#the pacing issues that have plagued this season really showed themselves here

[youngpettyqueen]

here's how Roy/Keeley/Jamie can still win

[bluetiefling]

So, Cursed (2020), is pretty bad! And I wanted to say a few things because somebody had to. This is mostly ranting.

Cursed was rife with problems from poor pacing to poor worldbuilding to plain cliche and uninspired story arcs, but the most glaring issue has gotta be Katherine herself who c a n n o t carry this thing. It was gonna take a very strong and compelling actress to make Miss Nimmyway work and she is not that. The wooden acting just exacerbates all the issues the character has, which plague a lot of badly conceived fantasy protagonists. Mainly, being devoid of real charm and personality and having no agency because she plods through the story largely reacting to everything and not driving the action (while other characters fall at her feet and love her inexplicably and are there to hold her hand and tell her plot points to react to etc). When she starts “acting out” and showing I guess some semblance of personality, it’s because of ~magic corrupting her, so of course when she snaps at someone or goes into a rage it’s not really her fault and there’s no growth or organic character conflict to develop her. She also does a thing I’ve grown to loath in many protagonists where they get people killed or make stupid mistakes, and then angst about it but really they’re not taking any blame or examining their behavior, they’re just wallowing and making it about themselves. And of course other characters are there immediately to coddle her because actually, she did nothing wrong! And please, be our queen, girl we met five minutes ago who merely showed off some powers (which she complained about the whole time btw)!

Devon as Arthur is great and he can actually act, and he was trying so, so hard sell his romantic dynamic with Ninny but there was no saving it. He was one of many better and multifaceted characters trapped in her orbit where her lack of charisma and overall static character development makes it very hard to understand why he’s so sprung over her, let alone why she wins anyone else over enough that they want her as queen. And on that note idk why all the other characters (her included!) constantly treated him so badly and he himself keeps struggling with his own honor and sense of goodness when he’s an all around goodhearted and noble guy from the jump. It’s like the show was gaslighting me lol. I feel like their plan too is for Arthur to win hearts and minds and take the throne through merit, which I am here for, but I suspect they’re gonna frame it like he stole it from Ninny or something. Like I personally would love that because she sucks, but it’ll be tedious sitting through a show telling me she’s been so wronged by him, if that’s where they’re going with this eventually. I mean they’ve already had it so Morgana only starts feeling negatively about Ninny because (again) corrupting magic, because this show can’t bear to have characters form doubts about her competence or worthiness in a sincere way. 

Morgana is another character played by a lovely and talented actress who immediately adores Ninny (well, I guess not immediately, but they had Ninny tell her “hey, being gay is okay” and that’s enough for Morgana to declare them bffs forever) and she too suffers from trying to prop up Ninny all season. I couldn’t believe it when in one scene Ninny throws a fit and tosses the sword in a canyon and Morgana jumps to declare she’ll go fetch it while Ninny literally sits and pouts. I mean??? And that’s basically their dynamic - Ninny complaining and Morgana bending over backwards to push this useless girl to her “destiny”. Lol and I guess they’re gonna expect me to side with Ninny when Morgana goes all dark sided. 

It is so telling that one of Arthur and Morgana’s strongest moments was when they get their one (1) scene talking to each other about something that isn’t Ninny related. Devon and Shalom saw the chance to Act and they came alive right there. 

Daniel is the reason I first heard about this show and I unabashedly loved his character and all the dramatic dance fighting - he was the highlight for me lol. (I KNOW I know) But that’s a problem when said character is very underutilized. He appears in every episode I think but sometimes that just amounts to less than a minute of screen time. His secret Lancelot on a path to redemption is one of the few twists on the legend that I’m really into, but there was so little to see of him. Like of course they must have been planning more focus for him next season, but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t more they could do with him here. His redemptive turn is prompted by a few scenes in the finale when they could’ve been seeding it more throughout. And I would’ve loved more scenes with him and Arthur (who managed to spark with him in their one fight scene far more than he does with whatshername). Before I’d seen the show I would’ve said I hope he interacted with Ninny a lot to see if there was something worth shipping but uhhh... hard pass on the idea now and it’s maybe a relief I didn’t have to sit through him falling in love with her instantly while she looks bored and delivers her lines with the exact same cadence for every scene.

And speaking of female characters he is presumably going to have a romantic arc with (that’s assuming this show actually gets a s2 which it doesn’t really deserve... .....), we have Red Spear. Or should I say RRRRED SPEEAARRR RAHHH because the actress couldn’t say a line without rage yelling it. And I wouldn’t care except I know this woman is meant to be Guinevere according to the book and.......... ...... ..... Like putting aside my aggravation at Guinevere being another rawwrr warrior woman because these writers have very limited ideas for Strong Female Characters apparently, but I can’t deal with her also being lowkey deranged like RED SPEAR comes across in all her scenes. She was just too much. And we have such a good Arthur and Lancelot and the thought them trying to make that love triangle work with RED SPEAR is actively painful.  

On that note, I’m a tiny bit hopeful that the fact the Guinevere name drop never happened in the show (as it did at the end of the book) means they’ve realized the actress can’t do this and they’ve cut that. Maybe she’ll be recast? Ideally they rewrite the plan for Guinevere entirely and let her be, god forbid, a courtly maiden who can’t fight but is no less “strong” for it? What a concept. The team behind this show doesn’t inspire confidence on that front, though. They seem set in their ways... I am also preparing myself for the possibility that they just merge Nimue and Guinevere after they realize Nimue has largely served her purpose already and they struggle to come up with things for her to do. And then my suffering will continue because I will keep watching this garbage for Daniel.

I have no idea what the viewership numbers are for this show - I would guess not great but worse things have been popular on Netflix so who knows. It doesn’t deserve a s2, but the show is potentially salvageable I think? I mean my recommendation would be letting Nimue stay dead at the end, her purpose and story finished, and let Arthur take over as the main with Lancelot and a new, not Red Spear Guinevere, as co-leads. You could really have something with that combination. Also get a new showrunner and reshuffle the writers’ room while they’re at it.

[chopperiv]

Sword Art Online As A Whole - A Review

As you may imagine, this is not going to be a positive review. I’m not going to come away singing Kirito’s praises and saying he’s the greatest protagonist any show has had ever. This show is terrible, and the few interesting or redeeming qualities of it are little nuggets of gold in a vast sea of shit.

That said, let’s dive in.

I have heard people say that “Sword Art Online’s first arc was great, and it only went downhill when they introduced fairies to it!” I would say to you, “Well, you’re entitled to your opinion, but you’re wrong.” Since pretty much day one, SAO has had flaws and issues that are impossible to ignore. Its character problem, for one thing. Barely any characters that aren’t Kirito get any screentime, and none of them (save maybe Asuna and Sinon) get any development. Female characters exist to faun over Kirito, and male characters exist to fill a role and not be people on their own.

Beyond character issues, we’ve also got the filler garbage that plagued SAO in its early episodes. Rather than having each episode fit into the arc and tell a continuous story from beginning to end, the first 4 introduce characters, settings, plot elements, and set up the way the show will progress from here on out. Then, suddenly, episode 5 gives us an MMO murder mystery that can only be solved by Our Hero, Kirito! And episode 6 continues the story, because we’re all oh-so-invested in this story that it had to be a two-parter. Hell, episode 4 is a bit of a grey area, since it introduces Silica (the girl with the dragon on her head, don’t feel bad if you’ve forgotten who she is) and not much else. Same goes for episode 7 introducing Lizbeth the blacksmith. Both of these girls, as I said, fall for Kirito, because that’s what girls do in this show. The only girl who never exhibits romantic tendencies towards him is Yuuki from Mother’s Rosario, and I’m fairly certain that’s because she’s in love with Asuna. But I digress. While the show gets back on track around episode 8, the episodes love to futz about and digress into side stories. For example, the Marty Feldman Fish subplot. It eats up half an episode, does absolutely nothing to further anyone’s storylines, and robs us of a potentially awesome fight with a giant centipede-skeleton.

Sword Art Online has a major problem with pacing. The filler is a big part of it, but there’s also the issue of Reki Kawahara being unable to deliver exposition unless the characters are sitting in a cafe. It happens with alarming frequency. Early on in season 2, there is a 10-minute-long scene where Kirito gets information fed to him while doing nothing but sitting in a cafe quietly listening. This grinds the pacing to a complete dead halt. I’m not watching this show for boring exposition delivered while sitting completely still, I’m watching this show to see people doing things!

Although even when it comes to people doing things, it’s pretty lackluster. The fight scenes in the show are abysmal. They are, without fail, Kirito and/or friends hacking and slashing at a target bigger than them which does very little other than stand there and take it. The enemy may attack once or twice for every thirty hits Kirito and/or friends get in. Throw in some insert shots of Kirito whining about how he needs to move faster, and you’ve got a Sword Art Online fight scene. There are very, very few fights that don’t follow this pattern. It makes the fights formulaic and just serves to hammer in what an incredibly boring protagonist Kirito is.

Kirito is intended to be a stoic loner who’s really good at video games. He comes across as an emotionless asshole (though he’s really good at screaming) who is strong not because he’s good at what he does, but because his writing is piss-poor. He’s practically invincible, and the only times he’s ever lost have been when a) the enemy was cheating, b) he wasn’t fighting “for real”, or c) he totally won anyway, shut up. Combine his generic powerfulness with his boring design (he looks like every harem anime protagonist ever, though I guess that’s fitting since he kind of is), and you’ve got a character perfect for young boys to project themselves on to. In short, Kirito is the character who gets the most development and screen time, and he’s still incredibly boring.

Remember when he approved of being called a “Beater”? What an idiot.

I’m not going to do a section on all the other characters in the show, because they can all basically be summed up in one word: Bland. There, done. Moving on.

Reki Kawahara has a major issue when it comes to writing female characters. He seems to view them as accessories to the main character, things to tell him how great he is, or spur him to action. This would likely be the reasoning behind the second half of the first season, where Kirito spends the entire time questing to rescue his girlfriend from a guy calling himself the Fairy King Oberon. (No, I will never get over that name.) And in that season, the Fairy King Oberon nearly rapes Kirito’s girlfriend, down to ripping off her clothes and declaring that after he’s “satisfied” himself there, he’s going to go to her real body and do the same thing. And that was fucking awful! I hated it! It was a shitty fucking swerve to pull on your audience, and I gave Reki much flak for it.

Then he pulled the same shit again at the end of the GGO arc. It almost seemed for a while that the only dramatic situation Reki could think of for a female character was attempted rape. Fortunately, after watching Mother’s Rosario, it’s clear that’s not the case, but it doesn’t mean he won’t try and pull that same garbage again in the future. To be perfectly honest, I think that I might not hold the same level of hatred towards this series that I do if there hadn’t been two attempted rape scenes. Two!

I’m not even going to go into all the more minor, nitpicky details. I could sit here for hours rambling about how shit Yui was as a character, or how absolutely god-awful any one of the MMOs featured in this show were, and how Reki Kawahara doesn’t understand a thing about video games. I could do that! But I won’t, because that would just start to get overly-detailed, and I’ve already done that while liveblogging the whole series. So instead, I’ll wrap this up.

Sword Art Online started with a decent premise. People trapped in a video game, if they die they die for real, sure. Great. Not exactly original, but it’s a fine premise. It spun this off into a show that resolved its own major plot by episode 14 of a 25 episode season, and then continued on fucking about and wondering what to do with itself. Sword Art Online is only worth watching if you watch it in the same way I did: purely out of morbid curiosity, and sharing your thoughts and frustrations with other people along the way. Do not buy this show. Don’t buy the original light novels. If you’re going to watch it, you can see the full series with a Netflix account. Don’t give money to Reki Kawahara for writing a hacky series of garbage books that don’t have the first clue how video games work. Stay away from Sword Art Online.

[nemesis-nexus]

Darkest Greetings and Salutations my Family how is everyone? I am doing well, it’s the first day of Autumn yet it’s in the upper 80’s with crazy humidity, go figure! It’s supposed to be like this for a couple more days and then Autumn (should) start to wander across the threshold! I hope everyone is enjoying their Mabon/Autumn Equinox, I am about to go take a walk in the early night Air myself but before I do, I will leave this here. Fair warning, this one is about 8 pages long so be pace yourselves!

Mabon/Autumn Equinox 2019

Not only is today the beginning of Autumn, it is a day to take some time to reflect on all the things that we have been blessed with this year; from the new friends we've made to the old friendships we've maintained, new jobs to new members of the Family!

There is so much going on in the world that we need to be thankful for the things that we have no matter how minor we may think they are; remember what is minor to us could be quite a big deal to another! Things such as clean water which we take for granted - turn on the faucet and there it is - is a major deal for those who don't have that luxury! Food to eat is another huge deal for those who are not privileged to have access to their own! A roof over our heads doesn't seem like it yields a whole lot to be grateful for until you meet someone who doesn't have even THAT much!

This Mabon while you are giving thanks for all these things, don't forget that there are others who don't have much and not for lack of want or trying but because they have simply fallen on hard times! Take a moment to take stock of your own life and realize how good you really have it even if you are going through tough times yourself! There are many things we can do to help out, donating to a charity in good standing, volunteering in a soup kitchen, handing out supplies to those who are living on the streets to help them get through the harsh Winter months are a few examples!

When you are gathering supplies for your Mabon feast consider picking up a few items to donate to your local food bank and donate some items that you no longer use such as: clothing, blankets, toys and books to your local shelter where they will be put to good use once again by those who need them! Remember that NOT all those who fall on hard times or are taking up residence in a shelter are adults and they too need a helping hand! Compassion for our fellow humans and the natural world should always be the norm, NEVER the exception and it should not require a holiday for it to take place, everyday someone out there is struggling to get by and while things may not be easy for us, we have it better than some!

On Mabon we light the Fires and we take some of what we acquired from the Harvest and we share with our own families and friends, we express our gratitude for all we have and we look to the future to see what we need to do to keep things moving forward! With all that is happening it is important that we do our part to improve our communities - keeping in mind that we live here too - so whatever we can do whether it's joining the school board, coaching a team, running for office or taking part in a protest - ALL of these things can help bring to the forefront the issues that are currently plaguing this country so that they can be addressed and resolved instead of left to fester and become even worse as time goes on!

Also while you are enjoying the company and festivities, take a moment to acknowledge all those who are not able to do the same because they are on active duty Stateside and around the world and give thanks for their service as they are the frontline of our defense no matter where they are stationed! It’s not easy for anyone to be away from their family especially during the holidays but they chose to shoulder this burden not for their benefit, but for OURS! RESPECT! I mentioned donating to food banks and homeless shelters, what is REALLY needed for our homeless Vets is access to psychiatric care ESPECIALLY those who are dealing with very real and very debilitating issues such as PTSD, depression, rage and suicide! Our Vets need to be taken care of by getting the medical attention they need and being given employment so they can bring in a paycheck and afford to buy basic essentials - it is the VERY least we can do for them for everything they were willing to sacrifice for the rest of us!

More than anything we should express our gratitude for everything we have that Nature provides from the Air in our lungs, to the Earth under our feet, to the Water of Life to the Fire that warms us and the planet itself because without these things we as a species would cease to exist - as would the rest of the natural world - which is why we need to start taking better care of our ecosystem!

Now is the time when the world begins to prepare itself for the Season of Death, when the leaves begin to change color and fall to the ground and the trees go into a state of suspended animation; when bears go into hibernation and the birds fly south; when the squirrels begin to gather nuts; when all those who live off the land Harvest their crops and hunt their meat to store it for the long Winter ahead! Mother Earth provides everyone, human and animal alike, everything they need to survive in any climate which is why we need to remember ourselves and treat her with the respect she deserves instead of taking for granted everything that is readily available! The more we waste things, the more we pollute things, the less there will be for future generations and what we do have will be completely useless because it'll be so toxic that consuming it or being anywhere near it would be deadly!

This Mabon I would like to wish everyone in my Family both Blood and Spiritual as well as their families, to my friends and their friends a very blessed holiday! May your tables never be barren, your cups never be empty! May you know prosperity as well as generosity! May your health always be on the uptick, may anything that is a source of stress be resolved! May your loved ones know peace and tranquility and may they never go without!

I would like to thank everyone for being a part of my life especially those of you who were around between 2012 - 2015 and are still here, your loyalty means more than you know because it reminds me that there are still people out there that won't just cut and run when times get tough! There have been those who I thought were loyal who turned out to be acting as double agents which I find to be pointless especially if the ones they keep running back to are only manipulating them and casting them aside when they are no longer useful until the next time they are, but better to know who the weeds in my Garden are so that they can be pulled rather than live in denial because I don’t want to accept that those I called Brother or Sister not only betrayed me but also tried their damndest to damage my reputation from behind closed doors because they for whatever reason thought I wouldn’t find out! I’m not worried, let’s just say that Karma has a way of sorting these things out…

I would like to thank all the members of the Temple of the Eternal Dragon, the Temple of the Ancient Dragon, the House of the Warrior Phenex and the Ancient Church of God, your presence is appreciated as without you neither my Temple nor House nor the ACoG would exist! While there have been some rough patches we have shown by example that so long as we stand together that nothing and no one can drive us apart! Loyalty in the face of adversity demonstrates the true strength of ANY bond whether it’s between two people, a group of people or an organization of any kind. This holds true especially if the group of people is all striving for a common goal in a sea of drama that constantly threatens to wash over anyone who isn’t paying attention!

The fact is that not everyone who smiles at us is our friend and a listening ear/reading eye can and oftentimes is also a running mouth especially when it comes to those who can’t hold a candle to you and yours and are so vindictively hateful that they will make up any story and tell anyone willing to listen in an effort to ruin your reputation and stop anyone else from having anything to do with you! We never need to concern ourselves with those who believe whatever they are told without question, however, if one (or more) of those people is in OUR House then it must be addressed and dealt with quickly lest this person become a liability by dispensing information revealed in private meetings or sharing personal information of other members with those outside the group! It’s a hard thing to accept to be sure but it makes ALL those who would never consider such actions shine that much brighter!

Most of all I would like to thank the Ancient Family who years ago reached out to me and never left my side even when I became an atheist in my teens and then back in December 2012 - go figure - reached out to me yet again when I began Walking the Gates of the Simon Necronomicon and showed themselves to me in various ways! We all start somewhere and even though the Necronomicon was overall a work of fiction, there are MANY seeds of truth sewn all throughout the pages! What I have learned since then is that no matter how lost we may get on our Path that the Ancient Family will always shine their Light to help us find our way, all we have to do is trust in ourselves and our Faith in them and let the Path reveal itself to us!

While there are always those who will read the stories and use that knowledge to present themselves as being superior, we know that no one who holds any real wisdom or power would use it to keep the rest of the people oppressed! We know this because for the last 2018 years those same stories were stolen and hidden away, their contents deliberately mistranslated and oftentimes outright misrepresented because those who chose the low road knew they were nothing special which is why they had to use violence and genocide to force their agenda on the rest of the people! Many of these people are the lowly decedents of Abraham, a reprehensible human being who embodies and represents the very worst of human nature! Through his thievery and deception he sought to make a name for himself by stealing and rewriting the stories of Sumer and other Cultures, casting down the ‘Pagan’ Gods until people were too afraid to remember them! I have news for that wretch and ALL his followers who demonstrate the same level of hatred and malfeasance towards the rest of us - YOUR DAYS ARE NUMBERED!

One of the things that enrages me about Abraham is the absolute DEMAND of SUBSERVIENCE towards women, in the Ancient World it was NOT like this! In fact in Ancient Sumer men and women spoke two separate languages and the men ONLY learned the language of the women - the keepers of all things Spiritual, whose wisdom and assistance was sought out by everyone including soldiers and politicians - if the women deemed them worthy enough to be granted such an honor! I absolutely exalt NINHURSAG on the HIGHEST of THRONES and thank her and the rest of the Grand Council PROFUSELY for making me the way I am no matter how difficult and isolating it has made my Path at times because at the end of the day I can honestly say that I would never harm a child and I would be the first in line to take down any person or institution that would! I will NEVER tell people they need to hate anyone for something as trite as sexual identity or preference, same sex marriage has been legal in many places for a while now and I don’t recall the world coming to an end because of it, go figure!

The fact is all one has to do is look at the track record of ALL THREE of the Abrahamic Religions and then at the track record of legitimately practicing Satanists and you will see where the true “evil” is not only cradled but nurtured and unleashed! Then go back even further to the Ancient World and realize that for all their theft, lies and violence that the ONLY hold they have over anyone is PSYCHOlogical! Once a person realizes the truth about what REALLY happened and HOW things came to be as they are, they no longer feel obligated to feed that delusion! The second they stop feeding the delusion and they claim their independence of such debauchery is the second they are no longer a slave to Abraham and they are able to find the Path back to the REAL Mother and Father and the rest of the Family!

This Mabon I give thanks to the Ancient Family who lets me know that I am NO ONE’S SLAVE! That being said I would like to share on this Mabon/Autumnal Equinox all that for which I am grateful:

1) First and foremost I am grateful to the Ancient Family for helping me to find my Path, I admit it took a while to figure it out and there were many obstacles I had to overcome, but at the end of the day I understand why it was necessary.

It needed to happen this way so that not only would I have an actual appreciation for everything I gained through my personal trials, including wisdom and insight, but so that I would see the world with eyes unclouded, meaning that I would accept the truth no matter how much it might hurt. Part of this is accepting any situation – especially personal situations – for what they are and to not deny it out of a misguided sense of loyalty or duty to anything or anyone. One of the harshest lessons that lead to being able to do this was seeing people for who they are and to stop helping those who don’t deserve it! Unfortunately this can apply to family as much as friends and co-workers. One thing a person needs to keep in mind is that there is a huge difference between trying to help someone who is being resistant because they might have issues in their past that makes it hard for them to trust anyone and someone who takes both you and EVERTHING you do for them for granted!

The first may be dismissive because they aren't used to ANYONE giving a damn, the second has become so accustomed to others doing things FOR them that they don't bother doing anything for themselves or they continuously ask you for favors and get mad if you say no! There are those that will never accept your help no matter how sincere you are and then there are those that will not only accept your help but will milk it for all they can until such time as you cut them off, in both cases you have to let them go and move on!

2) I am grateful for my Family both Blood and Spiritual.

There are two forms of Family, our Blood Family whom we are connected to through biology and our Spiritual Family with whom we share a common Path and Belief. We may not always agree with our either one on everything especially religion, but we will go through the fire for them! Our Spiritual Family are the ones who offer us the kind of support that repairs most past damage that has been inflicted by those we have met all along the road called life and as such we in turn are able to help others through their difficult times. I am grateful for both because I know who I am and where I came from due to my Blood and Spirit; that is a privilege that many people are denied! I am grateful for my Spiritual Family because not only do we share a common bond through our beliefs but we also stand together regardless of where we come from or where we are going!

3) I am grateful for my Friends online and offline.

There are people that we meet in life who stay with us no matter what happens and these people may be physically present or they may be communicated with via the internet. While we may be able to hang out with our offline friends, go to the movies, have private conversations that can’t be hacked and go through the motions of life, our online friends are also a source of support especially in a social media forum where it can get so bad that it’s literally a free for all where it’s no holds barred. Online friends are also in many cases the only people that some have to talk to either because a person is deathly shy or because they need to talk to someone about something they feel they can’t speak to anyone in their immediate area about out of fear something may be overheard or that they might be betrayed by that person.

In essence online friends are something of a safe harbor because when we are in dire straits and there is no one else around to talk to, we can go online and talk to them. We must ALWAYS however be very careful who we trust because online friends CAN be a double edge sword, because unlike offline friends we can never be certain who we are talking to at first, however as time goes on and we become more and more familiar we can usually tell who is legit and who isn’t. Sad to say but people we know offline can be even shadier than those we meet online. It’s all a matter of paying attention and never taking anything at face value.

I am grateful to my offline friends because I have people I am able to physically be with and confide in and I am grateful to my online friends because no matter where I am (for example on a train for 24+ hours) I always have people to talk to! I am MOST grateful for those who start out as online friends and eventually become offline friends and in some cases Spiritual Family! Nobody crosses our paths for no reason, they are either there to become someone of importance to us personally or they are there to be a lesson to remind us that not everyone who enters our lives should be trusted and as such are not meant to stay.

4) I am grateful for my Temple as well as each and every member in it.

When I formed the Temple of the Eternal Dragon, it came on the heels of a VERY stressful time where I had to make a choice; either continue to be used by an ungrateful man child who felt he was entitled to have other people do his work for him while he took the credit and simultaneously disrespected me behind closed doors every chance he got, or lead by example and show the congregation that I had told many times to never be afraid to walk away from a bad situation and an equally toxic person.

I chose the latter and when I did that bad situation got even worse because not only was I accused of ruining the church while I was still running it, after I left I was accused of being a member of a terrorist group that exploited children and people were told to not trust me. There was so much more vitriolic and hateful things said but you get the idea. When I formed the TotED I vowed to not bring the drama into it and to also NEVER “recruit” members or otherwise bribe people into joining by offering automatic ordainments just for joining. In my opinion ANY rank or titled NOT EARNED is not only superficial, it is completely meaningless!

Ordainments should ONLY be offered if a person has demonstrated knowledge of the Path itself, the ability to think for themselves and not be lead by the nose and also has been a member of the Path long enough to prove their loyalty and that they are NOT just getting ordained because they can! There are too many people who claim all sorts of ranks and titles yet they have NO background in the Path and they don’t know anything other than what was dictated to them AFTER they joined the organization!

Mind you we all start somewhere and there is nothing wrong with learning about the Path after you join an organization, the problem is when the ONLY knowledge you possess is what is dictated to you and you demonstrate absolutely NO desire to learn anything else. This is dangerous because ALL cult leaders rely on their members to rely SOLELY on what they are told and to NEVER look things up for themselves. This shows a clear lack of personal application and NO ONE who lacks the desire to take part in their education or Spiritual awareness should ever be ordained because they have no more to offer someone else than the one who dictated copy and paste garbage had to offer them. In fact a person in that position stands to be more of a hindrance to someone else’s Spiritual growth and personal evolution than anything else. Not only this, but a person who cannot think for themselves or do their own research is someone who stands to MISREPRESENT the Deities rather than uphold his/her honor! This is an insult to the Deities primarily but also to the individual themselves as it insinuates that they are unable to stand on their own without the man behind the curtain feeding them their lines!

Enki, Ninhursag and Ningizheda created us to be able to stand together or alone, whichever the situation calls for, neither they nor the rest of the Ancient Family intended for us to ever become so dependent on another human - or THEM for that matter - that we are unable to function without them or to ever be so easily won over with empty titles and meaningless ranks that we would be willing to claim belief in something ONLY to hold said meaningless rank and titles!

There are few things I have and will ever ask from those looking to join or are currently in my Temple; one is that you join of your own accord as you will not be given anything except respect and support by myself as well as resources to begin your own personal journey on the Path. Your connection to the Family is your own, I cannot make it for you and despite what you may hear from other groups NO AMOUNT of contract writing in blood or any other medium will establish this connection. You need to approach the Family with respect and humbleness.

Two is that you are respectful of the other members keeping in mind that while you may possess advanced knowledge or at the very least MORE knowledge than some, that there are others who are just starting out and therefore there is no such thing as a stupid question. I would rather have someone ask me a question that has been asked 10,000 times before so that THEY know the answer than EVER have a member who is to afraid of retaliation in the form of harassment or flaming to even pose it in the first place! A person who is denied access to the same knowledge everyone else possesses is a person who will never know more than they previously did and that doesn’t help ANYONE trying to advance on their Path! Remember we ALL had our “first day” and we knew just as much then as the newbies know now, so for all intents and purposes we are not above them when it comes to following the Path!

Three is that you do NOT mindlessly attack ANYONE else regardless of their faith. If a person wants to be a Christian, Buddhist or Pastafarian that is entirely at THEIR discretion NOT YOURS and you have no more right or business to mock them than they do to mock us! If you emulate the behavior of your so called enemy then you are really no better than your so called enemy! Keep in mind if you want Satanism/Aasarism to be respected as a religion or Path then you need to ACT like you do! Also whenever you are out and about keep in mind that it is NOT just you or this Temple that you are representing when you talk to people, it is the entire Ancient Family and if you behave in a manner that reflects THEIR preconceived notions as to what Satanism/Aasarism is about or how Satanists/Aasarists behave then all you are doing is proving THEM right!

Words can never express fully how grateful I am to those who joined in the beginning - especially those who followed me from my old church - and stayed no matter how much drama was going on at the time! I am grateful that this Temple is 4.75 years strong with no signs of slowing down! I am grateful that people continue to join every day and while not everyone sticks around I take pride in the fact that they came in the first place! It shows that they were curious enough to want to know more and even though they decided this wasn’t for them, they could have just dismissed me completely as someone not worth their time!

There is so much more I am grateful for but at the end of the day but I think the thing I am most grateful for, aside from the afore mentioned, is that no matter how arduous the road that led me here has been, I kept moving forward and because I did I found my way back Home and even though new challenges arise every day in various forms, I know we will NEVER back up, we will NEVER back down! We will NEVER give up! We will NEVER give in! That so long as the Ancient Family is by our side, we can handle anything! It is my fervent hope that I convey all the lessons I have learned through my own experiences to every member of the Temple of the Eternal Dragon so that they may glean a little something from them and even avoid certain situations altogether so as to not have to go through what I did!

I would like to take this opportunity to say a resounding THANK YOU to the members of the Temple of the Eternal Dragon, to my Sister Cindy who has helped me and continues to help me with various aspects of my Path, to my Blood Family for putting up with me, to my Spiritual Family for their continued support, to my Friends online and off for not abandoning me and especially to my Blessed and Most Exalted Father and Mother for showing me the way and for helping me to remain strong during the very worst of times - THANK YOU ALL! HAVE A MAGICKAL MABON AND A VERY BLESSED AUTUMN EQUINOX!

“O now is the time of the Harvest,

As we draw near to the years end

Now is the time of Mabon

Autumn is the time to descend

Old Woman waits patiently for us

At the threshold of the labyrinth within

She offers her hand that we may understand

The treasures that await at journeys end

O Great Mother has given of Her body,

We give thanks for Her fruit and Her grain

We then clear the fields so that next harvests yields

Will be full and abundant again.

Old Woman leads us through the darkness

Our most ancient and trusted of friends

She carries the light of spiritual insight

And leads us to our wisdom once again

And as we journey through the darkness

And as we continue to descend

We learn to let go of what obscures our soul

And re-discover our true being in the end

- Lisa Thiel (“Mabon/Autumn Equinox”)

---

“In the Darkness we ignite the fire

And we dance in the light,

We feast, we drink, we laugh

We enjoy the company this Mabon night!

We work the Web that connects us all

Our focus we shall maintain,

We gather up all the energy

And send it into the Astral Plane!

We are thankful for everyone

All those who decorate our life,

We stand together in full support

No matter how severe the strife!

No matter where we are

No matter what we do,

We know we can count on Family

To always come shining through!

To the Ancient Family who stands tall

Their Honor tried and true,

You are the reason why we are still here

And tonight we revere you with endless gratitude!

-HPS Meg ”Nemesis Nexus” Prentiss”

ZI ANA KANPA! ZI KIA KANPA!

MAY THE DEAD RISE AND SMELL THE INCENSE!

Etiamsi MULTA Et Nos UNUM Sumus Nos Sto Validus Ut Nos Sto Una!

Semper Veritas, Semper Fideles, In NINHURSAG'S Nomen Nos Fides! AVE NINHURSAG!

(We Are ONE Even Though We Are MANY And We Stand STRONGEST When We Stand TOGETHER!

Always TRUTHFUL, Always FAITHFUL, In NINHURSAG'S Name We Trust! HAIL NINHURSAG!)

AVÉ IGIGGI!

AVÉ ANUNNA!

AVÉ DRACONIS!

HAIL THE GREAT SERPENT!

HAIL THE ANCIENT FAMILY!

HPS Meg "Nemesis Nexus" Prentiss

[kardemomme-kisses-archive]

i've seen a lot of ur ideas on characters like sana isak and vilde but is there something extra u can say abt eva's underrated character? is there any special moments you really liked with her, is there any part of her characterization that you could talk on and on about? i rrly like eva and i hardly ever seen in depth convos abt her character or even just a few gifs that show the complexity of her character

I feel you anon, I feel you. There can never be enough discussion about her (and sadly, there usually isn’t which is more than a little perplexing to me seeing as she’s such a multi-dimensional character with a fully fledged arc who undergoes tremendous growth and imparts so many significant messages).

More under the cut because apparently I am not familiar with the meaning of brevity.

So, let’s talk about Eva Kviig Mohn. Eva, who started this series feeling so soul-crushingly lonely, with a boyfriend who as much as I love him when it came to his priorities back in their first year he wasn’t very attentive to her and her wishes. It always felt like there was this invisible line between her and Jonas’s friends whenever they were in the same room, a line she never fully crossed because she was never really integrated into their group. And really, this was all Eva wanted back then - a place to belong, to be a part of something, friends to have sleepovers with and share secrets and hushed confessions, maybe drink a little too much and dance together under bright lights and swirling colours. Even more so, she wanted the warmth of someone’s arm around her shoulders when she was feeling stressed about her grades plummeting, terrified that she could feel the boy she fell for slipping away from her  so cold inside that big old empty house …And the worst part about Eva’s situation is that she did have that once, and it went so much deeper beyond just hanging out together. Not when ingrid  befriended Eva accepted her into her circle and stood up for her during a very difficult period in her life.  Eva lost that the day she picked Jonas over Ingrid and I think that a part of hers will always be plagued by self doubt because was this really the right decision? Has she ruined this friendship for good? What if she’ll never have anything like that again? 

Let’s talk about Eva and one of the first friendships she built after picking herself up from the ground from one of her lowest points and daring to reach out and start again. A friendship that started as a whirlwind because when Noora barged into Eva’s life so fierce and strong and self-assured, so unapologetic and unafraid to be herself , it must have felt like the answer to everything Eva was looking for. Noora’s independence and courage to stand up for what she believed must have been so desirable to eva who was a little lost within herself back then, wonderful admirable Noora who was everything Eva did not feel she could ever become and everything she wished she would be… Eva might have put her on a pedestal in the beginning of their friendship but the way it evolved so organically, with her discovering that Noora was everything but infallible, with her own very real vulnerabilities was what really brought them even closer together and provided some of the warmth that had been missing from both of their lives before. They learnt so many things from each other and this helped them gradually grow out of their own insecurities and become the version of themselves they are today.

Let’s talk about Eva and the trait of hers I find the most admirable: her bravery and maturity, as demonstrated by the way she approached her relationships with Jonas and Ingrid. Let’s talk about a relationship so full of innocence and the quiet optimism of a first love which was ultimately brought down because they were both so focused on trying to maintain this ideal, the dream, the perfect romance,a world where everything was viewed through rose tinted glasses,that when the cracks started to appear they would rather pretend they were not there. And those issues that had been undermining the foundations of their relationship from the very start could indeed not be washed away, not even by the genuine love between them. Most importantly they never learned how to communicate and establish trust since they never had enough faith in each other to stay and work through a conflict and neither of them really knew how to compromise. Thus in the end they became their own worst enemy, which is something that Eva saw and in one of the most mature decisions anyone in this show has ever made took the first step towards a healthier future because she realised that they coudn’t grow while they were still together and holding each other back. This scene sent such an important message because eva's journey towards self-agency and self-discovery is such an indispensable part of life in general and of the teenage experience more specifically, sincee at this age where the matter of forming an identity comes into the forefront for the first time with such an intensity it is very easy to fall into the trap of defining yourself strictly within the confines of pre-existing or newly formed relationships. Even more importantly, a relationship can be unhealthy for you even if there is still so much love on both sides and this does not get addressed enough sadly. But here it was. It was and Eva handled it in the most beautiful way.

Let’s talk about Eva and the tremendous courage she showed when she confronted Ingrid and in that moment faced all the fears shame and guilt that had been haunting her for months. How in one of the most emotional moments in that season when she expressed how she wishes she had done things with jonas differently but she can’t keep feeling guilty her whole life she refused to let the shame and the guilt over past actions consume her, acknowledged her past mistakes with full clarity, chose to reconcile with everything that happened and actively decided to channel the remorse into moving on and focusing on self improvement and doing better in the future.

Let’s talk about Eva and one of the most underrated scenes in her season which I seldom see discussed, if at all. “Everyone’s like what kind of person are you? You have to know who you are. What a fucking cliche!” is one of the most important things she’s ever said for me. I feel like the way everyone always stresses about how adolescence is supposed to be the age that everyone should discover and define their identity puts a lot of pressure on teens and this moment stresses out that it is alright to feel a little lost within yourself and it is alright for someone to take this journey at their very own pace or not at all until they feel emotionally ready for it. Self exploration is an ongoing procedure which never really ends nor is it constrained by age limits and feelings of uncertainty are an absolutely natural part of it which is something this scene showcased  beautifully.

Lastly, let’s talk about one of Eva’s strongest features : her heart, her capacity for infinite compassion and forgiveness. And I can think of no other way to do so other than talk a bit about her friendship with Isak. Truly, there have always been heaps of understanding and forgiveness between them, even when isak's actions drive a wedge in the foundations of their bond. Eva has always been nothing but compassionate and patient towards him and it’s a true testament to her character that even when she didn't know the cause of his betrayal she mostly felt hurt and confused rather than scornful and resentful. Moreover, once she discovered the true source of his lashing out her stance shifted as well because there have never been any lingering traces of bitterness or anger ever since then.Of course that is in part due to her own emotional maturity and clarity when it came to her own responsibility in the fallout of her relationship, but also she is one of the few people who truly saw isak in that moment, the only one who saw his struggle and recognised his strife. It is a feeling very familiar to her after all, because she used to be in a very similar spot - losing sight of herself, being plagued by insecurity and guilt, having alienated and hurt her own friends in the process. She knew this is a journey he has to take on his own, so she would be there in the end waiting for him. And when he went through his own path of self discovery and reconciliation with himself, when he was finally ready to take that first step reach out acknowledge what he had done and try to make amends, she was already there with a soft smile and an accepting heart. Eva is absolutely the kind of person to take joy in her friends' happiness and this Isak - Isak who was finally confident and in peace with every part of himself - was glowing with contentment. In that moment all the space she had ever granted him was worth it and the look she gave him was full of pride and kindness.

So there she is. Eva Kviig Mohn. A brave girl, a caring girl, a girl who has been through so much but never lost her courage or her smile. A girl who wasn’t afraid to make difficult decisions, a girl who was lost but managed to rediscover herself. There she is, the girl we all recognise a part of ourselves in, having found a new second family, surrounded by laughter music and colours, people who genuinely care about her and came to celebrate with her when she threw her birthday party, people she brought together from the most unlikely places and who will never let her feel alone again. Her story is one of self growth and acceptance, of finding your place in a world that is often too demanding, unforgiving and cold and I really wish it got more attention than it does because it captures the essence of some of the most important and difficult years in our lives and it really deserves to be heard.

[flauntpage]

Jake Voracek’s Sobering Words About His Team Are Spot On: Thoughts after Penguins 5, Flyers 2

The air in the Flyers locker room was thick with something after last night’s 5-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

It’s not that easy to describe its aura, but I’m pretty certain it’s the same one that pervades all locker rooms and club houses of Cinderella story teams who come up just short.

This is what it must have been like when Gordon Hayward’s half court heave came tantalizingly close, but ultimately missed, as Butler fell in the National Championship to perennial powerhouse Duke a few years back.

Or when Jameer Nelson’s jumper from the foul line went off the rim and Oklahoma State, not St. Joe’s, danced into the Final Four in 2004.

Or probably most akin to Loyola Marymount, riding the emotional wave of playing in the tournament following the death of their star player (and Philly native) Hank Gathers on the court in the West Coast Conference tournament and going on to make a dramatic and unexpected run to the Elite Eight, only to get snowed under by the best team in college hoops – UNLV – missing on their own miracle run to the Final Four in 1990 – which happened to be the last time the Lions made the tournament.

Yes, that’s three college basketball references in a row to start a hockey story. But hey, it’s March after all, and the madness of this month does work its way into other sports sometimes.

And the Flyers are a perfect case. They’re an up and coming team, no doubt. They have two elite superstars in Claude Giroux and Jake Voracek. Sean Couturier may have stepped across that star threshold this season. There are several young players to be really excited about – a few who are significant contributors already – like Travis Konecny, Ivan Provorov, and Shayne Gostisbehere.

And led by that quintet, the Flyers became a real fun story in December, January and especially February. They rocketed from last place to first place in the Metropolitan Division. They amassed the third-best record in the NHL over a 37-game stretch – which is a good portion of a season (45%). They put the NHL on notice that this scrappy roster full of no-quit players was going to be a hard opponent to play against night in and night out.

They overcame a 10-game losing streak. They built a 12-game point streak of their own. There was – and still is – a lot to like about the Flyers. It was a darling of a story.

But, lost in the feel-good vibe the team was emanating for so long, was the fact that there were still concerns, still issues that could, at any time, once again rear their ugly heads and rain on the orange an black parade.

Enter the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The most-hated rival. The two-time defending Stanley Cup Champions. Captained by the most hated heel in the history of Philadelphia hockey – Sidney Crosby.

A berth for first place in the division was on the line. Surely, this would be a game where the focus was precise, the execution near flawless, the pace breakneck and the emotions running white hot.

And for much of the first two periods, the Flyers were right there with arguably the best team in the sport. In fact, for a while at the beginning of the second period, the Flyers were actually taking it to the Penguins.

But then, in what seemed like an instant, but was really half a period, it all went south. Pittsburgh thwarted two Flyers power plays, and then scored quick goals after each and added a third tally off a neutral zone mistake, and that was pretty much all she wrote.

The third period was fruitless. Pittsburgh added an empty-netter and beat the Flyers for the third time in three tries this season, scoring five goals in each game.

And the players were left to try to explain what went wrong. It wasn’t a poor effort. It just wasn’t good enough against a superior team.

It left players mad. Frustrated. It led to Giroux saying the Flyers power play was “shit,” after going 0-for-5 and running their performance over the past six games to a paltry 1-for-19.

You can sense they all knew what the real issue was, but were all too prideful to say it out loud.

That is, until Voracek faced the media circle (circus?).

Jake is nothing but blunt and honest. He truly may be the best interview in the locker room. He tells it like it is. And from his perspective, he spit what was really the truth that so may others don’t want to face:

“I don’t know what you guys saw up there (in the Press box),” he said. “But… we’re playing good teams right now that are on top of the standings, with a lot of experience so sometimes it shows that we are not there yet.”

And that’s OK. Really, it is.

The Flyers are not the Pittsburgh Penguins. Not even close. They’re not the Boston Bruins, who they play tonight. They’re not the Tampa Bay Lightning, who beat them last Saturday in a wild shootout.  They aren’t the Winnipeg Jets or Vegas Knights, the next two teams they play at home.

The Flyers are on the come… just not yet.

Here’s the thing; when you don’t have unrealistic expectations, and you just let the team be what it is, you can see the fruits of the labor that Ron Hextall has done to slowly put this team together.

Sure there are frustrations that still exist. There are veterans taking up roster spots for an entire season that would have been better served by having a younger prospect with more long-term benefit to the team playing instead.

But that ship sailed already this season. Now the Flyers are trying to make a playoff push to prevent missing the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since the early 1990s.

Now, you have to go with what got you here.

And what got the Flyers here was the group of guys on the ice last night. It had them playing a game on national television for first place in the division in March. If I told you at the beginning of the season that would be the case, you’d be thrilled. Admit it.

But now that they lost the game – and have dropped four straight – the fourth streak this year with at least three losses in a row (10, 3, 4, 4) – even though first place is still a possibility, last night’s game was evidence that it’s not, nor was it really ever a realistic goal.

Pittsburgh is too good. The rest of the division is mediocre, so coming in second is not out of the question – and neither is missing the playoffs entirely.

Woah. Hold up Ant. What the hell are you saying? Miss the playoffs entirely? Are you smoking some of that same stuff A.I. was in Charlotte the other night?

I get it. It can be viewed as an overreaction to another loss. And I’m not saying they are going to miss the playoffs. I believed it earlier this year. I said it repeatedly in this space that the Flyers were just a .500 team and likely not going to make the playoffs (which, by the way, they’ve played 67 games and won 34 and lost 33. That’s pretty close to .500 wouldn’t you say? And that’s for those of you out there who were mocking me for calling them a .500 team a couple weeks ago.)

But now I’m on board. This team is going to make the playoffs. I don’t think an epic collapse is hiding in the weeds here.

There is cause for concern though. There is a potential to feel a little tightening in the general area of the sphincter. They are eight points ahead of Florida, who is the first team outside of the playoffs, and that’s usually a pretty solid cushion with just 15 games to go, but the Panthers have three games in hand. There’s no guarantee they will win all three, but for the sake of argument, let’s say they do – well then the cushion is all but gone and a very tough schedule still remains, which could make for some hand-wringing and the talk of a collapse even more deafening.

But, I think the Flyers are good enough to play .500 hockey the rest of the way, and if they do, and finish with 94 points, that should get them in the postseason. Whether it’s for a first round series against Washington or as a wild card playing either Pittsburgh or Tampa Bay, the Flyers will be there.

But, this team is not ready to make that Cinderella run that we are wont to see this time of year. No. They could beat Washington – maybe. But they would be toast against Tampa or Pittsburgh. You could see why last night.

Now, I can highlight the mistakes from last night, but why bother? It’s the same things that plague them every game. Their defense lacks speed and when they attack five strong and turn the puck over in the offensive end, there are usually odd-man rushes created against them.  They get themselves in trouble with the puck by either holding on to it too long or making an ill-advised pass attempt. Their second pair defense is truly a third pair being forced into second pair minutes and the guys playing third pair are really just seventh defensemen. Their goaltending is not up to snuff. The penalty kill is not good. If the power play struggles – as it is right now – they don’t score enough because they don’t have good scoring depth. The coach makes curious matchup decisions that seem to blow up in his face (Val Filppula against Crosby? Really?)

They stay in games – and win a lot of games – because they have character, grit and determination – and that’s why you should like these guys – even the veterans who get a lot of crap from Flyers Twitter – but they aren’t anything more than what they are.

Listen to Jake. He’s on the team. He knows.

They’re getting there. The process is moving along slower than you wanted it to, but they’re getting there. It’s baby steps. Make the playoffs this year – maybe be more of a contender next year – really make the push in 2020-21.

Just not now. Just not this year. And all it took was one more game against the Penguins to show everyone that for certain.

        Jake Voracek’s Sobering Words About His Team Are Spot On: Thoughts after Penguins 5, Flyers 2 published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[recentanimenews]

AnimePalette's Guide to Fall 2017

This article is cross-posted with the permission of AnimePalette that does not reflect the opinion or values of Crunchyroll 

    The chart is meant to be a compact tool to quickly pick the shows you might be interested in. The longer reviews below were written by a few friends of mine from the 2016 /r/Anime Awards jury, who frankly who have been helping me out with the charts for quite some time now.

The Ancient Magus' Bride The show to watch. Maybe not the best of the season (critics will give that to Land of the Lustrous, Girls' Last Tour, or one of the sequels), but certainly the best compromise between quality and accessibility.

Magus Bride starts out like a shoujo cliche - a frail, sensitive girl, troubled by life, gets rescued by a gentle, mysterious individual. One might question the relationship (words "Stockholm Syndrome" are bound to appear), and such unhealthy relationships are kind of a plague in fiction written for girls - but this is not as much of a problem as it might appear to be. Whatever your questions or problems are, the show will address them, and will not let them go as easily. However, the romance element is in the background, as the show's main strength is the breathtaking journey into the world of magic and fantasy. Magus Bride manages to enchant the audience with a world, cast, and visuals that never fail to cause the sense of wonder and amazement.

Let it bewitch you. If you're a fan of Mushishi or Natsume's Book of Friends, this is most certainly a must-watch. [lukeatlook] Land of the Lustrous A true hidden gem of the season, Land of the Lustrous finds it hard to shine in the shadow of Anime Strike’s truly outrageous double paywall as well as being ignored or even straight up called “awful” by prominent voices in the anime community. However, this show is hardly the type to fracture under stress, as so far each episode has delivered a landslide of interesting character interactions and solid animation. That isn’t to say Land of the Lustrous is a perfectly cut gem - the low frame rate and lighting effects can sometimes be jarring to those sensitive to unpolished frames. However, this diamond in the rough is a jewel of a show and has left me glassy-eyed and over the moon with how it’s shattered my expectations for CGI anime. While it’s certainly not perfect, I would adamantly recommend everyone give this show a shot. [Pandavenger] Land of the Lustrous is an adaptation of a fairly esoteric manga with the same title, about a group of androgynous immortal gems that inhabit a small island in a (post-)post-apocalyptic world, while defending themselves from the Lunarians who want to take them to the Moon and make jewelry out of them. Such simplicity in premise and setting, while leaving many questions to be answered, allows the focus to be put on the dynamics of our long-lived characters, who day by day face the existential horror of being immortal beings, by questioning the meaning and value of their existence and fulfilling their small but meaningful roles constantly. Through the eyes of Phos, our clumsy but good-willed and charismatic protagonist, we slowly get to discover the nuances and tensions of these relationships, as well as slowly get to know more and more about the current state of their world.

The series features excellent comedic timing, and balances both its lighter and more dramatic chords competently, managing to capture at least a fraction of the bittersweet melancholy its source material presents, helped by a brilliantly composed and utilized OST featuring subtle percussion, with piano and strings being at the front. The choice of getting this adapted by a CGI studio like Orange is a good one, given the fast-paced action and intensity of movement the manga has, since CGI animation allows to make this kind of action look consistently good with extra technical freedoms, which is also the staff’s specialty in this case.

Definitely recommended for those looking for something out of the norm in terms of presentation, don’t mind lack of a clear-cut plot direction, and want a more world/character focused show. [Karmic_thread]

  Kino's Journey -The Beautiful World- Kino’s Journey is a show of two parts - first, there is the titular journey to a multitude of culturally, politically, technologically unique and diverse nations (more like city-states), which serve as a setup for hypothetical thought experiment showcasing a philosophical dilemma. In essence, they act as parables and you view this via the lens of the second part of the title, Kino, who’s a biased but non-judgemental protagonist with a moral code that allows you to come to your own conclusions about the actions of both parties in any given episode. That’s the core appeal of the show, really: it forces you to interact with the stories it puts forth, leaving you in deep thought about the core moral issues at play in a wide array of contexts. It engages you, yet lets you choose your own way, accepting any answer that you present it as truly yours and thus worthwhile - and that’s honestly a pretty rare thing in media.

On a side note, given the inherent nature of the show, it’s a totally episodic affair, and this new adaptation is trying to appeal to both fans of the old series, by adapting mostly new stories, as well as newcomers to the franchise by readapting the 3 stories that are crucial to understanding Kino’s unique viewpoint. Considering this, I’d highly suggest you check out the 2003 series if you have the time, as while this new show is pretty good, it stands nowhere near the level of the original, in terms of not only the presentation of the material but even the content of the material they have adapted, at least thus far. [AdiMG]

  Girls' Last Tour "Wow, is this like Made in Abyss"? Eh, not really. But the comparison is fair - little kids adventuring into a dangerous and unknown world sounds familiar, right? However, I believe this is where the similarities end, as Girls' Last Tour is much more of a slice of life before anything else. Even though the setting is terrifying (a presumably post-apocalyptic world, with no human civilizations in sight), the focus of the show lies in the interactions between the main duo, Yuuri and Chito, and those tend to be light-hearted with a tendency to the cute and/or funny side. Despite the focus, Girl's Last Tour still approaches subjects common in any post-apocalyptic story, such as the meaning of existence and the value of weapons in comparison to food and other resources. Still, even when dealing with such matters, Girls' Last Tour tends to take a positive view on it, leaving the depressive storytelling for other shows. Rarely do you find a tale that handles themes like these this way, but more importantly you not often find anime that use their setting as well as Girls' Last Tour does, utilizing a rich and detailed worldbuilding to tie in amazingly well with the characters and their way of life, resulting in a beautifully developed canvas for the plot to take place in.

It is, of course, possible that at some point this light-hearted approach to a presumably hostile environment will change, after all a theoretical threat is present and it could cause Yuu and Chii some degree of suffering in their future, frankly though, I doubt we will ever get to such point. You can probably watch this and expect nothing more than smile-inducing moments, beautiful backgrounds and exploration, and the occasional philosophical question.

Overall, Girls' Last Tour has so far introduced us to a mysterious and intriguing world, a couple of main characters with great comedic and dramatic chemistry with each other, and a narrative that might go in several different directions, making the viewer as curious as the girls themselves to what the future holds for them. If you are a fan of unique slice of life shows don’t miss out on this one. Oh, and it has one of the best OP and EDs of the season. [Patureau]

  JUNI TAISEN: ZODIAC WAR There have been some new battle royale anime in recent times, most noteworthy the oh-so-popular Fate series, but here we have another challenger entering the fray with Juni Taisen. The rules of this clash is a simple ”last man standing” deathmatch with all the participants more-or-less content with that. The show managed to make the characters interesting and relatable by delivering backstory for one of them each episode.

The animation and choreography, especially in the fight scenes, are great. For the fans of action series, this show is pretty much a must-watch. And while you can criticize whatever flaws it has, it's indubitably the least bad edgy action show this season has to offer. [MilanY]

GARO -VANISHING LINE-

There are numerous shows centered around a superpowered protagonist fighting monsters. The newest addition of Garo takes this seemingly simple format and turns the action up to 11. While the two previous iterations of Garo occasionally shied away from the exciting fights, Vanishing Line absolutely revels in it. Set in the fictional town of Russel City, the show follows our battle-hungry protagonist as he fights monsters known as Horrors while searching for the truth behind the words “El Dorado”. Are you a fan of incredibly well-animated action fights? Complete balls to the walls action sequences with entertaining characters? A fresh MC who's virile and joyous? Then Garo -Vanishing Line- is definitely the show for you.

  IMPORTANT NOTE: Although Vanishing Line is the third installment of the Garo anime-series, it is not a sequel. All three series are completely standalone, and there is no preference to watch any installment before or after another. Each series also has a dramatically different tone and atmosphere, making it closer to three completely different shows. [Vaxivop]

  Just Because!

Dozens of school slice of life shows come out each year that try to stand out among the others by using all kinds of quirks carrying from revenge plots to age pills, but usually failing to stand out in the most core parts of slice of life. Just Because!, on the other hand manages to shine above most other school slice of life shows we’ve seen this year while staying true to the core fundamentals of the genre: Characters living their ordinary lives. Just Because! manages to have some of the most interesting, entertaining and charming slice of life characters of the year while still keeping everything simple. The show has a very good grasp on the ‘simplicity’ of its setting and manages to use that combined with strong production to make the show feel genuine, human and true to life. The driving force behind the show is the friendships and romances blooming between the cast but the show never overplays them for cheap drama.

  Overall Just Because! is a show worth checking out for any fan of character-driven light slice of life shows with a mild focus on romance. It’s not much more than that, but it’s damn good at what it is.

[DoctorWhoops]

  Recovery of an MMO Junkie

Seemingly just another MMO focused romantic comedy, MMO Junkie is a pleasant surprise of the season, showing charm in many aspects, and providing the viewer with a mostly pleasant experience. The plot follows Moriko Morioka, a 30-year-old woman who willingly quits her job to become a NEET and play computer games all day long. Here we can already see one of MMO Junkie's main appeal, its unusual main character. While the NEET MMO player is a trope overused at this point, a relatively old woman who fits the description is something new, and thankfully it does not fail to deliver an interesting approach to this type of character. Morioka’s funny/sweet’ reactions and thoughts are the main driving force of MMO Junkie, making all the usual MMO tropes a lot more bearable.

But that's not all MMO Junkie has going for it, the romance between Morioka and her in-game guildmate is surprisingly well done by this point. Both characters have been making rational logical decisions (not much Misunderstandings! here) and their relationship has been progressing in a nice, believable pace. Now the show is set to have 10 episodes only, so it is hard to assume such development will maintain such qualities until the end, but it's a possibility.

In the end MMO Junkie is a nice romantic comedy that does not rely on fanservice to get the viewers attention, instead it showcases a (mostly) mature relationship between two adults with constants modern gaming references, like gacha mechanics, and it's certainly worth a try for anyone looking for a decent romantic comedy.

[Patureau]

  BLEND-S

Welcome to the meme town - Blend-S hits off with the inherently most memetic opening of the season, creating fertile ground for dozens of parodies. The anime features a cast of characters working in a maid cafe. Unlike typical "cute girls doing cute things" shows, it's not all cute girls - there's male characters, too, which makes the whole ordeal a bit akin to Working!!. Certainly a positive change in cast dynamics, because it's still a "cute girls doing cute things" at heart, with girls standing firmly in the foreground.

  It's a simple idea, really - in this maid cafe, the girls embody several popular anime archetypes - the tsundere, the imouto, the idol, the sadist, the older sister... thing is, none of the girls are anything like the characters they're supposed to play. Their real personalities are far, far away from the ones they act as - which creates a simple yet effective vibrancy of the cast.

  Watch this if you're looking for the most upbeat comedy of the season.

[lukeatlook]

  A Sister's All You Need

There was a AnimeMaru article once, titled “Eromanga-sensei’s Author No Longer On Speaking Terms With His Sister”, which was a satire on the works of the infamous author of OreImo. This show, in particular, seems to follow the exact same joke - by portraying a character who lives off writing light novels featuring the incest romance taboo - in a cynical manner that Watari’s Oregairu and Gi(a)rlish’s Number would be proud of.

  At this point, it doesn’t even surprise me that the most upvoted reactions of the community are the ridiculously blatant lewd jokes. The irony is not lost on them - we’re just horrible people and this show knows it. The first few minutes are what you'd call a "normie filter", and hopefully you're expected to be on the verge of dropping the show there. Otherwise, I fear for you.

  Watch this if you liked Eromanga-sensei. Watch this if you hated Eromanga-sensei. [lukeatlook]

  INUYASHIKI

The opening 10 minutes or so are some of the most gut-wrenching scenes this season has to offer. I don't think we've seen a protagonist that shat on by life in a good while.

  Inuyashiki is most probably going to be a complete adaptation, which is already great news, of a somewhat popular or at least acclaimed manga. Animated by MAPPA, with OP from MAN WITH A MISSION (this time not as memetic as the legendary Database), this is a solid piece of anime with an odd taste of CGI that you simply need to get used to. [lukeatlook]

  KONOHANA KITAN

Do you like Hanasaku Iroha? Do you wish it had fox girls and yuri vibes? Look no further, Konohana Kitan is the anime for you! The story follows young and adorable Yuzu as she moves into the Konohana Inn and starts working there while interacting with a cast of lovable youkai, ranging from a Kanna-esque little girl to a tsundere-ish black haired beauty, these are all likeable characters, even though they don't have the most original templates, through good comedic timing and decent writing one can grow attached to them rather quickly… and by the way, there is a Saber with fox ears.

  Konohana Kitan is one of the best slice of life series of the season but, despite being the trademark of the genre, comfy relaxing moments isn't all it offers, even though these are abundant, Konohana also brings in some quality tidbits of possible romance between the girls and some genuine heartfelt moments, wrapping all that up with a great atmosphere of Japanese culture, presenting interesting references to religion and customs of old age Japan. Also, did I mention it has a fox-eared Saber? [Patureau]

  URAHARA

Urahara is definitely one of the most controversial shows of the season. Despite the fact that the show sits at a very meager 5.29 on MAL, it is garnering praise and attention in specific circles. With the unconventional (yet gorgeous) style and plenty of quirks and absurdities, the show hasn’t left the best impression on most people because it’s quite difficult to get into. However, I think despite this I think it’s a show that really has to be checked out.

  The visual style is bright, expressive, and beautifully comes together with other elements of the show like characters, setting and narrative to create a very complete picture of how the show and world express themselves, and the more you watch of it the more it builds upon itself. The character interaction is charming and entertaining and also a has a very distinct style to it. The music is one of the better if not one of the best soundtracks of the season and all these parts come together to create something unique and highly engaging if you take the time to get used to it.

  Of course, it might not work for you, but it’s definitely worth the try. If you get into it, it’s an incredibly unique and highly entertaining show to watch. I won’t call it a ‘must watch’, but definitely a ‘must try’. [DoctorWhoops]

  My Girlfriend is a Shobitch

Remember My First Girlfriend is a Gal from the last season? If you take that and dial the lewdness waaayyy down, you get Shobitch. The side characters, although mostly one-dimensional, seem much more mature in regards to how they react to relationships. While the show is still chock full of sex-jokes and one-liners, it forgoes the panty shots (mostly) for a bit more of an innocent atmosphere. This overall results in a much less frustrating watch, at least for me. It feels more like Seitokai Yakuindomo in regards to its humor, as opposed to a raunchy ecchi-comedy. While it’s certainly still a “trashy” show to watch, it’s certainly not awful. not to mention we get to hear the wonderful voice of Aoi Yuuki talk about sex positions.

  If you like slightly more innocent sex humor, give this a shot. If you’re specifically looking for a show full of ecchi tropes, this show might not be for you. It’s certainly a fun show to sit down and watch after a long Wednesday. [Pandavenger]

  Anime-Gataris

Something something Monogatari watch order joke. So far, I haven’t been impressed with Animegataris and I genuinely thought I was going to like it. The character designs are cute and interesting and the surrealness of the talking cat and beret still have me intrigued, but the episodes are a drag to sit through. While many can certainly appreciate and even laugh at some of the references in the show, it feels like it has no soul. The characters we’re supposed to relate and empathize with are just caricatures of each subsect of the anime community and, as a result, all they feel like are characters reading out a script. Credit where it’s due though, some of the references made have been very on point, and the meta-ness of the third episode, where the characters literally talk about the show getting dropped if nothing happens in the third episode only for nothing significant to happen, could potentially pay off if the rest of the show executes on it.

  The first three episodes haven’t left a positive impression, but there’s plenty of screenshot and meme fodder here, and the premise and set-up is still very intriguing. If a (potentially surreal) show about the adventures of joining an Anime Club with a bunch of uber-weebs interests you, give this show a shot. [Pandavenger]

Code: Realize ~Guardian of Rebirth~

Straight women and gay men rejoice! We have another cute boys series besides Free! that isn’t complete garbage! Following a ragtag group of bishonen versions of famous fictional characters such as Arsene Lupin, Frankenstein, and Van Helsing, Code: Realize centers around a girl named Cardia who disintegrates anything she touches. This superpowered gal is taken by our previously mentioned squad in order to keep her away from a dastardly secret organization who plans to use the relic replacing her heart in a terrorist attack.

Overall, the show doesn’t do anything special but is still very enjoyable. An interesting steampunk Victorian London setting, fun characters, and a plot that at the very least makes sure something exciting is happening keep the show afloat. Perfect for casual viewing, but nothing more. [chrispy294]

Love Is Like A Cocktail

There’s not much to say about this. Each week is a 3-minute clip into the life of a complete lightweight whose husband loves to get her drunk (and who can blame him? Drunk anime girls are C U T E!) There’s a short recipe for each cocktail at the end of each episode as well. Watch this if you enjoy drinking cocktails, want a new recipe to impress your weeb friends, like drunk and/or adult anime girls, or just have 3 minutes to kill each week. [Pandavenger]

TWO CAR

From the studio that brought you beloved shows like Tanaka-kun is Always Listless and Kokoro Connect comes their 10th-anniversary celebration show about sidecar racing that no one asked for.

  I have no idea why a studio that usually makes romances and comedies would do a racing show, but I guess they thought it would be a great idea! Somehow, beyond all believable doubt, they managed to suck all the excitement and tension out of racing. Pair that with poor animation, rough art, and annoyingly bad characters, and you have a mess of a show worth no one’s time. Unless you like staring at CGI anime girl butts as they go around a curve? [chrispy294]

Black Clover

Have you ever been watching anime and had the sudden urge to listen to something that’ll make your ears bleed? Well then, Black Clover is perfect for you! With an amateur voice actor, poor direction, and an obnoxious shounen MC cliche, this anime is perfect for all your deafening needs.

Horrible voice for the MC aside, Black Clover otherwise isn’t much more than another mediocre shonen battle anime. If you like Naruto and want a fantasy version that doesn’t even reach the low bar set by the long-running series, then maybe you’ll like Black Clover. For everyone else, the shallow characterization, bland storytelling, and overabundance of poorly-used tropes probably won’t do it for you.

[chrispy294]

King's Game

What do you get when you cross-breed Mirai Nikki, Mayoiga, and Another? Well, I’m not sure what it is but it’s called King's Game and goddamn is it entertaining. Combining the worst elements of all three shows and wrapping it up in a whole lot of awful writing, this show becomes something so hilariously bad that it reaches levels only rivaled by the unintended comedy classic Garzey’s Wing.

  The show follows a class of students being forced into a death game by a weirdly fetishistic almighty being called the ‘king’. The King forces them to do a variety of unusually sexual tasks that vary from licking each other’s feet, to forcing characters to have sex. All these tasks have to be obeyed to avoid a cruel punishment which usually ends up being a violent and bloody death only matched by Another in its ridiculousness. If you think you’ve got the jist of just how silly and ridiculous this show gets, then prepare to have your expectations blown away as every time you think you’ve seen the worst the show can offer it manages to pull a brand new beautiful disaster out of nowhere. If you love a good shitwatch, or want a beautiful example of just how low Anime can get then Ousama Game has got you covered, probably much more than you bargained for. [DoctorWhoops]

  EVIL OR LIVE

A strong contender for the "least watchable", "most edgy", and "unintentionally funny" awards. If you're puzzled by how silly the title sounds, the entire show is exactly like it. Watch only if you want an experience you'll get to share with fewest other people possible. [lukeatlook]

Dies irae

Ever since Saga of Tanya the Evil, the community has had a hankering for some good (but, also not good) evil Nazi anime girls. Dies irae tries to cash in on that demand, but with an emphasis on “tries.” The prologue episode was confusing and impossible to follow and, while the following episodes were better, it wasn’t significant enough to convince me to continue watching.

  The show itself is a mess, and while I am assured by the visual novel readers that it will get better (and in their defense it does appear to be very critically acclaimed), I think I can see myself more likely to sit down and play the VN rather than continue watching the show. I’m 100% sure clicking through the VN would be infinitely less boring than sitting through the anime. The music is pretty epic and that’s about it. If you like the character designs or the premise of the show, I would say that you should keep watching in case it does get better. It’s certainly not anything I would recommend anyone pick up, although I think I might check out the free common route on Steam. [Pandavenger]

Welcome to the Ballroom

Adapted from a critically-acclaimed and successful manga, Welcome to the Ballroom comes in as easily one of the best and highly-anticipated shows of the season.

  The focus of the story lies in our young protagonist who only just finds out about the wonderful world of dancing and gets dragged into a dancing school. The show explores themes of rivalry, competition, and talent like you’d expect from sports anime with finesse and great writing, but on top of that manages to be an incredible story of overcoming anxiety, finding your passion, and opening up which is told through the awkward but dedicated main character. On top of that, the show has lots of fun characters like the many rivals and some of the dance partners Tatara meets in his career from zero to hero.

  Don’t be scared off by the fact that this is about dancing, because Welcome to the Ballroom is one of the most well-written and highly enjoyable shows of the season that shouldn’t be missed out on. [DoctorWhoops]

  MAGICAL CIRCLE GURU-GURU

Hailed by plenty of avid anime fans as the "hidden gem of the season" this renewed adaptation of an old '90s manga holds up as one of the more interesting watches this far down the list.

The show tells the story of a young and incredibly smug hero and his adorably bubbly magician travel companion, who set off to defeat the demon-kin in a quirky RPG style comedy story. And with RPG style I mean that quite literally, with 8bit text boxes showing up on screen and the show often resorting to classic elements and tropes. The show is filled with a silly but incredibly fun style of comedy that makes it a great watch. The old style is there, but it holds up, and the show’s humor doesn’t feel outdated. If an old-school JRPG comedy with a totally unique style sounds like your thing, you can’t miss out on this. [DoctorWhoops]

Altair: A Record of Battles

Turns out that when you write a Middle East historical drama from the Far East perspective, there's more than enough interesting cultural groups in what's modern Turkey alone and the European perspective goes out of the window.

  That means there's no DEUS VULT memes, but it's alright as a political drama. Nothing to write home about, but if you're a fan of the genre, go ahead and give it a try. [lukeatlook]

Food Wars! Third Plate

Boobs! Foodgasms! Hype! Asses! Epic Soundtrack! More Boobs!

  Yeah, you know the drill and, if you don't, do yourself a favor and go back and watch the first seasons. Just don't be too sad when the animation quality drops for this season, because it does. But hey, maybe it will improve again later on. [Patureau]

March comes in like a lion

This show can’t save anime, anime can only… wait shit, wrong Shaft show. In the newest installment of Homura-chan did nothing wrong… wait fuck, that’s not right either. Which one is this again? Oh yeah, more shogi with plenty of Shinboisms! So 3-gatsu no Lion is back and, of course, it’s as beautifully powerful as ever. Directly continuing from the ending of season 1 this season approaches one of the most highly anticipated arcs of the manga. Anyone who liked season 1 cannot miss out on possibly the best sequel of the year. [chrispy294 & DoctorWhoops]

Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond

When Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond was announced, a lot of fans were understandably worried that it wouldn’t live up to the previous season, given the director change. Luckily, there was no need to worry. The second season of BBB is as strong as ever, this time seemingly focusing more on the rest of the cast instead of the first season's heavy focus on Leonard, Black, and White (the latter two being anime original). All its charms, all its wacky nonsense, and all its over the top action is retained and if you liked the first season, then you will definitely not be disappointed in Beyond. [Vaxivop]

  Osomatsu-san

Probably the least noob-friendly show of this season, wildly popular in Japan - a successful remake of a cult classic cartoon. If you "get" the Japanese humor, this might be the pinnacle of it. [lukeatlook]

Himouto! Umaru-chan R

Surprisingly enough, a genuine improvement upon the first season. R changed focus from Umaru being a spoiled little ball of hate to her learning to be a normal human being and having fun with her friends. It’s still not great, but it’s much less annoying.

[lukeatlook]

Yuki Yuna is a Hero

Last but not least, the second season to what I like to call the milestone of post-Madoka magical girl anime. Watch the first season to understand why. It's got the punching kickass action from Symphogear, the melancholic mood of Madoka (just with acid trip dimensions being colorful instead of creepy) and the upbeat joy of cute girls doing cute things slice of life - all in a mix that acknowledges its predecessors and plays with the audience's expectations for the story.

  The second season is... weird. Half is a prequel, based on a light novel that was published alongside the first season, and it was already released in a movie version. Second half, however, is a sequel, with no source material to speak of, so let's just say the fans are pretty fired up for that one.

  In Japan it sold pretty well (we're talking top 2 of the season), hence the continued development of this multi-media franchise. The confusing release made it look pretty niche and forgotten in the West, but it's certainly a show with a dedicated fanbase. Taking just the production values at face value, it's got the character designer of Sword Art Online, the composers of NieR:Automata, and... well, the scriptwriter is the mangaka of Akame ga Kill, but hey, it's all renowned titles.

  Give it a shot. Everything's gonna be daijoubu.

[lukeatlook]

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com