#the best thing episode 25 did though was NOT have any closure

[sw4gg1e4life]

Yu Yu Hakusho (Reviewing 25 years later)

This anime is like a forgotten gem. It doesn’t come to mind as #1 first but when mentioned everyone goes oh yea that was like one of the best anime’s of all time. I feel like most anime’s don’t have the same level of action, adventure, comedy, drama, and growth that this show offered. Whether you watch it as a kid for action & childish humor or as an adult for the deeper drama, life lessons and adult humor, it’s great across generations and across time whether you watched it as a kid in the 90s/00s or now in 2021. 

Let me simplify it because there’s so much in-depth analysis I could go into.

Ratings per Arc/Saga:

Spirit Detective - 8/10

Dark Tournament - 10/10

Chapter Black - 8/10

Three Kings - 7/10

Deeper Analysis:

Spirit Detective - Honestly this arc had amazing parts to it, introducing the main characters, slowly improving enemies, and setting up for the Dark Tournament. I love the intro and how Yusuke has to undergo his ordeal showing his relationship with Kuwabara, Keiko, his mother, Boton, Koenma and everyone else around him. We’re introduced to a brat who doesn’t really belong but slowly finds his place and purpose starting here as Spirit Detective. I loved the deeper stories with introducing Hiei and Kurama. The introduction of Genkai was amazing, it showed there’s different aspects of growing and trying to master spirit energy. I only wish that section was a bit longer, maybe just 2-3 episodes of more unique competitors. The Spirit Beasts section is what made it a tad lackluster. This is their first real mission to spirit world and the abilities of the 4 spirit beasts just felt somewhat limited to me. Especially the fire-tiger beast, his tenacity just became annoying at some point. This is what dropped the Spirit Detective Saga to an 8 for me or else I would’ve made it a 9. The final part is amazing, it brings some backstory to Hiei by introducing her sister and most importantly the Toguro brothers leading to the Dark Tournament. 

All together, it’s probably one of the best intro sagas to any anime I’ve seen at least. There’s simplicity but also complexity at the same time depending on how deep you look into it. They didn’t just half ass the action like many of my other favorite action-packed anime (DBZ, Fairy Tail). There’s a lot of mystery, dark moments, and strategy for a supposed kids cartoon for the haters out there. 

Dark Tournament - This has to be the best saga in any ever because of the different strategies, emotions, growth, and somehow comedy still added in. I can’t help but re-watch this saga again and again every few years. We start with a mystery question: how much did the main characters grow in strength, abilities, and strategies? Now as a teen then now adult, the masked fighter is obviously Genkai because of the height, outfit and abilities, but as a kid, she was such a mystery for me haha. Anyways we go into the tournament and the committee seems hell bent on pitting everything against Yusuke & friends. I like that though Yusuke’s team comes out on top at the end of each fight, they do lose some individual matches for multiple different reasons. Instead of mindless matches purely on the fighting, we actually learn some backstory about many enemies and our main characters. It didn’t take long either; there wasn’t a ridiculous amount of episodes spent per backstory like Naruto or Fairy Tail. Genkai showed even more wisdom but also understanding of humanity as she knows her time is ending so she passes on her power abilities and most importantly wisdom to her favorite dim-wit. And throughout the story, we get to know more about Genkai and Toguro’s backstory and how power, morals and unfortunate events can change one’s future. The part that most people forget is the final episodes of the Dark Tournament: Toguro has been and wants to continue punishing himself. He actually does care for Genkai and Yusuke. He knows Yusuke has greater potential to grow into something great but needs proper and sometimes drastic measures and guidance to do so.

This saga had an amazing start, several related series of actions in the middle and a proper explanation at the end for many questions we had. On top of all that we’re left clues to the next arc, subtle clues you don’t realize until the next arc comes around. Episode 66, was shocking, Koenma actually granted Yusuke’s wish for his mentor and friend to be revived to live until the end of her life in peace as much as possible. 

Chapter Black - This saga was great. You really don’t know what it is until it’s fully explained. We all know there were stronger demons deeper in spirit world. But something deeper darker is coming and it’s crazy because after 66 episodes we realized we never wondered about a previous Spirit Detective. What happened to that one? Now we get a trio of test spiritually aware humans just to test Yusuke & Kuwabara, but the really interesting part is when Sensui and his team is brought in. A few abilities were obvious but others were so mysterious with a constant ominous presence and heartbeat music looming over. What is each unique opponent’s abilities and what is Sensui’s background and end goal? His multiple personalities each containing yet even more unique abilities with his desire for an open tunnel into the depths of Spirit World for A/S class demons is insane. It seems impossible for Yusuke to win here even with Kuwabara’s sacrifice again. But wow what a reveal that he does have a secret demon king lineage in his blood. I both love and hate this at the same time. It feels like a cop-out but also explains everything at the same time. It’s like Super Saiyan in DBZ but different because at least here it took until the 3rd Saga and several arcs to reveal it. I guess in the overall scheme of things it’s like having Dragonball before Dragonball Z. Anyways the ending is amazing as we see them fight and find out just why Sensui wanted this all along as well as his gay partner’s obsession over him. 

This was a great saga with a truly ominous back story and I love it. The only reason I keep it rated at 8/10 is unfortunately it happens right after the best saga ever in the Dark Tournament. At this point, power scaling and the use of demon king lineage in Yusuke just unfortunately puts the rating here. And we already know what the next saga is about for sure. There’s nothing left to really explore.

Three Kings - Here we go, the finale of Yu Yu Hakusho. We know Yusuke is of demon king lineage so of course he’s going to go train in Demon World. Hiei and Kurama obviously would follow along. Now with everything being obvious, why is it still interesting? Somehow the writers/producers of Yu Yu Hakusho find a way to bring even more back story in appropriate timing without it becoming filler. Learning about the deep ancient history of Raizen vs Yomi vs Mukuro shows how even as demons they have a human aspect: Raizen who ended up loving a human, Yomi who had a child and history with Kurama, and Mukuro with her tragic backstory that led to an odd relationship with Hiei. The ending is great with yet another tournament. As a kid, I wished they had a full tournament arc, but decades later I realized how much sense it makes that they didn’t show us the whole tournament, just key battles and how no one in our main crew won. Yusuke, Kurama and Hiei still has much to learn and grow. Yomi and Mukuro’s time has passed. A new brighter future awaits the demon world. Yusuke finally gets his happy ending with Keiko. 

This final saga unfortunately because of its timing and closure gets a rating of 7/10. For an ending it’s great and I’m not sure how to improve it. That’s why I’m not a producer/writer haha. But it is definitely amazing and I appreciate it. Yusuke went from a kid/teen to a young adult. The story we came to know and love is over and he did NOT end up obsessed like Toguro. He didn’t choose the demon life. He also didn’t choose a psychic path like Genkai. He chose his own path with his friends in the human world continuing as spirit detective but living as close to a normal life as possible. I love this ending, The ending and whole narrative makes me give this show a 10/10. Yes I know they released 2 specials in 2018 but why not that’s a small treat for us fans. They can do specials maybe every decade or so. I don’t actually want them to do a new continued series like Dragonball Super. Let the original show be what it is and be remembered in history as one of the most unique shows with catchy theme songs. Also the Eng dub is actually good haha. Listen carefully for the adult humor hidden in the show if you’re re-watching it. You likely didn’t understand every NSFW joke as a kid. I know I didn’t haha. 

[b-listbadboy]

Castlevania Season 3 was disappointing

(Spoilers for Castlevania Season 3, if you haven’t seen it yet it’s out now on Netflix. I suggest watching that first before reading this review)

I won’t say it was an awful season by any stretch of the imagination but man was it a drag to get through.

Almost nothing of significance happens for the majority of the season and the things that did happen felt extremely off and weird. 10 episodes, 25 to 30 minutes each, and every single one except for the fucking TWO LAST EPISODES were spent dicking around with a mystery that had little to do with anything from season 2 beyond a really out there twist that I’m sort of iffy on. Top that off with a lackluster arguably stupid ending to leave us off on a needless cliffhanger, and that’s the magic remedy that will leave me feeling pretty damn frustrated.

The best parts, in my opinion, were with Isaac’s massive undead crusade he was waging throughout his journey for revenge, and Trevor and Syph’s interactions with each other as well as with the little villagers. Isaac’s arc going from a servant of Dracula to slowing evolving into the master of the damned felt genuine, intriguing, and badass! I really wish he was the next main villain instead as it makes sense thematically. He carries out Dracula’s nihilistic views of humanity in a similar but now more direct way and that can lead into something really intriguing. However, for some reason, this season left him and his whole journey on a back burner, and virtually everything else that is implemented into main villain role fell flat on its face execution wise.

For example; The new vampires of this season are Camilla’s three other empress sisters, and while they do have a plethora of personality at the very least, that kind of comes at a cost of the main threat being extremely diluted. We go from this hurting sympathetic undead overlord with the power of an anchent GOD, to a couple of wicked sassy sisters who just wanna eat people forever? It’s a bit lame of a progression from what we once had, we know Vampires like to eat people that’s nothing new or exciting. There’s no real twist to it besides it being “led by women in the dark ages” and granted that makes sense here since it IS the dark ages, but come on we literally just had arguably the BEST adaptation of friggin’ Dracula! This shouldn’t be all they got moving forward from that.

Now, I have ZERO issue with the main antagonists being female or even two of the four sisters (not by blood don’t worry) being a lesbian couple. I hate that I have to emphasize this, hell I often defend Cinder Fall in RWBY more than anyone in the fandom at all despite her issues as a complex and sometimes flat out badly written character. However, The four of them in this season have the most basic of plans that it seems arbitrary status quote fluff at best. It felt like just because it’s Castlevania, we HAVE to have the vampires as the villains. Even though in the games the Belmont’s were literally fighting werewolves, dragons, skeletons, and the GRIMM REAPER??

Therefore, the sense of urgency and tense calculating plans of ‘survival vs extinction’ is completely gone. And yknow in a way, I can kinda initially SEE that working in a sort of “Empire Strikes Back” esque plot. Yknow, with Alucard and the gang go around cleaning up Dracula’s leftover horde only for Isaac or even Camilla to have this huge vengeful comeback of dominance? But there’s no one exactly “striking back” or even taking any kind of immediate initiative after Dracula’s death. It’s been MONTHS after the whole event and no one seems like they really care about that world changing event from the last two season’s. Everything is fine and dandy, no one has a single worry in the world! How enthralling...I miss Godbrand 😑

Besides the plan the four empresses have as well as Issac’s revenge, which I hope will both be more explored in season 4, no one really has any goal to warrant THAT kind of length of a season. This is more of a Netflix problem that I have with most of their shows and it’s one of the reasons why I don’t like watching them. Almost every singe show Netflix produces now, feels the need to overstuff itself with needless filler that gets us really nowhere until the very end where it SUDDENLY all comes together. But because of the nature of binge watching and considering how Netflix wants to desperately keep their subscriptions in fear of intimidating competition, they make these shows 12 episodes long with HALF HOUR OR MORE amount of filler content that’s supposed to satisfy us cause it’s “cute”?! No, stop this shit! Granted, Castlevania wasn’t nearly AS bad as the live action shows, but honestly, what exactly was shown to us that couldn’t have been reduced to like 5 solidly paced episodes focused on one or two plot lines ONLY like before? It worked perfectly back then, why change what ain’t broke?

As much as I don’t like the immediate rush of Trevor and Syph’s out of nowhere sexual relationship, I didn’t overall mind it too much since they still somewhat felt consistent. Their characteristics play off very nicely with one another and it’s pretty easy to see the chemistry between the two....HOWEVER I’M STILL GONNA COMPLAIN ABOUT IT SO HERE WE GO!

I get that they were setting them up as an endgame ship of the series, there’s no denying that, but they start fucking for what feels like (to the audience) two days after and I think that’s a bit ridiculous! Even if Alucard states that it’s been at the very least a month worth of time since the events of Season 2, there’s no real physical signs showing that statement to be true. Hell, Trevor’s beard and hair remains the same despite a HUGE passage of time where it would naturally grow out to indicate said time passing by. But both him, Syph, Alucard, and damn near everyone else looks the exact same as last season. So for all I know it could have been like a week since Season 2 and that to me doesn’t feel exactly earned. The Season 2 finale didn’t explicitly leave off Trevor and Syph officially a couple, they felt more like partners in crime more than anything else. Not to say that there wasn’t any chemistry there to develope INTO a relationship GRADUALLY, but going from a little spark of interest to the immediate jump of them sleeping together naked all comfortably as if they’re a goddamn married couple is a STRETCH! Even Trevor himself thinks so too so don’t jump down my throat about not being immediately swooned by the shipping fanservice given to us. I don’t dislike them as a couple at all, in fact I think their dynamic is cute! However, I would have also liked to have this couple feel natural and earned. They most certainly do not feel earned this way, at least to me.

Oh god, then there’s this out of nowhere sexual tension between Alucard and his new two recruits from another region hinted at in the previous season? Mind you, Alucard was doing literally NOTHING throughout the entirety of Season 3. Yep, literally the ONE DUDE WHO BASICALLY KILLED DRACULA gets about fuck all story progression afterwards out of the three. But what they DO give him are these two new vampire hunting student’s who look identical to one another (no racial they just literally look like fraternal twins) so I assumed they were either siblings or a couple, which makes it REALLY WEIRD WHEN THEY BOTH FUCK ALUCARD OUT OF NOWHERE?! I’m NOT making this shit up I promise! What makes even less sense is that it was really just a ploy for them to steal the Belmont knowledge of killing vampires to show to their people who have been enslaved. Which of course ends with them being killed so it really makes this entire conflict in his character damn near pointless besides “sad vibes check”, but here’s the thing...why didn’t they just keep doing training with Alucard?? There were virtually no downsides to having him teach you how to kill Vampires to save your village from being enslaved, he was teaching you both very well and gave you like the eternal knowledge of how to kill literally EVERY MONSTER and even let you live in the castle FOR FREE, food and wine included! What was the turning point for them to want to kill him all of the sudden? Cause he’s a vampire?? THEY FUCKING KNEW THAT ALREADY!!! Why was is suddenly not a problem at first but then coincidentally a problem now? If they wanted to use this to somehow depict this notion of “Oh my dad/Dracula was right humans are the worst” mindset, trust me, it was better conveyed with Isaac. These twins side plot not only made no sense, but also felt unjustified for Alucard to be an emo boi. I get that it’s supposed to be symbolic of him going through the same issues that both of his parents went through, but none of that really showed how bad human’s are. Just that those two twins didn’t think things through apparently. So the point of Alucard having this odd character convenience shift feels by the numbers cliché, and most importantly CHEAP.

It really makes no sense to me why they’re adding so much of this filler for such a long time, especially with some of this filler being oddly sexual. I don’t mind honest depiction of sex between consenting adults of course, but it just felt so misplaced and awkward at parts where it showed itself. I felt like I was reading a mediocre fanfic of Castlevania instead of the actual show itself! Granted, Season 2 had somewhat of a similar dilemma but the lull in between was still showing the character specifically doing things to further the story along. Towards the end, it gave us a way more satisfactory closure of that saga with Dracula that felt natural and well earned. This season however, felt like they were scrambling with different ideas here and there and didn’t know which to go with. Alucard training new recruits in his castle, Trevor and Syph figuring out an estranged (and BORING/GENERIC) cult of Dracula’s plan, Camilla setting up an army with her fellow sisterhood of evil vampires to gain ultimate power, Hector surviving captivity by using his wit and charm, Isaac raising up the dead for revenge on his deceased master, a new character introducing an all new world to the lore of Castlevania as we know it, all of these interesting concepts and ideas that could easily make up for a good season alone! And instead of focusing on one or two ideas to develope into something natural, they ended up saying “FUCK IT! Fucking I dunno what to- WE’RE DOING ALL OF IT I DUNNO!” and mixed the whole thing in a blender of different flavors that don’t necessarily blend together well enough for a tasty satisfactory meal. It just ends up being a mesh of okay at best, and gross at worst.

IN CONCLUSION, Castlevania Season 3 had a rocky start, an okay middle, and a kind of cool end. There was definitely some cool and exciting ideas implemented in here, but not enough to warrant that lengthy amount of time that Netflix seems to love to give to most of their TV shows. Sometimes less is more, and all that shiny cool glitter isn’t necessarily going to turn out to be gold. I’ll give this season a 5/10. It’s not the worst I’ve ever seen but it certainly could’ve been a lot better.

P.S. “Who Do Ya Voodoo” from Dead Island is Isaac’s new theme song, you can’t convince me otherwise.

[pass-the-bechdel]

Stargate SG1 s09e14 ‘Stronghold’

Does it pass the Bechdel Test?

No.

How many female characters (with names and lines) are there?

Three (25% of cast).

How many male characters (with names and lines) are there?

Nine.

Positive Content Rating:

Three.

General Episode Quality:

A personal favourite.

MORE INFO (and potential spoilers) UNDER THE CUT:

Passing the Bechdel:

Not a personal favourite.

Female characters:

Ka’lel.

Kelly.

Samantha Carter.

Male characters:

Maz’rai.

Bra’tac.

Cameron Mitchell.

Bryce Ferguson.

Hank Landry.

Teal’c.

Daniel Jackson.

U’kin.

Ba’al.

OTHER NOTES:

Ka’lel may be under the influence of anti-democratic brainwashing at the time, but her point about requiring gender equality before any so-called ‘democratic’ vote can be held and considered legitimately representative of the people is still totally valid.

Listen. I love Reed Diamond. I love him. I’m not going to pretend that’s not a factor in my enjoyment of this episode. But also, Mitchell taking personal time to go and hang out with his dying friend and play video games and have Very Good Soft Talks and be honest about his feelings in a nice non-toxic-masculine fashion is just really good shit. Even though we’ve never seen or heard of Ferguson before, he and Mitchell have a wonderful easy chemistry that makes the notion of them having 15+ years of friendship behind them totally believable, and Mitchell’s guilt over Ferguson’s condition is as palpable as Ferguson’s forgiveness. This is a sweet and lovely subplot, very unusual for the show, but more’s the pity.

“Sorry doc, you were wrong. Hitting it doesn’t help.” This is funny, but also, adds to the image of Mitchell having a hot-headed impulsive streak that can get him (and others) into trouble, and that’s why he’s here, after all.

Mitchell giving Ferguson the experience of everything he’s missed out on is actually a really poignant use of the memory technology from ‘Collateral Damage’, far better than anything I would have expected them to do with it. This is emotionally very rich, and I’m all about it.

“I would have done it for anyone. It’s part of the job.” GOOD SOFT TALKS. 10/10 REED DIAMOND.

We’ve got several episodes this season offering close analysis of Mitchell’s psyche, and this is by far the best one. The fact that they don’t violently murder a woman in order to facilitate the narrative is a good start; the story also remains coherent and thematically intact throughout, it doesn’t wander off or switch awkwardly to a new topic and then pretend to be linked, it doesn’t shoehorn anything in, and it - crucially - doesn’t come to any cathartic conclusion. Mitchell doesn’t take Ferguson on a jaunt through the ‘gate or any such cliche, he isn’t able to cure him with special advanced medicines; he does better than just showing Ferguson the life that he could have had, the life that Mitchell feels he has stolen for himself. Allowing Ferguson to experience it all with the memory transfer lets him die with a sense of fulfillment of a dream; he still dies, though, and Mitchell still has to live with knowing that Ferguson never did and never will do any of the things that he gets to do because of Ferguson’s sacrifice. There is no closure in the experience for Mitchell, no solution that lets him unburden himself of his guilt. He goes out and he saves Teal’c, but that doesn’t make it better. No amount of action or anger or endless penance will do the emotional labour for him; he has to work out how to handle his guilt on his own, and make peace with himself. This is the good shit, right here.

P.s. also there’s Jaffa politics and brainwashing and another Ba’al bites the dust; that’s all good fun too. It’s a winner from every angle.

[almaasi]

reaction post typed while watching SPN 14x13 “Lebanon” (300th episode)

in which i compare this episode to pumpkin soup, because I’m craving more Cas

03:30pm

all righty, thing is still downloading, and there’s a 720p version queued up so that’ll be downloaded by the time i’ve watched half. i have snacks, i’m gonna half close my blinds so i can see, but I DON’T HAVE HEADPHONES AGAIN which is the worst. why do headphones break so easily, that’s what i want to know. (just gotta pray there’s a good sound quality i guess. my laptop speakers suck)

...2 minutes left on the download c’moooooon

-

03:35

OKAY DONE!!!!

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03:36

“dad’s on a hunting trip and he hasn’t been home in a few days”

i don’t know if it’s dean’s little baby voice (HE’S MY AGE CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?? I CAN’T) or the laptop speakers or the video sound quality, but dean sounds like a kid in a 1980s disney cartoon, with that vintage prickle in my ears and i love it

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03:38

okay look it’s super hot 'cause it’s summer, and my fan is on, and there’s cicadas... i think i gotta shut the window and turn the fan off aND SLOWLY ROAST IN HERE BECAUSE I CAN’T HEAR THIS PROPERLY

i’m 9 seconds into the recap u_u

it’s gonna be one of those days i guess

-

03:41

is that the monkey again?

yeah it’s the monkey again

-

03:45

dead black guy already????????????????????

really?????

-

03:46

are those kids meant to look like the kids from stranger things? because they kind of do. and the movie theatre as well

-

03:47

cas is in this episode, right??

if he isn’t i’m gonna scream

misha had a tv guide cover so maybe

-

03:39

every single one of these kids is cute and i’m offended

“weird sidekick with the trenchcoat” i am further offended, but also smiling

-

03:50

SHE GAY

SHE VERY GAY

-

the plaid though. she’s a dean mirror 100%

edit: i did doubt this for a second but nope, i was completely right

i mean, she drives the car as well

-

03:52

tHE IMPALA JUST SCOOTED OFF THE SCREEN AND I ALMOST CHOKED OH MY GOD that was hilarious

-

03:54

dean doing the puppy eyes is 

a) cute

b) FUCKING TERRIFYING BECAUSE THIS POOR WOMAN’S TRYING TO PROTECT AN UNDERAGE GIRL AND IT SHOULD NOT BE THAT EASY

-

03:57

the hand that popped out of the smoky cigar box

SUPER COOL AND SUPER CREEPY EW

-

03:59

dean: “this is like the best/worst thing that’s ever happened to you. ‘cause you love serial killers but you hate clowns”

ahahhahaha

-

04:02

sam: “are you sure you don’t wanna call mom, or wait for cas”

YES PLEASE DO BOTH OF THOSE THINGS ;A;

-

“michael out of my head”

HAVE YOU NEVER PAID ATTENTION TO ALL THE WISHES THAT GO WRONG??? YOU GOTTA BE MORE SPECIFIC DUDE. TAKING MICHAEL OUT YOUR HEAD JUST TAKES HIM OUT, YOU GOTTA KILL HIM TOO DAMMIT

-

04:05

john: “now you live in a secret bunker with an angel and lucifer’s kid”

he took that surprisingly well

 a little too well

probably part of dean’s wish that he takes it well

-

04:08

OH BOY

the face he made when he saw mary sdjgfd

-

04:09

ahahah dean and sam awkwardly leaving while their parents make out

dean kinda looked like he was gonna stay, lil bean

-

04:11

the fact dean was so adamant that he said he wanted michael out of his head, but then is now defending the fact he wished for his dad back instead

says a lot about what dean says he wants =/= what dean actually wants

-

04:13

john is much sweeter and more understanding than anyone remembers him (at least than i remember him, or could infer from all the stories about him)

i really do think dean brought him back nicer

-

04:15

i love seeing sam have emotions, it’s so refreshing

-

sam kinda looked like he panicked when john touched him aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

-

04:17

there’s a sign for “castle storage” in the background and i think about that sometimes. hill of a forty dogs or something??? i forget, it was so long ago

-

ALSO WHERE’S CAS

also switching to 720p now

never mind switching back, the sound was better on the lower quality video u_u

-

04:22

oh no, nobody knows them

IS CAS NOT GONNA KNOW THEM

OH NO

-

04:23

this universe-sam: *kinda smug* “god bless kale, am i right?”

I CRINGED SO HARD

-

04:25

OH BOY IT’S HAPPENING

(well SOMETHING IS HAPPENING)

-

04:26

zachariah: “c’mon, constantine”

cas: “i don’t understand that reference”

zach: “you wouldn’t”

i kinda missed this cas though. like. i’m not even mad

ONE PROBLEM: HE’S PROBABLY NOT HEAD OVER HEELS IN LOVE WITH DEAN

-

04:28

life goal of mine: have a sign like that in my house as decor

-

04:29

THE BACKWARDS TIE

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04:35

okay first off i got so involved watching cas beat dean up (again) and dean being unable to stop him (D: D: D:) (kind of expected dean to croak “i love you” but um no....... that didn’t happen)

and then mary’s egg timer went off 

and it reminded me i’m hungry again so brb

well actually i’m not hungry..... but my body is shutting down because i need fat and magnesium to function which means i need to eat or else i can’t see, but same difference

-

04:43pm

okay i’m back

-

04:45

DEAN FINALLY HEARING HIS DADDY SAY HE’S PROUD OF HIM

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04:46

john: “i thought you’d get yourself a normal life, a peaceful life, a family”

dean: “i have a family”

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3

]]]]]] I REALLY FUCKING WANT JOHN TO MEET CAS [[[[[[[

-

04:48

THERE’S SALAD ON THE PLATES HALLELUJAH

-

04:49

sam: “did you see them, at dinner, the way they looked at each other, they seemed happy”

and then there’s the way max looked at the girl she was crushing on

AND THEN THERE’S THE WAY DEAN LOOKS AT CAS LET’S GET SOME OF THAT IN HERE PLEEEEEASE

-

04:51

it stresses me out when people wash dishes but only rinse using the dirty water not fresh tap water

-

04:53

they’re about to send john back, he’s holding mary’s hand

all the rainbows behind dean’s head

betcha he’s thinkin about cas

-

04:56

john: “i love you both, so much”

dean...................

-

“i love you too”

OH MY HEART

he says it ......he never used to say it to anyone

-

04:59

YEEEEE

BUT ALSO THIS ONLY LASTED 0.5 SECONDS WHY

but also???????

TALL GUY = SAM

PLAID GIRL = DEAN

COAT GIRL = CAS

IS ANYONE ELSE GETTING THIS

WHY DIDN’T THIS SHOT LAST LONGER SO PEOPLE WOULD BE ABLE TO SEE WITHOUT PAUSING

CURSE YOU EDITORS

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05:02

so....... that end scene where john’s like “i’m on my way back, i’ll see you soon”

was that meant to be in the past, 2003 era? the flip phone would say so, but his visible age kind of confuses matters

i mean i get that it’s hard to make someone look 16 years younger

but still

unsure about that

-

05:04

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm it’s over

i dunno

that was definitely a special and important episode, and i appreciated seeing this side of john, this is gonna make it way easier to write fanfic of him without the story ending up as a trauma survival fic

but

i was kind of underwhelmed

things i rEALLY REALLY WANTED that didn’t happen:

john actually reacting to dean saying they made friends with an angel (and a werewolf, a vampire, demons, etc etc)

john meeting cas

cas being part of that family meal (i get that the point was he was 2003!cas and not there, but still)

jack being in this even a little bit??

and as the story went on and reached the end, what it really lacked, for me, was a comparison where we can then see how john/mary & max/her crush = dean/cas...........and that just didn’t happen

i think it just ended too soon, really

and there was a lot more they could’ve done with the altered timeline, could’ve brought a whooooooooole lot back from past seasons and just made it a smorgasbord of nostalgia

i get that it was focused solely on john, which gave it an emotional core, so there’s not actually a problem there, i loved that

but it felt kind of dull and slow and....... soupy..........?

(i just mean. the emotional feeling in my brain as i think about it. feels like soup. specifically pumpkin soup. warm and spicy and goopy and nutritious but ultimately not very filling)

then again, if the pacing had been sped up, i would’ve complained it was too rushed. so there’s no winning, it was probably fine ?

i think my favourite part was the kids. i loved the kids. i love the lil gay romance going there. i loved the fact it was a destiel/team free will parallel (even if that part of it was OVER SO DAMN QUICKLY MOST PEOPLE MISSED IT). i loved the kid in the hat, he reminded me a lot of the actor thomas brodie-sangster, and also johnathan byers from “stranger things”

also enjoyed sam vs. the serial killer clown, and that whole aspect of hunting that we haven’t seen in a while, felt very nostalgic

also enjoyed 2003!cas, but was both distressed and frustrated by him fighting dean and then NOT GETTING ANY CLOSURE ON THAT WHATSOEVER. the point was to make dean and sam realise they really needed to send john back, so essentially, in some respect, they did choose cas being their friend over john being around, but that part of the overall problem was never mentioned at all, cas wasn’t mentioned at all after the fight

i’m just looking forward to coda fics that start where this episode leaves off, and dean talks to cas, because i am craving that SO FUCKING BADLY i can’t even express. like. it’s becoming maddening. i just. want. them. to have. a conversation

and the black guy dying at the start?? and the other black kid running away from the ghost and never being seen again? and besides the unnamed diner guy offering info on skip day, being the ONLY PEOPLE OF COLOUR IN THE ENTIRE STORY??? NOT COOL, not a fan >:{ (still better than it used to be, but soooooooooo many white people. so many. so. many)

anyway. um

so that wasn’t my favourite episode, but not because it was bad, but because it didn’t live up to expectations. i tried not to have any expectations (i really tried) but there were just... basic things this episode needed that i felt it was lacking (*cough* cas *cough*), and i can’t really shake that feeling

HOWEVER, having seen 2003!cas be the thoughtless drone that he was, i can appreciate just HOW MUCH character development has happened while he’s been around, which.... i suppose, is a sort of nod to his entire existence ???

anyway, 9/10, and a big ol shrug

but yeah. seeing john be kind and understanding was amazing (and completely changes how i’m gonna write him in my fics in the future, since he’s probably gonna be in the fic instead of just mentioned) and having him say he’s proud of dean and he loves him was just a super nice treat c:

sam being emotional is the best, too. sam confronting his feelings 10/10

i just. i want aaaaaall of this. but with cas. i really want that. so goddamn much. ;~;

[mtvswatches]

Crazy Ex Girlfriend 4x08 I’m Not the Person I Used to Be

Stray thoughts

1) OMG I’m Other Rebecca!

2) This looks like a smut fanfic…

…except no one asked for it?

3) OMG!! What is it with Rebecca and shit?

REBECCA: Hey, I'm sorry I stunk up the toity yesterday.

JOSH: Oh, no problem. Made my eyes tear up, but, uh, I needed a good cry.

4) I fucking love when this show goes all meta!

5) And they did it again!!!

HEATHER: How long are you here for?

VALENCIA: For the rest of the series! …of holidays, I mean.

Is this going to be a thing in this episode? Because I love it!!

6) This scene was – in Heather’s words – THE BEST.

Okay, based on your face when you were looking at the guest list, my guesses are we're dealing with a frenemy, a nemesis or an ex. So it's an ex. Wait, no. But you dated Josh all through high school. So you cheated.  Oh, you really cared about this person. Oh, my God, you were in love. And nobody knows. Whoa. This is so juicy. Wait, wait, was it a girl? Oh, it was the first girl. Wait, is she here yet? Have you seen her? Oh, okay. So she's not here yet, but she's on the list. Okay, I am on it, I am gonna figure this all out.

I just love how well they know each other, and even though this is obviously exaggerated and played for laughs, it’s a quite accurate depiction of female friendship. When you really know your friends, it’s quite easy to read them and know what they’re thinking just by looking at their facial expressions.

7) So this is the episode, this is the episode where he gets back? Right? Btw, I nearly died when this happened…

REBECCA: Anyway, am I… I can't believe I'm saying this Am I meant to be with Nathaniel or Josh or both or neither?

VALENCIA: Neither.

HEATHER: Neither.

REBECCA: Right, of course. Because the idea of "meant to be" is a lie perpetuated by Western culture.

VALENCIA: No. You're meant to be with Greg.

HEATHER: Wait, you think that? I totally think that.

VALENCIA: Everyone thinks that.

Seriously, it made me feel so good inside and giddy to hear both of them validate how I FEEL. Yes, Rebecca is meant to be with Greg.

Now I’m getting nervous because I know he’ll show up soon. It is his high school reunion, after all. But “he” won’t be “he”anymore, and I’m not sure if the show will be able to pull off this switcharoo you know? Okay, I have to continue watching, don’t I?

8) I see what you’re doing, show…

REBECCA: Okay, look, the only way the only way… The only way Greg would ever be my "meant to be" is if we were in some sort of sci-fi weird parallel alternate universe where he was just a completely different person.

I swear to god, I just got chills when I heard his voice in the background. I’m not ready for this. I’ve been waiting two years for Greg to be back and yet this wasn’t what I was waiting for? What if I don’t like Greg anymore? I’m scared! Okay, I’m going to hit play again…

9) So here he is…

He does look Greg-ish, I must admit.

So, the idea is that this is how Greg has always looked to everyone but since Rebecca wasn’t mentally stable at the time they were together she saw him differently? Is that it? I mean, we always tend to see people differently after some time apart. And Rebecca has changed a lot since Greg last saw her, so that’s probably why she’s seeing him differently. Both of them have probably changed a lot.

10) OMG they did it again, the entire conversation!

GREG: No, I'm-I'm here on winter break. I'm actually back for the whole rest of the series… of holidays. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's and the finale…. Valentine's Day.

HECTOR: Valentine's Day. I guess that is the logical end of our series… of holidays.

11)

12) I love Heather so much…

13) Josh had a literally one good thing going on in his life right now – being prom king at his reunion – and it was all a lie!

14) Now, this was quite a revelation…

GREG: I got to confess, I've been back a few times.

REBECCA: You have?

GREG: Yeah, uh, I just thought it would be best if you and I didn't see each other.

REBECCA: So you were back in town and no one told me?

GREG: Well, I may have asked them not to. I did. Yeah, I did.

Question is… does he know about Rebecca and his dad? And everything that happened in the last two years?

15) The clean slate thing works considering he is literally a different person – at least physically, what he says sounds pretty Greg-ish to me – but it’s the easy way out for Rebecca… Sleeping with Greg’s dad is probably at the top of the worst things she’d done (and yes, I’m including pushing Trent off the balcony.)

16) OMG we’re getting a new Greg and Rebecca song, I can’t believe it.

Okay, show, I think you did it. You got Greg back and you didn’t piss me off in doing so. And of course the Greg and Rebecca song is amazing and it’s the first one this season that I actually love. I had to go back and watch it again.

I really didn’t believe they could pull this off, and I really don’t know how they did it, but it worked? Listening to these two sing to each other about their history together and seeing them reconnect… my heart was swelling with joy.

Also, I loved the fact that they made it clear Greg is still sober.

Is it weird that even though he’s clearly a different person, I do see Greg?

17) Man, I loved every Heather/Valencia scene in this episode! And damn, Valencia, that story is the thing great love stories are made of!

18) So… does Greg’s dad really have to talk to him about sleeping with Rebecca or was Greg trying to get Rebecca to fess up?

19) Yes, Rebecca, you make total sense…

I mean, he basically told her he didn’t feel for his ex-girlfriend the same way he’d felt for her, right? I wouldn’t want to fess up either...

20) WAIT, WHAT?!!!

HEATHER: What? It was Father Brah?

VALENCIA: Joseph. He never got the letter. My love letter was in his jacket in Hector's trunk for 12 years?!

OMFG this show just blew my mind!! He was going to marry Valencia and Josh, right? He was always giving Josh advice about his relationship with her? Is this why he decided to become a priest? WHAT IN THE HELL?!

21) I’m HEATHER, THIS IS HOW I FEEL WATCHING THIS EPISODE!!

22) A GEORGE SONG?!!! CAN THIS EPISODE GET ANY BETTER?!!!

Another catchy tune!! Love the Hollaback Girl homage! And I laughed so hard! “We learned to cry while you were popular!”

23) My shipping heart is killing me right now…

24) Oh, dang, indeed!

25) OH ME GERDS!!

Paula is going to freak out when she reads all those texts, isn’t she?

26) I SHIP THIS? A PRIEST AND A PARTY PLANNER?

What is this episode doing to me?

27) thIS FUCKING EPISODE, I SWEAR TO GOD!

Okay, it makes sense, Valencia is in a good relationship and she is very much in love with her girlfriend. And I’m sure Father Brah didn’t become a priest just because Valencia didn’t choose him. At least they got closure and knowing the truth about what happened definitely changes how they will look back on those memories.

28) OMG they were about to kiss and she told him!

I’m kind of sad she ruined the moment, but it had to be done. Good for you, Honest Rebecca, I’m proud!

29) Greg’s reaction was not what I had expected. He did freak out a little, but he was mostly surprised at how Rebecca came clean and owned up to probably the shittiest thing she could’ve done to him. He didn’t punch any walls (awwing at the reference!) And yes, Rebecca has changed, too. For the better. Old Rebecca? She would’ve lied and schemed and manipulated to prevent him from finding out until ultimately everything would’ve blown up in her face.

And I loved the fact that he’s the one to acknowledge they both have changed.

30) Paula’s ending scene!! I loved her reaction to all the texts from Rebecca as if she was seeing the situation unfold in front of her in real time. It was perfect!

31) This episode… is definitely my favorite episode this season! I just loved EVERYTHING about it? The Heather/Valencia/Father Brah B plot, Greg’s return, Hector’s obsession with the speech and the 2-hours lunch, Rebecca’s texts, the songs, the meta!

It was an amazing episode that reminded us why we love this show so much and why it is SO GOOD.

The writers knew the odds were against them in bringing back Greg with a different actor in the role, so they brought their A game and delivered a nearly perfect episode, one that I’m sure will be remembered as one of the best in the series.

And of course they had to amp up the meta jokes in this one - they were bringing back one of their main characters but played by a different actor, they had to make a meta-commentary about it. But I really enjoyed how organically they weaved the behind the scenes stuff into the storyline - they made the fact that they were recasting a character emotionally relevant for the characters.

I also love how all the storylines had a common thread and in a way reflected back to Rebecca’s storyline - Father Brah and Valencia missing their shot kind of echoes Greg and Rebecca’s story, although they might get a second chance now; Josh discovering this whole new side to the high school experience he’d never noticed before kind of mirrors Rebecca seeing Greg in a new light; Paula missing out on the events of the whole night and catching up in a few minutes probably mirrors Greg’s journey in this episode.

I was very hazy about the decision to cast a different actor to play Greg, but I also knew that if any show and any group of writers could pull it off, it was CEG. And God bless them, they did! I’m not saying I’m totally sold on New Greg yet, but I feel like I will. I feel like I will grow to love this Greg as well. And I think the fact that they were able to achieve that - the possibility of viewers falling in a love with a recast character - is a feat in itself.

This show is such a blessing, I swear! I can’t wait to rewatch this episode!

Sorry if I got a bit rambly and incoherent there, I just enjoyed this episode a lot!

32) Hope you enjoyed my recap, and, as usual, if you’ve got this far, thank you for reading! If you enjoy my recaps and my blog, please consider supporting it on ko-fi.Thanks!

[aion-rsa]

Buffy: The Animated Series – The Buffy the Vampire Slayer Spin-Off That Never Was

https://ift.tt/2GmmqL5

A demon driver’s ed teacher, a shrunken Buffy, and a pre-teen Dawn.

No, these aren’t Buffy Season 8 comic stories, but rather ideas for the much-discussed but never actually made Buffy: The Animated Series. In development hell since the days when Buffy the Vampire Slayer was still on the air, the show would have featured episodes written by faves like Jane Espenson, Steve DeKnight, Drew Greenberg and Doug Petrie, as well as creator Joss Whedon himself.

After the idea was conceived by Whedon and Jeff Loeb in 2001, a four-minute presentation (which you can now watch here) was written and drawn in 2004 with voice work completed by principle cast including Alyson Hannigan, Nicholas Brendan, and Anthony Head (but not Sarah Michelle Gellar, who turned down the chance to return). But by 2005, Whedon declared the show to be dead. So what happened? 

It wouldn’t have been a straight spin-off or sequel, but rather it would have taken place during the parent series’ first season – specifically after episode seven, Angel. This would presumably allow the show to take place at a time when the Scoobies know about Angel’s little vampirism problem, allowing him to be more than the creepy guy who brings Buffy missions. 

Another interesting wrinkle is that Dawn would be a character which, as those familiar with the original show know, didn’t become the case until season five. This retroactive insertion of Buffy’s kid sister (Dawn would have been just 11 or 12 during the first season) would certainly have been an interesting way of generating fresh stories and not being handcuffed to canon. 

But as we know, the idea never came to fruition, and it seems that it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Despite the initial plan for the show to air on Fox Kids, it was left homeless after the channel’s closure. From there, Whedon and Loeb had an uphill battle to sell it somewhere else. 

In 2003, Whedon told The Hollywood Reporter: “We just couldn’t find a home for [it]. We had a great animation director, great visuals, six or seven hilarious scripts from our own staff – and nobody wanted it. I was completely baffled. I felt like I was sitting there with bags of money and nobody would take them from me.”

Of course, the animated show wasn’t the only Buffyverse spin-off that was abandoned before it ever reached our screens. The most famous was Ripper, a Giles-centric show that would follow the character on ghostly adventures in England, and there was also a potential sequel series following the newly-awakened potential slayers, a much-hyped Faith-centric show from seasoned Angel writer Tim Minear, and even a movie about Spike (the script for which was eventually released as comic Spike: Into the Light). 

Like the Spike project, the animated series also found its way to the page in After These Messages… We’ll Be Right Back, which saw Buffy ponder how life might have been simpler when she was back in high school. In tribute to the bygone series, the pages were drawn in the same animation style.

It’s tempting to think that an animated show would be a cheaper option than some of the other spin-offs that were being pitched, but the aspiration was always for the series to be high-quality from top to bottom.

“It was a question of people either not wanting it or not being able to put up the money because it was not a cheap show,” Whedon said. “One thing I was very hard-line about was I didn’t want people to see it if it looked like crap. I wanted it to be on a level with Animaniacs or Batman: The Animated Series. And that’s a little pricier…But I just don’t think it’s worth doing unless it’s beautiful to look at as well as fun.”

Read more

TV

The 25 Best Buffy The Vampire Slayer Episodes

By Michael Mammano

Movies

Ben Affleck Remembers Disappointing Buffy the Vampire Slayer Performance

By Kirsten Howard

As various pitches for reboots and remakes have proven, many fans would be trepidatious about any show tied to this universe without the involvement of either Whedon or the original cast, but a ray of hope was offered during the 2017 anniversary reunion when the cast (this time including Gellar) entertained the idea of returning for voice work (thus bypassing the issue of real human ageing for actors portraying immortal characters). 

Even before this though, during a podcast released in 2008, Brendon said: “I know that there’s been talk about Buffy: The Animated Series. Which we did, gosh, like, three years ago. You know, to be quite honest with you, I don’t know why it didn’t go further, but I know that there’s been a lot of hullabaloo on the old YouTube there, and I checked it out and I almost got a little teary. 

“I hadn’t seen Xander in a while, and it was kind of neat to kind of go back into that life. I’ll go on the record saying I would love to do an animated series. That being said, I might be the only one. I haven’t had a chance to talk to anybody about it.”

The same year, Loeb echoed others’ sentiments by pointing out the growth in appetite for adult animation in the years since the series was first conceived.

“Everything still exists – the designs, the scripts. It’s such a ‘no-duh’ project, so why the hell not?” he said. “All you need is to draw it. Eight years ago, there was no fascination with Family Guy or Robot Chicken, but there’s an audience now that could drive to it. You can’t stand in the way of pop culture.”

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

With live-action productions facing increased hurdles with social distancing and other safety measures, we might soon see a boom in animated shows that have been made during the pandemic. What better time to revive a promising project that’s never been given its due? Providing the cast are on board, it could be a slam dunk at a time when viewers are hungrier than ever for nostalgia-adjacent content.

The post Buffy: The Animated Series – The Buffy the Vampire Slayer Spin-Off That Never Was appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[ramajmedia]

King Of The Hill: 10 Times The Show Broke Our Hearts | ScreenRant

King of the Hill isn't just a show made for Texans. It's for anyone who enjoys a mirthful, frank depiction of surburbic Texas. Fans know there's universal appeal to this series. The show lasted a whopping thirteen seasons, and every one offered insight into the blue-collared average joe. Something else people forget is the nuanced emotion. And with Arlen being set in the conservative South, there's the habit of biding or silencing one's feelings. The show captures this aspect perfectly.

RELATED: King Of The Kill: 10 Most Hilarious Hank Hill Quotes

So, in memoriam of every pang big or small, here are ten times King of the Hill broke our hearts.

10 Hank finally accepts Luanne

Luanne Platter's uncle Hank and her maternal aunt Peggy took her in when she had nowhere to go. Her mother was in prison, and her father was not in the picture. Peggy welcomed her niece with open arms, but Hank was more resistant. He always assumed Luanne would eventually leave, and he didn't see her as family for a long time. That changed in season 2's "Texas City Twister" when Hank basically sends Luanne back to the trailer park she escaped from. So while it takes the threat of a tornado to do it, Hank finally regards Luanne as family.

9 Bill and Peg's excellent adventures

The uncomfortable dynamic between Peggy and Hank's friend Bill continues in season 4's "Bill of Sales". Fans know Bill has been enamored with Hank's wife for a long time, and that's why he helps her with her new job. And Peggy needs all the help she can get because she's trapped in a pyramid scheme. The more Bill helps her, the more Peggy realizes he doesn't respond well to kindness or gratitude. She pretends to be cruel and bosses him around to the point where his feet bleed. This is a pitiful sight that makes one's heart wrench for Bill.

8 Taking care of Kahn, Jr.'s business

Hank watches over Kanh, Jr. as her parents Kanh and Minh go on a business trip in season 4's "Aisle 8A". All seems to be going well between Kahn, Jr. and Bobby until puberty kicks in for Miss Souphanousinphone.

RELATED: 10 Dark King of the Hill Theories That Change Everything

With Peggy not around, Hank handles the situation by himself despite how uncomfortable it makes him feel. He even takes her to the one aisle at the Mega Lo Mart he never thought he'd step foot in. Seeing Hank care for Kahn, Jr. at the best of his ability is the kind of slice of life story people can relate to.

7 The land of the Rising Son

The episode of the The Simpsons where they go to Japan is beloved, but King of the Hill's season 6 finale "Returning Japanese" is equally delightful. This two-parter entails the Hills visiting Japan with Hank's curmudgeonly father Cotton. Cotton was wounded in WWII, and his feet were reattached to his knees. So, Cotton's PTSD stems from his service in Japan. However, it's revealed that Cotton shares an estranged son named Junichiro with a woman he met over there. This also means Hank has a half-brother. These episodes are proof the show is good at plucking heartstrings without ever being maudlin.

6 Boomhauer or bust

Boomhauer has always been considered a ladies man. His near unintelligible, cluttered manner of speech and good looks make the women of Arlen swoon. Yet in season 6's "Dang Ol' Love", it's Boomhauer who catches feelings. He falls hard for a woman who has no interest in dating him. This causes him to spin in a way that audiences were not expecting. After all, Boomhauer was never developed to be more than a drinking buddy for Hank and the guys. Seeing the tables turn on Boomhauer shouldn't be so affecting, but it's like watching a teenager experience his first heartbreak.

5 Mommie dearest

In season 2's "Leanne's Saga", Luanne's mother and Peggy's sister-in-law is released from prison after stabbing her daughter's father with a fork. Leanne's claims to be sober now, and she's trying to patch things up with Luanne.

RELATED: 25 Twisted King Of The Hill Facts That Will Surprise Even Longtime Fans

Hank's excited over the fact that Luanne may finally move out of his house. It doesn't take long for Leanne to return to her old ways, though. She drunkenly ruins a party and attacks Peggy, who has been biting her tongue for Luanne's sake. No longer able to stay quiet, Peggy kicks Leanne to the curb and consoles her disappointed niece once again.

4 Father figure

Kahn Souphanousinphone gets in big trouble at work in season 3's "De-Kahnstructing Henry" and is fired. To save face as he searches for a new and better job, he ups and leaves Minh and Kahn, Jr. behind. This urges his neighbor Hank to step in and help them at every turn. From fixing things around their house to bringing them dinner, Hank becomes a surrogate father to Kahn Jr. and a shoulder to cry on for Minh. This situation is not ideal for Hank personally as there's too much emotion involved. Nevertheless, Hank proves to be a very good egg.

3 Breakdown alley

Bill is a troubled, lonely man whose wife Lenore left him years ago. And he never quite got over it. In season 3's "Pretty, Pretty Dresses", though, Bill really snaps. His deep-seated depression manifests in him dressing up in Lenore's clothes and pretending to be her.

RELATED: King Of The Hill: The 5 Best (& 5 Worst) Episodes

Hank is frustrated by his friend because he doesn't understand Bill has severe mental health issues that were never addressed or treated. It feels like Hank is being a jerk, but he really swoops in and saves Bill at the last second. He's able to give Bill something he was never afforded before — closure.

2 Father of mine

Up until season 3's "Peggy's Headache", Hank's wife had no idea Dale Gribble's son Joseph wasn't his biological child. It was a well-known secret among the gang that Dale's wife Nancy was having a long-term affair with her masseur John Redcorn. And Joseph is their son. Like Dale, Peggy was absolutely clueless about Joseph's paternity. It's when Hank forbids Peggy to stop seeing John Redcorn for massage therapy — legitimate massages, too — that she learns the truth. She wants to tell Dale, but she doesn't have the heart as she sees the secret would devastate him and his relationship with Joseph.

1 100% Cotton

King of the Hill did something most other animated sitcoms cannot bring themselves to do — it killed off an important character. In season 12's "Death Picks Cotton", Hank's rude, misogynistic father Cotton becomes gravely ill following an accident. Hank refuses to accept that his father is dying, and Cotton's deathbed behavior isn't making the inevitable farewell any easier. Hank tries to say goodbye to Cotton, but the WWII veteran mocks him for acting weak. Peggy steps in and sends Cotton off in a manner he deserves. In addition, she lies to Hank and said Cotton finally admitted he loved him.

NEXT: 10 Best Raunchy Animated Series (According To IMDb)

source https://screenrant.com/king-of-the-hill-saddest-moments/

[sinsiriuslyemo]

Good morning everyone!! Welcome to another episode of Cuba v DR!! So guys, little something I’d like to share about marriage. Marriage is hard work, it’s not always a picnic, and yes sometimes  there need to be difficult conversations among spouses, but that doesn’t always deter from the love and commitment that they made to one another :) With any luck, Nevada and Dama will emerge from this rough patch a stronger, more solid couple!

Meanwhile, Rafael may be catching a break with his case! Will he get closure for Leila and Michele?

On another note, I am so very deeply sorry that I have slacked so completely with translations. I will try my hardest to update that post as soon as possible, and also create a master list for the season. Thank you guys for your patience!

Stay tuned for another episode from @missjennifercole later today! And thank you so so much for all the comments, reblogs, likes, and asks!!

EPISODE 25

Rafael walked towards the courthouse, confidence radiating from his being as always. It was eleven thirty, and he still hadn’t heard a peep from Buchanan, but he’d called early that morning anyhow to explain to the judge that they may have had a deal in place. Luckily, his honor had agreed to postpone the jury selection until noon. Still, Rafael hoped that Cory would simply do the right thing, and accept the plea.

“Counselor, what’s the verdict?” Rafael asked just as Buchanan came around the corner.

“We'll take the plea,” he said with a sigh. “I talked to him and told him that it was his best option.”

“Good to hear he’s willing to do the right thing,” Rafael replied as he followed the defense attorney into the courtroom. Liv and Carisi were already there with Leila and her two roommates, as well as Michele’s family.

Rafael turned in his seat to look at them.

“He took the deal,” he whispered. “He’s going to confess, and then this is over,” he assured them.

Cory stood in front of the court eyes focused on Leila. Making her trembling in fear.

Jaycee growled, “I will slit his throat,” she hissed.

“He’s not gonna try anything here, you’re safe,” Liv offered quietly as Buchanan whispered in Cory’s ear until the young prodigy turned his gaze forward again.

The bailiff came into the courtroom.

“All rise, the honorable Judge Hatley presiding.”

“Be seated. This is a hearing for jury selection, but am I to understand that we may have a plea?” the judge asked, sitting in his towering seat behind the bench.

“We do, your honor. The people are dropping the rape charges against Mr. Johnson, and he has agreed to plead guilty to the charge of murder in the first degree with special amendments as well aggravated assault in the third degree. He has also agreed to allocute in open court, on record,” Rafael replied, standing to address the judge.

“Very well. Young man, I will hear your confession,” the judge said, looking to Cory.

Cory stood up and nodded, “Your honor, I would like to issue a formal apology to the family of my beloved Michelle, and also to Leila.” He turned and looked at them, “Michelle was so smart and beautiful and talented, she was taken too soon. I'm sorry for that. And Leila, my love, I want to say I'm sorry for so many things. The way I held you down underwater to see if you'd die before I came, the way I made you crawl on your hands and knees-”

The judge slammed his gavel down on the bench, stopping Cory mid sentence.

“Young man, I will not have that talk in my courtroom. You will confess, in detail, to your crimes and nothing else, or I will vacate the plea deal, and you will go to trial! This is not a eulogy” he barked, glaring at Cory.

Cory nodded, “Yes your honor, I confess to the murder of Michelle, my ex girlfriend. I threw her off the balcony. I confess to the assault of my former girlfriend Leila as well, I'd go into detail, but I'm not sure how much I'm permitted to say,” he said pointedly.

“You will detail your crimes, from beginning to end. This is your last chance. Confess or have the rape charges tacked right back on, and go to trial. My patience is wearing thin,” the judge growled firmly.

“I called Michelle, told her that we needed to talk, it was all a mistake. When I went over to her place, we fought for about an hour, we went out onto the balcony, I punched her, and then I tossed her over the balcony, she screamed the whole way down.” He detailed the events as though he were describing the weather.

The judge just looked at him expectantly, clearly regretting even giving him a second chance, let alone a third.

“And you did so to prevent her from testifying?” the judges asked, still irritated.

“Yes, I did.”

Again the judge waited for him to continue confessing to his crimes.

Cory took a deep breath as he started to explain in detail how he met, assaulted and tormented Leila. The girl's sobs could be heard throughout the courtroom, half in sadness, half in relief.

“The people are satisfied that the terms of the plea have met,” Rafael said solemnly. Judge Hatley nodded with a frown of his own.

“Cory Johnson, you have changed your plea from not guilty, to guilty. You clearly have no regard for life, and would no doubt kill again if allowed to rejoin society. In order to be certain that you will never take or destroy an innocent life again, I sentence you to the following; On the charges of aggravated assault, ten years with a five year minimum. On the charge of murder in the first degree with special amendments, I sentence you to the maximum. Life, without the possibility of parole. It is the hope of this court that defendant will never again be free. This court would also like to extend its condolences to the victim’s family, as well as your second victim, Leila Hyde.”

He thought for a moment, closing the case file in front of him.

“In addition to your sentence, I order you to pay restitution to both the victim’s in this case, the amount of which to not exceed fifty million dollars over the period of twenty five years. Court is adjourned.”

As the bailiff took Cory out of the room, he winked at Leila making her cry harder.

“Thank you, Mr. Barba,” Michele’s father said through grateful tears. Rafael nodded and shook the man’s hand, then did the same to Mrs. Yarborough. Turning in place, he put a gentle hand on Leila’s shoulder as Olivia held her up supportively.

“It’s over, Leila,” he said softly. “He can’t hurt you or anyone else ever again,” he added comfortingly.

She threw her arms around him and sobbed, hugging him tight. Liv kept a hand on her back as Rafael returned her hug, pulling away after a moment and giving her a gentle smile.

“You’re going to get through this,” he said softly. “You’re strong. You already took the first step towards getting your life back and putting this behind you,” he added.

She cried as Jaycee and Hannah hugged her close. He was right this was a big first step in the right direction.

When Nevada came home you were on your laptop, while the babies slept upstairs. “Hey, Lily's been bugging me about getting a pet, can we get fish?”

“Yeah, that’s fine. What kind of fish are you thinking? Goldfish? Beta fish? Salt water tank? Fresh water?” he replied, shedding his jacket and hanging it on the hook beside the door.

“What about like… a tiny shark?”

“Epaulette shark or Catshark?” he asked with a smirk.

You nod and smiled, “I was thinking we could do something like that…a cat shark?”

He nodded slowly, coming to sit beside you, looking at the screen of your laptop.

“We gotta figure out where to put the tank,” he mused. “A fish like that needs at least 180 gallon tank...I’d feel better with a 220, personally pero 180 should do fine. We’ll need a protein skimmer, and we won't be able to put too much in the tank so the shark has plenty of room to swim. Sharks aren’t really the best for first pets, they need a lot of care. You think she’s ready for that?” he asked softly.

“I think I'm gonna be doing 90% of the caring, but I'll let her feed it and talk to it. I was thinking once Eddie goes to college, we could turn his room into an aquarium?”

“The whole room?” he asked, brows shooting up on his forehead. “That’s gonna take some construction. Pero we can put the shark’s tank out here for now...see how it goes with one to start out,” he answered.

You nodded with a smile and closed your laptop. “How was your day?”

“Good, we’ll be ready to make our first move soon. Blackwood wants to tread lightly...I’ve been trying to tell him, too much planning could end up fucking us,” he replied. “What about you? Your day go okay?”

You nodded, listening intently. “Sounds like he's cautious, I can appreciate that,” you smiled softly. “I spent most of the day cleaning, doing laundry and watching the little monsters,” you smiled fondly.

“I’m cautious,” he argued half-heartedly, smirking at you.

You grinned, “True. This morning I went shopping with Amber for wedding dresses.”

“Jesus, that’s still happening?” he asked, laughing a little when you playfully swatted his chest.

“Be nice, she loves him,” you answered.

You stood up, taking his hand and pulling him up too. You wrapped your arms around his neck and looked up at him. “Do you wanna hear a secret?” you whispered.

He arched a brow, still smirking. “Okay,” he mumbled softly, leaning his ear towards your mouth.

“I made your favorite for dinner and a very special treat for dessert.”

He snorted softly, pulling back to look down at you.

“Flan?” he asked.

“No, but it is something sweet. You have to eat your dinner to find out.”

He swallowed softly, sighing as he nodded his head.

“Okay,” he answered.

You smiled and looked at his face, “It's an actual dessert,” you reassured.

“I didn’t say anything,” he replied, brows shooting up above his eyes, corner of his mouth quirked up. “Bueno, vamos...I’m hungry...feed me, woman,” he teased.

You giggled and took his hand, setting him at the table and pouring him two fingers of scotch with his meal, setting it in front of him, hot and ready to go.

“Smells good,” he mused, waiting for you to sit with your own plate of food.

You smiled and grabbed your food, sitting across the table. “Thank you, I slaved over a hot stove all day,” you teased.

“Coño, the little woman of the house, que lìnda,” he answered playfully. “Oye, don’t forget, we’re eating with the Blackwoods tomorrow,” he reminded you.

He had to admit, it felt nice to have some of the pressure of fixing the marriage off his shoulders. He just hoped it would stay this easy, he was confident that if the two of you just focused on having fun together, things would fall back into place on their own.

“Right, Blackwoods. I'll see if my sister wants to babysit.” You smiled at the word sister. It had started to feel almost normal. You took a bite of the food and grinned. “Nailed it,” you high fived yourself in triumph. He snorted, nodding his head softly in agreement.

“Come libro,” he said, laughing a little.

You rolled your eyes and grinned, “Hush and eat the food I made. Cause it's awesome.”

“I’m kidding, it’s good. It’s really good, he replied softly. “Thanks for making it for me.”

You nodded and smiled back, “I wanted you to know that I really appreciate how hard you work to provide for us.”

He smirked at you, arching a brow. “Oye, chica, I already said yes to the pet shark,” he said, playfully. “What are you buttering me up for, hm?” he added, still smirking.

You just smiled at him. “Nothing,” you said seriously. “I just wanted to do something nice for you.”

He smiled back, nodding his head as he continued to eat the dinner you’d cooked.

“Gracias,” he said softly.

“De nada,” you smiled and sipped your water as you stood when he was finished with his meal. You came back from the fridge with a bowl of diced peaches. Praying he'd take the joke as a joke and not a weird sexual advance.

His brows shot up on his forehead, staring down at the bowl and he burst out laughing, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head.

“Wow, peaches!” he exclaimed sarcastically.

“You know, someone told me once that peaches were your favorite,” you teased. “Tah-dah!”

“Jesus Christ,” he said in a deep chuckle. “Well, I wasn’t expecting it, pero thank you.” He took a piece between two fingers and popped it into his mouth. “They’re good but...I used to know this woman who had the best peaches I ever tasted,” he added playfully, eating another couple of pieces.

Your cheeks flushed bright red. “Must have been a special lady,” you pulled a chair beside him and grabbed a peach, popping it into your mouth.

He nodded his answer, eyes focused on the bowl of fruit the two of you were sharing.

“She is,” he said softly. You ate the rest of the bowl in a comfortable silence and he yawned. “Fuck, I think I might go into a food coma,” he said, stretching and rubbing his stomach. “That was really good, thank you.”

You giggled, “You're welcome, go head to bed.” You stood and started clearing the dishes. He sat looking at you for a moment before he got up and slowly came up behind you, arms circling your waist.

Dipping his head, he planted a kiss on your neck, then another, a little higher towards your ear.

“Goodnight, Dama,” he whispered against the shell of your ear, stepping away and moving towards the downstairs bedroom.

You closed your eyes, whole body trembling at not only his use of your nickname, but also at the affection in each kiss. You finished the dishes in a rush and headed to bed yourself, leaving another note on his jacket, a new decided tradition.

There's nothing wrong with cautious, but I know you'll make the right choice. I love you, always.

-Y/N

“He took the deal,” Rafael said with a smile when Roxie answered the phone.

“Rafael that's incredible! I knew you would do it! That's my superman!” She praised him in a voice that was so pure and genuine, filled with more pride than Rafael had ever heard for him in his life.

His smile grew and he felt his chest swell a little with pride and in that moment, he would’ve given just about anything to see her, to be able to reach out and hug her.

“Thank you,” he said sincerely. “So what did you do today, young lady?” he asked playfully, laying back against the headboard of his bed.

She grinned widely, “I'm cuddled in bed. I'm officially taking the day off to work on business stuff for the second bakery. My investors want my business plan by next week.” She sighed with a gentle smile.

“Wow, sounds like things are moving pretty fast,” he mused softly. “Have you thought about where in Maine you’d like to build it?” he asked.

“I actually wanted to ask what you thought, since you’re an American. I thought you might have some insight as to where would be the best location.”

“Alright, which cities have you been looking at?” he asked.

“Portland, Limestone, Pittsfield, and Bar Harbor,” she answered.

“Okay, Pittsfield has the lowest crime rate, you know I’ll like that. It’s a small town but still not that far from bigger towns. They have a great boarding school there, and some kind of annual Egg Festival,” he answered. “Limestone is even smaller of a town, only about 2300 people, affordable housing. Portland has bakeries all over the town. I would say your best bet is Pittsfield or Bar Harbor. It’s a big coastline city, lots of nightlife, good shopping town, and it’s on the map already.”

“Hmmm, alright, I'm gonna do some looking into Pittsfield then,” she replied and smiled. “What suit were you wearing when you took the wanker down? I want to picture it.” She closed her eyes, waiting for the imagery.

He couldn’t help the almost bashful grin that spread over his face as he bowed his head a bit.

“Um, it was the charcoal jacket, vest and pants, and the neon blue tie,” he answered. “And the matching lapel,” he added.

She gasped, “That handsome in court? I object!”

“I like to look appealing, help with the confidence,” he answered. “I also had neon blue suspenders on, but you couldn’t see them because of the vest.”

She playfully moaned, “Oh the suspenders get me every time! I bet you were a knockout, in more ways than one,” she smiled into the phone. “I knew you'd get this guy, Superman.”

“I was just doing what any good prosecutor would do. Now at least Michele can rest in peace, Leila can start piecing her own life back together. I never did have that talk with her, by the way. This whole...Cory Johnson happened before I could and...I don’t know that I can have that conversation for a while. She’s been through so much, to add on top of that just seems wrong,” he said in a sigh, pinching the top of his nose and screwing his eyes shut for a moment.

“Just be there for her as a friend right now, be honest. If I were her, I'd much rather hear that information early on.” She twirled a lock of hair between her fingers and closed her eyes, “Relax right now,” she cooed. “You're not at work, you're not with them. You're with me, in Key West, soaking up the sun and watching me in a bikini.”

He closed his eyes, sighing contently as he mentally put himself on a sailboat in Key West, furrowing his brows after a moment.

“Wait a minute, why am I watching you? What exactly are you doing?” he asked with a chuckle. “Water skiing? Wakeboarding? Oh God, you’re not being attacked by a shark, are you?”

“You're watching me because my skin is damp from the ocean, my black string bikini hugs my curves just right and I'm walking out of the ocean over to you. You're on a blanket on the sand, because that's what lawyers do. Although if I went with the lawyer is a shark stereotype, I'd say that you should be the one in the water.”

“Why a blanket and not a towel?” he asked playfully. “Also, in my mind we were on a sailboat, but that’s neither here nor there. We can be on a beach if you’d like. Can there be umbrella drinks?”

“Yes, you can have an umbrella drink and I'll drink a screwdriver with an umbrella put in so we're matching.” She smiled. “Oh, I suppose you call them towels over there. Alright, you're on a towel.” She giggled. “You're in those sexy neon shorts I saw you in at the EDM party,” she teased.

He made a face. “Dear God, those trunks were atrocious,” he replied in a chuckle. “Do I at least have a nice tan?”

“You're like a movie star, golden skin and a wide smile because you’re on holiday and we're together for the first time in a year.”

“Hm...I guessed honeymoon. We’ll see each other again before a year will have passed, won’t we?” he asked hopefully.

“Definitely, I have to come down to the states soon to view some things in Maine, so I'll drop by Manhattan if you promise to take me somewhere amazing.”

“I was invited to the Mayor’s Ball this coming weekend. I don’t suppose you’ll be here Saturday,” he teased. “The opera. I want to take you see the opera,” he added softly.

“I was planning to come down the week after that but…” she smiled. “How could I possibly leave you alone for the Mayor’s ball?”

“You’d do that for me?” he asked, smiling a little. He’d been half kidding about asking her to visit on such short notice, but he couldn't help the warmth that came over his heart upon hearing that she would move up her trip just to see him.

“You flew to another country because I was sick,” she whispered fondly. “I'd do just about anything for you.”

“You were in the hospital, I wanted to be sure you were okay,” he answered, smiling softly. “I’d do it again with absolutely no hesitation,” he added. “You should stay here with Izzy and I, save yourself a hotel bill while you’re in Manhattan. You can have my bed, and I’ll just take the couch.”

She smiled, “Oh I couldn't impose like that, you're awfully sweet to offer though,” she sighed. “I couldn't kick you out of your bed.”

“You’re not imposing, and you’re not kicking me out my bed, I’m kicking me out of my bed,” he answered, smiling when she giggled. “Please?”

“Fine,” she whispered into the phone. “But if you're just offering the bed so you can smell the pillows, it's gonna put a real damper on this marriage.”

He chuckled a little. “Damn, and here I thought you’d be none the wiser,” he replied, playing along.

“I have to go,” she whispered softly as she closed her eyes. “Goodnight superman.”

“Goodnight,” he answered, smiling and waiting until he heard a click when she’d hung up before he plugged in his phone to charge overnight and turned out the lamp on his bedside table.

[furederiko]

We'll be heralding the arrival of the Space Rebellions tomorrow morning. But before we do that, here's a quick review of Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger as whole...

Yeah, this was supposed to go up not long after the final episode's weekly review, but well... I got a little sidetracked by my health *sigh*. It's basically under the weather (which has been unexplainably REALLY cold recently), that's why it took me a while to finish one. Don't worry though, because this post will be brief. Okay it's not.... Ahahaha. XD

Let's just get one thing out of the way: Zyuohger is just another good example, of the flaws of a long running show. The downside of having a whole-year worth of air time. The need to explore stories in around 50 episodes is indeed a challenge on its own. And frankly, I don't think the writers of this show succeeded in their task. There were great stories that focused on wonderful morale messages, but there were also episodes that felt like merely repeating the annual tropes, and even went below average standards. To put it simple, it's an uneven show. The beginning of the episode wasn't as memorable and a little on-the-nose. Which was the reason why I only gave it a 7,2. That's a stark difference to the 8,4 score of the finale. But the contrast also proved something! The show gradually built itself to become something interesting. Offering a vast amount of potentials, especially due to the cultural, and racial differences of its members. The main reason why I've decided to continue watching, despite my initial reluctance.

It's quite unfortunate, that this positive progression began to falter again halfway through. I believe this show lost its momentum when the writers decided to axe Bunglay, who was easily the most interesting and challenging antagonist the show had. If it's up to me, I think this character should've stayed to the end. I've said that I appreciate the surprise they wrote to Dethgaliens Master Genis in the end, but in many ways, Bunglay was indeed a much worthy and better 'scumbag' than Genis to be called a final boss. His obsession to Yamato Kazakiri would've worked better to explore our Red's damaged relationship with his father. Not to mention, his quest for Cube Whale, could've been linked nicely to the reveal of Immortal Azald. Instead, the show ditched him, and went even south when they gave Kubar a demise that was too early and underwhelming. Yes, the cunning and treachearous antagonist who initially rose up to be an excellent replacement to Bunglay. A villain that hid his own agenda, and never hesitated to use sleazy tricks to meet his goal, wo went off in a very unceremonious way. Thus all the build-ups, those numerous episodes spent to explore him, suddenly became pointless. No matter how praiseworthy her devotion for Genis, Naria suffered from weak writing as well. She's a character who showed promise, the potential to be deliver the 'surprise' that audience needed. But the show just treated her poorly and made her a one dimensional blank character instead. As for why Genis failed as a strong big boss? That's due to the show's habit to tell, and not show. Many times we only heard how scary Genis was, particularly from the Team Players. But it wasn't until the finale that we saw first hand how evil he could be. Something that should've been done much early on, and even better, throughout the whole run. Yeah, I get that everything was meant to lead to that big surprise in the end. But at least, audience needed actual proof that he's a sinister being instead of the overly optimistic boss depicted all the time.

The core storyline about connection between people, particularly those who are different, was admirable. It touched upon issues of discrimination, equality, and many sensitive ones that resonated strongly to the real life current condition of the world. I also appreciated how pieces of the puzzle that were seeded from very early on, became connected, and (mostly) paid off in the third arc. Problem is, even if it's a strong and delicate one, this main plot was considerably thin. And worse, the show loved to drag audience from one plot point to another, without utilizing it to explore minor subplots. The result? The Zyumans practically didn't have any significant character developments. At least, not that I could remember. This mirrored the similar negative trait of "Shuriken Sentai Ninninger", because the writings never fully explored these character's potentials. Which was too bad, since each one of them were completely different races that easily shouted 'blank canvas'. Each species could've played out more distinctly with one another, and that weren't even touched. In general, their presence felt like nothing but supporting characters for Yamato, because from start to finish, they remained who they were. And speaking of Yamato, while he did have one, it was somewhat rushed as the show's approaching the end game. A fact that annoyed me, because of how ill-timed it was. The only one who had clear character growth, was none other than Misao Mondo. This additional character grew from an awkward and meek guy, to a more confident, mature, and stronger in the end. Even moreso than Yamato, and he's not even the core cast!

This was quite disappointing, because if there's one thing that the season definitely shine, it's in the cast. Eventhough they were NOT perfect, everyone's easily likeable. Despite his 'blandness', Yamato was one of the better Reds we have in the recent years. Sure, many people were calling him the 'Jesus of the Group'. But when compared to the lousy and gratingly annoying Takaharu of previous season, the mature and nurturing Yamato obviously came on top. The other members in Ninninger were better than its Red, but I'd gladly choose the other Zyuohgers in their place. Amu was a character with the strongest and most interesting personality. Her presence was important because she's crucial to drive Yamato's plot. With that reason, I think she was the best character we got in the show. Even when he seemed standoff-ish, Tusk was the likeable smart one. His story with Misao was a great touch, and a pairing I didn't expect would be a gem. Sela was the tough girl of the group, but she's also the one who was sensitive and caring. If there's one member that I found to be annoying, it's Leo. But even I have to admit that he used to be my favorite character early on. Right until the writers dumped some bad traits on him. Seriously, he morphed from super fun, to super annoying, so it was nice that he got a little redemption near the end. These characters were not only easy on the eyes, they were fun to be with. That includes Yamato's uncle Mario Mori, Bard who became the seventh member albeit too briefly, and also the wise gorilla zyuman Larry. All three who were severely underused. My point is, what a waste of potentials indeed.

In general, it became obvious and clear that the show just didn't reach nor exercise its full potential. This somehow felt like a deliberate decision from the writers too, as many of the episodes felt more like... intended fillers. It's a good proof that the number of episodes was simply too long for the core plot. I honestly can't help but wonder, if this show would've been much stronger as a 25 episodes series? I mean, this flaw was even more apparent during the third arc. Aside from Yamato, whose substory came out way too late, the show suddenly pushed aside other character's development and focused more on action, and became a by-the-number trope showcase. If it's up to me, the whole plot from episode 1-48 that involved Genis would've been concised into the first half, while the second half would fully focus on repairing the rift between Earth and Zyuland. Dealing with discrimination and injustice that's happening in both world, while introducing a whole new enemy. A stronger and more powerful threat that threatened both worlds!

Of course, that doesn't mean that I dislike the ending that we got. I wouldn't give it a high score if I do, right? Yes, I know I did whine a lot during the final 5 episodes. But I don't regret that, because it made me appreciate the ending even more. Albeit somehow feeling like a cheat, it was still a brilliant conclusion. It caught me off guard, because I was completely ready to see a 'bad ending'. What kind? One that ended with goodbyes. Where the show's dream to create a unity between Earth and Zyuland, remained just the way it was. A dream. That the 'happy' ending would still be miles away from happening, since our heroes never actually accomplished this goal. Thankfully, we all know that's not the case, as we get a truly sweet, joyful, and satisfying closure instead. In fact, I personally think that the epilogue accomplished much more than what the entire 3rd arc offered! For real.

In the end, despite leaning to 'good', my response to Zyuohger is mixed at best. There's a massive potential and promise the show could've explored, but opted not to. The show is plagued by occasional weak writing, weird decisions, and more importantly, bad timings. There's a shadow of a much better and stronger show that could've been, but in the end, that's not the case. Not saying that it's a bad season, because many times it was plain fun and entertaining. Particularly that 2-episodes crossover with "Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger" that helped established both teams to exist in the same continuity. Zyuohger just didn't feel as 'complete' as it could've been, unlike several previous seasons that managed to successfully nailed their story elements with wonders. Interestingly, at the same time, thanks to being somewhat underdeveloped, I certainly want to see these guys again. You know why? Because the way the show ended just opened up an entire possibility for a whole new season! Where humans and zyumans struggle to coexist in the same universe. One which unfortunately, we won't be seeing. At least not until these character 'return'...

Yep, of course we haven't seen the last of this team. Customary to their tradition, TOEI has already announced a special V-Cinema that will be released on June 28. Jugding from the official plot of "Kaettekita Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger O-inochi Choudai! Chikyuu Ouja Ketteisen", I'm crossing my fingers that this IS the continuity I want to see. The show wasted the chance to explore the barriers between different races, and moreso, skipped the actual daily lives of the four Zyuman Zyuohgers in Zyuland with their family. So I hope this special sequel will deal with that unused plot. It won't be their Swan Song though. Some, if not all members would undoubtedly participate in the upcoming "Kamen Rider x Super Sentai: Chou Super Hero Taisen" movie. And just like last month, they most definitely will have a crossover movie too early next year. That Versus movie will be their final official (as in, not in guest-star capacity) foray in the Super Sentai franchise. And it might be an interesting one, since the next season takes place in a distant future. That's like, a completely different world and timeline, right? Here's hoping that means we'll be getting bigger and better adventures for the Zyuohgers soon!

Overall Score: 7,84 out of 10 NOTE: Overall score was accumulated from my Weekly Review scores. You can view a graph of those reviews to find out which episodes were the highlights and also the series lows.

[swipestream]

SUPERVERSIVE: Even “Death Note” Needs a Hero

So I wasn’t going to do another post on “Death Note” – and I can promise you this will be the final one – but I decided on this topic because I realized that the flaws actually had a lot to do with the superversive philosophy. So I think this will be instructive even for people who aren’t necessarily fans of the franchise.

“Death Note” is basically two different animes with one title (as usual, this is my catch-all for both the anime and the manga, though in this case there are actually some instructive differences). The first half is an absolute masterpiece of concept, characterization, and (particularly) plotting, with multiple iconic moments and a level of consistent suspense that would make Alfred Hitchcock turn green with envy.

The second half is…meh.

I am sure fans of the franchise know where I’m going with this, and it’s really impossible to avoid spoilers if I’m going to discuss it. If you haven’t seen the show yet, do so before you read ahead.

…

…

Ready?

All right, let’s do this.

The death of L was the end of the franchise’s golden run. What happened is actually fairly common, and I’ve seen it before. The franchise decided it was going to go with a totally unexpected, game-changing move in order ratchet up the suspense and surprise people. “Sherlock” did the same thing in “The Reichenbach Fall”, and “Justified” did the same thing in the season 4 finale, “Ghosts”.

In all three cases, the actual episode was brilliant; for all of “Sherlock’s” flaws “The Reichenbach Fall” is the best episode of television I’ve ever seen. Yet in all three cases, there was a problem: the writers had no idea where to go from there. (“Breaking Bad” actually made this sort of thing its stock in trade; one of the main selling points of the show is that the writers would pull these sorts of massive game-changers constantly and follow the consequences to their logical and often brutal conclusions.)

In “Justified’s” case, they frantically tried to ratchet things back to the status quo, resulting in a mostly entertaining but sloppy season 5, and the show never fully righted itself until season 6. “Sherlock” did the same thing (twice, in fact), and even more sloppily; unlike “Justified” it never fully recovered despite a couple of good outlier episodes stuck between some real disasters.

“Death Note” is an interesting case. While it did accept and work with its new status quo, this caused a different problem: The new status quo simply wasn’t as interesting as the old one.

The problem with killing off L is that L was the hero. The writers put a hell of a lot of work and thought into L. After the Lind L. Taylor scene, we’re already impressed with him (Light’s “This could have been interesting if you were just a little smarter” is a great line). We watch as Light alters his actions in an attempt to throw L off his trail, and how L figures things out and reacts accordingly. We meet him, see his habits, his personality, the way he moves and thinks and eats. We see him take enormous risks and watch as he very carefully and slowly, but inexorably, tightens his net around Kira.

And we watch him die. We watch him lose.

This was a great episode…and this was where Death Note lost people. Because it lead to a lot of problems.

You see, everyone wanted L to win. And when L dies, we cut to…4 years later.

4 years later? So it was all for nothing? His work went nowhere?

And then we’re introduced to Near and Mello, or as I like to call them, punchable L and crazy L.

Near is left, Light is center, Mello is right

Near and Mello are introduced to us as L’s successors, but everything about them falls flat. Near is – and I don’t know how else to put this – just a terrible character. He looks and acts like L, except that he doesn’t do anything. L was active, he took risks, he threw himself directly into an epic mental battle with Kira. L put absolutely everything on the line. Near just sits there and works out stuff through a computer, then acts all cocky about it. He’s like L if L was lame.

Mello is actually, in his own way, an interesting character, but the way he’s used is just terrible. He’s supposed to be the “active” side of L in contrast to Near’s “intellectual” side, but the writers use him as a plot device who occasionally shows up, wreaks havoc, then completely disappears for long stretches of time. What is he doing? How is he running his own investigation? We don’t know and don’t get any explanations for silly things like him getting access to an actual missile. And he’d be a somewhat sympathetic antihero (though not nearly enough to make up for L’s death) if we didn’t see him straight up murder almost the entirety of Near’s task force for no reason other than spite.

The idea the creators had was to make Near and Mello the two different halves of L – Near being the intellectual half and Mello being the half that moves and take action. But this leads to two other problems.

First, splitting L into two halves does nothing but create two distinctly unlikable characters. If L doesn’t make moves and take risks, we don’t respect him, thus Near. And if L is a maniac who acts impulsively and murders people out of spite we don’t like him, thus Mello. You’re sacrificing one great character for two weak ones.

Second, if you’re going to use two “halves” of L solve the mystery anyway…why did you kill off L at all? Why not just use L?

The obvious answer to “How could you have L win the game without making it appear too easy?” is a simple but effective one: L wins, but sacrifices his life to do so. Thus the victory is accomplished with the proper sacrifice. The second Death Note Japanese movie actually accomplishes this in a suitably clever way, and I’d say – hesitatingly – that if it was extended a bit it would probably be superior to the way the anime/manga ended.

There is even a way Near and Mello could have worked. Flash forwarding to four years later was a mistake. It cements the fact that L lost, and again, people need a hero to root for or “Death Note” becomes unpalatable, coasting along solely on the fact that we want the maniac Light to die. And there’s really no way to go through a new investigation without rehashing things we already went through in the first half of the anime. The only way to avoid that is for the plot to become increasingly outlandish and ridiculous. The first half of the anime is expertly plotted. It has nearly no exploitable holes, and any that you can find are so subtle that the odds you’ll even notice them the first time around are extremely low. The second half is so woolly I’m still not entirely convinced the ending even make sense.

For Near and Mello to work, they need to be an extension of L. Once again – L can’t lose. This is very different from saying L can’t DIE. L can definitely die, so long as HIS plan and HIS work leads to Kira’s ultimate defeat. So here’s an idea:

One of my only issues with the first half of the anime is the reaction of the anti-Kira task force following L’s death. L dies IMMEDIATELY after saying he believes the 13 day rule – the rule that if a Death Note is not used for 13 days, the owner will die – is fake. And the shinigami Rem disappears directly after L’s death. So why does the task force not investigate this idea further?

The answer I THINK the anime is trying to get you to buy is that they are starting to believe that L is fixated on Light – that he has been proven conclusively innocent but L refuses to let the idea go. This is the tragedy of L – he KNOWS Light is Kira, but nobody believes him, so it’s clear in the final episode that he knows he’s living on borrowed time: Kira has no reason to keep him alive anymore. He’s been completely cleared. Hence L’s impatience when he realizes he’s hit upon the crucial clue that will unravel the whole thing but the task force is unwilling to test it.

So what if we see L secretly contact Near and Mello before his death, tell them he’s going to die soon, but that the 13 day rule is fake? Then immediately after L’s death we don’t flash forward to four years later but instead see Near and Mello DIRECTLY advancing L’s work, and it is L’s final deductions, and his secret hand-off to Near and Mello, unbeknownst to Light, that ultimately leads to Light’s downfall. If we do this it allows us to more properly accept Near and Mello as true successors and to see L as the ultimate winner of the game, providing the necessary closure to his story – because ending it with his death and the unraveling of all his work is the opposite of closure. It’s moving back to square one. We can hit home even more L’s current involvement in the story if we see Near and Mello having “conversations” with their image of L inside of their head, which allows us to see L’s continued impact even more clearly.

This is speculation, of course, though I think it could work; I’d imagine it would be more simple just to end the whole thing with the end of L’s story.

So that’s my diagnosis: For “Death Note” to work you need a hero, a man to root for, because without that the story is no longer satisfying to watch. If you don’t care about any of the people Light is facing off against, why do you care if Light wins? “Death Note” managed to coast along to its finale on the strength of the promise of Light’s downfall, and even then only barely.

One last thing: I will note that the final two episodes, where L and Near finally have their stand-off, are immensely satisfying, though I must admit to strongly preferring the ending of the manga to the anime. Light doesn’t deserve dignity in death; he deserves to beg. But both versions work fairly well.

To close out my “Death Note” series, I leave you with this surprisingly awesome song from the surprisingly awesome “Death Note” musical; skip to a 1:25 to see the real fun start.

SUPERVERSIVE: Even “Death Note” Needs a Hero published first on http://ift.tt/2zdiasi

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10 Useful Steps To Move On From A Relationship

1. Clear your baggage. Acknowledge, accept and let go of your feelings.With every broken relationship comes baggage. The (a) longer and (b) more intense your relationship is, the more baggage you’d have accumulated. The length of time me and G were in close, active communication was about 2.5~3 years in total. Not very long compared to others, yet there was so much baggage to be cleared in my head! If your relationship was longer, I can imagine there must be a lot more for you to deal with.

Our baggage will be a mixture of sadness, regret, hope, wistfulness, melancholy, disappointment. If the relationship was intense, your baggage will probably include hate, grief, anger, fear, shame and other deeper emotions. It’s natural to feel these. Whatever the emotion is, open yourself to the emotion fully. This means if you hate the person, feel that hatred. If you feel sad, soak in your sadness. If you feel the need to grief, then please grief. Cry if need be. Take time out for yourself to process these feelings. Don’t block them away. Embrace them and accept them.

Don’t bottle them in, because as we all know they will explode in the future when least expected. You might have heard of people who claim to have moved on by shutting off / avoiding their emotions altogether. They may feel like they have moved on, but what’s really happening is the issue has just become so deeply buried that it doesn’t cause any immediate reaction. It’s like having a cut that is healed on the surface, but still has impurities underneath the scar. To complete the cleansing process, all the dirt has to be cleansed. To do so you need to first acknowledge and accept your feelings.

As you connect with these emotions, slowly let them go. Feel them, understand the source, then release them.  Some suggestions would be to talk to a good friend, journaling or meditation. Sleeping helps to clear mental baggage too – but just be conscious that you don’t turn to sleep as a source of escapism.

2. Recognize he/she is not the one for you

A large portion why you can’t move on is probably because you keep seeing him/her as “the one” for you. You just can’t see yourself with anyone else but him/her. Such fixations are dangerous. This leads you to linger on and on, hoping for a “some day” which will never come. Not only that, it leads to a lot of mental projections – both on you and of him/her.

One thing I’ve realized is that if  the party does not have the 110% intention to be together, then he/she is not the one for you. I always believe if real intention is there, any obstacles, no matter how insurmountable, can be overcome. If the intention isn’t there, then anything else can come forth as a “reason” for not being together.

If you keep thinking that you guys will be together once the circumstance changes, or once the timing changes, or once you are a better person, then perhaps this isn’t the right person. These prerequisites are signals this relationship isn’t meant to be. Because ultimately, it’s not about the right place or right timing. It’s about whether he/she is the right person. If he/she is the right person, you guys would have been together regardless of how wrong the place or timing is. That’s why it’s called the right person.

  3. Share with your close friends

You don’t have to go through this alone. Your friends are there for a reason, to help you, support you, and pull you through this period.

Looking back, I can’t imagine how I could have dealt with this saga without my close friends with me. K, for sure. Other close friends include my secondary school pals, my junior college friend, my god brother whom I knew back when I was 15 and my best friend from university. These people were there to listen to me and support me when I was down. Their overwhelming patience made me very grateful for who they are and our friendships. This experience has undoubtedly strengthened our friendships.

4. Reduce contact with him/her

The initial healing period of every wound is always the most delicate. During this time, you wouldn’t want anything to come near and agitate your wound. Especially not the very things the wound is susceptible to. Because of that, it might help to reduce contact with this person at the beginning, if that’s what it’s going to take to move on faster.

There are three possible situations where you’d have to do so.

If you feel you can’t move on with constant reminder of his/her presence.

If he/she keeps pestering you even though you just want to be friends.

If he/she acts in a way that prevents you from moving on. For example, words or actions that are more romantic than platonic, making it hard for you to decipher on the status of the relationship.

I had to reduce contact with G because his actions toward me made it hard for me to move on. A part of me kept seeing him as an ideal guy, while on the other hand he was treating me in this special way that was ambiguous. Reducing contact made it much easy for me to gain clarity on the situation, that what we had was a friendship and there was nothing more than that.

5. Seek closure with him/her

At the end of an unrequited or broken relationship, there are going to be a lot of unspoken words, questions, and pent up emotions. Questions like: Why did he/she do this to me? What was he/she really feeling at that time? Did he/she ever liked me? Why couldn’t things be worked out? You may try to rationalize them away, but they will remain there, yearning to be answered.

Airing these thoughts to the person helps you gain closure. Write down everything you want to say; things you had qualms with; questions you have always wanted to ask. Arrange for a heartfelt talk with him/her and get the air cleared with these questions. Ask for his/her side of the story. Listen. Talk it out. Seek for an answer, in his/her own words.

At the end, you will find it’s really not so much the answer itself that matters, but the fact that there was an answer. It’s like the piece to the whole puzzle. It gives you certainty on where he/she stands.

Some of you may ask – What if he/she avoids the issue or doesn’t answer the question(s)? If that’s the case, the avoidance itself is the answer. You can interpret the behavior in whatever way you want – irresponsible, player, evasive, unsure, conflicted – but the fact is, he/she chose to avoid. If he/she can’t even give you a proper answer you need, perhaps he/she is just not worth it.

6. Forgive him/her

“To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness.”

I once read a book on forgiveness which shared this powerful idea. It said that whenever we refuse to forgive someone, the person we are not forgiving is really ourselves.

It makes sense doesn’t it? When you feel angry/bitter toward someone, it’s not the other person who is carrying the anger and bitterness. It’s you. For what it’s worth, the other person is probably not aware of how you are feeling toward him/her. You are the only person carrying the baggage around. On a deeper level, I believe you are angry/bitter at yourself for allowing yourself to be hurt by this person. This was what happened to me.

Carrying all these heavyweight emotions can be very tiring. It’s like while dragging a whole pile of carcasses wherever you go. I’m sure you feel tired emotionally and mentally from the episode. You can’t get anywhere far if you keep dragging them along.

To forgive him/her, first forgive yourself. Think about how you are denying yourself of so much happiness by holding on to your grievances. Think about how you are preventing yourself from experiencing your real love because you are still hanging on to these baggage. Whenever you hold on to something, you prevent yourself from receiving new things in life. Forgive yourself for putting yourself through this trauma. Forgive yourself for everything that has happened. As you forgive yourself, forgiveness of the other person will occur naturally.

7. Do the things you love

Steps 1-6 are tied to your inner world and specifically dealing with the root of the issue. While spending time in your internal world is important, don’t linger too long in this stage. Get into some activities. What are the things that perk you up? Things that excite you, enthuse you, make you feel rejuvenated? Exercising? Jogging? Swimming? Cycling? Rollerblading? Traveling? Going out with friends? Movies? Watching a drama? Reading a book? Engage yourself in them.

8. Meet new people

It’s easy to get trapped in your head thinking about the thing for too long. Meeting new people, friends or romantic potentials alike, reminds how there is a whole world out there. There are many great people to know out there. Don’t get cooped up with your life. I always find it an amazing adventure to know someone new and be exposed to a whole different life. It helps me understand life from a whole different angle.

9. Know there is nothing wrong with you nor him/her

It’s easy to conclude you are not good enough when something doesn’t work out. I thought I wasn’t good enough for a long while, both consciously and subconsciously as you could see throughout the series. However, this is an erroneous belief. If the relationship could only happen if you are XXX person with XXX traits, then it meant you are not the right person for this relationship. Everyone looks for different people. There is no preset criteria on what are the “right” or ‘wrong” traits to embody, just different expectations. If you don’t embody the traits the person is looking for, that just means you guys aren’t the right match. That’s all. There is nothing wrong with you or him/her. You guys just aren’t suited for each other.

  10. Recognize there is someone out there for you

It might be hard to believe as you try to move on from a broken past, but it’s true. Heck, I’m 25 (as of 2010), never been in a truly serious relationship (by choice), met my share of incompatible guys, and I still believe there’s someone out there for me!

There’s no reason why you shouldn’t think so! I don’t care how many relationships you’ve been in the past, how many wrong men/women you’ve been with, or whether you’ve never been in any real relationships. (I haven’t). There is someone out there for you. You’re definitely not the only single out there in the world. Look around you! Look at your friends. Look at the people on the streets. Do you think you’re the only person who is single in this world? Of course not! There are 7 billion people in the world. For every couple you see out there, there are multiples of other singles. For every single you see, there are even more singles.

[aion-rsa]

Young Justice Season 3 Episode 25 Review: Overwhelmed

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Young Justice delivers the best episode of the second half of the season with "Overwhelmed."

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This Young Justice: Outsiders review contains spoilers.

Young Justice Season 3 Episode 25

Young Justice uses the second to last episode of the season to take a break from the endgame and look back at how far the team's come. The result is one of the strongest episodes of Young Justice season 3. 

The episode follows two stories and sprinkles in some setup for upcoming episodes. One sets up the final episode: Brion and Tara’s brother sneaks to Hollywood to see them and tell them that he’s trying to find a way to get them back into Markovia. The other storyline focuses on Cyborg and Halo, having defeated Granny Goodness and closed off the Apokalips storyline for the season. They’re babysitting Lian for the night with Beast Boy when Metron shows up and kidnaps Mother and Fatherbox (and Lian gets caught in the boom tube). He booms them to the Source Wall and lays on some heavy foreshadowing for next season. Lian has the time of her life floating in space and hearing Cyborg and Halo make Mother/Fatherbox noises when they try and talk. It’s fairly insignificant, but it’s a pretty enjoyable interlude in an otherwise pretty heavy episode.

In yet another story, Forager is having a tough time deciding his path forward. With Mantis and the forces of Apokalips defeated, he has the ability to return to his hive on New Genesis, but he also wants to stay on Earth with his “new hive.” But he doesn’t feel like he can truly be himself on Earth because he needs to keep his Fred Bugg glamor charm on to pass as human. So Superboy takes him to visit Geranium City, where he meets Mayor Dabney Donovan, who turns out to be Dubbilex using his psychic powers to make the entire population of the town appear human. This is actually where all the genomorphs hid after Cadmus fell. They built a city for themselves, and hide in plain sight while subtly guilting Superboy for not doing more to help them.

This was...unexpected. On a lot of levels. First of all, this was all out of the blue - there was no hint of Superboy having trouble with his identity, and it never occurred to me to think of what happened to the genomorphs after they were freed from Cadmus. Using them to further Forager’s story and push Connor into making a pretty substantial change next episode was interesting and a nice way to move forward by looking back. I was also not expecting a lecture from a psychic alien about the relative value of systemic change versus helping individuals. So if you’re looking for clones raging against neoliberalism...Young Justice, folks. 

Seriously, this could have turned into a conversation about secret identities and masks. I think it’s to the show’s credit that it didn’t. That’s well-trod territory, something that literally every Batman writer and most Superman writers eventually explore. Systemic injustice is a much more interesting and unexpected critique, one I think the writers did well to poke at, and I’m glad this is the direction they went.

The last major storyline focuses on Will Harper and Artemis, who are on a date. They unfortunately do NOT go to the Bone Zone like I expected in my notes because, as they kiss, she freaks out about not getting any closure with Wally. So she grabs Zatanna, who brings Rocket and Miss Martian for emotional support, and demands to be reunited with Wally. Z pushes back with all the clear and smart and well-known warnings about raising the dead, and instead offers to give her an evening in limbo with his soul. Of course, she jumps at the chance.

This storyline is messed up in only the way Young Justice can be. Like the Superboy/Forager storyline, it looks back to move Artemis forward. Rather than pushing nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake, it uses our fond memories of characters who have passed to help develop Artemis as a person. She lives a quick life with Wally in Limbo, seeing him again, moving back in with him, getting pregnant, and having a baby. Then the show makes her give all of that up. Wally forces her to acknowledge that none of it is real, and that he loves her so much that he wants her to move on. So she gets her closure.

Of course, this is Young Justice doing Young Justice things, so at the very end we find out that it was just Zatanna putting Artemis in a psychic trance and letting her subconscious do all the work. So they now have a quick and easy way to undo the growth, and also another dark secret that is being kept by three teammates. It wouldn’t be this show without dramatic secrecy.

Swerve aside, this was a genuinely emotional, sweet episode that takes a lot of time to remind you of the world these characters have inhabited for almost a decade and of their potential power. It was an excellent episode. 

OUTSIDER TRADING TIPS

-Geranium City doesn’t exist in the comics, and I’m fairly sure it doesn’t have an equivalent. Young Justice has never been afraid to just put the wild shit from the books in the show, so if there was a city for clones and Cadmus monsters in the comics, it would be in here. 

-Dabney Donovan does exist in the comics, though. He’s a real bastard - head scientist of Cadmus, cloning expert and creator of Dubbilex. He was also featured in the Death of Superman/Reign of the Supermen animated features as one of Superboy’s creators. Those movies are excellent and you should watch them when you have time. 

-I really loved how John Stewart put the genomorphs down on what would become Geranium in a Green Lantern construct-ark.

-Artemis’s line when she comes out of the trance is “The spirits have done it all in one night!” That’s a Scrooge line from A Christmas Carol, in case you’ve never lived through a Christmas with a television before.

-I’m also very glad Will and Artemis didn’t happen. I think Will spoke for all of us when he said it would be “too weird.”

-Count Vertigo also breaks Baron Bedlam out of jail and he stages a coup in Markovia. This pays off next episode, and I’ll talk more about it there. There’s more Luthor/Trump stuff, and I really don’t like it. 

-Watch the credits all the way through. The credits sequences in both of the last two episodes pay off a season worth of jokes. They’re really funny.

Keep up with all our Young Justice: Outsiders news and reviews right here.

Books

5/5

DC Universe

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Animation

Young Justice

DC Entertainment

Review Jim Dandy

Aug 27, 2019

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