#i need to watch the last bleach episode too

[seraphfighter]

I forgot Dragon Age: Absolution came out today, that's what I'll be binging this weekend

[fuckyeahgoodomens]

Ooh! A wonderful interview with Rich Keeble who played Mr. Arnold (the one with the Doctor Who Annual :)) in S2! :)❤

Q: In Good Omens 2 you play Mr. Arnold, who runs the music shop on Whickber Street. Were you a fan of Good Omens before joining the cast, and is it challenging to take on such an iconic story which is already loved by a huge fanbase?

A: “There’s always pressure if you’re working on something with an existing fanbase and people might have an idea already as to how you should be approaching something. To be honest I was aware of the show but I hadn’t actually seen it before I was asked to get involved. I knew it was something special though! I remember talking to Tim Downie [Mr. Brown] about how when you tape for certain things you know if something’s a “good one”. Of course by the time I was on set I’d watched Season 1 and read the book. 

I had an interesting route into the show actually: I was asked at the last minute to read the stage directions at the tableread on Zoom, and Douglas [Mackinnon] the director called me up to discuss pronunciations of the character names etc. To prepare further I quickly watched the first episode on Prime Video, and I was very quickly drawn into it. A couple of hours later I was on a Zoom call with David [Tennant], Michael [Sheen] (with his bleached hair), Neil [Gaiman], Douglas and the whole team, including Suzanne [Smith] and Glenda [Mariani] in casting. After that readthrough I asked my agent to try and see if she could shoehorn me in and she came back with a tape for Mr. Arnold saying “you play the piano don’t you…?” They wanted me to demonstrate my musical playing ability, so I rented a rehearsal studio room in Brixton for an hour and filmed myself playing piano (and drums just in case), then I did my scenes a couple of different ways and I guess it wasn’t too terrible!”

Q: During episode five you mimed to music written by series composer David Arnold alongside a real string quartet – this must have been very immersive! How did it feel to work with David, and bring the ball to life?

A: “I actually didn’t meet David Arnold sadly, but I did work with Catherine Grimes, the music supervisor who is lovely. David was at the London screening but I missed an opportunity to go and say hello to him which I kicked myself about. 

I remember before I was in Scotland there was a bit of uncertainty as to whether I would need to play anything for real or not, so I practised every day playing loads of Bach and other music I thought was era-appropriate just in case they asked me to do anything on the fly. So yes, it was very immersive as you say! They sent me three pieces of music to learn which I practised in my Edinburgh apartment on a portable folding keyboard thing I bought. They introduced me to the string quartet (John, Sarah, Alison and Stephanie) and I tried to hang out with them when I could. On the day we all had earpieces to mime to. I had to mime while listening out for a cue from Nina [Sosanya] from across the room, then deliver my dialogue and carry on playing, which was tricky! The quartet and I helped each other out actually: Douglas would say something like “let’s go from a minute into the second piece of music”, I’d look at the sheet music and whisper “where the hell is that?” and one of the quartet would say “we think that’s bar 90” or something. Here’s a little bit of trivia: the shooting overran and the string quartet couldn’t make the last day, so they found some incredible lookalikes to replace them for the scene when we get lead out of the bookshop through all the demons, although I think they also kept them deliberately off camera.” 

Q: What did you think of your music shop when you first saw the set? Did you have a favourite poster or prop?

A: “I thought it was incredible! It could’ve been an actual music shop with all the instruments hanging up with the “Arnold’s” price tags on. The attention to detail was incredible, well IS incredible as I understand it’s all still there. It’s hard to pick a favourite to be honest. I did a little video walkaround on my phone at the time so maybe I’ll post that if I won’t get in trouble. Interestingly the shop interior itself was elsewhere on the set to the shop entrance you see from the street. You walk out of Aziraphale’s shop, over the road, through the door of the music shop and… there’s nothing.” 

Q: Mr. Arnold is tempted into the ball by a Doctor Who Annual and is playing the theme in the music shop scene – are you a fan of Doctor Who in real life? And what was it like making those jokes and references in front of the Tenth Doctor David Tennant?

A: “I’ve always dipped in and out of Doctor Who over the years since Sylvestor McCoy, who was doing it when I first became aware of it when I was growing up. Even if you’re not a fan it’s one of those shows you can’t really get away from, so doing that particular scene in front of David was really fun, and of course Douglas had directed Doctor Who as well. Apart from the amusing situation of two supposed Doctor Who fans talking about Doctor Who without realising they’re in the company of a Doctor Who, I also seem to remember Michael being the one to suggest that he would deliver his “due to problems at the BBC” line directly to David.

Oh, and I think it was actually my idea to grab the annual off the harpsichord before joining the queue behind Crowley at the end of the ballroom scene (which we’d shot weeks earlier at this point). When we were blocking it out and rehearsing I knew I had to leave my position and get to the front for my “surrender the angle” line, and then later it just felt like I wouldn’t leave without the annual so I ran back through everyone to grab it. Nobody seemed to have a problem with me doing that so I just carried on doing it when we shot it! I do remember it being a fun set with Douglas and the team being very open to suggestions.”

Q: How did you balance filming both Good Omens and BBC Ghosts at the same time?

A: “Luckily both shows were a joy to work on, and everyone seems to know about both of them. We were shooting them in early 2022 and I also had a little part in an ITV drama called ‘Stonehouse’, starring Matthew Macfadyen. I usually never know when I’m working next so to have three great TV jobs at once was very unusual. There was all this date juggling and I actually almost had to turn down Ghosts due to clashes. Luckily both shows had to move some dates so it worked out. But yes, I spent two weeks up in Scotland shooting all that Good Omens ballroom stuff, then I came back down to London to do Ghosts, knowing I’d be back up to shoot my scenes in the music shop in a couple of weeks. Now, when I found out who was playing my wife in Ghosts I couldn’t believe it: Caroline Sheen – Michael Sheen’s cousin! She was amazing and that was another great set in general. I say “set”, but it’s all filmed in that house which surprised me. I’d worked with Kiell [Smith-Bynoe] and Jim [Howick] before, and Charlotte [Ritchie] was in the Good Omens radio play a few years ago and a big fan of the book. Charlotte’s very musical of course and we got talking about my folding keyboard I had for practising my Good Omens stuff, and she ended up setting it up in the house for us to have a play on!

Now, when we’d shot all our internal scenes there was this big storm forecast, and our external scenes were scheduled for the day of the storm, so that had to be moved into the next week. It meant I ended up shooting those scenes outside the house, then going straight back up to Scotland to shoot the Good Omens music shop scene the next day! When I mentioned to Michael I’d just worked with Caroline he said “ooh she’s in Ghosts is she!” and revealed that she’d texted him about me which was rather surreal. Then later after the Ghosts wrap party Kiell gave me a part in his Channel 4 Blap, so at the time I felt like I was killing it career wise, but the industry quietened a bit after that and my workload eased off over the year so I was in my overdraft by November.”

Q: What are your plans for the future – can we expect to see you in something else soon?

A: “This year, after a bit of a quiet start, I was very fortunate to work on a Disney+ show called Rivals which stars… David Tennant! I think I’m allowed to say my character is called Brian, and I shot five episodes so that was another really amazing job, and great to work with David again (I told him he must be my good luck charm, although I hope he’s not sick of me). That should be out at some point in late 2024. Other than that I’ve filmed a few other bits I presume will be out next year, one of which is called Truelove on Channel 4 which actually looks really good. That starts early January. Of course now Season 3 of Good Omens has been greenlit, I would love Neil and the gang to have me back on that��� but I can only keep my fingers crossed!”

[evilkitten3]

i don't think television is real

"Your top 15 favorite TV shows can say a lot about your personality"

Ty lovely mutuals @kuhakukage @mochiajclayne @tentensgiantfan for tagging me I really enjoyed making this list... memory lane... it was so hard tho, but:

Breaking Bad

Naruto (minus war arc and ending)

Avatar The Last Airbender

Master of None

The Umbrella Academy

Castlevania

Silicon Valley

Freaks and Geeks

Mr. Robot

Westworld

How I Met Your Mother

Food Wars

Haikyuu

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

Kim Possible

Mutuals I haven't seen tagged yet, I tag: @sasubaeuchithot @the-real-sasuke-uchiha @narutobrainrotstuff @moon-trees @azenta

Bonus - honorable mentions bc I love sm shows and am indecisive:

One Tree Hill

Masterchef (Australia)

Tokyo Ghoul

Teen Titans

America's Next Top Model

Black Mirror

The Boys

Game of Thrones (s1-5)

Lost (s1-3)

Winx Club (s1-5)

Totally Spies

Billions (s1-4)

The Vampire Diaries

CW The Flash (s1-4)

Arcane

[talesfrommedinastation]

My redneck neighbor Doug watches 'The Bad Batch': 'The Harbinger'

Yup, as we all know, Doug unlocked a HUGE character with Asajj Ventress, who is apparently an embittered ex-Navy wife lurking somewhere in the depths of the Florida Panhandle and not a reborn Jedi goth chick.

CW: You will learn more about this poor ex wife of John then you will ever deem fit. Be warned.

All images taken from here: https://www.cap-that.com/starwars/the-bad-batch/309

-----------------------------

Episode 9, “John’s-Ex-Wife: The Revenge”

Daddy Warcrimes does what a daddy in need of a mommy will do, and is going to pick up women by the dockside. Wonder if they take cash or not. 

And here’s Julio to remind him to wrap it before he snaps it, ya know? Good bro, when has Julio done anything wrong, love him. Maybe Julio laid his pipe in Space Louisiana last week, who knows if the mantis had a sister who had bills to pay and Terrebonne Parish don’t have a lot of jobs but has a lot of lonely people and, where were we? 

Why is it all foggy here now? We in Maine now? 

Well, Mutant Jimmers is doing work, as the kids say now, tracking down the junkies hiding out in the caves. I can’t blame Mutant Jimmers or the junkies, they gotta do their smack and doing it in the park ain’t good. I wonder who makes the meth on the island? It ain’t Church Lady, she’s too busy working and having fun in the snow with her beau, Sassy-Park-Ranger*.

Awwww shit it’s not space junkies, it’s worse! It’s JOHN’S-EX-WIFE! Of course she’s hiding her Ford pickup in a cave, the other one got booted outside of Pensacola after she banged the neighborhood granddad and he called the cops after she stole his TV. 

(the last shot John saw before he left for the rig that one time)

God damn, she’s wearing the same outfit you wear to work, Meat Muffin! Do you think she writes papers and yells at people on the phone like you do too?

Well John’s-Ex-Wife hasn’t changed, first thing she starts doing is fighting and bitching at everyone for not paying their bills on time. I hated that damn woman but I’ll say this much, she was organized. But that’s how the Devil is. Not organized to not cheat on John with every sailor in Pensacola and the neighborhood granddad but nobody’s perfect I guess. 

Well, she’s going to test Little Orphan Blondie by making her do yoga on the beach while her brothers watch. Doing dumb shit in public to be different, yup, that’s John’s-Ex-Wife for you. Surprised Daddy Warcrimes hasn’t capped her and her bleached hair yet. 

Oh! Now she sent Little Orphan Blondie on an errand leaving the boys behind in a dark room with her. How much do you wanna bet there’s gonna be a train and Thomas the Tank Engine ain’t involved? God, it was a miracle John never ended up with the clap. His ex wife really was the bike of Escambia County. 

And there’s a fight. Woo! John’s-Ex-Wife’s history as a bartender is coming on through! Girlfriend can handle her own–and here’s the lightsaber! WOAH! I don’t want her to kick my boy’s butts but damn girl, git ‘er done! 

Also why don’t they all just pile on her, why are they waiting, this ain’t ballroom dancing boys! Toaster Strudel and Rex would NEVER.  

Where IS TOASTER STRUDEL AND REX?!?!?!

Well, Little Orphan Blondie’s back and seems to like John’s-Ex-Wife for some reason. God damn it, Little Orphan Blondie, you’re a rube and I ain’t happy about it. At least Church Lady got you sushi and hit on your idiot brother who didn’t deserve her. 

Little Orphan Blondie’s no Jedi, whatever. But nothing brings the family together like deep sea fishing, even more then going off into the snow and punching each other in front of the trailer! 

Off John’s-Ex-Wife and Little Orphan Blondie go while the dads do a lil bit of peepin. Except Daddy Warcrimes who knows a thing or two and keeps a gun tailed her. Yeah, Daddy Warcrimes! 

Oh! What’s this? Ain’t this the shit from Aquaman? Are they gonna get jumped by sea aliens until Aquaman throws flashlights at them?** 

Nope! It’s that thing from Pirates of the Caribbean! Where’s Johnny Depp and his dreadlocks?! They’re firing up the HMS Search Warrant to do a rescue and…woah. Woah. What’s Johns-Ex-Wife doing here? The force? She can do all that shit but she can’t keep her marriage, oh Johns-Ex-Wife.  

Look at Daddy Warcrimes being a gentleman and helping the ladies onto their stolen work truck. Most ladies get upset when a creepy old man with a gun hoists them into a windowless van but not Johns-Ex-Wife. Trust me. 

Johns-Ex-Wife warns them and then flings off, as she is wont to do. Why do I feel the next episode is going to be the DEA raiding Space Florida? I bet she’s a snitch for the government, calling it now!

*=Doug will never get off the Phee/Mayday train. I tried. I failed. I’m sorry, internet. 

**=I THINK Doug means the Trench from the movie. The Trench Scene | Aquaman [4k, IMAX] - YouTube

For my Doug fans! @eyecandyeoz @cdblake1565 @sued134 @megmca @skellymom @yeehawgeek @amalthiaph and anyone else!

[sorryimananti-romantic]

i was snooping around your blog and saw that you also like bleach (the anime/manga) 👀 are you still following the new seasons or did you stop at some point?

do you have any favorite: character, shinigami (shikai/bankai), arrancar (abilities/resurrecion), quincy/sternritter (abilities/shift), visored, hollows, arcs? special moments that have stuck with you (positively/negatively)?

it's so rare for me to find someone else into it lol so you got me curious now~

•🃏

omgg when i tell you that bleach is the love of my life, possibly my fav manga ever (or at least one of my fav)!! i started reading and occasionally watching (bc i was more of a reader) back in 2012 until the manga ended (somewhere around... 2016?) and then i reread the whole thing again and watched whatever episodes were available :'))

i don't read mangas anymore, i sometimes watch anime (not very often) but i still cherish bleach so much. and omg seeing those terms made me go *blink blink* bc it's been so long i had to google to confirm what some of those were!

and that's why my answers might not make sense BUT I HAVE FAVS. definitely. firstly, ichigo, ofc. esp when he attained bankai. kisuke urahara is also my biggest anime crushes (also my anime crushes are such a strong indicator of my type). from the arrancars, i remember how obsessed i was with ulquiorra and grimmjow (ulquiorra's arc and the way he died? and the scene with orihime still lives in my head rent free).

i honestly don't remember much but i remember being a fan of the ishidas too. i also have the softest spot for rukia and byakuya, kenpachi and the little girl that tags with him. toshiro's powers always fascinated me the most and aizen was so hot for being the villain lmao. and omg ywach!! always gave me the chills.

i think my fav arc was when (the explanation's gonna suck) the soul society is in... shambles? with ywach and the other espadas. thousand year blood war or sth? basically before the manga ends. i think the ending and opening of this anime are perfection.

i think this is my cue to reread bleach bc i've been wanting to reread (and hopefully getting back into reading manga) for a while now. since the last time i touched this manga was in 2016, my knowledge is very dusty if you can't tell already-- but if i pick it up again, i'm bothering you 🫵 bc it really is rare to find a bleach enthusiast! i need to hear your fav moments and fav characters too, come on. refresh my memory (and give me the push to pick bleach again)

[lilyginnyblackv2]

A Deeper Look At Kazuki’s Delinquent Teen Version of Miri

In Episode 5, we see Miri packing for her brief visit and stay with Kyutaro at the Mistletoe Cafe:

She has a drawing pad, crayons, an eraser, water bottle, a white stuffed rabbit, and some food: the stuff like the orange gummies and popcorn (ポップ) seem rather generic, while the Poki Poki is obviously meant to be Pocky, the pink container is meant to be Calbee’s じゃがりこ (jagariko), which are basically like a potato stick snack. The chocolate seems a bit generic too, though the shape of the box and the circular shape of the chocolate reminds me of Lotte’s Ghana chocolate:

In Kazuki’s wild imagination of a shoplifting teen Miri, we see that he has her stealing Poki Poki and the Choconut chocolate, two things that she is packing in her bag in Episode 5. There’s also a stack of Morio Kart 6 games (like 3 or 4, maybe for her and her friends, lol). 

The stationary stuff was replaced with makeup and other kinds of cosmetics, which fits in with what we see of her appearance. 

Looking at her face in the image below, Kazuki has her looking like Misaki, Miri’s mother. This makes sense, of course, she is her mom. He imagines her with the same color eye shadow though, which is interesting. Anyone who has watched anime, especially school based ones, for a while, likely know that wearing makeup goes against the usual school dress codes. 

The same goes for her earrings, especially if they are pierced. Most school dress codes in Japan don’t allow for earrings, so if someone does get ear piercings, it’s in adulthood, after they graduate. Even then though, clip on earrings are more common. A teen girl with pierced earrings though gives the image of delinquency. 

Miri is also show with the top buttons of her dress shirt unbuttoned and her tie loosened. All of which is against dress code as well. Her skirt was also altered to be a bit shorter than it is supposed to be (you can see that more in the last image below). Before we talk about that last image though, let’s talk about the aspects of Miri’s appearance that could go against some Japanese school dress codes, but which she has no actual control over.

Specifically the color of her hair and it being wavy. I’ll link to some articles that go into more details on these issues, but her is an excerpt from on Vice article. It mentions:

Text: The unnamed female student said her institution repeatedly demanded she dye her naturally brown hair black. She followed the school’s rules at first but eventually stopped, leading school officials to remove her desk from the classroom, erase her name from rosters, and check her hair roots. A court ordered the local government to pay her $3,100 in damages last February, but ruled the school has a right to impose hair regulations.

In another article entitled, #HairWeGo: Japanese take aim at school rule requiring black hair, from AsiaOne (which I will link to below), we have this segment:

Text: In most of Japan's public schools, pupils are only permitted to have straight black hair. They cannot bleach, dye or perm it. Conversely, any student whose hair is naturally light or curly can be made to straighten or dye it until it is the required shade of black.

The reason for these rules on hair color and needing all students to have straight black hair is because it is often associated with the ideal Japanese image. 

There have been lots of debate and discussion about these sorts of rules over on Japan Twitter, Japanese news, and etc. in recent years, with many calling these rules out. So, recently, many of these rules have been removed or, at least, are currently being reevaluated. 

But these changes are still new, ideas of differently colored hair like brown (or blond, like Kazuki) and hair that isn’t straight (curly, wavy, etc.) are viewed as outside of the norm. And therefore are often associated with acts of rebellion (dyeing hair, perming hair, etc.) rather than the possibility of them just being the natural state and color. 

I’ve worked at a number of Japanese elementary and junior high schools though, and I know that this sort of mentality is changing, especially as more and more biracial children are being born in Japan. But, there is still preconceived ideas there. I remember one teacher I worked with, had to dye their brown hair black for a formal event (outside of work) once. It was sad to see.

But, that’s also why I like the fact that a lot of the Buddy Daddies characters have brown hair (Miri, Kyutaro, Miss Anna) and many of the children Miri plays with have different hair color shades as well (different shades of brown, Taiga with blond-ish colored hair like Kazuki, etc.). I know it’s an anime, but the general character designs in Buddy Daddies leans more towards grounded than something you might find in a Shonen Jump series, etc. So, I think these choices also say something.

Finally, lets talk about this last image. In the background you have posters for the basically “Just Say No to Drugs!!” campaign in Japan (they don’t always use the Globe Mascot for all posters, it makes sense they would use one with a cop at a police station or police box location). There is also a poster warning about phone call scams.

But, I want to focus on Miri sitting with her legs crossed. The other day on Twitter, I saw a video of a woman crossing her legs on a train. An old man that was sitting next to her, and who was manspreading, got upset when she did this and whacked her legs with a newspaper. (I’ll link to think video below).

It’s seen as rude and, especially in the case of women, disrespectful. Of course, that doesn’t mean that people don’t cross their legs (that woman did) and that doesn’t mean that older man’s actions were okay. But, this is also why teen Miri is shown sitting with her legs crossed in Kazuki’s wild imagination, because it is associated with disrespect and the like (the speech patterns that she uses in Japanese are rude too, of course). 

I won’t include the image here, but teen Miri and teen Taiga being all over each other (like hugging each other and making a heart shape together, etc.) is viewed as too much PDA, which is also looked down upon in Japan. So, of course, Kazuki would end up including that in his “delinquent” version of Miri, lol.

[littlemissrbf]

Arcane S2 Act 2 Thoughts (Continued) ep. 5-6

(okay I completely forgot to post the rest of my thoughts on act 2 after that devastating ending so here they are now)

spoilers ahead

Episode 5: Blisters and Bedrock

Damn that poor bald dude cannot catch a break (I’m pretty sure his name is gustave) his mandible is like Vi’s personal punching bag

Hallucinations apparently run in the family (but seriously Vi hallucinating season 1 Caitlyn because that’s the girl she fell in love with… ouch)

Also where the actual fuck did that big dude go, like he was present throughout the pit fighting montage and then he straight up dips- where is vander #2 and also where is Sevika?!?!

Jinx absolutely gagged Vi with that “what about those over designed biTCH mittens you didn’t even build yourself”

Now is a pretty good time to mention that the interactions between Jinx and Vi this episode are peak sibling behavior. Jinx writing her name on her cheek just to be funny, their bitch-off in the tunnels, and the fight that said bitch-off lead to which immediately stops once the youngest sibling gets hurt- perfect representation of sibling on sibling violence

I don’t care what anyone says about the flashback being fan service or creating plot holes- I DONT CARE I LIKE TO SEE CHARACTERS GET ALONG AND BE HAPPY

The flashback giving Silco fans some much needed attention- seeing him young and healthy, making jokes, and having a good time with his friends

Singed is 100% going to use Viktor’s body/connection to the hexcore to cure his daughter which is gonna lead to full-on glorious evolution robot Viktor and I’m not sure if I’m ready for that.

Hearing Mel’s screams and cries during this episode was absolutely heartbreaking (props to her voice actor Toks Olagundoye)

HOLY FUCKIN SHIT JAYCE JUST SQUASHED SALO LIKE A DAMN GRAPE WHAT DID HE SEE IN THERE AND WHERE ARE EKKO AND THE GREMLIN ?!?!

Episode 6: The Message Hidden Within the Pattern

The episode opening and closing the same way with Viktor’s “I understand now.” monologue is giving me equal parts hope and dread bc I know he’s gonna come back but he will never be the same.

Viktor and Sky inside the hexcore is such a beautiful visual but it had me laughing the whole scene bc it reminded me of those really awkward sears portraits

Caitlyn in her red melee training outfit is so hot, like yes step on me please

Not Ambessa literally foreshadowing the episodes ending with her “sacrifice” as a new principle of strength

Okay I am 100% a Viktor girlie, but I’m sorry the long hair with the bleached undercut is just giving bisexual disaster someone give our boy a haircut

Isha pocketing the two gemstones from Vi’s gauntlets- HOW DID I NOT SEE WHERE THIS WAS GOING

I think I’ve said enough on this page about the Viktor-Jinx interaction but now the score is 1-1 (jinx nearly kills Viktor with her bomb, and Viktor returns the favor by beating her at her own game, he out-sasses her)

The Viktor with the white hair that heals Vander inside of his mind is the REAL Viktor. He has his gorgeous golden eyes and his hair is the same length as the s1 finale. The bags under his eyes are gone and his eyes are wide and full of wonder- we’re never gonna see Viktor like this ever again.

The watercolor flashbacks during the “remember me” sequence were so wholesome and adorable (it kinda reminded me of how watching a studio Ghibli movie feels like)

Viktor is holding onto the last threads of himself as he refuses to sacrifice Vanders humanity for Singed’s cause, too fucking bad he’s gonna get killed and resurrected again leaving little to no trace of the man he used to be

Not Caitlyn ignoring Maddie’s advice to break off from Ambessa and Noxus but the second Vi drops back into the picture she’s ready to switch sides

I knew that Caitlyn and Vi were working together the second that Caitlyn wiped the spit TOWARDS her mouth

literally the second everything seems like it might be alright everything goes to shit- thanks a lot Jayce (okay I’m sure he has a good reason that they’re gonna explain in act 3 but I’m a professional hater and Jayce is my designated scapegoat)

Isha’s sacrifice had me bawling my fucking eyes out like a baby and I still can’t listen to that song without getting ridiculously upset.

I’m still actively grieving Isha, Viktor, and Vander’s deaths (even though two of them have already died before and come back) so I’m not sure I’ll be able to handle the season 2 finale.

[uaremyjae]

My thoughts on my One Piece journey and How it’s affected me 🩷

This is going to be long ass post lol

I think this is the platform that I never knew that I will ever comeback to but you know because of one piece and deprived of Sanji, Nami & Law content, ✨ here I am 😁✨ *shamelessly comeback after abandoned tumblr for good 11 years lmao*.

Anyway, I just want to let out my thoughts on my one piece journey and how it affected me. So bear with me. This is only place I can talk about One Piece because other platforms I had is related to kpop * Yes I’m a kpop fan. HEAVY ON NCT. Neo Got My Back.*

I know about one piece way back when I’m teenager. It’s just I don’t start to watch it/ read it somehow?? Idk why 🤷‍♀️ I’m also confused to as why because I did grew up watch anime like FMAB, Naruto, Bleach, Black Butler, K-On, Fairy Tail on tv. HECK I EVEN WATCH THE LONG ASS DETECTIVE CONAN TOO 😭

I think it’s because back in the day ( 2010 - 2017 ), I had lack of access to internet and not exposed to the series at all. Besides the local TV station here, only aired Naruto ,Bleach and those anime I mentioned . *I’m just 24 years old btw*

So around September 2023, I came across to One Piece content on TikTok and funny enough it’s Brook edit! I was so intrigued with this character and little did I know I watch a bunch of One Piece clip here and there on TikTok. To be fair, I am basically spoiled myself that time 😬 but I’m the type dgaf if I got spoiled because I won’t remember at all later on. 🤷‍♀️

So I decide to start watch it. First few episodes, my reaction was like “ Okay Luffy is an interesting guy🧐his body stretches and always smiled! He got damn hands tho ngl”. Zoro, my reaction was like “ahaaa SO THIS IS ZORO THAT EVERYONE KEEP TALKING ABOUT. Quite a Stud.”

Nami, interesting female character that I can relate because I like money 🤑 and her backstory is so sad. Ussop is also another character I gradually love over the time!

Then COMES MY HUSBANDO, SANJI. Man I have a thing for a man who can cook and looks good in suits. Sanji really makes me having my first anime crush ever! I DONT HAVE A CRUSH ON ANYONE IN NARUTO & Detective Conan but One Piece made me have one 🤧 *The upgrade from loving a guy that exist but doesn’t know you exist ( haechan,jaehyun & jaemin bb i luv you guys but Sanji 😮‍💨) to loving a guy who are not exist on this plane of earth 👀*

Little did I know I start to binge watch it. First day of watching, 30 episodes in 6 hours. 10 days later I already watch 325 episodes . but the show is so good! The story telling that oda created really hit home to me and the foreshadowing & lore he created makes me hooked unlike other story that I have read & watched.

Here’s the thing, to me every anime that I watch, I never like finish it . Sometimes I would just watch last ep and called it the day. This is not only apply on anime, it’s apply to western shows, my own local shows & k-dramas. So One Piece truly like solidified their place on my heart. I finally can understand why one piece are so loved for decades!

Also during those times, I hit rock bottom too. I quit my job because I was falsely accused for stealing shit at my work place and being discriminated by my ex-boss due to being the youngest one for my entire work.( everyone else was in their 40’s ). That time I was desperate as I need some money to achieve my bucket-list and want to lessen the burden of my family. Lord heavens knows what I’m going through, got death threats by that mf. Twisted the truth that causing my whole family cut ties with her severely. From there, I felt so stress and worried.

So One Piece is my way of escapism and it’s been a beautiful and exciting journey. Compared to last time, I took a 7 months breaks from works due to burn out & anxiety, this time it doesnt took long for me to overcome those situations and my “year-end blues” that I called is not as bad as before. I also has been actively try to get a job asap so I can buy an Ipad as I want to start learning digital drawing again after watching one piece.

One piece teach me it’s never late to start a new journey towards your dream! I used to dream to be a graphic designer or animators but my family don’t want me to be that. They want me to have that conservative jobs like working in government, an accountant etc. so essentially I gave up those dreams so I can make them proud of me. It’s been bothering me for so long as I felt like I should have go for what I want not what people want. At the end, I abandoned my accountancy knowledge and worked as an admin & a baker which I found a lot more less stressful that being an accountant. I guess what people describe after knows me personally being a confident, free-spirited & rebellious is just the way I am. AND oddly enough One Piece is just perfect manga & anime for me!

At this point, I already caught up with anime. I’m a weekly basis anime watchers now. I also has caught up with manga too. It’s been a huge revealing & fresh experience of One Piece for me. I felt like I being myself again! It’s weird but it’s the truth! I never felt so at ease and being seen. I just want to do what I want. It’s just fitting fate for me to be a One Piece fan!

That’s all what I want to say… if you really read this till the end. Thank you!

[le--fruitcake]

In the meantime while I anxiously await your plentiful truths, might I ask for what cartoons you might recommend my humble self?

Ah, my vassal! I am neariy finished writing that essay, I promise. Just a while longer, I need to be sure my sources are accurate.

I will say you should watch Samurai Rabbit, despite it being almost painfully cringeworthy at times. It's surprisingly well-written, though! It's only on Netflix.

In terms of TMNT, the only one I can recommend with my whole chest is Rise of the TMNT. I like the others (mostly— 2012 is on Thin Fucking Ice with the Donnie/April thing), but Rise is the best by far! I am Extremely Biased and am going to say you should watch the Usagi crossover episodes of 2003 (S2E23-26, S3E01 [does not contain a whole lot of Usagi, but he and Leo uh. Exchange swords], S3E22-23, S4E13, and S7E13 [no speaking lines, appears as a background character only]) and 2012 (S5E15-17). The 1987 ones (S3E32/34) aren't as good, but you do get to watch Mikey slap Usagi in the face with a pizza. Fucking LMAO. All the TMNT is on Paramount Plus, but far be it from me to tell you not to hoist the colors, matey.

The Amazing World of Gumball... exists! It sure does. I really like the way they play with animation and art style, and it has some honestly amazing physical comedy, but it's very, um... 2012. I think it popularized a lot of tropes you see in more modern cartoons that make them borderline unbearable, but I found myself watching the entire thing and kind of wanting more! It's pretty good if you just want some batshit insane cartoon nonsense, but it has no story to speak of, really. The episodes are both startlingly interconnected and purely standalone. Anais is my favorite character, followed by Nicole, and honestly the men in that family are trash lmao. I think I watched it on Hulu, but it might have been HBO Max.

I like Star Wars, too, specifically Visions, Clone Wars (both 2003 and 2007), and, though I haven't finished it, Rebels. (I like the movies, too! Real shame they never made any past Episode VII. Had so much potential. Smh my head.) Visions S1E8 is my favorite thing Star Wars has ever done btw. Very Heavily Biased. All of this is on Disney Plus.

I have of course seen Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Legend of Korra, and recommend Avatar if by some miracle you haven't seen it, but tbh I don't know if I would recommend Korra. It has very interesting concepts, but the execution is um. Bad. Watching the Straights™️ frothing at the mouth over Korrasami was an Experience! "we poppin' the biggest bottles when Makorra happens tonight" is a regular part lo my vocabulary. Both are on Netflix, I think.

I like Teen Titans! I used to have the first two seasons on DVD. There are a lot of jokes I didn't get as a kid, and so rewatching it as an adult was interesting. I also didn't appreciate Cyborg enough as a kid, man has the best jokes. Robin was always my favorite, but on rewatch, I really can't say who's my favorite. I like Beast Boy's power the best, but Raven is p cool, and Starfire is wonderful, and Cyborg is funny. This is available on The Max Formerly Known as HBO.

I also watched all of the original animated Batman. Batman: The Animated Series, I think it was called? I really really liked that one, it was the perfect mix of edgy and funny, and is my favorite Batman iteration. Mark Hamill Joker also! That interpretation of Two-Face is my favorite, and made him my favorite Batman villain. I still want a silver dollar btw! I already have a $2 bill and several dollar coins, so if I get one of those and a half-dollar, I'll have one of every kind of defunct American currency. I think. I believe this is also available on The Max.

If you count anime as cartoons, Bleach and Fairy Tail are good, if you skip the filler. My Hero is... Pretty good. Mirko is of course my favorite character, and I am now only invested in the show for her sake. Crunchyroll is kinda the go-to for anime, but Hulu also has all three of these. I think Bleach might not be on Crunchyroll anymore also? Very Odd if so because it's one of the Big Ones, but I couldn't find it when I looked last.

Little Witch Academia is adorable! Lesbians abound, and features a surprising amount from actual Celtic lore. It's also quite possible the only anime featuring high school girls that doesn't make any blatant attempt to sexualize them, which is a breath of fresh air. The official anime is a Netflix original, but there apparently exists an OVA that I have not seen, and a movie, that I have, also on Netflix.

Castlevania is extremely good, but I guess it's technically an anime? It's originally in English and has some of the best lines I have ever heard come out of someone's mouth, ever, but it is heavily gorey, and S2 has some Unfortunate Rather Graphic Heterosexuality. Fortunately, one of the characters is confirmed bisexual! It is also a Netflix original.

This was a doozy to answer! I don't watch too many cartoons, per se, because I wasn't allowed watch most of them growing up. Never seen Spongebob, Powerpuff Girls, Phineas and Pherb, etc. etc. Despite that, I am a fan of animated shows over live-action shows, generally speaking, due to the liberties one can take, and the fact that you aren't limited by what you can achieve with human actors and such. The same goes for video games— I prefer heavy style to realism, though the GameCube/PS2 era games had the best of both worlds.

[forcebookish]

new fic masterlist (now by fandom!)

(tumblr now suppresses internal AND external links, so i may as well have the proper links in the original posts going forward.)

organized by alphabetized media type (ctrl + f: ANIME/MANGA, COMICS+, RPF, and THAI DRAMAS to find what you're looking for), then in order of most recent to least recent.

ANIME/MANGA

the weight in her heart (2/5) BLEACH M | IchiRuki | 10,509 WC

In the span of a few days, Ichigo goes from giving the transfer student a ride to school on his bicycle to watching her die right in front of him. With nowhere else to go, Rukia’s ghost haunts him, hoping to find out what killed her and move on. Claiming it’s only about getting her out of his closet, Ichigo does everything he can to help her move on—including confronting her family and, of all things, going on a date. Yet the more he does for her, the less he wants to let her go. And the closer they become, the heavier the Chain of Fate on Rukia’s chest grows.

COMICS+

kiss you or kick you (4/5) Captain America (MCU) M | SteveBucky (Stucky) | 15,710 WC

All I had to do was hold him. After the fallout from the Sokovia Accords, Steve, Bucky, Sam, and Wanda find refuge in a Wakandan safe house. Desperate to keep Bucky by his side, Steve convinces him not to go back on ice and instead try to loosen Hydra’s grip on his mind. With the help of Shuri and Wanda, Steve tries to put back Bucky’s pieces in the hopes they can finally be together—but what if they’re both too broken to reach for each other? What if it’s like Bucky falling from the train all over again? (Takes place after the events of Captain America: Civil War.)

self defense (one shot) Wonder Woman (DCEU) G | Diana/Barbara (WonderCheetah) | 1,113 WC

Diana may have taught Barbara self defense, but there’s no defense against their mutual attraction.

RPF

thirty minutes (one shot) Thai Drama RPF (GMMTV) E | ForceBook | 3,800 WC

So much of Force and Book’s life together is play pretend, the boundaries between them and their characters drawn out in bold—but for thirty minutes every week, the lines blur.

melt away (one shot) Thai Drama RPF (GMMTV) G | ForceBook | 1,374 WC

Force reminds Book of who he is; he always has. After a day without Force on the Only Friends set, Book has a hard time getting out of Mew’s mindset and the anger he has for Top’s betrayal—so he goes to Force’s to remember what it’s like to love him.

slow down (2/2, sequel to Love Out Loud) Thai Drama RPF (GMMTV) T | ForceBook | 1,556 WC

1. like gravity would betray him: A sleepy, clingy Force helps calm Book before a daunting Only Friends shoot. 2. standing in the eye of a typhoon: Between takes, Book struggles with the most challenging scene in episode six and Force helps him focus.

Love Out Loud (2/2) Thai Drama RPF (GMMTV) G | ForceBook | 1,406 WC

1. I wouldn’t want it with anyone else. After the whirlwind weekend of the 2023 Love Out Loud Fan Fest, Book needs a hug to get to sleep; so does Force. 2. You’re supposed to say it back. (Prequel.) Backstage, Force has a hard time meeting Book’s eyes—but that’s not what Book is looking for.

THAI DRAMAS

make my heart tremble (one shot) Only Friends M | TopMew | 4,385 WC

(Episode 9) After his blow-out fight with Ray, Mew gets wasted and runs into Top at YOLO; he can’t tell if Top is the last person he wants to see or the only one.

a compelling argument (one shot) Only Friends E | TopMew | 2,044 WC

(Episode 11) Top proves to Mew one of the benefits of living with him.

False Alarm (one shot) Only Friends T | TopMew | 1,145 WC

Since the fire at the hotel, Top’s dreams have gotten worse. Even Mew’s presence cannot fight all the demons in his head.

taste you again (one shot) Only Friends E | TopMew | 1,128 WC

(Episode 4) “You wanna go faster? After making me wait so long to taste you again?”

Thunderstruck (one shot) Enchanté T | AkkTheo | 713 WC

Recently married, Theo still protects Akk from thunder like when they were kids.

more than forever (one shot) A Boss and A Babe E | GunCher | 2,311 WC

(Episode 12) Cher left because he wanted—wants—to be with Gun forever, and Gun means to hold him to that.

Extrême (one shot) A Boss and A Babe E | GunCher | 4,536 WC

Cher loves Gun’s new cologne; Gun just loves Cher—publicly and privately.

these are only the fics i've written since i started my blog/under the farewellswords pseud; check out my ao3 for older ones!

[tuliharja]

BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War - The

Conflict episode 8 review

Manga readers know Lille Barro looking through his rifle Uryuu was a big hint of what is to come, just like Jugram watching over in the last episode. But even without the manga knowledge, I'm sure many noticed how these two people were watching if Uryuu would handle his job. Because of this, the rest of the Shinigami got to escape...for now.

Liltotto mentioning Bazz-B wanting to settle things between him and Jugram kind of promised an upcoming flashback. Not sure if they'll have time to cover it in this course as we're already so far in it. After all, just this recent fight took a good chunk of the episode. Not that I mind...wait, that's a lie. I DO MIND! And that's because Pernida Parnkgjas was disgusting and Mayuri's altered Bankai was disgusting. Who needs horror when they can watch Bleach anime? Who needs to watch anything disgusting when they have Bleach anime? Maybe to some, it wasn't like that, but personally, to me it was.

Despite that, I think Mayuri vs. Pernida was...interesting. Even though Mayuri slicing off Pernida who kept growing his hand/arm back wasn't that pleasant to watch. Not to mention Ashisogi Jizo's modified form and it basically gives birth to a new one. Despite that, it was interesting how Mayuri held his long monologues, mused aloud, and asked questions when just moments ago he had been mocking Kenpachi about it.

Personally, the first half where Kenpachi and Mayuri exchanged sassy retorts between each other was best. It showed Kenpachi could very well keep up with Mayuri and vice versa, even though Mayuri tried to best Kenpachi with his science talk. Which clearly was too much for Pernida... but admirably, Pernida was evolving throughout the whole battle.

Which makes me wonder...why Pernida was so different from Mimihagi? Pernida had his eye on the inside of his hand while Mimihagi had his eye on the back of the hand. Mimihagi had only one pupil while Pernida had two (which clearly confused both Kenpachi and Mayuri at first as they seemed to think Pernida was a humanoid being). Pernida had chains in his fingernails which he broke when he revealed himself, making it look like Pernida had been restrained by someone or something or he, himself (or should I call Pernida it? Them? I'll settle for now to 'he' because Soul King was male and since it seemed like Pernida had managed to gain an ego, even chastising Mayuri about that subject, I'll grant [like Mayuri, lol] him a pronoun) had restrained himself. While Mimihagi seemed like some actual minor kami. Though, in a way both Mimihagi and Pernida seemed to be restrained. Mimihagi was restrained by being a shapeless thing who had to settle into another living people, while Pernida was more easily breakable. Interesting how those two seemed to be similar in that aspect, yet in different manners. Not talking about the duality of the other one being on the side of the Shinigami and the other on the side of the Quincies. It seemed like they were each other's opposites through and through.

This begs the question just where Mayuri got that book that told about Soul King's hands? Like, I feel like the subject of Soul King (before the Thousand-Year Blood War arc) was a very hush-hush topic, but it seems some actual facts (in the form of books were circulating around that "normal" Shinigami could investigate. Or maybe got into the wrong library (as in that flashback it seemed to be a room full of books) that kind of played its part why did he end up in Nest of Maggots? I could very well see a Shinigami getting jail time if they would snoop around about Soul King when it wouldn't be any of their business! Mayuri being a curious cookie could explain that.

Not writing about the fact, why it felt like Mayuri was underestimating Pernida? (Those who have read the manga know what I mean.) There were moments when it seemed like Mayuri had lost a bit of his edge (again, this seems to be a reoccurring event if we think about Urahara and Aizen), he even admitted it when he fixed his own arm. Which reminds me, why Pernida and Mimihagi were called Soul King's hands? They were clearly arms. Also, Pernida's CGI at times was fine, and at times not at all. If it was on purpose like that (for a disgusting/fear factory) it then succeeded in that, but if not, then no. And I'm pretty sure the elbow's anatomy was most of the time with Pernida wrong. It looked just...wrong and not in a good way.

But back to Mayuri. It felt like he was a bit out of tune, which made Nemu's concern toward him justified. Not talking about Nemu's hints/worries over the fact Mayuri might have changed.

It was interesting to watch Nemu interact with Ikkaku and Yumichika as it felt like parallels. They all were worried about their own captains and seemed to be very in tune about that -surprisingly!

Also, good thing Ikkaku and Yumichika were positioned in there, just so they could drag Kenpachi away before Mayuri's battle with Pernida got more heated! Hopefully, Kenpachi will be fixed just so he won't be left out of the upcoming action.

Wait, I just realized I didn't see Hanataro anywhere in this episode. In the last episode, he was still with Mayuri, Kenpach,i and the company, but now he had disappeared. I suppose he got left behind? Or, if he was in the episode, I missed him, but I suppose we'll see him again at some point.

The ending speech and card...I couldn't recognize who was talking in it (unless it was Kyoraku? I'm not honestly sure) or the symbolism of pine needles...but the next episode's title gave me big Kyoraku vibes, hence, I associated that ending 'poem' to him (If anyone remembers Kyoraku's shikai ability Kageoni). But I could be fully wrong.

[bleachbleachbleach]

2/24 - 3/2/2024

For the last couple months, I've been working my way through Pravesh Bhardwaj's favorite short stories of 2023, and not enjoying a lot of them. Maybe Bhardwaj and I just have different taste, but I kept thinking to myself, "so what? why did we just spend this time with these characters?" or, alternately, grating at the "reveals," because I kept receiving them as weirdly trite. Trite in ways that I guess I don't associate with contemporary fiction. Like, ohhh he killed the friend for drugs! or She was in a mental hospital! Like, what is this, an episode of Law and Order?

But there is also a voice inside me that's like, I think you're reading these uncharitably, because these writers aren't stupid and don't seem like the type to condescend to the sensational and probably aren't actually doing that. Maybe it's YOUR brain failing to read for nuance. And in the case of "spending time with these characters," I was like, what am I wanting, exactly? A plot? A thesis? The former doesn't sound like me; I almost never read anything for the plot. As for theses, maybe?? But it's not like I wanted some heavy-handed symbol or Meaning-Laden Scene to come bursting through the door like the Kool-Aid Man. I like reading things that are just studies of a character's life. "People sitting around" is my favorite genre. I still felt like I kept coming up short after reading them, though, like, is that it? Is there no meaning to this? (Am I blind to the meaning? Am I blinding myself because I'm imposing some rigid set of expectations or "shoulds" onto things instead of reading openly and with some semblance of intelligence?)

I thought maybe I just don't want a short story right now, and need something longer. I really enjoyed the novella Make it Black by Andre Dubus III, which really is just a lady sitting with people and driving around. But even then, toward the end I felt like the meaning got a little too pointed, even though I've been grumbling this whole time about the ~meaning of it all not being pointed enough.

But then I was like, oh, lmao, you know what all of this actually sounds like? I'M PROBABLY JUST DEPRESSED AND BURNT OUT. (Cue realization hitting as though these things haven't been true for years, albeit manifested in ways other than these very specific ruminations on short stories.)

Writing-wise, I can only hope that what I am writing is also secretly good, like those short stories probably are. I didn't write very much this week, though I read the aforementioned Make it Black, and Chapters 86-88 of Bleach. I did write for a couple hours yesterday, which was a decent enough time. I found myself wanting to write a lot this week, and then not doing it. In addition to my generally just being a wet husk of a person, this week has been acutely sad. My sister had to put her dog to sleep on Sunday, so this week I've spent most of my free time energy being sporadically weepy about that and trying to send my sister long-distance love. It's one of those things where I was like, god, I really want to write, because I want to process this grief through fanfic. But after going to job-work and doing the laborious work of Being Sad, I was just like, I am too exhausted to do anything else, I barely did THOSE things.

I was struggling to remember what, exactly, I wrote yesterday--because it continues to be drop-in scenes in the Hisagi chapter--but it looks like it was some overwrought Hisagi thoughts about Matsumoto I'll probably delete, some Hitsugaya paragraphs that took 19 years to write apiece, some jinzen lore, and this exchange between Hisagi and Rukia:

“We’re not going anywhere. No one’s going anywhere. Just rest,” Hisagi says. How he manages to make the truth sound so unconvincing is beyond him. There’s an unbridled terror in her eyes that Hisagi does not know how to handle. The 4th makes it look so easy.

Kuchiki locks onto Hisagi. Maybe she can see his terror, too. He watches as hers closes itself behind an impassive mask, eyes hardening into dark stones. She, too, makes it look easy, though the green tinge to her cheeks and the new beads of sweat at her brow, already weeping down her temples, betray her.

“The thing I did with the hell butterfly. That’s what you’re feeling. It should help. It will help.” Hisagi tries to sound as reassuring as possible.

Kuchiki looks less than reassured, though more put out by the notion than terrified by it. So there’s that.

"In the Living World, Kurosaki Isshin is a human doctor. But I also saw him successfully operate on a dog once," Kuchiki informs him. “He was very good at it. Even so, I don’t know that I would expect a dog doctor to operate on a human.”

It’s unclear whether the statement is encouragement or insult, but Hisagi has published enough Kuchiki poetry to know that it is likely intended as both.

“Akon handled the actual surgery,” Hisagi offers.

This Kuchiki cannot be won over. “Perhaps it would suffice if it were Ichigo. If Ichigo needed the operation, I mean. He’s very good at that.”

“At... being a dog?”

“At enduring what he’s given.”

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

BLEACH: The Thousand Year Blood War Ep 16 Reactions and Thoughts

Overall reaction:

Another late reaction post, but considering the next episode is airing today, I had to get this out before then...also, there was no way I was doing this reaction post without gifs from this episode!

If I was blown away last week, I have lost my footing this week. OH. MY. GOD! There's was way too much good stuff this week, I don't know where to start.

Highlights:

Momo's cameo: SHE'S BAAAAAACK…for ten seconds. I'll take what I can get! What's happening with Ichigo: I mentioned my theory in the last episode reaction that Ichigo is going to the Reio's past and this is all likely a test to see if he can be as strong as Reio to take his place as part of Kyouraku's plan. Well, it looks like that's basically what's happening. He's getting visions of Reio's life and we even got the multiple irises. Is this a sign of him simply seeing into Reio's past, or is it a sign he has the potential to become the next Soul King? Toshiro vs Cang Du and the lead up: this was just top tier! Form the music, the voice acting, and the animation, it was a beautiful adaption. Seeing Toshiro's hollowfied bankai was a moment for me, because I'll forget how I reacted to seeing it for the first time in the manga all those years ago. As a Toshiro fan, seeing him struggle, especially when Rangiku was thrown down in front of him, and he was helpless to even crawl over to her, was heartbreaking.

Then, to see him rise up again, with a form that looks this cool, and to take down the one that had harmed both him and Rangiku, it's one my favourite moments from the arc. Now here I am watching it ANIMATED (for, like three minutes, but who cares?!). And not just animated, but voiced. Romi Park couldn't have done a better job, and whoever thought to sync Toshiro and Hyourinmaru's voices when Hyourinmaru deserves a raise. That moment gave me the shivers, and it adds to the reveal. And just look at him!

I absolutely love how the ice has been coloured, and the small particles falling from his bankai is such a good touch. The conclusion of this fight had me sighing sadly, because I know where this goes for Toshiro and Rangiku. It was sad enough to see him stumbling and then collapsing trying to get to Rangiku, but then knowing that's Giselle's shadow and what she's about to do to him...I am both dreading and excited for zombie Hitsugaya. So then, this begs the question of will Toshiro make another appearance in this arc. The first arc adapted volumes 55 to 61 more or less, and this arc is still volume 62 if I'm not mistaken? Zombie Hitsugaya first appears in volume 65, so my guess is we will be getting an adaption of his fights against Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Mayuri in this cour. The excitement is real everyone! Shinji's shikai and bankai: the man of the hour. Fifth division's best captain. The fashion icon. The dork who spells everything backwards. The spin master himself. Shinji Hirako is here and he got his bankai animated. I knew it was coming, I had screamed during the trailer when I saw it was going to be included as part of the arc in a small way, but I still screamed when I saw and heard him activate it. When I read it in Can't Fear Your Own World, I knew I needed to see this animated, and the team behind the anime has made that happen with flying colours. Would it have been better to see him use this ability against a massive army? Of course! But the emonstration of it here was still amazing, and like with Toshiro's fight, the combination of the animation, colouring, music, and Shinji's voice actor made this scene AMAZING.

They make Shinji look like a freaking tank here (and he deserve it considering how the rest of this arc goes for him). Then there's the animation for his shikai, which was also just *chef's kiss*

Sui Feng gets her bankai back: I'm not a fan of Soi Fon, but even I have to admit this scene was great. Just look at this explosion, it's epic!

Mayuri the Christmas tree continues: HIS SUIT/COSTUME CAN CHANGE COLOUR?! HE REALLY IS A CHRISTMAS TREE! Shuhei, Ikkaku, and Yukichika vs Mask De Masculine: in my initial reaction, I said Sajin appeared the battle earlier than he did in the manga. My mistake, he actually does appear at this point in Shinji vs Bambietta, I had just forgotten about it. What IS early though is Shuhei, Ikkaku, and Yukichika's battle again Mask De Masculine. I'll admit it here and now that Mask is one of the few Sternritter I don't like. I found him annoying the manga, and so far, the anime hasn't really changed my opinion of him. So when I saw him appear in this episode, I cringed a little. I thought the anime wasing going to come back to him and just show he'd defeated Shuhei, Ikkaku, and Yumichika off screen like it happened in the manga. I was pleasently surprised to see this was not the case, and that we actually get to see this fight. Yes, it's going to end with the three of them defeated, but it's still great to see them in combat, showing off their skills and getting some good banter in. If nothing else, at least Hisagi gets to look cool for a couple of minutes:

Why did Yumichika get a Shin'eiyaku?!: It the question that's got the fandom scrambling for answers, and I honestly didn't notice he got one the first time I saw the episode XD

Overall, what an episode! We got at least two iconic moments here, and they happened for two of my faves! I have high expectations for the next episode, considering Momo will finally get an appearance that's more than a minute long (I hope)!

[strawsoldier]

Summer 2023 Anime-Round Up

A pretty mediocre season of anime tbh. But still some hidden gems to be found and appreciated. RIP to Zom 100 btw lmao. Anyway, here's the round up!

Anime of the Season: Bungou Stray Dogs 5th Season

Best Opening: Ao no Sumika (Jujutsu Kaisen S2)

Best Ending: Akari: (Jujutsu Kaisen S2)

Drops: Tenpuru, Liar Liar

Plans to Watch at a later date: Bang Dream! It's MyGO!!!!! , Dark Gathering, Spy Classroom Season 2

Completed:

Jobless Reincarnation: Season 2 - (6/10)

They told me that this season was just Rudeus trying to cure his ED. Too bad I didn't believe them. Not a fan of the "Solve my heartbreak over one of harem girls dumping me by finding another one of my harem girls" narrative that went on for 5 episodes more than it needed too. Unsure if I'll come back for more of this. After 3 cours of this show, I think I can confidently say I just don't like Rudeus.

Horimiya: Piece - (8/10)

Not every side-story worked for me, but most of them were pretty good. I just love how stupid and honest these kids are. Sometimes, the way anime glorifies high school life can be overbearing, but I can't help but wishing I enjoyed those days more whenever I watch this show. Gonna miss it.

Remi best girl.

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Arc Part 2 - (7/10)

Definitely felt the exhaustion I remembered when reading the manga. I'm not sure what's Kubo fascination with long strings of fights while the plot stands completely still. Didn't enjoy it during the Arrancar arc, not enjoying now. At least Squad 0 redeemed themselves (somewhat)

My Happy Marriage - (8/10)

Still believe this show would be better if it didn't have all that supernatural stuff. Nevertheless, still enjoyable romance. Mio is a great lead and her development alongside Kiyoka was really good. We will be there for Season 2.

Reign of the Seven Spellblades - (6/10)

Remember when "Magic High School" was the genre that was oversaturated? Me neither. This show was enjoyable but had some weird moments. Also for once, I'd like a magic show that doesn't obsesses over the reproductive system. Probably won't watch any foreseeable sequel. Still rooting for Nanao to get that kiss.

Bungou Stray Dogs 5th Season - (9/10)

Actual Peak Fiction. Igarashi and his team at Bones just know how to make this show as stylish and cool as possible. Also this arc is by far the best one we've gotten so far. Could feel the tension at every episode where crazy shit happened. Shame I can't read the manga to find out what happens next lol.

Undead Girl Murder Farce - (8/10)

Now this is a show that had style in every corner of its being. Undead Murder Farce with just so fun to watch. The trio of Aya/Tsugaru/Shizuku is one of my favorites in recent times and the side characters we very memorable. I think the last arc when one for 1 or 2 episodes more than it needed too, but still enjoyable nonetheless

EDENS ZERO 2nd Season - (7/10)

This season was a lot more darker than what I usually expect from Mashima. Wish the presentation wasn't so exact to Fairy Tail, but it has some high points that exceeds it's sister series. Probably will check out the manga if a third season isn't announced sometime in the future.

Fate/strange Fake: Whispers of Dawn - (8/10)

An anime series by the team that did all those FGO commercials is any fate fans dream. Cannot wait for the full show of this. I hope Aniplex gives them enough time to animated this (they probably won't)

[talesfrommedinastation]

My redneck neighbor Doug on 'The Solitary Clone'

Oh boy, a Daddy Warcrimes episode, happy happy joy joy!

Here it is, Doug's review of 'The Solitary Clone' or, as he calls it, 'Daddy Warcrimes Goes To Texas'.

Nothing much to say...enjoy, you lot. Doug liked this episode, but he likes Daddy Warcrimes the same reason I enjoy characters like the Joker and Daemon Targaryen: I AM NEVER BORED.

CW: Daddy Warcrimes do what he do and Doug narrates it. Need I say more? Oh and if you're from Texas, I apologize ahead of time. Doug shreds the Lone Star State something bad in here.

----------------------------------------------------

Oh boy, we arrive at some dry-ass dump. It’s gross and there’s corn and everyone seems a little off. Must be Oklahoma.

Wait, there’s peaky mountains, must be Texas. Didn’t know Texas was in Star Wars but whatever. 

Well, here’s the Empire, but wait! This dump is run by an angry lady with a bucket on her head dressed like a hippie beekeeper. I’ll call her Beekeeper Bitch.

Anywho, looks like Beekeeper Bitch is holding the government officials hostage today, which is what they do for fun in Texas I guess, besides make barbeques and do weird shit at football games. I hate A&M so much. 

Now, here’s Daddy Warcrimes, having a nice nap in what looks to be the broom closet at my job where the junior engineers always end up banging each other at least once a week. I’m surprised there’s no bleach in there. Jeez, Daddy Warcrimes, no blanket?

Poor Daddy Warcrimes, trying to make friends with the other dudes at lunch and no one wants to go near him because he was forced to sleep in the Dirty Shag Closet. At least the clone cafeteria has turkey legs like Ren Faire. I wonder if it’s because Daddy Warcrimes crashes where the younger employees screw each other all day and there’s stains on the walls no one wants to talk about. Oh well. 

Oh, now we gotta see MBA-Rob. No turkey legs for Daddy Warcrimes today. I hate this little asshole, of course he’s dicking around on his stupid assed phone while Daddy Warcrimes waits and fantasizes about killing and smoked meats.

No one will swipe right on you, Rob, you’re unemployed and gave your last girlfriend an itchy crotch. Or is it left? Up and down? How does that thing where you meet ladies work? 

32 rotations…wtf is this Waterworld shit? How come Daddy Warcrimes isn’t burned to a crisp? How did he survive on that dump? Damn, the man must be part roach, I guess, wow. 

Now he’s got his sweet Johnny Cash armor back on, just looking at him makes me wanna watch that western robot show with Ed Harris again. He’s hanging out in front of that script that possessed Linda Blair back in the day. Does Pazuzu exist in this universe?

Oh, shit, it’s Obi-Wan’s Boyfriend! What in the what what. Glad to see he’s still around! Where’s his gold armor? Did he get it after Obi-Wan…you know, that makes me too sad to think about. I’m sorry, Obi-Wan’s Boyfriend, that must have been rough on you. 

Well, looks like he and Daddy Warcrimes are off!  Where? They’re off on a charming romp to squash some rebellion!...wait, is this a good thing or a bad thing? Who are we rooting for? I’m confused. When did Star Wars get confusing? Am I old now?

Ya know who's not confused? Daddy Warcrimes! His job is pointing, shooting, killing. Which, I get, man. I worked in the oil industry. Speaking of which, they’re back in Texas, but where? Are they in Marfa? This looks like one of the shittier towns in West Texas, outside of El Paso. Are they making meth? Is the Empire the DEA? 

You know, this place is quite nice for someone like Daddy Warcrimes. Second amendment respected, the locals spoke in grunt, and smoked meats for everyone! Speaking of Texas, I wonder if there’s a Buc-ee’s inside, and the Empire wants to take over their jerky emporium, and that’s where this mess came from.

I miss Buc-ees, I could go with a hot brisket sandwich and some Beaver nuggets, get some red velvet fudge for later. 

No wonder Daddy Warcrimes is shooting everyone, the man is hungry! 

God, DAMN, Daddy Warcrimes waiting and staying perfectly still while he’s getting shot at and the TANK holy SHIT he is a BAD ASS but a BAD PERSON and I am CONFUSED BUT I LIKE IT? 

("Meat Muffin, you got a doctorate, diagnose me, what is this feeling where I’m confused but happy?"

"It’s just being happy, Doug, and my doctorate is not in psychology.")

And those crap robots are shooting at them again, but are these good guy robots? Didn’t we spend the last few years hating on them? Oh wait, they’re reprogrammed for defense…oh.

Have I ever told you how much I hate those damn things? They look like vacuum cleaners, if someone made art of a vacuum cleaner that they wanted to be human. Non sexy vacuum cleaners.

("Doug, when did you ever think vacuum cleaners were sexy?"

"Never, don’t know what you’re talking about.") 

Why does this feel like an FBI siege? Is this based on Waco? Shit man, I was in the navy when that happened. This ain’t good. This really is Daddy Wacrimes's Texan adventure, isn't it?

But what is good is Daddy Warcrimes and his GUN. Look at those trick shots like the man is yelling ‘SKEET’ and ‘PULL’ like you wouldn’t believe. I bet he’s the type of person who throws a tantrum at the ice cream store because his favorite flavor is ‘bullets’ and it ain’t on the menu.

Look at him and Obi-Wan’s boyfriend just going up and killing robots left and right. He ain’t good, but that ain’t bad. Which is…good or bad? Ah, whatever, I like this damn show. 

And there’s Beekeeper Bitch bitching at the Empire’s Bitch. Those couches look comfy. 

Daddy Warcrimes is coming your way! When she’s not wearing her helmet, Beekeeper Bitch looks just like my niece! Wow! Oh, now I don’t know, is she bad? Good? She wants independence for her people, maybe Obi-Wan’s Boyfriend and Daddy Warcrimes can listen to her? 

Oh, shut up, Empire Bitch, no one cares. ‘Execute her’ uh shut up, your hat sucks and don’t you know that Obi-Wan’s Boyfriend is a free-thinking MAN who might just up and take a DUMP on your LAWN. 

Well, no. Damn, Daddy Warcrimes, you cold-assed sonofabitch. 

‘Hang her body in the square’, what in the hell, this is dark, Dr Meat Muffin, are you letting your sweet girls watch this show? One of them’s a baby, I hope not. 

(I was 100% watching this with my 2 year old, it was on Disney, what do you expect- Dr. MM)

Welp, Daddy Warcrimes is back where he started, chilling in the cafeteria and his new best friend is his helmet. Wonderful. The helmet will at least make eye contact with him. 

Back to MBA-Rob being a dick to everyone and now Obi-Wan’s Boyfriend has run off. Probably to drink himself into a stupor and cry in a shower somewhere. I know I would, too.  

We really didn’t learn anything in this episode, did we? Well, I learned that Daddy Warcrimes is living a confusing life, never gets to eat and has to sleep in the Dirty Shag Closet. But at least he's got his helmet and his gun and MBA-Rob.

I know he’s bad, but he’s good at that, which is bad…but for me, it’s good?

[ciaossu-imagines]

Okay. Cool. That’s good to know. A part of me figured that was the case but since that everything purely said ‘Ask box closed’ I figured I’d better be safe than sorry and should wait until you opened it up again. And I’m so sorry that someone sent in that spoiler with a request. I really do hate that. And that’s great to hear that you slept so amazingly ☺ Gods, me too. I have this weird thing where I absolutely have no idea how much sleep I actually need beause I’m always tired, even if I sleep more than normal. Sure, I feel slightly more refreshed, but still hella tired. Okay. I’ll try to come up with everything I thought of saying at the time and will send it next time you respond to our DMs. And thank you so much for saying that. It most definitely was a great chapter and I hope I have good enough thoughts to add onto everything you’ve already said about it. Oh I see. That makes sense. I also usually go for those kinds of things and rarely watch purely romantic series, unless they’re recommended to me or they’re said to be really good. It really is. I finished A: TLA a few days ago and cried so much at the end. And I hope that you also get the chance to rewatch it at some point and I’d love to hear your thoughts on it when the time comes. I immensely enjoyed rewatching A: TLA and it’s funny beause even though it’s been a while that I’ve watched it before , I still knew a lot of everything concerning the story but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the moments. Like I still cried at another emotional scene a few episodes before the end beause it really is just so beautiful. I just started the last season of Demon Slayer that’s out today and I’m just in awe of the animation and how it looks and it’s making me emotional. I’m really so grateful that a series as good as that has such a beautifully well done adaptation. Couldn’t ask for anything more and hope that they continue doing it justice until the very end, though I have a feeling they will.

Thank you. I managed to get through everything I didn’t get the chance to read yet today, as you may have noticed 😅 And I enjoyed all of them and have written my thoughts down for them, though I feel like they’ll probably look quite repetitive 😅 Yeah, fandom is amazing like that. I’m really grateful for that and the way that they write all of the wikis. Yeah, one of the filler arcs in Bleach is really weird and I never rewatch that one. Oh that’s nice to know. And it’s also cool to know that they also translated the songs. Were they sung by the English voice actors or something?

It really was and luckily, now that I’ve restarted my computer again since it was being really slow, it’s gone back to how it used to be. And that could be. And thank you for calling the explanation clear. And that sounds good. I hope you get to read it beause one of the matches centres on some of my favourite babies and I really do hate that they messed up the adaptation like that. At least I’ll always have the manga, though it still sucks 😭 Yeah. And the fourth season still has some really well-done scenes, and there’s this scene of another kind of fave that I haven’t mentioned at all, that appears in that season, and they have like this really beautiful shot of his eyes. And that’s nice to know. No problem at all. Even though I probably won’t rewatch the movies, I do really appreciate that they animated those extra scenes beause they’re all important in their own way. Shame can’t be said for some later stuff and I know Covid had something to do with the second half on the fourth season, but the movie of this year and those OVA’s from many years ago have no excuse so yeah, it’s still a shame (I know I’m being really salty here so sorry for that). The chapter limitation really does suck, especially because both were really easy to get through for me, someone who doesn’t read as fast so I hope that you do get to read both on your normal app one day. Yeah, me too. Like even though I do have my faves that I’ve talked to you about, I still love all of the characters and am so proud of the growth that certain ones went through and it’s just all so nice. Like even my non-faves make me emotional. And yeah, especially those. Like the other boy I’m not normal about has such noticeable flaws and is such a silly boy (like I call him silly so often while rewatching some of his scenes) but he’s such a well-made character that you can’t help but love him.

Oh I’m so sorry to hear that and I can’t blame you for being upset by it. I hope at least that that character has good reasons or something. I’m also scared now, but also kind of intrigued to see it all. And true and that’s really nice. And you’re amazing for that. Glad to see that I’m not the only one who likes justified text. And no problem at all 😄 I’m doing pretty alright. Like I said, I watched some Demon Slayer today, which put me in a good mood but my mum was really judgemental about a certain thing concerning my dad which was so horrible to hear sine it was during dinner time so I just had to sit there and listen to everything she had to say, especially since I couldn’t come up with enough stuff to counter her. It really is always so painful to have to hear her comments about all kinds of things but I won’t let it keep me down because I know I have your writing to look forward to and many great anime and all kinds of stuff. Just couldn’t help but mention it. Hope you’re doing amazing and that the writing is going great 😊

C

I know you had figured that and I think it’s really sweet of you to be concerned about bothering me! You’re never a bother though and I enjoy seeing you in the inbox 😊Thanks – that one was rough as I’ve done amazing at avoiding Jujutsu Kaisen spoilers (blacklisted the general tag until I’m completely finished the manga read just to make sure of that). Though, just saying – I called that one way back in our messages but ouch, rough yeah, for both being spoiled and for what it said happened. I need way more sleep than the four to six hours I’m lucky to get a night. I’m horrible in being a super light sleeper where every little sound wakes me up though, even with my pills being in me. Caffeine is my best friend in all forms (coffee, energy drinks, caffeine infused chocolate or my favourite, chocolate covered espresso beans, even caffeine pills if the insomnia is really bad…yeah, I know, I’ll probably die of a heart attack from all the caffeine guys but adult life sucks and requires you to stay awake). Sounds good! I’m hoping to get a reply to our dm’s off maybe this weekend in between writing other things, where I have a weekend off. I can definitely get checking out series that are recommended to you, even if they’re not what you’d normally watch. I recently paused watching my other shows to binge through Mashle because it came highly recommended by two people I trust, even though it seemed like it would be just a blatant rip-off of One Punch Man. Turns out they were right and I loved it. I hope it will be that for you with the romance series when you do watch it through! The ending of A:TLA was definitely worthy of the crying and I remember crying quite a bit throughout that show. I loved Iroh, but I really had a soft spot for Azula and things got real rough for my girl around the end of the show. I felt horrible for her, I really did. I’m so glad that you enjoyed your rewatch of it, that it could still hit you in all the right ways despite knowing what was coming. When you say last season, do you mean this is it? It will wrap everything up completely or is there a plan for more (like a spin-off or anything) after this season or a follow-up like Naruto: Shippuden? I’m so glad the last season is starting out so well though and I’m with you in hoping it will continue to be beautifully done right up until the end, and not just because it’s high on my watch list.

I noticed and appreciated all the likes and am happy you enjoyed them all! And I never find your thoughts repetitive and am always really glad to hear your thoughts on my posts! Comments are always wonderful and motivating! I hate the Bount arc for Bleach and when I do get the urge to watch it, I always skip that arc, since it’s pure filler anyway! I’m pretty sure it’s all the English VA’s singing the songs but I noticed about halfway through season 2 there were some songs they didn’t translate and upon googling it, it looks like sometimes it’s hard to get the permissions needed to translate and revoice those songs. Either way, the music is really solid all through the show!

I’m glad your computer has gone back to how it should be and hopefully isn’t running super slow anymore! It definitely was clear and it helps me know what to expect. I’m someone who likes to get every single moment, so even if the movies are a lot of recycled stuff, I still need to watch them. Oh no! It sucks that your favourite didn’t really get what they should have when it came to the anime adaptation. I know how that feels and it sucks big time! I hadn’t even actually thought about the impact Covid would have had on animators and studios! A lot of what came out during that time would make more sense if they couldn’t really all do their work successfully from home, I guess. And hey, no, please feel free to be salty. Everyone has things they’re salty about, even me, and it’s cool that you feel comfortable enough with me to feel safe getting salty about things. Thank you for that! And so far, all the characters are great. I was pretty sure I’d dislike Hinata going into it, because those kind of characters normally bore me but I ended up just adoring him, which is the one that surprised me the most!

Thank you! I do hope that, when I get to reading and finishing up everything for the manga, I’ll see the reasons the author went that direction and that it ends up making sense in the story. If not, I’m sticking just with writing Nanbaka up to the end of the anime seasons haha! I’m so glad you’re doing okay and that you had some good moments, though I’m really sorry to hear that about your mother. I personally am of the opinion that spouses shouldn’t bicker or pick at each other in front of their children, but I know it happens all too often. It’s awkward for the person sitting there and uncomfortable. I’m sure you did your best to defend your dad and that he appreciated it a lot! I know it’s hard but try to focus on some of the positives of your day or lose yourself in something you enjoy and don’t let her steal your joy, my dear! You deserve more than that! And thank you! I’m doing okay tonight – just got my pills into me, sitting on my couch in boxers and a comfy t-shirt, eating a McCain cake out of the tin and writing (just finished a chapter…it was supposed to be a request for a one shot little drabble about me travelling with comfort characters and now it’s bloated into a whole multi-chaptered fic, haha)!