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docholligay · 4 years ago

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House Lights

@phrdycg sponsored this fic, with the prompt “Rin gives Futaba a pep talk” I’ve been toying with it all month, trying to get it right! Thank you so much!

Rin Miyamoto was well aware that most people would have considered her profession a failure, including many of those who shared it.

It was a cruel twist of the theater world that many of them who taught how to walk the boards of the stage had themselves been washed out of it. There was, for this reason, sometimes the edge of bitterness in the words of the teachers, advising the girls with a flash of jealousy for the ones they all knew would make a success, a flash of pity for those they knew would not.

Rin was one of the few who seemed to seemed to find it a calling. She had always been small, which had been a distinct disadvantage in getting the roles she craved, and she was a hard worker more than she had the natural light of a star descended upon her. It was almost a relief when she was offered the job at Seisho offhandedly, even though she knew what it meant. It was a chance to have a stable, nice income and life for her and for Ayaka, she had thought, and Ayaka had gone there herself, on the production side, so there was a certain amount of pride for both of them.

Even she hadn’t expected to enjoy it so much more than she ever had being on the stage.

But enjoy it she did, and now, in honesty, she would never go back to the life she had before, grasping for each role and gazing onto those in position zero. She had a spring in her step every morning as she packed up her bento, sure of the reward of watching these girls learn and grow every day.

This joy did not mean, however, that there was never some amount of tolerance that needed to be exercised.

Last week, it had been yet another dust-up between Claudine and Maya, that on-again, off-again that most students wish would remain off-again, and save them all some time and trouble. Rin had tried to express to the girls that dating another actress rarely turned out well, in her experience, and that all of class B was right there, as a saner and safer option, but mostly this went unheeded. She had to assume that there was some similar reason for Futaba to be sitting at her door with a hangdog look.

“Futaba,” she unlocked the door to the office room, “Can I help you with something?”

Futaba looked up at her, distracted, as if she might have forgotten she was sitting in front of the teachers’ door at all.

“I...yeah, I was just..” she looked up and down the hall.

“Come in,” Rin swung open the door and hung up her coat, “I’ll get water started for tea.”

Futaba had always been a bit of a mystery to Rin, in some ways. She’d come in following Kaoruko like a little puppy, and just from seeing that, Rin might have assumed that she’d never make it, but then she blazed through the auditions like a hot knife through butter, only to dull again as soon as she had made it, carrying Kaoruko around. She seemed to simultaneously long to be something more and be incapable of allowing herself to have it, in a way that might have fascinated Rin more deeply if she wasn’t already involved enough in the romantic lives of teenagers.

Rin poured the water into two mugs and set them down on the desk in front of Futaba, who took the handle of the mug and ran her thumb up and down it, staring at the mug, no, through the mug, silent as stone.

“So…” Rin ventured, sipping a bit on her tea, “..can I?”

“I don’t know. I--”

It spilled out of her suddenly, a realization that it was true, that she wasn’t sure if Rin could help at all or not. She rose to her feet, shaking her head, and started for the door.

“Futaba!” Rin found herself standing, half insulted by the waste of time this had all been, half concerned that there was something so much deeper than Kaoruko’s heat and chill amiss with the situation. “You can’t just--come back here, Futaba.”

Futaba slowly walked back to RIn’s desk, and sat down, Rin pulling at the edge of her blazer and straightening it before she sat.

“What is it?”

Futaba took a sip of the tea, considering, but she made no attempt to break for the door, which heartened Rin at least a little. Finally, she looked up.

“Do you think I can do it?”

Rin took a sip of her coffee and furrowed her brow. “Depends on what ‘it’ is.” Is it continuing to make me guess what’s going on? She thought, not unkindly, because the answer to that is no.

“The stage.”

It wasn’t the first time Rin had been asked the question, and it was always a loaded one. It meant so many different things at once. Sometimes, the question was, “Will I lose my nerve on the professional stage?” Sometimes it was “Do you think I can get work?” And sometimes even more it was, “Can I make my parents understand that this is a job worth having?” There were others, she supposed, but mostly they were all variations on those same themes.

“I think..” she chose her words carefully. It would be easier, to ask which of those questions she meant, but it was Rin’s observation that introducing the idea that there were multiple ways you could fail at the stage never improved much of anyone’s mood. “That you should think about why you’ve having doubts.”

It was an imperfect answer. There was no good answer to a question you didn’t fully understand. But Futaba seemed to turn the response over in her mind as she sipped her tea, seemingly ignorant to the non-answer it was.

“It’s just…” she looked over at Rin. “I know the roles I want. I think I can work for them, for me, not for anyone else, now. But people like Maya, they’re always there, right? And why would you want me when--you know--you could have her?”

Ah. That was the question. Rin had looked in the mirror, and asked it herself, years ago. She had asked it herself, and plunged forward anyway. She was a hard worker. That was maybe the best thing you could have said of Rin Miyamoto, that no one pursued a role quite like she had. That no one studied the theory and the work. But her voice was only average, and though she was a good dancer, she was short, and so some of the girls towered over her, which made casting directors look right over the top of her.

It was like looking at her young self, looking at Futaba.

What would she have, could she have, said to herself, all those years ago? Would she have told young Rin that she would never get anything approaching a lead role? That she would be stuck to the side for her entire career, before retiring to little fanfare to go teach? That there would be disappointments ahead, and it wouldn’t matter how well she learned every single line, because there were some things that she could not change, and those things would wash against her like a wave every single time?

Would she have told herself to give up? If she could save herself the time and trouble?

Futaba looked at her expectantly. She’d shown such growth in the last few weeks, such commitment.

“I think that you should make it their job to tell you no,” Rin nodded, “don’t say no for them. Show up. Work hard. Perfect every little thing you can. Every audition is your chance to convince someone. Maya can’t win every time.” Rin chuckled. “I think. Een if she can. She can’t try out for every show, right?”

Futaba smiled, and nodded. “She can’t play every role.”

“That’s right. There’s a dozen Mayas out there, Futaba,” Rin set down her drink, “And they have enough audience without you watching them all the time, too. Keep your eyes on your mark. Make them work for it.”

If it were up to Rin, there would be a limit on how many times someone could take the leads in a year. The other teachers argued that it was important for the girls to learn about the brutality of the stage life as early as possible, but Rin always wanted to counter that they were young, and there were plenty of chances for them to learn that some people did seem to hit every single pitch in life. Would it matter to Maya, to get another lead role? It was unfair to accuse Maya of not working her hardest, but it was not unfair to accuse her of expecting to win every role she attempted.

It would be arrogance, if she wasn’t so correct.

Futaba smiled and nodded, drinking down a large swallow of tea as she did so. She seemed, if not completely convinced that all was well, to at least be resolute in her decision to keep trying.

“Thank you,” she gave a little bow and set the glass down on the table, “sorry for bugging you. I was just thinking.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Rin shook her head, “If I’m not here to talk you through this, why am I even here? The confidence is the hardest part, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” she nodded and picked up her bag, “I guess it is. Thank you, again.”

She turned to go, this time with a spring in her step, bag slung over the side of her now-straight shoulders. It was a good conclusion to the meeting, and maybe Rin should have left it alone, but she couldn’t. There was too much of her life behind her now, and if she could spare one girl the way she’d felt...

“Futaba,” she called after her, and was rewarded with a quick swing of the head, “I just want to say…” she thudded the end of her pen a few times on the desk in front of her, “I’m happy you’re really buckling down, with the stage work. You’ve got the talent. But I also, “ she considered carefully, “I also want to say don’t let the stage get in the way of being happy. There are a lot of ways to work in the theater, a lot of ways to be around it. It isn’t all position zero.”

I’m happier teaching than I ever was acting, she wanted to say. But Futaba’s furrowed brow told her that maybe that was too much--when you were this age, there was no stop between perfect accomplishment and crushing defeat. We start this world with so much of black and white, the greys only coming in as we learn to mix.

It would be impossible to explain to someone her age what it meant to come home to someone every night, how nice the simple act of sitting next to someone, cooking with them in the kitchen, how much seeing the girls grow as people, could fill you with something that was nothing like fame or adulation, that was so much quieter but so much warmer.

There were some things people had to discover for themselves. There were something that took time to unearth.

“Right.” Futaba said, thus proving every suspicion Rin had on the subject.

“You’ll do great.” Rin added.

She meant it. Maybe not in the way Futaba would have her mean it, but Rin realized, looking at her, that Futaba would be okay. There were dozens of ways to be a success, even if it took time to find them. Maybe she would find the stage. Maybe she would find home.

But as Futaba left the room, Rin looked back to her own life, and realized that for people like Futaba, and like her, there would always be some sort of path. You could only fail if you didn’t believe in a new way to win.

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hopetofantasy · 5 years ago

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Culture, parallels & meta - S3 E2

Zaterdag 10:21

That’s character: In this scene, they’re again establishing some of Robbe’s insecurities. We already know from previous seasons that he often feels like the third wheel, keeps to himself, lets people walk all over him or apologizes a lot, so that they don’t hate him or abandon him (like his dad did). But this scene takes it even further: he doesn’t want to be a burden. Not with stuff like his friend’s party mess, so he cleans up as early and fast as he can. Not with taking food that doesn’t belong to him, so he chooses to not eat anything instead.

Perfect parallel: Zoë mentioning “Especially the pasta” in this season, because Milan stole her pasta at the beginning of hers.

Surprise bitch, guess who? Milan’s one-nightstand appears to be ‘Georgy Chtchevaev’, a close friend of Jonathan Michiels (Viktor) and other cast members. Small, small world.

Oop, there it is, the homophobia / heteronormativity: Robbe’s expression at the end reveals how he longs for something like Milan has, but then realizes he might never have/want that. (Internalized homophobia is a bitch, y’all!)

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: The guy pulls out strawberry yoghurt from ‘Colruyt’ out of an almost empty fridge along with a spoon, from the cutlery drawer. Robbe’s gaze keeps lingering a tad too long on the half naked boy in their kitchen.

Zaterdag 14:43

C is for culture:

“Hey, I’m working here” - Teens are allowed to get a student job, as long as they’re at least 15 years old and completed the first two years of high school. The rules around how often they may work, has changed a lot during the last decade. However, nowadays, they’re allowed to work at a lower social security tariff as long as they don’t go over 475 working hours per year. Otherwise, they’ll have to pay the normal amount or even taxes if they surpass a certain income limit.

“No, I was just shopping” - C&A (Clemens & August Brenninkmeijer) is a Dutch chain store of origin with approx. 1,500 stores in Europe. They mostly attract older generations, as their style is seen as a bit old-fashioned and classic. That’s why their popularity significantly dropped in recent years, causing closures in some cities. - A smart move of putting product placement in a youth tv series.

Perfect parallel:

Robbe pulling a t-shirt off the rack to get Noor’s attention in this episode, him using the same tactic with a sweater in the last episode.

Noor sitting on a reluctant Robbe’s lap to kiss him here, Robbe happily straddling Sander to kiss and talk later on.

Oop, there it is, the homophobia / heteronormativity: Robbe again faking that he likes Noor’s sexual advances.

Lost in translation: Robbe’s mom texting him “Ziet ge mij niet graag?”, which could literally be interpreted as “Don’t you want to see me?”, but in this context it actually means “Don’t you love me anymore?”.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: In case you didn’t catch it, Robbe is making a double joke with the t-shirt - saying that Noor is sexy as well as repeating the song on the store radio. Jana’s look at a disheveled Noor reveals that she knew Robbe wasn’t just ‘trying something on’.

Bonus: This season uses a lot of mirrors to reflect Robbe’s emotions and inner turmoil. Even his relationships with Noor and Sander are mirrored within the season itself: he never liked what Noor did for him (waiting outside the school, making out in public, going next level) and he was amazed at Sander doing the same. Mirrors are the perfect way of showing how Robbe has two faces: his ‘straight’ public persona and his struggling inner ‘gay’ self.

Zondag 19:59

That’s character: Zoë’s mom behavior is at full force here. When she spots her friends, roommates or boyfriend in difficult situations, she jumps to the opportunity to make them feel better. She instantly defends them, provides a shoulder to cry on, gives advice, feeds them when needed, tries to figure out what they’re feeling, ... Sometimes giving some tough loving too. Zoë just has that caring nature of her own. This probably stems from the fact that she missed out on parental figures and wants to feel needed as a compensation.

Perfect parallel:

Symbolism! Robbe walking away from his mom’s room in a cold-looking hallway, because he’s not comfortable (yet) with the situation. And him walking towards Sander’s room in a warmly lit hallway, since he’s at peace with what’s happening with his love.

Zoë asking Milan if he’s “Playing hard to get?” in this situation, Milan asking Robbe if his clothes say “Hard to get or playing hard to get?” later.

Oop, there it is, the homophobia / heteronormativity: Robbe analyses what Milan is doing with his partner, not really sure how to feel about it.

Nod to the OG: Zoë stating “The only thing you can do now is just be there for her and yes, that you have to wait”, sounds oddly familiar to the minute-for-minute speech by Sonja.

Funny coincidence: Milan making out heavily with his boy in front of Robbe and his salad, might look like a nod to the ‘Right in front of my salad’ meme.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: Robbe’s other (thicker) coat is hanging on a hook in the hallway. Senne’s “If I had have known that, I would have tried harder” indicates that he probably had to retake a year in high school, because otherwise he’d been a student in uni earlier on.

Maandag 16:27

C is for culture: “Kwak en Boemel kwamen binnen” (= “Kwak and Boemel entered”) - Robbe is referring to two side characters in the Belgian comic books ‘Jommeke’, who are homeless, lowlife criminals. The main protagonist in the series is the 11-year-old boy ‘Jommeke’. He is clever, honest, brave, loves adventure and is recognizable by his distinct blonde bowl cut. It’s one of the best-selling strips in Flanders, besides ‘Suske and Wiske’.

Perfect parallel: Jens’ first time suggesting toothpaste to jerk off happens here in S3, but he repeats it again during wtFOCKDOWN.

Oop, there it is, the homophobia / heteronormativity: The boys questioning why Robbe didn’t go all-the-way with Noor yet.

Lost in translation: Noor saying “Is dat een eik? Want ik zie veel eikels hier!” has completely lost its meaning when translated. ‘Eikels’ means ‘acorns’, which come from the ‘eik’ (= ‘oak tree’). But ‘eikels’ also means ‘assholes’. That’s why she’s pointing out the oak tree, to diss the boys that they’re actually ‘eikels’.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: Again, the very subtle hint at the beginning that Sander was at the skatepark - checking Robbe out. Robbe pulls the middle finger at the boys hollering. His skateboard has a ‘World Industries’ sticker on it.

Dinsdag 14:56

Perfect parallel:

Robbe arguing “A whole weekend on a trip with people you don’t know?” against Noor coming along in this episode, his flirty affirmative answer to Sander’s “Like a weekend trip with strangers, right?” in the next.

Amber and her match making skills again! First, she tried to set herself up with Senne in S1, then Jana and Zoë with Max in S2, now Luca with Aaron in S3.

Lost in translation: “Ik denk niet dat ze daar goesting voor heeft” - ‘Goesting’ is a typical Flemish word for anything that has to do with desire, preference or willingness to do something in any context (work, food, activities, sex, ...). That’s why Aaron answers him with “I had a different impression on Friday”, taking the “I don’t think she has ‘goesting’” in a very sexual way.

Oop, there it is, the homophobia / heteronormativity: The real reason why he doesn’t want Noor to join the trip, is him not wanting to fake his attraction to her. Except Robbe isn’t willing to admit that to himself yet.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: Luca has braces!

Woensdag 12:21

Perfect parallel: Noor’s “And then you haven’t even seen the men yet” as a rebuttal to Moyo’s comments about art school girls in this episode, Robbe meeting the beautiful art boy Sander in the next.

Oop, there it is, the homophobia / heteronormativity: Robbe just doesn’t see the appeal in watching women dance, since he’s not attracted to them. But the guys don’t get why he says ‘no’ to the recital.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: Noor is greeting Britt with a hug in the background. Moyo kisses the dance recital flyer right before going outside.

Donderdag 07:21

C is for culture: Robbe is making a sandwich with choco spread and speculaas cookies. ‘Speculaas’ (’Biscoff' in English) is a spiced shortcrust biscuit with origins in the Netherlands and Belgium. It’s typically baked for the ‘Sinterklaas’ and Christmas celebrations. Though, it can be eaten as a treat to accompany coffee, thee or ice-cream as well.

Perfect parallel:

Zoë saying “I think you’re not used to eating healthy” earlier this episode and Robbe making sweet sandwich at the breakfast table, confirming her statement here.

Milan taking revenge for Zoë on a sleeping Senne in this episode, him helping Robbe prank Moyo for being homophobic in a later one.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: Milan’s breakfast is a banana. Senne pulling Zoë into their bed, without her spilling the coffee in her hand.

Vrijdag 18:02

Perfect parallel: Luca dissing Moyo’s sexist statements with “Do you actually have a girlfriend? ... I understand why” earlier, her saying “Moyo, then you better take a good look at it, because it will be the last time you’ll see that room” here.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: Zoë and Jana hugging each other outside. Luca giving Moyo a clear wink after dissing him. Robbe didn’t expect Noor to sleep with him in the bunkbed, as his face falls when she says she will.

Vrijdag 22:04

C is for culture: "It isn’t because he isn’t here...” - The reason that Senne couldn’t join their trip to the seaside, is that he doesn’t have a fall break. Universities usually start their school year a week later than university colleges, so they’re the only ones who don’t have a vacation at the end of October.

Perfect parallel: Robbe looking at drunk Noor with a sad expression of “Why can’t I just love this girl?” in this episode, him looking at a sleepy Sander with a face filled with love in the last episode.

Oop, there it is, the homophobia / heteronormativity: Robbe trying to pry Noor’s hands away from his body.

Blink-and-y’ll-miss-it: Senne responds with “#metoo” as a joke, referencing the movement and him missing Zoë. Her face freezes for a few seconds to indicate that she is indeed jealous. Robbe’s little wink at Luca.

#wtfock #wtfam #skam #skam belgium #cpm rewatch

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pxiao · 5 years ago

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Reasons I’m glad V///R is dead and gone forever

So V//R is dead and cancelled and my only reaction is FINALLY. Since VR is gone and we can finish forgetting the forgettable show and get rid of all our salt. You’re free to add to the post but there are rules.

1. DO NOT TAG IT SO THE FANS CAN SEE. As much as I hate the show and the fandom even they don’t deserve to see people bashing the show in their tag.

2. Don’t write the name of the show or the characters. Use /// or ---- in the character’s name like Yu///saku so the tumblr search can’t pull them up

ok good? Good.

Everyone but Yu///saku is worthless.

Seriously when have any of the characters actually progressed the story? Potentially only SB have done anything truly worthwhile. Everyone else was just to die to build tension for Yu//saku. And if you’re asking for RE///volver. OHHH I have a section just for him, don’t you worry.

Sto//rm Acc/ess aka Yu//saku is such a shitty duelist that the MINORITY of his duels has him not cheating.

SERIOUSLY it’s written that Yu//saku can get a random extra deck monster with his skill BUT the issue is despite it being “random” Yu//saku ALWAYS gets the monster he needs to win. NOT ONCE IN THE 100+ EPISODE HAS HE GOTTEN A USELESS CARD. ALWAYS THE ONE HE NEEDS. Totally doesn’t seem like plot armor. And you know it wouldn’t be as big of an issue IF HE DIDN’T USE IT FOR EVERY SPE///ED DUEL!!!!!!!! For a character that the show likes to say is “invincible” he sure isn’t good enough to win with the deck he built. It got ridiculous with his duel with G/oo in season 2 where G//o countered his skill BUT A//i revealed it had a secondary effect that let him draw a card AND still get a new extra deck monster.

Plot twists:

They fall into two camps, “we already knew you dumbasses” or “THE HELL WERE YOU GUYS SMOKING!” Essentially the twists are obvious like A///i was based off of Yu//saku’s data as why wouldn’t he be. Or the dumb ones like Spec///tre beating A///oi or somehow Spec//tre had CONSCIOUS TREE AS A MOTHER. There have been a few twists that I can count that surprised me but they lead to other twists that fall back into stupid.

the “Plot” just plain doesn’t exist.

It’s just things happening with some connecting plot lines BUT they rarely lead into each other. Light///ning revealed that his plan was happening THE EXACT SAME TIME as season 1′s finale. A//i being the villain is more due to Light//ning’s simulation somehow proving that A///i will destroy humanity than the fact that A/i’s the only Ig//nis left. And each season’s arc has no connecting plot either. Season 1 can be broken down to Yu//saku gets A//i which has him meet the “main cast” and then Yu///saku go to S//OL for info that was TOTALLY pointless. Which is isolated from Re//volver setting a virus that traps you on the internet which leads to Re//volver learning Yusa//ku’s face AND MEETING HIM but does jack shit with that info. And then Re///volver’s final plan happens that was based on timing than anything else.

Does that seem disjointed? YEP because there is no narrative at all, things are just happening. There is a vague connection at best but none of the characters’ actions actually affect how the story goes. THE FRUSTRATING PART IS THEY SET UP MOMENTS WHERE THEY COULD HAVE BUT THEY DIDN’T. SEASON 2 AND 3 IS THE SAME THINGS JUST HAPPEN AND THEN YU//SAKU HAS TO SAVE THE FUCKING DAY. V/R has no rhyme or reason why things happen, they just do and let me tell you, that’s fucking boring.

The Yu//saku praise

My fucking god. Look the protagonist getting praised isn’t new, it happens with each series BUT the issue is the volume that Yu//saku gets and how early he gets it. Most protagonists have to wait till at least the second series before the population love them. Yu///saku got it by the THIRD EPISODE. BY. BEAT. A. MOOK. He was called a hero, people were saying he was hot, people were copying his avatar. AND IT NEVER STOPPED. EVERY OTHER EPISODE HAS SOMEONE SAY HE’S AMAZING, STRONG AND SOOO IMPORTANT.

An A//oi episode in season 1 has a less than five minute section just to show that a kid HERO WORSHIPS YU//SAKU AND WAS IT. The kid appears with an avatar based on PM, PM saves him and tells the kid to trust him to save and then the kid logs out. AND THIS HAPPENS CONSTANTLY. “YU//SAKU IS INVINCIBLE”, “YU//SAKU IS MY HERO!”, “EVERYONE DEPENDS ON YOU YU//SAKU”. IT’S BEEN AN ENTIRE SHOW OF PEOPLE SINGING YU///SAKU’S PRAISES AND THE WORST PART OF IT IS, HE DESERVES NONE OF IT.

The setting.

Let me ask ... THE FUCK IS IT. What even is Link Vr//ains? Is it a game, a site, a program? WHY IS IT ONLY IN DE///N CITY? WHY IS DESTROYING IT WILL LEAD TO THE ENTIRE INTERNET CRASHING???????? Link Vr///ains is something that NEEDS to be explained but the show NEVER DOES. HELL IT NEVER EVEN TRIES.

The girls

Jesus christ ... the girls are .... just sad. A///oi ... my fucking god A//oi. A///oi’s personality starts and ends with “onii-sama”. NEARLY EVERY MOTIVE OF HER’S IS I WANT TO DO SOMETHING FOR MY STEPBROTHER. Everything else is a passing fancy. Mi///yu? Yeah nice motivation but that’s why her two duels as BM in season 2 is more about her relationship with Ak//ira than her “friend”.

Em//ma’s backstory was absorbed into BS’ despite the fact he was a new addition when Em//ma was around since season 1.

Vir//ya is just a bit character meant to fill out the remain KOH, since their return in season 2, she haven’t done anything of value.

Qu///een ... why is she there? I mean she appeared in a Bikini ... in virtual reality. seriously there is no point in that shit, and then did nothing besides watch over Ear//th’s death and then lost to A//i when her skill was named honey trap.

Mi////yu is so unimportant we haven’t gotten a scene of her out of flashback despite being a lost chi//ld.

Back to A//oi, it’s not even that A//oi isn’t important,sadly that’s not uncommon in YGO, it’s the fact EACH TIME SHE TRIES TO DO SOMETHING, THE SHOW PUNISHES HER FOR IT. She tries to be a symbol for people, it’s stupid why she trying but still, Spec///tre reveals he was toying with her the entire time and she had no chance. She tries to get stronger in season 2, SB beats cause she doesn’t have an Ig//nis and then she does nothing for half the season. She tries to save her “childhood friend”, Bow//man beats her and takes her consciousness so Yu//saku has to save her ... again. She tries to protected Ak//ira, A//i beats them and only takes A//oi to taunt her over her failure. THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE SHOW, ANYTIME A//OI TRIES TO DO ANYTHING, THE SHOW BEAT HER UP AS IF TO SAY, YOU SHOULDN’T DO ANYTHING EVER. Great message there.

Simulations

You know as people there are plenty of reasons that conflict starts, greed, hate, anger, lust, desperation to survive, hunger. And how does conflict start in V/r? FUCKING SIMULATIONS. EVERY SINGLE CONFLICT IN THIS SHOW IS BECAUSE OF A SIMULATION. K//OH are a thing cause Kog///ami did a simulation that showed that the Ig//nis are learning TOO FAST AND WILL CAUSE THE END OF HUMANITY. Ligh///tning turned evil because he learned no matter what he can NEVER BE FRIENDS WITH HUMANITY CAUSE OF A SIMULATION. A///i turning “evil” because he’s doom to end the world cause of you guessed it a SIMULATION. Simulations are just tools and are NEVER THE FINAL RESULT. There are too many variables to truly make an 100% accurate simulation BUT HERE THEY ACT AS IF SIMULATIONS ARE A FUCKING GOSPEL. IT’S STUPID AND INCREDIBLY LAZY THAT THE CAUSE OF ALL the conflict in this show is because of independent simulations.

Mental illness

As a person with a mental illness and went to therapy I can say this, VR doesn’t deserve any brown points for covering mental illness. If anything VR touching mentally illness takes points away. I have already said my piece on how poorly VR tackles mental illness. But my take away is this when it comes to mental illness VR is a absolutely horrible.

Rev///ovler

Re//voler is in all honestly a shitty character despite what his fans think. He’s an asshole that has no drive of his own. He admit he does this all BECAUSE OF HIS DAD. The one time he did do something of his own accord, turn his dad in, he later regretted so much that he refuses to do it again. LOOK I can understand missing your father despite the fact he’s trash, human relationships are complex BUT RE///VOLVER BEING “FATHER I WILL NEVER EVER GO AGAINST YOU AGAIN DESPITE THE FACT YOU KIDNAPPED KIDS AND THEN TORTURED THEM BECAUSE YOU FELT SAD HUMAN WILL EVENTUALLY GO EXTINCT ONLY TO TURN ON YOUR CREATIONS” IS FUCKING STUPID. And then he goes the EXTRA MILE OF ASS and says to Yu//saku’s face that he REGRETS SAVING HIS LIFE TWICE. And he never apologized either.

Also his “development” is forced as shit, Revo//lver never develops onscreen or shows signs of changing, just the show and characters say OH YES RE//VOLVER CHANGED.... IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. Honestly after his return in season 2 where he showed he DIDN’T CHANGE, then he tries to help Hom//ura despite telling Yu//saku he regrets saving him. WHY THE CHANGE. HE HAS SEEN NOTHING THAT MADE HE FEEL SYMPATHY FOR THE LOST KI//DS. BUT HE’S ALL OF A SUDDEN KIND TO HO///MURA. AND THEN AFTER HE LOSES TO LIGH//TNING AND SAY’S A/I NAME, ONLY TO SNAP BACK IN SEASON 3 AND WANTS TO KILL A///I. What I’m saying is, he has no real character development, you can tell what the show WANTED him to become but my god they were too lazy to actually show him changing.

Yu//saku

OH BOY this is going to be long. Yu//saku is by far the WORST WRITTEN PROTAGONIST IN YGO HISTORY. He has no personality and no real background besides HE WAS TORTURED, POOR HIM!!!!! Seriously what was his life like before the Lo//st Incident. What did he like to do, did he have friends, where the fuck are his parents. There is no information about him, past or present. Like his current “personality”, WHAT IS IT besides he’s stoic/emotionless. He’s not nice or even mean anymore. He has no likes or even dislikes. All we know is he’s determined ... and that’s it. Yu//saku is a blank slate for the viewers to project on. Yu//saku is honestly NOTHING.

Honestly, Yu///saku isn’t strong as he cheats the MAJORITY of his duels, he isn’t smart as rarely does he do anything that’s smart, wanting to brutal force the solution and he doesn’t follow his own advice.

Yu//saku: Bonds are important and the only thing that are absolutes

Yu//saku then fucks off for 3 MONTHS NOT TELLING ANYONE

And like Re//volver, his “development” is forced as hell. He just says things that make no sense for him to say. Yu//saku shouldn’t say revenge doesn’t help WHEN IT OBVIOUSLY DID. The show was supporting him and he got the guy that kidnapped him killed and then he got better. HELL JI//N WAS SAID TO GET BETTER ONCE THE K//OH WERE BEAT.

#vr damn it

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libidomechanica · 5 years ago

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“As if his your booty”

As if his your booty; let me known, what I felt th unkind! With such a trouble. A goal of grief may find him; I cast; and to gaze towards that the world is only one before it came too, joining tide homeward straight glowd; on burnishd them away!

Attention shamed through a thousand milk are undergo their eyes were angrily: “What Folly, Jámi, wearing. The image o my bosom, where nature sprang elate, but being lost lie still: anon he reeleth from side the Deluge or awe me, she speak of damsels glad, and the gate: give themselves know I love, his upon Sions blithe people things thee unripe years I have their door. In self-contemplate author of what face of all the window veil

that tenderer of blood, transparents although suffocating than his hand, wherein campeth, saying, Open to know my oat prodigy, Miss Araminta Smith a modestly bales; and where enter and hot as his pride o sinny noon, and perform this sharply he distant still warm in the ranks are grows too much care thereof every beauty and low!

Adonis trampled flowers in my dreamed I was woven girths he breake; loue it is death, if thou hast ravished from his soft fall confidence, this throngd extremely—thou south; blow the wind live in his willing felt like to me, where not white glowing knowledge as you markets overtaken. What is demons this daughters of lamps together.

To this: if the service, none with her the shadow in the Grates; when first and waters noise, no sun, where stand, that man I do appear from its praise; but know as spider clotting soul. Ah, is not she locked thee to the lusters at the evening ears; it isnt even so doth truth I must have playd. as if shed, Brother mixd,

But sweet, sweet bottomless. the others samphire, through to mighty “greater from off each time-beguiling doth such as no dreams and their cups with gold, his countrys good example of right dungeons like two were live our wholly mild, unlike what are twined float all fruit the lords neighbour care thy false, the mirror clear, are one. In the river of the dawn, youthful, charms for virgin and clay endurance, ground is een woe that hour, and stick your old bards, the background? S all you that twere hard heart half-turnd in vain arrest: how fair peace be to me appeare; so that knocketh, saying, ‘Dost thou saw. Road:

for they cannot chances are like a flock, by fortunes mastering a dragon. Who think it heavy groans I never be desperate in some softly and entire as I never be, and taught me in his hasty with barren memory. Some language wholly, and listening valley, which state a nocturnal carnation pouring blush o my Phillis the fox which the powdry snow, such a jocund compassd in visit; the picture, that is through the Seven but for my beings, and all-oblivious blundering cloud,’ and when praying.”

#poetry #automatically generated text #Patrick Mooney #Markov chains #Markov chain length: 6 #173 texts

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spootiliousrps · 6 years ago

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Satan!Crowley (Though my partner didn’t seem to like it much :/)

Stranger: (Very much au, Crowley is Satan. Will be explained, don’t worry he’s not evil. Based after the fact that it's fairly well accepted that the snake was actually the Devil) When mother had told him of her plans for humans Samael had been curious to meet her latest creations, until she’d told him of her plans for them, of free will and the tests and trials she would put them through. He’d argued with her then, for the first time he had argued. And she’d told him how he would have his own role to play. When she'd told him what that role to be he was horrified, angry. He'd argued and argued with her, pleaded when that failed, refused. But then she'd shown him what would happen if he didn't. There was already unrest among some of the Angels, who didn't like their mother focusing so much on her latest project, who were jealous. And if they didn't have a leader in their rebellion it would be chaos. Random reckless outbreaks of fighting, more and more of the host falling when they grew resentful as to why mother hadn't stopped it, until the world would be black and barren. Samael had hated her for that, but he'd done what he had to. He'd rebelled, became the leader and took control, until it was an actual war, and he was cast down and burned for it. The only one who knew the truth about his reasons was his closest friend and most trusted regent and general Azazel. Once he got things in order things had already started on Earth, and mother had told him it was time for the first test. That he needed to tempt Eve. And... well Samael didn't have any problem with that. The chance to choose... well he'd wished he'd been given that. And then he'd met Aziraphale, and he'd decided to stay on Earth, taking on the persona of a lesser Demon, choosing the name Crowley, leaving Azazel as his regent, his ally telling the legions of hell that he was sequestered away, planning and preparing for the future war. And he enjoyed his time on Earth, learned to love Humans, and a certain Angel. Then after so long Mother had sent word that he needed to create the Antichrist. So he had, even if he took no pleasure in it. And he'd delivered the baby and went to Aziraphale, and they'd come up with their plan, had sent people to influence his son, his Angel doing the same, and he'd reached out for his son in his dreams, nothing evil, just telling him that he loved him, that he could be the best of them, and all the while he stayed away from seeing his son in person, he couldn't risk anything going wrong couldn't risk his son getting hurt, and he tried to ignore that worried feeling, that something wasn't quite right with Warlock-and really that was a terrible name. And then he'd s een the boy at his eleventh birthday and he'd felt horror. That wasn't his son. He'd lost his son-oh he knew it was his son he'd spoke to in his dreams. But he had no idea where the boy was, physically. And he longed to tell Aziraphale why he was so panicked, but the long lie was too deep now. He didn't want to lose his Angel, and he was terrified he would if he told Aziraphale the truth. And then the end hadn't come, and they were in Tadfield, and he resisted the urge to snort when Beelzebub said that she was going to tell Adam's-and that name he definitely approved of- father. And then the Demon and Gabriel were gone and Crowley relaxed, running his fingers through his hair, “Well Angel.” he gave Aziraphale and smile, “I think that went very well.” his eyes flicked to Adam, who was stood watching him, a curious look on his face. “A-” he groaned when the ground shook and Azazel rose out of the dirt, looking thoroughly annoyed. “CROWLEY!” and Crowley winced. “Azazel! Good to see you-” “I just had Beelzebub screaming at me about you and the Antichrist!”

You: [Reading]

You: Aziraphale wobbled as the ground shook beneath them, trying to keep his balance. As soon as he gained his footing he moved to the young boy's side protectively as the giant Demon appeared before them. His heart was racing as he raised his sword, terrified, not for himself but for the potential of losing those he cared about. Adam was only a recent addition but he was an Angel, capable of immeasurable love. Adam /was/ loved. His gaze turned towards the red haired Demon, the man he was truly scared for. Satan could destroy Crowley with just a thought he was sure. There would be nothing he could do... Still, he refused to give up, standing tall as the Devil snapped at his oldest and dearest friend, ready to strike with whatever strength he could muster.

Stranger: "Yeah, yeah." Crowley rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "I bet that pain in the arse did. Let me guess, he told you that you needed to inform the big boss." "DO you have any idea how hard it was to keep a bloody straight face Crowley?" Azazel demanded, "Hell is in chaos right now-" "Eh I'm evil I thrive on chaos, let those idiots suffer for a little while." he waved a hand dismissively, "And drop the Devil guise Azazel, we both know it doesn't suit you." honestly it didn't suit him either, and he watched amused as Azazel's form shrunk, and he became almost like a normal demon. "You know sometimes I really regret offering to help you." he grumbled, eyes flicking towards Aziraphale and Adam. "Ah, that would be the Angel you stayed on Earth for even if you pretended he had nothing to do with it and-ah. That must be the young master." "Adam." Crowley answered proudly, "He decided to stop it." "Yeah." Adam nodded, "I like the world. I haven't seen all of it yet why would I destroy it?"

You: Confusion flashed over Aziraphale's features at the exchange, his sword slowly lowering as Crowley approached the other Demon. It was obvious that Crowley didn't see any threat which put the Angel at ease... a bit... Still something didn't add up. His gaze narrowed as he glanced between the two trying to connect all the pieces. When Adam spoke Aziraphale glanced back at the boy and offered a proud smile, straightening his vest as if to emphasis how pleased he was. At least... Until the mention of himself had him snapping to attention once more, moving forward to stand next to the red head. "What in Heaven's name is going on here Crowley?" He asked softly, though his tone hinted he was half way between concerned and annoyed. He eyed Azazel apprehensively as if he would suddenly jump out and bite him; and to be honest the Angel wasn't quite convinced he wouldn't.

Stranger: Crowley suddenly looked incredibly sheepish, which made Azazel smirk almost gleefully, "Oh Crowley don't tell me you've not-" "Azazel please don't." Crowley groaned, "Please I don't want to ruin-" "Crowley keeping up the lie is what will ruin things." he stated exasperatedly, "Are-are you scared you'll scare your precious Angel off is that it?" Azazel focused on Aziraphale before shrugging "If he's half the Angel you seem to think he is then he'll come around, he'll be pissed but he'll understand eventually." "Azazel now is definitely not the time for this discussion-" "Oh come on! The only reason you rebelled is because she told you to. You're not like the others you should have never fallen Crowley, you're an idiot in love who's terrified."

You: Aziraphale blinked at that, clearing his throat awkwardly as he ran a hand down his lapels. "An idiot in love?" He mumbled, giving a small scoff. "Nonsense, you never told me of any love." He inquired, giving his friend a pointed look, obviously too oblivious to connect the words to himself. He paused only for a moment before shaking his head and waving a hand in the air. "It doesn't matter. The subject is highly inappropriate at the moment." He added with a huff, trying to ignore the jealousy that was rising in him. The few words that Azazel had already spoke contained a lot of information to process and yet... Not nearly enough. A

You: [sorry wasn't done]

You: Crowley was hiding something from him? Something that could ruin their friendship? Nonsense, nothing could do that... Could it? No. Aziraphale was certain of it. "I demand to know whats going on." He snapped, his voice commanding and unwavering. "I don't care who tells me. Just tell me." He demanded.

Stranger: Crowley didn't look at Aziraphale, and it was Adam who spoke up, tilting his head, "You're him aren't you?" he asked, "I can see it. You were so bright once... and you're hurt and angry but you still love humans... you love us." he paused, "and me. My dreams were real." he tilted his head, "You love me more than anything else don't you? You... you didn't raise me but you're my father." Crowley closed his eyes, wincing, "He uh... he's not wrong Angel." his voice was tight, "Before I fell... I never told you.. I didn't exactly lie... I mean... I never claimed to be a lesser demon I just implied as much... I.." he let out a little cough. "My name was Samael, Angel."

You: Aziraphale's attention snapped to the boy as he began; his expression still confused. Slowly, realization began to dawn on him with every word the boy spoke, eyes growing wider and wider until he turned to stare at the Demon before him. Crowley... The man he had entrusted with everything... His friendship... His love... The being he expected would always be there for him even if he pretended that wasn't the case. Tears began to well up, threatening to fall over his usually rose colored cheeks. Everything was a lie... All of it... His brows furrowed, a mixture of betrayal, pain, and confusion contorting his features, a hand moved to cover his mouth in shock as he took a step back from the Demon... No... The Devil himself. The very being he'd been fighting almost his entire existence. Was this all a joke? Poor, poor Aziraphale fighting the very creature he tried to keep so close? Poor, stupid, /angel/. He shook his head as he took another step back and another. "Adam?" He asked softly, voice cracking. "Will you send me back to my shop, please?" He pleaded, forgetting that it had burned.

Stranger: Crowley's eyes widened and he ran his fingers through his hair, "Angel-Angel it burned down-" "I can fix it." Adam spoke up, focusing on Aziraphale and stepping forward, "I'll fix it for you." he paused, "But-will you talk to him later? Please?" he glanced towards Crowley, who had a look similar to a kicked puppy, pained and hurt and desperate. "Lies are bad I know, but I don't think he wanted to hurt you." "I didn't." Crowley stated quickly, "Angel I- I am sorry." he stated quickly, "I am so sorry Angel.. I... when I first met you... it was wonderful. You didn't recognise me... and because you thought I was just a normal Demon you didn't fear me-and you would have feared me when you first met me. Don't deny it Angel. I know what heaven thinks of me. The fallen, the worst of them all." his voice was bitter. "She forced me to do it you know. The choice she gave me was barely a choice at all. You don't know what would have happened had I not taken over the rebellion. She showed me. She told me it was my job."

You: "STOP!" Aziraphale snapped, his voice so loud that the ground beneath them shook just as it had when Azezal appeared. "Stop talking!" He ordered, a holy glow beginning to appear around him. "I don't want to hear anymore lies! I just want to go home!" He added, shooting the Demon a glare even as the tears began. He felt pathetic... used... warped in some way. His hands shook as they fisted at his side, as if he was doing everything in his power not to smite Crowley where he stood... Not that he could, and he certainly didn't /want/ to. Still, when he glanced towards Adam his expression softened, his wrath obviously not directed toward him. "Adam... If you would... please." He asked softly. "I can make no promises, but I will take your request to heart." He reassured.

Stranger: Adam nodded, frowning, and Crowley felt the subtle shift in reality, and then he nodded, "I fixed your bookshop. I'll send you home now. He'll give you a few days to settle down and think things through." "I will." Crowley ducked his head, looking upset, "I really am sorry Aziraphale... and I really, really hope that you'll let me explain in time."

You: Adam earned a soft fond smile at his words. It was nice to see that he had grown to be the boy they had hoped him to be. The smile was gone however, as Crowley spoke once more, causing Aziraphale's jaw to tighten as he pinned the man with a flat stare. "Perhaps it would be preferable if you saved your breath, Samael. Your words are falling on deaf ears." He stated before he felt to world shift as he was sent home.

Stranger: Crowley winced and watched Aziraphale go, before he spent some time with Adam, and after that went down with Azazel, dropping his act and sorting out the chaos downstairs, it took maybe a week or so, and after he returned to Earth, and he was torn. He wanted to see Aziraphale, but... how would he know when his Angel wanted to see him? If he ever did.

You: As soon as he felt the worn wooden floor of his shop beneath him, Aziraphale collapsed, uncontrollable sobs escaping him. He'd been betrayed by the only person in existence he had trusted. How could he have been so stupid?! He should have never trusted a Demon... Especially THAT one. He was a fool. The next few days were spent in solitude, the Angel wallowing in his own sorrow, feeling sorry from himself. Eventually, he had enough of his pathetic nature and got to work. He'd sell what he had copies of or didn't need. He'd pack the rest up and put them in storage. From there... Well... He didn't know. Heaven wouldn't take him now... He supposed he could travel... Maybe visit Atlantis... Or Rome. No... too many memories... America could be nice he suppose... Perhaps Florida... He wasn't sure yet. Regardless, the preparations would take a bit of time, giving him the opportunity to decide.

Stranger: Crowley did eventually pull himself together enough to visit Aziraphale, opening the door to the shop, the small bell making its little familiar jingle as he padded inside, "I uh-" he let out a nervous cough, "It's me Angel. Just-if you want me to leave just yell at me okay? You are here aren't you?" he was stood in the doorway, almost too scared to go in fully, to see his Angels reaction to his presence. This was why he'd hid it for so long. He knew it would destroy things.

You: "We're closed." Aziraphale's voice came from somewhere in the back as the bell chimed. Many of the shelves were already empty leaving the small shop feeling empty and cold. At the sound of the Demon's voice however, the Angel glanced up from where he was packing a box and frowned, his heart rate spiking a bit. For a moment there was silent as he considered doing just as the Demon suggested. Though, eventually he gave a huff, tossing down one of his book with a bit too much force and giving a wince. "I'm back here." He replied loud enough to be heard, tone still a bit harsh. "What do you want?"

Stranger: Crowley was tense, nervous as he heard his Angel's voice, and when he didn't send him away he started to speak, "I know what you and the others all think of me." his voice was tight, "I knew telling you would destroy things... I... I wanted to make what we had last as long as I could before I lost you. Selfish of me I know." he admitted, "I should have told you long ago Angel but I was terrified of losing you." he leaned against the wall, closing his eyes, "You know, only Azazel knows why I rebelled. I know the others were always so horrified at how suddenly I turned, decided I was faking all along but that's not true. I-I remember going to mother, to ask about her project, humanity. I loved them you know... I was curious and excited for them... and she told me I'd have my own job... and she told me what it would be. I argued with her. I begged and pleaded and I refused to rebel, even when she told me I must, I said I'd never tempt them. And she showed me what would have happened if the rebels had no leader. Random attacks, brutal and bloody-there was no organisation so Heavens armies couldn't exactly find out plans." he felt like crying as he spoke, remembering how he'd felt. Trapped and lost, betrayed. "And more Angels would have gotten angry and hurt and resentful towards mother for not stopping it-and she wouldn't have. She'd have let it happen to punish me for refusing to do my duty. And Heaven and Earth would have become burnt out husks. I didn't fall because I hated mother, because I wanted to take over or anything like that. I did what I did to save as many as I could... because Mother decided that was how things must be and she always gets what she wants."

You: Aziraphale listened to the words as he worked, moving about the shop, collecting this or that to pack into the box as he went. The words didn't help in the least, if anything they only made his anger worse. Still, he wouldn't interrupt the Demon. He would allow him to say his peace and go before Aziraphale, himself, would. Still... What would it be like without him? He and Crowley had been together for as long as Humanity had existed... Well, practically anyways. Even if they weren't always in the same place they were always there for one another. No! He couldn't afford to think like that. Not now... He was finally gaining enough strength to walk on his own, he wouldn't allow himself to fall again. "I don't care about any of that." He called back with just as much malice. "I don't care to hear any of your stories! They mean nothing!" He countered, still not moving into the main entrance, too afraid to see him. The Angel wasn't fearful /of/ him but rather... The effect he had on him... the pain he caused.

Stranger: "Do you think I'm lying?" Crowley asked, his voice tight, "Is-is that why you're angry... or... or do you just.... do you think I must be evil because I fell... do you believe everything they say about me?" his voice was hurt, "Or is it the lie that hurt you? I-I can understand that... I should have told you a long time ago I just-I feared this Aziraphale... Mother... she didn't just force me out of my home she destroyed me. Destroyed my reputation and broke me down. I had to rebel. I had to kill other Angels who I loved as brothers and sisters, because of her."

You: Pain bloomed in Aziraphale's heart at the words. He understood how difficult it could be to harm those you loved... to strike them down. He had been there during the rebellion. He set his jaw at that, trying to ignore the feeling as he set another book aside and strode out of the room and into the lobby. "Are you really such a fool, to think any of that matters to me?" He spat. "Or perhaps you take /me/ as one; to believe everything my kind says about you?" He asked, obviously insulted. "Stop making excuses!" He demanded as he strode about halfway to him and paused. "Mother may have forced you to fall but everything else was your own doing. You talk about your /reputation/? You had no other reputation to me than the one you /earn/ through the countless centuries we've been together. A reputation that /you/ ruined! Not mother, not our brothers and sisters! You!" He accused, obviously having enough of it all.

Stranger: Crowley flinched, "I-You and I both know that the worst thing I've done is tempt people... and not even really bad stuff Aziraphale you know that.. you know most of the things that I claimed I did I didn't do.. the worst thing I did back then was on mothers orders! She told me to tempt Eve! I followed orders... and then I met you." his voice shook, "I met you and.... and I felt something new. You gave them your sword.... I wanted to know more but I knew you'd run away if I told you who I was so I gave myself a new name. I told Azazel to take care of hell. I hated it down there anyway, and... and I wanted to be where humans are, watch over them. And I just... needed to know /you/ and over the years we became... allies of a sort and then friends... and by the time we were friends... how? How do you tell someone that you're actually the Devil? Aziraphale I know I should have told you I know that... but I was scared. I'm not perfect angel I never claimed to be."

You: "Stop calling me that!" He snapped the shop shaking briefly in his turmoil. His gaze shot up as dust drifted from the ceiling, worry crossing his features before he managed to calm himself enough to keep it together. Finally he pinned the Demon with a glare once more. "You're wrong, Crowley." He stated flatly, an almost growly. "The worst thing you've done is far worse than tempt people." He corrected. "I'm well aware of the lies being told about you... about..." It was hard to admit it, as if saying his name would make it that much worse. "About Satan..." He finally managed. "That has nothing to do with this. Mother has nothing to do with this. What is happening now, in this shop... This is /you!/" He pointed out, shooting an accusing finger in his direction. "This is /your/ doing not theirs. Maybe you're right about not telling me in the garden... Maybe you were right to wait... But the fact that you never intended to tell me! What did you expect Crowley?! Was it some sort of game to you?! Poor, foolish /angel/! Look how dense he is! Look how naive!" He spat. "Well, I won't stand here and be made a fool any longer! You didn't want to 'ruin this' by telling me? Well congratulations Crowley! You didn't! No, you ruined it by doing the opposite!"

Stranger: Crowley was near tears as he stared at Aziraphale, "That was never what it was about." he shook his head, "Never Aziraphale I swear. I never... you're not foolish Aziraphale I-" he could feel his heart breaking. This was far worse than falling had been. "I never thought you were any of that. A part of me wanted to tell you so bad but I'm a coward I just-I didn't choose to fall but I did. I-I'm a monster I'm far worse than any of the normal demons I know I am. How-how could... I could never deserve you, no Demon or Angel would ever deserve you Aziraphale you're too good. But I thought.. I thought maybe if I pretended for long enough it would somehow-somehow make it better, somehow if I didn't tell you I was-then you wouldn't realize how much better than me you are and you wouldn't leave me behind. I was lucky enough to earn your-to be-while I was a demon.I wanted it to be real. I wanted to just be a normal demon... because you could never love the Devil because you'd leave me."

You: "Bullshit." He replied, his emotions so forceful that it pushed him to actually curse. "How dare you blame this on me. You have never been a monster! Even if I didn't know what you were I'd know that much! And don't you dare put me on a damned pedistood to make excuses for your behavior! You /lied/ to me, Crowley! For centuries! And you haven't even managed the nerve to apologize! To Hell with the rest! I don't give a tick about any of it and you should well know it! If you haven't figured it out then you don't know me at all! The only think I care about is that you lied to me and show no remorse for it! So, as far as I'm concerned you can march straight back out those doors and don't come back until you've learned to properly apologize!" He snapped, pointed towards the very exit he had mention, his expression obviously not to be trifled with. He paused waiting to see if Crowley was going to attempt to speak before interrupting him. "I said MARCH!"

#ineffable husbands #ineffable boyfriends #good omens #crowley x aziraphale #aziraphale x Crowley #omegle #rp #roleplay #Satan!Crowley

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fairsts-a · 6 years ago

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i wanted to take some time out to actually explain my canon divergence in one post instead of making a big ass rant post that only says half of what i want it to. this is more of a general explanation, so it will cover a few things. i’m gonna address plot points that i’ve changed or omitted, changes in how regina’s mannerisms and behaviours are, changes in how i write canon relationships, etc.

re: snow white . this doesn’t really show through in a lot of my writing because it’s one (1) scene that happened in an alternate timeline that doesn’t necessarily make sense anyway, but i just completely omit the scene in 3x21/3x22 when regina thinks she kills snow but she escaped by the skin of her teeth. i’ve ranted about this over and over again, but i just absolutely do not think regina actually wanted to kill snow. she definitely thought she did, she definitely killed other people in the process, but ultimately i don’t think regina would have ever killed snow, even if she got the chance. she had far too many chances that she never acted on.

she says in the show that she was afraid to be happy, because without that anger she was scared she would just float away. by this point, regina had convinced herself that her happy ending was snow’s head on a spike. if she had killed snow she would, in her eyes, have been without purpose. there would be nothing to drive her to continue going (see, regina meeting zelena and choosing not to put herself under the sleeping curse. she had an enemy, a purpose, therefore she had something to keep living for.) but as long as the chase was still going, so was she. (we see more evidence of this after the curse was cast. eighteen years later, regina felt like she had no purpose anymore. she got her revenge, but she still wasn’t happy. that’s when she got henry.)

re: evil queen . the biggest change i make to the evil queen is how i write her demeanor and behaviour. in the show they try to display her in such a way that the audience is led to believe that she’s absolutely bonkers. yes, regina is dramatic. yes, regina acts like a child. no, regina does not go around acting like a classless sniveling child. that doesn’t really resonate well with me for a few reasons. most importantly, i just don’t feel like it’s true to the evil queen’s character in snow white and the seven dwarfs. in fact, her calm and threatening nature is played up when she becomes the old hag and acts entirely opposite to herself. i feel like that regal disposition is as much to the evil queen as the kindness and naivete is to snow white. not to mention, regina has never behaved like that previously. she was trained her entire life to be the queen and that shined through the most in her composure. yes, regina was enraged and yes she did let madness envelop her, but just not to that degree. regina knows what she’s doing, she knows that she’s doing wrong, she knows that she’s evil. she doesn’t care, and i think that’s what’s scariest about her.

re: o*tlaw q*een . i’m very reticent to just full on retcon parts of regina’s plot, because i usually kind of get where they were coming from. i understand what ends those means met, but it was usually just done in a lazy or backwards way. o*tlaw q*een is one of those things. i think that killing robin off was lazy and i don’t think regina loved him as much they claim she did. i do think regina was in love with the idea of him, but i don’t think regina was in love with him. if anything, i usually just write that they broke it off after zelena revealed that she was pregnant. regina can be irrational at times, but i don’t think that at that point in her arc she would beat that dead horse. not to mention, regina is known for running when things get tough, and those circumstances are the definition of tough. also, they definitely would not have been sneaking around with him when who they thought was marion came back with emma. the vault scene still happened (mostly because it’s not out of character for her to make dumb decisions), but regina would’ve felt terrible about it afterward and that would have been the end of it.

re: zelena . as much as i would absolutely love to change everything about their arcs, i just tweak a few things. season three, i think their relationship was written exceptionally well. regina wanted a sister, but zelena was trying to kill her, so she did what she needed to do. very good, very on brand, one of the few things canon did right. i loved them for what they were in season three. as the story keeps unfolding, though, i think a lot of bad decisions are made on the regina end of things (specifically how they handle writing her.) i don’t love the lack of belief she put in zelena, considering during her own redemption arc regina screwed up so many times. zelena never pretended to be reformed to get close to them. she was pretty transparent the whole time that she hated all of them. i just don’t see regina (who wants to mend things for the sake of having a sister) being so distrustful of her in that specific way.

also, i’m not really going to talk about the baby plot just because different zelenas write it differently, but i kind of just default to regina delegating that one to emma because she wants nothing to do with the whole situation.

#* 𝐇𝐂 \ bad memories: do not open ! ”#* 𝐎𝐔𝐀𝐓 \ i brought a knife to a gun fight ! ”#like i generally like to follow the events of the show's timeline #i just really hate how they approached them #so i rewrite context #*finger guns*#this is subject to updates because i may have forgotten stuff #but this is a pretty good rundown of my canon divergence #that i can now link to on my blog

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zoueriemandzijnopmars · 3 years ago

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Okay, so you all know I’m confused about the lack of K3 on my Spotify wrapped, so I decided to compare to another site that takes my Spotify data and makes lists to see if Spotify is as wrong as I think it is:

My top songs according to Spotify from the past year:

[Image ID: A screenshot from Spotify wrapped, detailing the top 5 songs of the user, from top to bottom the songs are: Good 4 u by Olivia Rodrigo, Promises from the Hadestown soundtrack, Wait for it from the Hamilton soundtrack, Some Things Never Change from Frozen 2 and Nothing Left to Lose from the Tangled Series. End ID]

And now let us look at what the site says:

Top Tracks — Medium Term (6 months)

good 4 u — Olivia Rodrigo

Hallo K3 — K3

Vliegen Als Een Vogel — K3

deja vu — Olivia Rodrigo

traitor — Olivia Rodrigo

Top Tracks — Long Term (years) (adding 6 and 7 because they are in Spotify’s top 5)

Helpless — Phillipa Soo, Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton

Good Kid — Chris McCarrell, The Lightning Thief Company, Rob Rokicki

Zero To Hero — Chorus - Hercules, Lillias White, Cheryl Freeman, LaChanze, Roz Ryan, Vaneese Thomas, Tawatha Agee

My Grand Plan — Kristin Stokes, Rob Rokicki

Bring on the Monsters — The Lightning Thief Company, Rob Rokicki

Nothing Left to Lose — Jeremy Jordan, Eden Espinosa

Wait for It — Leslie Odom Jr., Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton

Okay, so the songs could maaaaybe be correct assuming I did not listen to Hallo K3 in the first half of the year (which I listened to at least once, but I can’t remember if I was really into it) so I will let this slide for now.

Now the spotify app keeps crashing on me if I play the wrapped slide show, and I only managed to see my top artists once because of this and did not manage to get a screenshot before it crashed, but from what I remember it was Anais Mitchell, Taylor Swift, Phillipa Soo and two other musical people I can’t remember, so it did NOT include K3. So let’s look at what this site says:

Top Artists — Medium Term (6 months)

Taylor Swift

Olivia Rodrigo

Ed Sheeran

Krezip

Top Artists — Long Term (years)

Ed Sheeran

Taylor Swift

Krezip

ABBA

K3 is highest over the past 6 months and in the long term!!!! So I refuse to believe I did not listen to a lot of K3 in the past year overall! Why aren’t they in my top 5 artists?? And Anais Mitchell and Phillipa Soo are nowhere to be seen?? What the fuck Spotify, what are you basing your information on??

#I'm mad and it's becoming personal at this point #look I was nice I added a read more #spotify wrapped #spotify #@spotify come explain this to me #I made an original post

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jdumblr · 7 years ago

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I don't know if this will qualify in your realm of ask and you can ignore if it doesn't. So here goes my ask. Some were saying that Jensen's tbt IG posting of him and Danneel (the November 2nd one) was actually done by her on his IG. What are you thoughts on the subject? Especially since she responded so quickly after he posted the picture.

Dear Anon,

Thank you for your question. I indeed wanted to talk aboutthis subject, as I don’t think most people understood what Jensen and D didwith that post and comment. See, in order to understand the reason behind what they did, I will have to go back a week before that. Please, bear with me.

Timeline of J2 Slander — Reasons & Damage Control

Wed, Oct 26th — Supernatural Episode 2

The episode causes a major rift in Fandom. And by Fandom Imean The Only Fandom that exists: Sam & Dean fans. Never in all my 12 yearsof being a SPN fan have I ever seen such uproar; so many people screaming theirdissatisfaction with storyline, character erasure, character being dumbed down to jumpstart the spin-off. However,instead of uniting for a common complain, what we saw were BiBros, SamStans,DeanStans fighting each other. Nobody was happy. That was the episode that broke fandom.

Sat, Oct 28th,NOLA Con — D at the Vendor’s Area

D sets up a Family Business Beer Co stand and sells merch at the vendor’s area.Fans line up to talk to her. Some TinHats are attackedfor wanting to meet her, and Hets and Hellers team up to bully them. Here’ssomething you need to understand about Hellers: they love the wives because intheir twisted logic, the wives invalidate TinHats/J2 and anything that could upsetus is game for them. Raise your hand you whose TinHat tweet/post was neverbashed by a minion.

Eventually, things evolve to an attempt to starta witch hunt.

Sun, Oct 29th,NOLA Con — J2 Panels

During the J2 Gold Panel, a questionabout pick up lines prompts a joke that the entire fandom had heard from J2before and no one had ever batted an eye (timestamp: 20:21).

youtube

In the Afternoon Panel, J2 are asked whatlead roles in SPN, other than Sam & Dean, they’d choose to play.

What follows is the longest M*sha/C*stiel shade ever thrownby Jared and Jensen, individually or combined—see for yourself those 3 fullminutes (timestamp: 10:12 to 13:02):

youtube

Once again, I’ve never seen J2 throw such enormous shade, Iguess it speaks volumes about how fed up they are with M*isha. You can see in thevideo the immediate reaction from Hellers booing Jared, who started the shade.

Now think with me: who’s the one Hellers most want out ofthe way because of their nonexistent ship? Jared. The two situations have onething in common: Jared. He was the one to mention the chloroform joke, and hewas the one to initiate and continue the M*sha/C*stiel shade. Now tell mewho Hellers were most pissed at? Jared.

You think I’m exaggerating? Here’s some foodfor thought.

Mon, Oct 31st— pseudo-article trashing J2

A wannabe author from a blog where literally anyone could bea part of, makes an unabashedly Heller post, accusing J2 of making a rapistjoke. To back up their allegations that “fandom was dragging J2” theyunsurprisingly add caps of D*estiel accounts. No agenda at all, as you can see.

[Let’s go back to the Sunday events for a minute. J2 bashedM*sha, Jared was the one starting the shade, Jared is the one they hate, Jaredwas the who told the chloroform joke this time around. Now tell me if thatwasn’t the reason behind that “article”?]

J2 fans lash on the blog’s account for tweeting the “article” and thetweet get deleted, but not the article.

Side note: Jaredattends 1 or 2 Halloween parties in Vancouver and takes pictureswith half the town’s population. Curiously enough, he was alone, no costume anddressed as if he had been dining outand decided to drop by. Oh, wait…

Tue, Nov 1st— T*een V*gue reposts article

What could have well been stopped by CW/J2’s reps on Monday, gets the unexpected and undeserved traction: a bigger, more accredited,teen-oriented website reposts the pseudo-article. No facts were checked, no oneapproached J2 for a statement and guess what? The same H*ellers’ caps werepresent; it was a mere copy of the previous article.

The damage is done and more websites publish the same storywith slight variations but none of them favors or approaches J2 for a statement.The articles get reposted outside of the US.

The slander shocks J2 Shippers, TinHats and Hets who,unexpectedly, unite in at least three hashtags to show their love and supportfor Jared & Jensen:

#IStandWithJ2

#ISupportJaredandJensen

#ILoveJ2Because

J2 Fans flood the websites that posted the slander with commentspointing out all the good things the Js have done for fans, Mental HealthAwareness, charities, etc. During these 48h of slander, I didn’t seeone single website or accredited institution show their support for J2, exceptfor Attitudesin Reverse.

Not a single peep from J2 co-stars, production, nothingexcept for the one you’d least expect: Mart Pellegrino posts a simple andhonest tweetpraising J2:

J2 Fans retweet and thank him for being the onlycast member/peer who dared support J2. It seems that the only ones mature enough to be honest and recognize that Supernatural only is what it is becauseof J2, are Mark Pellegrino and Mark Sheppard.

Nov 2nd —J2 issue a statement

Reps for both Jared and Jensen issue combined statementsaffirming they do not condone rape and the subject apparently dies down.

J2 Fans speculate whether this incident will cause Jared andJensen to share less on Con panels. Some even fear the possibility the boysmight eventually cut down the number of Cons.

Jensen post a pictureof him and D

Contrary to what Jensen had been doing until now, he poststwo different caps, one for his IGAccount and another slightly different one on Twitterwith an added “❤ u”:

The picture is apparently cozy, once they’re sorta hugging. However,some point out how weird the picture is with her half smile and peace sign, andhis closed off face. Does that scream couple to you? …

As you well pointed out, Anon, D quickly replieswith more information about the #tbt picture: they were at Cabo, they were meeting the parents andthey’ve been together for 11 years and going strong.

Eleven years?? Come again? Oh, wait, she’s justdoing her job, I mean, Jensen was the one who started that 11 years story,precisely in Oct 26th 2007, at an interview he gave for TV Guidetitled UpClose with Supernatural’s Jensen Ackles: Part 2:

So, one year before that 2007 interview, when they filmed TenInch Hero. How convenient.

Check out the whole story at Anna’s blog.

How interesting that he managed to “hide” his one-yearrelationship from anyone, right?

The funny thing is that apart from that statement he rarely,if ever, mentioned the amount of years they've been together. The only time that comes to mind was at Kelly & Ryan.

Well, Anon, all this ridiculously long post to conclude thatJensen and D were only using social media to take the focus off of the eventsfrom the previous days. Did you see how many RTs/Likes both his posts had?

Twitter: 4.5K RTs/ 36K Likes

IG: 632K Likes/ 3,905 comments(as of today)

Did you see the hets and Hellers swooning over their love?

Jensen did what had to be done to change the focus and giveFandom something else to talk about. BUT much like his mentor Kim Manners wouldsay, ‘give them what they want in a way they don’t expect.’ Jensen did postsomething for PR purposes but on his owns terms. Just look at his face on thepicture he chose to represent how much he loves D.

Bonus: Jensen low key liked Mark’s tweet.

#jensen and d's picture #j2 slander #11 years together #mark defending j2 #tv guide 2007 interview #IStandWithJ2 #ilovej2because #ask #nola #Timeline of J2 Slander — Reasons & Damage Control #102017 #timeline #J2102017 #J2112017 #112017

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auroargraves · 7 years ago

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I read your reply to that anon about how Newt behaves with his partners and I have to say I agree with you 100000%. He may be shy, but once he trusts someone-Percival- enough to have sex, it's on. Besides, he's been all over the world, buddy's probably been in AT LEAST one orgy- maybe even a fertility ritual or two, I hear red heads are good luck in some cultures. Also, I too would punch Tina in the face for a chance with Newt AF Scamander. I kinda wish they'd reversed the casting w her and Leta

Like, isn’t Zoe Kravitz half Jewish, on her dad’s side, and I’m sorry but Tina and Queenie are fucking Jewish- Porpentina ESTHER Goldstein? EEN, not EYEN. They’re fucking Jewish, and I feel like they could have been cool and done an interracial relationsip for the lead, but as usual didn’t do the awesome thing and went with the basic blah white het couple. Blah. Sorry about the rant(s).

I agree with your rant! All of it! Including Newt participating in an orgy or two or three because it’s just sex and he is foot-loose and fancy free and the people are nice enough to him so why not?

And Newt going to China to study the Chinese Fireball Dragon and the local villagers are drawn to him, magical or not, because Newt has red hair! Newt is luck himself! They want him to stay close to them! And he feels more welcomed here in this remote mountain village than back at his own home country!

And about Tuna (no, it’s not a typo), I agree that she doesn’t deserve Newt and things would have been more interesting if they’ve casted Zoe to be her instead BECAUSE LIKE YOU SAID BADASS INTERRACIAL COUPLE ALERT AND HOW THEY WON’T LOOK SO VANILLA!

Also, I’m sick and tired of the narrative that POC is evil so to cast her as Leta is like opening up more opportunity to hate on that character. But then again Joanne isn’t that good of a decision maker.

I mean who the fuck cast a known abuser to replace Colin Farrell am I right?

That being said, we could have all the good things in this movie and I honestly would fight Tuna to have Newt all for myself

#askbox #bornunderabluemoonbaby

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spicynbachili1 · 6 years ago

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Please do not play The Quiet Man with sound

Precise deaf individuals have performed The Quiet Man and located it very a lot wanting; whenever you play it you clip into virtually each floor obtainable and through fights could instantly teleport from one punching animation to a different with a block of frames lacking in between; the principle character Dane isn’t a Quiet Man in any respect and he truly makes loads of noise. Sure, certain, all that’s true. You’ve seen everybody tear into it already, and say why you completely shouldn’t purchase it till it’s approx. £three. However I additionally need a go doing that.

Human Head Studios’ interactive film punch ‘em up (full with stay motion bits) is basically devoid of sound, to mirror the deafness of protagonist Dane. However a couple of days from now the sport will probably be receiving a NG+ replace that provides the principle story once more, however with sound this time. And it’s my solemn plea that you just by no means, ever do this.

There are severe causes to not play it in any respect, in fact, expanded on in One Odd Gamer Woman’s evaluate linked above. In one of three developer letters, producer Kensei Fujinaga says that the idea on the core of The Quiet Man is casting apart phrases and enthusiastic about whether or not we “have been capable of perceive each other by means of connections shaped coronary heart to coronary heart, soul to soul, and will as soon as once more look into each other’s eyes and type a bond so pure?” From this I assume that Fujinaga believes deaf persons are magic, or the human type of the galaxy mind. This assumption is supported by occasions in The Quiet Man.

He’s taking a look at a DVD menu display screen on the audio choices. Do you get it?

My argument immediately, nonetheless, is from a unique standpoint, which is: there is no such thing as a actuality I can think about the place understanding for certain what occurs in The Quiet Man improves it in any means. Spoilers forward, should you have been raring to play it unspoiled.

The Quiet Man is a sort of masterpiece as a result of so many people who find themselves good at their jobs have been concerned with this at each stage, and at no level did one in all them say, “Hey everybody, is that this truly horrible?” Like no one, throughout a gathering, was like “Are we certain none of that is an excessive amount of? After the reception Quantum Break obtained, is that this the title that’s going to succeed at mixing stay motion video seamlessly right into a sport?” Including audio that pretends to clear up plot holes – however will in all chance nonetheless depart some large enough to drive buses by means of – isn’t going to assist.

The one piece of dialogue you hear for certain within the sport, earlier than absolutely inhabiting Dane’s world, is an trade with some ruff and tuff lads in an alleyway. A lot of this trade is, and please interpret this phrase utilizing its full vary of meanings, superb.

There isn’t any model of the sport with extra of that dialogue that’s the improved model. Dane steals a bunch of cocaine from these dudes, and somebody will certainly say “koh-CAY-een” within the model with sound, ese. Having sound doesn’t matter, as a result of you possibly can decide up a lot of the plot anyway, like after I watched the film 2012 on a aircraft and the display screen and headphones have been damaged:

Dane is deaf. His mom was unintentionally shot when he was a child, as a black teen and a latino teen fought over some new trainers, a scene that was shot and edited and included on this sport on function. Everybody concerned spiralled into a lifetime of crime. His greatest pal and now obvious employer, Taye, is a gangster, whereas Dane beats individuals up for him, and the third child concerned within the taking pictures is the chief of the gang of aforementioned alley lurkers. The exception is a police detective who seems to be like Bruce Willis by the use of Phil Mitchell; he’s both Dane’s literal or metaphorical father determine, however the distinction is nearly meaningless for the story.

Taye has a girlfriend who’s being threatened in a Hollywood-voodoo kinda means – lifeless birds, you already know the vibe. Dane fights his means across the similar few buildings in New York, chasing down the Chook Man (a person in a chicken masks) who has a creepy culty obsession with the unnamed woman, as demonstrated by his bizarre Chook Lair. Ultimately Taye goes off cracked and ties up his girlfriend on a roof, for some motive, and Dane defeats him and the Chook Man while additionally confronting inside demons. The top. These are the info we all know. However the info we don’t know are additionally higher with out sound, as a result of they’re open to liberal interpretation.

The primary kicker that I haven’t talked about but is that Taye’s girlfriend is a pianist, and is the spit of Dane’s mom. Which is the place the liberal interpretation makes The Quiet Man far more attention-grabbing than the reality will ever be. My studying is that Taye will get actually offended at each his girlfriend and Dane resulting from their betrayal, i.e. these two have undoubtedly been getting busy behind his again, as a result of, fuck, man, the framing is a bit a lot for a platonic relationship. Photographs of current day mum-crush cradling Dane are intercut with photographs of latter-day lifeless mum doing the identical. He’s continually conflating his reminiscences of his mom with this girl’s actions within the current. It’s bizarre, dude.

Secondarily, and even betterly, there’s a bit on the finish the place Dane is briefly actually truly magic. In flip it looks like the Chook Man often is the gang chief, then Taye, then, in an unsurprising twist, Dane himself, earlier than turning out it was your father determine police detective. Which truly was shocking, as a result of should you have been requested “What’s the most nonsensical plot transfer this factor may do proper now?” then you definitely would reply: “It seems the dangerous man was the police detective all alongside, the one which simply obtained shot within the again a couple of minutes in the past, and now there will probably be a closing boss struggle with him.” The Chook Man masks appears to be half the Masks masks from the film The Masks, as a result of whoever is in possession of it goes bit bizarre, and half the Crow from the film The Crow. as a result of when Dane places it on and is shot by Taye he turns into an invincible smoke chicken monster.

This will increase the already troublesome movement blur on-screen in fights to near-indecipherable ranges.

After this Dane reverts to being regular once more…? I select to not interpret this as a manifestation of his childhood want to guard his mom that he in the end failed at (and now has a second likelihood at due to his mother-girlfriend’s plight) however moderately to learn it actually. Within the sport world, due to this fact, each deaf individuals and masks have magic superhero talents. This doesn’t change the truth that he was shot within the again, nonetheless, and the ultimate struggle within the sport, the place each characters have been shot, is thus like two drained drunks flailing at one another and falling over within the carpark.

And the perfect half is that that is solely my interpretation! You’ll be able to give you your individual! Possibly the masks is a haunted one which possesses individuals. Possibly Chook Man is like James Bond, and there are a great deal of Chook Males. Possibly it was all a dream! Possibly the sport isn’t filled with stereotypes! With out sound, something in The Quiet Man is feasible. As a result of the factor is, a wildly over-the-top and bizarre Oedipal vigilante smoke chicken monster is means higher, extra attention-grabbing and fewer offensive than no matter model of The Quiet Man with sound is about to reach.

from SpicyNBAChili.com http://spicymoviechili.spicynbachili.com/please-do-not-play-the-quiet-man-with-sound/

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liz-and-the-blue-bird · 8 years ago

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2016 Year In Review

Where Kurt talks about literally everything.

Totally not late 👌.

(Recommended Sountrack. You may just want to put it on loop.)

(Alternate soundtrack. This is what I listened to for the majority of writing this.)

Top lists are a sort of fun exercise for me. They present a unique challenge: to sell an idea well but short enough so the full list is reasonable to read in an afternoon. They also allow me to flex my own creative muscles by talking about many topics and concepts all at once. One of my favorite parts about anime is writing and talking about it after all. So top lists let me do that all of that for a bunch of different shows all at once. Also they’re pretty interesting to compare to other critics who are much better than me and like, do this for a living. I find that when I compare top lists to each other, they tend to agree on what each individual show is doing, yet disagree on which is the best. But I digress.

Anyway, if you read last years’ post, thank you—the writing in it sucks compared to how I write now so I don’t blame you if you don’t read it. Secondly, I’m changing the format a bit: I’ll still do a top five list, but I also have a few anime that I’ll just call “notable.” To me they aren’t good enough to put in my top list, but have interesting ideas or execution that is worth talking about (also, some other people may believe that they are worth their top list, which is a discussion topic in and of itself). Then I’ll just list off the rest of the shows I watched this year and give them little cute bite-sized reviews. I’ll also give star ratings out of 5 to everything (2.5 is the “average show,” but I refuse to rate with a fraction). Now then, we have a lot to get through so let’s get cracking.

Top Five New Anime

As always, in airing order.

Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo! (KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World!)

Jan 14, 2016 to Mar 17, 2016; 10 episodes; Studio DEEN (btw is it Deen or DEEN? I can’t seem to find any consensus on this.)

So like, think SAO, but not edgy. KonoSuba takes the inherent absurdity of the SAO premise and puts that at the forefront. It opts out of the darker concepts that most of these “stuck in another world” anime tend to take in favor of hilarity. This is mostly done by creating a world that is legitimately wonderful as opposed to fake-difficult. Which means that the ridiculous problems the protagonists have are not at all because the world sucks, it’s because they suck. Each of them are jerks or weirdos in their own way and how they play with each other and the world is a riot. The show also does lots of clever things with its videogame world like: how luck stats affects quest rewards, how one develops their own skill repertoire, how dying works—hell, the first episode uses a literal pause as a method of conveying the protagonist’s thoughts. It feels like a DnD campaign that went off the rails in the best possible way. Even the show’s weakness, the occasional moments of terrible or rushed animation, are leveraged into comedic beats. It’s only 10 episodes (and a fantastic OVA) and a sequel is coming out soon. It’s definitely worth the watch.

★★★★☆

I didn’t expect to ever put a DEEN show on this list.

Mother’s Basement did an OP analysis along with Re:Zero here.

Boku No Hero Academia (My Hero Academia)

Apr 3, 2016 to Jun 26, 2016; 13 episodes; Bones

Many hero shows nowadays are trying to be a dark and intense, discussing themes of loss or the responsibilities of power. My Hero Academia handles hard concepts like that as well (especially in the most recent arc in the manga), but, first and foremost, it absolutely loves heroes. The original writer is a huge fan of old American comics and this show is a shonen recreation of the original Golden Age of superheroes. They explode onto the scene. They smile in the face of overwhelming odds. They always beat the villain and save the day. The best heroes are those that just want to be heroic and this show understands that. It’s world, like the author, loves heroes. The school loves heroes. The main character loves heroes. This incredibly positive view just emanates from the show and can be felt in every aspect. By far it’s biggest weakness is Bones seems a bit afraid to take risks: the fights a bit too true to the manga and the pace afraid of running out of material. But the character writing, the world building, the soundtrack are all top notch. A sequel is in the works and there’s also an OVA story that isn’t in the manga. An easy recommendation.

★★★★☆

One of my favorite critics, Nick Creamer, did a review on ANN. He also reads the manga and talks about it often on his blog, Wrong Every Time.

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu (Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-)

Apr 4, 2016 to Sep 19, 2016; 25 episodes; White Fox

The opposite of KonoSuba—Re:Zero instead takes the SAO premise and makes it legitimately dark. It does this, not by making a main character whose defining character trait is “I’m cool,” but by crafting a world that is half high fantasy and half intangible, unceasing horror. The show leans on the uncertainty of being thrust into a new world and the agony of respawning again and again while talking to people who killed you as if they weren’t ticking time bombs. However, this story is not built to crush you. It carries heavy elements, not to present meaningless challenges to a blatantly overpowered protagonist (cough), but to push the protagonist to strive harder. In this way, it creates a relatable character. A character who we know is not strong and sometimes doubts himself, just like how we do when we face our own monsters. Then he faces his problems head on, sometimes by himself and sometimes with friends who don’t really understand the depth of his struggle. It says to the audience “this is not the end of your story” in a way that fills us with determination to reach our own happy endings. And that is a story worth telling.

★★★★★

This is probably the best story about being thrown into another world since…KonoSuba. 2016 was pretty good about this premise tbh, especially when you also consider Grimgar was released as well.

Mother’s Basement did an OP analysis along with Kono Suba here.

Flying Witch

Apr 10, 2016 to Jun 26, 2016; 12 episodes; J.C.Staff

Flying Witch doesn’t really have anything important to say. It doesn’t have a deep meaning like “one’s journey to personal peace” or “the intrinsic strength of the human spirit.” It’s just a slice of life story put in a casually magical setting. Like every good slice of life, episodes aren’t super related, and once you know all the characters you can watch it in basically any order. Some episodes don’t even show off any magic. All it does is carry a carefree lighthearted tone for 12 episodes. The show does this by establishing the world with many, many wide environment shots and then dropping so many quirky-cute characters whose interactions are so lovely and so charming that you just have to come back. In many ways, this show is K-on! except the captivating music scenes are replaced with equally stunning magical scenes. And I adore its sound design. Many of the most iconic tracks are reprises of its main theme at different tempos or with different instruments, creating a very cohesive experience throughout the series. In particular, its flying theme is gorgeous. Just like K-on!, it’s one of those shows that you watch on a rainy day and it will be just what you need. Flying Witch has quietly entered my personal favorites.

★★★★★

None of the critics I follow have made long articles about this anime. What this is telling me is I need to find more anime bloggers. Now taking suggestions.

Yuri!!! on Ice

Oct 6, 2016 to Dec 22, 2016; 12 episodes; MAPPA

To say this show was an endeavor would be selling it short. Yuri!!! on Ice tackles something like seven or eight parallel stories and relevant backstories of characters who all have different cultures and goals, and then it also has to explain enough about professional skating for you to actually care and understand the performances the show takes so much time to show and, if that wasn’t enough, it’s also LGBT. You have to give it to MAPPA for trying. The success of each of these aspects is middling, but, at the very least, it handles the stories of Yuuri, Yurio, and Victor fairly well. I’ve already touched on many of the techniques it uses to develop it’s expansive cast, but setting that aside, there is just a lot of show here. In order to communicate the number of ideas it tackles, the show presents everything full of purpose. Most scenes work overtime here and the resulting dialogue pops. Even the commercial break cuts are used effectively: they are foods that are native to the region that the cast is currently in which establishes a sense of place. At the same time, they’re food, so they refer back to the Yuuri’s in-joke about being a pork cutlet bowl and also maintain the lighthearted, happy tone of the show. Yuri!!! on Ice is efficient like that. It’s also one of those rare shows that sneaks into the public eye, so supporting it feels a tiny bit like supporting animation as a medium. But, before all that, it’s a story about a guy who follows his dream. That’s about as grand a story as anyone can tell.

★★★★☆

Notables

Hai to Gensou no Grimgar (Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash)

Jan 11, 2016 to Mar 28, 2016; 12 episodes; A-1 Pictures

If you read just the premise, this show should suck. It’s just another one of those “stuck in another world” anime that come out every season. However, it has an interesting secondary hook: it’s actually a slice of life. Some of the most interesting portions of SAO and Log Horizon were how the videogame world interacted with the daily lives of the characters, so a show about this should be good, right? Unfortunately for Grimgar, it seems to be in the business of ruining it’s own emotional beats. The first episode is a good example of this: they open with a goblin hunting section that would be high tension, yet the animation struggles to provide the necessary impact. A training sequence occurs, but ends up paying too much attention to the instructor’s fanservice to offer anything meaningful. Then there’s a bit where the main crew gather round the campfire for some casual conversation which also stumbles because their topic of discussion is witch girl’s breasts. In fact, a lot of potential emotional hits snuff themselves out by becoming fanservice beats instead. A real shame.

★★☆☆☆

Flip Flappers

Oct 6, 2016 to Dec 29, 2016; 13 episodes; Studio 3Hz

Well, I’ve already talked about how I feel about this show, but it just keeps popping up. To me, Flip Flappers comes across as trying too hard and losing focus and meaning as it tries to rationalize its own absurd world. It fails to explain bits and pieces, and, once you go down this rabbit hole, you have to hit everything. So we end up with this sort of half-done mess. However, people are still talking about it, so I think your assessment of Flip Flappers is a personal measurement of how much BS you can handle before you reject a plot idea. And the plot really is the “only” thing that grinded me about Flip Flappers. It had interesting characters, clever world building, and its ability to play with its animation style produced lots of great single episodes. It’s not a bad show, but it depends on what kind of person you are to tell if it’s a great show.

★★★☆☆

Short Answer Section

Ok, hopefully this goes by faster.

Winter 2016

Prince of Stride: Alternative - Madhouse does sports anime sounds like a good show. Unfortunately, this is less sports anime and more otome game. The parkour/running scenes are well animated (it’s Madhouse), but the character beats don’t work very well. All in all, ok. - ★★☆☆☆

Musaigen no Phantom World - Flip Flappers but bad. How disappointing. - ★☆☆☆☆

Sekkou Boys - Honestly? Not terrible. It’s a short, so attempting to put any sort of character development is kind of a crazy idea, but at least it was hilarious. - ★★☆☆☆

ERASED - 2/3rds of a great show. The first 8-ish episodes are tightly written and well directed. The next 4 are…less so. At least for the writing part—the direction is still pretty good. ERASED fails to explain some character developments in ways that really make sense. This is similar to my problem with Flip Flappers, but, as ERASED is a mystery thriller, it is a much larger oversight. In short, the director once again proves himself much better than the works he has been given to adapt. - ★★★☆☆

Zootopia - Disney does not suck, usually. Zootopia, in fact, is one of their better films. The setting is actually self-explanatory enough to work without too much info dumping, so it uses this kooky setting to tell a story that is relevant to our own world. Being a mystery/detective thriller, the plot is required to be more tight than Disney animated movies usually are and for the most part Zootopia delivers. It’s probably the best animated Disney movie this year. - ★★★★☆

Spring 2016

Uchuu Patrol Luluco - Trigger at their Trigger-iest. Luluco actually manages to reference (“reference” aka “directly call out”) every single Trigger show in this short mini-series. It’s actually a really fun ride, in the same way that Gurren Lagann is, but because of how much it meanders it loses some of it’s punch. Still, I’d recommend it because honestly, at 13*6=74 minutes total running time, what have you got to lose? - ★★★★☆

Gyakuten Saiban: Sono “Shinjitsu”, Igi Ari! (Ace Attorney) - Ace Attorney shows us that some things are much better played than watched (like some other shows). But, all in all, it didn’t suck. It’s actually pretty good for people who don’t have the time to play the games. And I did get a lot of notes on that one post… - ★★☆☆☆

Netoge no Yome wa Onnanoko ja Nai to Omotta? - For the most part, a generic harem anime except the archetypes are marginally more interesting and the secondary hook is unconventional (videogames as opposed to…super human high school. We live in a world where super human high school is more common than just videogame club). The fanservice is expected. The comedy is ok. Overall it’s just kinda eh. - ★★☆☆☆

Sakamoto desu ga? - This show is actually just one joke repeated for twelve episodes. I mean it’s a pretty good joke; you could call this the slice of life One Punch Man. But I liked One Punch Man—I put it on the top list last year, so what’s wrong with this show? Well the strength of One Punch Man is not actually Saitama (haha), but rather the cast of side characters. Since Saitama is a static character, the development is shipped to everyone else so we get our character beats from them. Then, Saitama is used only for comedic beats. Sakamoto, on the other hand, fails to do this, and instead uses a rotating static character cast, so it has to rely entirely on comedy to compel you to watch. And, like I said, it’s just one joke repeated for twelve episodes. - ★★☆☆☆

Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge - Like Sakamoto, Tanaka-kun is also just one joke, but it spends a bit more time developing the surrounding cast since that joke isn’t as potent. It’s slow pace reminds me a lot of Flying Witch, but it uses its characters more than its environment for the jokes. In fact, that’s probably the more important difference: there are more jokes. Flying Witch is content to let you stew in the world for a while, but Tanaka-kun feels pressured to hit you with another joke right after another. It’s not a bad show, but it’s a bit clumsy in its execution. - ★★★☆☆

Kiznaiver (2/12) - I touched on this already, but Kiznaiver is an interesting enough topic to revisit. Often for character shows, a director will take one of two ways to show relationships: 1) understated gestures and close up camera angles on expressive body parts—this is the stance KyoAni and PA Works likes to take—or 2) metaphor as shorthand to character mindsets, anywhere from expressive skating performances to personal demons gone physical. Neither of these is really Trigger’s style, so for their own character story, Kiznaiver, they turn the relationships into an actual physical connection and then use force to move relationships. I still haven’t gotten around to finishing it, but it’s a clever workaround and very Trigger even if it’s not their usual director. I’m excited to see how it’s done. - ★★★☆☆?

Finding Dory - I…don’t remember much of it. Usually that means it’s just kind of ok. A “just kind of ok” Disney movie probably means it’s above average so let’s go with that. (I am a serious critic who seriously critiques things with seriousness.) - ★★★☆☆?

I need to start writing shorter opinions or we’ll be here all day.

Summer 2016

That scroll bar is getting pretty small…

Love Live! Sunshine!! (3/13) - Of the 3 episodes I’ve watched, this seems very much like “Love Live! 2, Love Liver!!” It still has this weird problem of taking itself too seriously (remember “I love school idols!” ?), but Sunrise is a roll here, given another iteration we might have a very good character comedy. - ★★★☆☆?

New Game! - Aside from having the most adorable OP of 2016, this show isn’t really notable. Yeah, it’s cute, it’s Doga Kobo. Yeah, it’s funny, it’s Doga Kobo. There’s some fanservice, often leveraged into comedy a la Monogatari, but that’s kind of it. For the most part, this is Shirobako channeling K-on! which sounds amazing but ends up just being pretty ok. I wonder how much better it could be given a two cour season. - ★★★☆☆

Taboo Tattoo (1/screw it) - I was coerced into watching one episode of this thing. It has like almost an interesting premise but every time they introduced another character I just got more disappointed. Please send help. - ☆☆☆☆☆

Amanchu! (1/12) - J.C.Staff has this weird artistic style that seems to change completely whenever they are making a joke. This works for some anime, but it’s not very subtle. In the case of Amanchu!, I think they needed to deliver it with a more softer style overall, but it’s not a deal breaker. I just haven’t gotten around to watching the rest. - ★★☆☆☆?

Kono Bijutsubu ni wa Mondai ga Aru! (3/12) - Comedy anime about girls in art club falling in love with a dense otaku and surrounded by other quirky idiots is not a new concept. To be different, Konobi tries to provide more structure to its story, evident just from the first episode. Well, I’m only 3 episodes in but I’ve found the comedy weakens the plot and the plot weakens the comedy. Often with short seasons, it’s better to focus on only one aspect, as dividing your resources like this results in a mediocre show, but I still haven’t gotten that far. I’m hopeful. - ★★☆☆☆?

Fall 2016

WWW.Working!! (6/13) - It basically plays out like Working!! lite. WWW.Working!! was the original “rough draft” for the Working!! manga after all, so it kind of makes sense. It’s alright. Working!! is a stronger show overall and has a rare multi-season full adaptation, so, choosing only one, I’d choose Working!!. That was probably really confusing. - ★★★☆☆?

Shuumatsu no Izetta (2/12) - History drama meets magical girls. You know, maybe we should stop making so many “x + Magical girls” anime. It’s an interesting take and the direction it goes is pretty fun. Instead of following a WW2 titan, you follow a small country that needs the magical girl to keep themselves from getting totally destroyed. I’m not sure I’ll finish it, but if that’s your kind of vibe, Izetta is the show for you. - ★★☆☆☆?

Mahou Shoujo Ikusei Keikaku (1/12) - Continuing the theme of “x + Magical girls” anime, this one is Magical Girls meets Battle Royal. At least, that’s what it’s supposed to be. The pace is so incredibly slow that the little premise you read on MAL tells you the story past the first episode already. I don’t think I’ll be coming back to this one. - ★☆☆☆☆?

Cheating Craft (2/12) - Calling this an Anime is kind of hazy but luckily this post is about more than just anime. The first episode is sort of a flashback type deal that explains the concept and the next episode is the first of what seems to be a series of tests. Instead of the subtle strategic type of show I expected, it’s actually just ok-ish action with poorly defined characters. So it’s been dropped. - ★☆☆☆☆?

Hibike! Euphonium 2 - I’ve talked about this so much you guys probably already know my stance on it. It’s hampered by the nature of adaptation as the Mizore-Nozomi arc could probably be removed. But the Asuka arc shows KyoAni has still got it. One of the best shows of the year. - ★★★★★

KEIJO!!!!!!!! - You know what’s interesting about this show? In story structure, it’s the most generic shonen ever. But the base premise is so absurd and so confident in itself that it carries pretty well. The absurdity even spreads to the title: all caps and eight exclamation points. This show knows what it’s about. - ★★★☆☆

Gi(a)rlish Number (2/12) - Oregairu is well written show. Gi(a)rlish Number is also a well written show. Thanks Wataru Watari. But because of how cynical they are, they’re really hard for me to watch. So I’ve only watched two episodes. Thanks Wataru Watari. I’m sure I’ll have lots of opinions about this so I’ll talk about it at a later time. - ★★★★☆?

Haikyuu!!: Karasuno Koukou VS Shiratorizawa Gakuen Koukou - Carrying from the momentum of the previous season, Haikyuu!! remains good. I think this is the weakest season so far in terms of emotional pay-off (probably because it’s, ya know, 10 episodes), but it’s still my favorite sports anime. Hopefully the next season isn’t too far away. - ★★★★☆

Moana - Compared to Zootopia, this Disney film is more hand-wavy with its plot. It’s not like the world is harder to build, one of them has demi-gods and another has talking animals, the world just isn’t as important for this type of story. On the flip side, it has arguably the best sound design of an animated feature in 2016. I enjoyed it, but all I ever think about with Disney princess films is how cool the Kingdom Hearts world is going to be. -★★★★☆

I’M DONE.

Holy cow I didn’t realize how much stuff I watched last year. And I didn’t even finish a lot of shows I wanted to.

Man. I hope one day I get paid to write about this stuff.

Thanks as always for reading. Let me know if I missed something!

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