#it's like they took an episode from a better version of season two and placed it into the version we got

[swagging-back-to]

season 2 episode 7 is the best episode in the entire series and i will fight balls to the walls over it

[fabseg-creator]

My review about Miraculous World: London, At the Edge of Time

I publish my second review about a Miraculous episode. It's Miraculous World: London, At the Edge of Time.

The Paris review here

This post contains spoilers.

And now, time to read:

Plot:

This happens during the ellipse from Re-creation (5.26) between the Gabriel's suicide wish and before the Pool party scene.

It begins in the Lila/Cerise's lair (the Plage in the Catacombs). Cerise, who made an auto-akumatization into Time Stalker, comes back to the place in front of a worried and afraid Nooroo (still captive). She travels to the past (some hours ago) in the moment of the final battle (Bug Noire VS Monarch) for finding out who Ladybug is. She removes her akuma (making her lose her memories from her former akumatization) and reads her book where the Ladybug's identity is written (despite the Noiroo's objection). She reakumatizes herself into a ghost super-vilain named Spectral Looter for steal the Ladybug and Cat miraculouses (+the configured miraculouses) to Marinette. The wish Cerise makes affects the Reality AND the Time itself.

Three Bunnyx (Teen Alix, Adult Alix and Grandma Alix) are playing together a futuristic version of Chess in the Burrow when suddenly the two Future Alix disappear and the portals around Teen Bunnyx disappear too. She discovers someone is making a wish with the Ladybug and Cat Miraculouses (at the Marinette's horrification from this corrupted timeline).

I've learned about new elements in the Miraculous lore by watching the special:

This Special is both the Season 5 real finale and the Season 6 prologue.

The main protagonists are in fact Ladybug and (Teen/Present) Bunnyx (Cat Noir only appears in the ending scene).

Cerise/"Iris" is akumatized herself into Time Stalker. She used her phone for insert her akuma. Her superpowers are: to teleport herself some hours ago in the past and return to the moment when she begun her travel. She has been very silent (nearly no Clara Soares' lines 🇨🇵 under this character until the end part).

Nathalie knows Marinette is Ladybug. Teen Alix already knows Matinette is Ladybug, Adrien is Cat Noir and Gabriel was Hawk Moth/Monarch. Ladybug/Bug Noire is aware Kagami knows her friend's identity (Representation retcon).

Bug Noire (thanks to a revived Nathalie's words) knows Gabriel and Tomoe had planned together the Operation: Perfect Alliance (planned on Representation, launched in Conformation/Re-creation) when nearly everybody in the world was turned into a Miraculized army for track down Ladybug and Cat Noir.

When the wish is finished, the living beings still exist (except Gabriel and Émilie who are definitely dead) and Nathalie is healed (I think Gimmi's reality rewrite power is a bad joke from Thomas Astruc). The wish has revived ex-Mayura but there are two people who disappeared in exchange (there must be another person who is revived).

Marinette is remorseful about Gabriel's self-erasure.

Bug Noire lies to Adrien by telling him: "Gabriel, Nathalie and Tomoe were Monarch's hostages. The Butterfly villain forced them to create Alliance rings, to configurate the stolen Miraculouses and finally to launch the Miraculized worldwide crisis. Bug Noire wasn't able to defeat Monarch but Gabriel had ultimately confronted the villain and made the Wish to heal the superheroin and Nathalie in exchange of his and Monarch's lives"

Kagami knows Tomoe is Monarch's accomplice. But she doesn't denounce her. Bug Noire could expose Tomoe but she doesn't too. It looks like Tomoe is the Kagami's only family link. Kagami must clear the things with her in her own way (I guess the better explanations will come on the next Special: Tokyo)

When Cerise akumatizes herself into Time Stalker (off-screen), it means Cerise has been initially unable to find Ladybug was Marinette when the living chameleon girl took the Butterfly miraculous (which was fallen to the water).

Cerise's second (auto-)akumatization is Spectral Looter. Her superpower is: the intangibility. She can pass through the walls and Chronobug doesn't manage to hit her. Under this form, she is still mute. (If the two akumatized forms spoke, Chronobug could recognizes her voice's enemy as "Lila Rossi"'s)

Both Adult Bunnyx and Grandma Bunnyx (the two future Bunnyx) disappear because of the Cerise's wish from the corrupted timeline. They don't spoil to their mini-her how the Teen Bunnyx will save the Time.

Teen Bunnyx saves Marinette from her erasure because of the evil wish.

Marinette takes the earrings in the moment of Origins (1.22-1.23) and becomes Chronobug.

During the Time crisis, Chronobug, from the Burrow, figures out Time Stalker, Spectral Looter (Cerise's second akumatized form) and the new Butterfly holder are the same person.

In the Burrow, Chronobug thought about take the Butterfly miraculous before her adversary can find it and/or prevent Gabriel to make his wish (for save him and Nathalie in her own way) but Teen Bunnyx reasons her to not do that. Because it can alterate the future (for the worst). If Marinette did that, it's possible we could have a timeline when Gabriel and Nathalie are both dead without the wish and Adrien is definitively an orphan (Amelie and Félix as the last remaining family for him).

When Chronobug and Present/Teen Bunnyx manage to take the supervillain's book, yellow Ladybug erases her name and writes "Gabriel Agreste" instead of the former's. The two superheroines give the book back to the villainess.

The Burrow is restored, due to Cerise evil plan's failure.

Marinette/Chronobug is still uncomfortable about lying to Adrien and everyone about Gabriel's fate. But the Three Bunnyx give advices to her about her choices and her future she must decide.

The Chronobug's Lucky Charm brings back Marinette to the present and the past Tikki and the earrings from Origins back to her initial moment. She has erased the Spectral Looter part.

The Time Stalker time incident is the main reason why Marinette decides to bring all the kwamis and their Miraculouses to their respective holders (and the holders become permanent holders as we see that in the epilogue of Re-creation (5.26)).

Cerise/Iris becomes feral 😡🤬👿 after deakumatizing herself and discovering her book has been falsified (Ladybug = Gabriel Agreste). 🤣 She realizes Ladybug (helped by Bunnyx) has sabotaged her plan across the time. Of course, the crazy girl remembers Gabriel is Monarch (she had already double-crossed him when she was Hoaxer (watch Revelation (5.20)). 🤣

If Gabriel silents Nooroo by the will of seal his kwami's mouth, Cerise, as the actual Butterfly miraculous holder, fully immobilizes him (like a statue) with a finger snap. She doesn't let him to have more time for celebrate her plan's failure in the actual timeline. That means Cerise treats the kwami worst than Gabriel. Cerise is not just an evil girl, she is an egotic master manipulator, she is insane, mentally unstable, impulsive, narcissistic pervert and a psychopath too. 😈 Nooroo moves again only to the moment when Cerise orders him to transform her.

When Ladybug and Cat Noir are reunited together, they talk about the Butterfly miraculous disappearance. Ladybug warns her partner about the new Butterfly supervillain. So they prepare themselves together to stop "him/her".

And despite her (first) defeat (as Chrysalis(?)), Cerise still seeks revenge against Ladybug. So it's a Cat-Mouse fame who begins (Road to Season 6).

It's the last time the SAMG animation is used in this episode.

What I liked:

The moment at the train station when Marinette and Adrien are reunified after the Gabriel's suicide wish. ❤

The Cerise anger crisis due to the fact she failed to discover the Ladybug = Marinette Dupain-Cheng thing.

The moment when the Marinette's name is replaced by "Gabriel Agreste'"s in Cerise's book. Get Trolled.

And Nooroo when he jubilates (before Cerise immobilizes him).

Chronobug's design.

Spectral Looter's design (Cerise's second auto-akumatization from the corrupted timeline).

Cerise's new civilian disguise as a blong girl with blue eye lenses. I guess it's Iris Verdi form.

The moment when Spectral Looter roasts Chronobug in the Miraculous Grand Theft in Marinette's room was so funny.

Placide I.T. (Adrien's bodyguard)'s moment. Sounds badass.

When Adrien repels Bug Noire after the "revelation" about his father's death. We can understand Adrien is saddened and angry toward his own dad.

The fact there are three (3) Bunnyx who simultaneously coexist in the Burrow: Teen Bunnyx, Adult Bunnyx and Grandma Bunnyx (I called the older Alix like that).

Marinette says her adventures happen like 10 years (4th wall). Miraculous has begun in 2015 and we are in 2024. It's 9 years.

The final scene with the new animation.

What I disliked:

The Felix/Argos' absence. He lives in London. He sees Kagami for secret dates. He was normally in London during the Miraculized crisis. I understand he and his mother must be hidden because Monarch and Tomoe knew Felix has the Peacock miraculous. And if he intervened, the boy could lose the Peacock brooch because of the Miraculized people.

The Time Travel explanations (modifying the chronology, time paradoxes) are too complicated for me.

Bug Noire is supposed to search the Butterfly miraculous in the water below the Crypt. She even told to Alya and Su-Han she transformed into Aquabug for that. But it's off-screen.

Cerise transforms with the Butterfly miraculous happens off-screen (We will see her form in Season 6).

The weird fact for me is Cerise doesn't remember what she have done during her auto-akumatization as Time Stalker (even deakumatizing herself). But Alya, Nino, Marinette and Kagami (when they rejected Hawk Moth/Shadow Moth/Monarch's akumas and removed Betterfly's kamikos) had kept her memories. Is it because Cerise is a teenage girl and Gabriel was an adult ?

What I want to know for the future:

How Cerise has managed to take the Butterfly miraculous ? Her future self (as Time Stalker) hasn't done nothing but stalking Bug Noire and write the Marinette's name in her book.

Cerise/Iris Butterfly miraculous full transformation (and her full form)

In this Special, Cerise (who is wearing a new disguise) akumatizes herself into Time Stalker in the evening (just some hours after Gabriel/Monarch's disappearance). Meanwhile, In the Re-Creation last scene, Cerise is surprised by a supernatural light in her lair (it happens AFTER the Time Stalker incident). What is it ?

ML Theory:

It's possible Re-creation Cerise has picked up the brooch when Bug Noire and Nathalie were in the room where the kwamis were imprisoned. She has possibly deactivated the system cameras with Tomoe's laptop for preventing to be caught ans for infiltratring the Crypt (before Bug Noire cataclysms everything). It happened before her first (auto-)akumatization as Time Stalker.

I even think Cerise can transforms into the Butterfly supervillainess (while she keeps her civilian form intact)

My personal aggregation on the London Special:

I think this special episode is good. It's the transition from season 5 to season 6. Meanwhile, it lets some questions without answers: How Cerise has really managed to take the Butterfly miraculous ? When Adrien will be ready to accept the truth if he finds out ?

Let's waiting the Season 6.

Result: 7/10

The salting moment:

The annoying detail I heard about from the fandom is: the fact Marinette/Bug Noire decides to lie to Adrien about "Gabriel is dead as a hero".

Some of you has been pissed off about that. But I think ONE thing: An Adrien who knows his dad was Monarch will be shocked, mentally devastated and outraged. He would hate his dad AND Ladybug. And Butterfly Cerise would have good reasons for use him as her own advantage for destroy Ladybug and take revenge against Marinette.

It's too easy to blame Marinette for this detail but there is this fact:

Nathalie, Tomoe, Kagami, Félix, Marinette, Alix and Cerise know Gabriel is Monarch.

So the all of them can tell to Adrien. But Tomoe (as Monarch's accomplice) should be jailed.

Nathalie should be jailed.

Marinette, Felix and Kagami keep the truth secret from Adrien.

Alix could tell to Adrien, but her older selves adviced her to not do that for the Time's safety.

Cerise is the only perfect candidate to reveal to everyone (and especially to Adrien) the Monarch's real identity. But instead to expose Ladybug's lie, Cerise preferred to make an evil, sneaky and dangerous plan to stalk Ladybug by time travel and directly stealing to her the Miraculouses for make her own wish (just some hours after the final battle).

Adrien will knows the "Monarch = Gabriel Agreste" thing in another time. Thomas Astruc and the writers will continue to surprise us/you.

[our-happygirl500-fan]

From what we know about the original plans for season 3 of Rise was that the general outline of the plot of season 3 was that the Turtles find out that they have two more siblings & the family then each split up into two teams to go look for them.

There has been a lot of speculation on which turtles would go with Draxum & which turtles would go with Splinter but there are two members of the Hamato Clan that we should also possibly consider

Karai: Thank you my young Hamato’s, we will always be with you

At the end of season two Karai thanked the current generation of Hamato’s for finally defeating the Shredder & from Karai’s perspective the latest generation of the Hamato clan was made up of Splinter & the Turtles, Draxum, April & Casey. Meaning if the Hamato clan fully split into two teams to look for the missing Turtle siblings, there is a possibility that April & Casey could have each been on a team as well.

Though we can only speculate which two Turtles would have gone with Splinter & which two Turtles would have gone with Draxum, we honestly could have gotten any combination but my theory is that the teams would have been Raph & Donnie going with Splinter and Leo & Mikey going with Draxum. 

And as for the humans of the Hamato Clan there is a possibility that April could have gone with Splinter & Casey could have gone with Draxum.

April: You aren’t important to me because of your teach! You’re important to me because of you. I don’t think mystic powers is better than science, if anything they’re stronger together! Just like us, right?

Donnie: Right!

I kind of think that April would have been placed on Donnie’s team due to their close bond throughout the series but it would also make sense for April to be placed on a team with Splinter & Raph as well.

Throughout Rise, Splinter & April have often been a duo with several episodes even focusing on their dynamic. Due to their close relationship it seems possible that Rise would continue Splinter & April’s dynamic within season 3 as well.

April: Relax big guy, what’s going on?

In Rise April & Raph have a dynamic as the two oldest siblings of the Hamato Clan however we have yet to really have an episode of them having a full adventure together the way we have for multiple episodes with April & Donnie or the way we have with April, Leo & Mikey in the episode The Gumbus.

If April was on a team with Raph in season 3, it would be a good opportunity for an April & Raph adventure that we are due for.

I think it would have been possible for Casey to be placed on Draxum’s team as not only are they both the redeemed villains of the Hamato clan but Casey & Draxum also need an opportunity to find resolution after Draxum betrayed Casey’s trust in the episode How to Make Enemies and Bend People to Your Will

Draxum: I have accomplished with one assistant what you couldn’t accomplish with an entire clan!

Casey: Assistant? But I thought we… were partners?

Throughout the episode Draxum works with Casey & quickly earns her trust & respect only to cast her aside once he had gotten what he wanted, it would be interesting if season 3 took the opportunity to give them some resolution from that incident while also having Draxum acknowledge the people he hurt in season 1 in his quest for power.

Mikey: Nice work Frenemy

It also seems possible that Casey could have been on a team with Mikey as not only does Casey have a connection with Mikey due to her first appearance in the episode Hot Soup the Game being about Mikey’s first solo mission but Mikey seems to have considered Casey a sort of friend even when she was still in the Foot Clan.

Raph: Dad!

Mikey: Draxum!

Donnie: April!

Leo: Foot Recruit?

It could also be interesting to see Leo & Casey on the same team as well not only as a slight link to how the future version of Leo trained Casey’s son but also the fact that it could be interesting to see Leo on a team with the two  redeemed villains of the Hamato Clan when Leo is one of the more skeptical members of the Hamato Clan

[flightlessangelwings]

Waitress in Distress

Tommy Miller x fem!waitress!reader (no use of y/n)

Word count- 1.5k

Warnings- fluff, mutual pining, flirting, protective!Tommy, harassment, minor violence, takes place in season 1 episode 1 before the outbreak, 1 kiss

Notes- After Tommy’s comment in episode 1 that he defended a waitress from getting harassed, this immediately popped into my head and I had to write it! So this is what if you were the waitress that he saved there! I’m sure others had the same idea, but this is my version of things! I love show Tommy so much and I’m definitely gonna write more for him but I had to get this out of my system now!

Reblogs/follows/comments/asks highly appreciated! Reminder that my blog is always 18+ even if this fic isn’t explicit!

To stay up to date on when I post, please also follow my update blog and turn on post notifications @flightlessangelwings-updates​

~

September 26, 2003

The bar was alive with lights and music and crowds of people enjoying their Friday evening drinks. Sweat lined your brow as you worked as fast as you could to serve your tables and keep everyone happy. Some were in a good mood, smiling at you and thanking you for their drinks. Others seemed to be in a foul mood, and snapped at you more than usual. Even some of your regulars who you usually enjoyed seeing seemed off tonight.

But you shrugged it off, perhaps they just had a bad day. The way some of the men twitched and snatched their beer bottles from you did get to you more though.

“Shit, it’s busy tonight!” you exclaimed to the bartender as you stopped at the bar and poured a fresh pitcher of beer.

“Better than being dead,” he replied back as he shook his mixer, “Tips will be great by the end of the night.”

“Fuckin better be,” you quipped back with a smirk before you turned and headed back to your table. 

Before you took more than two steps though, you smacked right into someone. The pitcher crashed to the floor, but before you slipped too, a strong grip kept you upright. 

“Shit! I’m so sorry!” You gasped as you mumbled a string of apologies to whoever you ran into, but your name in a familiar voice sent a jolt of nerves through you.

“Hey there sweetheart,” he cooed, “You alright?”

“Tommy…” you breathed as your face lit up in a smile, “Yeah I’m fine.”

Although you tried to hide it, all your coworkers could tell you harbored a secret longing for the younger Miller brother. From the first time he and Joel visited the bar, Tommy caught your eye. He was handsome and kind, and his gaze always felt like it lingered on you for a few moments longer than necessary. He never made you feel uncomfortable either, and many nights when he was there until close, he walked you to your car to make sure you were safe.

“Thank you,” you tried to sound smooth as you regained your bearings, “It’s been a while since you’ve been in.” You quickly turned back to the bartender and asked for the barback to clean up while you reluctantly broke free from Tommy’s embrace and poured a fresh pitcher of beer.

“Well ain’t you a sight for sore eyes,” Tommy’s face lit up as he rested a hand on your shoulder, “You look as pretty as a magnolia in May.”

You fought the trembling in your hand from the nerves that shot through your veins, “Always the charmer,” you laughed off the nerves, “Beer?” you offered the other table’s pitcher to him.

“Do I really drink that much?” Tommy joked, “I’ll just take a bottle. You know the kind I like,” he winked at you as you nodded, “Thanks sweetheart.”

You bit your lip as your heart pounded in your chest. Not trusting your voice in front of him, you turned and headed to your table to drop off the pitcher first. Tommy was by far not the only customer to flirt with you, but he was the only one you filtered back with. And he was the only one who made your skin tingle and your heart race. One of these days you would muster up the courage to ask him out, you told yourself. You had the feeling that he was too much of a gentleman to ask you out while you were at work. 

But the blissful state quickly vanished when you arrived at the table with the bitcher that you held onto for way too long, “Sorry for the wait,” you sighed as you set it down in the middle of the table, “We’re slammed tonight.”

At that table sat four men, and they made your skin crawl. You had seen them before, and every time they made you feel like you had to take a shower after you were close to them. Their grins were dark and the look in their eyes told you exactly what they were thinking about you, and you did not like it at all. But, they never tried anything, so you couldn’t do anything about it.

Until tonight.

“Why don’t you make it up to us, huh sweet girl?” one of them reached out and grabbed you before you could walk away, “Damn you smell good,” he stood and leaned in to sniff at the nape of your neck.

“Please let me go,” you tried to sound tough as you pushed him off of you.

He let go, but your freedom was short lived as the other snuck up behind you and grabbed your hips, “Oh come on pretty thing, don’t be like that,” he caged you in from behind as the others surrounded you, “We promise we won’t hurt you.”

“Stop!” you screamed in hopes of getting someone’s attention over the hustle and bustle of the busy bar. Your heart sank when no one seemed to notice your distress, though. 

“It’s a busy night,” one leaned in close enough you could smell his bad breath, “No one can hear over all this noise.”

“Wanna bet?’ a voice called from behind him.

When the man turned around, Tommy punched him right in the face so hard that he fell over, his nose already gushing blood.

Your face relaxed in relief, “Tommy…”

“You asshole!” the other man let you go and lunged for Tommy.

“Don’t worry sweetheart, I got you,” Tommy winked at you for a moment before his face twisted into a more serious expression as he kicked the other man hard enough that he fell over as well. The other two leapt up and tried to attack Tommy, but he easily had them on the floor with just a few hits.

Once the threats were down, Tommy ran to you, “Hey,” he murmured your name as he placed his hands on your arms, “You alright?”

You were in a state of shock for a moment that you didn’t register that Tommy said anything to you until he said your name again more urgently, “Yeah,” you breathed as you blinked and looked into his eyes, “I’m fine,” you let go of the breath you didn’t realize you held, “Thank you, Tommy.” This was the second time tonight you thanked him for saving you.

Tommy’s smile lit up his face and it brought those butterflies back into your stomach, “No need to thank me, sweetheart,” he playfully nudged your chin, “Just helping out my favorite waitress in distress.”

“My hero,” you sighed as you laughed softly. It was then that you realized Tommy still held you, and the warmth of his hands brought a comfort that you had only dreamed about until now. As nervous as you were, you decided this was the perfect chance, “Hey Tommy… Why don’t I make it up to you… Tomorrow night?”

“You asking me out, sugar?”

“I am,” your voice was just a whisper as the chatter of the bar seemed to dim away around you and the only thing in focus was Tommy.

“Well shit don’t you know how to make a man feel special?” he felt his face heat up and he was sure you noticed, “But tomorrow sounds wonderful, sweetheart.”

Your face lit up and Tommy swore the whole world stopped for a moment. After months of watching you from afar, waiting for the right time to ask you out, the moment came and you took it before he could. But, he had to admit, other than you being in danger, this was a perfect moment.

But perfect moments don’t last.

From behind, someone grabbed Tommy and yanked him from your grip. He yelled and tried to fight back, thinking it was one of the guys he knocked out, but before he got a swing in, he felt the cold steel of handcuffs on his wrists.

You shouted at the officers, “Wait, it wasn’t him!” you pleaded, “He was deafening me!”

“Sorry ma’am,” he told you in a cold tone, “But he was the one who attacked.”

“That’s bullshit!” both you and Tommy shouted at the same time, overlapping each other. 

“Yeah, yeah,” the officer brushed you off, “Come on, bucko.”

“Tommy!” you shouted at him as he was ripped from your grasp. You lunged forward and grabbed onto his shoulders as you rested your forehead against his for a moment.

“Don’t worry sweetheart,” he comforted you as best he could with his hands bound behind his back, “I’ll make our date tomorrow night. Promise,” Tommy placed a quick kiss on your lips before the officer dragged him out the bar. The entire time, while everyone else starred, his eyes never felt you. And your eyes never left him until he was through the front door.

“Tomorrow…” you echoed as you felt the tingle of his brief kiss on your lips.

Unfortunately, the world had other plans in store… 

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for not swapping chores back.

I live with friends. We are on a schedule for all house chores. I am having a problem with one of my friends/roommates : Ethan.

Ethan used to clean stuff right after me. It drived me nuts. I don't particularly like cleaning but it's part of adulting so I do it quick and well. I have lived both alone and with other people and never had issues with the way I clean things. Ethan himself tell me it's nothing personal. It's just "the way he is", he just needs things to be done his way. He does it Whenever anyone clean something. It's not a me thing.

Other roommates were not overly bothered by Ethan cleaning just after them. "He is free to pointlessly clean if he wants, I have better things to do than be bothered about it"

Ethan and me decided to exchange tasks. He got my cleaning tasks and I took his cooking turns.

About cooking. Everyone one of us has food preference or restriction. We try to accommodate everyone.

I eat everything BUT one of the thing I asked was to eat a different homecooked meal everyday. (We are a Lot of roommates so it's really feasible for us to only cook once a week or less) I am OK with leftovers and alternate leftover foods for some days. I just want to not eat the Same Meal Everyday. I had a difficult depressive episode while I couldn't cook and just ate the exact same thing for 6 months, and now, eating bland rice twice makes me sad.

Ethan is Difficult with food. He hates a lot of common ingredients and favors the most bland flavors. He is the pickiest eater. He asked us to always cook him bland pasta (or Rice) for every meal. He will eat the same things as us all, then takes two servings of pasta. Whatever you might cook will never be as good for him than pasta and butter. It's OK, I got to live with it.

Ethan is a terrible cook. He hard boil and overcook everything. No seasoning except salt.

I am a very good cook. I spend hours cooking. It's the way I express love. Homemade lasagna, ramen, boeuf bourgignon, … Because I don't have to cook everyday, I love overdoing it on the days I am cooking. Even making complicated deserts. I also often prepare two or three versions of the same dish to accommodate the tastes of everyone (no cheese for Ethan, less spice for Jeanne and Ethan, no Pepper for Alix and Ethan, no gluten for…)

I love all of my roommates cooking. I am grateful when I don't have to cook and always compliment my friends and thanks them for cooking even if they cook more everyday food than I do. I always say : The one doing the thing is the one who is doing it the best.

I don't hate Ethan cooking. It's just terribly bland. You can't really hate boring. It's just meh.

But we swapped.

I thought everyone was happy.

But yesterday, we talked about a new roommate joining our home. He is Ethan's best friend. Everyone was happy and asking question to Ethan about his bff and how cohabiting with him will be.

Me : Does he cook ? Ethan : Well, we never died of hunger for all the years we lived together Me : That's not what I asked, though. Ethan : Yes he cooks, but I don't know if he will be up to your impossible standards. Me : I appear yo have impossible standards only from your place. You are the one with a 5 y.o palate !

Now Ethan is acting all upset saying I insulted him. That he always felt so much pressure cooking for me and that I am a upthight princess and I didn't have to insult him. That me specifically (I am autistic), should know how it is (he is not diagnosed with anything but there is hints here and there).

He says that I have to swap back our tasks to demonstrate I like his cooking. I asked if he will stop cleaning after me then. He said he can't promise, so I said no. I don't want to. I hate him cleaning after me more than I dislike eating bland food once in a while but he is acting all offended and insecure. Our other roommates also doesn't want to force the change as they prefer my cooking. Ethan says obviously I am the one that cook the best of all of us but it's not the point. He wants me to prove I don't have impossible standards by eating his cooking Again.

AITA for insulting my friend and telling him he has a child's palate. While it's not very nice, I think it's rather true. And AITA for not swapping our tasks ? If I am the A, I will agree to swap. I will present my excuses anyway because I don't like seeing my friend buthurt.

What are these acronyms?

[brucebocchi]

Ranking every new anime I watched in 2023, Pt. 4: #5-1

hey, i just started a ko-fi for my writing and possible other creative outlets. this post will also be available there, so please check it out and consider tipping/donating as i'm currently between jobs. the tumblr version of part 1 can be found here, part 2 here, and part 3 here.

The list is complete! This took a lot of work but I'm over the moon to get this out there. Please consider leaving a tip if you've enjoyed reading.

Here goes, my top five anime of 2023:

5. Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead

Zom 100’s debut hit like a freight train, especially coming from a brand new studio. It had everything: Visceral satire of Japanese work culture, incredible animation, vibrant colors in unexpected places, clever cinematography, wish fulfillment for everyone who’s ever wanted to Stone Cold their boss, and most importantly: Zombie titties.

The premise is magnetic: When your job makes you feel like a zombie, an actual zombie apocalypse means certain freedom from the grind. Akira Tendo realizes that he can finally use the vacation time he amassed while being exploited and overworked at a legally dodgy black company, so he writes a bucket list of everything he’s ever wanted to do, with all intention of checking off every single line item before succumbing to a zombie bite. He manages to rescue his hunky fuckboy bestie from college, and they embark on a road trip across Japan to finish out the list, along with a beautiful, risk-averse tsundere and a big-tiddy German weeb. 

It's a perfectly fine elevator pitch, and a welcome break from the guns-and-grit quagmire the zombie genre has been stuck in for the past two decades, but what makes any good zombie-flecked media resonate is the human element, which Zom 100 delivers expertly. You’re quickly given reason to care for all the characters, their motivations are clear and relatable, and you want to see them survive and live out their dreams. But more importantly, you just want to hang out with them through their hijinks. It even delves into more serious matters, like what we owe our parents as adults, the ways isolation and bitterness can drive people to act out in their worst moments, and even the factors that push abuse victims to stay with and even return to their abusers. 

Above all, though, it’s a powerful (if extreme) story of finding joy in the direst circumstances. Akira, Kencho, and Shizuka are all kindhearted, well-meaning people whose situations kept them from what they truly wanted to do with their lives, and there’s something kinda beautiful to be found in them finding a new opportunity during the possible end of the world (Beatrix is a sweetie too, but aside from the whole zombie thing, she’s already exactly where she wants to be). The final arc of the season, in particular, looks you dead in the eye and asks you: If you were suddenly faced with the ultimate freedom, would you use the opportunity to better yourself, improve the lives of others, or do whatever the fuck you want at everyone else’s expense? You may not like the answer at first if you’re honest with yourself, and that’s okay. The world isn’t over, and there’s still time for you to be your best self.

Zom 100, unfortunately, fell prey to a cruel irony in the form of production issues. Bug Films is a new studio made up of a former team from OLM that was responsible for similarly gorgeous projects such as Komi Can’t Communicate and Summer Time Rendering. They clearly saw so much of themselves in Akira's workplace exploitation that they had to swing for the fences here. The firm he works for is named “ZLM” in this adaptation, for fuck’s sake, and he fully destroys his zombie boss in the first episode. But new studio or old, the anime industry is a grind, and Bug had trouble keeping up; animation quality did take a bit of a dip after the stunning first episode, and episodes were frequently delayed as the summer broadcast season wore on and ended without the entire seasonal run making airwaves. Hell, it was impossible to watch the final three episodes until just a few days before I could write this sentence.

For what Bug were able to pull off, though, Zom 100 is outstanding. The paintball-colored blood splatters everywhere are an instantly-iconic look that strike the balance between horror and spectacle. Everything and everyone looks gorgeously faithful to Kotaro Takata’s art, and delivers an appropriately cinematic look that the manga always deserved. I almost don’t know what else to tell you but that this show is a fucking blast.

There’s also a zombie shark. What more could you want?

4. Oshi no Ko

I spent a good chunk of 2023 just assuming Oshi no Ko was going to be a layup for anime of the year. Shortly after moving on from Kaguya-sama, I rushed to binge Aka Akasaka's subsequent manga in time for the anime's feature-length debut. I was taken in by OnK's bonkers premise and sudden dark turn and quickly fell in love with the characters, and my anticipation only grew. I had high expectations for the screen adaptation, but nothing could have prepared me for just how lovingly it all came together. This is as close to a perfect adaptation as you can find, and the same can be said about both the preceding and following entries on this list.

Oshi no Ko is an audiovisual feast. Doga Kobo cleaned up Mengo Yokoyari’s character designs just a smidge, but put just the right flourishes on them to make every single cast member instantly iconic. One look at Kana Arima’s eyes will tell you everything you need to know about the level of care put into the visual design of this anime. The performances are on point as well; though many of the main cast members are relative newcomers to the world of seiyuu, you can tell they truly came to understand the characters before they even recorded one line. I’ve already gushed about Rie Takahashi in earlier entries, but her turn as Ai Hoshino is easily one of the best voice performances all year. Takahashi makes a meal out of every single second Ai spends on screen and gives you every reason to care about her as a character.

Showbiz manga in general is obviously missing an audio element, and when an adaptation can expand on that aspect well, it can help turn even middling source material into something transcendent (see also: Rock!, Bocchi the). Music is central to Oshi no Ko, and the OP/ED combination is already iconic; YOASOBI’s “Idol” has had the best worldwide chart performance of any Japanese song ever, and the prolonged intro to Queen Bee’s “Mephisto” became a meme in Japan in the same vein as JJBA’s iconic use of “Roundabout.” Rather than taking manga characters’ word for it that someone is a terrible actor, we actually get to cringe along to an amateur actor’s hammy emoting. We get to see and hear what turned a fictional idol group into a national phenomenon rather than just see cute girls posing on the page. All of this is to say that while Oshi no Ko is an excellent manga, it needed a screen adaptation, and especially one of this quality.

Oshi no Ko deserves every shred of its success. I've never seen an anime make a splash this enormous with just its debut episode, even if it’s kind of cheating to say so because the first episode is almost literally a movie, and if I were to give an award for the best single episode of anime this year, it would be that one, hands down. Adapting the entire first volume into a feature-length debut was the correct move (mostly because it’s a tonal rollercoaster, and the Big Event that defines the entire story wouldn’t have happened until the fourth episode otherwise), and the investment paid dividends. The hype naturally died down a bit as the season wore on and settled into a more consistent tone and rhythm, but it remains an essential anime to 2023.

You may have noticed that I have said very little of what this show is actually about, and that’s by design: If you still don’t know the plot of Oshi no Ko’s first episode by now, I refuse to tell you: you need to go in blind. All I will say is that it is an idol anime that glorifies nothing. If you've read this far and still trust what I have to say about anime, I beg you to just take my word for it. It's an incredibly rewarding experience.

3. Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

There's just something so wonderful about taking in an adaptation of a work you’re already familiar with and knowing, almost instantaneously, that every single person working on it genuinely loved the source material and relished the opportunity to bring it to life. Nearly every single member of the original cast is in the dub (including the ones who went on to be MCU mainstays), Edgar Wright is back on as executive producer, Anamanaguchi reprise their soundtracking duties from the video game, and even Bryan Lee O’Malley himself helped co-write everything.

That last detail is probably the most important thing about this entire production: It’s not exactly a secret that the original Scott Pilgrim comics are very imperfect portrayals of a very imperfect young man. I knew reading them at the time that the comic did not have a great grasp on relationships and the dynamics between men and women, and that was at a time in my life when I myself was pretty terrible with and to women. O'Malley has said that he would only revisit Scott Pilgrim if it was “the right thing” and that he was leery of a straight retelling of a work he has since outgrown.

So instead, we have the Rebuild of Scott Pilgrim, to put it simply. Takes Off is a completely new story that reexamines the Scott Pilgrim comics, movie, and even game without undermining what came before it. This series is not a repudiation of Scott Pilgrim (the character or the franchise)’s flaws, nor is it purely fanservice; it splits the difference perfectly. It’s both more mature and completely self-indulgent. This show so easily could’ve marched to the familiar discourse drumbeat of “Scott isn’t the hero here” or “he’s actually not a good dude,” but it instead focuses on what should always be the second half of that sentence: “But Ramona still sees something in him.”

Yes, Ramona Flowers is effectively the protagonist of a new work that doesn’t even have her name on it, and it tackles some surprisingly necessary questions: What was her responsibility in creating seven evil exes in the first place? What made them evil? Are they even that evil? This series opens up entire worlds of possibilities within the extended cast and gleefully dives into them. Though Takes Off may not flesh out every single character, it does take its time with several of the ones who really did need a little more meat on their narrative bones, and even gives some characters new roles just because it would be fun to see them in new situations.

I still cannot believe they got Science Saru to make this show. “They made a Scott Pilgrim anime” and “They brought back the movie cast” are already good enough fodder for that Vince McMahon meme, but “It’s produced by the motherfuckers who made Devilman Crybaby” had me falling out of my chair. The animation maintains O'Malley's chunky, cartoony character designs and works wonders with line weights and simulated camera effects to give everything a tactile, weighty feel, like it’s somehow (and very appropriately) splitting the difference between a comic, a film, and even a video game. There’s a wide array of visual effects that helps to place all of Scott Pilgrim’s influences further on its sleeve: Dynamic action scenes, camera depth and chromatic aberration, and our beloved pixel art inserts. It looks like every Scott Pilgrim, everywhere, all at once.

The live action film’s cast did a (mostly) great job reprising their roles for animation, and there are some wildly unexpected cameos in there. Voice acting is not quite the same as stage or film acting, but everyone pulls their weight, and dialogue feels far more naturalistic than your average anime dub. Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ellen Wong and, surprisingly, Chris Evans are outstanding in their respective roles. I’m gonna have to watch this again in Japanese, though. Fairouz Ai as Ramona, Aoi Koga as Knives, and Yuichi Nakamura as Lucas Lee? Sign me the fuck up.

This is not an apology or revision of Scott Pilgrim the character or work, it is a celebration that still acknowledges and improves on the flaws. If you’re a Scott Pilgrim fan who’d been clamoring for a proper cartoon adaptation, Takes Off may not exactly be what you’ve wanted, but it may be what you needed.  Chances are pretty good that you’ve grown since the first time since you read, watched, or even played something with Scott Pilgrim’s name on it, and it’s a blessing to say that while the character may not have grown, Scott Pilgrim the franchise finally has. 

2. Jujutsu Kaisen, season 2

I’m so glad I picked up JJK this year, if only because I would’ve otherwise been caught in a mudslide of memes I didn’t understand.

Season 2 follows in lockstep with the manga from where season 1 left off, beginning in extended flashback with the Hidden Inventory/Premature Death arc, covering Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto’s high school life and the events that would eventually create the rift between them that came to shape Jujutsu Kaisen’s story. We see very different versions of Gojo and Geto here, much younger and more naive, but only marginally less powerful as they’re sent on an escort mission with the future of the jujutsu world in the balance. Because this is Jujutsu Kaisen, and because Jujutsu Kaisen is for masochists, nothing happens as planned.

We unfortunately do not get the precious slice-of-life hijinks the OP suggests, but if you watched season 1, you should know better by now than to trust an OP. While the initial arc does have its quieter and goofier moments (and some delicious homoerotic subtext), it wastes little time in declaring that this is a new version of the Jujutsu Kaisen anime: Lines are thinner, character models are looser, and action is buckwild. Two of the best fakeouts in the series happen in the span of five minutes. Those unfamiliar with the source material may have wondered for a bit why there needed to be a five-episode prequel arc to start the season, but the pieces would soon fall into place.

And then came Shibuya.

The Shibuya Incident arc was what made Jujutsu Kaisen a must-read in every new issue of Shonen Jump. It reset the status quo for the story and shaped it into something far beyond another “teenagers with special powers go to a school for teenagers with special powers” battle shonen. Needless to say, the hype for its anime adaptation was astronomical.

The Shibuya arc sets the stakes early: Nobody is safe and there may be no happy ending. Triumph is short-lived, and every threat is existential. Everyone who has been in the series up to this point plays a role, and you’re not going to like a lot of what’s needed of them. This arc punches you in the gut, repeatedly, and in between each blow is some of the most intense and innovative action you’ve ever seen. It will hurt, and you will beg for more.

I liked this arc a good amount in the manga, but by the end I was ready for it to be over. I didn’t get the hype around Toji, thought the deaths were cheap, and was so. FUCKING. sick of Mahito. Seeing it in fluid motion onscreen, though, everything just clicked for me and I couldn’t get enough. I fully get now why the girlies have been wetting themselves over Toji; the character modelers were HORNY horny this season. I see now how even the most unceremonious deaths fit into the narrative, or at least one will make perfect sense to me once Gege Akutami and I have a little chat :). And holy hell do I understand now that Mahito is one of the best shonen villains in the history of the medium, that sick bastard. Season 2 was my Rosetta stone for Jujutsu Kaisen; I see it all now. My sixth eye has been opened. Throughout heaven and earth, I alone am the literate one.

JJK’s second season has a markedly different feel from the first from a presentation standpoint, and I feel it’s for the better. Every aspect of the presentation is on point, and I want to call attention to the audio element: The production music, with a heavy focus on jazz piano, is wonderfully unique for the genre, and the voice acting remains top notch. These are banner performances from the likes of Yuichi Nakamura, Kenjiro Tsuda, Takahiro Sakurai, Asami Seto, and Nobunaga Shimazaki, but the performance that defines the Shibuya arc (and by extension the entire season) is Junya Enoki as Yuji Itadori. 

Enoki’s been great this year in lead roles in goofy works like KamiKatsu and Girlfriend Girlfriend (not to mention minor roles in Skip and Loafer and the vending machine isekai), so it’s no surprise that he continues to crush it as JJK’s protagonist; Yuji Itadori is a goofy dude. But the Shibuya arc, for as much ground and as many characters as it covers, is ultimately Yuji’s story as he is forced, time and again, to endure the cycle of the “suffering builds character” meme. His peers and mentors in the first season told him repeatedly that the life of a jujutsu sorcerer is a short and unhappy one, and he now has to shoulder that burden for everyone. Enoki nails every single part of a wide spectrum of emotions Yuji is forced to endure over the course of the Shibuya arc, be it determination, naive confusion, or just pure unbridled trauma. If this isn’t the best voice performance of the year, it’s top five at worst.

Like every major battle shonen release in the age of social media, this season has had its detractors. Reviewers at Anime News Network kinda hated the story, but that’s something you take up with Gege Akutami (and get in line behind the manga readers). I've seen people complain about the animation. Which, like. If you don’t like the new visual style, sure, fine, that’s up to personal taste. But if you think this season isn’t well-animated, you just plain don’t know ball. It may not have a cohesive look, but that was the draw for me: Season 1 was good, but at times I felt like it looked a little too rigid, a little too shiny, a little too samey. Season 2, especially the Shibuya arc, looks like everything. Sometimes it looks like an action film, sometimes it looks like Mob Psycho 100, and at points it looks, most crucially, like Akutami’s most iconic panels brought to life, stroke for stroke.

The varying styles weren’t an accident: Nearly each episode had its own director, and those resumes cover top-tier animations like Mob Psycho, Devilman Crybaby, Kill la Kill, Heavenly Delusion, Oshi no Ko, FLCL, even Akira and goddamn Golden Boy. While the episodes don’t look entirely consistent from one to the next, the variance is less jarring and more “holy fuck, what am I going to see next?”. The looser style of animation is what Jujutsu Kaisen always needed; Akutami’s art is very loose and dynamic, and his action panels are borderline inscrutable at times. Season 2 nails the feel of JJK to a degree that its adaptation always needed and lets its directors, storyboarders, and animators run wild. At times, characters will look like they leapt right off the page; others, they will look like something you have never seen before in your life.

It is unfortunately impossible to talk about this season without also bringing up MAPPA’s working conditions, and how animators were frequently overworked against nigh-impossible deadlines. It was an open secret last year as Chainsaw Man aired that MAPPA’s animation schedule was a meat grinder, but that came bubbling to the surface quickly as JJK’s second season aired. Word got out midseason that MAPPA had its animators sign NDAs about their work conditions, but complaints still broke containment and several staffers took to social media to apologize for their work looking incomplete, and some even publicly announced that they are leaving the studio. It is stunning that the finished product looks the way it does under such conditions, and I respect the animators for putting in such incredible work, but something has to give. Several major series suffered from major delays this year, some of which I gave significant praise, but MAPPA is lucky that all of JJK came out on time. I wish I knew what could push them to treat their workers with the dignity and respect (and pay) they deserve, but that’s a conversation that covers much wider ground than just anime.

MAPPA has already announced that the series will continue through the next major arc. While there is quite a bit of it that I would love to see on screen, I can only hope that the animators get to rest. For now, though, we can be proud of what they made under duress, even if some will forever wonder what it would look like if the staff were treated like something a notch above cattle.

1. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

Fucking hell. This is why I watch anime.

I was curious about this one because a couple major anitubers I watch had reviewed the manga and were effusive in their praise. I knew the anime adaptation was on the way, so I decided to hold off on reading and see what the anime would be like, and with Keiichiro Saito (director of Bocchi the Rock! and key animator for Oshi no Ko’s instantly-iconic OP) at the helm, my excitement was piqued. That guy turned a B-minus 4-koma into an innovative hit comedy, so what can he do with a beloved source material and the backing of a legacy studio like Madhouse?

I've had so much to say about Frieren since the premiere, and I still have so much to say now, but to talk about what I love about this show is to talk about everything about this show. When the first four episodes dropped, I described it as “Mushoku Tensei without the baggage,” and I stand by that. There were multiple points throughout Frieren’s first cour where I'd nearly forgotten that I wasn't watching Mushoku Tensei. Every single element is on point: The animation is fluid and expressive, backdrops are consistently gorgeous, voice performances are quickly memorable, and the music is evocative and instantly iconic. This is, plainly, one of the most beautiful pieces of television I have ever seen on nearly every level, be it visually, sonically, or thematically.

The initial four-episode debut was a masterclass in establishing the setting, building emotional investment into the characters, and slowly but deliberately laying out the premise of the season to come. The titular Frieren is an elf mage who, for a very brief decade of her millennium-long life, lent her skills to an adventuring party to slay the Demon King. Though she helped save the world, she was never one for stuff like adulation or socializing, so she breaks away from the group to continue her hobby of collecting various spells and arcana. She regroups with them after 50 years, having kept in contact with none of them, only to find them older and frailer. The party’s leader, the hero Himmel, passes away shortly thereafter, and Frieren breaks down at his funeral, having realized exactly too late how important he was to her and that she’d never really bothered to get to know him as a person.

Some time later, she’s called by the surviving human member of the party, Heiter, under the guise of translating an old text, but soon realizes that he duped her into helping train the young orphan girl he adopted, Fern, as a mage. Upon Heiter’s death, Frieren and Fern head out together, carrying out odd jobs and retracing Frieren’s steps from the journey that changed her more than she realized. They soon learn from the other surviving member of the party, Eisen, that (ooh) heaven is, in fact, a place on earth, and that Frieren may be able to properly pay Himmel his final respects in person. In order to do so, they must make a trip to the north, past the Demon King’s castle. The story of Beyond Journey’s End is, quite literally, a nostalgia trip.

Frieren's story is one of grief and regret, but also how we can use those emotions as a way of moving forward rather than looking backward. Her history is a long one and her memories seemingly everlasting, but she uses them to pave the road ahead of her rather than let them shackle her to the past. This is best exemplified by Fern herself, as well as the other companion they pick up along the way in Eisen’s former trainee, Stark. Frieren can carry on the legacies of Heiter and Eisen by helping their young wards grow into the capable young adults they’re meant to be, while Himmel’s legacy lives on in the memories of the towns and villages he helped save along Frieren’s new path, and most importantly, in Frieren herself.

The degree to which Himmel truly mattered to Frieren becomes more apparent to her as the story goes on, and it becomes more evident in her actions. Himmel was a gentle, selfless (if self-aggrandizing) man who was every last bit the hero the modern world believes him to be. With every statue of him she cleans, every flower she plants in his name, every core memory that returns to her, we are watching Frieren become more and more like him in real time. You would expect a thousand-year-old woman to be pretty set in her ways, but we see her holding off on old, bad behaviors because of how Himmel would react to them back then. As Fern and Stark grow into young adults, we see her beginning to treat them the same way Himmel treated her. Frieren doesn’t realize it until later in the season, but it’s apparent to us early on that Himmel well and truly loved her, and I feel that it’s dawning on her that she loved him too and didn’t recognize it. That is tragic in and of itself (this show absolutely is a tearjerker at times and I will cop to getting misty-eyed as I write this), but there is something beautiful, well beyond my grasp, in being able to honor the memory and carry out the legacy of a loved one in how you treat those around you. I don’t think anything could have made Himmel prouder.

Frieren herself is a really goddamn good character too (and expertly voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki, best known for voicing Anya Forger in Spy x Family). Though she is portrayed as quiet and uncaring for the early part of the story, it’s been really delightful to watch her open up, and above all, inadvertently reveal that she’s actually just Really Fucking Weird. For as self-assured and put together as she always seems on the surface, it was great to learn that she’s just an enormous slob (she just like me fr), and any outward expressions of smugness or her offbeat sense of humor are always a joy. “Deeply weird person trying to act normal” is always fun, and there’s just something so consistently delightful about seeing someone so typically calm and intelligent get caught in a mimic chest every single time.

I still can’t get over how fucking good this show looks. Beyond Journey’s End features some of the most intricate, loving animation I’ve seen for stuff as simple as someone putting on a jacket. Action scenes are few and far between, but not a single frame is wasted when shit pops off. Not everyone is as detailed as possible at all times, and they don’t need to be, but everyone looks incredible when they do need to. It’s well above my pay grade to accurately say so, but this show could be a lesson in proper animation budgeting. I could go on and on and on, but I’ve written nearly eighteen thousand words about anime, so I’ll wrap it up. 

The debut season of Frieren will continue into 2024, and if the quality remains a constant, it could very well be one of the best anime of next year too. It has remained as MyAnimeList’s top-rated anime ever for its entire run, warding off the legion of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood fans. Frieren deserves it. I say with no hyperbole that this is one of the most perfectly realized things I’ve ever seen on television. This is an essential watch for anyone who likes fantasy anime, anime in general, or fantasy in general.

[wishingstarinajar]

I know, I know I'm a scratched record

But I'm dying to hear your thoughts on the Wakfu finale when you get to it!

I just finished watching it and it's uuh... hmm. I read people saying the finale was "satisfactory" but I am not fully on board with that sentiment.

Too much left unanswered, not enough wrapped up, too rushed to get to the end.

I know the Waven game is a continuation of sorts, it takes place decades after Wakfu's conclusion so that game might hold some answers or closure, buuuuttt... I'm not interested enough in the game to play and find out. I guess I've grown a bit tired of the whole cross-media info/lore some franchises love to do (like Blizzard and covering important info across the Warcraft games, books and short stories).

Wakfu season 4 obviously has an open ending, no matter that it is the final season, so who knows what might follow. I'm just a little saddened that the story picked up a little too late this season but the animation, particularly during action scenes, was pretty great... when not using the same static images of characters xDD They loved that a little too much but I understand the budget wasn't that big so I can't really fault Ankama for it.

Did I like this season? Mmmyyeeaaah, it's a mixed bag. Better than season 3 but not better than the first two seasons or even the OVA episodes. Glad it exists but I don't feel super satisfied with its conclusion.

HEAVY SPOILERS ahead, so be mindful but gonna share some thoughts:

Seeing Joris play a bigger part in the second half of the 4th season, and him vibing with Adamaï made me very giddy and happy. Love that for them, hope they become good friends. And thank fek neither of them died. RIP, Qilby, Armand and Brakmar (maybe?). The guys who needed to redeem themselves got their chance, at least.

Goddess Eliatrope was a big disappointment and an unlikeable character but I guess that was kind of the point...? Angry that she totally ignored Chibi and Grougal, like what the fuck even? Didn't even show a hint of acknowledgment towards them. What if they wanted to meet mom, huh?? And what even happened to Baltazar and Glip, who were in Emrub with the same kids that were asleep in Goddess Eliatrope's belly? What did she do with them?

But hey, at least my headcanon that the Sadida and Eliatropes will combine into a single kingdom/people (which I also wrote about in my Rebirth fic) actually happening was pretty satisfying x'D It even has Wakfu-infused trees, om nom nom.

A little frustrated with Necroworld (not the same Necroworld from the Transformers: Lost Light comics) because it's supposed to be a different planet in some other universe but it had dofus (dragon eggs) and races of the Twelve like Sadida, Sram and Sacrier. It was pretty confusing... Imo, it should have been something similar to The Upside Down (Stranger Things), or an alternate version of the world of Twelve rather than a completely separate place. But eh...

Why did nobody care about the state Inglorium was in, or that the Gods have disappeared? That bothered me so so so soooo much during the first two episodes; nobody non-Eliatrope or non-demigod cared that their God/Goddess was... well... gone. Aside from God Iop, where are they?? Hated the disinterest, hated the silence around it. Guess that's a mystery that will be unraveled in some other media.

Yugo grew tall and handsome and I'm not afraid to say it. Happy for him, though him suddenly growing so quickly was a bit silly. I figured there would be a time skip to justify his 'growth' that we saw in promotional images and teasers. Won't complain though, he deserved to finally be in a body that reflects his actual age, it took him long enough!

"Bootleg Alys" from the Dofus movie made a cameo in episode 11 which made me snerk. (I noticed a few more background characters from the movie that were re-used in episode 11.)

And that's all I have to say, at least here on Tumblr. It was quite a ride.

A big thanks Ankama and all the Kickbackers that made it possible; this show had its ups and downs over the past decade but it was enjoyable and loved. It still holds a special place in my heart and I will keep a tiny eye out for more Krozmos stuff in the future (like Welsh & Shedar, gimme!!).

[bucchus]

Honestly it just feels like 911 has been going in circles for a while now. During season 5 i was already kinda getting bored and frustrated with some aspects of it so i only watched season 6 sporadically when they then moved to abc i was like I’ll give it another chance… liked the opening disaster and was then positively surprised by bi buck. But looking at the show now… literally every character seems to be in the exact same place they were years ago there is nothing really new happening anymore i feel like I’ve been watching the exact same storylines over and over again. There are hardly any new faces popping in that could freshen it up and if they do the side characters are gone again after a few episodes. Bobby and Athene have communication problems every season and Athena is a cop that gets some copaganda shit to do. Henren always have drama when it comes to expanding their family and hen‘s job. Chim never has a storyline outside of his wife and maddy is only needed when something regarding abuse pops up. Buck just recycles through wanting to find love and being dumped (now with the addition of male love interests but they still can’t even say his sexuality on camera) and Eddie is still finding himself and trying to heal. It‘s getting so repetitive i kind of wish they will end the show after season 8 because it seems to be getting worse and worse.

i agree mostly. i think tim really meant it when he said characters shouldn't change. i just took it to mean that their core characteristics should be kept intact while still growing into better versions of themselves. it's weird that tim seems to have forgotten about that part. recycling the same issues over and over doesn't make for good storytelling, imo—it just gets boring. the outcome is always the same—it seems like a given character has finally found the answer or made peace with themselves, only to circle back a season or two later. it's exhausting.

that said, it does remind me of real life in a way. people often think they've learned a lesson, only to end up repeating the same patterns over and over again. it takes tremendous self-discipline to change how we approach things, since we tend to stick with what feels most comfortable. so, in a way, i get why some of these characters fall back into the same habits—it's realistic. but here's where this argument falls short—as oliver likes to point out, this show is not a documentary. it doesn't have to reflect real life 1:1. honestly, who wants to watch characters constantly go in circles? it may work for a little while, but there comes a point where you have to know when to stop. i think buck's had enough failed relationships to have learned how to navigate or fight for one. i think bobby and athena have had enough conversations about difficult topics to understand that it's better to approach the situation in a healthier manner.

i'm not saying these problems need to disappear completely. i'm saying that it'd be nice to see the impact of the previous situations on the current one, with a character actually drawing from past experiences and trying to do better. it doesn't mean the character has to suddenly be perfect in that aspect—just that they're clearly trying. it'd be enough, and i think it would make for some compelling storylines. and once that's done, why not introduce some new challenges? why stick to the same tried-and-true approach? sure, it worked in the past, but that absolutely does not mean it's still the best option moving forward.

and don't get me even started on henren—or on CHIMNEY. who's chimney outside of being maddie's husband, jee's father and a paramedic? because i don't think even the writers know. that's why he's missing for like six episodes in season 5. maddie's gone, and suddenly no one knows what to do with him anymore, so they just write him off.

and when it so happens that chimney, maddie, eddie do get individual storylines, they’re always tied to the same past we’ve already revisited a thousand times. i get that it’s part of who they are, obviously, but is that really all there is to those characters? how about creating something new for them to go through and then exploring the repercussions of that instead? not just pretending the arc is over and leaving the consequences behind? seriously, is it really that hard?

[burnwater13]

Grogu lying next to the rancor. Both are sleeping. Image from The Book of Boba Fett, Season 1, Episode 7, In the Name of Honor. Calendar by DateWorks.

Yes, Grogu was sleeping. He’d had a long, eventful day. He’d left Luke’s Jedi Sleep Away Camp. He and R2 had determined that the Mandalorian had ended up on Tatooine. They’d gone to Tatooine. Found Peli Motto. Took her droid cart to Mos Espa from Mos Eisley. Found Din Djarin. Messed up the Scorpenek Annihilator Droid and then soothed a very upset and hurt rancor. Grogu saw the advantage of taking a nice nap at once. No one was going to wake him up at the risk of waking up the rancor. Right?

He had hoped that he would dream of simple, lovely things. Soft things like moss bunnies, and sweet things like honey stacks, and kind things like the tickle bugs from Coruscant who acted like alarm clocks. Grogu had always enjoyed waking up laughing. Ian hadn’t liked them at all, but then Ian didn’t always appreciate the early hour that the Masters expected them to be out and about by. 

But he hadn’t dreamt of simple comforts. Nope. He also hadn’t dreamt about the Mandalorian, which was a little surprising, all things considered. No. His dream was all about going on some sort of smuggling run. He wasn’t sure why he was doing that. He didn’t really think he was cut to be a smuggler. In fact he’d been the thing smuggled more than anything other than just being himself. But in this dream he wasn’t the prize. 

He was in a YT-1300 light freighter, sitting in the pilot’s seat. Another Jedi was sitting next to him, but it wasn’t Luke or Ahsoka. He looked like an older version of Obi-Wan Kenobi, but Grogu knew it wasn’t Obi-Wan. This Jedi looked like he’d never lost a lightsaber or forgotten his cloak anywhere.

“Do you two have the course laid in? She says we won’t have much time when we get there and every minute counts.”

The Mandalorian walked into the small bridge and spoke to them both with something like panic in his voice. Grogu glanced over his shoulder to say something soothing, but stopped as soon as he saw his dad’s face. What!? Why wasn’t Din Djarin wearing his helmet? He didn’t want to go to Mandalore and find out whether or not it was safe, just so he could swear by the Creed again. They clearly didn’t have time for that.

“Tell my daughter that we will get there when we get there and not a minute sooner. She should know by now that the Force doesn’t always show you exactly what you need to see.”

“Seb, I invite you to tell your daughter that. The last time I said that I received a very cold cup of caf and a raised eyebrow along with two hours of silence.”

“That sounds like a gift, not a threat. But you two live your lives as you see fit. Grogu, is the course laid in to Coruscant?”

Grogu nodded because he was too flabbergasted to do anything else. Coruscant? Why were they going there? Had they run short on Imp-sympathizers? Or did they need to find a Sith artifact? The place was riddled with them. 

“Excellent. Okay. Time to go.”

Seb pushed the appropriate control and the next thing Grogu knew was they were being bathed in the strange light that was the hallmark of hyperspace. At least this time he didn’t see any space whales. The first time he’d seen those he thought he was dreaming. But he hadn’t been. They’d been real. He’d found out that they were called purrgils. They used the Force to travel through hyperspace. It was fun as a fact but better as a dream.

“Okay. It’s going to a take a while to get there. I’m going to take a nap to avoid listening to your parents complain at each other about why we didn’t leave yesterday. You should get something to eat. I can hear your stomach growling, young one.”

Grogu looked up at Seb, with his beard and fading ginger colored hair and smiled. Whoever Seb was, Grogu liked him. He seemed like the sort of person who had seen a lot but it hadn’t affected him other than to make him kinder and funnier. 

“And we would have been able to leave yesterday if you hadn’t left your lightsaber in the twins’ room and Djarin and I hadn’t had to rebuild that part of the house when they realized what it was and started to argue over it.”

“Daughter, don’t get me started on the many things that you did as a child that created havoc among our family’s plans. I am surprised that we managed to get here at all, given all of that.”

Seb laughed as he exited the bridge. Grogu was still reeling from the various announcements that Seb, the Jedi had made. He had a daughter? His daughter was with them? She called Din Djarin, Djarin and they had twins?  And she was his mom?! He had a MOM?!

Grogu woke up with a start and looked around, his eyes wide and his brain racing. Where was this mom lady? And Seb, where was Seb, the Jedi? Where was his dad?!

“Buddy, how are you? You took a pretty big risk with that rancor. I can’t thank you enough for saving me.”

The Mandalorian picked him up and held him close. Grogu sighed. For once he was glad that Din Djarin was wearing his beskar helmet. Things were the way they were supposed to be, at least for now. He’d just have to be prepared for what was coming. And prepare his dad for that as well. Uff. 

A future where Din Djarin had a wife and kids and didn’t wear his helmet all the time sounded like a dream, but Grogu knew that Force dreams were only ignored at your peril. He’d spent too much of his life in that state to want to spend more time there. For him, this dream was just reality showing up late to the party and he hoped he had enough food for everyone. He would hate to run out of fire stacks, even though he had no idea what they were. Dank Farrik!

[swearyshera]

Unused ideas

My notes app had so many different ideas that didn't make it onto the blog, so I thought I'd put them here and talk about why they didn't get included. A little 'bonus content', if you will.

They're in no particular order, just how they were when I opened it.

Catra sorry but afraid to commit. Adora also afraid This was a bit too general to make it into a particular scene, but I did like the idea that they're both afraid to take that big step and ask for/accept love. I think it got touched on, but I couldn't really find a good opportunity to outright say that.

Adora has nothing real. Catra in heart: I finally know what's real, it's me and you. One of numerous rejected ideas for the Heart scene. The notion of Adora not having anything real (Angella not really being her mom, Light Hope not really being a proper guide, She-Ra not even really being the hero she expected) was a cool idea, but I covered it back at the beginning of season 5 and it just wasn't a strong enough motivation to carry through to the finale.

Mara: You're afraid of being hurt. Adora: Course I'm fucking afraid, I got hurt before This was from the 'you're worth more than what you can give to other people' scene. I loved these lines, but by the time I got to that scene, it was clear the story was about so much more than just admitting her feelings to Catra, it was about the idea of allowing herself a happy life in general.

Dryl is like IKEA If I hadn't thought this up after the episode that took place in Dryl, I would have absolutely done this. We just never went back.

Finale is Catra proposing for real - I can't live without you/A world without you is no world/Love yourself because I do/What's the point in creating a world where you can be yourself if you aren't there too? Various rejected lines and ideas for that 'don't you get it' scene. They just weren't as good as what you ended up seeing.

This is the point of you - to love and to be loved. That's all any of us ever asked This one was also for that scene, and played on Adora's repeated asking of "What's the point of me". It's a great line in isolation, but it didn't fit with the others around it

Wanna fuck?/I've gotta save the universe first We ended up with a toned-down version of this, because there's undercutting the tension and there's undercutting the tension. Yup, there are even times where I reject the cruder lines!

Entrapta has a birth mark. Hordak knows. Another one on the slightly cruder side, but I couldn't really find a place that this worked. Maybe next time...

(On Prime's ship) Glimmer accuses Catra of being like SW and that's why Catra decides to help. "You're not perfect yourself, Princess"/"Wow, you can tell Shadow Weaver raised you" In hindsight, this just looks like it's unnecessarily harsh. I get what I was aiming for, a point of reflection for Catra that she may be going down the wrong path, but now I look back, I'm glad I didn't include this.

Corridors - Glimmer: It would be nice if you apologised for being a bitch to me/Catra: That would imply I'm sorry about it This one would have fit a lot better than the above idea, but the two of them bickering whilst fighting was funnier.

And that's the unused stuff! Would you have liked to see it in the blog? Happy that it didn't happen? Let me know!

[oneatlatime]

The Waterbending Master

Finally! Only took the whole season to find one.

This one apparently also has commentary. I'll leave it off for now.

After countless episodes without, we finally have another hybrid animal. Behold:

A koala Sea-otter? That makes noises like a Raven. Alright.

Sokka saying "I'm not one to complain" is a) pretty damning evidence of his amount of self-awareness b) self-deprecating sarcasm c) a funny line that I'm reading too deeply into

Why is Appa flying so low anyway?

Subtle signs that these guys are way too used to relying on bending: -no railings -no alternate propulsion source (seriously, not even an oar?) -no emergency supplies in case a trip runs long (I don't even see an emergency sandwich, and come on guys, it's not like waterbending controls the weather)

Random pinball bumper style ice stabbies does seem like a good defense though.

Not so subtle exposition dump from Zhao the asshole. Avatar writers are usually better at integrating catch-up dialogue. Looks like Aang will be arriving just in time to defend the Water tribe from the invasion that, ironically, he summoned. Talk about self-inflicted problems. Do you think if Aang had found a waterbending teacher somewhere else, the Fire Nation would have left the water tribe alone for another hundred years? Aang's been learning on the run; they could have picked up a single waterbender and hightailed it back to some cave in the earth kingdom to learn there. Or the water tribe could have sent a waterbender out to find the gaang as soon as rumours of the avatar reached them. See? This was avoidable.

Always love me some sea-bison.

They have bending doors like Omashu. Actually is this a door or a lock? I think the water level is changing.

Is this a hybrid animal? The yak thing, not the two legger.

Last time you got a hero's welcome, Suki's village burnt down. Foreshadowing?

How often does this lady see sea-bisons? She just passed by one and didn't even bat an eye. Is there a secret sea-bison colony that's spent the last 100 years hiding from the fire nation in the north pole?

Music Night! Need a better lyricist.

What's going on here? Did they roast a giant turtle thing and now they're cooling it to serve by dunking it in water? Did they feel the need for a steam effect for the guy's speech so they heated up a giant thingy and dunked it in water? Is it a weird boat thing? It looks like it has a face. I bet it's a ritual object.

Are these pot stacks the water tribe version of Totem Poles?

Oh nuh uh. Nope. 16 is way too young to marry.

This girl is so into him I can feel it through the screen, the dvd player, and the 15+ years since this aired.

Even the head guy's like "yeah, he's an asshole, What can you do?" Let's put this asshole and Zhao the asshole in a room together. They can out-asshole each other. Should be fun.

Remember back in episode three when I said that Zuko needed to learn how to lie? This is why.

Nevermind, we don't need to put Zhao and Paku in a room together to out-asshole each other. Paku wins. As far as I've seen, bending is not gender specific, either in who gets it or how it's taught/used. What kind of idiot would tell someone born with the ability to wield an incredible weapon that, actually, they aren't allowed to? How did this attitude get instilled in the first place? Why didn't the first guy who ever said this get slashed to death by ice stabbies thrown by the ten nearest female benders? Are these northern water tribe people so unbothered by the war that they can afford to sideline 50% of their forces? More than sideline, render incapable of defending themselves or others? Obviously this tribe is far too privileged if they can afford this attitude. And also far too bored. I guess hiding behind that giant ice wall for 100 years left them so understimulated that they turned on themselves.

Bad attitude? Fucking bad attitude!?! There's only one guy in this episode with a bad attitude and it isn't Katara. Zhao looks downright pleasant compared to this Paku guy.

Question for Paku: why would the Northern Water Tribe's rules apply to a Southern Water Tribe member?

My god these two are so cute. Sokka could propose they disembowel whale carcasses for their activity and the princess would say yes.

So the parrot lizard did survive the fall over the waterfall.

They're little tiny children. Katara, who has spent her whole life wanting to learn to bend to fight, has literally been shoved back into the igloo with a bunch of babies to learn lady-bending (no offence to the babies). How how HOW is she so calm right now? If I were in her situation, I think I'd be so angry I'd be ugly crying. And also plotting how to murder that Paku guy.

WHAT.

Paku the asshole is apparently a proponent of the tell don't show philosophy of teaching. The Tell-while-doing-unspeakable-things-to-my-lunch don't show philosophy.

Unexpected backstory. This lady must have been pretty close to Gran Gran if she recognises a carving she presumably wore for maybe a few months about 50 years ago or more. Also this lady is shockingly dumb if she can't see why Gran Gran left this misogynistic hellhole, but I guess it can be hard to see it while you're in it.

Nitpick time: How does the teacher recognise this? Isn't this just the water tribe symbol? Probably the most common symbol in the whole north pole?

Nosferatu Zuko. Nosferzuko. Zukoratu? Iroh's pause here was so long that I checked in case I had muted by accident. And how does your crew being taken by Zhao the asshole make your crew traitors Zuko? Orders are orders.

So we're adding asassinating royals to our list of reasons Zhao is an asshole. I think he's won the title back from Paku.

Fuck this port I guess.

Zuko's dead. Huh. Bye then. Gotta say I don't get why he's so big in the fandom.

This princess sure does send some mixed messages. At least she didn't ghost him.

"Master Poophead." My God. It's perfect. Why didn't I think of that?

Aang passing on what he learns to Katara. Why didn't I think of that either? My plan was to get Katara to launch unprovoked attacks on Paku's students and study how they defend themselves until she can copy / surpass them. Mostly so I could watch Katara beat the crap out of sexists.

Die mad about it you troglodyte. Disrespect? How nice it must be to have enough of your culture left that it can be disrespected. And you're going to deny the avatar training, thus dooming the whole world to death via fire nation, because you're butthurt? Freakin manbaby.

YES! YES! BEAT HIS ASS! PLEASEPLEASEPLEASE!!!!!!

"I know. I don't care." + "I'm not doing it for you." = I'm officially in love with Katara. I took a while to warm up to her, I admit the first few episodes were a little rough, but this seals the deal.

This screenshot sparks joy. Last episode Aang bitchslapped a fire nation guy with air. This episode it's Katara's turn with water. The Firelord Uber-Bitchslapped Zuko with fire a few years ago. All I need is an earth bitchslap and my collection will be complete. Avatar: master of all four bitchslaps. Also this wouldn't have worked to goad Paku into fighting if he was half as mature as he thinks he is. Although he gets points for being harder to goad than Zhao in the Deserter.

In an episode where the A plot is Katara, the B plot is Aang, the C plot is Zuko, and the D plot is Sokka's love life, the writers still manage to fulfill the Beat up Sokka quota. Good job guys.

If only she'd aimed a couple of inches to the left. This show already includes a kid getting his face burned off. Surely a Poophead being separated from his nose is ok?

That's twice now she's lost her necklace. If the carving has lasted 50+ years, surely it's earned a metal chain rather than a hair ribbon?

Gran Gran! Bullet dodged! Excellent call!

That's a lot less beat up than I was expecting. And Iroh has never once given the impression that he isn't quietly ride or die for Zuko, so why would Zuko not expect Iroh to help him? Because Zuko isn't terribly perceptive? Because the writers needed a way to deliver yet more exposition?

I did notice that the healing lady specified that Gran gran was in an arranged marriage but Poophead was talking about love. Again, why was Gran Gran leaving a mystery?

Underrated moment of wisdom from Aang here. He gets why the princess is upset and he's twelve! But I'd bet good money that the idiot on the right has no clue what's going on.

Princess ran so far away that it's night time now. This episode is not subtle anywhere, so I figured that the princess being engaged was the cause of this whole blowing hot and cold thing. Despite being 16 and fictional, Sokka handles mixed signals and rejection with 10000% more maturity and kindness than many unfortunately non-fictional grown men I've met. Kudos to Sokka for being honest and respectful.

Even redeemed, Poophead is still an asshole.

Well that's a problem.

Fire Nation ships would be a lot more intimidating if they didn't look like shoes.

Final Thoughts

This episode was a lot of exposition, a lot of set up, and even some catch up. And it was not done as gracefully as this show usually does it. More than once the dialogue between characters felt like two actors lecturing the audience rather than the characters we know.

This episode also had twice the concentration of assholes. A Zhao episode I can deal with. An episode with a one shot asshole where Zhao doesn't appear? I could also deal with. But TWO grade A assholes in ONE episode? No. Too much.

My whole-hearted congratulations to Gran Gran for seeing Poophead for what he was, and refusing to put up with it. Leaving his ass didn't make him get the message. 50+ years alone didn't make him get the message. The granddaughter that ought to have been his being so disgusted by his conduct that she attempts to cut his face off didn't make him get the message. There was no way that this idiot was going to change. So congrats to Gran Gran for making an excellent call, leaving his ass to freeze, and getting two most excellent grandchildren instead.

I also have to applaud Sokka and Katara for not being bitter about the Northern Water Tribe. I can't help but notice the spectacular architecture, complete with embellishments and unnecessary non-structural doodads. Let's do a quick comparison (ignore the ship):

Left has one waterbender. Right has all the waterbenders. We know that Northerners can travel south thanks to Gran Gran. The North couldn't have sent one sneaky waterbender to at least make the south a ship-proof wall? That chief guy has some audacity calling Katara and Sokka their brother and sister or whatever when they've evidently left the south to rot for a century. And I know the Fire Nation, the War, bla bla, but you guys are so bored behind your walls that you're cannibalising your own capabilities based on gender just for fun.

RANT INCOMING

Since I'm on the topic, can we talk about how STOOOPID it is to separate your combatants from your medics? Here's a secret about combat medics: they're both. They learn the basics of combat, and they learn the basics of emergency medicine (And a LOT of other stuff besides). Basic training includes basic first aid for EVERYONE.

Because here's the thing. People who get hurt beating the shit out of other people are usually hurt in an environment where beating the shit out of people occurs. If they are injured enough that they can't get themselves out of the 'beating the shit out of other people' zone, then unless they can treat themselves on the spot or their fellow soldiers can administer first aid or get them out, they die.

Alternatively, if they can't get themselves out of the 'beating the shit out of other people' zone, then medics have to be sent in. A medic who doesn't know how to fight who gets sent into the zone will - guess what? - get the shit beaten out of them. Now you're two men down at present, and who knows how many more you're going to lose over the next few days because you're down a medic. So unless every single waterbending fighter in the Northern water tribe is going to go into combat with a waterbending healer literally attached to them, there will be mountains of unnecessary losses and avoidable injuries.

Now let's look at this from the other angle. What happens if the enemy breaches your defences (because all your defenders are merrily bleeding out from wounds their bending could heal if only they'd learned how) and then makes their way to your combat hospitals? Which are full of soldiers who are too injured to fight and healers who don't know how to defend themselves? Apart from the whole living surrounded by their element thing, waterbenders' greatest advantage in a fight appears (to me) be to be their miraculous healing powers. Katara completely healed her burnt hands to the point where there wasn't even scar tissue and she had no training at all. A skill that can erase burns (the thing firebenders give you) negates the fire nation's greatest weapon - their fire. Any fire nation general who's not an idiot would therefore target waterbending healers, maybe even over waterbending fighters. So any fire nation commander would absolutely put 'capture field hospitals' as one of their top priorities. This is a kids' cartoon, so let's ignore historical precedent as to what happens to nurses caught in field hospitals behind enemy lines and say that the fire nation would defeat the waterbending healers.

Let's paint a quick picture here: in the background, a field full of waterbending fighters sidelined by treatable injury. In the middle ground, an inexorably advancing wall of firebenders. In the foreground, a field hospital full of defenseless waterbending healers. Just peachy isn't it?

How fucking UNSTOPPABLE would a bender able to shrug off a fireball to the face then turn around and take out a firebending platoon be? Get one hundred - no fifty - benders who can both heal and fight, have them advance in two rows: Front row fights, switches with back row when they're injured, gets healed up, rotates back up to front row as a replacement. Functionally unstoppable barring the need to eat and sleep (so long as they bring their own water). The Northern Water Tribe had decades to develop that. Unlike the south, they had the time, the resources, and apparently so little going on that they took up sexism to pass the time. The wasted opportunity here burns. See kids? Sexism hurts the sexists too.

This northern attitude is just dumb. It's illogical. It's stupid. I'd call it a ham-fisted unsubtle after school special of a plotline if it weren't a fictionalised version of something that's literally baked into to many cultures worldwide, past and present.

RANT CONCLUDED

What else can I say about this episode? Aang and Sokka had like three lines each, but they were very in character. Sokka and the princess are cute together. Zuko and Iroh had a good dynamic when they weren't acting in service to exposition. This whole episode really feels like part one of a two parter.

I think something might have been off with the narrative weighting of this episode. There was an honest to god assassination attempt and I forgot.

While the shot of Paku looking put out that the ice disk landed so close to his face was funny, I would have preferred it if Katara had gotten in one hit beyond her bitchslap. Just one. His ego needed the beating which it got via the necklace thing, but I would have liked to see actual beating too.

If I had seen this episode as a child I absolutely would have lost my mind over Katara getting to beat up a sexist. I'd bet good money that this episode did lots of good for the self-esteem of little girls who saw it.

Katara's plot line is like the plot of the Waterbending Scroll episode, but in a positive light. In that episode her selfishness regarding bending got them in trouble; in this one it helped. Seen in that light, the fact that it's the necklace rather than Katara's skill that gets through to Paku is a bit undermining, but if "magical girl has such impressive skills that the sexist dinosaur throws away decades of sexism for the chance to be her teacher" had been the plot instead, I'd probably be complaining about cliches instead.

All in all, a bit clunky, a lot of set up, and too many assholes and frustrating idiocy for it to go on my rewatch list. Feminist beat downs are good for the soul, but I'm not sure they outweigh Poopheads.

[where-them-kinomiya-at]

OMFG YAYAYAYYYYY OKOK SO WHERE DO I EVEN START

Ok one thing that makes me sad abt those who steer away from vforce is that they're also the ones who are like 'the best thing abt beyblade is that it's so over the top but it doesn't take itself too srsly' and its insane bcz vforce is EXACTLY THAT ykwim???

One thing I love that I just need to quickly put in somewhere is that GORDO IS SO HAWT HELLO PLS ye that's just like a sidenote

I love max x mariam hehe

Vforce writing is a bit inconsistent like in some places and arcs I only like it as much as I do because of my headcannoning problem and cuz I see the ✨️vision✨️ but for the most part it is the most INSANE szn and I love it for that ❤️

Like there is the psychick and saint shield arc where two parties try to steal bit beasts exx one for v futuristic rzns and the other for v traditional but same goal. Also no one talks abt this enough BUT THERE WAS LTRLY A DETECTIVE INVESTIGATION SIDE PLOT LIKE HELLO that is so good?

Also I love zeo as a villain he's just a little roboboy who wanted to be a real boy and the whole thing was so good my jaw was on the FLOOR

I love kai in this szn but I can't go into that now that's a whole other rant

Also speaking of writing king and queen had the PERFECT win to loss to tie ratio for the roles they played in the show. That's so random ik hehe

Anyway sry for ranting up ur poor askbox I just got hyper excited to talk abt vforce 😭

Ik exactly what you mean. It’s so overlooked it’s sad. It took me a re run of the series (quite a few bouncing of episodes from season to season) to understand its purpose and need and what I REALLY want to state, even though I’m not gonna elaborate it here is that the characters are a perfect build up of their season 1 counterparts and FFS THEY ARENT OOC. I can go on but I’m trying to keep it short.

Hahah I love Max and Mariam too! In fact, I LOVE Mariam! Don’t miss out on her, whether or not you like vforce.

Ironically v force Tyson is my favorite- let’s just not go into that overly recorded dialogue: omg Tyson was such a jerk, totally OOC- like no?? He was not😭. He literally deserves nothing but hugs!! I love his dub version a lot more tbh (also Marlowe did his best in this season).I love Kai in this season too!

The detective investigation part is my fav because that guy is LITERALLY THE ONLY useful adult in Beyblade, it’s hilarious. I’m not fond of the villains (Gideon and Dr.B) because they don’t match up to Boris, but I still love the rivals- Ozuma, Kane and Zeo and their respective teams ofc.

King and Queen had less screen time but omg I loved their presence! They didn’t feel unwanted and unnecessary and I loved that about them!

Season 1 is my fav but vforce is the best for me when it comes to analysis. The dub definitely messes up at time but there are so many things it does better too. V force dub is PEAK.

Also pleaseee do not feel sorry for filling my inboxes! It’s vforce, I can and will defend and talk about it my entire life haha. my dms are always open jic!

[serendertothesquad]

Seren's Studies: Odd Squad UK -- "Three is the Oddest Number" Episode Followup, Part 1

Well, ladies and gents and human beings...it's here. The finale of Odd Squad UK. Given PBS's track record with this franchise, I'm going to just deem it the series finale until some news decides to slap me in the face that the show got renewed for a Season 2/Season 5. And that's assuming it actually does.

This is a three-parter (considering "Should Odd Acquaintance Be Forgot" is chopped in two parts), so I'll be tackling this episode and hopefully get to the other two tonight. Maybe. Hopefully. I'm not exactly confident nor excited to see how it ends, but nearly anything could be better than the trainwreck that was "Odd Together Now". And never forget that I took a fucking bullet for all of you who watch Season 3 because I watched that shit early. (Funny to think that I had a big old speech for my Seren Reacts video about how the show's ending...and how it aged poorly. Didn't even get to do a final run on it!)

But enough talk! Let's have at this episode below the break.

(A post-editing note: I was informed that Leonie is, in fact, a girl, and not a boy like I thought. I'm keeping the LGBTQ+ theory because we've already gotten gay triangle villain and they could extend that to child villains too, but keep in mind that Leonie is a girl and not a boy. That's my bad.)

Ohhhh...a Niki episode. Once again, as long as it's not Omar or Tasha, I do not give a flying rat's Photoshopped ass.

That aside, this looks eerily similar to the classroom at the Academy where Orchid taught in "End of the Road". It's just more green, and there are no Mobile Unit agents, but the sentiment is there.

Hold on, hold on...this shit was all them?

Okay! Great! Cool! So riddle me this, then: why did we not get any hints about you in any of these episodes? Even a shot of any one of these three peeking around a corner -- or hell, even a funny background Easter egg or a symbol of some kind! -- would have helped tremendously.

You guys remember my complaint about them trying to squeeze a story arc into 12 episodes? This is the result of that and my complaints are legit so help me God.

Oh, hi, Ohlm. You got out of your eternal grounding and hopped on a plane to the UK? Didn't...didn't even serve any jail time for committing mass murder, huh?

(Yeah yeah, I'm aware that's not Ohlm. But you can't tell me it doesn't look like an older Jaiden at first glance.)

This is the most goddamn LGBTQ+ child villain I have ever seen, and I will leave the fandom to discuss their own theories.

Their...their logo is literally...it's just a slimmed-down version of...the...Science symbol...

Deja vu, I have in fact been in this place before, in "Oscar Strikes Back". And if neither of these three were Scientists, then what is point?

Oxandra is a name I'm fine with. It's Cassandra but Odd Squad-fied.

Offee, though? Is the name born from a mother with a severe caffeine addiction, and anyone who says it's toffee is wrong. Think about it. Sit on how demonized coffee is in this franchise. And then, find the symbolism.

SEE???? AND HIS NAME IS OLLISON. ALLISON. HE'S A BOY.

THE MOST OBVIOUSLY LGBTQ+ CHILD SINCE SEATTLE MR. O BAR ONLY HIM.

"To do that, we need to steal three shapes from their gadgets."

I see someone's taking their cue from Odd Todd in World Turned Odd.

"But we can't just go into Odd Squad HQ and steal it."

Actually yes you can, and lemme lay this out:

Get some agent suits

Maybe get some masks, or disguise yourself with a shapeshifting device

Get into HQ

Steal the shapes

????

????

Profit.

*long deep sigh*

No. Don't do this. Not after m' boi reformed. Don't do this. I'm recovering from last episode still. DON'T. DO THIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-

Pretty sure I mentioned how good foreshadowing would be in "A Tour of Odd Squad", no?

And yet, they decide to shove it into this episode????? They decide to have the "kids in the superfan tour" thing in this episode?!?!?!?!

Okay, they cared about continuity this season, but only a sparse few times. They've bent the rules of continuity so many times that they could abso-fuckin'-lutely have put them in the tour in that episode.

"But Seren, you would still whi-" FUCKING YES I WOULD STILL WHINE. I HAVE A RIGHT TO WHINE THANK YOU.

Ohhhhh...because Icy Mouseeeeeeeeey.....

If this is shaping up to be a villain episode, then I'll say right now that "Villain Networking" handled it much better.

I...why do we need a time card? If they're already at the "assigning roles to the evil plan" portion, how the fuck long do they need?

Aaaaaaaah' c'maaaaaaaaaahn. You can't tell me they weren't thinking of Macklemore here. At least once!

"We don't follow fashion...?"

Already got my idea for a new Season 2/Season 5 character. And that's setting aside the fact that Onom is canonically a seamstress. (Seamster?)

No, that's a child in a mouse mask, Ryan Lewis. There is a difference between a bipedal mouse and a bipedal human wearing a mouse mask.

"Chasey or zappy" is a real PBS Kids way of saying "shoot first, or chase first?"

Though to be honest, wounding him would up the finale's ante considerably.

50/50 chance of Orli calling them out on being literal children instead of adults.

...

No, lemme change that. 90/10. And you should know what the 10 is for.

DID A WHOLE-ASS VISCERAL COUGH AT THIS LGBTQ+ CHILD ASKING ORLI TO TAKE A FUCKING SELFIE AND NAME-DROPPING SELFIE AND BRO WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING.

If I really wanted to, I could make an MLP unicorn telekinesis joke, but I don't want to, so I won't.

NOOOOOO. N O T THEM HAVING A PORTRAIT VS. LANDSCAPE DEBATE. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NIKI CHILD WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK- *explodes*

This slow head shake is fucking sending me. This entire scene is beautiful for a cold-open-not-cold-open.

Y'ALL GOT TWO MORE SHAPES TO FIND NOW W H A T ARE Y'ALL DOING.

I appreciate the villains giving the math lesson this time around, even if they are our big bads. We don't get many villain math lessons because villains are supposed to be st00pid at math.

Oxandra. Sweet summer child. Either drop the evil laugh or work on it. It's not for you.

Look, the more this very obvious Otis reference is brought up, the more I will fucking complain about it.

Again I have to ask: what is the writers' fixation on referencing Season 2 stuff? 10 years' worth of stuff to reference and you go with Season 2?

...Oh, and speaking of:

"Is...that just a regular magnifying gla-"

"JUST LET ME HAVE THIS ONE, ORLI!! PLEEEEEASE!!"

"they wouldn't have gotten away from me and this"

bro has feet

other bro has a limp and two tiny wheels

Think realistically, Orwell. Really think. Sit on it forever if ya have to.

Y'know, seeing this season makes me realize that they really just up and went "okay, make a gadget for anything and everything in existence".

And that's in addition to the 10k they already have, mind you.

(On to Part 2!)

[variousqueerthings]

Dear God! That’s the attack prayer!

OKAY A good man goes to war... I think "let's kill hitler" is enough of a departure to do these separately

sexism rank objectification (female character is ogled/harassed/turned into a sex joke by the doctor and/or a lead we’re supposed to root for and/or the camera): 6/10

sexism rank plot-point (lead female character is only there to serve plot, not to have her emotional interiority explored): 2/10

interesting complex or pointlessly complex (does the complexity serve the narrative or does it just serve to be confusing as a stand-in for smart, this includes visually): 3/10

furthers character and/or lore and/or plot development (broader question that ties into the previous ones, at least two of these, ideally three should be fulfilled): 5/10

companion matters (the companion doesn’t always have to be there, but if the companion is there, can they function without the doctor– and overall per season how often is the companion the focus or POV of the story): 3/10

the doctor is more than just “godlike” (examines the doctor’s flaws and limitations, doesn’t solve a plot by having it revolve entirely around the doctor’s existence): 4/10

doesn’t look down on previous doctor who (by erasing or mocking its importance, by redoing and “bettering” previous beloved plotpoints or characters, etc.): 6/10

isn’t trying to insert hamfisted sexiness (m*ffat famously talked a lot about how dw should be sexier multiple times, he sucks at writing it): 5/10

internal world has consistency (characters have backgrounds, feel rooted in a place with other people, generally feel like they have Lives): 4/10

Politics (how conservative is the story): 4/10

FULL RATING: 42/100 (if I can count….)

listen, this episode has this exchange:

Thin guy: Hello I’m the thin one. This is my husband, he’s the fat one Lorna: Don’t you have names? Fat guy: We’re the thin/fat gay married Anglican marines. Why would we need names as well?

and then one of them is killed immediately after this and the other isn't seen again I believe

so... my feelings about this episode can be encapsulated by that line, but certainly there is... more to pick out than just that

OBJECTIFICATION: shockingly that's not a big issue this episode. yes we're used to River Song being sexy in all of her outfits, and now we've added Jenny's very similar type of outfit, but Amy is mostly in sort of... linen-looking loose shirt and trousers, which, she'd better be she just gave birth. speaking of giving birth, still wearing those boots with heels

idk, this could be explained away as character, but it feels like it plays into a bit of Amy not being the important part of this episode so they're just saddling her with business as usual (so they took all her clothes away except her boots?) it just feels. a bit lazy

PLOT-POINT: speaking of being a plot point. Amy, in the episode about being kidnapped and having been secretly imprisoned while pregnant without knowing it and then waking up right as you were giving birth after months and months, and then being threatened with that baby being immediately taken from you (which does in fact happen)... is not the focal point

she's got an opening scene in which she speaks to her baby and is like "you're gonna get saved don't you worry, because your dad is a badass (I guesssssssssssss, we'll get back to Rory), and I too will be saved"

and then she stands around waiting to be saved, and there is One Bit where she's like "I was here all along and that was a bit fucked up" and the Doctor hugs her (with Rory's permission, because we love casual sexism) and is like, "the stuff on the Tardis was also real, I mean, your body was here and pregnant, but youknow, close enough" and that's about it for Amy's Stuff

I'd argue Rory meeting the baby is given more emotional weight/time, and that scene is good and important and he's crying and he and Amy are sweet, but where's her version of this moment?

we do have Amy losing the baby at the end and that's fucked up, and we get her demanding River to know what's going on, and then the episode ends before she reacts to that (maybe in the next one...)

but on the whole, she's just damseling and not even having much of an opinion on being a damsel, beyond going "yeah it'll be fine"

River comes in at the beginning and the end, at the beginning she's talking about the Doctor and at the end she's revealing who she is, and she's... happy. so that's an emotion. and she's finally getting to tell her parents that she's their daughter, and getting to tell the Doctor

so River gets more than Amy in this on the whole, and now she's no longer a mystery she can go on to be a character I imagine... wait and see...

COMPLEXITY: classic M*ffat. montages. characters youve never seen before who are very important now. characters you have seen before, but in episodes where it makes no sens for them to be here (Danny-boy? you're a WWII pilot, what?) (where did all those Silurians come from? Judoon? what a strange set of choices)

bunch of mythologies that were just made up on the spot, saying "well the Doctor is badass" instead of showing him doing much of anything, also that bit where he blew up a bunch of cybermen ships just cos? it looks cool I guess? why do things happen? to look cool

CHARACTERS/LORE/PLOT: siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh well what do we learn? we learn that Amy loves Rory and believes he's going to come and save her, so nothing new there

we learn that there's a bunch of mythologies about the Doctor being a "great Warrior" but also that the "doctor" comes from the Doctor's name, I suppose

we learn about the headless monks and the one-eyed lady, sort of. we learn they exist and are behind the abduction of Amy and later Melody

we learn that Amy and Rory had sex on the Tardis and so their kid is kind of Timelord????

and that River is that kid, but grown up

think that's about it

so lot of plot, some stupid lore, and a couple of character dynamic moments (Rory meeting the baby, River revealing she's Melody, although we don't see Amy and Rory reacting to that)

the Doctor has more of an emotional moment with Vastra, a character we've just met, than with Amy and Rory (Vastra also does more plot shit than Amy or Rory, see below)

COMPANIONS MATTER: Amy. Standing around.

Rory. The Last Centurion. Okay so I don't buy this. which is probably the problem. I really really enjoyed the Rory we were getting to know this season, who's defined by his caring nature, quite a sweet man with a strong sense of right and wrong that's based in his nursing, and then this episode they're like "but also he's Badass Action Man who says shit like "the twelfth cyber-legion monitors this entire quadrant"" and then right down to that tidbit about how he's got a sword but he'll allow the Doctor to hug Amy

and in all of that what does he actually do? not much of anything. in many ways he's standing around as much as Amy is, just in a Centurion outfit, because. Oh and he has a myth about him as well, I guess...

“GODLIKE” DOCTOR: “that you pricked the side of a mighty beast and entirely failed to run” siiigh

"Demons run when a good man goes to war…" siiiiiiiiigh

Pandorica

A dark legend

"Doctor, we get that word from you you know" SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGH

listen the thing is, again, this episode is actually inevitably really about the Doctor all along, it's a mythology about the Doctor, and Amy is - like in s5 - bait and trap and red herring

all the reveals about River and the journey of why this matters is because the Doctor will rise higher than ever before and then fall so much further, or whatever, and I'm like... I think Amy feels worse actually... I think this is about her. it's not though

In theory I like the big about Colonel Runaway, I think that's very Neat, and I like

Evil Woman: The anger of a good man is not a problem. Good men have too many rules The Doctor: Good men don’t need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many

but it's framed around all the rest of the Schlock

the one upside is that in all of those annoying montages, the point is that the Doctor knows all these people who do stuff because the Doctor comes to call. it begs the question of whether the Doctor in this incarnation has friends or just people who owe him, like a mafia boss, but at least the Doctor isn't going it alone, like in the beginning of the episode with the exploding Cybermen ships (just... to send a message.... gasp, he is a Mob Boss!)

PREVIOUS DOCTOR WHO: it doesn't technically do anything with previous DW one way or another, but I do think it's dubious in terms of the ethos of previous Doctor Who... not the biggest Thing on this, but urgh, this episode is dumb. I hope the next will be better (I say about an episode I remember not liking)

“SEXINESS”: it's not actually overwhelming this episode, maybe because Amy isn't chatting with the Doctor, and River is barely there, although she does flirt with... Rory... a bit.... which is first when she doesn't see it's Rory, and then a joke about how two Doctors was "a whole other birthday" which is just a little weird when we know later on that Rory is her dad, but isn't about him at least

there's also River asking "if he's considered heels" which I cannot tell what the tone of that comment was meant to be about

Vastra and Jenny have a joke related to Vastra having a long tongue (get it, they're lesbians), and Vastra is the first woman equivalent to a Sherlock/Doctor type we've seen (that is, she's casually mean and withholding, because she's too busy being Brilliant to care about others' emotions -- I wonder if she's actually Sherlock Ho-)

INTERNAL WORLD: who are the headless monks? they're an order. who are the cleric marines? they're an order. what is demons run? it's a place. that's about what we know right?

POLITICS: it's not so much that the politics are bad as that the episode is a hot mess. there're these cleric monks (I believe a throughline from the ones we saw in s5 with the Angels), but their whole Thing isn't really explored so much as there, and there are the Headless Monks, again, cool but... just there... there could have been politics in that, but there isn't

which leaves us with the sexism (Amy's complete irrelevance in the episode about her abduction and semi-forced pregnancy), and the casual homophobic joke, which feels like it was meant to be a funny tongue-in-cheek meta point about representation, and at best it falls flat. at worst it's just homophobic (it is)

FULL RATING: 42/100 (if I can count….)

It just fails on the emotional level, that's what it is in the end. Nobody's actions are grounded in anything, they're just there to serve some seemingly cool set-pieces that ultimately prop up the Doctor as being cool

its highest ratings are "this was not the worst thing it did." I am not a fan of this episode

I didn't actually talk about how I feel about River being Amy's and Rory's kid..... that's a whole other post

[ducksbyday]

HELLO TUMBLR PEOPLE

I HAVE BEEN ASKED TO WRITE MORE SO I SHALL OBLIGE

I will never get over how sweet the tumblr/qsmp community is. yall are so sweet and amazing and oof- hugs for all

PART 2 QSMP MEMBERS + THE KINGDOM (DDG) WOOOO

[You can find part 1 here]

PHILZA - FIRJEN/LJORD

The only kingdom to fully get wiped off the face of the earth for good, leaving almost no trace of it ever existing in the first place (the king deleted his YouTube channel :,( )

In the north peak of Midisti, deep in the snow was once the freezing kingdom of Firjen. It was a kingdom with little allies that mostly kept to themselves. It was once ruled by King Joris who, after losing the war against Entropia & friends, lost everything. The Goddess Eclypsa took notice of the unnecessary blood spill and became enraged. Fueled with grief and anger, she decided to save King Joris by bringing him to Ljord. Here she gifted him the dragons of Bovisti.

The king, broken but determined, rebuilds his empire in the new snowy lands of Ljord. He recruited new people, found some of his old companions, and eventually got revenge on Entropia after capturing King David and feeding him to the dragons. But his glory didn't last forever. His men turned on him, kicked him off the throne, and threw him in jail, never to be heard from again.

Philza seems to me like a person who'd do well in Firjen/Ljord. Either as someone who stayed loyal to King Joris and went down with him or as one of the people who turned on him in the end. Perhaps he realized that the revolution and appointing a new king did not make things any better, and joined the refugees to Fenrin to fight for freedom from the outside. Also, he has a history with cold lands (the Artic Empire & his DSMP base with techno). Plus he is currently taking care of two dragon eggs, which is fitting to me.

MISSA - HELLIOS

Truly a great place to be. As the name says, Hellios is the kingdom’s version of Hell. If you're bad and you die, you get doomed to live in a black, lifeless realm for all eternity named Hellios. If good, you go to Elementos, a haven with everything a person can dream of.

Hellios is run by Celcrius (the God of the underworld) and his mage Arjan. They are known to dabble in dark magic, necromancy, and mind control and will use it without hesitation. This has been made very clear since the beginning. In episode 1 of their series, they resurrect an old king intending to take over the kingdom of Tyksa.

Q!Missa being a walking, living, breathing skeleton fits in well with how Celcrius goes about his business. I see Misa possibly being one of Celcrius' workers who was brought to life by the mage. He could've been an informant, sent to the surface to collect information. I like to think Celcrius told him to spy on people from a distance, but Misa misunderstood completely. Instead, he started trying to blend in with civilization so collect info that way. People might've been a bit freaked out at first, since he's a walking skeleton but eventually got used to it. "But he's so kind though!"

QUACKITY - BOR

Kingdom Bor is.. a strange one. I don't know much about them except that they live inside hills and mountains, are OBSESSED with carrots, and don't seem to take anything seriously.

They're most known for the song the king wrote about importing carrots. Further, the kingdom is known for the song the king wrote about jumping around. Also, the king blew up a part of his own kingdom because looking at it made him sad. He also started beef with Hellios for some reason. Idk even how.

In general, the whole kingdom is just a bunch of lads messing around and being stupid. The fact that they survived for two seasons and won multiple wars is incredibly shocking to me.

I think Q!Q would fit in well seeing the many many times he went missing, and then came back, and then went missing, and then came back, and then- you get the point. He's unhinged, a little bit crazy and I think he would be busting it down if he heard the songs about carrots and jumping.

WILBUR SOOT - MURA (kinda)

I wanted to assign Wilbur to a kingdom but then later changed my mind. I think it be cool if he was a nomad, traveling from kingdom to kingdom to play music and have a good time. But if I did have to assign him somewhere it would probably be Mura (the kingdom of former nomads, who sworn to never participate in wars).

This is all for now, since it it getting very late for me and I am very sleepy. I hope you enjoyed reading this! :D Sending love to everyone <3

[xxlea-nardoxx]

Hi! I love your videos and art! and can I ask a little question - how do you feel about other tmnt movies and TV series? (1987, 90s, 2003, 2007, etc.) what is your opinion on this? (I think you've seen and watched some of this). thank you in advance for the answer. keep up the good work! ^^

I'm so sorry this took longer to answer! I completely forgot it yesterday.😂

I kinda expected this question to arrive SOMEDAY, to be honest, since I mainly talk about 2012, but I don't mind it of course!

1987:

I only ever watched a few episodes and bits of it, so I cannot form a good answer, but I do think the show is actually funny, or at least entertaining. My friend even calls it a haven for incorrect quotes and I agree on that. xD I swear I will continue it one day to have better judgement!

The 90's movies:

Never watched them, honestly. I do want to watch the first one at one point, but I'm still holding out on doing it. xD

2003:

TURTLES COUNT IT OFF! I swear, my friends and I sing the opening of that show more than we've actually watched the show.💀

I started watching the first season and made it a few episodes in. Even watched it in German and it was honestly already great. Fell in love with these idiots immediately, especially Donnie and Raph who became my favorites in an instant. Still cannot believe they let Raph say "shit" in the german dub. xD

2007 movie:

*angelic music resounds*

God, I love that movie SO MUCH. It's just such an enjoyable watch late at night (as is Tmnt in general, actually) and I remember it from back during my childhood. That movie was actually on TV a few times, during my time as a Tmnt fan back during 2013-2016, and I loved to watch it.

Returning to the fandom and finding the movie on Netflix actually brought back all my nostalgia I had for this movie, and thus watched it again one night. And I will not forgive Netflix for just taking it down.

2012:

I mean......Do I need to explain? As if it isn't obvious enough, ahshsjsjs. It was my introduction to Tmnt, to anyone who didn't know!

2014/2016 movies:

I do not care what anyone says: These movies ROCK. Sure, the turtles look quite terrifying, but I never experienced a dull moment watching these movies. I genuinely enjoy watching them so much.

Back in 2014 I wanted to watch the movie in the cinema so badly, but I was only 11 and thus couldn’t watch a Rated 12 movie alone (since my mom dislikes the turtles HEAVILY xD), so I could only watch it once it was on TV for the first time (I wasn't allowed the DVD for whatever reason), which did take about two years, shshsjsj.

BUT two years later, when "Out of the Shadows" came out, I was 13 and READY. It was my first Tmnt movie on the big screen and I had such a pleasant time watching it.

These two movies hold a special place in my heart, because they were part of my childhood and my introduction to other Tmnt-versions. Donnie and Raph are my favorites here, they are just so- *screams*

2018/Rise show:

I guess this also counts? xD

I do like the show. It's a different approach on the turtles and their world as a whole, and I enjoy it a lot whenever I watch it. Leo and Mikey are my go-to turtles here for a change and especially Leo has made his way into my heart, shshsj.

Rise movie:

Not gonna lie, this movie was actually the first tmnt-media I had consumed in literal years. I randomly found it on Netflix one day, about a week after its release. Looking at it I went:"Oh my god, the ninja turtles? I haven't seen these guys in ages, how are they holding up?"

I was SO confused by Raph and Leo having some sort of role (and kinda personality) change and wondered, if I remembered Raph being the "fight-first-ask-questions-later" impulsive dude and Leo as the responsible leader correctly, because it was not exactly that way in the movie. Turns out, I was, as I realized upon rewatching 2012 in September.

All in all I did enjoy the movie and its more darker theme! It reminded me of the 2012 show and honestly, it was a ride 'til the end. xD

2023/ Mutant Mayhem (no spoilers, don't worry):

*screams*

Not gonna lie, this version is definitely my second favorite one now. I already enjoyed these guys from the trailers alone, but after watching the entire movie my heart did loopings with adoring feelings.

These guys are easily one of my personal fave turtles. Silly, funny, cringe, teens, everything I need. They kinda gave me 12!turtles vibes again at some certain points in the movie, and even if it's pretty unrelated, they also remind me of my "AU kids". I love the turtles acting the way actual teens would. Seeing them do things that, upon looking back at it in the future, makes one cringe, is exactly how I feel looking back at my teenage-years.

I love these dorks so much and I hope the spin-off show and future sequel are gonna be just as good. :>

I hope I didn't forget anything. But if I did, rest assured I never watched it, qhsgshsjsj.💀