#i love british teen shows like its so fun and funny

[wildlyfreemoon]

i just rewatched fate the winx saga lmao

[thoriffix]

Can you rec some media with canon queer characters 😌

ofc!! thisll by no means be an exhaustive list but idk what youre looking for specifically so ill break it into categories

my current favs!! if u follow me u know these already lol

the umbrella academy: netflix show abt dysfunctional superpowered siblings reuniting to stop the apocalypse. canon mlm character (pansexual according to his actor) w mlm romance, canon wlw character (lesbian according to someone on the show dont rmr who) w het romance in s1, wlw romance in s2 - this is one of my absolute fav shows at the minute in general its brilliant

the magnus archives: horror podcast abt the head archivist of an institute researching experiences w the supernatural. protagonist is canonically biromantic asexual, in a mlm relationship in s5, and there is another canon bisexual character, as well as (iirc) a canon wlw couple - yall know ive been so into tma lately its so so good, obviously if you dont like horror its not for you but if you do.. 👀

sanders sides: youtube series abt a gay dude working out his emotional problems via personified aspects of his personality. all the characters are gay cuz thas what thomas is baby! - i was hesitant abt putting this cuz thomas is a person not a character lol but if u haven't seen sasi i recommend it its like free therapy but theres songs sometimes

shows!

julie and the phantoms (netflix remake): musical show abt a teen girl rediscovering music after her mothers death w the help of three ghosts who were in a 90s band. canon gay character w a slow burn romance (not yet canon bfs but s2 lets go) - its very cheesy and the musical segments can drag on a bit but its p good overall

lucifer: detective show abt lucifer abandoning his rule of hell to buy a nightclub and beginning to solve murders w the lapd. lucifer is canonically bi/pan, as is his demon pal mazikeen, but queerness rly isnt a focus of the show its more casual rep - that being said its a good show overall, if a little predictable now n then (s1-3 on amazon prime, 4+5 on netflix)

kipo and the age of wonderbeasts: fantasy cartoon set in a future filled w mutant intelligent animals, kipo finds herself lost and has to get home w the help of her friends. canon gay character as one of the mains, canon nb side character - its a rly good cartoon! lots of fun, excellent soundtrack, and the main characters are all poc which is rly nice to see

the dragon prince: cartoon abt two princes and an elf assassin returning a dragon egg to its mother. canon mlm couple, several canon wlw characters, canon nb character - i havent seen the show myself but ive heard very good things abt it!

i am not okay with this: netflix show abt a teen girl discovering she has superpowers and hating it. protag is canon wlw (i THINK shes a lesbian but i havent watched it in a hot sec), developing wlw relationship - ianowt slaps! sad that s2 got cancelled but s1 is real good its a touch spooky and theres a bit of gore/blood so watch out lol

schitt's creek: sitcom abt a rich family who lose all their money and have to move into the motel of a town they bought as a joke. canon pansexual character and canon gay character w one of the sweetest mlm relationships - a rly good witty show w excellent character development for every character!

good omens: show abt a demon and an angel trying to stop the end of the world. every celestial character in it is nonbinary, + crowley and aziraphale have a nonexplicit (ie no on screen pda lol) romance - good omens is such a good queer show none of the characters care abt gender in the slightest lmao, plus the show in general is fantastic (the book is also very good)

movies!

the old guard: a group of immortals fight an organisation that wants to capitalise off their immortality. canon mlm couple - another one i havent seen yet (i will!) but apparently very good

it chapter 2: horror sequel to It, w the main characters returning to derry to defeat pennywise for good. canon gay character in unrequited love - i only say chapter 2 because his queerness isnt referenced at all in the first film, again its big horror and theres no gay romance just gay tragedy but its a good film

love, simon: romcom about a closeted gay teen falling in love w someone over emails. do i even need to state the rep? - honestly if u haven't seen love simon yet what are you even DOING its so good proper fluffy queer romcom, the book (simon vs the homosapiens agenda) is also really good!! so is the sequel (leah on the offbeat) where the protag is a bi girl + it focuses on a wlw romance

the way he looks: brazilian coming of age film abt a blind teen boy falling for the new kid at his school. canon mlm relationship - this doesnt seem to be on (british) netflix anymore so idk where youd find it with subtitles but i rmr liking it a lot!

games!

night in the woods: 2d platformer abt a young woman (well. cat) dropping out of college and coming home to live w her parents + discovering spooky happenings in her hometown. canon mlm couple and i believe the protag is canonically bi? - i will recommend nitw to literally anyone who will listen its one of my all time favourite games, deals w a lot of mental health issues and its absolutely gorgeous w a brilliant soundtrack and rly good dialogue thats witty and serious and realistic (its on steam + switch for sure dk abt other platforms, abt 15 quid i think?)

tell me why: adventure game abt twins returning to their childhood home + findin Secrets. canon trans male character - i havent got around to buying + playing this yet but it looks really good! (its in three chapters + on steam, not sure on price)

other media!

the art of being normal: slice of life novel abt a young trans girl discovering herself. main characters are a trans man and a trans woman. - a good novel! trigger warning for transphobic actions including descriptions of a transphobic attack on the guy, and its certainly not without its faults otherwise, but i thought it was pretty good

the adventure zone: dungeons and dragons podcast by the mcelroy brothers. idk specifics but theres a lot of canon queer characters in it! - i havent listened to taz yet but i know a lot abt it, inc that its good and funny and has plenty of queer rep

theres several more i like that arent listed here but to keep this from getting just ridiculously long ill leave it there :] tried to get a range of genres and medias, hopefully theres something for you in there!

[theniftycat]

Some queer media recs that you likely haven’t seen and that will make you feel warm and nice for a change.

1. A Taste of Honey (1961). It was my favourite film when I was 17. It’s about a girl who has a pretty bad mother and more problems than she could handle. She gets pregnant and then abandoned by her mum. Then she meets a gay young man and he becomes her best friend.

It’s not a gay-centered film, but it’s very relatable for teens who have troubled relationships with their parents and who don’t know what to do with themselves. It has no depicted homophobia. It’s basically a story of two friends and how they make each other’s lifes better. The ending is pretty sad, but it still will leave you with a sweet aftertaste.

2. The Crying Game (1994). My favourite film when I was 18 (I didn’t even come out to myself till 19). I won’t spoil this movie, it’s interesting enough to watch it for the first time without knowing what it’s about.

It has depictions of transphobia though, but the trans character is the least problematic character and gets a happy ending. This is quite a gritty realistic movie, so, it was a great thing to see.

3. Maurice (1987). Look, I even doubt it belongs in this list because you probably have seen it. If you haven’t, what are you doing with your life?

It has everything: dark academia, young Hugh Grant, reading of Plato, gay relationships to kill you and resurrect you, cottagecore gays and a happy ending.

4. Tipping the Velvet (2004). A very beautiful and fun story of a young woman who looks for her way in life in Victorian England. That way appears to be a number of romances with other women that ultimately leads her to finding her happiness with someone right.

There’s not that much lesbian media, so, this show was truly a gift. I remember watching it in my early 20s and absolutely loving it. It’s very light hearted, but deals with serious stuff well. Plus, Anna Chancellor as a dark dominatrix??? Sign me up.

5. My Beautiful Laundrette (1985). It’s a sweet story of two lovers who manage a laundrette. The main character is Omar who has to keep his face before his family who expect him tio have a model life.

I love British movies of the 80s, they had this style that wasn’t as filled with despair as what we had in the USSR back then (especially the late 80s), but still relatable. Not as glossy and escapist as American films of the era, but on the contrary very realistic and human. Easy to connect to. This film is very much of that kind. Oh, and a happy ending is there too.

6. Touch of Pink (2004). Now, this movie hit very close to my heart, as a story of a fellow Asian queer who loves old movies. See, Alim talks to the ghost of Cary Grant who supports him through all kinds of hijinks. Alim lives in London with his boyfriend when his mother comes to finally find him a wife. This film might be seen as a successor to My Beautiful Laundrette, but the mood and the humour are quite different, and for me personally it was like a breathe of fresh air, I’ve never seen a film like this.

It is a pretty basic romantic comedy, but sometimes that’s just what one needs. Plus, seeing Kyle MacLaghlan do a Cary Grant impression is pretty funny on itself.

7. Oh My General (2016). I spent this entire summer obsessed with this show, but I wasn’t active online back then after the rona hit me. It’s about a female general who, as a punishment for not disclosing that she was a woman, has to marry a good-for-nothing playboy. However as they go from enemies to lovers, the show becomes a tense political drama (and I love that shit) in which my then already favourite het couple of all time, become pawns who later become queens. The queer part is not only the subversion of gender roles (that stays there the entire show without disappearing as soon as the general gets married) that can be read as the general being trans, but also the fact that she has a female cousin who’s in love with her. And that cousin’s story is alas, tragic, but her tragedy is worthy of Shakespeare.

I genuinely loved the main couple so much by the time they finally got together, I’m emotional even as I’m typing this. They had so much character growth because of each other and then started supporting each other no matter what. But even so, the show still reads very queer. The general can very well appreciate beauty of women and it’s even shown that she thought of herself as a boy since childhood (I’m calling her a ‘she’ because that’s what she’s called in the show). There are also touches on many unpleasant sides of femininity and it’s refreshing to see them addressed. The show has its bad moments, but they are so rare that they are negligable in my opinion.

I wanted to mention some other things, but got too tired writing all this down. I’ll also mention Mr. Wakefield’s Crusade (1993) (don’t spoil yourself, but it begins with his wife leaving him for a woman), Breakfast on Pluto (2005) (might be seen as problematic, but it’s an old film and it’s filled with joy) and Fantaghiro (1991) (a tomboy princess dresses as a man and wins in a duel with a prince who falls in love with her. I was obsessed with it as a child. haven’t rewatched it tho).

[wolfsgravity]

I can’t sleep so I’m just thinkin’ about my range of Pokémon romantic F/Os. This series has meant so much to me for so long, and I know F/Os from that source make up a decent portion of my list. I’d feel more embarrassed about it if I didn’t make it abundantly clear that Pokémon is one of the most pervasive influences in my life from an exceedingly young age.

I just. I dunno. I find my collection of Pokémon series F/Os so interesting.

I’m just gonna ramble a bit.

I’m going to talk in Generational order, because my 1am brain couldn’t decipher a more cohesive timeline if it tried.

Giovanni is a funny one. As a kid, his character in the show intimidated me a little. But I really loved Team Rocket on some level. They were my first Pokémon villain organization, and with the Gen III games having Aqua and Magma, I decided pretty early that Team Rocket was my team. I had a stint in Magma since when I was young, I thought I’d specialize in Fire types, but eh it didn’t stick. No team really stuck nearly as much until Team Skull! So I had a lot of time for my intimidation from Giovanni to evolve into a fearful respect, to a mild devotion… by the time I played Let’s Go! and Ultra Moon, I was more than a little excited to see him in game. As in, I would quietly cheer when he appeared on my screen, in some weird giddy manner. It was only a matter of time before I realized I was crushing hard.

Steven Stone (he has a full name so more often than not I use it when referring to him) probably didn’t make the biggest impact on me in the original Gen III games? Hoenn was my favorite region for a while (in part due to pre- “Hoenn confirmed” hype), but he didn’t have a huge role in Ruby/Sapphire. Maybe I noticed him first in Emerald? I wish I could remember my real first inkling of crush on him, because I just remember when I played Omega Ruby… I was already obsessed with him. He showed up for the first time in game and I squealed. I spent the whole game seeking him out and already making romantic passes at him in my around-19-year-old head.

I am counting Grovyle for this, but it bears repeating that my S/I for the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games is a Pokémon too. Those Mystery Dungeon games enamored me as a teen! I got to BE! A POKEMON!! So I probably got Explorers of Time/Darkness for DS not long after it released in 2008. I was so excited to have Gen IV Pokémon to be and battle and recruit, ugh, this game meant so much to me. I will always remember being part of Wigglytuff’s Guild super fondly. And like, as I am super susceptible to mental role play, putting myself in my characters shoes (or lil toe beans I guess) has always been second nature for me. So a dashing Grovyle just jumped into my silly life and was the most honorable and misunderstood character and I am not even joking when I say I fell for him in my first playthrough. And I’ve played through it a lot. I was always jealous of Celebi. I hate every Dusknoir I see to this day. *chefs kiss* Good game.

Gen V is “oops all F/Os” Gen, where to even start..

Just kidding, N is the obvious choice to start for me. He was love at first sight. He just, ugh, he cares about Pokémon SO MUCH. I literally don’t know how to even expand on this. He literally rode the Ferris Wheel with the player character in the game, and I WASNT supposed to interpret that as a date? Wack. It was a date. I love him so damn much. Next question

Elesa comes next because I’ve always thought she was stunning. I mean, duh I guess, she’s canonically a model. Also, Electric types are in my top 3, behind Fairy and somewhat tied with Fire, so she was a woman after my own heart. Her Emolga kinda wrecked my team and I respect that. Also, she loves puns. So again. Woman after my own heart. The only reason she’s still listed as Crush and not as Dating is because she intimidates me. She’s out of my league and I worry she’d only see me as a friend. Well, not “only”, her and Skyla are bffs and that also looks fun. I just. Can’t imagine her romantically being interested in me sometimes. Heh.

Grimsley was a crush that came on yeeeaaaars after his Gen, and it hit me like a freight train. I swear, he made very little impression on me in B/W, because I was young and I was just excited to possibly see N again as champion. I was a little shit, okay. I also never played B2/W2 all the way through, which is a huge stain on my Pokémon record. Anyways. When he showed up in Sun/Moon, I gasped. I was like, that’s a familiar face. Why is he hot now? (The answer is we was always hot, and I just had a few years to grow between games). But like, I kind of tamped it back down? I think I legit tried to tell myself around Sun/Moon era that I can’t keep finding Pokémon characters hot, because I was drooling over another one in Moon. Anywho. Grimsley kept popping up as fanart on my Tumblr dash for a while and by the time I pulled him in Pokémon Masters, I slipped into love. Whoops.

Professor Sycamore, probably not my proudest moment of fandom. He was another one I liked from the very introduction. I made fun of him in equal measure, but I affectionately referred to him as “Professor Hotdad” for an embarrassingly long amount of time. He’s not even the oldest of my Pokémon F/Os. One of my other Pokémon F/Os is canonically a father. But nope. Sycamore was Hotdad. That all said, he did make me smile like a crush-stricken schoolgirl when he talked in game so it wasn’t all just memey objectification. I do love him dearly.

Gen VII! Alola! Guzma! Oh man, like I’d stated earlier, Team Skull really nestled it’s way close to my heart the way no team had since Team Rocket. It wasn’t all because of Guzma, I really did like the group of ragtag misfits banding together and creating a family. Guzma was icing on the cake. Oh boy, he made my heart do funny little flips even when he was threatening me in game. I loved his design, I loved his character, the way he talked, I just. Ugh, I was down bad for ya boy in Moon and Ultra Moon. He’s actually the inspiration behind my main blog url: its-ya-boi-remington. The “Y’all are stupid!” line and face lives in my head rent free at all times. Guzma protection squad.

(Nanu isn’t a romantic so I won’t talk about him here, just know I’m not forgetting him!)

Leon was, believe it or not, my actual first Gen VIII crush. I saw that fashion disaster and felt a warm comfort from him. It didn’t help that I mentally read every character in Galar with some UK/British Isles accent, that sweetened the deal. I was actually gushing to a couple then-friends about Leon while we all played Sword/Shield together and they kind of mocked me about it. They chided me that Leon “doesn’t bat for my team” and said either of them would have a better chance with him if he were real. So I was a little downtrodden about Leon after that for quite a while. It wasn’t until a couple months ago when suddenly it hit me that A- He’s literally fictional and my version of him can like me regardless of what “team he bats for” and B- I’m nonbinary? So rules get thrown out the window, anyone who likes me is both a miracle and some kind of gay whatever way you spin it. So I let myself warm back up to him, though I’m still a little skittish from before.

Piers, I guess, as awful as it sounds, was initially a crush rebound. Like, don’t get me wrong, I’d have been attracted either way. He’s a musician, a SINGER no less, and has that emo/punk vibe. But he’s also gentle and kind. Swoon. But it helped that I had my crush-feelers out full-force for a cutie in game to obsess over since I was still butthurt about my “friends” killing my crush on Leon. Obsess I did, and continue to do. I could probably snap this man over my knee like firewood he’s so lanky, idk why I put that in here but it’s staying. Piers is the one I most imagine jamming out with on a regular basis, and it makes performing for no one a bit more fun 🥰

I’m finally getting tired, I feel like I’ve been typing this for an hour. I probably have been. Ah geez now I gotta tag all these F/Os lmao. Thanks for letting me ramble.

[queenangst]

Hey so any cartoon/show/anime recommendations?

sure!

these are some of my favorites, but * are, like, extra recommended. 

cartoons/kids’ animation:

Tales of Arcadia, a trilogy of three shows (Trollhunters, 3Below, and Wizards) about supernatural goings-on in Arcadia, with themes about family and friendship, love, heroes, and not being alone*

Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, a post-apocalyptic show about titular character Kipo navigating a world of mutant animals while trying to get back to her home underground—and choosing kindness and hope when the world is out to get you*

Glitch Techs (season 2 coming on August 17!), a show about two teens who get a job dealing with real-life video game monsters, friendship, and the adventures that come with*

Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventures (also known as Tangled: Before Ever After and Tangled: The Series, yes, they changed the name multiple times), a show that is set after the film Tangled following Rapunzel, Eugene, her handmaiden and guard Cassandra when Rapunzel’s hair grows again after a mysterious incident, addressing family and friendship, making mistakes, and dealing with life wrapped up in a show that turns its main characters into birds at a tea party

Carmen Sandiego, an animated spin on the old Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego games in a mix of a thief raised by VILE trying to do good, her crew, the criminal organization chasing her, and the secret operative organization also chasing her. and each other. all with an educational aspect as homage, to learn about different cultures and places around the world

Infinity Train, an anthology series about a train with seemingly infinite cars and its passengers, and the stories they have to tell and personal fears and issues you have to face before you can leave

Lego Elves (original webseries) and Lego Elves: Secrets of Elvendale (Netflix adaptation), a fun, feel-good, rompy and cheesy show about a teenage girl with a magic amulet who becomes the guardian of the land of Elvendale

note: you can watch the webseries or the Netflix show as a standalone, with no knowledge of either. i watched the webseries first, then le:soe. le:soe is better animated and written, but there’s a lot of fun development in the longer webseries! 

tv shows: 

The Genius, a Korean competition show where competitors form and break alliances, try to outwit each other, and solve problems through a series of intellectual games*

Society Game, a Korean competition show where contestants are split into two societies in a fake village survival, playing various games as teams and individuals to win*

Knowing Bros (also known as Man on a Mission), a Korean reality show with stars who attempt to answer any and all questions viewers send in, leading to really funny scenarios 

The Great British Bake-Off/The Great British Baking Show, a British baking competition show

Portrait Artist of the Year, a British competition show where both professional and amateur artists compete and create live portraits in several rounds, with the winner being commissioned for a painting for the national gallery*

The Great Pottery Throw Down, a British competition show where potters work with clay to create complex pieces and test their skills

Love O2O, a C-drama about two gamers who fall in love, basically; sweet, overdramatic at times, and fun*

yes, i basically watch Korean reality entertainment shows and British competition shows. they’re good. 

anime (shows and films):

Violet Evergarden, a show about a perfect child soldier now become a girl who writes letters for other people and a divided nation, learning to find peace and how to live, love; and how expressing feelings for others can teach you more about yourself and the world around you*

Miss Hokusai, a film about different chapters of the life of famous Japanese artist Hokusai’s daughter, a woman with little known history in real life, a talent for painting, and strong opinions

In This Corner of the World, a melancholic and aching, yet also surprisingly soft and happy, glimpse in a young woman’s life in Hiroshima as she is married to a stranger and WWII approaches

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, my favorite Ghibli film, about titular princess Nausicaa who loves her people of the valley fiercely and the post-apocalyptic nature and giant creatures that surround it; until they are attacked by greed and war*

Promare, a Trigger film about fire and fighting fire. you don’t need to know more than that to watch it*

Weathering With You, Shinkai’s latest film about a boy running away from home meeting a girl who can change the weather by praying

things i haven’t watched (yet), but still recommend: 

BNA, a Trigger show about a girl turned Beastman trying to find her way

Carole and Tuesday, about two misfits who want to play music

Anne with an E, a show adaptation of Anne of Green Gables

The Umbrella Academy, i mean, a weird show about siblings with powers

[frighthouseofalighthouse]

I'm gonna do it. I'll take all the history asks for 500, Alex!

OKAy. I may have to reblog and do an add-on, because I will almost certainly go over the 250 paragraph limit. ALSO NICE JEOPARDY REFERNCE. Okay, ready? Go.

1: Historical role model?

We could all stand to be more like Julie D'Aubigny.

2: Favorite underrated historical figure?

See above.

3: Funniest historical kerfuffle?

In 1774 Boston's Committee of Safety (John and Samuel Adams as well as Joseph Warren and PaulRevere were on it) was made up almost entirely of patriots, except for one man: Daniel Leonard. They couldn't decide anything important with him around so they would have a fake meeting and then be like OKAY IT'S AUGUST WE'RE HOT AND TIRED, LET'S GO HOME, and then after he'd left they'd lock themselves in a room and have their REAL, TREASONOUS MEETING. Reading about this is objectively one of the funniest things I have ever heard. It's literally the beack house episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine where they have a fake party for Captain Holt.

4: Favorite conspiracy theory revolving around history?

Whatever the fuck the real story of the X FIles was (I've watched the whole thing multiple times and I still don't know what exactly what the point was. DOn't get me wrong I love it. It just makes no sense.)

5: Favorite political scandal to examine?

The XYZ Affair because I was there for it all and it's...a lot

6: Opinion on the presidential assassinations and their impact on America?

I answered this in depth last time I got that question and you can read my response here.

7: Which time period would you like to live in?

Either take me back to the revolution or put me in Victorian England (BARRING MEDICAL NONSENSE AND SOCIAL BARRIERS)

6 (again?!): Favorite historical fiction book?

See the assassination link!

8: Favorite tv show based on historical events, but not really faithful to real life?

Top choices are Outlander, TURN: Washington's Spies, Black Sails, and Ripper Street.

9: Favorite musical based on history?

*sarcasm* Definitely NOT Hamilton whaaaaaaat why would you even assume that?! Ahem. Also Les Mis is cool I guess.

10: Favorite movie based on history?

Wonder Woman!!!

11: Favorite biography?

The Swamp Fox by John Oller

12: If you could prevent one tragedy, which would you choose?

The Trump Administration.

13: Fun fact?

MLK and Anne Frank were born in the same year.

14: Favorite female monarch?

Cleopatra or Mary Queen of Scots.

15: Favorite war leader?

I'm biased but George Washington.

16: Favorite controversial leader?

Winston Churchill

17: Favorite feminist pioneer?

J U L I E D ' A U B I G N Y. Also Mary Read and ANne Bonney my queer pirate gals

18: Which president, in your opinion, was the best speaker?

No contest, Abraham Lincoln.

19: If you would travel back in time and kill anyone, who would it be?

Listen I’m not a fan of these questions when people are like “I’d kill Hitler” etc. bc butterfly effect, BUT The British officer who shot John Laurens can CATCH THESE MF HANDS

20: Opinion on each of the founding fathers?

Oh boy. This is an interesting question at this point in time because I am currently grappling with the fact that the people I worked with did not really believe in equality for all, and the system we built was designed to reflect this. However, it is a system that I believed in and put my everything towards so I have many conflicted feelings toward it rn. Anyway here's the low-down on the major ones. GEORGE WASHINGTON: Good guy, needed to loosen up and not be a slaveholder. JOHN ADAMS: old stinky man. Called me mushroom excrement once. Put him back in the swamp from whence he came. THOMAS JEFFERSON: Rapist. Slaveholder. Really stuffy. Founded an entire political party for People Who Don't Like Hamilton. Fuck him foreverrrr. JAMES MADISON: Friendly with me but betrayed me when Jefferson came back from France. 2/10, cute but do not trust him with your secrets or coffee order. JAMES MONROE: A teenager during the war and I barely ever saw him after that but he was fine ig. ALEXANDER HAMILTON: that me! Made mistakes but all around a cool(tm) guy. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN: fresh funky and really funny. Cooler than you'd expect an old man with gout to be.

21: Which leader do you think would make the best spouse?

No leaders are good spouses bc superiority complex.

22: Most pointless war in your opinion?

All. But King Phillip's War was especially whack.

23: John Wilkes Booth - crazy or crazy with a cause?

I mean of course he had a cause, but it was a bad one and having a cause doesn't make him less crazy. He was...really yikes.

24: Why do you think Lee Harvey Oswald killed JFK and did he act alone?

Most certainly did not act alone. But I feel based on timeline of events and maps of the area that either he was paid off either by our own government or the Soviets, or one of the two set him up as a patsy. Then Jack Ruby was paid to cover up the tracks.

25: Opinion on assassinations of leaders in general?

Same as killing anyone else, I guess, murder is bad, and I don't think that's really the route that should be taken to remove dangerous parties from power. But in some cases it may be the only way of removing them, and, well, that is what it is.

26: Do you think we're going to repeat history because we haven't learned from it?

Always. It is constantly happening. There is nothing new.

27: Have you ever been teased for being a history nerd?

hahahahahahahahaha yeah. Ever since first grade.

28: Which historical figure do you think has been subject to the most fictionalization and elevated to a godlike status nowadays?

Due to the musical, Alexander Hamilton (me.) People need to realize that I wasn't perfect but also not evil. Just human.

29: Rant about your favorite topic?

See the other part of my Lincoln Assassination rant here

30: Favorite kids/teens history books?

The Dear America series and the Liberty's Kids novelizations are WHERE ITS AT.

31: How was your interest in history started?

I don't even know exactly when or how anymore. My mom's a book nerd and an archaeology/anthropology major, so I grew up in a house chock full of books, including history books. I've loved it ever since I could read, honestly.

32: Do you know a history professor?

I do not!

33: How did your favorite history teacher structure their class?

I was homeschooled so it was my mom. She made sure we covered every period, but other than that just let me pick out what interested me and what I wanted to read and explore. She read a ton of big historical books right alongside me and we'd discuss as we read. We still do this!

AND THAT'S THE HALFWAY POINT OF THESE. I HAVE TO GET READY FOR AN OVERNIGHT SHIFT AT WORK SOON SO I WILL LEAVE THIS HERE FOR NOW AND REBLOG WITH THE REST OF THEM UPDATED TOMORROW. THANK YOU SO MUCH.

[cs-discourse]

Reccomendations (V long sorry 😅)

I offer you all some shows to watch instead of hAzBiN hOtEL:                         

Epithet Erased (On YT I think. - Animation style is a little hard to get used to, but I love the chars and story line. Wholesome fun.)

Brooklyn 99 ( Netflix - please remember that real cops are not like this, it is a fictitious portrayal - the actors themselves donated 100,000 $ to support protesters against cops. Enjoy it but watch it as the fiction it is. Be aware that it’s copaganda.)

She-ra ( Netflix- we stan that lgbtq representation)

Avatar the Last Airbender (Netflix - Most of you have prbly already seen it but uh. If you haven’t, it’s pretty good. Definitely a lighthearted semi childish show.)

Daria (Crave - We stan unique poc representation. https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/59kp45/daria-jodie-landon-suburban-black-girl) 

Adventure Time (Dailymotion -free- or Google Play - Just google best episodes and watch those ones. The ones with Marceline + PB are my personal faves.) 

Magic For Humans (Netflix - Basically an interesting magic show. Fun activity: when I watch this w/ other ppl we try to figure out how he did the tricks.) 

The Fresh Prince (Netflix - A classic. Still know the theme song by heart.) 

Hilda or Kipo and the Wonderbeasts (Netflix - these two animated shows are new unique takes on fantasy adventures. ) 

IZombie ( Netflix - Basically a zombie detective, but better. Think Veronica Mars. -also a good detective show y'all should watch. *trigger warning: it’s a zombie murder show so it has some semi-realistic depictions of gore/brains.) 

Disenchantment ( Netflix -The closest thing to Hazbin on this list. An animated show with dark humour without being racist or homophobic. *some animated gore that some people might find triggering. It’s been a while since I watched so idk exactly what.) 

Final Space ( Netflix -like disenchantment, an animated show with an intended audience older than your average animation show. *again, animated gore.) 

Mods, if any of these shows are homophobic/racist/otherwise problematic -(ignoring B99 which is obvious copganda. Again: It’s fiction. Do not -I repeat, DO NOT- look at it as a real representation of cops. It’s not.)- please say so. We not here tryna recommend problematic shows. Or, if you have any other reccomendations?

ps: I’m Canadian, so some of these shows may not be on american Netflix, or some of the ones that aren’t may be on it. Idk. Stay safe y'all. Oof way too long submission finally over. 

-

if you like anime, here are things i watch:

blue exorcist - DEMONSSS (hulu and netflix im p sure)

scissor seven - its actually chinese animated, but its very well made and the production value goes up as the show goes on. i honestly rlly like the cliche anime backstory for the main char bc its also funny as hell (netflix)

saiki k - its like if one punch man was a teen who was also incredibly sarcastic. if you have adhd this shows p good for you too, it goes really fucking fast and you cant look away or youll miss something. its hilarious, go watch. (netflix)

also, some youtubers if youre feelin like that:

dream - minecraft youtuber, child friendly (not in the annoying way. just no cussing)!! hes like 5000 iq and holy shit his minecraft manhunts are insane. holds the mc speedrun world record POG. good coder, my fav youtuber right now.

hellfreezer - reading reddit stories youtuber. his voice is very nice, and videos are faily long. i use him as background noise when doing work.

TRO (the right opinion) - long commentary/rant videos on controversial topics/youtubers, like onision and yandere dev. sexy british voice ;)

mossbag - hollow knight lore and theories. i love hollow knight sm

penguinz0 - streams, commentaries, very short videos. one of the funniest men alive. absoultely incredicble. hes very quick witted and his insults make me scream laugh sometimes

joana ceddia - random life videos. full of personality! i love her honestly shes really chill but also gives off the energy of a thousand suns

pointcrow - gaming youtuber. makes a lot of insane challenge botw videos/zelda vids in general. he streams and then makes the videos.

jarvis johnson - makes videos like drew gooden/danny gonzalas do, but he is also a poc. his bids are entertaining and interesting!! i recommend greatly if you like shorter commentary videos.

.phe

my current faves are:

dorohedoro - anime about humans and wizards coexisting during a war against each other. the wizards hate the humans and curse them to experiment with their magic. all-powerful demons control the magic world behind the scenes. very graphic in regards to gore, some nudity on occasion. anime not finished adapting from manga.

hunter x hunter - anime about hunters who do just that-- go out into the world and hunt for whatever it is they want. examples include justice for their clan killed by genocide, a new family because the old one is a toxic group of assassins who believe you can’t have friends, friends to fill in for an absentee father, and a phd. somewhat graphic in regards to gore, especially so later on in the series. anime not finished adapting from manga.

what we do in the shadows - tv mockumentary series about vampires living in staten island. very funny but also VERY NSFW... lots of sexual references/content, gore and blood.

snowpiercer - tv fantasy series about the apocalypse in which the government fucked up and sent the world into a total deep freeze. 1001 train cars are all the life that remains on earth. VERY NSFW... sexual references/content, gore and blood. there’s also a movie adapted from the comic series by the iconic and incomparable bong joon ho on netflix which is good.

// Mod Peach

[an-american-whovian]

• The Story Thus Far:

This is the one that started it all fer me! The reason I bleed all things Doctor Who -- like my anus bleeds beer shits of Pabst Blue Ribbon.

My Series 2 review of NuWho (just rolls off the tongue).

• Goodbye, My Liveeer -- Goodbye, My Friend:

In all honesty, I don't know how it happened -- one day I came across a fan made Doctor Who video to James Blunt's 'Goodbye My Lover' on YouTube. More specifically, the episodes 'Army of Ghosts'/'Doomsday'.

It had that bit in which he asks, "How long are you going to stay with me?" To which she replies, "Forever." Then to see the whole conclusion with her getting sucked into a parallel universe/the stuff on Badwolf Bay all to that terrible song.

I was sold. (Mostly 'cause I was fresh off a break up, myself.)

• But I'm Getting Ahead of Myself:

As I watched all four minutes and twenty six seconds of that corny ass shit, I recalled Classic Who and asked myself, "Wasn't Doctor Who some big nosed dude with a long scarf and really bad special effects? Who's this hot bitch -- and the blonde!?"

Well, according to the nerds at Brainstorm Comics in Wicker Park, Chicago, it was this long running sci-fi series that had finally made a comeback after a long hiatus.

Then I remembered the TV Movie on Fox. That came and went like another one of their illfated shows, 'M.A.N.T.I.S.' (NO ONE ever remembers that one.) Then I remember as kid watching a different dude play the Doctor. This guy wore beige clothing and hung out with teens.

Total pedo' vibes.

Well, luckily fer me, those nerds at Brainstorm had a rental section and I proceeded to rent series two of NuWho -- 'cause i wanted to see how we got to that conclusion. (Then I proceeded to copy it onto VHS -- as was the fashion at the time.)

It was all downhill from there.

• Controversial Statement Up Ahead:

If a US network ever had the AUDACITY to do Who -- it would pro'ly look like this series (one could kinda say the same about series five, too). Handsome lead; hot companion. Easily to digest science fiction stories and culminating in a two part epic in which the hero fights off giant metallic salt shakers with plungers as they wage war against the British equivalent to the Borg. (Yea, I know -- Cybermen came first. I said it fer comparisons sake, ya nerd.)

Also, anyone remember that episode of 'Community' in which they do an American version of 'Inspector Spacetime'? They're TOTALLY supposed to be Tennant and Piper-esque. (The show would then go ahead and predict that the first female Doctor would go onto suck -- "but not because she's a woman".)

• Onto the Good Shit:

'The Christmas Invasion' is a fun festive romp -- that has the Doctor in it fer about ten minutes. Extra points fer 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' reference. It's, also, where I learned that out there they call baby oranges "satsumas". (Y'all are funny.)

'New Earth' brings back Cassandra from the series one story 'The End of the World' -- along with that giant head with dreads that lead into testicles known as The Face of Boe (love the enigmatic shit with him). The body switching stuff is fun; but how the Doctor saves the day is just plain lame. "Lemme dump all these cures into one giant concoction and bukkake this whole hospital!" *high fives all around!*

'School Reunion' brings back Sara Jane -- and till this day I use her "Everything has its time and everything ends" speech (almost to a fault). It's got Giles from 'Buffy' in it -- so that's dope. Be that as it may, I don't like how the kid takes credit fer blowing up the school at the end. Like, dude, eveyone's gonna think yer a prepubescent psycho.

'Girl in the Fireplace', The Cybermen two parter and 'The Impossible Planet'/The Satan Pit' are all time classics in my book. (Fun Fact: TO THIS DAY I refer to my basement as "The Satan Pit".)

• Controversial Statement Part Deux:

I don't hate 'Love & Monsters'. 😳 Like, I think Elton insinuating at the end that he skull fucks a slab of cement with his girlfriend's face is pretty fucked up and the Abzobaloff looks like it was designed by a child (oh, wait, it was) -- it's still a lot of fun and a different take on a Doctor Who story. (DW is ALWAYS at its best when it takes chances!)

Like, ELO is prominently featured in the episode. How can anyone hate that!?

• All Filler and No Thriller:

'Tooth & Claw' is just too boring to even talk about. I can't even remeber a characters name or which Queen was ruling at the time.

'Fear Her' HAS TO BE one of the worst episodes -- EVER. The less said about it the better.

• Let's Cut This Short -- Like the Doctor Gets Cut Off on Rose:

Series two isn't as great as series one; but it's not too far off. Yea, jokes are gonna be dated like bad CGI werewolves. Deal with it. Have you ever seen 'Warriors of the Deep'!?

It's all worth while fer a balls to the wall finale.

"You would destroy the Cybermen with four Daleks?", asks a Cyberman.

"We would destroy the Cybermen with one Dalek! You are superior in only one respect."

"What is that?"

"YOU ARE BETTER AT DYIIIIIING.", adds the Dalek. *DROPS MIC!*

Finally, don't tell me you dont get all chocked up when Ten tells Rose, "I'm inside the TARDIS. There's one tiny little gap in the universe left, just about to close; and it takes a lot of power to send this projection. I'm in orbit around a supernova.

I'm burning up a sun just to say good bye." 😭

ALL THE STARS AND FRESHLY ROTTEN TOMATOES.

• Epilogue; i.e. Controversial Statement No. 3:

Are Timelords low key pedos!? Like, the Doctor is over 900 years old at this point and Rose is, like, 19 or 20.

Talk about a midlife crisis, bruh.

[charlieism]

Any podcast recs?

woo yes!! i love podcasts!! i’ll get right into my favs :D click the read more bc it gets kinda long

The Adventure Zone

If youre on tumblr youve probably heard of this already. It’s created by the McElroys, and follow the adventures of Taako, Magnus and Merle and a lot of fun other side characters all voiced by Griffin. Its hilarious and full of goofs, but the story it weaves Will make you cry by the end, there are so many plot twists, gays, found family tropes, its just ugh. amazing. very good to listen to if u want a laugh tbh, but the episode are pretty long, up to an hour and a half. but the story is beautiful, the characters are amazing, n i feel like im constantly laughing at jokes i dont even understand bc the mcelroys r Just That Funny. there are also other arcs u can listen to, like amnesty, which is about a trio of monster hunters, commitment, which is about superheros, and dust, which is a western supernatural mystery!

EOS 10

This is for sure one of my favourite podcasts ever. The characters are so easy to love and all so complex with very human issues, except its set in space surrounded by aliens so the shenanigans are never-ending and all so, so entertaining. the general plot is about dr. dalias, a surgeon on the space station EOS 10, and his friends and coworkers dr. urivdian, jane, and levi the hypochondriac, chaotic alien prince (and akmazian, the gay space pirate). the relationships between the characters are to die for, the gays are beautiful, and its fucking hilarious. 10/10 recommend, the episodes are relatively short between 10-15 minutes so its very easy to listen to.

Wolf 359

This was the second podcast I ever listened to, and will forever be held close in my heart. it starts off as a funny, light-hearted podcast based on the logs of communications officer doug eiffel, an astronaut aboard the USS Hephaestus, a spacecraft with only 2 other crewmembers, commander Minkowski and scientist Hilbert. eventually more characters are introduced such as captain lovelace, and the SI-5 crew Jacobi, Kepler, and Maxwell. the series goes from something entertaining and joking to a story with an unfolding plot that honestly blows me away, morally grey characters and the complex relationships between everyone, and amazing character development. the episode start out pretty short but they get longer as the plot progresses. you’ll laugh too many times to count, find yourself crying near the end and wonder how you got here, and fall in love w the characters, the jokes and the mystery. i cant recommend it enough (eiffels development ugh my fucking boy…..)

The Penumbra Podcast

This podcast is so fucking fun. its a detective-noir type storyline set far into the future on mars. it follows PI Juno Steel, a detective in Hyperion City, and all the cases he lands and has to solve. its intriguing as hell, the characters draw you in completely bc theyre so layered and complex but so easy to love, its gay as FUCK (theres only one straight person on mars lol) and its v enjoyable listening to juno’s character development and his interactions with other characters (namely nureyev and rita). im literally never bored listening to this podcast, and if the detective theme wouldn’t typically be your thing i swear you should listen to it anyway because with how its set on mars, in space, in the future, there are things youd never imagine and worldbuilding so smooth and surprising and fun. there are hilarious moments, tragic moments, heartbreaking moments, heart-healing moments, and just. the whole thing is brilliant dude. i adore it. (theres also a lot of mini episodes set in different universes like old western lesbians, and the Second Citadel, which runs alongside juno’s universe and is kind of a knights vs monsters fun thing but theyre also all bisexual lol).

Time Bombs

This is a mini-podcast made by the same creators as wolf 359. its only 3 episodes long so if u want something quick to listen to this is v good! its about a bomb squad on new years eve as Simon Teller tries to break the record of most bombs defused in a year. its very funny, easy to listen to, and just a fun lil thing!

Lake Clarity

Now this boy is a horror podcast. Its about a bunch of teens who go up to the abandoned Camp Clarity for a trip together before they graduate. they uncover abandoned military bases and a conspiracy, mutations and monsters, and get picked off one by one. i admit i never finished the second season but i greatly enjoyed the first! it was interesting (and they acknowledged the slightly basic set up in show a lot lol) but i like it!

King Falls AM

I only recently started listening to this one but its so good dude!! its set in a radio show in King Falls, hosted by Sammy and Ben. Sammy just came to the town from the city and Ben has lived in King Falls his whole life: we listen to the strange events happening around town as they happen and ben and sammy report on them, listen to the residents send in calls about their weird situations, meet new characters, and get a lil freaked out by some spooky things! its funny, its odd, its creepy at times, its the perfect blend of humour, supernatural, and horror!

And now for some honourable mentions

Welcome To Nightvale

This is one you’ve probably heard of as well. WTNV is a radio show hosted by Cecil Palmer, a citizen of the town of Nightvale, which has got to be the weirdest town in the world. its delightfully strange, entertaining, fun to listen to, and i havent finished it but i like it and i know a TON of other people adore it, its v popular!!

The Magnus Archives

Another horror podcast, I never got very far through it (mainly bc i just. struggle to listen to jon’s voice and accent rip) but the gist of it is a british archivist is going thru some archives n recording the stories. its full of monsters, supernatural stuff n creepy stories. people love it, if ur into horror n creepy stuff then i recommend this one!

The Bright Sessions

Another one I never got very far through, it follows dr. bright, a therapist for the ‘strange and unusual’ and her sessions with various super-powered people, for example empaths, time-travellers, etc etc. im not sure why i didnt get v far thru bc it is v intriguing and has a lot of potential, im sure id pick it back up one day! i think it could have a lot of cool overlapping storylines if u dig that!

Directive

This short podcast is very interesting, its about a man who is on a spacecraft alone looking after people in stasis for many years, and isnt allowed any real contact with other people on the ship outside of a video call once a night. there are plot twists, you will randomly find yourself crying by the end of it bc of the raw emotion, and it can be a little slow in the start but its worth the quick listen!! it goes into the effects of isolation and moral dilemmas on a person and is v interesting!

And now just some ones on my to-listen list that have been highly recommended to me!

Limetown

Wooden Overcoats

Within the Wires

Rabbits

Alice Isn’t Dead

[aion-rsa]

9 Best TV Roles From Gillian Anderson

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Full-time TV goddess and part-time television detective Gillian Anderson is never far from our minds. Here are nine of our favorite TV roles from the actress, whose on-screen legacy reaches far past The X-Files franchise to British period dramas, eccentric Bryan Fuller shows, and animated snarkiness.

Dana Scully in The X-Files

Let’s just get this way out of the way, shall we? Not because Anderson’s turn as Agent Dana Scully over the course of 11 seasons (and counting?) of The X-Files TV show and two The X-Files movies should or could be diminished, but because most everyone is familiar with Anderson’s turn as the chronically skeptical FBI agent.

Dana Katherine Scully is more than a TV character. She’s an institution. I grew up watching The X-Files and having a female character who wasn’t the same cookie-cutter example of what it was to be a woman made me feel like much more was possible. Gillian Anderson’s understated, yet affecting portrayal of the character was a large part of that.

Scully was (and still is) complex and flawed. She is a scientist with a commitment to her Catholic faith. She is a skeptic who, nonetheless, believes in Mulder. And she is funny as anything—much of that down to Anderson’s dry, deadpan delivery (“Bad Blood” being a great, oft-cited example). If Gillian Anderson had to have one character define her career, she could do a lot worse that Scully.

Miss Havisham in Great Expectations

If you’re looking for a great Great Expectations adaptation, the 2011 BBC/PBS miniseries is not your best bet. If you’re looking for a role in which Gillian Anderson gets to chew up the scenery in a miniseries-stealing performance, this three-part series is for you.

Anderson is so often cast in understated roles, and she plays them incredibly well, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t gratifying to see her make moves as a completely over-the-top villainous character, like her turn as the bitter, mentally unstable, and highly-flammable Miss Havisham. As they should probably start saying in England: Come for the Dickens, stay for the Anderson.

Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier in Hannibal

Hannibal is not a show for the faint of heart, but it rewards viewers endlessly with its sumptuous visuals, unpredictably gruesome plot, and its ridiculously stellar cast. Gillian Anderson is only one of the many talented actors who make up this ensemble — including Mads Mikkelsen, Hugh Dancy, Laurence Fishburne, and Gina Torres.

Remember how we were talking about how Anderson often plays understated characters? Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier may be the most understated of the bunch. Perhaps the most enigmatic character on a show filled with enigmatic characters, Anderson manages to imbue the sly, clever Bedelia with a complex vulnerability that her cold, proper surface only occasionally lets through. If you are a fan of Gillian Anderson or good TV, Hannibalis a must-watch.

Lady Dedlock in Bleak House

A big part of Gillian Anderson’s career renaissance has been Dickensian adaptations and this is, perhaps, the best example. The BBC did a 15-part (eight-hour) adaptation of Bleak House in 2015. Anderson took on the role of the cold, secretive Lady Dedlock and she is one of many deft moving parts in this brilliant retelling of the Dickens classic, which is much more fun than its lawyer-heavy premise might suggest.

Anderson seemingly agrees. She spoke with The Daily Beast about finding an appreciation for Dickens through her acting, saying:

One of the only things that I have regrets about in my life is my experience of school and education. I wish I had known how important it was to pay attention … My first foray into a lot of the classics has been through my work. It’s only after falling in love with the screenplay or adaptation that I’ve then gone on to read the novels themselves.

Stella Gibson in The Fall

If you’re and Anderson fan and haven’t yet watched The Fall,a Northern Ireland-set crime drama about the cat-and-mouse game between Detective Inspector Stella Gibson and serial killer Paul Spector (played by Jamie Dornan), then stop reading this and go do so now. Anderson plays Stella Gibson, an English DI who is brought to Belfast to stop the series of murders of young professional women that have been occurring in the city. The Fall has been celebrated for the fact that Anderson plays a character who is almost always male. She is extremely focused (and good at) her job, sees sex as a primarily casual habit, and doesn’t have the most robust of personal lives.

Anderson’s nuanced performance makes Stella a strong and sympathetic character — one who is deeply affected by the way that men take out their anger and frustrations out on women, and who knows how to navigate a world and professional space riddled with misogyny and casual sexism. Anderson has called Stella Gibson her favorite role, and it’s easy to see why. The actress is asked to do a lot in the BBC drama—and she more than steps up to the challenge.

Dana Scully in The Simpsons

Sure, this is really just a guest starring role on someone else’s TV show, but how could we not include at least one of Gillian Anderson’s animated turns? (She also appears briefly on Robot Chicken,as Fiona.) This X-Files spoof episode—”The Springfield Files”—comes in The Simpson’s eighth season and it is filled with in-jokes about the paranormal drama. David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson basically just voice their characters, but — as A.V. Club‘s review notes — “Anderson is, if anything, even more restrained than she is on The X-Files, which makes her lines funnier.”

“The Springfield Files” is far from the best episode of The Simpsons, but it is another great example of the kind of range Anderson has. Sure, she may be playing another version of her most well-known character, but getting that same character across in voice work is far different from getting that character across on live-action TV. Anderson nails it.

Media in American Gods

Sadly, Gillian Anderson is no longer on American Gods, which has suffered a series of high-profile “departures” that began with the “exit” of showrunners Bryan Fuller and Michael Green before Season 2. But we will always have one season of Anderson as Media, the mouthpiece of the New Gods, in this Starz adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s bestselling novel. As Media takes on the form of various celebrities and lives off the worship people give to their various screens, we got to see Anderson transform herself into people like Marilyn Monroe, Lucille Ball, and David Bowie—a smorgasbord of eclectic Anderson performances all in one show! For one season, we truly were blessed.

Jean Milburn in Sex Education

For a show that is mostly about The Youths, Anderson certainly makes her presence felt in Netflix’s British dramedy Sex Education. Anderson plays Jean Milburn, a single mom to teen protagonist Otis (Asa Butterfield), and a sex therapist. When Otis somewhat accidentally shares some of the sex education his mother has been feeding him presumably for his entire adolescence to a school bully, he falls into the sex advice business, helping his classmates with their sexual struggles. As Jean, Anderson gets to be both wise and neurotic, a mother and not defined by it. She also gets to regularly deliver lines like: “Why don’t you start by telling me your earliest memory of your scrotum.” Honestly, we deserve this show and its brilliant casting of Gillian Anderson.

Anna Pavlovna in War & Peace

Still have room for one more Gillian Anderson-starring period drama? (You know you do.) In this lush yet somewhat soulless 2016 adaptation of Tolstoy’s tome, Anderson plays “glittering society hostess” Anna Pavlovna. Written by period adaptation master Andrew Davies and directed by Peaky Blinders‘ Tom Harper and featuring a cast that also includes Paul Dano, Lily James, and James Norton, War & Peace has a lot going for it even if it never fully capitalizes on its deep reserves of talent and, honestly, with such an expansive cast and Anderson in a supporting role, our fave only gets a small amount of screen time. But, per the usual, Anderson steals the show.

What are your favorite Gillian Anderson TV roles? Sound off in the comments below…

The post 9 Best TV Roles From Gillian Anderson appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3aMACIh

[fly-pow-bye]

What’s Airing On Cartoon Network (November 2019)

The Futon Critic updated with Cartoon Network’s listings for November, featuring the return of Apple & Onion, the return of Total Dramarama, a Craig of the Creek special, and more! See it after the break!

Apple & Onion

November 2nd:

Apple's Focus - Apple helps Onion achieve his dream of competing on a baking show. Includes special guest Sue Perkins (Great British Bake Off). (9:30 AM)

Lil Noodle - Apple and Onion must remain legit enough to be in their favorite rapper's music video. Includes special guest Timothy DeLaGhetto. (9:45 AM)

Gyranoid of the Future - Apple and Onion struggle to ride Gyranoid of the Future, the craziest roller coaster at the carnival. (10:00 AM)

Fun Proof - Apple and Onion want to become this week's "Most Fun People". (10:15 AM)

November 9th:

Whale Spotting - Apple and Onion need to join an exclusive club to see a rare whale. (9:30 AM)

Heatwave - Apple and Onion try to spread cheer during a city-wide heatwave. (9:45 AM)

Apple's in Charge - Apple is put in charge of the Dollar Store for the very first time. (10:00 AM)

Burger's Trampoline - Apple and Onion must find a way to use Burger's trampoline without making him feel used. (10:15 AM)

November 16th:

Baby Boi TP - Apple needs to acquire a lifetime supply of toilet paper to finish his modern art sculpture. (9:30 AM)

Not Funny - With their 6 month friend anniversary approaching, Apple has to find a way not to lose his best friend. (9:45 AM)

November 23rd:

Onionless - Apple tries to survive a weekend alone while taking care of Onion's plant. (9:30 AM)

Party Popper - Apple and Onion's party plans are interrupted by a grumpy guest. (9:45 AM)

November 30th:

Face Your Fears - Apple and Onion must face their fears while trapped in a pet shop, so they can save French Fry from facing hers. (9:30 AM)

Apple's Short - Apple needs to be tall so that he can be in love. (9:45 AM)

Bakugan: Battle Planet

November 3rd:

Happy/One Way or Another - Happy: The AO expect a fight in Brakistan, but soon discover that old enemies Lord Brakken, Magnus, and Nillious are unnaturally happy to see them./One Way or Another: In the heat of emotions, Shun convinces Lord Brakken that his usual enemies are the best allies he has to sequester a renegade Core Cell. (7:00 AM)

November 10th:

Stormy Weather/Who Can it Be Now - Stormy Weather: On a flight to their next Core Cell mission, the AO's plane falls under attack by Pyravian, who strangely believes the team to be Bakuzon./Who Can It Be Now: The AO find themselves in a battle against the Bakuzon forces of Tiko that upends everything they thought they knew about Core Cells. (7:00 AM)

November 17th:

In My Room/An Army of Their Own - In My Room: When the AO report that they've been fighting the wrong fight, they discover that Benton has been corrupted by the villainous Tiko./An Army of Their Own: The AO are forced to turn to Philomena Dusk for help, only to realize that they have led Benton/Tiko right to the AAAnimus Campus. (7:00 AM)

November 24th:

Calling All Parents/Nowhere to Turn - Calling All Parents: When the parents of the world are turned against their children and confiscate their Bakugan, the AO must seek out the Rowdy Reds./Nowhere to Turn: While the AO attempt to gain allies and warn other children, Wynton is confronted by Armstrong Tripp, who now works for Benton Dusk. (7:00 AM)

Ben 10 (2016)

November 2nd:

My Bodyguard - When Zombozo hypnotizes Grandpa Max's entire baking class it is up to Ben and Gwen to clean up the mess, but it gets even messier when Zombozo unveils his new bodyguard: Kevin 11! (12:00 PM)

Wheels of Fortune - Team Tennyson's thrift store shopping is ruined by the latest high-speed heist of LaGrange - who is now aided by a super-fast electromagnetic racing car - and Ben must convince Kevin 11 to help stop the speed demon's globetrotting robbing spree. (12:15 PM)

November 9th:

Heat of the Moment - After Ben easily dispatches the Weatherheads, Team Tennyson travels to a ski resort for some fun in the snow but when Ben runs into the Weatherheads yet again, this time they are a force to reckon with. (12:00 PM)

Vin Diagram - When Ben sees Vin Ethanol impressed with Kevin's automotive know-how, Ben's jealousy has him convinced that he has to out-do Kevin before the older boy influences Vin to embrace his bad-guy side at a charity race. (12:15 PM)

November 16th:

A Sticky Situation - All Ben wants to do is stop Queen Bee from robbing a bank, but when Kevin shows up to try and be the hero and take all the glory himself, Ben will need to save the day twice or end up in hot honey. (12:00 PM)

What Rhymes with Omnitrix? - At a poetry slam event, Charmcaster's reading of Kevin's poetry causes magical trouble for Ben and Gwen, causing mind swaps that have everyone confused as to who's fighting who. (12:15 PM)

November 23rd:

You Remind Me of Someone - Ben and Gwen look for the infamous Bojamboo (the Bigfoot of the South) and discover that it's actually the Forgeti, at the same time as Kevin 11, but when Ben and Kevin are blasted with the Forgeti's forgetfulness mist, they reverse roles and it's up to Gwen and Max to restore them back to normal. (12:00 PM)

Adrenaland Jr. - Team Tennyson visits the safety-neutered version of Adrenaland known as "Adrenaland Jr.", only to end up facing off against a bitter Kevin 11, out to destroy everyone else's good, and safe, time. (12:15 PM)

November 30th:

Steam Fight at the OK Corral - When Kevin convinces Steam Smythe to adopt a modern approach in fighting Ben, our young hero must resort to old-fashioned thinking to save the day. (12:00 PM)

I Don't Like You - Ben and Gwen's social media battle with Kevin 11 quickly escalates into an all-out war in real life. (12:15 PM)

Craig of the Creek

November 23rd:

Craig and the Kid's Table (Half-Hour Special) - It's a Williams Family Thanksgiving, which means it's time to reunite The Kid's Table! But when Bernard accidentally destroys dessert, Craig uses the power of the Kids Table to help save his brother from certain grounding. (10:00 AM, half hour)

Teen Titans Go!

November 9th:

Teen Titans Vroom (Half-Hour Special) - In this episode of "Turbo Titans Go Force" the Titans gain the ability to transform into cars. Then, in the exciting conclusion of "Turbo Titans Go Force" the Titans must learn to work together to stop Dr. Military. (10:30 AM, half hour)

November 27th:

Beast Boy's That's What's Up - Beast Boy goes to visit the Doom Patrol. Beast Boy, Negative Girl, and Robotman discover some crabs are up to no good. Cyborg becomes inseparable from Robotman. It's time for Beast Boy to leave, but the Doom Patrol try to get him to stay. (6:00 PM)

Total Dramarama

November 2nd:

Mutt Ado About Owen - After accidentally hypnotizing Owen into being a dog, Harold thinks he must reverse the hypnosis to avoid going to jail. (9:00 AM)

Simons Are Forever - Duncan and Leshawna try to take advantage of Izzy's love for the game of Simon Says. (9:15 AM)

November 9th:

Stop! Hamster Time - Owen takes over the job of caring for the class hamster and learns that he's evil. (9:00 AM)

Driving Miss Crazy - Duncan leads Beth to believe she's broken his battery-powered bike and makes her chauffeur him around in a wagon for the day as punishment. (9:15 AM)

November 16th:

Weiner Takes All - After forgetting to book a Hot Diggity Doggity Dog mascot on National Hotdog Day, Chef tries to pass off an Australian man dressed as a kangaroo as a substitute. (9:00 AM)

Apoca-lice Now - When Chef brokers a truce with lice by selecting three kids to "host" them on their heads, Courtney instigates a kid vs. lice war. (9:15 AM)

November 23rd:

Gnome More Mister Nice Guy - When the daycare gets taken over by evil gnomes, Duncan finds himself on the wrong team. (9:00 AM)

Look Who's Clocking - When Harold's warnings not to mess with the clock go ignored, the kids are forced to save themselves when Duncan tears a hole in the fabric of time. (9:15 AM)

November 30th:

Harold Swatter and the Goblet of Flies - After finding what he believes to be a magic wand, Owen accidentally turns Harold into a housefly. (9:00 AM)

Stink. Stank. Stunk. - When a skunk comes seeking its annual revenge on Chef, Duncan sees it as an opportunity to get a vacation from daycare. (9:15 AM)

Transformers Cyberverse

November 2nd:

Spotted - As the Autobots prepare for an attack, Cheetor struggles to find his place amongst the tight-knit group. (6:30 AM)

November 9th:

Secret Science - Shockwave kidnaps Wheeljack to help the Decepticons find Starscream, but he underestimates the wily Autobot inventor. (6:30 AM)

November 16th:

Infinite Vendetta - The Autobots and Decepticons are surprised by the sudden arrival of two bots locked in a millennia long feud. (6:30 AM)

November 23rd:

I Am the Allspark - Starscream unleashes the ultimate attack on the Autobots and Decepticons. (6:30 AM)

November 30th:

Escape from Earth - The Autobots have the Allspark! Now they just have to get it off Earth. (6:30 AM)

[heresince93]

Full transcript of Gillian’s Sunday Times Interview

Gillian Anderson interview: Sex Education, phalluses, and why she’s hot for comedy

A coming-of-age comedy from Netflix puts therapist Gillian Anderson on the couch with her teenage son. She’s got ‘the chat’ down pat, she says.

Two things are striking from a tour of the set of Sex Education, Netflix’s new coming-of-age comedy. The first is how much a disused university campus in Newport has been made to look like your favourite US high-school TV show. There are sports pennants on the wall, the corridors are lined with battered lockers and the oversized serif M of the fictional Moordale High is on every pane of glass. You have to remind yourself it’s Newport, Wales, not Newport, California (though the drizzle helps).

Gillian Anderson was so taken with the set that she took pictures to show her friends. “Would you like to see them?” she says, passing me her mobile. “I think 50% of the pictures on my phone are now of one kind of phallus or another. Look at that. It’s a chess set that’s been made out of penises and vaginas. Aren’t they amazing? All those little penis pawns.”

The set she’s showing me is the house belonging to her character, Jean, and the reason there are so many phalluses is that Jean is a sex therapist. Sex Education is about Jean and her 16-year-old son, Otis (Asa Butterfield). Jean has no filter, is a prodigious oversharer, introduces her son to her various lovers and hands out condoms at parties. All Otis’s life, she has been a constant embarrassment to her son.

As a result, he is terrified of intimacy and can barely even look at his own penis. But when he runs into trouble at high school, his extensive sexual knowledge, gleaned through listening to sessions through cracks in the floorboards, turns out to be a gift that is much sought-after — so Otis sets up a clinic of his own on campus.

“The original idea actually came from a Channel 4 documentary called The Joy of Teen Sex,” says Laurie Nunn, the show’s creator. “Someone at the production company saw it and came up with the pitch, which was about this kid who’s been raised by this sex-therapist mum, but he has problems with his own sex life.”

To that premise, Nunn and the director Ben Taylor (Catastrophe) have added an unusual backdrop: Sex Education is set in a British secondary school that feels as if it has been teleported into a John Hughes film. The pupils wear backpacks and arrive in drop tops; the soundtrack is MOR hair rock; there are verifiable jocks, nerds and bully boys; and, although everyone speaks with an English accent, the sky is always a Californian blue.

“I’ve always said to my agent that my dream gig would be an American-style high-school comedy — quite rare in this country,” Taylor says. “This is a genre I’ve grown up loving, and I’ve really been frustrated that this country doesn’t seem to produce a ‘positive school experience’ on screen. There are movies like Gregory’s Girl, but I was looking for something of that tone on television. I found it in abundance in Laurie’s script.”

A character such as Jean in a series such as Sex Education marks a decidedly different tack for Anderson, too. From Scully in The X-Files to Miss Havisham in the BBC’s Great Expectations to Stella Gibson in three series of The Fall, she has made her name as the nation’s favourite ice maiden. Ice maidens aren’t generally hilariously confident failing mothers; ice maidens don’t make dick jokes.

“This script was so refreshing,” she says, “not just because it’s different, but also because I don’t get to be funny often in my career. The stuff I get is FBI agent, CIA agent, period stuff or women who commit suicide. With this, I just laughed and laughed and laughed at every script. I just felt like I couldn’t say no.”

It’s not that she can’t do comedy, she points out, it’s just that she doesn’t get offered it that much: it’s often forgotten that a portion of The X-Files episodes were comedic, at least in part. “I think back then I found I could do them as well [as serious material], and some of the theatre I have done has been comedic, but I don’t often get offered straight comedy.

“I might be offered a comedy, but I’m the straight man as opposed to getting to be goofy or erotic in a humorous way.”

In the case of Sex Education, Jean is both goofy and humorously erotic. It is also a subject Anderson knows a little bit about — not so much the sex-therapist bit (though she gives a good explanation of scrotal dysfunction to this wide-eyed innocent) but the mothering. She has two boys aged 10 and 12, as well as a 24-year-old daughter: she has had plenty of time to think about the whys and wherefores of “the chat”.

“My sons are literally about to start a new school,” she says. “They’re about to go through all of this. What’s fantastic about the series is, aside from being incredibly funny, it just puts front and centre what all kids are dealing with on a daily basis.”

Through her children, Anderson recognises that when it comes to teenage sexuality, smartphones have changed the game in a single decade. “It’s because of social media. There’s so much… almost dysmorphia about it. Everything is so out of proportion and not where the focus should be in terms of intimacy.

“Ultimately, sex is the most intimate thing one can do with another human being — how do you teach kids that? It’s fabulous in this to be able to draw attention to all the misguided versions of what sex is today for teenagers.”

Asa Butterfield, 21 but looking much younger, is about as close as you’ll come to a teenager on the Sex Education set. He thinks the show will provide a helping hand to teens lost in the morass of 21st-century sex. “It almost takes the pressure off people, because we deal with these issues in quite a blunt and straightforward way. It’s just saying that everyone has these issues, and it’s all normal. It shows them that it’s not a big deal to be scared or be behind.”

Anderson, sporting a short platinum bob that happens to make her look more icily unapproachable than ever, says filming Sex Education has made her less afraid of speaking to her own children. “That’s all it is, really — fear. Fear about approaching the subject, then the awkwardness and not wanting to be awkward, not wanting to make them awkward. There was a situation recently when I noticed I could have taken the conversation into a broader arena, and for some reason chose not to. I thought, ‘Have I not learnt anything?’”

Sex Education, it should be pointed out, is not a public-information film: first and foremost it’s a laugher. Inevitably, there’s plenty of sex and nudity (from the very first scene), but, as with Taylor’s Catastrophe, the sex is either awkward or joyous, never gratuitous. “One of the challenges,” Nunn says, “is always trying to keep the tone right — because they are teenagers. It’s still having the sex scenes and dealing with some quite graphic stuff, but keeping it totally appropriate and fun.”

Netflix has high hopes for the series, and you can see why. In one sense, it’s the perfect Netflix product, with Jean’s story playing to an older demographic, the John Hughes nods appealing to gen X nostalgia, and Butterfield, a child star from The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and Martin Scorsese’s Hugo, a gawky but gutsy shoo-in for the 16- to 24-year-olds.

“Fingers crossed,” Nunn says, “that the generations can watch it, because I think the Jean stuff, particularly, exists in its own world. You can watch that and get a lot of enjoyment out of it, alongside the teenage characters. But in some ways older people could watch the teenage characters, too: it’s more about being a teenager than being just for teenagers. And everyone’s done that.”

Sex Education is available on Netflix from January 11

[alittleoptimistic]

Favorite Character Tropes as Wish Fulfillment?

I wrote that title after I analyzed this stuff because I realized a thing about myself I was unaware of. I always get attached to the Same Character. Like, they are literally the same person in different stories. And I want to know why. So I did a little digging and thinking and all that good, good stuff. 

Here are a few examples of my typical favorite character

Charlie from Lost

Virgil from Sanders Sides

Philip from Travelers

the Doctor from Doctor Who (specifically 10)

Klaus from Umbrella Academy

Stiles from Teen Wolf

Riley from Sense 8

Cisco from Flash

Peter Pan from any version of this story

Jim from the Office

Peter from Heroes

Merlin from Merlin

Will from Hannibal

Felix from Orphan Black

Chuck from Chuck

Josh (the werewolf ) from Being Human

Jessica from Jessica Jones

Castiel from Supernatural

Loki from Marvel

Skylar from Heroes

Sherlock from Sherlock

Zuko from The Last Airbender

Killian from Once Upon a Time

I could probably find more but you get the idea

General similarities seem to be:

out of 23

21 are male?

15 have some type of addiction/problem they have difficulty controlling? (drugs, attention, adventure, eating people, killing people, ya know, etc)

17 have a secret

‘neuro-divergent’ in some way? (ADD, PTSD anxiety, depression, something? the kids are not alright)

All 23 have grey morals (probably chaotic good-ish? they all would break the rules for a good reason or get what they want)

19 have a crappy homelife/large tragedy in the past

20 have ‘superpowers/special ability’

18 are physically weak in appearance

18 are Underdogs, underestimated but actually powerful/very intelligent?

7 have a redemption arch

17 have dark hair lol

18 have a sarcastic, sense of humor

14 talk too much

mostly white in one form or another :/

So... why?? Why do I tend to like these characters more than others?

male. I am female and there are a few female characters that I LOVE. They happen, but, in all honesty, they are far and few in between. Wonder Woman, Jessica Jones, Hermione, Rey, Riley, Rory (Gilmore girls) Perhaps it is the way girls are often written? I like Jessica Jones because she is a hilarious mess and I relate. Same with... all of the ones I like, actually. They have that grey-moral vibe of real people, but lack the sexy Cat Woman, I’m-so-bad-I-can-kill-you-with-my-massive-butt-and-boobs?? Thing?? yeah? how unfortunate. They are small breasted or, at least, that is not drawn attention to too much. Could it be. holy moly, ya’ll. could it be I like women characters when they’re written... like people? like. like, as if girls are screwed up humans! not objects?? isn’t that incredible.

srry but not srry

an addiction. now, why do I tend to go here? Its a kind of a painful trope. They always go back, and back and back again to what we know is horrible for them. Perhaps there is enjoyment in watching the struggle and seeing them inevitably win their struggle, whatever it is? The strength to conquer the darkness within themselves and do the right thing. It might just make you think you can conquer your own battles?? Maybe I feel like I can relate in some sort of way, going back to old habits, struggling to be the person I want to be. Year after year of the same new year goals...

a secret. This is honestly just a nice trope and its neat, fun writing. Creates tension, and it is usually connected to the addiction. You get invested in this secret!!! It builds up to the inevitable discovery of that secret and the aftermath and all the reactions of their friends. (merlin, Will graham, chuck, etc.)

Neurodivergent. I think this is just me relating to these people. I have bouts of depression and anxiety and am currently researching the possibility of having ADD (thats a whole new weird thing idek) so this is just something that I think I see in myself.

Grey-morals. Again. This is my moral alignment, shocker. So, again, me relating to the characters. Also, characters that obviously have flaws are just well-written, well-rounded characters? No one is actually Clark Kent. characters that seem perfect either come off as plastic and fake because real people do not act like that, or they come off as kind of creepy?? because they must have some darkness lurking beneath the surface (when this is done on purpose, i actually like this quite a lot. Rose Quartz is an example of a character who seemed perfect on the surface, but as the show moved on, is revealed to be a Real Disaster Queen. she isn’t evil, just kind of a brat, but that redeemed what seemed to be sloppy storytelling because it was realistic)

Tragic past. This is just something that authors give to Disaster People to justify their screwed-up-ness. Course, not all of them had tragic pasts, but something bad happened to all of them (except Jim from the Office I think??, but then again, that is a sitcom...)

Special Ability Again, wish fulfillment. Not even gonna lie. I often feel powerless and out of control, this Freaks Me Out. I think there is comfort in seeing the ‘little guy’ (aka le me) having with a BAMF hashtag

 Weak And once more on Relatable-Station. This is in connection with relating to feeling and looking powerless, but finding comfort in the secret strength these characters have whether through supernatural means, superior intelligence, biting humor, a quick tongue, etc.

Underestimated the cap on this trio. The last 3 points could be summed up as one thing. A weak, underestimated person actually has some secret strength. These characters might just be a coping mechanism I have to deal with feeling weak and overlooked and powerless, whether or not those feelings accurately portray reality. I wonder where those feelings came from in the first place.

A redemption arch This trope is often a result of having grey morals. These also help deal with feelings of inadequacy or guilt in the reader?? It makes you think, if they can be loved, surely I can. (i am really dragging myself in this post, which was not the plan lol but here we are) 

Dark hair/brown hair. I have dark hair, I also wanted black hair as a child and found it very beautiful. Also, I think the dark hair goes with the personality trope as a Screw Up. Not gonna lie, messy brown/black hair on boys and girls, honestly, but the short messy thing, is great. and when they go evil for a bit and the hair gets Extra Messy?? That. That’s. Good. (for reference see: Stiles, Killian, Peter, Virgil, Loki)

Sarcastic my flavor of humor. this is turning into the realization that we do, in fact, like characters we relate to the most. I thought that might be far fetched because I’m ‘nothing like’ these characters, but let's get real. They’re me but as a cute boy or girl.

Talk too much This isn’t me. but This is who I want to be, I think. I’ve always struggled with anxiety about being the quiet one while my brother was so much better at talking, making friends, etc. so this is, again, wish fulfillment. i swear i didn’t think this was going to be this self-indulgent but i obviously was wrong

White They aren’t all white. Zuko is Asian. Cisco’s actor is Columbian American. But that’s... thats a really small amount of diversity. Like, I’m concerned. (when i say white btw, I don’t mean just American or British or whatever, because there are characters on here that are from all over. I just mean overall white-looking for the sake of this analysis) 

So, First Hypothesis: prejudice is very ingrained and even with good intentions, i could be subconsciously avoiding characters that are POC??? If this is all a ‘projecting myself’ thing, then I relate to white people the most? Im sure im screwing this up, but i’m not gonna chicken out and avoid this because thats what I’d usually do to keep from dumbly saying something offensive, but if I dont address a problem, then no one is getting anywhere 

Second Hypothesis: Its been known the fiction industry as a whole has a problem with representation,,, I don’t want to discount me being white, but I don’t think this is just me and my tiny entitled butt. There probably isn’t as much access to that type of character for POC. How often do creators have well-rounded, stick-around-for-a-long-time, flawed, funny, sometimes-problematic-but-well-meaning characters that are also POC? not often enough. Maybe it’s not always on purpose. But because of ‘Diversity Points’, character development might get pushed aside, and then the character’s personality becomes Their Race, which is... a crappy way to build a character? The industry has a hard enough time with diversity in general. Maybe people just don't write POC as that type of character. Which makes characters like Cisco unique. I’ve never even thought about that... Good on you, Flash writer crew.

let's fix this??

need more Ciscos???

 if any POC feels inclined to call me out on my bull or give their insight (only if you want to, of course), pls do.

In conclusion: this was interesting, and it makes sense, I guess, why people like different types of characters if their favorite characters are projections in one way or another of them. I’m not saying that we all relate to our favorite characters, but me, because I have this weird, dozen or more of the same type of character that I love, it might be reasonable to assume there’s something about that character I see in myself or wish I saw in myself? Anyway, an interesting thought. What do you guys think? Do you see yourself in your favorite characters?

This has been an honest essay that got too long. I wish I was as invested in writing school essays as I am in Tumblr posts.

[copperbadge]

Podcast Recommendations

So, I asked for podcast reccs and boy howdy did you guys deliver :D I didn’t really have a response to a lot of the comments but I wanted to both acknowledge them and also share them, so I thought I’d compile them here. I’ve taken out duplicates, and bolded and added commentary to ones I’ve encountered; as I try them out I’ll come back and add more. (At the moment I’m way behind and catching up, so it may be a few weeks.) 

Because I don’t want this to become like A Thing, I’m not going to add any more recommendations or respond to reblogs -- sometimes I just need to make a cutoff point. Thanks for all your thoughtful suggestions, guys! 

biblioaesthetica replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Fiction podcasts: Solutions To Problems is a little Night Vale-ish but snappier and funnier, premise a space alien and a human in the future give out love advice and time machines are tricky. 

The Strange Case Of The Starship Iris is like if Firefly were only overheard by the evil empire, it's queer, and the tension and mystery is great. 

The Bright Sessions is about a therapist's sessions with extraordinarily powered people. There's an underlying spooky tone to this

myjennieblr replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

You might enjoy The Fridge Light, a CBC series about the providence of many of our staple foods and changing trends in them. https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thefridgelight

timetravelingvampire replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Up and Vanished. Host investigates missing persons, one person per season. Season 2 just began

jessiqa82 replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

LeVar Burton Reads is probably my favorite podcast. Each episode LeVar reads a short story. The genre differs story to story and it’s really just nice hearing his voice.

ilacatz replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

I really like the Phileas Club: 3 or 4 people from around the world talk about recent local and international news, with occasional specials about certain topics/countries

wordsandshadows replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Apocrypals is a really great show - two guys having in-depth discussions on books of the Bible & the Apocrypha (which I actually found, weirdly, because the writer of Magnus Archives mentioned it on twitter)

skulkingwriter replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

I would give a qualified rec to the Black Tapes 

maybe the first series of Tanis - when the slow burn faux-real urban legend horror stuff works it works, when it doesn't it gets a bit repetitive and shark-jumpy.

andromeda-reinvented replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

My roommate listens to “And That’s Why We Drink” which is like, combo true crime/weird shenanigans. She really likes it and the couple times I’ve listened in, I enjoyed it as well.

dragonmuse replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

If you like My Favorite Murder, you might enjoy S'laughter which is two British women discussing British crime some historical, some more modern.

bigwigs replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Re: true crime, I’d strongly recommend In the Dark - its focus is on the police investigation surrounding a couple of cases and it’s fascinating (though difficult) listening

ohgreatblackbunny replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Pounded in my butt by my own podcast by Chuck tingle is a fun romp for occasional listening. 

If you want to just learn about cults (Cults) is a good one. 

I like a lot of the how it works podcasts-stuff you missed in history class/stuff mom never told you/ridiculous history. 

(Sam’s Note -- I couldn’t get into Stuff You Missed In History Class, I think possibly because I knew a lot of the content, but I don’t think it’s a bad podcast, just not fitted to me.)

For news and current events I like 1A. 

And if you feel like old nior style radio drama The Control Group is a fictional story about institutionalization involving murder, brainwashing, abuse of power. It's an interesting take on a dark part of mental health care.

sphinxyvic replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Have you been recced to listen to Futility Closet?                    

gemini-melia replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

I've listened to a couple of true crime series by Wonderly, Dirty John and Dr. death. They are short enough and engrossing but I feel you on the iffyness of true crime glamorization.

vr-trakowski replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

You might try The Hidden Almanac, described as Prairie Home Companion meets Lovecraft. It doesn't always have a plot but it's often hilarious. And each ep is only a few minutes long.

brilliant-starlight replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

You might like "You're Wrong About" ... looks at both historical and recent past events, on a wide range of types of topics.

mstornadox replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Becoming Mother Nature just launched. Fiction, about a teen girl who finds out her grandmother is Mother Nature.

knownasbelen replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

I love anything produced by Gimlet Media, but their Crimetown podcast might appeal? It’s true crime ish but the first season is about politics and the mob and they have great production values.

Sam’s Note: I really wanted to love Crimetown and I think for a lot of people it’s a great podcast, but I couldn’t keep track of who was talking -- I fell way behind and didn’t understand what was going on because they kept quoting people in rapid succession and I’d end up thinking a cop was a criminal or vice-versa. 

tardis-stowaway replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

Have you tried Criminal? It’s a true crime podcast where the crimes range from the harrowing to the silly (like a guy who streaks at major sporting events). There are also episodes about more loosely related topics, like an interview with trauma surgeons about gunshot wounds or about the forensics of shark attacks. It’s part of radiotopia, the same organization that supports Allusionist and 99% invisible.

spiderine replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

If you like the Allusionist, you'll LOOOVE "Answer Me This". It's done by the same woman (plus co-host Ollie and Martin The Sound Man) and it's both erudite and utterly hilarious.

dreamwaffles replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

I highly recommend Wine and Crime, where three Minnesotan friends discuss themed cases and review a related wine for the week (relation of wine to the crime: varied). They hit some true-crime classics, but most are new to me. Also they’re ridiculously funny.

the-other-sandy replied to your post “Out of curiosity, which podcasts are you into?”

For True Crime, I listen to The Vanished (ongoing) about missing persons cases. 

If you're willing to branch out, I also like Countdown (limited series) about space program accidents.

[sammysreelreviews]

Counting Down My 5 Favorite Netflix Original Shows At The Moment

Everyone always asks me “Sammy what should I watch on Netflix?” Honestly it’s getting on my nerves but I can’t be mad cause I don’t post on here as much as I should! I have compiled a list that has a little bit of everything for every one so y’all can leave me alone for a bit. Although I will say I will be happy to give anyone film recommendations. 

5. Made In Mexico (2018)

If you love reality TV you’ll love this. Made In Mexico follows Mexico City’s elite and fabulous. This show has all the petty drama that you could get on Bravo but it also has a little more heart. Although these young hot people live an extravagant life at the end of the day familia is the most important thing to them and that’s why this show stands out. Also I tweeted a whole thread about this show and one of the cast mate’s responded hoping they’d get a season 2 so fingers crossed!

4. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018)

The producers of the hit show Riverdale give Sabrina a fun dark makeover in her new show. Instead of switching up her outfits she is now tormenting classmates! We love character growth! Although Salem doesn’t talk we still have Aunt Hilda, Aunt Zelda, and a new addition Sabrina’s (highkey hot) cousin Ambrose. We also get a few new diverse characters but Harvey is even better cause he’s played by Ross Lynch and honestly I have never wanted to protect a TV character so bad in my life. So far the new Sabrina is on the right track I just hope the show doesn’t take a wrong turn into Riverdale anytime soon.

3. Elite (2018)

If you like rich kids, forbidden romance, and murder this is the show for you. Elite is about a group of kids at an exclusive private school in Spain. Three students have to go there because their public school got closed down and things get WILD. So I am literally obsessed with this show. It’s your classic teen drama. In the first episode they tell you someone gets murdered, honestly didn’t think they would kill off THAT person, and the rest of the season goes over the events that lead up to the crime. Yes you do find out who the murderer is and I honestly didn’t guess it. It’s only 8 episodes and if you end up yearning for more, a season 2 already on its way.

2. American Vandal (2017-2018)

First season was all about who drew the dicks on the cars (please bare with me) but season two was all about who the turd burglar was and it was even better. American Vandal is a mockumentary set in high school. Two guys named Peter and Sam are out to clear the names of people accused for harsh crimes. Season one they try to help the school’s class clown and in season two they head to a private school to see who put laxatives in the lemonade. It’s not only one of the most detailed shows I’ve seen but also one of the funniest. When the first season came out I was recovering from heart surgery and it physically hurt to laugh so I couldn’t watch it, THAT is how funny it is. Unfortunately Netflix has a thing for cancelling good shows cause they don’t have enough views ( I mean if I’m going to be honest Orange is the New Black didn’t deserve a season 3 but WHATEVER) and American Vandal is no more. If you want a good mystery with tons of twists, turns, turds, an emmy nom, a 98% on rotten tomatoes, and laughs, American Vandal is the show for you.

1. Bodyguard (2018)

Richard Madden stars in this gripping British drama that may be the best thing to hit Netflix all year. Madden plays a bodyguard with PTSD who has to work for the UK Home Secretary. Apparently this show did so well in the UK Netflix bought the international rights to it and I don’t blame them. This show is only 6 episodes of non stop adrenaline and nail biting. It also does not hurt that Richard Madden is a total babe and for that reason alone is why Bodyguard is number one. 

[needsmoresarcasm]

A Review of Crazy Rich Asians Before Seeing Crazy Rich Asians

And several years ago, she had been e-mailed a humorous list entitled ‘Twenty Ways You Can Tell You Have Asian Parents.’ Number one on the list: Your parents never, ever call you ‘just to say hello.’ She didn’t get many of the jokes on the list, since her own experience growing up had been entirely different.

That’s the passage that sold me on Crazy Rich Asians. I know, it’s no “Life lilted to the sounds of her soliloquy, skipping across lily pads, seeking to fill her soul with elusive validity” or whatever nonsense collection of pretty sounding words sells people on books these days. That’s all to say, for me, the thrill of Crazy Rich Asians does not rest in sparkling prose but in its revolutionary ordinariness.

You see, in that passage, Rachel, a first generation Chinese American, is reflecting on the differences between herself and other Asian Americans, as a result of considering her differences with Nick, her Chinese Singaporean boyfriend.  A character in a story saying “I’m not like all the other [girls/boys/teens/football players/handsome men named Chris in a comic-book based superhero movie]” is hardly new ground. But an Asian American character specifically contemplating her differences from other Asian and Asian American characters? I feel pretty comfortable betting that you can’t even name another instance of it. Because that would require at least two Asian American or Asian characters, and then a recognition that those characters did not encompass the entire experience of all Asian Americans.

I’m confident making that bet because there are so few mainstream stories that include enough Asians to make that opportunity possible. Only 11 percent of network TV shows in 2015 even had more than one Asian actor in its main cast. There have only ever been three network sitcoms featuring an Asian American family. Ever. There have been that many network sitcoms featuring a group of predominantly white friends with the word “Friends” in the title in the last decade. And that’s not even including “Friends”! (Best Friends Forever, Friends with Better Lives, and Friends with Benefits, in case anyone was wondering. Yes, I watched every episode of them all, in case anyone was wondering again.)  And TV is the medium where Asian actors are doing the best. Want to know how many major studio films featured an Asian actor in the leading role in 2015? Zero. None. In 2015, only 3.9 percent of characters were Asian, the same as in 2007, despite the fact that Asians are the fastest growing demographic group in the US.

That’s hardly shocking, I hope, because we’ve all been outraged about whitewashing for like a solid two years now. It’s exhausting, and I don’t know that I need to rehash it. But, for the sake of propriety, let’s just see how many movie characters were whitewashed in say… the last ten years: Allison Ng in Aloha (Emma Stone), Mindy Park in The Martian (Mackenzie Davis), The Ancient One in Doctor Strange (Tilda Swinton), Light Yagami (nee Turner???) in Death Note (Nat Wolff), Motoko Kusanagi in Ghost in the Shell (Scarlett Johansson), Khan in Star Trek: Into Darkness (Benedict Cumberbatch), Hae-Joo Chang in Cloud Atlas (Jim Sturgess), Boardman Mephi in Cloud Atlas (Hugo Weaving), the Archivist in Cloud Atlas (James D’Arcy), Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender (Noah Ringer), Lena in Annihilation (Natalie Portman), Goku in Dragonball Evolution (Justin Chatwin), Keiji Kiriya in Edge of Tomorrow (Tom Cruise), Kyo Kusanagi in The King of Fighters (Sean Faris), everyone in 21, and everyone in Speed Racer. In the last ten years. And that’s not even counting the characters who were not necessarily whitewashed, but were still inexplicably white: The Last Samurai, The Great Wall, the random white person POV in the Bruce Lee biopic Birth of the Dragon, those seven seconds on the Internet when the Mulan script had a white dude. I guess what I’m saying is, thanks Ed Skrein for opting out of Hellboy.

And so, Crazy Rich Asians is revolutionary. Sure, its satirization of class is nothing that Pride and Prejudice hasn’t done. And it’s got a Game of Thrones convoluted web of familial relations. And a Tolkein-esque love of a tangential backstory for a tertiary character (no one ever needs to know anything about Bernard Tai). But it’s not a bunch of white people in Regency era England or Westeros or Middle Earth. It’s a bunch of Asian people in the 21st century. And so when Rachel says she doesn’t identify with a Buzzfeed list, I not only get the reference, I feel it. It’s a mundane aside that feels written for me--not written for an Asian audience generally, but written for me specifically. It’s the kind of representation you only get when identity assumes the role of a character’s foundation, not a character’s personality: when you can no longer win a game of Taboo by giving the hint “the Asian one.”

It’s the type of representation that allows me to feel no pause about decrying how Eddie should just be written out of Fresh Off the Boat (send him off to college, already) because that show still has the rest of the Huang family. The Fresh Off the Boat gag about not knowing the dishwasher was more than a drying rack? That’s the hardest I’ve laughed at a TV show in ages, as a person who hadn’t run a dishwasher until he was 24, despite having grown up with one in the house. The extended bit about having to prepare for Asian glow? Still funny, but I’ll die of alcohol poisoning before there are any signs that I’m visibly drunk. When every joke is from the perspective of an Asian American family, I don’t feel lost when a few aren’t for me.

I love Fresh Off the Boat because it’s a great family sitcom. It’s funny and heartwarming and totally accessible. And as a network sitcom entering its fifth season, that’s all it needs to be. Because if you’re looking for a different flavor of representation on TV? Try Master of None or Kim’s Convenience.  Or The Good Place, in case you identify with a sweet, dumb molotov cocktail or a fancy British giraffe. Or Superstore, for either sass or sadness personified. There might not be a buffet of TV sitcom representation, but at least the prix fixe menu has some decent options.

And books are much the same. Crazy Rich Asians (and then China Rich Girlfriend… and then Rich People Problems) is fun, pop spectacle. It’s propulsive, with drama escalating through multiple storylines until they can’t help but burst into each other. It’s a great beach read. It’s a story you could live tweet. But you’d be disappointed if you were looking to read a rumination on identity and place in America or scrolls of lofty prose. The great thing about books, though, is that there are so many of them. So if you want those things? You could probably find it somewhere.

I don’t know that I realized how truly powerful it was to feel like something was crafted just for you until devouring Chemistry by Weike Wang. Chemistry is about an Asian American PhD student who leaves her PhD program in part because she feels like she lacks the motivation to dedicate her life to answering single research questions. She’s frustrated by lab work, by the unpredictability of scientific research. When she leaves her program, she tutors kids in science - and she so clearly loves science, as she peppers scientific trivia throughout the narrative. Her voice is deadpan and her thinking analytical. Switch some pronouns around, and I’m pretty sure I just wrote an autobiography circa 2012.  

It’s hard to describe just how much feeling that catered to entirely changes the power of a piece of art. Honestly, it’s not something I’ve had much occasion to think of. Of course, Chemistry is great for so many more reasons. The writing is breathtaking in its economy. As an author, it feels like Wang can take the same five words and rearrange them into the world’s best joke and the world’s saddest tragedy. Every observation feels elemental - like chemistry, a fundamental truth of this world that Wang has just discovered. And as any good scientist, Wang has published those truths for the benefit of the public.

Celeste Ng has a similar knack for observation that’s on full display in Little Fires Everywhere. Now, Little Fires Everywhere is not primarily about Asian American characters. The only prominent Asian character does alight the most dramatic narrative in the book - a custody battle smoked in class and race wars. Still, I can’t say I particularly identify with the character, a Chinese immigrant so impoverished she leaves her child on a doorstep. But that’s not to say I don’t identify with the book. Because Little Fires Everywhere is a book about white identity, written from the outside looking in. Set in a midwest town in the 90s, race smolders in the background. Instead of merely being the default setting, the characters’ whiteness is a clear choice. It’s on full display. Much as it’s impossible to not notice the Asianness of a Mr. Miyagi, it’s impossible not to see the Richardsons’ every move as coded with whiteness.

And that perspective - the one that notices when things are particularly white - is something I can identify with. Little Fires is much more subtle about noticing whiteness than I am though. Where I muttered “this is some white nonsense” when a bar trivia category was “songs with the world ‘sail,’” Ng has the McCulloughs promise to feed a child Chinese food to connect her with her culture. Or has Lexie, whose boyfriend is black, declare that it’s so great that no one sees race in their town. Or has Mrs. Richardson feel entitled to barrel headfirst into affairs she has no business being part of. It’s in the claustrophobia that builds from the deliberate confines of the setting: a utopic, white-picket fenced community decidedly apart from the less desirable fringes of the town. A subtly observed us vs. them, where the central characters are almost certainly the “them.” In its hyper-awareness of whiteness, Little Fires gives its reader a sense of what every person of color lives through.

For me, Little Fires Everywhere and Chemistry and Crazy Rich Asians and Fresh Off the Boat are excellent forms of representation, even as they’re all incredibly different. And I am so grateful that all of these things exist. They’re great as independent works of art. And they’re even better for me, because I get to have the joy of being on the inside of the inside jokes.

But still. Not a single character in any of the works I’ve referenced is Japanese American. Not a single character in any of those works is a fourth generation Asian American. But I don’t blame those works for that. Those works are at least giving me something I recognize - an outsider's perspective on whiteness, a former PhD candidate, an exasperation with Buzzfeed lists, a family that doesn’t use their dishwasher. I would just like more. And when it comes to movies, I would just like any. Crazy Rich Asians is at least something. And all I’m asking for is something. And then, well, and then I’d like more something.

Because I am so glad that a story exists where an Asian person sees-and then rejects-a list of items that attempts to encompass every Asian American. Oh and as a last note? My parents really don’t ever call me “just to say hello.”