#i guess it just wasn't apart of the tv culture i had when it first came out in 2004? by then i was in kindergarten so idk

[nerves-nebula]

wait I legit thought that the rat dad figure being (?) in TMNT was extremely neglectful and that's why the four stick together because they essentially had to raise themselves alone while hiding from the rest of society?

Like that's why they're big on fighting/being strong is because they had to protect each other from whatever dangers might come and try getting rid of them all for being mutants and stuff.

Also thought they grew up in the sewers and had to climb out and steal a few things at night and that's why they dressed up as ninjas originally. So they could steal food/some supplies and like not die of starvation or whatever

(I have not seen any versions of the show and have only a vague understanding of TMNT. It sounds like it's ripe for dysfunctional family dynamics possibly??)

GHAGHAG OK SOOOO THE THING ISSSS THAT I HAVE A LOT OF OPINIONS ON SPLINTER and the nature of abuse/neglect in the tmnt franchise BUT

the thing is that there are a lot of versions of TMNT that I haven't seen, including any original/old versions or comics SO mind you that my opinions here are also mostly crafted through cultural osmosis, and some vague memories of comics/tv shows. the only tmnt show ive watched in its entirety has been the 2018 version (ROTTMNT).

THAT BEING SAID: I don't think its unfair to call most versions of splinter kind of bad parents. theres definitely versions of him that are barely parents at all, really more of a Master figure who teaches the turtles to fight and trains them, than like, a Dad. 2018 is prolly the most Dad like one (they even call him dad and pops and stuff)

the thing is that TMNT can be either incredibly lighthearted or really really angst-y. They do live in the sewers cause they can't usually live above ground with people, but this really ranges from "all humans hate and fear them and will attack them on sight" to "they just need to stay in the shadows and make sure they dont spook anybody" and sometimes it barely matters at all and people are just like "wow cool costumes guys"

and so in those lighthearted versions, while splinter might not be portrayed as a really cool great dad, he is usually a really cool great NINJA MASTER. so any kind of symptoms of neglect that could come from not being raised by PARENTS is usually forgotten/hand waved because who needs parents when you have your brothers??? COwabunGA lets go eat pizza :)

and thats FINE thats the tone they're going for its ok, even if logically it would be an emotional nightmare. this is a show about teenage mutant ninja turtles its ok to not be logical.

im actually not sure why they're ninjas, apart from Master Splinter training them to BE ninjas. though there are definitely versions where they're being hunted/seen as threats and that's why they need to Get Good at fighting.

so to recap: splinter isn't always portrayed as a good person or a good guardian, but usually the story doesn't really delve into that or frame it as abuse/neglect. sometimes he's "too harsh" or "too cold" but usually nothing deeper than that.

WHICH BRINGS US TO RISE OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, the 2018 version that ive watched all of.

THE THING ABOUT ROTTMNT is that they made me uncomfortable by making jokes about splinter being a neglectful shitty dad, which i made a whole post about a while ago. and while they did make him a better dad LATER on it really really weirded me out how his neglect wasn't super focused on except for like. one or two episodes??

the thing is that splinter needs to be neglectful so that the boys can go out and have adventures and I GET THAT I REALLY DO as a storyteller some things just need to be hand-waved I GET IT. BUT. why draw attention to it if you dont plan on there being long term affects???

the only result seems to be that he Becomes a Better Dad but I can tell you first hand if my parents did a turn around like that it would NOT fix everything and I GUESS i'm just weirdly disappointed that they pointed out the neglect, made jokes about it, and then didn't reallyyyy go into it more. I mean im sure if I wanted to I could go into analysis mode and be like "well these character arcs could point to the ways neglect has effected them" but to be HONEST that'd probably be more me projecting than anything else.

AND LIKE. if they didn't want to discuss neglect why even bring it up???

and your point about it being a set up ripe for familial abuse/dysfunction is TRUE, but is also hardly ever the focus of the story. sure the stories focus on interpersonal issues, but its almost never framed through the lens of "these kids are being neglected" or "the reason they're having interpersonal issues because of the neglect they suffer" because well. that's just not very cowabunga. that's not very Kids Show. why not just have Raph and Leo fight over being the leader or again or something that's still a conflict but its less existentially draining.

and like MAYBE there's a version out there, some obscure comic run or something, that addresses all these issues and gives me the catharsis I crave BUT UNTIL THEN I will continue redrawing childhood memories of my shitty family superimposed onto TMNT characters.

SORRY for this huge, loosely jumbled together ramble but you activated my tmnt abuse/neglect fixation trap card

[ojcobsessed]

GQ: In the New York Post, you called yourself “the go-to guy for toxic men.” Was any part of you hesitant about playing another rich San Francisco jerk just a couple of years after The Invisible Man?

Oliver Jackson-Cohen: Not really, because I think that there's something really interesting in the complexities of these men. There are so many layers to them that you get to explore. I don't know if I've ever made a decision, specifically in the past, like four or five years, that has been about, "Oh God, how's this going to look?" I'd rather play someone like James than play the friendly neighbor, do you know what I mean?

The season really puts James through the wringer. I think we see him both cry and seem like he might kill someone in every episode. You've spoken about having a hard time closing the door on roles that are emotionally wrenching like this. Was that the case with Surface?

I think so. I'm probably a therapist's dream because there is a part of me that's like, "If it doesn't hurt, it doesn't count." I'm not interested in faking it. It probably sounds incredibly clichéd and probably a little bit fucked up, but I feel like I learn so much about myself by going through these emotional turmoils. I guess this one was taxing, but then every job is taxing to a certain extent.

TV shows don’t generally shoot in the order that we see. Given how much it changes over the season, what were the challenges for you and Gugu and keeping your characters’ relationship straight from day to day?

We actually managed to shoot most of the season in order, apart from Episode 6, where we just went away for three weeks, but even that was kept in sequence. It's the episode where James is telling Sophie everything about their lives [before the start of the series], and they were so generous that, by this point, I’d made all the decisions about the backstory, all of the little things that they'd done and that happened to them. And they let me just sit in front of Gugu, and they put two cameras on us, and they filmed us for, like, 45-minute takes.

I just improvised this whole story, but it was all the story that I knew. And it was the first time for her, hearing it. So that was incredible, to be able to start at the beginning — not too dissimilar to this documentary called Tell Me Who I Am, which inspired the show.

That level of collaboration is unusual in TV or film.

Yeah. I mean, I've watched the season once, like this [partially covering his eyes], but what was quite remarkable is that they've kept so much of all the stuff that we improvised as well. Working with people like that, who embrace what you bring to the table as much as being respectful of what you need to bring on their end, it’s very lucky.

Luke, your character in Hill House, has issues with substance abuse, and you've said you wanted to avoid clichés about it that tend to appear in pop culture. What research did you do with or around the recovery community to make sure that what you and Mike Flanagan created together was truthful?

Well, quite a lot. It was an interesting prep period, for Luke. When they offered it to me, I watched a bunch of documentaries. Then I thought, "No, no, no, this isn't the right way. I don't want to play an addict, because these are people." Playing Luke was not about playing a heroin addict. It was about playing someone that had been so deeply traumatized that he had no choice but to end up in this place, and that it wasn't his fault. No one fucking wakes up one morning and goes, "I know what I want to do.”

Let’s stay in the horror realm with The Invisible Man. It’s amazing how much I felt not just that there's a presence in the room with [Elisabeth Moss’s] Cecilia, but that it is specifically Adrian — it still seemed like you even when you're not on screen. Because it’s not always just special effects or a stand-in: you were there!

In that sexy green suit, yep. Lizzie is such an incredible talent and I just wanted to support that as much as I could. I mean, she's more than capable of doing it without me, but it just felt like the right thing to do all the stuff that I could do. I mean, some of the stuff were [stunt performers] doing it. I'm glad that you say that: we did want this constant looming threat, so I'm glad that it's achieved.

But that sexy green suit was horrific. Never ever say yes to green spandex. Ever.

You did a similar thing on The Haunting Of Bly Manor, in the scenes where Miles [Benjamin Evan Ainsworth] is possessed by your character, Peter. Do you ever get stressed out working with children, particularly on something that scary?

I think there's always a concern when you are working with kids: you don't want them exposed to anything. Ben and Amelie [Bea Smith, who plays Miles’s sister Flora] were just so incredible, and their moms were with them the whole time. We tried to make their experience as uplifting and as fun as possible. But with Ben, I would sit on set with him, and I would do the scene, and then he would copy what I did. Then I would just sit by the monitor, in his eye line. I mean, kids at that age, they're such brilliant mimics, you know what I mean?

Apparently I love to do stuff like that offscreen. Maybe I shouldn't be an actor. It felt very, very important for the story, as with Invisible Man. Whether or not people will notice that, I don't care, but I feel like all this minutiae hopefully adds up to something in the end.

When I was going back through your older press, it was impossible not to notice the dates on all those pieces about The Invisible Man: it really was the last big movie to come out pre-COVID, and your first big splashy Hollywood movie. What was it like for you to have the movie and lockdown happen right on top of each other?

It was mad. Like, it was really quite mad. I remember getting home from the press tour and then four days later the world shut down. But it was exciting in a weird way. Even as quarantine was happening, I remember Universal pivoting quite quickly to say, "We are going to release this at home and people are going to stream it for like 700 bucks.” It became this thing that people were doing, watching at home even though it had just come out.

So I feel so proud of that movie. But my dad just had passed away, and three days later I went on a press tour for The Invisible Man. The whole press tour, it was like, "What is happening?"

Then I got home. The movie was this huge success. My family was a mess. And then the world shut down. From March to September was such a bizarre time — for everyone, of course. That's why when the quarantine lifted in September and I went and did The Lost Daughter, it came at such an important time for me personally, with what had happened that year. It was life-affirming stuff, being in Greece with all these people that I respect so much and just having a laugh — and being with any people when we hadn't been for so long.

Your director on The Last Daughter, Maggie Gyllenhaal, is, of course, a prolific actress. Leigh Whannell also has a background in acting. How does it change your process when you and your director can relate as peers in that way?

It's like a completely different language that's spoken, because there's such an understanding. Maggie’s a phenomenal actor, but I think an even more phenomenal director and writer. She said this very early on: "I hire people that I trust. So whatever it is that you are going to do, it's going to work, but what flavors do we want to bring?" On set, she's like, "Why don't we do this? Why don't we do this? This is nuts, but why not?" And so it becomes this playful thing, this quite fun exercise.

One day on set — it's a small thing, but it was post-lockdown. My dad bod was in full swing. And then I got to Greece and was like, "Oh, shit." And I was like, "No, I feel like my character just, like, wears tank tops all the time." And then we got to set and Maggie was like, "You look great. Why don't we try it without that? You look great." She's been in this situation so many times, and knows what it feels like. And so she’s able to approach her actors with such care, which is not always the case, you know?

I think we've covered all your darkest roles, so let's move to a very light one: Mr. Malcolm's List, which is out now. You had previously played the same character, Lord Cassidy, in a short film version. Had you followed the project’s journey from that iteration to feature film?

[Director] Emma Holly Jones I'd met because she was a hostess at a bar in L.A. when I was living there. I was like, "Oh my God, you're English. Right, let's be friends." I was 22. We were babies. And so she called me in 2018 and said, "Listen, there's this movie that I'm trying to make, it's just a short, will you come and help me out?" Of course. And then she was like, "We're making it into a movie." And I feel like you hear this quite a lot: "No, we're going to make it into a movie." And then she fucking did. I'm so incredibly proud and happy to be a part of it. I think it's important to champion first-time directors, and specifically first-time female directors.

Is Regency rom-com a genre that you spend a lot of time with as a viewer or a reader?

Not really, but I think that was the appeal. I've done this Emily Brontë movie, which comes out later in the year. I knew nothing about Emily Brontë or Wuthering Heights — or very little. It’s the same with something like Mr. Malcolm's List. I'm familiar with it all, but it's not in my wheelhouse. So there was something very exciting about jumping into those worlds, and they're so fun.

Given the rough stuff that you do most of the time, how did it feel knowing this was coming up on your schedule?

I loved it. Like, I really, really loved it. Because I went from The Lost Daughter to Malcolm's List and then went into this Emily Brontë thing, which is pretty harrowing. So it was this magical moment. There's something really incredible about being able to go to set every day, and your main focus is to figure out what makes you laugh the most. Working with Zawe Ashton, who I think is comedic perfection, it was just such a joy building that dynamic [with her character, Julia] of utter co-dependence — these two cousins who need each other but hate each other.

[jay-and-dean]

Hey J! I would love to hear your opinion on something. You write Dean so well that I feel pretty confident to ask you. (I mean you must know something about his way of thinking,his way of behave..I can proudly say that you have a master in Dean's psychology ok?🤣) I wanted to ask you,apart from the Destiel situation(this is another conversation) in your opinion,why the authors never gave him a real love story? They tried with Lisa..it just didn't work, they had 0 chemistry in my opinion. Cassie otherwise, was really interesting and I would even liked Jo, but the writers just decided against it. Probably they never gave the brothers a true relationship because it wasn't the main focus of the show and the fandom maybe wouldn't have liked it. Anyway I was just thinking that in 15years we have never actually seen Dean's romantic side and given the complexity of his character, it still feels like a whole part of him is missing,a piece of him that we never really got to see. What do you think about it? How would you have handled his love life? Do you think that is better that he never had a real one?

Hey Anon !

First of all, thank you so much for trusting me and for your kind words.

It's actually fun that you say I have a Master in Dean's psychology (I'm actually a professional Irl).

Now regarding Dean, all I can do is give you my personal opinion. But since you asked for it, here it is (sorry it will be a little long) :

I. Supernatural

First of all, I will talk about the general theme of the TV show. Most say, including the writers themselves, that Supernatural is about family. This alone, I guess, could explain the focus on the family relationships than love, in the romantic sense of the word.

II. Quests

But, this is not all. For me, Supernatural is an initiation story. And in that way, the focus is put on the theme of redemption.

II. 1 Sam

The redemption of Sam, who is the "gifted", like a lot of other characters in literature, the one who is too gifted to fit in, the one for whom it is a curse (Being good at school, highly sensitive, that prevents him for fitting in his own family codes, then the gift of boyking Sam, the "mark" of Demon blood and the "link" to the big Bad, very like a Harry Potter figure). His own quest will be to overcome the idea that he is unclean and finally use his gifts to define who he is and not just to fit in (In that he is really close to the journey of high IQ kids in real life). Sam's quest is personal, and as long as he can't "fit" with himself, how could he with a partner ?

II. 2 Dean

Dean... Dean has the exact opposite quest. Dean is the kid that forgot himself to fit in (in psychology, we call them the sacrificed child). He is the one who wasn't given an individuality, and therefore, no true free will. Supernatural really explores this theme until the ultimate quest, against God himself. You can note that the only relationship showed in the Supernatural was, once again a "prescript" which he can't invest exactly because it is. Dean's quest is individuality and freedom. In that way, it seems pretty logical that can't link himself to yet somebody else, as long as he didn't "kill" the father figure that is keeping him a slave of their will.

III. Sacrifice

Now, something else, in my opinion is standing between Dean and a serious love interest : Dean Winchester is a sacrificial figure. He seems himself like an appendix to his brother's story, he is expendable. So in his mind, I think, he doesn't even occurs to be the architect of his own fulfillment.

IV. His girls

I agree that Lisa and Dean had not an extraordinary chemistry, and, for me, it serves the story just perfectly. Lisa is barely a person, she is an idea, an ideal. Lisa represents "apple pie" life itself. She represent what the show sells us as a goal, a perfection when it is obviously like trying to make a fish live in a tree. Dean needed this prerequisite to continue his initiation. Dean leaving her is him closing the door on a fantasy that was holding him back since childhood, because he is the one who lost it.

Jo happens in the beginning of the show and, for me again, she couldn't work. She lives in the steps of her own mother and is not the "free" alterity Dean needs to grow.

Now okay but which girl could help Dean in his quest ?

In my opinion, someone who is "free" from his own prison. Someone stranger to the issues Dean struggles with, that open his view and gives him individuality (Cassie was a good try, but way too early in his journey).

V. This side of Dean

I agree. Dean is complex, and I could talk about him for hours (if you read until this point, you know... and bravo) and getting to see this side of him would have been great. Just because we love him so much that we want to experience everything of him.

I explore this in my fics with the greatest pleasure, and I could write about Dean falling in love all my life.

Dean's personality includes radical contrasts : The highest sense of responsibility, alternated with moments when he shelters himself in childhood for example. So I'm pretty sure that for a true love to occur, the woman (or man, gender really doesn't matter) would have to be able to reach those both sides of him. I see them sitting with cross legs eating candies in front of Scooby Doo.

Cockiness and insecurity is another contrast. Leadership and habit of submission to authority (I'm talking of the sexual way this time). Sensible vs rational. Adventurous but home-loving warrior that loves comfort...

Dean romantic side would be so complex. And after a very long answer no one asked for, I'm going to have to answer the most annoying thing : If you want to know how I picture Dean in a romantic relationship, mix my fics. That is literally what I dedicated my blog to exploring.

The individuation from his father's plan in Love me once, shame on me.

His quest of the stranger in Captive.

His struggle with apple pie life in Knocked-up.

His fight for free will in Greater Good.

The deconstruction of his culture in Rescue you...

God that sounds vain, I swear I am not, just passionate.

I have to conclued by saying I have no problem with Destiel but this is indeed, another subject. And that all of this is just my opinion.

Thank you so so sooo much for this ask and please forgive the 1k words answer and the OCD presentation.

Keep being so awesome.

Love love,

Jay

[purplerose244]

My thoughts on Seabound!!! 🌊🌊🌊 (3/4)

SPOILERS ALERT!!!

Yep yep yep, I'm liking this season a lot! 😍 Although I hope we'll get into a more frantic situation now, like with more battles and more bonding moments (Nya and Maya hopefully, but with Bentho too 🦈🦈🦈)! We got half a season to go, I'M READY!! 😎😎

Alright, here we go!

GENERAL THOUGHTS

I do like the season a lot, maybe MoM was a little more cohesive? Idk but it's not a big complain, I still love it so far 😍

Also maybe I would've liked more interactions between Nya and Maya about how they've been apart for so long, they had a chit chat but I would've loved even more. Maybe with Nya saying that it was fine and she grew up only to realize she is still hurt by that, even though it wasn't Maya's fault. I still like how they did it, I wished there was more that's it 🤷‍♀️

While I do make sense to Maya's behavior, that while it seems a little different from Hands of Time it had its logic in my opinion, maybe Ray feels a little weird? He seems less courageous than before, and it was established that he is a hothead like his son so that came off as unusual 🤔🤔

But I do love the fact that he's here and he's bonding with his son, for real, I've been waiting for this for so long so I'm happy nonetheless 🤩

Maybe I'm just easy to please and I take all I can get idk 😅

THE STORM AMULET

Oh, are we gonna address the wind element? It feels like we haven't really seen a Morro reference since Hands of Time, that would be cool! 😍 I mean, why even mentioning the wind then 😅😅

Well what do you know, they tracked them, who saw that coming?... me, I saw that coming... we all did probably 🤷‍♀️

Jay took upon himself making a quick recap on how Ninjago will be destroyed this time, thanks Bluebell 👌

Yep nyeheh electricity makes Nya go crazy for sure ❤💙 ... wait it wasn't a Jaya pun?

Jay wear your seatbelt please, you risk you life enough 😅😅 Pff lol "are we there yet" and they are actually there, biggest plot twist I've ever heard of 😂

LEGO HUG 💜💜💜

And with someone who might as well join the League of Jay apparently 💙

I liked The Island yet it was not as exciting as I hoped for, but now understand the meaning of it. The ninja helped the keepers and they are all allies. Without The Island the moment where Mammatus gives Nya the amulet wouldn't be as meaningful

Is it just me or Nya looked even more gorgeous during that moment?... just me huh? Okay then 😂💕

Wait that's a fake? Wait... UNCLE POWERS?!? OMG THAT I ACTUALLY DIDN'T SEE COMING 🤯

Here I thought he was just messing around, he always makes things harder 😅 Or maybe better? I mean, they kinda missed a bullet on this one...

BENTHO IS SO SWEET AND COOL OMG HE IS ALREADY OUR FRIEND 💙🦈💙🦈

Jay somehow had his own TV show in the past and yet he's got that horrible acting skills wth 😂😂😂

Kalmaar is a very cool villain, like, deeply evil. Not only he's calculated and merciless, he stops at nothing to get what he wants. And the people that get in the way? He wants them to suffer because they had dared to confront him 😳

And yes the voice does help a lot, I'm sorry I'll keep saying it until the season is over 😂 (or even beyond? Please cast Giles again LEGO ���🥺🥺)

Awww Nya no my poor girl 😢 Jay wanted to hug her to comfort her he is so sweet my SHIP ❤💙❤💙

MOM PEP TALK MOM PEP TALK!!! 🤩🤩🤩 How cool was it?

Like, this isn't even Maya asking Nya to believe in herself, this is her saying that she KNOWS her daughter can do anything when she puts her mind into it. FINALLY SHE SEES HOW AMAZING WATER GODDESS IS 💜💜💜

MORE LEGO TEARS OMG THIS SEASON IS FILLED WITH TEARS 😱 Which... kinda makes sense considering it's a water based season 😂

Nice one, and now? NOW WE GO BACK TO KAI COLE AND RAY YAS!!! ❤🖤❤🖤

RIDDLE OF THE SPHINX

That is... surprisingly Egypt theme like? It feels like a title coming from the Fire Chapter of season 11... well we got two fire elementals so 😍😍

SPARRING KAI AND RAY

I REPEAT SPARRING KAI AND RAY!!! SPARRING KAI AND RAY!!! ❤❤❤ Lol Ray got old, but how can someone blame him? He did touch death while aging in Hands of Time, I'm just happy he is alive 😂

Yep, master prankster Wu, that's what I love 👌👌 I always thought Wu had become a father figure for Kai at the beginning, so seeing Ray and Wu in the same picture feels very wholesome to me 😚

Ah, uncle Powers, I both love you and hate you so freaking much 😌😌 But you make cool slides nonetheless 😂

ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME WITH BEAUTIFUL SMITH INTERACTIONS??

BECAUSE I LIKE IT KEEP GOING 🤩

Oh no you guys are stranded on an island whatever are you going to do?? It's not like you had already before and managed to survive (Skybound) or you got stranded on a rock in a sea of sand filled with giant monsters (Fire Chapter) or you were on a freaking COMET in SPACE (Rebooted). Yeee, this is the worst yet 🙂

I'm starting to think these ninja are just a bunch of drama queens so no matter what happens, it's always hopeless 😂😂 I feel like I'm kinda right on this one honestly 😛

Whoa whoa WHOA WHO IS NYAD THIS SOUNDS VERY COOL???

Aww I like that, while Ray told his kids stories about dragons and how they traveled through the Underworld, Maya told them about Nya the first water master that could summon whales 💙❤💙❤

Pff imagine if it turned out Nya was the master of fire, carrying a very water based name? Lol

Maya: I would know if it was possible!

Nya: Yeah, like she knows that I can control a bit of ice because it's frozen water

Maya:...

Maya: YOU WHAT

I find both interesting and very annoying that this explorers club thinks so highly of themselves, to the point the deny to aid even the FREAKING SAVIORS OF THEIR FREAKING LAND 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Misako got good reflexes after all, Kai was probably ready to melt this guy's face 😅

Oh, so a trial by Sphinx is a challenge? A mental one? A cultural one? A physical one? Idk but Misako is actually taking charge and that is cool I guess 🤷‍♀️

Okay this is kind of weird, how is Ray so afraid? Is it because there's fire?... did he... did he grow afraid of fire for some reason? Because it feels a bit off for now, but if there is a deeper meaning that could be interesting 🤔

Wait is that the riddle from Decoded? That's fire right?

IT IS FIRE 🔥🔥🔥

Lol at least in this one Kai wasn't completely ignored 😂 I know my flame babe isn't the most rational person, but I do like that it was an answer connected to his element where he used his head!

Ah Clutch, you really got no backbone 😅 And apparently you're the only explorer who doesn't, dang look at the others go! I'm having a bit more respect for them now 😚

LOOK AT SENSEI GO FINALLY!!! 😍😍 FIGHTING SCENES HECK YES!!!

Kalmaar: I'm your conquerer

Wu: so after skeletons, the serpentine, nindroids, the Stone Army, Chen's army, ghosts, oni, more snakes but on fire and people from a game, that makes you the tenth. Have a free cookie

Kalmaar:...

Wu: you're not special

Is this a little throwback to Possession too? Nya seems to always control better water when she doesn't actually think about it. When her feelings are free, so are her powers 🌊🌊🌊

Also this opens up more possibilities! Creatures connected with other elements might get summoned too! I would love something like that 😍😍

This was NEAT, or maybe I just missed Kai that much ❤ What's next??

PAPERGIRL

ANTONIAAAAAAAA!!!! MY GIRL IS BACK!!! All my girls are back in this season, I'm so happy 😍😍😍 And if she is here, sweet little Nelson has to be around and I cannot wait! Bring in the purple ninja! 💜

Owww Antonia's last day as a papergirl? Nooo why??

She's got a job at the... DAIRY DRAGON??? OMG OMG OMG IT'S THE ICE CREAM PLACE BRAGI TOLD US ABOUT ON TWITTER!!! 🤩🤩🤩 I remember the post, he was asking about names for the place and ice cream flavors. Now I can't wait to see what did he choose 🍦🍦🍦

UNAGAMI BABY HI HONEY!!! 🙋‍♀️ I hope he's doing great 😘😘

This is so cool honestly, Antonia got her own character arc going on! Living in a chaotic city like Ninjago City must be pretty dang exhausting 😅

Was... was that Dareth in the garbage can? Am I wrong? Poor brown ninja 😅🤎😅

SPINJITZU SWIRL, BANANAKHAN, ORANGE SERPENTINE, I'M DYING 😂😂😂

Their friendship is so wholesome, I'm so happy they are still together no matter what happens 💕

I thought Kalmaar wasn't much of a fighter but DANG he's got skills! Also the fact that he uses tentacles makes the fight very cool to watch! 😚😚

RAY RUNNING IN AFTER KAI GOT HURT HECK YES ❤❤❤

Well at least you tried Ray 😅

Ah, little cameo of the original Weekend Whip, always nice to hear it again... AND DO THE WEEKEND WHIP!!! 🌪🌪🌪

EVEN NELSON GOT CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT I'M SO PROUD 💜

I don't even know what is cooler, the kids being mad lads on their bikes, Kalmaar driving a TRUCK or Kai going full parkour on the buildings to follow them 🤯

I'm sorry... am I the only one that during the Kai and Kalmaar talk kinda thought of Jestro and Clay? I miss my boys from NK, they're even more at odds now 😭😭

KAI YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DIE OR EVEN TRY TO DIE GET BACK HERE AT ONCE 😱😱

Kalmaar just loves to make everyone feel inferior, gotta be his hobby 😶

Oh good Kai is back

OH NOT GOOD KAI IS NOT BREATHING?!? FLAME BABE I TOLD YOU YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO DIE 😱😱😱

Antonia, Nelson, you guys are now my heroes. You saved my fave, I'll be forever in dept with you ❤❤❤ Am I being overdramatic? Most likely, but Kai is one of the few that didn't almost die or did die in a dramatic situation and he is also my absolute favorite character so that... kinda keeps my sanity in check in this show 🥴

I wonder... does he still not know how to swim? He saved Lloyd in Possession but I wonder if he was only trying to float on the surface... THAT'S TERRIFYING

This episode was so adorable, I love Antonia and Nelson so much 💜💕💜💕 It's nice to see what the other people of Ninjago do while everything goes mad 🤣

Wait hang on my Ninjajan is a little rusty

"Ninjago City. City that never sleeps" well if that ain't the truth 😂

MASTER OF THE SEA

Like Master of the Mountain? Wait are we going back to Shintaro?? VANYA?? ANOTHER BEST GIRL RETURNS??? 💛

Hey hey hey, we got a full Nyad backstory! I really like when they do these little drawn shots, they feel more like legends! And... the ending sounds terrifying? Like, they wouldn't let Nya sacrifice herself and die... again... right? 😱

Bentho: and the world was in balance, until now because of my brother

Lloyd: and the Overlord before of course

Bentho: the what now?

Lloyd: the evil one my grandpa the first Spinjitzu Master fought?

Bentho: YOUR WHAT NOW

Why do I like this offscreen "hiiiyaaa" that sensei Wu does before actually going into the scene? 😂😂

No matter if they come from the underground or the sea, these are all snake-like creature with the same intellect 😅 Kalmaar and Garmadon would have a lot to talk about, sea king dealing with his minions does remind me of Lord Garmadon in season 2 a lot 😂😂

KAI AND RAY FIGHTING TOGETHER KAI AND RAY FIGHTING TOGETHER ❤🔥❤🔥❤🔥❤🔥❤

OMG Kalmaar is such a brat and petty villain I love him so much 😂😂😂 Yes I didn't even mention his amazing voice!... AH DANG IT 😳😳

*Misako kicks Kalmaar and is actually useful* 🙆‍♀️🙆‍♀️🙆‍♀️

*Misako gets taken as hostage immediately after* 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

KAI LITERALLY JUST GOT SAVED FROM DROWNING WHY MUST YOU DO THIS TO HIM!!!... and Ray and Cole and Wu of course, I care okay 😅

OMG that face 🤣🤣🤣

That some meme material right there

Whoa Vincent that voice just got super up when the Unsinkable showed up, it kinda sounded like Jay's lol

NO NOT BENTHO!!! 😢😢😢

Kai: Nya talks to whales now? (I snorted so hard at this 😂😂)

HECK YES NYA GOT THE AMULET!! 😍😍😍 ... we got, like, four more episodes to go so something needs to happen in between... do I need to be scared? I feel like I need to be scared 😅

Jay starting a fire then blaming Kai?... this is so in character I got chills 😂😂

SHARK BOY IS STAYING TO THE MONASTERY THIS IS SO PRECIOUS!!! 🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩 I want all the shenanigans and we need to write fanfictions about more shenanigans and AAAAHHHHH 🦈🦈🦈

Bless these two fire idiots

They own my heart ❤🔥❤🔥 Also Vincent, this is supposed to be a fun little gag moment, your amazing voice acting is kinda distracting me 😭😭😭

ANOTHER LEGO HUG

YOU GUYS ARE SPOILING ME OVER HERE HECK YES 💙🌊💙🌊

Maya learned that her daughter is capable of everything, I love that. Nya simply understood that she doesn't have to give up when something gets difficult. She is AMAZING and can do anything she puts her mind into. She simply has to hold on until the end 💪💪💪

Omg Benthomaar playing billiard with the guys I already love this 😍😍

YES IT IS SHINTARO!!! THE UPPLY ARE HERE OMG!!! HI VANYA YOU LOOK AMAZING GIRL MISS YOU I HOPE YOU'RE DOING OKAY!!! 💛💛💛 ... I just really like Master of the Mountain okay 😅

I love how Vanya doesn't even question it. It comes from Cole and he said it needs to be protected? Done and done 👌

Wait what, did something fall?

IS THAT THE FAKE?!?!? WHAT HOW WHEN??? UNCLE POWERS??? OR KALMAAR DID SOMETHING??? SOMEONE??? I'M LEGIT CONFUSED AND EXCITED??? 🤯🤯🤯

Well dang, I didn't see that coming, now what Seabound? What do you have for me?

[join-the-club-weve-got-jackets]

Ok list your top 3 shows/fandoms and explain how you got into them

So I had to cheat because I couldn't narrow it down to just three. There are too many shows that I love where I don't necessarily interact in/know of a fandom online, but I still wanted to include them. Here are ten shows I came up with, in no particular order and with long, detailed explanations:

• The Originals: This one is being listed first both in terms of shows/fandoms. After OUAT, this is the fandom that I am most heavily invested in and interact with mutuals the most. Tbh though, I can't really remember how I got started on TO. I have very vague/faint memories of a night during my freshman year of college where someone I follow on here posted something about the show. I think it was involving Klaus and Hope and/or Klaus and Hayley, because I remember going into tags and seeing bits about the rocking chair scene and the fight scene in 3x02. It had interested me enough that night to go searching through pages and tags, but I didn't pursue anything further. I was probably still in my post-Twilight/over vampires stage, and I never had an interest in TVD at that time either, so I'm guessing that's why. But then something happened, I'm like 99.9% sure it was on Tumblr again, during the fall of my junior year. I remember it was around Thanksgiving, but nothing more specific than that. I do know though that Joseph Morgan/Klaus was the biggest factor in deciding to watch the show. For his hotness, his acting/talent, and just loving the character overall. The miracle child and unique father/daughter relationship storyline I'm guessing was another factor, as well as the other interesting, fucked-up family dynamics that could only be found with the Mikaelsons lol.

• ODAAT: Like other shows you will see on this extensive list, I first learned about this show through Tumblr. As someone who has studied the Spanish language and Hispanic/Latino culture for years, I really appreciate shows with good representation of these cultures. So when I saw how amazing ODAAT was in terms of positive Hispanic/Latinx representation, as well as for being funny, diverse, relatable, well-written, relevant, feminist, and female-led, I knew I had to watch it. Plus, it gives me more exposure to Spanish outside of work, which I use to improve my skills.

• This Is Us: I saw a lot of commercials and previews for the show before it came out. I thought it looked good and I that I had the connection between the characters/timelines figured out (which, for the record, I did), so I started watching it from the very beginning with my mom.

• The Bold Type: I watch a lot of shows and movies on the channel Freeform (mostly because they show a lot of Disney movies and used to have HP weekends) and I saw commercials for this show before it aired to. Like I said above, I love shows that are female-led/driven, feminist, well-written, diverse, funny, relatable, and actually cover important issues of today, so I was very interested in this one. I gave it a shot and I have loved it from the start.

• Jane the Virgin: My reasons for loving JTV are very similar to ODAAT and TBT, so I won't repeat that list again. I had heard of this show really early on and read about it online, but didn't start watching it then. During my senior year of college, I was living in an apartment with limited TV channels. One of those channels happened to be the CW. There was probably nothing better on TV one night, and since I was already familiar with the show and loved positive Hispanic/Latinx representation, I put it on. I believe it was around the time of the season 3 time jump. I really liked it so I would watch it from time to time during that time slot, but wasn't fully invested. Then one of my mutuals started watching it and was loving the show (esp Jafael and our boy Raf) so much that I finally made it a priority to watch this last spring.

• Friends: This is one of my oldest TV show fandoms. I was under ten years old while the show was actually on, so I didn't watch it back then. But the first episode I remember really watching was the one where everyone learns about Monica getting stung by a jellyfish and Chandler having to pee on her. That was on some band trip in high school. After that, it was probably just on TV at some point, maybe after a different show I watched, so I started watching it and kept watching it.

• That 70s Show: Another older one. My cousin Kyle put this show on when we were at our grandma and grandpa's house when we were kids. I don't remember exactly how old I was, but I know the episode was when Donna and Casey break up and then Donna and Kelso take off for California. Being a kid growing up in Wisconsin, the show stood out to me in that way and for being funny. So I probably just kept watching re-runs whenever I found it on TV. All except for season 8. We don't talk about season 8.

• The Good Place: I saw/heard a lot of good things about this show from people on Tumblr that made me want to watch it so I could know what they were talking about and could be a part of the amazingness too.

• Parks and Recreation: My cousin Heather introduced me to this show when she was visiting years ago. I didn't keep up with it right after that, but I probably saw it on TV at some point later, recognized it, and kept watching it.

• Grace and Frankie: When I was studying abroad and had some downtime, I was looking for shows on Netflix to watch that were light, funny, and short, and this one fit the bill. I loved the humor and the characters and could relate to them, even if some of them were three times my age. It's also a show I can enjoy with my mom.

[stileshale]

What are your thoughts on teen wolf? especially writing wise? I have stopped watching regularly around 3b and I wasn't too convinced by what I've seen here on tumblr about the rest of the episodes, in particular 6x10...

i will always have a special place in my heart for the characters i love that the show gave me. i still blog about teen wolf, i write fic, and i enjoyed s1-3a. saying that, i don’t particular enjoy what the show became, or look back on the experience i had as a fan with much nostalgia (i think we were v much used and abused as a fandom online, for sure). i love my part of fandom, though.

short answer about the writing... it was terrible because

1) there was a complete lack of planning and follow through

2) we love this idea/actor/theme for 30 seconds but oops now we don’t

3) they completely misused their social media as a way to a) explain away/correct plot holes in their own writing and b) encourage viewers to watch a show they implied to be many things that it turned out to... not be any of

long answer

as a disclaimer here, i watch a lot of tv, i watch stuff on cbs, abc, fox, cw, bbc, tbs, p much something from every network, and i’ve seen the highs and lows of writing through comedy, drama, medical, supernatural, and everything inbetween. i’m not a professional writer, i am only a consumer. i have, however, over the nearly 20 years of watching shows as a fangirl (where i’ve been into something i follow religiously, and then later became involved in online forums) honed my tastes and opinions. on average i watch 15 shows a week, last year it would have been 21 around february time, but i’ve cut six shows including 3 i started this fall and dropped because of writing issues similar to that of teen wolf, or it just got terrible, either way). i have totally tried to rationalise what teen wolf did and i just... can’t. 

to elongate

1. the whole “let’s throw everything at the wall and see what sticks” approach is terrible. the best thing about breaking bad was that everything was planned to the very minute details. lost only picked up again when they were given an end date and suddenly had to come up with a plausible endgame. every season teen wolf has started off with a new plan, a new theme, and then it’s fallen apart because they’ve quite clearly changed their minds about something and either dropped it completely (they’re especially bad about dropping characters and never speaking of them again, or even acknowledging they were there in the first place), or made up new stuff to fit their new plan (scott is the true alpha so he can move mountain ash, kate is a werejaguar

not to mention they’ve joked about not being able to keep up with their own timelines, unsure how old any of the characters are, forgetting the characters have school/work/should be in prison, introducing siblings, changing history, forgetting actual canon...

2. kinda leads on from 1. where they would introduce an idea or a character and then totally lose interest and instead of trying hard to give them depth or something to do or going somewhere with the concept, they’d just drop it? see, parrish as a hellhound, kira as a kitsune, even way back when with stiles as a spark, a cool idea for thirty seconds to fit in with the plot and then... whoops it never happened, what are you talking about there was never a whole season about japanese culture, that season was about stiles conquering his internal battle with his own psyche telling him he’s never going to be good enough because we always make his dad out to be a total dick to him (surprise, his dad’s called noah, which we know you’ll hate because we dragged it out like some sort of magical plot twist, and also HIS dad is a dick so it’s okay he’s always told stiles he’d rather have had scott as a son) WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT FOXES FOR? THERE WAS NO FOX. THERE WAS NO TREE TRUNK. BANSHEES? THE FUCK? LYDIA JUST SCREAMS EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE AND SOMETIMES HAS MAGIC POWERS. but then doesn’t. pfft it doesn’t actually matter.

 or worse conveniently fix it/disappear it. it was tiring to watch and be confused and wonder why they were treating you like an idiot as a viewer. like the show is on mtv sure, but at least awkward stuck to a clear timeline. awkward covered where characters vanished to. we never actually even got clarification on basics like... why did deaton never want to help derek in season one... even though he was the hale emissary? what did emissaries have to do with anything by the next episode as nothing ever happened with that whole theme... why did stiles have a magic spark... where did cora go... how did she come back and how did the alphas find her before derek... why did the alphas originally start a war with derek, kill off his pack but then decide they didn’t want derek and just wanted scott... why did scott let deucalion walk off into the sunset? WHY IS PETER STILL NOT IN PRISON FOR THE MURDER OF HIS NIECE? these questions are all like three seasons old but that’s all i have and they still bug me. i can’t believe the show has never covered any of these huge issues. it’s lazy. everyone likes consistency, nobody likes writing leaving this big wink like “you don’t really care about this do you???”

again, with the big deaths, the characters they did kill off all had opportunities not to die, they could have had different endings, but each time their death was used to create man pain, probably one of the many reasons i’m not as big on male characters (they always need something to prop them up and make them more heroic and tragic in the long run), and that writing? erica, boyd, allison, was cruel and unnecessary. it did nothing for the show, and it lessened the writing. it actually made it worse when they tried to defend it, because they’d been going on about it for so long before hand as if it was a new and exciting toothpaste they’d all just gotten “now even whiter than before/now with even more death!!!”

the fact they hadn’t planned out a season without stiles (despite knowing dylan was out) and so instead of giving all of the other characters a chance to grow and learn and develop they literally wrote a whole season about stiles (after all of 3b, and from what i can tell most of s4 and s5 was about stiles). every character seemed to be focused on this missing person. the whole season was based around a character that wasn’t even on screen. and all because std fans were promised a big beautiful season of std??? gutted.

3. leading to point three! teasing your internet fanbase with ~thrilling and huge deaths to look forward to all season! using tumblr to answer questions about the plot holes/characters/encourage you to watch for the return of characters and not actually ever going through with it on screen. the teasing. the baiting. the flat out refusal to learn from your own viewership (when more than happy to use their gifs, use their images, their fanfics and their ideas) and then act as if the fanbase are the ungrateful ones. to try and join in with memes and tbt and a bunch of other infuriating actions that made even the actors uncomfortable. the tweets, the writers creating more drama even now, six seasons in, jeff saying “oh yeah if hoechlin had stayed on we’d have tortured derek some more with a fake julia (????? dick) haha i hope the internet doesn’t kill me for that one” as if we’re a bunch of deranged lunatics instead of just fans of a character that deserved better? like he knows what’s up. he’s a grown man. he knows they fucked up, in so many areas, and yet he’s just not willing to learn from it, or acknowledge it, he’s just always said “well if they don’t like it, they shouldn’t watch”... 

i guess we didn’t.