#so yeah maybe watch the first 3/4 episodes and see if there's some potential!!!!!!

[stormyoceans]

We are really that good? I'm scared off by the large number of couples. Is each of the couples sufficiently disclosed in the script? You're so excited about this show. I'm skeptical, but maybe I should try?

I MEAN. MUST A SHOW BE GOOD. IS IT NOT ENOUGH FOR IT TO SPARK JOY AND GIVE YOU A BRAINROT SO DEEP THEY HAVE TO GET YOU INVOLUNTARY COMMITTED BECAUSE OF IT

but all jokes aside, let's talk about it. when it comes to reviewing shows, i always try to be as honest and objective as i can, so im not just gonna lie to you and pretend we are is a masterpiece. it's very much not. if you enjoy plot driven stories then this series is very much not for you because the plot is basically non-existent, or rather.. all the different dynamics between the characters ARE the plot. to me the show is a slice of life in the connotation that's given to it in anime and manga: a narrative that takes place in a recognisable everyday setting, often in a school, and that focuses on interpersonal relationships. this isn't to say slice of life shows with a character driven story can't be masterpieces, they absolutely can, but we are is not..very refined, there are some things that do not make much sense to me and the way the story is told can be a bit frustrating at times, not to mention that for a director who likes to show a million angles of the same moment you'd think the editing would be top notch but it's just. it's not, okay, it looks like my hair after i chop it off over the bathroom sink at 2 am when i cannot sleep, that shit's ROUGH

all this being said, im still enjoying this show TREMENDOUSLY. and believe me, no one is more surprised about this than i am. tbh i can't quite explain to you why it works for me when other (maybe even better) shows don't, it just feels very genuine, the humor isn't over the top, the characters are all extremely likeable, and i love that they're giving the platonic relationships the same weight and importance as the romantic ones. and i mean..im mostly insane about phumpeem because apparently that's THEE Dynamic™ for me, but since there are four different pairings i feel like there's something for everyone

although when it comes to development, since you asked, i do want to point out that pondphuwin and winnysatang's pairings are clearly the main ones (before anyone comes at me, i do remember the cast saying this), but aouboom still get a fair amount of screentime and they're the heart of the show tbh. the only pair that's suffering in this regard is marcpoon, but honestly it makes sense considering they had to reshoot stuff

so, um. yeah ;;;;;; this is way too long and it's probably a mess but i wanted to give you an honest and complete overview so you know what you're getting yourself into if you do decide to give it a chance. i actually started to like the show more and more after episode 3, so maybe if you have a free evening you could just try it out and see if you can get into it!!!!!!

tl;dr: it's not a masterpiece and it has its shortcomings but it's highly enjoyable and although not all couples have the same amount of screentime and development i think everyone could find something to like in the show

[thatgirl4815]

OF Favorites Rankings

I did this once before the series aired, but I thought it’d be fun to rank the core characters in OF in the middle of the series’ run and once more at the end.

I’m gonna tag some of my active OF moots here (and some new OF friends as well!) if any of you want to play too—no pressure at all! And of course, even if you aren’t tagged, please feel free to play along! I’m super curious to see how opinions have changed from the beginning to the middle to the end. :)

@abstractelysium @nihilisticcondensedmilk @just-gm @firstkanaphans @prapaiwife @dreamedofyou @sandrayy @fanfictionroxs @khaopybara @tiedankelstotheocean @thegalwhorants @autisticbokutoenthusiast @itsmelb @way-too-indecisive @k-white @waitmyturtles

1. Sand

Of course it was going to be Sand in first place (get it…First place?)

He might be morally dubious in Ep6, but if anything, that makes him more endearing to me (don't ask me how). If they all play dirty, he can play dirty too. Plus, he's just got the vibe. The t-shirts, the jackets, the boots, the independence. The superior music taste? Mans has it all except for money. Though tbh, the moment that solidified Sand as my favorite was when he ran after Ray at the end of Ep6--he was just dealt a personal attack by Ray in front of everyone, but he doesn't even hesitate to go after him. And that is the marker of a ✨ favorite character ✨

2. Ray

Naturally, both Sand and Ray have taken the top spots (pun intended), and it's because I have a special place in my heart for "woobified" characters (did I use that right @waitmyturtles? 😂)...and Khaotung executes his layers so beautifully. Ray did go in for a nonconsensual kiss (which he later apologized for, but I digress) and he did hash out some pretty brutal insults last episode. Irrespective of his feelings for Sand, it's indisputable that he has used him in some aspect to distract himself from Mew. So for all that, Ray is also morally dubious--but I'll use the term realistic instead.

I just want to give him a hug and tell him that he matters. Because clearly that is something he's heard only a few times in his life. And maybe if he heard it more often, we could avoid situations like the one at the end of Ep6.

3. Nick

I’m having a bit of an inner battle with myself over this one because Nick came out of the gate with some very immoral behavior, and yet I’m still putting him above Mew, because something about him is just so…pitiful. Admittedly, I've been growing more and more frustrated with him as the series goes on and he still fights for Boston's affection when Boston has proven time and time again that he just doesn't care. Boston keeps him on a rope, and in some ways I sympathize with Nick's struggles, because it isn't easy to turn the feelings off once they've already been cemented. But alas. He's digging himself further and further into this hole.

4. Mew

A lot of my gripes with Mew have been in respect to his treatment of Ray, but I go back and forth because I do understand the mental toll it must take on him. Regardless of whether or not he's responsible for helping Ray through his mental issues, as his closest friend, I think it should've been him running after Ray at the end of Ep6. Yeah, Ray said some shitty things about everybody, but Ray has only ever wanted what is best for Mew. And Mew was going to watch him run off and potentially get himself killed, even after Ray admitted what Top had done. Something about that just doesn't sit right with me.

Despite all of this, Mew does appear to be the most level-headed of the group (alongside Sand, though that was put to the test last ep). And the moment he played TopBoston’s sex audio right in Top’s ear? Phenomenal. He nailed that execution. I will laugh when he's on his revenge kick next week.

5. Cheum

Cheum is this low firstly because she doesn't get a lot of screen time, and secondly because she's made some comments that are a little questionable too. I can't remember who said it, but someone pointed out just how often she references how lucky Mew is to be with Top--which is a little strange, looking at him like he's some big prize. Also, not to bring everything back to Ray but...she contributes to the "burden" discussion quite a few times.

I do really enjoy the small snippets we've gotten of her with April. I like that they finally gave their relationship a little bit more context in Ep6. They do seem to have some pretty solid communication (at least compared to the others) so I'm pleased with that.

6. Top

I know a lot of people have felt sorry for Top. And I understand that completely. I struggle to given that he not only cheated but lied about the cheating--and likely would never have admitted to it. For Mew, someone who values communication and honesty so strongly, it's like a punch to the face. I hope Top gets what's coming to him. (Also, stealing Sand's boyfriend? Wtf dude.)

7. Boston

Not much to explain about this one--I can understand why he is some peoples' favorite for the sole reason that he is the one creating all the conflict in the first place. But he's so twisted, manipulative, and careless that I just want Mew to kick him into that pool a hundred times over. I don't expect him to rise from last place by the end, but if he does, it'll be a miracle.

[straw-beret]

The significance of the claw machines in the opening of season 2

This is the first theory I've ever really posted or even MADE, and I haven't seen anyone else address it so apologies if I'm just repeating what someone else has already said; but yeah, these are just some observations I made recently, and they mostly have to do with the the intro to season 2 and how that potentially relates to the future of a rather significant main character.

More under the cut! And spoilers for season 2, if you haven't already guessed.

Every week I tune in to watch Link Click with my friends, and only at episode 10, i.e. a week ago, did i notice that in the opening, all the stuffed animals surrounding the claw machines are bunny rabbits.

It's a bit hard to see on account of the dim lighting, but I assure you that every single plush on the outside of those claw machines (and inside, at least in this shot) is a bunny rabbit. You can check the OP out on youtube if you want as well, if you want to confirm.

At first I thought, "Maybe the animators were just trying to save money on the budget!" But then I remembered that in the very next shot, we see other stuffed animal models that aren't rabbits:

This is the interior of one of the claw machines, presumably the one from episodes 4-5, and we can see 3D models of plushies such as bears and cats, alongside the rabbits of the outside.

And even in episodes 4-5, which are conversely animated in 2D, we can see there are a variety of other animals in each of the claw machines. And although the outlines aren't the clearest, it's still easy to discern they aren't ALL the same plushies as in the machine Tianxi is focused on:

From left to right as seen in the second image, I'll call each claw machine CM1, 2, and 3.

In CM2, we can see there's many different animals, majority with tails. I had a theory that they might be related to the animals of the Chinese zodiac, but you can't see them too clearly, so I'm not too sure.

CM3 isn't clear either, but the plushes/toys are definitely different to the other ones. On close inspection, I think there are bears and rabbits, but coloured red and white instead of pink, brown and greys/whites, like in CM1.

So clearly they didn't just have just one bunny plush model they had to reuse, and they put in the effort of hand drawing different plushies in the other claw machines. Plus, the budget for the intro must have been enormous— they weren't exactly pinching pennies. So why pile ONLY rabbits on the outside of the claw machines in the intro?

My theory is that it has something to do with my beloved Qiao Ling.

From the very first episode season 1, the show has set up a recurring rabbit motif in relation to Qiao Ling. We see this first in her phone case:

I put in a second photo of her phone for reference, and that one is from season 2, either episode 9 or 10.

So, bunny ears on the phone case. Big deal, probably just a fun piece of visual storytelling to add to her character— maybe she's into 'meng' culture. She's about the age to be into it, right?

Well, let's look at the chibi spinoff, Daily Life in Lighttime!

I don't think it's at the end of every episode this animal segment appears, but after the main events of each episode, we get to see the main characters as animals, doing animal things. Pretty straightforward— LG is a cat, CXS is a dog, and QL is a rabbit. Another thing connecting QL with the motif of rabbits.

In the official art by INPLICK, who did the character designs for the show, Qiao Ling is also commonly depicted with rabbits/a rabbit motif, and the boys with their respective animals as well.

On top of that, we know the show is set in 2021. Based on her character profiles, we know Qiao Ling is 22 years old, making her birth year 1999 (March 16th, if anyone cares). This makes her, you guessed it, year of the Rabbit!

So, let's tie this back to the claw machines. We've got a character who is established in show and in official art to be associated with rabbits, and we've got an abundance of rabbit plushes on the outside of the claw machines. Link Click is always very intentional with their imagery and mise en scene, this isn't an accident. So, what exactly does this mean?

My theory is that Qiao Ling will come to play a very significant role in the finale and upcoming season 3.

Initially, when me and my friend discussed this (shout out to Lara if you're reading this); we figured it might just be another reference to how Qiao Ling is metaphorically on the outside of the supernatural happenings. She is the only main character without powers, she didn't know what CXS and LG were doing with the photos, she was the first of the mains to get possessed by red eyes, who we now know are a wombo combo of Li Tianxi and Li Tianchen. But why go to such lengths to compound on something we already know?

So then I started to wonder, maybe it means she is less protected than the others? After all, she was the first to get possessed, she is the only one without any supernatural powers. I thought it might mean imminent doom for Qiao Ling— which would suck, because (and this is especially applicable if you've seen the most recent episode, i.e. s2e11) Link Click is not the best when it comes to leaving female characters alive!!!!!

It adds up— the animals on the inside of the claw machine are "safe", metaphorically and literally. They are protected by the glass (and also the impossibility of winning anything from a claw machine). But on the outside, they are up for grabs, easy to be destroyed or harmed. The claw machine ensures safety, and when you're outside the machine, nothing is guaranteed. So when we see the inside of the claw machine in the shot of that pink cat plush, i.e. the second image in this post, we see that there aren't as many rabbits in the claw machine, meaning less safety for QL.

(also if you want to strengthen that argument, that stuffed cat that liu lan and li tianxi won from the claw machine was torn apart by li fan when they got home).

((and even in the est. shot where we do see rabbits on the inside, there are much less than on the outside.))

So, Qiao Ling the outsider in this situation, who has as far as we know no powers and not much of a clue as to the supernatural happenings (and who let's be real only became plot significant recently, as much as i love her), her animal is on the outside of the claw machines. Simple.

And then the trailer for the finale of s2 dropped, and we got this lovely frame:

My friend and I thought it might be Qiao Ling's powers awakening, some others think it might be Tianxi transferring her powers to Qiao Ling. However, if you watch the rest of the trailer, you'll notice that Qiao Ling is left entirely defenseless, just sitting by Tianxi's body.

While the rest of the fight is presumably happening. These characters have guns and tasers! Why is she turning her back on them when she has no natural defenses of her own (save for those sick martial arts skills)?

Especially because Qian Jin, who has been established to want to harm QL and even rigged up a god damn BOMB to set off for when she and CXS went to retrieve LG:

Is on the scene with a gun!

I think that something bad is going to happen to Qiao Ling, the "outsider", either in the finale or in season 3. Could be death, could be a major injury, but whatever it is, it will have been foreshadowed through the stuffed rabbits and the claw machines.

-

kudos if you read this much lol i'm not sure if i structured my arguments well but i got really into this theory. and maybe i might make a post about the symbolism of the pacman machine in the intro as well? idk. lmk what you think!! i'd love to know if there's anything i'm missing or if there are any other interpretations to glean from this :)

[mdhwrites]

So, are you the kind of person who thinks MLP Friendship is Magic should have ended in season 3 with Magical Mystery Cure since you think it went downhill in season 4 onward?

I'm going to answer all three MLP asks you sent together, this, the one asking what I think made S4 start the decline, and if I might go back to Equestria Girls at the same time because the S4 one is short and so is the EqG one: Season 4: I can't say exactly. It's been over half a decade since I watched literally anything MLP:FiM related. I remember thinking the plots were more boring, that characters acted like assholes a lot more and just that I enjoyed it less. Like I remember people praising Rarity in Manehatten while that episode in my opinion killed the interesting elements of Rarity's character. I can't say a lot of specifics though because I just haven't even had other people talking about the show to refresh my memory like with stuff like Avatar. EqG: I have been tempted in the past to go back to it but would honestly rather not do the coin flip for it. After all, Rainbow Rocks, maybe the one MLP thing I could talk more concretely about because I talked about it a lot, I consider to almost be the epitome of all that went wrong with the show. The girls are half the problem, no one actually seems to be nice or give a fuck about one another (Rarity broke down sobbing on stage for some reason, let's YELL AT HER despite being IMMUNE to the anger magic), and the jokes, voice acting and pacing are all just worse than they used to be. So yeah, Sunset is great, I like Sunset, but... I don't want to risk just ending up liking everything less by watching more of it.

ANYWAYS, this ask:

I like S3 a LOT more than I think a lot of people did but I did agree that Magical Mystery Cure had a finality to it. The thing was that it wasn't a series finality to it: It was a character finality. It was the exact opposite of what Twilight had been like when she first entered the show (see why her regressing to make Starlight look better might have pissed me off?) while also still having her intellect. She literally joins her mentor as a peer and is no longer the student. It is a great way to end her journey and potentially bring in a new character.

Even if they didn't, there was still stuff they could have done. Her tackling what being a princess means. Her tackling the power imbalance between her and her friends. How her worldview changes. S4 is even smart enough to start with some of that. Then... Yeah, people are right to call out that they do nothing with this and seem to mostly just ignore that she is a princess.

Honestly, that lack of depth and nuance and interest in exploring the characters is part of the problem I had in the long term with MLP. Everyone was an archtype, yes, but there was a little more. Not so much to make them ever purely escape their archtypes but enough to make them feel vibrant and alive while still being malleable which made them good for the fandom. I feel like S3 was the last time, and this is the ONLY thing I might give the Fausticorn assholes, when a lot of that spark to the characters was in full force. Even then, Faust has freely admitted that other members of her team were helming the show long before she left anyways because she didn't get to do the adventure series she wanted.

The show didn't have to end at S3. Not by any means. But... It sure does feel like they started struggling for ideas more after that half season. At least that's how I remember it.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[after-nine-at-the-oasis]

OKAY SO it may be almost two hours past midnight for me and it may be season 4 in 2 minutes BUT I am going to make this post lol. So, it's time for HSMTMTS Appreciation Week Day Four: Favorite Episode/Season!

Honestly I don't think I have one of either xD

I love all the episodes, and most of the time when someone asks me for my favorite of something (like books or movies) I just go with the one that has the most rewatch/reread quality/potential. So, some of these episodes may just be the ones I watch the most lol.

Each season has their pros and cons for me, but I will say I think I enjoy season 2 more than most people! The ending isn't amazing, sure, but it has some really great music, ship moments, acting, and Wildcat family moments :).

Season 1, they're not all family for a little while, and we don't have as much development on some of the others, nor most of the ships. But it's also fun that it's the most grounded season lol, and it just has a special charm. Also, it really focuses on the musical lol!

And season 3, obviously I miss Seb, Big Red, Mr. Mazzara, and half Nini and Ms. Jen from it :). And sometimes the drama is a lot, but at the same time, there's so many cute and fun moments, it is absolutely HILARIOUS, and the change of setting is super cool :). Since I'm a multi shipper, it's also a con for Portwell and a pro for Rina lol xD.

Anyway! Now, a few of my favorite episodes :).

Season 2 Episode 5: is this one a surprise even xD. I love Seblos, I love the Wildcats, and I love great music! What more could you ask for? Also, it's just so sweet that they'd throw a big party for one of their friends like that :'). And it's especially cool seeing Carlos be appreciated <3. Plus, it gave us "I never learned how to lie", so you know xDD.

Season 2 Episode 10: LISTEN. Again, is it partly because of Seblos lol? . . Sh xD. But seriously, it's great Seblos drama, the music is once again amazing, and I LOVE the sleepovers :D!! The recipe for my favorite episodes is really just Seblos, Music, Wildcats xD. Lol. But seriously, it's such a good episode <3.

Season 1 Episode 6: Maybe it's just because it hits home, which is weird because that makes it bittersweet, but I love this episode. It's really focused more on them being a family than any of the ships (which is interesting and a nice change of pace :) ) and it has some great music! Plus, the photoshoot lol. And of course, a few Seblos moments, and some lovely Carlos angst xD. Justice for the Seblos deleted scenes 😤😔. Lol, but yeah, I love this episode <3.

Season 1 Episode 7: Again, my Wildcats xD. I was hesitating to put this on here because the end hurts me so much, but it's just too good :). We have Carlos inviting everyone to someone else's house (for the first time, I think, lol), Ricky and Nini being chill for a bit, Gina being adorable, and the start of Redlyn 👀. Lol, remember when one of the half jokingly proposed ship names was Big Rashlyn xD? Bring it baaaack lol, we deserve it. In a good way, not as punishment xD. Anyway! The real star of the show this episode, though, is of course the party :). We love the Wildcats being family, and I seriously love them all so much <3. And again, Seblos moment lol. The music is good this episode (I adore Out of The Old), but there's not too much of it lol, so I forgot to mention it and came back here after the next paragraph xD.

Season 3 Episode 7: LISTENNN. Once again, I can do anything I want xD. I think I said that earlier, or maybe in one of the other posts, but nonetheless lol. I say it a lot regarding things like this lol. Anyway! Obviously, SEBBB!!! HE RETURNS TO ME :'DDD!! But we also have Ricky's bucket list (ADORABLE) and everyone's ICONIC outfits :D. So sorry to Portwell though :( xd. That does hurt throughout the episode lol. Oh, and of course we have the iconic welcoming of Ashlyn to the community :'). And Wouldn't Change a Thing!!! Such a slay :D. Honestly though, I love the ending, like, after the dance. I don't know if I love it more than the prom itself, but seeing the guys come together and support each other, and the same for the girls, with a BOPPING song in the background? Amazing :'D. And, of course lol, Seblos moments <3. And the second Seblos kiss!! I love them so much :). And, like I said, amazing music!!

Season 3 Episode 5: This one is just so hilarious xD. I had to include it lol. Plus, :O drama a bleeped out curse on HSMTMTS!! We don't get many so that's a slay for being unique xD. Also yes, Carlos totally deserves it 😌😤. Like, to get one lol. Just like Natalie, lol. Anyway!! Yeah, this is so funny xD. It also has great music!! The drama hurts, of course, but we love the little moments of supporting each other xd. And again, I just have to mention how FUNNY it is, those moments xD. Plus, the fact that it's all (well, yk. Mostly xD) a plot is amazing lol. I just love this episode lol.

So yeah!! I think that'll do it for today :). I probably won't be on Season 4 for a bit tomorrow, as in it'll take me a little while lol. I still need to finish my rewatch xD. But, I will watch it!!! And I'm so excited :)) 🥰.

[meid4]

My thoughts on Max in s4 (and Billy)

I don’t know if other people with childhood trauma can relate to that, but :

When I watched Stranger things season 4, I was kinda like : “c’mon, Max, Billy was a bad person ! How can you feel bad for him when he was a piece of shit ?”. But at the same time, I understood it so much, and I know that this is why I didn’t want her to feel that way. All that guilt.

Her, being so depressed, was showing what it is to live after something so traumatic happened (I mean that we don’t really see the others dealing with that side of PTSD as much)

Okay so, my abuser(s) are not dead, i even still live partially with some of them. Like, I know the wrong they did, that they hurt me and others but it’s so difficult, especially when they are family, to not feel bad when they're hurting. You hate them but at the same time, you know they are like that because they were also hurt. 

Episode 4 made me cry like hell. I wanted her to live, to be with people who actually care about her, and not be stuck with the memories of her abuser. Billy made her feel guilty when he was alive (because he needed to watch after her and because they moved to Hawkins) and still made her feel that way when he died. His power over her didn’t die with him. Her memories of him even twisted a bit, because of his sacrifice, she kinda thought : “oh, but he wasn’t that bad”.

HE WAS. 

Billy apologist are wrong, I’m sorry, but I can’t. It’s just a disrespect to Max’s character and all people who were abused. I think Billy is an interesting character, I’m not like saying people can’t like him at all (you can like “villains”, that’s not wrong. You just have to acknowledge the wrong they did at some point (I know that's an entirely different discussion, but yeah)) 

It’s a difficult topic, I’m coming from a place where I empathize way too much with Max and his other victims to forgive Billy even if he was abused. You can’t say that what he did wasn't that a big of a deal : he was a bully, a racist, and a misogynist. 

Maybe, if he had some of a redemption arc, my point of view could’ve changed a bit (his sacrifice doesn't count). Like with Steve, who had kinda like 2 seasons of character development in a good way. Even if he did things that were wrong, he acknowledged what he did and grew (I don’t remember everything of the show, so potentially fan fictions helped me love him much more lmao). 

But I don’t forget what he did. 

And what’s for the end of volume 2, when I watched it the first time, I kinda wanted Max to die OKAY WAIT HERE ME OUT, HERE ME OUT !

Because, it WAS so CRUEL to do that. She finally wanted to live, and killing her would’ve been HORRIBLE. It would’ve shown that the good guy’s don’t always win, and it echos with Robin’s line where she says that she doesn’t think they are going to make it this time. (yeah, I love a good angst to tear my heart apart. I was crying, throwing up when Max begged to stay alive). 

I’m like happy she’s alive now, she is one of my favorite characters and I would literally die for her. They HAVE to let her stay alive now, they can’t do the “is she going to die or not ?” 3 times. 

So I want to see what they are going to do with her character, now that we know that she wants to live. I hope she doesn’t stay in a coma most of the season, and that she isn’t going to be miraculously fine after waking up. It’s not my place to say if it would be okay for her to be a disabled character because Sadie Sink isn’t disabled, so I’m not going further with that. I just hope they aren’t going to rush the rest of her character arc.

And I want her to be happy with her new family, because we love a good found family.

[vividxp]

Part 4 (final) of Liveblogging my second watch of IWTV Ep 5 because I need to process and get it all out

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

When I saw the synopsis before watching the episode I was so confused. Claudia going to college? The way the synopsis sounded was like welp, she just decided to go just for the ~*experience*~ and then Louis and Lestat had to deal with being empty nesters during the  the Great Depression alone. So yeah, they really undersold the episode by a lot.

Seeing the total dump the townhouse becomes in the 7 years of Claudia’s absences was another painful thing to experience. Even if the random racoon was funny. The picture of depression and desolation, my heart felt heavy watching this. To top it all off, the argument...like this isn’t fun, I want to get off this ride. 

I do wonder why Lestat stayed, why bother? Why not leave? Did he think if he waited 20 years one day Louis would stop being depressed and they could go back to whatever fantasy he had of their relationship? 

On that note, after watching the episode for the first time I couldn’t help but think of Hades, the videogame. One of the themes of that game was the idea that being immortal meant that eventually you had to solve your issues. Some of the elements are familiar. Hades is willing to kill his son, Zagreus, over and over again to prevent him from escaping. Eventually (and as Zagreus comes into his power) you get to a place where the relationship between Hades and Zagreus, while not a-okay and not without scars...it does show some potential for reconciliation.

Anyways, to wrap up that tangent, the point is I’ve seen the ‘immortals fuck up a lot but it gets better with time’ type of story pulled off before. It’s not completely impossible, but it’s going to take a lot of work. 

So we transition to the scene between Killer and Claudia. I have to agree with a lot of people. I didn’t like that they did this to Claudia. I don’t think this added anything and it wasn’t in the book, so I didn’t like it. If the point was to show that vampires can be bad news there are many ways to show that.

We go back to Daniel questioning Louis about the 4 ripped pages. Daniel you ain’t shit and you know it. You knew where you were and who you were provoking. Like sure Louis has generally waved it off maybe with a snarky comment or two about internet classes. But even Louis, even one determined to push this suicidal quest to get the story out is dangerous. That’s his point.

But yeah Louis also deserved the slap, that shit was scary as fuck. Like these vampires are scary y’all. I also see your theories on Rashid being able to pull Louis out of that and I subscribe to them because again, something is up. I would like to get to the bottom of it. 

Lowkey as much as the whole Antoinette infuriates me, I need to know what the fuck is going on with that. Why? 

“You’re not my Louis, you can’t be”. "I prayed myself old thinking about what to do about you. God never talked back, so this is what it has to be. For me, for my family. You understand?” Ok and this is where the tears start. This was so sad.

And then we don’t get a break because Claudia returns and shit goes all the way down. But firstly, I am so here for Claudia and Louis’s vampire hunting adventures in Europe. That whole premise sounds like a good concept for a tv procedural. But would it have been necessary if Lestat told her anything she asked. She wants to know! She knows Lestat knows. But I think Lestat wants her to go and not come back. 

“That’s right keep ‘em scared. That’s his way. But I think he’s scared. And when he’s scared he ridicules.” I mean...is Claudia lying? Is this not years of experience? Louis has to know.

So okay, here’s the thing that is going to haunt me a bit. Had Lestat not attacked I really don’t know who Louis would have stayed with between the two of them. 

This scene is still shocking. I really don’t have any eloquent thoughts. I do admit screaming in shock watching it for the second time. Once again, I don’t subscribe to the ‘unreliable narrator = lying’ explanations that sometimes I see floating around on social media. I think this did happen, yes, as people pointed out there was weirdness with not being able to see everything and the dialogue in that scene. Which I do think could be interesting to explore in future episodes, but when it comes down to it, I do think this actually happened.

I don’t know, I feel a little a little lighter after writing my thoughts, but this is going to stick with me for the rest of the week. I do think the episode was gripping. I do think I enjoyed it even as dark as it is. But again, I’m curious to see where we go from here.

[gobbluthbutagirl]

I’m not either of the anons but THANK YOU. I just didn’t really care about any of the characters and it all just felt a little flat. David was so extra it felt like they overbalanced by giving his partner no personality whatsoever. And there’s no real redemption? All of the characters were mean and awful at the beginning and now they’re still mean and awful but the townspeople just consider it quirky. The closest anyone got to character development was Alexis

yessss like i kept watching in part because i wanted to see david and Some Guy(i forgot his name too lol)’s relationship because i was like. Well i hate everything about this show so far but maybe having a gay couple will make it better. and it DIDN’T!!! and it’s honestly because they failed to get me emotionally invested in any of the characters. it’s like yeah it’s cute…ish…at times but like…that’s it??? and Some Guy really did only exist to be david’s partner. like he had nothing going on outside of that whatsoever. he felt less like a character and more like a vehicle for saying, “look! we’re depicting a gay relationship on our tv show!” and i think they kind of thought like, oh well people love david, people relate to david, look here’s a relationship for david with a happy ending! except that like… i did NOT love david. i thought he was kind of annoying. and then Some Guy was just like…nothing. so you’ve got a guy who’s kind of annoying and a guy who barely even exists and if you already don’t like the show that really does nothing to redeem it.

i think there’s a post i reblogged sometime in early 2021 where someone articulated this way better than i can but schitt’s creek is basically like if you took arrested development season 3 episode 9 “S.O.B.s” and removed all the irony. even in the very first episode it’s like, “oh no!!! it’s not their fault they lost all their money!!! their lawyer(or whoever) was corrupt and they didn’t even know!!! ):” and then they proceed to just be awful and it’s like. Come on man. if you’re gonna have a family of rich bastards at least lean into it. don’t give me all this corny shit about “heartwarming” and “life lessons” and “they’re not actually bad people” and whatever. like genuinely HOW do you take the concept of a rich family losing everything, which has so much potential(as evidenced by arrested development, which had already aired 4 of its 5 seasons by the time schitt’s creek aired its first), and turn it into something so lackluster???

[howiwatchmooves]

The G A Y S H O W Sandman (2022)

???/10

This fucking thing confuses me so much. I honestly have no idea how to rate it because there were so many things I loved and so much stupid annoying stuff (and I'm not talking about G A Y S ) as well. And Idk what am I supposed to do with that situation ;-;. I just wish they'd try harder on this one, so there are only the good parts because the show had so much potential. But oh well, Netflix, am I right?

Disclaimer: I watched this show like 3 months ago and I didn't finish the review on time, so it's gonna be a bit of a mess, I just wanna post it and move on.

The plot. It is fucking shreded. We have 11 episodes in total. First 4 episodes is one story, then episode 5 that is connected to the previous events, but is quite independent on its own. Episode 6 is an another adventure of a Sandman. From episode 7 till the episode 10 we have something else going on (there are some connections to the first story, but they're too weak to make this whole show consistent). Episode 11 has nothing to do with the rest of the show. That was the reason why it was hard to perceive the show. Like, Idk what they've done it that way, maybe the original comic was like that. I really liked some of the plot lines and scenes (especially one episode stories, they were better than stories that lasted 4 episodes), the other ones were extremely boring and unnecessary for me. And that's the shame. There was so much good stuff, why couldn't all of the stuff be good. I just feel like there was so much potential and they could've try better.

The characters are very different. I absolutely loved some of them, like Death and The Corinthian for example. Perfectly portrayed , very capturing and magnetic. The Corinthian is my personal crush and the reason why I watched the show in the first place. I know, I know, he's a terrifying maniac, but I have daddy kink, okay? So no judgement please. The actor is great, the character is well played, maybe a bit weird motivation, but nobody's perfect, eh.

Other characters were neutral to me, like Dream himself. He... he has his moments, let's say that. Some were just played by unqualified actors, like this vortex girl and her widow friend (it was painful to look at them sometimes, like, no emotion 😐).

And yeah, there's a lot of gay characters. Not a problem for me tho, I was even happy to see so many pissed homophobes, who get offended by the harmless show.

Visuals were quite alright. Nothing remarkable though, nothing I can remember at least.

Same thing with the soundtrack

Atmosphere is on spot on the other hand. So many Neil Gaiman vibes, like all these realms with their rulers, Satan, Biblical stuff, Greek mythology. This show is basically R rated Good Omens, with blood and swears and I loved it. Otherwise the show would be way too boring.

[pop-punklouis]

Hi loveee 💞

You might be right bc the first time I've heard my older cat hiss was when we showed her our younger cat lmaoo

Yesss attachment theory is so interesting I truly think it helps you understand yourself and others!

No exactly. That or I need someone to like encourage me. Being a perfectionist and having a fear of failure AND procrastinating are the unholy Trinity it runs together. The only reason I didn't abandon painting after a day is bc I somehow was okay at it. You bet your ass I've never watched a single tutorial I simply don't have the patience. I'm either decent naturally or it's not for me 💀

Re: fandom friends: I wholeheartedly agree

Re: shows. Nooo how do you do that 😭 I can't even watch more than one show at a time (unless they're all ongoing shows). I automatically go for light shows as like, coping but I also feel like watching several complex ones at once would be me if I wanted to cope but HARDCORE jfhfhf. Ooh I kinda get that. I liked ST season 3 simply for vibes and aesthetic and like, robin. I thought season 4 (while incredibly different from all seasons) was kinda cool but they kinda ended it messily which sucks. Guess we see where they go for the finale. Supernatural was good then bad then good then wtf?? Then good 👀 then the ending was: trauma I deserve compensation 😭 I do enjoy the earlier black mirror eps more but also I'll eat up more if they did more. White bear is a fav. I also like shut up and dance. I should rewatch it all I've got terrible memory. And I'll deffo be watching midnight mass!

Re: food. Oooh yes Mac and cheese. Simple yet so good. For me I think just Italian food. Pasta. I could have pasta for the rest of my life I think it's just so good.

For today: saw that you're graduating!! Congrats! But that made me realize I didn't know what you're graduating in, so if you feel like sharing, what did you study? Is this a postgrad? Future plans? (I usually hate this question so you can skip the last one!)

Have a wonderful day babe 💗

~🌱

hiiiii babe sorry this is so late this week has been so busy rip but!! i love that about you painting. yeah, i have to at least see some sort of potential in a skill or else i abandon it all together 💀 see! i’m like the opposite of a procrastinator?? if i see i have to do something like three weeks in advance i will think about it obsessively until i do it even though i still have like three weeks to have it done rip it’s so bad. i stress myself over something like i’ve got two days to do it instead of 18 days 🙃 but anyway yeah tutorials have never been my forte either. i like watching paint tutorial videos to help calm my mind down to sleep at night but otherwise

re: shows dude i KNOW i’m truly a masochist with my own brain watching shows. if i’m not watching three at a time i don’t know what i’m doing. it’s so bad. i could never watch multiple shows with other people because it would be a mess 👐🏼 omg how did i forget about robin yesss season 3 of ST had it’s good moments and i loved the robin character introduction. i think i would’ve liked season 4 a lot more if they had stuck to the original lore of the series instead of throwing new thinks in for shock value and plot twists to create new monsters and villains. and holy shit i forgot about the shut up and dance episode of black mirror that was also a really cool one. maybe i also need to rewatch the seasons again. but fr if they came out with more i’d watch them in a heartbeat. pls update me on midnight mass!!! also i recommend you watch 1899 too. i just finished it and i wish i was able to watch it again for the first time. it’s too good ✨

re: food. please love how pasta is both of our favorite foods. what kind of pasta is your favorite? i love cheese tortellini if i had to choose (besides mac & cheese of course)

and yes!! i graduated wednesday with my masters in film & media studies 🥺💕 i truly very little future plans at the moment besides relaxing for the next 5 or so months at home while i figure out what i want to do rip i have a lot of experience in a lot of different things in the industry but nothing has really grabbed me rip would rather just work in an antique store (own one is the dream) for the rest of my life. would be v happy i think 👐🏼

how has your week been? 🤍 have you done any christmas shopping? (if you celebrate!) i feel like christmas has just came so quickly i’m scrambling to do all the shopping and decorating two weeks out 😮‍💨 we just decorated our tree last week so it’s been frantic lol

[beacon-lamp]

with hermitcraft season 7 slowly coming to an end, i figured it was time to consolidate all of the Informative Posts about hermitcraft that i and some of the other members of hermitblr have made over the last several months.

if you enjoy:

minecraft youtube content, but want to see more traditional vanilla minecraft gameplay like building and redstone

fun, lighthearted interactions between genuine friends including Elaborate pranks, collaborating on massive projects, light roleplay, proximity voice chat mod

weekly 20 - 40 minute long youtube videos and consistent upload schedules

chill grind stream weekends where CCs interact with chat and each other

an entire youtube channel dedicated to weekly 20-minute recap videos on what all the hermits have been up to so you don’t have to piece it together from the posts on your dash/timeline

insanely talented people who have been doing mcyt for nearly, if not more than, a decade and essentially built minecraft youtube from the ground up

give hermitcraft a try!  

you will find all of the information you will Ever Need below the cut.  it’s Very Long so view it on desktop.

and if you ever have any more questions, just shoot me an ask :)

what is hermitcraft?

the Basics: what, who, where, how

more details on the Basics

bonus: the historical impact many hermitcraft members have had on mcyt

where do i even start watching?

start with grian.

good mix of Incredible builds and fun server shenanigans.  instigator of many server-wide events.  interacts with many other hermits.  generally entertaining to watch.  but zero redstone knowledge.

check out hermitcraft recap.

great way to be introduced to other hermits and learn what everyone’s up to.  if you find what a hermit’s been working on interesting, go watch their video and maybe give them a like and subscribe.

official hermitcraft website with links to every member’s channel

more information on every hermit’s attributes and general vibes

do hermits every stream?

short answer: yes, most do!  but these streams are mostly chill grinding or buildling streams.  and you don’t have to watch the streams to be caught up on content.  check the official hermitcraft website for each member’s twitch links.

long answer that covers most of the hermits

what do they do on hermitcraft?

let’s start with some examples of their incredible builds.

hermit cribs: some of the megabases in s7

goodtimeswithscar’s s7 magical village with shaders

stressmonster’s bakery and ren’s star wars world

Capitalism

they have a shopping district where hermits can set up shops and sell items and resources that other hermits can buy with diamonds.  here’s season 7 shopping district set on a mooshroom island:

some of the most advanced redstone you’ve ever seen

if you’re more into the technical side of minecraft, you can be rest assured that hermitcraft has some of the Biggest Brains in redstone.

tangotek: a fucking madlad.  Singled-handedly created the minigame Decked Out.  im Begging you to watch his tutorial video on how to play.  currently finishing up his Among Us but in minecraft minigame. all of this was built Entirely in survival vanilla minecraft.  get this man to 1M subscribers.

mumbo jumbo: the man himself.  built a 128 x 128 block industrial district in both season 6 and 7 packed to the Brim with mechanical farms.  half the brain behind the masterpiece of engineering that was Sahara in season 6.  currently working on Pacific, the sequel to Sahara, in season 7.

iskall85: the other half of the brain behind Sahara and working on Pacific with mumbo in season 7.  also has an industrial district like mumbo’s in season 7.

xisuma: built an automatic potion brewer in the second half of season 7.  this thing churns out potions by the Shulker Box.  can also turn a shulker box full of potions into splash potions and extend duration all with a press of a button.

impulseSV: incredible example of form + function.  farms are scattered throughout his base.  he has a farm for nearly every farmable resource in vanilla minecraft.

etho: the pioneer of some of the most widely used redstone mechanisms to date.  content isn’t super redstone-focused.  mostly does compact modules that serve a specific function.

zedaph: makes strange contraptions.  he’s basically if grian knew how to redstone.  impeccable vibes and fairly underrated.

bdoubleo100: he occassionally does this segment called “redstone with bdubs” and it’s the only redstone i understand so that’s why he’s here.

what about roleplay?  and lore?  

yeah they have Plenty of that too.  

it generally comes in the form of self-contained storylines that involve most members on the server and take place over the course of several weeks in multiple videos.  it’s fairly light roleplay, if that’s not your thing.  but the plotlines also have a Massive Potential to be angsty and whatnot if you really look into it, which a lot of people also do.

here’s a more in-depth look into the Major Plotlines over the last 2 seasons (season 6 and 7).  huge spoiler warning though.

um also there’s this post that highlights how truly cursed hermitcraft can be if you dig deep enough hahaha.

so do the hermits only make hermitcraft content?

nope!!  many of them are involved in other mcyt content as well and are friends with other prominent members of the mcyt community!!  

MCC

mcc9 blue bats video essay: the time the hermit team won the whole damn competition.  a wonderfully made video worth Every second of your time.  especially if you don’t typically watch the hermit teams.

falsesymmetry: mcc10 ace and mcc’s First Back-to-Back Winner

lord grian dreamslayer: that time grian Popped Off, killing dream, tubbo, and fundy in mcc9 survival games

Vault Hunters

a modded minecraft server coded entirely by iskall85′s team.  all the content is streamed live on twitch.  

current members are: Iskall85, AntonioAsh, Stressmonster101, HBomb94, CaptainSparklez, Fundy, CaptainPuffy, 5UP and Tubbo

more info on the series 

3rd Life SMP

hardcore minecraft server with a twist that started on 4/20/21.  all content is posted to each member’s respective youtube channels.

every member has 3 lives, as indicated by the color of their name: green for 3 lives left, yellow for 2, red for 1.  if they lose all three lives, they can only spectate the world (like in hardcore mode).  the series ends when all members have lost all three lives.

the twist: once a member is on their 3rd and final life, as indicated by a red name, they are Hostile and their goal is to take the lives of the remaining players.

the members (hermits are italicized): BdoubleO100, bigbst4tz2, Etho, GoodTimesWithScar, Grian, impulseSV, InTheLittleWood, Renthedog, Skizzleman, Smajor1995, Smallishbeans, SolidarityGaming, Tango, ZombieCleo

the tumblr tag for 3rd Life is “#3rdLife”, “#3rdLifeSMP” and “#3LSMP” if you wanna see more content, as it’s Not supposed to be cross-tagged with “#hermitcraft”.

do you have any free serotonin to spare?

here’s a bunch of posts that’ll make you smile

scar’s friendship with a bunch of the hermits

grian, false, cleo, bdubs, iskall: why they deserve so much respect

same post as above but with an addition about ren

small hermit things that give you serotonin

why you should watch tfc

if you’ve made it this far you are Contractually Obligated* to watch one (1) hermitcraft episode and reblog this post.

*for legal reason, this is a joke.  you’re not contractually obligated but consider this: Please. i spent way too much time on this.

shoutout to everyone who’s posts i’ve linked and anyone who has helped answer a question about hermitcraft.  this all started because i was frustrated that people were writing the hermits off as cannon fodder in mcc and im genuinely so glad that many of you have given hermitcraft a shot.

[dribs-and-drabbles]

BL ~ Drama Asks

Tagged by @biwichapas over two weeks ago (!) but thank you for thinking of me!

1. If you had to watch one drama forever what would it be?

This is too hard...maybe one of either Bad Buddy, To My Star (1&2), or HIStory 3: Trapped.

2. If you could change the ending of a drama which one would it be?

I have to say HIStory 3: MODC, of course, but maybe controversially I'd change He's Coming to Me. Hear me out: I cried. I cried SO MUCH when I thought Mes and Thun weren't going to get a HEA. I mean, it made sense... Mes was a ghost and Thun a human...how would this work? But the series handled that journey of grief really well so by the end I could accept it. BUT then they brought Mes back. Now, it would have worked if either a) he didn't come back at all and Thun could move on, fallen in love with someone else, and forever savoured that memory, or b) if Mes had come back as a human again - then they could have had a proper life together. As it was, coming back as a ghost still, there is an inevitability that their time together will end at some point when Mes does have to leave. I don't know... I was left unsatisfied because it was only a HFN.

3. Name your favorite drama and tell who your favorite character was.

The series currently top of my top ten list is Bad Buddy...so I should say that. Favourite character...ah this is hard...Pran? Maybe...

4. Name a drama you dropped within the first few episodes ~ we all have at least one!

Tharntype 2 (I just couldn't...), Peach of Time (partly availability issues, partly the prospect of not getting a HEA), Top Secret Together (it just got bad but I think it was a victim of the pandemic), and I have started Coffee Melody but don't know if I'll finish (It's slow and I don't have time for things that don't grab me).

5. Name a popular drama you’ve never watched and why?

I Told Sunset About You (and I Promised You the Moon). First it was availability issues, then I felt a bit wiggy about watching it because a) the characters are so young and b) I had heard it was a bit to 'real' for some people and I just didn't want to go through the angst.

6. Name a drama you regret watching.

I don't regret anything I've watched. I would have stopped watching anything that may have ended up being a 'regret watch'...so I guess I could just repeat those.

7. Name a drama you thought you’d never watch but did and did you end up liking it?

HIStory 2: Right or Wrong. It took me a while because I wasn't sure about the student/teacher dynamic...but it's a great series and the age gap/potential for abuse of power was dealt with well enough.

8. Name a pairing you want to see?

Well, I've been wanting to see Poppy in a lead for a long time and I have already suggested a polyship with him and the two Perths...but actually, thinking about it, I want to see TONG and POPPY together. Both EXCELLENT goofy/character actors but I believe could pull off something more mature and dramatic. So, yeah, them.

9. Name a pairing you didn’t think had chemistry?

Maybe controversial but I don't really think Jimmy and Tommy have chemistry, certainly not as Saifah and Zon in Why R U?

10. Name a pairing you have seen in another drama that you like?

I presume this means in a drama I haven't seen...but if I like the pairing I probably would have seen the series, so I don't really have an answer. Instead, I'll offer a few secondary pairings who I would like to see lead a series (the actors or the characters): Pitch and Bank from Golden Blood, Jack and Zhao Zi from HIStory 3: Trapped, and of course Ram and King from My Engineer.

Tagging @jemmo @liyazaki @taytawan @minhhyung @pranpats and @laowen if you haven't done it and feel like having a go...or anyone else who wants!

[boomerang109]

uhhh uhhh top 5 VM head canons nobody can convince you aren't necessarily true

thank you sm for this ask bestie!!!

this will vary wildly from “basically canon,” “thing i thought of once,” and/or “found in some/many fics” and anywhere in between so just deal with it

1. non-binary keyleth! she/they pronouns and they genuinely don’t mind being called she—most people are stuck in the gender binary and don’t understand the fluidity of nature the way keyleth does and they won’t judge others for it and they don’t really care how that causes them to be perceived. however, they do wear a binder for dysphoria purposes—this is where the headcanon came from in the first place, marisha was stressed (watching grog fight in the pit maybe?) and said “i’m so stressed i’m chewing on my binder!” and my first thought was this meant keyleth was biting their clothing

1b. they’re also ace, i’m taking any and all ace rep i can get but our convo about them not actually responding to vax’s kiss as being one of many examples of their a-spec identity just made me !!! (also on ace visibility day i started writing a fic of ace keyleth coming out to percy and it then became him going ‘uhh yeah most people are like that’—he essentially thinks sexual desire is like a social construct everyone pretends to be interested in to varying degrees but they’re actually all faking—and her going ‘no i don’t think so’ which is how percy then discovers he’s also ace and idk if i’ll ever share it but yeah I really made myself laugh writing it)

2. trans vax. i think it’s very fun to say vex and vax are both trans and switched places and their father didn’t notice, however since they’re identical twins i believe it is canon that one of them is trans and i choose to believe it is vax. no real reason at this time, just trans rogue half elf! (however as i also very much want percy to be trans and am a huge Vex’ahlia shipper, i also see the potential for some great t4t content so really you cannot go wrong) (canonically i actually think there’s more support for vex being trans because we know that vax has a left nut, however as of episode 41 i have no knowledge of vex’s anatomy. but also, i have no idea how transitioning physically would work in tal’dorei so maybe grog hit vax in a left nut he didn’t have as a child, i prefer not too think too deeply into such details)

3. no because i wasn’t going to give Trans Percy his own bullet but also. he deserves it. like yes this is probably 90% projection and 30% just because talesin is himself so gender, but the other 28% deserves to be validated. just. at what point did he transition—before or after the briarwoods because yes in canon it probably can only be before (otherwise Whitestone wouldn’t all know his name) and in that case we stan supportive parents, but. imagine if he didn’t transition until after? the double blow of returning home (to Cassandra) not just to rid Whitestone of the Briarwoods, but also to re-introduce himself as Percival de Rolo. Orthax who promised more than just revenge, but also to make him exactly who he wants to be. I could go on all day about trans Percy but I think you get the idea

4. ace pike! okay okay hear me out on this one. so i don’t know if she and scanlan become a couple but in my head it’s very much “ugh he’s cute in like a small child way” for a very long time and then at some point something shifts for pike and she’s like oh shiiiit i actually like this asshole. but! being ace as a cleric has never been an issue—sarenrae doesn’t require chastity but it can show extra respect, or at least that’s what pike has been telling herself for years—but all of a sudden pike is romantically interested in scanlan, the most sexual person like…ever. so suddenly her perception of her own asexuality changes from ‘yes this is a strength that makes me an extra good cleric’ to ‘oh shit, is it even worth telling scanlan i like him back if i’m under the ace umbrella and therefore don’t know if we would be a good match as partners’ and to be clear even if pike isn’t demiace and told scanlan she’d never sleep with him, scanlan loves PIKE so he wouldn’t be weird about it, but i think it would take pike a while to realize that

5. all of the party lives forever and ever and doesn’t die until old age naturally takes them. no i don’t know any spoilers about anyone dying before old age because that doesn’t happen, everyone couples up (except grog) and lives happily ever after

[veliseraptor]

top five smiling moments in The Untamed

answering this made me realize how many good smiles there are in this series. there are a lot of good smiles. feel bad for some of the extremely good ones I’m leaving out (including every time Wen Qing smiles in particular, she has the cutest smile and it doesn’t show up all that much).

but anyway here’s a selection of five personal faves

1. End of series Wei Wuxian.

Did I almost learn to gif to answer this ask because screen stills did not fully capture the degree to which this smile is perfect? Maybe. I’m just a little too lazy to do that (yet). Anyway!! I have gone on record as saying that I really like the fact that CQL ends the way it does and a big part of that is this shot here because it really is just...transcendent. The slow turn! And then his smile that grows all the way until his eyes scrunch shut and it just warms up his whole face and - yeah, it’s extremely quality. I can only imagine I’m getting the same warm-fuzzy feelings that Lan Wangji probably is at this point.

2. Xiao Xingchen’s little head-shake smile at Xue Yang.

Look, you knew there’d be Yi City on this list, and this smile is just - augh! I mean, all Xiao Xingchen’s little smiles are so cute but I’m particularly fond of his “you’re too muuuuuch” smiles at Xue Yang (and a-Qing!). I love watching them come easier and more often over the course of the flashback, too. And this one in specific is another one where I wish I could’ve gotten the gif because it comes with this little hitch of a laugh, too. And I don’t think this one specifically gets the little “you’re too muuuuch” head shaking, but it’s definitely kin to the one(s) that do. The warmth! The fondness! The sense of the potential for unbridled joy in this daozhang! It’s perfect and he’s wonderful.

3. Lan Wangji’s startled little smile at the rabbit lantern.

I thiiiink this is the first time we see Lan Wangji smile? And (like all his smiles) it is so, so, striking.

(I mean that about all his smiles. I knew I was going to have to put a Lan Wangji smile on here and the only trouble was deciding which one I was going to use.)

But yes! Just - his sheer delight, his surprised pleasure at seeing this lantern - with a bunny! for him! - is so much. And then of course how quickly he panics about it. But yeah, the way it warms up and softens his whole face and how much younger it makes him look...

Lan Wangji smiles are treasures each and every one of them but this one does stick out for the fact that it is the first real glimpse of him we really see of a different personality, and a warmth, behind the icy exterior.

4. Jiang Cheng smile-crying at his siblings in episode 20.

This is another one where I was like “I know I’m going to have to include a Jiang Cheng smile, I just know it, but which one am I going to do” and I had to land on this one because the way Jiang Cheng looks at his siblings breaks my heart every time and just his...yeah, smile-crying! He’s so happy here, he’s so relieved, everything is fine now and Wei Wuxian is home and they’re together again! Everything will be okay! Or at least significantly more okay than it was!

This is just the face of a kid who loves his family and wants them together and is just overwhelmed with feelings he cannot really express, while no one is looking at him. He just loves them both! So much! And it kills me. Baby. I love you.

5. Xue Yang’s absolutely stupid besotted little smile(s) looking at Xiao Xingchen.

yes I know he is dead in the first one, what of it, he’s going to be fine any minute now.

Anyway though!!! I feel like I could just say “Xue Yang’s smiles, all of them, from these to the most unhinged ones” but I hard moded myself about picking one specific mood of one, and...yeah. Just. look at that face! look at him!!!! having a whole feeling and he’s not putting on a face, nobody can see him, nobody knows, but there’s just this absolute...augh. Adoration, is the best word for it, I think. This is Xue Yang’s ‘you are the only (other) person who matters in the whole world!!!’ face and it absolutely murders me.

I just want to grab his face and be like “THAT FEELING, HOLD ONTO THAT FEELING AND DON’T BLOW THIS FOR YOURSELF” but it’s too late, he kind of already did, and this is why I’m always crying about Xue Yang.

BONUS MENTIONS TO:

every time Wen Qing smiles (as mentioned above)

Lan Wangji’s staircase smile

Lan Wangji’s drunk “I like rabbits” smile

Lan Xichen’s various ‘fuck you’ smiles

Jin Guangyao’s nervous dimple smile.

[hageny]

Succession Thoughts: Gerri x Roman 

AN: Credit goes to @thinkingfixatingobsessing​ for the idea for point number one in this post. Also, this post is my lengthiest yet, but I promise it’s worth the read, lol.

1. Come Over?

This moment between Roman and Gerri is a small one, but presents an interesting thread that starts in this episode--Vaulter--and gets threaded into their phone sex scene in Safe Room. During his time working through the documents and foundations of Vaulter, Roman is stuck in the middle of the proxy battle and feeling the heat of the moment, which comes to a head in this scene. We see him wrestling with himself about what to do, throwing his phone a pathetic glance, hesitating, and then finally deciding to call Gerri for help. He divulges to her that he essentially has no clue what to do and throws out a weak ‘pivot to video’ idea that Gerri instantly reminds him was tried by the Vaulter team already and presumably fell flat. Finally, Roman breaks and asks her meekly, “Can you just come over? I want you in the room.” This is interesting because it is one of the first scenes where the show establishes the fact that Roman seeks out Gerri for comfort. This, of course, comes on the heels of their trip to Japan, so we can deduce that Roman has realized that Gerri could’ve screwed him but didn’t, and sees how he was exposed to her nurturing side when he needed it most. What’s interesting is how the dialogue in this scene mimics what comes later. He first asks her for her help, and when she balks at his request, he immediately says, “Yeah, could--yeah--fuck you!” and hangs up on her. The move from gentle and comforting to caustic is an interesting one, but it’s fascinating because for once it isn’t built into the scene to showcase that Roman needs degradation to achieve sexual pleasure. Here, he flies off the handle at Gerri, but when we think about this scene the reason why is obvious and not tied to sex: Roman gets angry because in his one weak moment the response he receives is not the sympathetic one he wants, and so he pivots back to caustic to shield himself later on. He knows that should Gerri brings this up later he can tell her he was fucking with her and didn’t mean it, but in truth, he did mean it--he did want her and need her, and Gerri didn’t understand this, and was too busy with things on her end to meet him where he needed her. Part of Roman’s hang ups, sexually, are tied to the degradation he experienced as a child, but there is also a link between his need for degradation and his realization that he never got the comfort he needed, so seeking insult was easier. He is a walking example of the quote, "All attention is good attention.” Because Roman never received the comfort he desired, he shields himself from rejection by pretending to be hardier than what he is and striving to be insulted, because to him, at this stage, it’s all the same. He could get a hug, but getting walloped and getting off are faster so he settles for that instead. This thread is later carried into the ‘shirt-button’ scene in Hunting, where Gerri walks up to Roman’s room to look in on him. Now, she has the understanding of him that is necessary to respond appropriately, and instead of berating him for being a mess she comforts him, and he responds not by pushing her away but accepting her gentility, however brief. Roman doesn’t so much need humiliation to get off--he only needs it because it’s all he thinks he deserves, and it’s served him well enough so far. It’s the key to his inability to have sex with his other girlfriends: it’s not that he can’t, it’s that sex requires intimacy and sensitivity, and Roman isn’t close enough to himself emotionally to comfortably tap into these feelings and deliver. 

2. Rejected.

As I’m re-watching the series in preparation for Season 3, there is a thread which is established early on between Kendall and Gerri that begins in Lifeboats and is expounded upon later in the show. We see Kendall at the helm of Waystar during Logan’s absence as he makes his infamous ‘Lifeboats’ speech, gathering his team together and asking for their help in moving Waystar into the future, inviting them to pool their ideas and deliver them to him, essentially attempting to depart from his father’s style of management by ostensibly establishing an ‘open door policy’ with his team. This move, however, is ironic, as immediately after this scene we have the scene between himself and Gerri, pictured above. Really, in hindsight, Kendall is as manipulative as Logan, but he is weaker in the sense that he is not as combative openly, and therefore comes across as a softer, better version of his father, which isn’t always true to his nature. We see Gerri follow Kendall after the meeting and tell him, “I want to talk options to you, okay? I’ve got some thoughts I’ve been working on for a long time--”. Kendall immediately interrupts her and replies, “I don’t want the sloppy seconds, Gerri. I’m taking five to think big.” When she presses the issue again, promising that she has some good ideas, he flat out rejects her without even listening to her, and it is here where we see shades of his father in himself. It’s also what makes Gerri’s manipulation of Kendall easier later on. We can deduce that this is not the first time that Gerri has been pushed to the sidelines by one of the Roy family members, and at a time when help is sorely needed--and on the heels of Kendall openly asking for it--he outright rejects Gerri’s and essentially makes it clear to her that her help is second-rate help--only useful to him when it can get him out of a tight squeeze, but not so useful that he believes her worth listening to when the stakes are higher. This ties into her relationship with Roman as well. While Roman is always showcased as being the one who needs her, if we pay attention we can clearly see that Gerri’s need for him is equal to his. Gerri has been a part of Waystar for decades--at one point in Pre-Nuptial commenting to Kendall that she and Frank are reminiscing about their first visit to Caroline’s estate in 1986--making her one of the most senior members of staff. But what she has--it is implied--never had is someone who genuinely valued her ideas and her input. This is also what she gets from Roman. She tells him to do something, he does it. She throws an idea out, he listens. He becomes her voice, often using the phrases, “Gerri thinks” or “Gerri says” during Season 2. Through Roman, we hear Gerri, and through Gerri we see Roman’s potential. They carry each other. Roman is always depicted by his family as being stupid, and yet who was smart enough to seek out advice from the one person with the most experience at Waystar aside from Logan? Not his siblings. Because they believe they know better, their ego will be their downfall. 

3. In Logan’s Shadow.

In Sad Sack Wasp Trap, we see shades of Gerri’s eventual betrayal of Kendall begin to take shape. Having tasted his first drops of power, real power, Kendall’s ego immediately starts to swell in little ways. We hear him telling Jess that he wants to do a run on the late-night TV circuit, having gotten the idea while traveling in L.A. Gerri reacts to this with disbelief, and Kendall retorts, “What does that mean? I was fuckin’ king of the Lampoon.” Kendall’s use of the word ‘king’ is used to purposefully emphasize the way he has begun to see himself--finally in the position he desired for so long, finally out of his father’s sphere of influence. His high is interrupted by Jess’ telling him that his father has dropped into the office and wants to see him. When Kendall asks Gerri if she knew about this, she denies this, but when he says, “Shouldn’t he have told you?” all she does is shrug coolly in his direction. This begs the question: did Gerri really not know? On the surface, it seems obvious she didn’t, but we have to consider that this moment comes right after Kendall’s complete disregard for her in the previous episode. Gerri’s motivation to help Kendall would be at a fairly low point, and what could be more amusing to her than to watch him fall flat on his face so quickly again, especially considering Logan’s outrage at Kendall’s decision to bring Stewy in to help their debt issue. Maybe she genuinely didn’t know, but given what she does later on, it would seem pertinent to wonder. 

4. Take the piss.

Later in Sad Sack Wasp Trap, Kendall finds out that his father has pissed on his carpet and brings Roman, Gerri, and Frank in to assess and discuss the situation. He starts by lecturing them about what could happen if people knew Logan had done this, pointing out that this bit of knowledge could spear the company’s already flagging public persona, and trying to use that as a way to keep his father from attending the RECNY ball. He tries to drop the responsibility for fixing the situation into Gerri’s hands, telling her she needs to talk to Logan and tell him that if he intends to come back he has to do so via the proper avenues, and that he can’t just show up on a whim. Gerri listens for a while, and eventually delivers a barb that is subtle but effective. She asks Kendall, “What did you do, Kendall, when you realized he’d done this?”, referring to Logan’s pissing incident. Kendall immediately falters, stuttering that he didn’t want to embarrass his father in front of Stewy and basically admitting he did nothing. The camera sweeps over her and Roman’s faces, and they give Kendall the same look, suggesting they are disappointed but not surprised at his ineffectiveness. This moment also mirrors what Roman does later in Vaulter, undercutting his brother in front of his father to get the result he wants. The point of Gerri’s remark is to showcase her opinion of him. To Gerri, Kendall is nothing but a papa’s boy with a golden spoon in his mouth, someone who wants the power but is unwilling to work for it. And who can really blame Kendall? Considering the way his father treats him, he has learned from Logan that working is one thing, but using a by-way to get to the top faster is better, and he attempts to see this come to fruition by taking control of a company he is ill-equipped to lead. Gerri’s disgust for Kendall is fairly obvious, but to Kendall’s great misfortune, he is a swimmer in a shark tank, completely out of his league in her waters. She is faster than him, more subtle, more cunning, and lacking in conscience enough that when she disposes of him later she feels no remorse. Kendall has bad traits but he is overall not a bad character, and we see his better parts shine when he is not chasing power. But to Gerri, his better characteristics are a moot point. She undercuts him later once again, and we see how she delights in what she’s doing, how his weakness and trusting nature to her are disgusting, and if anything make it easier for her to do what she does. While Roman makes her prove herself equal, playing with her, seeing if she can give back what he puts out, Kendall takes for granted her abilities, wanting only a menial servant, and sees himself eaten alive. 

5. I Will Guide Thy Hand.

During the RECNY ball, we find out--via Connor--the Kendall has plans to make a retirement announcement in Logan’s presence, allegedly so he can usurp the throne for himself. Though Kendall later denies this, we do know that he does not want his father to speak at the ball. Allegedly, this is out of ‘good will’, his concern for his father and the company mainly influencing his decision, but truthfully Kendall is also motivated by a desire to take hold of a position his father always had at the ball--as a speaker--and be on the receiving end of the adoration Logan is so used to. He wants to be seen by the public the way his father is: competent, powerful, totally in control; he also knows that there is a chance that Logan will declare himself CEO again, knocking Kendall from his throne--which eventually comes to fruition. Gerri knows this, is smart enough to intuit why Kendall is afraid, and is calm when Kendall once again comes to her for assistance, wanting her to handle his father. Unlike earlier, she doesn’t throw any barbs his way. She calmly promises to talk to Logan about his supposed speech and to try to dissuade him--while not so convincingly claiming she knew nothing about the speech at all to begin with. Instead of doing what she promised, she walks over to Logan and simply tells him, “Good luck tonight. Gonna knock it out of the park.” She gives him the motivation he needs to move forward with his plans, especially at a point where his health is so precarious. Gerri knows this, knows Logan well enough to understand that a little reassurance will ensure that Logan will do as planned and follow through with his decision. We see her later in the episode watching the whole thing play out during Logan’s speech, a self-satisfied smirk on her face, already knowing the end from the beginning. What we’re witnessing is the blooming of the flower on the end of the thread that started when Kendall disrespected her in Lifeboats. All he had to do to save himself was listen to Gerri, and yet he chose not to, believing he knew better than her how to reposition Waystar and lead the company into the future. He, who has been to rehab, fallen prey to his addictions and vices, and only played in the big leagues when he wanted to while Gerri--and the other members of Waystar--had to be there regardless of the circumstances in their personal lives. Again we can’t solely blame Kendall--he is the person his father has allowed him to be. We can also see that what Kendall lacks is the thing that makes Gerri so capable of remaining in power--detachment. Gerri is emotionally detached enough to do her job well and not worry about what amoral things she does to maintain her position of power. This is another trait she shares with Roman, who, after hearing how beleaguered the employees of Vaulter are, still guts the company and costs them their jobs without a second thought to the damage he is doing. With regard to her relationship with Kendall, for Gerri destroying him is not only easy but pleasurable. She knows that Kendall stupidly trusts her, and will remain none the wiser to her duplicitousness, and so she operates in the background, doing what she can to ensure he will lose what is so precious to him because of her--all while believing she did what she could to help him. This theme reminded me of the movie The Witch, hence the title of this particular post. Thomasin ends up in the hands of the Devil at the end, and--believing he will give her what she wants--she gives her soul to him. Like Kendall, she doesn’t realize that the person who is giving her what she wants is really taking everything, and she, like Kendall, is left with nothing in the end. Am I comparing Gerri to the Devil? Only superficially. She is certainly not totally like Satan, but from what we see here, she has the ability to operate like him: swiftly and maliciously. 

[yusei-clownington]

SO I FINALLY FINISHED 5D’S! And what better way to celebrate than to go through my favorite characters as…briefly as I can

Slight spoilers I suppose?

Let’s work it up from 10 to 1

10- Jack

Was gonna go with lucchiano but who am I kidding Jack’s great. He’s a drama queen with an even more dramatic wardrobe. Never afraid to express himself and just bluntly blurt out what he thought.

His obsession with Cup ramen is on another level but what can I say? Love is love, Jack x cup ramen for life *wipes tears*

But seriously speaking he’s great. His very first line was enough proof of that. He just… apologized for being late then declared “I AM KING” like the…king he is.

My favorite Rival character still remains Manjoume… and… Yeah I still prefer Kaiba over Jack but damn was he a good rival.

Like he has to be the only Rival so far with an actual past with the Main character, no? That was pretty interesting because usually, the protagonist meets the rival somewhere during the first season and we go off from there. But here we had to go through their backstory to know what their relationship was fully like. Nice touch.

9- Aki

Hands down my favorite female protagonist so far. I adore Anzu and feel neutral enough about Asuka but Aki? NAH MAN AKI’S AMAZING. I think 5D’s just does the best job with its female characters. Like it actually gives them big enough roles. I loved how Aki got her own episodes…be it the D-wheel ones or just… fillers.

Her crush on Yusei was justified, at least it seems so to me, and honestly never got obnoxious. Sure she had a moment here and there but it was honestly never a bad thing. Hell faith shipping in general isn’t exactly a bad Idea.

Speaking of shipping, is anyone going to talk about her little frienshipmaybemore moments with Crow? No? Ok…

But anyway, overall, SHE’S AMAZING AND I LOVE HER. There was more to her than some boring pining love interest and it shows with each episode. So when people say she has a great personality, they’re actually talking about her personality. AKI RULES

8- Mikage

Would’ve been way WAY higher on the list if the thing with Jack was thrown out the widow.

That being said I think she’s the more mature of the Jack-crazy trio. Like sure she was just as into him as the other two, but in some scenes she was a lot more tolerable.

But that honestly might just be my bias towards this amazing woman speaking.

She’s devoted to her work, gentle, caring, gorgeous and just all around a wonderful character to see.

I loved most of her scenes in the series, and the fact that there was more to her than just the jack part. She actually had an important part to play in many episodes and honestly proved herself to be a very fun character. I just wish they gave a her little more screentime than what she got.

A lot of lost potential there- I mean come on.

7- Rua /Lua

He reminds me of Judai WAY too much. LIKE WAAAAY too much not to be on this list. The guy’s adorable. And I love how they made him the emotional one. Like they could’ve gone with the “the boy is always rowdy and tOUGH” stereotype, but they didn’t. Sure, ruka (who I don’t like as much) was much more gentle, but it was much easier to see Rua cry than it was to see her do so. It’s just fun is all.

I also adore his deck and that little theme that played whenever he dueled… Plus his relationship with Jack and Yusei…GOLD GOLD.

6- Ushio

I made a whole post about Him, You think he wouldn’t be in my Top 10? Well think again. Great development would see through again.

5- Sherry Leblanc

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA SHERRY.

What you just witnessed in the line above is my internal reaction to literally any scene this beautiful badass woman happens to be in.

She’s just amazing. She has this really… tough energy IDK HOW TO DESCRIBE IT BUT SHE’S A REALLY INTIMIDATING WOMAN. But not in a bad way, oh nonononono in a REALLY REALLY GOOD WAY OKAY.

Her character arcs and episodes somehow felt…really separate from the whole team 5D’s shenanigans even though they were basically connected…

Like she had her own motivation that didn’t particularly rely on bonds, but was still willing to accept and even form a bond with the whole team.

Revenge is kinda hot ngl.

Okay no it’s not. But seeing a vengeful character that WASN’T played off as evil or particularly wrong amidst a bunch of friendship is magic ones was pretty refreshing.

The moment she took her helmet off when dueling yusei I was HOOKED and so was Aki but shhhhhh.

But damn I love what they did with her at the end, Rushed as it may have been. It took her joining with Z-one briefly and dueling Aki and Crow ( a very underrated duo btw) to realize that maybe thinking of the past and only the past was not a very good idea.

Anyway love her. And her duels are always a delight to watch.

4- Placido

Before he showed up, sherry was supposed to be 4th but here we are. Placido Placido Placido. I want to make it clear that…I really couldn’t care less about Aporia as a whole. But Placido and Lucchiano were pretty fun characters.

Now I finally get to talk about my beloved.

This dude was…the biggest mood. EVER.

He would hang up in that third one’s face like it was nothing and constantly ignore his boring ass. Oh. You have a plan? Ok. I don’t care. It’s boring. I’m placido and I’ll do what I want. Kiss my D-wheel ass.

He has a lot of hilariously sassy lines, which include and I quote:

“I don’t know what god wants you to do.”

“But I won’t accept it!”

The guy just does not care and I’m living for it.

Not to mention his bee analogies which- Why have I not seen anyone point out????? BEE ANALOGIES COME ONNNNNNNN

aNYWAY PLACIDO’S GREAT

3- Kiryuu

Edgy dude with pretty hair. Also gay. Also the crash town arc. Need I say more?

I will anyway.

Honestly dark signer Kiryuu was pretty fun to me with all the crazy laughter and stuff…

Then past/ flashbacks Kiryuu was just as interesting but in a completely different way. Sure he didn’t get as many episodes or screentime as the rest, but what I saw of him was more than enough for me to care about the Character. Like unlike the old satellite gang (Rally and the other two whose names I can’t even remember) I actually gave a shit about this guy when bad stuff happened to him.

Not to mention his growth. Like…He went through reverse/ negative development, then uphill by the end of the signers’ ark with all the…dying in your hands gayly stuff, then downhill again by the beginning of the crosstown arc….aaaaand back up and higher than ever by the end of it. Basically the fact that his development wasn’t always constant just added some spice.

Plus his dynamic with his ex-teammates…team….satisfaction (Try saying that with a straight face) was always pretty entertaining, especially his with Yusei.

Speaking of which...

2- Yusei

With all my talk about him…and…my profile picture…and URL, it may come as a surprise that he’s not number 1 here, but honestly it’s so close you could call it a tie.

As for why I love him….Have you- Have you seen my blog????? Do I even..need to say anything????

1- Crow

Now there’s a lot I have to say about Crow honestly hE’S JUST THAT COOL, but I’m saving it to talk about later still. All I’ll say for now is this:

Flashy guy with an amazing sense of style, an earring and an incredible amount of cockiness and charisma. What’s not to like?