#its a legitimate critique because there was a lot I didn't understand and even them explaining it didn't help

[amisbro]

My UtaPri Concert Report

So today I saw the UtaPri Concert “Maji Love Live Kingdom” today and it was an interesting experience.  It was interesting in that it shows me sometimes why I need to NOT let people hype up something to me before I see it/play it (if we are talking about a game) because sometimes people overhype something to a point where there is NO WAY it can live up to the expectations that were put forth by a fandom. So let me get into this First off the fact that I am actually UP is a testament to the fact that I drank a lot of caffeine...and its event day in EnStars so I got that to look forward to at 2 AM! I left for the theater at about...8:40 (in the Morning) and got there at about 10:30 ,got my ticket and then went and got some popcorn and a drink to get ready to settle in...that took me a minute though because the Auditorium it was being shown in DIDN’T have a sign but to be fair they are also showing “Tokyo Ghoul S” this week so I can give that a pass...still confusing but I figured it out on my own after about 10 minutes! The next part I need to explain the seat configuration So in the theater there are like rows of seats and then space so people can walk.  I was in the first section where I came into the theater (Section D I think) and took my seat which was right near the stairs so I could walk out when I needed to.  For anyone that has anyone that is handicapped you will be happy to know that they have seats that are clearly marked for Handicapped patrons in each row...this doesn’t come into a factor with me but I thought I would point this out. The actual show started at about 11:02-05 and it went through some of the usual credits but when it actually started it was...”interesting” So the thing opens up and when it does they decide they are going to shoot it so that you can’t see the bottom half of the characters but you COULD see the footwear.  This is borderline dumb since we have seen the trailers by now so trying to conceal the identity of the characters (considering we already know the cast) is kind of “Eh” but we roll with it because when they do the actual “Roll Call” for the characters its at least clever enough that you go “Oh well that’s cool” and it can still get you kind of amped for it After the character intros this way (and it wouldn’t be the last) we see the train really head off to the Tokyo Dome for the big concert NOW...we are going to talk about the actual setlist but before that a little detour Do y’all remember the ‘”Feather in the Hand” and “Egoistic” events in Shining Live?  Yeah turns out that the events with Masa/Camus and Ran/Natsuki were pseudo spoilers for the movie...sigh! Now to talk about the actual show but really...there isn’t a lot to talk about and by that I mean this! For some reason ,when they did the set list, they made a conscious decision to NOT have the songs be played in full unless it was all the group songs which I found curious.  We already bought the shuffles so WHY would you have them do the “Abbreviated” versions?  It makes legitimately no sense because...I can play all the songs from the movie IN FULL and wasting $15 to hear a “Medley” of the shuffles is kind of dumb.  I think people need to really think about that and make a bit more of a stink about it because doing that makes it feel like its a rush job and the irony of that is that I don’t think we had any stages that were under 2 hours except MAYBE the first one ever.  The fact that they would make an Animated one shorter than a real one and at a real one they have an EVEN LONGER set list is kind of stupid in my opinion.  I came to see a concert and not people speedrunning songs You know what they took their time with though? THE MCs! Okay so to put this in perspective there was the MC that we have just about all seen the trailer for ,a series of MCs that dealt with each song (and I will tell you now:  When “Feather in the Hand” came up I legit checked out mentally) and then they did one after they did another medley of group songs Okay so I won’t gloss over this:  Here was the order that they did the two group medleys in (and I will tell you also the ones I liked the most in them) 1st Medley STARISH - Fantastic Prelude (I think that was the name of it right?  I played it in SL once) QUARTET NIGHT - World is Mine HEAVENS - GIRA SEVEN (This was legit my favorite of them all for this one) 2nd Medley HEAVENS - Secret Shangri-La QUARTET NIGHT - FLY TO THE FUTURE (This was my personal favorite of the three) STARISH - Ultra Blast Legitimately speaking:  These two medleys and the MCs were what took up the majority of the concert time.  I think I legit said this out loud in the theater “You know...if you didn’t have these long ass MCs you MIGHT be able to get more songs in...I hear HEAVENS had some singles not used” For almost all of the actual shuffle performances I audibly said “I don’t understand the concept they are going for here” I REALLY said this when Kira and Reiji did the motion where they were clawing at their arms...I had NO IDEA what the f**k that was all about Oh and I also said this during the MC for “Feather in the Hand” “F**k you Maeno” (Really I should have said “Camus” and not “Maeno” but I was still legit pissed at that trio) For reasons that still are lost on me they decided to replay things from Season 4 and especially one of HEAVENS’ lowest moments...not that any STARISH fan that was in that theater would have given a crystal s**t but they did and I was cluess as to why but then again I was still clueless why we had a long ass MC before the final song which was “Maji Love Kingdom”. I went in wanting to like this concert so much and I think if I get to see it again without trying to review it MAYBE I will like it more...still won’t be happy about the whole thing with the Eiji/Camus/Masa shuffle and between “Egoistic” and the one from Reiji/Ren/Kira those songs confused me greatly in concept and that is something I look for greatly when I have to watch a performance.  I can watch the Joker Trap one and get a better idea of what they were doing than damn near any of the MLKingdom ones Alright I have to give this highlight The first MC right:  We don’t get Camus calling us “Fools” BUT we do get something ELSE! When Reiji addressed the audience at one point he said “My Girls” AND “My Guys”!  The best part about that was Reiji made male members cheer louder when he said “My Guys” and it was awesome! Now...was this a “bad” experience for me?  No not really...just wasn’t what I was hoping for when you get a “concert” and instead of getting an experience where they are playing “full songs” it felt like a “Lighting Round” which made me wonder really “What did you do for 3 years?” I also have this issue with any of the groups calling the others rivals...STARISH and QN?  Okay that works but HEAVENS saying it is like SANADA in New Japan saying Okada was his...the difference there was in real life SANADA actually got a win and HEAVENS can’t buy one and have to lick STARISH’s boots from now to eternity...yeah that pisses me off! ANYWHO Go see this if you are dying to see a UtaPri concert Animated and if you are a STARISH or QN fan (and I am a definite QN fan) then you are in HEAVEN (Pardon the pun) If you are a HEAVENS fan...it almost felt like STARISH wants to have the door close on us so they don’t have to take the L on the way out...despite the fact that they DID lose in real life to HEAVENS in the Oricon but why sweat the details right?! Anywho you take care and I shall talk to you later

[maschotch]

I know I'm super late on commenting on the scene with hotchs worst qualities but the anon talking about how they categorized hotch as sexist made me want to bring it up again lol.

Like you said, the show has a lot of casual sexism that has to be kind of excused sometimes but it strikes me as so odd that the writers would point out this one specific instance and imply hotch is sexist instead of the many other times on the show.

Like. I love them but Derek and Rossi have way too many sexist moments on the show. Like just plain womanizing or objectifing or slut shaming or anything else. And as a woman it doesn't bother me too much, you kind of have to expect a bit of that from an early 2000s crime show, but it does strike me as odd that the writers would choose to make Hotch the one called out for sexism.

I'll also admit that I'm very very biased because I am a Hotch Girl™️ lol but I don't get him being sexist. I know Emily said it because he didn't trust her as much as the rest of the team, but it's very clear he trusts Penelope and JJ a lot, even Elle before Emily. I think the writers were trying to point out how Emily viewed hotch and how there relationship was weird but it still bothers me a little lol like how is that man sexist.

I can appreciate the writers giving him some character improvement, like going after that one case because he respects and trusts JJ and saying nobody "asks for it" or not to call a r*pe victim lucky and all that but I will never understand that dialouge with the team.

As for the rest of them, dereks comment about him being a drill Sargent makes a little sense but the other two were just. Really wrong if not kind of mean lol. Don't get me startedddd on how wrong the bully comment was. I know you've talked about this scene a lot but I was curious on how legitimate you think the things the team says are

Love being offended on my boring white man's behalf <3

yeah honestly i think that comment is more about emily and his relationship w her at the moment than an actual valid criticism. he still doesnt trust her yet so maybe its easier for her to think that its a general thing rather than admitting he doesnt like her specifically. plus this is right on the heels of jj and hotch ganging up on her and forcing her on the spot with the question of “how come none of this gets to you” like its a less than subtle way of saying “mind your business and dont fucking worry about it.” its an attempt to maybe give him second thoughts when he starts to doubt her—why would he be suspicious unless he didnt trust women???🤔

and tbh i think he knows it too. like i dont think this one bothered him too much bc he knows why shes saying it… he cant bring himself to feel bad for making her feel distant when he still doesnt trust her. hes not sorry for questioning her or doubting her bc she hasnt proven herself in his eyes yet.

tbh i dont think anything the team says is accurate lmao. hes clearly not a bully. i dont even think jj means it necessarily, but its not the first time she’s thought it. hes not even much of a drill sergeant? hes “strict” ig but he does all their paperwork for them, reaches out when one of them is struggling w smth (he stops trying to help so directly after this for a while.. almost like he’s afraid of being overbearing or tyrannical… of being a bully), lets them goof off and have their fun, etc. there are definitely worse bosses who are way more tough and by-the-book. and honestly i dont think derek meant it that way either: i think he was referring to how pushy he can be sometimes—like now when he’s urging them all to name his worst qualities. i think thats what he’s trying to get at anyway

and i almost like it more that none of them quite mean what they say? bc this IS him crossing a line, forcing them to come up with critiques and insult him. his own self doubt and insecurities are getting in the way of being the leader they all know he’s capable of. they scramble to find the closest thing to mind. for jj its the way that she feels small. for morgan its the way hes worried ab hotch demanding for his question to be answered. for emily its ab her own fears and frustrations from him not trusting her. i think it says much more about all of them than it does about him. but i dont think hotch would ever see it that way. he’s gonna take everything to heart—just another type of failing to look out for

[professorfaber]

I'm interested to see what you have to say about my communism paragraph.

To point out the Healthcare Man, me personally? No, I have not been able to do that for years on end due to my age, however several people over the years have been pointing out the issues within Marvel media as well as general superhero media. Including Healthcare Man. I wasn't trying to seem like I was disagreeing. I think that part got deleted, apologies. (I had made note that the paragraph was no way intended to be directed at you, more as like an agreement and that the situation was kinda dumb.) As for the memes, yeah could definitely do without those, I'm tired of seeing them. (Also wow do I agree with the statement that Marvel are incompetent cowards. Oof Marvel, step up or clear out.)

The WandaVision thing, g o d s don't get me started on the bs they pulled. Consumer activism definitely doesn't work in this situation, I wish that situation was handled differently. For the centrist fearmongering, it could potentially have to due with the fact it's a common piece of media. I'm sure as you know, the more x is in the media, the more people seem to think x is ok. The memes would contribute by someone taking it lightly or not thinking it's a serious issue. Only mocking it to go with the crowd and not looking at the situation through a critical lens, barely even scratching the surface level on the issue.

As for the statement of "Marvel is problematic" I'd say in this day-in-age, it needs to be worded like that because it catches people's attention. Do I personally agree with it, no. But it's necessary to catch an audience so something can be done. As long as the person using that statement has an actual argument, I think it should be used. I see where you are coming from though. Also I hope I haven't come off aggressive or rude, if I didn't address your other points it's because I agree with them. I'd also like to apologize, my tone often comes off as argumentative when I just mean to have a conversation. I hope you are havin a good day.

Thank you for clarifying all of this! I think we agree on a lot more than I initially thought (and no, you haven't come off as rude, don't worry). And thank you for sending an ask instead of adding on to an already very long post. I hope you're having a good day too.

Okay, point by point (this might be pretty long, sorry, I'm like. allergic to brevity but I do try):

1. The communism paragraph. First of all, I'm allowed to make snide remarks about liberals on my own blog on tumblr dot com without it harming The Cause. My post was not directed at liberals, and very few people, if any, that I engage with on this website are liberals so I wasn't hugely concerned about watching my language. Normally I would agree with you that it's important to do outreach, but it's my personal blog and I make the rules. Also:

"liberal this, republican that", both side are are horrible in their own ways but we still need the people.

Okay so, this is tricky because sometimes when I say "liberal" I do mean it in the modern, especially American, sense of social liberalism that the Democratic Party (ostensibly) adheres to, and that was kind of what I meant in the original post, but Republicans are also liberals, just of a slightly different ideological strand. In America today both parties are primarily dominated by centrist and rightist factions, with the original American left (i.e. socialists, anarchists, trade unionists, social democrats) being essentially squeezed out of political discourse over the past century. It's less an instance of "both sides are horrible" than "one side is horrible, but it's being presented in two flavors".

Also, I never said I was a communist and I actually usually don't politically identify as such, but I can see why you'd make that assumption based on the kind of things I post.

2. I think I get where you're coming from on this better than I did at first and I'm sorry for being dismissive about the memes. It did not occur to me that casually shitting on a massive corporation's ridiculous propaganda could be an issue in that way. Like, to me it was less "people all of a sudden realizing that Marvel is bad" than it was just a continuation of people criticizing Marvel as before, but you've honestly made me reconsider and I'm sorry if those sorts of jokes are frustrating or annoying. They honestly seemed like completely innocuous leftist tumblr memes to me, in the vein of jokes about any other shitty company ("shitty company" is kind of redundant I think but you know what I mean). But yeah, you've convinced me. I'll stop reblogging them if that helps.

3. This was a bit confusing to me? I understand being personally upset by the memes, but the notion that they normalize and contribute to corporations using propaganda to nullify left-wing ideas is kind of odd. Companies like Marvel and its parent Disney make those sorts of characters and storylines because it is in their interests to do so, and it will continue to be for as long as capitalism exists. What I called "centrist fearmongering" is like, a function of their existence as capitalist entities with immense power to manipulate public opinion in their favor, and what you or I post on tumblr really does not have an effect on that.

Capital shapes public opinion, not the other way around. That's one of the big reasons consumer activism doesn't work.

4. I've gotta disagree with you here, honestly, though I should say upfront that I'm not like, super invested in whether people call Marvel problematic or not. My original post was just a rant, no one is obliged to listen to me, I don't care about this nearly that much.

However, if we are going to have that conversation, then I will say that while it is important to attract an audience, using patently misleading or reductive language is the wrong way to do it, even if you also have a solid argument. I might also note that the problem that needs addressing (the influence of the interests of capital on entertainment) isn't exclusive to Marvel, and pretending that it is just lets the problem fester. "Marvel is problematic" just... seems like a bad slogan honestly as far as critiquing capitalist media goes.

I think there are two separate problems here: Marvel media broadly containing harmful or clumsy messages, and Marvel media suppressing or distracting from left-wing ideas and resistance. The former will change when it becomes legitimately profitable for Marvel to become more sensitive to certain members of its audience (which will only result in more marginalized identities becoming emptily commodified, unfortunately). The latter is a more direct result of capitalism that is systemically unavoidable.

Lastly: as you said, if I didn't respond to one of your points or comments that probably means I agree with it or couldn't think of anything to add