#it’s such an underrated series in my opinion this is the first time I’ve seen someone talk shit abt it

[puppypawprince]

just saw someone say they hate series 12 *shakes you by the shoulders violently*

[liketwoswansinbalance]

What is your favorite thing about SGE series and why?

I have multiple favorite things, so you can expect me to elaborate for a while.

One of my favorite things from the series is Soman’s novel concept of "psyche travel," and for christening it with an actual name.

I’ve only seen this concept in a few other, more science-fiction or speculative type of stories, like the Divergent series, The Giver quartet, "The Veldt," a fascinating short story by Ray Bradbury (which TOTSMOV41 is very much inspired by) and the Artemis Fowl series, which involves time manipulation that wasn't strictly time travel (which is far more commonly seen in fiction). And I love Soman's more fantastical spin on psyche travel! To me, the concept was previously called "mental landscapes" or simply "simulations" of reality. "Psyche travel" as a term is just far broader and more versatile, and I feel like you could do more with it, experimentally.

In fact, I would've loved it if Soman could've left more room in his tight plots to explore human consciousness and "the cauldron of the unconscious" more in TCY, so I will be doing exactly that with the themes in my longfic TOTSMOV41. If anyone wants to know more about TOTSMOV41, I'll redirect you to this table of contents/introductory post.

My fic's entire premise reflects how much I loved that one scene in ACOT. It was absolutely brilliant, especially with the edited views of what reality once was, how subjective memory could be. Plus, in that moment, ACOT managed to combine a few of my major interests: psychology and how generally error-prone the human mind and memory are, surreal imagery in literature, and delving further into SGE’s soft, irrational/nebulous, thematically-relevant magic system. (The way I see it, problems are more often unintentionally created than intentionally solved with magic, and we understand little of it, what goes on magically, really, and can't logically extrapolate what the characters could possibly do said magic. So, the magic is framed as unstable and flexible, even while it does reflect the state of the world and the important relationships in the tales. Thus, that's how I might classify the SGE system. You're welcome to disagree on which type of magic system it is though!)

The following points are probably more obvious:

First, Soman’s prose and images overall are enthralling, and his use of VERBS, especially, rivals few authors that write for a younger demographic, at least in my opinion. It’s often just so well done. It's the little things, like using "scalded" or "pinked" instead of "blushed" that I love. Soman's use of language is so inventive at times, and I love trying to imitate it. Verbs can make or break a piece of writing in my mind.

Also, I love the extravagance and length and readability of this particular book one sentence that I think is underrated for the sheer exasperation embedded in it:

“After chastising her for slipping in the Ever ranks, explaining every assignment thrice, and berating her to cover her mouth when she coughed, Pollux finally left in a circus of hops and falls.”

It’s fabulously sweeping and exhaustive.

In addition, the third person omniscient pov is less common nowadays, I think. So much of middle grade and YA is in first person these days, so it may be a trend, for its immediacy. Though, I tend to prefer third person, even if my preference also generally depends on how well the work was executed.

I love SGE for its basis in fairy tales since I loved reading the classic Grimms' fairy tales before I discovered SGE—they were probably my favorites for a while (and still sort of are, alongside SGE). And they inhabited my storytelling before I ever discovered more subversive things existed. Thus, it's the overall darkness and the dramatics I find compelling about Soman's work.

The cleverness in the writing, when it’s well-executed, is phenomenal. And this applies to two aspects: first, Rafal, obviously, and second, the plot structure itself.

When I say Rafal, I mean specifically during the moments in which he shows off his conniving craftiness, his prowess at outfoxing others. And I love any instances of scenes in which he tricks or outwits people and systems.

Someday, I’ll have to remember to discuss the Fala-shoe-fairy-kiss scene from Fall, one of my favorites ever, in a future post. Those particular thoughts must be somewhere in my scads of drafts... I’ll have to look for them. For now, I will give you any thoughts I have now:

I'm referring to the scene in which Fala lures a fairy with a golden kiss and traps it in his shoe without a single word of verbal explanation, and he expects everyone to intuitively follow his genius thought process, the solution to their dilemma. Then, everyone, except Aladdin, manages to catch on, when they watch his demonstration.

Here's an (exaggerated?) approximation of how I'd imagine his internal monologue could've gone:

Watch and learn, youths. I’m better than you. In innumerable ways, and this is one. But fear not! I will lead you to success. No one else is capable of doing it. Yes, I will take on this burden myself. Give me all the credit. But don’t even bask in my cleverness, even if it deserves your attention. My actions speak for themselves. Just get the task done. Now. We don’t have all day to dilly-dally like inane cowards.

I will redirect you to this post, if you would like to read more about how I happen to interpret Rafal's "trickery," or rather, absence of trickery, perhaps.

And for my second spiel on the series' cleverness, elaborating on its predictable unpredictability, on a structural level, even if I only saw it in hindsight:

I love any kind of legerdemain or sleights of hand, or twisting of plots, except the devastating Fall one, I suppose. And there is something very characteristic of SGE I've observed: there are often, very, exceedingly late third act turning-points. These points are likely hallmarks of the series, to the extent that I've come to expect them by now, especially after Rise, and sometimes, I'm probably actively on the lookout for them when I read other books. Besides, Soman likes to lull readers into a false sense of security, that much we can probably confirm.

Furthermore, these turning-points seem to take two forms and you can literally only expect one of two things to happen.

It's either: 1) the characters reach a point of what should be a settled peaceable resolution, that is then rapidly negated, or 2) the characters reach a darkest-night-of-the-soul moment, the prospect of temptation in the story, often for an individual, and wishes are granted (often in subversive, unfulfilling ways to almost everyone's dismay).

Examples:

1) In Rise and TLEA: you think you are safe, that you're out of the dark Woods (which often represent the darkness of the soul or the human psyche as a symbol) but you're not. There is no built-in "warmth" to the narration, as Soman puts it in one of his interviews. This all is literally the narrative's "liar's tell" or "slip" in the third act, a revisiting of conflict, the reopening of the tale. You know there is more disaster to come. The ride is not over yet, however much you may think or desire it to be so.

In AWWP, characters say and believe the wrong things, are misled, and narrowly miss a possible "happy" ending because Sophie felt alienated enough to choose Rafal, who chose her.

In TLEA, we think everything is resolved, but all of a sudden, we get one more little impact, a jolt, that not all is well or completely restored, the moment Aric kills Lady Lesso.

In Rise, when Rafal is revived and reclaims the Schools from Vulcan, setting everything back into their original, proper forms, back to order, we think we've averted all crises, and have reverted back to the status quo. But, that resolution, again, is only momentary. Supposedly, Rhian's Evil, his rot, was awakened, and the moment Rafal considers leaving again and does, to seek out a new replacement student, is when the plot begins to race downhill again. When Rafal leaves, he leaves a gap for Rhian's poor judgement to bleed through, and Rhian hires Hook, effectively setting off the second wave of awful plot events in Fall. Rhian sort of resurrected old conflicts, and breathed new life into them.

2) Before the Great War in TLEA and the climax, we get tonal signposting that nearly "all is lost," that we're approaching, marching towards our imminent demise. There's an ever-present fog of "Abandon all hope, ye who enter" because if there's anything Rafal's good at, it's cultivating an air of stifling oppression. Hence, we have the narrow aversion of the darkest moment:

Agatha (unlike prequel Rafal with Evil Rhian) doesn't use the wrong emotional appeal. She gets through to Sophie, she and Tedros aren't executed, and Sophie destroys the ring, killing Rafal. Despite everything that said otherwise, that said Good would lose.

Lastly, a few other bits I appreciate are the roles the Seers play in the series, the meta aspects of the Storian (or Lionsmane) and the tales in general, and the names of a lot of the proper nouns such as the kingdoms—I don't know why I love some of them. The alliteration is oftentimes fun, and the names feel right and plausible.

[threephantomrey]

my Scooby Doo opinions:

• i don’t like Guess Who. i’ve only ever seen 1 episode in full (the first one) and i thought that was decent. but i don’t like the rest of it after seeing some other clips from the show so far.

• i think the Loch Ness Monster movie is underrated. maybe not AS underrated as other movies but i don’t think it gets talked about enough in the fandom. also it’s one of the best DTV movies

• my opinion on Scrappy is that i am indifferent to him but i think his design is cute. that being said, i love and support all of my mutuals who love him and i will ALWAYS back them up 100000% no questions asked.

• the artstyle for Be Cool definitely fits the tone of the series well and it makes sense that it was used for that series. also i think Velma’s voice fits that series and that version of Velma well too

• Wendy Airs should come back one day and i think her relationship with Daphne in high school should be explored a bit more. i think we should see some flashbacks of them together when they were in high school and how they play a part in the present maybe

• Dapper Jack Rogers is one of the best characters in this franchise and is one of the best members of Shaggy’s family

• the Where Are You Now special was bad and i didn’t care for it

• i hated straight outta nowhere i thought it was bad. i couldn’t even get through the whole thing i had to skip scenes. and it’s NOT because of courage or anything related to him (i have respect for the Courage characters) it’s just a me thing.

• ALL of the gang members are the heart of the group because each and every one of them have so much love for each other as individuals and as a group, the group wouldn’t be what it is without any of them, and they all bring something equally important to the group.

• i’m so tired of crossovers ESPECIALLY Batman crossovers. i don’t have anything against Batman personally it’s just i think we need to stop with the crossovers for a while.

• we don’t need a 3rd James Gunn live action movie

• we don’t need a 3rd season of SDMI. the series is over and has been over for the past 10 years. there’s nothing left for the story, why would it get a 3rd season after all this time?

• people in the fandom need to stop getting mad for the wrong reasons or about things that don’t matter. i’ve seen this happen with some Scooby accounts that use to be my favs on instagram and it’s SOOO annoying.

• the 13 Ghosts series had one of the best and most interesting plots in the whole franchise. am i biased because i am a 13 Ghosts stan myself? NO!

• Scoobynatural was awful and one of the worst Scooby specials ever made.

• the Daphne & Velma movie is the only live action movie i liked

[marisoft-paint-adventures]

Pgs. 385 - 445

TG: skepticism is the crutch of cinematic troglodytes TG: like hey mom dad theres a dinosaur or a ghost or whatever in my room. "yeah right junior go back to bed" TG: fuck you mom and dad how many times are we going to watch this trope unfold it wasnt goddamn funny the first time i saw it TG: just once id like to see dad crap his pants when a kid says theres a vampire in his closet TG: "OH SHIT EVERYONE IN THE MINIVAN" TG: be fuckin dad of the year right there

so fucking true Dave, keep spitting.

EB: that's fine, you are entitled to your opinion, i am just saying that being a white guy who is a rapper with a ventriloquist doll is not cool by any stretch of the imagination or by any definition of word cool, ironic or otherwise. that's all i'm saying.

ULTIMATE WHITE BOY BRO STRIDER.

oh hey it’s the page I used to showcase Hussie’s affinity for slurs.

uh

still bad.

me when I fucking sTAB MY MOTHER.

I’m having rough flashbacks to HS^2 and I don’t like it.

also I just gotta say that Mom is the coolest looking person in this entire comic I mean just look at this fucking POSE.

it just screams “hello daughter you are going to get fuckin served.”

yes. the pony. beloved Maplehoof.

I’ve always seen this idea that the process of creating Earth, and by extension Universe B, involved taking the attributes and interests of the 12 trolls and morphing them into brand new instances and ideas, like how Gamzee’s Juggalo religion manifested as ICP on Earth.

I like to think that the entirety of the For Assholes book series exists through a recycling of Karkat’s personality.

also that fucking Asshole Note is comedy gold.

aw yeah time to fucking beat the shit out of an imp let’s

shit.

W magnet.

alright for real this time let’s kick the shit out of this imp.

goddammit.

also another White John can be found in this flash, collect all 7 to turn Super White.

also the Egbert Centipede I guess.

Tip: I am so fucking mad.

OK 1 MORE TIME.

he did it. he destroyed the fucker. John man.

YES.

DO THE THING.

YEEEAAAAAAH.

yeah.

fuck you cat I am about to revive.

IT’S HER, CLOWN GRANDMA.

HI NANNA.

TG: i mean dont get me wrong i think its cool and all TG: the semi-ironic puppet thing or whatever TG: or semi-semi ironic TG: man i dont even know TG: im just starting to think some of this shit is going a little far and its kind of fucked up TT: I've seen his websites. TT: I like them.

what did she mean by this.

what did she mean by this?

what did she mean by this?!

TG: oh man i wish lil cal wouldnt look at me like that TG: with those dead eyes jesus TG: sometimes i dream that hes real and hes talking to me and i wake up in a cold sweat and basically flip the fuck out

not saying it.

Page 422, titled “[S] GO ON. ==>” completely underrated flash, just listen to this fuckin song.

it captures the feeling of a big expository RPG cutscene so damn well I love it, it’s like I’m a kid again.

this is also just one of my favorite Sburb mechanics, I love the concept of basically deciding the abilities and aesthetics of the NPCs via prototyping, it’s such a cool little thing and opens up a lot of possibility for any fan-sessions.

JOHN: ok, i think i get it now! JOHN: so i guess the battle against good and evil is sort of irrelevant? well, i don't know, that all sounds kind of weird, but in any case, we build the house to get to these gates, and then i can save my dad! NANNASPRITE: Yes, John! JOHN: and then after that, we solve this ultimate riddle thing and save earth from destruction!!! NANNASPRITE: Oh no, I'm afraid not!

NANNASPRITE: Your planet is done for, dear! There is nothing you can do about that! JOHN: oh...

I fucking love this sequence because John activates the Cheery Protagonist Mode ready to assemble a team of teens with attitude in order to save the world from Dark Chess and whatever only to hear that the entire world will end and his response is just “aw..... :(”

I went on this entire shpeel about the potential of writing an isolationist John based off of willy nilly prose narration at the beginning but MAN do the early versions of the kids not give a SHIT about what’s going on.

“John Egbert, the Earth is doomed, it is going to explode, all life will die, you and your friends will be the last living things remaining.”

“:(”

AND THEN HE JUST MOVES ON.

this is a very weird moment that sticks out when looking at the comic as a whole because the weight of literally all life dying at once is nonexistent, but at the same time, this is fucking hilarious.

it makes think about a lot of rewrites I’ve seen where they try, emphasis on try, to give the fact that world ends more emotional relevance, and they basically kinda force this by introducing random background characters who are obviously going to die immediately.

like “oh hi my name is Huma Nfriend I’ve been besties with John Egbert since childhood we’re very close and cool and we’re gonna play a game called Sburb!!!” and then they just

I understand y’all want to make the characters actually feel something in regards to the entire home blowing the fuck up but there’s gotta be better ways than inventing some characters just to fridge.

also John does this.

uh, yeah. I don’t know.

he’s having a moment.

just give him some space.

ok now that’s just rude.

god Rose’s house during the winter is so pretty.

holy shit a Jade and Rose conversation, I hope we get plenty of these! (we do not.)

Jade knows about Sburb??? and it could bring Jaspers back to life???? what could it me- ok this joke already fucking sucks.

ah yeah it’s time to beat the shit out of the local whiteboy.

this shit is so fucking cool oh my god.

also there are literally meteors falling as Dave looks out and I guess he does give a shit.

[ecargmura]

Pokemon: Path To The Peak Episode 1 Review: Card Games On Actual Earth

An animated series about the Pokemon card game? I’m intrigued! How was it? I quite liked it! It’s rare to see the TCG side of Pokemon get this type of content, so I’m sure a lot of TCG players are thrilled. For me personally, I’m not much of a card game player. I like collecting Pokemon cards, but I’m not much of a card game player. I did play the TCG online and I did thoroughly enjoy it. Maybe I should retry playing the online game when I get the chance.

How was the first episode? I enjoyed it! Seeing Ava get accustomed to her new school and then finding something she thoroughly enjoys doing is always nice to see in a kids-oriented show. In fact, seeing a Pokemon animated show that actually takes place on Earth is a first for me. It’s not bad. It shows that Pokemon is not afraid to experiment. I think that the show taking place on Earth does help with the realistic factor in the sense that it’s hard to make a TCG anime that revolves around the fictional universe when Pokemon and humans work side by side. So yeah, I’m saying that it’s innovative.

Seeing Ava trying to get used to her new school and trying out new things and failing is always nice to see. Kids always try something new and see if they like it or not because that’s how they grow. I’ve tried a lot of things before coming to where I am now as a writer, so I can relate to Ava on that matter. However, I am a bit envious that there’s a Pokemon club in school. Maybe I’d be less of a dweeb back in my youth if there were people that enjoyed Pokemon like the people in the club.

The other characters that aren’t Ava are actually really nice to see. Joshua is a good player; he’s a bit of a rival character, but he’s a nice guy. He doesn’t bully Ava or anything. He’s just there to let her know how fun TCG is. Ava was frustrated at first, but thanks to Joshua, she found her calling. I like the relationship between her and her dad. The fact that her dad knows how to play the card game and helps his daughter. Since the box belonged to her mother and her father knows how to play the game, I do wonder if her parents were once TCG players. I hope this gets explained later on. Celestine was introduced at the end, so I can’t really give an opinion on her. From first glance, she seems to be the mean rival that most Pokemon games have; Joshua would be the nice rival equivalent.

I do like that Ava’s main Pokemon is Oddish. It’s an unusual choice and I always appreciate when Pokemon animated content chooses the less popular Pokemon as a main partner; the last time I’ve seen an underrated Pokemon be used as a partner Pokemon was the Poketoon episode, Blossom’s Dream, where Blossom’s partner was Nidoran. I do wonder if Ava will plan on evolving her Oddish to improve her card battling skills. Joshua’s partner is Jolteon and Celestine is Mismagius. They’re interesting choices.

The animation was really good. I’m more familiar with animation created by people in Asian countries, so to see an anime created by Western people is novel to me. Despite the novelty, it’s still good. I love the fluidity. My favorite part is where the cards float around Ava in her imaginary meadow. Animation is not an easy feat. I can tell the artists worked hard for this project and I want to applaud them for making this beautiful.

The music was good. I quite like the BGM used during the second Ava vs Joshua match. It’s fast and perfect for action scenes. I also like the music used when Ava is in her imaginary meadow. Though, my only gripes with the music is that the sound effects are so loud I can’t hear the music.

The voice actors are people I've heard for the first time. Ava's voice actress Nyara Afshar seems like a relatively new actress from what I've looked up. Joshua's voice actor is AJ Beckles, who voiced Hop in Pokemon Journeys. Celestine's voice actress Abby Espiritu voiced another purple haired girl in Romin from Yugioh Sevens. Ava's mother is voiced by Nazia Chaudhry who voices Nyla from Gundam - The Witch From Mercury and her dad is voiced by Mick Lauer who voices Looker in Pokémon Masters. I think they're all doing a very good job with the voices. They're expressive and give the characters life!

There seems to be four episodes. The first was being in the club. The remaining three episodes seem to revolve around competitive TCG, so I’m curious to see how that unfolds. To all the TCG players or card game enthusiasts, is this show doing the card game justice? How accurate is it to the actual card game? Please let me know what you thought of the overall episode!

[euphorial-docx]

Hi Mary i think you have very exceptional taste in movies, music art in general. I wanted to ask you whether you could share what are your few favourite movies and series that you could recommend (besides bones and all, that I know you love and I am already obsessed with) hope your having good calm time and enjoying the summer

hi! thank you very much! and i love that it’s a Thing that i love bones and all. i’m very happy to be branded by that movie lmao.

here are all my favorite movies and shows (separated), and the reasons why i love them because i cannot help myself from sharing my opinions <3

my favorite movies:

hellboy (2004, dir guillermo del toro) — i watched this movie with my dad often as a kid. guillermo del toro blends so many genres into this movie without it feeling inconsistent, and the production, costuming, and hair and makeup is just gorgeous. i feel this is a criminally underrated comic book adaptation.

waves (2019, dir trey edward shultz) — this movie is something else in a great way. i don’t think i’ve ever seen a movie structured, edited, and shot like this. the use of screen resolutions and the camera work make it very visually interesting the entire way through. the acting is also phenomenal (and it’s the movie that made me fall in love with taylor russell)

juno (2007, dir jason reitman) — another one from my childhood. there’s something so cozy about this movie to me. the actors are great, the dialogue can be both hilarious and heartbreaking, and it’s generally cute a little story.

20th century women (2016, dir mike mills) — i feel like this movie’s selling point is it’s plot. it’s set in the 70s about a single mother in her late-50s trying to raise her son, so she enlists two other women to help influence her son to be a good man. it’s just… so good. i want more people to see this movie. it shouldn’t be forgotten.

rhymes or young ghouls (2013, dir jeff barnaby) — it’s been a while since i’ve last seen it, but i first watched because it has one of my favorite actors it (devery jacobs— you will see her again here) but it quickly became a movie i’ll never forget. there are few movies about indigenous people, and even fewer that handle their trauma in a respectful and caring way. this movie is about indigenous people, by indigenous people, for indigenous people, and it’s great and it’s beautiful and it’s sad and it’s horrific and it certainly doesn’t fall into the “racist redemption” bullshit. not at all. this movie sheds light on a history that i was never taught about, and that i’m sure many people still don’t know about. this movie is an important watch, in my opinion. TW for residential schools, racism, rape, and abuse, so definitely be mindful of those topics.

moonlight (2016, dir barry jenkins) — one of the best coming of age movies ever made. all three acts are perfect. i don’t think there’s a single thing i don’t like about this movie. i genuinely can’t think of any flaws. it’s visually beautiful, the acting is beautiful, the dialogue is beautiful— everything is beautiful. deserved the oscar and more. a review of letterboxd sums my feelings about it up perfectly: visual poetry with the emotional depth of the fucking ocean itself.

aftersun (2022, charlotte wells) — this movie really feels like observing real people. it’s like watching home videos of a parent and kid on vacation. you can tell this story is so personal and so real, and the actors are incredible. it’s slow and melancholic, but it’s not boring and it keeps your attention. i was expecting to relate to the preteen girl, and i did, but i wasn’t expecting to relate to a single father turning 31. great movie. glad to see it get some light at the oscars this past season.

spider-man: across the spider-verse (2023, dirs joaquim dos santos, justin k thompson, kemp powers) — i don’t wanna spoil anything, but oh wow. oh wow.

everything everywhere all at once (2022, dirs the daniels) — instant classic. i’ve never been one for action/comedy/kung-fu movies, but this one’s blend of those genres and its imagination and humor and big heart make it something unique. it’s high energy, always interesting to look at, the costuming and hair and makeup are cool as fuck, and the acting is phenomenal. deserved to sweep at the oscars, and anyone that tells you differently is a loser trying so desperately hard to be different. don’t be different. love everytbing everywhere all at once. it deserves all the love.

and now…

my favorite shows:

mr robot (2015-2019, created by sam esmail) — my absolute favorite show ever made. it’s so hard to describe this show to other people, but you just need to watch it. it’s so precise in its decisions and so thoughtful with every single scene. the quadrant framing of the cinematography shows you the tone of the show and makes you feel what the characters feel in such simple ways. it’s truly stunning and the unraveling story is so intricate and infinitely layered. i feel this show’s message only resonates more as time passes. it’s scarily realistic.

game of thrones (2011-2019, created by david benioff, db weiss, george rr martin) — i’ll address the obvious: the ending sucks. the cracks in the show start to show in season 5, begin to crumble throughout 6-7, and complete breaks in season 8. BUT! seasons 1-4 is some of the best television ever made. the characters are multidimensional, the story is carefully crafted (thank you, george rr martin), and actions have consequences. even though the ending sucks, the beginning is well worth it.

house of the dragon (2022-current, created by miguel sapochnik, ryan condal, george rr martin) — yes, it’s a spin-off of game of thrones, but you don’t need to have seen game of thrones to watch house of the dragon. so if you don’t want to suffer through game of thrones season 8, just watch this prequel! it has everything i loved from season 1-4 of games of thrones but with a bigger budget. it’s great. i have hope that it will get even better.

the last of us (2023-current, created by craig mazin and neil druckmann) — my favorite video game ever made turned into one of my favorite shows ever made. the last of us was in good hands. as a fan of the games, i was beyond satisfied with what hbo did. It captures the heart of the story while also expanding on things us gamers never got to explore much. it’s everything i could’ve asked for in an adaptation. patiently looking forward season 2– you can’t rush greatness. and i already waited half a decade between the first game and the second. i can wait a year or two for the second season.

deadly class (2019, created by rick remender and miles orion fieldscott) — it’s a high school for assisins. what else do you need to know? seriously though, i love this show. it unfortunately got cancelled, but i think it’s great just in its one season. the music is good, the acting is good, it balances wit and existential drama. it is pessimism wrapped in a creative bow, and i love it and am forever wishing i got to see a season 2. i’m holding out hope rick remender can get another shot at adapting it in some way in the future. also check out the comics! they’re great too.

the walking dead (2010-2022, created by robert kirkman, tony moore, charlie adlard, and (formerly) frank darabont) — this one might be biased. i grew up watching this show, i still love this show. i have walking dead posters and played all the games and even have twd socks. i just love the walking dead. of course it has zombies (that look great, by the way; makeup killed it), but it’s also a very good inter-personal drama. it loses its footing around season 6 and stumbles a bit through 7-8, but season 9 finds its balance again and brings back everything i loved about the show. whether or not you like zombies or hate them, give the walking dead a chance. i really think it would surprise a lot of people.

reservation dogs (2021-current, created by sterlin harjo and taika waititi) — here is that devery jacobs i promised. this is a coming of age comedy about teenagers on a oklahoma reservation who steal, rob, and save money with the hopes of moving to california. it’s hilarious, but it also touches on many issues the indigenous communities face— namely suicide. you can tell the people on camera and behind the camera love this project, and again it’s a show made by indigenous people, about indigenous people, for indigenous people.

ok. i think that’s it! there all the film that i love. i hope y’all check some of them out because they’re all pretty good :)

[tymime]

Lola Bunny in the comic books

I’ve discussed at length my views and opinions about Lola Bunny before (https://tymime.tumblr.com/post/174484746321/lola-bunny-is-one-of-animations-more), but something I’ve been wanting to really dive into was her sporadic appearances in DC’s Looney Tunes comic book series in the late ‘90s and early 2000s.

I think these are the most overlooked and underrated depictions of Lola ever, and actually very much key to understanding her personality, history, and potential. The trouble is, I’ve been waiting many years for someone to scan all the issues with her in it. But back in the day, I had issue #92, and when I read the Lola story within, I didn’t even blink. The basic premise of most of her stories is a weird one, but it somehow works. Her job is to deliver pizza. But she delivers pizza to gods, monsters, and other supernatural beings, traversing dangerous landscapes, fighting off viscious wild animals, and generally taking care of business. So like, when I was 13, it didn’t even occur to me that this was at all unusual. Of course she’s a kick-butt action girl. Why wouldn’t she be? What else would she be? I had seen Xena. I watched cartoons with strong female leads. I didn’t even have to think about it. There wasn’t any doubt in my mind that Lola could be more than a sports-obsessed, one-dimensional teen fantasy. It actually baffles me when I see anyone suggest otherwise, like the director for Space Jam: A New Legacy did. As if she wasn’t always the tough, proactive, heroic type. Of course Lola is an Amazonian warrior.

But let’s actually look at her first appearance in the comics, after the Space Jam graphic novel, in issue #60, 1999 (why it took three years for this to happen I can’t guess).

Right off the bat, we see Lola fighting off a jaguar with a machete and a board with a nail in it. The narration implies that a woman would do a better job at exploring and surviving the South American rainforest than a man could. I’m all here for it. It’s also an obvious parody of Tomb Raider and Lara Croft- probably because of the similarity between their figures, which for some reason people wouldn’t stop talking about for about two decades. While I haven’t played those games myself, I’m sure there’s much more to it than that, and it’s kind of a relief that we’re finally over it.

Something that these comics do well is give Lola additional quirks and traits. This first story does it straight away:

Apparently Lola has no sympathy for panhandlers. I’m not sure how I feel about that, since that sort of attitude often extends into dismissing homeless people who can’t get jobs for one reason or another, but hopefully Lola isn’t as black-and-white about the issue as she seems here.

At first it seems like a straightforward parody of temple-raiding adventures, à la Indiana Jones and even Ray Harryhausen movies, but then comes the twist:

Nearly all these stories follow a similar format- Lola has to deal with nasty aggressive demons and beasts to deliver a pizza from Machu Pizza (get it?), and she doesn’t break a sweat. I’m not sure how the writers (kudos to Sean Carolan and Jennifer Moore) came up with the idea, but it’s incredibly original and inspired and I’m glad they ran away with it.

Her next appearance in issue #71 is unfortunately a bit of a step backward, seen here portraying a parody of Daphne from Scooby-Doo, but I suppose there wasn’t anybody else available.

Luckily she goes right back to pizza delivery soon afterward in issue #76 (albeit nearly two years after the first time).

Apparently Lola’s mother was a fan of a ‘70s soul/disco singer named Vicki Sue Robinson. It’s weird randomness like this that makes these comics special, I think.

Another aspect about this depiction of Lola is that she shows just as much sharp wit, quick thinking, and cleverness that any good trickster should have- just like Bugs. And yet, she’s not just a carbon copy of Bugs, as it should be.

We also get a glimpse of Lola’s past in issue #80:

Apparently she’s a Beatles fan, which is always cool.

As I said, I had issue #92, completely out of context, but I caught on to the premise immediately nonetheless.

Here we learn that Lola is actually part of some legendary lineage, which prevents the gods from starting a war with each other. Sounds like a pretty big deal. Lola is fed up with all this nonsense, so she quits her job and starts working at a clothing store. I think this exchange speaks for itself:

Eventually, however, she gets bored of nothing happening, and nobody else can deal with the mythical creatures like she can, so she returns to Machu Pizza with newfound confidence.

I think this is great stuff. She doesn’t put up with any guff.

Unfortunately, that’s the last of the pizza delivery stories, and it’s a shame there are so few of them, because it’s quite possibly the best material Lola ever had. I think more than anything it represents Lola at her fullest, and shows how much potential she has to be a regular character, instead of someone who just shows up every now and then, only to be reinterpreted once again.

Lola also wouldn’t make another proper appearance until 2011 in issue #203, only making background cameos in the meantime. This story- which is all about roller derby- is a bit underwhelming in comparison to her older comics. Sure, her sportiness comes into play for the first time since Space Jam (weirdly enough, considering that’s what she’s best known for), but she doesn’t get to do very much. There are good moments, though:

I’m into it. (The first panel implies Bugs and Lola knew each other in junior high/middle school, which is an interesting tidbit. It contradicts how they’ve never seen each other before in Space Jam, but Looney Tunes has never been much for continuity anyway.)

And that’s it for stories focused on Lola. From then on, her appearances are brief and insubstantial. In issue #220, she’s only in a few panels as an angry police chief.

In 2017, she appears in a Star Trek parody in issue #239, playing the Lt. Uhura part, and is essentially just as limited.

In 2019, she returns as a basketball player, and still doesn’t do much. They’re obviously trying to make her look more like she does in Space Jam, but no attempt is made to make her a main character.

Her most recent cameo is in 2023’s issue #269, which suggests that she won an award for journalism of all things.

And that’s it. Outside of Space Jam: A New Legacy and its graphic novel adaptation, there really hasn’t been very much OG Lola Bunny media at all.

In fact, the largest amount of screentime Lola ever gets is in Baby Looney Tunes of all things. That’ll be another blog for another time, when I finally finish watching that series, and it probably won’t be very long.

Other than that, Lola appears in three video games: Bugs Bunny & Lola Bunny: Operation Carrot Patch (the only time her name was in the title), Looney Tunes Racing (where they actually ramp up the whole “girl power” thing to Nth degree), and Looney Tunes: Space Race. She has minor roles in the webtoon Dating Do’s and Don’ts, and in Tweety's High-Flying Adventure. She has one cameo, and two featured episodes in New Looney Tunes- and only one of ‘em portrays her as smart trickster. She’s a main character in Bugs Bunny Builders, but her personality’s been reduced to a generic perky girl, although they at least refrain from making her stupid again. I actually like this show, though.

So why is this? Why do people struggle with writing for Lola anyway? It doesn’t seem so hard. The whole trouble is almost everybody seems to have a different perspective of the character, and I can’t figure out why. It seems pretty straightforward to me- she’s good at sports, she’s smart, she’s strong-willed, and doesn’t like being pushed around or not taken seriously. This is a personality type that’s been done before, in every genre. So what’s the deal with Lola? Why do people think she’s terrible or needs “fixing”? It doesn’t help that most of these comics are long out of print, hard to collect, and they’re not given much attention in the first place. They seem to be best known for starting Dave Alvarez’s career in Looney Tunes projects.

I suspect there’s not only a big wad of sexism involved, but also a general resentment towards Space Jam in general. The whole “how do you do fellow kids” aspect of that movie has dated it, I’ll admit, and I never took the whole hip-hop Looney Tunes thing that was going in the late ‘90s very seriously, even when I was a kid.

But that shouldn’t mean Lola should be dragged into it. Sure, the way they handle the character isn’t flawless- she literally comes out of nowhere, with hardly any proper introduction at all. We have no idea who she is or where she came from in the movie, and we probably never will. Her independent, self-reliant traits are a bit undermined when Bugs has to come to her rescue, briefly turning her into a damsel-in-distress. It’s not perfect, but then again, I’m not sure how else Bugs was going to become her boyfriend in the screen time available.

Why this makes people hate her or even see her as sexist, I can’t imagine.

She’s also one of the newest Looney Tunes characters. There hadn’t been a new character groomed for stardom since Cool Cat and his ilk, in the late ‘60s. I’m sure to some people she seemed like an intrusive wannabe. Why she gets picked on instead of even newer characters like Claudette Dupri from New Looney Tunes, or even the Nerdlucks from the same movie (who are even more underused), I can’t guess. So maybe it’s just sexism after all.

Opinions about Lola vary wildly. So what’s the deal? Well, let’s examine the most negative views of her: Is she a oversexualized pin-up? While there’s obviously some degree of sexualization in the way the artists designed her curvy, semi-hourglass figure, this is just falling into the “fictional women aren’t allowed to be sexy” trap that men who pretend to be feminists often do. On the other hand, it’s understandable that you wouldn’t want to make ALL female cartoon characters bombshells and eye candy. But hey, why not use Petunia Pig, Granny, Miss Prissy, or even the She-Devil to balance things out? Why not come up with solutions instead of complaining about it?

Is she a stereotypical “girl power” sporty type? Is this even a thing? Why would anyone want to undermine positive female role models? There’s a disturbing trend recently of people wanting to criticize the whole “action princess” thing, and I can’t understand why. Seems dangerous to me. Sounds like more fake feminism if you ask me. (I’m a guy though, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.)

Is the ditzy, dumb blonde version an improvement? Why is this even a question?? I don’t know how making her a complete airhead is supposed to be “less sexist”. It’s like opposite-day logic. And no, we shouldn’t mix in the “wackiness” of the LTS version with her original version. She doesn’t need it. God no.

So there you have it. If it were up to me, I’d be making cartoons starring Lola with this exact same premise. Hopefully this blog will spread some awareness of Lola’s best work. If you wanna track down these comics, here’s a list of all the best ones: #60, #76, #80, #84, #88, #92, #117, and #203.

[rosewood-multifandom-writer]

To go back into actually reviewing something and in the spirit of the countdown to Death Island, I’m gonna do a review speedround of the other CGI movies I’ve watched:

Degeneration:

Since this was the start of the CGI films, Degeneration gets a 5 out of 10. Degeneration is the perfect example of a mid Resident Evil movie. First the positives: I like how Curtis Miller is used in this movie. I always liked morally grey characters in Resident Evil even if they die in their debut appearance, and Curtis Miller is one of those characters I feel sorry for because he lost his wife and kid in the Raccoon City incident and tried in his own way to rebel against Umbrella and other corporations who do experiments alike because he is vengeful, which ended up killing him in the end. I also liked Curtis’s G-Virus transformation.

The negatives are in the characters, despite having Leon and Claire who are established characters. Leon’s personality feels non-existent which is strange because he had more personality in the campy OG RE4 and his personality was just, BAMF Leon and that was it. Claire has more personality than Leon, but is sadly sidelined. Angela Miller is bland. That Senator character is a caricature that feels out of place and was forced in there to be a red-herring for the true villain and the villain in this is badly written.

A rough start, but at least we got Damnation. Speaking of which…

Damnation:

To absolutely no one’s surprise, this is the perfect Resident Evil movie. Likable characters, awesome villain, great storyline, the sexiest Leon model I’ve ever seen, great animation, loved seeing the Plagas lore be expanded on, loved seeing the Lickers and Tyrants again, and I loved that Damnation takes place before the events of RE6.

So the characters other than Leon and Ada, I love Buddy a lot he’s underrated and handsome as hell, and the best written morally grey character in the series with a sad backstory. J.D., I was SO sad when he died. The poor guy didn’t even get to see America. If anything, Resident Evil is pretty good at making you grow attached to one-time characters easily. Also, it’s refreshing to see a couple of Slavic characters not act evil or be complete assholes just because they’re Slavic.

And of course, no Resident Evil story is complete without a bittersweet ending because there have been multiple casualties, Buddy gets paralyzed from the waist down due to his Plagas infection, and it turns out that the US government ONLY saved Leon and Buddy from the two Tyrants because they wanted to save their own skin because they supported Eastern Slav’s dictator and didn’t want to face any backlash. And both America and Russia wanted to take that infested area for themselves. Further more, Simmons and his Family wanted that area, hence the connection to RE6 in the end credits. So yeah, another example of the US government being shady in Resident Evil.

Amazing movie, 10/10 would recommend. Also, fun fact, my RE CGI movie poll “One of These RE CGI Movies Have to Go,” Damnation has 0% votes, so it really shows that Damnation is the perfect RE movie in my opinion.

Vendetta:

Vendetta feels weird to me, because like Degeneration, it has flaws involving characters and some moments to fill the run time, but like Damnation, it has good animation and plays around with an existing monster.

The Los Illuminados mention just feels like a mention in Vendetta.

I also love this Yin and Yang going on with Chris and Leon. Both are seasoned veterans at this point, both have went through multiple forms of trauma related to bioterrorism, both have lost their team to a bioterrorist (for Chris, three times at this point), and they are both stubborn in their own ways with Leon not wanting to go after Glenn Arias since once again, the US Government keeps on being the US Government and bombed a wedding, and once again, they got another bioterrorist on their hands and Chris wanting to go after Glenn because he not only targeted innocent people at a university, he also wiped out Chris’s squad and killed their secretary and her son.

The characters other than Chris, Leon, Rebecca and yes, even Glenn Arias, the other characters are forgettable to me. I even forgot that Maria Gomez was even in this movie. Maria just seems like an all looks no personality type of character. Her father is also just another all looks no personality and was just there to be Arias’s tool in a mutation transformation.

As much as I like Glenn Arias as a villain, I really don’t like how he was written as a “woe is me, feel bad for me,” villain but he’s a bioterrorist who killed and infected a bunch of innocent people, including a kid. Not to mention that he is a part of the most wanted criminals who was an arms dealer. Which is why I never felt bad at all for him. I didn’t even need to mention the creepy as hell advances he made towards Rebecca just because she just so happened to look like his dead wife. The government in Resident Evil still sucks a lot, so there is no good guy or bad guy in this situation in my opinion.

Despite a lot of the flaws in this movie and me having mixed feelings towards it, I’d still recommend this movie and give it a 6.5 out of 10. Vendetta get’s a C- for characters and story, but A+ for animation.

TL:DR:

Degeneration? Mid. Damnation? S-tier Resident Evil movie. Vendetta? Decent. All of which are my personal opinion, I’d say watch all of these movies for yourself.

[mischief-lies-and-stories]

Fanfiction Author Q&A

This questionnaire is from wing-ed-thing.

Why do you write fanfic? I write fic because the authors are WrongTM. Lol, no, but actually. I write because I want to continue the story, or there’s a part of the story I think could be expanded upon or reimagined and I have an idea for it. 

What is your most overrated fanfic? I don’t think I really have an overrated fic per say, but if I had to choose it would probably be (non-Loki) Te Veo or (Loki) These, Our Bodies, Possessed By Light, just because it’s the first fic I wrote since coming back to AO3 so I don’t think it really deserves the hype given how much I’ve grown and improved since writing it. 

What is your most underrated fanfic? Underrated is either Like the Dawn or Phantom Limb. Like the Dawn is one of my personal favorites, and Phantom Limb more explicitly links Where Mischief Lies with the MCU in a way that was personally satisfying to me. 

What is your most overrated headcanon? I don’t know what this means? Something I consider to be overrated? I’m gonna go with a headcanon many people in the fandom seem to agree with maybe. Definitely that Loki didn’t die on the Ark when Thanos supposedly killed him. It’s overrated because we’ve never seen him die and the members of the Asgardian royal family we’ve seen die have vanished to Valhalla in golden sparks, which Loki didn’t do. So it seems pretty textbook that he wouldn’t be dead, whatever a stupid power-hungry titan said about it. 

What is your most underrated set of headcanons? As much as I hate it, it’s definitely the headcanon that Mobius is a Loki. (See my post about this for more details.)

What detail did you put in a work that you wanted people to notice? It’s the entirety of Bring You Safely Home to Me honestly, but it’s my lowest-performing Frostiron fic in the series so I’m counting it. It’s a retelling of a Norse myth of where Loki is just before the events of Ragnarok in the Norse mythological cycle. 

What thing(s) in canon do you have VERY STRONG OPINIONS ON? In the MCU, definitely how they’ve chosen to represent Loki’s genderfluidity (poorly). In the comics, how well subsequent authors have honored the character development Al Ewing has afforded Loki (not well for most runs since 2013).

What thing(s) in canon do you prefer glossing over in your work? We don’t talk about that Kiss, unless it was a distraction, and comics-wise we really don’t talk about Vote Loki. Loki is a thinly-veiled stand-in for an American presidential candidate who very unfortunately won an election seven years ago, and acts like him, and I hate it. I hate it with every fiber of my being. I hate that he showed up in the tv show, even as a bad guy cameo that got his hand bit off. I hate that I have to see merch for him all over the fucking place. If we never acknowledged his existence again it would be too soon.

What controversial fandom takes do you have, if any? Probably the most controversial are that I ship Thorki and I don’t ship Loki with who he kisses in episode six. Like I ship incest but not selfcest? I don’t know, just how it goes I guess. 

What is your writing schedule like? I don’t have a schedule. I get an idea, I think about it, and then go on a day or two or three day writing binge until it’s done, edit it as soon as I’m done, and post it. And then wait for inspiration to strike again. Rinse and repeat. 

What fanfic took the most research? Honestly probably Nothing Matters at the End of the World. I spent an obnoxiously long time reading quotes from the series, trying to find relevant phrases to serve as chapter titles. I read a lot of MCU wiki pages, and spent an uncomfortable amount of time reading about dinosaurs and their extinction event.

What fanfic of yours is your favorite? Like the Dawn. (Non-Loki favorite is The Courage of Stars, my most recent Good Omens fic.)

Do you read your own fanfic? Yes, more often than is probably reasonable. 

What character deserved more screen time? Like canonically? In Loki-featured comics, Cloud and Verity. In the show, Croki. 

What secondary character would you make the main character of the series? I’m gonna answer this in terms of my frostiron series, actually (Nights on the Roof). I like Idunn and Clint’s characters in the series, maybe not as the main characters, but maybe a part from their perspective could be fun. 

What character have you written the most for? Loki. That’s why I’m doing this on my Loki blog. After Loki, Tony. 

What character(s) would you never write for? Why? President Loki. Fuck that bitch. I’ve already explained why I hate him. He’s a terrible person and he makes no sense for any characterization of the character whatsoever.

What is your favorite fanfic trope? Least favorite? Favorite is enemies to lovers and hurt/comfort. Least favorites are hurt/no comfort, major character death, and Harry Potter AUs. Even when I was a fan, I wasn’t up for those. 

Where did you start reading fanfic? Where did you start writing? The N. My childhood best friend was writing a Harry Potter fanfic when we were 13 and posting it on there. I started writing it (online) on Cartoon Doll Emporium (I think) a year later. If not, then I started posting it on AO3 in college, but I’ve been handwriting it since middle school. 

Favorite fanfic platform? AO3 hands down. I don’t use anything else. 

How old is your blog? This one? Like a week and a half. How long have I been on tumblr (no, I’m not telling you my other account)? Like 13 or 14 years. 

When did you write your first fanfic? What was it about? Do you look back and still like it? First fanfic in general was an unfinished Chronicles of Narnia fic I started when I was 13 that I didn’t post anywhere because The N didn’t allow you to post anything until you were 14, and I was a goody-two-shoes who refused to lie about my age. I don’t remember it and I don’t think I still have it, but I probably wouldn’t still like it. First Loki fic specifically was History Books Forgot About Us in 2017. It’s the first version of These, Our Bodies, but it’s from Thor’s point of view. I still like it, and there are some good parts I had to leave out for the rewrite that got published since it changed perspectives, but ultimately the best version of the story is the one that got posted on AO3. 

What is your favorite fandom to write for? Marvel, definitely. Within that, probably the Avengers, because I think Tony and Loki have a really interesting dynamic that lends itself to a lot of possible storylines with many options for side characters. 

What niche character/fandom/trope is your guilty pleasure? I don’t really believe in guilty pleasures, but probably the most “problematic” pairing I write about is thorki. I have written (unpublished) fanfic of fanfic for this pairing. If you like thorki and genderfluid Loki, the To Know You Anywhere series by triedunture is heart wrenching and perfect. 

For reader insert writers, who do you imagine when you write your reader inserts (OC, yourself, canon character, etc.)? I neither write these nor read these. 

What compelled you to your go-to characters? Really? Loki is genderfluid, bi/pan, a fascinating anti-hero, and between Tom Hiddleston in the MCU and Al Ewing’s writing in the comics I’ve come to really latch onto Loki. He’s interesting and I like exploring him in different contexts, with different people.

OC writers, when did you first come up with the concept for your OC? I don’t write these either. 

What character(s) do you think you most resemble? Probably Verity. She kind of just goes through her life with this strange best friend who she cares about but is kind of doing his own thing that he occasionally brings to her doorstep. She doesn’t put up with any of his shit but is loyal and kind to him. She’s ace (I don’t make the rules, Al Ewing absolutely made her ace), so she wants nothing to do with Loki romantically. She’s about the only woman Loki isn’t related to who treats him decently, but she’s ace so she’s never gonna be in a romantic relationship with him.

AO3: irishavalon

[juniperhillpatient]

To expand on this because I got bored & fell asleep at the end of this movie (not a great sign…) I think the first 30 or so minutes of this movie felt like a typical Blumhouse movie. Nothing spectacular or noteworthy but fun! I feel like I’m constantly coming off a bit disdainful toward the Conjuring movies & Blumhouse overall but to clarify my feelings -

1. It’s a whole studio of course it spits out some masterpieces (I really liked the Blackphone, that was actually an original & interesting movie & I’n not surprised given it was based on a story by Joe King) thanks to the diversity of creatives involved I just think a lot of this studios movies are very basic unchallenging ghost stories & other studios like A24 are often producing more interesting content.

2. I do like the Conjuring movies as fun popcorn flicks. There’s nothing wrong with a little lighthearted spooky fun, but that’s all they are. There’s nothing challenging or special or subversive about the series. Every one of them is like the template for a basic ghost story. And I’m sorry but while some of the stories surrounded by the Warrens are interesting (I do find the real case behind the Devil Made Me Do it fascinating for many reasons) many of their stories have been all but proven to be exaggerated at best & hoaxes at worst. So like…. The franchise is fine? I’ve seen most of them in theatres & had a good time! But they aren’t particularly special as horror movies in my opinion.

Back to the Exorcist: Believer - this movie started off okay, like I said! It should’ve leaned into the plot about the two girls coming back from going missing Not Quite Right (& maybe not over explained the already obvious stuff so much? The Christian moms grating explanation that the girls were gone for 3 days just like Jesus & that it seems like they were in Hell - things that were already made abundantly clear through basic inferences & paying attention to the film even a little - was especially grating.)

The film really went downhill for me when it became your typical Hollywood reboot - leaning obnoxiously far into how hyped they were to get Ellen Burstyn & to play into nostalgia. So many shots in this movie were just the original but Worse. The second half of this movie is disappointing on every level. It’s not confident enough about the source material - the “feminist” parts like Chris’ rejection of the patriarchy (out of nowhere?) or speech about how Christianity & the church isn’t just about specific beliefs but about community (where did this speech come from?) & then a lady giving the exorcist (at least this one was sort of explained by the priest leaving after the church rejected his request & bordered on touching an interesting idea) —- these elements were such bland moments of hollow Hollywood feminism that actually detracted from the overall vibe of the movie.

And yet despite its lack of confidence in the source material, this movie was also not confident in itself enough to do anything original or subversive or remotely interesting. It’s the same old bed shaking scenes & creepy voices that made the original famous but it’s TWO girls now.

I haven’t actually seen the other Exorcist sequels but I LOVED the Fox television series which I think is painfully underrated & is genuinely really smart & scary horror tv as well as a much more compelling continuation of the original then…. This movie.

I’d be curious if anyone thinks the other sequels are worth watching or if anyone else has a different opinion to share about the 2023 movie but yeah - I thought it was pretty disappointing on every level LOL

I’m only about 30 minutes in & of course my review could change but so far this movie isn’t bad by any means like I’m very entertained & hooked but it is a very typical Blumhouse ghost movie. I think it would have faired better if it didn’t attach itself to the Exorcist name & allowed itself to exist on its own. maybe I’ll change my mind but it’s very typical Conjuring series spoopy vibes so far, none of the bark or bite of The Exorcist

[pippenpaddlopsicopolisthethird]

Top 5 anime you think are criminally underrated!

This is a really good question, and it was VERY difficult to keep myself to only 5. These are all anime that I think deserve a much wider viewership! (Plus five more!)

I ended up spending waaayyyy longer on this than I thought, I can’t imagine how much I would have written if you’d said top 10. I can literally talk about anime forever. Here’s some I wholeheartedly recommend.

1. Shojo Kageki Revue Starlight (Action, drama, romance)

This is my newest love, as of yesterday, when I binged the whole thing. The best way I can describe it is by mashing up other anime. Take Revolutionary Girl Utena, iron out about three layers of metaphor, and trim off all of the dark themes related to the Rose Bride. Then throw it in a blender with Madoka Magica and Love Live!, add half a cup of Gay Concentrate, and serve up the result: A character-driven drama about girls at a performing arts school, who settle their differences in magical-girl-fantasy duels styled as impossibly gorgeous theatrical stage-combat musical numbers. Beyond the flash and high concept, there’s a well-written cast, solid emotional core, and really engaging plot.

2. The Eccentric Family (Drama, comedy)

This show is my favorite genre of fantasy; mythical creatures living in the modern world, right under humans’ noses. In this series, humans only know tanuki as the cute little raccoon-dogs, but tanuki are really sentient shapeshifters whose goals are to outsmart the humans who live in the cities, pester the tengu who rule the heavens, live a life of freedom and trickery, and not end up on the inside of a hunter’s trap. The story follows a family of a mother and four sons whose widely-respected father was killed to end up in a human’s hot pot, as they try to enjoy their lives, live up to his imposing reputation, and unravel the increasingly suspicious circumstances of his death.

I have called this one “deceptively light-hearted” when describing it. My friend got halfway through the first season and came back to me with the verdict, “consider me fucking deceived.” This show has weight and does not pull its emotional punches, but neither does it ever stumble into becoming grimdark. Its worldbuilding is solid and the characters are all fantastically developed. Plus I wrote a whole post about one of the main antagonists(?) who I hadn’t even mentioned here.

3. Dennou Coil (Mystery, sci-fi)

Dennou Coil is a masterclass in worldbuilding, in my opinion. It’s a near-future sci-fi world, basically if Google Glass had taken off and become as common as cell phones are today. Many people don’t see the real world, they see the virtual textures of the world as they’re rendered through the glasses. Kids in one city have learned to mess around with codes, collecting tradeable fragments that break off the edges where the system glitches, chasing viruses that hide in pockets of obselete code in abandoned areas of the city where the software doesn’t get updated often. They spend their time after school saving virtual pets from being accidentally deleted by the city’s antivirus, trading tall tales about kids who get caught by the antivirus and get their glasses bricked, and spinning urban legends about ghosts waiting just behind anything that’s visibly rendered, waiting to steal kids when they least expect it. Every detail they introduce is critical to laying the foundation for the mystery that forms the show’s plot.

Everything about this world feels real in a way I’ve never seen in a sci-fi anime. It’s all grounded in a clear understanding of programming, and lives by show-don’t-tell. The stakes aren’t life-and-death; the kids tagging glitches like graffiti to distract the city’s antivirus software are only at risk of ruining their glasses, at least at first. The plot and escalation is perfectly-paced, and the mystery is so satisfying to piece together as it unfolds.

4. ID:Invaded (Sci-fi, action, thriller, murder mystery)

This show is like Psycho-Pass meets Silence of the Lambs. To catch a serial killer, you need to think like a killer, and nobody does that better than killers. A contraption called an “id well” can manifest an uncaught killer’s unconscious mind as a bizarre, unique, deadly terrain driven by stream-of-consciousness, and convicted murderers turned “detectives” dive into these wells to try to solve the mystery each well presents and discern the identity of other killers before they can strike again.

This show is a tightly-written, perfectly paced, edge-of-your-seat thriller. The two layers of mysteries inside and outside of the wells balance high-octane, big-screen action with tight, tense realism. Plus the soundtrack is an absolute banger.

5. Ping Pong the Animation (drama, sports)

Imagine if I told you that there was a show that, in 11 episodes, unpacked how patterns of relationships are repeated across generations, how the tradeoff between talent, practice, and who you are outside of your achievements can scar the spirits of kids, and what it feels like to wrestle with the tension between your core understanding of yourself and how others expect you to be. Imagine if I told you that every major character goes through massive restructurings of their fundamental sense of self and how they see others, and that every single arc comes to a well-rounded and satisfying end. Imagine if the animation style pushed the limits of both realism and absurdity, landing somewhere between rotoscoping and caricature, pushing the impact of action and stretching the character’s expressiveness without betraying faces that are animated like real human people. Imagine that it had a dub so fantastic that it sits next to Baccano and Cowboy Bebop in my mind, shows where the cast threw themselves into their roles with their whole hearts.

Now imagine that I told you that this story is told in the context of high schoolers playing ping pong, and that it’s arguably the best show I’ve ever seen. Go watch this show.

[gunsatthaphan]

Hi! Kinda new here! I was wondering about what BLs could you or anyone recommend? I’ve recently watched: Be Loved In House:I Do, We Best Love,KeiKoi and Lovely Writer,so you kinda get the vibes that I like haha. I’m also currently watching TMS2 since I’ve watched the first one,and even though It’s been kinda heart-breaking,I’m actually very much in love with how it’s directed and written; beautifully for me (as I am with every show listed above lol). And also,does anyone also feel like Taiwanese and Japanese BLs (I just watched TMS from Korea,so I don’t really have an opinion!) have been EATING so much more than Thai BLs? I just think the way they develop the stories is so different,I don’t really know how to explain it haha

hiii anon!! 💜

welcome to the fandom!! lol.

There are a ton of shows out there lmao and based on the ones you watched, I'm assuming you're more into the more generic taiwanese bls and the more elevated thai bls haha. Regarding which country produces the better bls, I don't think you can generalize that lol. they’re all so different. taiwan and japan have been putting out a lot of good stuff, however I find myself coming back to thai bls lol. But it’s a matter of taste. 

Lovely Writer is one of my all time favorites and also We Best Love is amazing so you got good taste 😄 Also before I recommend stuff, know that all shows can be watched here. Just type in the title and it will pop up 😉 

TAIWAN:

If you're looking for more stuff like BLIH and WBL, I generally recommend the HIStory series, which has multiple seasons with multiple installments so there's a lot to cover lmao. But you probably came across that already. My personal favorites are make our days count (season 3) and close to you (season 4) but you can find a list of all of them here. Another one that I liked was Dark Blue and Moonlight which is very polarizing and a lot of people didn’t like it because it’s a little controversial but I loved it. 

JAPAN:

I haven’t seen a looot of japanese stuff but the ones I really liked were:

- Cherry Magic (soooo lovely. you’re gonna love this one I promise) 

- His: Didn’t think I would fall in love 

- My Beautiful Man 

- Fujoshi, Ukkari Gei ni Kokuru (this one is so underrated, it’s a masterpiece imo)

- Mr. Unlucky has no choice but to kiss 

- The Man Who Defies The World of BL (ss1 + ss2) 

KOREA:

If you’re looking for some good korean bls, my personal favorites are:

- To My Star season 1, we don’t speak of season 2

- Light On Me 

- The Tasty Florida

- Ocean Likes Me 

- Blueming

- Semantic Error

THAILAND:

oof where do I start lmao. I guess if you’re looking for something similar to Lovely Writer, I recommend: 

- Love Stage (this has a somewhat similar plot, however a lot more comedic)

- Theory of Love (one of my absolute favorites) 

- Until We Meet Again (a little darker than the rest but very well produced) 

- Club Friday The Series Season 8 (very underrated!!!) 

- I Told Sunset About You & I Promised You the Moon

- Cupid's Last Wish (this one is so cute, I highly recommend) 

- Cutie Pie (very good production and extremely successful - worth the hype imo)

- Friend Zone (this one is messy af but so good lol) 

- Love Mechanics (this one just started so I don’t wanna give it a rating yet but it has an impressive production quality) 

An honorable mention goes out to Not Me. It’s a different genre than the other ones I listed, it includes socio-criticism and political topics. But even if you’re not into these kinds of themes, I still highly recommend it just because it’s so so so good.

That got long lol sorry.

I hope this helped you anon; additionally to these recommendations I also have a recommendations tag that you can check out, as well as this list of all my favorites 😊 

have fun watching and have a lovely day! Also as always, feel free to drop replies with more recommendations! 

xxx

[softbean]

“capable of such magic”: cherry magic and Adachi’s ordinary power

Good day! I’m here to write a short essay on Cherry Magic after briefly ranting about “(extra)ordinariness” on twitter. I’ve once written my many thoughts about this series into a fic, but I wanted to elucidate some points about the show that are important to me and point them out exactly as they are, and present my interpretation of the show through something tangible, so here I am!

Here is my thesis. Are you ready?

Adachi is ordinary, but more incredible than he gets credit for, and in the same way, so are every one of us that identify with him.

Sections

1. Introduction 2. Adachi’s Self Perception 3. Adachi’s Courage, Honesty, Confidence 4. Audience Perception and the Point of it All

Introduction

When I first started watching Cherry Magic, I felt myself immediately pulled into the show because of Kurosawa. Machida Keita is just so good at embodying charisma in his role! Together with his kindness and gentleness, Kurosawa really felt like the ideal partner someone can have. On the other hand, at least with the way the “30 year old virgin” trope initially frames it, Adachi seems to blend into the sidewalk, have no outstanding qualities, and his virginity at 30 is actually supposed to add burden to his character.

Now, after finishing the show (4 times), stewing on it a bit and trying to understand why I loved it so much, I can say that Adachi is my favorite character hands down, and based on what I’ve seen, I have a feeling that Adachi’s character is actually hugely underrated. Hence, I am here to write an essay standing up for all the ordinary ways Adachi is incredible in my eyes.

We know that over the course of the show the perfect boyfriend/undesirable loner trope is actually flipped on its head. Repeatedly, the show challenges Adachi’s assumption that he shares nothing in common with this person he perceives to be in a different league from himself. Kurosawa and Adachi share the same interests, they both sometimes feel disappointed in themselves, they both feel anxiety and fear and uncertainty, they’re both genuinely good people, and so on. The gap between ordinary and extraordinary is bridged, and I think that’s the whole point of the show as I’ll explain in the rest of my essay.

Adachi’s Self Perception

As consumers of media, we are not aware of it while immersed, but our opinions of characters are subtly influenced by the characters’ own self perceptions. This often prevents us from seeing a character clearly and developing accurate judgment about what kind of person they are.

Adachi is one good example. Adachi is always putting himself down with thoughts like “I don’t have Kurosawa’s positive traits”, “I shouldn’t try things I’m not familiar with because I’ll fail”, “I run away all the time”, the list is so extensive that by episode one, we have a good idea what kind of character trope he’s supposed to be, and along with this understanding we attribute traits of this trope onto him, whether they are accurate or not. Let’s take a look at the text for a minute. Adachi always blames himself for being a coward and not daring to take a step forward, but is that really true? 

There is a certain degree of truth to Adachi being inclined to avoid scary or difficult situations (he does, after all, run away a couple of times). But the truth is, so do most people. That’s how people are built: to feel fear, which tells us to avoid some kind of danger or potentially undesirable outcome. Adachi fears Kurosawa’s feelings, but more so than that, he fears his own feelings, he fears what would happen if he did return those feelings, and fears he will disappoint Kurosawa if they were to get together, and so on. But these are normal feelings that, when put into words, most of us can relate to, especially in a situation with so much uncertainty and so little experience to support him. Adachi may consider running from Kurosawa “chickening out”, but isn’t it normal to hesitate when getting closer to someone you know has complicated feelings for you?

In other words, Adachi has a tendency to take normal human flaws and make an identity out of them. Because he’s so attached to his identity as a loser, we see him through this colored lens.

What, then, about the continuous effort Adachi makes to to open himself up to Kurosawa, the effort to give Kurosawa a chance, the moments when he doesn’t run away, or the moments when he proactively seeks Kurosawa out? 

These are moments of courage that Adachi doesn’t credit himself for.

Adachi’s Courage, Honesty, Confidence

One of the themes of the show is that mutual love makes two people better people together. Being loved gives you confidence, having someone else behind your back makes you more courageous. Adachi himself attributes his change in character to two things: his magic, and Kurosawa, but he neglects the role played by himself in carrying out these feats.

Kurosawa gives Adachi encouragement, but I wonder if it’s possible to give someone courage, if there was none there to begin with.

When Fujisaki is in trouble, despite almost peeing his pants wanting to run, with his voice cracking Adachi would stand and defend her. When Kurosawa is in trouble over the mont blanc, Adachi steps in and reads Hashimoto’s mind to save him. Despite thinking competitions aren’t for him, Adachi applies. Instead of pushing Kurosawa away after finding out his feelings, he works up the courage to get closer instead and eventually the courage to confess, despite how extremely difficult it is for him.

We also can’t forget about the times Adachi’s courage to be honest has saved lives. When the aromantic Fujisaki is troubled by her mother’s expectations to date, Adachi speaks up to encourage her that she’s doing well exactly as she is. When Rokkaku has the thought that he’s lame for giving up dancing, Adachi speaks up to encourage him that there’s nothing wrong with changing one’s dream. when Tsuge is having a hard time believing in himself and his chances with Minato, Adachi speaks up honestly about his relationship with Kurosawa to encourage Tsuge that he can do it too. 

And, of course, the start of it all, years ago when Adachi recognized Kurosawa for the person he is and not the appearance he was born with, and made Kurosawa feel seen and fall in love with himーspeaking his mind honestly there was an act of courage.

Not only courage, but Adachi also has a degree of confidence in himself that easily gets overlooked. Like an average person, Adachi doesn’t hate himself, but it’s hard to say he loves himself either. Still, when he hears Kurosawa’s thoughts of praise when getting the scarf wrapped around him, his reaction is not to dispute any of the praise that is being said, but to feel overwhelmed that someone else is seeing him for the first time. That means that he does see his own strong points, his attentiveness, his care, his hard work and self-sacrificing nature. To a degree, I imagine, these traits must also be important to him, something he puts effort into expressing instead of something that just happens to be. 

Adachi has his own life philosophy, as we can see from him telling Fujisaki about the romance part of it. He tries to live in a way authentic to himself and what makes him happy. This is why I believe that Adachi tries his best to be a person that he himself can approve of, and why being acknowledged for his efforts feels so satisfying. To this extent, Adachi must have some confidence in the way he has chosen to live. 

He has confidence, has dignity, in his way of living without romance.

He doesn’t let Urabe push him around when it comes to his personal choices. He doesn’t succumb to societal expectations, and that shit is heavy in Japan.

And so, with all these instances compiled, is it really fair to say that Adachi is the kind of loser he paints himself to be? He’s got a comfortable amount of confidence, is able to speak up to help others, and has acted out of courage many timesーso what kind of a person is he, really?

Audience Perception and the Point of it All

Something I’ve noticed here and there, and just always assumed (based on how gender works between female audiences and BL tropes) is that a lot of viewers, especially women, tend to identify with Adachi much more than they do with  Kurosawa. One, given the demographics of BL drama viewers, this makes sense. Two, all demographics aside, it still makes sense, because the average person probably relates to the ordinary Adachi more than they would to the extraordinary Kurosawa. Kurosawa tends to be seen as the prize, the “what have I done to deserve him”, and Adachi is seen as the undeserving self, lucky as if he had won the lottery. 

I hope that after my previous sections you’ve come to appreciate the strength behind ordinariness a little more, and that the gap between Kurosawa and Adachi feels a little smaller. Actually, the whole point of me writing this essay is that I wish more people loved the ordinariness that can be found in Adachi and within themselves!!

And this strength isn’t dependent on magic. In fact, I would argue that the message being sent by the show is that none of us need magic to become the person we want to be. All it takes sometimes is for someone else to believe in us, and most importantly, for us to see that there is no real distinction between us and those people we perceive to be extraordinary and alien from ourselves. Adachi was able to believe in himself because he saw the vulnerability in Kurosawa, realized they are both human all the same, and started to believe that maybe he can possess the same positive traits too. It wouldn’t be too far to say that the entire story revolves around empathyーthe magic of being able to read someone’s mind is the power of empathy...but that would be an essay for another day.

Think about it another way. If the storytelling in this series is really as good as I think it is, then The Magic doesn’t happen arbitrarily, it comes and goes with a purpose. I think of The Magic as a gentle guiding hand. It’s a hand that believes in the power of empathy, in this case, empathy that is shared between a romantic relationship. Assuming virgins like Adachi have never experienced this wonderful feeling because of a difficulty with connecting and communicating (I am rolling my eyes a bit, yes), The Magic allows them to get a taste of this connection by giving them access to knowledge about other people that they would otherwise have to work to obtain themselves. And, if losing one’s virginity is any indication of having successfully connected with someone (XD?), then The Magic calls it a day and leaves because its work is done.

Its work isn’t to make relationships work for you. It’s to make you realize you can make relationships work. Isn’t the point of having magic in the show so that Adachi knows, with or without it, he can be this powerful, because he’s already experienced what it’s like? Adachi may have visualized these new and scary situations going poorly for himself, and his perception of himself makes it difficult to believe something like being loved is possible, but when he has experienced it in his own body thanks to magic, then it feels real, then it feels achievable. 

The magic vanishes, yet rather than disempowering Adachi, it leaves him with a craving for more, as if it’s introduced a whole new world of possibilities to him. It makes him want to “ask for the moon”, to aspire towards things that had felt impossible for him before. Having magic has taught him that he can read the hearts of others and get closer to them if he just had the courage to try. 

And that’s what I think we should all take out of this series, on top of a wonderful love story. That by opening ourselves up to understanding others better, we start to see the rigid divisions between self and other dissolve, and things that we feel we lack that others have start to feel a little bit less unobtainable. As a side effect, we soften our hearts towards others too, because we feel their joy and their pain, and in so doing we find ourselves with more and deeper connections than we’ve ever had before.

In the end, we are all ordinary. You are more powerful than you think, if you believe in yourself, if you see the ordinary power you possess, if you see yourself for who you really are.

///

Thanks for reading my essay! If you enjoyed it, I’d appreciate any kind of engagement. I’d love to hear your thoughts or further this discussion if anything sparks an idea. If you’ve never seen Cherry Magic (!) I highly suggest watching it, or if you have, why not watch it again!

Have a great day!

[twistedtummies2]

Top 10 Versions of the Wicked Witch of the West

I’ve been in an Ozian mood recently - mostly due to discovering a new, very fun illustrated edition of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” - and, being the villain-loving sort that I am, this had me pondering a classic favorite of mine: The Wicked Witch of the West. In the Oz books, the infamous Wicked Witch is actually a fairly minor antagonist: she only appears in the first book, and in that story, she’s more of an obstacle for our heroes to conquer than a true main villain. However, ever since the famous 1939 film, the Witch has become recognized as one of the quintessential villains of childhood and fantasy.

The Oz books have been reimagined and spun-off from numerous times, and due to the iconography of the character, the Wicked Witch is usually featured prominently in many of these incarnations. However, for as many Wicked Witches as there are, only a few are really great, in my opinion. (On that note, I hear the series “Supernatural” did a bang-up job with the Witch, but since I haven’t seen that version, I can’t comment. Sorry, Supernatural fans.) I thought it would be fun to do a quick rundown of some incarnations I enjoy, just for the sheer sake of it. So, here’s a Terrible Ten for you, my pretties! These are My Favorite Versions of the Wicked Witch of the West!

10. Eliza Swenson, from Dorothy and the Witches of Oz.

This 2011 miniseries is…not too great, to be honest. It has a lot of interesting concepts, some great character designs, and even some really solid performances from several of the actors, but its intensely cheap budget and somewhat convoluted storyline don’t really help it any. Inspired more by the books than the 1939 film (although, as you can plainly see, the Witch’s visuals are definitely more in line with the latter), the plot focuses on an adult Dorothy - who has lost many of her memories of Oz - having to stop the evil machinations of the Witch, who has mysteriously returned and is seeking the power of a magic book that will allow her to conquer not only Oz, not only Earth, but apparently the entire universe. Swenson plays the Witch, who masquerades for much of the film as a normal Earth woman called “Billie Westbrook” before eventually revealing her true form. Swenson does a great job differentiating between the two roles; her performance as the Witch is wonderfully creepy (if at times rather hammy), and as Billie Westbrook, she does a decent job at hiding her inner evil and even acts as a friend to Dorothy. For all the faults this miniseries has - and it has PLENTY - this is an underrated interpretation of the character, in my opinion.

9. The LEGO Version.

Obviously not a very serious portrayal of the Witch, but certainly a fun one. This version became prominent in 2017, appearing in the video game “LEGO Dimensions,” and in - of all things - The Lego Batman Movie. (I can safely say THAT’S not something I anticipated.) In the former, she was voiced by Courtenay Taylor; in the latter, she’s played by Riki Lindhome. Admittedly, the Witch’s role in both of these is pretty small: in the former, she appears as the antagonist in the Wizard of Oz level of the game, where players - acting as Batman, Gandalf, and Wildstyle - have to do battle with her twice on their journey to try and find the Ruby Slippers, which apparently are part of a grand Kingdom-Hearts-esque puzzle. After defeating the Witch, players then can get a chance to play as her, using special abilities unique to her minifigure. In the Lego Batman Movie, meanwhile, the Witch is really just a cameo: one of a horde of famous villains who band together with the Joker after being released from the Phantom Zone, causing chaos in Gotham City. Again, not a very serious version, and she doesn’t exactly DO a whole lot…but I just really like this one for some reason. Maybe it’s the fact it’s LEGO doing it, or maybe it’s the fact that SHE FIGHTS BATMAN AND GANDALF. Probably a bit of both. :P

8. Lina, from A Wicked Christmas Carol.

I was actually in a production of this play, and while I won’t go into how I feel about said show when I was in it, what I WILL say is that the main thing that astonished and pleased me most about this reimagining was its script. “A Wicked Christmas Carol” is, as the title implies, a reinvention of the classic Dickens’ story “A Christmas Carol,” essentially crossed over with the Wizard of Oz. The Wicked Witch - here named Lina - is our Scrooge substitute, and the story not only unveils how she became so wicked, but offers the Witch a chance for redemption. The play is interesting in how it combines various elements of past Ozian interpretations - including the original books, the 1939 film, and the musical version of “Wicked” - all while managing things in a way that is totally unique to its own version. Admittedly, I feel a couple of the Christmas Carol elements are slightly forced, but it does a great job at telling this story and doesn’t dumb down some elements you’d expect it to. The only reason this version is so low is because, since this is a stage play, I feel a lot of the strength of this Witch has to come from the performer…and while I think the actress who played the Witch in the version I was in did a good job, I don’t think it’s fair to credit her, for a lot of reasons (one being obvious bias), and I don’t know how other performers would stack up in comparison. I can really ONLY judge the script, and as plays are really things meant to be PERFORMED, not simply read, I don’t feel comfortable ranking this rendition any higher.

7. Tress MacNeille, from The Wizard of Oz: The Animated Series.

In the early 1990s, DiC - the studio behind such shows as “Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego?” and “Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century” - produced an animated series based on the 1939 “Wizard of Oz” movie. The story had Dorothy returning to Oz to save the Emerald City from the tyranny of the Wicked Witch, who was resurrected by her Flying Monkeys. Even though she and her allies succeeded in chasing the Witch out of the Emerald City by the end of the first two-part story arc, the show didn’t end there, as the Witch managed to escape to other parts of Oz, and our heroes had to continue to deal with her many tricks and traps. Tress MacNeille voiced the Witch in the TV show; I used to watch the aforementioned two-parter a ton of times when I was a little kid, and in recent years I took time to revisit it and look into more of the show. On the whole, the show isn’t bad, but it has some flaws; the Witch, for example, lacks the real menace she had in the original film. Still, it was a lot of fun to see further adventures with these characters, and the Witch was still a fun villainess. So I guess it’s worth a mention.

6. Kathleen Robertson, from Tin Man.

“Tin Man” was the first of a group of miniseries produced by SyFy based on classic fantasy stories. The other two that followed were “alice” (spelled just like that) and “Neverland”: the former was a sequel and reimagining of the Lewis Carroll “Alice” stories, while the latter was a prequel to “Peter Pan” with a sci-fi sort of flair. In my opinion, the three miniseries got better with each installment, with Neverland being the best…and, unfortunately, Tin Man being the worst. Unlike the other stories, “Tin Man” is a pretty direct reimagining and adaptation of the original “Wizard of Oz.” It has a lot of great concepts, and I remember thinking it was really cool when I was younger…but upon revisiting it, the piece has a LOT of problems. One thing I do still enjoy about this version, however, is the Wicked Witch character. Named Azkadellia and played by Kathleen Roberts, this wily villainess turns out to be the long lost sister of D.G. (our Dorothy for this outing), whose soul has been possessed and corrupted by the ghost of a mysterious, demonic being called “The Witch of the Dark.” Starting off as a cruel and dastardly character, Azkadellia becomes more and more sympathetic as the story goes on, and the truth of her past is revealed. Eventually, she teams up with D.G. to battle with her own (literal) inner demon, and the two work together to save Oz. What a twist!

5. Rebecca Mader, from Once Upon a Time.

Another case of the Witch being related to some interesting characters: in “Once Upon a Time,” the Witch - called Zelena - is the long-lost half-sister of the Evil Queen (Regina). Both, in turn, are the daughters of the Queen of Hearts (Cora). Zelena, it’s revealed, was abandoned by their mother and raised in poverty, but eventually she discovered her true heritage. Even though Cora is by no means a great mother, Zelena still feels slighted that she never got the privileges, power, and general attention that Regina got. Having SOMETHING, she feels, was better than having NOTHING. As a result, she goes on a quest of revenge to humiliate and destroy her sister. I’ve always had mixed feelings about Zelena. For one thing, Rebecca Mader’s crisp, posh English dialect sort of bothers me. I know it’s her natural voice, but for me, something that always made the Oz stories interesting was how fundamentally American they were; that’s actually something most people point out being great about them. They are, in essence, the American fairy-tale universe. It’s so odd hearing that English dialect from the Wicked Witch of the West as a result, at least for me. This, of course, is just a niggling point; there are other issues, and while none of them are HUGE problems, it all sort of stacks up. Over time, however, I have and did warm up more to this take on the Witch…just not enough to rank any higher.

4. Mila Kunis, from Oz the Great and Powerful.

This prequel to the Oz stories seems to be really, REALLY hated by a lot of people, and one of the biggest complaints a lot of people have is the Wicked Witch, as played by Mila Kunis. So…yeah…obviously I don’t agree with those complaints. At least not entirely. The movie, as a whole, I think is okay; not brilliant, but not terrible. As for the Wicked Witch…(takes a deep breath)...I know a lot of people really dislike this Witch. They hate the performance, they hate the character design, they generally just feel this was a giant misfire. But again, I must respectfully disagree. Kunis’ Witch - called Theodora - is a guilty pleasure for me. While there are a couple of scenes where her screaming feels awkward, it literally is just a couple for me. Most of the time, I think she’s an effective portrayal of the character, and I actually unironically really, REALLY like the visual design. This is a good idea of what I would imagine a younger Wicked Witch of the West looking like. Honestly, my big problem with Kunis is everything BEFORE she becomes the Witch; her backstory comes across as rushed to me, and her motivations for becoming evil are not necessarily the strongest. This is probably my most controversial opinion of the bunch, and if you dislike this Witch, I won’t blame you - I can understand why people would - but it’s an unpopular opinion I am sticking to.

3. Mary J. Blige, from The Wiz Live!

“The Wiz” was a modernized retelling of “The Wizard of Oz” developed in the 1970s, most famous for featuring an All-African-American Cast. It was later made into an (awful) movie, and then - more recently - into probably the best of NBC’s “Broadway Live” television specials. Of these specials, I would argue that “The Wiz” is the best of the bunch, and considering for years I really only had the terrible movie to compare things to, it was a joy to see a newer and more smartly-made rendition of this musical. The show is based much more on the book than the 1939 feature (intentionally so), so the role of the Witch - called Evillene - is a bit smaller than in most incarnations…but with precious little time, a fine actress can turn the part into silver and rubies. In the “Live” production, Evillene is played with zeal and gusto by Mary J. Blige; I will throw a bone to the original Witch, Mabel King; she played the character in both the original Broadway show and the aforementioned movie. King was great, but I could really only judge her film appearance, and the terribleness of the movie meant that she didn’t get very many favors done for her. Blige is just as grand, and in a better production overall, so I decided to give her the special point here. Sorry, Miss King: I hope you don’t mind the bad news. (If you know what I’m referencing when I say that…good.)

2. Elphaba Thropp, from Wicked.

Now, I’m specifically talking the musical version of “Wicked,” although Gregory Maguire’s original book that inspired the play is pretty good, too. “Wicked” is considered to be the start of many pieces of fiction lately reimagining various classic villains either as misunderstood heroes or anti-heroes (or at least as more sympathetic antagonists). You can probably blame “Wicked” for the existence of things like “Moriarty the Patriot” and “Heartless,” but you can also definitely blame it for things like “Maleficent,” so obviously this was a mixed blessing. Regardless, “Wicked” famously tells the story of how the Wicked Witch of the West came to be the character we all know, with the premise being that she really wasn’t as evil as we all believed. In Maguire’s book, Elphaba truly does become a Wicked Witch: she’s a sympathetic villain protagonist, but she’s still the bad guy in her own story. The fact there are even worse people does not excuse her vile actions. In the musical, however, Elphaba is softened to be misunderstood hero, who only becomes “wicked” towards the end of the story…and even then, she’s really an anti-hero in the final parts of the play. Yes, she’s doing bad things, and quite possibly has lost a few marbles, but it’s pretty hard to hate her by that point. Both are valid approaches, but I personally find the musical to be a much more fun ride, keeping a lot of the concepts Maguire had in his much darker, more adult-oriented book but reworking them in a way that appeals to a more widespread audience. It’s a bit like looking at Disney’s “Hunchback of Notre Dame” versus the original story by Victor Hugo; both have a lot of the same concepts and elements, and both handle themselves very well, but one has to make changes to appeal to more people. Many actresses have played Elphaba over the years, and whichever you prefer - in terms of both the performers and the medium, between the play and the book - it would be blasphemy not to give this high marks.

1. Margaret Hamilton, from the 1939 film.

It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that the OG non-book Witch takes the top spot. The simple fact is that none of these other Wicked Witches would exist if it weren’t for Margaret Hamilton’s incredible, powerful, deliciously nasty performance as this crooked old crone in the classic MGM picture. It’s a performance that I often feel doesn’t get the credit it deserves: documentaries on the making of the Wizard of Oz usually seem to give Hamilton’s Witch the short end of the stick when discussing the cast, and nowadays, the popularity of things like “Wicked” has sort of superceded the truly impressive work Hamilton does. What makes Hamilton’s Witch so great in the original film is not only that her role is greatly expanded from the book, which helps the character a great deal, but also that she takes the role perfectly seriously. As much as we all mock the iconography of the Witch Hamilton started, when you watch the original movie, there’s nothing silly or jokey about her. She’s treated as a real threat, and the actress delivers that in spades. It’s not for nothing that the Witch was, and for some folks still is, considered one of the most nightmarish villains in the history of cinema. As vile and volatile as Hamilton’s Witch is, however, there’s a sort of hidden humanity under the surface. In an interview, Hamilton once said that, in a way, the Witch was a sad character: “She’s very unhappy because she NEVER gets what she wants! You know, most of us get SOMETHING along the line, but as far as we know, that Witch just NEVER got what she wanted…and I just think that, sometimes, we think she’s just mean and a very bad person, but actually, you have to think about her point of view. It wasn’t as happy a time as she wanted it to be.” Even the Wickedest Witch of them all understands. And I think that’s perhaps the reason why people latched onto the character and she became so powerful, and why people have continued to develop and twist the character in so many interesting ways over the years. And while performers like Mila Kunis and the various actors who have played Elphaba have all brought something uniquely their own to the part over the years, they can’t help but call Hamilton back to mind, often intentionally so. I don’t know if the Witch would have wanted to be here at the top of my list…but if so, I guess she finally got something.

[stellasolaris]

This is an opportunistic ask to help add to your Tecna content. I’ve always been curious to hear the perspective of a longtime fan of the show…has the fandom opinion of Tecna changed over time like Stella/Riven? Or have people always been indifferent or meh with her? What do you think are her most underrated qualities (I realize there’s a lot to list, so say top 3)? -lambofzenith

Thanks for the ask, lambofzenith! From what I remember, Tecna has always been quite underrated. I cannot say for sure if the fandom's opinion of her has changed over time because I don't exactly know what people thought or thinks of her now. I haven't been consistently in the fandom as some other fans, so take this with a grain of salt. 

As for your last question, I’m going to list the qualities below to avoid turning this into an essay. Not sure if these are her most underrated qualities, but I haven’t seen anyone talk about these in-depth, so I thought I’d take the opportunity to do so.

Emotional introspection. Tecna is often viewed as the “nerd” and someone who relies on cold, hard facts and occasionally takes things too literally. These are not entirely misplaced observations, but it’s important to remember that there’s more to her character than her smarts. For starters, she isn’t aloof or completely hopeless when it comes to expressing her emotions or gauging other people’s reactions.

In 2.22, she shows remorse and apologizes to Timmy for judging him too harshly. In 1.21, she was the only one who cried when Bloom and Stella were sent to the mission to CT. In 1.11, she forced herself to remain calm and not get angry at Flora. In 1.02, she apologized to Bloom after laughing at her old, prehistoric cell phone because she thought her reaction, in hindsight, was inappropriate. Throughout the series, her perception of logic and reality gets challenged, and she gets more in tune with her emotions, so much so that she has zero hesitation when she’s asked to choose between logic and feelings in 3.22.

I’m not saying she's an expert at reading social cues. However, while she sometimes needs things to be spelled out for her (e.g. Tecna takes the term “voice of nature” literally in 1.04 and doesn’t realize that Stella is using humor as a coping mechanism in 3.25), she also has moments where she catches her “social blunders” and misjudgments.

Sass. Maybe not the most profound characteristic trait to add to the list, but one of the reasons I enjoy her character is her sass. The scene where she scoffs at Riven for insulting Timmy and later schools him in 1.07 will always live rent-free in my mind. I enjoy her puns and sarcastic responses as well and am glad she wasn’t written to be the stereotypically shy and quiet “smart” character.

Boldness. Tecna is very matter-of-fact and daring, not only in speech but also in action. She has a bit of a habit of running headlong into danger—or rather, not analyzed to the fullest extent⁠—and therein lies a stark difference between her and Timmy.

When Timmy decides to let the Trix go in 2.10, Tecna takes it badly, disappointed that he chooses surrender over resistance, and calls him a coward. It’s a small scene but very telling of the temperamental differences between Timmy and Tecna. In Timmy’s case, he is more grounded and patient and takes the time to think things through, whereas Tecna has a quality of emotionality (and overconfidence) that leads her to be a little reckless in her boldness even after she has assessed the parameters of a situation (2.09, 3.13). It matters that she needs the first three seasons to completely understand the consequences of her actions and what they will cost her and to fully reflect on the said consequences through dual lenses of logic and emotion. 

[pandaponderart]

Underrated Anime Part 1:

Hello my fellow Weebs, I’m back for some more Anime blogging, this time to talk about so not so well known ones. Some that have got forgotten with time, some that new Anime fans have maybe never heard of and the ones that I feel deserve more love and recognition. I’ve been watching Anime for about 13 years so I’ve seen a lot so this will be in at least 3 parts, so hopefully you like this and look forward to more. Til then enjoy, hope you can find some new anime you’ve never heard of thanks for reading and look forward to part 2!.

1. Azumanga Daioh(2002)

Starting off with an older Anime, and one of the best and earlier comedy, slice of life Anime that paved the way for a lot of other Anime in the same genre like Nichijou and Daily Lives of High School Boys. Off the wall and highly unrealistic, this comedy is completely over the top in the best way possible. it’s old but gold and should be crowned as one of the best comedy Anime to exist.

With the most lovable cast, you have Chiyo the 5th grader who is so crazy smart she gets placed in a high school class, then there’s Osaka, who’a real name is Ayumu Kasuga who’s named that because she‘s from Osaka. Osaka isn’t the smartest and neither is her other classmate Tomo Takino who will do anything to avoid studying. Then to balance out the cast is Koyomi Mizuhara aka Yomi, the smart one who keeps everyone in line and Kagura the sporty one. Then of course can’t forget to mention the teachers Yukari Sensei who is anything but the normal responsible teacher and to balance her out Minamo Sensei the responsible one. There’s no real plot with Azumanga Daioh but there’s not meant to be it’s just an over the top comedy slice of life, with moments that will make you laugh from your gut. It’s all about the characters and the ridiculous situations their put in and each one is a lovable idiot that really drives the show. Give this one a shot if you want a show that will put a big smile on your face the whole way through.

2. Eden of The East (2009)

Another older Anime, not everything on this list will be older Anime but there’s so many good ones like this!. Eden of The East is an action, mystery with elements of romance with one of the most unique stories I’ve seen in Anime. It’s a short watch being only eleven episodes with two movies following after which I recommend watching because they continue the story. I’m really surprised not more people know or talk about this show but it need to be talked about more!.

With one of the funniest and most bizarre starts to an Anime, our lead charcter Saki is on a trip to Washington D.C, when she gets in trouble for throwing a coin in the White House’s fountain she’s saved by a naked man who claims to be a terrorist. Not only is this mysterious man naked and claims to be a terrorist, he also has amnesia and is carrying a phone with 8.2 million dollars. Saki befriends this strange man and throughout the story they try to uncover more of his past, his involvment in an incident called careless monday and a dangerous death game with other players. They must also spend all of the money as instucted by the mysterious voice in the phone Juiz as well as try to save the world.

3. R.O.D The TV( 2003)

Ok I know I said this list wouldn’t only be older Anime but I guess the older Anime just has my heart and this one has a special place in mine. One of my all time favorites and one of the earliest Anime I saw and it still holds up to me til this day. It is hands down probably the most underrated show on this entire list and if you only watch one of these Anime please make it this one. The story is completely original, the characters are complex and endearing, there’s action, heartwarming moments, comedy and mystery, I wish there was more Anime like it, it deserves to be a classic.

It‘s a one of a kind show about the paper sisters Michelle, the oldest bubbly bookworm, Maggie the seemingly intimidating quiet giant. Then you have the youngest sister Anita who unlike her sisters hates books, she’s a bit rough around the edges but loves her sisters. Although they aren’t actually sisters they have a detective agency to help find lost books to help pay for rent while also doing odd jobs like being body guards. Their first assignment is to protect the author, Nenene Sumiragawa who is being threatened to be killed at her book signing. The paper sisters aren’t called that just because of their love of books, they can turn paper into weapons and whatever else they please, but each having their speciality. Nenene finds out they‘re paper sisters just like her friend who ‘s missing, Yomiko Readman and asks them for help finding her. They try to help Nenene find her friend, while solving other cases and saving the world with the power of paper.

4. Baccano(2007)

Probably the most well known but also I think one of the most under appreciated Anime, from Durarara’s creator, Baccano. I feel like most newer Anime fans won’t know this one and although it’s a beloved series by many, I still feel it’s underrated. Also another bias opinion shocker, it’s one of my absolute favorites but that’s why it’s here. It’s once again a shorter anime with only 13 episodes but it somehow manages to combine all of the storylines cohesively, it’s a wild ride full of mystery, murder, and magic that will keep you on board the entire time trying to piece everything together. Also warning it jumps around a lot so make sure to pay attention everything pieces together!.

Based in the 1930’s in the prohibition era you have several stories involving different characters going on but they‘re all connected to one thing the transcontinental train, the flying pussyfoot. Yes that’s actually the name of the train, why, still no idea but all these characters from different walks of life end up here somehow. Now to introduce some of these crazy characters, first off the goofy thieves in love Isaac and Miria, who aren’t the brightest but can steal just about anything. Lad Russo the sadistic hit man who loves to see people die, including fantasizing about killing his fiancé one day. Then you have the ones involved in gangs, all In different ones, but nonetheless involved in some sort of crime. First there’s Firo, the youngest of the Martello family and one of the immortals in the show, then there’s Jacuzzi Splot and his partner Nice, Jacuzzi is a big wimp and crybaby but will protect his loved ones with all he’s got and Nice is a bomb expert and his childhood food. Those are some of the main characters it’s such a large cast it’s hard to name and explain them all. This one is a must watch especially if you liked Durarara, jump on the hype train of this wild show.

5. Black Cat (2005)

Now quick disclaimer before I begin talking about this one, I haven’t watched this in years so it may not hold up as well as I’m remembering but when I watched it I really enjoyed it so that’s why it’s here. This was one of the earlier Anime I watched I’m pretty sure my friend showed me it but it caught my interest from the beginning. It’s not the most groundbreaking show to exist and I’ve heard that the manga is apparently better but that’s for almost every show. It’s got cool action, funny moments and a great cast of characters, plus not gonna lie I had a crush on train when I was younger. its just a fun show and definitely worth giving a watch!

Train Heartnett is an infamous cold blooded assassin who works for the organization Chronos, and because of his lack of empathy for killing he’s named Black Cat. But after a chance encounter with a bou hunter named Saya Minatsuki, they become friends and Train decided he wants to leave Chronos to pursue an honest living as a bounty Hunter. However chronos and particular his fellow member Creed Diskenth are not pleased with this and try to get Train to rejoin Chronos. Along the way Train teams up with fellow bounty hunter on the brink of broke Sven, the bio mech weapon and little girl Eve and master thief and seductress Rinslet Walker. Together they try to escape from Chronos and get enough money for their next .

6. Arakawa Under The Bridge(2010)

Where do I begin with this one first off, this is one of the weirdest Anime I’ve ever seen but just like Azumanga Daioh that’s what make it so good. Beautifully animated by Studio Shaft with some of the most colorful and visually appealing animation I’ve seen, it’s pure eye candy. it’s equally as strange as it is hilarious and it’s just a fun time that’s not meant to be taken seriously. So if you want a good laugh and something thats truly one of a kind in story and characters give this crazy show a shot.

The show begins with one of our main characters Kou Ichinomiya getting stuck by his underwear on a bridge by some kids, he falls into the river and is saved by a mysterious girl. Kou is the son of a wealthy businessman and his life motto is to not be indebted to anyone, so when he’s saved by this girl he asks what he can do. He finds out that her name is Nino and what she wants is to fall in love, so she asks Kou to be her boyfriend. At first Nino seems like a regular girl but she claims to be an alien from Venus and lives in a box under the bridge, not wanting to be in debt Kou agrees and begins living under the bridge with Nino. However Nino isn’t the only one who lives under the bridge there are many other strange characters like hoshi, the aspiring musician who wears a star on his head, and the captain who’s a human in a kappa suit. I highly suggest watching this strange sci-fi romantic comedy for something different and fun to watch.

7. 91 Days (2016)

The newest Anime on this list so far, see I told you it wouldn’t be only old ones!, this is also the darkest Anime on this list so far. This has been highly overlooked since it’s release in 2016, it reminds me of baccano and in parts like death note. If you like mafia movies or just a dark gritty story with some light hearted moments, it s short show but nothing is rushed and it’s solid from front to back and keeps you on the edge of your seat.

Just like Baccano, 91 Days takes place in the prohibition era in a town called Lawless where crime is rampant and illegal alcohol sales are thriving. In this town our protagonist Aviicio‘s family is killed by one of the mafia families, The Vanetti Family. He receives a mysterious anonymous letter telling him to return to lawless to infiltrate The Vanetti Family. He tries to befriend the families son Nero, to find an opportunity for revenge, the story keep you constantly guessing if they’ve truly become friends or if he’ll kill him. Please watch this wonderful mafia crime drama of friend vs foe.

8. Yamada Kun and The Seven Witches (2015)

This is one of the ones that I still really want to read the manga for because I just couldn’t get enough of it! i’m still hoping for a sequel one day! The premise of body swapping has been done many times in Anime and cinema as a whole but this one adds a unique enough of a twist to keep it fresh and interesting. I looked forward to watching this weekly each week meeting a learning about each new witch and learning what power they had.

Ryuu Yamada is a high school delinquent who wants a fresh start at a new school, despite the intention to start with a clean slate he soon falls into old habits of laziness and getting into fights. One day he trips on the stairs which leads to an accidental kiss with fellow student Urarara Shiraishi which causes them to switch bodies. Another student Toranosuke Miyamura learns that they can switch bodies and recruits them to his Supernatural Studies club. There they learn about the other seven witches that all have different powers

9. Arslan Senki (2015-2016)

The second to last of the list comes from the creator of my all time favorite Anime Fullmetal Alchemist, while it’s a very different series and not quite as good as FMA it’s still deserves a spot on this list and deserves your time. It’s hard not to compare it to FMA but it really is it’s own thing, and it actually came out before Fullmetal, it’s a historical drama about war and strategy and a character growing into his potential. Just as Hiromu Arakawa is known for there’s still some comedic moments and some great character development and a well done story, Plus if you like this there’s two seasons so there more to enjoy.

Ok I promise from this point forward I won‘t say anything more about Fullmetal Alchemist this is about Arslan Senki, here’s the story. In the year 320 the Kingdom of Pars is at war with the neighboring kingdom Lusitania. Pars is ruled by the ruthless king Andrangoras III who has a son who’s the complete opposite of him Arslan. Although he doesn’t know how to fight Arslan tries to prove his worth by joining the battle, but things take a turn for the worst when one of the kings officials betrays him. The once prosperous Kingdom of Pars is seized, and since Arslan is the kings son he must flee to avoid capture. So he sets off with his loyal bodyguard Daryun to find allies to help take back the kingdom. Knowing that Arslan is still alive he is still faced with pursuers from other kingdoms and the head of the Lusitania army, a mysterious man with a silver mask who knows a secret that could jeopardize Arslan‘s succession to the throne. Arslan is a gentle, kind person that doesn’t enjoy fighting, he must learn to fight and protect himself and gain the courage to lead an army to regain his home.

10. Shingeki No Bahamut: Genesis (Rage of Bahamut) (2014)

Leaving one of the best for last, not to be confused with the popular series with a similar name Shingeki no Kyojin(Attack on Titan) this show is just as good. One of the first shows from one of my favorite Anime studios, Studio Mappa. I had low expectations when I heard this was a card game adaptation from a new anime studio but I decided to check it out despite that and it was the best decision. This has all the elements of a great anime, the beautiful animation, the unique characters and the compelling story and all the cool action scenes are just a plus. There is a second season too but I’ll leave that for another time, ok time to stop gushing about this wonderful show, time for the story!.

Years and years ago the ancient powerful dragon Bahamut reeked havoc on Mistarcia, a land where gods and demons lived harmoniously with humans. The gods and demons manage to seal away Bahamut with the god key and agree to split it to keep him sealed. Now that the the peace has been restored we meet the main characters and one of my favorites the orange Afro haired bounty hunters Favaro Leone. Favaro is constantly on the run from his adversary and fellow bounty hunter Kaiser Lidfard who‘s main purpose in life is to get revenge on him. One day both of their lives are thrown into chaos when they meet the mysterious girl Amira who holds half of the god key sealing Bahamut and wants help reaching the land of Helheim. I also can’t forget to mention my other favorite character and the fourth member of this unlikely crew Rita the zombie necromancer little girl she is just the definition of cool. Then there’s the characters that want to steal the god key the demon Azazel and the knight Jean D’Arc who are constantly in the characters way but you’ll find out more about them in the show. These unlikely heroes must face the threat of the battle of gods and demons, the pursuers of the god key and incoming threat of Bahamut awakening.