#these are all stills from 1 episode. and in motion they look even better

[let-them-fight]

y’all should watch interface btw

y’all should watch Interface btw. Not Asking go watch it

[gwynfahr]

Sleeping position

Jordan Li x reader

Synopsis : You can't seem to fall asleep and keep accidentally bugging your lover throughout the night.

1:57am

"Jordan ? You awake ?" encased in your partners arms, in his masc form for the moment, your voice sounding loud despite the fact you were whispering in the night.

His answer came in a groan and a stir, telling you he was listening.

"Did we do the assignment for Brink's class tomorrow ?" your voice sounded anxious, and you clearly forgot you did it earlier with Jordan while watching an episode of Property Brothers.

"You thinking 'bout that in the middle of the night ?" muffled words came from your lovers whose head was located on the crook of your neck. "We did it two hour ago, babe."

"Oh. That's right, I forgot, sorry for waking you up, baby, go back to sleep." You were still wide awake, so you took it on yourself to help him fall back asleep, after all, you didn't have classes early in the morning tomorrow, while he did. Your hand slowly began caressing his hair and he groaned a bit at the soothing motion, grateful.

Ten minutes later, Jordan was back asleep and you still couldn't sleep. You didn't dare move too much as Jordan's body was litteraly flushed against your side and you really didn't want to wake him up, so you just laid in bed, eyes wide open, trying to understand why your brain wouldn't just fall asleep.

3:36am

An hour later, you got a cramp so painful that you jerked up harshly, moving your boyfriend with you. Your whimpers of pain were made to be silent in order to not wake Jordan up more than he already was, but it was too late.

"Babe, you okay ?" He asked, not quite awake, but definitely not half asleep anymore.

"I got a cramp, sorry." You answered, massaging your calf where the cramp hurt like a bitch. "Shit, that hurts..."

Jordan took your leg in his arms and gently massaged the area, figuring that, if he was awake, he must do something to help. Soon enough, the pain faltered to a reasonable amount. "That's better ?"

You nodded. "Yeah, I'm sorry for waking you again, you have classes tomorrow..."

"No it's okay, I was having a nightmare either way, so I should thank you for that."

"Really ? Do you want to talk about it ?" You took his hand, an expression of concern on your face.

"Meh, it's stupid." He said, and then suddenly, Jordan was sat in front of you in her female form.

"Nothing is stupid when it comes to nightmares baby, if you don't want to talk about it, though, it's okay, we can just cuddle until you fall back asleep." you proposed.

"That's clearly implying you won't sleep." Jordan said as you took a more confortable postion, laying back down, face to face on your sides.

"I wasn't sleeping before, but it"s okay, I don't have classes in the morning so, I'll be able to get back some sleep then. You have to wake up early though, baby, you need your beauty sleep."

"Please," Jordan snorted "I don't need sleep to look hot, and I've done worse than a four hours night of sleep. Why weren't you sleeping ?" she asked, hugging you close to her so her head was rested comfortably on your neck, caressing your head. Mechanically, you did the same.

"I think I forgot something, but I can't remember what, and it's bugging me. Ithought it was an assignment or somethng, but it wasn't that. Not a birthday either, not something school related, not an important date for us, not an appointment... I thought about everything and I can't remember." Somehow, explaining it to Jordan made it feel even more stupid, if you forgot something, then you'd remember at some point, no need to lose sleep over it.

Your girlfriend looked deep in thought.

"Maybe it's just your anxiety taking a toll on you. I know it hppens to me when I'm stressed. Just try to forget bout forgetting something and relax." She moved her hands to your back, scratching it softly in a soothing motion, making you giggle a bit at the tickles it created. "I mean, we could also fuck until we're both too tired and lazy to even think about anything, but I feel like you're not really in the mood." She joked a smirk on her face.

You genuinely thougth about it. Jordan was wearing one of your shirt right now, and she looked so hot in it it was criminal. Plus, you really wanted to sleep. However, you felt like the cramp would come back at any too suden moves or contraction of your muscles. "We could make out instead ? You look so hot right now that it's really hard saying no, you need to know."

Soon enough, the both of you were flush against the other, legs entangled, Jordan's hands on your neck as yours were messing with her hair (making it more toussled than it was before). Your mouthes moved in sync, gently, slowly, carefully, you had time, neither of you wanted to sleep anymore. You had to come up for air after some time, but you still found the breath to whisper to Jordan.

"I love you so much, Jordan. So so much."

"I love you too. So much" Was your girlfirend's answer, after a minute of silence where she kissed everywhere she could on your face.

You spent, maybe twenty more minutes making out, Jordan switching forms twice, settling in his male form. Finally, you bth stopped, out of breath. You looked in each other's eyes and Jordan whispered :

"We should try to sleep."

"You're right, it's actually crazy to see you be the responsible one on this relationship, though." You teased before cuddling again with your boyfriend, the forgotten thing plaguing your mind forgotten.

You both fell asleep peacefully ten minutes later.

_________________________________________

4:33 am

Rufus was still calling for help after you hung him on the american flag hamper in the main alley of God U, five hours earlier.

It seems you forgot about this entirely.

[ep2nd]

@remy-a

Today's topic- the change in animation in LMK

I know like the majority of the Fandom has probably been sent to the ER after season 5 animation (or the emotion couldn't tell) but I think someone said that the animation slightly changed from like the Pilot to s 1-3, somewhere there, so like 3 different animation at this point, maybe??

Alright here's my thoughts

AGGAGAGAGGGGHHHHHHHH

Okay for real this time-

When I first watched LMK, I fell IN LOVE with the fluid motions, the active movement, the anime-style Influence, the exaggeration, the most random fun moments, pop ups, yse of environment, angles, camera movement, facial and body expression and other stuff I don't know the name of

Now as someone who's never watched Anime, please don't kill me, I don't exactly know what that looks like, but try going anywhere on the internet without tripping down the stairs and falling into the basement of ANIME

Also, I'm used to more rigid, beautiful backrounds, great lighting, or basic show animation. Such as Trollhunters, Amphibia, The Owl House, Big City Greens, Ninjago, How to Train your Dragon, Carmen Sandiego and others

So as you can see, this was new to me, and I fricken loved it

Now I can tell there definitely has been change from the Pilot to season 4, more refined, less sloppy

So, when season 5-

Oh dear, I love you Wild Brain, I really do, Ninjago and Carmen Sandiego WERE BEAUTIFUL

BUT AHHHHHH

I will say this, this is a new artstyle, they need practice, and I'm sure it'll improve, but this is not that time it's time to CRITISIZE GET THE RED PEN (maybe I am an English Teacher)

Remember what I said about what I love about LMK animation? Okay now throw it out the window into the Fire of FRICK THIS

Now I will say, they used some angles pretty well, such as using the environment to show emotion/tension, like when it would Pam out and something was blocking the two characters, from Wukong to Macaque to the poll in the Pagado and then a mountain between MK and Wukong near the end- look for its cool- someone pointed it out here on Tumblr can't remember name sorry

2nd, the expressions look really typical, like I miss the shot eyebrow from Wukong, or the the pathetic puppy eyes of MK, or the :3 for Mei, or the furious faces of Pigsy, the sparkly pure joy of Sandy, the chaotic gremlinness of MO, the evil Edit maker smiles of Macaque (I've seen your tiktoks) ALL THE LITTLE EXTRA THAT MADE THE EXPRESSIONS AND HUMOR/TENSION/EMOTION BETTER

3rd, the movements. Seen especially in the second episode when they escape. It's just, so basic running, like compare them running to MK's run in s2 running from the LBD and then when he ran in s4 away from the Ink scroll. Just so much more fear and dread. Also talking bout LBD, her voice actor? Phenomenal as always? Her movements and how they animate her? She seems more like a red headed doll with button eyes than the horror of something like FNAF(haven't played FNAF so can't really compare) what I'm saying is she seemed less huanting, a weary, fear-instilling, and bone-chilling(shut up let me pun) presence this time around, which really makes the scene less dramatic, but the camera angles, voice acting, and some animation still make it somewhat good.

Okay, this post is getting long and I can rant all day, and that's not even with me rewatching the show to pick it apart, someone probably already has good for them I'll look for it👍

In conclusion, comes of more dull, simple, rough, and rushed. S5 story, which has some problems, really hit deep in the last few episodes, mostly MK and Wukong, and if the studio beforehand continued animating, then I think it would have been a masterpiece, really sad to see the wasted potential

I know it's a new studio, but I wish they took more time to practice and learn, and maybe do it on a season that wasn't like the big reveal and end (I'd say a more happy season but let's be honest the Trauma train ain't stopping for a LONG TIME)

so, I guess I'll give it a 4/10, points for using the backround to storytell, still got some great angles, some funny bits here and there (the soldiers where a joy), action scenes were somewhat good, not a lot can't judge more, and pity points because I know they're still learning

[btstulip]

Jimin being bullied in AYS?

I never expected to be writing about this, but I feel it's important to talk about. Bullying and toxic behavior is serious and I keep seeing it come up when people talk about Are You Sure?! episode 3 in Jeju.

Frequently when reading about people's reactions to AYS, I find myself wondering if we've watched the same show. Even though I know our own life experiences influence how we see the world, it's always amazing to me how different that perception can sometimes be.

I am not here to tell anyone they are wrong about Jungkook and Tae and it makes no difference to me if you like them or not. I am only hoping to give people the chance to look again from a different perspective and maybe ask themselves what kind of lens they may be viewing this episode (and maybe life) through.

It’s not my perspective I want to show you… it’s Jimin’s.

This is going to be a bit long, but I hope that you will read to the end and feel free to discuss or share your own perspective in a respectful way.

▶︎ Jimin feeling sick

Before getting into what Jungkook and Tae did that has upset people, we have to discuss Jimin feeling unwell. I want to start by pointing out that Jimin is in a good mood and his stomach does not seem to be slowing him down. Obviously he isn't 100% and he mentions feeling like he will vomit if he eats, but we see him drinking without issue and otherwise seeming fine. He's having fun at the restaurant and even chases Tae.

Let me repeat that, Jimin chases Tae down the street, abandoning his shoes! I am not saying Jimin doesn't feel sick, but he is obviously far from miserable.

The most popular theory is that Jimin has motion sickness from driving since he is known to get motion sick. I personally struggle with this theory since he is in such a good time in the car and not holding back puke the whole time. My personal theory is that Jimin is probably hungover, but obviously I could be wrong. Another reasonable guess would be that he is recovering from food poisoning or a stomach bug where he is feeling better, but still fragile. Either way, he seems okay for the most part.

▶︎ Bullying or playing?

I'm going to try to stick to the events in this section, but please keep reading because I have some things I want to point out in the next section.

It starts with the guys hanging out on the floor together having fun just being with each other. Tae and Jungkook start head banging while Jimin lays on the ground next to them. Jimin then sits up and says he feels sick. Then he tries to lay on Jungkook, but they both laugh when Jungkook stops him (while looking directly at the camera). At that point Tae spins Jimin around and wants Jimin to join them in head banging, but Jimin says he might throw up.

Jimin goes along with it anyway right up until his stomach revolts. At this point, Jimin pushes Tae's hand away and lays down. Tae laughs and Jimin smiles. Pretty sure he is feeling a bit like an old man.

Shortly later we see Jimin happily hanging out on the floor and singing when Jungkook decides to go swimming.

Then comes the water guns. Jimin is relaxing on the ground singing to himself when Jungkook runs up and sprays him and then runs off to ambush Tae. Jimin says he's exhausted at this point, but he doesn't seem upset, more like just stating facts and maybe explaining why he isn't joining them. There's lots more spraying by Jungkook, then Jimin goes back to singing while they reload and both come back for another round and soak Jimin. All the while they are spraying him, Jimin keeps laughing. Even when you can't pick out Jimin's individual laugh, (after 1 min mark in the video below) you can see his shoulders moving and at the end, you can clearly hear him laugh to himself, still entertained by the antics of these big kids.

Jimin changes into swim trunks and watches his friends play in the pool before sitting down and talking to us about how he is getting older and his body doesn't work the same anymore. He's obviously not feeling up to joining Tae and Jungkook in the pool, but he's smiling and moving around. And after talking to some birds, he decides to nap on the ground instead of going to lay down in bed.

Also, after a little nap and rest, Jimin starts running around with the water guns and then they all go to indoor rock climb and ride go-carts.

▶︎ Jimin isn't helpless. Period.

I have rewatched the footage over and over so I can look critically at the situation and three key things stand out to me:

Jimin isn't "that" sick. I am not trying to minimize how Jimin felt at all. He was obviously unwell and wanted to rest. However Jimin wasn't so sick that he couldn't get up and leave if he had wanted to. He had lots of chances to go lay down in bed and chose to stay over and over again. But we saw Jimin go all out chasing Tae earlier, and after a nap, Jimin is back to goofing around.

People need to respect Jimin and his choices. He isn't powerless. He knows how to set boundaries and chooses which boundaries to set, like pushing Tae's hand away when he feels like he might puke. Jimin is not being forced to stay downstairs, start round two with the water guns, go rock climbing, or ride go-carts. All of these were his choice and point to him feeling well enough and wanting to participate in the ways he chooses.

Jungkook and Tae are playing and laughing with Jimin. They are not trying to be mean to Jimin, they are including him in their fun. And we clearly see Jimin laughing and smiling in response. Even when he tells Tae to stop spraying him, he says it in a very soft, not assertive way and then continues to stay there and laugh when they keep spraying him. He isn't getting annoyed or frustrated. Jimin may not feel like getting up and running around with them (at least not in that moment because he does later), but he seems more entertained by their behavior than annoyed.

▶︎ Look again

When I watched the first and last time, I saw so much love and joy and I don't know how people missed it.

Love is never an excuse for putting up with someone who treats you badly. When people set boundaries, they should be respected. In order for me to see the behavior in this episode as anything other than harmless play, I would have to believe that Jungkook and Tae were intentionally being cruel, Jimin was upset by how he was being treated, and that Jimin wasn't capable of stopping the situation when ever he wanted. But I just can't find any evidence showing any of that. In fact, I see the opposite.

I’m going to focus only on what we see in this episode, but we have years of evidence that we are ignoring.

When Jimin is actually sleeping, we see both Tae and Jungkook check in on him and leave him to rest peacefully.

And later, when Jimin cut his lip, the panic and concern on both Tae and Jungkook's faces speaks volumes. Yes, it only takes a second for them to realize that Jimin is okay (that's how well they can read him) and return to smiling and being playful. But even when Tae breaks the tension with a fake punch, Jimin doesn't show even the slightest bit of annoyance. This is how they often play together and Jimin is okay with that in this moment.

Can I just point out for a second how funny I find it when Jungkook turns and tells the staff that Jimin got hurt like a little kid telling the teacher? 😂

This is their bond and we only get a glimpse of it. And we can’t forget the fact that Jungkook picked up and brought Jimin his shoes. If touching those things isn't an act of love, I don't know what is. LOL

I watched this episode over and over again and I didn't see Jimin being too sick and weak to set boundaries for himself. If Jimin had wanted Jungkook and Tae to leave him alone, I believe Jimin would have communicated that clearly and firmly and they would have listened. We have years of evidence that both Jungkook and Tae love and respect Jimin, to the point where people feel "shocked by this side of them they have never seen before". I think it's because "this side of them" doesn't exist and has been imagined by people that have forgotten that Jimin can set boundaries and make decisions for himself. I don't understand how people can ignore the evidence in order to see their play filled day together as something toxic and cruel.

Ultimately, it isn't up to us to decide if Jimin is being bullied, it's his. And if you look to him for signs he is upset with what is happening, there just isn't any evidence of that at all.

I say this from a place of love and without judgement... if you are more upset for Jimin than he is, then this may be less about Jimin and his relationships and more about how you feel in yours. If you saw something other than Jimin choosing to participate in his own way and having fun in spite of feeling under the weather, I suggest you spend some time reflecting on your ability to set boundaries for yourself. ❤️

[sometipsygnostalgic]

Nintendo 3d rendering vs Sony disc size

The Nintendo 64 and the Nintendo Gamecube both had better 3D geometry than the Playstation and the Playstation 2, but the Playstations were able to have much more music and textures than the Nintendo consoles. They were also able to have more 3d objects in a space at one time. Infamously you could fit all the top 10 N64 games on a single Playstation disc, and then more.

The N64 models looked solid despite their low polygon count. It had this weird double anti-aliaising effect which made images look blurry. However, textures were very, very limited, and the cartridge could not fit much music or fmvs.

The playstation had worse geometry and even had the "wobble" effect on most games, due to its Z-buffering hardware not being used. However, it was able to make up for its weaknesses.

It used textures to elevate the look of its 3d models, and replaced backgrounds with detailed 2d textures in games like Resident Evil and Final Fantasy 7.

It also used pre-rendered videos and lots of music, things missing from the N64 entirely.

Games that use pre-rendered videos on other platforms, like "Star Wars Episode 1: Racer," had them removed from their N64 ports.

This image seems to be taken from an emulator. I'm having a hard time finding images captured from the original devices. However, you can see that the ps1 has a "wobble" effect and the n64 has lower resolution textures.

These issues ended up carrying over into the PS2/Gamecube generation.

This is Mariokart Double Dash. It's a very good looking gamecube. Its geometry is simple and it only has 16 tracks, but it's more than playable today, and still looks good when upscaled on an emulator.

This is San Andreas. While the game is graphically impressive, you'll notice that the models for vehicles and even the UI look worse when compared to Gamecube games.

However, San Andreas was able to fit so much more information on the disc than any Gamecube game.

Instead of being limited to 16 race tracks and 16 racers like Double Dash, you have an entire open world to explore and dozens of cars to choose from. You have a hundred hours of things to do in this game. There is hours of music that you can listen to in the cars.

That's why San Andreas was never ported to Gamecube - the game requires 4.2gb of DVD space, whereas the Gamecube's DVD-R was never larger than 1.4gb.

To be honest, I have no idea what black magic Capcom used to port Resident Evil 4 to Gamecube.

When the Nintendo Wii came out, it retained the Gamecube's power for the most part, while offering DVD space of up to 8gb!!! Finally it could have things like music and voice acting.

However... the PS3 and Xbox 360 were already on their way, and the standard definition Wii was far from their ballcourt.

In the Wii's early days, the PS2 was also still in a lot of hands. So developers who wanted to make games for Wii ported them to PS2, and vice versa. Both consoles ended up having lots of "previous generation" versions of games, like The Force Unleashed, which ran better on Wii than the PS2 by a small margin and had different features like motion controls.

[stargazerlily7210]

Hello, and welcome to my TED Talk.

In this essay, I will demonstrate why I think Mrs. Flood is Susan Foreman (aka The Doctor's Granddaughter, aka The Unearthly Child, aka The Boss, aka The One Who Waits).

I know, I know. Not exactly the hottest take out there.

But buckle in, cause this goes deep.

Getting this out of the way first: I know this season has been billed as a bit of a fresh start (what with calling it Season 1, and all) and thus people are wary about assuming Mrs. Flood is a returning character. But let's be real. Just look at the 60th anniversary specials. Ya know, the massive 3 parter whose plot has set everything in motion for this next season.

They feature The 14th Doctor (aka The 10th Doctor revamped) with Donna Noble and her family (from the 2000's), Kate Lethbridge-Stewart (from the 2010's) who is both the current leader of UNIT (from Classic Who) and the daughter of The Brigadier: original leader of UNIT (throughout all of Classic Who), The Meep (from a Classic Who comic strip of all things) The Toymaker (Classic Who) and Mel (Classic Who).

And that's just the characters. Never mind the near constant references to both New and Classic Who.

They made it appealing and approachable to new viewers, sure. But they've already proven they're not actually interested in distancing themselves from the show's past.

So why do I think she's Susan, specifically?

Well, for starters, although the age of an actress doesn't really mean much in a 60 yr old time-travel show that's already had (MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVENT SEEN THE 11TH DOCTOR'S EPISODES!!) a parent-child dynamic where the daughter is not just played by an actress who's noticably older than the parents, but also canonically met the doctor first, despite her parents being the primary companions, (and each of them are played by both adult and child actors). But Anita Dobson is 74. Which would have made her 14/15 when the show started in 1963. Around the same age Susan Foreman is supposed to be/appear.

But again, that doesn't really mean anything in this show. So why else would I think she's Susan? And why do I think this means she's also The Boss mentioned by the Meep, AND The One Who Waits mentioned by The Toymaker?

Well, because I think it all falls into place with some of the big themes they've been pushing in the episodes so far, if she's Susan.

I mean, from what I know of Susan, she was a refugee from Galifrey, with her grandfather, The Doctor. As far as we know, he's her only family. He'd basically been raising her until she caught feelings for a human guy, so The Doctor decided she'd be better off staying on Earth. Effectively abandoning his very traumatized teenage granddaughter in 1960's London. It wasn't malicious, he was trying to do what's best for her. But he still left her there against her will and never came back for her.

So she's an orphaned teenage refugee, raised in a high-tech alien culture, stuck in the 1960's, with her first major crush as her primary confidant and caregiver. Let's be real. She'd have been deemed a mentally unstable minor, and at best institutionalized, at worst dissected/studied, in a heartbeat (or rather, two heartbeats (a surprise tool that'll help us later)).

So here we have a woman who's likely been drugged and tortured ("psychotherapy" in the 1960s, am I right?), gaslit, and desperately isolated for a significant portion of her life. With a massive list of reasons to both deeply resent and have seriously dissociated from The Doctor and the TARDIS.

And now we finally get to the new episodes:

The Meep says that creatures with two hearts are so rare that it can't wait to tell The Boss about The Doctor. So we have The Meep, who just happened to pick Earth to "crash land" on, answering to a nameless Boss who's on the lookout for 2 hearted creatures. Thus, we're looking for someone with both a connection to Earth and intimate knowledge of Timelord biology.

The Toymaker says even he didn't dare face The One Who Waits. Which says a lot, considering the importance and prevalence of people described as Waiting with a capitol W.

(MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE 10TH and 11TH DOCTOR'S EPISODES!!) Off the top of my head, I can think of Jack Harkness aka The Face of Boe who waited billions of years to see The Doctor again. We have Amy Pond aka The Girl Who Waited, and Rory Williams aka The Boy Who Waited. We even have Sara Jane Smith, who's first real conversation with the The Doctor after finding him again had her admitting she'd spent her whole adult life waiting for him to come back. So to be The One Who Waited, above and beyond all others? You'd have to have somehow waited more than the rest. And when you're already talking about Waiting upwards of 5 Billion years, that's tough to do. Unless you're looking at it from The Doctor's perspective. And the Granddaughter he'd abandoned 15 lifetimes ago would absolutely fit that bill.

So we have an individual who is intelligent/knowledgeable enough to be called The Boss by an alien kapable of mind control and space flight, who's searching for creatures with 2 hearts. Who's earned the title of The One Who Waits, above so many other candidates.

And we just so happen to meet a character who's being played by an actress the same age Susan should be.

Speaking of, we can finally look at Mrs. Flood herself. When I first watched the episode, it struck me just how angry she was at seeing the TARDIS. When it's far more normal to see people ignoring the thing. So her reaction is weird, both in general, and for a character the actress herself described as a friendly neighbor lady.

It's only after she's utterly shocked by the TARDIS disappearing in front of her that she starts acting different. As if seeing that unlocked her memories. From there on out, she's a different person who knows exactly what's going on. She even addresses the audience at the end and knows to call it a TARDIS. Which Susan of all people would know, as Susan claimed to have come up with the acronym herself, during her time with the 1st Doctor (whether that's technically canon or not, idk).

It's also worthy to note, that if you look at the houses during the scene where she's complaining about the TARDIS, you'll see that on the outside, her house, while the most extravagantly decorated outside, is noticably stark and empty inside, unlike each of the other houses where you can clearly see decorations through the windows. Not to mention, her door is the only one that looks like the TARDIS. The other doors are either the wrong shade, or style, or both. And her's is the only one that doesn't have stairs going to the second level. I don't know how much of this is just working within the confines of the location, and how much is intentional, or what it would mean, but we see enough wide shots of the house fronts, it seems potentially relevant.

So if Mrs. Flood is, in fact, Susan Foreman, she's exactly the right age, she'd have had more than enough reason to be triggered by the sight of the TARDIS, more than enough intelligence/knowledge to reach Boss status in her search for a rare two-hearted creature and being The Doctor's Granddaughter, could absolutely intimidate The Toymaker, and have more than enough claim to the title of The One Who Waited.

And if she turned out to be a future Big Bad, she would have the trauma, reasoning, skillset, and intelligence to truly challenge The Doctor and force him to deal with the repercussions of his habit of never stopping or looking back at his actions or mistakes.

We've never seen if Susan can regenerate as far as I'm aware, but we know she's a Timelord and significantly younger than The Doctor. So if she can, the actress has already suggested that Mrs. Flood will go through quite a transformation throughout future episodes. We might be seeing the birth of a new antagonist for a new generation of the show.

Honorable Mention: I feel like The Boss is right up there with The Doctor and The Master. And RTD would absolutely make The Boss a bada** boss babe.

Phew. That was a whole essay. If you've made it this far, congrats!! I'd love to hear your thoughts!

[legobiwan]

TotJ Rewatch: Ramblings (1 of 3)

After a long abstention from consuming anything Star Wars-related, I plopped down on my couch yesterday and decided it was time to dip my toes back into this arena, mostly for the purposes of writing.

And what better way to delve back into this universe than by starting with the Dooku episodes of Tales of the Jedi?

Boi, oh boi, had I forgotten how much I love this character.

And so without a thesis or much a point whatsoever, I'd like to ramble about a few dozen thoughts I had while yelling incoherently through this rewatch.

Episode 2, "Justice"

One of the overarching themes of Dooku's episodes is this unsettling notion of darkness. Even at the start of this episode, gone are the usual triumphant Star Wars themes are so familiar with - the militant and boisterous brass, the rising strings and woodwinds. Instead, this episode opens with somewhat dissonant string passages interspersed with with a subtle, almost glistening electronic tones that meld in and out of the sustained string notes.

There is no optimism whatsoever as Dooku and Qui-gon set down on what looks to be the charred husk of village.

The remainder of these episodes rarely lighten in tone. And I don't think the thrust here is that Dooku is the only Jedi to have encountered these unfortunate situations - suffering and devastation due to corrupt politicians in a Republic the Jedi is supposedly tasked with protecting. What I do think is that this is all meant to be seen through the lens of Dooku's increasing disillusion. That these scenes are bleak because that's what Dooku is focusing on, more and more, to the point where...well, we know what happens.

But anyway, to get back to the episode.

You have give props to the animation team here. The continuity with Qui-gon's older self having a tendency to show cleavage apparently stems from his youth, where it was even more exacerbated. (Aren't you cold, Qui-gon?) The best part of this is the contrast with Dooku and he (of course) very well put-together outfit.

Maybe teen!Qui-gon just went through too many growth spurts and the Jedi tailor threw up their hands in frustration. I do find it infinitely amusing that Dooku - Mr. Propriety himself - had two students (Rael and Qui-gon) who might as well have been wearing burlap sacks half the time. Never let it be said that Dooku didn't allow his charges to express themselves, even though I'm certain it vexed the hell out him.

What's fascinating about this episode is the absolute economy of dialogue. There's not much of it, letting the visuals of the ravaged village and Dooku's own tight-lipped anger carry much of the weight of the narrative. It's almost as if we're at a point with Dooku where he knows he's angry, he knows his base instincts are trending in a bad direction, but he's still trying so, so hard to be a Jedi and toe the line, to believe in the Order he brought up in, which I think is partially why Dooku is so reserved in this particular episode, minus the part where he tries to Force-choke a guy.

I love that Qui-gon is doing the majority of the talking here. There's no disapproval written on Dooku's face, no motion made for him to hold his tongue or know his place. It truly shows the level of trust Dooku has in his student (and the level of trust in himself as a teacher) and also the level of respect he has for Qui-gon (despite his sartorial missteps). I've said it before and I'll say it again. Dooku is a teacher, through and through. He trains Qui-gon and is devastated at his death. He trains Ventress and is unwillingly forced to abandon her. He trains Savage as if he were a dark Padawan. He's constantly making remarks to Obi-wan as to how he could improve. The man can't help himself. But Qui-gon was special to him, as we'll see in another few episodes.

One of the most fascinating layers of Dooku's character is his political idealism. I'll point it out in more detailed fashion when I recap the next episode, but young Dooku and Padmé Amidala have so much in common. And it's wild for Dooku, as someone who (both canonically and in the EU) was born into a noble family, was aware of his heritage, and by all accounts, maintained a level of haughty distance from most people exacerbated by a taste for the finer things in life.

And yet...and yet. This is a man who is unbelievably angry at the actions of a corrupt Senate. That a village could be treated and forgotten this way. Padmé is little different, as we see in TPM and throughout TCW. (You have to wonder what a political powerhouse those could have been if they had stood on the same side of the aisle at the same time).

When we think of Dooku, we think of a relentless man who would go to any length to see the Jedi destroyed. And later, he goes on to commit some true atrocities. But like many roads paved to hell, it begins with good intentions, even if they may be self-serving.

Is it noblesse oblige? Maybe there's a hint of that. Does Dooku really care about the little person? In a way, but I don't think that's his major motivating factor.

Dooku grew up with the Jedi. He loves the Jedi, or at least loved the Jedi. He was talented and became one of their best. And then he started to see the cracks in the foundation and began to question everything about the Jedi, everything about himself. So much of this, in my mind, stems from a sense of betrayal by an organization and ideal which he held so dear to his heart (not to mention his main teacher was the head of the whole shebang).

What do you do when the thing you identify with the most - the thing that is you identity - your passion, in a way, your first love - curdles into something unrecognizable? If Dooku loved the Jedi any less, he would have left. (And that touches on a whole other cultural aspect of the Jedi Order and a type of institutional pressure that I won't get into here). Well, in Dooku's case, you start by trying to reform it from the inside. By bucking authority and replacing cracked edifice with your own hewn stone. Until you can't anymore, until the weight is too much to bear and your grievances begin to spill and metastasize into something else altogether.

The funny thing is, I feel like the start of this confrontation would have gone the same with almost any other Jedi. I can't see, say, Mace Windu (and I choose him as he gets underserved flak for being rule-abiding to the point of inhumanity) just up and saying, "Oh yeah, dude, you're totally right. Let's fuck over these peasants."

But where it gets interesting is when Dooku allows it to become a firefight. There's a long series of shots showing the fear of the villagers, the way Qui-gon looks around and is uncertain as to whether or not this is the right path.

Yes, Dooku, you do.

But. You're also willing (if not thrilled) for these people to become momentary collateral damage in an idealogical battle, as we see during the firefight exchange.

And the thing is...there's no easy answer here. It's not Republic vs. the Confederacy. It's not good versus evil. It's a lot more complicated than that, and Dooku isn't wrong in allowing the confrontation to happen. The Senator is corrupt. The Senator is willing to burn the village to the ground. The Jedi do (or should) serve the people of the Republic, first and foremost.

You can see why Dooku Force-choked the guy, in a way. He's still at a point where this collateral damage goes against everything he believes in, where he sees that the only option of restoring justice is through darkness, and he's willing to go there. For justice. For peace. (For himself).

The real hero here is Qui-gon, who is quick enough to realize number one, that his Master is going over the edge again (and given Qui-gon's response, I have zero reason to believe this was the first incident), and number two, that the Senator's son would be far more effective in persuading his father to abandon his terrible, awful plan of obliteration (although would his father have listened had Dooku not choked out of him first?)

As we know, Dooku is an aloof man. Touch is probably not one of his most-used emotional languages. I realize that in raising a child, even if they are ten to twelve years old when they come into your care, you probably have to have some comfort or at least tolerance of physical touch. But the fact that Qui-gon has no fear of Dooku and his possible reaction, that he instinctually takes him by the shoulder. I feel that with Dooku, so little can say so much, and to me, this is obvious proof of the solidity and trust in that relationship.

Part of the issue here is - Dooku's gambit works. Now, yes, he is absolutely correct in the exchange below that Qui-gon truly saved the day, but as I noted, it's not guaranteed the Senator would have listened to his son prior to having the life choked out of him. And what does Dooku received in response? Positive reinforcement. The village is being rebuilt. The Senator (for now) is reconsidering his actions. Brute force, in a way, worked, even if Dooku at the time was not fully in control of his own actions. And there's this weird negative/positive feedback loop where Dooku is rewarded for his actions, even if he knows his methods were less than savory, even his guilt eats at him, leading to the discussion below.

It's so interesting that Dooku is teetering on the edge during these years, but is always somehow brought back. It's really when he stops having a Padawan - that's one of the tipping points, where he has no counter-balance, has no one else to invest himself in, to learn from and, in some ways, live for. You almost have to wonder if some of Dooku's issues could have been solved by forcing another student on him after Qui-gon was knighted.

Next post on the docket: "Choices"

[buddiebeginz]

In the beginning of this season we had Chris talking about Shannon and how it didn't matter if he wasn't being serious about the girls he's dating because all people did was leave anyway. They kind of wrapped all that up in that episode but I feel like there was a lot more to that scene than just the surface stuff.

This could have been just a convo with Eddie and Chris or even just Chris and Buck but instead it was all three of them. They put Eddie in that scene for a reason. Because it's not just Chris that's afraid of everyone leaving it's Eddie too.

More accurately Eddie is scared to lose the one person who knows him better than anyone else (think about who was there during the worst parts of Eddie's ptsd) and who was not only there but saved Eddie during the shooting. Buck is who knows him and who he depends on not just as a friend and partner but as a co parent. Just look at when he was worried about Chris this season he went straight to Buck to talk about it and ask for help.

What if Eddie has known about his feelings for Buck since he almost died in that well. If you watch that ep what he sees in his flashes of memory are predominately Buck and Chris. And what did he do after that? He added Buck to his will. Sure it was to make sure Chris was safe and looked after but if you watch and listen to Eddie when he tells Buck about the will it's clear that he was trying to say I love you to him in the only way he felt he could. Also if the will wasn't that big of a deal why did it take him a whole year to even tell Buck about it?

We've been so focused on Buck and his jealousy and insecurities (rightfully so given his past) we haven't been talking about how Eddie has a lot of those himself. What happened with Shannon scarred him a lot especially where Chris is concerned. She hadn't even been back in their lives all that long before she died and it clearly still impacts them both.

If you look at how few relationships Eddie has had since then and how he always seems hesitant to be vulnerable or invest much of himself in them this is why. I also think it's because his heart already belongs to Buck. These relationships to me have all feel very hollow like we're watching a guy just go through the motions. I mean look at how he broke up with Ana.

I think it's very likely that Eddie knows how he feels about Buck is more than just friendship but 1. He doesn't think those feelings would be reciprocated. 2. Even if they are I think Eddie is going to be scared at first to risk their friendship and change things. To lose the one person who has been a constant since he came into it. But I think Eddie's biggest hesitation will be Chris. He knows the kind of bond Chris and Buck have had so I think he would be worried about doing something to fuck that up. He still likely blames himself over Shannon's death and blames himself for why his son doesn't have a mom, so he'll likely be scared to risk losing the only other parent Chris has known.

Ultimately I do think we're going to get canon Buddie (probably not until season 8) but I do think this is one way they could drag the story out for a little bit. Like we could have Buck with his whole jealousy thing which leads him into figuring out his sexuality and at some point during all this in season 7 he'll have his Oh moment.

Eventually Eddie either finds out about Buck's feelings for him or Buck tells him and maybe we even get a kiss between them but then Eddie stops it and says he can't do it he can't risk what they have for something they might have and lose.

So into season 8 they're a little weird around each other until Buck decides to start dating a guy and we get to see Eddie being jealous and realizing he doesn't want to be without Buck anymore (and can't stand the thought of him with someone else). And this forces him to have to deal with a lot of the stuff he's never really dealt with from Shannon's death. Maybe we get some Frank scenes. Or maybe some Eddie and Maddie scenes because despite what the show would have a us believe I do think they hang out sometimes. But at some point maybe towards the end of season 8 we get one of those big sappy romantic gestures where Eddie tells Buck he loves him and he's always been his person. I'd also love it if season 8 ended up with Buck moving into Eddie and Chris' place. Buck has always been searching for where he belongs when his home is right there with his boys.

[sparkanonymous]

Dragons Rising: Season 2

I'm a little bit more nervous to watch season 2; I like watching things that make me feel happy, and from the brief spoilers I've gotten about this season, this is probably gonna be more sad than anything... But I'll try.

I will be continuing to work on the two pieces I was working on before, so check the bottom of this post if you want to see my progress! (This goes for my season 1 notes post, too, by the way.)

⚠️ Spoilers for episodes 1-5!

Divider by cafekitsune

Episode 1: The Blood Moon

New Jordana look, huh? I don't really like it right now, but I can grow to get used to it.

So are the lines on her face just... permanent?

Good to know Raz has night vision.

Jordana is clearly scared about all of this... I wonder how long it will take for her to switch sides.

The bad guys always seem too distracted, intentionally taking their time to get to their targets. I kinda understand why it was that way for the little phone video in the beginning of the episode, since it's such a cramped space to work with and the movements might cause motion sickness. But with every other fight? No.

Wow, Ryu grew up quite fast.

Fugidove? In 2024?

Holy fuck, the news reporter remembered Pixal? Most of the ninja didn't even remember her. Actually, practically nobody in Ninjago city. He's either a super fan, or the writers completely forgot that fact for this season.

Is Intelligent George a parody on someone? I can't tell.

Did Sora really have to spell that out? Did they just... not think that that people watching the second season had already watched the first? I feel like spelling it out like that will make people not want to go back and rewatch the first season to see what they missed.

Also, with how much bigger Ryu is, I would've thought more time had passed. The way Sora had said that line makes it sound like she just unlocked her true potential instead of it being like... a few months ago or something.

Okay, so now we're on the "Arin really wants elemental powers" thing. He seemed mostly fine with that last season. What changed?

Arin, if you're looking for someone to be talking about those still lost in the merge, why the hell would you watch a Youtuber who only wants to talk about the ninja to sell merch? There are plenty of people that you could talk to; the people you're currently around would be far better to talk to about this. I know that they don't have the solution right now, but they are far more likely to come up with one before a fucking Youtuber.

Sora and Arin are such good friends. Even if their interests are completely different, they still partake in the other's activities, especially when the other is looking blue.

Poor Frohicky, lol

Zane would have already heard and figured out these figures of speech back in like... season 1 or 2. But he's still cute. I like that Kai and Zane are playing the video game together.

The layout of this game makes me think of the TMNT arcade game. Nice touch.

Hm... so Lloyd's getting more visions... or he's having a nightmare... or both?

So... Zane and Sora are gonna get taken down. Is Arin going to rebel, betray them? Beatrix is clearly coming back, which I figured would happen after she disappeared into that merge-quake at the end of last season.

Wu watching over his nephew is nice, but... where's Garmadon? Sure, Wu is probably more iconic and a better teacher, but Garmadon is Lloyd's father. I want to see him again... would he have the same golden glow that Wu's ghost does, or would he have a purple glow or be a purple void?

Also, where's Nya? I don't think I've seen her at all this episode.

Why is Arin's voice so soft now? It's like he's constantly whispering into the mic?

Kreel not even denying that she tried to make their mech explode back in episode 1 lol

Wait is the junkyard ghost Wu?

Wow, that was a small investigation montage.

I like Ryu's teenage model over the baby one, but he reminds me a little too much of Toothless.

That old lady shaming those throwing away a good dragon... but not taking the dragon? Oh, come on; she would've totally tried to take Ryu back home with her. It's an old lady thing.

Oh my god, Arin stop self-pitying; this is not the time.

Arin, they will be proud of you; you're a ninja.

Lloyd's gonna have a heart attack.

Woah, the camera during this fight is really wobbly. It actually feels like Arin, Sora, and Ryu are in danger.

The actual panic in Lloyd's voice.

Give me the smoke guy's name. I need it. He's really cool.

Episode 2: Shattered Dreams

Wait, the writers of destiny are still a thing? I would've thought that they would have disbanded after it was proven that writing the future didn't actually mean anything.

Their idea of fun is bagels? Yeah, I can see it.

Wait, so their entire religion isn't completely founded on made up bullshit?

Lloyd, why would you drink that?

Sora, you sound like Raven Queen.

Arin, that's robot-ist. In front of Zane? Really?

Y'all are in broad daylight. So much for being ninja.

Everybody judging Sora's graffiti, including Zane lmao

Hitting Zane in the head with a non-magic teapot lmfao

The Gong of Shattering is such a terrible name.

Poor Arin, lol

Oh, no. This is Arin's undoing. He's gonna hit the gong in order to try and get an elemental power, he'll turn evil, and then fight beside Raz. I'm calling it now!

I really enjoy Percival's character now. He's learning, he's helping out, and he seems to be kinder than when he was under Beatrix's rule. I think the rebellion was good for him.

The Master Writer was so scared, he didn't even try to run. Wow. Anyone will let the bad guys overthrow them, huh.

Euphrasia should seriously train with the other ninja; she's far too weak to be looking after a kingdom alone. (Yes, I know that they're making all the ninja really bad at fighting to make it look like the smoke ninja is way stronger than them, but still.)

It's not called the Blood Moon for anything good. Is it ever?

You're supposed to be sneaky; that glowing green spinjitzu is not sneaky in any way.

Why did Euphrasia have to say that? She could have looked relieved instead of saying that terribly said "Thank goodness your okay!"

Zane, that doesn't answer shit. A written language can't look evil. That's the dumbest shit I've ever heard.

Should Euphrasia even be here to save the Master Writer? She's using a crutch. Actually, does literally everybody have to be here for this? Bigger groups are hard to be stealthy with, and most of them aren't really being useful. They should've picked three to go in while everyone else stays behind as back up.

So Raz was the reason the worms turned evil last season. Hm...

I'm still not over it. Why is Ryu here? It should've been Lloyd, Arin, and Zane; Lloyd because he needs to confirm his visions, Arin because he's really foreshadowing something, and Zane to confirm the stupid language thing. Euphrasia would've been a good choice to bring if she wasn't using a crutch. Everyone else is just... here for no fucking reason except to just listen to the Master Writer. They're not really hiding, so any of the wolf-masked characters could easily find them. They didn't bother animating anyone except Lloyd and Arin going up the wall; they all just kinda teleported. This is bothering me so bad. (Not everyone has to be here to listen. The three that would've gone could've spread the information off screen so it didn't become too repetitive.)

See, I fucking told you. Now Lloyd's having another panic attack.

Why did the gong only affect the wolf-masks? Is the detail I missed that they have to be wearing the wolf mask to be affected by the gong? That seems dumb.

Lmao Kai

Woah, Zane glitching.

Episode 3: Beyond the Phantasm Cave

Wait, where did Kai's mech come from?

Of course when Lloyd asks for an answer, the source dragons come.

Wow, that source dragon from season 1 is so convincing, he convinced the other source dragons within seconds.

Why wouldn't Sora believe Lloyd after all of this?

Aw, Kai checking on Wyldfyre.

Nya, you trained under Wu for how long? You would know that, yes. He would bring you guys somewhere based on half-understood dreams.

Why is Zane always the one to keep an eye on the ship? Ugh.

"Now it sounds like the rotor sneezed!" Lmao Lloyd

It's sweet that Sora and Arin are talking to each other about fond memories, but... why? This came out of nowhere, and they just arrived at their destination. The writing here feels a little clunky.

Aw, now they all have grappling hooks.

Wow it sure took those snake things a while to come out to try and kill them.

Uh oh, Kai's powers not working very well...

Is this like the future telling ice thing in the original series?

Sora that is quite clearly static. How the hell did you think that was Kai?

Oh man, it's all their worst fears...

Oh, shit... The Jaya thing I've seen fanart for.

Poor fucking Nya... this is foreshadowing.

They have airjitzu. They could take the jump a lot more carefully.

Episode 4: Force From The East

Ooh, finally! Back to Cole.

God, Geo and Cole are so fruity.

That was a mouthful of exposition. They could've had a mini flashback of that moment from last season when Cole left and followed Wu. Sure, Geo didn't see that, but this show has never shied away from showing other character's perspectives during flashback sequences told by another character.

Geo being worried about Cole.

They're such an artistic family.

Bonzle is gonna make Geo panic.

Kai and Nya working together is sweet.

Me, too, Arin. Me, too.

The dragon speaking English instead of using telepathy or whatever.

"Should we... ask them what they want?" "Sure. What do you want?" *Gets obliterated* Lmao

Geo's so silly.

Finally; Cole comes to the rescue!

Bonzle's hiding something... I'm not sure what just yet. But she knew that they could leave when they previously couldn't.

Why does Zane have a Frohicky plushie? I'm so confused.

Why isn't Cole surprised to see Zane?

"- why do you have a frog-man-doll?" "It is a long and barely comprehensible story." I love them.

So that's why I thought the Glacier reunion was so... weird and terrible. They're in the middle of a chase scene.

I like how Zane tries to decipher what the problem is by examining his face... I'm so normal about this pairing, I swear.

I like how this episode is split into the stuff that Lloyd and crew were doing and Cole and family were doing, but I focus on just the Cole and family stuff. Mostly just Cole and Geo. They're family is really sweet and care about one another so deeply. Fritz and Spitz need more to do, though; they're kinda just... kids in the middle of everything, but they seem to be as strong and fast as the rest of their family, so... idk

Episode 5: The Spell at the Waterfall

Ah, the Zane and Frohicky side of the plot.

I understand what Frohicky is trying to accomplish, but Zane has already gone to him if he has a problem with the things he's doing. That's just the kind of guy Zane is. This tactic might have worked better with Kai or Lloyd.

Zane whacking the bad guy with the stupid fucking doll lmao

Why wouldn't Bonzle have told them earlier? Lmao what a mouthful.

Oh, so that kinda makes sense... kinda. For Bonzle to know when the could leave. But she would've sensed that opening a long time ago, and probably would have looked more worried throughout the beginning of last episode.

See? The entire Cole and Geo family is artistic.

Bonzle met Master Wu?!

Kai and Nya are so epic.

So, wait. i thought Wu would have taken her to meet the ninja, but I guess not?

Aw, Cole and Geo getting emotional about Bonzle's story.

"This reminds of the old days. Count me in." "That's what I'm talking about." Ugh... I love them too much...

So is one of the source dragons helping Raz? Or am I going crazy?

Of course, there are some critics I have. But I'm liking this so far, even with how often Lloyd was getting panicked and the amount of foreshadowing to future episodes I was getting. Still a little nervous about what's coming, though...

Current Progress:

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

Thoughts after finishing a re-watch of Taskmaster season 2:

- You can see this a lot throughout seasons 1 and 2, that in the early season they had a lot more time for the tasks. The average seemed to be an hour, while these days 20 minutes would be a long time. I can why there would be very good budgetary reasons to shorten the timeframe once they were doing 10 episodes instead of 5 or 6, if they gave them an hour for each task they’d be there forever. But still, an hour is enough time for the contestants to come up with some cool stuff that just can’t be done in 20 minutes. I enjoyed watching that.

- I still think Impress the Mayor is one of the best tasks in Taskmaster history. I see why they don’t do stuff with the general public anymore (like high fiving a 55-year-old in season 1, and season 2 had a bit of that with ordering a pizza), but I think they should bring on more authority figures and make Taskmaster people entertain them. I don’t think they’ve done that since with someone of that stature, and actually, it’s been a long time since they’ve brought in an outside person of any stature (ie. the woman they had find things in common with in season 6, the guy they cheered up in season 7, Rosalind the nightmare, even Fred). Those are fun.

- The was a very potato-heavy season, even by Taskmaster standards. The potato throw. The potato bridge. The cat named Patatas. The potato live task. The bandstand potato team task. The stop motion potato team task. That’s a lot of potatoes for a five-episode season.

- On the subject of the bandstand potato team task, it was jarring to see them bring in Josh, as they’ve now more firmly established the rules of Taskmaster and they don’t include just throwing in ex-contestants to make a team task fairer.

- I had it in my head, for some reason, that season 2 was slightly better than season 1. On a re-watch, I’d say it was the other way around. Season 2 was very good, but season 1 hit some highs it couldn’t quite match. Possibly due to the cast not seeming to get along quite as well.

- Every time I have to do one of those “prove you’re a human” things that ask me to click on every picture with a bridge, I mutter the Greg Davies quote “Sometimes you don’t see bridges” under my breath. It was fun to see that one in context again.

- I also have a kid at work who likes to name farm animals, so sometimes I sing Old McDonald to him. Every time I do, I picture Joe Wilkinson standing there in his suit looking blank, and I sing the song in his disinterested voice, and the kid giggles, it’s great.

- Jon Richardson is, as I’ve said before, absolutely right to be upset that he got robbed of a season victory by one live task in which it was possible to get fifteen actual points, especially when the scoring system wasn’t made particularly clear in the instructions. Having said that, I am please that Katherine Ryan has given us Canada’s 100% winning record on UK Taskmaster (with Mae Martin).

- The good old bandstand. I like the increasingly elaborate sets, but the bandstand was fun. Someone on Reddit posted a map recently that shows how you can walk from the Taskmaster house to the Taskmaster bandstand in about half an hour, I have saved that map and intend to do that walk when I go to London this summer. Along the Thames and see if I can catch sight of Tim Key’s ice block.

- The task where they threw groceries across the river, was also very strong. Richard Osman just fucking going for it with all his might to launch a shopping cart into the water is one of my favourite shots of Taskmaster, for similar reasons to Romesh Ranganathan throwing the watermelon on the floor. I like watching people really go for things. Richard Osman eating that egg with no hesitation whatsoever and then casually picking up his tea and walking away like a movie star was pretty fucking cool too. God Richard Osman is cool.

- I now think of Joe Wilkinson’s ass whenever I see a pineapple, so that’s a fun effect Taskmaster has had on my life.

- I don’t often think of Jon Richardson doing the four one-minute tasks when I think of tasks that have been set just for one person. But I should, because that was a lot of fun. I like how they upped the ante a bit from the previous season with Josh just doing it on his own, getting others involved in setting the tasks. That was very funny. Also, the makeup tutorial one reminded me of a particularly intense/harrowing bit from the Russell Howard/Jon Richardson BBC 6 Music Show, and Jon looked quite upset while doing it, I think Katherine Ryan may have inadvertently given Jon some flashbacks.

- I said after episode 1 that Katherine Ryan was really funny in that episode, I think she may have remained the most consistently funny contestant throughout the season. The perfect mix of confidence and ability to laugh at herself.

- The final live task was excellent.

- I see why they didn't keep making them buy gifts for Greg for 17 seasons straight, but I think they should bring that one back in some future season, just once, as a treat.

[toujokaname]

Game master / Episode 21

Author: Akira

Characters: Aira, Rinne, Kohaku, HiMERU, Tatsumi, Mayoi

"I'm grateful, I honestly am."

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[ Read on my site for a better viewing experience using Ois~su ♪ ]

Season: Winter

Location: Matrix Stage

Aira: —Hwah?!

(H-Huh? Where... is this?)

(It's bright! My eyes are adjusting after being in the dark for so long, but somehow, after dodging those weirdos for ages, we've stumbled into this wide area!)

(What are these, fireflies? Stars? I can't tell, but there are so many lights floating around!)

(What's this mysterious space...?)

Rinne: Welcome.

Did you have fun with the test of courage?

Aira: Ah, there he is, the mastermind! Look, Hiro-kun, Kohakucchi, the culprit's shown himself! Now beat him up!

Kohaku: Right. But before that, mind clearin' a few things up?

What the hell's all this about?

Rinne: Gyahaha, what a dumbass question! "Teacher! I don't even know what I don't know!" That's literally you.

Kohaku: Shut up. I ain't in the mood to go along with your stand-up comedy, especially after havin' to play tag with those mysterious masked guys 'til just now.

Quit stallin' and fess up already, or I'll roll you up in a bamboo mat and plunge you into the sea, ya halfwit. [1]

Rinne: No wayyy, ever since getting involved with Double Face, my child's turned into a delinquent...

Kohaku: I've been a delinquent from the get-go~... If anythin', I've been gradually becomin' a good kid since then.

Rinne: Yeah. By now you must've figured I'm sketchy, and that Matrix has an ulterior motive, yet you've obediently played along until the very end.

To repay those feelings, I'm gonna show you guys something good.

This is—my real hometown.

Kohaku: Rinne-han's hometown...?

Rinne: What I've shown you so far is only the surface of our hometown.

Think of it like the layer that hides something important, the armor shielding something fragile.

To put it in extreme terms, unless we're talking about a completely different dimension—

Environments completely cut off from the outside world only exist, if at all, within specially treated equipment in a lab.

While our hometown may have a pretense of self-reliance, we still need to be connected to the outside world. For food, water, and other essentials.

Rinne: The Amagi Village you visited is a contact point set up for that purpose—it's nothing more than a bridgehead or a frontline base.

It's a fake Amagi Village, so to speak.

And this space, it's where the village meets the outside world, linked to our hometown—you could call it a gateway.

Look, you can vaguely make out a door in the back, right? Beyond there lies the real Amagi Village.

It's where we're from. After following a long, long tunnel from there, we reach the hometown where we were born and raised

Kohaku: Yeah, I see it. There's this faintly visible buildin' in the distance. Looks oddly modern—is that Rinne-han's real hometown?

Rinne: Yeah. To those expecting a stereotypical backward village from a movie, my condolences, but this ain't exactly the old-fashioned countryside that everyone imagines.

In terms of scientific power alone, we might be more advanced than you.

Making buildings levitate in the air with perpetual motion machines and anti-gravity is as simple as pie, unlike anything you guys can achieve.

HiMERU: Is this a story from a sci-fi novel?

Rinne: It's a story from reality. If I explain too much, even as the monarch, I might be held accountable, so I can't divulge all the details.

Well, mysteries are better in some ways, they let your imagination run wild ♪

Rinne: Maybe we're descendants of aliens who came from outer space. Or maybe we're underground dwellers who've lived in hiding on the other side of the earth.

Or maybe we're the descendants of a persecuted people, defeated by the Yamato Imperial Court and repeatedly driven into distant corners in ancient times.

Our origins don't matter. What matters is that we're intelligent beings who can talk and share our feelings with you.

Unlike insects or animals, we can do the same work as you.

We can live in the same society.

We can even become idols.

Tatsumi: It's clear that you, that all of you, are unfamiliar beings.

But if we share the same aspirations, we should be able to coexist. Isn't that so, Mayoi-san?

Mayoi: Yes, Tatsumi-san. That's why I, too, am shamelessly living here with you all.

Rinne: It's strange, isn't it, underground dwellers? We're people who may have different births and upbringings, maybe even different races, yet we wear the same clothing and sing the same songs.

And so, we can love and be loved by everyone. That's good, isn't it. It's a miracle.

Rinne: There's someone who taught me that such miracles really do exist.

Back in my teenage years, I longed for the outside world so much that I ran away from my hometown. After getting lost for a while, I ended up on some street corner—

And found someone singing and smiling.

It was an unknown idol, to the point where nobody knows his name anymore. Maybe not even Ai-chan, who loves idols so much, knows him.

A long time ago, he couldn't sell anything and ended up retiring.

And yet, that idol, who was nothing special at all and could be found anywhere—at the time, I was just some little kid and looked up to him.

When I seriously ran away from home and pursued becoming an idol, he helped me a lot. He was a kind guy who taught me the basics of how to be an idol.

His producer in charge was Akan-san, and when he retired and she was left with some free time, she decided to produce me too.

She managed to turn me into a proper idol, one way or another.

In the end, during my solo days, I couldn't keep up with the times, and I was left completely stranded when the bigwigs at my agency fell from power with "SS."

Even before that, I hardly had any jobs; I was essentially open for business but had none. That was just the final straw, or rather, the fatal blow.

Rinne: Despite being meant to disappear quietly like that, why is it that someone like me is still able to stand on stage even now?

It's all thanks to my benefactors who taught me how to live as an idol.

It's because of them that I've been able to love being an idol and still not be disillusioned.

I'm grateful, I honestly am.

[ ☆ ]

Kohaku's referring to "sumaki," a term associated with a method of execution. This method involved throwing someone wrapped in a mat into water, often resulting in death. While not a formal punishment for crimes, it was commonly employed in extrajudicial killings by bakuto, the predecessors to modern yakuza.

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[boysplanetrecaps]

Build Up Episode 0: Getting to Know the Boys Part 1: Team AllRound

Hey, friends! I’m struggling with writing the recap for episode one of Build Up on MNET because I want to stop and give you the background on everyone, which makes the recap really hard to follow. So I figure I’ll spend some time giving you their backgrounds in four separate posts, to help you get to know the guys. I mention things like where else you may have seen them, if they're in an idol group, who knows who, etc, as well as my opinion of their voice based on their teaser performance. I think it’ll make the recaps easier, both to read and to write. In this first post of four, I’ll be talking about the twelve contestants who chose to join the “Allround” category, as opposed to “Soul”, “Power”, or “Unique.” Let’s go!

Before we go on, I just want to let you know that I’ll sharing my informed opinion on their singing voices. I am going to be a little bit harder on them than I am on singers on Boys Planet, with the understanding that these are all great vocalists. We’re looking for the S+ tier guys amongst a group that is A tier at worst. So if I say anything a bit negative about a fave of yours, understand that I’m not saying that he’s a bad singer! Every guy here is an excellent singer. Cool? Cool! 

I also have to apologize, but most of my screenshots are going to be pretty awkward. The video I'm watching makes it really hard to use because every time you pause it, it opens all sorts of porny popups. When it's paused, it has a huge pause symbol in the middle of the picture. So I have to try to take screen shots while it's in motion. It's not easy! Hope you understand.

Also, I have even less time than usual to proofread these posts, so please forgive me for my inevitable typos. <3 Thank you!

Choi Suhwan

Suhwan is currently a soloist. He’s released a few digital singles, none of which have really taken off, unfortunately. You might remember him from ProduceX 101, where he made it to episode 11, so the final cut before the finale, finishing in 28th place. Pretty good!

He was V17, doing a cover of Energetic by Wanna One. I wasn’t blown away by that performance -- it sounded a little processed, and I wasn’t completely sure it was live --  so I sought out another one. Here’s a live performance of his song Losing Sleep. Unfortunately, in this performance, I found his voice a little too nasal and affected to be to my taste, and he had serious issues with his upper mix. He’s not a terrible singer, but there are a lot of stronger singers on this show. Or maybe I’m wrong and he’ll do better next time. Fighting! 

Bitsaeon

Bitsaeon is 28, and is the main vocalist from M.O.N.T. He seems to have a predilection for soft fuzzy sweaters. He was V36, singing Rose Blossom by H1-Key, and all I wrote down in my notes was “this is just a really nice voice.” I just really liked it. Clean, smooth, easy to listen to.

I think this performance of Creep by Radiohead shows both what I like and what I don’t like as much about his performances. He does a lot of this soft whisper singing in his covers, which seems like a waste of what he can do. I love his full belts -- they’re so good. I want to hear him sing full-on more often in songs, like he did with Rose Blossom.  

M.O.N.T. has a whole complicated dealie that I just don’t have the energy to figure out -- the wikipedia page explains some of it. They’re mainly a three member group, with a leader, a rapper, and a main vocal. They haven’t put out any singles in a while, so I’m not sure what’s going on with them. 

Incidentally, Bitsaeon almost certain knows Jay reasonably well. Jay was involved in this thing called MONT Arena that was supposed to collect more members for MONT, so along the way I’m sure they met. In fact, Jay is still signed to the same agency as them (along with a few other agencies).

Seunghun

Seunghun is 24 and a member of CIX. His teaser song was V01, Rain by Paul Kim, and his performance was kind of… not my favorite. He sounded at times almost like he had a cold, and at other times I’m pretty sure he went off key -- I don’t know the song so I can’t be sure but it sounded off. He showed a lack of agility on one of his vocal runs, which means that as he tried to sing a lot of different notes all in a row, he had trouble transitioning from note to note quickly and hitting them all neatly. He had to switch awkwardly to falsetto to hit a single high note in the middle of a line, which is kind of not the goal. I think he may just have been nervous or having an off day. 

Seunghun also competed on YG Treasure Box, which I didn’t watch, but maybe you did. 

Let’s talk about CIX, baby! (Ok, that joke relies on you pronouncing it “six” but it’s really pronounced “see-eye-ex,” if you read the hangul). 

CIX is a five-member group under C9 entertainment, which is also the home to Cignature and Epex. CIX features Wanna One’s Bae Jinyoung, who is the center and face of the group. As sometimes happens in cases like this, the member who was in the big Produce group is famous and attracts stans, while sometimes the rest of the group just doesn’t get as much love, and the group as a whole suffers. See also: Gugudan, Weki Meki. However, CIX does ok. Per genius.com, “The group has released several Top 10 albums in South Korea, including Hello Chapter Ø: Hello, Strange Dream which gave them their first chart-topper in the country. The group’s singles have also consistently landed in the Circle Music chart.” So CIX is a little bit closer to say, IVE than it is to, say, Weki Meki. 

Personally, I like CIX -- I think the members are talented --  but I don’t love all their songs. However, their song Cinema is so smooth and lovely, it’s like a glass of orange-peach juice for your soul, and that’s in great measure because of their smooth vocals. (Seunghun is the one with the blue hair in that clip, if you want to watch it.) In fact, this is the song I wanted to listen to in the car on the way to the hospital to have surgery a year or two ago when I was feeling pretty scared. My fella said, “This is nice. I like this.” So if you never heard it, give it a chance. I’m looking forward to getting to know Seunghun a bit better and seeing him on a better day.  

Yeo One

Yeo One is 28, and is a lead vocalist for Pentagon. I don’t have to tell you about Pentagon, right? Another excellent group who lost a member and whose popularity has ebbed and flowed. If you watched Boys Planet, you know about Hui, and you know that I like Pentagon a lot! 

Yeo One left Cube Entertainment just a few months ago, in October of 2023, along with several other members of Pentagon, so though Pentagon hasn’t disbanded, their further activities will be a bit tricky. He had a sold-out solo concert recently, and was profiled in Rolling Stone Korea, so he’s doing ok for a recently solo artist. Yeo One is a lead vocalist of Pentagon, not one of their two main vocalist, and on kprofiles, he actually ranks in last place in the popularity poll. He often would be given pretty brief lines in most Pentagon songs. But we will get to know him and get to love him on this show, right, team? 

He performed a ballad for his teaser (V40) and all I wrote in my note to myself is “I hate songs like this so much I almost can’t think straight.” So, instead, I found this little song that apparently he wrote and performed himself -- it’s light and charming. It sounds like a guy sitting by the fire making up a song on guitar and singing it to himself. He’s not a super skilled vocalist from what I’ve heard thus far, not a powerhouse like Hui, but he has a charming vocal color and is just sort of a generally a lovable dude.  

Hwang Inhyuk

Inhyeock / Inhyuk (I’ve seen it transliterated both ways -- both would be 인혁 in Hangul) is 26 and is apparently both a soloist and a member of a vocal group called Unison. Unfortunately, I can’t find anything about them since there’s also a Japanese group called “Unison Square Garden” and when you search “Korean vocal group unison” all you get is information about K-pop songs sung in unison, so…. Yeah. Inhyuk is also a composer and lyricist, and has competed on I Can See Your Voice (I’m not sure which season) and Sing for Gold. 

He was V29 and performed a song called The First Day. Again, my perspective is skewed because it’s another feckin’ ballad and no thank you. The opening section when he’s singing in a soft, almost gruff voice is really charming, though. It’s so different from what you’d expect from his appearance and general demeanor. He has a really distinct vocal color, and I think he should have chosen “unique” rather than “allround.” Once he heads into the chorus, which requires belting some higher notes, his voice falters a bit. I just get that feeling that maybe he can do better than what he showed in this teaser. Maybe he wasn’t warmed up properly, or maybe he had a bit of a cold, something like that. The potential is there and I sense training was involved. I’m going to keep an open mind about him. 

Geonu

Geonu is from Just B and is 22. In addition to going on I-land, he also went on a show called Dancing High, which also featured Seo Won who you may remember from Boys Planet. God, there are so many of these shows. I kind of remember Geonu from I-land, where he did pretty well, making it close to the end. It’s kind of a shame that he didn’t make it into Enhypen since Enhypen is definitely short on vocalists. 

If you want to check out one of Geonu’s previous performances, here he is doing a duet performance of BTS’s Butterfly on I-land with Heesung (who did go on to debut in Enhypen). 

Geonu has gotten a bit better since then; here is his audition for this show, where he was V10. 

His upper mixed register has gotten stronger and a lot less breathy compared to when he was on I-land, but he seems to have developed an unpleasant nasality. Maybe being on this show will spur him to adjust his methodology. He has a really pleasant vocal color and a lot of potential. 

(I discuss Just B in Bain’s write up.) 

Jang Intae

Per my online sleuthing, Intae, age 27, is a singer-songwriter and is one half of the duo 415. (Their group is named for the fact that both members were born on April 15th, 1997.) 415 has put out seven digital singles and performed a few OSTs, but their MVs generally get fewer than 10,000 views. I think his general style and vibe isn’t what I personally look for in a musician -- it’s a bit too “acoustic lite” -- but I bet a lot of people would like what he and his duo partner do, if people gave them a chance. 

His teaser performance, V37, was Missing You by BTOB (a song performed on Girls Planet 999, if it sounds familiar to you -- a member of BTOB is on this show's judging panel). It started off really nasal, but got a bit better as it went along. He strained a bit on the high notes, unfortunately. It wasn’t the best performance, but I’m not going to condemn him for 90 seconds of imperfect singing. I hope that as I see more from him, he gets to show more of what he can do.

Jeong Yoonseo

Jeong Yoonseo is a trainee, and little info is available about him. He’s V32, performing Starlight by Taeil. There are a lot of background vocals -- I think there’s a guide track behind him the whole time! -- so it’s hard to pick out his pure voice. It sounds nice from what I can hear.  That’s kind of all I got! (Side note -- I’ve seen his name listed as Jang, not Jeong, but if you read the hangul, it’s Jeong, so IDK.) 

Hong Seongjun

Seongjun is 24 and is (was?) a member of a group called BDC, a three member group under Brandnew Music that debuted in the latter end of the pandemic, in September 2020. All three members had been on ProduceX 101. Seongun himself was eliminated in 51st place. They put out several comebacks but never really caught on.

On their kprofiles page, it says “On August 18, 2023, BRANDNEW MUSIC officially announced that BDC will end all official promotions as artists under the company on August 26, 2023, after they mutually decided to end their contracts. Thereafter, the group have been active in Japan and have a fan meeting planned in Korea on December 3, 2023.” I’m not sure what to make of that, but it doesn’t sound great obviously. 

I went to check out their M/Vs and remembered that I had actually listened to Moon Rider for a few months there at some point. Pretty decent song, but it got only 3.6 million views. I think it’s just kind of tough for three member groups. 

He was V27 and sang a chipper acoustic little song by 10cm. For me, him having such heavy backup vocals for so much of the song kind of makes me wonder, why would you do that?  It’s the same thing as the situation with Yoonseo. Isn’t the point to show their vocals? That said, this was a pleasant enough performance -- clean and sweet, with decent agility in some of the runs -- but not something I’m dying to listen to over and over. I think he didn’t really understand the assignment and chose something that would be nice to perform with people watching you, instead of something to sing in the dark.

Jeong Inseong

Inseong is 29 and is main vocal of a group called KNK. 

He was V06, performing a song called Letting Go by Day6. I looked it up and this song came out on March 28, 2016 -- just a few weeks after Lim Junhyeok had to leave that group. It being called “Letting Go” is a bit… pointed. Kind of like when f(x) did a song called Four Walls as their first comeback (and last) as a four-member group. Anyway… I really liked this. I just wrote in my notes, “ooh, likey.” This is just so good, I don’t even know how to pick it apart. It’s just a combination of stellar technique and smooth natural vocal color. He does have to go into falsetto to hit a super high note, but he transitions almost instantly. This is good stuff. 

KNK debuted in 2016 as a 5 member group. They left their first agency in 2018 but continued as a group at a new agency, losing one member and gaining a new one. Over the last few years, two more members have quit and one more joined, leaving four in the group as of now. 

Their most recent single, Ride, came out in September 2020 and currently has about 1.7 million views on Youtube. It’s so easy to tell when Inseong is singing -- it’s like when Kihyun sings in MonstaX and you’re just like YES, come THROUGH. I threw Ride on my playlist just so I can hear more Inseong. 

Inseong has been in a bunch of music shows, and also participated in Mixnine, so he may know the other Mixnine contestants, Ma Jaekhyung from Romeo and Donghun from A.C.E. However, he had to withdraw early from the show, so maybe not. 

If you want more Inseong, here’s a fun duet he does with the “Korean Madonna,” Kim Wanseon. 

Taehwan

Taehwan, 30, is the leader and main vocalist of Vanner, and was V13, singing Goodbye by Park Hyo Shin. You probably know by now that I’m not much of a ballad girl, but at least this is sung simply, with a really warm, textured voice. He does sound really pinched on the higher notes, like his throat is closing, and he gets a bit nasal at times, as well. In my opinion, he lacks technique, but has a lot of natural talent. He also has a great smile. 

Vanner is a five member group that debuted in 2019. They had a lot of support as they debuted, and even got significant crowdfunding. They went on Peaktime, as did many other lesser known groups -- and they won! Good for Vanner. Their most recent EP charted very well overseas. Their song Performer, released five months ago, has 8.7 million views on Youtube, and their song Jackpot, released on Jan 30, 2024, already had almost 4 million views at the time of writing, an incredible performance for less than a week. So it looks like Vanner is really starting to take off.

Taehwan may have met Ma Jaekyung, Bitsaeon, and Hong Seongjun when they competed on Peak Time.

Ji Yeonwoo

Yeonwoo is another trainee I just don’t know much about. Apparently he went on a show called Wild Idol, which I haven’t seen. But I do know that his teaser song, V24, Suffer by Charlie Puth, was great. A great combination of a song I actually liked and a voice I really liked. He has great agility, leaping up into falsetto and back down again. He does get a bit pinched sometimes on higher notes, but for whatever reason, it doesn’t bother me. Maybe it’s just I’m so glad it’s not a ballad!

Ok, that’s enough for now. I’ll see you in the next one, when I tackle Team Soul, featuring everyone’s favorite. You know who I mean.

[scratchybongvt]

Vinitom reacts to fanfiction about themselves

Writer’s note: Don’t worry, Sidemascots season 1 auditions is still in progress and will release later today.

No offense to any of the creators of all of the stories mentioned intended. All stories are real and sourced from Idea Wiki

Intro

Tom: What are we doing exactly, Vini?

Vinicius: Well, since we’re reunited, someone asked us to react horribly to some fanfiction loyal mascot lords made for us.

Tom: Are they actually horrible?

Vinicius: I don’t know, let’s go through this together, maybe we’ll find some good ones there.

Tom: Well, time for Episode 33 proposals then.

Vinicius and Tom: Heroes of Nature

Vinicius: Heroes of Nature? I’m smelling false information here.

Tom: Why?

Vinicius: We did absolutely nothing to save everyone in our lives and someone pretends that we did.

Tom: Come on Vini, they don’t know much of our personal stuff after all. Let’s see…

“Vinicius and Tom: Heroes of Nature (Portuguese: Vinícius e Tom: Heróis da Natureza) is an upcoming 2024 American-Brazilian computer animated sports comedy action and superhero film, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and 20th Century Animation in collaboration with Birdo Studio, and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film is based on the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic mascots and was created to maintain legacy of the 2016 Summer Olympics and 2016 Summer Paralympics.”

Vinicius: Disney? I’d rather choose being milked by Warner Bros.!

Tom: Come on, what do they know?

Vinicius: Point taken. Go on Tom.

Tom: Ahem…

“Set a few days after the events of Paris 2024: The Olympic Quest, Vinicus goes back to Rio de Janeiro to meet up with Tom in the Barra Olympic Park, their home. They had nothing to do due to the Olympics being over 8 years ago, so they played sports there and enjoyed their lifes in Rio de Janeiro. However, in the Tijuca forest, a group of criminals were chopping off the trees and killing the animals in there. When they heard the news, Vinicus and Tom were ready for their next adventure.”

Vinicius: I expect better.

Tom: Really?

Vinicius: This is what happens when Disney hires a bunch of amateurs, they can’t even spelled my name right!

Tom: At least it has a creative beginning.

Vinicius: And a terrible ending.

Tom: to the movie or the passage above?

Vinicius: The passage above.

Tom: Point taken.

Vinicius: What’s this? A few days after Paris 2024: The Olympic Quest?

Tom: Let’s see… oh my, no article found!

Vinicius: I’m having a feeling that the rest of the articles are as lazy as this.

Tom: hm.

Vinicius: What the? Near-swearing? Off-screen killing? Death scenes? PG-13?! What WERE they thinking?

Tom: uhhh… they can explain.

Vinicius: I’m gonna contact the contributors of this idea ASAP.

Tom: Do you know they’re all children?

Vinicius: exactly.

Tom: and?

Vinicius:…

Vinicius and Tom: Adventures in Rio

Vinicius: Oh wow, they really were like “32 episodes? Why not 10 seasons?”

Tom: Yeah the idea might get out of hand.

Vinicius: At least we’re being milked by Cartoon Network which was way better than the last one.

Tom: Fair point.

Vinicius: What’s this? I have Aura Body and Wing Manifestation in season 2? Some lorekeeper of this series need to explain this to us.

Tom: Maybe they thought stretching isn’t enough.

Vinicius; WHAT?! STRETCHING IS ENOUGH FOR ME!

Tom: Calm down, you’re scaring everyone.

Vinicius: Okay, I will.

Tom: Huh? Rio de Janeiro’s mayor in this series is Mayor Greenbutt and not someone based on an actual mayor.

Vinicius: These kids might have no knowledge on Brazilian politics.

Tom: True. So true.

Vinicius: Ooh, gallery! Better look at 5-year-old drawings!

Tom: I look terrible in these pictures.

Vinicius: Hopefully you will look way worse in next one.

Tom: 😡

Vinicius and Tom: New Adventures in the USA

Tom: Huh, that’s realistic, except there’s no Vini! 🤣🤣🤣

Vinicius: 😡

Olympic Mascots: Guardians of Light

Tom: Vinicius? Where are you going?

Nevermind then.

Let’s see, scroll, scroll, scroll, oh, Mirasome? Now I get why the title is not named after us. Scroll, scroll, scroll, oh wait a minute, the posters are made by the same idiot who made Adventures in Rio! I’m going to call the Carioca Sisters to round their houses.

Guardians of Light: Forces Together

Tom: Vini? You’re missing everything! *sigh* I guess it’s all just me now. Let’s see…

(2 minutes later)

Tom: Boooooring!

Vinicius and Tom (film)/Credits

Tom: Vini? Where were you this whole time?!

Vinicius: It’s better to not to say.

Tom: Well, it’s open to interpretation then.

Vinicius: Speaking of interpretation, this thing is nothing but credits!

Tom: Yeah kids are lazy these days.

Vinicius: Hopefully the author won’t left this unfinished.

Olympic Mascots And Friends: Chuck E. Cheese's Musical Adventure!

Vinicius: What the heck? This is nothing but nursery rhymes!

Tom: At least it’s associated with a restaurant Swifty and I went once.

Vinicius: You went to Chuck E. Cheese’s?

Tom: Yeah, let’s say recycled pizza tastes great.

Vinicius: Wait a minute…

Mascot Power

Vinicius: An anime ABOUT US?! I expect it to be about Mirasome!

Tom: Yeah kids in 2016 kinda loves anime to be honest.

Vinicius: Even today ffs!

Tom: ffs?

Vinicius: It just means for Fanta’s sake. *pops open a can and drink like a nobody*

Tom: Vinicius, do you know Fanta is more faint nowadays?

Vinicius: Pfffft…

Tom: You’re spitting orange juice in my face, Vini.

Miraitowa and the Olympic Spirit

Vinicius: Miraitowa? I thought all of them are solely about us!

Tom: Yeah but admin just ran out of ideas.

Vinicius: Better have a good one at the end.

Tom: Yeah.

Crystal Dark Pinkie

Vinicius: Ah crap, here we go again.

Tom: Vini, If you don’t accept something, EMBRACE it.

Vinicius: Why?

Tom: Swifty and I had a stupid idea that we will go to an anime exhibition for an hour. I love them so much we actually stuck around until midnight!

Vinicius: And you don’t like anime in the first place?

Tom: Absolutely correct.

Vinicius: The drawings look like they are in content awareness scale a billion times.

Tom: At least I look fine.

Vinicius: 😡

The Muppets meet Vinicius and Tom

Vinicius: Muppets, like…

Tom: The Jim Henson one, I think.

Vinicius: I was meant to say that.

Tom: Sorry, I thought you’re going to say Paulo Muppet!

Vinicius: No, I don’t remember him.

Tom: That’s sad…

Vinicius: Anyway, let’s read the storyline.

Tom: Vini, you must be aware that it’s pretty long, right?

Vinicius: Oh yeah, we might linger with it for an hour or so.

Tom: If you can, then do it.

Vinicius: Alright, ahem…

(30 minutes later)

Tom: I didn’t know someone would bother reading as much, and considering they have a creative choice for an antagonist, a mascot clone!

Vinicius: A clone of myself?

Tom: Yup.

Vinicius: *sniffs*

Tom: Oh no… someone get a tissue!

*phone rings*

Vinicius: Stay here Tom, I need me-time.

Tom: Do you know that’s it’s a strange number?

Vinicius: I don’t keep phone numbers to my contacts often.

Tom: Risky decision, Vini.

Well, that’s explains more than avoid reacting the Guardians of Light series.

Vinicius: TOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!

Tom: What?

Vinicius: Someone said they are making a movie about us!

Tom: This MUST be a prank!

Vinicius: No, seriously! Warner Bros. Are going to produce it with Kayla Jordan as the director!

Tom: Sounds like a 15-year-old.

Vinicius: She IS a 15-year-old!

Tom: WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING WITH THE FILM INDUSTRY?! WHAT ABOUT LICENSING?!

Vinicius: The IOC and the IPC milks money from licensing nowadays.

Tom: We’re going to have the rest of our lives ruined, Vini.

Vinicius: I know right!

Vida: Come on girls! Let’s give him a lesson!

Tom: Vida?! Where are you and your sisters going?

Vida: To California, we’re targeting Jeremy Shada.

Vinicius: WAIT!

Holy Bela-Sol-Vida-Hitting-Jeremy-Shada-in-the-head!

Tom: Maybe that’s the reason why they decided to do that?

Vinicius: WHY?! WHY ARE WE RESORT TO THIS?! PLEASE I NEED HELP!

[hazbincalifornia]

Hazbin Episode 1 Liveblog

In order to avoid this post getting Way Too Long, I'm going to make one post for episode one, and one for episode two!

I will say, I'm kinda sad we don't have a 'proper' theme song/intro, just the little jingle :( I do get it, but ah well.

Oh my god the commercial is even better in full.

How the fuck did he get Charlie to keep the name if it was still him???

Al's so fucking offended they're making him use a camera he made it one giant middle finger. I love it.

The voices are definitely going to take a bit of adjustment. It's probably because I've rewatched the pilot a zillion times, though.

I like how Alastor didn't even look at Angel. "Never going to happen!"

Awww, Charlie's ringtone for her dad is cute.

I DO really love Keith David as Husk right away, he suits the role perfectly.

"I like being forced!" and I love you, you weird little gremlin. Hoping for some good CNC stuff with her now, tbh. She'd be fun for it.

The flat delivery of 'crack is expensive' made me wheeze out loud.

Aaaa and here we go, full animation for Happy Day!

Why... why is the 'shoving barbed wire in your hole' guy an imp. Is that, like, his job or something. Is he just an asshole?

Ooooo, that was VAGGIE singing the 'bloodthirsty and deranged?' line? More fodder for her being a fallen angel/exterminator.

'Helluva post' for the mail. Ha.

This just made me fully realize how much the cannibal colony probably considers the post-extermination like a feast day.

Awww, the music note background is a fun touch.

Something about the fact that the 'touch my parts!' guy is a completely shapeless slug-creature instead of just keeping the dick offscreen makes it funnier.

Oh, I love Adam. The fun kind of punchable prick.

The animation seems a bit... overacted? I've noticed it all along but with Vaggie in the scene where she talks about making a new commercial especially. It sort of felt like they wanted to match the pilot's very snappy energy but weren't quite sure how, so everybody makes kind of... aimless motioning instead of moving with purpose, if it makes sense? It feels more like 'moving body parts for the sake of moving things' over 'moving with intent'. It's sort of awkward and distracting. The shifting proportions don't really help, but I just know people are going to be Fucking Annoying about that when it's unfortunately part of the package of making a whole season at once by a regular animation studio.

Oh yeah, Blake's perfect for Angel, lmao. It was more of a change than I expected from the few lines we'd gotten since they sounded more like the original, but he's got the energy.

Charlie didn't know Adam ran the angel army? That seems like the kind of thing she should have known. I wonder if she was relatively sheltered growing up.

'Call me dickmaster' why do I get the feeling the Chaz fans will like him, lmfao.

Since I'm on Adam though, another little groan to myself about the lack of fat characters in the hellaverse that aren't either gross stereotypes or background characters. Adam falls into the misogynist type, (like, the 'redditor', you know the one, just sort of mixed with a sleazy rockstar) Mammon's literally Greed and a talentless abuser, the lady at the pound was gross/uncaring and ugly, and I still think the Nurse was the only one that really broke the pattern and I've seen approximately one piece of fanart or mention of her ever (despite her clearly-developed positive relationship with Barbie!) and it was porn. I'm allowed to bitch on this after people were so fucking annoying about how wanting Bee to be fat was wanting her to be a 'gross ugly blob' and then saying other people were being fatphobic for pointing out everybody's skinny. Somehow. Anyway.

Well, at least they got the vagina joke out of the way early.

I love how his deal isn't for anything that would genuinely screw Vaggie over, he's just pissed they want him to deal with TV.

The fact that the pilot's still 'soft canon' makes sense with how Angel just immediately starts admiring his new clothes without any surprise, since it's happened before. Also, Niffty with the Marilyn pose is cute.

Oh, I'm definitely going to like Lute. I still like my idea she used to be close to Vaggie but when Vaggie was cast down, she stuck tighter to the rules.

Adam's song is fun!

So season 1 takes place over the course of six months? Huh. I'm guessing we'll have some time skips if we only have eight episodes.

I wonder what the Heaven Embassy is for? I can't imagine it's only for meetings like that considering there's couches in the lobby and stuff. Can sinners communicate with loved ones in heaven or vice versa, maybe, just using the holograms?

Oh my god the Katie voice IS basically just Brandon's Bryce voice. Amazing.

Ohoooo? VERY curious who managed to pull off killing an exterminator, and 'can't let them catch on'... hmm.

[accidentally-in-fictional-love]

Things I Noticed While Writing Light The Fuse: Part 2, Episode 1

And here's more of episode 1 starting off strong with my favourite scene ever /)w(\ I noticed so much stuff crammed into here that I had to make this its own part, I wanna join them on the river so damn bad ;w;

I've seen this damn scene so many times they've created a pavlovian response within me, now whenever I watch it or think about it I gotta doubeltap whatever I'm nearest to, once for Betty and once for Uncle Lug

Johnson saying they're more than Brawlers and he means it! He also motions towards the jacket on time to the music and I must also do the same now, I'm a sucker for timing and this is so simple but cute 🥰 also love how they're just saying this assuming we're Ethan in this moment following them to get his tattoo

This is the old caution room a lot of stuff happens in, you can see it better in the promo image, as well as the fact that some Pinups are hanging out in there too

Matty reading the paper while it gets sewn 😭 I actually thought they went into town for this but nope it's all Agnes and she's doing it in house. I also had no idea what Johnson was doing at first, maybe just being silly, but on the transition you can actually see that he's adjusting his sleeves cause he's about to fix Ethan's collar I'm sobbing again

See 😭 I'm also very convinced they dressed him in canon since Ethan did not dress like this before coming down here and you can't convince me otherwise, they went on a shopping trip just like in my fic and that's the truth. Also I swear to god they share shirts cause sometimes it really looks like they've switched and that makes me insane. I also went ahead and counted how many shirts Ethan wears over the season so I knew how many they'd buy him in my fic lol turns out he's got a bunch!

This is the shot from the promo images!

I love getting to see inside the trailer, I wonder what they keep in those bins back there?

I'm in love with him

I love how this entire scene is Ethan doing all the work while Matty and Johnson shop, I love them so much like the matching HATS DUDE IN THEIR COLOURS and Matty trying to get Johnson back on track and then stopping to look at something else on the way out I would die for them. I also love the detail of every bag going out being red and everyone coming in being yellow, they probably switch between those two every weeks.

This is also the shop where Matty buys Johnson his books in Melt With Me ;w;

💗😭💗 he likes being a Phoenix guys this is all he needs he's happy doing this I'm gunna cry again

Was there any reason to look this hot while opening a trailer, seriously

I'm so goddamn in love with him it's not even funny

This one isn't even an observation I just really wanna have a drink with them they're having so much fun 🥺🙏 why is Ethan is small between them lol and why is that not me

There's so much I love about this shot. Ethan just collapsing. Johnson drinking away in the background. Johnson still being the one to urgently wake him up after a sleep so deep he didn't even move. The fact that they either visit this place multiple times or this was a very long night before Matty gave up the bed and let Ethan rest because it appears again when they're watching tv. The fact that there is only ONE BED in this room and you can see that when they leave and in the bts with Matty. Also the bonus second take making it in lmao he bounced so hard in that one

Again, he could either be talking to us, and so the wink is for us, or he just straight up looked like that to Ethan. I don't know about you guys but... 🙄

They are the hottest men I've ever seen. Hand shot from Matty just for me. His lip curled over the cigarette. Johnson staring directly into the camera. The smoke they both just blow out so casually. I need to participate in one (1) sloppy makeout with these two stat plEASE

I love him I need to have a car ride with him just to hear whatever he's so passionate about. Plus it looks like Johnson is leaning on the back of his seat to listen and that's just plain adorable

They didn't have to do this 😭 I'm so in love with Ethan being so sleepy that he falls asleep on Johnson, and Matty just stealing the whole entire bed for himself (which again there is only one of!) and funnily enough since Johnson's wearing the same shirt as the other scene (obviously because they filmed all this at once but I'm thinking in world hehe) Ethan took his shirt off before bed and put it back on again lmao I'm also completely ignoring how normal I am about this rare glimpse of Johnson chest 😀

Johnson likes to sing! Matty clapping away for him all proud and cheering him on!! Ethan smiling in the background until he joins in!!! These boys make me cry I swear to go- Anyway he's gotta be good, I need to go back in time and get into this scene

This made me laugh when I first saw it, just Matty being so expressive and energetic that he straight up stops driving and Ethan has to take over with such an unimpressed look lmao I doubt he's even listening

Based on his sleeve being rolled up, that's Matty telling him to come on and I think that's so cute ;w; Ethan is so spaced out, nice of them to let him have a sit before it was time to go. In my fic I wrote them as carrying around their own duffle bags with their clothes but it actually looks like Johnson's holding a suitcase, so Matty might be too. I like them having just an excess of duffles though lol I can't see Matty taking the time to pack a suitcase every morning it would be so messy

Literally the three hottest men on the planet and I love them all, I'm so incredibly happy I got into this show

And that's it for this scene! Episode 1 will be wrapped up for real tomorrow, there was just too much to look at here 🥰💙❤️💛

[youlooklikeabeeandilikebees]

rating being human uk dvd covers (the best and the worst)

I like the ghostly effect on Annie and the "moon" behind George. I don't know what's supposed to be at Mitchell's feet. Tissues? Snow? Ripped piece of the inside of furniture maybe? I like how they are inside the house instead of outside since so much of season 1 is focused on the house itself. The photoshop also looks good.

Rating 9/10

This image gives me so much nostalgia. Seeing it is like being wrapped in a cozy warm blanket. This is because it was the first image I ever saw of the show, all the way back in middle school. I heard the premise and saw this poster and I knew I had to see this show. Is the photoshop as good as the season 1 poster? Definitely not. But it's definitely not the worst looking in terms of photoshop (we'll get to that next). I also love the fact that Annie is cradling her box of tea.

Rating 10/10 for nostalgia (probably an 8/10 otherwise)

The photoshop here is atrocious. No one looks like they are actually in the environment. I like the concept of them being weird in such a normal location but it doesn't look good. Good concept, not great execution. I think if it was just Annie, George, and Nina it would look a lot better but Mitchell looks too out of place and the wrinkles in his jeans just look like he was poorly cut out on photoshop.

Rating 5/10

Annie looks good but both Tom and Hal look so bored and disinterested. I mean Hal looks bored but still slightly sinister while there is absolutely nothing going on inside Tom's head. The background moon with birds is just cheesy and unimaginative. Hal also looks more like he was caught eating a bag of cheetos than drinking blood.

Rating 1/10

I love this one. The characters look like they are actually standing in the hotel rather than superimposed onto a background. I like the details of Crumb, Rook, and Hatch in the background so we get a little bit more than just the main trio. I also like the glow behind them, it makes me think of the white light behind ghosts' doors in the show.

Rating 10/10

The bodies in the foreground is an interesting touch and sets this one apart from other posters. Usually the characters are standing still so it's nice to see a bit of motion. I think I'd prefer if Tom and Hal were also looking at the viewer like Alex. But it's definitely a poster that makes you think what's the context here? I do think the hotel cover represents season 5 better because it shows the hotel. This poster is a better poster just for the finale episode though.

Rating 8/10

So this is the cover they have for season 3 on amazon and it's what inspired me to make this post. What the actual fuck is this? I love how Annie and Nina are standing off to the side like they’re in a sitcom going “can you believe how silly our boys are??” Annie just looks disinterested which is like the opposite of her personality and Nina looks like that sitcom trope of the slightly naggy but wholesome wife who never gets to do anything fun. Also if George gets to be wolfy so should Nina, that's werewolf gender equality. Having the backdrop as the Honolulu wallpaper also makes the image look even weirder tone-wise, especially if you'd never seen the show and just saw this. This image of Mitchell is also the same one as in the other season 3 poster but the lighting on him looks better here and more integrated into the environment at least.

Rating: both 1/10 and 10/10