#like you supposedly are a super fan and don’t know the implications of it??? my mans

[mazojo]

That’s the face of a woman who ain’t speaking to her husband for the next 4 business days

[kanmom51]

This attitude some 'fans' have of being owed. The entitlement. Forgive me, but I just don't get it, and I’ll be lying if I say it doesn’t also anger me.

How many music or film industry couples, you know, those you suspect are a thing but haven't made it official (in the media that is, not talking about what they do with each other) do we see gallivanting around in public, interacting, publicly, on SM with each other? Seriously. Try and think of that.  

Tom and Zendaya but one example. I'm not even talking about their public behaviour before they kind of confirmed they've together. But even after. They are doing them as much as they can in private, because that's what they want, that's what's good for their relationship. I don't see their fans screaming every second minute they've split up. Why's that?

And they, my friends, are a straight couple.

Not a queer closeted couple in a conservative country that is now taking sexuality and queerness, that barely got acknowledged as is, out of their school textbooks, because to acknowledge it can 'turn' kids. 

Not a country where people in the current administration call queerness a mental illness. 

Not in a country where these two so very brave and amazing men, who for years tried to tell us who they are and who they love, constantly pushing the boundaries, are now awaiting enlistment into a super homophobic military, one that still has an active sodomy law (it ain't cancelled yet), disallowing queer relations even off base on leave (because that has everything to do with their actual service...).

Add to that mail stealing (that we are sure of), blackmail claims (we even have a fan boasting on how they broke into JM’s apartment and stole private stuff from him).

I wonder how those fans would feel, their privacy being invaded in any kind of way, knowing there are those out there that not only threaten to hurt them (mainly JM), but have literally taken active measures to hurt at the very least one of them.

the entitlement of said fans, that’s what gets to me.

Even in more or less accepting societies there are still those that hide their sexuality, famous people, actors in openly accepting Hollywood.  People that have much to lose if they ‘come out’, if they admit to being in a queer relationship, even a long term committed one.  Popularity to dwindle, roles not to be offered.  And this is in a place they would supposedly be accepted. Not a country, a society that would most probably shun them for being queer, for choosing to have a life together as a queer couple, a country in which queer couples in long term relationships don’t dare to openly live together as it could cost them their jobs, their safety.

Even in Australia, again, a more or less open society (I’m talking about the big cities like Melbourne and Sydney), I know of a queer couple that built a life together, living together for over a decade, all while one of them is hiding it at his place of work, them thinking he has a girlfriend.  Because even here, even now, there could be implications for him if it was to come out.

As for them not being spotted together or supposedly not interacting on SM (their public accounts that is):

I’ve written a whole post about this - you know, not seeing them doesn’t mean they ain’t together, and I’m not going to go on repeat here.  

We have seen almost zero of them together in public (when not having the mask of working together, like in LV) since December 2021.  We have also seen almost zero interaction between them on SM, well their IG public accounts.  And yes, once again I’m saying this out loud - they are not personal accounts, they are public accounts for them to interact, individually, with the fans, not each other.  They have told us multiple times that they do interact privately with each other, even if they don’t tell us or show us on SM.

Back then, in Jan 2022 fans were going ballistic.  Rumours of breakup, rumours of betrayal, rumours of both moving on with others.  Oh, the fanfics you could write with these rumours (or perhaps these rumours were taken based on fanfics...).

And then we had the Seoul concerts.  They were the exact fucking same as they ever were, if not even louder.  That’s also when we saw a glimpse of JM’s moon tattoo.  JM’s day counting.  And at the end of it all we had the White day post and photo.

Suddenly all the rumours didn’t make sense.  Suddenly all was well.

And then the next break, and the rumours up their ugly heads again.  

And then LV and how fucking loud those two were there.  So, suddenly all was well.

And this goes on and on and on.  We don’t see them - “something happened”; We see them - “Oh, they’re fine”.  How do people not see the pattern here??????

What we didn’t know back in January 2022 and we do know now is that things changed for them all.

Beyond the fucking political environment they are now in, beyond the upcoming enlistment, beyond the personal shit they had to go through (and those of you who know know).

BTS was going through stuff, things were changing, things changed. and now behaviours that could be written off as being part of the group, behaviours that could be written off as exactly what most of the fandom loved and lived to write them off as - the F word - Fanservice, well they couldn’t anymore, not when they are going each on their solo paths.  

We also don’t get content, well almost no ot7 content.  And as such, we don’t get to witness their interactions with each other. 

When we finally do get it, things are as per usual.  For example, the telepathy and flying Yoga Run episodes. 

Hobi’s party is another instance where at first there was almost no footage and the footage we had was them apart, so the tongues were wagging, oh how they were wagging.  And then the BTB dropped.

Yeah, it’s about time that people understand a basic point.

These young men have private lives.  

Stuff they do, people they spend time with, interactions they have that we are not privy to, that we have no right to be privy to.  

What they want us to see, what they want to share with us they do.  

And they have shown us over the past few months that they ARE spending time together, that they are still very much important to each other.  If we want to see it, we’ll see it.  If they want us to know, they’ll tell us.  

And sometimes it will be directly, like JK telling us in his birthday live that JM came to see him or JM posting the pic of JK blowing out the candles on his birthday cake, the one JM and Hobi brought him (and there is great significance to JM’s post, his choice to share with us that JK is the one he went to to celebrate his birthday with).  

And others it will be indirectly, like JK telling us his mom made seaweed soup on JM’s birthday (again, the cultural meaning and significance of it something not all of us understood or understand, even after Karmy’s explanation),  

Oh, and dare I mention JK’s thirst trap birthday message for JM?  Yes, many small minded people tried to twist it all around, but guys, really? The message WAS for JM and for us to know the message was for JM.

Jose Ochoa saw it:

Whoever had eyes and a working not homophobic brain saw it.

This article could be an interesting read, not only for the choice of calling the first cinematic queer rom-com “Bros”, but also a little enlightening to those that think there is a “gay look” or “gay behaviour” or about how about the difference between a stage persona and one’s personality:

So, we don’t see them out and about (and let’s be real here, over the 7 years some of us feel they were together for, how many times did we actually see them out and about together just the two of them, privately?), but for god’s sake, get it though your thick skulls - 

NOT SEEING THEM DOESN’T MEAN THEY AREN’T THERE.

Not seeing them together doesn’t mean they aren’t spending time together, wherever that may be (even going out together for meals at restaurants they have the semblance of privacy in), in public or in private.

NOT SEEING THEM DOES NOT MEAN THEY AREN’T THERE.

You might also want to read this thread:

Bottom line:

They owe us zilch.

They will show us what they want to when they want to when they are able to.

They are doing them.  What’s good for them.  What suits them. 

And for those that are insecure or want to believe the rumours or find it hard to believe in them and to continue to support them, well it’s up to you, no one else.  But know that this logic you abide by, well, it’s flawed. But again you do you.  I’m just here to try and explain to you how illogical that way of thinking is.

Why do we no longer see or hear about Jikook hanging out together ? Are they hanging out but are careful not to be seen ? Or are they not hanging out at all ?!

If they were careful because of the military, then I think it's going to backtrack on them. Because many Jikookers started to doubt them and think they either broke up or never were together. So, if they continue like this, they will have only few supporters left when they get discharged and no one to defend their relationship anymore.

If they were to be seen hanging out, no need to be careful because the fandom will just think they are friends. But acting like strangers in sm and in public, just makes army believe in the fanservice idea. Why be careful when you can be perceived as just friends, exactly like how they go out freely with the other members!

Anon please explain to me how this is acting like strangers on social media

Or this entire live

At the end of the day those that believe in them and have the capacity to understand the impact certain circumstances have on them as a couple, will stay and support them.

If you listen to them and watch them together you can see what they have is special.

Those that don't are no great loss.

How they choose to live their relationship is their business and it is not for them to 'prove' to us they are together.

💜💛🌈

[a-land-of-shadow-and-substance]

What's a fact you know about the Disney parks that most people either don't know or get wrong?

Hmm... honestly I’m not sure if I know anything super obscure that the average dedicated parks fan doesn’t know.  But here’s some guesses at what might count:

One that’s probably decently well known among other fans but not the general parks-going crowd is that the Ghost Host is NOT Master Gracey, and that we do in fact see Ghost Host’s physical form in the ride (the portrait of the hatchet man in the corridor of doors is all but confirmed to be GH...the skeleton hanging in the stretch room wears the same costume as the portrait).

Also, Anaheim used to have the same external “traveling light”/”ghost light” effects in the house windows that Florida’s Haunted Mansion does, but it’s been mostly broken for years.  Supposedly at least one window was consistently working until 2017, but I never personally witnessed it despite riding Mansion regularly during that time.

The Haunted Mansion’s famous wallpaper is supposed to be a parody of a type of wallpaper pattern called “damask” that was common in old houses.  It’s so iconic on its own now (and so many fewer houses have damask wallpaper) that people just consider it “face wallpaper” and don’t realize it’s a parody.

(I can actually keep going on and on with Haunted Mansion trivia that may or may not be obscure...)

Sunset Boulevard at Disney’s Hollywood Studios takes place in the 1940s.  It’s not hard to miss, but for some reason people do and it gets frustrating.  Rock n’ Roller Coaster actually has its own mini-land where the time period is the 90s, but it’s carefully sectioned off from all the 40s section.

Car’s Land takes place in Arizona, but Disney was so desperate to have it fit in California Adventure that they ERASED THE BORDER BETWEEN CALIFORNIA AND ARIZONA on a map in a gift shop.

Thanks to (in my opinion, unfortunate) additions to park canon, The Haunted Mansion, Indiana Jones, Rock n’ Roller Coaster, A Bug’s Land, and Tower of Terror (both story versions) are all in the same continuity.  It is not fun to think about the implications of this.

Probably the MOST obscure one, that I’m still gathering “canon” evidence for, concerns the theme of DCA 1.0.  I’ve often heard/read complaints that “the theme sucked because it tried to do current California as a theme IN current California”.  I’m fairly convinced that the theme was NOT intended to be current, but instead was meant to be California from the 1910s to the 1960s, and that there was a failure of audience perception (not helped by rushed development and lack of budget).  My TLDR summary is that, just as Main Street USA was supposed to remind the parents of 1955 of their childhoods, DCA1.0 was supposed to remind the parents of the 2000s of their childhoods in the 60s.  Unfortunately, the continued prevalence of boomer culture and continued availability of older pop culture thanks to technology meant that things didn’t feel as datedly nostalgic as intended.  So rather than “oh, it’s the Beach Boys playing, it feels like my long-ago childhood”, it felt like “oh, it’s the Beach Boys playing, like on my CD player this morning.”

[shinidamachu]

On the Japanese side plenty of fans are calling Sesshōmaru “ロリコン丸” or Loliconmaru and making quite a few statements like “Please don’t call this a sequel,” and “I am very disappointed,” so we know it’s not just the western fans freaking out. I think Sunrise is targeting the fans who’re likely to spend more money on merchandise

So I’ve heard, anon. So I’ve heard.

Regardless of how this mess turns out, this is the legacy Sunrise is gonna leave behind when this show is over.

If they go down that route, it’s gonna be extremely hard to separate $esshomaru from that stigma and with a reason. I’m not gonna pretend that I know what his stans are feeling right now because he was never my cup of tea. But I do know what is like to hold a character dear to your heart, looking up to them, growing up with them, loving them like a real friend. If it was Inuyasha in this situation I would be devastated. So at the very least I can empathize with you lot.

About the “please don’t call this a sequel” statement, again: you don’t have to. Nobody does. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise. I don’t care how much Takahashi was involved: no one thinks the movies are canon. Hell, some of us don’t even see the manga-based anime as canon. Yashah!me was created not to expand Inuyasha’s universe, but for the sole purpose of making money, so it seems to me it’s up to each and every one of us, their audience/costumers, to decide for ourselves if we think it’s canon or not. Personally, Moroha is the only thing I’m keeping with me.

The sentiment of disappointment is mutual and it comes with frustration too, because it would have been so easy to make this work. They had us the moment the design of the trio dropped and if they had shown the original characters just a little bit of respect and had their children actually caring about what happened to them as much as we did, it would have worked. Instead they opted for giving us mystery for the sake of mystery and drowned themseves in a sea of inconsistency.

We were supposed to be thrilled to make theories about who the mother is, not calculating to see if a character is old enough to be a part of the potential list. That’s just messed up. And I know that ruling said character off from the start would compromise a part of the audience, but there’s a difference between not denying something and straight up teasing it for profit knowing exactly what they are doing and the implications of it.

What makes it worse is that the whole “foundation” of the ship they are catering to is that she was supposed to be a woman now. Not longer a child. A whole ass woman, capable of making her own choices. That’s why some people claim in order to justify it. So they were supposed to be working their asses off to put as many distance as possible from the little girl we know to this hypothetical woman. That’s, like, the bare minimum. Yet there they are, portraying her as a kid in the merch, in the opening... even in the screenshot of the scene in which she supposedly gave birth, she looks disturbly young. They didn’t put any effort to properly age her up whatsoever.

So if a loved character such as $esshomaru is now carrying this disgusting label, that’s on Sunrise. If the Inuyasha franchise is gonna be associated with these sickening words from now on, that’s on Sunrise. If we’re divided and fighting, that’s on Sunrise. If people are fleeing the fandom left and right, that’s on Sunrise. If the rating drops and the people enjoying the show don’t get another season, that’s on Sunrise. And on Rumiko too, I’m not giving her a free pass on this.

As for the japanese fans, I just want to say I’m sorry some people felt entitled to speak in your behalf and your people’s. I’m sorry they think they know more about your culture than you do. But I assure you most of us are quite aware your country is made of individuals that can speak and think for themselves, just like, I don’t know... the rest of the fucking world?

We knew from the start this was a cash grab thriving on nostalgia, but like many of you, I lowered my expectations to the core of the earth, told myself it was just a high budget fanfic and was super excited about it... Only to realize by episode four that I’ve read at least 15 better fanfics than this and coming back to reading them would be a better use of my time. So that’s what I did.

At this point, I just want the band-aid to be ripped off already so we can finally move on as a fandom, but they won’t even give us that because they are not done assaulting our wallets. Well, guess what? They didn’t get a penny from me and now I’m gonna make my level best to assure they never will.

And it’s not that I think me not giving them money will change anything, but I’m not doing it to change them, I’m doing it so they don’t change me.

[thelightofthingshopedfor]

so I wrote most of this...four days ago, and then somehow didn’t get around to finishing it until just now, which feels super weird because after writing this I started getting worried about future episodes again for a variety of reasons, and of course now we’re at T minus 10 minutes? (honestly if I’m somehow late for my own funeral I’m pretty sure no one will be surprised.) but I still wanted to post this to go over some of what I liked so much about episode 4, even if...I am no longer anywhere near as confident as I was a few days ago about where the show might be going. whatever.

***

I’ve done almost nothing for the past day or so except chew over episode 4 some more, partly trying to figure out why I liked it so much when it was broadly very divisive, and I realized that a lot of what I’ve been feeling from this episode is relief.

the thing is I’ve been paranoid since at least Infinity War about Marvel doing setup that looks like it’ll lead to a big payoff and then nothing (Loki’s death, but also Gamora’s and maybe Vision’s, and the general fact that the “fix” to IW was convoluted, took place much later, and caused as many problems as it solved, and just, Endgame in general), so I don’t really trust Marvel that way anymore. plus Marvel has pretty badly fumbled a lot of different things in the past, especially on various social issues, by introducing unfortunate implications that apparently didn’t occur to them even though they’re obvious to literally everyone else...stuff like Thanos’s “sacrifice” of Gamora, or how the Flag-Smashers were portrayed and Karli was a villain for no real reason, or how it would’ve been so easy to add a couple lines in WandaVision that would fix the whole thing where the Maximoffs weren’t just whitewashed but they also voluntarily worked with Nazis and they whiffed that too. 

so, while I’ve been enjoying the show, a lot of that enjoyment has been based on meta I’ve seen and me sort of going “this interpretation is really cool and it makes a lot of sense, but at this point I can’t know if it’s something the showrunners are doing on purpose or if they sorta accidentally implied depth where there wasn’t any and it’s not actually leading anywhere” with things like the TVA being very clearly authoritarian but also supposedly the good guys, Loki being constantly described as an awful person, Loki sometimes being manic or incompetent, etc. etc. etc., along with the similar interpretation of “sure, we fans know all this stuff about how Loki is not an awful person actually, thanks, and the people who arrested him aren’t automatically Good Guys just because they’re in opposition to him but casual viewers--including not-casual-but-not-fannish viewers who should really know better--have not figured any of this out and so the show needs to go out of its way to demonstrate things that are obvious to us” but I wasn’t sure. the second half of episode 1 made me feel pretty good about where the show was headed as far as Loki’s characterization and emotions were concerned, but the more lighthearted aspects of 2 and 3 had me wondering again.

so then what happens in this episode?

the TVA goes fully mask off. the Time-Keepers are in fact fake, the Sacred Timeline by extension is also basically fake, the people who work there are all variants, the ones we know (C-20, B-15, Mobius) show grief and anger over the lives that were stolen from them, Sylvie is arrested as a child who did absolutely nothing wrong (and then put through the same process Loki was in episode 1, which is cool because a lot of it was kinda played for laughs then but showing the same things happening to an innocent child also serves to reframe what happened to Loki as, hmm, not that funny after all maybe!), Renslayer is willing to prune innocent people--friends and coworkers, even--just because they learned too much, all the sinister propaganda WAS SUPPOSED TO BE SINISTER

Loki gets very serious very fast in this episode. he displays a lot of genuine emotion and trauma but he mostly does it in a calculated way that shows just how fast his brain works and how he’s always, always thinking about what other people want/expect from him. (like--even the complaint about too few guards seems to fall into that category, given that he only says it after Mobius insists he must be wanting to make some kind of quip!) his self-image is garbage but through Sylvie he’s starting to maybe work on that. he goes up against multiple armed enemies while completely unarmed and holds his own until he gets a weapon. he pushes back when it matters and doesn’t just accept everything Mobius throws at him. he lies, pretty competently (the fact that Mobius doesn’t believe him is...really not his fault, considering Mobius wouldn’t believe him at first about the truth either, so I’m pretty sure he wasn’t planning to believe anything Loki outright told him), when it actually matters, primarily in what sure seems like an attempt to protect someone he cares about.

and Mobius. says that Loki WAS RIGHT. ABOUT THE TVA. FROM THE BEGINNING!!! I would still love to hear him say explicitly, look, I said a lot of shitty things to you and tossed in some actual physical torture at the end there oops but the vast majority of it was stuff I didn’t really mean and was only saying to get a reaction and/or information and of course it turns out I was wrong about all the TVA stuff, so I want to say for the record that I was wrong about you personally in many different ways and I’m sorry. (which, honestly, would probably be very awkward for both of them because I doubt Loki has much experience receiving genuine apologies.) but I’m mostly okay with it if he doesn’t, because I feel like you were right from the beginning, and by the way you can be whatever you want does a decent job of implying most of that. (...enough for casual viewers to pick up on it? well, I’m not hoping for miracles but sure, probably some of them.)

in other words? all that stuff the casual viewers were missing (not helped by misleading statements from the showrunners), about the TVA so clearly being bad guys, and Loki being a pretty decent person who presents different versions of himself in different situations and also has some shitty coping mechanisms, and the other Loki variant also not being evil just because they were trying to take down the TVA? we were right. that is, in fact, how the showrunners intended all those things to be taken. they didn’t want to come right out with that stuff at first because they wanted to tell a story and have some twists, and the fact that these things were twists for casual viewers is exactly why it was frustrating to a lot of fans, because it felt like obvious things were being misrepresented or overlooked. I still think that’s reasonable, because see above on why Marvel doesn’t necessarily deserve that trust, but at this point I’m a lot more comfortable believing that this specific show more or less knows what it’s doing.

I mean, yeah, there were some cool fan theories that went nowhere, like the whole thing with the broken TemPad, and I agree that was dumb and it’s very annoying that it really was just sloppy writing, but I guess specific things like that just...don’t bother me as much as more systemic, overarching elements like the characterization of Loki and the TVA. and yes, of course I’ll always be annoyed that we’re apparently never going to get explicit confirmation that Loki’s alliance with Thanos was coerced at best. but, you know, what we got isn’t nothing. 

[randomidiocyncrazies]

in celebration of the English fan translation of 2.43 reaching the end of the first bunkobon, i present even more of my (unorganized) thoughts about Oda and Aoki...

a thing i really like about book!Oda is that he essentially sees himself as a selfish person, and his relationship with Aoki is more complicated than it seems in the anime. like YuniChika, Oda and Aoki also have problems communicating with each other in a straightforward manner, which is interesting because they appear to function well as a unit in the eyes of their underclassmen

regarding the complications in their relationship, i think 2 pieces of information introduced in Ch 3 of the book illustrates it particularly well: the first is about how Oda became captain (spoiler: he wasn’t originally supposed to!), and the University Consultation Deception shows readers that they are willing to lie or otherwise keep things from each other. Oda regrets that he and Aoki are unable to “punch each other hard and tell each other their true thoughts,” and he is simultaneously grateful for Aoki’s support and jealous of his assets (primarily his height, but also his possession of what seems to be complete self-assuredness to Oda). this is also mixed with a sense of guilt for what he sees as dragging Aoki along with his selfish pursuits, and thinking everything Aoki’s done for him is a debt to be repaid, unable to realize that it’s ultimately Aoki’s choice to support him. (“You don’t have to understand,” which we WILL talk about later.)

the University Consultation Deception in particular highlights that both are hiding things from each other: Aoki doesn’t tell Oda about his goal to get into Kyoto University Law dept, choosing to lie instead (we aren’t explicitly told why Aoki lied, but I think one of the reasons might be because he doesn’t want Oda to let him go early so he could focus on his exams, even if it’s just out of politeness). 

Meanwhile Oda, who had already heard the rumor about Aoki’s future plans but pretended he didn’t know, silently admits that he couldn’t bring it up with Aoki, out of fear that Aoki would in fact choose to retire early and prioritize his studies. he’s also afraid that Aoki would realize that Oda is a “boring person” if you strip volleyball away from him (hence “Hey, do you... enjoy being with me?” in Ch 3.3)

Oda also flat out admits to himself that even if a confrontation about the university happens, he wouldn’t be able to let Aoki go without a fuss; he’d find excuses to make Aoki stay on the team for his “self-serving convenience,” although he also concedes that Aoki would prolong his retirement for as long as possible immediately afterwards and feels guilty for being indebted to Aoki (again).

(but still, it was a shock to find out that Aoki is willing to lie to him when asked point blank.)

When Aoki remarked on Yuni and Chika’s situation at the Ball Game Tournament, saying they should just let YuniChika fight and get everything out in the open, Oda immediately thinks that he and Aoki never got the chance to do that:

Although he and Aoki had their disagreements, they always ended up sidestepping the issue instead of getting into a serious quarrel. Even though Aoki would attack others with a sharp tongue as much as he wanted when necessary, but when it came to Oda, he would take a step back. He didn’t have to retract his opinion if there was something he didn’t like about the possibility of Haijima joining the team. I’m not such a tyrant that I won’t respect the opinion of the vice captain.

Oda still wasn’t convinced about how he was chosen as captain in the first place. Whenever Aoki gave him his due because he was the captain, it stimulated a deep sense of inferiority within him.

(2.43 S1 Chapter 3.5)

it turns out that Oda was not recommended for captain by their upperclassmen, and they had wanted Aoki instead, due to his analytical mind and ability to be cool under pressure. they also recommended Oda to switch to playing libero instead of a spiker, because they genuinely think Oda can get more out of the sport in that position. Oda was humiliated by this, which Aoki noticed.

so Aoki suddenly joined the student council and took advantage of school rules surrounding club activities to make sure Oda became the only candidate suitable for captaincy within the team, which meant he cannot be reassigned as a libero as per the school rules. this feeds further into Oda’s insecurities, and he's upset because it feels like only reason he got the position was because Aoki didn’t want it:

What’s with you? Do you pity me, who never grew taller? Or do tall guys have the freedom to do whatever they want? He was furious. However, he was unable to lay bare such ugly emotions in front of Aoki, and in the end it didn’t turn into a serious conflict at the time. The comfortable relationship that they had since they started high school had somehow created a wall instead, and there was an atmosphere where it would be too awkward to share their feelings at this point.

Although Aoki was his best friend and a trustworthy partner who was more easy to get on with than anyone, he also harbored a strangely twisted gloominess towards him.

(2.43 S1 Chapter 3.5)

as for why Aoki did it... while in the epilogue Aoki does think “no, I think you are a pretty unfortunate person,” pity isn’t why he does all this for Oda (if it were only pity, it would have burned out long ago). just as Chika’s volleyball changed Yuni’s world, Oda’s (passion for) volleyball changed Aoki’s. In Aoki’s mind there is nobody more deserving of being captain, but ironically Aoki’s respect and devotion seems to have created the opposite feeling in Oda, who feels indebted the more he does for him. 

it’s also really interesting that, although Oda feels guilty receiving Aoki’s help, he also isn’t afraid to ask for it, knowing that Aoki would support him. i feel like Oda’s willingness to rely on Aoki, even though he feels conflicted about it, is pretty refreshing in these kinds of narratives, especially when they technically still haven’t “fought and told each other their true thoughts” directly.

During this ball game tournament, which included preparations, while Oda was just saying he wanted Haijima like a spoiled brat, just how hard was Aoki working, even using his influence, for the sake of the whole team? Even though he supposedly didn’t agree with having Haijima join the team, he considered Oda’s feelings and took action like it was a matter of course. [...] 

[...] The prodigy who had student council duties, and who on top of that could get accepted to Kyoto University, probably had any number of things he could do besides volleyball, unlike Oda. He felt a deep sense of guilt that because he invited Aoki that day—because they were “Aoki” and “Oda”, an unexpected intrusion came into Aoki’s life.

“Ah, hey…thanks for everything…”

It was too embarrassing to say it now after two years, and he couldn’t look him in the eyes. He was grateful for the gap between their lines of sight right then. Every time he was helped, it only deepened his own sense of inferiority, and he had never thanked him face-to-face until now.

Good grief, it’s not just my outside, I’m also tiny and worthless on the inside.

“But, sorry…you’re going to have to go along with my selfishness for just a little longer.”

His debt would increase even more in the future. It seemed that Aoki won’t be able to concentrate on his exams for a while yet.

“…That’s just like you.” Aoki mumbled to himself, his head still turned away. [...] “You’re giving me too much credit, I feel guilty now. Playing volleyball with you is what I want to do right now, and I’m not doing it unwillingly. I don’t need to be thanked at all. I’ve been saying this since before, but me not liking Haijima is completely my personal feelings, and I’m the one who’s just being selfish. I don’t really care about going to university or not, and I don’t mind if you want me to lower my rank so we can go to the same place… I’m basically just driven by my ulterior motives.”

“Ulterior motives?”

[...]

“…You don’t have to understand.”

Aoki raised his head slowly [...] Then, he turned towards him and lifted the edge of his mouth. 

“Let’s go to the Spring Tournament. I’ll follow you until the end.”

For Oda, that thin, ironic smile was more reliable and trustworthy than anything.

(2.43 S1 Chapter 3.5)

a few things about that conversation: 1) it feels like Aoki just confessed to Oda... imo the entire conversation is Loaded with Implications™ (particularly his “ulterior motives,” the willingness to throw away his chance to get into the top school in Japan as soon as Oda gives an indication that he wants them to attend the same university, and “you don’t have to understand”)

2) it’s interesting that both Aoki and Oda both remarked that the other wouldn’t be able to understand them in this chapter: while talking to Chika about volleyball, Oda thought that “Aoki wouldn’t understand this much either,”* because ultimately Aoki’s devotion isn’t for the sport. and at the end of the chapter, Aoki essentially acknowledged that Oda wouldn’t understand his motives either, because while Aoki looks at Oda and sees the sun, Oda isn’t able to comprehend that he, with his passion and determination, changed Aoki’s life—and even when Oda feels inferior, Aoki thinks he’s the coolest, strongest super ace *in the published Chinese translation, the line is rendered as “Even Aoki wouldn’t be able to understand. He’d understand that it’s just who I am as a person, but he wouldn’t be able to feel what I feel.” 

3) i must stress the fact that, IMMEDIATELY AFTER Oda berated himself for his selfishness, he asks Aoki to go along with his selfishness for a little longer... the man knows what he wants (to play in the Spring Tournament)

[soyouareandrewdobson]

Andy on Asian Animation or SYAC: The Master Review 2

Let’s talk a bit about anime and Dobson’s work relation with it.

I think we can all agree, that starting from the late 90s and early 2000s on, anime and manga became extremely popular in the western world. Sure, Japanese animation was nothing completely new to us (Speed Racer, Nadia-Secret of Blue Water, Samurai Pizza Cats, Sailor Moon, Kimba and Akira e.g. come to my mind as properties already known in the west before 1995) but it really was around this time that thanks to “mainstream” stuff like Dragon Ball and Pokemon people became aware of how different Japanese animation was from western. Eventually resulting in the really good shit (like Cowboy Bebop, Black Lagoon, Kenshin and Heat Guy J) coming over and enriching nerd culture for more than just a few people who knew of it as an obscurity at that point. Now, if you know anything about Dobson, you likely know that his relationship with anime is rather… complicated to say the least. Or, to let him explain it with his own words…

Dobson essentially likes silly and wacky 90s anime. But later on he hated anime in general, because it got too popular and a bad experience with an anime club in college soured his enjoyment of it. Furthermore, he put the blame on his lackluster art style and storytelling capabilities as seen in the likes of Formera, Patty and Alex ze Pirate, on anime in general, while also claiming that Disney pulling the plug on 2D animation is the result of the “anime inspired” Treasure Planet, meaning anime in a sense deprived him of his chance at working at his dream job and “ruining” western animation.

Which to me has always been ignorant as fuck. For starters, I can understand not liking certain stories or genres, either for objective or subjective reasons. But to hate on an entire nation’s form of entertainment (not just individual shows or genres), depriving yourself of the chance of potentially watching a lot of good stuff while also being rather insulting to these other works and people enjoying them? Especially when the stuff you can supposedly “stomach” has been rather simplistic compared to other things?

 Second, blaming Japan for “poisoning” your art style? What, did the ghost of Osamu Tezuka possess you and FORCE you to put sweatdrops on your characters forehead while also going for the rather simplistic character style of Rumiko Takahashi, as well as emulating the slapstick of the likes as Slayers and Ranma ½?

 Next, if he had emulated them successfully, I say he would have actually managed to tell decent enough stories worth to read online. Not create Uncle Peggy aka “Discount Happosai” or the bland proto-Isekai known as Formera.

I mean, let’s give some context here: There have been people who successfully managed to emulate certain anime and manga aesthetics into western animation and make it work. Otherwise we wouldn’t have gotten the likes of Avatar-The last Airbender, Samurai Jack, the Animatrix, Thundercats 2011, Super Robot Monkey Hyperforce Go, Kim Possible, W.I.T.C.H, Megas XLR and Wakfu. You know, shows that are actually awesome as hell.

Heck, Dobson’s favorite animated show of the last decade, Steven Universe, is heavily inspired by anime aesthetics to the point of being embarrassing.

 But Dobson… well, he emulated anime aesthetics in his work the same way as these crimes against animation did.

Combined with his general shortcomings as a storyteller it is no wonder his initial comics did not do well.

 Lastly, and sorry for digressing here a bit, but if the Wikipedia entry on Treasure Planet is something to go by, there was no real inspiration by anime involved in making this movie.

Supposedly the idea of making an animated Treasure Planet in outer space movie was already pitched by Ron Clements WAY BACK in 1985 but only came to be after Michael Eisner greenlighted stuff in the late 90s. Design wise the movie was supposed to look 70% traditional and 30% sci-fi inspired and people took inspiration for the art style by illustrators associated with the Brandywine School of Illustration. A western style of illustration established in the 19th century, that had a big impact on the illustration styles for many 19th and early 20th century adventure novels and short stories.

What, is anime supposed to be the only form of animation allowed to have sci fi elements or steampunk in it? Fucks sake, The Lion King and Atlantis, which came out one year earlier to Treasure Planet, were likely more inspired by anime. Don’t believe me? Watch Atlantis and then a certain anime by Studio Gainax called “Nadia-Secret of Blue Water”. Or read up on the controversy surrounding the two.

The truth is, it is not entirely clear what caused Disney to shut down 2D feature film animation in the early 2000s. In fact, if anything, most people put the blame on Michael Eisner and a certain change in the publics taste in movies in general, combined with Disney trying to turn almost every movie they had into a franchise via cheap follow up movies on video and DVD.

And even if Disney did not shut down, are we really supposed to believe that a certain guy with fedora would have made it big at Disney to the point Alex ze Pirate would have been made into a feature film?

But Dobson could never quite understand this and instead of “reinventing” himself properly, he would rant about anime and its fans in one form or another…

 And on the peak of his hissy fit create this little art piece he baptized Anime Sux. Alternatively “West vs East”. Or as I like to call it, slap a jap.

Now, the pic was done in 2008 and Dobson claimed sometimes in the last decade, that he no longer holds his old opinions. Unfortunately, by that point he would also more or less use the chance to vent in his webcomic about anime (or rather its fans), which brings us finally back to SYAC.

 While Dobson never outright thematized in more detail WHY he hates anime and manga in SYAC (likely cause if his comic reasoning was even slightly like his reasoning in his blogs, people would have torn him apart like a bag of paper) he did use the format to punch down on anime fans and their preferences.

 For example, for someone who has a 4chan story going around of having been rather arrogant towards others in college for not liking Ranma ½, Dobson has THIS little college related comic to show off, where he portrays an aspiring manga artist as a delusional jackass.

Then in this strip titled manga, his manga fan is essentially portrayed as a young woman dressing up like a very stereotypical high school anime girl, who is in the wrong for even just DARING to draw her comics in the direction manga are read.

On one hand, I get Dobson’s point. She could be at risk of alienating a market of readers as she is obviously drawing for a western audience. Then again, if she doesn’t draw a traditional western comic but a manga, why shouldn’t she? I mean, as long as she enjoys it, which I assume she does as she seems genuinely just happy when stating that she likes manga, why not let her? Plus, this comic was drawn in the late 2000s. I think by then most people kinda knew how to read from right to left, so Dobson’s claim she would alienate or confuse people is kinda redundant. If anything I find a) Dobson getting angry at her just very petty (just let her have fun) and b) portraying a western manga fan as someone who would be confused by the sheer idea of reading stuff from right to left is also in itself just really dumb and insulting. What is Dobson trying to imply? That anime fans are so stuck in the way they consume certain media, they can’t act according to “western standards” again?

Then there is this strip where yet another female anime fan is essentially portrayed as the embodiment of how “ignorant” manga fans are of the idea of different art styles...

Which becomes rather laughable once Dobson describes his style as a mixture of European, American and  Japanese. Why? Because he is the one oversimplifying things, rather than the anime fan.

You see while anime and manga of all sorts do share certain aesthetics (like the black and white art style, emphasize on the eyes of characters, the way hair is drawn, recurring tropes within certain genres and so on) style wise (both in art and storytelling) there can be severe differences, depending on the artist alone. Akira Toriyama’s style differentiates significantly from the likes of Eichiro Oda, Rumiko Takahashi, Kentaro Miura, Tezuka, Kaori Yuki and so forth.

The same also goes for many western artists. Herge had a significantly different style from Uderzo and Goscinny. Don Rosa has a different style in which he drew Scrooge McDuck than Carl Barks did. Rob Liefeld and Jim Lee draw mainstream superheroes differently compared to how Jack Kirby, George Perez and others did. Heck, Ethan Van Sciver and Jim Lee were closely associated with Green Lantern in the 2000s and look how they differentiate.

 Which btw is the kind of skill level Dobson would have needed to have, to make it in the mainstream industry

So when Dobson says “I draw in a combination of American, Western and Japanese” all I can think is the following: THAT DOESN’T NARROW IT DOWN! WHAT THE HECK HAVE YOU LEARNT IN COLLEGE ABOUT COMICS? WHICH ARTISTS, WORKS AND STORYTELLERS DO YOU TRY TO EITHER EMULATE OR HAVE BEEN INSPIRED BY?

Then there is this little thing…

Where do I even begin? How about the fact that Dobson’s hand in the last panel looks like he has lost a thumb? The fact that the little boy, anime fan or not, is aware of Sae Sawanoguchi, a character from a short lived OVA and anime series from the 90s, which considering his age, I kinda doubt he would be aware off. Unlike Dobson, who got into anime in the 90s and admits in fact within the posts I loaded up earlier, that he had watched the anime in particular, known in the west as Magic User Club.

Then there is the implication by Dobson, that anime is so “corruptive” as a medium, little kids don’t even know the most basic characters in western animation because of it. I expect in a next panel, that all of sudden some 50s PSA guy comes along and lectures me that if I want this kind of thing not to happen at MY convention, I need to teach little kids more about the GOOD western animation, instead of the BAD eastern one. Then there is this rather unflattering portrayal of a shonen ai/shojou ai fangirl…

 Which makes me laugh cause honestly, even some of the worst shonen ai and shojou ai can do better in portraying a “realistic” gay relationship than Patty if you ask me.

Also, as much as I think fangirls can be extremely thirsty (I have read my fair share of extremely stupid yaoi and yuri fanfics) I think that in hindsight Dobson is really not anyone to complain about shipping obsession and sex when he himself has KorraSami, the Ladybug fandom and a certain rat pirate under his floppy belt.

As you can imagine, Dobson would get heat for those comics, considering how he himself has been greatly inspired by anime and manga for his major comics. And while I don’t have any explicit deviantart posts of him reacting to criticism in that regard, I do have this comic which addresses it directly.

 And yeah, if I were schoolgirl number 4, I would just sigh and walk away after telling Dobson that his mistakes and shortcomings are not related to having consumed anime, but rather by what sort of anime (and other stories) he had consumed and the amount of effort he had put in creating his stories instead of emulating just something more popular. Plus, if you really want people to draw more from life, how about drawing more from life yourself down the line? And no, tracing Star Wars movie frames does not count.

Finally, Dobson, considering how very little most people think of your work, I say mission accomplished: People have learnt from your mistakes and know not to be a Dobson.

And at last, there is this comic, which kinda wraps up Dobson’s “vendetta” with anime and manga fans within the pages of SYAC.

By trying to mock anime fans and make them look just as shallow as he is. I at least suppose. Honestly, the message of this comic is rather muddled. On one hand, I would say the strawman accusing Dobson hates anime just because it is popular is very simplified. After all, Dobson has made his reasons for not liking anime clear in a few more details. It’s just that the details in and on themselves in real life are still rather shallow and boil down to a lot of personal bias rather than an objective criticism of actual flaws. Which I think is worth pointing out.

But frankly, what is Dobson trying to say or point out here? That the strawman is not so different or even dumber than him, because he hates Justin Bieber for “shallow” and superficial reasons too?

Okay, this doesn’t quite work as well as Dobson wants. First, the argument Dobson’s strawman makes is in huge parts based on some verified statements Dobson made for not liking anime. Second, he just says a name and that triggers the guy to express his hatred for Bieber. We don’t know why the guy hates Bieber and you could make in fact the case, that he hates him not because he is popular, but because he has a genuine issue with the artist, his work or his behavior as a human being. Third, if you want to make yourself look like the better person Dobson, try to argue with the guy and make solid arguments why you don’t like anime. Instead you just deflect the criticism by changing the subject and then try to make yourself look like the “smarter” person in the room by mocking your critic in the most condescending manner.

Which as I think about it, sounds like your modus operandi on twitter and tumblr.

Weirdly enough, that more or less marks the “end” of Dobson tackling anime fans and the beef he has with them within the pages of SYAC. Despite how much Dobson’s negative reputation especially in early years was build around him hating on anime and belittling its fans, he didn’t really do more afterwards in the Dobson focused pages of SYAC. And mind you, those strips were also separated by other strips in-between, focused on Dobson just being at conventions.

Unfortunately for him, the strips didn’t really help in any way to diminish that negative reputation and instead just confirmed for many, that Dobson can’t handle criticism about his flawed opinion on anime. If anything, it just made people think even less of Dobson, as the strips just painted him as someone who would rather portray his critics as strawman he can be “rightfully” annoyed at, instead of fellow humans with slightly different tastes in entertainment, who are still worth listening to.

So, now that we have the anime fan related “annoyances” out of the way, what other sort of silly problems in making webcomics would Dobson cover in his strips and are “relatable” to everyone?

Lets see some of these examples in the next part.

[chalkrevelations]

Well. Episode 34 of Word of Honor, and, oh.

(Spoilers. Scroll on by and come back later if you want to watch it unspoiled.)

Oh. No. NO, show. Only A-Xiang is supposed to make me cry, so fuck you, Zhou Zishu, with your SAD LITTLE FACE, oh my god, why don’t you just pull my heart out of my chest, throw it down in the dirt and stomp on it? It would be kinder than having to watch you deal with the implications of whatever it is, precisely, you’ve done to yourself that means you’re expecting to drop dead any day and lose your chance at lifetime happiness with your soulmate but are hiding from everyone. (Well, I guess it’s your turn to be hiding something, because it looks like everyone in the jianghu except you was in on at least some part of Wen Kexing’s plan.)

So, the first thing that struck me in this ep is the way ZZS sits at the table at the post-Hero’s Conference meal drinking session, hunched over, like his bones are made of shattered glass, and here’s the thing: He’s absolutely just had a serious emotional blow. But also, this is a guy who’s terminally ill and in chronic pain, and we saw that repeatedly for about the first two-thirds of the show, and then the emphasis on it kind of slacked off. And I’m thinking now that maybe it wasn’t just slack writing or WKX playing his xiao in the rain through the nights at Four Seasons Manor like the worst emo kid ever that helped, that maybe some of the progression of the deadening of ZZS’s senses might have offered him some relief, but whatever it was, I’m wondering if whatever he’s done now – I presume pulled out those gd Nails - has exacerbated everything all over again. I cannot believe that at least Wu Xi can’t look at the way he’s moving and holding himself at the table and see that he’s not just stone-cold angry and emotionally hurt about being left out of the loop, he’s in physical pain. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s a little like being stabbed in the chest when he gets confirmation that Chengling and WKX were in on WKX’s “death” together while he was in the dark and believed this asshole actually died on him. But I also think we’re getting physical pain ramped up again from him; there’s a hesitation and delicacy of movement that speaks of someone who’s judging their movements and maintaining a high level of control, because if they do make a wrong move, everything could just explode into agony. I also noticed the way he clutches his cup when A-Xiang starts explaining how WKX made a deal with Xie Wang in order to rescue ZZS from Tian Chuang, and I can’t for the life of me figure out if it’s having to hear about WKX finding himself in that position in order to save him, or if it’s A-Xiang calling him “Sick Dude” at a moment when that’s going to press right on one of the tenderest, most vulnerable places. Because, god, everyone else at this table who even knows about his terminal illness still thinks that Wu Xi is going to be able to fix him. And here’s where ZZS apparently is a better person than me, because I don’t know that I wouldn’t have an absolute breakdown and end up throwing it in WKX’s face that if he had just told me what was going on, maybe I wouldn’t be about to drop dead tomorrow and leave him alone for the rest of his life, asshole. But no! His zhiji’s happiness is so important to ZZS, that he’s not going to say a word about it! It’s more important than his own life, that his shidi has been able to avenge his parents while keeping his own hands (relatively) clean of any more sins. He’s going to continue to be there, to be whatever WKX needs him to be, for however few days he has left. I won’t fail you. (Even when you fail me). Here’s the thing though – at some point, you’re going to drop dead, Zhou Zishu. And apparently you’re going to leave WKX completely unprepared for it, so I don’t know that you’re doing him any favors being the one who’s hiding something, this time around. And oh my god, I just realized something – you made him drink three pots of liquor as a punishment – was that to get him so blind drunk he wouldn’t notice the Nails were gone? You realize you have to tell him at some point, right?

ANYWAY, WKX gets sloppy drunk and stumbles into their(? has everyone just given up any pretense at this point?) bedroom, and first of all, can I take a minute to flail over the way ZZS pushes drunk WKX’s hair back off of his shoulder? Can I? Because I rewound and re-watched that 2 seconds of the show three times. But then, then, WKX starts drunken rambling about how happy he is, and how scared he’d been that he wasn’t worthy of ZZS, and tears start welling up in ZZS’s stupid eyes, and WKX starts talking about how finding ZZS made him a whole new person, and ZZS’s stupid precious face gets SO SAD, and I start fucking welling up too, and then WKX talks about his parents and their shifu, and ZZS presses WKX’s head to his chest and gives us his stupid sad little smile, and I’m literally clutching my shirt hem in inarticulate pain and distress by this point, and then ZZS starts to break down as he holds WKX’s hand as WKX finally falls asleep, and he gives that stupid shaky sobbing little gasp, and just UGH. I’m DYING here, show. Also, how did you manage to do this to me with just your face, Zhang Zhehan? I’m not sure I can take the next couple of episodes, when the whole Nails dilemma is sure to come out.

Second big takeaway of this ep is that I just … oh my god. I cannot with you, Xie’er, holy shit. And I say this in a completely loving yet utterly aghast way. Was it absolutely necessary to literally sit on Awful Yifu’s lap? I’m reduced to a state of horrified laughter over the envelope pushing. The absolute fuckery of the power dynamic fluctuations of the Zhao Jing/Xie Wang relationship at this point … it’s something. It’s finally reached a point where it’s so fucky and complex that I may have to go looking for some fic, despite my general desire to punt Awful Yifu into the sun. I do have to say that the whole (one-sided) conversation when Xie’er finally let everything out was super-cathartic. Go off with your unfilial self, Xie’er. Li Daikun has been amazing all through this, and he’s continuing to maintain a perfect balance as we move toward the finish line. I’ve heard he was offered Wen Kexing and supposedly didn’t want to take the role because he didn’t think he was ready for it? And while I absolutely appreciate Gong Jun and the chemistry between ZZS and WKX that he built with Zhang Zhehan, I’m flabbergasted that Li Daikun was able to pull off Xie’er like this, yet thought he couldn’t manage WKX ... and I have to admit, I kind of would like to see what WKX would have been in his hands. I’ve also heard a rumor that they’re talking about maybe filming an origin story for Xie Wang? I … am torn, because on the one hand, more Xie’er, but on the other, more Awful Yifu. Anyway, I think we’re continuing to see a whole tangle of resonances between Xie’er, Wen Kexing, and Zhou Zishu, and the awful men in their lives who helped make them who they are today; there’s something of a contrast between Zhou Zishu, who, maybe significantly, was older and had some grounding from his Four Seasons shifu when he got tangled up with Prince Jin and Tian Chuang and who was willing to gnaw off his own leg to get out of the trap (and only finally struck back because he was forcibly taken back) and the other two, one of whom killed and … dismembered? flayed? his abuser before taking his literal throne, and the other of whom turned his abuser into a muted … piece of furniture? sex toy? before taking his figurative throne. Xie’er is about five steps behind Wen Kexing on a parallel path, and maybe there’s still time for him to untangle some of the fuckery in his head about his awful yifu. But meanwhile, there it is: You failed me. Xie’er, you’re breaking my heart, but I feel like I have to point out, again, this is the guy who is literally responsible for the existence of the Department of the Unfaithful. I did have a brief moment when I was convinced Xie’er was poisoning himself and Awful Yifu in a murder-suicide move, but then we got lap-sitting instead? Which could have made me think we were getting some kind of reversion to wanting to feel safe, like a kid able to (finally) sit in his father’s lap and play at comfort, but then he went and made it – let’s be honest – a little weird.

Last really big takeaway for me from this ep is that A-Xiang and I continue to be simpatico, because lady, I also have a very very bad feeling about Fan Shishu’s absence in this wedding “party” from the Gentle Wind Sword Sect, and watching your dawning realization at the end of the episode when he doesn’t show up and doesn’t show up and doesn’t show up as the group enters only confirmed my suspicions that something is UP. Am I supposed to expect a fakeout to Mo Huaiyang’s haranguing speech to Cao Weining, with a wrap-up of “But since you clearly love her so much and want to be a good influence …” Because I won’t believe it. And I’m not going to be happy or comfortable until we see the back of this asshole, because speaking of somebody who says everything with his face, Mo Huaiyang was NOT happy when Ye Baiyi called off the rest of the Heroes Conference, after his horse in the race had already been completely repudiated and he lost whatever chance he had at gaining power and influence on Zhao Jing’s back. Even if he did come all this way – bearing gifts – just to tell Cao Weining he’s an ungrateful brat and to never darken the door of Gentle Wind Sword Sect, it would still be a jerkass thing to do. But I don’t trust him as far as I could spit, and my only question at this point is whether all of Cao Weining’s shidi who came with him to the wedding are in on whatever bs Mo Huaiyang’s planning to pull.

A couple other random things:

Oh, so A-Xiang’s two moms are going to stay together for the rest of their lives, are they? And Liu Qianqiao is even like, “Loser Boyfriend? I don’t know him.” Followed by a cut to Luo Fumeng and her vaguely smug reaction. I’m dying.

No one’s going to say anything about this random body that Wen Kexing used for his plan? Just, you know, went to the store or something and picked out a random body? I realize it’s very late in the game to be getting moralistic about the adorable merciless killers, but come on, man. I also think we have once again overused the infodump. I realize we only have 35 episodes, but some of this explanation of WKX’s very complex plan should have been shown, not told. Anyway, cue series of flashbacks to finally explain how the whole Rube Goldberg plan was put in place, and ah-hah! WKX, himself, talked to Chengling ahead of time. I notice that in that flashback scene and the one when he talks to Ye Baiyi, he’s prominently still wearing That Hairpin, so we’ll realize this all got set into motion before ZZS was rescued and brought home.

Finally, why has everyone seem to have forgotten (still) about that KEY that WKX was waving around? No one’s going to mention it? Really?

And now, I think I’m going to fortify myself with some bourbon for the next ep.

[ladymoonveil]

Mulan: A Case of Failed Empowerment | Video Essay This is an excellent video essay that pretty much sums up how I feel about the new Mulan movie.  I highly recommend giving it a watch if you’re interested in learning some things about the tale of Mulan and why the new adaptation is such a fail.  While I was disappointed that they are removing all the songs and characters like Mushu and Shang, I was open to the idea of a more character-driven, historically accurate portrayal of Mulan.  Sadly, this was not the case at all, and the end result was subpar to say the least.  It lacked emotional depth, and if anything the characters are even LESS developed than in the cartoon.

Some additional things not mentioned in the video, is that it feels like Disney tried to make a wuxia film without understanding the fundamentals of the genre, which is why it came off so inauthentic. Right off the bat, the addition of this “witch” character who was “born with powers” is something that you see much more often in Western fantasy compared to Chinese folklore or fiction. ��(Also, if you’re going to establish this super powerful witch character in your movie, maybe don’t kill her off in the lamest way possible?  You inserted a female character who was subservient to her male master, and killed her at the hands of this male master.  That's a bad take in a movie supposedly about female empowerment, Disney.)

Even though wuxia can contain fantastical elements, the majority of a character’s skills/powers/“magic” would come from them going through years of training, usually by studying texts or learning from a particular school of martial arts.  This is regardless of the character’s moral alignment, as both antagonists and protagonists achieve their success through hard work.  (The only exception is if we are talking about monsters or spirits which are magical entities by nature, but the movie makes it clear that the witch is a human.)

The way "qi" is used in this film also feels ridiculous and cringy. No one would talk about her having a "strong qi" or say things like "only men should use their qi" etc.  It feels like someone randomly plucked a word from wuxia vernacular then proceeded to use it in all the wrong ways.  On the other hand, I've seen some complaints about the characters scaling the sides of the walls, and want to clarify that is a common element in wuxia.  The wall scaling is not a problem since they are clearly going for wuxia in terms of fighting abilities, rather than Chinese historical fiction.  

The original movie also touches on the horrors of war very effectively, such as the abrupt transition from a song sequence to Mulan coming across the doll in the burned-down village. When you realize that "the girl worth fighting for" is not a dream bride at home but other little girls like Mulan, suddenly the stakes are much higher. The live-action adaptation really doesn't have half the emotional impact when it comes to things like this.  The dialogue leaves much to be desired, and I'm low-key salty at the fact that they gave Mulan's "You said you trust Ping; why is Mulan any different?" line to a male soldier instead. (When the emperor accepted the duel with Bori Khan, something that would NEVER happen, it made me facepalm so hard.)

I also don’t understand the reasoning behind removing Mushu, when they literally have a phoenix flying around on screen every 20 minutes.  It’s such blatant symbolism that it loses all meaning due to its lack of subtility.  One of my favourite sequences in the cartoon is when Mulan decides to take her father’s place while sitting beneath the statue of the Great Dragon, and the implication that the Great Dragon didn’t wake up when called because it was already within Mulan.  SHE is the guardian of the Hua family, and I didn’t need to see the great dragon constantly appear beside her in order to infer that.

Regarding the architecture, the emperor’s palace is fairly well done.  But the building that Mulan and her family live in is a distinctively Southern Chinese Tulou that’s unique to the Hakka people, while Mulan is from Northern China.  It feels like they just went with something that “looked cool” instead of historically/geographically accurate.

Overall, Disney not only failed to capture the emotional depth and energy of the cartoon, they also failed to make a movie with any cultural authenticity.  (After finding out that none of the writers or directors had a Chinese background, I understood why.)   This is especially disappointing because of how important the Mulan cartoon is to me.

I’m honestly not sure who they made this movie for, because they stripped out everything I liked from the original, and is too “Westernized” and inaccurate for fans of historical Chinese dramas.   (Mulan removing her armour and taking down her hair before going back into battle was a pointless reveal that would have only obscured her vision, because both men and women had long hair back then.  These are simple things they would have known if they just consulted someone who knows the history and culture.)  Even looking at it from a wuxia standpoint, they’ve missed the mark because they don’t really understand the genre and how characters should be developed.  

Lastly, can I just say they interpreted the Tang dynasty makeup in the ugliest way possible?  I don’t want Fan Bing Bing level glamour makeup, but it’s like they tried their hardest to make everyone look bad.  I can squint and maaaayybe give Mulan a pass, but what in the hell is up with the Matchmaker?  She looks absolutely horrible, and more like a witch than the actual witch character. 🤦‍♀️

For anyone interested in a scene by scene analysis which goes much more in-depth about all of the cultural inaccuracies, I also recommend this video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3QKq24e0HM

[msbeccieboo]

Arrow 8x09 Brain Dump

It was...not all bad. I really want to like this. I love Mia, William and FTA. I want to enjoy BS like I did in S7. I want to see Dinah written consistently with any kind of actual character. Well, at least my love for FTA is still intact 😂😂

Mia

Kat was brilliant in this episode. Her leading lady really jumped out 😂😂 Her emotional moments hit the mark, and I think she juggled her post-Crisis new life with her old memories brilliantly.

We opened on her waking up in the Queen mansion(!), with a very yummy Diggle Jr in her bed, only it’s JJ not Connor 😱😱 She’s also surrounded by adorable family photos, showing that Oliver got his wish of her and William growing up together (and confirmation that the Olicity Love Cabin still existed!) Basically, she’s living the best life that Oliver could have wished for her, without him in it, of course 😭

Probably the most notable change in ‘new Mia’ (other than her being infinitely happier and living in a crime-free city) was her social poise. She’s been brought up in Oliver Queen’s old world, and is quite the socialite, only without any of the haughty frivolity that one might expect (I imagine we have Felicity for that 😍). She loves her life and her friends, and she defends them, especially in the face of Laurel, who seemingly does nothing but scoff at her lifestyle for the whole episode 😒 I loved her addressing the press!! That was pure Queen! Maybe the influence of a certain Aunt Thea?

Source: feilcityqueen

More below the cut…

Basically this Mia is smart and loving and happy, and Oliver gave her a warm and otherwise full life, save for finding her true purpose (which is gonna be vigilanteing, of course). So of course BS and Dinah rock up and upend it all 😂 I really liked how they made the returning of Mia’s memories a source of conflict, as well they should. It was so brutal to just return them with no preamble, to destroy what happiness Oliver had given back to her, just because, what? BS couldn’t complete her own fucking mission? (More of that later lol) Then Mia standing up to BS when she went as far as to mock Mia’s new world, just gave me life!!!

Anyway, with her memories restored, and bad guys to track down, of course Mia couldn’t resist her heroic calling and suited up, then proceeded to be the epic badass that we have grown to love.

Source: kathmcnamara

I loved seeing her struggle with her memories returning, and the guilt that they brought with them of not living up to Oliver’s legacy. At the same time, she appreciates what Oliver did for her, that all he wanted for his family and the city was to be safe and happy. She ultimately decides to remain the Green Arrow, taking up the guard of her city in her father’s memory, to protect the new world that he sacrificed himself to create.

Source: felicityqueen

We’d seen she’d developed her ‘street smarts’ in the flash-forwards, so I think she’ll end up bringing these together with her new social skills, and badass moves, and be an unstoppable force!! Hopefully that will include her old FTA team as well, and not just the two feathered ones 🙄

FTA/JJ

God this needed more FTA.

We got a small amount of William, more of JJ, what with him being Mia’s fiance (!!), and little more than fleeting glances of Zoe (!) and Connor. The disrespect!! 😂

William (who even knows his surname in this new life?) continues to hold my whole heart in his hands 😍😍

Source: oliverxfelicity

LOOK AT HIM!!!!💗💗💗

He seems to have been least affected in terms of his character, post-crisis. It’s implied that he’s running Smoak Tech, and that he and Mia grew up together and are basically each others’ ride-or-dies 😭😍😭 

I truly hope if the show is picked up, that they increase the William content by a solid 1000% 😂 He brings so much heart and a certain humour and lightness, just like Felicity brought to Arrow, and Ben is such an amazing actor. The new show will need a William. BADLY. He really seems to have his shit together (in the very limited time we have seen him of course 😒), but I’m hoping that that doesn’t lead to Mia keeping her memories from him for long (although remembering who their Dad is, I’m guessing she could take a while 😂😂).

So JJ proposes to Mia at the beginning of the episode!!!! Apparently they are the love of each others lives here. Dig clearly learned from what Connor told him, and steered JJ away from becoming a murdering gangster...YAY! Although it seems that in doing so, our darling boy Connor ran into a few issues of his own 😫😫 It looks like there is no love lost between him and Mia, that he has been in and out of rehab, and is now somewhat of a bad boy 😏😏 But when they first lock eyes there is still definite history and heat there and, just HJJHDFVGDFK 🔥 BACKSTORY IS NEEDED!! Then at the end, JJ has his memories restored by scary-dude-in-cloak (who I was totally hoping would be Dig or Oliver tbh 😂), so I’m super interested to see how he copes with his dual memories!! So now Mia loves JJ, but knows he was evil and killed Zoe, and she hated Connor, but now remembers they had feelings for each other and that he is a beautiful soul, and all the shit is gonna hit the fan!!! I usually hate love triangles, but this is so exciting, with the good boy/bad boy switch up, and then the opposite memories being returned...YAAAAASSSS!! Although I’d like to make it clear that, whilst I’m going to enjoy the drama getting there, I am firmly in the SmoaknHawke end game camp!! 

And as excited as I just got, all of this took up just about 5 mins of screen time 😫😫 It reminds me of what Arrow was lacking in its early episodes...heart and hope. They lucked into it with Felicity/Emily, but they have it here, ready and waiting, and are so far not using it.

Kat knows what’s what. This is the show we deserve. 

Birds

There was a lot of bird action. Apparently in shaping a perfect future, Oliver saw fit that Mia never met BS or Dinah...this is why we stan 😂😂 Dinah has also seemingly been erased from the history books 😬, waking up after Oliver’s funeral (😒😭) 20 years in the future, so naturally becomes a bohemian, opens a bar and sings a lot. Cool, I’d probably do the same 😂😂 Laurel, it seems, went off to spend time with Sara, and has apparently become a solo time-traveller, trying to stop 2041 from becoming a really bad year. Righto. 

Dinah was actually ok in this episode, if not hugely out of character, but that in itself has been inconsistent throughout the show, so here’s hoping that the zen-filled peacemaker that she was in this episode continues! Dinah’s new-found peace and bearability seemingly comes at the cost of Laurel being utterly awful. She rocked up in the future like Billy Big Bollocks with a huge chip on her shoulder, just sneering her way through the episode. She had such bitterness, disdain and anger directed towards Mia (and Dinah, at times) for no apparent reason, when they seemed to have somewhat bonded previously?! She spent the majority of the episode sauntering around looking down on everyone, portraying a bitchy-tomboy type, deeming anything vaguely typically feminine or not hard-moody-’badass’ as beneath her. This is not #girlpower. Fuck off.

Then we have that clusterfuck of a scene at the exhibition 🙈🙈 where BS tries to tell Mia that she used to date her Dad, before quickly correcting herself to “some version of him, anyway”, as if they were one and the same 🙄 Laurel’s continual need to imply that she knows, or has history with our Oliver is infuriating as hell. E2 Oliver died on the Gambit in his early 20s. Even if he was similar in character to E1 Oliver up until then, that person bears no likeness to the man he became. Her past with her ‘Ollie’ is entirely irrelevant to the man that was Mia’s father, who she barely even got to know at all save for a couple of episodes in S8. And not only the implication that she knew him, but then to actually try to trash him as well, to his kid?! All to push her idea that all versions of people are the same (which was refuted when JJ doesn’t even turn out to be behind the Deathstroke mask anyhow)? NO! At least Dinah and Mia were cringing along with us 😂

It’s just astounding, the turnaround they’ve managed with Laurel/BS. They already did the unthinkable in S7 and got a lot of people from this side of the fandom to empathise and warm to her, without pissing off her existing fans. I really did grow to like her in S7 (check my reviews, I still can’t believe it 😂), she was snarky, but not bitchy, and showed some heart and vulnerability. So it’s mind-blowing how they took all that growth and just obliterated it this season, and then even more so in this episode where she is just plain nasty and unlikeable. 

I do think, however, that giving BS and Mia a tempestuous relationship from the off was a good idea, cos let’s face it, you can tell there is no love lost between them. But they could have made them clash in a better way than BS just being an arsehole to Mia for most of the episode. My best guess is her anger comes from Mia coming out of Crisis with a life untouched by violence, whilst her earth was still lost? (Was it? I can’t actually remember if E2 came back.) She can’t complete her self-appointed mission on her own and knows she needs Mia’s help to do it?? I don’t know. She had a lot to say about JJ supposedly being a ‘homicidal manic’...pot, kettle much?! She also seemed to find the notion of Mia initially wanting to just appreciate the peaceful life she had been given and not becoming a vigilante reprehensible, but why? BS is the one that needs to atone for past sins. Mia does not. 

Stray thoughts

That cliffhanger!!! WHO TOOK OUR WILLIAM?!?!?!

The music was...not good. Especially during the fight scenes. Arrow was always so on-point with its score. I don’t understand how this can be so bad?! I did like hearing Mia’s theme in there, though, that was a nice tie-in the old flash-forwards.

Who is this Kevin that cheated on William? He must be destroyed!😡

Some of that future make-up was really something 😬😬 2040 is all about the severe/dead and unblended looks, apparently. The fashion was fabulous though!

The dialogue in the action scenes was soooo hammy.

Who is the mysterious, villainous “she”???

“Frack you!” and “I’m not interested in joining your Canary club” YAASS MIA 😂

William and Mia’s “pet rock” talk was super cute 😍 

Oliver’s statue!! 😭😭😭

Hopes for the future, if series gets picked up:

Increased focus on Mia/FTA. We have such a fresh, interesting, diverse cast, with intertwined back stories ready to go for this show here already, waiting to be used. USE THEM.

A deadly outbreak of avian flu 😂🙊

Failing said outbreak...keep the birds in the background or MAKE THEM LIKEABLE. This is a chance for a clean slate!

I wanna see Papa Dig so bad. David had said we’d get to see 2040 Dig in Arrow, but looks like that isn’t going to happen now, and I’d just love to see how he is. I can also imagine David being entirely done, and not wanting to be a part of this, however, but a cheeky little cameo would be amazing 😂

SmoaknHawke to RISE 🔥🔥🔥

As it stands, I’ll watch if it goes to series, but for how long remains in question. I just know I cannot get on board with the faux feminist “heart/vulnerability/girly is ‘weak’! Let’s be hard/edgy/angry badasses and fight men and show the world we’re strong pow pow pow” narrative that BS in particular, but also the general tone of the show overall, is trying to portray. I really think that if the show is picked up that they should look to see what is working and what is falling flat on its arse. It’s in dire need of more heart and fewer birds imo, but we can have both, if they’d just write them as better people.

Thank you to the beautiful gif-makers 😘 Any uncredited gifs are mine.

💗💗💗

[hellzyeahthewebwieldingavenger]

Spider-Man 2099 v3 #13-16 Thoughts

This was mostly great fun!

I must admit when hearing about this arc and even approaching my re-reading of it, I was not looking forward to it. Typically event crossovers derail the ongoing plot in a big way, and for PAD’s Spidey work and for his 2010s Spidey 2099 work in particular it was a problem.

Plus I despise both the original Civil War 2006 and as this arc was originally released was in the midst of despising Civil War II.

I don’t know if it was the fact that I’d forgotten most of the plot points, the fact that I binged the whole arc or if the tie-in nature of the story lowered my expectations but regardless, I wound up really enjoying this arc, much like the last one.

In fact comparisons to the last arc are very apt as they’re almost going in for the same thing.

It’s an adventure in the altered 2099 future depicting futuristic versions of characters and groups we’re (in theory) familiar with, utilizing a fair amount of older 2099 continuity.

The difference is that whilst the Sinister Six arc was more Spider-Man centric, this arc is more concerned with the wider 2099 universe.

Just off the top of my head this story features:*

·         Spider-Man 2099

·         Captain America 2099

·         Strange 2099

·         Hawkeye 2099

·         Black Widow 2099

·         Hercules

·         Hulk 2099

·         The X-Men2099

·         ‘The Power Pack’

·         Punisher 2099

·         Iron Fist 2099

·         Deadpool 2099

·         Daredevil 2099

·         Moon Knight 2099

·         Sub-Mariner 2099

·         Ghost Rider 2099

·         Nik Fury, granddaughter of the original Nick Fury

·         And Ravage 2099 (although he’s an original character debuting in the 2099 line anyway)

 Now featuring this many characters is a double edged sword, much like the last arc.

On the one hand a lot of them have little development, little substance to them. They show up with cool looks, cool abilities and the novelty factor of seeing futuristic versions of familiar characters.

Some of them are pre-established people too, like Daredevil 2099 and Moon Knight 2099. So there is fanservice to be found there, but if you really liked those characters you didn’t get that much out of seeing them briefly back in action.

On the other hand I think considering this was a mere four issues and with this many characters, giving them all depth and distinction is difficult. More importantly I think it would detract from the fact that this is ultimately Spider-Man’s book. It’s about him and his ‘world’, of which these figures are definitely a part of, but also definitely not the point.

The fact is PAD does the best he can with what he has. More than this, I think it’s an example of PAD making the lemonade out of lemons and making the tie-in nature of the issues work for him  as opposed to making his series work for the tie-ins.

For starters he uses Ulysses lightly but effectively. He gets the ball rolling on the plot and beyond that has little involvement. In fact the entire story has little to do directly with the events of Civil War II, which is a plus given how shite the crossover is.

Rather PAD uses the tie-ins as an excuse to essentially present his own story with the general gist of Civil War, which you could say is true of every 2099 spin on the classic characters.

So in practice this arc is less a Civil War II tie-in and more Civil War 2099. It actually has more in common with the original 2006 Civil War story except you know, it isn’t dogshit.

There is an anti-superhuman legal act in force. Superhumans work directly for the government to round up their fellows. Those opposed to the law fight back. Hell Skrulls are even the root of the problem, which was initially the implication during Civil War 2006 and Secret Invasion.

PAD also demonstrates how massive crossovers and events like this should ideally be played. If I were being blunt, there isn’t much substance to this, there isn’t much character exploration.

With so many characters who draw from so many genres that simply don’t really go together (Greek myth side by side with sci-fi monsters, arcane magic and crime noir), going for something simple, superficial and yet fun (with at best a singular central character who shoulders whatever substance there is to be found) is the most logical approach to such events.

It’s why Infinity Gauntlet and Secret Wars 1984 are still fun reads decades later but hot trash like Civil War II has been forgotten about. The former know they’re trying to have fun and at best place one or two characters as the heart of the stories, the latter try to include everyone, be about everyone, and also strive for substance in stories that can’t support that.

Getting back to the specific heroes vs. heroes nature of the series, if there is one major failing in the set up its that the two sides don’t feel evenly matched.

The rebel superhumans have heavy hitters like Hercules, Cerebra, Hulk, Sub-Mariner and Strange, whilst the government forces...well, don’t have anyone in the same league. They’re also outnumbered by the rebels.

The pro-government side is also a clever use of subversion as they are comprised of the Punisher, the X-men and the Power Pack. Now I know little of the Power Pack so I did feel a little lost with them, and know equally little about the X-men 2099. But what little I do know makes their choice of sides unexpected but toally logical. The reasons given are that mutants were deemed not responsible for their powers as they were born with them and thus granted amnesty from the anti-super human laws provided they work for the government. Essentially mutants were given their best chance for rights and protection from persecution BY discriminatory laws. Ironic, but as the comic points out, mutants accepting this deal makes sense given their history.

Now we need to talk about Jameson and the Skrulls.

On the one hand it was a good twist. It had sufficient set up and you genuinely didn’t see it coming. It also made for neat and effective explanations of Jameson and Power Pack’s surviving into the distant future along with their questionable histories (like marrying Liz Allan or JJJ running Alchemax).

But I must admit, I was a little bummed by the Skrull reveal as I found the prospect of Jameson as the actual villain behind this fascinating. I’ve noticed that Peter David’s Spider-Man work, whilst not painting Jameson as a villain per se, has painted him often less flatteringly than he’s usually been played since the 1980s. In the 1960s-1970s, Jameson was one step away from practically being a super villain, his bufoonishness often offset his more unethical practices in the eyes of readers.

In PAD’s stories he still does unethical stuff and so the idea he could go down a road where he’s essentially happy to persecute super humans is frighteningly believable.

The Skrull reveal undermined this, and undermined the great twist halfway through the story that Jameson was behind everything. I thought it was Tyler Stone so the subversion really worked!

It also wrapped things up a little too neatly, in the sense that the heroes could get along just fine because the heroes on the opposite side were fake anyway. Maybe that was a subtle dig at the original Civil War, that they should’ve done something like this instead of commit to the schism in the superhuman community. But at the same time since we’re dealing with a version of the Marvel Universe that doesn’t need to last long term that’s kind of unnecessary.

One small criticism I have, and this is a nitpick. I felt that the part where Spidey was holding Punisher hostage before the issue ends wa not properly resolved at the start of the next one. The X-men have simply retreated, the heroes have gone back to their bases. It’s like if you smashcut in the middle of a hostage situation to the aftermath when everything is fine.

Over all a great way to do a tie-in and deliver a fun time for old time 2099 fans. I’m not one of them and even i had fun with this.

 *Note, whenever I don’t put ‘2099’ after a character’s name it means we’re dealing with, at least supposedly, an older version of the 616 characters, rather than new characters adopting their mantles.

[austerlitzborodinoleipzig]

The Timeless Children review.

There’s a lot to say about the Timeless Children, but setting aside discussion about what that new lore dump means for the show, and trying to keep things about this episode...

A bad episode with okay lore, and some noted improvements on Chibnall’s part. 

I’m okay with retcons. It’s Doctor Who. Nothing is sacred. (I mean, except the core values of the main character. Having the Doctor selling the Master to the Nazis as a POC is so much worse). Things will get retconned/modified. Are certain retcons bullshit? Yes, but that’s another matter. Fundamentaly I don’t think Who canon, if there’s even such thing, should be kept safe. Like it or not, the showrunner is in charge. There’s no such thing as respect for the fans, or for the previous eras. 

And like I’m the first to complain but really if Chibshow wants to stick the middle finger at Moffat show, that’s his godamm right. The showrunner has full ownership of the show, otherwise it would hamper the creative process. We can discuss why the changes made are bad, but saying “How dare Chibnall retcon the deep lore” is idiotic. 

So kudos to Chibnall for daring. I mean The Timeless Children left a bad aftertaste in my mouth, but hey it was engaging. I wanted to know more, which compared to Series 11 is a vast improvement. 

So yes lore was okay. 

Did I like the reveal/retcon ? Not really. 

Is it possible to make something interesting out of that? I’ve seen some good takes about it, so yeah. On the downside this is Chibnall we’re talking about, so trust him to pick the least interesting idea.

Will I come to terms with it? I did not like the idea of the War Doctor, or the fact that Doctor saved Gallifrey at first. I’ve come round since, and even like it now. I expect I’ll have digested all of it in the coming months, and I’ll be able to make it fit with my own headcanons/continuity/personal conception of Doctor Who... 

Does it really change anything? The Timeless Child, not so much. All the pre-Hartnell Doctors and the fact that the Doctor worked for the CIA (or the Division, whatever the fuck the difference is), yes, a lot, and I like it even less. 

Are there ways to go around it? Yes there are. And also the scope of Doctor Who is so big, you can comfortably ignore it. 

The episode was bad.

Bad because the lore was infodumped in the most boring and unimaginative way, with the Master just doing exposition for 60% of the runtime. Also the Matrix looks boring. Fucking grey background.

Ashad is perhaps the Chibnall villain with the most potential. I’m still thinking voluntarily converted Cyberman is a great idea that deserved a lot more of exploring. There’s really some fascinating implications... And all of that got flushed down the toilet, because Ashad got unceremoniously killed by the Master. 

Also, hello big MacGuffin death particle. Chibnall, would it kill you to make the effort to introduce the great big “plot-resolve” button in the previous episode?What a convenient reveal with no groundwork, that feels telegraphed from a mile. 

Worst of it is probably the moment where the Doctor awakes, ensues some excruciating moments, where the Doctor tries to figure out the Master’s plan, while we, the audience have already been informed, by means of exposition. And then we get more exposition for the death particle we already got 20 minutes ago, with bad dialogue to boot. “There’s a myth...” Oh ffs! Why use myth? Nothing in that dialogue is mythic, Chibnall is not lyrical enough for it. That’s imitation of mythic.

Also unclear on the specifics of how the death particle works. Per the Master and Ashad, it erases all the life in the Galaxy. And then during exposition n°2, provided by Ravio, we hear it only erases life on one planet, which is what the Doctor tries to do at the end. 

But “all organic life”... By all account had Ashad activated it, it would have killed the Cybermen as well, or at least him. They’re not pure robots and we can clearly see with Ashad that there’s organic living bits underneath. So all that big ascension will be without Ashad. Of course you could make the case that the Ascension is really the Cyberium’s aim and that it does not care the slightest about Ashad. 

Also we shall have dominion... Over what, if you killed everyone? Again, poorly thought out motivations for Ashad. Mostly it sounds cool, but it’s empty when you take a closer look at it. 

And speaking of the Cyber Time Lords. Well, we’re told they were made with the corpses of dead Time Lords the Master kept. If they’re dead, we’re assuming it’s permanent death, otherwise they would have regenerated... So where the hell does the regeneration ability comes from? And if they are corpses in Cybersuits, how come they would be affected by the death particle, as they are definitely not living?

I mean it’s Doctor Who so I’m willing to overlook this details if there’s a good story told behind it. Like, the Daleks’ plot in The Dalek Invasion of Earth is fucking stupid. Let’s mine the Earth’s core, to replace it with a motor and then drive Earth around in space, like a big spaceship. But then that’s a small detail in an episode whose purpose is elsewhere : presenting a dystopian vision of England, a post apocalyptic, facist world. It’s about the pure dread for the spectator of seing his world overrun by space Nazis. It’s the first episode of the show’s history with an alien invasion. It’s also about Susan. And there’s also quite a chunk devoted to mostly Barbara, but also Ian for a bit: how they react to that world that seems familiar and at the same time, completely alien. 

Here there’s no story behind it. It’s basically a dressing for the big lore reveal. 

It’s a bad Cyberman story. Nothing about the Cyberzealot is really explored in a meaningful way. He’s supposedly conflicted... Yeah because we’re told so by the Doctor in Ascension. Show not tell, yadda, yadda, yadda... So Cybermen are nothing more than your generic evil robots... And even the Master sees how stupid that is and takes the piss (rightly so). 

Supporting cast is there for nothing more than exposition, or action sequences that do nothing more than distracting us from the lore reveal, because that’s the only thing really going on in that ep. 

And yet again we have a final that does a piss poor job with the companions. Second in a row. To be fair, Battle of Raging Avatar tried to give some closure to Ryan and Graham... It just did it so badly it does not even register as a try. 

This time Yaz is the better served with three(!) character bits. Tis only fair after Series 11. But still feels underbaked. I mean I think it will all depend on whether she leaves with the Christmas Special. She still has been massively underserved by the show. The last episodes, starting with Praxeus she did get some good content, but that‘s a bit late and still not enough, when you compare it with the other New Who companions. And well one of Yaz’s traits is her need for validation from the Doctor... and here she gets it from Graham??? In itself it’s a really fine moment. but underwhelming if that is to be the conclusion of her arc. 

And again, there’s only minimal progression in terms of development for the fam. Yaz has perhaps the most significant one, going from   Doctor is the best person -> I’m the best person. 

Graham has mostly been stucked with comic relief this series, and goes from. Decent bloke that married Grace to ... You’re okay?? 

Ryan... I feel this season really did not know what to do with him. He doesn’t have anything to do in the final, just fire at a bunch of Cybermen. That bit with the bomb is one of the most half-assed excuses for an arc I’ve seen. So Ryan beats dyspraxia, said dyspraxia being only mentioned when it’s convenient, or when we need to establish the character, because he really believes in himself and focuses??? And yet I had so much hope after Woman Who Fell To Earth and that really good bike scene. 

Also the relationship between the Doctor and her fam is again unresolved... My fam, I need them... That feels unearned after a whole season of agressively pushing the Doctor and the companions apart, and with the Doctor becoming more and more distant, and sometimes an asshole. I was waiting for the show to adress that... And it peters out.  The episode fails on an emotional level. 

The big climax... Sigh... Is yet another riff from RTD, this time from that super good scene from Parting of the Ways... Except less well done, because we’ve seen all that before, what else is new? Also the resolution of that in Series 1 was a moment of grace and love, and just beautiful, and felt satisfying, and paid off the Doctor’s arc... Here we have wannabe-Obi-Wan/Luke-from-the-sequel conveniently sacrifying himself. Again, the less well done remix of the RTD years. And that final cliffhanger would have been charming had we not been coming from a season that consistently mined the RTD-nostalgia. 

That bit with Ruth was lovely, and gives me some hope for the way the lore is going to be treated but... Doctor!Ruth is magnificent and yet again upstages Thirteen a bit. And I think it’s a bit of a problem when your incumbent Doctor gets upstaged by other incarnations...

Another problem here is that the Doctor remains totally passive, ineffective, and with limited agency throughout the episode, which was... eh. Doesn’t make for a good story. 

Still some things were good

The Master was definitely the best thing about this episode. Maybe unpopular opinion but Chibnall nailed the Master. So many good moments

the whole kicking himself for not thinking of a good one liner before zapping the Ashad

his whole motivation: I’ve seen some really good posts going round, but of course everything is totally in character for the Master. Jealousy at being upstaged by the Doctor, again. Hint of race supremacy. Cannot bear the fact that his not from the Master race, because all his claims to superiority have gone up in smoke. He’s not a renegade prince anymore. He’s a renegade fake. 

That really good bit where he’s sad his gamble paid off, and he did not died when killing Ashad. This is a suicidal Master, a bit like Simm, but Simm had the rage to live, while Dhawan!Master... Just wants to sow destruction, doesn’t matter if it’s his own. Mostly really broken, with an identity crisis no less than the Doctor’s and going on a destructive rampage instead. 

The carped is red because it’s drenched in the blood of the Time Lords. That line and its delivery is one of the highlights of the episode. It’s so perfectly ridiculous and bad on purpose and over the top. 

Also Dhawan has a really great voice and I could here him speak forever. Does he narrate books?

Interesting how even if he’s Thirteen’s Master, the Dhawan Master just screams Eleven. The clothes. The mannerism, the lines and the delivery... I could see Smith in his performance. 

Another good bit is Ko Sharmus... Finally someone to articulate why the whole take “guns=bad” that was going on these two series was bad. Because yeah sometimes people try to kill you so you have to fight back. 

I was afraid that Ko Sharmus would be undermined... And he’s the hero of the episode. And I’m really glad that Thirteen failure to fire the bomb was depicted for what it was... A failure. Because then Ko Sharmus gets his hero moment and saves the day, by firing it. 

Criticism of the Doctor’s position for what it is: self righteousness and hypocrisy?? In my Chibshow??? That’s more likely than you think.

And finally the Cyber Time Lords were ridiculous and I loved everything about the design. 

So really, my problem is not the lore. My problem is that Chibnall is going balls to the wall, firing from all cylinders, doing big lore... And still fails to tell an engaging story. 

[violet-sabres]

Some quick observations re: TROS and some "reylo"musings (spoilers)

- the editing removed A LOT of emotional pay-offs for so many scenes. The decorations and actors change quickly, a bit randomly - in fact it takes a while before this movie finds its tempo and footing. Something weighty happens and no reflection is allowed even in briefest sketch of a reaction. Next scene. Next scene-

- Poe, Finn, Rose and two new female characters were absolutely robbed. Both by the ungodly pace of this movie (there is much potential for scenes that could mean much much more in the whole storyline. As is, they are discarded as soon as they happen). The bond between Finn and Poe got severed in the beginning with some awkward finnrey moments and strange jealousy (was that what it was???) from Poe. I say either carry out the finnrey thread (which was also beautiful actually, though Finn deserves so much better than how she treats him in TROS...) or finnpoe, something which JJ himself built up. Rose should be given an independent arc with no romance involved, or a love interest of her own.

- Rose's infatuation with Finn is never touched. Rose herself is absolutely erased - she is a statist, providing some dialogue with absolutely no weight behind it. JJ treated her terribly - it was his privilege and responsibility to utilize whatever he got from Johnson as he saw fit; but throwing away her potential only underlines the racist sidelining he did to all characters of colour.

- the heteronormativity I can't understand - Finn and Poe are JJs babies after all (and yeah, I know - shareholders...). Why tease hetero relationships for both and STILL leave even them hanging?? Like, he discarded Rose bc first of all racism, second - Johnson's 'leftovers' I guess? Unacceptable. The lady of Poe's was sketched boldly - but still sketched. Her inclusion wouldn't feel so random if Poe wasn't shown to be this randomly emotional abt her all of a sudden. Why now? It felt a bit forced and this is a shame bc she (and Janah, omg Janah...) is super cool. I'd love to read and see way more about all of them.

- Finn and Janah - wonderful rapport, so much empathy and loyalty, they are wonderful together. I definitely could see them together as well - so many threads to explore! There was so much potential to embed meaningful relationships for Finn into the plot. Janah is one of those that felt quite right but deserved more still. She deserves a story of her own. Not for the first time it is a secondary character of colour who carries so much potential and substance and gets sidelined. I dont mind Kylo content btw - but this series was shown to concentrate on 3 people and a villain. Keep to this proportion or perish I say. They didnt keep them and the movie feels unfairly skewed towards the force dyad of Rey and Ren. Hence, robbed. We were robbed of much of quality content here.

- the implication/suggestion that Finn may be Force sensitive held so much promise. I love Finn and Boyega played him with so much passion and dignity. He grew into leadership without pretense or drama, was competent and knowledgeable about the inner workings of the Fleet and found hope he was struggling for. Honestly the problem here is that his prominence was teased to be greater than the actual time and the weight of scenes he was given. This movie should be longer, scene order less abrupt and random - so the characters that were shown to matter in the first part could matter here as well.

- JEDI FINN please. The potential of it was teased - they should scrap some of the scenes and build those kinds of plot points more thoroughly. Finn's arc should be more - but that doesn't mean Boyega played it any other than magnificently. He got what he was given and made it his. I hate that this still means it was not as much as he and Poe deserved it. Same with Rose.

- galactic generals (*husbands) Poe and Finn. It could be marriage, it should be - Isaac played a man in love. I enjoyed this new romantic angle with the spice smuggler lady as well - but it required more buildup. As it was, it made for an awkward and frankly homophobic ersatz for finnpoe plotline of the first and even second movie. I hate wasting the potential of new characters in the movie, and this is what happened here. Also Poe's smuggling past - no previous setup that felt offensive to many bc of its randomness and no previous grounds in existing media. Felt like unnecessary sensationalism here.

- Rey is complicated here. I didnt like her attitude towards Finn and wished for more appreciation of their own idiosyncracies between them. Finn deserved his love (whether romantic or platonic) to be recognized. It was lacking here.

- I loved the fight scenes, the dialogues with Ren that should begin in TFA if they wished for the romance to be acceptably wet up. Driver is so fucking physical and huge, a bit awkward and very strong. To me it was attractive - but to me Kylo always lacked the threat in him when it came to Rey; I know this isnt so for others and respect that.

- Choreography is super effective here, the body work of Rey and Ren is wonderful.

- lighting, the sith locations were one of my favourites

- the creatures - while in the background, theybwere lovely. They made for lusher world out there.

- Palps was eh. Needed for the ending setup, ultimately fell a bit flat. The twist re his endgame would feel better if the whole scene didnt play this fucking quickly.

- the death (you know whose...) is quick and abrupt, passing fleetingly with no real depth or importance. They are rushing to another scene so quickly they forget that if you love somebody enough to accept them fully, this person's death tends to leave some kind of impression. As it is, Rey is hardly the first character robbed of emotional engagement in TROS.

- sigh. Ren. I love to hate him and hate to enjoy him still. Also feeling like a hypocrite bc would I enjoy him if not for my prefernce for how Driver looks like? Would anyone who I respect a bit more than his most fanatical reylo fans? I have no answer really.

I've never seen a character ripped into shreds from so many angles. For incels and dudebros he is a pussy (a lot of girls I know also mentioned that). He is supposedly not cruel enough, not awesome like Vader, whatever.

For others he is a genocidal criminal, and that he is. You can't sidestep Tuanul or his passivity in front of Star Destroyer wiping out whole planets. He is implicated in this genocide - and that scene where he is supposedly mutely watching it from the distance falls flat if its intention was to show he wasn't entirely behind Hux's agenda. He still never stopped him. So yeah, it is obvious that for many he is absolutely undeserving of any empathy, much less a romance plotline with movie's heroine. Especially when the first scenes setting it up were so messed up.

Now I hate the word reylo and I'd rather choke than call myself that. But I did enjoy their enmity and idk love?? towards each other? It should be plotted more consequently and I believe if JJ didn't muck it in tfa people would be a lot less opposed to the whole villain x heroine thing. Nobody opposes it bc of that - it's the torture bed and it's the "whatever I want" line that made so many recoil. It's the absolute lack of coherence at a time where more self awareness was needed from the director of the very first part in the series.

I believe there is a kind of generational divide on topic of their romance. Youve got gen z "antis" who argue about the abuse (and have a lot of good point more reylos should think hard and long about) - and mostly adult to older women (this includes older milennials also!) who grew up steeped in gothic romanticism that, up to gen z growing up, was a dominant romance paradigm in the West.

Youve got your Wuthering Hills, your Pride and Prejudice and Beauty and the Beast. I hate it. I absolutely abhor it, and the more the reylo fandom hammered their whole relationship from this angle, the more I was distancing myself. I believe the whole genre is steeped in toxic masculinity and yes, you can look at reylo from this angle as well - and I understand that when you saw those scenes from TFA, and didn't feel convinced by entirely paradoxal romance teasers (bc JJ mixed them both in equal measure, and thus killed wide enthusiasm for reylo for good) then what happened in TLJ and TROS must look like the embracing toxic hetero romance in entirety. And to some degree it is - entirely by JJs fault. The other elements that you mightve ignored in tfa suddenly get amplified in tlj, in tros and youre left wondering why the hell Kylo Ren could ever be seen as romanceable?

But the thing is, while the analogy of angry white male pursuing a pure young woman seems fitting, it doesnt work for me here. I also acknowledge that it may be in part bc I'm used to the gothic paradigm, attracted to Driver as Ren and feeling safe and assured that Rey would stay herself despite whatever he wanted from her (and she did in my opinion, she never caved even when she loved him). Kylo is white, and he is aggressive - he is a villain, he tortures and hurts Poe and Finn and plays psychological games with Rey, he shouts a lot and is very physical, which in itself looks threatening.

All those could end up somewhat accepted bc he is a villain - people will accept the consequent villain, or paradoxical one done with self- awareness on side of their creator. JJ was absolutely unaware of what a mess he did I bet - the worst elements that crossed "reylo" off the list for so many people I'd argue were first sown by JJ himself in paradoxical chase of I tease this-now I don't. Here's what I mean.

It was JJ who put Rey on that horizontal torture bed, even when Poe's was upright. It was JJ who had Ren say those gross words abt taking what he wanted. It was also JJ who irreaponsibly and paradoxically played with symbolism normally reserved for gothic princes DESPITE the gross elements he himself planted - the mask going off to reveal a goofy Disney prince, the crouching so as not to scare her, the freaking bridal carry, the humanizing via showing Ren's vulnerability. I actually hated some of those scenes - I loved the face reveal no lie, but what followed was unacceptable. Why style your villain this lush and vulnerable when you're shooting your own foot a few minutes after, with dialogue that had whole groups of young women discard him as trash? Why not polish your villain with more self awareness so that the ground for the romance is understood and cautiously accapted?

So youve got an internally cracked TFA that for some was obviously teasing reylo but for others made it unacceptable forever. This is one hell of a difficult mix to continue with and I believe if JJ was given the 2nd part to work with, perhaps he might be able to somehow work with Ren so that TLJ wouldnt feel like slap to the face to those who saw mostly the worst parts of Ren that JJ himself designed. Perhaps he would also polish the romance teasers or got rid of them altogether, idk. TROS shows that while he was eager to discard anything that Johnson had put into motion, he chose to leave reylo content still. This is really paradoxical to me, today as it was back then.

Now reylo isnt super mainstream - if he got rid of it, it would surely anger a lot of people but also satisfy an equal amount of others. Yet he chose not to and I'd argue it is because he planned for reylo to happen from the beginning, just in a shitty way we first witnessed in the worst scenes of TFA.

I'll also argue another point - if Johnson was given the saga from the beginning, reylo wouldnt be nearly as much hated and regarded as abusive for so many. It is this particular humanization of Kylo that was criticized by so many that would protect the 1st part from that torture bed, and from taking whatever Kylo wanted. As it was, when all this sudden humanity followed JJs paradoxical mess, only opposition could come bc it kind of must - it looked for many as woobifying somebody who was already irredeemable. The irony is that JJ probably never planned for this - maybe he thought he could pull this off, somehow work out the agreement between ugly Kylo and Kylo worthy of Rey. Johnson just put a fat line between TFA and his own vision, and irresponsibly ignored all the ugly heritage that should be better worked on if he ever hoped to rectify JJs paradoxes. He didnt do this and thus the mess.

I dont know if it would ever be possible though. Perhaps theres been a shift in ethics, in aesthetics even, so big that for the gen Z this kind of relationship is unacceptable. I dont see anything bad in this - even if I enjoyed a lot of reylo's potential, there will be better content, better romances done by those kids who despise reylo now as well. Meanwhile I plan to stay on this weird pole stuck deep into my ass between reylo enthusiast and haters bc I cant for shit choose a side fully.

Bc I dont see the abuse this clear cut - but am also unsure how much of it is my cultural baggage, the history of normalizing toxic masculinity etc. I bet it's both to some degree, like with all gothic romance genre, - and that there wouldnt be this whole rift at the heart of tfa without toxic masculinity normalization at all. Without it there would be no torture bed and no threats. And the irony is that Johnson would probably see to that better. But not as good as a woman behind the camera to begin with - if you want a heroine at its heart that is.

Like, you can see JJs initial vision as pretty homogenous - the bed, the words, and ignore all the paradoxical romance symbolism in there. You can also look at it as fractured and absolutely lacking coherence, and fish for the elements youd like to stay in next parts. I welcomed Johnson bc he took the best in Kylo and left JJs mess behind. This is also the very reason youre gonna hate the TLJ if TFA felt coherent for you. Bc you cant ignore that which felt threatening and cruel and very much obvious.

I have no easy recipe at dealing with this saga. I cant throw my weight behind reylo fully, ever, but will cautiously accept the potential it could have should it be more coherently written. I love so much of art and those fics that are in line with my wishes towards how Ren should be done from.the beginning.

When I was considering what to.think abt all that, back in the beginning, I didnt want for Rey to cater to emotional demands and baggage of an aggressive male, and I believe she actually doesnt - time and time again she asserts herself, maybe messily but she has the right to her anger and pain so the messy it has to be. She is shown to hope for him becoming better - and isnt manipulated or groomed to do so, and if loneliness was the only reason to stick to him then any other person would suffice, which isnt the case. She is loyal to the cause to the end and happily carries on despite Ren dying, even if it's clear she loved him. She is her own woman and the magnitude of his emotions, the physicality of his behaviour hardly influence her - she neither cowers before Kylo nor caters to him, ever. I love her for this, actually.

So there you have it, my messy thoughts on both TROS and 'reylo' dynamics. I cant say Im satisfied with both. There could be more, Ren could be fleshed out better in the beginning. The potential of so many characters was left undeveloped. I dont feel satiafaction even with elements I loved abt reylo bc there is no counterpart in other aspects I hoped to see developed. I wanted Rey to have more time with Finn, for Finn to have more time with Poe, for Rose to matter in tros as well. I wanted more of Rey and Leia, and for Ren to have more coherence to his character. Ultimately I got crumbs and some bits unable to be stomached.

Go and watch tros, stay in the place of engaging with this series that feels best to you, closest to your needs abd perceptions. Tros will not satisfy anyone in full, also bc of editing and the pacing - which is terrible. Reylo will either frustrate you or frustrate you for entirely different reasons. Dont take JJs shit, dont take Johnson's. Take from the saga whatever works for you.

I dont think it's possible to fully embrace reylo, without reservations. There are grounds for the so called antis to point out the toxic masculinity and potential for abuse. There are tropes suggesting romance despite this still, all in just TFA. It was a mess from the very beginning and it's normal people took sides.

I'm just glad it's finally over.

[asterinjapan]

Another day, another castle

I mean, I could apologize for the implications of that title, but I wouldn’t mean it, so…

Anyway, good afternoon after a short but no less fun day! Since tomorrow will be very busy and I’ll be making the long trip to Tokyo the day after, I didn’t want to cram too much on my Friday. There was one thing pretty high up on my wishlist, but I’d heard a lot of walking was involved… then again, I’d say my feet have had enough practice now to put up with a shorter day of walking, haha.

And so, I had reserved a ticket last night on the Shiokaze train down for Marugame! And yeah, this is another long report. Sorry, me and castles…

Marugame is one of the first cities on Shikoku if you come onto the island via Okayama and the Seto Ohashi bridge. I had actually passed the station when I went to Matsuyama earlier this week, but since that was such a long trip, I couldn’t combine the two. Since Marugame is a good 40 minutes removed from Okayama, I could sleep a little longer in the morning. Or I could have, if I didn’t wake up at 4 AM, and then again at 6… I kept hearing tinny music, so loud I thought my phone or alarm was malfunctioning, but I think it must have been a neighbor in the hotel anyway. Either way, I was determined to at least rest until 8 AM, so I did just that, haha.

After a good breakfast, I made my way to the station to find the Shiokaze already waiting for me. I noticed all Shikoku bound trains have theme naming: Shiokaze means salty/sea winds, then you have the Marine Liner, and then there’s also the Nanpu (southerly winds) and Uzushio (whirling tides). Train names are very poetic in Japan, haha.

Anyway, the sea wind train brought me to Marugame, where the skies were also grey. I hurried from the station immediately to find the castle. It was super easy, basically one straight road ahead, and then – wham, the castle comes into view. The main keep is rather tiny, but it sits on top of Kameyama (turtle mountain) at 66 meters high, and the mountain has been covered in stone walls. So much so that you can be forgiven for comparing it to a pyramid, actually. These walls are imposing, wow. They’re one of the reasons this castle stands out. Another is that it is one of the twelve original main keeps still remaining, with both Matsuyama castles from this trip being other examples. The main keep is the smallest of the twelve, but these walls might actually be the highest in the country.

Anyway! Just as I made my way through the Otemon gate, it started to drizzle. I was taking out my umbrella already when I noticed the nearby information center also offering something fun, so I figured I’d go in first, if I was going to walk through the rain anyway.

You see, Marugame is famous for the uchiwa fans, and apparently produces about 90% of all uchiwa fans going around. They’re the type of round fans made from bamboo and flat paper, so not the fans you can fold back. And here in the information center, they were making them, still by hand – and for thousand yen, you too can make your own uchiwa fan! Obviously, that sounded like way too fun an opportunity to pass up on (and if you buy a fan, they’re usually around that price class anyway if you want one with a nice print). And so, I applied – and could get started right away!

The bamboo crosspiece was already prepared, so I got to pick the paper I wanted and get gluing. They asked if Japanese instructions were okay, so I said they were if they could speak a little slowly, and they were very accommodating and helpful. I suspect small children want to do this too, so they have some practice with uhm, my current levels of Japanese, haha, but I knew what I was doing now in Japanese! Once the paper was glued on and had to set, I was guided to the area where the crosspieces were created. I received a bamboo handle, and got to cut it into a crosspiece myself! This was kind of tricky, because the instruments are very right-hand oriented while I’m a lefty, but I got hands-on guidance, so I didn’t injure myself as I cut up the bamboo into tiny, tiny strips. After a lot of bending back and forth, the crosspiece was more or less done, and I got to pose for a picture with it after writing my name on it, haha.

My glued fan had dried by then, so I was given a hammer and a sickle to cut it into shape. That’s a good way to get any aggression out, by the way. You trim both the paper and the bamboo parts with the sickle, so you have to beat down that hammer hard. Almost done now! I got to choose a paper hemming and pasted it along the edge of the fan to smooth it and decorate it further, and topped it off with two small pieces at either end to keep them in place.

Now, since these fans aren’t the kind you just stick in your handbag, I got to leave it behind for now while I went on my way to the mountain top. I was given a map, a lot of generous instructions (they really are super kind patient here) and went out the door – to find the last drops of rain had just fallen, and it was dry now. Nice!

I had read warnings about the steep climb, but honestly, after Bitchu-Matsuyama castle and Onomichi these past few days, I was barely fazed, haha. Okay, in all fairness, these are some steep roads, but they’re not that long if you take the quickest route up, and there’s plenty of space in between as you go through the third and second bailey on the way up. There’s even a slope called Mikaeri zaka, which means ‘slope on which you look back’, which you definitely want to, because the view on the walls is great. And the views on the look-out points, oh wow! Of course, the castle was built in a strategic spot, overlooking the Seto Inland Sea. Supposedly Marugame is at the coast of the narrowest part of the sea, which means that no-one could sail here without being seen from the castle top. In the distance, I could spot the Seto Ohashi bridge, as well as the interestingly shaped mountain Iinoyama and tons of tiny islands dotting the sea. In fact, the weather was getting clearer and clearer as I moved up, giving me better views.

Once I’d made my way past the defenses, I had finally reached the main area with the keep – and the sun had come out! I couldn’t believe my luck as I got to take pictures of that sweet, white little castle against a blue sky, the sea in the background. Wow. I don’t know which deity here I have pleased what with the amazing weather I’ve had so far, but I have to find out to give them my offers, haha.

You can enter the keep for 200 yen, which, to be fair, is reasonable considering how small it is on the inside. There’s a small exhibition, with tiles featuring fans on display, and the second floor had pictures up of all twelve original keeps, of which I have seen seven now, haha. Actually, the first version of this castle only existed for a couple of years. It was dismantled in 1615, as a new rule stating only one castle per area was allowed, so nearby Takamatsu castle got to stay while Marugame had to go. After a small fief was granted, there was allowed to be a castle once more, and so, the castle was rebuilt in 1641. Most buildings burnt down over the centuries, but the main keep remains standing.

There’s also a stamp rally going on inside the castle, but you needed to have bought the 200 yen sheet for it back at the information center, which I missed. I’m still a bit sad, because if you collect the stamps in order, you basically created an ukiyo-e painting: layer of color over layer of color to produce a full color stamp of the castle. Lesson learnt for next time!

Since the weather was still nice enough despite the forecasted rain, I took the long way down to take in the sights, as the walk was lovely and quiet. It’s not a super touristic castle, at least not today, although I’m sure the weather and it being a weekday had something to do with that. Anyway, I came across a well at the second bailey, which is apparently 65 meters deep! And since it’s almost Halloween, there’s a creepy story attached to this well.

My pamphlet nicely narrates the story of Juzaburo Hasaka, the stonewall designer who worked very hard and had earned the nickname of ‘Juza the naked’, since he, eh, worked wearing only a loincloth. Thanks for that detail, pamphlet. Anyway, the lord was very impressed with his work, going “ha, now nobody can get over these walls unless they’re a bird!” To which our naked buddy replied: “oh, actually, you can totally climb them. Just give me some iron bars and I’ll demonstrate it, easy peasy.” And so he did, and the lord’s eyes probably all but popped out. (I mean, I know mine would – these walls are high.) Since he was so impressed, the lord then said to Juza: “dear upstanding and oh so naked gentleman, would you please go down this well to do research down there? For, you know, Reasons?” And Juza, ever the hard worker, went down into that 65 meter deep well. For, you know, research reasons.

And then our nice lord promptly threw rocks on him until he died so he couldn’t spill the secret of climbing the walls to the enemy. What a cute little intermezzo! Honestly, I peered down into the well, and that’s – deep and dark, wow. I’m so sorry, Juza the Naked Man. You did an amazing job on those walls, if that’s any consolation.

I’m surprised there isn’t a ghost story about him, but there is another one that my pamphlet also lists. My pamphlet is a little macabre, actually. Anyway, since we’re already at it to keep up the Halloween mood: apparently the construction workers were having a tough time on the castle, as it kept raining, so they were all but about to call it quits when a tofu peddler came by to sell his tofu. “Tofu, tofu!” He kept shouting. I mean, makes sense, construction is hard work, surely they’d want a bite. These workers seemed to hear something completely different than ‘tofu’, or maybe just really hated tofu, I don’t know. Either way, they heard ‘sacrifice me so that the rains will stop!’, which is a lot longer than tofu, but that’s – exactly what they did. They buried him alive as a human sacrifice to the castle, and it is said that on rainy days, you can still hear a muffled ‘tofu, tofu’ coming from what sounds like underneath. That poor guy, cursed to sell his tofu until the afterlife…

Well, it wasn’t rainy and I think the well was located in the area that was closed off for reconstructions (… or was it for reconstructions, hmmmmmm), so I didn’t hear him selling tofu, but I was getting hungry, so I made my way down, through some lovely forested areas filled with tiny butterflies, and crows, and HUGE spiders, and EVEN HUGER hornets, which I quickly ran far, far away from. They had warning signs up, and they were not exaggerating, help. I think I prefer the huge spiders, provided they eat the huge hornets.

Inside the gate I had come through was a small exhibition, so I sped through it (hey, it was free), and then I also came across the front gate of the lord’s residence and the guard house, the kabuto (helmet) rock, before I hit a dead end and finally returned to the information center.

Apparently they had gotten a bit worried I had forgotten about my fan, haha. Nope! Just me losing track of time when exploring castles! I watched as one of the ladies here expertly tied a string through my previously cut crosspiece, and then I got to keep that one too, so I can either stick my own paper on it back home or use it for decorations: they showed me an example of one put up against the wall with flowers pinned through, which does indeed look lovely, so I might just do that. They then realized I’d have to take them back home with me, so they rushed to get some cardboard and cut it to size, giving me some bands to keep it in place. They absolutely didn’t have to go through all that effort, but they absolutely went above and beyond here, wow.

 So that was a really fun day, as you can tell by the length of this report despite it only being 2 PM now, haha. Still, that means I spent around 3 hours at the castle if you don’t count the time I spent on the fan, oops… Needless to say, I absolutely recommend this castle. Sure, the walk up is steep, but the short path really is just that, and there’s plenty of space to catch your breath in between. Dang, I really love the castles I’ve visited so far, plus their surroundings. Thank you castles of Japan for introducing me to lovely cities with lovely people! I got to speak a lot of Japanese today, since I stood out a little as a foreigner making a fan, so a group at the main keep asked me if I was indeed that girl, haha, and we chatted for a bit about my trip.

 Anyway, I still hadn’t eaten, so I picked up lunch at the convenience store at the station and hopped on the Nanpu train with it. This one is just as fast and brought me back to Okayama, where skies were getting grey. I think I felt the first rain drops as I made my way to the hotel, so I am really lucky, whoa.

I’m gonna get an early night so that I’ll hopefully be well-rested tomorrow (I’ll wear ear plugs if I have to, stupid tinny music), since that will be a busy, busy day, but also very fun. And then it’s off to Tokyo already! Time really flies. I always look forward to Tokyo, although I’m not sure how many of my daytrips from there can actually go through. But you know what? I’ve already been so, so lucky, I honestly don’t dare to complain. And if all else fails, I definitely know how to entertain myself in Tokyo for a week, haha.

Good evening for now, and see you tomorrow! (Or Sunday, if I’m too worn out to type out my report, haha.)

[itsclydebitches]

RWBY Recaps: Volume 6. Argus Limited

This is a re-posting from Oct. 27th, 2018 in an effort to get all my recaps fully on tumblr. Thanks!

Volume Six is here, folks! I am so very, stupidly excited for this season. Heartfelt thanks go out to my friend who was all, “lol yeah sure” when I begged to use their FIRST account to watch. There are heroes in this world and they’re one of them.

A quick note about recaps from here on out: they will (my productivity willing) be uploaded sometime on Thursday or Friday proceeding the new episode. This is partly so that I’m not scrambling to post immediately afterwards—stress and bad writing all around—and partly so that, you know, we can actually recap stuff before the next episode airs. So yeah, that’s the goal.

Let’s do it!

We open on a gorgeous, snowy scene with ROOSTER TEETH PRESENTS smack dab in the middle. You know that feeling you get when you hear the Harry Potter theme at the beginning of a new film and the whole theater loses their shit? Same with Doctor Who and Star Wars? Whatever your preferred fandom, the point is I get the same chills when RWBY comes back and it’s excellent.

The animation really is gorgeous though and I sigh happily whenever I see it, thinking back to the days when cookies disappeared directly into Ruby’s mouth. There’s nostalgia, sure, but it doesn’t beat this detail.

We hear the distant sound of a train and then we’re thrown into exactly what we’ve wanted for literal years now: Team RWBY back together again, fighting not creepy adults but just some good, old fashioned grimm. They’re chimeras and… griffins? Ngl I’m not entirely sure, but they’re big, flying, fire-breathing nasties, so that’s really all we need to know. Luckily everyone falls back into old habits, easily supporting one another and executing perfect attacks (a contrast to the residual tension we’ll see in just a bit). Ruby is so busy posing after a successful kill that she misses the grimm coming at her from behind. Weiss saves her ass with a cheeky, “Thank me later!” At the end of the fight we get a reversal wherein a hit nearly sends Weiss tumbling off the side of the train, though Ruby grabs her at the last second with her own, “Thank me later!” It’s a fun little exchange made better when we think back to the Vytal Tournament. Weiss still “had her back” then too, but was more resistant to Ruby’s proclamation that they’re BFFs. Now the teasing is on both ends.

Notably, Ruby saves Weiss by taking her into her semblance, creating a cloud of rose petals that are half red, half white. Now combined with the old team-ups and some shots in the new opening, this has led a number of fans (myself included) to wonder if a WhiteRose pairing is in our future. Which also means that the ship wars are in full swing. Needless to say I’m not about that nonsense and I’ll only point out here what I said episodes back: if it’s a queer relationship with one of our main girls, and not a random side character who was previously out to murder a whole family? I’m on board.

Back in the fight though. The rest of team RNJR appears with Nora exclaiming, “Why is it always something?” God that’s a mood. Welcome to adulthood, kid. It’s just one crisis after another—except in your case the crises are objectively more dangerous. Sorry about that. We get to see Jaune’s improved reflexes as he fends off all the fireballs with his shield while Ren and Nora team up to knock some of the monsters out.

Honestly, I love this trope in action stories. Where—as Nora does here—a character just shouts out a friend’s name to get their attention and they immediately know what kind of move they’re about to pull off. It’s made more hilarious to me given that RWBY once had attack names and Jaune at least made the attempt with JNPR...but apparently they're not needed anymore. So unrealistic, yet so very cool when used.

So yeah, things are going pretty smoothly… up until Oscar yells out “Tunnel!” Ruby saves Weiss from falling, they manage to get over or between the cars, and in the sudden darkness we transition to what we only realize later is a flashback. At least, I didn’t realize it until later. Totally thought we’d had a time skip and they were just hopping another train…

My stupidity aside, before we hit the train station we actually see a familiar hallway filled with angry voices discussing the disaster at Haven—one of which is Adam’s. I really enjoyed this technique, wherein we slowly pan across the room as the voices grow more frantic and the sounds of fighting break out, the camera revealing bodies scattered across the floor. By the time we reach the throne—and Adam on it— we realize that the fight occurred prior to this moment, something that Adam is now remembering. He goes all skyward scream on us as he howls menacingly. Okay, dude. Compared to Cinder and Salem you’re really not all that.

Now we’re at the train station where Qrow is narrating a letter to Ironwood. Hell yes, please bring back the badass, protective Ironwood who defended the students at Beacon and stood up for Weiss. I’d be very pleased if he joins the RWBY gang by the Volume’s end. Qrow’s optimistic about the trip—they’ve plans to reach Ironwood before the letter does, which says either good things about Remnant’s transportation or bad things about its mail—though of course we as the audience know it’s not going to be nearly that simple. We learn that only two weeks have passed since the battle, but people are still reeling from all the implications. Lionheart tragically lost his life defending the school and oh, some students coincidentally were there and did some stuff. Excellent choice in showing us the mindless crowds while we hear this, the naive masses who, yes, would absolutely believe a story like this.

It’s easy to criticize no one supposedly noticing Salem, magic, the finger Ozpin has in every pie, etc. but ultimately people believe what they’re told—especially when it’s much easier to swallow than the truth.

Enough of the doom and gloom though. Ruby is having the time of her life.

Qrow: “What’s with the running?”

Ruby: “What’s with the standing?!”

I love this girl so very much and it’s wonderful when we get to see her acting like the kid she is. She uses her semblance with abandon because yeah, if I could turn into rose petals I’d be doing that all the time too. Ruby teases Yang with something from the gift shop and I really hope we get to see what that is. Yes, we end the episode with everyone left stranded in the wilderness, but if Yang’s bike can survive then so can Ruby’s souvenirs.

(Seriously though they presumably lost all their luggage that sucks.)

Everyone else is in top, feel-good form too. Nora daydreams about hitting the beach, complete with a thought bubble of topless Ren and a beachball. Weiss quips about how she spent all last Volume getting out of Atlas, thanks, but Ruby reassures her that at least she’s back with the team now. When two jokers arrive boasting about how they’ll be the ones keeping the train safe from grimm, Ruby and Yang act exactly as nieces should when your cool uncle is telling them off. AKA, making fun of them behind his back.

God they must have been terrors as toddlers. I mean we already know Yang carted Ruby off into the woods one day so yeah, I’m pretty confident in expressing my surprise that Tai doesn’t have a full head of gray hair.

The two Nice Guys go on to specify that they’ll provide extra protection for a “generous tip,” which—while essentially a throwaway line—reminds us how most of the world functions outside of our close-knit cast. Money, and more specifically Schnee money, quite literally dictates who lives and who dies. Not everything about RWBY is fantasy oriented…

We learn that everyone is just waiting on Blake— “as usual”—and we cut to her with Ilia as the two of them say their goodbyes. Ilia will be helping Ghira lead the Faunus in a “new movement” and is supposedly 100% on the straight and narrow now. Cool? I guess? To be honest I’m fine with her taking a back seat for this Volume. There’s a moment where we get a shot of Ilia and Blake’s feet, the former’s angled forward in a classic kiss pose, and I was super glad to see that they were just sharing a hug. I really don’t want the first LGBTQIA kiss on RWBY to be iffy on consent, considering that Ilia knows Blake isn’t interested. Hug though? That was super sweet.

Sun and Neptune show up to say their goodbyes too. They’re heading to Vacuo to meet up with the rest of their team because, in Sun’s words, he’s the “worst leader” ever. You kinda are, dude? I loved Sun up until they had him following Blake without her permission and continuing to do so after she asked for space, all in the name of the guy supposedly knowing what the girl really needs. The reminder that Sun abandoned his team to do this just reinforces how much I dislike that plot-line.

Sun gets the kiss—on the cheek—and after leaving Neptune lectures him on “letting [Blake] go.” Except it’s not about you? Blake is off to quite literally save the world and the fact that these guys view that as a threat to any potential relationship is… icky. Ugh. Oh well. They’re presumably gonna be offscreen for a while.

The train finally arrives and everyone piles in. We’re back to bunk beds! And of course Team RWBY is situated exactly as they were in Beacon’s dorms. Weiss gets annoyed with Ruby’s cloak hanging down over the side. Blake has a book in her lap. Ruby challenges Yang to a video game. Cue nostalgia. I fully expect fluffy AU fics where they ride the train all the way to Atlas and treat the trip as one giant, dramatic sleepover. This is non-negotiable.

Tension seeps back in though when Yang moves to pull her luggage from the rack and Blake immediately hops up to help her. In a super guilty “I know I fucked up and now I’m gonna smother you” way. Really excellent voice acting here. Yang ends up reassuring her. No, things aren’t perfect between them yet… but they’re definitely improving.

While short, for me this scene was perfectly balanced between acknowledging the girls’ complicated relationship without totally undermining the happy mood. Nicely done.

Then Qrow shows up with a drink. A drink with a slice of orange on the side. I have never enjoyed a moment more and I was so surprised I didn't take a screenshot of it. Clearly I was too distracted and am I too lazy to go back for one now? You betcha. The point is everything is fine, dandy, and filled with alcohol.

So of course RT goes and ruins it for me. Something hits the train and in a split second everyone is on high alert. A quick peek out the window reveals grimm and Blake mutters darkly that it’s “just my luck.”

Qrow: “Not yours.”

Are they gonna leave the safety of the train to those bozos from before? Hell no. Especially when one guy is grabbed right when the fight starts. I mean, poor dude, but he also kinda sucked as a Huntsmen. He wouldn’t have even made it past Beacon’s initiation, let alone graduated.

…I guess he’s kind of like early Jaune? Useless, wannabe hero who acts more confident than he actually is? Aw, now I really do feel bad.

He’s grimm food though. Gotta move on with our lives.

The other dude isn’t doing too well either, though RWBY and NJR + Oscar quickly show up, coming full circle to where we began the episode. Oscar insists that he’s got this fight under control which tells me (hopefully) that in the past two weeks they’ve had serious conversations about if and when Ozpin gets to have control. That’s super great, though I do wish we could have seen it. Flashbacks, maybe?

As the fight begins Ruby announces that the plan amounts to “don’t let anyone else die.” Uh...Ruby? Buddy. Pal. This is why people die. Because they didn’t have plans! Pyrrha—god rest her reckless soul—went off after a freaking Maiden by herself. Jaune got Amber killed because he didn’t obey the plan of watching the door. Lionheart frantically calls Salem with no real plan for what he’s going to offer her in exchange for his life! Plans are important, Ruby. You’re the team strategist. It was a badass line, I grant you, but please do not.

Luckily, no one (else) dies. That would have been pretty brutal for a premier. +1 point for world building where we see that trains like this have built in defenses to fight off grimm. -2 points for how useless it ends up being. As Qrow quickly points out, the turrets are drawing all the grimm to the front of the train where the passengers are. So, not good. Oscar is charged with telling the surviving goon to knock it off already while Qrow faces off against the super fierce chimera grimm. Not gonna lie though, when its tail first started up I thought Qrow was getting attacked by a dove…

This time when we hit the tunnel everyone makes it back safely inside with the exception of Goon #2 who gets his arm injured in the scramble. He’s literally crying on the ground when, in a pretty harsh move, Qrow drags him up and demands to know what the hell all that was. Civility and benefit of the doubt? Not Qrow’s strong points. It allows Ruby to take control of the situation though. How do you make sure that your cast of kids is continually calling the shots?  A) isolate them and B) when you can’t do that have the adults act like children instead. We see that a fair bit in RWBY.  

Jaune steps in to heal the guy’s arm, which is an unexpected surprise. I honestly thought we'd get a whole Volume’s worth of him figuring out how to access and control his semblance, though I suppose once it manifests you’ve got the basics down. We’ve seen that semblances can be improved upon—Ruby turning other people she carries into petals; Ren dampening the emotions of a whole train—so presumably Jaune will be able to heal more complex and life-threatening things in the future. We also hear in the ensuing conversation that he can amplify someone else’s aura…to be decided what exactly that means, how it connects to healing, and what the limits of the skill is.

During some theorizing about the attack Ozpin brings up that grimm are attracted to the relic they’re carrying and… oh boy. Here we go. Is it tradition that every recap the fandom goes for Ozpin’s throat while I stand here defending him? Might be. Let’s create a (semi) comprehensive list:

This might have been less of a secret and more of a slip. The guy is thousands of years old and the forces they’re dealing with are stupidly complicated. He can’t info dump every detail of a multi-century war in one sitting. So—

He might have thought this was one of those innocuous things that shouldn’t take precedent right now. Not the sort of thing he needs to worry them with. He claims in the promo that he didn't lie to the group and he quite possibly didn't. There's a big difference between lying and not telling someone every single possible thing that might be pertinent. Especially when—

We know that grimm are already attracted to people/negative emotion and they’re sequestered within a whole train full of presumably stressed travelers. There’s no reason to think the artifact would put them in more danger than they already are and therefore isn't at the top of the list of revelations to dole out. Especially with—

Qrow and his bad luck semblance. He literally just implied that the grimm were there because of him. There’s a reason he didn’t want Ruby near him during the fight with Tyrian and now they’re all stuck together in close quarters. The grimm were coming anyway. Even if we didn't have Qrow's semblance and big crowds we can also assume as much because of—

Those turrets. They weren’t there for a fashion statement. The whole train was crazy armored. They’re clearly very used to getting attacked on this route. It's a normal thing.

All of which is to say that the relic is one of MANY reasons why they might have gotten a buttload of grimm on their tail. Ozpin mentions this as one possibility in a very “Here’s something else to consider” way and everyone (characters and fandom alike) jump on him like he’s solely responsible for this predicament. Besides, what would they have done differently? Not carry the relic? That’s not an option. Be more on guard? They’re already constantly on guard. None of their actions would have changed had they known.

Really though, it’s the keeping of secrets that people are mad about, not necessarily what the secret is. So if we ignore the possibility above that Ozpin legit didn’t think this was worth mentioning/even forgot about it, we have a) he withheld the information because it might have made them wary about traveling with others, but they need to get to Atlas as fast as possible and the train is the best way to do that. So yeah, that’s a possible change, though I agree with Ozpin’s theoretical logic here. It was worth the risk.

b) he didn’t tell them because—again—worry is a negative emotion and that might have just doubled their problem. Awful as it is, knowing you're carrying a thing that might attract more grimm is one of the best ways to make sure that you do, in fact, attract them. Knowing what the relic does is dangerous. 

c) he doesn’t trust them with all the information about these super powerful relics that are going to decide the fate of their world. Which honestly? Kind of fair. Yeah, I know he promised them no more secrets, but this is a centuries old, god-like entity making a promise to a child. It’s not even really a matter of trust anymore. We’ve got a core group of nine here and everyone has someone else they’re close to. Ruby isn’t going to keep secrets from Tai. Blake will probably fill Sun in when she sees him again. Weiss is close to her sister. Etc. In short, as soon as this many people know a secret it isn't a secret anymore. Ozpin is no doubt aware that anything he tells to their now massive group is fair game and he has to carefully consider what he wants to risk going public/landing in Salem's hands. A general doesn't tell every lieutenant the details of every plan. That's a good way to lose the war. Fate of the world vs. a promise made to Yang? C’mon. There are priorities here.

d) finally, we’ve seen evidence—particularly after the iconic food fight—that Ozpin desperately wants his students to be kids as long as they can. He might keep information to himself simply because he doesn’t want to burden them. And given all the reasons listed above for why they'd be dealing with grimm anyway, what's the harm in giving them what little peace he can? It's not perfect reasoning and if this is the case the others have a right to be annoyed, but it's understandable. It certainly doesn't make Ozpin the monster I see countless posts painting him as.

Plus, Yang? I’m not sure you have the right to get indignant about keeping secrets right now. Granted, there’s some ambiguity surrounding whether she’s mentioned Raven as the Spring Maiden, but regardless we haven’t seen any evidence that she’s told the group the details of what happened down in the vault. That’s a pretty big thing to be keeping to yourself.

A lot bigger than, “Oh yeah this relic attracts the thing we’re attracting anyway. My bad.”

Why the relic attracts grimm is another question. Because it’s connected to the original brothers? Just because Salem wants it and she seems to be the grimms’ creator? We’ll have to see.

Ruby interrupts everyone’s fury to point out that they have bigger issues at the moment and Ozpin’s expression kind of kills me? He looks so shocked to have anyone standing up for him, even if it’s a defense of practicality instead of his actions. I wonder if this Volume is going to have the team starting to lose a little faith in Ruby. Given the clear divide here (angry Ren, Nora, Weiss, Yang, and Blake on one side; Ruby, Oscar, Ozpin on the other) this might be a major theme moving forward. It would make a lot of sense too given Ruby's past relationship with Ozpin. To Yang he's just her headmaster; to Ruby he's the headmaster that let her into her dream school early. To Blake he's someone who wanted information from her before she was ready to give it; to Ruby he's the adult who gave her advice at the dance and was emotionally open with her about committing more mistakes "than any man, woman, or child." No matter how far she's come, they'll always be a part of Weiss that sees Ozpin as the teacher who didn't give her the leadership position she thought she deserved; to Ruby he's the man that has put a staggering amount of trust in her: by letting her into his school, giving her a team, sending her to Mountain Glenn, etc.

Now, it might be time for Ruby to put her trust in Ozpin.

Fight temporarily averted, they decide to separate the teams… which felt a little forced to me. I mean I get it. As said, giant group. It’s hard to write and keep track of that many, so let’s knock three offstage for a while. Jaune, Ren, and Nora will see the people to safety while Ruby and the rest of the gang eventually catch up. We get a glimpse of Maria—the old lady with awesome glasses—clearly plotting something and then everyone heads back to the roof to finish the fight with the grimm.

Blake has a quick vision of Adam; the last time she separated a train car. Excellent touch there. Ruby tells Ren to use his semblance through the scroll, but we also get a glimpse of their signals getting weaker. Another nice touch considering how important we know the scrolls are throughout the RWBY universe: how the team keeps in contact during the Volume Four short, the damage that the fall of the CCT tower has caused, etc.

We get a final, epic showdown with a massive grimm where everyone’s teamwork proves to be some top tier stuff. Blake and Yang capture it using Blake’s ribbon. Weiss freezes off its wings. Then—in a fantastic split screen—Ruby and Qrow both use their scythes to cut the creature in two. I’m here for the power family moves.

Only problem is that a final fireball from the grimm hits the train, derailing their section. Weiss keeps them all from dying an awful death, but now they’re kind of stranded.

I mean, they already were stranded before, but I guess the hope was the back of the train would have carried them farther down the tracks before losing momentum?

In the final scene we have an unexpected voice happily proclaiming that they’re still alive but boy, that was a close one! Maria hobbles out, having clearly planned to be with this group when they went their own way.

My personal theory? She knows (and to some extent recognizes) Ozpin. I can’t believe he wasn’t involved in a conflict like the Great War. Hell, he was probably at the center of it and Maria looks very old by RWBY standards. We have no concept of how long people in this world can live so I don’t think it’s a stretch to put her in her 90s or well over 100—old enough to have fought in the War and potentially recognize one of the central figures, even in a new reincarnation depending on her instincts, knowledge, and semblance. Her name lends a bit of credence to her age, if nothing else. As far as I know “Maria” doesn’t mean/isn’t evocative of a color… though I’m far from an expert. Could totally be wrong about that.

Regardless, we’ll see. More info arrives next week!

Other Details of Note

The grimm are at a distance when we first spot them and they actually look a lot like crows. The same motif we’ve seen with Raven and Qrow’s entrances but, you know, bad.

I really liked Qrow’s line to Ironwood about how they’re bringing “more than bad news.” It’s appropriately vague—can’t go admitting that Oz is back with the group—and at the same time quite up-lifting.

I personally take Ozpin’s “I hope they’re not from Beacon” as more of a joke than a true worry. If you’re telling me that this old as balls control freak doesn’t remember every student that’s ever passed through those doors… I don’t believe you.

When Blake is saying goodbye to Ilia and Sun we have lots of animation for her ears, helping to express her emotions. It says a lot about her character development that she hasn’t re-adopted the bow in such a crowded, human packed space.

Neptune is pursuing the “wrong tree” okay lol that was good.

When Neptune and Sun discuss re-uniting the team we briefly hear the soundtrack from their Vytal Festival match. Excellent.

Interestingly, Oscar gives Ozpin control immediately during the conversation about the relic, almost like he already knew what was going to be revealed and understood that it was important… I wonder how much they’re sharing thoughts now, two weeks later.

Here, have a beach Ren and happy birb. Yes, I went back for the screenshots...

[skygemspeaks]

I just love your Earth girl head canons so much. They make me so happy. Like the Beta Uni AU where Jarra realizes to late than decides to go with it and looks at her prejudices before they look at theres. Maybe she considers triading or somthing? IDK about that but no one is suprised she is a member of the Tell clan. She is just that nuts. They're all like "we should have expexted that". Than Solar five happens and maybe thats when it comes out? Sorry if this is a resend. I can't tumblr

Same anon from earlier about earth girl. I’m gerbilfriend on ao3 and ff. net. Sorry if I’m being a bother I just really love the earth girl series and there is like no fandom so I got really excited when I saw your posts. If you ever want to talk than I would love too (because my brain is being eaten alive by EG plot bunnies). If not I am sorry for bothering you.

Do not even apologize for your asks oh my god I have been waiting for an excuse to talk about my plot bunnies, because I have been thinking about the Beta university theory for way too long okay. I’m hoping to start writing it some time soon, and I’m probably going to just combine it with my au where Jarra’s parents didn’t die. Until then though, I’ll just infodump on this au because I’m just dying to tell someone about it.

Full disclosure though, I’m not really a huge fan of the Jarra/Fian ship. I know for sure I want her to end up with Raven, because I really love their dynamic, but I don’t know if they’re going to two, or if they’ll have a triad with Fian. I do love Fian himself and he plays a very important role in the series, I just don’t think he has any romantic chemistry with Jarra as a pair. Although introducing Raven to the mix would add a really interesting dynamic if they were to triad, so I’m still mulling it over. Either way, even if Fian does end up with her, I think her romance with Raven will probably happen first. But anyways, moving on:

Jarra originally chooses an Asgard university because that’s where Arrack San Domex is from. Conveniently enough, his name could just as easily be a Betan name, so in this universe, he’s from the San clan of Zeus, and when Candace asks Jarra which university she’s considering attending, she accidentally blurts out her favourite vid star’s home planet, earning a skeptical look from Candace, who may be pretty understanding in her own way, but who also holds prejudices against Beta sector because that’s just the environment she grew up in. After looking it up, Candace is surprised to find that University Zeus actually has one of the best pre-history courses, right after University Earth.

Jarra considers back-tracking, but it might make Candace change her mind if she looks unsure of her decision, so Jarra grits her teeth and endures, telling herself that it can’t be that bad.

She arrives at her course the first day, and is surprised when her Lecturer is a sensible Deltan man named Dannel Playdon. He doesn’t seem too approving of her when he meets her, but he’s not at all like the leering Betan stereotype she’d been expecting so she counts that as a win. Then comes the meet-and-greet, and she’s surprised that the people in her class seem…normal.

Most of them do end up being Betan, but they’re all dressed in sensible clothes and speak perfectly normally. In fact, the only two that are anything at all like she expected are Lolia and Lolmack, and the rest of the class steer well clear of them. Jarra hears some whispers about them being from a plebeian clan cluster but doesn’t understand the implications of that.

There are some people from the other sectors of course. A pretty Alphan girl ends up being the daughter of the famous Ventrak Rostha. There’s also Krath, a complete nardle from Gamma sector whose motivation for joining a Beta sector course turns out to be related to their supposedly promiscuous ways. There’s a super uncomfortable-looking boy from Delta who looks a lot like Arrack San Domex. And, most surprising of all, there even ends up being a girl from a frontier world in Epsilon, Amalie.

Most of the events at New York dig site happen pretty similar to canon, right up until the Honour ceremony, where everything changes. The class finds out Jarra’s from the Tell clan, and there’s a bunch of new rumours started as people wonder why she had kept her clan prefix a secret until then. The general consensus had been that she was sick of the hero worship her clan always received, and she had wanted to be treated like a normal person. The class respects her wishes, and Jarra remains none the wiser. Though despite their efforts to treat her like a normal person, many of them can’t help but be at least a little deferential to her in some ways, leading to Jarra wondering if she’s going crazy, or if people seem to be treating her differently. She chalks it up to them finding out she’s an honour child.

But anyways, that’s all y’all get for now. Don’t want to spoil the interesting part before I even get around to writing it. Suffice it to say that Raven definitely makes an earlier appearance than he did in canon, and we’re also gonna see hella more of Jaxon and Gemelle, and the rest of the Tell clan. And Colonel Torrek is gonna get an ass-whooping from his granddaughter for staying away from the family for so long.