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rexecutioner · 3 months

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Buckle up campers this is a long one

spoilers for all of mystreet and a bit of mcd ig??? Idk there is Demon Warlock and Irene lore

This is all about Travis btw

So I was rewatching Emerald Secret and when Tatiana was loredumping about forever potions in ep 13, she mentions Michael testing a forever potion on his son not too long before the events of s4

(implied by the fact that she was there, and supported by the facts that 1) she was missing a lot of other info, like the whole fp backstory and not knowing about Katelyn and Garroth, thanks to only recently becoming human and only knows new info, and 2) the whole “Michael (Terry), Elizabeth and Zach have been trapped in a different realm for years and only recently escaped” thing)

and it “failing”. Knowing the events of Angels Fall, this plausibly aligns with the plotline. One problem. How tf did Travis get there??? And back??? Without anybody questioning where he went??? Or with nobody noticing???

I don’t think Tatiana was referring to Ein, as she describes him as a grunt to Michael’s plans, and it’s always pretty explicitly said that Michael has a son, stated by both Tatiana and Derek, and visibly is shown to be Travis in loredrops and the entirety of s6. A son. One singular son.

So the only person she could be referring to is Travis. But what does this even mean? What kind of forever potion was used on Travis? We learn from Ein that forever potions can be reaaally specific. It could have literally been anything. What does “failed” mean? Just not working? Or Travis fighting it off? The imagery shown with the scene is a broken forever potion lying on the ground by what is implied to be Travis’ limp hand, so failed may be a bit of an understatement.

Also, again, how tf did Travis get there and back with nobody taking note of it, him not remembering it (probably more forever potions), and it never coming up again?? Not even slightly mentioned in 3 to 4 side episodes OR Aphmau’s Year, although we do get some juicy Travis lore ep 2 of AsY.

That is also when his whole “omg i feel lightheaded wait did i do that” thing started, so maybe something happened at the lodge that is never shown but implied to be what Tatiana mentioned???

And ofc, my first question.

HOW THE HELL DID HE GET THERE AND BACK WITH NOBODY NOTICING

It’s a snowy forest for goodness sake. He had to have driven there. Why would he go in the first place? Maybe he got a letter from Terry (Michael) saying “hey kid i wanna reconnect heres my address dont bring anyone with you k bye” and he went “oh boy the father that left me shaken and traumatized who just randomly disappeared leaving me alone bcs everyone else i love is dead!! I love that guy!!”

And drove out to see him only for fucking Ein to be there as well as this man in a stupid ass cloak who sounds weirdly like his absent father, they give him a forever potion and it fails (again, whatever that means) and he wakes up in a random lodge with a random backround voice in his head giving him dating advice, having forgotten everything that happened, goes “welp ig he isn’t here i must have gotten the wrong address” AND LEAVES

weirdly in character for ms Travis lmao

Did he just tell Dante that he was going on a trip for a few days and dipped?? I haven’t rewatched the 3 to 4 side eps in a long time so I have no clue if he did leave but wasn’t Travis a mildly large role in them with the whole trash thing???

Alright so I just spent like 4 hours rewatching the transition episodes and Travis is a very consistent reoccurring character and isn’t missing from an episode for more than a two episode gap, and him leaving for a while isn’t mentioned, although they do make Laurance returning a big deal, which leads me to believe he left during/right before Aaron’s Ticket, a two part mini prequel to s4, taking place only a few days before ep1.

This makes the most sense, as Aaron in Part 1 goes over to Dante and Travis’ house to get money advice from Dante, and Travis isn’t shown or mentioned at all. He never appears in AsT, and there is an implied gap between the last side ep, Shadow Knights Rule and AsT, because we also never see Gene (and by that extension, the other Shadow Knights and Ivan) again after the final side ep, though they all played mildly large roles in that ep.

It would make sense if Travis left not too long after Laurance bothered him outside of his house (the last time we see the both of them until AsY 🥲) and came back to Lover’s Lane during the small two day gap before s4 starts, after Aaron and the gang left to Bunny Hill, and they just didn’t see each other on the way back. But this also leads to another frustrating question.

Why does Travis not remember the lodge after the whole thing? We could chalk it up to forever potions, yes, but that would be a really specific forever potion, making him have to go home and forget about it. I have the inkling that Dante would at the very least ask Travis questions about his trip, and if Travis just replied with “idk lol I actually have no clue what ur talking about” he’d at least be concerned and at least ask Lucinda for advice when she got back.

It’s shown in AsY that Travis has no recollection of the lodge, only knowing about it from Lucinda (another piece of good lore from ep 2), but he doesn’t get more of a chance to interrogate her about what happened there it until he gets possessed and leaves. It is very much shown that he has no memory of even being there. Which also brings up another point. Aaron and Garroth remember Bunny Hill Lodge, even if just a bit. How does Travis of all people not remember it at all?

Aughhhh so many questions! I’m probably going to chalk up the not remembering the lodge thing to a really specific forever potion that also plants false memories in his head. Forever potions are shown to be able to do that in s4, when Zane and Lucinda refer to Ein as their brother and their memories are completely altered.

OK I JUST FINISHED ACTUALLY WATCHING APHMAUS YEAR (ep3’s thumbnail scared me away the first few times lmaoo) AND I HAD NO CLUE TRAVIS GETS POSSESSED MORE THAN ONCE THIS MINI SEASON?!? AND KATELYN ACTUALLY MEETS TERRY BEFORE THEY EVEN THINK ABOUT STARLIGHT?!? THANK GOD I DID.

Whenever Travis is possessed, he not only gets very lightheaded, causing headaches, but he quickly loses his memory (shown in his second possession) as Michael takes the spotlight and puppets him around until he’s done with him. Travis then regains his memory and remembers what he did while possessed, with it all being kinda foggy, with him questioning if it was really him that did that and being mildly confused about what he just did, before making up an excuse for it and going about his day.

We only just begin to see Travis getting possessed AFTER s4, which leads me to believe that during s4, Travis reconnects with a recently actually present Terry (guess who just escaped another dimension lmaooo) leading to him and Katelyn fake dating and going to Starlight, leading to the events of s6 and Travis getting possessed more frequently until Michael consumes him completely before he gets exorcised and murdered by Kim and Terry, leaving Travis behind unconscious on the floor.

OK SO IVE MADE A TIMELINE OF TRAVIS’ EXISTENCE BASED ON MY THEORIES

-Born to Terry and his wife

-His mom dies (probably due to Michael?? I dont actually know lol)

-Child experimentation at a cool Lodge

-I recently learned that it was apparently a fp that gave Travis the little voice in his head, but its never acted upon until post s4

-Growing up with a father that’s possessed half the time

-Goes to middle school and meets Dante

-His father disappears at some point thanks to Garte and Derek using the realm breaker (they dont know Michael is actually Terry)

-Goes to high school and meets the rest of the main cast

-Whatever he does before season 1 during fcu

-Moves in with his homies (they kiss each other good night)

-Gets blasted to Love Love Paradise

-Starts to become actual friends with Katelyn (dont get me started on how both of these characters were wrote during season 1 and most of 2)

-Moves in with Dante thanks to his house exploding I wonder who did that

- 3-4 side episodes, he starts to learn about potions again from Lucinda

-Gets a letter from Terry, his absent father with a bad influence on him, asking him to go to Bunny Hill to reconnect

-Bunny Hill Incident #2, he goes home with a fabricated filler story, actually reconnects with Terry

-Travis gets possessed for the first time (to our knowledge) and steals Lucinda’s book under Michael’s influence

-Terry meets Katelyn, everybody's fate is sealed

-Terry invites Travis and Katelyn to Starlight Wonderland

-They enjoy themselves for a while (Travis gets possessed every now and then)

-Travlyn is canon for real this time

-Season 6. Travis gets possessed more and more frequently to the point where Michael takes over for him a lot near the climax, and Michael uses his control over the Guardian Forces to manipulate Travis into thinking he’s safe

-Travis gets fully possessed when Lucinda performs the exorcism, takes control over Katelyn and Garroth, Nana almost dies and Aphmau does die due to mildly unrelated events but dont worry she comes back thanks to the fact that shes a third of literal god

-Derek gets relic’d

-Ethereal Bonds my beloved, the lip syncing did Nana so dirty (Travis isnt really in this one i just love ethereal bonds story wise even though it’s definitely not perfect)

-Travis (Michael) threatens to kill Terry and has actually killed Holla and Derek as this twink so his threats are not empty

-Garroth and Katelyn (and Toby ig) are used as distractions to stall Michael, but he takes back control over Garroth by manipulating him and throws him at Katelyn

-Travis and Aphmau beat the shit out of eachother, cool lore, i love the Zane and Lucinda s4 trauma, everyone is a rock now

-Terry and Michael both die at Kim’s hands, the one thing she was good for (im sorry i hate Kim so much) using the cannon

-Travis is now back in control and wakes up to his bisexual girlfriend holding him and says a pickup line, very in character, and passes out again (understandably)

-everyone is no longer a rock, but thats some pretty hefty trauma you got there (i feel so bad for Dante and Laurance) (im making a separate post on them soon)

-Travis monologues about everything that happened and trauma dumps to the sky (fuck you Terry)

-Heart wrenching “not alone buddies” scene, seriously these two tried to kill each other and now they are traumabonding i love it

-Whatever the fuck Jesson has in store for him in One Last Time because i started writing this before it was announced so they might fill in my plotholes later

-He does NOT show up in Her Wish which scares the shit out of me (he isnt dead thanks to Katelyn and Dante not being utterly wrecked the entire time) (but his absence is not a warm one)

-whatever happens after that

Long story short I love Travis’s character and I hope we see more of him

there is no conclusion to this i just like ranting about characters i like and the plotholes that come in the package (headcanons sold separately)

tldr: Travis s4 plotholes are filled in by my overthinking

have some of my art as compensation 👍👍👍

i will be re-drawing the Travis one bcs I don’t like the shading and I got the outfit wrong 😑

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putnamcapital · 7 months

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s1 ep 6 rewatch notes

[yeah i am still doing these essays, everyone copes differently OKAY]

I wish i had the words to convey my love for the Simon-Rosh-Ayub dynamic when they’re sitting on his bed trying to talk about his video, not the Kim K. video. it’s an instance of one of the things i ADORE about YR, namely, the importance of the love and support of friends - “the gang is back together”. contra a lot of the teenage and adult movies that put romantic love on a pedestal and everything else goes to the dogs.

That shot of Wille set against the sky when the Queen leaves = is it the apocalypse or is it heartbreak and i'm not the only one seeing the religious imagery right?

“we haven’t done anything wrong.” Simon’s moral clarity, his unbreakable backbone - it’s a moment where it’s obvious the Court has no idea who they are dealing with. I’m not sure Wille even knows then.

Frida doesn’t get enough praise for her acting. that side eye of August as they cross in front of him loafing on the picnic table: sublime.

Another parallel I hadn’t seen before: Sara dresses up before dinner; she likes the image she sees of herself in the mirror. She is “someone she is not”, according to Simon (later that night), but she wants that false countenance. In S2, that same move will devastate Wille. But we have another Sara-mirror scene, in S2. Leaning on the Wille-Sara parallel, there’s something being done here about becoming who you are through artifice (dressing up ‘in costume’) or through love (revealing your true self). August (as opposed to Simon, i think …) ends up being a false or traitorous ‘coming into self through love’ for Sara.

Related … when Sara went to see August to confront him about the video, i have retrospectively imagined her as having planned what happened. But if you look at the scene as it happens, both Sara and August seem to just be playing the situation as it arises. Sara starts off by not even intending to tell August, I think that was honest. When she then confronted him about the video, she first asks why did you do this to Wille and then, how do you have the right, you destroyed Simon? none of it is about her. it’s when August asks her ‘what do you want’ - that i think the idea comes to her. And i think that explains her face after she kisses August - her revulsion at herself. it seems like a situation that spiralled out of control very fast.

i can’t really talk about the Sara-Simon fight scene because it’s my Point of No Return in terms of “This is a nice program to watch of an evening” and “These characters have become my entire waking and sleeping existence, is there treatment for this.”

in the scene that starts with them sitting on the floor in Wille’s room, there is that tender moment by the door, and one of the top two kisses and hugs in the whole of season 1 and 2 combined, punctuated with the forehead tap. and i’ve always thought it so lovely until this time i saw the “red flag” - the towel hanging on the hook - and it reminded me of the red ‘flag’ we see in the locker room every other time things go south.

the scene with kristina and wille in the car starts simply with him saying, “WHAT?” which a) comes straight out of fanfic; b) is hyper-realistic adolescent approach to dialogue but also c) actually shows that they are really close. as in, Wille might loathe his mother by the end of this episode, but also he knows exactly what she’s thinking and they can just skip all the usual staging aspects of conversation. it links, i now see, to the book scene, where wille admits that he can’t just throw out everything he’s been taught, b/c he’s internalized it so well

when K is lecturing W about all the public attention he’s going to get now, and how it will be even worse, it’s the same shot of him looking out the car window wishing he could be literally anyone else as in the first few minutes of s1ep1, after the club fight. and we see his reflection in the window, so we get him 'in double' - who he is IRL, and who he is seen to be by the viewer. very clever. very clever.

#young royals #yr s1 rewatch #sometimes frankly i wish i had never watched this show can i be released #yr office meltdown

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yohangaontdj · 1 year

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The Devil Judge Rewatch Ep 8 (Part 1)

We're halfway through the drama and this time, I just have to start from the end cause how can we ever forget this - the highlight of this episode.

The two of them on the bridge, looking in the same direction and finally standing side by side.

Look at Yohan, how immensely satisfied he was like he had gotten what he wanted.

And to me, the next bit that Yohan says, I swear it is his wedding vow.

Instead of the usual - in sickness and in health, in blah blah blah till death do us part. Yohan had instead promised revenge for Gaon's sake. And maybe you might think I'm twisted, but its just so much more better than the usual vow. Cause what better way to show your love than to swear that u will kill and destroy anyone who dare to make your spouse cry (and Gaon did cry a lot in this episode).

Reminds me so much of John Wick which is another series of movies I'm so in love with.

And now, we have Gaon's response that is like what a pair of lovers would say. How it's like the two of them together against the entire world.

Okay the photo above is doctored by me. It didn't happen in the drama and Gaon never said that two words - with you.

But I can't help creating a fake one cause it fits so well with what Gaon had said earlier. And sorry! For misleading you like this and to TVN as well.

And we have Yohan and Gaon staring at each other with so much emotions on their faces.

They must MUST have kissed after this. It will be a sin if they hadn't. Not with the amount of tension between them.

The next bit, let's go back in time to another favourite scene of mine. Gaon walking out on Professor Min and choosing Yohan instead.

And how in the world did Yohan do it? Arriving perfectly on time to pick up Gaon.

Did he make K watch and report to him from somewhere nearby. Or did he get Elijah to hack into every available CCTV in the area?

Even Professor Min hadn't got the time to stand up yet.

And this, nothing more need to be said, except to feast our eyes on it.

And going further back in time, we have a furious Gaon.

Doing this in Yohan's office.

It's just so sensual. The way he took Yohan's chair. Sitting there like he didn't give a damn that this is Yohan's seat of power - his throne in a way. And in the past, if Gaon were to do exactly that, he will have been beheaded for the affront he had caused.

And I love TDJ for the details they had put in. Just one little act - Gaon taking Yohan's chair and we know, he's about to go on an all-out confrontation with Yohan.

And it's just so hot and sexy having Gaon sitting in Yohan's chair. Taking over Yohan's personal space like he had the right to own it. And I like to imagine Yohan and Gaon, doing something more in that seat that is now shared equally between the two of them.

Have reached my photo limit again and see u in Ep 8, Part 2.

#the devil judge #the devil judge rewatch #gahan #kang yohan x kim gaon #lawful husbands #yohan x gaon #i just love love them and i want to rave about them.#And I can't believe I have make it so far here.#Had started this on impulse and now so addicted to it.#so much so I have about 4000 screenshot of the drama #750 that I have polished to make them look better #And lots that I have made collage out of

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evergreen-dryad · 7 months

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xy's media thread 2024!

I'm going to count music (with story/series) as part of this. Books I'll try to actually write my thoughts out on. Try. Ongoing 'can't be finished' games:

garden galaxy

usagi shima

A Kinder World

Genshin

January

tress and the emerald sea

simon vs the homosapiens agenda (proper reread)

leah on the offbeat

corpse party (2021)

rise of the guardians (#3 rewatch!)

densha otoko manga

that Loveit? music vid duology ish (biz)

After Marchen [Tajima Ikuno] (i like it a lot!! aaa more chaps pls)

started:

Manga: Mushishi (again after watching an ep a couple years back! Here to try again!)

Started a webtoon, don't think I'll continue it (feels very cliche)

webtoon #2 The Pale Lady that looks really pretty

various books: red azalea, Becoming A Writer by Dorothea Brande, Steering the Craft [A 21st Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story] Ursula K Le Guin, Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett

NewNaratif short stories on queer ecology

February

finished snow flower and the secret fan, lisa see

animal farm, george orwell

Dear Ijeawele: A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (-the sudden caps for her in respect is deserved)

interesting song: Pilvet liikkuu, minä en by Yona. really want to check her out more

started: Nights into dreams

Dungeon Meshi

The Witch and The Beast

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto (watching with friends)

The Gene of AI (excited for this!!)

Cherry Magic!! the anime

Milgram

#a little fun thing inspired by @rapidfur on twt #i'm too lazy to add photos of everything #i'll never post this otherwise so here i go #about me

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silviakundera · 8 months

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Ok I'm trying Legend of Fuyao again. This time perhaps I will triumph! I left off like 2 years ago on ep 26 or so.

Refreshing my memory by skating thru ep 16

oh look, it's sidekick bro I never cared about. Pretty sure his role in the narrative is to be a drag on FL. And fighter guy! He's much more useful.

This period is where I previously began losing my patience with the show. A lot of story time and 16 episodes had passed and I wanted to see FL taking center stage, being a powerful threat. I wanted her to be saving her love interest approx as much as he was saving her. The opening in ep 16 is right back to a situation where I want to see FL beating ass and not Wuji to show up to save the day. Scram, future boyfriend! Ladies are FIGHTING. 🙅

(past me may not have known exactly what I wanted but the answer was A Journey to Love)

It was the whiplash - Oh cool, she's fighting alongside him! ...and then he's knocking her out to be his pawn again :/

But rewatching now, I think I was in the wrong mood. I am older & wiser! I can be patient. I have been promised a battle couple and Fuyao being awesome. I can wait. 😇

Watching the prime minister character be manipulated is entertaining. Fuyao is handling situation pretty well, actually. "The Earth Abdorbing Bell is back to its rightful owner. I've also found Xiaoqi. Why do I need to stay here?" THANK YOU for asking this very pertinent question, protagonist! Her rationale to stay.... doesn't make much sense, unfortunately. Because the narrative (er, the servants) requires it!

"Rest assured? I have been in this office for thirty seven years and I've never had a restful day." idk Mr Prime Minister, maybe u need a new job.

Ok, sneak out and leaving a fake corpse. Not a terrible plan. I especially like the part where u set the mansion on fire.

Prime Minister's foster son is so good looking he's making everyone else in this drama look bad. I like his sullen murder son vibes. Very Hao Du of Long Ballad. MDL says he's basically done nothing since. He was the ML in a 2020 drama that never aired. 💀

I really don't get Wuji. Why is he even involving Fuyao in things. I don't believe he has any romantic feelings at this point. If u can control this nation but can't control her, then... why? I suppose we have to go with ✨fate✨.

Dragon scale armor! Makes me think of the dark tale behind such garb in c-novel Heart Protection.

Why was the doctor randomly lurking around the PM mansion in this dark with a face mask? eh, a man's gotta have hobbies.

Ep 17

So Doctor had a secret mission, ran into Fuyao burning shit down out of happenstance. and now he's dragging her along. I vaguely recall this.

So. Many. Robes. Curtains. Twirling. the twirling I caaaaaaaan't AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Hope I wasn't expected to find any of that sexy. It was extra and hilarious as hell, though. I 100% understand why FL is so done with this dude and ready to go home.

Actually, one moment had real dramatic tension and sexual tension for me. The scene where the prime minister shows up with his soliders and ML is sitting on the bed, acting unbothered, and she's hiding under the blanket. Then slides her hand out and sighs to complete the act. 👌 👌

Then things get INTERESTING as they embark on misc mission things in secret tunnels.

She's like holy shit exploitative royals are trash.

And he's all.... well if I'm Like That would you still be hanging here with me. She sidesteps the question (as she should, since he has all the power). But then, could YOU give me what I want? And he seems intrigued, I presume because then he has something over her.. It feels like a TEMPTATION MOMENT.

Fuyao: nah j/k I'll get whatever I need myself

@dangermousie mentioned to me that Fuyao is very complete in herself. That's really intriguing to me, considering how so many of the characters seem tormented & controlled/restrained by a need to live up to a legacy or another person's expectations.

that CGI magic hamster tho

Totally forgot the reveal of them being ~fated enemies is this early. So she is supposed to break the seals and go to five kingdoms to do it. But he has a mission to STOP the girl w the 5 colored stone. Now he has a character & plot reason to keep tabs on her! ✔ (actually he has those reasons to simply KILL her lmao but protagonist halo, sorry my friend)

Love that she's not a sucker and won't agree to a bet where she has to be an obedient servant if she loses. Just take reasonable requests. But I wish she didn't just take him at his word that he's the one who can help her break her seal. He's a lying liar who lies!

I like that he's a bit uncertain/dubious about the legend that this girl will Bring About The End. Because that certainly sounds wild. Especially since he met her and she seems pretty normal.

#legend of fuyao #cdrama #spoilers #silvia drama reactions

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satelitis · 3 months

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ANIME WATCHLIST ‼️

bc i wanna be back in my weeb phase but not the wierd, creepy, crazy ones yk?

— finish rewatching BNHA

current status : s1 - ep 9 (i didn’t get past season 2 in my first watch)

— rewatch the promised neverland

current status : not started (i didn’t get to season 2)

— finish hunter x hunter

current status : s4 - ep 1

ANIMES NOT STARTED YET

— fairy tale

— fruit baskets

— death note

— saiki k

— jjk

#୧ ‧₊˚ 💢 . . . juno is typing.

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redbullgivesyouwingedkuriboh · 7 months

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GX Rewatch: Ep 1-5 (Dub)

Before we get into it, I have to say that obviously this is spoilers for ep 1-5, but also the entirety of the show since I reference things that are foreshadowed in the first few episodes. you’ve been warned

k let’s go

Episode 1

how is Crowler not fired yet?

Crowler was nonbinary before it was cool (aka before season 3)

jaden says bastion is the second best duelist there (him being the best) but Zane is literally 50 feet away

“legendary rare monster” it’s $0.79 on Amazon. Cyber Dragon cost me more.

Zane doesn’t give two shits about Jaden’s ego. A piece of paper is worth more. Baby Zane was such an ass <3 /affectionate /icanfixhim

Alexis saying Jaden’s really good and Zane just turning and walking away. what an icon. girlboss. he’s already planning how to kick jaden’s ass.

Episode 2

not much to say here.

Jaden sticks up for colorblind people? sort of?

forgot how much of a prick Baby Chazz was

Alexis says that there’s no off-hours arena duels allowed and that Chazz should’ve told Jaden that— why didn’t she tell him when she got there?

jaden refusing to leave the duel arena is SO FUNNY, like he could literally get expelled and he’s just like nah cards

Episode 3

Syrus can’t read, canon

Crowler is the definition of right formula wrong answer

YOU ARE A TEACHER, REPORT HIM FOR SOME SHIT.

at least abuse your power properly smh

Alexis being obsessed with Jaden from the get-go is def because he acts exactly like Atticus

also: alexis doesn’t talk about Atticus until ep 5. you’d think there’d be some residual trauma since he disappeared at this school, but she doesn’t say shit

Episode 4

crowler stealing the rare cards and pulling a Clark Kent when everyone gets there is such a drama queen move, I see where Atticus learned it from

seriously crowler could have just left

also Jaden is canonically ripped, he pushed a truck up a hill

he also says something like “now I don’t need to go to the gym” which means DA canonically has a gym that JADEN goes to

Syrus praying to Slifer is so fucking funny oml

actually now that I think about it it would make a lot of sense for characters to actually worship Egyptian gods considering. y’know. they’re real.

probably not Syrus’s motivation but either way

Chumley trying to rig the exams by letting Jaden get his beauty rest

Bastion. everything about Bastion in this episode gives me life. I love him. He was the only one who stayed back to wake up Jaden and Syrus, which (though misguided, he didn’t do it for their sake) was really cute

Baby Bastion in general is just a vibe

Episode 5

really wacky when you realize Jaden’s scary story about hearing card voices isn’t just about his normal cards, it’s about Yubel too

“kids went missing from the abandoned dorm” oH gEe professor banner, whO kidnAppEd tHem?

Pharaoh is my homie

on the topic of the stories Syrus’s actually scared the shit out of me until he was flailing around in the water

CROWLER JUMPSCARE JESUS CHRIST

Millenium items and all what the heck

oh yeah i forgot about the fake millennium puzzle

love how a guy canonically got a call from Crowler being like yo can you come scare the absolute fuck outta these actual children and he was like yea no problem that’s actually my favorite activity

lmao where’d this fuck get a fog machine

Crowler knows how to teleport?????

“Well alright if you insist” crowler I stg I need you to save some sass for the rest of us

“you could just say we’ve found a couple places where it’s not” JADEN YOU’RE SO FUNNY OMFG I forgot how silly Jaden is

“oh, hi Alexis” YOU’RE EVERYTHING TO ME JADEN

“well that’s not very intelligent” marry me alexis

“why are you here” “I have my reasons, that’s why!” weird way to propose alexis but I accept

the reaction shot on Alexis’s reveal of her brother is the least dramatic in the show and yet it’s the one that makes me cringe the most

jaden, having just heard that some kid literally disappeared here, with actual evidence from Alexis: fuck that i’m not a pussy let’s go in

OH NO A GIRL SCREAM TO INDICATE DANGER

ATTICUS JUMPSCARE OH MY GOD was not prepared to see that

REACTION SHOT TM

“That sounded like Alexis” syrus how many girls have you heard scream to know exactly what Alexis sounds like screaming

episode five and Jaden is already done with Villain of the Week tm

love jaden’s commitment to the catchphrase even though he’s seeing his first real threat

Jaden canonically pays enough attention in class to know about Archfiend effects, he’s truly not as dumb as people think

oh S3 Jaden totally got flashbacks to this duel during his battle with Bronn

“you flunked math, chumley.” “no, I got a 54” HELP THEY’RE EVERYTHING

“hey, my arm” YOUR ARM IS GONE AND THAT’S YOUR FREAKIN REACTION JADEN I STG I LOVE YOU

“we got blackout curtains” weird way to propose but yes

POT OF GREED MENTIONED RAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

the music in this series is epic as hell

“this is totally anti-lishus” chumley i miss you so much come back to us

TO BE CONTINUED ARE YOU KIDDING ME

okay spose this is TBC then

#yugioh gx #ygo gx #yugioh gx rewatch #auggie watches yugioh gx #jaden yuki #judai yuki

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dramacorazon · 2 years

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random concluding aos 2 thoughts:

i enjoyed this show so much. it’s been a while since i’ve been so completely invested in a k-drama like this. it made me feel like a teenage fangirl all over again. i’m not a fantasy lover either so i never expected to love this show as much as i do. between episodes, this show was on my mind and i think it’ll continue to be for a while.

overall, i loved alchemy of souls. it might be one of my favorite k-dramas ever. but the problem is that for me aos 2 had one major flaw, which i’ll talk about below. but first i want to talk about just some of things i liked.

likes (this isn’t all of them, just ones that come to mind rn):

uk + yeong!!! they are in LOVE!!!! and i love them!! i wish we got more of the playful bickering that was present in aos 1, but the chemistry here was off the charts!!!! watching them fall in love with each other (twice!) was a joy. they looked at each other with pure unconditional love. they also had some of the best kisses i’ve ever seen in a k-drama.

go yoonjung. we all adored jung somin’s portrayal of mudeok so deeply but yoonjung as yeong managed to capture my heart within the first episode. she did such an amazing job.

lee jaewook. he’s so so so so so good in this. he was acting. he made me laugh and he broke my heart.

a happy ending????!!!!!! i got so attached to this show and the characters in it so i was genuinely sad that it had to end and was not ready for a sad ending at all. although perhaps rushed, i think it made sense. i’m glad that after all the suffering the characters have been through, they get to be happy.

yeong. not gonna lie, i wanted to see naksu use her own sword just once. just one scene with the return of badass naksu and her killing jin mu but that’s not what we got. but surprisingly i’m fine with that. the last time she held her sword she killed the love of her life so i’m not surprised she doesn’t want to go back to that. instead yeong was able to grow without remembering any of her naksu trauma at first, allowing her the space to figure out who she truly is at her core. and after all the abuse she endured she is now able to choose what she wants to do with the person she loves.

my main dislike: the pacing.

all of my problems with this season all come down to how rushed the pacing is. this show would have been better as two seasons with 16 episodes each.

i think the plot as a whole makes sense but they could only fit so much into 10 episodes which meant parts were rushed. nothing had time to breathe. there was an overload of information crammed into the final 2 episodes, to the point where i had to rewatch a few scenes because i didn’t get it the first time around. for example, i didn’t realise that jin seol ran gave yeong her soul back. i thought she was being beamed up into the afterlife and was gone forever.

the events of the final 2 episodes should have been spread out over 4. there was a 30 episode build up for the fire bird only for it to be almost... anticlimactic? idk, i feel like there should have been a huge epic fight that should have lasted 60% of the episode, with the four seasons combining their powers or something. in reality it was over super quickly. maybe that was supposed to happen but they had to cut it for time, who knows. perhaps some of the unanswered questions wouldn’t exist if they simply had 2 more eps to flesh it out more. for example, did uk ever find out why mudeok killed him? (or did i just miss that scene?)

the shortness of aos 2 also meant parts of season 1 that we loved weren’t present because they didn’t have the time to show it as they had to move the major plot points forward.

i missed the uk/mudeok dynamic. we got hints of it but for me it wasn’t enough. we fell in love with the way uk and yeong fell in love in aos 1 because of their playfulness. so for us to watch them fall in love all over again in aos 2 and for the writers not to lean into that playfulness was a wasted opportunity. i like to think if they had more episodes, that dynamic would have developed naturally between them again.

on a similar note, i missed the humor of aos 1 where i think i laughed out loud in every episode. obviously there was a big tonal shift between seasons which made sense with the plot. the characters went through a lot so it was inevitable that things weren’t going to be as lighthearted as before. so in aos 2 there wasn’t the time for the characters to have fun because there was evil ahead. but it would have been nice to have a few more funny parts in season 2.

because of the lack of time, we didn’t get to see more of the four seasons. i loved seeing their interactions, they built up great friendship dynamics only to not show it in aos 2. we should have seen more of their powers/abilities. weren’t they supposed to be really powerful? we saw choyeon’s magic in s1 but in s2 we barely saw her! first she was angry at her father’s death and angry at danggu for not saving him. then she kissed him on the cheek. then we found out they fucked. then her mother almost died. now she’s married with twins. i was so ready for her to fuck shit up. at least we finally saw danggu in his katniss everdeen era.

in the epilogue of aos 2 the hong sisters had to break a major screenwriting rule of “show don’t tell”: there wasn’t enough time to show so they were forced to tell. so much happened offscreen. i wanted to see uk find out yeong was still alive. i wanted to see everyone discover that park jin and maidservant kim were still alive. they mentioned that yeong has a screening process for potential brides for gowon. i wish we’d seen that, that would have been funny!

all that being said, i think alchemy of souls is one of my favorites. of the hundreds of k-dramas i’ve watched, i’ve only given 6 of them a 10/10 and i’m tempted to make this the 7th. yes there were many flaws and it could have been executed better, but none of that takes away from how much i enjoyed watching it.

i don’t get attached to fictional characters easily. i don’t fangirl. i don’t read theories. yet with this show, i did all of the above. i was fully immersed in every episode and i enjoyed every second. i think the characters and this show will stay with me for a while.

#alchemy of souls #alchemy of souls 2 #my thoughts

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piganatur · 1 year

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THE EIGHTH SENSE EP 1

The eighth sense is: - the type of production that I tend to inhale - giving me such k-indie film vibes I’m humming with joy

I watched the first two episodes like two days ago. Rewatched them again the next morning. Pondered for a day, then watched the first ep again. At that point I accepted: this show lives rent free in my brain.

It’s something about: - the opening sequence because it literally plunges us into the middle of what this story will tell and what it’s about. It’s the wave crashing over our heads and after seeing nothing but the confusing (but crucial) bits, much like the white crest of said breaking wave, the scene in the bar slows down. We’re up at the surface again, waiting, building for the next wave

It’s something about: - how funny it is that in the bar, there’s noise, everyone chats loudly, there’s ought to be the dynamic of life and fun – a certain kind of rush to the scene – yet it’s the opposite. I’ve seen people describe it as too boring and long of a scene. It’s fascinating to think that it’s our timeout before the next wave. Two conversations from the bar: 1, about getting dumped/love life and 2, about getting rejected/ finding a job AND THEN we have the table with Jaewon who’s about to look for a job + broke up with his gf + is about to meet Jihyun... I already love this sm

It’s something about: - how everything Jaewon’s friends say about 1, him being impressive (for not taking time off school, for interning at a foreign company, for doing his military service then getting certificates and straightaway acing TOEIC… so things he had to do) and 2, him being backed up (by connections, family, money… essentially the reason why he had to do those things – bc they’re expected of him *just think about his mum’s messages*) COMES INTO FULL CIRCLE His friend says ‘when I see you I feel like I’m suffocating’ >> man… imagine what it’s like for Jaewon. He’s angry but stifles it and it builds in him. He’s trapped in that scene (background sounds and music fades out as Taehyung’s accusations echo through his head) until he’s literally knocked off his seat. And that’s when he shows his anger. And Jihyun embraces him and pulls him away from that (and the scene slows down again!!!)

- Jaewon knows what they say about him is true but that’s a double edged sword when others only see the positive side of it. Seeing how korean media represents university friendships, the way his friends act is (sure, shitty… but also) kinda typical. If they all met at the start of university, besides attending school and working on their social connections they drink/have fun together. The mention of someone’s connections or money (especially in their final year) is simply their drunken-jealous bitching about how easy it is for Jaewon, how he has no worries. And Jaewon also pretends to be drunk so he can let it go and make up with them but he’s obviously so fed up like… ppl just look at him and see

It’s something about: - the scene where Jihyun and Jaewon first talk. Jihyun not only gives Jaewon two cigarettes… he also has the lighter on him while he hands Jaewon those cigarettes but chooses to light one for him with his very cool bbq lighter instead. So then he can give the lighter as a farewell gift a few minutes later!

It’s something about: - Jihyun’s allure and that it’s his lack of preconceived assumptions about Jaewon. Jaewon doesn’t have to be any certain way around Jihyun and sometimes that’s the best someone could wish for

It’s something about: - Jihyun drinking with his boss lady. That scene is so magical because Jihyun is portrayed as a quiet countryside boy full of fears but he still pulls people in, connecting with them even when he doesn’t try (also I’m pretty sure boss lady is the tteokbokki shop owner from WYEL, where are my fellow WYEL enthusiasts at?)

It’s something about: - the scene w/ Jaewon at the gate of his house. Everything about that scene is just *chefs kiss*

It’s something about: - Jihyun trying to follow Jaewon and losing him vs Jaewon catching Jihyun eating lunch by himself (yo, I’m vibrating on a cellular level)

It’s something about: - Jaewon almost pissing his pants when caught talking w/ Jihyun in the cafeteria. It’s too funny to me

It’s something about:

this damn shot that makes me go feral - Jihyun follows Jaewon out of the bar to talk with him, they’re framed together yet there’s a line between them with the mirror/double images (I’m biting the edge of the table) BUT the moment Jihyun talks to Jaewon it’s all gone. Jaewon’s 'I didn’t see you earlier' is so telling

There’s also the scene with Jaewon and the therapist lady but I’ll come back to that in ep two

#ps. i already love yoonwon #when she told jihyun that boys always join the surf club because of eunji #so it must be the case for him as well #jihyun’s reply of “It’s not like that” is peak comedy #i tried to be coherent but its hard when my brain is all scattered #theres still more #but this post is already so long #thank you t8s cast and crew #the eighth sense #여덟 번째 감각 #ep rundown

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boysplanetrecaps · 9 months

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The Great Produce 48 Rewatch: Ep 2, Signal Song [Part 1]

In my previous post in this silly yet necessary project, we finished off the auditions, including the ones that weren't aired on MNET. It's time for the girls to move into their dorms and start practicing for their upcoming large-group performance to your favorite song and mine, Nekkoya! Let's do it.

In this second phase of the Produce 48 series, the 96 trainees (well, 94 -- 2 of them dropped out already) are asked to learn the lyrics, tune, and choreography of a song then get one chance to perform it in front of a video camera for their final grade. Did I mention that they have to learn the lyrics in both Korean and Japanese? Also, per AleXa in her interview with Grazy Grace, they had about a day and a half to learn the choreography and lyrics in both Korean and Japanese, and this was the very next day after they filmed the auditions for about 24 straight hours. Seems… like a bad idea. But what do I know?

So, the signal song is called Pick Me aka Nekkoya. The only signal song from any of the Produce series that I actually like is Nayana from Broduce101 -- I remember hearing it playing at Cafe Bene in K-town and just liking it without knowing what it was. But I’m not wild about Nekkoya, even if it is marginally better than Pick Me from Season 1. (I mean, “oh won’t you pick me up?” is the worst, ugh). I do enjoy the fact that Nekkoya sounds extra funny to the Japanese girls, because “neko” is the Japanese word for cat. You’d think that someone would have noticed that already…?

The girls are told that they’ll get to perform on MNET countdown. They’re so happy, despite the obvious fact that most of them aren’t going to get any camera time. They’re probably just giddy from lack of sleep. As in previous years, those in higher ranked groups will get more screen time -- but it’s even worse this year than in previous years, because rather than having the Bs and Cs flanking the As, they’ll all be stacked behind each other, so that it will probably be impossible to see even the members of the B group, much less the Ds.

The diagram at the top of the post shows the F ranked girls at the very back, but actually they won’t even be allowed on stage. The F-ranked girls, the majority of whom are Japanese, are heartbroken, notably the fashion challenged Mogi Shinobu in her blue furry sleeves. This girl is like a living meme.

We stan a relatable queen.

The judges remind them that all the grades will be reassigned, and that only someone from group A can be in the overall center, a very desirable position. I genuinely don’t remember who gets chosen, but it also seems obvious that it’s going to be 🌸Sakura🌸….?

Dorm Move In

The girls move in to their dorm room and find color-coded t-shirts waiting for them. I feel like I can feel the texture of these t-shirts through the screen. You know, those t-shirts that feel like steel wool and hang off you like a burlap sack? But despite being a full centimeter thick they somehow are also see-through and show the outlines of your bra? No thank you.

Miru is happy, but I think she is always happy. Honestly, I’m jealous.

Many of the girls like the colors, but the A girls are especially excited by their shirts, which feature a glittery A on a light pink background. Gyrui, the member of Fromis-9 who rocked a side-pony in her audition, is a bit salty that some of her roommates have pink shirts while she has to make due with orange.

Meanwhile, the F-ranked girls get gray, just to make sure they feel as bad as possible about their situation. SUFFER, the producers seem to be saying. SUFFER FOR YOUR DEFICIENCIES.

Suffer more, Ichikawa Manami! Your performance in What’s Your Name means you don’t deserve such a thing as “color”!

The F-ranked girls are joking that at least the F is on the back so they don’t have to see it themselves (unless they turn around really really fast). Goto Moe, who mysteriously seems to have completely recovered her voice, finds a white shirt she plans to wear instead. Doesn’t seem like a good idea, Moe.

Some of the girls find rules posted in their rooms. The rules, as translated by Google translate via my phone camera:

Adhere to the class schedule

Maintain cleanliness of accommodation and practice rooms.

Do not make noise while going to bed.

No unnecessary physical contact.

Compliance with writing a practice journal.

Prohibition of use of mobile phones and communication devices

Thorough management of the training center facilities

That fourth rule causes a lot of giggling and “touching” among the girls, and the editors play Knock from Broduce 101 in the background. Uh-oh, no skinship allowed! (Gossip online seems to imply that this is because of certain trainees, but I’m not sure that this is true and I don’t want to put anything out there like that without more confirmation.) This was a new rule for this season, but to the best of my knowledge had been kept in place for later seasons. For example, I remember that it was a rule in Boys Planet as well.

The girls have trouble communicating with each other, but some translation heroes step forward. Miyazaki Miho, who was in What’s Your Name and who I noticed writing in Korean at the beginning, can speak Korean reasonably well too, and serves as interpreter in one of the D-class dorms for Kim Minju.

Multi-lingual queen Miho!

Lee Chaejeong, future member of Alice who auditioned with Roller Coaster, has a little stuffie (that she calls her “chingu”) with her. Cho Ahyeong, who auditioned alongside future Cherry Bullet’s Haeyoon, has a stuffie that is sitting in for her mom. Kim Da Hye from Banana Culture (who auditioned with I Don’t Like Your Girlfriend) has a pink stuffie that is a gift from her mom. Wang Yiren (future Everglow) has a piggie. Strong approval on all that. My Christmas wish list is at least 50% Squishmallow. On the other hand, Sato Minami (who I continue to think of as Sailor Mars) has a terrifying doll named Lemon-Chan. No thank you.

NO THANK YOU

I SAID NO THANK YOU

1:05:35 Training Begins

Ok, we’re an hour into the episode, so it makes sense that it’s time to do something or another! The girls gather in the big studio wearing their Caste T-shirts (see what I did there? I spelled it caste not cast) and get ready to learn.

Kindly Soyou says, “You will be practicing the title track starting today. Since it’s the first time that the Japanese trainees are being trained in the Korean way, this may be quite difficult. But please trust in us, your trainers, and listen to us.” The girls are excited to learn new things -- we hear from Bibian, with her distinctive baby-doll face, and Nakanishi Chiyori, who had the fluffy pink skirt in What’s Your Name.

So the dance class, led by Psychopath, begins.

You can tell that he’s trying to break down the steps and give specific advice. I don’t know how it worked with the translations -- none of the Japanese girls seem to be wearing in-ear devices, so there must have been someone on a microphone, translating the information into Japanese or this would have been chaos. But it I had to learn a dance with someone speaking a language I don’t know, with a translation following a few moments later, it would be so hard to learn. It’s going really fast even for some of the Korean girls, and the Japanese girls look completely lost. Even Miru looks sad. Oh no! Protect Miru! Then after they suffer for a while, Dance Bae tells them the part they just learned is the “easiest part of the choreo.” Oh no!

It’s time for them to study in their groups. This is their class schedule, with the benefit of my google translate on my phone:

I think “consonant practice” should say “self-practice”.

The A group and B group both have Soyou for vocals and Psychopath for dance. The C group has Dance Bae for dance and Soyou for vocals. The D group has Mary J Lee for dance and Jeremy for vocals. The F group has Dance Bae for dance and Jeremy for vocals.

So, let’s start off with group C, in their yellow shirts, who apparently did the best at the big group dance instruction. Park Seo Young, the blonde individual trainee, has been elected leader and has the L sticker on her shoulder to prove it.

They are scared when Dance Bae comes in.

They go up to do the choreo in smaller groups, 5 or 6 at a time, and Dance Bae’s eagle eye picks out even the smallest mistakes. When they make mistakes, she tells them they have to try harder, which, like, lady, they ARE trying.

Then she picks out Son Eun Chae and Honda Hitomi to dance on their own -- one Korean girl and one Japanese girl to represent their respective groups.

They both look great, and Dance Bae compliments them. The other girls think they’ll both move up a rank.

Meanwhile, in class B…

B group has elected Park Minji -- future Secret Number -- as their leader, perhaps because she has experience from being on the first season of Produce 101.

AleXa is serving with a deep red lip. She understands the assignment.

When Psychopath comes in, they introduce themselves in unison, and he greets them impatiently. He watches them perform, then tells them they have to be more “bashful” in their dancing, mocking their more “powerful” attempts at the girlish choreography.

They all love him, saying that he’s a good dancer. Cho Ka Hyeon -- the Starship girl who isn’t Wonyoung or Yujin -- voice overs, “I stared at him shamelessly because he’s so good at dancing.”

Yoon Eunbin likes him a lot.

They might also think he’s handsome or cute, for all I know -- he was only 34 at the time of taping, so not necessarily too old for them to have crushes on (though obviously way too old for them to date, to be clear!). I know he’s being relatively nice to the girls and it must seem weird that I’m calling him Psychopath, but I DO NOT FORGIVE HIM FOR WHAT HE DID TO THE BOYS ON BOYS PLANET. It was full on psychological abuse.

Anyway, the dance practice continues. Miru-chan is trying to keep smiling, but she looks more like she’s crying. Psychopath scolds her, because that’s so helpful, and Jurina comes over to try to cheer her up.

This choreography is much harder than what any of them are used to.

Her training diary consists of this drawing and the words, “Today I had my first singing and dancing lesson in B class. I couldn’t follow the choreography during class B. I made the teacher worry. Is there no hope for me?” Aww, Miru-chan!!

We check in with Team A, who are having a vocal lesson with Soyou. Lee Gaeun from Pledis has been chosen as leader, probably on the strength of her already having debuted, and being the oldest in the group.

Soyou asks for a brave volunteer, and at first, no one steps forward.

Left to right: Lee Ga Eun, Jo Yu Ri, Park Hae Yoon, Kim Do Ah, Yu Min Young, Miyawaki Sakura, Takeuchi Miyu, Kim Cho Yeon, Lee Ha Eun, Lee Chae Yeon, Kim Da Hye, Hwang So Yeon, Choi Ye Na, Na Go Eun, Kwon Eun Bi

Finally, Na Go Eun (future Purple Kiss) volunteers. We’re reminded that at her audition, Soyou had said of her, “She’s the most promising trainee among the ones we’ve seen so far.” But Goeun, singing acapella, goes slightly off pitch, which is what happens to people who don’t have perfect pitch. I mean, most people don’t have perfect pitch! Soyou tells her that she’s going sharp, and that she sounds like she’s just reading a textbook. I would also find it difficult to put emotion into lyrics like:

From now on, you’re mine, mine, mine, only mine / Mine, mine, mine (Superstar) / From now on, you’re mine, mine, mine, only mine / Will you tell me? Pick me up

… but I guess that’s why I’m not cut out to be a K-idol. That’s literally the only reason, though.

Jo Yuri goes next, and has a bit of trouble with the high notes. Soyou tells her that she, Soyou, had fought for her, Yuri, to be in A group (no pressure!) and then tells her she’s disappointed. Kwon Eunbi is next to be insulted for her pronunciation and lack of, I don’t know, spirit (?).

🌸Sakura🌸 is next, and inspirational happy music plays as she talks about how she has studied the Korean lyrics -- amazing! She sings completely incorrectly, like the tune is only slightly an approximation of correct. Instead of insulting Sakura and/or expressing intense, soul-destroying disappointment, like she did with every other girl, Soyou kindly asks the talented Miyu to come forward to sing it correctly to help 🌸Sakura🌸 understand the melody. Finally, 🌸Sakura🌸 manages to sing a few notes correctly, and everyone applauds. I get it that the other girls like her, because she’s a nice girl, but even so. What. Is. This.

Next we check in with D group, who has chosen the multi-lingual Miyazaki Miho as their leader. Good call!

They are working with Mary J Lee, who many of them know from her Youtube dance videos. They seem a little star struck by her.

Sweet faced Motomura Aoi, who we met during the Never Ending Ferris Wheel performance, is in the back row and seems to have trouble seeing what’s going on. She knows the other girls are more skilled and is determined to do better.

Kim Minju, one of the Very Pretty Girls, is having a lot of trouble with the dancing. She’s self-conscious, looking at everyone instead of focusing on herself. She’s acutely aware that the others are better than her, and she’s taking it to heart, crying in the interview chair. We see her showing up in the dance practice room when no one else is there to practice some more.

In what may or may not be the next day, we check in again with the B girls at 1:21:48. Kim Sihyeon, future Everglow, and Lee Seunghyeon, who I’m going to just call Riina from H1-Key, interview that their group has Americans (AleXa), Chinese people (Wang Yiren from Everglow, Wang Ke of the red polka dots), Japanese people (Iwatate Saho, Miru from Dancing Hero, Juri, and Jurina), and of course, Koreans. So it can make communication tricky.

We see Jang Gyuri (future ex-Fromis9) and Lee Chaewon (future Le Sserafim) trying to get Jurina to understand that they want to practice the Japanese version of the lyrics together, using mostly English, but Jurina doesn’t seem to understand.

Husky-voiced Kim Hyuna (who did that excellent audition with My House by 2pm -- did you watch it yet?) encourages everyone to come watch the dance on the tablet, and the Japanese members, who don’t understand at first, come over later, when there’s already a big crowd.

Jurina interviews that the Koreans crowd around so much that the Japanese trainees can’t see at all. She is obviously frustrated.

What we see in the video, though, is that the Japanese trainees’ method of trying to see the video is to just stand there looking sad and wishing that the video will magically come closer. We don’t, for example, see them tapping anyone on the shoulder and pointing at the tablet with a hopeful facial expression. They just STAND THERE. I know it’s a cultural thing, but toxic passivity drives me nuts.

Quick story time. A few months back, I was flying somewhere for work, worried I’d miss my connecting flight which would cause serious issues with my job. I was seated in an aisle seat, and I noticed that boarding was taking a really long time. There was a woman standing in the aisle wearing a big backpack that kept smacking me in the face as she spun around trying to let people pass her. She apologized when I pointed that out, and I was like, it’s ok, but why don’t you just sit down? And she said, well, there’s someone sitting in my seat. I asked her which one was supposed to be her seat, and she pointed to the aisle seat in front of me. I was like, just say something, and the woman was like, oh no, I can’t, I don’t want to be rude. Meanwhile, people were still trying to board. The woman with the backpack was trying to duck into chairs that are open to let people pass, but there were hardly any open seats left and so she was really slowing down boarding, making everything really difficult for everyone. And all because she doesn’t have the chutzpah to either (a) tap the person on the shoulder and say “I think you’re in my seat” or (b) at least ask a flight attendant for help. So then I had to be the one to tap that person on the shoulder. Turned out she had sat in that seat KNOWING IT WAS THE WRONG SEAT because there was someone in HER seat, which was the window seat. So then I had to tell the person in the window seat that SHE was in the wrong seat. Like here I am just trying to get the plane to take off on time so I don’t miss my connection and no one has the ability to speak up about the simplest of things. The woman in the wrong window seat realized she had just made a mistake, and she apologized and moved up one row to the correct seat, and everyone got seated. But like, my GOD. What was your endgame, backpack woman? To just stay in the aisle the whole flight? URGH. I get it, some people are shy, but sometimes if you don’t speak up, it’s actually irresponsible and rude. And it’s even worse if you then make the other people out to be the bad guys.

Sorry, this is a pet peeve of mine. Deep breaths.

The four Japanese members sulk about how no one is “letting” them see the video, without ever, I don’t know, pointing to it? Walking over and gently taking it out of someone’s hands? ANY FUCKING THING? If I had to deal with people that passive I would evaporate. Just boil away into space.

Finally, husky-voiced Hyunah grabs Jurina by the arm, drags her over to the side of the room, and begins teaching her the choreo. Jurina realizes that the Korean girls who know how to dance learned the choreography first, so that they could teach it to the other girls, and regrets the misunderstanding.

H1-Key Riina helps Saho learn the choreo.

Saho interviews that in Japan, the girls typically work by themselves, but in Korea, the girls work together as a group, which makes her really happy. What I’m learning from this show is that Korean culture is superior to Japanese culture. Thanks, MNET editors! Thmeditors.

We see some of the Korean girls using English to talk to AleXa. Cute!

Choi So Eun interviews, “It feels like we’re communicating telepathically.”

We end the segment on this shot of the girls all crowded around Juri and Jurina -- looks like maybe Juri had been crying and then everyone in the whole class came over to cheer her up? Maybe? Anyway, it’s cute. They’re working together. This is my favorite thing about shows like this.

At 1:24:20, we switch over to watch the A girls at their dance practice. Gaeun shows off her dancing, and she looks great, of course. She’s so cute!

Behind her, you can see, left to right, little Lee Ha Eun, the “little Chungha” girl; Kwon Eunbi, looking a little different with her hair pulled back; Lee Da Hye from Banana Culture; behind Gaeun, you can see a tiny bit of the short, talented Miyu; Jo Yuri, of the yellow Chewing Gum; and Yu Minyeong of the mint green polka dots in the Celeb Five performance. (We’ll see Minyeoung dance in a little bit….)

As Gaeun finishes her performance, we get to see Hwang Soyeon, the “little Sunmi,” show off her teleportation skills! At 1:24:45 she’s standing by the wall next to 🌸Sakura🌸, calmly applauding for Gaeun.

Psychopath praises Gaeun, saying that all the details of her dancing are very neat and precise.

At 1:24:57, Soyeon has teleported to be sort of behind Gaeun. Dahye from Banana Culture is still near the wall -- but she’s out of breath and is pumping her t-shirt back and forth to cool herself down. Jo Yuri and Miyu seem to have disappeared. Soyeon has charged the part in her hair, and also seems out of breath. Gaeun’s hair is much messier, too.

And at 1:25:00, Soyeon has teleported back to her original position next to 🌸Sakura🌸, with her hair put back to its original part.

These are some talented girls, my friends.

Look, obviously this is just some bad editing, but it wasn’t an accident. For whatever reason, they wanted it to look like Psychopath was praising Gauen alone. Maybe he was, but maybe he wasn’t. This is all just to go back to one of my key points about this show: It is edited with such a purposefully heavy hand that it might as well be fiction.

In the next group, though the editing wants us to focus on Choi Yena, my eye kept getting drawn to Kim Doah, future Fanatics/GP999 contestant. She’s just so expressive there!

Left to right: Eunbi (권은비), Doah (김도아), Dahye, Yena (최예나), and Minyoung (유민영).

Psychopath reminds Yena not to let her fingers go in her mouth in the “tap near your mouth” part of the choreo. It’s interesting to think about those little details.

Many of the girls have their turn, and then he asks Yu Minyoung to come out to the center. He calls her “Celeb Five,” not by her name, even though she’s wearing a huge name tag. He called Gauen and Yena by their names, but not Minyoung! She makes quite a few mistakes. We see a flashback to the very first dance rehearsal, something we’ve never seen before -- Dance Bae pulling Psychopath aside and asking why on earth did Minyoung get an A. Honestly, I wondered that too at the time -- I said I would have given her a C. Psychopath reminds her that Minyoung was part of that Celeb Five performance. Back at the A-team’s dance rehearsal, Psychopath, showing his true nasty colors, says, “I think it was a really good idea to do Celeb Five back then. But you have no charisma now. You’ll end up in lower classes.” She just sort of says “Yes, I understand.” She wants to stay in A class, but I think she knows her skills are just not up to the task given her short training period.

This next segment, which begins at 1:27:35, is probably my favorite part of the whole episode. Jeremy just actually teaches the D-grade girls to sing. Instead of insulting them, or scolding them, or telling them that they have to “try harder,” or rolling his eyes and asking if they even want to be here, he just teaches them how singing works, physically. It’s a delight to watch. He has them do something that my vocal teacher taught me, an exercise to open up your palette. You start by being super super nasal, making a sound fully through your nose, then sort of make a “nnnngg-gga” noise that clears the sound out. It’s hard to explain in words, but it’s something I do before I sing a note, even alone in the shower. He even explains it to them in Japanese, since there are so many Japanese members of the class and the Japanese girls are especially nasal. Is he or is he not the most lovable of people?

He has Minami (owner of the Lemon-chan doll) lie flat on her back to learn how to engage her abs while she sings, and afterward, she can hold a note without wavering unpleasantly. You guys, this is what learning to sing is all about. The segment is only about 2 minutes long, which is a shame -- I could watch this for a long time. I like watching kindness in action! If you want to watch, here’s a Youtube clip.

And that's as much as I can fit in one post, so I'll have to cut it off here! I hope you're at a temperature you like to be at, and that you have the right number of Squishmallows nearby. Take care and see you in the next one, when we finish off their preparations for the signal song evaluation!

#produce48 #produce 48 #bpr recaps p48 #sakura #le sserafim #akb48 #lee hongki #ft island #choi yena #alexa #lee chaewon #h1-key

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