#and it’s such a loss in the sense that this anime really resonated

[bandzboy]

nothing more insane than tiff and i rewatching yoi days ago for only days later they announce ice adolescence is gonna be cancelled 😭

[p1utofairy]

PICK A CARD: BARBIE edition.

★ which one of your manifestations is coming towards you?

NOTE: take what resonates, leave what doesn’t. i feel like people are in need of some positivity and encouragement so here you go! 🍬

pile one.

hi pile 1 🌞 wow i feel like you have a very bright personality! it's so potent and beautiful. you can light up any room you walk into, and once you start seeing your beauty for what it truly is, that's when you'll really become a magnet for the things you desire. i feel like you've come out of some deep situations that left you confused or wondering about your true purpose in this lifetime – but don’t let anyone or any situation ever dim your light or take away your power. your soul purpose is really special and i think you’ve been looking for clarity or some sort of answer/solution to this lack that you’re feeling in your soul. you will definitely receive a message and/or an answer to what you’ve been seeking to find. i see this manifestation being a dream come true, pile 1.

you’ve put the work in and now you’re about to reap the benefits of your labor. this could be a new job, career path/major, business opportunity or an increase in your finances. your spirit guides want you to put yourself out there and say YES to whatever this message might be. you already have the motivation and desire for it, so it just requires you to take action and be confident in your choices in order to receive it. you might downplay yourself a lot or make self-deprecating jokes that ultimately put you in a lack mindset. i’m hearing “psh…yeah right. i doubt something as extravagant and nice as that would happen to me.” but why? whose to say what tomorrow will bring? your guides want you to lean more into your optimism and have faith in yourself, and understand that you truly deserve all the great things that are about to unfold in your life.

you know how to make light of situations, so use that to your advantage. i feel like you have a great sense of humor lol but be kinder to yourself okay? it can be really tough when life starts throwing curve balls at you, but it’s what you choose to make of it. as phil dunphy from ‘modern family’ said, “if life gives you lemonade - make lemons and life will be all like whaaaaat?!” so go out there and show the world what you’re made of!

pile two.

heyyy pile 2! i feel like you're coming out of a period of grief or a loss of some sort – a powerful transformation. i feel like this is more about letting go of a toxic mindset and freeing yourself from negative energy/situations rather than on a physical level. for some of you, a loved one could have recently passed or a connection you had with someone ended but i think it’s more so that you’re in a period of transition and starting to accept things for what they truly are. you’re no longer letting anything or anyone hold you back. you’re gaining momentum in your life path, and your spirit guides are so very proud of you!

they see how much it’s taken you to get to this point in your journey. it’s taken a lot of patience and discipline, but you’ve persevered and made it through - and for that you will be rewarded. i feel like you’ve been trying to manifest a change of some sort…whether that be physically moving out, going on a vacation/traveling, going out more or just a genuine change in your everyday life; i’m happy to say that you will be receiving that! you’ve been slowly but surely focusing on yourself and nourishing your mind, body and soul. you’re now starting to realize that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to…you might be seeing a lot of signs/confirmations like angel numbers, repeating patterns, symbols or animals.

you’re starting to realize that surrender is key - not everything can be in our control and sometimes that’s a tough pill to swallow but that’s just the way of life and it usually works out in our best interest in the long run. a flow of abundance is on its way to you. you can manifest anything you want in this lifetime, it just comes down to your mindset and the power of your words. continue to be at ease and let your actions speak for itself, you don’t have to prove or explain yourself to anyone. you’re on the brink of success and it’s coming in fast, just make sure to always stay grounded and remember where you came from. heavy is the head that wears the crown; you know what you’re capable of and what you deserve so don’t let the pressure and weight of life hold you down. keep moving forward, it’s all going to work out in your favor.

pile three.

pile 333 i just wanna give y'all a hug 🥲 y'all are really going through it right now. heavy water sign energy. do y'all have any pisces, cancer or scorpio in your chart? i get the sense of someone laying in bed…just staring at the ceiling like why? why me? you're trying to process a lot of intense emotions and center your energy, but it's taking a toll on you right now. you feel very alone and and unsure if you can talk to anyone about this. not even trying to be funny, but yeah it's giving existential crisis barbie.

if you've seen the ‘barbie’ movie, you know the scene where barbie just gives up and lays down flat on the ground and they're like "she's not dead. she's just having an existential crisis." 😃 real AF but no no no you gotta quiet down your mind. you can 100% feel and process your way through these emotions, but don't let them take control over you and make you feel like you’re doing something wrong or like you’re not doing enough – release that negative energy! i feel like your mind is going a mile per minute, and you can’t even form a rational thought without getting upset. in terms of your manifestation, i feel like you’re really craving love right now. you’re ready to go out there and bag the person of your dreams, but your guides just want you to first take this time to quiet your mind and trust in them & second believe that love is going to find you no matter what. don’t force it…don’t question it — believe it.

you could’ve had a couple of instances where you thought it was the real thing, but it turned out to be really disappointing and not what you wanted. that’s your spirit guides telling you that you can’t force it. this new relationship will find you naturally and it will be everything you’ve ever dreamed of plus more! this person will not only be your lover, but they’ll be your best friend and your confidant. you will feel absolutely liberated and comfortable to take on any challenge with them by your side. however, you need to let this wave of emotions pass and understand that what’s meant for you will NEVER pass you. you got this my pile 333's 🦋 it will be in reach soon.

[tigerpearlsworld]

Pick a card

(deep in your soul who are you in core and what is your path)

Before you chose the cards know that this is a general pick a card and in this universe all the energies are different. you can only choose one card. this pick a card is meant for your soul not for you to resonate but for you to realize when you get the message and the truth. to pick the card you have to look for more then the image but you have to look for depth in each image. breathe in and breathe out, lit a candle, meditate and really feel the image and sense if you were not in your body but in the universe where would your soul be realistically. again its not about how you want to see, its about what your soul wants and when you feel the tug in your heart not your head know that its your card.

Sorry if my English is bad.

𝓣𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓼𝓮 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓬𝓱𝓸𝓼𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓹𝓲𝓵𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓪𝓷𝓼𝔀𝓮𝓻𝓼 𝓸𝓯 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓼𝓸𝓾𝓵 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓻𝓼 𝓶𝓪𝔂 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓼𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓼 𝓫𝓮 𝓫𝓵𝓮𝓼𝓼𝓮𝓭 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓰𝓾𝓲𝓭𝓮𝓭 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓻𝓾𝓽𝓱.

Left to right :

pile 1 . pile 2 . pile 3

The reading starts...

Pile 1 :

(Healing,poems,sadness,withering,calling,acceptance,leaving)

Animal which came for you... Phoenix

Element which came for you... Fire and Water

Cards: (3 of cups, 7 of pentacles R x, ace of wands, 4 of cups, strength, the high priestess)

There is sadness a sense of loss. Deep in your soul I see you trying to dive deep but every time you do you're pushed back by life and its waves. I see restlessness you feel every time dread consuming you. At night it feels that you know something is missing but you don't like to feel and so you leave this feelings alone. I see the word which comes for you is " Deeper then you realize" yes that's you. you fail to understand yourself so people fail to understand you. you have good intuition and strength of mind but you have fears. I sense that your mind is blocked somewhere deep in your unconscious mind if it makes sense. I feel that your soul is very old and tired and that you were a victim in your past and even now. such tiredness such sadness yet you don't let it push you down you're relentless and even when you feel lonely you move again and again and again. you don't like to be too available but you crave freedom. I sense your heart is blocked too as you don't allow or maybe you try too but deep in your mind you chain yourself to suffering. it feels like you are trying to give justice to yourself from something you don't understand.

I see in the stars that you have been promised a house and a career. I sense that materially you will be always fulfilled now or later but in matters of heart, soul and tears you'll always be wounded and lost.

I see you in a boat alone trying to navigate your way but there is no light and sound and wind. that is where your soul feels you are. I see people show you illusions and try to take what is yours from you but you don't back down as you're strong. But I feel like you may have nightmares or bad dreams or even no dreams at all. But you feel in your heart that there is something empty. I see unlike your peers and people who always have it lucky ..from early on life your parent saw you as someone mature and you had responsibilities more then someone should have in your age. You feel as if people always ask you for guidance look at you as someone who has experience and know everything. sometimes you feel its unfair. you are also someone who has high standards and always in competition with others i see you're a jealous person and you like to have and be better then anyone. Emotionally in your present you are shallow and discontent, there is always a sense of rush in your mind towards everything weather it be goal, work or something....its always now or never. you cant rest because you are still tangled up in the veins of your punishment your mind punishes you for your past and it doesn't even lets you know or see your fault. it cages you.

the solution I see for you is to get in touch with your past and do fire rituals. Meditate on the fire to purify your mind. In this life your karma is to be mature and aware. Don't cage yourself in this loop of negativity but try to think and say good things. Do fire meditation or ritual before you sleep to get answers. feel that you're surrounded by love and light because I see many of your past people mainly ancestors are behind you in each step. Untangle yourself from the victimhood and destruction of your mind. Realize your full potential and you'll be unstoppable.

As i was channeling your energy this song came asking permission for your soul maybe you can resonate.

Pile 2 :

(Complain, voices, Lack, guardian, protected, Independent, Repent)

Animal which came for you.... Hawk

Element which came for you... Air and wood

Cards: (10 of swords, 10 of cups, page of cups, the world, the emperor)

Alice in the wonderlands is coming for you but also the story of red riding hood is coming.

I sense something is unforgivable and you live that unforgivable life. Maybe its something you had done or something done to you but you cant forgive. You're a stubborn soul who wont forgive and so even if you like to show yourself or others and tell that you don't focus on past but your path always leads you back to the past. your mind and heart always leaves you in lost . As because you don't understand what you want. you have so much potential to grow in ways you don't understand but your short coming is you're always lost as because you and your soul have different opinions and don't come in agreement as something is being rejected or hidden. You are realistic and you're skeptic I sense and that is your reality to always question and see things for what they are. you judge, yes. but you don't like to be judged. you have a ego problem too I see. And sometimes you chew more then you can swallow in that rage or moment of ego.

But I see you have talents and you garner jealousy from people if you realize or not. I can see in life you'll get many betrayals and experience many loss in terms of career, money, family, love, friendship. but something which you wont ever lose even if you try is you. and that is because even when you try to give up your stubborn soul doesn't lets you. you have a keen sense of knowing everything when you look at something or someone. your capability to sense danger or vibes which are off about people or situation is on point. you are a survivalist and you like to be prepared even if people say or see you as someone who is lazy but you work smart.

I see that you maybe popular or become popular in time. you may even have pets or be someone who advocates more for animals then fellow humans. "Antisocial and Watchful" is coming as words in my mind for you.

In your stars I see that you'll be given despair at one point of your life. unemployment and even homelessness is seen with poverty coming so strong. you will have to work hard and labor for each moment of life and suddenly I see that when your karma of repentance is complete YOUR STARS WILL GIVE YOU JUSTICE you'll be given a soul community of like minded people who feels like home and sudden wealth. I also see that your love life will blossom later in life but it will stick with you when it does happen. I also get a message for you "When you close your own seeing eyes and you trust your heart and the stars and let your hand be guided by the gods and the angel and you don't let past or doubt fill you in question but you're filled with peace, acceptance and forgiveness you'll meet your love" and your lover I can see will be a total angel who will always be with you and will always guide you towards light. just don't bring ego, independence and stubbornness. that is what I heard for you.

like i said early your word for you is repent and your soul wants to repent for something and its stubborn so till it repents it wont let you rest and will direct you back again and again to the past. and if you fight too much you'll lose.

I see you'll go through betrayals and even accidents where someone intentionally does bad to you but you'll survive and pick yourself up again. your key to success is to honor your past but not let it control you. you have to mine your way out towards a direction which is not in the same place or same thing you had previously done. you have to do something different and differently to get answers from your soul and the stars.

no one can control you, only you control yourself and in a way i feel that you already know that. you're a natural rebel and even may had bad relationship with authority figure and even your own father. you don't like to be controlled and told what to do as because you don't search for answers from others but from your self. you are an independent soul so you don't like when people are indecisive or change opinion or mind a lot. you are ride or die and loyalty is something huge for you. I also see that as you are so sure of yourself and independent in your thought and way of doing you may come in conflict with a lot of people. I'll tell you one thing your eyes are good and intuition is very on point. I see that you have the kind of eyes which See's through the facade of people and sometimes without even knowing the person and just by looking at them you can know what and how things will unfold with this person for you or others. Your eyes See's everything,every detail and you remember each and every word. but sometimes your all seeing eye and intuition can make you paranoid when you don't know how to use and so you may lose a lot of opportunities in life .Being independent is good but sometimes you should also lean on help that comes for you.

In this life to lessen your sorrow I see you must be more forgivable and also not come to conclusion about someone. I see that there is a lesson meant for you which is to be more social and accepting of people and their ways of doing things not everyone is perfect so let it rest and try to go on hike or walk in the nature when you feel restless or more chaotic. Doing more charity work or non profit work will also help you a lot in this life. To get less sorrows in life try to get blessings of people older and servants in your life.

This song was coming in my head for you as i was channeling your energy listen to the song maybe you can resonate.

Pile 3 :

(Distance, Travelling, Time, Healing, changes, Diet, path)

Animal which came for you... Lion

Element which came for you... Ether and fire

Cards: (Queen of wands, 5 of wands, 3 of wands, the hanged man, queen of pentacles)

The story which is coming for you in my head is Cinderella and the little mermaid.

you have the blessings of your ancestors, i see them blessing you and protecting you. there is this sense of stealth you have which always keeps you balanced and floating no matter what life throws at you. some call it luck but you know that its more then that.

what i sense for you is that your soul is someone who is strong and brave and someone who has mastered everything in the past life and so it feels confident and content within itself. for your soul freedom is the most important thing. i sense that you as an individual is someone with surreal themes of ultimate romance and tragic love where you want to be in love with the most pure form of love.

your soul doesn't allows you to get pin down by tradition and pushes you to be more then what is expected of you. sometimes you may come as aloof or hard to access to people and sometimes people may think you are submissive and a push over but those who know you close know how strong and spirited you are.

Even though your soul craves freedom sometimes you may panic not knowing your own path and may want others to decide, but whenever others decide for you.... it either bring bad fortune or you are discontent and do the opposite of what the person told you anyway.

i see you have a lot of competition in life and its not the kind of competition where you want to participate but the kind where you are forced to compete. you like to push your own limit and like to compete with yourself more then other. the idea of competition is something you may not like. i also see you waiting in life for something .... sometimes you may even dream about that certain something but what is coming for you is that rather then waiting for something to happen in life you should do more initiation in life. yes. initiation.

"a thought out action is better than a action with no thoughts", is the message coming from the ancestors towards you.

"know who you are and only accept things which are worthy to you"

i feel that there is two sides of you which comes like a tree which was planted and then it branched two different ways. i sense that as a kid you may have been very trustworthy and naive to the point of people abusing and using you and then suddenly something so major happened in life that you did not remain the same naive innocent person you once were. i sense there is a lot of traumatic experience you had to deal as a child and you had lots of hopes. i also sense for some not all that you family members abused you or controlled you , but you break free from them and moved away.

i see that you are someone who is very unorthodox and someone with a lot of alien fashion and thoughts in your head. you like to dream. you like art too. but you also are someone who is very scientific, like i said you have two face but its not a bad thing you learned that in life everyone wear mask. and although your small version would have disapproved as you were such a bundle of innocence and dreams but now its different.

you are someone who is full of beauty and also can be both a career woman and a house maker.

in your stars i see escapism and pleasure is coming for you, i sense that you have a lot going in your heart and head always and that you're someone who is very sensitive in your heart...empath to be precise so i would say don't try the shortcut and don't do drugs or alcohol it would severe your connection from your ancestor and your luck would lessen if you do. also i can see a major transformation happening in your life where once you may had been imprison for real in jail or in house through relationship i sense something traumatic is written in your life which would free you from that bondage of imprisonment and make you powerful. i also sense that you have lot of people trying to get your attention and fight for you in love and some of them can be as toxic as wanting to control you but don't falter and settle down. As the romance you crave you will find, yes true love that you have once dreamt or wished when young that wish will be fulfilled. I sense that your star is always helping you get to the right track in life and always shows you your true path, you are guided even when you think you're not. the stars has written that in your faith even when you feel lost you wont be. you are protected. also look for butterflies especially yellow once they may guide you sometimes.

In this life you must be true to you, your karma in this life is to transform. Its saying you must be careful in your words and action, more like be precise with them. Be mindful with your group of friends. To connect with your ancestors try to bath in the early sun light and do meditation.

No song came for you during my reading, sorry.

[rainstormcolors]

Pegasus and Kaiba for the comparison thing!

Hello. Thank you for the ask.

Seto and Pegasus were both young inventors and entrepreneurs – a key difference is Seto came from a rougher and less-privileged position and Pegasus grew up in a wealthy family with the implication that his family funded his initial business ventures. Seto in time would also enter into a rich family but with the rather glaring asterisk of “having to prove himself worthy.” Both of them have been wealthy and very upper class within an upper class elite, but Pegasus could be said to come from “old money” and Seto from “new money.” We never actually see Pegasus interacting with his rich peers but he's also fairly young for an established business man, and canon (the DM anime specifically) repeatedly included other young wannabe entrepreneurs seeking to work with him. Both Seto and Pegasus pivoted their family’s wealth towards a new venture – Seto turned Kaiba Corporation away from military ventures into gaming and holograms, and Pegasus seemingly did not hold onto running casinos and instead focused on building his card game brand.

Both are introduced in a villain role, but Pegasus has a more distant motivation whereas Seto’s is more personal and direct. Seto is also, I feel, much more self-destructive and desperate during his villain arc – a wrecking ball who did not care what would come next, a wrecking ball wanting attention and yet wanting to be alone, a wrecking ball trying to motivate his enemy to just kill him if he loses. Pegasus seems more specifically goal-orientated as a villain, rather than specifically emotionally motivated. Obviously, given they are villains, they both had cruel streaks and a disregard for others. And both had their forms of tragic backstories to give context to who they are and what they’ve lost and how that loss has left them hollowed out in some way. Death and feeling haunted are certainly themes in both characters. There’s also a sense of a “lost self” for both of them.

Personally, that Pegasus’ goal in the manga and sub was always hollow and empty was the point to me – his goal was doomed and hollow from the very start. He was chasing something that was already gone and he could never get back. I don’t have an issue with people preferring how the dub changed his goal but his manga’s portrayal has more of a sense of hopeless doomed tragedy to me.

At the end, Seto is able to stand back up after bit-by-bit pulling himself together, tired though he may be he pulled himself together, and Pegasus (in the manga) allows himself to be destroyed. It is very much implied in the manga that Pegasus allowed Yami Bakura to kill him without putting up any fight.

DSoD is a continuation of canon one can take or leave as they please given its release many years after the official conclusion of the manga’s run. I also personally feel Seto’s fate is left up to personal interpretation. I consider it canon that Seto had a genuine emotional attachment to Atem and I feel ignoring that really flattens Seto’s character, especially given Seto shows that he has come to a place of being able to trust Yugi and Atem to save the world near the ending of the movie. I don’t think Seto knows how to name that emotional attachment and the feeling is so alien and new and strange to him. I’m not interested in ship wars or flattening Seto’s character in the name of ship wars – whatever Seto’s feelings for Atem are, there is *something* there. I don’t think Seto wanting to say goodbye to Atem should destroy any prospects of other ships or destroy asexual headcanons. With all that said, DSoD is about Seto’s struggle with grief for Atem to me even as he has no idea how to name this feeling or how to handle this feeling. And that Seto is chasing a ghost and feels something darkening in him in grief has been compared to Pegasus by fans a few times and in a few ways. I personally found resonance with Seto’s grief in DSoD and enjoyed how the film was allowed to have teeth but it’s a polarizing film for the fanbase, hence why I do think it’s fair for a fan to take it or leave it.

I apologize for the rambling about DSoD… it’s sort of inevitably a complicated discussion given the poles people might take Seto’s characterization and motives to as they interpret the movie. I personally feel it’s more complicated than Seto taking clear steps forward or clear steps back.

If I can keep going, the discussion around DSoD has made me understand that I personally hate the phrase “moving on.” DSoD finally finally -finally- got me talking about grief after so so many years of not even understanding my own grief. I literally had not been able to name my own grief or understand that I had experienced grief until I discussed the themes of grief in DSoD. DSoD helped me come to terms with my own grief. I did not need Story #20343243 where characters explicitly discussed how sad they were about a death but it’s okay because they have each other and now it’s time to move on. I never connected with those stories because that wasn’t how it went for me and I always felt disconnected from grief to the degree I hadn't even realized I did go through grief until discussing DSoD.

Man…. Man, I am so sorry for that ramble on DSoD. I really got away from the point maybe. I think I’ve seen too many fans compare Seto to Pegasus as a “bad thing” but those fans have the right to do that too. They have their own complicated feelings and life experiences too. I am sorry ._.

I do hope the day is kind to you. Thank you for the ask again.

[turtlethon]

Hi there!! I’m such a big fan of your reviews, you did a great job with them!! 😄

My biggest questions would be;

Who’s your favorite turtle? And if you had to choose just five episodes from the series, which ones would be your all time favorites? 😁

Thank you!! Have a great day!!

Thank you so much for the kind words! For the record, I'm Team Donnie, always a big fan of the inventor/scientist archetype. (Also my favourite colour is purple, so he gets an extra point right there.)

I feel like when it comes to picking the top five episodes the natural inclination is just to pick the first five, and with good reason; nothing that came after S1 had as much time, care or money afforded to it. So just to make things interesting, I'm going to set everything from season one aside and pick five more episodes that I think also deserve to be celebrated.

5. THE DIMENSION X STORY

The Turtles having to fight their way into the Technodrome (and back out again) somehow never fully lost its allure. This one and "Shredder's Mom" both rank highly in my estimation, and while this is the less visually impressive of the two I think it wins out for how willing it is to mix things up, sending the Channel 6 regulars to Dimension X while two of the Turtles remain behind. Wild, far flung adventures that tap into the more sci-fi aspects of TMNT, and the cherry on top is that this is easily Vernon's best episode - it turns out he's more interesting as April's rival when he's doing well and she has to work to regain the upper hand.

4. THE NINJA SWORD OF NOWHERE

This one gets few points for innovation - Shredder and his crew jostling with the Turtles for control of some ancient magical artifact or high-tech invention is standard stuff for season three, and in this case, it's a dimension-hopping ninja sword. But rarely, if ever, has it been done this well. Splinter and Shredder battling in dimensional limbo is great, and the animation team handling this one really went above and beyond. Ninja Sword of Nowhere almost feels like it should have been held up as a textbook example of what a Turtles episode circa 1989/90 should be, a reference point that could be shown to writers or animators for what the show should be trying to acheive.

3. SPLINTER VANISHES

The intended 100th episode, even if it didn't turn out that way, and one that I remember feeling like a big deal while watching it as a kid that still held up upon revisiting it as an adult. I always know it's a really good ep when writing the entry for it takes hours as I agonise over it, trying to make sure I articulate everything I want to get across to the best of my ability, and I remember dwelling on this one for a looong time, thinking about how the story compels the Turtles - and us - to consider what happens when the adventures end, when it's time to grow up and move on. Probably the most emotionally resonant episode of TMNT '87, and even though Splinter does not come across well by the end of it, the journeys we go on with each of the Turtles as they explore their post-hero lives easily outweigh that. The fact that "Splinter Vanishes" accomplishes all of this and is a non-Shredder episode - when let's face it, they're more often than not filler shows - makes it all the more remarkable.

2. SHREDDER TRIUMPHANT!

I have mixed feelings about the show continuing into the Red Sky era because this episode, the season seven finale, felt like it had brought TMNT '87 to its natural end point. I love how it plays upon the sense that the Turtles (and the viewers) have that they've seen and done this all a million times before, and it quickly becomes apparent that this time things are different, that finally Shredder and Krang are competent and have learned from all their previous losses, setting the stage for one final showdown. All the main characters - the Turtles, Splinter, the Technodrome regulars and the Channel 6 crew - get their chance to shine and show how they've grown over the course of the show's run. A milestone episode for sure.

1. TURTLES ON TRIAL

I think for me this is still The One, the single episode outside of the first season that I'd consider peak TMNT. It's also the first episode I remember seeing on TV, which I think set me up to have entirely unrealistic expectations about how good Turtles would be; fortunately the rest of the run was still a good time even if we never quite got here again.

I like to see my heroes really have to go through the wringer, to have everything thrown at them and somehow just about make it out victorious, and so the environment we see the Turtles forced to contend with here, a city full of people who have been conditioned to be actively hostile towards them, while they're also dealing with the usual Shredder/Krang stuff, makes for compelling television. Yes, Clayton Kellerman and "On Trial" are a perfect encapsuation of the media landscape at the time - which still feels relevant today - but on top of that this is a gorgeous episode with some terrific battles between the Turtles and Shredder's bunch. It's simply the bee's knees. (Or should that be the turtle's knees?)

[zumurruds]

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series)? And why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....Thanks...

Hello, and thank you for this ask!

It's really tough to pick just a few… I'll have to split this into two posts due to tumblr's word limit, but here are some that immediately come to mind. Remember, this list isn't exhaustive and isn't in any particular order. (Here's part two.)

(Warning: this list may include spoilers!)

Tyrion Lannister - His wit, intelligence, and resilience make him one of the most entertaining and tragic characters in ASOIAF. Despite being born into one of the wealthiest and most powerful families in Westeros, he faces discrimination and cruelty due to his dwarfism. He didn't inherit the beauty of his siblings, nor is he tall, handsome, or skilled with a sword, and he's not particularly well-liked by others. But Tyrion holds a pivotal role in the series for good reason, and it's rare to encounter such a masterfully crafted and captivating protagonist who also grapples with disability. As Varys once said, "ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow."

Arya Stark - She stands as one of the most compelling and complex female characters in ASOIAF, yet she often remains underappreciated and misunderstood within fandom circles. While some may see her as a tomboyish archetype (forgetting that GRRM penned the books in the early 90's, a time when Arya's character was quite revolutionary in fiction), Arya's character transcends clichés to embody a raw and heartbreaking portrayal of a girl thrust into the brutality of war and forced to navigate a world torn apart by conflict as a child soldier. Separated from her family and faced with unimaginable challenges, Arya's unwavering determination to survive is both inspiring and heart-wrenching. What sets Arya apart is her multifaceted nature. She embodies a mix of magic, cunning, animalism, spirituality, and femininity, making her a rich and dynamic character. Her connection to her direwolf Nymeria and her training with the Faceless Men add layers of mystique to her narrative, while her unwavering sense of self and identity challenges traditional gender roles which modern readers can relate with.

Eugenides & Irene (because I can't mention one without the other) - In The Queen's Thief series, Eugenides, known as Gen, isn't just a master thief; beneath his sharp wit and roguish façade lies a man burdened by profound grief and the challenges of his disability. His journey through pain and loss adds intricate layers to his character, making him all the more compelling. As for Irene, the formidable queen of Attolia, her intelligence and resourcefulness are matched only by her inner turmoil. While she deftly navigates political challenges, the weight of her responsibilities and the harm inflicted upon her loved ones weigh heavily on her conscience. Their intertwined destinies and the magnetic pull between them form the heart of their portion of the series, making their romance a standout element of the story.

Ella of Frell - The curse placed upon Ella in Ella Enchanted, one of my cherished childhood books, serves as a powerful metaphor for the struggle many girls face in asserting their agency and setting boundaries. Forced to obey any command given to her, Ella's curse robs her of control over her own actions and decisions, leaving her vulnerable to manipulation and exploitation. Ella's struggle to assert her independence and reclaim her agency is a central theme of the novel, and it highlights the importance of standing up for oneself and setting boundaries. This aspect of her character resonates deeply with readers, particularly young girls, who may relate to the feeling of being powerless in certain situations.

Achilles - One of the most powerful moments in the Iliad is Achilles' encounter with Priam, Hector's grieving father. Priam's act of kissing Achilles' hands, despite them being responsible for Hector's death, demonstrates remarkable humility and shared grief. This profound display of empathy moves Achilles to return Hector's body to Priam. In this moment, Achilles transcends his own ego and recognizes the universal experience of loss and mourning. By agreeing to return Hector's body, Achilles symbolically abandons his pursuit of personal glory, finding redemption and closure.

[geodethecrow]

kaleidoscopic worries in a rainbarrel

They tell me “try to

See the forest for the trees”

But that’s the problem

I see the trees too clearly

It’s not the size of the forest

That overwhelms me

It’s how many trees there are

Those innumerable branches

Reaching out to snag my hair

The pine sap flowing to

Entrap my limbs in amber

Thick canopy stealing the light

Shifting shadows messing with my eyes

I see it all and that’s what’s wrong

There’s too many ways

The world could end right now

So I'll retreat to the woods

Get lost in the underbrush of my mind

And when I find a pleasant thought

I'll try to hang on to its branches

And stay above the tide of green

Though my hands often slip

And I fall

The bushes swallow me whole

Down into the shadows

Thoughts spiraling like fern fiddleheads

Deep into the infinite what-ifs

Of life and death and decomposition

Spoiling the solitude I seek

I’d love to hang a hammock here

But that branch above is leafless

And leafless branches are often dead

Dead branches, more likely to fall

That branch up there might fall

And hit me

So no, I shouldn’t hang a hammock here

It’d be too dangerous, maybe even deadly

My mind is stuck on all the thorns

Snared in a thicket of thoughts

Unable to escape

I can't see the forest or the trees

There's only darkness in my view

My eyes flooded with tears of night

I tear at my body like an animal

To free myself from this trap

Before it's too late and I die

Then the storm truly hits

Tornadic winds tossing me around

Ripping my sanity out of my grasp

Before my wide and watery eyes

The rain pours down and pounds

Me like a bass drum

I wouldn't be surprised if I'm hollow

See if I resonate when you touch me

But like a tree that falls alone

If no one hears me

Do I even make a sound?

I don't really understand

How only wind

Can scrape a city bare

Rake its claws into the earth and pull

Uprooting all that meets its path

But still it makes some kind of twisted, twisting sense

That something as incorporeal as cloud

Can when angered do such damage

When the winds finally calm

Enough for me to draw a

Single shuddering breath

The area around me's scoured clean

A trail of destruction left where

Everything I touched is dead

And I cry

Wracking sobs of grief at what I caused

Such loss of life I cannot bear

Then I disappear

I melt like morning fog

Battered down by the sunrays

Harsh light pierces my eyes

And I’m

gone

[h-worksrambles]

I think one of the reasons Burrows is so engaging to me is that there’s an emotional core amidst all the drama and horror that really speaks to me. Content warning for discussions of suicide as well as spoilers below.

We meet Grey on the day he’s about to take his own life. He’s down on his luck. Racked with guilt over sabotaging his relationships with both his ex-fiancée and his lover (both of whom are his best friends). He’s no longer in touch with his family. He still blames himself for the death of his childhood friend. And he’s made other, extremely costly mistakes that we’re still only being drip fed at this point in the narrative. At this point…he’s just tired. Trapped. Completely at a loss.

And it’s at this point that he’s ensnared into Virgil’s game. He meets four other men and forms a kinship with them as they all feel oddly familiar, only for him to get ripped away from them too. But what really resonated with me was the reveal about who these four are. According to the rules of Virgil’s game, they are what’s known as Constants. People who are all doomed to die. And Grey is sent to a point in each of their lives shortly before it happens. At this point it’s unclear if they will die by their own hand, or because of something else. But one way or another, someone, somewhere has decided that their time is up. And yet, for all these men are suffering, Mark’s twisted response to grief, Gabe’s ostracism in his community, Ken’s sense of displacement and inability to connect to people, Hiro’s struggles with his gender identity in an unfamiliar land…

…Their pain is treated like a game. Both by Virgil, and the other entities we’ve only seen glimpses of at this point in the narrative. A higher power has arbitrarily written off these men as a lost cause. Their mortality treated as having no meaning other than entertainment.

But then the game starts. Grey has slowly started to bond with each of the four Constants. And in each route, someone from Grey’s past is brought into the mix. For all Grey thought of himself as worthless or a burden, he clearly isn’t. Not to Simone, or Etienne, or Jean. They all go looking for him. They only get trapped by Virgil because Grey touched their lives enough that they wouldn’t leave him behind.

Do I think these stories are going to be clear cut? No. At the end of the day this is a horror game. Mark is a deeply messed up individual and it’s made clear that the burgeoning romantic relationship between him and Grey is pretty toxic. But even when Simone helps him extricate from that, Grey still wants to help Mark. He refuses to leave him to die. Hiro opening up to Grey about his past is a powerful moment, but it’s not going to stop Hiro’s workaholic nature driving him to disaster. And that’s not even getting to the walking mess of violence, fear and anger that is Ken. But still, Grey remains determined not just to help them, but to help himself. To go back home. To go back to the very life he was originally going to leave behind for good. Even when literal eldritch horrors (who happen to look like handsome rabbit men) have declared their existence as meaningless.

I think that’s one of my favourite things about Burrows. Beyond the stellar presentation. Beyond the mystery. Beyond the jumpscares. Beyond the gore. Beyond the crazy supernatural shenanigans. Beyond the sexy animal men and…overwhelming horniness. Burrows is the story about one unlucky possum. But it’s also about his journey to connect with other lost souls, rebuild himself from rock bottom and take his life back.

I dunno, I think that’s pretty damn powerful.

[katiajewelbox]

On the occasion of Dilandau and Celena's birthday 2024, I feel this is an appropriate time to share some of the reasons why this character is special to me.

There's so much we don't know about Dilandau based on the canon information in the anime, but what we do see provokes tremendous curiosity! How does the whole biological sex changing thing work? Is Dilandau "trans" in our modern sense of the word or something else entirely? Who is the real identity - Celena or Dilandau? Is Dilandau happy in their role as the bringer of death and destruction or are they suffering the whole time? Does Dilandau truly care about the Dragonslayers and what is the real relationship among them? Why is Dilandau filled with so much hate and aggression, and are they really evil or just a troubled teen with access to a flame throwing giant mecha? There are many interpretations of Dilandau and every fan has their own idea of who and what Dilandau really is.

Of course, as a transmasculine person myself I feel a kinship with Dilandau due to their intriguing and never fully explained gender identity. Dilandau was one of the first transmasculine coded anime characters I saw, along with Lady Oscar, when I was a young person and hadn't yet figured out my own gender identity. Seeing characters like this got me curious about unusual gender identities and it just resonated with me even though I didn't fully comprehend why that was at the time.

Finally, being a fan of Dilandau and creating fanworks about them gave me comfort during a very dark chapter of my life when I lost my Dad to cancer, faced financial instability, and was trapped in an abusive relationship with my now-ex fiancee. It was difficult for me to care about myself when my self-esteem was at its lowest, but I could care about Dilandau. Creating stories about Dilandau overcoming horrible trauma, loss, and abuse before finding a happy ending with Miguel cheered me up and inspired me to imagine a more hopeful future for myself.

Dilandau continues to be my muse, my anime waifu, my comfort character, and my Best Girl (that's a gender neutral term in my book!). I look forward to sharing more fan art in the future as well as the thought-provoking fanfiction about Dilandau and Miguel I've been working on for the past year. I'm sure they'll have that special place in my heart for many years to come. Please join me in wishing them a very happy birthday 2024!

[themuse-if]

20 (or so) Questions with Jo Nielsen

Let's see what lies behind those beautiful eyes. Is Jo really just a hot hippie or do they have a more thoughtful side?

Interviewer: Jo, thanks for sitting down for a deeper chat. Let's start with your birthday – Aquarius, right?

Jo: Absolutely! Born on February 2nd. * starts to get more animated* The "Age of Aquarius" from "Hair" does pop into my head every now and then, you know? The '70s musical – but let's not get stuck on that.

Interviewer: Got it, Aquarian vibes. Any nicknames you go by, or is it just Jo?

Jo: Jo suits me fine. Keeps it simple. *shrugs*

Interviewer: Good to know. Beyond music and the Rebel Rejects, what are some of your good traits?

Jo: Empathy is one. I've been through a lot, so I tend to connect with people on a deeper level. I'm also a good listener. Life's too short not to find humor in the chaos, so a wicked sense of humor is in the mix too.

Interviewer: Sounds like a solid combo. On the flip side, any traits you consider challenging?

Jo: I can be guarded. Growing up in a commune, nudist colony, and a cult – trust doesn't come easy. It's a protective mechanism, you know? Opening up about my own struggles is also something I'm working on.

Interviewer: Understandable. Hobbies outside of music – what's Jo into in more detail?

Jo: Getting lost in a good book is one of my favorite pastimes. The escape into different worlds helps me find balance. Also, nature – hiking, camping. There's something calming about the outdoors that resonates with me.

Interviewer: Nice choices. Let's explore strengths a bit more. Besides the drums, what do you see as your greatest strength?

Jo: Resilience, definitely. Life threw some curveballs, especially after my dad's sudden suicide, but I've kept bouncing back. It's like punk rock – resilient and unapologetic.

Interviewer: Powerful. And on the flip side, what's your biggest weakness?

Jo: Maybe a bit too self-reliant. Asking for help isn't my strong suit. It's a work in progress, though. *runs finger through hair*

Interviewer: Growth is a journey. Describe yourself in one word.

Jo: Complex.

Interviewer: Intriguing choice. How do you think others see you in one word?

Jo: Genuine.

Interviewer: Nice. Let's dive deeper. What's your greatest fear in more detail?

Jo: Losing people I care about. I've dealt with enough loss already, and the thought of it happening again is something that keeps me up at night.

Interviewer: Tough reality. Top priorities in your life right now – could you elaborate?

Jo: Keeping the Rebel Rejects together is crucial. The band is family, and we've been through thick and thin. Beyond that, it's about enjoying the simple moments – friendships, music, and finding inner peace.

Interviewer: Family – tell me more about your relationship with your mom.

Jo: It's just me and her. After my dad's passing, we became a tight-knit team. She's been my rock through all the unconventional experiences. We've leaned on each other in ways that go beyond the typical parent-child dynamic. *cracks a sad smile*

Interviewer: That's really sweet, I hope you won't miss her too much during your transition into university. Alright, future goals – what's on Jo's agenda?

Jo: Fame and fortune aren't the driving forces for me. Playing music with friends, exploring the world, and finding those hidden gems – that's what I'm all about. Maybe create a little haven of my own someday.

Interviewer: Sounds like a fulfilling journey. Rainy days – walk me through how you spend them.

Jo: A cozy bowl of miso ramen, a good book that transports me to another world, and the soothing sound of rain tapping on the window. Maybe crack the window too. I love the smell of rain. The perfect atmosphere.

Interviewer: Love the imagery. Favorite book in more detail?

Jo: "The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger. Holden Caulfield's journey through the complexities of life resonates with me on a personal level. Especially when I was facing some very particular struggles when I was younger.

Interviewer: Solid choice. And what's your favorite movie?

Jo: "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" for sure. The messiness of relationships and the beauty in imperfection. It's a visual representation of how love isn't always neat and tidy, but it's real.

Interviewer: Beautifully put. Alright, any dark secrets or unconventional experiences you're willing to share in more detail?

Jo: Growing up in a commune, nudist colony, and a cult – it's more than just a quirky backstory. Each phase shaped who I am today. It's not a secret, but it's not your average upbringing either. The real secret is why we left, but I can't share that with just anyone.

Interviewer: Ok, thanks for sharing that much with me. Lets make this a little lighter. What's your best physical feature?

Jo: My eyes obviously! *a flurry of silly blinks and giggles* No but seriously they feel like a representation of me and and my duality, and I thinks that's kind of cool.

Interviewer: *covers face with notecard to hide intense blushing* *whispers* you're so fucking cute *clears throat* Nicely said, I definitely agree, your freckles are cute too though and your hair and... I mean... sorry next question. What about your least favorite physical feature?

Jo: *shy smile* I mean sometimes I look at my nose and I'm not sure how to feel, or I think I'm too pale. Not that Ro stands for that kind of talk. They're always like, "I'm only friends with hot people, so deal with it, your HOT!" *chuckles* I love them they're so cute.

Interviewer: Speaking of love, let's move to the last question. How would you describe being in love?

Jo: It's like finding a melody that perfectly fits with your rhythm. Imagine a cozy indie bookstore, flipping through vinyl records, sharing stories about our weirdest experiences. Moments by the river or a tucked-away park – it's a quiet symphony that speaks louder than words.

Interviewer: Beautifully expressed, Jo. Thanks for sharing your journey in more detail. Excited to see where life takes you and the Rebel Rejects!

[alinktoana]

local elderly girl sells stickers at a japanese food festival

not gonna lie, the entire experience is very emotional to me and it's been a month but moon channel's vid essay about cool japan, and the release of smt5 vengeance (lol) inspired me

tldr: i made some stickers, got real existential about it, will keep making more c: if youd like to check them out, here's a link

ive always wanted to draw, i used to say i was gonna become a painter or a fashion designer when i grew up. none of that happened, but i did go to film school. my final project was a script for an animated short highly inspired by nbc hannibal, majora's mask (i know, it was 2016, it makes sense to me lol) and a huge loss in my life from which i havent fully recovered, 10 years later.

the point is, ive always been art adjacent but i never really drew, until i got inspired by_hannibal itself_, noel fielding, kylux (LOL) and a roommate who was who was really inspired by art youtubers like frannerd and drew around the house, so i picked up a pencil and started drawing hannigram fanart bc i was so insanely in love with that show lol i remember who i was before i drew. i spent my days reading and watching tv, bc i love stories and stuff, but i was a consumer. and once i got a job after college i felt so incredibly isolated and directionless. do i have a direction now, as i work as a """"designer""" for a company that sells a mental health app? no. but like demifiend was force fed a magatama and got demon powers (LMAO BEAR WITH ME I JUST BOUGHT SMT3 HD REMASTER), i caught the art demon (like steven zapata says). and i caught it bad. i spend my day to day rushing through my work and chores and everything so i can have enough time to draw in the evening, to do whatever, and sometimes the need is so immense i cant do anything bc im not good enough, my skills are fading, im worthless, what's the meaning of all this? so i took a chance and showed my work at an arts alley on a japanese food festival i was helping organize. mind you, i was juggling that with my 9/5, promoting the event, finishing drawings from years ago. and when i got there, nobody got it. people looked at the stickers and didnt recognize the characters, and went on to buy the stickers my friends had that were more current. it was all japanese fanart. we were there with the single purpose of baiting weebs like us lol

ive always dealt with clients, im used to this. but im used to business to business, bc sigh i am a corporate girly. and im a beginner in the demon arts of arting. i felt so ashamed people were preferring other people, that i had the audacity to think i was worth anything. but i stood there, standing still with my brain boucing off my skull wanting to leave but also enjoying the experience and hoping someone, anyone would get it. and some people did. to my surprise, jack frost was my best selling sticker, lol. jack frost, from the smt franchise, a franchise im so new to but i love so dearly. im 100% a poser, ive never finished a megaten game. but… it just speaks to me. and thats where my cool japan feelings come from bc, like i said, i was selling at a japanese food festival. people my age, from the country i come from, were exposed to dragon ball and cardcaptor sakura from birth. and learning about history and the atrocities of the japanese empire is just. who can you trust. but ive aways resonated with one thing from japan, and it's the way they portray sadness in their works. it's become a ritual since last year that i will listen to smtv's ost when im on my period bc it literally brings me back to life. no one but i know how many times ive drawn goro majima and taiga saejima bc their mere existance and their sorrow resonates with me so immensily and i dont wanna see them being sad, nor do i wanna see me being sad. it's. it's really difficult to be to admit that im from brazil, bc our country sells happiness as an export but for many, many years the most popular genre is butthurt country music, and it makes sense, you know? people dont wanna admit they're sad. and i can only imagine what it's like for regular japanese people, bc we (i) get to see their big exports of bittersweetness… i dont know, maybe other people get to see that from brazil too, i dont know. the arts in brazil, or specially where i live, it's just isnt in the cards for us. but ill keep trying, you know. and i know fanart is a hack. but im trying. despite everything and everyone wanting us (me) to work for mining/metal/oil companies, make the most money, have the least health, drink all the alcohol (but call an uber), consume, reproduce and die, i. i just wanna draw tiny people, you know. it's. not that big a deal. all this to say that yes im gonna keep drawing and making stickers and, who knows, you know. these are stickers that i wont ever find near me, or that im too broke to get them from artists/official stores, so if youre like me, here's some pdfs in case you wanna print them and stick them wherever c: ty if you got this far, this is a big ramble… but it's been years in the making and despite everything im happy about it c:

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

SPIDER-VERSE On The Brain

Massive SPIDER-VERSE *spoilers* are ahead... Do not read on if you haven't seen the movie...

It's been four days since I checked out SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE in theaters... And I'm still processing such a rich layer cake of a movie with all this stuff going on, just the sheer ambition of it... And... This story isn't even over, that's the mind-blowing part...

This movie did have pretty strong arcs for Miles Morales, Gwen Stacy, and even Peter B. Parker to some extent, in addition to introducing a major conflict and a soon-to-be-primary antagonist in Miguel O'Hara/Spider-Man 2099... While a larger threat, The Spot, still looms, and there's even a closer to home threat for Miles himself as the picture wraps up...

There's so much more to go, assuming that BEYOND THE SPIDER-VERSE is also going to be a pretty long movie. That this movie was, in the planning stages, getting to be so big that they had to break it up into two parts? Who knows what we're in for...

I feel a lot of ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE's narrative brilliance is within its yet to be resolved conflict...

Canon...

Back in 2018, INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE came onto the scene with its dynamic new way of rendering CGI imagery in an animated feature, while throwing in eye-candy flourishes and other dynamic art styles to really make that movie pop amongst other mainstream animated movies *and* the entire comic book movie sphere. In a neat sense, this groundbreaking new way to make an animated feature strengthened the inclusive and quite simple overall message of the story: ANYONE can be Spider-Man.

Now, if INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE said "anyone can be Spider-Man", ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE asks what that "anyone" must go through to be Spider-Man.

Can Spider-Man truly be anyone?

What is "canon"?

Miguel is adamant that every Spider, from man to woman to animal to insect, must experience some major tragedy in order to truly be a Spider-Something. A loss of a family member, close friend, or any kind of loved one... That's that about that, that's the nature of the "Spider-Verse", it is set in stone, no other way! Seems to contradict "Anyone can be Spider-Man", right? Apparently Miles can't have a relatively normal non-costumed life, someone he loves HAS to be axed... And that's the case with... How many Spiders? Over 280?

... which quite frankly sounds very controlling and lacking in imagination. And kinda dumb on paper. Miles knows that, even... It all relates back to what his mother and father want for him vs. his ambitions and desires.

"Nah, imma do my own thing"...

Such a liberating line, during such a literally and figuratively heavy moment in the film...

Between Miles' arc and Gwen's story, this autistic queer right here felt something quite resonant from all of this... I needed to see and hear these classic story tropes pulled off in such a great new way at a crucial time in my life...

Now, this works even beyond one's personal journey and how a film relates to someone: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE seems cleverly critical of contemporary superhero movie culture and most nerd-dom, from its most toxic swamps to its most boring offices. Adherence to "canon", shackling oneself to hard-set rules that mustn't be deviated from. It's especially potent coming from a movie series where the main Spider-Man is a black/Puerto Rican teenager, and his pals include a trans Spider-Woman, an older adult Peter Parker who has a child, and many more.

The insistence that Spider-Man has to be this one thing, i.e. Miguel running a Spider-Society that makes sure all Spider-People have that very "Uncle Ben" tragedy happen to them, with NO ANOMALIES... Miles' whole existence as Spider-Man, of course, is revealed to be said anomaly... In that a spider from another universe, Earth-42, got to his, Earth-1610, and bit him... Messing everything up... He's even blamed for Earth-1610 Peter Parker's death, to add insult to injury!

Or DID he mess things up?

Maybe "canon" is a bunch of bullshit.

The very kind of thing that shackles whole characters and franchises down, instead of letting those who come to the sandbox play with the toys THEIR way. INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE came to CG animation and didn't do the Pixar style, didn't do what most other mainstream animated movies were doing, didn't follow the accepted "standard" or "canon"... A friend of mine, in his review of ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE, noted something very interesting: This also ties into how a lot of very online animation fans insist that every new movie now must be like SPIDER-VERSE. And like PUSS IN BOOTS: THE LAST WISH. And like any other animated movie that they consider "top tier" or "based" or "cinema". Including a relatively-panned Mario movie. Screw off if you're Pixar making "mid" movies like TURNING RED and ELEMENTAL, or Disney Animation making equally "mid" movies like ENCANTO or RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON... "Canon" in feature animation, apparently, is now movies that must be like SPIDER-VERSE or PUSS IN BOOTS or whatever. Animated movie "requirements". You have to have scary dark villains, you have to have the most amazing unseen animation style ever, you have to do it all THIS WAY...

This whole "canon" nonsense also ties into superhero movies in general, as well. Even comics, like a lot of runs of Spider-Man are apparently doing... especially in a time of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC movie-verse being clamped down by such hard continuity... That has only morphed into a bigger cluster-cuss, post-SPIDER-VERSE.

I remember when watching the LOKI Disney+ series, thinking... This series is trying to explain in FIVE 40-MINUTE EPISODES something INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE effortlessly explained in less than 5 MINUTES... Then you bring in the Doctor Strange follow-ups, all this stuff about "incursions". Incursions this, Sacred Timelines that... Why is this so goddamn convoluted and wracked head-to-toe with all these RULES? Other multiverse stories don't do this, and Marvel's characters span DECADES... And a big criticism of the recent MCU output is that the continuity, the canon... Doesn't allow for the characters to have their own unique stories, told by filmmakers with individual unique visions working within reasonable guidelines. I feel these two movies, along with EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE, show what a multiverse story can still be in this day and age.

And by using Miguel's rule, ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE goes right for the jugular bearing its spider-fangs.

Anyone can be Spider-Man, Spider-Man can have ANY life.

May I also add? The Spot... He's not in the movie much, but his arc... Tying this back to the worst of toxic nerd culture. The Spot is shook by being called some villain of the week and everything else that happened to him (like getting conked by the very bagel from the first movie), and instead of using his weird abilities for something good, he's going to go great lengths to prove that he is not some villain of the week. To become a larger scale threat... And for what? To fill a literal hole in himself? What validity and happiness will this bring him? I see something similar in some aspects of nerd culture, where they take being wronged (I'll humorously compare this to being shoved into lockers, circa 1988) at some point in their life, and turning it into their literal villain origin story... Growing up to be the jocks that bullied them, growing up to be the ones making life harder for other people in the community... The very people complaining about how "w0ke" this movie is for having "forced diversity", the very people who also lob that stolen word at harmless things like the LITTLE MERMAID remake and virtually anything "W0ke Disney" puts out these days, the very people who had literal shit-fits over MAD MAX: FURY ROAD, every new STAR WARS movie, GHOSTBUSTERS 2016, SHE-RA AND THE PRINCESSES OF POWER, new MUPPET BABIES, any new STAR TREK media, the list goes on and on... That's The Spot. Funny how some superhero movies, even animated superhero movies, have these villains who feel like they've been wronged and feel like they're entitled to something...

Just more texture to this ludicrously-textured layer cake movie... Yeah, CAKE itself is a big part of the movie, too. Look at that-

All this, amidst a backdrop of hundreds of Spider-People, a surrealistic smorgasbord of visual styles and animation techniques (Spider-Punk alone, YOWZA YOWZA YOWZA!), a multiverse-spanning story, and at the end... All of it tying back to who Miles Morales wants to be. How he wants to tell HIS story... When he defies Miguel on the train, it's a monumental moment...

And the story isn't even over yet... This movie is something special.

[pancake-breakfast]

I'm INVESTED. I need to know what happens next. Especially since the last chapter ended on a cliffhanger.

Stream-of-consciousness thoughts for TriMax Vol. 5, Chapters 3-4 below.

Chapter 3: Loss

Well, that plus the title page art is ominous. He looks really peaceful for someone who's losing it enough to grow giant feathers out of their arm.

Is he really a traitor if he's still doing the job Knives sent him to do? Or are you just giving him shit because some part of you thinks whether he betrays Vash or betrays Knives, betrayal is betrayal and that's worthy of shame and punishment?

I feel like hiding a gun in your sax would muck up its sound a bit....

Looks like a few of his shots hit Midvalley.

Ok, I think I finally get it. For this fight, Nightow is actually using very particular visuals to represent Midvalley's attacks. I wish I'd figured this out sooner. Might have made some other scenes make more sense. (No, the sound effect doesn't help me much. I don't know what the Japanese onomatopoeia is for sax sounds.)

I hope Milly is ok through this. I don't think most people are as tough as Wolfwood.

Wolfwood's a force to be reckoned with, for sure.

Ok, I had to go back through the Wolfwood parts in the last two chapters of the last volume. I totally missed that he couldn't see. I thought his references to it being dark and all were more metaphorical than literal. My bad. But him being blinded this whole time and still managing to hunt down Midvalley just makes him all the more intimidating.

I still don't understand why Gauntlet and Midvalley are so determined to cover their tracks.

Oooh, Meryl's elevator-cell isn't doing so hot.

Feathers.

FEATHERS. (I love how Gauntlet's reaction here is just pure confusion.)

Ohhhh, that's an angel arm silhouette.

Going... down?

Dude, Gauntlet totally has a cross on his face in between his eyes. Because of course he does.

Aaaaand everybody's screaming. I think that's reasonable.

Needs moar feathers.

Knives flashback?

Knives flashback. Vash flashback, but with Knives. Gauntlet is seeing this?? Goshdarnit, Plants are weird.

LOL, from Knives' perspective, Vash is being rude. All Knives has done is try to look out for his brother. The fact that he's doing so in a horribly destructive and abusive way is lost on him, so all he sees is Vash pulling a gun on him for no particular reason. And he was so happy to see Vash, too. (Also, shout-out to Knives' weird drinking habit.)

Ah, it looks like Vash is communicating these memories directly via touch. I gotcha.

Uhhhhhhhhhh.... Is Knives having someone inject Vash with stuff?!?! That is NOT talking, sir!

Knives, holding the metaphorical sword over the doctor's head, daring him to just try and destroy them, since all that would do is prove Knives' cynicism right.

Poor Meryl is probably REALLY confused right now. Whatever she might have expected, I'm sure it wasn't fifty billion eldritch feathers coming through the ceiling.

Knives looks so proud of himself. He's waaaaay too calm and happy about his brother panicking. That's no way for an onii-san to behave.

Yeah, Knives, what you're saying isn't gonna make Vash want to resonate with it more....

I have thoughts on this panel and the rest of this scene between the two brothers.

You know... I made a post about exactly what Knives is saying about Vash's scars and how that appears in Stampede.

Ugh, he's getting Vash worked up. He's trying not to, but it's not like all those moments didn't still hurt.

Honestly, this is a bit of a brutal way to communicate this all to Gauntlet, but I don't know how else Vash could do it that would have Gauntlet understand and believe Vash, especially while they're plummeting down an elevator shaft. And Gauntlet is going to relate to it in a way other people might not, because from what little we've seen of his life before the Gung-Ho Guns, he was also hurt, betrayed, lied to, humiliated, treated like an animal, had his every word questioned, and been laughed at while people (whether figuratively or literally) dragged him through the mud. I could go into more detail, but it's either that or another chapter tonight....

Ugh, the quivering gun pointed at Knives....

Knives is blaming Rem, but... I think inasmuch as she is to blame, it's because she died before she could help Vash flesh out these ideals better. And that's not her fault, even if she was the one who chose to turn back to try and save everyone else. She wasn't the one who decided to crash the ships.

Uhhhh, what are these little face-thingies crawling through???

Vash is still trying to fight it, and when Knives sees he won't give up, he gets... pushy. Pushier. Injecting your brother with stuff to force change is already, to put it very mildly, pushy.

The focus specifically on people Vash interacted with and clearly cared about getting sucked into the gate is... a good touch. Painful as all hell, but that pain is important to the narrative. I don't think either of the anime adaptations quite managed to capture it so well.

And Gauntlet gets to feel the loss of the girl he cared for all over again.

Chapter 4: Villain

Maybe part of the reason people have historically had trouble recognizing Vash is because they're expecting someone a lot older than he is. Or maybe he's so much of a legend they don't quite believe he's the real deal.

Also, Gauntlet's gotta be, like... what? Late 60's at the least, yeah?

Well, if this isn't a poignant opener....

Is... Meryl getting a glimpse of all of Vash's pain here??

I'd say it's impressive that Gauntlet's screams have reached Midvalley, but we've already established Midvalley has superhuman hearing.

It appears Vash's pain is so much that Gauntlet would rather die than continue to experience it.

"They rigged this whole place to blow?" This is my surprised face ----> :|

And now it's Wolfwood's turn to point a gun at Milly. Fair's fair. But I think she would have actually tried to throw him down if he hadn't relented when she pulled her gun, and it's clear here that he pulled his solely as a scare tactic.

I'm not sure what this is, but it definitely feels like Vash's doing.

Gauntlet definitely expected to die in that attack.

Duuuude, Midvalley even found him! Lucky!

Haaaaahahahahahahaha, Wolfwood is STILL going after the Hornfreak.

Oh, that ball of light swallowed up the debris? That's another point in the "Vash did this" column.

Midvalley's calling Wolfwood out here, huh.

CREECHUR VASH IS WITHIN EASY HEARING DISTANCE AND CREECHUR VASH SAYS THIS CONVERSATION IS OVER!!!

Also, wings.

Ahhhh, I love how Nightow made Midvalley dedicated to calling Vash "it" here. It says so much about how Midvalley sees Vash/Knives, his place in comparison to them, and how he thinks everyone else should approach them.

Midvalley's approach is still fatalistic, I see. "No matter which of them wins, we all lose, caught in the crossfire."

LOL, even in creechur form, Vash doesn't appreciate Midvalley's sentiments.

Fuck. He was reacting to Legato. That's FAR worse.

Seriously, folks, I get antsy EVERY TIME Legato shows up. EVERY. FREAKING. TIME. I'm still traumatized from '98... and where I know he's gonna take things eventually here.

Oh, he just had to get himself his own ripoff Angelina. Thanks, I hate it.

"What's he doing here?!" Grinning like the madman he is, of course.

He's really happy about this whole "torture the hell out of Vash but don't kill him because Knives-sama asked for it" thing, isn't he? Freaking yandere....

"You may have your rest." Ummmm, is Legato gonna kill Gauntlet?

Wolfwood's still ready to throw hands in spite of being DEFINITELY outgunned right now.

Wait, is Midvalley trying to take down Legato?!

Whyyyy did Gauntlet shoot him??

FUCKING LEGATO, THAT'S WHY. Someone take this man and his iron maiden box and throw them in the bottom of the sea already. Please.

Ok, it's a nice touch to have this be the contrast to how the title is listed on the opening page. Why have one person highlighted as a potential villain when you could instead highlight two?

Archive

Trigun Volume 1: Covers + 1-3, 3 Detailed Thoughts, 4, 4 DT, 5-6, 5-6 + DT, 6 DT, 7-8, 9-10 || Volume 2: Covers + Extras, 1, 1 Supplemental Research, 2-4, 5-6, 7-8

TriMax Volume 1: Covers + 1-2, 2 DT, 3-4, 3 DT, 5-6 || Volume 2: Covers + 1, 2-4, 5, 6-7 || Volume 3: Covers + 1-3, 4-5, 6-7 || Volume 4: Covers + 1-2, 3-5, 6-7 || Volume 5: Covers + 1-2

[morningstar-warriors]

Adventure Three

Danger, Twolegs, Chaos

With the group gathered around an injured Patchpaw, they all discuss what to do next. Dreadcrag mentions Fern Clan's Moonstone, and how he should probably find, and secure it. The bodies at Fern Clan camp should also be buried, and paid respects to. Crimsonstar investigates Buddy, asking what he knows in relation to the fire. A recap of sorts. He explains loud thundering booms, and fire, lots of fire. His Two-Legs left him behind, and although he's defensive of them-- he seems sad and lonely. He mentions a molly named Jill who can help tell them more information, claiming she's really smart. Buddy promised he’d wait by the Thunderpath if they were interested.

────────── · · · · ✦

Dreadcrag and Briareyes burry the dead, unfamiliar with Fern Clan's customs they use their own burial methods. Marking the symbol of a star on their foreheads. (Stone made this up, I like it, good rp!) Patchpaw, the young apprentice watches on with tears streaming down his small face. He was unable to speak, grieving the loss of those he'd once called home. Moonshadow sits beside him, telling him that the forest has burned down before, but in the wake of its destruction brings life anew. There was hope and wisdom in his message. It seemed to resonate deeply with Patchpaw.

Patchpaw’s grief, Moonshadow’s wisdom by Morningstar.

Once the dead are buried and honored, the group moves on. Traveling towards Great Oak, where the Stoneteller of Fern Clan had slept. It was uncertain if he was alive, and if the tree was still standing, but Dreadcrag moved the group forward with the intention of finding out. At the very least, his dedication to Star Clan did not wane in front of his clanmates.

────────── · · · · ✦

The group didn’t get very far before sensing trouble deep in the woods. No one could locate the strange salty tang of animal in the air, nor identify it. Crimsonstar scratches "DANGER, PREDATOR" into the dirt. (using Cat Scratch ofc) The group looks around bracing themselves for the lurking danger, but the pause was enough to give their hunters time. Two thin sticks pelted the ground, silvery and alien. Snowystorm bristled, instinct taking over. She immediately took off from the area. Dreadcrag crouched, white striped fur blending in with the ashy ground.

Briareyes hissed, bristling at the strange thing that screamed danger to her. Crimsonstar hissed into the forest, eyes searching for their attackers but to no avail. Another swipe of air passes over head, ears twitching wildly around, Briareyes is impacted with a dart to the chest. Crimsonstar in the arm. She immediately faints, strength isn't her strong suit. Moonshadow took action, swiping Patchpaw off of his Deputy's back and into what dust and dirt they could hide in. Briareyes ripped the dart out, fighting the sudden sensation of exhaustion. her vision began to close in.

Moonshadow looks out into the trees, peering hard trying to find the source of danger. All he catches is the glimpse of what at first reads as a branch, slowly sliding behind a larger tree. His fur pricks on end. Dreadcrag commands Autumnbreeze, his undead hawk, to go find the source. The skeletal bird takes flight, soaring across the woods to startle their hunters. The sound of Two-Legs shouting, their unusual hollars and calls, twinged with an edge of urgency. The comotion ends with a loud clap-- Dreadcrag feels his connection to Autumnbreeze's cut.

At this rate, Snowystorm had finally calmed down. Her clanmates! She had to help her clanmates! she turned back, seeing Briareyes and Crimsonstar on the floor. Dead? She didn't know, but the others were still there! Moonshadow feels himself beginning to panic, the shouts of two-legs echo through the woods, unable to decipher how many are lurking. Dreadcrag begins to drag away Crimsonstar, hurriedly attempting to take their leader away from the line of danger. The Two-Legs begin stomping through the woods, Moonshadow leaps out standing over Briareye's unconscious body. He accentuates his scars, and bristles, yowling loudly at the pair. The large beasts waving at him, making sounds that sent spikes of fear through his chest.

Snowystorm runs in from behind, she debated climbing a tree to ambush the Two-Legs above. But to no avail, the burnt bark peels away under her claws. Instead, she faces the pair, and attempts to act like a cute Kittypet. Maybe flattery will win them over! (Neon, rolls one dice, and its a 1. It couldn't have been a worse roll LOL rip.) One of the Two-Legs, already frightened, points a shorter version of their metallic sticks at her. The sound is explosive, ears ringing she looks down in horror to see her left paw has been obliterated.

Snowystorm's paw! by Morningstar

Snowystorm is stunned, but uses the rest of her strength to run. It was all she could do now, uncertain of her fate or the others. Moonshadow was hit with a dart in the shoulder, and despite his strength, he too faints. Dreadcrag successfully drags away Crimsonstar, hiding her and himself in a ditch far far away from the Two-Legs. For all he knew, his friends would be taken as Kittypets, or worse...

────────── · · · · ✦

Snowystorm rushes to the Thunderpath, spotting Buddy. He lights up upon seeing her, then immediately gawks at her bloody stump. He hurriedly helps Snowy across the road, she can feel the life draining from her, carried towards The Barn. A calico cat sits on a waron out chair, a strange stone garbling Two-Leg meows beside her. Long whiskers, or antenna, branching from the top of it. She immediately stood upon seeing the two. This was Jill!

The Barn, by Morningstar. Click for detail!

☆・*。

・゜+.

　°。+ *´

Crimsonstar stands in a thick black mud. It comes up all the way to her stomach, long fur grazing in the muck. Tall monolithic black trees tower over her, their gnarled branches cover up the sky. All is eerily dark, except for the dim red glow that seems to emminate all around her further off in the trees. She begins to run, the mud clinging and sticking to her legs with wet shlooocks. But despite this, it didn't deter her at all, like walking through water.

She finally finds a clearing, the trees are shattered and broken here, covered in gross webbing dangling sheets that looked like hunks of flesh or fur. It guides her eyes down towards a massive sleek Thunder Bird. Angular, alien, completely Two-Leg in its eerie perfection. Its nose and wings crumpled, eyes shattered open to reveal the rotting corpse of some deformed Two-Leg. Its eyes buglike, with a long snaking nose. She felt sick, the same feeling that Onyxstar gives her. It was suffocating, she knew he was here. She screamed that he reveal himself.

Onyxstar steps out behind her, face made of mud and shadow, gleaming eyes visible. All she could really make out, was the gleaming fangs poking from exposed jaw bone. She demanded he stopped, explained what was happening. To stop this now! He laughs... And LAUGHS! AND LAUGHS!

────────── · · · · ✦

Crimsonstar wakes, groggy, confused. She was laying in... A dusty ditch..? Stepping out she finds the longest cat scratch message of her life. "US, CHAOS, ME GO FERN CLAN, YOU GO, BOULDER CLAN, TWO LEGS, DANGER." she stared for awhile, bitter that Dreadcrag would tell her what to do. She's the damn leader! She makes these calls! Whatever, she decides what she wants to do!

☆・*。

・゜+.

　°。+ *´

Moonshadow and Briareyes flota suspended in deep dark water. A massive panel filled with light flickers before them, the silhouette of something massive Two-Leg made, creaking and groaning. Its noises like a wounded animal, sinking deeper and deeper into the abyss. They see a cat ahead of them, caught only occasionally by the light. Blood seeps slowly from their head, body limp and at the mercy of the cold water.

────────── · · · · ✦

Briareyes wakes up, glancing around to see Patchpaw, and his frail body leaning over her. She glances around, seeing Moonshadow stir awake... The Two-Legs didn't take them? Discomfort pinched at her neck, an unusual heavy feeling. With a panic she saw it on Moonshadow, a collar with a strange bulky box attached to it. She rolled and struggled clawing and kicking with her back legs to no avail. She rushed to Moonshadow, biting down on his collar to rip him free. Her gums were cut against the hard leathery surface, she couldn't free him either.

Radio Collar by Morningstar.

Dreadcrag approaches them, watching the struggle inquisitively. He examines the collars for a buckle, but it was leather all around. He informs his group that Crimsonstar is safe, but he doesn't know where Snowystorm is. All that's left is an ominous bloody stain, an explosion of viscera where her foot once stood. Despite the grim view, they figured she was still alive thanks to her trail of blood. At least, hopefully it didn't lead to a corpse.

Briareyes looks to Patchpaw in surprise. He had moved to watch over them, despite his injuries. They decided to go to The Barn, guessing Snowsytorm would be there. Patchpaw didn't want to be a burden, he knew where The Barn was, but he would slow them down... Briareyes says they won't leave him, and carries him on her back.

The group heads towards The Barn....

To be Continued ────────── · · · · ✦

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Is It Really That Bad?

Dreamworks has such a stellar reputation these days thanks to things like the reappraisal of Megamind as a subversive superhero masterpiece ahead of its time and The Last Wish being one of the single most epic animated films ever made, but there was a time where the studio got very little respect. You see, the studio found solid footing a lot quicker than you’d think, with the first two Shrek movies becoming smash (mouth) hits and The Prince of Egypt being an animated Biblical epic for the ages. Sure, Sinbad is the fourth biggest confirmed loss in box office history, losing Dreamworks $125 million, but they could definitely rebound with some of that Shrek money, right? Maybe, but when you bomb that hard, you’re probably in need of a little bit more cash. Clearly the best way to go about getting that is to recapture that Shrek magic with a star-studded snarky comedy full of pop culture references! What could possibly go wrong?

Well, you’ve got the lowest rated Dreamworks Animation film on Rotten Tomatoes, uncanny valley CGI that was derided even back at the time, a star-studded cast that seems overly excessive even by animated studio standards of the time, a nonsensical combination of animated fish and gangster movie tropes, accusations of racism towards Jamaicans due to the two jellyfish characters, competition from The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie and Finding Nemo, and even one of the own stars looking back on voice acting in the film as bad. That’s what could go wrong.

Still, some people look back on this movie fondly. You go to places on the internet where this movie is talked about and you’re bound to find some people saying how this movie was their childhood, and how it’s a riot, and how Will Smith is great… There has to be something to this, right? Shark Tale must have something to it if people still sing its praises, right? Is it… really that bad?

I mean, take a look at Oscar and you tell me.

Alright, alright, I’ll actually give it a fair shake. Here goes.

THE GOOD

Look, when you have this much talent in a film, you’re bound to accidentally stumble onto a few good things.

Easily the best thing in the movie is Martin Scorsese as Sykes, Oscar’s boss and the fish who most has to put up with Oscar’s boneheaded antics. The acclaimed director really shows off his funny side with this one, and the fact he has to deal with the problems of an obnoxious Will Smith fish make him surprisingly sympathetic. He’s genuinely a lot of fun, and the movie gives him plenty of screentime so you don’t have to worry about him being underutilized, and he manages to make any scene he shares with Oscar more tolerable.

Then we have the sharks. Specifically we have Robert de Niro playing the mob boss Don Lino; despite this being the most basic de Niro role you could possibly give the guy, he still manages to make it entertaining. In a broad sense, the entire shark mob gets a fair share of solid jokes, which is compounded by the bumbling octopus lackey Luca, who gets a few chuckles with his comic relief antics. Overall, our antagonists are pretty solid… and more enjoyable than our hero.

Then we have Lenny. I think Jack Black’s vegan shark is a bit of a divisive figure, but rewatching the movie, I honestly liked him and his storyline. For a movie from the early 2000s (and a comedy at that), it surprisingly tackles the topic of homosexuality in a tasteful manner. Yes, it is blatantly obvious and heavy-handed, and it’s not executed in a way that the film can make better use of it, but I think it’s a pretty bold and resonant message. If only the film had focused on Lenny and had it be his story instead of letting Will Smith’s stupid “Shark slayer” plot steal all the screentime; the movie is literally called Shark Tale, why is this not the story of the gay shark?! Why are we spending so much time with some whiny fish who lies, cheats, and acts like a dickhead to everyone around him?

Oh yeah and there’s a shark voiced by Peter “Columbo” Falk. That kinda rules.

THE BAD

Hey, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I do not fucking like Oscar.

Oscar is easily one of the worst protagonists ever conceived. He’s selfish, self-centered, stupid, egotistical, oblivious, obnoxious… It’s honestly mind-boggling that they cast one of the most charming and charismatic actors of all time and had him play a character antithetical to everything that he is as a performer. The entire movie is founded on him lying and taking credit for something he didn’t do, scamming multiple corporations out of brand deals in the process, gambles away his best friend’s precious heirloom and loses all the money, rarely takes responsibility for his actions… Honestly, this whole segment could just be listing all of Oscar’s negative traits and actions. And all of this could be forgivable if he was funny, but he’s not! He is utterly cringeworthy every time he attempts humor, and don’t even get me started on the romance.

Actually, no, let’s get started on the romance! Oscar and Angie’s relationship is fucking awful and toxic. This is the original Reylo right here, an unpleasant romance between characters with zero chemistry that is just overwhelmingly miserable and unhealthy. Angie refuses to communicate her feelings to Oscar and gets mad and jealous when he remains oblivious, and Oscar s just pretty callous and oblivious to Angie. There is no way any relationship with these two would actually last.

And then there’s Lola, the Angelina Jolie fish. Now, I ain’t saying she’s a gold digger… But she ain’t messing with no broke fish. Her relationship with Oscar is so blatantly telegraphed from the start as being manipulative and superficial, but he goes for it anyway. And while that is basically shoved in your face from the word go, you know what isn’t? The fact she’s able to pull some strings and work with the mob to kidnap Angie! How the fuck did she get in league with the sharks? Why did this not come up before? Why is this movie trying to frame this fish as a sexy femme fatale?

And there’s another thing: The animation in this film is abysmal, even for the time. The Shrek movies have aged more gracefully than this, and have you seen how Puss looked in Shrek 2 lately? This movie was bad even back then, with all of these fish designed to resemble their actors. Funnily enough, the more tolerable characters like Sykes and Lenny are a lot easier on the eyes (relatively speaking at least), while the worst characters are just unbelievably ugly. Angie, Lola, the jellyfish, and of course our old pal Oscar. It’s just really weird and awkward.

And maybe all of this would be easier to deal with if the film wasn’t so relentlessly unfunny and generic. When you get down to it, this is the most by-the-numbers mob movie and “liar revealed” story you will ever see. And while it’s trying to be funny, it’s generally failing miserably. Almost every joke is either a reference or an incredibly lame pun; there’s even a point where, while hamming it up, Oscar just rapid-fire spouts off movie quotes. And on top of everything else, the characters being fish really adds so little to anything that changing everyone to humans would improve things exponentially. Like it still wouldn’t be great, but we wouldn’t have to look at the aquatic version of Cats.

THE UGLY

Okay, I decided to save this for last. Ernie and Bernie, the two jellyfish, are widely viewed as Jamaican stereotypes due to their designs, voices, and singing of a Bob Marley song. They are probably the least-liked characters in the movie, and are seen by some as racist stereotypes.

The way I see it, while I don’t particularly like them, it’s not an Apu situation we have going on here, these aren’t two white guys putting on offensive accents. This is full-blooded Jamaican Ziggy Marley (the literal son of Bob Marley) and part-Jamaican Doug E. Doug playing stereotypical characters. Are they instantly not bad or offensive just because the actors match the ethnicity the jellyfish are stereotyping? No, of course not! But I do think a little context and nuance is needed here. They’re more annoying and stereotypical than outright offensive, but if you see them as offensive I can’t say I blame you. I just don’t think Marley and Doug were intentionally trying to offend.

IS IT REALLY THAT BAD?

Look, if you were hoping I’d be the shining beacon in a sea of mockery, here to tell you Shark Tale is an unsung Dreamworks masterpiece, I’m about to disappoint you. This movie is bad. Like, really, genuinely bad. You have to be seriously blinded by nostalgia to think this movie is good. It is basically “How Not To Make An Animated Film 101,” committing every single crime that made 2000s animation awful, from the bloated celebrity cast to the excessive pop culture references to the poor world building to the dance party ending.

That being said, this is an utterly fascinating bad movie. This is a film that’s fun to talk about, fun to mock, and like I mentioned above there’s still some genuinely good elements that keep this from being truly painful. This film is many things, but boring is not one of them. When it comes to “So bad it’s good” animation, this film is top tier, though your enjoyment of it will definitely hinge on how well you can stomach the terrible animation. That solid 6 is a little bit generous if I’m being honest, but at the same time, as far as bad movies go this one is an enjoyable one. I mean, what’s the Disney equivalent to this, a pop culture poisoned shitty, generic animated movie? Chicken Little. Shark Tale is a million times better than Chicken Little, so if it has one thing going for it, it’s that.

[essayofthoughts]

4, 9, and/or 36 for the writer asks 💖

4. What’s a word that makes you go absolutely feral?

Susurrus or susurration. I love how it sounds, I love how it feels to say, and I love how both suit the meaning!

9. Do you believe in ghosts? This isn’t about writing I just wanna know

Kinda? It's complicated. I don't believe in spirits that linger, really - I think the energy that makes up what you could, possibly, term a soul, dissipates when we die - the animating spirit, the energy that keeps us going... I don't think that sticks around. I don't think there's ghosts in the sense of a trapped soul. But I do believe in kind of... an impression? An echo? The sense of those who came before? I've stood within Stonehenge and caves with prehistoric art and in the ruins of castles destroyed and within the walls of those still standing and some have just... a character. A sense of something. Stonehenge and Avebury, when you stand by those stones... you can feel the weight of ages. Maybe it is just psychosomatic, maybe it's nothing at all - but I do feel something sometimes, and it makes me more inclined to believe in something, even if I don't necessarily believe in something specific, you know?

36. They say to Write What You Know. Setting aside for a moment the fact that this is terrible advice...what do you Know?

I mean for one, I don't think it's terrible advice. I think a lot of people take it too narrowly - to write only about exactly their own experiences - but in my experience, you can write what you know without it being a bad thing. I mean... how far our writing can develop kind of inherently relies on what we know - what our life experiences are. Can you write grief accurately if you have not, at some point, experienced some form of loss?

The trick, in my opinion, is take your knowledge and your experiences and find ways to contextualise them. Taking that example of grief, even if you've not lost a loved one to death - have you just lost a friend? Drifted apart and felt the pain and loss of that friendship, the way it aches steadily and sometimes suddenly? Have you lost something important or precious to you? It's not the same thing, but finding that point of kinship can help to extrapolate further. And in flipside: you may not have experienced abuse, but you may have been peer pressured into not making a fuss about something which upset you - they're not 100% the same thing, but there is an emotional throughline, a point of connection that can allow one enough understanding to empathise with the situation and at least make an attempt at accurately portraying it.

You don't need to have 100% experienced the thing you write, but when you write about it, you'll most likely be best at the parts of it you understand and have experience of yourself.

This is all to lead to - I know emotional manipulation and the resultant trauma. I know depression and I know the particular grief of someone you think you know actually being something else. I know violation. And I have written it! Never precisely accurate to my own experiences, but by drawing on my own experiences. (I am very honoured that some commenters seem to have also found it resonant with their experiences - in my opinion, that more than anything shows a job well done.)

I also know archaeology, so anyone wondering about the details Keyleth and Percy discussed about the Shadebarrow in A Whisper on My Shoulder, now you know. I get emotional about archaeology in a way few things can and I like finding excuses to write about little things I learned when studying it.