#tbh at this point my main struggle is that my stems? i guess you would call them

[glitteratti]

trying to make a character playlist when i have barely listened to music lately…agonizing experience tbh. i NEED a soundtrack for imagining nico in situations!!! anyway check our my latte art from today this is my best so far ^_^

[murasaki-murasame]

Thoughts on Fruits Basket 2019 2nd Season Ep2: “Eat Somen With Your Friends”

Just as a PSA for the fandom, everyone should be bracing themselves for the very high possibility of parts of this season getting abruptly delayed because of the whole pandemic situation. This series has enough of a production backlog that I think the first half of this season will probably go as planned, but the second half might get delayed.

Anyway, with that out of the way, this was another really great episode, and maybe worked even better as a ‘season starter’ type of episode than the one we actually got last week, lol.

Thoughts under the cut.

LMAO I seriously need to just stop trying to guess how this series is going to rearrange the story to fit in the anime, since I just keep being off the mark entirely. I wasn’t expecting this episode to cover most of what it did, and now it sounds like the next episode is gonna adapt chapter 36, which I was sure would get pushed to later in the season.

Anyway, this episode adapted chapters 46 and 52, and honestly it worked a lot better than I figured it would. Mainly because I’d forgotten about the whole talk between Kazuma and Kyo’s biological dad and how well it meshes with the themes of chapter 46. It’s kinda surprising how often this series has managed to combine entirely separate chapters in a way that feels really natural and seamless. But it worked really well.

Basically both parts of this episode just focus all on Kyo and Tohru’s relationship and the whole theme of anxiety about the future. I figured Yuki would be more relevant in this episode since I remember chapters 46 and 47 of the manga feeling really Yuki-centric, but he was the main focus of last week’s episode so it’s nice to focus more on Kyo here.

This is another one of those times where Fruits Basket just gets Uncomfortably Real [tm] with talking about all kinds of mental health issues and personal struggles. The whole topic of Kyo’s impending lifelong isolation is it’s own whole mess that will get explored and unraveled across the whole story, so I won’t talk about it much for now, but the whole bit near the end with Tohru recognizing her own anxieties about the future is still super good, and goes a long way to remind everyone that she’s not as perfect as she seems. On the surface she tends to come across as kinda airheaded and carefree, but her outright going ‘stop reminding me of the stuff I’m trying to actively avoid thinking about :’(’ shows how wrong that impression is, lol.

It’s a pretty timeless message, but now feels like a pretty good time to get a reminder that you’re allowed to take a break if you get overwhelmed, and that it’s better to focus on what you can accomplish in the present instead of stressing over things about life in general and things you can’t control.

In completely 100% unrelated news I also recently got diagnosed with having ongoing non-epileptic seizures that basically stem from my lifelong panic disorder and anxiety problems manifesting physically, so uh. Yeah. lol. luv 2 exist in a hell world of my own making.

Anyway this episode was basically a perfect example of how often this series makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside while also kinda making you feel all raw and vulnerable and messy.

Also, we still haven’t properly seen him yet, but we got the bit with Uo talking about Kureno, so that’s cool. I assume we’ll see him relatively soon, considering that his whole character design and stuff has been used for merchandise recently.

It looks like the next chapter is going to at least adapt chapter 36, but tbh I don’t really have much of any idea what the other chapter they’ll adapt with it will be. My best guess would probably be 47, since that also focuses on Yuki and Ayame’s whole relationship and whatnot.

I’m kinda surprised at how long it seems like it’s gonna take for us to actually get to the beach arc at this point, lol. I figured they’d get to it faster than this, since it’s been all over the advertising material and the OP theme and whatnot, but they’re taking their time to go over the material they skipped in season 1. Hopefully it doesn’t end up feeling too slow or anything.

I think that between now and the beach arc, the anime still has to adapt chapters 36, 47, 50, and 53, so I guess that’ll basically be what the next two episodes cover, and the beach arc should start in episode 5 of this season.

[oswednesday]

okay i guess characterization,

 i wish rey had more time to develop like a struggle, like a consistant narrative that unfolds over time, its not Worse than lukes but it could have been elevated beyond the pre-existing limits of star wars as it is like Its Star Wars but theres really so much room to tell these nuianced stories, she never gets the time to own her own suffering like anakin does and neither does ben either really its all just plot plot plot credits dfg but there are so many posts that was like legit They Made Her Into A Sue (its going to be 2020??) For These Reasons and like,,,that shit all ruled like hell wtf are you talking about, it was stupid and awesome but stuff would have felt more if it was more simplistic like that sounds like a step backwards i guess but if it was like rey has one issue, this issue stems from x, all the symbolism resolves around this issue, because there is  symbolism theres foreshadowing, like thats difficult even for solo writers with their own “ip” but it was really hurting for that, i think an easy fix would have been making the culture she came from extra family like its all that matters and have her have like been orphaned at some space nunery or something, her parents running and hiding her has been so done to death and the reveal that she had surpressed memories wasnt really satisfiying imo, i havnt read much of the reviews with neg stuff about her character, shes often just There,moving ghost like through the scenes (the actress was amazing dead like her acting is really good she just idk underwritten)

i guess that can be said about the whole cast tbh like completely underwritten, rose is brought in to break up the trio het it up obvi but the character is awesome and so is the actress who deserved to be apart of the group proper after the last movie : / she gets a nice scene with poe but its literally the only thing that happens after the last movie like fdfgdf??? she gets some lines but the character is underused, like used as much as unnamed background characters

finn is written soooo hostile in this movie too like whys he have so much beef fdjdgdf like okay theres a scene where it looks like poe is going to confess his feelings to rey which!! SURPISED me cause posts ive seen make it sound like they didnt even have screentime together, like, is it enough? no, but it is something dsfgh thanks for the crumbs, i guess you can read the hostility as jealousy and i kind do love that he brought it back up when they looked like they were going to be death squad’d with poe being like hey ill tell you later dssfgh, it as such a relief when random character from finns past was like no hetero and it was all done in head nods and how warm the scene was when finn and poe reunied and rey joined them in this super tender hug, that was nice

there was also like a half min of two women looking people making out so theres that

i feel like poe’s parts were better than the last movie but also like, under written, i really liked the scene when he meets another trooper, like, theres almost a moment of emotions happening, and i really enjoyed the ex-troopers side plot even though it was super short and kinda tacked on for the hets, she was a really expressive actress for what a small role she had!

i guess the major thing is i didnt feel like i knew or got closer to any of the main characters or like,,cared,,about what was going on and thats WILD for a three hour movie dfdgh

and i know i know this is going to sound awful but i actually liked that scene where ben like force heals her, like that kiss should have been just a forehead touch, or like, maybe his mom speaking to him through rey as he dies, like a lullyby or something, that was a pretty decent redemption arc in like force lore but it was like so strange what little lines he had during that whole thing, it was like, okay this is The character you want delivering a bunch of dry speeches instead of like finn or poe who should be more personal, it was just this weird basic half hour of silence from the cast who should be saying wack stuff with finn  and poe being the audience connection to these wackos?? finn the everyman and poe like the connector and with rose like the deep lore person,the formula was there?

also i think it would have been better is c3p0 died during then, like, if it was more emotionally built up where he recounts his life like the one who created him has died in many ways and many times, if the rebellion is going to end this then i too should go out with the empire, thank you all for being my friends or something like that LIKE THERE IS A SCENE SIMILAR but its super quick and they use the droids as constant slap stick, it doesnt make much sense for finn to be so mean to him through out???? after he sacrafices so much it makes finn this unpleastant character? like character growth would have had him like soften up a bit towards the droid when he comes back but i think it was a deprement to the plot to have that happen, imo it should have been something like my creator installed it in me after he rebuilt me after such and such battle so that i may be free from control of sith influences and then like request to be destroyed after the sith memories are re-instated? again it was just plot point plot point no emotional depth

chewbaca should have also died but that scene should have been better, done in genral also what was UP with that single military dude gettng some actual lighting in that scene fjugjhgh

it was uggh to just have palpatine regurgitate like narrative and not like, have rey come to that conclution herself with him like, saying words an actual person would say like its clear hes lying but its like theres no room to feel anything about it, it just barrels right through

her being like im a skywalker and fade out into the twin suns ruled SO hard tho

[kylermalloy]

SPN Questions Game!

1. When did you start watching Supernatural?

I binged it my freshman year of college, while season 10 was airing. I got caught up in time to start watching mid season! (I had no life. Still don’t.)

2. Who is your favorite in TFW?

Sam. Always Sam.

3. Who is your least favorite in TFW?

I guess Cas? If I have to choose? I don’t have anything against him, he just seems redundant lately.

4. Tag your top 5 Supernatural blogs.

I don’t even talk to five people...

@sealionfoam, @lovedsammy, @semirahrose, @lillysilverus, @to-the-lost-heroes

5. Who is your favorite character (not including TFW)?

If “TFW” just means TFW 1.0, then Jack. Besides him, Crowley. I miss Crowley.

6. Who is your favorite woman in Supernatural?

Rowena. She’s perfect.

7. John or Mary?

John. He’s more controversial. He always causes strong emotional reactions in me, but to this day I still can’t figure out if I like him or hate him. Mary I’m just kind of neutral about.

8. What were your first opinions of Sam, Dean, Cas, and Jack?

Loved them the minute I saw them! Seriously though, I felt for Sam and everything he was going through so hard. (And s1!Sam is...so cute.) I found Dean funny but not annoyingly so, and his serious moments were very touching. My first impression of Cas was pure awe, although that’s slowly drained away through the seasons.

Jack on the other hand...oh gosh. When he appeared in the last shot of season 12, I was So Done with him already. Cas was dead, Crowley was dead, and I was exhausted. Then, over the hiatus, I came to realize they were doing more of a blank-slate character rather than an evil-at-heart character, and I warmed more to the idea of him. By the season 13 premiere, I was enraptured by him and the way he reacted to the new world around him. And by the end of the first ep, he had my heart. (and still does!)

9. What’s your favorite season?

Season 5. The apocalypse storyline and the angst, and the way Sam and Dean are pitted against each other but still cling to each other is my jam. And SWAN SONG.

10. What’s your least favorite season?

Season 9. This is the season I went full bitterSam!girl. The POVs were so skewed in the Sam and Dean conflict. The distance between them made the whole season quite chilly—and made the finale seem forced. The angels-falling and Abaddon v. Crowley story arcs were a mess. The one-off episodes weren’t fun. I found Mark of Cain to be a boring, dead-end story. Human!Cas didn’t last nearly long enough to be interesting. Even Dean’s death didn’t resonate quite right with me. The only good, memorable thing from season 9 was the Sam/Cas hug.

11. Opinions on Destiel?

I don’t ship it. The fans who loudly insist it should—and will—be canon have driven me to the point of being annoyed by it. I’m extra-appreciative of the shippers who enjoy it regardless of canon.

12. Do you believe Supernatural queerbaits?

Hahahahahahahaha no. Whatever other flaws they may have, TPTB have been very clear about what they do and don’t intend to do regarding characters’ sexualities. Any claims of queerbaiting stem from scrutinizing a collection of subtle performance tics and a desperate confirmation bias. You want queerbaiting, head over to the Teen Wolf fandom.

13. Seasons 1-7 or 8-14?

1-7, no contest. There are fewer retcons, fewer dumb episodes, fewer superfluous side characters (and they were used more sparingly—therefore more enjoyably), and an overall tighter and emotionally genuine story.

That being said, there are some wonderful things from the latter seasons: Rowena, Jack, the rock-steady marriage of Sam and Dean from season 11 onward. (I despised the forced conflicts of seasons 8 and 9.)

14. Favorite villain (plot wise)?

Ruby. Azazel. Season 5 Lucifer. Why were these villains good? They had excellent interactions with Sam.

Ruby, in her own words, was awesome. She played Sam like a fiddle, and I love that. Azazel, in all his iterations, was an incredible mastermind disguised as an agent of chaos. And Lucifer (in season 5 only, mind you) was the epitome of quiet menace.

15. Do you think they should end the Lucifer plot line?

Yes, about two years ago.

16. Who do you think has gone through more trauma (Sam, Dean, or Cas)

I don’t like comparing trauma, because it deems some people’s suffering more valid than others’.

Objectively, Sam has gone through the most trauma (being caged for so long). But Dean has suffered too, in different ways.

17. What’s your favorite Supernatural episode?

Swan Song. Always Swan Song. I don’t wish the show had ended here, but it would have been a perfect finale.

18. Do you like case episodes?

Yes! The show was built on them. I especially like when they highlight some aspect of Sam and Dean’s current struggles. (in a subtle way, though)

19. Who do you relate most to in TFW?

Sam. I love my awkward, fish-out-of-water son.

20. Why do you like Supernatural?

Hmm...one of the things I appreciate most about it is the lack of romantically focused plots. The main characters are heterosexual life partners with no intentions of entering romantic relationships with other people.

That’s the other thing—Sam and Dean are the ultimate leads. J2 are perfect onscreen together. Their chemistry is what makes every stupid storyline, every forced plot point manageable, because it always comes back to them and their psychotic, irrational, erotic codependency.

I guess I could also mention that my passion for SPN was waning by the time season 12 wound down. Jack was what revitalized my love for the show in season 13—and prompted me to join tumblr and fandom! So yeah, I love the little nougat boy a lot too.

21. If you could bring back one character and kill off another who would they be?

Bring back? Original Bobby. He wasn’t perfect, but he was an excellent exposition machine, and someone for Sam and Dean to talk to besides each other. And he had some truly fantastic one-liners.

Kill? Anyone and everyone played by Mark Pellegrino. I’m so sick of his irrelevant storylines. It’s as if Buckleming is trying to create a Venom-style spinoff about a dude and his serial-killing eldritch horror boyfriend. (I’m down for whatever it takes to get him off my show, tbh!)

If Lucifer does come back this season, I’ll accept it only if Sam gets to kill him this time.

Tagging @to-the-lost-heroes to do this

[the-ghost-of-jason-todd]

(Same anon from before)(Hi!) Ahhhh please tell me what the endgame will be!!!! Also, I’m curious to know what the next two fics will be about? It’s so cool you already have two more planned out when I can barely plan out one fic without getting stuck or changing things halfway through 😂

(Hi again! This is the same anon from before, and I’m pretty sure I already messaged you but the wifi near me has been spotty lately so this is just in case my previous ask didn’t go through. If it did, just feel free to ignore this lol) I’d love to know the spoilers about how the fic will end!!! And what are you planning plot-wise for the next fics?? 👀👀 I’m super excited to see what you have in store

AHHHHAHA SORRY THE IRONY IS THAT MY INTERNET IS ALSO BEING A BUTT RN 

I HOPE YOU SEE THIS AND GET THE ANSWERS YOU DESIRE

anyway here we go, spoilers ahoy!  under a cut because Long and also i’m not sure how many of you even follow this fic 

SO like how in canon Keith wasn’t ready to be the black paladin of voltron when Shiro went missing at the end of s2, in OMHCV Keith just isn’t ready to take care of a child.  shiro is supportive either way, but that’s the bottom line.  like, Keith might be a good dad (probably would be if he chose to take that route) but he still has a lot of issues with abandonment and What Happened During His Upbringing that need to be dealt with, and he knows that on some level.

so, yeah... he’s giving up the Little Alien.

but!  this is not the end!  like his arc in s6, Keith is going to have some development and see a few things resolved in the next two fics that will definitely help him figure out everything else!

in the next ‘installment’, i guess we’ll call it, the major plot sequence is a lawsuit against Zarkon and his company, which gets filed near the end of OMHCV (though House Voltron doesn’t know this is happening).  the suit will go to trial around january/february of the next year, just after the Little Alien is born, and it’ll involve all the shady people and shady deals that Zarkon is involved with.  this includes the Galra--the people that Keith’s dad got in trouble with before Keith was born and the main reason why Keith was raised the way he was.  Keith is going to come face-to-face with his dad again after a long time in the system (paralleling how he and krolia meet in canon) and he’ll have to deal with a lot of mental health issues that stemmed from how he and his dad lived.

ngl, the second Big Fic is going to be hard on Keith.  and everyone, but... especially Keith.  he’s gonna have to go backward a bit before he can move forward.  i don’t have eeeverything planned but i do have a few big arcs and i know it’s going to be.... hm.  angstier than OMHCV?  i don’t have a real gauge for How Much angstier but... it will have ups and downs but mostly downs.  just like... a lot of downs.  but good news!  matt is gonna show up!

now, the third Big Fic is... more amorphous at the moment?  it’s mostly still just a collection of ideas and it’ll definitely be influenced by s7/8 when they come out.  i’ve been thinking for a long time about how i want to tackle the Operation Kuron situation in this series and i had a Very Sad Idea a while ago and... i think i’m just gonna do it, tbh.

SO the idea is that Shiro gets in another accident, right?  and hits his head again.  and it’s kind of his journey through recovery, but also it’s an in-depth look at the symptoms that he has to deal with and how unreliable his mind gets after dealing with a second round of trauma.  i’ve heard that in canon Shiro had a chronic illness of some kind, so depending on how that goes down that might get tied in.  it won’t be strictly Shiro POV because he’s going to be a pretty unreliable narrator (more than he is now, anyway) for the duration of the fic.  also, lotor is going to get involved.  

a big part of that last installment is going to be Keith and Allura taking lead in the House and helping Shiro find his feet again while also carving out their own paths.  and of course, the other kids are going to be working and learning, too.  i think at this point the only one not old enough to leave the nest will be Pidge so it will be partly about how everyone decides to move forward--if they want to leave to pursue schooling and careers away from home, possibly reconnecting with their own pasts as they go, or if they can find a way to do whatever they want to do while also juggling stuff at the House.  the whole family might also move out of House Voltron in a parallel to how they lost the castle in s6!  and, as things shake up, i think that Keith is going to get more involved in the Little Alien’s life.  he probably won’t try to get custody back, but he’ll be there for the little guy.  since he got to House Voltron he’s been learning how to Be Steady and Stay The Course--he’s learning how to be a permanent presence in people’s lives and he’s going to put that into action starting with Shiro and extending to everyone else, including the Little Alien.

....ngl it’s going to be sad.  i make myself sad thinking about all the character arcs and events coming in the future for these guys.  i thought that i’d end OMHCV on a high note and then after that it would just be nothing but found family Fluff but... apparently i’m not capable of doing that so.

if you want to get english class about it, which i always do because i’m an incredible nerd, then the big picture is this: OMHCV is about cohesion, the Second Big Fic is about stability, and the Third Big Fic is about persistence.  those are the major themes, you could say, strung together with a motif of family bonds and found family.  the biggest counter-themes would then be conflict, as seen in the way that the members of House Voltron fight and struggle against each other and themselves as they come together as a family in the First Fic; uncertainty, as Keith and Shiro struggle to bridge the gap between the past and the present in the Second Fic in order to find stable ground and move forward again; and discontinuity, as everyone faces the changes occurring to House Voltron as the kids all come of age and Shiro deals with his own mental and physical health.

OMHCV: conflict vs. cohesion

Second Fic: uncertainty vs. stability

Third Fic: discontinuity vs. persistence

which... is kind of how it’s gone in canon, tbh?  the first season is team voltron finding cohesion, seasons two through ~five are keith (and, separately, team voltron) trying to find stability, and season six finishes up with Keith’s persistence in saving Shiro and protecting voltron, which i’m ASSUMING will carry through to the next season or so, finishing up with victory.

and like... i don’t think there will be a real moment of decisive victory in the House Voltron series simply because the war they’re fighting is just life, you know?  but even so, i’m hoping that there will be something good waiting for them on the other side of all this.  even if it is just all of them, together as a family.

[lattetimes]

Latte Talks About: Y//O//I

okay, fuck it, let’s go.

for context, i use to be a fan of the show in the beginning. i thought it was kind of interesting, and the main character being in his 20′s and coping with constant anxiety was something i can 100% relate to! that being said, i have a shitton of issues with the show and the fanbase itself by extension. 

i’m gonna put all this under a readmore and separate this by categories. before that, i’m gonna start off with a quick summary of what Y/O//I is (for anyone that’s kinda curious and have 0 idea wtf this anime even is about). i tried to keep everything as brief as possible so it won’t be too much to read through, but i have a lot to say about this entire anime that i didn’t get to say last year, soooo.

PROLOGUE: WHAT IS “ YOI ” ?

if you already know what YOI is, you can skip right over this and jump right into PART ONE. 

ok, so. Yuri!!! on ICE (a.k.a. YOI) is a sports anime series that was produced by MAPPA, directed by Sayo Yamamoto and was written by Mitsurō Kubo. it ran from October 6, 2016 – December 22, 2016, with 12 episodes under its belt for one season and talks of a possible second season. 

the story goes that 23-year old (turns 24 in episode 9) Yuuri Katsuki is Japan’s top figure skater and he fucks the fuck up at the last Grand Prix Final (GPF) he participated in. he decides that he might as well put this career on hold or just quit altogether. while he’s chillin’ back at home (which is a hotel-bath house, keep that in mind for a lil’ bit), he recreates an advanced performance done by his idol Victor Nikiforov during that same GPF (Viktor was in first place, Yuuri was dead last). 

well, this performance was secretly recorded by his friends’ triplet daughters and put up on YouTube, getting the attention of Victor and prompting Victor to stop skating for an entire season to coach Yuuri (much to the dismay of Victor’s coach, Yakov). this event sets off Yuri “Yurio” Plisetsky, a 15-year old skating protege that worked with Victor closely and was promised Victor’s help years ago.

the two compete for who gets to be coached by Victor in this season and Yuuri beats Yurio, leading to the rivalry between the two and Yurio returning to Russia without Victor. the anime goes through the entire skating season revolving around these three characters- along with a revolving door of side characters in order to keep the competitions interesting- going through physical and even mental obstacles to kick their opponents’ asses. 

...and this is where my issues with the anime starts.

PART ONE: THE STORY IS AWKWARD

i have a lot of issues with this anime. a lot. 

for one thing, the entire story hinges on this one accidental night that was revealed in episode 10 after Victor and Yuuri trade matching golden rings: Yuuri got hella wasted after his fuckup in the GPF, and basically gave Victor the time of his life. they danced, and Victor had fallen hard for drunk-off-his-ass Yuuri. (pole dancing was also somehow involved. don’t ask me how.)

Yuuri forgot the entire night, presumably because he dropped off the face of the earth in social media. my main issue with that is how was this never brought up again with any of the other characters?! how was Yuuri completely unaware of this happening?!

Yuuri’s friend, Phichit, being unaware of it makes a little bit of sense due to his absence during that GPF. but not Yuuri? there was a small segment in the first episode that shows that he had his phone notifications off for a long period of time after he recreated Victor’s routine. 

but, i still find that to be a bit too convenient. and after he’s back into skating how did no one else mention this? i know Chris, Victor and Mickey alluded to it at separate points and that makes sense- it’s a good way to get the shock of what episode 10 dropped on us to be even better.

...but no one’s bothered to straight-up mention, “hey, Yuuri, remember when you spun on a fucking pole and beat a 14-year old in a break dance competition? yeah, what the fuck was up?”

my main issue with the entire story would be the ending, so...

PART TWO: THE ENDING KINDA WAS MEH IMO

the end of the series has Yuuri coming in second place (a huge improvement from the last year) and Yurio in first place in his first senior-division GPF. oh, also JJ gets in third place somehow, but we’ll get back to that in a second. 

now, i get why they made Yuuri get second place since he promised to quit skating competitively once he wins gold and to also “allow” Victor to go back to skating (there’s a huge internal conflict with Yuuri since a lot of people assumed Yuuri “stole” Victor from competing). what could’ve happened instead of Yuuri getting second is the following:

Yuuri wins gold, and he either stays in the competing world as a competitor for another year because he gained his love for the sport back and wants to go for one more year. or, he decides to teach Minami (an upcoming Japanese skater that greatly admires Yuuri). this would help create a new dynamic with Yuuri and Victor (if Victor coaches Yurio if Yuuri starts coaching), along with introducing Yurio to a new competitor for the next skating season. 

Victor stays as a coach, for either Yuuri or Yurio (since Yuuri does move in with Victor after this GPF). he really enjoys coaching people, and learns how to improve his coaching skills with extra help from Yakov. 

Yurio comes in second. he’s devastated at first, and he’s disappointed in himself. but then he remembers: he’s only 15. and he got second place in his first senior division GPF. and that itself is fucking incredible. 

JJ gets dead last. after an incredible season of completely crushing all of the other competitors and even showin’ Yuuri up by perfectly executing Victor’s signature move (that Yuuri struggled to replicate), he fucked up. he messed up both his skate routines. with the promise he had made is fiance, Isabella, that winning gold means they’ll get married and he fucks it all up. but, Isabella is still with him after he fucks up; his parents- that are also his coaches- still support him; the crowds still chant for King JJ! the king may have fallen, but he’s not gonna give it up. and he becomes stronger from that!

give Phichit or Chris bronze, dammit.

PART THREE: THE CHARACTERS THEMSELVES ARE MEH AS HELL TOO, NGL

so the character design was handled by Tadashi Hiramatsu, working off of Kubo’s original sketches of how the designs would look. and overall, i think the designs are alright. they don’t stem too far from reality (with a few exceptions, because this is a fuckin’ sports anime so fuck it!). 

i’m only gonna specify a few characters, because tbh almost all the characters are very flat or not interesting. if they didn’t have nice designs  or hella bomb music for their routines i wouldn’t even give a flying fuck about them. but they have that goin’ for them, i guess.

Yurio Plisetksy

oh, we’re gonna get back to this character don’t worry. 

Seung-gil Lee

i personally don’t have much to say about Seung-gil, but the issue of racism against this character was brought up multiple times while the show was airing. 

Seung-gil is a South Korean skater that competes against Yuuri once, and was unable to make the cut. the issue with this character is that he’s rude to a lady skater that seems to have taken some interest in him (and she was being polite and sweet to him) by ignoring her calls and outright saying he has no interest in being her friend. he also is calculating his scores as he’s performing.

Otabek Altin and JJ

god, i wish Otabek was introduced earlier ‘cause he probably would’ve been a much better character. his entire existence was basically just to contrast Yurio, and not in the way JJ does with Yuuri.

Otabek is a large and powerful masculine man, while Yurio is constantly called the “Russian ice fairy” due to his more feminine appearance (which was stated in the anime). and Otabek admires Yurio’s grace while Yurio admires his strength.  but, other than that, Otabek is basically only a prop for Yurio. his entire character revolves around Yurio, and that’s it. you can’t really talk about Otabek at all without even mentioning Yurio.

with JJ, he’s got his own character arc goin’ for him. he’s always been at the top, he’s incredibly skilled and everyone fucking bows for King JJ. fuck, he has an entire song called Theme of King JJ! and this contrasts amazingly with Yuuri!

whereas Yuuri is constantly questioning his self-worth and skill, JJ owns that shit. but with Otabek and Yurio, it falls flat, and in the next section i’m gonna delve into the character of Otabek a bit more.

Makkachin

the dog is objectively the best character and no one can say otherwise.

PART FOUR: YURIO IN GENERAL TBH

honest to god, i think Yurio was the character that was hardest for me to get use to. 

and i’m just gonna start right off with my biggest issue here: Yurio was incredibly sexualized. and not in the way that would be Yurio owning his sexuality.

nope, Yurio’s performance for his exhibition skate Welcome to the Madness was very... uncomfortable to sit through. his performance was like this:

(CREDIT FOR THIS GIF)

there is absolutely NO FUCKING REASON to show off one of the youngest characters in this show in this way. there’s ZERO REASON FOR THIS BOY’S SHIRT TO RIDE UP LIKE THIS, OR FOR HIM TO REPLICATE THIS SPECIFIC ICE SKATING MOVE. you want one of your characters to perform that kind of move as a homage to Stéphane Lambiel? HAVE YUURI DO IT- HE WAS THE ONE THAT SKATED TO EROS- A LITERAL SKATING ROUTINE ABOUT PASSION AND LOVE-MAKING AND ALL THAT JAZZ.

yeah, Yurio was the one that wanted to go for that spicier routine (basically personifying lust) over Agape (personifying wholesome love), and you can argue that having Yurio do shit like this was for the character to show everyone that he has control over his own sexuality, but that isn’t the case.  having his arc be about how he’s coming to terms with his sexuality or how he feels pressured into being more sexual while still being a minor- leading to him being uncomfortable and having a new friend step in and say “hey you do wtf you wanna do” would’ve made this shitshow better. 

no, the creator made this routine in order to get more sales (which duh), and to garner more interest from the side of the fanbase that wants to see Yurio get together with Otabek by throwing him in the routine.

Otabek’s part in the routine was only for a decoration, like icing on the cake for Yurio’s performance! he was only there so they could upstage Yuuri and Victor’s duet!

this isn’t a character taking charge of his sexuality or even an arc about how figure skaters. no, they only had Yurio doing this performance because a lot of people wanted to see Yurio and Otabek end up together (which is something I’ve already stated i have a few issues with). 

a really good way they could’ve taken Yurio’s arc was to show him being pressured by the adults in his life into having to sexualize himself, and constantly showing Yurio being uncomfortable with this. he just wants to skate his own way, but then the fear of the judges and other competitors looking down on him because he’s the youngest competitor in this year’s GPF (everyone’s in their 20′s, minus JJ who is 19) he falls into a state of depression because he’s not doing things on his own terms. have Yurio combating with this inner struggle and have him overcome it by saying, “hey fuck you, stop staring at me like this.” have Otabek back him up- have Otabek (who is 18) be someone that isn’t confident with himself and have him be the one that tells Yurio, “hey, this is hella gross, are you even okay with any of this?”

or, y’know, don’t sexualize kids just for money, just sayin’, that’s a better option.

another issue i’ve seen with Yurio is that he’s fucking everywhere. 

yes, Yurio is a main character and i get that he’s gonna get a shit ton more merch than Georgi or Leo, but he’s overshadow the other two main characters. and honestly, i’m sick of seeing him. it’s upsetting, but true. i’m sick of that character entirely. 

PART FIVE: THE ANIMATION REALLY ISN’T GOOD

so, another issue i have is that the animation really isn’t jaw-dropping. 

the only time i was fucking impressed by the animation was episode one, showing off Victor’s performance of Stammi Vicino! 

the show’s animation was subpar at best, and it wasn’t anything revolutionary or stellar at all. it was very flat and static, and even the ice skating routines were boring in that regard. there’s barely any real effort that is put into the animation of the anime, and it’s a real let-down!

y’know what anime had crazy-good animations? Mob Psycho 100.

this character is just talking to people, and he’s incredibly animated and overall interesting to watch!

this show has very interesting use of squash and stretch when it comes to making characters emote. even the smallest of expressions are easily magnified due to the solid execution by the animation team at Studio Bones!

YOI could’ve better attempted at doing this with at least the skating routines, and the bare minimum with the main three characters. it would’ve made the anime a lot more engaging instead of having everything be so damn static or consist of shot reverse-shots. having more interesting angles in the show would also help with the expression of feelings, as this show is very heavy on emotional weight when it comes to Yuuri and Yurio’s struggles to compete against the other.

and i’m so not upset about MP 100 losing to YOI in the Crunchyroll anime awards because it was totes not biased. which, by the way...

PART SIX: THE FANBASE ITSELF (OH BOY)

these are a few examples of the issue i take with the fanbase. for this section, i’m going to list off what problems i have with the fanbase, and why i now have the entire YOI tagged blacklisted.

Victor and Yuuri’s relationship (homophobia!!): this is one of the biggest reasons why i don’t associate with the fanbase anymore. the fanbase constantly takes this couple and tries to add toxic “relationship problems” to them. this includes (but is not limited to):

threatening to divorce each other

doting “wife” Yuuri

“playboy” Victor

Yurio’s “constant disgust” with the two being happy together (Yurio seeing “sin” if the two so much as cuddle with each other)

basically calling two men that are together “a dirty sinful ship”

“Victor is the man of the relationship” “no, Yuuri is” (basically the application of heterosexual standards onto a gay pairing, and having a “power struggle” with them instead of them being happy together)

fanfics (which i will make a separate part for)

Yurio’s sexualization (OtaYuri): i’ve went well into depth about this, but there’s another point i would live to bring up. there are actual minors that don’t want to see Yurio in a sexual way because they’re around the same age as him and don’t like the idea of having people having sexual fantasies about a teenager. that thought genuinely makes them uncomfortable. well, the side of the fanbase that ships OtaYuri (the ship name) will go well out of their way in order to make them uncomfortable. some OtaYuri shippers join anti-OtaYuri discord servers or skype groups, and then spam them with OtaYuri content until they’re permanently banned from the chats. 

Killing Stalking (also referred to as “KS”): i already can’t stand the fucking online series called Killing Stalking, and it’s horrid to sit through. the fanbase of KS already has a fucked up vision of shipping the two main men- one of them being a homophobic serial killer that breaks the other guy’s legs in order to keep him trapped in his home and another his obsessive stalker that broke into his house. and the Yuri!!! on ICE fanbase flocked right into that the second the anime ended, and decided it was okay to take Victuuri (the ship name of Victor and Yuuri), and try to come up with their fucked up headcannons and AU’s with KS.

The YOI Fanfics: okay. this is honestly a huge part of why i’m very cautious of interacting with YOI fans. there’s a multitude of fanfics that incorporate homophobic, non-consensual aspects into their writing just so people can get their rocks off to it. and that really bugs me. i’m going to talk about the kinds of fanfics that really seem to bug me the most. WARNIING: this is NSFW-related, since that’s the most kind of fanfic i’ve seen of them. 

Alpha/Omega/Beta Fics: this category for fanfictions involves an AU where occasionally characters will go “into heat” and have the uncontrollable need to breed with either their partner or anyone nearby. and usually it’s the “uncontrollable, lusty, submissive Omega” (which is commonly Yuuri) that needs their “dominating and powerful Alpha” (usually Victor) to give into desires and screw. a lot. now, this is wrong for a coupe of reasons: it portrays these gay men as people that cannot control their desires at all; this isn’t always consensual sex at first; there’s always a focus on a power dynamic between the two+ characters involved due to being “presented” as an Alpha, Omega, or Beta. 

THE POSITIVES: YES, THERE’S A FEW POSITIVES I SAW

its music was composed by Taro Umebayashi and Taku Matsushiba, and they did a fucking great job workin’ with the music. On Love: EROS will remain as my favorite song from the entire album that YOI released.

seeing Yuuri attempt Victor’s move in episode 7 and then successfully master it in episode 12 was something amazing to see. it was an incredible thing to see Yuuri land on his feet as opposed to him hitting the ice again, and it really shows how far’s he’s come. 

another positive would 100% be the fact that figure skating had gained a lot more popularity. it was so nice seeing so many people become more interested in the sport itself, and i loved seeing pro skaters even love the show! Stéphane Lambiel even had a cameo in episode 12!

the characters’ designs are really not all that bad. and the voice work is great! i don’t really watched dubbed anime often, but the dub for YOI was over-the-top and ridiculous! and the VA for Yuuri in the English dub (Josh Grelle) was at SuperCon this year, and he kept talking about how much he loved Yuuri’s character. he loves the fact that the story of YOI takes place in a world where no one has to be afraid of loving who they love, and that’s something he wants to see in the near future, and i find that incredibly sweet.

the dog is immortal.

CONCLUSION

so. there you go. that’s all i have to say about the entirety of Yuri!!! on ICE. 

did i enjoy it? well, yeah, a little bit. i was a part of a YOI skype chat when it began because i was so excited that we were getting a sports anime about figure skating!

was it worth all the Internet-breaking hype? eeeeh, not entirely, no? episode 7′s kiss was something special, yes, but the show itself wasn’t allowed to be critiqued that often while the show was still riding the high of popularity it had. 

and if you liked the anime, that’s awesome! i’m glad you did! i can 100% see why the show was very popular and why a lot of people still love it! 

i don’t label every YOi fan a homophobe for liking the show, but seeing this kind of behavior way too often has made me lose my love for the show overall. i can’t even look at the show anymore, and that’s really upsetting to me. but, it did make me happy for the time being. it’s just a fucking shame that the show had a shit ton to work with, and they didn’t go for it. 

i’m sorry this got very long, but there were some areas that i needed to delve more into than others and i got carried away.

[endowrites]

1, 3, 10, 11, 12, 13, 17, 25 for your writer ask meme! (feel no obligation to answer them all, there were just so many good questions!)

[Get to Know Your Author!]

1) is there a story you’re holding off on writing for some reason?

Probably my first novel project?? I’m honestly still terrified of not being a good enough writer to tackle it just in general. I talked it over with a critique partner a few months back and we both agreed that it would work better as a novelette or short story, so that’s definitely what I’m going to end up doing should I choose to pursue it further, but yeah. I dunno.

(For context, it was a story that took the red herring from the movie “Ex Machina”, where Domhnall Gleeson’s character cuts open his arm because he thinks he might be a robot, and actually ran with it. I really liked the idea, but my first draft was far too info-dumpy and I can’t stand that ;_;)

3) what order do you write in? front of book to back? chronological? favorite scenes first? something else?

I cannot write out of order. Not at all. It’s chronological or nothing for me. Part of it, I think, stems from the structure by which I operate just in general - the way I organize myself is very linear because my brain likes to go off on fractal-level tangents and I spiral down crazy rabbit holes that make me anxious and confused. I’ve got to keep things in order, and the best (and only, for the time being) way I’ve found to do that is to just stick with writing linearly. It sucks, because it means if I hit a snag it derails me for months sometimes, but I consider that a worthy consequence, considering the alternative.

10) write in silence or with background noise? with people or alone?

I write almost exclusively to the Skyrim Atmospheres track. I put it on repeat and just zone out for a few hours. I listened to it so much last year, in fact, that it was my number one played song on Spotify for 2017 and skewed all my damn listening stats. grumble grumble

As for writing around people - if I need to crank out some words and don’t have any serious blockage problems, I will typically go to Starbucks or something for a few hours because being around a bunch of faceless people actually helps me for some reason. But if I’m blocked, the only thing that works is locking myself in my apartment, taking my router, chucking it out the window, and forcing myself to suffer through it alone. 

11) what aspect of your writing do you think has most improved since you started writing?

Precision! I used to waffle on for thousands of words, saying in twenty pages what could have been said in two. Figuring out what needed to be said and what didn’t, as well as to what varying degrees each proverbial dial needed to be tweaked to, was a long, arduous, uphill battle that I’m still struggling with even now.

12) your weaknesses as an author

Plot. I can’t plot to save my damn life. I’m honestly a pantser - I tried outlining, but it didn’t work so well. Pantsing is fun in the moment, but the instant the first draft is done and I try to make something coherent out of it, it all just... crumbles. That, and I just don’t have many profound story ideas that are worthy of being written about, tbh. It’s why writing short stories and original fiction has been so difficult for me. 

Something that’s taken me a really long time to come to terms with is the fact that I just need to write, and not worry about originality or even coherence at first. I just need to write.

13) your strengths as an author

I’m honestly a terrible judge, but based on what I’ve gleaned from critique partners and beta readers over the years, my dialogue and sentence structure are pretty decent. Dialogue scenes are always the ones that I find easiest to write, and the fastest to write, so I guess that’s a good thing! It’s kinda meant that over the past few months, almost all of my writing projects have focused on conversation moreso than action, and also why my main Voltron fic right now is stuck because I was a ninny and wrote myself into a fight scene corner ._.

17) if you could give your fledgling author self any advice, what would it be?

Answered here!!

25) copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of

Oh man - there are a couple. I’ll limit myself to one from each of my main three WIPs right now.

Geartooth:

The castle is an open tomb, and Shiro is too friendly withthe dead to pull himself out.

Blonding (Final Draft):

The paperwork on Minato’s desk demanded diligence. The lists ofninja lining the book in his top drawer demanded understanding. The names inthe bingo book beneath it demanded blood. Those were emotions he was familiarwith, and they didn’t scare him in their familiarity.

But when he spun in his chair and looked out the otherdirection, the price of life lost its label. A village wasn’t another line in aspreadsheet. Children weren’t numbers.

He imagined Kushina, a bundle of blankets and warmth in herhands, cooing into the face of a baby that bore his face. There was no pricefor love. And yet here he was, the father to ten thousand children, and theyall seemed to look up at him like he knew the answers to every question.

Only a shadow could lead the shadowed.

‘You’ll do fine,’the portrait said again. Minato, for the life of him, hoped it was right.

Project Hubcap (my novel):

Gabriel narrowed her eyes. "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh, like you said you wouldn't dare touch myshit?" Marigold said, bending her knees and waving her hands back andforth like an off-duty circus performer. "'I wasn't touching anything,'"she mimicked, and Gabriel hissed. "'I was just looking around is all!Ignore the big blocky bulge in my back pocket; I'm just happy to seeyou!'"

"Alright, shut up!" Gabriel said. "You'vemade your point. Christ, you're even more of a bitch when you're drunk than youare normally."

"That's how it tends to work, sweetheart,"Marigold said, hiccoughing.