#happy ep 7 and i hope you enjoy <3

[moonsart]

Eternal Dream - Murder Drones animation

Song made by @lumineary-arts

Youtube link

[aurivelles]

WONYOUNGISM ep 1 ｡⁠*ﾟ⁠+ | motivational acc

EPISODE 1 : Mental health

🪽 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — 🪽

— Hello and welcome to my wonyoungism episode 1, today I will be teaching you how to finally enter your wonyoungism era!

— The wonyoungism aesthetic that's been going viral around tiktok, tumblr and basically everywhere, is not just about glowing up physically but also mentally!

— "How do I improve my mindset?" "How do I become more confident?" Well you've come to the right place my love!

— Coming from someone who just got into their wonyoungism era!

1. Be kind to everyone! If you wanna start with confidence and mental health, I recommend being mindful of your surroundings and be considerate of others feelings. I recommend this a lot because people will start looking up to you and your kindness personality that's likely borrowed from an angel. ♡

2. Set boundaries! Yes, be nice to everyone but being nice to everyone doesn't mean you have to let other people treat you like nothing! If someone disrespects you, I recommend cutting them off because those people will never help you get anywhere but only bring you down to their level. ♡

3. Stay organized! Having an organized bedroom, backpack, closet and basically anywhere you roam around is such a nice feeling! Clean environment = Happy environment! Deep clean your room and throw out everything you don't need or don't use anymore and start fresh! ♡

4. Make a journal, write anything you want in it such as your planned occasions, routines, make it your daily diary and basically anything you want! ♡

5. Have an organized sleeping schedule and don't always stay up so late! It can be both physically and mentally tiring for you and stress is not for girls like you! You deserve some proper rest. ♡

6. Don't stress yourself, over academics, selfcare, confidence, or anything! Remember, we have to take baby steps before we get to the big ones. ♡

7. Listen to some calming music and try to detach yourself from social media to get a relief and a sign of relaxation and freedom from social media attachment!

8. Read books, draw, do anything productive that can help you become happy! Don't spend your day laying on your bed, I promise that won't get you nowhere. ♡

— That's all (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧ I hope you enjoyed reading this xoxo, follow and come back for more future tips!! ♡

[gizkasparadise]

2023 wrapped: cdrama edition!

taking a page from @dangermousie and doing an overview of all the cdramas i watched this year (i'll do one for kdramas later)! listed in order of least favorite to most favorite. favorite =/= objectively best/most well-made. just the ones i had the most fun watching.

15 have a crush on you. oh dear lord. this drama should be a case study for what happens when a bad drama has charismatic actors and they keep you trapped hostage. i watched this whole damn thing hating every minute of it on behalf of the poor female lead who definitely deserved better. the ending? absolutely batshit, and not in a fun way. one of the weirdest, worst endings ive seen since with you

14 back from the brink. too kitschy for me, i didn't last long on this one (i think 2 eps lol).

13 gone with the rain. i wanted to like this one because i love sean sun and troll general is exactly what i want out of life. but i didn't like the weird daydream asides, constant animal noise sound effects, and i found everyone kind of off-putting in a non-watchable way, so i peaced out really quick--ep 4ish

12 here we meet again. i love janice wu. i continue to try out her dramas hoping for something to grab me again. this one was pretty boring/too focused on the work element and not the rest of it.

11 exclusive fairytale. i have a secret weakness for youth-to-working-life dramas, so tried this one out. flat, not a lot of chemistry, and very color-by-numbers. the show was clearly made to vehicle jun, and that's okay, but not my thing

10 the starry love. i wanted to like this one because the side characters were fun and i loved the male lead/prince of heaven and all his awkward "please leave by 9" energy. but it bored me overall and unlike most folks i had no interest in the demon secondary ship. i dropped around ep 10

9 my journey to you. it kills me to rank this one so low because it was my most anticipated cdrama this year, but i just couldn't get into it. the pacing was too slow for me, and i couldn't stand how everyone talked to each other (long. pauses. and then. staring. and then. whispers. always the. whispers). i dropped this around midway

8 the love you give me. the chemistry between the leads was cute and it was a decent modern romance. started losing me around the midpoint when the paternity reveal hit and the ML got way into boundary crossing because of it

7 circle of love. objectively not a good drama. in fact, a toxic and batshit drama that has probably made me a worse person for watching it. but gd did my messy ass enjoy the trainwreck.

6 road home. you really got to be in the mood for this one, but it's a nice, understated and slow melo romance. but def not a bingeable show since it takes its time with everything

5 wonderland of love. another drama that i dont think is objectively great, but two competent schemers/martial artists trying to one-up each other is like ship catnip for me and this was a show that lived or died by its ship. surprisingly tame for the screenwriter, and had a happy ending! popcorn watch.

4 till the end of the moon. me and this drama were in a bad romance, which i suppose is thematically appropriate. i hated parts of it, i was super invested in others. the post-dream human arc was giving wuthering heights tragic obsession incredibleness. even with its flaws, i think most of cdramaland is in agreement that lyx/tantai jin stole the ML competition this year. great gowns, beautiful gowns

3 story of kunning palace. i adored the characters in this drama! even when the plot was losing my interest, everyone was cast so well and had so much charisma that i stayed pretty hooked from ep 10ish on. absolutely loved the mean high school theatre director wreck that was xie wei, as well as the other (imo) true love interest of the show, princess leyang. the desperate speech about being like iron is gonna live rent-free in my head

& then 1&2 are way ahead of the others for me this year/a very close race between them!

2 a journey to love. i love this drama so much!!! i have not skipped or speed watched a single scene which for me is a huge feat! great character work across the board -- even the side characters have a lot of nuance and interesting dynamics between them. beautiful fight scenes. great ost. one of the best, most balanced main couples ive seen in a show. it's gonna break my heart in a few eps when it ends, but i'll be happy about it

1 lost you forever (s1). this drama came out of NOWHERE and the vicegrip it had on me while it was airing!!! my favorite FL this year (although a journey to love's ruyi is a close second), and just a ton of fun while also being quietly devastating in parts. i loved how lived in and tired the FL felt, enjoyed the various flavors of mess from her love interests, and enjoyed how extra it could go while still giving us really grounded and complicated characters. this drama gets extra points for converting me on several actors i did not think that highly of before the show.

overall, despite how many i dropped (lol writing it out made me realize i dropped so, so many), cdramas delivered for me this year! my top two are on my short list for favorite dramas, period. everyone go watch a journey to love and lost you forever if you havent yet!!!

AWARDS

Favorite ship: definitely goes to ruyi and yuanzhou from a journey to love. it's just nice to see a couple that mutually supports each other's murders

Favorite FL: xiaoyao from lost you forever with ruyi from journey to love as a very close runner-up. i am here for this year's theme of competent, jaded ladies trying to reclaim their lives

Favorite ML: objectively, tantai jin from till the end of the moon should win this, but story of kunning palace's xie wei was just so entertainingly grumpy, petty, and unhinged which is a winning combo for me.

Favorite 2FL: princess yang ying from a journey to love. she's doing amazing and im proud of her!!

Favorite 2ML: technically third male lead, but xiang liu from lost you forever was my favorite to watch and had the best tuxedo mask exits

Best Cast: a journey to love, i literally adore all of them, even the ones i hate

Best Blood Cough: tantai jin, you beautiful bastard who needs a bib

[nerdylittleguy]

Transformers Earthspark theory - how Knockout could actually be Mr Smelt

....or ideas about it, anyway. Enjoy my observations!

So uhh here's where the neurodivergent urge to consume media and hyperfixate on it has lead me! Please, feast your eyes on my flow chart/ mind map of madness™.

I know the text is really small, if you click and zoom it could be easier to read. I did try to split the original image into quarters, hope that makes it a little easier to read. However, if anyone needs a transcript I'll do my best to sort it out, my only concern is that I have no clue how to link ideas if they're just bullet points (the idea of having a way to link ideas is what lead me to make this in this format :) )

Perhaps a bit of an explanation as to what lead to this?

A few weeks ago, I saw the Earthspark season 1 part 2 trailer and hey... Who's that?? Breakdown?? Of course, I immediately wanted to watch what existed of the series so far, and imagine my pleasant surprise when I heard Knock Out's (tfp) VA voiced a side character!

Anyway, I started watching the series, finished it in 3 days, cried tears of happiness over Nightshade's pronouns (for those of you who say representation doesn't matter, it does. You probably just feel represented), fell in love with Megatron, etc etc. But imagine my absolute, brain-rotting madness when I couldn't find episode 7 on youtube!

Meh, like that would stop my theory brain. Using various episode summaries I found on youtube (first and foremost this one, as it was short and had good attention to detail! But if anyone has any recommendations for other good summaries feel free to let me know), I started to slowly make a mindmap. That evening I found @transformers-earthspark's blog and the where-to-watch resources... Firefly I cannot thank you enough!!! You're literally amazing!! You have no idea how happy I was to find ep 7!! You do so much, give yourself a pat on the back and a nice snack :))

Anyways, armed with my new access to ALL the earthspark episodes (1 - 10, anyway, as only they are available atm), I remade some of my mindmap, added to it, made more points. Over the last few weeks (aka less than two) I polished my mindmap, did some colour-coding, added images, links, details etc until it could apparently fit on an A3 sheet?? What??? So many ideas from silly old me??

Obviously, I don't think I'm completely right. As a matter of fact, I think I made many assumptions and links that were a very big stretch (blame this overactive imagination of mine. I keep thinking of potential plot lines and then forgetting that actually, I made them up and they're not canon). However, I hope I made a few points that will inspire someone to make their own theories, or just have fun thinking!

Apologies if this all sounds garbled or if it's difficult to understand, I am tired and I have two languages running around in my head (that I'm fluent in, I've also tried to learn 5 others. Lingual hell!!!)

Have a good day/ night and enjoy the theories!

Also a quick note and thing to add: I wrote this on Monday the 27th (I draft just about everything in my notes ok), before I woke up on Tuesday and saw the new images from the episodes, including the one with Breakdown!! AHHH!! /pos So I guess I was right about something? And I mean... Breakdown and a theme of racing in one episode? If this is a coincidence and Knockout is not chilling somewhere in the background then I don't know what to say.

[domtheforestgnome]

Some moments in season 3 of Young Royals that stand out for me ep.2

Here's link when I share moments from season 1

I have some free time now, and there is ALWAYS a good time for rewatch of Young Royals, so here we go episode 2. I'm sharing outstanding moments from season 3, that made me gasped, yelped or laughed. This show is so dear to me. Hope you'll enjoy :) Have a nice Sunday :3

The beggining!

At first I cringed a little bc I thought Wille's talking to the picture, but then we hear Simon's voice and my heart melted. Also, this whole scene made me balance on the edge of cringe bc I was with my friends while watching, but... well... Wilmon is just too lovely and soft for that, so yeah more melting body and heart from this scene.

2. I will repeat - The Music

Always the music <3 It just flushes into my soul and meander there with whole show emotion package. Ugh! I love it.

3. The casual pretty packed racism Felice is facing from the headmistress of the school...

It was the same kind of discrimination words as Kristina said to Wille in season 2 about him being the first one who decided to start unconventional relationship. It is said smooth and soft and It's even more disguising bc of that.

So I just screamed when I saw Felice's reaction. Go girl! They won't fvck with you! It was also very thoughful way of relieving the emotions by creators. I like that.

4. Them

So soft and casual <3

5. New choir member

I'm still kicking my feet while watching this.

And then...

Wille is so gone for Simon. My teeth are gonna decay because of the amount of the sugar this season. And it hits even more bc of how much they suffered in previous seasons.

6. The moment I realised

that when August and Nils were 1rst years in Hillerska, Erik was a third year student. I gasped.

7. The fight

Up until this moment the series is just walking around talking about how jokes are used as excuses of violence, yet here we go again. I burst out laughting.

And then the knowing Erik thing.

It's just so satisfying how August repeats the sentence without any shame. It felt good. In time, extremely quick answer. Ohh, I LOVE THIS SERIES.

8. Simon being done with looking after Sara

and being honest about it with his mom. I think this season Linda hears lots of uncomfortable words from Simon, but he needs to let it out and she need to hear it so it felt good also how is he saying that. We can hear how tired and pissed he is. I'm proud.

9. More speaking up about what we could witness in previous seasons

I just screamed "THANK YOU!"

10. Small moment for nonbinary people.

I felt seen. <3

I know that the show is not about that, but just this small moment of acknowledgement for us - pure bliss <3

11. Feliece the biggest support for the gays

Idk I was just happy with this, probably bc of all the stories in fanfiction hahaha. My favourite combination :3

12. And the Rosh and Ayub!

Like - them all in one place finally! My heart, the joy, I can't, I loved it.

13. And the Roshella - Noone expeted it, yet everyone needed. My computer can't handle it so no screeshot from this scene. But I love the way the showed it, the close ups, and the Fredrikas face. Chefs kiss :D

And then I was getting more and more angry. So, I'm ending this post here.

Haha, also I need to go to work, so that's it.

Take care!

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - I’m largely pleased with BL & pissed with Kpop

April 2023 Wk 3

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Step By Step (Thai Tues WeTV & Gaga) ep 1 of 10 (MDL says 12, but I think it’s just 10) - Abused intern trope is a go! I wasn’t sure I would like the lead, but he’s totally adorable. Although (I gotta say it) who tf eats a croissant with a knife & fork? Also.. the main couple has good chemistry! Hallyfuckingluya! In fact, the quality of the acting and sound etc is generally superior to a normal pulp. It’s good! This is a good show? How exciting! 

Our Skyy 2 (PondPhuwin) eps 1-2 - Honestly, I was nervous to watch this but I liked it a lot! Doomed soulmates + paranormal time travel to fix the past. I’m happy for the outfits and the dancing (if not the singing). It’s not a bad premise and it’s nice to see GMMTV lean into its high production values for a change. I could’ve watched this as an actually full length BL. Gotta say, Puhwin’s English is so good and v west coast USA accent (international school kiddo got skillz). Meanwhile, loved seeing MarcPuwin again. My Gear & Your Gown disappointing us wasn't their fault. *Hilarious that Marc is side couple in 3 BLs airing simultaneously, that’s a record! (Waves at Marc X1.) I’ll be rating each of these installments separately, as I did the first time around. This one gets an 8/10 from me.

Bed Friend (Sat YT, GaGa & iQIYI uncut) ep 10fin - A very Check Out the series ending. Disastrous sun glasses. King being shy was adorable. Nevertheless I do think the final 2 eps felt a little tagged on and superfluous excess. Ultimately? This just wasn’t as good as the first 5 episodes set us up to hope for. Series review below.  

Pastsenger (Thai Weds Gaga) ep 7 of 12 eps - Cute confession and boyfriends phase. The bit with brothers’ boyfriends serving each other food was kinda charming. Could do without blushing maiden trope. But hey ho. (Waves at Marc X2.) 

A Boss and a Babe (Fri YouTube) ep 8 of 12 - Cute phi/nong convo and teasing, but this is largely boring. I do like that the conflict is all about business loyalty, cubical friendships, and coworker gossip. This is as it should be in an office romance. But I wish the characters were consistent.  

Tin Tam Jai (Tues Gaga & iQIYI) ep 9 of 12 - The boyfriends phase. I just know with this show that the moment it ends I’m going to entirely forget about it. It’s boring.  

Chains of Heart (Sat iQIYI) ep 10fin - What a waste. Seriously don’t bother. It seems to end unhappily, but maybe not, but also who tf cares? 3/10 Series review below, for my sins. (Waves at Marc X3.) 

Future (Thai Sun YouTube & Gaga) ep 5fin - It was Songkran so no new ep until tomorrow. May your New Year be blessed. 

The Promise (Thai Weds YT & WeTV) ep 7 of 10 - the put YT on a week delay off WeTV, so I will watch it next week. I have WeTV but I prefer YT. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Unintentional Love Story (Korea Thurs iQIYI) 9-10 fin - Awe a crying kiss. My fav! This one was fine. Not a v good kiss but KBL has to bow to form on occasion. The sides didn’t get much of a resolution. (Although we know why.) It was a solid ending. Series review below. 

Our Dining Table AKA Bokura no Shokutaku (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 3 of 10 - this ep was a little slow for me, oh I know, that’s what this show is doing, but yeah. Still it’s soft and sweet and wonderful. Why are you not watching it? Go. Now. 

The Eighth Sense (Korea Weds Viki) eps 7-8 of 10 - Honestly? I checked out a bit this installment. Possibly because JaeWon checked out as well. I mean, I understand what the narrative is doing, portraying JW coping (badly) with loss and the complex knot of guilt, love, fear, lust, and shame. But I don’t really feel drawn into a romance when the main characters are separated for most of an hour. I do like JiHyun’s personality shift and aggressive stance on renewing the relationship. That’s fun to watch. And I do love his besties. Of course ep 8 ends with major heartbreak and pain. I expected nothing less from this show. Gotta admit I’m a little mad tho, I wanted it to EXCEED my expectations. 

My Story (Pinoy Sat YouTube) ep 2 of 10 - I don’t like one of the couples (not side dishes, this is a 50/50 split) but I weirdly like Sky’s new arc, even if he’s with someone new. 

Naked Dinner AKA Zenra Meshi (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 2 of 12 - it’s just so odd. I can’t believe THIS is the JBl we get 12 eps of. This one?  Japan, must you? (How many times a year do I type that phrase?)

Finished this Week

Unintentional Love Story - A boy who just lost his job due to faked corruption charges accidentally discovers his ex-boss’s favorite artist, now a recluse. His ex-manager offers him his job back if he can convince the artist to rejoin society. Instead, they fall in love. Gongchan (maknae of B1A4) carried this show (which I don’t expect from the idol element). He was luminous with extraordinarily expressive eyes. That said, he had weak chemistry with his co-lead. But everything else was quietly queerly KBL pristine and beautifully executed, even the conflict. I’m not sure on rewatchability for me, and it didn’t whip me into a verbal frenzy the way some KBLs do but it’s still getting a solid 9/10 

Bed Friend - Office frienamies transition a flaming hot one night stand into a f-buddy relationship, that is essentially built on a puppy/cat dynamic (and kinks into it at one point). Our puppy is loyal, smitten, and protective with endlessly worshipful eyes, while our cat is snarky, prickly, and deeply damaged (ALL THE TRIGGERS). NetJames give lovely high-heat with excellent chemistry and tuned-in performances of surprising depth, unfortunately the story ultimately failed them. Had the show had the strength of its convictions and kept to a tighter, darker, harsher 8 eps it would have been the first high heat to earn 10/10 from me, but once they fussed with it, it dropped to a solid 8/10. Could have been great but they overworked it. Still if high heat is your thing, this one will not let you down. Full review here.

Chains of Heart - This was a terrible show, unbelievably confusing, badly subbed, with characters behaving illogically, nonsensically, and heartlessly. What’s worse? The leads had fantastic chemsitry, were willing to do high heat (and do it well) and were pretty! So they squandered a decent cast and some actual production money on a shoddy scrip and terrible directing - what a waste. Seriously, don’t bother. It maybe ends unhappily, maybe not, but you should neither care nor bother to find out. 3/10 

It’s Airing But ...

Love Syndrome (Thai Sat WeTV) stopped at ep 2 of 12 - I’m just not into any aspect of it (except Lee Long Shi and I can watch him in Tin Tem Jai) - saving to binge if the end is solid.

Venus in the Sky (Sat YouTube) pilot/tester?) 0 of 10 - not entirely sure what’s up with this one distribution-wise, but the pilot was classic university-set pulp. I hope it happens because the leads are cute with good chemsitry and I thought it was fun. However, this pilot holds together as its own little short too.

Make a Wish (Thai Weds ?) stars Fluke Natouch (OhmFluke UWMA etc...) & Judo (The Miracle Of Teddy Bear) in a medical-fantasy. About a doctor who sees ghosts and a deity who resides in a Bodhi tree that earns merits whenever he fulfills a wish, based on a y-novel by Sammon (Manner of Death, Triage). Same as above.

Stormy Honeymoon (Vietnam) - 3rd in this series and the ULTIMATE in domesticity. New side couple is cute too. But I’m kinda over the leads at this point. (see comments)

In Case You Missed It

BL Express has a post on upcoming GL. I don’t track this, but they do. 

I decided to hold off and binge Cafe in Love and Destiny Seeker. So I’ll be watching and reporting back after I’ve collected all the eps. I realized that I miss binging BL. That said I have been siting on To Sir, With Love forever. Not sure why I am so reluctant to dive into that one. 

[ Not into Kpop? Skip to “next week.”] 

Peak Time pretty much ended exactly as expected, which was also exactly how it started. Our BL boy Karem got booted for the grave sin of being a, ya know, 2nd gen idol dude bro. But it was the superior survival show. BLK made me cry, so did MASC for that matter. We have discussed this before, I am a sap. I look forward to seeing where Vanner go next. 

Boy’s Planet was ultimately disappointing. I watched some predictions about who Mnet actually wanted to win, and they were mostly correct. With the delightful upset of China scooping the #1 spot. (Delightful bc I am a chaos money who lives for politics fucking with soft power and watching China give the jaundice eye to S Korea for half a decade bc they Hallyued their way into winning the culture war using Kpop, and NOW China is doing what we all knew they would which is... infiltrate. Ultimately? Boy’s Planet was nothing more than an exercise in manipulative editing, they just accidentally manipulated the global vote into Zhang Hao winning. Not to slag off that baby boy’s serious cuteness - I genuinely thought he was great, actually. Frankly, I emerged cackling and mostly just v. disappointed in Pentagon fans. I think they deserve to lose their group for how little they supported Hui. Let’s be truthful? They are likely losing their group or Hui wouldn’t have been on the damn show in the first place. (Cube seems highly disinterested and their 7 year contracts are uppity up.) This is neither the first nor the most extreme version of me being disappointed by Kpop fans. There’s a reason I don’t participate in that fandom. 

In more relevant news to THIS fandom, JiWoong made it into ZB1, which means we will NOT see him or the Kissable Lips pair back on our screens anytime soon (if ever). 

RIP the pretty.... 

Whatever, it is still the golden age of Korean BL. Our Dating Sim happened. We will all be fine. 

Next Week Looks Like This:

Happy Merry Ending starts Weds April 26 on Gaga (with ep 2 the next day) 8 eps total. It looks cute: opposites attract, musicians, giving me Wish You vibes. It’s from the Our Dating Sim’s Kidari Studio. Adapted from the manhwa of the same title (해피메리엔딩) by dorae (도래). Stars Lee Dong Won (main rapper of KNK - yes that’s Semantic Error’s Park Seo Ham’s group) opposite actor Byun Sung Tae. Also stars Kim Kyu Jong (of SS501) and actor Shin Myung Sung (The Heavenly Idol).

The Eighth Sense ends, thank fuck. I don’t think I could take much more of the tension with that one. 

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED)

This week’s fashion hall of shame:

those glasses, both useless and ugly 

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Leaning into their brand. 

Leaning outside of it but looking sexy AF. Thank you GMMTV! 

What do I always say? I love it when a drama reviews itself. 

All Our Skyy 2: Never Let Me Go (PondPhuwin) 

(last week)

Current Kpop earworm? Winner’s Remember. I got nothing to say about it except it’s great and everyone always seems to forget about Winner but they just keep singing, and that’s kinda the sentiment of this song.

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

ari, could you potentially give me advice as to what i should watch next? i finished 'jujutsu kaisen' a couple of months ago, but i can't find myself anything to watch...

i tried getting into delicious in dungeon but i didn't really enjoy it all that much and found it to be a little boring... (i watched three episodes.)

i started watching frieren and while it's entertaining and there are aspects that i enjoy, it doesn't grip me as much as 'jujutsu kaisen' did.

on the other hand, i don't want to watch anything that it too dark and distressing, you know?

i was just wondering if you have found something fun since you have finished 'jujutsu kaisen'.

SLAMS FIST ON TABLE.

you have come to the right place :3333

ANON I’M SO HAPPY SOBS!!!!!!! i’ve been wanting to rant about the anime i like/the ones i’ve been watching recently for a while now………….

not liking dungeon meshi is totally fine, i will say that it only gets better the further you get!! :3 if you have the time i’d at least watch the first cour and see what you think!! it does . a bit of a genre swap….. 👀👀 frieren is one i put on hold too, so i can’t say much about that… i’ll probably watch it at some point though. anyway.

OKAY SOOOO . i do have some general recs for you first, before i get to anime that are currently airing/just finished airing!! if you’re looking for something similar to jjk then the obvious answer is chainsaw man, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea but it’s my favorite manga next to jjk so. yk!! personally i think it’s better than jjk writing wise but s1 doesn’t get to the Really good parts…..

buuuut i know you didn’t want anything too dark and gritty, which csm most definitely is, so 😭 i’m gonna tell you abt my favorite favorite little anime. kind of. which is fate/stay night: unlimited bladeworks <333 EXTREMELY important that you watch the ufotable version. the fate series is my favorite ever and the anime means so much to me…. lots of good writing and characters and more than anything it’s very hopeful. in a really heartfelt way!!! the heaven’s feel movies are super good but also adapted from the darkest route of the fate visual novel lmao, so maybe… stay away from those. they’re insanely good though!!

another fate work that recently got adapted is fate/strange fake!! :3 only one episode is out rn as a kind of teaser for the series to come, but PLEASE do check it out because it’s… so good. i have a feeling you’ll love it, anon!! fate and jjk are similar in a lot of important ways i think….

i also want to give you some recs if you’re just looking for fluffy slice of life/romcom stuff!!!! romantic killer, gekkan shoujo nozaki-kun, and a sign of affection are all super feel-good and comfy <3333 just really funny and cute…

WITH THAT BEING SAID . i’m gonna recommend some anime that i’m currently watching/just recently finished!!!! i have two in mind :33

first: oshi no ko!!! i’m mentioning this one first since it is… a pretty dark show. not in the same way jjk is, but i’d call it a kind of psychological horror/it deals with some really sensitive topics!! the whole point of the show is to dissect the entertainment industry, including/especially the darker parts, which i think says enough. it’s so much fun to watch and i feel like i learn a lot from it too :3 from what i’ve heard the portrayal is very accurate!! it’s also just… a gorgeous show with such an interesting premise and fun cast?? the first episode is movie length and made me sob like a baby, so i’d watch that one and see how you feel afterwards!! season 2 is currently airing :333

then!!! we have my arguably biggest rec for you anon: wind breaker!! it just recently finished at 13 episodes, and it’s a very action heavy shounen :3 super cool fight scenes, GREAT characters, and really lovely writing but in a way that’s easy to digest. this is the perfect anime for binging i think, and also really pulled me in (though eps 7-9 are my absolute favorites!!) <333 if you’re looking for something to feed your shounen brain with characters you can latch onto for comfort, wind breaker is your guy. i am in Love with togame jo.

………. also. anon. you asked for anime specifically but i want nothing but the best for you so 😔 i’m also gonna go ahead and recommend this…… interactive murder mystery music series? on youtube. it’s… basically anime!! just mostly mvs and audio dramas….. i’ll link the playlist so you can watch it in order, the first video will hopefully explain everything you need to know :33 milgram means . the universe to me and the characters/song are soso lovely. please tell me if you watch this one i would literally kill to have someone to talk about it with…..

ANYWAYYYY this got very long but i hope that’s okay!!!! more than anything i hope this helps you find your way to a new obsession 🫂🫂 all these anime are super good and precious to me, i’m sure you’ll love them all a lot!!!! hopefully!!!!!!!

[jenyifer]

The Trainee Ep 2 initial reaction

Slight disclaimer I did watch the episode 1/4 3/4 because YouTube is a cruel mistress and I’m dumb lmao. But I assume if anyone has seen my watching series you’d know I don’t really offer much of intellect anyways sooooo

Let’s get on to the photo review

Quick note here Ryan is a lot more relatable believable character to me in comparison to Chef Prem? I think it’s good writing and set in these scenes with Ryan at his dad’s shop really do a lot to establish who he is as a person. We can see his family circle is hard working and maybe isn’t the best with their feelings. We still see Ryan’s family does take care of each other in important ways and understands to some extent. Also very relatable to be a recent grad with no direction or going to university without passion because you know your family needs you. Idk I like Ryan. He’s not quirky for quirky sake. He’s believably broken in predictable ways.

Ugh couples are the worst. Also performative gestures like this are so stupid now you might say it’s comedy. However I’ve enjoyed a couple office romance interns edition and it’s ways sickening. Just like highschool sweethearts that kind of sweet where they are blind or trying to make others jealous because of their own inadequacies with themselves

I’ll say this it is good for new members of staff to learn to speak their mind quickly because if they don’t contribute you are missing out on new ideas and eyes. Also Jane/Off is so handsome my brain would definitely malfunction. A person in control who knows what he wants 🥵 sexy. Also Off’s irration just scratches a good itch in my brain makes me think of Sean 😩😩

A very important bonding activity converting the non nerds to the joys of Harry Potter and other pop culture. A dance as old as time. My older coworkers try to get everyone to watch their pop culture references too. It’s really an unspoken office life normality. I really wasn’t expecting so many references though. But I still love Harry Potter because idk I see the good parts of the story and adore it. Yes yes I can now see the racism and the transphobia (the dream of Malfoy’s cronies turning into girls) also preachiness about sexism when needed. But I also see the fandom that raised me. The various queer friends I met because of my love of the boy who lived. Something I won’t have had in Mississippi. The books that always comforted me since I was 6 years old quoting the first book. the theme parks that still take my breath away when I go to visit Universal Orlando on the weekends. The queer and loving people who work there and are all too happy to make a child’s dream come true or adult look in wonder at something they have missed. (Sorry for the tangent)

Oh no it’s Gun’s arguably greatest talent crying in character. I felt like I could feel the fear and panic building in Ryan to this point which… if you aren’t crying in the first several days at your big kid job because you feel like an imposter who can’t do shit and will never be trusted? I can’t relate to you. Hell I got a new job a couple months ago. For a month I cried most days when I got home because I felt so awful about my capabilities even though I’ve worked 7 years in my field. It’s normal. Also Jane being shocked by this is hilarious you aren’t telling me he hasn’t broken someone down into tears before.

Oh no here it is folks Jane just enjoying Ryan’s energy and believing in him for no reason. Gun’s tears are very potent and can melt any wall I’m surprised Jane isn’t pulling him in for hugs.

Jane trying his best to keep Ryan without directly forcing him to stay was masterful as a boss. As a Simp it could use work but it’s a start put the ball in Ryan’s court with hope. Jane wants Ryan to grow and experience life which is good as a boss.

Awwwwwwwwww happy gunnie/ryan he’s so tired and anxious now he’s found solace in Jane’s words nothing can bring him down. He’s precious someone put him in my pocket.

[vestaclinicpod]

Audio Drama Sunday - 9th July ✨

For a good long while now, I've been sharing my weekly thoughts on the fantastic audio drama I've listened to each week on Twitter... I think it's time to start sharing them here too!

I’d love to start by shouting out @tellnotalespod’s S2 crowdfunding campaign. I need to know what happens to these characters like I need air to breathe and I have a specially vested interest as I’m going to be playing a really sweet ghostie this season. PLEASE let’s make this happen!!  

🌲Happy birthday to Mx Wellman, the @hellofromthehallowoods creator! I listened to this week’s episode while cycling to and from work and happened to be wearing leggings with lightning bolts on them…. You can imagine how FAST I got home during Olivier’s affirmations! 

📻 (104) The first @monstrousagonies letter made me so sad for the writer but really raises such a good point about how to cope with people doubting the authenticity of your identity. I especially feel that this is important when people enter more diverse (often online) spaces and meet people who have identities that you may not have met otherwise. If a new identity resonates with you, you can explore that! “And if you do decide that transformation is right for you, well. Welcome home.”

🌒 (S4E17) OUGH I don’t want to spoil anything because today’s Moonbase Theta Out (@monkeymanproductions) episode isn’t out at the time of writing but oh my GOD. BRACE yourselves. You’re going to cry, you’re going to laugh, you’re going to wish you could act HALF as well as Tau Zaman and Cat Blackard!! I am SO excited for the season finale - I’m sure it’s going to be … explosive. 

🧛‍♂️ @re-dracula Renfield time! I was so confused about this part of the story when I first read it, but the team are doing an amazing job of bringing it to life! 

🧬 Ep 3 of Regina Prime was great! Poor Prime, she’s wandering into something far greater than she could have ever anticipated and I love the contrast between her cheerful exploration and the jaded additions from Omega. I’m enjoying this so much!! 

 💫 This week I listened to episodes 7-9 of Wolf 359. I love Doug and Hera’s relationship. I’m not sure if the genre of the show is going to shift over time, but I’m really enjoying how it’s falling in the same weird place as WTNV where the events are strange and a little uncomfortable, but you’re always waiting for the punchline. 

Hope everyone has a lovely week! I’ve told myself that I’m going to wrap up writing S2 of The Vesta Clinic by the end of the month and it’s looking like that’s going to be possible!! Sending only the finest creative vibes to everyone else who’s working on something they want to be proud of! 

[mayasdeluca]

I know you had to of already answered but can you point me to a post where you’ve said your fave Marina episodes are?

So I had thought I answered this kind of recently but I literally went through 40 pages of my asks tag and it still wasn't there so I'll just answer it again lol

Season 3: 3x05 for obvious reasons, their first meeting has everything and we get Maya back story as well! 3x07 for the lasagna scene because it's perfection...everything about it just makes you fall in love with them and the chemistry is just 😍🔥 3x11 for all the fun vacation scenes and then the panic attack scene at the end...this is when I personally really started falling for them and got obsessed because we got to see them just be together for a whole storyline in an episode and it was everything. Special shoutout to the makeout scene in Maya's office in 3x14 because 🥵 we deserved more of those while Maya was captain!

Season 4: 4x06-4x07 hands down. These are at the top for me. Seeing Maya being so protective and worried about Carina once she finds out what she's doing with Andrew. Leaving her job and first inspection as captain because she was more worried about her girlfriend's well being...seeing her support Carina through her grief and stand by her side and help her in any way possible. It was all so truly beautiful and well done. Honorable mention to 4x08 because the jealousy scenes with Gabriella were fun and the scene at the end of them discussing it was so important for their relationship and well done. 4x14 is also at the top for obvious reasons. We went through a rollercoaster of emotions through it all but we learned so much about Marina and they learned a lot about each other and then the proposal at the end was beautiful. 4x16 the kitchen scene in this episode is one of my all time favorite scenes for them. Just seeing how happy and excited they were to get married and how at peace and safe they are in each other's arms. It's everything. Of course I wish their wedding was more focused on them but still overall a good episode.

Season 5: Honestly the only episode in full I truly enjoyed in Season 5 was 5x07. I thought it was very well done overall (really hoping Leah is getting an episode in Season 7 because her solo eps are so good) and of course all the Marina scenes were perfect. The 'I want to hold a little you scene' is an all time favorite. Some honorable mentions for scenes regarding Marina is the wedding scene in 5x01, the conversation at the end of 5x03, the beginning scene in 5x05, and the last scene in 5x17 (another all time fave).

Season 6: 6x10 was so good and everything was on point from Maya bringing Carina lasagna (while on shift) to then immediately going over to her hotel once finding out she was sick (again on shift) and then taking care of her while respecting her boundaries and both of them expressing their feelings and of course the forehead kiss 🥰 6x13 solely for "Every time I'm near you I just want to let gravity pull me back to you" and "Carina DeLuca will you go on a date with me?" 6x14 because the beginning of them pretending it was a first date, jealous Maya towards Pam, 'you are my conscience,' and of course their first kiss in forever and 'can i take you out again?' 'Maybe. Call me.' Carina being a menace. 🥵 6x15 is an all time favorite for obvious reasons and the last scene is an all time favorite. The bar scenes were great and the shower scene was too but that conversation afterwards was so needed and the hug and Carina burying her face in Maya's chest 😭 it was everything! Also them cuddling in bed like they were...we need that for longer in Season 7 🤞🏻

[the-ghost-of-a-spirit]

Mha s5 ep 1-12

@maidofdarkness23

Ep 1

NEZU, WHY IS YOU THE "EMERGENCY DRILL" also the "hypothetical villans" is so funny. why is the announcment like that

miriyo the river is so silly

can't stop twinkiling, more like cant stop twinking (i misread it on the screen)

miriyo is a victum, nejire is a villan, whats tamaki up to? hes a vilan too

"i'm going home" tamaki, YOU JUST GOT THERE

also, how come he doesn't have shoes?

"What do you want amajiki- i mean villan" "to go home"

bakugo does not have a hero name. imagine it ends up to be kachan, like with deku

"i was scared of your face" i mean, angry, explosion-y bakugo would scare anyone

"i should have gone home" he has wanted to go home, like, 4 times now

Ep 2

so, rabbit girl is here. and dabi. and endevour and hawks

also hawks is aspec, to me

wait, is hawks the traitor? (still love him)

so hawks is double crossinf lov.

endevour and shoto are scae buddies!

"you care so much you'll be my bodyguard!" "i'll incinerate you" love hawks and endevours dynamic

hawks was an endevour fan as a kid

betting theres ship work on them (there are almost 3000 fics)

i am the same height as hawks (and bakugo) and that makes me happy

aizawa and the cat outside todoroki's house

shoto likes soba (alot i'm guessing)

natsu is shoto's brother so (checks)

ep 3

deku is having a Dream

"metas" i think the "meta libaration front" is gonna become really important

quirks=meta??

"why so loud. did u have enough cheese"

am not enjoying the ofa lore

oh hey! its shinsou (he's important i think)

class a vs class b fight?

i will not remember any of theese people. (class 1B)

also steel guy is called tetsu tetsu

aizawa is tall (183cm)

i have so many questions

froppy has chamofladge

shinsou seems cool

ep 4-6

i am not taller than shinsou but am taller than Kaminari

are all aAvsB fights that long? I hope not. hopefully it's like the exams

tokoyami's arms look weird

"is that a joke" "nope I'm 20% serious" -ltokoyami and hawks. episode 5

aouyama's scream though

i think all fights are going be 2 episodes long

"hey... please don't die"

ep 7-8

ill be doing these per fight instead of episode now

"I finally FINALLY got shoto's contact info" bro doesn't even have his son's phone number. and he needed help to get it.

shoto's ignoring endevour lol

almost everyone is taller than me : (

ep 9

bakugo seems to be getting nicer

ep 10 -11

afo has a brother?

almights ringtone though

blackwhip (qurik and the guy) are pretty cool

aizawa looks so weird in this scene like

he looks different and idk why

also MD I see the resemblance between aizawa and shinsou now

midnight was given the mic cause vlad was too biased

aizawa just straight up choking shinsou like that (i like their dynamic)

"except almight but he doesn't count"

ep 12

Eri!

"do not try to murder your classmate"

kirashima and tetsu-tetsu are besties

whats happening with mineta?

endevour, dont choke your sidekick

aint no way almights over 2 meters tall. maybe when he was buff, but not now

woah, big wave. thats not good

POV: you fight vilans 0.5 hours after you get allowed to

"i need to melt the ice" "i'm not helping"

[thefringespod]

Happy #AudioDramaSunday wanderers! This was a GREAT week for podcasts and we're gonna start with the public release of @souloperatorpod episode 1. I'm so obsessed with this show already. Tot has done a phenomenal job and I'm ready for this show to break me <3

I finished season 3 of the @thenightpost and my gods the heartbreaking ride this took me on Val and Clem *finally* getting together in the face of the smallest bit of hope but the hope can't last and it makes me cry. Same with Milo and Ashley they were *so close* but it can't last

@tellnotalespod came back this week and episode 1 of the season was *wonderful* and also hurt me so bad. Leo is in their self destructive era and I'm worried for them after only one ep of the season please Leanne just let them be okay they need their friends back

@eelerschoice bloopers were absolutely delightful. Daisy McNamara has apologized for nothing nor should he. She has given us a gift with these bloopers

@woebegonepod continues to astound and also stress me out so much each week its just so fucking good. This week was especially unsettling with things going spooky at every turn gods yall just have to listen to wbg it's so important. Also the song this week? Absolutely gorgeous

New @somewhereohio was a mix of making me laugh and squeezing my heart til it popped. Sterling and Green make me feel so many emotions and all of them end up hurting me. Also im obsessed with Orange and yes I'm biased because it's Cody Heath but I'm RIGHT they're spectacular

The Grotto had their midseason finale this week and it hurt me SO BAD!!! Athan is doing incredible things with this show and it is going to break me. If yall aren't listening to The Grotto you GOTTA the first 4 eps are out now and you'll be blown away I swear

@thesiltverses came back swinging in the most spectacular way. I adore how this show utilizes religion and the different sides of it we see. I'm also incredibly worried about both Val and Paige. Val fascinates and will do terrible things while terrible things will happen to Paige

The @kingmakerpod also came back this week and everyone's favorite wet cat Leonid is back and being just as pathetic as usual. I laughed, I gasped, I wondered if the show would just let Leonid die. The Kingmaker Histories is so wonderful and fun and everyone should listen

Once I finished The Night Post, I started my next long-term listen which is The Storage Papers! I'm 10 episodes in and absolutely adoring it Jeremy Enfinger is an excellent narrator and the story has been incredibly captivating I can't wait to dive further in

Here on the Fringes we released episode 18! This serves as our midseason finale and new episodes will resume on February 7 for the public and February 4 for patrons at patreon.com/PineTreePods

And over on @forgedbondspod I've written the first arc and a half! Im enjoying writing this show so much and can't wait for my brilliant cast to absolutely destroy me with there performances because I already know they're gonna destroy me <3

That's all for this week!! There will be a very special feed drop coming up this week and I've got some bloopers for the first half of the season in the works so look out for those coming soon!

[lamonnaie]

GMMTV 2024 Part 1 roundup :)

it's been a day, i've had some time to gather my thoughts, so i wanted to get them all down in one spot. (Only really gonna be talking about the shows I plan on watching, in order that they were announced!)

1. We Are the series

aka ALL my favourite couples in one show ahhh 😭😭 i was so happy when the trailer started, you mean i get winnysatang marcpawin pondphuwin AND aouboom all in one??? i wanna be a bit cautious seeing it's directed by p'new and i'm not a huge fan of his work, but i'm super excited for this regardless :] looks like a cute romcom à la futs, which i rlly loved <3 i WILL be hyping this up no matter how it turns out :D

2. Only Boo!

rookie leads !!! strong msp vibes with this one (which i'm not opposed to at all, and i'm pretty sure is what they're trying to emulate) it looks rlly cute?? i know keen is from proj alpha so at least i'm not worried about the singing/dancing for once 😅😅 and we get aun in the side cp!! and louis dance role!! honestly this could turn out rlly good and i'm gonna tune in to at least the first few eps :)

3. Peaceful Property

The second tay slapped new in the face with the sandwich and jan instantly had her camera out, i was 100% sold. but fr, i love horror comedy and ghost stuff, and we get it with taynew + mook and jan!! all the dynamics look like so much fun and i already know i'm gonna enjoy this a lot

4. My Golden Blood

OH MY GOD THIS SHOW i went for a dinner break during the performances, then came back and was planning on just quickly skimming through the livestream to catch up. well, the first 20 seconds of the trailer played, and once i realised what was happening (JOSSGAWIN BL HELLOOOO????) i had to pause and faceplant on my bed for a solid 5 minutes to process it. vampire series would have already had me hooked, but jossgawin??? looking super gritty?? mond evil vampire moment?? neo with a baseball bat (in his sand era🤨)?? gawin my fav in another lead role??? Also the bloody kiss !!!!! guys i'm dead i'm literally writing this from the grave (hoping to meet my own hot vampire guy) Basically i dont care if the cgi's a bit questionable or if the story's cliche, i WILL be eating this up, be ready for it to be my whole personality

5. Kidnap the series

OHM!!! my day one!!! 😭😭 so he was hanging out with leng a couple months ago and i was wondering ahaha what if...? AND NOW !!! WE ACTUALLY GOT OHMLENG !!! i'm rlly happy to see him back to bl, and i like how he stars opposite lots of different ppl (just like gawin). The concept actually seems rlly interesting + more mature, leng is gorgeous and seems like a good actor, and the tied hands sleeping scene totally had me sold on the pairing <33 also ohm squared siblings !!! i rlly like ohm tpk :) and PAPANG WITH A GUN WOOOHHH i said i needed more papang on my screens and my wishes have been answered 🙏🙏 i'm gonna be so annoying about this show as well once it airs ahjskdjfh

[5.5. special mention: Summer Night]

gmm knew Exactly what they were doing with those first 30 seconds 😭😭 i was rlly getting hyped up for a dunkphuwin show but ofc it was too good to be true <//3 not gonna be watching this, but i'm still holding out for a joylada poly show at some point... pls gmm 🙏🥺🥺

6. Wandee Goodday

Okay so I saw the GreatInn lore a couple months ago (guys pls read it here it's insane), and i didn't think too much of it because it did seem kinda random, BUT HERE WE ARE WOOOHHHH this show looks so good??? Great with braids <3 ployphach <3 podd homewrecker era <3 mature bl with adult characters <3 directed by golf tanwarin <3 and even more good things!! also i have no idea what the song in the trailer is but it goes so hard, rlly suits the show. i'm all for this pairing and the whole show looks like so much fun Also thorfluke!!! (thor out here collecting all the flukes - thorgawin for 2025??) loved the situp scene and i'm rlly vibing with this pair <3 another show that will be all i talk about once it airs

7. High School Frenemy

God what is that name 💀💀 definitely one where just a literal translation of the thai name would have probably been better names aside, sky and nani !!!! i rlly liked sky in some other shows, and i'm loving the tension between the two. lol i had ohmsky and ohmnani on my gmm24 bingo, i guess we just got it without the middle man 😂😂 also i see they're pulling a double savage with the bromance toeing the fine line of bl hajskdj honestly i don't mind that at all, i think sky and nani have good chemistry and it doesn't seem like there's a random female side wedged in for drama. also so many of my favs as side characters, i'm happy to see them <3 overall, i'll probably watch it if i'm not too busy when it's airing (or just bingewatch it after)

8. My Love Mix-Up!

Gem4th series announced last, who's surprised lmao. this looks very cute!! i know nothing about the source material, but gemini and fourth are great actors, and i trust p'au's directing. i was hoping for something a bit more mature for them (like heartliming was) because i think they're so good in those heavier scenes, but i rlly don't mind this either !! i've been on a kick for less high school bls lately though, but i had the same thought for msp and that ended up being one of my fav shows of all time, so i'm not gonna go into this with any preconceived notions :) gonna tune in for this, no doubt gem4th will serve like they always do

Overall, i was rlly pleased with the lineup this time around. Lots of shows i'm rlly excited for !! a bunch of my favs didn't show up even once which... yeah, but i'm holding out for part 2 🤞🤞 :)

[pluckysidekick]

OMG. We went 180 degrees from last week’s desert to this week’s paradise of riches in CW’s Nancy Drew land! We knew Larry Teng and the whole crew wouldn’t abandon us with the BTS content. After the seemingly epic filming of episode 6 when it was all quiet on the set last week, we’ve gotten hints from Kennedy and onset photos for Ep. 6, we’ve heard from exciting new ND writers, and saw some glimpses for Ep. 7 that’s filming right now. Let’s get into it!

I have to start with this incredible “team meeting” cast photo Kennedy posted in non-wardrobe from the Icarus Hall set. So happy to see them together, masks and all! Note Leah with her tablet, Maddison with her phone, Alex going old school with his yellow lined pad and pen, while Tunji and Kennedy are both like “I don’t need to write it down, I remember everything” 😂.

Larry shared twin pics from (presumably) the Ep. 6 set of the women and men of the Drew Crew, and they are perfection.

Nancy, Bess, and George having a heart to heart at the Claw is everything to me. I love these three together whether they are talking ghosts, relationships, career, family, or anything else. Also note the wardrobe, loving George’s yellow blazer and Docs especially. And of course, the Claw is closed, no customers as per usual!

Seeing Ace and Nick together in action is just…no words. Love their looks, love the intensity, just the best two characters together. Of course we’re wondering what’s going on - are they dumpster diving? We saw George and Bess in front of a burned out van back in Ep. 3 - is there a junkyard theme this season 😂?

Ace’s shirt looks a lot like the one he wears in 2x15 (Tom Swift episode), and it’s also a very similar (but slightly different) to two earlier looks, the cast photo from Ep. 2 and the early morning pickups photo from Ep. 3? 4? (some kind of blue/green button down and white T-shirt combo). Coincidence, or is there something else timey wimey going on with Ace? BTW if anyone from production is reading, we’d love to see a nice colorful old man shirt for Ace in one of the eps (also thank you for reading lol).

Speaking of Ace, Kennedy gave us another heart attack on Twitter this week when she gave an emoji hint for Ep. 6 that amounted to someone dying “a little.”

Since we know from Larry that Ep. 6 epic and special effects heavy, I wondered in an earlier post if the crew tries to break the curse in this one. Could things have gone wrong, with Ace being “mostly dead” (shout out to Carly for the perfect Princess Bride reference)? Did they trigger the curse instead, or deliberately try to flatline him like Nancy once thought about doing to George? Or can they somehow use the shroud to flatline Ace and George, revive them - and possibly switch bodies? The possibilities are endless.

Alex did show up for the Ep. 7 team meeting pictured above, so here’s hoping Ace recovers to be with his soulmate (and all that entails) for him and for us, e.g. we’re expecting great things that top that S3 finale dreamscape scene of Nancy and Ace!

So excited to see new writers working on ND this season! Lauren Andrea and Tiffany Irene both posted pics from the set and talked about how great the experience was. So important to see diverse representation in the writers’ room, and also love to hear about how awesome the whole cast and crew are on ND - it really shines through in every episode IMO. So happy for them, and can’t wait to see their words come to life in S4!

Onto a few early hints on Ep. 7. Maddison posted an IG story that Ep. 7 started this week (confirming Larry has a break while he preps Ep. 8, which we know he’s directing). Check out her cute white top from wardrobe hanging up in the closet. DP Nick Thomas posted some gorgeous, spooky photos to his stories from the Historical Society exterior. Are those Riley and Maddison’s stand-ins? Ace and George? Or some combo? Can’t wait to find out.

I may have broken Tumblr’s long post rules, but really hope you enjoyed the pics and speculation. I am almost done with Chapter 9 of The Space Between (S4 spec. fic), it will most likely go up next week. If you haven’t tried it already, I can promise lots of action, angst, and wackiness with the whole crew including meetings at the Claw, Ace and Nick bonding, Ace’s earring, and much more to help tide us over. See you soon, my guess is we get tons more content!

[absolutebl]

This Week In BL - Korea is coming after your office romance crown, Japan

March 2023 Wk 3

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Bed Friend (Sat YT, GaGa & iQIYI uncut) ep 6 of 10 - (sorry, yes I knew they extended it to 10, and I don’t think it’s a good sign) I thought the kink moment was kinda cute, and it illustrates the best thing about f-buddy relationships, license to play and explore. Also language play! (You know phi/nong is also for pets, right?) Poor Uea never gets to keep a grain of happiness very long - so now he’s pushing it away and self isolating. Sigh, I do hope there is happiness for a few eps at the end of all this trauma. 

Future (Thai Sun YouTube & Gaga) ep 1 of 5 - Based on a y-novel by Faddest (En of Love) about an engineering student and a dentist. Expect this one to stay soft, it’s from the 21 Day Theory people. I LOVE it. Bad sound and wooden acting but this is a classic old school Thai pulp. Older shy (but delightfully manipulative) sweetie dentist Ana with crush on younger sappy sunshine jock engineering student, Fuse. Very much a puppy/cat pairing. I admit, knowing all the various characters’ back stories means everything makes more sense. The friends’ conversations make me laugh a lot, but this is a very talkie show, with not awesome subs, so certainly not for everyone. I’ve already rewatched the first ep 3x. 

Pastsenger (Thai Weds Gaga) 3 of 12 eps - I enjoy that its the tsundere uke developing feelings first. Unusual approach. I also like that fake dating is being deployed to protect the girl from a stalker. It’s silly but I’m starting to like this show more. 

A Boss and a Babe (Fri YouTube) ep 4 of 12 - Honestly, the boss character isn’t really that tsundere. He’s basically a big old softy. Also baby boy very jelly. I would be too. Ex is v hot. But we keep being told things about these 2 characters but not shown said things on screen. Like the writers think they are telling one story but what we are watching is completely different. It’s... odd.

Tin Tam Jai (Tues Gaga & iQIYI) ep 4 of 12 - Aw, P’Park has an emotional support uke. OMG they brought the flirty faen fatal crumb back! YES. I love him. 

The Promise (Thai Weds YT) ep 4 of 10 - Good advice about secrets. It better come out and it better be a good reason... like witness protection. I am starting to get annoyed and feel manipulated the more they drag it out. But from the preview it seems like next week brings the PAIN. I have never been more ready. 

Chains of Heart (Sat iQIYI) ep 6 of 10 -  Will I ever understand this show? I hate that such good acting and chemistry is squandered on such an incomprehensible script. Is the “Korean doctor thread” a set up for Lue actually being Din (dead lover) with a new face? Because I suspected that at the beginning but if that’s the big twist in this narrative it’s a super clumsy twist. I hope they don’t. I’d rather it’s that Din turned himself into Ken - creepy, but less predictable. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Our Dating Sim (Korea Thurs Viki) eps 5-6 of 8 - Miracles of miracles: The kissing is even good in this one! Aw, baby wants to be courted. The redial phone call flirt had me flappy-handing and cackling. How are they THIS cute? It hurts my heart, two nerds in love. Also being linguistically outed at work is my new favorite trope ever. I rewatched these 2 eps an embarrassing number of times. (Warning, it looks like we got us a classic 1yr Kdrama separation coming down the line. PLEASE subvert this trope ODS. PLEASE.) 

All the Liquors (Korea Thurs Gaga & Viki) eps 7-8 fin - I guess I just don’t get over-dramatic angst about silly things. The premise of this show seems to be overreaction to some stuff, under-reaction (more typical KBL) to everything else. So not allergic but an alcoholic grandma who drank herself to death? Cute confession and kiss. They are so shy and sweet with each other. For a Korean drama this had a great ending which elevated it a lot over the many other KBLs of this type (Tasty, Sweet, Ocean, etc..) 

Final thoughts: A pretty classic foodie set KBL that managed to distinguish itself from others in this category by having a particularly satisfying final episode centered around found family. Sunshine sweetie soju rep gets involved with a shy introverted chef who doesn’t drink. Has a somewhat uneven plot, but If you are looking for a restaurant BL with Korea’s signature softness, then this is a great option. FYI I may identify with our baby party boy hedonist more than any other BL lead ever presented. 8/10 

I present actual footage of P’ABL whispering in your shell-like about what you should watch next... 

Unintentional Love Story (Korea Thurs iQIYI) 3-4 of 10 - (here’s how I am getting it) ALL THE TROPES these 2 eps. Cohabitation! Pretty house! Flirting. Ooo evil agent ex? White towel sponge bath doesn’t get deployed by Korea very often. Other thoughts: Why does the ceramicist’s car look like a hearse? How is Gongchan SO CUTE? Boyfriends-to-be eating together is great. So many self-worth issues in this one no wonder @heretherebedork​ loves it. (This is an unexpectedly long series, too. 10 eps and each one is over 30 min. That’s crazy for a KBL = Light on Me territory.) 

A Shoulder to Cry On (Korea Tues Viki & Gaga) eps 3-4 of 7 - this sort of emotional and mental manipulation (from narrative and characters) meets bully romance isn’t my thing. (And should be left up to Japan if it must exist at all IMHO.) Ultra cringe, humiliation, and emotional torture for everyone! (What is this, fan fic?) Result: therapy is needed for everyone, including me, who continues to have trust issues with this show. 

Jack o’Frost (Japan Fri GaGa) ep 6 fin - delayed until next week 

It’s Airing But ...

Love Syndrome (Thai Sat WeTV) stopped at ep 2 of 12 - I’m just not into any aspect of it (except Lee Long Shi and I can watch him in Tin Tem Jai) - saving to binge if the end is solid.

Blue Sky Complex (Japan ???) 5 eps for VR - adaptation of Kei Ichikawa's manga started Feb 27 on 360 Channel (SHOCHIKUch) a VR distribution service. Will inter-fans ever get to see this, and if it’s filmed for VR will it adapt without being overly dark and fuzzy? I have questions. But as usual, you do you Japan and we will wait (im)patiently to see if you remember the rest of the world exists. This is my preferred kind of live action yaoi, so fingers crossed.

Boyband (Thai) ep 2 of 10 - Stopped airing on YouTube, and only available in Thailand & Japan. Not sure if they’re working a distribution deal or just fucking with us.

Cafe In Love (Thai ???) 10 eps on Ch3+ - Thai pulp, about trying to save a coffee shop. FairyGodBLer came through for me, but I’m collecting to binge just in case. It’s my new policy with the grey stuff.

Destiny Seeker (Tues WeTV Thailand) 10 eps - it’s not on any WeTV I can get ahold of. Bad Buddy the pulp rebirth meets Japanese handsome host club action. Same as above.

Make a Wish (Thai Weds ?) from WaGa Creative staring Fluke Natouch (OhmFluke UWMA etc...) & Judo (The Miracle Of Teddy Bear) in a medical-fantasy. It seems to be a light-hearted romance with a comedic flair. About a doctor who sees ghosts and a deity who resides in a Bodhi tree that earns merits whenever he fulfills a wish based on a y-novel by Sammon (Manner of Death, Triage). Too hard to find. 

In other news

I finished watching Why You... Y Me (hold over from last year). It’s basically Puppy Honey + a band + excessive fujoshi, so NOT my jam, but the main BL side is nicely handled love triangle, if that’s your thing. There is a tiny gem of a story (buried in amongst the rest of this nonsense) about friendship, support, love, and owning your identity. But BL is very much the secondary plot here and the main plot is AWFUL so I can’t give it more than 5/10. Still it’s all on YT if you wanna give it a try. 

I also finished The End Of The World, With You AKA Bokura no Micro na Shuumatsu. (Speaking of Japan psychologically bullying us.) Conclusion? It’s not BL (no BL tropes used, a sub-genre is defined by its tropes, BL is a sub-genre of gay romance). It’s a quirky road trip found family gay drama/romance. It’s fine if you like this kinda artsy tortured character thing. I don’t. But it’s well done high heat from Japan so... 6/10 I guess?

Next Week Looks Like This:

The Eighth Sense starts weds Viki, I’m thinking this is KBL doing JBL style again, so no promises on an HEA for this one. It’s giving me. His (the series) feels. But it could be more in the Blueming vein. Remains to be seen. 

Full list of upcoming in March 2023 is here.

2023 forthcoming BL master post. (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED)

This Week’s Adventure in Captions

Actually, Fuse said meeha which is usually translated as wifey (there are other slang words for bottom). Fuse is trying to establish a sexual and romantic dynamic where he plays “the male role” and he is doing this with Ana for several reasons: 1. Ana made the first move. 2 Ana is older. 

This is definitely one of those were the captions are OK but old-fashioned, it helps to know the common used terms and parlance. They are ALSO never saying boyfriend, they are always saying faen (gender neutral). 

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENT

I really liked this phrasing (Boss & Babe). 

Double date!

The cuteness, it burns us. How is Gongchan a 2nd gen idol, nearly 30, and still the ultimate macknae? Inquiring minds would like his immortality pill, please and thank you. (Unintentional Love Story) 

Another gay cactus baby! (Why did tumblr lose its mind over this? Here’s the BL meme primer) 

I love it when a show calls out it’s own tropes. 

I also love it when a show accurately reviews itself. 

All from Our Dating Sim. 

(last week)

Current Kpop earworm? Okay so Ireah on Peak Time did a bitty cover of Bad Love by Hynn and now I’m obsessed with it. I like her original a lot but I really want him to drop a full cover of it someday. 

[khaleesiofalicante]

Hello I'm the annie who asked about watching hotd without having watched got. And guess what? I did! I watched s1 and ep 1 of s2 and I loved it so muchhhh. I cannot believe a show like this exists. I'm sure I'm missing some context because I haven't seen got but it's still so good. I could die for alicent and rhaenyra. Their relationship is so beautiful and complex and I'm completely in love. Here are some scenes I really enjoyed and some people i loved and hated:

1) the whole dinner scene in ep8. R and A toasting to eachother and then A being disappointed when R was leaving. That was probably one of my favorite episodes.

2) I loved kind viserys.

3) aemond chasing luke scene. I actually gasped at the end. I was heartbroken but that was some good shit

4) I hate the hand. And I hate christon cole. And I hate that foot fetish guy. I hate most of the men on the show tbh.

5) I love R's kids. Especially luke. I wanted to kill aemond so badly.

6) why is there so much childbirth in this show? Like in the first episode of the time jump when R is giving birth I could literally hear her vagina sounds. And the second was also very horrifying. And when Aemma gave birth- that shit scarred me. I'm never having kids after this.

7) I had no idea I'd love politics so much. But I really do. It's so fucking interesting. I'm obviously team black but I also feel very attached to alicient.

8) at first I was wierded out but at this point I've even stopped to think about the incest. Like they just marry their brother or sister and call them husband and wife? Okay cool.

9) what did you think about 'a son for a son'? I wish it had been aemond instead because I hate that asshole. Fuck aemond.

10) what do you think about R and daemon? I honestly don't completely understand his character. So much shit has happened.

11) it's crazy how much history A and R have and that THAT one night is still something that governs their relationship (atleast for A). I just. I love them. I love their love. I love that I get to see and feel it. When A touched R's hand in that dinner party episode- I felt SO MUCH. I love it when shows/stories make me FEEL. Does that make sense? I just love them so much.

12) A lighting a candle for Luke :'(

I cannot wait to watch the rest of it. It's so good. I don't know if I'll watch GOT or not because it's too long and I'm worried it won't match up to hotd and this style that I've gotten used to.

OMG YOU WATCHED. I AM SO HAPPY.

for those of you who don't know, before coercing people into watching f1, I was coercing people to watch GoT/HoTD. So, this makes me so happy hehe.

Watching this story and hating all the men is such an experience, trust me.

Or not you like Luke the most. My deepest sympathies 😔 the baby deserved so much better.

The show is very graphic about childbirth. I was watching all the murders unblinking and then hid under the blanket during the childbirth scenes lmao.

The whole marrying the brother thing is extremely common among the targaryens because that's how they keep their bloodline pure (which is a tradition that actually existed among many royalities before...)

A son for a son in the show was fucked up. I WANT TO HURL DAEMON FROM A MOUNTAIN. Also, it happens differently in the book. Do read up on it if you're interested!

I loooooved Matt Smith a lot so I was super into Daemon earlier on in season 1 but then he got really annoying really fast. LIKE BRO STOP MAKING THINGS WORSE.

I like Alicent a lot too. But I do not like this new arrangement with Cr*ston Cole. I HATE HIM.

I hope you watched the next episode today! The funeral procession scene was >>>> Also I don't support team green but the way their grief was portrayed, each one so different, was so well done.

BUT. BUTTTTTT. If you liked this and if you loved the politics, you will LOVE game of thrones. I promise. HoTD is good. But it doesn't even come close to GoT. GoT doesn't have as many dragons, BUT YOU WILL LOVE THE PLOT AND THE CHARACTERS I PROMISE.