#I EXPECT ALL OF THIS IN RECAP FILM 3

[taekooktimeline]

July 30, 2023 (filmed), February 14, 2024 (released) -

We finally have a BB of Jk’s Inkigayo stage performance! A smiling Tae arrives to support him -

Timestamp 2:33 

Tae, at first, stands over Jk. Jk knows who’s entered the room, even with his eyes closed. He clearly was expecting Tae, and he “greets” him by asking, “What?” It should be noted, as others have pointed out, that they didn’t greet each other with the standard “Hello” or “How are you?” This is another indicator of how close they are and how much time they spend with each other to skip these formalities. 

There’s then a noticeable cut, with Tae now air-straddling Jk. The subsequent interaction between them is so incredibly domestic! Jk is adorably pouty as he twice asks Tae, in a soft voice, where he’d been.

Timestamp 2:40

Tae explains in an equally super soft, low tone that he had been practicing. Jk repeats in an inquiring, yet still soft tone, “Practice?” Tae further explains that he was at dance then violin practice, before working out.

Timestamp 2:50  https://x.com/v1230mp4/status/1757708423280640268?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

Translation -

https://x.com/tcnckclnsmaek/status/1758376772562010549?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

Also something to point out is that when Tae stood over Jk, Jk’s legs lay flat on the ground -

Once Tae’s legs were encased around him, Jk lifted a leg up so that he could reciprocate his touch.

CT to Eve for the observation - https://x.com/evexece_kthjjk/status/1758339565239099456?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

And it’s super cute how Tae seems to have left his glasses on Jk’s luggage while they talked - 

In the next clip, Jk starts boxing while Tae looks on.

Timestamp 2:51

We then see Taekook playfully boxing together.

Below is a close up of Jk’s soft, fond stare as they box, complete with his adorable dimple on display (and he was focused on Tae the entirety of them boxing, not their hands and movements!) 

https://x.com/tcnckclnsmaek/status/1757731117128679917?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://x.com/jeonjkloops/status/1757709108927439093?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg  https://x.com/kveline_/status/1757721535119274154?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg  https://x.com/dionyxxsustkx/status/1757741281340494321?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

Of course, this isn’t the first time this precious duo have boxed together. Tae uploaded a video of them boxing on Jk’s birthday, September 1, 2022, posting the video as soon as he landed in Seoul from NYC. 

Tae’s post - https://x.com/bts_twt/status/1565075044703019008?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

Recap - https://www.tumblr.com/taekooktimeline2022/694602961670766592/we-finally-got-the-taekook-sparring-video-tae 

And while it’s not the exact same thing, I also thought of Tae boxing on Jk’s abs in ITS season 1, episode 3. Remember, this is a sign of closeness, as all Tae said was, Today were working on abs,” nothing further, and Jk understood context and lifted his arms to expose his tummy. 

Recap - https://www.tumblr.com/taekooktimeline2020/632423882773676032/may-26-2020-filmed-soop-episode-3 

And we also got to see this PTD boxing moment between the two -

https://youtube.com/shorts/eRGSXEwaEKw?si=7fHDWS5gv5ztEAWS 

Jk looks back and watches Tae as they practice the choreography for his record breaking song, “Seven.” 

Timestamp 3:04 

Tae confirms a dance move with Jk - 

They practice once more, with Tae exclaiming the choreography is hard.

Tae gives Jk encouragement and support, attempting to massage him as he softly speaks to him. I also want to note, as others have, that the staff didn’t react in any way to Tae massaging Jk, which indicates that this is habitual and a common occurrence between the two.  

Timestamp 3:22

Translation - 

https://x.com/tcnckclnsmaek/status/1757723740887306298?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg  https://x.com/v1230mp4/status/1757708897417400325?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

Tae playfully receives Jk’s congratulatory stash (“Seven” won first place at Inkigayo!) - 

timestamp 4:08

Jk imitates Tae’s 2020 “Gidaryeo gidaryeo” at the end of his “3D” segment of his M countdown prerecording -

Timestamp 7:47 https://x.com/bangtannieslayy/status/1757714312607773013?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Remember, during Jk’s February 3, 2023, live, he twice imitated Tae’s “Gidaryeo gidaryeo.”

The fact he’s so endured by this adorable moment (shown below) that he imitates it even 3+ years later is so cute. 

https://x.com/taesmug/status/1621513590330261506?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg  https://x.com/koovarbie/status/1621506463335329795?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

Recap of this 2023 live here - https://www.tumblr.com/taekooktimeline2023/708525777682038784/february-1-2023

Prior recap of Jk arriving for Inkigayo - https://www.tumblr.com/taekooktimeline2023/724383250492145664

Prior recap of Inkigayo - https://www.tumblr.com/taekooktimeline2023/725289352690843648 

Recap of Jk’s live the day after Inkigayo - https://www.tumblr.com/taekooktimeline2023/724837237671575552

Raw -  https://youtu.be/WvU6SWsg0_4?si=KmBs-hgA84Jk5bJL 

[gentlebeardsbarngrill]

05/09/2024 Daily OFMD recap

TLDR; Leslie Jones; David Jenkins; Taika Waititi; Samba Schutte; Vico Ortiz; Jes Tom; Police Menacing Max; Articles; WBD Q1 Earnings Call; Casey Bloys Excuse Generator; Love Notes; Daily Darby/Tonight's Taika

== Leslie Jones ==

Leslie Fucking jones will be Joining NBC's 2024 Olympics coverage!! She's gonna be Chief Super Fan Commentator! Fuck yeah Leslie!

Source: @nbcolympics Instagram

== David Jenkins ==

Some sneaky shots with Chaos Dad for Kinga's 41st birthday! Happy Birthday Kinga!

Source: Kinga Malisz's Instagram

== Samba Schutte ==

So apparently Samba has started his Thirst Trap Era -- none of us are complaining! A lot of the OFMD cast members decided to comment on these as well!

Source: Samba Schutte's Instagram

== Taika Waititi ==

In case you missed the video on Rita's IG Stories: Peepa Sighting (I don't actually know how to spell this? I see like 3 versions online-- feel free to correct me!)

== Vico Ortiz ==

Vico's been doing so much voice acting lately! They decided to drop some pics from the booth! Loving all the facial expressions!

Source: Vico Ortiz' Instagram

= Date My Abuelita, First! =

New Episode of Date My Abuelita, First! with Vico! Listen here

Source: DMAF Instagram

= Jes Tom =

Our dear Jes Tom is an honoree of Queerty's 2024 #Pride 50! Congrats Jes! Thanks @adoptourcrew for sharing this!

Source: Adopt Our Crew's Twitter / Queerty's #Pride50

== WBD End of Q1 Meeting ==

Today's Q1 Meeting was full of massive BS as you've probably seen from various sources by now. Thank you @ragsandmuffins-ali for live tweeting during the call so we could get an idea of what's going on in their heads.

Source: @ ragsandmuffins Twitter

== Max Polite Menacing ==

SO MANY OF THE CREW stepped out today and started polite menacing Max again! Excellent job everyone! Thank you @ indarltonitrust for catching the count! I saw it was close to 10K by the time I went to bed!

Source: @indarltonitrust on Twitter And man oh man, we even got the bots in on it!

Source: @ragsandmuffins-ali on Twitter Some folks really let loose!

Source: @ ofmooshd on Twitter @ Seven_Sugars not pulling the punches either.

Source @ Seven_Sugars Twitter

= Casey Bloys Excuse Generator =

Idk which one of you indestructible little fuckers on this crew created a Casey Bloys Excuse Generator -- but well done! It's fantastic, try it out below.

== Articles ==

Thank you to Adopt Our Crew, Pink News, Never Left Podcast, and everyone else who shared all these articles today! Adopt Our Crew as well as the general OFMD fandom got several shoutouts today in them!

‘Nobody cares about Gollum’: The Internet’s reaction to new ‘Lord of the Rings’ films is anything but ‘precious’ 

‘Don’t Stream on Max’: Why viewers are protesting Max and calling for David Zaslav to be fired

#DontStreamOnMax, #FireDavidZaslav Trend as Warner Bros. Tries to Convince Us Everything’s Going Great

Warner Bros. Discovery Misses Q1 Expectations, TV Ad Sales Down 11% as Streaming Revenue Flat

Warner Bros. Discovery Reports Wider-Than-Expected Loss as Revenue Falls Short

Warner Bros. Discovery Plans Fresh Cost Cuts, Max Price Hike

== Love Notes ==

Wow! Crew, today was nuts! I wasn't even present for most of it, but I poked my head in occasionally and saw so many people Polite and Not so Polite Menacing today! It was fantastic! I want to give a huge shout out to AdoptOurCrew for leading this charge, SaveOFMD Crew for all their support and resources, @sonnetforbonnet for guiding folks, and all the other folks who helped so many people today in menacing Max! I tell you lovelies, it felt really good to see that kind of passion and banding together today. It reminded me of earlier this year when we were all united for one common cause. I realize we can't keep that momentum up all the time, but it was so very heartwarming to see everyone working together today again.

You all are badasses and you should be proud of yourselves. You seriously stepped it up today. I heard there was some drama with some not so kind "max supporters" but if you can, please just ignore those folks. They don't know where we're coming from and they are absolutely not worth your energy if you don't have the spoons <3 I'd like to share another love note I found on Instagram today that's not completely applicable to todays events, but it spoke to me because of the last part. Be proud of yourselves lovelies. No matter what you did today, polite menacing, sleeping, massive aggression, whatever it was. You did great <3 Take care <3

Source: soulscribbleerr's Instagram

== Daily Darby / Tonight's Taika ==

Tonight's theme is being a boss and dancing, cause yall were BAMF today.

Gifs courtesy of @ fandomsmeantheworldtome and @ a-man-for-hire-and-his-archives

[fernsnailz]

January 2024 Review Roundup

hello everypony‼️ something i want to do through 2024 is a mini review series where i recap some of the media i watched/played/read at the end of every month. this was inspired by tumblr user ponett’s 2023 media wrap-up, it's a great collection of quick reviews so go check it out!

i’m doing this partially as writing/analysis practice, but mostly because my memory is really bad and i want to keep track of what i've seen this year. with that said, my thoughts on everything i finished in january 2024 is under the cut :]

Portal 1 + 2

yyyup i beat Portal and it only took me (checks watch) 13 years

the first time i played Portal 2 was at a friend’s house when i was in middle school, and i had a fuckin blast. but after all that time... it still holds up! i don’t think anything i have to say about Portal will be particularly new since people have been praising this series since it came out. the writing, the level design, even the controls feel tight and engaging the whole way through. i played on switch and expected a bit of jank, but i was pleasantly surprised at how smooth it felt to play. the only part that dragged for me were the levels through the old aperture labs, but i think i would like them a lot more on a second replay. Portal 2 is fantastic and one of my new favorite games, the artistry behind it is truly incredible and i’m really glad i finally finished it. while i was playing Portal 2, i described Glados and Wheatly to a friend and said “they’re like if a ceiling fan could be passive aggressive and if Fozzie Bear was an evil golf ball”

I Think You Should Leave

finally. i can truly understand and appreciate Subspace Dubbed Over

i think one of my favorite things about I Think You Should Leave is how it utilizes horror. beyond sitting slack-jawed in disbelief at the crazy events unfolding before my eyes, a number of the sketches dipped into bits that genuinely kinda scared me. like the one sketch that circulates on here where the guy (pig?) in a mask crawls through a dog door, which is. genuinely terrifying. but so many of the other sketches have slow, nerve-racking pacing leading to crazy shit that would be perfect in a horror film were the context different. idk i like dissecting how horror and comedy are essentially the same thing and I Think You Should Leave was very good at enabling that <3 favorite sketches are probably “then let my wife eat the damn receipt” and “55 BURGERS 55 HOTDOGS 100 FRIES 100 TATER TOTS”

Sonic Prime Season 3

man. ohhhh man. i didn’t go into this with high expectations and i still feel let down. Sonic Prime Season 3 was definitely my least favorite “season” of the batch - abysmal pacing, very few character moments i actually enjoyed, and the things i praised about the show felt very underutilized through these episodes. Nine is the shining star of Sonic Prime and i was looking forward to seeing his more villainous side, but his character took such a sharp turn into pure evil and it felt like he spent the entire season repeating the same three lines. and as much as i praise Shadow’s writing in Prime, it doesn’t really matter when he spends half of the season trapped in a hole that he just… runs out of later.

lastly, i cannot stop thinking about how bad the pacing of this season is. three episodes for a repetitive final battle feels like such a waste of time when you see just how much they rush the emotional resolutions in the last episode. however, there is one thing i truly love about Sonic Prime Season 3 - i love the Sails and Mangey fakeout death. it's so fucking funny. like you really expect me to believe that two cartoon animals in this Y-7 rated show EXPLODED?????? absolute comedy gold.

overall, i just… don’t really know what to think of Sonic Prime. anything i enjoyed in the show was often fleeting, and much of it felt like its only purpose was to waste my time. also Rouge i can’t believe they did you so dirty oh my god

Ghost Trick

i was so proud that i figured out the secret behind Sissel’s memory loss like halfway through the game. however i also kept getting caught during the prison escape sequence like an idiot

Ghost Trick is in a similar situation as Portal where 1. it’s incredible and one of my new favorite games, and 2. there’s nothing i can really say about it that hasn’t already been said or just. shouldn’t be said. Ghost Trick is a fantastic mystery game, and because of that i think it’s best to go into its story as blind as possible. the narrative unfolds in such fascinating ways - even though the actual object manipulation gameplay isn’t directly about solving the mystery (like in Ace Attorney or other mystery games), it still ties wonderfully into the story in some incredibly unique ways.

i also really love the artstyle of Ghost Trick - i love 2D character artwork with that sharp lineweight, it reminded me a lot of Sonic Battle (another game with an artstyle i love). i was also really impressed by the 3D character models and animation - despite the limitations of the camera, you get a wonderful sense of everyone’s personality from the limited body language expressed in the overworld (even though the models lack much facial expression which. i guess they don’t really need? idk that was the only thing that threw me off). anyways yeah everyone should play Ghost Trick so Ghost Trick fans can be freed from their curse and talk about it without having to tag like 10 different spoiler tags. and for Missile

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

ok bear with me. i went into Scott Pilgrim Takes Off without reading the comics first. and i fuckin loved it

my understanding of Scott Pilgrim before SPTO was mostly from the movie (I KNOW I’M SORRY), but even with my base understanding of the series i really enjoyed this show for what it was. i found myself appreciating the time they dedicated to further develop every single character in the show - especially Ramona. she’s fantastic as the lead, i really loved watching her reconcile with her exes and seeing all of them grow instead of exploding into coins. my favorite episode was probably the one with her and Roxie - not only did i adore the movie-jumping set pieces, but you really understand the weight of Ramona’s mistakes in their past relationship and how much it hurt Roxie. despite the big climactic fight, the flashbacks are quiet, subtle, heartbreaking. Ramona’s apology is genuine, and it feels so wonderful to watch her confront her past throughout the show. also i think it’s really funny that for all these characters to become the best versions of themselves, they had to kill off Scott for most of the story

and holy shit the artstyle and animation. oh my god. i love watching something that makes me immediately go “i need to see the storyboards for this RIGHT NOW.” SPTO is such a visual delight to watch, it elevates the artstyle of the comics while also keeping what makes that style so appealing - i love the line weight on the characters, i love how much forward energy the animation has, i love the fucking. virtual boy section. as soon as i found out Science Saru was also behind Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken, everything made immediate sense. i was destined to love this show.

another worry i had going into SPTO (besides the fact that i hadn’t read the comics lol) is that the original cast from the movie was returning. i think the movie cast is fine, but i wasn’t sure how some of them would fare with voice acting for animation. however, i thought they all did a good job - i think the whole cast loves these characters and would be able to fit into them fairly easily no matter what form their performance takes, and they definitely had a good voice director in the studio with them. the only thing that felt off about the voice performances to me was that sometimes it sounded like some of their mics kept peaking?? idk some of these episodes i watched high as balls and i felt like i could hear and see every single sound and frame of the show. so that might have just been me.

god i did not. expect to have this much to say about Scott Pilgrim. i really loved this show and i’m currently reading the comics to fully catch up on the general Scott Pilgrim experience - i think reading the comics AFTER Takes Off is making me appreciate even more of the character work that went into the show. like they do so much with Mathew Patel in SPTO, a character that was. not originally around for a long time from what i’ve gathered? also i like the funny little robot. oh my GOD i cannot talk about this show anymore whatever it’s good get me out of here

Sword AF Season 1

i put on the Smosh cast’s D&D series to play in the background while i was drawing. i did not expect to think much of it. instead, i had one of the most enjoyable D&D podcast experiences since i listened to The Adventure Zone Balance???

i haven’t really enjoyed other D&D podcasts since i dropped off of The Adventure Zone, and i wasn’t expecting much from Sword AF of all things. then i saw that Shayne was playing as a druid warforged made of plants and his name was fucking Fernie and i sat my ass down and LISTENED. while i think Sword AF is currently lacking in its world and larger story, those things just. aren’t really what Sword AF is really trying to provide at the moment. it’s main focus is comedy, and the players are genuinely such a delight to watch play together and build off of each other. they mostly focus on bits and goofs for the sake of she show's comedic tone, but i still found it thoroughly enjoyable because every player embodies and performs their characters really well. idk Sword AF was an unexpected hit for me this month, i thought it was fun. and i love Fernie so much

Plastic Death - Glass Beach

so originally i wasn’t going to include music reviews in these roundups at all, but then i was entirely surprised by a new Glass Beach album and oh my god. holy shit. oh my fucking god jesus christ. holy shit. its preddy good

Plastic Death gets the low point of the album out of the way immediately. it starts with the “phone call/conversation audio” trope that i don’t particularly enjoy - HOWEVER despite me disliking this opening, 1. it sets up the overall themes of Plastic Death very quickly, and 2. the rest of the album blows this 40 second opening completely out of the water. from there, the album grows into something beautiful and uncontained, and i just. i really like it

Plastic Death captures the beauty of the temporary, asks what it means to be created for a cause you can’t fulfill, questions if you can reclaim yourself from cycles and constraints designed to destroy you. and is also about being transgender. the lyrics are abstract in a way that requires a conversation with the listener, many of the vocals obscured and smooth like waves - this album is definitely one that needs to be listened to a few times. i wasn’t sure how i felt about the vocal style at first before realizing the vocals were the main reason i was relistening to this album, allowing myself to find even more that i loved about it. the instrumentation is also incredible, i love the use of marimba in a number of songs - distant, eerie, almost skeletal. and the fucking. 8-bit section?? which kinda rules???? and that’s the only point in the album it ever shows up??????? incredible. a fleeting, somewhat silly moment that i love every time.

this album left my heart aching, in part from my connection to it and in part from the pure love and joy emanating from this music. i can feel just how much fun this music was to perform and create, a cohesion of time and sound that just clicked for me. Plastic Death made me miss playing music, which is something i haven’t felt in years. all from an album that starts with a conversation about CrankGameplay’s dead youtube channel. good lord

i like this album a normal amount. go listen to it a few times. my favorite tracks are cul-de-sac and commatose

Wish

i watched Wish with a couple of friends and knew i probably wasn't going to like it. with that in mind, i gave myself a challenge: i wanted to find one thing about this movie that i genuinely really loved. it could be anything, and loving it for ironic reasons was allowed.

here's the complete list of things i loved about Disney's Wish (2023):

i love the one shot where King Magnifico stirs an evil caldron evily. i thought it was hilarious. what was he cooking

i loved that the end credits included a reference to Dinosaur 2001 at all, and i loved that they paid homage to Big Hero 6 by showing the forgettable villain of that movie instead of their Baymax cashcow for some reason. my friends and i saw him show up in the credits and were like "who's the trenchcoat guy??"

you may notice that this list is very short and 50% of it is about the movie's credits. so yeah this movie is not very good

Wish is an empty husk of a movie. everything about it feels so, so hollow - lifeless town squares, uninspired character designs (to quote a friend: "i have all of these characters' hairstyles in The Sims"), characters whose existence is only justified to fill empty space or an overused archetype, and an "evil" villain who lacks charisma and spine in a futile effort to remind the audience of previous disney villains with actual character. even the artstyle lacks any sort of sauce, the watercolor effect they were trying to go for only makes the backgrounds and character textures run together, and the dull lighting makes things look even more faded. it's like disney was scared of making a movie that made its audience feel... anything. all to celebrate 100 years of Disney slop, baby!!!

Some YouTube videos I liked in January: 💥 An Exhaustive Look at Pokemon Brilliant Diamond 💥 TomSka's Guide to Plagiarism 💥 Paradise Bombed (this video is a great piece of journalism and i’m definitely not doing it justice by throwing it into the youtube vid list) 💥 Surprising Our Friends with Zoo Animals 💥 Did FNAF Ever Have a Good Story?

thanks for reading! next month’s roundup will be wild because i’ll likely be reviewing House of Leaves and Hazbin Hotel. can you guess which cursed house gives me a worse headache? WHO KNOWS! (hint: it's Hazbin Hotel)

[chirpsythismorning]

I think what really puts into perspective the likelihood of ST5 premiering in 2025 (I’m gonna predict March 21st for fun), is that a year from now is just barely Summer 2024, and yet as of now, they have not even started filming.

Are fans really expecting them to have season 5 filmed, fully prepped with marketing and promo ready, with everything ready to be released within one year from now (roughly speaking, give or take a couple months)?

In all honesty it's very much the norm for Stranger Things' to have promo leading up to an upcoming season last for months. And I'm not talking like 3-5 months I'm talking a year+.

This isn't like s1 where they put out a trailer and a release date and some low budget marketing roll out on social media, which is something they do for every new Netflix show. This is a $35 million + budget per episode series and thats just to budget for the literal episodes... There are dozens of partnerships they have going on with merchandise and things like that which are discussed and planned for months/years. There are music rights negotiations which go on for months upon years. Shit, post-production has the capacity to take, at the very least half of the time it takes to film, and in some cases as much time or even more. This shit takes time!!!

The build up to a new season is so huge, that each month leading up to it, there are different things dropping, creating the hype that guarantees millions of fans engagement for a long time.

Like 1 year up to the 6 months before the release, promo starts heating up officially. The main accounts for the show will start posting stuff, initially it'll be cryptic using old footage to kind of recap the characters and get us refreshed on where we left off. This time could have some really awesome surprises, but it's mostly casual. If we're lucky we can count on Atlanta filming paparazzi bc those people are insufferable...

6 months up to the one month mark is when it starts to get more real. At this time we're likely to get an episode list announcement, along with sneak peeks and teasers that are quite short, being that they're still likely in the editing process when they are releasing these so it's very much in part them trying to tide us over and keep us interested.

The final 3 months leading up to it is when it gets REAL real. This is at the latest when we'll get a release date announcement, but that's a worst case scenario. I feel like it took so long for them to announce s4, and not until like Feb 2022 bc they wanted to be certain certain. And that could apply to s5 as well. The state of the world isn't like awesome I would say... Look what happened last time? Like it sucks to be the person to say that but I think also considering delays in general, for any reason are a possibility, is also what contributes to my open mindedness about an early 2025 release.

And so based on what we should be expecting for marketing, that means that assuming s5 would somehow premiere in summer 2024, means we are already close to the one year mark, which means promo should be ramping up right now, with literal content to share? And yet we have nothing filmed...?

A lot of people have this idea that s5 is going to take as much time to film as s1 took, which is just not the case. Not saying it will take as long as s4 took, however it's still going to take a while. One of the main factors for this is an in demand cast with conflicting schedules. In a perfect world, everyone would be available all the time throughout the entire production run. Instead what you have is certain actors not available at this time, and so you have to overlap those that need scenes together and schedule according to all of that. And so even if it wouldn't take more than 7 months to film literally, adding another 4+ months might be necessary to accommodate everyones schedules so that they can have these A/B list actors be able to film scenes together.

And then there’s editing and VFX to account for, happening during filming yes, but also with them needing months to focus on AFTER filming is complete. S5 is arguably going to have more VFX than any other season, as most of the season is expected to be surrounded by UD conditions and with the final battle being pretty epic with a 3 headed dragon potentially. Editing is more likely to be 7+ months post filming AT LEAST, vs. like the 4 or less, which is what I think everyone is imagining and telling themselves.

This is also the last season and so they obviously want to focus on the quality, not their ability to churn it out as fast as possible. Rushing for a quick release is just setting themselves up to flop.

The story is over forever after this (excluding spin-off prospects). It would make sense for them to give themselves the wiggle room to make it perfect (the stakes are so fucking high you guys), as opposed to rushing the entire time just to have it release as early as possible.

This also reminds me of what Noah said when asked about s5 premiering in 2024, where he basically just deflected and said that they want to focus on quality… essentially hinting at the fact that it’ll probably not be soon as we’re expecting, but we’re better off for it bc it gives them time to ensure it's the best that it can be and also is just realistic in terms of considering potential unplanned delays.

And then there are the strike implications. While I think the ST production is lucky in that they wouldn't be impacted as much as other productions, that doesn't mean the solidarity won't impact other parts of the production beyond just the writers. This is an industry where people are extremely overworked and underpaid, where a strike could be on the horizon at any moment. And we’re out here telling them hey i know the conditions are horse shit, but I'm gonna need you to step it up and experience even worse conditions bc I need s5 asap... which is just, it’s asking too much if I’m being honest.

Not trying to rain on anyone’s parade here. I know it sucks hearing that it could be another 1 year and 10 months. But lets be serious right now.

All the action that happens in the fandom, building up to the release is arguably just as exciting as the actual premiere and I think we overlook that. Again, once it premieres, it's over. So being so hellbent that it comes as soon as possible, is built on this idea that getting it is the only worthwhile part of this experience, which couldn't be further from the truth. Hiatus and all of the activity that happens during that time is what makes this experience so unique and without it, none of us would be here.

I think realistically, the timeline for s5 production is likely to look something like filming taking place from May 2023-Feb 2024 (giving them AT LEAST 10 months, but if you ask me srs i think it'll take 12...). We should get an announcement post from the official Netflix/ST social media accounts the very day filming starts.

As time passes and they're filming more and more, we will start to get teasers and sneak peaks from the little bit they have filmed from the earlier episodes in the season. Technically they can't spoil that later stuff too much in promotion, so it does work out for us in that sense.

But in all honesty, well planned out and detailed promo is likely to not start getting official until this fall when they’ll actually have at least (hopefully) over half of s5 filmed, and be planning ahead plenty in advance so all of the promo leading up to the release is well thought out.

I won’t rule out Fall 2024. But there are no Friday dates in fall 2024 that ring any bells to me as being the perfect day? Maybe Winter 2024? Or like January/Feb 2025?

The problem is Netflix loves ST for their summers... But summer 2024 is too soon and Summer 2025 is too late imo...

So what it will likely come down to is them trying to be realisitic about their options, and how to ideally get it to match with the setting of the show, which is something they have tried to do with s2-3, but couldn't in s4 (for obvious reasons), and so I definitely see them thinking ahead to try to bring back that approach for s5 if they are able to.

So filming, best case scenario, ends maybe Jan-Feb 2024. If we give them at least 7 months, which is still arguably rushing to me, that lands them in September 2024.

BUT if they were smart they would be realistic and just plan for late 2024/early 2025 so that they don't have to keep delaying... also why they haven't announced a date/year... if it was for certain going to be 2024, they would say it. But they aren't. That alone should tell us they are not willing to make that commitment bc it's not something that can be made when there are so many impromptu factors at play.

I imagine a scenario though honestly, where it takes them a year (12 months to film), so they won't be done until May 2024, which means that they would have until January 2025 to edit with 7 months for that strictly. And that just honestly feels realistic to me to look at instead of hoping that everything just is swift and fast as possible.

Not to mention ST5 2025 just fits.

However, I don't see anything wrong with hoping for late 2024, since as of now I think it is still possible.

But I also think, keeping all of the factors in mind, most notably a potential strike and also them ensuring quality over a speedy release, I think 2025 is something people should also be prepared for as a possibility.

The good news is that we'll know eventually as s5 starts filming and as time goes on.

If filming is complete in 2023 then we could definitely hope for a fall 2024 release. If filming isn't complete officially until early/mid 2024, then pack up your duffel bags bc we're going back to spring break...

[evaglass]

Speculation about Mizu's parents pt. 3

Now, to expand even more on the connections between Kill Bill and Blue Eye Samurai, specifically with the Ronin and the Bride play, the last thing I mentioned was how both Brides woke up and quickly went to seek vengance.

Beatrix woke up from a coma while the Bride from the play came back as onryo, a vengeful spirit with blue eyes.

The Bride cuts off the Ronin's head for what he did

And then the play ends with this shot. Notice how there are four bodies, and none of them are the Ronin because they all have their heads. I don't think any of the four white men are Mizu's father, but I do think they knew her mother and betrayed her, like the Bride from Kill Bill expect that she didn't survive.

I also want to clarify really quickly that it is revealed by the end of Vol. 1 to the audience that Beatrix's daughter is alive, and she finds out in Vol. 2 in the final act of the film when she sees her daughter, BB, for the first time.

Now, I don't think Mizu's mother is alive at all, but I do think the love Mizu's mother had for her could have been similar to Beatrix's love for her daughter. I do think, unfortunately, Mizu's mother was killed before she could be with Mizu again.

Now, Kill Bill and Yentl aren't the only two films to influence Blue Eye Samurai

There is also the influence from a few other films, one of them being Lady Snowblood.

Funny enough, Lady Snowblood actually influenced the making of Kill Bill as well.

I will admit I have never seen Lady Snowblood, but I have seen and read reviews, recaps, synopsises, video essays, etc.

Lady Snowblood is about a woman named Yuki who is on a quest for revenge against the people who assaulted her mother Sayo (the woman in the picture below), killed her older brother Shiro, and her mother's husband (I will get into why I refer to him as her mother's husband).

Before she could get revenge against the people who wronged her, Sayo was sent to prison. Realizing she does not have a lot of time to spare before Sayo dies, she gets impregnated and gives birth to Yuki so she can fulfill her quest for revenge after she dies

Yuki is essentially a representation of her mother's rage beyond the grave.

Another interesting thing is that I believe there are some moments in the film Lady Snowblood is compared to a demon, kind of like Mizu. There's also the fact that Lady Snowblood's actually name, Yuki, means snow, like how Mizu means water. Snow is just frozen water, after all. Although I don't Mizu's mother had her out of the purpose of revenge, I think her conception was an accident.

Part 1/Part 2/Part 3/Part 4/Part 5/Part 6

[veliseraptor]

October Reading Recap

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun: vol. 3 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou. Still in the territory of a part of this book I remember fairly well, and while the whole underworld arc is good it's not my favorite part of the book and mostly I come away from it going "Rong Jiu has rights." which is true! and I do think Meatbun knows it actually but it still hurts how his arc goes here. Me: continually getting too wound up in the fates of side characters and distracted from what's going on with the mains.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to moving into the next parts of the book, which I don't remember as well. Though I know it's a while before it gets really painful, aka what I'm most excited to reread.

Dark Carnivals: Modern Horrors and the Origins of American Empire by W. Scott Poole. I was so frustrated by this book. I wanted it to be an analysis of horror films and their relationship to American imperialism; what I got was a lot of overwrought prose and repetition of the titular metaphor that was very light on the analysis of the actual texts and heavy on the scathing opinions about what is "good" (politically) horror and what is "bad" (politically) horror. Which, fine, my politics are technically the same as his politics, but it was annoying to read in a book that I thought was going to be more analytical. I had high hopes for this book and it failed them; makes me more hesitant to read his other book about horror and World War I, which I have had on my list for a while. But I liked his book on Lovecraft, funnily enough, so not totally sure what went wrong here.

Paradise-1 by David Wellington. I did not realize that this book was first in a series and I'm a little bit annoyed about it. It was decent horror but it doesn't need to be a series and the lack of resolution bugs me, because now if I want resolution I have to read the next book and I don't think I really want to read the next book. Space horror seems like it would be such a rich land full of possibility and yet I keep being disappointed by space horror. (If, in this case, less disappointed than I was by Dead Silence.)

Remnants of Filth: vol. 1 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou. She's done it again! It's a differently fucked up relationship, to be sure, but boy am I already here for it, despite feeling like I know very little about what's going on. Gu Mang is my jam as far as character type, and I really like the dynamic as its laid out as having been previously between him and Mo Xi, and also how it is now. Dedicated friends/lovers turned to bitter enemies turned to one of them fractured to a shadow of himself leaving the other bereft of resolution...mm, good stuff. Can't wait to find out more about what's going on under Gu Mang's surface. Looking forward to reading more of this one and glad that I already have the second volume to go to. (And the rest, technically, but I do like reading cnovels in print when I can more than reading on a computer.)

I, Robot by Isaac Asimov. Look at me! Reading classic sci-fi knowing only the bare minimum about it. I liked it more than I expected to, and was less bothered by the way the women were written than I expected to. I didn't realize that it was more a string of short stories tied together by a frame narrative than a novel, but it was really fine that I didn't know that going in - didn't affect my enjoyment, I don't think. And I did enjoy it! I might not have read it on my own, but I read it for a sci-fi book club and ended up liking both it and the book club. Not sure I'd give it, like, a strong recommendation, but I'm glad I finally read it. It'll be interesting seeing what echoes/traces of it I can now pick up in other robot/AI-related writing.

Monstress: vol. 5-7 by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda. This comic is so good you guys. So. Good. I don't really know what else to say here, except that she continues to step up her game even more with every volume, and I don't know how she's keeping all the balls in the air that she is with this story as deftly as she is. I have no idea where this story is going, either, and I can't wait to find out. I don't know. Themes of monstrosity and agency and lack of agency and how to be a good person (or try) in a terrible world. With a whole lot more than that. Also there's gay betrayal, if you're into that.

Ariadne by Jennifer Saint. Why do I continue to read Greek Mythology retellings when at best they end up making me go "eh, it was okay I guess"? Not sure. But this was okay, I guess. I liked the same author's Electra better.

Pathogenesis: A History of the World in Eight Plagues by Jonathan Kennedy. More of a "history of the western world categorized by periods of time in which there were various diseases" which...was not quite what I was hoping for, but it was still a good, solid book about epidemiology and the impact of disease on history. A lot of it was familiar to me (how disease enabled the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs and Incas, for instance, but also British colonization in North America), but I did learn some new things, particularly in the sections about Paleolithic/Neolithic diseases. All in all a book I read because I'm particularly interested in the subject but not probably one I'd recommend as the one book that they'd have to read about it.

The Hollow Kind by Andy Davidson. I made it a goal in October to read some spooky books and ended up only reading three, but this was easily my favorite of those - and my favorite non-Darcy Coates horror I've read in a while, too. I wasn't totally sure what to expect from this one, and the slow reveal in the first two thirds particularly was very well done. I found myself slightly more compelled by the portions set in the past than by the present storyline, but not so much as to ding the whole book for it. And I liked that the monster was left pretty vague and undefined, too; that's always my preference. Some very gross descriptions and body horror, as a caveat for those who might be interested but are sensitive about such things.

Die: vol. 1-3 by Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans. I'm finally rereading (and finishing) this series and...I forgot how much I like it. Not only because the art is gorgeous (and the art is gorgeous) but Kieron Gillen's writing remains as sharp as ever, and the way he is playing with fantasy as a genre is very fun for me as a fantasy nerd. My favorite issue remains the one about The Lord of the Rings, though. I don't know that this one is quite as good as The Wicked and the Divine as a whole, but I'll have to reread that one taken as a whole, too, before making that determination.

And the art really is gorgeous. Stephanie Hans remains a fave.

Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right-Wing Extremism by Jeffrey Toobin. A decent narrative about the Oklahoma City bombing, certainly competently written, but he interrupted himself a little too often drawing parallels to January 6th, in my opinion, and I don't feel like I took anything particularly new or fresh away from this. Which is maybe an artifact of the fact that I've read a number of better books about the rise of right-wing extremism in the 90s, and this one wasn't one of them, but I'm going to go ahead and damn with faint praise when I say "it was fine."

currently I'm rereading Banewreaker by Jacqueline Carey which is a fascinating text in ways that I'm going to need to chew on for a bit, so that I can finally read the sequel. but then a bunch of stuff came in for me at the library, so I'm next probably going to be reading Silver Nitrate by Sylvia Moreno-Garcia, and then Godslayer by Jacqueline Carey, and then The Art of Prophecy by Wesley Chu, and then Children of Memory by Adrian Tchaikovsky, and then Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez. or that's the plan, anyway. we'll see how fast it gets derailed.

also somewhere in there planning on reading more Female General and Eldest Princess and most likely the second volume of Remnants of Filth. I'm trying to spend less time on the internet in general (you absolutely could not tell I am sure) so let's make it a busy reading month instead.

[hccn-overseer]

Issue 5, 5/17/2023 - The Overseer

Issue Masterpost About the Overseer

This week has shown the Hermitcitizen Hub settling into a rhythm, with an art compilation being created for the lovely ZombieCleo's birthday! Citizens are also encouraged to apply for mod, as more are welcomed! Please check announcements for more details. On to the news!

The Employment Guide to Season 9 and What to Put on Your Resume to Get The Job

By Winter

You may be wondering like I did a few months ago, “How do I get paid? Will I have anything to retire on?” The answer to all your financial questions will be answered by someone who did a little bit of digging to find the answer to the eternal question. So here is a step by step guide on what businesses will pay you. 

At Number One we have Az’s bakery. You help her bake, and just generally help out. The one caveat is that you cannot eat the batter. Under no circumstances. 

Coming in at Number Two we have Grian. Grian will pay you to work at any one of his many Un-Grianproof areas. You do have to be able to not be afraid of the dark, possibly perishing, and overall weirdness. You will be paid in life insurance and grian orbs.

Coming in at Number Three we have SUS. Scar Unsafe Services will pay you to mess with SSS, SUS pays you in whatever you can find in SSS’s chests. A quote from one of the members reads “We do not claim responsibility for anything that may happen if you choose this payment option”. They also pay in free mob farms. 

Coming in at Number Four on the opposite end of the spectrum you have SSS who will pay you handsomely. Yes I repeat, HANDSOMELY to light up very dangerous things. The pay rate will go up depending on the difficulty. 

Coming in at Number Five we have The Hermitcraft Recap. As a member of the recap filming team, the recap definitely pays you. You have the ability to live on sight and you are given 3 meals per day. If you are like me and don’t live in the recap housing units, then you get compensated in what you may ask, Health Insurance, and a diamond a month. 

Coming in at Number Six we have Beef’s TCG shop. You get paid in TCG cards and learn the skills necessary. That’s pretty much it. 

Coming in at Number Seven we have Impulse’s Mega Base. You will not be paid at IBuy. At the mega base you will be paid in the diamonds you dig up. You may also get some cool ores. 

Coming in at Number Eight we have Mumbo K(illsalot) Jumbo. As he is the richest hermit you will get paid, in what who knows. You get paid in diamonds, and A LOT of work holidays. Last this writer heard the Mumbo Affiliates went on a BIG biking holiday. 

And finally The Overseer. This writer can confirm….

…

…

THAT YOU DON’T GET PAID. 

In all honesty, I have been paid in the experience of a lifetime, and we also get baked goods so pretty nice. You also do get paid in fun times.

Now onto other news below the cut!

Weekly Weather Report

By Virtual

Note: If any of our readers are rich and generous, we ask for assistance in paying Rainy’s ransom. The kidnappers' identity is still unknown, but leaving a pile of diamonds on the doorstep of the Overseer offices may be enough to reach them.

Thursday - STORMS, hail expected between 3 PM and 5 PM (GMT). Helmets are suggested for all those working outdoors.

Friday - PARTLY CLOUDY, 75% chance of Doc messing with Grian and Scar. Citizens near Scarland and Grian’s rocks advised to watch for anvils and charged creepers.

Saturday - CLOUDY, fog expected around Zedaph’s base between 1 AM and 10 AM (GMT). Reduced visibility may obscure ledges, increasing risk of death by fall damage.

Sunday - RAINY, hordes of Drowned expected around Spawn Town. Watch for tridents from every direction.

Monday - SUNNY, high temperatures expected to reach 36 Celsius by 11 AM (GMT). Dry areas at risk of wildfires.

Tuesday - SUNNY, high heat continues. Citizens advised to carry water and watch for signs of heatstroke.

Wednesday - WINDY, elytra flight may become unsustainable at high altitudes.

Additional Notes: Increasingly strange copper structures expected to appear around Grian and Mumbo’s bases throughout the week. Citizens are to continue working around them as normal. Do not attempt to wax the copper.

Astrology Corner

[The Horrorscope Theme - Intro]

WINTER The Overseer Presents The Horrorscope Edition 5 [The Magnus Archives Theme – Intro - Continues]

WINTER Test… Test… Test… 1, 2, 3... Right.  (Sounds of Winter clearing her throat) My name is Winter. I work for the Horrorscope, Astral Library, an organizsation dedicated to academic research into the esoteric and the Paranormal. 

I work for the Horrorscope and have been asked by my superiors to record my thoughts on the coming week. I have been working at the Horrorscope for a few weeks and have not got to voice my thoughts so far. As of current we have ten cases still ongoing. 

Statement begins.

(Pause)

Our first case is of the star sign Gemini… While searching through the previous weeks records I noticed that star sign was advised to invest in (disgust) Etho Heads. While this may seem merely harmless, it seems foolhardy to invest in something that multiple people already have invested in. While Etho Heads may make great gifts for family members off server, this reporter suggests ridding yourself of these interesting collectables, if anything give a few to the Hermit known by ZombieCleo.

(Pause)

(Sound of Winter taking a breath)

Our second case is of the star sign Cancer. Cancer was suggested previously to fight GeminiTay. The same week an obituary was released of one of the Cancers. A suggestion for the Hermit Citizens under the star sign of cancer is to invest in life insurance. 

(Pause)

Our third case is of the star sign Leo. Leo is often associated with the symbolism of a lion and the colour red. According to one record, Leo was described as “Lucky” for this year. I doubt the likelihood of that occurring. To improve the chances of this happening, it is suggested to obtain a lion, and then set it free in a friend's house. 

(Pause)

Our fourth case is of the star sign Virgo… Virgo was advised previously to follow a Joe Hills certified beauty tutorial. While this was previously suggested, it is now suggested to spend time away from the entity, and other paranormal beings. 

(Pause)

(Sounds of the newsroom, brown noise if you will)

The crew seem up in arms about something, however that is not my business, my business is delivering this to the listener.

(Pause) 

Let’s get back to business. 

(Sounds of Winter taking a breath in and out)

In the case of Libra it has been written down that they should bring an umbrella with them and open the umbrella up in inconvenient moments. The rest of the suggestion is scribbled out, with some words, which are indistinguishable. 

(Sounds of Winter flipping through pages)

(Beat)

For Scorpio it seems as if they are suggested to start pooling diamonds?? together. So sorry for the confusion but I cannot understand for the life of me what is written here. 

(Sounds of Winter flipping through even more pages)

For Sagittarius it is suggested that they have-

(sounds of a wet being squelching up beside the recording device)

(Sounds of a thud before the sound of Winter slumping onto the ground)

(Static)

Editor's Note: This transcription was not written by the editor. Due to its disturbing nature, the editor would like to exclude it but it is above her pay grade (the pay grade being nothing at all). Sincerest apologies.

The Birdhouse

By Azure

Citizens may have taken notice of many avian and bird-adjacent persons flocking to a treehouse in the forest near the shopping district. One of our interviewers, Azure, has spoke with some of the avians who often use the birdhouse for more information on this new gathering area.

1. What is your favorite part of the bird house? Z: I'd say its how inviting everyone I've met here so far have been! Budgie: Similarly, I like the closeness of it. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you’re from, an avian is an avian Raven: Definitely [the living room], it so comfy and I may or may not have not left it in weeks except to necessities due to that 

2. Who built it? Z: I don't actually know that one, do you know who built it? Budgie: Well, when I got here, nobody really knew, either. It just kind of… existed. A lot of the accommodations and decorations you see were brought in after we settled. We’ve built crash-landing pads around the entrances, we’ve put ladders for those who can’t fly… I believe we changed some of the glass to stained glass so nobody would run into it. While it doesn’t change how I view the Birdhouse, I would certainly like to know who to thank for this building, it’s provided such a welcoming community Raven: No, not really. It's just kind of always been here.*

3. How did you find the bird house? Z: I just got here recently, and after getting a home set up i just- went looking for some community, and heard there was one for avians. I’m glad i looked into it Budgie: I was on my way home from working when I flew past it, I saw what looked like an avian-based build, so I got curious. I wanted to explore, but I didn’t know others were inside until I stumbled upon them. I believe it was Pen and Nerd I found… Raven: Oh, I was out flying a while back and it caught my eye. I went it to check it out and I haven't really left since than

4. Roughly how many citizens are living there and how big is the Birdhouse? Pen: None of us live here per se, at least I don't think so! We all just come around to hang with each other, this is a space to meet other Avians after all. The birdhouse is quite big, that's for sure, quite accommodating too. Can't tell you the exact amount of avians that come by, the amount varies everyday and I'm personally sure I haven't met them all yet Budgie: I’ve so far met… maybe 10 other avians? I’m not sure how many of us actually live here, but many of us will stay the night on occasion! We have a designated ‘comfort’ area for nests and other sleeping arrangements. Z: I’ve only met about 4 so far, 6 counting these two (referring to Pen and Eagle)

6. Is there anything else you'd like to mention about the Birdhouse? Eagle: Well it’s a very nice community space and we’ve kind of formed a flock here. I won’t name names, but some of us can be very bad at remembering to preen or have never learned how, so a lot of times another avian will offer them help. And the avians here are always welcoming, even if I haven’t quite met all of them yet. Budgie: The Birdhouse is always open— I don’t think there will be a time where anyone would be turned away, We’re a welcoming community. As I’ve said before, an avian is an avian. It doesn’t matter if they’ve got full wings or lost or damaged ‘em, they’ll always be welcome to settle in. Pen: I'd say that the Birdhouse is a great place for everyone, especially the birds, it's... I'd have to admit, it's very nice to have a place filled with others that can understand you, ya know? Still working things out and hopefully more things could be added for the others, like how the stairs are a recent addition for those that are grounded. Can't wait to see how this place grows honestly. Z: I've only really been here a very short while, but from what i've seen and heard from the others here, the birdhouse seems like a sort of safe space, and i'm just really glad i joined here

*Editor's Note: The Birdhouse was designed by Morph and built by Redfeather. Canonically, whoever built the basis of the Birdhouse is not definitively known but many other avians helped make the Birdhouse what it is today. You can find a tour of the Birdhouse here.

Lost and Found 

By Virtual

The following items were brought in from across the server this week. As nobody knows who they belong to, they have been categorized as lost. If you recognize any of the following, or would like to report a lost item, do reach out to us at lostandfound@thehermitnews.org*

*not a real email address

Item 1: An iron sword that has rusted up to the hilt, found buried in the desert. The sword was excavated by a citizen collecting sand for a mega project. Despite its poor condition, the sword appeared to have full durability and whistled when swung, as though it was extremely sharp. Tests have shown that the sword is exactly as sharp as it sounds, and it is now being kept safe in a leather scabbard in the Lost and Found office, where it has temporarily become a coat rack. If the sword belongs to you, we hope you are up to date on your tetanus shot before you come collect it.

Item 2: A book with a yellow cover, found in Welsknight’s base. Nearly imperceptible patterns weave their way through the fabric cover of this book. The pattern seems to have no beginning or end, and when we attempted to find one, we found the shapes repeated infinitely, like fractals. This cover appears to have been layered over an older leather binding, which peeked out when the book was opened. The inside cover did contain a bookplate, but the name of the library it came from was too smudged to make out. The book itself contained no words, only a series of impossible mazes that bled over onto each consecutive page, creating a hundred page long infinite spiraling puzzle. If this book belongs to you, perhaps you can show us the solution.

Item 3: An amulet in the shape of a stylized eye, found in the Overseer Offices. The sound of running tape spills from the amulet at a steady volume. When a citizen listened closely, they could hear a voice layered beneath the static. They reported an unmistakable feeling that, whoever this is, they are talking directly to the listener. Their words are faint and unintelligible, but their tone and repetition strikes a sense of urgency. They are trying to tell you something. Can you hear the whisper? Come to the Overseer offices, and listen closely. Maybe you can pass on the message.

Spectating Science: Ravagers and Environmental Behavior in Decked Out

Recorded by Cirrus, the Shoebill

Scientific studies of the Hermit Citizen Hub have been steadily developing over the course of the past month, allowing insight into subjects that have drawn both applied researchers and their fellow citizens towards a dedicated journey of curiosity. These growing developments include but are not limited to observing mob behavior, the radiation of The Perimeter, the transformative effects of The Rift, the fungal nature of the Sculk and its symptoms of infection, the possible existence of The Watchers and their relation to their citizens, and experiments related to the enigmatic Zedvancements.

This edition of Spectating Science focuses on the behavior and care of Ravagers, several of which are heavily integrated into the up-and-coming dungeon crawler game, Decked Out, and features an interview with its highly experienced laboratory technician and beast keeper, Redfeather.

Redfeather, a researcher who specializes in the fields of mob biology, health, and behavior, also keeps watch over a variety of experiments focused specifically on animals and has been working as an applied scientist for two seasons. After several months of assisting other prominent figures with their experiments, Redfeather conducts his own calculated routines of Ravager observation, care, and experimental study.

Ravagers play a vital role in Decked Out, as they are used to increase the game’s difficulty and instill a fearful sense of urgency in its participants. Originally herded by the creator of the dungeon, Tango Tek, these creatures are known to be aggressive towards players and notoriously bloodthirsty, making them a perfect addition to the intended pulse-pumping chases of Decked Out. Despite their brash demeanor, those who are persistent enough to study their instinctual reactions to an ever-changing internal environment have brought an intriguing perspective. 

The following interview with Redfeather was recorded on May 12th, at approximately 8:45 AM in The Birdhouse by Cirrus, the Shoebill.

“Good morning, Feather! Have a seat and tell us where your work hails from. How long have you been an applied scientist?”

“Well, I’m just a lab tech, I work odd jobs here and there, mostly taking care of experiments and other captive mobs, feeding them, recording any growth, monitoring health issues, and recording their behavior in studies! I’ve been working as a scientist for two seasons.”

“Please, elaborate on what makes you passionate about your work. Our listeners [and readers] and I are enamored with any enthusiasm.”

“I’m especially passionate about studying mob behavior. For example, the way Ravagers react in a controlled environment is fascinating!”

“Ravagers, such rambunctious creatures. Have you made any particularly notable discoveries about their behavioral changes, perhaps related to their environment, in this case, or their keepers?”

“Well, for example, their varied reactions can depend a lot on different variables! Depending on the keeper, their past experiences, how hungry they are, the space they’re in, temperature, the presence of other Ravagers, they can be wildly different in their levels of aggression! Sometimes they can seem downright cuddly! Of course, you must always still exercise caution with an unpredictable animal. Illagers may ride them, but they are far from tame.”

“Bulls of their own unruly destiny, they’re not to be tamed by those who dismiss their spirited minds. You say they can be quite affectionate, yes? What are the ideal conditions that could bring them into such a state?”

“I’ve yet to arrive at a precise conclusion, however, I can draw a pretty confident line between docility and whether you have food. Also, if they have recently quenched their bloodthirst, they seem to enjoy a bit of ‘celebration’ so to speak. Other Ravagers treat them with more respect for having won the hunt. Also, while not great for their general mood, a Ravager in a smaller space is less likely to attack right away, granting you the opportunity to distract it with food. Thus, why letting them out of the stable right at feeding time is the perfect time to sneak in pets. They also love a good brushing, providing you can get close enough.”

“Bloodlust for Ravagers, it can’t be removed any more easily than a decaying body seven feet into a bog, after all. A sociological development of a hierarchy among these creatures must be more intricate than those of mere slow cows and sheep if respect for victors is considered imperative to their moods. You have an observant instinct about you to notice such previously undiscovered details. Now, you’re also affectionate towards them from a domestic pet standpoint, just a smidge, from what you mention about brushing them. What is it about them that draws you in with such a sensitive approach?”

"Yes, well, I am one of the keepers as well and have taken on the job of making sure their health is well as they live in Decked Out. I have grown fond of them, though they, I think, feel less towards me and are fonder of the food I bring. Nevertheless, they enjoy their pets and brushes at least as much as a picky cat enjoys being pampered. And that prickliness is what draws me in, I suppose. It's lovable in a way to see them go after their prey so enthusiastically!"

“Cats, what an intriguing comparison. Chasing and devouring their prey gives them a common ground with many, I suppose Ravagers included. Being in such a controlled environment as this ‘Decked Out,’ I suspect, requires Ravagers to relearn their instinctual routines to freely roam. Did you and the keepers work to build a Pavlovian response to their controlled living quarters?”

“For right now, I can say that the Pavlovian response is clearly observed when bringing food, however, for their bloodlust, no additional training is needed! They will go after the keepers or testers or developers alike.”

“Listeners [and readers], take note. Feather, have you recorded any developing changes in the behavior of any other mobs?”

“The only other mobs in the dungeon are the Vex, and they are very instinctual, familiar with Ravagers, and are only let out on occasion when the runner is out of time.”

“Decked Out runners, your time is fleeting from the moment you enter, in that case. Now, if you were to attempt to socialize these controlled Ravagers with other mobs, do you think that they could co-exist in that same environment in Decked Out?”

“I believe other mobs would adapt quickly, given they don't have any natural hostilities aside from Villagers and Iron Golems.”

“Excellent for them! How about if they were to live among each other in the wild? Are they too far changed in this environment to readjust to living in the wild, say, if Decked Out does not last forever?”

“I'm unaware of any extant wild Ravagers aside from their cousins, the cows, but given their natural herding instinct, they would likely do just fine on the plains. The future of Decked Out after the game is currently quite uncertain, but I'm certain we could free the Ravagers at the end for some fun."

“The release of these capricious Ravagers will certainly receive quite the fanfare! […] Each and every second of your time in this interview is one I am grateful to have shared with you. Those are all of the questions I have for you at this time, though I have no doubt that another interview will come along your way in the future.”

“Pleasure to have you! Yes, I can't help but invite you back when you please, not for work, but as a fellow avian! This place is both for the community as well as for avians to be themselves. Have a good day!”

Spectating Science would like to thank Redfeather for providing such a detailed perspective on the idiosyncrasies of these bull-like creatures! We invite any applied researchers to bring forth any growing developments that they would like to share in this segment and look for Cirrus, the Shoebill, for an interview about themselves and their work. In addition, tangents and rambles are more than welcome. No discovery is too small, and it is never too late to teach your fellow citizens something new!

[If you would like to be interviewed for Spectating Science, please look for Cirrus’s Citizen I.D. Card in the Discord server and leave a note for them.]

ADVERTISEMENTS

By Jamie

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The most magi-cal place on the server is opening soon! In just a few days, the Calnival will be opening in the south side of the shopping district. Opening night will have half-off ticalets and exclusive acts! All members of the Calition will be present for the show of a lifetime. Staff positions are open.

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To honour Mi Amore, the Garden Club is hosting a meeting at Bdubs’ new Horse Mountain. Guests are expected to bring Pink Carnations, Marigolds, Roses, or Rosemary in his honour. Hopefully things go down less explosively than the last time Bdubs’ pasture was used.

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Have you accidentaly created a mob farm in your empty interior? Don’t worry! The Scar Safety Services is happy to come in, clean it up, and light up your base! While we can’t help build your base, we can ensure that you won’t die trying! :)

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Fun and Games

This week's fun and games are brought to you by Roo, Snuffy, and Azure!

Word Search by Roo

Crossword by Roo

Coloring page by Snuffy

Brain Teasers by Azure

And that’s all for this issue folks! Thank you so much for reading, and have a wonderful week!

[phantomoftheorpheum]

PLL: OS (Summer School) 2x04 thoughts

*Spoilers for 2x01-2x04 of Summer School

okay y'all, I've done my nails, washed my hair, I've got my under eye masks on, and a box of old fashioned butter fudge, let's watch 2x04.

EDIT: just a fair warning, I'm absolutely overthinking (I like overthinking) and if you aren't interested in someone overanalyzing a tv show down to the tiniest detail, this post is not for you.

We're officially halfway through the season!

In the "previously on" recap, they play that clip of Mrs. Beasley saying, "we must all do our part to save those who are worthy," (<< or something very close to that), which certainly plays into my "sinners" being punished Mrs. Beasley/Pastor Malachi "Bloody Rose" theories, but I also worry about the show specifically bringing our attention to it this early on.

One thing that I've been thinking about more and more, which makes this season a little difficult to predict, is that we don't really know what "Rose" wants. We have really 0 concrete motivation at this point. In season 1, while we didn't know how all the pieces fit together, we knew the A storyline was centered around Angela, her death, and the role the moms played in it. Since "Bloody Rose" isn't actually Rose Waters (or certainly doesn't seem to be), we don't really know why she's tormenting the Liars, or why she's killing other people. While I've been working on my "sinners" theory, and this episode definitely has some elements that play into that, the lack of a defined "goal" keeps us guessing a lot more this season.

Rose Waters - Are we convinced that the "actual" Rose Water IS Rose Waters? While I've never really thought "Bloody Rose" is Rose, it does put my guard up that the girls immediately buy in to her being the real Rose. I'm not sure rn.

I’ve taken note of the SpookySpaghetti Waters Family films, and I haven’t talked about them at all before, because they’re pretty much just going over stuff (in an incredibly dramatized way) we already know, and I could honestly go the rest of my life never hearing Mouse say “SpookySpaghetti” again, like we GET it, but considering how much screentime they’re giving the plot line, I do have to consider the fact that the films & website may be more important than just a convenient place to dump info & have "Rose" contact people. One thought that comes to mind (despite the character being largely absent so far this season), is that Wes told Tabby in 2X01 that the film festival she was rejected from had rejected him 3 times. We know he’s obsessed with horror, and he’s the one who talked Tabby into posting her film online in order to get it out there. Could the films we’re seeing be Wes’ rejected festival films? Does it matter? This is what I mean when I say I overthink things.

The fact that ROSE is using the “final girl” terminology does immediately make me think of Wes & Christian. It’s kind of hard to imagine Mrs. Beasley (who has been my top suspect since 2x01) knowing/using the “final girl” label, and Wes did quite literally call Tabby a final girl at the beginning of the season, but I don’t feel I can draw any strong conclusions on this one, just taking note. 

In that vein of thought... Chip/Christian - I know I was not initially sold on the “Christian is connected to Chip” theories, because it feels like a retread of old ground, BUT I’m a little suspicious that they haven’t really brought Chip and his mom up since the first episode, other than Tabby having flashbacks of him & seeing similarities in Christian. I also noticed Christian referred to Tabby as a final girl (though he does so in relation to her potentially starring in the film), which is terminology I am keeping my eyes open for from anyone other than the main girls. I’m still not completely sold on the suspicions of Christian, but the fact they AREN’T pointing at him right now (which I expected them to do as soon as they realized the Bloody Rose situation was an actual threat since he literally has A and Rose masks in his basement) has me re-evaluating his threat level.

Dr. Sullivan - This character has been a tough one for me. I know she’s from the original show, and a lot of people think that rules her out. I’m not so sure about that (if they’re willing to take jabs at Ezra, a main character from a very popular [but also despised] ship, then I wouldn’t be surprised if they took other characters from the original show and changed the perception of them), and honestly I don’t remember her. It’s been a LONG time since I watched the original show, so I’m missing some of the context with this character. It’s also difficult to know what her motivation would be- yes, it seems Rose was one of her patients, there is a connection, but if she IS behind things, I think we’re missing some really vital information, presumably about the “loss” that is hinted at when Imogen is talking to her this episode. Surely that’s coming back around at some point (is this info we have about her from the main show and I just don’t know it? Someone help me out here). It feels like Dr. Sullivan's past has a part to play, but is she a bad guy? IDK. That being said, we have no proof that Dr. Sullivan was actually pushed down the stairs. She could have just as easily injured herself escaping the fire during Mouse’s test. 

Mothers and daughters, mothers and daughters, mothers and daughters, this is haunting me. Everything is about mothers and daughters- basically all of season 1, Rose’s lore, Imogen’s plot, Kelly’s plot, etc. Mothers betraying daughters (Rose’s abuse of Angela, Noa’s mom letting her take the fall for her drugs, Faran’s mom causing her permanent injury/pain with unnecessary surgery, infantilizing/stunting Mouse, failing Karen & isolating/abusing Kelly, etc. etc.), Mothers protecting daughters (Davie’s support of Imogen, Imogen’s fears for Estelle, Tabby’s mom threatening Wes, etc.). This feels so central and so important to the identity of this show, but I feel like I’m missing an important puzzle piece here.

Not important, but like, y’all where can I get one of these jobs where you can just leave because things are “slow” or take a nap in the office because you’re tired and still get paid? 

Henry - The Henry/Faran relationship still feels very tenuous/on the rocks. We know so little about Henry, and sometimes he does feel just flat out obsessed with Faran (which, like, I get it, but you’re in a slasher/murder mystery, so…) like, “I just wanna be close to you,” sounds nice, but feels weird. IDK. I have the same problem with being suspicious of Henry that I do with Ash, which is that we’ve never been given any indication of what their connection could be to the larger events at play and we’ve also never been given a particularly good motive for why they might do terrible things to terrorize their girlfriends (Ash more than Henry because I GUESS Henry could be super mad at Faran for the dance stuff, but that feels like it’s pushing it quite a bit) and most, if not all of their scenes, revolve around their girlfriends. Speaking of-

Ash - I don’t have a lot to say here because we get very little new info to work with here. He’s done nothing particularly suspicious (other than being by himself during the Rose search scene, meaning he could have called Faran as "Rose") and I have no idea what his motive could be, so I don’t have a valid reason to put him on my suspect list. He currently has no known connection to Rose, Archie, Angela, and the Millwood past. He currently has no known connection to the church (and considering some of the other topics we see the church condemn, it seems unlikely they are accepting of trans identities). Also, I like him, so until he says or does something that triggers suspicion, I’m gonna allow myself to think the best of him. BUT-

Um. Are we gonna talk about Red Right Hand playing over Mouse & Ash’s search scene or…? Like I said, I have no solid reason to suspect Ash, but you cannot play that song without invoking Scream and NEVER TRUST THE LOVE INTEREST. Are they fucking with us? Is that what this is? Also, from a production standpoint, why was Jordan Gonzalez upgraded to a main cast member this season when this is all the screen time he’s had so far? It doesn’t feel like more than season 1 yet, so does that mean he’ll have a heftier role in the back half of the season? I am spiraling, y’all. 

Idk that calling the somewhat obsessed mom (not that I blame Imogen for her overprotective feelings) of your infant daughter to come babysit when you’ve been trying to get her to leave you alone makes ANY sense, particularly since Imogen implied earlier that they don’t even know about the Millwood stuff that could make Estelle a target, but okay?

Johnny - We really don't learn anything about him this episode. Imogen has been through so much, and last season Shawn, Henry, and Ash all turned out good (within the context of that season, who knows this season), so I'm just going to hope this is a good thing for Imogen. That's really all I have to say about this right now. My judgement of him is pending.

Okaaayyy, let's talk about Shawn/Noa/Jen - I've said my piece before about my dislike of infidelity plots and love triangles, there's no need to go further into that here. If there's one saving grace of this plot, it's that I think it could have very important ties to the overall plot of the season ("could" being the operative word here). As I've mentioned before, if Shawn actually learned about Noa & Jen's relationship at some point in the past, he absolutely could be plotting longterm revenge. It almost seems like he almost has to be bad to somewhat soften the blow of Noa's actions, but... maybe they just are working up towards him dumping her. If he's done nothing wrong, then holy hell this is awful for him. I mean, not only did your girlfriend cheat on you (presumably more than once, since Shawn & Noa were a couple when she was in juvie, too), but she also convinced you to give her $2,000 dollars to bail out her "friend" (which, by the way, she also lied to you about why that friend was arrested) who she immediately cheats on you with. Regardless of Shawn's role in the story, that is seriously messed up of Noa. If Shawn is bad, she doesn't know it, so wtf. I'm also really curious about Jen as an individual. She brings up her mom a lot (and uses that connection she has with Noa with her mom being an addict) and the need for money for her mom's rehab (is that even why she needs money?) and with the themes of this show, that doesn't feel like a throwaway thing. We never see her father (also she never mentions a stepmother or a relationship for her father, but there's loads of women's clothes in that house, so are those Jen's clothes? Her mom's old clothes? A partner her father has that just wasn't mentioned?) so we can only take her word for who he is and what he's like, and that's kind of hard to do, considering everything. And was that even her Dad's house? I can't help but wonder if Jen has deeper ties to the main plot than we realize. If not, I think it's certainly a good bet that Noa's "test" will involve her love triangle. She's definitely the most "mysterious" of the new love interests so far this season. While I don't love infidelity plot lines, I'm interested to see where all this goes.

“Rose” - I’m going to make an assumption here (maybe I shouldn’t), that much like Ghostface, Rose’s strength/agility is not necessarily realistic to the character under the mask. And because I think this, I’m not going to waste time comparing her size/strength/agility to Faran. 

Quick Note: Of course I was screaming at Faran not to go and play along with "Rose," but regardless I love her and she's strong as hell.

Alright. It's time for the Kelly/Mrs. Beasley/Pastor Malachi/Church plot discussion.

First of all, obviously everything about Kelly's plot/scenes in this episode are massive red flags, and I'm not sure whether to feel validated or like that's massive distraction technique. We are halfway through the season, maybe it's not too early for this. Or maybe the church being involved in the Rose plot (if they are) isn't meant to be a twist, but some of the characters involved are? It does bother me that the show is leaning so hard into the cult-like aspects of the church, because obviously that makes them incredibly suspicious. And what the hell is happening to Kelly?? Like what did we not see?

Kairos - Okay, this was something I had to look up, because wtf. They just dropped this so casually in with Kelly mentioning group therapy and trauma bonding, but this is a really specific bit of terminology. So, it’s safe to say that I waded through some religious stuff I was not familiar with in order to try to get a better understanding of this. Kairos (Caerus) is, in Greek mythology, the personification of opportunity. He is associated with the “fleeting moment” where the scales may tip in one direction or another. “Kairos moments” refers to the right moment for decision/action. In Christianity, Kairos is “the appointed time in the purpose of God.” So anyway, I ended up reading a bunch of Bible verses picked out by various “Kairos” groups, and basically it seems like the Christian interpretation and usage of “Kairos” is often related to the concept of conversion. Kairos is a dangerous time, a moment where you have an opportunity that you will not have again, but one that can lead to positive transformation and, if you miss it, immeasurable loss. There was also a section about submitting to the judgement of authority and how rebelling against this authority is an affront to God (and if that doesn’t feel related to Kelly’s storyline idk what does) and how you can bring ruin and judgement on yourself through things like “adultery” “murdering” “stealing” “coveting”. All of this fits in very much into the concept I’ve had of “Rose” punishing “sinners” and viewing herself as God’s Judgement. BUT is it too early for us to have all this stuff just pointing straight at the church?? It seems too early. Oh, and don’t think I didn’t notice how many of these “sins” Noa has committed in this episode alone. 

The constant bombardment of religious iconography, the church plot line being so present, Rose's backstory being directly linked to religious abuse, "sins" and "tests" being central to the plot of the story, the entire concept of the redemption house, the mention of kairos... At this point if the church stuff is a side plot and not directly related to Rose, I'm going to be disappointed, because I'd rather have coherent, well supported motive than a shocking "gotcha" moment. But we'll see.

OKAY, I think that's it from me tonight, y'all. Also I'm sorry for how many times I've written "y'all" in this post (I grew up in the south, I come by it naturally, I promise). Send me an ask or something if you want to spiral & overthink with me. 💜

[shouldiusemyname]

Finally getting to it! (After I had to figure out what the hell is On Repeat..) so @thegalwhorants bestie, here I am with a playlist that will surely shock you!

The game: Put your Spotify On Repeat playlist on shuffle and post the first 10 songs! (In my case, I don't really use Spotify much, so I used YouTube Music's recap playlist - same concept).

1. I AM NEXT TO YOU by Alight The Night - Very unsurprising and I lovingly blame @plantsarepeopletoo for this. The OF brain must OF at all costs. Also, it's 3 y.o demon baby's favorite song.

2. Baggage by Tilly Birds - apparently THIS is the one I listened to most this month (?). I guess someone had to fill the position lol

3. As I have no actual knowledge in Japanese I will not even attempt - the theme song from My Beautiful Man Eternal. Which I have been obsessed with since I watched the film.

4. ไม่ปล่อยมือ (coming of age) by Billkin - I love this song so much and it didn't even register with me until the #5ql game... btw, hope I got the name right in Thai 🫣

5. Do I Wanna Know by Arctic Monkeys - blame it on the OF brain, but it did remind me how much I love AM.

6. Back Door by Stray Kids - blame it on the blend!

7. I Can't Lose it All (instrumental version) by Ben Goldstein - this one is from The Eighth Sense and I can live in this one. Pack all my things and move in. Permanently.

8. Ok, this one is a surprise for me. Did not expect this one specifically, but Spotify said what it said.

9. Today by CITI - I have no idea how this got here. It all happened so fast!

10. Check for Pulse by Duplex Heart - will just say that this is one of demon baby's favorites.

Open and close with OF songs, and one inspired by smack in the middle.

I have no idea who to tag next as almost everyone already did this... Oh! Very curious about you @catsundmaus and @sofapup17 , so if you feel like it...

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Week in Review - Lighting Recap (April 16-May 13, 2023)

Some indie studio called Legendary Pictures released an entire video to reveal the title of its next film. Looks interesting, I guess.

Press notes and a teaser trailer are out for Ultraman Blazar. It's going to have Kiyotaka Taguchi back as the main director, a host who's also the leader of the defense team, a new mecha, and a simuldub... in other words, it's going to drag me back to the Ultra Series. The Ultraseven short that Tsuburaya has cued up for the 55th anniversary is looking good too.

Godzilla Rivals: Biollante Vs. Destoroyah was a fun capper to the series, with incredible attention to geographical detail. Or... is it the end? There's a "next issue" image at the end showing SpaceGodzilla rampaging through an alien world; that one's going to mark Matt Frank's triumphant return to writing/interior art duties on an IDW Godzilla comic. Also, the Monsters & Protectors series is ending with a double-sized issue called Summer Smash. Expect Mothra, Jet Jaguar, and Mecha-King Ghidorah in that one.

Zigra's been revealed as one of Gamera's foes in Gamera: Rebirth.

The new Godzilla Battle Line units are Mechagodzilla (1974) and... Chibi Godzilla?!?

Speaking of Chibi Godzilla, please do not sleep on Chibi Godzilla Raids Again. You can get all caught up with it in about 22 minutes.

Keizo Murase's Brush of the God has wrapped production, per Kickstarter updates. They're aiming to have the film done by October.

The Movie Monster Series onslaught continues this summer with Monster X and Fire Rodan. There's also going to be a very cool figure based on a maquette used during production of the original Godzilla... unfortunately, it's an event exclusive, so expect ridiculous aftermarket prices.

Finally, a reminder to check out @lsdjellyfishu's translation of Gamera vs. Barugon, an action-packed manga set between Gamera 2 and 3!

[z0urcherri]

Z0ur's 2023 Recap

Here goes with a personal first. To start, 2023 for me was transformative. I felt more confident, more focused, and doing the things i love has felt even easier. Less emphasis on working hard was the key. I'm very proud of this change. I'm also proud of my accomplishments. In no specific order, i've given my blog a structured queue, i've started up a Neocities, and have finally picked up projects that have sat dormant for years. Alzier is seeing character modeling and soundtrack work being done, and Burrowed Alive has a main cast and a plot synopsis ready. I'm sorry i promised a preview and then never got around to it, so i'll simply release it when the time's right. With all that out of the way, here's other cool things i did: In music This year (especially in comparison with 2022) i got serious about sharing my favorite tunes, some obscure and some more well-known. In particular were some ear-catching artist discoveries: The Twilights, Coral City, Russ Freeman. I dusted off acts like The Return, Janis Ian, Paolo Conte and Jimmy Wayne in hopes that listeners could make their own discoveries. Plenty of tunes were subject to hours and hours of replays-Nocturne, Juicy, and City Magic, for example, bring an irresistible feel-good vibe to any occasion. I also played the hell out of Charmless Man, In E, Concrete Blonde's Little Wing, Time Goes On and much much more. Seriously, it's an enormous list. Check out #hand-picked music for everything! In film Finding time to watch a movie can be a challenge, especially when you're busy. That challenge doubles when you're also planning around movie night with loved ones. It doesn't always work out. However, movies were watched, from classics to a select few new releases. Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, despite being released in 2022, took 'til this year to get around to and is easily among my top 5 flicks. Facing off with a dull and uninspired Five Nights movie, Willy's Wonderland was put to the test, which it passed with flying colors. And in the tradition of watching horror around Halloweentime, i chose the Final Destination series, somewhat to combat my own phobia of death. I'd seen the first one, but i have yet to finish the 2nd. I also got started on Venom and Transformers. Lastly, i gave Raggedy Ann & Andy a watch, and while i didn't hate it i ultimately have a couple bones to pick with it. I'll do a full review later. In streaming Less time spent dealing with technical issues is always a plus. It's allowed me to bring a new segment, live drawing, into the mix. #z0ur artz is where you can find not only finished pieces, but also a 3-minute timelapse of the drawing process! I'm also happy with the new chatbox, and plan to experiment with different graphics in the future. In Syphon Filter, i've just defeated the first boss, Anton Girduex. Let me tell you, it wasn't easy. I fear for the next boss fight already. In Tarzan, my biggest problems are falling out of a tree and missing out on collectibles. Corruptions have been steadily improving, and the results are no longer simply "pixel puke" and crashes. I've been diving into lots of corruption tutorials, so expect to see it pay off in the coming year. We'll also be starting some new playthroughs! In closing And, of course, i've met some incredible creators like @lucianinsanity, @razialart, @lace-arts, and more this year! Please, do check them out. I ultimately learn from and find inspiration in everything in the #hand-picked art tag. New fandoms include Amazing Digital Circus, Toontown Corporate Clash, Welcome Home, Emesis Blue, and others i can't think of right now. And that's about it! Be seeing you. - Malcolm

[nostalgia-tblr]

Thor: The Dark World

Hello I have now seen THOR (COLON) THE DARK WORLD. This film was not as bad as I was expecting it to be, though it also wasn't great so maybe I had just set my bar too low based on how nobody seems to like it that much. I watched this with a visiting friend who had not seen Thor 1 or The Avengers so I did her a Dramatic Presentation beforehand where I explained what had happened in those, except I couldn't really remember what happened in The Avengers so that recap was mostly "then something exploded, I think." So anyway she was a useful non-MCU-person barometer for this one.

Christopher Eccleston is in this yet also he is not, in that we kept forgetting his character existed. He didn't seem to be enjoying himself much either. Which reminds me, this film seemed a bit desaturated in an off-putting way, it was like if you were watching Thor 1 while feeling depressed and the depression had manifested visually instead of just as a metaphor. Because it was a Dark World.

The ending was very confusing, people were jumping in and out of invisible portals (maybe?) and the magic hammer was flying around for a bit like when a plane circles the airport while waiting for a spot to open to use the runway. Stuff was lining up in space except not because we'd have noticed by now if the realms of the gods were that close and it would indeed have a gravitationl effect though not the weirdo ones in this film.

The pacing in this film was pretty poor generally though we felt it did perk up a bit towards the end.

Friend's favourite characters were Erik Selvig and Loki, in that order because Erik is a bit mad in this film (I belatedly explained the mind stone stuff from Avengers 1, having forgotten about that until Erik was in his pants) and goes to Stonehenge (which may be magic or alien or who the fuck knows) to run about naked (and not even at a solstice!!) and then he was in one of those Creepy American Movie Psychiatric Hospitals (or possibly it was a police station in London???) with medication in plastic pill bottles like they don't really do in this country and as mentioned he was in his pants for no real reason and that's all very relatable. So hooray for Erik!

More tumblr-esque-ly, friend was like "i can see why people liked this Loki, he's popped in from a better film of his own to bitch about this one" and indeed things do get more interesting when we finally let him out of jail where he is sat being a goth because Angsty because Frigga got fridged. (It feels like there should be a great Frigga/fridged pun but neither of us could think of anything, which was very saddening. Though we did realise that Anthony Hopkins = Welsh Odin = Woden, which is the best we could do for a pun and fuck it it'll do after struggling for at least an entire minute with the fridged-Frigga thing.)

Natalie Portman was in this film.

They were in London for some reason, cannot remember why. Elves, probably. Oh wait was it so they were in the right country to have the Stonehenge bit? Stonehenge is pre-Celtic which means it's also pre-Norse but it was somehow relevant to the elves stuff, as was Snowdon, which isn't that just a mountain? But it was somehow put there by people in The Olden Days or... okay I admit we were lost by that point, but there are stone circles all over Britain, they were very fashionable for a while but nobody really knows why but if you start drawing lines between old rock things here you're bound to come up with proof that a layline runs though the Prime Minister's bathroom or some nonsense like that. I suppose Stonehenge is our Giza Pyramids in that films make up complete shite about it all the time, and so inspired by that popular tumblr post I have just checked where the nearest Pizza Hut is to Stonehenge and it's at "Solstice Park" about 3 kilometres away just off the A303, hope this information is helpful to someone.

Erm. Yeah it turns out I can remember less about this movie than I thought, so this review is lacking and no doubt as disappointing as the fact that you can't see Stonehenge from Pizza Hut :(

[flythesail]

on this gifset of the scene of Ace asking Nancy, "Why did you hesitate at the veil? You said you were doing this for us. What does that mean?" you said in your tags: #i am SOOOO obsessed with the way it was filmed

I would like to invite you to talk a little more about that, if you wanna, because I would love to hear your thoughts. ♡

Hii, YES I will talk about that!!

*Pulls out 3 hour long presentation I've had sitting in a folder labeled just in case.*

The short answer is: I love how much movement there is in the scene through the camera work. Also, how the camera work is used to reflect what's actually happening in the scene.

Yet because this is possibly my favorite scene in the finale, here's the LONG answer + bonus narrative analysis! ->

To recap, this is right after the veil. Nancy comes back to The Claw, saves Ryan's life, and soon after, the rest of the crew arrives. They discuss damage, casualties, and what's next. Nick and George are off to the youth center to open it as a shelter. Bess and Ace are going to empty the freezer and cook food for people.

Ace watches Bess and the others go, and immediately turns to Nancy: "We could use some help if you're up for it."

The important thing to note here is this is right after the veil. The last Ace interacted with Nancy, she told him to run from the veil ("I'm doing this for us, okay?") and right after, grabbed the front of his jacket, apologized in tears, and left. So he's definitely concerned!

Yet instead of being like "what happened back there at the veil?" he takes the I know Nancy route, and invites her to help him and Bess.

It's comparable to 3x01. There, Ace could tell Nancy was off. So when she says this:

He says, "I can help you carry it."

And it works! She accepts. Whereas he's asking if she literally wants help carrying it, it's also his way of saying "hey, I'm here if you want to talk." It gets them alone and leaves the decision to then talk up to Nancy (who we all know tends to not want to do that) (unless it's to Ace 😉).

But in the finale, that method does not work. Nancy does not want to talk. She shakes her head and tells him she's going with Nick and George instead.

In terms of the camera work here (gif below), it's incredibly quick. We jump from Ace, to Nancy saying no, to her grabbing the first aid kit and making a run for it.

It highlights how badly Nancy needs to get away from him. She just held him dead in her arms, found out that wasn't even real, came back to reality only to give him up to save the town, and now here she is at The Claw - needing to pretend none of that happened. Which is more or less impossible because she just experienced some of The Worst moments of her life.

Yet this time, Ace doesn't let her run.

Technically, this is uncharacteristic for him. He never pushes Nancy. He knows that only pushes her away. But this is really important. He also knows it involves him.

So Ace follows her into the back of The Claw. The camera as Ace follows Nancy is another example of how much movement there is in the scene.

We stay right behind him as he practically jogs after her. The camera is a bit shaky, and that highlights the lack of stability in the scene. He knows something's wrong (is probably panicking because of that). Nancy is incredibly upset (needing to get away so he doesn't see her cry, further proving that something is wrong).

Here's where we end up next, with Nancy in the back putting the first aid kit on a shelf. Maybe expecting Ace to not follow, she begins to let herself cry. She's alone now.

Which does not last. Ace arrives and as soon as she realizes that, she has to put all that emotion away.

Interesting to note here is that Ace wastes zero time before asking Nancy what's up. He needs to know, and maybe he's thinking if he doesn't hurry and ask, she'll slip away again.

What I like about this part is the camera is focused on Ace. Yet we can see Nancy too. Ace is focused on Nancy. The perspective doesn't change much from when Nancy puts the kit away and when Ace shows up. He's there that fast, so all she can do is turn to him. I think because of that, the way it's filmed feels personal. To stay with the idea of movement, we've moved with them. We're with Nancy, and then Ace shows up, and we see that from her perspective.

Since Nancy can't run, she gives him an answer. She hesitated because she's never killed someone.

For what it's worth, it's a decent attempt at an answer. Even if it's entirely a lie, as Nancy already killed Temperance once before in the future forecast. But in that sense, there's still truth to it because killing Temperance is something she struggled with in the forecast too.

To discuss perspective, we are now from Ace's. Nancy is now the one talking and Ace is the one listening. Yet look how close we are to Ace, basically at his shoulder. It still feels personal. This entire scene is very personal for them. The camera is still not steady. Even as Nancy gives her explanation, she's starting to move away from him. She's talking fast too, sniffling as she does. There's an urgency here, just like there is in the entire scene.

The second she's said what she needs to, Nancy leaves. She doesn't give him a chance to ask follow-up questions or even respond.

She pushes past him as she leaves, and the camera responds to that.

The camera pushes back as she pushes past Ace. The perspective ends lower and further back than where it started. This distance works in contrast to the moment prior, where we were very close to Nancy and Ace. This shows how alone Ace is. Literally alone because Nancy is gone, and also figuratively as he has no idea what's going on.

I'll also point out that Ace does not move. So much of this scene is movement because the camera is following them. Jumping from Ace to Nancy, the walk to the back room, Nancy leaving, etc.

Now, he's still as the camera moves without him. The camera moving shows the tension isn't gone, but Ace is now at a loss. His attempt to talk to Nancy failed because all he got was a lie (or half-truth). He can't follow her as he knows she's upset. Following her would further upset her, increase the emotional distance between them, etc. He's doing the right thing in letting her go.

As the scene ends on this new angle, he just looks smaller. He looks helpless. He's left to contemplate what just happened, and we don't learn his conclusion until a month later during the famous Apartment Scene. (Where he blames himself, completely unaware of the moth curse via great aunt).

But to wrap things up and return to the point, I don't know that Nancy Drew is a show with a ton of noticeable camera work in every episode. Or maybe it's just that I've only recently started paying attention to it. I'm no expert lol, but I will say 3x13 is a very standout episode.

Another good 3x13 example is after the car crash. How the camera goes low to show Temperance towering over Nancy. Temperance is powerful, and she is in control.

There's also the odd angle (a disoriented feeling after the crash combined with the realization this is not reality). That's in addition to the (not pictured) close-ups on Nancy's face. Getting close and personal highlights how distraught she is.

With Nancy Drew, if there's episodes with cool camera work, there's a good chance Larry Teng directed. Recently when I rewatched 1x17, I was all of ten seconds in when I realized it reminded me of 3x13. And no surprise! Larry Teng directed that one too.

So I feel like it's one thing to just film what's happening, but another entirely to use the camera to emphasize emotions/the story itself. 3x13 is just a perfect example of that, and that's interesting to me.

And if you made it to the end, hopefully this was interesting to you!

[theprettynosferatu]

State of the Blog, October 2022

Friends, Romans, countryfolk:

The State of the Blog is strong. Ish. Strongish. Let me try to step back and recap this latest period.

Stories are being written. One of them is a quite long piece, and it will be a Patreon exclusive. The reason for keeping it exclusive is both to give patrons a thank you of sorts and because even if I were to post it in sections it wouldn't work on this platform because of the tone and content (it's less full erotica and more erotic romantic comedy) and the structure: any cutoff point would be arbitrary since it wasn't created to be episodic.

Aside from that story I'm working on 3 more, which will come here. Of course writing multiple stories means they will take a bit longer to come out but hopefully they will be worth it when they do.

Understanding the lack of stories, I've written more shorter, "to the reader" texts. I enjoy making them and it seems you are enjoying them too! I'm trying to be careful with them, since I am concerned about going too hard and causing harm. It's a bit of a tight rope to walk.

Captions are, as expected, coming out less frequently. This I anticipated when I changed my standards for image selection (only using either pictures with full consent or pictures from stock photography sites) and yes it's a bit limiting but I feel it's, for me, the way I'm ethically comfortable doing it.

The discord remains an amazing, supportive community and I have nothing but love for everyone there. Different activities are popping up organically and seeing people have fun and find common interests is awesome, even if some of them have terrible, wrong, no good opinions on the merits of the film The Batman.

On the money side, things are tight; but I've talked about finances enough lately and I always hate doing so. The patreon post/ad is there, and any support is really appreciated.

All in all, I'm a bit marveled that with all that has happened in my life this year, so many of you continue to enjoy my work and offer your kindness and support. I don't take anything for granted and I am deeply grateful for your words, help, reblogs, comments. It's nice to feel I'm putting out something that can be helpful, fun, or arousing to some.

The world is shitty enough as it is. Might as well enjoy our pleasures where we can get them!

And as always, be kind to yourselves and others! Let's grow this community with safety, humanity and shared fun 💜

- Nos

[mikuni14]

Hiii!

I want to ask them all haha, but I'll stay with 2, 3 and 15 (for the 2023 ql ask I mean)

Happy New Year darling!

Hiiiii! Thanks for your questions! haha I'd like to answer all the questions, but it would probably put me in a coma from pulling a brain muscle trying to remember what I even watched this year lmao

2. What show surprised you the most?

Be My Favorite because the unusual pairing actually worked, because I liked Krist 😮, because the series was simply very interesting

Laws of Attraction how the show is so well made and enjoyable, how Film is an EXCELLENT ACTOR

many series created couples this year that surprised me with how well-matched they are and won my heart unexpectedly (like To Sir, With Love and LoA, Love in Translation, Sing My Crush, and several other series from Korea)

The Sign surprised me with how great the show is and what a great couple BillyBabe is

Korea surprised me with amazing series in which they finally started kissing and even having bold scenes lol

Bake Me Please surprised me, I don't know if it was intentional, with how realistic the series is

not a series, but an actor: Mick surprised me as a seme character in My Universe

3. What show did you have high expectations for, but ended up disappointing you? oh boy, here we go: Step By Step, Between Us, Chains of Heart, Pit Babe (though if I focus on other couples, it's ok). I write mainly about series whose trailers and descriptions suggested something different than what I ultimately received. There are, of course, a lot of series that I had no expectations for, but which started out great and ended up disappointing me after I became interested in them.

15. What is your favorite scene from a QL this year? ohhhh "sweats nervously" there are so many of them???

To Sir, With Love (watched this year): Tian and Jiu's first meeting (I can watch it over and over), Yang realizing that his brother is gay, jealous Tian and Jiu running after him… oh they have so many wonderful things scenes together

The Eighth Sense: this series is made up of scenes that are carved in my heart, I really don't know which ones to choose

Sing My Crush: same

Our Dating Sim: same lol

Laws of Attraction: jfc SAME lmao 😆 from Charn's deranged smiles, to King Himbo I's Grand Entrance, to the shirt buttoning scene, flower scene.. omg..

Love in Translation: all their kisses, how is Yang with Phumjai, oh, and their making out session in the store? 10/10

Unintentional Love Story: Tae Joon "testing" Won Young, making him feel good in his car ;), tying a scarf around his neck, his scenes of being possessive, being shocked that Won Young doesn't want to go with him to the dinner..

Jun & Jun: Choi Jun pulling Lee Jun closer (daamn, I should add this to my recap as the hottest scene in 2023, silly me), the series has a lot of great scenes that I love rewatching

Our Dining Table: scene on the stairs 🥺

Chains of Heart: gift shop scene, love making scene

Be My Favorite: Piseang discovering his sexuality

PhayaTharn: I can't choose, I'm so sorry but they are perfect and have only great scenes that I keep rewatching all the time

I probably forgot half of what I liked lol

HAPPY NEW YEAR HONEY! ✨✨✨😘😘😘😘

[365days365movies]

31 (Films) to Life: End of Year Round-Up II

Before I wrap up last year and begin anew, here's the rest of the round up of the crime films I saw in 2022! Here's the first part of this post if you want a catch-up. These post is gonna cover these films:

Once Upon a Time in America (1984); directed by Martin Scorcese

Thelma and Louise (1991); directed by Ridley Scott

Reservoir Dogs (1992); directed by Quentin Tarantino

Casino (1995); directed by Martin Scorcese

Heat (1995); directed by Michael Mann

The Usual Suspects (1995); directed by Bryan Singer

L.A. Confidential (1997); directed by Curtis Hanson

American Psycho (2000); directed by Mary Harron

Catch Me if You Can (2002); directed by Stephen Spielberg

Monster (2003); directed by Patty Jenkins

The Departed (2006); directed by Martin Scorcese

Zodiac (2007); directed by David Fincher

OK, let's jump back into this recap!

Goncharov (1973); dir. Martin Scorsese - 82%

Look, I realize that this, as a recently recovered film, this has gotten a sort of cult-following, as it were. But after finally getting ahold of a copy of it and watching it, I dunno...seems somewhat overrated to me? Sure, Scorsese's choice to focus on Italy during the end of the Cold War is an interesting premise, and the cast is genuinely excellent, but...again, I thought it was only OK compared to some of the other movies on this list. Although, I will say, John Cazale was a stand-out character for me, in sort of a spiritual successor to his role in Dog Day Afternoon, playing the unhinged assassin with a very complex backstory. I read somewhere that there was a planned spin-off for Ice Pick Joe at some point, and I would love to know more about that. Plus, Scorsese's choice to follow up on Midnight Cowboy and Dog Day Afternoon by injecting homoerotic tones, especially in a film from this time period, was...

...Yeah, I'm WAY too late to hop on this meme. I'll stop now. It's a very funny meme, though. Love the fact that Scorsese himself admitted to making it; that's shit's hilarious. Anyway, on to the actual list.

Once Upon a Time in America (1984); dir. Martin Scorsese - 94%

This is a complicated movie to describe and to recap, and I actually never posted the last part of my review for this one, but...man. This is an excellent movie. Granted, exactly what you'd expect when I say it's a Martin Scorsese-directed period piece set in NYC and starring Robert de Niro...but, it still manages to surprise here and there. A couple of these surprises are, in my opinion, a tiny piece contrived, and it also manages to make its main character thoroughly unlikable in many ways, but it's still a great story with a lot of character packed in a...3 hour and 50 minute runtime, JESUS CHRIST. OK, yeah, this is a really long movie, but it's also hard to see a good place to trim it without harming the story and character work as a whole.

In terms of my normal breakdown, acting is nearly perfect all around; plot is convoluted and takes place in multiple time periods, but is still very good; directing and cinematography is beautiful; production and art design is perfectly immersive throughout all time periods represented; and if I hear pan-pipe music one more time I'M GONNA FUCKING LOSE IT. But the editing is still solid, despite an insane runtime. Look, if you're the kind of person who doesn't like uncomfortable moments in film or unlikely characters, or if you'd rather not strap in for a lot of atmosphere and silent character moments over the course of a nearly four-hour movie...maybe skip this. But otherwise, this movie is entirely worth it, and a genuine masterpiece. A must-watch for crime movie and Scorsese fans.

Thelma and Louise (1991); dir. Ridley Scott - 84%

A good Ridley Scott movie (and one that I only published half of my review for, whoops)! So, Thelma and Louise has a pretty good plot and acting, and does everything else pretty well. Plus, its titular relationship is compelling for a lot of reasons, whether or not you take it as romantic (which there are arguments for and against). As well as being a good source for an essay on justice within a patriarchal culture that has issues with female self-autonomy and sexual consent (yes, really, I'm not even reading into that super hard), it's an interesting movie. But if I'm gonna be honest, while I thought this was a good movie...it's not necessarily one I'd go out of my way to watch again, and I may turn away from it when it comes on TV. Y'know what I mean? Like, I'd tell people it's a good movie, but I wouldn't recommend it, necessarily. It's a good movie to watch at least once, though.

Reservoir Dogs (1992); dir. Quentin Tarantino - 89%

Reservoir Dogs, on the other hand, is a movie that I absolutely recommend. Now, is this a movie that, like Scarface, every college fuckboi in the world has seen, recommended, and quoted. I mean, yeah, absolutely. Is it gratuitously gory and violent? Again, yeah, absolutely it is. But it has a banger of a cast (Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, to name a few), fantastic plot and good writing, good direction and cinematography, good production and art design (simple as it is), great editing, and memorable music (for what little there is in this movie). There's a lot packed into this one, and there are narrative twists and turns you wouldn't necessarily expect, leading to one of the tensest endings I saw in a movie last year. And as much I would love to go into more details about this crime thriller...I won't. Go watch this one, trust me.

Casino (1995); dir. Martin Scorsese - 94%

So, this year, I made a huge mistake. I was in a hotel room for a conference, alone (much less sad than it sounds, believe me), and I decided to watch a movie that night. So, I sit down, look at my list of films, and realize the next one is the Scorsese classic film Casino. Now, I have a copy of this movie at home on DVD, but I find it on streaming, so I figure I may as well go for it. Here's the problem: it was on AMC. Now, at first blush, this doesn't seem like a problem. But it actually is a massive problem for Casino, more than any other movie I've ever seen, because the censoring for TV really distracts from the movie itself. Like...really badly, too. It was an issue.

Now, is this a good movie? Very much so. As Scorsese loves to do, it follows a gangster played by De Niro, during the time period where the Mafia was at its strongest influence in Las Vegas. His enforcer and best friend, played by Joe Pesci, joins him in the business. What follows is a multi-year story of death, lies, betrayal, talk shows, domestic abuse, and a LOT of crazy shit that you follow the entire time with baited breath. This is a 3 hour plus movie, and I remember more of it that I rightfully should. And yes, there are a LOT of F-bombs, all of which were covered by Joe Pesci's less-than-stellar dubbing over his own lines. When "fuck" comprises 40% of a character's dialogue, censoring tends to really hamper with immersion, just saying. But yes, this film has stellar acting from the leads and support, an interesting and engaging plot with curse-heavy writing, great direction and cinematography throughout, fantastic production design, and a good score with great editing. Definitely watch this one...uncensored. Trust me on that one.

Heat (1995); dir. Michael Mann - 90%

Well, shit, Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in a crime movie? And Pacino's playing a cop? Hell yes. It's also Pacino's last movie before he goes into overacting hell, and even then, he has a lot of scenery in his teeth and he is loving it. But even despite that, solid performances from our two leads, one of whom is playing to type, and the other against it, but both very well. It manages to mix multiple compelling stories, while maintaining the tension of a cat-and-mouse game, during which you're somehow always rooting for both sides to win. Direction is great, production design is simple but good, and the music is...fine. I actually don't remember it much, to tell the truth. But either way, a must-watch for any crime film fan. It's fantastic.

The Usual Suspects (1995); dir. Bryan Singer - 92%

As some of you may know by now, I'm a firm believer in divorcing the art from the artist. So, yes, even though this is a Kevin Spacey vehicle directed by Bryan Singer, I still really wanted to watch this one. And it's great. Absolutely fantastic, don't get me wrong...but I was kinda fucked from the start here. Without going into any details, this movie is about cops investigating a crime committed by the mysterious Keyser Soze, and uncovering who the culprits are. And that's it. That's all you're getting. Because there's a famous twist in this film, and I knew it from the jump, unfortunately for me. Definitely didn't ruin the movie, but not knowing the twist would've made it OH so much sweeter. So, that my word that it's a good movie, do not attempt to look it up anywhere for more info, and go check this one out.

L.A. Confidential (1997) - dir. Curtis Hanson - 90%

Another Spacey vehicle! And hot damn, is it a great one. I like the previous movie more for the plot, but L.A. Confidential is certainly no slouch when it comes to twists. Not the least predictable twist in the world, but still a notable twist. Again, excellent cast here (Crow, Pearce, Spacey, Basinger, DeVito, Cameron, etc.), great plot and writing as well, great direction and good cinematography, excellent production design, and great music, and this is another must-watch action movie, on par with Chinatown in tone, and Heat in quality. Also, a seminal buddy-cop movie...kinda.

American Psycho (2000); dir. Mary Harron - 82%

Fun fact about me: I'm a serial killer true crime junkie. Which, yes, makes me either a typical millennial or a middle-aged white mom with nothing to do all day, but sue me, I think it's an interesting topic. Anyway, because of that, I've always been interested in watching this movie, which not only pictures a very '80s sense of psychopathy that's still identifiable today ("sigma males", anyone), but actually inspired a real-life serial killer duo, Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka, AKA Canada's most notorious murderers. Their favorite book was the original American Psycho, which was later adapted into this film. But that said, outside of the true-crime connection, I also liked this film as a character dissection of a man quickly going insane, as well as the exploration of a business shark capitalist drive and misogynist culture surrounding it as major causes and drivers of that mindset. And I'd say that was reading too much into it, but...it really isn't.

But that said, this movie is interesting to watch, but definitely not perfect. Acting, with Bale as an exception, is good but not great throughout. Plot and writing are good, if ham-fisted at times, and with an unexpected ending (and not in a great way). Direction is great, cinematography is pretty good, too. Production and art design is extremely solid, and maybe the strongest part of the movie. Music gives that a run for its money, though, since it's also a narrative device to better understand our lead. This is a good movie, and weirdly relevant with certain elements of our internet culture, so check this one out if you have the time. And if you're in the mood for a film whose bread and butter is toxic masculinity, but was also directed and written by women. Which is hilarious.

Catch Me if You Can (2002); dir. S. Spielberg - 88%

The concept of an auteur in terms of film directing is varied and storied, but is usually used to refer to an individual whose artistic vision is clear on the screen, making their films quite distinctive to the discerning viewer. And Jesus Christ, is this film an example of that for Stephen Spielberg, because I don't know if a crime film could Spielberg harder than this! What I mean by that is that Spielberg's style, while not often applied to the crime genre, is very apparent in his films. You usually know one when you see one, is what I'm saying.

That's to say nothing about quality, which is very good in the base of this film. The only real weak spot, for me, was the music of the film, which wasn't very distinctive outside of the opening credits theme. Everything else, though, is pretty great. DiCaprio and Hanks kill it, even though Hanks was admittedly still definitely Tom Hanks through the film. Plot and writing was a Spielberg plot, but a really good set of character dissections and interactions. Direction and cinematography are fantastic, Production and Art Design are TOP fucking notch, until we sort of fall off towards the end of the movie. And editing is great, even if music wasn't my favorite. Great movie, very much recommended if you want to see Spielberg do a crime film. And you should want that, ideally!

Monster (2003); dir. Patty Jenkins - 86%

Remember that thing I said earlier about being a fan of serial killers? Well, Monster and its focus on real-life murderer Aileen Wuornos was high on my list of must-sees at the very beginning of this project. Charlize Theron's performance as the character is pretty legendary, and for good reason, because she does an AMAZING job as Aileen. And Ricci's no slouch as her girlfriend Selby, either. Was it the most accurate movie in the world? No, but it was unexpectedly accurate in some ways as well. Wuornos is one of those figures who's kind of controversial, as some of her murders could have been self-defense, and the film's writer and director, Patty Jenkins (yes, that one) does realize that. And I started to be worried in the beginning of the film, but she turned me completely around by the end. It's great!

Direction, though, is...fine? It's not particularly distinctive, but it isn't bad. Same goes for the Cinematography. Production design is excellent, mostly because Charlize Theron BECOMES Aileen Wuornos, partially due to acting, but also absolutely due to appearance and wardrobe. It's genuinely very impressive the whole movie. And finally, music was there, and kinda weirdly clashing with tone in some instances, but it's not too bad. Check this one out if you're into serial killer stuff, too.

The Departed (2006); dir. Martin Scorsese - 94%

Another fun fact about me: I grew up in New England, as well as currently living there. And I live in an area of the region where Boston is a major feature, as is the culture that revolves around the city. And yes, this film is well-known for being a somewhat stereotyped view of Boston...but JESUS FUCKING CHRIST, is it wicked accurate, kid! It also helps that, as a Scorsese film, it's very well-made and absolutely star-studded. Some of those stars, namely Damon and Wahlberg, are actually from the area, and they flex some intense Boston accents throughout this movie. DiCaprio and Nicholson are also fantastic in this film, as are Sheen, Baldwin, Farmiga, Winstone, and Anderson, even though some of them don't quite pull off the accent as smoothly as others. Baldwin, in particular, is still Alec Baldwin, no matter how you try and change that voice.

Directing and cinematography is stellar, unsurprisingly, while production and art design is definitely very iconically mid-2000s Boston. The score of this film literally changed the musical tastes OF BOSTONIANS, according to my fiancée who's more from the area than I, and the editing is also top-goddamn notch. And the plot and writing? Holy SHIT, the plot and writing! Look, you need to now two things. One, this is a cop-mafia drama in a vein similar to Heat, and it is VERY good at that job. A little bloated, story-wise, but it doesn't show too much. And two, watch this movie, do not look up the plot or film beforehand. Suffice to say, this is an in-depth morality play all over the spectrum of morality, and the twists are EVERYWHERE. Please check this one out, it's fantastic. Go Sox.

Zodiac (2007); dir. David Fincher - 90%

And last but not least, another serial killer film with an unclear ending, and one that focuses on the investigation and the figures involved instead. Zodiac is a fantastic movie, based on a book about the case by Robert Graysmith, who's played in the movie by Jake Gyllenhaal. Graysmith is, in fact, arguably the main character of the film, with Robert Downey Jr. and Mark Ruffalo playing other key figures in the investigation from both a press and police side, respectively. You watch how this unnerving case affects these people's lives, while knowing that the case won't ever actually be solved. They present a case for the killer, but no actual answers. And in playing with that, Fincher is able to build some real goddamn tension in some moments.

Again, though, not perfect, but it's pretty damn close. Acting is stellar all over, even though some people don't quite disappear into the role. Ruffalo and Gyllenhaal are amazing on that particular front, but it's hard to see RDJ as anyone but RDJ, as an example. Plot and writing is great, directing and cinematography is great, production design is pretty good (I dunno, I wasn't as sold on that one, but that might be a me thing), and the music is great as well! Editing makes the film a little overlong in my opinion, but I don't think it affects the movie much. Check this one out, again, if you're in a serial killer movie mood.

And that's it!

Next film I was set to watch was Captain Phillips, and I'll try and check that out this year regardless, but I only got that fair this year. That said, though, the next movie I'm set to watch in 2023 is technically a crime film, from what I understand. But I'm leaving the life of crime behind for a while otherwise. I've done my time, so it's time to say farewell to the old life for now. But that said...I do have plans. Oh, I always have plans.

In 2023, I'll be going off of a list of challenges, as curated by the book Everyone's a Critic: 52 Week Movie Challenge. These challenges each require I watch films of specific categories, like award-winners, animal films, etc. And the first one in the 52 Films challenge is Best Picture winner. And for the first of those...I gotta watch this movie. And I've been wanting to watch it since 2020. So, what better time like the present? Plus...been a while since I've watched a foreign language film, honestly. So, strap in for the next one! It's gonna be a ride in 2023.

Next: ...We'll see.