#honestly i feel like having just 2 more episodes in each half of the season and a bigger dragon budget would solve a lot of problems

[helaenahightower]

i don't disagree with people criticizing the lack of screen time laena has gotten but i am confused by how many people i've seen acting like book!laena wasn't a cardboard cutout who existed to ride vhagar, be rejected by viserys, disappear from the story completely for ten years, return to be daemon's placeholder wife, give birth, and then die

[dazais-guardian-angel]

Chapter 110 is 13 pages long welcome to hell!!! so in a lot of ways this is just more fuel for a theory that I've had for a few weeks now, that's only gotten stronger with each recent season 5 episode, which is that the last episode of the season is gonna end on 110, and that Asagiri/Harukawa and Bones have been collaborating to make this happen, specifically because it's a major turning point that would be the only good place to end the season on.

When we started getting especially long chapters again (like from 25-35ish pages, with the exception of 107.5, the last two being some of the longest we've ever had), at first I just assumed that Asagiri/Harukawa got freed up from some other obligations they'd been having to cause the extremely short/half chapters, like promotional stuff for the anime/Beast movie, or working on light novels. But then 109 happened, with the "supposed" death of Dazai, and heavy emphasis at the end on how literally everyone is at their lowest point right now, and I got to thinking. 11 episodes is a strangely specific number for an anime season -- why not 12, or 13, or even 10, like you'd usually see? Why have we gotten suddenly gotten two 35 page chapters out of nowhere, that's almost unheard of at this point? They're both beautiful chapters, don't get me wrong (as always), and maybe A/H simply just didn't want to cut them in halves because they felt like the full emotional impact wouldn't hit/that there were no good cutoff points in them, but you can't deny that it's surprising, after all the shorter chapters we've been getting. Why has the anime been going at such insanely breakneck pacing for the most part ever since around the Sunday Tragedy chapters, even more so than it has in the past? So much so that it feels dangerously close to overtaking the manga?

Well, maybe, just maybe, it's because..... Asagiri decided a long time ago that whatever happens in 110 is the only point that feels "season finale"-worthy enough, in an arc that still isn't anywhere close to being completely wrapped up, and so both the manga and the anime have been specifically coordinated to reach that part within 2 and a half weeks of each other?

I've seen a lot of people now think season 5 will end with 109, and as much as my sadistic side would find that hilarious, I honestly don't think they'd do that and realistically don't want it to happen; it'd be so cruel to cliffhanger the anime for years like that, and just doesn't feel like a season cliffhanger BSD would do, a series that is ultimately hopeful and uplifting. Seasons 2 and 3 had a positive, conclusive ending; the only reasons seasons 1 and 4 didn't was because they're technically not really full seasons of their own, and are more like the first cour of another "season" that also came out that same year (seasons 1 and 2 both aired in 2016, so they're more like one big season, and seasons 4 and 5 have both aired this year, so they're also more like one big season, again taking into account how episodes 12 and 50 are not satisfying finales like episodes 24, 37, and hypothetically, 61, are). I really can't see season 5 ending with Dazai and Fukuzawa's supposed deaths, Sigma being unconscious and maybe close to death, Atsushi being vulnerable and limbless again, everyone we love still vampires, and the entire world being basically doomed; that's just too depressing and not like BSD at all. However, having said that, if it doesn't end there, there really isn't any good place to end the season before that, either, that feels in any way satisfying or like a finale at all. And so, to me, that only leaves after 109: chapter 110.

I think things are really gonna turn around next chapter. Like I said, everyone is at their lowest point right now, it cannot possibly get any worse, the framing of Dazai, Fukuzawa, and sskk at the end of 109 is telling us that; this is the time for the heroes to finally start winning again, with Aya being so close to pulling out the sword, and for all the thematic reasons other people have talked about to death that I don't need to go into here again. This upcoming chapter being so short again makes a part of me wary of 110 being "the one", so to speak, I won't lie, but at the same time, it's very possible that it needs to be that short because that's all the final episode of the season will be able to reasonably fit in, since it's already gonna be VERY close if they do make it all the way to 109. And at the end of the day, I don't doubt at all that Asagiri and Harukawa can make these the most monumental and game-changing mere 13 pages ever if they wanted to; a chapter does not at all need to be extremely long in order to be an important and impactful one, even if short ones we've gotten in the past haven't felt the most important.

An additional thought I've had, though this is much more crack territory than all this already is, is that since we know from Anime Expo that a Stormbringer movie at some point is highly likely (judging from Asagiri's reaction when someone brought it up), it's possible that chapter 110 and thus the final episode will involve the long-anticipated return of Verlaine and/or Adam, or at least some other major reference to Stormbringer, that would naturally and smoothly lead into a Stormbringer movie to explain things to people who haven't read the novel. It would make a lot of sense, especially since the s4 OP has the Old World sign behind Chuuya, which might be a hint that this has been in the works ever since seasons 4/5 were first in planning with Asagiri. We also know that Dazai and Chuuya's voice actors apparently struggled to record their lines together this season, which probably relates to 101 and possibly 109, but it could be 110 too.... I could be very wrong, as I'm no expert on this kind of thing, but I kinda doubt they would bring Chuuya's actor in for just the vampire growls, and Asagiri placing heavy emphasis on Chuuya's importance this season in that one interview gives me the impression that he's talking about much more than just 101/109. But that's the least solid evidence I have, that's just mostly based on vibes I get.

So basically, I think a lot of factors -- the unusual episode count, how close the anime is to catching up to the manga with three whole episodes left, the seemingly arbitrary recent chapter lengths, and the climactic events of 109 -- can tell us that 110 might be a very, VERY big deal. Again, there's of course no way this arc is anywhere near close to being finished, with so much left to address and resolve, but since it is currently incomplete in the manga, unlike the previously adapted arcs, if the anime was going to adapt it at all, they'd have to find a place that feels satisfying enough to end this season, knowing there won't be more anime for a long time after this, and so I think they specifically planned for that, from both Bones' and A/H's sides. 10 episodes might not have been enough to reach that point, but 12 or 13 might have been too many it wouldn't have been if Bones actually decided to slow down and let the story breathe the way it needs to, but this post isn't meant to criticize the anime, so maybe 11 was just right. And maybe Asagiri and Harukawa specifically pushed to make recent chapters longer than usual, in order to make sure that the manga reached the story content in 110 the monthly release right before season 5 was to end.

Is this just copium? Absolutely. Am I going to look like an absolute clown in two days when this post ages like milk? Probably. But the evidence is There, so let me just enjoy my delusions until Sunday, okay 🥂🫡

[llannasvsp]

Dragons Rising Season 2, Episode 3: Beyond the Phantasm Cave

We are baaaack!! Honestly, I like spreading out my rewatch because I binged all 10 in one sitting. Spreading out my rewatch makes the excitement last longer. Not that I'm running out of excitement. I will never get over this season and it's not even done AGH. ANYWAY. On to the episode!

So, Cinder is Link from Zelda?

You feel the gong what?

Jordana and Cinder beef so real.

Awh, Kai. Glad they didn't forget his anger issues.

Arin is definitely not okay.

LLOYD MEDITATED ALL DAY AGHHH POOR GUY.

Lloyd has every right to be upset and frustrated right now.

Little source dragons!

OH MY GOSH the Netflix subtitles tell us which source dragon symbols correspond with the element!???!?

LIFE SYMBNOL CLAIMS LLOYD EVEROYNE. LIFE SYMBOL. DID ANYONE KNOW THIS?!?! YHHELLO. THIS IS MY FIRST TIME LEARNING OF THIS SO THIS IS A GENUIINE REACTION OH. MYGOSH.

Soooo Strength is a hater.

"He is no ordinary mortal". Okayyy so are we going to talk about him literally having Dragon heritage???

LEVITATING LLOYD CLIP!

Once again, Sam is literally serving. He portrays anxiety so well.

KAI + WYLDFYRE CLIP!

I am literally obsessed with this moment between them. Wyldfyre doesn't want to be left out. Kai wants her to stay safe and be okay. He's so kind and gentle with her. I love them.

I gotta admit, I'm an elemental mech hater.

"Would Master Wu take us on a mission based off of half understood dreams?" Oh he absolutely would.

KAI ASKING FROHICKY TO WATCH OVER WYLDFYRE RAGH.

I don't know how I feel about the Cloud Kingdom having a motor buuuut okay.

They really decided that this was the episode to upload clips from.

I love this moment because it addresses that Lloyd is doubting himself, it acknowledges that Lloyd and Nya have been through way too much stuff, and it shows us that Lloyd does not want to put Arin and Sora through something horrific. He doesn't want them to experience "the horrors" too young like he did.

Kai being mad that Wyldfyre stowed away but not in like an angry way but in a "I don't want you getting hurt" way is just sooooo.

Sora is so right to be concerned. I would be too if I were her.

I get what Sora was trying to do with the grappling hooks, but I also feel like this isn't going to bode well for Arin. She made his thing something "cooler" because their elemental powers are involved.

EWWW TENTACLES.

AGHH Arin and Sora complete each other my hearrrt.

Okayyy so visions.

Arin: Fear of letting his parents down. Guilt that he "replaced" them with the ninja.

Sora: Something to do with Imperium?? I don't really understand hers I'm gonna be so honest.

Lloyd: Being an inadequate teacher. Leading everyone to their destruction. "You will never be good enough." Dang.

Nya: Jay not remembering her.

Wyldfyre: The wasting thing that's talked about later.

KAI: WE DON'T FREAKING GET TO SEE IT. LET US SEE IT.

I feel like we just need to remember all of their fears because it's absolutely going to be important to all of them later.

"I know the real Jay could never forget me." Oh, honey. Don't say that.

Egalt is ugly.

GRRR THIS EPISODE IS AMAZING.

I think we didn't see Kai's vision because they're going to bring it back later. I know some people are saying that it was of a corrupted version of himself, and honestly, I'd say that's a very likely assumption, given his history. He used to have a lust for power, and maybe he still does, it's just more subdued. If anything were to happen to him (pretend we haven't seen ep10 yet), he could likely succumb to that temptation for power.

ALSO I'm such a Lloyd "life" truther, so learning that it was the LIFE DRAGON who claimed him?!??!? Yes. I'm so excited to expand more on that.

[elliespuns]

Honestly, I like how Show Ellie managed to save herself from David in all ways possible: she killed him when he attempted to assault her, then ran from the burning building by herself. Idk, it's just incredibly important to me, the fact that she's her own hero and is able to recognize the moment she needs to stop because she is far more important than anything that David ever was and represented.

BUT, the follow up with Joel is kind of a let down. Yeah, sure, he calls her "baby girl," but... man, Game Joel was crying while holding her, and it's up to the audience to decide if it's because he's sorry he left her alone for so long, if he feels guilty because now she has killed a man with a machete and he wasn't there to help her, if he fears said man might've done something to her, or if it's just relief from seeing she's still alive (or a mixture of everything). He was crying and holding her and telling her "I'm never leaving you again, you understand?"

It helped depressurize the scene, show how much Joel relied on Ellie for comfort too, how it wasn't a "duckling thinks the first thing she saw is her parent" situation, but that they love each other mutually and completely. Joel's promise to Ellie also translates in the finale of both games too.

In the show... it kinda fell flat? It felt like they were desperate to wrap up the episode as quickly as possible, as if the more quiet parts of Joel and Ellie's relationship aren't worth seeing if they don't directly advance the plot.

I like the show, I love how they implemented Joel's PTSD and gave him panic attacks and depicted just how irrational grief can be by showing him mistaking that girl in Jackson for his Sarah, but... that post-David scene was so, so important for the development of his relationship with Ellie, and seeing how the writing treated it as if it was something not particularly meaningful makes me sad.

That's true. Giving Ellie the freedom to save herself in the show was maybe the ONE good thing about this scene when it comes to comparing it with the game version.

But then again, as you say, we got so much more from this scene in the game that we just have to compare it all the time, like it can't be unseen. I feel like we've been robbed of one of the best scenes in TLOU when it comes to HBO. This particular scene was as important as the scene at the farm house where Ellie and Joel had their confrontation. They nailed this scene. Then why did they decide to go down with the babygirl scene? I have no freaking idea. It's like they do half the story's justice and the other half they just don't because, why the fuck not, I guess.

I am very curious about what we will get in Season 2 and how many things are going to caress our hearts and how many things are going to piss us off on the contrary. I swear to God, it sometimes feels like Mazin hasn't heard about the game at all, and Druckmann just blankly stares at him and lets him demean the whole plot of the greatest story ever told.

*sigh*

[cherish--these--times]

Okay. BUCKLE UP.

To the people who say that we have no media literacy because we hoped til the very end that Ted and Rebecca would end up together: you can FUCK RIGHT OFF.

Recently, Hannah W. declared: "Is there chemistry beyond friendship? Yes, I think they do have that as well."

But beyond that, there were A MILLION OTHER WAYS they could have done the last season (and arguably season 2) differently than what they did to avoid any ambiguity as to Ted and Rebecca's relationship. They could have had them hang out all the bloody time and be the rock solid best friends in the world. Ted and Rebecca were never more than friendly co-workers since season 1 ended. That BFF, platonic bullshit was never a thing. If that was true, Ted would have had NO PROBLEM hugging the shit out of her in the stands in the last episode when she begged him to stay. Or again in the airport. They would have gushed over how they made each other's life better and it would have been beautiful and moving and perfectly reasonable. Instead it was loaded with unsaid stuff between two people who never dared to get too close to one another. Keeley was Rebecca's rock. Beard was Ted's. Ted and Rebecca were something else. They were connected in unfathomable, cosmic ways. A perfect set up for a romcom, even if you dislike the idea.

But okay, playing the devil's advocate here, if the platonic soulmates shtick was always the intent (and I don't care what people think, I'm not sure it was), why not have them fall in love with other people early on but keep them as a tightly-knit tandem? Why keep them apart so much throughout the show and both single for most of it???? Why even establish they were born to meet then they never see each other again at the end?? Romance aside, what was the fucking point of that??

Let's address your fucking condescension, shall we? I'll tell you what media literacy fucking taught me:

That Rebecca immediately sensing Ted was having a panic attack, following him, and missing him by a hair, is a classic trick for lovers in a "right place, wrong time" kinda way. If they didn't want to leave any space for ambiguity, she would have found him, comforted him and took him to Dr Fieldstone's office herself without this need to overdramatise and make us long for said comfort that she was unable but clearly desperate to provide.

That Ted texting her for the first time on screen (15 times!!!) because he wanted to hang out at night in a foreign city JUST WHEN SHE LOSES HER PHONE IN A CANAL is a classic SEE ABOVE!! Fuck all of you, honestly.

That one half of the equation carrying a matchbook in his pocket the other half had been obsessing over for months means he is the answer to her romantic quest. And before you go and say that everyone got a matchbook that night, THAT'S NOT THE FUCKING POINT. They chose to show that Ted, of aaaaaaall the people in the restaurant that night, had been carrying Rebecca's hopes and dreams in his pocket THE ENTIRE BLOODY TIME. It was an intentional, purposeful decision. They decided to drop that hot potato later on but you can't blame us for thinking it would lead somewhere!

That one half of the equation carried a trinket in her bag the other half gave her YEARS BEFORE, means he is the one for her. Why? Because this was something he gave her to make her feel safe! Letting someone wonderful love her without fear of being safe was the thing she canonically admitted she was afraid of in a ROMANTIC relationship! The fact that the army man happened to be stuck in the green matchbook was frankly TAKING THE PISS.

That Ted's official love interest having admitted she disliked his puns and having Rebecca laugh at one of his puns IN THE SAME EPISODE is meant to convey she's the one and right under his nose!

That her love interest for the night unloading his marital struggles on her unprompted just like Ted did, loving the same songs as Ted and making her tea that had the same impact on her as Ted's first biscuits means that what she looks for in a partner is right under her nose!

That having her bump into Ted in a corridor and both sensing each other in a choreographed dance MOMENTS after Higgins gave her a whole ass speech about how psychics could help her see in herself what she's missing means IT WAS ALWAYS TED. Don't even get me started on the fact that during said speech, the pink biscuit box was very conveniently placed just behind the green matchbook! A speech about her not seeing something about herself?? Uh??? FUCK OFF.

That Rebecca being told she will have a family and have her instigate Ted getting closer to his son and gushing over his mother is a clear indicator that she would fit in the Lasso household like a glove!

That having Ted canonically never ask for help and Rebecca being the one who doesn't need him to because she always knows when he is unwell means she's framed as being the right person for him. She also uses a trick his EX-WIFE used in the past for that exact purpose.

That their baggage matching right up meant they would have been perfect for each other. His biggest fear is being abandoned and hers is ending up alone. Ted and Rebecca were the logical option for a couple. Ted even had to begrudgingly admit it worked for Jane and Beard. The only canonically happy couple at the end (and ain't that fucking mental...).

That having the line "Remember to let her into your heart" from the Hey Jude song coincide with Ted looking down at his phone and seeing Rebecca's name means that she's the woman he should allow himself to end up with.

Why keep them both single and desperate for love until the very last episode? Why not have Michelle beg Ted to come back and Dutch Guy find Rebecca thanks to newspaper clips about football in Holland 10 episodes ago and be done with it?? Why even not have Rebecca pine for him on screen ever since they parted ways??

Everything in this show was intentional. You can't marvel over this fact for everything BUT Ted and Rebecca and suddenly claim we read too much into things! We were played. Multiple times. At various degrees. And it doesn't take being a fan of the show to see it:

An LA Times journalist made an article about the hints and clues in the show after she interviewed TedBecca fans. And she BELIEVED IT. She got convinced. She told Hannah W. in an interview.

Another journalist on CBR.com (male, so you can shove your "desperate women wanting the straight couple to be together at the end" where the sun ain't shining) lamented the way the TedBecca shippers were treated.

Keep your passive-aggressive posts to yourselves. We've been dangled a carrot since day one and just because we never got to eat it doesn't mean it was never there.

[inthemiddle0feverywhere]

Bad Batch Season 3 Episode 5 (scattered) thoughts and first impressions (ramblings)

Major spoilers under the cut

This one is also very long because mannnnnnn did I love this episode and omg do I have big feelings about it

Also yes I do love each member of tbb but in case it’s not obvious I’m a crosshair girlie. Have been since I first heard his voice in season 7 of tcw so this is gonna be very crosshair centric (because he finally has screen time and more than like 2 speaking lines this season!!)

Lula! 🥰🥰

Is Omega in a supply closet? Whatever better than her barren room at the lab

Ah nope her old “room” the gun turret 🥰🥰

A glimpse of mornings on board the marauder: peaceful boys and caf 🥹 probably only peaceful again now that omega is home

This is Omega’s best look omg the the crocheted vest??? I wanna cosplay her now or actually just wear this outfit fr

At first I was so annoyed they kept crosshair in this ugly ass outfit but I honestly think it’s because even though it’s warm on Pabu he’s always cold because he’s so skinny now (well he always was lean but this is a testament to how much weight he lost as a prisoner) They keep trying to feed him fruit and my man keeps using it as target practice 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

I honestly love when they show scenes through like either a scope or helmet visor. Like I really love seeing what they’re seeing. In this case AZI (so happy they took him from Cids bar- sorry “parlor”….it was a dive bar)

He’s so mad at his hand 😭 my poor baby he really should let AZI look at it. What do we think it is? Nerve damage? I imagine it feels tingly like when your foot falls asleep.

I love that Batcher loves him!! Animals know good people. He’s a good man Savannah! 😭😭😭 and he likes Batcher too and anyone that’s kind to animals is ok by me.

Ugh Crosshair teaching Omega about being a sniper 🥰🥰😭🥰😭🥰 one day she’s just gonna pop out with a sick trick shot lmao

Shouldn’t have given him his rifle??? Sir it’s an extension of him, it’s like you gave him back one of his body parts

“Omega trusts him and that’s good enough for me” Wrecker!!! My sweet boy!! Big man and even bigger heart. He’s now kinda caught in the middle he wants to be cool with Crosshair again but doesn’t want to betray Hunter they’ve been through a lot just the 2 of them these past several months. Crosshair and Hunter are like parents in the middle of a divorce 😭

53%???? Fuckkkkkkk way worse than we thought

Echo!!!!! Yay mom came home!

“No hug for me” screaming crying throwing up! 😭😭😭😭😭😭 💔💔💔💔he’s disguising it as sarcasm but he wants it, he wants a hug! SOMEBODY HUG HIM DAMMIT! I volunteer!!! Please

Omega between her 2 dads 🥰 (Though is Crosshair more wine aunt vibes sometimes?) And batcher by Crosshair’s feet of course

Yummmmm I bet Pabu has banging sushi 🍣 Love Wrecker being an unbothered king enjoying his sush🥰

😭😭😭😭😭 Crosshair’s face when Echo mentioned Tech. He knows. He knows he fell or perished (shh no 🤡) trying to save him. They’re twins and he lost his other half and I’m devastated!! 😭

Haaaaa welcome to parenting a teenager Hunter!!!

Are Hunter’s eyes green all of a sudden?

Crosshair being the voice of reason?? I love seeing this side of him. I HC that since he is silent and highly observant he was a voice reason often for the batch. (Can we please get a series of TBB during the clone wars?? Or like when they were cadets or something. We only see them in 4 episodes in tcw and they were just an insane suicide squad who hated regs and didn’t follow orders or have anyone in charge of them like I wanna see their adventures and their dynamic and how they are when they have downtime! Please lucasfilmmmmmm 🙇‍♀️🧎🏼‍♀️)

“I’m older than you are, little brother” 😂😂😂 and she got crosshair to chuckle lol ugh I love their dynamic so much. They are really feeding us rn (please don’t take it away)

Omg he’s so brave bringing them back there! To that freaking ice planet where nothing but trauma happened for Crosshair. I know he probably wished he would never have to go back there again but he knows this will help so he goes anyway

The old armor!!!! Helllllll frickinnnn yeaaaaaa (he’s so hot in armor omg I have a headache)

“Take a guesssssss” 🥵

“He started it” 😂😂 major youngest sibling energy

Mayday’s helmet! 💔💔💔💔 somebody sedate me!! 😭

Why can’t Hunter sense the Wyrm?

TOOTHPICK!!! Wrecker defo kept his toothpicks in the armor case 🥰

Frickin ice vulture always an omen. (Animals seem to really like Crosshair though even the scary ones)

“I know you” 😭 I know Hunter meant it in a “I know you’re sneaky and closed off and I’m expecting the worst from you right now ” but it just hit me harder than that. “I know you”- you’re my brother, the youngest I’ve known you since the day you were born. “I know you- I know there’s more to your silence I know your still waters run way deeper than you let on.” “I’m your brother- I know you talk to me I know you”❤️‍🩹

Oh shitttttt thems are fightin words yes let it out everyone

“I’ll do it! 😁” Wreckerrrr I love you

Hunter’s fast af boi!

Batcher is actually ripped af 💪

Ok petition that Cross doesn’t yell anymore it doesn’t suit him at all lmaoooo

Poor Wrecker yes it’s always ALWAYS a huge monster 😭

“Fantastic” 😂😂😂

Omg this is a roller coaster of emotions! Crosshair being soft with Batcher, the nodding! Ugh nothing like fending off a giant ice wyrm to bring bros back together

He’s so pretty shut up I know his head is shaped like a lightbulb

AAHH THERES THE HUG 🥰

progress 😌

“I thought I was being a good soldier 😔” * *pterodactyl screeching *

Welp Im deceased, fed and nurtured but dead at the same time.

Thank you thank you thank you for these past few episodes. Us Crosshair girlies were really in pain seasons 1 and 2

[ordinaryschmuck]

Bob's Burgers Halloween specials ranked

(Because screw it, why not?)

11. Tina and the Real Ghost--This one's more awkward than funny. I honestly feel bad for Tina for falling in love with an empty box...and grow to hate Tammy for being so petty to steal the box away from her. Even the B-Plot of ghost hunters in the restaurant isn't all that funny. Honestly, the funniest bit is when Bob's unexpectedly swarmed with bugs after a brief moment of cockiness. Other than that, pretty weak episode.

10. The Wolf of Wharf Street--PROBABLY the most irresponsible Linda's been with the kids and Bob believing Teddy's a werewolf was a bit of a stretch. Still, some spooky atmosphere carries this one a bit, so I can't hate it THAT much.

9. Apple Gore-chard! (But Not Gory)--There need to be more episodes with Louise and Jessica. Their friendship is easy and cute in a lot of moments. Anyways, as for the episode, it's pretty standard. Some REAL Halloween stuff doesn't happen until half way through and the jokes aren't all that funny. There's barely any attention on the lesson, making it feel more like a waste of time if anything else. It's just Louise and Jessica's friendship that carries things if anything else (Seriously, MORE of that)

8. Pig Trouble in Little Tina--A great episode about peer pressure and with a fun subplot about Bob's gross ear wax. It's just that none of it screams HALLOWEEN to me. There's some spooky imagery, but a lot of this episode feels like something that could happen in ANY episode, especially Bob's subplot. Great episode, but not so great of a Halloween special.

7. Heartbreak Hotel-oween--This one's cute. That's all I can say.

6. Teen-a Witch--Tina trying to be a witch is more cute than it should be, even if the jokes aren't strong with this one. Thankfully the subplot of Bob obsessing over who's stealing his jack-o-lanterns is funny enough to carry it.

5. The Pumpkinening--Weird title, but it's an episode with Gayle. They're naturally weird, and this one's no exception as Linda and Gayle hunting down who knows that they smashed pumpkins from a contest. Add that with a warm ending and a great subplot of Bob dealing with the stress of being a house with GOOD candy, and you got something fun.

4. Nightmare on Ocean Avenue Street--The kids hunting down a candy kidnapper is fun and Bob and Teddy trying to show up an impressive handyman has some good laughs to it. Solid special.

3. Full Bars--It's always fun seeing the Belcher kids use their brand of chaos to do something good. The only thing that drags it down is the guinea pig murder mystery. Some good jokes are there, but I can't help but cringe as Teddy ruins his own party and the payoff isn't all that funny. That credit scene where Bob danced in the fat suit for Linda was cute as shit, though.

2. Fort Night--The introduction to Millie, and a great one at that as she tortures the kids who are in a situation that's...way more dangerous than you think in hindsight. They really were that close to death, huh? Still, a pretty empathetic episode as we all know there's no worse fate for a kid than missing Halloween and you REALLY want them to get out. And I'm sure some parents can relate to Bob and Linda's plight to make a costume for their kids and the payoff for this one is pretty good.

1. The Hauntening--A genuinely creepy and intense special for this show, where the jokes don't take away from the scares but add to them. This really feels like how these characters would react to a horrifying situation, making you fear for their lives even more. And even the big twist in the end doesn't ruin the episode, but adds to it, showing how much this family cares for each other and how much they'll do to make one of them happy. They might have gone a LITTLE far, but it's in that gray area where you can accept it. Being sweet and spooky is no other combination you can get from any other show except for this one, and I love it.

And that's all. Well, for now. Season 14 hasn't had its Halloween special yet. It's probably pulling a Simpsons and waiting until November for some reason. And I'm not waiting until then. This is the Halloween Special on MY blog, so there. Happy Halloween.

[aardvaark]

having just watched the Rundown Job. that fucked. I feel like this is what it would be like if the Big Bang Job had just an iota more self respect. for some reason BBJ is just toooooo corny I can't take it seriously, smth about eliot trying to have his emo backstory and big gun fight in one episode, but hardison and his magic Hacker Overlay and the trio drift compatible action movie-ing thru without a mastermind had me by the THROAT

the rundown job is THE ot3 episode. whether you prefer parker/hardison/eliot, or parker/hardison & eliot, or any other formation of those three, they certainly undeniably work very well together. they move in sync. they know each other so well that they don't even have to talk half the time. they've developed so much trust for each other when you compare this episode to season 1 jobs, and that mutual trust has brought all of their already-incredible talents to a new level.

you'll find that the leverage producers/writers/etc call it "competence porn", ie having scenes of the characters being extremely competent at what they do. it's fascinating and awesome just to watch them, don't even need much dialogue or plot pressure or anything. and that's really a testament to the actors' acting abilities & the stunt performers' skills.

plus we get all of their paired dynamics too! i love the parker & eliot dynamic where they’re both very task-oriented, logical, dangerous people. in the lost heir job episode commentary, john rogers had this to say...

[from @leverage-commentary]

...which i love. i love that dynamic, and you can see it in the rundown job too. except the lost heir job was season 2, and the rundown job is season 5, and that makes a difference in some respects - they're not so much hiding that from hardison, for one thing. and hardison doesn't need them to hide it, cause he seems to mostly think they're super fucking cool. except for when they're scaring the shit out of him, like parker burning the disease at the last second or eliot getting shot etc etc. mostly he thinks they're super cool though lol.

and while i tend to think that the "seeing math in the air" thing is usually a cheesy trope (like the spencer reid version. why is jesus there), i honestly really liked seeing inside hardison's head for once. it wasn't just random numbers like the confused math lady meme:

no, he's mapping the whole thing out in his head: we see some if-then-else flowcharts, he's picturing the direction the gears will turn, etc etc. he's figuring out how it will logically work and how it will mechanically work. to figure out all these problems in his mind, which he does every episode... well, he really is a genius, never forget it!

plus of course we get parker showing off her skills by jumping on trains + laser gymnastics + upside-down bomb defusing, and we get eliot skills of disturbingly calm negotiations + of course the fight scenes. they've each come such a long way too... eg hardison being way calmer about leaning on a bomb (again!) lol... ugh i could rant forever about how much i love these characters!!

i think the big bang job's gun fight is part of the eliot angsty stuff cause he had to shoot (and therefore likely kill) people for the first time in a long time. for action movie enjoyers, The Implications TM certainly dampen the action fun, so i get what you mean. i don't mind eliot angsty moments though. eliot IS kinda emo deep down sometimes - however, if hardison or someone called him that, there'd be hell to pay lol.

thank you for the ask, i love discussing this show!! :)

[ladyluscinia]

I have rewatched the mean lesbians episode in hopes I would like them more the second time, but I'm afraid I'm still not vibing with it. Credit that they tried to undercut the "lesbians who drop in to give our main couple therapy" with the whole reveal it was game and Mary's little rant about their relationship "losing the magic", but like... did they really? Do Anne and Mary not successfully tee up the really touching BlackBonnet airing of grievances and reconciliation? Laughing at them a bit for being dorky doesn't change that they really didn't do much sabotaging, overall, so it's not like they weren't pushing them back together.

I mean, even Mary's whole rant happens after Anne leaves the room. By the time they really start telling us how this couple has their own foundation cracks and issues (vs the veneer of just keeping it interesting) and aren't a longstanding example of a healthy relationship, Anne is literally offscreen making a grand romantic gesture that will solve Mary's discontent. I know they are fitting a miscommunication arc into half an episode instead of 2-3 seasons, but the end result just feels like speedrunning a knock off of BlackBonnet's issues.

And that along with the fact they function as BlackBonnet mirrors first and characters second, it all just feels very... underwhelming (?) to me.

Like why do I care about Anne and Mary? Is the face stealing gimmick supposed to have hooked me? They also, imo, really fucked up by ending on a hug - it just spotlights the fact that, for all the sex jokes, they don't really bother to sell physical intimacy between the two. They maybe bump shoulders at the shop, sit in separate chairs in every scene in the house... honestly the best they do is the offscreen knife flicking. Which funny metaphor but like. Why can't the lesbians be into each other without the metaphor? Or am I supposed to think that Anne "burn the whole house down the second her wife admits she doesn't like swamp life" Bonny didn't pick up that Mary was maybe unhappy when they entirely stopped touching each other and replaced it with murder attempts.

Even a repeat of the offscreen joke but this time imply they are hardcore making out as Stede and Edward slip away would have probably hit better? (I'm assuming for some reason kissing was off the table, otherwise even more wtf why not just kiss?)

(Can you tell I've been thinking about the sorry state of femslash?)

Also I'd be remiss not to tie my dissatisfaction with Anne and Mary to my dissatisfaction with OFMD's prevailing approach to female characters. Spanish Jackie's entire thing is being so awesome and desirable that she has 20 husbands that all work for her, which is super fun. Mary Bonnet became a widowed girlboss with a Doug, which was also fun. Then suddenly we're meeting Zheng Yi Sao who is a girlboss Pirate Queen better than any man, and her right-hand woman that seems like a more stable and competent Edward/Izzy parallel, and her crew of only hyper-competent women... do you see how this is getting a bit repetitive?

Now we add Anne and Mary speedrunning BlackBonnet parallels to teach them a grand gesture romantic lesson? So... doing Stede and Edward but Better™?

Zheng Yi Sao still has time to get more interiority that could offset the whole "girlboss" gimmick which would help, but until that happens the only real female character standout to me is Archie - a woman who has something deeply wrong with her but has so far just kind of slotted in as a equal crewmember instead of the Competent Woman Character.

[meenawrites]

So.. I finished Alchemy of Souls

Guys, the amount of tears I just shed in front of my entire family in the last episode of part 2 is crazy.

They were just sitting there like, you good? It's fiction as I'm sobbing my eyes out.

Anyway.

I have many thoughts. So many. And I lowkey want to make a separate post for each of them.

But for now I do want to leave some of my impressions about the finale: (spoilers ahead obviously)

I thought it was pretty well done. I expected to be a bit more shocked about the whole Jin Buyeon is Jin Seol-ran plotline but it honestly made sense to me and I feel like it was actually foreshadowed pretty well for the most part, even in season 1.

Also they definitely got me good with the deaths of Park Jin, Maidservant Kim, and Jin Hogyeong (if that's how you spell her name). Like that's when I started crying tbh. (I could care less about Mama Jin tbh, she sucks, but that deserves its own post). And I'm glad that them actually being alive didn't feel like a cop out to me. They established early on that Jin Seol-ran knew what would happen and used that to their advantage so it was believable and didn't feel like a Deus Ex Machina move for them to be saved. Well, maybe one of them should have died (cough–Mama Jin–cough). But it's fine.

I do feel like the last two episodes were kind of rushed though. I don't know if they had budgeting constraints or if Netflix didn't give them more than ten episodes, but I think that they should have had at least 12. Two more episodes would have allowed for more expansion on the climax and allowed them to up the drama more, which I think would have done well for the series over all, and would have been a better payoff.

I think the time could have been used well to flesh out some of the side characters arcs more. I feel like Danggu and Jin Choyeon were kind of pushed off to the side this season, and especially in the latter half, but I would have liked to see more of them and their relationships not only with each other but with Jang Uk and Naksu/Jin Buyeon.

For all intents and purposes, Naksu/Jin Buyeon lived as Jin Choyeon's sister for three years, and we can see that despite everything that happened three years prior, Choyeon did treat her as her sister even knowing the soul was Naksu's and cared about her. I think that could've and should've been expanded upon, her choosing to care about Naksu/Jin Buyeon or how that came to be. Also, after Naksu regained her memory AND found out Jin Mu had been for sure controlling her at the end of Part 1, I would have loved to see the conversation between her and Choyeon about what she did, an apology and an explanation that she would never have done that if she were sane of mind. What I said about Choyeon applies to Naksu as well because she lived three years as Choyeon's sister, and we can tell she cares about her, so I would have loved to see more of her feelings towards her, especially upon remembering all that had transpired in part 1.

When it comes to Danggu, I mean, he's one of Uk's best friends, and he was left out of the loop a lot when it came to anything Naksu-related. I would have liked him to find out or for Uk to tell him at some point and see how he makes peace with that. Because Danggu and Mudeok were friends in part 1 and he supported her (erroneously) in her supposed romance with Seo Yul. But then she killed his fiance's father and tried to attack him. I can't imagine the sense of betrayal he felt, but also finding out that it wasn't her fault and how he could come to terms with that would have been great to see. I also think his whole experience/trauma from part 1 was kind of glossed over. Like his main thing this season was his broken heart after Choyeon didn't end up marrying him, and I think that was making his feelings a bit too one-dimensional there. They do talk about how he feels slightly uncomfortable/doesn't know what to do with Jang Uk at the beginning of the show, but once Seo Yul comes back, that's kind of forgotten about and the three of them just start hanging out again no problem. I would've like to see a bit more about him struggling with becoming Leader of Songrim as well and how he adapted to that amidst his heartbreak for both his love and his friend who he doesn't even know how to act around anymore, and even towards Naksu/Mudeok who kind of ruined his future and that of his best friend but also being intuitive enough (because he is and he has one of the best hearts we've seen in the show) to realize that there's more to the story than her just going on a murder spree.

I've seen some talk about people saying they didn't like the actress for season 2 as much as season 1 (forgive me, I forgot their names), but I think both brought something good to the table.

Season 1 actress for Mudeok was really good. Her facial expressions were spot on and her chemistry with Lee Jaewook and the other cast members was really good. I think she definitely had great stage presence and made the show popular in the first place. I just don't agree that season 2 actress was worse.

I think season 2 actress definitely put in the work and embodied who Naksu/Jin Buyeon was for the majority of the series. There were times where she made expressions that perfectly resembled/echoed Naksu/Mudeok's that really got me like yes they are the same person even if she doesn't remember. She may have been cuter than we were used to with out sharp-tongued and emotion-resistant Mudeok, but I think Naksu needed that. As Mudeok and before then she didn't have the luxury to be more emotional and girly, it's only now in this body that she does, and I'm glad she had the opportunity to express that side of herself that had never seen the light of day.

We did get a glimpse of that side of her at the end of part 1 where she's playing around with makeup and what might make her look pretty, and it really spoke to all that she had missed out on and had to give up in order to survive. So yeah despite all the angst, I'm glad Naksu/Jin Buyeon had that opportunity through season 2 actress who played it really well while keeping in line with the essence of Naksu/Mudeok.

This whole thing about Naksu being the shadow to Jang Uk's light and if light exists then it needs a shadow broke my heart you guys, it was so perfect. And the fact that they were each other's light and shadow at different points but were also wholly necessary to each other in that was beautiful. I want to talk more about this in a separate post, so I'll table this metaphor for now.

Shout out to Crown Prince Go Won, a great character this whole season in terms of both comedic relief and massive character growth. So good.

Uk's arc was fantastic too but again want to save that for a full post.

Those are my out of order first thoughts about part 2, but I have SO MUCH MORE to discuss, so I will come back for sure. I just needed to scream to the world for a bit (virtually of course).

Question though for all of you more knowledgeable in the k-drama world: is there going to be a season 3?

[neuroticbookworm]

Step by Step Episode 8 Ramblings

Episode 7 Ramblings, here

Put is not even gonna let Pat say his piece? 2 minutes in and I'm already burning mad

"I haven't taken you for granted like before"

"I know, you've been really good to me" Oh Pat, you pathalogical people pleaser

I continue being impressed by this show showcasing how adults do and should handle relationships and everything that comes with it. This must be one of the most realistic breakup scenes in BLs. And it is done without compromising the emotions of the characters. Hats off, really

Jane is wearing two layers of pink. Our resident Tumblr color demon @respectthepetty has taught us that pink = love, so good to know that his feelings has remained unchanged or even intensified from last when we saw him

My god, Khun Jeng looks so fineeeeeeeee

And he's wearing a dark blue shirt underneath his neutral brown jacket. While Pat is in a dark blue cardigan. Interesting

Ohhhhhhh wow Jane is pissed and Jaab is too. The cat fight between these two is gonna be hilarious

Put, you insufferable snake, ya dumped. Stop misrepresenting facts

Jeng, how the fuck did you know? Are you really THAT perceptive?

Oh man, that is the worst takeaway you can ever have from a failed relationship

*jaw dropped* Oh Jeng is going for the jugular. Oh he's done playing games, he wants to fight

Oooooooooof. Put, you manipulative bastard

Oh it's still not over. Oh they're still going, holy shit, this is intense

Is that a threat, about coming out? Seriously, what the fuck

I CAN'T WAIT to read all the body language analyses y'all are gonna write on that scene. Woah, that really was something

Ae and Beam are here!

Well, Ae looks like a goddess, as usual. What else is new?

I love this scene and the commentary that comes with it. Keep your noses out of pregnant people's business, for fuck's sake! How hard is it to have some basic decency?

I love that Tae is calling out how quickly Jeng's mood changes from brooding to giddy and vice versa in this conversation.

We have a new stuffie. The shark is out and the tiger is in. YES I SEE IT AND I LOVE IT

Oh I'm sooo ready for this non-date date. I want the sweet, sweet fluff to drown me. Gimme all the blushing, all the eye contact, all the accidental brushing of fingers, GIVE IT TO ME

OH MY GOD, he planned the whole thing. He had people move chairs out of the way for aesthetics. This complete bitch (affectionate)

GUYS, THE FLIRTING, I know I said I can handle it, but this is too adorable ^^

Jeng just hung up on his brother in a flash, not even waiting for him to respond? Oh that's cold

Oh shit, Pat is drunk, again, Here come the truth bombs

Damn, Man Trisanu is nailing this. He is acting his ass off to show how restless Jeng feels before every almost-confession

This slowburn is gonna kill us all, honestly

Oh we are dancing, oh it's so gloriously awkward, oh make it stop

Jaab, my beloved, I've missed your melodrama. You look like a divorced sugar baby who won half the riches in the settlement, I love it

Jeng tells Pat he can be just a safe space for him, while Pat is sobbing on his shoulder about his ex. All while Jeng has been trying the whole day to confess his own feelings for Pat. Every atom of this man is a green flag, I swear

These drunk disaster gays, I love them so much

Pat, sweetie, no. Please, you must be joking. Don't tell me you didn't know, DON'T TELL ME YOU ARE THAT OBLIVIOUS!

Okay, now Pat has to rethink each and every one of their interactions to see if he has ever misled Jeng, or if Jeng has ever crossed his boundaries. And then recalibrate his feelings with this new information. Yeah, this could take a while.

I'm leaning more and more towards the possibility of a second season, or even a special episode, after the show ends. Because there is no way they can fit all the domesticity these characters deserve within the next couple of episodes.

Ahhhh I can't believe the slowburn is still not over. I love it and I hate it and I'm pretty sure this show has turned me into a sadomasochist.

[cononeillbreastingboobily]

I agree with all your takes on omfd season 2... wasn't all that a laugh and a half :/ do you have any thoughts on a prospective (?) season 3?

Oh yeah lmao, the writers were definitely having a laff, unlike me 😭😭😭

When it comes to season 3:

• I can't imagine or accept a situation in which Izzy is not there in the flesh. Not after a season that specifically introduced the concept of magic and the gravy basket. I don't want him to be a ghost or a vision of guilt-ridden characters. I want my boy back, in the flesh, to pester everyone around him and to finally have his hot girl summer ‼️‼️‼️

• as much as even after the first 3 eps of s2 I could potentially see Steddyhands happening, all of that kinda went to shit in my eyes after they killed Izzy off.

• After everything that happened I can't and don't want to imagine Ed and Izzy reconciling enough to get involved with each other romantically.

• I can see Izzy with Stede tho. I'd actually like that quite a lot.

• at this point I'm not a Blackbonnet girlie (gn) by any stretch, and well, I can't imagine myself enjoying a potential season 3 if all it has to offer will be more drama between those two

• knowing them both, I think they will be making genuine attempts at running an inn for half an episode. And I'm being generous

• also, I can't imagine a season 3 that has Zheng just. Hanging out on the Revenge. Making out with Oluwande. And not even attempting to rebuild her pirate empire. I need my girl cunning and powerful with a fleet to show for it. I think that what they did to her by the end of the season was a shit writing decision. Was her losing her entire fleet... Supposed to humble her? To teach her a lesson? What lesson? That it's not things but people that really matter? It's kind of a weak message, especially for this character. And the execution of it was just. Plain bad lmao. Her talk with Auntie by the end was cute, yes, but it came so out of the blue tbh. If it has been established earlier on that maybe Zheng feels insecure sometimes and would like for Auntie specifically to tell her she's proud of her, that would make more sense. But this way it was kinda. It didn't have the punch it should've had.

• also sidenote: Zheng deciding to team up with Stede (even if it was mostly because Ed was also there) doesn't reflect well on him... It reflects badly on her. My girl deserves allies as powerful as her and Stede is simply not that.

• I want more crew shenanigans. And more backstory for every crew member!!!

• I can imagine a version of the story in which Stede and Ed break up and just don't get back together again by the end. It's so beautiful here. Hold my hand

• also sidenote, but has Jim just completely given up on taking their revenge on the Siete Gallos? I think it would've been fun to revisit that storyline

• also - WHAT HAPPENED TO JIM'S BROTHER

• honestly - after the shitshow that was season 2, I can't think of an actual potential way that the story could end. And tbh I don't think the writers do, either. I do have ideas, but they're mine and not the writers' of the show, and thus not very likely to actually happen.

[itsprjc]

Well, Season 2 of TDI Reloaded (TDI Rematch) has had its first four episodes out for about a week. I figured I’d share my thoughts about what we’ve gotten so far:

-The challenges are a little more fun than in Season 1. They have a good amount of variety and the often led to really fun moments between the characters. From the Skunks clogging the toilet slide, to basically all the Rat Faces being carried by Caleb, and of course the AB questions challenge. My girlfriend and I straight up paused the episode each question to try and guess the answers. (We got over half of them right.) As for my personal ranks on the challenges:

-Taking it to the Rim Reaper (Ep. 2): Memorable concept, without going too overboard with it. Also, I’m a bit of a simpleton sucker for the pratfalls.

-Choosin’ for a Bruisin’ (Ep. 4): Great challenge for both character insights and just playing along with it during a first-time viewing.

-You Poor Saps (Ep. 3): I technically prefer Ep.1’s challenge, but this one led to so many gold character moments.

-The Pink Painter Strikes Again (Ep.1): Solid start. Simple challenge, nothing too crazy.

-Animation is pretty much on the same level as Season 1. The facial expressions are GOLD! I’d argue some parts feel more dynamic than Season 1, like the slide moments in Episode 2, but overall, no complaints.

-The characters feel like they never left:

-Priya: I kinda get why she’d fall hard for Caleb, as keep in mind, she’s been stuck with this training with hardly any friends. This also explaining why she instantly jumped to befriending Millie when it seemed they got along. It’s clear that she does value the friendship as she was the only one to give Millie a chance after Episode 2. She also did work as an effective leader in the same episode, instantly taking advantage of the challenge’s slide order rule. Overall, I’m okay with Priya.

-Bowie: I dig his plot. Bowie made it clear at the end of Season 1 that he’s willing to bend the rules…and it’s clear that he probably cares about Raj more. Since people are more weary of him after the finale, it makes sense to have his conflict be more about whether he’d play dirty again. Also, this joker in Episode 4! As a captain (assuming those roles are official) I feel Priya’s more effective, though.

Millie: It’s clear she had alot more learning to do about being a good friend. (I still say both her and Damien could have taken the two-point slide together if they were both weary on the third.) Though her elimination was pretty anticlimactic, unfortunately. I do prefer her in Season 1, but I’m not against the plot they gave her.

Julia & MK: I’m putting them both together because they’re basically a package deal this time around. Overall, live their dynamic. It was a sudden jump from animosity to friendship, but that’s just because they know game when they see it. They have so much fun just being underhanded together, and it’s honestly a refreshing take on villain alliances. While I’d say MK is the breakout of the two, since she’s the brains of the whole alliance, Julia’s dialogue is so on point that it hurts. My hopes is that MK does succeed in backstabbing Julia, but she doesn’t even get mad. She just respects a player and roots for her to win…underhandedly, of course.

Emma: Compared to Millie…honestly not that mixed. I’m glad she cut the chord with Chase early and she got him booted in a clever way. The one thing that’s kinda backwards is how she ends up being a poor judge of character in Episode 4 when she basically red Chase like a book in Episode 2. But then again, I guess that’s just chalked down to being used to his sorry butt the most?

Chase: Everybody (including me) called that he’d be an early boot…and he was. I’m perfectly content with that, as it’s clear that character development was never the end-goal with Chase. And the moment he left, the Skunk Butts became the de facto best team. Props on his ballsy attempt to outrun the balloons in challenge 1, though.

Zee: All I wanted from Zee in Season 2 is for him to still be Zee…Good news, Zee is still Zee. I honestly got worried the “soda influencer” plot would be a cheap and easy way to make him an early boot…and they make him Papa Zee instead. I love this lanky boy.

Ripper: My one complaint on Ripper is that he feels like he’s really not there that much. In Episode 2, he disappears for a good while until the mid-end. And he doesn’t really get to interact with his new team that much. The only real time he interacts with the other skunks is when he asks about how to approach Axel. Let’s talk about Ripaxel…I honestly really wanna see what they do with it! It is a little sudden how it starts, but in its defense, so was Rajbow. Their interactions in Episode 3 were fun to watch, and that POEM. Hey, fanfic writers…Raj and Ripper having a poetry battle…think about it. Despite him disappearing sometimes, what we do get from him is enjoyable. Here’s to more!

Wayne and Raj: My boys are untouched! The one blessing is that they NEVER went for some stupid jealousy plot! (Wayne cares too much for Raj for petty stuff like that.) And they are arguably goofier than in Season 1. (Shoutouts to them wanting burgers after seeing the slides and the “Cyclone-Spin Cycle”) It is funny how many people (again, including me) wanted to see their mischievous side more, but instead the boys are even bigger boy scouts with their understandable disgust at cheating. While I still think one leaving earlier is more likely, I really, REALLY hope that they stick for a little. Imagine them against Julia and MK for at least an episode or two! And while I still would love a Damien VS. MK finale, Wayne or Raj VS. MK works great! Fair and honest player against a crafty cheater. It would be gold!

Damien: I’m really holding out for him since he’s pretty much jogging in place a bit. Sure, he wants to take more risks, but it’s not to a great extent. Then again, the season’s only gotten started. I just hope his crafty side comes out more later. He’s not too afraid anymore, so now he needs to push his brains to the forefront.

Scary Girl: I dig the “Lauren” design. Unfortunately, the “normal” bit wasn’t really used all that much, as she barely had a presence in Episode 1. She had some small scenes, but nothing outstanding until she got herself eliminated. Though given how she was enjoyable, but pretty one-note last season, I feel she works well as a first-boot. Will she return to stalk everyone? Who knows. Probably.

Nichelle: I dig her more confident attitude. Part of me wishes we saw her gaining that confidence DURING the season, rather than all that development being off-screen, though. It makes sense for her to train beforehand, but I would have just as easily liked her having a bit of fire in her and then training throughout the season. As she is, I like how she’s so done with her old Hollywood life. Hopefully she does interact with Damien more, as they seem to have a friendship growing.

Axel: Besides MK, Axel was the biggest relief of the S1 pre-mergers. She’s still hostile and hardcore, but I find her showings of care towards the team being well-needed additions. Examples being her helping Damien back to camp after the four-point slide, and her warning her team to be cautious about getting stuck with the sap. I already said my piece on Ripaxel, so my personal hope is that there is a survival or stealth challenge where the two have to work together. (Ala Hide and Be Sneaky, Eat, Puke, and be Wary, or Hurl and Go Seek if you wanna count the “zombie” thing.)

Caleb: Caleb was simple, and he still kinda is. I like how paranoid he was in Episode 1, but overall he’s just a more effective Justin. I do prefer him over Justin, as he can be a massive asset to the team, as shown in Episode 3. Like Zee, I’m fine with him as is, and can only wait and see what he does in later episodes. Will his alliance become genuine romance or just a tool for Caleb to outlast Priya? Probably the ladder, as he doesn’t seem to show any romantic interest in her that feels genuine.

And that’s Total Drama Island Rematch so far. Tomorrow should be the debuts of Episodes 5 and 6, so here’s to a great season. I was honestly shocked at how much I loved this cast, and how refreshing it felt seeing the show after a seven (eight if you ignore Ridonculous) year hiatus. I will be making sure to watch the series again when it comes to MAX in seventy years. As for whether or not I wanna see the Gen 4 cast again…I’ll probably be content with them stopping their run after Season 2. Reloaded and Rematch work as just two halves of a nice little package, and I really don’t want them to risk having this lovable cast go through what Gen 1 did. If we do get a new season, I’d be fine with them having a new cast. Fans will probably like them as much as they do with Gen 4.

[66sharkteeth]

I've been rereading City of Blank before it gets censored, and I just wanted to say I love it just as much as I did when I first started reading 3 years ago, if not more so now that I can see plot elements being set up and foreshadowing, etc. It made me sad to see you on twitter/X talking about how S1 isn't good. I can understand being hard on your own work, I'm like that, but why S1 in particular? I really like it! I could make notes as I go through listing out each and every thing I love in every chapter and I'd be doing it for ages. I've read a ton of web comics before and after finding CoB and yet it remains my favorite even still, including S1. Ignore my question if you want, I don't wanna bother you, but please at least accept the compliments because you deserve it and more, thank you for sharing your story 💜

Hmm, to be clear, it's not like I think season 1 is a steaming pile of crap or anything... I just think it's...nothing special and not particularly good.

I think it's biggest issue is it's pacing. S1 feels like...2 or 3 episodes, all stretched out into 25 episodes. A big part of this is because I was told they wanted s1 to end on Jericho's reveal, and back then, they didn't want first-time creators like myself committing to 50+ ep seasons they weren't sure they could keep up with. And honestly, not a ton happened between the first ep and Jericho's reveal. In hind sight, there was a lot more I could have done. I could have had Rex bond with Des and Lyss more, and just...given Lyss more screen time in general. I know so many people dropped the series because Lyss is introduced and when boy meets girl in media, they assume there's gonna be SOME romance there...but then Lyss just kinda fucks off and is asleep for literally 2/3rds of s1, losing that entire audience. Even if...Lyss didn't end up being the love interest, I wish I kept her around more to at least give people the false hope that she would be so I could have just maintained that huge part of WT's audience LMAO.

But instead, half of s1 was spent on that night on the town with Rex and Des and fighting Claude. These are things that crossed my mind when writing it but... I don't know how else to put it other than back then I just had the mindset of "eh, good enough." And on that note, I think the story just wasn't nearly as personal to me back then. I remember literally telling people like "It's nothing deep. The blanks don't represent anything. Sometimes people just wanna tell a fun story." Which...to be clear, 100% valid to people who wanna tell stories like that! But uh... by the end of s2, that stopped being the case. And this story became very personal to me. It became really impossible for blanks and their struggles to not represent things deeply personal to me. Around end of s2 is when this story started to be a lot more than "just a fun story w/ no deeper meaning" and when I really really started to pour my heart into it, and I LIKE to think it shows, because s3 is hands down where I'm most confident in my writing, compared to s1, when it was just trying to be a safe shonen adventure.

Lastly, going back to s1, I guess I kind of underestimated just how much this would end up meaning to me, and how having a weak-ish s1 would impact me 3 years later in s4. Back then I wasn't thinking about how the audience I get back in s1 is only gonna be a fraction of the audience you maintain in s4. I didn't realize there would be literal discussions on Reddit of comics people dropped and CoB being one of them bc of a lackluster s1. I wasn't thinking about how I would eventually be showing this to agents and publishers and that they might not look past it beyond s1 as just very average, mid content.

I was really just kinda in the mindset of "This is just Canvas 2, and if people like it, they like it!!" I wasn't thinking about how not putting 100% into s1 was going to potentially cost me thousands of readers, dollars, and even potential opportunities.

So TLDR, I don't think s1 is the worst thing ever, but a lack of heart, ambition, certain conditions, and just experience made it very lackluster in my opinion. I wish I could put a huge disclaimer on the series "IT GETS BETTER I PROMISE"

[saltpepperbeard]

WAAAAAAGHHG HEY ITS ME AGAIN IM SO SORRY I HAVE A THOUGHT AND DONT KNOW WHO ELSE TO GIVE IT TO: Im going to try really hard to be quick!! Still reeling from ep 8!!! (I have so many thoughts and emotions- tldr I know it struggled with pacing but I just really loved it. I’m so glad this show exists. Not going to recover anytime soon!! Excellent.)

I think the ending is a great setup for what could be coming next! Looking back at this season as a whole it feels to me like they had two major points they zeroed in on: 1- Edward’s state of mind. We spend a lot of time with him when no one else is- we’re with him in his head while he tries to process what he wants and how he’s going to get it. We see him wrestle with feeling unlovable, and then we sort of sit with him in his pov while he starts, (STARTS!! He’s not done yet!!) to understand that he IS loved and there ARE people waiting for him. 2- The Golden Age of piracy is ending. They lost The Republic of Pirates, they lost Spanish Jackie’s bar, Zhengs fleet, and they lost Izzy, the most pirate to ever pirate. After the couple of weeks(??) season two takes place- the OFMD cinematic universe is going to be different for pirates now.

ALL THAT TO SAY- after Izzy’s funeral, (rip king I sobbed lol) when Zheng asks Ed and Stede to team up- Stede says something like, “He needs a minute”/“Maybe give him a minute”. So they agree to help- but they stay behind to build their inn. (“It’s a fixer upper, but the bones are good.” ITS THEM ITS THEM THEYRE EACHOTHERS FOUNDATIONS THEY JUST HAVE TO BUILD ONTO IT TO MAKE IT A HOME IM GOING TO TURN TO ASH) this is a decision both of them make- this will give them time to just be. I think Ed still has a ways to go, and talks to have, and maybe needs some time to grieve Izzy, but Stede is there, and they love eachother, and they will be ok. Shit will still go down, and they’ll get involved again eventually, but they’re going to take a minute. NOW. That wraps up this season as a part two of a Three part show- we have a setup for the next big bad, and we’ve focused a lot on Ed (accompanied by Stede’s) issues/insecurities with a focus on Ed having to deal with his issues directly. He had to sit and talk, honestly talk. Do you know. Which half of our main pair. Has not done that?? The guy who the show still deliberately makes a point of showing us he is STILL. NOT OK. Granted, he had the end of season one to realize what he wanted and what he felt, but then we had so many moments this season of him reacting to those feelings but not actually talking about them to anyone. SO. What if the last season is meant to be point 2 revisited- piracy is still ending, the world is changing so how do we deal? And point 1, but FLIPPED. WHAT IF. Season three is Stede’s turn revisited??? Season three with Ed AND Stede TALKING and Stede genuinely coming to terms with the fact that the people he loves are not better off without him- that he doesn’t have to earn the love he thinks he doesn’t deserve?? What if he gets to take that final step into a new world where being a pirate can’t be the same as it was before, but that spirit carries on and now he knows he’s loved and has worth regardless?? I STILL WANT THAT MAN TO BE THROWN IN THE EMOTIONAL BATHTUB IS WHAT IM SAYING. I don’t know if this is anything, or if this is true or accurate!!! Do I just want to see them kiss and cry some more?? MAYBE. Aaaaagh I just really hope djenks gets to made season 3- he deserves to finish his pirate story and I would very much like to be here when he does. hbo max count your days.

Also I once again want to thank you for your thoughts and screams over the course of this season- you really are incredible at character analysis and it’s been an absolute pleasure to come running over to this corner after each episode to see what you think. Thank you for posting. YOU. are WONDERFUL THANK YOU <3 <3 (also. Also also. THEY KISSED SO MANY TIMES ED READ STEDES FUCKIN LETTER ED SAID I LOVE YOU AND THEY ARE NO LONGER SEPARATED. MARRIAGE. I CANT BELIEVE THIS SHOW IS THE WAY IT IS. There is still an owch but!!! It’s a good owchie now 😭😭)

I AM ONCE AGAIN HONORED TO GET SUCH A BEAUTIFUL STRING OF THOUGHTS IN MY INBOX??? <3

PARTICULARLY EXCITED, HAPPY, POSITIVE ONES SJDKSDS LIKE I AM HUGGING YOU SO SO TIGHT <3 <3 <3

AND ALSO, I'M SHARING SO MANY OF YOUR SENTIMENTS TOO SDJKJSHDKLS LIKE-

*INHALES* So seeing the little house in the BTS footage ~*~fucked me up~*~ because I just had a FEELING it was going to be both literal and symbolic for them and their relationship. A little house that's struggling, and falling apart in some places, but is still standing after years and years of battering. It's been through the wringer, yet it still flourishes with so much life and beauty. And it has the potential to grow into something even more beautiful and strong with some mutual effort and tender love and care.

AND THAT'S THEM!!! THAT'S THEIR RELATIONSHIP!!! Like, as you said, they're BOTH still so hurt. They BOTH still have issues to work on. But now they're there, together. They're standing on the same, rickety, wooded floors. They're there, ready to patch things, side by side.

AND YES, I've very much thought it was going to be Stede for Season 1's focus, Ed for Season 2's focus, and then both of them for Season 3's focus, but I do like your idea of it looping back around to Stede! Or maybe like, SHARING the focus. Because, as you said, Stede needs his fRIGGIN BATHTUB, and Ed still needs time to figure out who he is.

It's just such a delicious setup indeed, and I am crossing my fingers so so hard that it gets greenlit quickly for us here. There's just so much MEAT to their dynamic that's still left, still so much to be EXPLORED AND GROWN. AND ESPECIALLY, LIKE YOU SAID, WITH THEIR WORLD COMPLETELY CHANGING AROUND THEM TOO!!! THE BRITISH!!! THE REVENGE BEING CAPTAINED BY FRENCHIE!!!! ZHENG AND AUNTIE WANTING TO GET AT RICKY!!!!!! SO SO MUCH!!!!!!!

BUT anyway, thank YOU so much for taking the time to come in here and share YOUR thoughts, too! It's been such a delight reading them, and I'm so glad we could MUTUALLY SCREAM SDJKSDKLS <3

[piracytheorist]

Ranking SxF season 2 episodes!

So, some time ago I made a ranking of the season 1 episodes of Spy x Family, from my least favourite to my top favourite. I felt inspired a couple days ago and I thought I'd make a similar ranking of the season 2 episodes.

Mentioning again that: This is all my personal judgment heavily based on stuff I liked. You most certainly will disagree with me and that’s fine! Just don’t argue with me because that’s just personal opinions, I’m not trying to change anyone’s minds or prove anything!

And also: I chose to rank each episode by five criteria, the things I love the most about the show: 1) Humor (intentional or not), 2) Character (defining or cool moments and such) 3) Cute 4) Plot (how much development there is and how well the action is delivered) 5) Feels (of any kind).

#12, Least favourite of the season: 29. The Pastry of Knowledge/ The Informant's Great Romance Plan II

Humor: 6/10 Character: 6/10 Cute: 7/10 Plot: 6/10 Feels: 5/10

I think this is the only episode that got points removed for something I didn't like. I made some very passionate posts about it when it first aired, particularly due to how after watching it I realized I'd been treated very unfairly by some fellow fans, and thus I'm almost incapable of rewatching the first half. Yes this is about Damian bullying Anya, no I won't shut up about it.

Anyway. This is still quite a high ranking (it's higher than the three lowest from my s1 ranking), cause the humor and the cats of the second part were quite entertaining on their own. It got a few points for plot because it introduced the stakes of Anya getting low grades, and also because of the discussion between Franky and Twilight about Garden.

#11: 36. Berlint in Love / Nightfall's Daily Life

Humor: 9/10 Character: 6/10 Cute: 6/10 Plot: 5/10 Feels: 7/10

A very high humor score because I honestly doubt a single minute passed without me laughing my ass off in this one. It was so ridiculous and they loved making it so. Though having two wholly different parts, they were both fun in how they were around two characters blinded by their affection for Loid to the point they have no idea how hopeless their goals are. I just love how exaggerated it all is.

Some feels points were added for Yor talking about remembering what Loid had told her during the bench scene, and also because we get Loid being a stupid simp for his strong wife.

#10: 31. The Fearsome Luxury Cruise Ship

Humor: 7/10 Character: 8/10 Cute: 6/10 Plot: 8/10 Feels: 6/10

Reminder that this is still a high ranking. I'm just being strict in the ratings because the entire season is so good, the bar is really high!

Anyway, though I like this episode, it feels more like a passing point from the previous one to the next, compared to those specific episodes, so that's probably why it's this low. I love how the assassins plot is kicked off and we get to see some action, and character points were added for McMahon's ruthless killing of the stalker assassin.

#9: 28. Mission and Family / The Elegant Bondman / Extras

Humor: 6,5/10 Character: 9/10 Cute: 6/10 Plot: 9/10 Feels: 7/10

This is the first time I felt the need to use decimals, lol. I just feel that this episode is one of the darkest and most serious of the season, but also... Bondman's part was ridiculous (affectionate) and the omakes were great by themselves, so I felt that a mere six wouldn't do.

I'm honestly entranced by the first part. The plot and exploration of Yuri's and Perkin's characters were near damn perfect, I only wish there was a bit more beyond that episode, haha. I understand the focus needed to be in the Cruise Arc, so I feel a nine will do for this one. The feels were honestly added because I was a bit touched by Perkin's motives, and how those touched Yuri too.

#8: 30. Plan to Cross the Border

Humor: 8/10 Character: 9/10 Cute: 7/10 Plot: 7/10 Feels: 7/10

The Shopkeeper's introduction was amazing, albeit terrifying. Olka's was a little more subdued, but it was more touching. I felt both also reflected on something about Yor, so it was overall very satisfying. Due to so many introductions, plot was light (not that I minded), but Anya's scheming put up points in humor and cute. Feels points were added for Olka wanting to escape the crime underworld, and how that affected Yor.

#7: 32. Who Is This Mission For?

Humor: 8/10 Character: 8/10 Cute: 8/10 Plot: 6/10 Feels: 8/10

I'd spent the entire week before this episode aired wondering how Yor would manage fighting Barnaby, and even though I should be used to the story's wackiness by now, it still managed to surprise me and make me laugh. Also Loid will never outlive his ridiculous tourist getup. Anya was an adorable little gremlin who couldn't stop having fun, so cute points went up, and Loid managed to spend one (1) episode without going "For the mission!" once, so character and feels points went up as well.

#6: 26. Follow Papa and Mama

Humor: 9/10 Character: 7/10 Cute: 8/10 Plot: 6/10 Feels: 8/10

To be honest, I think I'm a bit strict with this one. I don't know how this story manages to make miscommunication so funny for me, but it was legitimately hilarious. The thing is, this was the only episode of the season whose manga chapter I'd already read, long ago too, and maybe my expectations for its adaptation were unrealistically high - probably also due to it being the season premiere and I'd spent ten months without my show, so I'm probably biased. Mind you, I still loved it, but this further cements my will to stay anime only.

Anyway! Character points went a bit down because I didn't feel we saw anything new, but the cute and feels persisted because of Anya's machinations and because of Yor admitting how good she felt with Loid dedicating time for her that day.

#5: 34. The Hand That Connects to the Future

Humor: 8/10 Character: 7/10 Cute: 8/10 Plot: 8/10 Feels: 8/10

A lovely, hopeful closure for Olka and the rest, Yor getting the acknowledgement she deserves, a spectacular ending of the assassins fight, high stakes with the bomb threats, and an emotional ending scene with Twilight carrying Anya to bed and then the family getting ready to meet in the resort island. Not much else to be said <3

#4: 35. Enjoy the Resort to the Fullest / Bragging About Vacation

Humor: 9/10 Character: 7/10 Cute: 9/10 Plot: 6/10 Feels: 9/10

No, I'm definitely not biased because this episode shows us the first glimpse of Twilight yearning for Yor what are you talking about.

Who am I kidding, I definitely added feels points just for that look he gave her while she watched Anya play with the sheep. The whole episode felt so relaxing and fulfilling after the intense assassins plot, especially the scene of the Forgers having tea upon returning home, that I don't mind that the second part at school feels a little exaggerated. The ending scene with Anya being surrounded by liars though is top notch.

#3: 27. Bond's Strategy to Stay Alive / Damian's Field Research Trip

Humor: 9/10 Character: 8/10 Cute: 8/10 Plot: 7/10 Feels: 9/10

Endo used Dog Cuteness! It's super effective!

Yeah, the whole adventure and the way it was presented were appropriately hilarious and we saw some more of the dynamics between Bond and the rest and I really liked that. Plot wasn't heavy but I was all wide eyes at the introduction of a truth serum, and at the second part when Mr. Green talked about people defecting to the West. Feels went up thanks to, among others, Twilight thinking he was helping Bond get his "revenge". Also, though the second part didn't do much for me, it actually felt nice to see Damian laugh innocently like the kid he really is.

#2: 37. Part of the Family

Humor: 8/10 Character: 8/10 Cute: 9/10 Plot: 8/10 Feels: 9/10

Despite the mopping wet of a dog we got here, I kinda felt this was less... humorous, or at least not focusing so much on the humor aspect. I felt it was more cute and emotional that Bond was just trying to help left and right but was only misunderstood by Twilight. The action takes the place of a plot here, and I loved it all. Some development too through Twilight realizing he can relax a bit with Bond, even though he's still in denialTM about how much he appreciates his company.

#1: 33. The Symphony Upon the Ship / Sis's Herb Tea

Humor: 8/10 Character: 10/10 Cute: 7/10 Plot: 9/10 Feels: 10/10

Yeah OH MY GOD are we surprised. Top tier shit. Excellent balance of pretty much everything in this one. The humor even in the way Yor took out some of the assassins. Her flashbacks with Yuri. The ACTION and the ANIMATION of it all. HER REALIZATION AND DETERMINATION POWERING HER THROUGH. HER LOVE FOR HER FAMILY.

Yeah wow it's really so good any eloquence evades me. Perfect. Mwah. Thank you Endo-sensei.

~

And here is the overall ranking of the episodes, from both seasons, based on the ratings I gave:

1. Operation Strix

    2. Secure A Wife

    33. The Symphony Upon The Ship / Sis's Herb Tea

    24. The Role Of A Mother And Wife / Shopping With Friends

    38. Part Of The Family

    16. Yor's Kitchen / The Informant's Great Romance Plan

    27. Bond's Strategy To Stay Alive / Damian's Field Research Trip

    14. Disarm The Time Bomb

    12. Penguin Park

   11. Stella

   21. Nightfall / First Fit Of Jealousy

   35. Enjoy The Resort To The Fullest / Bragging About Vacation

   15. A New Family Member

   9. Show Off How In Love You Are

   5. Will They Pass Or Fail?

   34. The Hand That Connects To The Future

   3. Prepare For The Interview

   26. Follow Papa And Mama

   32. Who Is This Mission For?

   13. Project Apple

   4. The Prestigious School's Interview

  30. Plan To Cross The Border

   28. Mission And Family / The Elegant Bondman / Extras

   8. The Counter-Secret Police Cover Operation

   6. The Friendship Scheme

   31. The Fearsome Luxury Cruise Ship

   25. First Contact

  23. The Unwavering Path

   18. Uncle The Private Tutor / Daybreak

   6. The Target's Second Son

   36. Berlint In Love / Nightfall's Daily Life

   20. Investigate The General Hospital / Decipher The Perplexing Code

   19. A Revenge Plot Against Desmond / Mama Becomes The Wind

  29. The Pastry Of Knowledge / The Informant's Great Romance Plan Ii

  17. Carry Out The Griffin Plan / Fullmetal Lady / Omelet Rice ♡

  22. The Underground Tennis Tournament: The Campbelldon

  10. The Great Dodgeball Plan