#this is bittersweet because i didn't want to finish watching this drama but at the same time i had to

[lenteur]

random thoughts about run on, episodes fifteen & sixteen

(please do note that this post contains spoilers so read at your own risk. this post will also be lengthy because i’m going to share my thoughts about both episodes.)

just a little announcement: i will cut this post into sections. so if i talk about a topic/character, i’ll share my thoughts about what happened in both episodes instead of talking about the same thing in different points. am i making any sense? i don’t think so 💔 sorry about that

we’re starting this post with dan ah being torn about how to end things with yeong hwa :( like she said in previous episodes, everything she ever liked was temporary “everything i like ends up as regret”. it all ended too soon for her liking. so, in order to not be so heartbroken, she wants to end things with him before things get complicated. what spurred this reaction was her father’s health problems. it’s like she was finally starting to open up to yeong hwa before she heard the news. and, just like that, she went back to being more distant. she ended things because it reminded her of her own health problems. she knows she’s weak and she’s at risk. that’s why she always told yeong hwa to “live a long life” and called him “kid”. she didn’t want to even start a relationship because she knew things would end. no matter how hard she tried to not develop any sort of feelings, she was faced with a more powerful force than she knew: yeong hwa’s love. his love is so sincere and he has such a pure heart that, in the end, she couldn’t take it and succumbed to her heart’s desires.

talking about yeong hwa, he’s the character with the most interesting development to me. he went from being a”kid” discovering about love and experience his first love to being more emotionnally mature by the time things ended with dan ah. like seon gyeom said (not his words because i forgot to take notes when he said it sigh) “without dan ah, you wouldn’t have become as mature as you are” meaning that dan ah has taught him that things don’t always go his way and how to handle frustration and work around miscommunication. it’s also telling that during their first encounter after they broke up, he was the emotionnally stable one “i’m still the same. nothing you do makes me hate you. i just keep liking you” he said this with so much love and care that dan ah couldn’t help but cry. she must have been shaken by the fact he still decides to love her, even though things ended between them. he was the one to hug and comfort her. this might have been a first for dan ah because she’s always put that strong front in front of everyone around her. people must think she’s not fragile, when in fact, she might be one of the most fragile characters in this show. she’s just guarding her heart because she doesn’t want to be broken. and yeong hwa understands that. he chose to keep liking her because she was his first love 💗 the only thing he asks of her is to keep him in her heart for as long as she likes, and when she no longer needs it to just throw away their memories. it’s his way of saying she can still keep this relationship alive on her own, even though they broke up. you can also see that dan ah will be kept in his heart forever because she’s always in his paintings, even the one that was hung in the museum. i know i said yeong hwa was mature (and he is) but it was heartbreaking to see him cry after the breakup when he got home. he let it all out and it must have been difficult for him to handle both the breakup and seeing his first love cry in front of him for the first time

the jewelry box metaphor was such a great idea. i don’t know who came up with it but i’m impressed. it links back to what yeong hwa told her (keep me in your heart for as long as you can) “saving a precious moment you might never get to experience again” what a beautiful way to put their relationship.

i’ve seen many posts/videos talking about how the writers of the show decided to give the couple (dan ah and yeong hwa) an open ending because they wanted the viewers to form their own opinions/theories about them and i think this was the best decision for this relationship. you can see there’s no animosity between them and i’m sure a lot of people rooted for them and imagine they’re back to being a couple. others would think that dan ah would protect her heart forever and stay out of this relationship for her own sake. it might be frustrating to not know how their story ends but, in this case, i’m 100% behind this choice. it was the only good choice for this relationship

to end on a lighter note about this couple, i found it hilarious how dan ah couldn’t remember anyone’s name lol and everyone’s reactions to her not knowing added another layer of funny to the barbecue scene haha

not getting too far away from dan ah and yeong hwa, i’m glad the last two episodes focused a little on ye jun. looking back, the longing gazes and avoiding eye contact were subtle hints about ye jun’s preferences. i found his character very complex yet easy to read at the same time. he kept on hiding himself for the longest time and then boom everything unfolded quickly at the end of the show, just like how he came out to his mom. it’s also ‘funny’ (not in the literal sense of the word but my brain sometimes forgets words so i resort to using another word that’s similar to what i wanted to say) that the child named after jesus ended up being gay and viewed down by his religious mother. ms dong (ye jun’s mother) demands he goes back to church with her and blames him being homosexual on her focusing too much of her attention on her job instead of her children. it’s something that a lot of gay children must have faced. his mother wants him to change because she’s not ready to admit the truth, she thinks she’s a bad mother because one of her children is gay. ye jun’s response to her reaction to him coming out was “you can deny it all you want but this is who i am” reminding her that no matter how hard she tries to “bring him back on the right path” nothing will work because that’s who he is.

it was also nice to see ye jun interact with both dan ah and yeong hwa in the last episode. the first person he came out to (among dan ah and yeong hwa) was dan ah. and we got dan ah apologizing for the first time. after realizing ye jun liked men, she wanted to apolgize to him because she used the excuse of being gay to avoid getting married while ye jun (the actual gay) was living in fear. she realized what she did was wrong and she apologized to the right person. and then we see ye jun come out and admit his feelings to yeong hwa. ye jun admits yeong hwa was his first love but yeong hwa cries because in order to be first love feelings have to be reciprocated. i think he cried because he was handling the post-breakup and ye jun added his feelings on top of that. it was a lot for yeong hwa. 

allow me to fangirl a little because this is my post and i can do whatever i want for this. i finally found my one and true otp: mayhyun (may x jeong ji hyun) 💖💖💖 this was such a wholesome moment when they unveiled their relationship to their friends/colleagues. i mean when i found out about this, i was immediately their #1 supporter. i mean how can you not? they’re both so cute and made for each other. it was nice to see mr. jeong outside of his work persona. jeong ji hyun falling in love with may during the fight scene with the slowmo shot on may’s face. and then him following her around asking if she’s taken. i hope they’re both in love with each other forever and ever (alexa play love4eva)

after that wholesome and sweet moment, let’s tackle the ki family situation. we left off with eun bi involved in an affair scandal with ki jeong do’s rival assemblyman noh (idk how i remember all their names). this has caused eun bi so much stress that she had the yips. i was suspecting ki jeong do to be behind all of that. and i was right! he used his daughter as a tool to look like a great man just so he could win the elections. so much for eun bi trusting her father to resolve the whole scandal... when he was the one behind it all along. to say eun bi was disappointed would be an understatement. she was going through all of this scandal and ryan running away from her on her own and the traitor was her own father. when seon gyeom told his sister he would defend her, he wasn’t joking. he did the one thing he never did before: tell his mother about the incident. it might seem like a childish thing to do but he made the right decision. with everything that was shown in previous episodes, you’d think yook ji woo (the mother) would choose her career over her children like she has done many times in the past. but the one time she chooses to prioritize her children is also the day of her biggest opportunity career-wise. it’s nice to see her finally wake up and choose to defend her children. “think of everything i achieved at the expense of neglecting them (eun bi and seon gyeom)” she can have another great opportunity in her career as long as she keeps working but her daughter needs her the most right now. so, she made her decision: her children are more important. when she stormed into ki jeong do’s office to slap him, i screamed YES because i think we’ve all been waiting for it to happen. “how dare you use our kids to show off your fake fatherly love?” “i wonder why my divorce wasn’t my decision to make?” and then she kept attacking him where it hurts: her family’s background. she thought ki jeong do at least married her out of love but it ends up he married her because of her family’s fortune and reputation. in the end, we see yook ji woo eun bi and seon gyeom thrive and ki jeong do losing everything: his career and family that he’s used so many times. 

to end this post, i need to talk about the main couple. i’ve already developed the ins and outs of their relationship but i’d like to note a few more things before ending this post. i like that in the last episodes, every time we see them, they’re always together. they’re going through their routine as a couple: cooking/eating with each other for the first time, then running with each other, going to work/doing their things on their own, and then reuniting at the end of the day. i like that they’re getting more comfortable with each other. they’re finally “clicking together” like mi joo said compared to how they communicated in the first episodes. “we’ll probably never totally understand each other. but we could align our worlds next to each other, couldn’t we?” while it is true they’re still very different, i think it’s beautiful how they have met each other halfway. they’re a beautiful pair and it was refreshing to see them enjoy their time together and be affectionate with one another.

i’ve seen this quote in run on gif posts but i just want to share it here because it’s a beautiful one “delicate and sensitive people should live happy lives. those who are polite shouldn’t be looked down on”

it was probably an obvious choice but mi joo’s movie’s ending credits being run on’s ending credits was such a great idea. and the pictures were all cute :( i felt a pang in my heart when watching it because i realized the drama actually ended

#this is bittersweet because i didn't want to finish watching this drama but at the same time i had to #i'm a little sad this is the end of run on #but i now understand why it was a special drama for a lot of people #i got attached to a lot of the characters #the casting was amazing #the storylines were greatly developed #the scenery was beautiful #and i especially enjoyed the fact that i could relate to mi joo over translation #it took me more than an hour to write this post but i do not regret it one bit #i'm kind of proud of this post #beware there's a lot of words! #i'm sorry if there are any grammatical mistakes but i'm too tired to look them up #kdrama #run on #random(al) thoughts

[ponett]

Bobby's 2023 Media Wrap-Up

So! Like I said before, this past year I kept a running list of everything I watched, every game I finished, every new album I listened to, etc., and wrote one-paragraph blurbs with my thoughts on every single one. Please enjoy this journey through everything I liked, or didn't like, in 2023, with my favorites of the year listed at the bottom.

(Yes! This is long!!)

Some notes:

I mainly only included things I finished. Exceptions are marked with an asterisk.

I included some YouTube stuff as "TV shows" - mostly particularly long, high effort video essays and documentaries.

I was a bit less adventurous than I'd like to have been this year. Part of this was just that I felt like I was constantly playing catch-up with Big Releases I felt obligated to check out, and part of this was just executive dysfunction from burnout. Wait until you see how long it took me to beat Mario Wonder lmao

Yes, I need to read more books. I don't read a lot of books these days. I need to get back to Discworld.

COLOR KEY

Video Games • TV / Web Video  •  Movies  •  Comics  •  Music

January

1/15: Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (MSQ) - Very slow at times, the Primal shit is generally extremely lame to me outside of the boss fights themselves, but god if the quality of life improvements over WoW, the JRPG energy, and the fact that it Actually Has A Story carry it pretty hard.

1/18: Sonic the Hedgehog: Scrapnik Island miniseries - One of the most creative and compelling uses of the Sonic IP… ever? Fantastic little self-contained arc about the struggles of Eggman’s abandoned creations that gracefully weaves between heartfelt optimism and moody horror with some of the best art ever seen in a Sonic comic.

1/18: Mega Man X4 - Glad I finally actually beat this after never even beating any of the Mavericks as a kid! I can see why it’s a lot of peoples’ favorites. The gameplay has very little of that X series bloat and is just fun, especially after getting X’s armor upgrades. (But the story really is a long series of missed opportunities.)

February

2/2: Donks - Felix Colgrave continues to be an exceptional artist. The sound design on this is fantastic and really sells this short as something unique. Had to go back and watch his older stuff again after this.

2/4: Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward (3.0 - 3.3 MSQ) - I get it now. I get why people say this is just a proper mainline Final Fantasy game built into the framework of an MMO. That shit ruled. Not even walking back the drama in Ul’Dah from the end of ARR can sour me on it because the main storyline was so strong.

2/8: Disneyland's Forgotten Sci-Fi Rock Band - Live From the Space Stage - A nice and honest tribute to a group of artists who could have easily been forgotten. In hindsight this feels like a precursor to Kevin’s Disney Channel jingle video, a tribute to the unsung artists pouring their hearts into “lesser” art for a megacorporation, art that was designed to be transient but sticks with people nonetheless.

2/9: Metroid Prime Remastered* - Not gonna finish because I just played through the Wii version in 2021, but still. Very, very pretty remaster.

2/16: Theatrhythm Final Bar Line - It’s more Theatrhythm. What more could I want

2/17: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean (anime) - Probably the best part of the anime so far (assuming they continue on to SBR). A near perfect mix of the more structured plot of part 5 with the goofiness of parts 3 and 4 that crescendos into a fantastic, bombastic, emotional, bittersweet ending. The use of footage from the original opening and the new ending set to Roundabout in the finale were perfect, and made me intensely nostalgic for the early days of my JoJo fandom between seasons 1 and 2 of the anime.

2/22: Aggretsuko Season 5 - I don’t really know what to make of this one. Once you get past the agonizing initial arc all about Haida where Retsuko has to be his overbearing mommy GF who flips out and starts spying on him when she’s left on read and chides him when he misbehaves, it feels like an improvement over the previous seasons. But I don’t know how much of that is due to the extremely low bar set by season 4. And then the ending is extremely rushed and anticlimactic. They got legally married and the only acknowledgement was a shot of them signing the paperwork in a montage partway through the final episode?????????

2/24: Double Fine PsychOdyssey - God, what a journey the making of this game was. I already loved 2 Player’s past efforts at documenting Double Fine’s process, but this takes it to a whole new level. This feels culturally significant. The depth and honesty with which they depict not just the nitty gritty of making a game, but also the inherent struggles of working on a collaborative creative work for years at a time, is astounding. Not to mention that they were there to capture the shift from office life to remote work as COVID hit. So much of this would have been nightmarishly stressful to watch if I didn’t already know how successful the game was, but that’s just because they really didn’t sugarcoat it. And yet even after all that, it leaves me feeling optimistic about video games as an art form in a way that the constant headlines about cynical live service games don’t. There are still people out there pouring their hearts into making real art, and this is their story. Everyone who plays video games should watch this.

2/25: Cracker Island (Gorillaz) - New Gorillaz albums feel like less of an event these days, but after Humanz it feels like they’re just more chill with the project and their ambitions with it. Every couple years we get some more laid back jams from Damon along with some fun new collabs. Hard to complain. Favorite track: New Gold

2/25: Pool Kids (Pool Kids) - I discovered this band because Derek knows them and was excited when they got a song added to Fortnite through the Bandcamp collab. Always down to find more cool indie rock bands I can vibe with. The mix of dreamy vocals and energetic riffs on some of the tracks here almost fill the Crying-shaped hole in my heart. Almost… Favorite track: Conscious Uncoupling

2/25: Insane in the Rain (insaneintherainmusic) - I thought it was really funny timing when Carlos announced that his first original project would be a jazz fusion album inspired by acts like T-Square and Casiopea right as I was getting into those two specific bands. The final product does not disappoint. Favorite track: Insane in the Rain

2/26: Get Up Sequences Part Two (The Go! Team) - I’ve never been one to believe that a band’s sound has to remain exactly the same forever, but it really does hit you hard that the first two tracks here sound like classic The Go! Team. Their more recent cleaner sound is still here too, though, for a nice mix of old and new. Favorite track: Divebomb

2/28: Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury (Season 1) - Oh my god. Oh my god. I got distracted around the time I was finishing SLARPG, but finally catching up now, wow. My assumption that the seemingly lighter tone of the series compared to the prologue was there to lull us into a false sense of security before twisting the knife when war finally breaks out was spot on. This is peak Gundam.

March

3/4: Pizza Tower - One of the best platformers I’ve played in a long time. It transcends its blatant Wario Land inspirations with the sheer speed at which Peppino can move and the way things like the level design, his wall running, and even the hidden ability to do a second lap around the level reward getting into a flow state where you’re just constantly moving. This is the type of game that wants to turn you into a speedrunner. My only real complaint is a few iffy enemy designs that I wish would get patched.

3/6: Bloons TD 6 * - I bought this before bed one night on a nostalgic whim and then the next morning woke up and saw the Steam receipt email on my phone in one of the most “what did I do last night” moments of my life. I like when the monkeys pop the balloons.

3/7: The Book of Boba Fett - I put off finishing this show for a very long time but finally caved upon the release of The Mandalorian season 3. This show spends four episodes failing to make me give a shit about Boba Fett trying to be “the daimyo” and drive the drug trade off of Tatooine, then just gives up and becomes season 2.5 of Mando, which in turn feels like it undercuts the main series. It fails as both its own story and as a spinoff. I know that finishing this after Andor did it no favors, but WHOOF.

3/12: Obi-Wan Kenobi - Some interesting ideas in the first half hinting at a more introspective show, but it’s mostly swept aside in the back half so it can become a generic Star Wars adventure remixing things from A New Hope and Rebels (and apparently Jedi: Fallen Order). Action scenes have zero stakes because you know nothing can happen to any of the returning characters and none of the new ones are particularly interesting. Why there’s a second climax hinging on a Luke Skywalker death fakeout eludes me. Obi-Wan throwing the rocks at Vader is one of the funniest things in Star Wars history. But it was still better than Book of Boba Fett, I guess.

3/19: The King of Braves GaoGaiGar - Wow, cool robot indeed… GaoGaiGar isn’t going to blow anyone away with its writing, but sometimes you just need a really fun monster of the week mecha show with great action and lovably goofy characters. This is a show where like 20% of every episode consists of recycled transformation, combination, and signature attack sequences and I ate it up every time because they look fucking cool as hell. I don’t care. I’d watch Final Fusion another 49 times.

3/21: The Last of Us (HBO) * - Watched the first two episodes out of curiosity, but I’m not sure if I’ll continue because I don’t give a shit about The Last of Us. It’s definitely a well done adaptation, though, even if I know it’s inevitably going to devolve into miserable torture porn with questionable politics if they adapt Part II faithfully. The ending of episode 2 also lines up perfectly with where I stopped in the game in 2013 lmao

3/27: The Future is a Dead Mall - Decentraland and the Metaverse (Folding Ideas) - Another banger from Dan Olson. This time the premise inherently gives him more time to just show off a bunch of stupid ugly bullshit made by crypto guys, which is fun. My main complaint was that I wished he would’ve brought up Second Life more as a point of comparison (a thing I basically always want out of discussion of “the metaverse”), but he at least did touch on it in the last section.

3/31: The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog - I can’t believe after years of begging for the supporting cast to get more and better material in a Sonic game I got my wish in the form of a freeware murder mystery VN released for April Fools. This kicked ass.

April

4/7: Berserk - Completed Miura’s run and caught up on the chapters that have been released posthumously. It’s hard to say anything that hasn’t been said about Berserk, universally agreed upon as one of the greats of manga and fantasy fiction as a whole. What begins in its first few volumes as a nihilistic and edgy action comic built to facilitate as much sex and gore as possible quickly evolves into something deeply human and vulnerable and beautiful, both figuratively and in terms of its lavish art. The world sucks and is immeasurably cruel, and you will see that cruelty illustrated in graphic, sickening detail repeatedly throughout the series. (Perhaps a little too often throughout the Golden Age, where it feels like Miura never misses an opportunity to threaten Casca with sexual assault mid-battle.) But the point isn’t to wallow in that misery. It’s the story of a victim of horrific abuse learning to slowly open up to others, having those people he cares about torn away from him in the worst night of his life, hardening himself into a cold killing machine, and then slowly learning to open back up again, even if it means leaving himself vulnerable to more hurt. Anyone who says that the series peaked with the eclipse and went downhill in the “Guts’ JRPG Party” era is missing the point. Guts needed to find new people in his life to care about, to begin to find happiness again. Because no matter what unspeakable things Guts has gone through, it’s still possible for him to heal and to be loved. It takes time, but eventually you stop and realize that life has moved on.

4/8: Dedede’s Drum Dash Deluxe - Skipped it upon release because I didn’t particularly care for the minigame in Triple Deluxe, and I didn’t miss much. It’s fine as a little distraction, but not as a standalone rhythm game with only seven songs. If you don’t bother with the hard modes or chase after high scores this game is 15 minutes long. Oh how I yearn for Kirby to get the Theatrhythm treatment.

4/10: The King of Braves: GaoGaiGar FINAL - Eh… It was okay. Lots of cool robot fights, but said fights are stitched together with a mediocre plot that tries too hard to be more “mature” than its unabashedly schlocky kids’ show predecessor. Not crazy about the ending, either, which tries to be a bittersweet farewell closing off the series once and for all while also teasing that maybe there’ll be ANOTHER sequel after the OVA series they literally called “FINAL.” Ah well.

4/11: The Owl House - Sad to see this one go, but it’s hard to imagine them doing a better finale than this, even if they had gotten the six seasons they deserved. I’m not as obsessed with The Owl House as I probably would’ve been had it come out when I was, like, 20, but it’s a really fantastic show for all the reasons people always say. Great characters, great world, great story. I love that this starry-eyed fantasy story about a teenager finding love and a place where she belongs is also set on the rotting corpse of a titan with Hieronymous Bosch-inspired scenery and freaky monsters everywhere. What a great mix. If anything, I just wish I would’ve watched the first season as it aired so I could’ve had more time with it.

4/29: Mega Man Battle Network 3: Blue Version - FINALLY beat this via the new collection, 20 years after playing it as my first Mega Man game. (Technically my first was White, not Blue, but whatever.) There are more annoyances than I remember - lots of really really bad forced backtracking sections where you have to revisit every previous part of the internet, low chip drop rates, some really aggravating bosses like BubbleMan and KingMan, etc. But it’s still a great time overall. It’s Battle Network. In the back half the story gets surprisingly emotional, too. I was always under the assumption that the Hub stuff never came back up much in the story after 1, so I was pleasantly surprised with how relevant it was to the emotional arc of 3.

4/30: Mega Man Battle Network 4: Red Sun * - Yeah I’m not playing through the whole thing lmao. I just wanted to play the first couple hours for nostalgia’s sake, and as a baseline for how much better the rest are. Even before getting deep in the game and having to deal with all the shit gated between doing two new game+ playthroughs, it’s immediately obvious how much of a downgrade this one is. Tons of glaring errors and typos all over the script, blander music, a way more boring aesthetic for the internet, and a premise that mostly just recycles the tournament idea from 3.

May

5/14: The Venture Bros. - Glad I finally sat down and watched all of this with Anthony after having seen one (1) episode as a teenager and a bunch of random clips in the years since. Great show. Some jokes in the early seasons haven’t aged gracefully, but what the show grows into over time... man. Hank and Dean go from being the butt of the joke to being characters you actually sympathize with - while still also being funny little goofballs. And the journey Henchman 21 goes on throughout the show. Man. Amazing that a comedy like this could run for 20 years and maintain its level of quality. Can’t wait for the movie.

5/18: Future Me Hates Me (The Beths) - Okay yeah I’m now just discovering bands through Fortnite lmao. I can’t complain really, they pick some really great indie artists for the in-game radio stations. Anyway: It’s very easy to win me over with a combination of energetic power pop, catchy guitar riffs, and earnest lyrics like this. One of those albums where three or four tracks in I know I have to buy it. Favorite track: Not Running

5/18: Jump Rope Gazers (The Beths) - Ditto. Favorite track: Dying to Believe

5/18: Expert In A Dying Field (The Beths) - Another good album. (I’m listening to these in release order.) I’ve been a bit slower to warm up to this one, initially thinking it was a little too mellow overall, but it might be my favorite after a few listens. Some real high highs. Interestingly, the lead singer’s New Zealand accent is also coming out more in her singing? Favorite track: Your Side (or maybe Head in the Clouds)

5/19: The Super Mario Bros. Movie - As a Mario fan, I think I enjoyed it? As a movie, less so? It was decent, in spite of feeling like they came up with a list of fun action setpieces first and then wrote the absolute bare minimum possible for the story scenes tying it all together. Full thoughts here. (This is the first movie I’ve seen this year, huh? I really don’t watch a lot of movies.)

5/23: Don't Know What You're In Until You're Out (Gladie) - I feel like I don’t like Gladie as much as I should. Their style of noisy indie rock is very much in my wheelhouse, and I do enjoy listening to them, but I dunno. Maybe it’s that the particular style of vocals makes it more monotonous to me. A good album nonetheless, if not 100% my thing. Favorite track: Nothing

5/24: City Slicker (Ginger Root) - Yes I am still making my way through Bandcamp artists I heard on Fortnite don’t @ me. Any excuse to get me to listen to some cool city pop-inspired funk like this is a good excuse. Favorite track: Loretta

5/24: Rikki (Ginger Root) - Favorite track: Why Try

5/25: Spotlight People (Ginger Root) - Favorite track: The Classic

5/29: Succession - A good dramedy series that increasingly focuses more on the drama than the comedy as it progresses, but it’s hard to complain about that since the drama is so compellingly produced. I enjoyed it. That being said, I kind of rankle at the claims that it’s The Greatest TV Show Of All Time. It’s great, don’t get me wrong. Amazing performances all around. But the show LOVES to spin its wheels, to repeat itself, and to let most of its interesting dramatic developments fizzle out before anything really comes of them, almost as if the show is constantly getting bored with its own ideas. To some extent this is intentional - Logan Roy is the untouchable billionaire, his kids fail at everything (but will nonetheless remain billionaires), and in the long run none of them really give a shit about anything other than their own status. But it’s not like things tend to visibly impact anyone else, either, be they supporting characters or the world at large. Even the Big Scary Election, where the Roy siblings are directly responsible for plunging the nation into chaos, ultimately has zero impact on the finale a mere two episodes later. Certain Other Things do have an impact in the last season, though, allowing things to meaningfully change for the cast and for the show to sit with the ensuing drama, which has stopped me from souring on Succession more. There was finally a payoff for something. But it does still kind of feel like a show that goes in circles until it’s ready to call it quits, even if those circles did contain a lot of great acting and music along the way.

5/29: Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts - I’d watched the first 12 episodes when they originally released, but I guess the Netflix binge release and the fact that all three “seasons” came out in one year led to me waiting until it finished… and then I just never got around to finishing it. Glad I fixed that! Really fun and stylish cartoon with an art style reminiscent of Teen Titans, a hip hop-filled soundtrack, dynamic fight scenes, and a colorful post-apocalyptic world filled with mutant (mostly anthropomorphic) animals. I’ll admit that at times I do kinda roll my eyes at Kipo’s unshakeable belief that everyone can be friends in a way that I don’t necessarily with similar shows like Steven Universe, and not every joke lands, but I dunno. It’s a kids’ show. That’s to be expected. It doesn’t detract from the overall package for me.

June

6/1: Craig of the Creek (Season 4) - It’s been years and I’m still processing the fact that kids can turn on Cartoon Network and hear Jeff Rosenstock. Anyway! Craig continues to be one of the best cartoons on TV, consistently funny and creative and way more engaging than a show about a bunch of kids LARPing in the woods has any right to be. This season turned into One Piece with the gang effectively hunting down the Poneglyphs in search of a legendary treasure. The kids think it’ll be magic. It isn't. An increasing number of cartoon logic gags aside, this show is firmly set in the real world. Does that make it any less interesting? Hell no. Season 3 turned a game of capture the flag into an all-out five episode war between the heroes and villains, filled with dramatic turnabouts and a climactic guest appearance from Del the Funky Homosapien. I’m sure however they wrap things up in the (sadly shortened) final season, it’ll be great. (Also? I would watch a whole show based on that “what if” episode that jumped forward to everyone’s 20s.)

6/6: Barry - Holy shit, what a show. I ended up binging it in less than a week in a cycle of “okay, just one more episode.” The way this show is able to swing between tones and genres while still feeling like a cohesive whole is truly masterful. It’s a layered character drama, a tragic crime thriller, a farcical comedy, an understated action series, a surrealist morality play, and a scathing satire of Hollywood, all in one. Even within the criminal underworld subplots the show ranges in tone from Breaking Bad to Paddington 2. And it works! While the show naturally gets bleaker over time as it confronts the repercussions of Barry’s murders, it never completely loses sight of its comedic roots. My favorite episode was easily season 2’s “ronny/lily,” a mostly self-contained episode that somehow manages to keep throwing the perfect curveballs to escalate its dark comedy.

6/12: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Extended Edition) - Y’all heard of this movie? Pretty good, it turns out. (I’d seen the theatrical cut before, but this was my first time watching the extended edition. I’ve also only seen parts of the other two movies, so it’s time I finally watch all the extended cuts. The Gollum game pushed me to this.)

6/13: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Extended Edition) - give it to us RAW and WRIGGLING

6/17: The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Extended Edition) - I’m not crying YOU’RE crying

6/22: Clone High (Season 2) - While the first episode being about “cancel culture” (or, more accurately, a teenager from 2003 being transported to 2023 and putting his foot in his mouth a lot) put a lot of people off, I ended up enjoying the new season of Clone High. The new clones grew on me as the season went on and their roles in the web of teen romance melodrama crystalized, and it made me laugh a lot, and Cleo/Frida is galaxy brained. Also they played one of my favorite Antarctigo Vespucci songs like a minute into the first episode. I don’t think I could really ask for much more.

6/28: The Mandalorian (Season 3) - I'd been watching this weekly but put off the last episode for no real reason. Responses to this season have been all over the place, but my blistering hot take is… it was fine. Is it as good as the first season? Probably not. But Mando no longer needs to carry the whole franchise on its shoulders and set the bar for how good the live action Disney Star Wars shows can be, because Andor exists, and it’s never gonna top Andor. The Mandalorian is free to just be a pulpy space adventure show where Giancarlo Esposito plays a scenery-chewing cartoon villain and a little puppet does wire stunts. These are things Andor cannot and should not do, but that’s Star Wars, baby. It’s delightful. I could watch Grogu get underhand tossed like a sack of flour all day.

July

7/2: Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury (Season 2) - LOVE WINS. (More nuanced take from way later: It definitely feels like a lot of the more messy political conflicts in this show got swept aside by the big final battle where some more easily resolved family conflicts take center stage. I’m not sure the ending is the most satisfying. But also this show only got half the episode count that damn near every other Gundam show ever made got, so that might be a factor here. Idk. Still one of my favorite Gundams.)

7/4: Final Fantasy XVI (watched Anthony play) - I had to write my longest Medium article ever about this one because I was so frustrated

7/10: Home Movies - “Things I like that I’ve never seen in full” has certainly been a recurring theme this year. Home Movies remains an all-time classic of animated comedy that went out on a high note before things got stale or the characters became parodies of themselves. While it’s mostly known for its funny improvised banter, throughout the last season you can really see the arc where Brendon no longer enjoys making movies, yet he feels obligated to keep using them to escape from the real world. In that light, the ending where the nature of their dysfunctional makeshift family is cemented, Brendon’s camera suddenly breaks, and life moves on really does feel like the perfect note to end on. Truly one of the best to ever do it.

7/15: The Legend of Zelda - Tears of the Kingdom - Wow. Just… wow. I had serious doubts about TotK in the months leading up to release due to how close Nintendo was playing their cards to their chest. I didn’t want this to be a Saints Row IV, where the game is fun enough but the recycled map makes it feel like a rehash. Instead, I found a game that made me look at BotW’s map in a whole new light, brimming with so many more things to do and people to meet. Add on a better, more versatile set of tools, more varied dungeons and bosses, and a story that I felt was told somewhat better and we’ve got a real contender for my new favorite Zelda game. It was hard to tear myself away, but as this list shows, it’s been basically the only game I’ve played since it came out.

7/16: Sonic Prime (Season 2) - I liked the parts with Shadow and Chaos Sonic, but I’ve come to the sad conclusion that most of this show is just mediocre. More thoughts here.

7/18: We ♥ Katamari Reroll + Royal Reverie - “I’m a dog, but I love Katamari Damacy.” Truer words have never been spoken.

7/19: Transformers: Rise of the Beasts - Pretty good! It didn’t blow me away, but after how bad the Bay movies got I’m just thankful to have a decently cohesive Transformers movie where the human story is okay and I like the bots (although half of them needed more screen time), even if it is just another Hollywood blockbuster about two sides fighting over a macguffin that devolves into a big CGI battle against an army of nameless monsters in the third act. This is basically a mid-tier MCU movie but with Transformers, which won’t do much for most people, but again: the bar was underground.

7/22: The Venture Bros.: Radiant is the Blood of the Baboon Heart - God DAMN. A phenomenal ending for the series. While I would have loved to see a full final season to get some more one-off episodes in there, this doesn’t feel creatively compromised in any way–either due to the time constraints, or due to a desire to make it more marketable as a movie. It really does feel like they just took their outlines for the canceled final season and gently massaged them into the shape of an 84-minute movie, and I mean that in the best possible way. It’s completely on par with the previous seasons. A hilarious and fitting sendoff for one of the greats of adult animation.

7/23: Beautiful Katamari - This was one of my first Xbox 360 games, but a frustrating temperature-based level made me put it down for 16 years. “Maybe it won’t be as bad now that I’ve beaten the first two games and am better at Katamari,” I thought. Nope! Still an absolutely dogshit level. But also, turns out the whole game is only like two hours long lmao. It’s still Katamari, so it’s still fun - the final level in particular, which seamlessly takes you from ground level all the way to space, feels like a logical endpoint for the series - but beyond that it just doesn't have the same soul without Keita Takahashi's input.

August

8/4: Doom Singer (Chris Farren) - I’ve been waiting so long for Chris and Jeff to do another Antarctigo Vespucci album, but god damn. This is the best of Chris’s solo work, and a contender for his best record, period. Every track’s a banger, with more energy than some of his previous solo work but also a good deal of variety. Favorite tracks: First Place, Cosmic Leash

8/4: Transformers Earthspark (Season 1) - This show had a bit of an uneven start, unsure if it wanted to have the emotional maturity of a more serious action cartoon or a preschool cartoon where the characters have little kid mood swings and outbursts and learn basic lessons. It also felt like it was speedrunning its Wholesome Found Family Dynamic with characters who just met, which didn’t feel earned. While these problems never completely go away (see: the cheap and corny way the otherwise very dark season finale suddenly resolves), the show improves quickly, and the positives outweigh the negatives. It’s so great to have a Transformers cartoon that feels fresh, giving us a post-war setting with a bunch of new characters and new dynamics between the Cybertronians and the humans. The returning characters are also uniformly great as the old veterans overseeing the new generation. (Reformed Megatron! Danny Pudi as Bumblebee! Steve Blum returning as Starscream! Keith David as Grimlock!!!) And those super dynamic action scenes! I can nitpick, but Earthspark’s a ton of fun, and easily the best new Transformers cartoon since Prime and Animated.

8/5: Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective (remaster) - Everyone who told me this game was a masterpiece was right. I had played the first chapter when it dropped as the demo for the iOS version years ago, but never went further than that until now. What a game. Absolutely incredible through and through. Great story, great twists, great characters, great puzzles, great art direction. Everything comes together so perfectly to form a totally unique, unforgettable package, a top tier video game murder mystery. Everyone should play this, preferably going in as blind as possible.

8/15: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (Season 16) - Wow! Recent seasons of Sunny have been kind of up and down, with some interesting experiments (Mac Finds His Pride, the Ireland arc, etc.) paired with some comedic duds. Most of this latest season is standard fare for the series with fewer big creative swings, but it’s just hit after hit in terms of comedy. Not a single dud, whether we’re seeing Mac and Dennis try to start a rental business for inflatable furniture or watching the gang meet Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul, believing the entire time that the latter is Malcolm from Malcolm in the Middle. Even the attempts at topical comedy landed better. Easily the funniest season in years.

8/16: One Piece Film Gold - It’s easy to see why this one has kind of been forgotten in the wake of Stampede and Film Red, which revolve around established fan favorite characters, but this was still pretty fun. Perhaps a little too long, but it’s fun to see the Straw Hats fool around in a giant casino and do a heist. They definitely cranked the fanservice up even more than usual in this one, though, as I probably should have expected for a movie made alongside the anime’s adaptation of Dressrosa.

8/17: One Piece: Stampede - This one goes for a different kind of fanservice. While most One Piece movies are isolated from the ongoing plot and its expanded cast of characters, Stampede instead asks “What if we just put damn near every active character on the same island and had them fight?” The answer: a fun time! It would get old if all of the movies were like this, but after a bunch of movies that are just like “the Straw Hats are gonna land on another new island and fight some more weird guys” it’s fun to see characters like Law and Buggy and Smoker get in on the fun. It’s also nice to get a movie with the Wano era art style, and Usopp surprisingly gets some really good character moments in here.

8/18: One Piece Film Red - This really is the best of the One Piece movies, huh? (Baron Omatsuri is a close second.) It really feels like a change of pace after the last four with the most interesting and emotionally engaging story out of any of them. And even if the events of these movies are never canon, it still feels significant in my understanding of Shanks as a character as we move into the final phase of the manga.

8/21: Pikmin 4 - The opening hour of the game made me really question if they’d changed too much, with all the focus on your new dog unit over your Pikmin and the extremely dull, drawn out dialogue scenes with your new companions back at the base. But once I got into the swing of things I had a blast. This is probably my new favorite Pikmin game. There’s a great mix of activities here to keep things fresh. I also really ended up liking Oatchi’s role as basically your second captain who can also serve as your tank or a rideable mount. The Dandori stuff and nighttime missions in particular show off how useful Oatchi is for your multitasking without necessarily overshadowing the Pikmin.

8/22: Never Get Tired: The Bomb the Music Industry! Story - I literally backed this on Kickstarter eight years ago (my name is in the credits!) and then never got around to watching it for no reason. It’s on YouTube now, and Jeff’s got a new album out next week, so now feels like the perfect time to watch it. And man… what a great documentary. Obviously I’m just a fan of the band, but this also really spoke to me as an artist. Jeff wanting to stick to his principles and give out his music for free and play cheap all ages shows, his discomfort over the idea of selling merch, and the struggles that come with not playing the game like that… It's hard. They readily admit that Jeff is an idealist, that people fight him on this stuff, that he’s missed out on some big opportunities because of these stances, and that he’s had to compromise a bit on some of these things over time. But that incredible climax with their final show, including a full opening performance of the slowly building “Campaign for a Better Next Weekend” and the closing performance of “Future 86” where the whole audience is singing along as the members of the band are hugging and crying… it’s beautiful. This may have been a band where the members had to go back to their shitty day jobs after every tour because they weren’t selling out arenas, but their art meant something to people, and that makes it all worth it.

8/25: Nimona - I haven’t read the original comic (yet), so I can’t compare them too much, but it’s nonetheless pretty apparent that some things were softened and easy kids’ movie jokes were added by the studio to squeeze this graphic novel for teens into a PG animated movie. Regardless, the emotional throughline hits REALLY hard, particularly the very blatant trans allegory and the climax. (It’s no wonder Disney was afraid of this movie seeing the light of day lmao.) The animation is also very squishy and fun to watch throughout. Great movie.

8/26: Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - Spider-Verse really has done so much for animation, huh? This one was as good as everyone said. Beautiful use of stylized color and lighting throughout, and every time this movie very conspicuously shifted to different framerates for a flashy fight scene it owned. Very cute and heartwarming story, too, which thankfully gave its second act plenty of time to explore the cast and let them go on their journey, unlike a certain plumber movie that came out a few months later. Also I would let Death [redacted]

8/28: Holocure: Save the Fans! - This isn't really something I can beat, but I've been addicted to Holocure lately. I don't even watch VTubers aside from maybe seeing a funny Korone animation every now and then, this is just a really, really good freeware Vampire Survivors clone with a huge roster of varied characters to pick from.

8/31: HELLMODE (Jeff Rosenstock) - A new album from Jeff is always a major event for me. If there were any worries that he was starting to go soft at 40 (because one of the three singles off this album was a gentle acoustic piece), the frantic opening of this album put those worries to rest. The first two tracks are Jeff screaming out for help as he’s pulled in a million directions by the chaotic state of the world, a theme that becomes the thesis of the album. I’d say it lags slightly in the middle, but overall this is another extremely well-rounded record full of bangers that’s unapologetically Jeff, with possibly my favorite closing track he’s ever done. Favorite tracks: I WANNA BE WRONG, 3 SUMMERS

September

9/3: One Piece (live action, Season 1) - They did it. I can’t believe it, but they did it. While I have my nitpicks (Usopp and Sanji don’t get enough big moments to shine), this is an extremely solid and faithful adaptation of the first few arcs of One Piece with a great cast. For the most part the changes feel smart and logical, and the big emotional beats of the story are all there and executed very well. I doubted it a little in episodes 2-4, where the Orange Town and Syrup Village arcs saw some major changes to shift the action indoors, and the increased focus on the drama in favor of repeating every gag and battle from the manga 1:1 took a bit of getting used to, but by the end I was having a blast. It’s a different take on One Piece, but it still feels like One Piece. Genuinely very excited for season 2.

9/4: Pseudoregalia - A great little N64-style 3D Metroidvania focused on platforming and very satisfying movement. I always love entries in the genre that are less prescriptive in what order you have to tackle areas in, a la Symphony of the Night or Hollow Knight, and this one’s great in that regard. While there are a number of new moves to find, most of the map is open to you very early in the game, and smart use of your moveset can allow you to “sequence break” without even realizing it. (You would not believe how long I went without getting the wall run.) I do wish it had a map, but that’s already being patched in.

9/6: Bomb Rush Cyberfunk * - Not a bad game at all, but I quickly remembered how bad I am at skating games, so like… eh? Not sure I have much desire to play past chapter 2. Also the soundtrack is sadly kinda hit or miss for me outside of the obvious Naganuma tunes.

9/9: The History of the Minnesota Vikings (Dorktown) - Jon Bois never misses. Even as someone who doesn’t actively follow sports, Jon Bois is a master storyteller, using graphs and statistics and funny anecdotes to explore these deeply human stories. He can convey why people care so much about these teams, these people, and sports in general, and how our popular sports reflect on American culture. He could tell the story of just about any team or player in any sport and I just know I’ll come out the other side a misty-eyed fan. And what a fascinating cast of characters we have this time, with origin stories for everything from the Hail Mary pass to a Minnesota state supreme court judge to the Griddy. Nine hours well spent.

9/10: Timespinner - A fun and highly polished Metroidvania that maybe doesn’t quite have enough of its own identity in its quest to replicate Symphony of the Night…but also, like, this was pitched as a Symphony throwback on KickStarter in a pre-Bloodstained, pre-Hollow Knight world, so I can’t really blame ‘em! Stopping time to avoid boss attacks is fun, the pixel art is gorgeous, and I liked the dark science fantasy story about warring empires and meddling with time a lot more than I thought I would - lore journal text dumps and all.

9/14: The Decay of Sam & Cat (Quinton Reviews) - All the stuff at the end with Matt Bennett (the actor who played Robbie on Victorious and Sam & Cat) in this was really good and sweet. It’s that kind of thing that makes these videos feel like they’re still worthwhile on some level. But the padding and the things Quinton chooses to spend the colossal runtime on does drive me more and more insane with each passing Nick sitcom video. I don’t know how much longer he can keep this schtick up. I hope he’s able to move on to other things before too terribly long instead of continuing to extend this “miniseries.”

9/19: Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales - AKA Insomniac’s Marvel’s Spider-Man 1.5. It’s fun for the same reasons Peter’s first game was fun. I had a good time swinging around New York again in preparation for the sequel, and there’s a lot of cute stuff with Miles becoming Harlem’s neighborhood hero, but WOW did the Underground v. Roxxon conflict fall flat for me.

9/20: I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson - I understand so many posts now.

9/25: Spider-Man (2002) (rewatch) - It’s you who’s out, Gobby! OUT OF YOUR MIND!

9/25: Futurama (Season 8) - I was ready to be a hater, recalling the fact that Futurama has already had three “perfect endings” with the show getting a little weaker with every revival. Then I watched the first new episode on a whim and thought it wasn’t bad, so I was like, eh, sure, I’ll watch the rest. Overall Hulurama is hit or miss. There are chuckles to be had, and it sure as hell beats modern Simpsons, but almost every episode is either a belated take on an overplayed Topical Issue (the pandemic, Amazon, cancel culture, etc.) or a direct sequel to an old episode people liked. Or both! It’s also really noticeable that certain voice actors sound way older - Billy West is struggling with the Fry voice in particular, and it hurts his comedic timing. But just when all hope seemed lost after the nigh-incomprehensible toy-themed anthology episode, possibly the worst episode of the entire series… the last episode, where the Planet Express crew explores whether or not the universe could be a simulation, was really, really solid. Great note to end on to make me not regret my time with this season as a whole.

9/26: Spider-Man 2 (2004) (rewatch) - Once the GOAT, always the GOAT.

9/27: Spider-Man 3 (rewatch) - Revisiting this movie for the first time since I saw it in theaters… it’s not bad. It’s fine! It continues to have the heart and sincerity that make the first two movies work. It’s just not as concise with three villains vying for the spotlight, but I also wouldn’t cut any of them, necessarily. I guess Eddie/Venom would be the easiest, but Peter getting the black suit and giving in to his resentment feels too central to cut. (Yes, even with Emo Peter becoming a meme.)

9/28: Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake - I wasn’t really sure what to expect with this one, especially since I was never really a fan of the genderbend episodes in the original show. (At the time they mostly just felt like an excuse to crank up the teen romance stuff to 11.) But MAN. This was a fantastic coda to the original series. It made me care about Fionna and Cake and their friends as their own characters separate from their original counterparts, it gave the Simon/Betty arc a much more satisfying (if no less bittersweet) resolution than the original finale had time to do, and it even managed to be a multiverse story that didn’t make me roll my eyes in 2023. A+ all around. Makes me wanna rewatch the original show again. [spoiler: I did]

9/29: Meanwhile (aivi & surasshu) - It’s been a whole decade–they were busy with, you know, all the music in Steven Universe, among other things–but we finally have a new aivi & surasshu album! Their chiptune/piano fusion style is familiar, but they’ve definitely grown as composers in subtle ways. Favorite track: Time Travel

October

10/1: This is Financial Advice (Folding Ideas) - A lot of the nitty gritty finance law stuff turned into white noise for me, but still, great video. I had no idea that the GameStop stock craze devolved into this bizarre cult that thinks they’re going to crash the global economy and rise from the ashes as the new kings with the value of their GME stocks. Glad this video exists to try and balance out the narrative.

10/5: Sonic Frontiers: The Final Horizon DLC - Good ideas, absurdly frustrating and tedious execution. Full thoughts here.

10/10: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (rewatch) - I didn’t plan this, but very fitting that I would end up rewatching this on 10/10.

10/12: Half-Life Alyx but the Gnome is Self-Aware (wayneradiotv) - ha he! (Seriously though, that finale was a fucking masterpiece. The RTVS crew has an incredible knack for using the framing device of video game livestreams to blur the lines between comedy and horror, or ironic anti-humor and complete sincerity. I’ve never seen anything else like this.)

10/15: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Not sure how much I can say that hasn’t already been said. The most visually creative movie I’ve ever seen, grounded by some really excellent storytelling about Miles (and now Gwen) that’s probably better than his actual comics. But it also does feel like it’s about to end and then the movie just keeps going like ten times over lmao. Can’t wait to watch this a second time on a better TV.

10/20: Sonic Superstars - A mostly really solid and fun 2D Sonic game that’s unfortunately dragged down by an extremely hodgepodge soundtrack and some overly drawn out boss fights. I spent HOURS trying to beat the final boss of the bonus scenario (which is required for the true ending in this one) before giving up. Really a shame that that’s the note I’m leaving the game on, because I otherwise enjoyed it, but ah well. More thoughts here.

10/27: Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 - Another good Spider-Man game from Insomniac. Liked the story more than the one in Miles Morales, but maybe not as much as the first game. Extensive thoughts here.

10/28: Venom - Was in the mood for more Venom after the game. As expected this was not a very good movie, but the dynamic between Eddie and Venom made it a fun watch. Tom Hardy is constantly about to shit his pants in this movie. It’s great.

10/28: Venom: Let There Be Carnage - I had a way better time with this one. Is this a good movie? No. But it cranks the insanity of the first movie up to 11. Goofy as fuck in an extremely watchable way.

November

11/5: Pluto - An absolutely masterful series that anyone interested in sci-fi needs to watch. The anime adaptation was great, and I immediately understand why people who’ve read the manga speak so highly of it. Really makes me want to get into Astro Boy more, and also read some of Urasawa’s other works.

11/18: Scott Pilgrim Takes Off - Wow, just wow. When news of a Scott Pilgrim anime broke I was cautiously curious to see if we’d get a more direct adaptation of the comics, and instead it veered off in the exact opposite direction in the best way possible. This is almost entirely a different story, one that’s in conversation with the previous versions (sometimes in very meta ways), and I think it’s really valuable to see O’Malley revisiting these characters with new things to say about them. The major story divergence gives us a chance to examine the characters from a new angle - particularly Ramona, who’s the real protagonist of this version, and the evil exes, who completely steal the show. This was a great reminder of why I fell in love with this series as a teenager. I now genuinely hope we get more Scott Pilgrim.

11/22: Void Rivals (Issues #1 - #6) - The first arc of the new Robert Kirkman series that kicked off Skybound’s new “Energon Universe” is now complete, and I’m left thinking Void Rivals is… okay? I thought the first issue was a decent (if not particularly original) sci-fi comic with an appealing art style, which just so happens to also briefly have a Transformer in it so there can be a Big Surprise. And the series still hasn’t quite shaken that feeling to me. It’s an okay sci-fi series that arbitrarily dedicates a couple of pages of every issue to something from Transformers, but I’m not really sure what the shared universe stuff adds to Void Rivals, or what Void Rivals adds to Transformers and GI Joe. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

11/22: Journey to EPCOT Center: A Symphonic History (Defunctland) - Yeah, gotta be honest, I only got halfway through this one. It seems like Kevin just 1) really wanted to push himself creatively and 2) make a love letter to Epcot, and while I respect that, I think it suffers as a historical documentary. It’s Fantasia but for the creation of Epcot. That might be very impressive on a technical level, but it feels more like a piece of Disney propaganda than prior Defunctland videos due to a lack of context and nuance. 

11/24: Aperture Desk Job - A short, sweet, and funny little tech demo for my new Steam Deck set in the Portal universe. More effort was definitely put into this than was strictly necessary.

11/26: ESCHATOS - I am not good at bullet hell games, but I enjoy them from time to time and I really love this one’s FM synth soundtrack, so I picked it up on a whim in the Steam sale. I only beat it on Easy, but still, I had a lot of fun with it! It’s straightforward but very flashy, with the camera dynamically zooming around from set piece to set piece at ridiculous speeds and each level segueing directly into the next. The lack of a powerup system on the main mode in favor of just needing to know when to use your different shot types makes it feel very approachable.

11/27: Lunistice - A great little 3D platformer with a good soundtrack that I had fun hunting down all the secrets in. This is an easy recommendation for fans of games like Kirby or Klonoa - whimsical games set in colorful dream worlds where the underlying story can get a bit more somber. (Although the story in this one is mostly told through mildly cryptic lore dumps, so your mileage there may vary.)

11/28: Spark the Electric Jester 2 - The leap from 2D to 3D here is impressive, but this is very clearly a rough draft for Spark 3. Very, very fun Sonic-style 3D platforming, but the combat is lacking and the storytelling is just kinda bad. More extensive thoughts on this and the above two games here.

December

12/2: Fortnite (Chapter 4) - This was my first full chapter of Fortnite, after having been roped into the game by the siren songs of Zero Build mode and Goku during Chapter 3. This means it’s harder for me to compare this chapter to previous ones, but still, Fortnite remains a genuinely very well made Battle Royale shooter that’s a blast with friends. If I have any complaint about this Chapter, it’s that they would regularly introduce zany ideas and then slowly reel them back in, whether it was the Augment system or the increasingly mundane movement items. It also felt like it was a little too easy to get the perfect loadout in every match, meaning the final showdown would almost always be against players with Slurp Juice and gold shotguns. And I missed the smaller mid-season map updates of Chapter 3. But overall I still had a really good time, and look forward to playing more for the foreseeable future.

12/4: Plagiarism and You(Tube) (HBomberguy) - This will get written off by many as “YouTuber drama,” but this really is an excellent video essay that feels like the kick in the pants that YouTube needs. If video essayists are gonna be a major source of information for so many, then they gotta have standards. I also think it does a good job of highlighting the people that have been plagiarized and trying to drive more attention their way in an attempt to right those wrongs.

12/6: Transformers (Skybound comic) - We only got the first three issues of this in 2023, but I just HAVE to say something about how incredible this series is here. Daniel Warren Johnson is knocking it out of the park. This is the new bar for Transformers. The hand-inked art is extremely dynamic and full of character, and the story is using the familiar beats of G1 Transformers but doing very new things with them. You can tell this from the very first page, but the emotional scene of Optimus accidentally crushing a deer in the forest and realizing how fragile life is on Earth sealed the deal for me. And yet in the very same comics Optimus can do suplexes and clotheslines and lord knows how many other wrestling moves on Decepticons, and it doesn’t feel like tonal whiplash? These comics just fucking rule, and anyone with even the slightest interest in Transformers should be reading them.

12/8: What We Do in the Shadows (Season 5) - [spoilers] WWDITS has very much settled into being a status quo show. Every season has its own little arc where one or two things change to keep things interesting, but then everything returns to normal by the end. Guillermo finally becoming a vampire, only to become a human again in the end, might just be the most egregious example of this yet. But also… the show’s still really funny? And I continue to be happy that Kristen Schaal has stuck around as a series regular as the Guide. So it’s hard to complain. I could see the show running out of steam over the next few seasons, but it’s still hitting for me right now.

12/12: Pony Island - Finally got around to this since the trailer for the sequel dropped. I feel like playing this years later in a post-Inscryption world where Pony Island is a known quantity kind of lessens its impact, but still, it’s a fun and funny puzzle game where you try to hack your way out of a possessed arcade machine. I’m not sure I found it particularly scary, but I’m not sure it’s supposed to be? The way the game messes with you during the Asmodeus “boss fight” was probably the highlight for me. I also like being able to say things like “The part where you have to not kill Jesus was so hard. I kept getting terrible butterfly patterns.”

12/16: Breaking Bad VR but the AI is Self-Aware (wayneradiotv) - As always, Wayne and co.’s commitment to the bit is unrivaled. This kind of got interpreted as just a way to troll HLVRAI fans, but so many moments in this genuinely made me laugh out loud.

12/18: Soul of Sovereignty Prelude - As someone who would list Cucumber Quest as a big creative influence, I was naturally very excited for this first chapter of GGDG’s new visual novel. Their mentality of both scaling things back in terms of labor while also going more shamelessly self-indulgent in terms of storytelling after burning out on making webcomics has really spoken to me, and WOW, the end result of that new process of theirs is shaping up to be something really special. The art and music are sparse but extremely evocative, giving you the rough sketch of the world and letting your mind fill in the rest. The story blends literary high fantasy vibes with the style of fantasy seen in ‘90s JRPGs (you can definitely tell this came from an idea for an RPG), but rather than constantly winking at the audience and making self-aware video game references it plays these storytelling ideas extremely sincerely, giving them real dramatic weight while still indulging in fun tropes to their fullest extent. While it’s a far cry from their most famous work with much more mature content, GGDG always excels at creating characters and worlds that immediately grab me. I can’t wait for the rest.

12/18: Barbie - I’m only… what, five months late for the whole Barbenheimer thing? Perfect timing. Anyway! On the one hand, I get the critiques saying that this movie is just a major corporation funding a self-aware feminist critique of their own product as a marketing ploy. And I kinda agree with that. And the movie is a little too long, and I don’t really know what to think of the way the Barbie/Ken conflict plays out. Anthony asked me to summarize what the story ended up being about, and I had no idea what to even say. But also… I did still like the movie? We don’t get a lot of cartoonish, absurdist, fourth wall breaking comedies like this anymore, and this is a good one of those. Also the whole cast is great, the set design is kind of stunning, and the cinematography is consistently appealing. I wouldn’t say it’s a revolutionary work of feminist filmmaking by any stretch, but it’s a good comedy movie.

12/21: Dr. Stone: New World - Man, Dr. Stone is great. I’ve said this many times, but I just love that this series uses all the trappings of shounen that would normally be used to hype up the protagonist learning a new move to instead hype up things like the protagonist building a loom or a hot air balloon. It’s shounen Bill Nye. I didn’t completely love everything about the Treasure Island arc this season, but it all built towards a really fun climax with a lot of satisfying turnabouts where the heroes use their ingenuity to just barely win.

12/23: The History of Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out World Records (Summoning Salt) - Truly one of my favorite Summoning Salt videos ever, even with how repetitive Punch-Out can get to watch. It’s just so hard to beat “and that runner… was me.”

12/24: Super Mario Bros. Wonder - What more can be said that hasn’t already been said? It’s the best and most creative 2D Mario game since the ‘90s. The only real flaws are that it’s a little easy, the Search Party stages are annoying in singleplayer, and I wish that every boss prior to the final boss wasn’t just some form of Bowser Jr. fight. But those aren’t nearly enough to drag the whole experience down. It was a blast.

12/24: Do a Powerbomb! - Got this from Anthony as a birthday present. This is the previous series by the creative team currently doing the new Transformers comics I was gushing about a few entries ago. Even with the high bar set by those comics, Do a Powerbomb! exceeded my expectations. Holy shit. An absolutely entrancing fantasy wrestling miniseries full of dynamic, energetic action and tons of heart. These comics where a guy wrestles a giant talking orangutan almost made me cry. Twice. An instant favorite.

12/25: Adventure Time (rewatch) - We ended up finishing our rewatch of Adventure Time (the main series, anyway) on my 30th birthday, which feels appropriate. I already kinda knew this, but this rewatch has truly confirmed that Adventure Time is my favorite TV series of all time. The entire show is even better on a full series rewatch. In hindsight, even parts that annoyed me when they aired end up being important parts of the beautiful tapestry that is this series. The many low points of Finn’s adolescent love life are important stepping stones in his growth as a person, which leaves him in an extremely satisfying place by the end. Jake having kids didn’t get to be a huge status quo change because they grew up instantly, but then they did a bunch of fun episodes about Jake’s relationships with his adult children that deepened him as a character. And most of the big lore questions they kept teasing over the years (“Where’d the humans go?” “Who are Finn’s parents?” “When’s Finn gonna get a robot arm?” etc.) ended up getting satisfying and creative answers, because the show left itself the room to figure those things out later. This is a truly special, one-of-a-kind series, one that lasted nearly 300 episodes and yet still seems like it was over too soon. And yes, I did in fact cry during the final montage, like I knew I would. I will always cherish this show with all of my heart.

12/25: Olive the Other Reindeer (rewatch) - Haven’t seen this one since I was a kid! It was a favorite of mine back then, and while it might not be quite as funny as I remember it’s still very cute, with a 2D/3D hybrid art style that remains very unique and appealing. As an adult I can also appreciate the cast they got for this, with like half the cast of Futurama bolstered by guests like Michael Stipe from REM and The Sopranos’ Joe Pantoliano.

12/26: Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio - Anthony and I capped off our Christmas with the most jolly and festive stop motion movie of all! Jokes aside, man, what a beautiful movie. The animation is immaculate, and we really just don’t get children’s animated films like this anymore. Ones that overtly feature real world politics and religion and so many other dark themes in a way that doesn’t talk down to kids or sugarcoat things. This one hits hard. We need more movies like this.

12/31: Oppenheimer - This was an interesting one. Despite being three hours, the way that first hour jumps around in time makes it feel like Oppenheimer is constantly being propelled forward through life at a breakneck pace, swept up by the rising tide of nationalism in spite of his personal left wing politics, never really reflecting on what he’s doing until it’s too late. Then when he’s no longer useful to the empire, he’s chewed up and spat out, only to eventually be honored as a national hero as a symbolic gesture. It’s a compelling story. However, I’m a little torn on how certain aspects of history were framed. Does the abstraction of the bombings detract from the true weight of those events, in favor of sympathizing with the man who built the bomb? Or is it clever a way to show how the realities of the war were compartmentalized away by people who were complicit in its most heinous acts of violence? One minute a bunch of physicists are talking theory, thousands of miles away from the theaters of war, and the next they’ve killed 200,000 people. So which is it? Eh, probably somewhere in the middle, I guess. But I liked it overall.

12/31: Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe - I’ve been really surprised by how good this rerelease is. It kind of flew under the radar for me. I liked the original game, but at the time it also almost felt like the New Super Mario Bros. of Kirby. It was a straightforward throwback game where you went through a grass world, then a desert world, then a water world, etc., and also they added four player co-op. But returning to this one after the kinda mid Star Allies has made me appreciate just how solid RtDL is as a Kirby game. I really like the updated graphics, too - yes, even the new cel shaded outlines around the characters - even though I didn’t think it looked that great in screenshots. Also the two new copy abilities (Sand and Mecha) are fun, the minigame collection is shockingly fleshed out to the point that they could’ve sold it as a standalone eShop game, the collectible character masks are fun, and the new epilogue mode where you play as Magolor is one of the coolest bonus modes they’ve ever done. This is a top tier Kirby remake any fan of the series should check out.

Ongoing things I followed in 2023 that don't have a blurb:

Halo Infinite multiplayer

IDW Sonic the Hedgehog (main series + specials)

One Piece

Chainsaw Man

My Hero Academia (not caught up)

The JOJOlands (not caught up)

Things I started in 2023 that I still need to finish:

Freedom Planet 2

Hi-Fi Rush

Live A Live

Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Picross 3D Round 2

Rhythm Heaven MegaMix

Mega Man Battle Network 5: Team ProtoMan

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Spark the Electric Jester 3

Sonic Dream Team

One Piece (Wano arc, anime)

Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 (I’ve already read the Shibuya arc already in the manga, though)

Astro Boy (2003 anime)

Futurama (original run rewatch)

One Piece (manga reread)

The Amazing Spider-Man (Lee/Ditko era)

Scott Pilgrim series (reread)

And finally... my favorites of 2023!!!

Overall favorite game: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Favorite indie game: Pseudoregalia

Games remastered in 2023 that are now among my all-time faves: Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, We Love Katamari

Most pleasant surprise in gaming: The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog

Favorite film: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Favorite live action show: Barry

Favorite anime: Pluto

Favorite anime written by a Canadian guy and an American guy based on the Canadian guy's old graphic novel series: Scott PIlgrim Takes Off

Favorite live action adaptation of an anime that I still can't believe they didn't fuck up: One Piece

Favorite Western cartoon: Adventure Time: Fionna & Cake

Favorite older cartoon I only got around to watching in its entirety this year: The Venture Bros.

Favorite documentary: Double Fine PsychOdyssey

Favorite semi-improvised semi-scripted absurdist comedy/horror/tragedy Twitch livestream performance art thing: Half-Life Alyx but the Gnome is Self-Aware finale (wayneradiotv)

Favorite manga: Chainsaw Man

Favorite older manga that I only read this year: Berserk

Favorite Western comic book: Daniel Warren Johnson's Transformers

Favorite album: HELLMODE (Jeff Rosenstock)

And that's a wrap!!!!! Happy new year, everyone! Here's to me maybe actually reading a goddamn book this year

#bobby writes #i don't have a writing tag so i'm making one now to save this and other things

[animealways]

Im sorry i wasn't a good dad

tony x stark!reader/mention of peter, morgan and pepper (wrote this as father to his daughter fic but reader gender is never revealed so make of that what you want)

''hiiiiyaaa''

morgan yelled as she swing her plastic lightsaber while peter blocked her with his lightsaber. you watch the 2 fool around and it remind you of your dad messing around with you.

''here you go kid''

tony stark, the infamous iron man, genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist. no one ever thought he would settle down and live the simple life. after all even after having his first child he never slowed down and clearly wasn't going to anytime soon but you knew different. as his first child you saw those moments where he showed his true feelings. those glimses of kindness, wanting to do right and that longing for peace/happieness.

you took a sip of your drink as did your dad. both of you calmly watching the younger starks playing. peter recently got adopted into the family after the incident with mysterio killed his aunt. he is now legally apart of the family but honestly he was that way before your dad plopped the adoption papers infront of him.

-flashback-

peter was doing some schoolwork while you taught him. he still got his school work but didn't go to school for the past 3 months cause of the whole ''spiderman is just a kid and he murdered mysterio'' drama with the media. morgan was watching something on her tablet.

your dad and mom came into the room with some paper and threw it infront of peter. '''guess what?'' peter looked up to tony then you unsure of what going on. you just gave him a smile knowing whats gonna happen next.

''we're adopting a kid!''

''thats great si-''

''and you're the kid!''

you and your dad said in unison. peter eyes widen.

''w-what...? is this a prank?'' this has to be a joke, right?

pepper put a hand on peter shoulder as she sat next to him.

''no peter, it isn't. we all talked about it and all of us want you to be part of the family offically on paper.''

''yeah all you have to do is sign here and your offically a stark.''

peter looked utterly shocked and tears started to form in his eyes.

''i-i don't k-'' you cut him off before he finished his scentance.

''then don't, just let it all out. you're safe here.'' you gave him a headpet and all the emotions spilled out. something you and peter shared was the dealing with the fear of losing people, parents in particuliar. you knew exactly how it felt to be in the dumps and being picked up pieces by pieces and the overwhemling feelings it came along with it.

pepper let him cry on her shoulder, rubbing his back while morgan ran over trying to dry his tears to no availe. ''why are you crying?'' morgan asked worried she thought peter be smiling. ''sometimes emotions get so big we don't react the way we usually do'' you explained to morgan. she just nodded and hugged peter.

-end of flashback-

now peter parker is peter stark things slowly got better bit by bit. you couldn't help but smile at the memory. you wouldn't leave the kid alone even if it ment dying and your father felt the same.

his head however was somewhere els though. the sight infront of him remind him of you as a child. the good and the bad. and man were the bad memories horrible. he remembers the times to disneyland, builing tech, the parties, the missions and so much more but alot of them had a bittersweet taste to them.

disneyland was always fun, building tech was fun until something exploded and sent you flying almost giving tony a heart attack every single time it happend but it was one of your fav things to do so it happen alot, the parties were fun until he got drunk and you had to drag his ass out of there before it got out of hand and the missions man were you stubborn about that. the only reason he allowed it to happen was because your a supersoldier and under the condition he would always tag along.

but alot of them had 1 thing in common. tony doing crazy shit and putting you in danger. he couldn't help but feel guilty for that. all the time he acted reckless and you having to deal with the aftermath, being completely helpless to all of it as a child. the stress he must have put you under for all those years. no wonder you wanted to join the avengers so badly. back then he just thought it was you wanting to become a superhero and nothing more but looking at how you are now. apart must of you felt like if you joined the avengers you have more controle over your life and be able to make a name for yourself instead of being in tony shadow.

''im sorry (y/n)'' you looked at him confused as you took a sip.

''for what exactly? did you blow up something?'' you immedaitely looked at the garages. he chuckled at your antics knowing exactly where they came from.

''no, no don't worry. its just... i could have been a better dad to you...''

''dad, you did your best. sure you fucked up a bunch of times but... you still mean the world to me. i wouldn't be half the person i am without you.'' tony smiled hearing your feelings towords him but he bite is under lip knowing he could have done better.

''it doesn't change the fact i put you thru alot. i should have protected you from the danger instead of dragging you into it.''

''to be fair dad, i wouldn't be a real stark if i wasn't a magnet for danger.'' he chuckled knowing goddamn well that is true. its seems to be a trait that somehow runs in the family.

''just do me a favor and don't blow up half of this house for morgan and peter sake.''

''i won't.'' he looked at the 2 pretending to be in the star wars movie.

''i promise to do it right this time.'' you smiled at him.

''i know you will, dad.'' you stuck out your fist to him and the 2 of you did your handsake. something the 2 of you started to do ever since your 12.

#tony stank #tony stark daughter #tony #tony stark #tony stark x reader #tony stark imagine #tony x you #tony x daughter!reader #tony x son!reader #tony x stark!reader #tony x child!reader #iron man reader insert #iron dad #ironman #iron man x reader #iron man imagine #iron man #morgan stark #the avengers #avengers #peter parker imagine #peter parker #peter parker x reader #peter x reader #peter x you #peter x stark!reader #pepper stark #pepper potts #pepperony #stark!daughter

[noodleblade]

Random thoughts about how BD and KO's dynamic could've played out if budget cuts didn't send the big guy to the grave, and he became an autobot, be like: I imagine this happening in ep "Plus one"

KO: Alright, how long have you two been dating, because you argue like an old married couple

BD: (honking after him) Knock Out!

KO: Ugh, and speaking of bitter exes.

BD: Pull over KO, this is going to far

KO: Ha! Make me you slow brute (accelerates)

BD: Low blow (uses the terrain as a ramp) good thing I know how to take the high road! (KO, has to break in order to not get squash by BD)

KO: Hey! WATCH IT! Don't think you can get away with ruining my finish now that you're an autobot.

BD: End of the line Knock Out, hand over the humans and forget about the fossil

KO: Breakdown, don't tell me you now have a soft spot for them too. I'll make you a deal, big guy (transforms and holds the humans tight, turning his other sand into a saw) fetch me the fossil and I let the humans walk.

BD: ... Why you doing this KO?

Knock Out: Because, this is what WE decepticons do, now, play nice or else-

BD: Don't give me that scrap! You don't believe in the decepticon cause, you never did! So why do you keep playing lapdog

KO: How DARE you!

BD: Answer me, Knock Out!

KO: I did it for you! I left Velocitron for you! I joined the Deceptions for you! YOU were my cause! And yet you left us! Left me! For a bunch of fleshies and their leader.

BD: ... Knock...

KO: Tell me Breakdown, when did I stop being enough of a reason for you? (yeets the humans to distract BD, and transforms to go after the train)

;____________________________________; anon....that's so bittersweet</3 I stopped working to read this on my phone! The drama, the angst, the hurt....maybe one day the comfort....;___; <3

I have my own little Breakdown Lives and Becomes an Autobot AU wip I want to work on when I finish up some other projects I have going on. Its a bit more sad, somber than this (maybe I'll post some snippets at some point....)

But reading this, I kind of love them as bitter exes that are still not quite over each other!!! Makes me want to write a little something of them splitting off before the events of Prime and being forced to face off. I want the snarky digs and borderline banter. I want them not really putting their all into a fight and when they see the other in danger, momentarily forgetting their faction ties to save the other. I want a scene where they are forced to work together and realize how much they miss each other and how well they just ARE together. I want another bot there (my brain supplied smokescreen but anyone would work) watching them in awe. I want them pleading the other to come back to them and join their side, both of them too scared to leave not knowing if they would be able to get back what they had.BFWRNFCFKNVWKENDSFEKJVNF OK ADDING THIS TO MY RUNNING WIP DOCS THANK YOU. The wip list is getting ridiculously long.

#kobd #knock out #breakdown #tfp #transformers #anonymous #asks #fic ideas

[lunarriviera]

i have finished reboot & i am sad

it's bittersweet—i mean, it was time to be finished with it; i've been watching it literally over the course of the pandemic. but enough! all things must end, even the arduously dragged-out conclusion of a whacked-out chinese tomb raiding drama featuring poisonous gas, hordes of insects, zombies, hand crabs, flying carnivorous clams, and "coffin dew," which like all the rest of those things does not exist. ruminations and pictures and spoilers behind the cut!

1. so why is this xie yuchen the most boring xie yuchen out of all of them? i don't even know this actor's name because i never bothered learning it. also when the hell did he become a doctor and do sketchy operations on people without anaesthesia? he's wearing pink, he's rich, he has the same name; but there the resemblance ends. this is not the xiao hua we know and love. where is my bitchy swishy opera-singing organized crime boss? no wonder there's no chemistry between him and xiazi; this guy barely has a pulse. sorry to this man. nice sweater, tho.

2. i was trying to prove that pangzi says "that's not your xiaoge" (which he doesn't, those are bad subtitles; he just says "that's not xiaoge") and instead captured this adorable picture of drunk bai haotian. xiao bai gets a bad rap—mao xiaotong is adorable and sweet and honestly kinda hot when she's not trapped in a bowl haircut and overalls. i appreciate that wu xie, busily dying of lungs, doesn't have time or patience to explain to her why he's not available, but zhu yilong plays it wisely straight down the middle, face impassive. ship it or don't, he seems to be saying; i don't care, it's not up to me anyway—the viewer can read it however they want. (but wu xie does manhandle her on more than one occasion and that's also kinda hot.)

3. admittedly liu sang is very very pretty but i still don't want him in my pingxie, like mint in my chocolate chip ice cream. no thank you please. i have always considered myself a multishipper, a live-and-let-live fan; but this fandom has taught me i'm monogamous and i guess there's nothing i can do about that. still. look at liu chang's beautiful features. he made me care about jinx beyond just his function as a whump magnet, and that's an achievement. someday maybe his ouxiang will give him the hug he deserves.

4. speaking of beautiful just look at these total idiots. i'm going to miss their stupid faces. xiaoge drinking water, so he can be sober enough to take his drunk husband home and put him to bed. wu xie so plastered that i have inadvertently captured the one (1) image of the most beautiful man in the world making a derp face.

BONUS: whatever this beautiful cranky bitchy "doctor" has going on. which definitely involves feelings he still has for wu xie, after what happened in germany. (you know what happened in germany.)

and that's it, that's a wrap. in the meantime zhu yilong has been in cannes being absolutely heart-stoppingly fucking divine, and i will bet you a hundred flying carnivorous clams that the next time he's there, his film will be in competition. the condé nast cover story didn't hurt. with each entrée he cements his reputation and, more importantly, protects himself from the increasingly nasty sweeps of china "cleaning up" c-ent. i honestly don't know what there is to clean up anymore; there's almost nothing left. immortality and the live-action of tgcf not being released; justice in the dark just abandoned not even halfway through. this doesn't end well.

at least as far as lost tomb goes, though, i've decided i'm proceeding backwards—so next i'm watching sand sea/sha hai, because i want to spend time with mob widow wu xie (qin hao has won me over via gifset) and ji chen's xiazi. until then, pouring one out for li jiale and chuchu. and wu erjing i guess. 干杯!

#reunion: the sound of the providence #tltr #dmbj #xie yuchen #bai haotian #liu chang #liu sang #mao xiaotong #z1l #don't get me wrong i adore c-ent #i just feel protective of it #maternal if you will #i want to cradle it close to me and glare at anyone who would hurt it #huo daofu

[shall-we-go-far-away]

listen, I didn't plan to at first but even prior to its release the trailer caught my attention so.. I started watching the eighth sense today!! and I can confidently say that I haven't been this drawn in by a show in quite some time it is so good and we are only two episodes in.

I really don't know where to start with this post:

I love the dynamic we got going on between jihyun and jaewon, I like that there is the typical junior-senior dynamic but that jihyun isn't afraid to get back at jaewon whenever he nags him a little

I am also obsessed with the way they look at each other sometimes, it is so subtle but still very visible for the viewer.. I almost don't want to call it looks they're quick glances and then they suddenly seem to get aware of their surroundings again and quickly look away like you can tell that for just a few seconds they are in their own little bubble and then BOOM reality hits

also - as mentioned in I think the official synopsis - I like that up until now there isn't any proper crushing going on from any sides but it's simply the mutual curiosity it's almost like whenever they look at each other they are wondering what the other might be thinking, if he's thinking the same or if it's just a misunderstanding I really like that because I feel like a lot of shows start out with a one sided crush

I'm also very intrigued by jaewon's back story because clearly this guy got something going on, his reactions to certain things sometimes make it soo obvious.. well, I'm preparing myself for something tragic

tragedy actually brings me to my next point: the entire series so far (and the trailer) has this kinda serious undertone (I mean yeah, it's a drama so obviously it's somewhat serious but like yk that typical something bad is gonna happen kind of vibe) and that just makes me suspect we're gonna get a bad ending like that the whole show is gonna be very bittersweet and I really, really hope it's meant to be misleading and we get a happy ending instead because there is no way I'm gonna be fine if anything happens to any of them

I'm keeping my hopes for a good ending low tho because I keep thinking about the first few scenes from episode one with jaewon alone at the beach and the sirens in the background and I really can't stop reminding myself of the fact that jihyun literally CAN'T SWIM and they're surfing in the open ocean like that scares me

another thing that's pretty unrelated to the storyline but I thought it was worth mentioning, jaewon and jihyun kind of remind me of isak and even from skam like idk if this makes sense to anyone else but to me they have a very similar vibe I can't even explain why or where it comes from it was just one of the first things I thought of after finishing the first two episodes

#bl drama #kbl #the eighth sense #korean bl #basically I'm very attached already #like I'm so serious about them #love them dearly and hope they get the happy ending they deserve #i am actually begging #I need them to be happy

[neversee]

Dramas I watched in january and february 2023

New year, new dramas, I’m kinda suprised that I alredy watched a lot of dramas. So let’s go to the list:

1) Unforgettable Love

A cute and funny c-drama, about a children’s psychologist that has to treat the son of a CEO (the kid can’t speak because of a trauma). The kid treats the main girl like she is his mother, and obviosly the CEO is gonna fall in love with her. It's a light c-drama, with a couple who have good chemistry and charismatic characters. My only criticism is that it could have had fewer episodes.

Where to watch: Youtube.

2) Love in the Air

I enjoyed it, had fun watching it, but it wasn't a favorite. The story is divided between two couples, and the drama ended up being divided into two parts, 6 episodes for one, 7 episodes for the other. I thought that the story would focus more on the racing part, but they are not as relevant as it seems, the focus is on relationships. In many moments of the story I felt quite uncomfortable because of the violence, especially in the last few episodes, so if you have triggers with things related to sexual abuse, I suggest watching with caution. As for the romance, I was surprised by some scenes because they were very explicit, Thai people are not afraid to have sex scenes.

Where to watch: Viki.

3) Between Us

I really enjoyed this one, it’s an one night stand that becomes a estabilish relationship without the couple noticing. The main couple is great, the supporting characters are very funny, there’s a drama related with the trauma of the main character, but it’s not heavy enough to make it hard to watch. I’ll be honest, I didn’t really care about the other couples, but it was not boring.

4) Bad Buddy

I had started watching it in 2022, but I didn't want it to end, so I just put it aside for a while, but in February 2023 I decided to finish it because I just love this story, so I rewatched all the episodes and watched the rest. Now I can safely say that this is one of the best dramas that exist in BLlandia, the story is simple but at the same time it doesn't make you bored, you fall in love with the characters, you root and suffer with them, the actors are incredible, and there is a lot of chemistry even though there is no sex scene (which is not necessary, by the way). The OST is wonderful too, I got addicted to "Just Friend?" and "Our song" which are sung during the story. About the ending, it has a bittersweet taste, because it's sad that they have to act like that, but at the same time there's that hope that things will get better. I feel like I'm going to carry this story with me for a while, it's a shame they didn't make a special for it.

Where to watch: Youtube.

5) My School President

Probably my FAVORITE DRAMA OF THE YEAR!! I loved so much this drama, It’s cute, funny, it’s a musical, the characters have a lot of chemestry.  It’s about a music club of a school that is in risk to be closed, so the vocalist and leader of this band tries to save the club running for president of the school, but obviosly it goes wrong and he loses it. And now he has to hope that the elected president to be merciful with them.

I love the characters, the school president (Tinn) is my favorite, he's actually a dork but to everyone he's very serious. Gun is very cool too, and he carries the most dramatic part of the story, the actor is great. The drama has a amazing OST, I recomend to listen to it too.

Where to watch: Youtube.

6) Enchanté

I didn't have much expectation for this one, because I saw a lot of people saying it wasn't very good, but I really liked it. I loved the main couple, there is a mystery in the story, but I think the relationship growth was more interesting. I loved Akk, you can feel the love he has for Theo, and the actor is great. I liked Theo but to be honest I didn't like him in the last episode because I don't think he sacrifices himself enough, I think Akk had to work harder for their relationship. Overall it's a very cute drama, it's fun, I recommend it.

Where to watch: Youtube.

Dramas I'm still watching:

1) Mr Gu 

It’s another CEO drama/ contract relationship. I’m not sure if I’ll finish this one, because with time it becomes very repetitive.

2) The Romance of the tiger and the rose

A very interesting drama about a screenwriter who one day wakes up in the drama she is writing. One thing I’m loving is the fact that the world of the drama is a matriarchy. 

3) Legally Romance

A time travel story in which an aspiring lawyer goes back to her college days and tries to change her destiny. 

All of this dramas you can find on Viki.

That’s it guys, see you soon!

#unforgatable love #love in the air #between us #bad buddy #my school president #Enchanté #c-drama #thai drama #bl drama

[consistentsquash]

HOTD Thursdays! Ossuarium Recs!

So! Ossuarium being the best fic I have read in this whole year and also one of the best fics in fandom I have ever read in like two decades, I decided to love on it some more before 2022 ends! It's a multishipping paradise. All the OTPs feel like OTPs when they are on the screen/on the page. Also a really queer fic but not the sanitized queer takes we get a lot now. So depending on whether that's your thing read/avoid.

Ossuarium series

Fandom - ASOIAF, HOTD

Author - eldritcher

Summary - Soon the light.

The series is around 400K. It's more of a collection of fics like an anthology instead of an actual series. So you can read anything in whatever order.

Overall, it's got three parts.

Part I

Part I is the actual plot of the story which finishes with the finale. My rec.

This is for you - if you are into Greek myths and impending doom with character studies and also if you want a fixit. Because there is a fixit. 90% bitter 10% sweet. But still. More than canon!

What stands out - The insane prose. Eldritcher's prose is always unique and brilliant in its lyricism but here we can actually see the musicality in their writing which is pretty hard to find in shorter fics. It's like a symphony. They went full Odyssey and it shows.

Part II

Part II is the cut scenes from Part I. The vibes are real here. It's 100% character studies. If you are looking for plot this part doesn't really have a plot. It ends with a coda. My rec

This is for you - if you are into character studies.

What stands out - It's got some of the more intense fics. Definitely read the warnings. Ossuarium doesn't have any in-text noncon/graphic childbirth/miscarriage but it's definitely got its share of in text implied dubcon. Also Targs are Targs. This series doesn't really go light on their Targness. FWIW the series approaches dubcon with a really gentle touch. The author has a careful style which doesn't really go all out on the bad in the dirtybadhotwrong and it definitely shows. But the allusions and the implications with the imagery and the repetition can feel heavy.

Part III

Part III is the cut POVs from Part I. Also 100% character studies. Some plot. But not really. This part is what I am going to be reccing today! I really loved it! So!

Recs!

Carnarium

Balerion POV. 3300 words. Rated G.

Blurb - What is Balerion thinking?? The OG Dragon of the Conquest. We get to see him with his riders. Really cyclical patterns of forgetting and remembering. Really Targ. Bittersweet fic.

She did not know what he was. She did not know what she and he must be. She, his dreaming mother-child-bride, and he, her death.

The Dornishman's Wife

Viserys/Daemon. 3000 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Viserys/Daemon is the most dysfunctional relationship in Ossuarium. Now we get to see their drama in Mysaria POV. 100% dysfunction. 100% Targ. 100% dirtybadhotwrong.

The Gate of the Gods held them in its maw. Seven carven faces watched them. Her Gods were far away. So were his.

Off to Gulltown

Aemma POV. 4000 words. Rated G.

Blurb - Fluffy dysfunction. Definitely need the fluff after the intensity in the previous fic. You can feel the impending doom but right now it's fluffy.

Daella, Aemma thinks, would weep in joy if she could see the culmination of her legacy. Rhaenyra will take her to Gulltown, to that city of wonderment she has long longed for. And what places does Rhaenyra dream of? Far away places, Aemma decides. Her daughter will dream of places farther than Gulltown.

The Seasons of My Love

Laenor POV. 6000 words. Rated G.

Blurb - Just Laenor dealing with a really dysfunctional family. But he is also really naive about his own entitlement. Which comes back to bite him in a big way. Also fixes the Seasmoke plothole.

He was married to Rhaenyra and she was bound to the throne. He had failed his duty to her thrice. He would not fail her again.

Two Hearts that Beat As One

Rhaenyra POV. 4200 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Laena/Rhaenyra. The action we didn't get on the show. Really hot and sweet femslash.

The Maiden of the Tree

Laena POV. 11000 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Laena/Rhaenyra/Daemon. The OG canon polycule. Really hot and sad. Because we know how this is ending. Love, love, love the relationship dynamics and the character studies in this one. Laena/Daemon is actually the healthiest pairing in Ossuarium and Rhaenyra gets it. The contrast with the other pairings is insane.

The Vow Unspoken

Rhaenyra POV. 4200 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Rhaenyra/Daemon. How they continue their relationship after Laena's death. Really sad because you can feel the missing third of the trio. Definitely better than the Driftmark show canon.

The Maids That Bloom in Spring

Dreamfyre POV. 2900 words. Rated G.

Blurb - Dreamfyre thinking about her riders. Pretty bittersweet because she gets the most tragic riders ever.

On a Misty Morn

Helaena POV. 2700 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Helaena is just unlucky because she is the coolest kid and totally deserves a better family. Of course she gets the worst family. Really lucid dreamy fic. Nighmares not good dreams.

The Mermaid's Lament

Nettles POV. 5300 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Nettles doesn't really want to be a dragonrider and she's so totally done with dragons burning stuff. She just wants to go back to fishing and chill. Of course instead of that she's got babysitting duty when Daemon goes after Vhagar. I really feel for Nettles here. The non-Targ POVs are really amazing because you get to see how entitled/stupid/cruel/ambitious the Targs get.

The Bear and the Maiden Fair

Larys POV. 6500 words. Rated M.

Blurb - This is the total opposite of the Nettles POV but comes from the same perspective. Larys just wants to end the dragons because he thinks dragons are bad for peace. Also he wants to rub his power in other people's face. Which he does. A lot. Intense fic!

The Night That Ended

Daeron POV. 4000 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Somebody didn't forget Daeron! In fact this fic totally shows him like the fanatic young brainwashed kid he is.

The Queen Took Off Her Sandal, The King Took Off His Crown

Aegon II POV. 3000 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Aegon/Baela. One of the best fics ever. Really tragic. Really summarizes the generational trauma they have. This is essentially two kids trying to live based on what they were told but they have lost everything. Really Reek/Theon Greyjoy or early Dany vibes.

Six Maids in a Pool

Harrold Westerling POV. 5300 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Kingsguard POV. Targs being weird. Also a really good Aroace character POV. One of the nice things about reading the series in order is how we get these lighter one-shots between the intense fics.

Copula

Cannibal the Dragon POV. 3000 words. Rated G.

Blurb - Did Cannibal the Dragon actually have an identity before people started calling him the cannibal? Mythological side.

Patrimonium

Multiple POVs. 5200 words. Rated M.

Blurb - Fathers and daughters. This is the Icarus myth. His dad gives him wings of feather and beeswax. Which of course melts in the sun and he dies. We get to see this repeat in the fathers and daughters of the story.

Matrimonium

Jaehaerys/Alysanne, Rhaenyra/Daemon. 3600 words. Rated M.

Blurb - History repeats. Especially for Targs. Really cyclical tragedy. Of course also really dysfunctional and dirtybadhotwrong.

Creed

Viserys/Daemon. 4300 words. Rated M.

Blurb - The worst couple ever. Because their relationship is worse than a nuclear explosion for people living around them. They are really the definition of dirtybadhotwrong.

When he woke, he woke a bride. Were he your sister—

The Song of the Seven

Viserys/Daemon. 20000 words. Rated M.

Blurb - This isn't a fic. It's a thesis. It's the core of the Viserys/Daemon in the show canon. A really uncomfortable fic with nonstop intensity and an unreliable POV. The Viserys/Daemon fics in Ossuarium have this slipstream effect because of the unreliable narration. This fic is the culmination of their characterizations and dynamics through the series. This is them. The worst couple ever. Also the best couple ever because you really won't be able to stop looking at the total trainwreck. If I can pick only one fic from Ossuarium to take with me to a desert island, it's got to be this one. Because, like the summary says...

Sow a war, reap a brother.

#hotd #house of the dragon #hotd fic recs #house of the dragon fic recs #asoiaf fic recs #fic recs #ossuarium #viserys x daemon #daemon x rhaenyra #daemon x laena #also the dragons #the dragons #the dragons really deserved better #peak dirtyhotbadwrong #detailed fic recs #recs

[chocolate-apple7]

Young Royals reflection

As the last episode comes out tomorrow, I figured I reflect a little on my experience being a part of this fandom for so long.

I first discovered Young Royals when the season 1 trailer dropped back in June 2021. At the time I was going through a weird teen drama phase and this seemed right up my alley (although I will say as the series continued with seasons 2 and 3 I found the teen drama aspect of it fading to more serious and adult stuff which I really like). I had also just finished reading Red, White, and Royal Blue and while I did not love it, I was obsessed with the secret relationship and the monarchy stuff. Therefore these two interests combined and the fact that it was a teen drama, made this show seem like a perfect fit for me and I figured I would give it a try.

Come July, I was actively trying to distract myself from a book series that was coming to an end. I was very obsessed with Carry On by Rainbow Rowell and the first week of July waiting for that final installment was pure fan agony. That's when I remembered Young Royals had come out that day and as a distraction I decided I would watch an episode a day. Of course, that ended up being impossible as I got so immersed in the show that I watched the whole series in 24 hours rather than over the course of 6 days. Before I knew it this became another hyper fixation of mine. I find it crazy that while I was actively losing one this new one just arrived.

I remember when I got to college that year and would literally use Young Royals as a comfort show while adjusting to a new environment. I remember forcing some of my new friends through the first season (they didn't like it as much and that's ok). I remember when season 2 got announced and I was so excited and realized that this show was actually getting really popular internationally. I remember when more and more of the interviews were being done in English and I didn't have to hunt down translations as much.

When season 3 got announced it was such a bittersweet experience. I was so excited this show was going to come to a proper conclusion but I also knew that the day it ended would be hard for me. It feels silly that this little Swedish show means so much to me and it's really hard to explain. I myself don't even fully understand it. It's weird but losing a hyper fixation, even one that comes to a planned ending, is like losing a little fandom part of yourself.

I can't explain the draw that I have to this show. Maybe it's the monarchy part. Maybe its that all the characters just feel so real and while they are messed up I have a soft spot for them all (yes, including August). Maybe its because it was one of the first series I consumed where the characters had acne and that was okay. Maybe it's a combination of all of that and so much more.

Whatever it is, I am glad this series exists. I am thrilled that we will actually get a proper conclusion tomorrow and that this was one of the few shows that Netflix decided to give a chance. I can't remember the last Netflix show I watched that actually concluded as intended instead of getting abruptly cancelled. I plan on watching the last episode later at night so I will be avoiding tumblr for the majority of the day tomorrow. I just wanted to get these thoughts out before its released. I hope everyone has a great time with the series finale tomorrow. I'll be crying with the rest of you and then we can all move on together, while still holding this series in our hearts.

It's so cliche but I love the quote "don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened". See you all on the other side!

💜👑💜

#young royals #young royals s3 #reflection #This may be kind of weird but I wanted to do this #experience

[twogyuu]

kdrama anon -

Yes we do indeed stan Sang Tae. And the female lead was def refreshing - it's like you said, the relationship was just a bit unhealthy to me.

I will be honest I cried at the end of Twenty Five Twenty One but like...if you don't cry at the end of a kdrama was it really that good lol?!?!? ngl I thrive off of a little angst because it makes the stories more emotional to me and more human, but overall i'd describe the relationship between the two leads to be incredibly sweet and the female lead is so endearing. And all the plotlines and characters are really interesting to watch. I cried at the end because it was beautiful - that kinda cry, ya know? Yes there is some angst (I'd rate it 5 or 6 in my opinion but we all have a different tolerance and mine is kinda high) but it's worth it to fall in love with Baek Yi Jin lol 😆. no regrets. They also add in some historical/political context which I really appreciated as I don't know much about South Korean history!

Also yes The Glory is on my list because the premise sounds soooo good!

Hi kdrama anon!!!

I LOVE ANGST TOO!! LIKE YES GIVE ME ALL THE FEELS LMAO. I wanted to wait until I finished watching Youth of May to reply - sorry I took a minute!! I was talking to a friend who watched Twenty-Five Twenty-One and she said ppl who was hurt by Twenty-Five Twenty-One will probably be hurt by Youth of May (and vice versa) too just as a fair warning 😭 I was about to watch Twent-Five Twenty-One next, but I think I'm going to give myself to recover the emotional damage Youth of May caused :') I didn't cry per se but Youth of May was a very heart wrenching and very bittersweet ending. Overall, a very nicely done drama imo. I feel like a lot of k-dramas are over-the-top and melodramatic (for good reason- it's called a drama LOL), but this one inflicted a lot of feels but in a very subtle way in that it was all just very raw and human emotions, if that makes sense?

If you check it out, keep me updated! I'm dying to talk to someone about it, which is why I word vomited on here about it LOL. But no pressure!!! I'll probably be wriggling about Twenty-Five Twenty-One as well in the near future if my friend said it was similar kind of vibes 😂

#kdrama anon #<3

[silviakundera]

SPOILERY DRAMA REVIEW

Binge watching Immortal Samsara, with heavy misc scene skipping, because I truly am weak for xanxia romance. It's watchable if you really love the genre (though wow narrative cohesion took a big hit from how many episodes they edited out, you just have to go w it and accept all the holes).

Gotta say my perhaps controversial opinion is that the creators screwed up foundationally by changing the endgame couple from the novel - swapping from Yu Mo to the Sovereign Lord™. Wrong move that imo made the drama less compelling than it could have been. They really should have stuck with Yu Mo as her ultimate life partner and given him the larger narrative focus & screen time -- flipping the casting! They could still do their preferred reimagining of the novel, but have Cheng Yi play Yu Mo, who pines selflessly and also injures himself again & again to protect his beloved and found family. He has rivals and fight scenes! He has a secret identity! He suffers silently and pines from afar as the person he loves has an ill-fated romance with a guy who chose the heavenly rules and his leadership responsibilities over her & their love. He could have spit SO much blood and cried delicate, forlorn tears while being heroic and supportive. Longing for her, waiting for her, protecting her in the mortal world. I feel like the actor would have shined with this material and the audience would have completely bought-in to wanting her to move on from her first love.

They also should have doubled down in Part 1 on how Yan Dan truly joined the found family of Yelan mountain and created her happiest memories there. What could have been an emotionally rich arc was abandoned when the drama decided to to change the endgame OTP. Making Cheng Yi play Ying Yuan forced the drama to need to keep him on screen - they stretched out all the heavenly realm scenes to slow burn her relationship w Ying Yuan in place of stretching out her time settling into her mortal life as a flower spirit with the mountains yao. So much of Yan Dan's time in Part 1 was spent in other locations in the mortal world episodes, purely because Ying Yuan doesn't belong there. Then in Part 2 the drama remembers this is her new family, but it's too late because the viewer by now is laser-focused on her & Ying Yuan working things out.

IMO this was a mistake, because viewers love found family dynamics when there is real team building & investment. Drama tried to have it both ways but I wasn't feeling it - they didn't build up Yan Dan's connection with the location & people enough in Part 1 and so in Part 2 you never believe she will pick them over getting back together with the ML or that this new life is an opportunity for her to be happier than with him. So there is little emotional investment.

The writers could have developed a poignant, bittersweet storyline for Yan Dan with the heavenly lord as a love doomed to never be. While also letting the chemistry & agonizing (blood splattered!) Cheng Yi pining get the audience invested in Yan Dan's new love, a love and a new family that will last.

It's just such an odd choice to take the protagonist through an emotional arc where she moves on & puts Ying Yuan behind her, and then reverse course.

Another alternative is drama writers could have gone w the found-family & moving on themes BUT keep the casting the same and write in a vague loophole to have Tang Zhao reborn as a spirit and they live HEA with sworn brother Yu Mo in Yelan Mountains. Basically, either option I think works better narratively than Yan Dan/Ying Yuan endgame.

I'm not saying I'm not into the couple they went with. I'm almost finished watching it, so it's obviously working for me. I just can't help but want to pull out my red pen and do some edits, where I see the opportunity for it to be MORE.

I skimmed the last novel chapters, it's MTL but there were bits that yeah, I feel like the drama writers should have leaned on the sentiment of this ending:

But I don’t know…I really don’t know how to tell you…”

Yan Dan felt that her throat was dry, and it took a long time to continue: “Dan Shu said just now that he planted a peach tree and would like to eat the peaches he planted next year. Everyone likes it here. I watched lots of monsters live here, it’s so lively…This is also my home; even if it is destroyed, I can’t let it go.”

“I escaped heaven, because…a person, I dare not face him, only escape. At that time, I thought that to jump the Seventh Reincarnation Dao is so great, but it's actually weak.” 

She promised Danshu to let him eat the peaches she grew next year. Watery, big and sweet peaches.

“It won’t be long, I will be back soon.” This is her home. Even if you travel far, you will definitely come back there.

[ ]

Looking back, I realized that the twenty years were actually terribly heavy. There are traces in every place, every day and every moment are still intact in my heart. These are more profound than the 800 years in Yewangchuan.

Ying Yuan is the first obsession in her heart, an extremely heavy stroke, but Yu Mo is different.

[ ]

“The flowers here have been planted for a long time. They have not bloomed before. I wonder if they will bloom this year?”

Yan Dan sighed, hesitated for a moment, or said: “I don’t think they will . Ying Yuan, let’s just talk about it, what can we do to pretend that nothing happened? Although it has been a long time, it's impossible to erase anything that happened before. It’s not a calligraphy, where if you don’t write well, just tear off the paper and rewrite it.”

She stretched out her hand to close the carved window to hide the view from the outside, walked to the side of the desk, and picked up the very delicately carved agarwood burner: “At that time, I really admired Ying Yuanjun. I still can’t forget the Yellow Springs of the Underworld. I originally thought that I would die in Yewangchuan, because I couldn't forget the past. Couldn't reincarnate, can only transform into the ghosts underneath. I’ve never forgotten those memories. I’m afraid I won’t forget them. But, what about it?”

Yan Dan lifted the lid of the agarwood burner and said softly: “Put the whole piece of agarwood in, as long as a little spark, it will burn, and will not stop until it burns into fine scraps, and then replace it with a new piece. The agarwood continues to burn. But when the agarwood is like crumbs, it won’t be burnt no matter how you use the fire to fold it. Just like this agarwood, I have burned into fine scraps, and I won’t even make light. At most it’s just the residual temperature after it burns out.”

The agarwood burner tilted down slightly, and the ashes of agarwood like shavings were scattered on the ground, turning into nothingness.

Yan Dan smiled and looked at him: “Even the last residual temperature will be cold one day, and nothing will be lost, just like when you and I haven’t met…”

Tang Zhou is gone.

Yan Dan slowly slid down and sat on the wall, feeling that she was exhausted. I finally said what I wanted to say. But in fact, it’s just nostalgia coming and going, it's already nostalgia. From now on, she was truly relieved.

#cdrama #i think i might know #what the drama team intended #eternal love of the dream was a huge hit #i can see how twisting the story #and themes of the novel #can make it similar to ELotD #maybe that was the play here #but if that is true #i think it was misguided #i think the themes originally #in the novel #make a good romance too #frankly a more mature one #its ok to let the FL have a 1st love #see: rebel princess #the ML doesnt need to be her first #just her last #immortal samsara

[kibleedibleedoo]

For the romantic prompts.. “You can’t keep doing this. You can’t keep lying to yourself.” with our lovely RA? 🥰

It's ok if I do a totally self indulgent response right ? Because I'm totally gonna imagine this scenario with me in it.

Lord only knows how you got the job. You were wildly unqualified but apparently degrees didn't matter to the boss if you had a niche obsession.

Richard had first met you wandering around the tower of London. He had been there researching a new film he was trying to produce when he noticed you babbling away spinning wild stories of court romances and drama to the person you were with, reeling off fact after fact but in a way so entertaining he couldn't help but follow you from room to room occasionally looking at the brochure to check if you stories were founded in truth. It was only when you noticed your friend not listening that you stopped mid sentence that Richard felt comfortable enough introducing himself. You knew who he was however it seemed he was just as amazed at your story telling as you were at his.

Over a tea pot in a cafe around the corner he spoke of his plans. The movie would be his first produced by white boar films so he would be working with a bare bones crew. He needed help with research and based on the fact you knew details that weren't even on the exhibits he trusted that you knew how to research and help him translate the facts into a story worth watching.

Over 2 years later you now raised a glass to toast the cast and crew at the premiere after party. You found yourself becoming fast friends with the actor come producer and he seemed more than happy to receive your input on things that were outside of your speciality. This film was like your baby and it was bittersweet releasing the film for the world to see. Without this film you were back to being Y/N, plain old Y/N. Someone that Richard wouldn't keep around now that your use was gone.

" - and to Y/N without her this film would still be a vague idea in my head. You found the frame around which we were able to build around together!" He stared at you with those icy blue eyes watching as your cheeks flushed.

"TO Y/N" the crowd chanted and cheered, the sound of clinking glasses was almost deafening. Richard seemed to glide towards you ignoring the crowd. He stopped close enough that you could feel his breath against your neck.

"I couldn't have done this without you." His glass clinked with yours as he pulled away, still dangerously close. Your heart thumped in your throat as you admired the genuine smile of the man who you had frequently thought about at night. In your fantasy this is where you'd kiss him. But this was not a fantasy this was real life and the handsome man before you had kissed the likes of Ann Hathaway why in Earth would he choose you.

Even just that thought stung and you felt your need to distance yourself before you truly had your heart broken. All that time spent in your head you failed to realise that he kept looking at your lips. His attraction to you just as strong if not stronger than yours to his.

"I uh I think I need to go outside for some air." You breathed taking a step back.

"I can come with if you'd like?" It sounded vaguely like a plea but surely it couldn't be.

"No it's okay. I'm sure they'll never forgive me if I stole then man of the hour." With that you sped toward the door placing your half finished glass on a waiters tray hoping that the tears welling up in your eyes hadn't given you away. Once out of the door you sped up again until you were practically running down the beautifully decorated hallway.

"Wait" a firm hand grasped your arm bringing you to a halt.

"Please let me go" you whispered as he pulled you into a strong embrace.

"What's wrong Y/N? What can I do to help?" His grip loosened on you as you nuzzled into him, his cheek coming to rest against your temple as he rubbed circles on your back.

"This. I want this." You finally admitted your feeling out loud. "I want you but I can't compete with those beautiful women out there, they are all so smart and talented. And now that we are done with the film you don't need me anymore." You were now fully sobbing, makeup be damned. Richard took a step back now holding your shoulders so you couldn't run away again.

"You can't keep doing this. You can't keep lying to yourself Y/N. You are stunningly beautiful, amazingly smart, and incredibly talented. You were the only person in that room that I wanted to spend my evening with tonight."

"Please don't." You begged barely above a whisper.

"I'm not allowed to tell the woman I'm head over heels in love with that she's the most beautiful one in the room. That I would rather be spending the evening talking to her than all the other producers, directors, and actors in the world." His hand now came to cup your cheek and you leaned into the caress as he wiped some of the tears away. "I will always need you. Be that in the form of you telling me that the shape is wrong for the corset in the era we are filming or you being by my side laughing and joking at the end of the day. I need you, I want you. Now that I've found you I couldn't imagine life without you, film or no film." His face was tender as he looked at you and for the first time you could see the love that you held for him reflected back at you.

It felt like an eternity passed, his thumb gently caressing your face and your hands resting on his chest. Both staring at each other. Neither wanting to break from this moment. In reality on a few seconds had passed.

"May I kiss you?" Richard whispered, daring to lean in closer.

"Only if you mean it"

"Oh I meant it." He smiled kissing you in a way only a man consumed my love could kiss.

An - little bit of angst little bit of fluff all nerd and anxiety. Hope you enjoyed

#kilby writes #richardarmitage #richard armitage #Richard Armitage x reader

[ponett]

what are your ultimate thoughts on gaogaigar final and would you say it's worth watching? i've been really reluctant to start it as someone who watched and loved gaogaigar, i don't want the tone shift and content included with it to retroactively lessen my enjoyment of the original anime.

okay i can finally answer this since i have now finished it

i think gaogaigar final is the perfect level of quality to make it a total pain in the ass to decide whether or not i would recommend it. it's not nearly bad enough to say you should just skip it as a fan of the original, and it definitely doesn't ruin gaogaigar or anything, but it's also not good enough to say it's a must-see sequel to the original

there IS a lot of good stuff in there. it's fun to see the characters return, and they have a lot of fun (particularly in the first few episodes) riffing on the things you remember from the original show. it answers some lingering questions from the original series, in particular what actually happened to kaidou and soldato-j. and, of course, the robot fights continue to be very cool, if you wanna see more knock down drag out no holds barred super robot fights like the most beloved episodes of the original show

but, as i've complained about a lot, it feels like they shoehorned in some uncharacteristically "mature" content that clashes with the kids' show stuff. it never, ever misses a chance for a boob shot, and there are some weirdly dark moments that feel like surface level attempts to make the show more mature. (much of this is apparently censored in the tv version, which i skipped because its additional connections to betterman would have been meaningless to me.) a lot of this centers around the most significant new character, renais, who gets a lot of screentime despite feeling like she doesn't add much of value to the series. all this while still being a show where characters all but look directly into the camera and go "kids at home, you too can do anything if you have courage, just like guy"

i think it also suffers because like... when you're constantly trying to fire on all cylinders, to crank up the drama, to make almost every fight as Epic as ones like the battle with EI-01 or the showdown from the finale... you just kind of get desensitized to it? i think it retroactively proves that the monster of the week format was really valuable for the original show, making certain moments stand out way more when they shake up the familiar rhythm of the show. same goes for elements like mamoru's silly little classmates and other civilian characters, who are largely sidelined - especially once the action leaves earth. that might not be "the cool stuff" to mecha fans, but the show hits different when the focus is shifted

and i'm not crazy about the note it ends on, which tries to be a definitive but bittersweet ending while ALSO teasing that maybe it'll get ANOTHER continuation someday, which i guess it did via the obscure gaogaigar vs. betterman stuff as well as maybe some super robot wars plots? idk. i kind of hate that the thing literally named "gaogaigar final" ends with sequel bait

but again, it's not like i thought it was BAD. it just didn't quite hit the same way that the original show did for me, even as someone who literally just watched both for the first time and as such isn't speaking from a place of nostalgia. gaogaigar was a show that knew exactly what it was and had a lot of fun with it. gaogaigar final is a sequel that wanted to be something a little different and didsn't entirely succeed. but a lot of fans seem to hold final in very high regard, so i might be an outlier. idk. like i said, i can't say it's either a must-watch or an easy skip. if you do watch it, just keep expectations in check

#tamamayfox #ask

[juneviews]

I'm the anon that started watching 3 Will Be Free and I came back to say I just finished the series AND I'M A MESS. 😭 When I tell you I cried when Ter's mom told Mae that no one showed up to his funeral.... Like, I just fucking sobbed at that. 😭😭 Tbh I hate that they killed Ter off, I wish they hadn't done that. 😑 I love both him and Mae so I wanted a better ending for the two. They wouldn't even need to get together by the end or anything, I would have been satisfied with them just staying in each other's lives. I can't help feeling very bittersweet when it comes to Mae because sure, on one hand she got the surgery she wanted, but on the other she's literally so alone now, she has absolutely no one in her life and (judging by the outfit she had on the last time we see her) still working at that horrible diner. Don't know how I feel about the decision to have her be the one to shoot Shin's dad either. Obviously, I completely understand why she hated him and wanted him dead but idk... She's been trying to get Ter to stop killing people (she clearly hated that kind of violence) but then the show had her kill someone as her last scene. It didn't entirely sit right with me for her character.

bestie, I was holding my fucking tongue not to tell you to prepare tissues bc that fucking scene??? ENDED ME ;_; like, as I said recently my holy trinity of pain is 1) popoat not ending up together at the end of wtd final call one day before my birthday, 2) ter's death in 3wbf, 3) the entire last two eps of not me :'))) I also really disliked ter's death, bc usually thai dramas are all about giving redemptions to those who don't even deserve it & have had no growth, whereas it's so clear that ter was forced into the hitman life bc of his extremely poor background, and honestly his whole character could be great commentary about the exploitation of the poor. I don't condone the things he has done, especially about killing neo's boss at the bar who really didn't deserve it, but he had clearly started bettering himself and I think his death was written more for shock value & to push mae to kill shin's dad in the last ep than anything else, which I hate. like mae is literally one of the only good trans characters in thai dramas that got a love story & an interesting character development, so the fact that she ends up losing the one man who cares for her AGAIN... fucking sucks. this whole storyline was definitely my least favorite from the whole show, even though I still love this show so much & consider it one of the most important and groundbreaking thai dramas out there.

xxx

#answers #3 will be free #3wbf #termae #ugh I didn't realize her outfit in her last scene means she's still working at the dinner NOOOOOOOO :'(

[leham-n-daavocado]

Formula 1: Drive to Survive, S1:E10 "Crossing the Line"

So the last episode of season one is here! This episode recaps the arcs of this season and prepares us for the next.

We start off with Red Bull and Max Verstappen. F1 journalists are just soooo rude and nasty. Like who goes, "Why do you crash all the time?" That being said, they do love painting Max like a villain when he fights back. However, he does have the tantrums and says the questionable things. Like Brazil with Esteban.

Red Bull is really a team of great contrasts, Max's first half was terrible, but his second half was excellent. Daniel started off a title contender and then DNF'd off a cliff in his cursed car. (Maybe that car feeds off of the love Red Bull has for its driver and can't function when its driver is being neglected?) Funnily enough, DTS only hints at all the trouble Daniel had that season. I remember the first time I heard that he DNF'd eight times that season and just being like whhhhhaaaaat!? O.o

Nico getting shunted by Romain was insane. I'm hanging here like a cow is iconic though.

The team dynamic of Red Bull in this race is interesting and portrayed unfavourably, but doesn't really get into the fact that their third place standing is secure, a third and fourth place finish is excellent for them, they want Max to get third in the championship and Daniel was always gonna get shafted because he'd left. The only way he would've gotten a podium was if Max didn't have any chance of getting one.

The contrast in racecraft between Max and Daniel though...Max makes all this rough contact as he passes while Daniel just makes these smooth, precise moves. Funnily enough, they both pass Bottas... because of course they do.

That team principals press conference with Christian snipping at Cyril and vice versa is hilarious because everyone else looks like they're being held hostage by a quarrelling divorced couple. Like Christian totally tries to belittle Cyril with that tea making comment. Cyril is the mom who got the house and the custody agreement of the child who dad thought would choose him. I just imagine Vikings and Bjorn choosing Lagertha over Ragnar for "No! I'm choosing mom!" drama.

It's kinda sad for Fernando to be fighting Williams for a single point, but his attitude is repelling despite his frustration.

It's fun to see Lando, but it's too bad they don't show him at all next season after setting him up. I kinda like his ability to throw it back at the shitty media.

With Haas, it's kinda bittersweet for me because I remember when I still liked them and the underdog story, but the more I watch DTS, the more I can't help but see how problematic Guenther is.

I really like how they set up the new season. As much as Christian is a Bond villain, he's just so good at setting the scene. I have a crazy love- hate relationship with Red Bull. I love their PR (especially with Max and Daniel), I loved their drivers (Daniel, Pierre, Alex, Max's ability to challenge Lewis), I enjoy their ethos and their audacity to be an energy drink company that's good at F1, their mechanics are top notch...etc. I really loved both them and Mercedes, but the way the whole Alex thing went down was the final straw for me and it really became hate. And I realized what I loved was Red Bull Daniel because he just so embodies everything Red Bull is about with his daring, humour and charm and it just fit so perfectly. But I don't miss Daniel at Red Bull.

I always love their closing clips of driver and team principal interviews each season. They're so amusing. I love the contrast between the older and younger drivers. And somehow Daniel with his youthful demeanor is an older driver.

Rating: 8/10

The interview clips at the end is the best part of the episode. It's a summary, so it's harder to care about some story elements. The Red Bull drama just felt tired at this point but it's nice to see Daniel.

#f1 #formula 1 #formula 1: drive to survive #netflix #crossing the line #red bull racing #max verstappen #daniel ricciardo #christian horner #renault #nico hulkenberg #cyril abiteboul #mclaren #fernando alonso #lando norris

[mejomonster]

The original Scarlet Heart is amazing, if you're loving Jade Palace Lock Heart, then this one is not going to let you down, only that the ending is, let's say, bittersweet, but it's good and it's fitting with the story and the characters. If you finish Goodbye my princess, you'll find that its ending was the only way for that story to end, so the ending of Scarlet Heart is in the same way, it was really the only way that story could end in a satisfactory note. The korean remake of Scarlet Heart is a different story, though. The script of Moon Lovers Scarlet Heart: Ryeo is a mess, but an entertaining mess. The story is not well developed but it's addictive for a lot of people, and the thing that has everybody in a chokehold even to this day (myself included, not gonna lie to you) is the male lead, the 4th prince Wang So played by the great Lee Joon Gi. This man didn't need to be so dedicated and going so hard for this character, but he did, and I don't regret watching this drama because I got to meet him and because, even with the psychic damage the ending left me and everybody that watched it, it was highly entertaining story in a shoujo manga way, so maybe you could try the korean version too, but the quality of the two series are not going to be the same.

I wanted to let you know I saw this! I just thought about it and forgot to reply. ToT

1. ok yes I am excited for the chinese drama Scarlet Heart now. I'm also very intrigued? Because based on mydramalist summaries it is incredibly similar to Hade Palace Lock Heart set up wise, so I'm curious how distinctly different they'll feel from each other and Why.

2. The korean drama hadn't even been on my radar but NOW it certainly is... ohhh I may have to check it out.

Thank you for these <3 <3

#replies #scarlet heart #rec list #anonymous #ask