#unfortunately it's like. 45 eps and that's a commitment

[thenegoteator]

anime number 1?

so I also never got into this one - 12 Kingdoms (2001) - but I think it's a girl power portal fantasy. the first episode has a guy show up and pledge to protect our main character while refusing to explain anything. When they are attacked by a demon, she asks "so are you gonna save us" and he says "what? no why would you think that" and hands her a sword only she can wield and tells her to kill it herself. when she refuses he simply has one of his friends possess her so she is forced to kill the demon anyway. then they portal away. absolutely bonkers, maybe I'll give this one a shot

[breathe-2am]

hey idk how to tell u this but the big cliffhanger in s1 isn’t the crew being separated it’s stede going out to find ed when ed has fallen so deep into heartbreak and self-loathing that he’s destroyed stede’s ship and split up their crew. the cliffhanger is about “how will ed and stede fix their relationship after stede broke ed’s heart and ed went off the deep end?”

bc what’s going on with the crew is not the main storyline. the main storyline is the romance between ed and stede, djenks has said this many times. the main plotline is the development of ed and stede’s relationship. the show didn’t “shove most of the characters into 1 minute scenes between much longer gentlebeard arcs” in 2.04, the crew was just part of the B plot that episode, which is to be expected because they are all side characters who are always in B or C plots if they’re not part of the plot with the main characters (ed and stede). the main A plot of 2.04 is ed and stede making up now that they’ve finally been reunited, and the show develops this storyline in a rewrite/adaptation/homage to the play who’s afraid of virginia woolfe.

it’s fine if u don’t like gentlebeard or if your main enjoyment from the show is izzy/the crew, but if that’s the case for you then unfortunately you’re always have a harder time enjoying ofmd bc the writing in the show is always going to prioritize gentlebeard over the other characters. the crew reuniting was always going to be much less important than ed and stede reuniting and making up. that’s what david jenkins meant when he said “the show is the relationship.”

Heyo! I see my meme has breached the side of ofmd tumblr I usually interact with, which is really cool! Thanks for stopping by haha

I think your response is so emblematic of the shift the show went thru from season 1 to season 2- namely, that season 1 was an ensemble show and season 2 was not. Stede was the main character, yes, and he got more backstory and focus than a lot of the crew, but the story of the show in s1 was that it was a bunch of people with conflicting personalities shoved onto a boat together. Stede’s the center, but every other character gets focus as well. This show, by djenks own admission, was not originally intended to be a rom-com romance between stede and ed. He said that he didn’t commit to actually have them be together until filming season 1 episode 6- more than halfway thru the story of the first season, and that it was mainly due to rhys and taika’s acting that made him change it from an unrequited love to a relationship. So while the story is a lot about gentlebeard, saying that every other character is secondary to them and their romance isnt true.

I think a great example to bring up would be season 1 episode 7, the episode that solidifies (via lucius) that yes, this is happening. This is a very relationship heavy episode, but crucially gb isn’t the only focus.

Here's a breakdown: we start w a 1:00 gb scene, then roach comes in asking about the oranges, which leads to a 2:00 scene w the whole crew that sets up the episodes plot (swede has scurvy, we need to get more oranges). Jim protests going to st augustine, which is followed by a 1:00 scene between jim and olu, including a jim flashback. Stede and lucius return with the treasure map, there’s 1:30 more of the whole crew, then we go into the captains cabin for 1:00 of stede, ed, and lucius. 6 minutes into the ep flashes to the crew on land, a 0:50 conversation between jim and olu, then 2:00 of the whole crew, ending then nana invites them all to eat some cake at 8:15. We then go to stede, lucius, and ed in the marketplace until the 9 minute mark (abt 0:45), then back to the church where olu and jim talk to nana for 1:15, including more jim flashbacks. Back to the adventure w stede ed and lucius, which is 2 scenes back to back, totally about 3:00 (the “oh my god this is happening” scene). Then back to the church for jim olu and nana, a 1:00 jim flashback inside a 3:00 scene. Then back to the captains and lucius for 1:30, then to jim and olu, more jim flashback, then the a and b plots converge at the 2:30 mark when jim sees stede digging up their tree. Stede, ed, and lucius exit the scene after 1:30, jim and olu have a conversation for another 1:00. We see the crew leaving, then olu and nana talk, which all takes 2:00. Back on the boat, ed and stede become co-captains in a 0:45 scene, then the final 1:30 of the ep is izzy at jackie’s with 1:30 credits

Gentlebeard: 9:00, whole crew: 5:30, Jim and Olu: 11:35, Izzy: 1:30, credits: 1:30

I would say that s1e7 is the most overtly gb episode before the kiss in s1e9. But as you can see, it’s not just gb. There’s a lot of focus on jim, who gets multiple filmed flashbacks, there’s scenes w jim, olu, and nana, there’s scenes of the whole crew together, stede and ed are really only oncscreen together for abt 9 minutes- not even 1 third of the episode. And this is the ep that says directly to the audience “yes, they have a romance building”. I’m not trying to say w this that every member of the crew needs to b given equal screentime, bc that didn’t happen here obv, but everyone is doing something, and the plot is moving forward propelled by more than just the gb relationship.

Now this is very much changed in season 2.

S2e4 starts with 0:20 of stede waking ed up, then 0:45 of stede and the crew, 0:30 of ed and buttons, izzy’s w the unicorn for 1:00. The crew kick ed off the boat in a 1:15 scene. Now at the 2:25 mark we get to the plots splitting. Ed has a 1:15 scene on land, 0:45 is spent talking to a bunny. Stede and buttons find anne and mary’s antique store after 0:45 of walking. The scene in the antique porch is 2:15. Back to the revenge where there’s a 1:00 scene where wee john, roach, and pete talk about how the kraken crew, lucius, and izzy are different, and the kraken crew thinks they’re plotting to kill them. Already we go back to anne and mary’s where theres various conversations for 3:00. We go back to the revenge for a 0:45 scene where the revenge crew scare the kraken crew and lucius by trying to surprise them. Back to land, where anne and stede and mary and ed talk for 2:00. Back to the revenge for a 1:45 scene w the crews, izzy enters at the 1:00 mark and then crawls away. Well that’s that, we go back to the dinner on land for 1:00, then ed storms out and he and stede have a conversation on the couch for 2:15. Anne and mary reenter, followed by a 3:00 argument that ends with anne burning down the house and they don’t kiss for some reason. We have a 0:20 scene of the crew preparing the unicorn leg, izzy is in his room and received the leg in a 0:40 scene, and well it’s been a whole minute on the revenge, time to go back to ed and stede for 1:00, ed and buttons talk end when buttons turns into a seagull after 1:30. Ed and stede talk for 0:30, and then we end w izzy the new unicorn for 0:45. Credits are again 1:30.

Gentlebeard: 19:50, whole crew: 5:05, Izzy: 3:10, credits: 1:30

To illustrate my point, i made some graphs

You don’t even have to think very hard to see the change in distribution of screentime season 1 vs season 2. And i’d argue that this is absolutely to the show’s detriment, because that ensemble cast is given way less time to shine, grow, or even speak. Notice how for the second chart there isn’t a jim and olu section? Yea that’s cause Jim has 10 lines this whole episode, and Olu has 5. Two characters, whose relationship, backstory, and plot takes up more screentime than gentlebeard’s in season 1, have a combined 15 lines between them, only 4 of which are longer than 1 sentence- 2 for jim, 2 for olu, and those lines are two sentences long. god bless us every one.

I get that there’s a large subset of the ofmd fandom that only cares abt ed and stede. I get that that’s how u find enjoyment in the show, and u know what? All the power to u. I’m not saying stop liking the show, stop liking gentlebeard, stop caring abt these characters. I don’t like gentlebeard, but i used to, and i remember really really loving ed and stede and their relationship in season 1. That changed in season 2 because of ed’s abusive actions and stede pivoting from being an independent character to just basically following whatever ed says (but that’s a story for another day).

But let’s be honest with each other, and with ourselves: season 1 was an ensemble show. Season 2 narrowed its focus to gentlebeard, while also making it (for some people) harder to like. That’s why a lot of people (myself included) didn’t like season 2 as much as season 1.

Also, just to focus back in on the original issue, the meme was not about gentlebeard. It was about Anne and Mary. And there is literally no way you can convince me that they were used as well as they could have been, or that they were implemented into the story in a smart, necessary, or even respectful way.

Because i'm a nice person, i made a brand new updated meme just for u, anon!

:-)

[poipoi1912]

Carisi-centric thoughts on Ep 18x18

The last fifteen minutes really ruined what was, until then, a perfectly serviceable episode. It really flew by, up until that point, and I kinda liked it. It was dumb but fun :D

I even liked the hypnotism angle, but I must say, I think the problem persists; yet again, the episode had an interesting premise, but it failed to take advantage of it. Why not go into the practicalities of hypnosis? Where was Huang to get on that stand and explain it in detail? Speaking of, wouldn’t Barba talk to an “expert” during the trial? Why not make a show if it and demonstrate hypnosis? Wouldn’t that be fun to watch?

Warning

OK, guys, I’m going to be honest. I’m of two minds, when it comes to this episode. Sonny-wise, the episode was fantastic (and let’s be honest, that’s always my main concern lol), the premise was fun, we got Barba working with the entire team, not just Liv, and the case itself (the investigation of it, at least) was twisty enough to remain enjoyable.

BUT.

From a legal standpoint, this episode was laughably bad. It honestly left me baffled. Who wrote this? The last fifteen minutes were ridiculous. No way would Barba ever get a conviction based on what we saw. I’ll expand on that in a minute (in EXTENSIVE detail), but first let’s start with the good.

Sonny and Continuity

A lot of great stuff in this episode! Sonny pulled a classic Sonny, and looked into the case thoroughly, going above and beyond and finding information about out a crime which was committed out of state. He even dug up a civil suit. That’s absolutely consistent with the Sonny we know. It’s what he’s always done. He never gives up, he finds smart ways to work around the obstacles and solve the case.

I also appreciated that Sonny showed real empathy when he heard the first victim had died. Peter played that little moment so well. Both the surprise and the sadness. What I loved most about it, was that it didn’t feel like he was thinking “oh shoot, there goes our witness.” It felt like the old Sonny, the one who used to cross himself when he found a dead body. The Sonny who’d take the time to grieve, just for a moment, when confronted with the death of a stranger as opposed to last week’s Sonny, who dismissed actual death threats like he didn’t give a shit lol.

And I do always love it when Sonny cracks a case with his research. Even though he didn’t actually crack it, because what the fuck? But, again, more on that later.

Sonny’s Love Life

Wait, Sonny has a legit girlfriend that’s been mentioned more than once? Can we meet her, please? I’ve always wanted to see him happy and in love :D and making out with someone lol. I just wish we knew more about her. A name, even. Wouldn’t Amanda know her name? She and Carisi are obviously buddies. So far, the info we got on her is a) her bra size (classy, SVU writers) and b) that she’s into that raw food trend. I like that, actually. It fits Sonny. He seems like he’d totally be up for trying new experiences food-wise and otherwise, and this could be their thing, going around random restaurants and trying to convince each other to eat weird dishes, lol.

I love it when our characters are shown to have lives outside the “show”, but can we actually see it? Can we see Sonny all flirty and cute? If they don’t want to cast anyone new (because they seem averse to creating new characters), can’t we at least see, like, Sonny smiling as he talks on the phone, or as he reads a text, with Fin teasing him about it? Or something? Please? :D

Barba Thoughts

I was surprised Barba was the one to suggest hypnotism. Way to think outside the box! I’m not sure he was the best person to do that (he seems like a total skeptic who’d shoot that theory down immediately), but I bought the excuse of him having come across it before. Plus, I loved that he was the one who got to solve the case, for a change. And I also liked how the entire team, Barba included, spent several scenes brainstorming together. I had missed that. Barba in the precinct, with the entire squad.

Aaaaand that’s where the fun ends, and the pedantic/annoyed part of my post begins, lol.

Why on Earth would Barba take legal advice from Liv? Why would he ever play that tape for the jury? If that’s not reasonable doubt, I don’t know what is. Why would he follow Liv’s actual instructions? She’s not a lawyer! She directly affected the case, in a way that could have been detrimental, even though Barba seemed like he knew better (since he tried to talk her out of it, before folding as always), and the way the episode chose to resolve that was by having Liv and Barba drinkin’ it up at a bar.

Liv’s mistake was never identified as such, and it took Sonny “deus ex machina” Carisi and his random discovery to save the day.

Even though it shouldn’t have. Which brings me to:

The Law

Me for the first like 45 minutes: OK BUT WHERE IS RITA???

Me when Rita appeared: YASSSSSS QUEEN

Me at the end of the episode: NOOOOO QUEEN 

Where do I begin?

Why was Barba acting like hypnosis was sure to be accepted as 100% real and effective by a court of law, let alone a jury in its entirety? Why did he seem to “suddenly” realize he had no case (which, d’oh) at the halfway mark, only for Liv to wrongly convince him otherwise? And, even if Barba did manage to stumble upon a group of jurors who all believe in hypnosis, why didn’t he bother actually proving anything?

To get a conviction, Barba would have to prove that:

hypnosis is real,

hypnosis can be powerful enough to make a woman consent to sex against her will,

Trask has the skill to hypnotize people,

Trask actually hypnotized this specific victim, and

Trask raped this specific victim.

None of that was ever proven. None. Like I said, no expert was shown explaining just what hypnotism entails. No proof was given that Trask even knew how to do that (so what if his mentor taught him, does that mean he now knows how to do it perfectly?). There was an actual tape with the victim’s ‘consent’ that was played but not actually debunked.

And oh Lord. That old case Sonny dug up. WHERE. DO. I. BEGIN.

What defense attorney, hell, what judge would allow a totally random arrest from over 20 years ago to be brought up into a totally unrelated criminal trial? Not to mention, no one even bothered to point out that the defendant was a drug addict at the time (22. YEARS. AGO), and he had since “changed.”

To be fair, the writers tried to make it work, with Barba asking Trask if he had ever been arrested, to “open the door” to bringing up the previous arrest (and also to get Trask to lie on the stand). Problem is, Trask only lied about the arrest itself, not about the specifics of it. With that in mind, Barba would only be able to mention the arrest itself, to contradict Trask’s testimony and present him as a liar. But he’d never be able to introduce the actual details of the arrest, the actual facts of that old case.

Barba would need to ask something specific to open that door. Something like, “Have you ever been accused of anything like this before? A man in your position, wealthy and surrounding himself with drugs and beautiful women,” blah blah. If Trask had lied about that, then Barba would have been able to bring up a similar case from the past (even the case of the dead woman mentioned previously). 

Unfortunately, there was nothing similar about the case Sonny found. No relevance, no probative value. A drug addict, ill and scared, letting someone die? Over 20 years ago? An expunged arrest, no conviction? That was prejudicial as fuck. Rita would have it thrown out in 3 seconds. Many times, prosecutors can’t even mention actual (and relevant) convictions, because it would be prejudicial, unless the specific convictions have a significant probative value relating to the case on hand.

Same goes for that half-assed “confession” to Trask’s mentor-slash-friend. Trask never mentioned this specific victim. That was circumstantial as fuck. I'm embarrassed on Rita's behalf for losing this mess of a case. The old Rita would never.

Legally speaking, this was a total circus. Barba proved nothing. No way would the jury find Trask guilty. No way would Rita Fucking Calhoun let any of that fly. This is Dana Lewis levels of character assassination, in my book. 

Stray Thoughts

Is Liv working reception now? Didn’t she used to have an office? Where her subordinates could reach her, if a victim wanted to speak to “someone in charge”? You’re a Lieutenant, sis! Let someone else man the doors!

Declan? 👀

Amanda didn’t judge a victim, for once, and the case involved drugs! Progress!

Fin listening to that lady for like 5 minutes? YES. His face was the highlight of the episode. Fin himself was the highlight of the episode, actually. So many great lines, and Ice-T was clearly having fun.

Speaking of, we got Fin joking! And Carisi joking! And Amanda laughing! Who are these people? I don’t recognize them :D

Seriously though, I really appreciated the attempt for a more ‘lighthearted’ episode, but the writers should have stopped themselves riiiiiight before giving Rollins the line, ‘look deep into my eyes, you’re under arrest.’ Because no.