#so this confirmation from s2 has been bittersweet

[osbornelius]

maybe unpopular take but as someone who loved the book as a teen and has been reading GO fic for 15 years, the only positive thing out of the heartbreak of s2 is the confirmation that no, Crowley being an angel again isn't a perfect happy ending, he would never want to be angel again cos that's not who he is, or who he wants to be ever again

Crowley doesn't need to be forgiven or accepted by heaven for them to be happy and to be together, he just needs Aziraphale - their side, no one else's

[o-wild-west-wind]

okay, here’s my actual thoughtful post: I get why people are upset about the finale…I really do. but I want to mention that there’s a bigger picture to this story that’s missing if you’re zooming too close onto Izzy as a character, and I’m honestly so grateful that the show stuck to the thematic arc it introduced in season 1 because, as per usual, it’s about the themes 🤌 and this show never skimps on the symbolism!!

so here’s the thing: the primary themes are toxic masculinity (& it’s opposite, queer joy); trauma; love as a healing force for the above; and, title alert—DEATH. because it’s so much more than a cool title!

now, Izzy has always represented something metaphorical about all of these points; most directly, he’s always represented masculinity, and s2 has been an arc of toxicity deconstruction. but crucially, he’s also represented all that for Ed, who is the deuteragonist of this show. because—don’t forget—Stede and Ed are the show.

I’ve always doubted myself for feeling this after seeing how fandom saw Izzy as a third romantic figure (which like by all means have a blast in your fanfics I don’t care it’s about joy at the end of the day and pursue that as you want to), but after hearing something about djenks referring to Izzy as a father figure, it confirms a major point for me—Izzy is also in a lot of ways a parallel to Ed’s dad, and a representation of the trauma and guilt Ed felt from that formative killing. for so long, Izzy was an aggressive shadow in Ed’s life, and a tangible reminder of those daddy issues—someone telling him what to do, keeping him Blackbeard—and the beautiful thing is how that changed this season, how Izzy became a version of masculinity that could love and be beautiful and make good from the hurt, the literal poison into positivity. someone antithetical to his own paternalistic force, healing our daddy issues one drag show at a time. BUT, Izzy is still thematically representative within Ed’s arc—and by also representing the trauma that made Ed “Blackbeard,” it does make smart writing sense as to why Izzy died (NOT saying you can’t be sad about it—stick with me for a moment).

because here’s the thing—as aforementioned, this show is also about DEATH. killing is the root of everyone’s trauma, and reconciling a relationship with death is the ultimate arc Ed and Stede are both on, with the ultimate path of learning to live despite its inevitability. there’s a reason it was such a huge thing that Ed couldn’t personally kill, and then in this episode killed so many people with his bare hands in the name of love—and there’s a reason that was framed as a good thing. and there’s also Ed’s (and arguably Stede’s) active suicidality, which has been a huge force driving this season. these are characters who see death as this all-consuming thing, and they see their own deaths as the only solution. death is the traumatic force driving almost everything about their being for so long—and its reconciliation is everything for them, the greatest sign of growth. so Izzy’s death, and everyone beginning again with love—healing each other with love—is a cap to it all. it’s death as a positive force, for once. it’s death as love, not trauma. it’s death as something that will always happen, but this time not forced by your own hand. it’s a death to everything toxic, to what “Blackbeard” represented, and all the while a sort of rebirth. it’s kind of a death to…death? it’s functionally like the real physical moon replacing the giant romantic imaginary orb: it’s taking the thing that’s been artificially morphed in Stede and Ed’s heads and making it real this time, with all the bittersweet emotions that come with tangible reality.

and honestly, I’m glad that it was tragic and emotional. I didn’t think I’d be so devastated to see Izzy die, but it really did get to me, especially because of everything he said to Ricky and then to Ed. but think of it this way: Izzy and Ed might be romantically compelling because they were toxic and charged (and I hope people still enjoy everything they get from that dynamic in fan work), but imagine if the show had actually gone in that direction—where would it take us thematically? it would kill the thesis; it would be love as chaos and entertainment, but not healing. instead, this show gave us something so much more powerful: a legitimate, fully-fleshed trauma arc.

trauma hurts. Izzy’s death hurts. but that’s okay. that’s great, actually! it means the storytelling was effective—that Izzy’s arc made you feel something. and i know this won’t be every viewer’s experience, but honestly? I’m glad I can have this grieving process in such a beautifully framed light in the safe space ship of this show, because let’s be real—death, real life death, fucks you up. and let me tell you, I could’ve used this show during so many episodes of grief in my life. but here it is now, reminding us that our grief and trauma doesn’t define us—and WHAT a powerful thing for queer love, especially, to be presented as the thing that heals us all. ESPECIALLY when so much grief and death in this community is woven so deeply with the trauma of our identity.

so grieve as you need to, but don’t forget to turn the poison into positivity 💛 because that’s what the show is telling us—choose live, despite!

[castlebyersafterdark]

"it doesn't look good for byler because if El is really gone, this means that Mike was separated from El not because he decided it but because something happened to El, so it makes Will look like a second choice. and it's quite concerning."

I wanted to try and soothe this one bc it just isn't true! we'll be okay! the mike and hopper scene is the only scene with pretty solid confirmation that it takes place in the epilogue, which would be two years after any el death. lot of time for crying and acceptance, but (and I say this as a m11 hater) if we don't think mike is going to be sad then we're living a fantasy. of course he is, he didn't love her romantically but he's always said he didn't want to lose her. the boy in ET has to let ET go home and is sad about it, same thing here. they just need to drive home that it's not weighing him down like in s2 and he's secure and happy with will, he was just having a moment to reflect on el with her dad! we also need to remember el and mike wouldn't be staying together all season and byler get together in the last hour of the last episode bc she dies lmao, they'd have time to flesh it out all season long with ideally a break up early on. I get that everyone has their own theories and ideas for when and how byler is happening, but let's not choose the super negative bare minimum route for our boys it's not good for ourselves or anyone <3

All of this!! Thank you for the reality and perspective. We've got a LOT of show in store in season five. It's not like Stranger Things is going to be a movie. It's EIGHT MOVIES. That's a lot of screentime. See how much we got developed in season four. Wild season. We'll be fine.

I think some of the themes people are afraid of have always been there - of course the ending is in some way going to be bittersweet. It's always been that type of show. I am choosing to trust the writers and if the worst should happen - I'm not going to regret a second of being confident and loving this show and having faith in this beautiful story. Because I refuse to live any other way. I think it's going to live up to expectations and yall can call me naive but hey... I've been called much, much worse.

[illogicalines]

Fresh off the last two episodes there is so much to say and I can’t even begin to process what’s going on with Izzy and Ed and Stede but what’s interesting is that it really slipped past me how quickly we���ve been losing crew members on the Revenge. Let’s just go through one by one—

Five minutes into s2 and we lose the Swede to Spanish Jackie, and as proven in that episode and in s2e7 he is fully committed to her. No big deal though, the Swede was never a huge player on the ship and he seems much happier with Jackie anyways.

We also lose Ivan in the first episode, but again— never a huge player on the ship. He was always more Blackbeard’s crew than Stede’s, and while maybe that could’ve changed we’ll never really know.

Then our first major hit— Buttons in e4. Honestly his departure definitely felt odd to me, but it’s been more or less confirmed (?) that this was his goodbye, at least for the season. Buttons is one of the characters that really made the show what it is back in s1, and as Stede’s first mate this is definitely a blow, even if Stede himself doesn’t seem all that bothered.

Lucius and Pete get engaged at the end of s2e5 and while it seems like they’re sticking with the crew for now, the setup is definitely there for them to leave the ship at some point. Neither of them are particularly good at the whole pirating thing, and at this point seem to have mostly stuck around for the relationships they’ve formed with the crew. For now I’d count them as iffy.

Ed leaves, completely cuts ties with Stede and the Revenge and pirating as a whole. He’s done, he’s going to live as a fisherman now. We know he’ll end up coming back, but for now, he’s gone. And even when he does come back, will he ever be satisfied living on the Revenge as a pirate?

That leaves us then with: Frenchie, Roach, Wee John, Fang, and Izzy, the only crew members that haven’t shown any desire to leave. Our cast has been getting smaller and smaller right under our noses— the family is slowly growing apart, moving on. Nothing can last forever, and I think it’s very likely that the season will end with the crew disbanding completely and going their separate ways.

What really makes me certain is that everyone is leaving of their own volition, and everyone is leaving to find new happiness elsewhere. The Swede with Jackie, Buttons as a bird, Lucius and Pete together, Oluwande, Jim, and Archie with Zheng. Bar maybe Ed, everyone has just moved on from their time on the Revenge, and as bittersweet as it is, I’m so, so excited to see what happens next for these characters and I really can’t wait to see how this is all resolved in the finale.

[infamousmonkey-cat]

I guess the mental illness wants me to do ofmd reaction posts now so here we go

called it on the rabbit :( all the world will be your enemy, prince with a thousand enemies... rip

last week i was like "wow i was way off" but now i'm kind of feeling like my fic actually did a pretty good job of capturing the general vibe of these last two episodes

speaking of which i have two separate wips in my draft folder from weeks/months ago (before any s2 promo). one has ed bonding with a rabbit and one has ed being scared of spiders (which i'm PRETTY sure is new information, right?). spooky

dang that crew's getting whittled down! ivan (what did guz do??), the swede and now buttons. i have mixed feelings about this. it kind of feels like it's leading towards everyone going their own ways--not necessarily one by one, but certainly not staying together as a crew. which is probably necessary growth and shit but also feels quite bittersweet

idk what the general fandom reaction has been to buttons turning into a bird yet but i'm on board with any and all magical realism this show wants to give me

1x05 and 2x04 both end with ed and stede leaving a party that is on fire, having hit a major turning point in their relationship. i like symmetry

maybe it's just because i've been catching up on wwdits but izzy's arc this season feels "baby colin robinson" to me. i'm genuinely enjoying the stupid disaster that he is this season

i've been SAYING (to myself inside my own mind) that stede is the service top in this relationship and i feel like that is basically textually confirmed at this point

"pop WHAT magnitude? pop WHAT?"

stede risking a curse for that gay little outfit might be my favourite thing he has ever done

i wonder if that suit could possibly be a metaphor for anything

so weird that ofmd and iasip both independently did nut-allergy-being-mistaken-for-a-curse episodes

for ep 5 part of me was like "oh wow they're really gonna keep them apart for basically the whole episode??" but i actually love them having their own little adventures and then reporting back to each other at the end of the night so w/e

waxing moon <3 <3 <3

eta actually i want to say a bit more about this scene: FIRST of all the role reversal is very Something, second of all the fact that ed got to kiss stede like he wanted to the first time around. kind of rewriting history, but in a good way. very Shark

i miss zheng. girl where ARE you

[astridandoddsandends]

I don't usually like these what ifs because I don't believe in Jason as a writer. Wells would have been corrupted too. He wouldn't have remained the one from s1. He wouldn't have convinced her or he would have joined the hate train (the latter seems the most likely - the writing team loved to do that).

Besides, Clarke remained in Polis for diplomatic reasons (partially leaving out the fact that she was in captivity disguised as hospitality - she didn't have much freedom: the captivity and gaslighting to which L.xa submits her implies that she is in a relationship with trauma bond formerly known as Stockholm syndrome). The context was somewhat complicated. Was she naive? Maybe. Did the grounders deserve the vote of confidence? Absolutely not. Still she was trying to do the right thing to avoid going to war again.

I'm not trying to defend the writers (I would have preferred other options like the one Ricky suggested to Jason at the time: he wanted Lincoln to be the one to have a mediating role with L.xa - to me that made sense considering the disappointment of Lincoln and Indra at the end of s2 - Jason chastised him for making that reasonable suggestion), but they clearly needed a narrative conflict and went with this one (a boring storyline in which Clarke is isolated in Polis dealing with grounder politics + a romance that every day makes less sense to me & Bellamy following Pike's logic that would inevitably lead them to war again). Something else: if Clarke had chosen to return to Arcadia with Bellamy, I think the return wouldn't have been so easy. The grounders still believed that Clarke was a legend that they should kill to appropriate her "power". It's just complex. That would have meant war too. She was still a target. I'm sure it would have been nice to see Clarke and Bellamy deal with that but it's pretty obvious that not following the grounders' terms would have made all the clans want to crush Arkadia. She and the characters had no alternatives that would lead to a less belligerent result with people who were impossible to negotiate (yes, I'm talking about the grounders). It's complex. Every alternative narrative has its buts because as @travllingbunny always points out Clarke was set up for failure. I think trying to be diplomatic considering the scarcity of resources was the most rational thing to do but Clarke (and Bellamy) were set up to fail.

What is nice about season 3 is that it further conveys the idea that the key to survival is both working together; an idea that they later catastrophically abandoned and which only confirms that you simply can't trust these b!tches a.k.a. writers.

They definitely could have done better with all of this but looking back it's always a pretty bittersweet because every inconsistency and wasted potential we spot feels like a pre-announcement that the story was going to end badly anyway. ugh! 😒

Let’s be real one of the biggest mistakes the 100 ever did is kill off Wells and keep Finn instead. There was literally no reason for fu.ckboy to stay around other than to eventually die which he did. If Wells had been here, just imagine how he would’ve been there with Clarke and Bellamy when they tried to figure out what to do with Mount Weather. He could’ve possibly been one of the people getting hurt which would’ve solidified Clarke’s decision even more when she decided to kill the mountain people. Or if he was there when the whole Pike thing was going on and Clarke was away at Polis. He would’ve been able to convince her to come back or at least consider what was happening at camp and help her make sense of the situation. Honestly, what a disappointment!!!

[hellowkatey]

post-finale thoughts on the bad batch below the cut

[I'm specifically focusing on story and characters. this doesn't even begin to address the issues with their animation design, coloring, and the whole lot of racial, stereotypical, and ableist themes that show up, they are important to be aware of and speak out against. resources that I have found helpful are linked.]

@revenge-of-the-shit has a great compendium with lots of resources for both TBB and SW as a whole | change.org petition

okay.

As a SW fan, I am no stranger to putting up with meh writing because of my love for the characters. I love found family and I love the protective space dad trope with all my being, so TBB caught me by the hyperfixation... but not until the last few episodes of the season.

I loved Echo and Tech from the beginning. As someone who is neurodivergent, I relate to Tech a lot. And I've had a soft spot for Echo since TCW. Wrecker and Omega are more neutral for me. I like them but don't connect to them as much. My like for Hunter decreased as the season progressed, and I disliked Crosshair until episode 15. After part 1 of the finale, I went back and rewatched TCW backdoor pilot and actually began to understand Crosshair.

Coming into the 2nd part of the finale, I sort of expected them to discover Crosshair still had his chip despite claiming to already have it removed, remove it, and they fly off in the Marauder into the sunset, brothers again.

Obviously that is not what happened. But I'm not mad about that. I'm actually glad this didn't happen, though it hurt to see that wide shot of Crosshair standing alone on the platform as his brothers flew away.

I do think Crosshair still has his chip. I think the Empire tricked him into thinking they removed it. It's a mind game. Because Crosshair thinks he had the chip removed, he stops fighting the impulses to support the Empire over his team. He genuinely believes he has chosen this.

And, because Crosshair by nature is severe and unyielding (as Tech says), his natural personality is not far off from the aggression and standoffish shift that chipped clones display. But compared to how Crosshair was in TCW and the first episode, he's definitely not all there imo. The fact he remained loyal to the Empire after they destroyed Kamino with him on it (and the scenes of him still having headaches-- I mean, hello, how did the boys miss that??) is why I believe he is still chipped.

But I am glad Crosshair did not go with them even though it messes up the premise of a fic I wrote between ep. 15 and 16 (rip). The finale was important for bringing the boys back together so they can see they all still care about one another, but there's a difference in ideology. And there's a breach of trust on both sides.

Crosshair needs to see for himself that the Empire has been manipulating him and he needs to come to that conclusion on his own. The Bad Batch, mainly Hunter, needs to realize that they did abandon their brother because as soon as they figured out about the inhibitor chips their primary mission should have been getting Crosshair out of there.

In terms of the conflict between Crosshair & himself and Crosshair & The Bad Batch, I think the show did a good job. It's an extremely complex issue, and they depicted the characters as true humans that make mistakes and have to atone for them. I hope season 2 focuses on what they need to work on individually to be ready to come back together as a team.

That is why I think I watched the show but didn't really connect to it until we actually got back to the main conflict from the first episode.

But this was a 16-episode season. They filled half a season with cameos and odd-jobs which were hardly used it to advance the characters' arcs. (At least when the Mandalorian S2 did this, the cameos contributed to the journey in some way.)

Tech, Echo, and Wrecker basically got no development when there were lots of opportunities to explore this-- I mean, we have Echo who was a POW, the last of his squad, pretty well acquainted with the Jedi, and the only "reg" among them. Before he was taken by the Techno Union, he was a huge advocate of following orders and doing things by the books. I feel like he would have had a hard time with learning about the chips and Fives' death amongst other things. Tech and Crosshair were depicted working together a lot in TCW, and he is one of the few that (sort of) defends Crosshair in the finale, but that dynamic isn't explored much either. And Wrecker's chip actually activated and he hurts his brothers. Yet, there's not really any sort of fallout there either. I also feel like they alluded to Omega having some sort of special ability at the beginning and then we just never touched on it again.

I point out these things not just as a fan, but as someone who studied writing and storytelling in college. You can have your round and flat, dynamic and static characters, but they still should have a complete arc. And they all can't be flat. Especially as being part of the main cast. I think they focused mainly on external struggles and forgot about the internal ones, which would have been much more profound. If The Bad Batch was an anthology of their missions during TCW I would be a little more forgiving of the mission-to-mission episode format, but this immediately following Order 66. One of the most emotional moments in the SW franchise.

Don't get me wrong, I loved moments of the show. It's inspired me enough to read (and write) fic for it. And I've read some really kick ass writing that has fulfilled a lot of the desires I had for the show in terms of addressing internal conflict and character development. I'm well acquainted with the fandom by this point to know emotional depth is not often a priority in SW. But I did not expect the show to lack basic character development for main characters. I've browsed The Bad Batch AO3 tag a few times now, and a very large portion has to do with creating character development and backstory that doesn't exist in canon yet. I think that says a lot on its own.

This is long so I'll stop but my overall opinion of the show is bittersweet. If someone asked me what I thought of it in one sentence, I would say "it has potential". But since S2 is confirmed, it sounds like they should have time to see fan responses, take the valid criticisms to heart, and I think TBB has the potential to join the club of a beloved SW show with a rough first season.

[bladgsmsoffical]

Upcoming BL & BL themed drama

F: Facebook | IG: Instagram | Y: YouTube | T: Twitter | W: Weibo | B: Bilibili | O: Other

Those with release dates

2021

Nitiman the series (นิติแมนแฟนวิศวะ) [T] : 7th May

SiewSumNoi (เสี่ยวซำน้อย) [F] : 12th May

Top Secret Together [IG |F] : 14th May

The Most Peaceful Place Season 2 [Y | F] : 14th May

Be Loved in House [T | F | IG] : 20th May

The Love’s Outlet [F] 20th May

Mẹ Chồn Dâu Cáo [F | Y]

Pa-Mine Pare [IG] : 21st May

Saan, Sana Tayo sa Himig ng Musika [Y | F | IG] : 21st May

I Told Sunset about You Part 2 [T | IG] : 27th May

My Chinito Prince [Y] : 31st May

2gether the movie [F | IG | Y | T] : 4th June (Japan)

Country Boy [F | Y] : 15th June

Bed Weather [F] : 16th June

Golden Blood รักมันมหาศาล [T] : 23rd June

Ossan’s Love Hong Kong version [F | Y | IG] : June

Given [T] : 17th July

Gameboys The Movie [Y | IG] : 30th July

The Best Story [T | IG | F] : July

You’re My Sky [IG] : October

55:15 Never Too Late [F | IG | Y | T]

Bad Buddy [F | IG | Y | T]

Baker Boys [F | IG | Y | T]

Between us [T/T] (Hemp Rope)

Enchanté [F | IG | Y | T]

Eye Contact [F]

Kumasta Bro? The Series [Y | F]

Love Mechanics

Meet Me in Bangkok [T | Y | IG | F]

Middle Love [T]

Not Me [F | IG | Y | T]

The Player [F | IG | Y | T]

Semantic Error

What Did You Eat Yesterday? Movie [O]

Y.U? [IG | Y | F]

ฮักแรกคือเขาฮักเจ้าฮักสุดท้าย (My Last Love) : [T]

รักวุ่นวายของนายรสแซบ [T | Y | F | IG]

Upcoming but no release date

2Moons3 : The Ambassador [F | T] (New cast, none of the previous cast are taking part)

7 Project [Y]

Absolute Zero [T] (Rights brought for series)

Amore the Movie [Y | F] (A retelling of the Amore series from the director’s new company, with new cast)

Art Adore En The series [T | F | IG]

ArYa: Lakbay Serye [Y | IG | F]

One Day Pag Ibig Ikaw at Ako [F]

Be A Friend [F | Y]

Beat It the series [T | IG | Y]

Because of You 2020 series 2

Bed Friend series [T]

Better Days Book 2 [Y | T | F | IG]

Bittersweet [IG]

Unknown Future Comics x Studio Blue Joint Production [O]

Boys Next Door [T | Y | F]

Brothers Season 2 [F]

Brown x Coco [F]

Call it What you Want season 2 [O | T]

Chemistry in Love [T | F | Y | IG

Create Infinite Series Y Project 2021 [F]

Cutie Pie Series [F | T | IG]

Dear Cupid, Please Come to get the Subpoena and Dear Doctor, I’m Coming for Soul [F | T(?)] (Casting)

Destiny Seeker The Series [T | F | IG]

Don’t Say No [T | IG | F]

Emergency Love the series

Explore the Series [Y | F]

Fah Lun Rak [F | T | IG]

Gameboys 2 [Y | IG]

GameOn the series [T | IG]

Grab a Bite : ส่งร้อน เสิร์ฟรัก [T]

He Called Me…? 2 [Y]

Idol Am I [T | IG | Y]

In My Mind the series [F | IG | T]

Inn Love [F]

Innocence the series [F/F | IG |T]

Innocent (Full version)

In Your Heart (在你心之所向的地方) [W | T]

KHI GẶP EM – 2GETHER PHIÊN BẢN VIỆT [F]

KinnPorsche The Series [F]

Knock Out Engineering วิศวะเกียร์มัว & Check Out Engineering วิศวะเกียร์พยศ (by CLAZZICAL) (Purchased for adaptation)

La Cuisine (เมนูลับฉบับแก้มยุ้ย) [F]

Left Alone [Y]

Libulan at Sidapa [T]

Light (小光) [T | O]

Like Love 3 [W]

Limited Edition [Y | F]

Love and Chemistry [T]

Love Arena [Y | F | IG] (Postponed)

Love by Fehlar [T | Y]

Love Love you 3 Dawn of four maidens [F]

Loveless Society [T | F | IG]

Love Lies [T | Y]

Love of Time the series [F] (Rumoured to have been cancelled)

Love on Me Pare [F]

Love Stage (Thai) [T | F | IG]

Love Storm [T / T | F]

Love Syndrome [T | F]

Love Team : Boy’s Lockdown S2 [T | Y]

Lovesick The movie (Currently unknown if the cast will be the same as the series, most likely new cast) [T | F]

Lovin’ U [F | T]

Meow Ears Up น้องเหมียวในห้อง���ม [T]

Mi Amor (Amore SS2) [Y]

MIM [T | F | Y | IG]

Mr.Bad Guy (นิยายตัวร้าย) [F]

My [F]

My Boy the series [F | T] (Filming)

My Bromance 2 : Side Story [F | Y]

My Dear You [F]

My Destiny the series [T | IG | Y]

My Engineer SS2 [F | Y | IG | T]

My Ride the series [T]

Nighttime in the Suburb [Y | IG]

Oh My Gee! The Series [T | Y | IG | F]

Once in Memory [T | F | Y | IG]

Our Stories by YoeNim [F | IG]

Pass To Your Voice (สะพานปูน) [T | F]

Patrick Rangsimant novels that are possibly being adapted

ASLove [T]

The ‘Our Story’ (กังหันพัดโบก) [T]

Mirror Reflection (ใครในกระจก) [T]

My Imaginary Boyfriend [T]

Peach of Time [T]

Rainbow Prince [F]

Reminders SS2 [T] (Mean and Plan are the only cast that have been mentioned to be returning so far)

Sakristan: The Second Reading [Y | IG | T | F]

Sea Him The Series Season 2 [Y]

Secret Admirer [T]

Secret Crush on You [T]

Seven Project [T] (Possible BL)

SILINGAN [F | Y | IG | T]

Status the series [IG | Y]

Stuck on You [T]

Summer Déjà-vu [Y]

Tarrar: The Series [F | Y]

Tell The World I LOVE YOU (บอกโลกให้รู้ว่ากูรักมึง) [IG | T] (Postponed until further notice)

That’s my Candy [IG | F]

The Bangkok Boys [F]

The Heart Accent Lamp [T | IG]

The Immerasuble [T | O]

The Status [IG]

The Sweet Robot [F | IG]

The Tale of the Tail [T]

The Theory Series [F | T | IG]

THE TUXEDO สูทรักนักออกแบบ [T]

The Victory Academy (So Much in Love SS2) [T |IG | Y]

The Yearbook [T]

Tie the Not [F]

This Moment [Y] (This Night sequel)

Touch Your Mind [F]

Triage [T]

Turbulence [T | F]

U & I : The Series [T | IG] (recasting)

Unexpected [Y | IG | F]

When the Apple Falls in Love [T | F | Y | IG]

Why Love, Why? Season 2 [Y | F | T]

You are my Arm [F]

you f o : ยู เอฟ โอ [Y | F | IG]

You’re Always in my Heart (Nilundon) [F | Y]

Zero the series [ T | IG]

ขอโสดStory (My Single Series) [F]

หวานใจนายวิศวะ [F]

แพ้กุ้ง My Sidekick [T]

คุณหมีปาฏิหาริย์ (by ปราปต์ ) (Purchased for adaptation)

บ้านซ่อนศพ (by สาววายรำพัน) (Purchased for adaptation)

น้องไอไลฟ์สด (by ++ saisioo ++) (Purchased for adaptation)

ม.4/1 คิดถึงจึงนั่งด้วย My Friendship [F | IG | Y | O]

คุณได้ไปต่อ (You’ve Gone On) [T | F]

Plus another Untitled BL series [T | F]

รักวุ่นวายนายรสแซ่บ (What Zabb Man!) [F/F | IG | Y]

ช่องวันอ่านเอา (Mon Meng Mang) [F | T | IG | Y | O]

คุณวิศวะขาโหดมาเป็นคนโปรดของผมเถอะครับTheSeries [F | T]

ขอดาวมาเคียงเดือน [F]

ដើម្បីស្នេហ៍ Just Love [Y | F | IG]

ส่งร้อนเสิร์ฟรักBiteMe [T | F | IG | Y]

ใส่รักป้ายสี (Sai Ruk Pai Si) [T]

새빛남고학생회 (Saebitnam High School Student Association) [O]

เฟื่องนคร [T]

เดือนอิงดอย

Announced but Inactive/Cancelled

After I Love you [Y | F] (Can no longer find reference to it)

Alternative Love 2 [W] (Mentioned to have been released but no confirmation. The actors mentioned it in August 2018. Weibo account for the movie and actor have changed names)

BadMan and Cherry [F | IG] (No update since announcement)

Behind the Scene the series รักหลังฉาก [F | IG | T] (Facebook page closed, though Twitter and IG still up but not active)

BloodyBuddy เล่นให้ได้เลือด (by ปราปต์ ) [T | F | Y] (Released at festival but no word on if it will get a release elsewhere)

CRY=ซ่อนรัก [F] (No update since announcement)

Dear My Friend [F/F] (No recent updates)

Destiny Boy ฟ้าลิขิตหรือใครลิขิต [IG] (No update since announcement)

FLY IN SHALLOW [W | B] (Trailer and BTS released but nothing since. Another movie based on the same novel was released though not BL and with an entirely separate cast. BL version likely cancelled)

GUEST ผู้ชายขี้เหงากับภูเขาลูกใหญ่ [IG | Y] (IG closed, youtube channel under different name)

HBL The Series [IG] (No updates since 2019)

HeartBeat the series [F | Y | IG] (Facebook page closed)

HIStory S2 Crossing the Line Movie [F| IG] (Cancelled, statement here)

HIStory S3 Make Our Days Count sequel [F| IG] (Never officially announced and not mentioned in the statement concerning Crossing the Line movie cancellation)

HUG Hill Aomkodpookhao Raoraknay อ้อมกอดภูเขา เรารักนาย [F] : (Originally set for release in 2019 but no updates)

Lady Boy Friends: เพื่อนกันมันส์ดี The New Class [F | IG] (No update since 2019)

LUCKY โชคดีที่รักเธอ [F/F | T] (Facebook updated Jan 2020 but no more information about series released)

Love by Cathy Doll short film series [F] (Shown at event only, no mass release.)

รักต้องตบ

รักต้องถอน

รักต้องรุก

Love Chase [IG] (Writer has left the production company and so the series will no longer be made under them. They have said the series may be made in the future.)

Love Complex (Continuation) [F | IG] (Due to channel reshuffle series was taken off air, production company inactive, likely cancelled)

Love Lab The Series [T | IG] (No update since 2017 but filming was started)

Love Next Door 3 [F] (Facebook no longer mentions it)

Lovers in Thailand [T] (All social media has been deleted, said to have been a fake production)

May I Love You? the series [T] (Became Thank God it’s Friday the series)

My Bromance Season 2 [F | IG] (No update since announcement and production company inactive, likely cancelled)

My Day the series season 2 [F] (Rumour that S2 has been cancelled, due to Aki leaving Oxin and joining a new company, but so far no official confirmation. Aki did a live stream talking about the issue. Oxin may plan on recasting Ace and still going ahead.)

My Dreamboy [F | T] (Announced to be released on 25/12/2020 but all social media has been deleted, said to have been a fake production)

My Dream The Series Alpha [F | IG | T] (Someone got in contact with P’Up and asked about the series. P’Up said he was sorry the series hadn’t been released in 2019 but that he couldn’t say anything about it but that if they have any new projects then they will update the official social channels)

My Extraordinary Season 2 : A Kiss to Remember [T | Y | F | IG] (Shelved)

One Night Stand [IG] (J.ACE TV have announced that their current series is their last)

Our Last Day [F | T] : Delayed due to recast (Originally planned for 30th April 2018, more than likely cancelled)

Penguin’s Trap กับดักเพนกวิน (by แบมแบม) [F | IG] : (Announced to have been picked up by Jinloe but no mention of it since)

Sex Friends (เพื่อนกันมัน(ส์)ฟิน) [F] (Discontinued due to internal conflict and lack of funds)

Soulmates The Series [F] (Facebook closed once again)

Status The Series [F(?) F | T | IG] (Workshop started but no update since August 2016)

That’s my Umbrella [F | T] (Facebook page & Twitter renamed. Twitter purged but Facebook still has content relating to the series, just nothing recent, likely cancelled)

The Extra SS2 [F | IG] (No update since announcement, production company inactive, likely cancelled)

The Law of Love [Y | F | IG | T] (On indefinite hold)

The Lawyer’s Love [T | Y | IG | F] (All social media has been deleted, said to have been a fake production)

Until Forever [T] (All social media has been deleted, said to have been a fake production)

War Of Highschool SS2 [F | T/T] (Jinloe had mentioned it was still coming soon however no update since then)

Where We Were [Y | IG] (J.ACE TV have announced that their current series is their last)

With Big Love [F] (Facebook closed)

Your Star The Series [F] (No recent updates)

เธอคือลมหายใจ [F] (No recent updates)

นายจอมหยิ่งกับชายจอมยุ่ง (Defeat Arrogant for Love) [F] : (Originally planned for a June 2020 release however has been put on hold)

ทัพอย่าเปิดกระโปรงน้อง (by FroggyTime) (Due to the controversy in Thailand about the book’s content the publisher deleted the tweet announcing it had been brought for adaption, the publisher has since stated the novel will be removed from sale and readers can return the book)

神將 (Sheng Jian) [F]

笙声入心 – Your voice, my heart [F]

วุ่นรักนักบิด Motor-Cycle the Series [F | IG] : (Originally planned for release in May 2020 but no update since August 2020)

โดยตัวละครชุดเดียวกัน (Memorie, Destiny, Miracle & Cupid) [IG] (IG deleted)

เกมเมอร์และน้องเด๋อของเขา (The Gamer and his Lover) [T] (Announced that production has stopped due to cost and inability to agree between parties)

စည်း The Series [F] (Facebook closed)

[britishchick09]

sherlock s2 ep 1 livewatch

welcome to a new (cumber)batch of eps! i’m excited to see all the iconic moments in this one :D

i haven’t even played the dvd yet and it’s glorious :’)

ooh it starts with a ‘previously’!!!

JIM MOIARTY HIIII!!!! :D

moiarty is amazing (and this recap is so dramatic!)

OMG SHERLOCK NECK FRECKLE! :o

also seeing the old channel 8 logo in the corner is so cool! :D

HOLD UP why is bee gees playing

IS MOIARTY A BEE GEES FAN???

‘staying alive’ lol funny since he’s about to get shot :D

moiarty: “SAY THAT AGAIN!!!!!” say that again QUIETER MOIARTY GEEZ

and he just walks away!!!

shoe sherlock cool

sherlock 2 NOW

oh no it’s irene alder...

masterpiece INTRO YAAAASSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!

me watching sherlock be like:

the masterpiece trust is just rich people cool

omg the viking river cruises spon is the same as today! :D

woah they’re playing a movie trailer! :o

it’s a british movie obviously and i’ve never heard of it OBVIOUSLY

the scottish host guy is talking and i love it :D

host: “his mind has more apps than an iphone” lol

“a series of his three most famous cases begins! are you ready?” HECK YEAH LET’S GOOOO!!!!!!

YAS the blog scene!

sherlock: “what are you typing?” john: “a blog... about us”

lady: “i think my husband is having an affair.” sherlock: “yes”

sherlock thinks cases are boring except

sherlock ‘cases don’t need titles’ holmes

WOAH SHERLOCK JUST TOLD A LITTLE GIRL THAT DEAD PEOPLE BURN :o

lestrade: “any ideas?” john: “eight so far” wowza :o

sherlock ‘don’t mention the unsolved cases’ holmes

glasseslock!!!!! :D

eyyyyyyyy ;D

people want pics of sherlock and john do johnlockers exist in this universe? :o

lol :D

irene is seductively putting her hand on lockie’s newspaper pic ewww :(

mrs. hudson hates the fridge

THUMBS IN THE FRIDGE FRIDGE THUMBS

mrs. hudson: “BOYS YOU’VE GOT ANOTHER ONE!!!’ *insert meme here*

ooh it spins into a flashback!

OMG JOHNLOCK VID CHAT!!!!

sherlock’s in the sheet! :o

*phone rings* sherlock: SHUT. UP!!!!” lol :D

john’s holding his laptop around lol :D

john: ‘there’s a mute button and i will use it” aka the 2020 president debates

woah some random guys are in lockie’s house and john needs a helicopter what’s up with that????

BUCKINGHAM PALACE YAAAASSS!!!!!!!

john looks under...

giggly!!!!!

♥

mycroft is the queen now

BOI LOCKIE’S LIKE ‘what for?’ TO PUT PANTS ON OMMGGGGGGG

john smol be like :o

guy: “mr holmes the younger”

LOCK BUTT LOCK BUTT NOOOOOOO

john be like o///o ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 

o lockie’s’s in clothes again :/

mycroft doesn’t trust the secret service welcome to america

:(

i don’t like irene not because there’s apparently a thing between her and sherlock but because she’s a bit creepy!

THERE LIKE THAT!

sherlock: “photographs of whom?” ooh how fancy

sherlock: “laters!!” lol! :D

irene’s friend is named kate like channel 8 being called ‘kaet’! :D

fashionista! :o

yes this is ‘the right armor’ lockie

john: “you didn’t even change your clothes!” lol :D

sherlock: “go on punch me in the face” lol :D

watson: “i always hear ‘punch me in the face’ when you’re speaking in subtext” ...wut o_O

WORST BATTLE DRESS EVER NNNOPE IMMA HEAD OUT

are sherlock and irene being shipped because they were naked in the same up

irene: “i could cut myself slapping your face” louise belcher wants your number

bi john when he sees irene: o///o “...i’ve missed something haven’t i?”

sherlock isn’t affected by naked irene thus i headcanon him as aro/ace (or even demi/ace in john’s case like my own holmes character) thank you and good night

irene just sits her bare butt on the chair why

JOHN SISTER NANI???? :o

also this font is so basic WHY LOCKIE

irene: “somebody loves you” *glances at john* ok i like her a tad she gets it ;)

john: “put something on, please. like.. a napkin?” lol :D

irene’s like ‘why’ JUS LIKE SHERLOCK BUT I SHALL NOT SHIP THIS SHIP THE SHOW IS TRYING TO SHIP

also john giggles at naked sherlock and is like ‘plz no’ with naked irene (although i would be too that lady is OUT THERE)

ooh antiques roadshow! :D

also she’s dressed like lockie NO

irene: “brainy is the new sexy” plz no :(

she took her clothes off ‘to make an impression’ yep

WAIT  they were just outside now they’re back in wut???

irene was born in the 80s cool :D

WOAH why are there more guy with guns?

and *le gasp* AN AMERICAN????

DON’T SHOOT JOHN AMERICAN!!!

ooh what was the code? :o

EPIC SLOW MO FIGHT YOOOOOO

DANNNNG IRENE JUS GUN SMACKED A GUY

sherlock just flipped a phone LIKE A FLIP PHONE OHHHH

irene is number 1 sherlock fan besides john confirmed

at first i thought it was a fandom phrase but it’s not! :o

WHY DID IRENE JUST PUNCH SHERLOCK

SHE’S WHIPPING HIM????

this reminds me of a certain sw ship... :(

yeah i don’t ship them AT ALLLLLL NOW

the key code is irene’s measurements DOES SHE MEAN...

the camera’s spinning FLASHBACK???

woah are they in the case?? this could be sherlock’s mind palace!

irene: “you got that just from one look? definitely the new sexy” NONONONONOO

outside bed

awww sweet bby ;)

did john tuck him in?

CRAP it was ireneeeeee >:(

the way she says ‘hush now it’s ok...’ is like count olaf in the hostile hospital when he drugs violet :o

LOCKIE’S FIRST WORDS WHEN WAKING UP WHERE JOHN awwww :D

OMG DID JOHN REALLY TUCK HIM IN awwww!!!!!!! ♥

lestrade filmed loopy sherlock lol :D

john: “ahhh back to bed!” awww :)

sherlock: “iiii’m fine i’m absolutely fine!!!’ drugged sherlock is a treasure ♥

sherlock: ”why would i need you?” john: “no reason at all” :)

ew was that an irene phone moan gross

DID SHERLOCK CHANGE HIS TEXT NOTIF TO THAT???

mrs. hudson: “family is all we have in the end, mycroft holmes!” mycroft: “oh shut up, mrs. hudson!” john: “my-“ sherlock: “MYCROFT!!!!” lol :D

mrs. hudson: “it’s a bit rude that noise isn’t it?” indeed!!

sherlock: “you can follow her on twitter” TWITTER IN THE HOLMESVERSE????

sherlock: “there’s more! much more” but wait... THERE’S MORE!

LOCKIE VIOLIN!!!!! :D

THE CHRISTMAS THING WASN’T A FAN MANIP HOLY YAS!!!!!!!! :D

cool sweater john!!! :D

:D

molly: ‘having christmas drinkies then?” wallace wants walkies thank you very much

john: “she’s off the booze!” sherlock: “nnnope” john: “shut up sherlock” lol

john to sherlock: ‘take a day off” lockie doesn’t know the concept mr doc

DID SHERLOCK NAME MOLLY CRY???? :o

HE KISSED HER????

sherlock still has the irene moan after all this time WHY

finding irene on christmas coolio :D

molly: “how did sherlock recognize her by... without her face?” ;)

sherlock smoking bad >:(

WOAH IS IRENE DEAD?????

VIOLIN YAS!!!! :D

smiley smiley :)

awww sherlock plucked a bit :)

OH CRAP IRENE’S BACC

john: “you flirted with sherlock holmes? “someone jellyyyy ;)

OOHH THIS IS THE IRENE JOHNLOCK SCEEENE!!!!!!! :D

irene: “you jealous?” john: “we’re not a couple!” irene: “yes you are.” ;)

john: “i’m not actually gay” irene: “well i am” IRENE LESBIAN GOOD!!!!

irene: “look at us both” (or perhaps bi like john could be...?)

biiiiiig door creak

UGH american... >:(

someone comfort mrs. hudson!! :(

sherlock: “take away your boys. it makes up for too much stupid in the room” he’s surrounded by idiots...

OMG SHERLOCK PEPPER SPRAYYY

awww he’s comforting mrs. hudson :)

john comfort! ♥

the guy’s tied up like the foody moody in bob’s burgers cool :D

awww mrs. hudson’s in shock :(

sherlock: “mrs. hudson leaving baker street? england would fall!” awww! :D

john says ‘alive’ like an irish guy :D

OMG IT’S NEW YEAR!!!!

happy violin new year! :D

sherlock’s xraying a phone lol

john said ‘in your bedroom’ BUT IT’S HIS AND SHERLOCK’S

and irene’s! :o

sherlock: “who wants to kill you?” irene: “killers” lol :D

sherlock said ‘the strand’!!!! :D

irene looks better without lipstick :)

the code is ‘i am SHERlocked’ HOW DO THEY NOT KNOW???

random john middle name reveal lol :D

FOR BABY NAMES NOOOO

john’s is hamish and eugene’s (from tangled) is hoarace... it’s the weird h middle name club! :D

sesame street time :D

...what in the world did sherlock just spout

john said ‘flight double o 7′ JAMES BOND REFERENCE????

MYCROFT IS SAYING ‘BOND ERE IS GO’ yep that’s bond!!!

sherlock didn’t notice john was gone for 2 hours lol :D

ooh sherlock says ‘second world war’ instead of ‘world war two’ :o

NONONONONNONONONONNOOOOOOOOO

sherlock: “that’s not the end of the world, that’s mrs. hudson” lol :D

mycroft: “that’s the deceased, always late” hey yeah :o

WOAH HE JUST CALLED SHERLOCK NAIVE AND IRENE A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS :o

oh hey irene

irene: “jim moiarty sends his love” ha ha funny love :D

WAIT MOIARTY CALLS SHERLOCK A VIRGIN??? :o

THEY’RE HOLDING HANDS NOOOOO

bada bing BADA BOOM!!!!!!!!!

wowza it’s been 6 months since they met???

sherlock: “sorry about dinner” *leaves* yesss :)

i’m glad they didn’t kiss and just held hands that was nice to make johnlock dreams fly :)

OMG IRENE LEGIT DIED THIS TIME BY BEHEADING!!!!! :o

john told sherlock she was in amurica good :)

lockie wants her camera phone aww :(

way better than any hand holding irene and sherlock did! ♥

awww irene texted sherlock goodbye :(

ew the irene moan one last time...

sherlock laughed and called her ‘a woman... the woman’ awww :)

that was a bittersweet ending! :)

aaaand it’s over!

next time... ;)

that was a great season premiere!!! irene was kind of cool (i like how she and sherlock were just friends) and the mystery was engaging as always. and of course... it was nice finally hearing lockie’s violin!! here’s to next time! :D

[tetrakys]

do you really think we won't have lance? *cries* I hate this

Hey I know nothing, I always try to prepare myself for the worst because I’ve been burned too many times. Everything points to the fact that this is not ending well…

I mean… Aleja getting married? The Aleja who is the self-insert of a member of staff who doesn’t work for BV anymore? We all know what happened the last time…  🙄

And the vision showing Erika entering the Crystal… I did say we were going to have to sacrifice ourselves and I still believe it. Everything happening in this episode has kinda confirmed all my theories.

Lance will be defeated next episode and probably die while at the same time redeeming himself, there’s no doubt in my mind about this. Of all the baiting and messed up things they have done with his character there is one constant factor, they kept insisting that there’s still good in him, that his real personality is not bad and all the worst things happened more by accident than his own will. Redemption is the one hill I will die on. Unfortunately these days redemption means sacrifice and death, and those bloody wings from the vision are not encouraging. I believe he’s going to die a noble death.

However

I’m also fundamentally an optimist, and I want to believe in a second season. I’ve smelled a second season coming since a year ago, logic points to the fact that the story is not over.

And, if indeed there’s a S2…

How stupid would they be not to include Lance? Way more than half of the fandom wants him, they have realised that by now. This is a fantasy game, there are dozens of ways they could make up to revive Lance. Fanfnir could do something useful for once, and gift him his vital essence or something like that, he always believed Lance should be saved.

So this is my theory: 

S1 with a bittersweet ending, where bittersweet means a shit ton of blood and death but Eldarya is saved thanks to sacrifice. So what I would define tragedy because I really don’t care about saving Eldarya, but apparently that’s the point of the game. And then we have S2 where all routes are still there but start from scratch. LANCE IS INCLUDED.

That’s what I’m telling myself to keep my sanity intact.

[multimetaverse]

Andi Mack 3x18 Review

Something To Talk A-Boot was a pretty good ep that was surprisingly fillery and made apparent the cracks in the show’s writing. Let’s dig in!

We got some great Tyrus scenes that more than made up for the crappy writing we’ve seen the last two Tyrus eps. For once they got to end on a happy note which was much appreciated. We returned to the same fun and flirty dynamic we saw before costume day and it’s like that whole mess never happened (which I’ll discuss more in the negatives). 

We’re back to the confident and flirty TJ we had been seeing up until costume day and it’s good that the show has abandoned it’s incredibly ill advised and poorly done internalized homophobia story line which is necessary because Tyrus can’t canon in the finale if TJ and Cyrus aren’t both comfortable with themselves and with each other. Luckily for the show, most of the audience will never know what the hell was going on with TJ in eps 13 and 15 and will just ignore it as bad writing. 

Lot’s of completely unnecessary touching between Tyrus in this ep like holding on to each others shoulders after the verdict and TJ tapping Cyrus as he was putting his seat belt on. I was pleasantly surprised by the full on hug we got; I didn’t think Terri would get a hug approved in this ep and be able to get hand holding approved in the finale but looks like she pulled it off. It made for a rare rule of three for Cyrus as we saw three increasingly gay hugs between him and TJ this season. I loved the whole you’ll visit me on the inside bit, that’s the kind of thing only couples say. 

Man was that Tyrus golf cart scene ever romantic. Just pure flirty fluff and it was wonderful to see. Really the only reason TJ stole the golf cart again and drove off to find Cyrus was to flirt with him. It’s the closest a show with 14 year olds can get to a classic drive off into the sunset ending. Has there ever been a better nerd/jock ship? The golf cart scene was a perfect encapsulation of their dynamic and showed such growth on Cyrus’ part from the scared kid who couldn’t imagine breaking the rules to the more confident self TJ has helped him become. It’s a bittersweet thought but even though a good chunk if not most of the audience still thinks Tyrus is a friendship or one sided crush, everyone who ever starts the show after the finale will know that Tyrus is a romantic relationship and for them subtext will be text from the very start. 

I think it was very deliberate that all of TJ’s scenes were at the school, we needed to see him interacting like normal with Cyrus at the place they’ll spend most of their time. This ep really was in many ways a glimpse of what canon Tyrus will be like after they get together and come out to the world; supportive, flirty, comfortable.

They really took advantage of Luke being 17 and a good driver. I wonder if ‘leggo’’ was in the script or if that was a Luke ad lib.

This was the last confirmed ep they ever filmed at the school and there’s an extremely good chance that the very wholesome and very gay Tyrus golf cart scene was the last scene we’ll ever see at the school. Which is a hell of a way to say goodbye to the school. 

We got just under 5 minutes of Tyrus screen time and just over 5 and a half minutes of total TJ screen time this ep (excluding TJ cheering in the stands). This is the most he’s had since 3x06 and may actually be the most he’s had or will have all season. And this was more Tyrus screen time than we’ve had in 3x11, 3x13, and 3x15 combined which is a damning indictment of Disney’s censorship. Partly this was likely because the writers were trying to pad his screen time a bit since he was originally supposed to be gone for 3 eps in a row instead of 2. Funnily enough, because his story line was left intact even with the cut ep and re-shoots it now looks as though he may actually get a little more screen time in these final 7 eps than Marty does.

It’s impressive too because all of TJ’s scenes were filmed over two days; it makes such a difference when they’re actually allowed to have him on set for more than one day and that they let Luke and Josh actually have scenes together and took advantage of them being older and able to work longer hours.

This ep really built TJ’s character back up and it’s easy to see that the writers knew they had to get the audience back on TJ’s side and remind them of his and Cyrus’ dynamic especially since he was supposed to have been gone for 3 eps in a row instead of 2. 

Josh did a great job hamming it up at the trial. Loved the ‘’you’re showboating’’ ‘’thank you for noticing your honour’’ bit. And Cyrus adding ‘’sir’’ when he was pretending to respond to himself from the witness box was good too. Love that Cyrus took the time to change back into a suit before hearing the verdict.

It makes such a difference for Cyrus’ character is TJ is in an ep or not and I don’t even mean from a shipping perspective. In non TJ eps Cyrus is almost always reduced to therapist friend or comic relief, when TJ is an ep he usually gets to be an active character and actually get to do things. 

We had Buffy saying he used to be the worst and is now the best and Cyrus taking credit for seeing the good in him which was a nice reminder of the amazing growth TJ has had. And of course, there was no real reason to have TJ be the one to help Buffy get to class except to make him look good in the audience’s eyes.

I know a lot of people wanted to see more of Buffy and TJ’s friendship but I’m fine with their brief interactions. The only reason he had so much time with her in S2 and why the end of S2 set up a friendship between them was because Garren had left and they didn’t know they could get him back.

Such great growth on Buffy’s part from the girl who wouldn’t even pass the baton to her team mates back in S1. The Spikes have largely been treated as a joke but we really saw a great dynamic between them and Buffy tonight; they all felt like a real team for the first time ever. And it was interesting seeing Buffy’s room and seeing her doing normal teen stuff with people outside of the GHC. Glad the Spikes got a win and glad Buffy was able to bounce back from her injury and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. 

Very sweet last scene between Jonah and Amber, it was a nice call back to 2x01 when Amber confided in Jonah about her family’s money problems. It was messy but they did help and support each other. I’m happy that Jonah will now be in a more secure place. 

This was also the last confirmed ep they filmed at the Spoon and Jonah watching Amber get him a milkshake is a sweet way to say goodbye to a location that was almost a character in and of itself. We also got to see one last glimpse of the ginger waitress who we’ve seen in a couple of eps.

I liked that Jonah pointed out how well the GHC know each other; he’s a part of the friend group but he’s always stood apart from the GHC itself. 

I also liked that Jonah didn’t know what an existential crisis was. Always funny when they lean into dumb Jonah. 

Jonah and Andi had a sweet scene; glad he’s self aware enough to know he’s not a good advice giver. Liked the callback to Jonah scaring Andi. 

Bex is doing her best. Andi is definitely reacting like a teen. 

No Kira this ep which was great.

Shout out to the FBI and SLPD for shrinking the gap between TJ’s appearances. As much as cutting Ham has ended up damaging the other story lines it will definitely make Cyrus’ story line age much better. Having TJ be gone for 3 eps in a row only to come back after the wedding and only being able to have this kind of screen time and nice scenes after the wedding is so transparent that even kids would have noticed why that was.

Negatives:

I plan to have a happy finale night so I’m going to get my criticism of Terri’s handling of Tyrus out of the way now. I’ve seen quite a few posts on different social media sites wondering if TJ was in the cut ep and that’s why Kira isn’t mentioned or if there were cut Tyrus scenes but the plain simple truth is that this is just bad writing, some of the worst Terri has done. It’s not a satisfying explanation but it’s reality. 

I’d like to hear Terri one day explain what she thought she was going to accomplish with this internalized homophobia plot line on a show with so many restrictions and with an audience that doesn’t know TJ is gay. I don’t think there is a good explanation but I would like to know what the hell she was thinking. She’s always shown such care with the gay story line and to just drop the ball so badly when the show is almost done is more sad than anything else. Thank god Disney let her have canon Tyrus in the finale.

It’s clear from the writing of S3 that they knew from the very start that Tyrus couldn’t canon until the finale, if at all. It’s been nothing but drama that keeps them apart up until now: Buffy is still kind of mad at TJ, Reed had a gun, Jonah is mad at TJ, Bubbe Rose dies, Kira comes in. TJ isn’t even involved with the Spikes after 3x04 and barely had any scenes with Buffy and he hasn’t had a single scene with Jonah since so it’s not like those plots were meant to have an impact. And Terri would have known that TJ could only be in 9 eps max this season and she was the one who cast a 14 year old to play Kira, knowing that Raquel just wouldn’t be able to be on set nearly as long as Luke which of course she did because she knew it didn’t matter how old she was because Kira and TJ would have limited screen time anyways. And she would have known that the look back had been edited to make it look like TJ was straight and yet she still went ahead. 

Honestly, Terri is lucky that most of the audience will never know that TJ was supposed to be struggling with his sexuality in 3x13-3x15 because if they did this story line would come off as much worse than it does for them. I can buy that she wouldn’t have known how far she could go with canon Tyrus until close to the finale itself but that just makes her decisions even more baffling. If she ends up being able to have a textual ending then she has to have TJ be confident or it just won’t make sense. But if Disney said no to canon Tyrus then there’s no way they would have let her properly explore an internalized homophobia arc anyways which makes it all pointless. 

Now that we’ve seen up until 18 we can see just how defensive Terri’s instagram post back in November about not complaining about Disney censorship or queerbaiting was. At the time all she had actually accomplished was Cyrus saying the word gay which was historic and wonderful but only one ep. There’s obvious censorship by Disney and it would have been even more apparent if it wasn’t for Stoney’s arrest. And up until now there’s really nothing differentiating  Tyrus from queerbaiting as Cyrus hasn’t even been able to say he has a crush on TJ. I know she’ll do a good job with Tyrus in the finale but I really hope she doesn’t do something egregiously bad with Kira’s ‘redemption’

It doesn’t make sense that no one would mention Kira. We had TJ scenes over 4 days in universe and no Kira in sight. So either she’s not clinging to him or he told her off. It’s all just so her appearance at the party can make Cyrus flee to the bench for one last bit of contrived drama. 

We finally ended the very poorly plotted Jamber arc. It’s clear that they first decided to get Jamber back together, likely to keep Jandi apart and as a shocking twist, and then worked backwards from there to figure out how to make it plausible and settled on Jonah also having financial issues. The problem being is that those financial problems were largely ignored and we never got an in depth exploration of Jonah or Amber’s psychology. It’s not like they didn’t have time for it since Amber set a new record for recurring characters, excepting S2 Bowie. It’s hard to say Amber has had a true arc over the series. She definitely got nicer but we’ve only really gotten character development from her these past couple of eps. She’s in the same place she was back in 2x01, newly broken up with Jonah, with parents who fight, and forced to work at the Spoon to help support her family. 

Loved that the Spikes were watching footage of their game with the Spartans, which hadn’t happened yet, at their sleep over. Back in the S2 finale when Buffy announced that she was founding a girls team I never imagined that they would be written as a joke and barely shown. I’d guess that was another casualty of them being able to get Marty back for S3.

Looking Ahead:

I’m a lot more content with the show ending after S3 after seeing these recent eps. There’s been way too much filler and a lot of bizarre decisions. Yes the cut ep and the re-shoots hurt a lot of plots but it doesn’t seem like the originals were all that much better. It’s clear that the Muffy plot in 3x17 ended after the bowling alley and Amber’s plot ended with her leaving Cyrus’ house which means that Marty went with Buffy as her date to the wedding in the original 3x18 only to friendzone her and tell her to get her foot checked. And Amber still went with Jonah even though she knew he had been lying to her and they only broke up at the wedding. I’m sure the Mack family A plot would have been great but the B and C plots look like they would have sucked. 

Terri’s never had a show that went beyond 2 seasons and I think in some ways she struggled with plotting out 21 eps worth of story lines. Better to end now when the show will go down as historic then drag it down in a potential S4. And better for Terri’s reputation as well, she gets to end the show as a visionary whereas if we got a S4 she’d likely end up with more of a Michael Jacob’s type reputation. 

Also this ep shows that any hope for seeing canon Tyrus in S4 was just a dream. Disney is clearly only willing to let things get textual in the finale itself. Even Mack Chat didn’t mention Cyrus once tonight despite him having a big role in the ep. An odd game Disney plays with showing the bench scene in promos but not letting Mack Chat get too gay. 

New finale promo sheds a little more light on things. Two Cyrus waving scenes, probably one is before the bench scene and one is after. Bench scene starts with some extras near the fire and once they leave is when things get textual. TJ and Marty will probably have an interaction after both Tyrus and Muffy canon. Looks like there doing something with Jandi but again I don’t think we get canon Jandi, just something ambiguous. Bowie and Bex dancing in the back ground, Bowie in his dad’s tux and Bex possibly in her wedding dress. Obviously they’re already married but it’s probably them re-creating the wedding they had planned for but didn’t end up having.

Next ep is one with a ton of re-shoots and should feature the new wedding. We’ll see how smooth it is. My one hope is that we get some word that Jonah has told his parents about his panic attacks, even if it’s off screen. 

[slashtakemylife]

Very late but here’s my personal journey with Adashi

One year ago I was at work, I was still just training and we had nothing to do atm so I was scrolling on twitter, so I followed the Voltron account and then is when I saw it, yes the famous tweet, I thought I saw wrong but no I clicked on it and it was a normal tweet like any other followed by all the sdcc panels tweets

I was soooo over the moon!!! I wanted to scream and shout and jump and everything!!! But I was at work so I silently screamed, I was sitting on a desk chair so I kept sliding my feet on the floor and just wiggling my legs because I was soooo excited!!!!

It wasn’t until I was home that I saw Shiro was trending and not no.8 or 5, but 1!!! And the trend said Worldwide!!! People, I’m from Mexico so trends are from here and of course massive popular things like GoT or Orange and stuff but I never saw voltron as more than a small specific niche of people so the idea that we were trending and enough for even me to see was so amazing

I swear I stayed on my bed, just watching it, feeling the moment just staring at that list and giving it a refresh and seeing Shiro, Shiro my fave character be so loved, I saw the power of representation since all this love was because of the Shiro announcement so I couldn’t believe it, I felt like I was part of something beautiful

I knew vld had a big LGTB audience and given what happen with Korrasami I wished them good luck, but to see it happen to my favorite character, it brought so much potential character development, know Shiro’s backstory, see how he is in another setting, now not just as a Garrison member, a paladin and a war survivor but now I’ll be able to see his soft side, his family and closed one side even more

I love Captain Holt in Brooklyn 99 but my favorite moments are when he shows affection for his husband, I felt I could get that and yeah I felt great for the LGTB community, they wouldn’t get a presumed, allegedly, out of show confirmed character, they and we would get a big on screen presence and Shiro is perfect for it, this big male man is also gay and in love and it changes nothing

I trusted these guys, I saw people said they promised rep and they were part of the group that made Korrasami so now a few years later here is the payoff, a beautiful on screen stablished and interesting relationship, I had my reservation when I hear they had broke up but I trusted these guys

Now onto a bit bit more personal, I have a nephew (by a cousin not my sis) and for what I see his parents are young people but I’ve never heard their posture on LGTB so it could go both ways, I lean more on acceptance, still both their parents (aka my nephew’s grandparents and one is my uncle) are very religious and one has outright said in MY home how WE shouldn’t go to starbucks because they supported the LGBT community, they also had issues with my nephew’s parents because when they left him with them they would teach my nephew their religion, a religion that is not the one they have so they had a big fight on how they tried to influence my little nephew behind his parents back or approval, my biggest fear was that they teached him to hate and there was no one to teach him otherwise and as I’m not a so close relative I didn’t know how to even start the subject

One day they stayed at my home and while me and my sis were asleep in the same room (since they used the other) my aunt went to our room to “spend time with us” by putting her religious music and reading the Bible to us, both of us were dead asleep so we barely even noticed but she did the same in the living room were my poor nephew was bored af, so my sis and I suggested we go to our room and watch something, all we could think of a kids show was Voltron, that was when only S2 was available, so now back to that day when Shiro was announced I thought, I have a perfect excuse to open the subject with him, or even if I’m not there he could see it (I didn’t know if he kept watching it but if he did then he could see it from the comfort of his home), and in Shiro! The leader, the guy you look up to, the guy who’s compassionate yet strong

I had my reservations since S3 to 6 were so wack but if he could just reach S7 that would be perfect, well now I’m glad to say he wasn’t interested in voltron and it was amusing enough to watch while he was with us but not enough to continue watching on his own and I’m so glad I never told him he should give it a try, now honestly I’m in square one and haven’t talked at all with him about the LGBT community but I also don’t know how, anyway that is another issue

Adashi was a whole new experience, I’ve had other ships but they are really popular so I had no issues finding content, with adashi we became a rare pair real fast after S7 dropped and then sank more with S8 and people leaving VLD pretty much for their own mental health

It was new for me because I had never experienced this new wave of people wanting to control and regulate fandom, I’ve never seen ship wars at this scale and so full of hate and honestly some pretty dumb reasons, I saw idiotic views from both sides of the war and that is what keeps me away from twitter

Still thanks to Adashi I saw the struggles the LGTB community had on rep since vld was compared and explained so detailed and understandable, I know more and understand better thanks to adashi

By searching for adashi meant learning on vld and I also understood why I never could fully love vld the way I did Avatar or Korra, I understand more about writing and tropes

More than that, having my ship become a rare pair meant that I had to step out my comfort zone, I began writing again, I researched to better my writing and my biggest accomplishment so far:

It’s always been an ambition of mine to learn how to draw but my lack of natural talent, my insecurities, lack of will and easiness in which I get desperate I feel I’m not progressing meant I never really truly tried but by being so thirsty for content (and having the correct time and place in my life) I began to try and all I have are two fanarts but those mean so much to me because they mean that I’ve TWICE defeated my insecurities and made something I’m proud of

I’ve met interesting people and feel even made new friends, I’ve reach out to people they way I’ve never done before and even used the skills I have to contribute with the adashiversary

That doesn’t mean I don’t get heartbroken all the time, adashi is bittersweet, we rose at the same moment we sank, thanks to being in the bottom is helping me rise but the pain and suffering wasn’t necessary and it was completely avoidable

It feels wierd, it’s like thanking your abusers for making you who you are but I think we all agree we would rather never have been abused, we all here are trying to make best of this truly awful reality

But I also appreciate so much all the strong adashi warriors that hadn’t given up and that keep me strong as well

[cwnannwn]

For the headcanon ask game: carmilla, laura, leliana, and sera

So, I took forever to answer this, and it ended up being way too big. It was very good to write tho, I love thinking about headcanons for my fave characters!

For this Headcanons post.

Carmilla

Headcanon A: what I think realistically: As much as canon likes to ignore its own lore, Carmilla is a very powerful vampire. It’s not an easy thing, living for more than 3 centuries, especially with a creator like Lilita around. I headcanon each of the dean’s children developed a particular ability more than others, and for Carmilla, that is shape-shifting. Her panther form is her favorite, but turning into mist has proven advantageous more than once. That last one is an exercise in self-control, becoming another state of matter entirely is glaring proof of how well Carmilla has mastered her abilities.

Headcanon B: what I think is fucking hilarious: Talking about that panther form, it’s terrifying. Far larger than a normal leopard, with teeth and claws that are sharper than scalpels. And she acts like the laziest house cat around Laura. Sleeping away the day on Laura’s bed, leaving a veritable heap of cat hair, purring louder than a truck when Laura scratches between her ears, and of course, sitting in front of Laura’s computer when she wants attention (and to be a little shit). Laura’s favorite is when she can cuddle with the giant black cat, who’s far warmer than an undead creature of the night should be.

Headcanon C: what is heart-crushing and awful but fun to inflict on friends: Against the dean’s advice/orders, and under a bit of well-intentioned mockery from Mattie, Carmilla kept an eye on her mortal family through the ages. Most of them perished the same night Carmilla died, but one of her younger brothers had been sent for fosterage with some relatives. The servants under her power reported he grew up to be a kind man, very different from their father. To the Carmilla of those early years, reveling in bloodlust and excess, it shouldn’t have mattered at all. But somehow, it did. So the years passed, and she kept tabs his descendants. His daughter was smart, his son excellent with a blade, and so on. The coffin put an end to it, as it did to many things. After she got back in contact with Mattie, she learned the last of her kin, a boy no older than 17, disappeared in the Carpathians during one of the many disastrous offensives of Austria in the first world war. It shouldn’t matter, but that severing of the last real connection she had to mortal life hurt more than she could have expected.

Headcanon D: what would never work with canon but the canon is shit so I believe it anyway: This is actually a bunch of headcanons rolled into one, but Carmilla was well aware of the various confronts Mattie and the Dean had. In fact, Mattie asked Carmilla to join her in at least a few of them (both because she truly trusts Carmilla, and because, as said on headcanon A, Carmilla is no weakling). She never accepted the offer, first because she was too taken with the lavish life style Lilita offered, and later because she did not want to be interred again. The important thing is, tho both her and Mattie would desperately like to believe the Dean was dead, they would both know she is very very hard to kill, and would realize she was still around about, oh, five minutes into Mattie’s appearance in s2. Laura would have noticed the many glaring signs pointing to that too, and this all leads to many headcanons where s2 went completely different and so did s3.

For a shorter headcanon, Carmilla continues to be a vampire, and she and Mattie actually get to have revenge against Lilita over her literal millennia of abuse.

Laura

Headcanon A: what I think realistically: Whether Laura becomes a journalist or a professor, she never loses her knack for getting into supernatural trouble. One year she unveils a trafficking scheme focused on bringing fresh blood to vampires in Paris, in another a group of werecats shows up on her and Carmilla’s doorstep, asking Laura to investigate a rival colony and their recruitment methods, and so on. By this point, Carmilla just sees Laura off with a kiss and a promise to call if she needs any help.

Headcanon B: what I think is fucking hilarious: More cute than hilarious, but Laura is really ticklish around her ribs. Carmilla takes every opportunity to use this to her advantage, including to get Laura’s attention. It doesn’t annoy Laura, because the smile on Carmilla’s face whenever she hears Laura laugh is a beautiful thing indeed.

Headcanon C: what is heart-crushing and awful but fun to inflict on friends: Laura has suffered enough, so I don’t like thinking about more bad stuff happening to her. That said, among the few headcanons I have about who Laura’s other parent would have been, I have one that fits here. Laura’s mother left her and her father when Laura was around 12 years old. No real explanation given. One day she was there, and the next her wardrobe was empty, her car gone, and only a note saying she was done left behind. Neither Laura nor her dad recuperated from that entirely. She never told anyone about her mother leaving. So when Carmilla left in s2, that brought back a lot of bad memories that were never really put to rest, only buried. In the library, in the dark and with Laura’s conscience eating away at her for all the mistakes she’d made, she told Carmilla about it. Carmilla listened to her, quiet and attentive, offering silent support. It didn't make everything better, but it was a start.

Headcanon D: what would never work with canon but the canon is shit so I believe it anyway: Laura is wolfblooded. Either a werewolf or something close to it. She’s the kind that is born a lycanthrope, but her father isn’t one. Thus, one more reason for him being so overprotective of her. Laura doesn’t know much, or anything at all really, about her heritage. She only knows that once every week, she has to run around as a wolf, and it’s best she doesn’t let anyone see her. When she arrives at Silas, the woods around the campus prove perfect for that purpose. Strangely, she keeps catching glimpses of some kind of big cat walking around the forest too.

Leliana

Headcanon A: what I think realistically: Leliana will be remembered as a pivotal historical figure, whether she’s Divine or not. She will be know as a skilled bard, a formidable warrior, and one of the main fighters for the better treatment of elves and mages. She’ll have an amazing legacy even by herself, but when the tales tell of her adventures with her lady Warden, both during the Blight and after, it’s the kind of stuff that legends are made of.

Headcanon B: what I think is fucking hilarious: Whenever she and Zevran were on guard duty together, they’d pass the time by telling every dirty joke in their native languages they could think of. Even tho Leliana took a little while to trust him, these nights made a strong friendship begin between them.

Headcanon C: what is heart-crushing and awful but fun to inflict on friends: Nope, canon has fucked Leliana over more than enough, as far as I’m concerned, she’s living happily with her lovely warden and their army of nug children.

Headcanon D: what would never work with canon but the canon is shit so I believe it anyway: It would totally work with canon, but Bioware would never do it. One of Leliana’s parents, probably her mother, was an elf. Both she and Alistair can see ridiculously well in the dark, for a human, and this gives Zevran and an elf Warden pause. My Tabris brings it up during one of their shared nights on guard, and Leliana confirms it to her. After they get together, and after the Blight is dealt with, Tabris takes Leliana to the Alienage often, and there Leliana learns more about a side of her family she would never have really know otherwise.

Sera

Headcanon A: what I think realistically: Sera and Leliana have an informal archery contest going on. Whenever Leliana has some free time, and is in the mood to train her archery skills, Sera finds her and they get to shooting some targets together. They both give pointers and advice to the other, and that’s how their friendship starts. I really like the idea of Leliana and Sera becoming friends.

Headcanon B: what I think is fucking hilarious: I can’t beat Sera and her bees here, but I like the headcanon she sometimes joins forces with Leliana to prank everyone in Skyhold. They are an unbeatable team together, as Cullen learns after he asks his creepy questions about a mage warden to Leliana. Sera doesn’t feel sorry for him at all.

Headcanon C: what is heart-crushing and awful but fun to inflict on friends: I feel bad even thinking about it, cause Sera deserves nothing more than good things in her life. If a romanced Inquisitor dies because of the Anchor, Sera goes into a spiral that’s very hard to come back from. It’s only her desire for vengeance on Solas that keeps her going after it.

Headcanon D: what would never work with canon but the canon is shit so I believe it anyway: Again, this should be canon. Sera and the Inquisitor have the best fucking wedding ever. None of that crappy, half-assed cutscene we got. It’s a big party, where many of the companions helped make the food and preparations, Blackwall was the best man for Sera, Cassandra and Iron Bull cried, Vivienne has an amused, is also somewhat bittersweet, smile through it all, Dorian was ridiculously proud and happy for both of them, Varric though it was the best kind of wedding he’d ever seen, Cole couldn’t stop smiling because he was overwhelmed with all the love he could feel from Sera and the Inquisitor, and even Solas had to agree it was a very nice party. Leliana and Josephine helped with the planning, and honestly both cried a lot during it too. There was food laid out in big dining tables, everyone could take as much as they wanted, and no one was made to serve anyone else. There were so many red jennys there, and the family of the Inquisitor, whatever their background, came in full force. It was one of the best days in both of their lives.

[kihocrystal]

Summer 2017 - Final Impressions

I may have skipped writing opinions up for Spring season (due to computer issues...), but I’m back for Summer season! I even fell behind this season because of school (hence why this is half a month late), but nonetheless, here are my thoughts on the animes I finished this past season! 

The list of shows is in the tags, and are ordered alphabetically under the cut!

Boku no Hero Academia S2 - 8.5 / 10 ( B+ )

This was another really fun season of Boku no Hero Academia! This season was twice as long as season 1, which meant double the action! Most of the action this season was actually more on the light-hearted side, as two of the main story arcs of this season were the School Tournament, and the Final Exams. These arcs got to see the cast work together and face off against one another, which helped us learn more about their characters in the process! Almost everyone had their time to shine (which was great!), but the one who had the most prominent character arc was Todoroki; we learned about his troubled past with his family, and how he changes his mindset and attitude throughout the tournament, which was great to see! Character development was definitely a big aspect of this season (as seen through both of those arcs), but there was also a good amount of overarching story set-up as well! The main arc showing this off was the Hero Killer Stain arc (which included the Internships), which was definitely my favorite part of this season! Seeing Midoriya, Todoroki, and Iida face off against him was super fun and interesting, and also kicked off some plot progression that should go towards future arcs! Midoriya has improved his super power usage over the course of this season, and we also learned about All For One, which will surely be the Big Bad of this series as a whole. The finale also teases more things about upcoming conflicts, which included Midoriya having an interesting interaction with villain Tomura (and a ship might be sailing with Ochako and Midoriya)! It’s a good thing a season 3 has already been confirmed, because an open ending like this would’ve been bad otherwise! As it stands though, it’s a really good lead-in to the next season! Season 2 was great set-up for things to come (and good fun action on its own, of course!); I probably would’ve enjoyed this season even more if there was more interactions with the villains, but that will surely come in the upcoming season 3!

Isekai Shokudou - 7.5 - 8.0 / 10 ( B- )

This was a cute little show that was a good pick for “comfy show of the season”! I enjoyed meeting the wide range of characters and seeing them try out different types of food. I also appreciated how the food reactions were very downplayed, in comparison to more over-the-top fares like Shokugeki no Souma. That being said, they go into just as much detail describing why the food is so good (at least in the earlier episodes). I also liked seeing the patrons interact with each other, including getting into fights about who’s favorite dish is better. Each character’s story about how they discovered the diner (and the occasional backstory) was enjoyable to watch; we didn’t learn much about them outside of that, but we learned more about their interests and relationships via how they interacted with others both inside and outside the restaurant. It was also nice seeing how the restaurant has been a recurring thing for years, going back to the chef’s grandparents! The story is episodic, but each individual story was a nice, occasionally heartwarming, and “comfy” thing to watch once a week. The art-style complemented the easy-going pace as well; it was warm-toned and drew the food quite nicely (even if the animation itself was standard fare). This may not be a super in-depth slice-of-life show, but it’s a good watch if you just want to relax and see some good food!  

Kakegurui - 7.5 - 8.0 / 10 ( B- )

This was the most popular show of the season on MAL (in terms of amount of people who watched it), and it’s easy to see why: high stakes (and over-the-top) gambling, the extreme reaction faces, and VERY sexual characters who get off on gambling (with yuri overtones to boot!). The more sexual scenes kind of got old for me over time, but I enjoyed all those other aspects! The crazy gambling games and characters were fun to watch (as someone who enjoys YuGiOh so much, that’s right up my alley!), and the crazy reactions added to the over-the-top appeal. Yumeko was an enjoyable lead, since she’s got just the right amount of insanity behind her also-enjoyable sweet facade (plus her seiyuu, Saori Hayami, did a great job performing her!). Many of the other main girls got some time in the spotlight too, both student council members and eventual Yumeko allies (though some student council members got more time than others, for sure). The main male lead, Suzui Ryouta, was definitely just there as an audience surrogate though, since he’s pretty bland (though he had some involvement in some gambles too!). When you get down to it, the appeal of this show is the characters and the gambling events themselves; all the story in-between just feels kind of lacking in comparison. Even the finale, which to be fair was anime original, kinda felt like a non-ending; the outcome kind of made that final gamble pointless and didn’t leave me with a good sense of conclusion (but hey, at least it’s better than a full-on cliffhanger or abrupt stopping point!). This show was far from my favorites of this season, but it was still an fun time during the gambling parts (which thankfully there’s a lot of here!). If you enjoy over-the-top gaming action and don’t mind the more sexual aspects (which can get somewhat explicit at times), you might like this one!

Made in Abyss - 9 / 10 ( A )

This is easily my pick for AOTS, no contest! It’s just a great adventure show from top to bottom, with a great sense of adventure and mystery! It also helps that the setting is one of the most unique and mysterious we’ve seen in anime for a long time! The Abyss is full of many different elements that not even the in-universe cast know of, which lends itself well to majestic scenes, along with terrifying secrets (it’s a lawless place, after all). Not to mention that the background art captures it extremely well; the huge amount of detail is a good contrast with the more square and cartoony character art-style! The soundtrack is used wonderfully, as it really gets a grand sense of ambience, mystery, and scale all at once! (Especially that one insert song they use a couple times, but first in the premiere!) The Abyss has been a cool place to learn and see more about over the course of the show, but it can definitely rear its ugly dangerous head from time to time, too. Meaning, this show can be VERY gruesome at times; there’s quite a few scenes involving large amounts of blood, and even body mutilation. It’s definitely not for the squeamish. If you can handle it, these scenes just add to the raw emotion this show has, and will have you on the edge of your seat! As for characters, Riko and Reg were a really good duo to follow in their journey! Their personalities (plus abilities and awareness of danger) balance each other well, and I enjoyed seeing them grow closer over time! Riko’s definitely an odd case since she has no fear of the Abyss despite never being able to return home, though (^^;). My other favorite was Nanachi; she was (unfortunately) only in the *last four* episodes, but her character and story really makes up for it! I enjoyed the rest of the cast too, including the cynical and crazy Ozen and her maid assistant Maruruk (she was so sad when Riko & Reg had to leave ;~;). The only real gripe I have about this show is its… inappropriate jokes at times. Lets just say there’s quite a few penis mentions (and yes, they say that word outright). However, the (double-length!) finale was crazy good; incredibly intense, fucked up, emotional, and with a hope cherry on top (including the balloon scene! I just wish I knew what was written inside!) Just learning the full details of Nanachi (& Mitty)’s backstory was REALLY fucked up… and the whole buildup and execution (I’m sorry…) of Mitty’s death brought a few tears to my eye (and I don’t cry easily when watching stuff!). The story definitely isn’t done yet (which impacts its score as a standalone season a little bit), but it had as good of a conclusion as it could’ve had. It sets up an easy-to-hate antagonist really well too, all within the span of one (double-length) episode! This show is definitely the best of this summer season (and one of my top picks for this year!), so this is a very easy recommendation! (Unless you don’t do well with gore, of course).

New Game!! S2 - 8.5 / 10 ( B+ )

I really enjoyed this second season of New Game! It definitely took a slightly different approach, as there was a bit more emotional and dramatic moments (which personally, I think is a good thing!) I also can relate to this show quite a bit, as I’m now a game design student at a community college; so as a result, seeing the girls work on a game in a variety of ways (along with the working process in general) is very interesting to me! Of course, that’s not to say this show is the most realistic portrayal of the industry, per se, but it’s still cool to see more of this slice-of-life comedy about working in a game company! This season shows the team work on a new IP from start to finish, and all the trials that happen along the way. The girls are challenged a lot more as well, especially Aoba as she gets her first go at being the main character designer (with help from Yagami-san)! The concept art contest was definitely the biggest moment for her character arc; seeing her do her best on an art piece, despite knowing she’s going to lose by default due to a sales decision, was bittersweet to see for sure (but she came out much stronger in the end)! That even tied into Yagami’s character arc as well, since she realizes she’s holding back the growth of her younger employees (;~;). Aside from that, the programming aspect got a bit more spotlight this season! Watching Nene make a game by herself, then see her as a programming intern was great to see! Speaking of interns, we got two new girls this season: Momiji and Narumi! Both of them served as good “rivals” for Aoba and Nene, even if there wasn’t fierce competition between them; I just liked seeing their different (more cynical) viewpoints and how they interacted with the other girls (and learned from them + vise versa!). This season ended on a strong note as well; seeing Yagami leave for France and all the girls going to see her off (plus Aoba’s tearful goodbye to her!) was a great emotional end to the season (and heck, it could be a good end to the series in its own right!). I definitely liked this season even more than season one, as the increased emotional depth added a lot to this cute and fun series! If you like slice-of-life comedy shows, this is a really good one to check out!

Princess Principal - 8.5 / 10 ( B+ )

This show is my runner-up for AOTS, so you know this show is a fun time! It’s always fun to see a new spy anime, and this one really delivers on the spy action! The action scenes are really well done, with fluid motions and well-choreographed fight scenes! Add in the steampunk / early 20th century-style, and you’ve got a really cool spy show! The characters’ art style (for the girls) are definitely more on the moe-side, but they were fun to watch the whole way through! The main girls’ personalities were a good mix, and really interesting to see play out (especially Ange’s deadpan shtick). They all have their own skills to contribute too; even Beatrice, with no spy training, can use her mechanical neckpiece to perfectly imitate other people’s voices! The story is mostly episodic; while there is an overarching premise of an England-esque country being torn apart by war and regimes, each episode focuses on one specific spy case. I liked this approach, as each case told a nice little story than could range from action-packed & tense, to somber & heartbreaking. Each of the main girls get some spotlight time too in at least one story, meaning we get more insight into their personal histories and personalities, which is great! The main character focus though is definitely on Ange and Princess, as they swapped places when they were kids and reunite in the spy team during the present timeline. This story is kept vague (which added a good sense of mystery to these two!) until slightly past the halfway mark; it was great finally seeing their backstory when it came time! Their relationship had a big part in the final two episodes as well; speaking of that finale, it was yet another action-packed good time! But it also was very open-ended; The main villain hasn’t been defeated, and the anti-hero spy (Zelda) in the final two episodes got away as well. At least the main group is back together, and hopefully we’ll see them in a season 2, because the ending makes this season suffer a little bit as a stand-alone show. That being said, this was one of my favorite shows of the season for sure, and you should check it out if you like steampunk-style or spy stories!

Re:Creators - 8.5 / 10 ( B+ / A- )

What a solid show! It’s not every day we see a modern anime have a definitive and satisfying conclusion, but here we are! The first episode might not have won me over initially, but it definitely grew on me over time. Exposition was a bit more heavy-handed in earlier episodes as well (which is the most common complaint I’ve seen), but it’s not as bad later on. Re:Creators had lots of themes and messages about the act of creating things and what can come from it, which was really cool to see, especially since I’m an aspiring artist myself. This show may have had a lot of action, but the characters (both creations & creators) and how they interacted with each other was one of the most enjoyable parts for me. I definitely related to the main character (Souta) quite a lot, as he had a hard time creating things (& enjoying it) due to negative circumstances (albeit his reasoning was guilt-related, via mine being self-confidence). Not to mention he admitted to having negative bitter feelings towards his friend Setsuna due to her success (which I admit I also relate too…). Seeing this kind of character reflected in an anime, in addition to seeing a variety of different creators, was definitely great to see, since I could relate to it so much! The creative process is a big part of plot progression & magic-power-logic as well, which is super unique! Seeing a bunch of different genres being represented was cool as well, including a magical girl! (though I wish Mamika was the first to die & last only 8 episodes… at least she was a great character in that short time!) Magane was probably the other standout character for me, as she had a fun personality and was a real wild card in terms of what she could do (though she took a liking towards Souta, in the end). The villain, Altair, was also a great concept for a villain, since she was a Hatsune Miku-type who could use endless material from fan-works as her powers! Each character got at least a decent amount of development/screentime, and like I mentioned before, the conclusion to Altair’s story was really well done, and even left room for an epilogue episode at the end… I love when they do that! The ride that was Re:Creators was full of action, funny moments, heartwarming and heartbreaking moments. In the end… it’s a really good original action series that’s actually complete!

Sakura Quest - 8.5 / 10 ( B+ / A- )

P.A. Works does it again with another really good “working women” series! Like Hanasaku Iroha and Shirobako before it, this show follows a group of young adult girls working to try and revitalize a small rural town. As I’m getting older, I love seeing anime with characters closer to my age range, as they try to find their place in a working adult world, just like I am! The “revitalizing a rural town” aspect was also interesting to see play out, as there’s a lot that goes into that, like trying to get your name out there (either through the web or through TV) or organizing and planning events! The story plays out over the course of the year, but there’s lots of 1-2 episode-long stories that show off all these aspects, along with highlighting certain characters (which I always love to see!). It’s definitely a slice-of-life show that has a lot of character growth, and seeing the team accomplish things and the town slowly-but-surely come together was great to watch! The cast of characters was also really nice, both main and supporting! Most of the supporting cast were elderly or adults, so seeing them bounce off the young adult main group (& seeing their ideologies clash and work together) was cool to see too! Each of the main girls had their own realizations and journeys to make while working for the Tourism Board, whether it was learning the value of small towns (Yoshino) or finding your own way to do what you want to do, even if you fall short of your dreams (Maki). By the end, all five of them definitely show off some good insight towards adult life! The finale was nice as well, showing their classic festival finally coming together and the Dragon Song showing up again (which was one of my favorite mini-arcs back during the first half). While it’s left unclear whether Manoyama gets absorbed or not, it definitely ends on a happy, conclusive ending for our characters, and the town is definitely better off than at the show’s beginning. This was an enjoyable, down-to-earth show to watch, and you should give it a try too if you like slice-of-life shows (or if you enjoyed Hanasaku Iroha or Shirobako)!

Senki Zesshou Symphogear - 7.0 - 7.5 / 10 ( C+ )

This fourth(!) season of Symphogear was a big, fun action fest, just like the other seasons! The strong points of this series have always been the bombastic fight scenes, the insert songs, and the characters, which continues to be true here too. This was the first season that I stopped trying to focus on the story, and I think my enjoyment actually improved because of it! This series’ story has always been silly and tries to top itself with every iteration, which happens again in this season; it likes to pull explanations out of thin air, and have situations work out for our heroes at *just* the right time so the show can have a cool “badass” moment. I will give AXZ credit though for at least trying to pull elements from past seasons into this season’s weapon upgrades and logic reasoning, even though it still kinda feels like an ass-pull to me (then again, other people disagree with me on this, so YMMV!). The story is definitely this series’ biggest weakpoint for me (which is why I tend to rate these seasons relatively low), but its strongest aspects are in top form and a lot of fun to watch! The fight scenes and power-ups keep finding new ways to one-up themselves, and the main Symphogear girls continue to have an enjoyable dynamic together! The new antagonist group was mostly just okay, but the core three alchemist girls (Saint-Germain, Cagliostro, and Prelati) grew on me after they turn on their master (even though I liked Cagliostro the entire time, really~). The final episodes were a fun time, as always (including Hibiki being an evil god-monster at one point!); it’s notable though that they set up some things here for the already-confirmed season 5! Symphogear definitely grew on me this season, as I realized it’s the epitome of a popcorn-action show; just shut your brain off, and enjoy the spectacle!

Shingeki no Bahamut: Virgin Soul - 8.0 / 10 ( B )

This was another fun and action-packed season of Shingeki no Bahamut! While I’m not sure whether I liked season 1 more than this one, it was still a very enjoyable watch throughout! One of the main reasons for this was the main new addition to the cast: Nina! She’s such a fun character to watch, as she’s strong, goofy, and jumps into action right away! I wasn’t the most fond of how “horny” she was for other guys, but that settled down a bit once she finds the guy of her dreams…. Which by the way, is also the main antagonist of the show, King Charioce. She falls in love with him when he’s in disguise, but even after his reveal, she still doesn’t give up her love for him (while simultaneously trying to stop his evil crimes). It’s definitely a unique approach to this type of romance for sure, but it was still a bit odd to me that she still stayed in love with him despite all the tyrannical things he did… At the very least, the execution of this subplot was pretty good, as were all the other story beats! This show has strong execution throughout (the prison escape arc was a highlight), with high quality animation (especially those dance scenes!), swelling music, and the right emotional notes. The problem for most people then will be some story beats themselves, mostly at the show’s end. A couple notable characters seem to get killed for no good reason, Charioce’s motivations try to spin him as “a good guy all along”, and his punishment at the end seems too light (as he merely just loses his eyesight); plus it feels like the people being oppressed by his rule turn right around and he gets praised as a hero for defeating Bahamut (which btw he himself summoned)! And oh yeah, Bahamut isn’t actually dead for good (leaving things open for a possible continuation). Oh well, at least the bittersweet aspect of a voiceless Nina and a sight-less Charioce being together is a nice touch. (I may sound mad here, but I didn’t hate these episodes at all ^^; ) In any case, the whole journey was fun to watch, and was full of engaging action the whole way through. I enjoyed seeing all the returning cast come back, and seeing them interact in both the upbeat and darker moments. Even though the ending won’t win over everyone, if you enjoyed the first season, you should have a good time here too!

[samsoleil]

oh my gosh I am so glad that we are talking about this!! I was so excited at the end of s12e4 when they decided to bring Magda back to the bunker with them and raise her as their kid 🥰 it really did so much for the rest of the show, genuinely such a good move,,

from the start they do their best to make her comfortable and I think it really highlights that they really have no idea how normal kids are meant to be raised! especially when it comes to bringing her on cases or not. they know that she isn't going to have a normal life but they're trying to balance keeping her safe with abandoning her. I think that the brothers' stances really demonstrate how they were affected by their upbringing!! Dean is really insistent that she stay behind in the bunker while they go on hunts, but Sam wants her to join them and I just think it establishes so well some of the stuff we saw in s11, Sam being left behind and lonely and Dean wishing he hadn't been exposed to violence when he was so young.

I think Dean does a little better than Sam just in like practical things because of Ben. he's the one to take her clothes shopping while Sam "antichrist proofs" the bunker, he gets her pads and stuff and it's just so awkward at the checkout hahaha, and he absolutely tries to be the fun parent and buy her a bunch of junk food but it totally backfires because "mom used to say that stuff was poison for your body". neither of the brothers say anything about this because they are both a bit. well. about food and eating. it's bittersweet to see her bond with Sam over it, like yes healthy diet but also it's a reflection of them feeling impure. but I think Dean cooking meals for the three of them and her seeing Sam eat them really helps her get a bit of that balance back, like food can be this good and wonderful thing that you share with your family. Dean's so excited the first time she eats junk food it's actually so cute hahaha

but I think where Sam shines is in the more emotional stuff, especially about Magda's powers. I have no idea where he had all of this character development because it certainly didn't happen on screen. but by the time we get around to Magda Sam is actually?? okay?? with the fact that he was psychic?? and I think that comfort with himself is what helps him with relating to Magda and being there for her. but I also think that him sharing that he used to /not/ be okay with his powers is really helpful to Magda, like. it's just such a hopeful thought that even if she isn't okay with them now, she might be. and also it isn't fully confirmed but it is heavily (like, /heavily/) implied that Sam's powers come back and it's so good. it's cleverly done. like yes there's the occasional door closing or convenient near-miss but sometimes he just like. knows things about a case, or knows things from scenes he wasn't in.

Dean is kinda a bit. Dean about it all at first, not that Sam really notices. I think that this is a really good example of Sam's revisionism wrt some of the stuff that happened in s4-5. But that's Fine,, s12 Dean isn't quite as ride or die for Magda as s2 Dean was for Sam but we definitely see that change after the BMOL invades the bunker lmao. you can really see how he goes from like. our adopted daughter. to Our (adopted) DAUGHTER. also Sam 🤝 Magda, the BMOL hates you. but of course it's absolutely devastating when they're considering sending her away because they can't trust themselves to keep her safe but she is so insistent that she wants to stay, like that's her family. moments like that are like a bit heavy handed with her paralleling both Sam and Dean but it's also so compelling.

so yeah. s12 ends with like, the Actual child of the devil being born and Sam and Dean love their daughter. other highlights include learning that Magda shares Sam's taste in music. what I mean by this is that it's the year 2017 and Sam is still listening to pop punk bands from the 2000's and she has imprinted on him like a duckling. I think she likes Sleeping At Last as well, she probably shows it to Sam and they have some quiet moments together listening to it. they go road tripping and they make Dean listen to their music because he gets outvoted. also Dean watches her in the backseat in the rearview while Sam has to turn around, it's so cute how many times they turn to check on her. such mother hens 💕💕

My daughter

[valeriemperez]

So 4x01 is called "The Flash Reborn". Sounds like the Rebirth storyline to me!

Sounds like it to me, too! I’ve had this feeling for awhile, and the title seems to confirm it, but we’ll see. I do hope there’s some of Barry readjusting to humanity and Iris being his lightning rod. And if we see Eobard again, I’m not complaining.

It is so good!!!! but I wish the writer could do something more for Bong Hee’s character development, they did so well for JiWook’s characyer but I feel like they neglected the fact that she also is an attorney, newbie one! I need her to be more actively involved in investigating the cases!

This is 100% true. I love the series, but I was invested from the start in Bong Hee’s journey to become a great attorney despite her limitations, so I hope to see them circle back to that before the end.

Think of this for a scenario. Iris gets home after Team Tranquilizer defeated their 1st meta of S4. We already know we get a “hardened” Iris at the beginning. But let’s just say Joe, Wally and others tell her that it’s okay to feel vulnerable due to Barry’s exit. So she finally has her moment of weakness as she finds an item that belongs to him (You can decide what she finds). She sobs, then hears Barry calling out to her from the SF. We see Barry and 4x01 ends.

Awww, this is perfect and bittersweet. Maybe she finds that one shirt he wore all the damn time?

I’m really disappointed no one from the main cast/producers publically congratulated Candice on her big win. It was the only Flash related thing that won a Saturn Award this year, and it was her first major award ever. I don’t care if they privately texted her or whatever. The criticism she recieves is not private. Considering none of these people ever publically defend her from that, the least they could do is show that they support her and her casting by celebrating her successes. (½)I’ve never seen a cast so reluctant to acknowledge anything related to their female lead, even when it’s good for the show. Even the official twitter has no problem supporting other cast member’s accomplishments that are unrelated to the show, or other shows entirely, but never her. I get, but don’t agree with, them all being too afraid to address racism, but even praise? That seems way off. (2/2)

I’m glad that several writers - old and new - acknowledged her win, and that Keiy/Grant liked the post. But I agree that it feels like the official twitter/instagram could especially do more to promote her. I do think it’s a failing of Flash PR in general, though, and not always a specific slight to Candice. They may retweet Danielle’s wedding, but they fail to capitalize on things relevant to the show’s success. It’s too late to hope it changes, so I’ll just hope Candice keeps winning regardless.

Do you know what happened to Joe being honored as CCPD captain?

The writers happened, lol.

We’ve been told that in S2 that Iris would bury herself in her work after Eddie’s passing, though 2x12 was when we really got to the meet of it with her journalism. It’s interesting that this time around, we would get a hardened Iris. Do you think she will exhibit some of the “no nonsense” attitude from her E2 self?

I would love to see Iris be a little more E2, but only so long as we get to see her be vulnerable as well. Because as much as I love E2 Iris, that isn’t really our Iris, who is much “softer” if you will. But when she needs to step up and hold it together, she does.

Since Barry is in the SF, he essentially becomes one with it. So when he gets out, it is possible that his self awareness in the real world will be difficult for him to get used to again. Perhaps, he’ll be like a zombie for a while and then starts getting that awareness back. Since Iris is likely to pull him out, Barry would be looking to her for guidance as she is his compass. If he had no lightning rod, he’d be lost in the SF forever. Iris being the anchor is his last hope.

This totally goes with the Rebirth storyline, and I hope we see it!