#taking this character with such depth and being like 'yeah he hates women and thinks animal abuse is funny' was a weird turn!

[glitter-stained]

thank you for all your jason posts! it's frustrating when some more titans-adjacent fans (especially hurts if you like mia and others too) like to warp any fans of him into being like serial killer fetishists, or act really misogynist and assume one only likes him for being "hawt guy", and then even warp some of his canon faults and shitty moments to be even worse than they are like saying he killed everyone at mia's school or wanted to SA her. at least charge him with the crimes he really did, people.

They claim he what

They said he wanted to do what to Mia

I'm genuinely upset about this

Also yeah that sexism towards jason fans thing is so real like yeah assuming we're so shallow calling us "fanon fans"/assuming with zero proof that we don't read comics (which you know is just repackaged "fake fan" comicsgate discourse) it's so fucking annoying like "jason fans have stolen traits from other characters and his personality is just fanon and they just like him because they think he's woman-coded because they actually hate women but what can you expect from stupid little girls who wouldn't know any better"

It's almost like because this character is popular amongst women there's this assumption of shallowness.

And also like, I do make a lot of post about how interesting he is and the catharsis he brings but I feel like in the end nothing I say matters when it can be waved aside with "you're just bending backwards to defend your favourite serial killer white boy you fangirl", nevermind 1) my actual gender and 2) that jason isn't even a serial killer. It's like, I feel like being a Jason fan I always have to prove I'm not shallow to others and have a right to my interest, which is a very usual, tiring experience and like, when in doubt people should assume depth and intelligence. Why do I have to defend my depth all the time? I shouldn't have to be defensive all the time I shouldn't have to perform the social equivalent of an IQ test to be allowed to engage in fandom.

There's a lot of sexism in fandom and yes, this can definitely happen to female characters, I've seen the way people talk about Stephanie Brown or Talia al Ghul and Jesus fucking Christ wth. And yes, at large, there's also a question of the impact of sexism on popularity at large, aka characters that would definitely be more popular if they were men. That absolutely does not mean that liking a male character somehow makes you a misogynist (and especially not with how talk of sexism in fandom doesn't often take into account gender stuff) and most importantly sexism in fandom is not limited to sexism towards characters. People are sexist as fuck towards female fans¹, notoriously real life human people. But I'm not fucking shallow. I know when I'm being called a fangirl even if it's dressed up in fandom speech. "Read a comic" how about you read all the meta I've written about all those comics I have read.

So anyway sorry that got a little out of hand I'm pretty upset about that one but I'm really glad you like my posts! I'm just tired because as much as I love literary analysis I just wish I didn't have to be on the defensive all the time. Maybe next time someone claims we're shallow we can join forces to print out all the good JT meta out there into one big book and beat them up with it- aside from that I'm all out of solutions.

Also just one last thing - "they just like jason todd because they think he's hot" this is comics. Literally everyone is hot. Who's your fav? Starfire? Oliver Queen? Kyle Rayner? Dinah Lance? Donna Troy? Raven? Cassandra Cain? Dick Grayson? Do you think your fav is ugly? (John Constantine fans this doesn't concern you). "They just like him because he's hawt" is short for "because I don't find anything interesting in him I'm going to assume shallowness and act sexist about it because I can't conceive that different people have different tastes and may enjoy different things than me without acting superior about it." But also it's ridiculous because again, this is comics. They're hot. 🤦

1. And towards female writers. Devin Grayson I haven't forgotten you. They should be so ashamed of what they did to you.

[thewadapan]

School Days review

Yeah, School Days is actually pretty good after all.

When you google "School Days", on the first page of results there's a reddit thread asking "hey, why do people hate this show?" OP gives a succinct summary of the show's themes and praises it for its tight focus and psychological depth.

The comments in that thread are fucking crazy. The top-voted comment includes this absolute gem: "Sekai is an emotionally manipulative bitch". Some users gesture towards a faint understanding that School Days is a deconstruction of harem anime, but almost to a one they claim the character writing is unrealistic. Nobody seems able to look past the show's metatextual meaning to just look at it on a straightup subtextual level—that is to say, it's not just being different to other anime for the sake of contrarianism, it's making a serious point about misogyny and toxic masculinity. Describing Makoto as a "character" at all is almost missing the point; he's practically a force of nature, and the vast majority of the show is concerned with the psychological manoeuvring of the girls in his class trying to manage and shape his behaviour.

I only know about School Days because @weaselandfriends is constantly banging a drum about it being a secret masterpiece. Gee, I wonder who the OP of that thread was! Cannot imagine being on a "School Days slaps" grindset for eight fucking years now.

(CW: discussion of underage sex, full spoilers follow)

I'm going to take a cowardly centrist route and say that School Days does in fact slap on a conceptual level, but that the execution in many places leaves a bit to be desired. It often feels repetitive. I watched the thing on 1.5x speed because, as someone who reads fast, watching subbed anime is like watching paint dry. The dialogue often feels awkward (unintentionally so, as in), which I'm willing to partially chalk up to the translation; maybe some of the clunkier lines feel more natural in the original Japanese. The imagery is often kind of laughably blunt: in some cases it works, like Kotonoha's red yarn like she's pulling her own fucking arteries out of her body, and in other cases it feels derivative and hackneyed, like the whistling kettle in the final episode. Maybe that was more original in 2007, I don't know—I would've seen the same thing in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire two years prior.

School Days does set out to pull the wool over the eyes of its presumably-mostly-young-men audience, by putting them in Makoto's POV. The show is adapted from an eroge, where the player literally would have inhabited Makoto and made his choices for him, and the "objective" of the game would have been to unlock sex scenes with all the schoolgirls. The trick with the anime is that it removes the possibility of choice, creating an impactful dissonance as Makoto's actions become increasingly alien and harmful. Inversely, as Makoto's sexual exploits escalate, we see less and less of them; by the end, the whole thing is routine, not eroticised in the slightest, we see people putting clothes on afterwards, sneaking around darkened rooms.

At the start, though, it's all panty shots and boobs. And like, how do you depict the objectification of women, from an internal perspective, without just... objectifying women? This has basically always been the classic problem with satire. If there is a way of doing it, School Days hasn't figured it out, so it just rolls up its sleeves and gets on with it. Where School Days stumbles, in my opinion, is that the fanservice shots leak out of Makoto's POV and into the scenes where it's just the girls on their own. Nevertheless, I think that even pretty early on School Days is unmistakably saying, "this is a bad thing". There's a discordant note to everything, a threat of another shoe waiting to drop. At the start, it takes the form of these innocuous remarks as the characters try to interact in good faith: Sekai is constantly like, "There's nothing wrong with feeling attracted to a girl! But maybe she doesn't feel comfortable with it! Have you thought about how she might feel?"

That's the great tension of Sekai, and indeed of much of the show's conflict: there is a world where Makoto and Sekai are just friends, and where Makoto is faithful to Kotonoha, and everyone lives happily ever after. Maybe Sekai really is earnestly trying to cross this gulf between genders, and wants to just make Makoto understand, so everyone can be happy. But from the start, there's a question of Sekai's motives; embodied by Sekai's friend Setsuna, who trails after her constantly asking, "But do you like him really?"

Setsuna is an interesting character with her own motives. There's a reading where she has a crush on Sekai, but can't pursue it because of her family's impending emigration; she ends up hanging around Makoto and desperately attempting to protect him from the consequences of his actions to preserve his relationship with Sekai, expressly stating that she wants Makoto to be a proxy for her after she's gone (though leaving any romantic feelings unspoken, that's just my interpretation). This escalates to the point of her having sex with Makoto on the condition that he breaks off another engagement with Otome, which is such a self-defeatingly doomed gambit that it becomes tragically clear Setsuna has lost all control over the situation. I got the impression that Setsuna somewhat envied the other girls' entanglements with Makoto: the bit where she kisses him while he's asleep, in an attempt to create a personal memory before she leaves forever, is haunting. Like Sekai, Setsuna ends up manufacturing a romance between herself and Makoto as a way to be with him "by proxy", without earnestly confronting her own feelings.

Anyway, my point is that early on, everyone is treating Makoto like a person, which is sort of their mistake. They're like, oh, a boy with a crush, how cute! What's the worst that could come of this? He's a bit clumsy, but I'm sure he means well! And progressively, mercilessly, the show is like: no, he does not mean well. This dude has absolutely nothing in his life except sex. Girls only exist to him as people to have sex with. Guys practically don't exist, as he can't have sex with them. And for these teenagers who are discovering their sexuality, the very fact that Makoto soon starts having these rumours circulating around him is what gives him some allure: he's a sexual entity, he can be thought of in that way, there must be some reason all these girls are acting so crazy over him. Even a character like Hikari, who early on was crushing heavily on the anime's one (1) other male character, Taisuke, ends up taking her turn with Makoto; whatever feelings she had for Taisuke are forgotten, the anime doesn't even bother establishing how that romance works, because it doesn't need to, we've already seen Makoto use his exact same wiles on like three girls already.

School Days has aged well not just because the years since have yielded a better cultural understanding of its subject matter, but for its "production design": what would have been a timely present-day setting at the point of its release ends up turning the whole thing into an early-2000s period-piece. The fashion and environments are distinctly noughties. Perhaps the most consistent bit of visual symbolism in the whole thing is the flip-phone: whenever a character is holding their phone, you can think of them holding their heart in their hands. They're like the fucking soul gems from Madoka Magica. Sometimes, people leave their hearts in the other room, or block each others' hearts, or search their hearts for good memories. The "cell phone charm" from the first episode is brought up towards the very end, seeming bitterly quaint in retrospect. Right before she kills him, Sekai sends Makoto a text which just reads "sorry" copied and pasted hundreds of times. And of course, the ED shows a propped-open cellphone with a slideshow of photos of the girls.

I think in terms of its place in history, School Days speaks to this information age where young girls are being bombarded with cultural messaging that the best way to get ahead is to sexualise oneself while simultaneously slamming everyone else for their sexuality. Girls aren't just competing with one another for the attention of boys; now, they're competing with online pornography. Sekai works as a waitress at a maid cafe (?), and sometimes wears the outfit for Makoto when they have sex. During the School Festival, the girls theme their class as a maid cafe (drawing on Sekai's experience, I think?), and are shown using "absolute territory" as a last-ditch resort to steal people from the other classes. As part of the festival, they have a secluded area curtained off with a bed, encouraging couples to go there for sex acts—but later, it turns out some of the girls have set up a camcorder, and they use the footage to reveal how everyone is cheating on everyone else. While the exact events are obviously taken to an extreme, subtextually everything in School Days tracks 100% with my own experience growing up in a Bri'ish high school, and it feels like things have only gotten worse since social media really tightened its grip on our society.

The most common talking point I see regarding this show is that the characters are "stupid". And it's like, no, they're not stupid, what planet are you on, they're fucking children! (They're children, fucking!) Most of them have probably never been in a relationship before! Everyone in the show is pursuing their own interests; it's just that often, they're in denial about the reality of the situation, because to acknowledge the reality would run against those interests. It's funny, Makoto hardly changes his behaviour throughout the whole show—it just becomes more extreme—but the only thing that affects whether or not his behaviour with Sekai is good or not is whether or not Kotonoha is his girlfriend. The use of "girlfriend" as a role is weaponised by both Kotonoha and Sekai against the other constantly; like declaring "you're It!" At once point while cooking for the school festival, Makoto starts groping Sekai's ass, and she goes, "Geez, stop it! Stop it I said! What'll you do if someone sees us?", only for Makoto to reply, "Then it's okay if no-one sees us?"; this motif of a private sin recurs with Setsuna's character, particularly in the masked play that crops up a couple of times. In what context is an act of desire okay, or not okay?

Halfway through the show, I remembered Emily is Away, a short Western indie visual novel. Released in 2015, Emily is Away is very consciously an early-2000s period piece, wearing the whole time period as an affectation. The whole game is a series of text conversations on an IM client with a girl; after key choices, you are told "emily will remember that".

I fucking hated Emily is Away when I played it. It made me so, so cross. Because after I finished my first playthrough, and got a miserable, unsatisfying end, I naturally started the whole thing over and tried again. I picked different favourite bands. I acted completely differently. And yet, no matter what I picked, during the timeskips between sections, my viewpoint character would do the exact same shit and the relationship fell apart in exactly the same way. The second playthrough was a complete waste of time. It seemed like I, the player, was being railroaded, that the writer simply hadn't the imagination to conceive of a truly interactive narrative with a wildly diverging chain of events.

But of course, that's the whole point, obviously. Emily is Away plays a mean trick on the player, where it outright lies that "you" are making meaningful choices, when in fact "you" are merely spectating the actions of the viewpoint character, a specific guy who is, by nature, a certain way. It posits that all this shit on the computer just doesn't fucking matter, it has nothing to do with how we feel about each other, that it's only our actions in the real world that matter. The thesis of Emily is Away is that sometimes, for some immutable reason, shit just doesn't work out between two people, and there's nothing you could have done differently that would have changed that.

In the timeline where you go the party, you regret going to the party. In the timeline where you don't go, you regret not going. So, the game says, what's the point in regretting at all?

I totally understood this, after finishing the game. But, fuck, I was still pissed about it. The game lied to my face. It put me in the position of being a shitty person, and I didn't like that. It left a bad taste in my mouth. I'm still not sure if Emily is Away is actually any good; I think I like it conceptually, but maybe the writing sucks, I played it eight years ago. My point is that I think School Days is trying to pull the same trick as this one game, but in a much more mean-spirited way, to much more devastating effect, and I suppose I can't be too surprised that it pissed off a lot of people. If I hadn't known upfront what to expect- well, I wouldn't be watching ecchi anime in the first place, but you get the point, maybe I would've been pissed too.

If you break out of the "anime" mindset for even a second, and allow yourself to think that what you're watching is a frank portrayal of events, rather than some hyperreal cartoon, then Makoto is obviously just a little sexual predator. He's constantly pushing the girls past their limits, groping tits, going in for kisses, often against their express wishes. He initiates all the sex we see, and while in a certain sense it's all consensual, everyone involved is under the age of consent, and the show is making a very strong case for why underaged sex is a problem. When Sekai gets pregnant, Makoto wants nothing to do with her—"It's not my fault!"—but it's made clear he wasn't using any contraception, so, c'mon.

School Days is very deliberate in omitting adult characters entirely. Teachers mostly exist in the form of textbooks being read offscreen. I think we get a line of dialogue from Sekai's mom, if I remember right? It presents this world where Makoto basically has free reign to do whatever he wants to the girls, and everybody knows about it, but nobody is doing anything about it. When Sekai murders Makoto, there isn't a scene where anyone notices his absence, finds out. Kotonoha carries his severed head across town without anyone noticing, kills Sekai, and makes it onto the boat without getting caught. The show ends on a montage of idyllic school scenes, as if to say, "nobody noticed, everything just carried on". And again, to a certain kind of guy, I think this would stretch plausibility to the point of causing offence. For me, I think it's speaking to something very real.

Makoto's bedroom is barren except for his computer and magazines: porn, and porn. In the back half of the show, the void left by the absence of adults is filled by Makoto, Sekai, and Kotonoha, who are thrust into this horrible domestic drama, as everyone else in their class blocks Makoto. Makoto relays Kotonoha's recommendation for an abortion clinic to Sekai. He and Sekai sit diagonally across a table in a living room, and suddenly Makoto's school uniform looks like a salaryman's suit, a size too big for him, like he's walking around in his dad's clothes. Sekai tries to prepare a big meal for him, in a fucked-up parody of domesticity, but ends up destroying the whole thing after Makoto spits in her face yet again; later, she sees the remnants in the trash, an uneaten chicken leg poking out, and sees a little of herself in there, and that's basically when she decides to take the knife and kill Makoto. She stabs him in the belly, which is what Kotonoha will later do to her; both are imitating the original sin of the pregnancy.

Kotonoha explicitly chooses to kill Sekai this way because she believes Sekai is lying about the pregnancy—which we can pretty safely say isn't true, based on the scenes where Sekai is on her own. There's this horrible, horrible shot where the camera is looking out at Kotonoha from inside the gut wound, and she observes, "Just as I thought. There's no-one in there." And it's like, is she talking about this baby, still so early in the gestation that it's scarcely even an idea? Is she talking about Sekai, or Makoto, these two people who turned out not to care about her at all? Or is she peering straight through the screen at the viewer, complicit in this atrocity? The shot mirrors the bag containing Makoto's head earlier in the same scene; when Sekai unzips it, the inside is just a black void, and we aren't shown the contents. It's honestly more unsettling to infer it—that bag's not big enough for all of Makoto—and have it "made real" by that final shot of Kotonoha pressing the severed head into her chest on the boat. The memes were more right than they knew: "Nice boat."

Overall, I think School Days extends a lot of empathy towards its female characters. Or, if nothing else, it takes care to give them complex and distinctive internality, which is more than I can say for a lot of anime. Kotonoha initially represses her feelings for Makoto, and then when she feels pressured into reciprocating his intimacy, she soon gets turned into a social pariah for it. Early on, there's this eye-roll-inducing scene where Kotonoha is like "the other girls used to make fun of me because of my huge boobs", and from Makoto's perspective it's like "great, you've got huge boobs!", but then from Kotonoha's perspective, she spends the whole show getting slut-shamed, doesn't she? As a coping mechanism, she builds up elaborate delusions around Makoto—Makoto wouldn't let this happen to her, would he!?—which make it impossible for her to see how he's harming Sekai at the same time, culminating in the "I think you've made up your pregnancy for attention" beat. Their own internalised misogyny prevents the girls from identifying their common enemy.

If I'm being totally blunt, I feel like I can pretty safely put most of the comments regarding School Days I've seen online into a big bucket labelled "HAS NEVER HAD MORE THAN ONE GIRL INTERESTED IN HIM AT ONCE". Like, "I can't believe this Makoto guy! Why doesn't he just dump Kotonoha and date Sekai, who he's obviously more compatible with?" Bucket. "Makoto is so spineless and needs to stop letting these girls manipulate him!" Bucket. "There's no way the teachers would let him get away with this!" Bucket. "What do these girls see in Makoto anyway?" Bucket. "Sekai is such a bitch!" A new, bigger bucket labelled "NO BITCHES".

What I'm interested in is takes from School Days haters who aren't brainpoisoned anime fans, who might even nod along to all my analysis of the show's themes here, but who nevertheless think it's a bad show that deserves to be reviled. What part didn't you like? Is it the part in the OP where you see every female character naked one after the other? Yeah that part's pretty bad. Is it that windowpane-shattering digital transition that gets used once or twice? Is it the utter self-seriousness with which it tackles its ludicrous melodrama? I can see how, if you don't let yourself start to think "oh, those poor girls!", if you don't have that emotional buy-in, the whole thing might just feel comically edgy, sophomoric. I don't think there's any level on which School Days is fun to watch, and I'm not saying it's a secret masterpiece either, but I guess it more-or-less landed for me.

[liminalgayhorror]

hell of a summer thoughts (spoilers)

- happy to say it wasn’t bad, sad to say it wasn’t much better than mid

-it just wasn’t really funny enough for me. The vibes, the setups the characters were all pretty funny and interesting, it’s just most of the actual jokes didn’t land. Obviously not talking about that one at the end that was impossible not to laugh at.

- it felt unfair that Bobby and Chris survived but I’m happy they did. They were great characters

- I kind of wish we explored other characters more. I’m happy with what we got with Chris Bobby and Jason but the main girl needed a little more in my opinion and so did Shannon. I also would’ve loved to have a bit more depth to the theater kid.

- I hate to say it but it’s not a good look that the main guys have great characters but the main girls are a little flat. It’s not a huge discrepancy but it’s noticeable. Practice writing women pls.

- Imo you need to reward the characters who survive longer with more characterization to make the audience more invested. I get they were going for a “they just get worse” but I feel like you can do that while still getting us invested—I mean they did pull that off with Bobby. It felt kind of random who did and didn’t get more depth and that was kind of frustrating bc I was trying to connect to the characters with more screen time and sometimes I literally couldn’t

- the reveal was alright. It wasn’t an “oh my god that makes so much sense!!” and it wasn’t super funny but it worked.

- I DIDNT EXPECT THE HOMOEROTIC BOBBYCHRIS FRIENDSHIP BUT IM SO HERE FOR IT. Bobby being gay made so much sense I wasn’t expecting it going in but it made the movie twice as interesting. Also i wholeheartedly think Chris likes Shannon more (as he should) but he’s not straight he’s 1000000% bi but I don’t think he knows it yet.

- I think Chris x Shannon is better because Chris and especially Shannon can do so much better than Bobby however with the ending I can also be convinced of a throuple if you make Bobby a little better or Shannon a little worse

- the Jason x the girl (Claire?) were cute I just wish we got to know her a little more other than she’s nice to Jason. (Developing her & Shannon’s friendship could’ve fixed both of their problems tbh. Why were they talking about Shannon having sex at all if they were gonna spend the rest of the movie barely knowing each other??)

- visually it looked amazing.

- I’m still thinking about the vibes. I adored the vibes.

- actually watching it I didn’t think it was That great but the fact I can’t stop thinking about it is a huge plus I think I’m starting to like it more.

- I was gonna write a hot take about Chris’s only real flaw being that he’s willing to go along with Bobby and not ever call him out or even question him then I remembered that’s literally the point that’s not an idea that’s the story. But yeah I liked it. I liked his character.

- I don’t think it’s a bad first big film tbh it would’ve been golden if it was just funnier

I will be rewatching but I won’t be going back to the theater for it. Tbh the main thing I wanted was characters I would want to talk about and consume/create content about and I got my wish so I’m not disappointed.

[eyeballsoup7310]

Finally got to the end of sh2 and man. I really like that ending cuz not only does it expand Mary, who desperately needed more depth beyond “loving wife who’s dead now” (her flatness early on, I think, was also very intentional as I imagine that’s how James was trying to remember her), but it also retroactively makes James way more interesting to me, too.

By giving Mary these complicated feelings about her illness, she’s no longer Just A Nice Dead Wife, which is annoying trope in of itself, she’s a woman who feels like she’s been torn apart between dealing with an illness she knows won’t go away and being with the man who used to love her. In her final letter she says that she’s scared to go home to James because she knows he’s fallen out of love with her over this, he rarely visits her anymore and when he does he clearly hates it. Hates her. She doesn’t seem to have any other support system, the only people she knows are a small girl in the same hospital and the nurses and doctors. She probably felt broken and alone. And while there’s no way for a human to be broken, she was definitely alone.

And by having James internalize these frustrations, he then has all the thoughts simultaneously running through his head that “I’m not taking care of her as good as a husband as I should be” and “I hate her for this she says she hates being like this” and “I’ll be she’ll be better off for it”. There’s layers to it other than just “aaaaauuhhh I wanna fuck other women :((((“ like yeah, that theme is definitely there, there’s a reason why every enemy Looks Like That, but I personally prefer characters who have multiple reasons—bad as they may be—for doing things. Even the version of Mary that only exists in his memory tries to give him an out, she hated being sick, it’s okay, James, he still has to make the active decision to put that false memory to rest and tell her he did it for wholly selfish reasons.

Mary’s characterization is constantly at war with the real version of her, sick and resentful and scared and full of self hatred, and James’ memories of her, watered down to sick and sweet and forgiving— you only want to remember the ‘good’ parts of people you’ve lost, and if only remembering their best means forgetting why you grew to hate them, then that’s a bonus, right, James?

Mary was expanded from just a motivation for James to being her own person, fucked up and struggling, while simultaneously still being viewed as just a motivation for me in James’ own head, until he actually tries to make efforts to shut down the part of himself that thinks of her this way. I’m speaking in circles now but you get the point I think these are both really interesting characters

[nightmare-foundation]

I'm thinking again about the take that the brother cult religion as seen in The Infinite Man (or similar to it) is a widespread/well known religion in modern Remnant.

And like... i do LIKE the idea of there still being a Brothers-based religion on Remnant. Fantasy religions are always fun, and it'd be fun to explore how that might effect Remnants societies.

But like. It's almost laughably false. It's a cool headcanon, and I like seeing it in AUs (I use it myself), but when talking about canon, it's just not true.

For one, there isn't any discussion of religion in any rwby material, at least nothing truly in-depth. None of the characters are ever stated to be religious in RWBY, and we also don't really get any hints of religion in the entire show? We never see any churches in Vale, Mistral, Atlas or Mantle, and the only thing I can think of that MIGHT be a church is the building in the v4 Ruby-focused short, though we never see the inside of it and it could just as easily be like, a town hall or something. Specifically, it has statues of 2 women in front of it, so if it IS a church, it doesn't appear to be Brothers-based.

Also in v4, Qrow states to RNJR that "Not many people are religious these days". I highly doubt that this line is untrue? First of all, Qrow has absolutely no reason to lie. Second, I doubt this is a case of Qrow being an unreliable narrator; even if he believed that all of the other religions were "fake", this would still be a very odd thing to say if religion is widespread?? It's like if you were talking to your friends and said "haha yeah not a lot of people are religious these days :)" which would obviously get you VERY weird looks. On top of that, none of RNJR ever seem to recognize what he's talking about. Qrow never says like, idk, "Do you know about [insert name for Brothers religion]? Yeah, they're real. In case you don't know the story- [insert convenient religion/lore dump for the audience]". At least, if i were writing RWBY and wanted to make it clear the Brothers were still being worshipped, that's how I'd write it.

Qrow does, obviously, phrase it like it WAS a religion- which is true. But it doesn't seem like it's like still a religion, and if it is, it's certainly not big anymore because religion on Remnant has slowly died out.

And about Fairytales of Remnant, it isn't a "propagandistic hit piece", it's a book of fairytales that Ozpin put into Beacons curriculum. I doubt a tale in a widespread religion (or religions) would be put in a book containing fairytales, at least not without public backlash. That'd be like if you put the story of Noah's Ark into a book containing things like Cinderella and Snow White. If Ozpin really wants to create a Light-based cult in the modern day, he wouldn't do that lmfao. (Though that would be a HYSTERICAL move on his part)

Also, the topic of the Brothers (and separately, them being real) is treated like it should be kept secret. Ozpin never told the Inner Circle about his task either- they follow HIM, not Light, and the Gods aren't really treated as important by anyone. The Relics are more important, both before and after the reveal in v6.

And in general, there's nowhere in RWBY on Remnant that shows that it's main religion is a doomsday cult. If it was as widespread as Christianity is in the modern day, that would SHOW. And people on Remnant seem very against controlling religions and doctrine like these, both The Infinite Man and the Great War showing this. Oz's biggest achievement up until that point... was creating a TOWN dedicated to his task. A freaking town. Where peoples main desire was to learn how to defend themselves and the people they cared about, which was promptly destroyed by people who HATED the idea of a doomsday cult (reasonably so) and completely forgotten afterwards. And you're telling me he'd be more successful with an oppressive religion right after the war that was fought partly BECAUSE people hated that kind of oppression?

And like... idk it doesn't track with Ozpins character as it is now. It's sort of a Rose Quartz/Pink Diamond situation- we see how he is now, and then shown how he WAS, and think how he was is how he is now. And like. I don't think how he is now would do that kind of thing- it's blown up in his face multiple times, why would he keep trying? On top of that, there's multiple other pieces of evidence that he's saying NO to Lights task and the Gods' return. And like... i feel like the end of the war and post-war kinda shows that he kinda Gets the balance thing? Even if he doesn't realize he gets it, he kinda... did the thing the Blacksmith was talking about. Destruction to clear away the wilderness (the Relic of Destruction was presumably used during the final battle, then he tore down the world's militaries and monarchies), and then he created (created institutions of learning, created an entirely different form of government, and raised Atlas. Idk which this one goes into, but he also helped free Vacuo).

He... kind of Gets the whole balance/actual meaning of destruction thing (hello, the circle/cycle theme in the Infinite Man?). I mean, it's sort of how his reincarnation works. I don't think his current belief system is very compatible with Lights at all. Plus it seems like he kinda... doesn't like the Gods. So it doesn't make sense for him to continue working towards his task at this point.

Anyways. There's no proof there's a modern Brothers-based religion in RWBY, and it doesn't fit with Ozpins character at all. I like the idea, but it's better as an au.

[vikcacao]

IM SO HAPPY THIS IS A SAFE SPACE FOR INDANE PEOPLE LIKE ME. dude it's all I think about and i litteraly NEED 2 draw them more omg.

Ok yap sesh incoming so be warned this will be a long one.

Ok so like at first after reading May's unckuna fic End Of Beginning I rlly wanted 2 make a modern no curse au fic of my own. Smth about sukuna and his dysfunctional emotionally unavailable and horrifically traumatized ass taking care of jins kid has a special place in my heart fr... and then ofc at first I had an au where I ramp up all the dark shit 2 like 1000000 billion.

At some point I'm not feeling the au bc it got super dark and I needed smth new after I saw the end of jjk. So I made a new au with my fixation about yuji being a basketball player with the idea of him having the same issues as me, and then I realized he wouldn't be scared of the same shit as me so i changed it again. I made it itafushi...

The way this idea occurred was bc one day I was watching a SHIT TON of r/inceltears and r/niceguys on it and it inspired me alot. Also nerd x jock thing...?? Yeah I put a stupid little twist 2 it and made megumi and incel.

BEFOR PEOPLE THROW TOMATOES AT ME, REMEMBER THIS WAS AN IDEA THAT WAS LIKE "lmao that would be so funny if megumi was a bitter incel and yuji was an allstar basketball player that everyone loved... omg he would hate him fr." And then boom the au started... it was a crackfic of an idea spawned by stupid hyperfixation on incel misery and at first I wasn't even gonna write about it.

The more I thought and talked about it the more in depth it became dude... like I've BEEN friends with an actual incel and I was in a rlly bad situation bc of it so I kinda wanted 2 base my expirence with those kinds of people in the fics. Then I started researching.... and hyperfixating and uhhhh then it spiraled out of control bc my autism said that IT NEEDS 2 MAKE SENSS 2 IRL ISSUES AND "OHHH I CAN TACKLE THE HARM THAT ONLINE SEXUALIZATION OF WOMEN AND MYSOGONY HAPP3NS!! I CAN TAKLE CONCEPTS OF PEER PRESSURE WITH PEOPLE ON DISCORD AND SHOW A CHARACTER SPIRALING 2 THE DARK SIDE FROM THEIR OWN STUPIDITY ON THE INTERNET!! I CAN SHOW TEEN VICTIMS WHAT ITS LIKE GETTING IN AND HEALIMG FROM THOSE SITUATIONS!!"

And then I started taking it super srsly... crack treated srsly tag will need 2 be added ig...

Main premise of the fic is this.

Megumi is an incel and yuji is the allstar on the basketball varsity team. Best of the best.

Megumi hates yuji bc he's jealous and bc he's insecure, hating on a "typical chad" bc being an angry bitter loner is easier to take out on someone else (who's a stranger) than trying to figure out what's wrong, let alone fix his issues. Meanwhile yuji wants to be Megumis friend soooo bad that it's embarrassing how many times yuji tries 2 start a conversation with him.

One sided hate my beloved...

Yuji don't realize that megumi hates him so he tries 2 talk and at some point (begrudgingly) they become friends(?) !

Yuji finds out slowly but surely about all of megumis problems and tries 2 help him heal from it all. Not gonna say 2 much but like imagine an absolute loser who wants 2 die and is a walking red flag and u have megumi.

Yujis favorite color IS red tho so... yeah jokes aside yiji sees the good in him blah blah blah he's gonna save him in every universe and oh btw did I mention that megumi has awful emotional regulations around yuji??? Bc he's the only one that wouldn't run away from him or be disgusted with him?? I also looked into like alot of autistic behaviors for teens and shit so he fits the bill perfectly.

Yes my goats both have autism

Yuji with that AuDHD swag and megumj wit the autism sauuceee!!

Ok yeah imma stop bc this is like a wall of text even for me. SIGHHHHH BACK 2 THE CELL OF MY OWN MIND... TIME 2 GO BACK 2 BEING INSANE WITH MYSELF...

ALSO FEEL FREE 2 TELL ME ALL ABOUT UR AU IM SO IN LOVE ALWAYS GNG!!

THIS IS SO UNIQUE AND COOL !?!?! Megs being an incel would never cross my mind, but it seems possible

And I like the Yuuji helps him, that seems like a fascinating read honestly, I love recovery (the more realistic the better honestly)

((And I'm sorry that you've had bad experiences in the past with folks like incels, I've watched a lot of the r/nice guy stuff too, and idk. I'm glad it sounds like you're no longer in your bad situation, hopefully at least))

[independent-fics]

Inde Watches Leverage: Redemption

S01EP— The Rest of Season 1 because I told myself to stop reviewing each episode and just enjoy watching it because I was making myself anxious trying to analyze it to compare it to the original and had to take a break but now wanted to get back to it because I have two weeks to watch it before season 3 but ended up making a bit of a live reaction post anyways.

TLDR: I enjoyed the second half of season 1 immensely! I think I just became annoyed with some of the growing pains I noticed in the first half of the season combined with many out of character moments and cinematic choices (I know the characters are different years later but there were some moments that they felt like they were caricatures of themselves/or writers were highlighting fan favorite traits of them and emphasizing them) like Eliot exploding over Parker eating his carrot cake in “The Rollin on the River Job” felt overdone? Like yeah he gets grumpy but I can’t think of moments where he growled or huffed off that dramatically except in fanfic. Even genuinely angry he’s a controlled guy or used sly words and targeted insults and occasionally gets huffy. There were a couple moments with Parker but I can’t remember rn. Also cinematically honestly the only thing that bothered me was in “The Bucket Job” when Eliot is having his flashback at RIZ. Im sorry we can do flashbacks better than this we have done them better. The rapid head shake gave looney toons and I never wanna see it again. But honestly the beginning was rough but I did love the ending as I think the character interactions smoothed out writing wise, and I’m excited to finally start season 2 (finally inde goodness!) which everyone and their mother has told me gets even better.

Now the rest of this post is just my live reactions from the rest of the season which I did NOT want to do but ended up in this post anyways so if you care to read it’s under the cut. But come scream at me about leverage I love to talk about it especially now that I’m finally making myself sit down a catch up with redemption!

Spoilers I guess under the cut? But if you’re like me and behind on Redemption go watch it!

S01EP11 The Jackal Job

I knew I was gonna love this one because I hate the mark so much and also more grifters! Also broke my heart to see her losing her memories. And I also love Parker and Eliot’s Emerson/Aerosmith quote moment.(I just love all their little moments this episode actually) And Eliot’s “I don’t use guns but I still know about em” he’s so grumpy I love him.

Also it said London but the cars were on the wrong side for London. BUT ALSO HISTORICAL EPISODE WITH SOPHIE AHHHH. AND WOMEN IN LOVE. Also Breanna’s “we needed used crap that looked expensive. And boring. Like you.” And Parker’s “this is better than Disneyland. A box is basically a vent that moves” and now I have to see the ot3 at Disneyland.

Absoloutly love her pouring Eliot a beer and saying he’ll kick the marks teeth in and basically going yes maam.

“Never define a love by its length only its depth” MY HEART.

Parker only having to use her name to cut a deal I love to see it.

S01EP12 The Golf Job

Okay ngl golf episode opening up with human trafficking nail salons not what I expected but this tells me it’s gonna be good. But hellooooo James Marsters.

Also loving Hurley being back hello and how he is obsessed with Eliot I love it. And Parker and his crazy hug. Also Korean leverage reference! And Eliot the dog hehehe.

Also I just see Hardison as a camp counselor. I need this missing episode.

Eliot please golf or not you know you’re not gonna leave a kid.

Hurley you’re a really good grifter convincing Eliot to do this I cannot this was so funny. But I cannot Eliot actually saying the GOAT. (Also did Eliot throw the shirt on the floor in the golf shop??? Who is this man) and I’m sorry the upside down backwards visor how is that working for him rn.

Sophie dressed as a priest?? Taking a call with southern accent I cannot.

Eliot managing to get a dart into his drink is amazing.

I nearly screamed at Hurley figuring out how to help Eliot play amazingly. And then when he posted his chili recipe Eliot nearly said “damnit Hardison” I did scream hahaha. Hurley being like he’s missing chaos (aka Hardison rambling in his ear the whole time my heart)

Harry you are shining in this episode. Love a bomb bluff.

S01EP13 The Hurricane Job

Aka the episode everyone has told me about and that I have been waiting for.

I am loving Parker in this episode like yes she is uncomfortable and give her time she’ll explain Eliot. And he’s being as patient as possible while trying to figure out why she’s being the way she is about Maria. Also Eliot you cannot tell me that you don’t know how to work a ham radio are you fr.

I do love Maria’s sass though. Eliot you’re usually so good with imitations you cannot think that was anywhere close to that guys voice.

Harry is so proud of himself for that doctor grift I love him for it and the reference.

The way every partnership always splits with one guy telling the other one they’re weak. Like yall gotta have more loyalty than this. Also smart gun wtf. And Parker you being sad about giving back the lottery ticket ahhhh I love you.

Ahhh I loved Parker’s facial expressions in the last moment with her and Eliot because you could tell she was trying to be honest even if she didn’t like the feelings she was expressing. Wished it lasted a beat longer before the comedic touch was added but still cute hahah I love them.

S01EP14 The Great Train Job

Oh goodness give me farmers or miners (the underground job) and you’ve got me I know this is gonna be good and small town and heartfelt and im going to love it.

NOOOO I HOPE HANDLEBAR MUSTACHES EVERYTHING BREAKS.

Directed by Beth Riesgraf I love it!

Breanna’s total offense at Harry for thinking things just disappeared from the internet hahaha.

It’s okay Parker I would be so excited to rob a special safe in a train.

I too fear bachelorette parties.

Gosh of course it’s Nazis.

I love Sophie having 30 characters in her bag. But ugh Eliot looking out for Breanna oh goodness this episode might scare me no one touch my baby.

Breanna scandalized that Sophie wants her to turn her into royalty immediately. It’s giving Hardison’s “I have to wait for her to finish making it [her backstory] up.”

I love the convo between Eliot and Harry I do but all I can think is the tik tok audio “I’m tired grandpa” “you keep diggin.”

I knew it was battery waste! I love the rise of electrical things but as we advance we don’t have proper ways of disposing electric car batteries and things like that. (At least not ways a lot of places are doing properly. So many places think it’s just easier to dump tech). It’s leading to a potential for so much waste as more and more companies create electric cars. (I blame Elon musk so much for buying Tesla and just mass producing it just to be first).

I’m loving Breanna attempting to flirt so much. I love them.

I love the Canadian Mounties fear. And the fact that they’re all wanted there hahahah. I want to see all these cons they did to get wanted by them.

“I think I am gonna hurl.” “Rub some dirt on it.” Eliot that is not how that works.

The wired reference I can’t. Also I love Parker’s excitement pushing a guy off a train.

AHHHHHH TAKEDOWN. AND THEN KISSING. I LOVE THEM. Taking down a corrupt business man who is also a white supremacist is such a fun first date.

Low key though they missed out on a potential historical episode with that title and handlebar mustache guy. Still loved it though but I need Sophie in a train murder mystery Orient Express style.

S01EP15 The Muddy Waters Job

Ah Eliot I have missed your commitment to whatever the headquarters is at the time. And the doctor who references.

Ahhh finally get to meet Harry’s daughter!

“Bad guy side part” I can’t I love you Breanna.

“I didn’t even know we could go on strike.” “It doesn’t come up a lot.”

Omg Parker I love you “I’m gonna call the us Marshall I know”

You right Maria he is very cute when he’s grumpy.

“A haunted baby doll” I love you Parker.

Ah the efficiency expert con. I have missed you from “The Inside Job.”

“I’ll find it, Eliot’ll keep us safe, and Breanna can hack into the computers” ahhh I love it. Beautiful Parker.

I love Eliot’s dramatic planning and Breanna completely ruining his moment. And Eliot desperately trying not to squint his eyes and twitch his eyebrows.

Eliot I saw the smile you love Parker’s relationship advice. I love Parker and her relationship advice.

Eliot getting a baby shower instead of getting to fight 12 guys I love it.

Gosh dang okay Harry’s ex wife.

GOSH DANG WTF OF AN ENDING NO

Wait DOUBLE WTF.

S01EP16 The Harry Wilson Job

“Fire fixes everything” yes it does Parker. “I wanna kill a lot of people all the time” same. I love how it’s Eliot no (wouldn’t kill) and Parker is a maybe. (I know someone made a post about this recently).

Okay weirdly animated R.I.Z. building.

Dang calling Harry Sophie’s project is wild.

“112 days without an incident. They’re due” what a wild statement Parker.

AHHHHHHH I KNEW HE WAS COMING BUT AHHHHH HARDISON MY BELOVED. You know he’s gonna hold that KO over Eliot. Love him tossing the wrench not even looking and Eliot catches it. Same vibe as Parker and Eliot in “The Hurricane Job.”

Please debate the coolness of the entrance (still my fav gifset for this episode from @246bce that I saw the other day).

“Guilt ruined my family I wasn’t going to let it ruin yours” ahhhh Harry. Yes once again the don’t con your team talk love it coming from Sophie the first one who did it.

The epic side eye Hardison. But Eliot and Hardison’s smiles when they hug I love it. And Sophie being like yeah did he apologize yet hehehe.

The level of this RIZ conspiracy is crazy and will give me nightmares once again because I think about these types of risks all the time with our digital age. Also Eliot I love your random knowledge.

Oo Parker back to masterminding. “Harry. Don’t die. I need you around to make me look good.” I love them and Harry completely accepts that he’s the novice at everything here but at the same time he’s so brave about it all.

Low key for a US Marshall she should have been asking these questions a long time ago.

Mcsweetin and Taggert love that for them.

Always wanted to be a US Marshall? Of all things how does a kid decide that? Oop breakup but got the codes anyways okay then.

Goodness yes I’ve been waiting for this grift. And the breakup talk with Eliot. “You can make a puppet out of anything you can stick your hand in” Parker please. “Hey skipper negative words” stroking his shoulder omg. I really want to know when they measured his head.

Gosh dang it Bligh. I know like it’s for the plot and all but she’s not really a good private contractor otherwise she would have killed him right there probably.

Such a secure building that lets someone they are looking out for walk right in? I love you Sophie.

Why that photo of all things for Eliot omg.

BREANNA MY BABY WITH THE VENT TRAINING.

SLAY HARRY WITH THE FANCY DESK.

I love to see Bligh suffer here go Sophie.

I love how the theme of this episode is the old fashioned way works.

I also love that Hardison unintentionally gave Parker a really good con date. Like she gets to work with everyone, take down a major bad guy, jump from a building, push him off a building. She’s having the time of her life.

The fact that he made it through the building to get to Sophie in that 60 seconds. And gave Harry the punch I love it!

IN SO PROUD OF YOU TOO BREANNA.

Dang Aldis those arms.

Harry getting his daughter back? I love that for him. Yes Harry a little bit of everything.

Honestly don’t know how I feel about Sophie taking off that ring ugh my heart.

Ahhhh what an ending. Who gets reimbursed for the drone how does that work when Breanna’s the one crashing em hahaha. And Eliot please which hair got cut that it was a $300 haircut I cannot hahaha.

[raven]

As someone who plays persona I feel you’re a good person to ask: should I play a persona game

you know a game is a real one when the answer is "if you do, please dont think im stupid for liking it". the first persona game anyone should ever play is persona 5 royal and that game is. well. the best part isnt until 70-90 hours in on average. tries really hard to be a social commentary but fumbles basically every aspect. can barely keep a cohesive character arc for most main characters. "the gameplay is really good though" -karl marx. so like short answer, do you have a hundred hours or so and want an excuse to hate on something's story and politics while also having a good time in the actual gameplay, sure... i feel like i can recommend this to any general person but i feel less confident recommending it to you specifically as i feel you are a woman of taste. but you're also someone who loves the slop at times. and what is this game if not slop. i put the rest under a read more because i said too much. My bad for being loquacious

like storywise i do like it... Mostly. and i do like the characters. and i think akechi is genuinely a great character, well written, well acted, yaoibait, knocked everything out of the park with him. he is what kept me going, but if you dont like characters whose main flaw is that theyre a teenager and therefore stupid, he might not click with you. like yeah, everything he does is poorly thought out... it's consistent. it's in character. and he does it with such swag, too. everything in the game's story seems designed around him, including the phantom thieves themselves. but i dont know whats in it for people who dont like him. not that you'll really get to know him for a good chunk of the game. which is the biggest thing... i could say "keep going, it gets better" but... does it? for everyone? it did for me, but it was made in a lab for me.

the game can understand that violence against women is wrong, but it doesnt understand what violence against women is. it can understand that the current system isnt working, but is too weak to actually take a stance on how to fix it. it's too obsessed with giving the player a power fantasy than to give them any challenges at all, or to make them think for a second. which i like in a game. i like it when games fuck up hard because theres more to discuss. and one of my biggest issues was discussed in the very last part. not necessarily to the depth i would have preferred, but it lets you draw your own conclusions. it also really shocked me at one point near the end there, which really colored my view in a positive way. i had grown complacent. i stopped thinking. i didnt think the game could do anything interesting... and then it did. but that level of shock was only because of my specific proclivities... i dunno. like it's hard to defend.. oh also theres a massive climax that builds up to a twist and reveal which is genuinely one of the worst ive seen a story ever do it, especially with such a strong set up. like genuinely laughable. but once you reach that part you're about 3/4 of the way through so you cant really stop there just have a laugh and know it's almost done.

the gameplay IS good though. like it's not only flashy, it's fun. i think the only issue is that it can be too easy, and the merciless mode is famously easier than hard. but as persona games go, it really is the best. it's just fun! the social sim elements are... well lets just say the majority of character writing in this game is stupid. otherwise, it can be fun to try to balance everything. it's possible to do it all on your first playthrough even if you don't know the perfect strategy, but if you fuck up too much you really wont be able to finish them all.

but heres the thing: metaphor refantazio just came out, which, aside from the time aspect (you have so much time lol) almost improves on persona 5 in every way. it's slightly less misogynistic. the social commentary... well, its fantasy racism, but it's a little more well thought out than p5's. but the main thing is the gameplay. and like, the gameplay in p5 was already good! metaphor is much more balanced for difficulty than p5's, but if you really get a hang of character building you can really take control. the slight differences in battle systems really take it for me. press turn system every day. i adore it. basically you get turns if you hit a weakness but if you miss you lose two turns. same goes for the enemies, so you can really get destroyed, but you can dodge every attack and they wont be able to do shit. but the story is, well, it's okay. there were some really good moments, and i liked it mostly because its kind of.. the least bad anyone could ever do it? it's pretty idealistic but just seemed like, nice in a way that i really cant describe. like, i have my issues with it that i could go into detail, but i still generally liked it. beautiful presentation as well-- and is that not all that matters? give me literally anything with a beautiful cutscene and I'll be tearing up. and the words "election magic" are so potent to me. its also shorter than p5r. but will it stick with me as much? no. would it have caused me to play the rest of the persona games? unsure. have i listened to the soundtrack so often while falling asleep that atlus is my number 5 artist on my spotify wrapped, not because the soundtrack is so calming or because i especially like it, but because i was trying to conjure a character in my dreams? NO. and persona 5 was a resounding yes on all fronts.

in terms of the other persona games, i dont recommend 4 unless you want to feel like, actually bad? i dunno it just put me in a foul mood. it was like radiation emanating from my switch for several weeks. incredibly homophobic with a side of (possibly slightly unintentional) transphobia. as well as some very fatphobic jokes (what game from this time period doesnt, but.. well it's bad every time!) and of course our classic misogyny. all this and the gameplay is worse than every other (new) persona game, and the story is fine. it thinks its twin peaks at the beginning. it is not twin peaks. LMFAO. 3 is better than 4 but theres not really a definitive edition even though it just got remade. each version has its ups and downs. if you look it up and any of it compels you i can give you more info on that one. the aesthetics alone are enough to be compelling , I'll admit. if you like boring and repetitive gameplay this ones for you! Im being serious. the story's pretty good though, and the characters are probably the best in the persona series. 2 (which is a duology, but the gameplay is the same and the second is well, a sequel) is pretty bad gameplay wise that i would only recommend if you're really into the series. i really liked the story but yeah i dunno. eh, it's fun. hard to recommend. 1 is okay. underwhelming. nothing much.

[absolutelybifurious]

no one follows me from the 911 fandom so i feel mostly safe in whining to the abyss about this, so like i feel bad for not caring as much about buck's bi rep at face value... i can appreciate that buck - as a stereotypically masculine guy, who is for all intents and purposes the main character of a procedural prime time show - coming out as bi is a big deal, and i appreciated the set up with tommy. it was fun/fine. as a bi person, as someone who wants the world to get better - it makes me happy in an intellectual sense.

but for me, as a viewer of 911 the show - i don't really care. emotionally, in the context of the story it didn't do anything for me. tommy is (mostly) a random guy who showed up and buck realizes he's bi and now they're dating, but there's nothing to draw on earlier - and if it's a stepping stone, then i'll love it wholeheartedly in hindsight but if buddie doesn't happen - i just don't quite know how to feel other than like, detachedly glad we got a queer relationship for someone like buck.

and full disclosure, i wholeheartedly admit to being an eddie girlie, but even if eddie had gotten the storyline with tommy - i don't think i would've had a super strong reaction?

like yeah, i appreciate rep and of course it matters, but what would feel revolutionary for me is to take this relationship thats been implicitly on screen - to basically look at all these queer fans and be like, okay, yeah, you were right. all this subtext you've seen in a dozen other mlm ships over the years is valid. you aren't crazy and it's not gross or weird to make it REAL. you aren't rabid. (not counting the people who send weird hate to women actors just trying to do their jobs) and god - more than that, i'm just here for the fuckin STORY of it. tommy is fine. lou is lovely and i'm plenty interested to see where the buck and tommy train goes, but i don't have investment in it, not significant investment anyway, and i don't think i will? i mean, we're 7 seasons in. i can't get all in with tommy and buck at this point, i've been frothing at the mouth for another ship. and you brought me THIS close just to swerve at the last second.

so while i get that canonizing buck as bi is a big deal - it is always going to feel hollow for me personally because the story is what i'm here for. the relationship. the depth of it. and tbh i just want to see something beautiful and unintentional building in the background and have it fuckin happen for onceeee.

just sometimes i feel like i'm missing something, because i see the like... level of reaction some people have just to the bi-ness of it, and for me - if there's not a satisfying story, then, i don't have many emotions about it. i've gotten plenty of bi characters over the years, and very few of them felt fully actualized in the story being told around them.

[kohakhearts]

Zelos 22, Kohaku 18&19!

thanks yume!!^^

22: if you're a fic reader, what's something you like in fics when it comes to ths character? something you don't like?

you know, i feel like zelos is one of those characters i’ve never actually seen an interpretation of in a fic that didn’t feel in-character. like he so would fucking say that! i think this is because of how deeply his Problems are tied into his annoying behaviours - you really can’t take away one without disrupting the other. so people who hate him because he’s an obnoxious womanizer still have to acknowledge his trauma and people who love him because he’s so Deep and Complex still have to acknowledge that he’s a problematic jerk.

that being said, i really like seeing people explore his womanizing behaviours in fics in more depth. i read this fic probably not long after its post date, so like…9 years ago? and it’s stuck with me all this time as like, peak zelos. i think the idea of him using women for non-sexual intimacy was something i hadn’t really thought of before but made so much sense when i read this fic and i love seeing that explored in other ways by other people too!

as for dislike, again i can’t think of much…i guess it’d be erasing his womanizing completely, but i really haven’t seen that very much (if at all?) lol.

18: how about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

i’m a sucker for sibling duos and kohaku and hisui have such a fun dynamic! the overprotective older brother archetype is often annoying for its inherent sexism lol and i can’t say that’s not happening here too (especially in hearts r, if memory serves), but i mean…of course hisui is overprotective, just look at everything they’ve been through! something i really like about hearts is how in the early parts of the game kohaku is a passive actor but still dominates the narrative - hisui’s concern for her creates such interesting dynamics between him and the other characters (namely shing lol) because it’s clear how unbalanced he feels by the position she’s in, and i think it also sets a strong tone for how those dynamics play out later on when she does regain her spirunes and she actively encourages him to be less grumpy lol. i just think it’s neat how much it shows how much he actually relies on her, even though his whole schtick is being the dependable older brother that SHE can rely on. idk if this makes sense but yeah. them <3

my runner-up here is her relationship with richea. it’s SO interesting, and also a little ??? because wow, what a weird situation. there’s so much potential there to explore imo and i think the game kind of drops the ball with it in favour of developing the dynamic between richea and hisui, which…fair enough, but also kohaku is so intertwined in richea’s whole. everything. i just would’ve loved to see that expanded on more than it was.

19: how about a relationship they have in canon that you don't like?

this is kind of a random pick but chalcedony tbh. i feel like in vanilla hearts the other characters often became kinda secondary to shing when chalcedony was around and i’m not sure hearts r really fixed that by adding him to the party? idk maybe this is selective memory on my part but i just would’ve liked to see a more fleshed out dynamic between him and any of the other characters but especially kohaku, who is obviously pretty implicated in the initial antagonism between him and the party/shing. like it was definitely touched on but clearly not in a way that stuck out for me because i can’t remember any interactions they actually had lol. to be fair i didn’t get to the point of him joining the party in hearts r so it’s possible there are interactions i never saw that would sway my opinion here but yeah. it’s been many years since i played hearts so my memory is pretty fuzzy…maybe i should continue the replay i started a couple years ago haha

character ask game

[blodgmonster]

Thoughts on live action Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Not that anyone actually wants my take.

It's solidly in the middle. Not as horrible as that wrteched movie. Obviously, it's not as amazing as the original series. It was never going to be. It was NEVER going to be as good as the original. You can't top perfection. I don't hate it. I don't love it. Below the cut (for spoiler free...ness) are my likes and dislikes. Probably not all of them. I'm sure I forgot some.

LIKES

Iroh. His characterization was good and I like that it kind of addressed the fact that he's a war criminal. Our beloved war criminal.

Azula. I've always adored her and was worried they'd wreck her. Obviously, I want to see her blue fire, but she was clever and badass, and we saw her insecurities. And went she lightning bent? * chef's kiss * That's my girl. Also, glad they didn't have her grinning like a sociopath when Zuko got burned.

Kyoshi. They leaned HEAVILY into the fanon interpretation of her and she wouldn't have yelled at Aang but she was badass.

Aesthetics. The show looked good.

Jun and Nyla. Perfect

The line "You are the fire in which her iron was forged." Fantastic.

Yue. Less wishy washy, more proactive. Also, a waterbender who sometimes chills in the spirit world. Good for her. And no love triangle.

Big fish fuckin things up!

Sokka. The actor did a good job.

"Kick his ass." Sokka being fully supportive of Katara

Katara bringing all the women to the battle.

Having Zuko's crew be the division he got his scar for was a cool touch.

DISLIKES

Zuko fought back against Ozai in the Agni Kai? I think NOT. That's the whole point. Ozai attacked a CHILD who refused to fight back. That shows the depth of his evil. Why erase that?

Did Aang just...leave my boi Hei Bai raging and in pain?

Aang never learned waterbending!? Didn't even try? Why???

Where was Katara's rage? Yes she's hopeful and motherly and in touch with her feelings but she's also fucking angry and she's right and it's great. But cutting that, they made her one dimensional.

Cutting Sokka's character growth, wherein he learns to respect women. "It was problematic." Yeah, dude, that's the point. He was in the wrong and had to learn that.

Suki. They made her...less than somehow. Less capable. Less strong. Ogling Sokka? Unnecessary. Saying he brought the world to her? Lame.

BUMI. WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT? Bumi was so BITTER and CRUEL to Aang! It made me so mad. Yes, he's unhinged but he's also a playful genius

Aang was kind of wooden. They cut his joyful, playful nature. But that's at Aang'd core. Why cut that? And he sides with PAKKU when he says Katara can't fight? EXCUSE YOU? No. He calls him Master Poophead and teaches her himself.

Cramming all the spirit world stuff into one episode was weird. Koh, Wong Shi Tong, and Hai Bei all in one go? And having Gyatso there only to have him leave? What was that? And they stripped Koh of his purpose, telling Aang who Tui and La were.

What was Mai's wig? Good Lord. The wigs in general were meh, but hers was particularly heinous.

Kyoshi and Kuruk yelling at Aang. Too much yelling.

[magnorious]

Eowyn and the "Strong Female Character" debate

In the ongoing argument about Strong Female Characters (SFCs), the usual poster-women of “characters no one ever complains about” are the strong badass women from classic movies, like Elen Ripley, Sarah Connor, Princess Leia, and Trinity. Modern SFCs no one hates include Wonder Woman, every female character in Last Airbender, a handful of Marvel women like Gamora, Nebula, Agent Hill, Black Widow, and *some* of the heroines from teen dystopian fiction like Katniss Everdeen.

The attention paid to the women of Lord of the Rings goes, “Galadriel is a badass in her own right and the movies could have had more women, but the women we do have are great.”

And, yes, I agree, but I want to look at Eowyn in particular and answer this question: Would Eowyn, written exactly the same, in the exact same story, be criticized by today’s audiences? We’re looking at movie-Eowyn, not book Eowyn, for familiarity’s sake.

Eowyn looks a lot like the terrible so-called “strong female characters” modern audiences hate from modern movies. She’s strong, she’s skilled, she’s smart, she’s capable, and her whole story is about overcoming the stigma against women warriors and joining the battle in the end, and killing the great evil Witch King that “no man can kill” by virtue of having a uterus. She’s also one of… I think five named women in the cast, Arwen, Galadriel, Eowyn, Freida (little villager girl), and Rosie (the hobbit bartender).

She checks so many boxes, she’d have to fail in a movie written today, wouldn’t she?

I love Galadriel and Arwen and I love the argument around them—that SFCs don’t need to act like men to be considered strong. They don’t need to be physical warriors, they can champion their femininity and that in itself makes them strong. Their wisdom and compassion and wits, not just their muscles.

Eowyn, though, is a warrior through and through. She literally goes “I am no man,” as she stabs the Witch King, a line specifically and implicitly subverted by Wonder Woman in her debut solo film during the No-Man’s Land scene when it’s softballed to her with the line “It’s No-Man’s Land, that means no man can cross it.”

Surely, a 2024 Eowyn would be ripped apart…. Right?

—

Getting this out of the way first: Every character is written with depth and nuance, including the women, and, thus, no character feels like an agenda with a face taped to it. So already Eowyn has a leg up on so many other terrible releases lately. But let’s take it piece by piece here.

Eowyn is one of three prominent women in the cast

Yes, no arguing that. Why? “Because it’s fantasy and the author is sexist-” no. This is an author who lived through the World Wars, from a time period without women soldiers. Young men and boys being ripped away from home to never see their sisters, daughters, wives, aunts, mothers, best friends ever again is what he lived through and what this story is saturated with.

Could there have been scenes of prominent women nurses, or lady elves at the Council of Elrond or any member of the Fellowship? Yeah, sure, but it’s not at all a lack of women because Tolkien discounted women warriors. This cast is hefty enough, these movies are long enough, and they’re based on a book that’s almost 100 years old.

Eowyn is objectified by male characters and trapped in a love triangle

Yeah… the love triangle bit was weak. However! Eowyn was never bitter over Arwen and didn’t know she existed until Aragorn tells her basically, “yeah, I love her, but I’m guaranteed to never see her again,” so… can you blame Eowyn for holding out hope? It doesn’t at all define her character either, and she likes Aragorn not because he’s Protagonist Boy but because he’s a high-ranking, noble man who doesn’t bat an eye at her desire to join the war effort. She then gets Faramir, so, win-win.

Grima objectifies her, but Eomer, her brother, Aragorn, and Theoden, her uncle, all defend her. Eomer gets banished under punishment of death for standing up for his sister (among other things). She’s not the butt of jokes or slights or innuendos. No soldiers look at her with lust and desire. No one degrades her or belittles her or mocks her for being a woman. Nowhere do the writers get to satisfy their own sexism by writing in gratuitous insults and slurs against her.

Eowyn is repeatedly told to run from the fight and hide with the other women

Theoden has no living siblings and his only son dies off-screen. Eomer is (I think) older, but he’s busy being a general. Eowyn is Theoden’s best chance at an heir to the throne and he can’t let her get killed on the battlefield. Eowyn being told to hide is strategic, not sexist. Not only that, she may be competent enough with a sword, but she can’t have trained as well as the battle-tested soldiers to not be at risk in a nasty battle.

Also, at the rate men are getting killed on the battlefield, sending too many of your women off to war risks so much collateral damage.

Even putting strategy aside, Theoden loves his niece, loves her strong and pure and good soul, and doesn’t want to see it destroyed in the fog of war. All he wants is to see her smile again, so he can give her a world and a future worth smiling for. War is the “realm of men” not because they’re male, but because it’s a horrible, terrible, violent, depressing, scary place to find oneself in, and he’s trying desperately to protect her from it. Eomer tells her this explicitly in a deleted scene, that they’re only trying to spare her some horrific trauma.

When Eowyn does finally see real battle up close, she’s rightfully horrified and terrified and out of her depth during the battle for Minas Tirith. She’s not riding into war all smug and overconfident, and she’s not magically a better fighter or rider than the rest of the cavalry.

Eowyn constantly complains about being looked down on for not being a man

She’s not allowed to be a soldier, yes, but women of Rohan aren’t treated as lesser by the men. She’s not being teased or mocked, her station as the crown princess is uncontested, being relegated to the caves with the women isn’t seen as a time-out, but a necessity to make sure all the vulnerable non-combatants don’t get murdered and the entire kingdom of Rohan doesn’t get exterminated in one night.

She herself isn’t putting other women down for not wanting to fight, or putting men down to make herself look better. No one is telling her she can’t be a soldier because she’s weak and womanly. If she was Denethor’s kid, he’d be singing her praises right next to Boromir (within the context of movie Denethor, at least). She wants to fight, not because she hates her own femininity, but because “women of this country learned long ago that those without swords can still die upon them”.

Eowyn single-handedly kills the Witch King because Woman

Actually, Merry stabs him in the leg to distract him first, giving Eowyn a few seconds to breathe and surprise him. The legend goes that “no man can kill the Witch King,” but it’s not meant to be the fault of men and instead the arrogance of the Ring Wraiths. These nigh-immortal spirits are so cocky and overconfident they don’t even register women on the list of potential threats, to their own doom. The legend also didn’t specify no Elves, Dwarves, or Hobbits, since “Man” is a race, not just a gender.

The Witch King is the Witch King because he was seduced by a shiny ring and a lust for power by Sauron. The “power of womanhood” isn’t the point, it’s the overinflated ego of the Witch King that is his downfall.

So Eowyn’s “I am No Man” is as much a “yay feminism” as it is a dig at his arrogance. It’s the fulfillment of this line by Galadriel: “Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.” Frodo is small in stature and worldly presence, and Eowyn is small in prowess and authority.

*headcanon that Sauron also hates the Nazgul and wrote in that little clause for the Witch King so he could get the last laugh on these snot-nosed, so-called “kings of men”.

—

So would Eowyn be panned by today’s audiences? No, I don’t think so. Another well-written woman who wants to learn swordplay and join the men’s war, and kills an unkillable witch king is Arya Stark. That “victory” went over like a box of rocks and no one hates Arya for it.

You can write women warriors in a no-women-allowed fantasy land. You can write them championing feminism without cramming an agenda down your audience’s throat, or insulting the audience for presumed bigotry. You can write women who kill the Witch King through a prophetic loophole. You can write them in a love-triangle and give them all the “women empowerment” speeches you want.

She is still feminine. She’s still nurturing, still has her wardrobe of pretty dresses, still sings at her cousin’s funeral and pines after men she absolutely deserves. She’s also a terrible cook and independent and not afraid to put creepy men in their places. She has flaws, she’s humble, she’s shown having fear. She’s not built up by stepping on her male counterparts, and her big moment isn’t detracted by Merry going “Wow! A woman! Who’da thunk it?”

[rage-against-the-dying-of-light]

1, 3, 7, 8, 16 >:3c

>:3c hehehehehe thank you for the ask!

the character everyone gets wrong

Franziska! god I could write a whole thesis about how ppl treat Franziska especially in comparison to Miles. Miles gets the uwu treatment for being just as shitty a person as you can argue Fran was at 18. but bc he's a man and part of everyone's fave ship he gets such a pass.

Fran was literally forced to grow up too fast, dealt with the trauma of growing up in the von Karma household, and had to deal with Miles 'dying' when she was 18. this is a traumatized, grieving 18 year old and people demonize her like crazy. I've seen ppl write fics where she gets hurt or killed, bc they don't like her, or write her like she's a sociopath and not a deeply complex individual.

Franziska has so much depth and layers, and it sucks to see everyone either turn her into a shipper of Wrightworth, or villify her or have other characters enact violence on her bc thinking about the nuance of her character is too much work.

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you've seen on tumblr

Oh man this is like a collection of takes, but like. nobody knows what a dad bod is. like everytime i see a piece of art tagged "Phoenix's dad bod", and bro, he doesn't even have any fat on him in the art, i feel like I'm gonna lose it. like a guy that's just not shredded is not a dad bod. give Phoenix a fat stomach, thick thighs, stretch marks, a bit of grey, maybe some wrinkles and laugh lines and y'know make him actually fat and then and only then can you say that he has a hot dad bod. bc fat ppl are hot.

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

sorry Clay, I wouldn't say I hate you, but it does annoy me that you get so much more attention than tons of well developed and well written women when you are basically a cardboard box of a character.

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

This one is not that serious, but almost everyone is wrong about Klav. he is an actual for real German. yes he's named piano. yes he lived in germany as a boy, yes his family went to awful house parties put on by the von Karmas when he was a toddler since they were all rich and all rich ppl know each other. yes he toddled along behind Franziska and Miles hated it.

16. you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

oh this one is DGS related, I just do not get Barok x any Japanese character. is it just bc he fits with the Edgeworth vibes? Barok is racist as hell. obviously I understand liking villains, I'm not trying to flatten the nuance here, but he seems so beloved and ppl are ready to make him into such a ~tragic~ character uwu, but like plenty of other ppl have lost someone to another person of another race and not become a racist. I just don't think his racism can be easily overlooked for cutesy shipping stuff. it's especially bad when ppl ship him with Ryu or Kaz. And yes I know he 'apologized', I just don't think it was a well done enough or well explored enough. It didn't feel like he actually grew as a person and reflected on his racism, more like 'oh, this one Japanese person isn't bad.'

but yeah, I just don't get it

[transexuality]

rhe thing about kairi is that she is so underdeveloped to an utmost degree beyond any other kingdom hearts character even though she is the POINT of kh1. yes, sora and riku's relationship is in the forefront of kh1, but sora is searching for KAIRI hes mad at riku for what hes done to KAIRI. but she has 0 agency. she is asleep 90% of the game and for the last 10% she does nothing. naminé and larxene are the next original female characters introduced in chain of memories and immediately we see them have more interesting development and storylines and personalities than kairi. naminé suffers a bit from being a female character written by men who dont know how to write women, but she has struggles and she has her own motivations, she is complex. she feels jealous and wants sora to forget everything and stay with her, but she sacrifices those wants because she knows its for the greater good. larxene is an active antagonist and she is a ruthless villain, with agency and power in the narrative. jump to kh2, naminé has become basically a ghost, larxene is dead, and kairi has been captured again. we get moments in kh2 of some personality from kairi, certainly more from what weve seen, but ultimately she still lacks agency and doesnt do much. riku just sort of gives her a keyblade at the end and then shes there to reunite sora and riku, since finding riku is the point of kh2. they had the chance to make her do more in kh3 and while i appreciate that she at least is given a fighting chance it ultimately falls flat because her character revolves around sora. her existence is to support sora and riku's friendship. shes the case that is replace her with a rock and nothing changes. and im saying this as someone who loves kairi! shes fun! shes cute! shes sweet! shes snarky sometimes! but ultimately her personality is Nice Girl Who's Nice :) and there is an untapped well of potential for her to get some depth and it ultimately isnt there as the writers have made her character shallow that pales in comparison to her counterparts. but somehow people hate her EXISTENCE for this and thats what drives me crazy. even with all of these criticisms i have with the writing i still really like her and think that she needs to exist. and yeah sure sora and riku have much more chemistry and are written with such a beautiful bond that its hard to see it as anything other than accidental gay romance but sora and kairi is still there and its still sweet. soriku shippers hate kairi for whatever reason cause it gets in the way of their gay ship and thats whats frustrating. sora and kairi are clearly intended to have romantic undertones and while yes its a shame that kairis character is reduced to this, people shit on it for the wrong reasons. theres nothing wrong wirh sora and kairi's relationship, and its been there from the very start and its not going away. they both care a lot about each other and its sweet! kairi is hated on for merely existing but people dont take the time to step back and critique the way that she is developed and written, they just go for the jugular and perpetuate the misogyny that is already written into the franchise. you can have a problem with the way things are handled, but just shitting on a female character for existing in a male dominated cast written by men is just not cute. Can anybody hear me

[some-pers0n]

I think it’s a shame that Stella ended up the way she did. I’m not saying that she needed to be a complex 3D character or get redeemed or have a tragic backstory but it’s a shame that she was reduced to “I’m a spoiled brat who hates my husband!!!” Originally it was a morally grey thing, with Stolas cheating on his wife (resulting in a scandal about him cheating with an imp in a PUBLIC PARTY). Olivia also says that they didn’t used to hate each other, but unless she was the most oblivious 17 year old alive she would have known how much Stella loathed him (in s2e1 she says to his face that she likes tormenting him and mocks him in front of all his friends).

The reason their relationship was so interesting was that neither Blitz or Stolas were right! Blitz used him for the book and Stolas cheated. Making Stella a brat takes a lot of blame away from Stolas. You know what it reminds me of?

When female characters in fanfiction are demonized for the sake of making a gay ship look better. Stella is this trope to a T, removing any interesting things about her. I might send another ask on my opinion on s2e1.

It really is kinda terrible to see her fall so much as a character, despite her barely having anything to begin with.

Like...I don't know why Vizzie and the writers are obsessed with making Stolas out to be a perfect guy when he was the one who threw the entire family into jeopardy by sleeping with Blitz. Obviously we sympathize with him because Blitz likes him and he's an alright enough guy, but he still cheated on his wife. Even if she is a royal ass, we feel more bad for Octavia because she's clearly not handling the whole situation all too great.

It's not the most nuanced thing in the world, but it's something. It's interesting. It provides depth to Stolas and his relationships. He's willing to disrupt his seemingly okayish family life because he got horny and wanted a plaything.

Then season 2 rolled around. It retcons everything to make Stolas out to be an itty bitty lil' cinnamon roll who was pushed into marrying Stella and was actually sad the whole time because Stella is an abusive asshole who never loved him. The way she talks about him in season 1 versus season 2 is so much more different. It strips her of any sort of character and just makes her as blatantly evil and horrible as possible. Openly insults him for being bad in bed, complains about him, etc and etc.

I also hate how they retconned it so that Blitz and Stolas first met when they were kids and Blitz was Stolas's first friend. It feels something straight out of a bad fanfic. It makes the relationship less interesting to me since apparently these two knew each other already before they started this whole thing. It's just...yeah. Bad writing.

Then s2e4. I don't know what the writers did or if it was the direction the voice actor was given, but her voice is EAR-SPLITTING. Every word is so shrill and irritating to listen to. Not to also mention that she's just a stuck-up oblivious brat who behaves like a toddler. It's asinine.

It literally is just: "I don't like the Women because it gets in the way of my Hot Demon Yaoi so I'm going to make her the worst character in all of fiction" and it's really tiring.

What even happened with season 2? Where did Brandon go? What happened to the sharper and wittier dialogue and writing? Yeah, Helluva usually was about dick and sex jokes, but most jokes now are just the same old thing over and over again. I remember when it was like s1e5 and around that time when I was really on board with the show. Now it's just...yeah. This.

[simonthewatcher]

movie review time

this is will be somewhat bias all movie reviews kind of are its about people likeing or dislikeing a movie. I just like movies ya know. This is what i like and dont like about each movie.

1.Scott pilgrim: ok i love the cinema shots and the equal liberty they take with every detail of the comic also the characters and yes i did read the orginal comics.Especially wallace. Wallace is my favorite The books were appart of my middle schools library half the time. First off I hate scott he didnt deserve ramona i know she could be shitty too yet she never groomed knivesss sooo ahem scott is a bad person also cheated on said girl with ramona and made knives feel like she wasn't good enough . Second Ramona was my bi awakening thats all . I think that's everyone's review though.

2. Star wars in general (except the sequels its poor writing dont be racist in my comments or your blocked or dont be homophobic or hateful towards women. I just hate how they wrote rey as someone who is strong in the force when she litterally just learned she just LEARNED. How can she do stuff most jedi masters cant do. Also kylo ren being a haha edgelord. Like seriously also why is han a dead beat dad in the sequels. Luke giving up also makes no sense in writing. Also just to kill him off in the most lazy way too. Its so much lost writing. I like skelton crew , skelton crew you keep it up. I also love rogue one , ) . I love this movie 100% i love luke , leia, han , obi wan, anakin/vader techincally, C-3po, Artoo , padme. Sometimes the fandom not everyone since im in the fandom but the um actually people. That will destroy your head cannons and will send death threats if you even peep. Like please im just trying to watch my favorite movies.

3. I love you phillip morris .Ewan sold it. Phillip is a sweetheart. I want to protect him with all my heart. Jim carrey really did sell the con man role . The acting in this movie is comedic yet somehow serious. I just love it. Also wrriten well.

4. Velvet goldmine: ahem my favorite movie ever . It has mystery it has this sense that it was a labor of love. Thank you todd haynes for making all of the queer kids feel heard(im queer btw im bi thats why i use that word to clarify and trans) I was one of those kids so thank you so much.

5. Metroland ,, um christian bale. Ok im a bit bias the movie is so good i love the cinema shots. I love that he had so much depth to him. Chris (yes that was the characters name) had character to him. He was a scum bag but they knew how to show it.

6. a space odyssey:this is the first movie i ever watched of Kubrick, i fall in love with this movie. I like the plot twist. I love the ending . I think im the only one who understood the ending,

7. Amadeus :uh hell yeah , a zanny movie that feels like a fever dream sign me up. I loveee this movie. Nothing could pry this movie from my dead cold hands.

8. The outsiders: wow this movie is beautiful . I love the visuals the characters and the book. Everything makes me happy. (minus the people who think dally did nothing wrong he litterally is problematic thats what makes him a character oh and the people who think johnny is a inoccent uwu soft boi hes not. He is just like the other guys. Ponyboy litterally said he would join in , in talking trashy)

9. Disturbia , ok i might hate shia for his in real life violent tendencies but be honest this is good acting. i love this movie 100 percent of the time. The movie doesnt pull punches it knows what it is.

10 serial mom : i love john waters. He is my favorite director though he does filth films He is someone who is truly is true to himself. He cares about his craft. The highlight of the movie is Mathew Lillard . He has acting chops. Also the mom played by Kathleen turner is really funny. This shows a big problem in our society how people glamorize serial killers. (which if you do im blocking you) how people treat serial killers like their movie stars instead of people that have taken thousands of lives just because they are sick in the head and do it for no reason not even out of self defense . Serial mom has that important message which i appreciate. It also had beautiful color grading.

10. My private Idaho , thank you for making me sob. This movie is heart wrenching why did scott leave himm 😭they where in love.

11.the color purple. Its deeply sad . Tackles racism and other subjects . its tragic from beginning to end how could someone not be sad watching this movie. Its powerful towards major issues nobody says out loud . How could you not find this movie good. (the books better but stil! the movie is rich with great story telling) good movie to cry to .

12. trainspotting. Um do i need to explain. Uh yes . yes this is my favorite movie.The acting was sooo good. Also had a way of making someone throw up during the movie. This movie was my PSA awakening, to stop doing drugs. ( i used alot when i was younger and i regret it . Im a changed clean person now but nobody will ever realize in which this movie impacted me.