#watched the first few episodes in an anime club and loved it

[charmedimsure]

Your writing is just fucken scrumptious 🌟🌟 if you don't mind, Can you write about Thanos's reaction to a Nana osaki fem! Reader? (Like reader got her style, career, and personality) {plus points if reader is pierced, like Se-mi} You can make this into a one shot if you like ;))

i have beef with you, anon. i watched the first episode to try and get a better grasp on her personality and i got hooked. holy crap that anime is sad but so good. decided to add others cuz i fell in love with this character

SQUID GAME X NANA OSAKI! READER

including: thanos, nam-gyu, dae-ho, in-ho

warnings: squid game stuff, blood, violence

THANOS

Thanos is not completely sure how he got himself in this position.

He's laying on the floor, his throat being squeezed by player 001, who's fist is positioned to hit him again.

"I'm sorry," Thanos manages to get out with the bit of air he still has in his lungs. "Please. Please let me go."

Player 001 let's go and he rolls over, bringing his own hand to his throat as he tries to suck in deep breaths to get as much oxygen into his lungs as he can.

The players around them break out in applause, praising the man for beating up Thanos. As the man walks back into the crowd, the soft sound of laughter can be heard from behind Thanos.

The rapper turns, ready to tell off whoever it is that's laughing at him. His words die on his tongue when he sees the source of the laughter is you.

You're sitting on your bunk, head tilted back in laughter. Your hair falls to the side, exposing your piercings. And for the second time today, Thanos' breath is stolen from him.

The next day he approaches you right before the second game.

"Señorita, excuse me."

You turn, an amused smirk gracing your face as you recognize the boy speaking to you. "Oh, it's you. How's your throat?"

He knows you're making fun of him, but he can't help the small flutter in his heart because you remember him. "Let's play the game together."

You bring your hand up to support your chin, showing off your rings. "Yeah? Why should I?"

One of the players behind him gives you a dumbfounded look. "Don't you know who he is? He's Thanos the rapper."

You chuckle as he recites one of his lines. Truth is, you do know who this is. You and Thanos had played at a few of the same places. You doubted he could remember though. He was always high out of his mind.

The other player behind him puts a hand on his shoulder. You recognize him from one of the clubs you play at. Nam-gyu, if you're remembering correctly. "Hang on, a girl? We don't know what the game is."

Thanos pushes him away, his eyes still on you. "I'm gonna destroy anyone who gets in my way," he says, punching the air in front of him.

You let out a chuckle. "Whatever, man. Just don't get me killed."

NAM-GYU

"Two."

Nam-gyu turns to Thanos, ready to run into a room with him. It's the last round and they're definitely getting out of here alive.

Thanos shakes his head quickly, looking between the three of you before ultimately grabbing Min-su's hand, dragging the boy toward one of the rooms.

Nam-gyu just stands there, watching as the person he's looked up to since before they even ended up in this shithole chooses some kid over him.

"Come on!" you yell, grabbing Nam-gyu's wrist and pulling him along after you. He nearly falls over but stays on his feet, running after you to a pink door. Nam-gyu goes in first.

As you're entering the room, a man grabs you by the hair, yanking you backwards and out of the room. He takes a step forward before a foot makes contact with his crotch, causing the man to let out a yelp of pain. He falls to his knees, revealing you standing behind him.

You push him out of the doorway, coming in and closing the door just in time for it to lock.

Nam-gyu stands in the back of the room, massaging his wrist where you grabbed him.

You catch your breath, looking at the man in the room. "Sorry, did I hurt you?"

Nam-gyu scowls at you. "You could've broken my wrist, you bitch."

You scoff, putting your hands on your hips. "You're unbelievable, you know that?"

Nam-gyu just glares at you.

"You've been rude to me since you met me for no damn reason. And now when your 'friend' chooses someone over you and I step in to save your fucking life, you're still finding things to complain about!" You huff. "Get over yourself."

You turn your back to him. Nam-gyu thinks about your words. You're right, he has been rude to you since you joined their team. He was really just jealous because Thanos was paying more attention to you than to him. And now you're the whole reason he's alive and all he had to say was "you could've broke my wrist".

You pace back and forth, trying to get over you anger without physically attacking the boy standing by the other wall. You hear him mumble, which gets your attention.

"What was that?"

He sighs. "I said thank you."

You just look at each other. You study his face, seeing a hint of remorse in his eyes. You nod, a silent 'you're welcome'.

"Let's just hope those two idiots made it to a room on time."

DAE-HO

Dae-ho looks through the crowd of people. He'd jumped at the chance to prove himself a useful team member and find a fifth person for the game, but now he's struggling to choose. Everyone is either already in a group or isn't the kind of person the others are expecting him to bring back.

"Hey," a voice says behind him.

Dae-ho whips his head around and his jaw practically falls to the floor when he sees you looking up at him. Your hands are shoved into your pockets, the expression on your pierced face calm despite the situation you're in. Dae-ho is sure he's never seen a girl who looks more intimidating than you. Or more beautiful.

"Do you have a team yet?" you ask.

Dae-ho just stands there, staring at you with his mouth still open, brain trying to comprehend the words you just said to him.

You furrow your brows. "You okay, dude?"

He snaps himself out of it, nodding. "Y-yeah, I'm... uh... I'm f-fine."

You smirk as he tumbles over his words, finding the man endearing. "So, do you have a team yet?"

He nods. "Uh, yeah, yeah I do have a team."

The smirk on your face drops. "Bummer." You take one of your hands out of your pocket, giving him a small wave as you take a step back. "Well, good luck."

"Wait!" Dae-ho yells louder than he meant to, gaining the attention of a few people around him. You look back at him, an eyebrow cocked. "We, uh, actually need one m-more person, if you want to join." He knows you're not the person they wanted Dae-ho to find, but he has a good feeling about you.

You smile at him and he swears this is heaven. "Yeah, that'd be great."

He leads you through the crowd towards his own team. Jung-bae is the first to notice him. "Dae-ho, did you find someone?"

Dae-ho nods shyly, stepping to the side to reveal you behind him.

Jung-bae's smile falters. "This is who you got?"

You look between both players. "Is this a problem?"

He puts a polite smile back on his face. "No, miss, not at all. We were just expecting him to bring back someone more..."

"Male?" you finish for him. You look at the other men in the group. "It seems like you have enough testosterone in this group already."

Player 001 steps toward you. "Are you confident you can win this game?"

You nod. "I don't plan on dying in this place."

He turns to the others. "Let's let her join."

Player 456 steps forward. "I agree."

You turn to Dae-ho, smiling and giving him a small thank you nod.

He smiles back, a blush coloring his cheeks as he kicks at the sand on the ground.

IN-HO

"I saw what you did, you sick fuck!" a voice shouts.

In-ho looks up from his coversation with Gi-hun, eyes immediately finding the purple haired player in the middle of the floor. Another player is standing behind him, chest puffed out.

A plastic spoon is thrown at the purple player's chest. In-ho looks across the room to see a girl marching toward him. You. Your fists are clenched and the look on your face could send fear into the hearts of anyone.

Player 230 chuckles. "Saw what, Señorita?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," you growl. "You pushed those people! You killed them!"

"They would've died anyway!"

"They could have made it!"

He laughs again. "Who cares, it's more money for us." The player behind him, 124, snickers.

You scoff. "Well, why don't I do us all a favor then and add another 100 million won to the pot?"

Player 230 laughs out loud, raising an eyebrow at you and stepping closer, "Oh yeah? And what are you gonna be able to do?"

Gasps come from everyone in the room as you lunge at him, knocking the both of you to the ground. Player 124 watches with an open mouth, too shocked to do anything.

Player 230 looks up at his friend. "Help me, you fucker!"

Player 124 nods and kicks you off of 230. You manage to get to your feet, throwing a punch at 124.

He stumbles back, touching his fingers to his nose and pulling them away to find blood. He grits his teeth at you. "You bitch!"

He swings at you, which you manage to dodge until the other player kicks you in the back of the knee, sending you to the ground. You kick his legs out from under him, getting on him to hit him again.

In-ho stands up, pushing past Jung-bae and Dae-ho to the center of the room. He pulls you off of player 230. You try to attack him again but In-ho has a tight hold on you, putting his body between you and the rapper.

"They're not worth it," he says to you. "Don't get yourself hurt over this."

You look at the rappers face, smirking when you see the imprint of your ring on his cheek. You throw the man's arms off of you, wiping the blood from your face with your sleeve as you walk back to the bunks, a few players on the sidelines clapping for you.

In-ho turns to face the boys. Player 124 is helping 230 off the ground, both bleeding. Scratch marks can be seen on 230's face from your nails. He's lucky you didn't claw one of his eyes out. He looks back at you, watching you sit down on your bed, holding your sleeve up to your split lip.

You're someone he's gonna keep his eye out for.

Squid Game Tags: @thebiggestigurosimp @vvnbxz @lov3yy @miltzzy @l5byrinth @come-as-you-are-111 @starkeyszn @learninglinesintherainn @galactict3a @sawlover353 @jspidey5 @skywalker0809 @zannispppp @lianobody @ihrthoney @machii-d3arr

Dae-ho tags: @whatthefuckeryfuckityfuck @ally1uvsu @hiphip-horray @k1michii @tpwkcaryslizb @louissst28 @sshwaa @jennwonwoo @sunnysurvives @lalalaa2210 @tayshs @sunshinethatlooksalive @plntmxrss @lxnnrobin @mariaxman @alexx-iia @batty-barty-crouchjr @kxsm3t @takuma-talkz @peacemakersbeloved @skywalker0809 @soobinbunnie5 @dragons-h0ard @silas-222 @putrescentpoet @chrisgetsmewetter @sunhyeswife @smile1318 @casually-simping @slvtforfakemen @ang3licbabydolly

lmk if you want to be added to the taglist :)

[alligator-tearzz]

R.I.P Van Der Linde Gang 💔 You would have loved:

(seen a few ppl do this,, if you started this definitely lmk and I’ll credit u !!)

updated to add Kieran and Sean

Dutch - Self help books, those podcasts where people give you terribly incorrect health information and claim that they’re doctors

Uncle - The massage chairs in malls, Frank Gallagher, insane reddit stories that definitely never happened, scamming disability cheques from the government

Abigail - iPhone’s share your location feature, the Parent Teacher Association, audiobooks

Arthur - Remote control racing cars (aarwh it’s a toy boat!), the catch and cook youtube videos, Cowboy Carter by Beyoncé, free healthcare mayhaps…..

John - Maury, The sassy man apocalypse on TikTok, Sitting and watching Bluey in a trance with Abigail after Jack has already gone to bed

Miss Grimshaw - Supernanny, Judge Judy, Spas, Massages, Bear Grylls probably, Bed Bath and Beyond

Sadie - Streetwear, absolutely bodying men on FPS games, Rage rooms

Charles - Axe throwing to get the frustration out, wildlife protection acts, David Attenborough, ATLA

Javier - The head massage you get when you get your hair washed at the salon, edibles, Guitar Hero, collecting vinyls

Hosea - Game shows like The Chase and Deal or No Deal, Dolly Parton probably, cruises, community libraries where you take a book and leave a book behind

Strauss - Cryptocurrency, whatsapp scams

Mary-Beth - Wattpad, Ao3, Booktok, you name it. Those fanfic movie adaptations like After, 50 shades of Grey etc, Cottagecore aesthetic, Taylor Swift, TikTok edits, Bridgerton

Tilly - Those ‘Day in the Life of’ Tiktoks, Jazz bars, Chloe x Halle, cruises as well

Karen - How To Get Away With Murder, Bottomless brunch, Reality shows with a bunch of drama like Love Island or Married at First Sight, Ru Paul’s Drag Race

Bill - Mardi Gras, Brokeback Mountain 😋, Home Depot, probably, those giant American cars that are on the verge of being trucks, Call of Duty

Pearson - Those late night infomercials that show random kitchen utensils like a garlic mincer or a nutribullet blender, Reddit, Spending money on E-Harmony, standing in the club and staring awkwardly at a woman, Dungeons and Dragons

Lenny - Online self paced university, Jordan Peele movies, Studio Ghibli movies, Noise cancelling headphones, The Last of Us

Kieran - Animal crossing, Saddle Club, the Wikihow “how to talk to girls” page, taking horrible advice from tik tok just because the person who posted it sounded trustworthy, astrology probably

Sean - Getting drunk at local football games and heckling the other team, claiming he’s not into Karen’s reality shows but then standing there watching the whole episode with his arms crossed while asking her about every single person and their drama, would most definitely be famous for yapping on Twitter, Derry Girls would be his fave show

[dizzybunni]

⋆˚✿˖° . . 𝐌𝐲 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐣𝐨 𝐃𝐫 𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭 !

⋆˚✿˖°

໒꒰ྀིっ˕ -｡꒱ྀི১ ; I very much suck at writing summaries— so be warned, this is more like an ambiguous oneshot than anything else.

— The start of the new school year had arrived, and with it, the music club reunited once more. The group remained as popular as ever, boasting a lineup of well-known peers, including Kawamoto, the charismatic and talented drummer. Yet, despite their reputation, the band struggled to stay focused, their practices often descending into playful bickering and occasional slacking—especially without a vocalist to anchor them.

It wasn’t until one late evening during practice that Kawamoto noticed something unusual. Through the narrow crack of the clubroom door, he caught sight of someone watching them. The mysterious onlooker darted off before he could get a proper look, leaving him momentarily baffled. He dismissed it at first, chalking it up to curiosity or coincidence.

But later that evening, as he was leaving the school, something stopped him in his tracks. A soft, ethereal voice floated down the hallway, drawing him toward the source like a magnet. Unable to resist, he followed the sound up to an empty classroom on the upper floor.

Peeking inside, he found her: a girl with headphones on, quietly sweeping the floor. She was utterly lost in thought, her delicate voice filling the room as she sang absentmindedly. It was angelic, raw, and completely mesmerizing.

He recognized her immediately—Saimori Yumiko, the foreign girl who had transferred to the city a few years ago. Known for being quiet and reclusive, she kept to herself so much that most students barely acknowledged her presence.

Before Kawamoto could stop himself, he stepped into the room. Unfortunately, his entrance was anything but subtle. His foot caught on a desk, sending it screeching across the floor. The noise startled Saimori, who ripped her headphones out and whirled around, her face a mix of shock and embarrassment.

“I—I’m so sorry!“ she stammered, bowing quickly as if on instinct. I didn't mean to spy on your club! I wasn't trying to be creepy or anything, I swear! Please don’t be mad—”

Her words tumbled out in a frantic stream, and Kawamoto froze, piecing it all together. The spying, the singing, the nervous apologies—it clicked.

A grin crept onto his face as an idea began to form.

This girl wasn’t just a shy classmate or a random onlooker. She was exactly what the music club needed. Now the real challenge was figuring out how to convince this reclusive girl to join them.

꒰ᐢ. .ᐢ꒱/ This is so bad oml… but anyhow I rewatched lovely ☆ complex again and decided I would go insane if I didn't have a Dr where all the cliches of a shoujo anime happen ( beach episodes, festivals, overdramatic firework setting confessions ) so that all this basically is + a band Dr !! * ( I wrote this from a 3rd person perspective, Saimori is who I am !! ) ★⌇animated line dividers by cafekitsune !!

[profiterole-reads]

2024 Favourites

In no particular order. This is content I've read and watched in 2024, not necessarily content released in 2024.

Books

1. So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole: f/f heroic fantasy + another female protagonist on the aroace spectrum with a male love interest (YA). One sister can channel the power of the Gods. The other dreams of becoming a drake pilot to protect their country from dragons.

2. Hunters of Ironport by Lou Wilham: m/m urban fantasy with a trans male protagonist. This series has Buffy/Faith vibes, except m/m. It crosses over with the Witches of Moondale series (f/f), but can be read independently.

3. The Mage's Secret by Ami Spencer: f/nb urban fantasy. This witch story is mostly cosy, with a few action scenes. It's about a coven elder and an Academy head in an established relationship.

4. [Spanish] Prodigioso principio de amor de Silvia Aliaga: m/m urban fantasy. This novel takes place at the University of Magic and Eloquence, in Florence, Italy, and the two leads are from Spain and the UK.

5. Power to Yield and Other Stories by Bogi Takács: collection of speculative short stories with many non-binary characters and a couple of intersex ones. This is my favourite read of the year. These brilliant stories explore gender identity, neurodivergence, religion, immigration and the human condition in general.

6. Earthflown by Frances Wren: m/m science fantasy. The characters have superpowers, but it's not superhero fiction. This novel takes place in post-flood London and has complex worldbuilding. Note that the e-book version doesn't include the 60 illustrations.

7. Redsight by Meredith Mooring: f/f science fantasy. This is mythological fantasy in space. The protagonist is a blind witch who's going to serve as a spaceship navigator. Her love interest is an ancient witch who's become a pirate and can turn into a giant snake.

8. Welcome to Boy.net by Lyda Morehouse: f/f science fiction with a trans female protagonist. This novel is about two bounty hunters in an established relationship. The protagonist used to be part of the ENForcers, which supposedly had only male members, so she had to desert in order to transition.

9. Everything for Everyone: An Oral History of the New York Commune, 2052–2072 by M.E. O'Brien and Eman Abdelhadi: speculative activism fiction written in the form of non-fiction, with many non-binary characters and two trans women. 12 interviews cover the crises of the mid-21st century, then the insurrections that led to establishing communes all over the world, with a focus on NYC.

10. [French] Un Amour pas si aveugle by Lena Clarke: f/f romance. A blind piano teacher and her guide dog move in next to a former firewoman, now an ambulance driver, and her dog.

TV shows

1. Kaos: mythological fantasy with several mlm characters + a trans male major character, and the Fates are played by trans/enby actors. I love this Greek Mythology modern AU, full of dark humour.

2. Meet You at the Blossom: BL wuxia. This Chinese/Thai coproduction is the first uncensored BL wuxia drama and I hope it'll pave the way to many more.

3. The Spirealm: BL portal fantasy. This c-drama is an intriguing adventure with horror vibes. The BL is still pretty visible despite Chinese censorship.

4. Tadaima, Okaeri: BL omegaverse. I had always avoided omegaverse stories, but this anime about an alpha/omega married couple with kids is just lovely.

5. When the Moonlight is Shining: GL fantasy. This c-drama is a quick watch, with 18 episodes of about 2 minutes. A mermaid comes to the human world.

6. 3 Will Be Free: m/m/f thriller + a trans female major character. This Thai drama is about the son of a mafia boss, a male stripper and a hostess at a go-go club. It's actually not as explicit as it sounds.

7. Petrichor: GL murder mystery. An inspector and a medical examiner team up in this Thai drama, which is much better than the forgettable Rizzoli and Isles.

8. Love Sea: BL + GL romance (a lot of BL sex scenes). This Thai drama is Fort/Peat (from Love in the Air)'s new show. Watch it for the high-chemistry BL, as the GL storyline is subpar.

9. Lucky My Love: GL romance. This Thai drama is a quick watch, with 5 episodes of 20 minutes. A superstitious woman meets her new team leader.

10. 1670: historical mockumentary with some f/f. In this Polish show (available on Netflix), the 17th-century humour is a metaphor for 21st-century issues.

Movies

1. Wicked: fantasy with sapphic vibes and achillean rep. I loved it, it was stunning!

2. Drive-Away Dolls: f/f crime comedy (a lot of sex scenes). This lesbian movie was on crack and is supposed to be the first of a trilogy!

3. Le Comte de Monte-Cristo: historical revenge movie with a canon sapphic minor character. This was a magnificent adaptation of Alexandre Dumas's masterpiece.

[cry-ptidd]

Me and my sister watched Hellsing together. Here's her opinion on the characters

- Alucard: "He's a cunt, but he's entertaining. I'd probably pay to see him in a strip club. I didn't like him and his shit-eating grin and 'master' bullshit at first, but he grew on me quick and i don't like that he grew on me. He's a complex character, and he's hot asf when he cries. Also I wish we'd seen his Dracula form for longer; that was awesome. Him and Anderson had a thing going on."

- Seras: "Didn't really mind her at first, but liked her after she drank blood. Her transformation and the guns are really fucking cool. I didn't like her voice and her whining at first but it got better after a few episodes. I like her when her personality became a little bit more spunky. Her story's fucked up."

- Integra: "Absolute bad bitch. Her attitude reminds me of myself so idk if I should like it or hate it, she's got a lot of pride which I respect. Really human and I like it, she takes no one's shit and she's a badass. Didn't even FLINCH when she got her eye shot out. Girlboss. She gives me ace vibes also."

- Walter: "I liked him, he was funny. And then he betrayed everyone and became emo. He gave good advice, and he was cool as hell with that wise older veteran vibe. I'm disappointed in him, but the plot twist was actually good. You'd notice the signs if you suspected him from the beginning."

- Pip: "He's FINE. I'd braid his hair any day. I was in love and then I mourned. I'm widowed. He was hilarious, plus his voice actor nailed the French. My favorite character. Screeched when he came back. He's a good leader and I loved his speeches, also his death made me cry. And I don't often cry when watching anime."

- Anderson: "kinda neutral. I didn't like him at first, he was obnoxious as fuck. Then he respected women and opposed Maxwell and his orders so he grew in my esteem a bit. His character is cool as fuck tho. I wish he didn't turn into a monster, he fell to the same level as Alucard. It's like human greed or desperation for power. Him and Alucard had a thing going on."

- Enrico Maxwell: "Lucius Malfoy. I hate him but not the one I hate most."

- Heinkel & Yumie: "Really like these two lesbians. So cool and I respect their resolve, especially Heinkel's. Rip Yumi. You were cool. Heinkel being intersex is a dope detail, she's very androgynous too. I like their designs."

- The major: "Augustus Gloop? I like the fact he refused vampirism, that was cool, but he's an actual fucking sociopath and I hate him"

- The Captain: "Ngl, I actually find him quite dope, aside from the nazi thing. Literally no one respected him, that shit had me crying. His face is pretty and his tits are big, even if he looks a bit goofy at times. Wish we'd seen more of him. I felt kinda bad when he got defeated."

- Schrödinger: "I want this thing dead"

- Rip van winkle: "She gives me the vibes of a Dr Seuss character."

- Zorin: "Bleach Ichigo knockoff. Fuck this bitch in particular I hate her"

- The Valentine brothers: "A slav squat necrophile and his gay brother that used to be a runway model but got cancelled after a scandal"

Overall: A hit, neither of us expected her to like it. She likes the political and literary aspects, and also finds the characters interesting. She doesn't really know how to feel about the ending; she considers it realistic and a good end, but she wished it was more epic. But from a writing perspective it's good. Also she lowkey wished Alucard would turn Integra into a vampire, just because it would be cool. Now we send each other memes about it. She calls Nendocard a whore when she passes by him, but says she'd buy a Pip nendo in a heartbeat

[thottyimagines]

What are the Konoha 12’s favorite reality TV shows? You can literally say anything from Dance Moms to Kitchen Nightmares, I just need to know what you think 😭 Love your work btw <3

Thank you!

Naruto loves Jersey Shore Family Vacation, specifically, because he really likes that these crazy party animals have grown up to have wholesome family fun. That they are still crazy and spend entire episodes yelling at each other, just now they sometimes disappear for a while to go hang out with their kids, does not occur to him.

Sasuke doesn't watch reality tv. At least, not after the time he got sucked into a Toddlers & Tiaras marathon and walked away four hours later thinking of Itachi with absolute pity for reasons he still can't quite explain or understand.

Sakura likes watching Bad Girls Club; she takes notes during both verbal and physical altercations.

Kiba is a reality tv connoisseur, and it's not even a little bit because of his sister. He can talk to anyone about their favorites, because he's seen at least a handful of episodes of any show he can get his hands on. If he had to pick, his favorite would be Love Island. Most of his slang comes from there.

Hinata likes Love is Blind, even if it saddens her that her Byakugan would surely disqualify her from ever being a contestant herself. But she would (a) totally never cheat and (b) absolutely never try to be on reality tv, lest she get picked and die of shame.

Shino has been watching RuPaul's Drag Race religiously for longer than he'd care to admit. He watches Untucked, too, because one thing about Shino is that he wants to know the dirty details.

Shikamaru isn't big on most reality tv, but he stumbled upon The Circle and turned watching it into some sort of weird mental exercise on picking apart human social intricacies. He's getting frighteningly good at figuring out exactly how entire seasons are going to play out, down to the order of eliminations.

Ino is a die-hard Bachelor fan. She's weirdly very good at picking out who the winner is going to be by the end of the first night, but Sakura tells herself Ino is just somehow rigging the bachelor fantasy league year after year.

Choji watches Hell's Kitchen. He would never want to be on the receiving end of Gordon Ramsay's ire, but he also feels secure in the knowledge that he'd never be anything but the top dog in that kitchen.

Neji spits on reality tv! What is he, a moron? Anyway, if he walks by Hinata watching Love is Blind, he's lingering in front of the tv with his hands on his hips and a vacant expression on his face until the end of the episode, at the very least.

Tenten likes America's (Konoha's?) Next Top Model, and her favorite episode is always the makeover one. She's equally thrilled by the good and bad haircuts, but looks down on anyone who cries.

Rock Lee is inspired to work hard and be his best by Project Runway each and every time he tunes in. He's never seen the contestants create anything quite so glorious as his Jumpsuit, of course, but it's been a near thing on a few memorable occasions.

[owlobservation]

Interview with Itoshi Rin (Blaze Battle)

Taken from Blue Lock mobile game "Blaze Battle". Currently, the game is only available in Japan. I haven't played the game yet but thankfully a fan is kind enough to upload Rin's interview on youtube. You can check them here!

There are 10 Q&As in total, most of them are information that has been revealed in Egoist Bible and canon sources.

1. Where are you from?

Up until junior high school I played for Kamakura United Junior Youth. If you play soccer, you've probably heard of it.

2. What is your favorite food?

Ochazuke. I won't even complain if it's sea bream ochazuke.

3. What is your favorite animal?

Owls. They have good eyes. They're cute I guess.

4. What is your favorite subject

Physical Education and Art. English? That's a must for a soccer player.

5. What subjects are you weak at?

Calligraphy is so damn pointless. If you want to copy something, just use a copier.

6. What is your motto?

"The field is a battlefield." That's what soccer is to me.

7. What do you do in your days off?

Immerse myself in horror. Whether by playing games or watching movies. Back in the day it was only soccer...

8. What is your favorite movie?

I've only watched horror movies in these past few years.

9. Who is the person you admire?

Are we talking about soccer players? or....

Sae? ...Bastard, do you want to get killed?

10. What made you start playing soccer?

...Listen up. Don't ever ask me stupid questions again. Ask again and I'll seriously crush you. I'm dead serious.

===================================================

My Notes.

Q1. Rin played for the junior youth (U-15) division of Kamakura United. Sae used to be the ace of this team, winning Japan Club Youth Championship (U-15) when he was only a first-year junior high school student. He was scouted by Re Al because of this. (Light Novel). On his last year of junior high school, Rin also lead his team and won the U-15 Championship. I think that's why Rin answered the question with a bit of sarcasm. His club was pretty famous.

Btw, here's the club name in Japanese: 鎌倉ユナイテッド・ジュニアユース

Q2. Ochazuke (or Chazuke) is a Japanese dish made by pouring green tea, dashi, or hot water over cooked rice. Rin loves the one with sea bream. In Episode Omotesando oneshot, Rin said Ochazuke with sea bream is his tranquilizer* (精神安定剤）and he needs to eat it at least twice a month.

*Tranquilizer/sedative: something used to reduce anxiety, fear, tension, and stress.

Q3. "Owls. I'm fascinated by them. I think it's their eyes." (Egoist Bible)

Q4. He's already fluent in English.

Q5. "I hate having to write exactly as I'm taught." (Egoist Bible)

Q6. 「フィールドは戦場」 "The field is a battlefield" is what Sae told him. (Ch. 124). His other motto mentioned in Egoist Bible 「ぬるい」 "tepid/lukewarm" , is also what Sae told him from the same chapter. and night.

Q7. His hobby: Feeling the "chills" from playing horror games and watching horror movies. (Egoist Bible).

Q8. The Shining is his favorite horror movie (Egoist Bible). They didn't state that in the game for a reason I think lol.

Q9. The interviewer guessed that the person he admired is Sae which pissed him off. He didn't even answer the question. Anyway, the soccer player he admires is David Beckham. Rin said "I respect his kick". (Egoist Bible).

Q10. The question is harmless but Rin refused to answer again. The person who introduced him to soccer was Sae and it seemed like Rin didn't want to mention him at all...

[i-am-grell]

Daylight Savings Anime Poll

I have a movie and a few episodes of filler left and then I'm finished the first season of One Piece, so it's time to decide on a show to take a lil break with.

If you're new here, I love anime and am indecisive, so you get to pick what I watch next.

As always propaganda* (*rambling) below the poll. You can reblog if you want to. You do not have to know me, follow me, like me, or like/know any of the shows on here to vote.

Propaganda:

Free! - The deal: you can vote for this is you want to, and believe me I wouldn't mind finishing up Free!, but if you keep it in the polls, I get to keep putting 50% Off! quotes in the buttons. It's up to you, but I'm js

Fairy Tail - Break from long series with other long series? Up to you Fairy Tail gremlins on the Fairy Tail webbed site. This poll option covers Season 2 of Fairy Tail (episodes 49-72).

Horimiya: The Missing Pieces - Running out of stuff to put in the buttons for this option tbh. Might end up being the thing I watch in between whatever other show wins this poll and whatever show wins the next poll like I did with Tribe Nine

Moriarty the Patriot - You know, honestly? I'm just in the mood. Give me Victorian shit, give me mystery, give me homoerotic Sherlockian rivalry. (Tbh I think the only actual Sherlock Holmes tv adaptation I've actually seen is House MD and if this is even a fraction as phenomenal as that was-)

Wind Breaker - Fight Club but anime and I'm pretty sure I'm not wrong about that, right? From what I've heard that's the premise. I'm just curious, frankly.

The Case Study of Vanitas - Halloween might be over but I'm sure not, give me those vampires.

[sapphic-agent]

ummmmm your tv show gif tag is how I discover you like Ouran High School Host Club??? PLEASE share any headcanons or rants or thoughts or anything!! I was feral over that show in middle school!!!

Stoooop ily so much🥹

It's a rite of passage to watch Ouran in middle school and form an unhealthy obsession with it. It's a prerequisite for high school I don't make the rules.

It's so funny because I only get into Ouran because of a crossover fic I read. I was only reading the fic because of a really niche anime I was into and that happened to be one of the only fics for it at the time since it just wasn't a popular show. To summarize, me being an oddball who watched shit no one else did and read fanfic I definitely wasn't supposed to led me to Ouran.

(Who let me have unrestricted Internet access)

I will say, I don't have much to say about Ouran. I've never read the manga and I was never really active in the fandom. It's always been a comfort show, one I rewatch when life gets too shitty.

If I have any thoughts at all it's that OHSHC is genuinely the funniest thing I've ever watched in my life. Almost ten years after I watched it and I still crack up at nearly every single episode. My absolute favorite episode is when the hosts ambush Haruhi at her house (the poor girl was actually happy for once and those damn rich kids ruined it😭). The interactions between Tamaki and Haruhi were also on point that episode.

I always appreciated that Haruhi wasn't really sexualized. Infantilized maybe at times (but, like, that was the joke), but they maintained that she was a simple girl who didn't really like or dislike femininity. She just... Was. And the other hosts still liked her. It was just nice that there was never a huge change to her looks or personality (yes I know the first episode but a) she was posing as a guy and b) she looked similar in middle school she just couldn't afford the Ouran uniform), they loved her for her.

Tamaki's backstory always gets me emotional. The last two episodes are just masterpieces to me. I would sell my soul for another season or even just a movie.

So yeah, those are my thoughts! Maybe I'll make future posts when I find the time to rewatch. I tricked my guy friend into watching a few episodes but he's a pussy who can't handle the twincest. Men🙄

[susandsnell]

You watched Joker 2: How the Joker got his Groove Back? Do tell, because I’m not watching it lmaooooo

hi maggie i love u. so i was having a progressive mental breakdown trying to write this the last few days and today, I slipped forwards and fell backwards walking to the restroom from my own kitchen and fell onto my back and smacked my head on the floor really loudly (i'm okay for now dw), and i think the slapstick is a sign to answer this question, while subsequent looney tunes esque possible injuries an appropriate tone for this shitshow. I also think the fall damaged my brain less than this movie did, but I'm nothing if not a glutton for punishment when it comes to viewing experiences. let's go.

as a consummate disliker of the first film, my expectations were low, but holy fuck. i was pleased in the schadenfreude sense when we first got the announcement that the premise for the sequel was a musical with Lady Gaga as Harley with how alienating to the fanbase of the first this was, and when trailers emerged I was prematurely annoyed but cautiously optimistic for at least some good musical numbers and maybe some creative imagery.

well. this movie rips off The Room.

spoilers below the cut, trigger warning for mentioned but not graphically discussed police brutality/prison violence (physical + sexual), ableism, misogyny.

gott im himmel, what is there even to say.

so the opening is - actually good. having the rights to warner brothers, they open with the merrie melodies theme with Joker's face popping into frame and an old-school animated recap of the talkshow sequence from the first flick, which was actually a great idea...until the whole premise of the cartoon, and later, the legal defense, ends up being that either the Joker takes on a life of his own outside of Arthur or, as the defense will later posit, the Joker is a DID alter. This is not handled well, at all.

the movie is basically an ugly, dingy, confused, feverish bottle episode that makes me retroactively appreciate the first more for its pretty exciting third act and grounded Gotham City; our locations are a very very boring Arkham , and the courtroom drama as Arthur Fleck is brought to justice for his actions in the first movie. While incarcerated, he has both haters and fans in the prison population, including a young fanboy who is dared by the guards to kiss him, and who he kisses tenderly on the mouth early on, because quoth Todd Phillips, "the Joker is bisexual and stuff." diversity win!!!! this will matter later.

after several unhappy renditions of When The Saints Go Marching In, Arthur meets Harleen Quinzel, mercifully nicknamed 'Lee' in this version so we can easily dissociate her from our favourite harlequin. He finds her at Arkham Asylum glee club rehearsal, which is apparently a thing, and immediately put me in mind of Bialystock and Bloom putting on Prisoners of Love in Sing Sing, and she eagerly tells him she's a huge fan of the Joker as an abused child of poverty herself, and that she avidly watched the TV movie made about his exploits, which was fantastic. (This TV movie will come back later. It's possibly further self-flagellation on the part of Todd Phillips, which is amusing.)

anyway, the choir practice meet cute is important because it flimsily sets up the rest of the film being a musical. because he loves Lee, and she sings music, and therefore if Lee = an escape for Arthur, music is an escape for Arthur too! much thoughts! society. they also watch some old hollywood musicals together on their arkham dates. I don't know.

so regarding the musical numbers. the worst part is that they didn't let gaga sing properly in the movie??? like they made her and phoenix sing badly on purpose as ~character choices~ because it ~fits the characters~ and half the fantastic-looking performances from the leaks a few months ago were cut because musical movies are cockshy now about committing to the medium. instead we get bored white woman dancing from everyone, except for two good numbers, and breathy, off-key and off-rhythm jukebox renditions of everything from Sweet Charity to The Carpenters. a good 40% of the songs are arthur being questioned or something and just bursting into it while everyone looks bewildered, with only a handful of fantasy sequences, when the easiest thing to do given the courtroom drama setup would've been to just rip off Chicago and call it a day, would've been unoriginal but cogent, but instead we're treated to endless tedium and talented singers performing poorly. is there a way to blame this all on tom hooper? because i feel like this is all somehow tom hooper's fault.

this one will really piss you off - Harvey Dent is there and they did him filthy! he's prosecuting the case against Arthur Fleck, and they made him a smirky little twink and did fuck all with him except 'punchable on purpose' because he's The Man and The Man is keeping poor trod-upon Arthur Fleck down. but The Man pales in comparison to the true villain of this movie - women!!!!!

despite trying to deconstruct the incel following and give a middle finger to a lot of the nerdbros who wrongfully worshipped the first one, this movie is somehow a lot more overtly sexist than the first? every woman in this movie is Wronging arthur. his lawyer is an older woman who's going for the insanity defense with completely misrepresented DID (i'll cut her slack in that it's set in the 80s) but is apparently framed as condescending/exploiting his tragedy publicly when like, literally what is she supposed to do to try and get him acquitted for his crimes in the first movie, and it's not like she's trying to get famous for it (or is she? didn't come off from what I saw). she's genuinely being as empathetic as possible and still presented as condescending, and arthur fires her to self-represent in court -- dressed as the joker. more details about penny fleck being much more abusive than shown from the first movie are revisited to...i guess justify her murder more? zazie beetz is back as sophie to prove he didn't kill her but she's framed as deeply unsympathetic for believing arthur's abuser, penny, over him bc apparently she talked shit to the neighbours, when sophie has like, every reason to be afraid of this guy who was talking to her young child and broke into her apartment under the delusion they were together and then later that night going on a killing spree. and then her role in the story got added to the tv movie (which she reveals, to arthur's heartbreak, sucks) but the movie frames her as this judgmental ableist heartless meanie because she's not empathetic to the man who traumatized her and endangered her daughter.

this is juxtaposed to gary, arthur's clown temp agency coworker from the first film who he spared because of his kindness, who gets another one of the only good scenes in the film as he recounts how deeply witnessing arthur's murders broke him -- a sympathy not afforded to that stuck-up witch sophie. shoutout to leigh gill, it's the film's best and powerful performance....undercut by joaquin making the Choice that the joker, self-representing and cross-examining a witness, would spend a solid 20 minutes doing a Humble Southern Lawyer I do Declare bit that had me cringing out of my skin.

and then, of course, there's Lee. so basically they went the telltale batman route where it's subverted of the classic mad love dynamic -- she's the one playing him, but they did it worse because todd phillips doesn't really grasp like, character beyond Bad Things Happening Make People Do Bad Things and also Women Aren't People, so her sob story is false, her parents are rich and alive and she's a psychiatry Ph.D who voluntarily committed to arkham out of parasocial obsession with The Joker. this would be cool in the women's wrongs way if and i mean IF she had any coherent reason beyond "crazy bitches" and being a groupie of who he became on the talkshow.

and then for some reason the movie decides to wholesale lift plot points from The Room. Lee is allowed to see Arthur after one of his many drawn-out gratuitous beating scenes at the hands of Brendon Gleeson's Arkham guard Jackie Sullivan (kind of a Lyle Bolton type), whereupon she puts his clown makeup on and fucks him as the Joker, as you do. when she's 'released' (really, she leaves), she sees him in visitation to tell him she's pregnant with a little baby clown, which motivates him through the rest of the trial. it's of course clear and later revealed that she lied about the pregnancy. since the film is not interested in giving Lee any real motives beyond Crazy Flaky Bitches Am I Right (her transformation into Harley is never named and consists of clown cosplays worn to court), it's never really clear why she faked the pregnancy, which made me immediately think less of Roxie Hart and more Lisa from The Room saying "To make things interesting". like she already had him on the hook from what it seems, there didn't need to be a fake clown baby!!!!

if you've made it this far, here's where it goes from bad to "oh fuck off". please mind the trigger warnings I listed above.

after going on society rant part 2582342572473423995324324932592394293, Arthur shittalks the Arkham guards on TV. this results in Jackie et al not only beating him but -- non-graphically, but it is completely clear before and after the scene this was the intent -- SA'ing him. After which they murder an inmate sympathetic to Arthur for singing to him. none of this is engaged with meaningfully, none of this is textually addressed, none of this has any real narrative weight beyond Arthur being "broken" during his trial and flubbing the case, renouncing being the Joker. I don't have to say how unbelievably offensive just throwing this shit in is and handling it with about as much care as can be expected from the director of Hangover 2.

so Arthur flubs the case and Lee, along with the rest of his fanbase, storm out of the courthouse, disappointed, much in the way audiences are doing in theatres. but the stans camped outside the courthouse pull a Matt Reeves Riddler and plant carbombs around the perimeter, killing everyone in the jury, burning Harvey Dent's face (DO YOU GET IT???) and two cosplayer juggalos rescue Arthur and they drive off echoing the cop car scene in the first movie. but Arthur doesn't want to be the Joker anymore! he escapes the car and returns to the Joker steps, which the film has already returned to in fantasy lke 10 times. He finds Harley - Lee there, and she tells him coolly that she’s really disappointed he’s not the joker because she loves the joker and not Arthur. She does half a musical number while he begs her to stop singing which made me LOL because shrek and then the cops show up and arrest him and not her.

when we next see Arthur, he's in Arkham awaiting the electric chair. He gets called to go see a visitor and walks alone down a hall, somehow unsupervised on the way to visitation. That young, twinky inmate that kissed Arthur earlier in the movie and senpais him runs up and begs Arthur to let him tell him a joke. And it’s this longwinded bit of incoherence about a “psychopath and a killer clown who let him down walk in the bar, and the psychopath says what can I get you” but the punchline is, of course, “you get what you fucking deserve” and the fanboy shivs him in the gut repeatedly. It cuts to a dying fantasy of a parody sonny and Cher show with joker and Harley singing and finishing their act, then back to a lingering closeup on Arthur bleeding out alone in the Arkham corridor while the twink laughs hysterically, implying the next Joker riseth. Roll credits.

to quote my friend Peter, "having the new Joker play gay chicken with the old joker is cinema".

but all seriousness, save for a few goofy moments here or there or "oh my god, they're really doing this", the movie is boring as sin. which is quite the feat given it's a musical with Lady Gaga as Harley, but when it wasn't boring it was a shockingly offensive mishandling of serious issues that was also a pointless rehash of the events of the first film, not just as a middle finger to those who liked it, but a middle finger to people who like musicals, Batman, DC, and maybe even film as a whole.

just please, please, do yourself a favour and stream Harlequin (Lady Gaga's tie-in album) instead. Mother Monster ate.

[dashboardcat]

beastars s3 (pt1) thoughts (for old time's sake)

-I didn't love the opening at first but it def grew on me. shishigumi car. reblog. you agree.

-was the energy drink plot in the manga? or did they make it up to kinda try simplify a number of black matket plot lines? bc I will admit a lot of the black market stuff has kinda been "it's always been bad, but it's SO bad now trust us bro" so I don't mind seeing them actually to show what the change actually was

-I don't love how they literally translated sebun's name as seven but alas

-no "be mad legoshi" smh my head. can't the gays have ANYTHING

-Louis's still a giant faggot lmao

-zaguan is apparently also a giant faggot lmao

-the fish eating a bowl of upon is perhaps one of the most unsettling things I've ever seen

-while I was hoping they'd cut kyuu entirely, I do appreciate them name dropping her a little early so she doesn't just pop up out of no where like she does

-HE ATE A BEE

-I don't really love melons dub voice. could be faggier.

-was haru's dream of opening a restaurant in the manga? did they add it to parallel legoshi working in a restaurant?

-I was originally ready to say I didn't like the initial scene with haru's college friends bc I thought that was all we'd ever see of them, but im glad that wasn't the case and we got more of them, including the original manga scene (more or less)

-ngl I hate that they took out legoshi forgetting his own birthday smh

-juno infordmping on legoshi fucking killed me

-my mixed ass is having a hard time taking how they throw the word mixed around seriously lmao

-goofy ass cgi car

-THEY KEPT THE KINKY PARTY LESBIANS LETS FUCKING GO

-damn i thought FOR SURE the season was gonna end on legoshi getting shot but there's still a few episodes left lol

-speaking of, while I did like the scene of legoshi getting shot, I didn't love that they took out the part where legoshi handcuffed him, then let him go

-oh hey they they included a bit abt louis's prosthetic leg acting up. diversity win or smth idk

-even if I don't love melon's voice, they sure did animate that twink well

-LEANNOOOOO 😭😭😭😭😭😭

-immediately following that up with louis talking science with the civet was... a choice... like sure the theme of mixes is there but it's tonally very jarring in a binge watch (which again, they insist on)

-speaking of, wasnt the civet super racist before? hes kinda just some dork now

-legoshi not being able to resist talking stage lighting with the strip club owner lmao

-did... did netflix censor louis picking a lock?? lmao what

-wait how fast did louis's antlers grow back?

-JUST TO LOSE ONE AGAIN???

-lol at the principal telling the drama club "stop doing Adler get some new material"

-WHY DOES LEGOSHI WEAR HEADPHONES LIKE THAT

-oh they DID leave it on a he dead cliffhanger lmao

all in all, all of the great, slice-of-life legoshi making his way through life as an adult type stuff that I loved from the latter half of the manga (and also the jokerfied fruit twink) was there. aside from the aforementioned bit with the leanno scene going straight into something almost entirely unrelated, most of the pacing was pretty decent (even if in hindsight it is kinda funny jumping back and forth between scenes of legoshi experiencing bodily harm and the drama club going "but what about the big playyyy :(")

things haven't gotten too messy yet... now we wait for whenever pt 2 drops to see how bad it gets...

[docholligay]

DOCDOC BIRTHDAY WEEK EXTRAVAGANZA

HELLO AND WELCOME! For my birthday, i am getting to do things that *I* want to do, but I hope that you will love as well! Stuff we don't normally do, stuff I don't always have time for, etc. I hope this looks as fun to you as it does to me: BMuch of this I have handpicked as "Fuck I would love to do that if I had the time"

Saturday, August 10th: That evening, we'll have a lovely fun stream. The movie that won the draw out of the pitches was:

I FUCKING LOVE THE QUICK AND THE DEAD I HAVEN'T WATCHED IT IN YEARS THANK YOU FOR REMINDING ME IT EXISTED. It's so bad, it's so bad. It is so very much a shitty modern girlpower type fucking movie, it has NOT ONE IOTA of subtlety, it was basically a 60s-70s Western made with A Girl but trying to do business with the grittier Westerns of the 90s AMAZING. I CANNOT WAIT to tell you everything that is wrong with this movie, it is so fun and fucking stupid.

Sunday, August 11th: I'm running a race Full Send because this is how I have fun I guess but then, that evening, Jackbox games!

Monday, August 12th: The Patreon release of some more of Justified Episode one, and then that night, the movie club for The Lucky Mill! There's a separate post on that, I'll make sure to reblog it again a few times.

Tuesday, August 13th: First of all, It's Lena's birthday! According to my canon, the only one that matters. Weirdly this is not related to it being close to my birthday--I picked it out of a book about birthdays that I use for that sort of thing. I 'found' her personality and just made that her birthday. It's how I did it for all the Overwatch characters. ANYWAY.

It'll be a 'liveblog' (More like a series of long posts) about Season 2, Episode 9 of Vinland Saga. I streamed this show, and really really liked it, but Oath was, I think, my favorite of a series of very good episodes, and I can't wait to really talk about it.

Wednesday, August 14th: IT IS MY BIRTHDAY SHOWER ME WITH AFFECTION. I am going to the fair all day. It is also, no joke, Doc Holliday's birthday. How's that for fuckin kismet?

Thursday, August 15th: A series of unhinged essays about the television show Interview With The Vampire, deeply informed by the fact that the Vampire Chronicles were akin to my Harry fucking Potter when I was a deeply weird 13-16 year old. HUGE spoilers for the books, but honestly the TV show has been so different that it might NOT be a spoiler for the show ahaha. (I do very much like the show, in case anyone is worried it'll be a hateblog.)

That night: @keyofjetwolf and I will be watching S2E5 of Interview. She will have only seen UP to that point, and it's one of my favorite eps (I am sure all of you who have seen it know why)

Friday, August 16th: We finish off with a drunken stream. I will be asked to identify anime and what they are about in what I can only assume is some kind of Who Wants To Be A Weeaboo Piece of Shit, while I am drunk. May include audience participation. For any more detailed instructions/explanation, @ultrace is the main runner of this, with a heavy assist by @keyofjetwolf I think it will be very funny and I will do badly ahahah.

And that will be it! a full week of fun celebration! PLEASE JOIN ME AND HAVE FUN

[stardustizuku]

Why Miraculous LadyBug Is the Worst Thing To Happen To Magical Girl Genre in All Its History.

It would be easy to sit here and tell you all the logical reasons why Ladybug is a bad show. It has horrible pacing, it has low stakes, repetitive episodes, and a dialogue that is cringe worthy enough to get its own tiktok sound.

But saying that, would be beating a dead horse at this point. Everyone knows this show is a bunch of wasted potential, only made worse by a director who keeps thinking he created gold, when in fact he messed up in a lot of areas – particularly the fact that he’s a grown man who thinks he knows what little girls want.

I’m not here for that.

Particularly, because I can be quite forgiving to shows like this. I mean, they’re kids' shows! Meant for little girls, and I haven’t been one for a few years now. But I still enjoy them.

Why? Well, cause I’m a massive fan of Magical Girl animes. I love the glitter, the sparkles, the silly adventures with friends, and the transformation sequences! Even with all its flaws, I really like them. So, stories or shows that borrow from them, get a pass in all these things. 

I mean, I have fun re-watching WINX Club, I love Star Vs The Forces of Evil despite its flaws. Steven Universe holds a deep place in my heart and She-Ra is…She-Ra is in its very own league of how amazing it is.

So, no. Be it a very dumb show or a very smart one, I can have fun. It’s very rare when a show with, you know, glitter, girly stuff and animals CAN’T hold my attention.

But, well, MLB failed at that.

It’s just, not a good show.

I mean, it could be. But the age demographic would need to drop several, several age groups just to be barely watchable – and even then, I seriously doubt that it would be good for young girls to watch it. The lessons it teaches are concerning, to say the least.

And at this point, you may be thinking,

"Why do you care so much about this show? It’s dumb and you’ve acknowledged it treats its demographic as toddlers. Why do you care so much?"

Well, because I've been here... for a very, very long time.

Listen, I started watching Miraculous Ladybug, back when I was in high school. Maybe a bit old, but, hey, a lot of unique cartoons came out around that time. (Star Vs, Steven Universe, etc). So, I was hopeful. Really hopeful.

Mainly, because I was here before it EVEN premiered. I remember it. The original PV was 2D animated and it had this vague Princess Tutu vibes that JUST I couldn’t resist. It was clear as day that it borrowed a lot of its inspiration from magical girls from the 90's, probably even 80's.

The premise looked similar enough to Kaito Jeanne, and Kaito St. Tail for me to draw those conclusions.

It had a dynamic very similar to Princess Tutu and seemed like a mix of silly and dark like that one was.

To be honest, I could even see hints of Sugar Sugar Rune with Pierre and Felix.

Not to mention, the animation was beautiful.

I will never, never forget that scene with Chat looking at Ladybug starry-eyed under the Paris Moonlight. That was so beautiful, a genuine touch of romance that rang so similar to the Magical Girl animes I grew up with.

I was thrilled, I was excited. I wanted this show to succeed, before even the premier had dropped.

This is all to say -

I never came to this show with the intention for it to fail.

And I didn’t expect nor want it to be ground-breaking or a giant of the genre. I just hoped I could have a fun time.

I didn't want subversions, I didn't want it to be dark, or deep. All I wanted, was sparkles, fun and a good time.

So, when it first aired, I tried to stay positive. I tried to like it, even when it had all these massive red flags.

I’ve never been a big fan of 3D animation, and especially not how it’s used in Magical Girl animes. (We all know the disaster the first season of Sailor Moon Crystal was).

But I swallowed it down.

The characters were different from the original PV

But I swallowed it down.

The background scenery was bland and generic and hardly felt unique.

But I swallowed it down.

I was here since day 1. I was here when Stormy Weather premiered. I was here before many of you were, and

I swallowed it all down.

Because I really, really wanted this to be good.

And I really thought it would.

But things should have been made clear, when they fucked up the one thing they shouldn't. The one thing that held this all together. The one thing that kept me here even as everything was burning to the ground, and I was too naive to realize it.

They fucked up the thing that started all this, to begin with.

MasterList >> NEXT

[rose-of-the-underworld]

What are your favorite shoujo shows? I just started watching anime and would love recommendations.

AAAAAAAAAAAA! First of all, I'm sorry that this took two months to write up, but I am honestly touched that you asked me! Okay, so disclaimer that I wasn't deep into the anime scene until a few years ago (I'm a late bloomer), but shoujo is my bread and butter so to speak, so I'm happy to give some reccs! Note that this isn't ranked in any particular order, it's just as they come to me! Will give a summary and my thoughts on each. Also, most of these anime don't cover the entirety of the story published in their corresponding manga, but they're all a good starting point if you want to dive into reading the rest!

Putting under a read more because I'm more long-winded than I thought I would be

1.) Sailor Moon: The magical action-adventures of a teenage girl who learns of her destiny as the legendary warrior Sailor Moon and must band together with the other Sailor Scouts to defend the Earth and Galaxy.

Had to start with the original!! Now my love for Sailor Moon goes back to before I knew what anime even was. I caught wind of it when I was five years old and it was airing on TV for the first time, but I adored the show and my Princess Serenity doll. Now, please note that I really did not absorb much outside of the aesthetics and the insane dialogue of the 90s English dub before it stopped airing on tv and I forgot about it for a while, always meaning to get back into it, but never quite managing. Then during 2020 lockdown, my good friend and Sailor Moon expert @pollyannaisms started streaming little watch parties of Sailor Moon Crystal and boy did I fall in love all over again. I'm so happy that it came back into my life when I needed it most, tbh. It really is such a hopeful and optimistic series with some of the most lovely female friendships, one of the most beautiful and romantic love stories I've ever seen, and wonderful messages about loving yourself.

If you want a more streamlined plot with less episodes, I recommend starting with Sailor Moon Crystal since it follows the manga very closely and it's relatively short. 39 episodes across three seasons and then four movies - Sailor Moon Eternal parts 1&2 and Sailor Moon Cosmos part 1&2. Cosmos is FINALLY being released internationally on August 24th and I can't wait to finally see it, I've been rotting for it.

Now, the original 90s anime is also fantastic, it is just incredibly long with I believe 200 episodes and a few movies. It was airing as Naoko Takeuchi was publishing the manga so there's a lot of filler and the monster of the week format can get a little monotonous if you're trying to binge. I would say to take your time with it, but I do believe it's worth the watch because you get some wonderful character development episodes that are absent from Crystal. It's not perfect and there are some....odd choices made, but I do love it. Please note, that if you watch it in English through official streaming services, you'll be seeing a re-dub that Viz did with the Crystal cast when they bought the rights. It's a good dub! But man, I wish I could watch the original 90s English dub more easily (pirating such a long series is kind of an ordeal) because it has some of the funniest dialogue I've ever heard. Lots of people hate it, but I love the nostalgia factor and I personally find it hilarious.

2.) Ouran High School Host Club: Haruhi Fujioka is a studious girl who has recently enrolled at the prestigious Ouran Academy. One day, while looking for a quiet and peaceful place to study, she stumbles across a seemingly unused music room. Upon entering, Haruhi is welcomed by the members of the well-known Host Club: a club in which attractive boys amuse girls from across the entire school. However, when Tamaki Suoh—the founder and president of the club—startles the bright scholarship student, she accidentally breaks an expensive vase.

With repayment looking difficult for Haruhi, the Host Club members come up with the perfect solution to the girl's problem: work for the club and ultimately become a Host herself! Mistaken for a boy by her peers, Haruhi has to entertain various female students while coping with her fellow Hosts' extravagant personalities.

Ouran was the first anime that I ever watched on purpose at age 17, and it is very near and dear to my heart. It does come with some caveats, though. While this was the perfect starter anime for me (the friend who recc'd it knows me very well), it's not a good starter anime for everyone. It is incredibly over the top and is also a parody anime of shoujo romances, so some of the jokes might not land if you're a newbie. While I loved it at first viewing, I found it MUCH funnier when I rewatched it ten years later after having seen much more shoujo anime. Also, please note that Ouran aired in 2006, and while it was very progressive for the early 2000s, there is a lot of outdated terminology when it comes to LGBT topics, so tread with care and know that its heart was in the right place and we've come a long way in the last 20 years.

That being said, this series will always be one of my favorites. Aside from being insanely hilarious (and wildly out of pocket), the show has a lot of heart and characters who all genuinely love each other. It touches on feminism and gender and I credit it with making me bisexual.

3.) Fruits Basket: After a family tragedy turns her life upside down, high schooler Tohru Honda takes matters into her own hands and moves out...into a tent. Unfortunately for her, she pitches her new home on private land belonging to the mysterious Sohma clan, and it isn't long before the owners discover her secret. But, as Tohru quickly finds out when the family offers to take her in, the Sohmas have a secret of their own--when hugged by the opposite sex, they turn into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac.

God. Fruits Basket is everything to me. This was the second anime I ever watched on purpose, recc'd by the same friend who showed me Ouran. She lent me her DVDs of the 2001 anime adaptation when I was 18 and it took me a few months to actually watch it but MAN. When I tell you that I was crying during the finale with my 8 week old kitten on my chest, and then when the 2019 reboot aired their version of the season finale, I was crying AGAIN with the same cat who was at that point 14 lbs and still snuggling on my chest. Full circle. It will never not be good. I would absolutely recommend that you watch the 2019 reboot over the 2001 version because it encompasses the whole story and has the budget for a much higher quality production. The animation is beautiful and I really like the music. The storytelling is phenomenal, thank you, Natsuki Takaya for my life.

Tohru Honda is truly one of my favorite characters of all time. There is so much depth to her, so much kindness and sadness and a heart full of love. She changes the lives of everyone she meets by just loving them unconditionally and has a legion of friends who would do anything for her. This is another story that features the struggle to love yourself, but it is also about the struggle to let others love you as well. The main romance is another top tier love story for me, and all of the side romances are compelling as well. I will warn you that the series deals heavily with familial abuse and with grief. For every laugh and heartwarming moment, there is a punch to the gut right around the corner. But god, it's worth it in the end. Fruits Basket is full of bittersweet moments of catharsis and it never fails to make me insane (affectionate). Fantastic characters and an excellent plot, it's one of the most compelling series I've ever seen.

4.) Kimi Ni Todoke: Sawako Kuronuma has had a difficult time fitting in, due to her shy nature and her similarity in name and appearance to Sadako from The Ring. On her first day of high school, Sawako meets the one boy who treats her like a normal girl-Shota Kazehaya. Through his selfless aid, Sawako slowly learns to come out of her shell and even begins to make friends for the first time in her life. However, with a new social life come social pressures. As she grows into her new identity, Sawako must learn to deal with such pressures as well as start to understand the unfamiliar feelings inside of her, especially in regards to the boy who made her new start possible.

This is probably THEEEEE sweetest thing I've ever seen. I watched it for the first time last year and I was legitimately crying happy tears in episode 1. If this is your first time watching, you're in luck! Season 3 just premiered after a 13 year hiatus! I've only watched an episode and a half so far, and I already love it so much. It has the exact same energy as the first two seasons. Sawako and Kazehaya are too adorable for words, and Sawako's two best friends are wonderful. This series does a great job of handling the real struggles of adolescents while also being full of optimism and love of all sorts.

5.) Kamisama Kiss: newly homeless teenager Nanami Momozono is trying to figure out her next move when she helps a stranger in need. Out of gratitude, he offers Nanami his home, a rundown shrine, and also his job as a land god. Now, Nanami must juggle high school along with the duties of a deity with the help of Tomoe, a reformed fox demon who reluctantly becomes her familiar in a contract sealed with a kiss. As the headstrong Tomoe tries to whip her into shape, Nanami finds that love just might have cute, pointed fox ears. With romance in the air, will the human deity be able to prove herself worthy of her new title?

This series made me CRAZY!!!!!!! Nanami and Tomoe are such a good nuisances to lovers story with a really interesting twist that I genuinely did not see coming! Nanami is adorable and Tomoe is the perfect house husband, I love them so much. This series is such a fun little romp through the supernatural world of gods, demons, and spirits, with an incredibly interesting cast of characters. The anime has two seasons and a few OVAs, but in order to see the latter, you're going to have to search the less than legal sites because they were never licensed internationally. Definitely worth it in my opinion to see the end of the story.

6.) Yona of the Dawn: Sheltered and spoiled Princess Yona is the only heir to the throne of Kouka. Yona's perfect world comes crashing down when a heinous act of treason threatens to erase all that she holds dear, including her birthright as the princess of Kouka. Left with no one to trust but her childhood friend and loyal bodyguard Son Hak, she is forced to flee the palace. Faced with the perils of surviving in the wild with a target on her back, Yona realizes that her kingdom is no longer the safe haven it once was.

Free from the shackles of naivety, Yona vows to do everything in her power to become strong enough to crush her enemies. With Hak by her side, she must piece together the remains of an ancient legend that might be the key to reclaiming her kingdom from those who conspired to steal it from her.

THIS SERIES MADE ME CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yona of the Dawn honestly ticks all of my boxes -- sheltered princess who needs to learn how to fight, political intrigue, betrayal, heartbreak, ancient magical legends, and a princess/bodyguard romance. The anime (and OVAs) are only a very small part of the story, but it was excellent regardless. The manga is incredibly long and actually just celebrated its 15th anniversary; it's regarded one of the greatest shoujo manga of all time. I had started reading the manga a few years back, and I REALLY need to get back into it, especially since it seems to be inching closer to the end. But if you love action packed fantasy adventures, this is the story for you!

7.) Inuyasha*: Suddenly finding herself in feudal Japan, schoolgirl Kagome teams up with half-demon Inuyasha to retrieve the scattered shards of a sacred jewel.

*Technically, a shounen, but has the vibes of a shoujo. I need you to know that last year when I had covid, I watched 50 episodes of this series and the first movie. And then I was compelled to make the following image:

Inuyasha is a long one so I suggest pacing yourself, but it is so so worth it! This is another action packed fantasy series with awesome characters, fantastic writing, and a heart stopping romance. The creator, Rumiko Takahashi was already an experienced mangaka when she made Inuyasha, and it shows. She's excellent at naturally weaving the romance into the overarching narrative and there's a maturity to her writing that makes this story about young people feel so intense and complex in the best way.

8.) Maid-Sama!: Misaki is class president of a formerly all-male school. A beacon of hope to the female students as well as teachers, she rules over the boys with an iron fist and a heart of ice. A popular male student stumbles on to her secret double life- working part-time as an upbeat and cheery waitress at a maid cafe! Misaki is forced to make a deal: spend some time with him, or have her hard earned reputation destroyed by revealing her embarrassing secret.

I will warn you, there are elements to this anime that have not aged well since its airing in 2010. A lot of it is very feminist in that early 2000s way! But it also includes that early 2000s brand of "problematic" possessive (and maybe a little too inappropriate) love interest and some outdated romance anime tropes. But all in all, I think it's worth a view. I really love Misaki as a character so much, and her relationship with Usui is fun and frustrating and very, very sweet.

9.) My Love Story!!: With his muscular build and tall stature, Takeo Gouda is no ordinary high school freshman. However, behind Takeo's intimidating appearance lies a pure heart of gold. Unfortunately for Takeo, his appearance does not bode well for his love life. As if his looks were not already enough to scare girls away, Takeo's cool, handsome best friend and constant companion Makoto Sunakawa easily, and unintentionally, steals the hearts of the female students—including every girl Takeo has ever liked.

One day, when Takeo saves cute Rinko Yamato from a creep on the train, he falls in love with her instantly. But with handsome Sunakawa around, does Takeo even stand a chance?

It's rare to see a shoujo series with a male protagonist, but Takeo is honestly perfect for the role and deserves everything good in the world. This is such an adorable anime with the sweetest couple on Earth and the best friend that anyone could ever ask for. Takeo and Rinko are both down so bad for each other and they're both adorable, awkward clowns. They were truly meant to be! Takeo's friendship with Sunakawa is also such a vital and lovely part of the series and shows that your platonic relationships are just as important as your romantic ones.

10.) My Little Monster: Shizuku Mizutani is apathetic toward her classmates, only caring about her grades. However, her cold view of life begins to change when she meets Haru Yoshida, a violent troublemaker who stopped attending class after getting into a fight early in the school year. He is not much different from her, though—he too understands little about human nature and does not have any friends. Much to Shizuku's surprise, he proclaims that she will be his friend and immediately confesses his feelings toward her upon meeting her.

Because of her lack of friends and social interaction, Shizuku has a hard time understanding her relationship with Haru. But slowly, their friendship begins to progress, and she discovers that there is more to Haru than violence. She begins to develop feelings for him, but is unsure what kind of emotions she is experiencing. Together, Shizuku and Haru explore the true nature of their relationship and emotions.

This is a story about a boy and a girl who struggle with love and friendship. Opening yourself up to other people forces you to be honest with yourself.

Here's another "problematique" anime that I fell head over heels in love with in spite of certain things that didn't age well. I'm a simple woman, give me a cold girl and a feral boy who are obsessed with each other and don't know how to function in society and I'm sold. While Shizuku and Haru's bizarre, never-on-the-same-page romance is the overarching narrative, an important part of the series is the two of them learning how to make friends and find community with other socially dysfunctional weirdos. The friends that they make are just as interesting as the two of them and are equally important to the story.

This is another series that I highly recommend reading the manga for, since the one season anime doesn't get far enough into the story for a satisfying ending. Shizuku's revelations about herself and her character development in the manga genuinely made me cry, and Haru gets some good development as well. Their relationship progresses in a very sweet way as they work to understand each other and respect boundaries and communicate.

11.) Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun:

Chiyo Sakura is a cheerful high school girl who has fallen head over heels for the oblivious Umetarou Nozaki. Much to Chiyo's confusion, when she confesses to her beloved Nozaki, he hands her an unfamiliar autograph. As it turns out, the stoic teenage boy is actually a respected shoujo manga artist, publishing under a pen name. A series of misunderstandings leads to Chiyo becoming one of Nozaki's manga assistants and befriending many of her quirky schoolmates. This slice of life comedy follows Chiyo as she strives to help Nozaki with his manga and hopes that he will eventually notice her feelings.

I adore this series to the moon and back. Both adorable and absolutely HILARIOUS, Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun, is a wild ride from start to finish. The slow burn to end all slow burns, this ongoing 4-panel, slice of life manga has been ongoing since 2011, yet remains hilarious and so does the one season anime. This is another parody shoujo anime where some jokes might go over your head if you're a beginner, but I think it's easier to digest than Ouran, and would be a fine starter anime. This is another clown4clown romance, but Chiyo and Nozaki aren't the only ones. Their friends are a vibrant cast of characters who tend to fall into classic shoujo manga tropes (though not always in the ways you'd expect) and all have their own incredibly silly and off the wall will-they-won't-they romances.

This is such a fun series that never fails to make me laugh, and often makes me swoon. It's both ridiculous and relatable and you can't help but root for every single character.

And I'll end it there! I have quite a few other series that are near and dear to my heart but these are probably the ones I talk about the most. If you've made it this far, thank you for reading. Anon, I hope that you enjoy your adventures in shoujo anime!

If anyone ever wants to talk about any of these series, my inbox is always open. Seriously, I am always dying to talk about all of these!

[ultraericthered]

2020 Memories: CLANNAD/After Story

In late 2019, I'd watched all of the 26 episode anime adaptation of CLANNAD, a visual novel from Key Arts that's probably Jun Maeda's most famous work. It was a quality series overall, but it really sat just OK with me rather than being something I fell in love with. Part of what was holding it back for me is that I could sort of tell that it was adapting a bunch of different VN routes into the framework of a singular narrative, that narrative deriving its core from the Nagisa Route, so it made it weird when helping Nagisa re-start the Drama Club was set up as the main goal only for the story to keep getting sidetracked with different plots and character arcs that had little to do with that goal, making it drag until the last couple of episodes. Also, I was coming off from having recently seen Madea's following work Angel Beats!, which was a very different beast than CLANNAD that had much more plot momentum, arguably a bit too much given how the midsection got stuff that was not designed for a one cours anime squeezed into it and checked off at a very frantic pace. On top of all that, the stuff with the girl and the toy robot in the invisible in-between world came off as such nonsequiturs, it drove me aboslutely insane!

Then in 2020, I watched After Story, the second season which just upped the game in every possible way. The few solo character arc route adaptations at the start (the Sunoharas, Katsuki Shima, and Yukine Miyazawa) were brief yet memorable and impactful, and then after Tomoya's graduation, his story of transitioning from boyhood to manhood got legitimately compelling and resonant with me. One of the things about the show I'd absolutely loved since early on was the character of Nagisa Furukawa, so I had to watch what I knew was coming since starting the show: her death in childbirth. It didn't make me cry much, but it hit me in my heart so hard that I had to take a small break from watching the show (and it didn't help that the Covid pandemic was rampant around that exact same time), and in that time I actually started a re-watch of the first season, partially just to get to see my dear Nagisa again. And this time around, knowing what everything in After Story that it's building up to enhanced the experience and made me love and appreciate the show on a deeper level. Both seasons put together weave a storyline that was just a perfect fit for what ended up being a life-altering, coming-of-age year.

The bad news is that when I resumed After Story, it reached its emotional peak two episodes in (this one did get me choked up!) and then the last episode kind of sucks if you're not familiar with the outside context of the VN. But when I finish the story and hear this song playing, it just feels so right. It's a work I'll always treasure.

[heavenangelblog]

as promised, according to the past post, movie list:

my favorite action movies:

Straż nocna and Straż dzienna

Skyscraper

Die hard

two old Hellboys

Ice road

Monster hunter

Priest

Unleashed

The darkest hour

Maze runner

Kick ass (only the first one actually and it's my guilty pleasure, don't judge me)

Valerian

Duel 1971

Watchmen and bunch of Marvel movies

Rollerball

Hunger games

Returner

Independence day (sentiment)

Ghostbusters

Tim Burton's Batman

Demolition man

Red

Wild wild west

Tank girl

old Twister (new one is a disgrace)

Free guy

Charlie's angels

Operation dumbo drop

Arsene Lupin

The silent hour

Jurassic park/world

Uncharted

Indiana Jones

The rocketeer

Robin Hood 2018 (it's a secret why)

Salt

Mad Max

Speed

Blue thunder

old Judge Dredd

Equilibrium

The fugitive

The purge?

biography or document:

Napoleon (even tho it was disturbing, it's worth watching for few scenes)

Extremely wicked, shockingly evil and vile

Iris

Frida

Marina Abramovic

Sayat nova

Grey gardens

Dangerous minds

Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds

Purple rain

Girl interrupted

The Ron Clark story

Advanced style

Queen: days of our lives

Królik po berlińsku

Cleveland abduction

comedies:

Addams Family

Elvira

What we do in the shadows

Buster Keaton movies

3 men and a baby/little lady

My big fat greek wedding (last one wasn't the best tbh)

Les nouvelles aventures d'Aladin

The first wives club

Freaky friday

Mean girls

Maverick

Galaxy quest

Ciacho (sorry not sorry)

Sydney White

Sahara

*wondering what it all means about me, probably nothing good but paints a pretty good picture of my humor

dramas:

The last legion

Marrowbone

Alice, darling

Klass

Shutter island

Judex 1963

Secretary

Cloud Atlas

A patch of blue

Truman show

Times square

The monuments men

The fall 2006

Robinson Crusoe 2003 (the french version)

Renaissance man

Race the sun

Frantic

Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind

Breakfast club

Hello my name is Doris

Little miss sunshine

En Duva satt på en gren och funderade på tillvaron

The beniker gang (if someone has a link where I can watch it - I beg you)

Click

To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar

Under the Tuscan sun

Flight of the phoenix

Christmas movies:

Santa and Pete

It's a wonderful life

Grinch

Elf

fantasy movies:

Hobbit and LOTR (including animated one)

Krull

The watchers

Red riding hood 2011

Dungeons and dragons

Gods of Egypt

Kate & Leopold

Paradise Hills

The princess bride

Warcraft

Fire and ice

The scorpion king and all Mummies

League of extraordinary gentlemen

The shadow 1994

Night at the museum

The 10th kingdom

surreal movies:

Blood tea and red strings

Meshes of the afternoon

Paprika

Destiny to order (also looking for a link)

This is me... now

The cell

Twin peaks: firewalk with me

romantic movies:

Red white and royal blue

Penelope

On - drakon

Stranger than fiction

A lot like love

Ode to joy

My policeman (but it's complicated)

Byoo-tee In-sai-deu

Five feet apart

Me before you

My monster

horrors and thrillers:

A quiet place

Bird box

Priest

Van Helsing

Last night in Soho

The lost boys

The village 2004

sci fi:

Star wars

John Carter

Atlas

Mortal engines

favorite shows:

High potential

From

Grotesquerie

Fallout

Heartstopper

Gen V

The crowded room

Into the night

Czterej pancerni i pies

Don Matteo

Call the midwife

first series of Stranger things and Orphan black

Buffy

My mad fat diary

Poirot

OITNB (but not to the very end)

TBBT

The Simpsons

United states of Tara

AHS Freak show

few episodes of Black mirror

The last of us

LOTR (mixed feelings about it)