#he's a cool dude apparently there's no beef but it Is hysterical

[menlove]

starting my new job as a dishwasher tomorrow lmfao the american dream ✌️

[ladyloveandjustice]

Fall 2018 Anime Overview: Continuing Series- Golden Kamuy Season 2 and Banana Fish

Golden Kamuy Season 2

If you enjoyed the first season, this is pretty much more of the same, so check out my review of season one to know what to expect.

Though I guess you could say this portion of the season DOES lean even harder into weirdness than the first one did. There’s not many anime where you’ll see two dudes having the time of their lives modeling fashionable outfits made out of human skin, which include...crotch appendages...only in Golden Kamuy y’all.

Interestingly bizarreness tends to overlap with queerness a lot in this season and its hard to know how to feel about it. For instance, it’s definitely an unexpected revelation that dudes are attracted to Lieutenant Tsurumi like whoa. 

IDK apparently he’s a catch. Half of his subordinates are in love with him. It’s handled as comical and of course the dudes are mentally unbalanced weirdos (as is everyone in Golden Kamuy except Asirpa and Sugimoto only sometimes) and one of them dies, but the show is never overtly mean to them either. Nobody acts disgusted about it and when one character observes the attraction, he basically shrugs about it.

 Satoru Noda apparently also REALLY loose with his fixation with dudes muscles with this part of the story, to the point we got the beef-cakiest hotsprings episode I’ve ever seen, which includes an extended fight scene where the male characters were naked throughout. There’s also an entire scene where apparently otter meat is an aphrodisiac that causes the dudes to be really into each other, so they engage in nearly naked sumo wrestling.

This is all clearly supposed to be wacky and funny, but at the same time it’s pretty clear the mangaka must REALLY LIKE drawing these scenes of muscular, naked men, and I support him following his dreams. Also I won’t deny it’s refreshing to see a hot springs episode where not a single woman got objectified, but there was dude oglin’ a plenty. It healed me a little.

I guess while we’re talking about this show and its weird relationship with queerness I should reporting that my prediction was right and the trans woman I mentioned in the previous review did become an ally. Her transness hasn’t been bought up again (though for some reason the subs decided to switch to “he” despite sticking with “she” before) and her role is pretty minor, she does reveal she’s skilled in both cooking and surgery (because she likes dismembering people) and talks about how great it would be to see people murdered every so often, so pretty much more of the same.

And that’s really all there is to say. Golden Kamuy has only gotten weirder and the plot only more convoluted (I’m starting to have a hard time keeping track of the characters tbh), but it’s an entertaining story and there’s still characters with resonance and heart underneath it all (the scene where Sugimoto discusses his trauma from being in the war with Asirpa genuinely tugged a heartstring. These two are still great and have really settled into a kinda of adorable dad-daughter dynamic at this point) and the historical and cultural research that went into this story is still amazing. 

I can tell the anime’s still skipping a lot of the manga (most of volume 7 was completely skipped), but since the English release of the manga is so slow, I’m happy to watch it in the meantime. It helps that the show has a bangin’ soundtrack and and it managed to pull its ginormous cast together for some truly exciting and action packed final episodes that left me eager for more. 

Banana Fish (13-24)

Again, if you read my review for the first half of the show, you can basically expect more of the same, both with the good and especially the bad parts. We do get more downtime with Ash and Eiji’s relationship, and they continued to make me think this show would be so much better if it focused more on these quiet scenes rather than on piling as much trauma on Ash as it possibly can. 

I think this second half did allow me to see what was compelling about Ash and Eiji’s relationship and why it’s stayed with so many people. When Ash explained that he’s finally found someone who will love him without expecting anything in return, so of course he’s willing to do anything for that person, that got me in the heart. Ash is someone who has either been viewed as a threat or someone to exploit- he’s especially used to being treated like he’s nothing more than a body, a receptacle for desires. Eiji isn’t afraid of Ash, or in awe of him, and never asks anything of him other than for him to be okay and by his side. Ash genuinely can just be a dumb teenager with him while he can’t with anyone else. Eiji is an outsider, to Ash’s gang-bangin’ world, to his culture in general, and that allows him to see Ash as he truly is, just a kid who needs to get out of this mess.

The romantic in me really loves that concept, and as an ace person, I especially connect to the underlying implication that Eiji is a romantic partner who isn’t going to demand sex from Ash or try to force him into it. Though Ash’s implied desire to avoid sex almost certainly stems from trauma, I know how he feels in a broad sense. And I think it’s a thing a lot of women can relate to even if they aren’t ace, wanting to find a relationship where they aren’t used or objectified, so it goes back around to how Ash acts as kind of a representation for the anxieties and desires of (likely) the mangaka and many women despite being a male character, and I still find that very interesting. The scene where Ash has a complete breakdown and screams at his rapist while laughing hysterically was really affecting.

So there’s moments of real resonance here, but is it worth the bullshit surrounding it, which includes every single gay man being represented as a rapist, to the point a gay bar is connected to a child porn ring? The nasty implication that gay sex is inherently evil and non-consensual, and Ash and Eiji’s relationship is only okay because they’re not doing it is very strong, and as much as this ace appreciates a romance that doesn’t require sex, I don’t want it THIS way.

There’s also some SERIOUS anti-Semitic bullshit that I can’t believe MAPPA didn’t edit out in a couple episodes. Like it would have been so easy to cut. Also some more pretty rough scenes of black men being murdered (they’re extras this time at least, and the main black dude for this part of the anime miraculously manages to both survive and not be an offensive caricature. Also his name is Cain Blood which is the best name in this story, and possibly ever). 

The second half of the anime also involved some of the more absurd elements worsening. I got REALLY tired of every character commenting on how hot and amazing Ash is like. I GET IT.  Also Ash’s life of being sexually exploited somehow gives him the ability to seduce any man holding him captive, and every bad guy is down for raping a teenage boy, I guess. It’s actually again, a little surreal to see these tropes with a male character. I’m used to seeing hot female characters who’ve been through sexual trauma and have magic seduction powers and are endlessly drooled over...I almost want guys to watch these segments so they can see how uncomfortable it feels when the tables are turned. 

There’s also some really good examples of ACTUAL jarring tone shifts, where the anime really fails to land some of its attempts at a funny, light moment in the midst of really tense and tragic situations. I think it’s possible the manga managed this better, but I can’t imagine the “joke” where Ash has to crossdress and a male doctor gropes him and Ash punches him out cold and his friends chortle and tell him he’s not a gentle woman could ever be done in a non jarring way. Like, I don’t like sexual harassment humor in anime at the best of times, but it’s especially bad when the person who is harassed has been raped more times than he can count.  We’re expected to take that seriously, but not this, because Ash is in a dress? It’s also like, appalling that his friends who are fully aware of his history would laugh about him getting assaulted again. It’s a moment that feels like it comes from a completely different anime. 

So um, yeah. My conclusion is those resonant moments are not worth the bullshit. The ending really cemented this for me. I had an (admittedly overly flippant) reaction that kind of sums my feelings up. Let’s just say I HATE meaningless cruel tragedy for the sake of tragedy, and I especially hate the implication abuse victims can never find happiness. 

I can’t say Banana Fish is an anime I’ll think fondly of or recommend. I do still find the discussion about it interesting, much more interesting than the actual story (as presented in the anime, again, haven’t read the manga), tbh. And I can see the seeds of a good story there, and I can understand why fans would want to see a reboot that truly modernized the story, cutting out the worst stuff and giving it a better ending, while keeping the resonance of the main relationship and the good characters (I really did like Sing, and Yut Lung was interesting. Shorter and Skip both deserved way better. Also Jessica, who at least got to do something besides be victimized at the last minute. One whole female character got a few moments of agency. Hallelujah.) Maybe someday it will happen. 

In the meantime, there’s a bunch of cool articles on Banana Fish that are worth a read. All of the pieces published on animefeminist as well as this post on Otaku, She Wrote are really informative, illuminating, and break down a lot of the issues I found here.

[jinglejangleurshitupbro]

1-100

I can't believe I'm doing this but here I am!1 - Who was the last person you texted?-My friend Lexi
2 - When is your birthday?-Jan. 31st
3 - Who do you want to be with right now?-Pretty much sny of my friends tbh
4 - What sports do you play?-What are sports?
5 - Who is the first person in your contacts?My friend Lexi
6 - What is your favorite song as of the moment?-Remember Forever by Tori Letzler and Weight of the World cover by Emi Evans
7 - If you were stranded on an island, who do you wish to be with?-Probably Les Stroud (survival expert) or my friend Michael
8 - What do you feel right now?-I feel calm at the moment
9 - What chocolate is your favorite?-Milk chocolate, especially the kind they use in Kinder Eggs
10 - How many boyfriends/girlfriends did you have?-I've had a girlfriend in the past
11 - Why did you create a Tumblr account?-My friends pressured me into doing it
12 - Who is your favorite blogger?-Definitely @chefpyro , he's a cool guy
13 - Where do you want to be right now?-At the movies watching It (which I will be later tonight)
14 - What do you want to be in the future?-Not sure, I get annoyed when peeps ask me this
15 - When was the last time you cried? Why?-About a month ago because I smashed my toe into the leg of a wooden chair and broke the nail
16 - Are you happy?-At the moment? Yeah, I guess. Long term? not really.
17 - Who do you miss?-My best friend Trinity from when I lived in Connecticut, and my ex
18 - If you were given a chance, would you like to have a different life?-I'm not sure. I mean there are certainly some aspects I wish were different but I'm not sure about as a whole.
19 - What was the best thing you were given?-Great friends
20 - Who was the last person who called you?-My little sister
21 - What is your favorite dish?-Pho (Vietnamese beef noodle soup)
22 - Who is your bestfriend?- @hoko-doko and @icybleuie23 - What is your biggest regret?-Not telling someone how I felt
24 - Have you ever cheated on your partner?-Fuck no! What am I, someone from my previous generation? Cheating on your partner is the second worst thing you could do, with the first being murder!
25 - Who do you spend crazy moments with?-My friends Emily and Amber
26 - Name someone pretty.-All my gotdamn followers and mutuals! Not to call anyone out but @404bot is fuckin cute
27 - Who was the last person you hugged?-My sister
28 - What kind of music do you listen to?-Video game OSTs
29 - Are you over your past?-Nope, some crazy shit that I'll never forget happened to me in the past.
30 - Who is the last person in your contacts?-My old friend Jesse from Connecticut
31 - What kind of person do you want to date?-Someone who loves hugs and cuddling a lot!
32 - Do you have troubles sleeping at night?-You have no idea :T
33 - From whom was the last text message you received?-A groupchat I'm in
34 - What do you prefer, jeans or skirt?-Both, depends on how hot or cold it is
35 - How’s your heart?-Physically, in pain (chronic shit) and metaphysically in pieces
36 - Did you ever have a girlfriend/boyfriend whose name starts with a “J”?-Nope
37 - Do you like someone as of the moment?-Fuck dude, like a dozen people
38 - What would you want to say to your latest ex-boyfriend/ex-girlfriend?-I'm sorry if I ever hurt you.
39 - Do you have any phobias?-Entomophobia(bugs), Coulrophobia (clowns, kinda ironic since I'm gonna see It), Acrophobia(heights), Rollercoasters (self explanatory), mild Photophobia(light, especially sunlight causes me physical discomfort), Nyctophobia(it's complicated, I both like and dislike the dark), Autophobia(abandonment), and finally, just adults in general.
40 - Did you try to change for a person?-Never, if that person has to change for you then they aren't worth your time.
41 - What’s the nicest thing have you given to someone?- A bracelet from a jewelry shop in the Louvre
42 - Would you go back to your previous relationship?-Hell yeah I would!
43 - Are you in a good or bad mood?-Pretty good mood
44 - Name someone you can’t live without.-My friends (all of them)
45 - Describe your dream date.-Staying at home and watching a movie or just hanging out somewhere
46 - Describe your dream wedding.-Haven't even thought of this yet, sorry!
47 - How many roses did you receive last Valentine’s?-None :T
48 - Have you ever been kissed?-Yes
49 - How long is your longest relationship?-10 wonderful months
50 - Do you regret your past?-No. Everything I have done led me here now. Wouldn't change a thing.
51 - Can you do something stupid for someone else?-Depends on the situation.
52 - Have you ever cried over someone?-Yeah.
53 - Do you have a grudge against anyone?-Many people.
54 - Are you a crybaby?-At times (aka when my mind doesn't repress my fucking emotions without my approval)
55 - Do people praise you for your looks?-Haha no, I look like a potato.
56 - Did you fall for someone you shouldn’t?-Mhm. A few times, actually.
57 - Have you ever done something bad but you don’t regret?-Yep. Getting revenge on someone who hurt one of my friends.
58 - Do you like getting hurt?-Uhh this seems out of place, and the answer is no.
59 - Does anyone hate you?-God I hope the fuck not, I don't remember wronging anyone (lately, at least)
60 - Did you slap anyone whose name starts with an “R”?-Yeah, my friend Ryan and I would get in slapfights all the time.
61 - What hair color do you prefer?-Pretty much anything except blond hair. Dunno why.
62 - If you can change anything about yourself, what is it?-My gender, my face, and my skin (stop being dry gdi)
63 - Do you love someone as of the moment?-Yes
64 - Have you ever thought of killing yourself?-Yes
65 - Do you have issues with somebody in your school?-Yes
66 - Can you live without internet?-Probably, depends on my living situation I suppose
67 - What’s the song that remind you of your special someone?-I'm not quite sure, we never had a song
68 - Are you good at holding back your tears?-My tear ducts are overactive and make me leak tears constantly, so no. But I rarely ever cry of my own accord. If I do, then something's up.
69 - Are you a crybaby?-Yeah, when my mind doesn't repress stuff
70 - Have you ever experienced being hysterical?-Numerous times.
71 - Are you a KPOP fan?-I've been meaning to get into it but Idk any good bands (feel free to reccomend some)
72 - Do you study hard?-As a senior I must say that study machine 🅱️roke fam
73 - Have you ever sacrificed something important to you for someone you love?-Not really, it was a LDR so the only thing I could sacrifice is my time
74 - Did you ever had a kiss under the moonlight?-No, but god I wish
75 - Have you ever ridden a boat?-Yeah! When I was touring the main river in France this year (forgot the name)
76 - Did you have an accident last year?-Yeah, I fell up the stairs and almost broke my legs
77 - What kind of person are you?-A nice one who talks too much and has too many crushes
78 - Have you ever thought of killing someone?-Yep
79 - Have you ever been jealous?-Nope
80 - How can you prove your love to someone?-Through words, or maybe some elaborate stunt? Not sure.
81 - What are you thinking right now?-Thinking about that bag of BBQ chips in the pantry...
82 - Who is the 6th person in your contacts?-Why are these questions? My friend Arge
83 - Do you have any memories you want to erase?-Yeah
84 - Have you been hurt so bad that you can’t find words to explain how you feel?-Yes I have.
85 - Did you ever badmouth someone?-Nah, I don't have a reason to talk bad about someone
86 - Have you ever had an argument with someone?-Dude who the fuck hasn't? I was just arguing the other day with a friend about the meaning of existence.
87 - Do you have trust issues?-Kinda
88 - Are you broken-hearted?-YES I AM
89 - Who’s the person who first comes to your mind when someone mentions “love”?- @sunflower-maiden-love because it's literally in their name and I kinda constantly think about my friends all the time
90 - Do you think all the pain is worth it?-If it means getting closer to happiness then yes
91 - Do you believe in the phrase “If it’s meant to be, it will be”?-Yeah
92 - Who do you want to marry?-Not sure
93 - Do you believe in destiny?-Yep
94 - Have you ever thought “I already found my soulmate”?-Not sure
95 - How do you look right now?-I look okay I guess, probably tired
96 - Do you believe that first true love never dies?-I dunno
97 - Have you found your true love?-Apparently not
98 - What should you be doing right now?-Freshening up before I head out
99 - Name one of your ex-boyfriends/ex-girlfriends.-Not gonna, sorry pal
100 - What is your sexual orientation?-Hhhhhhhh girls are amazing