#this scene is just so funny because they are having a very serious discussion

[essycogany]

Sonic HATES Being Wrong

Like…to an extreme degree. Let me elaborate.

This is a very interesting detail I’ve noticed ever since I made my Sonic’s Flaws post. Here, I’d like to talk about Sonic’s most fatal flaw because this conversation gets interesting. The flaw is one every variation of Sonic can be guilty of and one that causes the most damage to his world and even the people he cares about. If you disagree, I understand. Just hear me out and even if I don’t convince you, I hope this turns out to be a fun read regardless. Feel free to give me some context, correct me, or add information if you‘d like.

The Flaw

Sonic is terribly pertinacious and stubborn. Most people would think of Sonic Prime where he doesn’t listen to his friends warning him to not destroy the paradox prism, but when I think of Prime!Sonic I don't think of that. Especially since this version comes off more as an inexperienced teenager trying to figure things out. While in the games, he’s portrayed as rarely being wrong. Not because he’s perfect, but because Sonic never feels the need to change because of past victories. After all, if everything is going his way, why should he change, right? Well, this can be a problem. The scene in S3 ep3 where a few of the pirates were lost at sea, shows how truly stubborn Prime!Sonic (and Sonic in general), can be. He verbally refuses to take accountability for lost resources and unknowingly helps Nine have better predominance over them.

In this scene, No Place was decaying and Sonic finds out that the other pirate crew was stuck there. Everyone else, even the villains, reasonably says it’s too risky and he ignores them. Of course, he is within reason but if things went sour, it would’ve been his fault. Especially since that almost became a reality before the Chaos Council swooped in to help.

Near the end of the episode, Sonic says it’s a win for everyone, but Mr. Doc says, “Was it? Your little friends are safe, but at what cost? The fox can conjure up more minions with the snap of his fingers. Whereas our fleet is damaged, our troops are spent, and we’re almost out of time.” Surprisingly reasonable call out of the consequences of saving the pirates, if they don’t have enough resources, they were even more screwed than before. Then Sonic says, “I’m sorry but losing anyone is not an option.” While it’s warranted and makes sense for his character, it almost comes across as “We had to save them because I said so.” This is an example of Sonic not having a good argument by addressing the results of their battle. He does it a lot more than you’d think. Despite Sonic not listening to people being a bigger staple of Prime, I personally think it’s never expanded upon or executed well. Not to me anyway, but I don’t mind anyone disagreeing.

In any case, Sonic, as a character in every continuity, tends to “follow by his own rules” but this can be perceived negatively as “doing whatever he wants no matter who argues with him.”

Examples

Sonic Boom Rise of Lyric tackles this too. This is probably the least serious example but still can be a problem sometimes. This is S2 Ep 19 when an Eggman robot Clone tries to break Team Sonic apart and almost succeeds too. It doesn’t have much to do with this topic but I do like how in this episode when the drama started happening, Sonic for once in his life tries to talk abohut his feelings with Tails who turned out to be Steve. Of course, he doesn’t apologize and I know this has nothing to do with this discussion, but I just thought it was a funny thing to point out. The one time Sonic tries to talk about his feelings, he gets the door slammed in his face. It’s so mean-spirited and stupid. I love Sonic Boom!

But yeah, Rise Of Lyric also shows how his stubbornness can end up with the world being at stake. Or in the case of this episode have your friends grow apart.

The Sonic Movies tackles his shortcomings perfectly. I think he's pretty impulsive in all 3 movies. Mixing his perniciousness doesn't create the greatest meal. He's younger, so that would be expected. This scene is the most recent example. Sonic as a character tends to live in the moment and here, Movie!Sonic is playing a huge role in this category. He’s not even trying to hear anyone out. He’s in a constant rage at this point and can’t think clearly. He wants revenge on Shadow so much he loses himself. His friends. His brothers are so loyal to still allow him to get the Master Emerald despite knowing he wants it for revenge. Sonic's so hurt, he loses himself and forgets what they originally were there for.

I'm sure if Sonic choose to let his feelings consume him, he probably wouldn’t have saved the world. Why? Let’s just say things would’ve went out of control without Shadow. Sonic dogged a big tangent bullet for having mercy on Shadow.

Yeah, Archie/Reboot Archie didn’t mess around either. I'd say it’s sometimes as tense and bit worse due to him having the biggest ego and ongoing trauma. I'm surprised he didn't go insane. Notice how harsh he is in these instances. He’s overly angry here. Luckily, he has a large group of friends to help him take things down a peg and reminds him how they have his back. Even when worst comes to worst (which is an understatement), his friends are able to get him out of that mindset and put him back in reality. Hunbel him to put it bluntly.

In a way, Sonic's flaws in the Archie comics make me think he feels so guilty that he pushes himself beyond his limits as a way to make up for his loudmouth. Like in other versions, he feels the need to take on more than he can physically handle. He strains his body, mind, and entire being to accomplish tasks on his own because he believes he deserves the punishment. Alternatively, he might just be exhausting himself and attempting to take on more than he can manage. It’s not surprising, really.

This panel is insane for letting Eggy make a valid point. You can tell by his ears how Sonic’s getting visibly irritated. By the end of the argument, he gets super mad and can’t even find a good quip to back himself up. Because in a way, he knows Eggman has a point. That’s how I interpret it anyway.

Game or IDW Sonic is usually in denial when it comes to being wrong. He doesn’t address the issues directly but the person who calls him out for it instead. He’s the most experienced Sonic. I know some people use “mature” but I think experience is a better term due to how he doesn’t have arcs or character growth like other characters. More so he’s used to this song and dance, so his hatred towards being wrong comes from a place of thinking he’s got everything under control. Until it bites him in the butt.

You notice in most of these Sonic’s pretty angry and isn’t the biggest fan of being told off. Even in different continuities, the guy cannot argue without not being self-aware most of the time. The funny thing is he isn’t doing it selfishly. At least not in a typical way. To me, Sonic is the least selfish character in the franchise for a good chunk of the series. He sacrifices himself, gives people more chances than they deserve, and even takes the time to stop his main goals if it means helping someone else. But the guy cannot take the time to admit he’s wrong or his morals have consequences. Not because Sonic thinks he’s better than everyone. I don’t think Sonic sees himself in that way, but I do think he’s always in “I’ve done this thing plenty of times. As long as this thing works, I’ll keep doing it,” mode. Or in the case of Movie!Sonic, goes on instinct which is also a common part of his characterization.

Why Sonic Has This Flaw

Sonic never stops running; he charges head-first into any situation, always striving to do what's right. After all, he's the fastest thing alive. Sonic doesn't have the luxury of questioning himself or dwelling on doubts. While it's true that he has caused some issues, including in the games, he doesn't waste time feeling sorry for himself. The only times he's shown insecurity were during the Metal Virus arc, so interpret that as you wish.

This brings up another point. Crazy how much I didn’t notice, but most of the time, Sonic doesn’t like it when people disagree with him. Understandable, everyone doesn’t want to be wrong. But he takes it to the extreme at times. Like sometimes he's baffled when anyone challenges him. Sonic’s also never truly called out by the right people. I don’t mean Shadow, Espio, Knuckles, or the villains. I mean, Amy, Tails, Tangled, or other characters he’s inspired. People who look up to him. Sure, they try, but I can count on one hand how many times he actually listens. Sonic’s always so caught up in doing things his way that he disregards people who mean the most to him.

I mentioned this in my other post but he doesn't listen to Tails in Sonic 06 or Lost World, so the games count.

While Sonic often has valid points in his arguments with others, he frequently comes across as someone who needs to be right. He rarely allows others the opportunity to express their views or admits when he is wrong. This issue is often overlooked in stories where these conflicts arise, either because there isn't enough time to address them or they remain unanswered altogether. This makes sense, considering that Sonic typically doesn’t undergo character arcs canonically. However, I appreciate the presence of characters like Shadow, Knuckles, Surge, Kit, and certain Archie characters like Scurge. They serve to challenge Sonic’s morals and illustrate that he isn’t always correct. If Sonic isn’t going to evolve as a character, at least these figures can show that his sense of freedom and living by his own rules doesn’t work for everyone. They can be portrayed negatively and can challenge his viewpoints. They can be questioned. They can be challenged. Sonic isn’t always right.

His passion shows that he truly wants things to work for everyone. His stubbornness drives him to the point of frustration as he strives to help others to live according to his ideals. However, at times his approach isn’t the most effective. You can see that Sonic genuinely hates this, yet he continues to push forward to help those in need. There’s something both beautiful and heartbreaking about that.

Conclusion

What’s funny is that Sonic rarely gets angry, so you could say this could be one of his few triggers. Along with people being unjust and other such.

Overall, Sonic has good intentions but the results of those intentions are severe. None of this is to imply Sonic’s a terribly written character. It’s just a serious flaw he has. Though listening to his friends more would help.

I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t like a moment of his friends noticing a constant pattern of him being pertinacious and not paying attention to anyone’s protest. I wouldn’t want it to come out of nowhere, but it’d be an issue that’d progress over a large amount of time and add up. It could be dramatic or constructive depending on the situation and execution. Whatever character does it, they’d either talk to him about it or physically show the outcomes of his actions. They do it all the time in other media but not canonically. This is just random speculation though. I don’t know if I’m in over my head but I hope someone got something out of this.

All of this is not to say Sonic never takes accountability or listens to his friends. SA1 scene with Amy, when he apologizes to Bell in IDW for being too standoffish, and plenty of other examples. Like the end of Sonic movie 3. That Sonic Boom episode where he apologized for not working with his team. And endless moments in Archie and Reboot Archie. Sonic isn’t unreasonable. Just 9 times out of 10 he can get a big head. That’s all.

Stay Creative! 💜

[notoneglance]

HIkawa: Are you and Ryou good friends now?

Shouichi: yeah!

Hikawa, aggressively licking his ice cream: >:( He punched me once! He attacked you!

[canonizzyhours]

I'm so glad this blog exists because this is perfectly serious meta I would never post on my own blog because of the discourse it would invite.

There's a common take on Izzy that basically goes like this: Izzy does not have any problem with homosexuality, in the sense that he doesn't specifically think there's anything wrong with men fucking other men AS LONG AS IT'S CASUAL SEX. But he DOES have a problem with men experiencing romantic love, because he thinks that's effeminate, or because he doesn't want someone else to take his place in Ed's affections, or something. (Obviously this is still homophobic, just in a slightly complicated way). This isn't a canyon vs gb thing, a lot of the fandom both in and out of the canyon believe this take on Izzy. As far as I can tell it's Con O'Neill's take on Izzy! And, up until a very recent rewatch of season 1, it was my own take.

However I've realized now that it's wrong. There are multiple valid takes on Izzy but that fully just isn't one of them. It simply cannot make sense of Izzy's actions in season 1.

1. If Izzy thinks it's fine for men to have casual sex, then at some point when he's flipping out over Stede he would give some sign of at least considering the possibility that Ed just wants to have casual sex with Stede and that's fine. At no point is there even a hint that he thinks that's what's going on or that it's ever occurred to him or that it would make any difference to him if it was. When he catches Ed & Stede doing the consensual stabbing thing nothing he observes gives him any reason to think they're tenderly making love as opposed to having a casual fuck. Sure, he's seen them flirting before this so maybe he might SUSPECT this is a case of cooties, but there is absolutely no sign that he's even CONSIDERING the possibility that this is just casual sex which he would be fine with. (This is almost a shame because I think it would be a super funny AU if Izzy decided he just needed to wingman for Blackbeard so he could get laid and get back to normal.) This makes much more sense if he would not, in fact, be okay with the sex as long as it were just casual.

2. When Izzy catches Lucius blowing Pete? That's causal sex! It's EXPLICITLY casual at this point - they don't start going steady until Pete gives Lucius the wooden finger. The dialogue afterward has a bunch of "well that was nice we should do this again sometime" stuff, which strongly implies this is their first time having sex ever and that they hadn't discussed whether they would ever do it again. But Izzy still has a big fucking problem with it. Now I know there's a popular canyon interpretation of this scene where Izzy is upset that they're neglecting their chores, not that they're fucking, but I assume everyone who reads canonizzyhours understands why that's clearly absurd so I won't go into that since it's a whole other meta essay. But this scene is clearly part of characterizing Izzy's whole deal regarding his opposition to queer joy and it is specifically telling us that he did not like catching two men having CASUAL sex.

3. What does Izzy threaten Lucius with AFTER catching him having casual sex with Pete? That he'll tell Pete about Lucius flirting with other men. THIS ONLY MAKES SENSE IF IZZY'S DEFAULT ASSUMPTION IS THAT SEX HAPPENS WITHIN SERIOUS MONOGAMOUS RELATIONSHIPS. He has no reason to assume Pete would be jealous of Lucius' other partners other than the fact that he knows Pete and Lucius had sex one time. This is COMPLETELY INCOMPATIBLE with Izzy being a guy who's used to being surrounded by casual gay sex and has no problem with it.

FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE:

So are you saying Izzy's a straight up homophobe?

Actually no. I think he COULD be a straight up homophobe, that's an interpretation that makes sense of his actions in season 1, unlike "he's fine with gay sex as long as it's casual." However there's at least one other possibility I can think of: we never see how Izzy would react to heterosexuality, so it's possible that he just disapproves of all sex full stop no matter who's having it and no matter if it's casual or not. Maybe he thinks a real manly man ought to be above being led around by his dick.

What about Calico Jack? If Izzy doesn't like men having sex with other men on the ship, why would Izzy invite Ed's fuckbuddy back to the ship?

There are several potential answers here but the simplest and funniest, since we've never actually seen Izzy interact with Jack, is that Izzy never figured out Jack and Ed were fucking and he thinks "Whip my balls, Jack" is just guys being bros.

Anyway I hope you enjoyed this thesis but I want to emphasize that I am completely serious about it. I was wrong about this before. Con O'Neill is wrong. "Izzy is fine with men having sex as long as it's casual and non-romantic" is fully non-viable as an interpretation of Our Flag Means Death season one.

#503.

[ficyorick]

[BE] deleted scenes clean-up :) - ch5

with chapter 6 published, heres a scene i was holding onto from chapter 5 (the one with the kessler reveal). originally, butcher was going to disclose a bit more about his traumatic childhood, prompting homelander to be a rude cunt to him. i removed that scene bc i felt like it was a). too self-aware for both of them b). i didnt want homelander to be TOO feisty from the get-go, i wanted to work up to it. i still like this scene tho, like homelander WOULD just ask someone 'why did ur parents even have you 🤨'. i'm sad we also lost some butcher reflecting on his abusive childhood (and how it might echo what he's doing to HL now) but i do think the chapter is better without this. the scene was cut before the final edits so pls excuse grammar/clunkiness

___________________________

“My da was a proper fuckin’ asshole...” He informed Homelander. The former Supe glanced at him, probably surprised at the topic. Billy rarely spoke about himself, after all, Homelander was the star of this show. But maybe the hangover was making him nostalgic for the good ol’ times. “He’d beat the shit out of me mum and my younger brother.” Butcher conveniently left himself out of that sentence. 

He watched for a reaction. Homelander just slightly reclined and propped his head up with his fist, trying to appear like he wasn’t listening. As if Butcher didn’t know he was dying for anything that wasn’t related to his own suffering. 

“So when I tell you that Soldier Boy would’ve fucked ya up… More than you already are…” Billy raised his palm and swooped it through the air in a cutting motion, slapping his own knee. “You better believe it.” 

“Ugh.” Homelander just made an annoyed noise. “I’m not taking advice from a man who zip-tied me. Or a human raised by other humans. It’s not the fucking same.” 

“How’s it different?” Butcher raised a brow. 

“It just is.” Homelander shrugged. And then, suddenly emboldened, he scoffed at him again: “Why’d your parents have you?” 

Butcher snorted. Another testament to how funny Homelander was. 

“Oi, you rude fuckin’ twat. You can’t just ask people that.” 

“I’m serious.”

”People don’t always… plan for things.” Billy always just assumed he was a happy little accident. Because he could never imagine his mom and his dad sitting down to plan a family, picking out a house and the nearest school, already crossing off days till he was born. Or maybe the worse scenario was that it was exactly how it happened. And then just a few years after he was born, he made everything go to shit. 

“What’s that like?” Homelander interrupted his musings, an insistent question next to him. 

“What’s what like?” He muttered. 

“Having no reason behind your existence.” 

“Fuck me, you’re a rude cunt today.” Billy all but whistled.

”I’m serious. What’s it like to just be born with no committee over your head?” Homelander was now staring at him with a very unimpressed look in his eyes, his head still propped up. Like he just got challenged to a fight he could win without breaking a sweat. “Nobody had to sign off on an executive decision to make you to keep stakeholders happy. What’s that like?” 

Billy just watched him. And looked away. Maybe discussing the finer points of parenthood and child upbringing with a lab rat didn’t make as much sense as he thought it did.

[crystalrainfall]

Dear Izumi Curtis,

Maybe stranding kids on an Island, with no survival tools other than a knife and forbidding the use of alchemy, their only real reliable source and means of survival and way to make things easier, (since these are children) , might've been a mentally deranged decision.

I do not care that an employee was there to take care of the children, if said employee's only purpose was to fight the already weakened, and vulnerable, hurt children and steal resources, such as hard earned food, from them in order to "train" or "toughen" them up...

The real risk of that wound Ed obtained from a WILD fox is nothing to scoff at.

The wound could've been infected if not treated properly, which I don't think a couple of children could've done easily, regardless of if they are geniuses or not ...

It's still highly irresponsible.

That's not to mention the diseases that fox could've carried.

This scenario could've ended in such tragedy which is only caused through pure negligence.

I do not care that Izumi herself was trained in a much harsher scenario, she was clearly an adult during her training in Briggs and thus could probably asses the situation and consent.

Which children just can't, no matter how much a child thinks they know an 10-9 year old just isn't mature.

And I don't even think pinako, the legal guardian for the two boys at the time knew of this, because if she did she rightfully so wouldn't have allowed it....

I hate that this is played off as a joke, that the two were trained in an absurd way...It's so easy to forget that fma is an anime when it's usually very grounded in reality and tries to explore deep conflicts... But when similar serious topics get ignored, the handling of the other topics fall flat and almost ignorant...

Slapstick in 2003 doesn't work.

It doesn't when the show tries to tackle extreme topics and tries to take itself serious...

Edward fearing Izumi and being physically hurt by her isn't funny because it feels out of place in a show that's meant to tackle trauma...

It feels like these issues are ignored and undermined.

Like I get this part was supposed to be a joke but it just comes off as not funny... Because you're just left asking yourself "is this actually trauma or just a joke?"

Which I think is the wrong message.

Just that it unintentionally comes off as extremely manipulative, having someone who's supposed to be a maternal figure for Ed and Al show this much violence...

And mind you, this is exclusive to Ed and Al. No other kid has ever been hit or treated that way, yelled at?, sure, but even then it was mild. Tf kind of messaging is that? It's okay to harm the ones closest to you? You're doing it for their own good? As long as the person treats you good afterwards it's okay to be hit?

Like I know this is probably unintentional, because these issues just aren't addressed in the show, so it's not meant to be taken literally but damn did they miss the mark hard!...

Like this entire sequence just pisses me off, there's already a post on this site which discusses the harsh flinch that Ed had when Mustang approached him after Nina's death in the alleyway...

The 5th picture of him just expecting to be hit again and accepting it... Just is wrong...

Like is this kid just used to it? Being treated like dog shit by authority or adult figures in his life, by anyone that isn't his deceased mother?

And the entire scene is flat, no music no nothing... This is just painful to watch. The hug afterwards just comes off as empty, damage control, to apologize after hurting someone, but doing it again.

[thekatebridgerton]

I like your discussion of Anthony's relationship with his sisters.

For Hyacinth, I have this image of Anthony at her wedding, breathing a sigh of relief. He got Hyacinth married and it didn't involve any of the Theatrics of their other siblings.

Imagine what he would do if he knew about all the breaking and entering & Mattress dancing the bride and groom have done?

Oh I have thoughts about that all right. But on a more serious note.

Anthony's relationship with his sisters is very sweet but also funny because he's at odds with all of them half the time and the other half he loves them to death.

With Daphne, he knew she was going to be the first one he'd have to step up for as a man of the house and she was born in more or less equal footing with him. First girl vs first boy when it comes to society expectations. There is a certain respect there that Anthony has for Daphne, and her womanly intuition. But I think Anthony for most of her life has treated her as an adult, I highly doubt that Anthony did much sugar coating with Daphne, she got to live most of her life in the role of his sister not his daughter and it shows in her relationship with him. The problem in their book was that Anthony at one point started worrying that Daphne wasn't as ready for marriage as she pretends to be and began to be a little bit overprotective over her specifically because of her adventures in the marriage mart. Which seriously weirded her out. And once she got married they went back to their usual relationship where they both respect each other's interests and leave each other largely alone. I'd also like to add that when it came to Daphne Anthony was hurt because he expected a little bit more of her since he always trusted her to be an adult and at one point Daphne was going something along the lines of ' well I'm not an adult, I'm not that mature, I'm just a girl' which really brought things into perspective for him

With Eloise the scene where they're talking things out into tspwl speaks volumes about their relationship. Because Eloise was stuck in the middle between being Anthony's sister and being treated as his daughter, which she never wanted and really rebelled against, both of them wanted to have a sibling relationship and both of them knew they couldn't have it because she was entirely too young when Edmund died and needed a father figure. but she resented that it has to be Anthony, she resented at her playful brother had to grow up too soon and now couldn't play with her, because she simply wanted Anthony to be the guy he used to be before their dad died. So she antagonized Anthony just to be contrary and have her fun. Also she is the sibling who is the most like him, prideful arrogant, I lay the law kind of person. So Anthony was sort of worried for her because he knew she was a lot like him and eventually she would chaff at the weight of the Bridgerton name, he just didn't know if he could protect her from the consequences, so when she ran away to meet Philip he probably had a little bit of a heart attack because he expected something crazy to happen to Eloise at some point he just couldn't prepare for this particular eventuality. Also I think it was a welcome surprise for Anthony to see that his most stubborn sister had actually grown up and was ready to become the leader he always knew she could be, he just never thought that and all this happened while he wasn't looking.

I think that Anthony's relationship with Francesca is the sweetest one, because unlike Eloise and Daphne, Francesca never actually made Anthony feel like a failure which he often felt like with his other two sisters. But Francesca she played by the rules, she never gave Anthony any trouble she was smart, a little bit sneaky, always there to welcome him with warmth, at home or in Scotland, sometimes you just have that sibling who is a healing to the soul. And I think Francesca was that for Anthony, perhaps that's why she fell through the cracks because she never complained and that made Anthony think that she was happy. I think in his younger years Anthony would just spend time with Francesca because he wanted to be with someone who was just always happy to see him, since everyone else seemed to have all these expectations and demanded so much attention, but not Francesca, she was calm and good and she understood when he couldn't give her as much attention as he gave everyone else. And because he loves her so much I think he also feels very guilty that he missed out on a lot of important things in her life and wasn't there for her when she was passing through her worst moments and he feels grateful to Michael that he made her smile again because to Anthony Francesca is special, out of all his crazy siblings, she's the one he probably likes the most and the only one he's willing to look the other way for. I'm pretty sure that Anthony did find out what happened in Scotland, and he pretended that he didn't know because she's his favorite and he doesn't want to have this conversation with her Anthony has never had to seriously scold Francesca for anything in her life and he doesn't want to start now ( at most he told her off for not inviting him to her second wedding and that was it. )

And then we have Hyacinth, she's practically Anthony's daughter so she is more babied than anyone else, I think Anthony spoiled her too much, and at the end he realized that he had to let her grow up make her own mistakes even if that meant he would have to eventually deal with a scandal (because of course she's wild and stubborn like Eloise but with Daphne and Francesca's social charm). Letting his baby grow up also meant setting her loose to find her own path. And let her be the' joy' of other unsuspecting individuals like Lady Danbury and Gareth for a change.

And that's the tea

[singto-prachaya]

Author of book for the series You(r)tuber Official greetings to everyone!

As you all know, my novel "When I Wanna Be a YouTuber Competing with My Ex-Boyfriend" is being adapted into a series by Domundi TV. I wanted to share my feelings a bit before the pilot is released. I'm so excited and nervous about how it will turn out. When I finally saw it, I was even more thrilled! I love the camera angles, the overall tone, and the chemistry between the actors.

Actually, I intended this story to be about a healthy relationship without many complex issues. It's a slice-of-life story that I hope will make readers feel warm inside and bring a smile to their faces. In the pilot, Tle and First One acted so adorably, making the audience happy and feel the butterflies. I saw some chemistry between them since I started following them.

Tle is very handsome and has this aura of warmth and romance. His eye expressions are amazing, making it believable that he can make Khun blush for sure! (haha) He also plays guitar and sings beautifully, which is perfect for the role of Khun In.

First One's acting is so cute and clear, every single bit of it! His smile is lovely, and he's adorable when he talks. He's such an endearing person. His dramatic scenes and emotional scenes are also well done and impactful. He's also a great singer. I'm really looking forward to the scene where they get to sing together; it must be amazing!

Last night, I heard him say on stage that Khun's character is difficult to play because it's older than him. For me, I like both InTouch and Khun in his version. If they had a serious workshop before filming the series, they would definitely be able to connect with the characters and act even better. I'm sending them a lot of support! Keep fighting! Next, the roles of Tee Rak and Pluem were a big surprise! I just found out when I saw the pilot that it's Jem and Earth! In the novel, Tee Rak is prominent in protecting his older brother and doesn't tolerate anyone messing with him. His love interest only appears briefly because I'm writing a separate story about them. Jem acted so cute and mischievous, with some funny moments. When he acts with First One, it must be so adorable! These two brothers are quite sweet together because they're very close.

As for Earth, his emotional scenes are so good and his acting is captivating. I love the flashback scene to their school days; it's so cute! In the story, Pluem's character is the most dramatic and complex. I'm waiting to see how it will turn out in the series, and I'm also looking forward to seeing the other actors.

This novel is very dear to me. I created every character and every scene with great care. Watching the eight-minute pilot, I felt so happy! I'm also glad that everyone likes it and wants to see more.

The production company and the team have been in contact with the scriptwriters, discussing some adjustments to the script and asking for some minor details from the novel. I believe the series will turn out great.

Thank you to Domundi TV and Deep Production for choosing this novel. Thank you for choosing the right actors and for your dedication to creating quality work.

I sincerely thank all the novel fans and the actors' fans for your compliments and well wishes. Thank you for your kindness towards this little writer. Every time I see that people like this novel, I'm truly happy. It means a lot to me and it's a great encouragement.

Lastly, please support this novel and the series. I believe the talent and loveliness of all the actors will be discovered and they will receive a lot of love in return. What will In and Khun be like in the series version? Let's wait and see together!

[kurorosanime]

25 Years Later: "Pride ✕ Stormy Water ✕ Duel"

Our arrival at the third member of the main cast also comes in the most faithfully adapted episode thus far. While our first episode took a great number of often overlooked liberties, and our second episode was purely a product of the anime’s staff, with both shedding light on the remixed characterizations at play for this anime, this third episode offers a slightly more faithful rendition of events.

Obviously it won’t be one hundred percent faithful- it’s adapting one standard length chapter to a full episode, and it frontloads much of its changes. Certain scenarios are removed to ease the viewer into events, such as the storm that opens the chapter in the manga. This is removed in favor of combining both storms for the second half of the episode and instead showcasing some background potential Hunters getting seasick at the start. We’re still firmly in that bed of realism 1999 likes to approach.

While discussing changes from the manga, a point of note is that slightly greater focus is placed on Gon’s journey in a rather innocuous scene. The ship’s captain in all versions of this moment asks about what Gon’s dad does, but 1999 invokes a classic trope of the captain comparing Gon to his father vocally. Gon’s recognition of a coming storm is responded to with “You’re the second person who could do that”.

Now, I’m already fairly rattled by comparing to the manga so much when I didn’t really want to invoke this comparative idea so much, but I have to when the episode is as faithful as it is currently. Another element of note is how this carries on Leorio’s character into the episode as we already got introduced to him in the second episode, and here we see he is less interested in looking out for Gon and more interested in himself, and other changes abound beyond that.

Leorio is now the only character who resists saying his name. Rather than berating Gon for saying why he wants to be a Hunter, he gets frustrated at the invasive question and starts shouting, being more prone to outbursts in the anime. But a significant, character-informing change is that Leorio is the one who initiates hostilities with Kurapika.

In the manga, Kurapika opens by disrespecting Leorio in their very first interaction (ignoring him, not using the polite “-san”, and of course insulting him at the end). Manga Leorio is obnoxious but he never actually does anything to Kurapika before asking why he needs to be a hunter to take revenge. In the anime though, Leorio jabs and snarks at Kurapika before this point, commenting on his book smarts, and of course, already being quick to anger before Kurapika even opens his mouth in the interview scene. 

This is all part of my grand theory that yes, as I’m sure nobody suspected, the 1999 Hunter x Hunter anime was made by Kurapika fans. Kurapika is often framed more as the victim of these exchanges with Leorio’s demand for respect being seen as unreasonable, Leorio wonders about Kurapika’s age, Leorio is just an all around jerk- which is accurate to his introduction last episode. He doesn’t bother with Gon and tries to get away from him constantly, and he has to have his heart of gold dug up throughout the episode. He is now reset because who’s this ship captain? What’s his deal? Why’s this little twink acting so cool and conceited? It’s pissing him off.

The softening of Kurapika is really funny when Leorio finally snaps and says he’ll fight him. In the manga, Kurapika’s expression darkens and he takes serious issue with Leorio’s words, and in the anime he still takes issue, but the framing of it shows Kurapika’s softer side still, while Leorio’s visible annoyance takes up most of the screen. Of course, Kurapika is still all over the idea of fighting him. The battle also actually happens in the anime, unlike the manga, and it shows the classic style of masculine bonding through beating your fellow man up- the two acknowledge each other’s strengths in this.

(forgive the incredibly dark screenshots, we'll take about 1999's video issues another day)

In fact, throughout the episode it is often shown that while Kurapika and Leorio are different in their words, they’re often similar in their actions. They both stray from helping others on the boat and both end up being confrontational to people invading their privacy with the interview questions, which ultimately leads to both rushing to save Gon and Katzo. But yet another change occurs here- Kurapika hesitates in the manga!

Yes, it’s one panel, but Kurapika visibly hesitates while Leorio goes first, and I feel like I am going crazy as I am only now realizing this. In the 1999 anime though, both rush at the same time, and Kurapika actually even follows Gon’s example and leaps off to grab him, whereas in the manga, Leorio and Kurapika both grab one leg.

It’s made clear in this episode that there is an underlying love already blooming for Kurapika. He’s less prone to angry or surprised outbursts (his ones questioning Gon at the end are mostly removed and he doesn’t even shout them), he begins to find common ground with Leorio through battle, and of course, he almost sacrifices himself for Gon but implicitly understands the man behind him, that being Leorio, will save him.

It’s an interesting and remarkably subtle shift in characterization, and while Gon’s shift is incredibly noticeable, Kurapika’s will be slow. Eventually, his character might even become unrecognizable and he may usurp the mantle of main character entirely- for at least a little bit.

[setaripendragon]

Okay so new accidental proposal idea for Bagginshield.

There's a big party in Erebor for reasons. Thorin is still not fully healed and when Bilbo asks if he's ready to go lay back down since he's been up way more for the day, Thorin says he must be the first to dance so everyone else can start too and dance at least a little more than one or two songs and glances tiredly at a group of dwarrow.

So Bilbo stands up, and being a well raised gentlehobbit, dramatically sweeps into a bow and offers his non dominate hand palm up and keeps his position as he asks if Thorin will dance with him. There is a huge pause.

NOW either Thorin can choke out a yes and take Bilbo's proffered hand and the hall erupts in cheers OR for comedy Balin can basically remind everyone that Bilbo is a hobbit and does not know their ways and Bilbo gets to be rather embarrassed that he technically proposed to Thorin in the most serious of ways for dwarrow, one that would only be done for a love match, and so publicly makes it way more intense. While Bilbo was just holding to proper Shire manners by not staring at the asked so they can feel less pressure to say yes if they don't want to.

I think if I had the health for writing that I would go with the first way as accidental proposals are so fun in my opinion but just wondering which way others would take it. So which would you pick if you were writing a story or would you have another way?

*Asks are sent for fun, no pressure to answer.

Oh, absolutely Thorin would accept! I'd probably write it that Balin or someone would be About To Explain, but Thorin, who 100% thinks Bilbo - clever, sneaky little hobbit - did the research and Knows What He's Doing, says yes before anyone else can jump in.

And then everyone else wonders if Bilbo did in fact, know what he was doing.

And Bilbo gets Very Confused when people keep congratulating him, and very exasperated with Thorin who keeps asking him about Proper Party Planning Procedure, and he keeps demuring because he knows Hobbity Manners, not what's appropriate for dwarves! Which Thorin thinks is yet more Respect For His Culture, and pushes for the hobbity answer anyway, which devolves into hours long discussions of Hobbity Propriety, and maybe that's when Thorin starts to get an inkling...

So he does the sensible, responsible, grown-up thing - hah! - and talks to someone not Bilbo about his growing concerns that he's planning a wedding Bilbo doesn't realise he proposed. And that someone (Balin? Dis?) face-palms because they're a bit too deep in planning a mountain-wide celebration to just drop it now if Bilbo didn't mean it.

And then someone (I'd go with Dain because Dain's my favourite, but Ori or Kili would be funny too) just blurts out something about 'the wedding' and Bilbo gets all 'Oh! A Wedding? Is that a big deal to dwarves?'

'Is it not to hobbits?!'

'Well, the actual... getting married part is important, of course, but we don't really celebrate it so much. It's all very personal and private, you see? It's common knowledge in the Shire that if someone up and vanishes for a little while, they're probably off getting married.' A long pause as Bilbo stares off into the distance looking more and more perturbed. 'Oh good gracious me! Everyone back home is going to think that I-'

'Well, aren't you?'

'Aren't I what?'

'...getting married?'

'WHAT?!'

And then probably cut to an epilogue-scene where Thorin and Bilbo are getting married in some very long-winded, official ceremony deeply steeped in Ritual and Tradition, and in between speeches and vows and probably Balin droing on and on and on (possibly reciting lineages? That seems like a thing that might be very important at a dwarven wedding), Bilbo and Thorin are having a hissed argument on the topic of 'I can't believe you thought I'd propose like that!' 'I can't believe you thought I was asking all those questions theoretically!' 'Oh, pardon me for thinking you might be interested in learning about my culture' 'That is not what I meant and you know it' 'Oh do I? You don't seem to know what I mean by things, so why would you expect me to know what you mean!' etcetera and so on.

I'd probably try to figure out a way to have it devolve into aggressively complimenting (complisulting?) each other somehow, so that Balin could ask for their personal vows/declarations of affection and intent, and they'd just... carry right on without missing a beat.

(Some dwarven songcrafter would turn it into a rom-com duet. In Khuzdul, so Bilbo has no idea it exists for years and years and then gets to reprise the 'Tell Me What Things Mean, You Great Lump!' argument when he finally does realise what it's about.)

[bildads-shoes]

Ever since I saw this incredible post I've been thinking a lot more about the book vs show differences, and one of the things my brain keeps returning to is the very different presentation of Heaven and Hell.

In the book, I feel like the majority of the time Heaven and Hell are mentioned, it's simply in reference to them being adversaries. They're often just referred to in the context of being Aziraphale and Crowley's bosses, both equally uninterested in humanity or the details of their employees' actions. Hence, we really do see them as not being so different from each other, and dislike them both equally. Personally, I feel this is a bit different in the show.

In the show we actually get to see Heaven and Hell. We get to see Beelzebub for more than a couple of lines, we get to meet Gabriel, and we get to feel the atmosphere of Heaven and Hell as settings.

In terms of their general vibe, the difference feels pretty stark. Heaven is empty, cold, unfeeling; every interaction between the angels we see is laced with mistrust and two-faced scheming. Hell, on the other hand, does have emotion; it's a deeply unpleasant space, of course, but the way the demons complain to each other feels more honest. Take Uriel and Michael: we've seen them throughout both seasons, yet I can't recall either of them expressing a single honest feeling. Shax and Furfur, on the other hand, have had a lot of honest moments both with each other and with other characters. In a bizarre way, Hell becomes more relatable, more likeable, in the show.

Of course, there are massive issues with Hell, but they don't necessarily come across at first glance. The really dark aspects are almost always played off with jokes, to the extent that we don't talk about them that much. Beelzebub is pretty well liked from what I can tell, despite evidently having extensively tortured their employees - but it's part of a funny scene so we instinctively overlook it. Gabriel, on the other hand, seems widely loathed; he's just blatantly a dick in Season 1, and we don't see enough of him actually as himself in Season 2 to balance that out. I'm sure that's also in part due to fake-Aziraphale's trial being resurfaced in Season 2 as a serious, traumatic event for Crowley. We aren't shown the impact that Hell's treatment of Crowley had on Aziraphale, so once again Heaven ends up seeming like the more 'evil' side.

So I suppose it's no surprise that we end up having more discussions surrounding dismantling Heaven in Season 3, with Hell's toxicity being a slightly lesser topic of conversation. It does instinctively feel a little like Heaven is the 'bad one' in comparison, whereas we have to actively analyse those throwaway/comedic moments to acknowledge the massive issues with Hell. Therefore, to me, that neutral/equal presentation of the two 'bosses' in the book is no longer the case in the show.

Perhaps this is all because the show is shifting more towards commentary surrounding religious institutions as opposed to the Cold War energy of the book. Or perhaps we'll be explicitly shown more of Hell's dark side in Season 2 and will return to truly seeing them as equally bad. Or maybe you have a totally different interpretation (please let me know 👉👈). I don't know man, I just needed to get this thought out honestly lol.

[usamifriends]

IDOLiSH7 Anime vs Game Comparisons

First Beat - Episode 5

Getting a New Song! (+ Apologizing to Yaotome Productions)

Small detail, but Tsumugi actually called and was yelled at over the phone first before going to the office for round 2. In the anime, we just see leaving to go to Yaotome Productions.

Tsumugi discusses with Banri about how the overall team morale of IDOLiSH7 has increased significantly after TRIGGER's concert. Takanashi papa overhears this and tells Tsumugi to call the boys for an announcement.

They are getting a new song!!

It's funny because game Takanashi papa was much more serious and toned down. He also speaks in a lower voice. They say the exact same lines: "I've been waiting for you to be ready to sing this song." But in sooo different ways.

Game Takanashi papa was like this:

Anime Takanashi papa was like this:

Anime Takanashi papa seems genuinely excited, like a fan. It's very interesting to see the differences in direction. I think they had a better picture of how they want each character to come off as when they were producing the anime. The small changes to Takanashi papa really sets the atmosphere of Takanashi Productions: warm, supportive, and free-spirited aka the best home for our IDOLiSH7 boys.

The game has an added scene where Iori asks about the writer of IDOLiSH7 songs. Takanashi papa chuckles and says, "That's a trade secret."

The other boys start discussing the writer of the songs in the practice room because Takanashi papa's response caught their attention.

Mitsuki observes that Takanashi papa seems to be quite proud about this writer. Riku wonders, "What if it's the president? It seems like a lot of feelings were put into writing them."

Tsumugi doubts that because she's never seen her dad write songs. Then, she says that she has to go out for something.

Nagi offers to accompany her, but Yamato volunteers instead. Yamato insists saying, "I spent the whole night thinking about the schedule for this date. Let me go this time, okay?" Then, he tells Tsumugi that he will meet her on the way.

Tsumugi waits as she tries to figure out Yamato's intentions. Yamato arrives in a suit, saying he knows that she's going to Yaotome Productions to apologize and wants to accompany her. The anime just skips the whole date thing and starts with Tsumugi and Yamato outside.

We suddenly cut to the practice room with the others. In the anime, Riku immediately brings Iori outside to talk, but in the game, he just shuts Iori’s mouth. Then, they continue practicing. (The anime version is so much funnier. I love it so much.)

Then, we jump back to Tsumugi and Yamato who meet Tenn on the way back. In the game, Tsumugi actually FANGIRLS right in front of Tenn (lmao but I get her): “…Wow…. It’s the real Kujou Tenn… You have such a small face! And you’re so cute! So cool!! You’re really like an angel.”

There’s an added Tenn line when discussing about Gaku: “He[Gaku] is scary, like a werewolf who transforms under a full moon. Roar!”

It was so surprising, I had to add it.

Tenn surprises Yamato who asks Tenn to go easy on Yamato and the rest because they’re all non-aggressive people. Tenn continues to tease Yamato, and Yamato plays along.

We go back to the practicing boys with Banri bringing them lunch. Tamaki reacts negatively to Sogo’s comment like in the anime, so Mitsuki asks for the real reason. Tamaki was actually about to share his reason, but Iori started talking at the same time. He didn’t cut Tamaki on purpose. He was walking from another side to talk about Riku’s sickness to the rest of the members and Banri (as shown in the anime). Riku muffles Iori’s mouth before he could speak and brings him out.

After trying to bribe Iori with ice cream or taiyaki, game Riku actually increased budget in the game to 1000 Yen (around 6.5 USD). But Iori will NOT be bribed! In his response, he actually calls Riku "Riku-san", which does not happen in the anime.

The flow of the scene is very different. In the anime, it starts as a funny squabble with Riku's cheap bribes. Then, they abruptly shift the atmosphere into one that is much more intense with Riku's: "I'll keep dancing even if it kills me."

In the game, it starts out as an outright fight. Even Iori's "Hey. Let go of me." sounds much more angry than the anime's. Right after this, he is hit by Riku's cheap bribes. Iori tends to speak less formally when he is emotional, so I think his "Riku-san" in the game scene was because he was bewildered. He just found out that his center probably has a serious chronic illness. As he was trying to tell the others, he gets forcibly dragged out and suddenly bribed with cheap food, which kind of makes light of the situation (even though Riku does not mean that at all). After this, Riku muffles Iori's mouth a second time, which annoys Iori. The tension is resolved when Riku proves to Iori that he is taking the situation as seriously as Iori is by saying, "I'll keep dancing even if it kills me."

Side note: When Iori gets emotional, he often addresses people less formally. We'll see that in a future scene in the game.

Iori calms down and returns to calling Riku “Nanase-san”.

During the performance in a typhoon, there were some details that changed. Tenn was worried because he heard there was a typhoon, not because he noticed Riku going out of breath. Also, Riku was about to go for another song, but Iori announces the end of the performance.

Riku's Dream Scene

Game Tenn asks Riku what kind of performance he wants to see. He offers The Wizzard of Oz and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Based on this, it seems like Riku and Tenn's parents had some kind of troupe or theater that does musicals and other plays. I like this because it explains Tenn's connection to musicals. In part 1, Banri said Tenn caught the attention of Broadway people + if you know you know ;-)

Also, Riku wakes up in his room instead of a hospital bed in the game.

Teasing Riku

After Iori calls Tsumugi to talk, which happens in the anime, we get an extra scene with the rest of i7 left in the other room.

Riku observes that Iori and Tsumugi would often go somewhere together and wonders what they are talking about.

Sogo asks if Riku is curious. Yamato teases Riku for wanting to know. Mitsuki jumps in saying, "Should I teach you how to say, 'Stop right there!'" (stopping Iori and Tsumugi lmao)

Riku says, "It's not like that!"

They also shuffled some scenes. For example, the scene where Tamaki talks about being followed by HS girls and the Iori & Riku fansite comes after Iori talks with Tsumugi in the game but before in the anime.

Side Story I: Nanase "Tenn's little brother" Riku

We start with Riku worrying that i7 will treat him differently, knowing that he is Tenn's younger twin brother. He didn't plan to tell them, but because he was overwhelmed at that time (having to face the reality of his brother leaving him and not being able to sing to process those feelings), he impulsively told everyone.

He's stressing quite a lot over this that it's starting to affect his health.

He wonders if he should tell the others about his sickness too, but he's scared that they'll make him leave IDOLiSH7. In the end, he decided not to think too much about it because it won't get him anywhere. He leaves to see the other boys.

He swings the door open and greets everyone with the sunniest, "Good morning!" (There is no sound for side stories, but I can hear his voice🥹)

Yamato and Iori greet him back. Mitsuki asks him if he wants to eat breakfast. Their response makes Riku happy because they're treating him as usual. (Happy Riku, happy life ^o^)

Well... that's what they say out loud, but in their minds, they are thinking wayy differently, haha.

Yamato: "That's Kujou Tenn's younger brother..."

Iori: "That's the younger brother of TRIGGER's Kujou-san..."

Mitsuki: "That's the twin younger brother of a super idol...."

Sogo: "I'm living with the younger brother of the person whose concert I went to yesterday...."

Tamaki: "Rikkun, I heard your older brother is in TRIGGER. You know, I gave him a piggyback ride yesterday."

Riku responds saying that he heard about that and asked if the bomb thing was a joke... 😭 Tamaki frustratedly shouts that everything he said is true!

Riku asks Tamaki about what was Tenn like. Tamaki says that Tenn gives him good vibes. Riku probes for more information, asking if Tenn talked about family or more about his health condition.

Iori asks why Riku is suddenly so fidgety about the topic. Iori observes that Riku spoke with more resentment that day before the live (yesterday). Iori asks, "Didn't you want to prove yourself to the heartless person who abandoned you?"

Riku is surprised that he came off like that. Tamaki says that he won't talk about Tenn again if Tenn makes Riku uncomfortable. Iori continues, assuring Riku that he will definitely be able to prove himself. Someone with a voice like Riku will not only prove himself but also surpass that "heartless person".

Riku gets mad at Iori for calling Tenn a heartless person. He says that he's going too far! Iori defends himself, saying that Riku said that himself. Riku replies, "Well... but Tenn-nii might have had his own reasons..."

Iori asks if Riku wants to reconcile with Tenn, but Riku quickly denies it. He adds that even if Tenn apologizes, Riku will never forgive him. Iori is confused.

Sogo understands Riku's feelings and says, "I am grateful for my family and love them dearly, but that’s also why I feel such deep resentment." Listening to Sogo, Riku thinks that just might be it.

Riku thinks, "I wonder if Sogo-san understands that feeling because he also abandoned his family..." Sogo reads Riku like a book and seems a bit sad.

Iori breaks the heavy atmosphere, saying, "That sounds complicated." Mitsuki comments, "Iori is sensitive, but his motives and goals are aligned. So these kinds of conflicting feelings might be hard to understand?"

Iori responds saying, "...No, I can understand them." Tamaki jumps in saying, "Don't force yourself to understand." Iori angrily replies, "I don't want to hear that from you!"

Iori explains that he wants Riku to be clear about his goals because indecisiveness may lead to less than desirable results. Riku retorts with "It's not that easy."

Iori says that it might not be easy, but if Riku doesn't sort his feelings out properly, he will end up regretting it later. Yamato takes Riku's side.

Nagi wonders why Tenn didn't try to enter the entertainment world with Riku when Riku is so good at singing. Mitsuki adds that Riku does not have good stamina, but he can work on that. Riku smiles and promises to work hard.

Iori:

Yamato speculates that it's out of rivalry because he can't think of any other reason.

Yamato leaves to go to Yaotome Productions with Tsumugi.

After meeting Anesagi, Yamato and Tsumugi introduce themselves and immediately apologizes.

Anesagi is furious and says, "Do you think that an apology is enough?" Anesagi can't believe that IDOLiSH7 started dancing just because they were "feeling pumped". If IDOLiSH7 could dance anywhere if they felt excited, then Yamato should dance right here, right now.

Yamato says that right now he's not exactly "feeling pumped" right now. Anesagi replies, "Then, I'll make you 'feel pumped up'. GO! GO! GO! GO! Well!? How about now!?"

Yamato shocked, says, "I.... I'm at about 70%"

Anesagi furiously retorts, "70%!? Then make up the rest on your own!! Do you rely on others to get things done?"

Yamato apologizes.

Anesagi criticizes Tsumugi for just blankly observing the situation even though she's the manager.

Tsumugi also apologizes. She also starts cheering, "GO! GO! GO! GO!"

Yamato is shoookk.

Both managers are cheering now....

Yamato decides that he'll just dance. He says, "I'm sorry! I'm pumped up now! 100% pumped! I'll dance. Manager, can you hold my suit jacket?"

Just as he was about to dance, Anesagi shouts in disbelief, "What!? You're dancing!? I thought you came here to apologize, but you're dancing!?"

Yamato angrily replies, "Then, what do you want me to do!!" Yamato quickly catches himself.

Anesagi continues to express disbelief.

We cut to TRIGGER who could hear Anesagi screaming from another room. This part is in the anime!

TRIGGER catches Tenn up on their beef with i7 because game Tenn was delirious. They show Tenn some pictures, and this is when Tenn learnt that Riku is in i7 in the game.

We get a funny scene about Gaku's impression of the i7 members. At first, he thought they were talented, but because of the audience stealing incident, he started seeing them as shameless people, especially the center. Tenn chokes at Gaku's assessment of the center. Gaku adds, "Wasn't he [the center] smirking with a sinister smile?"

Ryuu doesn't think that the center was smirking. He thinks they seem like good boys. Tenn says that Gaku is not a good judge of character and shares his experience with i7.

He talks about Tamaki's cheap taxi fares, Nagi's love for role-playing, and Yamato's passiveness. He adds that if anyone has a dark side, it would be Yamato. He also says that he doesn't mind i7 dancing because it means TRIGGER's stage was that infectious.

He says but does not explain that i7 will not be able to continue if they do not change their center.

Side Story II: Confronting Yamato

Mitsuki asks about Yamato's "date" with the manager. Yamato said that it was great. Mitsuki whacks him.

Yamato teasingly asks if Mitsuki is jealous. Mitsuki says, "Why didn't you tell us? I didn't appoint you leader to wipe my ass." (to make him do all the hard stuff).

Sogo joins in and also asks Yamato to be more open with the members because they want to share the burden with him.

Yamato tries to play it off as no big deal, so Mitsuki whacks him again. 😂 He tells Yamato not to take on these kinds of things by himself more forcefully.

Then, Mitsuki cues Sogo who says, "Thank you for doing that for us. You've worked hard, Yamato-san." Mitsuki chimes in with another "You've worked hard!"

Yamato calls them idiots and then thanks them. Mitsuki says, "That's our line." Then, he invites all three of them to go drinking. (It would be their first time drinking together)

Mitsuki says that he knows Yamato often drinks in his room and asks Sogo how much Sogo could drink. Sogo said this would technically be his first time. Yamato tells Sogo that he can count on Yamato to teach him. Mitsuki is happy that they get to introduce Sogo to alcohol.

Nagi and Tamaki are watching anime together in Nagi's room. They were crying over a touching scene when Tamaki brings up how Riku and Iori has been kind of weird lately. Nagi agrees. He feels like they're hiding something.

Tamaki thinks that they're fighting, but Nagi said that he saw Riku treating Iori to some nice food recently. Tamaki suggests that they should try out what Iori did to Riku. Nagi agrees.

Tamaki puts his ear on Nagi's back. Nagi says that it feels like someone is wiping their runny nose with his shirt and that it is very unpleasant. 😂

Tamaki: Oh, you found out. (L.M.A.O)

Nagi: SHIT.

Tamaki immediately apologizes, and Nagi tells Tamaki that he should be glad that Nagi is not wearing his Kokona t-shirt.

Next, Nagi muffles Tamaki's mouth and asks him how he feels. Tamaki, obviously, can't speak properly. Finally, Nagi releases Tamaki and Tamaki says, "That was on purpose, wasn't it." Nagi admits yes. Tamaki says that this is making his nose runny, and he wipes it on Nagi's shirt... again 😭

We see Iori in Riku's room. He is still trying to convince Riku to tell the others about his sickness. Riku refuses and insists that it's not that bad of a problem. He asks Iori to leave because he wants to sleep early.

Iori refuses because he can tell that Riku is about to have an attack. Riku lies, saying that it's just a cold. And tells Iori to leave because he doesn't want Iori to catch it.

Iori gets angry and says that he is worried about Riku. He threatens to tell the others, and Riku finally admits that he is about to have an attack. But it's not a bad one. Iori asks Riku to be honest and tell him everything because he wants to help.

Iori starts asking some questions, but it seems like Riku was answering more about his resolve rather than his true physical condition. Iori restarts and asks another question.

Iori: Am I... Are my expectations for your singing putting pressure on you?

Riku says, "No." He is happy that people are happy to see him dance and sing. He dreams of being for others what Tenn was for him. He wants to stay with i7 and says, "Instead of giving up on my dream and living to a hundred, I'd rather die singing a hundred year's worth of songs."

Iori is surprised that Riku used the word "death". Riku assures him that it's just a figure of speech. He assures Iori that he won't die because Riku has become stronger and the disease is not life-threatening.

Riku says that he's really happy to be chosen as the center because he feels needed. He says, "....For the first time in my life, I feel like I'm truly living for myself."

Iori calls Riku an idiot and says, "Even if there is someone with your level of singing but with a healthier body and more stamina than you, I chose you to be the center. Because you are truly valuable, IDOLiSH7's center, Nanase Riku-san."

Riku says that he's touched but adds a question, "Did you even have a choice? Shouldn't it be either our manager or the president?"

Iori also says that it's just a figure of speech. Riku teases him a bit. Then, repeats a "Thank you."

Riku asks for details on what his value is because he likes being praised. Iori says that it's a secret for now. Through Iori's thoughts we learn that Riku's value is in Riku's ability to make people love him. Iori says that while not everyone might wish for Riku's happiness, no one is rooting for Riku's misfortune.

Then, Iori talks about his own dream, which is to be of use to another person. He is glad that he finally found someone who he can support without hurting. He says, "Even if Nanase-san has to walk down a thorny path, if that is what he wishes, I can play the role of a demon king."

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

s2 episode 18 "fearful symmetry" thoughts

zoo episode! sad zoo episode.

but. i was giggling. because our very serious agents were forced to say lines like "you think it was an invisible elephant?" and i was laughing!!! sue me!! we can hold space in our hearts for the sentiments that both the sad animal story is sad AND ALSO the thought of them doing investigation work at the zoo is comical. like the tiger is INVISIBLE.

okay. from the top we start.

a janitor is grooving. his partner tells him to stop. i say, keep grooving, man. you deserve it.

dancing has been interrupted!!! stuff is exploding and crashing and we hear elephant noises?? invisible elephant.....? that can BECOME visible?

it seems while in invisible it went a bit sicko mode as the kids say and then came back to visibility mode down the road

(where did renting an elephant for this episode fit into the s2 budget....)

so elephant has been spotted. a family calls the cops. and i understand the sentiment but i'm not sure the cops can do a whole lot about the elephant situation.

NOOO a child is crying as the elephant is dying in the road... this will be a core memory for those poor girls

(elephant actor is really selling it though... emmy nomination deserved)

back to the scene where the janitors saw things explode. mulder jumps out the window and i can't explain why it was really funny lmao

mulder is convinced that the elephant being found dead some miles away is related to this scene of destruction. and yeah, the dead guy DID have an elephant footprint on him. but no one saw an elephant and the janitors were very much there the whole time. so what's the truth?

this is so silly. i'm laughing.

mulder's explaining his theories and scully deadpans "an invisible elephant?" and i'm laughinggggg. can you imagine an elephant making a huge scene but somehow the witnesses just managed to miss the giant creature responsible.

the zookeeper, whose name is ed, arrives at the scene. scully asks about the dead elephant, and ed corrects her use of the elephant's pronouns, which made me think he was an ally.

(later we learn that he was beating all the animals, so this is decidedly un-allied behavior. ally certificate revoked)

the elephant is named ganesha- hey, i understood that.

mulder says he's heard of the "elephant rebellion" phenomenon, and asks if this is an example. yeah of course this man knows about the elephant rebellion. "fucking nerd", i wrote in my notes.

(actually, i am aware that this season aired in 1996, and the infamous Hawaiian elephant incident was 1994. the phrase "elephant rebellion" sounds very niche and nerdy in 2024, but at the time i image this was still very fresh in the world's minds, and part of a wider reckoning on how animals are treated for the sake of entertainment, and this episode is commentary upon that. i was not around for this national discussion, but i did watch askamortician's video on the incident, which is very good by the way. i have mostly grown up in a world free of animals in circuses and with zoos as conservation agents, so interesting to get glimpses into the discussions that led to the shaping of the world i live in)

but then we see the zoo!!! zoo time!!! there are penguins. i saw penguins like that at the zoo once :)

they go to talk to the naturalist who is basically like "idk how the elephant got out" and i'm thinking, girl shouldn't you be... more invested in this?? like an elephant died. ur not even shedding a tear. i would be in mourning.

they see where the elephant was staying when she wasn't on display, and it's frankly awful. scully asks why it was so small, mulder notices chains on the floor, and she says it was leftover from the 1940's, and that ed is treating them poorly, and i understand why this and other elephants have chosen violence

the folks from a radical anti-captivity group are protesting the whole situation. and she refers to them by some acronym that mulder immediately understands, which is further evidence that he must listen to npr or something. my professor that knows everything all the time listens to npr so i'm guessing that is what mulder does too.

meetup time with the dude leading the protest! his name is kyle, and he is saying that no animals should be in captivity, and he often kidnaps animals from zoos to let them go... and i'm not sure if this is a great idea?? because if an elephant has been raised in captivity its whole life, is it gonna know how to be in the jungle?? idk i am not a scientist.

this episode is suuuuper fuzzy and has a very vhs quality to it... i bet y'all were sleeping on this episode, huh? i'm guessing there wasn't as much effort placed into de-fuzzing it because it was about invisible animals and not one of the "hard hitters" of the season. but i think it's camp and i'm seated.

so kyle reveals that ed, the zoo guy, is treating his animals awfully at this point, which is where i formally revoked his ally status. and he says that the naturalist is too busy being sued over her gorilla to really focus on making the zoo more humane.

yeah, you heard that: she "saved" a gorilla and took it home, and now the government of the country she took it from wants it back.

"i thought you said she saved this gorilla?" scully asks, and i dissolve into further fits of laughter, because that is such a funny line out of context and even in context.

well, she "saved" the gorilla by bringing it home and sticking it in a cage, so kyle isn't pleased by the whole ordeal.

so, what to make of these anti-captivity activists? mulder says he thinks they're all talk and not really apart of the whole crime, but scully says she thinks they are behind the elephant's fate, and will release another animal to get the zoo shut down. this is a deep philosophical difference.

he leaves and says he is going to talk to the animals, because i knew that was the type of guy he is

(he's actually lying, though. well, sort of, because he's calling his buddies at the lone gunman, that conspiracy magazine he is involved in somehow. and it's a video call using a camera and a projector, or as i described it in my notes, "a biblically accurate zoom")

his pals thinks its related to the nearby UFO hot spot, and offer this fun fact:

"no animal at the zoo has ever brought a pregnancy term" <- and yeah. i hit pause and yelled "WHAT" so quickly. hey. what's going on. are the aliens getting involved in their reproductive cycles??

frohike, the strange man who is always hitting on scully, hears mulder's phone ring and adds "if that's the lovely agent scully, let her know i've been working out" and i sentence him to a sentence of 10,000 years in the dungeons. (and this is a reduced sentence for his quick thinking in sneaking out her blood work when she was in coma mode)

she's calling to let him know that someone from the anti-captivity organization is breaking into the zoo!!! not a very good look for their cause!!! he climbs a fence to break in, and she looks around cautiously before doing the same. she is normally a ruler follower, after all.

where is this dude going?? to the... lions? he's setting up a camera?

ed the zookeeper has materialized behind scully, who explains she was following someone else, and then they go off into a warehouse area

but the activist dude is setting up his camera- probably just to record their poor conditions rather than anything nefarious, i think- when BAM! flash of light! terrible ruckus!!! tiger is invisible...?

activist man, you are going to be EATEN!!! and the camera is rolling while this happens!!!!

scully's trying to talk to kyle, the head of this whole organization, who is saying he doesn't know why the dude broke into the zoo, and he had nothing to do with it, and she says that if she finds out he was involved in getting that dude eaten by a tiger that she will have him charged

mulder comes to get her, and it's very cute.

she is mad!!!! "you know, that guy really pisses me off" she says, and mulder asks if she's calmed down- bad move, let her be angry- but he tells her that the video showed the attacker was INVISIBLE! even though she examined the body and it was CLEARLY mauled to death!!!! even more frustration ensues.

mulder decides he must question the gorilla... he is so open minded :)

(the gorilla has been taught sign language, so this is a thing you can actually do. but for a guy big into aliens, i don't think talking to a gorilla is really out of the picture, even if there was no known method of communication)

he asks her a few questions and gets very vague answers, learning that the gorilla really wanted a baby, and i'm like, where is this going... he says he is going to need scully's help and i'm thinking... is he going to have her give the gorilla a pregnancy test.....

not quite! it is ELEPHANT AUTOPSY TIME!!!

he is watching all this go on from above and commenting and NOT soiling his pristine suit by getting inside the elephant guts which made me laugh. just watch 'em do the dirty work big guy. i guess he wouldn't know what the hell he was looking at anyway. but with all the other random shit he knows maybe he WOULD know how to identify elephant pregnancy.

and his hunch is correct: scully says the elephant had been pregnant, delivering this news in very fancy medical terms while her face and clothes are covered in elephant gore. oh yeah baby. that's fbi work.

(she is so brave because i would Not have been able to do any work with elephant blood on my face)

okay okay now the tiger that got out has been tracked to a building... and the naturalist really really does NOT want to have to shoot him... but ed the animal beater does, and he kills the tiger!!!!!! what is he hiding....

this poor naturalist, who i am suspicious of, is just taking L after L, and dead tiger is not helping

and GUESS WHAT? tiger was pregnant at one point, too!!! even though there were no efforts to make that happen!!!! how could this be??

"what do you know about alien abduction?" he asks her, entirely serious. she laughs and we see his deadpan face. it never gets old seeing people think he is deeply strange and unusual.

he proposes that perhaps the aliens are taking the pregnant animals and their embryos, and then dropping them back down on earth, which the naturalist describes as "the most ridiculous thing i've ever heard". she has not opened her mind to the idea of the space-time continuum turning them invisible when they come back.

despite the hostile reception to his theories, he watches intently while she asks more questions to the gorilla in sign language. but as this is going down, she is given an order to put the gorilla into custody. another L.

faced with the thought of losing her gorilla, she goes to kyle, who she begs for help, and when he says that she should let the gorilla go back into the wild, she yells "she's MINE, kyle" which is a lot. and he refuses to help. honestly he was kinda rude about it but i understand sticking to your morals.

but he seems to change his mind, because he comes to the zoo at night, calling out for her. and i'm thinking, no, an invisible animal is gonna eat you!!!! but this isn't what happens... something FALLS ON HIM and KILLS HIM!!!! huh???

scully figures out that kyle and the naturalist knew each other, and asks if she went over to his office to ask for help, which she denies. because she is a liar. and she is also deeply mad, and says "why don't you ask agent mulder, he seems to have a novel theory... maybe it was alien abduction" okay queen this is even ruder like he is trying to HELP you

mulder thinks that SHE killed kyle so she could keep the gorilla... which would be tea...

he investigates the cage and he uses a pen to avoid making any fingerprints... will be employing this tactic if i am ever at a crime scene investigation....

he sees ed, the trainer slash animal beater taking off, with guns!!!

back in her office, the naturalist is packing up all the things from her office, including a framed photo of her smooching the gorilla... (sabrina brier voice) oh!

scully is like well ur actually not gonna leave right away. because it looks like kyle was kinda murdered. and she says it was an accident, ed was scared and hit him with a cattle prod. and out of desperation, she gave ed the gorilla. THE ANIMAL BEATER?? you gave HIM your precious baby??? girl.... these decisions.....

back at a warehouse he tracked down ed to, mulder is holding him at gunpoint, which he is remarkably good at doing

the gorilla is going ham because she is in a weird and dark place and mulder says ed, you're gonna have to tranquilize her... but when they open the door, he doesn't shoot and instead leaves mulder in the room with an outraged gorilla!!!! no, mulder, we all shout!! she pummels him, and he doesn't seem to know sign language, so there is a immovable language barrier!!!!

but she backs off from pummeling him, which is good, because gorillas are horrific and CAN kill you.

(and i semi-recently saw a gorilla at the zoo so i'm looking at this one, and i'm trying to figure out if it's a real creature or a dude in a suit... pls someone feel free to share what the truth is. i mean if they got an elephant actor maybe they could hire a gorilla one too... but it looks off. kind of like a guy in a suit. so i'm thinking about that episode of spongebob with the scary guy in a gorilla suit. which was honestly a scary episode!!! but i digress. mulder locked in with gorilla)

OH. LIGHT FLASH! alien time....?

he wakes up on the floor with a bloody head from gorilla pummeling, and scully bursts in, trying to get him to stay still because there is a big bleeding wound on his head, a place you do not want a big wound to be. she is really doing her best to wrangle him and take a look, but he is too wiggly for this.

the naturalist is at the scene, and he does the sign language the gorilla did back to her, which was quite good. if i saw a gorilla do sign language after it beat me i would not remember how she moved its hands. good memory on that mulder guy.

they get a call for an animal in a field, and of course, it is the gorilla, who was hit by a car, and the naturalist sobs into her... fur? hair? as she dies. a tragic end to a gorilla life.

mulder wraps the case up, asking the hard hitting questions: are aliens stealing zoo animals to breed them and steal the embryos, and then preserve them? is it archival or conservationist in nature? he gets very philosophical, as he always does when writing a report. and i can imagine skinner reading this and saying "... okay" and then not saying anything else.

so, what did i think? well, i think they aren't gonna want to recreationally visit a zoo for a while, which kills that one fantasy of mine, but don't worry, i'll make them go to a museum instead. and if there is museum related trauma in a future episode we can work around that.

honestly though, was this episode the best? nah. but was it campy? yeah. the aliens made the tiger invisible, dude. how could you not love that?

i do think this episode was trying to partake in the growing discussion of animal captivity and ethics, especially in the wake of the elephant incident of 1994, and i'm not sure if it really takes a stance beyond "hurting animals is bad". i suppose if anything it comes off looking like it supports the anti-zoo agenda, which is still something that is in the public discourse. i know because i follow a lot of zoos on instagram and there is always someone in the comments saying that the creatures should be free and then someone else countering that they are super endangered and actually he is doing just fine in his cage, eating an appropriately designed cake for his needs. but that discourse hasn't left the public sphere, so it's interesting to see it represented here.

and maybe aliens ARE interested in conservation. i would personally just take the whole animals rather than stealing their embryos and leaving the creatures on the side of the highway, but what do i know? not much in terms of tigers.

i liked seeing scully get pissed off, i thought that was really funny. but overall, this episode was more intersting to me in terms of cultural commentary and outlandish plot than character devlopment. which is fine!!! we need a break from the heaviness of the last two episodes.

[mercedesssssss]

insane scene. let's discuss.

first, him watching her walk up, like he Knows who she was probably just with, and the heartbreak but also just *in awe of her* anyways on his face is sooooooo 😵‍💫

the way when she walks up and he just doesn't say anything for a moment, it shows #tome that he's thinking abt It.

secondly, him saying "normally I'd take care of this but the guy looked sketchy" or whatever the hell.... BE SERIOUS what are you talking about "I'd take care of this" like ... can't take him srsly sometimes like okay honey that was an awful excuse but i love you dearly anyways

like he could've called abbott, cho, fischer, but he called lisbon not just bc he prob knew abt the date, not just bc she's his partner, but simply bc he wants to see Her.

At any time.

For any reason.

Ever.

thirdly, her being like "you called me out here for duck tape?" & him being like "you need to trust me" is just so important to me because even though it's glossed over in this scene, (they don't spend any time on it, it's not the main point of the scene) her trusting him has always been so important to him. It certainly would be now more than most any other time considering how Tense everything is.

and then her just not believing him and immediately jumping to the conclusion that he wanted to screw up her date, which honestly as a viewer isn't big of a stretch at all but surface level it kind of reminds me of the s5 "I'm not you're girlfriend" line, bc in terms of the situation it kind of comes out of left field, just like in that s5 scene, but on a *everything* level it's both subconsciously lisbons feelings for jane coming out AND her wanting Him to talk abt his feelings for Her, & it's so insanely good bc she's totally right to think it

and then he continues on to *try* to act like he didnt know! and its funny here especially because, yes, the show has shown he's a great liar, we know this, but sometimes he's not (here) and when it comes to This (the jisbon of it all) it was just getting harder and harder to keep lying and pretending and that's why here he kind of does a TERRIBLE JOB

and in another circumstance that conversation couldve ended up going in a totally different direction, except for the fact that he was being partially truthful in his reasoning for calling her, because while he did have all those other reasons behind calling Her specifically, he also did call her bc he genuinely thought/knew someone was in trouble.

so then #it gets put aside once he convinces her and they go inside.

like I said, insane scene.

in conclusion, jisbon tension angst pining yearning etcetcetc all very loved by me 🫶

[kolbisneat]

MONTHLY MEDIA: January 2025

New year, same me.

……….FILM……….

The Substance (2024) Despite not liking horror or needles, I was really excited for this. The premise sounded great and then I sit down and see a 2+ hour runtime and start getting nervous. Did I love everything about this movie? Yes. Do I think they could've done it in an hour thirty or an hour forty-five? Yes. Except the last 20ish minutes; keep that exactly as it is.

Beverly Hills Cop (1984) I knew this movie was written for Sylvester Stallone but I didn't realize that almost all of the comedy would stem from Eddie Murphy. Without him (or his stellar wardrobe), I suppose it's just a fairly straightforward crime/detective movie. Just an incredible performance.

The Lighthouse (2019) As someone who also lives where they work and does so in (mostly) isolation, I'm glad I watched this when I didn't have looming deadlines or the urge to get back to work. Anyway love a good fairytale movie and this is a good fairytale movie.

Nosferatu (2024) Watched this shortly after The Lighthouse and while it was fun to see overlapping visuals and themes, I kinda wished it was...weirder? Still so many beautiful scenes and bold performances, but not nearly as unhinged as I was expecting.

……….TELEVISION……….

Laid (Episode 1.01 to 1.08) Fun and funny and, for something that acknowledges the pandemic, really strikes a good balance of feeling contemporary but not immediately dating itself. I'm torn on the ending but it's definitely more hits than misses here.

Skeleton Crew (Episode 1.05 to 1.08) A nice breezy adventure. Perhaps expecting a few more narrative beats or one-off adventures but really I can't complain with what this is: an all-ages entry in the Star Wars universe that stands on its own.

Columbo (Episode 2.06 to 2.08) Some really fun...villains/murderers this season and I love the recurring doctor/vet visits. Peter Falk's comedic timing and charisma are on full display this season.

……….YOUTUBE……….

The Alt-Right Playbook x PhilosophyTube: Doublewrong by Innuedo Studios Don't fall into the trap of meeting a value-driven discussion with facts and logic. It doesn't work. Instead see where your values differ and focus on that. VIDEO

What Now? by Sophie from Mars This came out at exactly the right time (for me, at least). It's not denying the struggles ahead. Instead it's a perspective that sees a way through. Community above all else. VIDEO

Why No One Wins the Fast Fashion Debate by Broey Deschanel A thoughtful look at both the fashion industry and global economics. VIDEO

……….READING……….

The Truth by Terry Pratchett (Page 45 of 442) Always a treat to spend more time in the Discworld and it's been a while since the main character is wholly new. It's refreshing.

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin (Complete) Given how much I love Le Guin's Earthsea series, I was really excited for this. Maybe it was the length, maybe it was that it was sci-fi, but I found it to be a slog. I could feel how groundbreaking this must've been, and appreciate how relevant it still remains, but the long stretches of world-building and describing arctic travel/survival was not for me.

Doctor Strange Vol 1 and 2 by Jason Aaron, Chris Bachalo, and more (Complete) I read the Donny Cates run a few years ago and didn't realize this was set before that. While I didn't like that run, I'm digging the visuals and narrative here. Doctor Strange feels a little too...quippy, but that's just because I've always liked the contrast of a very serious lead with a whimsical and unexplained setting. Happy to keep going with this and see how it ties up!

Batman - One Bad Day: Two Face by Mariko Tamaki and Javier Fernandez (Complete) A decent introduction to this series but it didn't really grab me. Great character writing but the...mystery....never really clicked.

Batman - One Bad Day: Mr. Freeze by Gerry Duggan &, Matteo Scalero (Complete) This, on the other hand, really worked for me and delivered everything I want out of a Batman comic: sympathetic villain, Bruce Wayne going undercover out of the costume, plucky Robin, and a cool bat suit. I'd definitely read this one again. Heck Mr. Freeze briefly has a sidekick called Frostbite! This is superhero comics at their best.

……….AUDIO……….

Sunflower by The Beach Boys (1970) Pet Sounds is one of my all-time favourite albums and yet I never really got into much of the other post-surf output from The Beach Boys. After seeing this review I dived in head first and now adore it. It really is a shame that they didn't blow up the same way as the Beatles, given how similar their musical trajectory was.

……….GAMING……….

Mika and the Witch's Mountain (Chibig) I don't really Kickstart video games so this was a gamble. The art direction and characters are great, but quickly realized there's really only one trick to this pony. I was even more frustrated that the trick (flying on a broom) never really clicked for me. There's potential here but it's not quite there yet for me.

Oz: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting (Andrews McMeel Publishing) The party is spinning so many plates that it's a marvel none of them have dropped yet. Right now they're investigating a murder tied back to their first session. You can read all about it here.

Wonderland: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting (Andrews McMeel Publishing) The Mof1 crew got back together for a one-shot! We had two character deaths but a lot of loot and XP for those that survived.

And that's it. See you in February!

[grayskyzephyr]

Hi there, you don't know me and you don't need to know jack shit about me I just feel like giving my take.. and also want someone else's take on it.

I'm.. conflicted on Adam as a character, on one hand he has a lot of potential to be a great villain.. on the other hand, he's a raging incel and that's all he's ever written as.

Now that isn't where I take issue. I take issue with the fact the writing had him be both a shitty ex to Blake (which is a whole bundle of questionable choices given THAT product sold by rt during Valentine's day- aka the one where it had Blake and Adam on it and some shit like "lovers quarrel"- but that's beside the point.) but also.. a major component to the white fang subplot, and unfortunately.. the show drops the ball on the combination.

It could have worked but it nose dived as soon as Adam entered v4 (with his fuckboy design- no.. need to be serious here) with it being more apparent the story was focusing on Adam being Blake's ex rather than.. anything to do with the white fang, and to be blunt I feel as if that's one of the big problems I have with Adam (and Blake) they have a lot of story potential (for Blake it's too much but that's my take.) and yet nothing is done with them.

Adam gets packed up by volume 6 and the white fang is dissolved immediately prior when he first got his ass kicked by Blake. (Which.. dear god I have opinions on). Overall he feels underwhelming.

Im not expecting a tragic anti hero but if the writers are gonna set him up as a threat it feels a little unsatisfying to have him go out with no spectacle, no grand ass whooping when against yang and Blake, no send off with Blake refuting his hatred for humanity, no scene where yang gets pay back for Adam slicing off her arm and giving her PTSD from it, he just gets killed and that's it.

It's disappointing and overall I feel like if I could, and had to keep Adam a villain I would have atleast given his dynamic with yang and Blake more time, id atleast try and make him more hateable because instead of meeting hating him for everything he's done, I just can't care.

I'm sorry this makes no sense but if it somehow does id like your take on it, I know Adam is very much a dead ram horse (heh.. I need to be more funny..) in terms of conversation because.. well he isn't a "character" he's just a piece of cardboard the writers liked to ignore until they decide to give Blake something to do... Or in the fandoms case argue about whether he was written well or not.

Have a lovely day.. imma go fuck off now.

Wow, I wasn't expecting a lengthy ask. I had to find time to answer lol

But yes I do agree with everything you said. I've made a post here taking my turn beating the dead horse on the whole Adam debacle, but it was more so geared towards the fandom's continued violent hatred of him. Reminder that he is a fictional character who does not exist.

I do believe making Adam Blake's "ex abusive boyfriend" was unnecessary, because it takes away the struggle Blake faces as a faunus in society and where her values in activism lie. But that doesn't mean it couldn't work alongside with it. It was so cartoonishly goofy when Adam walks in calling Blake "my love" in that cringe attempt to be sinister.

I really do hate how Blake is defined by being a victim of abuse and the fandom coddling her for it and not by her indominable spirit in wanted to fight for her people. That part of her has been tossed to the wayside along with Adam's corpse. And I do hate how we are not allowed to have a nuance discussion on Adam as a character because the fandom and crwby simply won't allow it

[olderthannetfic]

i saw this post today where this person was talking abt fandom racism and was pointing out some real issues within my fandom and favorite ship that I too had noticed… but then kept bringing it back to the lack of one particular other ship they liked, when it's like, no that's not the problem, and that ship is unpopular because those characters have zero romantic or sexual chemistry and barely any scenes together. (it was really funny that someone had reblogged this to take their 'lack of seeing this one character in a sexual way in fic miiight be racist' complaint to be like 'i think you're right! we should have more fic about [a long list of different ships involving that character with people they have ACTUAL chemistry with].' it was really funny. ofc op totally missed the point they were making there.) anyway i just feel like way too many useful conversations about this stuff are ruined by people making it about shipping or other really subjective fandom preferences. i get that this is because something like 'number of fics X ship or character has on ao3' is an objective measure, and something like 'level of orientalism in how a lot of people are writing this desi character' is not, but i wish people would realize it tends to alienate more people that it converts. and ime, it's often the people who maybe would most benefit from hearing those criticisms (e.g. are writing unintentionally racist stuff in their works, and are someone who would want to know about that and how to do it differently) who tune it out the second you make it into insulting their shipping preferences.

i mean, there WAS some real racism in the star wars sequels fandom, including among the fanfic/shipping side. not just the shitty dudes harassing kelly marie tran. we saw the really bizarre 'predator' language people directed at john boyega just for making some joke posts on instagram about disliking reylo and its shippers. it was the very classic racist thing where people see something as automatically more threatening when a black man does it. ....but how many people had already tuned all that out because the people most outspoken about the racism in the fandom kept reducing it to 'if you ship reylo over finnrey, or kylux over finnpoe, you're a racist'? it's like a boy who cried wolf thing. if you've shown that you can't uncouple serious discussions and concerns from just being pissy that your otp is not more popular, people are going to see you as someone who can't be taken seriously and then ignore you when you do have a real complaint. it's like how i'm sure that some of stitch's essays are thoughtful and important, but i have no desire to read stuff by someone who is infamous for harassing people just for what they ship. i don't feel like i can take any of that person's judgments about fandoms i'm not in, for instance, seriously.

that's not to say fandom preferences in shipping can't ever be influenced by racism (or other 'isms') but is it ever really *that* specifically that is the problem, or the broader pattern it is part of? and i feel like 'maybe fandom is a little too focused on het and slash ships between two young skinny conventionally attractive white people' is a message more people are open to than 'your specific white M/M or F/M otp is racist'

anyway it reminds me of the stuff i've seen sometimes in academic fandom studies about how you can't really honestly study a fandom where you're deeply mired in its discourse - you need to focus your work on fandoms that you're familiar with but not in that way. and i think that maybe also applies to some of these discussions about fandom racism and misogyny. maybe you're just going to have better takes on something when you're not deeply invested in other unrelated arguments about it, like about which ship is the most popular. like i could not care less about star wars shipping and have zero take in reylo vs. finnrey, so that's why i feel like i could trust my perception that the way a small minority of reylos were posting about john boyega's instagram posts was racist. it didn't matter if he was genuinely being a jerk to them or about their ship. he obviously wasn't a 'predator' and it was pretty telling language for a group of largely white people to use about a black man making fun of their ship on a different social media site.

--

The laying pipe thing was blown so out of proportion, yes. Call it sexist, sure, but it wasn't fucking predatory.