#literally nothing this season was about him and still stole the entire show

[gx-gameon]

Some reasons why the DM cast would not like the friends Jaden made during school:

Syrus: In the dub, it's clear that he doesn't have the best relationship with his brother Zane so he projects the perfect brother figure onto Jaden. The minute Jaden doesn't fit the ideal, he abandons Jaden at the toss of a hat. From trading his bed/eating his breakfast shrimp to the Dark World, Syrus was never as loyal as Joey. Only reason he got the Ra Yellow promotion duel was because of his brother and it's hinted that he was given his Obelisk Blue rank as a 'thank you' for helping against the Light of Ruin since he was at the final battle (even though all he did was hold Aster). Didn't truly improve until Season 4 and his deck upgrade came from his brother. Literally rode coattails to where he is at the end of the series.

Chazz: He was a jerk at the start, but mostly due to his brothers putting pressure on him. When Jaden tried to bond with him, he was mostly rebuffed and while he could see Duel Spirits, he never reciprocated Jaden's attempts to bond over it. Despite everything he went through with Jaden, he didn't hesitate to rejoin Obelisk Blue in a heartbeat come Season 4.

Bastion: Season 2 did this man no favors. He lost on purpose to join the Society of Light to get recognition and respect, which he never got anyway. He did give Jaden the wake up call he needed to get out of his Dark World funk to at least beat Yubel/get Jesse back.

Alexis: RIP her development in GX because her archetype didn't do well in the real life sales, because having a Ritual Expert would have been great. When Jaden returned, she tried to act like nothing happened and tried to force Jaden into activities, which only made him angry because he wanted to be left alone. She only moved into the Slifer Red Dorm because Crowler was trying to make her into a pop star with her brother in Season 2 so she can't be blamed too much for leaving.

Atticus: After getting his memories back, all Atticus did was become comic relief and tried to hook his sister up with guys. Never did he duel with his own original deck against the villains (Red Eyes deck is hinted to be the deck he was given as a Shadow Rider, not his original). He's one of the few that can beat Zane since he was part of the Obelisk Elite but never showed it. It's his fault that the Sacred Beasts woke up because he stole the keys for his plan to get Alexis to hook up with Chazz. Literally tried to force his sister into stardom against her will because he's an overly dramatic theater kid.

Zane: Zane is a one trick pony with a pretty powerful beat stick. His entire deck revolves around getting out Cyber End Dragon via Power Bond. Anyone in the pros can shut that down quick and instead of trying to improve he just kept with his old deck and fell into the underground, rejecting any help due to pride. Literally almost rage quit his final duel with Jaden because Jaden was trying to duel around a brick opening hand and had to think instead of having fun on the fly.

Aster: Multiple posts already on this for this blog, was manipulated because of tunnel vision concerning avenging his dad and didn't care who he hurt as long as he got his revenge.

Hassleberry: This boy literally has a dinosaur bone in his leg which gives him dino powers, got his spirit sent to space to save the world, and still will talk smack about Jaden behind his back and call his Duel Spirits 'imaginary friends' despite having met Neos.

Axel: He saw that Jaden's monsters were forced to attack Brron and how it wasn't truly Jaden's fault that his friends were sent to the stars, but still turned his back on the boy and told him that he was on his own. Despite his tough guy act, he ran when the Supreme King challenged him the first time. Redeemed himself by beating the Supreme King in Sesaon 3 and in Season 4 by helping Jaden though!

Jesse: Jesse is a all around sweet guy, he really is! The fact that he considered making himself a martyr to save the school was fulfilling his dream probably doesn't sit right with some of the DM crew because of how Jaden blamed himself for not being strong enough to save his friend.

Exception to this cause would be Jim. He saw that something was going down at the academy and investigated. the minute he saw Jaden as the Supreme King? In the original Japanese he outright asks if Jaden was tricked into being a ruthless warlord. Only reason this man did not return in season 4 was because his Japanese voice actor retired. Chumley is in this camp too because he stayed a solid friend with Jaden after Season 1.

Okay I thought I was the Gx friend groups number 1 hater but I take my cap off and pass it to you. Way to eviscerate all of them.

Here’s the thing. The DM cast are big friendship people. They forgive people for things they probably shouldn’t as long as the offended party says it’s okay. But they are also loyal.

In Duelist kingdom Téa holds a bit of a grudge against Mai until they get to know each other. Joey and Tristian are very protective of their friends. Yugi is warm and welcoming to all but he won’t stand for anyone messing with his friends and loved ones. Atem is protective. He loves his friends dearly and will do anything to keep them from harms way. And Seto is a dragon, he hoards that which is precious to him and protects it viciously.

I don’t think they would tell Jaden they didn’t like his friends. Nor do I think these adults would hold grudges against children (Seto might but he’s Seto Kaiba he held a grudge to the afterlife) but they aren’t fans of all of Jaden’s friends

Syrus

Syrus for all the reasons you stated, they just don’t like him. Syrus tries to force Jaden into a preferred older brother role instead of his best friend and equal. If Jaden fails that glorified image even a little bit Syrus loses all faith in him and interest in their friendship besides whining until Jaden full fills the role again. He’s a fair weather friend. I don’t think he’s a bad character or person but he needs to grow up. But because he is sheltered by both Zane and Jaden (from hiding behind him and Jaden’s hero complex) he doesn’t have to. Hopefully he matures after school.

But from a parents perspective this is not the person you want your kid relying on. He’s the friend who expects you to always be there for him but won’t be there for you in a hard time. Yugi’s good at reading people and from the stories Jaden tells them (which put all of his friends in a much better light) he and the Sam cast are not impressed. Téa and Joey especially don’t like the kid. Mai to. She felt with a lot of fake people in her life time. But how do you say that to a kid like Jaden who is so excited to have friends? Yugi is hopeful that Syrus will mature one day. After all his mom had similar worries when he became friends with Joey. But as time goes forward he’s proven wrong and Joey is a little offended by the comparison.

Chazz

I haven’t seen season 4 so I can’t comment on it. I’m almost done with my rewatch of season 1 and Chazz grows a lot in that season. I can see the DM cast being wary of him in the beginning because Chazz does start off as a bit of a bully. But after the school duel and Chazz starts truly hanging out with the cast I think most of those fears are put to rest. With finding out about his family and he is fairly loyal to Jaden. It’s not Joey levels but he’s not suppose to be (he’s not the designated best friend though he does a better job then Syrus)

I think by the end of season 1 they like him. (They haven’t met any of these kids and only have Jaden and school reports to go off of) the kid did stand up for the whole school against his brothers using a completely different and “weak” deck. He’s impressed them, and he at least tried to help. He took down one shadow rider.

In season 2 they are probably worried about him with the cult running around but I don’t know how much Jaden has told them about said cult. Chazz is also a real winner in that season of I remember. He goes out and beats all the members of the cult and wins the Gx tournament while Jaden deals with the leader. That should be the job of the “best friend” but Syrus and Hasselberry were mostly cheerleaders. It sticks that most of it is off screen but at least he’s helping. The cult can’t gang up on Jaden if Chazz is mowing them down.

Season 3 is a mess for Chazz. He’s sideline like most of the cast and it doesn’t help that he is one of the nay sayers. I know it’s a spell and Jaden is being selfish and rushing ahead. But this is a rescue mission that you chose to go on. I need to rewatch this season because how did Chazz and the others get captured? How did they not fight back? I don’t remember them taking part in one duel in the dark world. Like they were just following, complaining, and dying. It sucks how much the writers sidelined the cast like I love the exchange students, it think they are better characters over all, but the way the og cast is handled is t the best.

In conclusion, I don’t think the DM cast disapproves of him, it’s just a complex relationship between him and Jaden. I have them becoming Chazz’s pseudo family by the end of the au. Him and Jaden started on a ruff foot but they got there eventually.

Bastion

It’s almost funnier to say they forgot Bastion existed. He’s so fun in season 1 even though he’s a simp I love the energy he brings. But he’s the e first of the cast to get hard sidelined. I have to watch season 2 again. I always felt bad for the kid. Arthur and Solomon would have loved this kid. I’m going to play with his story a lot because he just wants to be acknowledged and seen as an equal to his friends and is constantly dismissed. Like he willingly joined the cult. He’s going to get a DM parental figure. One that probably doesn’t want the nerd following them but will grow to love their newly acquired duckling. I need to rewatch season 2 and think through the DM cast.

Alexis

Is that why her development gets thrown in the garbage?? Her archetype didn’t sell well? No she’s the ritual expert. And you’re right that would have been super cool. She’s still not a good friend. She’s alright in season 1 and at least takes down one of the Shadow riders. In season two she has a mini arc as the ice queen and they do a nice job of if I remember correctly. But she’s also sidelined in season 3 and I’ve heard season 4 is not great for her. To focused on her crush on Jaden and his past and her idolized version that she can’t see the Jaden in front of her is in need of help.

I don’t think the DM cast hate her but I think she rubs them the wrong way in season 3 and 4.

Maybe I’ll extend post cannon because I can see Alexis with a mentor and learning how to navigate her own feelings becoming a real power house. Ritual decks are rare and I wish we saw them more. Atem has two ritual monsters he uses in Black Magician of Chaos and Black luster solider. I’m not saying Atem’s her mentor but she just needs a chance to grow and stand on her own. Post cannon is going to be forcing these characters to stand on their own two feet, letting them fail, and watching them build themselves back up again.

The og friend group relies on Haden way too much to solve their problems.

Atticus

Atticus is a disappointment. He’s so fun and a goofball which is very different from his shadowrider persona. And I’m okay with that. It’s not his personality that upsets me. (Joey and Tristan have a can can dance when they beat an enemy and sing “can can we kicked it in the can can” like they would love Atticus and I love that goofball energy)

No where Atticus is a disappointment is that he never wins a duel on screen. He’s built up as this amazing duelist. He wins against the tomb keepers duel spirits to get his half of the shadow medallion. He’s part of the obelisk elite like Zane (I always wondered why their uniforms are different and now I know) yet he never wins an on screen duel.

I’m okay with him being a jokester and having fun with his kid sister and her friends, he’s behind his class by two years so he’s got to make new friends and Alexis and her crew welcome him. But I wish we say more of that.

Serenity join the DM cast in Battle City works this really well. She’s new to the group but already has connections because she’s Joey’s sister. She doesn’t know the rules and learns over time. Shes not the strongest but she’s helpful (saving Joey from the anchor) she doesn’t take center stage but we care about her.

But the difference between making her a side character/cheerleader and Atticus is Atticus is hyped up to be a good duelist. If they just showed him winning a duel or even talked about how he was win off screen I wouldn’t be as mad but the boys is a joke. He’s older than the rest of the cast and while he can be a goofy older brother he should also be a mentor or at least protective of the group. What was he even doing during the Gx tournament/Alexis’s cult time. I honestly forget. His kid sister spent a season looking for him and fighting to save him and the writers could let him return the favor. No Jaden has to save her.

(Like let him attempt. Maybe he can’t win in his own and Jaden has to take over or switch it and have Jaden start the duel but he’s not getting through and then Atticus steps in. It would be like Arem taking over for Kaiba bs Noah, where he takes Kaiba’s life points and deck and still pulls out a win. Do you know how good that would have made Atticus look if he took over Jaden’s duel using his deck and was able to beat Alexis. He’s a great duelist and to win using someone else deck is always seen as an impressive feat.)

I’m going to play with him to. I think most of the DM cast would love him. The Gx writers really just dropped the ball on their side characters.

Zane

Way to kick Zane when he’s down. Honestly sounds like something Kaiba would yell at him.

To be fair, if Zane is a one trick pony it’s also a fault with the school. They held him up as the best of the best and never forced him to change or adapt. The pro league is far more aggressive and he should have been prepared for that. If none of the students could beat him that’s one thing but a teacher should have pointed this flaw out. Maybe they did and he was to prideful or thought they were wrong because no one had ever stopped him before.

In know the Cyber end deck is a good deck. It still sees play today and has a lot of legacy support. So I don’t think it’s that his deck is bad. I think he just needs to change up his strategy.

But in topic. Ever already discussed the DM cast feelings towards him. He’s talented and good to Jaden in season 1 but they can’t help him in season 2. One they have their own things going on and two they can’t reveal their connection to Jaden. In all honesty they probably don’t know about Zane’s underground dueling until Jaden does. By then it’s too late to get the kid out.

Aster

I’ve already talked a lot about asteroids and his relationship with the DM cast and how they feel about his actions so we will move forward.

Hasselberry

I haven’t rewatched season 2 but I remember preferring Hasselberry to Syrus

They thing that drives me nuts though is that they both act like Jaden is crazy talking to spirits. Syrus has had multiple encounters with duel spirits since season 1 and Hasselberry has turned into a cartoon dinosaur and fought beside Neos. The man has no room to talk. We are all suppose to believe in your Dino DNA but you think Jaden talking to spirits is crazy.

Hasselberry is far more helpful than Syrus but it’s the Jaden is crazy talk that drives me nuts. Like he draws the same short straw as everyone else in season 3 and I want to do a deep dive on who got what negative emotion because some fit the character way more then others but we will talk about that later.

Over all I think the DM cast would like Hasselberry. If he’s away from Syrus. They get really toxic together trying to prove who is Jaden’s “true best friend” and he follows Syrus’s lead of putting Jaden on a pedestal and then getting upset with him when he falls off. (I wonder what their friendship could have been without Syrus?)

Axel

Okay I have to defend my boy here. Yes he sucks for abandoning Jaden. He’s also the “most experienced” when it comes to missions like this. I need to rewatch season three to figure out exactly where everything g went wrong. Yes Jaden is selfish and moving to fast but it’s also understandable where he is coming from. And everyone else invited themselves on the mission.

I saw someone say season three is meant to show Jaden what will happen if he keeps bringing his friends into dangerous situations and loses. Um I’m sorry. Jaden didn’t ask them to come. He does in season 1 ask for Syrus and others to come and support him but he doesn’t in season 3 he knows this is dangerous, stupid, and reckless, he knows he’s going to do whatever it takes and he tells them that up front. And then they get mad at him for doing exactly what he said he was going to do. And I can see the Duel Academy kids getting upset because they’ve spent 2 years with Jaden holding their hands but Jim and Axel? They did so well in the other dimension and Axel knows what this kind of mission intels, move fast. They have a short window of time to not only save Jesse but to move without Yubel knowing they are there. They have to keep moving.

Now in his defense. If my friend (and let’s be honest Jaden, Jim and Jesse are probably his first real friends) just accidentally murdered/was forced to murder our other friends I’d be upset to. And you have to blame someone even if that blame doesn’t go to the right person. Syrus was running (both his mouth and his legs) and he’s the weaker of the two. Jaden, in theory, can take care of himself. Should Axel and Jim slip the responsibility and in go after Syrus and one stay with Jaden yes. But they are teens and no one expected Jaden to spiral like that.

So here Axel is, his whole life has been a war zone. He finally has friends and they are dropping like flies but he’s still going strong. Until the supreme king is revealed to be Jaden. Jaden the silly sweet kid who welcomed him even after the way he acted. Who has always dueled with honor. Who he abandoned and lead to this monstrosity before him. And he just killed Jim. Him who only wanted to help him and is all around a great guy.

I don’t blame him for having a panic attack. He reached his limit and freaked out. He also over came that and still came back to help Jaden. Risking his life to do so.

After season 3 and 4 the DM cast love him. I don’t think he would ever run from a fight again. I think he’s started down the worst that could happened and over came it. He shows his loyalty (from what I understand) in season 4 and I believe is one of the few life long friends Jaden made at school.

Jesse

My boy. I think the DM cast is more worried about him than anything. He does have a self sacrificing tendency. But then so does Jaden. I think that’s the thing that worries them the most about the two of them traveling together post cannon. They know Jaden won’t let Jesse get hurt. But what will Jesse do if Jaden gets hurt protecting him? And the opposition is true to Jesse won’t let Jaden get hurt and we’ve already seen the lengths Jaden will go to if Jesse gets hurt protecting him.

Over all the DM cast likes him (with Seto Kaiba being huffy about it, only because he’s scared he’s losing Jaden to his future boyfriend/husband. He’s got big over protective dad fears going on)

Jim and Chumley

No notes. They are great friends and very helpful in their seasons.

I already decided Chumley finds out in between season 1 and 2. He’s just a good guy and I wish we say more of him.

I wouldn’t put it past him to figure out Jaden’s identity on his own. But still need to rewatch their season and see how things play out.

As of right now.

The DM cast likes

Chumley (finds out post season 1)

Chazz (the drama with his family solidifies his placement in season one but he doesn’t find out until post season 4)

Jesse (finds out during season 3)

Jim (finds out post season 4/ maybe mid way season 3)

Axel (same as Jim)

Aster (ruff starts but he and Jaden end up close and he finds out post season 2)

DM cast are on the fence about

Alexis

Atticus

Zane

Hasselberry

Bastion (I forgot him when I was first making this list and that is actually hilarious)

They got some ground to recover. The DM cast don’t openly dislike them. But they don’t know if they trust them with the Jaden.

This person is on thin ice with the DM cast

Syrus (is anyone suprised)

[nico-drawings]

You know, you start seeing a lot of reels and posts and shorts about a series and so you start to watch it. And you see how a lot of people like one character and it is really common to see this: men relating a lot to a male character that is badass and kicks ass and them looking up to him and wanting to be like him. And 90% of the time that character is a fucking piece of shit.

Well nothing could have preprared me for the gigantic asshole that is Daemon Targaryen. It is honestly impressive how many good things I have seen said about him AND HOW MUCH OF A HORRIBLE PERSON HE IS. OH MY GOD. I have heard so much stuff about how much Daemon is a great warrior and how much he loves his brother Viserys and how much he DOESN'T want the throne. And. No. For fuck's sake no. How can people look up to this absolute garbage of a man. I can make a LONG list of the awful things Daemon has done to people.

Season 1:

Episode 1:

- Sitting on Viserys' throne (not that bad, but it shows how much he respects his brother's title)

- Called his wife both ugly AND a bitch (sexist piece of shit)

- Made fun of the death of Otto's wife (Otto is a bastard that deserves it, but he's still an asshole to make fun of someone's mourning)

- Making Otto's knight trip after asking for Alicent's blessing just to humiliate the Hightowers even more (doing so by making the horse trip, fighting dirty is a dick move)

- Made a toast celebrating the death of Viserys' death, even calling him "Heir for a day" to mock him

Episode 2:

- Stole the egg of Viserys' dead son, basically spitting on his death again

Episode 3:

- Beat the shit out of a messanger because the little brat couldn't accept the fact that he was sucking so much at a war that his big brother had to send him reinforcements (yeah he won before they arrived, doesn't change the fact that it was quite literally a reaction at the level of a tantrum)

Episode 4:

- Called his wife a bitch AGAIN and joked about her being probably infertile due to being harsh and stuff like that

- Bringing his teen niece to a brothel, grooming her and having sex with her (hey, it does not matter if morality is different in Westeros and Rhaenera is technically an adult, THAT'S HIS NIECE THAT IS HALF HIS AGE. THERE'S A POWER INBALANCE HERE. AND NO, BECAUSE OTHER CHARACTERS DO IT, IT DOESN'T MAKE IT BETTER. VISERYS CAN GO DIE IN A DITCH AS WELL FOR HIS RELANTIONSHIP WITH ALICENT FOR ALL I CARE)

- Boosting about fucking his niece to her FATHER and then proposing a marriage with her, acting like she's a prize for his success in battle

Episode 5:

- Killing his wife (of course she wasn't manipulable so she had to die)

- Mocking the cousin of his wife about having her inheritance

- Almost started to make out with Rhaenyra in front of everyone at the banquet before her marriage

Episode 6:

Wow, actually nothing in this one. They even kept him from making the same choice Viserys made with Aemma.

Episode 7:

- Fucking his niece again, he just doesn't learn I see. Oh yeah and he marries her. I'm sure they won't be toxic.

Episode 8:

Wow nothing again. Unbelievable, I am surprised. Did his two wives help him become a decent person? It has been like more than 10 years between the start of episode 6 and the end of episode 8 so it could be.

Episode 9:

Nothing again, but he wasn't in it so.

Episode 10:

- HERE HE COMES BACK WITH THE STEELCHAIR! Calling Alicent a whore and telling Rhaenys what she should have done.

- Ignoring his wife screaming for him, what a great husband (god that birthing scene, why jesus christ)

- Basically commanding Rhaenyra's council of war like it's his, just like the conversation with Otto. This doesn't make him an asshole per se, but it is a great showing of not being able to read the room. If the entire conflict hinges upon the fact that her legitimacy is being discussed you shouldn't really talk like YOU are the boss instead of HER.

- Basically saying that Vyseris and Rhaenyra aren't good leaders in front of EVERYONE. This man is not smart. At ALL.

- Chocking Rhaenyra and saying Vyseris' reign was useless. He is pathetic beyond belief.

Season 2:

Episode1:

- Wow less than 5 minutes into season 2 and he's already kicking. Giving Rhaenis orders, undermining Rhaenyra's authority and basically telling Rhaenis that Luke's death is her fault.

- Treating both Mysaria and Erryk like shit.

- Not trying to be there for Rhaenyra for Luke's death not even for a second, not one word, nothing. I understand, Rhaenyra's pain doesn't help in a war, but the war in question hasn't been going on for not even a MONTH. And with the naval blockade and the loyalty of some of the clans they already struck back. You CAN hug your wife for 5 seconds due to the death of her son, you won't lose the war if you do.

- I know some people try to defend him by saying stuff like "Oh he just ordered to kill Aemond". Why would they kill the kid then. I'm not joking, why the kid ESPECIALLY? Do people really think a random rat killer would be smart enough to kill the prince because he, one day, would get on the throne? Why would he even care? Even the guard loyal to Daemon wouldn't care about that. Hell, Haelena would be more straightforward and reasonable for a random person, since she's an adult and she saw them. But no, the MALE child specifically to destroy the bloodline. Come on, Daemon ordered it, "a son for a son", he doesn't care if it's a child. And even if he didn't, and it's a huge if, it just shows how little in control he is. He is not able to do anything right.

Episode 2:

- Throws a tantrum, lashing out to Rhaenyra, insults Vyseris in front of her and basically tells her "You're only on the throne so that I wouldn't, you don't deserve it".

Episode 3:

- Taking an offense in being called "Prince" instead of "King". You are not the king boy, pipe down. The crown isn't yours. Ego piercing the clouds, seriously.

Episode 4:

- I'll give him the benefit of the doubt because he was tripping balls, but seriously? Killing young Rhaenyra? Yeah that's not a good look.

- He told a teen to kill his grandfather, and then said to his face that his family is shit.

- So you DO know that that Psycho of Aemond is basically you but 30 years younger.

Episode 5:

- "Daemon never wanted the crown!" His literal subconscious in the form of his mother (that he was fucking) told him he deserved it more than his brother. What else do you need?

- He scoofs anytime he is remembered that the crown isn't his.

- "The true heir of Viserys" he calls himself, he seems SO loyal to Rhaenyra (that's sarcasm)

Episode 6:

- The allucination with the Viserys conversation due to the "heir for a day" comment made me realize that he never apologized for it. Not once.

Episode 7:

Surprisingly nothing, I mean yeah he killed the Lord of the rivers with Alyn's help, but the man was to going to die anyway so. I don't know if it counts.

Episode 8:

Nothing again, not denying the treason proposal was fishy but at the end he bent the knee so all good.

Now that season 2 has ended and season 3 won't come out for a year or more, the list by episodes is over. I will use this to elaborate my thoughts.

Watching Daemon Targaryen in the series and seeing his reception by the fandom made me realize how the "media literacy is dead" is yes wrong but is also very justifiable as an opinion. Because the Daemon situation is really the last installment of this behaviour, especially from men: Walter White, the guy from American Psycho, hell even Ken from the Barbie movie. How much can these characters been latched onto, been seen as incredible and as a goal, while their entire purpose in the story is to have a giant glowing sign that reads "this is a bad person and this how they fit into our messed up society" or maybe they are part of a story and they are not there to be an omen, but they are very openly written to be bad people. Daemon falls into the second category. He has a very distinct role in the series and that's to be the ambigous guy with a giant ego, always understimating everyone around him, while constantly being punished for such way of thinking and arriving, at the end, at finding purpose in being under someone and serving them. Daemon is constantly dismissive towards other people: he thinks he's beneath everyone and everything. That he can do and say anything he likes. And he gets fucked every single time for it. He thought he could insult Vyseris' child, he got sent away. He thought he could steal his egg, he had soldiers and a dragon at his doorstep to take it back. He thought he could start a war at sea and win easily and he had to use Laenor's tactic to win or use Vyseris' troops, otherwise he would have lost horribly. He thought he could have his way with Rhaenyra, he was banished for it. He thought he could command his second wife, ignore her desires and choose for her, she made her own dragon burn her alive in order to make a choice for herself. He thought he could take revenge for Rhaenyra and hurt the greens, he not only gave an order so shallow that it could have been misinterpreted but Rhaenyra was disgusted by it and it ruined her reputation throught the seven kingdoms. He thought he could make the Blackwoods kill their rivals without a problem, if the young Tally hadn't grew balls the size of Caraxes the entirety of the River people wouldn't have followed him even if the dragon was about to burn them all alive.

THAT is who Daemon is: an incompetent, egomaniac that is constantly needed to be reminded that he ain't shit.

And yet so many people think he's the most badass character in the show. They think he's a loving brother, a great husband, a genius when it comes to war and a great warrior. All of those things, Daemon Targaryen is not.

And if you enjoy him as a character, well I only have one thing to say to you: that's fine. Because Daemon is written BEAUTIFULLY. He is coherent to a fault.

You can see that he loves Vyseris, but he's a psycho that has never respected him so he constantly hurts him because he's a piece of shit.

He doesn't respect Rhaenyra because to him she's always gonna be a child because Daemon is a groomer. She is also not fit to be queen because she's like Vyseris, someone that Daemon never thought to be a good king, and he wasn't entirely wrong. Because, mind you, if Vyseris had a backbone, Daemon would have lost his head. He got too many chances.

Daemon will always envy Rhaenyra because in a way he was always seeking Vyseris' attention, he always wanted to be praised by him, but he always wanted to be praised for being HIMSELF, hence why he never tried to act as Vyseris would have liked. He wanted Vyseris to like Daemon, not the Daemon that acted like Vyseris would have wanted.

Daemon could never be in a good relantionship because he can't respect anyone else outside of himself. His first wife was his equal. In no way that woman would have bent to his will. His second wife was more accomodating, but she had pride in herself and at the end choose for herself. And Rhaenyra? She's supposed to be BENEATH him, he could never accept that.

Daemon can never shut his mouth because to him, being himself is more important than reason. My brother is mad at me for maybe having fucked his daughter? Well I'll double down, I have every right to get her- oh he banished me. The entirery of the conflict revolves around my wife's claim being questioned? Well I want to fight this war in this way, so I'll give orders, go to Harrenal to build an army and win by myself- oh one of her council members has come here to ask me to betray her and lead the war because he doesn't believe she's good enough to lead.

You can almost always predict Daemon before he speaks or acts, that's how well he was written. And it is also very EASY to see how he was written. Seriously, his actions are up there, they have been documented episode by episode, if you still don't see it I don't know what to tell you. Anyone that has seen him throw a fit for not being called King is seriously still trying to say that he didn't want the crown? HIS FIRST SCENE IN THE ENTIRE SERIES WAS HIM ON THE IRON THRONE.

ONLY. And I repeat, ONLY in the last episode Daemon has let go. Only then. Because he finally realized, due to the visions: "Okay I need to get my shit together, this is bigger than me" and it took a vision of quite literally zombies killing a dragon and marching towards the world of the living to make Daemon Targaryen lower his head.

I repeat: this is not a post about Daemon being a shitty character and me saying that his fans are dumb. It is, however, a post about how men have, once again, latched onto a toxic and objectively bad male character in a show and ignored 90% of how he was written in order to have a cool character to kin. It is also about people not being able to. Understand writing because saying "Daemon never wanted the crown" is like saying "Aegon always wanted the crown" and I think we all know he never wanted it.

Also also, this post, about making a list of all the bad things a character has done, can be done about a lot of other characters, I am aware. But no other character in this show has been read as wrongly and has been lifted so high as Daemon has.

[elegantjellyfishwerewolf]

Why I don't like "Wizards"

In general, I think that the "Stories of Arcadia" began to slide after the release of "Three from Heaven", but more on that later. In this post there will be many comparisons of "Wizards" with "Trollhunters" due to the fact that they are a direct continuation.

1. The first thing I didn't like was that the narration was too fast, and if this is still acceptable in the first series, then in the rest such narration begins to annoy, because it does not allow you to delve into the story and concentrate on at least one action.

For example, already in the second series, a lot of things happen: the arrival at Arthur's castle, the interaction of Claire and Morgana, the acquaintance of Jim and Deya, Steve becomes a knight, the trolls escape from Camelot. Of course, there are episodes in which the narrative goes normally, for example, in 4 episod, but basically the story does not have the ability to concentrate on one moment and continues to throw out new information to us.

2.The second problem, for me personally, is the characters. 1. I really didn't like that Steve's intelligence was cut so much, he wasn't a very smart character before either, but he could still come up with interesting ideas to solve problems (for example, when in the second season he guessed to use umbrellas to help trolls), but then they made a complete jerk out of him who, throughout the entire viewing, only irritates with his tantrums. If you remove him from the series, literally nothing will change, because his "knight's arch" didn't really lead to anything. After the battle of Kilahed Bridge, he says he will continue Lancelot's cause and bring back the Knights of the Round Table, but in the end he did nothing of it. 2. Another character who, in my opinion, has become worse in "Wizards" is Claire. I'm the only one who thinks that in the two weeks she spent in Camelot, she became too good at using shadow magic, considering that she studied with Douxie, who himself said he didn't understand anything about shadow magic. And even after becoming such a professional magician, for some reason she still can't guess to open a portal under Jim and only then, after escaping from the fortress of the Secret Order, try to bring him to his senses, BUT NO! Instead, she tries to convince Jim to enter the portal himself, and when she tries to open the portal under him, Morgana has already arrived by then, and she has to retreat. 3.The third character is Douxie. I immediately say that I do not hate him, the only thing that confuses me is his age. He is 900 years old, just think about this figure! And with all this, he behaves like a teenager who is 18-19 years old. The authors are trying to show us that he has changed since the events in Camelot by showing his younger version, but these changes can happen in a maximum of 2 or 5 years, BUT NOT IN 900 YEARS!!!! While watching it, the thought did not leave me that it was a 900-year-old man who, for some reason, continues to behave like a teenager.

4.Morgana. After The Wizards, I hated her. The authors tried to make her an ambiguous character, but in the end they created a bunch of plot holes. In Wizards, she says she wants to help all magical creatures, but in Troll Hunters, when Angor asked her for help, she tricked him into serving her and killing Merlin's champions. She also stole troll children and used creepy experiments to turn them into changelings (also against their will). Yes, even in the series itself, she contradicts herself when she gives Gunmar a sword that can control the mind. 5. The secret Order. I have no doubt that the authors came up with these characters only when they were writing the script for "Wizards", and that they did not exist initially. Because after the battle on the Kilahed Bridge, they say they will now try to change the world. AND THEY DECIDED TO DO IT ONLY AFTER 900 YEARS!!! SERIOUSLY!!!!!! You say that they have been recovering all this time, but I will say that only Belrog needed to be restored, and the rest of the Order members could try to carry out their plan to steal the seals alone. AND WHERE WERE THEY WHEN GUNMAR AND MORGANA ARRANGED ETERNAL NIGHT?!!?! I very much doubt that magicians of their level would not have felt such a strong release of magical energy.

3.Plot holes. There are too many of them! Literally in every episode I noticed one or another plot hole. Of those that were very noticeable: 1. Deya could not be the first hunter because Kanjigar said that troll hunters tried to kill Gunmar many times, but never won. 2. Morgana couldn't create a changeling in a couple of days, which also grew so fast. 3. When the moment came to conclude a deal between Angor and Morgana. 4. Creeper's poison created the Order of Janus, changelings could not create an order in a couple of days, and Morgana could not create such a number of changelings. 5.In the third season of trollhunters there was shown the battle of Merlin and Morgana and it had happened not only in another place but also there was no Douxie on the scene. 6. Blinky said that the confrontation between Merlin and Morgana lasted for centuries, as a result, it happened within a couple of days.

There were also many minor inconsistencies in the plot: 1. The battle on the Kilahed Bridge was different from the one we were shown in the third season of "Troll Hunters".

2. The design of the Deya is different from the statue in the forge of heroes.

3. WHY THE HELL CAN MORGANA OPEN PORTALS WITHOUT A STAFF?! Then why didn't she just create a portal in the finale of the third season and fly out of it? 4. The process of creating the amulet is different from what we were shown in the third season.

5. Where did Belrog get the staff of shadow if it was destroyed in the finale of the third season? AND WHERE DID THIS STAFF GO AFTER THE EIGHTH EPISODE?!! 6. The hand that is used to create the amulet is also different from the one that was shown to us in "Troll Hunters".

7. During Morgana's incarceration, she was wearing a helmet and a raincoat. 8.Wendel's appearance is also different from the one that was shown to us in "Troll Hunters".

(This is probably going to sound like a quibble, but why didn't Jim react to Draal in any way?)

And this is the main reasons why I can't perceive wizards as a direct continuation of the trollhunters series.

4.Of course, there were moments in this show that I liked, for example, the acquaintance of Blinky and Aarrg, the storyline of Merlin and Douxie, but, alas, the cons in this show outweighed the pros for me.

[rose-tea67]

Ranking TDI characters as someone who just finished the first season. Worst to best.

23. Gwen- I know she’s a fan favorite but literally everything she does is so mean and for like no reason. Also why does she give like pick-me energy?

22. Katie and Sadie- just annoying.

21. Harold- Incel. Is more obnoxious than like randomly sexist Ezekiel because he stay in longer.

20. Ezekiel- I don’t understand his purpose in the show. He didn’t get much screen time before being randomly sexist.

19. Tyler- I literally don’t remember anything about him.

18. Duncan- i feel like his character just changes randomly throughout the season that i couldn’t really get a feel for him.

17. Owen- i don’t think he’s funny the majority of the time.

16. Trent- bland.

15. Beth- she just does nothing for me. I found her alliance with Heather entertaining.

14. Cody- I also don’t remember much about Cody besides the fact that he’s respectful as hell and i would trust him.

13. Geoff- didn’t do much for me in the beginning but near the end I grew to like him a bit.

12. Lindsey- I don’t know why but she makes me smile.

11. Courtney- most normal person on the island. Near the end she gets a little too silly but I still love her for it.

10. Dj- I loved ever scene with him, I just wish there was more in the first season.

9. Eva- SHE DID NOTHING WRONG! SHE GOT VOTED OUT BECAUSE SHE WAS MAD THAT SOMEONE STOLE FROM HER!

8. Izzy- shes so silly goofy. Love my psycho queen.

7. Justin- every bit with him was so funny.

6. Bridgette- a true girls girl. I love her.

5. Chris- I just thought he was funny in like every scene.

4. Leshawna- another girls girl. Love. Also worst way to get voted out.

3. Heather- she was such a bitch and so fun to watch.

2. Chef hatchet- actually the funniest character ever.

1. Noah- I LOVE NOAH! he so sassy and I could watch an entire season of him just judging everyone.

[cuddlyreader]

I'd love to hear your top 7-10 OTPs! I'm guessing Leyton and Delena are both on the list?

Hello! I'm reusing my answer from an old post for this because I am proud of it. :)

Brenda and Dylan (Beverly Hills 90210) - As I have said before, I love Shannen Doherty. This show is the reason why. Brenda was my favorite character from day one, and her romance with Dylan was so intense and epic. This one has to be the first time an emotionally damaged character stole my heart. He needed her screaming and crying at him to understand that someone loves him because no one did until then. She needed his recklessness to temper her own. They grounded each other with their love.

Buffy and Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) - Watching these two fall in love and be unable to resist it was so much fun. They were actually doomed from the start. I mean…a vampire and a vampire slayer…that has tragedy written all over it. She literally killed him, and he came back from a Hell world (sounds familiar). Then, they fell right back in love (hmm, also familiar). They loved so hard, and their world was always in peril, which kept the angst level pretty high. For years, Angel wallowed in the torment of guilt that his soul provided. She gave him a purpose…her purpose. Her entire reason for being was to save people. She made him want to do that, too. He made her realize that not all monsters are evil and not all “good” guys are good. In my mind, they found their way back to each other and lived happily ever after.

Willow and Tara (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) - These two had the most beautiful and sweet love, and I am bitter that the idiot writer killed off Tara. Shy, bookish Willow really grew into a powerful and strong witch because of this relationship. She could fully be herself, and it was amazing. Tara, sweet Tara, was so kind and compassionate. She held Willow accountable in her magic, which turned out to be pretty important. I won’t even get into the fact that at this time, there was very little LGBTQ representation on television. Yep, I’m still angry.

Pacey and Joey (Dawson’s Creek) - Dawson’s Creek is my comfort show. I watch it all the way through several times a year. There is nothing that soothes me like it does. When this show aired, there was nothing more enjoyable than watching Pacey and Joey fall for each other against their own wishes. Pacey knew first, and he tried not to act on it for the sake of their friend Dawson (I won’t go into how annoyed that makes me given that Dawson didn’t want her.). Joey fought it with everything she had for the same reason and also because it was so real that it scared the hell out of her. He pushed her to grow and become the person she was meant to be, and she accepted him as is without any expectations other than they would do it together. They had the best dynamic. They bickered and laughed and cried, but they worked at their relationship like you do in grown-up relationships. Even when they broke up, they cared about each other consistently. My favorite episode is when they get stuck in K-Mart overnight. Joyously, they were also endgame.

Max and Liz (OG Roswell and Roswell, New Mexico) - By now, I have established that I love intense love. That’s exactly what og Max and Liz had. Liz was very structured and academically driven. Max was very closed off from everyone including Michael and Isabel. He opened her mind and heart to possibility. She made him feel and be open about it. They loved so intensely that even supposed alien fate couldn’t keep them apart. I was so sad the show was canceled so soon, but I am eternally grateful that they were endgame and that I got to see it. They sort of switched the emotional roles of new Max and Liz, which I like. They would still do anything for each other, so they are still my OTP. Admittedly, I haven’t watched the last season because I’m sad about it being the last.

Peyton and Lucas (One Tree Hill) - Look, they were always drawn to each other, but their timing was awful. I loved how no matter what, they were there for each other, even if it was just as friends. Peyton was the broken one in this relationship. She lost too much at too young an age. Feeling so deeply terrified her. And let’s face it, Lucas was intense. He felt everything and didn’t shy away from it. It was immensely gratifying to see them finally be happy together.

Logan and Veronica (Veronica Mars) - Logan was a real ass at the beginning of this show, and they were full-on enemies. So, I can honestly say I did not ship them at first. The metamorphosis that Logan goes through to be a better man is truly remarkable. To be fair, they both have emotional damage in this one. Veronica copes with her losses by saving others, but her love for Logan scares her. They both had to work out their own stuff before they could successfully be together. Thankfully, we got to see that they made it. I have no comment about the killing of my beloved Logan.

Damon and Elena (The Vampire Diaries) - Anyone that follows me knows that these two are my current obsession. Damon has literally spent over a century and a half being abandoned and rejected by his father, mother, brother, and love. To say that I love him is the understatement of the century. He had no intention of falling in love with Elena. He wanted to save Katherine, and her rejection nearly killed him. He feels everything so much that he can’t cope, and then he snaps. Elena saves him. Period. She makes him feel human because she treats him like one. She expects him to care and makes him want to do better. And he does, starting with her. He loves her so much that it is palpable. Damon makes her look at herself and the world differently. He pushes her to be and accept her true self no matter who that is or who she is with. I am elated that they got their long and happy human life together.

Clary and Jace (Shadowhunters) - I love Jace with every fiber of my being. I just want him to have love and happiness. He did not get that deserved love from his parents, and he never felt like he deserved it after that. Clary brought him to life. She was caring and compassionate for everyone: mundane, shadowhunter, or downworlder. Loving her opened Jace’s heart to everything. I choose to believe that the ending we got means they find their way back to each other and live happily ever after. I know I could finish the books, but I honestly cannot read Cassandra Clare’s writing anymore. Besides, where they are in my mind is good for me.

Magnus and Alec (Shadowhunters) - Magnus is one of my favorite characters ever. He’s loved many times over the centuries he’s lived, but what he has with Alec is so much more. Like all shadowhunters, Alec doesn’t trust downworlders, but for him, it’s more than that. He believes he has a duty to his family, and being with Magnus flies in the face of that duty. Magnus not so subtly or easily pushes past Alec’s defenses. Once they get together, they make each other better, and it’s literally magical. Their wedding was everything I could have hoped for as far as endgame goes.

[metalandmagi]

I'm re-watching High School Musical the Musical The Series (again) and even though I love this silly show so much, I'm compiling a list of things I would change for my own sanity. Get ready for some of the most niche nitpicks you can imagine!

Give the poor background kid who plays Ryan in HSM during season 1 his part back. We only ever see this kid during the "Status Quo" dance. He's not even in "Bop to the Top." I love Seb, but dang it, Sharpay and Ryan are an iconic duo.😞

Figure out what to do with EJ from the beginning. He is such a good character at his core, but the writers fumbled the bag with him so many times.

Ashlyn or Seb should have gotten offered a spot at the Youth Actors Conservatory instead of Nini. You know they carried that musical, and then we could have avoided the entire YAC arc.

More Natalie Bagley (the stage manager). She's hilarious and has a good voice.

More Kaden (background guy with bleached blond hair). Idk I just like him for some reason 😅

Make Seb the Beast in season 2. Justice for Seb!!!!!

The award that they want to win in season 2 not only has a cash prize, but a scholarship too! If the wildcats won, that scholarship could have seriously changed someone's life!

Lily seems like the type of person who would let the Wildcats perform The Rose Song and let them get disqualified without telling them about the rule. Just saying...

Why are the Wildcats ordered to stop production on Beauty and the Beast for going to North High and literally not doing anything, while a North High teacher stole their property and yet doesn't get punished? Also, why do they just drop this plot point later? I don't remember seeing it get resolved.

Ditch Ashlyn's "make way for Belle" attitude at the beginning of season 3. Seriously, what's up with that? Do the writers know her at all?

WE NEVER GET TO SEE JET ACTUALLY PLAY HANS!? WHAT IS THIS NONSENSE?

We never find out what Carlos was aiming to do by changing the Frozen cast list. Who did he want to play?🤔

This is going to be an unpopular opinion, but I didn't need Maddox and Ashlyn to get together. We could keep the arc about Ashlyn (and Big Red) discovering she's bi at camp, but I just don't feel the same chemistry as I do between her and Big Red. They're fine together; there's nothing really wrong with the ship. I just didn't like the way Ashlyn and Big Red broke up. And it felt a little like both Ashlyn and Big Red had to end up with people of the same gender to somehow "validate" the fact that they're both bi. (Yes it's a funny reveal at the end with the fake French kid revealing that he likes Big Red, but the point still stands). Again, Ashlyn and Maddox isn't a bad ship at all, I just feel like everything between these 3 could have been handled better.

Get rid of Dani is season 4. I'm sorry, but she doesn't add anything to the show (even though she gets chiller by the end). Nothing against her, she's just a nothing character.

BRING BIG RED AND SEB BACK FOR THE ENTIRE LAST SEASON! And scrap the cheating plotline. I don't have the patience for this nonsense.

I love Miss Jenn and Mr. Mazzara being end game (they're just like Luke and Lorelai from Gilmore Girls!!!!!), but there has to be a better reason to break up with Ricky's dad. It felt so rushed.

Where the hell were all the extras that end up in the musical when Miss Jenn needed eight people to show up to the rehearsal? The main characters ditching that important rehearsal already annoyed me, but you'd think she'd get some of the ensemble to show up. Even if they said that most of them are doing the movie, some of them could have showed up, considering how big the ensemble is in the end.

Also in season 4, they talk about Miss Jenn and Mr. Mazzara's first meeting, but don't we see their first meeting back in season 1? Like...isn't it completely different?

As much as I love Miss Jenn wanting to continue teaching, I feel like she should have gotten her Broadway moment, at least for a little while. She was born to play Glinda.

I need to see Emmy become Natalie Bagley's protégé. They deserve to rule the world.

We needed an Olivia cameo at the end of the series. It could have been her face-timing the Wildcats. It could have been the camera zooming out when the rest of them were singing "Born to be Brave" to have her watching the video. Something! Anything!

[justmenoworries]

My unorganized thoughts about Hazbin finale because I am feeling all the feelings.

Positives

The songs? Absolute bangers. Both of them. The Chaggie "More Than Anything" reprise got spoiled for me but I still loved it. We stan a supportive couple ready to go to war together. The reprise for "Happy Day in Hell" at the end was a nice touch. Loved that it was Lucifer who picked up the slack to cheer up Charlie. Mans finally becoming the dad who stepped up.

The battle as a whole was awesome. Hot take, but if Adam didn't have the spawn infinite enemies cheat all bad guy armies seem to have in these situations, the Hotel definitely would've won.

I'll admit, I wasn't too jazzed about Sir Pentious replacing Mimzy in the main cast but he kind of redeemed (lol) himself for me this episode. Bro was both one of the funniest and most heartwarming characters in the finale get yourself a man who can do both. The unholy (lol) noises I made when he showed up as a redeemed soul in Heaven. Good for him! He deserves the best. Also I find Sera's and Emily's reactions to the reveal kind of interesting. Emily is overjoyed seeing that Charlie's idea works, but Sera looks... mortified? Disgusted? Kinda tells us which one of these two really deserves the title of Big Good. Side note, but it's kind of funny how the only physical change a redeemed sinner goes through is that their color scheme is now pastel instead of goth.

ADAM FUCKING DIED YESSIRRRRR! GOOD RIDDANCE BITCH NO ONE WILL MISS YOUUUU (Except for Lute, but no one gives a fuck about what Lute thinks, cry harder hoe)

Charlie's and Lucifer's true formssss! Razzle and Dazzle getting to be badassss! (R.I.P. Dazzle, hope you somehow end up in Heaven too)

Alastor Vs Adam. Cool fight, surprisingly not as one-sided as one might've thought. I mean, Alastor still lost but he lasted a lot longer than most of the others who fought against Adam (Poor Sir Pen)

Vaggie and Lute rematch, I fucking called ittttt!

Seeing everyone gear up and fight for the Hotel was cool, seeing so many Exorcists get axed off was cathartic as fuck.

Lute losing a part of her body because of Vaggie, just like she took a part of Vaggie's body was *chef's kiss*.

Lucifer Vs Adam and Lucifer just... not taking the fight seriously at all until Charlie almost gets hurt. He was really just toying with Adam for the entire first half and when he started getting serious Adam got trashed so fucking quick, I love it.

Charlie fucking shanking Adam and stopping his punch Just Like That. I lover her, she's such a badass. Sure wish we could've seen more of that (foreshadowinggg)

Vox acting as the greek chorus for the events of the episode works surprisingly well. Ngl I thought his constant commentary would get annoying really fast if they kept cutting away from the action just so he can say a funny. But no, they actually managed to time it pretty well. Props to Adam Stein (writer for this episode).

The Negatives (Yes, They Exist)

The other Vees did not need to be here. Seriously, we're starting off with Vox alone in his control room and we could've stayed there. Velvette and Valentino didn't even talk for the majority of the episode. And I'm not a fan of how Val continues to be played for comedy. Unfriendly reminder that this man is a r*pist and an abuser. If you needed a V for the funnies, Velvette and Vox are quite literally right there. (Can you believe Velvette had no lines this episode but fucking Val had both a speaking role and a not insignificant part of the ending song? Weak.) You can still have the ending scene of the Vees hanging out and planning after the aborted Extermination, literally nothing changes if you cut Val and Velvette from the cutaway gags.

Not a fan of how Lucifer stole the spotlight. "But you said you liked the Adam Vs Lucifer fight-" Yeah, I did. Doesn't change that this shouldn't have been Luci's fight, it should have been Charlie's. We've had hints this whole season that Charlie is actually way stronger and wrathful than anyone thinks and that she's actively working to keep up her cheerful and friendly persona. Her stabbing Adam with her trident was a nice start, but after Lute killed Dazzle and seriously endangered Vaggie, this should've been the moment Charlie decided "Alright that's it, no more Miss Nice Girl, I didn't want this to end in bloodshed but these assholes are going down." This should've been the moment where the gloves come off. How much more impactful would it be if Charlie was the one beating down Adam but stopping before killing him? If the show made it clear Charlie could murder this asshole, but she doesn't, because she's still better than he ever will be. What a way to show that Charlie truly does believe in the good in everyone or at least still believes in non-lethal solutions to the conflict between Heaven and Hell! But nope, Charlie gets two badass moments, then is banished to the side-lines and to the role of damsel Lucifer has to save and who has to be the metaphorical angel on Lucifer's shoulder who stops him from offing Adam (for some reason). If we needed to get Lucifer involved, maybe have him show up earlier to help the Hotel but get hurt somehow, forcing and motivating Charlie to step up as the future ruler of Hell. Speaking of-

Why the fuck was Lucifer so late to the fight??? Yeah yeah, I know, depressed shut-in, but in "More Than Anything" he literally calls Charlie "the only thing worth fighting for" in Hell. He knew the Extermination was coming. Yeah, maybe Charlie didn't tell him that the trial in Heaven went south and that Adam's Exorcists were going to target the Hazbin Hotel, but you'd think he'd have noticed something was up??? More importantly, if he really wanted to support Charlie's dream of saving the sinners in Hell, why didn't he take part in the battle from the start??? Why didn't Charlie ask him to fight alongside her??? Yeah, Charlie is reluctant to ask Lucifer for anything because they don't have the best relationship, but we've had an entire fucking episode of them growing closer and Lucifer assuring Charlie he'd help her. And this wasn't just a matter of pride, Charlie's friends and her girlfriend were in danger of getting killed, you're telling me she'd choose her own hang-up over all of them??? "But if Lucifer was there, the fight would've been over too quick-" refer to the previous point. Angels can be hurt and killed by angelic weaponry, there were like over a hundred Exorcists on that battlefield and don't tell me Adam would be above fighting dirty by attacking while Lucifer is distracted. There. Easy way to take Lucifer out of the fight and make way for Charlie.

Not a fan of how Cherri Bomb x Sir Pentious was bullrushed in this last episode. Yeah, we established Pentious likes her, but Cherri had like no interest in him until Angel commented he might have two dicks. Which, I guess her being after a purely physical relationship could work, but we all know that's not what Pentious wants. Their "romance" gives "He Was a Boy She Was a Girl" vibes. Like Velvette and Valentino, nothing in the episode would've been lost if that particular plot-line was dropped.

"The future of Hell belongs to the Vees" Yeah but does it though? Does it? Sorry, but I'm having a hard time taking these three seriously as a threat. Vox got effortlessly trounced by Alastor (and contrary to what the Vees believe he isn't missing, he came back), Velvette talked a big game about fighting the Exorcists but then did absolutely nothing and Val would eat dirt so fast against anyone who can actually fight back. Plus "Overlords hanging by a thread"? Which Overlords, exactly? Alastor? He's not dead and like previously stated, he's not 'missing'. Rosie, Carmilla, Zestial and the rest of the Overlords are just fine, the Extermination was centered around the Hazbin Hotel this time, no other turf even got scratched. "Nature abhors a power vacuum" What power vacuum? Again, no Overlords even died! No territory outside the hotel was destroyed! Are they just on a high from Alastor's supposed disappearance? I hope that's it, because otherwise damn, you three fucking suck at being Overlords.

[itsdappleagain]

tis time for the need for speed caper!

notes under the cut as always

if you saw my boston tea party caper post you will already know that this is not my favorite episode. potentially one of my least favorites in the season. still has some fantastic moments though, and I'm excited anyway!

cool foreshadowing for next ep with neal. bellum likes him

THE WAY BRUNT'S FACE LIGHTS UP WHEN MECH WALKS IN

these bitches really ARE gay

THE SIGHS AND FORCED POLITE GREETINGS ARE SO FUCKING FUNNY

i love how snarly they animate mech's face. her lip is curled or her nose is wrinkled

poor mechanic. so british it hurts a little bit

a choice of playdates 😭

cs: you can work remotely from my latop! the season being released in 2019: 👁️👄👁️

god why do they always make carmen's hottest and most showstopping outfits only get like a minute of screentime

the complete 180 from barfing at fish to proclaiming his love for a vile operative. fantastic

also mmmmmmmmmmmmmm the driver is a fantastic character. she's set up just enough w/ the green outfit and the mechanic letting us know that there's an operative already in dubai. plus she's milking trey without anyone suspecting a thing. she's so cool. imagine having to play dumb about your specialty for this arrogant little white boy

anyway trey sterlings little earrings

bonus points for how the driver only smiles when trey is looking at her

im a duke and ivy's a rocket scientist wheeze

god that cape on carmen is everything

who voices sterling sterling

okay 1. daddy sterling 2. ITS MR GROUPER FROM BUBBLE GUPPIES JIDSHH. he's been in a ton of shit. soggy joe from amphibia, benzo in arcane, phineas and ferb and a lot of stuff as the amazing hulk. i wonder why they had him do the role GOOD LORD THIS GUY HAS BEEN IN A LOT OF STUFF

so has trey's va

and then the driver throws herself on trey as soon as she confirms that he's the one driving its so good

love how trey uses the wrong names just to be a dick

not entirely sure why zack and ivy went to the party at all when they could have just gone with carmen but whatever

ah, the part of the episode which makes me hate it. zack acting like a homicidal toddler

carmen and the fastest change of clothes in the world

i love how ivy is just glaring at him the whole time

my favorite part about cs being a kid's show is that when characters get arrested the cops just stand there really menacingly because they can't point guns at anyone who isn't dexter wolfe

i love the next few episodes of player and shadowsan bonding/gaining trust with each other tho

i love when carmen gets pissed off about stuff

i also like seeing how on edge she is- flattening herself against the wall on the roof when a car goes by and stuff because she's trying to figure out how she's going to get them out of jail

i love her

HAHA okay i do love to see carmen yell at them because its SO emotive and GOOD but also IVY DID NOTHING WRONG SHE GETS THE SHORT END OF THE STICK

what was possibly worth risking your necks and mine and giving VILE a chance to win RNGRH its such a good line to show carmen's mentality. we see it in stockholm a little too with how she would almost literally rather die than let VILE win

how do they get home

mmmm this show is awesome with the setup for the driver

why would zack and ivy be knocking on his door if they knew he was supposed to be driving the car btw

man this show really tried to go for more refined themes in the depths of the episode. its implied that the driver seduced trey in his trailer and then stole all of his shit once he was undressed but obviously they can't do anything else with it but imply

NO WAY DID THAT CAR STOP THAT FAST BJSDJDGJH

i love how mad carmen is about literally everything in this episode she just snarls about things

PLS THEY JUST STOLE SOME MORE SCHMUCKS CAR

the motorcycle driving animation is so slick though

the driver is underrated actually im realizing

HAHAHA CARMEN'S ANNOYED LITTLE LOOK

i LOVE the animation of the car speeding up to rocket mode its so cool

you can hear the tires squeal every time carmen/the sibs turn their vehicles around

carmen sandiego tragically dies in a 60 mile per hour head on collision atop a parking garage

"whats she going to do, give us both a piggyback ride?" carmen five seconds later:

split up gang! lets look for clues

GIGANTIC AUTOPILOT BUTTON <3

carmen's hips. thank god for this shot

also i love the implication that carmen was just dramatically positioning herself against the wall and waiting for the driver to turn around

i love this fight scene with carmen and the driver btw its good. they are pretty evenly matched

uhhh...where in time is carmen sandiego?

i also love the driver v carmen fight because they are like. clawing at each other. just brawling

those are the fighting moves of a bitch who has been mad ALLLL day and needs to take it out on someone

ivy constantly being terrified of zack's driving because she's seen him flip the car completely upside down before is my favorite

SEEN SOME SHIT

asami is that you

boston tea party and need for speed are truly a two part episode

i love frames of carmen jumping off things before she deploys her glider

she's literally so hot. also her forearm is disconnected from her elbow

THE GLARE DADDY STERLING GIVES HIM SHDGSDS

who still talked to carmen about a headquarters after she screamed "WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO SO WITHOUT A HEADQUARTERS" into the phone and then hung up in a fit of rage because i wouldnt have

yeah they tried to fake us out didn't they

we got to see that workshop in s4 when carmen was brainwashed..

THE FLIGHT TIME FROM SAN DIEGO TO MOSCOW IS 21 HOURS NO WAY DID THEY MAKE IT IF IT WAS HAPPENING TOMORROW MSGDJKDGJDS

I KNOW A PLACE i love shadowsan

alright theres need for speed. im going to try to crunch out crackle goes kiwi maybe tonight but we'll see how it goes lol

[k7l4d4]

K Reviews and Rants: Miraculous Ladybug Season 5! Episode 17

Hello all, time for yet another review and rant by me, K7l!

Now, there is a LOT I could rant about regarding this episode, but in hindsight, leaving to the blatant script-shilling going on by the writers' having all the adults lose brain-cells to buy Chloe, the known liar and cheat, be believed when she accuses Marinette of having stolen stuff despite it being known that Chloe HERSELF once stole from Marinette to try and cheat in a design contest... But I'm not gonna do that, since it'd be just another re-hash of this season just shitting on Chloe as a character.

No, what I'm focusing on, at least in the forward, is how this episode marks the first time the Writers have tried to paint Sabrina as being "good inside." How do they do this? They have her be upset at Chloe wanting her to rob people in order to frame Marinette, claiming "My dad's a police officer!" What makes this utterly stupid is that Sabrina has already stolen things on Chloe's behalf going as far back as Season 1. Her breaking the law on Chloe's say-so is nothing new. Having her just NOW sprout a conscience over this just does not work. If they'd framed it as her being hesitant to drag other people into Chloe's feud with Marinette, and building off of that later on, it'd be one thing. But that isn't what is happening. What the writers are doing is acting as if Sabrina has always had this moral opposition to breaking the law because her dad's a cop, despite having never been bothered at doing stuff like this before. Doing so, if anything, makes Sabrina look worse to me because it comes off as Sabrina only having moral standards when it involves people other than those she dislikes. It's hollow, and uninspired.

Like how I think that Kagami's plots this episode involving being used by Lila would worked marginally better if they took place before Oni-Chan (emphasis on "marginally," to be clear), this idea wouldn't be bad if any actual care for continuity was taken into account. But it isn't. And thus we get a lazy plot that exists more to shill Zoe as a character while also dodging her explicitly admitting she's LGBT+.

Also, on the topic of Zoe, I should mention that, in hindsight, I got really pissed off this episode and the fact that Marinette realized what Zoe was talking about slipped my mind. Although whether that's entirely a "me" thing or if it was influenced by how shoddy the writing was, I couldn't tell ya. Still, egg on my face!

And with that, onto the review! As always, warning for profanity on my part.

Episode 17: Adoration 

Okay, I just got started, and are seeing Zoe and Andre "bonding" over his past as a lover of movies and cinema... and he talks about how he wrote a script dedicated to his love for Audrey. I just... no. Right from the beginning, NO. If they had done this to show how Audrey used to be different, and had maybe grown worse over the years, MAYBE I could've tolerated this, but the show has been very consistent on Audrey having always been a piece of shit so... fuck that. We also learn that Andre used to have a different name that I'm not even going to PRETEND to try and spell, let alone pronounce, because the way he phrased changing it as being "in the name of love" is part of why this set-up of him doing it "for love" reeks of bullshit. 

Okay, so Zoe has a "secret crush," and that's the reason that Andre spelled out that he's a simp for Audrey without explaining what it is he "loves" about her. It's very telling in this show that it often either gives very bland and unoriginal reasons why someone is "in love" with someone else, or just doesn't give a reason at all. 

Like, Andre literally coming running at Audrey calling for a foot massage isn't funny. It just makes him look like the same kind of spineless parasite that enabled Chloe FOR FUCKING YEARS!! 

Okay, we have a dance about to be hosted... and they unintentionally called attention to just how small the cast is by explicitly making Marc and Zoe's class "the Eight Grade class" and Marinette's "The Ninth Grade class," which honestly just looks insanely awkward since how in the world is the school so empty that the only have one tiny class per grade!? The school looks huge!

Now we get a scene of Zoe being shown around Marinette's room before spotting Marinette's insanely creepy pull-down curtain covered in Adrien photos (and that "perfume commercial" comment from Guitar Villain makes a lot more sense now) with Marinette babbling in embarrassment, no surprise there. Okay, why the hell is Marinette babbling about kissing Adrien and babbling about planning things out despite the show having insisted she's "over that" already? Wait, don't tell me, "drama." Barf. 

Oh, NOW she remembers the dance! And NO, Andre is NOT ZOE'S STEPFATHER. That would imply that he married (or Audrey married) into his family. That is not the case. Audrey CHEATED ON ANDRE WHILE STILL MARRIED TO HIM. That is not a stepfather. God dammit!! 

Having Zoe pull "first name privileges" does not make it look like she has a stronger relationship with Andre, and his "real name" is an obnoxiously pretentious sounding mouthful. So yeah, no one has any clue what she's saying. 

Zoe, going "Chloe doesn't have that power anymore" is a blatant copout. It does not acknowledge ANYTHING about why she doesn't have a power she shouldn't have ever had to START WITH, and she doesn't need the ability to enforce rules on you to make your life a living nightmare. So shut the fuck up. 

Having Zoe apparently know a random employee of the Hotel and know about his personal life looks creepier than anything. It doesn't make her look more "down to Earth" or "relatable" because it comes out of fucking nowhere, was never once foreshadowed, and the idea she's somehow bonded enough with a building of random adults who have no reason to be loyal to or care about their boss's kid to know their personal lives makes no sense at all. 

Zoe, Chloe, it's NEITHER of your HOUSE, it's a fucking Hotel that Andre owns and lets you guys live in rent free, AND NEITHER OF YOU MAKE THE FUCKING RULES.

Now we get to the scene of Chloe smacking Mr. Cuddly to the floor... wow, they really aren't even TRYING to act as if they are bothering to acknowledge continuity. Seriously, Chloe loves that stuffed bear more than life itself, they have GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME WITH THIS SHIT!! Seriously, WHY THE HELL Is THIS the BEST THEY CAN DO!? WHEN AND HOW DID ZOE GROW A SPINE WHEN IT COMES TO CHLOE!? WHEN!?!? 

They are LITERALLY having Chloe act like a LITERAL FIVE YEAR OLD by going "I saw Marinette step on MY stairs, I KNOW I did!!" That is LITERALLY the logic a five-year-old would use. HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO FUCKING TAKE HER SERIOUSLY AS A VILLAIN IF THIS IS THE BEST SHE CAN DO!? 

AND WHY THE FUCK IS "We were in the middle of a computer update, so the cameras were off" THE REASON THEY HAD CHLOE'S ATTEMPT TO PROVE HERSELF RIGHT FAIL!? And for FUCKS SAKE, ANDRE IS STILL A FUCKING WUSS WHEN IT COMES TO DISCIPLINING HER!! 

And we get a scene of Audrey acting like an abusive bitch to both Chloe AND Zoe. "But Chloe isn't abused, she gets whatever she wants!!" We LITERALLY JUST SAW THAT AUDREY STILL CANNOT BE BOTHERED TO REMEMBER HER NAME!! THE BEST SHE COULD DO IS REMEMBER THAT ONE OF HER TWO DAUGHTERS IS NAMED ZOE, RIGHT BEFORE PULLING THE EXACT SAME "THE STAIRS BELONG TO ME!!" SHIT AS CHLOE!! CHLOE IS LITERALLY TRYING TO MIMIC AUDREY'S BEHAVIOR, WHY IS THAT SO HARD TO COMPREHEND!? 

And then she just walks up to Andre and demands a trio of credit cards because WHY THE FUCK NOT!? It is shit like THIS that makes me have ZERO FUCKING SYMPATHY for the spineless louse!! 

Zoe is literally just fucking STANDING THERE WITH MARINETTE. Despite being verbally threatened by Audrey with being sent back to New York (leaving all her friends behind) she doesn't respond in any way. 

The most she does is smugly point out to Chloe that she isn't allowed on the stairs either as determined by Audrey (who will probably stop caring and forget about the threat in the space of an hour since she gives that little of a shit about her own kids one way or another). 

And we get Chloe saying something incredibly bizarre and out of character. "I'll make you pay for every one of these steps!!" 

It makes absolutely NO FUCKING SENSE!!! 

And Zoe's just staring at her. Still not having responded in any way to Audrey treating Andre like shit this entire time.

And then we get Zoe going "it's all thanks to you Marinette, you're the one who helped me change!!" When. Fucking. WHEN!? WHEN DID SHE EVER HELP YOU CHANGE IN ANY WAY!? YOU BARELY HANG OUT, YOU DON'T SHARE A SINGLE FUCKING CLASS, AND YOU ARE BASICALLY A NOISE IN THE BACKGROUND NINETY PERCENT OF THE TIME!! THE MOST SHE DID WAS CONVINCE YOU TO STOP TRYING TO PLEASE CHLOE BY MIMICKING HER!!! YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW HER!!! 

Okay, NOW Zoe and Marinette get around to asking Andre's help on their dance thing. And for some fucking reason Andre keeps a portrait of himself in his Mayor's sash behind the front desk of the Hotel. Why!? 

And after proposing their idea to Andre, he starts going off on a weird fucking rant about filming. I GET IT, he's meant to be a movie buff, THIS IS STILL STUPID!!!! 

Okay, so all it takes to set-up a private party for a single school that will literally COVER a national monument, all it takes is Andre saying so as Mayor. All right then, that makes perfect sense and NOT COMPLETE BULLSHIT!!! 

Seriously, this is the STUPIDEST ABUSE OF POWER IN THE SERIES!!! 

Again, WHY IS ZOE SUPPOSED TO BE ON A FIRST NAME BASIS WITH ANDRE!? 

Also, Andre going "if Chloe comes sniffing around, we never had this conversation," instead of "I'll use my authority as mayor and her father to get her to settle down." YOU KNOW, DOING HIS JOB APPROPRIATELY!!!

Also, now we have yet another scene of the show trying to pretend Gabriel isn't an abusive piece of shit by having him superficially dote on his son by personally preparing meals that Adrien has wanted to try. What makes this utterly hollow being how he literally cares more about forcing Adrien to follow his little plan for how his life should go rather than accept who he WANTS to be with, of FUCKING COURSE!! 

And of course, Gabriel went demanding to his minion Lila for her to ruin things for him, because of course he can't do something in all his influence and power as a rich business man to ruin one lousy dance. Oh, and then we see Lila was apparently in Chloe's bathroom, with Chloe describing presumably Zoe as a "punching bag" while Sabrina files her nails (I'm FAIRLY CERTAIN that every time in the past that Chloe has looked after her appearance, she's done it herself, so this is just fucking pointless). THEY ARE NOT EVEN FUCKING TRYING!!! 

She basically just says that it's actually all Marinette's fault that Zoe is standing up to Chloe (despite the fact that literally no one has genuinely given a shit about Chloe's alleged "authority" in-universe among her age group SINCE SEASON FUCKING ONE!!). Again, NOT EVEN TRYING WHAT THE FUCK!? 

And now we get a brief scene of Marinette seeing Zoe's room, with Zoe trying to desperately hide a photo that we don't get to see. Wow, much shock. Much mystery. 

And then we see Sabrina has apparently sprouted a conscience because "what she's being asked goes against everything she stands for, because her father is a police officer." Sabrina... I am going to say this as calmly as possible... YOU HAVE BEEN HELPING CHLOE BREAK LAWS AND VIOLATE THE PRIVACY OF OTHERS SINCE THE FIRST FUCKING SEASON!!! 

Also, WHY THE FUCK DOES CHLOE THINK NO ONE WILL SUSPECT SABRINA OF WHATEVER THE HELL SHE'S SUPPOSED TO BE DOING!? SHE IS LITERALLY CHLOE'S ONLY KNOWN ACCOMPLICE AND HAS BEEN HER EAGER MINION SINCE DAY ONE!!!

This goes beyond just stupidity, this is CONTRIVANCE!!! 

I can't even get pissed off at them having Chloe deny that Sabrina's her friend and calling her her Underling, since Chloe caring about Sabrina in spite of how shitty she treats her has literally been a thing, I repeat, SINCE SEASON FUCKING ONE!! You can't even present this as being part of Chloe "getting worse" since this entire fucking SEASON has been hammering the "CHLOE HAS ALWAYS BEEN AN EVIL BRAT" button since the beginning!! 

And then we get a scene of Chloe throwing a whistle of Sabrina's on the ground... when did she even GET a fucking whistle to start with!? 

But yup, it looks like the whistle is going to be targeted by an Akuma. 

And Lila apparently can sense Akumas or some shit since she perfectly counted down to Sabrina's Akuma bursting through the doors. And never once does Chloe seem to be worried that the Akuma formed from the person she just pissed off might try and hurt her, she cares more about her FUCKING PHONE. Yeah, FUCK THIS SHIT. 

...Okay, so Zoe's crush is someone in the 9th grade, and this means she won't "ever see them again." BECAUSE IT'S NOT AS IF PEOPLE CAN STAY IN CONTACT OUTSIDE OF FUCKING SCHOOL!!! GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!!! It's unimaginably stupid. Oh, and Akuma Sabrina is creeping up behind them, apparently planning on either stealing stuff or taking creepy photos, while Marinette rants and gushes about how amazing love is, yet does so in a way that just comes off as someone who "loves the idea of love" rather then someone who is IN LOVE, because she's just rambling a bunch of generic slogans and talking points about the amazingness of love that don't have any context or personal experience behind them.

Wow, they actually addressed the fact that a person can be in love with multiple people at the same time, or dating someone but in love with someone else, or just plain not being in love at all, and coming from Marinette! If they hadn't spent several episodes shitting on the idea that you can EVER move on or find love in someone else or hold multiple crushes at the same time, this would be sweet, but since they did do that, it comes off as FUCKING PRETENTIOUS!! 

Now we get Marinette shilling how great Zoe is now, and how much growth she's done off-screen, to Alya over a video conference. And never once does the idea that maybe Andre doesn't have the actual authority to let them use the Tower for a fucking party cross their minds. 

Marinette... WHAT THE FUCK DOES IT MATTER IF ZOE'S CRUSH WON'T BE GOING TO THE SAME SCHOOL AS HER NEXT YEAR!? If she's close to them, she'll be able to see them plenty of times OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL!! 

Oh, and Marinette referring to Zoe's crush as her "true love." I am fucking CRINGING. They throw around "true love" and "destiny" so much that it makes the BS damage control all the more blatant. 

And NOW we get Marinette thinking that "What if Zoe's IN LOVE WITH ADRIEN!?" Just... fuck that. Fuck this BULLSHIT of Marinette once again refusing to GROW THE FUCK UP about her relationship troubles!! WHO GIVES A SHIT IF ZOE HAS A CRUSH ON ADRIEN OR NOT!? MARINETTE, YOU ARE THE ONE DATING HIM!!! Wow, she literally couldn't go a single fucking second without bringing up Adrien after getting this bullshit into her head. 

She also, mid-rant, stated "he doesn't belong to me, well, he kinda does a little" and I'm just... sitting here, barely reining in my temper at just how fucking STUPID she sounds right now because WHAT THE ABSOLUTE FUCK IS THIS BULLSHIT!?

We get a montage of Marinette gathering supplies, and Akuma Sabrina covertly following her the entire time SOMEHOW, despite the fact that Marinette was explicitly driving on her scooter through traffic and Akuma Sabrina's only powers are teleporting objects TO HERSELF and being invisible. HOW!? 

And is apparently also framing Marinette for stealing stuff, all in the name of ruining the party. 

This is literally just a lazy rehash of Lila's "fake Marinette having stolen answers to a test and pushing her down the stairs" plot. I say "lazy" because Marinette hasn't been shown to have ever been in ANY position to have taken anything, she just showed up a bunch of places and then LEFT, so HOW IN THE WORLD COULD SHE HAVE STOLEN THEM!? 

And it's kinda fucking rich them having Tom be one of the ones getting mad about Chloe accusing his daughter of theft when HE was one of the ones to basically sit back and let it happen ALL THE WAY BACK IN SEASON ONE. 

When Chloe says stuff like 'There will be no obstruction to MY justice!' while yanking Marinette's gym bag out of her hands and dumping its contents on the ground, it's really clear the writers aren't even bothering to give her a consistent voice and behavior any more. They are just shoving whatever anger-inducing buzzwords they can into her mouth. Also, I'm honestly surprised no one is accusing Chloe of planting stuff in Marinette's bag, since SHE IS LITERALLY THE EXACT TYPE OF PERSON WHO WOULD DO THAT!!! 

Oh, and it's Marinette herself who accuses Chloe of planting the stuff. Still surprised no one else is saying it since, AGAIN, Chloe has a TERRIBLE reputation and unlike Marinette, is a KNOWN THIEF, given she was literally caught red-handed having stolen from Marinette TWICE in SEASON ONE!!!

Again, WHY IN THE WORLD ARE PEOPLE JUST STANDING THERE AND LISTENING TO THE WORDS OF SOMEONE THEY KNOW THEY CANNOT TRUST AND WHO WILL SAY OR DO ANYTHING TO GET HER WAY!? WHY IS NO ONE QUESTIONING HOW IN THE WORLD CHLOE EVEN HAS ALL THIS FUCKING INFORMATION!? THIS IS FUCKING STUPID!! THEY KNOW FULL AND WELL BY NOW THAT CHLOE IS A MANIPULATIVE AND SPOILED LITTLE FUCKING BRAT!!! 

AGAIN, ONCE AGAIN!!! WHY THE FUCK IS ANYONE BELIEVING A WORD CHLOE IS FUCKING SAYING!? CHLOE IS NOT TRUSTWORTHY AT THIS POINT!! EVEN IGNORING THE HAWKMOTH BETRAYAL SHIT, SHE IS SOMEONE THAT LITERALLY EVERYONE FUCKING KNOWS CANNOT BE TRUSTED AND WHO DOES WHATEVER SHE WANTS WHENEVER SHE WANTS TO DO IT!! FUCK THIS NOISE!!! FUCK IT ALL TO FUCKING HELL!!!!!! 

And literally everyone, INCLUDING MARINETTE'S PARENTS, ARE BUYING IT HOOK LINE AND FUCKING SINKER!! Except for Zoe, the girl who does FUCK ALL FOR THE PLOT BUT IS ALSO OH SO IMPORTANT!!! WHO TAKES THE FUCKING BLAME FOR SOME GODDAMN FUCKING REASON!!! WHAT IS THE FUCKING POINT!? THERE IS NO ENGAGEMENT TO THE PLOT!! THIS IS JUST SHOEHORNING IN ZOE INTO BEING IMPORTANT IN A COMPLETELY NONSENSICAL PLOT!!! 

I'm gonna be actively ignoring the Akuma Fight itself, I think, because I've reached the limits of my tolerance for bullshit, and just wait until the "confession" before I get into it. 

And now that we are at the rough timeframe of the confession... we get Marinette saying "I know you love Adrien" BITCH NO YOU DON'T!! YOU BLINDLY ASSUMED THAT BASED OFF OF LITERALLY NOTHING BUT YOUR OWN FANTASY-DERIVED IMAGINING OF HOW "PERFECT" ADRIEN IS AND YOUR INABILITY TO WRAP YOUR HEAD AROUND THE IDEA THAT PEOPLE CAN HAVE CRUSHES DIFFERENT FROM YOURS!! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!? 

...And it isn't even a confession. Not even NOW, when they have literally HAVE THE PERFECT FUCKING MOMENT, THEY CAN'T ACTUALLY HAVE ZOE SAY THE FUCKING WORDS!? AFTER JERKING EVERYONE'S CHAIN, THIS IS THE BEST THEY CAN FUCKING COME UP WITH!?

THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE MARINETTE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT SHE'S THE ONE WHO ZOE IS CRUSHING ON!!! WHAT KIND OF BULLSHIT IS THIS!? 

She "knows" in that she goes "Ohhh" in a tone that could be implied to be realization, but they don't have her actually indicate that SHE is the one Zoe has a crush on in any deliberate way. She doesn't point to herself. She doesn't say "me!?" She doesn't do ANYTHING to show that she is the one who is being crushed on. "Oohh" is the best we fucking get. 

They are having the characters bend over backwards to avoid being "actually gay." Because heaven fucking forbid they ACKNOWLEDGE that Zoe has a crush on Marinette directly instead of trying to go for a "wink and a nudge" set-up. 

Okay, maybe I spoke too soon. They have her state "I am truly, very honored." And they then act as if Zoe has actually stated that she has a crush on Marinette instead of vaguely implying it with Marinette vaguely acknowledging. Because WHY THE FUCK NOT!? It's not as if Marinette hasn't been dancing around confessing to Adrien FOR FOUR FUCKING SEASONS!! AND STILL CANNOT EVEN KISS HIM!!! 

And then they have ZOE give MARINETTE advice to finally tell Adrien she loves him, and apparently Marinette is still a fucking hypocrite in being unable to even MENTION the guy.

OF FUCKING COURSE ZOE HAS HAD A CRUSH ON MARINETTE SINCE THE DAY THEY MET, IT'S NOT LIKE THEY BARELY KNOW EACH OTHER OR ANYTHING!!! AND APPARENTLY SHE'S MEANT TO BE SOME FUCKING LOVE MARTYR IN THAT SHE WILLFULLY REFUSED TO EVEN TRY TO PURSUE MARINETTE BECAUSE SHE WAS "MADLY IN LOVE WITH ADRIEN" CRY ME A FUCKING GODDAMN RIVER PEOPLE!!! 

At least Zoe POINTED OUT that Marinette's a hypocrite in not practicing what she preaches, NOT THAT THE WRITERS REALIZE THAT THIS APPLIES TO MORE THAN JUST FUCKING SHITTY ROMANCE!!! AND ZOE YOU HAVE NOT ACTUALLY TOLD MARINETTE THAT YOU LOVE HER AT ALL, SO YOU ARE NO BETTER THAN MARINETTE IN THAT REGARD!! Remember, MARINETTE STILL CAN'T VERBALLY TELL ADRIEN SHE'S IN LOVE WITH HIM PEOPLE!!! 

And when Marinette FINALLY FUCKING SAYS THE GODDAMN FUCKING WORDS, Adrien RIGHT ABOUT TO FUCKING RECIPROCATE, and DESPITE HAVING A STANDING ORDER TO NEVER LET ANYTHING STAND IN HIS WAY OF PURSUING LOVE, Gabe STILL KILLS THE FUCKING KISS!! THIS SHOW FUCKING BLUE-BALLED EVERYONE STILL SHIPPING THIS GODDAMN TOXIC TRASHFIRE LOVE SQUARE!!! GABE IS SUCH A TOXIC PIECE OF MONSTROUS SHIT!!!!

[dianthe715]

felix has never lied

hear me out

in all of felix’s tactics, he never actually lied in the traditional sense. he used his charisma and people skills to make literally any of his lies sound normal, and omitted necessary details. lets review his time with the new republic!

starting in season 11 -

- “seriously? come on man! everyone knows about you guys! you’re heroes!” even though he says this was a lie, it actually wasnt (of course he was probably just saying that to mess with them). dr. grey quoted the article written by dylan andrews that addresses the reds and blues taking down freelancer, and it was evident everyone knew them, and saw them as heroes. no lies here!

- he said completely straightforward what was going on on chorus. and then he was honest and said it’s not his home, he’s literally only there because he’s being paid to bring in weapons and supplies to the new republic. again, completely honest. he was a merc, and vanessa just happened to be paying him to bring in weapons and supplies. he just, like i said before, omitted details.

- he told them they need to defend against the oncoming attack to the canyon because those were orders by doyle to apprehend the reds and blues, so technically it had nothing to do with felix, and he knew that locus was going to bring soldiers who would be attacking them.

               - this is where he used the situation to get information, which shows more about how he had manipulated chorus for so many years. he would twist a situation to get enough information that he needed to gain more control over his targets.

this is the majority of his statements/claims in season 11, so let’s move onto season 12!

- again, felix brings the brutal honesty on the operation he leads with tucker. “well it could be that someone from up top is coming to visit, or... it could be a response to all the weapons i stole from this place a couple weeks ago.”

              - thats how he brought in weapons and supplies! there was nothing that suggested, even in the videos just about charon, that felix didn’t steal weapons and supplies from the federal army. they did have the most resources after all, and knowing him he would’ve probably done anything to avoid calling control for a shipment.

- he was upfront and said he literally doesnt care if more soldiers die. which he doesnt. “but you do,” he goes on to remind tucker, another obvious way of manipulating him.

- vanessa also knows his entire background, as locus’s visions in the temple reaffirmed their time in the unsc. felix just left out the fact that he is still working with locus. and who knows? it easily could be a challenge to see who’s better once and for all. felix doesnt like locus and locus doesnt like felix (sorry lolix shippers).

- now when they tell the generals that the reds and blues have died, this is the first lie that felix tells in his time on the show - and it’s the only time where control directly told felix what to say, as far as we know. so clearly, it’s a much different way than how he regularly handles a situation like that.

this is the end of his claims while with the new republic before church and tucker streamed him to both armies. and after examining this i just like how much effort was put into felix and what a good character he is. he has a particular style of operation that is unique to him. i think it would be really interesting to see what happened to siris and how, if at all, it affected felix or turned him into the loveable asshole he was up until his demise. 

[racfoam]

A bit more of my Shadow and Bone S2 thoughts. I just feel really disheartened by the entire thing.

They really butchered Alina's character. The heart of the books was her still feeling compassion and caring about the Darkling even after the fact. She genuinely cared for him the entire time.

Oh, they butchered the Darkling, too. Fucking arseholes.

As a writer, the most important thing for me is to keep characters, you know, in-character? Treat it with respect.

Just... Such butchery of characters and such disrespect...

The only powerful, moving scene was the Darkling holding his mother.

Why do they let those sort of people even into the studio? Why do they give them the job? How?

This is just absolute disrespect. I feel so disheartened that people who are so disrespectful to the main characters get the job to work on a show with main characters being Grisha while the ones who do respect the characters/love the Grisha characters don't.

Also, this writer gave a lot of scenes to Crows — who aren't even in the S&B books. I like the Crows, but they should never have been in S&B. Because they turned S2 of S&B into cannon fodder for a crows show, which is even more disrespectful! Like, the fucking nerve.

Shadow and Bone should not have been a skipping stone for Six of Crows. The cast (the Grisha) was phenomenal and there was so much potential.

I keep seeing this with American media/Hollywood when it comes to dark/light. They're so fucking afraid of that trope.

Because most screenwriters in Hollywood don't know how to write it. Because they're pussies, cowards, bland and boring. The only ones who do know how to write this trope are the AO3 authors.

A normal Grisha could one-shot the Crows. In fact, the Grisha got NERFED! The most powerful Grisha — the Shadow Summoner got nerfed!

Yeah, because definitely, when it's a fight against Shadow Summoner who lived for thousand years against a limping man, a flash bomb will beat the fucking Shadow Summoner. Fuck off, you crow-fanboy (I'm calling the screenwriter that cuz it's obvious).

I have nothing against the Crows, but I rolled my eyes every time they got on screen, especially in this season. S&B trilogy is about Grisha, SoC is about the Crows, and honestly, I hope the TV show never gets greenlit. They LITERALLY stole S&B Grisha scenes, ruined S&B plotline to speedrun it (really tells you a lot how they feel about Grisha storyline, huh), butchered the Darkling & Alina’s characters, wasted Ben's and Jessie's time and talent, nerfed the Grisha and gave 70% of S&B to Crows and now they want to give the Crows an entire TV show? Yeah, really respectful to the Grisha audience.

Fuck off.

God, the crow-fanboy screenwriter writing S&B. I genuinely want to vomit.

And here I thought we'd get a respectful Grisha adaptation.

(sighs)

Sorry for the S&B spam, guys, but I really liked the Darkling & Alina and all the Grisha, to see them be so disrespected really bums me out and leaves me bitter and angry.

[hopeshoodie]

If you were writing s3, what drama would you have added?

So I’ve tried to rewrite S3 before, but now I feel like I overdid it with the conflict there lol. I’m much prouder of my rewrite attempt for Boat Party, I think it gets at the themes better than the former.

But I would agree that the biggest problem with S3 is the lack of drama (followed closely by the juvenile writing). So here’s just some spitballed ideas that could’ve been implemented in S3 without changing the entire story structure, but would have added way more drama:

I would have a recoupling early in the game where MC has no input because it’s a guy’s choice. I think in general LITG under-uses the player not being in control of the couplings, and those were the most suspenseful parts of S2 (wondering if Rahim would get eliminated, the disaster recoupling). Maybe this could be done by having MC as the bombshell and then immediately having a guy’s choice recoupling, or having MC come in as a bombshell and steal someone, but then two days later having a guy’s choice recoupling. 

I like the idea of MC being the bombshell because I love the concept of her not being the center of the villa. People were really upset how S4 implemented that idea (I can’t really say, I haven’t played it), so I would try to soften it by allowing MC to approach different LIs and get them to secretly confess that they’re interested in her, but also that they’ve got something going on with their current partner and they’re willing to see how things go. That could create drama between MC and their partner or the LI and their partner, which I like. 

I would keep the ‘your LI forgets your name’ bit, but customize it to each LI like I suggested here. I like the premise- a simple insulting thing your LI says without context/explanation so it causes the player to question their relationship and wonder if the LI will switch on them. So your LI still forgets your name, but each LI handles it differently/has different motivation. We also have to have a REASON you can’t talk to your LI about it, so I would make it clear-er in the narrative that MC is being rushed into activities by other islanders and not just that the LI is avoiding her. 

I would bring Rafi in much earlier (because he’s objectively the most successful character in canon) and have three different girls be VERY interested in him and willing to leave their partners for him. I don’t think LITG has used the ‘one person is way better than everyone else and everyone’s into them’ thing in regards to a NPC, just with MC. So I think it’d be super interesting to have three girls acknowledge they’re gunning for Rafi, and basically say ‘may the best win’. Especially if the girls are already friends and trying to be respectful of each other’s feelings. You could play that out for 1-3 days, with Rafi reacting in confusion to being so aggressively shmoozed, the other boys being put off that their partner’s ignoring them, and the girls trying to be civil with each other while obviously being frustrated. 

Instead of what, five challenges? That did nothing for the plot and were just filler? Have a couple of challenges that force people to do uncomfortable things (lie detector, guessing their partners interests, physical game where they get up close and personal with not-their-partner). Those conflicts aren’t good to draw out more than a day, but do add a foreshadowed problem with relationships or add spice to an uneventful episode.

I HATE how Nicky/Elladine left. It felt so performative, because they literally only have a couple days left before the finale and weren’t visibly THAT into their partner anyways. I do like that Rafi/Lily leave if rejected, it shows a lot of integrity, but I think more than one person just walking during a season starts to feel… Cheap… Like the characters want out as much as the readers do… Instead, I would have one (1) islander walk out, but have it be the person that the new islander stole. So for example if Lily takes Nicky from Elladine, have Nicky walk out because he told Lily not to couple with him and he’d rather leave than be coupled with someone who doesn’t listen to him. Then you have more drama instead of people just pretending to be ok with the new coupling, because Lily and Elladine would both be single and would be incredibly irritated with each other. 

The only other way I would have someone walk out on the show is if it’s a couple we’ve genuinely been rooting for, like Seb and Viv, who say they’re leaving because their relationship is more important that the drama happening for the show and leave together.

Finally I need to have an explosive finale. I HATE how none of the characters really react if MC cheats on them or steals the money. I would have customized reactions for each LI to both if it’s revealed through the montage that she cheated with Tai and didn’t tell them, and more intense customized reactions if she steals the money. There’s no way in hell Rafi or Harry would still be friends with MC if she took the money, we need an argument to SHOW that. 

[hello-nichya-here]

What is your opinion on Katara as a character. How do you think she should develop after the show ends. Many were upset at her comics portrayal almost as much as Azula.

As I've said before, the comics are just Yang's fanfic, with Zuko being his self-insert into the story. I do not take it as canon.

As for Katara in the original show, I actually had a conversation about it with @dragomer very recently. Our conclusion was basically that she is mostly a good character that we still like, but there were moments when the writers dropped the ball simply because of lack of attention.

She starts off struggling to bend, especially when compared to Aang, then suddenly she can put up a pretty good fight against Pakku, becomes Aang's teacher, and is basically shown as a prodigy.

We see her steal from pirates and use the fact that they stole all the stuff they have as an excuse, then berate Toph for doing the exact same thing in "The Runaway"

Again, it's nothing too major, say like the complete character assassination everyone went through in the comics, but it could have and should have been done better, especially in the later seasons (I give book 1 a bit of pass since the writers were still kind of figuring the characters and world out).

For her future, I imagine that she will still be with Aang, and they'll spend half of their time in the South Pole, trying to rebuild it with her family, and the other half flying all over the world to help people, or to visit their friends, or just because they want to go on a vacation somewhere nice. Whenever she's not on work mode, she's playing, being goofy, just relaxing a bit, or enjoying some quality time with her loved ones.

She'll be a known healer and fighter, and will sometimes teach some special classes in the North Pole, but mostly her focus is on helping the waterbenders of her own tribe as it grows once more.

I see her and Aang getting married in their early 20s, but only having kids much later on (mid to late 30s), when they're more mature and the world doesn't need their help as much as it used to on the years immediately after the war.

I see her, Aang, and honestly the entire Gaang, being the kind of old people that are trouble makers, way more than they ever were as kids, because with the world almost completely stable, and their children fully raised and independent, they don't owe shit to nobody anymore and will do whatever they want.

Katara will be probably be the kind, loving granny that will just say some wild shit about her life when she was younger to bait her grandkids into begging her to tell them about how awesome and badass she is and she will go "Well, if you insist... here's how I literally I brought your grandpa back to life, saving him, the Avatar cycle, and the world all at once"

[tiggymalvern]

Burn Notice - season 6 rewatch

My rewatch of season 6 didn’t change my take on any of the main events. It did prod me into a few other thoughts, though, mostly about what isn’t there. It made me curious about Sam’s family. Seven years, and he only refers to his blood relatives twice – first when he tells Michael about how he stole an air rifle when he was ten, and his dad had the cops put him in a cell to teach him a lesson. Then when Elsa’s son is talking to him about how hard it is trying to deal with parental expectations when you’re not what they want you to be. That’s all we get. And maybe Sam’s parents are dead, maybe he’s an only child (less common in that generation than now), but no talk of aunts, uncles, cousins, anybody? We get Jesse’s tragic backstory and why this disaster of a found family are all he has, but Sam’s situation seems to be the same and nobody mentions it. This is a man who’s turned being likeable into a professional skill. He cultivates an entire network of people who’ll risk their careers, and in some cases jail, feeding him confidential information, because they think he’s a nice guy. But apparently his own relatives don’t like him, or he’s avoiding them. There has to be something bad there, right? And honestly, it fits my headcanon perfectly well, because my Sam is bisexual, and if his family discovered that in the 1970s or early 80s, that would explain everything. But I’m curious if the writers ever had any thoughts on it, because we have some very specific details on background, childhood and family for the other three main characters, while Sam’s just a big blank space for everything except his career. The other thing notably missing is any interaction between Madeleine and her adopted ducklings after Nate is killed. They all show up for the funeral, but otherwise they’re entirely conspicuous by their absence. Which is understandable, because she’s furious, and not just with Michael (she specifically says there’s enough blame there for everybody) and nobody would be enthusiastic about putting themselves into that line of fire. But at the same time, Madeleine’s flailing, and Michael’s flailing, and every time he tries to mend fences with his mother she vents her anger on him, and everyone just steers clear and leaves them to it? That’s... harsh. And not just on Madeleine and Michael, because a stressed out and emotion-driven Michael isn’t particularly pleasant or safe to be around. Sam definitely knows that, and Fiona must too. Jesse might not – yet. And honestly, he’s getting a pass from me because he hasn’t known Madeleine for as long as the others, so he’s not best placed to be running interference. But Fiona and Sam? Trying to mitigate and defuse the tensions between the surviving Westens would almost count as self-preservation, given the alternative of leaving Michael struggling to deal with it all. In many ways, they have a better relationship with Madeleine than Michael does, because they’ve really only known her at her best – they don’t have all the years of baggage and failed trust with her that Michael has. Fiona has a good enough relationship with Madeleine that she keeps in touch with her even after she’s given up on Michael and she’s living with someone else. How many people still hang out with their ex’s mum? Sam lived with Maddie for a while, which is more than adult Michael ever did – Michael turned up in Miami broke and homeless, and went around begging favours from anyone he knew rather than go to his mum’s house. And Sam could probably get away with a bit more on the Nate front because he had nothing to do with it, he was with Maddie and Barry the whole time. But if they make any attempt to help Madeleine and Michael in their grief and guilt and recriminations, we don’t see it. Apart from the funeral, we don’t see Maddie with any of her ducklings until after everything's gone to hell (hello, stressed out and emotion-driven Michael!) and they’re all literally running for their lives. After Maddie’s told Michael that she has to forgive him (and by extension the rest of the gang) or she’ll lose him too. So did they actually all ghost Madeleine all that time, or did they try and we weren’t shown it? Because if they did just keep their heads down and wait for it to blow over, they are godawful friends. On medical stuff – I have SUCH a love/hate relationship with the cruise ship episode. This is the Pearce I really wish we’d seen more of, because she’s awesome when she’s allowed to take a big role in Burn Notice shenanigans. But the ep also drives me up the wall, because nobody is remotely consistent on whether they’re talking about bacteria or a virus. And no, that’s not how a Gram stain works. Or what it does. The writers went to so much trouble for that scene where Michael’s rehearsing how to fake being an infectious disease specialist – trying to learn all the CBCs and PLTs and PTTs – they obviously looked some of that up. So why didn’t they double check the basics? AAAAARRRRGGHH. Sometimes they obviously checked. When Sam gets shot, most of the detail there is pretty good. Not all of it, but I’ll accept there’s a limit to what you can show, and what you can mock up for Network TV. But the consequences of delaying treatment for an abdominal gunshot wound, that’s all nailed. Even when you’re not bleeding significantly, if you delay surgery for 24 hours, the survival rate drops to 50% because the septic peritonitis kills people. Probably, like everything else on these shows, it came down to time, and the writers didn’t have enough of it to look up everything. But seriously, they could have given the cruise ship script to someone with any kind of medical or microbiology training for an hour and had it fixed. Any vet tech/nurse could have made those edits and made it a really good, fun ep that doesn't make me want to scream...

[ultraericthered]

Anime Update V2 38

Wolf’s Rain - OK, something happened during production of this show that handicapped it in its second cours, because four episodes straight do little to nothing to advance the plot from where we left off and are largely recap episodes. I shit you not, there are four recap episodes in a row! Like the viewer would find the story that they’d followed for 14 episodes so drab or so complicated that it needs to be retold to them for four episodes! This is notoriously why the show would later recieve four special episodes following its “ending” in Episode 26 to compensate for the four episodes that got wasted.

Hunter x Hunter - The OP animation and ED credits have changed now that we’re finally in new territory with the Greed Island arc. It’s unfortunately another point where Kurapika and Leorio have to be Put On A Bus again, but we’re going to meet some new characters, Hisoka will play a big part again, and even the Phantom Troupe is still around in the city for some minor parts here and there! Gon and Killua also continue to have great interactions, and at one point a call is made to their Nen sensei from Heaven’s Arena. A literal call-back!

Fruits Basket - The Sohma family summer getaway arc started, and between another sighting of Rin Sohma as she visits Shigure, Hiro struggling again with his jealousy at Kisa’s closeness to Tohru, Tohru hurting herself inside by simply questioning whether or not she needs to cling to her dead mother’s memory as tightly as she does, and Akito making plans with Shigure to intrude on everyone’s fun, we’re not exactly in an entirely bright and sunny mood. But the core of this episode was Yuki realizing he still hasn’t told Tohru the whole story regarding all the trauma Akito inflicted on him and the fact that he was the boy who gave her the cap. It can’t be avoided forever, Yuki.

Date A Live S4 - Finally back to the next season of Date A Live, and OK, what has happened to the animation for this anime? It’s taken some downgrades before, but now it just looks completely different, with the models being stylized differently and sometimes stiff, so it could get distracting even when the events of the episode were mostly engaging enough, as Shido has now met and is dating the second spirit, a young author named Nia who might just be as much of a weirdo as Tohka. There had to be some obstacle keeping Shido from sealing her powers so easily and it dropped at the very last minute of the episode - Nia can only fall in love with fictional 2D guys!

Fate Zero - The final battle of Saber VS Lancer did NOT play out in any way I’d expected it to, especially since on the sidelines we got Kiritsugu brutalizing poor Nuada and threatening to kill her unless Kayneth signs a Geass scroll that forces Lancer to skewer himself to death and ensures that Kiritsugu brings no harm to Kayneth and Nuada. Exact Words, because Kiritsugu’s sniper assistant picks them both off immediately afterwards. I was dumbstruck when I saw this. What an evil BASTARD. While he went on to make unfortunately true points about humankind, human nature, and the causes and prices of conflict that he intends to end, I’m far more on Saber’s side here and think Kiritsugu is only bringing about more ruin, including to himself. And then it just ends with Irisveil collapsing! Goddammit!

Re:ZERO - Started this series with its full hour premiere. The only issue I took is that the way Subaru finds himself in another world was WEAK. But after that’s out of the way, things pick up as he teams up with Emilia and Puck in a search for Felt, the thief who stole Emilia’s very important insignia. The fantasy world so far doesn’t seem like anything too spectacular or original, but what held my attention is that I immediately took a liking to these characters. Even the thief is super lovable and I want to see more of her. I also enjoy watching Subaru constantly get knocked down at so many points where he’s thinking like a gamer or your average entitled Isekai protagonist who believes he knows the way things around here are “supposed” to work only to have reality refuse to go that way. And the twist about how Subaru is also a time looper now, and the fact that whenever he resets it brings about as many consequences as it undoes. So good.

Symphogear G - This premiere caught me off guard and threw me some curveballs, with Hibiki and Chris now working in a military style setting against more dangerous and unstable Noise while Tsubasa is touring as a music idol to keep people’s spirits up. While it’s pretty easy to guess that the “Dr. Ver” character will end up being a villain, it was legit surprising to see that Tsubasa’s pink haired co-singer and seemingly friendly rival Maria Cadenzavna Eve (what a name!) turn out to be a villain too, one belonging to a terrorist organization named after Finé with direct control over the Noise and is terrorizing the whole concert hall with them! One downside is that Miku and her friends are totally apart from Hibiki and the rest, almost as though Miku and Hibiki didn’t need to have reunited at the end of last time!

MAR - Did you forget I had this one on here a while back? Well, it’s finally returned with the second season, and a new round in the War Games set at an appropriately icy and snowy battleground. The first match ended up being Alviss VS Mr. Hook, which wasn’t too difficult for Alviss to win but then we got Rapunzel killing Hook for his loss, sending him sinking into the frozen water. The noble Mr. Hook deserved way better than that, and I can hardly stand Rapunzel and her equally vile and creepy brother Gillom. They have zero humanity.

AMC: Yuki Yuna Is A Hero - So there are depressing episodes of anime and then there are cruel, soul-torturing episodes of anime for maximum depression, misery and tears, and this falls into the latter category. Seiji Kishi delivered with the drama in a very Angel Beats!-esque way, but for real, lighten up Yukki Yuna! This show is stronger when it’s embracing the cheese and silliness of what Kishi can do with the Hero Club’s double life and letting the girls play off each other. When it’s trying too hard to be a dark and edgy Madoka clone, it generally doesn’t impress me. The pathos didn’t even fully reach me since when watching it dubbed, there were no subtitles to tell me what Itsuki’s notes were even saying, so I couldn’t feel with Fuu felt.

AND

Akiba Maid Wars - They’re cafe maids at a pig-themed maid cafe who also live a dark secret underworld life and are players in a crime drama. This is real and it is played totally straight. Japan be crazy.

[ourflagmeansgayrights]

OH GOD OH FUCK. OHHH FUCKING GOD. OKAY OKAY OKAY. OKAY

the man the myth the legend the self-proclaimed slut Contessa O'Fucking Neill said that he thinks izzy is too emotionally immature to identify his emotions towards ed as love, AND that his feelings about stede are like the childish possessive feelings he got when his older brothers stole his friends away

y'all. y'all.

who else do we know that has a hard time identifying that they're in love with ed???? hmmmm????????? who else spends the whole season bending their entire world around this man but still just thinks it's bc they're good buddies??????? anyone????????????

STEDE FUCKING BONNET, THAT'S WHO!!!!

ouhghhghg fuck. ohh FUCK the similarities are so fuckingggg tasty to me. the way they both want to spend as much time with ed as possible. the way they try both to keep ed near them with convoluted plots instead of just, Telling Ed They Want To Hang Out With Him (stede with his treasure hunt, izzy with his... uh. trying to kill stede thing). oughguhfhjfgjj the fact that that neither of them realize they want ed carnally. im going INSANE!!!!

and aside from the fact that stede actually recognizes his feelings by the end of the season, the crucial difference—the thing that makes this delicious fucking feast of a comparison go from yummy to mind-blowing, the salt sprinkled on top of the caramel—is that stede thinks he makes ed worse and izzy thinks he makes ed better

stede, when faced with the idea that his presence might be hurting ed, immediately removes himself from ed's life. even though he wants to be near him, he wants to go to china and make the most out of this one life. there are other reasons that he goes back, sure (guilt about abandoning his family, trauma of seeing a man accidentally die a gruesome death right in front of him), but all of those reasons are things he's been dealing with since the beginning of the show. the idea that he's driven History's Greatest Pirate to ruin is the straw that broke stede bonnet's back.

but izzy. izzy won't even consider that his actions could hurt ed. literally nothing matters to izzy, not his own physical wellbeing, not stooping so low as to get help from the fucking british, not even ed's actual feelings, as long ed continues to be everything that izzy worships and as long as izzy gets to be the most important person in ed's life.

and ohhhh my god it's so good bc they're both fucking wrong!!!!!!!! stede is not "ruining" ed, and izzy is not "protecting" ed or whatever he thinks he's doing. more importantly tho, IT IS NOT THEIR JOB TO DECIDE WHAT'S BEST FOR ED. rather than fucking talking to him, listening to what ed wants, they make decisions about ed's life without ed's input or consent!!! they're BOTH emotionally immature white men who are acting on their own emotional impulses without really considering how their actions and behavior will affect other people. by the end of the season stede is starting to get some fucking character growth in this area, but stede and izzy have a long way to go if they're gonna get happy endings by the time this show hits its finale