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princesstutufandemonium · 4 years ago

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Rapsblüte no Yoru (Princess Tutu epilogue skit) and my thoughts

Or: Why a bitch is still salty after 9 years

So, as previously mentioned on this blog, there was a skit presented at a Princess Tutu convention in 2004 by series creator Ikuko Itoh and chief director Junichi Sato called “Rapsblüte no Yoru.” It takes place about a year after the anime’s ending and serves to wrap up some loose ends about the characters and their feelings - particularly Ahiru and Mytho.

So I’ve talked about it before, but now more time has passed, so I thought I’d let the raging monster out of its slumber to REALLY address the epilogue and my own uncensored thoughts and feelings about it. Half of this ended up reading like a rant, really, but I just had to get it all out there.

Here is the skit, as recited by Japanese blogger Goma and translated by LiveJournal user csakuras, along with my reactions and thoughts, which are indicated by the blockquotes.

"Quaack.." Ahiru seems to be swimming on the river during a night with a beautiful moon It's been a while since then, and every day I'm happy. It's fun talking with my bird friends, and Madam Pelican is a little noisy, but...it's fun. And besides......whenever I look up, Fakir is always there.

So Ahiru has returned to life as a bird and has settled in well. Good for her.

Ahiru: "I've come all the way to Gold Crown Academy....somehow I feel like dancing." Saying that, Ahiru climbs onto the bank and is surprised to find the whole surface covered with rape blossoms. Ahiru: "Gwak!!" Autor: "Oh? What's this?" It seems he stepped on Ahiru.. Ahiru: "Gwakgwak!!" Ahiru protests. Autor: "Oh it's you, Ahiru-kun...isn't Fakir with you?" Autor backs away as Ahiru tries to talk to him. Autor: "Sorry, but could you not get so close? I'll start sneezing from my bird allergies." (The mystery of his dislike of birds is solved.) Ahiru: "Charon-san and Raetsel-san had a child so Fakir went to the celebration."

The idea of this seems to negate all of Raetsel’s development, but okay then.

Autor: "I see....by the way, did you come to see the Night of Rapsblüte too?" Ahiru: "Rap..Rapsblüte?" Ahiru asks curiously. Ahiru: "Rapsblüte are rape blossoms, right?" Here, Autor goes Hnph! with his nose as if making fun of her. Autor: "The Night of Rapsblüte is when once every 50 years, all the rape blossoms bloom simultaneously on a night of the full moon. According to what I've researched in the library, in the records of a student from 50 years ago, there is an eye-witness account." Ahiru heaves a sigh (lol) Autor: "And tonight, the weather, the date, everything matches with the past data!" Autor is full of confidence. "Besides that, you're in the music department so maybe you should be studying piano instead..." Ahiru mutters. Autor: "Did you say something?" Ahiru: "Huh? Autor can understand me." Hnph, he laughs at her with his nose again. Autor: "Anything can happen tonight and it wouldn't be strange." Ahiru: "The moon is so pretty..." (Here, a man wearing a mask of the moon appears from behind..it's a great hit in the assembly) Autor: "What's that? An onion?" Ahiru: "!!" Uzura: "Ho~ Ahiru zura~" *Tototon* (her drum) Ahiru: "Uzura-chan!!" Ahiru: "Uzura-chan! Where were you?" Uzura: "I've been wandering the interval of time with the old man zura."

WHAT does that even mean?! What is the interval of time?! Considering Uzura’s previous life as Edel, it’s surprising that Uzura chooses to stick with Drosselmeyer. He’s the one who put her Ahiru and Fakir through so much trouble, after all. Then again, Uzura is a child and probably has no memory or idea of the role Drosselmeyer played and the evil things he did. Uzura also isn’t human, so maybe human morals don’t bother her as much.

Ahiru: "By the old man do you mean Drosselmyer-san? Then where's Drosselmyer-san?" "Drosselmyer?!!" <--(Autor's switch is on) Uzura: "The old man is busy with updating the site zura, sorry he's so irresponsible zura." (Here, Director Satou is rolling with laughter.) Autor: "Why didn't you bring him with you?!" Clearly, his Drosselmyer otaku switch is on lol

I hate you, Autor. I try not to but I do.

Uzura: "One more is coming zura." Autor: "One more?" Mytho: ".......Tutu." Ahiru: "Mytho!!" (I can never forget Ahiru's sad voice here)

Ah, and here it is. The agony.

You know, I could possibly stomach the whole damn ending of the show if the epilogue doesn’t go on to make it entirely clear how heartbroken Ahiru still is. I mean, if Ahiru is actually happy, there’s nothing more you can want for her. But this here kind of ruins it. Like, why?! How am I supposed to be content with her situation when she’s sad at the mere sight of Mytho?!

Mytho: "It's been a while...." Uzura: "He was dancing on the balcony so I brought him zura." (....At your own pace as usual, Prince.) Autor: "Prince Siegfried from the story!! Myu...Mytho-san." (He sounds as emotional as if he were meeting Drosselmyer.) Mytho: "Are you Fakir's friend...?" Autor: "I'm Autor!" Mytho: "You were the one who helped Fakir? Thank you..." (How does he know..)

How DOES he know? Well, there was a tiny time skip between the defeat of the Raven and Mytho and Rue’s departure to the story. Perhaps things were explained a little during then.

Autor: "No! It was an honor." (only dimly remember) Mytho: "If I remember correctly, during our ballet lessons you were asked by Neko-sensei to accompany us on piano." Autor: "Yes, I was asked to accompany you on piano by Neko-sensei 11 times, and I passed by you with Neko-sensei in the hall 27 times." (Jeez, Autor's in high spirits (lol)) Mytho: "Fakir sometimes sees cows and alligators flying in the sky, so I'm worried. Could you take care of Fakir?"

Mytho seems to naturally be a little bit of an airhead. It’s funny to see that qualities of him that we saw in the anime can be attributed not to his lack of a heart and common sense, but just to how his personality really is. Cute.

Autor: "Yes!! Mytho-san, please leave him to me." (He's been left to him without having a say, Fakir's in a pinch (lol)) Ahiru: "Mytho? How is Rue-chan?" Mytho: "Rue is doing well." Mytho: "It seems Rue is good at singing too and she's a popular princess among the people." Autor: "Rue-san?"

So Rue is a true lady of the arts, not good only at dancing but at singing too. Interesting that she’s so popular, considering that she honestly doesn’t seem to be the most sociable person. Polite, but not going out of her way to be friendly. Perhaps her time in the story with Mytho has defrosted her even more. What is the new Rue like, I wonder?

Uzura: "Mytho is rabu-rabu with Rue zura~" Autor: "Could you be quiet for a while..." His voice is lacking energy and sounds like he might cry (He knows they're rivals in love..is that okay?)

WHY is Autor so torn up over Rue still?! He never even really spent time with her. Foolish kids, I tell you. She was hardly more than a pretty face to him.

Ahiru: "Thank goodness... Mytho. "The Concluding Volume of The Prince and the Raven" got published. It's not a story without an end anymore." Ahiru: "And also, soon Fakir's going to dance an all-male version of La Sylphide with Matthew Bourne-sensei's choreography!"

Soooo this part is confusing. The concluding volume… So The Prince and the Raven was a story published in installments? The show made it look like it was just a single novel. Unless they mean that they simply published an official ending… But if the story was given an ending, wouldn’t that affect the storybook world? And who wrote the ending and got it published, Fakir? A couple of questions that remain here.

Mytho: "Fakir....I always feel like I'm connected with Fakir..the more my country becomes peaceful, I can feel him close by." (It's...mostly dim recollection. Just the nuance of it.)

Yeah, don’t act like you didn’t just up and leave him AND Ahiru once your business was finished, Mytho. Anyways, skipping the salt, does this mean that Fakir’s conclusion to the novel made things more peaceful in the story world? That’s what it sounds like to me.

Actually, isn’t it kind of scary that Fakir can still wield influence over Mytho’s world? What if he got pissed off at him? yikes

Ahiru: "Mytho...." "You should meet Fakir! He's coming back tomorrow..so then.." Mytho: "I can't..I can only come here because the interval of time is connected tonight..see, the moon is already sinking this much." (The man playing the moon sinks down (lol) The assembly bursts into laughter again) "I see..."

WHAT is with this ‘interval of time’ nonsense again! Someone explain it to me!

Also, fuck Fakir, apparently.

Mytho: "Princess Tutu.....thanks to you, I can be like this. Thank you." Ahiru: "I wanted to see you smile, so my wish is already granted." (only dimly remember)

AND THERE IT FINALLY IS!!!

“Thank you, Tutu, for risking your life to save mine and restore my happiness and holding your tongue about your feelings for me so I could do nothing for you in return and leave hours later.”

No, I’m not salty. Anyways, the abrupt ending to the show without much dialogue was due to time constraints, not necessarily a true display of Mytho’s character, which I guess this epilogue was partly written to fix. It does seem pretty heartless when you watch the anime, though.

Mytho: "Princess Tutu, I wanted to be with you longer. I wanted to talk with you like this longer....to me, you are the light....because you are someone very special..." (?? Mytho/Ahiru?)

See, this is why I just can’t do it. Like, Mytho, are you fucking kidding?! You leave her alone as a duck and now you want to sweet-talk her?!

But actually, all bitterness aside, this is really sad. They obviously care for each other, but because of circumstances and plot, never once did they have the time to really just… talk.

And he still sees her as the light. I saw some people kind of making fun of this, but of COURSE he does. There was a considerable period of time when she was the only person vouching for him, keeping him safe, acting as his voice… and ultimately saving him in every way. He can only be a real person again because of her, and she never faltered in her mission. That’s INCREDIBLE. Of course he would hold her in high regard.

Mytho: "But, I have to protect Rue. Rue needs me...." (I'm sorry, it's completely out of memory...because I was so overwhelmed..(lol) I should take my reeling in moderation)

And here’s the dagger. After talking about how highly he thinks of Ahiru/Tutu… he backtracks by saying Rue needs him.

And you know why this is REALLY fucking sad? He doesn’t say that “But, I really enjoy being with Rue” or “But, I love Rue.”

He says he has to PROTECT Rue. Rue NEEDS him.

I don’t think I need to dive too deep into the implications of his wording to spell out why this is upsetting, but I’ll sum it up quick. Instead of saying he likes being with Rue, he says Rue needs me. That’s the first thing that comes to mind.

And if it means what I think it means, that’s just fucking harsh. That’s not fair for Rue. That’s not fair for Ahiru. That’s not fair for Mytho.

I mean, we all know the prince has a savior-complex, but the implication that he chose Rue because he feels a sense of duty to protect her instead of romantic affection is kind of… tragic. That’s not a happy ending at all, really. Does Rue have any idea?

I think this is why I have an issue with Ruetho, because no matter what you can’t escape the fact that Mytho will always view her through the lens of what she suffered. It’s just in his personality as a heroic, selfless prince. Doesn’t Rue deserve someone who sees her as… more than someone to protect?

Whatever, can’t be changed now.

Mytho: "Tutu...you have done so much for me, but I couldn't do anything for you." "Is there something I can do for you, Tutu?"

WHAT on Earth could he possibly expect to be able to do for her?! I mean, short of turning her human again, but I’m guessing that’s out of the scope of his abilities. Don’t be so bait-y.

Ahiru: "......Mytho! I.........." "No, nevermind..." (Ahiru sounds incredibly sad)

AUGHHHHHHHH

What was she going to say? You know what, probably doesn’t matter anyway. We know what she wants… she can’t have it, though.

Mytho: "It's almost time..." "See you again....Tutu...." (Jeez..I don't remember any of it) Ahiru: "Can we meet again?" Mytho: "Surely we will meet again..." Mytho (or is it Yanagi-san? lol): "We can meet again, when Sakurai-kun is here." (The assembly explodes with laughter)

NOOOOOOOO

No no no

No, do NOT meet again. This is just asking for trouble. Ahiru clearly isn’t over Mytho, and Mytho… clearly does not have his priorities straightened out. If they keep meeting like this…

Well, as the anime shows, it wouldn’t be the first time they put themselves through the wringer for love. Mytho recites something in German. "Waaao!!" <--(Uzura)

What did he say? I’m curious.

Here, Mytho says his never-ending feelings for Tutu (if someone remembers this part please tell me~) And at the end, Mytho: ".......Ahiru."

……..Yeahhh, probably not a good idea to meet again.

Like, I get that this epilogue is to ‘tie up loose ends’ including the torched remnants of Mythiru that were dropped so abruptly at the end, but...

Why, oh why, Mytho, did you choose Rue if you’re still hung up on Tutu?

Additionally, we see that Mytho DOES now know that Tutu is Ahiru. That’s bittersweet too, but in more of a good way. He finally knows that the little passionate goofball was the princess all along. I wonder who told him, or how he found out. Did he just figure it out on his own? Like, the duck that was once Princess Tutu must be Ahiru because Ahiru = duck? Maybe Uzura told him? I doubt Fakir would’ve, simply because once she was back to being a duck again permanently, there was really no reason to tell Mytho. Couldn’t much matter anymore, right?

Ahiru: "I get the feeling I heard Mytho's voice at the end." I am a duck....I can't wear toe shoes, I can't dance.. (I'm sorry, I don't remember) But inside my chest there is a sparkling gem that will never be broken. The end.

And that’s it.

Sooo a lot of conflicted feelings coming at me from this, if you couldn’t tell. I guess first is the question of whether or not this could be considered canon.

Honestly? I think so. Both Ikuko Itoh and Junichi Sato, the people behind Princess Tutu, worked on this and presented it. They even had some of the Japanese VAs present to act it out. Additionally, as I’d mentioned previously, it addresses some questions that were left open due to the somewhat rushed ending of the anime’s finale. And nothing presented in this skit goes against the show’s canon or really comes out of left field (aside Charon and Raetsel man tf). It’s short and sweet.

Moving on, the first time I read this I was really happy, simply because it makes it clear that YES, Mytho does return Ahiru’s feelings. Which I guess was clear in the anime too, but this skit makes it undeniable. It’s nice to feel validated.

But as time goes on and I’ve had the chance to chew over and really digest it… It’s kind of a really crappy situation for our heroine and hero. Like, so they are in love, and they want to continue seeing each other… but Mytho is SUPPOSED to be spoken for with Rue, and Ahiru is a duck. Not to mention that Ahiru is Rue’s FRIEND. C’mon girl, chicks before dicks. Of course, they could still interact platonically, but the confession from Mytho in this skit kind of shot that possibility dead. And what about Fakir in this mess? Granted, Fakir isn’t stupid – he’s known that Ahiru loves Mytho from the beginning, and it’s not exactly like he can be in a relationship with a duck. But still.

Maybe I’m just looking too far into things, but with a piece this short and direct, I don’t know how deep you can really dive.

Anyways, my final thoughts are: Mythiru is canon but in the most tragic way possible, Rue deserves better, annnnnnd I’m still left unsatisfied.

#princess tutu #pt #tutu #ahiru #mythiru #mythotutu #rant

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dumbledoom · 6 years ago

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Love, Death + Robots Opinion

So this show popped up on Netflix not too long ago and I was enticed by the trailers and the fact that they were all animated shorts. I truly love animation and I think it is such an incredible platform for creativity and art and it truly is limitless. I often wish animation was more appreciated and taken more seriously, as I feel like a fair amount of people usually think of children's movies when they hear the word animation. Now, there is nothing wrong with that association, but the platform is not limited to children's movies or shows and I wish more people understood that. It can be utilized for very serious and complex stories, yet people often overlook it because, "oh its animation, must be for kids", like no...fuck off with that attitude. Animation is for everyone and can be used for anything and it's beautiful and painstaking work and it should be appreciated as such. This collection is the perfect example of that! I decided to give it a go and watch the anthology (which is just a fancy word for a collection of short stories).

This collection is so...unique...its not really like anything I've ever watched before. Each story is different, none of them are connected (which is the point of an anthology), they all have different kinds of animation, and they all vary in length.

Let me just start off with the simple statement that this show has several sexual/nude scenes (yes animated nudity and sex, almost to the point of softcore porn maybe? depending on your perception of it), so it is definitely NSFW, depending on the episode. Also shoutout to the creators for including both full-frontal male and female nudity and not keeping it onesided, respect dude, cuz a lot of the time it's just women you see fully nude and its refreshing to see men included now. Also the show has quite a bit (and by this, I mean a lot) of graphic gore and (as the title would suggest) very graphic scenes of death. If you don't respond well to that kind of stuff, maybe this isn't your cup of tea (cuz seriously some of it is brutal, even for me and I'm pretty desensitized to it for the most part).

The animation styles are beautiful. They had quite a few episodes that were motion-capture animation over actors and it was super cool to see the style and creativity. (Episodes: Sonnie's Edge, The Witness, Beyond the Aquila Rift, Shape-Shifters, Helping Hand, Lucky 13, and The Secret War) These were by far my favorite episodes out of the collection just because of how well done they were with the animation. Sonnie's Edge is the first episode and you dive right in to the blood and gore and graphicness of it, and it also introduces you to the nudity you'll see throughout the different episodes. Beyond the Aquila Rift is probably one of my favorite episodes because of how intense the motion-capture animation is. It's really good, the story is good too, kinda like a Passengers-vibe to it, but different. Also probably one of the more softcore porn episodes, but it's nothing crazy. I thought it was tasteful for the maturity of it, no full-frontal male nudity like in other episodes, but it does have a sex scene. Shape-Shifters was really good too. I liked it a lot, it is quite graphic with blood and gore, but it works really well. I liked the story idea behind it too, so go check it out. Either way these episodes were truly just incredible, almost like the animation for the cutscenes of new videogames these days, but even better. It was also super hard to tell if it was live action or not and honestly I love that kind of animation because it just invites future creativity.

(I'm getting sidetracked, but like think about it as a filmmaker, if you wanted to create some crazy sci-fi or bring a fantasy book to the screen, you could do this kind of animation and not be limited to the limitations live-action films face and still be taken seriously and not as kids movie just cuz its animated).

The motion-capture animation is beautiful, I love it. They had a few episodes that were like a mix of motion-cap and 3-D computer animation. (Episodes: Three Robots, The Dump, Blindspot, Fish Night) These episodes were fun and reminded me a lot of the new Disney and Pixar animation styles, but some were even more elevated in quality. Each story was super different, but they were kind of like wandering soul-type themes. They had some really good humor, especially Three Robots, those guys were really funny and the end of it has a fun twist.

Then they have some episodes that are kind of like a comic-book style animation and it's really fun to watch. (Episodes: Suits and Zima Blue) Suits reminds me a lot of Into the Spiderverse for its animation, but its story reminds me of A Quiet Place. Zima Blue is kind of 2-D-ish and its retro which is a lot of fun, the color and story of it is really deep.

You have a few episodes that seem kind of like anime, but they're not. (Episodes: Sucker of Souls and Good Hunting) These episodes were really unique because they did have a very strong anime-feel to them, but they were still different. They weren't the over-the-top dramatic fashion that like normal Japanese anime has, but almost kinda like Avatar: The Last Airbender anime, if you know what I'm talking about. I really enjoyed them, they were really artistic. Sucker of Souls was a bit graphic and dark, while Good Hunting was graphic in it's own sense with nudity both male and female. It was definitely steampunk inspired to my eye, which I liked.

Then there is one or two episodes that are straight-up 2-D animation, which was fun for the episode it covered. (Episodes: Alternate Histories and When The Yogurt Took Over) These episodes were really funny and reminded me a lot of like the quickdraw animated style you see in YouTube videos or on Snapchat. They were pretty funny and light-hearted for the most part, but definitely strange and weird in a fun way. Super quirky.

Then they had a single episode that had live action in it. Topher Grace and a fellow actress were responding to an ever changing civilization stuck in this old antique freezer that came with the house they were moving into. I really enjoyed this episode cuz it was just funny and set apart from the others (plus I love Topher Grace cuz of That's 70's Show).

So overall the collection was just really quirky. I wasn't really sure how to feel about it all once I finished it. It was kinda like, "what the hell did I just watch" but at the same time, "they were all really good and I kinda wanna watch it all again." If you're into weird and quirky shows that are different, go for it. Its definitely strange and not something I personally was used to, but I enjoyed it either way. I really appreciate the animation styles the most out of it all and the fact that Netflix was ballsy enough to put something so unique, graphic, and sexual on their platform. Way to go, Netflix.

Soooo...yeah...that's all I got to say about that.

#love death and robots #quirky and weird #but still pretty good #adult animation #animation appreciation #check it out maybe?

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natsspammityspamspamham · 5 years ago

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Dino Watches Anime (Dec 31)

I haven’t done one of these in over a month, and I wanted to try to get this out before the year ends! It’s still 2019 here. Here are some anime I’ve been watching recently and what I thought of them.

Recently Completed

Dr Stone

This anime turned out so well!

I was hesitant at first. The character cast lacked a bit of diversity. I thought they were relying on the main character too much, but then I realized that that wasn’t necessarily a problem. Nobody will ever be as smart as this main character, and that’s okay. Everyone in this anime still plays a purpose, and even though that really showed more in the last episodes of the show, I think we’re in for a treat next season (that and I keep hearing that from my brother, thanks Kuya). The OPs and EDs were a lot of fun to listen to, the art was really good, the OST wasn’t the most memorable but I appreciated its service, and the casting was great! I don’t think I would stand for anyone else playing Senkuu at this point. Yuusuke Kobayashi has really proven how good of a seiyuu he is in recent years. He joined a little later in life and was more apparent in other types of work. Dr. Stone was a great anime, and even though it’s not even my favourite Shonen Jump series of this year (*cough* Kimetsu no Yaiba had a way stronger impact) it’s still worth the watch.

I rated this a 9/10 on MAL

Gamers!

You know how practically every romance anime has miscommunications which “add” to the plot? Now imagine that was an anime and that’s the only thing going on. That’s what “Gamers!” is, and it’s hilarious. I think I saw a YouTube comment that perfectly summed this up.

“This anime is great but it makes me want to bang my head against a wall”

It’s pretty much that! It’s hilarious in its writing, and even though it isn’t really about gaming, it showcases different types of gamers. We have a former gamer, a guy who’s terrible but plays to have fun, a hardcore gamer, an indie developer, and one person who doesn’t even like games! They make the cast really funny and inconvenient, and the seiyuu performances add to the hilarity. Seriously, this quickly became one of my favourite Toshiyuki Toyonaga roles. I think his best works come in the form of romances? Yuri on Ice, Zetsuen on Tempest, to a lesser extent Durarara, Gamers? It’s like he has experience with romance (he has a daughter and is married). Seriously, I almost want to make a post just dedicated to this anime. It has such a low rating on MAL because it is so cheesy, cliche, and it does sometimes drive you up the wall, but isn’t that all romance anime? I was okay watching socially inept people because I am socially inept.

Episode 2 came out of nowhere with it’s cliche yet fitting dialogue.

I rated this a 9/10 because I enjoyed it so much and it was the anime I needed at the time. I can definitely see why people wouldn’t watch it though.

Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara

I went to the other side of the romance spectrum and went with a rom-drama instead of a rom-com like Gamers! And... I feel like I enjoyed Gamers! far more. Irozuku was a bit mean to colour-blind people if I’m completely honest. The characters were flat and uninteresting, but they began to get personality in... episode 8 or something? Also, being colour-blind isn’t as big of a deal as this anime makes it seem. They were so fast to say a girl was from the future but wanted to keep it a secret that she’s colour-blind? She also has no personality because she’s colour-blind? In fact, her personality is that she’s colour-blind? Did I mention she’s colour-blind? Anyway, the ending was conclusive but still left some unfinished ends. P.A. Works made this anime beautiful, I really like the OP and ED, but I ironically didn’t like the casting for this. I give praise to almost every anime for casting, but this anime couldn’t sell me on Kaori Ishihara (who is actually part of Magi which I keep commending for having one of my favourite casts) and Shoya Chiba (who was good in Dororo). The chemistry between the characters and cast didn’t work for me on this one which was sad because the ending would’ve made more of an impact if they’d gotten me more attached. The OST was also amazing so I thought I would add that. Besides that, it was a good premise (with pretty good execution), great art, an amazing OST, beautiful OPs and EDs, but subpar characters.

Asobi Asobase

At the time, Konomi Kohara, Hina Kino, and Rika Nagae didn’t really have that many roles outside of a few (well, Kohara had Tsuki ga Kirei but this really cemented her talent). This anime’s art style threw me in for a loop, and even though the humour didn’t always hit, this anime made me laugh at some points. It was vulgar, full of humour, and I’m really surprised Kino is still alive after screeching a lot. Seriously, that’s a lot. The ED is just them screeching too! Random appearances from big seiyuu are also present, and the animation by Lerche is all over the place. It sheds every essence of the innocence you thought it was going to have in ep 1 and keeps the pace going throughout.

I rated this anime a 7/10 because when humour doesn’t hit for me, it bores me.

Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon

I actually didn’t enjoy Dragon Maid as much as I thought I would. That’s partially because of Quetzalcoatl. I’m sorry, but everything else besides her and a few questionable things (especially the OVA) was alright. The animation was beautiful (KyoAni is soooo good, please do the second season!!!)

The OP and ED were really catchy. I don’t think those songs will be leaving my head anytime soon. At its core, this anime was still heartwarming. The romance between the main two is one-sided but sweet. Kanna is such a cute kid, and Fafnir and Takiya are also funny. I gave this anime a 7/10 because it was still solid, just overhyped.

Africa no Salaryman

This is mostly the same from the last time I reviewed Salaryman so if you read my past one, just skip this.

The story for this anime is mediocre, the animation is really bad, the music is poor, and it was still a fun anime. It’s one of those terrible anime that you end up kind of liking. Have you ever wanted to see a mix of bad CG and limited 2D animation by a studio that has no other notable anime (besides a flop from 2018)? Have you ever wanted to hear the villains of BNHA (All For One, Overhaul, and Dabi) voicing weird safari animals with quirky side characters? Seriously, they took the money that they should’ve put into animation and hired a bunch of famous seiyuu who seem to be having fun. We have Eri Kitamura, Yui Ogura, Akio Otsuka, Kenjiro Tsuda, Hiro Shimono, Toshiyuki Toyonaga, Kengo Kawanishi, Akira Ishida, Hiroshi Kamiya, Tatsuhisa Suzuki, etc. It’s a lot of fun guessing them. Overall, this anime was pretty average. I wouldn’t recommend it unless they intended to watch the seiyuu (which is the only thing really going here)

And the ending itself wasn’t eventful either so I gave this anime a 5/10.

Ani ni Tsukeru Kusuri wa Nai! 3

This is mostly the same from the last time I reviewed this so if you read my past one, just skip this.

Another (slightly better animated) bad anime. It’s a collab between Japanese and Chinese studios (but is originally Chinese), but since Japanese dubbing is far more accessible, I went with that dub. Sora Amamiya, Yuuichi Nakamura, Kensho Ono, and Natsuki Hanae are part of the main cast here. Nothing is really notable besides the story. The sibling thing is kind of relatable. This anime ended recently, and it ended on a good note. The quality didn’t go down, and it kept more of the sibling and stupid antics from the first season. I liked that. I rated this a 7/10 because the art isn’t as clean as most anime, and some of the humour missed.

Bokutachi wa Benkyou ga Dekinai!

This is mostly the same from the last time I reviewed this so if you read my past one, just skip this.

However, I added some stuff regarding the ending of this season.

I will eventually stop wasting my time with these bad romance series, but *cough* I need to fill my depressive void with something, and somehow other’s awkward situations distract me from my own. I mean, this feels like an anime that was supposed to fill the void that Nisekoi left after finishing in Shonen Jump. Hopefully, this time he’ll end up with the right girl. As usual in a lot of harems, the main character has several bad choices. But the overall message and whatever’s left of the plot is really nice and entertaining. The characters are actually intriguing when the fanservice isn’t glaring in your face. I hated how they ended this season. I get they didn’t want to make another season, but stretching an anime-only ending? That just sucks. They were going so well until the last few minutes too. The school festival arc was really nice and sweet. Overall, I still liked the second season. Minus the ending, it was just as strong, if not stronger, than the first. Together with the school festival and Furuhashi’s development, I really enjoyed this. I rated this an 8/10 (but it’s a higher 8 and was only hurt by the ending)

Ore wo Suki nano wa Omae dake ka yo

This is mostly the same from the last time I reviewed this so if you read my past one, just skip this.

However, I added some stuff regarding the ending of this season.

Everyone in this anime is a scumbag in one way or another. Everyone has their bad sides, and unlike a lot of series, this anime isn’t afraid to put them front in centre. This contrasts nicely with Bokuben which is mentioned above. Both are centred around harems, but this one is everything turned on its head with vengeance. Protag? May have a Deku voice, but he’s a pervert that’s described for being “Jekyll and Mr Hyde” which I find interesting because he’s truly nice to his best friend and doesn’t want to betray him, but he also really, really, really likes girls and would want nothing more than to have several of them all to himself. Best friend? Jealous as heck and would probably stab him if things truly went south, but he’s also his wingman. Class president? Talks like a samurai sometimes when nervous and uses MC. Childhood best friend? Terrible liar and uses MC. Then there’s a whole bunch of other people who use everyone. The score is not that great. It’s better than silence, but it hasn’t really been anything above that. The OP is catchy, but I’m not sure if I like it? The ED is nice. The voice acting for this anime is PERFECT for the MC anyway. Daiki Yamashita is really good at acting like this animal of an MC.

I didn’t really feel satisfied with the ending of this season. It wasn’t as funny, and they relied too much on the 4th wall to make the last episode funny. It lacked the hijinks and chaos of the first episodes, and even though it kept character development and stuff throughout, this is the one time I wanted them to end on a less obvious note. I rated it an 8/10

Enen no Shouboutai

Okay, so they began picking up their act within the last few episodes and it shows, but that doesn’t mean everything in-between was saved because it wasn’t. After episode 2, this show plummets and doesn’t pick up in quality until episode 19 or something. To me, that makes this show not worth it. I almost want to make a post about the rise, fall, and slight rise of this anime.

The animation production is amazing, the first OP and the EDs are awesome (couldn’t say that the second OP lived up but it wasn’t bad), the voice acting was alright at most points (can’t say I’m a fan of hearing Asta), but the story went off the rails and was executed poorly during the majority of the series.

I gave this a 6/10. Maaya Sakamoto’s character tried to save the day, but Maki also saved it the best she could.

Kono Oto Tomare! 2nd Season

This went so slow and the manga’s art is so beautiful that the anime looks like a sad outline, but I really liked this overall. Just for hearing their performance, it was all worth it. Trust me, the sound makes it worth it, but if you like visuals, read the manga. The voice acting is good for establishing what you can imagine the character voices add, but the art in the manga is too pretty to pass up.

Sankarea

I just finished this today! I originally dropped it because of its uncomfortable content but picked it back up because Maaya Uchida’s birthday just passed and I wanted a bit more horror before we roll on into 2020. Was this the way to do it? I mean, the horror is very light so that’s good. I can sleep at night. Quality-wise? Hmm... Along with the special episodes 13, 14, and 0! Honestly, these last two anime are ecchi. I don’t know how I got here.

The story is a pretty cool concept. Imagine the idea of a story surrounding a guy (zombie-obsessed or not) helping this girl fulfill her lifelong dreams of being normal even though she’s an undead zombie. Slowly as time passes, her flesh begins to rot so he realizes he has to work faster to complete her wishes to make her life seem “normal”. Taking her to the park, shopping, walking her to school, this seems like a good set-up! If only it went that way.

The story was okay, but I found this anime was going a bit on the ridiculous side. It got cartoony at times, and the characters were a bit cringy at times. Characters in this series ship this character with the MC who certainly isn’t keeping a zombie girl around for no reason. Well, anyway, this girl that the characters keep shipping him with... is his cousin. And Sanka Rea’s dad... is a very uncomfortable character as well. Overall, these two elements are actually what made this anime extremely uncomfortable at times.

I liked the art for this despite all the ecchi. I liked the quirky character designs of our main two characters. Some of the head tilts from Studio Deen almost felt Shaft-esque. It was not that bad!

Umm... I never actually paid attention to the OP, ED, or OST because I was too busy skipping the ecchi. Maaya Uchida was a really cute zombie that made me really like Rea more than I would towards regular zombies (except for maybe the ones from Zombieland Saga). Ryohei Kimura was a pretty good zombie otaku. That’s about it for this one. I gave it a 5/10.

Junketsu no Maria

Another ecchi anime! They didn’t even categorize it as such, but the site I watched it on did. Seriously, I don’t know how MAL didn’t process this as one. Anime that criticize wars and the Catholic church (even fictionally) make me feel a little uncomfortable, but I pushed through this one because... actually, I have no idea why. I was depressed that day and needed some picking up through cheesy predictable anime.

Umm... the art was alright, the music was alright, the story was a little cringy at times, and the characters were pretty flat. They gave too much time explaining how some of these characters were virgins to the point where it just got annoying. Kensho Ono and Hisako Kanemoto were good in this anime (despite playing flat characters), Sakurai plays another insane villain, Yoko Hikasa plays another seductive character, and Mikako Komatsu plays another “male” character. I gave this anime a 5/10.

Dropped/On-Hold

Aku no Hana

WHERE DO I START WITH THIS ONE?! THIS ANIME WAS SCARY. THERE WERE NO DEMONS, NO SUPERNATURAL, ONLY HUMAN BEINGS.

Fun fact: I did not read the synopsis before heading in. I saw the poster and thought, “wow cool! let’s try this! middle-schoolers! what’s the worst that can happen?”

Okay, so I had to remind myself every two minutes that these kids are MIDDLE-SCHOOLERS?! Middle-schoolers? Ugh, I don’t know why?! What’s going on here? I know this is supposed to be a psychological anime, and it does its job seriously well. I was scared. I was genuinely scared. Everything in this anime added to the scariness. Read the synopsis, come back, and realize that I’ve made a mistake. I watched 3 episodes. As a person on the asexual spectrum, I don’t know what this anime is trying to get at. The art adds to the psychological effect. The characters are really messed up. The OP and ED add to this insanity. Aku no Hana lives up to the name (Flowers of Evil). I felt so disgusted. This anime showed an ugly part of humanity that made me want to take a shower, and that’s very out of character.

Just watch a trailer, the OP, and the ED. It gives me the creeps.

Senjou no Valkyria

I didn’t find this interesting. Maybe I’ll pick it back up. The art seems pale and soulless. The voice acting wasn’t enough to draw me in, and the characters weren’t that great. Honestly, this is probably going to be better than Junketsu no Maria, but timing is important.

Seikai no Monshou

1999 art probably hurts this too, but the same reasoning as above. This anime seems genuinely interesting, but I think I started it at the wrong time.

Watching

Hanasaku Iroha

Hmm... this anime annoys me, but I really want to finish it!!!

This anime is about a girl who learned that she can rely on no one from a young age. She starts doing household chores and cooking at age 4. At her last year of middle school, her mom runs with her fiance and leaves her behind to go live with her grandma, and her grandma doesn’t like her. Keep in mind, this grandma is her maternal one. That woman who just dropped her daughter to run away... is her daughter. Ms. Grandma believes her daughter is a failure and projects these views on her daughter because “she raised you”. She forces her own granddaughter to work for her inn with no special treatment. At every single turn, you get introduced to characters you’d rather not. Every character is an absolute ass to the main character, and she keeps chasing, but I would rather see her refuse? Characters are straight-up telling her to die, telling her that she’s not doing everything she can, and kidnapping her. Seriously, someone in this series kidnaps her, ties her up, and sexualizes her and her coworkers. How does the grandma react? She says that they must respect the customer’s orders. ARE YOU F-- this anime has a really high review on MAL so I want to believe there’s good coming but it’s really rough so far.

Darker than Black: Kuro no Keiyakusha

This anime is looking up! It has an interesting concept, and the execution has been mediocre so far! The OST is cool, and the characters have interesting designs and powers. I don’t want to say too much on this because I want to wait till the end!

Boku no Hero Academia 4th Season

No words for this one. I’m just going to wait until the season is over. It’s been slow so far, but I have hope.

#dino watches anime

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tdrcycle09 · 8 years ago

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Main Challenge #5 - Queens of the (Late) Night

This week, our television sets have been turned upside down by our contestants, with their crazy, sexy, cool late night informercials! Let’s see how they’ve done!

Analyse Thropic | Miracle Mug™

If you’re as terrible at makeup as I am and you take four hours to look even 25% as good as these pretty bitches, then you need Miracle Mug™. Here to talk to you about Miracle Mug™ is B-list actress Kelly Carmichael. Kelly had some pretty minimal roles in a few direct-to-VHS sequels during the 1990s, but she was really thrown into the public light after she leaked her own sex tape with the entirety of the Backstreet Boys in the early 2000s. She began making a series of workout videos designed for the modern career woman–they mostly consist of doing kegels at your desk– and now she’s made her way into the exciting world of late night infomercials. With the help of beauty guru natural woman Analyse Thropic, she’ll make sure that every cable subscriber awake at 3am becomes a proud user of Miracle Mug™. Miracle Mug™ is a temporary tattoo for your face, a fully transferable sheet of makeup that gives you a flawless mug in just seconds. Whether you’re just bad at makeup or you’re running short on time, Miracle Mug™ is a lifesaver. Kelly’s look for this informercial is rhinestoned-business-fish-with-a-thing-for-pearl-necklaces-if-you-get-what-I-mean-winky-emoji.

Lila: Hi Analyse! For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. Saying that, your outfit this week is by far one of my favourites this week. Clear focus, more school teacher-y but I can see this woman being on TV in the 90s so kudos to that. Okay - your video this week was my favourite. You are absolutely hilarious and your strength comes full circle when it comes to personality-type challenges combined with video editing. I’ve grown to expect such great things from you in the challenges, and this week, you nailed it on the head. You expertly handled the delivery of everything and really had me laughing a LOT. HOLLERING. If anything, the video could’ve had that retro fazey-hazey static the old TV used to have, but like, honestly, my favourite video this week goes to you for stellar performance, stellar outfit, and overall stellar-ness. PLEASE WELCOME TO THE STAGE, STELLAR NESS. Okay, I’m done. Great work this week Analyse, you’re really coming into your own.

Gluttoni: Anal! I AM FUCKING SOLD! Everything you're selling I want three of. You honestly really fucking shined bright in this. You are fucking hilarious in a effortless sort of way and all your transitions where timed perfectly and just flowed. Not one moment was I left there wanting more because you continuously hit it out of the park with your props and witty jokes. You definitely understood the energy of those awkward commercial makeup lines on infomercials during the late nights and all your add on products were genius. This trend on flaming Toni casually is something I'm living for. I'm also impressed with you makeup this week. You look more youthful and very cute and I love the look overall. I see a vast improvement after giving you just a little personal critique and I'm honestly so proud so please keep up this progression and it'll skyrocket you to the top of the pack.

Letha: Your video had me HOLLERING. It was funny and well edited, and the product was featured throughout. The mug is getting SO MUCH BETTER, I’m honestly so proud. You backed off the contour so it doesn’t go in as far on the cheek and it looks a lot better, in my opinion. The nose contour seems a bit harsh and gray though, so watch out for that. The boob contour isn’t bad, but I would practice it a bit more. Eyes and lips are BOMB, I love them. The outfit makes sense for the character, and it’s pretty cute. Hair is good too, it’s an interesting style. Your growth and progress continue to impress me, great job this week!

Toni: TONI NO BROWS I WASS SCREECHING!!!!! Honestly, You may not always be the prettiest bitch but you’re always one of the funniest and I loved your video so much! I think it was that perfect blend of reality mixed with humor where it seems to be a real commercial but it has these wild lines such as “and raging dick pig” or “my pussy is a nutcracker” that had me screaming the whole way through. I really appreciate that there wasn’t any dead air or times where i wasn’t laughing so good job! The face looks good this week, i do wish the cheeks were a bit more blended as well as the eyebrows a bit thicker but you’re showing improvements week after week and I’m proud of that! The outfit was cute but I do wish the skirt was a bit shorter to show of a little leg! Overall its a good submission this week!!

Adrena: GREAT JOB!!! I love the thought process behind your product, I love how you set it up like an actual infomercial, I love everything about this. Honestly, your video is outstanding and also kudos for using a green screen because that shit looks good! The outfit and overall look are fine. I get that it isn't a look challenge, so what you're wearing is appropriate, though a bit dreary. May I suggest spending some time playing with different eyebrow shapes? Your overall makeup is outstanding, I feel like the only thing holding it back is your eyebrow height and shape. They could be lower I think, but overall it's up to you to continue evolving in your makeup and aesthetic! Exceptional job! xx

Avana Noir | Avana Noir's Donut Hole Puncher

Welcome to Kawaii industries ! and Im here to show you our latest product...THE AVANA NOIR DONUT HOLE PUNCHER Hello Judges! for this week Main challenge I went in! So, My product that I was sold was Avana Noirs' Donut Hole Puncher!. Which basically allows you to create perfect donut hole shapes and donut holes! I wasn't able to create a product or lewk from scratch because I had an extreme time restriction due to having to do overtime at work 3 days in a row. So i had 1 day to do everything ! Which isn't an excuse but just my situation for this week!. Regardless This challenge was fun and I had a great time doing it. My skit/infomercial was inspired by like the 90's and early 2000's infomercials so had like 90's themes music playing and had a overlay of an old TV border on my video. My outfit was actually inspired by those 90's late night shows as well as Japanese anime/ buisness.casual..hoe haha. I wanted my character to represent something awkwardly sensual and like almost cringy like those old informercials. I really liked this challenge and I hope you enjoy my video as much as I did!. Thank you so much!

Lila: Hello Avana! For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. Your outfit was cute, I did expect some sort of raunchiness in terms of an outfit, so kudos for that. Work on your hair styling at best. I appreciated your titty contour a lot this week too. Okay! So I’m warning you now - we’re starting to see you fade into the background a bit. I’m sure you told me you said that you did your video in a day and it shows. The video could’ve gone a lot smoother if you did cutaways to your product rather than you holding it constantly in the continuous one take that you had. Your energy is infectious and you performed quite well, it’s just that your video felt like it went on for a long time due to how continuous your shots were. For the next video challenges to come, think of set dressing. Some girls are using green screens, we don’t expect that, throw up a curtain on a bookshelf and stand behind that and try to dress a table so that you’re not stuck in a bedroom-like scene. I think you’re stagnating a little bit from Week 3 where we saw you really shine through, you’ve just got to make it work, get into contact with us a lot more (rather than just speaking to one of us) and we believe in you henny! Good work this week.

Gluttoni: So this was just a little middle of the road to me, Avana. I'm actually a huge fan of this look and aesthetic you are going for with whole hentai sexy submission school girl. *creepy face* I loved how some of your movements and expressions were very Japanese pervy infomercial but compared to some of your sisters this just felt a little "meh". I think your natural mannerisms and humor honestly coasted you through this because honestly you are soooo charming but this didn't push it enough for me. I see some improvements on the mug. Congrats on that and this week I promise to drop in your dm's and give you that good good. I can't tell if I'm highly entertained or grossed out you're using your personal butt plug as a product but it's definitely giving me John Waters feels of being grossed out and I can't entirely be mad at that. The look is very simplistic and clean so I'm also not opposed to that but I will say we are getting to the halfway point so fucking step it up.

Letha: This video wasn’t my personal favorite, if I’m honest. It was just sort of, vulgar, but without a lot of funny for me. The makeup is cute and fits the look, but I would recommends not doing SUCH a harsh contour on the whole jawline/chin, as it does read as a block of color. The hair is not my cup of tea, I wish it was styled more than just some rubber bands. The outfit makes sense for the aesthetic you described, I think I was just expecting more… business fish instead of slutty schoolgirl. All in all, an okay submission from me.

Toni: Hello dear, let me jsut say comedy is your strong point but I wish there was more to this video because it seemed rushed and unprepared. I do think that the part where the chair was spinning I do think that was cute. But overall it was just a large miss with the video. The look is also very questionable because it just seems that you grabs whatever your had and put it on and made it a “look” but it really doesn’t make sense. I wish you had the jacket because that really would have helped the look!

Adrena: YOU ARE SO FUNNY!!! From the intro I was totally invested in your video. I love that rather than just advertising a buttplug you really made it into a funny and unique idea and really utilized sexual innuendo. If I had to give you one tip to focus on for future acting challenges, I would suggest that you work on slowing down a little when you speak and really enunciating your words. I love the high energy, so keep the energy but just slow down a little, because I wanna hear every single word that comes out of your mouth. I like the hair, but it’s a little simple and it blocks out your face, so I can’t really critique your makeup. From what I can see, though, your makeup is pretty good and I can tell you have a certain aesthetic. The outfit is fine for me- it matches the makeup and hair and goes with your cute personality- But this is a drag competition and I would have loved to see something more eyecatching. Also having a completely unbuttoned shirt underneath a jacket kinda defeated the purpose of the shirt, so I think you coulda done with one or the other. However, I love your personality and can’t wait to see how you continue to grow! Great job girlfriend! xx

Ebony Boss | The Sex Bomb Wig

The product I created is the Sex Bomber. This isn't your everyday average wig! It is a one of a kind mullet wig that will give every hopeless virgin a raging sex life. The outfit was chosen to show some sort of reserved nature but with a very sexy edge(hence the dress). I also chose the hair because i wanted something natural but gorgeously sexy!

Lila: Hey Ebony! For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. Your styling is a little basic this week. I love your hair, it’s the best part of your outfit, I am defintely not feeling this mug and the no titty situation and uncinched body isn’t working at all this week. It’s a step back in the look department unfortunately. Okay, so as for your video, we gave you a lot of suggestions, but again, you gave us something absolutely different to what you planned to give us, but the idea stayed the same so I’m pleased with that. For me, you didn’t connect with the camera. You looked uncomfortable, you seemed unprepared in some shots, you could’ve edited those shots to cut the stilted and awkward pauses out, and in some cases you had scenes that worked well, but some of them essentially threw the anchor down whilst you were trying to sail across the sea. For me, you really need to make your commitment direct. I’ve noticed that you’re doing a lot of competitions at the moment, which no complaints here, but you’re straining yourself thin with all the commitments. If you were to win TDR, you’d be spread even thinner - so next week, really put in a lot of effort to try and communicate with us from the minute you get the challenge - we know you’ve got it, you’ve just got to continue from this misstep. Overall, your work was okay this week.

Gluttoni: Ebony, Ebony, Ebony.... Now your video was fucking hilarious to me but for all the wrong reasons henny. The look I did not like in the slightest. I've never witnessed a corset giving you the opposite effect it's supposed to. I specifically remember praising your makeup growth from you last week but it's honestly the worst makeup I've seen from you. The the eyes are messy, the contour is off and the nude lip I'm not a fan of in the slightest. But Ebony we're rooting for you and I personally think this experience will help you in your future of drag. The video was just a tad rough. I wasn't into those transitions and your product just seemed to not have as much production value as some of your sisters. It was funny because it was cringe worthy and you definitely don't want that so please step it up my dear.

Letha: I have to admit, this wasn’t your best week. You had made improvements in many areas, including body and makeup, and both of those seemed to regress this week. Your 5 o clock shadow is pretty evident this week, and the lips are very weakly defined/colored. The video itself was not my favorite, the editing was a bit clunky and not crisp, and I think the acting could have been better/funnier? There were a couple laughs, but I wanted more snappy dialogue (you repeated the catch phrase a LOT, which is good, but only if it’s mixed in with other content). The outfit is pretty basic, and the lack of a boob contour or any body makes it look not very special. All in all, an okay submission from me.

Toni: Ebony this week i’m a bit disappointed this week with your submission. I feel that you took a massive step down this week in the look department. You aren’t cinched, padded, no nails, and your tights are ripped and the dress is ill fitting. I also feel like you should have worked with letha this week on your makeup so that you can improve because again its a step down from last week. I do really like your wig this week though. I think your video wass a bit messy done and I think it could have been better put together but I did enjoy some aspects of the video and did find myself chuckling from time to time. I think next time you do a video a level of engagement with the camera to make you seem a bit excited as well as making sure there are no moments of blank air throughout your video.Overall it was a weak submission.

Adrena: EBONY. This is very eh. I appreciate you trying to use a green screen and I think it could have worked out, but there was really no substance behind it. Every time I’ve talked to you you're very funny, but this video did not show that whatsoever. I don't want you to just be content with what you're capable of right now, I want you to push it. Push your comic abilities, push the envelope, push SOMETHING. Even if it doesn't work out, at least we’ll see that you tried something edgy and new. I like what you attempted with the hair, but I think it could use more refining. Same with your makeup: looks decent, but you can keep pushing until you're a shining star! Keep trying. xx

Lexi Lamour | Lexi's Gold Star Elixir

Welcome to The Completely Unaffordable New Things(C.U.N.T.) Network! Have you ever wanted to be better than mediocre? Ever dreamed of having ANY inkling of talent? Wanted to just win something? Well look NO further because I have JUST the product you're looking for! Lexi's 3 Week Gold Star Elixir Booger Cleanse! Or Lexi's Gold Star Elixir if you're short winded. We've bottled my very essence, MMMMM, to make a "delicious" drink infused with beauty and skill...along with a little bit of special sauce. All you have to do is drink ONE bottle every week for 3 weeks. Preferably on mondays...so you can start your week off right! At the end of the third week, once all of the....juices.....have set in, you should be rid of any bit of booger you may have in you! This is the newest product that The C.U.N.T. Network has to offer and can be yours for the low price of the Tumblr's Drag Race Cycle 9 Prize Package! Will you rise to your full potential? Or be PICKED and FLICKED by your competition? CALL NOW! At 1-800-TDR-BOOG! (Offer valid for a limited time only!) Hi, Judges! Have any of YOU ever felt like a booger? If so I can give you a free sample of my product! HAHA! Kidding! You're all flawless already! Honestly I had so much fun with this challenge. What started out as a silly idea joking while talking to Toni about the challenge Wednesday night turned into what we thought was a pretty cute/funny idea. As you all know I'm NOWHERE near this confident/conceited. I merely wanted to make a satire, a joke, over exaggerate, and poke fun at the people who have given me hell for my current standings in the competition. As you can see I gave them shout outs in the video! lol. I wanted to pick a product that I could make and not just seem like something regular? If that makes sense. Something wild and outrageous like the text post for the challenge said. I used glass bottles and used different types of glitter and glitter glue to make the thick glittery suspended liquid. Then adorned the bottles with gold stars, bows, and trim. For my outfit this week I wanted to give executive, business woman, strong, CEO, lesbian fish! I've been told before that I look good with a shorter hair and I thought I'd try it out on y'all this challenge. I didn't wear a necklace because I thought the built in bow on the shirt paired with a necklace would've been clunky. So I put on some simple pearl earrings, some signature Lexi nails, and invited a clutch to the party this week! As for my makeup.....I personally love that EVERY. SINGLE. WEEK. I try something new and give y'all something different. This week Gluttoni challenged me to do a softer face and I think I achieved that. I contoured lighter and used a peachy/lighter toned blush instead of a heavy pink. I personally love it. I also tried a different shape with my lips, cheeks, and brows. As for my eyes....I didn't give Gluttoni exactly what she wanted....because i'm still learning what to do with the small space I have available. By the time you add my small forehead, contour, brows, and a wig theres not a lot of space for my eyes. As you saw the first 2 weeks my eyebows were hidden by hair. So this week was just a little experimentation with space and color. Probably better to play around during a mini instead of a main, but I still personally love with I did with my face this week. I'm aware there are mistakes, but I still feel like there were certain parts that I gave strong improvement on. I mentioned to Gluttoni that I feel like I looked, for lack of a better work, sad(?) in my makeup from my past few weeks......but I feel like these new shapes really help to change that. All in all I'm very very happy with what I did this week! OH AND ALSO!!!! Major heaps and bounds in the videoing/editing department for me. I'm super proud of that too. (P.S. All contestants mentioned/showed in this video gave me permission to do so! And I want to think them immensely for being good sports! <3).

Lila: Hi Lexi! For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. I’m not really excited when I see your outfit in pieces, together it snaps together, but the jacket needs tailoring to fit your waist area and if the pants flared at the end, that’d work better. Your lips look a little too jelly, like I thought you were a stepford wife - just a nitpick on your makeup unfortunately. I love your hair so much! Okay, so for me, your presence on camera this week was great. I think your energy is strong and honestly not mad at your acting. The problem is, with your editing, you have to be so meticulous with where you cut your videos, in some areas, you’d insert a picture or something that would refer to your product and the shot would hold for a second before you reacted to the picture. As well as that, the no music threw me off this week, it felt really hollow. BUT - I digress, for being essentially new to editing, this wasn’t terrible in execution - you still had me hooked. Be careful with being too self referiential in TDR too - a lot of references I had to do a double take and coming from someone who sleuths down every slither of drama that happens from TDR it was hard to keep up with you. Overall, good job this week.

Gluttoni: Lexi! I am so proud of the strides you made with the makeup. You listened and I can definitely see the effort. Of course because I'm an ass that cares about you, I will say there are still some weak points still (eye makeup, brow gradient etc.) but all in all you look beautiful and I know you worked hard this week per usual. Your video was fucking funny. The network name and branding of your product was fucking perfection and I died. I'm glad you aren't just a pretty face and you are showing everyone you can be multifaceted and dimensional. I laughed a few times but sometimes I felt you could have let your jokes breath because sometimes it felt you were trying a bit to hard to hammer in on the joke. Not only that as funny as the direct TDR references were, I think it's only insider humor that we may only get which closes you off to a whole other audience. You already know you're a fierce competitor and your work speaks for itself. I want that outfit promptly, thanks. Good work this week love.

Letha: Lexiiiii, I really liked your video! It aired some drama and brought the funny, which is a good way to deal with issues sometimes. I did feel like it relied a bit heavy on the inside jokes, which might exlcude some people from knowing what you’re talking about. The outfit makes sense for the challenge and I like it, same with the hair. I’m not loving the makeup as much as your previous weeks, your crease has been blended better in the past, and the lipstick makes the overdrawing very apparent with the shine. It’s not the worst, but you’ve looked better. That being said, good job this week!

Toni: Lets start by saying I’m glad you were able to take a negative from the community and turn it into your own and make it work for you! Lets start with your look, I like it the look, i think it's very business fish, I like the little pixie cut, I like the makeup but I do wish that the brows were a bit closer together because they look off on the eyes. Onto the video let's hit the biggest issue first, i know you had technical issues and i will say it did affect the flow of your video a bit and distracted me. I enjoyed it, it had a few good chuckles but at some points it did seem to flat line and I think thats a mix of editing as well as contact, I think you could have added a few stereotypes from commercials to really amp it up a bit, but I will say the end had me giggling. Good Job this week!

Adrena: LEXI! Lemme start with what I love. I love the look from head to toe. The pant suit looks great on you, your face is flawless as usual, and I even love the hair! I’m not entirely sure the hair is the most flattering on you, but I don’t really care because you still look like a high fashion Ellen Degeneres and it’s wonderful! Now onto your video. I think the concept is very funny, I think the main issue is the execution. I went through the issue last cycle of being kinda awkward on camera, and your awkwardness is nowhere near the magnitude that mine was, but it was still there a little bit. The main thing to understand is that you need to be fully invested in what you’re doing. You may feel ridiculous because you’re saying “Cut the camera. CUT IT” to nobody in particular, and that often makes the audience less immersed in the video. It definitely gets easier with time, but just BECOME the character you’re playing and pretend that you aren’t being filmed. Another thing that I used to struggle with that I saw here was the awkward pauses between cuts. Some of the jokes fell flat because there was that split second of you just standing there before you deliver a punchline. Again, it gets easier with time and it’s totally a trial and error scenario, so I applaud you making a video with so many references to past weeks in it. Overall, you did a good job! Keep up the good work! xx

Marcella Fox | Gravellean™

Hello judges! I’m not going to talk about the product too much here, because I do that in the video :p Instead I’ll talk to you about my references for this challenge.

My main source of inspiration was Look Around You, which is a parody of British television shows from the 80s that dealt with science and technology (like Tomorrow’s World) – This influenced the look, the way I spoke, the editing (lots of stock footage) and the music, which my boyfriend helped out by making. I knew I wanted to do a dietary supplement infomercial, as I’ve always found parodies of these particularly enjoyable. And I decided to make it an unauthorised product using Marcella’s name, so that I could play a befitting character while still linking it to Marcella.

I wanted to give you an authentic retro look and, after researching, I realised that TV presenters (Carol Vorderman, I’m looking at you!) could get away with wearing pretty much anything in the 80s! So I went with the glitzy shoulder-padded dress and hideous oversized belt, and styled my perm into a jaunty side-pony. I finished it off with the authentic 80’s glasses, which actually contain some randomer from ebay’s old prescription lenses that I can’t see out of ;]

Lila: Ahoy-hoy, Marcie! For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. I loved your look a lot this week - one of my favourites. You gave me PTSD to when I used to do English in secondary school because you literally look like a teacher who tought me, fused with Miss Frizzle and every 90s BBC personality ever. I love your styling, it’s hot as fuck. Your video is exciting, had really great editing and was really clever in deliverance. Your skill in editing is just so damn admirable in editing and you really made me laugh. I would just say the last part was a small dissapointment, you could’ve faked a camera swish or edited one in to reveal Marcella kicking the door down or running towards the camera, knocking it over or something like that. Really fun look, honestly, you’re stating your claim so much in this competition that I get really excited every week to see what you create for it! Great work this week!

Gluttoni: MARCELLA! You are such a genius and no lie I bow to you. Your wit and tenacity will get you far in this game because your video was sooooooooooo aggressively good. The look was so spot on and everything I could have wanted in an awkward disheveled 80's spokeswoman. I love the big, overtly permed hair, your expressions are priceless and I love the dress and even the choice in dark tights. The glasses and other accessories honestly just fucking GIVE IT TO ME! The 80's is probably my favorite guilty pleasure of a stylistic era and you captured that in every way so you should be proud. You are so detailed in your presentation and acting because you were selling rocks and you made me want to buy them from you. Your video editing surpasses all your other competitors and rightfully so Miss Queen of Reddit. Your super well spoken, your transitions just gelled together and you were effortlessly funny. The before and after had me on the floor as well the wedding cake joke. I honestly didn't see a flaw in this. I see your passion and work and I'm excited to see more from you after this platform because you're quite the star.

Letha: Your editing skills from LSFYL certainly came in handy this week! The video was tight, funny, and overall well done. You did so many diverse characters and put in a LOT of work. For your actual look, it does make sense with the challenge, but I was wowed a bit more by the other looks, I think? Makeup is good as always, and the accessories are cute. Hair isn’t my favorite, but it’s alright. All in all, great job this week!

Toni: Okay so this look like a cooky bitch trying to sell me shit i know is a scam but I wanna buy it. Lets start with the look, i really like it, and just being nitpicky I wish it was a but more fitted and that the wig was pulled down a bit more. The video was so well edited and looked very professional. I wanna just mention a few of my favorite parts of this such as the “my stange addiction was wedding cake” and any time you’d change away to your “call centers”, both of those were so funny!! Good job this week!!

Adrena: I LOVE THIS! You are so funny, have a knack for editing, and even your look slayed me! Everything in this video went together perfectly, and honestly this was my favorite submission. I…… I'm honestly speechless because the video was so perfect I can't critique it!!! Just….. 10/10 good job!!! xx

Paprika | Paprika’s Spice Rack

So for my infomercial, I decided to sell Paprika’s Spice Rack! Get it? I thought it’d be funny, since I only started padding/wearing tits like a week ago, to sell my drag body for this challenge. It features some friends of mine for some extra flavor, and I really do like how it came out. For the look, I wanted to stay true to Paprika and my style while still giving that 90s infomercial MILF-y vibe. I bought this dress on etsy a few weeks ago but never got a chance to wear it and its so fucking cute omg I wanna wear it forever. Anyway I hope yall like my video xoxo papsmear

Lila: Ayy, Papronka!For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. Your look isn’t much to gag over, you’re honestly such a fucking pretty drag queen and your face is to die for. This strawberry shortcake kind of number is cute, and your hair is super fun too, I’m not mad at it, but just when the next look challenge comes around, I really want you to destroy it! Okay, video - really, really funny. You got me absolutely fucking screaming last night and my parents told me to shut the fuck up so that means you’re doing something amazing. Your titties reminded me of like unbaked pies? Which got me cackling. Extremely great name for your product, really great that you got some referential humour in there, and different actors to help you construct this narrative really made the feel of a TV advert come alive in yours. For editing, maybe just watch for the end, or have some type of logo-label next to your tray of titties, just so it’s on-brand. Overall, great work this week!

Gluttoni: Paprika. You are quickly becoming my favorite spice. You did phenomenal this week in my eyes for this challenge. Honestly you were the person I laugh at consistently throughout your video because your jokes and punchlines were sooo on the nose and hilarious. Lmao the puny opportunities of "spice rack" are endless and I love you for that and not only that your self deprecating humor is so self aware and genuine that it makes me love you more. I'm so happy your skill sets are getting to shine and I can definitely see the growth in your demeanor and presentation. You of course know already that the look is lacking. I know you're super young so I feel bad for faulting something that may be out of your control but I think the look may hold you back in the slightest in the future. But that's also the great thing because everyone is fucking rooting for you girl! I'm so excited to see your growth and what you make of this because sincerely I'm a fan and think you are just a star on the rise.

Letha: Your video was great this week! It was edited well and I had some solid laughs throughout. It was very clever and I think you have a mind for comedy (even beyond drag, to be honest). The product itself was well featured, as well. My only main thing would be addition of multiple characters who WEREN’T you, because I feel like that could have been a character opportunity, but it was still clearly your stage and you didn’t let anyone steal it, which was good. Makeup is looking good this week, maybe a bit pale, but I’m pleased overall with it! I don’t love the outfit itself, I don’t really buy it for late night TV infomercial, but it’s cute I guess. Other than than though, great job this week!

Toni: I’m suing because your whole commercial was built around my expertise and I was given no compensation. Honestly I’m glad you took something that was a critique and made your whole video on it as well as working it in with your name I think it was very smart to do. The video was really funny and I got a lot of laughs from it, I do wish the graphics were a bit better done but It was really a good video and enjoyable to watch. I think my favorite part of it was the fact that you held a coffee cup I think that added a touch for realism to it for me. The outfit is cute, nothing to write home about, I think if you had a belt or some jewelry it would really amp it up a bit. Over all good job this week!

Adrena: Good job! I laughed a few times throughout your video and I love the thought process behind your product. A “spice rack” is so funny and I love how your personality showed in the video. Not a huge fan of the outfit, it was just kinda bleh, but your makeup is so interesting to me and I love it! You were pretty middle of the road to me, but I've seen a lot of progress from you thus far. Keep going! It suits you! xx

Phoebe St. Jefferson

Hello TDR Judges! So this week I decided to sell my confidence, which is irony bc i’m not a confident person and thats funny right haha teehee. My product matches my video quality in being absolutely terrible looking. I decided to show a bit more of the ugly side and I really hope some of my jokes landed. I had a lot of problems with audio. It’s a big cringey to watch but oh well.

Lila: Hey Phoebs! For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. Your outfit pieces together quite well, but is giving me like Rodeo Drive housewife who sells her product door-to-door. I love your hair, always love it when you step out with a different coloured hair than blonde because you give us such diversity just by a hair switch. Your makeup is pinnacle, but try fine tuning your brows, because at the moment, your brows are starting to come off a little cartoony for your face. Okay! Your video was a little shamrock shakey - like you had elements of funny in the video, the editing seemed to be a bit slanted, but some elements of cringe really got me. You didn’t modulate your voice when you did your 3 characters, what you could’ve done to kind of make the video work was perhaps make it seem like the presenter was being the women in the video, like make it look like they’re her, and she’s trying to play a character but awkwardly and have her read the dialogue all off-kilter and fed through like a teleprompter, it could’ve really worked in your favour that way. I think you got the basics down for a commercial, you just had to push it further than it was. Overall, good work this week.

Gluttoni: I want this product Phoebe like ASAP. Kudos to you for making me what to drop some coin because you delivery was insanely good henny. The concept is fucking hilarious and if it was real I think you'd have a shit ton of costumers lining up to get it. I think the editing and maybe the bottle itself could have used some polishing up but otherwise I really enjoyed your video. The look was honestly super cute. Very casual yet dressed up! I love the hair color on you and you know how to sell beauty and crazy which is what I love about you. Try some experimental stuff with your face because I'm still trying to feel out your painting abilities but otherwise you really came for blood this week girl. Be proud of this.

Letha: Heya Phoebe! You video was cute this week, very tongue in cheek, pretty funny. I know you were limited with your filming location, which sort of limited your energy, but it was still pretty good. I would work on upping the quality of your videos, the screen size is off and the whole image suffers as a result. The characters were varied and the confessional at the end was pretty funny. The outfit is cute, I’m not so sure about the shawl (maybe a blazer would have worked?), but the hair and makeup are really good! Watch out for lashes tho, make sure to “train” them to stand up evenly when you put them on. Overall, good job this week!

Toni: Hey girly! Lets start off with saying this week you were very safe and middle of the pack. Look wish I wish there was just the tiniest bit more polish over all to the look, maybe jsut a solid color dress rather than a pattern to look more professional. The makeup is getting better but there seems to be an issue where you misplaced one of your lashes so it looks a bit wonky to me. The video was nice, it hit all the notes but felt a bit lackluster to me and I think that could have been broughten out by having a variety of strong characters, but I did enjoy the ending with the “wrong clip” and felt that that was a nice touch, over all good job!

Adrena: I’m conflicted… I know how funny you are, so this video just feels kinda try hard to me. I don't know what you could do to make it better other than don't go straight for the joke, take time to actually develop a character and a story to make jokes based off of. It just feels like you really want us to laugh and in turn that make me not laugh. Also when you're filming, make sure to look into the camera, not at the viewfinder. I know how great you are, Phoebe, so in the future just be more true to your own personality and the comedy will come through. As for the makeup and look, I like the outfit and the little headpiece, and your makeup is looking much better! Just make sure to fix that wonky lash before you take pictures. Love ya! xx

Sugar Monroe

Hiiiiieeeeee!! I hope y'alls sweet tooth are ready for what I can to serve this week. ;) this week, my products are sugary sweet candies that take the bitterness out of anyone’s mouth! I was inspired to do this look because, duh, my name is Sugar, and I’ve been known to be a little bitter. (I’m looking at you week 3 of cycle 8. Lol) And in an effort to be more sweet and live up to my name, I came up with these candies. My outfit is covered in sugary goodness and I styled my hair reminiscent of cotton candy, the ultimate sugary sweet treat. ;) So, get your phones out and your credit cards ready, cuz you’re gonna wanna order something from Sugar’s Candy Emporium. :3

Lila: Hey Sugar! For each critique this week, I’ll be focusing on your presence in the video and performance a little more than your outfits, however don’t hesitate to contact me on what you could do better as far as styling for these video challenges in the coming weeks. Your outfit is cute, I can tell you’re trying - you sewed this, it’s fun and fresh and really captivates your brand. Your mug is at a pinnacle this week - fun and fresh to see you use different colours other than purple in your crease. Outfit is still lacking something, but all in all, I can’t complain much! Your video, for lack of a better term, was short. Your comedic energy shone for about a minute and then I forgot about your product, and your name is literally the product. More editing is needed and being outside wasn’t really the best shooting location in my opinion, you were shrouded in your porch’s natural shadow and it needed some front lighting to give it that “Bitch look at me, I sell my shit in nature!” kind of vibe. I loved the product honestly, that gave me a chuckle. Now, I’ve said outfit this week has a small impact, but if the next challenges are look challenges, I 👏 want 👏 a 👏 different 👏 silhouette. A Gown, a two piece with a jacket, a bodysuit, like this empire waist, short sleeved skirt is getting BORING. I might be coming off harsh, but girl - I know you can sew and you’re intelligent in design, just please come full force next week and prove us wrong!

Gluttoni: Sugar! This was another sweet attempt at something and to be honest I'm hoping you drop the sweet act and play the game like you want it. I definitely see the effort of course this week. Conceptually I'm definitely not mad at this in fact it's super smart and I think you worded everything well in the video about what you were selling. You look super cute. The dress is super adorable and of course we get the connection and the hair is nice. You always have modest decent mug but at the middle of the game I just want a little more. I'm definitely not trying to pick on you but I'm just trying to push you to do more because I know you have more in you. I'm definitely rooting for you more than you know, just give us all more because we all want you to do well.

Letha: I’m a bit at odds here, Sugar. The look is cute, certainly not bad, and makes sense with the theme of your video. The hair and makeup are also adorable, I want you to maintain this level of “good hair/makeup” for the rest of the cycle! The problem I run into is the commercial. The video was alright, and I saw where you were going with it, but it was SO SHORT. You could have done more, and brought more laughs, because what’s there isn’t terrible, it’s just very condensed. I wish you had brought it a little harder with the content, but I do enjoy what you had, it’s an okay submission from me this week!

Toni: Sugar dear, lets start out with the good this week. I think this look is absolutely adorable and I dont think this is pedestrian at all! So thats a plus! The hair is cute I really like the way you styled it and I think your makeup is improving! Onto the video, why are you still doing your filming in the shade because It really affects the quality of your video not being able to see whats going on. I think you could have taking this video so much further than it was because you had candy! You could have done su much like have your teeth nasty and have a sugar rush and crash, you really missed the mark this week dear.

Adrena: I LOVE YOUR HAIR AND MAKEUP! Your mug looks fantastic and I love the Derrick Barry circa The Roller Skating Episode hair you got goin on. It's adorable and really fits with your product. I wish your outfit had more of a silhouette and more accessories would be great! I don't know how to feel about your video… It wasn't really selling a product, but more of a business, and I'm not sure it fit into the challenge that well. There were a couple funny parts, but I think if you had put more thought into an actual product the comedy would have been easier. I've loved watching you this cycle and can't wait to see what's next for Miss Sugar! xx

#tdr #tdrc9 #main challenge #Analyse Thropic #Avana Noire #Ebony Boss #Lexi Lamour #Marcella Fox #Paprika #Phoebe St. Jefferson #Sugar Monroe

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