#thinking about it is actually interesting. hopefully next ep shows a bit more of their perspective

[amelikos]

At least, I don't think Sango and Onyx were lying or playing along when they said they were willing to hear Amethio's side of the story. Because both of them cannot lie at all. Sango will spill all of her organization's secrets accidentally because she is just too straightforward and simple, and Onyx is just a bad liar in general.

Sango came off as mocking when she said she was willing to hear Spinel's excuses back in HZ016. Compared to her more serious tone when she said she'd hear Amethio out. It felt different etc.

[teaboot]

in WHAT universe is rising of the shield hero less of a dissapointment than spy x family? ppl glaze sxf a bit too much but theres few anime worse than Incel Isekai 20472.

anyway. if you want something actually good, frieren, odd taxi, and my roommate is a cat. havent watched ascendance of a bookworm yet but i hear incredible things.

Oh yeah no ROTSH felt like ABSOLUTE dogshit episodes 1-5ish, I have no idea why I kept watching cause the MC was so cringe but I’m enjoying it quite a lot now! (I was actually checking my inbox before catching the next ep, lol)

I’m actually really happy with how they showed the MC’s immaturity and flaws and all the stupid and confusing common isekai tropes in a realistic light- And I’m kinda sorry you didn’t keep watching too ‘cause it absolutely lays bare all that stupid “chosen one” crap about halfway through s1. You stop cringing at the awful stupid incel asshole shit E3 or so and start GENUINELY LIKING him, which is wild!

It’s not perfect media obviously- I kinda REALLY don’t like some of it- but it focuses a lot on personal responsibility and thoughtfulness and working within the context of your environment, learning to heal relationships, and the importance of diplomacy and communication.

What I REALLY like is the central theme that being a hero doesn’t mean everything you do is correct- but that people WANT TO BELIEVE everything you do is correct, so being a symbol isn’t so much a ritzy ride as it is a HUGE responsibility that one shouldn’t be eager for.

Also, I don’t want to give any spoilers, but I’m at a point now where they’re starting to touch on the idea that there’s a difference between fighting for an idea and fighting for PEOPLE, and I’ve never really seen that done well before so between that and the twist here that’s being foreshadowed I’m genuinely SUPER EXCITED to see where they’re going with it.

Also- even WITH all the “pretty girls love the hero” trope- if you watch long enough you’ll notice how they PLAY with the trope without investing in it. There’s genuine respect between the characters, and several times the MC makes it clear he sees some of them as family, that he’s not into kids and it’s creepy when others are, and there’s no fanservice panty shots or surprise “oops I’m naked” shit. It really does show by example how a REAL good-hearted protagonist should- or would hopefully- realistically act in the circumstances of an unrealistic isekai type series. There’s been pretty much zero actual romance or any interest in romance shown by the character after episode 1-2. (At least as of s2e1)

And I love that! It’s incredibly character-driven. It feels like the MC genuinely might fuck up, that there are real stakes, that the correct path is unclear, and I want to see if what I’m hoping for will happen. The MC is selfish and closed-off and heartless sometimes and TOTALLY has a cruel and pragmatic streak, and the narrative takes full advantage of that to force him to confront those issues. Some of his vices are even advantageous, as they would be in real life!

Spy X Family didn’t do anything for me. It appeared to be what it said on the tin. I never got any real sense of stakes or depth or personal development, or of reoccurring thematic elements or symbolism or overlying message, or any kind of statement that was poignant or meaningful. It came off as a fun story, but not anything exceptional or different.

I couldn’t bring myself to care much because it was pretty clear that the good guys were right and they were gonna pull something off and have a happy ending and live a cute little family life with a mom and a dad and a daughter and a dog. It was never surprising or curious and I never felt emotionally intrigued or invested or attached.

They’re both enjoyable, but I like Rise of the Shield Hero more because it’s been proving me wrong in exciting ways and making me think about why I feel the way I do, and I like that in a series.

Spy X Family is fine, I don’t think it’s BAD, it just didn’t scratch the itch for me personally.

If you watched like 15 eps and hated it the whole time that’s fair but if you stopped at e2 I’d super recommend giving it another shot!

[zukiiiiiiiii]

spoilers for The Apothecary Diaries Season 1 ahead!!

dude so wtf was that. Let me first talk about The Weirdo. The fact he was maomao’s dad was a shock, but he’s also maomao’s adoptive father (I forget his name so I’ll just call him Maomao’s dad) nephew?? Like they’re related?? And maomao’s mom sent her the tip of her (maomao’s) pinky finger to her?? (I find it funny because the tip of my pinky finger also got cut off, though on accident. It did actually grow back but I found it interesting) his whole story line in I think the 23rd ep was actually really sad to me and it made me feel bad for not liking him, but he’s still weird?? like it lowk made me cry, but I think I was sad about the situation instead of empathetic to him. And Jinshi. First of all he still has a dick. But that lowkey confuses me because why? Wouldn’t it make more sense to get rid of it? Considering he manages the rear palace (I think that’s what it’s called. I don’t watch with subtitles so I forget the names of things/people) and he probably will be for a long time, why doesn’t he just cut it? And he’s only 19, why does he hide his age. I’ll probably find out more in the next season but I wanted to write my thoughts on the matter. Also I find all the interactions between that one guy who took maomao home when he gave her a pin (gonna call him the golden retriever guy) and that one princess (again, HORRIBLE w names) so cute?? Like yes, go get your girl!! The whole blue rose thing was interesting, and I like how maomao’s message that “even withered flowers are beautiful” was tied to those flowers. The whole show is interesting and leaves you wanting more. It has a VERY good plot and good conflicts. Like the whole conspiracy to kill Jinshi during the ceremony?? VERY interesting. And the way maomao saved him??? So so so good. I think it’s funny that she wouldn’t rest her leg up to the end of the last ep. Maomao aid such an interesting character, not only with her background but also with the way she thinks. Jinshi is a GREAT supporting character/love interest. When he was first introduced I HATED him because he wouldn’t leave her alone, and at some points I still feel that way, but their interactions can be cute. especially when Jinshi get mad at golden retriever guy because maomao doesn’t explain things/doesn’t get things is a funny thing/bit that I can appreciate.

Overall, a great show. It leaves clues for things, but doesn’t give you everything up front. It leaves you guessing and is all in all incredibly entertaining! I’m about to watch season 2, so hopefully my questions get answered, and hopefully maomao and jinshi’s slow burn burns faster. Please. 10/10 show so far!! ( ^ω^ )

[mezzodrops]

Gavv ep 29 thoughts [Spoilers]

New Arc who dis?

But we do actually get introduced to new characters who appear to be the main villains for this arc

Love the changes they made to the OP

Shouma is eating again and is so cute every time he enjoys food. Never gets old

Space Jam 3 was fun. There are aliens/monsters playing basketball with humans.

Lakia is now chilling at Suga's lab? Like... I get wanting to reuse the set they already had, but I can only imagine what crazy ass stuff Lakia finds in there. Plus we know Nyelv has a door that goes straight into Suga's lab, I wonder if that's going to be brought up later?

Detective Hanto is on the case, for his boyfriend's sake. It would be sweet for Shouma to see his relatives.

Hanto getting ticked off by Lakia's attitude was perfection.

I'm so happy to see more of Stomach Inc. and the Granute world. We got to see what Jeeph was up to. Liselle and Bocca are over the top aristocrats, who makes everyone else's lives unintentionally miserable just by being themselves. All the siblings seem to be on edge, even Jeeph.

My first thought when the Bocca was like "Make it happen!" was that this man really cannot escape work at all. He's been busy running a company and the first time he gets screentime again, he's given more work!

I do think it's unfortunate that they couldn't have hinted Liselle and Bocca a little bit during the past arc. With Suga, we knew he was shady from the get go and that's why when everything came to light and he became Bake, it felt really epic and cool. Here we had 1 ep to get caught up on everything and we'll to take them as antagonists because they are granutes.

I say antagonists because while I'm sure they will fight against our heros, they're more like the producers from Geats and not marked as outright villains yet. They could be redeemed maybe.

The promo pic does show Lango in his granute form, so hopefully we'll see him fight and prove that he's either the end game boss, or at least an actual threat. I guess its still up in the air who the final big bad is, Lango, Nyelv, Zomb, someone we don't know. It would be kind of fire if it ended up being Glotta tbvh, we know she's strong, she has a broken power, and it would be fun. It would be wild if Jeeph ended up being the final boss.

I'm wondering if this arc is gonna set up Stomach Inc. actually taking over the Granute World, fulfilling Zomb Stomach's dream and that will kind of be the final arc's plot of sorts. Like they go from being used by Bocca to them being in control.

We get Siita's mimickey fixed and Jeeph might be going off his rocker. I am excited to see where they take his character, and just how far off the deep end he goes. I'm sure there's going to be a moment where Jeeph either protects Liselle from death or he leaves her to die. No idea which (or maybe both?) will happen.

We know Sachika is hinted at having kind of a sad backstory, but she's already gone through her character development prestory. We've seen hints, and it could just be me but I feel like her crouching down and holding the basketball at the end was hinting at something deeper. We also know that Liselle loves sad/messed up/broken things. It would be interesting if Liselle and Sachika had a moment together. Maybe where Liselle goes on about how she loves broken things and Sachika talks more about how she likes making people happy and her history, and that conversation starts to change Liselle if just a little bit.

All in all, I'm excited for this next bit.

[hheartsdramas]

continuing on with tmopb eps 5/6/7:

i have revised my opinions, ji ling is no loss. idiot.

but maybe this means our lead gets to actually be the lead now?

why do non-villain people make world-destroying weapons in the first place? nuclear bombs, donghuang bells...maybe leave that reality-shattering shit alone

the lookalike ghost is back. he seems to both know and not know things about si yin. i know there are multiple lives in this drama, is he from one of those? i am confusion.

xuan mu is still going to be so awful and sweet disciple boy is still going to like her. poor thing

oh no ninth brother!

i'm sad that the goddess is probably about to die

i've heard this show was ridiculously expensive to make and i gotta be honest, i don't see a huge sfx advantage over, say, the untamed, which had a notoriously small budget. the swords wobble and the cgi sucks and the wire stunts are pretty silly tbh

"wait for me"? interesting last words

ohhhh ji ling we do NOT hit our partners even if they are terrible people

i think i would be more affected by mo yuan dying if he'd had more than 2 minutes of screen time. on to the next life, please!

i am so confused about this ghost guy!

oh god what's happening

she's feeding him her heart's blood?? he'd better reincarnate and be thankful, wow

bye ghost guy, hopefully see you soon

did heavenly princess just get immaculate conceptioned so ghost guy can be born?

"i just told you about this cool important mystical thing your enemy has that you'll really want, but definitely don't go stealing it. please."

viki subs continue to use masculine pronouns when referring to si yin in third person, which is honestly delightful to me when they're talking about ji ling having feelings for him

pacing continues to be a bit off and i can't say i truly care about any of the characters. but i'm going to soldier on because i want this feather in my cap.

[in-flvx]

thoughts on latest doccy who ep?

Hi dear ❤️

So, my first thought was "how are we at the finale episode (didn't think there'd be another one) already, we're only 8eps in" before I remembered that that's what shows are like today. I wanted more of their outer space adventures and weird filler plots, bc imo that's how dr who is supposed to be like. And like, has been like for 60 years I guess.

But then I got very much pulled into the tension of the episode. I thought the time window was a sweet callback to the dream dreamatorium (not canon to dr who but brought to us by abed nadir of 'community' who is a big fan of inspector spacetime aka the 'community' version of dr who).

I was a bit annoyed by Ruby's attempts to see her mom when there was so much else hanging on her just remaining in space, but I suppose it's excusable bc it's her entire arc. I loved how the characters got to play together in this episode. Rose was a lovely addition to it, always happy to see her again.

I also generally enjoyed this seasons callbacks to og who, even though I didn't understand them unless I've already read about them in some fan wikis, so I might have missed a bunch.

Which is also why I found the reveal a little disappointing, though. The reveal of sutekh was exciting in the way it was played, but meant not a lot to me in the story of the actual season. I wasnt able to watch og who so far so i was only familiar with susan from the very first episode i started and didn't finish. My personal projection included lindy pepper-bean, and Susan twist to work together, for a satisfying villain mystery and reveal. I thought it would be exciting to have the woman who was around in every episode, in often antagonistic roles, to become the end villain. With white supremacist lindy by her side to extent cruelty.

Which might still be happening in the next episode, since we don't know what Susan is planning with cherry, though I'm not counting on it. With Susan in the role of the vessel and sutekh as the actual main villain. They did try to set sutekh up with susan and the groaning tardis... but I guess there could have been more I terms of both setup and filler bc that's what at least new-who used to thrive on. Loads of it came out of left field for me, even though they did as well as they could with their reduced episode number.

It wasn't a bad setup, and, like I said, I was on the edge of my seat for the most part of the episode. I am genuinely excited for the next episode, and am very much looking forward to the hopefully following season... but yea... it would have been more interesting like 13ep later.

I hope this makes sense to you. Also tell me what you thought about it pls!!!

[bluektw]

Ok it has been a couple days now, so let's talk about Moonvale

(it's quite long btw)

Spoilers Alert

Ok where do we start?

Well, let's talk about the story and things I like first.

I was hooked. Ngl. I'm not sure why exactly but from the first call I got hooked an wanted to understand what was going on.

What was weird though was how "easy" MC opens up with Ash about what happened in Duskwood, like maybe a little bit of reluctance? Of disbelief? Of trust issues after what happened with Richy?????

We don't know these people. So opening up like that is kinda weird, but moving on.

I actually like the video calls, it makes quite involving. Maybe we should have more of that in Duskwood.

So yeah that's it, I want to know the story and what's going on but I have to admit everything else makes me feel like I might give up.

Now for the characters

Eric is kinda... Cute? (His voice was so pretty though). Adam I have no words, the actor was amazing, I felt everything thing he felt and it doesn't look forced.

The others well... We'll talk about AI later, but the others don't really feel like... Friends? They feel a lot like coworkers. Like Adam and Eric feel like friends, but Eric and the others feel like not exactly friends (maybe next episode we get more of them this might change).

Oh and the unknown guy, scared the shit out of me, but like, I'm used to being threatened by masked people (cof Richy cof) so just another Thursday.

And let's talk about the star: JAKE SHOWING UP AT THE END. He's alive, thank God. And saying "X, I will find you" AHH THE FEELINGS (I'm a Jake girlie, sorry) (I want to talk to Alan too btw)

Now let's talk about what I don't like about it

- The minigames: I don't think they got harder, but I do think the dialogue was way too short in between minigames, like I'm pretty sure I played more than read messages. (I don't like the new style and miss the dark vibes, but I can look past that)

- P2W: I'm a hater on this. I get what they were aiming for, that not everyone can pay so they made this so everyone could have a chance but the execution was so bad. I hated this, especially the fact that EVERYTHING was so expensive like 19 gems for a photo of an envelope? 12 gems for changing profile? Hell 25 gems for a conversation?? If it was like till 10 gems I think it would've been a little less annoying. I'm not sure but that made the game feel way more like a game than a chat, it lost a little of the magic Duskwood had.

- The "flirting": Can you play without flirting? Sure, but does the story get more interesting if you flirt with Eric? Yes. That's the problem, it feels forced. In Duskwood many of the flirts were a lot more subtle, and took more time to start, you literally can flirt with Eric within the first messages. The flirting wasn't the center of the story, it was a background thing, and that's why it was cool and exciting, here it feels more like a way to progress the story than a connection.

- AI: I don't like this. I really don't. I mean, they had so much time and chose to use AI? Almost two years and they couldn't get actors? Or at least use like images from Pinterest instead of AI?. Besides that, the fact even our profile is made with AI it really takes away the whole "involving" thing, cause these are not people, I can't see them as people cause even the bloody cat is made of AI, they don't feel real and that makes the game feel way too much like a game, while Duskwood really made you feel like you were chatting with real people (just look at how many people fell in love with the characters), I hope they change this in the future, seeing the backlash it got.

I guess that's it.

I do hope they realize they messed up with the p2w and AI thing mostly, and hopefully they will find a way to change it. I can't say for sure I won't be playing when ep 2 comes out, cause again, the story is good, and the perspective of other characters (Jake and Alan for me) showing up it will keep me hooked, but I can't speak for the majority of people, but it's definitely a step down from Duskwood.

[the-irrelevant-trumpeter]

pjo ep 6 thoughts: bitchy edition because i’m still in a mood

everyone going “i wish they’d played poker face :(” annoys me so much, like they were obviously not going to play poker face. like come on stfu.

(additional note unrelated to the ep itself, but rick riordan responding to people wanting poker face with “normalise bad movie erasure” rubbed me the wrong way sooo much. like i don’t think the movies are good! and i think he’s correct by not wanting any movie callbacks! but you’re not going to do yourself any favours by criticising one of the only scenes that the book fans enjoyed? and also he says it as if he has never written anything that is worth criticising at all and everything he does is perfect. like sir, get off your high horse because the only thing i thought when you said that was “okay so you’re being a dick”. okay thank you.)

lin manuel miranda as hermes is actually very good casting. i said what i said. some of y’all need to chill out.

them knowing about the lotus casino’s effects before going inside didn’t really work for me. like i didn’t mind that same change with medusa because the way they changed that story felt a lot more fresh and interesting. but with this one, where they didn’t change the twists that much at all? idk i think there would have been more suspense if they’d let the characters (and the audience) figure that out as they spent more time in the casino.

i love love love grover so much and one of the changes i like the most is him getting a little bit more attention from the story! but when an episode is only half an hour long, i really don’t think we needed that much of it dedicated to him with that augustus guy. like i don’t care about that rn tbh. and i know the point of augustus is to show the memory loss from the casino, but i feel like that could have been done in a more interesting way (especially if, like i said, they let us figure that out as we went! like let them talk to some people from the 1800s and figure out that time works different and affects their memories.)

why name the episode “we take a zebra to vegas” if you don’t even show us the goddamn zebra? like okay then.

luke’s “old married couple” comment just felt really weird to me. like i enjoy the percabeth content we’ve been getting, but this one felt like they were just trying to spoon-feed us. let their relationship grow and develop over (hopefully) five seasons! we don’t need that at this point in the story come on now.

luke’s “how do you know” reaction to them saying they know who the lightning thief is was hilarious lmao. the boy was sweating.

i don’t think may castellan’s story needed introducing during this episode. like i didn’t mind hermes being there, and i don’t mind them alluding to later plot points a little earlier. but once again, the episode was only half an hour long, and that conversation felt like it was needlessly taking up time that could be better spent somewhere else. if you’re going to be giving us additional lore that we don’t need, then you need to either make the episodes longer or add more of them, because i feel like there was so much more we could have had in the lotus casino.

everyone’s kinda shitting themselves over percy getting four pearls instead of three, but of the plot changes, that was the one that concerned me the least? like they’re just trying to show that poseidon cares about sally, which i don’t mind. and i don’t think they’re going to just let sally escape the underworld easily, because that would be a stupid decision for the writers to make, and although there have been some things i have questioned, i don’t think they’re going to mess that up. i’m guessing they’ll lose one of the pearls when the shoes try to drag them into tartarus. dangling hope then pulling it away yknow. i don’t think the four pearls is something we should be concerned about. (if next week’s ep airs and i was wrong and they do mess it up, feel free to bring this back and laugh in my face, but i’m fairly confident.)

now you know which plot change does confuse me? making the summer solstice already have passed. like that’s a strange decision. and i understand why they’ve done it (trying to raise the stakes even more) but i feel like it was unnecessary and confusing and doesn’t add much. like i’m fine with them making changes, just as long as it brings something new to the table, but i don’t think this does, because the stakes were already high, so it just feels like changing something for the sake of it.

i wanted to say that percy not being able to drive is so relatable to me, but he’s 12 and i’m almost 18 so i feel like he’s got a lot more excuses than me.

justice for george and martha? where were they?

so many people have already said this, but the shows two biggest problems in my eyes are the pacing (why are some bits so rushed and we get no action, and then other bits so slow and clunky. like what’s going on) and also just telling us the information instead of showing us (like you’re getting the chance to use a visual medium to retell this story!!! use it!!!)

the preview for the next ep kinda spoiling the ares fight is so stupid lmaooo like can you wait for the plot twist before you go around showing us that please?

anyway i can’t tell if this episode is weaker than the others or if i just feel that way because i’m in a bad mood, so i’ll get back on that in 3-5 business days.

[natgoodmans]

Happy birthday!!! Yay I'm glad your voice is a little bit better but it's also funny to me that I have no idea what it even sounds like either..as many times as you've talked about it. It's one of the weird things about just talking online. For me, I get in the habit of just thinking everyone sounds like me haha jk. Also your crafty painting looks good! I admire your dedication to make so many bracelets since I'm not crafty at all..maybe that's something I could work on in the new year. Yes I want to see Company and I said possibly Mean Girls but I won't really know until it gets closer. Ooh I think seeing Spring Awakening would be so fun and cool!

So I can't remember if you're 26 or 27 today..but a fun fact is that Paramore has a song called 26 and Fall Out Boy also has a song called 27! I actually just became aware of the 27 one this year lol and have only heard it like twice but still! I also learned of a song called 24 this year by Switchfoot when Tyler Joseph of twenty one pilots covered it. So there are songs from 22 to 27 and I find that so cool. Right where you left me wasn't out when I turned 23..although I really could've used it back then and Nothing New but I had 23 by Jimmy Eat World which is one of the best most favorite songs ever! Also Blink 182...lol. And the pretty reckless, Taylor Momsen's band has a song called 25. But since we were just talking about Paramore and Fall Out Boy, I thought I would share! The only thing is..I'm not sure they even mention a lyric in the song..I think it's just the title. I hope you are liking their first album and the songs I recommended..but I'm glad you're going in order. Let me know what you think but also take your time! I'm sorry if the list of songs I recommended seemed overwhelming..I just love a lot of their songs.

So in a new quote Hayley Williams talked about how Taylor originally wanted her to sing on a different vault song and now I'm so curious which one it was. Possibly Electric Touch or I can See You. If it was I Can See You, that wouldve been awesome but I'm also happy with Castles Crumbling too. When we first heard I Can See You, my sister said the song fit Fall Out Boy more and he should have sang on that one instead of Electric Touch but the collabs are so good. I also suspected maybe it was Drama Queen cuz Hayley said she didn't connect to it or the sound that much..idk. but it makes me happy it was her choice cuz a lot of Paramore fans were complaining at first that Hayley didn't get to sing or show her vocals enough. I love their friendship and will be happy when they are back on tour together.

Wow it does seem like a lot of vinyls but think of it as a treat to yourself. I've never understood having a vinyl for one song though..I find that so interesting lol. You mostly have good taste and it seems like it makes you happy. Also..I like the new url and I'm definitely going to listen to the Fruitcake EP next week closer to Christmas! I did watch her new video though.

So I did not get a chance to watch the Eras movie yet but hopefully soon. But I did see the pics Taylor posted of her bday and I loved her outfit sooo much! She looked so good and really happy. Some people even have theories about TS11 based on the outfit but it also just felt like Midnights to me! However I'd love an album where she leaned into astrology or constellation stuff too. My sister loves stars so it could be really cool and I wonder what it would be like but it seems similar to Midnights too. I don't think this is as soon as other people think but I think it's fun to think about sometimes. Anyway I think today is also the day the CATS movie came out and I went to see it cuz I was soo excited my two worlds were colliding. Did you ever watch the movie..lol. I know some people were unhappy with it but I thought it was fine..I think people just don't get the musical, and it didn't really translate as a movie or onscreen at all. But I loved the musical with the costumes when I saw it last year and I like a lot of the songs. I'm pretty sure Today is also the day I watched La La Land for the first time too!!! Big day for my worlds colliding! I can't remember if you watched it..but that movie was literally made for me and loved up to my expectations! Now Taylor confirmed the choreographer from La La Land was recommended by Emma and she wanted something more theatrical for this tour..so I'm excited to pay attention to it more when I watch the movie! stuff like focusing on different dancers throughout will be interesting.

Omg I think I forgot to ask you your favorites on Folklore and Evermore! So please tell me and I will try to answer your question. I don't think my rankings have changed much, but I loved the rerecordings and it especially made me appreciate Speak Now more. For me, I don't spend a lot of time replaying full albums and her older music feels too nostalgic so I don't really hear it so I always put it last..sorry but that's the only reason. I guess I just prefer her newer stuff more. I think it would be Folklore, Rep, Red, Lover, Midnights, Evermore, Speak Now, 1989, Fearless, Debut. The middle was hard and I'm sure switch around a lot but I'm sure of my top 3 and bottom 3 I guess. What about you? I hope you have fun at your hockey game and have a fantastic fun birthday weekend!!! 🩷🩷🩷

thank you so much!! 🥺🥺 my voice is actually mostly back — except i was talking to my friend last night (one of my best friends came over with the blank space stabby cake and told me to go at it and stab, which was quite fun) and my voice got a little squeaky near the end! and isn't that so weird? i have a little made up voice for a lot of my internet friends, and it never matches with how they actually sound in real life! i love crafty time! i was thinking of tracking that in my new planner for next year (i'm terrible at habit tracking, which is something i want to be better at too)!

mean girls could be fun! i was supposed to see taylor louderman's last matinee, but then had to sell my ticket to a friend (i was ... hungover) and then missed it when it was in seattle on tour! i'm quite curious about the movie though.

i turn 26 today! which is quite horrifying! trying not to think too much about the birthday scaries! i started listening to some fall out boy too — i listened to the so much (for) stardust album twice, and i really liked it! i definitely need to listen to it more so i know the lyrics for the concert, but i'm really excited now especially since i know i like a lot of the songs! i will go listen to 26 by paramore in a bit 🤍 i was using "25 years old, oh how were you to know" from dancing with our hands tied and "i was 25 and afraid to go outside a millennial that baby-boomers like" from give yourself a try! you are totally fine! i was talking to a friend (who also loves paramore + FOB) about my quest to get into their music and how i usually listen to albums on my walks with toto! but we get distracted a lot (we usually run into neighbors and such) but it's been fun!

i could see hayley on either of those songs! and i do think (from my brief FOB knowledge) that patrick would also sound really good on i can see you! i think it's really interesting that the same thing happened with lana — fans were like "there's not a lot of them on here", and then it turned out to be their own choice!

thank you for the url compliment! and i hope you like fruitcake! i just think it's fun! :")

i've been seeing a lot about the new theories and i'm definitely curious! andddd yes i did see the cats movie (at home) and i... am not a cats the musical fan haha. we actually have beef. my mom and i saw it on tour and someone broke into my mom's car during it and i have been like 😡 that's the show where my mom's car got broken into 😡 ever since. but the dancing/choreo in that show is beautiful, and i loved the taylor song for it! i did watch la la land! i was reading about the mandy moore interview yesterday and thought that was so cool!

ooh i think my favorites on folklore are: cardigan, mirrorball, this is me trying, and peace, and then on evermore: marjorie, right where you left me, cowboy like me, coney island and long story short! </33333 everyone's least favorite is always debut 😭 my top three are: debut, red, and speak now, and then i think folklore, fearless, and evermore, then lover, midnights, 1989, and then reputation. i'm not quite sure of the middle rankings but i am also confident in my top three and last three!

thank you so much! i'm super excited for the hockey game 🤍 hope you have a nice weekend!

[stillness138]

finally got the time to yap about hotd

so people are upset and disappointed with how chood and bleese were done. i will admit to having only read an extensive summary of the book, but i didn't mind it. i'll get back to it but first some general thoughts tm

but reading different reactions and comparing them to mine kinda made me think about how this show adapts the source material in general. i really, really like the show, despite it having specific points i definitely disliked or was also disappointed with (especially in episode 9). because i think it is overall a great adaptation. and not necessarily of the text of Fire&Blood - a text that is harder to adapt to begin with because, as people seem to keep forgetting, it is told exclusively by in-world characters with their individual biases - but rather of the themes, topics and messages this story (and really asoiaf as a whole) is trying to convey.

and people seem to have lost sight of those a little bit too. this thing is about an oppresive, unsustainable patriarchal system that harms just about everyone in and around it. the most drastic change - Alicent being Rhaenyra's childhood best friend - is an excellent piece of adaptation because it allows them to say so much about the topic at hand, more than George did. [a side point, but this fandom, just like the witcher one, should also take a step back from treating grrm as someone who can never err and whose word is holy. the man has a morbid interest in writing child torture porn to illustrate a point he already made 3 books ago. he aint special, and he sure isn't the best thing since sliced bread.] [but actually, on this topic, the choices of where to have nudity, sex, sexual abuse, violence and gore are also made with thought in this show and my god is that so refreshing to see, ESPECIALLY in this universe.]

i would've done the first episode of season 2 differently, would've only set b&ch up at the end and built tension through the whole of the next episode, but i obviously haven't seen the rest of the season. no one has save for unenthused journalists but throwing hands in the air about the lack of this or that is kinda silly. it's literally just the first episode. i'm ready to do the stanczyk and eat my words if i'm wrong, but stuff like pact of ice&fire, how alicole came to be, even more reactions to Luke's death, why the castle was completely devoid of guards,.. may yet be subjects in conversations later on.

the ep manages to have a unifying theme, that being parents' relationships to their (deceased) children, and it gets that across well enough. yes there should have been more of Aegon and Helaena's time with their kids but also, this would've never reached the level of setup the red wedding had. they're not really comparable.

another opinion i've seen and disagree with is that b&ch is portrayed as an oopsie. what do you think Daemon answered to "and if we don't find Aemond?" and why do you think "does she look like a son to you" is said? they knew what they were doing. if anything, their surprise is to how easy it was to get to Helaena. and that is set up too. if Aegon took her seriously, like, ever (this is something he exhibits all the way back in the Driftmark episode), maybe there would be at least some guards. she foresaw the danger and he could've attempted doing something about it or at the very least ease his sister/wife's worries, but he was too busy using Jaehaerys to humiliate Tyland Lannister. [truly the dad to end all dads in this series.] i want to see Aegon wracked with guilt over it, because he definitely directly underestimated the situation.

he is also left with either his wild card brother or his daughter to name the new heir. where have we seen that before. and the not so secret third option is to put Helaena through another pregnancy to hopefully get a son out of it. that's what Maelor would be forced to live with. knowing that he only exists because of a terrible tragedy and the system's requirements for a suitable heir.

i do agree that the show leans towards Rhaenyra's team quite a bit, but i don't think they're being too sanitized. again i'm ready to be the fool, but Daemon has 9 more episodes to openly admit to ordering Jaehaerys's murder.

if the bag was fumbled on anything, it was delivery, but not adaptation itself. this isn't the show of women screaming in horror as men threaten to assault their six year old children. it is a show about a system that manifests as an abuse cycle and ends in tragedy one way or another, and that can be conveyed in a number of ways.

[phantom-of-the-501st]

Some Ep 5 Thoughts

Spoilers for TBB Season 2

So can we talk about the scene where the group got separated by the rockfall for a moment? Because what was the actual point???

As soon as they got separated I thought that there would be a half and half split of the episode where we followed Hunter, Omega and Phee for some scenes and then Tech, Wrecker and Echo for the rest before they ultimately ended up in the same spot at the end. I got really excited to see some content from team Tech, Ech, and Wreck because I feel like that's a combo we don't see enough of.

But we didn't get that!

Instead we spent a few minutes watching the other three sort out the tunnel puzzle thing (Hunter pls stop falling off/down things) and then cut to the others for... nothing.

Wrecker thought he heard a noise, the other two are like "nah, it's in you're head", they turn a corner and THEY ARE RIGHT BACK WITH THE OTHERS.

WTF WAS THE POINT? THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING???

I really feel like the entire point of that rockfall was to get the three of them out of the way for the tunnel scene so that they could keep it a little more focused and less cluttered. But they didn't actually do anything with them. They literally just tucked them away in a dark corner for a few minutes.

This scene just sums up one of my general frustrations with this episode, which is just how useless some of the Batch feel this episode. Wrecker gets to pull some rocks out of the way and swing a monster around and then Tech and Echo... what do Tech and Echo do?

They don't have any particularly interesting dialogue. They don't really do anything that impacts the mission in any way. Tech is just there to talk about how old the rock is and Echo is there just because.

It feels so much like when they got sidelined in season 1 which is why it's so frustrating.

If you're going to put all of them in, do something with them. Really this entire episode could have just been about Phee, Omega and Hunter.

And I do wonder if this coming off the back of eps 3 and 4 influenced the way I felt about this episode. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love those episodes, but we've had one ep without the Batch, one with half of them and now one where there might as well have only been half of them.

Wrecker got a bit last episode and a little less today, Hunter got nothing last ep but actually had something decent this time, Tech had the entirety of episode 4 but nothing this episode, and Echo has done fuck all since episode 2.

I think that had they put an episode like this after a few episodes with the whole Batch, it wouldn't be so bad. But with the Batch as a whole not really getting a lot atm, it makes me feel like we're straying a bit.

I was really hyped to see more stuff about the conflict between Hunter, Echo and the rest of the Batch. I wanted to see more with Tech questioning their choice to stay with Cid. And this episode didn't really deliver on anything.

I'm not really sure what the point was and this cave scene pretty much summarises that. Half the Batch felt completely unnecessary in their own show.

Hopefully we get something more next episode. If "Tribe" is about the wookies then Echo might get to shine a bit, seeing as we see him with just Omega and Gungi.

I don't hate this episode but it really fell flat for me. It felt pretty meh. I'm not expecting every episode to be amazing but I hope it picks up a bit after this.

Wow, this ended up being a lot longer and angrier than I intended. Oops. 😅

[swiftletinthecloud]

Alchemy of Souls: Episodes 13-14

Picking up where we left off last week with Uk x Naksu/Mu Deok hug 🥺😍 The way that it’s a hug with Uk just completely wrapping himself around Naksu/Mu Deok to comfort her when she needed it ❤️

The way that Uk uses what he found out about the yin-yang jade to call on Go Won to be his savior 😆

Uk stepping in front of Naksu/Mu Deok to block her from Jin Mu’s view 😍

Jin Mu and the fake Queen not underestimating Uk but still underestimating him. Lol. although we’re going down a tricky path here with them trying to figure out why Uk changed and for whom so they can potentially use that person against him

Crown Prince Go Won not being an idiot and starting to suspect Jin Mu bc he noticed that “intruder” Uk had no sword but “innocent” Jin Mu did!

Uk taking Naksu/Mu Deok’s statement that she can not bear it if he dies as a reply to his love confession and more meaningful than her “I missed you”! Side note tho - him realizing this but then starts to have doubts AGAIN when he sees her smiling with Yul is annoying. Like seriously did we not have this insecurity last week as well? How can you be so confident and then so insecure at the same time! Uk better not have doubts again next week too after ending the ep 14 confident after realizing Naksu/Mu Deok had tried to keep him with her instead of going to his room/ Heo Yun Ok and got back her half of the yin yang jade

The way Naksu/Mu Deok got them out of Jin Mu’s place by begging them not to let Songrim take Uk bc they will severely punish him had me in stitches 🤣🤣🤣

Pls I’m so over Yul’s romantic scenes and him as a love rival. Go Won’s scenes are just better and he’s at least a more entertaining love rival even if he knows he has no chance against Uk for Mu Deok’s affections. Yul had like a summer of friendship and longing but since she’s been back, he said himself: the only person in Naksu/Mu Deok’s mind is Uk so get over yourself, Yul. The more ppl try to separate them, the more Uk and Naksu/Mu Deok will fight to be by each other’s side (unless Naksu/Mu Deok tried to be a Noble Idiot and leaves Uk to protect him. Don’t think she will do that. It’s not in her character but the way she was thinking that if she’s found out it would put Uk in danger have me a little worry)

I’m here for all the Master Lee - Uk scenes and Uk actually getting advices and cared for by a father-ish figure. Pls hopefully this won’t change or Master Lee turning out to be bad or something with his reveal of being a soul shifter at the end of episode 14

The Master Lee - Kim Do Ju - Park Jin love triangle! And Uk’s delivery of it to Master Lee and Park Jin is hilarious 😆 I’m really rooting for Master Lee here if he doesn’t turn out to be some evil manipulative mastermind. 🤞

In all seriousness I was not expecting Uk to lose his last duel even if it was against Yul. Especially with the emphasis on Uk finally being able to master Chisu before the duel. I mean I get why Uk didn’t since it might have been a bit cliché and the audience expecting it for him to defy expectations and win like he did in his duel with Go Won and the writers might have wanted to go against expectations but I still wanted Uk to win 😩

The fact that Naksu/Mu Deok searched night and day in the muddy water for her jade pendant 🥺🥺 Girl might not have said “I love you” verbally to him but she’s so in love with Uk. And then her running to him to show Uk she has her pendant again 🥺❤️ and her actually showing him the pendant after initially hiding it when she saw him laughing with Heo Yun Ok as a reply to his kiss 🥺 Also side note here that’s similar to the side note about Uk above. Like Naksu/Mu Deok, how can you doubt Uk’s romantic interest in you and said he doesn’t see you as a woman when he literally have just confessed a few days ago? I hope that after the kiss and pendant scene they’re now on the same page romantically and stop doubting each other’s interests.

Everyone wondering how Jin Mu plan on tricking the Jin Gate with the fake Jin Bu Yeon, I guess now we know how. I really just want a deserving amount of time spent to explore or a spin off of Jin Cho Yeon and Park Dang Gu being happy and exploring their characters. Like we can go so much deeper with Cho Yeon that we only see glimpses of sometimes of how she’s dealing with an absent father (who is now home but just using her and not really caring for her well-being ), a neglectful critical mother who only cares for her other daughter, and the shadow of her missing big sister. Same with Dang Gu who is so caring to those close to him (Cho Yeon, Yul, Uk, Mu Deok) but have only been used so far for comedic effect for the most part. And he’s heir to Songrim yet no one has been shown to take him seriously and he seems to also be in Yul’s shadow even with his uncle. Park Jin had involved Yul in the whole soul shifter business first over Dang Gu.

Ju Wol and the ferry guy both warn Naksu/Mu Deok that So Yi is dangerous and we know her presence can’t mean anything good for Naksu/Mu Deok, but I hope they defy expectations and team up at some point to go against Jin Mu, a man that used/is using them both.

I hate that Uk and now Naksu/Mu Deok have been forced into promising to do something for another party (Heo Yeom and Seo Yul) without them actually knowing what they promised to do.

Based on these two episodes I don’t think Naksu/Mu Deok will ever run wild bc if Master Lee is really also a soul shifter, we have a precedent of soul shifters being normal and not running wild or petrifying. Also if the ice stone is what keeps soul shifters from running wild then she’s also safe being in Mu Deok/ Bu Yeon’s body. Based on last week’s episode, it was implied that the ice stone was used to bring baby Bu Yeon back to life and maybe that causing her to sense energy and control the sky’s energy. And from what we see with Eunuch Kim, if the ice stone is removed, then the being goes back to being dead so that means the ice stone used to bring Bu Yeon back still has to be in her and that’s what’s keeping Naksu/Mu Deok from running wild since she already has the ice stone. And also there can be multiple ice stones maybe?

I get why Heo Yun Ok is introduced now as a way to get Master Lee and in turn Uk to the palace and led up to that reveal by Master Lee but that’s like so paper thin and she still so unnecessary/ wasted.

Looking forward to next week where Uk and Naksu/Mu Deok can tell everyone to shove it and fight to be by each other’s side.

[booasaur]

No spoilers I just wanted to say im very excited for u to watch the new season of the dragon prince!

Aaah, anon, I didddd! First... the one thing I expected them to do this season after getting engaged in the first ep was to get married, but I'm just realizing that didn't happen, right? Lol.

But honestly, I expected a few scenes of them getting ready for a wedding and then a beautiful ceremony, but not much plot, unless Amaya was pulled into the kids' adventures. I definitely prefer this, it was a much meatier conflict than they've had, and a much deeper look at the Sunfire Elves than we've gotten so far.

There was a moment when I was afraid the show would act like the Sunfire Elves were completely in the wrong and was about to be very disappointed in Amaya, but thankfully it went the other way. I'm still not fully on board with fantasy/scifi allegories that have such a clear POC-coded culture being shown to be superstitious and savage and having to learn compassion from, in this case, the only white people* around them, and honestly, I spent a lot of time going, but Karim has a point?? I actually thought he was really interesting, with his grief at not being able to see that better world in their lifetime, it was so heartfelt and relatable and didn't seem to be about the kind of archetypal xenophobia or hunger for power this character would usually have in other stories, so I was a bit disappointed they went with him being seemingly out of control at the end.

However, all in all, I really enjoyed it! It was a really pleasant surprise getting everything that we did and they were so romantic and supportive in the middle of it all. The perfect middle ground of internal/external conflict in a show that was correctly always going to focus more on the kids who the target audience is tuning in for. Hopefully next season we'll get that wedding!

*ETA: I've been corrected on this, Amaya is Asian and not white. That definitely changes things, but I think, given the perception of different cultures, the point is still kind of there.

[epic-sorcerer]

Queer imagery in BBC Merlin

Content warning: kink/fetish, fisting in particular but I show I big image containing a long list of different kinks, homophobia, dom/sub dynamics, sex

Merlin is shown wearing a purple tunic in s4, despite the fact he is a servant and purple(especially with such saturation) was extremely expensive bc purple dye was so hard to make. Gwen also has a light purple dress(or maybe 2? It’s hard to tell). Even though it’s definitely lighter than Merlins tunic, it’s still expensive.

it was illegal for peasants to wear expensive fabrics because of the Sumptuary Law. Basically it makes sure that lower class people are not fashionable. However, BBC Merlin doesn’t seam to care about that law, considering Merlins other bright clothing so take this was a grain of salt.

Basically what I’m trying to say is that there’s no way they could have gotten their hands on these clothes without the help of nobles. Gwen might have, because she works with clothing and could have easily mixed blue and red dye together. Merlin probably not have because he’s never shown to be particularly materialistic or interested much in fashion, despite his bright clothes. Bright Purple would have been much, much harder to get.

It makes the most sense for Merlin and possibly Gwen too to have been gifted such expensive clothing by a noble for being a good servant. I’d imagine Arthur would be the one to give Merlin the tunic and morgana the dresses.

Why does this matter? Lavender(and also purple in general) was considered a queer color starting in the 19th century. Queer men especially were said to possess a “streak of lavender” and a serge of homophobia at the time was often referred to as the “Lavender Scare.” Purple and lavender is still used now to symbolize queerness.

Since Merlin is a modern interpretation of Arthurian myths, it would be perfectly plausible that this symbol was on purpose. Merlin/Arthur and Gwen/Morgana are both extremely popular ships and they are both shown to have a very deep form of trust(Gwen/Morgana being at the beginning of the show). Arthur and Morgana gifting Merlin and Gwen purple clothing could be show them they accept their queerness and/or signaling their own queer attraction to them.

Now, this next symbolism concerns only Merlin/Arthur.

Merlin is shown to have three neckerchiefs.

Navy blue, red, and light grey. Why does this matter? Well, let’s take a look at something called the handkerchief code, also known as the hanky code or “flagging.”

This code has its origins all the way back in time during the Wild West in the USA, but got more popular during the late 20th century in USA and UK gay bars. This code was used mainly by queer men and some nonbinary people to signal to other queers what they wanted sexually. While typically worn in people’s back pockets, a handkerchief could also be worn around one’s neck to show they are a versatile and experienced.

According to this code, Merlin is into;

Red: fisting and getting fisted. This color was hard to get an exact shade from, but the second best option was dark red for double fisting which is honestly so similar I’m not sure if it really matters much.

Light grey: stone topping and getting fucked by a stone top

Navy blue: fucking and being fucked anally

For any one wanting to make their own interpretations of Merlins neckerchief colors(the lighting makes it hard to tell the exact ones) have a look at this handy chart

Not only that, but Arthur is seen wearing a favour on his left arm in s3 ep 4.

What’s a favour? It’s a fabric strip of affection commonly given by maidens to knights before a tournament as a symbol of good luck. It’s often a very important scarf, hankcerchlif , towel, really any bit of cloth that can be tied around someone’s arm. This is also a popular trope in historical media for a female love interest to give a favour to a male one to show chemistry between them.

Regardless of your stance on Merlins gender identity, you have to admit how commonly Merlin is shown to be gender nonconforming(GNC) or otherwise be associated with “womanly” qualities. Especially in a society so heteronormative, the only “pure” option for a knight receiving a romantic gesture would have it be from a woman. If the token was from a queer man, it would also out the noble and cause lots of horrific chaos and destroy both of their reputations.

Even if it was common for women to give knights favours, queer men still existed and with that came romantic gestures—this time hopefully more secret.

Even though the favour on Arthur’s arm doesn’t look exactly like Merlin’s neckerchief, Merlin was the only person to speak with him while preparing for the tournament. Also, the original theorist who I linked in my sources also pointed out that Merlins neckerchief looks lopsided. Almost like Merlin tore off a bit of it and hastily tied it back on.

Although this theory is definitely flawed, it doesn’t matter. Arthur is still wearing a red handkerchief on his left arm. But what does that tell us exactly?

Regardless of wether or not it was Merlin’s, the red is the same shade and also implies Arthur is also into fisting. What about the placement? Sicne it’s on his left, it shows that he is a top/dom, meaning that he prefers to be the one fisting. Since it is worn around his upper arm, it shows that he is simply into the fetish, compared to what other placements mean. In another source, it shows taht upper arm means switch, but because Arthur is wearing it on his left it wouldn’t really make sense for him to signal being a “top-switch” compared to being a top and having the fetish in general.

If you look closely, you can see a different colored stripe on the favour. It’s hard to tell exactly what the color is, it could be yellow, gold, orange, etc. because the color is so dubious, I’ll just leave y’all with a list of color meanings that may apply to Arthur’s favour.

YELLOW: pisser/watersports kink

YELLOW, Pale: spitter/spit kink

MUSTARD: Has 8+ inch dick

GOLD: two looking for one

ORANGE: anything anytime

Also, it’s important to bring up what many in thsi fandom refer to as the “fisting scene.” Where Arthur threatens Merlin by showing him his gloved fist and pulling a bit at the glove.

In the blooper, you can see Merlin’s actor(Colin Morgan) breaking character and giggling as Arthur shows him his fist. Many in the fandom agree that this was a clear innuendo for fisting, and it is very well possible.

Merlin is shown hitting Arthur and saying he was just doing some horse play, but still indirectly convincing Arthur that he needs to teach Merlin a lesson. This is actually a common act in BDSM sex, where the submissive person purposely angers the dominant into punishing them in a way that somehow involves sex or fetish play.

If you look closely, you can see Merlin is wearing at kinky red fisting handkerchief, showing Merlin is perfectly capable of being a submissive fistee. Also, the hanky code also includes other symbols such as latex or rubber gloves that, surprise surprise, also mean fisting. Although it’s more likely Arthur’s gloves where made of leather, it can still further be interpreted as a fisting symbol if you want. Either way, Arthur’s favour still holds water as he is undoubtedly the dom in this situation.

Also, Merlin is very impulsive and a madlad. Tell me he wouldn’t wear his secret fetish symbols infrount of stuck up, Roman Catholics who are none the wiser. He’d probably think it’s hilarious which is probably why he wears them almost everyday. Merlin loves playfully misbehaving(and is also a brat sometimes) so it makes sense for him to have some dangerous fun.

Now, you may be asking. Why does this matter? At the end of the day, it probably wasn’t intentional. Well, there is alwyas room for doupt BUT I do have some ferther proof. One of the co writers of BBC Merlin—Johnny Capps—actually won a Stone Wall Award. You know, an award named after a core part of queer culture?

The award’s website and Wikipedia page say they give the award for art that describes the LGBT experience well. While I am unsure why or what Capps made to be nominated, it still shows he is very much in touch with queer culture. Capp himself even said at an interview about Merlin, “... in the end, deep, deep down it’s about sexuality and things you just can’t tackle head-on.”

Well, what says more about sexuality than the main characters fist fucking each other? That’s a lot of sexuality. While I am unsure of Capp’s age, he does look to be about middle age and it would make sense for him to know about a code popularized in a 70s to 90s. Especially for someone who has made multiple queer oriented stories in his life time.

Sources:

Why is purple considered the color of royalty?

Sumptuary law

How lavender became a symbol of LGBTQ resistance

How Lavender Became a Symbol of LGBTQ Resistance(part 2)

flagging opinicus rampant

Handkerchief code

DO YOU KNOW THE HANKY CODE?

Picspam: The Red Favour (Proof of Arthur Wearing Merlin's Favour in 3x04)

Five medieval love tokens

The Lady's Favour

Hanky codes

Nominees for Stonewall Awards announced

Merlin series 5 spoiler-free launch report

Pls reblog I spent hours on this /np 😭👊

[chalkrevelations]

SHOW. You are my BELOVED. Everything else is FORGIVEN as I savor this delicious delicious angst. I want to eat it up like a beautiful cupcake full of pain and longing and tears.

SO, even expecting this, it was still actually really well done, still left me with a sinking feeling in my stomach and a fist clenched around my heart, and a ton of that is down to the actors. The way Tun calling Talay “Tess” is all Talay needs to hear to know immediately what’s happened, the change in his face, like he’s been struck. The creeping look of realization and dawning horror on first Talay’s face and then Tun’s, the way Talay then goes blank, the way he edges away from Tun like he can’t even bear to be that close, let alone to touch him, the way that tells Tun everything he needs to know. (The way Puen jerks back, out of the hug, like he’s been slapped when he realizes that Talay isn’t Talay, is still Tess, in the preview for the next episode.)

Also, I know there’ve been some complaints about consistency of when we see Puen and Talay vs. when we see Tun and Tess, but I thought this was an interesting use of that slip-slideyness - that we see Tun as Puen up until Talay realizes he’s Tun, suggesting that Talay thinks of the body as Puen right up until he realizes that it’s actual-Tun, at which point, he no longer recognizes the body as Puen. That there’s some kind of Puen-ness that he knows and he recognizes and he misses when it’s not there, for all his talk about not knowing who Puen is. Again, Talay, we need to talk about knowing who someone is vs. knowing their label. I think this slip-slidiness of identity may be an indication that Talay knows who Puen is more than he gives himself (or Puen) credit for.

I’m not particularly concerned about Talay not knowing Puen’s name before the portkey system booted Puen’s ass back to their real life, because literally all he has to do is ask Tun what it is. Meanwhile, I expect Puen’s going to be sticking super-close to Tess-in-Talay’s body.

What I want to see in Ep 11: Tess and Talay staying in the wrong universe long enough for 1) plenty of delicious angst and pining, 2) Talay to realize that he’s still got some gd friends in the other universe, who might be little bit hurt to find that he thinks of himself as ALONE, and 3) Puen to reinvent himself - and his career - under the name “Shy.” It’d be nice if they would clear this up by the end of the ep though, so we have Ep 12 for them to acclimate back to their real lives and to hopefully avoid any time-jumps, my beloathed.

Finally, I loved the darker version of the show’s theme that kicked in over that last scene. :chef’s kiss: They’re finally actually tapping into some of the horror inherent in this concept.

[ladyloveandjustice]

Spring 2021 anime overview: Quick Takes

Now for my Spring 2021 anime thoughts! I’ve decided from now on if a season’s like, 20- to-24 episodes I’m just going to wait ‘til it’s done to review it unless I feels super passionately, so though I watched To Your Eternity (it’s good!) and MHA (eh), I’ll comment on them next time. Also, for the record, I watched the first eight eps of Joran: Princess and Snow of Blood but I dropped it because it had clearly crossed the line from entertainingly dumb to boring dumb. 

I will probably give Supercub and some other stuff a shot later, this was a stacked season! May give updates on all that later, but this is what I have for now.

ODDTAXI

Quick Summary: A mild mannered middle-aged walrus taxi driver is drawn into a case involving a missing girl, yakuza, Youtube clout-chasers, manzai comedians and idols with big secrets.

It’s rare to walk away from media and be like “that is a singular experience I will definitely never see repeated again” but ODDTAXI is definitely one of those. A tense noir thriller murder mystery starring cartoon animals that spends an entire episode detailing the one (cat)man’s very fall into darkness triggered by addiction to gacha games and an online auction for a novelty eraser? Also there’s a porcupine Yakuza who speaks entirely in rap? Also there’s tons of meandering conversations about stuff like manzai comedy and the struggle to go viral on Twitter?

Admittedly, I had a hard time getting into the first episode, the dry meandering humor not being enough to hold my attention while I was sitting still, but once I watched this while I was working out at the end of the season, I found it an easy binge. A ton of characters with dark secrets or dangerous ambitions, each with their own part to play in a tableau of intersecting events- and it all actually comes together really well.(As for the female characters, it’s a pretty dude driven story, but they do get nuanced characterization and even some good heroic moments from one of them.)

 It’s a great example of a carefully planned narrative paying off, with all the twists appropriately seeded and foreshadowed to reward viewers who paid attention. Even when it ended on a perfect “OH SHIT” moment and denied me closure, I couldn’t help but respect it. If you that all sounds interesting to you, definitely check out the first couple episodes and see if you like it- you’re likely to have a memorable, satisfying experience!

Shadows House

Quick Summary: Emilyko is a ‘living doll’ who’s told she was created to act as the ‘face’ of her shadow master, Kate. The shadows and their ‘dolls’ all reside on the mansion and are required to pass a ‘debut’ to prove they’re a good pairing. If they don’t pass, they might be disposed of. And so the mystery of the Shadow mansion grows...

This slice of gothic intrigue was my favorite of the season, tied with ODDTAXI. With an interesting premise, slightly tense undertones and a strong focus on character building and relationships, it kept me hooked the whole way through. And for any squeamish fans put off by the hype about it, don’t worry, while there are some suspenseful elements, I wouldn’t qualify it as horror. I thought the relationship between Kate and Emilyko might end up being a completely sinister one, but it’s thankfully a lot more complex than that and it’s really interesting to follow how both their characters and relationship grow. The focus of the show is, unsurprisingly, on the “dolls” slowly discovering their autonomy and personhood as they struggle under the rigid system imposed on them by the mysterious elders of this weird Victorian mansion. Can they develop a more equitable relationship with their shadow “masters” (who are also shown to suffer under this system)? There’s a lot to dig into there, and the show has the characters develop through learning to understand and appreciate each other, which is pretty heartwarming. Our hero, Emilyko, is the typical plucky ball of sunshine (they even nickname her sunshine), but she’s also shown to be clever in her own off-the-wall way and she bounces off the far more subdued and cynical Kate well, not to mention the other ‘dolls’ she ends up befriending. 

What’s more, the show spends plenty of time to developing several other character pairings and combinations, and they all have their own interesting dynamic that makes you want to see more of them. Same-gender bonds are at the forefront of this show, and many of them are ripe for queer readings (I definitely appreciated the healthy helping of ladies carrying ladies), but even outside that it’s nice to see a show where a strong, complex bond between girls is at the forefront. My only real complaints about the show are the anime original ending is noticeably a bit rushed (though it’s not too bad, and leaves room for a season 2) and I wish the animation used the whole “shadow” theme more strikingly (like the opening and endings do)- instead the colors are a bit washed out which makes the shadows blend into the background sometimes. The “debut” arc also drags a bit in places, but it makes up for it by having a lot of good character integration.

I hope to check out the (full color)! manga soon and see more of this quirky, shadowy story. There’s some physical abuse depicted, sad things happening to characters and naturally the whole “oppressive familial system” thing, but otherwise not much I can think of to warn about. I give this one a big rec, especially If you’re a fan of gothic fairytales and stories of self discovery.  

Zombie Land Saga Revenge

Quickest summary: In this sequel season, everyone’s favorite zombie idol group must claw their way back into prominence after a disastrous show- the fate of the Saga prefecture LITERALLY depends on it!

This was a fun follow-up to the first season- if you liked the first zombie-girl romp, you’ll probably enjoy this one. In fact, there were a couple areas it improved on- namely, Kotaro failed, ate crow and embarrassed himself a lot more this season, which made him more likeable (as did the fact the girls gained a lot of independence from him). This season also shed more light on what the ‘goal’ of this zombie raising project is and what kind of shit Kotaro got involved with to make this happen, and it’s appropriately off-the-wall and ridiculous. We finally got some backstory for Yugiri too! I wish it had focused on more of her interiority, but she got to be a badass in it, and it was a treat to see this zombie idol show turn into a period piece for a couple episodes (also her song ruled).

 Tae also got a cute focus episode and there was a particular SMASHING performance early on! Also That revelation last season that had the potential to turn creepy hasn’t yet, and hopefully never will. The finale was heartwarming with big hints of more drama to come- I’m definitely down for more zombie hijinks!

Vivy: Flourite Eye’s Song

Quickest Summary: A songstress AI named DIVA (nicknamed Vivy) is approached by another AI named Matsumoto, who says he’s from the future and they must work together to prevent AI exterminating all of humankind 100 years from now.

This show is absolutely gorgeous visually with some really nice action scenes, but when it comes to the story my feelings basically amount to a shrug. It’s fine! I guess! Vivy starts out as an interesting layered character- and I guess still is by the end- with her stoic but stubborn determination bouncing off her fast-talking bossy partner Matsumoto well. She never listens to him, which is delightful. The way the show took place over the course of 100 years was an interesting conceit as well. However, it bought up a lot of themes and then sort of... dropped them. For instance, Vivy interprets her mission (PRIME DIRECTIVE if you will) as protecting humans at all costs, no matter how destructive said humans are or what their fate is supposed to be, and is perfectly willing to murder her fellow androids to do this, showing she inherently thinks of androids (herself and her own people!) as less worthy. Which is a little alarming! There’s a very dramatic point in the show where they bring this up as a potential conflict for her character but then it’s sort of...dropped. Pretty much.

Actually, despite the premise, the show doesn’t dip into the “AI rights” as much as you think it would with the main theme being more about Vivy’s search to find her own creativity and discover what it means to ‘pour your heart into something’. Vivy herself doesn’t actually care if she has rights or anything. Which is in some ways fine, because ‘AI as an oppressed class’ has been done to death, but IT’S ALSO KIND OF IN THE PREMISE, so that means that the show just shrugs really hard at a lot of the questions it brings up  basically just going “humans and AI should work together probably” and that’s it. There’s a lot that feels underexplored. The antagonists in the show also either have motivations that don’t really make sense or have boring hackneyed motivations. In the finale in particular, it feels like a lot of things happen “just because” and it falls a little flat.

I also have to warn that one of the arcs focus on a robot ‘pairing’ where the dude-coded robots actions toward his partner are straight up awful and rob her of her autonomy, but it’s played like a tragic love story. I suppose you could read it differently too, but it definitely made me go ‘ew’ the story seemed to want me to sympathize with this robo dude,

Overall, I wouldn’t anti-recommend this show, it’s an all right little sci-fic romp (and definitely SUPER pretty). My favorite element was definitely the episodes where Vivy develops an entirely new (an loveable) personality, because it played with the idea of of an AI getting “rebooted” really well and interplay between her two “selves” was done really well. But there are a lot of other parts of the show that just feel...a little underexplored and empty, making me have an ‘eh’ feeling on the show overall. It’s definitely an ambitious project, and while it didn’t quite stick the landing, there’s something to be said for a show that shoots for the stars and falls short over a show that just languishes in mediocrity.

Fruits Basket The Final

Quick summary: The final season of that dramatic drama about that weird family with a zodiac curse and the girl who loves them.

It’s very weird that after not cutting a lot out, they kinda sped through some material for, you know, the finale. I guess they thought they couldn’t stretch this final arc to 26 episodes? Or weren’t cleared for another double cour? However, though there were a couple places that felt awkward, despite being a bit condensed it mostly held together pretty well for a D R A M A T I C and ultimately heartwarming conclusion. I was really disappointed they kept the part where Ritsu cut their hair for the ‘happy ending’, I thought  their intro episode not showing them in men’s clothes meant the anime had decided their presentation didn’t need to be “fixed” but WELL I GUESS NOT. That was the only big upset for me though, otherwise the adaptation went about how I expected, sticking to the source material. Furuba has a lot of bumps, from weird age gap stuff to ...gender, but it also has a lot of important feels and great character arcs. It was a gateway shoujo for many and has its important place in animanga history, so I’m glad it finally got a shiny, full adaptation.