#their entire dynamic is peak comedy to me

[team-avia]

Just wondering how Mia feels about Miranda? I mean, Mia suggested killing Miranda in her route and she seemed to contemplate about the whole idea before deciding against it for whatever reasons 😭😭

Mia HATES Miranda, the only reason she sticks around is for you. She's more or less joking about killing Miranda during her route and doesn't actually expect MC to agree to it (if they agreed...well...) and knows full well she'd probably fail. To my silly little brain, they eventually do become somewhat friends where Mia will push her buttons, and Miranda will try to kill her all in good fun* *(read: they agree not to upset MC so they "play nice").

Cinder

[yamujiburo]

POKEMON SERIES RANKED (IMO)

I get this question a lot and haven't made an updated list with Journeys

Original Series (S1-S5)

Sun & Moon (S20-S22)

Chronicles (S0)

Diamond and Pearl (S10-S13)

Advanced (S6-S9)

Journeys (S23-S25)

Black & White (S14-S16)

XY (S17-S19)

Original Series (S1-S5)

OS had that first season charm. Very unpolished, still finding its footing but super enjoyable for those reasons

Probably the strongest series comedy-wise

That GORGEOUS 90s anime style

Main character dynamics were REALLY strong

Ash's personality felt much more like a shitty little 10 year old which was entertaining

Dub writing was also the best hands down

Sun & Moon (S20-S22)

Honestly tied for first with OS for me

REALLY fun ensemble cast! They do a fantastic job giving each character enough time for you to get to know and care about

Excellent modern anime style that perfectly fit the vibe of the season and allowed for some of the best character animation of the show's run

Finally figured out how to write Ash like a 10 year old again (but in a kind/sweet 10 year old way as opposed to OS)

Very different from previous series in terms of the formula they'd follow. Doing a school series instead of another "8 badges to championship" plot felt new and fresh!

This series genuinely made me cry the most (MEMORIES IN THE MIST!!!!! LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING ME)

Chronicles (S0)

Fun concept! It was really nice to see more of the side characters without Ash there. We get to see more of Misty, Tracey, Daisy, Brock, Ritchie, Oak, Delia, Butch, Cassidy, Jessie, James and Meowth!

Stylistically really nice. Just solid drawings all around and it retained the 90s anime style in digital form more successfully than other digitally done series imo

BUTCH AND CASSIDY!!! Team Rocket centric episodes!!! Training Daze!!!!!!!

Idk how possible it would have been (seems like a TON of work) but it made me want one of these in between each season, where we'd follow the characters that Ash had just said goodbye to for the next region.

Diamond and Pearl (S10-S13)

Series I grew up with! Honestly I was kinda a hater as a kid but having watched it back, I love the series

Love that Ash and Dawn were bros. They had a really fun dynamic.

Debatably peak Team Rocket. They had some of the best Team Rocket centric episodes this series.

Contests were really fun and a bit more figured out compared to the Advanced series

Fun, memorable rivals for Ash (Paul and Barry) as well as Dawn (Zoey, Kenny and Jessilina sometimes)

This is unfortunately where I stopped caring about Ash as much. He feels kinda watered down for the next couple series.

Advanced (S6-S9)

Pretty tied up with DP for me

Really fun series! Still had some of that early Pokémon charm

I appreciated that they put Ash in more of a mentor role for May (but he still had a lot to learn himself).

Ash and May constantly butting heads was really fun

May was a very compelling character to me, being very clumsy, kinda lazy, directionless, not really into Pokémon, etc. But then over time, she comes around and finds something she's interested in!

Journeys (S23-S25)

I love the episodic take as well as the way they let the characters jump around from region to region at random

Goh was a GREAT travel companion to Ash. They contrast each other nicely, have moments where they get on each others' nerves but still get along and have a mutual admiration for one another.

It was fun that they made Goh's thing catching every Pokémon (the motto of the entire series) so they could focus on Ash just training and prepping for Worlds.

Amaaaazing style. Took the great parts of classic Pokémon, roundness of SM and blended em together for a really fun look.

Black & White (S14-S16)

I don't think it's that controversial to have BW this low haha

I did enjoy Iris and Cilan but it felt like the writers didn't reaaally know what to do with them? Also this was their first time in a while not having Brock and it shows. I feel like Brock was successful because he was grounded and lower energy compared to the rest of the kids. Having 3 pretty eccentric characters is kind of a lot. No hate to the characters in the slightest, there was just not as much balance.

I think maybe they leaned on Cilan and Iris for more comedic relief because they killed the comedic relief that was Team Rocket this series. I appreciate them trying something new with Jessie, James and Meowth but I don't think it worked very well lol

XY (S17-S19)

I've ranted about this series a lot LOL. I get the appeal of it, but it just wasn't for me. I felt like it was the weakest comedy-wise and took itself a bit too seriously for my taste

My main gripe is that Serena, Clemont and Bonnie all like,,, worship Ash. By doing so, Ash begins to feel like a side character because we're constantly looking at Ash through their eyes. There's so little conflict within the group so their dynamics feel really flat. I think this dynamic could have worked if they leaned waaay more into Ash being a mentor and maybe feeling the pressure of having to be a role model for the people around him.

Team Rocket very much feels like an afterthought in this series. They did in Journeys as well, but at least in Journeys they were doing something silly and also had a handful of episodes dedicated to em.

Outside of that, the episodes weren't super memorable for me

I think it's just frustrating because there was sooooo much potential character-wise

[alexxncl]

‼️NIGHTBRINGER LESSON 39 SPOILERS‼️

masterlist | all lessons | season 2 | lesson 38 | lesson 40

this was hilarious until i remember that satan is indeed the avatar of wrath and has destroyed the house of lamentations more tines than i can count on both hands. then it got slightly less hilarious, but it's still hilarious

ik we all joke about lucifer being satan's dad bc he technically is but this is PEAK father-son behavior 😭 satan throwing a temper tantrum, no pun intended, over not being able to adopt a cat is one of the funniest things ever actually

y'all know i love me some angst but dear GOD am i happy that we're getting something lighthearted after the emotional rollercoaster that was lesson 38

also we got our room back hehe 🫶🏽

aaaaand now they back to brothers

"nuh uh" "uh huh" DAMN just let him have the cat 😭

shithead lucifer my beloved 🫶🏽 and it's even more heartwarming bc we can see how much he's relaxed and recovered from the incident in cocytus. him smiling and laughing and joking with his brothers freely after the fear of losing them has finally been dissipated has to be a weight off of his shoulders, and a weight off of his brothers' shoulders, too. he's probably been less of himself since the fall, and this is probably more reminiscent of the lucifer from back in the celestial realm

i hc that mammon's familiars/crows just roam around the house freely, so this is even more frustrating for satan bc he's like "well if mammon can have pets, why can't i?"

oh baby :(((

just when i thought we'd gotten away from the angst, i was reminded that we are (i am) indeed on lesson 39 outta 40...ykw at least i was happy for a little bit

10/10 storytelling and writing. i love it when siblings ACTUALLY act like siblings, bc some media doesn't do sibling dynamics justice

granted, solomon isnt their sibling, but lucifer said it once AND doubled down bc he saw that it pissed satan off the first time. the older sibling in me smiled

ik i've said this before but...

lucifer says he hates when his brothers pester him like they don't get it from him 😭 oh no, if it isn't the consequences of your own actions!

now i feel like mammon might be onto something...what if he actually is stronger than lotan? but he doesn't want things to go past empty, playful threats bc hurting lotan would devastate levi, and he adores his little brother too much to do anything that irresponsible. more on this here

the brothers ever 🫶🏽 petty sibling dynamics always get me

satan reusing asmo's phrase after lucifer and solomon used it against him is peak comedy

ADHD TWINS

i can't do long, complicated shit for the life of me without getting sidetracked or overwhelmed

...unless it's these long ass posts

but that's different...kind of

so THAT'S why he was giggling and kicking his feet the whole time?? "hehehe" my ass you sly bitch

also, you can see the amount of pride lucifer feels towards satan just by the way he's acting throughout this entire lesson. he also knew wholeheartedly that satan would, one way or another, find a way to summon the white dragon. he egged satan on and teased him on purpose, which probably made his powers stronger. but i feel like the teasing also was a mask for encouragement

it was obviously still teasing at the heart, but there was a little more to it that reflected how proud lucifer is of his baby brother for coming into his own

also satan initiating the family picture at the end ??? I SOBBED

the lucifer from our timeline would NEVER allow a pet into the house. but the lucifer from our timeline also didn't get to heal the way this lucifer did, so now i'm kinda sad just thinking about that

maybe he thinks having a pet would mean that they're permanently staying in one place? and he still doesn't feel secure enough in his place in the devildom even after all the time he's spent there, even after making a home and a name for himself and his brothers. maybe he considered letting satan get a pet once mc came into the picture, and still toys with the idea, but keeps deciding against it for some internal reason that he won't address

MY WIFE MY BELOVED THE LOVE OF MY LIFE IS BACK

they really do invite any and everyone into the family. i love them so much it makes me insane

completely unrelated but i never realized that the kiss sounds are different for each brother ??? is thus just a nightbringer thing or am i just too far removed from the og game

[tater-tot-jr]

Honkai: Star Rail fans, I’m here to yap. Major spoilers for 2.4.

So, I’m the certified number 1 space china hater. I hate that place, I don’t trust it, I didn’t like its first story arc that much. But holy shit that ruled. That was awesome. It’s obviously impossible to follow up Penacony and outdo it, and you can certainly nitpick some faults, but the war dance arc thus far was super enjoyable to play.

Let’s start with the fucking Yanqing character development holy shit?? Seeing the ways he matured and humbled himself was super fucking cool, and his dynamic with Yunli was peak comedy. His monologue about why he wields a sword was completely awesome, very well done by the VA. Hoyo making sure to let us know that both him and Yunli are literal child soldiers and we should be concerned about that was based. The conflict between him and Yunli was actually presented really well. (I haven’t done the new march event yet so maybe I’ll come back and edit this if I remember) The didn’t really push someone as correct or incorrect, they just showed us the situation and let us form opinions. Yanqing getting some character development was awesome and I love that for him.

The plot? It still had some of that trademark complexity but it was much easier to follow this time around. It felt like events naturally lead to one another and the characters reacted as they actually would instead of just reacting as necessary to move the plot. It gives you a shocking amount of player agency to succeed or fail and I really enjoyed the stakes that came with that. I’m liking how dark some of it is, it’s not crazy but there are certainly some moments.

I love all the new characters, they’ve all managed to endear themselves to me very quickly. Even the characters I was meh on like Jiaoqiu and Lingsha managed to worm their way into my heart a little. Feixiao is a total badass and Moze really interests me. Yunli was really funny and I enjoyed her shenanigans. As much as some of the mechanics and designs of these new characters disappointed me I still found them compelling in the narrative.

And the fucking angst? Hello?? It was peak.

This might be a hot take but I think the shackling prison is my new favorite singular section of the game. I love Dan Heng, I find his lore and personality fascinating and was dying to see some more of it. His VA did a great job this entire patch, Dan Heng is very stoic so it was impressive how his VA managed to portray the general unease he felt being back in the Luofu. He was just normal enough to not have anyone make a big deal out of it but you could tell that something was just under the surface. Then you get to the shackling prison and it just… man. You get to the door and you hear his voice just break. For someone so stoic you hear him overwhelmed with emotions, and it’s so juicy. Wonderful way to set the tone, Hoyo. Then you get inside and wow it’s evil looking in there. The other chance you get to chat with Danny boy before shit hits the fan is just as good. They decided to give me personally a treat with his lines like, and I’m paraphrasing here, “it’s just as cold as I remembered.” And telling the trailblazer they “shouldn’t have to see this place.” Hoyo chose violence with that shit. Also, Fox Boy™️ literally got held hostage and (kinda) enslaved. Incredible.

The pacing of that section was awesome. Seeing Xueyi get destroyed and then rushing down with Hanya was a simple trick but goddamnit it worked. The way it managed to portray that rushed and dangerous feeling without going overboard on the monsters around you was impressive. It was so much fun to watch the mystery come together in a way that felt like both a climax and a cliffhanger somehow. The cinematic stuff was so well done, it was all so pretty. There were plenty of POV swaps but they felt natural and necessary to the plot. I was unenthusiastic about going back to space china but goddamnit Hoyo has done it again. Fuck.

It was just a really fun patch, 2.5 feels so far away…. :(

[botlabyrinth]

OKAY PERCY JACKSON EPISODE 6 THOUGHTS (long post)

i was definitely a bit weary of the big changes: the fact that the summer solstice deadline passed and that percy gets 4 pearls. but after thinking about it for a while i think im actually okay with it!! first of all, its making the show interesting for book readers bc they caught me off guard and now we don’t 100% know how it’s going to play out lol

but also, i like that the deadline passing raises the stakes a bit more. the fact that percy still wants to go get the bolt from the underworld, just shows how committed he’s become to the actual goal of the quest and starting to embrace his demigod side. and it’s going to make his trip to olympus at the end so much riskier & dangerous considering a whole war is literally about to start. so im okay with this

and then the 4 pearls: i still don’t think they’re going to be able to take sally with them out of the underworld. something is definitely going to happen to 1 of the pearls, it’s going to get lost in the chaos of them making it to hades’ palace or SOMETHING because a big part of the prophecy is “fail to save what matters most in the end”. they have to leave sally behind and i think it’s going to be so much more heartbreaking that percy HAD 4 pearls and HAD the chance to save his mom but they lost 1 along the way so then they’ll have to make the tough decision and TRULY fail to save what matters most… bc in the book it’s not even really an option since he only gets 3 pearls

obviously i could be wrong about that lol but i don’t think there’s any way they don’t leave sally behind because she’s not there on the beach when they’re about to fight ares, which is where they are directly after the underworld (unless they’ve switched the order around but idk how that would work)

other than that I LOVED EVERYTHING with the trio, the bestieism continues and i love it. you can really see the shift in percy and annabeth’s dynamic after the last episode it’s so cute. the little grover and percy moments were so sweet too, their convos felt RIGHT out of the books to me. also MORE SEAWEED BRAIN AND WISE GIRL!!!

LOVE the dream sequence bc it felt so book accurate, we do get a lot of percy witnessing other people’s convos through his dreams and this is the first time we’ve seen it in the show, it was great

luke immediately jumping at the chance to blame clarisse for stealing the bolt in the iris message lol im laughing

more luke/annabeth sibling set up AND hermes and may and luke backstory set up??? i was NOT expecting that so early on but im deeply obsessed

the whole hermes situation was also great… i can’t believe it but i liked LMM’s performance?? i think he sold it really well. again im so excited to be getting these convos about hermes and luke so early on because it is such a key part to the end of the series.

the conversation with percy and the nereid and the way percy reacts to thinking the quest failed??? the way he refuses to give up?? the nereid saying they all see so much of poseidon in him??? i’m unwell

crying at annabeth pick pocketing hermes, the literal god of thieves, that’s my girl fr

the entire cab driving sequence was just so funny. peak comedy, and brought some lightheartedness to the episode that i think was very needed. the new yorker in percy really came out in that scene lmao

there was just SO MANY hilarious moments of dialogue and jokes between the trio i feel like this episode captured the essence of their dynamic from the books so well

overall LOVED it, wish it was longer, and i’m curious to see how they finish it off in the next 2 episodes. i’m trying my best to hold back the criticism for any changes until we’ve seen the whole season, because i think most complaints people have from this ep will probably just be fixed or addressed in the next 2 lol

[spikedru]

you reblogged this three days ago but im catching up on your blog like the news so hi. hello. top 5 spike btvs moments and top 5 drusilla btvs moments

hello !!

drusilla

torturing angel in whats my line. queen. excellent little insight on their dynamic and insight on how dru operates in relation to her humanity. also the way she says "say uncle :) oh thats right, you killed my uncle :)" is very cute

in crush when harmony is yelling at her how she "broke my booboo's heart" and dru just looks over at spike and mouths at him "booboo? :)" and spike looks like he wants to crawl in a hole and die. it makes me laugh so hard everytime i think about it

happy birthday buffy :) shes said its girls night and im gonna psychically connect our dreamspace. ill also kill angel for you :)

i havent seen ats in *checks watch* i dont know. but spiritually i have to include the darla dru confrontation where darla demands why dru killed and turned her and she just sadly says "i did it for you. it was what you wanted." :(

the little look on her face when she first sees spike and decided shes gonna turn him shes like. oh. :) a kindred spirit :) time to go kill him

spike

the entire monologue he has at willow in lovers walk where hes just like IM SO SAD. IM SO SAD AND ALONE :( IM THE SADDEST GIRL IN THE WHOLE WORLD AND NO ONE CARES. peak comedy

the part in gone where hes just sitting on his ass watching tv in the most slutty way possible for really no reason

proclaiming his love in his wet dream and freaking out so bad he immediately wakes up before the dream even gets that wet and is like ohhh shit oh fuck oh fuck

having a girls night with dawn where they just break into the magic box and steal shit and he tries to lift the troll hammer and fails

catching a sword with his bare fucking hands

[callmearcturus]

Okay here are the Mission Impossible grades now that I've seen them all

Mission Impossible 1: A-Tier

STILL LODGED IN MY FUCKING BRAIN. I did not go into this one expecting it to be that good. I only shouted at DePalma once I think and mostly I was staring in fascinated horror at the sexually-charged manipulative thriller unfolding. I am obsessed with the dynamic between Ethan, Phelps, and Claire, there is some SHIT going on there, the queer reading of this movie is off the charts. Would rewatch any day.

Mission Impossible 2 Silent Movie Recut: C-Tier

This is a bad fucking movie but Punct and I were screaming for 90% of the film, it was so fucking fun and stupid. Granted, I don't think we would have survived if we weren't watching the recut, BUT nothing will ever be funnier than Ethan doing a backflip and then mid-air changing to a down-kick. I was so shocked at the AUDACITY and the STUPIDITY I immediately rewound the scene to watch it again. Amazing. Totally batshit. Ethan why are you kicking everything you are a punchman.

Mission Impossible 3: Trash Tier

This movie was a nightmare. I feel actively bad for Cruise and Monaghan bringing their A game to a shit-tier script. This movie has MULTIPLE PROBLEMS. There were multiple sequences that were so poorly shot that I couldn't follow what the fuck was happening. The constant unnecessary cuts and the rapid tempo gave me a headache. JJA is incapable of letting a shot breathe at all, like if he doesn't cut every three to five seconds his head will explode. Also this script was ATROCIOUS. Fucking WHAT. There is no introducton to the team, making them feel completely tertiary. That line about sleeping with your sister catapulted me out of the movie like an ejection from a jet plane. The entire anti-god speech was peak 'take the keyboard away from JJA.' And WHAT was with the random bondage mask scene??? Was JJA like "sorry i have no idea how to keep the plot moving unless Ethan literally can't speak in this scene so here's the IMF-issued Unsexy Bondage Mask."

Also this Jack Bauerification of Ethan Hunt pisses me off. Ethan Hunt should not use assault rifles, that's not who he is, JJA meet me in the pit.

Ghost Protocol: A-Tier

Stupid and delightful and finally some good fucking food. The first of the McQuarrie Trilogy. After enduring MI3 I want to kiss McQuarrie on the fucking mouth for writing this. You actually get to know the team! There is time spent establishing each of their dynamics with Ethan! Finally Ethan is doing sneaky shit instead of just shooty shit! The Burj! The comedy! This is a 2 hour episode of Leverage and I fucking love it. Thank you, zero notes.

Rogue Nation: S-Tier

Oh babygirl here we fucking go. Not only McQuarrie on script (with help from good writers) but he's in the director chair, welcome to the party, hardy. I L O V E this movie. It has supplanted GP as my comfort watch of the series. Ilsa Faust is an excellent addition to the team with a lot of edge to her and the way she drives the plot thrills me chills me and fulfills me. And while she's kind of the love interest that is not even remotely the plot of the story, the story is crunchy with Solomon Lane serving such fuckin good vibes. He has actual motivation beyond "hello i am the baddie" he has thoughts and motivations and he also is STAGGERINGLY PETTY. Also I cannot tell what's my favorite bit of this one, the part where Ethan is fucking OUT OF IT after he gets resuscitated or when Ethan goes off the deep end.

This movie really said "Benji Dunn is 90% of Ethan's impulse control" and it was RIGHT! Thank you McQuarrie, I love you.

Fallout: S-Tier

I'm fucking unhinged about this movie. The batshit motorcycle chase in Paris, the HALO jump, the helicopter hijacking. Ethan's continued moral decay as his ethical compass begins to realign, and the way it fucks him over. Solomon fucking Lane back to haunt the shit out of everyone. That FUCKING bathroom brawl jesus fuck. Everyone is on their goddamn A game, they are giving everything. Watching the final act is like a prolonged heart attack. Also the cinematography and lighting is jawdroppingly gorgeous. Also Julia is AMAZING. HER SCENE WITH LUTHER MAKES ME EMOTIONAL.

Not only do I have no notes, I want McQuarrie to give me notes. Goddamn. Ethan Hunt is babygirl and his tired eyes give me feelings.

There it is, my lukewarm takes.

[ppeonppeonhan]

BL Shows - Currently Watching (May 2023)

> TUESDAY

Step by Step (up to ep. 5/12) -Thai workplace enemies to lovers romantic dramedy: Love Pat (employee). Tolerating Jeng (boss). Pat's friends -- his female mentor that everyone thought he was dating; his gorgeous female bff Ae; and his new gay work friend Chot -- are really carrying this series, because Jeng is acting like he just woke up on this planet and has yet to master human emotion. I NEED the reason he disappeared and returned to work be goodt! Otherwise, the mystery is for nothing. Comparatively, I could care less about Pat's ex Put, and wish they chose someone less...nerdy. There is nothing intimidating about him -- not with the zaddy energy Jeng is promising us/Pat. Jaab (above) is my other favorite character. Not because of his crush on someone who is unavailable, but because he's adorable and reminds me of Vegas from KinnPorsche. 🤷🏾‍♀️

> WEDNESDAY

Past-senger (up to ep. 9/12) - Thai time travel enemies to lovers classmates romantic dramedy: I'm going to wait to binge the rest of this cause the current memory loss obstacle is definitely going to annoy me. In general, I'm enjoying Cooper's character, Kiao, more than his character in My Engineer. He has good chemistry with Bamee, but I don't understand how this ends. Even if Kiao returns to his timeline, grows older, and reunites with Bamee in his timeline, we'll have to pretend a 20yr age difference doesn't matter. But I also wonder if this is really just a journey for Kiao to realize he's bi and in love with Bamee's dad, which if they get together, would mean Bamee and his annoying little brother Mudaeng aren't born...what are we doing? 🙃

Happy Merry Ending (up to ep. 6/8) - South Korean one-sided workplace romantic drama: Jae is very cute, and the way he takes care of Seung is admirable. Wearing sunglasses while they performed in solidarity was peak adorrrrable. Also love that they have unique jobs: wedding performers. I hope his former kpop trainer who CLEARLY uses his job to groom young, impressionable queer men -- that guy: I hope he gets hit by a bus. In general, I find this drama lacking in romantic substance. Not because there aren't a lot of romantic scenes but because the focus is on Seung's trauma and recovery, and not a mutual interest in each other.

> THURSDAY

Love Mate (up to ep. 5/8) - South Korean one-sided workplace romantic comedy: Ha Ram is cute AF. That does not condone his stalking or scheming, but it does make it hard to feel bad for Lee Jun, who is a salty bitch who takes out his frustrations on complete strangers who've done nothing to deserve it. I get that he's recovering from heartbreak and he has every right to protect his heart, but he needs to be a little less...callous about it. I'm not even talking about Ha Ram. That first dude he went on a date with got curved so hard for no reason. Anyway, he gave in a lot quicker than I thought he would, so I wonder what their obstacle will be. Ex returns? Miscommunication? Plot twist -- it was all an experiment to prove a point? 🤔

> FRIDAY

A Boss and a Babe (up to ep. 11/12) - Thai one-sided workplace romantic dramedy: I expected this was going to be as stupid as Cher is 🙄 the entire way through. Did not, however, expect there to be a clinical depression or child abuse storyline. Still recovering from that emotional whiplash. But I do enjoy Cher's dynamic with Gun, even though it's a very inappropriate boss and intern relationship. I wish they would've leaned into the goofy chaotic romance genre more instead of trying to get deep, but I'm going to need Gun and Drake's character, Time, to reconcile before this ends. Always love seeing him and Mike in everything. And Fluke and his character's bf are new favorites. It's a really solid supporting cast, all in all.

[lottieurl]

deep meaningful analysis of that entire interaction AND dynamic aside. it is peak comedy to me that jackie goes. you're the best FRIEND. BUDDY. PAL. ive ever had. and shauna goes. FUCK you jackie. oh well. jeff probably still smells of your perfume

[asherlockstudy]

sorry for the long ask coming up!

disclaimer i'm fairly new to rhett & link/GMM + adjacent and i definitely haven't caught up on all the past GMMs or everything else they've done, but i've noticed a lot of things about randl so...

i wanted to bring up link's weird contradictory mentions of his sexuality, honestly. i remember seeing the video where they talk about gay dating apps and link refuses to call himself a straight man ("as a... as me in this world") + the ear biscuits where they talk about how they've gotten more comfortable acting gay "for comedy" + link talking about not caring about labels BUT then i feel like link puts a weird emphasis on being straight and monogamous in some videos too. what i wanna know is if there is at least a vague timeline here you can put these attitudes on because i get the impression he goes back and forth but idk if he's holding these attitudes concurrently or if there's a pattern, maybe? again, i'm a relatively new fan so i feel like it's because i haven't really experienced the timeline of all this myself.

Hello, welcome to the fandom! Sorry for the late reply, I am sort of having very low energy these days.

What I have concluded is that they do back and forths all the time. Sometimes I get the impression they give out mixed signals on purpose but I cannot fully rationalise it.

I have a timeline but it is about my general observation of their interactions and behaviours, through which conclusions about Link’s exploration of sexuality topics could be drawn.

When they started back in 2012, Link was way more reserved. True, he has always been silly and doing impulsive things, but he made sure to not say inappropriate stuff. At the time, GMM was also resolutely a family friendly show. Things such as mentioning sexuality and labels were entirely out of the question. Link had impulsive moments of getting touchy, sensitive or saying something compromising about how intimate (not sexually but more than your guy friend typical) they get in private but those were quickly blocked by a very uptight Rhett.

Around 2014-15, there is a shift in the way they interact with each other. They are more cutesy, more flustered, make more heart eyes. Rhett has loosened up compared to the previous years, enough that he sometimes makes inappropriate jokes, such that Link often has to cut him off or control him.

2016, Link changes haircut. Rhett loosens up even more. 2016-2017, Rhett at times seems uncontainable. Link is more assured in himself, his silliness and his openness but nothing extremely different.

2018-2019, ups and downs in their dynamics but Link goes ballistic. He starts being way more daring in the way he talks and acts, at times bewildering even us. Rhett fluctuates between being flustered all the time or shutting down. At times Link becomes too obvious in his actions. He starts dressing differently, his posture changes a little, he starts provoking Rhett consciously. Other times he seems to be in a low, pensive mood. There are still no talks on sexuality except in a humorous context in LTAT.

2020, spiritual deconstruction (Link’s is brave and heavily insinuating stuff) + creative house. Then COVID quarantine stops them in their tracks. According to what they said, they both were genuinely very cautious during the peak of the pandemic and stayed at home without meeting for quite some time. Link seemed to become more reserved at the time, somewhat going back to his previous self, he is pensive, melancholic and too concerned with Christy’s health problems to bother much with not seeing Rhett enough. On the contrary, Rhett climbs the walls in his house. He becomes uncharacteristically needy and open.

2021-2022, Mythical becomes more verbal and open about its support to LGBT people and Rhett and Link follow along. However, after the pandemic Link has not reached his 2018-2019 levels of boldness. Rhett is a hard mix to define, he is mostly contained and more reserved than the previous years but he has his outbursts too. GME helps Link let loose whereas it takes years off from Rhett’s life. In every Sextember that follows they describe their very straight sexual lives. From the second half of 2022, Link starts to make vague implications.

2023, Link starts the year with big statements such as that he is now living his best life. He starts talking a lot about the exploration of oneself and identity and is more clear in his conversations regarding labels and sexuality. Rhett is not having a good time, he becomes more closed off and appears frequently to be anxious or irritated, which he also addresses in some podcasts. Link’s outbursts sometimes involve provoking Rhett, but unlike in 2018-2019, they now mostly involve speaking more openly about himself. While this is an ongoing situation there are frequent breaks of stated straightness in between. Especially after the summer Link’s intentions have become a rollercoaster, with constant risks and immediate overcorrection. Their scripted videos are steadily bolder than they are.

That’s my recollection, there may be some inaccuracies regarding the precise years mentioned but I think it is mostly correct. Link’s attempts to open up about himself and his journey of exploration is a fairly new situation. The official start is his spiritual deconstruction but it did not become a regular effort on his part before 2022.

[songofsunset]

Please continue updating as you go through One Piece. I'm a fan of it and I absolutely need to hear more of your takes throughout the series.

Hello!!! tumblr didn't show me this ask until now, but it is always nice to hear that I'm not being super obnoxious when yelling about stuff! I have just finished episode 29 aka the Baratie and Don Krieg and here are my thoughts so far (aka justice for Usopp and also more thoughts after that hahaha)

-Usopp was done SLIGHTLY dirty in the live action lmao- the romance was great and it was all a wonderful bit of the show but like, anime Usopp??? he is a strategic thinker (he made a fake army in the bushes to scare away pirates! he prepped the choke point with traps!) and a good leader (he is so good with the kids!!) and is an excellent shot (he gets to use his weapon in a lot more ways and places in the anime!!!) and he KNOWS he is telling lies and exaggerations and he is doing it on purpose, because it's fun and it makes life interesting, and also because THATS JUST GOOD DAMN CHILDCARE LOOK AT THIS MAN GO!!!!

and he KNOWS he's a bit of a coward, which is why his goal is specifically to become BRAVE, and he is PROUD of his pirate dad, instead of like, kind of sad and jealous, and when he goes out to sea he is following in his dad's footsteps on purpose because he respects and looks up to that man (ALSO the fact that Yasopp wouldn't shut up about his son to the extent that anime Luffy recognized him on SIGHT with zero other context??? that helps!!! that makes things slightly better!!!! Like he's a shit dad still but lmao)(side note: I carried around pictures of my nieces and nephews and would regularly accost people with them for most of middle and high school lmao, same hat Yasopp, same hat)

And he is ready to do anything to defend his village even if he IS scared, and he just wants them to be safe so he let's them believe he'd been lying about the pirates this time as well instead of trying to grandstand and get credit for defending them, and they like him and miss him when he isn't there and he's a PART OF THE COMMUNITY (childcare!!!! entertainment!!! a public service!!!!!)

and he decides all on his own to set out on a journey, and the fact that he goes with Luffy is just because they are friends and they want him there, not because he isn't taking his own agency to change his own fate and become who he wants to be!!!!!!!!!!!

In conclusion I liked LA Usopp well enough, but anime Usopp is one of my FAVORITES!!!!! My hope is that they were just setting up a relevant arc for him, and I do believe they could pull it off hahaha additionally:

-yeah, the very first thing Nami did when she met Luffy was feed him, she was never gonna get rid of him LMAO

-the Sanji and Luffy dynamic is SO different in the anime and the show, and I love what they did with Sanji in the show (in contrast to Usopp the WHOLE BARATIE got SUCH A DAMN GLOW UP oh my god, the actor is charming as hell, and they nailed Zeff, and damn the set is so cool) but also the slow dawning change on Sanji's face from 'who the hell is this weird chore boy kid' to 'i respect him' to 'im gonna go be part of his crew and also I would die for him' is fucking visible in real time over several episodes and I cannot get enough of it, absofuckinglutely incredible oh my god

-Let 👏Anime👏Zeff👏Eat👏His👏Own👏Leg

-shoutout to the LA for saving their set budget for the Baratie and doing Zoro's ENTIRE BACKSTORY on one single platform in the middle of the woods, super effective and I didn't even notice until the anime had us in an actual training hall and stuff xD xD xD

-"If i can hold more swords ill be stronger" ACTUAL FUCKING ZORO DIALOGUE OH MY GOD, shoutout to that baby hamster for holding like 10 swords the first time he ever tried to sword fight, he began as he meant to continue and I love that for him

-JOHNNY AND YUSAKU!!!!! ZORO HAS GODDAMN COWORKERS AND THAT IS PEAK FUCKING COMEDY OH MY GOD, THEYRE GREAT AND ICONIC AND THEY ARE ALSO HIS ACTUAL DAMN PIRATE HUNTING COWORKERS LMAOOOO

-Mihawk's fucking EVERYTHING, what the hell, i love him and also LMAO

-Extremely fucking hilarious of the live action to have Mihawk deal with Don Krieg practically off screen lmaooooo, and also I understand why that one fan in the LA reaction videos I watched was so excited to see Gin show up, what an extremely One Piece character

-Luffy is my favorite. He is a character of all time. Something is deeply wrong with this child and also I love him and that terrible terrible glint in his eye

[cdyssey]

Hacks (1.10) Reactions:

the dedication being to jean’s late husband ;-;

God, Deborah edging Ava out of the schedule but not confronting her.

lol, the fact that deb has apparently served dj

“… because if you don’t want me to do this show I won’t.” Deborah genuinely asking DJ is such a good moment. DJ has spent so much of her life having to be subject to what her mother thinks best.

God, that beat after DJ makes Deborah genuinely laugh—she soaks in that moment, clearly proud and a little awed to have caused it. As we’ve seen with both Ava and Marcus, when you’re in Deborah’s spotlight, it is the most magical place in the world.

The Jimmy/Kayla dynamic isn’t quite working for me atm… her actress is great, but I need kayla to grow up just a little.

(heard they get more complex as the seasons go on, though!)

jfc, Deb doesn’t believe Ava about her dad because of the previous lies.

Deb doesn’t confront her, but Deb doesn’t look at her either. God. This drama is so fucking good.

“I don’t really think about you.” / “Yeah, right, lady. You do think about me. And I think about you. It’s called a human relationship. And sorry, but we have one.” OH, MY FUCKING GOD

“No one’s allowed to communicate honestly with you. And if they do, you either shut them out or push them away, or, I-I don’t know, hit them with your car.”

THIS IS SOME FUCKING GOOD FOOD

“This is my life!” JEAN SMART, THE WOMAN THAT YOU ARE!!!!!

“Does KFC want you to be the new Colonel Sanders?” GNDNFNSNDN, cold

“You are a fucking hack.” / [Deborah slaps her.]

OH MY GOD, DID THAT JUST HAPPEN

DID THAT JUST FUCKING HAPPEN

THIS IS THE MOST INSANE CONVERSATION FUCKING EVER

The tangible silence after that—the tears in Ava’s eyes, the immediate regret in Deborah’s. All of their punches have been verbal until this exact moment, but now a new line has been crossed, and it can never be taken back.

“I’ll trade you a Xanny for a cigarette.” Lol

AVA’S REVENGE. OH, GOD GIRL. STAY AWAY FROM YOUR PHONE WHEN YOU’RE DRINKING

Kiki is so hot.

Deborah taking responsibility with Marcus… but only because Ava is out of the picture. Hhhhhhhhhgh.

MARCUS CEO AND 10% RAISE!!! OH, HE DESERVES IT

The tears in his eyes and voice. Carl Clemons-Hopkins is such a good actor. He’s brough Marcus to life in such beautiful ways.

“‘Cause you’re already in a relationship. With Deborah.” WOOF. Yeah. And the use of “relationship” takes us back to Ava and Deb in the dressing room, firmly hammering it in home that Marcus and Ava are two sides of the same coin

THE TIMES COVER.

I THINK SHE WILL.

XOXO

I’M CRYING

Deb getting a standing ovation upon entry 😭😭😭😭 yeah, that’s right. That mother

SHE’S GONNA USE THE NEW MATERIAL

SHE WORE THE STILETTOS BECAUSE THE PAIN IS WORTH IT

THIS GODDAMN SHOW

jfc Ava’s dad is dead. 😭 She never got to see him again after moving to LA.

The environmental detail in Ava’s childhood bedroom is peak. Ofc, she has mean girls and twilight magazine covers

“I gotta be up before Kelly Ripa’s day is done.” Deborah is in her head.

I’m going to be nuts over them. I am going to climb the freakin’ walls

This argument with Ava’s mom feels so fucking real, down to it casually ending with, “Do you want some coffee?” as though they just get out of a devastating fight about everything that has historically made their relationship dysfunctional

DEBORAH AT THE FUNERAL

I’M WEEPING

IN A FUR COAT AND EVERYTHING

“It’s exhausting to lose a loved one.” she gets it.

Deborah warming up the crowd like she would a standup. 😭 I’m not kidding, y’all. there are actually tears in my eyes.

DEB IN AVA’S CHILDHOOD BEDROOM

“Hey, shoes off.” AKAKSKJD

Ava got into comedy because it made her feel connected to people—a response to a shitty childhood

“Well, no. You can’t quit. You’re too good.” Oh, God, and that’s what gets Ava to finally cry. Because it’s not just grief, goddammit. It’s catharsis and much needed release. The show began with Ava stuck in a rut because the entire comedy world had deemed her irredeemable. At her childhood home, she was and is the lonely creature who could never quite get her parents to understand. But here and now, here’s someone telling her that she’s talented.

And that she belongs.

Deb about mostly bombing: “And I loved it…. I haven’t felt that way in years. The show didn’t work, but it will. The pieces are there. I just have to figure out how to put them together.” Ava has pushed her out of her comfort zone—into new and exciting territory. And that thrill of the unknown has made her feel more alive and passionate than she has in years

DEBORAH ON TOUR!!!

“Okay, but you really can’t hit people.” I’m so glad that Ava (and the show) doesn’t let her get away with that.

That handshake transforming into a tender hand hold is so goddamn beautiful.

Poor Marcus. He’s gotten what he wants at so high of a personal cost

AVA FUCKING SENT AN EMAIL ABOUT DEBORAH WHILE SHE WAS DRUNK

OH, GOD AND DEBORAH IS HAPPY AND OBLIVIOUS, AND IT’S JUST LIKE THE DRUNK VOICEMAIL ALL OVER AGAIN.

ALSO, AVA SITTING NEXT TO DEB ON THE JET WHEN DEB USED TO NOT LET HER. BUT NOW THEY’RE ON EVEN GROUND TOGETHER, EXCEPT THEY’RE NOT BECAUSE THERE’S APPARENTLT AN EMAIL

FUCK ME!!

okay, not to be hyperbolic, but that was one of the best first seasons of television that I have ever consumed in my life

[zalrb]

“Please don’t tell me you’ve been out here the entire time.”

“It’s not going to work,” she cut him off, her voice thick.

“You can’t make me hate you.”

“You left me crying on a bridge in the middle of the night—" Stefan’s face crumpled slightly at the memory “— and I couldn’t hate you then.”

“Damon never changed that, and” — she nearly choked on the name— “Katherine doesn’t get to change that either. You don’t get to change that. It’s us.”

“Everyone always thought it was Damon,” she muttered. “I even thought it was Damon.”

“The one I couldn’t help but love, couldn’t help but want, because he got under my skin, because he’d consume me every time I was with him, right? Couldn’t shake him even after everything he’d done, just this nagging curiosity that became something else, something more than I ever thought it would become.”

“Because it’s you. It’s actually you,” said Elena, nodding. “who I can’t get rid of. Who I can’t help but turn to, who I can’t help but trust, who I can’t help but think about during the summer of dreams, who I can’t help but compare every relationship I have to, who I can’t help but fight for, who I always keep with me. It’s you.”

“You are a part of me and I’m realizing that in a whole new way now.”

IF THIS AINT LOVE IDK WHAT IS. this is sooooooo true. delena tried soooooo hard to steal/copy stelenas dynamic and they failed miserably.

Elena’s lips trembled. “This is what makes you happy?”

“I never said that.”

katherine's just a distraction elena. shes a bandaid at best. we all know youre the solution and cure. all he needs is you.

“All she has to do is show up with tears and regret and that’s all it takes? She’s redeemed?” 

Quickly, Stefan pulled the stake out of and she screamed in momentary pain. He looked around frantically for the threat to find a shell-shocked Damon at the end of the hall, holding a crossbow, looking from Elena to Katherine and back again. “I thought — I thought—”

LMFAO damon still not being able to tell katherine and elena apart is peak comedy and so accurate

I burst out laughing at this

tbh, I think this exchange is the angstiest SE scene I've ever written, even more so than the heartbreak back/affair series.

[pop-roxs]

hoo okay I can already tell this is gonna be long but manga thoughts!! i only read up to roughly 150 I think (Also hi hi I’m off anon! anxiety has been overcome >D<)

quick lil context of me even getting into this also! so my roomie and I have a tradition of watching really bad animes during finals weeks and this time my rookie suggested we watched black butler 2 (still so funny it’s just 2 not season two not book of ___ no. just two. Peak comedy) first half of that was laughably bad and then like ep 7 onward it was frustratingly good. Some bizarre pacing some bizzare writing choices but I liked it overall. anyways over winter break out of nowhere I got manga spoilers on my tiktok for Agni’s death and. It emotionally devastated me bc I loved him sm bc of the like one ep in 2 where he appeared. i told my roomie that and we decided to like actually watch the good parts of the anime so I could get a taste of the actual plot (and eventually we watched s1 lmao)

so yeah that bit didn’t impact me as much when I actually read it but 😭 Agni I miss you dearly you’re like one of the only people I’d trust to hold my drink in this series I KNOW you would take care of it and not spill anything. Also, I read the entire (post campania) manga while procrastinating studying for my organic chemistry exam bc chemistry is a pain in the ass and I didn’t want to look at it

right um. Other arcs. so the school arc has some BIZARRE pacing- (and i never got used to the just casually dropping the F word even if it was used iba like historical context) I was half skimming some of the pages bc I thought it was gonna be basically a fluff filler arc so that end caught me off guard- deffo enjoyed the soma content though! i sure hope he stays happy and nothing awful happens to make him stop smiling! hahah fuck.

Emerald witch arc is kinda funny to me. like yeah, okay queen of England, send this 13 (14?? I forgor) year old child to a different country to deal with werewolves. this isn’t even ur country girly what. Wolf and miss sullivan (can’t spell her first name) r fun characters I like their addition a lot. Could’ve done without the uh. weird scenes with sullivan but. whatever. (The scenes with finny taking care of ciel also were so sweet Omg I will cry- finny is probably one of my top 5 charas I love himmmmm he scares me tho )

that being said I fuckcking RECOGNIZED that shit was chemicals as soon as I saw that circle thing oh my FuckKING GOD. I literally put down my phone and stopped reading for a good while. I’m reading this manga to procrastinate my ochem I did not need it to insert itself like that >:’(((( it was good though I liked the arc a a lot (my roommate fucking burst out laughing when she saw me being angy and asked why.)

Sascha and Walmart will (sorry sir you are just not memorable) were cute! Hope we get more content of them in the future, or just more reaper lore. Please. I’m going insane all I want is lore (Also my roomie had already told me abt the reaper backstory so that didn’t rlly surprise me). Will and grell showing up for like one chapter was funny as hell, you know will was pissed bc that whole convo could’ve totally been an email or a pigeon or whatever. i missed them though so im not complaining

Idk what to call the next arc. the return of the school guys was… funny ig?? i have to be honest I kinda disconnect whenever they appear I just don’t really care for them 😭 the whole band group off was so funny though and the tonal whiplash was something I was NOT prepared for. It wasn’t as jarring as the paving of the school arc but like hWUH THATS A LOT OF PLOT AND BIG REVEALS HAPPENING REALLY FAST NOW-

love othello though. I’m a forensics chemistry major and I love the forensics part of it significantly more than chemistry so seeing a funny guy doing that is so very !!! ya :D also love the dynamic with Grelle. they’re both trans and besties you can’t change my mind- ALSO OTHELLO JUST . THROWING HIS SCYTGE AND THEN BIDING BEHIND GRELLE. Love him. ronnies still my fav dont get me wrong I am endeared with his talk-shit-while-getting-his-ass-beat mentality but othello is very close behind

wish we had more reaper lore . I would kill to know these guys backstories- Ronald and sascha seem so much you her compared to their coworkers it eats at my brain. sascha especially like aaaaaa kid what happened for you to end up here :(? MAN (also I could fight abt the reaper lore for so long. they don’t deserve this. this shits unfair. AGH…

i had more stuff that I wanted to say but forgot. sorry if this isn’t very understandable i just wrote as I thought of things- basically. reapers my beloved . I’m begging for lore please . soma my king I hope you’re okay. when will Ronald come back PLEASE he’s been gone since like campania 😭

BRO ROOMMATE ANON REVEAL!! i hope you dont mind me still using the roommate anon tag,,

agnis death def threw me off. i wasnt expecting yana to kill him off, especially after having him around for so long. that whole scene was very surprising. and yes i agree with you!! hes probably the most wholesome character in black butler next to some others like the phantomhive servants and soma.

i actually quite liked the school arc(and a lot of people in the fandom would agree w me)! but i get how you wouldnt. i personally was only mostly focusing since i just wanted to get back to grelle T^T.

i didnt really like emerald witch at first. i was mad when it had the honor of being the 100th chapter. but its grown on me since(n yeah those scenes were weird..).

i LOOOOVEEE SASCHA!!!!!! THEYRE SO CUTEEEEE X33333 they remind me of my best friend since they both have that same cheery vibe. like little guy is just making the best out of their afterlie and havin some genuine fun. i fw it. grelles outfit was also sooo hot in that chapter gaw dayum. i want a piece of that reaper PLEASE

you can call the return of the school guys the boy band arc. it was weird but i really enjoyed it.

i find it funny how everyone automatically says that othello is trans. one look at the silly science man provokes the Feeling.

trust me man, everyone wants more reaper lore. i am clawing at yanas feet and begging her to tell me what in the ever living fuck happened to grelle in her time as a human. WHAT THE FUCK KINDA LIVES DID THEY LIVE. WHAT DROVE THEM TO SUICIDE.

i understood everything you wrote, dw!! :3 im hoping soma is ok as well </3

[audreylovestoread]

Everything for You

Chloe Liese

If you’re a fan of the show Ted Lasso, read this immediately!!! It captures the exact light romcom with a slight bit of angst in just the perfect way, similar to the show. You have the young and energetic character, embodying Ted Lasso in his optimism, extreme friendliness and hidden anxiety disorder. And then the Roy Kent inspired character, who is grumpy, angry, and refusing to even think about his career in soccer coming to an end.

It is sunshine/grumpy enemies to lovers at its peak! It was the perfect mixture of emotional moments and comedy that made me happy the entire time I was reading it.

There is also a 10 year age gap between the two main characters, and while I usually avoid books with these relationships, I felt it added to their dynamic and never once felt like they were anything less than equals. I thought it was perfectly well done, and a rare exception to my rule.

Everything about the enemies to lovers plot was beautiful, and it didn’t feel like it took them forever to get to the point of romance which sometimes can happen in these genres. It definitely has a touch of unrealistic love speeches, but I personally live for that stuff so I ate it right up.

Absolutely recommend if you’re looking for a funny, light, emotional romance that will leave you with warm fuzzies and a smile on your face!

Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[watching-pictures-move]

Movie Review | Righting Wrongs (Yuen, 1986)

This review contains spoilers.

I’m used to how Hong Kong’s distinct historical and political subtext worms its way into its movies, even seemingly lightweight ones. Something like Police Story provides an obvious example, moving from a cheerful action comedy (full of breathtaking, death-defying action sequences) to something angrier, where the hero has been left to fend for himself by the institutions he once served but has lost faith in (but still with breathtaking, death-defying action sequences). But even then, that movie has its share of levity throughout, and ends on a note that I certainly wouldn’t call bleak. Perhaps it’s on me for not looking too much into this movie beforehand, but I was struck by how bleak this is. Within the first few minutes, an entire family is killed in order to sink the case against a pair of mobsters. Dismayed, the prosecutor decides to take the law into his own hands. But while in Police Story, the hero taking the law into his own hands got results and saved the day, the same thing here maybe does take down the criminal mastermind, but gets a lot of other people killed along the way.

I watched the Hong Kong cut and one of the alternate endings (my copy, freshly arrived in the mail from 88 Films, includes a few other cuts that I understand have different endings). Both of them end with the hero dead. The Hong Kong cut maybe leaves a bit of room for ambiguity, with the hero’s body floating in the water after he dives out of a plane right as it crashes, but the alternate ending ends with a grim punchline, with a group of partiers on a nearby boat choosing to ignore the corpse so that it doesn’t ruin their fun. I think I prefer the former, in part because I wanted to believe that the hero survived, but also because it ends things right at the peak of a crescendo. The latter drives the themes home, but allows things to come back down. Or to use punctuation, it’s an exclamation mark versus a period or ellipses. I guess I’m like Elaine Benes in that I’d opt for the former.

The hero is played by Yuen Biao, who I’d previously known mostly as a supporting player in the movies of his better known friends and co-stars Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung. (The three of them make up my most watched actors this year, according to my Letterboxd stats.) In those other movies, he usually had an offbeat, likable presence, bouncing off Jackie and Sammo to hit a different set of comedic notes. (My favourite is probably his role in Dragons Forever, where he navigates his political and philosophical confusion and tension between capitalism and communism through his treatment of his pets.) Disappointment might be the wrong word, but I was definitely caught a little off guard by how seriously he plays things here. He’s effective in the role, and it’s the right tone for the surrounding film, but I did miss the quirkiness of his other roles. To the extent that there is levity here, it’s provided by the dynamic between a slobbish cop played by director Corey Yuen and his doting father played by Wu Ma, but like I alluded to earlier, nobody here gets a happy ending.

But while this is certainly a grim movie, it’s far from a joyless one, in that it’s directed with a constant forward momentum and packed full of top notch action sequences. I don’t know what I can say about the action here that would meaningfully differ from anything I’ve said about other classic Hong Kong action movies. I need to get better at discussing technical matters; the two touches that stood out to me were the uses of undercranking and body doubles, which are less offensive here than usual because of how relentlessly the action hurtles ahead. But one is simultaneously in awe and likely wincing as they see one  crackling, fast paced, painful-looking action scene after another, whether it’s Biao taking down a group of assassins (which include a Mick Jagger lookalike and a gunman with an accordion), trying to avoid getting flattened in a cramped garage while the villains try to play bumper cars, Cynthia Rothrock and Karen Shepard going (wo)mano a (wo)mano (this apparently was notable for casting non-Chinese actresses in a Hong Kong movie in a non-gimmicky way), or Biao chasing after a plane on foot in the breathtaking (and death-defying) finale.