#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.

[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. 😅

[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.

[notebookmusical]

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.

[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.

[scripturiends]

law school episode 9 musings

warning: very very long post ahead. i have a lot of thoughts.

hey folks — how we feeling about episode 9?

given that there are so many plotlines in the show, i’m afraid i won’t be able to extend my analysis of the episode as far as i would like, but there are three characters who stood out to me the most last night that i’d like to talk about for now:

kang dan

there’s a lot that we got to uncover about her thanks to professor yang’s trial. if i’m piecing it all together right, the basic summary of what led to her disappearance goes like this:

she was a volunteer for assemblyman ko’s campaign, but upon discovering that he was spreading fake news about his opposition, dan reported him to the authorities (i’m guessing not just the police but also the media) and became a whistleblower. assemblyman ko tried to buy her off with money, but she refused, so he attacked her where she’s most vulnerable instead — by using her family.

i’m not completely sure about this (please feel free to correct me!) but it’s either byeol is (1) the twins’ half-sister, or (2) their stepsister? it’s so hard to tell, especially since korean terms can get lost in translation in the process (i watch on netflix, if that helps). but anyway, sol and dan’s mom married someone who was abusing her, and in exchange for dan’s silence (and her fleeing), the husband signs a contract that he would stop hurting his wife.

so that’s the backbone of dan’s story. however, this still doesn’t answer a lot of things, like where seo byungju or lee manho fits into the equation, the whereabouts of their mom’s ex-husband, or why dan was sent into boston in the first place.

i usually don’t like theorizing, but i do have one: there is an ivy league school located just outside of boston — harvard. (it’s technically in cambridge but you know, i’m taking liberties here.) professor yang said in passing one episode that he thought he saw dan when he went to the school for a seminar or a talk or something. could it be that assemblyman ko offered her an education at a top school in exchange for her silence? it could explain why she gave it up all so easily. what if she took that topnotch education as a chance to prepare, so that when she came back, she had much stronger leverage to take assemblyman ko down, given the knowledge and network of connections she’ll have earned in that school?

the theory’s plausible but i might be overestimating assemblyman ko’s kindness — unless he’s insanely desperate, he might not give a damn about dan’s education. it actually benefits him more if she stayed uninformed, but still. let me know what you think about it.

yoo seungjae

in this episode, we learned a little bit more about how yoo seungjae was able to hack into the professors’ laptops, and they also confirmed some of our previous speculations about him: that his wife yujeong was an ob gyn, and so was he, and that they were trying for a baby. unfortunately, i find it all to be a bit lacking in substance. i was hoping we could get down to the nitty-gritty of why he did what he did.

i say this for one important reason: i don’t know about you guys, but i would never make such a stupid mistake in undergrad, let alone in law school. seungjae has gone to med school, so we know that he knows the repercussions of his actions. why would he go to such lengths? sure, he found an opening, he was tempted, and he took it. but he didn’t just do it once, he did it multiple times, and those offenses add up (hacking, stealing exam papers, and cheating). surely he must know that something like this can ruin careers even before they even start, and not only would he get kicked out of the school, he would also get blacklisted from the industry once he implicates himself. so we understand why he’s so hesitant to testify (especially now that his wife is pregnant).

but why did he do that in the first place? we could say he’s insecure about his skills, but he’s survived med school. how much harder could law school be for him? i just don’t think that the payoff is worth the risk. what must be so important for yoo seungjae to do all of this for? what does he get in return if he successfully pulls it off and gets straight As during his entire time in law school? who is he doing for?

i hope it runs deeper than just wanting a ‘good future’ for him and his wife and their baby or something — because he could just as easily do that as a doctor. there must be another reason he went into law.

still, though, and this is just a personal opinion, even if i did find out his entire backstory, there’s no way i could ever defend him. we see in the show how his guilt builds up (from observing how kang sol A studies so well, to his conversation with jeon yeseul in the hospital), but at this point there is no more excusing what he did. not that i ever condoned it in the first place.

we’re still in the dark about a lot of things regarding yoo seungjae. hopefully by the next episode, we get something. but until then, he is still a shady, shady man to me.

kang sol B

her screen time in this episode was short, but i still wanted to highlight her because she is pretty much a ticking time bomb.

she’s in a tight spot right now because even if she testifies about having seen the sugar packet, the prosecutor will just twist the argument by saying she colluded with a murderer just to cover up her plagiarism.

and now, seo jiho needs her help, probably for something related to his case with prosecutor jin. in exchange, she puts pressure on him to ‘confirm’ that she didn’t plagiarize in middle school, since they were schoolmates and rivals.

there may be more to this plagiarism issue than meets the eye. who knows, we might find out later on that she actually didn’t plagiarize? but given what i know now, i have no reason to believe that she didn’t. i don’t blame her specifically for that, seeing as she has to pay for the consequences for something that her awful mom forced her to do. but now that the mess has been made, i want to see how she cleans it up.

kang sol B is a very elusive character to me. the scary thing about her is that she’s on no one’s side but her own. and that’s why i think she’s a ticking time bomb.

~

bonus: han joonhwi

so that’s all i have for the serious stuff. as a bonus, i’d like to talk about han joonhwi and his four (4) children jeon yeseul, seo jiho, kang byeol, and min bokgi.

one of my friends brought up how it’s so funny how he’s somehow just at the right place at the right time all the time. this happened when he ran into kang sol A when she was looking for yeseul (i still think they were on the phone with each other beforehand but this is just my shipper self talking — truthfully, if the focus was shifted towards that phone call without divulging who it was, i have a feeling it might be more important later on), and when seo jiho confronted prosecutor jin. adding his elevator conversation with kang sol B, i think it just solidified what we already know: han joonhwi is a very compassionate person. but he doesn’t sacrifice his own personality just to appease them — he recognizes that these individuals have agency, and he’s just giving them the little push they need to make them realize what they need to do.

i also felt the need to bring up kang byeol. the show does such a good job of ensuring that all the solhwi scenes that we get, no matter how indulgent and “fanservice-y” they might seem, actually have a deeper purpose. again, i could go on and on about what each solhwi scene has actually contributed to the development of the plot, which is exactly why i love them so much! because all of their scenes are so meaningful. but anyway, it’s nice to see han joonhwi care so much for his, ehem, future sister-in-law.

and for min bokgi — this scene was so short, but i absolutely loved it so much (i tend to pay attention to the throwaway scenes): min bokgi is going off about how yoo seungjae is acting weird, and he says to joonhwi, “hyung, you should call him.” and joonhwi responds with, “sure. eat your food.” it’s such a fatherly thing to do and it’s such a great contrast to bokgi’s dynamic with sol A, with whom he’s so loud and vibrant, moods that both match their personalities, but with joonhwi, who is more subdued, he’s like a little kid in need of rescue from an older brother, or even a dad. ah, i love it so much. min bokgi is such an underrated character. i wish he had more screen time. (if he doesn’t get a central ep, well, you guys know where i’m going with this, right? it means i’ll give it to him myself.)

~

so that’s it for now! i’m sorry i went on rambling again, but if there’s anything noteworthy in this post that you think is worth discussing, please do tell! if there’s anything that you found thought-provoking in the episode that i didn’t get to touch up on, let me know as well!

i personally don’t make any theories about the overarching plot myself, seeing as by the time the new episode comes out, we get fed information that renders the theory useless. still, that doesn’t mean we should stop coming up with our own ideas. sometimes, the theories are more interesting than the canon itself.

[d-criss-news]

Actor And Producer Darren Criss Reveals His Creative Process

The producer, singer and actor talks his approach to songwriting, discovering his sound and how he’s ready for the next chapter.

We don’t know about you, but we’re currently experiencing the Bank Holiday blues. With the realisation that our days of summer maybe coming to an end were in need of uplifting sounds and singer-songwriter Darren Criss is keeping the energy going with his fun-filled EP “Masquerade”. Between the slick alt-pop productions and high-octane energy, the artist puts his theatrical abilities and prowess at the forefront of the EP. Laced with serene dance floor-ready melodies, the actor and musician instantly gets the party going on the project, kicking it off with “f*kn around”.

“The dirty secret is that every song is character-driven,” the artist revealed when discussing the project. “I just chose wording that could perhaps aid people into understanding this exploration of genre, this self-aware exploration of genre a little more. For those people that only know me as an actor, I’m trying to guide them into this notion of music and songs being a form of acting.”

No newcomer to the scene, the artist has spent the past decade gracing our screens in the cult favourite Glee and the thrilling Assassination of Versace: American Crime Story. Wanting to continue his musical journey in the form of producing and writing, we caught up with the multi-faceted artist talking his growth over the years, staying creative in a pandemic and how he’s ready for the next chapter.

Check out the interview below now…

Hey Darren, how are you? How has this past year been for you? It’s a strange question to answer because everybody’s answer is so much more complicated than what you can say in a quick easy tight polite answer. You know, I’m well, as well as one could be given the situation. I feel, you know, luckier than most. Even with the music that I just put out there’s still more that I’d like to do, but I got to do even more than I thought I’d be able to. So that tends to be kind of the theme of the past year and a half. I feel like I’ve been so consumed by working on so many things for so long, that not a lot of people outside of my inner circle know about that. You know, it’s been a lot of high output but seemingly low visibility. So now finally getting to put out some of these things and talk about them… tipped scale of visibility versus output is hopefully having a chance to even out for a bit, to where the amount of work I’ve put in can somehow match that people you know may or may not know about what I’m doing. You know, I’ve been really busy. I’m the kind of guy where if you give me a white canvas it’s a more…I wouldn’t say stressful, but I’m more likely to fill up a blank canvas immediately with as much shit as possible – I guess that is more stressful than having only a few places to fit things in, and I usually keep pretty busy. Ironically when I’m really busy, that’s when I can get stuff done. Like you know that phrase ‘if you want something done ask the busiest person in the room’, and I think there’s a degree of truth to that because you know, the chaos kind of begets chaos, and productivity begets productivity, and in a lack of anything else to do it was like ‘I wanna do all these things!’ and then it gets really crammed, so it’s nice to be kind of simmering down from this overwhelming call to arms to get as many things done as I could with this new unprecedented free time that I had. So, in short, I guess, am well if you wanna use that! I feel, I’m just relieved that a lot of this stuff can exist somewhere outside of my head but it’s a complicated answer, I’ve been able to do a lot more than I thought I’d be able to.

With everything that happened last year, was your creativity affected? The time that it yielded is the kind of time that a lot of creative people fantasise about. Of course, we would have all preferred it in a very different way when you say ‘if only I had time to sit down and work on this’. I think we all have; I say creative people but we all say, ‘if only I had time to paint the kitchen, learn a language, get in shape’, you know do something different that requires a bit of time and focus. We were all given that golden ticket, of course take that with a massive grain of salt, I’m fully aware of the price with which that came, of course if we had the choice, I don’t think any of us would have wanted it to happen the way it did. But none the less, for those of us who did take the time to focus, to hopefully be productive and proactive with the situation we were thrown into, it was creatively beneficial to finally get to address things that had been sitting kind of on deck and dormant in my mind, and it was just a matter of having the time to give them any attention. One of the joys of jumping between acting and music is there is a battle of time commitment, because neither one is a thing you can do casually. If you’re acting in something, there’s a great degree of scheduling that really eats up a large chunk of your day. While I’m in an acting project, I’m writing stuff and playing music but the actual logistics of producing music is as time consuming as the acting. I am envious of people that can kind of just show up, sing a song and leave. I, unfortunately, am not that kind of person. Writing a song is only a small piece of putting music out. Production really does take a large part of my emotional and intellectual efforts, and I really dive in head on. And that’s not even mentioning the promotional side of it. So, it really does take a lot of time to dive into those things, and I was finally given that. If anything, it was hard to decide what part of my musical menu that I wanted to serve up. It just came to a matter of what felt right at the time, what seemed fun. I kind of wanted to put out something that was positive and fun, and unapologetically so. And something that really showed up for a side of me that I felt like hadn’t been represented in the past. The musician side, and unfortunately, we haven’t been able to perform these very much. We’ve done little videos here and there. Stuff that really showed my roots as a musician, a garage rock guy, a guy that really likes getting in the weeds of production. In the past I’ve put up things that are a little more analogue, singer-songwritey, and this is more me as a producer and a musician.

How did you first get into music, what sparked the interest? Well, I’ve been playing music my whole life, and not casually either. It’s such a massive part of my identity, and that’s one of the main driving forces of me wanting to put out as much music as I possibly can. These five songs on this EP are a small part of a much larger body of work that I’m dying to get out whenever I can. When you’re a songwriter, or just in general a creative person, you have more ideas back logged than your body can execute. This is only a small part of a much larger puzzle, and a lot of these songs, the ones that I’ve put out and the ones I’m still trying to put out, are ghosts that have been haunting me however many years., some more than a decade, some more than two decades. The reason I mention this is because I’m trying to illustrate how pivotal music and making music has been throughout my life. I started playing violin when I was 5, and that was a big part of my cultural education, learning how to play an instrument that is so dynamic and requires a pretty specific ear and technical ability. Now I’m not saying I was fantastic at the violin, but I think the training that I had on it from 5 until my late teens really shaped the way that I would create music and think about music, certainly as a writer and a producer, but with just how I would jump between other instruments as well, because the violin was such a great touchstone for me to end up taking up the piano or guitar, or drums, or other instruments that would really formulate how I create music. Between being the orchestra nerd kid that played a lot of music throughout my young life, and also being the guy that would play in bands, its just been such a huge part of my life. As I’ve gotten older and gotten to understand this other version of myself that exists in more of a public view, that has little to do with that I know, I have started to notice that person, that avatar of myself, isn’t necessarily associated with music. And that was troubling to me, so I wanted to rectify that.”

And now you’ve just dropped your EP, talk us through your mindset going into the project? If I was just a recording artist, and that’s all I did, I’d like to think that I’d have a much larger body of work to show for. I feel like a lot of songwriters feel this way. There is just simply too much music…now I’m not gonna say it’s all fantastic, there’s a reason you have to triage the ones that you think are the best at the time, and there are many songs that I feel would be outdated, they feel very of the time 10 years ago. But you’re always trying to put your best foot forward with the pile you have lurking behind you. So, it is a hard thing to decide which thing you want to put out. Killing your darlings is always a hard thing, figuring out which ones to really focus on is difficult and it usually comes down to who you decide to collaborate with – right before the pandemic was one of the most tumultuous times of my career where I was producing and acting in a show for Netflix, and I was also kind of show running, acting, writing music for, editing, doing everything for this other show I created called ‘Royalties’ on another platform. I was doing both at the same time, and one of the things that made this possible was the people that I would collaborate with. A young man by the name of CJ Baron who I produced and wrote this EP with, he’s sort of the midwife that I chose out of working on Royalties because we had a lot of great songs together. I keep referring to myself as a producer, but I do it from a much more cerebral space, whereas he is a much better technical producer than I am. We really shared a lot in common, so by the time I realised that I wanted to make a piece of music you have to decide ‘who do I want to go down this yellow brick road with?’ And when I decide with CJ, that kind of already hinted at the kind of music that I would put out because he has his own fingerprint, and so I thought there’s something that I have that might mesh well with that fingerprint, so that kind of helps the decision process along of what songs am I gonna put out. But in another world CJ wasn’t interested, so then I think ‘Okay let me try and produce an album with this person’, and that person would reveal a different selection of songs. I’m very open to seeing what the universe is allowing and pushing towards, and I kind of follow that northern star to figure out what songs I’m gonna put out. But the mindset was always ‘put something out’, on a completely pragmatic level. What did I want to have to show for if whenever we got out of this crazy, new age of ‘what does this pandemic mean? We have time to do stuff, when it’s over what do I want to sit there and say that I accomplished?’ And at the very least I needed to put out a few songs, so that was really my mindset – no excuses, this is the time that you used to hope for, and so what are you gonna do if you’ve got the golden ticket, you’ve won the time lottery – so don’t fuck it up Darren! That was my mindset.

You describe them as character-driven singles, why is this? The dirty secret is that every song is character-driven, I just chose wording that could perhaps aid people into understanding this exploration of genre, this self-aware exploration of genre a little more. For those people that only know me as an actor, I’m trying to guide them into this notion of music and songs being a form of acting. The number one question I always get it ‘which one do you prefer?’ and I always say they are the same to me. When I’m an actor I treat characters, characterisation of my voice and body, characterisation of how I deliver words like a piece of music. You’re scoring it the same way, there’s cadence, dynamics, volume, nuance, all kind of things that can make ‘a piece of music’ unique to a person. And that’s how I treat dialogue and characterisation. The other side of that coin is I treat music like I’m acting, like each song has its own character when you’re playing live or recording in a booth. You are donning the proverbial mask of that character and what it requires. I really wanted to keep people into this idea that at the end of the day, it’s all performative and all part of a narrative that don’t necessarily have to do with each other and the way that if you ask Alexa to play a ‘Jack Nicholson playlist’ it would be very disjointed. It would be like okay The Shining, that’s a vibe, and then it would go to As Good As It Gets, and that’s a completely different vibe. They wouldn’t necessarily be on the same playlist, but they are distinctly and undeniably Jack Nicholson. So I always thought that it was a bit of a double standard that actors can do this but in music, you know, I’m proud of this but it’s also very annoying – a lot of my songs would probably not playlist together on the same genres because you have more jazz songs, like a trip hop chill tune that might end up in the back of a Starbucks, but that wouldn’t necessarily go on the same playlist as a tune like ‘I Can’t Dance’, which is a crazy song because it doesn’t even sound like me, I’m literally putting on a different voice, I’m singing like two different people putting on an affectation. There’s a lot of things that are very different but uniquely and distinctly me. The word masquerade is a celebration of a lot of different masks, and in theatre we talk about ‘The Masque’, and how each Masque has it’s own style, history and culture, and I really love the genre, and I love Masques, and I love things that make them interesting, and celebrating things that make them unique, and really trying to maximise their effectiveness as a genre with whatever tools I have as an artist, so that’s really what I’m trying to go for, this whole character driven idea is – it’s all a masquerade.

It very much has a fun-filled vibe to it, was this your intention and why? I’m not gonna sit here and pretend I sat in a studio saying ‘Hey lets not have fun!’, especially during a time that was as fraught with a lot of troubled times. This EP was recorded during very troubling times, so I think I’d be delusional to think that whatever joy is in this EP was not some kind of reaction to that, trying to offer something positive is definitely my MO in life in general, so that’s always gonna bleed its way onto my records. Like it or not. The intention is to record things that can be effective. If the vibe you feel is fun, great. If you feel any vibe at all, whatever the fuck that means, that’s a win for me. If that happens to be the word ‘fun’ then awesome, there’s a lot shittier adjectives that can be derived from this body of work so I will absolutely take it. My intentions are again to try and honour the songs. When you write something it has its own magnetic pull, it has it’s own gravitational pull that you have to kind of follow. If a song sounds a certain way, you want the lyrics to feel the same way that it sounds, and you want the production to feel the way that it vibes for lack of a better word. All songs have different body types and dressing it up and knowing how to tailor it to accentuate the things that make it fun or sexy is really sort of a strange alchemy. It’s not up to me how people experience it, but that’s what makes it fun. Once you put something out into the world it’s up to other people to use their own adjectives of the suit you tailor. I’m always excited when it leaves my head and becomes somebody else’s experience. So hey, if it’s fun – great!

What do you want people to take away from the project? Obviously, I hope people enjoy themselves. Any musician or artist would hope that there’s some kind of memorable experience to be had from it. If I was talking about what I hope people take away from it, that doesn’t have to do with the music itself, I hope that every time I put out music it’s me broadcasting this notion that this is something that I do, and that this is a big part of my identity. I think the songs themselves and what they’re about and how they feel are less of an insight into my identity as the notion of me putting out music is, because I feel like for any artist your journey is a constant negotiation between how you see yourself and how you would like to be seen, and how audiences are willing to see you. And you know, sometimes that balance is not always even. Sometimes the way they see you isn’t the way you see yourself, and sometimes the way you see yourself isn’t the same as the way they see you, so you want to be somewhere in the middle. And ‘Masquerade’ is a huge step forward for me to try and represent who I am and what I’m about to folks who might not see that. So that’s the biggest goal I think with any release but particularly this one.

Who would you cite as your inspirations? I’m one of those people that, when I say that everything inspires me, I’m not trying to be cute. It’s a problem. It’s an actual scourge on my life, where I find everything interesting. I find everything inspirational. It’s such a core belief that I have that there is inspiration to be derived from every walk of life. Stuff like from a lawn chair to a Bach cantata, there are so many things that can be interesting and incorporated into some creative output. It’s just all about how you look at it and how you can perceive and understand where it comes from. There are so many things that are inspiring to me. Of course, this is the massive macro answer that you weren’t looking for, you’re probably looking for ‘what artist are you inspired by?’ I think I’m just inspired by people who are really genuine to themselves, and this is an ironic answer considering that I actually try to be as many different people as possible. It’s a strange thing that actors are celebrated for not being anything like themselves professionally. And musical artists are separated for being as close to themselves and putting their souls as close to the chopping block as possible. I think I’ve really found my niche as a storyteller. I’m envious of some of the great troubadours of history, that can put their souls out on the record for us and put their own personal experience into things. Leonard Cohen and Joanie Mitchell, and Carole King, more modern people like Taylor Swift who really can just bare their souls for us. I really admire them because that’s not a muscle I have. And when you’re an artist I think ‘Okay so what muscle do I have?’, and I think ‘Okay I’m like a playwright, I can make each story for these songs and try and bring them to life with as much accessible ability and reality, and as much truth as I can convey, that’s not to say they’re disingenuine, they’re born from a genuine idea but they’re supported by my background as an actor. Baring myself isn’t something that comes as naturally for me, I really admire those people and I try and perhaps emulate a lot of their song writing in whatever limited way that I can. Genres are inspiring to me, lets talk about song writing, and then there’s producing which are two different things to me, because when I hear music I hear chords, I hear melody, I don’t listen to the snare sample, but I always hear the bare bones and then I think about production. So as far as producing is concerned I think it’s really important to know all genres and to listen to what makes each one interesting and respecting those genres, and then when you are producing something yourself, and then taking from each thing by knowing why and how they work within that genre, so again to use a song like ‘I Can’t Dance’ which is a nod to late 70s/early 80s, somewhere between disco and new wave, I’m employing the things that make those genres fun, to me at least, and trying to smoosh them together in a way that sounds cohesive. So…everything is inspiring to me, it’s hard. But each song has a different source of inspiration, but they don’t transfer between all songs.

You’ve also wrote for animated series and for Glee, is the process different for producing? “This is actually a very good question. I think this ties into what I was saying before about writing for narrative is something of a calling that I think I’ve realised more recently is kind of where I can plant my feet more easily than any other type of song writing. I was mentioning the people that can bare their souls, some people have a really good ability of putting themselves out there but also writing as a satirist of character that he creates. The person that is a master of this is Randy Newman, he’s one of the greatest American songwriters of the 20th century. He has an amazing ability to create these scenarios or create first person accounts of people that aren’t actually him, but he can contextualise with his literal voice, his song writing voice, and make those their own sort of satirical version of himself. There’s a lot of layers going on there, but I’ve always thought of him as really excellent. He’s like a playwright with music, he’s writing musicals, I mean he’s won Oscars for writing music for narrative! That’s something that I’d really like to do – from a technical standpoint it’s actually very liberating because when you’re writing music with your name on it, you’re the artist, then there’s this sort of weird expectation that you’re trying to service which is why I like this idea of putting the mask on and separating the songs from my own personal experience, because I need to separate myself from my own experience of the music you’re hearing, at least on the surface. My big break was A Very Potter Musical, that I feel to this day are my biggest hits because I don’t really have hits, but as far as the songs that people know that strangers know of songs that I’ve written, they were songs that were written for characters. It’s a bit like painting by numbers. If you just write a song from scratch about anything, it’s like the canvas I’m talking about again. You can do anything, or go anywhere, and that’s overwhelming. Having parameters, knowing where the gates are, is extremely helpful, knowing when the deadline is, knowing how long your party can go for. It means you can maximise the space you know you have. When you write for narrative you go ‘this is the character’, ‘this is how they speak’ – so you already have your lyrical information there – ‘this is how they talk’, ‘this is the singer, the singer has a great range that goes from this note to this note’, ‘in this scene we need the character to go from point A to point B, and we want it to be a song that sounds like X’, so you create all these amazing little ingredients, and I look at artists like a service industry, I really enjoy servicing what the person or the experience requires. When I have a menu of ‘we want this, this, this’, it’s like okay great I’ve got you! A three-and-a-half-minute song that sounds like this song, but has to be in this key and has to be a duet, I really thrive on that. And it’s probably one of my more favourite versions of song writing. And usually there’s a deadline, so I can get it done! Because I need to get it done for production. I really enjoy coming back to writing for narrative, because I did that for Royalties with CJ, and when I realised how much I enjoyed doing that and how productive I was when I was writing for a narrative, that’s when I got into the idea of ‘I need to stop trying to bare my own soul in music’. I think if I treat it like I’m writing for a character, not only can I get it done faster but I feel like I can make things stronger. So that’s when I decided that’s what I’m gonna do for this next EP. Writing for other shows and characters is what helped me realise my strengths as a songwriter.”

What is next for you? What are you most excited for? “As I mentioned I think productivity begets productivity, and that’s exactly what happened with this EP. Even if the pandemic hadn’t happened and I didn’t have the time, I think I would have been just as emboldened from working on Royalties with CJ and it got me very excited about working on music and how much joy that gives me. Any artist will say the same answer, but I think by the time stuff comes out artists are already over it because they’ve been living with it for a year and a half, and in my case over a decade with these songs, so I’m always ready to move on and go to the next thing. Everything is a stepping stone, so I’m very happy that this EP is out, I think it’s a great representation of a lot of stuff that’s been unaddressed for far too long. I just wanna get going, it gets me excited about keeping the ball rolling as a songwriter or as a producer, I just don’t want this to be like ‘This is the thing I did during the pandemic’, I want to keep it going and be more proactive about keeping time aside for it, because that’s the name of the game. When you’re acting or doing music, you have to balance it with time, and this pandemic has shown me how much I enjoy spending time on music, so I’m gonna carry that on. But of course, as soon as I say that, that’s when something unexpected and something too juicy that I can’t keep my hands off it happens on the acting side. One learns to be pretty flexible, because as soon as I say one thing something else will happen, and that’s been the narrative for the past decade of my life. I hope to just keep going. I’ve been this lucky for this long so I’m not gonna pretend like I’m going to keep being this lucky. If I get to act great, if I get to do music great. I can’t believe I’m in a position where its like ‘oh if the acting thing doesn’t work out, I’ll just do music!’ or the other way around, it’s a highly privileged list of options, and I’m fully aware of that. So as long as I can have one or the other to fall back on, I will always be excited about option. It’s not always up to me, so we’ll see. Everything that I’ve put out is just a way for me to renew my lease with my ability to show up for myself as well as people that I don’t knows ability to be interested in what I have to do next. But I won’t flatter myself, I’m not gonna say that lease is forever, so I’m just trying to put in the time and work to keep it at the very least somewhat interesting.”

Photography - Amanda Demme

[outropersona]

Feel like there’s been enough episodes of Homecoming for me to finally voice my first impressions of the show. So far all I can say is that I’m not very impressed. There was a blank slate and a chance to create something new and fresh, but that was not taken.

The premiere was a chore to get through between pacing and recycled plots. Second and third episode weren’t much better. Fourth episode the “love triangle” was the only interesting thing and even that was a bit lack luster since it happened more in the beginning of the episode.

Simone: It’s starting to feel like she’s getting lost in the shuffle a bit. We first saw a little bit of her trying to adjust to school and her panic attack then nothing. How is she dealing with the stress of school outside of being told to visit the museum to be surrounded by black excellence? She got kicked out of her dorm only to still end up basically living with Nathaniel, so that whole plot point/struggle seems redundant. They made such a big deal about tennis but we barely see it. I think we may have seen one or two practices, but the rest is either shared with baseball montages or locker room scenes. Baseball gets games to themselves and we even cut off the tennis match in ep 4 to see Damon and JR arguing over basically nothing. New NCAA rules state that players can get payed for their sports but we’ve only seen sponsorship opportunities, banquets, and highlight reels for the baseball team even though they’ve lost every game. Baseball overall seems to have more of a presence down to seeing their coach every episode while Simone’s has disappeared back to the parking lot she watched from in ep 1. Now she’s been sucked into the “who’s your parent plot” so we’re not really seeing scenes of her discussing anything else but Damon and whatever is going on with that. I just feel like a character that’s been around since s2 of AA deserves more than what we’ve been given so far, especially since it’s her show.

Damon: Not very interesting and baseball already being a boring sport is not helping. Constantly reminding everyone that he gave up going to go to the MLB and telling them that they’re trash every chance he gets is not very appealing. No one asked him to do that, so to constantly bring it up is a bit aggravating. Hoping they actually follow through with this brother plot, because we’ve already been through a fake out once. Don’t really mind his friendship with Simone since they give me friendship chemistry.

JR: Most interesting character after Simone. He gives underdog fighting to establish his own path. I liked when he was named captain, felt very deserved even with there only being four episodes. Has the personality and charm that is lacking with Damon for me. Need his parents to start doing better.

Keisha: Feel like her story could be interesting with having to go against tradition in her family to do what she’s actually passionate about. I enjoy her dynamics with Simone and Nathaniel. I don’t really mind her and Cam right now since their scenes are cute.

Thea: She’s just there to be there. I tried to feel bad for her with that whole birthday party mess but she’s honestly just miserable to be miserable as of now. Nothing really going on outside of that tennis court for her just yet but hopefully that changes.

Nathaniel: Wish we saw more of her, but she’s great so far.

Amara/Coach: They’re nice I guess. I also think they’re Simone’s parents and that is what this whole plot is actually leading up to.

Cam: The brain aneurysm was dumb and unnecessary

Overall it could be a lot better than what we’re getting. Hopefully the next few episodes turn it around. Plot wise there isn’t much else to discuss or say since most of it has been predictable or boring. Ships are kind of mid and happening so fast it’s giving whiplash. Rewatch value isn’t very high and neither is the will to tune in live. Geffri deserves better than these first few episodes.

[scapular-dyskinesis]

I’d be interested to hear your predictions for the last three episodes, especially regarding Lilly and Candace!

I assume the last three episodes will be detention, the school play, and then the school dance. What kind of things are you anticipating? Do you think Candace will just say screw what everyone else thinks and ask Lilly to the dance? I would love to see them slow dance in front of everyone but that might just be wishful thinking. Anyway, what would you like to see happen? Hopefully we get a happy ending god forbid the show doesn’t get renewed for season 2.

This is so long I feel it must go under a cut: Prepare ur mind for my ramblings and my little theories about episode 8.

Oh boy, what to say. You're spot on for the episode order (If you want to know the particular monsters its on the IMDB for our precious show.) The part of me that loves angst doesn't want to see things easily resolved. I think they've set up characters with interesting and understandable motivations, but that all means that the feelings aren't easily untangled. I love nothing more than a multi-season emotional journey (it's part of why I was desperate for TBH season 2, and why I love my non-canon queer-coded slow burns.)

Earlier in the season predictions were easier, like my friends and I have been talking about the ep 7 kiss since episode 3, completely certain it would come to pass, and it did- thank god. At this point though, I struggle to come up with concrete theories, because I'm in my emotional analysis mode. Ultimately that means that next steps to me, is that somethings got to give between Astrid and Lilly. ESPECIALLY after that cafeteria scene in ep 7.

We see Lilly sit down, clearly emotionally NOT in a great mood. Astrid is still thinking about defiling Sparrows nude body, and Lilly is over it. For Lilly, it seems to be the case that it takes her a lot of processing time and stress before she confronts people about her feelings (we've only really seen her do that post-worst memory Jack-in-the-box, and even then it wasn't to talk to Candace about their childhood falling out) I think Lilly finds it very easy to fall into things other people want to do, it's part of why she makes such an effective listener. I think she imagines that she is just sort of passive, we see her unsure of what she wants a lot. I think in a way, she thinks that her just listening and not communicating (or even lying) is easier for everyone- not even realizing that it's creating this big drama over the last seven episodes, even while she recognizes the lie is getting harder to hide.

On the other hand, Astrid has ZERO clue why Lilly is sidelining her, except at this point it has something to do with Candace. Astrid has been pretty good at asking questions, but she's also super honest, and a bit impulsive. She's completely on board with this long list of lies Lilly has set out to try to protect them both from a confrontation. Lilly basically always saying "I have to do this for/with Candace." I think Astrid values loyalty and trust so much and she wouldn't ever imagine lying to Lilly about something as big a deal to Astrid as romantic relationships. So despite being distracted by Sparrow (Bird! boy!) she's catching onto the fact that Candace is taking some precedence (Not sure she's the one who will get it right, but I do think its about time she asks.)

We also see that Candace is willing to tell dumb cute jokes, talk in public, have long meaningful staring contests in the hallway. I'm not sure Lilly accounted for that at all. I'm also not sure Lilly has even thought to THINK that Candace was going to come out to her in episode 5. So depending on how many looks Candace gives... I think there's potential that Tate (or Astrid? hell, or Eggs) actually catches on, or that some sort of conversation between Tate and Candace makes Lilly big -all caps- jealous.

I think that it would potentially be in character for Astrid to confront Lilly, and for Lilly to make it a lot more personal- we saw Lilly do that with Candace after the Banana-plate debacle, also Astrow (?) had sex in her car, what the fuck, I would be so mad if someone did that to my car.

We know Astrid and Lilly will be fighting. We know that this episodes big bad specifically effects Lilly, you know, it's her nightmares. We also see that Lilly is sitting at a table alone :( but other than that I just have these theories and my perspectives