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Artificiality in SSSS.Gridman and Dynazenon

Not sure I have much of a point here, but I wanted to note something I find really interesting in the way that Dynazenon, and to an extent Gridman, are directed.

There's an element of naturalism that strikes you immediately when watching either of these shows. Characters mumble, talk over each other, and leave long, awkward pauses between lines. There is a sense that we are seeing something "authentic". A film would normally cut out all that stuff and only include the perfect, sanitized shot. By refusing to do this we are constantly forced to reckon with the fact that we are watching a film. This kind of technique is used often for example in French New Wave films, with devices like fourth wall breaks and improvised dialogue. "You are watching a film, which is constructed from, but separate to, reality".

Only this isn't a film made out of real footage. It's an anime. It isn't naturally there, it wasn't left in intentionally -- it's all constructed. This is really interesting to me. The "unreality" that is being indicated is not the gap between real life and film, because there's no real life there. We have the illusion of seeing something "authentic" slip through the cracks of the editing -- but in reality that authenticity is constructed. When I say "constructed" here I mean it's animation of course, but in the lore there's this idea that the series takes place in a simulation, too (pretty clever).

But by successfully constructing this illusion of authenticity in animation, it draws attention to the fact that even in authentic-seeming, live-action, we are never actually seeing "reality". There is always a deliberate choice involved in pointing a camera at an object. It may not be drawn from scratch, but it still isn't completely real. So in a sense, animation isn't any more "fake" than live action footage; if you want to flip that around, you could say it's just as real. To put it in one sentence: by imitating formal techniques from film that were initially meant to highlight the artificiality of film by showing reality as "it is" as opposed to reality as it "should be", Gridman/Dyna prove that the very notion that you can show reality "as it is" is an illusion. The fact that Gridman/Dyna can come so close to that illusion, without almost any of the same raw ingredients in film, is really impressive.

There's a lot to say about how the two shows deal with this and for what purpose this illusion is used, because it's vastly different between them. In Gridman, it's integral to the plot that everything is a simulation -- we are constantly reminded of it, and the goal of the series is in some sense to "break free" of the illusion. But in Dynazenon, the fact that it's all a simulation isn't ever mentioned directly. At the end, Shizumu asks Yomogi if he would like to "break free" -- but Yomogi says no. This one difference highlights a lot about the themes and characters of the different series, but I'll probably come back to it later. Suffice it to say that both series use the idea of illusions in very different ways, and in both cases the formal, technical aspects inform the narrative.

Apart from being clever and cool and interesting, I just think this approach is really exciting for anime in general. Anime, for better or for worse, is a very codified medium. That's not to say that there isn't innovation, but a lot of people have pointed out that there is a strong visual grammar to anime that is deeply ingrained in the medium with everything from nosebleeds to flashy run cycles. Of course, this extends to writing and dialogue as well. A lot of my issues with Gridman stemmed from the fact that it felt like it was constantly grappling with the legacy of anime before it (like Eva and Gurren Lagann), and it read to me like it self consciously trying to redo and outdo those series.

But ultimately, Gridman still felt completely unique aesthetically, and Dynazenon went even further beyond that while liberating itself of much of the baggage of being an inheritor of the Gainax mecha lineage. Even if there's a long history in film of the kind of techniques discussed earlier, I think there's a lot of potential for not just imitating them, but recreating them, modifying them, and combining them in new ways in anime and animation in general. There's quite a lot of directorial decisions in both of these shows that just absolutely blew my mind, and I think this is actually a way forward and I hope the birth of a completely new style. All this is to say that even pretty much ignoring the "content" (i.e. narrative, interpretations) of these shows, the "formal" aspect of them strikes me as downright revolutionary.

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this part got me good, ahah

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Gridman Universe (2023)

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That was so over the top in the best fucking way.

 I would also like to point out how much went into that character-wise.

Gridknight- Only exists due to Anti finding himself in the first show.

Dynazenon- Needs all of its pilots to be at peak mental condition to function. So Yume, Yomogi and Koyomi all needed to proceed with their character arcs

Goldburn- Exists due to Chise’s arc that started(?) here.

This thing was like 5 different character arcs all wrapped into one stupidly over the top giant superhero. I love it. Honestly, I think this thing summarizes the selling point of the entire series.

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Yomogi and Yume are truly the greatest, this is official merch, he really is her babygirl

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I realize I never posted getting the full set but here they are

The leafa I got for $112 used a few months ago including shipping

All in all spent a little more than I liked but considering all the crazy tariff stuff I'm glad I got them when I did

Still looking to get a proper shelf for them tho

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Gridman Universe (2023)

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finished my binge of the ssss series

def liked the character focus for dynazenon more but i can appreciate what they were going for in gridman

the meta-y stuff going on with the multiverse specifically was fun

as a whole the dynazenon cast was just more fun to have bouncing off of each other and i think had a more comedic tone overall? idk, but the gridman world felt more somber with its overall mysteriousness of the world and trippy dream sequence stuff

also where the dynazenon cast were fairly quick to reach out to each other to help, we spend a lot more episodes watching akane deteriorate due to lack of connection which was also a bit downer

the respective SSSS acronyms definitely reflect the difference in intent when writing the show tho haha

also the bit of instance domination fanservice was 10/10 for the movie

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(reply to the kroger & walmart chicken fettucine alfredo listeria outbreak)

hey holy shit. the sound I made when I read this. this is exactly why the chicken fettucine recall is so scary, it is such a huge comfort food and a bunch of folks eat it while pregnant. I am so fucking glad my post found you and that you got medical attention right away.

yours is an example of doing exactly the right thing: listeria is especially dangerous while pregnant, and there are antibiotics that can be prescribed for high-risk folks during the early stages of symptoms or even before symptoms begin. and while listeria can take up to 80 days to cause illness, it can also cause issues within hours or days of eating contaminated food.

for you and for everyone else trying to avoid the general news right now, here is a list to help keep up with recalls and foodborne illness outbreaks in the united states since I do not post all of them:

FDA recall list (food, drug, medical device, etc recalls with press announcements, usually bigger food recalls have announcements)

FDA enforcement reports (more recalls go here, but more difficult to navigate than the recall list with announcements)

USDA FSIS recall list (they cover different food than FDA, especially meat. the chicken fettucine alfredo recall was posted here)

NHTSA recall list (vehicles, car seats, tires, and equipment recalls!)

CPSC recall and safety warning list (products! there have been a LOT of recalls of baby stuff recently!)

FDA outbreak investigations (you can see the status of outbreaks as they happen and get investigated, this is often where recalls start)

CDC active investigations of foodborne illness outbreaks (outbreaks can have both an FDA page and a CDC page. they cover different information)

foodsafetynews (news about food safety ONLY! not a government source. mostly focused on the US and canada, but also news around the world. some of what they post involves commentary on the current administration, BUT they post about bigger and more relevant recalls that wind up in the ever-tricky FDA enforcement reports.)

best of luck to you and your baby, and make sure you get plenty of rest!!!!!

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Since you seem to take the opportunity to dunk on it regularly, I’m curious what exactly your reasoning is for disliking Dynazenon? I get the impression it’s less in your (my, for that matter) strike zone in regards to being very gay like It’s predecessor, but I didn’t think there were major fundamental problems with it (certainly I had some minor gripes with it myself, but overall I liked it despite being very Heterosexual)

God I don't even know where to begin. Overall it was very shallow and just a huge disappointment. REALLY LONG POST so, more under the cut

cw: Dynazenon spoilers, me getting heated over things that don't matter.

The problem isn't that it's het, it's that it's mediocre het and we spend so much time on it that it ends up ruining every other theme they were going for.

The show ends up contradicting itself a lot. Text and subtext say completely opposite things it's just frustrating.

Dynazenon introduces a lot of cool concepts, themes and characters then decides to do do absolutely fuck all with them. Because we need to spend all the screentime focusing on Yomogi, who is a nothing character because we need a blank character so that boys can self insert into him.

I think the show would be exponentially better if they wrote around Yomogi not existing.

Chise is far more interesting as a character and would've been a more compelling protagonist but instead she's just wasted potential. The way the show treats her is pretty shitty too. Her whole deal is that for her entire life she's felt left out by her peers. And here is no different. They try to have her pilot Dyna Soldier, and having her be Yomogi's tag team partner would've been so interesting, but instead a bedridden Yomogi has to step in because she sucks so much I guess. She's still feeling left out by her "team", because she never does anything with them other than stick around. Her character arc is resolved when she gets a robot-kaiju of her own. The team realizes her potential and... they take her robot and still leave her out. Nothing really changed but she's happy about it now, I guess?

In text, Gridman is about a group of broken people coming together to form a strong group of friends, that's one of its core themes. Yomogi even tells the main villain that's the reason they lost to team Dyna.

But in subtext, they were never really shown as friends or as a tight team. This is one of the reasons why I dislike Yomogi and Yume's relationship so much. We spends so much time forcing them together like Fire Emblem units to make them get to S rank but the final dialogue is just mediocre and we wonder why we did all that.

Yume and Yomogi don't really have friendships in the team outside of each other. Dynazenon doesn't feel like a team because Yume didn't have any time alone to bond with either Gauma or Koyomi. Yomogi never hung out with Chise or Koyomi. So we're supposed to believe that the baddies lost because they don't have any real bonds unlike our heroes, yet we see the villains be a closer group than them. (We see them go to the movies, bowling and karaoke together).

It feels kinda like this:

Then there's also the way the show treats Yume.

She starts as a very compelling character. She's obviously got her own issues to deal with, and over the course of the show she deals with them. But the problem with her is that over the course of the show, she gradually becomes entirely dependent on Yomogi.

I imagine they were going for a romantic thing, something like "No matter if you're lost, I will always find you and be there for you". But the way it's presented just comes off as her not being able to do anything without him.

After they start hanging out, that's pretty much it for her because the narrative doesn't allow for Yume to have a life outside of Yomogi. Even Yume's friend, Mei, whom she actually had a connection with her and showed genuine emotion and even joy with, gets pushed and fading away away by Yomogi's screentime with her.

Sure, Yume gets to be sad about her dead sister but he worms his way into every part of it. He literally ends up breaking into her memories.

Yume's sister tells her she should start to rely on her team more. Yume says she's learning to do so, but the narrative shows that she can only rely on Yomogi and no one else. When she gets lost, they keep pushing the idea that only Yomogi can find her, and even though Chise finds her first, she pushes the idea that only Yomogi is the only in the team for her. Again, contradicting its themes just to push this couple.

In the final episodes, Yume and Yomogi get separated because they need to find their robots that are in opposite directions. But Yume isn't allowed to have a life outside of Yomogi, so of course she fails and has to be saved by him.

The manner in which their relationship starts also rubbed me the wrong way. It starts with Yomogi feeling insecure that Yume is talking to Sizumu, a potential threat to his goal of dating her. The way he asks to help her form then on just feels less genuine and more like he just wants to make sure that she's not talking to other men.

Every other time that Yume talks to Sizumu, Yomogi is always there like a dog and when he finds out that she was talking to him without him being there, he immediately tries to pry. (While Sizumu, in the same situation, is shown to respect boundaries)

But then at the end Yomogi is proven right by the narrative and it wasn't wrong at all for him to be jealous and doubt the other boy getting in his way to pussytown, because he drops his calm and quiet façade and reveals his true colors, he wants to genocide everyone!

We don't even know why Yomogi likes Yume at all. He starts pursuing her because his coworker was like "hey girl and boy are always lovers maybe ask her out ;)"

Also this is me reaching but I do find it sus that the gnc looking kid that turns into a rainbow kaiju was the biggest threat to humanity.

I know it's not the case but it often feels like Dynazenon is Trigger's apology for making Gridman look gay. They spend so little time developing Yuta and Rikka that all they could do was add a quick blushing at the idea of him liking her even though they're complete strangers. So on Dyna feels like they were like "oh shit, let's spend the entire time focusing on them this time"

But yeah, like I said, overall it feels like it wasted so much of its themes and ideas.

Like when they introduce the Kaiju control on Yomogi, while every episode has been about defeating the monster of the week, suddenly there's the possibility that maybe humans and kaiju can coexist. That's something I'd have liked to see explored! But instead we spend our screentime with Yomogi trying to get his dick wet.

But yeah tl;dr: Yomogi sucks, this show is shallow and saved only by having the trigger logo slapped on it and the pretty animation.

My friend @sleepy-hailey put it into better words:

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For all of the northerners that stood up for Texas during our freeze and said, "Don't make fun of them, they've never dealt with this before. Their infrastructure isn't made for snow and freezing."

This one is for you.

Where I live 108°F with 80% humidity with no wind is normal.

Pacific North West is dealing historic best waves 35-40°C or 95-105°F.

First of all. Don't make fun of them for bitching about the heat. Just like Texas isn't built for a freeze and our pipes burst, Pacific North West isn't built for heat and a lot of their homes don't have AC.

If you live somewhere with a high humidity like 80+ HUMIDITY IS NOT YOUR FRIEND. The "humidity makes it feel cooler" is a lie once it gets beyond a point.

If you live somewhere with a lower humidity, misters are nice to cool off outside.

Once you get over 90°F (32°C) a fan will not help you. It's just pushing around hot air. (I mean if you can't afford a small AC unit because they're expensive as hell, by all means a fan is better than nothing).

If you have pets, those portable AC units aren't safe. If your pets destroy the outtake thing, it'll leak CO2. Window units are safer.

Window AC units will let mosquitoes or other small bugs in. Sucks, but that's life.

Now is not the time to me modest. If you have to cover for religious reasons, by all means. If you don't, I've seen people wear short shorts and a swim top. It's not trashy if it keeps you from getting heat stroke.

If you do have to cover up for religious reasons, look for elephant pants or something similar. They're made with a breathable material.

Shade is better than no shade, but that shit it just diet sun after some point. Don't think shade will save you from heat stroke.

I know the "drink your water" is a fun meme now, but if you're sweating excessively you need electrolytes. Drink Gatorade, Powerade, or Pedialite PLEASE. I don't care if you're fucking sitting in one spot all day. That shit WILL save you from heat stroke.

Most importantly. RESEARCH THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HEAT STROKE AND HEAT EXHAUSTION PLEASE!

If you're diabetic and can't drink Gatorade, mix water, fruit juice, and either lite salt or pink salt

If you can afford it, cover windows with thick curtains to insulate the house

If you have tile floors, lay on them with skin to tile contact. If you don't, laying your head on cool counters works too.

If the temperature where you're at is hotter than your body temperature, don't wear heat wicking clothing. Moisture wicking is safe though.

Check your medication labels. Many make you more susceptible to sun and heat

-Room temperature water will get into your body faster. This is something I learned doing marching band in high summer in Georgia, and it saved all of our asses. Sip it, don't gulp it, especially if you're getting into the red; same goes for whatever fluid you're drinking. And just in general drink during the day.

-If you are moving from an air conditioned space to an un-air conditioned space, if at all possible try to make the shift gradual. When my dad and I were working outside and in un-ac houses a few years ago, he'd turn the air down to low in the truck about ten-fifteen minutes before we got where we were going. This way your body doesn't go from low low temps to high temps. S'bad for you.

-If you can, keep your lights off during the day. Light bulbs may not generate a lot of heat, but the difference is noticeable when it gets hot enough. I literally only turn my bedroom light on in the evening when it gets too dark.

Don't be afraid to just like... pour water on yourself if you need to. The evaporation will cool you off.

Put your hand to the cement for 15 seconds. If you can't handle the heat, it'll burn your dog's paws. Don't let them walk on it.

Dogs with flat faces are more prone to heat stroke. Don't leave them out unsupervised.

Frozen fruit is delicious in water.

Wet/Cold hat/handkerchief on your head/neck will help you stay cool.

Pickle juice is great for electrolytes! You can even make pickle juice Popsicles!

Heat exhaustion is more, "drink water and get you cooled off." Heat stroke is more "Oh my god call 911."

Image Description provided by @loveize

[Image description: an infographic showing the difference between heat exhaustion and heat stroke. The graphic is labeled "Heat Dangers: First Warning." Signs of heat exhaustion: faint or dizzy, excessive sweating, cool, pale, clammy skin, rapid, weak pulse, muscle cramps. If you think you or someone else may be experiencing heat exhaustion, get to a cool, air-conditioned place, drink water if conscious, and take a cool shower or use cold compress. Signs of heat stroke: throbbing headache, no sweating, red, hot, dry skin, rapid, strong pulse, may lose consciousness. If you think you or someone else may be experiencing heat stroke, call 911. End description]

Be safe.

-fae

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30-Song Guess Your Age Quiz

Fwiw, they thought I was MANY years younger than I am. Just made me feel good all over. 😊

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I’m so happy I got this shot earlier holy shit

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just finished dynazenon and whooo boy this is an easy 9/10 for me, currently riding off the high of finishing it i might even go for 10/10

the naturalist-style of awkward pauses and lingering shots, combined with its use for comedic effect is like 1000% my jam and I loved to see that carried through the show

the male lead being the "yellow ranger" in tokusatsu terms meaning he's much less brash and instead more empathetic (he's not afraid to have a good cry and I am all for it)

the lingering way of dealing with death in the family/friends (last one i can recall hitting hard for me was anohana)

ahhhhhhhhhhhhh i was not expecting such a good character drama out of a 12-ep mech show (including plenty of excellently animated stock footage that would eat up runtime)

god i wanna root for all the cast so bad they were all very likeable, gotta watch gridman to prep for the eventual crossover

yomogi and yume were so friggin cute and they 100% sold me on the relationship gah. the subtle way they portray the relationship and yume teasing yomogi to use yobisute just. squeeeeeee

also i thought it was a really nice detail that their friend groups did indeed overlap through the blue short haired girl, they didn't even really know, the world is not as vast as it seems indeed

just everyone being so earnest, and the insert songs being wonderfully hokey was great, mmm yeah

Edit: cooling off the high of binging it til 2 am, Chise was done pretty dirty and I do think the show could have used a few more episodes to make it less the Yomogi/Yume show.

Like I don't think Yume and Koyomi talk one-on-one once

I actually really enjoyed the Kaiju Eugenist slice of life tho and I am glad they budgeted time for that.

Will probably dive into the supplemental material to see what other content the writers had to scrap to fit the runtime but I am invested

And as for the movie, well I do think it an interesting choice to have Yume turn into a hardcore shipper but I will admit it seems to be a common anime trope for the quieter girls that have a bit of a teasing streak