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suzuran777 · 1 year ago

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Revisiting Gakuen Handsome: Backstory + short review

I think every BL fan has seen something related to Gakuen Handsome at some point in their lives, it's a parody BL visual novel with quite the legacy. It was originally released in 2010 by Team YokkyuFuman and it also got its own OVA and anime adaptation in 2015 & 2016. The protagonist, who is an unnamed seventeen year old boy, moves back to the city after a seven year absence. He enrolls into Baramon High School, a prestigious all-boys school which takes pride in being the best of its prefecture. From now on, his life will be changed forever...

First of all, the developer team's backstory is probably one of the most unique ones. In 2008, eight film students from the Tohoku University of Art and Design formed Team YokkyuFuman (チーム欲求腐満). Their blog mentions that a year later, they attempted to submit the Gakuen Handsome opening movie to the 9th edition of the Niconico Film Festival (their submission was completely ignored). After that, the opening movie was uploaded on NicoNico Douga, where it was quite well received. The description of the video mentions “to be released in 20009”, as they originally probably had no intention to create a full game.

After it became a hot topic on NicoNico Douga, the team decided to continue production, and in 2010 they released the game "Gakuen Handsome". Their university even gave them permission to organize an official exhibition: Gakuen Handsome Matsuri (or just Gakuen Handsome Festival). Visitors could watch the opening movie, learn more about the characters and take pictures together with the life-sized cardboard cutouts. The exhibition also featured rare merch: A drama CD which would be released in "20009" and canned bread.

This exhibition was apparently not only held once, but many times according to their blog. The game was finally released in 2010 and many fans were happy to finally play it, supporting the team that created it. Togo Mito, who many of you know as the creator of (in)famous BL game Hadaka Shitsuji, also collaborated with them. These are some pictures I found on Togo Mito's old blog, Mizoguchi and Juro drawn by Togo Mito and the Hadaka Shitsuji cast drawn by Team YokkyuFuman.

Even after graduation, it seems like they would occasionally invite some of Gakuen Handsome's creators. In 2014, the university tweeted that they would not be able to host the exhibition that year due to renovations, but visitors could take pictures with the cardboard cutouts. There's also an interview from 2016 on the university's website, in which they talk about how things have been after graduation! I absolutely love how the university supported all of this.

Now about the game itself... Where to even start? You'll have to trust me, but the game is actually good. Many parody games can be quite a hit or miss, but this visual novel is something I still catch myself laughing at years later. The inconsistent art, pointy chins and strange jokes really create an experience unlike anything else. I don't think any commercial company would be able to create something like this, even if they tried. One detail that the anime adaptation doesn't really show is that many different artists worked on this, whose styles widely vary from each other, making absolutely no attempt to create one consistent artstyle. Most characters have at least 2 ~ 3 sprites that often look completely different from each other. For example, sometimes Saionji sensei looks like a clean-shaven teenager/young adult, but in the CGs he suddenly turn into an older looking man with a stubble.

Yes he's talking about eating paint in the screenshot above, why not. Anyway... the voice acting in this game is something else I wanted to talk about, because it adds so much to the game. Of course it's not professional, but I think that's what makes it amazing. You can sometimes hear the voice actors trying really hard not to laugh, and they will occasionally completely mess up their lines. Of course all of those lines are kept in the game and they didn't re-record them. I also loved it when they started swearing in English for seemingly no reason. Also, instead of just avoiding the name of the protagonist (who you can give any name you want) they pronounce it... by improvision. Just imagine how one would try to pronounce a "adfgdf" keysmash and you'll get an idea what it sounds like.

There are 6 characters in this game who you can romance. The protagonist's childhood friend Takuya, who is a bit obsessed with the protein bar Calorie Mate (which is censored in the new version of the game, so you just hear a BLEEP sound), outlaw teacher Saionji, school principal Juro who basically only functions as a save point, student council president Kagami, chuunibyou transfer student Shiga, and last but not least, the captain of the soccer team Mitsurugi, who also murders people with his chin sometimes. The protagonist's sister also has a (non-romantic) ending, which you need to play in order to unlock the extra scenario (which... is a ridiculous murder mystery story for some reason). I also could not find the guide I used a long time ago, so I just looked at some videos on NicoNico to see what others were doing and that worked pretty well...!

My favorite scene is probably still that one scene in Mitsurugi's route, in which he stabs people with his chin. It's also one of the scenes that gets referenced the most in fanart. The context makes it even more ridiculous, Mitsurugi gets really upset that some people like the chunky variant of red bean paste (tsubuan) and decides they should die. After stabbing his teammate and multiple other people he runs outside. The protagonist however, isn't safe either and also gets accused of being a "tsubuan supporter". If you survive though, you get a chance to marry Mitsurugi!

Honestly one of the reasons I wanted to write about this game is because many people only know the OVA and/or anime, but the game is so funny I think everyone should play it if they're interested. I also think the team behind it has such a funny backstory and I love seeing how supportive their university is. Right now the team is still active on their Twitter account and they sometimes create new content. Last year they released Gakuen Handsome Fighters, a short fighting game featuring the Gakuen Handsome characters.

If you are interested in purchasing it, I recommend getting the "Special" edition which can be purchased on DLsite! I couldn't find a working download link anymore of the older version, but I think the creators deserve the support, so I don't regret buying it (it was about 15 USD). It includes the original game and 5 shorter stories which were originally released as smartphone apps. While I think the original game is still the best one, it's fun to explore some of the extra scenarios as well. One of the shorter games takes place in an alternative universe in which the boys live in the Heian period, and for some reason some of the sprites are animated... yeah.

#gakuen handsome #blvn #blvnreview #visual novel

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bullet-prooflove · 2 months ago

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I need to know how you keep track of all your OCs?! Do you have a spreadsheet?! A written list?! A super big brain that remembers everything?! And how do you keep coming up with such different and complex characters?! It's wild, it's amazing..

Hi,

I love this question! Thank you for asking it!

So now I actually have a spreadsheet because I jump around different fandoms, it’s ordered by TV Show. Everytime a personal detail comes up like perfume, history, it goes into the spreadsheet. When I first started writing I did not do this and it was a struggle to remember everything esp when I was writing for so many different fandoms.

With some characters I have their details more mentally ready than others. Like Gina and Travis, I know everything to do with them by heart. Same with Alden & Lisa. Dean A & Isobel. I think it’s because I’ve done so much work on them and their stories that I feel like I know them so well, even then they still throw in surprises. (Travis’s illness, Alden’s deceased child, Isobel’s cutting.) I didn’t plan for any of that. I think when you’re a character driven writer it allows more flexibility than if you’re a plot driven one because the characters take you on a journey where anything can happen. Plot driven writers are a lot more rigid in that respect.

So when I’ve developing a character, I think of the guy I’m writing for and what kind of partner he needs or could bounce off/ or what’s they’re core value/desire. Also if they have a partner in the show, I try to write someone very different otherwise what’s the point?

An example is Dean Winchester lives a very transient, almost secretive lifestyle due to the nature of his work. He doesn’t stick around in one place for too long and is very committed to his cause and is resistant to relationships but happy to have casual engagements. However there instances in the series we see him playing house/talking about a normal life almost wistfully. At his core he wants a home but in his own head can never have that.

The kind of partner I envisioned working for him was someone very independent, who had their own life so Dean could flit in and out of it without feeling the pressure or issues that came with being in a traditional relationship. I wanted the character to have awareness of the supernatural shit but I also didn’t want to go the another hunter route as I’d seen it done so many times and I found it boring because it’s basically the Winchester Boys +1, and it comes back to that thing about being independent.

Also I had a massive thing for Fire Towers at the time so it gave me the idea for a forest ranger who situated in this little town at the edge of a mountain/forest reserve and has to deal with all the mad normal/supernatural shit that lives in the forest. This allows Dean a place to always come back to if he wants to, a home as it were. It also gave me a little history for them. They met because they were both ‘hunting’ the same thing, collaborated and then with all that left over adrenaline sparks fly. As the town is a tourist town Harlow is used to people just ‘passing through’ so most of her relationships have been transient so she doesn’t expect anything from Dean, despite the fact he keeps coming back. Also because her family are from along line of ‘forest rangers’ who have an affiliation with the mountain, they both things in common in terms of an irregular upbringing.

The nature of the transient relationship also adds drama esp with Dean wrestling with wanting more but not being able to give. It’s an internal battle for him when he starts to develop feelings. It gives you a lot to work with outside of the usual monster of the day plot (which is also great for drama).

All of It sort of plays off something I call cause and effect and this is what a lot of fics/characters lack in fan fiction. If you say a character does a job like an ADA or a cop, you have to think of what got them there to where they are today and how that shaped them and the choices they made because of it and also what’s going on in the current climate for a person in that position.

For example female cops really run a gauntlet in terms of sexism and misogyny. From the people they police and sometimes their coworkers. At some point in their career they are going to encounter it, so how do they handle it? Are they dealing with it now in they’re current unit? Or have they in the past? Has that created enemies? What does did it look like? Was it make the tea hun? ‘Accidental’ groping or something worse.

That’s just one job, what about ADA or a winemaker or doctor? What challenges have they faced. It’s different for every position.

It’s the same if you say someone is dyslexic or comes from foster care, you have to think how those things have shaped they’re lives, how does it affect them today, how are you going to let the audience know in a natural way. A dyslexic person, may use colour coding to help them identify files quickly, they may voice record as opposed to write notes. Someone whose had an injury in the past is probably going to have some residual pain, so they may use a cushion, be stiff when it gets cold, or pop pain killers. It’s those extra details that add to a character and define them from anything else other people are writing.

Sorry I realise I had a massive ramble there but I get massively enthused when it comes to qs like this!

#writing #writers #writing qs #writer tips #writing tips #writing advice

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gffa · 1 year ago

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choose violence 🥰✨: 3 (altho to avoid the Drama™ it should be more related to something silly I don't want u to die to answer this lmao), 7, 9, 10, 20, 21 (v curious about the last two actually)

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you’ve seen on tumblr NO NO I AM HAPPY TO DO THIS ONE because it is my favorite worst take I've ever seen: "Did you know that Darth Vader and the Empire must have freed all the slaves because we never see any slaves in the original trilogy!" THEY WERE SERIOUS. (Pssst, nobody tell them about Oola.) My other favorite worst take I've ever seen: "We are allowing people to express themselves too much because I just saw people shipping Obi-Wan and Anakin, they're writing all these fics about love, and they shouldn't do that! I also saw people shipping Gojou and Geto from Jujutsu Kaisen and they are FRIENDS, they shouldn't LOVE each other!" Absolutely stellar, no notes, phenomenal, 10/10. 7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them? It is an absolute struggle not to get sucked into the whirlwind around Qui-Gon Jinn's character. He's so often used as a weapon against the other Jedi, when the reality of his character is that he's both a lovely person and kind of an actual asshole in the movie, he's a dick to Jar Jar! He only cares about Anakin because of the prophecy! But he also is genuine about his affections and he was a good teacher to help Obi-Wan come into himself! He's absolutely HILARIOUS when he's not giving a shit throughout all the batshit stuff that happens in the first 20 minutes of the movie! But so much of fandom wants to flatten him out into either lionizing him or demonizing him and, if that made it more fun for people, I'd be more onboard! Hell, yeah, lionize the hell out of your faves because you love them!! But so few people seem to actually care about the character for himself and, when he gets used to bash the other Jedi, sometimes it's hard to get out of the instinctive urge to dislike the character. (QUI-GON DESERVES BETTER THAN THIS. LET HIM BE AN ASSHOLE CAT THAT WE LOVE.) 9. worst part of canon Honestly, I like pretty much all of Lucas' canon, which is the primary stuff I care about. And most of the boring stuff I can just ignore. But, man, I have trouble with TBB. 20. part of canon you found tedious or boring To be honest, pretty much any of the Star Wars books from the last couple of years that don't focus on established characters. (And some of the established characters, too, I could not finish the Padme trilogy.) I am just so full up on half-sketched characters that never seem to have any real arc to their character or bite to them that I've almost entirely stopped reading SW books, I'm just so bored with them, none of them have Lucas' ability to create a character I want to spend time with or they don't have the page time (like 3+ books worth) to develop them. 21. part of canon you think is overhyped I wouldn't have said this three years ago, but I'll say it today: The Mandalorian. That first season was phenomenal and deserved to be as hyped as it was, just for what it did for breathing enthusiasm back into the fandom. Those early days were amazing, we all got along in fandom, there was genuine affection and zeal for having fun with the characters! But by the time the third season came around, despite that I had a blast during it, it didn't deserve the hype anymore, Favroni had lost their focus or something, and it was all over the place and I don't think it deserves to be "the GOOD Star Wars" live action anymore. (You know what I mean with that.)

#lumi.txt #star wars #choose violence ask game

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mejomonster · 6 months ago

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Some good new (ish) thai dramas to check out (if u follow me and aren't watching thai dramas:

Wandee Goodday: do you like fwb to lovers? Fake dating? Very sweet people liking each other For who they are, but also not quite realizing they should do something about it? Its very warm feeling/comforting. Its in the middle of airing, you can find it on youtube.

We Are The Series: all i know for sure is art kid friends in college, to be fair i havent started it yet. BUT it has two of my favorite actors, who did amazing in Never Let Me Go (which finished! U can go watch it! Did u ever want gay Batman and the bodyguard who falls for him, against the gangster who killed his father? Its great!). So im going to watch, because it seems like mostly fluffy but genuine slice of life friendship group story, with some romance, and so if My School President was your thing then im maybe this will fit a similar niche.

My Stand In: i havent seen it yet, looks like Angst City. Great actors, sexy, looks heartbreaking.

Homeschool: not a BL, like the others above this list. But if you liked The Gifted or Blacklist, this is a school full of students who are likely being psychologically abused, delving into their trauma and family backgrounds, and having to team up on some level to get through it. Absolutely full of good actors.

Not new thai dramas, but always worth checking out:

3 Will Be Free: polyamory, running from a gang, murders, bi lighting, 3 strangers connecting and growing to love each other, a compelling narrative for the assassins chasing them too, and a satisfying ending. One of my favorite shows period. And very short and sweet. Definitely dark though, lots of people die, so if action thriller is your thing you'll have a good time. But its not a show for those seeking only fluff.

Not Me the Series: political vigilantes? Queer friends? Secret identities, pretending to be a twin? Enemies to lovers? Mystery? Action? Rich businessmen and capitalism as the villains? Writing that makes you think about real shit? Also very fluffy in moments, sexy, and just very well developed individual characters that get to grow together? One of my favorite shows. Probably my favorite role ever by Off.

GAP the Series: a GL, by Idol Factory (who's shows you may wish to look into). What it is: office romance, folding in every trope they could fit into their episodes, giving GL what it deserves: all of it. The lead actresses do amazing, and the story itself does have strong individual character arcs so it doesnt feel like tropes are what hold it up, the character arcs are ultimately what drive it. Its a great GL, im glad it got made, and it helped kick off more GLs being made. The lead actresses will later be in upcoming shows: The Loyal Pin (a historical gl romance that looks amazing) and Uranus 2324 (which im SO HYPE ABOUT okay so i NEED more bl and gl with space/sci fi elements! I need it! Its so RARE to get any space/sci fi type show, and then padticularly one with queer leads, and im so over the moon this was a concept that actually was picked).

The Gifted, The Gifted Graduation (sequel): not bl or gl. Really fucking good. I cant tell you how good. You just have to watch. If you like xmen, mutants, misfits, heroes, then this show will be wish fulfillment just go watch it! If you like shows confronting the structure of society, the new generations and the old, go watch it. It has a lot to say, it does a ton of stuff cool, and for mystery/sci fi/political thriller lovers its nonstop. Its also a coming of age story for the teens in The Gifted highschool, along with all the perks mutations in stories get used to highlight non-powered identity traits and life problems these characters go through. I love Tay Tawans acting and hes incredible in the gifted graduation. Nanon is a solid lead and shows off why he gets those roles. Gun shows off how phenomenal he fucking acts when he can go deeper than fluff shows, all of them do. Every actor is doing a phenomenal job, the lighting is acing it, the writing is drawing you in, the whole experience is solid. I love the story.

#rec list #thai dramas #dramas

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hyperion-catboy · 1 year ago

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I apologize in advance for this (maybe pointless) rant and any spelling mistakes, I'm super tired but had to get this off my chest.

I'm trying my best to enjoy the Outlast fandom but lately I've started to feel kinda bitter about it. I'm very discouraged from continuing to upload anything despite enjoying sharing my ideas with everyone a lot. I know it wouldn't really matter because I'm just a very small artist here so it won't make a big difference. I would be sad at least since I've been in the fandom since the very beginning and have seen it grow over all this time.

Being able to interact with other fans, exchange ideas and create things together is something I absolutely love and I've made some amazing friends over our shared love for Outlast, too.

I've been in many different fandoms over the years and have seen them falling apart and the most ridiculous reasons for unnecessary drama. Fandom means a lot of different people share one space and naturally opinions, headcanons and ideas will be the absolute opposite from each other at times.

That goes for how people imagine the especially mostly faceless protagonists of this franchise, too. I personally don't think there's a right or wrong way to portray them as long as it doesn't hurt anybody and I welcome every single interpretation. It's a good thing so many interesting and diverse ideas come together.

For me personally the way the protags have developed with every new piece of art I drew of them over the years has been an incredible fun journey so far. They started out with just vague concepts in my head back then and over all this time more personal ideas, headcanons, impressions and also inspiration from many other fellow artists turned them into who they are right now.

Waylon started out with blue eyes, a completely different face, a short dark brown buzz cut and no freckles at all, I also adapted the headcanon about his Korean origin because it made a lot of sense to me. He has come such a long way and I want to keep going because a lot of neurodivergent folks here probably understand what a comfort character can mean to someone.

Miles has followed me through the time of realizing I am trans to the point where I chose him even as the name I want to live for the rest of my life with.

I got attached to Waylon as well and for some reason I started to deeply project on him as a character. That includes picturing him as transmasc, seeing in him a lot of the anxiety I've struggled with my whole life so far and feeling a certain detachment from my own roots (I'm adopted, I don't know anything about my original background).

I know no one can take that away from me and it's impossible for everyone in a fandom to get along or agree with each other. What I wish for is just some mutual respect for each other and the vast variety of creativity here.

Let each other enjoy Outlast and if there's something you don't agree with, just move on and look at content that makes you happy. Being kind and a decent person costs you nothing, it's not that hard. Curate this space into a fun one for you, create your own little bubble of people you're comfortable with but let those you don't agree with live too and have a good time.

That's what I will try at least from now on. If you made it through this whole rant thank you for taking the time and listening ♡

#miles // vent

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romancemedia · 2 years ago

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My Review of LoliRock.

Last night I finally completed my binge watch of LoliRock and after some thought here is my review of the series. LoliRock is a fun show with great music, amazing animation and lots of fun stories. Though some might say it was probably one of your typical magical girl shows, LoliRock is unique and special in it’s own way.

I loved watching the girls different adventures in fighting Mephisto and Praxina, singing, helping people etc. It was all amazing to watch that you simply can’t look away, especially when it comes to the beautiful animation, scenery and whenever the girls were performing. I liked the girls characters and what they each bring to help while proving despite their differences, they all have a strong and healthy friendship. I also enjoyed the romance aspect, especially the main romance between Iris and Nathaniel. They are so cute together and though they are shy to outright admit their feelings, it’s clear they know it’s mutual between them. Aside from them, I did enjoy some of the other romances the show provided whether it was Talia and Kyle or the characters the girls were helping.

Lastly as for the villains, Mephisto and Praxina were pretty decent, but could be really annoying sometimes. However, if I had to pick which twin I liked better it would surprisingly be Mephisto. I hated Praxina, especially the way she talked and acted. I found her to be WAY too obnoxious.

However, not every show is perfect and LoliRock had a few faults of it’s own. There were certain themes and elements that got a little boring after a while like how Iris narrated the episode by writing in her journal or when an Oracle gem was being restored to the crown much to Gramorr’s dismay. It was always the same scenes over and over again during season 1 and it got old pretty fast, but I’m glad the creators started to get a bit more creative in season 2. I also felt there was some fault to the storyline or characters. For example, there was never a proper introduction where Talia and Aurianna first met Nathaniel.

I enjoyed season 2. I loved how the girls got to expand their music careers, learned new spells and explored new places never seen before, but I feel like it was lacking in certain areas and didn’t quite live up to its full potential. They missed out on so many opportunities such as Lyna and Carissa becoming main characters and could’ve even joined the band too. I would’ve enjoyed seeing this girl group expanded. It was rather disappointing they didn’t appear in every episode and instead only appeared in a handful. Not what I was expecting.

I also find it frustrating with other certain characters.

Izira - Although she remained on Ephedia, I was kinda expecting for Izira to make regular appearances. I was hoping for more expansion and development for Izira’s character whether it’s being a mentor or ally for the princesses, but sadly she hardly made any appearances until again near the end of the series.

Lev - When he first appeared at the end of season 1, I thought he was going to play a bigger role in the show’s future, especially when he followed the girls back to Earth, but nothing! He never made another appearance until Stop in the Name of Lev. Why build up so much drama and potential, only to end up not using it at all. It feels like a complete waste.

Aunt Ellen - I feel like they really missed out on building up more of the mystery surrounding her. The only time they ever hinted about her character was early in the start of season 2. Why couldn’t they have started giving hints earlier or for that matter, give us more clues than just a single episode. What’s worse is that she doesn’t appear as a secret ally to the princesses again after that episode. It’s really kinda frustrating.

Doug - He is a recurring character, who is a big fan of LoliRock and is friends with Nathaniel. He made plenty of appearances during the first season, but by the second, he was practically gone. He almost never appeared again other than maybe 2 episodes and a cameo in the series finale. It annoys me how they seemed to almost completely drop him as a character when he is brings such a fun and vibrant aspect to the show.

Nonetheless I still enjoyed season 2, but I gotta say it could’ve been a lot better. I just hate seeing so much potential wasted. Overall, LoliRock was a fun show to watch that I would rank an 8/10 and I am really sorry that the series was cancelled. I would’ve liked to have seen what was next for the princesses and Praxina as the new big bad.

#LoliRock #My Thoughts #Personal #Binge Watch

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consumeronionbulletin · 1 year ago

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Our Beloved Summer (2021-22)

A well written second chance romance that just feels real. I enjoyed the characters and just loved spending time with them, even when they were clearly going through it.

What Worked

The writing was top notch, but the two leads made this show come alive. The actors all put in the work to make sure all of the layers shown through with these characters. Every episode lets you see a new faucet to all of the characters and their relationships. It feels almost like an adaptation to a much larger story, which is an amazing trick to pull off in any drama.

Also, I normally hate love triangles, but the way this show did it worked. Mainly because it never felt like a dramatic love triangle, it just felt like a bunch of people in a mess because of their feelings. And that's always more interesting.

What Didn't Work

I don't think there were any major missteps, but there were choices that some people like and others won't. This is a slow, slice of life show that tries to ground itself in real life. For some people, like me, this is going to hit them right away. For other people, it'll seem boring, or hard to get into, and that's okay.

The Performances

Choi Woo-shik as ("the artist") Choi Ung. If you've seen him in Parasite, you already know he's a darn good actor. He makes a character that's kind of a loser (especially at the start of the show) seem instantly appealing, because you can tell there's more to him than you see on the surface. Fun to watch in every scene, and the way the character subtlety changes over the series is just fascinating.

Kim Da-mi as ("grumpy overachiever") Kook Yeon-soo. I loved this performance. The character is portrayed as this uptight, stuck-up person (even in High School), but (like Choi Woo-shik's performance), you can tell there's more going on under the surface. While Choi Ung's character has a hidden strength and charm, with Yeon-soo, it's the vulnerability and compassion that's hidden, and it's so good to watch these layers get uncovered over the series.

Kim Sung-cheol as ("side character") Kim Ji-ung. He played a similar quiet character in Do You Like Brahms? and he did an even better job of making him seem layered and interesting (it helps that the writing overall is better). This performance will probably shine on rewatches when you get his entire story and can see where things were hinted at early on. Fun to watch, even when he was a little mopey.

Roh Jeong-eui as ("super idol") NJ. I loved this performance too. The actor did a great job of playing someone who was forced to have feelings and care about people, even though she was way too cool for any of them. I liked how she interacted with Choi Ung, and pretty much all of the other characters as well. Just fun and interesting in every scene.

Park Won-sang as Choi Ho / Choi Ung's father. and Seo Jeong-yeon as Lee Yeon-ok / Choi Ung's mother. These actors were delightful. Just brought warmth whenever they were on screen.

Cha Mi-kyung as Kang Ja-kyung / Kook Yeon-soo's grandma. I loved the scenes we got with her, especially with Yeon-soo.

Park Jin-joo as Lee Sol-yi. I always like seeing this actor. The character work was solid, but the writing for her scenes (and so her performance) was a little uneven. She was funny and great to watch with Yeon-soo and sometimes with other characters, but the stuff with her and Eun-ho was kind of hit and miss.

Ahn Dong-goo as ("manager buddy") Gu Eun-ho. His performance wasn't exactly weak, just not nearly as good as the other people he had to share a scene with. Might have been improved by giving the character more depth, but I would still rather have an additional scene learning more about any other character, which is why he never got that.

The documentary team. The side characters (Ji-ung's boss, writer-nim, Ji-ung's junior, and the intern) were all well developed and it was nice when they got screentime. A good example of how this show treated even minor characters pretty well.

RUN Company people. I feel like this group was a little weaker, especially Yeon-soo's boss and the gossipy coworkers. At the start, they felt a little tropey and mostly interchangeable. By the end of the show, they were in a good place, but it took a long time for them to get interesting.

TL; DR:

A hard hitting romance drama that's not afraid to take its time. Definitely worth a try if you're even a little interested in this.

#my kdrama notes #our beloved summer #the year we #i hate love triangles #but this was okay

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glenrocklibraryteens · 2 years ago

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Heartstopper: Volume 1 by Alice Oseman

Coming of age , drama , graphic novel

Page count: 288

Rating: 5 stars

Reviewed by: AS

In my opinion I loved Heartstopper by Alice Oseman. This book made me feel happy, and I genuinely enjoyed the characters, the plot, character development, writing, etc. I think this because this book had amazing build up and it was very enjoyable to read. The characters were written well, and most were likable and enjoyable. I was hooked on this book, and I didn’t want to put it down until I finished it. I didn’t relate to any of the characters, but most of the characters I think can be relatable to some who read the novel. This is because there is a lot of diversity within these characters. Also, a lot of the characters have different personalities and the way they act, so it makes it easier for most of the characters to be seen as relatable. This book showed me the struggles of anyone who identifies to be a part of the LGBTQ+. It talked about a lot of struggles LGBTQ+ members face. This graphic novel talks about a lot of important issues like identifying your sexual orientation, being taken advantage of, the struggles of coming out, etc. I think representation is important, and Oseman did an amazing job in showing teen struggles. I believe Oseman did an incredible job on writing and illustrating this graphic novel. I like the small details she includes. For example, Oseman creates leaves and puts them on multiple pages and the cover of the book. Even the front and back cover include these leaves, which definitely symbolizes something. I would recommend this graphic novel to any teens who enjoy romance and coming of age books/movies. The romance in Heartstopper is entertaining and sweet. For people who enjoy coming of age the characters face adult problems, and losing their innocence. I would rate this book 5 stars, for it was amazing and one of my favorite books I've read this year. This is why I believe you should read Heartstopper by Alice Oseman.

Playlist for Heartstopper Volume 1 by Alice Oseman

Eventually by Tame Impala : Charlie is genuinely bothered by Ben and in the song "Eventually” by Tame Impala there is a lyric “Wish I could turn you back into a stranger”. Charlie does regret the choices he’s made with Ben, including liking him and kissing him.

ARE WE STILL FRIENDS? by Tyler, The Creator: In the ending of Heartstopper Nick ends up walking out the room, with Charlie anxious and confused. In this song “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS” Tyler’s lyrics are similar to the ending, for Charlie is left with the question are we still friends? Charlie doesn’t know if Nick is mad or if he doesn’t want to talk to him anymore.

Melting by Kali Uchis- This song can represent Charlie’s crush on Nick. With lyrics like “Melting like an ice cream when you smile” which means having a crush on someone.

Dream boy by Beach Bunny- This song can represent both Charlie and Nick’s crush on each other. Beach Bunny says in the song “You’ve got my heart bursting at the seams'’. This lyric does relate to Charlie And Nick's crushes on each other.

I THINK by Tyler, The Creator- Since Charlie has a crush on Nick, but is convinced Nick is straight, “I THINK” is similar to his situation. Tyler states “I think i’m falling in love How can I tell you?” Charlie doesn’t know how he would tell Nick, and Charlie doesn’t know if he is gay or not, so he wouldn’t wanna tell him if he’s straight.

Invisible String by Taylor Swift- I believe this song is similar to Nick and Charlie's friendship. The lyrics of the song is “All along there was some invisible string tying to me?” Which can be a metaphor to Nick and Charlie connecting quickly with each other when they first met. There is an invisible string tying them together to always be together and for them to never diverge.

Where is my mind? by Pixies - This song can relate to Nick being stressed with his sexuality. This was stressful because he didn’t know who he liked and he even tried taking quizzes. In the song a lyric is “And you’ll ask yourself Where is my mind?” which can represent Nick not knowing who he was and he was in a stressful situation.

Sparks by Coldplay- This song does relate to the ending of the book. This could be Nick's point of view of what happened with Charlie. Almost kissing and then him leaving. A lyric in “Spark” is “ And I know , I was wrong But I won’t let you down” which can be seen as Nick knowing what he did was wrong, but still caring for Charlie.

Flaming Hot Cheetos by Clairo- Charlie had a feeling his crush on Nick would come out positive. Tao, his best friend, tried convincing that Nick was straight, but somehow Charlie knew his crush on Nick would end positively. Clairo sings “I’m feeling something right” in Flaming Hot Cheetos. Charlie felt something right with Nick, that is why he continued to have a crush on him.

Treehouse by Alex G- “Treehouse” by Alex G can represent Nick and Charlie’s friendship in the first chapter. In “Treehouse” a lyric “Do not enter" is written on the doorway Why can’t everyone just go away? Expect you, you can stay” This lyric can show that even through a tough time Nick and Charlie will always be there for each other.

#book review #classic #glen rock teens #nonfiction #submission #teen book review #biography #glen rock nj #fiction #blog post

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canmom · 2 years ago

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kinda depends what sort of thing you enjoy really. basically all gundam will give you space battles and melodrama and tragedy, so it’s a question of how you want to approach those subjects!

i will preface this by saying i’m not a hardcore gundam fan by any means. i’ve seen mostly films and OVAs, rather than TV shows where the bulk of the series is. but if that suits you...

a good bet would be some of the OVAs from the late 80s and 90s, such as War in the Pocket and 08th MS Team. these tend to take a smaller-scale approach to the big space war, so instead of Newtype prodigies, it’s a handful of children getting tragically pulled in when the fighting spills into a neutral space colony, or a minor unit fighting in the jungle whose CO decides that actually he wants to stop killing people. they’ll give you gorgeous old-school animation and they’re pretty moving stories. 08th MS Team switched directors halfway through so it’s a bit of an odd one: the first one is very grounded military stuff, the second half a fascinating, if kinda strange drama about a pacifist soldier.

if you’re mostly in it for amazing animation, the recent films by Sunrise Studio 1 will have you extremely well covered. these include the two Gundam Thunderbolt movies, and more recently Hathaway’s Flash. these are set in the Universal Century, but they don’t really demand a ton of familiarity with the setting and characters. Thunderbolt is a decent length manga compressed into two quite short movies, so it proceeds at a real breakneck pace, but that is in a way its strength. Hathaway gives you a kind of tense spy drama.

in recent years we’ve seen Gundam series that take on the imagery and plot devices of Gundam, but use original settings rather than the main ‘Universal Century’. these include the currently airing Witch from Mercury, which is set in a school for mech pilots where the robot action is largely duels between students; its story focuses on corporate machinations, children being exploited, the implication of the military in tech/medical development... but the reason it caught all the attention lately is that it’s the first lesbian Gundam. Gundam is not, by and large, particularly good to its girls, so that’s a welcome change of pace.

Iron Blooded Orphans really drills into the child soldier angle. It follows the struggles of a mercenary company of ‘human debris’ child soldiers, who are attempting to get a sheltered wealthy scion to Earth for diplomatic reasons. The core dynamic is between the hot-blooded leader of the outfit and his friend the ruthless, singlemindedly devoted flat-affect killing machine of a boy. I’ve recently finished the first season, it’s fun.

one I’ve not engaged with at all but frequently had recommended is Turn A Gundam, which saw Tomino return to basically write a sort of meta series in the far future, somehow unifying all the others through some kind of cyclic timeline shenanigans. it doesn’t really make a lot of sense to me but it apparently led to a very compelling show in its own right, so hey.

the hardcore purist approach would be to begin at the beginning and watch the three compilation movies of the original Gundam ‘79, with which Tomino proclaimed his ‘New Anime Century’. however, these represent a long-running episodic TV series compiled into three movies, so they can be kind of exhaustingly paced as movies, with plots that would have taken an episode to resolve just flowing right into each other. it’s definitely got some goofy 80s ‘we want to sell toys to children’ energy.

still, basically all subsequent Gundam is riffing off it. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it as a starting point, but if you wanna get deep into Gundam, it will help orient you and it starts the arc that ultimately leads to the landmark film Char’s Counterattack. that’s basically the core ‘Universal Century’ story, focusing on Amuro, Char et al. and nearly every subsequent Gundam features a masked figure who plays on the Char archetype, so it’s worth knowing who he is. there’s also an OVA retelling of the ‘79 series called Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin; I’m not sure how that comes across if you haven’t seen ‘79 but if you’d like an easier entry point to Universal Century that’s a reasonable option.

hopefully that’s enough of a selection to give you something you might enjoy! that’s basically all the Gundam I’ve personally seen, but I’m sure I’ve missed some important ones in there.

since it seems to be in the air: what's the best way of getting into gundam and What It Is / Can Be with the least amount of unenjoyable stuff in the process

#gundam #anime

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annieedisonslostpen · 2 years ago

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Here are some shows I recommend to everyone!!! I just want the chance to gush about my favorite shows and if this convinces you to watch any of them, then I will consider my life’s mission complete and I will die peacefully 💕 (these are in no particular order btw)

1. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

- I love this show. I love it so much. The first show to ever make me laugh OUT LOUD in my empty home while watching, like a full on belly-laugh even with no one else around. I got my roommate/bestie/partner to like this show, and now our dorm room is covered in iasip stuff. It’s half satire and half pure comedy, with some really dynamic and funny characters and a super simple premise (5 people own a bar. They get up to shenanigans around Philly. They are also the most terrible people on the planet and have no regard for others.) I know a lot of people hate the first season (probably for good reason, the political satire didn’t click very well from the get-go and its… difficult… to sit through some scenes) but I still enjoy it purely for how funny the characters are despite being awful people. Notable episodes are The Nightman Cometh (4x13), The Gang Solves the Gas Crisis (4x2), A Very Sunny Christmas (6x13), and The Gang Dances Their Asses Off (3x15).

2. Barry

- this is the most recent show that I finished all the way through, and I have to say, it’s really that good. Bill Hader is a really amazing actor — I had only seen him on SNL before this, and I had no idea he could display such a perfectly horrifying range of emotions. It starts a little slow; the first couple of episodes are good, not outstanding, but then it really picks up and creates a super strange, almost surreal atmosphere of tension/emotion/drama. Basically, the premise is that a professional hit man realizes his true passion is acting, but can’t seem to shake his past and move forward with his plan of redemption. A super great show. Honestly I can’t pick a single episode or two that are my favorite, but Ronny/Lily from season 2 was nominated for an Emmy I think, so check that one out :) this show is also very very violent so just giving you a warning now lol

3. Arrested Development

- this show is so good??? what???? honestly I never watched the last two seasons (I tried — I failed), but the third season ends the show perfectly, you don’t have to watch after that if it’s not holding your attention like it didn’t hold mine. I don’t even know how to describe how well this show (especially the first season, which is the best first season of almost any show I’ve seen) interconnects all these crazy jokes, plot lines, and characters so effortlessly. It’s fucking insane. I think (?) Drew Gooden made a video about how AD was ahead of its time, go check that out if you’re interested in hearing more about the humor style bc it’s really hard to explain. The premise is that a super rich family ends up losing their money when the patriarch is sent to jail for fraud (??) and hijinks ensue. Best episodes are Bringing Up Buster (1x3), Pier Pressure (1x10), and Let ‘Em Eat Cake (1x22).

4. What We Do In The Shadows

- vampires who live in Staten Island with their human familiar, what could be better than that?? I am not going to sit here and say that this show is amazing or perfectly written — it’s not, but something about the passion that the actors put into their roles, how they absolutely fully commit to the goofiness, is super endearing and hooked me from the beginning. It’s campy and fun with a dark sense of humor, and really sells its concept well. Vampires!!! Blood!!! Homosexuals???? The Casino (3x4) is a standout episode to me, but most of the episodes are about the same quality in my mind.

5. Succession

- yeah this show deserves all the fucking awards. It’s so good. I almost never choose to watch dramas, but I was promised gay people, and while that kind of didn’t shape out, the rest of the story is just amazing. I’m sure you guys have heard people rave about this show, and you should listen to them, because they are fucking right!!!! On the outside, it looks like a bland, colorless business drama, but once you dive into it (the first half of season one is kind of a slog), there is so much pain, love, redemption, loss, and beauty hidden under the layers of the show (and this reflects the characters too — stale from the outside, but much deeper and intriguing on the inside). The writing is spectacular. The jokes are actually funny?? The camera work and acting is incredible (seriously, props to Jeremy Strong for making me have overwhelming levels of empathy for his shitty, horrible character. Also, all the other actors and actresses are amazing, I can’t think of a single one who put in less than 110% into their role). Just go watch it. All the episodes are good, but the beginning episode of season 3 is such a strangely compelling and relatable character journey for Kendall, I felt way too many emotions in one sitting.

6. Stranger Things (Season 1)

- I am currently at the end of season 2, and while I still really enjoy it, I don’t think there has ever been a more cohesive and enjoyable first season of a show than Stranger Things. Like.. when people were hyped about this… it was deserved. I only recently got around to it, but yeah, it’s just as awesome as people say it is. The horror elements are really well done (I normally hate gore and horror and scary stuff, but I found myself not even shying away or being grossed out, it just fits so perfectly into the story that it wasn’t off putting to me at all), and the characters are so dynamic and realistic and interesting that I felt myself so incredibly compelled to watch the next episodes just to see what the characters did next!! I’m trying to think of characters that I disliked from the first season, and I genuinely can not think of any (Steve is a little flat, but he’s not super important this season so I forgive him). The plot is so unsettling and creepy, I was sitting on the edge of my seat watching most of the season. The soundtrack slaps, the direction is awesome, the set pieces are fun to look at and make perfect places for action to occur. All the storylines coming together at the end occurs so smoothly that I was actually shocked they managed to pull it off, and none of the things the characters did made me irrationally frustrated like in most horror media (except when a few characters of the main group split up for an episode — that was kind of stupid and didn’t need to happen). I like the time period they decided to set it in I guess, I felt nostalgic for the 80s even though I was born in 2003 lmao. Just go watch the first season, you won’t regret it.

Okay I might make a part 2 later because I’m tired of typing, but hopefully you guys will give these shows a chance!!! 💕💕💕

#tv #television #show #iasip #wwdits #succession #stranger things #Barry #arrested development #drama #comedy

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transformers-fan-continuities · 3 years ago

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Spotlight: Ties That Bind

This one’s a doozy folks! If you missed the last spotlight you can go read it here, but strap in for The Ties That Bind, an absolutely brilliant take on humanformers. It’s hosted here at @tiesthatbind-tf created by @artsy-hobbitses!

Q) Give us a run down of your cont! What's it about, what's it called, what's it like?

Ties That Bind is a humanformers-based original continuity which is part Science Fiction and part Alternate History where the invasion of Quintessons and introduction of their technology to Earth in 1920 sets the world and humankind on a completely different trajectory. The active narrative spans a period from 1920 to 2070, covering the First and Second Quintesson Wars, the interplanetary Antillan War (leading to the creation of Unicron on Mars) and the Great War which involves the Autobots, Decepticons and Functionist stalwarts, and how it affects the characters.

The cast is pretty sprawling and the narrative is mostly centred around human drama with bits of humor interspaced and a dash of horror (mostly centred around how the previous government often chose to utilize the technology left behind from the Quintesson Wars to create new systems of oppression, which affected many of the characters, in the name of worldwide rebuilding efforts).

Q) What characters take the lead here? Any personal favorites?

I will admit to this continuity being very much heavy on the relationship between Old Bastards Optimus Prime and Megatron, which is given considerable weight as they were best friends who had known each other since childhood and were deeply intrinsic to each other’s growths as individuals, which makes it all the worse when guilt and betrayal enter the party. Despite being captains in two corners of this battle, there’s a part of them that just cannot let go of their pasts together and they need to reconcile with how this will affect their agenda (Megatron) and how they lead their team (Optimus) who don’t necessarily share their history.

Other characters with significant development include:

Starscream, a Cold Construct in a toxic working relationship with Megatron with whom he is hiding a dark secret, who struggles to balance the underhanded viciousness he believes he needs to gain power and his innate desire from his Senate days to make the world a better place.

Windblade, a Camien native who fights her government’s apathy concerning the situation on Earth which they see as unsalvageable compared to their more Utopian society.

Prowl, a Cold Construct raised from childhood to be a cop in a police state, who finds out that he was brainwashed several times to ensure his obedience and efficacy as a government asset and is now working to reclaim some semblance of the humanity he was never allowed to feel and figure out how much of him is who he really is and how much is programming.

Hound, a sheltered Beastman who joined the fight to ensure that Beastmen the world over would have the same rights he did in his homeland of Shetland Isle, but is forcefully stripped of his humanity and faced with his animal side during the war and has to relearn what personhood means amid his trauma.

Q) Is there a bigger point to this, like a theme or some catharsis? Or is it just fluffy fun?

God with the amount of time I spent sleepless trying to figure out how the logistics of this or the semantics of that were supposed to work in universe, I cannot for the life of me say it’s fluffy fun, but I can’t exactly say it hasn’t been pretty engaging either!

There’s elements of war being messy for everyone involved where there doesn’t seem to be a clear line between friend and foe at times, but I think for most part it prescribes to Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s belief that people are inherently good, but are corrupted by the evils of society. Despite its dark themes (Including but not limited to child abuse, torture, illegal experimenation and brainwashing), love and friendships do prevail, kindness does beget kindness, found families are made, even the smallest actions matter, and things do get better because there are people on both sides who genuinely want to, and strive to make it better.

With Cold Constructs and Beastmen, it also delves heavily into what it means to be human; to have agency and personhood.

There’s also a strong undercurrent of taking responsibility for one’s actions, even if they were made with the best of intentions (Avoidance of this is what eats up Starscream and Megatron from the inside, and what Starscream eventually embraces).

Q) How long have you been working on it?

There’s two answers to this!

I’ve had a Humanformers-related universe going all the way back to 2007 around the time the first Bayformers came out---basically I had a choice between learning to draw cars or draw people (I was an anthro artist back then) and I immediately chose people.

The 2007 draft however had no worldbuilding or connective storylines and was mostly a fun little venture into character design and practice which were actually instrumental to me experimenting and learning how to draw humans properly.

I left the fandom for about a decade and when I came back to it in late 2020 around September via the War for Cybertron series on Netflix, I immediately got hooked on the 2005 IDW comics I missed out on and wanted to get around to updating my old designs as well find a way to translate several of the concepts I wanted to explore in a human sense, so the 2020 update became its own full-fledged original continuity with detailed worldbuilding and history.

You can see the artistic evolution of several characters from their original incarnation below!

Q) It’s incredible to see your artistic improvement too! Give us a behind-the-scenes look! Show us a secret ;))

Say hello to my workspace! I’ve been working exclusively on the Ipad Pro since late 2016, which is fantastic because I can basically whip up concepts and sketches on the go anywhere. Nowhere is too out of bounds to work on TTB!

Also, do enjoy this sneak peek at true!form Rung, whose synthezoid human body took years to perfect.

Q) YESSSSS alright I must admit this is one of my favorite Rungs, and certainly my fave within TTB. Amazing. Phew, anyway. Where did you draw inspiration from? What canons, what other fiction, what parts of real life?

TTB was initially conceived as a faithful retelling of the IDW 2005 narrative before it was transformed into its own continuity and as such, it borrows heavily from concepts and mirrored plot lines introduced in that run! I chose to have the series inspired off it specifically for the amount of history and worldbuilding it introduced to the franchise.

Anime like Gunslinger Girl and Beastars inspired the depictions of Cold Constructs, especially the more harrowing aspects of their upbringing as government assets instead of children, and Beastmen (Beastformers) in TTB.

I haven’t depicted the world itself in my art all too much, but the architecture from Tiger and Bunny, which has sort of a futuristic Art Deco feel to it, is what you’d usually see in major cities. There is an in-universe reason for that---with a Point Of Divergence set in 1920 followed by 25 years (an entire generation) of progress basically being kicked to the curb due to the Quintesson wars, mankind was basically in a time-locked bubble until the end of the wars, and by then their heroes were 1920s-style rebellion leaders, which lead to 1920s fashion (especially among the Manual Working Class---Megatron, Jazz and Optimus all rock 1920s fashion at some point of their lives) and architecture being celebrated and retained as sort of a reminder of how things were before The Invasion. This anime’s background design is also where I adopted the tiered system TTB’s major metropolises are often built on (with each tier being designated to a different working class) from.

The main artistic style itself is a love letter to 90s cartoons, in particular Gargoyles’ deep and drama-driven character narratives and designs as well as The Centurions’ take on body armor logistics.

I also take inspiration, especially armor-wise, from the characters’ given heritage and background. As an example, Hotrod who is depicted as Irish has the flames on his armor done up with Celtic knots. Welsh aristocrat Mirage’s armor bears olden knight-style filigree and has his Autobot logo designed as a coat of arms. Indonesian Soundwave’s armor and Decepticon logo takes cues from Batik and Wayang Kulit while their mask is based off the Barong.

Q) They are absolutely gorgeous! Show off something you're really proud of, a particular favorite part of your cont.

The worldbuilding in general! Most Humanformers I’ve seen tend to treat it like a fun exercise which it is and is definitely valid, but I found myself wanting a full-fledged world to lose myself in and I sought to try and make that world myself by drafting a detailed history and timeline of events which would affect ongoing narratives, having indepth worldbuilding to include almost all societal aspects of the universe and expanding on the concept of Beastmen and Cold Constructs existing in a human setting.

I’m not so secretly proud of the research and diversity included to make the cast look like the multicultural, globally-based team that they were meant to be instead of being locked to a single region! My original draft from 2007 was, to put it simply, quite culturally monolithic and I wanted to improve on that aspect with TTB.

I’m also proud that I’ve kept to it this far! I’m a notoriously flaky person jumping from one idea/fandom to another and to have kept at this continuity for the better part of ten months is honestly a personal feat.

Art-wise, this scene depicting a young Megatron working alongside Terminus and Impactor (cameo by @weapon-up-wallflower‘s OC Missit!) is definitely one of my favorites since it helps build up the world they live in and plays to familial bonds and comfort found in one another despite their less than ideal circumstances.

Q) Everything has come together so beautifully, you absolutely should be proud. What other fan canons do you love and why? Would you like to see them interviewed?

I am dying to hear more from @iscaredspider’s Sparkpulse continuity! Her designs are MIND-BLOWINGLY GORGEOUS and I want to hear more about what inspired her to work on it!

Also YOU. Yes YOU BLURRITO. LET ME HEAR MORE ABOUT SNAP.

Q) [wails and squirms away in the mortifying ordeal of being known but in a very flattered way] I WILL SOMEDAY I PROMISE aflghsdjg thank you QwQ

Well that was fantastic, Oni, thank you muchly! A magnificent continuity with so much to look forward to! Coming up next is another personal fave of mine, the first inspiration for SNAP, so stick around...

#long post #gore #ties that bind #spotlight #transformers #HUMANFORMERS #transformers au #tf original continuity #transformers fan continuity #transformers redesign #maccadam #i said id post this on sunday but i realize thats a holiday for lots of folks on this site :/

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sofoulandfairaday · 4 years ago

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The ultimate How I Met Your Mother Finale rant

I know this has been done before, and I know I'm several years late to the party, but I don't care, so IN THIS ESSAY I WILL tell you about why this finale takes the spot as the second-worst finale in TV show history (because Game of Thrones is still, to this day, unbeatable, and it will probably stay like that forever).

But first, a little context: I've just finished binge-watching HIMYM. This binge has been going on for three days straight (my final exam of the semester is in a week and I should be studying, so the fact that the last few days were a partial waste of time makes me so mad). Second thing: I already knew how it would end, and yes, kids, it does ruin the show for you. It ruins the show so much it makes your blood boil when you rewatch certain scenes, but I will get to that.

You might want to make yourself a drink because this is a complete list of all the reasons why HIMYM's finale sucks - I'm warning you, it's gonna be looong.

It completely invalidates the entirety of season 9

This is one of the complaints people most often have with this series, and I have to agree. It would have been so much better if the last two episodes never existed, and they just showed Barney and Robin dancing at the reception after walking out of the chapel, Ted noticing Tracy and then the platform scene. "And that, kids, is the story of how I met your mother". Cut scene. Honestly, I don't get the hate people give to season 9, barring the last 2/3 episodes, especially since season 8 was so much worse (except for a few honourable mentions, like The Robin). S8 was slower, less funny, and less deep, and while the authors took a risk by making s9 happen in the span of a weekend it paid off: they took their time introducing the character of the Mother to the gang and fleshing her out. They make sure to highlight all the little ways in which Ted and Tracy are perfect for each other, and even tie up loose ends, like with the Slapsgiving episode, that was a filler but it wasn't boring to watch (although it may be problematic for different reasons, I'm not Chinese, so I can't say for sure if it's cultural appropriation or just the authors making fun of a particular movie genre).

Some episodes were arguably great: "Daisy" was amazing, and that whole fight between Marshall and Lily was so realistic and well thought out, "Sunrise" was extremely important for Ted's character development, same goes for Tracy and "How Your Mother Met Me", "Bedtime stories" was impressive, "Rally" was incredibly funny and proved once again what a beautiful character Barney Stinson is, so much so that even Robin never has doubts that he (the guy with the biggest commitment issues on the planet) will bail on her before the wedding, and says to Ted that "he always comes back". Daphne's character is super funny and the right amount of annoying, the shenanigans of the gang are well thought out and all of the characters (not just Barney) complete their arc in this season. The last two/three episodes butcher that.

Marshall and Lily

Marshall and Lily, arguably the world's most solid couple, are the only thing this God-awful finale gets right, especially Marshall, who is my second-favourite character, that finally gets everything he deserves. But what about Lily? They never mention her career after Italy, and I refuse to believe she goes back to being a kindergarten teacher as if her year in Rome meant nothing. I also refuse to think she becomes nothing but a political wife, the equivalent of Zoey, but without saving the world. We know she has three kids, but her postpartum depression is never really talked about much and they definitely had the screentime to delve into it.

Barney

Where do I even begin? Barney Stinson is, without a doubt, the best character in this series, the glue of the whole gang. I think the message they were trying to give is that, since his trauma stemmed from the absence of a father figure in his life, he could only truly heal by becoming a father as well. People also say that n°31 had to stay just a number, because who could match up with Barney Stinson? First of all, I call BULSHIT on that last point, because Robin wasn't the only girl Barney could have ended up marrying. I used to think that too, but it's just not true: that is the equivalent of saying that Barney was incapable to truly love a woman and commit to her, even after all the development he got, and that he only got one shot at love in life, and that's it. This goes against the point the showrunners try to make by having Ted and Robin end up together AND by having Tracy get with Ted in the first place: "it's never too late, you always have another chance at love, etc." And, let's face it, Barney and Robin are legendary, but Barney and Nora (hell, even Barney and Quinn!) were pretty good together too.

Second of all, if they wanted to give Barney a kid, they could have easily done that, before Barney married Robin. Barney's "redemption" starts when he gets with Robin the first time, hell maybe even when we meet James for the first time: Nora, Quinn, finding out who his father is, the episode dedicated to the lies his mum told him/finding James' father, him getting to know his own dad, etc... those are all steps along the way. The s9 episode where Barney accepts the relationship between Loretta and the reverend proves how far he's come. So why not give him a daughter BEFORE he proposes to Robin? Have him cheat on Nora/Quinn with n°31, giving him a relapse, and having him get closer to Robin while struggling to be a dad to Ellie. That would have been great.

Or, you know, don't give him children. What's the point of burning the Playbook if you're going to have him write the second edition? What's the point of having him do a complete 180 in the last few scenes and acting like having a kid is the only thing that makes him change? What's the point of doing that when the show spends entire episodes berating Marshall and Lily for "changing too much" when they have a kid?

Also, Barney is the "challenge accepted" guy. He loves his wife so much, he spent years wanting her, and then he gives up because there is no WiFi in his hotel. How does that make any sense at all? This is Barney Stinson, the "I will fly out to San Francisco and buy Lily a plane ticket", the "I will steal every girl from my best friend just to save him for Lily", the guy that wrote the Playbook (it takes effort to pull those plays off), the guy that planned for weeks his proposal, the guy that waited years to get back at the man who stole his first girlfriend, the guy that makes every night legendary... are you telling me that that guy becomes the equivalent of a bored housewife instead of living his best life while travelling the world? Come on. They don't even try to make it believable.

Ted

While watching seasons 7 and 8, I felt that Ted was becoming the worst character on the show: he was boring, depressed, basically had no good storylines, the whole thing with Victoria was pointless and inconclusive (and the whole "stop being in love with Robin" was completely out of character for her), but whatever, we could have accepted that because it passed the message that two people could be good together, without being soulmates - which, by the way, renders the TedxRobin ship pointless, because they were right for each other, but Ted and Tracy were soulmates. Him being hung up on Robin in the latter seasons is almost pathetic, and the thing he does with the locket is insane, not romantic - BUT I will say this: it can be seen in two ways, depending on who's watching. I personally like the two as friends, so I see the whole thing as a "Dahmer" situation, but I get the people who see it as a "Dobler" one and see what he did as a grand romantic gesture.

The problem, though, is that the whole TedxRobin ship gets pretty old, pretty fast: it's an annoying on-and-off thing, that should have ended with the locket. Because, yes, Ted was in a dark moment, yes, he was probably depressed, yes, he thought Robin was his only shot at happiness, but he changes during season nine! He spends entire episodes letting go of Robin, including the one where she transforms into a balloon and flies away. Ted is the good guy, ultimately. He is the guy that is genuinely happy for his best friends. In one of the deleted scenes from the finale, he meets Robin years later and says that he's so happy with Tracy he never thought about Robin in that way anymore. All of that gets thrown in the trash. Why do that? To use a Harry Potter metaphor, Ted is Severus Snape, while Barney is James Potter: the former loved the girl of his dreams with all his heart, even to the point of creepiness, but they weren't meant to be together.

Robin

This, along with the next point, is the worst of all: Robin is the worst character of the entire finale. Her relationship with Ted in season 2 is wonderful, and I say that as a full-on Barney/Robin shipper. There was never a problem in their relationship, apparently, but they then break up because they have an "expiration date" and ultimately want different things in life. Except that Ted is not her soulmate. The only times when Robin wants Ted are the times where (1) she can't have him because he's either trying to move on or (2) the times where it's convenient, for example when they become roommates again and they solve their disputes again. Around that time, we see perfectly that Ted had moved on and that the person getting hurt was Barney. It's one thing to see Ted and Robin in the finale as two people picking up where they had left off after they dated. But this is not the case.

In season 7, we have the exchange that should have put an end to any and all TedxRobin drama, and that completely invalidates whatever the writers wrote after that about the two of them: Ted declares his love - "I think you know how you feel about me now. I don't think time's gonna change that. Just tell me: do you love me?" To which she answers "No". And Ted also says later to Marshall, that he's "happy because he can finally move on".

What a load of crap.

Getting over someone is hard, believe me, I would know. And, oftentimes, it doesn't happen until we find someone else to love (and from the moment he meets Tracy, there is no one else for Ted). But by giving Ted feelings for Robin after this moment, it takes away from the beauty of it- because it's one of the most heartbreaking feelings in the world when you declare your love to someone and they don't love you back. Ted and Robin were both honest at that moment, and it was the last genuinely good exchange between them. After that, during season 8 they try to show us Ted trying to get over her (and failing) and in season 9 Ted getting over her completely. This is also weirdly paced because at the beginning of s8 both are in happy relationships with other people and there's no jealousy (which is good, because at least they weren't toxic) and they seem just friends (when Robin leaves Nick to go see him in the middle of the night, she implies that she would do it for any of her friends), but after Ted breaks up with Veronica because of Robin everything is weirdly coated in this sort of tension between the two: first Ted loves her, but she doesn't, so when he helps her by taking her to Barney's proposal ("which means my best bro in the world has given me his blessing").

And, by the way, every time they try to paint Ted as the guy that comes through for Robin after this moment, they dumb down Barney's character. And still fail to make Ted a better guy than him (see: the carousel in Central Park).

Yes, Robin and Ted have some chemistry, but it is nothing compared to what Robin and Barney have. Every time Robin is jealous of Barney, it doesn't seem like a stupid whim, just because some other child is playing with her toys (except, perhaps, during The Robin). Robin and Barney's relationship would need a whole other post, and the next time I rewatch the series I will write down all the things that make them perfect for each other, but, to me, the biggest difference between the two relationships is this: in season 6, when she's not dating either one of them, Ted accuses Robin of never making him feel needed while they were together, whereas Barney praises her for it. Those are elective affinities: that's what Barney and Robin have, and what Tracy and Ted have.

Barney and Robin have more or less the same arc: they both get over their fear of commitment and they do that with each other. Time and time again, we are told that if they're ever going to settle down, it would only be with the other. The first time they break up is honestly so stupid, and even when they are broken up, they are the best of friends, which also makes Robin's behaviour in the finale look so stupid. The way the two of them fit together is unparalleled, both in a romantic and a platonic way.

Think about it: Robin makes Barney a better man, while she makes Ted a worse one.

Also, the whole point that there are different seasons in life for everything gets thrown out the window: apparently, Ted and Robin (that were a couple that ultimately worked in their young twenties) are the same people in their forties.

But that's not even the worst part. The worst part is that the two final episodes butcher Robin's arc as well: episode 23 starts with Lily saying "I want this girl to be in our lives" and we know Robin never made other friends outside of the gang, because she didn't need to, and now she walks away from everything because of fucking Ted?? This is saying "hey, Robin was only in the group for Ted, who brought her in, and now she leaves because he's not her puppy anymore". Robin was the one that was eternally indecisive between Ted and Barney and you're telling me that three years and many many life experiences later, she's still not sure?

The point of her story is learning how to get over her fear of commitment, learning how to be there for her friends (there's an entire episode dedicated to that, and it's the one where Lily's pregnant and we meet Robin's ex-best friend in Canada), and how to balance her job and her life. Also, the way her character is treated is un-feminist and un-progressive: she becomes Ted's consolation prize. She is passive throughout s9. She cannot, ultimately, win the modern-day struggle most women have and balance out career and love life, so her true life, her "happy chapter" begins after she has already accomplished everything she wanted to and she's free for Ted. She doesn't even go back to him, she just the prize the main character wanted for all his life and only got in the end because his wife died (ONE SCENE, people, ONE SCENE!). Also, this makes Tracy the "broodmare" that gives him the kids he wanted, and his "happy family" experience before he goes to be with his one true love.

The mother

This. This makes me so mad. One whole season spent on building up Tracy's character, just for it to go to waste. It would have been so easy to screw her up, but she is hands down the best thing about s9. She's the perfect woman for Ted and the episode shot through her perspective is the sweetest. By the end, I liked her more than Robin and Lily. She was the perfect addition to their group, she fit together with them in a perfect way, and they show us the biggest moment of her and Ted's life... for what? To have her die in a few sentences? And I don't care if they shot a funeral scene, I don't care if the finale was supposed to be 40 minutes long, because, in the end, it wasn't. The scene where Ted meets her is the second most beautiful one (after Barney's proposal to Robin) and the climax of the whole show, but they ruin her... and for what? The chemistry Ted has with her, he has with no one. The joy she brings him, the way she understands him, is unlike any other. I am sure that one of the reasons they killed her off was the shock value and I hate it.

I cannot stress this enough: Tracy makes Ted a better person. When he's with Robin, Ted is "the nice guy" in the most selfish and narcissistic version of the trope. When he's with Tracy, love comes easy to Ted. Also, the scenes between the two of them are arguably the best Ted scenes of the show.

The kids' reactions (ugh)

It's not really what they say- it's the way they say it. The end of HIMYM was not supposed to be funny, even though the show is a sitcom. It was supposed to be bittersweet and beautiful, because it's the end of an era, and the writers must have known that. So, Ted finishes telling his story, reveals to the audience that their now-beloved Tracy is dead, and the reaction is: "No, ahah, you totally have the hots for Aunt Robin" (their words, not mine). Like, what the actual fuck? I cringed when Penny said that. It's tasteless and not fun at all. Even if it has been six years... It's still your fucking mum, show a little bit of sadness at the thought of her.

The reason the show ended this way

What makes me especially mad is that I know for a fact that the reason they went with this ending is that it was the original one, always intended for the show, from season 2 onwards. And, if you watch it right after s2, it makes sense. But if you consider the eight years that passed and the massive character development, then no, it's not the best possible one. So many things hadn't been decided yet back in s2, especially about Barney, Ted, and Robin, and I hate that they didn't dare to scrap their work. This ending probably had sentimental meaning to the writers, but authors have to do what's best for their characters, not themselves. It's like with GoT, in a way: I think that the authors were all too aware of the impact of HIMYM and didn't believe that their finale would live up to the expectations... which compelled them to make the worst decision possible?? Every single character is OOC during the episode. Oh, and Marshall and Lily moving in the last episode is a ripoff from Friends (or maybe a tribute? Idk). Anyway, I believe that the authors were too attached to their sentimental version of "what should have been" and didn't give the characters the endings they truly deserved.

"Life works this way" // "Life only moves forward"

Some people say that the show is realistic because that's how life works. But I call super-BS on that. That might be true, and yes, people do get sick and die (Max, Marshall's dad...) and life does go on. But then, you don't frame it the way they did. It's just bad storytelling if you do it like that. And the problem is not the structure of season 9, because the characters develop in that season. The problem isn't even the mother's death. The problem is Ted ending up with Robin because that's not life moving forward for him, that's him, doing the same thing he did in 2005, 25 (twenty-fucking-five) years before!

In conclusion, this finale is incoherent and inconclusive, and not satisfying at all. The only character that gets a good ending is Marshall: why is that? What makes his ending great? It's the fact that his character arc is respected and he finally gets what he's been working towards for more than ten years.

#himym #how i met your mother #how i met your mother spoilers #how i met your mother finale #09x23 #09x24 #robin sherbatsky #ted mosby #tracy mcconnell #barney stinson #marshall eriksen #lily aldrin #swarkles #ted x robin #ted x tracy #barney x robin #a rant #the blue french hor #the yellow umbrella

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mythoughtsxxblog · 2 years ago

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19 years ago today (September 23 2003) One Tree Hill premiered on the WB.

To celebrate I thought I'd post yet another opinion thread about my favorite show of all time.

Nathan Scott is quite possibly the best teen drama boy/man to ever exist. He had his flaws, but was ultimately the best husband, father, brother, and son anyone could ask for. Despite having a rough childhood, he managed to overcome and stop the toxic cycle of neglect/abuse. He made his children's lives something he had wished for himself. It takes a strong person to do that. Forever will love this man.

Lucas Scott aggravates me to no end.

3x20 is TV excellence. That no look shot is iconic and nothing will ever top that moment in TV.

Nobody does music like OTH. All those performances? Amazing.

Nathan and Haley >>>>> every other couple on the show. Idc what anyone says they were the #1 ship to come out of OTH. They went through hard times, but came out stronger in the end. I don't think there's any other TV couple with this much of a hold on me. And I've watched a lot of TV shows lol. They make me feel so comfy and warm inside. They're safe and overall written so damn well.

Going with what I said above, James and Joy's chemistry is what made Naley work tbh. They had such insane chemistry and it's mind boggling that they never even had a chemistry read when auditioning. OTH writers struck gold with them.

Dan is one of the best villains in TV show history.

Grandpa Dan....an angel lmao

It legit infuriates me that CMM was looked at as the heartthrob of the show when James Lafferty was right there. That man was and is still gorgeous. And if I'm being honest, his acting felt more natural to me than CMM. But that's a conversation for another day lol

We should've got more Skills than Mouth

Brooke's best seasons were the adult seasons tbh. Yes, she had iconic moments in the high school years, but her actual development doesn't really hit until the adult years imo

I'm convinced they only did the Nathan/Brooke sextape because they wanted the audience to sympathize with Peyton. Also Nathan and Brooke are quite possibly the most liked characters, the writers probably thought why not try destroying their development 🙄🙄

I loved Jamie 🤷🏻‍♀️ it seems like so many people find him annoying but I loved him lol I can understand why he might be annoying to some, but I really enjoyed him and thought he was a great addition to the show. He had great chemistry with all the core characters

6x03 is the saddest episode in TV history and if you don't cry watching it, you're not human

Nathan's NBA story arc is amazing storytelling. I loved every minute of it and believe it's one of, if not, the best story arc to come out of the show

Peyton was so much more likeable when she wasn't with Lucas. I honestly enjoyed her and Lucas being friends way more than when they got together

I didn't mind Lucas and Lindsay

Season 9 was so chaotic, but I loved it

I loved how Julian went from this hot mysterious producer to an absolute dork that loved chasing butterflies. Best development lol

This cast deserved an award for 3x16. The acting was on point. The storyline was on point. One of the most well done sch*ol sh*oting episodes I've seen a TV show pull off. It's a shame they barely got any credit for it

Never got the appeal to Karen/Keith. I honestly shipped Deb/Keith more lol

Nathan's depression storyline deserved better. The writers dropped the ball on a lot of mental health storylines, but this one in particular upsets me. First it was the race car incident in season 2. He should've gone to therapy. Then it was season 5 and his back injury. It felt as though he was being told get over it and "man up" when that sends a pretty toxic message. The scene with Peyton and him in the hospital pissed me off. As if seeing a child with cancer is supposed to make him feel better. I get what they were trying to get across, but it could've been done differently. Also Haley throwing dishes/bottles???? Why? Great acting moment from Joy, but unnecessary for Haley's character. I also applaud James for his acting throughout this storyline. Just wish it was written better.

Continuing with the above statement, Haley's depression storyline was done much better. It was a bit rushed, but it wasn't as frustrating to watch.

I always preferred Brooke and Haley's friendship to Brooke and Peyton's

Brooke and Nathan's friendship deserved more screen time. That scene when Nathan goes to check on her before Quentin's funeral will forever break me

Nathan getting harassed in the shower doesn't get talked about enough. Absolutely foul.

Although I loved Brooke getting her happy ending, I kinda wish they settled with her adopting instead of miraculously being able to have kids. Her adopting would've been more relatable.

Rachel deserved better

Quinn deserved better writing. I feel like she was treated more like eye candy than anything. Justice for Shantel VanSanten

FUCK M*RK S*HWAHN

I have many more opinions, but this is already long enough lol. Anyways, this show will always and forever have a place in my heart.

#one tree hill #oth #happy oth day #nathan scott #lucas scott #peyton sawyer #brooke davis #haley james scott #james lafferty #chad michael murray #bethany joy lenz #hilarie burton

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nellie-elizabeth · 2 years ago

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Roswell, New Mexico: Kiss From a Rose (4x06)

Sick Michael is kind of the most precious thing I've ever seen lol.

Cons:

I don't really know what to make of Bonnie as a character. I'm extremely torn. I was excited to find out that her kiss with Michael had ulterior motives, but now we find out that those motives were her trying to help him, not hurt him. She hits that "born sexy yesterday" trope for me, where she's this wide-eyed innocent excited for someone to teach her about the world, but she's also super dangerous. It's tired, it's lazy, and I don't like how she's just willing to follow whoever happens to be nice to her at any given time. On the other hand, I do like that they're kind of keeping us guessing with her character. So I don't know.

Everything with Eduardo and his daughter felt like a waste of time to me. As we move further and further through this season, I'm realizing how much these side characters and new characters are eating up the screen time I'd rather be spending with our core cast. Anatsa was like that, and the new trio, especially Bonnie, get so much attention, and Eduardo with his family drama, Shivani with her sick daughter and semi-estranged wife... I don't know. I wish they'd known when they were making this season that it would be their last. Maybe they would have tightened the scope and focused on the things we're already invested in.

It's weird, because honestly I feel like the character who is getting the most good attention in this final season, and has the most interesting character stuff happening with him, is Michael. And Michael is my absolute fave, so of course I'm happy to get to see him explore his identity and his past... but at the same time, all this amazing character development for Michael just sheds an even brighter light on Alex's absence. I wish he could be there for Michael to do some processing with. I wish we could have seen him there for Michael in that moment when he learned his powers were gone. So many missed opportunities. I just really hope the payoff is good, for Alex's return...

Max is making me so angry! Honestly, after the last couple episodes when the drama between him and Liz seemed to be "I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop", I was actually excited to see that Max's powers were putting Liz in danger. This is a concrete issue that they need to work through. It's appropriately angsty, you've got the handprint binding them so they can feel each other's emotions... all good stuff. And then Max goes and gets a kiss from Bonnie to remove his powers? Just like that? That's a huge decision that doesn't only affect him! Michael is powerless too, and now they're down two aliens as they try and figure out what to do about Tezca and Clyde and all that. It's just so stupid that Max would do this. These are our final episodes with these characters, I really wanted to believe that Max had grown and changed and had started to learn his lessons, but he just keeps making the same mistakes. It's not fun to watch anymore. Echo is a ship I really enjoy, but this season has been super aggravating for both of them. Liz is doing her best, but she seems less alive as a character to me lately, since her only role seems to be worrying about the future of her relationship.

Pros:

This wasn't a bad episode, by any means, and I certainly enjoyed it a lot more than I did last week's installment. I think part of it is that I've given up hope of seeing Alex until episode eight at the earliest, so I was a lot more Zen about him not being there.

To start with, Michael's arc this season really is the strongest, most consistent thing we have going on! He's grown so much as a character over the years. I love the moment when he wants to go with Max to talk to Bonnie, since he promised he'd protect her. And how even after learning what she did, he ultimately can't entirely hate her for it. He's learning so much about who he is, and it's complicated to let go of the things you've held onto for so long, while also trying to feel grounded in your present choices. I love how they're grappling with that!

Also, he's just super, super adorable all snuffly and curled up on the couch under a blanket. Seriously melted my heart. Missing Alex, grumpy about his powers... too sweet. Liz was so worried about him, promising to solve everything with science right away. And Maria makes him soup and commiserates with him over losing their alien powers, and Dallas comes by to check on him and get his advice... I'm just very warm and fuzzy about Michael having this whole support system. Sure, I could complain about the people who didn't get to react or know about Michael being sick in any way, including Sanders, Isobel, and of course, Alex, but I can also appreciate what we did get to see. I know people probably didn't like the Maria stuff in this episode but I honestly found it super sweet that she was there to take care of him and talk things over with him. Justice for their friendship, please!

I loved Liz being a bad-ass, and having faith in Max, and doing all the right things: speaking of characters who have really grown throughout the show. She is, in my opinion, handling everything really well. It's just Max who's freakin' blowing it for the both of them. I loved the handprint stuff, too, the way Liz and Max were navigating how they were feeling through being able to experience each other's emotions... Liz being understandably scared that Max's powers would continue to be a dangerous problem, but also wanting to reassure Max that she's in this for the long haul and isn't going anywhere... all great stuff! Until that stupid ending, and now next week they're going to have to fight about Max being an idiot! Again!

And then there's the Kyle and the Isobel of it all! As I said previously, I was really displeased with how things went between them last week, so I was ready to still be disappointed, but I actually really liked the angst here! Kyle is so happy and feels so settled after their night together, but Isobel immediately opens with "oh no, did I ruin our friendship?" And of course Kyle plays along. If they'd left things there, I still would have been annoyed. But instead, Kyle, after having a talk with Eduardo about regrets, decides to lay it all on the line. He tells Isobel he's in love with her, and she says... that she doesn't know what to say.

I loved how Kyle tried to be calm about this, tried to say that she could take all the time she wanted, but Isobel, quite reasonably, doesn't want Kyle waiting around for something that Isobel can't promise will ever happen. The way their relationship is structured, with Kyle pining away and Isobel not being aware of her own feelings, actually really works for me, in terms of a good romance story, and also with these particular characters. Kyle and Eduardo are off on a road trip, so he'll have some time to process, and I'm willing to bet that Isobel is going to be thinking quite a lot about Kyle while he's gone! I have high hopes for what we'll get between these two by the end of the season.

Dallas gets to learn a bit more about his dad, and discovers that there could be hidden messages in the bible his dad gave to him when he was briefly awake in the 1940's. I like that we're continuing to develop Dallas more and more; of all the new characters who arrived in season three/four, Dallas is the one I'm really happy about having around. It was sweet that Isobel rushed back to help him access his memories, even if I'm annoyed that nobody bothered telling her that Michael was sick and powerless! Yeesh.

So that's where I'll stop for now. I really, really hope that the next couple of weeks give us some forward motion on the Alex situation. I don't want that to be the only thing I care about. It's not the only thing I care about. But it sure is the thing I care about the most, and I'm not going to lie about that...

7.5/10

#review #roswell new mexico #roswell new mexico review

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