#like this isn’t the cgi hearts theory

[wakeupthemembersofbylernation]

That one-way sign to the closet is so aggressive and vivid. Melvins make fun of our “wild reaches” and “crazy theories,” but none ever have any real explanation for the sign. The only explanation they can give is, “Oh things don’t mean anything,” or “You’re being overly deep. This is a TV show. It’s not that serious.” But set design DOES mean something. Things aren’t just placed in scenes for no reason, especially in a show like ST, especially in a character’s room! The rooms of teenagers in movies and shows ALWAYS reveal key aspects of their character, interests, values, and personality. A room is like a personal shrine, a personal castle, the one place a character can fully be themselves. Why would the show randomly place a one-way sign to Mike’s closet? Like there really isn’t a heterosexual explanation for this from a set design standpoint. The only “explanation” someone can give is that it means nothing. Have you ever had a Merlin’s Beard attempt to give any other answer?

[clown-cult]

Sessrinner love to say that their ship is so popular and that everyone is watching the show for their ship yet if it’s so popular why couldn’t yashamine not get a third season, why is it that sesshomaru and rin were in a lot of episodes of yashamine yet they never trended like inukag, and why is it that after episode 15 viewership dropped. Let’s be honest season one of the show made no noise yet season 2 literally went unnoticed. Yashamine was a horrible sequel and deep down the creators now that.

Even if we were to overlook the problematic aspects for a moment (grooming ship, bad parenting, white washing, slavery etc) and look at it just as the bare bones of what it is (a sequel anime) it’s still not good. Let’s do a list, shall we?

The animation is trash. It’s clunky, rushed, clearly recycled from the main series and from its own episodes, bad uses of CGI, inconsistent models and a plethora of mistakes, awkward frames and cheap colour rendering. The choreography for fights and use of magic and abilities is as cookie cutter as it gets. Y’all know the bad 2000’s Mary Sue stereotypes for how baby’s first fanfic would play out a fight scene or give their character new powers? It’s that.

The designs for new characters aren’t good. The colour stories for the twins just blend together and don’t really stand out. The red stripes of hair exist for no reason. Setsuna looks like a walking bruise and Towa looks like she owns a plantation. Take into account the bad animation and any interesting detail in their designs is lost the minute we’re not in a closeup still shot. Takahashi apparently had some input into the designs and you can clearly tell where her priorities were as Kirinmaru and Moroha have the only passable designs in the show.

Speaking of Kirinmaru and Moroha, they’re the only decently written characters in the show even if they too fall victim to how bad the writing is overall. Moroha is a joke. She’s there to be funny, make mistakes and get hurt cuz funny and provide forced exposition when need be that a joke character should not have. I’m not calling Moroha a joke, I’m just saying that’s how she was treated yet they couldn’t even do that consistently. The entire OG cast is so bland and what characterisation they do get is so OOC that the writers might as well have not tried in the first place. As for the twins, these girls went to the “male brown haired character in a harem” school of characterisation and passed with flying colours because they’re incredibly flat and any opportunity they get to express some sort of strong emotion is not only jarring but quickly forgotten.

The soundtrack is nothing remarkable. What’s new and original feels flat and recycled and what actually is recycled isn’t in the best quality. If you listen closely, you might be able to hear the original episode of the OG anime that the soundtrack was screen recorded from. Something that made me kinda sad to note was how the OG soundtrack samples are the only ones that have any heart in them.

Which brings us onto voice acting. This goes for both English and Japanese. Whatever Towa and Setsuna’s actresses were paid, it clearly wasn’t enough because they just couldn’t get into their roles or emotions of the characters at all. The alternative theory is these actresses are actually some of the most masterful in the business and they read off their godawful scripts in exactly the non existent tone they were handed to them. Everyone else sounds like they’re really doing their best to be involved and earn their pay checks but that’s literally all that motivates them. It reminds me of how tired and disinterested James Earl Jones sounded in the Lion King remake.

The story goes nowhere, which is kind of incredible considering how obviously Sunrise is trying to mirror the original while insisting it’s all new and fresh and like nothing fans have seen before. Speaking of what fans have seen before, don’t include so many obvious references to the original and insist your fans must pay attention to everything if you’ve got no idea what you’re doing from episode to episode. Simpsons and Family Guy put more thought into continuity than this show does. At least if this was Family Guy or Simpsons with their characters who are Flanderized, horrible people, we’d at least have SOME characterisation and an element of self awareness this show sorely lacks.

All this to say that even with the clearly problematic elements removed, this anime still doesn’t hold up well, especially as when it was being released, you had other continuations also in the field like the latest seasons of Attack on Titan, MHA and One Piece still coming out, along with other proper sequel anime like Boruto, the latest part of JJBA or Higurashi, all which blow Yashahime completely out of the water.

This show never stood a chance, to be honest. I remember it being advertised when I was using Funimation and it would usually be a 30 second trailer right next to an ad the same length for Higurashi or Demon Slayer. Even then, the difference in quality was stark.

I almost feel bad for the show…and then I remember it condoned and allowed child grooming, abuse, racism and sexism and, much like any memory of this show in a year or so, any sympathy I have fades away.

[canary3d-obsessed]

Restless Rewatch: The Untamed Episode 06 part two

(Masterpost)

Warning: Spoilers for All 50 Episodes!

Bathing Boy Beauties

So, now we and Wei Wuxian get to see Lan Wangji with his shirt off. Eventually Lan Wangji will realize that his brother set this up, and will think of some way to get back at him, possibly by spending three years being stubborn in a cave or maybe by chopping an arm off of someone his brother cares about. 

This is A+ Yibo fanservice but it's also a male-male version of a trope that's ubiquitous in c-drama, in which the male lead takes a bath and the female lead sees him. The purpose of the scene is almost always so a woman can look a man’s body over and decide, not to put too fine a point on it, whether she wants to fuck him. 

Examples:

The Pillow Book - “Which part of Shen Ye is better than me?”

Women’s sexual agency is not often at the forefront in c-dramas, but the bathtub scenes are an acknowledgement of the female gaze, and of male objects of desire being subject to evaluation & approval.

Tientsin Mystic is a show with a lot of muscley swimming in it, In case you’re looking for your next Netflix show. 

As a CGI artist I have to mention that water does not reflect or refract 100% of light. If you look at a naked dingle-having person in a bathtub full of clear water you will definitely be able to see their dingle. But C-drama water is magic and nothing is visible below the waterline, to the point that Bai Yu is modestly covering his thoracic surgery scar chest in Detective L while leaving his lower half uncovered.

Note: that caption isn’t fake; she is really saying this on her way out the door, after having a long chat with him in the bathroom. You can find the whole series on YouTube.

Seen in this context, The Untamed’s two bathing scenes are saying quite a lot. Wei Wuxian, being a boy, doesn’t display any female-encoded shyness or modesty, but he and his sword pause for a moment of admiration.

(more after the cut!)

16 years later, Lan Wangji will sit quietly in this pool and let Wei Wuxian examine his wet body thoroughly from multiple angles, in a more prolonged invocation of this C-drama mating ritual.

Carrying on - was Xiao Zhan supposed to kick his boot in the water like that? Because if not, he rolls with it like a champ.

Wei Wuxian starts trying to be direct with Lan Wangji, giving him the worst, most neg-filled compliment ever, bless his heart.  

Then he says that there are benefits to being his friend, and starts taking off his clothes.

Wei Wuxian here takes his first step into the bold new world of respecting Lan Wangji’s boundaries, asking Lan Wangji to stay and saying he will keep his clothes on. 

Lan Wangji actually does stay, so he's apparently not too angry with Wei Wuxian about the drinking. Wei Wuxian invites him to visit Lotus Pier sometime (see my gifset here), but the promise of lotus pods doesn’t impress him. Then Wei Wuxian tries to tell him that the Yunmeng chicks really knock me out, they leave the rest behind. This also doesn’t impress him. 

You could read this macking-on-ladies talk as a sign that Wei Wuxian is oblivious to LWJ's feelings for him. But I read it as a bisexual boy being horny on main with a boy he likes, not  understanding yet that some boys don’t share all of his turn-ons.

Lan Wangji is sort of mildly startled when Wei Wuxian disappears under the water. His eye makeup is good here, isn’t it?.

Ice Cave

They end up in an ice cave and both spend the rest of the episode showing how good they look with wet hair. 

When the guqin starts attacking, Lan Wangji is only mildly perturbed about Wei Wuxian getting his shit rocked over and over.

Eventually he sends Bichen to protect his very bedraggled date. Lan Wangji’s sword is faster than the speed of a very slow sound wave.

Beauty's where you find it not just where you bump and grind it 

Gusuship Down

I feel like there are a couple of things in this show that are so problematic the fandom has silently agreed to never discuss them. Well, I’m here to talk about this one:

There are rabbits in this ice cave and they are wearing headbands. HEADbands. On RABBits.  

EXCELLENT FUCKING QUESTION, LAN WANGJI

*deep breath*

Are these rabbits lineal Lan descendants? Who makes the headbands? How do they stay on because “headband” here means “glowing cloud on forehead” without any actual band.  When rabbit babies are born, how do they stay safe while they’re waiting for someone to make them baby-sized headbands? Do these rabbits adhere to the other 3499 Lan Clan principles or just the headband one? Is any ol' rabbit allowed to touch a rabbit’s headband or is it limited to parents and significant others and is that even relevant when presumably these bunnies are all fucking each other like...bunnies?

The characters are like “oh, the rabbits are wearing headbands; killer guqin problem solved.” And then they move right the fuck along with their lives and the rabbit headbands are never seen or discussed again and I just want a hit of whatever the author or creative team was smoking when they came up with this whole idea.

Headband Sharing

When Wei Wuxian tells Lan Wangji to hand over his headband, Lan Wangji understands his entire rabbit-based thought process without asking

Gen-X Joke Alert

Wei Wuxian is awfully impressed by this sword-recall trick, considering that he did it himself when they went to the lake.

I see you know your way around a sheath

Killer Guqin

When they approach the guqin I hope that the subtitles are mistranslated, because Wei Wuxian keeps promising not to touch it and then says he can't look at it without touching it. I'm not going to touch it, I just need to touch it. 

Lan Wangji is going to teach Wei Wuxian some goddamn boundaries no matter how many times he has to make him fondle his sword.

Nothing suggestive here

Lan Wangji sits down to play the guqin and immediately goes off into the ether where there are seagull noises and plenty of fans. This is either a state of pure bliss, or he just really likes seagulls.

Did Lan Wangji just have a stealth orgasm?

Speaking of getting off, get your ass off of my desk

The Yin Iron

Lan Wangji does some spirit whispering, and suddenly the cave starts yelling at them. A bunch of clans are chanting in unison about a plan, which is the cultivator version of a battle cry.

Lancestor Lan Yi shows up. She is elegant and has a combination of sweetness and gravity that is similar to Lan Xichen’s. And none of Lan Qiren’s douchiness.

Search Party

Lan Qiren is worried and Lan Xichen is worried and they have sent people to look for the boys. It's really too bad nobody around here knows magic.

All these powerful cultivators search for missing people by running around outdoors yelling for them. 

Yanli is excused from PE class because she’s not feeling well, so she sits on a rock in the woods instead of, you know, staying home in the first place. She gets bored sitting down and unwisely decides to walk two or three steps. Xuan Lu, seen here competing in a gymnastics event, gamely pretends she can’t climb a small rock. 

Yanli falls into Jin Zixuan's arms and they gaze at each other for a long heterosexual moment. 

No homosexual explanation possible

This means two things: 1. he isn't looking very hard for her brother if he's hanging out here catching wobbly girls 2. soulful longing looks from him ain't shit, because he's going to dump her in the next episode.

Lanny Granny

Lan Wangji intros himself to Lan Yi and does a full prostrate bow. Wei Wuxian does a standing bow since he's not a descendant, just a future in-law.

No I mean come on, HEADBANDS

Lan Gran explains the entire history of the yin iron. It's bad, it's full of resentful energy, no-one should use it. She’s going to dump it on a couple of 16 year old boys, one of whom has a woody for using resentful energy, because it’s destiny and her battery is about to run out. 

Props to the Prop Department; this thing does look pretty cool

Xue Chonghai was the most problematic cultivator back in the old days. He killed a lot of dudes and fed their resentment to...a turtle? To the disk? I don’t know; I literally am unable to pay attention when anyone is explaining the intricacies of the unobtanium Yin Iron. 

Anyway there’s a disk and it’s soaked up a lot of resentment.  

Using it makes people evil. Well except..clearly this dude started off evil, yeah? If he was feeding people to his turtle.

Side effects may include: being fucking crazy

Here Wei Wuxian brings out his "resentful energy is awesome" theory and has an experienced grown-up grand master tell him that she also thought this, and has spent 100 years locked in a cave with headband-wearing rabbits because she was super fucking wrong. Does this deter him? ...nope

Baoshan Sanren

Now she name checks Baoshan Sanren, and Wei Wuxian has a big reaction and Lan Wangji has a big noticing of Wei Wuxian’s reaction. He’s very attuned to Wei Wuxian’s emotional state, in the moments where WWX lets his actual feelings show through the sass and swagger.  

Lan Gran talks about her search for the Yin iron, and Lan Wangji wisely says, if you can't neutralize it, why look for it? And she says, I was filled with hubris just like ya boi Wei Wuxian.  Lan Wangji points out the exact same shit he will later point out to Wei Wuxian.

So now we have a parallel in which Lan Yi is just like Wei Wuxian and Baoshan Sanren is just like Lan Wangji, yeah? Which is kind of sweet; it shows how these types are drawn together and how your clan doesn't determine your personality. Also it shows how the Lan clan has room for an unorthodox clan leader. Also it shows how the Yin Iron causes some really bad breakups. 

These boys are standing on snow barefoot which has got to take a pretty high cultivation level. Look how short Lan Wangji is without his stilettos, aww.

Flashback to Baoshan Sanren, just long enough to appreciate how beautiful she is.

Did OP give up on recoloring that flashback-blue-hazed image and just start fucking around with random filters? Yes she did. 

We also get to see that Lan Yi and Lan Wangji have more common than just guqin, because they both like to solve problems by kicking them.  

So after breaking up with her girlfriend, Lan Gran became invisible in this cave for 100 years while trying to contain the Yin iron and put headbands on rabbits. 

Soundtrack: Vogue by Madonna Writing prompt: Watership Down rabbits meet Lan rabbits

Bonus extended bath clip:

Bai Yu, Detective L

[musclesandhammering]

Loki (2021) Positivity from an Anti

Ok so all of my mutuals know I’m extremely anti-Loki (2021), anti-sylki, and anti-sylvie. But at a certain point, even we antis get tired of all the negativity. So! Here’s some Loki series commentary in the opposite direction! This is a list of all the things about the show that I loved :)

Also adding a disclaimer that all of this is just my opinion and some of my fellow antis (or even people who liked the show) might disagree, and that’s fine! I’ve been planning this post for awhile. I always say in my other posts that I don’t entirely hate the show and I wanted to be a little more specific about what I think are its good aspects. Feel free to leave your thoughts!

��� Mobius is a gem (Owen Wilson owns my whole heart) and his relationship with Loki is so so great. He’s not one-dimensional at all, he has conflicted loyalty and is morally complex, and he has the tragic backstory- which makes him a perfect choice for eventually becoming Loki’s first genuine friend.

• The casting was really really great. Lots of women and people of color. Most of the female actresses (as well as the males) are over 30, which isn’t very common and is fantastic!

• Superb acting all around. I can’t think of a single scene where the actors under or oversold it.

• Beautiful set design, incredible cgi, and gorgeous cinematography overall. It looked more like a movie than a tv show, which is really good.

• Kang being the big bad was a huge plus for me. Johnathan Majors was perfect in the role, his vibes were immaculate, and I was honestly pretty worried that the man behind the curtain would end up being another Loki variant, which imo would’ve been boring and predictable and counter-productive, so it was a big relief when that didn’t happen.

• I like that it sets up a bunch of future marvel movies, rather than being contained to its own little world. It gives it more importance and (hopefully) will encourage writers to not just toss Loki’s character aside in future projects.

• All the Loki variants were delightful. All of them except Sylvie. Kid Loki has my heart. Boastful Loki is a fashion icon. Alligator Loki is a savage. President Loki is the superior variant. Classic Loki became my fav character in less than half an episode.

• It showed some more variety in Loki’s magic. A lot of his powers we’ve seen before, but it feels like they were portrayed a bit more blatantly in the show. The energy blasts, the telekinesis, the teleportation… Outstanding.

• It also implied that Loki has the potential to be waaaay more powerful than he knows he is right now, which? Yes.

• Some of the quotes- and the themes behind them- are just profound as hell. Such as:

“I think we’re stronger than we realise.”

“It’s never too late to change.”

“You can be whoever you wanna be, even someone good.”

“We’re Lokis. We survive. It’s what we do.”

“Loki, God of Outcasts.”

“The universe wants to break free, that’s why it manifests chaos.”

• Technically Loki was Marvel’s first canon lgbt (bi) character, which is a win. His genderfluidity is also technically canon, even if it wasn’t really acknowledged on-screen.

• There were a lot of throwback references to Thor 1, Avengers, and Thor The Dark World. Which I loved.

• Sylvie’s so pretty. Her hair and makeup and costume were all perfect.

• Big fan of Loki finally getting Laevateinn.

• Sufficiently slutty imagery, courtesy of a female director (Loki in a collar, kneeling to Sif, President Loki looking down into the bunker, the hair flips)

• The music was Excellent Wonderful and Superb.

• I love that Loki being a good singer is now canon.

• I love that Asgardians having their own language is now canon (even if it’s basically just Icelandic).

• I also love that they disproved all of those “Loki was a shy nerdy wallflower pre-canon” theories in Episode 3. The drinking/eating/singing scene was fun, if a bit wacky.

• There’s a million different reasons why Loki does what he does, especially in regards to the New York attack (I’m literally writing a huge meta on them), but somehow I never considered that Loki being desperate for control was one of them. It makes a lot of sense, and I always love getting new insights into his motivations.

• I love that Loki finally outright acknowledged that he doesn’t enjoy hurting people. We Been Knew™️ but it’s still nice to hear it out loud from his own mouth.

• The TVA outfit wasn’t as hideous as some people make it out to be. It could’ve been A Look, even. You know, if he’d just accessorised a little better. And kept the jacket on. And not gotten sweaty. And not gotten dirty. And maybe had at least one other costume change… But it had potential, though!!

• Even though I despise the Obvious One, I did actually like some of the other romance crumbs they tossed us (sifki, Loki x the flight attendant).

• The whole DB Cooper thing was iconic idc idc.

• Loki’s hyper sort of overly excited puppy attitude in episode 2 was actually pretty refreshing and funny (for awhile). And now I can headcanon him as adhd, yeehaw.

• “We’re all villains here.” That quote was iconic, my favourite one in the show. And the entire theme that it summarised was really great as well. When you think about it, every single main character in this series has been the villain at one point or another. I mean, I know all marvel characters do bad things etc, but none of the Heroes are ever narratively categorised as Bad. This show did just that with all of them, though. . Loki was framed as the psychopath that attacked New York. Sylvie was framed as the murderous fugitive. The TVA/Ravonna/Mobius were framed as the murderous fascists. Kang was framed as the crazy totalitarian. It’s made clear that all the Loki variants were the villains of their stories.

However, every single main character in the series is also framed as the Hero at a certain point. Loki is framed as the main protagonist who throws a wrench in the TVA’s dastardly plans. Sylvie is framed as the persevering freedom fighter who wants to take down the fascists. The TVA/Mobius/Ravonna are framed as the ones who maintain order for the greater good. Kang is framed as the weird but ultimately benevolent wise man who’s just trying to prevent something worse from happening. The Loki variants are framed as generous allies who befriend the main character and help him on his journey.

Everyone in this equation is openly acknowledged by the narrative to be morally corrupt, but not entirely morally bankrupt. There are no Straightforward Hero Figures (like the Avengers) in this entire scenario at all, and that makes for a super interesting dynamic that marvel has never done before. So yes: “We’re all villains here.” But also: “No one bad is ever truly bad, and no one good is ever truly good.” I loved that.

• Even if it wasn’t really enough imo, I still treasure the crumbs we got of Loki being competent and capable (him putting the collar on B-15, him figuring out Sylvie’s hiding place, him teaching himself to enchant on the fly while fighting a giant cloud beast of eldritch proportions).

• I love that B-15 was the one who stepped in and saved the day in Episode 4, when we all thought it was gonna be Mobius. What a queen.

• Marvel usually has a bit of a problem with creating compelling and memorable side characters. But aside from Sylvie, I genuinely got attached to every single character in this show. Like Casey, C-20? I was seriously emotionally invested in them and they were only in like 2 episodes. Wtf.

• Introducing the TVA storyline in the Loki series specifically was a really good move. I’m not saying they executed it well, just that it had a ton of potential. A lot of people have wondered why marvel even thought to put those two (the TVA and Loki) together, when they had literally nothing to do with each other, nothing in common, and essentially no connection at all. But when you think about it, it’s a really interesting twist on both of those stories. Forcing the embodiment of destructive chaos and the pillar of rigid order to interact could make for some seriously entertaining and compelling television. And as far as meshing these two completely unrelated entities together goes, I thought they did it pretty well- at least just the bare bones of the story (loki being arrested by the TVA and being one of their most common variants).

So that’s it! If you guys (fellow antis) wanna add stuff you liked, feel free. If anyone wants to discuss (or debate) my list, feel free to do that too!

[naanima]

This is the promised Ultimate Note (UN) // 终极笔记 rec post, but also honestly just a sincere post of love to the series.

UN is a 36 episodes series that covers the books 4 to 7 of the DMBJ/Lost Tomb book series. Yes, it covers FOUR (4) books over 36 episodes. None of this 40+ episodes covering ONE (1) book bullshit. This means that you won’t have to put up with literal 30+ episodes of fucking filler, pointless romance, and NO drama only characters taking up 50% of the fucking screen time.

What UN is, is that it is a tightly paced, actually decently scripted series, not too badly acted series that’s SINCERE and ADHERE to the major plot points of the DMBJ series. You can tell EVERYONE in the production had great respect and love for the original. The script writers, the set designers and the actors all did their homework. They read the books, studied and what was finally realised on the screen brought me nearly in tears and definite squee. Because fucking fuck, FINALLY, a live adaptation of the DMBJ books that’s good and faithful to the plot and the characters and the core of the series.

Okay, now onto the details of why I love this series so:

The CHARACTERS and their RELATIONSHIPS with EATH OTHER! The Iron Triangle here is new, and at the beginning of the series it isn’t 100% trust yet, but it deepens and strengthens through the series. And it is fucking beautiful watching them trust each with their lives.

Xiaoge – people, this is the Xiaoge of my heart. He bleeds, he fears, and he has so much vulnerability. And despite of it all he is brave, loyal and so very beautiful. He is ethereal! But seriously, he comes across finally as human, instead of a paper cut-out with not depth. Xiaoge has feelings, and they aren’t just about Wu Xie for fuck’s sake. But also, I FINALLY have seen the light that’s the greatness and hotness of Xiaoge. I FUCKING THIRST.

Wu Xie – FINALLY, a Wu Xie who is allowed to be imperfect, a Wu Xie who is normal, who is young and reckless but so fucking brilliant. He has so much anger which he is finally allowed to express here, because yes, he deserves to express his anger and displeasure at the way his life has been manipulated, the way he has to navigate this minefield while family won’t/can’t tell him the truth. It was fucking cathartic and so very fucking satisfying.

Pang Zi – OMFG! PANG ZI! FINALLY. A super fucking competent Pang Zi who is good with his money, sees through the bullshit to reach the heart of the problem. He comes up with the bluntest plans but the plans that work, he can be a leader when the situations calls for it. And he is just fucking amazing.

I LOVE how, each member of the Iron Triangle have a relationship with each other. That Wu Xie and Pangzi’s relationship ISN’T dependent on Wu Xie. The love and bond between Xiaoge and Wu Xie runs deep and it is fucking strong. JUST FUCKING YES.

A-Ning is actually MORE than a sex-dream for men here. She has a PERSONALITY, her own MOTIVATION. She is not set up as a love interest for Wu Xie. I’m so fucking thankful. Like, FUCKING FINALLY.

Sanshu is both uncle and fucking dick. Which honestly is the best portrayal of him. But it is Er Shu who is fucking amazing, I don’t want to say anything else beyond what a terrifying motherfucker.

And Heiye and Xiaohua!!!!!! AHHHHHHH! They are both such fucking badasses. Xiahua here is smart, competent and will go for the jugular. Heiye acts like he has got a few screws loose except when he is kicking ass and we get flashes of the dude beneath the dumbass act. And Xiaohu and Heiye’s back and forth is fucking amazing – you will laugh and you will have your heart clench.

The Sets

GUYS, THEY TRAVELLED TO ACTUAL PHYSICAL LOCATIONS – fucking insane natural mountains, deserts, forests and so much more. Their built sets are beautiful and so amazing, while the CGI isn’t the best (apparently their budget was tiny) but they spent it on the things that mattered. It is FUCKING GLORIOUS.

The PLOT

I love the plot, for once, a DMBJ adaptation that has a COHERENT and TIGHT plot with AMAZING pacing. What is amazing is the fact the scriptwriters integrated information from other books, side stories and fan theories in order to create a tapestry that links EVERYTHING together and makes sense of the fucking mess that has been the previous adaptations. What this means is that it lead to character and story depth, and the viewer is introduced to a sense if history and lived in world. It is beautiful and amazing.

 OTHER STUFF

The New Moon Hotel episodes were fucking beautiful. The pace and tension was intense and just heart pounding good.

The fights are really good. Barring the first third which had too much quick edits.

 THE NOT SO GOOD

Look, some of the actors are young and some of the earlier episodes they are a bit green. But as the series progress their acting improves.

The intrusive bgm, which I personally found super annoying. However, it does disappear in the latter half.

 In conclusion, if you want a new C-drama that’s tightly scripted, decently acted with pretty people, good action with hints of horror, comedy and some truly A++++ friendships. THEN GO WACH ULTIMATE NOTE!

Oh, and of course you can watch this and walk away SHIPPING Wu Xie and Xiaoge, Heiye and Xiaohua.

At the end of the nearly 1k words of love I’m gonna go vids for this show now.

[lizisshortforlizard]

Dominion trailer thoughts?

How would Lizzy fit in if at all?

If you can’t tell from my entire aesthetic change, I’m very excited.

Under the cut because it really is an essay.

*cracks knuckles*

I’m excited too.

Gonna be a mess as I’m spewing thoughts here.

Okay, first of all. The latest trailer is extremely cool. Ignoring the actor who plays him, Grady is a great character and him doing his Monty Roberts thing with the parasaurolophus was a strong intro. Curious what Claire’s contribution is as she appears to have been sidelined apart from holding her breath as a dino looms above.

Hammond’s voiceover almost made me cry. God, I miss Richard so much.

Now, I’m a sucker for practical effects. But they appear to have outdone themselves with the CGI (feathered dinos?!) The visuals with the Mosasaurus, the rex at the drive-in, the trikes and the helicopter attack were insane.

Baby Blue? Blue’s baby? Teaching to hunt? Yes. Life finds a way and so on. Interested in the science behind that.

There’s definitely something going on with Maisie and Biosyn, whether Blue is involved or not, that’s hard to tell. The fan theories about Maisie being part-dino might not be so far-fetched after all. But I don’t think the dinos are the main villains…

ALAN

ELLIE

IAN

Mum, dad and weird uncle Ian! The band is back together! Seeing Alan and Ellie at the dig site gave me such feels.

I want to know who that other woman is in the helicopter, standing beside Grady etc. it would be oh so cool if it were Kelly Curtis Malcolm, but I don’t know how likely that is.

(Also Sarah Harding?)

One thing I am really missing is Lex and Tim. I wonder if Joe and Ariana have cameos, if they are being kept a secret, or if they were never signed up in the first place. But it would be cool to see the Hammond grandkids all grown up and having to deal with what their grandfather set in motion.

Finally: Dilophosaurus. I have a special place in my heart for that pesky lil demon. That display at the end of the trailer was just…yeah. It got to me. (The dilo is special to me because its where I h/c that Lizzy is actually mentioned, though not by name, in the JP novel, one of the first chapters I ever wrote for LD)

As much as I think Lizzy would still be up for helping out if she really had to (and she still loves Alan, Ellie, Ian etc. to bits) Jurassic Park is her story, not Jurassic World. She lost a lot of people the first time around and isn’t in a hurry to do it again (also I am not at all tempted to write a full-length JW fic for her!)

Maybe she is like Yoda and appears to give Owen advice using the Force before dematerializing again. Or, y’anno…drops in via Skype when he’s least expecting her.

I’ll let her enjoy her peace in India sitting drinking chai (yeah, she’s given up the coffee now) while the odd pteranodon flies overhead.

Your header image of the teeth is extremely cool. I think we’re all excited, even those of us that weren’t so much before. This movie feels like more of an homage to the original JP.

[mejomonster]

i tried to watch lovely writer again since it IS finished and like.

it is a good drama. its interesting in the way its main lead is a novel writer, the show comments on bl industry while being a show within it, the dynamic of actor playing in bl and is probably a fan of the writer, with bl writer who’s like ‘when will i be allowed to write my mystery novel’ is a cool premise

but um. i can’t do fluff. i just can’t. i can’t do fluff without like at LEAST: gratuitous humor, angst, action (ideally all 3 or more than 1)

like? theory of love had fluff, but for most of the show that fluff was Actually Angst ripping your heart apart into slivers after giving you hope. and it did have some decent comedy too.

Till Death Tear Us Apart has fluffiest romance ever, but also action spy shenanigans with secret identities and gun fights (i love both of those things), angst galore cause they’re on opposite sides and later there’s a full on hunt for one and kidnapping of the other (some nice angst to balance the fluff along with fun action). and Then it also has humor because the businessman is SO smitten with a spy he just... walks right into being spied on which is repeatedly hilarious, and the second spy is SO DUMB he’s lucky a hitman fell in love with him cause if the hitman had wanted to kill him then he wouldn’t even have been in more than one scene of the show lol. 

Guardian also provides me heaps of: sweet romance, angst galore (and quickly too), comedy (shen wei’s attrociously bad kept secret identity is both comical and a trope i love, puppet man and cgi cat anihilated me with laughter in ep 1, zhao yunlan’s bi flirting is both cute and deeply hilarious like that sleeping beauty kiss attempt and ‘are you married?’ shen wei saying ‘i work out’ i can’t even handle it ToT), action galore (it doesn’t have nice cgi to cushion it but it was a super easy show to adjust to after buffy and the x files action wise). 

dmbj in general also... while not supposed to be overtly gay (but every drama maker purposely missed that and ships pingxie like wild), its inherent premise means gratuitous soft romantic shit, soft friend stuff, action, horror, angst and hurt/comfort to the roof, comedy (because bug monsters are at least a Little Comical as is Wu Xie’s utter naivety and pangzi being 3rd wheeled as agressively as he agressively asserts his presence in return lol). 

Like... for thai bl’s just like so often the setting is fluff college... and like... hands down every single one i’ve gotten fond of was also super heavy into the: angst (Theory of Love), Comedy (2gether the one time I could handle it), Action (3 Will Be Free thank you), and Sotus when i first watched it appealed cause the sheer level of angst is so unfortunately accurate to being an engineering student and messy college relationships (that show was good for feeling like my real life and also so sad because of it i am not going to ever watch it again lol)

cherry magic is like... one of the few slice of life fluff shows i CAN handle. and i’d say in large part that’s because: at LEAST i relate to work life slice of life more than college (its refreshing seeing all main characters my age living my kind of life?), it is actually quite angsty (its just inner character worries - which is a nice angst that isn’t like heart stabbing but is quite personal and relatable and sad anyway), and it does have a decent amount of humor. Also its got a key trope i love and will watch MOST things at least once for - magic premise in an otherwise realistic setting. You put mutants or fantasy elements in an otherwise completely regular modern setting? I will absolutely check out the story just because that is my FAVORITE story premise. 

[mostlycompetentwriter]

“Chronosaurus” One-Shot

F/M Pairing: Y/N x Han Jisung (SKZ)

Genre: Science-Fiction, Back to the Future AU

Warnings: Lots of angst, fluff, and many life lessons

Word Count: 9K

Summary: Despite what everyone believes, Y/N enjoys spending time with Dr. Park, the town’s self-proclaimed mad scientist. She’s especially interested in his idea for building a time machine, an experiment Dr. Park has been researching for many years! One night, he attempts to test the machine, but is disappointed when nothing happens. Y/N tries to investigate for herself, but inadvertently succeeds in starting the machine, finding herself in the year 2035! She decides to take advantage of the rare opportunity, but is disappointed to discover that her future self is nothing more than a front desk receptionist at a hair salon. To make matters worse, she’s married to Han Jisung, the nerdy guy everyone always picked on in high school! 

Thankfully, Y/N has a reliable time machine to help her rectify those terrible mistakes...

In a rare moment of unpredictability, I had decided to visit Dr. Park before enduring another day of mind-numbing lectures and the endless political debate between our Student Council representatives. You see, once upon a time, I tried to run for school President, but I lost to Bang Chan because everyone thought he had really cool hair (Jesus, he was unbelievably hot) and I was just Y/N, the girl who thought visiting the future was possible and spent way too much of her time around the town’s self-proclaimed mad scientist. Ultimately, I had decided that the outcome was rather favorable for my situation because I could spend less time trying to negotiate with our principal for new gym equipment and more time analyzing Quantum Mechanics. 

Dr. Park lived on the opposite end of town, which meant that I was constantly gambling with the possibility of another late slip when I finally found my way to school. However, Dr. Park was on the verge of an imminent breakthrough and I didn’t want to miss a single moment of his genius at work. Thus, I found myself retrieving the spare key from under the mat before walking inside the messy living room, greeting his dog in the kitchen. Dr. Park spent most of his time in the basement since he claimed it was nice to have some kind of separation between his work and private life. Subsequently, I was also well-acquainted with the musty basement smell and the impressive equipment with names that I couldn’t remember.

“Dr. Park,” I said, finding the man in question hunched over his desk. “I’m here.”

“Y/N,” Dr. Park grinned. “Perfect timing!”

I paused next to an odd display of bullfrogs. “What’s going on?”

“I think I’ve figured it out!” Dr. Park exclaimed. “I need you to make sure that you can be here tonight because the invention of time travel is ours for the taking!”

“Tonight? What happens tonight?”

“We unveil my newest invention!” Dr. Park said, knocking aside a few boxes to properly introduce a rather large object obscured by a white bed sheet. “The culmination of my research!”

“That’s great, Dr. Park,” I said while checking my watch absentmindedly, but my eyes widened in horror when I realized the time. “I’m late for school!”

I was instantly sprinting up the stairs, stumbling against the door-frame, and Dr. Park was yelling at my retreating figure. “Did you hear me say midnight, Y/N? And remember to bring a hat!”

The industrial disaster known as my high school was nestled on the opposite end of town in the furniture district aptly named after our town’s founders who made their fortunes selling rocking chairs. It was perfect considering the interesting band of characters who came in after the founders, forming the upper-class suburbs for the eclectic combination of inventors who were once the envy of the scientific world. These days, all we had left of that great renaissance was Dr. Park and their great-great grandchildren, AKA, my darling classmates who proved to be more inept with each passing day. 

Thankfully, for the most part, I could use that to my advantage when alluding the students who were supposed to hand out late tickets to the kids like me who waltzed in after the first bell. However, on this morning in particular, I had the misfortune of accidentally running into one the school’s hall monitor. Of course, upon second glance, I realized that it was just Han Jisung which meant that I could probably convince him to let me off the hook. “Hi, Y/N,” he said, shoving his ridiculous glasses further up his nose as he looked directly at the ground. “I like your shoes.”

I rolled my eyes. “Look, Jisung, just pretend you didn’t see me, okay?”

Jisung managed to make eye contact for a split second before he was nodding his head. “I know you were probably just with Dr. Park.”

I paused, studying him for a moment. “You won’t tell anyone?”

“I don’t want you to get into trouble,” Jisung said and that was all the confirmation I needed before I was sprinting down the hallway. 

Subsequently, classes passed by like one of those lazy summer afternoons when my mind was occupied by my daydreams, thinking about my impending meeting with Dr. Park. You see, he had dedicated most of his life to the research known as time travel and he was determined to reign supreme over the explorations of the past, present, and future. Most of the town thought that he was crazy for believing such an idea, especially when most of his early inventions ended quite prematurely, resulting in property damage that once nearly gave our mayor a heart attack when he saw the total cost of repair.

Regardless, Dr. Park was still adamant about the possibility of time travel, forgetting about those early inventions and focusing all of his time on his crowning achievement. I was grateful to come along for the ride, even if most of my classmates often mocked me for my efforts. However, I really didn’t care about their opinions, with the exception of one student who had always held my attention...

When the afternoon bell rang, I trudged to my locker while ignoring the congregation of girls surrounding Lee Minho. I sighed, choosing to watch Minho from the safety of my locker. He was, without a single doubt, one of the most attractive men I had ever seen in my entire life. I often sang his praises to my friends, even if Changbin and Felix would roll their eyes at my behavior.

One of those aforementioned best friends stopped next to me at my locker, following my gaze with a tired sigh. “You’re drooling,” Felix scoffed, handing me a tissue which I gratefully accepted. 

“Why is he so beautiful?”

“Lee Minho? Are you still crushing on him?”

“It’s more than a crush, Felix,” I sighed impatiently. “I think we have a real connection.”

“Yeah, it looks like it,” Felix grumbled.

“I’m asking him to the dance this Friday!”

Felix rolled his eyes. “You and the rest of the student population.”

I frowned. “Why shouldn’t I be any more likely than the rest of those girls! At least I don’t swarm him for an autograph!”

“That’s true,” Felix mused thoughtfully. “I guess we’ll have to wait and find out.”

Despite his cryptic words, I still held my high head in determination.

It was bitterly cold that evening, and I tried not to think too much about the ice forming on the sidewalks as I hurried to make my appointment with Dr. Park on time. He was quite meticulous about maintaining a tight schedule, and I knew he would be less likely to tolerate my tardiness as opposed to someone like Han Jisung, our school’s residential nerd. The same kid who I once saw attempting to save a slug trying to cross the street.

I snorted at the memory, finding Dr. Park’s spare key under his mat before letting myself in the front door. The heat inside was welcomed, and I followed the sound of a power drill into his basement. “Dr. Park!” I gasped, squinting my eyes against the unexpected light show emanating from what looked like a phone booth straight out of Dr. Who, but with far less CGI effects.

“Y/N!” Dr. Park exclaimed in return, beckoning me forward with his usual over-zealousness. “Isn’t it beautiful?

“It?” I repeated.

“My time machine!” he proclaimed, eyes wild and exhilarated. “You’re here to help me test it out.”

“Really?” I grinned, rushing down the remainder of the stairs to get a better view of the machine. “You figured it out!”

“Of course, I did!” Dr. Parked chirped, pulling back the blanket on his work station to reveal a pile of what looked like pure gold. “I found the fuel fairly easily.”

“Fuel? Dr. Park, is that real gold?”

“Of course,” he huffed. “Do you think it would run on fake party supplies?”

“The time machine runs on gold!”

“That’s what I said!” Dr. Park groaned while running his hands across the pristine glass of the machine. “It requires a substance of immense value.”

“But, Dr. Park, it’s actually real gold?!”

“Oh, come now, Y/N, since when does something as superficial as profound wealth bother you?”

“I guess you made your point,” I remarked, watching as he continued to tighten the bolts running along the top of the machine.

“Alright,” Dr. Park laughed, tossing the wrench onto the table before opening the door. “Go ahead!”

I carefully followed his direction, forcing myself into the unexpectedly small interior of the bright red phone booth. “It’s small.”

“The measurements are meant for one person,” Dr. Park explained. “Did you remember to bring a hat?”

“Sure,” I managed, pressing myself against the glass when Dr. Park joined me inside, turning around to make further adjustments. “Why do we need a hat?” I asked, trying to ignore my uncomfortable position.

“Well, we may encounter our future selves!” Dr. Park explained. “It’s best to try and disguise our faces before anyone can notice.”

“Right,” I said, nodding my head as he started typing something on the small computer screen drilled into the glass next to the door. “Let’s try...2035? I heard theories that flying cars will be widespread by then!”

“That’s what they keep saying,” I remarked, whining in pain when he accidentally stepped on my foot.

“Okay!” he said, clapping his hands together. “Hold on tight!”

I shivered in anticipation, closing my eyes because I was hoping to open them again and discover the city of the future. However, as more and more seconds continued to pass by with only the distinct sound of the machine’s buttons providing background noise, I began to wonder what was happening. “Dr. Park,” I whispered. “Is this supposed to take this long?”

“I’m not sure,” he said, typing something furiously. “After I press this button...” he trailed off and I held my breath, fully expecting for the machine to start moving, but I opened my eyes again to the same grim basement.

“Did it work?” I asked, realizing the question was really stupid only a moment later when Dr. Park turned around to glare at me.

“No, Y/N, it failed.”

“Well, maybe we can re-check the wires?”

“No, that’s not the problem,” Dr. Park sighed. “I’m a complete disgrace to the name of science.”

“I’m sure that’s not true, sir!” I said, cautiously squirming around the glorified phone booth. “Maybe you just miscalculated something?”

“I never miscalculate,” Dr. Park scoffed. “It’s more than that.”

His downcast features made me wonder if Dr. Park was actually considering the idea of giving up on his dream. “Sir, this is everything you’ve been working on for years!”

Dr. Park shook his head, opening the door and pushing us both out at the same time. “It’s just a piece of junk,” he glowered, already trudging for the steps. “Feel free to stay the night, Y/N,” he said. “I need to sleep.”

“Sir?” I tried again, pouting when he made no move to return.

However, despite Dr. Park’s suggestion, I decided to take matters into my own hands, comparing his meticulous hand-written notes lying on the work station to the machine itself as I slowly surveyed the outside. “It looks right,” I said, opening the door to step back inside. The diagrams were quite complicated, and they probably wouldn’t make much sense to the common eye, but I had been studying under Dr. Park for years and he demanded perfection. “Ah! The turbo muffler isn’t plugged in,” I noted, reaching down to rectify the problem.

I glanced at the computer screen, watching the loading screen analyze the solution before taking a spare tissue from my pocket to scrub away at the fingerprints alongside the glass. It was easy to lose myself in a rhythm, until I suddenly became aware of a strange vibration from underneath my feet. I froze in place, looking down and realizing that the intricate panel of lights were blinking rapidly, and a strange noise was emanating from every corner that faintly reminded me of an over-sized fan. The whirring sound grew louder and I realized that the edges of my vision were growing darker, watching the room spin around faster and faster before I completely lost consciousness.

2035

An unexpected bright light infiltrated my line of vision when I slowly opened my eyes. Everything was hurting, and I realized that it was because I was still cramped inside the time machine, legs curled uncomfortably beneath me. “Why would I do this to myself?” I groaned, gingerly rising to my feet before pushing open the door to allow myself to stumble into the basement.

I felt unusually dizzy, watching the ceiling rotate before settling back into place. I groaned at the feeling. “I guess I just overworked myself or something and passed out.”

There was a newspaper on the table that I hadn’t noticed from earlier and I reached for it without really thinking. The headline was blurry, but the topic of a general store theft wasn’t what caught my attention. I re-checked the newspaper over a dozen times before I was shaking from head to toe. “2035?!”

I quickly dropped the newspaper, reaching for my phone in my back pocket only to nearly lose my grip on the slim case when I realized what was displayed across the screen. “Impossible.”

However, like a sudden dam had been released, I remembered last night’s events, including starting the time machine without meaning to activate the switch. I quickly ran to the window, lifting the blinds only to gasp when something impossibly fast sped by the window. “Flying cars!”

It was like a dramatic transformation had taken place overnight and everything was suddenly monochromatic, bright and pristine as people walked along the sidewalks in strange clothes and talked to holograms projecting from their phone screens. “Dr. Park did it!” I squealed. “I’m in the future!”

For the first time since I discovered the concept, I was convinced that the future was actually going to be extraordinary. “Look at all this cool shit!” I exclaimed, skipping along the sidewalks with my hat tucked low over my face.

I paused at the corner of the street, admiring the traffic of the flying cars, before noticing someone on the opposing sidewalk. “She looks like me,” I noted before I felt my eyes fly open. “That is me!” I gasped, looking both ways before crossing the road, and I continued to follow Y/N, watching as she greeted several people along the sidewalk. “It’s good that we grew out of our social anxiety,” I nodded.

Eventually, Y/N halted outside of a salon, studying something on the phone screen in front of her. I waited cautiously, startling only when I realized that a familiar face was walking in our direction. “Is that Han Jisung?” I groaned, rolling my eyes because, of course, he would still be involved somehow with my future. 

Of course, the even bigger surprise came only moments later when Jisung leaned in to press his lips against my unsuspecting person. “What is he doing?” I seethed, only to realize that Y/N was reciprocating his affection. “Why the fuck am I kissing Han Jisung?” I gasped, sprinting around the corner so that I could have my mental breakdown in privacy. “What the hell is going on?”

I took a few deep breaths because I’m sure that the incident was just some kind of futuristic greeting. Everyone must enjoy kissing other people in the future, and it was certainly a better alternative to the idea that older Y/N wanted to actually kiss Han Jisung. “It’s fine,” I reassured myself, bowing politely to a couple who passed by with suspicious frowns. When I looked around the building again, I watched as Y/N waved in Jisung’s direction before entering the salon. “Oh, is this something I do in my free time?” I questioned because I certainly hated going to the salon despite my mother’s best efforts.

I carefully made my way to the large glass panel at the front of the salon, peeking in through the clear display to find my older self standing behind the counter. “What are we doing?” I asked, especially when Y/N answered the phone, speaking into the other end with a bright smile that made me grimace at the exact moment of understanding. “I’m a receptionist?” I groaned, wondering if the universe had allowed me to visit the future only so that it could laugh at my disdain.

“It can’t get any worse!”

However, contrary to my expectations, when the salon finally closed, I decided to follow Y/N home to make sure that I wasn’t living somewhere ridiculous considering the measly salary I probably made at a hair salon. I huffed in irritation because my older self insisted on walking fast down the street as if she was eager for something that I didn’t understand. “Slow down,” I wheezed, seconds away from collapsing when I finally noticed us standing on the front porch of a fairly modest house.

I waited until Y/N was inside before rushing to the door quietly. It was locked, but I quickly found the spare key under the mat which made me roll my eyes considering that I had copied Dr. Park’s tendency to hide his house key in the same location. Regardless, once I was inside, I heard voices coming from the kitchen, so I decided to walk upstairs to avoid the possibility of someone finding me.

The hallway was cramped, and I checked several rooms before finding a larger offering at the end of the house with pictures of myself displayed across the dresser. “No way,” I said, snatching one of the photographs when I noticed Han Jisung standing next to me. “Ugh,” I groaned, returning the picture before looking around the room.

It was becoming clear to me that I had a more complicated relationship with Jisung that went beyond casual strangers meeting in the street outside the salon where I conveniently worked. Eventually, my answer came in the form of an incriminating wedding photo stationed directly next to the queen-sized bed on the nightstand. Jisung and I stood side-by-side in the picture, and I was holding out my hand where a bright silver wedding ring proclaimed my commitment to the entire world. “What the hell, Y/N?” I sighed. “We married Han Jisung?”

Of all the possible scenarios I had once envisioned for the future, Han Jisung was never involved with any of them. He was the class nerd who all the older boys picked on while the girls decisively ignored him. There was simply no explanation for why I was so heavily involved with him in the future! 

I snatched the wedding picture from the nightstand, searching for the date in the lower corner. “November 5th, 2030.”

The date was from five years earlier, and a small light bulb suddenly went off in my head. “I know when I married him,” I grinned, taking a step back. “I can stop it from happening!”

I studied the picture one more time, gasping when I realized where we were both standing. “We got married at my parent’s house!”

I slammed the photograph down onto the nightstand because this was my chance to secure my future. Subsequently, I managed to leave my future home without disrupting Y/N who was busy in the kitchen, even though I couldn’t cook to save my life. I shook my head at the strange situation, finding myself back on the streets before retracing my steps to relocate Dr. Park’s house where it still remained after all these years.

The time machine was still waiting inside Dr. Park’s basement, and I only briefly wondered where the man in question was in this bizarre future before I was checking the necessary equipment. There was still some gold left in the fuel gauge, and I typed in the corresponding wedding date and watched as the computer started to process my request.

“I can fix this!” I said, wrenching aside the door of the phone booth. “I’ll just go back a little further in time and stop myself from marrying Jisung!” 

I crowded myself into the corner when the machine started to vibrate and groan as the gears rotated in response to the ignition running. It all sounded good, and I stumbled backwards against the glass in anticipation. Suddenly, I was spinning rapidly through the air, unable to focus as I fell to the ground and closed my eyes to forget the unpleasant sensation.

2030

I gained consciousness once again in Dr. Park’s basement, checking the time on my phone. “We should be close,” I said because the picture had taken place during the early evening based on the setting sun in the background. “I need to hurry.”

Thankfully, I had grown up near Dr. Park’s house during my childhood and nothing much had changed regarding our living situations. Likewise, I found myself standing outside of my childhood home, frowning at the sight of guests gathered outside along neat and well-organized benches. I even saw Han Jisung himself standing at the altar while talking to the future versions of Changbin and Felix who certainly defied aging expectations. “Why couldn’t I marry one of them?” I whined because fantasies about my ridiculously attractive friends had been commonplace back when we first started high school.

Still, I was on a mission, and it seemed fate was on my side because the side door was unlocked and I rushed upstairs, determined to find Y/N before the wedding could officially begin. I checked several bedrooms, sighing irritably when each one was left empty. Finally, I paused at the entrance to the attic, wondering if it was possible that I decided to get ready in the same space that I once feared when I was a kid because my father jokingly told me that aliens lived in the rafters.

I shook my head at the memory, carefully opening the door to be greeted with the sight of an older Y/N studying her reflection in the vanity mirror. We wore a beautiful white gown, straight out of my imagination, and it was obvious that great effort had been put into our appearance despite the fact that I usually didn’t care for that sort of thing.

I cleared my throat, attracting Y/N’s attention who turned around only to gasp and drop the make-up brush she had been holding. “What the hell?”

“Hi,” I said, startling when Y/N jumped back from the mirror, eyes wide as she looked at me.

“What’s going on? Am I going crazy?” her shoulders dropped up and down with several deep breaths. “This can’t be happening!”

“Look, can you stop freaking out for one second? I came here to warn you! I’ve seen what our life is like in the future, and it’s nothing like what we dreamed!”

“W-What do you mean?” she stuttered. “How can this be possible?”

“Don’t think too hard,” I grumbled. “Look, I came here from the past. I used a time travel machine that Dr. Park invented.”

“How? The time machine never worked?”

“Sure it did,” I grinned. “I fixed it! Aren’t you proud of us?”

Y/N slowly sat back down in front of the mirror. “Okay, let’s say that I’m not going crazy for a moment.”

“What a good idea,” I rolled my eyes. “Seriously? You aren’t dreaming, so can we just admit that I came here from another time and move on?”

Y/N eventually nodded her head, regarding me warily despite the evidence of time travel success standing right in front of her. “Okay, like I said, I’m here to warn you. I’ve seen our future and it’s horrible, Y/N, and I think it’s because of this moment! You’re making a huge mistake by marrying Han Jisung!”

Y/N gasped, eyes widening as she quickly shot over to the window, looking down at the reception where a sweaty Han Jisung stood at the altar nervously, wringing his hands together while he waited for his future bride. “How is that possible? Jisung is so sweet to me!”

“Are you really not going to believe me?” I asked, taking a step back. “It’s me, er, I’m you! Shit, if you can’t believe yourself, then I must be more stubborn than I thought.”

Y/N frowned. “Why are you telling me this?”

“To stop you from making a mistake! You need to leave him!” I insisted. “Find Changbin or Felix and get the hell out of this shithole town!”

Y/N looked at me with eyes that were suddenly a lot less bright in comparison to when I first entered the room. “I just- I can’t believe that we don’t work out in the future.”

“Trust me,” I said again. “This is our last chance to make things right.”

“B-but what if you’re wrong? What if there’s something else I can do-”

“I’ve been there,” I interrupted her. “Ask me anything about the past. I can tell you things about us and that should prove that I’m you.”

Y/N was hesitant. “The name of our imaginary friend?”

“Cleopatra,” I said. “He looked like a dog, but he could also fly.”

Y/N covered her mouth as the truth finally processed. “Fine, if you are from the past, then I guess you wouldn’t lie to me.”

“Why would I sabotage my own future?” I asked, reaching out to take her hands. “I know it might be hard to believe, but I’ve seen everything with my own eyes. This is the moment that changes everything.”

“What happens?” she asked with sad eyes. “Why is it this moment?”

“It’s...complicated,” I managed. “We’re very unhappy, though. I mean, you remember the things we once imagined, right? What if they never came true?”

“And it’s because of Jisung?”

“Obviously,” I snorted. “Why else would I be here?”

“It’s just hard to accept,” she admitted. “We’ve been together for years.”

I wrinkled my nose at the unpleasant thought. “What? Did we get a concussion somewhere along the way?”

Y/N frowned. “You came from a time before Jisung.”

“It still doesn’t negate the fact that I’ve seen the future!” I said. “I was so happy when I saw it for the first time, there were flying cars and holograms and the streets were painted with silver! But, when I found our future self, I couldn’t reconcile that wonderful vision of the future with the life we were living.”

Y/N wiped away a single tear that had fallen during my explanation. “Okay,” she said, suddenly appearing a lot more confident than before. “I’ll leave through the garden.”

“Yes!” I nearly exclaimed, reaching back for the door to the attic. “You have to go now while everyone is still waiting!”

Y/N obeyed instantly, hurrying down the stairs while I followed from behind. I watched her from the living room, waiting until her white dress disappeared into a field of green before returning to the reception outside. I found a good hiding spot in the bushes, kneeling down while I waited for the inevitable discovery that future Y/N had somehow disappeared from the attic.

It didn’t take long as an older woman ran outside with a bouquet of flowers. “Y/N is gone!” she eventually announced to the gathered crowd of family and friends.

“Gone?” Jisung repeated, eyes widening as he froze in place next to the altar.

I watched from the bushes, smiling when everyone started to stand at once, murmuring among themselves and wondering where the bride-to-be had gone. Thankfully, she had taken my advice before it was too late and I resisted the urge to pat myself on the back for a job well-done.

2035

I waited until I was certain that everyone had abandoned their search for Y/N before returning to Dr. Park’s basement. The time machine was still waiting for me, and I shuffled inside for my return to the future with a satisfied smile. “Now, I can return to the future in peace,” I declared, tuning on the ignition before closing my eyes and dropping to the floor. “Maybe this will help,” I whispered, holding my breath until the sounds of the engine finally subsided.

It only felt like seconds later when I stepped out of the time machine and froze, realizing that an older Dr. Park was actually standing in the middle of the room wearing a similar expression of disbelief. “Impossible!” Dr. Park exclaimed. “You look like you did when you were still in high school!”

I rolled my eyes at his observation. “I’m from the past.”

“Well, that’s also impossible!” Dr. Park shouted. “I destroyed this thing years ago!”

“Yeah, but I came from a time when you had just invented the machine,” I reminded him. “Actually, why the hell would you destroy it?”

Dr. Park shook his head. “It ruined so many futures.”

“Really?

Dr. Park nodded sadly. “I learned my lesson about time travel, Y/N. It never amounts to anything good.”

“Oh,” I said, shifting nervously while he continued to look at me as if he were seeing a ghost. “I guess that makes sense.”

“What a minute!” he finally said. “That means you came from the past to interfere with the future.”

“Not necessarily,” I grumbled, but he could clearly see through my lies.

“What the hell did you do?”

“I just changed one little thing,” I assured him. “I was supposed to get married to this guy, but I made sure that it wouldn’t happen.”

“You did what!” he gasped. “Y/N, you shouldn’t mess with a timeline like that! You have no idea what effect you could have on the future!”

“Fine, but can you blame me? My future was terrible!”

“But it still doesn’t give you the right to interfere.”

“I couldn’t let it happen,” I insisted. “It wasn’t what I wanted, especially considering the fact that I was a stupid receptionist! Can you imagine? I’m meant to study Quantum Mechanics not shampoo bottles!”

“It doesn’t matter!” he sighed. “The future isn’t something that you can just mold and shape to whatever you want! Changing one thing will set off a chain reaction that might impact other people and their futures!”

“I didn’t know, okay?” I cried, suddenly anxious with the way he was talking to me.

He ran his hands through his untameable hair. “Well, I guess it’s done now. There’s nothing more to be said.”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, suddenly feeling very small standing in the middle of the room.

“It’s only natural,” he sighed. “But let's see what you’ve done.”

Dr. Park held tight to my wrist as we navigated the busy streets. Thus far, I didn’t see any changes around me, but that didn’t necessarily mean that something wasn’t amiss. “I kept up with you through the years,” he explained. “I remember the wedding you visited, and I always wondered why you changed your mind.”

“Yeah,” I sighed. “I might’ve convinced myself.”

“Nevertheless,” Dr. Park said. “You live in an apartment now in the city.”

“Really?” I asked, feeling a faint glimmer of hope that Dr. Park had overreacted and everything was fine with my future.

“We can take my car,” he said, fetching the keys before pausing next to a sleek, silver sports machine. 

“Wow!” I gasped, admiring the delicate paint job before joining Dr. Park inside. I immediately startled when the car suddenly left the ground, hovering above the street before joining the traffic. “When did flying cars get invented?”

“Oh, not too long after the time you just came back from,” Dr. Park said. “I invented them, you know.”

“You did?”

“What else was I supposed to do when I gave up on time travel?” he shrugged. “Besides, it runs mostly on solar power which is a big plus for the environment.”

I nodded my agreement. “What else has happened?”

Dr. Park smiled, glancing at me with a knowing look. “Oh, Y/N, the future is something to behold.”

Subsequently, for the remainder of our trip, I listened to Dr. Park talks about the inventions that defined the future, everything from flying cars to holograms and the small gadgets in between. My personal favorite was the automatic sock warmers that dispelled water and kept your toes safe during the winter months. However, above everything else, I was glad to hear that society was advancing with new technology and medical practices. It was nothing short of exciting, and it only made me want to return to my own time so that I could experience it happen as I started to explore the world around me.

“Here we are,” Dr. Park eventually said, dropping his car onto the street next to a fairly modest building. “These types are the current rage. Most complexes come equipped with doors that open after scanning your fingerprint.”

“Really?” I wondered, following him outside onto the sidewalk.

He opened the door to the lobby, allowing me inside first before he nodded towards the elevators. “10th floor.”

The building wasn’t very busy, and most of the residents ignored us while we stopped outside of the door to my future apartment. “Y/N,” Dr. Park said, rapping lightly against the frame. “It’s me.”

The door opened slowly and I found myself looking into a familiar pair of eyes that widened when they recognized me. “It’s you from the wedding.”

“Well,” I said hesitantly. “I am you.”

Y/N frowned, but opened the door wider to allow me and Dr. Park inside the small apartment. I took one glance around before feeling my stomach fall as I recognized the sad condition of the property. “What happened?”

Y/N sniffled, looking at me with sad eyes. “Our future is nothing.”

“Well, where is everyone else? What about Changbin or Felix?”

“They left years ago,” Y/N said. “Everyone left me after I ran away from the wedding.”

“What?” I gasped, falling back onto the ground. “Why would they do that?”

“Because I broke his heart,” Y/N groaned. “I’m so stupid!”

“Stupid?” I repeated, glancing at Dr. Park anxiously who could only shrug in response. “Tell me everything that happened after the wedding.”

“My mom found me,” Y/N explained. “She told me that Jisung was moving someplace in the city with Changbin and Felix. He told her that none of them wanted anything else to do with me after what happened at the wedding. I was so sad, and I decided to move back home, but I lost the passion to want to do anything. Jisung had always been my muse, and without him I stopped feeling inspired.”

“When did we move here?”

“A year ago,” Y/N said. “I have an office job in the city, but it gets really lonely out here with nobody around.” 

“Oh,” I said, aware of Dr. Park’s stern gaze burning into the back of my head. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Actually, it was you who told me to leave because our future was so bad,” Y/N reminded me. “What happened? Did Jisung do something?”

“Well, not exactly...”

“It had to be something! You said the future was horrible, but I can’t imagine anything worse than this!”

“Okay, look,” I finally relented. “When I went to the future, I saw us with Han Jisung and I thought that it was unfair that we ended up with him. I decided to try and change that, but I didn’t understand what I was doing until it was too late.”

“You had no idea,” Y/N said with a frown. “I guess you came from a time in the past before we knew who he really was.”

“Well,” I sighed. “I mean, who is he?”

“Han Jisung is one of the best people in the world,” Y/N said with tears falling freely. “He was the best thing that ever happened to us.”

By the time we returned to the basement, I was traumatized from my meeting with Y/N, falling against the couch unceremoniously while Dr. Park examined the time machine with obvious scrutiny. “What have I done!” I groaned against the pillows.

“Well, you destroyed your future,” he replied, ignoring the glare I aimed in his direction.

“Dr. Park, I have to go back in time again! I need to undo the stupid shit I’ve done.”

“Is that so?” Dr. Park chuckled, wiping his hands clean as he stood next to me. “You think it’s that easy?”

“Why not?” I frowned. “I know the time and date when I got married.”

“That won’t matter anymore because you altered the timeline!” Dr. Park exclaimed. “At that precise moment in time, you created an alternate reality! It’s impossible to go back now and change everything.”

“Why? Can’t I just go back and stop myself from interfering with the wedding?”

“No! That’s not how time works!”

“Well! What the fuck? I don’t understand what I’m supposed to do! I can’t just stand aside and do nothing!

“Y/N, the delicate aspects of time are extremely convoluted! You should’ve never messed with the timeline in the first place.”

“Don’t you think I realize that now!” I cried. “I know that I ruined my future because I didn’t think it was important enough to understand everything that had happened before 2035. I just...I was surprised because it wasn’t like anything I had ever dreamed about. I mean, Dr. Park, I wanted to be a physicist, not a stupid receptionist! I thought I would marry Lee Minho and we would, like, completely takeover the world together or something.”

Dr. Park was silent for a moment, watching me as I completely broke down in front of him full of regrets for everything I had done. “Y/N,” he finally said. “Can I offer you some advice?”

“I guess,” I grumbled, ignoring the way his gaze grew sympathetic.

“The future is whatever you want to make of it,” he said. “If you want to make it a future that involves Jisung, then you need to make sure that he stays in your life.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know the original story,” Dr. Park continued. “But if you create a new narrative where you met Jisung even earlier and started dating him before that predetermined time...”

“Then I can fix it!” I gasped. “I can change the timeline!”

Dr. Park smiled. “Good girl! It’s all up to you now because you're responsible for the future you decide to make.”

His words were incredibly wise, and I could only hope to follow his advice and reclaim the future that I had so painstakingly changed without fully understanding the consequences.

2020

Hopefully, for the final time, I stepped outside the time machine after returning to the past where I belonged. However, this time I was determined not to interfere anymore, deciding that Dr. Park was right when he explained the fine semantics. After all, the future was whatever I wanted it to be, and I already knew that I was more determined than ever to succeed.

“I’m back!” I exclaimed, looking around the mostly vacant basement. I checked my phone with a gasp because school started in less than an hour. I would need to find Jisung as soon as possible because I had an idea of how I could fix everything that I had broken.

I quickly dialed a familiar number, holding it up to my ear as a tired voice answered from the other end. “Hello, Uber?”

Ten minutes later, I saw a car pull up to the sidewalk next to Dr. Park’s house. “Y/N?” the driver asked, looking at my from behind a dark pair of sunglasses.

“Park View High School,” I said, joining him in the backseat before the driver took off while I searched my pockets for any spare change.

I managed to make it to school on time, just five minutes before the first bell. Still, I knew the chances of finding Jisung before class were slim, so I needed to be patient. “Here,” I said, shoving the cash at the disgruntled Uber driver.

“Gee, thanks,” he grumbled because he was probably dissatisfied with the fact that I didn’t tip properly.

In any case, my perfect opportunity finally arose during lunch when I found Jisung lingering in the hallways as he exchanged textbooks. I took a deep breath to steel my nerves as I hesitantly walked in his direction. “Jisung,” I said, cautiously approaching him at his locker. “Can I ask you something?”

He wore his signature jeans with a loose t-shirt that was way too big for his narrow form. I frowned because my taste in men had apparently evolved at some point in the future. Of course, as I considered him more closely, I realized that there was also a charming aspect to his boyish features.

In the meantime, Jisung had froze in place, eyes wide as he turned around to face me. “Y-Y/N?”

I offered him a smile. “There’s a dance on Friday,” I started, searching his gaze imploringly. “Would you like to go with me?”

His eyes widened, breath hitching as he looked at me. “You want to go with me?”

I nodded. “I think it might be nice to go together. You can even come over this afternoon and we can make our plans!”

“Really?” he asked, appearing doubtful despite the way I had suddenly leaned in closer.

“Please?”

He finally nodded his head and I released a sigh of relief because my plan was starting to formulate right before my very eyes.

Later that afternoon, I opened the front door to my house to find Jisung ten minutes early wearing a much nicer pair of clothes. “Hi,” he said, nervously shuffling in place.

“You made it,” I grinned, reaching out for his hand to pull him inside. “We can go to my room.”

Jisung nodded. “Is this still okay?”

“Of course,” I said, grabbing onto his jacket sleeve to guide him up the staircase. “What do you want to do?”

Jisung didn’t respond, gazing around my room with a look of astonishment written across his expression. “Huh?”

“We can watch a movie,” I said, patting the space on my bed while turning on my laptop.

“Okay,” Jisung agreed, settling down next to me while finding it very difficult to tear his gaze away from me while I pulled up my Netflix account.

“Did you need something?” I teased, enjoying the way he blushed as a result.

“Sorry,” he grumbled, scrunching his nose when he noticed what movie I had picked. “Romance?”

“My favorite genre,” I said, leaning back to tilt the screen in our direction. “I think it’s good.”

Jisung still seemed reluctant, and I found it amusing that he was so willing to accept this unfortunate decision. Nevertheless, I relaxed next to him on the bed, watching the characters on-screen with far less attentiveness than I usually allowed for movie viewings. Because my eyes kept wandering over to Jisung, watching as his expression transformed from disgruntled acceptance to active fascination as he started reacting to the action on-screen.

Still, it only made it that more interesting to watch him blush during the more scandalous scenes, shifting uncomfortably from next to me. “What’s wrong?” I asked, enjoying the way he jumped in reaction.

“Nothing,” he said, shaking his head aggressively in response.

“Are you sure?” I asked before turning around to properly face him.

Jisung paused and I decided to make the first move, leaning in closer to where I could smell his cologne on the collar of his jacket. “Y/N?” he questioned, but I pressed my lips to his before he could protest any further. And it didn’t take long for him to reciprocate the kiss with a feverish desire that made me realize that I had been overlooking Han Jisung for far too long.

It was almost midnight when I let myself into Dr. Park’s house. Despite the consequences of time travel, there was something inside of me that wouldn’t quite settle unless I determined whether or not I fixed my future relationship with Jisung. I knew the risks, but I needed reassurance that everything would happen the way it was supposed to before I had mistakenly intervened.

I jerked off the sheet hanging over the machine, wiping my hands on my jeans when the sudden flickering of the light overhead forced me to spin around. “I see that you fixed the machine,” Dr. Park said, watching me carefully from over his coffee cup.

“Oh, right,” I started awkwardly. “I guess I did.”

“Well,” he sighed. “Were there any visits involved with your tinkering?”

I knew that I couldn’t lie to Dr. Park, so I explained everything to him, including the advice from his future self and the revelation of the destruction of the time machine. “That’s really all that happened,” I assured him at the end.

“Then why are you going back?”

“Ah,” I pursed my lips. “I think it might be necessary to ensure that everything works out...”

“So you learned nothing from your mistakes?” Dr. Park said. “If you did, then you’ll help me destroy this thing instead of using it again.”

“But...Dr. Park!”

“We should believe me!” he protested. “I’m the smartest person that I know!”

“You don’t even know your future self, yet!”

“Yes, but you’ve met him and he sounds perfectly reasonable.”

“I need to make sure!” I insisted. “I promise, Dr. Park, this will really be the last time.”

He looked perfectly ready to protest, but he continued to study me with that close scrutiny that I had started to associate with him when he was discovering something particularly interesting. “I guess this means a lot to you,” he eventually conceded. “Despite all logic, I suppose that one more time wouldn’t hurt.”

“Really?” I grinned, glancing at the time machine from the corner of my eye. “Do you mean that?”

“But no more interference after this,” he grumbled. “You’ll get your answers and we’re leaving as soon as possible.”

“I agree with you,” I said. “100 %.”

“Well, I suppose it’s also a good time to try out my newest invention,” he said, holding up something that resembled a walkie-talkie. “It’s a tracking device. All it needs is a sample of DNA and it can help you locate your future self.”

“That’s awesome,” I gasped, clutching tightly to the device while Dr. Park started to prepare the machine.

“Are you ready?”

I nodded enthusiastically, waiting next to the machine while he loaded another gold bar inside the fuel tank. “Let’s do this right,” he said. “The way I intended: observation and nothing more.”

“Okay,” I agreed, closing my eyes when the door was firmly shut and the machine started to rotate rapidly as the very space-time continuum was warped to accommodate our travels to the future.

2035

“This is very dangerous,” Dr. Park remarked when the machine was silent once more and a very different version of his basement greeted our arrival. “Hopefully, we won’t run into my future self.”

“Maybe you could stay behind with the machine?” I suggested. “I’ll find myself and make sure everything is back to normal.”

“Fine, but please hurry,” he said, desperately looking around the silent basement like he expected an explosion at any moment. “I might also gamble a chance to look outside, but it’s only for scientific purposes!”

I rolled my eyes at his comment while I lowered the brim of my hat and left the house through the side door leading into the backyard. It was incredibly sunny outside, and I watched several flying cars soar past overhead before I was running along the hedges supporting the fence marking Dr. Park’s property. I pulled the tracking device from my back pocket, watching the screen load before rushing off in the direction of the bustling city scape.

It didn’t take long for the tracking device to lead me into a mostly-deserted park. There weren’t many people around, and I took a deep breath, following the increasing sounds of the beeping before pausing at the edge of a pond. Because sitting on one of the benches next to the water was a very familiar face.

“Y/N,” I said, but she didn’t look surprised to see me.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” Y/N said, smiling brightly while she patted the bench next to her.

You have?” I immediately questioned.

“Of course,” she said. “I’ve been expecting this moment.”

I tentatively sat down next to Y/N, shaking my head to try and clear the confusion. “But? How is that possible?”

“I’m you after the new timeline we created,” she explained. “I know everything that happened.”

“Ah,” I nodded. “Well, then I guess you know what I did.”

“I do,” she confirmed. “I can also tell you that our curiosity only gets worse instead of better.”

“Isn’t that what got us into trouble in the first place?”

“Yes, but we learn to make the best of it,” she replied. “Now, I’m sure you have a lot of questions.”

“I don’t think we have enough time to answer them all,” I joked. “Of course, there’s only one thing I’m really concerned about.”

“Our marriage to Jisung?”

I swallowed hard. “Well?”

“I won’t keep you in suspense,” she said. “We married him, and we’re very happy together.”

I sighed in relief. “I thought I ruined everything.”

“We came close,” Y/N admitted. “But I think that some things are destined to happen.”

“Do you really believe that?”

“Why wouldn’t I? After all, you should already know this, but isn’t Jisung great?” Y/N grinned. “Where did you come from in the past? I’m assuming that we’ve already met him for you to be at this point?”

“He’s still the hall monitor,” I said, wincing when Y/N squealed like it was the greatest thing she had ever heard.

“Wasn’t he so handsome?” Y/N asked.

“The best,” I offered, watching Y/N swoon like she had married a celebrity or something. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Of course,” Y/N smiled.

“Why did we marry Han Jisung? No offense, but he wasn’t exactly...normal?”

“Yeah? But what qualifies as normal?” Y/N asked. “I think a young girl who spends way too much time with Dr. Park trying to invent a time machine isn’t exactly normal either.”

“That’s...surprisingly a good point,” I conceded.

“Actually, I think I should tell you about him,” Y/N continued. “Han Jisung is the type of person who looks after other people before himself. He’s the thoughtful kind of person who once spent an entire paycheck just to buy me a new jacket after I accidentally left mine behind at the theater.”

“All of that happened?”

“He cares a lot about us,” Y/N said. “Jisung had a crush on us for a long time.”

“On us?” I repeated, eyes widening in disbelif.

"You might naive now, but I think you’ll find out for yourself just how wonderful he really is.”

“But...that still doesn’t explain why we never amounted to anything? I mean, a receptionist wasn’t high on my list of accomplishments.”

“That list was superficial. Our life with Jisung is anything but ordinary. I think you’ll come to realize that sometimes we never understand what we truly want until it actually happens.”

“I guess that makes sense,” I shrugged.

“By the way, the receptionist gig is only temporary,” Y/N smiled. “We’re waiting for a grant to start our research into Quantum Mechanics at the University.”

“No way!” I gasped. “If I had known-”

“Exactly,” Y/N interrupted. “We aren’t supposed to know because it takes the excitement out of life. Isn't it more interesting to think that the future is a blank canvas?”

“Okay, I get it,” I said. “But the temptation was hard to resist.”

“I understand,” Y/N nodded. “However, I’ll also be the first to tell you that even now your future could change. Because nothing is ever set in stone.”

“That’s something like what Dr. Park said,” I remarked, sharing an easy smile with the older and wiser version of myself.

“In any case, being a wife and a mother is my greatest adventure. Trust me, Y/N, our future is nothing short of extraordinary.”

I knew she was right, and I took her hand with a firm squeeze. “I’ll always remember that.”

“Good,” she smiled. “Because I don’t want you to mess this up, okay?”

I laughed. “I think I can manage to create a good future for us.”

“But you might want to hurry up before Dr. Park decides to leave you here.”

I took one more look around the park, admiring the gentle elegance of the calming water. For the first time ever, I was nothing short of ecstatic when I thought about living every second to its fullest. Because life was far too short to worry about what could’ve been when I had the rare opportunity to understand what my life will become.

2020

Upon my return to the present, Dr. Park decided to dismantle the time machine. “It seems necessary to avoid any further mistakes,” he nodded.

“But...what will you do now, sir?”

“Anything’s possible, Y/N,” he said. “We’ll just have to make the best of it.”

“Maybe you should think about cars,” I suggested, offering him a sly smile to which he rolled his eyes.

“What did you see?”

“My lips are sealed,” I chirped, ignoring the way he continued to call my name while I ran upstairs in a rush to finally arrive at school on time without the assistance of an Uber. Graciously, traffic wasn’t as chaotic, so I was able to waltz through most of the crosswalks with little difficulty, waving at the cars passing alongside the road. My adrenaline was pumping, and I had never been so enthused to see the familiar outline of my school building in the distance.

Fittingly, I was actually unable to report to my class on time, but I couldn’t be more satisfied to meet a familiar hall monitor stationed near my classroom. “Y/N!” Jisung exclaimed, eyes widening as he checked behind him. “You can go inside before Miss Adams arrives.”

“Thanks,” I said, but I still paused in front of him. “I want to talk to you about the dance.”

“You don’t want to go with me anymore,” Jisung frowned and I quickly shook my head.

“Why would you say that? I can’t wait for the dance.” 

“Really?”

I smiled at Jisung who was blushing furiously. “I’m looking forward to our date,” I said, reaching out to squeeze his hand. “Thank you, Jisung.”

“Y-Y/N,” Jisung stuttered. “What are you doing?”

“I just want you to know that I think you’re pretty great,” I said, enjoying the flabbergasted expression on his face as I walked inside my first-period classroom, satisfied that my future was truly secured.

[themanicgalaxy]

SPN 7X16 Out with the Old

les go

ah ballet dancers

ah no she's gonna die

yeah she's bitchy, but I think she should get to be bitchy

Swan lake of course

oh that was

intense

like really interesting, but INTENSE JESUS CHRIST

SHE'S DEAD??SHOULDN'T SHE BE ALIVE??

damn...he literally only knows America

don't read into that At All

ah just COFFEE

I relate Sam

DEAN WATCHED A TOXIC FEMININITY BALLET MOVIE

TWICE

NERD

ah no not the fancy cursed ballet shoes

oh shit not the kid please no

SAFIHS OH MY GOD THEY JUST APPEARED

OH GOD NO

AND THEY FIT PERFECTLY NO N O

SHE KEEPS KICKING HIM

*kick* SORRY! *kick* SORRY!

they…they come to DEAN??

THEY’RE TARGETING D E A N ??

they trace it while DEAN KEEPS WANTING TO PUT THE SHOES ON

YEAH MANS ISN’T AS MASCULINE

oh god not cursed KNIVES

NO CURSED TEAPOT THAT’S WORSE THAT’S SO MUCH WORSE

STOP DRINKING HOT TEA STOP STOP THAT OH MY GOD

Jesus fuck

yeah they’re too late

“I wonder how old porn kills you” Lmao

HEY TIMMY

This honestly is so funny if it weren’t so fucked up

like your heart sinks each time because apart from Sam and Dean, no one is safe

KID DO NOT STAB YOUR MOTHER

LMAO BITCHY TIRED SAM

Dean must have had fun with the wrangling old porn for some old guy

move on, keep them in your memory awwww

and again, right after bobby died

ah the “sell sell sell” lady

ah sell because of dick roman and then kill whoever’s in your way

damn she’s a bad boss

and they would know about torture wouldn’t they

STOP GOING FOR KIDS P L E A S E

BAHHAAHA

SAM WITH NO WIFI GOING "NO CANNOT BE ALONE WITH MY THOUGHTS NO CANNOT

oh god poor Sam

Frank and Dean are hilarious

jesus christ he almost got hit with a car

ah and he sees the winchesters

I feel like the leviathans are some kind of comment on toxic work culture, just a bit

mY silEnce is yoUr Cue

they’re hilarious

“call me if you don’t die” lmao Frank

“he’s singing stairway to heaven rn” “good song” “Not 50 times in a row” AHAHHA

no lucifer this time tho

ah he got to Scott

and here we go

AMONG US IN REAL LIFE

I still

the cgi is so funny

ah george! good for you!

“sure you can uproot your life. It’s not that hard” DEAN

“thank you..I guess”

he convinces them

damn

good for you george

gooey son of a bitch

Cure cancer?

it’s gonna have caveats

aw sam sleeps to soft rock

AW BAD MOON RISING

AND THE UHAUL

oh god

oh no frank

oh shit they got him

Needle drop: been a while, but I like it in theory. It’s acute concept, the “always knocks you right out” I wish It was a bit more emotional but also watching it at 1.5 speed doesn’t help

Once more, the Bi Dean agenda rises, the man just wants to do ballet

The corporate commentary is…is there I think. Like about the leviathans, I think it’s there

damn no luci this time. I assume budget cuts but still. A lil wacky to have him implied. I think they should have done it more

Also pretty horrendous scene with the cursed objects, those were Well Done, I think the fact that this wasn't a monster of the week was bad for it, ultimately.

damn I hope frank is ok

[chenbatyz]

DLDL 1/4 Review

I have finished watching all 11 episodes and I gotta say: It’s better than I expected!

Before watching this show, I was worried about numerous things: the CGI work, the plot, the characters, the acting and the harem. However, now that I have completed 11 episodes, the show is to me, for now, intrigued and captivated my attention with its beauty. 

CGI: As you can see, this show requires a lot of CGI works (Soul Beast for instance and their characters’ powers as well), thus this need to be created by good CGI artists. If I am not wrong, the show was able to hire a person who had once worked for one of Marvel’s movies (If I am not wrong, the Avengers?). Anyhow, the CGI was far beyond of what I had once expected, although there are small weird animations going around during some of the episodes, but I don’t care much because the good cover it up. Well done to every creator that had worked hard on this!!

The plot: I have never read the novel so I don’t know much about it. But I love the pacing and the world-building of this show. I don’t think it’s confusing as the writer did a good job of explaining the characters, the powers and the Soul Beasts. Of course, we are only 11 episodes in so there are still many secrets behind each of these characters. And I like the “Weak-To-Strong” MC so yeah hehehe.

The Characters: As I mentioned earlier in the plot section, they all keep their secrets for now. I wonder what they have under their sleeves...I love that the female characters are not super annoying and obnoxious. They are strong, badass and have their own charms. I, for now, like Hu Lie Na. And actually, it took me around 3 to 4 episodes to like Xiao Wu. She was a bit too much for me at first but now, I like her more because she is strong and cute too! I also want to learn her character’s back story as well. I don’t really like Dai Mu Bai...but he also must have a reason why he acts like that. But if there isn’t, then I am not a fan of his personality. I would love to know every single character’s background and history, and hope that the writer answers all of the question in the future episodes. 

The acting: As I mentioned earlier, Xiao Zhan and Wu Xuan Yi act solid and the emotions are well-delivered. I love XZ crying’s scene! He always does so well in angst scenes! They always break my heart no matter how many times I watch it. I, however, hope to see XZ improves his shocking expressions because it can be quite cringy but I am sure he has improved his acting skill by now. The other casts act fine as well. I haven’t seen anyone’s past works except XZ so I don’t know much. I actually find that Gao Tai Yu who acts as Dai Mu Bai is similar to Liu Hai Kuan who acts as Lan Xichen in The Untamed? Or is it my eyes...... 

The harem: We are not so sure yet... There are still 29 episodes to go....Let’s hope it’s not though...

Theories: I also have seen some theories about this show on Weibo and Twitter. Why are the people so smart? I didn’t even recognize those details even my second watch. I expect to see some plot twists in the future I guess?? Let’s hope it’s real~

[fangirlsovertoomanythings]

A Sherlock Holmes actor AU where everyone is just trying to make a normal Hound of the Baskerville adaptation. And also the main actors names are Jeremy Bell and Michael Watson. Because. Jeremy Brett. Dr. Bell. Michael Williams. Watson. Get it?

This is Jeremy Bell's first big role in a movie. He's been a background character in two indie films and the casting crew just thought he looked similar to Sidney Paget's illustrations. He's a big joker and his bloopers usually consist of him laughing at a serious situation while trying to stay in-character, excusing himself saying "It's the cocaine, it does things to your brain. Pray, continue" all the time. He also keeps doing pranks with the producers and the director literally just adopted him since she follows him around in case he misbehaves.

Bell suggested that his best friend, Michael Watson, being dr. Watson just because they share the same surname and the casting crew accepts it. Michael is a theathre kid that has been unemployed for 4 years and takes his new job extremely seriously, yet he can't help but laugh everytime the set falls silent and he stares at Bell. The duo are the main reason why some scenes need retakes and everyone thanks the Lord that HOUND has only a few instances where Holmes and Watson are together.

Michael Watson doesn't believe he needs to act like the character when he isn't filming, but Jeremy Bell does and it's the funniest thing because he will find someone and try deducing something about them, only to his theory to be incredibly wrong and he will still be in-character even after the fail and laugh it off saying Mycroft would have gotten it right. He keeps patting the dog that plays the hound and pretending it's Toby. He brings random streetboys to the set and give them food. The only thing he is unable to do is stay away from women, mostly because the writting team includes a lot of them and he keeps asking for changes to be made in order to make the story more engaging. The director is also a woman in her mid-50's that, as stated, keep an eye on him - so how can he escape?

Everyone rolls their eyes when a representative of the Conan Doyle Estate comes by to talk to one of the executives. The executive in question tells everyone to just ignore him and that they will sort it out in court in case the CDE keeps interfering.

It's the first mainstream movie to actually feature Holmes and Watson as a romantic pair explicitly and every scene they have together they get more free to be themselves. Henry Baskerville even notices it and makes comparisons to his own crush on Stapleton's wife. Of course, Michael Watson says that Jeremy Bell is a terrible kisser and every scene their characters need to kiss Bell says "no homo". They kiss just fine though, they are just dumbasses.

The dog that's playing the Hound is an albino pointer-german shepherd mix that was rescued from an abusive household and adopted by one of the managers. Everyone decided that the dog doesn't need to bark or growl and that no one will startle him - they can add it with CGI in post-production. Everyone is worried about the dog. His name is Pinknose.

There are multiple interviews with the cast and Dr. Mortimer's actor hates working with Holmes', because he can't stand dad jokes. He says you can notice the disgust on his face if you look closely to his facial expression in the scene their characters meet.

Stapleton's actor is actually a sweetheart when he's off-character and yet everyone fears him because he is such a great actor he is able to put a facade of evil everytime he is on-screen. He is one of the actors that were casted only to get attention to the movie because he's famous but he has decided to make a good job. Pinknose actually really likes him and many of their scenes together need retakes because the dog can't help but ask for pats and Stapleton's actor's heart is too melted to deny it. The manager who owns the dog gets jealous of it.

When Henry Baskerville's actor gets too nervous because of his role, dr. Mortimer's actor takes him to his trailer to watch Star Trek. Because of how often he gets doubtful of his own abilities, they already watched all seasons of the original series.

When the movie is released, everyone is surprised people actually went to watch it. The people on the team that have Tumblr see all the gay memes and the teenage girls crying over the somber scenes. They announce a sequel, that one being of Valley of Fear.

[aion-rsa]

Marvel’s Loki Episode 5 Ending Explained: Who is the Real Villain of the MCU Series?

https://ift.tt/36oBhxO

This article contains spoilers for Loki episode 5.

Agent Mobius did say that time ran differently in the TVA but who could have imagined that the penultimate episode of Loki would arrive so quickly? Marvel’s Loki episode 5 “Journey Into Mystery” keeps up a streak of superb installments for this increasingly superb show. 

In this hour, Mobius joins the side of the heroes, Judge Renslayer has some questions, and Loki and Sylvie’s relationship continues to blossom thanks to the conjuring of an uncomfortable green blanket. Equally as important, however, is that “Journey Into Mystery” raises some big questions about the ending of this show and the future of the MCU. Questions like…

What is The Void?

This episode does a pretty good job of succinctly describing what the Void is. The Void is the end of time, itself. Since the Time-Keepers are unable to completely destroy matter (Theory of Conservation of Mass and all that), they send unwanted Variants to the end of the timeline to languish or be swallowed by a hungry monster (more on him in a bit). 

In Marvel Comics, The Void is something of an actual character. It is a destructive amorphous entity capable of both adopting a corporeal form and destroying the universe as we know it. During the Siege storyline, the Void even killed Loki, which then facilitated his “rebirth” as Kid Loki. See how this all starts to fit together?

What is Alioth?

In the world of Loki, Alioth is a big, hungry cloud monster that prowls the Void looking to consume yummy matter. It’s the TVA’s unwitting cleaning service, wiping out all the Variants that the TVA can’t eliminate. Classic Loki helpfully offers up the analogy that the Void is a shark tank, and Alioth is the shark.

Alioth of the comics was first introduced in 1993’s Avengers: The Terminatrix Objective #1. That same comic also introduced Ravonna Renslayer and features Kang the Conqueror as its central villain. Oh yeah, it’s all coming together. 

Alioth is considered to be the first being that broke free from the constraints of time. It’s no wonder then that it would make an appearance in Loki.

What’s Up With That Castle?

It’s about time a Marvel villain lives in an honest-to-goodness castle! While it’s still possible that this is a misdirect and this environment is not what it seems, for now it looks like episode 6 will be headed off to a spooky castle.

Interestingly, there are no shortages of spooky castles in Marvel comics lore. Perhaps the most famous one is Castle Doom within Doomstadt. Bet you’ll never guess who lives there! Yes, it’s ol’ Victor von Doom himself, Doctor Doom to his friends…of which he has very few.

Another notable abode is Castle Limbo, which serves as the home of Immortus, who was once Nathaniel Richards a.k.a. Kang the Conqueror. Look, Kang is a confusing character, so you’ll just have to trust us on this one.

What is Mobius’s Plan?

Thank the gods that Loki and Mobius finally embraced their destiny as best bros. Mobius leaves all the Lokis behind in The Void to return to the TVA. What does he plan to do once he gets there? Why, burn the whole thing down, of course!

It’s unclear how Mobius believes he’s able to pull off such a grand task. The TVA is an enormous bureaucracy with seemingly infinite moving parts. The only real weapon that Mobius has at his disposal is the truth. The truth changed his and Hunter B-15’s perspectives but can it do the same for everyone else? The only other named TVA employee that we’re aware of is Casey (Eugene Cordero). He seems like a sweet, non-confrontational lad. But perhaps that will all change once he realizes he’s been robbed of fish dinners his whole life.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

What Becomes of the Other Lokis?

The most pleasantly strange aspect of “Journey Into Mystery” is how many new Lokis it introduces. This hour features: Classic Loki (Richard E. Grant), Boastful Loki (DeObia Oparei), Kid Loki (Jack Veal), President Loki (Hiddleston), and Alligator Loki (uh… a CGI alligator). Naturally, each of those Lokis has their own official hashtag sprite on Twitter. 

Fittingly for their chaotic energy, each of the Lokis introduced in this episode have quite different ultimate fates. Boastful Loki betrays his Loki comrades, because that’s just what Lokis do. The subsequent scene of President Loki and his Void army battling the other Lokis is one of the best moments of this show yet. That causes our Loki to take off with Classic, Kid, and Alligator. When Mobius invites that trio to come back to the TVA with him, they decline because the Void is their home now.

Read more

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That is the last we’ve seen of Kid Loki and Alligator Loki thus far but not the last of Classic Loki. The comic-accurate trickster returns to help Loki and Sylvie when they need it the most. He uses stunningly powerful magic to create an approximation of Asgard all around him, distracting the ravenous Alioth. Even Sylvie with her enchantress power is stunned by Classic Loki’s abilities. 

Is Richard E. Grant’s Classic Loki Really Dead?

Ultimately Classic Loki is swallowed up by the Alioth and therefore finally blinked out of existence. Or is he? It seems like he could have been utilizing the very same technique here he claims to have used to escape his death at the hands of Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War. “I think we’re stronger than we realize,” Loki tells Sylvie, so this would certainly be a case of that if it came down to it.

Plus, that leads us to the final and most important question that this episode raises. 

Who is the Villain?

Who indeed? There has been one name bandied about as the most likely Loki Big Bad. Before we get to him (and it’s absolutely who you think), indulge us in another theory. What if the villain of Loki is…

Classic Loki or Another Loki Variant

Richard E. Grant is kind of a big deal as an actor. It’s not every day you can find a seasoned performer who can portray a kindly exterior with some menace underneath. With that in mind, it’s possible that Classic Loki is a bigger character than he appears at first glance. This episode goes out of its way to communicate just how powerful Lokis can be. And when you combine that kind of god-like power with a trickster’s sensibility, it’s not hard to imagine that Classic Loki, or another Loki entirely, could be pulling all the strings. 

Kang the Conqueror 

While Loki confronting himself in the end would make for a dramatically interesting enterprise, the hard evidence at hand still seems to indicate that Kang the Conqueror is our real villain. The internet at large has been banging the drum for Kang the Conqueror as the ultimate Loki villain for weeks now and it’s not hard to see why.

This isn’t a case of collective delusion like with all of the Nightmare/Mephisto WandaVision theorizing, Kang really does seem to be a legitimate possibility. For starters, we know we already have an MCU actor for Kang in the fold already in the form of Jonathan Majors (Lovecraft Country). Kang was announced for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania but doesn’t it sound very Marvel for the character to make his unexpected debut here?

In the comics, Kang the Conqueror is wrapped up in multiverses, timelines, and all manner of heady sci-fi nonsense that Loki is already invested in. In fact, as Reddit user u/Hpotter821 points out, one iteration of Kang in Marvel comics sought to become Immortus by eliminating all of his other Variants. It would seem that creating the TVA to police other timelines would be quite useful in that mission. 

Then there’s the fact that Kang has at least some level of crossover with just about every major character and element of Loki. Kang has a relationship with Ravonna Renslayer in the comics and is also an occasional rival of Alioth. The show is not shy about injecting Kang’s aesthetic into the proceedings. While ostensibly space lizards as Loki described them, the Time-Keepers do appear to resemble the classic Kang the Conqueror look a bit. And the TVA logo? 

Oh. Hey. I just noticed that the centerpiece of the Time Variance Authority’s seal totally looks like Kang’s head. 🤷‍♂️ #Loki pic.twitter.com/93QzNDVSbi

— Ken Plume (@KenPlume) July 2, 2021

Oh yeah, that’s Kang, baby.

Perhaps by this time next week, all of this Kang conjecture will look as silly as WandaVision’s Mephisto fever dream. It’s undeniable, however, that Loki has provided us with plenty of breadcrumbs. If it’s all a Kang-sized red herring, then so be it. 

Doctor Doom

This is a considerable longshot, despite the fact that we’ve wanted it to happen for a long time. Doom was at the center of Marvel Comics’ multiverse-shattering Secret Wars event by Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic, and the castle we see in this episode’s conclusion sure does look an awful lot like his humble Doomstadt home.

Every time we get excited about Doctor Doom or the potential Secret Wars threads embedded in this show, we’re brought back to reality by the fact that there’s virtually no way that Marvel would introduce arguably their greatest villain in a teasing series finale episode, especially not when they’ve got the Kang-centric Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania to tee up with Kang. Yes, we’re hedging our best by including him, but can you blame us?

Anyway, patience, Doom fans. The Fantastic Four movie is finally a priority for the MCU, and we should see that by 2023.

Kevin Feige

This obviously won’t happen but in the spirit of Marvel’s next Disney+ series What If…?, what if Loki and Sylvie arrive to the throne room in the castle and Marvel Studios head Kevin Heige is hanging out there wearing one of his trademark baseball caps? As witnessed in WandaVision and now Loki, this phase of Marvel cinematic storytelling is clearly about setting up a new multiverse of possibilities. What better way to introduce that multiverse than by completely breaking the fourth wall?

OK, so there are probably a ton of better ways but Feige would at least be fun and truly unexpected.

The post Marvel’s Loki Episode 5 Ending Explained: Who is the Real Villain of the MCU Series? appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2Uv1SXs

[spike-and-faye]

Cowboy Bebop MBTI???

k so as some of you may know I am a huge slut for MBTI and I’ve been trying to determine types for everyone in Cowboy Bebop. I’m wondering what y’all think in regards to the accuracy of my typing:

*warning there are a few spoilers*

SPIKE SPIEGEL - ISTP

I mean the man is cool as a fucking cucumber. He’s a guy who notices all the details of his environment which makes him a great fighter. Additionally, he’s somewhat impulsive and can react to spontaneity without freaking out. He doesn’t need plans and routines - he can think on his feet.

IMPORTANTLY: while he DOES live in his memories, he DOES NOT live in his mind. He isn’t the kind of guy to dwell in theories and concepts and imagination. He’s much more concrete and pragmatic. The past is past, it’s been determined. Therefore, while he is broody and quiet, he’s not necessarily absorbed in thought. (Men have the ability to not think and/or think about nothing. As a woman I cannot comprehend being able to turn my mind off like that, save smoking a big ol bowl) Basically, Spike only deals in the concrete world, not that abstract.

Furthermore he’s independent, stubborn, reserved, and never shows his cards. IMO this man is an ISTP as one could possibly fucking get. He throws himself into adventures with no regards for the consequences and is a definite adrenaline junkie. Also he’s a terrible communicator. (See: Real Folk Blues Pt 2) 

FAYE VALENTINE - ESFP

Similar to Spike, Faye is an expert and improvising and thinking on her feet. She has an enthusiastic, contagious brightness about her that charms some (and annoys others), but at the end of the day is generally upbeat and likeable. Anywhere but the Bebop she is the life of the party and the one every guy wants to get with ... and maybe Jet and Spike don’t mind her liveliness too badly...

One of the dead give-aways that I think makes Faye ESFP is that she gets pissed off when she’s not getting the attention she needs. She’s always a flight risk, especially when Spike takes off. But it’s not solely the attention she craves, but the cohesiveness and love that her new ‘found-family’ brings. She doesn’t want them to be separated as a group. While a lot of her preferences seem shallow and fickle, on a deeper level, her emotions and loves are very important to her.

She’s materialistic, lives for the present (I mean she hasn’t got much of a past, and when she does remember it, she says it doesn’t matter) and loves novelties and spontaneity. Also like Spike, she inhabits a very physical dimension - nothing about philosophy or concepts or rhetoric will ever really intrigue her. The objects and people in her direct vicinity are what concern her and what give her fuel. That’s why a lack of hot water will put her in a worse mood than remembering her parents’ death.

Speaking of ... when she does revisit her old childhood home, she isn’t the loud and obnoxious and overtly emotional Faye we’ve come to expect. When her true, deep emotions are brought to the surface, she’s really kind of in a quiet state of awe.

JET BLACK - ESFJ

So I’m not QUITE as confident in this typing as I am with Spike and Faye. Jet shows hints of ENFJ, INFJ, and ISFJ along with ESFJ  ... I just  feel that ESFJ is most accurate here. My reasoning is that Jet, as his core, is just such a great mother hen. He’s just as a stubborn as Spike and Faye and wears his heart on his sleeve - but his anger is usually fleeting and his main goal is care for his little collected family.

Jet is OBSESSED  with ‘right vs wrong’ and ‘good vs evil’. He’s also kind of falls into the place of the ‘leader’ of the Bebop, and takes on all the responsibilities of leader. (To be fair it IS his ship and he’s captain). His adherence to strict black-and-white values are what made him the ‘Black Dog’ - he’d never let go once he got started. His values are also what made police work ultimately too challenging for him. How can a man like him allow corruption to be manifest in the people who are meant to be protectors? Bounty hunting on the other hand allowed him to be sort of a vigilante in that he is still capturing criminals, but now he only has his own value system to guide him.

With the addition of Spike AND Faye as primary bounty hunters, Jet is allowed to take his role as supervisor and supporter that is so natural to him. He can nurture Ed and Ein and care for his rowdy teenagers (Spike and Faye) with food and technical support on bounties.

Ed - ????

I have no clue. Please send help.

ANYWAYS so please reblog or comment with your thoughts on this analysis. I’m genuinely curious what everyone thinks. There is a good chance I’m missing some shit. (Especially with Ed lmao). SO PLEASE LET ME KNOW <3

If you’re on tumblr.com and some how don’t know what that is its a super in-depth personality test. Here are some links: 

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp

https://www.mbtionline.com/

[spaceorphan18]

Marvel Movie Nights: X-Men Days of Future Past (The Rogue Cut)

This... feels like a deeply complicated film to talk about.  Maybe because I know X-Men so well, it kind of goes beyond do I think this film is good or not.  I don’t... know.  Because I’m not sure I can see it objectively.  But I suppose I do have a lot of feelings.  Do I think it’s a good film? I do think it’s the best X-Men film they made.  Yes.  But is it a great film? No.  I think my biggest problem goes back to the difference between how Fox handles the X-Men films vs how Marvel handles their own properties.  It’s trying to service too many things in the matter of two (and a half) hours.  And the film feels dense and bogged down becomes of it.  

The main crux of the story is based on a two-issue mini arc - The Days of Future Past.  One of the most famous mini arcs of the comics.  And to that, I think the movie does a great job -- as it lifts the themes directly from the comics.  It’s all about fate and free will, as well as dealing what’s always at the heart of X-Men stories -- being different from those around you.  I think thematically, the story does very well.  

The film is a semi-time travel flick (which you guys know I’m always here for a good time travel story), bringing back a lot of the old cast from the original trilogy to hold down the fort while the new cast gets to hang out in the 70s for the bulk of the story -- the connection being, of course, Wolverine. 

I generally like a majority of the stuff set in the 70s.  Wolverine is great, and since he’s not the primary protagonist of this film, he can kind of be the audience involvement to great effect.  James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender return as Xavier and Magneto -- the dueling dynamic that’s the heart of this (semi-)prequel series.  (And it’s a delight to see McAvoy get a small moment with Patrick Stewart.)  And Nicholas Hoult is back as Beast - who is great in the role, as a young Beast still trying to figure himself out. 

Also back, however, is Jennifer Lawrence’s Mystique, which... uh.  Now, Mystique is pretty crucial to the original story line, so I don’t mind that she’s in the middle of all of it.  In theory.  But I guess I have two major problems though.  A) the fact that she never gets to wear her famous white, flowy dress, and instead is constantly naked.  That’s just not even practical.  Why?  Why is that a thing? It drives me crazy.  B) I just don’t like Jennifer Lawrence in the role.  I can’t even explain why.  She just bugs me.  

However! I will say, one unexpected delight is Even Peters as Quicksilver.  He’s quite a bit of fun, and I think it’s the one thing that Fox does better than the MCU.  (It’s also the one part of the movie that’s really just a lot of delightful fun overall.)  

Anyway.... The thing about the past portion of the film is that it doesn’t feel like a superhero film, much less an X-Men film.  Which is both good and bad.  It lets the film feel very character driven -- which I think is really cool.  But at the same time, there does feel like an element is missing -- namely, all the rest of the cool characters who don’t really get to be there or involved.  And if I’m being honest - one of the fun parts of these films is seeing the characters use their powers.  

On the other side of things, there’s the future part, which is merely a glimpse of everything.  Which makes sense --- the story, after all, is about the 70s.  It does have some fun superpower action going on.  But everyone is reduced to a glorified cameo.  And while I’m fine not having Halle Berry butcher Storm any more than she has to.  It does make me miss the original characters.  And while it’s nice to see new characters pop up -- like Bishop, Sunspot, Blink, and Warpath, they aren’t given really any kind of character development, and are merely there to look cool when they need to, before ultimately being killed off before the time reset.  

This is also kind of a final bow for Patrick Stewart (though he’ll be back for Logan) and Ian McKellen.  They really don’t get a whole lot to do either - but it is nice to see them on screen together one last time.  

Now... I did watch the Rogue cute, which is about 17 minutes longer.  (As an aside - even without the extra stuff, this film feels a bit draggy at times, and I think the lack of any kind of levity really hurts it.)  Unfortunately, my girl is only in about three extra minutes, however, and doesn’t get a whole lot to do.  It’s nice to see her again, but I’m hoping for a day that they can do a movie with Rogue that gives her her spunky personality and her kick-ass persona.  That would be nice.  

I will say -- I do like the ending reset -- kind of undoing everything that happened in The Last Stand and restoring Jean and Cyclops, as well as giving the future a brighter outlook.  We even get a cool after credits scene of Apocalypse.  It’s a shame, though, that the next two movies are going to be kind a shitty after thoughts of a dying franchise.  

Production wise, I think the film works relatively well.  The CGI isn’t that bad.  Everything is easy to follow, and the film looks overall good.  This film could have an absolute bloated disaster, and I think they handle the balance really well -- even in this extended cut. 

Final Thoughts: I do think overall, it’s an entertaining and solid film.  And I kind of wish X-Men left it here on a good note.  But we all know franchises are meant to be run into the ground... 

Next-Up: Getting Groovy with the Guardians of the Galaxy

[water-means-baptism]

Cats the Movie: Opinions of a Person who Already Kind of Liked Cats

(the musical)

Okay, so this is more than a bit too late for a post detailing the strange fuckery that occurs in Cats. BUT (and this is a rather large but) I'm a heathen who both enjoys the musical and took part in it a few years ago.

As a result I Have Many Opinions on the show, and now they shall be forced down your throat :)

Old Deuteronomy spent the whole show with,, something? On her shoulders. Logically, it's a coat. But the fur coat's color matches HER fur's color. Did she skin her twin sibling? Is it excess flesh? Am I just overdramatic? Only time will tell.

Who thought it was a good idea to make Rebel Wilson unzip her skin to reveal a second, show-choir-director-style outfit? In my purrsonal opinion, that was horror. This movie. Is horror.

As someone who is very invested in the relationship between Mister Mistoffles and Rum Tum Tugger, I find it personally offensive that they gave away one of Tugger's solos. Absolutely unforgivable.

The backing music was 1. WAY too loud and 2. Approximately the same quality as the pre-recorded tracks that we used. In a youth production.

To be totally honest, I was expecting the songs to be interrupted with "Rehearsal Tracks" spoken by a monotone robot lady.

The absolute worst part of Cats for a performer is the section in the opening where they're just listing off types of cats. It lasts too long and is impossible to memorize. What I'm trying to say is that tHE ACTORS SHOULD HAVE SUFFERED AS I HAVE SUFFERED. The solos were just cheating :p

Okay, so there's this song in the original musical. It's called 'Growltiger's Last Stand', and it's a mini story about a pirate cat. Cute, right?

No.

It's racist as all hell, and involves some very fun takes on Asian culture :))):):):)):))

So when I heard the opening of that song,, I almost had a heart attack like holy shit. I did not sign up for that.

Skimbleshanks looked like a male stripper holy sHIT

The dancing? Surprisingly not bad. BUT that's as a result of the fact that they hired actual trained dancers for the ensemble/certain main characters.

But the CGI? That made all the dance stuff look fake and edited. :(((

They skipped over a type of name in the opening and I'll never forgive them for it. T h r e e n a m e s .

A stupid theory:

Because I was in this show a few years ago, I've had a LOT of time to reflect on it.

Specifically, the role of Old Deteronomy. Deteronomy magically chooses a cat to be reborn, right? Well how do that cats know that it's true? Pure faith?

To add onto that, a bunch of the things they do in Cats give off incredibly cult-like vibes. @ the whispered monologue spoken in unison.

So my theory

(and just hear me out on this) is that:

Every year, Deuteronomy chooses a cat. The weakest link. A cat that will not be missed by the others. And this cat? It is sacrificed to the "Jellicle Moon".

However,

The cat isn't truly getting reborn. The cat just dies. And Deuteronomy has another year of total control.

Being the leader of a cult, Deuteronomy acts in ways that benefit her (and only her). Being the one to choose cements her power in the community.

And if a chosen cat happens to be a bit outspoken against the system?

That's pure coincidence.

[mnkiss]

A quick list of animes I watched and don’t want to forget:

Mushishi - pure, haunting beauty, 10/10 recommend especially when you want some clarity and calmness in your life. You’ll cry tho

K - the amount of tears I shed TwT I literally miss the characters. Weird af world and story, but somehow I got attached. There should be K: seven stories somewhere but I can’t find it... Also: this whole we’re a bunch of problematic people who become a family is a trope I’ll never get tired of

Tokyo Ghoul - S1 and S2 feel like one huge story and it’s just the beginning so buckle up... There are 2 OVAs (Jack and Pinto) that help with understanding Re: (S3) and then there is S4 which is apparently only the most important parts of the manga... I understand why so many people think that s4 is ridiculous, but the first 3 seasons are great. The manga is a must for the anime tho, bc the last season is a joke, so if you can, read the manga first. With that said, the censorship is terrible so if you can, watch it without the weird black and white patches that take up half the screen, because the animation, the fights, the colours are all extremely vibrant and alive, just like the characters. What being human means, why the police feel like they are doing god’s work when they kill innocents along with the psychos, what a family is, can we be selfish for others, and many more questions are discussed here, all while somebody gets gutted. S2 was much more like a filler than a normal season, but still, I cried, and the whole anime is awesome so watch it if you can. (If you get upset when humans are able to endure more than supernatural beings then it’s not your show, bc even though humans are supposed to be, you know, humans, they are still able to kill tens of ghouls with a fucking hole inside of them.)

Attack on Titan - got tired of waiting after s2... No mystery is worth more than a year of waiting lol

Black butler - I need to get around and watch the book of atlantis. Great story, Sebastian is everything and more, and the aesthetic is something I’ll never forget. The music fits perfectly, and the foods make me drool. It has the “big picture”, as well as small journeys where you can get to know your favourite characters which I appreciate. S2 was not something I enjoyed, but the book of circus was worth it as well as most ova’s.

Darker than black - THEY MUST CONTINUE IT BRING HEI BACK PLEASE PLEASE I CAN’T I JUST CAN’T - also s2′s opening makes me cry. Dolls and Contractors work together as a team, then alone, then again as a team... it was a wild ride. Awesome character development, great plot and world building. Sadly they cut their story and future at s2 for some reason... If I ever watch it again I watch Gaiden before Gemini tho - a lot less confusion and disappointment this way.

Bungou Stray Dogs - loving it with my whole heart can’t wait to watch it again because there is literally NO character I don’t love. It has pretty boys, crime, mystery, magical abilities and comedy alongside the surprisingly deep issues. The art style is otherworldly, everything is so PRETTY and CAPTURING ugh *-*. It also made me read lots of books again (especially Japanese literature which was new for me) ^^ (Who doesn’t ship Dazai and Chuuya... And Poe is a baby too)

Noragami - cute, very cute, I love it when the main character is powerful af yet has a silly, loving side. Also: you can learn a bit about gods and religion

Assassination Classroom - tears. all of them. tears. It’s not what I expected but still, the little assassins and the teacher’s relationship was perfect.

Another - i watched it for the dolls and the umbrella meme. Liked it? yes. Do I remember anything else tho? Not really

Parasyte - one of the first animes I’ve ever watched. Loved it. ^^ Migi was great, all the issues it brings up were thought provoking, and it has gore.

Hellsing - idk it had too many monologues and ideologies, didn’t finish it

Psycho-Pass - In short: cyberpunk future, systematic oppression, immigrants, killing with permission and other moral or societal issues, plus charismatic characters and gore. The watching order: S1, S2, Sinners of the system, S3, First inspector. Wonderful buildup, dynamic storytelling, great mystery elements, and of course the found family/teamwork will always be a favourite of mine. The writing is extra detailed, every character is 3D, their responses, beliefs and cultures are tied together perfectly, the chemistry between characters is relatable and although everybody seems to live by one goal only, it’s not as dull as one would think. It also has some great book recommendations, literature and philosophers play a big role, which is always a bonus. 10/10. I really hope we will get extra contents and S4 in the future.

Steins Gate - I can’t bring myself to watch the last 2 episodes of S1 lol. It starts slowly but it’s much better paced than I remembered. The anime heavily relies on the characters which are sadly very 2D: the haughty but loving, the cute but tragic, the clever weeb, the loving tsundere... and for some fucking reason every single girl loves the mad scientist who... doesn’t really show love or sometimes not even respect towards the others until the last half of the show, so I don’t particularly care about their fate, but I watch it bc I don’t want to leave it unfinished. Because people are so into it I thought maybe the story will be... flabbergasting, shocking or just a masterwork, but the whole time travelling thingy, all the rules, all the paralel worlds work very conveniently. There were some great twists that I loved, some that I saw coming and some that I didn’t, but the story itself isn’t the best and even the plottwists won’t help that.

Full metal alchemist - i watched many, many episodes. I liked it. But it lost me. Anyways, I looked up the story and it sounds interesting, lots of plot twists, great conspiracy theories etc. The main character was a bit... annoying. My main problem is that they were children cuz I can only get immersed in the adult characters’ stories...

Durarara!! - s1 was great I love gang and mystery stuff, BUT I stopped watching it bc I was only immersed in the adult characters’ stories...

The Ancient Magus' Bride - it’s a gory fairy tale, with two toxic but loveable characters who learn a lot, evolve a lot and become real companions. There is lots of touching, head pats and affection. <3 Seasond 2 is very much needed, I want to see more episodic journey elements like the cat kingdom episodes were, and perhaps cry just a little less. Pro tip: when you watched the first 12 eps you should watch the 3 episode ova and then the next 12 eps ;) Oh, and expect tears mostly from happiness

Devilman Crybaby - I was the crybaby. The ending is beautiful, the art style was great, it literally pulsed through my eyes sometimes. Awesome characters, weird storyline, sad ending.

Death Parade - another anime that made me cry :) Beautiful art style, immersive story, interesting take on the afterlife, moral issues. It had everything I needed,

Juni Taisen - It wasn’t the craziest or most cunning anime of all times, but I cared about the characters and I really wanted to know how it ends, so it was good i guess

Kekkai Sensen - i watched s1 and I didn’t care anymore...

BEASTARS - it was one hell of a ride. Interesting world, great conflict, highschoolers and gore... also I think there was a sudden rise in the numbers of furries while it aired. It’s art style however was too cgi-y, too smooth for me :/

Re: Zero - the main character is a little bitch i hated him but i stayed for the plot. I don’t really like love interests when one party is only loved because they look perfect... i really wish we got more seasons and explanations  s2 is on the horizon, but I doubt I’ll ever watch it

Updated it see in reblog

Also in conclusion, what do i need in an anime? 1) adults 2) superpowers 3) found family 4) a brooding, powerful af main character 5) action and mystery (plus gore) 6) chemistry between characters 7) side characters that matter 8) tissues

Any recs?