#good thing i didn't watch this season while it was airing in 2020

[hwiyoungies]

screaming at my laptop while watching gbbo because the judges are fucking Stupid and just send the best baker home

[cheriladycl01]

You built it, you fix it... Daniel Ricciardo x Engineer! Reader

Plot: Ricciardo isn't having an amazing season in Mclaren, and keeps complaining about everything especially Lando's friendship with an engineer. However, Lando seems to be doing just fine.

Credit to allgoodallways03 for the GIF

Mclaren, hadn't really been a top competitor since 2012 when they just came behind Ferrari in the constructors championship. However, you'd been employed halfway through the 2020 season. Mclaren are known for taking risky moves and employing youth over experience, so you being the hot shot graduate who'd interned with them 2 summers ago, they grabbed at the opportunity to have you on board.

You didn't travel with them in 2020, deciding to help in the MTC building the 2021 car, to see if you had any ideas that would make it better.

You had big opinions on the 2021 car, so Zac asked for you to travel with them for the 2021 calendar to keep an eye on things with the head engineer.

You considered this to be a phenomenal opportunity where you could travel while working.

In came, Pre Season testing in Bahrain and Lando was reporting that the car felt good, and much faster than the previous year. Yourself and Lando got on really well, being similar ages and all that. He reported everything about the car to you. Zac had appointed you as Lando's race engineer, while your counter part Charlie focused on Daniel's car. You gave him pointers on how to maximize the best out of a 'mid field' car, knowing that you'd put some little secrets in there (completely legal and within the FIA rules) that would maximize both car's potentials.

This is how he ended up coming P4 in the first race of the season. Zac pulled you into the biggest hug ever, fully lifting you up into the air while the other mechanics and engineers you'd worked with in the MCT came to congratulate you. It was your initiative and new ideas that made the car quicker this year.

To come ahead of both Ferrari's and a Red Bull was something special to all of the team.

Daniel had a larger time gap behind the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, but still came P7 getting valuable points to the team.

"I don't get it" Daniel complained in the debrief room. Zac's head looks at the screen before gazing at the driver.

"What don't you get Daniel?" Zac asked.

"Why's Lando's car looks so much quicker than mine... it looks like a different car when you see Lando pass me and how quickly he did it!" Daniel complains, as he watches the on-board of Lando passing him in Sector 2.

"Both the car's have been built the same Daniel, we can assure you that!" the head engineer, your boss admits.

"Are you sure, because to me it seems like some of you team have their favorites!" he exclaims before sending you a look, you look back at him in shock at the accusations.

"Y/N, are these claims true?" Andrea asks looking over at you before Zac butts in.

"This is ridiculous Daniel... Y/N has worked with us since last year. When Carlos was in your seat. She met Lando way before she was introduced to you. They have become friends" Zac assures in a dad like tone, scolding Daniel for the accusations.

If accusations like that were thrown round the paddock, other teams would want to launch and investigation into Mclaren with the FIA, and that's the last thing Zac wanted this season.

"I just think its odd how Lando was that much quicker as the less experienced driver" Daniel scoffs.

"Daniel, you have to bear in mind that Lando's been driving for Mclaren for 2 previous seasons. He knows the team and he knows the car. You've come from a car that was built to cater for Max Verstappen's driving style, you had to adapt to that before you went into a completely different car in Renault. You are still learning, and its only the first race" you say to him, everyone keeping their mouth shut at the irritated sound and aura leaking from you.

You slouched back in your seat no longer wanting to deal with his dramatics.

IMOLA was even worse for Daniel, Lando was stood sharing a podium with Max and Lewis while he'd come in 6th. It was to him, a very bitter-sweet feeling.

In Portugal, it was proven that Lando was consistent in performing the the top 5 this year as he came 5th. Daniel, coming in 9th. There had been rumors going through Mclaren that you and Charlie were too switch in where the advise was going to. You'd go to Daniel and Charlie would move to Lando.

"Zac?" you ask knocking on the door, you'd heard some raised voices in there. You weren't eves-dropping because you wanted to address the rumors with Zac and see if there genuinely was going to be as switch. You'd do anything to stay with Lando, it was like you guys had become best friends and he was someone you felt safe and comfortable with. You knew how to communicate with Lando, but Daniel... you think you'd struggle with.

"Change it Zac, or you wont have me here for 2022!" Daniel, yells before slamming the door open. He glances at you before walking off down to the garage.

"Zac, what was that?" you ask, looking behind you out the door, no Daniel in sight.

"Y/N I'm sorry but depending how the next few races go... we might have to switch you and Charlie round!" he shakes his head, pen on paper writing something down.

"Why... the teams doing well. I've watched Daniel drive and he's just still getting used to the car. He's not pushing as much as he could, he's playing safe. Lando's taking risks, and he's getting us those points because as of right now, he is the better driver!" you shout, letting all of your annoyance for Daniel out at your boss.

"I'm sorry Zac, I didn't mean to yell" you huff, he points to the chair opposite him, that you take slumping down.

"It's okay, you and Lando work well together. I don't want to change that dynamic as the risk of Charlie not getting Lando those wins like you are, and then there's obvious tension between you and Daniel, so i cant see that portraying well with a switch.

Spain looked at though it was a turning point for Daniel, he'd come in 6th while Lando came behind him. The Ferrari's had changed their car, meaning Carlos and Charles now were at an advantage. It was a difficult race weekend for Lando, and Daniel couldn't help but comment on it in briefing.

You'd promised Lando, you'd get him and podium in Monaco. And you never ever go back on promises.

So Lando coming P3 made everyone's day in Mclaren. But Daniel... he had an awful race, being knocked and ending up coming P12 not securing any points for the team. He'd asked in debrief if something had been done to Lando's car since last week, but again the team assured him we hadn't.

Azerbaijan was similar and at this point, Daniel was getting fed up. Zac had told him because of the accusations and how he was acting that he wouldn't switch you and Charlie around.

France was tense, with Daniel coming behind Lando after being told not to go for an overtake. He knew tensions were high with his team already where he'd been complaining about the cars and the team, and he needed to secure that seat for 2022. So he took it on the chin.

"Y/N, I want to talk" Daniel said pulling you round a quiet corner and out the pack of the hostility where it was quietest, no media.

"Daniel, I'm busy i need to check the car's for Styria!" you say, looking back round, wondering why he had to drag you all the way round.

"What have you told Lando, that Charlie hasn't told me!" he says, pushing you back against the wall slightly, the flexing of the aluminum you are lent against sounding in your ear.

"I haven't told him anything that isn't in the pre-season briefing pack that I wrote available for myself and Charlie. If your engineer has failed to inform you of something that isn't my fault Ricciardo. Suck it up... maybe your just not the hot shot you used to be" you say, yes it was a low blow but considering all Daniel had done since you built the car was criticize and accuse you when Lando was having exceptional drives.

"Excuse me..." he said.

"You heard me Daniel, stop shitting on Lando and the car and do better!" you say with a smirk, telling you were riling him up more and more.

"You built it, you fix it" he says.

"Why fix what isn't broken..." you smile before turning away and walking back to the garage leaving Daniel shell shocked.

Styria was awful for Daniel, and you thought maybe what you said was too harsh on him, but you gave him one look as he got out of the car that had him storming to his driver's room to look at the mistakes he had made with Charlie to try and correct them.

Austria he had picked himself back up into a points position and didn't complain at a Lando podium, he congratulated him in fact with a massive hug and a well done mate. You gave him a nod, which in return you got one back.

Spa was the pivotal moment for Daniel, after what was a hard few races, with some DNF's and some not very good positions Daniel came 4th, and he was grinning the whole day.

"Y/N!" he shouted you over, you job over after rubbing Lando's shoulder being a bit disheartened by his P14.

"I should thank you, for talking some sense into me. I think after Renault last year, my racing mind wasn't what it used to be. It was the first time i realized you were right with what you said in Zac's office. Even Lando's DNF's prove he's the better driver right now, but i think I'm slowly getting back to that 'hotshot' driver" he smirks, making you laugh.

"Well, if that hot shot driver ever wants to join me for dinner, to make up for the pain of this season, i'll be more than happy to attend!" you grin, before turning off and walking away.

Taglist:

@littlesatanicassholebitch @hockey-racing-fubol @laura-naruto-fan1998 @22yuki @simxican @sinofwriting @lewisroscoelove @cmleitora @stupidandunnecessary @clayra-g @daemyratwst @honey-belden @moonypixel @lauralarsen @vader-is-hot @ironcowboycopnickel @itsjustkhaos @the-untamed-soul @beebo86 @happylittlereader @ziejustme @lou-larcher5 @thewulf @purplephantomwolf @chasing-liberosis @chillyleclerc @chanthereader @annoyingmoonballoon @summissss @evieepepi08 @havaneseoger08 @celesteblack08 @gulphulp @fandom1ruined2me @celebstories @starfusionsworld @jspitwall @sierruhh @georgeparisole @dakotatankbig @youcannotcancelquidditch @zzonsbeek @tallbrownhairsarcastic @mellowarcadefun @ourteenagetragedy @otako5811 @countingstacksandpanicattacks @peachiicherries @formulas-bitch @cherry-piee @hopexcroc @mirrorball-6 @spilled-coffee-cup @mehrmonga @bigsimperika @blueberry64857959 @eiraethh @lilypadlover @curseofhecate @alliwantisadonut @the-fem1n1ne-urge @21stcenturytaegi @dark-night-sky-99 @spideybv28 @i-wish-this-was-me @tallrock35 @butterfly-lover @barnestatic @landossainz @darleneslane @barcelonaloverf1life @r0nnsblog @ilove-tswizzle @kapsylia @laneyspaulding19 @lazybot @malynn @cassielikereading @viennakarma

[roxannepolice]

Masters, coyotes and reset buttons

Ok, so this has been going after me for a few months now and probably won't end up as coherent as I'd like it to, but this is also a warm up for finally fixing that stupid article that everyone tells me is good but has been halted by journal paperwork since 2020, so... As always, because there be salt, putting everything under a cut.

There's been this debate on whether the Master should be given a break from appearing for a while and, as always, it's usually taken somewhat hostile as an attack on the character or a particular actor (which. look if this was about acting skills BBC should have never moved from sir Derek Jacobi, period). And I would say the problem lies entirely elsewhere. Namely, circularity vs. linearity.

There has always been a mythical or commedia dell'arte element to the whole concept of regeneration, an archetypal thing in characters going by titles as names and having a certain set of characterisics and narrative functions that go along with those. Hell, commedia dell'arte even has a literal "Il Dottore" whose whole thing is embodying science and education - more often than not mockingly. When you employ Zeus rather than Poseidon in your story that's probably because there be weird sex rather than disproportionate fury. When you choose a paladin class in your rpg that's because you're going to have different skills and make different choices than if you were a rogue. Galahad and Lancelot will go on completely different journeys of nunnery/brothel and rescuing a prince from forced marriage even while they both seek the Holy Grail. When you want your children to have different properties you'll use your mantra to invoke four different gods.

The thing about archetypes, though, is that they are, literally, timeless. Or better yet, outside of time. But stories, narratives are, by nature, linear and timed. There's the beggining, the middle and the end. And of course, the whole fun is toying with the archetype, tweaking and reinterpreting them in specific contexts and stories. And DW has been doing a phenomenal job of it throughout its history, even if occasional nitpicks can be made. Classic Who was perhaps more circular and repeating in its storytelling and - sorry, posession by Marshall McLuhan - this makes sense in a medium where a story airs just a couple of times. There were arcs for each Doctor, though significantly more so for companions. NuWho became much more clear in this, but still mostly managed to keep a neat balance between the timelessness and timeliness.

Take the Saxon's story, which is what kickstarted me spilling here. Not to come off as a canon snob, but I think if he was an introduction to the character it may not be clear just how shocking him dying on the Valiant was. This is the character that was a skeleton, a gooey body snatching snake and a cat to go on living, and has been the Doctor's prisoner, in fact begging them to save them. Ten is 100% justified in his assumption that he'd never kill himself. His death introduced a major shift to their dynamic, especially when framed as fuelled by hatred. The finale in EoT is largely a return from this shift. No, the Doctor didn't only care for the Master because he wanted another Time Lord. No, the Master doesn't wholeheartedly hate the Doctor. They can and will always cooperate when there's a common enemy. As has been the case throughout all of Classic Who.

Enter Moffat era. Now, it's a bit of a cliche to say Moffat is a better episode writer than showrunner, but it being cliche does not make it incorrect. His poetic definitely works better when there's an ending, a specific goal in sight. In singular episodes this works like a charm. It worked terrifically in season 5. But later on there definitely came this element of "keep watching, because this is all heading somewhere, trust me". And all too often the answer was proving less interesting than the question. This was particularly clear in seasons 7-9, with return to Gallifrey being hyped up repeatedly, only to fianlly fall flat. And I guess Moffat realised that and decided to go for a soft reboot in season 10.

Which brings me to Missy and redemption arcs. Now, in our completely not puritan era there's way too much talk of whether characters deserve redemption, and what would account for a redemption, and how that differs between different legal systems, and too little appreciation that redemption narrative is as linear as they get. You get the starting point of sin and have a clear goal of that sin being repaid or undone. Sure, you can dig into that, and question that, and reinterpret that, and cynically cut that, but it always relies on that clear line. And it's obvious that Moffat was aware of how linear he wanted Missy, and indeed the Master in general, to be. The fucking text says that: "where we've always been going". The disagreement is only what that where is. Now, if the story was meant to be lieanr, then it really does make infinitelly more sense to view the events of EoT as a turning point in the thoschei relationship, but the story explicitly shuts that down. Nah, it was more infitely more important to have the initial sin embodied to be killed in the ultimate act of redemption. #symbolism

A slight tangent here. I know that the original plan for Delgado!Master was to have a redemption arc where he sarcifices himself for the Doctor, so I guess it can be argued this was indeed where the story was going all along. But things turned out how they did and people generally don't introduce Moriarty into their sherlockiana to have no actual screentime (literal or metaphorical), as was the original plan.

Aaaand then there's Spymaster. I've seen dozens of explanations of why he is the way he is, and whether that follows logically from Missy's story or not, and whether he might be before her, and whether he undoes her redemption, and blah blah, but the bitter truth is: Chibs hit the reset button. He hit it hard. No, we are not meant to keep in mind the events of s10 when we analyze the spydoc relationship. Again, a comparison to Moffat explicitly bringing up the events of EoT with Saxon, if only to brush them aside as meaningless for both parties. More importantly, if those were meant to affect Thirteen's hostile attitude towards the Master, then she shouldn't have been so shocked with his appearance. She might be surprised he regenerated, but like the whole reason for bitterness over being abandoned would go along with the expectation the Master did survive, that's why they left Twelve in the first place ffs. So, it would look like Chibnall tried to go back to a circular status quo after a linear redemption, and that's certainly what the writing thinks it's doing. Except now that the whole TTC can of worms has been opened, the relationship is deeply imbalanced. Imbalanced in a way that cannot be easily undone. Like, I know the fandom is trying to frame the Master's sense of inferiority as somehow mistaken and fanon!Thirteen certainly thinks so, but that's not what the text is saying. There is a misundertanding going on here, but a misunderstanding that goes on unresolved gets tiresome and frankly masochistic pretty fast. Either the Master should get to the point of understanding that the Doctor is not inherently superior to them because of past or magic of friendship and that they're Kenough, or accept the Doctor as their lord and saviour and martyred god who died so they may live and spend the rest of their days as a lapdog. Which, I understand the fandom may enjoy, but doesn't make for a very exciting story. So yes, there's definitely a linear narrative going on here. One that does need some time in a fridge and exposition of how the Doctor themself feels about their relationship before the character is brought back. Right now we are not in the The clown always gets up again, no matter how often he has been knocked down paradigm only No clowns were funny. That was the whole purpose of a clown. People laughed at clowns, but only out of nervousness. The point of clowns was that, after watching them, anything else that happened seemed enjoyable. It was nice to know there was someone worse off than you. Someone had to be the butt of the world.

Butbutbut, of course, what about Ainley!Master being brought back again and again seemlessly? That's just the thing - Ainley!Master existed in a completely different poetic. He was purely circular. He was the most circular of the Masters. He was as circular as you can get without actually being a cartoon coyote who only falls down when he realises he's midair. I'm not entirely ironic here - there is an inherent trickster element to the Master as a character! Perhaps more Goethe's Mephistopheles that Native Americans' Coyote, but between constanct scheming, shapeshifting and falling into the pits they've dug the elements are all there. And a trickster either endlessly travels between Olympus, Earth and Hades or gets killed by Heimdall.

And before a gotcha of me insanely hoping for a Saxon cameo either in the 60th anniversary or, that being off the table, somehow meeting Fourteen - yeah, in an anti-linear bubble. I've seen speculations that RTD wants to do another soft reboot, hence there's no knowing what Master will pop out of that tooth. As far as I wouldn't like it to be one of pre-Delgado Masters and for the record I wouldn't mind if it is Spymaster!, there's definitely something to the idea there's a soft reboot in The Giggle, with the Doctor "going home". Because you don't necessarily want to know what Odysseus' tax policies were once he reached Ithaka, but you do want to know that he's been a year on Circe's island.

[itsasweater]

HSMTMTS thoughts before season 4

So I recently finished my re-watch of season 1 through 3 before the final season airs so that things are fresh in my memory. I wanted to make a couple of posts on my thoughts on the seasons in general and possibly some specific topics like the characters themselves. This one will be about each season.

Season 1:

I hadn't seen this season since when it originally aired and let me just say, it was kind of a grind to watch. I feel like the season didn't really start until the Homecoming episode which was ep 5. I also forgot this season had 10 episodes. The whole Nini/Ricky/EJ triangle storyline didn't really hit for me. Ricky's home problems with his parents, everything changing around him (which he clearly hates) and how he dealt with that was probably the best storyline of the season, as sad as it was to see his character go through it. The music in the season was decent, Nini had some really good. I think a lot of nostalgia comes in to play with the way people talk about season 1, it is overhyped. I also think a lot of it has to do with the very weird Jolivia obsession that still to this day for some reason resides in the fandom, I see the PFP's and twitter user names smh. Overall, new shows tend to struggle out of the gate and need a while to find the right path so I'm at least glad that they got more seasons to continue that journey instead of being cancelled like many shows do without getting the chance to do so. It certainly seems like they were not sure whether they would get renewed or not after season 1.

Season 2:

It really is a shame that this season has the most episodes because I feel like it is definitely the weakest season. It was a struggle to get through this season on the re-watch. I appreciate what the cast and crew went through while filming this season though because I know they started filming in Feb 2020 and stopped in March because of the pandemic and had to return towards the end of 2020 until March of the next year with under strict conditions. So, maybe the pandemic played a role in the quality of the season but I feel like this was even the casts least favorite season with the way they talked about it. Nini's YAC storyline felt out of place and just didn't keep me engaged, the lighting for this season was also very dark lol. I do think this season did a nice job of continuing to show Ricky's struggle with his home life from season 1 and the fact that things were still changing in his life which the show continues to mention just how much he hates that. Ashlyn getting the leading role as Belle was nice and her dealing with her insecurities about that was good. The season Finale fell flat though, it seemed rushed and I think it was ranked as the worst episode in the whole series. This season did however have 2 of my favorite songs of the whole show, the trio of Kourtney, Gina and Ashlyn coming together to sing 1-2-3 was great. The 4 main characters (Nini, Gina, EJ and Ricky) singing Second Chance was so good, they meshed well together.

Season 3:

This season is probably my favorite. I know some people in the fandom don't feel the same about the season because it felt different from the first 2 but I think that is a good thing. Sometimes shows need a change of pace and they did that with this season. Making it a summer season out of school at a camp was something different and the show had a different tone because of it. It was definitely more lighthearted compared to season 2 and the cast seemed to have had great time filming together. Also going from filming in Utah to filming in LA was probably a nice change for the actors since most of them are based in LA. I know the whole documentary storyline thing was an adjustment for people but they clearly had a plan for it to be a springboard for the plot in season 4 and connect them together. Besides that, Kourtney's anxiety storyline was a highlight for me as I'm sure lots of people could relate to her, the phone call with her mom was great and I'm interested to see if they touch on this more in season 4. Some of the disappointment in the season comes from favorite characters not being in it like Seb and Big Red which is understandable but it's also realistic that not everyone in the group would go to the same camp in the summer, when people usually have different plans. Also, the show clearly felt like they weren't as important to tell the story in season 3 which was used too set up season 4. It was nice that Big Red, Seb and Miss Jenn did make cameo's though, with how big the cast is and the length of the episodes that are not that long it's hard to fit everyone in with meaningful storylines. The additions of Maddox and Jet this season were probably the best new characters that the show has added during the 3 seasons, the actors playing them are great as well and seem to have really bonded with the cast which is really nice to see. WDYKAL was probably my favorite performance of the season, it was very non Disney like lol The tension and chemistry was kind of crazy lol I feel like they could have shown more of the Frozen performance but Kourtney playing Elsa was also a great moment in the season. I'm really excited for season 4 because they seem to be going with a really META storyline for the season and I'm excited too see how the documentary from season 3 has affected the characters.

Anyways, this turned out longer than I intended it too but these are my thoughts on each of the 3 seasons after my re-watch, I will probably make a couple more posts on singular topics like the characters or the ships later. I'm always up for discussions, so if you have anything you want to say please do. I know this place can get out of hand when discussing this show within the fandom but I have thicker skin than most and I don't mind having a discussion but I also understand I'm not the norm lol

If you have read all of this, thank you. If you at least read the title of the post, thank you. Even though you will not see the thank you lol

[ltwharfy]

"Bob's Burgers" Season 2 Episode Ranking Rewatch (Long Post)

So, I've been rewatching "Bob's Burgers" from the beginning and ranking the episodes using the spreadsheet that @babsvibes created! If you want to know why I'm doing this or how I view the 1-5 rating scale, you can check out my Season 1 post!

Now, on to Season 2:

Average (mean): 4.22

Mode (most common ranking) : 5

I hid the director and writer name categories when I took the picture to make it easier to focus on episode ratings. I will share my director and writer rankings when I reach the end of this project.

Season as a whole thoughts:

I really enjoy Season 2! I know everyone's got their own take on when "Bob's Burgers" really hit its stride, and many folks say Season 3 or later, but I'm going to say that for me, it had already hit that stride in Season 2. It was consistently funny, and I was surprised by how many lines from it were just burned in my memory- some without me even recognizing the source. (For example, before starting this project, the line: "You know what's free? Loading. Freeloading!" popped in my head. I did not know where it was from- not even what show. It's Louise in "Burgerboss".) "Mommy doesn't get drunk, she just has fun." "Don't feed a guy a sponge, Bobby." I could go on...

Seeing all the familiar faces who started showing up also really made it begin to feel like classic "Bob's Burgers" to me: we've got Zeke! Darryl! Sgt. Bosco! Mickey! Tammy! Honestly, I always think there is something fun in watching all the pieces of something begin to fall into place to create something wonderful, and Season 2 gave me a lot of that feeling.

In my season 1 review, I noted that if "Bob's Burgers" had been cancelled after that season, I would've been annoyed because I thought it showed promise but I wouldn't've viewed it as a tragedy (Season 1 of "Bob's Burgers" is no "Firefly"). But, Season 2 was really the beginning of the time period when I would've been outraged had it been cancelled. (Thankfully, it avoided being a two season wonder like "Joan of Arcadia" or "Saved by the Bell (2020 Revival)")

That said, the show was still figuring out some of the characters (especially Bob) and the overall family dynamic and show tone, which lead to the few episodes I didn't enjoy that much, including the only 2 I've issued so far.

Some thoughts on particular episodes:

"The Belchies": I remember watching this episode when it first aired and feeling like the show had clearly leveled up- it felt like it was beginning to realize the potential I saw in the first season. For some reason, I specifically remember watching the end credits- with Cyndi Lauper singing "Taffy Butt" and JJ dancing- and knowing that the show was capable of being more than it had been in season 1. Also, this episode is really the first example of one of my favorite "Bob's Burgers" episode types which is "the Belcher kids and their friends have an adventure!" And one of the great things about Season 2 is that the kids gain a number of friends- Hi Zeke!

"Bob Day Afternoon"- After this rewatch thing is over, I may try to do a top 20 or 25 list and this episode may be on that. I love it! In particular, the scene where the kids cling on to Bob as he is trying to take the burgers to Mickey and the hostages is one of the best of the series in terms of improv and the humor of talking over each other. And if I ever don't laugh at the part of Gene's Robot College fantasy where he walks in on his robo-roommate performing "routine maintenance" it's a sign that I am dead.

"Burgerboss"- This was a really pleasant surprise! While I knew those first two were two of my favorites, I just thought this one was kind of good- but on actually rewatching it, I found myself laughing the whole way through, so it gets a 5.

"Dr. Yap"- I generally enjoy Yap the character, as well as Gayle, but the two things I really love about this episode are the Gene and Louise jawbreaker subplot (it's fun watching those two get into a ridiculous competition over something stupid) and the Prince of Persuasia. The Prince is such a great parody of that horrible "pickup artist" style, and I find literally all his lines hilarious ("Never make her pancakes. Force her to make you pancakes- in the middle of the night.")

"Bad Tina"- Another episode that might make a top 25 list. Both storylines- the introduction of Tammy and Bob's obsession with "Cake"- are A+. They had already established a number of Tina's core traits throughout the first two seasons, but now with the addition of friend fiction and Tammy, her best of frenemies, it feels like they've fully got Tina down and we get the first great Tina episode (and Tina episodes tend to my favorites, even if Louise is my favorite character).

Okay, now the episodes I didn't like that much:

"Moody Foodie"- Why did I give this my first (and so far only) 2? Honestly, I thought it was overdone and dry.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. I actually enjoy the first half of the episode. Bob's nightmare about working in an office is hilarious to me as an actual office drone. The scene where he and Louise just start yelling "overdone and dry" at passersby is great. And the farmer's market scene at the beginning has some great family banter.

And then it goes completely off the rails in the second half. The second half of the episode is "Bob Belcher and his friends and family hold a couple of dudes prisoner" which sounds more like a WTF fanfic summary than an actual episode of the show. And it's likely that this episode bothers me more now than it did when it first aired. I think they were still figuring Bob's character out and if they had ended up making him more Homer Simpson-like (prone to anger and hare-brained schemes) maybe this episode wouldn't stick out so much. Similarly, I think that all animated shows struggle a bit with figuring out how grounded in reality they are going to be. if BB had evolved into a less grounded show, this episode also might not stick out.

But it does stick out, for me at least. I just found the second half of this episode more weird and disturbing than funny (although it still had some good lines- I enjoyed Tina translating "Wet Willie" into Spanish for Pepe). If the hostage taking was a shorter part of the episode, maybe I would give it a mixed-review 3, but it is basically the main plot, and I'd rather not rewatch it.

"Beefsquatch": I don't love the physical confrontation between Bob and Gene at the end, but what stops this episode from being a 2 is that really the worst part of it (in my opinion) is actually a pretty small part of the episode. And both of them realize they were acting nuts, and their motivations seem kind-of in character to me (Bob wanted the cooking segment to be a chance to promote the restaurant, Gene wanted his performance as Beefsquatch to be the center of attention). And I just enjoy some other bits in this. "More Scotch!". Louise first enjoying than getting burnt out by her involvement in Gene and Bob's prank war. And Gene's flashback to accidentally gluing his wiener to his remote control helicopter- followed by Louise's "accidentally on purpose!" and them high-fiving. (The high-five cracks me up so much! It's such a silly thing to high-five over!)

Random thoughts (stuff that doesn't affect the ratings):

-It was fun to see the introduction of the exterminator van being different each episode after seeing "Rat's All Folks!" for all of season 1.

-Peter Pescadero is back- and he has his correct face after that weirdness in "Spaghetti Western and Meatballs"! Has anybody written a fic about why his face changed? Like "Face/Off" but with Peter Pescadero (just one idea)?

-Generally, I try not to nitpick about continuity on the show that much. I think they do a really good job, especially by standards of animated comedies (but honestly, really all comedies). But it does bug me that there is a whole episode in a later season about how Louise can only poop in her home toilet when in "Synchronized Swimming" she poops in public pool. She named it Jezebel for crying out loud! It's Bob and Linda's grand-doody! JEZEBEL CANNOT BE FORGOTTEN!

Well, clearly I've been writing for too long and have gone crazy. See you when I'm done with Season 3, whoever may be reading these!

[bustyasianbeautiespod]

(non spn watcher here) when did destial become a canon love story with writer intent? like was there more destiel-ness in the season leading up to the nov 5th confession?

Okay *cracks knuckles*.

First and foremost, I'm gonna tell you about my SPN history. I started watching SPN and got caught up with the show while s10 was airing and was watching live until the end of s12. I gave up specifically because Castiel's s11 plot proved to be just on the side of too miserable for me, and s12 didn't really make it any better (Cas dies at the end of that season). During this time, and until Nov 5th 2020, I was solidly on camp "Dean and Cas are never going to be canon just because of what SPN is fundamentally as a show, and even if they did, I cannot imagine a situation where it would be a good thing for Cas given SPN's track record on how they treat the angel."

When Nov 5th happened I was sucked back into the show. In preparation for the finale I watched all of s13-15 in the two weeks between the confession episode and the finale. Again, my perspective going into this endeavour was still very doubtful and pessimistic, specifically on the Dean side of the equation.

The beginning of s13 was a bit of a shock to me, honestly. It starts with what the fandom calls 'The Widower's Arc'. I think this was the arc that most solidly cements the feelings from Dean's side. It was so vehement in pointing out that Dean feels for Cas in a way so distinguished from how Sam does. In the very first episode of the season (so the first episode I watched after going back into SPN), Dean quietly wraps Cas' body with a curtain all by himself in a sunlit room. And I go Oh. Okay.

This vibe does wane after Cas comes back and regular SPN hijinks ensues. S14 actually ends with Dean and Cas fighting and Dean doing his usual Dean-isms. 15.03 is when that fight culminates: they break up and spend a couple episodes apart from each other.

15.09 The Trap features Dean and Cas in purgatory, and this was Truly An Episode. They bicker through-out the entire thing and are pretty pissed at one another, but then Cas gets taken, and Dean desperately prays to him, confesses his anger issues, forgives Cas and asks for forgiveness back. Later, they reunite, and Cas acknowledges that he heard everything Dean said.

This episode is so interesting to me because it culminates the Dean and Cas fight-separation-reconciliation plot of s15, and in doing so confirms it to be as important as it is. I cannot point enough that the plot reasons for the stuff happening in 15.09 is so pointless. They go to purgatory for a fetch quest for an item that can be interchangeable with literally anything else, specifically to put Dean and Cas back in purgatory (a meaningful place for them), have them be separated, and have the prayer happen. The whole point of the Dean and Cas portion of the episode is to do character work. We don't even see the scene where Cas finally gets the thing they're here to acquire in the first place. That's literally not the point. The point is Cas and Dean's story. S15 is the last season of a show with so many big things to wrap up, and they make it a point to have Dean and Cas go through a half-season arc that DOES occupy so much of the season and brings a new openness, vulnerability, and room for development into their relationship.

So yeah, before 15.18 there WAS very visible marks of the fact that Something was gonna happen. Interestingly enough all those marks were pretty dean-centric. I would say s4-10 destiel is the audience being inundated that Cas loves Dean. S11-15, ESPECIALLY 13-15 is so very much making it known that Dean loves Cas too.

On a related note, on Nov 21, 2020, a post is made here on tumblr claiming that around Dec 2016 (S12 was airing at this point), Warner Bros. conducted a market research about Supernatural, and from this person's experience, specifically about Dean and Cas and Dean's sexuality (link to a post that confirms the information in the post to be true). This market research was during the time leading up to s13, which I think does mark a big change in how the love between Dean and Cas started being framed by the show as something Dean both feels and is also aware of.

So, to answer your questions.

Was there more destiel-ness in the season leading up to the nov 5th confession? Yes.

When did destiel become a canon love story with writer intent? It became a canon love story by S15, but the writer intent to make it canon goes way back to s13 but probably even s12.

- Grey :))

[offlineblues]

When did you first get into yugioh? I hope you're having a nice day! <3

thank you for your well wishes! i too hope you had a pleasant day!

let's see... to answer your question... it's a little bit of a long story, so i'll make a read more! (there is a TLDR at the bottom if you want)

in late 2017, twitch was broadcasting a marathon of Duel Monsters. at that time, my partner, Jamie, was getting really invested into it, since he had mentioned how he liked it when he was younger. for me, i had heard of YGO on TV when i was younger too, but i felt like i couldn't get invested in it, so i never kept track of it. i was vaguely aware of YGO's continued spin-offs, but i never gave it a chance.

so, after a few weeks, his passion about the show and how much he loved Atem made me want to try giving it a shot, too. because of Megumi Ogata's Yugi Mutou, i was interested in starting from the Very Beginning with the Toei season (season 0). i was curious how subbed YGO might be.

so, we watched all of the Toei season together. i came to really love Yugi the most, as he is a very kindhearted protag (my favorite type of protag) as well as Jounouchi and Kaiba. i was surprised at how the story was about our connections with others. i really loved how different it was compared to what i expected or remembered about the series from the past. the focus on games in general as a medium for the story was really good.

i was hooked on it and respected it. i finally understood the appeal. i wanted to jump into Duel Monsters (sub) right away. and we did! we watched it all together, starting in early 2018.

it took several months to watch, and i enjoyed it! i remember feeling shocked and kinda sad that "the shadow realm" wasn't real, lol. i didn't realize it had been a show that was censored like that. we even watched the DSOD movie after. it was really cool... Yugi really is a character i adore!

for about about a year or so after, i was really invested into puzzleshipping. i didn't draw very much at the time because of my severe untreated carpal tunnel though, so there aren't much past works from me, nor did i ever make any ship art.

Jamie got invested into the spin-off YGO and started watching VRAINS while it was airing after seeing a post about Yusaku/Playmaker on here. i gave it a few episodes, and immediately gravitated to liking Ai. but, i was going through a tough time personally and felt a little fatigued (in general) and of YGO because it was such a long series. i didn't think i could do another 150+ anime. so, i dropped it after 3 episodes and did other things for a few years.

he would talk to me about how much he loved how VRAINS was going and about datastormshipping, and i happily listened even though i didn't understand. it was nice to be a support at the time when i felt too tired and stressed to participate. this went on into 2019 as it finished, and well after into 2020. though, it shifted into aiballshipping, but he kept me safe from spoilers.

on a whim, in the middle of 2022, i suggested we watch VRAINS together because i felt up for it again, and i wanted to watch an anime together. i was excited to learn about Ai more, as i saw some vague spoilers here and there about him. i immediately grew to love Yusaku and Ai a whole lot! i was excited every weekend we could watch together. it only took 3 months to watch all 120 episodes because i was that invested. i again felt like a fool for not continuing in the past...

...and you know the rest. it's impacted me a lot. i haven't stopped thinking or talking about them for nearly a year now. i'm even more impacted by their story than the Toei season or DM. i like the characters and story a lot more for VRAINS, so it's my favorite. i even picked up Duel Links because i wanted to learn how to play (i'm kind of bad at it). i'm currently in the middle of ZEXAL now, but i want to check out all the others eventually, too. exciting!

TLDR:

i got into it in 2017 because of my partner's influence. watched season 0, DM, and DSOD and loved it. fell off for personal difficulties in real life and fatigue with long series. picked up VRAINS again in 2022 after dropping it in 2018 after 3 episodes. am now insane (positive) and invested in YGO because it's so fun and good. i'm happy to be here and hope i can be for a long time

[feeisamarshmallow]

Yeah I always wonder about the rapid disappearance of the b99 fandoms. Especially when compared to the Office and Parks which still have active fandoms. I wonder if it's in part due to the copaganda thing?

Hi Nonnie! Thanks so much for this ask, because I have a lot of thoughts!

The short of it is:

tl;dr I think the B99 fandom disappeared so quickly because of its fan culture--which meant B99 was heavily criticized for its copaganda elements and meant that fans were more likely to move on after the show finished its run. But I still think there are other factors at play I haven't identified.

Here's the long of it:

Yes, I do think it's partly because of the copaganda thing. I think Brooklyn Nine Nine will have less staying power culturally because it's a show about cops that finished airing right as the USA (and the world) was reckoning with the massive institutional racism and corruption of policing. And fair enough, if people don't feel like watching a comedy show about police officers right now (or ever).

(If you're interested in my take on the copaganda discussion, I wrote this response back ~2018. While my thoughts have changed slightly, I still stand by most of this. My tl;dr is that b99 both subverts a lot of copaganda tropes, and simultaneously plays into some of those tropes, by virtue of what it is. And I respect anyone's personal decision of how to engage with b99.)

That being said, I do think Brooklyn Nine Nine was subject to a disproportionate amount of copaganda criticisms in comparison to other cop shows, likely because of two reasons:

B99 was actually trying to address social issues, including racism and corruption in policing. This meant that they could be criticized because they weren't unaware of the issues. You can hardly criticize your run of the mill cable cop procedural--it would never be interested in changing or engaging with any criticism. It might not even be aware of its own copaganda content. B99 was. And therefore it was always going to criticized more heavily, and quite frankly, it was always going to fail to some degree. Because there's just no way a comedy about cops can (or should) address the deep and horrific racism, corruption, and discrimination that policing upholds.

Furthermore, b99 had a very progressive fan culture. The show got popular partly because of the way it addresses social issues. A really big talking point about b99 at the beginning was the diversity in its cast, in both race and gender. (Before Gina left and Hitchcock and Scully got promoted to main cast, 3/7 main characters were women). The show attracted a young, progressive fanbase that cared a lot of the show's politics in addition to its comedy. There was a lot of weight on b99 to be Good, both in a moral and comedic sense. So of course, it was criticized more heavily by its fanbase about its role in copaganda. (This isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact, I think a lot of it was good and I don't think we would've got the ending we did--with Jake leaving the force--without the pressures of this fanbase. But that being said, I do think by the end b99 sometimes collapsed under its own pressure to be Good. Again, it was always going to fail to some degree just because of what b99 was vs. what it was expected to achieve.)

However, I don't think that copaganda criticisms is the only reason the Brooklyn Nine Nine fandom disappeared.

There had always been those discussions around the show, and while they were renewed in the wake of the massive Black Lives Matter protests in June 2020, the final season didn't air until a year and a half later. By the time Season 8 was airing, the fanbase that remained had already come to a personal decision about how they wanted to engage with the show (and clearly that they wanted to keep watching it and engaging in fandom).

The fandom was very active on tumblr through the airing of the last season. People were running events like the b99 trivia nights and fanfic challenges and gift exchanges. There was a discord (or maybe a few) that were quite active and social. Gifmakers, fanfic writers, fan artists etc. were all very active. Meta got traction on tumblr.

In March 2022, there was a b99 reunion fan work event. (I wrote ficlets for each of the daily challenges). It got a bit of attention, iirc, but the fandom was already feeling markedly smaller. A few months later and it felt like it had really started to disappear.

Which is not to say it's gone!! There are still active b99 blogs here. And by no means am I the definitive source of knowledge on the b99 fandom--I was always kinda on the periphery of the most popular fans and mainstream fan spaces here. There may be some fans and fan content currently I'm unaware of. I also can't speak at all on fandom outside of tumblr/ao3 spaces. BUT, I can say without question that fandom is much, much smaller and way more inactive than it was a year or a year-and-a-half ago.

I'd guess it also has something to do with newer fan culture--I think younger/newer fans tend to switch fandoms quicker and don't stick around in fandoms that no longer have new canon. (This is very different from the Veronica Mars and Buffy fandoms I came up in, both of which maintained robust fandoms years after there was new canon).

But I always think there are some other factors at play that I just can't put my finger on. If anyone else has thoughts and wants to chime in, I'd love to hear it! (And kudos to you for reading this giant essay).

tl;dr I think the B99 fandom disappeared so quickly because of its fan culture--which meant B99 was heavily criticized for its copaganda elements and meant that fans were more likely to move on after the show finished its run. But I still think there are other factors at play I haven't identified

[aprillikesthings]

I couldn't remember why I like, 99% avoided the spop fandom at the time it was airing/right after it aired. It wasn't *just* that it wasn't my hyperfixation--it was that I mostly avoided the fandom in general. I had enough friends from other things in the spop fandom that I was able to see some great art on twitter/tumblr, but I didn't go looking for new friends in that fandom, the way I often do.

And I mean yeah I was far more into k/da when spop started airing, but by mid-2020??

Anyway, while digging around looking for old art and meta, along with some GREAT stuff, I find a lot of just dumb, terrible shit. Like: long unreadable posts about why Catra Is The Worst And If You Like Her You Are Also The Worst (she was the main antagonist for four seasons???? that's how that works??????). Or I'm just painfully reminded that a bunch of the worst people from SU fandom were in spop fandom (especially early on).

And I know I've talked about this before, but I remember realizing that the reason I'd been so into k/da was because it was, in fact, very stupid. All the good stuff (outside of the actual songs/videos), the fandom basically made up on our own. The fandom around spop was just SO SERIOUS because, like SU, the show itself was trying to do big things--good things!! around telling stories about queer people and talking about the effects of childhood trauma. (It also, like SU, attracted an audience of mostly young, traumatized queer people.)

But also, just like with SU, it made parts of the fandom insufferable. Because everything is EXTREMELY SERIOUS, YOU KNOW.

I can appreciate all that stuff, but god damn, I am just here to smash my dolls together.

It was just way more fun and relaxing to play around in the sandbox of a media that didn't even expect us to be there and didn't care about us--just try to watch the pop/stars video and tell me it was aimed at sapphics, lolol. To the extent that it appeals to us, it was probably by accident. (I blame Fortiche.) We could have all the fun we wanted, because who gave a shit? Vast majority of people who read/wrote fic for k/da never played League of Legends. We were never their intended audience!

So yeah. I'm four years late to the spop party, sure. But most of the worst people have moved on to other fandoms. Thank God. I can scribble my angst and porn in the corner while muttering under my breath, and only the people who made it through all that shit and stuck around are the people who will bother reading my stuff. Whew.

[myfandomrambles]

Not to be an asshole but like just because David Tennant/Tenth Doctor had the best viewing numbers of NuWho doesn't actually mean he's sooo uber special better than the others.

Like every doctor before and after he actually matters. Some of those doctors are beloved by like a lot of people.

It somehow just feels icky to me to pick up with David Tennant and Davies and like what? Fuck 11, war, 12 and 13?

Chibnall was bad enough about kind of feeling like he was snubbing 11 & 12's eras.

Like obviously you had misogyny and racism problems under Moffat. And we must, must speak up about that and make sure the show does better. And no he didn't stick the landing every time, The Wedding of River Song sucks. But like there were a shit ton of people involved in those years who like fucking put their heart and soul into that.

Matt Smith & Peter Capaldi along with all the companion actors (plus Gomez) deserve some goddamn respect. I do have just some big emotional attachment to 11 & 12 yes. I also however do not think every story under them was bad. They had extremely good stories! Like season 10 might not be popular but fuck does it kick me in the feels.

But like it's not like all the Tennant hype only affects Moffat's writing if you happen to hate him. This does feel insulting to Ecelston as well. I know he hates the BBC so like I get he wouldn't come back to the main show (his audios rock btw).

This whole thing also feels sketch because you're sticking him in between your first female doctor and your first main doctor to be played by a person of colour. Like do you just not trust that Ncuti Gatwa will be good enough to make people watch? Do you not trust your own writers (even your own writing) to be compelling unless you bring David Tennant back and give him a whole other marketing number (and the numbers, while sort of ridiculous at this if you look through canon, do have meaning to the fans)? Not to mention a new costume (No I don't mean he has to wear the exact same clothes if they don't fit but you can sew a copy of the same design again) and a whole big announcement about him getting a new Sonic. The costumes and sonics are HUGE signs for fans. Like people collect the fucking sonics you have the old ones referenced in the show, it's a whole part of 12's identity crises with the shades and the new sonic after re-accepting the doctor after losing Clara. The TARDIS can make these for The Doctor or The Doctor makes their own. It's a whole thing!

Also, do they have to also fuck with Donna's ending? Really? I get some people do the whole "Donna deserved better" shtick but her ending is heartbreaking, well-written, well-acted and done just so well. Sad can be okay! I'm with Ashildir on this one, It was sad and beautiful. (Yes she's not referring to Donna but the principle stands)

Also like, The Doctor fucks people's lives up. Donna wasn't the first up Companions to have shit destroyed by The Doctor!

In the words of Martha Jones:

You need to be careful, because you know the Doctor's wonderful and he's brilliant, but he's like fire. Stand too close and people get burned (TV: Sonatarn Strategem)

Like Journeys End aired in 2008! Could we just let the story stand on it's merits?

I realise the culture of like the media in the 2010s & 2020s is just fuck with shit that should have been left alone. I mean I guess if we're doing a distribution w/ Disney we might as well follow their storytelling formula.

I mean remember the whole Time Lord victouris project? Like I'm obsessed w/ Doctor Who and have been into the EU for a long time I didn't even try and keep up with it. It was like the high republic franchise in Star Wars so hard to keep up w/ the story when you have to get so many disparate pieces of media. And again it's all Ten focused.

Honestly, I have always loved Ten. minus all this fuckery he is fantastic. And i will go to the bat i don't think he's a fuck boy. but I also like am perpetually gonna be annoyed at him.

Being a money maker does not actually define the quality of the story in every case.

[lastweeksshirttonight]

It was 95 degrees with 35% humidity today, my house feels like the inside of a blast furnace, and somehow I decided this was prime "watch and write about John" hours. So greetings from the surface of the sun, we've got more LWT to see!

Last Lee Tonight (wherein there is, theoretically, a universe where John Oliver is writing Tumblr reviews of Lee's topical news comedy) Season One, Episode Seven

(original air date: 6/15/2014) Major topics covered: US immigration reform, Washington Football Team Interview: Stephen Hawking

Trigger warning: racist iconography

"If you don't learn the recorder, you're fucked." "Seriously though, playing the recorder sets you up for life."

So uh, fun story. Remember how last week I said that the YouTube channel was finally starting to get the hang of things by episode six, aside from the occasional oddity of a one-minute clipped joke here and there?

The YouTube team didn't upload the main story from this episode to the LWT channel. At all.

We're still in prime "figuring this shit out" mode! Strap in!

That's consistent across the entire episode. After the last episode, which saw the show starting to coalesce into its modern form, this episode seems to go back to the drawing board and toss all kinds of shit at the wall to see what sticks - it's honestly most reminiscent of episode one. The opening segments are lightning-fast and don't transition into each other well, the central topic doesn't go nearly as deep as you'd expect it, and there's a random (but amazing) interview at the end of the show. I wonder if the next episode will swing the pendulum in the opposite direction again.

John starts our episode banging and then punching the desk, going in the opposite direction from our last episode. He seems to be taking out his rage on the glass countertop, which he looks very silly doing.

We begin by revisiting net neutrality, from Episode Five. (I'm linking it because I wrote this months ago, and if your executive dysfunction is anything like mine, you totally forgot everything about the episode.) In that episode, John described Tom Wheeler as a dingo, and somehow Tom Wheeler was asked about the LWT episode in a FCC meeting. He speaks like a literal robot and refutes, in the weirdest way possible, the idea that he's a dingo. How is that the thing you focus on from that whole segment. How. What? Christ.

The unsaid caption "Satire is not C-SPAN, however." goes without comment, which is unbelievable to me. That phrase cracked me up so hard I had to pause the episode. I know there was a rich vein of missing the point entirely and subsequent dingo humour to mine here, but come on John, that caption is a gift.

We then move to Iraq, where ISIS forces crossed nearly the entire country in five days and stole $400 million dollars. This bit only goes for about a minute before we move to another topic, Obama visiting the Standing Rock Sioux reservation and pledging aid. We finally then transition into a discussion of the Washington Football Team, who, at the time, were still refusing to change their goddamn racist name and iconography, which I will not be using here. (I did learn from writing this that apparently they have rebranded - FINALLY - as the Washington Commanders in 2022, after two seasons of being Washington Football Team.)

I appreciate how John lets an extremely sincere and powerful commercial made by Native Americans regarding the offensive name largely speak for itself, aside from one dark joke at the end, before discussing what an abject shitwhistle former Washington Football Team owner Dan Snyder is and how pathetic his protestations are.

It did take a while, but Snyder was ousted from his ownership post of the team in 2021 after a massive expose of sexual harassment under his watch was released in 2020. He's been mired in investigations over financial conduct, fraud, and deceptive business practices as well, to which I can only say "good".

The night's main topic, which has no YouTube video anywhere (I'm sorry), is immigration. John says he has a vested interest in the topic and the audience laughs, which is funny-weird because it doesn't seem like John is trying to humorously highlight his insider nature here. The real focus here is the debate over immigration reforms, as the system is (and remains) very broken and anti-immigrant sentiment is high all over the world.

I do wish this clip was on YouTube. It's not the most informative piece on immigration, but is a nice window into how much John loved this country prior to the beginning of its full collapse. This definitely takes much more from The Daily Show mold, being a comedic monologue interspersed with news clips that allow John to riff on the state of immigration, as opposed to later LWT immigration segments, which tend to be exceptionally sobering. This one is comparatively light-hearted and surface-level, and John delivers the material with a very comfortable confidence. I don't think the segment itself is a standout, but I really like John's attitude here.

We technically get our first animal-fucking joke during this segment, which is about bears only fucking face to face and stops John cold as he helplessly giggles over it. One step closer to getting all the running jokes in order!

Somehow, the end of this with the animated Actual American Tale video is on YouTube, so please enjoy one of the most depressing things LWT has ever put together. It's genuinely far more distressing than the actual main topic segment.

The episode ends with the only appearance of "recurring segment" Great Minds: People Who Think Good, where John interviews Stephen Hawking. Interestingly, I was listening to a podcast today (gonna likely make a separate post on it) where John talked about how much he loved interviewing Hawking and how he wanted to showcase the man's wit and humour more than his intelligence. I think that the interview is incredibly successful in that regard.

I adore this interview so much. Never have I had so much fun watching John get totally roasted.

Random notes:

Lee is a very predictable man corner: today we get a black suit jacket with lavender shirt and dark purple tie, which is a great look, 9/10. The only thing keeping it from being a 10 is that it's missing an element of boldness. Maybe a deep purple jacket or a shinier tie?

Lee continues being predictable in a second bullet point: the interview outfit is a black suit jacket with a light-blue and white checkered shirt and black tie. Definitely a pedestrian but still solid look and I still love the baby blue on John, so I give this 7/10.

Please stop making me talk about American football in these, John, I beg you.

"I lost my virginity to the sound of a man ranting about Bulgarians." This is so far the best line of early LWT, I will bear no other arguments.

There are no random 1 minute YouTube clips of isolated jokes this episode! 🎊

Once an episode, someone from the past 20 years of American political culture pops up that I've completely forgotten about and am upset to be reminded of. This week, it's Michele Bachmann, who I refuse to look up to see what she's doing now. You cannot make me think more about Michele fucking Bachmann.

There is an extended interview with Stephen Hawking that adds a few nice bits, like John asking Stephen a meandering hypothetical about him being a drug lord with inconsistent staff.

[theawkwardanglophile]

TheAwkwardAnglophile's Year in TV shows: 2022

It seems I've started a tradition, and even though I know only very few people will actually see or read this, it's still fun to put together. This is my third time doing this. Feel free to check out my lists for 2021 and 2020 as well.

My criteria for shows making the list is the show either aired new content in 2022, or I'd never watched it before. So, while I did several rewatches, those didn't count. Also, beware: SPOILERS ABOUND! Here's the list in alphabetical order:

Abbott Elementary: What a perfect little sitcom that just stormed onto the scene after so many beloved sitcoms had gone off the air the last few years. They deserve all the accolades! It is genuinely hilarious. Ava probably makes me laugh harder than any of them, and of course I'm here for Janine and Gregory.

Andor: Holy crap, I was not expecting to be drawn into this show as much as I was. What a brilliant deep dive into the Star Wars universe. So many layers and subtleties to it. Luthen's monologue BLEW ME AWAY, and I looooved the prison escape. You get such a better understanding of how terrifyingly far the Empire's reach went.

Baymax: I was expecting a full-blown series, so I was very disappointed to find only 6 short episodes that were only a few minutes long. However, it was more Baymax, which is always a good thing. I think my favorite was the episode Kiko, which had Mrs. Kim from Gilmore Girls (Emily Kuroda)!

Blockbuster: I know it got cancelled, but I actually kind of enjoyed it. It wasn't the best, but it had potential. There were a few genuinely funny moments for me, and I think the episode where they do inventory was my favorite.

The Book of Boba Fett: Ok, so I know there are a lot of Fett fans out there from the past 40 years, but I'm indifferent to Boba. But I found a lot to enjoy in this show. I liked watching Boba connect with the Tusken Raiders. However, the pacing and structure were terrible, Fennec was underutilized, and the Mos Espa "power rangers" left me scratching my head. The BEST PART of it all was the Mandalorian season 2.5 they snuck in there! Watching Grogu with Luke, seeing what Mando had been up to, and the most beautiful father/son reunion!! MY HEART. Sorry you got sidelined in your own show, Boba, but the Mando eps were WIZARD.

Call Me Kat: I'm still watching, still enjoying, but this show is kind of a mixed bag sometimes. I was not happy with how everything went down with Oscar. He was such a sweetheart! Am I happy Kat and Max have become a couple? Yeah, I guess, but I think it could've been done differently. Also, it won't be the same now without the lovely Leslie Jordan, RIP.

Derry Girls: Loved the final season. It's so quirky and fascinating and hilarious. The parents' high school reunion was absolute GOLD.

Dream Home Makeover: It's definitely one of those shows that you question why you're watching, yet you can't turn away. I don't want to like it. The couple is just odd together sometimes, and everything was shown out of order! One minute she was pregnant and then she wasn't, but then they'd go back to her being pregnant!

Emily in Paris: Season 3 was pretty good, although I found Emily a bit grating. I was worried they were going to make the whole season about her shenanigans working for both companies, but thankfully that got resolved quickly. Luc is still such a delight, and Sylvie has even grown on me. Gabriel and Alfie are still 🔥🔥.

Hawkeye: I watched this at the beginning of '22, so it's a bit fuzzy now, but it was enjoyable. Not quite at the level of some of the other Marvel shows (like Loki or Wandavision) but still pretty fun.

History 101: A fascinating little documentary series! I was hooked. Each episode was about a very specific topic and was brilliantly done.

Home Economics: This sitcom is pretty fun. I've always loved Topher Grace (although oddly enough I never watched That 70's Show 🙈), and he still nails awkward comedy. All the family dynamics are fun to watch, the kids are cute. And the Spiderman joke when they were at Disneyland had me ROLLING.

The Home Edit: I devour these episodes whenever they drop, and then I want to revamp my entire house, and life. I love organization, plus Joanna and Clea make everything fun to watch.

How I Met Your Father: I was SUPER skeptical about this one, and maybe still am a bit (HIMYM fans, you understand). But I ended up enjoying it more than I thought. I need to watch the last ep again to prep for the upcoming season 2, because I've forgotten a lot. I'm curious to see where it goes.

Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous: The last season was wild, and I COULD NOT STAND Kenji's dad. The woooooorst. Shipped Brooklynn and Kenji, and happy Yaz and Sammy found happiness together. The ending was very satisfying for everyone!

Moon Knight: Oh DANG, what a ride. So many moments I'm like, "WHAAAAAAT am I even watching?!" But it was a fun, trippy adventure, and Oscar Isaac deserves all the awards.

Name That Tune: Always fun. I slay at this game.

Never Have I Ever: I just LOVE this show. Season 3 was another stellar season, and I am still definitely Team Ben! That ending! And the show still makes me cry, especially the scene with Devi and her mom in the finale. 😭

Obi-Wan: I know this wasn't as well received as was hoped, but I enjoyed it. Young Leia was fantastic! Lola, too (I have adopted her in my club of beloved droids). The story worked, and the Vader/Obi-Wan showdown was pretty amazing. The last 20 minutes of the finale was just a giant checklist of fan service, but honestly, I'm not complaining.

Only Murders in the Building: LOVE LOVE LOVE. This show is so incredible, and season 2 didn't disappoint! It's smart, hilarious, and I love the intro music so much. The intros were actually made even better by each one being slightly different with something related to that particular episode.

The Orville: If this journey for The Orville is truly at an end, then they sent it off well. A satisfying ending. I think the supersized episodes didn't work as well as their punchier 40-minute eps, but man, when they go big they go BIG. Incredibly well done topics, and the effects! INSANE. I swear Hulu must have kept just dumping money on them, like "Go ahead and make whatever effects you want!"

Paper Girls: This was...weird. I went through most of this going, "WHAT AM I EVEN WATCHING?" Obviously I loved all the retro vibes, and I was curious enough in the story to stick it out, but that was about it. It got pretty dark at times, and I thought the language, while warranted, got excessive enough at times to detract from the story. Anyway, if they were trying to capture the magic of Stranger Things, it didn't work, and it got cancelled anyway.

The Rookie: MY HEART! MY OTP. MY BEST SHIP AND SHIPPING EXPERIENCE EVER. My obsession with Chenford has exploded even more, as any of my followers can clearly tell. I love Tim and Lucy SO MUCH, and watching them become canon has been INCREDIBLE. But also, the show itself has stepped up its game in S5. The plots are better, more balanced, and I love all the different relationships shown. Making Thorsen a regular was a fantastic decision. The social media team has been killing it. And the show has gained tons of viewers and fans. We are truly in the golden age of The Rookie.

The Rookie: Feds: I like the show, but don't love it...yet. Maybe I will? It is done well, but it's just there. I watch it when I get around to it. Garza and Laura are probably my fave characters. I do like Simone, but she's also a lot. And I say this only because it's the FBI and there must be some kind of dress code, she should probably cover up the girls more. I swear she's going to end up having a wardrobe malfunction.

School of Chocolate: Pretty fascinating little chocolate-making competition.

Star Trek: Discovery: S4 was kind of a mixed bag. I'm not sure it was as memorable as previous seasons. I hate Tilly left. I did like that there was a running thread throughout of identity and belonging, and mental health. My FAVORITE part was how they found a way to communicate with Species Ten-C. Some brilliant television.

Star Trek: Lower Decks: S3 was ok, not my favorite, but it's still funny. My fave moment actually came in the DS9 ep. The background swing music at Quark's is actually from a band that my mom does booking for, Denver & the Mile High Orchestra, and for other personal reasons I won't go into here, that moment meant a lot to me.

Star Trek: Picard: Insert Picard facepalm here. I wanted S2 to work so badly, and be amazing, and it just wasn't. I mean it had Q and time travel and all the ingredients for something incredible, and it still didn't work. It would take too long to hash it all out here, but if anyone wants to vent with me, I'm around. I am excited (and nervous) for S3, however! I hope they don't let me down.

Star Trek: Prodigy: I still love the animation, and the kids are fun. I'm gonna be real honest, though. I'm mainly here for Janeway and Chakotay, because no, I'm still not over how Voyager ended, and if an animated kids show will let me see more of these two, I will take whatever I can get.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: Before I go any further, may I just point out the amazing WONDER that FIVE different Star Trek series aired new content in 2022?! A new record! The Trekaissance is real. This show exceeded my expectations. It's so different, yet still so classic Star Trek style. The characters are great, and the intro is incredible! I cry at that intro. It's sweeping and gorgeous and ahhhhh.

Stranger Things: I've loved Stranger Things from the beginning, was excited for S4, but when I watched 4x01 I almost gave it up. It felt so dark and depressing, and the scene at the end was horrifying. I put it off for a couple weeks before deciding to try again, and I slowly worked my way through the rest of the season. There were still parts I couldn't watch (I really don't do horror, Stranger Things was always about as far as I would go, but then they really upped the horror in S4, much to my dismay), but ultimately I'm glad I did watch, although unlike the rewatchability of S1-S3, I'm not sure I can go through S4 in its entirety again. But there were some BEAUTIFUL moments we got, lots of laughs, lots of emotions. All the reunions in Vol. 2! El seeing Hopper again 😭. And my absolute favorite part...JOPPER IS CANON!!

Supermarket Sweep: Always a lot of fun. Sad that it won't be back.

Young Sheldon: It's losing steam, but I'm still watching. The whole storyline with Georgie has been interesting.

And there you have it! 33 shows in all, which is probably a record for me. Feel free to message me or send an ask if you want to further chat about any of these. If you read this far, YOU ARE A ROCKSTAR AND I APPRECIATE YOU.

[whorrorgrl]

What I Watched In May

I have been gone for a long, long long, time. It's mostly because of my job, but also because of my lack of motivation in writing. I have a lot of ideas, but not really much time to write them. I

I watched a lot of things since February, things that I want to have their own individual posts, and others I forgot. Most of them are rewatches. I got HBO and was just playing Friends as white noise maybe 5-6 times (all. ten. damn seasons.). I'm not going to beat myself much about it or it'll feel like a chore, so I'm going slow. I want to upload my ideas soon though.

Anyway, here's what I watched for the month of May.

Lovecraft Country (2020)

After the disappearance of his father, Atticus "Tic" Freeman, his paternal uncle George, and childhood friend Letita "Leti" Lewis travel across segregated United States in the 1950's in search for answers. This trip kickstarts Tic into a world seemingly unreal as they fight against supernatural forces of evil and ones at their very door.

After the recent allegations against Jonathan Mayers, I was hesitant to watch this show. I knew him from that Antman movie, nothing much else. I thought he was a promising actor; decent. It’s disappointing he turned out to be an alleged awful human being. After watching Lovecraft Country, it’s an even bigger tragedy. This show is a whirlwind. Spoilers ahead.

I adore horror in show formatting. I believe it allows a plot to be properly fleshed out. But! That also means more of a dedication. That has to be the only excuse I have for not getting around to this masterpiece sooner. At only ten (10) episodes, Lovecraft Country is worth the binge.

I can easily watch certain movies and shows that others would find too hard to handle. One part I struggle with is suspense. I swear I feel it in the air and my lungs pump thick with it. But I get through it in one piece. Depending on how hard it hit me, I might not rewatch it again. After finishing LC, I think the ease at which I can watch certain movies/shows is accredited to it feeling outside of the realm of my own reality, or at least shit I wouldn't be caught dead doing.

I found it very uncomfortable to watch.

I almost didn't want to finish it.

On top of dealing with sharp teeth blob creatures, our characters have to take on the worst horror of all: racism in the 50's. Evil, pink skinned, sweaty and entitled white people make it their mission to harass and brutalize black bodies for simply existing. Worse, some wielded powers.

Horror movies are notoriously white. Even some of my favorites are all white casts with maybe an Asian or black character that gets killed off. They're usually slashers, demonic possessions, or ghosts walking in and out of frames. I'm used to that. Any underlying issues the characters battle are usually standard. In Evil Dead (2013), the main character dealt with addiction and those around her struggled keeping her focused this go-around at sobriety. In The Witch, Thomason had to assimilate to new life after being casted out by her previous community. In I See You (2019), the couple treads the aftermath of an affair - so on and so forth. The A plot is usually horrifying (messing with a spell that releases a demon, witches bordering on the edge of the forrest, or a bunch of new kids disappearing years after a case is seemingly closed) while the B plot is more grounded. I get that. But when I tell you, monsters and prophecies about magic is the least of Leti (Jurnee Smollet) and Atticus's (Jonathan Mayers) worries, I mean it. I'd prefer it. The worst scene was the very first episode where they're stuck in a sundown town with seven minutes til and have to drive 25 miles the speed limit with only seconds to spare or a shitty cop would murder them. I paused that scene countless times. The riots were another. The diner scene got me good.

Racism is just ugly. As more and more documentation reaches the mass through social media, what really happened during slavery and Jim Crow is more horrifying than the popular teachings of history in schools or dramatization in Hollywood tells. I despise this type of plot and try to avoid it. I don’t watch slave movies. The ones that I have were torture. I liked Django, but mainly because it barely had Jamie Fox suffering and actually showed him being a bad ass. I found out they wanted to do a movie on Emmett Till after the success of Central Park Five’s retelling, which was so alarming. It’s now money driven, these stories. It seems that's the only black stories Hollywood thinks is profitable. Them TV series (2021), Karen (2021), etc, are recent movies that popped up after the success of Jordan Peele debut movie. Get Out (2017) did it well. Its sons? Not so much.

That’s why I liked Little Monsters (2018), Us (2019), or my childhood favorite Haunted Mansion (2001), because they are horror movies with black lead that isn't full on KKK torture porn. Once Jordan Peele did his thing with Get Out, these studios are slowly falling into a box. Even Peele's future works like Nope and Us were speculated on being political pieces. It's only when they were first release did people realize he can create black horror without the traumas of racism. Even in the new Little Mermaid movie with Halle Bailey, there's a discourse about Ariel needing to be a slave to be historically accurate. A mermaid that got her legs from the witchcraft of a squid needs to be historically accurate. Her dad's cape is made of fish! I don't think anything is accurate in any dimension.

(Huffs) Anyway, Lovecraft.

I'd still recommend in a heart beat. So amazing. I cannot give it enough praise. The music choice was a little random and ill-fitting, some of the spoken words were excessive and didn't hit with the scenes they overlaid, and (love Jurnee but) Leti, another of many light skin love interest, was an annoying casting. Ji-Ah's storyline ending was okayish - I expected a little more since it was one of the best plots of the many packed into this show. But other than that, A in my books. I'll have to rewatch it again with my boyfriend, so I hope those painful scenes go down better the second time around. That scene with the two girls following Diana around was horrifuckingfying. It reminded me of Peele's 2022 Nope with the kids in the barnyard. Their eyes, especially in the alley when Dee waited to follow the cops, was chef's kiss. One thing I will also add is Montrose's sexuality not going down the path I thought it would. We're so used to some public, traumatizing rejection of a closeted man's sexuality to his partner and we didn't get that. It didn't end satisfactory for me since we don't know what's next for him and his partner, so it felt a little throw-away. I truly find it ironic that our characters faced racism, hated being treated as below human, yet discriminated against those within the black community that were gay, etc. It wasn't talked about much between "Tic" and Montrose enough for me and kind of seemed glossed over in order to incorporate other storylines.That's a thing with ten episode shows as opposed to 24, but not a big deal.

9/10.

2. I See You (2019)

After the abduction of a 10 year old boy, a detective and his family experience strange occurrences in their home that may or may not be related.

Weird things begin to happen in the family's home that is later explained. I kind of assumed who the abductor/killer was simply based on the small amount of characters we're introduced to, so process of elimination was short. There are three big plot twists in this movie: who the boy-abductor is of course, who killed a certain mister, and why mysterious things seem to happen under Detective Greg's Harper's roof. All were equally as shocking as the last. Some things were weird, like the green pocket knives and why those specifically. Also, why the killer would just...have a bag of them in his car where those closest to him had access to? I liked the way all the stories came together and how they perfectly made sense and answered certain behaviors characters had. For example, Alec's obsession with taunting the family and going against the rules of "phrogging." I thought he was just a jealous, sadistic street rat that hated the life the Harper's son had since the boy seemed to be the main focus. When it all came together, by then it made sense what he was doing, but still an amazing shock. Random but the story telling reminds me of A Place Beyond The Pines (2012). The interludes (that seem unrelated) between stories is a storytelling I'm now realizing I really love.

9/10.

3. The Night House (2023)

The Night House is everything Smile (2023) thought it was. If you've read my previous review on Smile, you know I do not like that movie. If it had been released in the early 00's, I would've felt a little differently, but considering it's an overplayed formula that I already loved, grew accustomed to, and now only nostalgia could draw me to it, Smile just wasn't it for me. The Night House, however, is!

Beth (played by Rebecca Hall) is dealing with the death of her late-husband who recently committed suicide, leaving her alone in her lakeside home. We witness as she reels from the tragedy in ways that leave her friends uncomfortable, concerned, and out of their element on how to console. Certain things begin to happen around the home that makes her believe there is more to her husband's death. She feels there is a presence that could be her husband haunting her and her dreams seem to blur the lines between reality and something dark that parallels. As she does more research, we’re lead to believe that her husband might’ve cheated on her when she finds multiple pictures in his electronics of women who look weirdly similar to her. When I watched the trailer, I assumed there was this mirrored house across the lake in another dimension. A second her, a second husband. Maybe hers really died but that mirrored husband lives on. In the same house. With a double her. It’s what hooked me to it.

She just has such good people around her. Claire (played by Sarah Goldberg), her neighbor Mel, and even her husband all have this woman's best interest in mind and it's really refreshing to see that those around her did what they could to help her. And you might say, her cheating husband had good intensions? Listen, listen!

You see, years ago, Beth had died for four minutes in a car accident. While others claim to see many things, Beth saw nothing. However this nothing is an entire intelligence that wants her back.

Nothing isn't over the four-minute stand he had with Beth, haunting her husband, Owen, into killing her to get her back to Nothing. Owen instead creates a reverse home by the lake, luring Beth look-alikes back to the home to trick Nothing into thinking Beth died.

This confused me a little, because I'm assuming Nothing is a lot smarter than assuming a look-alike is the Beth. Doesn't it have blood sample? A better, soul-based verification? Clearly not. It realized Owen's tricks and that lead to his "suicide." In the end, Beth is almost convinced to take her life until Claire and Mel save her in time. I believe Nothing is a metaphor of “stopping the pain.” It’s the promise of an end to the torment, the depression, the dull and excruciating task of living in misery. I just really loved it and am glad I got recommended it by TikTok.

8/10

4. Scream 6

Y'all, I don't think I can stop loving this franchise.

In an effort to not be seen as a hypocrite since, if I remember correctly, I was pretty tepid with my review on Scream V, BUT! But! This one has rejuvinated the small, itty-bitty hope I had in this franchise. 'Cause that's what she is; my baby's a franchise.

I don't know why I don't like Sydney Prescott. It's not that I hate her, but you gotta admit she's overstayed her welcome. This is why I was happy Ms Never Wanna Die was not in Scream 6. It makes so much sense, this show. It's a repeat, one I hope they don't continue, but Scream 5 is technically just "Scream," just like the first movie from 1996. The boyfriend was the killer in the original, so it's cool that the boyfriend's the killer in Scream (2022). In Scream 2 (1997), the killer's family comes back to blame Sydney Prescott for their piss-poor parenting. So In Scream 6 (2023), it's now a realized pattern that they're intentional by making the killers Richie's dad and siblings - one serial killer is bad enough, but the entire family is fucked. Hopefully in Scream 7, this isn't the same because that'd only mean the off screen Carpenter mother had some random love child with Adolf Hitler and that kid felt left out of the already dysfunctional family of the sisters.

Or it's Tara. But that's wishful thinking.

I loved loved loved loved LOVED it. The opening scene of the Jaime King kin member Samara Weaving dying was fantastic. We get to see a Ghostface reveal in the first few minutes, which is a first of the movies and so refreshing. It made me excited when I assumed we'd know one of the identities and how they'd incorporate that into the story. However, when said Ghostface heads home just to be killed by another, it blew my mind. "Who gives a fuck about the movies?!" Plus that angle? Y'all I was in heaven! I truly do not think I will EVER get tired of these movies and it's really sad. This is my Fast and Furious. This is my James Bond, my Star Wars franchise, my Days of Our Lives, My Greys Anatomy...I hope it never ends and if it does, what would life be? Bleak, I think.

I have to admit there are a few logistical issues. Like, why Kirby didn't do extensive research into Wayne Bailey the second she hopped onto the case for a "helping hand." Matter of fact, how was he even transferred to NY without a background search and the discovery of a link between Richie? Given Kirby's past and how no one in these situations can be trusted, why hadn't she done this? How had Bailey been able to bribe that many criminal evidence from the one police station without anyone finding out? Are there no inventories? Not many big cases seem to happen in that town, so I feel like the top four big cases of Ghostface would've been noticed gone. How did her therapist not know who she was since she's practically infamous, and what was his purpose in the story? I know it's to build up the many cases of defamation against Sammy but it was pretty weak. To be quite honest, a final girl like Kirby should've been handled with better care. I kind of felt like she was there for a legacy token coin and a misdirection that I'll admit got me. Other than that, pretty good.

I think these movies will be better than most being sputtered out today because of the pressure these writers have not to fuck up Wes Craven's work. A good idea would've been all the costumes on Halloween night paying tribute to Craven's many movies, but they are dated so I understand. Would've been cool though.

10/10 shit

5. The Lighthouse

I don't want to be that girl. I already stated how I am when it comes to slow burns, but I tolerate elevated horror. Tara Carpenter is rolling her eyes, but she has a stab wound to heal from so priorities. I clicked on this one and just watched it quickly before I talked myself out of it.

I like it.

I think.

Seeing Willem Dafoe being walked like a dog was an interesting scene.

Seeing a mermaid pussy was also one for the books.

The Lighthouse was directed by Robert Eggers, who we all know from The Witch. He's an amazing director and clearly has a niche for period pieces. I don't know how to properly review this since I still do not know what the fuck I watched - Watch Mojo couldn't even help me. It's based on a Greek mythology and is about wanting something you cannot have. One of the references was Icarus, who died after flying too closely to the sun despite his father's warning. Proteus, a sea god that controlled the changes of oceanic bodies of water was also mentioned. Thomas Wake (played by Willem Dafoe) warned "Ephraim Winslow" of not killing seagulls to avoid bad luck, who were believed to be reincarnated sailers. However, out of frustration of one getting in the cistern, he kills a seagull, and all goes downhill from there. Since the beginning, the demands of being a lighthouse keeper proved to be demanding for Winslow:doing menial, disgusting, or laborious jobs around the rock the lighthouse resided on. What follows is Winslow's slow turn into madness, hysteria, and greed.

The part on sailers being reincarnated into seagulls was so interesting. The one-eyed seagull attacking him multiple times correlates to the previous "wickie" under Wake who had only one eye, the other seemingly singed in. Time going by differently for Winslow when he missed the lighthouse tender because of the storm. In the end, when Wake is murdered by Winslow and Winslow finally gets to ascend to the lighthouse, a growing curiosity of his since Wake never allowed him up there but himself, it reminded me of Icarus. Getting too close to the sun. He is then seen, one eyed, laying on the rocks as seagulls pick at his intestines.

I can dissect some parts of this movie, but that's it. It was an interesting watch. If I rewatch it again, I hope to discover things I missed. Hopefully next time I'll have subtitles.

6. Bodies, Bodies, Bodies! (2023)

Directed by Halina Reijn, this movies follows a group of young adults who get stuck in a remote mansion during a hurricane. When one stumbles up dead, this kick-starts a night of horrors as the group is picked off one by one by a mysterious killer.

This movie is so funny. I knew it would be fun to watch since majority of the scenes were Tiktok sounds, my favorite being the upper middle class one. There's nothing really revolutionary to talk about during the entire movie. Majority of the drama are things that happened off screen since the movie starts when Sophie shows up on the last day of an already existing hangout. It was still good, just a little annoying when they spoke on drama between a random guy name Max and Emma. Everything else was fine and easy to follow along with. This is the friend group where everyone hates each other and probably just tolerates each other just because they grew up together. It's also a really fun and tasteful jab at our generation's internet culture and the obsessive need to find victimhood. I mention victimhood because the ending is so ridiculous and unavoidable that it's crazy. David (played by Pete Davidson) is threatened by the geriatric Greg (played by Lee Pace), a “vet" that is hanging out with a bunch of 20-somethings at his gargantuan age. Greg used a machete to cut open a bottle of champagne, which all the girls fawn over. This annoys David, who is threatened by a new man in the group and it shows. After leaving a game of heated Bodies, Bodies, Bodies between David and Greg, David goes on Tiktok to try and replicate the champagne trick, slicing his neck open in the process. He stumbles up to the house with an open neck, freaking out the girls, and making Greg suspect number one. After the most nauseating misunderstandings happen between Greg and the girls, he is killed by Bee, Sophie's new two-finger warmer, with a kettlebell. These girls went through a night of hell, accidentally killing each other off or turning against one another as preexisting tensions comes to light.

There is no killer.

I was watching this trying to do my process of elimination and coming up empty. I thought, if it's this fucking off-scene dude, Max, I will throw a fit. This cannot be Pretty Little Liar's season finale where they introduce the culprit as someone we never saw. Max was at least mentioned but still.

It was just so ridiculous in a good way. Sophie annoyed me. She didn't stand up to them kicking Bee out or the fight with Bee and Jordan. Plus, she was cheating on sweet Bee. What country is that girl from? Who knows. Aside from being a foreign girl from an unnamed country, she is the outside of the group or long term friends so they quickly turn against each other. Plus Sophie was a romantic two-timer, which raised even more tension for third party Jordan. This movie was so ridiculous that I loved it. I just keep repeating, “He’s a Libra Moon! He wouldn’t do this!”

What I really want to know is what was on that phone of Sophie's?

8/10

7. His House (2020)

Wunmi Mosaku twice in one month? I'm not complaining.

Rial and Bol are refugees who make a harrowing escape from war-torn South Sudan. However, they get more than they bargained for with their new home.

His House is…. a trip. Directed by Remi Reeks, it stars Mosaku and Sope Dirisu who move into a home after seeking asylum in England. They’re on a trial base stay where they’re placed under strict restrictions they have to abide by or else face deportation. Bol is excited to start his new life in England and assimilates quickly to their customs. He opts to eat on a table as opposed to the floor, uses utensils instead of his hands, and buys western clothing. In a later scene, he even tries to stop Rial from speaking dinka, their mother language. He attempts to be friendly with the neighbors, especially this one white woman above him, but is met with hostility. Rial, however, is less willing to assimilate to British culture and keeps her Sudanese customs, much to Bol’s dislike. I first assumed it was because everything seemed trivial after all the couple endured. On their way to England on a small fisher boat, majority of the people they were with died, including their daughter, Nyagak. But on Rial’s first trip to the doctors, she tells a physician that growing up in Sudan, two warring gang would mark themselves distinctively to whichever group they belonged to. Rial marked herself with both, signifying that she belonged nowhere. She’s used to being an outsider, so trying to fit into a country that expects her to be happy with “unseasoned scraps” is not a priority for her. Being “one of the good ones.”

The depiction of racism in this movie is so similar to how I hear it’s handled in England: it night as well not exist.

You know what they mean when they say certain things, do certain things, and treat you a certain way. Unlike the United States, racism in England is so covert that they themselves will deny ever having this problem. It’s kind of like that parent (England) traumatizing their child (United States) and then are shocked when the child goes on to live a more volatile life. Where is the origin of this madness? How did it get this bad? Not a clue.

I read Reni Eddo-Lodge’s book on Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race. The very first paragraph spoke on British’s hidden racist history. They learned about American history with racism, yet not their own, so people will swear up and down it’s not a thing.

But the racial undertones are just that in this movie, undertones. It isn’t on equal grounds as Lovecraft Country when it comes to the most impeding issue Bol and Rial will have to face. An apeth, a night witch, haunts the home, tormenting the couple so that a “debt” is paid.

The horror elements were amazing. I love this new turn in supernatural movies, especially when it comes to hauntings. Lingering shots, horrifying visuals that are so vivid, and those ghosts that sneak up on you out of frame. Is this an elevated horror? If so, it’s what The Babadook was for others but for me. I really don’t like the Babadook, but that was years ago. If I have time to waste, I’ll rewatch it and see how I like it.

Now to the spoilers. The twist was a twist for sure. On my second rewatching, it was a completely different experience because it’s so obvious yet so not what was really happening. This apeth that keeps haunting them calls Bol a thief and he seems to be the primary focus of the entity. Rial tells a story of a man that was poor and wanted a home, just like Bol, who stole from another man that he didn’t know was a night witch. He got his home and the apeth moved in with him, haunting and tormenting the man. I sat to wonder, what did Bol steal? Why isn’t this life his to have? I assumed he was a member of one of the gang that must’ve changed his mind on murdering and wanted to seek refuge. Did he kill someone to get the opportunity?

Girl no.

He stole Nyagak, his “daughter.” After Rial survives a massacre of her friends and Bol goes to find her, they escape with other people seeking refuge. They happen upon a bus that’s only loading people with children. As people fight to be let on, the bus lead refuses single people. As the gang shoots in a distance, Bol sees a child separated from her parent and grabs her, lying to the bus head and giving Rial and Bol a seat to freedom. Nyagak ends up dying on the boat, which starts the chain of a apeth following then to whichever home they get.

It’s funny when they get to the house and Mark greets them. The house is bigger than those afforded to refugees. Rial asks why they got such a big house and Mark states, “Must’ve won the jackpot.”

I really liked this movie and, unlike most elevated horrors, it has a good rewatch quality to it. I’d highly recommend it.

One random realization is that Brits are amazing actors. I realize this when I watched Fish Tank (2009). It’s just so realistic and so natural. One scene where Rial sees three black boys playing. She gets a sense of relief seeing them and goes to ask them for directions. They’re assholes and even tell her to go back to Africa, mocking her mother language and pronunciation. They were just so realistic and so natural. Even the most random actors with small roles are so good, I don’t know. Those acting coaches there are something else.

Lastly, Netflix, I need everything translated. I don’t care how insignificant it is, translate that shit! [Speaking in Dinka] motherfuckers. Tsk!

10/10

8. Swarm (2023)

An obsessed, Houston-base fan goes to increasingly violent lengths for her favorite R&B singer amid a death.

This one is hilarious. Why? Because I am a Beyonce fan. I even have her tatted on me, no joke. With that said, I know the Hive can be an interesting fandom. Does it rival Nicki Minaj's? Closely. Does it Chris Brown's? Crack always prevails, so no.

I do not like Donald Glover, nor his portrayal of black women. When it comes to Dre, a mentally ill black woman, he describes her as he would a rabid dog and directed Dominique Fishback as such. Instead of allowing Swarm to be a depiction - of sorts - of mental illness of a black woman taking form in murderous ways funneled through a shared interest between her and her late sister Marissa, we get this. The links between Beyonce I think was a good touch because it's funny and kinda true. The soul of the movie and its intentions I'll save for another day.

Fishback is amazing and my first time with her. Billie Eilish as Eva was jaw dropping. But best of all, Rickey Thompson as Kenny just trying to do his job was hilarious. I wanted to watch him over and over again and I hope it's a start to an amazing acting career.

The question I have with this show is, did Dre kill Marissa? I believe so. At first, I didn't. Marissa had a history of depression and seemed co-dependent so I'd assumed she killed herself from the breakup. But as I watched more reviewers who pointed out things I hadn't noticed, it seems more plausible.

I don't think Dre's murderous rampage is just because she loves Ni'Jah. The R&B singer was something Dre and Marissa shared together. She was this successful woman that inspired the girls, especially Marissa who wanted to be a popular makeup artist. She had Youtube videos of makeup tutorials and dreamed of being big. When she died, Dre (who might've been the one to take that life) saw Ni'Jah as the potential, the stardom, the fame that Marissa could've had. She essentially saw this woman as a way to still have some remnant of her late sister. Anyone who did not like Ni'Jah Dre viewed as insulting her best friend. They might as well have spat on Marissa’s dead body. The obsession with driving across states to see Ni'Jah, wanting to get close to her and be at that concert no matter what obstacle came in her way showed that. We don’t see this much length be measured when Marissa was alive.

Marissa and the R&B singer were one in the same. This proves true when Dre steals her way on stage with Ni'Jah. Instead of being tackled off, the dancers and Ni'Jah helps her up. Instead of the R&B singer's face, we see Marissa, who embraces her.

The show kept me on my toes every episode. The many casts were also interesting. My favorite death would be Paris Jackson's. I love the tongue-in-cheek jokes that mirror scandals and rumors of the actors, including Beyonce. That fact that Dre is the one to bite Bey was on the nose. The mini documentary that shows that what we're viewing is a dramatization of actors and seeing pictures of the "real" Dre was a nice twist too.

Let's talk about Ms Eilish! Those big, Piscean eyes. This woman is stunning. For her first acting debut, she was a plot twist of the many that were in this show. She came off creepy yet comforting at the same time, the perfect depiction of a cult leader. Truthfully, if that's a cult, I'd join. That's how I know I'd be perfect for these cult recruiters because to this day I don't see the red flags of those white bitches. Of course, they leverage your deepest secrets above your head to keep you in but honestly it's all namaste and ashwagandha mellows from there. Hiking, sisterhood, meditations? I hope I don't sound stupid...

Apparently there'll be a season two. I'm not the best in figuring out if a show needs one, but I don't think this one does. There are a lot of unanswered questions but I think for an ending like the one we were given....dead it. It's an open-ended answer and the speculation of what is real and what isn't is fun and elevates it. If it comes out I'll still watch it, but I hope that's it.

10/10

9. Level 16 (2018)

Girls in a prison-like boarding school embark on a desperate search to uncover the awful truth behind their captivity.

This is literally The Promised Neverland. It really isn't far off from what I hear is being done for people to retain youth. Especially for those who can afford it. If anyone knows that one Ellen interview with Sandra Bullock, I don't even think that's the tip of the iceberg.

This one was all over my Tiktok feed, plus Stephanie Soo made a video on it so I knew what it was about and knew the big reveal. I still liked the movie, so I don't think it ruined it for me. But I do know my experience would've been a lot different hadn't I known. It's so hard avoiding spoilers. Even harder when you don't realize it's a spoiler you'll want to avoid in the future.

I know Katie Douglas from Ginny and Georgia and a few clips of The Girl Who Escaped (2021). Sara Canning is Jenna from The Vampire Diaries, so it was nice seeing that she's still employed. Love her.

Like The Promised Neverland, the children of this "boarding school" endure sixteen years of indoctrination in an attempt to be the perfect child in hopes of being adopted. They have never been outside and have only been within the walls of the school. The girls don't know certain things like "movies," calling them "moving pictures." They're unaware of how to read and I assume write. Every day is a schedule that doesn't falter. If there are any interruptions, the fear of being sent to the basement for punishment and being seen as "unclean" keeps them in line. There are also guards. Unclean girls are ostracized and treated as infections that might spread to the others. Vivian hides that secret of being "unclean" years ago after an incident on level 10, but it isn't a pressing issue in the story.

This is a good plot. It was weirdly paced, but still good. Maybe it has to do with me knowing the stakes, but I felt like it wasn't better shown? I just couldn't take this joke of a school seriously. It seemed like they only had two guards and the rooms were poorly ran. If the girls knew any better they'd easily overpower them or just break through the thin, rotting walls.

Certain things didn't make sense. Vivian was punished on level 10 trying to help Sophia. Years pass when the girls meet each other on level 16 once again, their final year. Vivian is now a obedient girl that treads the line and avoid getting involved with anything that would jeopardize adoption. With that said, why would she not take the medication when Sophia told her? Sophia gave no explanation. From the point of view of Vivian, Sophia is the reason why she went through something so traumatic in the basement that still haunts her six years later. So why just automatically believe her with no reason to and the potential of defying these "caretakers" that once punished her for something similar?

I'm nitpicking.

I just like this specific plot and had my jaws to the floor when The Promised Neverland first released it. Who would've thought an orphanage would turn out to be a farm for harvesting children...Definitely doesn't happen in the real world that's for sure! (sarcasm)

An amazing plot. It had one horrific scene which is horror enough for me, so I added it to this month's reviews.

7/10

10. The Babysitter: Killer Queen

Two years after defeating a satanic cult lead by his babysitter, Cole once again has to outsmart the forces if evil when old enemies unexpectedly return.

Starring Judah Lewis once again as Cole, he is now a junior in high school still being bullied. The fact that all the events of the first 2017 movie was cleaned up results in no one believing Cole who is mocked for being “crazy.” His parents think he’s nuts, even his best friend Melanie (reprised by Emily Alyn Lind) who’d helped him that night of outrunning his satanic babysitter, didn’t really see much to help his case. Even her new boneheaded boyfriend picks on Cole.

This one was also on my lift for a long time. I really liked the first movie, but had forgotten it, so I rewatched it before watching this new sequel (new to me anyway), so I guess you can add that to the list of what I watched this May. Killer Queen is so fun. I watched it two more times after because it’s a light movie, which is surprising given the premise. Black comedy horror are usually good and this is no exception. I might make a list honoring them. The comedic timing, the visual effects, the casting, and, the best of all, Jenna mother fucking Ortega.

I didn’t really like this role much for her for some reason. The character is great and all, but something was just off. Not sure. It doesn’t ruin my rating of this movie but I just wanted to put that out there.

Now to the spoilers. Melanie is the new blond goddess with her name in the devil’s book. I did not see that shit coming. They corner Cole on a boat after taking him on a trip to “relax” after he finds out his parents are fed up with their crazy son and are planning to ship him off to a psychiatric hospital. The new group of teens are Melanie, her boyfriend, Jimmy, Diego, and Boom-Boom are all playing a game when Diego tastelessly ask Cole about his killer babysitter. Melanie instigates, but Diego presses. Melanie slips up a detail of the night that Cole never mentioned to her and she is figured out when Cole doesn’t budge on never having had mentioned that information. Melanie slits Boom-Boom’s throat. The sacrificed. Cole is once again face to face with the same cult that wanted to use his blood for power, fame, and glory. Funnily enough tonight is the night the old friend group of his dead babysitter, Bee, comes back. They are still on the pursuit to use Cole’s blood to get their wildest dreams. Phoebe, Jenna Ortega’s character that’s on her own side quest that independently seems to be related to Cole’s, opens the door to the scene. Her jet ski ran out of gas and she’d stopped on the anchored boat for help but quickly leaves once it’s obvious this is no ordinary party.

I don’t mean to victim blame here, but all of this could’ve been avoided if Cole just got drugged. Actually, I do mean to victim blame. It would be less traumatizing, wouldn’t it?

In the first movie, Bee laced a shot glass of alcohol she was going to give to young Cole but he was afraid of the taste and downed it in the plant when Bee wasn’t looking. From what I got, they were going to leave the boy alive. In Killer Queen, that seemed to be the same case. But that didn’t happen, so Melanie had to quickly improvise. Her deal with the devil was more important than her friendship with Cole, who she teases his feelings for her on many occasions.

I’m not saying just let them use you for a satanic ritual, but if you end up alive… I don’t know. Seems better than running around trying to outrun two groups of killers out for blood.

This movie is just hilarious. My three favorite characters are Robbie Amell, jock head of Bee’s friend group, and Ken Marino, who plays Cole’s father. Marino I know from iZombie and he is hilarious on that too. Everything Amell says is just so perfectly timed and he’s not so bad to look at. I liked him in Duff and that one Scooby live action in 2009. He’s also in a show called Upload I’m excited to start - the clips looked amazing on Tiktok. Samara Weaving is an iconic given, and I’m happy that she and Ortega have worked together in Scream 6.

I recommend both movies strongly. The plot is so good and the actors are perfectly casted. The ending is nice too. I’m just really glad his parents will finally realize he’s telling the truth. Misunderstandings and gaslighting a protagonist is the worst. If they make a third movie, I wouldn’t mind at all. I hope Netflix does since they love to run things into the mud, but we’ll see.

10/10.

Next month I plan on watching the new Evil Dead Rise. I'm just waiting on my boyfriend, so it'll take a while. He also hasn't watched any Jordan Peele movies, which is crazy but perfect for me because I get to rewatch them all over again. I'm mostly excited for Get Out. Thank you for those who read my reviews. I hope I inspired a movie night or two, a binge watch or five.

[regarding-stories]

Rejection Carousel: "Sing 'Yesterday' For Me"

I quite enjoy watching this one, but after a while I realized that practically all characters either rejected someone, were rejected by someone, or both. Given that the cast grows over the time of the show, that's quite a rejection pile for one show!

Rikuo is a loser, working as an aimless loafer in part-time jobs after graduating college. There he meets Haru, an eccentric younger girl with a pet crow who keeps showing up at the store. Turns out she's been into him for five years. He rejects her.

Shinako went to college with Rikuo and they were friends, but upon graduation she moved back to Kanazawa where she came from. Suddenly she's back in town after six months, working as a teacher. Rikuo confesses to her. She rejects him. Eventually Riuko leans that Shinako is still grieving her first love Yuu, who died while she was still in high school.

Rou is the brother of Yuu and loves the much older Shinako, but she sees him only as a little brother. She rejects him. Repeatedly. He's learning to draw, the only skill people seemed to value him for while his dying brother got all the attention.

Minato is a former classmate of Haru who ends up working for the same gallery as Riuko. He was in love with Haru since high school. He confesses to her, knowing Haru is in love with Riuko. She rejects him and he gets closure, leaving Japan to see the world as a photographer.

Kyoko is Haru's employer at the "Milk Hall" café. We learn she rejected Izawa, the guy who runs Rou's art cram school.

Chika is Rikuo's ex-girlfriend who's avoiding her strict parents, so when she's out of a job, she crashes at Rikuo's place without asking - knowing he has no girlfriend and wouldn't say no. She didn't really reject Rikuo, in fact, she would have not minded a casual thing, but she dumped him after only four months in high school. She's basically never been in love with anyone and dumped Rikuo because somebody else asked her out, and she "likes being liked." So instead of rejection she dishes out loveless relationships... yay...

So this is Japanese romance, huh?

Basically the whole setup where all characters start from is either unrequited love or at least rejection from someone, starting out from Shinako over Riuko to Haru. (And Haru basically rejecting all her potential suitors - girl could have a harem...) And then, at a leisurely pace, the show tries to get moving.

I have no idea how it will end, actually, and that's two or three episodes from the finish line of a 12 episode (only) season. I think the anime makers had mercy on us, given that the manga was collected in 11 volumes, so it probably plodded even more than this one.

Not that I mind it so much, though. Japanese love stories seem to revolve about people not voicing their feelings for a long time, hurt, fear, rejection, and slowly growing closer. In spite of being a mature, maybe adult or young adult story, the roots of all loves are way in the past - most of them in high school, one in childhood, one in the first year of college. Each character has to wait five or more years for any sense of closure. And still the show never truly feels like a downer. Strange, huh?

Given how things move I might be pissed off at the ending, but it's a beautiful show, set before the internet age when people had to catch each other on their landline phones. If I read it right, this series took from 1997 to 2015 to fully get published, after all. (Anime aired in 2020.)

But if you want a show about lonely people and friendship that still somehow manages to feel good and has a sense of beauty woven into it, maybe you should check this one out.

Bonus

Also, how could somebody reject Manic Pixie Dream Girl Haru? (Well, I guess she's borderline for the trope, but the crow seals the deal...)

She's definitely the show's resident Miss Fanservice, showing off costumes as she plies her job as a ... coffee delivery girl?

What, no GIFs of her riding her delivery scooter!? You fail hard, internet...

PS - It doesn't stick the landing

I think the ending is utterly unconvincing given how Rikuo behaved towards Haru the whole time. Your mileage might differ...

I think Shinako should just see a shrink.

A bit of a shame, really...

[sillsif]

↳ 8 Shows To Get To Know Me

thank you @jyuubin for tagging me! sorry it took me a while to type this up.

i have decided to pick shows that i rewatch for comfort or keep me awake at night thinking about every little detail and emotion inside. here we go!

Bones (2005 - 2017) i grew up with this show and i just love temperance brennan with my entire life. i love the smithsonians i love booth and brennan i love i love i love and i rewatched s1-s3 sooooooo many times because iykyk it just kills me in the best way everytime.

Because This is My First Life (2017) my comfort feel good kdrama. i love how this drama focused on telling the stories of three women fighting for their dreams, and how every one of them had their own definition of happiness. oh i feel so much for the three of them and i love love love their love interests too. such a well-written show.

The Good Place (2016 - 2020) another comfort and feel good show. the good place is fun, intelligent, and most importantly, kind. it came out during a time when we all needed that reassurance: that things can be changed. things can be better. things SHOULD be better. WE should be better, and we CAN be. i'd even say it's another version of everything everywhere all at once's philosophy. it also has chidi anagonye, the love of my goddamn life.

First Kill (2022) if i were a zombie ♪ i'd never eat your brains ♪ a lesbian vampire x hunter show that got fucking cancelled by netflix bc netflix hates lesbians. i miss them sorely. this show was fun and intriguing, it has the right tone for teenage romance — dramatic and heart-wrenching. the cast is incredibly charming — gorgeous women from mothers to daughters and beautiful men too. talia burns you are everything.

Racket Boys (2021) coming-of-age sports kdrama. i had a visceral reaction to insol when he [redacted] and then i had a mini phase where i had intense brainrots over haesol ( haekang x insol ) which in retrospect is sorta like me with palmchopper. you get what i mean? i still love insol very much and i still have brainrots about them in fact i'm looking at my gifsets right now.

The Get Down (2016 - 2017) I WILL NEVER FORGIVE NETFLIX FOR CANCELLING THIS SHOW. the get down was about the bronx and the beginning of hip hop. ezekiel figuero and shaolin fantastic. mylene. dizzee kipling. i love them so much. so many iconic scenes and lines. justice smith has remained one of my fave actors since then.

Better Call Saul (2015 - 2022) i watched this show during the airing of its final season bc it was all on netflix and i did not expect how easily i grew attached. i watched breaking bad a long time ago and never thought too much of saul goodman the funny lawyer, so i didn't rush to watch bcs when it first aired. but damn how glad i am to have binged it when it delivered its finale too. incredibly tight-knit and immaculate in writing and filming. the details are so intricate it's almost impossible to pull off but they managed. it's quite heavy from time to time, and such a tragedy too. but that's the story. and it does get the ending it deserved. i can say it's the best written tv show i've seen with such a long run.

Scissor Seven (2018 - ) happy, feel good, comfort show. it's a chinese animated series with a lot of canto humour, which just hits home for a canto like me. it follows the regular shounen anime formula but with less self-importance. it's just about a guy who wants to live a good life with people he cares about on this island he calls home. well, with the past coming back for his life.

tagging anyone interested!

[my-reality-my-rules]

Hi! Idk if you've seen it but I'm just curious, what are your thoughts on the show "Maria Clara and Ibarra" on tv if you've heard and seen it? Just asking bc I remember seeing one of your posts back then about Noli and El Fili! 😄 And the concept of the show may not be totally related to shifting but it's interesting bc you know, the main character of the show travels to the fictional world,,,, or maybe a reality where the plot is taking place. 😄

[thanks for this ask!]

initially, i was stoked about the show. it's your classic isekai plot, added with the fact that it's about an obscure fandom, and it counts as historical fiction; i had been immediately head over heels for it.

i didn't watch it immediately, however. when a show I'm interested in comes out, i try to wait until it's finished (whether it's a season or as a whole in general). AO3 trauma should be counted as a real thing; i get so frustrated whenever i see a discontinued fic and find out it's actually really good. this factored in with my hesitance to watch shows i like.

and i disagree; the plot was totally related to shifting—while it's true that you're not necessarily creating a 'new' body that disappears while shifting [looking at you, 2020 shiftok], you're still shifting to a body that exists in a certain period of time. even if it's an isekai.

😭😭😭 don't be shy just list it as an isekai-

it's been a while since this ask was sent. I'm currently answering this just as the first part of the show is ending (the last episode for Noli was airing earlier), so i might finally watch it in full.

i might(?) update on this in the other blog, though. I've yet to finish my El Noli script, and the show just gave me some hot ideas.