#tunnel episode review

[ittsybittsybunny]

ATLA Live Action Series Review:

The Good

Aesthetically this show felt right. Sure sometimes the outfits didn't quite feel lived in, but I always felt like I was watching a fantasy world with decent effects and interesting design. Also, I really enjoyed the sets!

Bending: Yes some of the fights feel very quick, but the bending looks cool. It is certainly better than 10 benders lifting one big rock. I can honestly say the opening bending fight scene gave me so much hope for this show.

Kyoshi Warriors: I loved seeing them in live action, and I thought Suki's performance was great!

Omashu: I think the mashup of the mechanist made sense since that is an important character overall and I would hate to see him cut. However, both Jet & the secret tunnels felt sloppily thrown in.

Northern Water Tribe: I really loved the way it looked, and appreciated the two episodes we spent here. I think Yue gained more agency in this interpretation, and why shouldn't the moon spirit be a waterbender. Also, episode seven felt the most in tune with the original show's spirit.

Zuko: I think he was one of the most fleshed-out and best parts of the show! Dallas Liu really captured Zuko's spirit, and the scene between him and Aang in episode 6 was wonderful!

Soundtrack: Hearing the original soundtrack bits is always great, and when I first heard the ending music I was so excited.

Is the show perfect, no - but I wouldn't mind a season 2.

The Bad

Pacing: Turning 20 episodes into 8 was bound to lead to some cuts...but oftentimes times things felt too quick or disjointed. I think there were editing problems contributing to this for sure, but sometimes things skipped around too much without a clear purpose as to why. Also, why bring in plots from later seasons when you barely have enough time already?

Writing: This show definitely suffered from exposition dumping, though it did get better as time went on. I think the biggest example of this is actually opening in the past rather than the present. We do not get to learn along with Aang that the world has changed, instead, we get to learn that 100 years have passed....which doesn't hold the same tension or worldbuilding.

Clunky Dialogue: Along with exposition, clunky dialogue is another example of bad writing. I think sometimes I felt like the acting was kind of meh in the beginning, but then over time I began to realize it had far more to do with the lines characters were trying to deliver. The actors themselves are not bad, just cursed with awkward writing and lines that feel out of touch with the setting they're in.

Main Trio: I don't entirely know that I believe Katara, Sokka, and Aang are friends as opposed to 3 people stuck together to save the world. Aang feels a little too somber for a young kid running away from his responsibilities, Sokka is protective, but not exactly the heart of the team, and Katara is sort of just there until the last two episodes. Where is her struggle, her desire to learn so strong she steals from pirates? Also, while Gordon Cormier did a great job, Aang does zero waterbending on his own, is overly serious, and tells Katara not to fight. Where is his desperation to protect his friends? It feels like they all lost emotional depth.

Tension: Bringing Ozai, Azula, and Zhao out in the beginning immediately causes us to lose the realization there is an even bigger bad. Part of why Ozai is so terrifying is he is a primarily silent villain until the third season when we finally see the face of the "big bad evil guy" behind it all. Yes, they add to Zuko's backstory, but again, they are revealing the villains too early. Azula is the antagonist of season 2 and one of my favorite characters, so I hope they do more with her in the future. Finally, Zhao is supposed to be an example of the uncontrollable nature of fire unrestrained, instead, he comes off as vaguely threatening with the supposed true power being Azula.

Characterization: While all characters are bound to lose something in a shorter show, it still felt like certain characters were more mutilated than others. I am sure there are 100 different opinions on who, but I think the biggest victim was Katara.

Katara: Katara manages to go from a complete novice to a bending master in what feels like a matter of days. The journey feels short, and that makes the results feel largely unearned. Katara is one of the strongest personalities in the show, determined, kind, and fiery. In many ways, she is the unpredictability of water - equally dangerous as it is necessary to live. She is the child of a war who lost her mother, forced to grow up too soon, and even raised her older brother. Yes, Katara often gets stereotyped as the mom friend, but overall she feels underutilized in this show. We really don't see enough of her journey until the very end.

Iroh: Iroh was always comedic but most importantly wise. Even when Zuko is trying to give himself advice, he mimics Iroh. Instead, he seems to be used more as comedic relief without the underlying experience. He just doesn't feel right. Also, he kills Zhao instead of Zhao getting himself killed - which is less about Iroh and more about the writing than anything.

Ozai is weirdly a little too nice. Yes, he burned Zuko and pits his kids against each other, but he feels toned down in a show claiming to be more mature than the original cartoon.

Azula is perhaps more realistically worried about losing her status as the golden child, but she is also missing the cruelty she and her father share. I understand worrying about making your character cartoonishly evil, but the Fire Nation is currently a deeply nationalistic empire trying to control the world. Where is the deep-seated belief that they are better than other people, not just trying to bring balance to the world? There is a line between creating complexity and toning down the very real evil inherent in this plan.

Roku: I can only say what the fuck was that. He was barely there, and not the serious master to Aang's youthful exuberance.

The Ugly

Show, Don't Tell: The show's single biggest issue seems to be speeding through story parts by simply stating things. Instead of allowing the audience to discover, trusting that we are smart enough to understand, let's just blatantly say things like Zuko is the only reason the 41st division is alive to their faces. Even though in the context of the story Ozai literally already said that.... it's the division, the division for Zuko, Zuko's division.

Thematic Misunderstandings: I think this show makes several minor changes with major implications, such as airbenders actively fighting the firebenders, when airbenders are known for their pacifist nature and the lie of an Airbender fighting force is actively propaganda. Similarly, Aang very quickly accepts his role as the avatar and doesn't even run away in the beginning. Without this conflict between his desire to be a carefree child and the fact that the world needs him - the show loses a key aspect of Aang's character. Also, the obsession with downplaying the avatar state as something dangerous feels like a disservice to the tradition, connection, and strength of the avatar, which can be permanently destroyed as the trade-off for that kind of power. It's dangerous for the balance of the entire world, not just because it's powerful!

The Agni Kai: Zuko's fight against his father is one of the defining moments of Ozai's cruelty, not just because he is willing to fight his child, but because Zuko tried to do everything right. Zuko shows deference to his father, apologizes, and most importantly refuses to fight! The determination not to upset his father and still be grievously injured and banished is a hugely important theme for the fire nation and Zuko's life as a whole. He tries to do everything he is supposed to and only regains his father's acceptance after he "kills" Aang. Zuko's struggle between moral vs. social right and wrong in contrast to his family is hugely important to his character.

-----

TLDR: ATLA was a fantastical animated television show that was never afraid to show character development and flaws. When you turn 20 episodes into 8, you are bound to lose something. You hollowed out the middle, leaving the shell of important moments and events without ever wondering if all the times in between formed the true spirit of the show.

Rating: 6.5/10 It's perfectly fine and worth a watch. Not a disaster, but certainly falls flat of the original.

[aangarchy]

Netflix atla live action review ep 4-6

So, they completely ruined Bumi. Spoiler warning.

The more episodes pass by the more confused i get with the choices that were made. I wrote down commentary for the episodes and the thing that i wrote down the most was "why does this happen?". The writing is incredibly confusing and messy, feels too rushed in some spaces and too slow in others. There's just... so much going on and so little at the same time. They brought in elements that in the OG don't get introduced until later in s1, s2, the comics, or even the legend of Korra. The reason these things get introduced so early here is not clear at all, because they don't serve any purpose other than to be an obstacle to Aang, Sokka and Katara on their way to the North.

Mai and Ty Lee are.. there. They get introduced earlier but they don't serve any purpose at the moment other than stand around, watch Azula train, ask questions so that Azula can give us the answers the viewer needs. My guess is they only got introduced for the audience who watched the OG to go "oh we know them!". We get the secret tunnel story earlier too, but it has absolutely nothing to do with love. Somehow "love is brightest in the dark" now correlates to the badgermoles being able to sense a human's emotion. It's a waste of a storyline, doesn't teach us anything about love, gives us Omashu lore which is useless bc neither Sokka nor Katara actually use love to escape the tunnels. Also Oma and Shu are lesbians now, but you only know that bc they changed Shu's pronouns. Wow, so progressive! We have lesbians in the story now! Boy do i feel represented as a sapphic!

We get Koh early on as well, but his entire gig got changed. Now suddenly he doesn't steal faces but he "feeds", and hunts using the fog of lost souls (which is tlok lore mind you) as a tool to trap humans. We introduce the mother of faces (comic book lore!), or rather pendant of her that Koh owns. There's no reason for her to exist in this story though other than to be an easter egg to everyone who read the search (Not even the majority of the fandom!) and to offer a solution to this problem we've created, which is Koh capturing our friends in order to eat them and us not being able to convince him into letting them go. There's no feeling of dread in the Koh scenes at all because the whole problem of not showing emotion is just not a thing now. No suspense, no fear, just a weird cgi clown face worm. The worm doesn't even menacingly circle around Aang to invoke a feeling of being surrounded, it just sits there. I also just don't understand why Koh is here already bc now who is going to give us information about Tui and La?

This decision also creates a problem that Hei Bai's story just isn't about Hei Bai anymore. We get fed a few lines from a talking fox about how the forest spirit got hurt, but there's really no solution? Aang buries a pinecone in front of the statue and tells him not to give up hope but he didn't even really need to do that, because Hei Bai wasn't the one kidnapping villagers! It was Koh. Why did we appease Hei Bai if Koh was the real villain? Hei Bai/Koh's story leads us to Roku, but Roku is completely useless. All he does is undermine Kyoshi's advice to Aang, tell Aang about the mother of faces pendant so he can appease Koh, and then we leave. I knew in advance Roku wasn't going to warn Aang about the comet here bc Albert Kim already told us working with a deadline like that with child actors is just impossible. But with Roku suddenly not being Aang's main Avatar guide he just gets nothing to do. There's no suspense in this part of the story either, bc the time limit of the winter solstice isn't a thing here at all. Aang also ends up flying over Fire Nation borders without issue, and gets led right into the sanctuary without the puzzle of figuring out how to open the door, and without the problem of Zhao's soldiers waiting for him when he comes out. It creates this issue of there not being any excitement, at least for me. I genuinely am getting a bit bored with the show, which was never an issue with the OG for me. There's a reason all of this extra material didn't get introduced until later on. There's too many characters and they all get too little time to really do anything useful, they're not fleshed out, the stories aren't thought through and it ends up getting very confusing and boring. I'm genuinely curious for the perspective of people who have never watched the OG cartoon, bc i wonder if they're even able to follow along without prior knowledge of this universe.

Bumi is just... not Bumi. They completely changed his character to be this bitter old senile man that resents Aang for abandoning the world. This doesn't make any sense because in this version of the story Bumi shouldn't know that Aang is the Avatar at all, because Aang was told right before he disappeared! So why does Bumi immediately know that Aang is the Avatar, and why does Aang immediately recognize him? Also the original point of Bumi's tests is to get Aang to approach fights and puzzles from a different angle, so he can learn versatility as the Avatar. But here the tests are just happening because Bumi is mad at Aang for leaving and wants to get back at him for being gone so long. He says some lines about Aang having to learn to make hard choices and you can't rely on your friends, but Aang ends up proving him wrong in the end! What is even the point of Bumi's part in the story now, except for him just being another obstacle on the way to the North Pole?

There's a lot of instances where I feel like the bond between characters gets completely lost. We barely spend any time with the side characters like the mechanist, Teo, Jet and the freedom fighters, and the people in the spirit village. It makes some scenes feel very out of place. These storylines all happen at once, and they don't get their individual moments to shine. We have no room to feel betrayed by Jet or Sai, because we barely got to know them to begin with. Jet and Sai only spend time with One member of the gaang each, but when their betrayals come to light the rest of the group acts devastated, as if it was their dear friend. Sokka also gets really mad about the Jet thing, but he only met Jet once when he smuggled them into Omashu, and Jet didn't even tell Sokka his name. He said it afterwards when Katara met him again. It makes absolutely no sense why Sokka is yelling at Katara for trusting Jet only bc she finds him attractive, when Sokka wasn't even there during all of that!

The sense of family between the gaang that we get from the original also just doesn't happen here. Especially because these characters so far have spent more time apart than together. Aang constantly gets separated from Sokka and Katara, leaving no room for them to bond. We get Katara and Sokka bonding, but they shouldn't need those types of scenes because they're already siblings (which isn't very clear in the show either btw!). I ended up forgetting that Sokka and Katara were trapped by Koh, bc we spend so much time away from them (a whole episode, which is now an hour!).

I have little to no criticism for the Blue Spirit story. Want to guess why that is? Bc they left it pretty much untouched. We even get a little bit of an extra scene, with Zuko and Aang talking while Zuko recovers after getting hurt during the escape. I liked this choice, especially bc it highlights how conflicted Zuko is.

This is where we get Zuko's backstory. I have one question here: why did they make Ozai more sensible and less ruthless? Was that a Daniel Dae Kim decision? Bc it feels like a Daniel Dae Kim thing to do. They're very on the nose with the way Ozai is abusing Zuko and Azula, but then they turn around and make this man visit Zuko after he burned him and praise Zuko about finding the Avatar. I understand that they did this to show how Ozai uses Zuko's accomplishments in order to push Azula, but even if it were to do that: the original Ozai would NEVER. The problem here as well is that they don't let the viewers draw any conclusions themselves anymore. They're holding the viewer's hand through the whole thing, leaving no room for nuance or doubt.

I just finished episode 7 and 8 and I have Things To Say. None of which are good. Writing it down is challenging so it might take a day or two.

[dandadananalysis]

Turbo Granny Arc pt.1.2/4

Part 1: Episode 1/Chapter 1

Part 2: Episode 2/Chapter 2

Part 3: Episode 3/Chapter 3+4 [post credit: Bonus Vol.1 Chapter 5]

Part 4: Episode 4/ Chapter 5-8 (first 3/4) [1/4 rest is for AS arc]

(Sorry for pausing the first part 1.1)

Let's continue part 1.2 of episode 1/ chapter 1!

¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬

(chotto matte... isn't this more like a review/spoiler of the episode rather than an analysis...)

That's when he started to explained why he believed in aliens. He didn't have any friends because of his nerdy face and seemed untalkative. So he really tried to believe in aliens, even trying to call them but failed

(Fun fact: the hospital he stood on trying to call aliens is the same hospital that Momo went!)

He ready to give his body to the aliens, but if they are trying to hurt Momo, his first friend, that is unacceptable! So he is ready to sacrifice his body to Turbo Granny if it means to save Momo!

(Wow what a gentleman :3)

But eventually, going all-out meaning that he already reached his limit (he's a human after all...), that just give Granny a chance to easily taken over his body.

Meanwhile, the Serpos were trying to hypnotize her when all sudden, she just had flashbacks of when she was with her grandma doing the ritual. That's when she realizes, she actually regrets saying bad stuffs to her grandma.

Some how, when she remembered what her grandma taught her about the ritual, all of the sudden, she just beamed out her green aura and the surroundings cracked and explodes!

From blue, the whole area around her become green, that's when you know, green mint is taking the spotlight!

That's when we know, she has hidden psychic power!

What amazed us is that the Serpos' telekinesis powers don't match her ability! Probably because they are not the same soundwaves, her powers can nullify their power! After all, technology can't match supernatural abilities.

SPOILERS!!! I want you to remember this detail, because this is proof for the future chapters/episodes!

(I won't spoil this yet, but if you are a true fan of Dandadan, you might know what I'm talking about!)

She used her powers and kicked them outta here! That's when she knew the truth, she announced: "Grandma was a real spirit medium!"

(Why our boy being cursed so funny, lah :))))

Is this kick kinda similiar?...

The same kick she hit her ex-bf, except the latter one has more strength and will power!

(matte, I realize something, Tatsu-sensei may purposely draw Momo's hair seemed short, but actually, her hair is longer than we might think!)

(There is this scene that the manga actually didn't make it clear: When the spaceship is broken, the anime made it clear that it was actually a moon in disguise!)

After she kicked the Serpos, Momo's aura was gone, the whole screen seemed to turn into gray color, except Turbo Granny.

Then out of control, Granny has trying to attack her! She used her power to drag Granny out of Occult-kun but realized that she only dragged Granny out, not the curse!

(oh, her aura is back!) (one hella scene out there!)

(Wait, if you look at Granny's true form, her eyes' pattern kinda look like an endless deep hole, right?)

Granny told them that if they want to take his "body part" (kintama and the "we-nee"), return to the abandoned tunnel/bridge.

After that, the whole spaceship fell because running out of engine, and no one is driving it :)))

They managed to escaped, and they both now admitted that aliens and ghosts are real. I mean, Occult-kun was cursed by a high-level spirit, Momo was abducted by aliens.

(the anime made them look less worse :))

Then, after those 2 having some coversation abt clothes and other stuffs, our boy is too generous! Ready to lend his uniform to Momo, even telling her to go home while he would return to the tunnel.

But since being a gyaru, Momo has a strong personality. She wouldn't let that happen! So they decided to get going together, but first, go home, get dressed, and be prepared!

And then we have this SCENE!!!!

AND THEN THISSSSSS!!!!!

"What's your name?"

"Takakura Ken" (welp exactly what Momo wants)

And then, your choice of how you think what happen next.

Stunning Momo

Part 2: Episode 2/Chapter 2 analysis coming up next year!

The characters' profile, or hidden cool facts will be found once I found out some good stuffs on the Internet/Facebook!

Yeah, that is the End of the First part!

[violetmuses]

Roman Reigns + Correspondent!Reader (Part 4) 🖤

Fandom: WWE

Character: Roman Reigns

@expert-texpert @persethegawd @episodes-ff @adriennegabriella @fearlesschimera @secretlifeoofmarpessa @mytribalnightmare @adoresmiles @blackgurlnhermoods @babybratzmaraj 🏷

====

2024

“Wait a minute. Are you serious? Where is she? I can't believe this.” Reading this script for another match, Joseph Anoa'i vented regarding backstage production and started looking for you.

Calling first, Joe rubbed down his face and noticed this beard, quietly wishing that your fingers could smooth along black-grey patterns.

“Hi, Joe! I'm not sure if anyone told you, but I'm stuck in traffic. I'll be there soon.” Despite offering happiness, your bad news remained.

“Oh, man. I'm sorry. Just come find me when you get here. It's important. Stay safe.” Keeping his composure, Joseph tried to settle before hanging up.

“All right! See you later.” Your sweet voice pulled through once to end the call.

When Joseph silenced his phone, staff members almost looked horrified as the writer's team chaired this room and sought his opinion.

____

“Change the ending right now.” Joseph shook his head.

Voices would mumble in all directions upon realization.

“Episodes are fake. What's wrong?” One leader spoke up.

“This isn't fair. We've had segments together for years and the draft tossed everything out like garbage.” Not even mentioning details while thinking of you, Joe then lifted stapled papers.

“Joseph…” The leader wanted to calm down emotions.

“Don't argue.” Joe defended his choice. “I've spent most of my career putting up with y'all and you still can't listen to me?”

Just before that writer could respond, knocking echoed from the hallway.

“Hello, everyone. Apologies.” Staying cordial, you updated this production team.

Employees welcomed you inside and you quickly sat down, given the script.

While staff offered you this beverage, the progress kicked off once more as leaders explained that upcoming episode.

While reviewing details as usual, you smiled toward Joseph and laughed sometimes, prompting his rare joy that stood off camera.

Yet, the final pages grounded your unexpected shock.

What the hell? You thought.

No matter what happens though, you can't walk away from this opportunity.

______

“You okay?” Joseph looked for you in the tunnel once that vital meeting ended.

“No. The ending won't even make sense.” You stood across from him because this story would change forever.

“Since that team won't listen, I'll handle it.” Joe made this promise before walking away, ready for the program.

******

Thousands of people cheered when Roman defeated another monster, but nearly ominous music would pick up to signal one entrance.

“Holy hell! Solo Sikoa has emerged with members of the New Bloodline. A fresh chapter will change history.” Commentators almost yelled around fans.

Yet before Solo could even open his mouth with that microphone, someone else loomed and veiled their eyes, standing feet from the ring.

Taking off the hat of one outfit, that stranger revealed themselves.

You arrived.

“Oh! Let's go. What the…yeah!” Jimmy and Jey Uso almost cursed while realizing your appearance.

“Write this down!” Fans chanted your longtime slogan.

“Solo. Aren't you part of the family?” Using another microphone, your moment began.

“He's supposed to care about us.” Jey quickly spoke up near you.

“Who are you?” Solo dared to turn nonsense over your presence and everyone lost their minds.

“What did you just say?” Roman stepped forward while towering Solo to defend you. Even cameras noticed silent rage.

“Don't worry. I'll deal with this.” You intervened before Roman could knock Solo out.

Even Sami Zayn folded both arms while observing this live movie.

“I'm in charge now. I'm the Tribal Chief!” Solo barked, yet no one flinched.

Your nearly manic laughter spooked him right back and you no longer veiled the truth of this unexpected personality. Fans cheered again.

“No one has ever pulled this much audacity before! You've lost your mind, Solo.” Your declaring words protected the only bloodline here.

“OTC!” Fans encouraged Roman over and over again.

Camera angles zoomed inward as you stepped back and prompted Roman to watch Solo's every move.

“If anything happens to her, I'll burn this place to the ground.” Reigns held nothing back and warned Sikoa. “You understand me?”

“I don't care.” Solo narrowed his eyes. “You can't run things anymore.”

When Jimmy and Jey safely escorted you out of that ring, Roman burned emotions and grounded the most diabolical Superman Punch for Solo!

“You scared? Huh? Don't get up.” Reigns worked trash talk once more. “Uh-uh! Don't get up now, Solo.”

Lifting two blurred middle fingers, you shouted almost incoherently while standing ringside as Jimmy and Jey viewed this hopeful win.

“My goodness! Will Roman Reigns keep his rightful place as Tribal Chief?” Announcers questioned so much to offer dramatics.

“Listen. Keep her name out of your mouth before we have some problems!“ Roman torched Solo and looked for you again.

“Get him, Uce!” Jey chanted for Roman when time ran down.

Crashing his iconic spear maneuver with Sikoa, Reigns pulled this much-needed victory.

“The reign continues. There is only one Tribal Chief standing upfront in WWE!” Commentators wailed to end the match.

____

Turning himself away from that large-scale ring, Joseph shattered the fourth wall and immediately headed in your direction, rasping his words.

“Look at me. I love you.” Views of perfectly dark yet long hair fell around Joseph's chiseled face.

Even his bare sweat warmed near each of your stances.

“Joe…” Before you could turn away, Joseph raised your chin using his gloved finger.

“I love you…” Repeating the truth, his Southern accent toned this meaningful whisper.

Welcoming the true promise, you smiled against his lips in character while credits rolled to end another program.

*****

“Just warning everybody. I'm still fired up from our match, so be careful.” Joseph would still face media platforms once televised cameras stopped.

“Reports have already speculated that you were supposed to lose this match.” One person revealed their inquiry.

“I didn't.” Joe shrugged.

“We've also heard more rumors about the future your own storyline…” Questions moved to The Bloodline again, but Joseph couldn't overreact.

“We all put on a show. Everyone does. Leave it at that.” Joe knew better.

“One last question.” Your voice turned heads around the room.

“Excuse me. Before you start, Hey.” Offering this bright smile, Joseph truly laughed and colleagues almost swooned.

“Hi.” You grinned.

“Please go ahead.” Leaning back, Joseph welcomed the question, but his glare locked down and focused on you.

Even while hustling for media right now, You look absolutely gorgeous.

“What's next?” Your words quickly trembled this audience.

“Until somebody else can knock everything down and take power away from me, we'll just keep moving forward.” Joseph stood tall with the answer.

“Thank you, Sir.” You smiled to end the press conference.

���Sir?” Pulling that Big Dog character up, Joe messed with you while everyone silenced. “Baby Girl? This might be too hot for TV, but listen. Don't even pull this trigger unless you know what happens afterwards.”

“Uh-oh!” Other voices realized the dynamics of what Joe meant.

_____

Once media turned out of his way, Joseph nearly chased you down this tunnel and found one corner, hiding despite the surrounding public.

“You're a brat? Huh?” He smiled against your lips when you looked up to face his brown eyes.

“Maybe…” You would play his own games right back.

“I love you…” Joseph Anoa'i offered the truth one last time before looping his fight arm around your shoulder, grateful.

[ecargmura]

Dandadan Episode 4 Review - Crabby Turbo Granny

Wow, I just witnessed a masterpiece of an episode. From animation to storytelling to voice acting, this episode was fantastic in every way. This episode alone just put Science Saru on the map in terms of being a powerhouse animation studio. Man, I felt as if my eyesight got cleansed…and this is coming from someone who got LASIK three years ago.

This entire episode is just about Momo and Okarun facing off against Turbo Granny in hopes of curing the latter of his curse and get his thingy back. I like that the episode does not diverge away or have side content. It’s just a battle between them and the granny from beginning to end. It’s nice in a way. Sometimes, anime episodes do have a tendency to cut away to other characters.

The animation was *chefs kiss*. The camera angles are fire and how the characters move around is seriously amazing. My favorite part is when Momo decided to be Okarun’s guiding hands as she uses her powers to help him turn and fly. Not only is this amazing animation, but it also shows their impeccable teamwork even though it’s only been a day or two since they met. The choice to have a rendition of a classical song while Okarun went full throttle for the second time was so cool. Seiko is also in on the plan as she has been waiting at the front of the Kamigoe area as it’s the only way to defeat both spirits. 

I loved the twist of not being just Turbo Granny but also the location-bound spirit that they have to deal with. It’s interesting that spirits turn into crabs. It could just be Japanese folklore on that part, but that’s an interesting detail. It turns out that Turbo Granny is a protective spirit underneath her malice as her tendency to gobble up men’s peckers is because the tunnel she had resided in had been used as a place where girls would’ve been taken to get violated, mutilated and then killed. Turbo Granny had been a bit of a protective spirit for those lost girls’ souls. In a way, it makes her a bit sympathetic. It also makes sense how she was able to find Momo so easily in the first episode in that she traveled through the phone as she sensed a girl in danger and that was why she bit the aliens’ things.

The voice acting was also amazing. Shion Wakayama has seriously proven herself to be a strong rising star with how she screams and yells at different instances and she makes them sound realistic. However, her best performance in this episode has to be at the end where she was fighting with her grandmother Seiko over the crab legs and then she started making unhinged noises when chewing crab legs. Everyone else did amazing as to be expected of established voice actors.

Now that the Turbo Granny arc has come to an end. However, it doesn’t seem like Okarun got his balls back given that the story is still on-going. I do wonder what’s next in store for the story. Will they meet more ghosts or will their next adversary be an alien? What do you think?

[lemonhemlock]

It sucks HBO cut the season short so close to filming and it sucks they had to keep going during the writer’s strike, so I don’t doubt we would have had a better season if that hadn’t happened. But I’ll be honest, that’s only the main issue if your problem with this season was a lack of action, awkward dialogue, or that the finale “didn’t feel like a finale”. If your problem was the jump in characterization from season one to two or the fact that Rhaenyra and Alicent need two contrived meetings, or the massive lack of depth the Greens are afforded- not sure much would have changed on that front. Even within the shortened season, we still have some things that make no sense, especially knowing they were working with such a condensed timeline. Remember when Aemond found out B&C came through his room, looked at the tunnels, and then did nothing about it? Remember when we had 5 min of Alicent and Rhaenyra in the sept, agreeing it’s too late to do anything, only for that to be undone 5 episodes later? Remember Alicent’s two bath scenes that both convey the same thing that also conveyed in nearly every Alicent scene (her big eyes are sad and she feels guilty!)?

Idk, I do understand they worked within contraints, but they then made some bizarre choices within those constraints. Especially knowing things like a final shot of Rhaenys’ body on the ground, or even a brief second of Cregan with the winter wolves was cut- but we have 45 seconds of Aemond getting on a horse to get to his dragon? Would we not have understood the urgency otherwise?

^^^^^^^

to be honest, aemond getting on a horse was one of the few entertaining moments bc at least there WAS a sense of urgency to it and a real stake, you know? imo the problem was the intrigue: why was it necessary for us to see ulf flying right over king's landing after having just claimed silverwing?

in a season where we have seen only seconds of sunfyre and nothing of dreamfyre?? all the dragon budget wasted on dumbass shit like extra scenes with caraxes and syrax, dragons we already know have a bond with their riders

meanwhile ulf is such a natural at dragon-riding that 5 minutes after claiming one he flies the entire fucking distance from dragonstone to KL, meanwhile helaena "doesn't have a taste for riding" and they wanted to make aegon incompetent at flying before tom put his foot down 🙄 what a joke

and yeah this was??? absolutely should have been cut!! they didn't even show him at the small council meeting! where was the editor?!

honestly incredible that reviewers were praising the writing for the greens the first four episodes 🤡 i'm this close 🤏 to employing r/freefolk-level insults

[thecrownnetflixuk]

Goodbye to Diana, Goddess of the Hunt

Pt 1 of The Crown S6 Will Stand as the Definitive Dramatised Version of Diana & Dodi’s Final Days

Review (& gifs) by L.L @The Crown TV

Having seen Pt 1 of The Crown S6 before its official release, I can understand why Netflix decided to split the final season. The first 4 episodes are almost exclusively dedicated to the events surrounding the tragic deaths of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed.

It's first-rate drama, but it's not always an easy watch. The series does have some lighter moments too, but it makes sense for The Crown to take a short pause before moving forward in December.

To be clear, Diana and Dodi's car crash is not portrayed in a voyeuristic way. We don't see the moment of impact; hearing it is traumatic enough. Diana's body is not shown. The show doesn't delve into what caused the accident. This is still The Crown, not CSI Paris.

Kudos to Peter Morgan and his research team who somehow scrutinised all reports of Diana and Dodi's final days and managed to turn no doubt conflicting accounts and opinions into 4 brilliantly dramatised episodes which feel like a definitive screen version.

I prefer the sharpened pace of S6 after a disjointed S5. All the cast seem more comfortable in their respective roles ... except ... Dominic West is a great actor, his grief and regret is so believable in these episodes, but for me, West's natural charm and roguishness still doesn't fit well with Charles. Perhaps Camilla would disagree!

There are no such issues with Diana. It's a difficult task playing an icon hunted by the paparazzi, but Elizabeth Debicki radiates the right emotional intelligence and effortless star quality of the princess. In fact, Debicki's empathetic and assured performance largely carries these pivotal episodes and tops her earlier impressive work in S5.

Warning - long read: more detailed spoilers ahead! GO & WATCH THE EPISODES FIRST (NOW ON NETFLIX)

Interview/images: courtesy of Netflix & Elizabeth Debicki.

The final season of The Crown begins in Paris with a bold flash forward to a dog-walker who witnesses the crash at the Pont de l'Alma tunnel. It's a jarring change of tone after S5, but effective.

From the start, we know where this story is headed. But first, it's back to Diana on her summer hols, impertinent rodents scurrying in the palace and Charles getting grumpy over the Queen not showing up for Camilla's birthday. Reassuringly, it's royal business as usual.

^ Happy 50th, Camilla. I'm with the Queen about this pair; still not quite on board.

Enter Dodi Fayed, who could not be more different to his overbearing father. Khalid Abdalla infuses the shy son-of-a-billionaire with an engaging soulfulness which contradicts Dodi's two-timing behaviour.

Dodi starts out romancing his fiancée, Kelly Fisher (Erin Richards), but after being bullied into it by his father Mohamed Al-Fayed, Dodi pursues Princess Diana. For a while, Dodi juggles both women, before redeeming himself and confessing the truth to Diana.

^ Diana & Dodi. This time, it's Diana herself who ends up not quite on board this ship.

BAFTA nominee Salim Daw is a force of nature as a magnificently Machiavellian Mohamed Al-Fayed. Daw's performance, along with Elizabeth Debicki's note-perfect Diana, is a standout in S6.

Those who had concerns that The Crown was too generous towards the real Al-Fayed in S5 have no such worries about S6. By episode 3, Mohamed almost crosses into arch villain territory, bribing Dodi into marrying Diana to get British citizenship and raise his social status.

^ Mohamed Al-Fayed. Give him a cat & he'd be the perfect future Bond villain.

It's a controversial post-death chat with a 'ghost' which (nearly) absolves The Crown's Mohamed. Salim Daw is tremendously genuine during his imagined conversation with Dodi, sobbing for forgiveness. Too little, too late, but we feel his real pain about the loss of his son.

Before watching these episodes, the idea of Ghost!Dodi and Diana in the show did seem off-putting. Confession: I didn’t make it through the surrealistic film ‘Spencer’, where Diana talks to the ghost of Anne Boleyn (although Kristen Stewart seemed well cast in her role.)

Now that I've actually seen the 'ghost' scenes in The Crown, they don't feel ghoulish or disrespectful. Following the crash, both Charles (Dominic West) and Imelda Staunton’s Queen have small conversations with Diana, as though the princess is still with them.

You could take that to mean they’ve gone full royal-bats-in-the-belfry, but as a person who recently lost my dad, I talk to the dead all the time. It’s often what happens when you lose somebody you love. To see this depicted on The Crown felt honest. And human.

^ Wassup, Betty? Just chillin', chatting w/dead Di* (*not dialogue from The Crown)

As the show wades through the aftermath of the crash, dealing with public sorrow, funerals and grief-stricken young William and Harry, it becomes heartbreaking. However, The Crown does handle heavy subject matter very well, as shown in episodes such as ‘Aberfan.’

With a golden jubilee coming up, hopefully Pt 2 of this final season will be more uplifting, and feature more scenes with Imelda Staunton as Elizabeth II. When we do see the Queen in Pt 1, her intonation is superb. There’s continuity too, with Staunton merging Claire Foy’s vulnerability and regality with Olivia Colman’s steely durability.

I'm no ardent monarchist, but now that we've said goodbye to Diana, I can't imagine that The Crown would end without paying tribute to another Queen of Hearts who reigned for over 70 years.

THE CROWN S6 PT 2:-premieres on Netflix | Thurs 14th Dec 2023

N.B: These are just my (humble) opinions at this point in time. No offence is intended. Agreement = lovely; not compulsory. Disagreement = happens; kindly coexist. Ta!

[rynris]

Dungeon Meshi: Thoughts and Impressions

I've been thinking about how quickly I consume media these days and I feel like I've been desperately binging shows in order to keep up with the times. I hope this will be a series where I can thoughtfully absorb everything from a show that made a lasting impression on me and have something to come back to and review. This is more for my own fun and journal keeping - all thoughts are my own musings and can change over time. If there's something you'd like to add, please do! I'd love to hear your impressions as well.

*Minor spoilers below*

Overall Impression

What a well thought out and interwoven story with fairly interesting characters and a great hook/ mystery! I think rescuing Falin as a plot device works really well because the heart of the story is about relationships and everything around it caters to the journey and development of these characters and how they work together.

Cons/ Issues

I still don't really buy the world building, the dungeon idea seems a bit weak, but it's anime, so some plot holes are forgivable. The beginning felt weak, it was hard to buy into the stakes of losing Falin without knowing the characters but thankfully the exposition was rather quick (1/4 of an episode it felt like) which is good. The dragon fight scene seemed a bit off. I felt like the shots were framed too close - probably to emphasize chaos and keep the red dragon mysterious until the final reveal but with my tunnel vision, it felt messy.

Ok one big con is the character tropes. They sort of make up for it in the middle, but it was enough to make me want to stop watching. I've seen these tropes a million times now and am TIRED of it. And there's so much good stuff out there that it's so easy to dismiss shows these days.

Pros/ Love

CHARACTERS! I was surprised to see more depth in the characters and I love how the mysterious were presented depending on the encounters. Thought each scenario were expertly crafted and it didn't feel too forced.

FOOD! Besides the glorious food p*rn, I was definitely taken aback by the later recipes. I didn't expect food to be woven in during some scenarios, but when it was, I was very pleasantly surprised!

At first I thought Laios was kind of unrealistic, but then I remembered that my ornithology prof was passionate about eating every single bird in the world at least once and I was like... this is real. There are DEFINITELY people like this. +1 for the representation!

On representation, I like the potential LGBTQ representation and was surprised the show took that route. The show itself is coded to be super straight so I wasn't expecting it. This is a con, but it does feel a bit like queer baiting or for the male gaze unfortunately.

Later action scenes were good/ interesting.

The pacing between comedy and darkness was well done, Trigger never fails with good comedic timing.

Shots economy is good, I feel like there are not a lot of unmotivated, extra shots, and talking/ dialog/ exposition were all well done. The used the same layout for the exposition scenes from the manga and the added animation punched it up and mode those scenes interesting. - **I'd like to study these scenes in particular more.**

Final thoughts

I think this is a great show to study how you can make a slice of life comedy and weave in some darker themes without overwhelming the audience. A lot of shows usually stay in their chosen genre, or lean very heavily on the dark/ edgy themes. I like how this show isn't reliant on solid world building, but focuses on creative storytelling to keep audiences coming back for more. Overall, the design/ setting feels basic, but it is the creativity behind the idea of monster food and how well thought out every dish is that makes this show shine. The manga and show have pretty good pacing and doesn't linger too long on mysterious or draw things out, dropping enough tidbits and lore to keep you watching/ reading.

TL;DR I think this is one of the better amine series I've seen this year and I love that this show feels refreshing with very creative storytelling. The concept is feels surprisingly unique and original but you do have to commit to a few episodes before it kicks in.

**I only read a few chapters of the manga so my opinion is not 100% and may change if I have time to read more.

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy Weekend! How exciting we have a premiere date! Feb 20th. The light is at the end of the tunnel wonderful fandom. It’s beautiful and bright. I’m going to crank up to 3 reviews a week so I finish the week before s6 premieres. So this worked out nicely heh

Ahh this episode is another giant friggin work flirt. That competitive fire that drives one of their love languages is prominent af in this episode. Only they could take a shift apart and turn it into a flirtatious competition. The marriage vibes are extreme in this one in the best way ha Let’s get going.

4x06 Poetic Justice

We start off with Tim getting an assignment from Grey. He wants to get Jerry Mcgrady to retire. They’re running out of things to assign him to that aren’t a strain on him. Front desk he takes too much time telling stories. Even the kit room is becoming too much for him. So it’s Tim’s job today to have the ‘It's time to retire talk.’ Tim being Tim says it’ll be a piece of cake. Wanting to prove himself to Grey he can handle it no problem. That the tough conversations aren't an issue.

That if he doesn’t agree he can use his injury for an involuntary retirement. Cold Timothy. Cold. Tim makes it to the Kit Room and is instantly thawed. He is ready to hit him with the cold hard truth as he put it to Wade. Before he can Jerry gives him a load of praise right off that bat. It makes Tim stumble off the blocks super early. It's so sweet and genuine too. How could he not struggle after saying he's proud? I'm sure those are words he never got from his own old man.

Tim tries again and fails for a second time. It’s the way Jerry is looking at him. Tim can’t pull the trigger. Instead he invites him out to ride with him LOL Well done Tim baha This was not the plan at all my love. Tim Bradford is a softie and we all know it. Grey walks up asks how it went? Tim admits he faltered and he’s riding with him instead.... Grey is beaming. Knowing he wouldn't be as ruthless as he claimed in his office. Wade can’t help but give him crap on top of it. Asking what happened to the 'Cold hard truth?' Tim swears by end of day he’ll get him to retire. Mmhmm sure.

In the cold open Nolan and Harper arrested a man digging in a city park. He was following a treasure hunt riddle. With Tim swapping Lucy out for Jerry she is riding with Nolan. He hands her the riddle and she starts to decipher it. Lucy figures out the first clue and they go to the pier. When they roll up people are fighting. A young woman is killed by getting an ax to the chest. People are insane.

This is what brings it to the LAPD’s full attention since there is a casualty. They find out the author of the riddle is a previous criminal. He was apart of a robbery where he hid 2 million in gold coins. They never recovered them. So the city is losing it's collective mind trying to find it. They need to be the first to get it. Grey calls Lucy up cause she was the first to solve a clue. She is beaming as she makes her way up.

Let’s first admire the forearm porn we’re getting in this first gif. Man makes me so thirsty I need a glass of water. Arms-crossed Tim is one of my fav poses. Those glorious biceps popping out of those sleeves too. Whew lord. Anyway Lucy is so very excited to present her findings. How she got the clue she did. It’s adorable how proud she is of it. Look how Tim never takes his eyes off her the entire time. You know he loves when she analyzes and breaks things down.

Her intelligence is a turn on for him whether he wants to admit it or not. He can’t let anyone catch onto his admiration... So he calls her ‘Nerd.’ to make fun of her. Which fails because it comes off super flirty. Negating his idea to to tease her for her brain. It comes across as banter more than anything else. Fail Timothy big fat Fail. Your mouth is saying one thing. Your body language and intense gaze say another...

Jerry is a sweetheart and tells her not to let Tim shame her. It’s a great catch. This is why it's hard for anyone to have the retirement talk with him haha A kind station grandpa to them all. Lucy goes from being annoyed to thanking Jerry. Tim’s sly little smile when she does is so cute. You know he’s proud of her being in the spotlight. Sporting her brain but has to tease her. It's how they function haha They’re so cute I can not. Flirting once again for all of the station to see. It's truly a wonder they're in the dark about it.

I love this moment between Harper and Tim. I'm glad I had the room to add this in. She joins in with Lucy's train of thought for the rest of the poem. Flaunting her brain as well. Tim gives her a look wanting to make fun of her as well. Nyla is on it and dares him to call her a nerd too LOL The looks between them make me laugh so much. I love their teasing camaraderie. It's my favorite. It's how Harper and Lucy get paired up to decipher the rest of the clues. Nolan feels left out cause well it's Nolan. Like that kid picked last for dodgeball. Grey tells John if he asks nicely he's sure he can join them. SMH. Friggin Nolan ha.

The cuteness continues when Lucy asks if Tim and Jerry wanna be part of her task force? That she can make it happen haha She’s adorable and I can not stand it. Tim does what he does best battles back with a flirty tone. Trying to talk down about her ‘task force’. Saying old fashioned policing will get it done just fine for them.

Flirt more you two…oh wait they do. Ha Lucy offers up a bet she knows Tim won’t refuse. Because once again why deal with feelings when they can channel it through a work flirt instead? Honestly how Jerry could allow Tim to date his daughter after this display I couldn’t tell ya. It's so painfully obvious how into one another these two are.

They lay down the terms for the loser. Tim saying she has to be quiet an entire shift. Please Timothy like you really want that…but ok that’s your “reward” if you win. I mean it would drive her crazy not to talk so it’s not the worst pick. Lucy choses something way more apropos IMO. He would have to do something out of his comfort zone. Not only that but it’s her choice. Can only imagine what Lucy would've chosen. Something that would've been good for him I'm sure. Cause she's good like that. Her track record with him is solid.

Lucy's face is so smug from the minute she brings this bet up. So convinced she has this in the bag. Gah these two love a good competition and flirting it up a ton in the process. Like pre-get together foreplay for them haha They then start the worlds longest handshake to seal the deal. They once again are in their own world. Like Jerry isn't even there…

The best part is while they continue to work-flirt they're holding hands. They could've broken it off but nope. Basically holding hands while they fiercely flirt. The flirty competitiveness continues with their jabs. The poetry club shot from Tim. Her being sassy af about their 18 old case files. Saying how ���easy’ that’ll be for them to crack. LMAO Shots fired. All the while still holding hands. Because the work flirting wasn’t enough of a bat-signal to everyone else. They continue to hold hands while doing so. Seriously Jerry couldn’t you see the man was already taken?

We return to Lucy still at the whiteboard with Harper/Nolan. She gets a text from Tim saying they had a big breakthrough. Lucy could not be more dejected and anxious for them to get their own. Nolan and Harper tell her to ignore Tim. He’s just trying to get into her head. Yeah that's what he does. He kinda lives there rent free and vice versa with this kind of stuff. Good luck getting her to listen to that advice haha She is far too wrapped up in this competition with Tim to have that clarity. She does eventually put her phone down though.

Her taking a phone break does help her focus a bit. Because once she does they have a breakthrough of their own. They’re headed to the Griffith Observatory. Lucy is vibrating with excitement over this. She’s more excited to tell Tim they got something more than anything else. It’s so funny and adorable. The commentary in the gifs above is hilarious.

They are legit just trying to solve this case. While Lucy gets amped that they're gonna catch up with Tim and Jerry. Harper and Nolan’s reaction to her is priceless in the second gif. Lucy is too caught up in her work flirt. Telling them before they go she has to text Tim first. Let him know they’re gonna kick his ass. Because priorities LMAO

The way they look at each other is the funniest part. First and foremost they didn’t ask to be apart of this flirty bet haha They’re in it just to solve a case. Second they’re thinking does she not see it? She has to see it right? We know she doesn’t baha If she does she’s pushing it down real hard since 4x01 and it’s coming out in other ways. I.e. this moment. It’s so funny how lost in her bet she is. Doesn’t notice their hilarious reactions at all. I’m dying haha.

Tim tries again to have a frank conversation with Jerry. Since it’s day 2 of him riding with him and he was supposed to retired by yesterday... Jerry looks at the file again while Tim tries to muster up the courage. It's then he has an epiphany. Says he knows where the gold is. Tim asks if he’s sure? Jerry replies absolutely.

Now Tim’s first thought isn’t yes we solved the case. Or they got redemption for Jerry and his friend who never found the coins. No it’s excitement he’s going to beat Lucy in a bet LOL Man is amped about beating her to it. Like a high he’s been chasing the entire episode. God I love this so much. Flirty idiots in love have no idea.

This next portion is their married moment of the episode. Lots of work flirts but this interaction is all married. They are so ridiculous and I love them for it. The trio have figured out where the treasure is through the poem. An underground subway system sitting beneath the city. One of the people that has been chasing this thing since the jump causes chaos once the trio arrive. He shoots the last person also going after it. He takes off Lucy and Harper leave Nolan with the wounded one so they can pursue him.

They find him and he starts running again. Out of nowhere Tim comes into the picture and uses that sexy forearm of his to clothes line the guy. Lucy is shocked and impressed all at the same time. Me too. *fans self* Asking how they got here so quickly? Tim tells them they were already down here. Lucy then asks if they found the treasure? Tim smirks and says they’re gonna find out. Walks them over to a hole with a suitcase in it.

The final competitive flirting begins. Tim immediately claiming victory for him and Jerry. Because that suitcase is holding the missing gold. Nyla fights him on it though. Saying they would’ve been here first, but they had a police matter to deal with. Tim scoffs and tells them good job but they still won LOL The absolute sass coming off this man.

Lucy backs Harper in agreement and doesn’t let Tim battle back. Sassy return fire with her cocky smirk. Then the ladies just decide it’s a tie LMAO That Tim gets no say in the matter. I love their body posture mirroring one another in this moment. Lucy leans towards Tim then Tim does the same when he's upset it's considered a tie.

I saw someone call Tim ‘Sargent Sore Loser’ for a parallel of this moment hahaha it’s pretty apt when he loses to his wife. I love it sfm. Lucy waving by then pointing at herself as they walk off is amazing. It's hilarious. It's decided it's over and there is nothing he can do about it. Their flirting was off the charts in this episode. It was wild. Their string of work flirts continue on. One of the themes of S4. It makes me so happy.

I do love this next part with Jerry. It’s very sweet. It shows Tim’s wonderful heart. He went into this trying to prove he could handle the rough convos. That he could dispatch people with the cold hard truth. When it came to it his empathy won out. I truly believe he’s always been a sensitive empathetic person. It's been at his core this whole time.

Talked about this before. Just got lost in the shuffle of everything he went through with Isabel. Lucy reawakened that part of him. Now he taps into it like he does anything else. That heart of his let Jerry go out in a much better way. It’s why he thanks Tim for it. He knew what was coming and appreciated Tim for indulging him one last time. It's so sweet I might have a cavity.

Jerry's send off is equally as lovely at the station. Ashley is there to help celebrate his retirement. They all do their radio tribute that is beautiful to watch tbh. Once everyone clears Tim ends up asking Ashley out. (boo) She says yes and he smiles BUT it was most definitely not a 'Lucy smile.' No one compares at all. It’s unreal how by a smile you can tell when it’s Lucy driven and when it’s not. This for sure was not. So ends another ep. Such a good one for them.

~~~

Side notes-Non Chenford

The introduction to Ashley….how I dislike her so….just gotta make it to 5x05 and she’ll be gone LOL Was around longer than she should’ve been but we’ll get into when we hit s5 heh Also I’ll add more of why I don’t like her as the season progress in this rewatch. There is a reason he dates her IMO which I will also go over at some point as well.

I love any and all Lucy and Harper scenes we get . This one had loads. Amazing how they've bonded over the last 2 seasons. I love it so much. Them working on the riddle together at Lucy's place over beers. My heart. Watching them working this case together brings me joy. Hopefully we get more of this in s6. I need more Nyla/Lucy in my life.

Thank you forever and always to those who like, comment and reblog these reviews. You all make me so happy ❤️ See you all in 4x07 :)

[bat-snake]

THE GLITTERING BONES

oh god here we go

Ah Sunfire Plot picking up

Janai pardoning the prisoners...but there's gotta be a catch.

"The Queens of Mercy"

Janai actually being the face of mercy (for now?)

"Karim's army was lead astray, but he was the one who lead them"

Oh the parallels brother betrayal :( :( :(

NOOO HE YELLED AT ZYM :( :( :(

The scary elf doll :(

Oh Aaravos realizing she's figuring it out

SHE DID THE NOSE TAP/GIGGLE

He's so proud of her. Oh god he's so proud of her

YES EZRAN. GIVE THE DUCKS BERRIES

"You and Callum are not broken" continuing the theme of things being broken

UNICORNS ARE STILL AROUND

GOING TO DUREN AT LAST???

MIYANA PREAGNANT?!?!? (I had a feeling from one of the reviews)

I had a feeling Aaravos would Full Name him

He's literally just sending Terry on a silly fetchquest

The way he watched Claudia catch that kiss. Dad Mode

MAGE WARS MAGE WARS MAGE WARS

Well at least they problem rests with the MAGES and not humans????

Annnd we now have...Aanya infodump???

Ohhhhh the glittering bones...

Claudia in the Feel Bad mode

THEY MADE UNICORN GLUE????

TALKING ABOUT LEOLAAA

Damn I thought they were gonna start playing catch with the primal stone they just made

Karim realizing he didn't pull out

Go off Janai

A beginning of explaining the Eternal Night goal

A secret cave? with perhaps? A secret tunnel???

The Duren soldier ducking???

Ah. Callum's okay in this episode because he's not in it........

Ah. She's giving them rock bombs....

Off goes the little moon primal

[sanfangirl-cynicalromantic]

It's Always The Quiet Ones

In which Elsa writes fanfiction, but she never expected one of her own friends to read it.

~

Elsa was antsy. The professor was reexplaining the topic to students who hadn’t  been listening for what felt like the upteenth time. They had learned this subject three classes ago.

Now a college senior, Elsa didn’t appear to have changed too much in four years. She was still quiet, but more shy than haughty and aloof. She had shed her narrow tunnel vision to just ‘out out as soon as possible’ and instead had taken her friends’ advice - she had those now, too - to take a class out of pure enjoyment. But she needed this prerequisite. One of her said friends, Astrid, was also in this class so she could take a different elective, but Elsa was happy to share a class with someone she already knew. Now neither of them needed to make unnecessary conversation with other classmates and had an automatic go-to in the case of any group projects.

Her hands halted over her keyboard. There was no need for taking notes right now and she found herself navigating to a project she’d been stumped on for a while.

Not academic, but purely creative.

Fanfiction.

She’s not sure how it happened. She had sat down and watched a single episode of a show with her sister and then when an edit had come up later on her YouTube page she had idly clicked on it. One click had led to another until she found herself sucked into reading fanfiction feverishly under her blanket at night, too guilty to show her face to the empty room. Eventually, ideas had built up in her head and she had written a little piece. It had been freeing, knowing that she couldn’t be ‘not good enough’ because this was fanfiction, and anyone could write it. She hadn’t expected the heartwarming responses she’d gotten, or the spiral into madness as the dam inside her had broken and she scrambled to write all of her ideas down.

She had a sizable collection of works on AO3 after over three years, and had developed a signature style and carved a niche for herself in the fandom.

What she had gotten really good at was smut.

There was a saying, “It’s always the quiet ones.” Prudish pre-fanfiction Elsa, forced into socializations by her parents because apparently homeschooling online was ‘isolating,’ would roll her eyes, irritable at the guys who’d inevitably say so about her while wagging their eyebrows, hating being the butt of some joke she wasn’t sure she understood. Diabolical post-fanfiction Elsa now would flush guiltily at how true it rang. She still couldn’t say ‘sex’ in front of her younger sister without hesitating, but years of reading had opened her mind to ideas she’d never thought were possible, which had led to research, which had led to writing her own smut.

The professor had deemed today a review day, fed up with all the repeated questions, and after mentally answering all the problems so that if she were called on she could answer, Elsa opened up her special email account, drumming her fingers absently as she looked over her AO3 stats. She clicked away to the tab that held her WIP, taunting her. She needed motivation. She needed validation and an assurance that she could actually write a reasonably clever and hot story. She needed more comments.

She navigated to her drafts and selected a partially smutty oneshot she had written a little while ago on one of her sleepless nights. It had been a sleepless night for the couple on the other side of her wall. Good for them. She prided herself on being continually able to look them in the eye the next morning. She added a short little spiel in the notes, citing no beta and sleep deprivation to excuse errors (like she hadn’t already combed through the very explicit scenes of roleplay and creative positionsing to make sure everything was grammatically correct for her own sanity’s sake) before publishing it and clicking the tab closed decisively. The ninety minute lesson wasn’t even a quarter way through. She resolved to focus for the rest of the class.

Sadly, it didn’t get any more interesting. She made a conscious effort to engage and resist the effort to madly refresh the page and check for comments. Some people aren’t addicted to AO3, she reminded herself sternly.

About half an hour later, her ears perked up at the sound of an email notification. Coming from one of her seatmates. She forced herself to look straight ahead. Damn AO3 for making her develop a physical reaction to emails. People got emails all of the time and she doubted most of them were from AO3.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Astrid dig out her phone. She stifled both an amused grin and a resigned sigh. Astrid was very opinionated, and once she made up her mind her decision was final. And the thing was, she was most often right. If she had gotten her phone out, she had given up on the house today.

Elsa was not nosy by nature - she wasn’t - but she was bored and antsy and spending time with Anna had its side effects. Astrid’s expressions were minimal. Her boyfriend Hiccup could usually accurately tell what she was thinking by just a quirk of her eyebrow about half the time. The next person who could understand her half as well was Jack, who considered himself an expert on her and Hiccup’s relationship - at least, compared to the rest of the friend group. That was fair. Elsa considered herself a generally observant person who could relate to Astrid the most. Plus, she had the advantage (or maybe the misfortune) of having her dorm room situated right next to Astrid’s; the walls between them were excruciatingly thin. The phrase ‘it’s always the quiet ones’ certainly applied to Hiccup and Astrid as well. But Elsa understood Astrid’s preference for privacy, and so respectfully never commented on the things she overheard.

If Hiccup frequenting Astrid’s rooms more often instead of vice versa coincided with an increase of publishing smutshots, well, her readers were nothing but happy.

Whatever Astrid was doing on her phone, it seemed to be taking a long time and had her completely absorbed. Her face was stony and cool, and the only reaction Elsa could see was the occasional raise of what she was pretty sure was an interested eyebrow.

At last, the lecture wrapped up and Elsa gratefully annotated her planner before playing it and her laptop neatly in her bag. Astrid stood up with her, still glued to her screen, and the automatically made their way to the group’s designated spot under the big tree on the west side of campus. Astrid had finally cracked a smile and was typing something on her phone. Probably to Hiccup, if she wasn’t scowling. Neither said anything because they weren’t the sort to fill the silence with unnecessary  talk. Elsa didn’t mind, but was glad when she saw Jack and Hiccup waiting for them outside.

She supposed it was just one of those days where she got a craving for social interaction. There was no other reason she was looking forward to talking with Jact at all.

“How was class?” Jack called in greeting. She smiled politely at him, grateful he had started a conversation.

“It was ridiculous,” Astrid scoffed. “Nobody remembered anything from the previous lessons. It was an absolute waste of time.” Elsa shrugged in agreement.

“At least it meant he postponed the homework,” Elsa added, satisfied with her socially acceptable input to the conversation. She would still start the assignment of course, unless she had a stroke of inspiration for her WIP, but they didn’t need to know that.

“It’s the little things,” Jack agreed easily. Hiccup tried to put his around his girlfriend’s shoulders comfortingly; he knew nothing irritated her more than imbeciles. The only thing she hated more than idiots was anyone who dared to make fun of her boyfriend or slight him in any way - but in those cases, the reaction wasn’t annoyance, it was murder. Astrid dodged his arm and Hiccup cocked his head, confused.

“‘Fraid we’ll have to cut things short today,” Astrid said briskly, grabbing her boyfriend’s hand and making to leave. They all turned to look at her, surprised. She gave Hiccup a loaded look. His eyebrows shot up and he began to sputter immediately.

“Oh. Oh. Okay, yeah. Er - sorry um … something urgent just came up? Yeah, urgent, so we gotta …” he allowed himself to be dragged away just as an email notification chimed on Elsa’s phone.

A comment? She wondered eagerly. Probably spam, she reminded herself.

Jack was snickering and shaking his head. “Wish I had a girl who read smut,” he chuckled.

A girl who reads smut, you say? Elsa thought before she could tamp it down. She cleared her throat and took out her phone instead.

It was from AO3. Elsa’s heart sped up and she bit her lip to keep herself from letting out a shrill, undignified sound of joy.

axes-forever (Registered User) has left the following …

Aww, Elsa loved that reader. Their comments were never long, but they were funny and appreciative and had been with her and her writing since the beginning. She had checked their bookmarks once. There had been a reasonable amount, around eighty or so, which made Elsa assume that axes-forever was a bit selective - a compliment for her, since a good deal of her works had been saved. Aside from those, they seemed to be a big fan of Percabeth and Manorian, and Elsa could only approve of their good taste.

She opened the email.

[Istg I read this immediately after I got the notification in the middle of class. Worth it. You never fail to deliver.

Brb gonna go try those moves on my bf]

Elsa nearly dropped her phone as Jack’s words finally processed. Was he insinuating that Astrid read smut? She didn’t seem like the type, but then neither did Elsa. And considering some of the things she’d heard from the other side of Astrid’s wall … Well, reading smut didn’t seem far-fetched at all.

Wait … Astrid had been reading something on her phone during class only a little while after Elsa had just posted. Axes-forever had gotten the notification in class, and then said she was going to try those moves on her boyfriend. There were too many coincidences with Astrid’s unsubtle exit for them to not be the same person, weren’t there?

Holy shit.

She could be wrong, of course. She could be so wrong. What were the chances of her being right? But Elsa was naturally intuitive and she knew she had the right once she’d found it. She looked at the retreating figures of her friends with wide eyes.

Jack cocked his head to the side. “Hey, you okay?” he asked gently. “You look like you just remembered you forgot to turn off the stove or something.” Elsa let out a shocked laugh.

“No,” she said, shaking her head and smiling. “I just realized my plans to immediately go back to my dorm room aren’t a really good idea right now.” He barked out a laugh.

“Well … we could go get a coffee, if you’d like?” he offered with the slightest bit of uncertainty. Elsa felt something like a warm bubble expand in her chest.

“I’d like that,” she admitted.

[dandadananalysis]

Turbo Granny Arc pt.1.1/4

Part 1: Episode 1/Chapter 1

Part 2: Episode 2/Chapter 2

Part 3: Episode 3/Chapter 3+4 [post credit: Bonus Vol.1 Chapter 5]

Part 4: Episode 4/ Chapter 5-8 (first 3/4) [1/4 rest is for AS arc]

How I divide my parts: I have already posted: -> Part 2/3 Serpo Arc

This post will include: reviewing the episode/chapter, compare the differences between the two, my opinion of the episode/chapter.

¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬

First episode/chapter is kinda cheesy and sweet, basically like most animes/mangas, first episode/chapter is always shown as a plot of the whole story.

We were firstly introduced with Ayase Momo, a gyaru, and she basically got dumped by a terrible "boyfriend" who likes to do dirty stuffs with her for money.

After cursing him with seafood, ofc she is depressed. But oh well, she got very good and supportive girl friends in class who seemed to also be gyaru (I will discuss about gyaru in a future post). They all told her to dump him anaways because of his attitude is unacceptable. Momo claimed she only dates guys who look like Takakura Ken, a famous Japanese actor (he is real).

And while depressed about her first "ex-bf" dumping her (the way she was walking is actually from a dance/reference, I will discuss in a future post about her), she passed by a nerdy friend's classroom. He was bullied by other guys because of being weirdly, and passionately obsessed with alien stuffs, and always reading books about them.

Momo was pretty much annoyed with the nerd's attitude that he didn't stand up for himself, so she blocked the boys from throwing crumbled papers at him. Pretty much you can see, she was defending him from the bullies.

When she left, the nerd called and followed her. He thought that she was interested in aliens and space so he just went all-out telling her everything :))) Ofc Momo was mad.

Also I noticed a very small detail they changed in the anime: They changed President Barack Obama from manga to President Donald Trump in anime! If possible, you can actually read what is in the book that Okarun brings in anime if you know Japanese

When she was pissed because of his annoyance, and not interested in aliens because she thought they didn't exist, the nerdy friend is pretty sad about it, but of course she really didn't mean to say mean things at him, it's actually because she is interested in ghosts, spirits, which our nerdy friend smickered at her that they weren't real. And that turned into a debate/argument, whether aliens or spirits exist.

Each other challenged the other one to go to the rumored places. Momo went to an abandoned hospital, and Occult-kun (his temporarily nickname) went to an abandoned tunnel.

When they were on their phones, this is when they started to tell the other about their childhood why they are interested in aliens/spirits. Momo started by explaining that throughout her childhood, she's been living with her grandma who is a spirit medium because her parents are gone.

Every day, her grandma always told her to do a certain ritual for good luck, and her friends always mocked her for being abnormal and the boys teased her. And most painful one is her crush was one of those boys. (I mean, I would be devastated like Momo, too)

From that day onwards, she was pretty mad at her grandma for being a lame and fake spirit medium and stopped doing the ritual. But then she realized, it's not because of the ritual that she was mad at her grandma, it's actually because her friends were making fun at her grandma that made her angry, because she know deep down, she truly love her grandma :")))

After she finished her story, she asked Occult-kun why he was interested in aliens, he pretty much ignored the question and keep going onwards, until he saw some footsteps

Here's a small great detail that really does make a huge difference between the anime and manga: The manga actually didn't have the bloody footsteps on the tunnel, but the anime does. And that makes the scene more realistic, we can implictly understood that Occult-kun was getting closer and closer to the spirit

AND he met her. Turbo Granny.

Damn, first impression, a pervert granny :))))

Even worse, challenging her to a running competition.

In the manga, Okarun manages to escape from the tunnel and on his bike riding away, but Turbo Granny managed to get him. But in the anime, the studio made Okarun stuck in the endless tunnel, hiddenly stated that once you are in Turbo Granny's territory, there is no escape. Making the whole scene turned red, indicating that this is her territory and her ability, so she had the upper hand

Eventually he got cursed by Granny and suddenly lost contact to Momo. Even her smartphone was red

AND then Momo saw the aliens. They are even more lewd: ripping off her clothes!

(Youtube didn't have this scene :"))) but you can find it from other sources on the Internet!)

She was introduced with the Serpo alien, their species only has males and they reproduce by multiplication. Because of the modern technology, they wanted to know more abt female humans for experiments. They wanted to have the female reproduction organ (the w0mb/cervix) (The banana organ is actually implied for male body part, the reason the Serpoians said that because they are only male, so they basically dunno what it's called for female)

Luckily, her phone rang, and we saw Okarun in a form of being possessed by Turbo Granny! He defeated one of the aliens!

(Why is Turbo Granny biting one of the Serpo's p3n1$ ? :")))

If you watch the anime, you can actually notice that when the Serpo appeared, their territory was blue, and when Turbo Granny appeared in their territory, Okarun's body has a red aura, indicating that his aura trying to fight against the blue territory.

Seeing a major risk of a male human, the Serpo revealed their true form, and they attacked Occult-kun. And that made his red aura disappeared.

(Sorry, gotta stop this post for now, I reached max 30 pics already)

Part 1.2 is going to post next!

[arcsin27]

Reviewing all the stories in junji ito maniac because I can, fuck you :)

The strange hikizuri siblings - uhh okay. Not scary nothing even happened. Okay a guy was a jealous simp, little kids are just like that, some guy threw up bread dough ig, then a ghost stared at everyone for a while and dipped the end

The story of the mysterious tunnel - Jesus Christ that was pretty spooky what the hell. Lost my marbles when he assumed the drop was water, and the kid in the ceiling fucked me up with her voice (dub) and screams

Ice cream bus - im never eating ice cream again. Jokingly compared the driver to William afton fnaf in the beginning but he was somehow worse. The dad pushing the kid away jumpscared me, then horrified me, and I needed a break from the show

Hanging balloon - so absurd it was kinda funny. The nonlinear storytelling added a bit if spook as I slowly realized who was at the window but idk the concept was just funny to me. Also I was so happy someone finally showed up to a horror plot strapped until I saw the result. Sorry random Chad with a crossbow, wish you coulda helped…

Four x four walls - thought something horrific would happen outside and he wouldn’t hear it but it didn’t, thought soichi was famous for being scary but he wasnt, I think this was like a comic relief in episode form. No spook, kinda funny

The sandman’s lair - *laughs nervously* what the fuck. No clue what happened, why would you tape yourselves like that, let me see his dream form damnit, the nature of humanity is we reinvent homestuck etc

Intruder - these kids are based tbh. Balls of steel, don’t blame the redhead, just move on with their lives

Long hair in the attic - also based, i had wondered where her head had gone but i shoulda known by the title, that grinding sound pissed me off tho

Mold - thank. God. It was in black and white. I choose to believe its dust. Also idc about culture or taboo if your floor is coated in inches of ropes and pools of mold just wear your damn shoes. Jesus Christ

Library vision - this one felt like it was calling out all of my anxieties about losing the things and memories precious to me. Also 10/10 Sean chiplock that final recital of hell of thorns was incredible and spooky. Also what the fuck was the ending

Tomb town - im never driving again. Also just call the cops surely you get a reduced sentence for actually reporting the crime. Other than that not scary lol

Layers of terror - im never picking my skin again. god ALMIGHTY why did i bear witness to this. Fuck that mom bro she sucks. I was thinking about how the proportions of human anatomy change as you age and how a toddler with such short limbs and a thick torso could fit inside an adult but uh… then they answered my question. And then it got worse. Funnily enough the 2yo looked like a monster id design

The thing that drifted ashore - was this supposed to be scary…? Oh boy they turned into fish people and promptly fucked off good for them ig

Tomie • photo - wow what bitches lmfao. Idk why she has a face growing out of her scalp hut I didn’t need to see the removal process. Or how botched the removal process was. Based that the photographer just fuckin moved on. “Damnit the blood ruined my pictures :/“ incredible.

Unendurable labyrinth - probably woulda been scarier if they were lost for longer but to me it looked like they took five steps, found the brother, seven steps, “aaaah we’re lost,” two steps, “theyre looking at me!” then suddenly the mummies have eyes, fade to black. Cool

The bully - I was sooo ready for retribution, then I got reconciliation and got even happier, then it turned into child abuse and I wanted to kill a bitch

Alley - pfft idk if its based that she killed those kids or not but it was extra based that they got revenge on her lmao shoulda brought a ladder bro

Headless statue - Jesus fuck that’s gross. Stop it. Also smash the statues again it worked brilliantly earlier. Or maybe jump out a window idk

Whispering woman - mega based. The nervous girl gains support and confidence, the attendant is freed from her abusive friend, the abusive friend gets violently killed, its just wins all around

Soichi’s beloved pet - once again a comic relief episode but tbh it was pretty funny, soichi was a lot less hateable this time too!

[ecargmura]

Dandadan Episode 1 Review - Ghosts Vs Aliens

October is considered the spooky season, so Dandadan is perfect for the vibes. It’s a good mix of comedy and horror that you don’t get too often in anime. The animation quality was super unique and I really like what was presented!

The story is about two people named Momo Ayase and Ken Takakura, commonly known as Okarun. Momo is a girl who likes guys like her celebrity crush Ken Takakura (an olden day Japanese actor, sort of like Clint Eastwood), but she has a good heart when she defends Okarun from bullies in his class. However, Okarun believed she likes occult things like UFOs and extraterrestrial phenomena. While Momo does believe in the occult, she doesn’t believe in aliens but in ghosts. However, Okarun doesn’t believe in ghosts, so the two decide to challenge the other to see which supernatural existence actually exists by going to occult hotspots. Little do they know that both exist.

The premiere was super quirky in the sense that we get character building first from Momo and Okarun and then all the action and supernatural stuff happens at the end. I like that, honestly! It’s nice to learn who these two are. Momo has extremely high standards in men due to her ideal type being her celeb crush, but still has a good heart in that she defends Okarun and also hates people insulting her grandmother. Okarun may seem meek, but he does come around at the end saying that he wants to protect Momo as she was the one who stood up for him when no one else did.

Now for the action and supernatural part…that was crazy. Man, it’s nice to see a supernatural show where both ghosts and aliens exist. I feel like this story is one where they explore the existence of other paranormal creatures and not stick to a specific type. I like that! Though, it was sort of scary seeing these creatures move around! The Turbo Granny was by far the scene-stealer. Who’d ever think that you’d actually meet a lewd granny in a tunnel saying that she’d let you suck her t*ts in exchange for your balls. Then, there are very creepy aliens wanting to r*pe females because their species cannot reproduce. They even have a grotesque form underneath their default form. However, it was interesting that the person who believed in aliens got entangled with the ghost and the person who doesn’t believe in aliens got entangled with them.

I really like the animation! It’s really floppy in the sense that the characters are always moving around. I haven’t really watched a Science Saru anime, but if this is what they produce, I should reconsider and start watching more of their stuff. Even for mundane stuff like Momo walking towards Okarun is fluid in movement. The action scenes were also well animated in that it goes really fast. This anime feels like a roller coaster in a sense in that it slows in the beginning and then goes fast after a certain point. If the premiere is this good, I do wonder what will transpire for the rest of the show.

I love the music! The OST was amazing and I loved the opening! Creepy Nuts had a hit song with the Mashle opening in Winter, but I think they hit another home run. The song for this show is a lot different from the Mashle dance, but it’s really good and hits the vibes of the show! My favorite part is Momo doing the shimmy with Okarun and another guy doing the Carlton in the back. The ending song is good too! Though, I do wonder who that cat is…

The voice acting cast was really good! Like I mentioned in my Blue Box review that Jump title animes usually cast new faces for their animes at times, but like Demon Slayer, Dandadan uses a plethora of big names for their production. The only “new face” in the cast list is Shion Wakayama. Well, I wouldn’t call her a new face, but more of a rising star in the sense that I’ve seen her in other stuff before this. I usually associate with her with soft-spoken girls because of her roles in The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses and Pokemon Paldean Winds where she played characters who are reserved. This is the first time I’ve seen her with a more ‘boyish’ and talkative role. I actually like this voice she’s using for Momo! It feels natural and there’s so much emotion. Natsuki Hanae voices Okarun. Given his track record, Hane never has a bad role. I honestly think this role is perfect for him because of the amount of screaming. If you watch Demon Slayer and seen how many times Tanjiro screams, then you know Okarun is perfect for Hanae.

There are super big names in this anime too. The one role that shocked me the most was Mayumi Tanaka as Turbo Granny. The one and only Mayumi Tanaka is known for her roles as Krillin from Dragon Ball and Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece. Yes, Turbo Granny and Luffy are voiced by the same person. I remembered an episode where Luffy didn’t want to give his balls to the Amazoness Tribe and now Tanaka is playing a granny ghost that bites others’ balls. Luffy would be shocked to see this like how he was shocked with how Robin got Franky to join the Strawhats. The aliens Momo encounter are all voiced by Kazuya Nakai. If you’re a One Piece fan, he’s the fan-favorite Roronoa Zoro. Yes. It’s hilarious how Luffy and Zoro are playing roles completely different from their One Piece roles and even their usual roles! It’s really nice to see that even at the prime of their career, they try new things! Another surprise was Nana Mizuki as Momo’s grandmother. Another One Piece voice actress in this anime! Mizuki voiced Hiyori from the Wano arc. Momo’s grandma isn’t seen much, so I can’t wait to see what sort of person she is later on.

The English dub cast is crazy too! Momo and Okarun are voiced by Abby Trott and AJ Beckles, who are both good rising stars in the English dubbing world. However, the name that shocked me the most was Kari Wahlgren as Momo’s grandma. Wahlgren is a union voice actress, meaning that she doesn’t appear in anime all that often nowadays with the last time I’ve heard her in anime was in Durarara as Celty. It’s crazy how she made her big anime comeback in a big show like this! If you like English dub, then this is one you shouldn’t miss out on!

I honestly can’t wait for what happens next. Will Okarun get his balls back? The fact that the plot progression is due to his missing balls is funny in itself. I hope he can get them back… If Momo has psychic powers, what will Okarun have? I want to know! What are your thoughts about the premiere?

[nijigasakilove]

Damn so it’s finally over. Season 3 was a tale of two halves for sure. Started off horribly with pacing and got a lot better in the second cour, this sort of felt like Rimuru establishing this world’s version of the UN with all these countries coming together thanks to the festival and cooperating.

Most of the season felt like a lateral movement, but we objectively did have some upwards movement in the story here at the end and now have a clear vision of how to proceed in season 4. HOPEFULLY, when that does come they’ll go with the cour 2 approach and not drag out dialogue and exposition so much because man that first half was rough.

Solid finale episode though, the eastern merchants thought they were slick until Rimuru shut all that shit down. If you don’t trust a country of monsters, don’t do business with them 🤷🏾‍♂️.

Establishing a magitrain high speed rail network between the various countries is a book straight out of real life diplomacy. Countries that have trade linked with one another are a lot less likely to go to war, this was kind of the point of the European Union back in the day. That should bring a lot of economic development to every country involved as well. Momiji’s one demand for building the tunnel being that Benimaru be in charge of the operation is so cute I love her.

I also like the idea of Hinata having the holy knights train in the dungeon! This really was a win-win festival for everyone.

So now we’ve got to deal with Damarada, the infiltrator, Yuuki and Maribel in season 4. It’s like Rimuru deals with one problem and 4 more just pop up in its place. All tempest wants to do is live in harmony with humans and create a more prosperous world for everyone. Guess there’ll always be those who oppose that. It’s good he finally suspects Yuuki too! Even though this was a drag at times, I’m excited for the movie and season 4.

[review](https://myanimelist.net/reviews.php?id=538591)

[coulsonlives]

Real talk for a moment. Today I was looking on youtube, and I came across a video that was hm... highly sus.

In this video, a doctor claimed that he could treat very specific airway problems with something called "prolotherapy". And immediately, red flags went up because I was like, no... those specific airway problems happen because of nasal, jaw, or soft tissue structure issues. That's not something an injectable substance can cure.

Then I saw the rest of their channel and my jaw dropped.

In these 3 screenshots alone, here's a list of everything this quack claims to cure with "prolotherapy":

Cervical instability

Knee instability

Elbow instability

Knee injuries

Osteoarthritis

Being wheelchair bound

Big toe/bunion pain

Upper airway resistance syndrome

Vagus nerve degeneration

Lower back pain

POTS

Snapping scapula syndrome

Pes anserine bursitis

Thoracolumbar syndrome

Trigeminal neuralgia

Achilles tendon pain

Post-concussion syndrome

Seizures

"Atlas misalignment" (chiro stuff)

Wrist instability

Carpal tunnel

Scoliosis

If you're familiar with at least a few of these things, you'd know it's way more complicated than injecting some miracle cure into those areas. He also centers a lot of his videos around "cervical instability", which he attributes to causing all sorts of stuff:

Visual snow

Migraine

Itchy arms

White matter lesions

Dissociative episodes

Seizure disorders including absence seizures

POTS

MCAS

(Etc)

And he also uses terms that, if you google them, show up exclusively on his own website and nowhere else. One of the terms was cervical "dysstructure".

So um. Friendly reminder not to get sucked in by charlatans like this who claims to have a cure for a stupid amount of unrelated illnesses. You're just gonna get bilked out of your money, and you might even end up worse than before. These people prey on your desperation, and they're really good at it. Someone documented their experience with this "doctor" here. Reddit and other sites are full of negative reviews about him. Many people call him a scammer.

Don't let these quacks win. Do your research and take a breath before throwing money at them.