#and right after his narration and talk abt healing

[andrwgarfields]

its the way yuzuru reclaimed his Beijing 2022 (hole in the ice) performance, complete with the voiceover, the 6 minute warmup, his pooh and juice accompanying him…talk about a new level of healing ❤️‍🩹

[little-cereal-draws]

Details I noticed in Nimona pt 2

In the opening narration, when we first see Gloreth in the scrolls there are words behind her that read "Salva nos" which translates to "save us." When she stabs the monster there are words that read "mori" which translates to "Death."

One of the newspapers on Ballister's innocence wall reads "Black Heart Out There"

When Nimona bangs on the tower door you can see her shadow under the door

The first time we see the circular saw in the tower it's off. Then it turns on just so Nimona can lean on it. Then it's off again

Nimona wears a black pair of glasses when she asks Ballister about the job while reading the newspaper. She drops them on the table but wears them again as an otter after the second fight at the Institute

When Ballister is screaming "Murder him, murder her, murder everyone!" Nimona sees Ambrosius first. She looks between Bal and him a few times before Bal notices

Back at their hideout, when Bal looks over the couch to see Nimona cooking, he looks around like 'uhhh...' a few times

The item Nimona classified as most deadly was a HUMONGOUS chainsaw. The chainsaw gets moved around the tower a bit but ends the movie on a top shelf in the alcove

In the top left of Nimona's updated murder wall, there's a drawing she did of a design for Ballister's arm. It's shooting fire and is labeled, "Literal firearm." Next to it is a self portrait she did

When Nimona suggests maybe there's nothing outside the wall before they go to the market, Ballister blinks and actually considers it for a second before deciding that's wrong

Nimona's right (our left) fang is bigger than the other

The sign in the subway projecting the train arrival times said that the C to Marketplace arrived in one minute, the Q to Castle Cross arrives in six minutes, and the 6 to Victory Ave. arrived in ten minutes

When Ballister tries to convince Nimona it's "easier to be a girl" during their subway ride, there's a poster behind him that says, "Put Your Faith in the Institue." I love how unsubtle they were with their subtext in this movie lol

When they go up into the subway air vents to escape Ambroisus, Nimona beats her chest once in gorilla form

The highlights in the squire's eyes are pentagons. I know ppl have done metas abt what the eye highlights mean but idk how pentagons fit into there

While trying to stuff the squire's unconscious body into their trunk, Ballister drops him. On his head

The bandage that Bal uses to heal Nimona's knee is the bottom of his cape, we see him tear it off while she's talking. Also the bandage has increasing amounts of blood on it as he wraps it. It's still not very much but it does increase the longer it's on there

After coming back to the tower from the second fight at the Institute, Nimona almost hits Bal in the face with the door but he catches it at the last second

On top of the wooden case where the Director was hiding Ballister's real sword is a huge old book. It's in a glass case that she rests her hands on while talking to "Ambrosius." Again, I love how obvious they were being with this movie; she's hiding the weapon that she used to kill, frame, and exclude people to preserve oppressive tradition under smth that looks exactly like a medieval Bible. They were not subtle lol

When "Ambrosius" dies, there's blood on his armor and the sword. Not very much but you can see it

One of the citizens watching the news about the Director's confession is an old lady. She's got a couch, a tv stand, and two framed pictures of chickens on her wall. That's it; the rest of the room, like behind the TV (which is in the middle of the room for some reason??), is completely empty. I just thought her chicken pictures were funny lol

When Bal and Ambrosius are arguing in the Antlered Serpent, Bal says, "You know what? You are so full of-" And then he gets cut off by the waiter, so we'll never get to hear him finish that sentence

Also in that scene, there's a portrait of the Queen behind Ambrosius but nothing behind Ballister. Again, they're using the environment/background to show where characters' loyalties lie

Nimona's got a little pink and white circle on the bottom of her boots. You can see it when she wakes up on the couch and when she jumps off the balcony in the Director's office. I can't get a good image of it but I'm guessing it's some kind of logo

In the flashback with Gloreth, Nimona is pretty shy and reserved until she can use her shapeshifting. Then she's chatty, she's fully engaged in the games, and she just looks so much happier. She knew she could trust Gloreth and wasn't worried about hiding a key part of her identity. She shapeshifted and then she was free (ignore me crying)

When Nimona turns into the big shadow monster at the climax, the initial transformation destroys the well where she met Gloreth. I'm sure there's some symbolism in there but I'm leaving that for someone else to figure out lol

When Todd crashed his hoverscooter, he went all the way through the billboard. I thought he just hit it but no, he made a giant hole

When Ballister shows up to the city for the final sequence, the "A New Era of Heros" billboard is burning behind his right (our left) shoulder. Again there's probably symbolism in there but I'm leaving it to someone else

When Bal's sword hits the ground after he drops it off Gloreth's statue, it turns off. It's the first time in the movie where it hasn't been glowing. It really drove home that he's done with the Institute. He's not carrying it, it's not even on. He's helping Nimona

Ambrosius tries to carry an unconscious/severely injured person off the wall as Nimona's flying at it but he puts the person's full weight on his injured shoulder. Bc he's big brain like that

The scene where Bal and Ambrosius kiss is actually on top of the wall. Maybe that was obvious, but it took me forever to realize. They've turned it into a park and have made it accessible to the public. Also it looks over the entire Kingdom and it's HUGE! I've seen people worrying about how they fit all those people in the walls but it's actually ginormous

pt 1, pt 3, pt 4, pt 5

[papers4me]

Hi, I have always read your furuba reviews and I'm very curious about which are your favorite characters and why?

HI!

Thank you for reading my posts<3. I know I've been slow lately, but I'm not in a right emotional place right now, but I'll be back to posting soon. Actually talking abt furuba & story-telling here in tumblr is such a peaceful outlet that I'm thankful for.

While I love 97% of furuba characters, my faves kept changing while I watched the anime. I decided to have 5 top characters as faves & number one kept changing as the anime progressed.

Since I'm all abt story-telling, I think I need to separate the anime from the manga cuz no way in the anime that tohru would be on my top 5, heck not even top 10! I really don't like how her character was reduced to yuki's mommy-tohru, then angel-tohru, then villain-fixer tohru. The real individual tohru with her own personal story is just two eps long, so meh~. Also, while yuki is in my top 5 in the anime, I don't like how he's too perfect & prince in the anime while his own theme is the imperfect non-prince. Kyo's, too in my top 5 but I dont like how his own story is intentionally messed up by the anime with the stupid "I forgot" that contradicts the anime's own canon plot...

So, I'll tell you my top 5 fave character in the manga so fat with no particular order.

Tohru, while I'm yet to uncover her own plot in the manga, so far she has way more character exploration & depth!! She really feels like a different character from the anime! I'm shocked! The facial expressions, the occasional doubtful self-talk, even the "fake-smile"mask she puts is so expressive. She is treated as a character with a personal plot , regardless of being the protagonist. Her own plot is not reliant on being yuki's mommy, or the sohma's shrink, or a fixer. Her own plot line is abt grief & being lonely. It's the most common struggle that we all share regardless of our gender, race, financial status. Death is the ultimate fact & we'll face loosing a loved one & feeling lonely is not related to social skills nor being loved. I'll forever hate the anime for passing on such unique universal theme in favor of emphasizing the most popular shonen-themed coming of age story ( a boy becoming a man) "yuki" or the over-exaggerated drama in "kyo's". Like I dont want them to pass any of the 3 characters plotlines, but the anime made a choice & forever cemented anime tohru as the most "fixer"character in anime history like 98765678 of other female protagonists.

Yuki has way more character & realness in the manga. He doesnt come off as narrator-y as he does in the anime simply cuz the anime only chose the parts where yuki narrates as a voice-over & told us how to feel & dropped all the parts where he's interacting & actually talking to other characters not just the audience. His own personal story is abt "observing, learning & having the guts to make a move & embracing his own imperfection". I love this! Anime yuki is not imperfect. no. he's the icon of perfect prince, he even initiates a set of fanclub girls into the world that they float! He's so perfect, he "heals" a girl simply by talking to her once. That's all it takes him to fall in love & find his soulmate. While in the manga, I'm starting to see yuki display signs of "kind jerk" in the making, that's refreshing!

I admit that I didn't include kyo into my top 5 until se02. Don't get me wrong, he's so endearing since ep1, but didnt seem to be complex nor refreshing as the others. but se02, ep 9 was the first glimpse into his own character depth & I got hooked! I'm so in love with the theme of "repeated mistakes & guilt". it's such a mature theme & speaks to a much wider audience. The more we repeat the same mistakes, the more we self-sabotage our lives. Also, I love the love isn't a magic healing element in his story. He's the most loved character by tohru, yet her love only hurt him more due to his guilt. Moreover, the romantic element itself wasnt a cliche "love at 1st sight, nor lovers since childhood, nor girl fixes a guy, nor guy protects the girl from danger". Not at all. It was "love blooming subtly, little by little by mundane daily life". I cant express how much I applaud Takaya-san for such complex writing. In the anime, kyo only comes when it's his ep, other than that, he's absent or characterless. I hated that. So far in the manga, kyo has an existence even in other plotlines & has different aspects of his character. Also, I'm shocked at how much inner dialogue he has! like no too much that it involves other character nor too little that you dont understand him. It's just the right amount.

Momiji. He's the most balanced character. He isnt fixed by tohru, but isnt perfectly fine either. He's the definition of the right amount of kindness. He doesn sell himself to make other happy like tohru or kureno, nor puts himself in danger to save others like haru. He does help others but also helps himself. He helped his mom forget him cuz honestly that wasnt even his choice. it's the dad's. He participated willingly tho in avoiding her, but he didnt dwell in self pity & locked himself emotionally. He let go of loving tohru & encouraged kyo, but while he genuinely loved kyo, he didnt just back off cuz he's kind & a sacrificial angel. He stood like a man & challenged kyo for tohru's heart, but let go when he realized the choice is tohru's. not them. They can love her aromatically, but she's the one who decides who to be with. I love the theme of "not competing for love". it's not a competition really. never was. Still, as love sick & heart-broken as he was, momiji didnt dwell in self-pity & after allowing himself to heal, he bounced back & smiled. Momiji is no foolish traveler.

The spot is reserved to a certain character that I want the manga to prove their worth. I dont want them to be as shallow as the anime made them to be. I want to see depth. I dont know if the manga writes them better, but once I finish the manga, I'll know.

I wanted to add shigure but no. Despite all the complexity & the unique roles he has & despite how much I love characters with big giant flaws & ugly characteristics, shigre fell from my top 5 long ago. Look, this seems petty but I can't get over the fact that he slept with akito's mom. ewwwww. It makes me wanna puke! so disgusting. yuck yuck yuck! I dont mind that he "cheated"or wanted to "hurt akito by sleeping with ANOTHER woman". As a matter of fact, such acts create drama, ugly feelings & emotional struggle. I love such things in fiction. but he did it with the mother. He actually laid with both mom & daughter in his life. ewwwwww! This level of eww is so revolting to me! Some ppl are disgusted by bugs & worms that they want to puke, me.. when ppl sleep with both parent/off spring, or both siblings. Yuck! & it's even more yuck that it didnt stop their "love" from being real/ happy/ perfect/ passionate! & that it worked in making akito "want him more & be a "woman" for him"... ew!

lol, so yeah~here's my super long answer to ur super short qs. but I dont be "papers"if I didnt write till my fingers hurt, now would I? XD. I enjoyed ur question so much! thanks<3.

Anon, Don't get offended ny my shigure-rant! XD. its petty, I know. if u read this, tell me who's ur fave?

[nicollekidman]

Thoughts on dark*lina/al*rkling as a ship? (censored as to not invite unwanted drama) I know it’s the most controversial pairing in that fandom and I always like your spn takes so I’d like to know what you think abt them if you’re willing to share

i think they’re too complicated and interesting to think about just as a “ship” and i think it’s a really good example of introducing dynamics that have more going on than the author is willing or able to really dig into. also i wrote this on my phone so it turned into a very long jumble of half formed thoughts, any of which i could expand on in more articulate detail if prodded but

do i think the alina on the page in the trilogy as we have her should’ve ended up romantically with the darkling? definitely not! but do i think leigh introduced a relationship which is absolutely scorching and fascinating in its Implications if not it’s execution? yes!

and if we’re talking canon trilogy, the way leigh has alina’s story end shows me she had no interest in really doing anything more with alina than having her be the chosen one (tm) and punishing her for her aspirations, so i don’t mind going in completely different directions than what she does. but even so…. having your protagonist be obsessed with the villain and sexually/spiritually attracted to him and the possibilities he represents is SUCH an interesting angle to take, especially when you factor in their singularity in both power and life span, but their total imbalance in knowledge. alina as a character is power-hungry, brash, longing for stability (to hand off control), and so eager for… everything. she’s barely getting started in life and she’s so used to living in a bubble where she doesn’t have to think about what she wants bc she’s just a nameless orphan, she’s just a mapmaker…. and suddenly she’s calling down the sun and she’s a saint and she’s a savior and it’s a RUSH and there he is. the personification of Death and everything she’s meant to hate except he’s looking at her and he’s seeing her and he’s saying. death will not come for you (us) but we will greet it (each other) as a lover, and that’s intoxicating. but they have roles to play….. i think alina wishing in canon to kill her self while murdering him is the truest expression of what was going on with them the whole time, namely that she wanted to be with him and she was deeply deeply ashamed of that want and the selfishness of it, so it couldn’t exist (bc she is the Good Heroic Protagonist of a YA series). leigh making alina live past that encounter as a powerless isolated no one is a CRIME but the fact remains that alina’s last words as a narrator in her books is his name. so. miss bardugo id like to talk.

the darkling’s side in all this is really fun bc i think show aleksander and book aleksander are very different in their initial reactions to alina, but ultimately this is a monster who was once a man who is after all still a man, and eternity is a long time to be striving towards a Singular goal on your own. it’s not so much that i think alina should Fix Him but it’s. if you’ve cast away your humanity and embraced the label of Villain for longer than you were a man, what does it mean to finally find someone who reflects you back to yourself. like… he’s an immortal (nearly) amplifier who’s spent hundreds of years with tunnel vision, forgetting the individual in the mad rush to protect the collective. he’s got complete control over DARKNESS and has no one his equal. he wants the power she can bring him but he wants to draw the power out of her as well, for both their benefits. she could make him a better man… and that’s both a threat and a prayer. together they could change the world and then live in the world they created forever…. but he also knows she’s perhaps his only weakness, and it’s so much easier to play the villain than it would be to admit this role you’ve played for hundreds of years is not who you are or rather, who you want to be. and like. he is a murderer who’s literally Fated to be connected to a saint for the rest of their lives and if that’s not good narrative shit idk what is.

in my adult trilogy in my head, we get full hero corruption arc, because dark alina is my favorite thing to daydream about. and i could go on and on about THAT but i just realized it’s midnight and i’ve written Paragraphs so TLDR i think they should’ve both died in the book, bc on a “ship” level they shouldn’t be together in the books as they are, but like calls to like, there’s no darkness without light, the one thing more powerful than him or her is the two of them together, and they were BONDED to each other. for the duration of their eternal lives! leigh was too cowardly to see their storyline to it’s conclusion bc she couldn’t even let alina live as she’d written her, but they are 100% the most compelling dynamic in the trilogy and if left to their own devices would’ve corrupted and healed each other in equal measure. i kind of view them as inevitable like….. it’s the moon and the sun of it all. they would’ve been in orbit around each other forever and eventually the time would’ve been right for them to come together.

[limit-list]

its me again. astrogaang vlog au where aang carries around a camera and narrated everything the they do. sometimes its educational shit like telling people abt their research n stuff and other times its prank wars with sokka

i’ve just been staring at this in my ask box for a while like 👁👄👁 cause you’re SO FUCKIN RIGHT

this makes me think of the martian xnxkxlk in the BEST WAY but that’s not relevant so here have some idea vomiting

okay look brief set up, astrogaang is gaang in space for any reason, this one imma say they’re just on some random space mission cause yanno, space

aang runs most of the media stuff for the crew just cause people love him so much and he’s just genuinely good at it

of course, this doesn’t mean he doesn’t get other people in on it, aang is always bringing in sokka for pranks, suki for advice for his watchers, katara to help him explain something, zuko to have pranks pulled on him, or toph to respond to trolls

they do a mini series of “a day in the life”s of everyone in the crew and they’re adorable

it starts with toph, aang films her all day

to the viewer it looks like she doesn’t know she’s being filmed, but she definitely does

there are some good clips like toph metal bending a dent from an asteroid she missed, tending to her plants in the botany lab, actual science shit

there are also amazing clips like toph making sokka slip every two steps because the metal keeps moving out from under him

it’s an instant success, so they schedule days in the life for the rest of them

for katara’s, it’s a mix of things she filmed and things aang filmed

all of katara’s clips are like her explaining what she’s doing, both in science lingo and in layman’s terms. really cool demonstration of water bending in space, at one point she uses water balloons to demonstrate

aang gets some good shots of the glee in her face as she pelts zuko with water balloon after water balloon. he also gets actual good shots of her healing zuko after he hits his head on a sharp edge, katara looking focused and the water gliding around his head quickly

this is when people start theorizing that aang has a crush on katara, because there’s a bunch of filler scenes that are just katara laughing at silly shit

anyway, next they do zuko’s day in the life

zuko is just,,, so awkward on camera

like when he’s talking about his work it’s easy for him, he just plays with chemicals and shit, but he never looks at the camera and whenever he finally gets back to acting like normal, he looks at the camera and blushes again

HOWEVER once he has a partner on screen he’s an absolute legend, born for the screen

he and suki’s banter is incredible, they’re bickering over current events that they’ve missed and trends back home that they don’t understand

people absolutely adore him and they think he’s the cutest thing ever, fully forgetting that zuko is more than what they see on the screen and that he’s borderline genius just like everyone else on the team, treating him like a sweet awkward child

sound familiar? hm, wonder why

ANYWAY

i was gonna write the rest of them but this has been staring at me in my drafts for so long that imma just post this as is and come back to it

tldr: yes ❤️✨😌

[fthnfrouz]

So I just had a talk with my beautiful girlie. We talked abt being moderate in life. And we just realized that somehow we overworked ourselves. We push ourselves too much haha! We were too stressed abt our internet connections and we actually almost losing it. Its stressful that we can’t commit to online live class and it’r rly upsetting. We pay our guilt by overworking each other at night xD Thats why wer both burnt out xD

After pondering abt overworking, we then talked abt being moderate in every aspects of our life. She’s in the phase of healing from past. It hurts her to love ppl so much, to provide so much for her friends who won’t even do much for her. It still upsets me how that happen to such a decent soul like her. So this journey of her healing is abt her setting boundaries. Knowing when to say no. And bcs being moderate was our topic, we just discussed abt how does being moderate rly means in life.

I said from my pov, it actually begins from your faith to Allah and Rasul. I explained, You love Allah so much, but have you ever in ur life questioned where’s exactly is our Lord. Where’s his arasy? or the story of israk mikraj? Like how is that possible right? But as a muslim we believe and have faith in that narration. Why? Bcs that’s our imaan, our faith to Allah. So you don’t have to know everything, obsessed from physique to the logic of it. You have the faith bcs ur worshipping Allah.

So i further extend that’s how you love life. You be moderate in everything as in you are fair or ‘adil. Thats how you be moderate in life. Being moderate means you do things accordingly not excessively. Everything excessive is unhealthy. And as i talked abt this to her, I realized, maybe I gave too much of my real self to that student traveller. Maybe im trying too hard to be genuine and it appears fake. And i was in a moment of realization too xD

So from now on, i’m just gonna put myself into situations, accordingly. My feelings? Now that I talked to Allah and had this discussion with my friend, it is now neutralized. It’s good actually! Easier for me to accept things in the future.

I used to have this moderate mindset yknow. But I think I just changed bcs I simply stray away. Like right now, I have a lot of ‘family members’ that I place in my heart and I will always treasure them. They were there in one of my dark times. But, I will also try to love them accordingly and love Allah and Rasul more. And i will pray that they will finally find the path to Allah. I always pray for their hidayah. Idk it just still haunts me that i couldn’t guide my father figure, my lovable uncle. Rmb our tailor uncle? Yea he was my happy pill, i forgot abt my dad thanks to him

So yea, imma start being moderate. Again. xD This Ramadan really made me learn a lot of things. Learn and relearning things? Its been fun!

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket, SE03, Ep3

This ep is exactly like se02, ep 24, meaning it was divided clearly into two parts. While the graduation theme unties the two parts, you can point things out exactly like ep,24:

1st part : Machi’s story= the important part.

2nd part: scattered parts here & there that concern yuki, ep, 24 his interactions with akito, here his interactions with Motoko).

plus, an ep cliff hanger: (e, 24 the dvd given to kureno, here, Isuzu’s mysterious fate).

it is exactly the same even a small kyo/tohru moment!. School graduation instead of the zodiac’s new year gathering. 

Really awkward pacing, but that’s furuba, we celebrate when they DO connect dots for once! lets talk abt the REAL ep: MACHI.

-Machi’s awkward presence:  

Although I love Machi, I’ve voiced my concerns abt her character in Furuba:

It seemed that Machi was solely created to be a step in yuki’s success journey more than a character on her own right. After getting motherly love (tohru) leaving the nest, Yuki needed friendship (kakeru), then as an independent man, he needs romantic love: (Machi). This is all fine initially but I was yearning for more individuality for Machi as a character. All furuba characters were given space to be unique including minor characters like Motoko who narrated her own story each time she’s on screen & we lived it with her within two seasons & a number of eps.

 However, Machi’s background was introduced thro her brother’s exposition in se02 & that moment was a yuki/ kakeru bonding moment.

Thro kakeru’s exposition  we learned how similar yuki & machi are (the parental neglect, high expectations, cold sibling relationship, Big brother saves himself by himself, big brother pushing for redemption & the younger sibling’s still trapped silently ). While that makes for romantic appeal between the two which makes the writer’s job easier, it steals from Machi individuality.

Then her part in ep, 24 was shown & I was given hope for Machi’s individuality as her own inner voice spoke volumes abt her as a person away from yuki (romantic interest) or Kakeru (big brother). Having a lot of screen time, while can make a character more believable to the audience, is never a factor in character’s depth nor individual worth. Heck! kyo (part of the main trio & the main character’s love interest) has only ONE ep in se02 to explore his issues & by far it is my fave ep in se02 as it established kyo’s trauma, psyche, mental issues & emotional baggage better than I could ever imagine! You can DO WONDERS with little time if you knew what to do. That’s what happened with Machi this ep (half ep).

-Machi’s shines! (trauma & romance):

I was so relieved to learn that altho both Machi & yuki despised perfection as it suffocated them, the writer (thankfully) went abt a different approach with Machi. Unlike Yuki who went silent cuz he felt his voice didn’t matter as he was used as a tool, Machi went silent cuz she was was NOT needed, & not only discarded but painted as WRONG. If you admit that raising me this way is wrong, then what does this make me? What should I do with myself? I’m wrong! boring, a failure, & a presumed killer!! all while I was absolutely doing my best! all while I was having good intentions! It is devastating but It makes Machi real. A character on her own right with her own trauma, struggle, pain & outlook on life. Although, the writer made the whole yuki/Machi meeting orchestrated by Kakeru to quickly make the two siblings one step closer, it worked cuz kakeru chose to not interfere after setting the scene. He played a subtle mach maker & tried to find happiness for his sister silently. Kakeruy is yuki’s best buddy & Machi becoming the girlfriend, the trio will have to hang out more which will slowly but surely warm Machi towards Kakeru. While the flat visit is the part where Machi open the lid to Yuki with a spark of romance at the end, the chalk scene is the romantic part! Not only did Yuki noticed her panic & saved her by breaking a piece of chalk, she secretly remembered his promise! “ lets make footprints on the snow”. The snow that was another source of anxiety attack, is now sth she looks forward to & prays for! Truly romantic!!! Well-done writer.

Side Notes:

I know furuba is shoujo & it’s abt love, but C’mon! where did Nao/ Motoko come from??!! XDD Who is left without love interest? Kyo’s rejected fangirl loved by one of kyo’s buddies? The maids in love with Akito? Momiji? Who does Kimi love besides money? XD

Yuki once observed that kyo makes tohru happy with small things, Today he did the same! A broken piece of chalk.

Yuki/ Machi romantic scenes contrast Yuki/ tohru forced romantic scene at the earlier seasons. There is no lame cringy lines like “ I’ll kidnap you & go to a vacation” or kissing a ribbon. There is NO acting or pretentious lines. Here a piece of chalk did the trick, an understanding of her tears & a head pat, a promise to walk on snow together! Congratulations Yuki, You made it into romantic boyfriends category! XD. also, good writing!

The Bra scene is the real comedy in the ep.

Arisa’s “ kyon, we won’t forgive you if you hurt tohru” is gold cuz kyo WILL. When it’s time to confess he knew kyoko & she HATES him & doesn’t forgive him, tohru would be hurt! Even if she wasn’t in love with kyo!!! Knowing your beloved’s last words were hateful is painful!! Add to this that tohru loves kyo & would be struggling between forgiving him or not!! Add to this that kyo might NOT want to be forgiven!!

“ I won’t forgive you”. kyo’s haunting reminder that he’s unforgivable is now shared by kyoko, yuki, Hana & Arisa!! 

look, you might argue that furuba’s romantic writing might be a bit awkward with all sorts of romantic couples, age gaps, the need for everybody to be in love one way or the other & so on, but the traumatic behavioral writing is the best!!!!! I was never disappointed with how Takaya write abused traumatized children’s behavior. One of my fave scenes is yuki/ kyo in the stairs in se02 where kyo lashed out on yuki & yuki was over it. While that scene was rightfully celebrated for yuki’s triumphant attitude as he got over his trauma, I love it for the realistic trauma filled attitude of kyo, all charged with kyoko’s flashback! He’s in deep & he’s all by himself! Kyo will hurt tohru cuz he loves her just like how kazuma hurt him by forcefully taking his bracelet cuz he loves him. Kyo will be thinking it is for the best, who would want to be with someone that kyoko of all ppl hates!

 I’ll tolerate all the weird love couples in furuba, but the moment trauma is written weakly I’ll drop the show. There is NO way, kyo will confess kyoko’s lines then go “sorry abt that tohru, we’re good?” 

Back to Machi, I really hope that her trauma isn’t merely wrapped up cuz yuki loved her. Furuba was never abt love heals, it is abt love helps. We might not see more of her trauma for reasons of space, or not related to the current plot lines, but I really hope we hear her talk abt herself with yuki even few lines. Although, I feel that the focus now will be on setting her for yuki’s next stage in character development: honesty in the love confession. He’ll tell her abt the curse as the trailer hinted at. That’s their first love life struggle. But if I were to take a guess, it will be dealt with quickly like her trauma. She loves yuki dearly & as long as he walks with her in snow (human or rat, lol), it’s all good. <3

Hior’s mom is love.

Kagura’s new style is love! she isn’t dressed overly cutely anymore, but had a more comfortably style & I love her hair! also her friendship with Isuzu! <3. I wish Isuzu would really know there are ppl worried abt her in her life. Haru isn’t the only one.

Akito put Isuzu in the cat room, didn’t she? The place she left is similar to the place young Kazum wandered to in se01, ep25. & those scissors....

I never thought that the mere sight of shigure’s face will disgust me. XD. I still find him so intriguing, but yeah need time to get over the fact that he slept with Ren & counted it even with Akito, then slept with Akito afterwards! EWWW! so disgusting & I’m here to see this drama escalate!

Yuki / Machi moment was interrupted! XD It’s not fun when it happened to you, yuki? XD.

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket SE02. Ep 14

This is a build up: to the teacher conference & catching up with the aftermath of the beach after hatori/mayu & student council break. Tohru has 5% of of this ep! & not the usual ‘moma tohru/sohma’s savior tohru/ happy tohru/ healing tohru”. NO!! It’s real person with real issues tohru!!! scared lonely teenage tohru!!! celebrating the crumbs thrown to me!!!!!!! XD.

(1) Haru!!! The lighter version of tohru’s kindness:

I was right!! haru was there for yuki!! He was 13/14 years old when he asked shigure to take yuki, putting himself in danger by sneaking few moments to sit with yuki whenever he can. As a kid, he’s done than all the adults. His support comes from genuine concern over yuki. Haru is a lighter & healthier version of tohru’s kindness. He supports yuki & can get in danger but he’s not neglecting himself. he faced his demons early on as a kid & got over his hate which was caused by the adult’s mockery of him. He learned to love/accept himself & found love with rin, he didn’t selflessly sacrifice anything despite her attempts to leave him. He showed selfless kindness towards yuki, kisa, & rin. He still can turn dark but this is part of him being imperfect. Moreover, haru didn’t hold on to yuki, imposing his guidance & his support. he stands in the near distance. I’ll support you but you need to go search for your path yourself. He also understands that yuki can’t do like him & stay around helping haru in his issues with rin cuz (a) romantic issues are mostly exclusive to the ppl involved & interference may cause harm, (b) yuki needs to focus on himself now & not escape into other ppl’s issues like tohru does. He needs to face his future & haru is there to tell him so. Again the writer is telling us yuki will do/choose right even in moments of doubt cuz ppl will be there to support him. This ep, it’s haru ushering him into focusing on his path & resisting the need to escape the pressure. we’ll see others step in for yuki until he can stand on his feet. 

(2) Tohru!!! The abandoned/lonely teenager:

Her only loving relative might soon leave, he’s old & sick. Her mom wasn’t sick nor old. Yet, she left. Tohru’s fear of abandonment intensifies. From the moment she got the phone call, her face screams “Don’t leave me”. teacher conference usually involves parents. It’s supposed to be her mom that’s attending with her. it’s her mom’s dream to get into high school & she would’ve proudly visit the teacher to talk abt tohru’s future. except this time tohru goes with a stranger..not even her grandfather. Shigure genuinely cares for tohru, despite the ulterior motive of seeing Mayu. but he’s still a stranger who doesn’t know her or her future plans. Shigure’ll be present physically with her but she’s all on her own. Kyo saw that when he entered the house. He saw her pain despite the cheerful smile. Guess whose fault that kyoko isn’t here now? kyo. Guess who’s guiltily went to his room & stood there in the dark? kyo. Guess who couldn’t face tohru the next day? kyo.

-”why do they both have to pass away, I want to ge see them”!! Tohru begs her grandfather to stay with her, him suddenly dozing off caused her anxiety attack, it has been building inside her since hiro’s words. “ i want to see him” kyoko said!!! & oh she ended up really going to him..“its okay” it isn’t. “always together” they aren’t. tohru flashback is clearer. Kyoko abandoned tohru somehow around her father’ funeral. For some reason the door is locked literally & metaphorically between tohru & the sense of safety & being wanted!!. It’s too much for her!!. she” do anything, say anything, just don’t TAKE mom away!” alas~ Her mask cracks. Her legs fail. she can’t stand. she falls. she breaks. she’s alone. kyo’s here with her. Present physically & emotionally. Tohru’s angel. Except he’s real. if she reaches out, he won’t disappear. He’s not TAKEN from her (not yet). Tohru smiles genuinely without putting her mask back on. kyo, unlike haru, can’t hug tohru becuz of the curse. He uses head pats instead. lovingly, kindly & tenderly patting her head. “it’s normal to be worried when a relative is ill”, “don’t push yourself” is that like kyo’s 5th advice to tohru now?. “do you plan to sit here forever” carries more than the literal meaning, along with him actually holding her arm & pulling her up! followed by teasing her to ease her back into normality. Now it’s really “okay” for tohru cuz someone who cares is really here with her. present by body & soul. kyo teasing her shifted her focus from painful past into a flirty chat & musings in Arisa’s expense. It’s similar to when tohru helped yuki with his first encounter with akito in school by suggesting playing to cast away the fears. except this time someone is doing this for tohru!!Her struggles are seen despite the mask. she’s not a lonely teenager, she is receiving an emotional well-needed help. however...this is but the tip of the iceberg. tohru hasn’t opened her lid yet. she should or she’ll break down soon..

-The faulty/over usage of the Voice-Over technique:

Usually this tool is used by writers to send messages they believe is hard to catch for readers/viewers or for foreshadowing. It’s done mostly when (a) a character is watching a scene unfold in front of them & they comment internally, or (b) they are narrating a scene/story. However, that’s not the case in this ep. (I’m not talking abt internal monologue, that’s a different case & is totally suitable when character talks abt themselves when the scene only show them & doesn’t switch into a different place entirely). This ep is weirdly stuffed with voice-overs by kagura, yuki, haru & shigure done over multiple scenes & it was poorly done (in my personal opinion) as it caused confusion in the episode’s flow, especially the kagura’s part. Manga/still pictures are different from anime/moving pictures, therefore manga writers feel the need to insert lines said by this or that over another scene to connect what the still image might fail to express. Moreover writers publish monthly & there might be periods of hiatus, so they need to remind readers of certain themes. Anime/shows are totally different medium. The images moves with expressive facials expressions, colors, characters voices, & music to convey a message. How can you have all that & cause confusion? or over saturate a single ep with one tool?

-when kagura's voice is over kyo’s image in school, it shows kyo looking at tohru sadly. i really was confused on why kyo is still sad abt kagura, I didn’t notice tohru walking alone at first, then kyo went home before changing his mind. I kept thinking he’s gone to kagura!! or that he’ll go to Akito cuz kagura’s words expressed guilt?? or he changed his mind & would confess to tohru cuz of kagura’s words of illogical love?? when he didn’t tell tohru where was he heading for the longest time I was confused that he’s hiding sth!! it wasn’t until I watched the ep twice & omitted kagura’s part that I got it!! Why didn’t the show let us hear kyo’s thoughts directly instead of kagura’s confusing voice over?? it’s not like he’ll tell us kyoko’s promise? he’ll express what we already know! that he’s struggling to either let go of tohru or be there for her... why is that hard to express to viewers using kyo? If kyo’s thoughts MUST be blocked, then why NOT use the most effect method for shows/ moving pictures which is Show-Not-Tell???. They’re trying to do that but felt the need to insert kagura’s thoughts over to help us understand??? shame how the result is total confusion & loss of impactful scene for tohru/kyo unless you watch it twice to analyze. It was in my 2nd watch with omitting kagura’s scene that I understood why kyo was off/sad & where was he headed. Very poorly done.

-Yuki’s/Shigure’s/haru’s voice-over didn’t cause confusion but was excessively done in a single ep, Moreover, it carries the feeling of the shows flaw: the need to guide viewers’ thoughts to the door step in certain scenes or leave them without anything in other scenes. Again I’m not talking abt the monologues, I’m talking abt the images of other characters they showed over the voice when others are in discussion. It felt too on the nose for me this time.

Side Notes:

There are some moments in this show, more than other shows, where I feel like I’m reading more than watching or hearing audio book over still images, which is shame since the story itself is superb & the anime has all the tools it needs to express all themes visually. It also adds to the flaw of “imbalanced expression” that this show suffers from sometimes.

 Rin & haru relationship..wow.. I’ll hold on talking abt them until I see more. Haru is a dear fave of mine. I’m sure Rin worth the wait.

Yuki’s Japanese VA is awesome! he’s one of my top 5 VAs in furuba. 

I’m in love with tohru’s crumbs. Feed me more, show! plz.