#my one big big gripe with this show which i have to mention is the mess that is Min-yeop and Eun-sae

[lemonlovemeanslove]

Coffee Prince is like such an easy go-to example as to why genderqueer AFAB x cis man relationships are in fact queer, like thats in their nature. The show is a queer show about queer romance, about sexuality and gender and the complex, complex ways these things interact with culture and intense feelings. The sworn brother oath is such a great way to exemplify how we use socially accepted concepts of intimacy between men to justify (both to others but mostly to ourselves) why the feelings we feel for that particular person are so intense. When Eun Chan cried "I am neither man or woman," that is a confession. The ''whether you're a man or an alien'' line I have more complicated feelings with.

(Context: I've grown up in the Middle East in a very conservative circle. I say this now because when I tell you I KNOW misogyny and homophobia, I mean I KNOW misogyny and homophobia, and have in my youth consumed a lot of East Asian media where I have definitely noticed a kind of trend in many different genres. Because of misogyny, there is for a lot of women with a kind of fantasy of being loved despite being female. The man-woman relationship is so loaded with so much angst and patriarchy that there is this kind of underlying feeling that you aren’t liked for you, that you are seen for your gender and what it’s supposed to look like, to the point where it’s hard to want to project yourself into a typical F x M dynamic, because you can really only associate it with the patriarchal ideal you so wish to avoid for yourself.)

But anyways, that line to me is also hinting to this: hey, this isn’t just my kind of strange and confused coming out because I feel strange and confused, but also you, Eun Chan, are something out of binary that my subconscious has kind of picked up on but that I right now don’t really have the words for or even awareness of. Eun Chan sometimes wants to be perceived as female—or rather, as a ''girl'' sparkle sparkle—but only when looking for or wanting male validation. (This might seem contradictory to the italicized section, but it actually isn’t. Wanting to escape the role of the female completely but still craving the attention you have been taught to chase actually go very much hand in hand with each other.) Eun Chan is always performing gender when they need to. When they don’t, it isn’t brought up. It isn’t given a name, it just is.

Yes, I know it’s an older drama from a conservative country, but that doesn’t mean none of this was intended. And despite intent, it doesn’t make it less valid.

The drama is thoughtful and is open to complexities, half-truths, and almosts. Cut to ANYTHING between Han Yoo-joo and Han-sung. When I say I want complex female characters, I’m talking about Han Yoo-joo—what a fucking scene-stealer. Anyways, I’m rewatching the drama since I first saw it at 15 because my life is in turmoil, and yeah, it still hits.

[ladyloveandjustice]

I put this in the tags but my one big gripe about severance is there's such a lack of significant reccuring relationships between women esp developed ones so far. It's really just Helly/Helena and Ms. Cobel and Devon and Ms. Cobel.

Ofc Devon also mentions that she loves Gemma and she's her family too and we have a flashback interaction, but that's not a lot. Ms. Cobel's backstory is significant (I'm being vague about this I have someone following me who hasn't seen season 2) but also only involves like. one ep's worth of interactions so far.

And one of those two significant relationships is 100% antagonistic which isn't bad, I think their conflict(s) are great, they're not fighting over a man or anything like that, but it stands out that we have so many really developed positive relationships/friendships between men and like for women it's...one significant relationship that's a mix of positive and negative and mainly revolves around mark anyway, crumbs of a past friendship/family relationship, Devon briefly mentioning she was attracted to the...god I can't even remember her name i guess her innie didn't technically have one...the woman in the birthing cabin a little and that's it for the positive. Women in this show spend most of their time interacting with and having relationships with men.

(it's actually funny to realize Ms. Cobel is carrying 95% of the show's interactions between women on her back. What a feminist, clearly).

A lot of it really is due to Helly being the One Woman in the department and it would have been so easy to have two women in that group. I mean the show's made some nods at corporate sexism (with the first ep even having them discussing when the department's 'last woman' was) but it does appear lumon has some departments with a more even mix between men and women...so idk if the choice was about that. But yeah even if the core group only has Helly there was plenty or room for more interaction.

Like do Devon and Gemma even have any friends? We only ever see Devon talking to Ricken's friends. (I mean I guess that's not entirely a gender thing we never see signs any of the outies have friends, but that's in line with having the kind of life where you'd choose to get severed. I imagine most of outie Mark's friends bailed due to fallout from his depression.)

Women do talk about things that aren't men quite a few times, so there's that lowest Bechdel bar cleared, but it still feels like so much missed opportunity.

I really have high hopes season 3 might improve on this, though, given the set up, fingers crossed so tight. Also fingers crossed for Devon leaving Ricken and dating a woman, she deserves so much better.

[whateversawesome]

Let's Talk About Yor

Something is going on with Yor lately. Have you noticed it too?

Even though she wasn't in every chapter of the latest big arc (Wheeler-Yuri-Twilight confrontation), the arc started with her and ended with her and I think there's a reason for that.

As I mentioned before, Yor is a very emotionally intelligent character. She surpasses Twilight on this, who struggles with his own emotions and the emotions of others too.

So the way Yor works is by becoming aware of an emotion or a change within herself and then she reflects on that. Then, things happen to her and she reflects some more about that issue or emotion, which is usually connected to the things that are happening around her.

Example: Look at the chapters leading to the cruise arc. Fiona showed up and Yor started questioning her place in the Forger family. Everything seemed to be cleared out during that same visit, but then Loid went to a tennis tournament with Fiona and Yor kept thinking about this. When the tennis challenge happened, even though Yor won, this didn't make her feel better, quite the opposite. Finally, Loid reassured her during that date in the bar, right after he got kicked on the chin.

That should have been it, right? Wrong. More things kept happening to Yor and she kept thinking about her place in the world, whether or not she should keep her assassin job until we finally get to that moment when she realizes her reason to keep on living and protecting is her family.

I get the feeling we're now at a similar point in the manga. Somehow everything keeps pointing to Yor, specifically to Yor and her relationship with Loid. Look at what's happening to Yor and tell me what you think is coming:

1.That chat with her office friends about gripes, marriage and welcome home kisses.

2.The welcome home kiss that never happened when she got home.

3."The fight" she had with Loid, or more specifically: thinking about her husband while he was shot by Yuri. (Those sad eyes said a lot!).

4.That honest talk she had with Twilight where she tells him she wants to take care of him.

5.Her chat with Yuri, where her brother asked her if she loves Loid.

6.Meeting the Authens, a real marriage, and seeing them kiss. (The Authens' Theory here.)

See what I mean? If we take into consideration the way Yor grows as a character and the way she realizes things, then where is this heading?

It's clear Yor is about to realize she has feelings for Loid!

The way the story keeps pointing at a kiss with giant arrows is not a coincidence. For Yor, who is inexperienced, a kiss would mean true love and a real marriage (which is what she wants). If the almost kiss didn't happen at the beginning of the story (when Yuri visited) is because back then, the marriage wasn't real. Maybe they liked each other and a little more, but they had just met.

Now about the first twiyor kiss...we'll you can read my theory on that here. And I'd like to add a little more...

I know I said I wanted it to happen in the movie, but I admit I was being waaaay too optimistic about it. Sadly, I don't think it'll happen in the movie. Like some of you mentioned, that moment belongs to the manga and I agree.

However, all that is happening with Yor is leading to that kiss. I still believe she'll be the one who takes that step and will be the one who kisses Twilight. I insist; it's part of her character arc, which is about gaining confidence in herself, becoming a woman, and feeling worthy of love.

At this point, she's on the verge of figuring out her own feelings and after that happens, she needs to accept them and then figure out how she wants to proceed. I believe it won't be an easy task for her. Knowing Yor, she won't want to inconvenience Loid and impose her feelings on him. She also won't want to risk what she already has: her family. So it will take a while and maybe a little encouragement (maybe from the Authens?) to get to the point of actually want to act on these feelings.

But it's coming.

[loycos]

my head's a bit clearer, some thoughts about act 3

-my biggest gripe is episode 7- cool idea, love the concept of peaking into a different universe and seeing what our characters couldve been under different circumstances, but a WHOLE episode. when you only had 9 episode in this season, that already feel like theyre moving at a neck's pace. for a universe that ultimately doesn't matter to the main universe where the story takes place. the fact it had timebomb made it feel extremely fan service-y.

-no emotional resolution to a lot of characters. viktor and jayce are the only ones i can think of that felt like they got the screen time and care for an actual emotional closure.

-isha wasn't even mentioned in this act. in general she was already a martyr for jinx's character development but guys can you make it less obvious.

-it started in act 2, hence why i was so jaded on it, but it continues here: just where the fuck the political drama between 2 cities go? the conflict between zaun and piltover took a back seat since episode 4 and never came back. the resolution to it isn't bad per say, but when u got so little focus on it in the finale it just feels rushed.

-i loved the cait and jinx scene. but like, that was the resolution to it??? after act 1 thinking about it disappoints me. im not against a conversation being the climax to a story, but that is, and im not joking, the ONLY conversation these 2 have in the show one on one. in general the jinx\cait\vi arc ends with 1 conversation per duo (well caitvi got one fight and one very steamy sex scene but u won't catch me complaining). and after act 1, idk i think i wanted just a little bit more. im biased though- the jinx\vi\caitlyn dynamic is my favorite part about arcane. the teasers for s2 always had them front and center so i assumed it'll play a bigger part in the story???

-i felt like what the show was at its core, which is the conflict between the sisters and the cities, was completely sidelined this season. in general i can't really tell what the main theme of the show is anymore. but yeah look at the resolution to the jinx and vi story.did it feel like it had the emotional impact u expected? cause i felt like it was underwhelming.

-sevika?? didnt speak since episode 4???? huhh???

-maddie was pointless. why was she there?? i don't understand the point of that character. i dont understand her motives. she ended up not mattering at all to caitvi's story. the only thing i got from her inclusion is "caitlyn fucks" but is it that THAT important??? of a character trait??? to add to caitlyn of all people?? in THIS season??? this belongs in the realm of fanfiction.

-a lot here felt like fanfiction actually. every silco inclusion (except of him in the cell with jinx), the whole "nobody dies au" they threw in the middle, even the caitvi sex scene (IM NOT COMPLAINING THO). the caitvi scene at the end was dialog out of fanfiction, wtf was that.

-why did caitlyn lose her eye? im not like against the idea on a base level but losing an eye is very symbolic, and im not sure what its supposed to represent here. caitlyn is an observant person, its a big character trait for her. so youre basically saying she sees less now? that she's more laser focused? i sure hope not. wasnt her whole arc with giving up of revenge about seeing the "bigger picture"? her sacrifice didn't feel in character, because caitlyn is not really a "fight to the death" type of character like ambessa is. if she made that sacrifice for something like love, or for the betterment of other people, that would be more in line. idk, you couldve made me on board with it but im just very meh on it. also caitlyn only really emotes through her eyes, it sucks that we get even less of it now?? though i guess it doesnt matter at this point.

-what was the point of the enforcer that looked like vander?

-ambessa was so wasted in these last 2 acts its crazy. where's the "you have to be the fox and the wolf" mindset from her? she felt like she was wolfing only with no wit anymore by the 3rd act.

-mel????????????? it was. uhhh. maybe you shouldve saved it for another series, riot. but in this show, waste of time. the fight she had with caitlyn against ambessa was cool tho.

-i sound like im a hater but u have to understand. s1 of arcane was a political drama and a character study show. seeing all this discarded for magic and time travel shenanigans on like 4 different fronts was so jarring it took me out of the show multiple times.

-cant believe im saying that, but i wish they'd try to stick closer to the characters' current state in the source material (the cursed game). someof it felt out of left field and done for shock value, which isn't why we love the story or these characters to begin with.

good stuff:

-caitvi sex lmao ill take it babyyyyy

-jayce and viktor's scenes at the end were powerful.

-as usual, the visuals were phenomenal. the animation is gorgeous. fortiche u made this show what it is and youre still its saving grace.

-thank god they dropped the warwick\vander plot

-i liked the implication of the conclusion to jinx's story, even if it felt a little inconsistent with the character.

-the ending to jinx\vi\caitlyn was poetic and i did love it, even if it was rushed and didn't really hit the emotional highs i wanted it to.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

hey! wanted to say i appreciate you talking about how malleus doesn’t appeal to you :,) he doesn’t quite appeal go me either, but i couldn’t find anyone that didn’t either hate or love him, both sides often mischaracterizing him. i felt like i was going mad. but you put my feelings about him into words in a really eloquent and well thought out way, so, yea! thanks for saying your honest opinions on the internet haha

[Please check my pinned post’s FAQ section if you’d like to read about why I personally dislike Malleus!]

Thank you!! It’s not often that you get gratitude for being critical of a character (as opposed to, like, outright praising them) so this ask genuinely took me by surprise.

I find that Malleus is one of those characters that’s quite difficult to talk about. Because he’s so well-liked by English-speaking fans (fandom-run polls consistently show that he is liked by at least 50% of responders), his presence has become almost stifling… which formed a counterculture (ie hate) against him. In any case, whether you think negatively or positively of Malleus (or feel nothing at all for him), that can really color how his words and actions are perceived. But sometimes it feels like you can’t even talk about him without walking on eggshells. People tend to feel so strongly about Malleus and you never know how they’ll react to the thoughts you express.

It should be recognized that both extremes will blindside you. The most ardent Malleus lovers will make everything about him or enable and defend him to the bitter end even when Malleus has done reprehensible things. The most passionate Malleus haters will nitpick what are just normal or innocent actions as The Worst Possible Thing Ever or claim he’s aggressive all the time. Neither truly compasses who he actually is.

As I’ve mentioned in other posts, I’d like to think that even though I dislike the guy, I try and give him a fair shot 😅 Some of the issues I have with him are no fault of his own and result from the narrative’s failure to capitalize on his intrigue or the nature of gacha games and the main story being limited. Other issues I’ll admit are completely my own annoyances and gripes (like how I take issue with OP characters with few setbacks, how I don’t like characters that try to force their views onto others, or how I have had bad Malleus-related fandom experiences). Then there’s just the objective truths, like how Malleus is extremely arrogant but is rarely called out for it or rarely faces consequences for his actions in-universe (or from the fandom). He’s still a complex character, just… not one I enjoy.

Looking back on it 💦 I almost can’t believe I have like… 8 or 9 posts detailing my frustrations with Malleus, and each of them expressing significantly different issues from the last. I’m glad that this blog can be a space for me to discuss my thoughts and opinions without angry fans of X or Y character coming at me 😭 I unfortunately can’t say that this is always the case… But for the most part, it’s pretty peaceful here and I really appreciate that!

I’ll close this post off by shouting out the Malleus fans who don’t take it personally when someone else says they’re not a fan of their blorbo. The Malleus fans who are willing to come to the table and listen, the Malleus fans who acknowledge his imperfections and faults, the Malleus fans who accept that others can choose to dislike him for any reason, whether big or small, and don’t push for “correcting” the “wrong” opinion. I know that it sounds like such a low bar to clear, but trust me when I say I’ve witnessed and experienced much worse behaviors (from a loud minority of Malleus fans) and would not wish that upon anyone.

[causeimcrayzeebee]

holy shit that was one of if not the craziest tetro friday. this isn’t gonna be the most coherent but id like to ramble about just some of what i loved about this day. spoilers for day 35 of pink!

I think what these episodes have highlighted for me is how beautifully complicated these people are. these are teenagers who got thrown into a killing game, and that game AFFECTS them. one of my gripes with canon dr is just the lack of response to death and the tension and the pressure of the kg from the characters. this is something that tetro has really taken time to build up and show in every scene. it makes sense when tamba and hiroaki blow up at each other and one gets pushed down the stairs, it makes sense when hasegawa forgets what he said about the game because that’s information about kamimura fucking kazutoshi, it makes sense when hayashi tells everyone to give her their punishments.

(speaking of which… auditorium floor mention. I don’t even know how to feel about this and im sure hasegawa doesn’t know either. i am elated and devastes all at once. sigh. excuse me while i bawl my eyes out.)

the loyalty game was a really good way to display who everyone was. i think it highlighted both the good and the bad of everyone, showing that in the end, these are kids who just want get out alive. i think stairwell was one of my favorite episodes; it really showed that tamba and hiroaki are one in the same. …..honestly… they were both kinda real in their criticisms of each other. did they go too far? absolutely. telling him to kill himself?? holy shit that was insane. pushing her down the fucking stairs????? my god.

also can i say that yanagis confession to hayashi was actually so beautiful n i fr cried. yeah. wow.

in other yanagi news, im absolutely terrified for yanagi and hasegawa. how did the door even lock???? and being in there with the corpses…. with the lights off… god that’s horrible. if they don’t get out soon they might be fucked this chapter. it could very well be possible they stay stuck down there and we lose them down there. i feel like theories like the sole wada survivor theory aren’t gonna be too far off, especially if blue and white are coming after pink, so i can see them having to rot with the corpses worse comes to worse. but I’m not sure, they could still make it out.

i think hayashi has been a highlight of this chapter for me. her interview was rather touching, seeing her talk about the dead students n just really making me miss everyone we lost. seeing the game from where she’s coming from makes so much sense, and while i have been agreeing with yanagi that she has been putting herself in so much danger (esp with loyalty game), i also completely understand why she has been doing it. logically, that is the best plan as she is the most physically and mentally capable to hold that burden, and not only that, but that’s who she is as a person. i can’t even say i agree with hayashi or yanagi more because i think they’re both completely understandable; they’re human!

another thing i love about tetro that has shined especially recently: the characters are driven by their values. hayashi has been a fighter who protects people, yanagi is someone who wants to keep his loved ones safe, etc etc. all the tension of this chapter is due to the game pushing them so far that they have to act in accordance with their values at heart.

(i am also curious though, what is the purpose of a sole vote as a reward? if hayashi dies and the trial is for her, do they not get to vote and thus not make it out? been thinking about the possibilities of that one…)

there’s something so tragic about wada saying he doesn’t even know who hiroaki is anymore while wearing the outfit and hairstyle that hiroaki made for him. broke my heart a bit. it feels like we’ve come so far but realizing that it’s been just a month of the game.

i wanna end this ramble with a big shout out to von for everything she’s done. it’s absolutely insane that pink is almost done, but no episode has been wasted. every scene has been crucial for the story and the characters n just…. ugh it’s been a wild ride but ive been so so invested! ALSO A HUGE SHOUT OUT TO THE VAS!!!!!! they have been putting their everything into it and it truly has shown.

im beyond nervous for next week. “how can it get worse” i say as the universe prepares the worst to come.

[atalana]

actually you know what, while this isn't something i had an issue with in the movie (and honestly the costume designers for wicked did an incredible job), i do wanna talk about elphaba's stage dress bc i think the tumblr lesbians will have fun with it!

so like i made a post a bit ago about how i literally only have one gripe with the wicked movie and it's that every glinda outfit was pink (probably for marketing purposes, but stage glinda is incredibly varied in her colours, and she only has one pink dress, alongside a white, a yellow, a green, and two blue dresses)

but i didn't really go into how elphaba is, in her own way, just as colourful!

because if you read interviews with susan hilferty, the original costume designer for wicked, she talks about how the primary thing she wanted to play with was the idea of these two as earth and sky

glinda comes from the sky, both literally in terms of her first scene being in the bubble, but also that is who she is as a person, bright, airy, expansive. she gets so many colours because she represents the rainbow, and whenever her and elphie are put in contrast, she gets the light side as is fitting for the show

(i did mention this in my glinda post too, but in the show the school colours for shiz are blue and white, which they do conform to, but while every other student is wearing blue and white stripes, glinda is dressed entirely in white and elphie entirely in blue)

but to the point of this post! you then get elphaba as earth. i've seen posts around about how elphie's magic is so strong because she's more connected to the world around her, and that's not only true but something worked into her costume design! hilferty talks about mica and geodes being an inspiration here, elphaba comes from the earth and is an intrinsic part of it, she may not look like much from the outside but she holds an incredible beauty inside

and so her dress is designed to look black from a distance, but it's actually not! it's dozens of layers of different dark colours, that shine and catch the light in different ways

(these dresses are also all slightly different because she mentions they made each dress for the actress who would wear it, each one is unique to fit how that person plays elphaba)

it also to me represents her public vs private image, people like glinda who've seen those layers to her knows she's a beautiful person inside and out, know how she could be seen and loved and appreciated for her complexity and depth, but no one looks that closely. they see from a distance, and they see what they want to see - a wicked witch in a black dress

(especially poignant given how colourful oz is and how no one else, no one 'good', ever wears black)

and i genuinely do love the details put into elphie's movie design, i'm a big fan of victorian style costuming and she's got a lot of those elements (plus the amount of detail and complexity put into dresses that are entirely black should be commended)

but i wanna show off her coloured dress too, because it means the world to me

[satsuha]

not sure if you would agree but sometimes the ace attorney fandom feels like the Shu Takumi fandom, especially since all the games he is head writer on get a lot of praise, with people quickly brushing aside the flaws in the games he worked on or outright making up excuses, such as claiming he was drunk writing turnabout big top but totally sober writing every other case in the 2nd game because"they're good".

Meanwhile the fandom is very harsh towards the games with Takeshi Yamazaki as head writer, only focusing on their flaws, which aren't always flaws and claiming he "ruined ace attorney" or that the games he's head writer on "aren't canon".

Only expections seem to be AA4 and AAI2, but AA4 is overall loved a lot more than the other two Apollo Justice trilogy games and AAI2 has a more niche fanbase, due to only recently being localised, so I worry that game will get more hate because of how harsh people are to AAI1.

oh yeah i totally agree and like, i get it. as someone who got into ace attorney because of how much i liked ghost trick, i get it... but it is absolutely true that fans tend to put takumi on way too much of a pedestal. my personal feelings on the games takumi has worked on are extremely mixed (i think aa3 is amazing but i really did not like tgaa at all), as are my feelings with the games yamazaki directed (aa5 and aa6 are what i would consider my least and most favourite in the main series, while i like the aai games), so they're kinda equal in my book lol

it's ridiculous to me because takumi himself really REALLY likes turnabout big top (source) enough to call it one of his favourite cases so...? those fans would be straight up putting words in his mouth. it's a case i really enjoyed as well, and it's a downright shame that people can't look past a few gripes to just enjoy the case for what it is. i think the berry big circus' return in aai2 shows how well liked it is amongst both the dev team and the japanese fan base (famitsu poll where big top ranked #7 in "most memorable case" and one of the cases mentioned under "did you cry during any of the games", and max ranked #5 under favourite defendants)

i know i said takumi and yamazaki are equal to me right above but in terms of personal preference i would actually pick yamazaki, simply because he's the type of writer who clearly cares so much about his protagonists and the story they have to tell, and the journey they go on. takumi and yamazaki are nearly opposites in this regard if you ask me, with takumi saying phoenix ended up subconsciously being a bit of a self insert (source) while yamazaki tends to lean in much harder on what makes the protagonists unique. i like phoenix well enough but i think all of takumi's games are similar in that the protagonist (playable character) is never really the main character in the stories the games are telling - the one criticism people seem to have about aa4 is how much apollo is a bystander in phoenix and kristoph's story, but in my opinion all of takumi's games are like this, even ghost trick. i hesitate to call it a flaw because it feels very intentional to me and clearly some people like how it worked out with phoenix in aa1-3 and ryunosuke, but if i'm going to spend the whole game with a character and seeing all their thoughts i'd much rather the character have really strong personality traits that shine through in their dialogue/thoughts. this is what i really enjoyed about aai - edgeworth has a really strong personality and getting to see his thoughts was already really fun in aa3-5 and the investigations games were just more of that imo. it's also why i like aa6 and not aa5 - while apollo doesn't "spoil" anything for the player in his thoughts during 6-2, it made a lot more sense for him to be doing that with nahyuta as opposed to his relationship with clay. it's also why aa6-5 is one of my favourite cases... getting to play through that story through apollo's eyes was just. really really good.

but i really hope aai2 doesn't go down this same path... before playing it i already knew it was a lot of peoples' favourite aa game, and unlike tgaa it really did not disappoint for me... i understand that changing scenario writers mid-series can be rough, and i think capcom's insistence and reliance on keeping phoenix in the spotlight throughout the aj trilogy plays a big part in making the transition feel worse, but i just wish people could see yamazaki's writing for its strengths, like they do with takumi

[thatguywhodoesstuff]

What about you? What about the Warhammer Chaos gods interests you?

Alright, sorry for the late response, but here’s a point by point rundown on my thoughts on the various Chaos Gods and Chaos as a whole:

Khorne————————

The big man of Chaos and the one (besides Gork and Mork) that is benefiting and reveling the most from the constant battles and wars being waged throughout the franchise. In my opinion, the Lord of Blood’s main appeal to me is his simplicity. He knows what he wants and what he expects of his followers, and while at face value this makes him seem like little else than a blunt instrument, just how raw and utterly human the sensation of overwhelming and all consuming anger is both terrifying and compelling, especially in how it plays into and with Khorne also focusing on a traditional, albeit heavily blood soaked, concept of honor.

Tzeentch—————————

Ah yes, the Changer of Ways, Tzeentch is a tricky one on practically all levels. I will admit Tzeentch isn’t a personal favorite of mine, but I am a big fan of how the various domains he covers overlap and interact, such as showing the dual nature of desiring change which isn’t intrinsically good or bad, the danger of recklessly seeking knowledge, and not to mention the blinding effect unchecked ambition has on people. I can honestly get behind Tzeentch, his followers, and the nebulous, ever changing goals on paper, but the fact there isn’t much in the way of defined parameters regarding what Tzeentch draws power from is a bit of a turnoff.

Nurgle———————

Now we come upon my undisputed favorite amongst the Chaos pantheon. Grandfather Nurgle has a rather personal place in my heart as ever since I was young I’ve struggled with anxiety and fears regarding matters of death, pain, filth, sickness, and feelings of depression. See, when I first got into the Warhammer franchise, I found myself drawn to the Plaguelord and his followers as I felt strangely seen in them.

As for in-universe reasons, I find the paradoxical nature of Nurgle and his followers very intriguing. How this god of death also holds dominion over a twisted form of life. How he expresses his own twisted brand of love by “blessing” whole worlds with nightmarish blights. How his acolytes are all twisted & diseased pseudo corpses that are free of pain & fear of death as they shamble forward across the battlefield. I suppose the best way I can describe my feelings for Nurgle and his grandkids is that I find them sickeningly sweet.

Slaanesh——————

Okay, so I’ll admit Slaanesh honestly unnerves me as someone with obsessive tendencies. Aside from the more… obvious aspects of She Who Thirsts and her followers, what always interested me regarding Slaanesh was the personal connection and enmity it has with the Elvish/Aeldari factions. I will say, I do have one major gripe with how the Slaanesh faction is presented almost strictly in a carnal manner in WH40k and wish they would take more from the more widespread concepts of obsession and overindulgence they have been using in Age of Sigmar.

Malal/Malice———————————

Ah yes, the oft forgotten son of Chaos (and Games Workshop). I don’t have much else to say other than I find the overall aesthetic and concept of a faction that embodies the tendency of Chaos to turn inwards and self destruct to be absolutely phenomenal. 11/11, I really wish we would get more regarding this infrequently mentioned and not completely canon Chaos god and faction.

The Horned Rat—————————————

He’s the self serving god of a race of psychotic rat-men hooked on radioactive moon cheese that literally feeds on desperation and desires little else than to despoil literally everything, which led to him just inserting himself into the empty space left in the Chaos pantheon by Slaanesh’s imprisonment. What’s not to love about him and his manic followers in all the different and innovative ways they manage to manifest their depravity?

Hashut/Vashtorr————

Alright, I’ll admit I don’t have a whole lot to say about Hashut, but I thought I’d discuss these two together given their whole focus on the evils born of unchecked innovation and industrialism. Now, I will say I do find Hashut managing to corrupt and radicalize a whole group of dwarfs into their own subfaction with the promise of better materials/conditions to work with and the ability to wield conventional magic (albeit at a price) rather impressive, having basically carved out his own niche separate from the Primordial Four.

As for Vashtorr, I’m really interested in how the story regarding his quest to become a Fifth Chaos god will unfold, especially given how he’s aligned with the Black Legion, and while its clear that someone is going to get screwed over in that particular partnership, especially since it’s currently unclear who the unlucky party is going to be when that time comes. I also find it very interesting how Vashtorr more or less takes the opposite route of Hashut and instead has ingratiated himself to the Primordial Four via the manufacturing of Daemon Engines, while also being mostly untouchable in the greater scope of the Great Game.

Misc. Other Chaos Gods—

There isn’t much to say about the other Chaos gods as they are either yet to manifest or non-canon. I will say the idea of the Emperor of Mankind being a likely candidate of becoming the Fifth Chaos god is something I absolutely love and wish was more fleshed out aside from the rare references to the Dark King and the Star Child. I mean, common, it’s just so poetic that the man that spent thousands upon thousands of years busting his hump trying to elevate humanity and protect them from the forces of Chaos becoming just like the very beings he sought to starve and extinguish with his Imperial Truth and possibly condemning mankind, if not the entirety of existence, just like Slaanesh condemned the Aeldari. I get it’s something on such a massive scale that it’s just not feasible to properly tackle without massive effort on Games Workshop’s part, but it’s still something fascinating to explore.

Also, shout-out to the non-canon Necoho the Doubter and Zuvassin the Undoer for literally being the Renegade Chaos gods of atheism and plans going awry respectively.

Chaos Undivided—————

I suppose to answer the question of what draws me to Chaos is the fact it’s a dark mirror of the rawest, truest parts of humanity. It’s a corruptive force literally born from the minds of mortals and true to human nature, people try to rationalize it, direct it, wield it, only to invariably fail and fall deeper into its clutches. Chaos comes in so many forms and in some there are shades of good, yet it’s all clouded by the horrors it brings. It’s like an exploration of the human condition and yet, at the same time Chaos is in a way a literal man made hell, and that fact just fascinates me on a near morbid level.

I’m sorry that this was such a long read, but I hope this answered your question.

[thatfilthyanimal]

What are your thoughts on Schaffrillas?

Oh Anon I really hope this is being sent in good faith and isn't just bait because well. Hm.

I want to like the dude. I do. Without his review of Megamind (2010) I'm not sure Megamind would have had such a resurgeance that it's had in the recent years. And for a long time, I deeply respected the dude for that.

But I also had slowly fallen into the youtube trap of what I will not-so-affectionately call "ragebait youtubers", which are people who profit off of whatever new piece of media is the Big Thing To Hate. I was subscribed to a bunch of them, and had my big laughs at all the new "terrible" media coming out, for years.

And then suddenly Megamind Vs The Doom Syndicate was the new thing to hate. It was no longer funny. At all. Everyone I subscribed to dogpiled onto it and collectively sabotaged the series following it (many of which were people regurgitating things every other reviewer was saying, often getting things wrong about either Vs The Doom Syndicate or the show following it, Megamind Rules, if they even knew the show existed at all). The Rotten Tomatoes reviews tanked. The screenwriters got threats of violence on their personal blogs, one person actually stating that they wished they could cut their hands off so they could never write again. (Hi, what the fuck?) The Megamind tags were flooded by hate. The fans that DID like the new stuff were dogpiled and told they were stupid Dreamworks shills being paid to promote the new stuff. Nobody believed that there were actual fans that actually liked the new stuff, because the fans of people who do ragebait youtuber shit are miserable, unhappy people who fail to see joy in anything new just because it isn't 100% perfect.

My biggest gripe with Schaffrillas is the fanbase he caters to these days. I have not watched his newest videos about the new Megamind stuff (I refuse to watch any of it; I refuse to give these people my views for their blatant misinformation and hostility towards something "mid" at worst) but there was a SIGNIFICANT uptick in both hate in the fandom tags and harassment to both fans and the screenwriters on twitter, here, youtube, ANYWHERE-- after his video. I don't believe this was his actual intention, he's obviously not a dick, but I refuse to entertain the idea that his intention with his newest videos wasn't careless. "Why Megamind 2 Is A Cinematic Disaster" is a title implying the lie that Megamind Vs The Doom Syndicate is something that should be held up to the same standard as a theatrical "Megamind 2" and the dude is smart enough to know exactly that. The thing is, it ISN'T "Megamind 2", it's an extended pilot episode to a low budget straight-to-streaming show that is actually very damn good. Before Schaffrillas even got to review it, before it even released, I had seen news outlets falsely labeling it as "Megamind 2" in the same way, getting people's hopes up. I asked the screenwriters in a (now deleted because Elon sucks and lots of people fled the site) twitter post if they considered the film/series to be a proper sequel on par with a title like "Megamind 2" or not, and the response was basically "we just consider it a continuation of his story", aka what I took away from it: "No. Not a grand theatrical sequel like everyone is implying. But more stuff, regardless." My own expectations going in were lower, because of this, and I wasn't as greatly disappointed as everyone else who was under the impression this would be some high-budget Puss In Boots The Last Wish level production. Not these people's fault! News outlets and youtubers BOTH painted this film like it was supposed to be more!!

And the kicker to all of that is Dreamworks fully failed to promote Megamind Rules properly. In the advertising for Vs The Doom Syndicate, the show is mentioned as an afterthought at the end, as if there isn't like 7hrs of content behind that film to still watch after, that the writers/artists put blood/sweat/tears into for years beforehand. I assume there was a lot of push to have a pilot episode get turned into a "movie" even though it would have been better as maybe two episodes. But the backlash from the internet seemed to have hurt the Megamind Team SO BAD that the advertising for the 2nd half of the first season didn't even get finished. One of the team members slipped the unfinished ad video onto twitter finally. The ONLY people who advertised the 2nd half of the series were the Megamind Team themselves, and the fans who liked the show. Dreamworks social media was absolutely silent about it, choosing to promote everything else instead. Ragebait youtubers, and this culture of hating EVERY new piece of media that comes out, whether it deserves it or not (spoilers: it rarely ever does) had damaged the future of this show when it truly didn't deserve it. Dreamworks threw their hands in the air and gave up. The Megamind Team did their best to still promote it because their paychecks probably rely on it and they knew old fans still liked the new stuff even IF there was overwhelming backlash about it!

I don't think Schaffrillas realizes the full impact of everything he says and does in his videos these days. I don't know if any ragebait youtuber even cares anymore, as long as they get paid by Daddy Youtube for churning out the next video as quickly as possible before anyone can watch things for themselves and form their own opinions on anything. Does Moana 2 actually suck or is youtube just feeding me videos by unwashed losers who are mad their sequel isn't Shrek 2 perfect? I don't know!! But it's all I see! "This new movie sucks!!" "This new show sucks!!" "This new game sucks!!" holy shit! The reason I -LIKED- people making videos about Megamind before all of this was because the reception was generally entirely positive! People were talking about it because they LIKED it! Schaffrillas, give me a video over a damn hour about everything you LIKE about Megamind and I'll freakin' watch it. I will NOT sit there for an hour listening to someone complain about a piece of media they could just stop watching or walk away from and choose to go watch anything else the actually LIKE instead. IDK!! Idk. I'm old, I'm cranky, I'm tired. I'm glad people have mostly moved on by now and I can have a shred of normalcy back in the tags again. But it will forever be marred and ugly from all the hate from everyone shitting on the newest stuff (whether it deserves it or not) and I will forever be nervous to promote my fandom server to new fans for fear of one of these big youtubers dropping another "this movie sucks" video and their fans going to the tags on various sites to find ways to grief the fanbases for liking something "so horrible". Which, yes, already happened. A lot. (We banned a lot of people this year when we rarely ever had to before this :/)

I don't know if the dude realizes the bridges he's burned, both in the Megamind fandom and with various Dreamworks employees (not just about Megamind, mind you, but also other recent things he's said). This is NOT the way to get anywhere if that's what he's trying to do. It's just going to get him remembered as the dude who made people lose money/jobs because they couldn't make a budget larger from thin air, or couldn't read minds on what would be considered "good enough" to a larger swath of fans of something.

The Megamind Team is full of really good people who really did do a good job and tried VERY HARD with A LOT going against them to make a good product that would make fans happy. It certainly made ME happy! It was consistent with the the original canon material and even borrowed from fandom theories for some things (probably unintentionally? but it's still funny to me). Somehow Schaff managed to make a video over an hour long about everything bad about it. I don't see it that way, and it must be infuriating to live in a world where you CAN find over an hour's worth of stuff to bitch about with it. Yeah, the animation is crunchy and the pilot film goes on a bit long and could have been shorter. Whoo. I'm done. It was easy. Not over an hour long.

There's also a thing about the DeGun? Idk. I don't have the full context but I assume it's about the opening scene where Megamind doesn't dehydrate the Go Fish Gang dudes as they're running away. From a writing perspective, the building should have been completely flooded with water, so it makes sense that he wouldn't. Obviously though the animators didn't have time for the water everywhere or it just got overlooked. But also, Megamind sucks at his job. That's the point. He's new and he's not good. He also canonically doesn't use his DeGun to dehydrate people well before this! Metro Man, Titan, hell-- the whole tower falling towards them at the end of the movie? There's clearly rules towards his tech that are being followed (or the guy is just an idiot idk) that we don't ever get told about, and yeah that would probably be good, but personally all I thought was "ok he's dumb but let's go XD;" when it happened and that was it. I also didn't have monetary incentive to make an hour long video about hating it, though. So. Y'know.

All I really want is for the dude to reflect on where his videos are currently heading and, again, the bridges he's burning due to the careers and lives he's hurting by going this route. I can't sit here and pat his ass for him and tell him he's doing a great job when I feel like he's doing more harm than good, and apparently that's enough reason for his fanboys to have a problem with me and harass me and other fans. Again, I want to like the dude. But at the moment I don't think I can. Maybe he's said some really nice stuff in his recent videos, I don't know! I just know how his fans reacted and how much damage it did, and I don't care to look further.

As usual I just want to say that even if you don't like the movie, the show Megamind Rules is REALLY good and the ending is fantastic and satisfying. It's worth sticking it out, but you HAVE to try to put aside the urge to hatewatch and instead just watch for fun. This stuff is meant to be ENJOYED. Stop holding yourselves back from that. The world is hateful enough already.

[adobe-outdesign]

what do you think of the new pteri day stuff? personally i'm not a fan of the cardinal outfit mainly because something about the face just looks wrong to me, but i like the museum outfit and am glad we got a new one of those. and i think the candy pteri is so funny. i think it's cool to have a choice between a more typical-looking, but still cute, candy pet, and between using PB clothes to turn it into a peep. i've already seen people make hilarious customs with the peep pteri.

Candy: Yeah I'll admit, I'm not the biggest fan of this one, sorry. I do like the concept of it being based off a Peep (though admittedly most people outside of the US don't know what that is—note for non-US readers: a Peep is a vaguely bird-shaped marshmallow covered in sugar crystals sold around the holidays), and I do appreciate them doing two designs, one "outfit" that's super literal and then one that's more pet-specific, which shows a good deal of effort. Also, the outfit is pretty funny purely from a meme perspective in the same vein as the Maraquan Nimmo.

However, my problem is that we're on two ends of the extreme with both designs: one is literally straight up a Peep(TM) with nothing Pteri-like about it whatsoever, and one is a vaguely glittery Pteri with nothing particularly candy-like about it. Why not blend the two? Give us a Pteri with the same texture, but round out the claws, feathers, etc. Make the eye markings all blobby, give the head feathers and tail that signature Peep flip, make the pupils the little candy dots, and maybe even have a little bite taken out of the wing to show off the marshmallow interior. You could even still keep the same outfit for the meme if you want, but then you'd at least have a high-effort Peep-inspired Pteri instead of a Peep(TM) and a low-effort Pteri colour, which I think is an import distinction.

As a side note, I'm linking this post by @synthaphone out of obligation because it says most of the same things I just did but was published earlier:

Forest (Outfit): Once again, not a huge fan. I've never really liked these hyper-realistic animal outfits; I'm playing Neopets for the neat fantasy creatures, so for me, having an outfit that's just like, a straight-up cardinal feels pretty boring.

Putting aside personal preferences though, I also just find this really uncanny? It's a bad combo of way, way too much texturing and detailing on a very cartoonish body with eyes that really don't belong on that face. The rendering itself is at least objectively well-done with lots of nice shading, but I would've much preferred just a regular non-textured Pteri with the same colors and markings. Once again, the difference between making a Neopet inspired by something IRL and just making something that already exists IRL.

Museum (Outfit): Okay, now this one I do like a lot. I already made a review covering museum outfits and in it I mentioned wanting more that aren't just mammals. The Pteri is a welcome addition, following the same format as the other museum outfits but having the skeleton hang from suspension wires instead of it sitting on a platform like all the others. That's really nice attention to detail and works perfectly with the concept. While the rendering here is still more detailed than Neopets' art tends to be, it's not bothersome as it's not uncanny (being a skeleton) and you can still very easily tell it's a Pteri.

My only minor gripe is that the placard shows just a straight-up pterosaur, which is weird. I get that the Pteri is supposed to look a bit like a pterosaur with the head crest and everything, but just having a real-life dinosaur on there is kind of distracting. That's a very minor point though; otherwise, I'm a big fan of this one.

[unikhroma]

the big acid theory post

(i am sorry for how long this is)

couple weeks ago someone on discord asked if i could dm them my gripes about acid theory, since they hadn't seen any criticisms of it. i was very surprised to hear that so of course i did what any normal deltarune fan would do and wrote an essay (aka complained for several paragraphs). posting for reference sake so i have all my thoughts in one place and never make a post about this topic again

----------

basically my criticisms for acid theory are on all tiers/interpretations of it as an life-changing event where he ends up disfigured. i don't think it makes much sense to happen for multiple reasons

for it to happen from a narrative perspective i don't really buy it. spamton's downfall is already tragic in that he lost his friends, his fame and fortune, and got evicted. in regards to the mansion, the eviction itself is the tragedy, in particular that it's implied that it wasn't only him that got evicted that day. a swatchling says that the mansion used to be for high-class citizens. the rooms that were once for these citizens are now for lightners, so it wasn't just that he had no money, he was gonna get kicked out anyway.

i mention this cause a common interp of acid theory is that the mansion staff threw him in as punishment, and i think there's little evidence for that given the circumstances. a while ago i went on this whole spiel about how mischaracterizing queen and/or swatch to try and support the theory makes it weaker to me but that's additional stuff

and about the acid as a threat, it's hard to take it seriously when the majority of mentions of it are for gags or game design-related. for example, the gold berdly statue being dropped into the acid slowly dips in because if it just sank instantly, you could very easily miss it. the swatchling being stranded on the island is a goof with anticipating a battle the moment you set the bridge out for them.

for spamton falling into the acid as an explanation for whatever caused him to be a physical puppet (this is going off of taking the addisons' word that he was an addison too), it doesn't really line up. it doesn't make a lot of sense from a lore standpoint; there's no evidence to suggest that the addisons look like puppets underneath. i mean it's an interesting hc, but to assume it's canon that that's why spamton looks like a puppet now is kinda just filling in blanks.

that one q&a answer where spamton talks about there being some kind of "spamton method" he used every day and became "big" to me implies that it was some kind of slow transformation into a puppet. it's not much to go off of, but it's a lot more compelling than taking a tumble in acid. there's more mystery there and might even explain why spamton showed up to the mansion less over time

i think at this point it's clear that at some point he did get pushed in by someone, as stated in the spa attire from the sweepstakes and one of his valentine's cards, but to me it seems like it was an example of him being mistreated by the other rich residents in the mansion. before he talks about getting pushed in a pool, he mentions that he's gotten swirlies at the mansion, and to me it seems like he's still really bothered by his treatment there which is why he mopes about it.

queen mentioning that the acid can shrink people is also played for jokes, even susie in the ch3 video saying that they'll die if they drink the acid is played for jokes (also i think it would probably hurt them cause they're lightners and not cyber darkners)

anyway, if acid theory ends up being directly confirmed without any cryptic wording and all that i would still dislike it. i just don't think it fits with spamton or ch2's themes and it's randomly dark in a way that's not appealing to me. i like psychological horror more and the puppetfication thing already fits that. i know it's definitely appealing to others and i don't think people are bad for liking it per se, but it's not my kinda thing at all nor do i think it's canon, so i personally want nothing to do with it

[drifting-pieces-blog-blog]

As someone who watched the show first and then got into the comics later, I do understand some of the gripes people had with the show.

One that I see a lot is making the Mr. Knight suit just Steven's version of the costume. I really love the concept of the suit changing to fit each alter but at the same time Mr. Knight in the comics is really fucking cool as a concept. I'm fine with them co-existing but if the MCU does more with Moon Knight, I'd be cool to have MCU Steven getting to do some detective work as Mr. Knight or talking with clients in an MCU version of the midnight mission.

I also see a lot of people complaining that the villain is named after a one-off villain from the weird era when he has an ankh chest symbol instead of a moon, but I think there would have been more outrage if they used a villain that people like because then they would be complaining about how different and worse the TV version is. I mostly find it funny because comics Arthur Harrow didn't even meet Moon Knight face to face. They really made an OC and then slapped a Harrow's name on it lol

So the Mr. Knight suit was first created by Shelby in the Ellis Shelby run. …Which isn't 100% accurate. You CAN find little background tidbits of Moon Knight going in groups with the Avengers dressed in a first iteration white suit… But Ellis and Shelby are the first to actully make use of the suit and create the Mr. Knight character.

What is intersting about it is that Moon Knight had just come off of a haitus after a disasterous run by BENDIS that ended in 2012 and Ellis picked it up in 2014. At this point, Moon Knight was a joke and they really needed to get Moon Knight away from what Bendis did. (not nearly the worst writer, but the one with the least amount of comprehension on how to handle Moon Knight).

Ellis is known for a certain style of writing and he had long wanted to team up with Shelby. Their Moon Knight run let them team up and also run off together to Image to write a beautiful comic (that they didn't fucking finish).

While the Ellis run had issues, it really gifted us with the Mr. Knight character. At that time, Marc was far from the man we known and knew. Jake and Steven were nothing more than memories, and Moon Knight was more or less a ghost. Mr. Knight felt like a dissociative episode with very little substance. It fit.

In the MCU show, Marc was originally supposed to have the Mr. Knight suit. All the promotions of Mr. Knight with his sleeves rolled up to show off those sexy forearms are in the Marc Spector role. An interesting concept and I wonder what their original plan was for the actual Moon Knight suit…

I suppose if you look at it in a certain way, it makes sense. Moon Knight looks like a mummy in ancient Egyptian garb and so on. Steven in the actual Egyptian style suit DOES make sense.

But Steven won out on the suit trying to look suave and cool and proper.

I would love to see MCU Steven doing more as Mr. Knight. I'm not going to hold my breath, but I can see him getting along fantastically as a detective.

As for the villain thing. It isn't uncommon for Marvel to do that sort of thing. The number of times they have taken a one off name drop and brought it back to make it into a big deal is sorta rediculous. They DID have Mogart and it makes me incredibly sad for many reasons. Mogart was a major villain in the OG comics and one might argue that he was the first reoccurring major villain for Moon Knight.

Sadly, the actor that played Mogart died in a tragic accident and all plans for him left the table. I think he could have made an excellent villain for future episodes/seasons.

I did very much like Harrow in the MCU. It played a fantastic other side to Marc's ideology about guilt and his issues with Khonshu. Not to mention his soothing smooth talk as a cult leader that Steven could instantly see through. It really was a fanstic way to highlight Steven's strengths. We can thank Ethan Hawk for such a great performance and for adding his own ideas to the character.

I agree with your assertion that using a beloved Moon Knight villain would have really divided the comic fans further from the show fans. You can't make everyone happy and people would certainly have complained.

I wonder if the original intent was to bring Comics Harrow back like they did with Agatha Harkness in the comics thanks to the show? It seems their Moon Knight plans were kind of all over the place and many of them didn't pan out. I wonder why…

[cineflections]

You know, if there was one manga that would be adapted to live action and succeed, I never would have guessed it to be this one.

I'm ofc talking about the One Piece Live Action on Netflix

A whole day binge right after release, I was READY, and thankfully, I was not disappointed. There are cuts and streamlining of the story, characters coming in earlier than in the manga/anime, and some of the emotional bits don't hit as hard as in the original. Still, I can feel the love the production team has of One Piece. The characters are goofy and lovable, but they are also serious and straight-faced.

One thing that I noticed throughout was the constant close up to faces and sometimes straight on, as if almost breaking the 4th wall. The very first scene with Luffy is like this, but there he DOES look into the camera directly, but the pov of the camera is revealed to be a newsbird. It's like a statement that they know this is a silly pirate romp, they know that some people will not take this seriously, but they will not do 4th wall breaks silly, but in-universe silly. Does that make sense?

I laughed at several points in the show, big and wide smile on my face and pointing at the screen several times...

But I do wonder how much of my laugh was on the show's on merit or if I was only calling back on the the source material. At times I did feel the straw hat crew not being as iconic as in the manga/anime. The extreme reactions, the over the top noises and actions, at the same time I realize that real people generally don't act like that.

I appreciate the show runners attention to details. Putting stuff in to tease future arcs, adapting some cover stories, some of the complete unhinged behaviors of characters (Garp I'm looking at you!).

This show adapted Romance Dawn, orange town, syrup village, baratie, and arlong park.

There are so many moments that are almost scene by scene taken from the manga. Luffy in the barrel and meeting Koby. Alvida with her giant spike club. We got to see some pre-captured Zoro moments (particularly him killing a baroque works agent!), Nami being a sneak.

Then we meet the one and only clown Buggy! They hammed him up, they made him a showman and a real clown (with a real bulgy nose as well, props!). I loved Buggy. Goddamn what a show stealer. Excellent casting, his devil fruit was show cased so well and it looked good!

Usopp's introduction is the most changed. The kids are gone and the Black Cat pirates never call in the entire crew or Jango. Instead of the fight on the slope by the beach it's instead in Kaya's house from which they cannot escape. The actor for Kuro nailing the mannerism and hand movements, altho his "teleporting" looks a bit wonky.

With Baratie we are finally introduced to Sanji! Who's British now 😆. And Mihawk's introduction tho! Badass and just so over the top and goofy. I love him so much! This is where we got the biggest change where we instead get Arlong and crew coming in smashing the place up (a tiny bit). Arlong may not be as tall as he should be but I love the practical approach instead of CGI, which means he actually feels present! All the fishmen we see are guys in costume and prosthetics!

Arlong Park felt a bit more rushed than the earlier parts, but I do think they nailed *that* scene tho.

If the bar for live action adaptation was below the ground, I would say now there's a new bar, which is on the ground 😅. I think it's a solid show but it might be my bias talking. I do have some gripes tho.

One thing that was constant in East Blue Saga was how much village people hate or are scared of pirates. I think they got the marines right, and the pirates, but they failed to really have the village people be a character in their own right. In the manga and anime the villagers are mostly a monolith who will think and act alike in situations and be part of the happenings either by watching or fighting. We got just about none of it here, except a mention in Arlong Park. They did some really good and cool world building with lots of people populating the sets in the background - but that's it, they're just extras to fill out the screen. There are ofc a few exceptions but I felt it was not enough.

I wish they had Luffy be more agile when using his gum-gum powers. Whenever he springs a pistol or a whip is stands in place, which I found boring (and they did so well with Zoro's fights!). I do think the explanation is that they decided for Luffy to be coming into his powers as we go. That we will learn with him all the things he can do (him not knowing he can blow himself up like a balloon proves this). I hope that in season 2 (please netflix!) they show the growth in his fighting!

But to end this long post. I just wanna say how much I fucking love the dude playing Mihawk. Goddamn he's so fun. MVP.

For the straw hats, I would say that Usopp feels the closest to manga version, and Luffy feels the most distant from it. But I don't dislike this, and I think the actor for Luffy has so much potential to really make the role his own.

It will never be "just like" the manga and anime, but that's ok! It's a new adaptation (in live action) made by people you can tell loves the source material and really really tried to make it work! I respect that, and I respect this show. Please watch it on Netflix! It's a fun and silly time, just like it should be!

[bobvelsebobsession]

opinions on tender lovin’ cannibal?

I never did a full thought thread on this but I’m glad you asked!

I played the demo when it release and honestly? I really did enjoy it! I’m not a big dating sim person, I don’t play many. I played Monster Prom years ago and that was roughly it.

I feel it has good pacing, character interactions are humorous. Each character has a very distinct personally that shines through with dialogue. The voice actors did absolutely wonderful in their roles. There’s lots of options for choices and getting on characters good sides seem very easy and straight forward.

The game does have some horror aspects which I scare easily so it’s not hard to make me uneasy. And with what parts do have that element it goes a good job with it since one was in a rather strange place.

Now the biggest thing I can talk about? The main focus of the game: Bob

I ADORE Bob in this game, he’s sweet and charming. Shows interest in you and seems willing to chat, perhaps it’s a facade or even genuine. We don’t know for sure, but even so he is very approachable! VoicesByCorey does a wonderful job as Bob and I’m so glad they convinced him to reprise his role for this.

I’m in the discord server for TLC and Corey so I get to keep up to date with things, I’m so excited for chapter 1 and future chapters! I’m happy the chapters will be a week long each and I hope the routes will provide a wide variety of endings. I hope we can share a kiss with the big man and have options for other dateable candidates in case Bob isn’t your cup of tea!

They mentioned they may do this so that’s good news, but Bob will be my first romance. I intend to do an extensive video for each chapter and all route options since this game has really grabbed my attention.

Some gripe though, the achievements don’t fully trigger and some dialogue for Bob is missing, I’m also not a huge fan of Y/N’s clothing. Mostly the hoop ear rings, I don’t wear any ear rings nor wear hats so it seems out of place. I hope maybe we can get options for this at least but I won’t hold my breath on it.

If anyone hasn’t played it and can, I suggest it! If you can’t but wanna see gameplay you can always check my YouTube: HerobrineSings for an extensive playthrough.

[demonslayedher]

Things that ran through my mind while watching this episode:

--s-

--SWORDS

--Sorry, gotta recover from the beautiful ending theme which is unique to this episode--the one that plays after the opening theme which they tagged onto the end of this one. It was just--look at that--those Nichirin blades are so shiny and textured, that is A++ use of computer modeling right there which you can get away with if you have character models there too, they are beautiful, and it is poetic how it mirrors the clip in the opening theme of all the swordsmen. Also, the colors, the lighting, all that gorgeous attention to detail on the steps of smithing a sword! I was cheering with every step! Tamahagane! Mizuheshi! Hammering and folding the billet! Lengthening and shaping the blade! Ya--

--NO

--NO!!!!!!!

--No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, stop!!! How dare you do that to that beautiful blade!?!?!?!?! You render it breakable and useless!!!!!!

--Huff, huff, huff

--Let me back up and say that this was the second time I yelled "no" while rewatching this episode, because they briefly did it during the clip of Tanjiro passing by the workshops, too (which was otherwise wonderful). I also cannot take credit for noticing it myself, because fellow sword nerd @heartbroken4ever noticed it while these episodes were still new and made brief mention of the katana plunged in water being bothersome. We discussed it a little at the time, and since then, my research has put me through learning metullurgy in more detail, including a lot about this yaki-ire process of hardening the sword by submerging it in cold water. THE VERY BIG PROBLEM WITH THIS SCENE IS THAT IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE INSULATED WITH CLAY SO THAT IT ACTUALLY TAKES ON THE PROPER QUALITIES OF A KATANA. With how much attention to detail Ufotable otherwise gave the sword details and sword smithing process, I can only assume they did this because the viewers might be confused about a murky, bumpy-looking sword, and leaning the swords uninsulated as they plunged them into the water--twice!!--was for the sake of not losing the people who are not sword nerds.

--But, I am still mad at them for setting Yuukaku-hen in late fall BECAUSE THOSE MATSUTAKE MUSHROOMS ARE NOW OUT OF SEASON --griping aside! Tee hee hee hee hee, look at you, Ufotable, being such show-offs with the Infinity Fortress! I loved the sound design in this place and the flutes they added to the demony background music

--While wondering how Ufotable might show off in the first episode of Pillar Training on the theatrical release, it occurred to that we will get to witness Zenitsu witnessing Nezuko under the sun. Our ears might die.

--Since this was a rewatch, I got to giggle along and anticipate everything silly little Douma thing. I snapped along with him too on the "naruhodo." It's so unfair that this was the only time we ever saw Upper Moons interact. This is to say nothing of the extra Douma and Akaza interaction we miss out on, but like, Akaza and Kokushibo smackdowns with Akaza pissed off and Kokushibo pleased with him? But also, just like, Douma and Gyokko hangin' out? Please?? And like, Hantengu's terror-filled voice is endearing, that is my favorite Hantengu form, he's just a harmless silly little guy

--Kibutsuji "I'm disappointed in all of you, except Nakime" Muzan

--Ok, so, I was so wrapped up in Gotou's monologue because I love his manner of speaking so much that it did not even cross my mind that Inosuke was on the ceiling during that whole monologue

--Was Inosuke asleep up there? Is that why he did not pounce on Tanjiro the moment he was awake and talking to Kanao? Is that why Inosuke did not pounce on the delicious smelling food? Did Inosuke grow up clinging to tree branches and the ceilings of caves, because that was safest? Oh---oh my gosh--I did not mean to give myself a case of the Inosuke feels. Anyway, I love how he closes this scene out by staring real close at Tanjiro through his boar snout.

--Anyway, the other thing I was thinking during Gotou's monologue was how much I love the Kakushi and how happily I anticipated getting so much more Kakushi content in this episode. I love them a lot. If I ever show up to an anime convention again, I will probably be in Kakushi cosplay because that gives me fun ways to pose with any Kimetsu no Yaiba cosplayer I run into. They have such good poses, look at these guys. Also!!! Also, I love that the crows must also have the full course to the village obscured? And and and in that scene with Oyakata-sama getting the news of defeating Upper Moon Six, look at those birds hopping out of the way all startled when Oyakata-sama is worked up and coughing. Biiiirbs~ <3 --The first time I saw this, the part I most wanted to rewatch was Tanjiro HAPPILY SMACKING HIS FOREHEAD ON THE TATAMI. This is such a happy little boy, look at him, going on an adventure looking for treasure in the village, throwing his clothes off to go make friends, giving in to his shounen manga hero nosebleed fate but at least being a gentleman about saving the riceballs. You adorable little walnut, you are already dying because you had the mark and that is why you still aren't recovered. --Why were the Mitsuri and Nezuko interactions so brief.... wwwwwwhhhhhyyyyy

--TAISHO SECRET: Genya's birthday falls on "Nanakusa no Sekku," when people traditionally eat a rice gruel with seven herbs as an auspicious start to the new year. In modern day Japan, it is often treated like a day to let your stomach recover after all the rich and heavy fancy New Years food. This was yesterday and I made and ate this rice gruel, I kept thinking of how other characters might have forced Genya to eat this because they were concerned about his stomach. --Tooth

--Genya arguably is a more unfriendly person than Sanemi. While Sanemi was totally justified in being ticked off that a Corp member was toting around a demon and letting it live, Genya just turns around and yells "DIE" when someone says hello to him

--It's a good thing Tanjiro practices Water Breathing

--So, Mitsuri didn't know that was Genya, but she has heard of him, it seems. She made the connection that this is Sanemi's brother, not just that they have the same rare last name. Someone asked Sanemi about his brother, and Mitsuri either was there to witness somebody--maybe Himejima or Shinobu--say something about Genya, only to have Sanemi very immaturely imply they are imagining things that don't exist. Either that, or Mitsuri heard about this from Iguro. I can just imagine Mitsuri remarking right away how scary that is and how sad it is for Sanemi to not even acknowledge someone as close a brother, and then Iguro being like, "for the record........ I have never had any brothers."

--I want to be a guest of the swordsmith village. That looks like the perfect getaway for me. Nice and cozy buildings tucked away in the mountains, attentive hospitality, onsen, S W O R D S. I wanna go. Where is this place??? (That said, the stairs to the onsen do remind me of the stairs that led to the Love Breath display at the Yugawara Onsen collab event, hahaha)

--Muzan told Gyokko to head to wherever it was once Gyokko was sure of his intel. It took Gyokko at least another two months to be sure. It took that long to ascertain the location of the Swordsmith Village even once he felt pretty good about having figured it out. Either that, or they sure took their time.