#like how did we move from the ep 1 2 3 emotions to whatever that was

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - Scandals, Face Offs & Disappointments, Oh my!

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

Oct 2024 Week 3

Ongoing Series - Thai

Jack & Joker (Thai Mon IQIYI) ep 6 of 12 - 3 tiny girls ragging on Jack was possibly the greatest opening sequence ever. Poor Jack. He is so not single anymore - so far as everyone around him is concerned. 

Love Sick 2024 (Thai Sun iQIYI) ep 5 of 15 - Sports day continues. We get a little backstory on the respective crushes on Noh. The jealousy between Phun & Earn is way more extreme in this version. I'm not mad about it. I love a claiming. Although it is so unfair of Phun to claim Noh when they agreed not to go there, AND he’s dating someone else. The byplay with Pete’s ex was fun. I wonder if we’re supposed to suss that Noh knows he’s gay in this version? 

I'm doing a face-off style watch along of this new version versus the original 2014-2015 version. Where I decide with each new ep which one wins. I will render a final judgement at the end. Frankly, I'm warming to this show way more than I thought I would give my extreme affection for the original.

Kidnap (Fri YT) ep 7 of 12 - Oh it’s so cute that he just wants to officially move in. And the necklace claiming thing was darling. Mini boyfriend era. Min being a kept baby girl was kinda fun. The family thing was too sweet. Oh noes my man has been strangled! Oh good he’s okay. Stupid breakup “for the plot” moment, they could have easily been separated by baddies, we didn’t need to go through this. 

Fourever You (Thai Thurs YT) ep 3 of 16 - I don’t care how cute he is or how longing those beautiful eyes, ghosting is a pretty big offense. Especially high school first love. I’m glad Ter is being difficult about it. Still the backstory is getting frustratingly confusing. It seems increasingly convoluted (full of girls) and I’m not sure what happened. So I’m not sure if I should be on Hill’s side or Ter’s. I’m beginning to feel manipulated and I don’t like it. I still like the show, but not as much as I did last week. I’m on a roller coaster here. 

Battle of the Writers (Sun YT) ep 11 of 12 - It remains odd, disjointed, but still modestly entertaining. Ozone using a well placed Phi for manipulation purposes made me happy. Random het wedding is random. 2 drunk horny sunshine babygurls was cute tho. 

Every You Every Me (Thai Mon Gaga) ep 2 of 10 - AKA Just one meet cute after another. Nice queer rep this time. It’s lovely, just not my style BL. 

Addicted Heroin (Thai Tues WeTV) ep 10 fin - Okay so last week half the ep was eng subbed and this week only 3/4. Whatever. Please note my extreme annoyance with everything about this show will color my rating. As it should. Ready for a mini rant?

Conclusion

What to say about this damn show? It wasn’t what I wanted and I didn’t like it. I’m disappointed in myself for having expectations and in it for not living up to them. It starred August for fucks sake! How could they fuck it up so bad? I wanted it to be a Thai reinterpretation of the brilliance that was Addicted giving us the ending that we never got to have but the narrative deserved. I got a resounding nope. The side couple was messed with, rearranged, and then entirely dropped and forgotten. The main romance was weirdly obsessive without any physical payout or emotional resolution, as if this remake were the censored Chinese version. All characters acted irrationally most of the time, and from what I could tell there was no logic to the ending, which seemed to be to minors escaping to a beach, abandoning their schooling, families, and respective futures. It was a hot mess. Without being hot. 4/10 fatally flawed, do not bother

Bad Guy My Boss (Thai Sun Gaga) ep 5 of 10 - it's bad. I don't like it.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Let Free the Curse of Taekwondo (Korea Thurs Gaga) eps 1-2 of 8 - High school student Do Hoe lives with his violent and brutal father who runs a Taekwondo gym in a rural area. Then cheerful Ju Young arrives who dreams of going to college for Taekwondo. Joy begins to fill Do Hoe's dark life. An unexpected incident forces them apart, they reunite over a decade years later.

Make no mistake this one is dark. And Korea can go many directions when it leans dark. So I’m not entirely sure what to expect. All the triggers: child abuse, corporal punishment, alcoholism, gambling, and a few other things. But also a fantastically awkward kiss. Oh this is VERY good. I’m enjoying it. Tumblr is officially losing its tiny mind about it. What can I say? This hellhole loves it some gritty dark angst with high romance and deep meaning. All hail the return of Queen Hwang Da Seul. 

My Damn Business (Korea Sat YT) eps 3 of 7 - He kinda is the worst boss ever. Now he’s turned into a drinking buddy whether baby likes it or not. I really feel for this kid. I do want more backstory on both of them. Why are they the way they are? All that said….. phenomenal kiss. Thanks boys. 

Teenager Judge (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 4 of ? - I do like the brothers relationship. Even though we know it’s gonna become romantic, it’s nice to see them all teasing and friendly. Meanwhile I’m getting a little exhausted by the bullying and I’m very much ready for the revenge narrative to continue.

Although I understand we have more of a spiral first, could we get on to some actual kissing soon? 

I'm shallow I just wanna see BV kiss the next boy. It's the BL world's version of Pokemon.

Our Golden Times (Hong Kong YT) 6 fin - Okay so this was the last ep! 

Summary

This was an odd disjointed little piece, but the most BL BL we’ve ever seen out of Hong Kong. The optics are good and it’s enjoyable for what it is, which is a circumspect, badly subbed, and slightly odd yet earnest reunion romance. I liked it more for what it could be, and for what it represented, than for what it actually was, but I still liked it.

7/10 recommended with reservations

I would like to nominate Our Golden Times @bengiyo as a candidate for the next "Girl you tried." Because it really did try hard to be the best little BL it could be under the circumstances.

First Note Of Love (Taiwan Mon Gaga) ep 11 of 12 - I do like all the couples, and in classic Taiwan style we’re ending ultra sappy (when they don’t fuck it up, and I don’t think this one will). Mei is the secret power behind the throne - as we all knew - love this for her, and us. 

Love is Like a Poison AKA Doku Koi: Doku mo Sugireba Koi to Naru (Japan Tues Netflix?) 5 of 10 eps - I'm falling beind because my subber is, but sort-of trying to keep up. I don’t know. Just Japan messing with us, I guess.

Eccentric Romance (Korea Weds Viki) eps 3-4 of 12 - It’s oddly erotic with all the gym stuff but also awkward and weird with the jelly plus suspicion. (Hi GeonU, another Thai/Korea BL for you? Is it a thing for you now? Could you recruit Jimin to the cause? I mean you go him into a reality competition. BL is right there. Waiting. Pretty please with a shirtless hottie on top?) Anygay, I keep thinking that this show would actually be better if the Thai character were just a Korean character and this was just a regular KBL. Although, it probably still wouldn’t be very good.

It's airing but...

The Hidden Moon (Sat WeTV) 10 eps - This is a supernatural romance (my ghost boyfriend trope) by Violet Rain (I Feel You Linger). A man is hired to write an article about an old mansion in Chiang Mai being converted into a café. He sees the ghosts of people who died at the mansion, falls in love with one of them. Was substantially recast. I loved IFYLITA except the ending so I think I'll let this one run it's course you can tell me if it's work tracking down... if they managed to land it. I have my doubts.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

Still Coming:

10/21 Love in the Big City (Korea Mon Viki) ep 1 of - Okay, this is both a movie (already out) and a series. Neither one is likely BL and I can't imagine it will end happily. Here's your synopsis:

Cynical fun loving student Young pinballs from home, to class, to on night stands. He and Jaehee, his female besie and roommate, frequent nearby bars where they push away their worries about life, love, and money with soju and hookups.

Apparently this is causing a homophobic ruckus in SK right now. As is wont to happen when one puts a really big name in the gay lead and your country is, well, pretty damn homophobic. Brokeback mukbang anyone? (Oh yes I am aware I'm a turd, but I'm too old for this crap. I guess that makes me a coprolite.)

10/23 See Your Love (Taiwan Weds Gaga Viki et al) 10 eps? - Zi Xiong, a third-generation heir, attempting to flee from taking over their family business, meets and falls in love with Shao Peng, who works as a hearing-impaired nurse. From the same production house as Kiseki Dear To Me in partnership with Shinehouse Theatre, funded by Taiwan’s BIGART + Japan's Rakuten (Viki). Show includes Lin Chia Yo (Be Loved in House: I Do). Director Chiang Ping Chen’s childhood experiences with his deaf uncle have inspired the drama.

10/27 Perfect 10 Liners (Thai Sun YouTube?) 24 eps! - New directing yet another university BL with engineers + their mentees. Based on a Jittirain novel. with a massive cast and massive run time. We will be watching this until APRIL of 2025!

ForceBook playing the same old characters = enemies to lovers tsunder/sunshine jock/nerd thing.

PerthChimonSanta are doing the cohabitation cool guy/dork trope.

JuniorMark are doing popular sunshine meets lonely sad boy (the only interesting pair IMHO).

Not sure if these will be interwoven (We Are style) or shorter stand alone runs-within-the-run of 8 eps each (Y-Destiny style).

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

You just kissed his brains out, what do you think? (Eh, we all know the aniyo is coming. This uke is made of tsudere and 아니요 ) (Damn Business)

I know, it's not a good show, but just LOOK at his face.

And the uke drunken shenanigans was brilliant. Loved it. (Battle Writers)

I did LOVE the twist on Golf. (Love Sick 2024)

Joke coming for our hearts just like...... it's TOO MUCH. War is SO DAMN GOOD. (J&J)

Calling out the trope HDS?

Gah. So awkward.

(Both from LFTCOT)

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

Sigh, Tumblr in its infinite wisdom doesn't like too many at-ings.

[xsoulxsilencex]

Well, episode 72 was surely... something.

There's a lot to talk about (especially when it comes to Zwijo and Mitsuko) so if you can't stand seeing anything negative about this episode then better not read any further.

Well, where to start? I guess with the jab at Manabu. Seriously, can't the writers go one episode in this arc without reminding us of Commander Study or clowning on Manabu? And I can't believe that the reason why Manabu can't be in the finals is due to him not entering with his real name. If you never wanted him in the finals in the first place then you should've given him a better reason than that, Bridge.

Yudias and the twins know that Epoch avoids them (or more specifically Yudias) and we see a hint of darkness still in Yudias. This could get interesting if the writers don't screw it up. There's also Yuamu and Yuhi talking about the relic and Yuamu asking Yuhi for a favor we haven't gotten to know what that is exactly yet. Maybe that plays already a role in the next episode. (or in ep 74 which has "road" in its title and Yuamu once again mentions how "this is their road" or whatever after Yuhi got to know about the favor)

Now to the tournament final: Why does Ranran say there's around 8 finalists? How does she not know the exact number? Or does she know better and was told to say this? From the spoilers, we already know we have 10 finalists. At least Manabu is also aware of how weird this is.

And to the biggest topic of the episode: Zwijo and Mitsuko.

Honestly, what the heck? Don't get me wrong: I never expected Zwijo going full mushy mode and say he missed Mitsuko and he loves her too and all that shit. This is still Zwijo so he will never be super emotional and say cheesy stuff. But whenever Mitsuko asked him if he has something to say to her or if he remembers their first meeting, he just said "no". That's it. They meet each other for the first time after 2 years and he doesn't bother explaining anything. So am I supposed to think that Mitsuko doesn't matter at all to Zwijo? Was she just a tool like Chupataro but he kept her longer with him for some reason?

Speaking of "meeting each other for the first time": Seriously, what was that backstory? Mitsuko accidently bumped into Zwijo's space ship, he said sorry and she went full delusional mode and thought he wants her to live with him? *sigh* Why do the writers suddenly turn Mitsuko in some kind of Ranze 2.0.? Sure, her "love vision" is just for Zwijo and not every guy around her. But we never saw it as bad as now. Like there was nothing until ep 41 and even then, the way she saw Zwijo was still with him frowning which we are used to. But now, she imagines him all smiling charmingly?

Tbh, I don't really understand why Zwijo even accepted Mitsuko to live with him. Like he sees this 3 meters tall lady for the first time, she wants to be with him due to her delusions and he just accepts it? Why? He could've just told her to leave him alone or push her away or simply ditch her without looking back. But no, he took her with him. Tbf, we just got Mitsuko's POV on their first meeting but I don't think Mitsuko would have forgotten it if Zwijo had been totally against it. Now I'm sure some will say "maybe Zwijo saw some use in Mitsuko which is why he was okay with her" but again: Why would he accept her to live in his space ship along with him? Just because Mitsuko wanted to live with him together doesn't mean he had to do this. He could've found a random house or so for her (or tell her that living together isn't possible but spending time together is fine) and still use her as his tool but he didn't. There's also the question where the heck all of Zwijo's people were including Myuda and Dinois during the time Mitsuko lived with him. On the battlefield? Somewhere else?

And speaking of Dinois: 1. why was she suddenly with Zwijo, 2. why did Zwijo use her ace monster and 3. why did nobody give a shit that a desk is suddenly talking and moving? Are everyone in Mutsuba Town so used to aliens now, they think a talking furniture piece is normal too or an alien?? But yeah, Zwijo using Heavenstar doesn't make any sense to me. Why would he do that? He has enough monsters that could be used for a new fusion. I did think of the possibility of Zwijo wanting to provoke Mitsuko with this to lure the darkness (but then, Dinois must have told him that Mitsuko can't stand her, I doubt Zwijo found that out himself) but we also see him taking Darkness Sansara away from Mitsuko which Yuamu speculates on that he maybe did that to prevent her from getting consumed by darkness. Which would mean that Zwijo does actually care for Mitsuko? At least a tiny bit? Or am I supposed to believe that Zwijo just took Sansara for himself since he later said that he thinks that it can bring back memories and he saw some use in it?

Ofc, Zwijo defeats Mitsuko and Mitsuko falls for him again - due to her delusions of thinking he says he loves her too. Come on, don't do this to her, Bridge. And ofc this can't end in those two making up since Zwijo just angers Mitsuko again with not remembering how they met for the first time and then she falls down the pit. I did a post before by saying how much this duel reminds me of Roa vs Getta and I'm still standing by this. (and Roa still gets at least points for telling Getta that he's a great friend to him - all Zwijo does is tell Mitsuko she "did well" and "good work")

Look, I don't say Zwijo has to reciprocate Mitsuko's feelings for him. He doesn't owe her any love just because she is in love with him. And I'm honestly not believing in them becoming a canon couple anymore (because yugioh rarely cares for proper romances anyway). But is it too much to ask for Zwijo appreciating Mitsuko as a friend? This guy doesn't have a single deep bond with someone who isn't from his own kind. Yudias has a bunch of non-Velgearian friendships who helped him understand things better, why can't Zwijo at least have one with Mitsuko too? I've also seen some saying that Mitsuko "forced" herself into Zwijo's life and while she did have her delusions, Zwijo isn't some shy, weak kid who can't speak for himself. Again, if he can't stand Mitsuko or feels uncomfortable around her then why did he even accept her to live with him together in the first place? You can't tell me he couldn't tell no to her. This is still Zwijo we're talking about - the guy who let Mitsuko do work for him so Idk how Mitsuko is now the one who forced Zwijo to keep her with him and he had no chance to escape her? You really think she has that much power over him? He could've also asked any of his own Velgearian soldiers to be still with him to work as a henchman on Earth or could've looked for other aliens who wouldn't have felt the need to be close to him like Chupataro so needing Mitsuko as a henchwoman would've been redundant.

The way the relationship between Zwijo and Mitsuko is now is just frustrating. If Zwijo just straight up told Mitsuko that he doesn't love her or that she should stay away from him, this chapter could be done and Mitsuko could move on. But we don't have that. Instead I fear for Mitsuko doing it like Getta (when it came to Roa) that she might be angry at Zwijo again rn but she will return to him if she thinks he is saying something she could interpret as him actually loving her or needing her. And I really don't want this shit again. Either have Zwijo fall in love with Mitsuko eventually, have him reject her but they still stay friends or do a clean cut of him telling her she should stop approaching him. Mitsuko won't stop reaching for him as long as Zwijo doesn't make it crystal clear what he really thinks of her. Maybe this is a hot take for some but it is partly his fault if Mitsuko still has hopes for them together. Like get your damn point across, Zwijo! Tell her straight in her face to get lost if she really never meant anything to you other than a tool you had some use for a while but now you want her to leave you alone. Heck, even insult her if nothing else works to make it obvious to her that you see nothing in her.

Next episode is Asaka vs Tell, Rovian vs Yuna and Nyandestar vs Yuamu. Also hinted Zwijo vs Yuhi but that could be pushed to episode 74. And I want Yuhi to beat Zwijo since I want to see Yudias vs Yuhi as the arc final duel and Yuhi being the one helping Yudias to get rid of the darkness in him. After all, they're best friends and this arc had some build up for them to face each other in the finals. I would be disappointed if they just did nothing with them now.

[matan4il]

Thank you for the most recent meta post. So much going on in that episode! So many thoughts and you’ve captured everything so well. Look forward to reading every time

Hi darling! Thank you SO MUCH, this made me smile so wide, I can’t even explain it! I am hugging you more than you could possibly imagine, and sending endless love your way! There def was a lot going on in that ep, and not everything could even fit into the 513 meta post, but thankfully that’s why we can make additional ones, like this post about clothes during that ep. Honestly, thank you for all of your kindness and support, whenever I see you liked something from me, it makes me feel so validated, like awww yay, I did good. Thank you and tons of love to you, my darling! xoxox

And if it’s okay, I’ll add here another ask that made me smile wide -

You've already answered an ask of me before, and you're such a lovely person! About 5x13 and the scene with Eddie, Buck and Chris I have to say three things, apart from Ryan's outstanding acting performance and 1000 other things. 1 Chris' (Eddie's?) phone has the same blue case. 2 Buck's "I'm coming in" has a slight British accent, like Oliver felt that emotional in that scene that his accent came out. 3 Buck's second "okay" before asking Eddie what he was afraid of was soft. What do you think?

Nonnie, I am so happy I could answer your ask, I hope you enjoyed the reply, and thank YOU for the kind words. YOU are a lovely person and I’m really glad you’re here! *HUGS*

And God, YES, they do have the same phone case! Not exactly the same one, Buck’s has a small ridge around where the case is cut out for the phone’s camera (and Chris doesn’t), but it’s clearly the same model. And more than that, it’s the same freaking COLOR. TBH, I tried to think if this might be coincidental. Like, maybe the person in charge of props went to the store and found 2 phone cases of the same model for the price of 1, and as a responsible adult, went for that sale. But even then, most odds are they could get the phone cases at least in different colors, right? So to get Buck and Chris phone cases that match in terms of model AND color, that’s a CHOICE. More than that, Oli actually moves his hand away. It’s not an unusual grip for him, he also uses it in other eps, what stood out to me is that he started with another grip and moved into this one. Maybe so we could get a better look at the phone case? NGL, if it’s ever confirmed he did do this on purpose, to make sure we catch that they’re using the same phone case, like a true BFF father & son duo, I am going to LOSE WHATEVER MARBLES I STILL HAVE LEFT.

Oh, but I have more for you, apparently. I went back to look at older scenes with Buck talking on the phone, and in 403 he had a different one. By 501 he had already switched to his current phone, but it looks like he had a shinier case. Which means Buck switched to the one we see in 513 (and I couldn’t detect in any earlier ep) and got Chris another for them to match! This seems to have been done by the production team especially for this ep. I AM EMOTIONAL, okay? ;_; Here’s the older one being all shiny and without a ridge around the cut out in 505:

Oooh, Nonnie! I have to admit, since English is my 4th language, I don’t think I can speak about accents, but if you’re right and Oli slipped there, that is AMAZING. Def an indication of him getting emotional in the scene! And OMG, yeeees, Buck was SO SOFT in that talk with Eddie, especially after he says that he’s afraid. Buck gets EXACTLY how much this confession is difficult for Eddie to make, and he’s offering comfort even with the tone of his voice. The way that these two love and support each other, I’m just... askdfjhsdkjfsd Greatest love story ever told, even if they never go canon. Them’s just the facts.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Nonnie! I loved them if you couldn’t tell by how unhinged I went. LOL Hope you’re having a great day! xoxox

(I got an influx of asks, I WILL answer all of them, but it might take a sec. If anyone wants to check whether I've already answered theirs or to read my replies, here's my ask tag. Thank you! xoxox)

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket Manga Review , ch 109

-The Tragedy of a an episodic format attempting to connect narrative in a series: (Tohru’s Background or Kyo’s Focus?)

One of my issues with se03, ep6 (other than it being 3 chapters combined horribly with new material added for shock value) is that it was weakly undecided who would be the focus? who would the narrative follow?: Is it tohru’s own pov abt herself? is it the gramps giving boring exposition abt tohru over weak still images of flashbacks or is kyo thinking abt tohru’s pain?

The truth is, it was all the above in the manga, but the manga gave each a chapter focus so that the chapter is well-directed with focused narrative. The anime weakly jumbled the 3 chapters together as they always do. You mix chapters & tada~ you got an ep, you only need a broad weak theme that connects the dots! here: it is tohru! & that’s it. As long as the 3 chapters discuss tohru in any form & manner, nothing will seem off if we put them next to each other in a 20 minute ep! right? riiiiiight ????

.. this was never a correct way. Just like a chapter needed a narrative direction, the ep is the same!!

ch 107: The beginning of tohru’s pov on her realization abt loving kyo.

ch108: tohru’s full pov of shock upon reaching the conclusion that she loves him & the beginning of her mom’s issues & abandonment.

ch109: Kyo’s pov abt tohru’s pain & his involvement, guil & the sheet hug.

ch110: (completely cut from the anime!!!!!!!!!!!!!) Kyoru’s part: the aftermath of kyo & tohru crossing the line of being in the most vulnerable & intimate, building towards a more crushing impact of the climax. The stronger & more painful their love is, the more it will hurt. Also a yuchi buildup?!!!!

-so, you see each chapter has a direction i& a narrative it follows independently that is weaved together to make a connected tissue of the overall plot. The anime puts the 3 chapters next to each other & we are lost on who to follow? kyo or tohru or the gramps. That’s why it feels tohru is weak & her two chapters worth of pov is stolen from her cuz it cut or shortened to include the grandpa, kyo, isuzu, shigure & let’s not forget (kazuma, yuki & haru) at the beginning, the dramatic shock value addition & OP & ED. All these take valuable screen time. The ep shocks us by moving from tohru to kyo. One minute she’s crying with him on the streets, next he’s at the grave & she’s visiting isuzu.

Kyo said he isn't going to the grave in the ep, upon seeing him actually going, I just assumed he wanted to avoid, hana, cuz I’m so invested in his story that I remember sth happened in se1, ep 14.. ages ago, The anime didn’t even allow kyo to inner talk abt avoiding hana... In their weird mind, kyo only inner talks in dramatic situations..See the difference!

Not only the writer (a) reminds us why kyo avoided the grave visit, she also (b) seized the opportunity to shine lifht onto an issue that will be the center of kyo’s struggles: Running away!

The anime introduce this in kyo’s pov only when kyo confronts tohru. Only when it was needed & couldnt be avoided. This is sth that will be the core of all the climax & the aftermath as well! Kyo running away.. How bad are you if you avoid inserting one line only that can be said in few seconds & establish great deal & foreshadow plenty!!!!!!!!!! I can’t for the life of my understand why short lines are cut from kyo when in the anime they have him be standing silent in the graveyard. Like slap the line above the silent scene!!!!! But doing so means the anime team understands tohru & kyo’s issues. They don’t. Not the slightest.

-Ep 6 signals the beginning of the anime moving from episodic format of se1, 2 & 5 eps of se3 & entering a connect plot. The anime doesn’t know how to do that & screwed tohru in the process. The protagonist’s main issues are one ep worth only. The antagonist main issues are one ep only (ep7).  Ep 6, was treated as a stand alone ep (minus the inserted shock scene to create a lingering issue that needs a following ep to explain. TOLD YOU they don’t know how to make a series!). Thus the following ep 7 is akito’s focus. Everything that was established in ep 6 was pit on hold until akito reaches the craziest mindset for the climax. See why ep 6 was so bad? it is Should NOT be a stand alone ep.

-The plot connects kyoru emotional & physically: (Kyo’s chapter with a tohru’s focus:

Unlike the anime, the chapter knows what it’s presenting 7 where it’s going. Kyo’s issues. This ch focuses on him uncovering parts of his past as it connects with tohru’s. Unlike the anime, we know why kyo's connection to kyoko’s past. The anime is hiding this for the climax, no problem, it can still work both ways. However, hiding kyoko /kyo connection doesn't necessarily mean hiding kyoko/tohru connection. But the anime is cutting this to milk it in an ova or series next year~ no problem,  it can still work if you handle this ep’s  flashback better. for all the artistic creativity they inserted in the added scene, they failed miserably in tohru’s flashback portion. how?

By choosing a frontal pov shot in tohru’s grandpa flashback as if the audience are the ones who abandoned tohru or opening the door to find her alone. it does NOT work at all. why? the audience are encouraged to be like tohru since ep 1 as tohru is the mother, angel, fixer & endearing hopeful girl. The audience will NEVER abandon tohru, that’s why tohru’s story felt disconnected & weak in the anime. Not knowing what kyoko did, who would abandon such child?! differently not us. so why use the frontal pov shot? -_-’

-tohru confesses her pain to kyo without being ushered by isuzu, without any outside factor. She simply visited the grave & came home. hiding her pain. once again. like she always do. One question by kyo, prompts her to “ complain a little” call back to se1, ep5 as he advised. we see tohru get out of her shell little by little. NOT SCREAM OR SLAP. She opened up. why? cuz the story is abt “ opening the lid” not abt “ snatching the lid”. No need for shocks. Yuki opened his lide slowly, tohru even slower, kyo is resisting opening his altho it is cracking in this chapter. When your story focuses on character buildup it pays!

-I’ll give the anime credit when it due. The hug scene is so good both in manga & anime. but so awesome in animation, colors, music & voice acting. It’s breathtaking & painful. The most beautiful kyoru scene in the whole anime.

-It represents their mutual vulnerability, understanding, pain & determination to love the other but not also let go. kyo has made his mind to be locked in order not to hurt tohru & tohru has made her mind that she can’t let go of her mom.

You see, the scene’s meaning hits different between manga & anime; In the anime: tohru has already challenged the sohmas & screamed to be with kyo, while kyo is still decided to leave her. In the manga: they’re both at the same spot (undecided). I like both interpretations but I’ll choose the manga’s version. Simply cuz it means tohru is still uncovering her issues which means more focus on her, & more explanation of why cant tohru love her mom & kyo at the same time.

-This expression on tohru’s face is a the complete opposite of the shock value expression in ep 6! T_T. I do’nt even hate the shocked scene addition itself that much, I just think (a) this is NOT its time! Tohru deserved better spotlight! (b) kyo didn’t friggen forget! ah! THIS I HATE! (c) the whole shocked scene was so wasted in ep 7. tohru return to her stupid dumb lalala~ land, cooking & forgetting kyo. what growth? what determination & screams to isuzu? what enduring kagura’s slaps? nope! just happy & cooking, lalala~ no one was freaking over her mom’s picture~ lalala~ & kyo just slept it over~ shhhh... its okay. he’ll forget again... see? totally wasted!

The anime knows nothing abt connected narrative! augh!

Side Notes:

We see kyo asking the gramps why he’s offering him info abt tohru which is so logical! XD. I love it.

I’ve read ch 110 & wanted to insert the kyoru scene in ch 110 here, & put yuchi alone in a different post, then I realized I’ll need to talk abt it again once I analyze yuki’s own expressions! XD. so, I’ll put all ch 110 together in one post. It kinda half written by now, so I’ll publish it very soon in two days time. I didn’t read ch 111 yet tho.

I hope ch 110 is the last I feel this much disappointments in furuba’s anime & by ch 11, it hopefully be be minor changes altho I doubt that cuz the manga needed to dwell into tohru’s mindset & the anime kinda stopped after ep 6. so, yup! more big changes coming!

The sheet hug is so brilliant in theory & application! so romantic & so endearing! love it so much! The anime did it so well, too!

I love kyo’s narration & pov cuz it’s so refreshing change from the anime where he rarely does!

I really wish they kept the kyoko abandoning tohru part in the anime... sigh~ it has nothing much to affect her story with katsuya. so it won’t ruin the spin off/ ova or whatever it’s called. 

I love the light focus on tohru in this chapter & how organic & natural it is opposed to how forced the plot seems in the anime....

[meetmeatthecoda]

Now that I’ve had some time to cry & mourn & actually think about that horrendous excuse for television... I have... some thoughts.

Firstly, the pace of that episode was insane. I mean, the season itself felt like we were slowly & tortuously hacking our way through a tangled rain forest, trying desperately to see the forest for the trees, but instead stuck cutting vines & branches down one by one... until we got to that finale, which felt comparatively like finally cutting away all the dense foliage only to immediately fall off a fucking cliff. You could just tell they were using the least amount of dialogue they could to move through so many weird emotions at fucking breakneck speed. I mean there was... the brief aftermath in Latvia, the 4 second plane ride to re-introduce Red’s illness after how many eps, Liz’s 3 second long recuperation, the awkward attempt at humor with the helium followed by a crash landing into solemnity at Red’s talk with Cooper, the abrupt & unsatisfying discussion with Red & Liz where he makes his rEqUESt, all the different “heartfelt” one-on-ones with Liz’s people, the fucking forced af “romance” with K**nler, the shoe-horned “chance meeting” with Beth Ryker, the most Agnes has ever talked in the history of ever, the weirdly morbid & fucking heartbreaking walk in the park, the choppy restaurant scene, to the unmentionable... end event. It went all over the place, which is very unlike TBL imo, which usually seems to stick to a theme or emotional center for an entire episode, whether blacklister or mythology driven. I think it was painfully clear how poor their planning was (when they have literally no excuse bc they knew this was coming the whole season???) & just how much shit they were trying to squeeze into one episode.

Secondly - & this may seem obvious, but I think it’s worth talking about anyway - Liz should have gotten her answers. And I’m not just saying this as a Lizzington shipper (I mean, mostly I am, but there are other reasons also!) Primarily, I think bc... literally everyone expected them. Not just bc they were advertised (it’s certainly not the first time they’ve delighted in false advertising in promos when it comes to the all-important AnSwErS) but bc THEY MADE SURE EVERYONE KNEW BEFOREHAND THAT IT WAS MEGAN’S LAST EP. It might have been mildly acceptable to play coy for yet another season finale IF she was coming back in some capacity later to eventually wrap things up, but - given that they fucking slammed the door on that possibility - THEY SHOULD HAVE GIVEN US ANSWERS. I don’t think anyone considered the possibility that they would KILL her & NOT give us answers bc it makes no fucking sense. Additionally, Liz should have gotten her answers simply bc SHE!! DESERVED!! THEM!! They’re literally the thing she’s been fighting for for eight seasons & she fucking died without them? WTF??? But, most importantly to us Lizzington shippers, Liz not getting her answers ruined the park fantasy. I think we all imagined (BC IT WAS MEGAN’S LAST EP) that Red & Liz would finally talk & Red would give her the answers she wanted. I think we all expected from the (misleading) promo that he would make some sense out of the potentially jumbled memories/visions (?) from 8.21 &, most importantly, there would be SOME KIND OF EMOTIONAL TURNING POINT, SOME CATHARSIS, AN UNDERSTANDING & RENEWED LOVE BETWEEN THEM DRIVEN BY THE AFOREMENTIONED REVELATIONS (& LOVE OF WHATEVER KIND, MIND YOU, WE WEREN’T PICKY, JUST SOMETHING FOUNDED ON RECONCILIATION & PEACE.) But - bc they denied us that - Liz was still in the dark & waiting on answers for the entire ep, unable to forgive or reconnect with her true feelings for Red (whatever you believe them to be) & this made her reaction to Red’s rEqUeSt ring very hollow & detached, the whole park bench conversation stilted & awkward (on Liz’s end) & - THE WORST PART - it made the whole park fantasy feel FALSE. It cheapened it. Like she was just indulging him, letting him walk with her & play with Agnes & enjoy one more day of life before she indifferently killed him. The one thing we expected to get, should have gotten, & THOUGHT WE WOULD HAVE NO MATTER WHAT ELSE HAPPENED IN THE FINALE was ruined. With the assisted suicide talk beforehand, the almost begrudging acceptance from Liz, the obvious morbid mindset from Red, the song in the background, the context of it all. It put an awful spin we completely didn’t expect on what should have been our beautiful Lizzington park fantasy. And I think that may be the part that hurts the most - the fact that I can only look at gifs of that scene - bc the music & dialogue & context completely undermine what Liz’s fantasy should have been, that she got for just one afternoon, when she was supposed to be happy & at peace with Red & Agnes.

Thirdly, (anyone still there? lolz) the whole “plot” of this episode was fucking nonsensical. Chiefly - & many other people have pointed this out before now - Red would never ask Liz to kill him. I simply call bullshit. No matter how hard they tried to justify it (& boyyyyy, did they try) Red has never wanted Liz to be a killer, criminal, or have to live a life like him. He has canonically said as much. I could maybe buy the whole “taking over his empire” thing as the seasons progressed, but asking Liz to live with the guilt (however slight or delayed) of killing him, after everything they’ve been through together, after she told him she loves him (seasons ago, but the feelings are still there, albeit buried deep)? And thereby launching her (& by extension Agnes) directly into harm’s way as the “new” Concierge of Crime (?), without him there to guide her from the shadows? No way. Bullshit. Also - & @iwouldlovetoeatyourtoast mentioned this first, I believe - the whole idea of it was stupid anyway bc Liz has spent the entire season chasing him, has repeatedly gotten opportunities to take the big shot, & has always been unable to kill him. It wasn’t even an engaging tWiSt to throw in at the very end bc - even when she agreed to do it - we all knew it wouldn’t happen, also bc Megan was the one leaving & not James. So, it wasn’t a surprise when she broke down at the end & said she couldn’t, so wtf was the point?

Fourthly (almost to the end, god this feels good) & this was a huge tell imo - everyone was OOC. Now you might say that’s the bitterness talking & you might be right... but you fucking try & tell me that 1) Red all of a sudden decides he’s ready for death after how long of not accepting it or mentioning it & absolutely must be killed by Liz & no one else within the next 24-48 hours 2) Liz would willingly go along with that for even a second 3) Dembe wouldn’t try his damnedest to talk Red out of assisted suicide in general & especially coercing Liz into doing it 4) Ressler would be the one to fucking figure it out & hightail it out of bed AFTER BEING ON DEATH’S DOOR WITH A BUSTED LUNG & SEPSIS FFS 5) Wolf Man Van Dyke would even know where to find Liz on a random fucking street corner outside a random fucking restaurant 6) Red wouldn’t see him behind Liz taking aim 7) THERE WOULDN’T BE A DECLARATION OF FEELINGS/LOVE CONFESSION BETWEEN RED & LIZ IN THE 14 MILLION OBVIOUS PLACES THERE COULD HAVE BEEN *PRIMARILY AFTER SHE SAYS “I CAN’T DO IT, I DON’T WANT TO” I MEAN, HELLO????? WTF, WHY WASN’T THERE AN “BC I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU TOO, LIZZIE” LIKE HOW HARD WOULD THAT HAVE BEEN, IT WAS THE PERFECT PLACE, THE LAST CHANCE, & WE FUCKING DESERVED ITTTTTTTTTTT *ahem* & lastly, & most importantly, & I’m definitely going to cry typing this... 8) if you fucking try to tell me that Red would allow himself to be pulled away from Lizzie’s dead body for a second time by Dembe or anyone else (especially when it was only the stupid task force arriving???) without simply crossing the street to load his gun with trembling fingers, pull the trigger, & join her... you’re fucking crazy.

In conclusion, bc this has gone on long enough, this was just... a hasty, sloppy, rushed, unprepared, careless ending on all fronts, no matter how hard they tried to convince us it was totally-100%-on-purpose-of-course-why-do-you-ask? (And I’m not even touching on the Redarina bait bc fuck that shit.) Like, did anyone else feel like when Red was telling Dembe that he was sure & this was what he wanted & really he’s positive so please stop asking, and when he was explaining things to Liz in almost too much detail, and when he was telling Harold this was absolutely necessary... that it was really the writers trying to convince us? It just felt so sudden & forced & heavy-handed & absurdly preventable & at the same time ridiculously unstoppable... I mean, look, whatever drama clearly went on behind the scenes? I think we can all agree that they did a terrible, awful, shit-tastic job on all fronts. And it’s just such a shame that that’s how it ended 💔

[hiems-incaelo]

Welp I made this to prove a point BUT-

FIGHTS SASUKE HAS NOT WON BY DIRECTLY KILLING HIS OPPONENT:

1. Sas vs. Kakashi. Ya know how that ended, bitch got buried alive lmao

2. Sas vs. Haku. Dude almost fucken died but at least we got the sns screentime

3. Sas vs. Lee. Bitch got done dirty

4. Sas vs. Orochimaru. Well yall know how that ended. One vampire bite and a whole lot of uncovered trauma later and he still didnt beat a bitch. Hella cool fight tho

5 . Sas vs. That One Dude In The Preliminaries. so ye he did technically beat the dude but he didn't kill him and also he went into a coma like right after so it doesn't count

6. Sas vs. Gaara p.1. ok. MAYBE he was winning, but rll we'll never know

7. Sas vs. Gaara p.2. This man got beat up so much u won't even believe it.

8. Sas vs. Itachi. Not even gonna elaborate on this one

9. Sas vs. Naruto p.1. The holes in da tanks explain for themselves

10. Sas vs. Sound Four. U know he would blame it on his bare feet and pajamas. U know it rll just was his existential crisis and underestimation issues.

11. Sas vs. Naruto pt.2. He spent dat whole fight talkin bout how he was gonna kill nart, and he HAD HIM UNCONSCIOUS and the only thing he did was stare at his forehead. Gay little shit

12. Sas vs. Team Kakashi. OK maybe if it wasn't for orochimaru he would have actually killed em but we don't know that do we

13. Sas vs. Orochimaru pt.2. Yes he did kill him but not rll cuz he was still alive in the curse mark wasn't he. Also oro was hella weak and sick so rll it was a bitch move

14. Sas vs. Deidara. Deidara blew himself up. YES I KNOW that Sas lowkey forced dei to do it BUT he didn't hand the killing blow himself SO it does not count

15. Sas vs. Itachi. We all know itachi let him win. If anything, the wall killed him.

16. Sas vs. Killer B. Bitch got done dirty part two

17. Sas vs. Five Kage. Ok I'll say it was impressive that he stayed alive the whole time while fighting the five Kage BUT rll who actually expected him to kill anyone lmao

18. Sas vs. Danzo. Danzo ALSO did a hella weird seal thing. I'll be nice on this one tho and say that Sas is Def the one who defeated him. Killing him tho? Another story.

19. Sas vs sakura. OK we all know sakura would've been dead if it wasn't for Kakashi or Naruto but she's still alive isn't she??

20. Sas vs. Kakashi. I rll wanted to see more if this figth ngl

21. Sas vs Naruto pt.3. Well I won't blame him cuz he DID just fight like the five Kage and Danzo and Kakashi and he's also like halfblind so

22. Sas vs. Kabuto. First of all Kabuto isn't ded second of all rll itachi did all the work and u know it

23. Sas vs. Madara. Bitch fucken died himself lmao

24. Sas vs. Kaguya. She got sealed away, and even if she was killed Sas didn't do it by himself

25. Sas vs. Naruto p.4. Ngl I DID cry when I watched this ep. Hella emotional. also WHAT HAPPENED TO 'FUCK THE GOVERNMENT' WOKE SASUKE I'll never forgive kishimoto for fucking with his character like that

26. Sas vs. Weird girl from his special series. Don't remember her name. Chiro? Shiro? Chinso? Idk well she's still alive and that's what matters

27. Sas vs. Kinshiki. 10/10 amazing fight. Did not kill him tho

28. Sas vs. Momoshiki. Welp 1) it was Sas AND nart and 2) Momoshiki got this karma in boruto or whatever

29. Sas vs. Jigen. Bitch got done dirty part three

Conclusion: Sasuke is amazing and the goat and stuff but he didn't rll kill anyone did he

(might be cuz he literally saw hundreds of corpses when he was seven and so he was obv deeply traumatized and prob disagreed with killing other ppl. This comes back in the Manga too, but the anime unnecessarily makes him kill random characters to make him look colder. Idk)

welp I still love him either way. Hate what boruto did to him tho, he's a bootlicker now smh

[ladyc0312]

A Jikook Guide to RunBTS: 91-101

Sometimes, I think about some of the moments I list here and start to worry that I'm reading too much into things. And I'll be the first to admit that a bunch of them are ambiguous enough that reasonable people can differ in their interpretation. 

The thing about jikook, though, is that there are so many of these eyebrow-raising types of moments that you could throw out half of them and still have enough left over to think "there's something up with those two." Especially in the following episodes...

Ep 91 "Mini Golden Bell Part 1" (Ep: 3 / KM: 1)

The ones where they make the best of sitting on the floor of an empty room and Jin and JK just barely manage to avoid murdering Tae over his less-than-excellent MC skills

03:35 - Everyone is confident that the "oh!" sound that's played is either JK or JM, but aren’t sure which is which. 

8:14 - When JM gets the right answer, JK is the only one to clap.

16:38 - JK is once again the only one to clap when JM gets an answer right.

Ep 92 "Mini Golden Bell Part 2" (Ep: 3 / KM: 2)

15:00 - As he goes to measure JK's arm, JM informs everyone that JK's arms have gotten longer since he's been boxing.

15:54 - When JM keeps moving around while JK is trying to measure his arm, JK tells Suga to hold JM still. 

16:31 - When JM's arm somehow seems to get slightly shorter from his stretching, JK gets excited and calls him "Jimin" (no hyung) a few times and then "Jimin-ssi."

20:03, 20:18 - When JK is singing his karaoke love song, the other guys are all over-emoting or swaying and listening, but JM just stares straight at him (and even looks genuinely emotional?) and the camera just stops showing him at a certain point. See picture above. 

20:46 - When JK starts to criticize Suga's cham cham cham performance, Jimin tells JK to just sit down. And he does.  

BEHIND 5:48 - After RM tries to comfort JM about his short arms by saying his legs are long, JK repeats "yes, your legs are long" and then sings a lyrics with JM's name inserted ("moon, moon, what kind of moon jiminie")

Ep 93 "BTS Marble Part 1" (Ep: 4 / KM: 3)

The ones where I still don’t understand this game but enjoy the episodes involving it anyway

0:42: Not jikook-related, but I can't not point out the adorable moment where RM makes a pun about how Marble sounds like the way Koreans pronounce Marvel and JK says "I love you 3000" to himself. 

10:22 - JM and JK are sitting pretty close all episode, but it's particularly apparent here, where JM's arm is resting on JK's thigh as they read a question together.

10:40 - Reading the question is long done, but JM's arm remains. 

12:21 - JM pats JK's shoulder in comfort after he messes up a question.

16:14 - After the heart-making game is over, JM and JK make hearts towards each other once more.

20:21 - JK taps JM's leg while sweetly reminding him that the pedometer game is difficult. Then they lean in to strategize together. 

21:07 - JM pats JK's back when he ends up winning the pedometer game, then again when it seems like JK was tired out by it. BEHIND 1:15 - JK is sitting next to JHope in this shot. The next time we see them, JM is there instead and stays there the rest of the game.

2:10 - JK pats JM's hand after JM says that the winning team should share with the losing one so no one's feelings are hurt.

2:48 - JM appears to be sitting half in JK's lap as he explains his answer.

4:41 - JM leans into JK as he laughs. 

5:51 - Another angle of the 16:14 moment.

6:25 - JM is half in JK's lap again as they watch the other team eat snacks. When JK says it looks good, JM gets a piece for him and rather intensely watches him eat it.

8:40 - JM and JK continue working on a puzzle after the game is over. When JM solves it, he shakes his whole body and makes cute frustrated noises. JK looks like he finds it adorable (how could you not?). Jimin does it again closer to JK's face and JK looks away shyly. 

Ep 94 "BTS Marble Part 2" (Ep: 4 / KM: 3)

4:20 - JM & JK trace a line with their fingers together in sync and the on-screen text informs us "two hands are moving like one hand."

7:24 - After JM and JK mess up in a game, the reach towards each other and hold each other's shoulders while collapsing in giggles onto the game board. The caption dubs them "dumb and dumber."  

16:28 - JM has his arm around JK's shoulders (while continuing from last ep to be half on his lap).

23:13 - When they're going back and forth about who should do the challenge, JM puts his hand on JK's thigh (the far one, for some reason) to tell him that he (JM) might get a leg cramp if he does it. JK does the challenge. 

24:12 - After JK loses the leg-shaking game by only one point, JM comforts him by massaging his thigh, shin, and calf.

BEHIND  0:29 - JK yells out "Jimin-ssi!!!" after JM gets an answer wrong.

1:54 - Another angle of the 7:24 collapsing together on the board moment.

4:03 - More of JM with his arm around JK.

7:48 - JM and JK stay behind to geek out together over some sort of kitchen appliance.

Ep 95 "Let's Play with BTS Part 1" (Ep: 3 / KM: 2)

The ones where BTS play childhood games 

9:17 - JK whispers to JM to ask for clarification on the rules.

11:18 - JK falls backwards laughing and, immediately after, JM does exactly the same thing.

15:23 - JK comments on how small Jimin's hands are.

31:33 - JM shushes JK when he tries to give advice on the game.

34:32 - JK puts his hand on JM's shoulder and asks for a snack.

BEHIND

7:40 - JM and JK giggle together over something.

7:56 - JK wants to show JM a jacks technique.

8:18 - JM and JK giggle together again and JM puts his hand on JK's arm as they do so.

10:24 - When JK adjusts the cameras, JM says JK is the director, then congratulates him and offers him candy when he's done.

Ep 96 "Let's Play with BTS Part 2" (Ep: 4 / KM: 3)

The one where we get the origin of “Rock Bison” - and it’s rather jikook-y!

3:18 - JM sees that JK is sad because he didn't get the top he wanted, so JM gives JK his top and takes the Rock Bison one that no one else wanted. 

11:32 - JK giggles at JM repeatedly throwing his top in the background.

22:52 - JM and JK do a weird backwards handshake before competing against each other in the eraser game.

23:56 - JK claps for JM after JM beats him in the game.

31:11 - JK consults JM on which lane to choose for his model car.

33:46 - When JM reaches out to take a box that might be heavy, JK watches and stands up as if ready to assist. BEHIND 6:51 - JM stands with his hand on JK's shoulder as they watch RM compete.

6:57 - JM holds JK's arms from behind and acts as resistance for him as he does arm-lifting exercises. 

10:19 - An off-camera JM tries to help JK figure out what's why the model car he built is so slow.

Ep 97 "Pajama Party Part 1" (Ep: 4 / KM: 4)

The ones where the guys wear cute pajamas and yes the Behind picture in the second part is real!

5:49 - We see that JM and JK have been drawing on their socks together. More on this in the Behind...

11:14 - JK is lying in JM's lap and they're playing around with their feet. This one is also expanded in the Behind!

22:13 - JK pokes a rod he is playing with in between Jimin's asscheeks. I... have been searching for a less suggestive way to describe this accurately and I keep coming up empty. Blame JK, not me!

22:38 - Another entry in our ongoing "it's JM's fault if JK thinks everything he does is hilarious" series, JM collapses laughing when JK skips back to the group carrying a Cooky doll attached to the rod like he hunted it. (In JM's defense, JK does look incredibly adorable doing it.)

23:54 - JK reaches over and touches Jimin's hand and the camera immediately cuts to something else.  

Note: For fans of JK's satoori, it comes out multiple times in this episode when he gets frustrated with various members after they get a question wrong.

BEHIND 2:41 - JM calls for Taehyung to come sit next to him. JK does instead. 

3:04 - JM rests his foot on JK's thigh as they both draw on their socks.

4:07 - After JM finishes showing off the drawings on his socks, he points the camera to JK in full focus mode finishing his drawings and JM smiles like it's the most adorable thing ever. 

5:26 - I'm sure you've all seen this clip already somewhere, but I'll describe it anyway! After JK tucks his feet under Suga's robe, JM pulls him back so he's laying in JM's lap. JM then puts his arms around JK as he grabs his decorated socked feet to show him while making silly noises. JK then picks up his foot to show his drawn-on sock and makes a different silly noise, causing JM to giggle. The shot gets cut off mid-giggle for whatever reason...

5:53 - JM rests his foot on JM's back while he adds to his sock art. 

7:52 - When JK stretches his arm out to indicate some of the members, he maybe puts his hand on JM's back for a moment.

Ep 98 "Pajama Party Part 2" (Ep: 4 / KM: 1)

You'd think this would be a super jikook-y episode given those pictures, but strangely enough, there are no moments of note in the episode itself. Since you can see the pics without watching the ep, I didn’t include them in the KM score.

BEHIND 1:20 - JM complains to JK that he hasn't gotten any answers right so far.  Some people have matched this to a round of the game in the episode itself where JK doesn't seem to be guessing as enthusiastically as he did before, perhaps in an attempt to make JM feel less bad. I mention it here because it's a theory I've seen a lot, but YMMV.

7:50 - JK shows JM that he has attached J and M balloons to his shirt while saying "JM" and "Jimin," making JM giggle. 

Ep 99 "Florists" (Ep: 5 / KM: 3)

The one where we learn that Jin probably doesn't have a future as a florist

4:33 - When JM starts to get embarrassed because everyone is laughing about his birth flower name sounding like a dirty word in Korean, JK rubs JM's neck and then continues rubbing circles on his back for a while after, seemingly to comfort him. 

19:05 - When Jimin looks confused after RM says he comes out of a glass bowl in Serendipity, JK lightly slaps him on the chest for forgetting. It's almost like it has some sort of personal meaning to him...

28:05 - After JK presents the bouquet he made (which he says represents all different kinds of love), JM says "I think I'll love it when I get it as a present."  Translation note: As we've discussed before, Korean can be hard to translate because often pronouns are omitted. A more literal translation is "present if received will be loved." Most translations that I've seen interpret it as Jimin talking about himself as the recipient, but it's not totally clear. Mentioning this because I know I was wondering why this moment isn't talked about more, since it seems fairly suggestive that JM would assume JK was going to give him a bouquet of flowers he made.

28:38 - When JM explains what "Serendipity" means, he's looking at JK (I think - I'll be totally honest and say the angle is weird and it could be RM).

31:02 - After the florist picks J-Hope's bouquet over JK's as his favorite, JM comments that Jungkook's "looks like a real bouquet for a wedding."

Ep 100 "100th Episode Special Part 1" (Ep: 4 / KM: 3)

The ones where the show does enhanced editions of games previously played on the series and you will walk away with zero doubt as to whom the episodes are sponsored by

21:36 - When it looks like Suga hit Jimin with the badminton birdie, but he actually made a bad serve, JK approaches with his frying pan racket held out and an angry look on his face and starts to scold Suga.  I’ve seen this written up as a jikook moment with JK being over-protective of JM. I’m going to be totally honest with you and say that I didn’t see it that way - JK had been getting increasingly annoyed at the other team re-doing serves and my read was that the moment was more about that. Let me know if you see it differently.  Regardless, the more significant moments are the ones in the Behind...

BEHIND 4:13 - When JM is hit near the eye with the badminton birdie, JK goes over to him and checks on whether his eye was hit. JM reaches out towards him as he gets up. It's interesting to me that the others stand back and let JK be the one to check in on JM, even though Tae and Jin were both closer when it happened. 

5:03 - Not a jikook moment, but JK is doing an adorable cheerleading routine in the background here and I can't not mention it...

8:39 - When JM sees that Jin and JK aren't messing around and JK was actually hit in the nose with the volleyball, he gets serious and walks over, asking him multiple times if it hurts a lot. He ruffles JK's hair before kneeling down next to him to check in.

Ep 101 "100th Episode Special Part 2" (Ep: 4 / KM: 1)

17:40 - JM tells everyone JK is good at this type of game.

BEHIND

1:06 - JK instructs Jimin (in half-informal language) how to work the box.

5:50 - JK calls out to Jimin that his photo makes him look like he's in a cartoon (and there's a slight pause when he calls him in between "Jimin" and "hyung").

7:09 - Jimin asserts that JK does look sexy in the "sexy pose" photo. He is imho correct.

9:15 - When JM is playing around after the game is over, he calls for Jungkook to cover him

100th Episode Special: Survival Directors Cut (Ep: 2 KM: 0)

5:32 - JM covers JK with his laser gun, allowing JK to escape.  Not particularly shippy since they're on the same team, but including it for anyone who wants a visual aid for some sort of military AU...

[agnesmontague]

this is going under a cut, i am tagging this tma negative and tma negativity AND tma critical, absolutely do not even look at it if you can’t handle it right now or ever, you have been warned. goes without saying but do not rebl*g. ok last chance to scroll past

i like that there’s this huge discussion (which is valid and fruitful) going on about how the “fear capitalism” metaphor fell flat in s5 bc everyone’s read on the metaphor’s strength and presence is different while im sitting here shrugging bc my biggest gripe with the finale wasn’t even thematic or ethical it was just that jonmartin never hashed out their differences and finally betrayed each others’ trust by going behind each others’ back and everyone treated jon pretty badly including martin who just got pettier and naggier in a way that was difficult to stomach as the season progressed? and spent several eps holding the idiot ball without ever apologizing to jon properly?

the reason im not currently upset rn is bc 1) i spent about two (absolute dogshit) weeks before the finale forcing myself to come to an emotional reckoning that sometimes things don’t go the way i want and i should pull up my pants like a big boy, 2) i recognize that my particular gripes with characterization, while common, aren’t universal and definitely did not land the same for everyone else, and 3) the ending is ambiguous and open-ended enough to allow me to imagine that every conversation that i think should have occurred on-screen actually did occur in a couples therapist’s office somewhere in some other universe. canon is closed now so it’s our city and they mercifully left us a hook so we can continue doing whatever emotional work we feel like doing on the story/characters while still technically remaining within the possible realms of “canon”. i do appreciate that a lot and it was a smart move imo

like there’s a lot more things i feel bleh about including larger thematic elements etc and im famously someone who feels like the last 10 or so eps weren’t very good pacing-wise but after the finale i refuse to dwell on these any more bc a closed canon means we can sculpt it with more ease than when it was still ongoing and not continually getting my expectations down week after week when it didn’t go the precise way i wanted lmao. and im not about to give the cringe culture kiddies the satisfaction of sneering at yet another popular “”bad”” franchise when it was overall still leaps and fucking bounds better than 99% of things mainstream media has ever presented to the world, s5 and all. i also feel like i hold a relatively unique viewpoint within the fandom just by virtue of where im approaching the canon from, so i don’t expect any of my specific grievances to resonate with anyone else either. this is the last post im gonna write about this, hopefully, so i never have to think about any of this again and go back to reblogging jmart fanart and missing the fuck out of the characters i loved for 3 years

[mowu-moment]

i feel controversial & i care too much, so here's my des rocs complete tierlist

ranked list & reasoning (ish) under the cut

1. WAYNE: hoholy shit wayne. can hardly put into words how explosive this one is to me. the intro sets a Whole Mood before swiftly (& cleanly) smacking it down into an Absolute Banger and i don't use the term lightly. very hard not to scream along with it. only detriment is that wayne the person is kinda an ass in the mmc video but that's no qualm

2. POS: basically the same thing as wayne (oh both have great lyrics btw, this one more so), only gets points knocked for being 2 minutes long and having 30 seconds of that being intro & outro. go danny give us nothing

3. WHY WHY WHY: there's a theme among my top picks--they're all hard-hitting w/ killer guitar. the lyrics are absolute batshit in a good way, but the chorus is a lil flat & i feel like in general it just needed a touch more spice to score the top spot. or maybe it's just seniority & it'll have a coup a few months out idk

4. DEAD RINGER: similar killer guitar & lyrics but this one is Groovy as Hell. don't particularly like his singing in this one & it's too repetitive if i'm feeling grumpy but there's something so magic about after the bridge. top 10 songs to twirl a flag to

5. NOTHING PERSONAL: the minute long outro irks me & it's a little bit empty but plays into that well. groovy, great lyrics, the Sexiest Guitar Solo of the lot, the screaming's a minus but it does have an emotion there. not entirely sure what one but it's there.

6. LET ME LIVE / LET ME DIE: his first time being all over the goddamn place, history was made. amazing guitar, a little worse lyrics than 1-4 i'll admit, the intro Slays me both in a good and bad way. must be a joy to play live where he can just drag out that intro & bridge as long as feels right. at least i liked it in the digital concert like that. would actually kill me in a physical concert, imagine how much stomping gets going to that beat. bonus points for presumable cowbell

7. PIECES: for once not this high for the guitar & lyrics, they're both kinda basic. idk what's about this one but it just takes me to a separate dimension & i love it so much for that. really fills those earholes. also a bit of personal meaning, heard it for the first time on the day we moved into the house i'm currently split-custody-living in (is that tmi?) & the first music video of his i saw. man i love some spaghetti on the wall

8. SLO: basically the same as dead ringer, but knocked points for a kinda lame outro & the subject matter being a little less interesting to me. still lovely.

9. HANGING BY A THREAD: not my normal fare really & the way that the ends of the verses don't really fit in the pacing of them is bleh, but it's just so reminiscent of the songs my brother puts on whenever we hang out together that it just makes me all warm & fuzzy. it's also nicely put together which is something i'll have to start saying for. the later list.

10. SUICIDE ROMANTICS: this is where i start griping about head voice & higher pitches in general. don't like em so the pre-chorus is a lil annoying. also not my normal fare but it's tender & the ending is awe-striking. imo better live where he's loud on that last line before the final chorus. not enough to bump it up though. shoutouts to love and a smoking gun, i still am dying to hear that one

11. THE PAST HAS PASSED AWAY: my favorite lyrics out of the first 2 ep's. only thing wrong with it really is the bridge getting kinda repetitive. love that last chorus heehoo. same schpeel as the Banger Category

12. MMC: this one's lower than the rest of the Bangers for being pop punk which is something the radio has made me dislike, i guess. that trope with the guitar in the second half of the chorus just kills me so much. improves greatly during & after the bridge, love that lil ragtime piano. generally the same bit as before but i do love him doing something un-romance-related. yeah fuck the establishment!

13. THE DEVIL INSIDE: reminds me A Lot of the electronic-ish cassettes i've got from the early 90's but that's just me. this one will probably move up as i get more used to it, but only a little bit. the first part of the second verse makes me like. genuinely uncomfy? but the second part of it's fantastic. ending's ass though what happened to the instrumence. bonus points for using 'reverie' that's an SAT word (maybe). good singing but returning to the gripe at higher pitches, just a little bit though

14. THIS IS OUR LIFE: feels shockingly generic for a des rocs song tbh but there's nothing really wrong with that. adore the bridge. singing's alright. kinda miffed that he doesn't pronounce the 'f' in the second 'life' in the chorus, but it makes sense here. that sort of thing won't later so i'm bringing it up now. guitar's nothing spectacular but fits nicely into the song, probably one of the most cohesive of his (especially in recent history).

15. OUTTA MY MIND: really lives in the same space as slo and dead ringer do in my head (most likely the 'songs to twirl a flag to' zone), but this is by far the worst of the three for when i'm grumpy. just. Very repetitive. back to great lyrics here but it's kinda hard to pick them out (i've heard the song at least 100 times by now & i'm still missing a few lines). still groovin'

16. RUBY WITH THE SHARPEST LIES: what the fuck actually goes on in this song by the way? not the premise or whatever it's just. so all over the place. the verses are incredible but bringing in another vocalist just for one line kills me. bridge is really cool but that one part i don't remember where it is, the one that alternates basically nothing & an Electronic Piano Chord blaring at ya? ruins it. partially anyhow. also can someone tell the people on genius that it's 'carved it in my skin' not 'crawled down in my skin'

17. GIVE ME THE NIGHT: same repetitive issue as outta my mind but it's not groovy enough to save it, shame. feels like a trial run of all the wackshit stuff he's been doing recently, with the additional vocal bits at the end & the kinda weird lyrics. it still has a place in my heart don't get me wrong but it's just fallen in favor of stuff that Commits to banger or batshit (or actually pulls off both strongly, yyy). oh yeah nice guitar alright singing etc etc

18. USED TO THE DARKNESS: similar story to give me the night. i love it i do, but it's just lackluster nowadays. also remember that under-pronunciation thing i brought up in this is our life? this is where that comes back. rampant i tell you! that second verse he just doesn't finish the words & i hate it!

19. DON'T HURT ME: i honestly don't know why this one isn't in D. the chorus bit where he just cuts it short is irksome. the lyrics aren't anything special. i don't know what i like about it. but i can tell it does exactly what it set out to do if that makes sense. respect, respect. and using missile in an analogy, he's getting creative with the vocab

20. LIVING PROOF: kinda got a vendetta against this one i think? i don't know why i hate this one but i do. it's just kinda, blah. like the perfect sort of thing to nightcore up. sentiment's lovely & i do love the lyrics even if they aren't impressive but like. it bores me to an extent

21. TICK (LIVE): separating the version i heard in the digital concert just to give it some credit, this one was actually kinda nice. another one with a nice sentiment & what he was going for is great. no clue what the second part of the second verse has to do with any of this though. and it also begins our final group, the songs that just feel empty. like there's not nearly enough going on. this one's alright though i was just hoping the studio version would add some flair. you can see where that one is though.

22. IMAGINARY FRIENDS: also got a vendetta against pop. kinda hate the sentiment here (contrast!), the chorus just falls short of what the verses prime me for, head voice is rampant, and yet i still swing along to it. it's infectious props to him. love the outro though, monkey laugh and all.

23. MAYBE, I: another empty one, like it's a four-note progression what is that. love his singing in it, and the chorus parts do round it out, but like. eh? it doesn't even give me much to say.

24. BORN TO LOSE: another flop on the chorus! too smooth i say! and i absolutely Despise the pitch-shifting thing going on. not something i was expecting him to express so points there, lyrics are nothing fancy to my Literary Mind though. initially good singing but the chorus he's just sloppy over it. the instrumental is lovely but the vocals just throw it so hard into the bin which is a right shame. fuck that outro too i hate that gimmick

25. I KNOW: here's where the bad batshit comes in. singing is some of his worst imo, does the other-vocalist thing for that bridge, genre i'm not fond of, just a soup of Stuff I Don't Like. not one i'd kill someone over putting as #1 like i can see where it comes from but. mmmmmhhhh bad. cover does NOT help his case.

26. HVY MTL DRMR: empirically i should put this one higher. but the chorus flops so goddamn hard it deserves to be in the bottom of the barrel. the verses are lovely for what he was doing back then! but then just... nothing!

27. RABBIT HOLE: i was so excited for this name but it's just sad boi hours playlist curated by some corporation you hate. probably the most nothing of them all, genuinely where are the instruments. what happened. was this one just shoehorned in as the final track just to pump numbers up. and i swear he had some autotune or something which only makes his voice worse it's fantastic naturally. also that's not what a rabbit hole is! that's not the idiom! a rabbit hole is when you go on a wikipedia spiral from jennifer lopez to group theory! not when you just have a shitty night's sleep or whatever this is! i'm not just miffed i'm downright annoyed

28. TICK (STUDIO): what the fuck happened des. how did you release this. it sounds like a 3rd grader singing for the school talent show it's so out of rhythm. singing's honestly kinda bad & the instrumental has the same problems i talked about in the live version. the last chorus is fine, i guess, but no i don't forgive him for what he did to tick.

[a-moment-an-eternity]

Yashahime season 2 episode 3 ( ep 27) thoughts and opinions:

( note: I skipped my thoughts on ep 2. Because to be honest I didn't have alot. So. in summary I'd give it a 4/10. I didn't totally hate it, or totally love it. it was just plain old fine filler lol I did like that Setsuna and Moroha went without Towa. But that's just kuz I don't care for Towa 🤣)

Anyway ...🤗

Summery:

Rating : 7/10

I actually really enjoyed this episode! There was alot to like and just a few points I wanna make with dislikes or some I guess..."hot takes" in this fandom lol! But yeah I'm excited to see where we go from here🥳

Dislikes:

Jakens random saying of Rins age. It felt forced and just there for show. Really It just seemed oddly placed, and unnatural timing...

(opinion on the age since I'm sure it'll come up later on: Her being 18 also doesn't line up with the lore they laid out from season 1 if I remember correctly. (I also dont have a very specific memory of the timeline. But I'm pretty sure it's all wacko now haha. I am glad they atleast are making her of age, it still doesn't help the icky factor imo though. It's better than what it was. I don't like it, But whatever, I'll try too look past it...kuz these aren't real people lol )

I'm not the biggest fan of Riku being Essentially a walking window for Kirinmaru , but maybe they can do something with that and I'll change my mind.

I dont like that the pearls were basically scattered for NO REASON at all because Zero already has them all.

How can Jaken literally try to give over the twins as infants and still be liked lol

What I liked!:

The pacing was great. This episode felt jam packed with information but didn't feel like it flew by or dragged on. We saw alot, did alot and moved the plot along significantly, all while not leaving the feeling of being jolted.

As I stated I'm not the biggest fan of the pairing, however, I thought the Rin flashback was actually really good. Emotional and informational. I hated jaken here for obvious reasons (at least he was in character lol) but otherwise it was enjoyable. To be clear I'm saying that despite my distaste , if I take that out of the equation and imagine Rin as any other character, the writing and acting here was good. I felt like Sesshomaru was in character and Zero was as menacing as she needed to be. It was emotionally moving to see how Rin ended up in the tree and how she, as the twins mother cared for them. Regardless of how I feel about the pairing.

Moroha was funny as hell amd I loved seeing her shine here.

Setsuna needing to practice with her naginata is great. No major power boosts yet haha!

Hearing Towa be mentioned as "someone who needs protected" was kinda nice tbh. Because she's often played up as a the strongest of the 3 girls. So it was a nice change of pace.

The animation was great! Very few instances did I feel were lesser.

Set up for next week was phenomenal! It made me extra excited to see where this is all going!

Final Thoughts:

As I stated above I give this episode an 8/10. It's probably one of my favorites of the series as a whole. I've been worried about getting this lore for awhile and how I'd feel about it. I wasn't totally thrilled but it went...better...then expected lol! I still enjoy and want to keep enjoying the series which is good lol 😆

(Side note /theory note: I was kinda holding out hope that different timelines were at play here... That perhaps The twins were actually much younger than Moroha and just thrown into a timeline where they were the same age haha. )

But this episodes quality, acting and pacing really was some of the best I've seen in the show so far and I can't help but admit it. There was alot to like!

See you next week! I'm super excited for it🤗

[yukisohmasmokesweed]

heeey... so, might be still a bit early to ask, but: top 10 "things" about season 2? could be eps, moments, characters, things they did, whatever you feel like, literally ur top 10 favorites from it

i interpreted this to mean top 10 moments so....top 10 moments!

10. (from 2x4)

i love this whole fight so much. it’s kind of an unspoken thing after it’s first established that they have to hide a huge part of their lives from everyone around them since it’s a given, so i like this bottled-up frustration over having to live constantly walking on eggshells coming out. i also really really like that we get to see haru acting genuinely scary as dark haru; it’s introduced as a comedic thing and haru is a generally well-adjusted character compared to the rest of the zodiac, and so i like that we get to see just how destructive and chaotic his coping mechanism really is. filmmaking-wise it’s a little boring but i don’t really mind because it’s tense enough that i don’t really notice it.

9. (from 2x17)

this is the only funny one on my list because i live for the drama haha but i like this scene for more than its humor! this episode takes place at a point in the season where yuki has been able to accept that he is allowed to put himself and his recovery first, and has spent enough time with others and pushed himself out of his comfort zone enough to shake off the instantaneous automatic fear of rejection that his social anxiety manifests as. because of the slow undoing of this hardwired reaction and because he’s become very comfortable around kakeru, though, his real, unrestrained personality as well as his actual opinions start slipping out. i like that this scene shows us 1. that he cares for tohru so deeply that he would end a friendship over her getting hurt, even though he thinks it’s childish after he says it and 2. that not even yuki knows what his real personality is like because he’s kept it repressed for so long. and i think for people with social anxiety the reaction to this kind of thing is embarrassment, but despite his embarrassment kakeru accepts what he says at face value because he likes yuki for who he is, not who he pretends to be for other people’s comfort. this is a very sweet moment between the two of them even if it’s buried a bit underneath the humor and kakeru’s easy acceptance of yuki’s more dramatic and snarky side is one of the reasons yuki trusts him so much when it comes to heavy stuff. i don’t love the bg changes to this cartoony thing in fb but in comedic scenes like this one it didn’t bother me, and i thought all of the art in this episode was really nice. this was also one of my favorite voice acting moments from shimazaki, i looooved loved loved him stuttering as he turns around right after he has this revelation, i think it’s super funny and also very natural-sounding, plus it’s a different kind of delivery from yuki but it fits him so well.

8. (from 2x19)

i love this little moment between shigure and hatori. the way they talk about the curse in this scene is very indicative of their characters and how they feel about the curse: shigure is flippant and casual when he says rin visits him to see if he knows how to break it, and hatori is shocked at the idea of it, then instantly becomes resigned, claiming it’s not possible. but this moment right at the end is just *chefs kiss* the way shigure says hatori’s name so weighty, and the delivery of “...do you hear it?” is curious if not hesitantly hopeful, some of my fav line readings in the whole show. i also really love the pan up the stairs back up to the house when he says “the sound of breaking,” the implication of tohru’s involvement in this clear. this scene is also visually stunning and i like the track under it a lot.

7. (from 2x18)

i’m obsessed with this scene and i’m obsessed with every line reading from nakamura, he is so incredible. i thought the art in this scene was gorgeous and every blocking choice was amazing, the body language and where they moved and when was perfect. also one of my favorite tracks off the ost plays under this scene, and i love that it ends just before shigure delivers his line, “i’m the worst.” and rin looks over her shoulder in silence other than the sound of the door(!) sliding closed as shigure exits. you can feel in this scene how desperate rin is and how frustrated shigure’s flippancy is making her. i also really like rin’s body language in general, she’s a good amount touchier than anyone else, and she’s all over shigure in this scene, both because she’s propositioning him but also because of her implied closeness (gure-nii) to him.

this is an excellent shigure scene, and i love these lines included in particular as well as the repeat of them in the finale. it’s a moment of actual self-awareness and self-reflection from shigure for sure, you can tell by his face, but in true shigure form he is not saying it because he’s trying to be emotionally open with rin; he’s saying it to get her off his back. he knows that the curse is weakening but he also knows that the harder he pushes people and the harder they struggle to get out, the more likely the curse is to break. it’s cruel and manipulative and the most painful way to go about things, but hey at least he knows it!

6. (from 2x25)

this whole scene between shigure and hatori in the finale is a super hard hitter; they both know everything about one another and have nothing to hide and they are also very desensitized to cruelty, and so their conversations are incredibly frank, and they don’t skirt around anything, either. i like that hatori doesn’t hesitate to put shigure in his place regarding akito’s status (a good example of hatori as akito’s enabler and the upkeeper of the status quo in order to keep everyone’s lives as calm as possible at the cost of his own happiness), and i like that shigure immediately gives it back by calling out hatori’s attachment to the bond—which is an interesting thing to bring up and speaks to the bond as not just a curse, but of how it is also their family and community. their lives do revolve around it, so the curse breaking would be an unthinkable change to something integral to their existence. 

i chose this moment in particular because it’s a great insight into shigure’s emotional state, one of deep jealousy and pain over akito’s rejection of him. i like that it’s a close-up of his eyes here; shigure’s eyes are important in the reboot, and seeing them here tells us that this is his emotional truth. when hatori calls him out, though, they are hidden again. these lines are also delivered so well, i love how low in his register he’s speaking, it’s not something we hear from shigure a lot. it’s very heavy and very indicative of his pain.

also, i like when they copy things exactly from the manga, so i liked this shot a lot as the closer of the scene:

5. (from 2x21)

ok obviously i had to put this because it’s my favorite scene in the manga...i thought this was very visually beautiful, loved that they had yuki standing in darkness (in front of a door!) and kyo illuminated by the light, but a light from a place he’s not allowed to enter. i think the lighting design speaks to how yuki views kyo, not only when he’s a little older as someone who is naturally charismatic and attractive, but in the moment, as a potential ray of light, a possible friend who could understand his situation through shared life experience. i just love the puff of breath yuki gives in reaction to kyo confirming what akito has been saying to him about how everyone hates him and everything is his fault, and i love yuki’s hands folded in front of his chest, protecting the most vulnerable part of his body as a reflex to words that deeply wounded him. 

i like this scene for its function of the root of yuki and kyo’s conflict: that kyo needs to hate yuki and scapegoat him for his own problems due to yuki’s status in the family, and yuki hates kyo back to protect himself. it’s a very nuanced and deep take on a fictional rivalry that comes from a very realistic place of maladaptive coping and morphs into something more habitual and every day over time. also big love the casting choices for these two as children. this scene was amazing, it’s super short but i like this specific moment in it because it does a great job visually showcasing yuki and kyo’s immediate reactions and emotions to meeting one another for the first time.

4. (from 2x25)

i thought this whole sequence was incredibly well-done, but specifically i loved this part where the music swells and the loom crashes down onto the floor over akito’s repeated lines. also one of my favorite voice acting moments of the season, i loved akito delivering these lines through hiccups and sobs and trailing off into childish crying, and the art and animation was very visceral. seeing akito this out of control was amazing and kureno’s reactions to akito hit very very hard; it’s easy to sympathize with him and see why he would agree to this, and it contextualizes his decision to do so when all we the audience has seen before this is akito’s terrible and abusive behavior. 

i also really liked kureno’s hands coming in towards akito to comfort, it reminded me of this

from 1x9 but flipped; instead of kureno’s hands coming forward to comfort akito but representing his choice to trap himself in the curse, it’s akito’s hands coming from behind to force yuki to stay with akito against his will. they also both cut off very suddenly, which i like a lot.

3. (from 2x8)

this transition makes me go absolutely ballistic. visually i love akito and tohru turning to look over their shoulders in opposite directions, i just think it looks very sexy and it was a cool way to transition out of one scene and into another. i also like the mirrored body language to set them up as each other’s foils in these two scenes. akito brings kureno, who is functionally their love interest, out for a walk and then proceeds to belittle him, his status, and his opinions. tohru goes out with kyo, her love interest, so they can have a nice time at the beach. they have a very open conversation about the “monstrous” aspect to kyo where tohru validates and appreciates his thoughts and emotions. having these two scenes back to back was a really smart move to contrast our protagonist and antagonist and set them up as each other’s foils, and it’s definitely my favorite scene transition in the season.

2. (from 2x10)

i loooove how insanely tense this scene is. i really like that shigure and akito are sitting in silence here until akito starts their monologue in full, and then the track is cut off at its crescendo by kureno’s knocking. the track being bookended by low ambient sound from outside makes it more impactful when it does start playing, and the track cutting off with the knocking makes the sound of akito’s clothes moving as they get up and the door sliding open while the camera is still trained on shigure’s expression deafening. i also like the shot choices in this scene, particularly the close-up of akito’s hands around shigure’s jaw and that we can only see their mouths, as well as the shot of shigure seething but partially blocked by akito’s torso. the voice acting in this scene is also bonkers good, particularly yuichi nakamura’s shigure.

this is the first time the audience has seen shigure mad, not just annoyed or frustrated, and that’s definitely a big part of why i love this scene. his conflict with akito adds a lot of depth to his character and i like seeing a different range of emotion from him than normal. i also just love the introduction of their whole relationship drama love triangle thing going on with the adults, i honestly think it’s hilarious that takaya baits the audience into thinking it’s going to be a love triangle between the teens and it just completely is not but is instead a deeply fucked up one between the older characters. truly a stroke of genius

1. (from 2x8)

i love this whole scene so much. i think cinematically it’s gorgeous, i love that they’re surrounded by greenery and i really like the leaves starting to fall around them and the beams of sunlight behind tohru. those choices could have come off flashy and overdone but i feel the way it was directed was subtle enough that it didn’t feel like ibata was holding my hand through my emotions, but impactful enough that it’s an emotional gut punch every time i watch it. the moment where the flute ends with tohru’s internal line and transitions into strings/chimes mixed with the sfx of the wind rustling through the leaves is beautiful and probably my favorite use of soundtrack this season. 

the reason i love this moment in particular so much is because it so encapsulates yuki and tohru’s relationship. she sees him so clearly and has been in his life long enough to tell that his reaction to rin is a marked change from who he was when they first met. she also knows that yuki working through his trauma over akito is something he needs to do on his own, and that the best thing she can do for him is to support him and show him that she loves him. on yuki’s end, he already knows tohru will support him unconditionally, but he’s now at a place where he’s able to accept it in stride and knows without a doubt that she’s there for him. this little moment really showcases what their whole relationship is about and was gorgeously done. this scene very quickly became one of my favorites when the episode came out and i’m pleasantly surprised that it’s stayed there; in fact, it was totally enhanced by the development of their relationship this season, which has undoubtedly become my favorite relationship in all of fruits basket. i think a friendship as deep as this one is a rare gem in fiction, let alone one between a man and a woman. this whole exchange is very beautiful and touching and a great summation of what they both mean to each other.

[therappundit]

Best of the 1st Half: 2020′s Best Rap Projects (*so far*)...

“I’ve had, the halftime of my life...!”

*record scratch*

2020, WHAT THE F**K. 😳

Ohhh what a first half it has been. If 2020 ended today, it would still be one of the most historic years in a century...and NOT in a pleasant way. Years from now 2020 will be studied for the long-term damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the potential breaking point (hopefully??) of this country’s ignorance to systematic racism and the need for a complete overhaul of our police departments, and of course, whatever the hell comes from the November Presidential election....and, not to mention whatever additional ‘tbd’ chaos rings in the second half of ‘20 that we haven’t even heard about yet!? These are trying times, folks.

My whole life, I have tried to use humor and entertainment to help me with processing high levels of stress and anxiety. This year, that process has felt more daunting than usual. I am writing less and less, and often find Twitter to be too dark of a place for me to navigate. It’s anything but a fulfilling “escape”. Still, I am constantly inspired by all of the new music that fills my headspace during life’s precious little moments, and it really keeps me grounded in the day to day. 

At the end of 2019, I wrote the below in one of my posts. It took me back to a special feeling that I had, at a moment when the future seemed more like an opportunity, rather than a worrisome question mark. I’m going to work towards finding that place again, and I wanted to re-share this because it speaks to how the love of any art can be a healthy reminder of what we have to be thankful for in our daily lives:

“Regardless of how you feel about this list, I hope that you visit (or re-visit) any one of these pieces of strong work and find the same level of enjoyment that I did. I loved so much rap music this year and I could not be more excited about what the future holds. On a personal note, in 2019 I found myself even more in love with my wife, feeling luckier than I have in a long time, more satisfied with my hobbies and passions, and above all else, more in awe of my child (and anyone that ever raised a child) than ever before. I became a father for the first time in 2019, so as my baby daughter continues to fill my heart, I am beginning to wonder what she will think of her father’s love for this art form that has brought him so much joy over the years…I suppose time will tell.”

This list is long, because I think the talent that went into these projects is worth your time (and I put a lot of thought into creating this list as well...I do not work in the industry or know anyone that does, and I do not have any real platform - I just do this because I love the music).

If you are an artist on this list, I want to thank you, because you helped me stay positive and focused on a brighter future that I hope will soon come to us all...because everyone has been through something this year, and we deserve better.  So salute to you and many, many others. 🙏🙏🙏

- THE Rap Pundit

The “Rules” for my list of the Best Projects of Q1-Q2 2020:

- the album/mixtape/EP/project/whatever you want to call it had to be released this year, by June 26, 2020

- the project must have at least 6 songs 

- these rankings are a combination of my own personal preference, my take on overall quality of the project (whether it speaks deeply to my sensibilities or not), and how the final product compares to other work from the artists’ peers that occupy the same lane/‘sub-genre’ of rap music

So here we go 👀...

1. The Price of Tea in China by Boldy James and The Alchemist

Sometimes the greatest albums are not the most ambitious or flashy, they are remembered based off the strength of artistic chemistry and execution. Basketball fans know the beauty of a perfectly timed chest pass to a teammate streaking towards the basket can be more impressive than a behind the back pass that’s simply done for the sake of showing everyone that you can do a fancy pass. Staying with that theme, The Price of Tea in China is The Alchemist doing his best John Stockton impression, serving to Boldy James’ Karl Malone, and by album’s end you realize that Boldy scored a quiet 40 points while making this rap shit look like an easy lay-up.

TPOTIC finds Boldy sprinkling every ounce of his Detroit seasoning into Al’s pot to yield one of the most Mobb Deep-esque collaboration albums since Mobb Deep was dropping albums. In turn, this project is not only Boldy’s greatest work, but it serves as a re-introduction of a veteran MC that is suddenly more relevant than ever.  Much like what Freddie Gibbs and Madlib did with 2019′s Bandana, this project is a great lesson on what MC and Producer chemistry can sound like when both parties are 100% on the same page when it comes to message, tone, and aesthetic goals. 

It would make sense that Boldy James would fall into the Griselda fold, because much like Westside Gunn, Conway The Machine and Benny The Butcher, he comes from a city with a rich rap music scene that still struggles to reach the level of exposure that the NYCs, L.A.’s, Chicago's and Atlanta’s have basked in for so long. He writes from a place of “been there, done that”, showing a rich attention to detail that separates his street tales from that of his peers in the same way someone telling a story second or third hand can’t match the level of detail that an eye witness has saved in the memory bank. Boldy has survived both real world and music business challenges to rise from the ashes of “hey whatever happened to so & so, he was about to blow” conversations to reach a new peak in his mid-30′s. He deserved this suite of incredible Alchemist soundscapes (Al is deep in his bag here, delivering some of his most low-key impressive instrumentals in years), and like his super-producer buddy, Boldy is looking down at us from atop an already prolific 2020 at its’ midpoint.  

I’m not sure anyone can match the chemistry that Prodigy and Mobb Deep had with The Alchemist, but in 2020, The Price of Tea in China delivers some of the most brutally subdued, occasionally humorous, stripped down rap records since P was throwing TV’s at us like he had nothing left to lose. If The Price of Tea in China isn’t holding the championship at year’s end, it still deserves to be mentioned as an impressive work by one of the strongest title-worthy unions running the pick and roll in the genre today.

2. Àdá Irin by Navy Blue 

Okay let’s be honest: the “sub-genre” that is often referred to as lo-fi rap music (whether you consider it an actual lane or not, I know you know what I’m talking about...which I suppose proves its’ existence, right?), is beginning to suffer from the same affliction that all other sub-genres tend to suffer from once the word is out that this is “the thing” that the kids find trendy right now. A lot of folks in this lane sound *exactly* the same to the average listener. I’m not even the average listener, and I often feel that way. The irony that comes with being part of the sound that’s supposed to be bucking the mainstream clone machine turning into a mini-clone machine itself, means that the window is in danger of closing to avoid over-saturation of the artists that are already thriving between the gravelly, whisper-welcoming walls of Soundcloud URLs and Bandcamp EPs being slid to their heady fanbase with zero promotion. So with that all being said...why give Navy Blue a chance?

Navy Blue lacks the name recognition of many of his peers (for now), but he has now been thriving in the lo-fi pocket for some time as both a MC and producer, a young artist that’s closely connected to the lane’s most famous figureheads (Earl Sweatshirt, and to some extent, Mach-Hommy), as well as less heralded trailblazers like MIKE and the whole sLUms collective. Sure you can check out Navy’s Soundcloud page to get a taste of his work, but with this Àdá Irin album, we don’t just hear raw snippets of a freshly discovered unsigned talent. With this album we hear Navy as a self-assured solo artist, capable of sharing an inspirational song with the likes of Ka and sounding like every bit of the veteran next to the iconic soft-spoken lyricist. This is a very, very impressive debut full length album that showcases the best that the (sub)genre has to offer: some experimentation, jazzy loops, the diary-like intimacy of words that sit like dust on an old basement book shelf, and the raw emotions that come from working through love, pain and loss in real time. In 2020 there may be nothing completely new under the sun, but it’s the aesthetic choices that Navy Blue makes with every verse and every instrumental that make Àdá Irin feel like a perfect balance of beauty and sadness. If you want to dip a toe in this water but you’re not sure you can get into the mumblecore-ish world of MIKE, MAVI, Medhane or Earl’s work from the past two years, this Navy Blue album might actually be the perfect intro.

3. A Written Testimony by Jay Electronica (featuring JAY-Z)

Not a lot of positive breaking news in 2020...but when Jay Electronica surprised Twitter with a few cryptic Tweets back in February, implying that he was dropping an album (and Jay-Z would likely be involved), the rap game was set ablaze with excitement, skepticism, disbelief, and hope (albeit with some measured caution there as well). 

This is something that fans, and arguably the entire rap world, had been clamoring for for a decade, many long since moving on believing that Jay Elec’s debut album had gone the way of Detox, sharing “1a & 1b” status as the most eagerly anticipated projects none of us seriously expected to hear. 

Then it dropped....and then it went. In a Twitter-run rap world, quality is too often measured by how long a piece of art stays within the “trending” mix, as opposed to...well, whether or not it’s actually good! The truth is, A Written Testimony is not just good, it’s very, very good, and while it’s not the “Illmatic 2″ that some may have been expecting, realistically it’s superior to what I imagined a new project from such a reclusive artist would sound like in 2020. If you at least try to table the expectations laid out when “Exhibit C” came out in 2009...I think you will find a project (it’s up to you whether or not you want to count this a “solo debut” or not, but at this point, it’s new Jay Electronica - can we just leave it at that??) stacked with memorable moments, quotable gems throughout, stellar production (this is one of the best produced projects of 2020 by far, not sure how/why this piece of the puzzle would receive anything less than acclaim), and some moments of questionable preaching made more palatable by a strong overall voice and package.

Jay Electronica raps with conviction throughout, and while the project feels brief, it lasts long enough to be more than a quick feeling, even if many feel that it’s not long enough to feel like a full album. If "Exhibit C" was the teaser then this is the redband trailer, flashing enough skill and details to resonate for far longer than its’ duration. Much has been said about the heavy hand of JAY-Z on most of the project’s 7 tracks, but let’s be clear, this is not Watch The Throne 2 (even though at points, it may feel like something along those lines). Yes, in impressive fashion, Hov comes through riding shotgun to show a deeper shade of one of his more complex dimensions, with many of his rhymes begging for dissection with every bar. However, AWT features a JAY-Z that’s rapping through Jay Electronica’s lens, not by any means where 4:44 or Everything Is Love left off. This is definitely a Jay Electronica album. AWT dives in and out of Jay Electronica’s beliefs in broad strokes that appear and disappear rather quickly, but even when certain verses raise more questions than provide answers, every song still has at least a handful of the gripping words that remind us of what made Jay Elec-Hanukkah sound like the chosen one in the first place (his tussle with writer’s block and hesitation to put out any art make for some of the projects most engaging moments).

If A Written Testimony is the last Jay Electronica album we ever here - which I truly hope it is not the case - it is still a memorable piece of work. So if you were one of the folks that moved on from it after the “surprise” of Jay finally dropping a project subsided, I hope you change that stance and revisit it once again.

4. Descendants of Cain by Ka

“Quiet and frigid disposition, growin' up in the cold /  Surprised I ain't get high from what I was low enough to behold /  Like when Pops shot at the neighbor's shop, put one in his head /  He knew how he grew me, threw me the gun, a hundred, and fled /  Didn't play, 'fore po' arose dispose of exhibit A / I was raised to age a few years in a day /  If not elite, didn't eat if you didn't pray /  As much as I heal, had to deal, all my scars are here to stay /  Our senseis spent days peddling /  Our heroes sold heroin.” - Ka, “Patron Saints”

He makes it seem almost too easy. If the writing wasn't so gripping, you might not even revisit it. Ka’s Descendants of Cain arrived with little fanfare, except for the collective awe of his humble but religiously devoted fan-base. The religious devotion is an important piece here, as Cain adds to Ka’s quietly impressive discography another strong album that leans on classic scribes as inspiration to spin poignant metaphors on Brooklyn street philosophy. 

This time, the classic work is the Christian Bible, and Ka being the brilliant MC/poet that he is, seems to have little trouble working with the medium to preach without sounding preachy, and wax familiar-sounding nostalgia over wax that sounds as dusty as it feels fresh, rich, and urgent. Producing much of the album himself, along with a few trusted collaborators, the album’s strength is in its’ density, as each song feels like it requires a pause to unpack every bar...and to be honest, that’s exactly the type of attention this work deserves. If you missed this one in the first half of 2020′s feverish dump of new releases, you need to remedy that immediately.

5. Pray for Paris by Westside Gunn 

If The Alchemist is the overall rap music MVP for his many contributions to 2020 thus far,  Westside Gunn may deserve at least a few honorable mentions. From becoming the ambassador of Buffalo New York to stepping up as an ambassador of the underground rap resurgence, I don’t think any other rap artist has done more to run with the torch that Roc Marciano has been waving for a damn decade than the Griselda mastermind. If you happened to hear Gunn name-dropping to Peter Rosenberg on Rosenberg’s long-standing Real Late show on Hot 97, you know exactly what I mean. Shouting-out close allies and lesser known peers alike, Gunn’s presence proudly announced the underground movement’s invasion of the highly known New York City radio station. It felt like ECW invading WWE’s Monday Night Raw all over again. Of course Gunn’s voice was met with more ears than usual during that interview, since that appearance came hot off the heels of the release of his much discussed side project turned full-blown album, Pray for Paris.

By now most fervent rap fans know the story behind the album (a project that miraculously arrived to completion while Gunn was suffering from the affects of coronavirus), but for many Pray for Paris is the introduction to the story of Griselda Records and the world that they revel in. If Conway the Machine and Benny the Butcher are responsible for the Griselda team’s grittiest street tales, Westside Gunn’s success leans on his ability to blur the line between all-too-real violence and cartoon violence, splattered with elite luxury references and shout-outs for his fellow wrestling addicts. The song titles are merely scattered trains of thoughts that may or may not have anything directly to do with a song’s actual meaning, it’s like naming your child ‘brunch in Williamsburg’ just because it was the last meal you happened to have that day. An audience brought up on Lil Wayne as the God MC may be completely lost at the appeal, but audiences brought up on Wu, DOOM and Sean Price know exactly what vibe Westisde Gunn is going for.

At times Gunn can come across as more of a talent curator than a stand alone MC, so if this is the album that takes Gunn to the next level as a rap star, it would make him the most unselfish rap star to come along in some time. A rapper doesn’t jump on an Alchemist produced track with the likes of Freddie Gibbs and Roc Marciano and expect to leave with anything but the Bronze medal. The same can be said for his chopped and screwed contribution to “Claiborne Kick”, which clearly belongs to Boldy James. That’s not to say that Gunn’s verse is a weak moment on any of the joints on Paris, but the fact that he consistently surrounds himself with high caliber writers confirms that he is well aware that the quality of the final product will be determined by the team involved, not just the artists’ name on the album cover.

For someone that considers himself more of an artist than a rapper, he continues to paint intriguing collages with every album, featuring him at the center of an ever-expanding portrait of MCs, producers, singers, designers, and dancers. Pray for Paris is a typical Griselda project that also happens to sport the potential of something larger than most of their fanbase ever imagined. Yes we get the dark backdrops, elite underground production, and quotables throughout, but we also get a few additional shades, as Gunn dabbles with a “beauty and the beast” dynamic that cleanly pairs his violent imagery with fashionista pomp and circumstance (which no doubt helped draw the likes of Wale and Tyler, the Creator to this project). But t’s all less of a solo album to push a mainstream solo career forward, and much more of a cannonball through the mainstream wall, just to allow some sunlight to shine on his people...and his city, for that matter - because best believe, Paris may be the inspiration behind the project but Buffalo, New York is still with him every step of the way. 

6. Alfredo by Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist

A highly enjoyable surprise drop from two-thirds of the potent combination that gave us the fan favorite project that was Fetti (shout-out to Curren$y, though), Alfredo feels like the perfect treat to hold us over during these trying times. It feels rushed, but simultaneously sharp and activated. It has the feeling of a controlled experiment that was slapped together in separate rooms, rather than carefully curated by multiple artists hunched over the same mixer for days on end. Alfredo is more of a display of two power hitters putting on an impressive showing at a Home Run Derby, rather than the collaboration that has been slowly simmering for years...but that’s also part of the fun, because it feels like Al & Fredo (eh?) were just as excited to release it as we all were to hear it.

Neither party is reinventing the wheel here, but if you are going to have a rapper and a producer connect for an album of great rapping over great beats, you would be hard pressed to find a more natural pairing than these two. The Alchemist delivers with samples that channel the speakeasy jazz of an old piano, and Freddie is simply the king of hard-rap soul right now, so he excels on every song. There are moments of darkness, moments of hope, and moments of self reflection (Gibbs is a logical choice to swing haymakers back at cops abusing their power), all delivered by Freddie at a break-neck speed over Al's significantly less urgent production....as if Gibbs frantically spilled his guts to his buddy over the phone while Al was kickin’ back with a joint saying “uh-huh...yup, I hear ya man.” The final result is an effective one, if not a quick teaser of what a lengthier amount of collaboration time between the two might sound like. It should also be said that the guest verses on this album (especially those from Tyler, The Creator and Conway) took this album up a few spots on this ‘best of’ list. Alfredo is easily one of the strongest surprises of 2020.

7. Reasonable Drought by Stove God Cook$ and Roc Marciano

There is a tradition in the rap music biz that newer/younger artists are often shepherded along by more seasoned artists in order to insure that the less experienced artist is blessed with the built-in audience that comes with a co-sign. It doesn’t always work, but typically the initiation comes with a solid musical foundation on a debut project accompanied by a greener MC still finding his/her way. Not the case with Stove God Cook$, he is perhaps the most unexpectedly fresh MC to be cut from classic rap cloth since Griselda & Mach-Hommy began to build cult-like followings.

While Reasonable Drought (and seriously, how bold of a title is that for a debut!?) is blessed by the impressive production and mentorship of underground rap icon Roc Marciano, it truly is the lesser known MC himself that captures the imagination right from the get-go. When I say that in my life time, I cannot recall such a strong debut performance by a MC that I have heard virtually no work from prior to his 2019 emergence, with the help of minimal publicity/ad budget (if any? Cook$ was barely on social media until *after* his album had already been released) on his way to dropping an album with zero features...then you should take my recommendation very seriously. Fresh style, some of the most rewind-worthy quotables in recent memory (an Uncle Buck reference!? Bow down, people), and a new following built exclusively on the word of mouth of equal-minded folks that were blown away by a project many copped on a passing whim... it’s clear that this moment could be the beginning of an amazing, fascinating career. 

Similar to Roc Marciano before him, Cook$ possesses a rare flare with his wordplay and delivery that makes even the ugliest tales of coke dealing and disrespectful criminal activity sound like the colorful exploits of a post-Blaxploitation hero. He delivers every bar with the uber-specific word choice of Roc, but the outgoing swag of a Max B. The man that has people that never touched cocaine in their life singing that they’re “smelling like a brick right now”, is smelling like a winner in 2020 and beyond.

8. Battle Scar Decorated by Monday Night & Henny L.O.

Last call to board the Mutant Academy bandwagon! 

I have been saying that this deep underground collective of MCs & producers has been low key having a banner year all year long, and scrolling through this list you can see exactly what I mean. Henny L.O. is too good to be slotted as just a battle rapper, while Monday Night is far too strong of a presence to be considered a mere associate of the core Mutant team. When you think of Mutant Academy and their respective affiliated acts, think of them as a gathering of solo artists that happen to make dope rap music together, but all parties involved are capable of standing on their own two. I think that’s what consistently impresses me about their projects...hat, and the lack of filler material.

Along with a deep Rolodex of mostly under-the-radar talent, the hunger and confidence of a thriving Richmond, Viriginia rap scene is present on every track of Battle Scar Decorated. Much like many of my favorite albums of 2020, there is no reinventing of the wheel here, the triumph is in the execution. Monday & Henny tag in and out, each with the confidence that they have spit the best verse on the song before they have even finished. It’s that level of ability combined with a shocking amount of production talent that makes Battle Scar Decorated essential listening to anyone that wants to be reminded of a vibe that hasn’t been in abundance in the underground rap scene since L.A. in the late 90′s. It wouldn’t be fair to talk about how much I enjoyed this project without including the great producers involved, so a big s/o to: Sycho Sid, C.R.I.S.T.E.N, James Couch, Savvy, Heather Grey, and Ewonne.

9. Eastern Medicine, Western Illness by Preservation

Accompanied by a who’s who of underground hip-hop’s finest (Roc Marciano, Mach-Hommy, Your Old Droog, Quelle Chris, Nickelus F, Tree, Navy Blue, Billy Woods, Ka *and more* - I mean seriously!?), Preservation has assembled an impressively cohesive compilation album both sonically and thematically. 

Incorporating record samples from his travels in China, Eastern Medicine, Western Illness feels born in simplicity even though it is anything but a casual collection of dope verses over tightly wound production. A quietly gifted producer, Preservation knows how to squeeze the best out of his guests without shouting the results through the speakers, the choices are more subtle but yield a high impact and replay value. Listening to the project feels more like listening to a secret, unreleased project, because it’s hard to believe that this much talent would gift this much high caliber writing to a compilation of songs...although that was not uncommon in the 90′s and early 00′s (ah, I’m showing my old age again). Perhaps that’s a testament to Preservation’s vision, a DJ/producer with a relatively small catalog built on curated quality (see his fantastic 2015 collaboration with Ka on Days With Dr. Yen Lo). Eastern Medicine has enough talent involved that it could have been a worthy listen even if it was just as a hodgepodge of donated loosies, so the fact that the final product is so much more than that makes it an album that warrants a great deal of more attention.

10. The Allegory by Royce Da 5′9″

No accomplished lyricist makes life harder on himself than Royce Da 5′9″. Be it his tendency to cram personal observations and disclosures in and around his punchlines, or experimenting production wise, the Detroit veteran is intent on finding new ways to approach fine wine music, tossing more complex offerings into his catalog over the past few years. Things are no different with The Allegory. 

Not only did Royce once again pen an album that speaks to his ability to cope with his own past and present, he inserts himself in the producer chair as well, addressing the trials and tribulations of the increasingly problematic world around him, over backdrops crafted by only his hand a a few trusted peers. The effect is mostly successful, with the production exceeding the expectations of many (myself included), while the writing is at times both thought-provoking and in need of further exploration on Royce’s part. The guest features range from effective to scene stealing (not because Royce ‘s verse is outshined, but there are moments where it seems as if the guest is better suited over Royce’s own production than he is). If you’re Royce Da 5′9″ and you release an album titled The Allegory, no one should expect a simple quick fix of bars over easily digestible instrumentals. The highs come in abundance, and while the lows come in small trip-ups and the occasional skit that the listener probably could have done without, you get the sense that with some editing and further focus of his lofty goals, his sermons could have been sharpened into a more effective analysis of many of his topics (the music business, being black in America, history, conspiracy theories), resulting in an incredible album instead of a very good one. Nevertheless, it is all worth the ride to hear the latest work from one of rap music’s most gifted MC’s from the past decade. If The Allegory isn’t a home-run, it���s at the very least a strong base hit.

Top 50 (all belong in the Top 10-25, but...there’s only 25 spots in the Top 25, soooo):

11. Cold Water by Medhane

12. Shrines by Armand Hammer

13. Bag Talk by yungmorpheus & Pink Siifu

14. Try Again by ovrkast.

15. RTJ4 by Run The Jewels

16. Noise Kandy 4 by Rome Streetz

17. Innocent Country 2 by Quelle Chris

18. Weight of the World by MIKE

19. Sages by Henny L.O. & Ohbliv

20. Milestones by Skyzoo

21. Carpe Noctem by Big Ghost Ltd

22. Lake Water by SeKwence

23. At the End of the Day. by Fly Anakin

24. Sole Food by Deniro Farrar

25. The Oracle 3 by Grafh

26. The Blue Tape by Tree

27. lo&behold by lojii

28. Infinite Wisdom by Lord Jah-Monte Ogbon

29. FULL CIRCLE by Medhane

30. UNLOCKED by Denzel Curry & Kenny Beats

31. The Throwaways by The Opioid Era

32. Anyways by Young Nudy

33. PTSD (Deluxe) by G Herbo

34. Holly Favored by Monday Night & Foisey

35. THE GOAT by Polo G

36. Demon & Mufasa by Yhung T.O. & DaBoii 

37. The Face of Jason by ANKHLEJOHN

38. My Turn by Lil Baby 

39. No One Mourns the Wicked by Conway & Big Ghost Ltd.

40. Two4one by Jay Worthy 

41. Free Drakeo by Drakeo

42. Alone Time by YL

43. Assata by CV$ a.k.a. Con$piracy & Teller Bank$

44. Thug Tear by Big Kashuna O.G. & Monday Night

45. Ways and Means by Rasheed Chappell & 38 Spesh

46. IMMORTALKOMBAT by Al Divino & Estee Nack

47. Young & Turnt 2 by 42 Dugg

48. Sleeper Effect by Sleep Sinatra

49. Juno by Che Noir & 38 Spesh

50. LULU by Conway & The Alchemist

THE REST OF THE BEST (all belong in the Top 50 releases of 2020, but..what can I say, blame 2020 for being such a stacked year for music/events I guess):

Black Schemata by yungmorpheus,  The Smartest by Tee Grizzley,  Polly by the Powder Keg by Chuck Chan & Pad Scientist,  High Off Life by Future,  Gotham City Album by Plex Diamonds,  Memphis Massacre 2 by Duke Deuce, Poetic Substance by RIM & Vinyl Villain,  Styles David: Ghost Your Enthusiasm by Styles P,  MF Bloo by Bloo & Spanish Ran,  LSD by The Leonard Simpson Duo & Guilty Simpson,  Funeral by Lil Wayne,  RAW UNKNOWN by Spectacular Diagnostics,  Nezzie’s Star by Eddie Kaine,  ShrapKnel (self-titled),  The Bluest Note by Skyzoo & Dumbo Station,  WUNNA by Gunna,  Get Money Teach Babies by Heist Life & Spanish Ran,  Open Casket by Killer Kane,  6 Rings by Yung Mal,  The Beauty of It by Eto,  Meet The Woo 2 by Pop Smoke,  Fresh Air by UFO Fev & Statik Selektah,  Vito by Vince Ash,  GRIMM & EViL by GRiMM Doza,  RUDEBWOY by CJ Fly,  Rocket to Nebula by Killah Priest,  EVERYTHING by Kota the Friend,  NO Blade of Grass by V Don,  Eternal Atake by Lil Uzi Vert,  I’m My Brother’s Keeper by Yella Beezy & Trapboy Freddy,  Carhartt Champions by Tree Mason,  Viral Viral! by Dunbar,  Rowhouse Whispers by Ray West & Zilla Rocca,  Magneto Was Right #4 by Raz Fresco,  DUMP LIFE by Tha God Fahim, Jay NiCE & Left Lane Didon,  Burn One, Tap In, Zone Out by Dot Demo,  FNTG: From Niggaz to Godz by Squeegie O,   PANAGNL4E, Vol. 2 by Los and Nutty,  Death 2 All Haterz 2 by Rigz & Symph,  Thank You For Using GTL by Drakeo & JoogSzn,  Adjust to the Game by Larry June,  Martyr’s Prayer by Elcamino & 38 Spesh,  BETTER by Deante’ Hitchcock,  Attack of the Future Shocked, Flesh Covered, Meatbags of the 85 by $ilkMoney,  No Cosign Just Cocaine 3 by Ty Farris,  Hear No Equal by Chuuwee,  MSYKM by Tsu Surf,  Your Birthday’s Cancelled by Iron Wigs,  Spring Clean by Curren$y & Fuse,  Arctic Plus Degrees (The Sun Don’t Chill Allah) by Planet Asia & DirtyDiggs,  Psychological Cheat Sheet by Vic Spencer, Glass 2.0 by Meyhem Lauren & Harry Fraud,  Trust the Chain by Planet Asia & 38 Spesh, Director’s Cut (Scene Two) by Ransom & Nicholas Craven, and Son Of A Gun by Key Glock.

[a-simple-kpopper]

GOING HOME

Okay a oneshot prompt because of this Jeonghan in the backseat for a mini preview to the next TTT ep. Also I just wanna share I miss my friends more because of the latest ep. I miss hanging out with them like that getting drunk af at home hahahaha. So anyways, here. Happy New Year Seventeen and Carats!

PART 2

Okay, the last Going Seventeen Episode was a bomb like any other episodes this year. It is special because it is Carat's most-awaited TTT ep and the second part will be aired on the first Monday of 2021! But what happened behind the camera during their way home?

During the first episode, the members were divided into four cars.

Car #1: Jeonghan as driver with Woozi and Hoshi as passengers.

Car #2: Scoups as driver with Joshua and Seungkwan as passengers.

Car #3: The8 as driver with Wonwoo and Vernon as passengers.

Car #4: Mingyu as driver with Jun, DK and Dino as passengers.

They were supposed to go home in those groups still but because of the eventful evening they had, well, changes must be made.

Driving on their way home with two sleeping passengers, the leader can't help but talk with the cameras about how lonely the ride would be.

"We really had fun Carats as you would see," he starts while driving, "I know for sure the editors would be doing a great job as they had always been. I also want to thank them for making these contents with us and the way they edit the videos always amazes me really. So Going Seventeen editors, producers, staff, and everyone behind these amazing contents, thank you. And I hope that we could still give you these kinds of content this 2021."

He ended with his sweet smile to the camera and focused on driving again assuming it would be a silent drive since his two passengers are fast asleep.

"Wow," the backseat passenger who was still laying said, "Is that scripted or what?"

Seungcheol just smirked and giggled.

"So you're awake."

"Seungcheollie's message is too long I woke up."

"Am I supposed to apologize that I disturbed my angel's sleep?" he said quickly glancing at the back seat where a whole Yoon Jeonghan is having his own slumber time.

"No thanks. I'm fully awake now." He then slowly stood up and went behind Seungcheol to give him a quick peck on the cheeks. They both sheepishly smiled at each other.

Jeonghan then was a little surprised when he saw who was sleeping in the passenger seat.

"I thought I was with Soonyoung," he said, "How drunk is Chan?"

"He's not really that drunk. Tired yes because he had to clean the dinner again." They both laughed at the thought.

It was at a red light when Seungcheol grabbed Jeonghan's right hand and kissed his knuckles.

"Do you want to eat something?" He asked slightly moving sideward to see Jeonghan. The other shook his head and just said, "Nothing. Just want to go home."

The lights turned green again and Seungcheol had to drive. But now with Jeonghan's hand intertwined with his. After a while, Jeonghan realized something.

"Oh, are these still rolling?" He immediately retreated his hand from Seungcheol and checked the two cameras in the backseat. Seungcheol managed a simple, "Yeah." to his question.

"There's nothing to worry about though. The editors have been always able to edit..." he trailed off not knowing what to call what the editors have been editing out all these times. "...things."

Jeonghan nodded and there was a moment of silence between the two. They are thankful really, for the staff and all people they are working with. But still, it was a little tiny bit suffocating having to edit things out.

"Hyung," Chan suddenly called out with his eyes still closed.

"Good Morning Dino-yah." Jeonghan greeted with a smile to their maknae and patted his shoulder.

"Do you want anything to eat?" Seungcheol asked but Chan shook his head.

"Just be comfortable. It's just me." He said still with his eyes closed which confused his hyungs.

"What?" They both asked.

"I mean," Chan said finally opening his eyes and reaching for the camera in front of him turning it off, "This... And this, and also these. Don't mind them. And definitely don't mind me hyungs." He turned off all the cameras rolling in the car.

"Chan," Seungcheol called but he was quick to say his thoughts.

"I'm happy for you hyung, all of you." He said still with eyes closed as if he was just sleep-talking. But he's not. He is saying this because he wants his hyungs to know his heart and mind. That he always supports them and always will.

"I know all of you are happy too you know. Being all of you together as boyfriends and all. Don't ever think I am not supportive of all of your relationships because I am. I really am." He said and Jeonghan patted his shoulder again before he continued.

"What I just don't like is this," he said, "I hate that you all have to be careful of what you do in public, with the cameras, the press, and the media and whatnot. I hate that you cannot be open to your relationships and even thought about breaking up with each other because you all fear that our careers will end when the public know you all are dating each other." He said shifting in his position still with his eyes closed. He does not really talk about this but he wants now and also feels two of his hyungs should at least know what he really feels. Especially their leader.

"I know the saying that 'You can't get the best of both worlds' but I just hope for that day to come," he said with all the purest intentions for his hyungs' happiness, "That day when you all can be open about your relationships without fearing of risking our careers."

"I know for sure that our Carats will still support us because hell they are the ones who gave us those ship names right? Clearly, they don't mind." the two older ones were just listening to their maknae. They know for sure that he supports them no matter what but they did not know he was also carrying a different burden. That of hating to see them being afraid of getting caught by the public.

But in all honesty, they really don't hide as much, just like Chan said, they do have ship names and some of them are true, but still. They don't really officially acknowledge their relationships. They said this would be better and let the public think about what they want. However, of course, there are real risks if they ever announce it officially.

"But because we are living in a society, a system and whatsoever that is so suffocating and disgustingly homophobic," he said, "And just even two idols of opposite sex dating is a freaking 'scandal', I get your worries hyungs."

Chan took his time before he finishes his thoughts. Jeonghan and Seungcheol both are listening. Fondly looking at their maknae with unshed tears because of his overflowing love and support.

"I just hope the day would come that the public would accept that idols are humans too. We're not perfectly-built robots or whatever godly they think of us," he sighs contently as he was able to say what he feels, "Yeah, just that hyungs."

Jeonghan immediately hugged him from the backseat and he patted his hyungs arms around his shoulders and chest.

"Thank you, Chan," Jeonghan said trying not to be dramatic and a crier in the situation. But he's just so thankful for what their maknae said.

"Our maknae's an adult now huh?" Seungcheol tried to muse tapping Chan's knees twice but he too is overwhelmed with emotions from what he just heard from their maknae. "Thank you, Chan." He also managed to say and the latter just hummed in response.

Jeonghan gave him a little squeeze from his embrace before freeing him to let him properly sleep. Which he did, due to the smooth drive and also the warm feeling of having been able to tell his hyungs his support.

It was another stoplight when Jeonghan clasped his hands with Seungcheol's hand in between. He peppered it with silent kissed and the other turned around to see him.

"Jagi are you crying?" No, Jeonghan was not. It's just a tear fell from his eyes due to the overflowing happiness he has right now. Seungcheol was quick to wipe it and then rubbed his cheeks lovingly with his thumb.

"I'm just happy Jagiya." Seungcheol smiled at that and brought their hands to his lips kissing Jeonghan's once again.

"I know, me too."

They smiled at each other before both turning their attention to the sleeping maknae.

"I don't know about other groups but we sure have the best maknae," Seungcheol said.

"Hell yeah, we do."

Meanwhile...

Wonwoo is having a good time just taking pictures of the two on the backseat who were practically one given how they are so tangled with each other sleeping heavy from how much they drank last night.

“They are so cute.“ Joshua on the driver seat said as they halted at the stoplight.

“I know,“ he said scrolling through the pictures he took of the two at the backseat.

“How much did Dokyeom drink last night?“ he asked still absentmindedly scanning through the pictures he just took. 

Joshua thought for a while with pouty lips as he remembers how his boyfriend drank last night.

“Well he was beside Soonyoung the whole time so.“ he plainly said and Wonwoo nodded knowingly.

“Are those two even okay? They were all giddy when we left but they were suddenly avoiding each other when we got to the venue. What happened?“ Wonwoo said turning to face Joshua on the side as he drove again.

“Well, for one according to Jeonghan, those two had a little argument on their way to the venue after they ate at the market. Because Soonyoung drank a lot at the mart already.“ he says making a turn, “And then still according to Jeonghan, their fight got a little heated when Soonyoung vomited at the venue and Jihon scolded him ---“

“Like he always does,“ Wonwoo cuts him, “Because he is always concerned.“

“Yes.“ Joshua plainly said and they further discussed what happened and both hoped that the little fight between the two would be resolved.

"I remember the fight we had a week ago,” Wonwoo said and Joshua slightly laughed remembering it too.

“If not for Chan really, we would have also filmed this with an unresolved fight,” he says recalling their petty fight a week ago. As petty as who cooked the better ramen for their members at that time. Really, what a reason to fight.

“What did even Chan say?“

“He says petty fights like that could cause damage and such,“ Wonwoo starts, “I really was amazed and shocked to hear him kind of lecture me but regardless, I was very thankful to him. I was really just joking and I know some of the members were really just going with the flow of teasing Mingyu that time but then just what Chan told me, it could be just petty for me but it is already a big deal to Mingyu.“ he says and smiles as he recalls how Chan lectured him like that.

“Hyung it’s not that hard to say sorry you know? I know you were joking but Mingyu hyung’s clearly hurt that they liked your ramen better. So, please? He’s like a lost puppy now so go on and apologize. I don’t know how but you can do it.“ 

Little did Wonwoo knew that Chan talked with Mingyu first and has already scolded the other before him.

“Mingyu hyung, you could not really be upset to Wonwoo hyung because of this right?“

“What? Do you think I’m petty too right? Whatever. Go away.“

“Hyung it’s not that it’s petty but did you really think Wonwoo hyung meant to do this?“

“I felt he was just joking at first but then I got hurt for real Chan. What do I do?“

“Tell that to him hyung.“ Chan plainly said but Mingyu does not want to. At least not at that time. “I’m not saying now hyung but please don’t let this take longer okay? I’m also sorry if this feels like I am dwelling too much on your relationship.“

“Chan, no.“

“It’s just that I’ve seen this before and I don’t want it to happen again. I saw all of you fight a lot and thought it was just normal for couples to do that and all but that one time Joshua hyung and Dokyeom hyung ---“

“I know Chan, I know. I’m sorry.“ Mingyu said, “I’m sorry if you are in between in all of these.”

“I just want to be here for all of you guys and support you.“

“He’s matured like that now you know?“ Joshua says smiling at the thought.

“Mingyu said Chan mentioned what happened between you and Dokyeom and he immediately got scared that it would also happen to us.“ 

“Ah, that’s why.“ Joshua said as the memory came back to him. Smiling at it now.

“It’s nothing compared to our petty fights hyung really.“ Wonwoo said but was clearly distracted when he noticed that the cameras are still rolling.

“Oh, I almost forgot we’re still filming.“ he said and waved to the camera saying, “Editor-nim, pd-nims.” with a knowing smile.

“I’m really thankful for the staff of Going Seventeen,“ Joshua says as they pull on another stoplight. ”The amount of editing they do, the subtitles, the contents, the ideas, and everything is just, wow.”

“I really did not think that it would be a thing on Youtube given on how Going Seventeen started.“ Wonwoo said talking to the camera, “Also, of course, thank you Carats for the support. 2020 has been really hard for all of us in all different ways so I hope the content we make has made you feel a little happier and lighter amidst all the things that are happening. Carats please take care and be healthy. See you soon!“ He waved at the camera which Joshua also did also mimicking the “See you soon!“ part.

“I guess that’s enough footage for us here?“ Wonwoo said slightly laughing.

“But I’m really thankful for Going Seventeen staff, especially the editors,” Joshua says sighing trying to remember all those moments that had to be edited out of the episodes.

“I wonder how many minutes of footage they have of the cut parts?“

“Bold of you it’s just minutes.“ The two older laughed at that considering how long those edited parts would really take.

They shared a silent moment and common wishful thinking and hope that there would come a time when those edited could be posted. Or better yet have a time when those kinds of moments do not need to be edited out. Another turn filled with silence until someone groaned at the back finally waking up.

“It’s so hot.“ said someone from the back as he stretches his long legs and softly getting away from his sleeping buddy.

“Well you are hot.“ Wonwoo told him as a matter of fact and he immediately awakens at that with wide eyes and pointed at the camera. Joshua smiled at how cheesy Wonwoo could get with Mingyu. The startled puppy blushed at that blatant [and factual] comment which Wonwoo is proud of.

“Why is Dokyeom beside me?“ he asks as he placed the other on the side careful not to wake him up.

“You would not let go of each other earlier. I don’t know how drunk the two of you were until you said Dokyeom was your teddy bear.“

“And Dokyeom said you were his puppy.“ Joshua said a little bit sounding jealous but not really.

Mingyu was rubbing his face aggressively as the hangover gets to him bad. He was asking why they could not have just stayed for another day in the venue and Wonwoo just said they have another schedule tomorrow. 

“Could we stop at a mart? I want ice cream so bad. I’m really hot.“ he says and Wonwoo would have taken the opportunity to comment another cheesy line but Mingyu said looking at him, “I know I am hot, okay but I am literally feeling hot because of all the alcohol.“ 

“Okay, okay. So sensitive.“

“I am hot.“ he glared at the other but Wonwoo just smiled widely at him.

Joshua then says they needed a gas refill and Wonwoo presented to buy at the mart there. He was making a turn when he did not notice the bump so all of them inside jumped involuntarily with the car.

“I told you to drive carefully Mingyu.“ Seokmin with a groan and closed eyes said. Mingyu just laughed at him and tapped his legs quite aggressively saying, “I’m not driving Dokeyom-ah. I’m here beside you.“

“What the hell get your hands back on the steering wheel you would kill us!“ he says with eyes closed and shoving Mingyu’s hand out of his thighs. The two older ones at the front are smiling at the scene.

“I told I am not the one driving.“ Mingyu says laughing at him. Seokmin managed a quiet “What?“ before carefully opening one of his eyes to look at the driver seat. He was sitting behind the passenger’s seat and clearly saw who was driving. Well not really clear but he knows immediately who is driving. Joshua managed to catch him looking at him in the rear-view mirror. Seokmin was shocked and was trying to remember how even he managed to get in the car.

“Are you saying something Seokminnie?“

“Nothing hyung,“ he says closing his eyes again. Dang his head feels so heavy. “Just please drive carefully.“ Joshua then smiled at that thinking it was cute.

“What were you even thinking of competing with Soonyoung’s drinking last night?“ Wonwoo asked him but was not really expecting an answer.

They were nearing the station and Wonwoo volunteered to go alone to the mart but his puppy was so eager to go with him saying he wants to pick his own ice cream. Joshua just said to get them water and maybe some chips back. He parked the car near the mart after they got a refill. 

“I told you to always drive carefully.“ Seokmin said sleepily at the backseat. Joshua unbuckled his seatbelt to fully turn around and face his boyfriend. He looked so wrecked from all the alcohol he had last night. Joshua remembers he managed to get him to wash his face before they went out of the venue but it does not seem to have an effect. But he still looks gorgeous as always he thinks.

“I’m sorry I got distracted by you.“ Joshua said smiling but Seokmin shot him a glare and said, “Again with the distraction thing.“ and Joshua immediately apologized knowing where his boyfriend was coming from. He reached for the younger’s hand and squeezed it. Seokmin just closed his eyes again.

“Do you want anything to eat?“ Seokmin shook his head but immediately regretted it as his head hurt more at the motion. Joshua smiled and giggled a little even though he knows he should not have. But how could he not when his still drunk boyfriend is this cute?

“How much does your head hurt?“ he asks rubbing circles on Seokmin’s hand to hopefully ease his pain.

“So much,“ Seokmin says dramatically crinkling his face to emphasize that he was really hurting.

“Deserved.“ Seokmin opened his eyes to his smirking boyfriend and pouted to him saying, “So mean.“

The older just laughed and kissed the other’s hand. 

“I’m not hurting there, I’m hurting here,” Seokmin said pointing at his head. Joshua, in most of his capability from the driver’s seat, reached out to his boyfriend who had his head on the headboard of the backseat completely leaning back. 

He managed to give him a peck and was not really planning on staying like that for long because it was hella uncomfortable with his right hand on the backseat headboard while the other grasping the passenger’s seat for support. But clearly, his boyfriend had other plans. Seokmin cupped Joshua’s cheeks before the other could let go and kissed him on the lips. Just a peck but longer than what Joshua did.

“You are so gross.“ Joshua says not really meaning it because he’d kiss Seokmin whatever the circumstance is. Seokmin then just gave him another peck, then another, and another and one more until there’s a knock on the car. They were both startled but thankful because the windows are highly tinted.

Mingyu still sat beside Seokmin at the back and Wonwoo still on the passenger seat. As much as they all want to switch places, Wonwoo insisted they could not have a drunk person sitting on the front which Joshua agreed with.

They went back on the road and were eating peacefully when Seokmin looked at the camera and just realized the cameras were still rolling.

“WAIT ARE WE STILL FILMING?!“ he said at the sudden realization. He glanced wide-eyed to Joshua recalling their kiss earlier which he thinks is just at the right camera angle to perfectly capture it. Part of him wants the world to see their moment but there is a larger part of him still in fear of ‘getting caught‘.

“Have trust in the editors Dokyeom-ah.“ Wonwoo said, “They are really good at their jobs.“ they all agreed with their own version and moments replaying in their heads that have been edited out of the episodes.

“I really, really, really,“ Mingyu says exaggeratedly while eating his ice cream, “really respect our editors. Every Going Seventeen episode has been funnier because of their editing skills.“ he said and gave the camera on his side a thumbs up. They all agreed silently. But the silence also screams a common hope that one day, they would not have to hide these moments. Not with the public and definitely not with Carats who have supported them all throughout.

On the other hand...

Minghao thinks he just saw the car his Joshua hyung is driving pull up at a gasoline station. 

“Do you want to grab something to eat?“ he says glancing on his passenger seat with the person in question already munching some snacks. 

“Hyung, you have been eating the whole drive. Have you not eaten anything at the venue?“ the younger ones at the backseat who is awake asked him.

“I did but just drives make me hungry if not sleepy.“ he answered.

“We’ll just pull up at the second station and grab something.“ Minghao said and glanced back. “Would you be able to get out Jihoon hyung or you’d just stay?“

“I’ll stay,“ he says looking at Minghao then back to the person sleeping soundly on his lap. “Just grab us some water and cola.“ Minghao just nodded.

“What have you fought about this time?“

“Jun.“ Minghao said signaling him on the passenger seat not to ask more.

“What? They were okay before going to the venue but when everyone was there they were just like, I don’t know not talking and not even --“ he was cut when Minghao slapped his shoulder. Jun then stopped talking and just ate quietly.

Jihoon at the back seat with a drunk Soonyoung on his lap sighed. He knows it was partly his fault on the situation but what can he do? He was just concerned at that time. Well, clearly all the time but everything just piled up that certain moment, and then the next thing he knows is that his boyfriend was avoiding him during the entire time. What a way to spend the TTT episode right?

“Do you think they would be able to put something for the next episode on our way home?“ Jun asked again perking the other two awake.

“What do you mean?“ Jihoon asked while absentmindedly brushing Soonyoung’s hair.

“Well for one did you not notice how the car groupings ended up?“ he asked then curiosity sparked at Jihoon and Minghao who were both startled when the realization hit them.

“Oh.“ was what Minghao could only say.

“Manager hyung is driving Vernon and Seungkwan right?“ Jihoon asked and Jun nodded almost enthusiastically. Minghao who caught his boyfriend’s rather unusual giddiness over the situation questions him.

“What? It’s fun right?“ he says finishing the chip he was eating. “This is like the best groupings we had. I bet Carats will be enjoying this set-up, right?“ he says eyebrows raising up and down.

“Maybe.“ Minghao said but Jun immediately said, “What do you mean ‘maybe’? They will be getting the ships they got real you know!“ he says sitting up straight to face Minghao and explain himself.

“First there’s us, JunHao, then these two,“ pointing at those at the backseat, “HoWoo ---“

“SoonHoon.“ Jihoon corrected his hyung and looked back at his still sleeping boyfriend, “Soonyoung likes that ship name better because it’s our real names.“ he explains while looking at the beautiful person, who is by the way still drunk and reeks of alcohol, but still beautiful. Jun continued on.

“Okay so JunHao and SoonHoon in this car, the other one has SeokSoo and Minwon, VerKwan, and then of course JeongCheol.“

“Chan is with them.“ Minghao said, “Of course.” was what Jun said.

“It’s fun right?“ Jun asked excitedly and the two others just shook their head. It is really to have those couples be in the same cars. “Chan should have been with us and you two with JeongCheol.“ Jun pointed out.

“Hyung how can we when Jeonghan hyung just laid on the backseat like that?“ he says slightly laughing at the moment. He also remembers Soonyoung whining earlier when he was told they would not be sharing the same car with Jeonghan. 

“But I want to be with my Jeonghannie hyung.“ 

“Soonyoung, he would not be waking up anytime soon so let’s go with Jun hyung and Minghao instead hmm?“ Soonyoung glared at him and pinched both his cheeks. 

“You are mean. First, you don’t want me to drink much then now you would not even let me share a car with my Jeonghannie hyung! Bad Jihoon!“

“Soonyoung I---“ Soonyoung was already stomping towards Jun who opened the backseat when Jihoon tried to appeal the situation.

“Well, good luck with that.“ Seungcheol said tapping his shoulder before going in on their car.

And that is how the four of them ended together in the car and him with a sleeping, drunk, and annoyed Soonyoung on his lap. He just continuously brushes his hair trying to soothe the tension on the other’s body.

“But do you really think we’d get clips for the second episode from this segment of us going home or...?“ Jun trailed off at his question knowing that both Minghao and Jihoon knew what he was talking about.

“Well we did lots of things yesterday so I guess they’d be just getting whatever they could from us going home.“ Jihoon said still brushing Soonyoung’s hair. When is he going to wake up?

“That is true.“ Minghao said, “But are you not scared hyung?“ he asked directed to Jihoon but he just raised his eyebrow.

“I mean, with the fact that you guys are like that,” pointing out on their ridiculously domestic position with Soonyoung’s head on his lap and him still brushing his hair soothingly.

“They look so sweet what are you talking about?“ Jun asked and Minghao just looked at him and he immediately said, “Oh. That is exactly what you are talking about. Okay, I get it.“

Jihoon just shrugs before saying, “Hell to filming,” but he looked at the camera currently rolling and filming him mindlessly brushing Soonyoung’s hair. “This is our trip and I just want to enjoy what I can. Especially that I haven’t had that much time with this guy at the venue. He is so stubborn what do I do with him?”

He says and was not even expecting an answer because he was just asking himself. Jihoon wanted to enjoy this filming with his boyfriend but he totally wrecked it. They were fine on the first minutes of the trip but they just argued during their time at the mart with Soonyoung stubbornly drinking that much rice wine when it was just in the late morning. He sighed and thought of how he could have done it another way to not hurt his boyfriend’s feelings the way that he did and eventually spoiling the time that they could have enjoyed filming this MT episode.

“You know what, Chan told me something when I asked him the same thing regarding this guy.“ Jun said pointing towards Minghao. The other was quick to shove his hand away but then Jun, in his smooth ways of doing things, managed to grab his hand and intertwine them before kissing it. The action making both of them blush but Jihoon slightly seeing with jealousy to the two.

“Chan?“ Jihoon asked, “What about it?“

“Well,“ Jun says still holding Minghao’s hand and fully facing his boyfriend and watching him drive. If Minghao was not driving, he would have indulged in his staring contest but now is not the time. Jun turned to face Jihoon at the back. “There was a time when we both would have little fights about how stubborn he is and me not knowing what to do with it.“

“And what did Chan advised you to do?“

Jun then remembers that time and was shocked at how their maknae first gave him relationship advice.

“Hyung why are you obsessed with controlling what Minghao hyung wants to do?“

“What? That is so not true!“ Jun said defensively but knows Chan is right. He has this urge to meddle, if not control, what Minghao does. Not because he does not like it but because he is concerned that he might be hurt during the process, physically, mentally, and emotionally. 

“Come on hyung,“ Chan said sitting beside him in the practice room, “You did not want him to film in the forest at that time because you said you were scared of him being bitten by a snake what the hell. And then now you want him to reconsider this offer of modeling for a brand in China because of the pandemic.“

“That is exactly why I was trying to tell him to reconsider because there is currently a pandemic!“

“Hyung the shoot is not until late next year.“

“Still. It’s dangerous.“

“No hyung, it’s suffocating. You are suffocating Minghao hyung.“ Chan plainly says and Jun would have rebutted but Chan continued, “Hyung I get that you’re concerned with Minghao hyung’s welfare but can’t you do that without restraining him from doing what he wants? You’re his boyfriend right? Why don’t you support him like one? I know I get it, I’m the maknae and I hadn’t had had any proper committed serious to goodness relationship like you all have with each other but I know things too hyung.“ both of them sighed at the heaviness of the statement.

“I’m sorry if I’m meddling too much hyung but I just can’t keep silent when I see you guys like this,“ Chan says, “I know you love each other and all but please do not restrain each other from reaching your dream okay? I just, I think it’s best to talk things out really. And when I say talk things out I mean truthfully and not guessing whatever the other is thinking or if there is a meaning behind things being said. Just be truthful and supportive hyung.”

Jun smiles at the memory of their maknae being the support he and Minghao needed when their relationship was having some bumps.

“Wow,“ was just what Jihoon managed to say. He knew of this story but it was just now that Jun detailed what happened that he understood what really happened. 

It was at a stoplight before they turn to the gasoline station when Minghao spoke his side of the story.

“Chan was also quick to scold me saying I was just doing these things because Jun was opposed in me doing those. Which he was quite right at that time. It’s true I felt suffocated because he was constantly asking me why I was doing these and that and really thought he was controlling me when I could have thought that he was just concerned of me.“ Minghao looked at Jun who was already looking at him. Jun brought Minghao’s hand to his lips for a peck and mumble a quiet, “I’m sorry.“ in which Minghao answered in a similarly quiet way of, “It’s okay.”

“So like what Chan said, the way to deal with any relationship is - “

“Proper communication/Communication!“ both of them said at the same time with Jun just missing the ‘proper‘ part which earned him a smack on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,“ he says giggling with Minghao glaring at him, “I’m sorry babie I was just joking! I know it’s proper communication okay? Love you.“ he says while still laughing and trying to kiss Minghao’s hands which he retracted when he needed to start driving.

Jihoon then looks at Soonyoung again feeling sorry for what he has done the past few days and always telling him he is stubborn when he himself could have been more understanding of his boyfriend’s wants.

They arrived at the gasoline station and Minghao parked near the mart after they got refilled. The pair went to buy them food on the mart as it was proving to be a long drive due to the current heavy traffic. Jihoon is left with a sleeping Soonyoung, or so he thought. He closed his eyes and rested his head on the seat’s headboard but still soothingly brushing Soonyoung’s hair. He was unaware the latter was already staring at him from his supposed slumber. 

“Jihoon really looks good at this angle.“ Soonyoung thinks to himself given the way he was situated to see Jihoon with his head on his lap. He then immediately thought of how it must have been hard for Jihoon to have him sleep on his lap. He then immediately tried to shift the weight of his head but Jihoon felt it and immediately opened his eyes to see Soonyoung looking back at him. Surprised, he did not say anything and waited for the other to initiate.

“Hi,“ Soonyoung says looking up at Jihoon. And there Jihoon was staring back at him fondly it almost made him cry.

“Hello there,“ Jihoon said back, “Jun hyung and Minghao are out on the mart to buy food, what do you want?“

“I know but I don’t want anything, I just want to sleep.“ he says closing his eyes again feeling Jihoon’s hand lightly brushing his hair while the other is placed on his stomach which is a little ticklish to him but he manages to hide it because he likes Jihoon’s warmth there.

“Okay -- but wait you know?“ Jihoon says accusingly and Soonyoung tensed at that. He was just pretending to be asleep for quite some time now but Jihoon’s repeated brushing of his hair was constantly lulling him to sleep every now and then so he does not really know.

“How long were you awake?“ Jihoon asks and Soonyoung opened his eyes looking at him with a pout.

“I don’t know, maybe the time Minghao said he think he saw Joshua hyung’s car?“ he says and he sees Jihoon sigh, “Are you mad? I’m sorry.“ Jihoon shook his head and Soonyoung was surprised when he leaned in to kiss his forehead.

“I’m not mad at you Soonyoung, I’m just really disappointed about what happened.“ Jihoon says and intertwined their fingers. Soonyoung was quick to bring Jihoon’s hand to his lips for a soft kiss, “I’m sorry we did not get to enjoy the trip together.“ It was Soonyoung’s turn to shake his head at that moment.

“Jihoon, it was my fault,“ he says holding Jihoon’s hand to his chest, “If I had not been stubborn on drinking that rice wine, we would have been okay during the whole time. I’m sorry.“ at this point they would just be saying their sorry’s and admitting each other’s fault for what happened.

Jihoon smiled at Soonyoung and said, “You should really lessen your alcohol intake, and I’d be lessening my soda intake too.” Soonyoung smiled back at that and said, “Really?” Jihoon nodded still with a grin on his face. 

Soonyoung sit up and held his hand which was aching so bad the moment he stood up from Jihoon’s lap.

“Are you okay oh my gosh do you want to vomit or something?“ Jihoon asked concerned while running his hand up and down Soonyoung’s back.

“I think my head is currently being cut in half what the hell.“ he says still holding his head with both of his hands but he just heard Jihoon laugh. He opened his eyes and looked at his boyfriend laughing at him at this situation. What a cute jerk. 

“Wow you’re just laughing at me now?“ he says dejected but Jihoon just laughed harder at him. “Come on tell me the joke what did I miss. Fuck.” His head definitely hurt clearly but his boyfriend is having a laughing fit oh my gosh how could he.

“It’s just that I imagined you saying those exact words when you wake up from your drunken night. I am so sorry you are just so adorable.” Jihoon then went back to soothing Soonyoung’s back.

“My being drunk and head aching like breaking in half is adorable to you?” he says trying to glare at Jihoon but it just made his headache slightly worse, “You are such a weirdo but I love you.” he blurted out still holding his head.

“I know,” Jihoon said quietly trying to place Soonyoung back to where he was sleeping on his lap a while ago. “And I love you too.“ Soonyoung was back to his original sleeping place on Jihoon’s lap.

“But aren’t your legs hurting? I’m heavy like this.“ he says pouting but Jihoon just again brushed his hair and went down to kiss his forehead. 

“It’s already numb. But it’s okay,” Jihoon says and Soonyoung smirked, that smirk Jihoon knows is what happens before he says or does something incredibly cheesy making his toes curl. “It’s okay because I’m worth the pain?“ Soonyoung asks rather sheepishly at Jihoon. He would really rather hear Jihoon directly say it rather than this yes or no question but he just took the opportunity.

Jihoon rolled his eyes but with a smile answered, “Yes, you are worth the pain Soonyoung.” in which Soonyoung blushed not even trying to hide it. “But you are carrying me on the way out because I don’t think I could really walk after hours of you on my lap.” Soonyoung just laughed and nodded at that.

He then pouted his lips asking for a kiss. Jihoon just mimicked his action but was not doing any effort to bend down and kiss Soonyoung.

“Aaaaahhhh~“ Soonyoung whined, “Give me a proper kiss now Hoonie.“

“I am not kissing you’re alcohol-reeking and morning breath-filled mouth. No, thank you.“ Jihoon was teasing and liked the way Soonyoung pouted at that statement. Soonyoung further narrowed his eyes at the guy he was looking up at too. He then grabbed the opportunity to support himself to go quickly up to kiss his boyfriend.

“Ha!“ he said as he was back down on Jihoon’s lap and managed a quick show of the tongue which just Jihoon finds overall endearing and cute and adorable and very much his Soonyoungie.

They shared their giggles on everything they are just doing when Jun and Minghao returned.

“You’re alive!“ is what Jun welcomed Soonyoung with, “Congratulations!“

Minghao quickly went into the driver seat and set to drive home. He was quite in a hurry saying they got a message from their manager hyung with Vernon and Seungkwan as passengers that there was heavy traffic ahead. They were the ones who went out first but they are still somewhere in this traffic jam on the way home. 

Soonyoung was briefed on who were grouped into which cars and just like Seokmin he went, “OH MY GOD ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT THE CAMERAS ARE STILL ROLLING AT THIS MOMENT?!” when Jun asked him what he asked the other two earlier if he thinks there will be enough content from their trip on the way home for the next half of the TTT episode.

“There’s no way they would get anything from us here,” Jun says, “I mean the moment we drove you are sleeping on his lap so there’s that. How could they edit that right?“ the others agreed.

“I wish they could really air just a little maybe? Did you not talk about anything like having this episode to be aired half 2020 then the first Monday of 2021 something like that?“ the three shook their heads. Although Soonyoung was comfortable in his position on his boyfriend’s lap and is unwilling to suffer another rush of his headache, he sat up and fixed himself in a way he thinks is acceptable to the camera with him being drunk and all.

“The traffic is so heavy at this time.“ he starts and that is the cue of the three others that he is on broadcast mode. They need to have something to be able to let the viewers know that they were the ones on this car.

“Is there an accident or what?“ Jun says trailing off and trying to look like he was trying to look ahead which he really was.

“We could have just stayed at the venue.“ Minghao said and all of them agreed.

“We’re on the way home but I really want to head back at the venue. I want to play more.“ Jihoon said and looked briefly at his boyfriend who was already staring at him.

“Anyways, we all had fun filming this episode for the MT. We also hope that Carats will have fun watching us and also have fun with their family and friends too.“ Hoshi is talking to the camera now, “I hope 2021 would be a better year for all of us. Carats please take care! Horanghae!“ ending with his signature pose, the other three also said their short messages to the camera.

When they ended, Jun looked at the camera and said, “Pd-nim, editor-nim, all of you behind this, we all thank you very much. I don’t know what kind of footage you will be seeing in the other cars but we are really thankful that you have been helping us with our contents and well, editing and all.“ they all then looked at their cameras and told their silent gratitudes to all those working behind every Going Seventeen episodes. 

“If possible also I would like to have a copy of this particular with the four of us here because there are many moments I want to---“ Jun was cut by Minghao slapping his shoulder but the other two were just laughing at the back. Soonyoung also echoed Jun’s request. Minghao and Jihoon then shook their heads.

“Why are we with them again?“ Jihoon asked directed to Minghao in which the younger replied shaking his head with a smile, “I don’t know hyung, I really don’t“

Soonyoung then went back to his sleeping place while Jun was quick to hold Minghao’s free hand again knowing that the editors would not put any of these footages. They could have turned the cameras off but Jun and Soonyoung want a copy of these footages.

Okay OMG there is an unexpected part two of this. VerKwan will be the main of the part two and also whatever floats my mind. Thanks for reading this and Happy New Year!

01 January 2021

11:57 PM

PART 2

[unproduciblesmackdown]

some genius pt Musings i’ve been having this time around

1) the question of “is mytho’s hair white just from unknown decades of Time Passage within the paused story, like, his hair pigmentation Aged but nothing else lol” or “That, but his hair is white from the stress” (it’s that one lol. plus fr why would only his hair change due to Time) but i wanna introduce a Third Element: i think we can suppose in-the-story tutu’s appearance / disappearance happens just before or v shortly before the interrupted non-ending of prinz und rabe, and it sure seems like some or all or some Version of tutu’s Essence & part of the prince’s heart are like, truly Merged, and what if it’s that the prince got white hair from That b/c it was more swan-esque. a la the white feathery part of ahiru-tutu’s (& that one design of seemingly-prinz-und-rabe tutu)’s hair

2) again w/the matter of how at least part of Original Tutu seems to exist on in the prince’s physical heart: there’s the brief mention that fakir and mytho dance b/c Mytho Likes To Dance, which like, would be one of those Traits that transcends his emotions, like how he protects everything (so does tutu? emotionally? while the prince protects everyone physically (against a Metaphor for Despair so is that not also, in a way, emotionally too) like thank you power couple) but there’s also the brief mention that tutu is a Spirit Of Dance maybe so it’s like, again, did tutu becoming part of mytho pass something along in that way which imbues him with that proclivity to dance (although you’ve also got neko-sensei saying his dancing was not that Emotional earlier, which makes sense, but also seems like tutu protecting Feelings happens via dance. by “seems” i mean “this is a key aspect of literally every part of this series” s/o to me) or on another note: maybe drosselmeyer just wrote prinz und rabe For Adaptation lmfao. he was like “fuck yes they’re gonna make this into a ballet.” what with this series’ implication that like....the nutcracker is one of his stories where he just so happens to have a full self-insert who textually uses that power to make stories become reality. and that sure is a ballet. and from looking it up just now i’m learning that it was Based on a preexisting story, and, reading the wikipedia summary, i’m also remembering i’ve read an adapted-into-another-book version of this story, and it sure has another layer of “story interwoven with / becoming Reality” to it. anyways my point is i suppose, Watsonianly Speaking, prinz und rabe involving Ballet could’ve been Written Into It throughout all the characters, or maybe it’s just tutu who dances, which then becomes part of mytho’s character when her sacrifice like, bonds (part of? all? whomst can say) her to his heart. bless. doylean reason is this is a series about ballet and stuff

3) Another Briefly Mentioned thing when mytho talks about how he apparently could just naturally draw birds to him. and ahiru having that happen in the first episode/s is like, could be b/c she’s a bird or could be because she has part of the prince’s heart, as is emphasized like, immediately during the Bird Visit in ep 1. so i just had the thought like, a duck who cares about mytho gets to become tutu, but what if it was any other bird, surely it Could be. that fledgling canary he’s saving in episode 1 gets to become tutu mid-fall

4) i had some other Thought and i’ve forgotten it. well in the meantime thinking about how everyone dunks on Prinz Und Rabe Textual Lohengrin as the useless loser failure knight lmaooo but then like, that was just re: the One mentioned fatal raven encounter & also specifically about that lohengrin can’t protect the prince with his sword. but like, sure Behearted Mytho can probably exercise a little more discretion in risking his life to save whatever needs protecting, vs unsupervised heartless mytho diving out of windows, but can we really suppose he was That much more careful about staying safe vs impulsively throwing himself into a situation to save something at all costs. how much work did lohengrin do simply making sure the prince didn’t die in that sort of way. thank you lohengrin

5) oh right. i was thinking about Magic i think. s/o to the person who had the idea that when tutu sacrificed herself and turned into Light she might’ve merged with Good Magic in the story’s world, which the prince also had access to, and that’s how she kind of literally becomes part of him / they share powers / they share their Swan / Dance visual themes & stuff. & i was sure at one point wondering about the Forbidden But Granted Only To The Prince (own...?)-heart-shattering ability, like, maybe at some point an implicitly more specific verb was used like “taught,” or did the prince simply just Have the power by virtue of being the prince, or did it like, come from tutu who has the tie to the prince & Loved him & has those abilities to protect people’s Feelings, although maybe that’s just like, a choice and not inherently part of the magic lol. and then the Real World Magic we see is just like, inherited. but wait then there’s that bridge & ghosts & stuff, although there’s Stories about those too apparently. nvm this one’s really vague i’m just wondering if the Prince alone has that heartshattering Magic Technique through tutu or what. could be anything

6) but no really i think i had some other Thought, i’m sure it was great & ig i’ll reblog if it reoccurs to me, but i got distracted down another mental track so, you know, rip. in the meantime just thinking like, i have no imagination but was trying to muse on some sort of big Attack power the prince could have, b/c the classic thing to happen in the story (whether mentioned in its text or not) is for mytho to go ham with some such Power Surge [Magic Thing] to drive the raven away after lohengrin gets Got. even after he gets his full prince Abilities back he mostly only seems to Attack with his sword. damn wait a second and when he just like crashes Into the raven the big Swan Made Of Light appears first like hang on like is that Him? was it part of his Transport, can he like, Also turn into a swan of light or is it just how he Appears, was it tutu’s Hope Manifestation again since he’s being That to rue in that moment, oh my god. a lot to consider. anyways, but then the thing is, some sort of like Energy Blast move would go outside the realm of [fighting with the sword alone] and the prince’s Magic mostly seeming to be like, a mobility Boost, and how everything abt the prince is centered around Defense and Protection rather than going on the offensive. but then, who’s to say the Heart Shattering technique couldn’t be used as an Attack but was used by the prince only as a self-sacrificial protective thing, and who’s to say the prince Doesn’t have other powerful Attacks to draw from but refrains from using them if there’s others around to be hurt or whatever. i’m just trying to think of how the prince could just really go tf off and Immediately get the raven to fuck off after lohengrin is ko’d because that’s appropriately Tragically Dramatic & Emotion-Fueled Magic, not to mention the best case scenario vs still having to continue like 23 hours of battle when your boyfriend Just died. i mean like boom Light Blasts type situation i guess. or maybe he could just land a really good sword hit like Right Away. thinking about it. anyways

7) oh wait shit lmfao idk if this was The other thought but it was Another thought. that everyone in The Story (Within Reality) is like, locked in The Town (although they can leave if they’re not a Character / if they entered from outside? presumably) but in episode one this all kicks off b/c mytho was at The Lake which is Outside the town, right? i’m pretty sure. which like, is that something he Can and has been able to Do.....is this a. a liminal space. or did/does drosselmeyer like drop him over there sometimes For Some Reason, like having “stages” available around here, a la the s1 finale.....like, didn’t seem like he Knew if he put mytho in front of waterfowl that one would become devoted to restoring mytho’s heart. probably Does Not Matter, Actually, but it sure happened and much to Think about there. shoutout to mytho dancing en pointe whenever it’s magical and he can do so, e.g. when dancing naked on the surface of a liminal lake, or midair with tutu. iconic

8) the point is i’m sure just Thinking About Him (mytho)

[blogger360ncislarules]

Warning: The following contains spoilers for Tuesday’s Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist season premiere. Proceed at your own risk!

Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist showrunner Austin Winsberg is well aware that some viewers are not fans of needlessly endless love triangles. So instead of drawing out the titular heroine’s Max vs. Simon conundrum, Tuesday’s Season 2 premiere found Zoey making a choice between the two handsome men. After watching a recorded video message from her late father, encouraging his family to continue on with their lives following his death, Zoey finally had a talk with Max. The past six weeks had given her plenty of time to think, and now it was time to “carry on”… by kissing Max!

Below, Winsberg explains why Zoey’s decision was a bold choice for the show and what it means for Simon, the fella who lost out on Zoey’s heart. The EP also talks about bringing back Peter Gallagher as Zoey’s beloved father and previews how Max and Mo’s new business venture will impact their friendship. (And for scoop on whether Lauren Graham’s Joan will be back, click here.)

TVLINE | Zoey, seemingly, makes a decision when it comes to Max. So what is their relationship status moving forward? Are they officially dating now? Certainly seems as if they are going in that direction.

TVLINE | “Seems,” as in looks are deceiving? [Laughs] No. I think that they are definitely making a go at trying to be together.

TVLINE | What made now the right time to pursue things with Max? The messaging that she gets from her father in Episode 1, it’s just this idea of moving on and carrying on and having to make decisions in life, that you can’t just stay in neutral. I felt that’s kind of also true about our love triangle, in general. I felt like we had to make some choices in terms of the love triangle. I just feel like Zoey, herself, feels like, “I can’t keep being flip-floppy with both of these guys. I need to make the choice.” And so she makes the choice. And then we’ll deal with the consequences.

TVLINE | Was there a lot of debate in the writers’ room about it being too early in the season for her to make a choice, or about which guy she should pick? When I was coming up with the pitch for the season, when we first started talking in the room, [we discussed] how much time did we want to go back and forth between, “Should it be this guy, or should it be that guy?” There were a lot of strong feelings in the room that Zoey is turning 30 this year on the show, and that a lot of that kind of behavior could feel very young. And also, just sort of reading the Twitter boards and all that, there’s definitely a faction of people out there that don’t like love triangles. [Laughs] I just felt like, at a certain point, what’s real, you know? If one person keeps stringing two people along for a long period of time, it could be one or both of those people, eventually, sort of being like, “You know what? I don’t want to do this anymore.” So I just felt like it was a bolder choice to make the choice than to keep living in the indecision.

TVLINE | Where does this choice leave Simon, who is still carrying a torch, if that Jet song number is any indication? Simon has been doing a lot of his own self-growth and has gone through a lot of his own therapy. There was, unfortunately, a scene that we had to cut, where he talked a lot about this in Episode 1. Simon is very much trying to — and we hear this from him in Episode 3 — support Zoey in whatever Zoey wants to do. He knows what it’s like losing somebody, and he understands the challenges of that, and he doesn’t want to pressure her into something. So he just wants to be there to support her on her emotional journey. And so even though he might not be thrilled that Max is the one she picked, he is also trying to be respectful of what Zoey wants.

TVLINE | Will he be moving on, romantically? Might there be a new love interest for him? That’s something we will definitely be exploring, moving forward.

TVLINE | I loved the way you were able to incorporate Peter Gallagher into the premiere. Are you finding other opportunities to bring him back occasionally? Yeah. I was very reluctant to kind of go down the Dexter or Six Feet Under route… We already have a magical idea on the show with the musical numbers. I thought to add another big idea that she could sort of have these conversations with her dad all the time might’ve been like one magical idea too many. So it’s just about being creative in the ways in which we bring him back.

TVLINE | The way you staged the “Carry On” number, with some of the actors sort of freeze-framing, was very nice. Thank you. That was definitely a tricky one for [choreographer] Mandy [Moore] and me to figure out. How do we keep everybody in the frame? And also, we just liked the symbolic idea that everybody’s sort of been frozen in time, in a moment, with what happened with Mitch… That song, “Carry On,” is very thematic of what we go through the whole season of the show, which is everybody’s stuck in different ways, everybody’s coping with death in different ways. But we have to all figure out ways to carry on, regardless of the tragedy that we’ve just been through. Once we kind of cracked that frozen idea, it definitely helped us create that number.

TVLINE | And how is Max and Mo’s new business venture going to work out for the two of them? Is mixing friendship and business a good idea? It’s one of the major story points of this season that we will explore through all the episodes. I think you’re right — what is it like to work with friends who have two very different personalities? One is very right-brained, the other is very left-brained. How does that creative, artistic mind mesh with somebody who is very business, logic-oriented? We’re going to see a lot of growing pains between the two of them as they try to navigate starting this ambitious restaurant idea together.

[guinevereweepy]

Hi Bye, Mama!

*Spoiler ahead*

Gosh I don't even know where to start when it comes to this drama.

I knew that I was in for a sad ride of emotions before starting this. But I just didn't know it would be this bad. Took me 1 full week to finish this, almost 2 eps per night, and 7 nights of tears, non-stop tears.

I was crying lots in the first ep already, and I asked my friend, how am I gonna survive the rest of the drama? And yes, I barely made it out alive.

What made this drama so sad? The fact that Yuri didn't even manage to hold her daughter once? The fact that Ganghwa could barely live without Yuri? The fact that Hyunjong missed her friend so much she even celebrated her birthday? The fact that Yuri's mom acted all so strong but sobbed alone? The list goes on and on.

Firstly, Minjeong. Gosh. I had so many thoughts after the first ep, which was after Yuri was granted 49 days as human again and will be able to live on if she was able to get back her status, which was already occupied by Minjeong. To some, they may think, "well Minjeong was about to divorce Ganghwa anyway, just get going already." I admit I had the same thought at a point of time. But I fought with myself.

Minjeong. A junior to Ganghwa who had a crush on him when he was already attached to Yuri. Be it her crush or not. The fact that she accepted a broken and heavily-wounded man with a child that wasn't hers, the fact that she gave up her life, her everything, to be the mother Seowoo lost, I would flip if the happy ending didn't include her.

They always say, "the one who brings you up is more noble than the one that gave birth to you." It isn't right to just ask her to leave after she gave 5 years of her life to bring Seowoo up well and healthy, just so Yuri could live. It isn't fair to her. She was a nobody to Ganghwa, but yet she accepted the dad and the daughter with opened arms, showed them love and care with all her might, closed her heart to everyone else that she had no more friends.

My heart goes to her for almost the whole drama. How the other moms badmouthed about her and she acted like she didn't care, how she was always surprised when she was reminded that she is Seowoo's mom, how she felt that she probably will never be able to live up to Yuri who is Seowoo's biological mom. She didn't have to put up to all these, but she did. Be it for the love she have for Ganghwa or whatever reason, it was very, very noble of her to do what she did.

"Thank goodness, you are Seowoo's mom." - Cha Yuri

Secondly, Hyunjong. Probably the coolest mom ever??? How she and Yuri made will forever be my favourite friend-meeting montage. How she stood up to those nasty mothers who badmouthed Seowoo, be it because Seowoo is Yuri's daughter or it's just the right thing to do.

Hyunjong is probably the 2nd most reliable person to Yuri, after Yuri's mom. The first place Yuri went when she became human again was Hyunjong's restaurant. She missed Yuri so much that she celebrated her birthday with tears.

But yet she was so considerate that she didn't visit Yuri's family because she was afraid she will remind them of Yuri. She knew that Yuri would hate to see Ganghwa so down and devastated that she encouraged him to date Minjeong. She couldn't send Yuri off again after knowing that Yuri had a choice to live but chose not to, but she respected it.

And even after knowing that, instead of endlessly asking her to stay, she made full use of Yuri's precious time and took her out for a date, leaving another beautiful memory.

"What else did you like about it?

"Unnie, Unnie who was next to me." - Cha Yuri

Ganghwa. Oh Ganghwa, the amount of times you broke my heart over and over again. This poor man had been crying in every episode since 1st ep, save him and us please!

On a serious note. Gosh, bro, gosh really gosh. I don't want to compare but, can we safely say that he was the most broken one out of everyone due to Yuri's leaving? How much he blamed himself because of a surgery he insisted on carrying out. How much he felt that he could've saved her. How much guilt he had for Yuri, though it was her decision.

When Yuri looked for him after he had a breakdown from entering the operation room again, gosh that scene. That scene was enough for a bucket of tears. He blamed her for leaving him, he blamed her for making a decision that tore him apart. For the first time, he blamed someone else for his condition. Instead of apologizing, he had her apologizing to him.

He tried opening up to allow Minjeong in, but it was obvious that he was too broken to let her in. He was so nice to her that she felt like a stranger, he was being too considerate to her that they didn't feel like a couple. Beginning I just felt that, he probably had Minjeong just so Seowoo could grow up in a proper family. But he really did love her, just too careful with his every move, tip-toeing around that it was too uncomfortable for Minjeong.

His desperate calls for Yuri to live again when he knew she could. But after knowing Seowoo will have to have the third eye for the rest of her life just so Yuri could live, he was willing to give everything up to exchange for the two lives he cherished the most, even his own life.

And yes he is the only man that we will allow him to love 2 women.

"What did you miss the most after I died?

"Not being able to grow old with you." - Cho Gang Hwa

Yuri's family, or parents in specific. This whole drama is literally just about mother's love, or parent's love.

I love, love the fact that Yuri's mom's wish was the reason Yuri had this 49 days as human. This is probably my favourite plot twist of all time. No love is greater than mother's love. How Yuri's mom went to the temple to pray, just to see her daughter one more time. Her desperate prayers and cries were heard by the deites, not Yuri's cursing.

Her scenes scarred me the most. She missed her daughter so much, she sat in her room and sobbed to herself; she held onto the kid's shoes that were meant for Seowoo and cried.

After knowing Yuri had been around her for those 5 years, the thing she wanted to say to Yuri was "I'm sorry." She was sorry that Yuri had to deal with her last moments alone. It broke her heart to know what her daughter had been through. Her heart beats faster when it comes to pedestrain crossing. She probably knew that Yuri would leave in the end, but she respected and not ask despite having those dreams.

"I had her for 10 months, raised her for 30 years and it will take me only 3 years to let her go?" - Jeon Eunsuk

Yuri's dad. I'm sorry that I may not have lots to talk about him but that very one thing I would like to say is, that epilogue at Yuri's funeral. One minute he was doing fine, but when Hyunjong and Geunsang left him to be, he sobbed. The word is sobbed. That broke my heart.

He missed his granddaughter so much, even though he had to act as if they're strangers when they meet on the streets, he tried all his best to go to her. He gave up on the chance of raising Seowoo when Ganghwa brought her to them, because he agreed that Ganghwa needs Seowoo to live, and vice versa.

I might have more to add so there may be a 2nd blog on this drama. In the mean time, please go and check it out!