#i really loved her introduction to the series it was one if the highlights of the episode

[alicentflorent]

Alys Rivers showing up doing some witchcraft on Daemon and telling him he’s going to die here then leaving. Alys you will always be famous.

[batbabydamian]

The Boy Wonder #2 by Juni Ba rambling about Gotham's fearsome hunter

added Jason to this issue's collage since it was mainly from his perspective!

ramble for issue #1 here!

starting with the cover again, but now in contrast to the first:

Dick and Barbara are presented as statues in the bg for the first cover where they’re established heroes in a secure time in their lives, and Damian is obviously the highlight! For #2's cover, the autumn leaves motif returns, but this time featuring Jason!! Apparently, Damian isn’t the only one to go through a “season of change” in this series, as Jason takes his own steps forward by the end of this story 🥺 also the literal layers on Jason - his angry Red Hood helmet and the beaten down Robin head...

The issue opens with Joe the robber and his hostage "Merle"! The glasses feels like a giveaway that this is Carrie(??) narrating Damian's story, so the final issue could end with her perspective for where Damian currently is in his journey as Robin and where she plays a part.

Jason as the "hunter" of this fairytale is such a cool concept, especially upon his introduction pages!! He's surrounded by his recent "prey" with a nice contrast of their fancy jackets, pinstripe pants, and dress shoes to Jason's own tattered hoodie, pants, and sneakers.

Just like the past issue (or just Ba's work in general lol), THE BACKGROUNDS ARE SO LOVINGLY DRAWN. Makes Jason's stroll through inner Gotham so enjoyable from the bustling activity of the people, shop signs, and advertising to the quieter area of the cemetery. It's so lived in, especially feels like each citizen in the bg has a story to tell!

some bits of interest to me: is that scaly lil arm reaching for the rat supposed to be Croc LOL; just neat visual of old Joker posters leering over Jason; the name of the cemetery a nod to Kevin Conroy? and from T. Wayne - Thomas Wayne?

Despite showing how much of an intimidating and hardened exterior the Red Hood has, there's plenty of suggestion that he has soft edges! from his act of revenge for a beloved member of the community, his familiarity with the people even greeting him, and down to his chocobar...

might be my overthinking but the layers of that close up shot of the chocobar really got me 😭 it's like such a piece of innocence when seen in his scarred hand, especially when "Wayne Sweets" is visible - is it more emphasis of Jason clinging to a safer time and Bruce Wayne himself?? or is this brand just his favorite lil treat

EITHER WAY, incredibly funny to me Jason seems to hide it once Damian shows up

Seeing Ba's storyboards has me even more curious about his process with O'Halloran - like, it's a small detail but the traffic light in the foreground being red! added emphasis on the red theme this issue, or a warning for these two to Stop heading into a trap? ANYWAY DAMIAN HESITANTLY ASKING ABOUT HIS MOTHER I'M THROWING UP AWWGH

also love critically acclaimed animated film "The Cheetah King" haha! ALTHOUGH, Jason's story does line up with Simba's - a lost prince that feels like he's failed his father. Even believed to be dead for a period of time lol

Rok the demon's design is so slick!! Seems to take after a peacock with how fanciful he is, plus his tail details in his other form! A dapper demon definitely ready for the gala!

A GLIMPSE OF BA'S HEAVIER ACTION ART!! THE POUNCE!! the Robins being entirely made up of motion lines, even the details for Jason's helmet; and i'm always a sucker for those light streaks from the eyes!! THE PUNCH!! the quick panel of Jason's fist before arcing into that POW!!

and i say a glimpse, because in just the two other books i've read from Ba so far, he draws so much more action. lil Monkey Meat promo BUT LOOK!! have i mentioned how much i love his sfx lettering...that "AAAH" getting motion lines when closer to the camera...crazy...

dropping another small element from one of his books, Djeliya! just a really cool visual of casting magic!!

I love this sequence leading up to the Joker vision! The shapely flames that dwindle into the shape of TEARS!! We don't get the extent of how deeply the Joker affected Jason until this moment and the man is terrified.

First thing Damian does after getting shot is insult Jason, DAMIAN IS SO FUNNY. Also absolutely love the wiggly woggly lines of EVERYTHING in this panel.

Considering what Damian said earlier: "We both know you'd rather not have to explain your failure to father if anything happens to me that you could have prevented." As if Jason didn't already feel like a failure before this!! of course he'd turn into jiggling jelly realizing what he's done.

After 27 pages of a narrow-eyed Red Hood, including an early tease of him about to take off the helmet for his snack, this full page of Jason unmasking himself is such a heavy reveal. Adding the aching piece of dialogue?? BRUTAL

Damian responds in kind to the vulnerability with his own confession and something Jason really needed to hear after burdening himself for so long with the idea of being a failure.

After Damian leaves, the camera pulls back to show The Door in the dark of the room. Damian quite literally presents Jason a window of opportunity to face his past, and it goes so hard. Just like the buildup of frowning mask-to-face reveal, Jason's few expressions have mostly looked sad. So the shadowed eyes before the glare of determination makes this quiet moment feel extra epic!! also reminiscent of the Red Hood mask he wears!!

Beyond the door of Jason's "past life" is complete darkness. Jason has been hoping for Batman to pull him out of it (as further suggested by the newspaper clippings), but in the final page, the door is leaking light!! Jason finds his own way forward :')

The first issue introduces the Robins with specific labels, and so far the narrative either delves deeper into those claims or challenges it. Damian is unimpressed by "kind and brave" Dick and even forms some kind of rivalry. By the end, Damian’s learned how those simple traits are essential to becoming the person and hero Dick has become and gains a newfound respect for him.

#2 deviates from #1 by following “brash and rageful” Jason's perspective! Damian is under pressure from the legacies of all the Robins before him, and even if he relates to Jason the most there's still tension. This time around, while Damian does learn what lies behind the mask, he's the one to impart some knowledge to his fellow Robin.

ending ramble with a panel of the small beans

"Look Damian, everything the light touches is our kingdom."

TBH this ramble took forever to start because after reading Djeliya and Monkey Meat, i was so floored by how much MORE Ba has to offer. Everything i raved about from the first issue of The Boy Wonder...Ba's done it all in his previous work and MORE SO?? on top of writing, whimsical paneling and lettering, fun action scenes, deliberate coloring, kickass character designs and worldbuilding... the man does it all?? 😭

Monkey Meat 🐒

Djeliya: A West African Fantasy Epic ✌️

Mobilis: My Life with Captain Nemo

The Unlikely Story of Felix and Macabber

i may save the last two books for after The Boy Wonder ends because imagining the end of the series makes me so sad LOLL orz i may cave just because Mobilis is a pleasantly giant book...praying for DC to give the collected edition of The Boy Wonder this treatment...his pages are brimming with energy they deserve to be blown up with an oversized printing 😭

[northrnfool]

Lokius Meta (aka I had a lot of thoughts while grocery shopping today):

The more I sit with the series as a whole the more I’m actually okay with Lokius not being canon (yet).

Tom Hiddleston actually summed it up perfectly when he was asked if Loki would have a love interest; he said that the first healthy relationship you have to have is with yourself. This show captured that arc to perfection. When we first see Loki, he’s at his worst, most villainous: He’s angry isolated, and hella narcissistic. This show is so brilliant that they gave a reminder of Loki’s unhealthy relationship with himself in the first episode when we see the clip of Frigga telling him “you’re so perceptive… about everyone but yourself”. He doesn’t see himself for who he really is. And suddenly he’s confronted by this man who has studied him and understands him without judgement. Mobius cracked open that barrier a little bit, but it was going to take time to really break down those walls. The first season was meant to be a bit of a struggle when it comes to his relationship with himself; his introduction and journey with Sylvie is suppose to be ick in the beginning; His attraction for her stems from his narcissism and by the end of the season, they went from thinking they can ONLY trust eachother to the ultimately betraying and hurting one another. That was always going to be inevitable because the relationship was, at it’s core, unhealthy.

So now we get to season 2 and there is a very obvious shift. He still has a lingering need to reach Sylvie (which makes sense, he’s beginning to realize his sense of self, and he needs to continue to understand it, to connect with it), but there is also a relationship with Mobius that’s really starting to grow. Their companionship, their trust in one another, their support for eachother, the way they balance and regulate the other so easily and naturally is really highlighted in season 2. They are unquestionably soulmates… they just haven’t realized it yet. A big part of that is because Loki still has to focus on his relationship with himself. He’s still in conflict with himself, as we see in his conflict with Sylvie. And it builds all the way up to Kang’s insistence that the only way to prevent the war is to kill Sylvie. He knows that means killing a part of himself and undoing all the work he put into repairing himself. He would’ve been irreparably fucked up if he went through with it and she knew that - she even said she wouldn’t give him her blessing to go through with it so the only other option was to find another way, to go down fighting. He was going to be fighting as much for himself as he was fighting for the survival timeline.

So that bring us to his sacrifice. I said in a previous post that even though Loki is alone physically in the end, he’s not alone in his heart. He’s now fully opened himself to others, let them in, and is acting out of love instead of out of a sense of self preservation. He’s healed his relationship with himself and we are shown that in Sylvie’s last scene, we see a huge change in her, from being angry and tense to being at peace and happy. Her whole body in that scene is more relaxed with the soft morning sun shining on her face. It was quite beautiful. In that image we are shown that Loki’s relationship with himself is now healed. But what we’re also shown is Mobius.

I LOVE that they had Mobius and Sylvie in that scene together because it shows the stark contrast of where each of them are emotionally. She’s at peace, ready to move on, and he’s stuck waiting, alone and forlorn. This scene is a passing or the torch, so to speak. Now that Loki’s relationship with himself is in a good place the story is now going to move on to him and Mobius being able to fall in love (I mean, we know they already did, but they have to figure that out, themselves). I would’ve been concerned if we got and ending with Mobius back at the TVA with his friends, but instead we got a very clear message that their story is incomplete, that it’s really just beginning.

And I can’t fucking wait for this incredible love story to play out. I’m so so glad that we have Tom Hiddleston taking so much ownership of Loki’s story. It honestly feels like he’s not going to let anyone else mess up Loki’s character, like everything has to pass by him to get approval - which is why his arc in this show was so brilliant, so beautiful, and so perfectly executed.

So my hat goes off to Tom and Michael Waldron and all the writers. I’m beyond grateful to be a Loki fan and get this much care out into his character development.

[theofficialpresidentofmars]

did I ever tell you guys about how I would adapt (the tragedy of) Hamlet (prince of Denmark) if ever given the chance. because I have so many thoughts and I’m adding onto them all the time so here’s a post with all my ideas compiled.

- firstly, it would be an animated mini-series of five episodes, each one corresponding to an Act. I think Animation is a highly under-utilised and underappreciated medium that would suit this particular story well in terms of what it could achieve visually and also these are just a bunch of words to say I’m heavily biased towards animation and just love it so much.

- there are so many fun little character design tidbits i would implement. including but not limited to: Horatio being the shortest, Claudius/Hamlet Sr identical twins (and Claudius having a Scar reminiscent scar on his face for the drama… and also the eventual Act 5 Scene 2 parallels when Laertes wounds Hamlet with the rapier in an incidentally similar way), Laertes having a silly curly moustache, Horatio and Ophelia resembling the other, Hamlet looking tired, pale and ghostly at all times, character’s hair being used as a way to show passing of time (Hamlet having hair on the long side of short in Act 1, growing but in a little ponytail over Act 2, medium-length and unkempt in Acts 3 & 4, and cut shortly and neatly in Act 5. also Ophelia’s hair growing noticeably as well and being often neatly braided with little flowers in Acts 1-2, loosely braided without flowers in Act 3, but being down and wild in Act 4 etc), and so on so forth.

- I would shamelessly be including flashbacks to pre-tragedy memories of the castle/inhabitants. Baby R&G&H running through the castle halls and playing hide and seek. Hamlet actually, god forbid, practicing fencing. The Players entertaining at the castle in Hamlet’s youth. Ophelia and Hamlet sneaking out into the garden beneath the willows by the pond, Hamlet braiding flowers into her hair while they sit together. Yorick entertaining baby Hamlet. All coloured with the softest, goldenest glows that nostalgia can manage to contrast the desaturated depressive hues of the current day. I think a lot of the tragedy of *Hamlet* specifically lies in comparing what was to what ended up being, and since the play starts after Hamlet’s entered his mourning period, it’s hard to fully comprehend the true nature of such a fall.

- Each Act having a lovely stylised title card in its introduction with themes and motifs that are specifically prevalent throughout. Act 3 would have curtains, for example, given the play staging and Polonius’ later poor choice of hiding place. Act 5 introduces the classic skull we all know and love.

- Very purposeful dramatic lighting and colour throughout. Daylight lighting and then the switch to a lot of Hamlet’s soliloquies seeming to appear under more ‘spotlight’ lighting. Early evening during the play, sunset during the scene where Claudius prays (golden light tricking through beautiful stained-glass windows), nightfall when Hamlet yells at Gertrude. Lighting also being used to dramatise entrances perhaps, such as Claudius’s prayer being interrupted by the shift to ‘spotlight’ lighting before we even see Hamlet at the door.

- Same goes with music and motifs, interwoven character leitmotifs and themes that shift keys and qualities and work together to make larger pieces and show up to herald the arrival of a character, or turn sour to match their emotions.

- the visual humour of the play being upped, as well as the wordy humour being emphasised, in order to really contrast the shift in tone throughout the halves of the play. I’ve always been a tragicomedy truther when it comes to Hamlet, I think if done well it could be a really neat way to get the audience to invest more in the characters while also really highlighting how quickly everything goes south.

Probably add more on as I go

[sylvieserene]

My thoughts on Primer: Clashing Colors #1 - "Color Me Impressed" (2024)

This was a comic I was waiting a long time for and was super excited about its story. Not because omg New character, Primer!! Nah, because of Teen Titans lol

That too the TEEN TITANS ANIMATED SERIES 2003

I seriously had high hopes for this comic but let's just say I'm disappointed.

Without getting into spoilers,

The writing is just meh at best. Primer is fleshed out decently but the writing for TT03 cast is horrendous at worst and ooc at best.

This comic also suffers from the "Telling but not showing" problem, similar to Nightwing (2016) comic by Taylor.

It's clear that the writers prefered Primer but it's almost like they didn't really do much research over the Titans' personality and that was of less priority. They act a lot like their TTG! (2013) Counterparts rather than TT03 characters. Even the humour is similar to TTG! (2013) and not the original show unlike what was being advertised.

As a Primer comic, it gets the job done and highlights her nicely but as a teen titans fan who was looking forward for the TT content rather than Primer, it's pretty disappointing and saddening.

⚠️ Now getting into spoilers ⚠️

(click off if you want to or scroll down to the end if you wanna skip and basically go to the summary)

The introduction to Primer is pretty decent and I think it does a decent job and blooming her personality.

I believe most of you here must have seen this particular panel in the teasers before the comic's release. It catches the TT03 essence nicely but this is where characterisation jumps in.

As I said Primer as a character isn't of concern to me but as a TT fan, TT is.

So here's where things went downhill in characterisation and character consistency.

You are saying Slade came out in the open, got unmasked and it's of NO big deal to Robin?

Lemme rephrase this to you; Slade, the evil mastermind, who never does anything without a reason and NEVER leaves his basement other than the reason for kidnapping children, touched grass and came out at day and Robin is unphased? It doesn't make ANY sense.

Even more so, when the story tries to pretend it's on purpose.

Slade was NEVER unmasked other than that skull reveal scene and that one Easter egg from TTG! 2003 spin off comics. So the fact, this scene was displayed as something comical is genuinely baffling. The Titans KNOW he doesn't get caught unless there's a catch. This part makes absolutely zero sense.

Then this part ...

The problem with this part is, characterisation. BB debatably acts like himself but Raven? No. It's ooc for her to go "Awww :D" like that. If anything, the best possibility is that she'll say the same line but she'll say it with full and utter sarcasm.

I think most BBRAE fans will agree with me on this one but they both had romantic POTENTIAL but they weren't anything other than good pals in the show. And we haven't gotten any hint at their relationship even in the spin off comics which were canon to show. Which in simpler terms means, this is ooc. Most of the development BBRae can have is after the show and after they get older. But the comic claims they are same Titans who haven't aged a day thus THIS IS OUT OF CHARACTER FOR RAVEN TO SAY!

Raven is a gloomy, sarcastic character who doesn't express what she feels instantly or openly, it would have made a lot more sense if she said the same line sarcastically (where she could blush implying a subtext incase they really wanted to insert BBRae but not making too obvious)

It really makes no sense for her character as depicted in TT03 to suddenly melt at the idea BB giving her tulips if it is the same Raven from TT03. Raven isn't that stereotypical girl character. She's a reserved and introverted person who was still learning to open up even to the series very end.

If this is the TT we know and love, this can't be her.

I'm not bashing the ship btw, I'm bashing the writing. Atleast be faithful to the character's personality while doing fan service!!

If you say, it's the same people who haven't aged a day since the last time you met. You can't have it be that oh yk they changed. Both the statements can't be true at the same time.

Then this scene:

This scene looks straight up from TTG. Back to making Robin dumb af and the team bashing him into normalcy. I'm tired of this trope like jeez, TT ROBIN WAS NOT LIKE THAT!!!

Infact if anything, "Can we just call it 'the battery'?" Line is something BB would say not Raven. Also Starfire getting mad at Robin for saying a long name and rolling eyes? She would never. Robin taught her earth customs and language patiently. If anything, she's that one person who would never eye roll on Robin even if he says something dumb. If it's the same Starfire from TT03 AS ADVERTISED.

Then there's this panel....

Two things, Robin never had a car in TT03. He had a bike named R-Cycle. Second, Starfire always carried Robin while Beast Boy carried Cyborg as a Pterodactyl. The Titan with a car was Cyborg. And when the car was out, everyone rode the car instead of taking the skies. Why the hell would Cyborg be carried out by Starfire when the car is right there??? It makes no sense.

It's incredibly strange how the writer is going long lengths to not make the two (Robin and Starfire) even merely interact with eachother.

How hard is it to just be canon accurate? These are stuff you catch on literally one rewatch. Did the writers not even do that or did they go with fanon or what they remembered from their childhood or like spent 5 mins trying to remember the characters through YT shorts and called it a day?

Like this is the only time they technically look at eachother to talk anything other than business:

Then coming back to Slade, I said the story tries to pretend it was all on purpose.

This further proves that this Slade isnt the same evil mastermind we knew of. This is some other guy.

Then this,

Yk what the awful part is? This . This isn't something you would see in TT03 or anything similar. This is simply something you can expect to see in a fan comic.

And wanna know what's worse? Ravager already existed in TT03 verse except she was Rose Wilson not this guy. This simply just means the writers didn't even BOTHER doing minimum research on the show beforing stamping in characters.

========================================

SPOILERS END!!!

Like I am genuinely lacking words as to describe this mess of a Teen Titans 2003 representation. This isn't them at all.

If anything, this isn't anything like they promoted and advertised. If anything, this is simply a TT03 AU which has nothing to do with the show.

It's neither faithful to the show nor the characters nor the established canon.

If anything, this feels like a shameless cash grab..ik some of y'all be mad at me for saying this but yeah. That is what this is.

If anything, it feels like a clickbait way to get people to Primer without actually bothering to respect that clickbait through which you are trying to pull people in.

It's shameful and disappointing and if I'm being honest, this got boring fast. I didn't enjoy it at all.

The writers prioritised cheap comedy and Primer over the Titans who are apparently a big part of her journey. They didn't even feel hesitant in making all the characters go ooc. The story itself is pretty bland and not interesting and genuinely nothing unique about it other than the Titans who apparently were TT03 as left on the final episode.

Anyway, this feels like an AU TT03 self insert OC fan comic at best or a version of TT based on TTG 2013. Frankly, it has the humor and characterization of TTG. Infact, I think this can totally work out as a 'tame' episode in TTG.

Introduction of Primer to TT and her demeanor to them to get along and on the team gave off Massive Terra vibes, it's almost like the writers got heavily inspired from it.

Tldr, the characterisation and characters of TT aren't like their TT03 counterpart but rather TTG one with a lot more grounded personalities. They often go ooc and say things which they won't say if we went with TT03 canonicity. Deathstroke is basically a joke now. The story itself is boring and uninteresting and doesn't make me like Primer any better. The comic falsely promotes this as the TT03 version even though this is, at best, a TT universe maybe inspired by the 2003 show but not the 2003 show. It's closer to 2013 one.

Personally, I'm severely disappointed and I'm gonna say it again, this is a total cashgrab and not worth reading.

[madara-fate]

I know you're against the notion of sexist writing in Naruto, but I ought to disagree. The problem isn't that female characters have love interests or are driven by those feelings but that leading roles have that theme way too often and especially how little female characters have to do in the story. They don't drive the story but rather get shoved around, when they do something "major" (seemingly) it's to highlight Naruto - see Hinata vs Pain or Sakura "vs" Sasuke, getting saved by Kakashi, then Naruto as if it wouldn't be absurdly repetitive at that point. This is where the annoyance with the female characters stem from, it's almost comical how little room to develop and individuality they get. Ironically, as much as Sakura is hated on for these things (and quite frankly, many asspulls like mischaracterization of her personality), she's the character that at least has a saving point, which is her aspiration to become stronger and actually doing it. What was missing were more major fights to highlight that. Sure, we have in-verse explanations for why she doesn't fight in the front, she's a medical ninja but those decisions are made by a writer, after all and those rules don't have to exist or can be broken in favor of her having agency in the story.

This is the central part of any good character: agency. We want to see characters make decisions and act upon it. Basically precisely what Sakura did when she decided to lie to Naruto and kill Sasuke herself, I love the idea but the execution is terrible because it ended up circling back to Kakashi and Naruto.

A lack of agency is usually part of a characters struggles, you can see it in villain oirgins and underdog stories, "zero to hero", all that. Sounds familiar? This is the premise of Sakura's character but by not showing how she overcame that through involving her more, it flies over peoples heads that yes, Sakura was a character who didn't have agency and she wanted to change that (except, during important scenes, Kishimoto didn't pull through). I think Sakura is actually the best female character in Naruto due to that premise, however due to Kishimoto sidelining that and not doing the same for any other female character - aside from Tsunade in her introduction (she's the 2nd best female character in my opinion, btw) - his female characters are pale in comaprison to the male counterpoints and people are 100% justified for being frustrated about it. Because revolving the female characters around their love interests is one thing, stripping them of agency to change anything in the plot is another.

I don't hate the characters for it however, I dislike Kishimoto's writing in this aspect and I as an aspired writer take his female characters execution as an example on how not to do it.

This is a great video on Arcane's female characters that I think explains pretty well how agency is integral for good character writing:

https://youtu.be/hML-FGHGEN4

I recommend watching it if you're interested :)

I hope I could explain where the "sexism" claims stem from and why people are frustrated about Kishimoto's writing of female characters. Have a great day!

The problem isn't that female characters have love interests or are driven by those feelings but that leading roles have that theme way too often and especially how little female characters have to do in the story.

Sakura is literally the only leading female character in the story, so to say that the problem is how often this is the case, when there is only one leading female, doesn't really make sense. As for how little female characters have to do in the story, that is a numbers issue, not a female importance issue, which I'll elaborate on later. Because by this logic, I can very easily levy the same criticism towards every male character in the series not named Naruto or Sasuke.

They don't drive the story but rather get shoved around, when they do something "major" (seemingly) it's to highlight Naruto - see Hinata vs Pain or Sakura "vs" Sasuke, getting saved by Kakashi, then Naruto as if it wouldn't be absurdly repetitive at that point.

Only Naruto and Sasuke drive the story. That's why I've always stated that this is not a female character issue, its not an issue of the female characters not having enough panel time, it's that Naruto and Sasuke simply have too much of it. The vast majority of the male characters suffer from exactly the same thing.

The fact that you felt the need to put major in quotation marks, and then add (seemingly) already shows me that you're really trying to downplay everything significant that the female characters have done in the series in order to serve your argument, but why though? Why actively try to downplay the accomplishments and feats of the female characters? To me, that alone is far more sexist or misogynist than anything Kishi has done or shown in the series.

Sakura had major feats which had nothing to do with Naruto, such as saving multiple characters' lives, defeating Sasori alongside Chiyo, unlocking the Byakugou Seal etc. Tsunade had feats which had nothing to do with Naruto, such as her performances against Orochimaru, becoming Hokage, her role in the War etc. Temari's significant involvements, such as saving Shikamaru from Tayuya and then subsequently defeating the latter with ease, had nothing to do with Naruto etc. I can continue listing when female characters have done significant things, which had nothing to do with Naruto, so I do not get this point.

This is where the annoyance with the female characters stem from, it's almost comical how little room to develop and individuality they get.

Again, if you are unable to acknowledge the growth and development that the important female characters experienced, then that is on you, not Kishi. Sakura went from being an ordinary fangirl who cowered in the face of adversity, to being a compassionate person who is the strongest kunoichi in the world on paper. Hinata went from being a shy, stuttering bundle of nerves, to a confident kunoichi who's will can move mountains. Tsunade went from being a pessimistic gambler to a hugely respected leader, mentor and role model etc.

Sure, there are some female characters who experienced little development, but there are just as many, if not more male characters whom that criticism also applies to. I mean, what great development did Kiba receive? Or Shino? Or Kankuro? Even someone as beloved as Rock Lee, is essentially the same person at the end of the series that he was at the beginning.

Ironically, as much as Sakura is hated on for these things (and quite frankly, many asspulls like mischaracterization of her personality), she's the character that at least has a saving point, which is her aspiration to become stronger and actually doing it. What was missing were more major fights to highlight that.

On that, we definitely agree.

This is the central part of any good character: agency. We want to see characters make decisions and act upon it. Basically precisely what Sakura did when she decided to lie to Naruto and kill Sasuke herself, I love the idea but the execution is terrible because it ended up circling back to Kakashi and Naruto.

Okay, so because you don't like the execution of one instance in which Sakura demonstrated her agency, does it mean that the execution of her agency in general is poor? What about all of the other examples?

A lack of agency is usually part of a characters struggles, you can see it in villain oirgins and underdog stories, "zero to hero", all that. Sounds familiar? This is the premise of Sakura's character but by not showing how she overcame that through involving her more, it flies over peoples heads that yes, Sakura was a character who didn't have agency and she wanted to change that (except, during important scenes, Kishimoto didn't pull through).

I'm going to reiterate this point - If people honestly cannot see how Sakura experienced her own "zero to hero" like development (something that I went into a lot of detail on during this post for example), then that is on them, not Kishi. As far as I'm concerned, her development in a multitude of ways, was exceedingly clear. Because contrary to popular belief, Sakura had more focus and development than 99% of the male cast, surpassed only by Naruto and Sasuke themselves, and rivalled by Kakashi.

I think Sakura is actually the best female character in Naruto due to that premise, however due to Kishimoto sidelining that and not doing the same for any other female character - aside from Tsunade in her introduction (she's the 2nd best female character in my opinion, btw) - his female characters are pale in comaprison to the male counterpoints and people are 100% justified for being frustrated about it.

So let's exclude Naruto and Sasuke for a moment, because I've made my criticisms of their general over importance in the story very clear. Tell me, in the context of development and importance to the story, how exactly do the female characters pale in comparison to their male counterparts? Because relative to the number of female characters in comparison to the males, their importance in the story is near indistinguishable.

A quick overview of several of the teams to illustrate my point.

In Team Gai, Neji had the most development and significance, Lee was in the middle, and Tenten was last, fair enough.

In Team 10, Shikamaru had the most development, Ino was in the middle, and Chouji was last.

In Team 8, Hinata had far more significance than Kiba and Shino combined.

For the Sand siblings, Gaara had the most development, Temari was in the middle, and Kankuro was last.

For the Rain orphans, Nagato had the most development, Konan was in the middle, and Yahiko was last.

For Team Taka (excluding Sasuke), Karin had far more development and significance than Suigetsu and Jugo.

So you see, generally speaking, the female characters were given roughly the same amount of focus and development, but because there are noticeably more male characters, it gives the false impression that more focus was given to them. But when you consider the numbers, it's evident that this is not the case.

Because revolving the female characters around their love interests is one thing, stripping them of agency to change anything in the plot is another.

The lives of the female characters did not revolve around their love interests, and they were not stripped of their agency either. Plenty of them had several instances when they changed things in the plot or did something major, so that's just you downplaying what they accomplished, and they were not any less likely to do something major than their male counterparts outside of Naruto and Sasuke.

Sorry but my stance is rather firm on this. I hope you have a great day too, but we'll have to agree to disagree on this.

[coco-bee]

COCO'S REVIEW: LACKADAISY INGENUE (Ft. @thesilliestofallqueers)

Welcome to Coco’s Review! Where I review and breakdown episodes, movies and etc and overthink every tiny detail  and/or give my thoughts and opinions :D

Today I'm discussing Lackadaiy Ingenue (ft.Robin)

Yes I’m a fan of Lackadaisy! I haven’t been there since the start BUT I have been following the series ever since the animated pilot- I’ve also read a handful of the comics but I wasn’t able to read everything. But I have a good idea of the characters and their lore. I’m very happy to revisit this series through Lackadaisy Ingenue! So to start things off I want to define what ‘Ingenue’ means for those who don’t know (like I did). According to google, “An Ingenue is an innocent or unsophisticated young woman, especially in a play or film.” which makes a lot of sense since this short focuses on Ivy when she was a little kitten (I’m assuming she’s around 6-9 here), and I guess this short technically counts as a film. New word to add to your vocabulary ✨ So the short opens with Ivy’s father, Reuben Peppers showing off a car to Atlas (who is confirmed to be Ivy’s godfather in the description). Btw Reuben sounds INCREDIBLY young in my opinion, I didn’t even think he was her father- I thought he was her older brother or something but nope, that’s her dad. Confirmed in the description!

We aren’t even a minute in and I’m already asking questions- mostly with how close Ivy and Reuben are. With “I like it when it’s just you and me”, it got me confused since it IS just them traveling. I’m going to assume maybe she prefers private trips with her father over using public transportation where others can hear their conversations. Which really shows how close they probably are if Ivy really enjoys one-on-one time with him. 

So as Reuben greets Mitzi, Atlas, Viktor and “Joe”. Reuben and Mitzi have an interesting conversation… “What happened to New Years?” “It’s Effie, she's uh.. We’ll talk later” The look Reuben gives Ivy might imply that “Effie” is Ivy’s mother or just a relative of the Pepper family since Reuben doesn’t want to talk about it with Ivy listening. But that's just me- So that’s totally not suspicious :D 

I also just want to mention the nice hug Atlas and Reuben have- it really does seem like they’re very close. Which is probably why Atlas is Ivy’s godfather- Atlas seems pretty comfortable around Reuben too! From what I can tell Atlas was more of a “show more, talk less” kinda guy but that’s maybe because this is my first real introduction to him before he died (lmk if he appears in a flashback in the comics). He doesn’t have any lines in this episode too so I just thought that’d be interesting to point out. And that's why I came to that conclusion.

Upnext is Ivy meeting Mordecai for the first time I’m assuming. So this seems to take place when Mordecai used to work with Lackadaisy before switching to Marigold. This also confirms that he was the bookkeeper for the daisy cafe to which if you don’t know- a bookkeeper oversees a company's financial data and compliance by maintaining accurate books on accounts payable and receivable, payroll, and daily financial entries and reconciliations. They basically take care of the finances of the cafe. This scene also highlights the gun Mordecai was trying to hide, which I guess adds more evidence for Ivy to what these people actually do for a living. In the description it seems that Ivy is not very aware of what her father does for work. At least at the time. Mordecai having a gun despite being “just” a bookkeeper gives her an idea of what they might actually do other than running a cafe.

Also the “I subtract numbers too” line is fucking hilarious I’m sorry 😭 Now we have the scene where Ivy and Viktor’s bond seems to have started! I would eat up their interactions in the comics istg I LOVE THEM<33 Victor becoming that one chill uncle 

Viktor lying about how Mordecai broke his arm is fucking hilarious too- I’m now requesting a short comic of Mordecai trying to rollerskate but failing miserably! ANYONE PLEASE- TAG ME IF YOU DO THAT (Rob ik youre an artist pls /j)

I don’t have a lot to say about this scene- I just love Ivy and Viktor’s dynamic smm! I gotta talk abt them in one of my Dynamic Duos episodes! (getting ready to go through so many comics) After their interaction Ivy notices a broken car door with bullet holes on it. It looks very similar to the door Viktor was replacing while he and Ivy were talking. That’s when Ivy pieced it together, Mordecai’s gun and the bullet holes? Yeah it became obvious to her that these guys are criminals-

You can tell that was her conclusion with her asking Viktor directly if they were robbers or gangsters while also assuring that the secret is safe with her! 

I’d just end my breakdown here BUT YOU SAW THE TITLE! I would like to welcome my first guest ROBIN!!! Aka TheSilliestofallQueers :D I wanted to bring them in because they know more about the extensive lore of Lackadaisy so I feel like this’d be a perfect time to have them featured! SO I GIVE THE FLOOR TO ROBIN!! 

HELLO YES THIS IS ROBIN!! (@thesilliestofallqueers)

I’m not as obsessed with Lackadaisy as I used to be back when the animated pilot was just released (I had a friend who got me into it, thank you for that Breezy) but I still know quite a bit so I’ll be putting a few footnotes to this already extensive deep dive into the animated short

Apologies in advance but this is just going to be me analyzing / ranting about Viktor and Ivy’s interactions since Coco didn’t!! (ITS SPELLED WITH A K?? -Coco fixing her typos) (YEAH ITS VIKTOR LMFAOOAOAOAO -Rob) Now first of all, I found it so endearing that Viktor almost immediately warms up to Ivy and starts joking with her / trying to cover up what they actually do with lighthearted / white lies. 

As someone who has read the comics I always knew Viktor was fiercely protective of Ivy (He beat up her exes because he thought they were no good lol) but Ivy almost always responded to this by being annoyed with Viktor (specifically in the instance of the ex boyfriends, she got mad at Viktor for it)

So seeing her as a kid getting along with Viktor so well was refreshing and sweet (Also this short implies that these mfs are OLD AS HELL -Coco) (YEAH IT DO DUNNIT LMFAOAOAO -Robbobin)

Now they keep getting along until Viktor suddenly tells Ivy that she shouldn’t be there in the middle of her telling a joke, and you can SEE his expression shift from fond to worried as I guess he realizes that if he keeps being nice to her, she’ll want to stick around. Therefore putting her in more danger than if she was kept away

He slams the car door as he yells at her to go, and she does, but not before giving him one last angry look because dude WHAT THE FUCKK WE WERE SO CHILL LIKE 5 SECONDS AGO

And then Coco details the rest of what happened 

SORRY IF MY PORTION WAS SHORT I JUST WANTED TO EXPAND ON WHAT COCO DIDNT LMFAOOAOA (also there wasn’t much to go off of since it was short + coco covered most of it in detail already) THANK YOU ROB FOR YOUR INPUT!! Tbh I was struggling with finding words for Viktor and Ivy’s scene so thankfully Rob did the job! Please go follow Rob on their page! And that concludes our breakdown of Lackadaisy Ingenue :D  Huge respect to Tracy Butler and her team for their amazing work on this because the animation is GORGEOUS and the storytelling is super clever! I’m so excited to cover the future episodes of the series when it eventually comes out !!

This is Coco and Robin typing... thank you for reading!

[scribeoffate]

What’s your favorite thing about season 3a of Teen Wolf and why?

The tl;dr answer is almost everything.

Let's start with Tattoo- I love the way the episode sets everything up. I've mentioned it in rewatch before but I really want to explore the use of the word "ephemeral" in Tattoo. From exploring Scott's break up with Allison, to his tattoo not lasting, to the way he uses the word, even to the idea that Scott's status as a beta is ephemeral, even at this point in the series. I love the scene with Stiles and Derek holding Scott down to blowtorch his arm. I LOVE the way it opens with fucking BRAEDEN rescuing Isaac on a motorcycle.

I love the introduction of Deucalion. I love and adore the meet-cute in the elevator. Please enjoy @spikeface's brilliant fic: a certain potential for a fascinating glimpse of Deucalion's POV in that scene.

I love that Scott is Isaac's werewolf contact. I love the tension as the alpha pack stalks Braeden (I would be mad about how this ended, except she comes back) and their intro. I love the tension between Allison, Lydia, and Derek. It's a very well-done episode and definitely sets up a fantastic season so well.

Chaos Rising introduces Heather, who is friends with Danielle from Party Guessed. I was excited. We get the vault rescue, and there's some fun Steter banter. "No, you idiot, I live in a condo downtown, will forever be a favorite moment. The vault rescue! Scott's look at the end is A FAVORED moment, the blood on the chin? I cannot.

Then, we move on to Fireflies. I am weak for Scott saving those kids in the beginning, for the tension between him and Allison, and for the introduction of Cora! And then they are working with Chris. Who is still pointing a gun at Scott, but Scott is so soft and accepting of it. "I get that," he says. 🥺 Then they do a rescue! And Jennifer is there! And Derek is so worried about hurting her. Unfortunate. (When I was first watching, I leaned over to @illbeintheend and was like, "Tell me she's evil?" :D ) I think my favorite bit of Unleashed is when they pull the motorcycle swap on the twins. That is like PEAK supernatural teenager shenanigans to me. And they deserved more lower stakes (not that the twins are entirely low-stakes) shenans, overall. I also LOVE LOVE LOVE that Allison knows so much about motorcycles. Scallison motorcycle trip whenst?

Frayed. Frayed. FRAYED. BELOVED. I love so much about this episode. The sciles! the scallison! more truedemon in the elevator? and then on an escalator!! the scerek! the scisaac! BOYDDD. That moment where Scott is like "Well, I do," when Boyd doesn't care what happens to himself? Gyahhh. I CANNOT. And the the fight scene? Is SO good? Despite them having forgotten about light bulbs by 3a I find that to be one of the best choreographed fight scenes in the show. The Coach of it all? Ofc he's not gonna let them stop for a bathroom break, SIT DOWN BILINSKI. I love Frayed. AND THEN WE GET MOTEL CALIFORNIA RIGHT AFTER?? Lydia's arc in this is SOOO good. The Allison and Lydia moment where Allison is just "I believe you" and Lydia is so touched and clearly bolstered, it's one of the reasons I head canon she's had access to her powers her entire life. It's just now that people believe her about them. The Isaac and Ethan character moments? LEARNING ABOUT ALICIA (GREAT BUT OMG SHOOOOWWWW WHY IS THIS ALL WE GET???). Boyd. Cry!!! And THEN. The angst of the parking light scene at the end. I tear up still watching it. (Tbf I cry real easy.) Currents. I love Currents for the metronome scene and the way it highlights Boyd's intelligence. He has one of the best plans. And then the way it ends? That hurts me. Proto-alpha Scott almost rescuing Deaton? Bbbb. I have mixed feelings about Visionary. The Paige arc is devastating. Read my own excellent fic (i just) died in your arms for a look at my thoughts on her and Derek. I love the glimpse of pre-canon and Deucalion's backstory. I find the "unreliable narrator" bit to be a touch heavy-handed, but it's grown on me after many watched for fics.

The Girl Who Knew Too Much and The Overlooked. GYHAHHHH! I love so much about these. The scydia hand hold moment. "For someone like you to help" she says to Scott and I MELT. The big orchestra crescendo! The death of Deputy Tara and the little hints at her relationship with Stiles? The way Derek absolutely believes Scott and Stiles about Jennifer and her utter shock but quick turnaround?

The elevator scene! It's so silly and SO GREAT. I love it so much, okay. Deucalion manipulating events? The desperation as Stiles and Scott try and rescue their parents? Listen, these episodes are also so good. And then we have Scott going with Deucalion at the end of the episode. The way he has no idea what to do. He's just a lost kid, in so far over his head. And his mom and Stile's dad are missing and his (pretty damn good, too) English teacher is evil and there is Deucalion. And he has no choice and maybe he was right in that motel parking lot, it certainly feels like there's no help.

Then Alpha Pact happens. Then we get to Lunar Eclipse. And I just. The ice baths?? I have spent so much time wondering how Deaton, Isaac, and Lydia felt sitting there. Waiting. For hours. Lydia desperately holding back her screams for Allison, Scott and Stiles. Also, they all look so gooood in black. The Nemeton! The matching tattoos! The way it brings everything together to s1. The scalisaac moment with Rafael? Priceless. Love Kalia and Jennifer's showdown. It looks so cool, first of all. But there is a moment, where you think, just maybe Kali might NOT double down. And then the glass shards fly.

The bit where Deucalion is "brother against brother, how very American," cracks me up, every watch. And then he roars and tries to force Scott to kill and well, then we have an Eclipse. AND THEN AND THEN AND THEN we get the true alpha moment we've been building to since Scott threw off Peter's control in s1 and chose his own pack over Derek's in s2. That moment is so good.

Thank you for asking, anon. <3 I just love 3a so much.

[sunayyyy]

I think RHatO is a cursed series, the first one ruining all 3 main characters and the second one having the worst batman moment at the time, as well as a costume downgrade for jason (i like the muzzle and hoodie but the leather jacket that went down to the forearms was objectively his best look). However, it gave us a lot of good: the (platonic) dynamic with roy and kori i find really fun (I'm gonna ignore that jason lowkey caused roy to relapse because what the fuck), the introduction of the all caste was amazing (in concept, execution was iffy), and the dark trinity theme was fire, also the first jason and bizzaro scene was super humanising and endearing. Not to mention that it spawned one of my favourite ships of all time, jaytemis.

So, with all that being said, i need a competent writer and a really good artist to make a third version of the outlaws, this time with rose and eddie. While I love jaytemis, I think jayrose kinda fits better since they'd really help each other actualise their daddy issues. They know the other's father is abusive. It's clear as hell, but i think talking to someone in a similar situation who gives the same excuses you do may help both of them realise their situation, which can help both of them start healing.

Eddie and jason friendship is such wasted potential, too, with eddie being one of robin!jason's closest friends, and him also dating rose. I don't really like shitty romance arcs where there's tension between the 2 men because they dated the same woman or having the woman compare both men, so I want them all to be emotionally capable enough not to do that. Eddie would be really good for jayrose as well, since he's very familiar with feeling incompetent due to not being able to help, and the self loathing that comes with it. Also devil powers.

Alternatively, you can have jayeddie, which could be a good way to announce that jason and eddie are bisexual. I'm not really into poly ships, i liked a couple of poly fics, but it's not really to my taste, but if you want eddiejayrose, then it's there. Could be cute.

I think a competent writer could make this series about healing and mending bridges, as well as have jason solidify his position as an anti-hero who only works with the bats when he absolutely has to. Part of him still loves bruce, but he'll never be able to trust him or look at him again. I think that rose should really stay away from slade, because even though he'd be supportive of their relationship (which is canon), he is the worst thing to happen to her, not to mention a creepy pedophile. You can even have rose mirror slade's sacrifice since he got his eye back once but sacrificed it to save his kids. Have rose do the same but with her team,which would highlight how much she loves them and how she's slade's daughter but not slade. I think he's like bruce in the sense that he loves an idealised version of their kid, but is more consistently brutal about how they mould said kid to fit their ideals.

[himluv]

DA Review Series: Vows & Vengeance

<<< Previous Review: The Missing

Here we are. The final review. The last little crumb of DA content I had to consume in my year-long journey to read, watch, play, and listen to all things Dragon Age before Veilguard's release.

For awhile there I didn't think I'd be able to to get it all done, but here we are with two weeks to spare. I don't know how I'm going to survive these next two weeks with no Dragon Age media, but I'm thinking of it as a sort of cleanse. A break to prepare mind, body, and spirit for what comes next...

Veilguard.

Title: Vows & Vengeance Writer(s): Will Melton and Jeremy Novik Publication Year: 2024 In-World Year: 9:45+ Dragon Verdict: I had a lot of fun with this series, despite its at times cringe-worthy writing and the occasional lore discrepancy. Is it a wellspring of lore and info? Not so much. But as an introduction to Veilguard's companions and key characters I think it's quite successful. But, successful doesn't equal necessary so you do you, boo.

Vows & Vengeance follows thief Nadia Carcosa as she tries to save her lover Elio from the Fade. He's stuck there thanks to a certain Dread Wolf and the artifact he surreptitiously hired her to steal — the Eye of Kethisca.

After Solas's ritual goes wrong (this dude is a broken record!) Nadia meets Drayden Kiel, a scholar and historian with a particular interest in the Fade. Their hunt for the Dread Wolf and Elio takes them through much of Northern Thedas, and each episode introduces one of the seven companions in Veilguard.

I found all of the companions incredibly endearing and wonderful. Harding is so sweet and kind, but also a bamf. Davrin is strong and noble, but also extremely charming. Taash is an absolute badass and I can't wait to see more of her dynamic in the group. And of course, Neve is a stunner and not just for her fashion sense.

Bellara's episode was an absolute delight — as a longtime fan of the Dalish, hearing one of the People stand up and speak out against their colonizers was very powerful.

Obviously I LOVED the Lucanis episode, even if Antivan nobility having British accents was buckwild. What we heard from Lucanis told us so much about his character and I can't WAIT to get to know him better, if you know what I mean ;) .

Emmrich and Manfred were such a joy to meet. Their dynamic is so sweet and the kindness just radiates from Emmrich. I can't wait to play rock paper scissors with my little bone buddy.

It was almost unfair, honestly, because the companions were so loveable and Nadia... Wasn't. I really struggled with her, for a lot of the same reasons I struggled with Katara in ATLA. But Nadia doesn't have the excuse of being a child.

Nadia came across as very impatient, oftentimes mean, and incredibly short-sighted. She oscillates between being a know-it-all and being utterly uninterested in understanding what's happening around her. I wasn't really rooting for her, sadly. She was just the vehicle this podcast used to introduce us to these other characters.

I must add here that I absolutely loved Drayden and would be more than happy to meet them in Veilguard or other Dragon Age media in the future. But I am glad Nadia's "retired".

I also feel really bad for Elio. I don't feel like Nadia really processed the fact that he died and that it was her fault (and also Solas's). Or at least, we didn't get to hear her process that. And so her eulogy/vow at the end rang a bit hollow for me. Her emotion and her grasp at closure didn't feel earned.

But! I do want to say that shoving all these characters into eight 45-minute episodes had to have been an INCREDIBLE challenge. And, when compared to other Dragon Age tie-in media, this one is definitely not bad. I know I'm glad I listened, and that my Thursday morning drive has been the highlight of my week for the last eight weeks.

But now it's over. Just like this review series is over. The only thing left to do is sit back and countdown the days until we finally return to Thedas!

TWO WEEKS LEFT, Y'ALL!!!!!!!

[the-yuri-librarian]

Review: After Hours by Nishio Yuta

Summary: After Hours starts in media res, at a club at the beginning of the night. Asahina Emi enters the club on the phone, trying to find her friend Meyumi. She doesn't find her, and instead has a chance meeting with a self-described clubbing afficinado named Kei. By the end of the night, Emi goes home with Kei, who ropes Emi into helping her DJ at a club later. Emi reluctantly agrees, but, when she actually goes through with it, she falls in love. From there, Emi and Kei become close, their new relationship just starting to bloom. But, not without tribulation, as Emi is struggling with the aimless path her life is on, her own insecurities, and coming to terms with her feelings for this woman she has now become entangled with.

Review below the cut (trying out a new format too!)

If there is one word that can be used to describe After Hours, it is potential. From the moment Emi and Kei meet, this manga feels special. The backdrop of Tokyo nightlife serves as a beautiful canvas where Emi can explore who she is, who she wants to be, and exactly wat Kei means to her. She is shy, yet bold, a personality combo that causes her to thrust herself into the story before really considering the consequences of her actions. Kei is also incredibly well-written, not only as Emi's love interest, but also as her narrative foil. A little older, she seemingly has everything figured out. But, there's trouble brewing beneath her cool exterior, and as her and Emi both struggle against their own problems, they are forced to grow, sometimes when they're not ready.

Unfortunately, potential is where most of the good of After Hours ends, and it is also where the problems begin. Near the beginning of the story, a large group of Kei's DJing friends are introduced, and they all have various histories with her and work well as the main supporting cast. But, they are severely under-utilized in the story. Not only that, but all of Emi's problems are under-developed and, quite frankly, a little vague. She doesn't know what she wants to do with her life, she has a boyfriend who is never on screen, and she has never been romantically interested in a woman in her entire life. And, while many of these issues are resolved by the end of the story, their resolution is as fleeting as their introduction. Thus brings forth the biggest problem with After Hours; it is too short. Sitting at 17 chapters, this story could easily double in size without having to introduce any new story elements. As it is now, the story ends as quickly as it starts, and it leaves a empty disappointment once it is over.

Before it ends, however, it does hit a high note in chapter ten. Chapter ten contains scene where Emi and Kei's relationship becomes more concrete, and it is beautiful. Half-make up, half confession, it is a heart-warming and genuine to a surprising degree. As Emi and Kei tenderly embrace, their affection for each other shines, becoming the real highlight of the story.

Overally, After Hours starts out incredibly strong, and held back by its length, peters out at the end. Despite this, I still reccomend this series due to chapter ten alone. Combine that with the Amex vibrant setting and charming characters, and this manga becomes a real treat.

Rating: B

[saber-of-dreams]

Psycho-Pass: Providence - A Review

Well, I just go back from seeing Providence in theaters.

Wow. What an excellent movie. So worth the price of admission and the hour drive each way.

I'll do a more in-depth analysis of the story once it releases for digital and I can re-watch it at my leisure, but I wanted to get my first thoughts down before I get to sleep.

So: Non-spoiler version first.

If you're caught up through all 3 Sinners of the System movies, this movie will be a great segue into the next part of the story. If you've already seen Season 3 and First Inspector, as others have mentioned, this will fill in a LOT of holes.

I think each of our core characters get their moments in the movie, though the lion's share certainly goes to Kogami and Akane. They have a few great conversations in this movie, and I think by the end their relationship is on the most equal footing it has ever been.

Gino also has some wonderful moments. Not a lot of them, but enough that we start to understand who he is and what he is trying to achieve. He and Ko get a few moments to work out their...differences, and by the end, although he fails in his self-appointed goal (he and Ko both), I think it places him in a way that he will grow even further in the future.

Mika took a while to grow on me, but boy has she. I really liked her in this movie. There is one interaction she had with Gino that really made me chuckle, and overall, I really liked how willing she was to step up and move beyond the box she's always put herself in.

Frederica seems very intriguing. I hope we see more of her in future projects.

It was great to get an introduction to Kei and Arata, and to understand where they tie into this story.

Overall the plot was excellent, as always. There were several twists I didn't see coming.

I also have to applaud this series again for its excellent antagonistic characters. Because, in many ways, our antagonist was correct. Providence, indeed.

This series is in a lot of ways reminiscent to me of works like Brave New World by Aldous Huxley or to some degrees Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Phillip K. Dick, which I believe have both been referenced in this series. But it isn't so much the technological parallels that strike me , as the ability of the authors to understand where society seems to be going, and then writing the story to highlight the realities such changes would bring about.

We are facing this future now. With the rise of (primitive) AI technology in recent months, we're going to have to start considering the BIG questions. And this work is a great what-if scenario of where we could end up and the long-term ramifications of such choices.

Now to the spoiler version. You know the drill.

I really liked that Ko's attention is immediately centered on Akane when everyone is walking in. And his utter willingness to throw himself in front of an explosion to save Akane (again), just really made me love these two so much. The first phone call is great, because Kogami is lying to Akane (and also possibly to himself), and she doesn't put up with his bullshit. The second one shows his utter faith and trust in her. And that letter? God I loved that letter. The parallels. I think of all of them, though, my favorite scene of theirs was in the hospital room. I do very much want this couple to end up together, but I think it is oversimplifying their relationship to want them to romantically involved. There are so many layers to who they are as individuals and to how they interact together and apart that calling them romantic interests doesn't even begin to cover the first page. That all being said, I am really excited to see where this story goes and to how these characters develop.

Saiga's death was a true gut punch for me. He is one of my favorite mentor characters, and that death scene was just...powerful.

The reveal of Akira and the truth of his and Milica's stories was also very heart-breaking. It grounds the characters left behind in reality and propels the story forward, and each of them only get a few minutes and a few dozen lines to convey everything. Great storytelling there.

The final scenes of them watching Akane shoot Kasei, and of her being incarcerated while Ko is let free at the same time...the way Akane falls to the floor sobbing while Ko declares that he will set her free? Those moments are going to live in my head rent free for a long time.

I'm tempted to go and get a premium crunchyroll membership just so that I can watch Season 3 in English dub. Doesn't look like First Inspector is done yet, but hopefully here soon.

Okay, last set of thoughts and then I'm done for the moment.

Every character, from SIbyl to Ko to Gino to Mika, to even Saiga, seemed to put Akane on a pedestal. They commend her for her clear hue, for her sense of justice and morailty, her determination, and on and on. And I think it's interesting, because even after she shoots Kasei at the end, it's clear that those feelings do not change. Akane is not perfect, but she is willing to put everything before her sense of justice, and it makes her very compellig and powerful.

I'll probably do a deeper dive on Akane and Psycho-Pass in general at a later date, but for the moment it's almost midnight and I am tired. But thank you for reading my thought-spew. I'll get to a more polished version eventually.

[animanga-bonanza]

team 7 and empathy

Chapter 3 marks the introduction of Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha in the Naruto manga. And one particular moment in this chapter has spawned a lot of discourse and memes: when Sakura badmouths Naruto in front of Sasuke.

Now, I think that the exact details of this moment have been sort-of exaggerated in order to make Sakura’s actions seem worse than they actually are (not to mention that there’s kind of a big plot hole at issue here).

Regardless, this chapter is pretty interesting in how it establishes one of the core themes of Naruto -- empathy -- and how each member of Team 7 relates to that theme.

In this post, I’ll re-examine this chapter to highlight interesting details about the characters and their dynamics.

[Note: I am relying on the official English translation of the Naruto manga, which may or may not be 100% accurate to the original Japanese text.]

First Impressions

The first time we see Sakura and Sasuke, we see them through Naruto’s point of view: he likes Sakura and thinks she’s very pretty, but dislikes Sasuke in part because Sakura has a crush on him, and because Naruto thinks that Sasuke is arrogant. So it seems at first that Naruto's crush on Sakura is superficial and his judgment of Sasuke is equally superficial.

We also see that Sakura dislikes Naruto, and seems to find him annoying. After the iconic moment in which Naruto accidentally kisses Sasuke, Sakura (seeming to think that this was a deliberate action) says to Naruto, “You make me sick!”

These words will later come back to Sakura.

Shenanigans and Revelations

Later, Naruto decides to impersonate Sasuke so that he can get closer to Sakura. Which, by the way, is a pretty skeevy thing to do!

Something that much of the fandom seems to forget is that Naruto was very intentionally presented as an obnoxious and socially clueless person early on in the series – the other characters often had good reasons to find him irritating, as he didn’t really endear himself to anyone.

Of course, we as fans sympathize with Naruto because we know what he’s been through and why he’s like that, and also because he’s the protagonist and we relate to him by default. But as this chapter demonstrates, most of Naruto’s peers are clueless about his lived experiences and are only reacting to his current behavior.

However, Sakura stands out because unlike many of Naruto’s peers, who avoided Naruto in part because their parents warned them away from him, Sakura dislikes Naruto because she genuinely misunderstands his intentions.

Here, when Fake Sasuke (Naruto in disguise) asks her what she thinks of Naruto, she takes a moment to think about it before responding. She says: “If he had his way, I’d never find love or happiness…He ruins everything…He enjoys tormenting me! Naruto doesn’t understand me at all! …I can’t stand to have him anywhere near me! In fact, the one person whose opinion I value…the only one I really want to be close to…is you, Sasuke. I’d do almost anything to win your attention…your respect…because I have a crush on you…I’m…desperate.”

This is pretty interesting. Instead of Sakura hating Naruto because he’s a “loser” or a “troublemaker”, as many of their peers do, Sakura hates Naruto because she mistakenly believes that he has a vendetta against her. Which is pretty funny – the girl you have a crush on thinks that you hate her and are trying to ruin her life. I suspect that Naruto has maybe pestered Sakura in the past to try to get her attention, which may have led to Sakura misunderstanding him.

However, what’s also interesting about this is that Sakura is simultaneously correct and incorrect about Naruto.

She’s incorrect in her belief that Naruto doesn’t understand her. In fact, in the above pages, Naruto realizes that he does understand Sakura on a fundamental level, and that’s the reason why he has a crush on her. When Sakura confesses to Fake Sasuke that she only cares about his approval and is desperate to earn his attention and respect, Naruto has a strong reaction to this and thinks, “I’m finally starting to understand…what I love about Sakura!”

Naruto likes Sakura because he knows what it’s like to desperately crave the validation and respect of others. He sees a part of himself reflected in Sakura. He empathizes with her. Although there may be an even more interesting meaning here: Naruto can specifically relate to Sakura wanting Sasuke to validate her. As we know from later in the series, particularly the Naruto vs Sasuke fight at the end of Part I, Naruto had always wanted to be friends with Sasuke, but felt like he had to become Sasuke’s equal first. Hence why Naruto decided that Sasuke was his rival. This fact about Naruto and Sasuke’s dynamic may have been foreshadowed as early as this chapter.

Ironically, Sakura is also proven correct in her belief about Naruto wanting to sabotage her, because he literally plans to do so later in this chapter. Not only does he pretend to be Sakura’s crush to get her to lower her guard (she even almost kisses him), Naruto later plans to manipulate Sakura into hating Sasuke. Of course, he doesn’t succeed because the real Sasuke finally catches up to him.

Again, this is kind of skeevy and shows Naruto’s immaturity and self-centeredness early in the series; despite his ability to empathize with Sakura, he thinks nothing of manipulating her to get what he wants.

The Call-Out

Now we get to the Big Moment that launched a thousand memes. When the real Sasuke comes along and asks where Naruto is, and Sakura has some choice words to say about him.

Sakura says that Naruto “always comes between us (her and Sasuke).” Then: “It’s because he was badly brought up! You know…Because he never had any parents? He doesn’t have to answer to anyone, ever, and it’s made him completely selfish! If I did the kinds of things he gets away with, my parents would ground me for life! Don’t you envy him being alone, not having parents nag at you all the time?”

Many people claim that Sakura was "making fun of Naruto for being an orphan." I think this isn’t an accurate description of what she’s doing here. She’s not saying, “Lol look at that dumb orphan Naruto that’s so cringe,” she’s making a point that Naruto’s obnoxious personality and selfishness comes from the fact that he didn’t have parents to raise him properly, so he doesn’t know right from wrong. She even says that she envies him.

Now, this is obviously still a very inappropriate and insensitive thing to say, and Sasuke rightfully calls her out for it. Sakura’s naivete is on full display here and stems from her sheltered upbringing. She has no idea how good her life has been.

[Personally, I think Sakura wasn’t entirely wrong here; it’s true that Naruto’s bad social skills stem in part from the fact he’s had to raise himself. But the way she said it was still very mean and judgmental.]

Many people have also pointed out the irony of Sakura saying this to Sasuke, who is also an orphan. While that is kinda funny, I also feel like it’s a bit of a plot hole. Why wouldn’t Sakura know that Sasuke is an orphan? In fact, her question, “Don’t you envy him being alone?” suggests that she had no idea Sasuke’s family was dead. It honestly doesn’t make sense, since the Uchiha massacre would have been common knowledge to everybody in the Leaf village.

Anyway, Sasuke scolds Sakura, saying: “Kids without families always grow up selfish. That, and lonely. Being scolded by your parents doesn’t even compare! You…make me sick!” And he’s totally right to do so. Sakura was belittling Naruto’s suffering by speaking so ignorantly, and she needed to face reality. Sasuke literally throws Sakura’s prior words to Naruto back in her face.

This moment is also interesting re: Sasuke’s characterization, because up until this point, he’s rather distant and seemingly uncaring toward other people. He’s annoyed at the fact that he even got assigned to a three-man team and spends most of the chapter trying to avoid his new teammates. But here, he shows that he does recognize Naruto’s feelings and empathizes with him to a certain degree, even though Naruto behaves very arrogantly toward Sasuke in this chapter (literally ambushing him, tying him up and impersonating him).

Later, Sakura reflects on Sasuke’s words and finally realizes that she’s been acting like a jerk, and resolves to try to do better in the future. She begins to empathize with Naruto.

This moment is conveniently ignored by the anti-Sakura crowd, who only spotlight her cruelty in the earlier scene as “proof” that she’s an irredeemable asshole. But here, Sakura shows that she’s actually a kind person capable of critical self-reflection.

Conclusion

Chapter 3 introduces the other members of Team 7 and the concept of “empathy” which is central to the series. Naruto’s feelings for Sakura are rooted in empathy, but he still lacks an awareness/respect of personal boundaries, hence his willingness to manipulate her to get what he wants. Sakura initially lacks empathy for Naruto because she misunderstands him, but later begins to think more about his feelings and perspective. And Sasuke initially seems cold and unfeeling, only to reveal that he is empathetic to others’ feelings and experiences.

This chapter, despite its brevity, establishes each of these characters as being multifaceted. Naruto cares about Sakura and desperately wants the approval of others, but he goes about it in a self-centered way. Sakura is naïve and judgmental but also compassionate and willing to own up to her own faults. Sasuke puts up a cold and uncaring front but deep down, he cares about other people.

[sunnydalestudies]

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992) Whedon's Version

Part 1/3: Changes to the Script and Story

When discussing BtVS, many people often focus solely on the show without considering what the additional media has to offer. There are comics, accompanying novels, and even a prequel film that many people forget about. Indeed, the world’s first introduction to Buffy happened in 1992 with the movie starring Kristen Swanson, and that is where I want to start.

Joss Whedon claims that the character of Buffy Summers had been with him for a long time, but when he sold his script to Sandollar in 1991, he was not pleased with the results. Whether it was Fran Rubel Kuzui as director, the 20th Century Fox executives, the actors changing their lines, or whatever else that made the changes, the original script and the film we can watch now are not quite the same. Here, I will highlight some critical changes that change how we interpret the film.

First, the film made various changes to the script’s dialogue, which impacted jokes, foreshadowing, and misogynistic conversations. Thankfully, in the audience’s first introduction to Buffy, the film preserves Whedon’s dialogue. Buffy’s Valley Girl persona is alive and well, and we see her as the popular, air-headed, hilarious, and beautiful character all fans love. The dialogue in this scene is beautifully Whedon: full of quick-witted and fast-paced jokes and slang. Although I can’t say that I support Whedon in any way, I have to say that dialogue is one of his greatest strengths. That is why it is so disappointing when, shortly after, Buffy makes an unimpressive joke about doing her homework. In the script, Buffy says to Cassandra, “there’s a lot cooler things that you could be doing than your homework,” to which Cassandra asks, “like what,” and Buffy replies, “like my homework.” In the movie, as they are making plans, Buffy instead says, “I don’t know, guys. I really wanna get a head start on my homework,” which her friends laugh at. Despite this being a minute change to the script, it is disappointing to see alterations that waste Whedon’s writing and replace it with a subpar joke.

A more meaningful dialogue change appears when Buffy and her friends first run into Pike and Benny in the movie theatre. After Benny shushes the chatting group of girls, Buffy predicts the plot so he doesn’t have to follow as closely: “everyone gets horribly killed except the blonde girl in the nightie, who finally kills the monster with a machete but it’s not really dead.” It’s a simple plot summary of several popular horror films, but what is telling here is what it says about Buffy and the Buffyverse. Firstly, this explanation loosely foreshadows the rest of the movie by portraying what will happen at the dance: many students are horribly killed except the blonde girl in a white dress, who finally kills Lothos and Amilyn, but Lothos lamely covering his face and Amilyn’s overly dramatic flailing around the basement after Buffy stakes them indicate they might not be dead—although this may be due to the fans of the series expecting them to dust, and he does dust in the script, so it was probably due to the film’s low budget since the dusting effect was surprisingly pricey. Secondly, this knowing explanation displays Buffy’s intelligence. She may not be classically book-smart, but Buffy’s intelligence concerning pop culture and social situations gives her the upper hand throughout the film, show, and comics. This intelligence leads to my third point: Buffy exemplifies many contradictory horror tropes. Whedon founded the character of Buffy on the subversion of the trope of the blonde girl walking into the alley and getting attacked. In his version, the girl is who wins. Alongside this trope, this film also plays with those of the ‘final girl’ and ‘promiscuous blonde girl who gets killed off first.’ Whedon also plays with these tropes in his horror satire film Cabin in the Woods(2012), which is a trope lover’s delight, but he only uses the tropes there rather than subverting them. Only in the Buffyverse do we see the intersection of these two tropes: the promiscuous (and yes, film Buffy is promiscuous) blonde girl evolving into the final girl, becoming the one to outsmart the bad guys, not despite her initial airheadedness, but because of it, using her social skills and catty attitude to save the day. At first glance, this is a simple line, but it holds layers of meaning, and it is too bad that the film omits it.

Before moving on from dialogue, I want to touch on a few instances of misogynistic language and actions in the script and film. In the scene where Buffy kisses her boyfriend in his car by laying across his friend’s lap with her butt in his face, the friend calls the boyfriend a ‘pushover’ for spending time with her and asks to ‘borrow’ Buffy. In the script, the friend calls him ‘pussy-whipped,’ and Buffy remains silent after this comment, but the film changes this term, and Buffy displays more agency as she voices her discontent at this comment. The scene remains uncomfortable and gross, but the changes make it slightly easier to digest. An exchange from the script that the film thankfully omitted appears a little later when Buffy runs into her absentee mother in the kitchen, who asks her, “have you gained a few pounds? maybe it’s that outfit,” before asking what her boyfriend will think about it. This type of exchange is not atypical for the 90s, but I am still glad they decided to take it out. Finally, near the end of the film, a piece of dialogue I believe they should have removed is when Buffy steals a man’s motorcycle after he hits on her, to which he responds by calling her a ‘dyke.’ This homophobia is prevalent in 90s movies—take a look at Bring It On (1999) to see a horrific example—but it is still disappointing to see that Whedon wrote this line, especially considering the empowering lesbian characters he would later write.

As much as these changes to the dialogue can impact our understanding of the film, the plot is also significantly changed, and even the script’s first scene is completely absent from the film. Perhaps the first rule of any form of storytelling is that a successful story shows rather than tells. Yet, the film decides to tell us. Whedon’s script opens with a historical twist on the ‘blonde girl walks into a dark alleyway, gets attacked, wins’ horror genre subversion as a ‘dark ages’ barmaid saves a knight from a vampire before a group of vampires, including Lothos, kills her, and a watcher explains the slayer line to the next chosen one. The film, instead, skips this first scene and delivers the exposition by voiceover, which is not an inherently negative way to contextualize, but the hook—and the entire idea of slayers—is lost in these opening moments. Fans watching the film today are likely familiar with the concept of slayers and how it all works, but this context is bland and forgettable for those who may not be familiar with Whedon's world-building.

The most notable alteration to Whedon’s script appears in Buffy’s first meeting with Lothos and Merrick’s death. If you are a fan of the series, you would know that Merrick’s death greatly impacted Buffy and is a primary reason she claims to be ‘retired’ in the first episode: because she lost him and blames herself for it. Interestingly, Whedon’s version of this scene in the script is more fast-paced and nearly emotionless. In fact, in Whedon’s version, Merrick brings a gun to confront Lothos while Buffy hides in the shadows, and just as Lothos is about to attack Merrick, Merrick shoots himself in the head and dies instantly. The script skims over this formative experience for Buffy while the film depicts a tender moment and explains why Buffy blames herself. In the film, Merrick is the one hiding in the shadows as Lothos hypnotizes Buffy, and as Lothos is about to bite her, Merrick rushes out with a knife, which Lothos quickly turns on Merrick and stabs him in the chest. Buffy then cradles Merrick as he dies, and he tells her, “remember about the music. Listen. When the music stops, the rest is…” before trailing off and passing away. I will feature the use of guns in the Buffyverse and Donald Sutherland’s changes to his dialogue in future posts, but this line is vital to the plot yet absent from the script. In the film, Merrick’s last words allow Buffy to tune out Lothos’ voice and focus on the silence to resist being hypnotized, ultimately allowing her to beat him, but it is entirely absent from the script. I cannot say why the film added this line of dialogue, but I believe the touching final moment that Merrick and Buffy share is an incredible addition that humanizes the characters and solidifies Merrick as an essential influence in Buffy’s life.

There are a lot of differences between the script and the final film, ranging from alterations to dialogue to changes in setting, all the way to reconstructing plot points. The script was Whedon’s making, but ultimately, he lost control over the final project once he sold it; thus, is it his? Is the film canonical? How does it fit with the series? I am glad they made some of these changes while disappointed with others, but in the end, however you feel about this film as part of the Buffyverse, it is an incredibly entertaining piece of 90s media that I would recommend to Buffy fans and non-fans alike.

That’s that for this Sunnydale study session! 

Liz

[onelungmcclung]

mota for the meme!

the first character i ever fell in love with: I liked DeMarco early on but I was sort of predisposed to (supporting character, was already familiar with Adam Long, I root for little known actors). however, he does suffer from a severe shortage of dialogue. I found myself warming to Kidd early on, too. Crosby & Bubbles's friendship is a highlight of the early episodes. in the opening scene I wanted more of Crank and Blakely.

a character that i used to love/like, but now do not: Brady gets an enjoyable introduction but not much else. (not quite in the spirit of the question – this isn't me going off the character – I just want some good, economic characterisation stuff in later episodes too. some follow-through! but if we're going to talk about lack of follow-through we really need to talk about Westgate)

a ship that i used to love/like, but now do not: I'm still working out if I have any ships, and the show hasn't been around long enough for me to go off anything

my ultimate favourite character™: I like Crank, Blakely, Doug, DeMarco, Bubbles, Kidd, Hambone, Macon, Crosby, Brady and Rosie (and Claytor and Biddick, brief acquaintances both). if I were to pick one, it would be Kidd – but, as I have said, he is the only supporting character I have a really strong sense of, so it doesn't feel like a fair contest.

prettiest character: Peggy is very beautiful. throw over your man, I say. Paulina, I'm available.

my most hated character: I hate nobody, but I wish the series weren't told from a small number of POVs. BoB manages its large cast better. I would like fewer scenes with Egan &/or Cleven and more scenes centring other characters/dynamics/friendships. (I like the Tuskegee Airmen scenes for this reason; no single POV is centred. also the lack of narration.) I do have sympathy for every character who gets annoyed with Bucky – not because I'm disposed against him, I just think, in context, they're right 🤷‍♀️ (I did want to see him wearing a narwhal horn, though)

my OTP: possiblyyy Kidd/Rosie. possibly. thinking it over. in terms of canon, Helen/Nash had some of the best chemistry in any of the three shows. in terms of friendship possibilities, I want to see more of everyone and everything. and as I think I have made abundantly clear by now, my favourite among the crews we get to see is the Blakely, Kidd, Doug & Crosby lineup of ep 3.

my NOTP: I don't get that invested and I don't read much. the mainpairs, as usual, don't really appeal.

favourite episode: maybe episode 7 or 8

saddest death: I was genuinely upset by Hambone's 'death' (which seemed both horrifying and terrifying) except he turned out not to be dead. probably Bubbles.

character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but i hate: I'm relatively uninterested in Buck and Bucky; I blame the script; I've glanced through Miller's book and find the real guys more compelling. I'm rather indifferent to Lemmons, although I'd like to like him more. (also I like Crosby but I dislike narration unless absolutely necessary and a lot of it wasn't. and he's not a cinnamon roll, he's an everyman, come on now.)

my ‘you’re piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: I think these shows are fundamentally quite optimistic about people. but I think MotA does a slight injustice to the British forces. and I have already defended Huglin.

my ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: that's the nature of the genre / this is a woobification-free zone. but the Tuskegee Airmen got short-changed. so did Westgate and the Allied intelligence subplot (at least include a glimpse of her in ep 9 so we know she's still alive? during the 'war is over' announcement mayhap? if u really don't have time for more actual subplot, which is just bad planning). a little bit more of Solly would have been nice (maybe a Solly & Rosie scene?).

my ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship: I am a fine upstanding citizen (has anyone considered Biddick/Bryan... not that I consider it wrong and nasty, I just think they could work out their differences/competitiveness some other way... but I am aware the answer is 'no') (this is merely a fleeting thought)

my ‘they’re kind of cute, and i lowkey ship them, but i’m not too invested’ ship: could have probably got into Alex/Buck or DeMarco/Macon if they'd had another scene or two. I do not put it past myself to mildly ship Marge/Peggy. I don't really ship it but I think Chick and Red have good chemistry considering their lack of conversations – they seem very used to each other; not sure if JM and SCM had worked together before but their characters genuinely come across like two people with a close longterm working relationship. (I could believe they're together.) Biddick/Snyder deserves a little attention even though I don't have anything to contribute.

[meimi-haneoka]

Translation of the Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card article from Animedia 07/2023

Hello! This is a translation of the article that appeared in the most recent issue of Animedia, the July one, which was released today in Japan.

The article was released as part of the bigger feature for the 42nd anniversary of the Animedia magazine, where they showed the results of a celebrative poll for the most popular anime series, the most popular female character and the most popular male character of all times chosen by the readers of the magazine. Sakura ranked 1st as the most popular female character, Syaoran ranked 4th as the most popular male character and the series as a whole scored the 3rd place as the most popular anime series.

There isn't any big announcement or revelation, but I liked it because it's still the words of people highly involved with CCS (one of them is the Nakayoshi editor!) and they make us look forward to the second season of the anime, going straight to the core of the highlights from the remaining part of the story. They also give us an invitation to wait patiently some more, because it seems it's not going to be released immediately.

Introduction

The Cardcaptor Sakura series scored the 3rd place in the category of "most popular anime series of all times", while the main character Sakura herself got the 1st place in the "most popular female character of all times" category! No matter what kind of difficult situation she might face, Sakura will try as hard as she can to protect the people important to her, using the words "it's surely going to be alright!" as a lucky charm. Seeing her like that still gives lots of courage to many people, even nowadays. The pure and heartwarming relationship with Syaoran surely tickles the fans with blush-inducing feelings, but probably one of the reasons people love it even now is because it's a series full of gentle vibes that makes you want to keep watching over the characters. This year the broadcasting of the anime celebrates the 25th anniversary, and the production of a sequel for the "Clear Card Arc" has been announced, while the manga is on the verge of the climax, so it's really a development you can't take your eyes off! Without any doubt, even from now on, Sakura will show her exceptional, brave deeds to all the fans!

Interview with Sho Saito (editor in charge for "Cardcaptor Sakura" from the Nakayoshi editorial department) and Nozomi Matsuura (person in charge for the management of the copyrights for Cardcaptor Sakura)

"Let's aim to a wonderful future!" Interviewer: People keep loving "Cardcaptor Sakura" even now. Please tell us about the charm of this series. Saito: I think "Cardcaptor Sakura" is like an irreplaceable textbook teaching us the meaning of kindness. We can always get encouraged by the strong and honest words Sakura-chan says. I also wonder if this no-frills, a bit careless, life-sized sense of familiarity, so much that you'd want to become friends with her, is one of the reasons why she keeps being loved by the fans.

I: The production of the sequel of the "Clear Card Arc" anime has been finally announced, right? Matsuura: Ever since the broadcast of the "Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card arc" anime in 2018, we received lots of messages hoping for a sequel. On our end, we've also continued for long time discussions aimed at the production of the sequel with all the parties involved, but since this is a very big project, we needed our time. We found ourselves at a perfect timing to inform all the fans, with the volumes of the source material coming to the climax, and the anime celebrating its 25th anniversary, so we decided to announce the launch of the project at the "SakuraFes" event that was held on April 1st. To put it quite frankly, there is still a long way to go, so I'll be grateful if you could wait for it patiently.

I: Have you got any inside story for the announcement that you made during "SakuraFes"? Matsuura: We've been thinking "Let's announce it at the SakuraFes of 2023!" for more than one year, but we actually decided to go for it and started to make calls here and there only a few days before the actual event.......... We gave explanations to the voice actors basically on the same day of the event, and they were quite shocked. We caused lots of trouble to all the people involved because we did things in such a hurry, but thankfully at the time of the announcement loud cheers came from the audience in the venue, and lots of people were even crying. Being able to feel first-hand the excitement from the fans at the first "SakuraFes" in five years was really motivating for all the people involved in the production of this sequel too.

I: Lastly, please send a message to the fans. Matsuura: I was really happy to be able to meet all the fans after long time at "SakuraFes 2023". I'll do my best to give you lots of wonderful announcements in the time leading to the second season of "Clear Card Arc" anime! Saito: Considering the manga is at the climax, and the anime is celebrating the 25th anniversary, we are planning lots of events and release of goods! Please stay tuned!!

Part of the interview but separated from the main column, next to a screenshot with Kaito and Akiho: I: The "Clear Card Arc" source material is now on the verge of the climax. What are the highlights we can look forward to in the future (for the anime)? Saito: I'd say it's the real goal of the person who's always been traveling with Akiho-chan till now, Yuna D. Kaito. Or the revelation of what is the new Card produced by Sakura that he's always wanted. There's a stormy development that is being steadily told in the current story published every month in the magazine. Please look forward to the furoku coming with the magazine too! (caption under the screenshot) These are Akiho, who's told she's "similar" to Sakura, and her butler Kaito. Kaito seems to be planning to activate a certain magic using a Clear Card, but....?

Side paragraphs

"1st place - the most popular female character of all times chosen by the readers" "The beloved sweet girl Sakura Kinomoto (voice: Sakura Tange)"

She's attending the 1st year of middle school and she's kind, honest and always so lively. She's collecting the "Clear Cards" that are the source of many mysterious phenomenons happening around her. She's got magic more powerful than anyone else! Creator of the Clow Cards, Clow Reed was a magician so amazingly powerful that he was considered one of a rare kind. Even so, it seems like now Sakura's magical power, which got stronger through collection of the Cards, is surpassing that of Clow .

(other paragraph) Words of love for Sakura from the editor in charge! Judging by all the votes full of love, she got to the first place of the female characters poll, thank you very much! Sakura-chan, I'm really glad for you, congratulations!! (Saito) (caption under a screenshot of Sakura using her Dream Wand) If her magic surpasses that of Clow, then it means...she's the most powerful magician in the world?! Sakura's talent is too amazing!!

"4th place - the most popular male character of all times chosen by the readers" Syaoran Li (voice: Motoko Kumai)

He supports Sakura, who's confused by all the accidents occurring one after another, and encourages her. In episode 18 of "Clear Card Arc" anime, Syaoran used a spell similar to "Windy" in order to help Sakura out. But judging from all the troubled expressions he shows to Sakura, it seems like he's hiding a secret he cannot tell her....? (caption under a screenshot from episode 18) He's a distant relative of Clow Reed. He's a boy of few words, but he's kind. He cherishes Sakura.

(Comment from editor Saito in a pink baloon next to the screencap) Sakura and Syaoran used to be rivals when they met at the beginning of the story, but now they have an unwavering trust in eachother and they're growing up together being by eachother's side. I think that's their charm. A scene I remember fondly from "Clear Card Arc" is their date at the botanical garden. The tamagoyaki Sakura made looked really delicious! (Saito)

Random text next to Sakura:

"No matter what trials she's going to face, everything is going to be alright!"

"She wins first prize for both powerful magic and love from the fans!"