#oh also unpleasant cameo lol

[kasperrrrr]

some kinda stupid bugbo art i did :ppp

[ihopesocomic]

Is it true that you don't like Helluva Boss? I really don't like it because I find the humor very dull and I'm not a fan of demon/hell stuff lol, but what's your reason? :0

tw for helluva boss mention

-

Our views on Helluva Boss are essentially the same as My Pride: we like the sheer amount of effort that goes into it as an indie project completely done via Discord but we're not fans of the writing.

Mainly because we're confused on whether we should be rooting for these characters or not. We're meant to feel sad for Blitzo but he's an ableist, abusive and generally unpleasant character? Yes, it's set in Hell but when you're giving prompts for your audience to feel any emotion for him other than disgust or second hand embarrassment, that kinda interferes with the setting and atmosphere a tad.

The same goes for Stolas. The show portrays him as somebody who doesn't respect Blitzo's personal space and outright intimidates/frightens him sometimes but oh, we have to have feelings for him because he sings lullabies to his daughter and he's going through a messy divorce (which is entirely of his own making, arranged marriage or not - which is also not even clear nor developed enough for us to sympathise with him) and he actually legit loves Blitzo even though it's a bit late in the hour to turn it into an healthy relationship when you tried to portray it as creepy and inconvenient to Blitzo at the beginning for what appears to be comic effect?

We love the relationship between Moxxie and Millie, however. If the show had been purely about them and had been a sitcom where they're loving couple with an adopted hellhound daughter who also happen to be be professional assassins, we would've been all over that. Blitzo just seems to be there to be as obnoxious and rude as possible (an Eric Cartman-esque figure, if you will) and we just don't think him being the main protagonist with protagonist problems fits into that very well.

It appears to have the same issues as My Pride where it doesn't have a very good sense of identity. While it's entirely possible, it's very difficult to combine genres like comedy, musical and drama, especially when the comedy is very obviously adult-based. Because what can happen is that the genres can collide and conflict with each other if you're not careful and that's what we feel has happened with Helluva Boss. It started out as an adult comedy series but it also tries to be a complex, emotional drama whenever it simply feels like it and, unfortunately, that is not how these sort of things work. There has to be structure for these sort of things, or the characters and their motivations can come across as confusing and inconsistent.

Not saying these things should never be combined ever. They totally should and they can work together. It is possible to have an adult based comedy drama that's also a musical but you still have to have an identity first. Like Crazy Ex-Girlfriend kind of does that and it does have its more serious moments but it is still ultimately a comedy. It's like they we're trying to do a South Park/Ren and Stimpy combo but make it a musical but then try to pull it off as Bojack Horseman (which, based on a cameo of Bojack's heroin in Hazbin Hotel, is probably an inspiration) and Charlie's Angels at the same time.

There's also the fact that it's also only the first season and we've had six or so antagonists with their own storylines so far? It just feels kinda crowded at this point. Like the whole set up with Striker is interesting but then we completely forget about it for two whole episodes? It's a shame because him and his motivation as a bad guy has been the strongest of what we've been presented so far.

[writingsofwerewolves]

Hey, thanks for sharing about Rh'ex's pet situation despite some triggering. I know exactly how much it hurts to lose a pet. I'm a big fan of pets though, even with the loss, so animals are always very important to me. The best partners also love animals :)

To not linger here, how about #1 on the stories?

Oh boy, I was both dreading and hoping #1 would come up...

It was the first of these. Just aimless drabble. I didn't even know what was going to happen as I sat down to write it and then it took a strange turn lol.

Uh anyone who despises Twilight probably should skip this one, as we do get a surprise cameo from a Twilight character.

Despite the 'cringe' of this technically being Twilight fanfiction, I really like this because there's some cute dialogue with Damian and Vikram. Also Cyrus gets a mention, even if he doesn't show up in person!

So uh... enjoy? lol

“Should I change?” Damian asked, his fingers on the studded collar around his neck.

“No, it’s… nice,” I said evasively.

He grinned, “Nice?”

“Don’t change on my account.”

“So maybe a collar and tight pants does do something for you,” he commented.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I replied loftily.

“Someone is coming,” Vikram interrupted.

Damian's smile disappeared, “So late?”

“I will see who it is. Perhaps you should change.”

I sighed sadly as Vikram moved out of the living room. Damian chuckled but abruptly stopped, his eyes focused towards where the front door was, his brow furrowed.

“What is it?” I asked quietly.

“A complication,” he said softly.

I glared at him. Not only was that reply unhelpful but it was an illegal reference and I’d have to find a way to make him pay for it once the surprise visitor was gone. Damian put his hand at my back.

“You should go home,” he said.

“What? Why?” I demanded, surprised and hurt.

Damian met my eyes, seeming conflicted, “It will bother you if you don’t know, won’t it?”

“Of course.”

He sighed and nodded, “Alright. You should meet him.”

Damian guided me, his hand at my back still, out of the living room and to the front door. Vikram had invited the man in, apparently, and the two stood in the foyer, heads turned in our direction and Damian and I entered. My breath caught in my chest as I recognized the man easily. My blood ran cold.

I let out a small, ‘oh.’

The man’s eyes widened in surprise as he saw me, “Jillian?”

The sound of my deadname sent another unpleasant shock through me.

“Their name is Indigo,” Damian corrected, “And they’re not the one you met.”

“Right, of course,” he said quickly, “My apologies. Damian, it is good to see you again.”

“Carlisle,” Damian gave a curt nod of acknowledgment, “How did you get to this dimension?”

“We were brought through a portal. It wasn’t purposeful.”

“We?” Vikram questioned.

“My family and I.”

I inhaled sharply. The Cullens… in my dimension… where my family lived. Damian rubbed my back comfortingly but it did little to sooth my tense body.

“Your entire family is here?” Vikram asked.

“Not everyone. Nessie and Jacob weren’t with us when we were taken by the portal.”

That still left a total of six vampires. Six completely indestructible vampires. Only one of which had perfect control over himself. Assuming the books or movies were accurate. Carlisle looked almost exactly like his movie counterpart. The tone of his skin and color of his hair looked different, more… natural. Well, not natural. Nothing about him looked natural. But less like a bad makeup job and a wig. It didn’t take much imagination to picture his white skin sparkling in the sun.

The phone in my pocket buzzed. I took it out and saw a text from Cyrus.

“I will keep an eye out for them around the houses. I will keep everyone safe.”

I mentally thought to him, “Thank you.”

Damian read the text and gave me a nod.

I couldn’t help but wonder if even Cyrus could stand a chance against the Cullens. Though… Cyrus didn’t say anything about coming to bring me home. I wondered if that meant he didn’t actually think Carlisle was a danger to me. Cyrus always prioritized my safety over those I cared about, no matter how much I begged him not to. So if Carlisle really presented a threat, Cyrus would already be there, ready to drive me home.

“I sought the two of you out in the hopes that you can help us return to our dimension,” Carlisle continued.

“We have no method of traveling between worlds,” Vikram said apologetically, “We are at the mercy of the Realm Keepers.”

“I assume you already attempted to enter the Underground?” Damian questioned.

“Of course,” Carlisle agreed, “We tried, but it never opened for us. In addition, we have a communication device from IDJ and it did not work either. You truly have no way of contacting anyone with the ability to open portals?”

“None,” Damian confirmed, “The Barkeep finds us when he wants to play musical dimensions.”

“They are not an agent, then?” Carlisle gestured at me.

“Not this one. You met a version from another dimension.”

“But they know of dimension travel?”

“Yes. Vikram and I told them.”

“Is that allowed?” Carlisle asked, seeming surprised.

“Since when have we followed rules?” Damian laughed, “Is the rest of your family here? Do you need a place to stay?”

“No, we found a safe place for now.”

“Where?” I asked abruptly, my heart racing in fear.

“It is a house near {town name},” he replied.

I let out a breath of relief. That wasn’t super far from my family, but it wasn’t all that close either.

“It would be best if your family stayed away from the {different town name} area,” Vikram told him.

Carlisle seemed confused but nodded regardless, “Alright. I’m not extremely familiar with the surrounding towns.”

“It’s near the {recognizable location},” Damian explained, “Preferably don’t let any of your people get within thirty miles of it. Farther if possible.”

“Is that your hunting area?” Carlisle asked, a hint of distaste in his voice.

Damian grinned, “Maybe.”

I elbowed Damian in the ribs lightly and gave him a glare.

“I didn’t want to say without your permission,” Damian told me.

“My family lives there,” I stated bluntly, “Not that I don’t trust y’all, but…”

“I understand,” Carlisle agreed, “We will stay away from there. May I ask, Indigo, how did you come to be with Damian and Vikram?”

“Oh… Umm…” I looked up at Damian fearfully.

“That’s a long story,” Damian offered, “And a rather private one.”

“You’re here of your own free will?” Carlisle asked me.

“Yes,” I stated firmly, getting an idea of what he worried about, “They’re my friends.”

“I’ve been downgraded to a friend?” Damian pouted, “That’s disappointing.”

“Friend-zoned,” I couldn’t help but quip back.

“Oh, that hurts,” Damian put his hand over his chest, “Deep cut, Indigo. Deep cut.”

“I think you’ll heal.”

“Aren’t you perhaps a little young to be involved with…?” Carlisle began.

I blinked in surprise, “How young do I look? I’m nearly thirty.”

It was his turn to blink in surprise, “I’m sorry, I thought…”

“You’re only in your mid twenties,” Damian rolled his eyes, “Why do you insist on rounding your age up so much?”

“I’m closer to thirty than twenty. Besides, it runs in my family. My dad’s been saying he’s sixty since he turned fifty.”

“I apologize, Indigo,” Carlisle said, “I suppose… Well, since you know about dimensions, you know there are versions of you in other worlds. The one I met… Well, they were very young at the time. I suppose it’s difficult to think of you as older.”

“I’m doomed to look sixteen forever and I’m not even a vampire,” I sighed, “Lovely.”

“You don’t look sixteen,” Damian chuckled.

“So I look old? Great. Time to start dying my grey hair,” I ran a hand over my fairly freshly shaved head.

“What is it with you and age?” Damian asked, a lopsided grin on his face.

“Don’t you dare,” I told him, “You already got one reference past me. You’re not allowed another. Especially given the circumstances.”

“I’d think the circumstances call for it,” he shrugged.

Carlisle looked confused and Vikram simply sighed in resignation.

“I’m not allowed to quote the Twilight movies without explicit permission,” Damian explained to Carlisle.

My eyes widened in horror.

“He knows about the movies,” Damian assured me, “And books, of course.”

“The ones you are inexplicably obsessed with?” Carlisle asked. For a moment, I thought he was talking to me, but his gaze was firmly on Damian.

“I’m obsessed with vampire fiction as a whole. It just happened that Twilight was the most popular vampire media at the time. It’s not my personal preference, but I love how much it irritates Indigo when I quote it.”

I groaned, “You’re worse than my mom.”

“I look forward to teaming up with her to make obscure references you won’t catch until an hour later,” he grinned at me.

“I hate you,” I told him.

“Why do the references bother you?” Carlisle questioned.

“Good question… I don’t think I have an answer other than it’s a running joke between my mom and I… and now Damian… Twilight references are illegal.”

“It’s not our fault the movie is so quotable,” Damian argued.

“So is Princess Bride. Quote that instead.”

“There’s no equivalent to ‘you can Google it’ in Princess Bride.”

“Then suffer in silence.”

“That’s too painful.”

“Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.”

Damian chuckled, “I set that up for you, you know.”

“Yes, thank you. I appreciate it,” I replied stiffly.

“There’s two of them,” Carlisle muttered to Vikram.

Vikram smiled and said, “Indeed there are. I would not have it any other way. Carlisle, I am sorry we cannot help you return to your dimension. Is there anything we can do to help your family while you are here?”

“For now, we have things covered. I would like to stay in contact, though.”

“Of course,” Vikram agreed and pulled out his phone. The pair exchanged numbers.

“We will stay away from your family, Indigo,” Carlisle assured me, “I’m sure you know, we don’t feed on humans, but…”

“There’s always a risk,” I said quietly.

“Unfortunately, yes. It was nice meeting you. Damian, Vikram, thank you for your help. I will be in touch.”

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Michael After Midnight: Yoga Hosers

“So bad, it’s good.”

This is a phrase that is near and dear to me. It is a phrase that indicates quality where others would find none, it indicates that a movie is saved unintentionally, it just tells me I’m in for something fun. I love “so bad, it’s good” cinema. My love for it is is pretty much the entire reason I made Michael After Midnight, so I could showcase these weird, quirky, awkward films I love so much and spread them to a new audience, and maybe even convince you that some of these films actually do have genuine qualities underneath it all.

I also love the View Askewniverse, as this old review of the franchise can attest to. Kevin Smith really was onto something with this series, combining snarky dialogue, pop culture references, and stoner humor together into something that I feel so many movies tried to replicate but that very few ever came close to. Like most movies that use “lol weed” humor fall flat on their face, but not Smith’s movies. Any other movie where a couple argues over the girl having given 37 different dudes blowjobs prior to this relationship would just feel tacky and forced, but Smith made it work. Kevin Smith could take weird concepts like “A woman who works at an abortion clinic is tasked by the voice of God (played by Alan Rickman) to stop Matt Damon and Ben Affleck (who are fallen angels) from accidentally rewriting reality so they can get to heaven; she is aided by Jay & Silent Bob, a black apostle, a muse, and a skeevy priest played by George Carlin. Also there’s a shit demon and Alanis Morisette is God” and make them work. But outside the View Askiewniverse his success has dwindled, with his films ending up forgettable at best; you’ll never find anyone citing Zack & Mirri Make a Porno as their favorite comedy, you know?

So you’d think his “True North” trilogy, a series of B-movies with “So bad, it’s good” aesthetics set in good ol’ Canada, would just be a home run. Combine Smith’s with with the kind of fun campiness of B-movies, what could go wrong?

A lot.

“So bad, it’s good” is not an exact science. It’s not an exact art. The expert creators of this style of film – people like Tommy Wiseau, Neil Breen, or the SyFy Channel – they always have an air of sincerity to them even when they wink at the audience and really lay it on you. The Sharknado movies showcase a perfect balance of telling the joke and being in on the joke, to use one example. But it is so incredibly easy to go too far and end up ruining your own joke by just constantly rubbing in the audience face that yes, it is a joke. Willing suspension of disbelief applies to enjoying films ironically, interestingly enough, and if you keep slapping your audience in the face and telling them “Hey dipshit, this is supposed to be fucking stupid,” they’re not gonna like it. Tusk had this pretty bad, with its interesting premise being ruined by too much self-awareness and too much Johnny Depp. But Yoga Hosers?

This movie is even worse.

This movie is an absolute trainwreck of premises. Two clerks at a Canadian convenience store have to fight Nazi bratwursts created by an evil German mad scientist sculptor who helped form a Canadian Nazi party during WWII. Also there are Satanists who want to cut up the clerks and sacrifice them. There’s also yoga tossed into the mix for good measure. The thing is, all of these ideas could have been used separately for some fantastically stupid films, the “Bratzis” in particular being the idea only someone who is high half the time could come up with. The concept for them alone is what made me want to watch this film, and yet, the execution is just so utterly terrible it makes me regret ever finding the idea charming at all.

A big problem with the Bratzis is just how poor the effects are. They are painfully greenscreened in, an effect that makes the Fierys from Labyrinth look like something out of Avatar in comparison. They speak in gibberish German phrases and when they are killed they splatter in a confetti effect that looks like it comes prepackaged with Baby’s First Video Editing Suite. I get Smith doesn’t work on big budgets or anything, but this is just absolutely embarrassing. This man made a movie with a shit demon as a practical effect and this is what he does when he gets his hands on cutting edge technology?

And it’s not like anything else about this movie is pleasant enough to make up for the awful effects. The two main characters are played by Johnny Depp’s daughter and Kevin Smith’s daughter, and while they undeniably have good chemistry as friends and can sing very well, their characters are just unpleasant, obnoxious millennial stereotypes: they’re catty, they’re snotty, they’re glued to their phones, and they’re pretty dim. Johnny Depp’s character from Tusk is back, and I’m happy to say he’s just as terrible here, mumbling his way through his scenes and just in general sucking what little life there is out of this film. And as if the characters aren’t annoying enough, every fucking character is introduced with some social media title card. It’s absolutely as stupid as it sounds.

And see, some would point to this and say “Oh, come on, it’s so bad it’s good, Smith is clearly just taking the piss here, it’s supposed to be bad!” Well guess what? That’s no excuse to make your movie shit. The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is also an intentional “so bad, It’s good” movie, one that spoofs the gloriously cheesy sci-fi B-movies of the 50s. But that movie felt like a loving, affectionate parody, one that didn’t insult its audience. They knew you were in on the joke, and they just let you enjoy it while they tell it.

Smith, on the other hand, won’t let you enjoy his joke. He constantly needs to cram in cameos from his celebrity pals, with Stan Lee, Jason Mewes, and Kevin Conroy all popping in for some pointless appearances. The terrible effects are just too terrible, with none of it feeling like a charming throwback to rubber suit monster movies and all of it feeling more like budgetary constraints, laziness, and lack of creativity. But worst of all, this film is clearly trying to be funny. The best part of any “So bad, it’s good” movie is that it’s funny accidentally. Humor is derived from the awkwardness of lines delivered earnestly; again, going back to Lost Skeleton, it works because as goofy and awkward as the lines are, they really aren’t too inauthentic to old school sci-fi cheese. Yoga Hosers, though? It is so desperately trying to make you laugh at it unironically while simultaneously trying to get you to laugh at it ironically. It feels manipulative and tasteless, and in the end, it’s what kills the movie.

I have no idea who this would appeal to. It has none of the quality of Smith’s better work, it’s not going to appeal to monster movie fans because its plot is so scattershot and the effects are too poor for even ironic enjoyment, and the jokes are not going to appeal to anyone who isn’t too stoned to realize what they’re watching. All of it feels phony, insincere, and crappy in a genuine way, and there’s just no humor to be derived from something this creatively bankrupt. Shame n Kevin Smith for taking an unironically fascinating and stupid concept and running it into the ground with schtick. I came for Nazi bratwursts assaulting convenience store employees, but instead I get mumbling Johnny Depp and a guy dressed as a Nazi doing celebrity impressions. Fuck you, Smith. Fuck you and your insincere attempts at schlock.

[akatokuro]

The Inevitable StS Rewatch, Episodes 26-29

Leo Aiolia is... an angry person, you say? I never would have guessed!

- This whole Aiolia scene is REALLY interesting on a lot of levels and does a lot for his character.

- I love his whole immediate reaction to just hearing that there are deserters on the loose - Sanctuary is a brutal, awful place even without the recent setup of the Pope making things even worse. You are more than likely to get killed if you are a trainee there. It is more than understandable that people would want to escape. But Lia's response is "you fucking morons."

- Well, Lia probably has baggage about people trying to "escape Sancutary" to begin with, but...

- Lia is a decent guy, especially for a Saint, but he's determinedly and deliberately Lawful Neutral as fuck. He jumps in for the deserter babies situation, is clearly stern and unpleased, but then deliberately "softens" to urge the babies to go back. He's not going to be cruel about it, and he's more "merciful" than a lot of Saints would be, but he's also not going to let them go. His preference is resolving this without having to kill anyone, sure - but if it really comes down to it, he's going to uphold Sanctuary Law.

- And then, of course, Lia gets thoroughly disrespected and shittalked to his face by a bunch of Silver fuckwits. Lol at even the trainees calling him "Aiolia-san" vs "Algol-sama." Like, dude... yikes.

- Aiolia is even kind of weirdly meek when protesting, stammering and trailing off and all. You’d never guess this guy is a Gold Saint going from the dynamics in this scene, who could effortlessly squash everyone involved here like a fucking bug.

- And finally, Lia is clearly off-put by the blatant cruelty here, but does he actually do anything about it, whether it's against Algol and Shaina directly or the broader situation? Nah.

- yumetabibito, being the filthy Aiolia-lover she is, went ahead and checked, and this scene didn't exist in the manga, and Toei almost certainly wrote it before the reveal in the manga that Lia is a Gold Saint. It's hard to imagine that it would exist if they had known, because it revolves around Aiolia getting no fucking respect. Presumably, all they had to go off of was that Aiolia cameo from the first chapter, which they seem to have mostly gotten "likes Seiya and Marin?" from. So they’re vaguely trying to align him with them as sort of a sympathetic underdog in Sanctuary.

- But even so... they somehow stumbled into a really good and fitting scene that adds a lot to his character with future context in mind!

- yume and I have talked about, well, okay, Lia gets shit on and bullied for being a traitor's little brother - that's an important part of his characterization and his motives - but where does the hostility towards him really come from? He's clearly well-liked amongst the trainees and the regular soldiers. Among the Golds - okay, yeah, Milo, Deathmask, and Aphrodite would give him shit. (Goddammit, Milo.) But most of the rest of them either don't care or would be sympathetic.

- Getting his face spit on constantly by SILVERS, though, makes a lot of sense and would be even more rage-enducing than getting spit on by his actual peers. Because the Silvers obviously feel "safe". They know that Aiolia can't actually fight back or do anything without validating everything anyone has said about him and his relationship and his brother. He has to take it. And the fact that he just takes it leads to even less respect, with him being seen as a push-over while Aiolia quietly fantasizes about stomping on their broken arms.

- So in that way, it makes sense with the shitty crop of Silvers that around that jerking Leo Aiolia's chain is thought of as actually sort of a fun, twisted game. They get to taunt a fucking GOLD, a "traitor's brother" and wave their dicks around in his face and all the Gold can do is seethe powerlessly.

- tldr; Aiolia is very angry, has always been very angry, and even though it came together like this on accident - scenes like this give a lot of depth and context to that endless, boiling anger to the point that it is really, really fucking funny that it was almost certainly Toei writing out of ignorance of who Aiolia really was. How Aiolia is treated, and how he responds to the situation - both with the deserters themselves and with Algol and Shaina being assholes - says a lot about him.

- Meanwhile, as ridiculous as the [REDACTED] are, I can't help but find the weird sci-fi HQ Saori and the Bronzies have early on charming in a really corny way. I bet Saori really misses leading from this setup compared to that shitty little stone bed and curtain they throw at her when she's at Sanctuary, jesus.

- Man, there really is a lot more SeiShiryuu service than I remembered in these earlier eps. Will never be my ship, tbh - SeiSao is my One True Love - but lmao.

- for some reason saints on a plane always cracks me up no matter how many times i see it

- (note that once again we set up hyouga rushing in to help and then getting there too late to actually do anything. beautiful beautiful failswan)

- every time seiya whines about hitting girls i want there to be a flashback to this bit of him smashing shaina into the cliff face

- Oh for fuck's sake, the Steel fucking S--

- Wait, what was I thinking. What was I talking about. I have no idea. THANK YOU SAORI YOU ARE TRULY THE BEST.

- Shiryuu vs Algol is probably one of the more engaging fights in StS, Gold Saints aside. It's fun to see Shiryuu try to find a workaround to the shield and everything he tries blowing up in his face until he's cornered into jabbing his own eyes out. The sort of contrast between Shiryuu being the Bronzie who has the best chance at actually finding a normal life and a normal happiness with Shunrei, and Shiryuu being the one who keeps throwing himself into getting mauled like this, is probably the most compelling aspect of the character to me.

- One of the things that's also nice about Saint Seiya as a shounen is that it really feels like all of the Bronzies, not just Seiya, are equally crucial members of the team and get their own equally important fights. Like, Shiryuu legitimately gets to star here and save everyone because Seiya fucked it up. I used to like Rurouni Kenshin a lot, but I remember, like, yes - Sanosuke got his "big fight", but it was very much because Kenshin graciously "let" him because he could tell it was important to Sano or whatever. Or in Bleach, where the question of the others in Ichigo's group contributing during Soul Society is basically laughable. Neither really feels like the case in Saint Seiya.

- This is totally where CLAMP got their eye horror fetish from though isn't it. God I still can't believe Saint Seiya is directly responsible for the existence of CLAMP...

- Nothing to really say about the rest of the episode, but I do have to comment:

- Dude, what the FUCK.

- ANY of the Bronzies saying shit like this about Mitsumasa is grotesque, but fucking Ikki actually sort of makes my skin legit crawl. What the fuck, Toei. SOMEONE BRING BACK THE REAL IKKI PLEASE.

- Shunrei is such a good girl. She doesn't deserve this shit, man. What she honestly deserves is the privilege of getting to stab Dohko to death in his sleep--I mean, uh, what?

- THIS WAS COMPLETELY FUCKING UNNECESSARY. WHO THE FUCK SHIPPED THIS ON THE ANIME STAFF I REALLY WANT TO KNOW

- In seriousness, HyoShun is really darling. I love how weirdly attentive Hyouga is to Shun all the time; it's a really charming recurring detail. I IMAGINE SHUN IS CHARMED BY IT TOO. 

- Hyouga's good point is that, despite his bluster, he really is a sweet kid who is 100% sincere all the time. He acts tough but it's not like he's tsun or defensive about showing people - mostly Shun - compassion and concern either.

- lmao and then Ikki ditches these losers I like how after the HyoShun he instantly starts acting a million times more in-character. Did seeing the swan touch your little brother enrage you enough to expel the brainworms at last, Ikki...?

- Saori and Ikki are really good in this scene, though. I love everything about their quick exchange - Ikki being contemptuous and defiant of her, Saori answering without hesitation "HELL YES DO WHAT I SAY" when he asks if she's ordering him around. Both in how cool Saori is, but also her frankly falling back onto really bad habits dealing with the Bronzies when she's sort of panicking and doesn't know what to do. I love the scene of her lamenting about how she couldn't stop Ikki and obviously feeling like a fuckup by herself later, too. I really do appreciate that there is attention given to the arc of Saori learning to be a leader.

- I love Sanctuary openly referring to Saori as their leader, even without knowing she’s Athena, too. Damn right she is!

- Though I do still really think Saori should have been more involved in confronting Ikki when he was still extremely (justifiably) buttmad about everything. The idea of those two having a weird, special understanding about what Saori has to answer for would have been really cool...

- AND THEN SAORI GETS KIDNAPPED BY CROWS. YOU KNOW WE'RE BACK IN CANON, BECAUSE INSTEAD OF EVIL NEFARIOUS BUGS, WE HAVE EVIL NEFARIOUS BIRDS!

- Next time: THE SEISAO APOCALYPSE, MOTHERFUCKERS, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS: THE DESTRUCTION OF SEIYA’S BRAIN

[sassyminnesotan]

X-Men The Movie

For the none of you who wanted to see me liveblog another movie, here I am again! This time I’m sitting down and watching the first X-Men movie. I’ve seen the whole movie in bits and pieces before, but never in one sitting, so this should be fun. Plus I actually know about the X-Men comics now, yay!

- Good opening; actually a very well done brief intro to the character of Erik

- Poor Rogue. Her power sucks.

- This movie is better than I remember? They do a great job introducing everything and showing both how mutants and the public feel. Especially considering how early of a superhero movie this is.

- THE SCENE BETWEEN ERIK AND CHARLES IS UNDILUTED AWESOME. YOUNG(ER) SIRS PATRICK AND IAN YOUR ACTING MAKES ME WEEP RAINBOWS

- And here comes the beefcake. Young(er) Hugh Jackman, I forgot just how lip-bitingly sexy you were

- I also forgot how stupid that comic book hairstyle looks in real life

- Rogue is surprisingly relatable for an audience surrogate character despite being a bit bland

- As if I ever thought Wolvie was just going to abandon her. He’s got too much of the Gruff Dad Hero genes to ever do such a thing.

- Awwww Rogue and Wolverine are bonding

- Heck yeah, Storm in her natural state: awesomeness. And Scott, your outfit makes you look like a fucking DORK. Which I guess is an appropriate look for you.

- “The fuck are these dumbass dorky suits?” thinks Wolvie. Same, Wolvie. Same.

- Kitty! Jubilee! Pyro! Bobby! All the cameos!

- Charles stop being creepy and invading others’ minds without permission. Oh wait, you can’t. Otherwise you wouldn’t be Professor X.

- “Send Mutants to the moon!” Says a protest sign. “Lol,” says I, knowledgeable of a earlier X-Men plotline where mutants did try to live on moon (or at least a rock in space, idk exactly)

- Damn but that 2000-era Mystique CGI ain’t half bad

- Well then. This is an all around unpleasant situation. Good thing the girl Wolverine stabbed happens to have power sucking powers.

- I love all the beautiful yet unnecessary special effects of Magneto using powers for every single little thing in every scene he inhabits

- Cyclops, I cannot get over how dumb you look, and I love it

- Damn, Rogue. Your powers really suck.

- Scott, I’m sorry, your powers also suck. Ororo, however, your powers are THE BOMB.

- Wolvie, dude, you fucked. Magneto gonna kill your ass.

- Logan’s wearing jeans with a jean jacket, aka a Canadian tuxedo. Truly, he is a paragon of Canadianess.

- Sploosh goes the bigot

- “Yellow spandex” yes please make all the references

- I will never grow weary of Wolverine snark especially when it is in response to Cyclops I don’t care how dumb it is

- YOU HAVE ANGERED THE GODDESS OF STORMS

- ...who then had to ruin her own awesome victory with one of the worst lines ever uttered

- “It’s me.” “Prove it.” “You’re a dick.” is probably the best exchange in this entire film

- Wolverine is the bad ass-ist

- Awwww Logan you’re such a softy, offering up your healing power so Rogue can live

- Oh good no one is dead how cliche

So overall I actually thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Whatever anyone may say, it did well considering it was the first modern superhero movie. They managed to cram a lot of movie into a relatively short time. And most of the casting was superb. I can’t think of anything else funny to say, I enjoyed it too much. So I’ll sign off, and see you next time I decide to have a glass of wine while watching a movie.