#the last of recaps

[alicemichelle297]

You're going to cry for a "Long, Long Time" after this one - The Last of Us episode 3 recap

I don't think I have as much to say about this episode as I have the previous couple weeks. What I do have to say is positive, though.

This episode takes a bit of a risk by barely featuring our lead characters in it at all. There's a short intro with Joel and Ellie scavenging supplies from one of Joel and Tess' drop locations and a very messy explanation of the scale of destruction in the country.

We see the military rounding up civilians to take them to a quarantine site, only to kill them gang execution style when the QZ is already full. Which again, only makes sense in George Bush's America, so thanks for plugging that plothole, HBO.

Our hero for this episode, Bill, is a prepper who of course didn't go with the government when shit hit the fan and as a result he survived the roundup and was able to claim a whole town for his own.

Nick Offerman could easily be critiqued for just playing Ron Swanson again in this episode, but I think Bill's character really is just a gay Ron Swanson with a dash more paranoia, so you really can't blame the guy or HBO for casting him.

Anyway, life is good for Bill. He's secure, he has food, guns and freedom: everything an American man needs. Then one day, a lone man, Frank, stumbles into one of his traps.

Despite his better instincts, Bill takes Frank in and feeds him, clothes him, and of course sleeps with him.

Over the course of the episode, we see Bill and Frank's entire love story and it's beautiful. The way Bill opens up to Frank is heartwarming and both actors put their whole foot in these performances.

Beyond that, the show continues to impress me with how much smarter of a take it's trying to be on post-apocalyptic fiction. While I do think the military dictatorship is a bit of a stretch, Bill's doomsday preparations are detailed and realistic, and the episode's rumination on euthanasia was a surprise.

It was nice to see how Bill actually met Joel and Tess, and giving Frank some actual screentime enhances their stories greatly. In the game, we meet Frank after he's already killed himself and we find a much less tasteful suicide note left for Bill instead of Joel.

Come to think of it, Bill is still alive in the game version, so he really got the raw deal in this episode.

As a member of the LGBT community, I have to give the show props for portraying a gay romance without being preachy for even a second. It's shown exactly as it should be: a normal love story. In fact, what's highlighted as more unusual in this episode is the relationship between Joel and Tess being questionably romantic compared to our settled down gay couple.

[claraoswalds]

I'm just... post-bi-generation. Ah, it's more than that.

DOCTOR WHO The Giggle

[jq37]

In January 2024 y'all are gonna see how much I HAVEN'T CHANGED AT ALL. JUNIOR YEAR LET'S GOOOOOO HOOT GROWL BITCHES!!!!

[aprilblossomgirl]

my favorite QL 2023 recaps: part 2 - Mark Pakin

Mark Pakin Kunaanuwit and his co-stars in shows throughout 2023.

GIF 1. The Warp Effect (2022-2023) - as Jedi with Best Jira as Rose

GIF 2. Moonlight Chicken (2023) - as Saleng with View Benyapa as Praew

GIF 3. My School President (2022-2023) - as Thiuson with Ford Allan as Por

GIF 4. Only Friends (2023) - as Nick with Neo Trai as Boston

GIF 5. Last Twilight (2023-2024) - as Night with Namtan Tipnaree as Phojai

[hoolyelina]

ladybug redesign bc i fucking hate this show but also love it dearly , and i despise boring ass body suits ( `−ㅿ−´)

[mayvora]

give me six thing I got from my friends. 5th one is my partners ( @melnotfound ) character! he said I should draw him so I did lol.

I'm trying my best here!! learning how to draw!! yayyy

no background version under the cut

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

my favorite scully and mulder moments from s2

when they aren’t supposed to talk to each other anymore in the first episode because the x files were disbanded, so they came up with a code to know when to meet up

(and mulder at first is very annoyed that she wants to risk being seen with him because she’s deeply concerned about how distant he’s acting… “so what did you want?” “to see if you’re alright”. him trying to grapple with being cared for vs her trying to figure out why he won’t let her in. yeah.)

((and she runs her fingers through his hair at this covert meeting, after he confesses he’s lost all faith))

when she finds him, in the same episode, passed out on the floor of a random puerto rican jungle compound, and he grabs her by the shoulders, saying he saw the same aliens that took his sister

another covert meeting in episode 2, after moody mulder thinks he was moved to a case just to keep him busy: “is this seat taken?” she asks. “no, but I should warn you I am experiencing violent impulses” “well, i’m armed, so I’ll take my chances”

(and right after, when he said he wants to leave the FBI, but working with her is his only reason to stay)

“i’d consider it more than a professional loss if you decided to leave” <- sobbing. for ten thousand years.

episode 3, when she flew 300 miles in the middle of the night to draw his blood. couldn’t anyone else have done that? no. it needed to be Her.

(there’s another, very brief scene towards the end of episode 3, where she peeks over his shoulder and the height difference is incredible)

scully stopping her class because she gets a call from him, then flying up to New York to do an autopsy for him. and when they see each other they both smile SO big it’s adorable, even as she is holding a human stomach. krychek seems confused. he wouldn't understand, would he?

and then flying in AGAIN to try and help mulder during his hostage negotiation with duane barry in episode 5, getting furious when she is told to “calm down” while he is in danger

when she finally wakes up from her coma in episode 8- how she yells at her mom for calling him “fox”, how he brings her a VHS tape of superbowl highlights and she deadpans “i knew there was a reason to live”

(and he finally gives her necklace back- but then he leaves, despite wanting nothing more than to stay by her side, to let her be with family)

in episode 9, when they are finally back together, mulder tries to get her to stay home from this investigation to keep her safe, because he's terrified of her getting hurt again: “scully, i don’t think it’s a good idea for you to go”, he says, but she’s too stubborn to be stopped, and he realizes it’s an impossible fight

(later, they engage in an intense scientific argument over the existence of silicon based life forms, and it feels deeply charged)

another reassurance in episode 9 that she is okay despite what she has gone through: “i’m back and I’m not going anywhere” (shoulder grab!!!!) “i'm counting on you” (lingering eye contact!!!!)

when he returns from his mission to find scully handcuffed, having just saved herself with some quick thinking, and she has to comfort HIM at the sight of her in distress: “i'm okay, i’m okay”, she repeats, while he gently grabs her face, and seems to ignore everything she is saying to ask if she’s alright

(and the month long quarantine that ensued, which we saw none of, but the fact that it happened at all is lovely to me)

sharing an umbrella in episode 10!!!!! it’s really the simple things in life you know!!!

going out on a rib date… he wipes the sauce off of her face, then goes into explaining how a new spirit can take over a body

when mulder’s sense of injustice is going off that episode, so he leaves the restaurant to defend a kid being bullied, and when scully follows the mean kid taunts him by saying “why don’t you run along with the little wife?” and neither of them react (except for a few moments later when he’s staring intently at her, and it looks like he is considering the possibility)

(bursting into her motel room) “scully? you’re not gonna believe this” <- he said the line!!!! (and she could believe it, because she had figured it out on her own)

exchanging theories on murders and repression of memories: “i seem to recall you having some pretty extreme hunches”, she says, and he replies “i never have”. they both smile in the quiet of driving along a small town road.

when mulder narrowly escapes having his throat slit, and after scully nearly shot the woman holding him hostage, she runs to him and carefully cradles his head while he’s still on the floor…. oh the tenderness. i actually might fall apart.

thinking they will have free time on their trip to Minnesota in episode 13, he bought them tickets to a football game <3 and they didn’t get to go but it was SUCH a nice thought

mulder noticing that scully is in extreme distress while looking at the victims of the killings in episode 13,  but trying to give her space to admit that she is terrified; “scully, if you’re having trouble with this case, I want you to tell me” “I’m not having trouble”, she lies, and he answers “i just don’t want you to think you have to hide anything from me” oughhh.... </3

and when the killer who terrified her so awfully kidnaps her, and mulder arrives to find her, she insists that she’s okay despite shaking like a leaf, until he lifts her chin up. only then does she start sobbing into his chest, while he mumbles “it’s alright, it’s alright” to her. ohhh, the vulnerability hits hard here, especially because she had just said she didn’t want him to feel like he had to protect her! as if there was ever going to be any other option; he is the protector and he will protect what he loves, it’s all he knows

taking the little kid they meet at the refugee camp in episode 15 to get lunch, because one thing these two are gonna do is get any youth they encounter some food. and mulder gives him money for extra fries because he WILL spoil any random child.

she cuts her hand on a thorny branch left in their car, and when mulder says “let me see that”, she replies that it is nothing, trying to deny him any chance to be concerned. then when she starts feeling very ill, she keeps telling him its fine, because for some reason the doctor cannot doctor herself.

(he goes off to get the bad guy, and she is in the car hallucinating. when she finally breaks free from the clutches of evil, he’s lying on the ground, having been… like, psychically stabbed? and still. his first question when he sees her is. “you’re okay?” aughhhhhhhhh)

that time mulder was actively dying of alien poison in episode 17, so she barged in and started yelling at the doctor to get his shit together, because she knew what to do and he didn’t. and she manages to save him.

mulder agreeing to trade who he thought was his sister for scully in a hostage deal, then saying he couldn’t have told her it was his sister because he knew scully would never have let him go through with it... the terrible pain of knowing somebody so well, you know they'd endanger themselves for you...

after scully saves his life by figuring out how to treat his alien poison, she stays by his bed and gently strokes his hair. and when he opens his eyes, she was holding his arm. she smiles and says “thanks for ditching me”, to which he replies that he found his faith again (<3)

seasick mulder fumbling for words in episode 19, while she tries to see if he's feeling any better: “you’re lucky you inherited your father’s legs” “what?” “his SEA legs” (scully laughs while he is in ocean-induced misery)

when they take shifts watching the suspicious guy on the boat that makes you old, his alarm goes off to indicate his shift was over. he goes to wake scully up and switch off, she mumbles something about having just fallen asleep, and he offers to give her a little bit longer to rest. so sweet.

exchanging magic tricks while investigating the sideshow performers in florida in episode 20- her making it look like the cricket came from behind his ear, him pretending to make the nail suddenly appear

“we’re exhuming your potato” “may i ask why?” (she goes into a convincing explanation on searching for evidence, he ruins it by interrupting to say “we found out you used to be a dog-faced boy”)

episode 21: “see, this is a helium balloon, and the one thing i did learn in kindergarten is that when you let them go, they float up, up, and away” “did you learn about wind in kindergarten?” (she is funny and she doesn’t get enough credit for that!)

and episode 24: iI just came up with a sick theory, mulder” “ooh, I’m listening”

mulder brushing her hair back, asking if she is okay after nearly getting decapitated

and who can forget episode 25, the season finale, when mulder is collapsing into her arms, delirious with fever and covered in his father’s blood; she lays him down in her bed, placing a cold compress on his forehead. “we’ve got to find out who killed my father” “right now you need to rest. it’s okay” what if i started yelling

him waking up after she had to put him in a coma for damage control: “you shot me >:(” “yes, i did” (patiently explains how she saved his life about 3 times in 72 hours, including by shooting him)

him thanking her for taking care of him; her asking him to find out what the files he's determined to understand say about her disappearance

[randomshiptime]

credit to randomlifelog24 on X/Twitter, account deleted

[butchsophiewalten]

Q&A Answers and other notable moments from the July 4th Twitter Space:

-Martin says that in 1982, Kevin is alive and well, and is "probably still working for Bunny Smiles Incorporated."

-Someone asks if Brian would be a "film bro", and Martin says that Brian would be the kind of person to enjoy recording stuff to make personal films, comparing it to the way some kids will like to film a bunch of random shit and put it together as a "movie." He says, "I think Brian would be very into films, and trying to do his own stuff. I don't think he would have gotten too artistic with it, I think he would just fuck with common or mainstream movies at the time. But he would still love going to the theatre, probably. He would be that kinda guy."

Kyle says he thinks Brian would be really into the MCU.

-Someone asks, "What would you say was the biggest setback in development for The Walten Files?" to which Martin answers, "I Think we can all agree that by far, the biggest setback there was ever been for the series was the Episode 5 script." He goes on to explain that what is now episode 5 was originally the shortest segment of what was going to be The Walten Files 4, "... because it was the segment I cared the least about. And now, it's probably one of the most emotionally dense episodes in season one."

-Someone asks what animal Boozoo would be, if he was one. Kyle answers "A lion!" and Martin agrees emphatically.

-Coral asks about what the BSI Crew's favorite animatronics would be. Martin says that Susan's favorite animatronic is Banny, because that was the first animatronic they built. Charles' favorite animatronic is Sha, Rose's favorite would "probably be Bon", Jack's favorite would be Sha or Boozoo, and Felix's favorite would also probably be Sha or Boozoo.

-Someone asks, "Did Brian have any qualifications at all [to work at BSI] or was he just fucking around?" and Martin answers, "He was just fucking around."

-Someone asks about Jack's relationship with Linda. Martin answers, "They were friends! There's no- no more than that. Jack didn't know her very well, so, yeah."

-Someone asks for a Jack and Rosemary Walten fun fact, and Martin answers, "They smoke inside their homes! They smoke a lot, they smoke everywhere. They- they probably smoked while Sophie was a little baby. Maybe- maybe not, I don't know. But, a lot of people in the 70s--" then Coral interrupts, saying that they hope Rosemary didn't smoke while she was pregnant.

-Someone asks, "Does Jack Walten ever think to stop smoking?" and Martin answers, "No he doesn't! Thank you for joining the spa--" and immediately ends the twitter space.

[accio-victuuri]

WANG YIBO, YOU MEAN THE MATCHING HOT SEARCH YOU HAVE AND THE USE OF THE WORD COOL TO DESCRIBE YOU BOTH?!!!!!

[justablogger234]

A fun recap

of Ryu Sunjae being "pure like oxygen"

[alicemichelle297]

"Hold To My Hand" - The Last of Us episode 4 recap

Joel and Ellie make a pit stop to siphon off some gas for Bill's truck and to practice gunplay.

Joel actually addresses something in apocalypse fiction that bothers me: gasoline breaks down over time and wouldn't be usable this long into the apocalypse. The show presents this as a reason to need to siphon off gas often, which is better than not acknowledging the problem at all.

HBO continues to faithfully adapt its source material, keeping in Ellie's pun book and lifting the scene wholesale where Ellie finds a pornographic magazine from Bill's place. It's actually an interesting case study in how two different actors can interpret the exact same script completely differently as Bella Ramsey's tone in the scene is completely different from Ashley Johnson's version.

When the duo stops for the night to camp, Joel mentions the threat of uninfected humans outside the quarantine zones again, saying they'd have "way more in mind" than robbing them. This nicely connects to the prevalence of slavers in the second game and with the ambush they'll face later in this same episode. And we get a nice moment showing Joel's addiction to coffee, which is brought up in The Last of Us Part II as well.

When Joel and Ellie reach Kansas City, they're met with roadblocks and notice that the QZ has been abandoned and left wide open. With no military presence here, the city is home to bandits and other dangers.

A man stands in the middle of the road, in need of help. Instead of stopping, Joel hits the gas. It was a trap meant to trick them into stopping the car to help him, but when Joel doesn't fall for it, they resort to shooting to get what they want. Joel is able to dispatch most of them on his own, but when one sneaks up on him, Ellie is forced to step in.

We see Ellie shoot a man for the first time, on screen, but we learn later that she has shot someone before. Joel is stuck saying that it isn't easy for a child to have to do violent things, which Ellie mocks by asking if it's easier when you're older. That was such a dark line for her, but it really expresses her worldview in as few words as possible.

Kansas City is being run by a woman named Kathleen and her militia. It's not immediately clear what their goals are, only that Kathleen is looking for Sam and Henry and that she's keeping some kind of secret in a warehouse which I assume is some kind of infected like a Bloater or something.

Kathleen is a bit too comic book villain for this series, from what we've seen so far. She holds a doctor at gun point demanding information and then later walks in and shoots him down seemingly for no reason other than to make herself feel better. Nothing against the actor, I just think this is bad material to work with. It doesn't lead me to care about this place or these people, it makes me hope Joel and Ellie get out of here as soon as possible so I don't have to see this storyline for much longer.

They literally bring one dead man to her doorstep and Kathleen blames it on Sam and demands that her people go forth and kill everyone they can find. Like what is going on?

Joel and Ellie spend the rest of the episode sneaking through town and trying to find a safe place to lie low.

Ellie reveals that Joel has hearing loss in his right ear, which leads to them being ambushed in the night when Joel rolls over onto his side and isn't able to hear them coming.

The episode cuts with Joel at gunpoint.

[ladymiraclewings]

Just a little recap for myself about shows that i started watching and rewatching this year (counting last year too) for now.

2023

Started for the first time: Bluey - Gravity Falls and Digital Circus

Began rewatching again: Yo-Kai Watch

2024

Started watching: Murder Drones / Avatar the Last Airbender and Foster's Home

Began Rewatching again: Pac Man and the Ghostly Adventures.

[jq37]

What is it that the Rat Grinders actually want exactly? Or at least, what does Kipperlilly want since she's the one we know the most about.

At the top of the season it seemed like she wanted to Be The Best at school and Be Recognized in a very Tracy Flick/Sara Berry kind of way and was just going to crazy lengths to get there because this is a world where you help a dragon kidnap girls so you can be Prom Queen and life goes on. But now we know that the Rat Grinders are a part of Porter's larger plan and one of the major steps of that plan is completely abolishing Aguefort as an institution.

It's clear what Porter gets out of this. He gets to be a god and he gets to continue his imperialistic family legacy. And I would maybe get what Kipperlilly would get out of this is she were the Cleric/Paladin of the plan. She'd get to be the new god's champion, like she was gushing to Lucy. That's maybe worth something to an achievement hunting, Type A individual.

But she's not gonna get to be the best student at Aguefort if Aguefort doesn't exist anymore. Hell, Elmville won't really exist anymore. Is Porter planning on opening a new Adventuring School in Rage Elmville and she gets to be the god Principal's pet? Does she think he's gonna make things "fair" for her somehow? How? Retroactively killing her parents? Does she want to use the powers she cheesed from the easy XP he drip fed her to be a renown adventurer? Kinda hard to pull that off when everyone knows you were part of the plan that doomed the town. Maybe she thought they were going to get away with it without being implicated? Does she literally not want anything other than a chance to kill the Bad Kids? Or even pettier, to just to be stronger than Riz? Is that worth it to her? To damn the whole town just so she can say that she beat Riz once? Did she want something concrete at one point but at this point she's just lost in the sauce and doing whatever the next task is without knowing what she'd even do with a victory if she got it? Did she already get what she wanted in the free XP and now she's just paying her end of the bargain?

I'm just very unsure about what her version of a happy ending is here.

[aprilblossomgirl]

my favorite QL 2023 recaps: part 3 - say it with flower

GIF 1. Double Decker Hibiscus in Laws of Attraction (2023) -- Thank you to @embraceyourfandom for mentioning about the flower in a reblog of my gifset.

GIF 2. Sunflower in Last Twilight (2023-2024)

GIF 3. Chrysanthemum in Hidden Agenda (2023)

GIF 4. Plumeria in I Feel You Linger in the Air (2023)

GIF 5. Unidentified flower in Laws of Attraction (2023)

[demonslayedher]

Things that ran through my head while watching this episode:

--Not as much to say in my write-up today, because I would really just like to bask in this episode. The way that flashback of the Tokito Twins unfolds is an example of why I am so hooked on anime. That is some good angst, and it's made even better with that lighting, pacing, and vocal direction. I love the subtle changes in expressions, and the pause as Muichiro and Yuichiro just find themselves looking at each other in the silence of the night before the violence explodes. Ufotable was on their A-game. But also, none of this is original--they just read all the elements of the manga panels very mindfully, right down to all the ginkgo leaves.

--Like, seriously, seeing this episode animated just got me so much more emotionally invested in this back story than just seeing it unfold in manga panels. It took Yuichiro from "background character" to "character I feel deep regret for." He's not just crabby, he's a grieving kid who rightfully feels abandoned and desperate to hang on to what he has left, and that desperation leaves him no room to be kind or gentle--despite how deeply he cares.

--Irony time! Muichiro's favorite food is furofuki daikon--it's usually made with daikon cut into rounds like Yuichiro cut at that angry moment, and they already had a pot simmering in the background. Despite his irritated exterior, was Yuichiro nonetheless making a dish he knows Muichiro likes? In the way he talks about Amane just being out to use them because they're helpless children, it feels like a protective parent forbidding a child who dreams of being an actor from being targeted by talent scouts. It's heartbreaking that the fallout in their relationship comes from a place of love.

--I said after watching this episode before that I want an AU in which Muichiro grows up to be a sushi chef. Nah. Gyokko can the sushi artisan, and Muichiro can open a dinky takoyaki cart right outside his fancy restaurant and be way more popular.

--I love how Muichiro, powered by the desire to save Kotetsu and therefore able to free himself from the water pot, suddenly sounds more like his old little-brother self. Part of that--a lot of that--is due to being in a bad state due to the attacks he's endured. Of course you don't feel good, little dude, that's a bunch of Upper Moon Five poison in you. Not to mention you're severely injured. Still, it's so sweet to hear him sound more like little Muichiro instead of Yuichiro in his tone and cadence, especially as he recalls more about his dad.

--Another shout out to Kotetsu and Kanamori for being such troopers. Once again, I am confounded by Kanamori's timeline of when Tanjiro would have asked him to be understanding of Muichiro, Kanamori looking up Tetsuido's way of smithing Muichiro's sword because Tanjiro asked him this, and Kanamori having started and completed Muichiro's sword. The only way it works is if Kanamori works at the speed of sound and somehow the steel keeps pace with him as he smiths, or if Tanjiro for whatever reason asked him very far in advance to be understanding of Muichiro (well before Tanjiro and Muichiro had the Yoriichi Type Zero incident), or if Kanamori did not present the order of events or the cause and effect exactly as they happened. Perhaps he looked at Tetsuido's records first, and was finishing the sword when he mentioned being nervous about it to Tanjiro, and then with Tanjiro's encouragement, he got deeper inspiration from Tetsuido's notes while making the extra effort to understanding Muichiro. Whatever case, it's heartwarming that even though Muichiro & Kotetsu friendship gets more attention, Kanamori was indeed laying the foundation to be a very supportive part of Muichiro's life--this not only would put Tetsuido at rest, but it would cement how reliant swordsmen are on their swordsmiths. Also, it would simply be very nice and sweet to see Kanamori being a caring, sturdy presence in Muichiro's life.

--Also worth noting again, Kotetsu pleads with Muichiro to save Haganezuka, in order to save that sword.

--RIP for now, Kotetsu

--Gyokko is actually fun and I love how expressive he is with this unique body language, like how his little hands go to his neck once he's been cut. He acts like his pants have fallen down.

--Haganezuka is indeed very cool and handsome and no I don't think he'd have noticed if Kanamori got killed.

--This was an episode with no Tanjiro. I think the last time this happened was... the Rengoku special???

--He's there in the Taisho Secret, though, because this aired around Mitsuroi-chan's birthday! The Kamado siblings are so star-struck they really do just spend all these Taisho Secret time they can get with her. (Meanwhile, Tanjiro's only impressions of Muichiro are "He's right but he's a meanie! Though maybe he doesn't mean to be mean? Also, wow, he's impressive. Haha, he grabbed my nose! ...Uh, did he notice Chachamaru or something... is he... okay? Oh, he's flying----" so of course Tanjiro is going to be confused when Muichiro is suddenly a huge fan of him and thanking him for stuff he didn't even do.) Anyway, I happened to have just finishing eating omuraisu (omelette rice) when I watched this Taisho Secret, so tee hee, ya~y

--As usual, I had a lot to say.

--I'll just state again, THAT FLASHBACK IS SO GOOD. LIKE, DANG.