#I think the special will be good. Just as an adult I'm more cynical about these things

[quillandrapier]

So the red nose day thing is going to be a joke special right...non canonical.

I'm just saying, perfect place to show an old friend of ours.

[mahou-furbies]

First impressions on Kibou no Chikara: Otona Precure '23

Alright this had a pretty strong opening, like it feels like the show has something to say. And when Nozomi fails to help one of her pupils because "a student is moving away because her dad's company is going bankrupt (and her parents are also divorcing)" is beyond what a teacher can solve, for once I felt very much like I was in the target audience. Like usually kid shows have a theme of "you can do anything if you put your heart to it" (and for a good reason I guess) but if you're enough of a cynical adult you're just thinking that not everything can be solved like that. Or since this is a two(?) parter episode they still have the opportunity to water this down and save the business and marriage in the next episode but I'm keeping my hopes up. Also there seems to be an environmental theme going on too so the TMM vibes were immediate.

Another positive was that Nozomi was likable this time around, the Yes5 version of her is a bottom tier Cure for me but here she was far less annoying and made for a great teacher. Rin is also alright, and the other characters haven't had enough presence to form a proper opinion (though I did like Milk complaining about her job at the restaurant). And the girls are drinking alcohol!

Wondering what they'll do with Saki and Mai though, because usually for these crossovers the audience is just supposed to politely ignore how the shows supposedly fit together. Like do they even exist in the same version of Japan? Do they have discussions on how multiple world-ending catastrophes happened within a few years and they just didn't notice anything that occurred outside their own town? Since normies from Splash Star now have a restaurant in the Yes5 universe, the explanation probably isn't "Precure have special powers that allow them to visit other dimensions". So I'm really interested to see if this will be an actual part of the story and world building, or more in the "don't think too much about it" territory.

The visuals are kind of meh and I don't really like the character designs, the outfits are still boring and I'm not a huge fan of the hues they've chosen. Also no sign of new henshin outfits which is obviously a matter of great importance for this blog. Still holding out for a hope for great new updated designs. The bad ending would be that they revert back to their 14-year-old looks for battles, let's not do that!

[mother-chorizo]

I'm not the first person to make this comparison by any means, but Harry Potter always used to make me think of a different book written by a bigot that I liked as a kid: Ender's Game. Ender's Game is also about a put-upon boy who's the Chosen One who stops the great enemy that everyone's scared of after he's whisked away to a special school, only the entire point of the story is that it's all bullshit. He's the Chosen One because the cynical military bureaucrats need someone compassionate and empathetic enough to understand the enemy they can't, and the evil aliens aren't actually evil just misunderstood. Steadily the adults in Ender's life manipulate him into weaponizing his compassion and kindness as tactical insight, ultimately getting him to commit a straight-up genocide that he's told is just a game. Meanwhile Harry Potter is just like, "good boy kills bad guy saves day everyone happy." And Orson Scott Card is an infamous homophobe/obnoxious lonely conservative prick too, at least as bigoted as Jo Rowling if not more. My point is that even when you control for bigotry, Harry Potter still has, just, no nutritional value whatsoever. Pure trash. If you liked it as a kid, fine, but if you're an adult and you're still standing by that shit you're a lost cause idk what to tell you

[waitformethistime]

The Church on Ruby Road review

Well that was fun, for the most part. Weird pacing issues and it's mostly used as set-up for the oncoming season. But also a fresh new jumping on point for those who are interested in starting the show.

So let's dive in.

To start, I think Ncuti is a very charismatic actor. But, and this is an RTD problem more than a him problem, he plays the Doctor like a superhero. I was fine with the rope gloves the first time around, but by the end of the episode with him dramatically pulling down a ship like he's in a comic book movie, I was ready to see the back of them.

Then we get Ruby, our other lead, who is...Fine. She's just like every other NuWho companion we've gotten. This isn't a knock on her, but there's only so many times you can do plucky modern girl who also happens to be uber special in some way without it becoming stale and unfortunately NuWho has done it too many times at this point. So I'm a bit jaded now I guess, but she hasn't sold me yet.

Interestingly enough though, she, and by extension, what looks to be this season's main plot, very much reminds me of Moffat's era. So if this is RTD's attempt at doing a Moffat plot, I'm interested to see how he pulls it off because his writing is quite a bit blunter than Moffat's is. Say what you will about Moffat, but I love a good mystery, and I'm very interested to know who dropped baby Ruby off (bootstrap paradox maybe?) I thought at first it would just end up being 15, but apparently RTD has something else in mind.

This whole episode kinda played like a Moffat plot, but with none of the build-up or emotional pay-off (Doctor going back to meet his companion as a child, crack in the ceiling, timey-wimey nonsense) except I barely know these characters so it was really hard for me to care. And with how reckless 15 was with baby Ruby, I'm left wondering what the point was. Why would he destroy a ship that she was still on?! Get her off first, you idiot! Not to mention with how far she fell, the impact of falling in his arms would've probably broken her neck. Newborn babies are very fragile. Not to mention, just leaving her outside in the snow. Damn, atleast open the door and put inside or something where her cries will echo. What if they hadn't heard her? I remember a similar scene from Meet the Robinsons. But that was a cartoon so I can let it slide more.

The direction of the warm tones turning cool once adult Ruby disappeared was really good and immediately clued me in that something was wrong. Though I thought the dialogue afterwards with Carla was very heavy-handed and unnatural. Why was it specifically taking care of baby Ruby that made Carla a better person? The fact that Ruby is white also has some unfortunate implications since Carla and Cherry are a black family, but that could just be me being cynical with how RTD has done his previous black characters a disservice..And why was she telling a whole stranger her whole life story with this dead look on her face? I would've been asking why tf he was in my house...

Then we get the Goblins. First of all, they're massively underutilized with a total of 5 minutes of screentime, and most of that is used on an overproduced pop song that made me think I was watching a Disney Channel movie. 15 getting in on it certainly didn't help that impression. I'm a big fan of musicals, but this just felt out of place. I could forgive 15 singing if it was obvious he was just BS-ing his way through an escape and it was acapella. But the excessive autotune just really took me out of it.

Also don't like that 15 just automatically knew what goblins were and how they worked. When did he encounter them? This isn't the first time Doctor Who has used fantasy creatures, but I like when the Doctor's scientific mind is a bit more skeptical. And again, the carelessness with the baby was annoying. A baby's about to be eaten and all 15 is focusing on is "ooh cool singing!" And then after that, him and Ruby leave Lulubelle alone again. Are you guys stupid?

I did like how we incorporated Timeless Child here. It's clear that despite the rehab, his heritage is still very much a sore spot for him, so it's nice that he was able to find that common ground with Ruby. She's not the first adopted child (Bill, anyone?), but she is the first to come after his own shocking news, so it's significant. And even though she's happily adopted, there's still this curiosity about where she comes from, and I appreciate that she isn't shamed for that.

Another thing I appreciated was the casual trans rep. The singer for Ruby's band is a transwoman and RTD opted for subtlety this time instead of whacking me over the head with a lecture about it. I appreciate that. Sometimes the best rep you can have is where they're just casually existing and not you checking off diversity points.

Cherry Sunday (and what a name) was a delight. All she wanted was a cuppa tea.

Who is Mrs. Flood? If this were Moffat, I would say she's meant to be older Ruby, but this isn't Moffat, so I feel like she could be anyone. She could also just be no one.

I get this was meant to be a jumping on point, but I am a little sad we missed out on all these firsts for Ncuti (picking out his outfit, getting his sonic, etc.) and that it all happened off-screen. And coming right after the specials it just feels a bit jarring to not get it. How long has he been an established Doctor? Why hasn't he decorated the TARDIS yet? (Seriously, it's so huge and empty. Get a couch or something. This is why Capaldi's console is >>>). The night rave scene just felt a bit pointless and didn't really add anything to the episode, same with the taxi scene. There were quite a few scenes that just felt like pointless filler honestly, while the plot was resolved in 5 minutes. It was kinda frustrating.

Overall, kind of mid, but a solid start for 15. I'm looking forward to seeing more of him atleast and seeing what RTD has in mind for the mystery of Ruby's origins.

[mblematic]

ten books to know me

the way @broomsticks tagged me and I immediately threw myself into bed to answer this!!! books define me for better or *cough* extremely worse. okay here we gooooo these are a mix of older and recent-ish to avoid my usual Top 10

Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff — had to start with an all time fave, a book that pretty much defines what I'm looking for every time I pick up something to read. Characters you get mad at and root for anyway. A love story that's truly a love story, but much more than it appears. The writing!! The writing!!!!

On Beauty by Zadie Smith — This was the book that turned me into a contemporary literary fiction nut I think? Before I read it I was mostly reading fantasy.

The Magicians by Lev Grossman — speak of the devil!!! The Magicians, for me, defined that awkward phase where you grow out of Harry Potter but like. not really?? in retrospect I should have known I was going to be writing HP fanfic when this series became my whole goddamn personality. (Discord is my Free Trader Beowolf btw. Friends in my phone hehe)

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir — this series (The Locked Tomb) defines my life RIGHT NOW. Discovering TLT was like scraping back a layer of my calcified cynical adult self and discovering the child that still lives in my innermost easily-delighted soul. It took me two tries to read GTN and reading it the second time was truly revelatory in a way that I haven't experienced in years ........... cannot explain but I cried several times reading Harrow the Ninth and sometimes I get weird and shivery about how fucking good and special and unique this series is.

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason — I just loved this and it ALSO made me cry.

Beowolf: A New Translation by Maria Dhavana Headley — I really like Beowolf, I think it's so bizarre and funny, and this translation is hilarious and so special.

Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan — I love books set in New York City (SORRY) and Jennifer Egan is wonderful, and this book especially is like. so sexy and good

The Raven Cycle (but specifically The Dream Thieves) by Maggie Stiefvater — haha. Yeah. Well, u kno

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie — just love it!! a love story!!

Grief Lessons: Four Plays by Euripides, translated by Anne Carson — hard to pick an Anne Carson so I went with the Tumblr fave lmao. Give Anne Carson The Nobel Prize In Literature 2023

ANYWAY this was fun I could go on but I'll stop. Tagging some bookish pals: @femme--de--lettres @billsfangearring @tahtahfornow @pancakehouse @maybebabyplease heheeeeeee can't wait to read all ur lists

[absolxguardian]

After I made a post asking for fic recs that aren't setting aus, and generally being frustrated going into ao3 fandom tags and seeing so many setting aus, I thought about why I don't like them. The answer isn't relevant, but I did realize one setting AU for Ted Lasso I'd read the fuck out: Star Wars (probably because it's my main special interest).

Except I'm not interested in a fic where the cast are Jedi or something. Instead, I'm thinking about one where Ted is a coach for Outer Rim grav-ball (space American football)- perhaps for the Academy of Applied Sciences on Lothal (I'm just saying that because the children's chapter book that is half a high school sports book is set there. I know this would made Ted more comparable to a high school football coach, but ages for secondary and tertiary education in the galaxy is weird) who gets hired to coach a professional Core grav-ball team (space European football).

And this fic would really work by exploring the changes caused by the different societal norms between the gffa and our world. Homophobia? Nonexistent. Sexism? Also gone, which would change Rebecca and Rubert's dynamic. And sports aren't gender segregated. Mental health stigma? Honestly probably worse than current times given its unclear how prevalent therapists are in the galaxy.

But the big change would be that Ted goes from being an American expat to someone moving within the same nation that has a massive urban/rural divide as well as provincialism. His accent would be something people would discriminate against him for.

It would make things pretty dark, tbh, I think setting it during the Empire would be the best. Ted goes to work in the Core not just because he needs time away from Michelle, but because something doesn't feel right with AppSci becoming an Imperial feeder school and the new Athletics director is a racist ass.

The story would become about what you're supposed to do when you're just trying to be a semi-regular person within growing fascism. I think Ted would eventually snap and join the Rebellion (probably with a good portion of the main characters). There's the blockade and presumable communications blackout of Lothal, new policies banning aliens from professional sports, and probably one of his star players gets kidnapped by the Empire because they're force sensitive (there would be a higher than average occurrence of force sensitive people in professional athletics).

Some other new elements would be Nate (who is an alien) trying to be one of the "good ones" with Rupert, who is a die-hard imperial loyalist. He starts coaching for the Hammers at the same time aliens are banned from playing and only keeps his job because of Rupert's protection. Trent has the additional motivation to quit journalism that he doesn't want to have to deal with Imperial censors day in and day out, even though with sports there isn't much censor. Heck, Trent has always struck me as too somber and cynical to be a sports reporter, and maybe the reason he does sports reporting is because its the most honest specialty left.

The final new element I've thought of is that when I was running through my head for what planet the Greyhounds would be in, I landed on Chandrila. Which means that Rebecca and Rubert would be Chandrilan upper-crust- so instead of what we have in canon, Rebecca and Rubert are similar ages and were arranged to be married eachother when they were young (adults in their society, teens in our world). Instead of Rubert hurting Rebecca, they were both hurt by their society- which turned Rubert cruel. All the arranged marriages also means that divorce is more stigmatized and cheating more tolerated. This would also make Ted's in to the Rebellion through Rebecca and then Mon Mothma. Rebecca originally becomes a bit of a rebel sympathizer because Rubert is just so pro-empire.

[gofancyninjaworld]

OPM Manga Update 215: What was gained

Murata is about to take a well-earned rest and One-Punch Man will be back in the autumn. After seven years, the saga of the Monster Association (with bonus Hero Hunter) has drawn to a close.

Meta: Respite

It's all very sweet this chapter isn't it? If you think about it, this chapter represents the very brightest bits of a dark time. Like a storm cloud seen from high up in a jet plane, one we feel safely insulated from. Unfortunately, we shall be landing soon.

Boys will be boys

Nothing worrying to say about Tareo: like many a kid, he's come out quite well. His newfound confidence puts him in good stead to no longer be the picked-on kid.

Despite having the coolest friend in the county, Tareo's still the nice kid he always has been, inviting his playmates along. And why not? There's a reason adults are advised not to get into kid fights -- children are capable of very quickly changing their minds about each other. Tareo's the cool kid now. I'm also very happy to see that the experience has rubbed off well on Waganma and he's happier and more open too. I love Narinki being pleased to see his son come out of his shell... even if he's less than thrilled to be trampled by a horde of little boys. So it goes, dad!

Man changed against his will...

...is of the same opinion still.

I'll say this, it was hilarious to see Garou expound on his philosophy -- only to be deflated as the police officer asks what its relevance to the minor crime he's actually at the station to answer for is. Thinking on it a moment, it's not funny any longer Garou's body was beaten, but his mind hasn't changed. He doesn't think his shitty, counterproductive philosophy is wrong yet. It's just that he won't hunt heroes any more. He intends to ask first before beating them up as he's still greedy for techniques.

On the one hand, I'm very, very happy to see that Bang has stepped up as his guardian and is by his side. On the other, sigh, but Bang is a troublesome old man, isn't he?

I don't think he understands what his proper role in this matter is.

Bang should be the guy making sure there's a hot meal and a bath waiting for Garou when the latter returns from a hard day of casual labour earning money to pay for his dine-and-dash. Bang should be the guy sitting with a cup of tea to share with Garou when the latter comes back from apologising to yet another hero, who listens when Garou excitedly talks about discovering that Mumen Rider got beat up at school standing up for a fellow student who turned out to be Saitama, or his surprise that Stinger shares his cynicism about the goodness of good people as it's the most respectable people who are most likely to short his family's vegetable sales stand, or is discouraged when some don't want to even see his face [1]. That's the proper role for Bang, supporting Garou in making and seeing through better choices.

Instead, Bang has taken over and become his stage manager. Stage-managed repentance convinces no one, least of all Garou himself. Garou deserved better than neglectful parents who seemingly didn't care that he'd run away from home (he's still a minor in this cultural context [2]) and didn't come see him when he was detained. However, a guardian who won't let him learn his own lessons is not what Garou needs either.

Worse, Bang seems to have plans for him. I hope that he's spoken to Garou before embarking on this quest to groom him to take his place at the Hero Association. Now Garou would make a fine, fine hero, but only when he's actually ready to step up... and he's so not. This is going to be trouble.

Men who don't listen

What do you say about a guy who knows that there's going to be trouble but pushes through anyway? In hiding the fact of Garou's intended appointment from Sekingar, Sicchi knows that this isn't going to go smoothly.

I don't think he understands the half of it. Nobody likes to feel like their concerns are not listened to, not just the special snowflake Garou. I don't think he appreciates just how little heroes think of the top brass at the Hero Association and how bitter many of them already are at the combination of irrational demands, being overlooked despite their hard work, and the plain fact that most of the executives are totally unaware of what heroes experience in the field or need. This arc has been very good at showing us just why heroes dislike the HA management so, with Sekingar being the only one to earn their respect (at personal cost). If you've read the bonus story for volume 26, you've probably rolled your eyes at the sincere group of monomaniacally-focussed managers who can seemingly do anything for heroes... except listen to them.

Parachuting Garou without consultation or respect and expecting heroes to just deal is the sort of spark that sets a fuel dump burning. Doubly so a Garou who isn't actually sorry and doesn't really want to be there. Sicchi is going to alienate a lot of good people.

Meet the not-so-serious cyborg

I never thought I'd see the day when Genos made a joke. I don't begrudge him it. His life is tough and it's not going to get any easier, so let him laugh.

I don't know how quickly clams colonize a new coastline; I wouldn't be shocked if Genos planted it himself just to be able to make that joke at Saitama's expense. After all, Saitama called it clam-digging, didn't he? Fortunately, Saitama's the sort of fool who rolls with it. Sometimes I feel like dubbing these two sodium chloride -- largely harmless together, deadly apart.

There are two things I want to bring to peoples' attentions. The first is the timeline. It's been at least two weeks before they've been in a position to come back to try salvaging their possessions. How do I figure that? First, Bang needed to be treated by Metal Knight for radiation poisoning -- and his back got healed into the bargain. Then he needed to go fetch Garou. Then it's been a week since the interrogation at the Hero Association HQ ended. The rate-determining step for them to come back will be whether Genos is well enough to do so after his ordeal at the monster association. For him to be out of action this long speaks to just how harrowing the experience was.

The second is that the coastline has moved permanently. Remember the heroes who broke out of hospital to try pulling as many people as they could out of collapsed buildings? People can survive for days in buildings if the weather is good and there's no fires. But in this instance, there was no later for anyone who wasn't found or who couldn't be reached. The death toll is eye-watering and it's nothing compared to the sheer magnitude of destruction. But for today, we're not looking at that. Not directly at any rate.

Oh, you wanted me to say something about the dog? Nah, it'll keep until Murata is back from his well-earned rest.

As will the storm that's about to start pouring on this story.

Asides

[1] I think it would blow Garou's mind to hear Mumen Rider talk about Saitama as a schoolkid. He puts heroes on a pedestal and hasn't ever seen them as people people, just human beings like him. Many grew up in similar circumstances as him, struggle with the same issues, have to find a way to make peace with what they can do in a world so big and unjust. It could be very moving and funny indeed. Unfortunately, he's not going to get much of that with Bang coming along and rushing the whole thing through.

[2] While the law has recently changed in Japan, at the time ONE started writing the manga, the age of majority was 20, not 18. The primary audience for this story understands that Garou's parents still have a legal responsibility towards him.

[bulldyke-rider]

Did you ever watch the animated tv series Daria? In the first episode, cynical sarcastic Daria and her bubbly popular image-obsessed younger sister move to a new city and have to take a psychological evaluation at their new high school. Daria gets put into an after school program for teens with low self-esteem. Later she quips to her parents on the ride home, "I don't have low self esteem. I have low esteem for other people." I'm glad I saw this rerun so young because it helped me articulate my issue when I was put in therapy as a self-harming teenager. I had a lot of anger. I felt helpless to influence my circumstances and just felt trapped and depressed, in an underfunded "inner city" public school which didn't have the resources to educate us, around classmates I didn't fit in with. I really needed some guidance on how to change the situation I was in, maybe some recommendations for what groups to join so I could make friends, some direction towards college. But instead it was all about how to feel better about myself. I like myself. Back then, I suffered from teenage arrogance I was smarter and better than most people around me. I have good intentions and a lot of ambition, just aimless ambition. I didn't need to be convinced about what I deserved. I already knew I deserved more than the situation I was stuck in. An adult worth their salt shouldn't known how to use that to motivate me to take an active interest in making something of myself, look to the future, work harder at something that matters. But I struggled longer into adulthood because everyone wanted to talk about self esteem and I just figured they were full of shit. Because I had enough self esteem to think I knew better when other people didn't.

We know teenage girls feel angry about the injustices against their sex. We don't all mope around hating ourselves. And the downside is how this follows us into adulthood, into professional settings. They talk to women as if we're all afraid to negotiate raises and all experience imposter syndrome. It's infantilizing. We know from studies women who ask for raises are more likely to be denied than men, because male bosses believe men need more money as providers and other outdated stereotypes about men and their families.

Okay, you're so right.

Like, there are a lot of women and girls with just insanely low self esteem. I've run into so many. So so fucking many.

But people take that and apply it to all of us who are struggling even a little bit. And I think it breeds self esteem issues to be told you have low self esteem over and over. It's similar in concept to being called confident all the time and how it's code for ugly. "You don't love yourself" sometimes sounds like code for "I see you as lesser"

Idk, a lotta people think I have some idea about myself that I'm special and think differently from everybody. But I know there are a ton of people out there like me. It's just we don't get the center stage when it comes to talking about mental illness. And we're told we think differently than we actually do.

And so we're trying to navigate our own healing around being told to learn how to love ourselves and forgive ourselves. Bro, forgive myself for what? Love myself how? I don't see myself as separate from myself. I don't see myself as something I can love or hate.

I'm so far past learning why I do things, learning why I think things. I wanna know how to feel better. And no one wants to give me an answer. People just wanna convince me I'm self hating.

[traitor-boyfriend]

i am begging u to give us your thoughts on the special

i watched the special last night when it was available my time, and i just watched it again about half an hour ago, so i'm jotting all this down now while it's fresh in my mind:

- matt and trey have not given a specific date but have confirmed that the next special will be coming out in december; i do feel confident in my belief before that again these specials will be taking place in a separate timeline from the show as from the sound of it they still have not figured out exactly how to go about resuming "normal" production of the show within six days because of the pandemic, so these movies probably became a way for them to continue working as opposed to simply not airing for indeterminate time periods. the time travel element in this special will be how they bridge the gap between the two (presumably).

- stan the weak chin alcoholic failson with an overbearing miserable pseudo-robowife. ouch. not great to see but totally plausible. stan as an adult has definitely regressed into absolute cynicism and avoidance to deal with life, as his alexa robowife routinely criticizes him for. found it interesting that stan is the only one (other than cartman) that has left south park altogether and is living in "the city" though i suppose it makes sense once his Tragic Farm Backstory is revealed later on. the way kyle asks if this is stan marsh, from south park felt sooo bizarre to see on screen simply because i have read countless fics that have had this exact scenario which was very funny.

- i think the commentary in the future specifically regarding all the plus, max, add-on, etc to everything was very apt for where we are now, and i do think this is definitely a race south park has an inherent dog in, though that might seem to contrary considering these movies are exclusive to paramount+. if you've been watching south park as long as i have, you might recall back in the late 2000s when every episode was available to watch online for free, back before the concept of "streaming" content was a thing much less an entire industry. south park concurrently appeared on netflix, back when every show was on netflix, only to cycle on and off the platform, jump to hulu, have commercials introduced to south park studios to incentive people who wanted ad-fee episodes to use hulu, then heading to hbo max, except BLU and the new contracted specials will be on paramount+, and south park studios now only has select episodes available for free, with ads, and all other episodes are behind a paywall. hulu itself used to be a free service up to the 5 latest episodes of a cable tv show (this is how i used to keep up with the simpsons). the last five years or so has seen an explosion in "streaming" services, every major television network or production company has pulled their programming from existing services (namely netflix, or hulu) to start their own service to charge people for; all this is very confusing, annoying, and expensive for someone who wants to do the "right" thing of paying for all content they want. the dig about crypto later -- that centralized banking is bad and people are more inclined to trust fly-by-night ponzi schemes -- shows a very relevant breakdown of where many people's economic interest lie right now in which things are so decentralized now as to be incredibly vague and even more prone to nefariousness; cable is a racket, so i use streaming instead, except now i have to pay for several different services in order to access all the shows i watch, so paying for the all these individual services eventually becomes just as expensive. a good example of the current late-capitalist breakdown in which novel ideas that have the ability to revolutionize accessibility and simplicity in peoples' access to culture cannibalize itself so thoroughly as a hinderance to their intended purpose through pure economic incentive to maximize profit. i would be interested to know the details of matt and trey's role in this history with streaming and how much power they have re: comedy central.

- jimmy as the stand-in for jimmy fallon was funny to me; jimmy fallon is the perfect example of a highly sanitized, carefully curated comedian designed to be so nonthreatening and inoffensive in attempt to garner broad appeal while simultaneously appealing to no one. i thought this was their smartest way of criticizing "woke" pc culture within the comedy world in a way that did not just feel like Old Man Yells at Cloud; the humor is in how unfunny jimmy actually is.

- stan meeting kyle at the restaurant. oh man. the way that kyle tries so hard to seemingly brush past the animosity felt very kyle -- and the way stan sees through this immediately and curtly informs him that he's just here for the funeral was very stan. the scene later on where kyle again does the agree-to-disagree song and dance about their issues so they should simply move on and stan agrees is a really succinct breakdown of the communicate issues between the two of them. kyle has immense difficulty admitting his wrongdoing; stan has an immense aversion to any sort of confrontation. this is why they have problems and that felt very organic to their characters.

- i like all their adult characterizations and thought they made sense but absolutely none more so than clyde. clyde becoming a fat dumpy hawaiian-shirt tacky jewelry wearing anti-vax loser is hysterical. he's what cartman would realistically be. speaking of cartman...

- i had no real expectation for what cartman would become -- saw a lot of speculation about whether they would revisit previous versions of an adult cartman which i was fairly certain they wouldn't -- but i had to pause watching for a second when i saw him wearing a yarmulke. it follows the formula perfectly; cartman pretends to be something he isn't, which infuriates kyle as he typically is the first or only person to see through it (ex: ever diplomatic stan proposing that perhaps he has actually changed), cartman goes above and beyond to prove that he has, which frames kyle in the minds of everyone around them as an asshole for refusing to give him the benefit of the doubt, which leads to kyle inevitably deciding out of spite to go along to get along, only for cartman to pull the rug out from under him once he's done so, which we catch a glimpse of at the end, setting up these events for the second special. found it really, really funny the extent to which cartman is 'proving' this new identity though. three kids and a wife named yentl (assume in reference to barbra streisand). presumably by her shock, yentl also has very little idea the extent of cartman's sociopathy as a child and has had cartman to reverse the role of victim and offender in his retelling of events.

- noticed ike is the only sibling of the main four that was not seen; karen and kevin were visible at the funeral, shelly is dead (as is sharon), and yet ike was not seen. wonder if this was an oversight or if ike will have a role to play next episode in a similar manner in which butters was not seen in this episode but alluded to.

- kenny's "fuck these hoes!!!" written on the photo got a belly laugh out of me, as did kenny's adult self looking like he walked straight out of a reel big fish audition become a renowned scientist. i am too tired and a little drunk from dinner earlier to begin connecting the red yarn together of how butters, kenny, randy and tegridy, and cartman comingle in creating the future and its subsequent reversal. will think more on it later.

- speaking of randy, he has obviously learned nothing. the strained relationship between them was very believable, especially given the circumstances of stan burning down the farm which accidentally killed shelly and the grief of which led sharon to kill herself. stan obviously has a lot of unresolved grief which is made worse by the fact that randy refuses to accept any blame or responsibility for his role in all this.

- really liked the scene of them examining kenny in the morgue; stan making his dig about "fixing" everything, which kyle takes immediate umbrage with, kyle rightly accusing stan of something he himself is not innocent of, stan deflecting kyle's criticism of him by mocking him. i love the strife. and also loved the hint of reconciliation at the end and hope for more that deals specifically with stan and kyle in the next special.

- "a general sense of shellfishness" / clyde refusing to do the line of coke he was gung ho about initially once it's revealed to be the vaccine, then declaring his body "is a temple" afterward was a funny comment on the ways in which many people who are misinformed and resistant to understanding vaccination out of faux health concern are often not -actually- that concerned about their health.

- i think this is the longest any single event or plotine in south park has been continuously incorporated into the show re: tegridy farms and i wonder if they might use this eventual time reset to reset before the events of tegridy farms or if they do anticipate keeping them at the farm for the foreseeable future.

i have some more minor miscellaneous thoughts but i have been typing for over an hour and i need to head to bed. overall, i enjoyed it. it wasn't laugh a minute, and last night i was wondering if i was enjoying it b/c i found it genuinely entertaining or was simply having fun with the novelty of an all grown up episode, but upon watching it again today i was just actually feeling entertained. i think these longform movies-that-are-not-quite-movies will be a good way for them to explore some of their more convoluted plots with a lot of moving parts they have tried in the past few years with varying success solely b/c 22 min. 10 ep seasons require them to break things up in ways that make things a little too fragmented to follow or shallow to really dig into. we'll see what december has in store and if they can stick the landing.

[luidilovins]

So you guys can get a glimpse into my inner psyche and because I'm bored here's my top ten favorite movies.

10.) The Fly (1986)

I love this film. All the grutesque special effects, the age old poeticism of man reaching too far playing god and the more beast than man that ends in romantic tragedy, the brillant story from the first The Fly (1958) all these concepts are just coated with a thin film of Jeff Golblum completely ruining it beyond belief. This was a cinematic disaster that I will always treasure.

9.) The Abyss

Aside from underwater cave spelunking i cannot think of a landscape that instills the level of dread that The Abyss provokes. It was one of the very first films to sport CGI and it still holds up fairly well today. The film really captures the alieness that we have on our own planet and reminds us how every small and out of control we are without looking to the stars and I really appriciate that.

8.) Paranorman

I've said it before and I'll say it again: this is Laika Studio's most underrated film. Kubo and the Two Strings who? I think what I like so much about this movie is because Norman could very easily be interpreted as an allegory for childhood psychosis, and as an adult recently diagnosed with schizofrenia and watching this film again, I can see a lot of parrallels from my own childhood and how it felt to experience the world in a way nobody could relate to.

7.) Nausicaa Valley of the Wind

This movie really just said "the damage we leave on oyr planet will make the world uninhabitable to us but nature will luve on without giving us a second thought." The ecopunk, the fungi, the art and musical scores, the ambiguity of good and evil, and whatever genre that has broken down "old" technology that's still highly advanced. This movie is amazing I have nothing but good things to say about it.

6.) The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Hands down my favorite Disney movie. The cute animals and magical shit is so minimal to the film's overall plot it feels almost detacched from Disney's other golden era works. That scene where Quazimodo stands on top of the Stained glass and screams "SANCTUARY" sacrificing everything he knows against catholic inquisition for an innocent marginalized woman??? Where is that passion NOW Disney??? Where is it???

5.) My Neighbor Totoro

This is one of those films thats intensely emotionally charged for me. I was the eldest sibling and had a sick mom. The raw power of emotional energy this film posesses to the point where you don't even notice that it has no plot? It knocks me off my feet every time.

4.) SLC Punk

this film has an unbelievably good balance of cynicism and revere for punk culture. Its critical in a fun way and its got that guy that went on to play Shaggy later. Literally theres this scene where the mc explains exactly why they beat the shit out of Skinheads and Neo Nazis for fun. Thers this one scene where they go down to Wyoming and fuck with a bunch if bible thumpers by attemting to summon Satan there is NO reason you shouldn't watch this movie.

3.) Chicken Run

I know I know. You're thinkin this would be my FIRST favorite. This isn't the Vic I know and love you say. Its ONE of my top favorites but it's the film i watch the MOST OFTEN. I have every scene memorized cuz its burnt in the back of my noggin. I used to get yelled at by my parents sometimes for hours and I used to watch Chicken Run in my head scene by scene just so I didn't have to listen to their bullshit. The thought of these chickens escaping their living situation from a woman who looks WEIRDLY like my mom was appealing to me for some reason.

2.) The Labrynth

This film is without argument is good. Its a Jim Henson Studio film that's why. Obviously. But as an adult I realized exactly how much this movie means to me. The fact that this girl could look into the eyes of a man who has ALL this control over every aspect of her and find the will and courage to tell him that he has no power over her. And she did it for a sibling because her bond with her brother is more strong than her fear or allure of Jereth? Every obstacle that she faced was impossible until she made friends and with their talents and traits it was one thread cut from the web that imprisoned Sarah? This, this. Yeah. Maybe my interpretation isn't all that acccurate but to that I say fuck you?

1.) The Monster Squad (1987)

This movie wanted to be The Goonies. So. Bad. The sheer DESPERATION laced in this film is what makes it genuinely terrible. The kids arguing over whether or not Wolfman has balls and then proceed to kick him in the balls and proving that Wolfman does indeed have balls? I mean the montage scene??? This film it just tops all right?

[papofglencoe]

Re: you mentioning you vibe more with Kurt Cobain as you get older.

I totally get that. I don't know if I was ready for Nirvana when I was twelve- fourteen. I liked their music but I didn't fully get the vibe (I was a late bloomer spending probably 98% of my free time reading) and now I’m like damn, I wish I hadn’t been an actual child while Kurt was alive. Because goodness that cynical outlook fits pretty well on me too.

The memory that stands out the most to me when Kurt died (I was fourteen) was feeling this great loss, like I was in mourning for our generation because we’d lost someone special- even if I didn’t get all of the specifics at the time and just casually enjoyed In Bloom or Smells Like Teen Spirit on MTV.

Also, I’ll never forget speaking up at home, expressing how sad I felt about his passing, without really being able to express why, and my asshole stepfather (no longer in the picture) making some sort of remark about how he deserved it or he was glad or something along those lines. I heard the sentiment mentioned by more than one person at that time. It made me angry then and it still does to his day.

All that from a “good” evangelical, of course.

(I'm not bashing Christianity in general, I want to make that very clear. Just the particular type that refuses to see further than the ends of their noses)

Anyway, thanks for letting me dump my completely unsolicited emotions on you <3.

Man, your (ex)stepfather was an asshole! I'm so sorry he made things worse for you by subjecting you to heartlessness instead of sympathy. (As if his generation hadn't lost their share of culturally significant people far before their time... not to mention, oh, Jesus).

I was in the same boat as you. Too young to grasp the full genius of Nirvana at the time or to understand what it was that Kurt was doing with his music. I remember watching Woodstock 94 with my older brother through the static and garble of some semi-pirated version of HBO on our TV, but it wasn't until I started high school that I actually gave a shit about contemporary music. When I was 12 I was listening to old Motown, Doo-Wop, the Beach Boys, the Beatles, etc. Stuff more appropriate for my parent's generation than ours. lol. So I was a little late to the game, and too late to enjoy Kurt before the enjoyment was mingled with loss.

I remember the day he died, though... I remember my best friend getting on the bus that morning, dressed all in black, her face stained with tears, and maybe she got the full gravity of the situation or maybe it was in some ways performative grief, but I really didn't understand then like I do now as an old woman the tragedy of a 27-year-old man ending his life to escape the demons hounding him (or just how horrific those demons were). He seemed like a grown adult to me at the time he died. I know now he was still in many ways a child. So young. So fucking young. When you're a teen you think 27 is ancient... like it's time to pack it up and move to the retirement home. But in time, with wisdom, you come to realize that you've just begun living at 27. He had just started living when he chose to die. He'd just had a baby girl... just this little nugget of a girl, and he bailed on her. As a parent now, that makes my heart ache.

Kurt was the essence of a depressed person, you know? Brilliant, funny, playful, sarcastic, wry, gentle, creative, vulnerable, but completely overwhelmed by the soullessness and cruelty of the world around him, exhausted, saddled with chronic pain, pissed off, frustrated, desperately wanting to stop hurting the people he loved, desperately wanting to stop being hurt, and I just... did not understand at 12 what a life with depression would be like, how hard it was for him with the added burdens of addiction and the savage cruelty of fame and the press in the 90s (people quite rightly have taken the magnifying lens to how the press mistreated Britney Spears, but there are so many others out there, like Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse, who were literally picked to death by the media).

Don't you wonder what Kurt would be like as a 50 year old? Would he be an old curmudgeon the kids "Ok Boomered" all the time? Would his hard edges be worn away like driftwood? Would he have gotten softer, quieter? Would he be angrier? Would he still be laughing at all of us? Or would he be ripping his hair out (would he have any left?), tired of the ridiculous bullshit that's only gotten more ridiculous and more bullshitterific?

[hughiecampbelle]

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR MILESTONE!!!!!

May I please ask you for a ship with a guy from MCU?

As for description: I'm a heterosexual girl. I'm usually quite introverted and hate talking about myself or being in the spotlight but am trying to get out of my shell more often than before (still, it's a long process so...). I'm kind and friendly but do have a temper and a poisonous tongue when I'm angry (I'm working on that too). I'm from Bulgaria and just love learning - I'm quite curious about... everything!

I'm a mix of Slytherin and Ravenclaw traits but I've always inclined more to the Slytherin side of me as this is my fave HP house. I have a very strong intuition but need to listen more to it. Boys usually consider me as one of them and never see me as the romantic interest - and I'm too shy to show that I have feelings to someone so you can imagine how hard that makes the things in the romantic deparment for me lol.

Books are my greatest love! I can even start listing my favourite books as this will be an endless ask and I'm sure I'll forget something in the end. I can only say that I hate chick-lit and am allergic to rom com movies. Actually, I'm quite the cynic when it comes to love as I don't believe much in it.

Have a lovely day! 💖

What trope are you? Everyone Can See It But You 💕

You grew up together, you, Thor, and Loki. In Asgard, where the world was beautiful and safe. Everyone knew. Everyone saw the way Loki looked at you, how sweet he was to. He played tricks on all the other kids, but you were special. You were inseparable. Even Odin, a man who took little notice of what his children did, understood that what Loki felt towards you was something more than simple friendship. You never noticed. You'd always thought it was because you were nice to him, that you showed him kindness. You knew what the other kids said behind his back, how they laughed and teased, even how his brother teased him mercilessly behind closed doors. Loki needed a friend and you were more than happy to be there for him, to laugh at his jokes and watch as he surprised you with his "magic". He was your best friend, your adoration mutual. Together you spent quiet afternoons reading together and exploring your home, both of you getting into trouble.

As you grew up, you grew apart. Your lives took different routes, though you would always hold a special place on your heart for him. Loki never dated and after you, he made no more friends. By then it was clear he'd never get to be King, that he'd never be his father's favorite or be anything more than Thors brother. What you had always feared came true: Loki let his temper get the better of him. You knew what that was like, having to bite your own tongue. It caused quite a bit of trouble. Still, you moved on. You lived your life, wanting to reach out, reconnect, unsure how. You lost track oh him for some time, never knowing who to ask about him. You thought he was gone for good, and it saddened you in a way you couldn't explain. Years had passed, you thought you'd moved on, that you'd properly mourned the end of your friendship. Why was it hurting all over again? He tried not to think of you, not to follow this homesickness he felt with no one else. He knew you were adults now, that you were different people, buy how much could things have really changed?

He'd gone to Sakaar, hidden out from his brother and everyone else he knew, when he saw you. In the street, just there. Another place to visit, to learn about, to see. You weren't sure why, but your gut was telling you you needed to go there. For once, you listened. You wanted to rub your eyes, pinch yourself, do anything to see if it was real. After all this time, there he was. You could do nothing but wave, your expression melting into an easy, effortless smile. He did the same. Frigga always told him stories of soul mates, the kinds of people who found the love of their life. He never believed his mother, though he wished he had. The cynic in him laughed at tales of incomplete people walking aimless until they found the one. Now he wasn't laughing. Instead he walked unsteady and embarrassed, wanting to ask you about every second that passed between you all those years ago, coming up speechless. You watch his face grow red, suddenly shy, the two of you unable to say anything. Everyone knew before you did, how you truly felt. You'd ignores them, or thought they were saying it to tease you, but the realization struck you as soon as you saw him: maybe they were right after all. . . .

~ I hope you like it my love!!! Xoxoxo💜💖💜💖💜💖💜

[icameheretowinry]

So, as someone who also loves MASH (watched it in syndication and bought the whole series on DVD), so you have like a top 5 favorite episode or moments? If so, what are they? And how did you feel about the finale? I have been told that my dad did not like the finale and some old family friends also said it wasn't... Good. Me? I'm conflicted. I do see the pros and cons of what happens but you might be the only generational peer I know. So your opinion means a lot to me.

Wow! I was not expecting this ask, but I’m so glad you sent it. To be honest, it’s been a couple years since I sat down and rewatched the whole series chronologically, but I think I remember it enough to answer your question. (That, and I went through each episode summary to jog my memory.) 

I decided to go with my top 5 favorite episodes. (Specific moments just felt too… specific?) These opinions have definitely changed over the years, and they may change when I watch the show again, but for now, they’re as follows: 

Season 1, Episode 17: Sometimes You Hear The Bullet

This was the first episode I remember seeing Hawkeye vulnerable. Some later episodes with Sidney attempt to dive into his mind when strange reactions arise, but they always felt a bit forced in my opinion. This episode, on the other hand, was simple, yet devastating. Colonel Blake’s quote sums it up perfectly: “There are certain rules about a war. Rule number one is that young men die. And rule number two is, doctors can’t change rule number one.” This episode really sets the tone for the whole series. There’s going to be a lot of humor, but we’re not going to let you forget where these characters are. 

Season 4, Episode 18: Hawkeye

This episode was masterfully written. Hawkeye gets in an accident, and then must talk constantly to the Korean family who takes him in, in order to stay conscious. It’s the only episode of a sit-com I can recall is entirely a monologue, yet it never feels boring. Hawkeye’s character is at the forefront with his humor, but always in the background is his intelligence and concern for his wellbeing. It’s an episode that truly showcases both sides of his character in a way that is both natural, and funny enough, entertaining. 

Season 4, Episode 24: The Interview

I must say that the atmosphere of this show is always perfect, but this episode was especially so. Shot in black and white, it really doesn’t feel like anyone is truly acting when the journalist interviews the cast of characters from the 4077th. It seems like it’s more of a documentary segment than an episode of a military sit-com. As someone who comes from a journalistic background, I now appreciate the unique writing in this episode more so than I did when I was young. MASH was all about unique episode formats, and this is one of its best examples. 

Season 9, Episode 5: Death Takes A Holiday

I’m not a crier, but this episode did it for me. As funny and serious about political/societal issues as this show was (many of which are still very relevant today), sometimes, things were just supposed to be sad, because that’s the way things were. The moment Hawkeye stood up and changed the hands of the clock, I lost it. It’s a gesture that speaks more than any dialogue in the episode, but it completely broke my heart. Mike Farrell’s writing/directing talent really showed in this episode. 

Season 11, Episode 5: Who Knew?

Like the first episode I mentioned, this is another where the audience gets a “surprising” amount of humility, vulnerability, and honesty out of Hawkeye. It’s a heartbreaking realization to some that someone could be so rich on the inside, yet never share it. Not judging others based on many circumstances is a theme upheld throughout the show, but this is really the first episode where it forces the 4077th to look at themselves a little more closely. As it turns out, someone they perceived as distant, was actually in awe of their work, and unfathomably kind. Just a little shy. Hawkeye admits that’s he’s like her, but openly shares with those he cares about just how much so. It doesn’t feel forced, cheesy, or weighted. It feels like honesty, showing through the wisecracks. 

Honorable Mentions:

Season 1 Episode 2: To Market, To Market

Season 3 Episode 5: O.R.

Season 3 Episode 11: Adam’s Ribs

Season 4 Episode 4: The Late Captain Pierce

Season 6 Episode 7: In Love And War

Season 6 Episode 15: The Smell Of Music

Season 7 Episode 10: Point Of View

Season 7 Episode 20: CAVE

Season 8 Episode 11: Life Time

I know a lot of these episodes are more serious or deviant from the normal structure, but I just want to stay that I love all the humor, but these are moments that stick out to me. 

The Finale: 

To be honest, the first time I saw the finale as an adult (about 4 years ago), I thought it was perfect. In retrospect, maybe as someone older, more cynical, more critical, more observant, or more of whatever else, I do see its flaws. Hawkeye’s breakdown is described but never shown. Hawkeye is belligerent, as was his character, but it seems overdone. BJ’s grand goodbye also came across as very cheesy. 

However, I love the idea that Hawkeye finally hit his breaking point, because it was a long time coming. It could’ve been executed so much better, but the lead up to it was FLAWLESS. I just wish the aftermath was better. BJ and Hawkeye were close, and shared many vulnerable moments, but I think leaving it at a huge and wave would’ve been best. (Even though the message looked good to viewers.) 

In short, I’m also conflicted about the finale. I think there are aspects of it that could’ve been done better, and some that were incredible. But ultimately, there’s a reason 106 million people tuned in to watch it. This show had a special place in a lot of people’s hearts, so no matter how the writers chose to end it, I think that’s the most important thing, that it meant something to people. 

Ngl, I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t get emotional every time I watched that “goodbye” fade away with the iconic series music. 

I really hope this answered your question(s), and that I did this masterpiece of a show some justice. 

THANK YOU for this ask! 

[frozen-orbit]

Love and belongingness needs in Frozen

To understand: Abraham H. Maslow was a psychologist who established the Holistic-Dynamic Theory, in which he discussed how there are different kinds of needs: physiological needs, safety needs, love and belongingness needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs.

The love and belongingness needs can be manifested, for example, as desire for friendship, wish for a mate and children, the necessity to belong to a certain group, etc.

People can be classified based on the amount of love and belongingness they have received:

People who have had this need adequately satisfied from early years

People who have never or very less experienced love and belongingness

People who have received love and belongingness only in small doses

We are not going to talk about the first kind of people cause they're like the ideal type of and unfortunately there aren't characters like this in Frozen lmao, at least not during the development of the first film, the part in which we are most focused right now.

I like to imagine the second kind of people as Kristoff. According to Maslow, these persons have seldom or never been hugged or cuddled, nor experienced many forms of verbal love. Taking into consideration that Kristoff was an orphan since a very young age, I imagine he lacked of this need when he was a kid. And though he was embraced by the trolls and had always Sven's company, I do think he received affection, but only in a small amount that maybe never fulfilled the amount of love he really needed, not to mention that this affection never came from another human. Also, I simply love the idea of Kristoff being hug starved. I mean, just look at this big soft man.

Maslow believed that people who lacked of love and belongingness needs will eventually learn to devalue love and to take its absence for granted, something that in fact started to happen to Kristoff. He was a dude almost secluded from society, even starting to hate people in some way, thinking he didn't need anyone but his reindeer.

As far as we know, he didn't feel the need to love or being loved, at least not before knowing Anna. So bless Anna and amen to Kristanna.

Talking about Anna, I think we can all agree on how she can be a pretty good example of the next kind of people. Let me explain.

According to Maslow, these persons will be strongly motivated to seek love and belongingness because they have received only a taste of it. I'm basing this on the fact of Anna being excluded from Elsa from a young age, but also considering what many people think, that she might have been neglected by her parents since The Accident™, and that was just before they died and Anna ended up practically all alone.

Maslow said that people who have received only a little amount of love have stronger needs of affection and acceptance than people who have received either a healthy amount of love or no love at all. Should I still explain why does Anna acts the way she does when she meets Hans?

I think this could also apply to Kristoff in Frozen II, where he now has experienced more love after three years with Anna, but maybe not enough to consider him "completely satisfied", specially having in mind what I previously said, that he received a poor amount of affection or even none, meaning that he could now be included within this kind of people. This could be portrayed in Kristoff's desperation to propose to Anna and all the worries it carried.

Finally, I'd like to quote some things this book I'm basing all this on, Theories of Personality, says.

"Adults need love, but their attempts to attain it are sometimes cleverly disguised. These adults often engage in self-defeating behaviors, such as pretending to be aloof from other people or adopting a cynical, cold and calloused manner in their interpersonal relationships."

"They may give the appearance of self-sufficiency and independence, but in reality they have a strong need to be accepted and loved by other people." Yes, I feel this fits Elsa too.

"Other adults whose love needs remain largely unsatisfied adopt more obvious ways of trying to satisfy them, but they undermine their own success by striving too hard."

I think this doesn't need more explanation.

Anyways, if you're interested, all the info about Abraham Maslow and the Holistic-Dynamic Theory was taken from the book Theories of Personality by Jess Feist & Gregory J. Feist – 7 ed. :)✨

[this-sapphic-paradise]

I don't know if I can convince him, he likes Jessica Jones and now I'm arguing for that part that JJ is an adult series and that WW and the superhero movies is more for a young audience but no less important. I just need to remember what is the feminist things in WW

WARNING: this is gonna be a long ass post so I’ll put some of it under readmore.

Okay, love, let’s just get one thing straight right from the start: it’s not your job to teach men about feminism (if you’re a girl); if he doesn’t know enough about feminism and if he can’t see it in Wonder Woman, it’s his job to read on it and learn more.

The second thing I’d like to point out is that it doesn’t matter if the show/movie is aimed at a more mature audience or a general one: it’s possible to send a positive, feminist message through all ratings.

But alright, let’s get this started then. Let me copy and paste what you wrote on the previous message:

“My friend says that WW does not seem good or feminist because it shows unattainable ideals of perfection and it is a mediocre and empty film of meaning and nuances”

Let me break this down into parts.

“WW does not seem good or feminist because it shows unattainable ideals of perfection…”

I’m sorry, but what?!?! 

First of all, men are not gatekeepers and they do not get to dictate what is feminism. And secondly, personally, what I consider “unattainable ideals of perfection” (as dictated by Hollywood) is always casting actresses who are thin as hell and white. That is bad because it prevents like, 99% of all other women on the planet from being represented on screen.

And I’m sorry but–

These women come from all over the world; they are white and they are woc; they are tall, short, thin or muscular (which is still very rare to be seen as something women should aspire to be, btw).

And those are just some of the Amazons. There are many other “Amazon Townsfolk” we didn’t get to see much, and of course, our beloved, funny, badass, and incredibly cute Etta Candy.

And I’m sorry, what diversity do we see in the women of Jessica Jones?  

The token woc in Claire Temple?Yeah… I don’t think your friend should have too much trouble seeing the hypocrisy in his statement there.

Now, on to the second part of your previous message: “it is a mediocre and empty film of meaning and nuances”

And again I’m here like, what?!!?!? I’ll admit, WW has a couple of flaws here and there in terms of writing and visual effects, but nothing that would make it be deemed as a mediocre film. In my view, your friend is using “I didn’t like the movie” as an equivalent to “the movie is bad”, and those two statements often times are NOT equivalent.

And I would really like to hear from your friend why he thought the movie was empty of meaning, because you have:

Hippolyta: dealing with the weight of being a queen, protecting her people, and being torn between the choice of raising Diana quietly to protect her from Ares, and raising her to be the best Amazon warrior in their history. And then later on having to come to terms with the idea that her only daughter would leave to never return.

Diana: going from being naive and living a sheltered life, to leaving her home into a world unknown to her, seeing the terrors of war, being offered the easy way out (Ares’s proposition), but still deciding to do the right thing because that’s who she was raised to be. Diana embodies humans’ ability to stay kind and open-hearted even in the most adverse of situations.

Steve: goes from being a cynic man worn out by the Great War to learning to open himself up again; he learns once more that there’s still beauty in the world even if it’s something as simple as snowfall.

Chief: goes from navigating between both sides of the war to try to make a profit for himself, to risking his life for the freedom of the world.

Charlie: suffers from terrible PTSD, but he is shown to be understood by his friends, and Diana makes sure he sees that he is fundamental to their mission even if he can’t be a sniper anymore.

Sammy: starts the movie as a conman who, just like Chief, is trying to turn a profit out of the chaos of war. But he too learns throughout the movie that there’s something bigger and more important to fight for.

Not to mention that ALL the subplot characters teach Diana something about the world and about herself at the same time as she is teaching all other characters about the world and themselves. That’s excellent writing!

And do you wanna talk about nuances? Do you wanna talk about subtle things?? Then let’s talk about how Chief introduces himself to Diana in his own Native American tongue, and explains to Diana he’s only in Europe because Steve’s people devastated his land and took everything from the natives.

Or let’s talk about my FAVORITE exchange in the entire movie:

(source x)

Or let’s talk about how throughout the entire movie we can see Diana slowly coming to realize that life isn’t black and white, it isn’t all good or bad, and that she’ll have to make incredibly tough decisions (like who to help and when to intervene).

I believe your friend thinks Wonder Woman was “empty and void of nuances” because it’s not dark and gritty like Jessica Jones, Christopher Nolan’s Batman Trilogy, or Watchmen.

But guess what???? The world is full of people cynic people who think being indifferent makes them special and cool. It doesn’t! Cynicism and indifference is what helps breed misery in the world, and Wonder Woman was breath of fresh air!

And if your friend needs help understanding the difference between the so-called “realism” in movies (aka, being dark and gritty) and reality, I highly suggest he watches this video:

One last important point I would like to make: Jessica Jones is a GREAT show that deals with some very serious issues, and pitting one woman against another (fictional or otherwise) is a classic tactic to tear women apart. 

So both the show and the movie have their strong suits and their weaknesses, but neither is “more feminist” or have “better feminism” than the other. They are both valid, and should be analyzed within the context of when they were made.

[revchainsaw]

Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)

Wow! I can't believe I'm about to review a mainstream Disney release of all things on this blog. Eh! I make the rules and this thing is close enough to a high fantasy/martial arts film and who knows I may give a crack at Disney's Cruella later if the film strikes me the right way.

The Message

Set in the fictional land of Kumandra, Raya exists in a world where dragon lore is at the center of everything. Kumandra is a prosperous land that exists around a dragon shaped sea, and the different Kumandran tribes that live there are named after the part of the dragon they inhabit. Fang, Tail, etc, etc. It's no wonder that the Dragons are so revered in these cultures, as the prosperity that the world is now experiencing is due to the great sacrifice where the dragons gave their lives to create a magic jewel that keeps a horrible race of sprits called the Druun at bay.

The jewel is protected by the Heart tribe, particularly the lineage of the Heart chieftain. Raya is the heir to this immense responsibility. Her father the current guardian of the jewel is an idealistic sort and believes that the Kumandran people can be united, however the other tribes have their own interests and biases, even about the Heart people who they believe are using the power of the jewel to unfairly benefit themselves. Raya is an apt disciple of her fathers ideals but unfortunately this leads to her falling for a ploy by the people of Fang to steal the Jewel, when she 'befreinds' the Fang Princess Namaari.

A battle ensues over the jewel that ends up shattering the macguffin of power, and releasing the Druun back into Kumandra. The Druun now unleashed upon the world begin to create a ruin. Transfroming anyone they come into contact with into stone. Raya's father saves her before being petrified himself.

As we fast forward Raya has become a cynical adult bent on finding the last dragon of legend in hopes that she can defeat the Druun, and return the world to the way it was, abandoning her hopes that the Kumandran tribes can ever be united. It should come as no suprise then that Raya does in fact discover the Last Dragon, Sisu. Sisu is a fun loving, comedic, and hyper energetic creatuer with a love for humanity and trusting nature that is at odds with Raya's trauma and cynicism, it also doesn't help that her special power is "swimming".

As they journey across the Dragon shaped land of Kumandra, they gain friends and face foes. Raya holding onto her hurt and refusing to trust the other peoples they meet enough to think that maybe Sisu is a Sacred being who is important to their cultures as well. It is this lack of trust that eventually leads to tragedy for Raya.

At this point I'm going to uncharacteristically avoid spoilers. Raya is left with the fall out of her distrust and must either turn to her survivor nature and endure this world the way it is, or put her trust in those that have wronged her and bravely and boldly take a leap of faithful expectation that a better world is possible. It's a Disney movie, so I'm sure you know where this goes, but I'm not going to give you the specifics. It's pretty sweet and powerful.

The Benediction

Best Creature Design: Tuk Tuk: Available at Target

I can't lie. I work on the road and I have to use the bathroom all over town if I need to. My secret for finding the cleanest place to go is to generally avoid gas stations and rest areas when I can help it and to hit up grocery stores and book stores etc. as often as possible. My favorite is a local target, the bathrooms are generally less in demand than a gas station, much cleaner, AND at target they usually have a starbucks so I can also grab some joe. All that said, I have seen these absolutely massive Tuk Tuk toys in the toy section and I'm going to buy them for all the kids that I know. I just think he's a fun creature. Im not a big enough fan of Raya to justify having this basketball sized toy in my collection, but I think that kids will love having a giant armadillo bear monster to pal around with.

Best Character: Dragon's Heart

Sisu is an endearing figure and her offbeat but kind nature reminds me exactly of my favorite kind of people to meet in the wild. It's hard to be a lover and not a fighter. It's hard to be so understanding. It is an archetype that we see all over any media with a semi-spiritual message and I don't think we've seen it with quite the comedic edge as Sisu. Aang from Avatar comes close, but his light hearted attitude is certainly on par with Sisu, his comedic sensibilities are decidedly less "on". It also kind of says something that I forget that I'm talking about a dragon here.

Worst Aspect: Rayatar the Last Water Dragon

Alright, this might be a hot take but. Avatar: The Last Air Bender did it better. I can't call it parallel thinking as Raya came out almost a decade after Avatar. The two are playing off of very basic heroes journey style narratives that have existed in human story telling for longer than either show so it's completely unfair to claim that Raya was "ripping off" Avatar, BUT it's also a bit naïve to think that Disney wasn't banking on familiarity to move some product. Disney usually goes after public domain properties and fairy tales we are all vaguely familiar with and that's no accident. There's a clear pattern that people gravitate toward the familiar, it's why franchises won't just die. It's why they can repackage all their animated films into mediocre live action form and sell you the exact same movie over and over again. Even if the plot of Raya didn't have similarities to Avatar, which it does, the marketing certainly was attempting to banking on the beloved animated series.

When Raya was first coming out i saw a lot of people claiming that the fashions and character designs were copying Avatar and guys, that's kind of racist. Both shows are creating fantasy worlds with heavy influences from East and South Asian cultures. There's going to be some things that to a white American eye look pretty homogenous, although I'm sure with a little education are in fact very distinct. So as far as the "look", my only gripe is with the Logo.

Now, all that said. If you do want a show where an American animation company created a lore heavy fantasy world that draws heavy inspiration from Asian history and folklore, where a group of special spiritual individuals were wiped out but one remains and is the only hope of uniting a world populated by nations of people with very basic easy to remember names like "fire, and fang, and heart, and earth", where the chosen one is a goofy pacifist who uses the power of love and spiritual values to pull an impossible victory out of their butt at the last minute, but it still makes you cry and want to be a better person, then I have good news for you. You're spoiled for choice, I'm not gonna say Raya "copied" Avatar, BUT ... Avatar did do that particular story better. It may be a bit unfair, as Avatar had three seasons to do so and Raya had like an hour and a half.

Best Weapon: Shifty Sword

I just like Ranma's sword. I'm gonna use this category when I see an extra cool weapon. Oh man! When I review Flying Guillotine am I really going to have to talk about how bad ass the flying gullotine is?

Rayas weapons is actually not a sword at all but is called the Jade Dragon Keris. A Keris is an asymetrical indonesian dagger, and no it doesn't turn into a whip like in the movie, but it is cool that hers does that. The animators really do some creative things with that.

Summary

Raya is unfortunately shaping up to be one of Disney's forgettable features. I think that's a shame as it's stronger in my opinion than many of the recent films that have come out. But as is the case when Disney does a lot of it's more 'action/adventure' films, audiences seem to largely ignore them. Here's to you Treasure Planet. The good news is those movies do have the most passionate and interesting fans. The appeal is more focused than it is broad, and that's okay. As pointed out above, don't expect Raya to give you anything new, but if this is your kind of story then I'm sure you'll be happy to add it to your collection. There's room enough for lots of these.

Overall Grade: C