#the domestic montage was so fun

[a-wine-dark-sea]

the instant look of regret and panic on ciri's face after towel whipping geralt is so real lmfao. his slow turn and eyebrow raise was so dad core

[todayisafridaynight]

I saw the "#is there yaoi in the arakawa family" tag basically right as it popped up in the notes and was also left completely dead on the pavement, but honestly? As someone who is wholly and irrevocably AraSawa-pilled (whether said pill is red or blue in color is up to interpretation...), it's objectively SO much funnier if they're just Like That. I love your comics on the topic!

There's also some element of this post I saw earlier I think, divorced from the sexual context since it's not really relevant to what I want to talk about (you'll just have to bear with me there I guess lol, can't help what the post says). It's also still pretty melodramatic applied to them (even for me) when it chiefly is just. Hilarious. But what I'm trying to say is that, taking a more serious approach, "unresolved potential" is such a compelling and central recurring beat here, so what's one more instance?

I guess that post kind of presupposes that there is or could be yaoi, but I think it's kind of like. The concept of "yuri of absence." But with dads. Like that's along the lines of the emotion things like the pair of armchairs on the second floor of Jo's office evokes in me. Honestly I think this particular ask is probably one of the least intelligible I've sent and I'll probably regret it. But. It's. They're married. But they're not. But They're Married. BUT THEY'RE NOT. But th

after meeting with The Arakawa Family Council the verdict i bring to everyone today on Is There Yaoi In The Arakawa Family is:

Well,

[sharkneto]

So. Season 4.

Let’s start with the good. In no particular order -

The road trip. Loved the energy of them all together again and suffering mildly and looking terrible. I appreciate we didn’t waste a bunch of time with them without their powers.

Gene and Jean were great. Loved their energy, the right level of weird. Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally were perfectly cast for the roles.

Liked the idea of the Keepers, the consequence of all the timeline meddling leaking through.

Loved the concept of the subway-between-timelines. That aesthetic slaps for the map alone.

 The Truman Show Christmas Town. They nailed the creepy energy, I liked how ridiculously well-armed it was, I liked that they all died badly, I liked that the Umbrellas got to flex their powers. Diego’s flipping and bullet-mancy was fun, as was him cheating at the axe game to win his kids toys. Luther finally being properly bulletproof was also nice.

Ben Doc-Ock-ing around on the Horror. And the Horror dragging behind him while powers were booting back up. Silly fun.

Loved that Viktor dated and was unable to hold on to every eligible woman in Halifax. Daddy Issues strike again and again, poor guy.

It makes no sense for the level of tech in the show, but I did laugh at Ben being a Crypto Bro. That is the exact way in which his personality sucks.

Jerome and Nancy. If they had left Diego being suspicious of Lila seeing that “little Greek guy” as a “haha it’s just Five!” joke, it is very funny. But they didn’t. Alas.

I didn’t hate the ending! I will always think redemption through living is a better and more powerful conclusion, but them all dying to save the world because they’re the force causing repeat apocalypses was always on the table as an option. I thought they did a good job hitting emotions, them all snarking together until the end felt in character and heartfelt; if other writing choices didn’t happen before it, I think they could have really stuck that landing. I thought the easter eggs of characters from earlier seasons was fun, I hope the Handler still sucks as a regular person.

Overall, I was vibing for the first four episodes. Was it perfect? No. It was never going to be, but I could overlook the usual UA cringe and plotholes because my favorite guys were back on the screen and having good character moments together and fumbling along to save the world. I don’t usually care about spoilers, but I worked hard to avoid S4 spoilers specifically because I didn’t want expectations. The show was going to do what it was going to do, and I didn’t want to judge it for things it was never going to be. And that strat worked well for the first half of the season! It was on par with S3, which I’m an apologist for – had stuff I liked and stuff I was going to be happy to ignore, but overall we’re having a good time! My favorite dysfunctional family is here, I had missed them!

Then Ep5 hit. And we’re onto the problems and things I would change (under the cut --)

The biggest problem of the season is that the pacing was wack, in both an internal time-frame and technical-writing frame.

Internally, media for some reason has no idea how long a year is. Some of the Hargreeves’ problems at the beginning of the season would have worked much better if we were jumping in at year two or three of being in the new timeline, six years is a long time. Diego and Lila’s growing pains at being parents and living a domestic life, how to balance having kids makes more sense to be at this point. And the first couple years of adapting to no-powers-new-universe is way more interesting that hopping in once they’re all settled into mostly-sad patterns (which is in character for them all, they’re disasters). Why not an opening montage of them in their active struggle? Why are we picking up six years later? Unfortunately, because of Ep5, it does feel like the whole point of such a long time jump was to get Five’s body to a legal age and not just so Aidan wouldn’t have to pretend he’s physically a teen anymore (even though we have 30-year-olds playing teens all over other TV shows).

From a technical writing standpoint, for a show that only has six episodes to bring about a satisfying conclusion to a plot as convoluted and bonkers as UA has, they squandered Episode 5. The first four episodes we were moving along, finding plot points, getting Umbrellas in position to move things forward, and then Ep5 hits and is anyone except Viktor and Ben doing something for the plot??? The show is at its strongest with the Umbrellas are together, and it went out of its way to split them up. I also usually love character time, but we had no time to spare! We spend most of the episode either with Five and Lila in the subway, or with Klaus in the world’s most fucked-up situation. And neither do anything to build meaningfully towards the final episode! A weird choice to have your show screech to a halt in its penultimate episode.

Usually, Klaus’ side adventures loop in some important detail that pushes things forward in an unexpected way – he destroys Hazel and ChaCha’s briefcase because of Vietnam, he finds the Kugelblitz, he puts Reggie in position to use Oblivion. This time? He’s getting used and abused by a gang and buried alive to be reunited with Allison so that we… gain nothing? Except Klaus and Allison have made up from their fight? Why did I have to watch Klaus get possessed and fucked for that to happen? Why did they do that to him and me. I don’t mind angst and the incredible fucked-up situations, but it has to be earned and the story didn’t gain anything from it. Klaus just had a horrific time because that’s what he gets, I guess.

And now we get to Five and Lila. Five and Lila, Five and Lila, Five and Lila. The thing is – I don’t hate the idea of them. Obviously, it’s not anything I was ever going to ship on my own, but if they’re going to do it, I can see how and why. They even set it up in a way that I go “yeah I get it.” The thing is, after setting it up, they completely forgot what makes either character themselves or compelling so that they could be shoehorned into Cottagecore Bliss in the greenhouse and the most boring romance possible. If we're committed to doing this, I wish they’d had a weird trauma-bonded relationship in the rat pits of the subway, I would have understood that. Supported it even, tbh. Let them be weird and feral together, yelling and emoting at each other over eastbound vs westbound trains. Instead, Five, who for the past three seasons has been driven by his need to save his family, is happy to delay returning and give up on them to keep very quietly playing house with Lila. What the fuck. Lila, who cannot handle domestic life with Diego and her three children, can handle being a housewife with Five and wear soft sweaters and dresses. They didn’t try to kill each other once! I said way back after S3 aired that I didn’t like Lila’s pregnancy plot because it was going to tie her down in weird ways, and lo and behold! UA writers cannot write women, and it sucks that Lila was yet another casualty of that.

And then the whole thing shafts Diego. I know Diego and Lila don’t have a particularly healthy relationship, but he’s an Umbrella and Lila’s mom is the Handler. I think they do pretty well for what they’re working with, they have a fun chemistry, and it seemed (before this season) they really loved each other. Why did Steve write them off instead of letting their arc be them falling back in love (well, I guess that was Diego’s arc. Wasn’t Lila’s)? Now the three of them get to spend the final episode of the entire show in an unhappy, unnecessary love triangle instead of us getting to watch the Umbrella Academy fully join together to save the world one last time.

After all of that, the rest of my complaints feel like small potatoes. Why don’t we do another numbered list to round out this essay. In no particular order –

It sucks Ben was the plot driver of the season and then doesn’t even get to die with his family, just melted and turned into mindless Cleanse Goo. I was excited for him to get to do more, was excited for a payoff for Viktor trying to return the favor of Umbrella Ben sacrificing himself for him. I wish the Cleanse was more squiddy because it was made out of the two squiddiest characters.

UA has gotten more and more flexible with powers as the seasons have gone, but I straight up do not know what Allison’s power was at the end. Was she telekinetic? Was she Rumoring reality? Why did we have to use that to graphically crush a man’s balls in front of Claire? I liked that the powers got an upgrade and a twist, for the most part, but that only works if we know what they are. Lila has laser eyes and I thought that was it until they needed her to mimic powers again in the last episode. Five can’t blink anymore because he now just goes to the subway (still an aesthetic that is cool, and a cool way to have it tied in a different way to time), unless he’s doing it with Lila? Viktor just has energy now, I guess, sound doesn’t seem to be part of it.

Abigail. I did not fully follow what her motivation was. I wanted her to be comically evil, worse than Reggie, but – again- UA writers can’t write women so I guess she was just a good guy benevolently taking skin suits so she could get the world to end to save the world. Boring. Reggie also should have recognized his wife even if she was wearing Gene and kissed Nick Offerman.

Why didn’t Five have a reaction to his Apocalypse? He had PTSD flashbacks in S1! He was trapped there for four decades! It’s been six years but it’s not like he was working on his mental health during that time. No reaction???? Don’t even get me started on Delores and his “Good thing I’ve never been married” comment.

I’m not usually for fan service, but it felt like the season was actively trying to avoid fan service. Was Gene and Jean’s dance really the only dance party of the season? Five doesn’t have a single fight scene to fun music? Five doesn’t kill anyone all season??? What the fuck.

I wish the Fives in the Five Diner were Sean Sullivan. Bring back Old Five, why would Five fuck up his jump back in every timeline.

The gratuitous fat shaming. It’s always been bad with Luther, but absolutely ridiculous the comments made about Diego.

I don’t particularly like Sloane but where the fuck was Sloane. And I hope Ray not being in the show was a scheduling conflict, because that was tragic that he off-screen left Allison with no further explanation or context. Didn’t feel very Ray.  

A lot of character arcs from over the whole show stagnate or go backwards. Luther is back at the Academy after working to build his own identity. Klaus I guess has to be on drugs if he has his powers. I don’t know what’s going on with Allison and Claire’s relationship – it seems bad at the beginning but just sort of fixes itself when they go rescue Klaus? Diego tries to have an arc to understand how much good he has with his family, but the writers won’t let Lila be part of that. Don't get me started on Five.

I wish the writing team cared enough to actually know the characters. Luther’s powers aren’t tied to him being gorilla’d – that was a separate event, why would the marigolds re-gorilla him. Lila likes bracelets, one of the very first things she did in the show was take and keep the one Diego made. It’s little things, but they go a long way in making us know the creative team cares, rather than just jerking around these characters because they have an idea the think is funny or shocking and requires characters to go against their established personalities and motivations to pull off.

Overall – it was fine, which is not the energy you want when finishing one of the most popular shows on one of the biggest streaming platforms. I get why people are upset, I get a lot of mourning is happening, but I hope we can find a spot where we can enjoy what we have and play in the space again.

It was always going to be a rough goodbye. This show, as cliché as it is, changed my life. I started writing because of it. I’ve made some incredible friends because of it. It helped me figure out I was trans, because of Elliot Page. I’m going to miss it. I’m going to keep hanging around here having fun with the characters, but I’ll miss the fandom, too, as people move on to whatever the next new thing is.

It's been a ride, everyone!

[strandnreyes]

beginnings week

thanks @herefortarlos @lonestar-s5countdown @reyesstrand !

(1) Which 911 Lone Star season premiere is your favorite?

probably the pilot!! it's such a good one with so much packed in. I love the seeing Owen and TK come to Texas, work on rebuilding the station, and have things fall into place by the end of the episode

(2) Which character do you think had the best introduction or first scene in the show?

TK my love. we meet him in his fdny uniform (winner just for that) and he's so full of hope and we get him talking about big swings and romantic gestures. things get bad quickly so fast and he's hurt for a long time after, but that first scene of his really is the core of who he is--loves his job, loves working with this dad, still vying for his dad's approval, a thrill seeker who wants to be loved and domesticated

(3) What is your favorite moment of 1x01?

I think the montage of owen and tk hiring them all!! it's such a fun way to introduce all the characters and that's a family coming together!

(4) When did you first start watching Lone Star and how did you find out about it?

I started watching in february 2020. I caught up on the first 3 episodes after seeing a commercial during the Super Bowl and then watched episode 4 live! and never looked back!!

(5) What is one wish you have for the season 5 premiere?

I would like one sweet moment between tarlos. I know things are going to get angsty fast and I'm cool with that, but we haven't had them in so long. need one cute little moment to hold me over

tagging @tellmegoodbye @thisbuildinghasfeelings @heartstringsduet @chicgeekgirl89 @carlos-in-glasses @paperstorm + open tag!!

[shaunashipman]

For something fun, what’re your hopes with where Bick and Tommy’s story is by the end of the season and how they may set it up for the future? I’m hoping that they have a more focused ending for them going into season eight unlike what we got in the last season with Buck and Natalia. That ending felt very open ended in that they could be serious or could not be. I mean that worked out well for Buck’s story, but given this relationship with Tommy is his 3rd within the last three seasons, I would imagine they want it to be a good and serious one AND for the general audience to take it as such. That’s why I think ending the season with them not just being in a ‘good place’, but showing us (and not just telling us) that they are serious and committed would be the way to do that. This would also break the cycle of Buck’s nerve ending never succeeding romantic relationships.

oooooh fun stuff

my dream version: tommy and possibly buck heroic moment in ep9, we get worried boyfriends, maybe another big smooch, bit of conflict as they both have to come to terms with being on the other side of dating a first responder, and we end the season with them in the montage watching the movie they never got to see, but this time at home cuddling on buck's couch (the movie is either love, actually or top gun)

real world version where it's not the bucktommy show: i still think maybe a heroic tommy moment in ep9 cause of the award ceremony, unless it actually is for the cruise ship rescue (which wouldn't quite make sense, yeah they saved people and the dept saved face, but tommy still stole a chopper, and the others lied to their superior and disobeyed orders, also, how long has it been in-universe 🤨) hopefully a cute domestic moment during/after the ceremony (my heart for a buck/tommy/bobby/athena scene). as for a more focused ending, half of the finales so far have had a get together of some sort, so having a party at bobby and athena's and buck bringing tommy would help cement the seriousness of their relationship, since none of the others have been shown at the family events, and then we could get a bit of them dancing at the party during the ending montage

(i'm also pretty sure, if they are together at the end of the season 🤞 then they'll still be together at the start of s8, cause otherwise it'll be the second premiere in a row where we last saw buck seemingly happy in a relationship only for them to break up between seasons. if they are gonna break up, it would probably be sometime during the first half of s8. or they could stay together forever and get married and grow old and die within hours of each other, like thomas and mitchell)

[le-trash-prince]

4 minutes EP 8 thoughts

Last episode 😔😔😔 I’m gonna need Spare Me Your Mercy and Petrichor to come soon so I can get my Sammon fix

A version of Tyme with bedside manner??? Was this what he was like without the revenge plot taking up all of his brain?

love that the clock changed time as soon as she left

This domestic af montage of them being all soft is destroying me…

UH THROWING WHY DONT YOU STAY IN HERE WAS FUCKING SAVAGE???

love that Tyme can feel the rain on his face. Love that his connection to Great kept him from walking towards the light

Faisah spent this whole show sitting around sipping wine and I respect that

I must say I’m very surprised to see Tonkla and Korn run into each other’s arms kissing like this.

Korn’s face looking betwern Tonkla and Win dbfjfjfjf

Tonkla “Oh yeah did I mention I shot your brother. By the way I cheated on you too.”

Well I sure did not expect Tonkla to take a bullet for Korn. Win you done fucked up

Oh Great’s gotta live with knowing his actions led to his brother’s death…

The fuck kind of art exhibition???

GREAT JUST RAN OFF AND LEFT HER COLLAPSED ON THE STAIRS SHFJJFF I shouldn’t be surprised at this point…

Praying that Nan is somehow still alive and getting vengeance on Warit 🙏

Tyme to Manee: you can die anytime you like, but not in this bed

Tyme to Warit: you can die

ok fine sure doctors shouldn’t murder their patients 🙄

Well I still have questions… but I didn’t come here expecting answers ig 🤷‍♂️ at least Great and Tyme survived, plus Great’s parents and Warit and Title went down. I would’ve been frustrated if none of the Sriwat cargo stuff got resolved in the end. I would like to know who tf had kidnapped Warit (Nan’s vengeful spirit in my heart).

Also the art exhibition lady??? Did she just give them future seeing abilities??? Coz Tyme had the OOBE but he never saw the future the way Lukwa and Great did. Anyways that’s lady Jinta in my head.

The bar for worst BL dad is pretty high (Tony Chen when I catch you) but Great’s mom might get worst BL mom in my book lmfao she really did not give a shit

Overall I think the series was fun ride. There were some things I felt could have been improved upon, but when is there not? The series had a lot of really great visual storytelling, some wonderful performances, and I think a nice story about how Great and Tyme had this brief but meaningful connection that they both felt could have gone better under different circumstances, and the way that connection saved them. Sometimes you don’t need an earth shaking romance to feel that with someone. Sometimes you just find someone you want to have a peaceful life with.

Anyways Spare Me Your Mercy, Petrichor come soon please 🙏

[theultimatekamehamehavoc]

Naegamigiri Shower Thought (literal) Also SLIGHT spoiler-ish talk and all! Is tagged as spoilers!! No worries!!

Sometimes, I like thinking about domestic situations with these three, perhaps living together for some reason. But, not like the overly cute ideas like them going on little movie dates in the comfort of their own living arrangement. Not that those aren't fun to think of though! I'll always be a sucker for some good ass fluff. However, I've came to a specific thought in mind. I have a feeling Makoto's hair is kinda thick and would clog a drain. I also feel Kyoko with her long hair would also clog a drain. Kyoko's more carful about it, ensuring she brushes her hair thoroughly before showering though occasionally gets a bit forgetful due to her busy work ethic. It's either that or she's taking a late night shower, she's way more likely forget cus she kinda just wants to fuck off and go to bed. The gal means business after all, even if it means neglecting other things that are also kinda important. Would not be shocked at all if she just forgot to eat sometimes, not gonna lie. This gal is also constantly up at night working on cases or some other reasons I can't think of in this very moment. Meanwhile, Makoto is just a very forgetful man. Probably never really thought about this kinda stuff either. Not cus he's incompetent though. Man is just tired in life now. Probably been ages since he's actually been well rested due to his life of basically being the world's savior as the Ultimate Hope. My goodness though. Byakuya is SO giving him a talking too about it, even if the heir fails miserably because Makoto's exhaustion is unfortunately a bigger issue that 100% bleeds into other facets in his life. Case in point, the poor poor shower drain. I believe that thing gets clogged an abhorrent amount of times. These three gotta have some fumbles in their overworked lives after all, Kyoko with detective work and helping Makoto out on his shit, Byakuya working on rebuilding the economy. Also Makoto being the Ultimate Hope in general. Stuff like that. Completely understandable on their ends. Another thing of note is that I like to believe they all are inexperienced in their own rights, Makoto having the most experience. Not that it's a big bragging point or anything. The most he's got going is like having a crush at some point in life, getting a kiss randomly from a girl when he was in middle school, and maybe some shenanigans at Hopes Peak which he probably doesn't even remember cus of the dang memory wipe. But yeah. I like to think these three have their own shortcomings in their relationship, no matter what angle said relationship is looked at. Cus these three are strange. Back on the drain though, the plus side is that Byakuya's hair is the only one less likely to clog a drain so at least the poor thing isn't in constant agony. The blonde also totally blames Kyoko and Makoto for their plumbing problems. Not to say that his hair wouldn't cause issues when grown out (long haired byakuya supremacy moment hehe). However, Byakuya's a complainer through and through. No way is he going to just not obnoxiously sigh when he sees the specific brown and lavender hair slightly poking out of the drain. Besides, this man needs to be forced to do some manual labor. Make him do dishes and fumble his way through doing the laundry, completely confused on what any of the dials and buttons do. Make him unclog that shit outta that drain! Hell, have him with a drain unclogging montage with the Rocky music and everything! At the same time, my brain is also thinking of Your the Best Around blaring with the montage, Byakuya with big ass rubber gloves, kneeling on the ground, constantly working at it with that drain. Maybe him at a computer, hands on his temple as he stares at his bank account and what he has to do with it. Cus of course he's gonna complain about THAT too even though he's rich. Like, damn it! He should be doing more efficient things than this commoner cleaning shit! Byakuya needs to get humbled though, even if it's 10 or 30 or 50 years in the future.

[herembers]

My random thoughts on Bridgerton part 2 as someone who watched it after a very long day of work on very little sleep with my friends and a puppy that kept trying to distract me:

-The Polin sex scene is very cute. Everything I wanted for them.

-Colin telling off Portia is great. Pen gets validation, Colin gets to be a hero. Win win.

-The reconciliation between Portia and Pen is also something I was pleased to see. Real recognizes real.

- They should have had my Bi king Benedict agree to the threesome much sooner so that we could stop getting random montages of them and focus on other parts of the story that desperately needed tightening up.

-I like the angst and don’t mind that Colin is slow to warm to the idea of Pen being Whistledown. He is a pampered rich boy! Of course he’s going to pout! Of course he does not immediately get it! I do wish they focused on him more. I could have used more domestic Polin.

-Bridgerton is not renowned for letting a moment sit and breathe. The last two episodes make it clear that they feel the desperate need to cram as much into the storyline as possible, worried that viewers won’t return: BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE!

^^^this is just an unfortunate side effect of streaming services having such a heavy hand in ruining storytelling in general. Too much set up, not enough pay off. These seasons need to be longer. They just do.

-the mention of the masquerade ball made me go: 🥰♥️!!!

-I was so thrilled to see Michaela 🥹♥️ Francesca’s story is going to wreck me. I love them all so much already I will be suffering when their time comes. I will say: I’m preemptively blocking out the homophobic discourse. I’m already tired I won’t be dealing with that bs

-Overall, I wanted more, but I’m pleased with the season. The changes from the book gave me a lot of relief. It’s my favorite one so far. I love Colin and Pen so much and I’m so happy to see my little wallflower have her cake and eat it too 🥰 Bridgerton is like candy to me: just fluffy romantic fun. I enjoy low stakes and historically inaccurate clothing here and there hehe. Most of my complaints this season stem from needing more time with each storyline.

[bengiyo]

Tokyo in April is... Ep 4 Stray Thoughts

Last week, Kazuma and Ren began their FWB relationship. It has strict rules about how they interact. Ren doesn't face him during sex, the lights stay off, and Kazuma leaves after. They stay friendly at work with no mention of it. They also hook up every day. Kazuma seems to recognize that there's something huge holding Ren back, and decides to be patient and present for now. Meanwhile, Ren put the whole company on his back to save an ad campaign after their actor was caught up in a scandal.

Trigger Warnings for this episode: Striking a minor, discussion of sexual assault, implied harm and suicide attempt, aftermath of implied sexual assault.

One of the fun things about a show where the characters are in an active sexual relationship, is any time you're present for the sex you immediately know that there are emotional stakes in play.

I love Kazuma. I like that he can feel that Ren was tired and needed closeness. I love that he turns that into an opportunity for Ren to do something for him instead.

I'm expecting the color gays to say something about this orange shirt matching the shelves later.

I'd be overwhelmed if I was Ren, too. He has fairly-valid reasons to believe that his feelings were one-sided. He's been protecting his heart in this arrangement, but now he's forced to see how real Kazuma's feelings (which have been expressed clearly since they met again) are.

See, and I totally get Ren misunderstanding Kazuma as teens. This feels a little like Lee Wan and Shin Ki Tae in Our Dating Sim, where Wan just could not comprehend that Ki Tae could also like him.

I don't have the words to convey how sad I am that Ren believed he coerced Kazuma into sex, and felt he needed to say that to their parents because he needed to be honest about all of the events that transpired to ensure that Kazuma received effective care for his condition.

It's awful to watch, but I appreciate a mom striking the self-proclaimed assailant of her son.

An exacto knife? Fuck me.

That was intense. I like delivering the history Ren has kept to himself as he breaks over the answer he's always wanted. That Ryunosuke guy had clearly heard of Kazuma before.

Kazuma is such a boy. They got the jock-turned-diligent-office-worker energy correct.

A home cooked meal shot from the side with the kitchen available in the back. I know that this is probably a fairly standard Japanese apartment layout in Tokyo, but this is sending me all the way to What Did You Eat Yesterday? I like this shift after such a heavy sequence.

Finally, a show for the quiet gays like me. I'm not surprised the same director as Our Dining Table is involved. Those boys were also Quiet Gays (Yes, I know Minoru is bi. Let me have fun). After a rough week or two at work, just taking a day to lazily enjoy each other's company is so nice compared to some date at a sponsored location.

Ren is staying over and we're getting a domestic gay montage. I am living!!

It's hard not to notice that Ren never removes that wristband now.

Oh, timing Kazuma saying that the only thing that matters to him is Ren as Ren strokes Kazuma's sleeping face is the most touching "it's mutual" thing I've seen in a while that also reflects the characters. Kazuma will say it. Ren will show it.

The framing around a coworker leaving, ominous energy about Sanada, warnings from the pissed former employee, the info in the past, and now the actor facing over 1300 sexual harassment charges.... Implications unpleasant about Sanada and that management may already know.

Yes, please dry his hair. You are a BL boy who almost died from being soaked in the rain ten years ago. We cannot repeat our mistakes.

This conversation about just taking a bath was refreshingly gay for me. I like the tacit acknowledgement about mess.

Ah, and there's the overt confirmation about Sanada. That women looked out of it.

DRAMA NEXT WEEK WITH WORK.

This was simultaneously an incredibly sad and heavy episode, but also one of the softest and most domestic things we've had in a while. The Japanese teams are really good at that balance. You can feel Ren finally softening and letting Kazuma in. The rapport between them is solid. They feel older than a lot of the pairings we've had in Japan despite just being in their mid-20s. This is really such a fantastic show.

[iddybyddybee]

I understand if Dana Terrace wants to step away from the Owl House for a while, given all the crap Disney did to her and her crew (and also to explore other artistic ideas), but THE SPIN-OFF POTENTIALS ARE INSANE. Examples include...

1) The furthest back prequel of Caleb and Philip first visiting the Boiling Isles, the love story of Caleb and Evelyn, and the eventual “betrayal of blood” with the Whitebane bros.

2) More recent prequel of Eda and Lilith during their school days at Hexside. We got a glimpse in “Them’s the Breaks, Kid” but there’s so much more info to dive into. Darius, Alador, Odalia, Willow and Gus’s dads, VP Bump, the deeper relationship building of RAEDA. Ugh, so much.

3) All of the montages in Season 3 could fill up 2-3 episodes EACH.

4) The in-between of the ending to the time-skip, ala Steven Universe Future. Watching domestic Hexsquad would be fun, I think.

They don’t even have to be fully animated. They could go the Avatar series route of making official comics, bringing in some different art styles for the various time periods, maybe, idk. Though again, I will understand if no new content comes out in the near future. In the meantime, I will enjoy what we have, because it is truly special.

[herefortarlos]

3, 6, 11 <3

Thank you, britt 💖 Also, once again, so happy about our little conversation on sexuality yesterday 🥰

3. Favorite musical artist/group you started listening to this year?

I answered this before with Taylor, but another favorite that I found were Phoebe Bridgers and boygenius!!

6. Episode of tv that defined the year for you?

Well of course it's Lone Star but after thinking between all of season 4, I think episode 12, Swipe Left, meant the most to me!! Not only was it a great episode, that was fun and shot really well with all the different montages, we finally had some tarlos domesticity after ages, got more of TK and Carlos communicating, and them realizing that the most important thing they needed in their lives above all else was each other 😭 And we also got them hugging and kissing after too long!! Oh and I will never get over that the lizard came back as a gift from CARLOS of all people!!! They really love each other more than anything.

11. Something you want to do again next year?

Oh, to give myself some motivation I will say write more 😆 I haven't touched my document in too long and I need to start again, because I would love my little pornwithsomeplot to see the light of day!

[the-lady-hestia]

Alright spoilers for the final Dr Who special

HERES MY THOUGHTS ON THE GIGGLE AND FINAL RANKINGS FOR ALL THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIALS!!

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Bi-generation

Oh boy

I spent a while trying to write this, but every time I came to a complaint, I realized that the story kind of set it up in a way. All that to say, this review was originally going to be a lot harsher, but I found some justifications for the things I had complaints about.

In general, I like the episode. It’s a goofy romp where Neil Patrick Harris is a cosmic-scale nut job while David Tennant looks on in horror. It’s fun. It is not, however, a good ending to a series of specials let alone ANNIVERSARY specials. It doesn’t feel like an ending. The ending doesn’t feel emotionally resolved (that’s the thesis statement right there)

Throughout the episode, the doctor is constantly reminded that he has always had to move on. He always has to leave his friends. Between meeting the classic companion Mel, to the Toymaker giving him basically a slideshow of all the people who have died because of him and his actions.

And so the story compliments this with an ending where the doctor doesn’t have to leave. The pattern breaks. The doctor stays.

Aaaaaand he also doesn’t. At the same time.

I feel like the same effect could have been reached without splitting the doctor in half. Now there’s two doctors. How the hell are you gonna manage that? The Timeless Child shit is definitely cannon so now there’s two cosmic super beings AND two Tardis’s (Tardices? Whatever the plural of Tardis is) in existence.

I was emotionally prepared to say goodbye to David Tennant as the doctor but now the story feels unresolved. Instead of the heartwarming ending they were going for, it feels like this was just concentrated fan-service intended to lead into a spinoff series and encourage fanfiction writers to fill in the gaps (I will say, the Doctor calling Rose his niece was very sweet. He does finally get a family and that is undeniably nice)

SO! Corrections:

I think the same emotional effect (if not more of an emotional effect) could have been achieved if 14 didn’t actually die in that confrontation. Maybe the resolution of his story is that The Doctor decided that, for a while, he does stick around. Maybe we get a montage of domestic Doctor. He still gets his family and he still gets to resolve all his emotional baggage, just without the Bi-generation nonsense. When Ncuti takes over we get a Doctor that is ready to start traveling again (remember, 15 isn’t going to have this emotional catharsis. He left without confronting his baggage. He’s still fucked up, but I don’t feel like the writers are gonna acknowledge that) And then, after some time has passed, maybe the David Tennant body “wears a bit thin” and he regenerates the normal way (that’s how Hartnell regenerated, I feel like it would be fitting with this whole “new era of Doctor Who” shit they’ve got going on plus the Toymaker is a villain from Hartnells run, the themes are themeing)

Other than that, pretty fun episode. Kate Stewart slays. Shirley continues to be a bad bitch keeping the doctor on his toes. The tease for the Master at the end was fun, always a blast to see that lunatic. Overall, I give The Giggle a 6.5/10. Passable episode with a truly nonsense ending (and not the fun kind of nonsense)

Final ratings for all the specials:

The Star Beast: 8/10

Wild Blue Yonder: 9.5/10 (this might be one of my favorite episodes of Doctor Who ever)

The Giggle: 6.5/10

I do still love RTD. The man wrote some of my favorite stories in all of fiction. I’m very optimistic about this coming season of the show. I think Ncuti Gatwa has charisma coming out his ears so he’ll be fantastic. My pie in the sky dream is that it’s so good that it makes me forget about all this weird shit and hanging plot threads. Here’s hoping!

[featheredframingdevice]

🍬, 🏚️, 🧛, and 🎬! :D

Eee, thank you so much for sending this!

🍬 favorite Halloween candy

Mine: Mounds for fun-size wrapped candy, dark chocolate covered raisins for unwrapped/bulk candy

My as yet digitally silent co-mod: York Patties for wrapped, candy corn for bulk

🏚 are you the first one into a haunted house or are you being dragged by friends?

For a theatrical haunted house: either way as long as it was more for appreciating set decoration and performances rather than jump scares (you won't even drag me in if it's meant to be actually startling, let alone that full contact stuff). For a supposedly legit haunted house: I'm first in if it's a domesticated (so to speak) haunted building, like where there are plaques and tours and shit. If it's just an uninhibited building eith bad vibes that someone is saying is a haunted house, I'm only going in if I'm keeping a (less genre-savvy) friend safe, but I'd try to redirect before then lol.

🧛‍♂️ if you had to become a mythical creature, which would you pick?

I know it's a cop-out, but I'd LOVE to be a shape-shifter (subject to thoroughly checking the fine print). For more standard Halloween mythical creatures, there are a few iterations of vampirism I could fuck with (Only Lovers Left Alive is a good example), but if immortality is off the table then "witch/medium with telekinetic powers that may or may not stay under their control" is a fun trope, and the powerset is probably worth the cost of 50/50 survivorship when plot comes around.

🎬 what is your favorite Halloween quote/saying from a movie?

My favorite quote from a Halloween-appropriate movie:

"I'll be back! I ALWAYS come back! *sighs* But dyin' is such a bitch." -- Chucky in Bride of Chucky

Favorite Halloween-related quote from a non-Halloween movie:

"Happy Halloween!" -- Wade Wilson after going down on Vanessa with plastic monster teeth in his mouth in the "Calendar Girl" montage of Deadpool

This was so much fun! Thank you, friend!

[valentinaonthemoon]

Last night I analysed the Peaceful Property trailer because apparently I cannot be normal when it comes to a TayNew series, so here's my livetweeting of it:

It seems like the general plot of the show changed from what it was initially. I'm curious to know why! I was looking forward to meet spoiled brat heir Home, but he'll be fun as a real-estate agent, I'm sure!

This editing is so fun. It still doesn't really show much about the series, lmao. It shows that it's going to be pretty and pretty fun, but you can see the little cuts here and there that prevent you to see the whole scene. Sneaky, but fair.

Very tiny glimpse @ 0:11 of a scene that looks like the one almost at the end, where the main group and Perth's character are looking at a figure of a person on a wall. Could be the beginning of an episode and later some kind of resolution?

Oh! So Pang, Peach and [Perth's character]* are all part of Pang's supernatural vlogs! [*still do not know his name + don't know if they've mentioned it.]

Love how they cut this part of the trailer. Who is this man kicking the door open? Does he work for Home, since Home is seen in the same place later? Or is he from a completely different scene? Maybe someone else is looking for Peach to use his abilities?

I cannot wait to hear what quip Home will have as a response to "What do you want us to do? Ghostbusting?" because for sure it isn't "Cool" LMAO. That's a yet again different scene (and yet again I'm very curious about it)!

The 1% scene is hilarious, no notes. I love them all.

Really curious about Peach. He wants to be a cook, but he can't because he sees ghosts. Perth* asks if it's because he's sick, and that might be when Peach tells him about his ability. What I am curious about is how or why he acquired that ability! 👀

Also apparently both Home and Peach find themselves in a hospital with some kind of head injury, according to New's pictures from some time ago and this scene.

Gun wanting to sue some ghosts is so unserious, very unlike her at first glance. Can't wait to know more about her.

Oh my goodness, Pang and Home will be The Most Chaotic duo of the group. I need to see a whole episode of their shenanigans.

Also I'm pretty sure that the scene with Pang applauding will mean that Home will make a speech to the group (or to Peach in particular) and that's pretty fun! I wonder if it's a motivational one.

Next we have several scenes of them ghost-hunting, and I wonder if they're set in different episode as a "monster-of-the-week" type of show, or if there will be some montages of them as well.

Also, at one point not only Peach will be seeing ghosts, apparently. The police officer running away and Gun seeing the ghost in the mirror are interesting to see. 👀

"Ghosts aren't the reason your hands won't stop shaking" yeah babe, that's the anxiety/trauma. Go to a therapist, idk. Get a found family, fight your fears and move on <3

I wonder if Peach says "Thanks for dragging me out here to face my fear" to Home like everyone is saying, or to his sister Pang.

I love this shot. Love the silly (sweary) way "Cocktail Lounge" is lit. Love how domestic it feels. I'm curious to know who that other person is, sitting on the right, though. This looks like it could be at least a middle of the series type of scene.

I have so many questions about the blood, and then about how many times New had to scream in this series. And also why is it always funny when he does it.

Very fun, can't wait to see it in two weeks and a half and have fun with it: I am sure it's going to be a blast!

End of livetweet, but let me say a few more things about it.

I've seen somebody was confused about the hashtag to use or its title: don't be! The English title is still "Peaceful Property", #PeacefulPropertySeries on twitter, but I will just be using the title to tag it on my blog. The Thai title means "Haunted House On Sale", with "on sale" being in English.

It's difficult to see the English title in the logos, but it's there! Can't wait to see the found family gifsets when we'll come to it 😊

[sapphosewrites]

The game in this post is such a fun idea I decided to test it out as a "what would have happened if" outline game on one of my fics that feels like an episode, Necessary Storms

1.) The first chapter serves as the pilot, so it's unchanged. Julian is on the ship and they get a distress call.

2.) At the end of last chapter, I rolled a 3, which is "Fan favorite. Your most recently mentioned character (or named object) is now beloved by the audience. You must give it a bigger part in the story, a special destiny, or an important new romance or friendship. If you get this twice for the same character or object, the adoration cools and you must go back to treating the character or object normally." The most recently mentioned character was Julian, notably already beloved by the audience, but the last named object was the Qushji ship, so now I guess it has to be special and important. People want to know more about the ship! So now chapter 2, originally just a quick bridge scene and some garashir domesticity, now features a really long montage like in the first Star Trek movie of people walking around the corridors and slow motion glamor shots from the outside. And the bridge conversation has forced exposition about how the ship faced the Borg in the Battle of Wolf 359 and the Battle of Sector 001.

3.) I rolled a 12: "The most recently mentioned character's actor has decided to leave the show. You must write them out in the next chapter." This is a major problem since the most recently mentioned character at the end of the last chapter was Garak! Shit! So Chapter 3, the plot suddenly changes so that Garak has gone missing too (except he's not being kept with Julian, and he'll get found in the end by the crew... off-screen).

4.) I rolled a 7: "Audiences are craving more action. The next chapter needs to involve at least one extended fight scene, and the weapons must be the last three objects mentioned." This is the one where Julian and Ezri reunite in the caves, so they have to have an extended fight scene against Ryzen's guards. I guess they're escaping a chapter early! The weapons are the medkit, which I guess you could probably bludgeon someone with pretty effectively, and the tricorder. Could you stab someone with a tricorder?

5.) I rolled a 5: "Audiences are craving more coziness. The next chapter must be completely low stakes and set you at ease." This was originally the escape chapter, but since now they escaped in the fight scene I guess we can... pause and do nothing? Huddling for warmth? Maybe we go back to the ship and have a weird, out of place slice of life time with the original crew characters. We learn about Ensign Lopez, maybe. And have more glamour shots of the ship. Did you know it also fought in the Chin'toka System and every other major battle of the Dominion War, simultaneously?

6.) I rolled a 6: "Audiences are craving more suspense. The next chapter must take place entirely in a single location, ideally just a single room, and build tension with every exchange of dialog." Audiences should let me do my own pacing, dang. Well, chapter 6 was originally flipping back and forth between the ship and the caves, but we could keep it in just the caves and build the tension with drawing out the search for the guardians, building to a climactic realization when they aren't there.

7.) I rolled a 2: "Product placement! The next chapter must center (and subtly promote the features of) a product belonging to the most recent brand you've seen." Cameras are key in this chapter, so I think that's where the product placement will come in, although it's tricky that we're in future science fiction and so it's ~future technology~. I guess it's holorecorders with really conspicuous brand names- or a really obvious modern device as the prop that we haven't bothered doing much work to transform. (Although I guess we'd have to come up with a new plan, since Garak isn't here!)

8.) Last chapter! I rolled another 3: "Fan favorite. Your most recently mentioned character (or named object) is now beloved by the audience. You must give it a bigger part in the story, a special destiny, or an important new romance or friendship. If you get this twice for the same character or object, the adoration cools and you must go back to treating the character or object normally." The last mentioned character was Garak, who's left the show, and other than that it was.... Perra Ryzen, the villain entering custody and exiting the fic. So I guess now Chapter 8 has to follow up on her, her sentencing and what other people make of her and what she does next.

This is a fun thought experiment- if I had the energy, I'd do it with a new idea, but as it is I'll be glad that actors can't leave partway through a fic!

[roseposts-stuff]

once i rated doctor who series 11 episodes and said what i thought and i said i might do that with other series as well and as im currently on series 4 on my rewatch, i think it's time for series 1 ranking. btw im a very positive person and im NOT a storyteller (tho i want to be) and my rating is like 90% based on Vibes and all this leads to me going 'I LOVE THIS!!' like 98% of the time lol jajfjk

but! lets begin my ranking of series 1 👍

1. the empty child/the doctor dances (1x9-10): im sure everyone knows why this is my favourite story. i LOVE it, we get jack harkness, we get doctor who horror, it's such a good story and im sure we all know that so i won't elaborate further

2. dalek (1x6) this episode is so good, i LOVE the scene with 9 and the dalek y'all know what i'm talking about, christopher eccleston slayed i love that scene so much, i adore rose too, this episode has some of my favourite rose moments, the way she was so kind and compassionate in the best way, i LOVED it, could talk so long about how great rose was in this does someone want to talk about that?? anyway my introduction to daleks and it works very well

3. the end of the world (1x2) i really like this story too, i love jabe and i was so sad when she died :( and cassandra is iconic ofc, i liked how rose talked with the plumber, i really like that moment guys. i loved the atmosphere and everything, just a really good episode imo

4. bad wolf/the parting of the ways (1x12-13) this is such a good finale, i loved nine's regeneration scene so much it's perfect, i like that we visit the same place we did in 1x7, and the side characters are good, the plot is good, what more can you ask for, really? i loved the scene on earth with rose and mickey and jackie when rose tries to explain why travelling with the doctor is so great, i loved billie piper's acting in that scene

5. boom town (1x11) i LOVED the scene with nine and margaret the slitheen dining, and i'm so happy mickey finally told rose that how she's treating him is unfair bcs it totally was!! i really like mickey and the way rose treated him made me so angry, like girl break up with him if you don't like him?? so yeah, im glad mickey got to say what he has to say. also the scene where jack, nine, rose and mickey are having chips is short but great and i'd 100% watch 45 minutes of them just having chips and talking i loved the domesticity so much

6. rose (1x1) i like the introduction to rose, the opening montage is great imo, i like the set design too, it feels very real, idk a really good way to introduce us to both rose and the doctor

7. the long game (1x7) i liked the side characters in this (except adam, he was annoying and also stupid af like girl no?? are you actually so stupid??) anyway, i liked the story and the characters except for adam 👍

8. aliens of london/world war three (1x4-5) i like this story, but it's not the best you know. i love harriet jones she's great and i enjoyed having mickey and jackie there and tbh on my first watch this is what got me going like "i think i'm gonna like this", not sure why, but i do like the plot. it definitely had some great moments and i like this story!!

9. father's day (1x8) ahhh i'm not the biggest fan of this episode tbh, i definitely liked it more on a rewatch but i'm still not the biggest fan. it's good, don't get me wrong, i enjoyed rose and her dad and it was a beautiful episode, but something didn't click idk. i think it might just be that i didn't like how rose saved her dad, i understand her, i would do the same, but somehow it still annoyed me a bit?

10. the unquiet dead (1x3) im not a fan of this episode personally. idk it had some fun moments but i'm just not a fan, sorry unquiet dead fans. to me personally it's just a bit boring and i didn't really get into the story, not even sure why. maybe it's the fact that i haven't read any dickens and having him there just doesn't work for me because of that? i dont know

yeah, there we are! idk if you want to, feel free to tell me if you agree or disagree :D