#some of my reviews were so unhinged omg

[moonchild-in-blue]

So, fun fact - when I first got into Sleep Token, back in june, I had no one to talk to them about, so I just did a track by track review of TMBTE on a journal (this was just before I joined the Tumblr fandom).

Obviously I eventually made friends here to yell about them, but I just kept making the track by track reviews as I went through their entire discography.

It's funny to look back at them - TMBTE reviews are 3 or 4 sentences of me going "oh I love the jazz influences here ; Vessel who hurt you?? ; this line is raw af", and as I got to know the band, the latest are entire paragraphs of " ii the MAN you ARE OMG?? Go offff king ; Vessel honey that was excused, stop moaning in my ears; LEITMOTIFS AAAA".

Also funny to see which songs I liked the most on the first listen, and which ones are my favourite now hehehe.

[realcube]

YOU GOT: ISSEI MATSUKAWA (time-skip)

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ matchup for @slut4msby

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ if you would like a matchup, read this!

'I am a big fan of quality time (like dream activity with a partner is sitting in the same room in silence just scrolling social media) aswell as gift giving (I love remembering small details about people and giving them gifts based on that randomly and going overboard for events)'

𓆩♡𓆪 matsukawa would be so down to do the first one

𓆩♡𓆪 like he's chill and would just thrive getting to spend any sort of time with you

𓆩♡𓆪 and omg he's so chill and a lil lazy to the point where if y'all are together and he is scrolling and finds a video/image/whatever he wants you to see, instead of just leaning over or getting up to show you irl

𓆩♡𓆪 he will just send it to you over the app 😭 despite the fact you are literally in the same room as him

𓆩♡𓆪 and if you point this out like 'issei why did you send this to me?? we're cuddling i'm RIGHT next to you'

𓆩♡𓆪 he'll be like 🤷‍♂️

𓆩♡𓆪 but whenever he shows you something, it's either some SO brainrot and unintelligible that he finds funny

𓆩♡𓆪 or it's like to with one of your interests

𓆩♡𓆪 like you mentioned you like musical theatre so he would defo send you any clips he finds of shows or links to those posts detailing new shows and tickets and stuff

𓆩♡𓆪 or for books, he'd 100% send you those twitter threads of the crazy book reviews

𓆩♡𓆪 oh and he loves hearing you recap books that you read , especially if they are unhinged or if y'all are zooted lol

𓆩♡𓆪and issei is calm but i don't think he's an introvert or shy so he would definitely thrive if you were to go all out for his birthday or vb celebrations (tho he plays for seijoh so theres not much to celebrate smh)

𓆩♡𓆪 but yeah if you were to go big for him he'd SO love that and would not be the slightest bit embarrassed by it

𓆩♡𓆪 oh and even if the event isn't related to him, he still enjoys you going overboard

𓆩♡𓆪 like if you were to dress up all fancy for a date , he'd appreciate it and take SO many pics

𓆩♡𓆪 oh and this is slightly unrelated but his camera roll is 50% choatic screenshots and 50% pictures of you

𓆩♡𓆪 i imagine his main love language is quality time but he's defo not bad at giving gifts

𓆩♡𓆪 maybe not as great as you but you can tell he always puts effort into his gifts

𓆩♡𓆪 and usually with him, he'll get you one silly/joke gift and one sentimental/serious gift

𓆩♡𓆪 like for your birthday you WILL be receiving one of those rubber shrieking chickens bc he said it reminds him of you but you will also get those expensive shoes you mentioned wanting or a designer perfume you got a tester of once while y'all were on a date and you said you liked

𓆩♡𓆪 and for your anniversary you WILL be receiving a personalised card with a picture of you both on the front except your face has been covered by the text so it's just him, but you will also get a massive bouquet of your favourite flowers and one of those framed photos of a graphic of the constellations of the day you both first met

𓆩♡𓆪 he's multi-faceted!!

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

'is a taller guy or around the same height (im 5’11) as i can get super insecure about my height :p'

𓆩♡𓆪 the wiki doesn't have a post-timeskip height for him </3

𓆩♡𓆪 BUT pre timeskip , homie is 6'2" so he is at least that tall post-timeskip

𓆩♡𓆪 so yes he will be taller than you and no he will not let you forget it

𓆩♡𓆪 like he will call you shorty and if you try to argue or remind him thta you are objectively tall in comparison to other ppl he'll be like 'and are the "other people" in the room with us right now? 🤨'

𓆩♡𓆪 a bit of a gaslighter but not really bc its in good fun

𓆩♡𓆪 but yeah he milks tf out of those 3" he has on you (or more depending on his time-skip height)

𓆩♡𓆪 always teasing you and asking if you need help reaching things (even if you don't need help at all)

𓆩♡𓆪 on carnival dates you'll tell him a ride you want to go on and he'll be like 'but bae sorry i don't think you're tall enough to go on 😔'

𓆩♡𓆪 sometimes you'll walk in mid-way on a conversation between him and hanamaki and they'll be laughing and you'll go 'what are you guys laughing about? 😊'

𓆩♡𓆪 and issei will be like '😬 sorry babe..... it's a tall ppl thing you wouldn't get it'

𓆩♡𓆪 meanwhile maki is 6'0" so ONE inch taller than you ARGH

𓆩♡𓆪 anyway he would NOT let you be insecure abotu your height bc firstly he thinks you're gorgeous and will make you aware of it and secondly he genuinely doesn't make a big deal out of you being tall, since you are still shorter than him after all

𓆩♡𓆪 if you are feeling extra insecure he'll be quick to remind you that you're model height

𓆩♡𓆪 however for the most part he's doesn't pay much mind to your height

𓆩♡𓆪 like to him you're not his 'tall hot gf' , you're his hot gf who is tall iykwim ??

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

'what i look for in a partner is not someone who is not overly clingy and can identify when i need space and wont make a huge deal out of the fact i need space'

𓆩♡𓆪 he is defo not clingy

𓆩♡𓆪 i wouldn't go as far as saying he's distant but he doesn't mind when you need your space

𓆩♡𓆪 but he will still be there for you whenever you need it

𓆩♡𓆪 and he's kinda the same bc i imagine he'd probably also need space and time alone after seijoh's loss

𓆩♡𓆪 so he'd appreciate that you're understanding of that and don't cling to him when he would prefer to be on his own

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

'arcade!! I love the idea of an arcade date, it really shows you a lot about a person and whether or not they are a sore winner/loser or not. And at end of the night if the date’s been going well a nice night walk and some desert c:'

𓆩♡𓆪 matsukawa would so enjoy the arcade

𓆩♡𓆪 he's a bit competitive but for the most part he just likes to tease you

𓆩♡𓆪 like if he wins he will say you're going easy on him or maybe he's just that good

𓆩♡𓆪 but if he loses he'll be like 'nahh it's coz i had an eyelash in my eye' or 'that was just a warm-up! let's go again for real.'

𓆩♡𓆪 but you can tell he is doing it in a joking way bc he loves to see you get a little worked up

𓆩♡𓆪 and plus it gives him an excuse to ask for a rematch , therefore more time spent with you = profit!!

𓆩♡𓆪 oh and you both end up playing so many games by the end of the night you have like.. thousands of tickets

𓆩♡𓆪 and have to decide together what to spend it on

𓆩♡𓆪 matsukawa will probably suggest something goofy like a slinky or those stinky , cheap little putties they offer or a rubber bouncy ball

𓆩♡𓆪 but he could be convinced to get something else like a cute keychain or plush

𓆩♡𓆪 he would insist on giving it a name and sharing custody though

𓆩♡𓆪 omg he could also be convinced to go into one of those silly photo booths they have at the arcade and take filtered pics in front of the eiffel tower and niagara falls

𓆩♡𓆪 he'll say the pics look crazy bad bc parts of you both are clipping through the background but he'll still keep the strip in his wallet or in his phonecase

𓆩♡𓆪 he'd so be down for a little sweet treat too

𓆩♡𓆪 and would lk be the type to offer you some of his cake or icecream or whatever then feed it to you 😩😩

𓆩♡𓆪 WAIT ok so if it was like a small cake he'd pick it up and when you take a bite he'd push it into your face a little so you'd get cream on your nose

𓆩♡𓆪 so he can laugh and take a pic but also that would sooo be the moment he falls for you 😵

𓆩♡𓆪 and he'd wipe it off with a napkin like a gentleman!!!

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

for @slut4msby: i was thinking kenma but firstly he's not tall and also i think you being an ambivert would suit matsukawa more

[br1ghtestlight]

random thought but i love eugene mirman's gene sounds ESPECIALLY when gene is sleeping. they're so good & cute

louise tina bob and linda looking @ gene literally exactly like this when he forgets how his song goes at breakfast LMAOO

love that tina and louise seem to actually pay attention to what songs gene is writing and what they're about despite the fact that there are SO MANY. supportive family <3

gene's dream.... bro that was god speaking to you. like for real wtf

also im only a minute in and there are SO MANY good screenshots already he's such a cutie i love him so much!!!! <3 gene episodes my beloved

"Now I'm going to change into last night's pajamas, AKA my only pajamas, and brush my teeth with Tina's toothbrush because that's what I accidentally did last night."

"Wait, what?"

gene and tina are so silly?? 😭

me and gene share many similarities including waking up in the middle of the night every two hours for no fucking reason. like THATS relatable

MR AMBROSE APPEARANCE LETS FUCKING GOOO‼️‼️ why does his voice sound slightly sped up is he okay. does he have a new voice actor?? he sounds slightly off not like in a bad way its just strange

THERE WAS A NEW VOICE ACTOR BCUZ BILLY EICHNER WASNT CREDITED maybe bcuz its such a small appearance but thats very weird. i feel like mickey fans in season 12 episode 6 when loren did that horrible mickey impression 😭😭 also whoever did his voice in this episode wasnt credited so it was somebody from the main cast doing an impression of him. will try to figure out who. sorry episode review cancelled i need to figure out who the hell voiced mr ambrose in this episode

based on the fact that u cant obviously tell who it is i dont think its eugene mirman and probably not h jon benjiman?? dan mintz can only do one voice so its not him either. probably either john roberts larry murphy or a random crew member who they didnt bother to credit

(most likely billy eischner just wasn't avaliable to voice mr ambrose due to his movie career etc so i dont blame them but it was noticeable enough to ME that i needed to figure it out. not even a bad impression honestly the average fan wouldnt notice)

"What do you lucid dream about?"

"I do revenge stuff on people who were mean to me in high school, some fantasy and science fiction, some adult stuff I can't tell you about."

this is literally the gayest thing mr ambrose has ever said omg FHFMDDJKSKS i cant believe this drama club ass nerd was bullied in high school who could have guessed. not me thats for sure

(now somebody has to write a fanfic about mr ambrose having Adult Stuff dreams about mr frond. i want this on my desk by 3pm tomorrow)

love mr ambrose and his gay ass curly hair..... mr ambrose my beloved <33 kisses u

i dont have anything to say im just strangely invested in gene's lucid dreaming plot at this point. Love all his silly little dreams and its incredible he never seems to have any nightmares or anything!!

this is reminding me of the movie where gene had a dream and he was scared that he wasn't good at music and that people weren't going to like his performance and the aliens came down to told him to stop 😭😭💔 his insecurity that he might not be that good a musician literally makes me cry. he's so sweet and kindhearted my babyy boy

CAN I SKIP SCHOOL AND GO BACK TO SLEEP LMAO

"Even successful musicians went to sixth grade, Gene."

"That's a MYTH!!"

weirdly mr ambrose started sounding completely normal at some point like did his voice actor come back and just wasn't credited?? or whoever did this impression was REALLY good jfc

mr ambrose HATES these fuckign kids bro

HES SO UNHINGED LMAO 😭😭

NOT THE STARING AGAIN. why are they literally just this image every single time gene plays music in this episode im gonna cry

love this specific frame of gene running his hand through his hair

awww bob is such a good dad

sidenote but this subplot with tina and louise is so stupid it actually made me laugh LMAO the fucking girl cricket. thr female cricket. like what if he's gay huh what then

"or if she's not his type she also makes a great best friend. she's a good listener" THANK YOU louise for acknowledging the cricket might be gay. she's an ally 🙏

AWW GENE WRITING HIS SONG <3 eugene mirman isnt a Good singer (not hating he literally says that all the time. they have to record each line seperately bcuz he cant sing on key) so its hard to tell when they're trying to make gene's songs seem good or not but this is really sweet. u can tell he just loves music so much

why is gene's song kinda making me emotional..... like this show is usually 50/50 on if it actually wants to take gene's songwriting ability seriously but in this episode its so clear how much he LOVES music and songwriting and how talented he is at it. he has trouble with focus and commitment sometimes but thats never an issue when it comes to his music and he'd happily spend an entire afternoon writing a song from start to finish (even skipping out on dinner) because he was so hyperfocused. love how much respect they give gene in this episode tbh

deeply appreciate the "larry murphy as teddy" credit despite teddy not having one single line in this entire episode. Literally just a legacy credit at this point

I LOVED THIS EPISODE 😭😭💕 i dont think it'll be as widely popular as some other episodes this season but as a gene fan and an artist this episode really resonated with me. the ending sequence was actually really beautiful (gives me the same vibes as "your heart's not broken its only growing" tbh) and i loved gene's song and all the different costumes they put him in for his dreams!! tina and louise's subplot was really cute too. very enjoyable episode if you're a gene fan or just a casual viewer who wishes he got more focus. he's SO SWEET and so passionate <3

[psychicpinenut]

omg yes I loved season 3 but its so different to s1 and s2. if those 2 seasons were centered around fast paced chaos and mayhem, then s3 is abt being stuck and not being able to push through everything and it shows with the pacing because there's so many moments where I'm burrowing my head in my hands and I'm like wtf carmen????? but it feels real

i think a lot of people were expecting episodes like fishes or even s1 review but it makes more sense for s3 to be so fleshed cause no one knows what the fuck theyre doing and i kinda like that s3 can be the interlude to s4- I just wish s4 would be arriving sooner especially since we ended on so many cliffhangers.

it definitely felt different. it must be because it's not like a fully fledged season, it feels more like a set up for something else. i can't really point to an episode that was THE episode like with s1 and s2. it was stressful but more in the sense that you're frustrated with what's happening. carmy is off the fucking rails and no one is telling him to stop. i'm guessing claire is supposed to be that break that pulls him back but because she wasn't there for him he's just unhinged. but i feel like he has so many people around him that love him and should be able to talk some sense into him but that didn't happen, everyone would rather yell at each other and get panic attacks than try to work it out. s4 is gonna have to deal with some major shit that went down and get this resolved asap

[burningvelvet]

hi can i ask to hear you rant about the 2018 mary shelley maybe

thanks for the ask! this is an unhinged stream of thought & super long of course. will reblog with part 2.

where do i even begin??? 1) its disappointing that the filmmaker is a highly accomplished feminist & role model but then she sells a fake biopic about a historical woman which is twisted to fit a false narrative that mary shelley herself would disagree with. so disappointing! 2) percy shelley wasnt an alcoholic he literally wrote against alcohol consumption in his work on vegetarianism 3) mary literally never even met harriet and if she had the chance she wouldn’t have because she hated her 4) shelley and harriet both saw other people; harriets 3rd child was percy’s; also i dont even remember if harriets suicide is mentioned? why bring her in to demonize percy if not utilizing the main reason why ppl demonize him in the first place? 5) mary didnt like polidori - he literally threatened her partner to a duel & polidori is insulted in the preface to frankenstein - but the film portrays them as good friends omg what 6) all the characters are one-dimensional 7) no offense to byron’s actor who did good with what he was given but the character was written to be like a parody of byron. like a halloween costume gone too far. one review described it as cartoonish & i agree 8) claire is unrecognizable; irl she was firey and bold and funny and she literally asked byron out multiple times before seducing him then followed him across the continent & she’s literally the one who introduced him to mary first then percy!!! percy/byron didn’t know each other prior! all of this is left out!!! 8) hogg is so demonized & rapey; that scene was so uncomfortable and inaccurate; irl he was calm & funny & mary literally was going to have sex with him but didnt bc pregnancy etc. - she wrote all this in her loving letters to him which dont fit the filmmakers agenda; hogg was one of shelley’s best friends etc. 9) most importantly, percy actively encouraged and helped mary with frankenstein & helped edit/publish it and literally wrote part of it & she said she couldn’t do it without him. but in the film they don’t show any of this. 10) shelley was never given credit for frankenstein 11) the actors are nothing like how i would imagine these people but they all did their jobs well and had good chemistry and its so disappointing they werent given a proper script or guidance etc 12) the film was boring as shit, i watched it before i knew anything about the romantics personal lives (so i wasnt even critical when i watched it) & i only got thru the first 20 mins or so then continued i think weeks later vowing to finish it & when i did i was pissed at wasting my time, esp the scene with mary/claire crying ugh it was so painful to watch and not in a good way 13) i was actually relieved when i found out the film was inaccurate & that these events werent as boring as they were presented. like i knew the film had to be wrong & dismissed it before i even started learning about the romantics. like these are some of the most fascinating people in history how do you make them that boring & one-dimensional & insufferable 14) the figures themselves would all hate the movie 15) why is it called “mary shelley” when it should be called “mary and percy” or “the making of frankenstein” bc thats all the film really focuses on tbh! she lived decades after frankenstein and wrote other stuff too. but i dont think the director or the writer knew any of that 16) byron was the only entertaining part ngl (tbh whether demonizing or glorifying him it would be impossible to make byron boring; hugh grants version almost was except he’s hugh grant) 17) no grave sex? cowards. most historians agree mary and percy had sex for the first time on her mother’s grave. 18) shelley/claire were best friends, most historians believe they had an affair, & mary and claire had a lot of arguments until mary kicked her out (they loved each other but didnt like living together). none of this is shown! instead mary/claire are girlbossing against evil man percy. if they wanted to demonize him so bad why didnt they use the claire affair.

[andromedaexists]

Love Me Now || R.M. Virtues

★★★★☆½

TW: EXPLICIT SEX, ROUGH SEX, ALCOHOL/DRUG USE, VIOLENCE, MURDER/ON-PAGE DEATH, KIDNAPPING, ABUSE, TRANSPHOBIA

There are more TWs at the start of this book. R.M. is really good about listing all possible TW's, but that means the list is rather long. Please read it and pay attention to it.

Before I start this, I do want to say that I received an ARC (advanced reader copy) of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another thing I would like to start off with. I know I've said it before, but I really think that some stories are not meant for certain people even if you love other stories by the same author. This series is a great example of that. I read book one (Drag Me Up) and Did Not Like It. That is okay! I also ended up reading just a few chapters each of books 2 (Keep Me Close) and 3 (Let Me In) before DNF'ing them. They were not stories for me.

HOWEVER, I ended up LOVING this book!

So let's get into it!

I actually do have a few things I didn't like here that brought my rating down to a 4.5 from a 5 star, so let's get those out of the way first:

The weird hyphen thing I mentioned with Drag Me Up is still present. It is not as common, but there were a few moments where I was drawn out of the atmosphere of the book because of the forced cadence

RM really loves ending these books with a sex scene. He really does. Which, in itself, isn't a bad thing but like the final chapters of both Drag Me Up and Love Me Now are sad or somber in tone. I just, I don't think it's appropriate for then to be going at it during these scenes (especially LMN, seeing as Patroclus is literally recovering from an autistic meltdown)

The therapy talk! OMG the therapy talk returns. Again, it's not as present or common as in Drag Me Up, but like I didn't come here for two very clearly unhinged characters to be teaching me morals about rage, y'know? (this book was tolerable, book 1 was not)

All of the trans characters (that we see the genitalia of) have all had bottom surgery. This isn't a bad thing, I just would have loved to see a character that didn't "fully" medically transition (I talked more on this in the review for DMU) like Sisyphus

Speaking of Sisyphus, RM made me like Sisyphus?? that should automatically dump this down to a 2 star read honestly I am Not A Fan of him in mythology. Book Sisyphus can stay tho. I like him.

But that's really all the qualms I had with the book! So let's talk about what I loved:

GAY AUTISTIC TRANS PATROCLUS FTW I love him so very much. A lot of me reading this book was just screaming about Patroclus and how much I love him omgggg

I also love that the contents of the prior books are summed up at the start of this book. Like, I am glad that I read Drag Me Up so that I have an idea of the world, but books 2 and 3 didn't feel like a necessity for me while reading this one.

I genuinely love the dynamic between Achilles and Patroclus. When I tell you I SCREAMED at my kindle every single time the two denied feelings for each other OMG. And then, AND THEN Achilles has the GALL to be soft and loving and adorable and accommodating to Patroclus' autism??? I need me a man like Achilles fr

When I tell you I screamed at the fact that Achilles knows Patroclus is sensitive to sound and he does everything in his power to accommodate that, INCLUDING covering his ears before he has to raise his voice?? I swooned omg

Speaking of Patroclus' autism, the way his autistic rage is portrayed. This is the closest I have come to seeing myself on page. The way that Patroclus processes everything is through the lens of rage, even if he seems calm and collected on the outside. I love that, like genuinely. This book does not shy away from showing the ugly side of neurodivergency. We need more of that in the world, we aren't all uwu pretty boys.

SPEAKING OF Achilles does not infantilize Patroclus AT ALL, not even when he's going through a meltdown! That's HUGE!! Especially for a love interest!! I love it sososo much!

There are honestly so many things I love about this book, a lot of the issues I had with the first book were resolved by the time this book came around. Like, the pacing was great, the characters were fleshed out, they were more than just their sex scenes, over all the vibes were just more put together.

I am so very glad I had the chance to read this book. I will be purchasing a physical copy of it and putting it on my recommendation shelf.

Some quotes I love:

He would follow this man anywhere. All the way to ruin.

It was anger. It had to be anger. It could be nothing else.

Fates, do not let me lose him here.

He put all his feelings in a blender until it all looked like wrath or apathy.

Oh, he would protect this man with his life. He invited the Fates themselves to challenge that.

He made Achilles soft. He made Achilles mortal.

No, as long as there was breath in his lungs, there would be hope.

Honestly there are so many more quotes I pulled out from this book, but I don't want to share too many since it doesn't officially release until the 30th! (I say, already nervous that the scope of this review might bee to in depth to release before pub day)

I would also like to throw in the chat that got to see my live reactions to the book here:

[tomdutch]

writer year in review: 2021

hiii <3 i responded to this tag last year and since there’s 4 hours until 2022 for me, i thought it’s time to do it again :’)

first creation and most recent creation of 2021

blue jeans was the first fic i posted! the last fic was a drabble for flufftober, home to me

one of your favorite creations from 2021

i started making social media au series this year and my favourite one is break my heart, it meant so much to me at the time and so did all the interaction it got :’)

a creation you’re really proud of

blue jeans! it took 12 pages of planning, three weeks of nonstop writing (in a pit of ocd induced depression but i’m counting it as writing productivity 😭) and it’s the longest thing i ever wrote, sitting at 33k words. i loved every bit of it, it’s my best writing and characterisation and i’m really happy with it :’)

a new style you tried this year and a fic that uses it

help i already answered this with the smau bit bc i did not read all these questions 🧍🏽‍♀️ lemme link another series though: sun & moon

a creation that took you forever

sunny side up… MONTHS y’all it took months to hit 10k words then like a week to hit 22k 😭 it really takes me forever to get into a fic but once i’m absorbed it goes a lot faster

your creation from 2021 that received the most notes

break up with your girlfriend has 1.5k which is insane y’all are insane and i love you

a creation you think deserved more notes

hmm i’d say bliss among sinners sort of flew under the radar rip

a new fandom you joined and a creation you made for it

none lmao we sedentary and loyal

a creation you made that breaks your heart

i don’t think anyone is surprised by me saying break up with your girlfriend lmaooo though i also very much enjoyed giving it an unhappy ending bc it felt like the most natural conclusion

a ‘simple’ creation that you really love

any of the flufftober drabbles tbh but late night love has a special place in my heart :’) when will tomothy impregnate me come on man

a favorite creation created by someone else

ah there were so, so many incredible fics posted this year, i feel horrible choosing just one, but i can’t deny i’ve read torn leaves, broken hearts by thee incredible @t-lostinworlds like 800 times sksksksks it’s my go-to fic for when i need some romantic indulgence. t, i’ve already talked your ears off about how much i adore this story and your writing in general, but god you really outdid yourself here. 

however for peter... a billet-doux from the lighthouse by @subspider ash you unhinged genius 🧎🏽‍♀️ the bar i’ve set for myself is already so low but i truly never thought i’d ever say i wanted to take care of and fuck spider!peter or a man with more than 4 limbs in general. yet here we are. thee emotions, thee tenderness, thee yearning, thee web eating. poetic cinema.

some of your favorite content creators from the year

omg so many but to keep it a lil short bc i’m sleepy lmao: @userholland @specialk-18 @softholand @subspider @silkscream @vendettaparker @arvinsescape 

and for good measure, a couple more creations of yours that you love

hmmm bubblegum pop, love lies, welcome home, what moonlight can do & girls like you

tagging: everyone i’ve tagged here is very welcome to do this (no pressure ofc!!) + @veryholland @heavenlyholland @harryhollandsgirlfriend @honeyspidey @449 @peterbenjiparker @uhlxis @justapurrcat @saturnpeter @blissfulparker @lauras-collection & anyone else who wants to!!

++ not to be cheesy, but this was a very tumultous fucking year and through that all, despite how insufferable this app can be sometimes, i truly have been able to count on this lil community of ppl to make me feel better. i’ve made some wonderful friends and interacted with lovely people, and i appreciate all of y’all so much. i hope you have a peaceful, joyful and safe 2022. thank you to anyone who’s ever left a sweet comment on or sent me an ask abt a fic of mine. it means so much to me, i’m so greatful and i’m very excited to share more writing with y’all next year ♡

[peterstanslizzie]

Reacting To: Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (Season 3 Episode 2)

Episode Title: Code Word Milkshake

Spoiler Warning: Kindly proceed if you’ve already seen the episode or are able to handle spoilers 

1. OMG! A K-pop song? That’s so cool! It sounds like BTS lol. And the song is pretty catchy too 🎵; “Dive into my ocean of love”. It’s such a bop! We see the mutes (even the Mod Frogs) fangirling HARD. But what animals are these guys supposed to be? Are they dolphins? But why do they have horns? And apparently abs as well: 

2. Aww but the leader of the group, Hyun Soo (as revealed in the subtitles) soon gets paralyzed by a dart and is kidnapped after signing fan autographs. And of course, it’s the doing of Dr. Emilia as she’s seen testing a serum sample on Hyun Soo. Again, I’m impressed with her ability to be so stealthy. However, she’s finding it difficult in getting the right formula for the genetic serum since none of the samples she’s used so far has worked on the kidnapped mutes. BTW, Jamack talking to Hyun Soo is hilarious. 

3. In Timbercat Village, Kipo is planning with HMUFA a mission to find Emilia, rescue their friends and retrieve Song’s research journal. Oh, did Asher get a haircut? If so, they look really nice.

4. Our boy, Benson wants Troy to come along because he feels safer when he’s around. How precious! I’m  happy he gets to go on a mission with Kipo for the first time too. It’s nice to mix groups up sometimes. And it looks like it’s just gonna be a human/hybrid-only mission because the mutes won’t be able to handle Emilia’s sonic emitter. Dave is upset that he won’t be able to tag along with them. I think it’s a good thing to sit this one out because he does have a tendency to die during their missions lol.

5. They manage to hitch a ride on a couple of dragonfly mutes due to Kipo coming up with the codeword, “Milkshake” to keep situations calm.  Random but okay. As they’re flying over the sea, they spot a ship, which definitely belongs to Emilia since we hear Zane asking Greta to turn on the sonic emitter as some mysterious sea creature was circling around them. Because the dragonflies are not immune to the sound, this causes them all to fall into the water

6. The group tries to climb over the ship to get a peek of the situation aboard and they can see the burrow humans enjoying their time there, splish-splashing in a giant pool paired with a crazy slide and everything. 

7. Dave lets Lio and Roberto know that he wants to have a boys night out (BNO) with them. But it’s clear that he’s doing this because he still feels salty about not being included in the stealth mission. Roberto looks like he doesn’t want to go out but Lio is down to hangout with Dave-o lol. 

8. Back on the Dr. Emilia’s ship, Kipo and gang try to find her lab but they almost got spotted by a blonde human girl, who apparently is able to hear Hyun Soo  sing through the cafeteria vents and thus, wants him to sing for her. Kipo and Troy actually recognize her from their old burrow. She’s actually Hoag’s daugther, Doag! I can’t believe he named his daughter that lol. Anyways, they were all actually friendly with one another, so we shall see if she’s willing to help them or not. Doag really likes dancing and we see her dancing around to Hyun Soo’s singing. She then does a split and spots them. Well, she doesn’t look alarmed actually. 

9. Meanwhile, Dave and Lio are playing cards but afterward, they went to check out the so-called “community bonding” session between Timbercats and the Umlaut snakes. At first, it seems like they are having a huge argument but they’re actually just writing a song and having a couple of debates. It’s song-break time. This time, the song is called ‘Friendship Alliance’. How fitting. After the performance, Lio says he wants to go to bed but Dave isn’t done yet and wants him to check out his secret stash of explosion berry cola.

10. Doag explains to the group that Dr. Emilia has been treating them nicely so far but they want her to know the truth about Emilia who has been trying to kill Kipo since she was a baby. Plus, according to Troy (and Benson from earlier on), she didn’t eat his Benson’s pancakes. Troy is way more upset about the part about the pancakes, which of course he has to be since it’s his boo’s pancakes. But my goodness, Doag’s voice is like nails on the chalkboard. Don’t you agree? 

11. I think it’s hard for them to convince her that Dr. Emilia is a bad person, especially since they don’t have any real evidence to show. Emilia is like a savior to these humans. Fortunately, Doag wants to help them rescue Boom-Boom, Jamack, Camille and Hyun Soo regardless. 

12. She takes them to Dr. Emilia’s lab, which isn’t very hidden like they said lol. The door’s locked but Troy, the skilled magician was able to pick the lock no problem. Benson is impressed and he actually addressed him as his boyfriend! Cute!

13. They enter the lab and we see all the kidnapped mutes trapped in their individual mute-proof cells. Aww the way Jamack called Kipo, Burrow Girl was so sweet. He has come a really long way with her since Season 1 huh? I don’t know what’s up with Boom-Boom but she(?) doesn’t look too good, almost unhinged. So, Hyun Soo is known as a Dolphicon! I guess that’s short for Dolphin and Unicorn. That’s explains the horn. I actually like the name “Wall Siren” for him as well. Despite only speaking in Korean, Hyun Soo does seem to understand English when Doag asks him “who are you?”. I feel like the introduction of Hyun Soo is like paying homage to Kipo’s animation studio, Studio Mir, which is in fact South Korean. 

14. Kipo proceeds to then break them out of their cells. Doag declares she’s going to help them escape. I actually hope there’s a chance that she would be part of Kipo’s group officially. She seems cool, mostly lol. Wolf also finds Song’s research journal but before they could make their escape, the traumatized Boom-Boom looks at the needles Dr. Emilia has been using on her, freaks out and drops her nectar bombs on them, which causes the whole lab to explode.  Boom-Boom needs therapy for sure. Ughh…Wolf also accidentally drops the journal and leaves it behind the lab. That book is probably destroyed. 

15. Back at Timbercat village, I assume Lio had already drank the cola before he is super hyped. Yumyan also joins in on their shenanigans and he gives them the idea to steal Molly’s axe and put it in an axe bush (is that what Yumyan said?). Also, is this supposed to be a pun or something?

16. Doag puts Hyun Soo in their getaway boat but it’s weird since he’s a dolphin and can just swim in the water instead lol. They’re supposed to leave now but Kipo wants to face Emilia now. I say she’s making a bad decision here. Dr. Emilia then arrive with Greta and Zane but Wolf takes out the latter two easily. The rest of the humans come out to the deck to see what the ruckus is all about and Emilia tries to play coy and innocent with them. 

17. Hoag notices that his daughter isn’t around. Our heroes try to explain to the humans that Dr. Emilia is the bad guy; They told about how Song is the Mega Monkey and how she got her to attack and destroy their home back in Season 1. And they explain that she mind-controlled Song to kill her own daughter. 

Even grandma can deliver a beatdown on someone lol

18.The humans are reluctant to believe them because it does sound very farfetched. But c’mon…they should know by know that Las Vistas is a messed up place; Anything can happen. Also, don’t they remember the Mega Monkey saving them from getting gilded in Season 2. Suddenly, Hoag makes an attempt to paralyze Kipo with one of the darts but she quickly reacts and knocks him out. The humans see this and they get mad at her. Eventually, Kipo and the others make their escape. Finally. 

19. Back to Lio and Dave. We find out towards the end that Molly actually killed Dave 5 times for the stunt he pulled on her lol. Anyways, the both of them are glad to have this bonding session with one another since Kipo isn’t around. 

20. Our heroes reach land but Doag wants to go back because she knows her dad is worried sick about her. And so, Hyun Soo and I guess the rest of his groupmates are bringing her back there. Aww, she should’ve stayed but I understand why she wants to go back to the ship. But to be honest, somebody should’ve thought to give her a communicator or a walkie-talkie or something because at least they can know what Dr. Emilia’s next move is. Perhaps they don’t really have to think too much into it since the journals has been decimated and all…or is it?

21. Wolf, I hope you’re happy you dropped the journal lol. Dr. Emilia figures out that Kipo is X. Wait, I’m trying to remember if there any mention of X in the previous episodes. Anyways, I wonder what she’s going to do with the fur Kipo left during their last confrontation. I guess since Kipo is a human who also has the DNA of apex predators, Emilia is going to play with her recombinant DNA and figure out a way to reverse the effects of the mute DNA so that only the normal DNA will be present? I dunno….

22. Last note/tiny bit of criticism: Is it just me or do you guys sometimes think that some of the character designs look a little wonky in this episode? Sometimes, I felt like Kipo, Benson and even Troy look a little off in some frames. Anyways, that’s the end of my review of episode 2. Stay tuned tomorrow for my review of episode 3. Thanks for reading everybody!

[winetae]

MY ANGEL HELLO!! 💞💞!! Omg no need to be sorry at all and i hope things have gotten better for you!! And if not then I hope you can do little things that make you happy bc you deserve it!! KCKCKVKV March has been a very weird month…but I do think it’s bc it’s been literally two years in this pandemic cjcjcjcj but all the more reason to take care of ourselves in this time!!

AHHH watching figure skating felt like a horrible rollercoaster that was only going down for a long time!! but same i got so happy for sui and Han!! And omg the woman’s individuals were so hard to watch and literally the scores were so hard to watch!! I HATE THE ISU!! And yes we love yuzu in this house!! Honestly, I’m so tired of these jumps getting over scored when I feel like the most beautiful skating we get is when the artistry gets to shine!! But anyway thank you for your posts, it felt like I had a buddy living through that hell with me!!

Hehe my favorite flavors are the sugar ones!! I tried a taro and mango sugar one last week and it was so good!! Do you have a favorite?? OMG yesss taeyeon always has such good albums and i honestly have that album on repeat!! Omg listen none of your writing is trash and that’s so cute and awesome that you got inspired!! and i get emo over music and yoongi too JCKCKCJCJC!! Omg I totally forgot to listen to apinks album but I did enjoy their title so I’ll have to report back!!

Ooh I’ve never seen kingdom so I will have to try it out!! AND OMG!!! I’m watching 25, 21 too!!! Kim taeri is so cute and I love the cast!! It’s such a lovely coming of age drama!! DKFKCMCMCN I SNORTED OMG, listen somehow nam joohyuk gets us all…i remember that i literally stopped in the middle of the first episode of bride of the water god bc I couldn’t take it and now look at me KXKXCNCK

I missed you angel!! I hope you’re doing well and I’m sending all the good luck you’re way!! And all the hugs and kisses!! I hope you have a lovely weekend and can drink some wine and have some desserts!! 💗💖💞 also I’m so excited to experience another rv comeback with u!! Please expect me to come screaming into your inbox!!

HI BB I MISSED U 🥺🤍 aw thank u so much i’m definitely going to try to take better care of myself 🤧🤍🤍🤍 i hope you’ve been doing well, drinking ur water + getting all the rest u deserve !!!! march was a weird month 🙃 i’m finally getting my life together slowly but surely so i take that as a good sign !

omg figure skating… getting them war flashbacks as i type 🤕 it’s so fascinating to see we share the same interests tho !!!! sag twin indeed !!!! i agree w what u said about artistry >> my only exception is sasha trusova for some reason idgaf about artistry when she skates i love my unhinged jump champion 🥲

ooooo ive never tried those flavors before 🧐 i really need to try more to have a fave ;; n YAY A TAEYEON FAN ! she has the best albums for real… what are ur fave songs??? ok maybe i will post the yoongi drabble just for u ! n dj ddjwjsk i still haven’t listened to apink 😭 pls tell me if it’s worth it or not

yes i love kingdom !! 🥺 n omg i actually haven’t watched anything after ep 8 if 2521 the reviews and comments about the rest scare me 😭😭😭 it was really cute up to that point tho but i don’t want the drama to disappoint me ;;;; DONT MENTION BRIDE OF THE WATER GOD it’s a cursed drama omg it was so bad i couldn’t finish ep1 either

MISS U TOO ALWAYS ! ur comments n messages are a big positive part of this blog 🤍 ily i wish only good things for u !!!! i def had all the wine i could have (+ desserts) n i hope u also treated urself to some nice things hehe ! i will answer ur rv ask in a separate ask bc idk how to combine it on mobile ! 😚

[lokilickedme]

I gotta tell you guys a funny story.  I’m going to put it under the cut because it’s long and also probably not of any interest to anyone who hasn’t sold on eB*y before, but it’s a followup to something I posted back in October and the ending is kinda epic:

Okay, so back sometime around the end of October I posted about a buyer that was giving me trouble.  She had filed for a return label to send back something she bought from me, due to the fact that she’d found it cheaper someplace else after she’d paid for mine.  Which isn’t allowed - the only valid reason eBay allows for requesting a refund is if the item isn’t as described.  Which mine was.  So I politely told her her request wasn’t valid and as per eBay’s rules I was under no obligation to let her send it back or issue her a refund.

She fired back a rant telling me that I should read the rules because she was ABSOLUTELY allowed to get a refund for that reason if she wanted to (yes, she did actually use the term “if I want to”).  So I pulled up the easily accessible Rules For Buying page, copied and pasted the paragraph where it’s clearly stated that the only situation in which a seller is required to issue a refund is the one situation that ours clearly wasn’t, and sent it to her with a “thank you, have a wonderful weekend” because that should have ended it right there.

She threw an ungodly SHIT.FIT.  Told me I didn’t know what the hell I was talking about and she was gonna get me kicked off eBay AND get her money back.  Oh and for my information, the “real” reason she actually wanted a refund was because the item wasn’t as described (which is, coincidentally, the rule that I had copied and pasted to her in my previous reply, which she vehemently denied was anywhere in the rules).  I laughed hard at that...like, pants pissing hard.  She hadn’t even known about that rule until I told her, and then she immediately changed her story to fit it.

BUT - she’d already filed her complaint under the category of “found item cheaper somewhere else”, which in eBay speak = shit out of luck.  You can only file once and you can’t change anything once you’ve submitted it.  She filed with an invalid reason, the first one they immediately disallow straight across the board - Buyer’s Remorse.

She blew her load in her own damn face.

Cue multiple more emails threatening me, telling me I have no idea what I’m talking about (I’ve been selling there for 20 years this Autumn, she’s been registered for less than 2 years) and insisting that I do what she says and give her her damn money back NOW.  I say sorry, but no.  But I still have to take some sort of action on the filed complaint, because that’s just how it works (a seller can lose a case that they’re clearly in the right on just by failing to respond to it officially).  That plus the nutbag had added more details to her side of the case, stating now that the item wasn’t as described (despite having officially filed it as Found It Cheaper Elsewhere).

So now she’s got two conflicting reasons listed for wanting a refund, but since she filed it under the first one, she’s screwed and there’s no unscrewing her.  But still I gotta do something official from my end, I’m just not sure what.

So I called eBay and asked if I should ignore the request or decline it.  The rep got the details from me, read all the emails between myself and Nutbag, reviewed the case notes, and came back to the phone LAUGHING HER ASS OFF.  Decline it right now, she told me in between choking sobs.  So I hit the decline button while the rep tried to get herself under control (and failed, because yeah, Nutbag’s emails were amusingly unhinged and ridiculous as hell) and we chatted for a minute because this was apparently the best thing that had happened to her all day and she was grateful to me for calling.  So I ask her what Nutbag can do next.  “Absolutely nothing” she assures me.  “Block her unless you just really enjoy being harassed, though from the looks of it you were having a great time.”

Yeah, I admit I was :)

But to avoid any more wasted time and energy, I go ahead and block her, meaning she can never contact me again because all of our correspondence has been through the eBay messaging system and she doesn’t have my email address.  It also means she can’t bid, buy, or send offers on any of my things ever again.  I’m shut of her.  Good riddance.  Ebay rep assures me that if Nutbag strikes back with negative feedback, all I have to do is call again and they’ll remove it and give her a strike for abuse of the feedback system.  Everything is in my favor and there’s absolutely nothing for me to worry about.

Ebay rep thanks me again for the good time and we say goodbye.

I keep an eye on my feedback for a few days, but nothing happens, and after about a week I stop even checking it.

And then about two weeks later I get a notice from PayPal.  Nutbag has filed a chargeback on the transaction.  She has filed a claim that her credit card was stolen and the purchase wasn’t made by her.

This is conflicting lie #3 on this purchase, and they’re just getting more hilarious as she gets more desperate to win.  The big gaping obvious hole in her claim this time?  The item was shipped to her home address, addressed to her, and the USPS tracking that PayPal had access to showed it was delivered to her at that address.  Why would someone steal her card and make purchases on it, only to have them delivered to her, the card owner?

So I called PayPal and pointed this out.  Another rep got the opportunity to laugh their ass off, and laugh he did.  I had already called eBay and requested permission to share with PayPal all the correspondence that took place through their system, so the PP guy read it all and just fell apart.  He counted the lies and I could all but see him shaking his head in disbelief.  And then the big whammy happened, and my faith in the entire universe was completely, unequivocally restored (with the exception of the rock Nutbag lives under).

PP rep informs me that not one penny will be taken from my account, because I’m covered by PP’s insurance and the case OBVIOUSLY is fraudulent...and then he tells me the really good part.  Because she filed the chargeback through her credit card company instead of through PP themselves, according to PP policy her account with them would be closed permanently.  As in, no more PP for Nutbag.  EVER.

I about choke on my tongue.  Every crooked thing this woman has done has backfired on her SO EPICALLY that it’s starting to border on unbelievable.  It’s like the two bank robbers in Raising Arizona who ended up just breaking back into jail at the end because everything they did blew up in their faces.

So PP rep guy (still laughing) tells me not to worry about anything, there’s nothing I need to do, even if her credit card company goes ahead and grants her the chargeback (which wasn’t likely because PP rep guy was typing notes about the fraud into the claim page as we were speaking) that PP would pay it through their insurance and not a penny of mine would ever be touched.  The claim wouldn’t count against me and absolutely nothing was going to happen to me.

But Nutbag was about to get a very upsetting email from PP, and dear god in heaven I wish I could have been there when she got it.

So PP rep guy and I bid each other good day, he thanks me for the funsies, and I spend the rest of the day giggling because omg it feels so good when lying dishonest assholes get what’s coming to them.

She lost, completely and ignominiously, at both eBay AND PayPal (and probably her own bank as well) - and all her frothing at the mouth to get even with me had failed embarrassingly.

So...all of this wrapped up a couple of weeks ago, and earlier tonight it crossed my mind to check my feedback at eBay, because I’d sort of forgotten about Nutbag.  Still no bad feedback, which is really surprising based on her previous refusal to back the hell off no matter how many times she was proven wrong.  But hey, I’m not complaining, that’s one less phone call I have to make.

And then out of curiosity I click on her ID and look at her purchase list on her feedback page.  There’s been no transactions since her run-in with me.  Not one.  And then I realize...without a PayPal account, her eBay account is basically useless, because a good 99% of all sellers there require PayPal as their only accepted payment method.  Some will take credit cards, but after PP reported her attempted fraud to them, they probably canceled her card as well.

Nutbag can’t buy on eBay anymore :D

I kept my hard earned money and my good selling reputation and got a good jolly giggle out of the whole thing.  And somewhere in New York, a failed fraud with the worst lying skills in the history of dishonesty is probably still trying to figure out how to get that $18 back from me.

And that’s the story of how I saved the rest of the eBay selling community from ever having to deal with Nutbag.  You’re welcome.

[gayfantasybooklist]

Nightrunner Series

★★★☆☆

Luck in the Shadows

1996 by Lynn Flewelling

Sword & Sorcery (-ish); Queer main characters.

★★★☆☆

Stalking Darnkess

1997 by Lynn Flewelling

Heroic Fantasy (-ish); Queer main characters.

★★☆☆☆

Traitor’s Moon

1999 by Lynn Flewelling

Epic Fantasy (-ish); Queer main characters.

All three books follow our two protagonists: Alec (sweetheart) who starts out as a country bumpkin who kicks ass at archery but is also very sexually verklemmt due to his religion and because, well, he is a country bumpkin. Seregil is a flaming bisexual who is incredibly fun to follow because he’s classy and thieving and secretly a badass super-agent for the world’s secret magic police (and his aristocrat alter-ego has a butler.). Then there’s also Seregil’s best friend and ex-agent-turned-family-man Micum who is a nice down-to-earth foil for the all-over-the-place Seregil. And the two Thaumaturgists (magicians) Nysander (a morally more ambiguous and heterosexually active version of Dumbledore) and Thero (I started off hating him like Malfoy, but after 2 books loved him like Hermione).

Luck in the Shadows is a delightful Sword & Sorcery adventure story of Alec & Seregil meeting in some random lord’s prison cell, travelling to the city of Rhíminee together (note a hilarious boat adventure where Seregil dresses as lady and flirts with the oblivious crew so hard that they basically still want to bone him even after they find out he’s a guy), and doing some masterfully written thieving that puts Ocean’s 11 to shame (= Nightrunning).

Stalking Darkness has a more heroic fantasy feel to it as Alec and Seregil get roped into the war between the countries of Plenimar and Skala (and poor Mycena which basically just gets run over #Belgium) and thwart a necromancy plot that tries to unhinge the foundation of magic itself. Still lots of skillful thieving and secret agent stuff going on, and with increased awesomeness, because Alec has been practicing. Also, Micum’s daughter Beka (badass lieutenant) is the POV character on the battlefield and we get some fun and pretty gruesome battle tactic shenanigans.

Traitor’s Moon gets into the epic fantasy genre I’d say. It’s set in Aurënen, the country of the magical Aurënfaie and dragons and explores the cultures of all the clans in a diplomatic quest to have Aurënen help in the war between Plenimar and Skala (which somehow is still going on despite Nysander kicking serious ass at the end of the second book). It doesn’t have the same fast-paced sword & sorcery action as the other two books, and instead explores the culture and magic system of the world, anchored in a kind of detective story (somebody died and also Seregil’s ex-boyfriend from when he was young got him exiled and everyone is still salty about that). Props to Flewelling for creating not just paint-by-numbers elves, but Aurënfaie whose longevity has actual consequences on their diplomacy with short-lived human nations (#neverforget). The dragon life-cycle is creative: dragons start out as very common lizard-size buggers whose (lucky?) bite sings like a bee, but no one kills them because who knows, they might grow up to be big and sentient and then come for you. My only issue with this book is the resolution at the end, which was okay, but not half as clever as I hoped it would be.

The most delightful moments in all three books are in the slow-burn relationship between Alec and Seregil. Seriously, it’s so slow that it doesn’t hit the ground until I think midway through the second book when Rhíminee’s pleasure houses (color coded by sexual preference – genius!) catalyze some much needed sexual awakening in both Alec (omg I’m so gay) and Seregil (omg I’m totally in love with Alec). Their relationship transitions from travel companions to friends to mentor-mentee, and then to a beautiful and respectful (and sexual) romantic relationship (side note: everyone is cool with the gays in this world, aside from Alec’s priest teachers). For all the ageist readers out there who noticed the significant age gap between Alec & Seregil: that gets explained away with the usual immortality/longevity context we often find in fantasy, but what I actually find more convincing is that their relationship is just as initially angsty and then healthy as if they were the same age, so my conclusion was: who cares? I did notice a shortage of female characters especially in the first book (even though Flewelling is a woman), but actually gender dynamics are explored in interesting ways in this world through the kingdom of Skala where they only have female monarchs (because prophecy reasons), and their military is refreshingly mixed gender. The Aurënfaie culture also has interesting female and clan/chief dynamics, in addition to being generally very creative (and not based on conventional Western world templates).

How I discovered this book: “The Gay Fiction Booklist that Doesn’t Suck”

I post a book review every week. Visit https://gayfantasybooklist.weebly.com for the full archive.

[wullu]

the hills are alive with my feelings about arang and the magistrate

A review that I am transplanting from LJ cause my feelings about this drama haven’t changed one bit. 

 It was technically the first kdrama that I watched from start to finish (all the episodes and no fast-forwarding) and omg, it was the BEST thing ever!!! I absolutely loved the show. Never once did I get the feeling that I was bored. Every episode was gripping and the pacing was excellent. I could have done without the tears in the later half of the show (seriously you guys, EVERYBODY cries) but that’s like a minor complaint. My love for the show stems from a combination of factors, the main ones begin: an amazing storyline, really solid acting from everybody involved, and a historical romance with flipping amazing chemistry that I was really invested in. (I’m a sucker for historical romances, you guys. They are my weakness.) I’m going to take a moment to profess my love for Lee Jun-Ki who was flippity amazing. His portrayal of Eun-Oh was so good that you can actually see the character develop from somebody who does not give a shit to somebody who actually cares passionately about EVERYTHING. And as an added bonus, this fellow does his own stunts!! His fight scenes were a delight to watch. And then there is Shin Min-ah. Can I pls pinch her cheeks? She was so great as Arang. Sometimes when characters are very naïve, it becomes annoying because you want to take them and shake some sense into them. But never for a moment did I feel annoyed with Arang. In fact, I was rooting for her all the way through. Shin Min-ah played Arang with so much honesty and feeling that it kind of becomes impossible not to love Arang and you can totally understand why Eun-Oh falls head over heels for her. She’s absolutely lovable and she cuts through his façade right away. And oof, the chemistry between these two. BE STILL MY BEATING HEART. They were so, so good together. I mean, it’s been a while since a pairing as evoked such squeeing and chest clutching from me. I HAZ A NEW OTP you guys. They complemented each other so well and were so ready to sacrifice and do stuff for each other at the drop of a hat all because they wanted the other to be happy. #OTPGOALS. (Though I really could have done without Arang throwing herself into harm’s way to protect everybody all the frickin’ time. A very admirable quality for sure but girl, NO. ) You know what else I really liked about this show? Joo Wal, the second lead. Yes, he was a villain and a very cowardly one at that, but Yeon Woo Jin did an excellent job of portraying him. He did most of his acting through his eyes and his eyes are so expressive. Whenever he cried, I was like, “OH NO, PLS HUG THIS TERRIBLE VILLIAN CHILD’. He’s a terrible person who really earns your sympathy. Never have I felt as bad for a villain as I felt for this fellow.  What made him sympathetic was the fact that he realises that he’s a terrible person and never justifies what he did as right. You can actually see the turmoil in his face as he struggles to come to terms with the fact that he did some really bad things. Ugh, he really did tug at my heart strings. His love for Arang was all kinds of heart-breaking because not only did he know it was not going to come to fruition, but also because he realises that he really did have a chance when Arang was alive but didn’t not make anything of it. The crushing, soul-destroying irony of it was not lost on him. And besides, while I don’t agree with what he did and how he did it, it was hard not to feel bad for him. All he wanted was a family and love and he ended up getting the most twisted version of it. The show did a really good job of portraying him as a person pretty similar to Eun-Oh, except what sets them apart is that when Eun-Oh is determined to do something, he will literally move heaven and earth to get it done and is just not afraid at having to sacrifice things. I felt like Joo Wal also recognized that about Eun-Oh, which in turn makes him realise that even if he does love Arang, his love is no match for Eun-Oh feels for Arang. I also really liked the other villain, Mu Yeon. She was twenty different kinds of manipulative and SO CHILLING. The lady who played her for most of the show, Kang Moon-young, was amazing. I mean, her switching between poison-tipped sweetness and unhinged evilness was spine-chilling. I was legitimately terrified for anyone who got in her way. One thing I wish they had explored a little more was the side plot between Mo Young and Mu Yeon. There was a spark of something interesting there, considering the fact that these two have been inextricably linked together in so many lives and even became a part of heaven together. Plus, there’s no denying the fact that their actors look so good together. In the few scenes they had together, I saw SO MANY shippy vibes. You could have thrown us a bone here show. I do also wish we saw more of Im Joo-Eun. Maybe it’s just me, but there’s something very arresting about her. So yeah, in conclusion, LOVED it. 10/10 would recommend to everybody on the street if they didn’t think I was nuts for doing so. B-)