#and writes a full essay instead

[hootiee]

After re-watching the new Blue Exorcist anime episode (ep.4) I can't stop thinking about how this arc should have been adapted soo many years sooner. it came out 10 years ago. And THIS is the true quality writing this series is known for and what truly pushes fans into really getting into it. Yes, this series is a slow burn/in-for-the-long-haul and the waiting always pays off tremendously, but I still believe it should not have taken THIS long for it to be adapted into an anime.

And it just sucks. It sucks even more that even the biggest anime-only fan's sole interaction with this series was nothing more than the mere introductory premise and never got to the true plot of this series for over than a decade since the first season. I can't help but pity them, at least in the manga it took around 5(?) years for this arc to start, it should not have taken any longer than that after the kyoto saga adaptation imo.

This series has soo much to say with so many stories left unexplored in the anime and yet the wider anime community still calls it "mid" based off the shitty non-canon season 1 ending that unfortunately left everyone with false impressions of this series. It says A LOT how the majority of people who have read the manga agrees it's phenomenal, miles better than the anime.

And it just frustrates me because Blue Exorcist could have still kept up the huge audience and the reputation & recognition it deserves for it's level of quality writing, especially for shonen. Instead of bearing the fate of its audience whittling away over the years due to the anime's mistreatment and the only fans remaining are the loyal manga fans. This series deserved better treatment years ago, but late is better than never.

[sideblog-of-the-sideblog]

but fr artists should be allowed to eat the faces of whatever "journalist" is acting like this

[woah-uhuh-uhuh-uhuh]

Christine Canigula was socially ostracized & developed a complex to protect herself: an essay

(suddenly i NEED to infodump about Christine actually so here)

Something I only noticed on rewatch: the way Christine will say something silly and then just kind of gingerly wait to see if Jeremy reacts well to it before continuing, almost like she's asking permission?? (e.g. the gap after the first stanza of "Play Rehearsal"). And it's only after he riffs off her bowling alley bit that she feels comfortable talking about her personal feelings with him (right before "Guy that I'd Kinda be Into"). The same happens with their "weird noise" exchange immediately before "It's pretty killer to sit and chat with you." I know theater relies on being succinct, and that 'bonding over shared quirks' and 'feelings talk' are both just crucial parts of relationship development... but I don't think it's a coincidence that it always goes in that order!

It's like Jeremy has to pass these *trials of weirdness* before she feels safe opening up to him and it drives me BONKERS so I wrote a whole 1000 word thing about it under the cut and this got too massive and I'm sorry. Also some autistic Jeremy meta at the end if that sweetens the pot hehehe

Table of contents:

Why she was ostracized

How she was ostracized

How that might inform her pattern of relationship development with Jeremy and Jake

How gender caused Jeremy's experiences to differ from hers, and how that affects their current relationships with "popularity" and peer acceptance.

1. Why she was ostracized

I am just so certain that Christine has been bullied or at least majorly outcast for a lot of her life. She's very obviously neurodivergent and because of that she can have these obnoxiously deep and repetitive interests, she can't judge if a piece of information will be genuinely interesting to someone, and she doesn't take social cues very well.

She frequently interrupts people when they're talking (an ADHD symptom btw), even when they're literally talking to her about the thing she wants to hear!

(C: "Do you find that? Because I totally find that!" J: "Uh, yeah, I-" C: "-And no matter how hard I try....")

(J: "I know the last thing I deserve is another shot, but-" C:"Jeremy, just... say what's on your mind.") (girl I'm sorry but that's what he was doing..... I have a whole other thoughtpiece on how this particularly fucks with Jeremy while they're dating but thats another thing...)

She doesn't seem confident in her interpretations of people's emotions and she'll ask/talk about them point blank (both theirs and her own) in a way a lot of people would find rude

("Uh, you seem really nervous...") ("Popular people are fucked up! *mutual laughter* …I mean, you're one of them!") ("I am flattered, this is new / still I'm not sure what I should do" <- as a response to getting asked out, that's pretty bold! Plus the entire part where she laughs at Jake's "rich boy routine") (also compare and contrast to Jeremy's "I don't know what I'm supposed to say right now." idk. are your allistic stage dorks in the room with us right now motherfuckers)

I'd go on about her hyperfixations/special interests too but I think Play Rehearsal pretty much sums it up lol

2. How she was ostracized

All this to say that I am CERTAIN she spent a lot of her schooling having "nice girls" patiently let her sit with them at lunch for weeks at a time until they finally get sick of her rambling and faux pas. Only when they leave does Christine realize that they didn't actually care about anything she said... And this happens over and over and over. (I know this seems hella specific but I swear it's an actual phenomenon... at least I'm pretty sure? sdjflksjf)

But anyway, it's clear that by the time they're juniors, Christine has kind of (and I do only mean kind of) figured out what behaviour other people respond poorly to. And from evidence I stated in the intro, I think she's become really careful about which people she lets herself get attached to. She doesn't want this to ever happen again - which means if she's going to hang out with someone, she has to know that they actually care about her, that they know she will sometimes be obnoxious or blunt, and they'll still be okay with that forever.

3. Applying this to her canon relationships

You can extend this to Jake, someone who sees her in her element in drama rehearsal (the thing everyone finds annoying about her because she won't shut up about it) and STILL likes her. I think it's a totally valid reading that her bluntness with him later ("Upgrade") is just because she misreads him / doesn't quite get the social standard that she should be white lying instead. But I think you could also read her as testing the waters. If she's really going to commit to dating this guy, she's gotta know he's okay with her being herself. And the fact that this guy (and I think it's significant that he is a boy, for reasons I'll explain in the end note) genuinely seems to like her is a whole new level of peer validation ("I am flattered, this is new") -- so of course she's gonna fall at least a little! It doesn't hurt that he's "tired of being the person that everyone thinks that I am..." just like her!

Her history with being pity-liked makes Chloe's "advice," that Jake's just toying with her and is going to move on soon, even scarier, because that's genuinely happened to her (on a platonic level) so many times before.

Jeremy is also a good candidate from the beginning because he's weird he's a weirdo he doesn't fit in and he doesn't wanna fit in you ever see him without this stupid cardigan on? that's weird! And she keeps warming up to him not only because they're getting to know each other but because he gets progressively more willing to not only tolerate (as Jake does) but *participate* in her weirdness!

First, she does something weird and he tolerates it ("Play Rehearsal"); the next time she's weird, he participates! (bowling ball before GTIKBI). Then finally finally finally he initiates the weirdness and lets her join in! ("weird noises" exchange before GTIKBI reprise).

And notably, it is THIS moment that canonically signifies that they've hit the apex of their canon relationship development. If there was an achievement called "Befriend Christine," it would have popped up right then and there!!!

IN CONCLUSION: YOUR HONOR I LOVE THEM T_T

4: Christine vs. Jeremy: Gender differences & how that ultimately impacts their social goals

I also think all of this would have happened to Jeremy too if he'd been a girl. But because, generally, young boys feel less social obligation than girls to take pity on the autistic kid (and because boys tend to be more quickly recognized as autistic) he just ends up completely alone for most of his school life (Michael nonwithstanding - and yeah there's an important distinction between your childhood friend putting up with you and knowing that, woah, I guess literally nobody else ever will).

Meanwhile, Christine has had people "put up" with her, and she's SICK OF IT!

That's part of why their complexes are so different, because Christine is trying to check everyone she meets to make sure they'll be okay with her weirdness before she gets attached, Jeremy is trying to eliminate his weirdness altogether because he's never even experienced his peers listening out of *pity* so how the hell can he expect someone to ever listen to him out of *interest?*

Jeremy has never had someone pretend to like him before, so he completely lacks Christine's fear of befriending someone who secretly hates you. He doesn't realize how bad it'll hurt him if he destroys his real self for popularity, if he befriends people who would have bullied his real self. He doesn't know what disingenuous friendship feels like, so like a very young Christine he's still actively trying to get there because he thinks it's the only kind of validation he'll ever get.

Do you see what im saying? Do you see it???? AUAUGUGUUGGH

THANK YOU FOR READING!!! If you have thoughts or even rebuttals please share i am so desperate to discuss the blorbos

[repurposedmeatlocker]

I gotta make a post about this. It will drive me insane otherwise. But I really REALLY like the way in which Beavis and Butt-Head incorporates the music video commentary segments within the context of the actual show.

On one hand, it is indeed a way for musicians and creators to be promoted, albeit in a satirical and tongue-in-cheek way, through the banter of two ignorant fifteen year old boys. But this does not mean these segments are floating around unrelated. Actually, the commentary segments are completely intwined within the world of the show. They are not just used as opportunities to make pop-culture references and trash the musicians, but as a jumping-off point for Beavis and Butt-Head to get into off-topic tangents. Ranging from simple questions to sparse recollections of their home-life. I can't say this definitely since I haven't exactly been keeping track, but it appears to me that most of the sparse information out there about their moms and family come from statements made during these segments. Then there are also all those moments during music videos where they aren't even paying attention to what is on-screen and instead are doing stuff like looking at magazines, trying to cook, fighting, falling asleep, etc.

This all is such an odd yet interesting window into their lives, and how much it revolves around their television. I don't think this is unintentional at all. The characters are first introduced in the pilot, as being parked in front of their TV getting off on a woman advertising exercise equipment. Mike Judge is indeed making some kind of commentary here regarding the modern dependence on TV and cable television (especially in the context of the 90s when the show came out). At the same time though, I don't feel like this is a completely mind-numbing experience in the case of Beavis and Butt-Head. In fact, I find their interaction with the programs on television extremely "active" whether it be actually constructing opinions about what they are watching (even if it rarely is more complex than 'this rules' or 'this sucks'), or deciding to do something based off of seeing it advertised or talked about on TV. When you think about it, most of the plots of the show use the television as a catalyst for the episode's plot, which just ties the TV to the show as a whole even more.

[brittlebutch]

finally found a place to read With the Light online and i'm thrilled; if you haven't read this manga i do Legitimately recommend it

[sanjipussyindulgence]

the best part of writing fanfiction is getting to expand on characters by just giving them your own personality traits. your favorite show is digmon adventure now i just decided.

[overtake]

content for a very small audience but i was experiencing major deja vu when daniel posted this

[dullahandyke]

Anyway needless to say, college is showing me a whole slew of people who are using laptops in school for the first time and they're so bad at it. They're so bad at taking notes too. They're so bad at everything

[creedock]

i want to DRAW THE WONDERS AS ACTUAL 17TH CENTURY WITCH HUNTERS but I HAVE TO WRITE AN ESSAY UGGGGHHHH

[sparfloxacin]

hi, your Olli/Allu delivery is here!! 🥰💕

AAAAAAA thank you!! 😭💕

aren’t they the cutest, I wonder what Olli is thinking about 🥺 💗

[landofgay]

it's something about how A League Of Their Own isn't shying away from the very real racism, sexism, homophobia, and transphobia of the time, but all the characters still get a happy ending. yes of course they went through hardships and some had it harder than others and it would be wrong to just ignore that part of history. but the point is they're happy ANYWAYS. Bertie especially like they did not shy away from people's reactions to him but in the end he's happy with his wife and god isn't that beautiful????

edit: fixed Bertie's pronouns!

[waugh-bao]

“I’m probably the most drummer-influenced guitar player around. Over the years, Charlie and I developed a style between us, and a lot of it has to do with the fact that for many, many years I couldn't hear us onstage at all. The chicks are screaming and the band has no P.A.

So we developed a way of playing where it didn't matter if we heard the voice or the bass-it was just Charlie and me. I'd be forced right up against Charlie's kit with my amp right next to him. My playing would have been totally different if I hadn't gone through that with Charlie. I developed more and more of the rhythm things and licks because he was really all I was playing to.”-Keith Richards, 1989

[statuesquueart]

Sire to pyre, brother, I swore it to you.

Findis, from @dialux​ ‘s i imagined a dark world where the stars clamor to be inside us (which is absolutely breathtaking, please go read it!)

[astramachina]

I'm curious about our current fascination with mimics and what it has to say about our current fears. Like how trends in horror tend to reflect current societal fears (ex. "the virgin lives" during the AIDS crisis, "you're telling me a queer coded this villain" etc.).

The first time I watched Annihilation, I had put it on the TV while I cleaned the tiny studio I was living in. The bear scene unsettled me, sure, but I have a distinct memory of stopping what I was doing the moment The Alien came on screen. I sat on the edge of my coffee table and had to remind myself to breathe during that entire 10-minute-long sequence because I could feel at least five new fears unlocking in real time. The uncanny movements that perfectly mirrored Lena as it slowly morphed to look like her, her inability to break the mimicry until she decided to risk her own life. I quickly went from "I fear just about nothing in horror" to "well this one scene in a sci-fi flick really fucked me up".

Fast-forward a few years and now we have a boom of internet-based indie horror. The Mandela Catalogue is all about something, demonic or alien or both, taking over and mimicking us and the ones we love for some motive we can't even begin to comprehend. In Vita Carnis there's a subspecies called "mimic" that badly shapes itself into human form in order to violently eat people. Now, even FNAF has shifted gears, where the big bad was a very human serial killer and now it's all about an "AI program" (to oversimplify an unnecessarily complicated plot point) called "the mimic" who, you guessed it, mimics in order to lure.

Someone (I cannot for the life of me remember who it was) said that this might relate to the overbearing presence of social media and its effect on people's psyche, and while I partially agree, there's also a part of me that wants to say this is simply continuing the longstanding tradition of "the queer as the evil". A continuation of the panic that the queers are among us, and not only that, but they're completely indistinguishable from "the rest of us".

What's really scratching at my brain here is this: if the aforementioned point is true, what's that say about me, a queer who knows they've been queer since forever, being unsettled by this trope? And does it have anything to do with the fact that, when The Alien first went from a nothing blob to taking on the form of a human woman, happened to coincide with the countdown to my realization I wasn't cis.

[axemetaphor]

so funny to me that while my textbooks were still in transit to come to my apartment i was stressing about missing reading assignments. and now that they are here .... Well. I Simply Do Not Want To Read.

[un-pearable]

hm. hey uh. in the incredibly rare chance you have notifs on for me. i am SO sorry