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whitehotharlots · 3 years

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It’s all religion, and it’s all profane

Over the past few days I have delved, rather pointlessly, into the messy scenery of the UK’s ongoing gender wars. My interest was equal parts morbid and academic. I hoped to answer two questions. First, why is the back-and-forth between trans rights advocates and gender critical feminists so vicious in the UK, culminating not just in the threats and recriminations found in the war’s American iteration, but in women being blackmailed and even arrested.

The second question is why is it even happening? That is, why is the UK in particular a hotbed for an ideological war of this type among liberal-identifying people, while in the US the feminist movement has accepted trans ideology more or less uniformly and with minimal pushback. My first inclination was that it was a matter of professional survival. Perhaps academic jobs aren’t as precarious in the UK, meaning that it’s somewhat safer for people to issue heterodox opinions. But, again, the viciousness of the first question seems to rebut my assumption in regards to the second. Losing your job is bad, but going to prison is worse.

Of course, I found no clear answer to either question. UK academe is utterly unknowable to an American who’s never experienced it. I found out what “O Levels” means but after that I got kind of lost. As much as a shitty lie our myth of academic meritocracy might be, the UK makes us look like a Dutch Montessori school run by doctrinaire Quakers. If your first name isn’t proceeded by Lord, Lady, or Sir, or if you don’t have a number after your name that’s at least as high as The Fourth, there’s not much of a chance you’re going to get yourself a gig within Oxbridge.

So I delved into the viciousness, and oh boy did I get what I was looking for. The English are renowned for their dry, cutting humor, but that’s because only the best of the best come into the American purview. The majority of pedestrian UK humor is a sort of sarcasm without jokes. Like, let’s say you brought home a sausage pizza. I asked you what the topping was and you said “It’s pepperoni, mate.” And then you opened it up and it was sausage and that made me confused and slightly pissed. That’s the extent of the comedic ability of your average Brit.

The fights, meanwhile, are more direct and blunt, really a sight to behold. Again, there’s no attempts at humor, which tend to accompany the verbal conflicts of Americans. When Americans fight, we’re usually doing it to try and get the people around us to think we’re cool. When UK people fight, they just want to hurt the other person.

Of course, there’s much in common between the US and UK iterations of gender discourse. Minor disagreements are regarded as violence, hyperbolic overstatements of harm are routine, and person who uses terminology that was considered progressive up until very recently can find themself labeled a Nazi for not making linguistic adjustments quickly enough. But it’s still somehow even more rancorous in the UK. You get a sense that they’re not in it just for online clout but out of a desire to cause real, physical harm to members of the other side.

One of the more salient aspects of UK arguments is how their insults will often consist of a simple description of a person. Sometimes you’ll get “fat” or “snaggle toothed” or something most of us would consider mean. But other times it’s like “you blonde cunt” or “you working class shite” or something else that us Americans would never regard as an insult. Mentions of religion are surprisingly common. They say “you Catholic bigot” as opposed to “you bigot,” or “you deranged Protestant” instead of “you freak.”

This really struck me. You’d never, ever see that in America. Firstly because it’s taboo (unless it’s a Republican talking about Muslims). Secondly, because we simply do not care. Your average religious American cannot articulate any meaningful difference between Catholics and Protestants. We have no need to, because as much as we love Jesus we don’t bother with any of the messy parts of religion, such as having a faint understanding of the faiths we claim to adhere to.

This, I have always felt, is the greatest folly of New Atheism. What are you gonna do, present a scientific case demonstrating the absurdity of the creation myth? You gonna stick solely to the bible and highlight its multiple hypocrisies and contradictions? What is that gonna achieve? These people had Donald Trump autograph their bibles. They think salvation can be purchased by giving 20% of their paychecks to millionaires who preach in stadiums. There’s nothing an outsider can do to profane their religion that’s more obscene than the manner in which they practice it.

(I recall a time in my mid-teens when I attempted to “A-ha!” a youth pastor with my knowledge of the story of Jephthah from the Book of Judges, who committed yahweh-approved ritualistic sacrifice of his eldest daughter. In response, the pastor informed me that he hadn’t read that part of the bible, and that his relationship with Jesus was more about the feelings it gave him than some words written down in an old book. Needless to say, he won the argument.)

The UK is, even now, broadly to the left of the US in regards to their social safety net and most cultural matters (this is a low bar, for sure, but they do clear it). Perhaps people who us Americans would identify as liberal (in that they don’t openly want to murder poor people; they’ll often still do it, but they won’t giggle while doing it) aren’t as ideologically siloed over there. The Democratic party is, after all, an unworkable mishmash of a few dozen different concerns, and their basic strategy since the Clinton era has been to blame the incompatibility of those concerns for the fact that their governance is indistinguishable from that of the GOP.

An American liberal therefore doesn’t focus on piddling things like principles or ideals or even whether or not a policy they support does the exact opposite of what it’s supposed to achieve. Paying too close attention to the workings of our coalition will reveal its manifest contradictions, which will in turn weaken it, and if gets too weak then we’ll once again have an evil fascist doing the exact same stuff that a good and honorable man like Joe Biden is presently doing. Instead, we must understand politics as a means of achieving self-actualization through the process of deferring our concerns to others. Those concerns are not addressed within the present system, no, and neither are our own, but worrying about cause and effect and results is not the point. It’s much more important to exist, to validate, and to listen.

In the UK, politics is still understood as politics. It is a means of gaining and exercising power. In the US, politics falls eerily in line with our profane understanding of what religious devotion entails: an acontextual, borderline illiterate expression of ourselves, which we have been trained to believe connects us to some kind of higher power that unifies us as humans by calcifying our utter disconnectedness from one another.

And so maybe that’s the difference? In the UK, people are delusional enough to think that politics is entered into by people who have something to gain or lose. In the US, it’s all about vibes.

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youngboy-oldmind · 3 years

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ALBUM REVIEW- The Slim Shady LP

“A killer instinct runs in the blood/ Emptying full clips and burying guns in the mud/ I've calmed down now I was heavy once into drugs/ I could walk around straight for two months with a buzz/ My brain's gone, my soul's worn and my spirit is torn/ The rest of my body's still being operated on/ I'm ducked the f*** down while I'm writing this rhyme/ ‘Cause I'm probably gonna get struck with lightning this time”

Before excellent albums like The Eminem Show and The Marshall Mathers LP2; before missteps like Recovery and Revival; before unnecessary releases like Relapse and Music To Be Murdered By; One project launched the highest grossing hip-hop artist of the 21st century: The Slim Shady LP. The production, lyricism, and even delivery sounds so foreign to 2021 Eminem, someone foreign to him would not think they were the same person. While a classic in its time, The Slim Shady LP has aged surprisingly well. Interestingly enough, many millennials and older may hold nostalgia for this record. However, young ears exposed to this album for the first time may find it unappealing.

I would like to preface, however, this is not due to the subject matter of this record. While Eminem is ridiculously obscene and vulgar (which I’ll address later), the topics he discuss are not far from some of the “edgy” rappers younger ears may be exposed too, including anyone who’s heard early-generation Tyler the Creator. Both seeming immune to cancel culture.

All this to say The Slim Shady LP ages well. Although “As The World Turns” is very offensive and if you ever listen to this album, steer clear of that song entirely.

Dr. Dre’s production elevated this record. The instrumentals aren’t particularly complex. In fact, some of these beats are as simple as one melody, one kick, and maybe a little extra bass and snare on choruses. While utilizing simple instrumentals, Dre manages to prevent every song from sounding the same. You could play the instrumental and I could probably pick out the name of the song without hearing any words. This is a spectacular feat that elevates the overall sound of the record while allowing Eminem’s performance to remain the focal point.

Matching Dr. Dre, Eminem’s lyrics are bare-boned and straight forward as well. This is a complete 180 from the Eminem we know. The Eminem who makes every single line in a song a metaphor or double entendre. I think his lyrical style contributes to the main strength of The Slim Shady LP. Storytelling.

It’s implied that most of this album is hyperbolized and purposefully absurd for comedic or shock effect. But Eminem tells easy-to-follow narratives that paint an image of everything that’s occurring and everything he’s feeling. The highpoints of narration include “My Name Is”, “Brain Damage”, “My Fault”, “Guilty Conscience”, and one of the best songs on the album “’97 Bonnie and Clyde”. Most include pretty gruesome situations, but nevertheless, they are quite enjoyable if you can stomach the subjects.

Another highpoint on this record is the collaboration “Bad Meets Evil” featuring the only other rapper on the record, Royce Da 5′9. They are excellent together, collaborating on one of the best songs on the album.

Other songs feature Eminem being more reflective on himself and life. These include “If I Had”, “I’m Shady”, “Just Don’t Give a F***”, “Still Don’t Give a F***”, and another highpoint “Rock Bottom”. Eminem does a good job of balancing more serious/somber songs from the goofy and over-the-top.

Eminem has attempted to duplicate this style in recent years, but to no avail. The main reasons being 1) He’s too old and paints himself too serious and aggressive to take playfully and 2) His goofy songs tend to counter and contradict his serious songs. On The Slim Shady LP, he could have one song talk about struggling and poverty, and another about accidentally giving a girl too many mushrooms. This works because Eminem doesn’t paint an album theme that focuses on recovery, growth, political commentary, etc. He makes the album about him, which means he’s sometimes serious and sometimes playful. This is why this works on this album, The Marshall Mathers LP and The Eminem Show, and why it didn’t work on Revival or Kamikaze.

This record has an interesting place in hip-hop history. While it launched Enimem’s trajectory to Hip Hop Hall of Fame, this record isn’t particularly amazing. There’s no apparent low point on the album, but nothing enraptured me like other iconic albums for this era. It is unhealthy to be a die-hard fan of this record. It’s too offensive and out of touch to worship like its one of the best albums ever. But, it still is admired by many fans of Eminem. Plus who doesn’t know this dumb, iconic chorus:

“Hi, my name is,

what?

My name is,

who?

My name is Chicka-chicka Slim Shady”

Top 3 Songs:

1) '97 Bonnie & Clyde

2) Still Don’t Give a F***

3) Bad Meets Evil

Overall Grade: B

#music review #album review #hip hop review #hip hop #music blog #eminem #slim shady lp

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lethbians · 4 years

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can you explain what's going on right now? i keep seeing big IT blogs talking about some discourse or something but i have no idea what they're talking about other than it involves you lol

alright i like. i truly do not like having diScOurSE out in public because i’m not one to air out my dirty laundry 24/7 but seeing as how it was brought into public against my will i feel like the least i can do is clear up the situation for those who’ve been seeing the posts.

i’m putting this under the cut bc it’s long. tws for some biphobia, brief mention of transphobia and, at the end, a rape mention.

so if you don’t know: hi, i’m migz, i’m an it fandom blogger. its okay, i know, its really cool. part of my shtick here is that i like to turn normal thirst tags into works of art for the sake of comedy. perhaps you’ve seen some of my highlights from my “fhg” tag - perhaps your brain has been spared. either way, it became kind of “my thing” around the third or fourth week (mid nov) of me having this blog. at first, i tagged just about every ask i got mentioning the thirst tags with “bill hader” - they had to do with him, so why not tag him? it would draw more like minded people! about two days into that i got a message asking me to tag my nsfw. i am a big dumb idiot, and apologize for not initially doing it. i havent had a following bigger than like 10 in several years and completely spaced on basic etiquette. so by the end of november i was tagging everything applicable with “notsfw” and “bill hader”.

now you’re caught up.

on december 1st i got this message from user billhaderanti:

now i want to start by saying i absolutely was in the wrong here. i didn’t even think about how many people were being subjected to the asks i was getting - especially ones who had no idea they were all jokes. i don’t track the bill hader tag, so it just didn’t even occur to me - that’s ignorance on my part, and to anyone who was subjected to the terrors of me before my tagging system: i am genuinely sorry. i relay the same sentiment in my response, though you can tell i’m on edge.

and they replied:

clearly they Were offended by it but thats.. not the point. at this point, im feeling Really weird about the whole interaction, but still understanding, because again - i GET it. i know my posts are gross - that’s the point. it doesn’t make it excusable, though, which is why i understand why people are offended. so i responded with the only solution i Knew would keep us both safe and happy posting on our own blogs.

so i thought this would be the end of things! i’d been pretty anxious lately already since i’d started to receive anons telling me i was gross and whore-ish for thirst posting in this way (i delete all of those, so if ur thinking about sending one, i guess no one’s stopping you but it won’t be seeing the light of the dashboard). i’m unsure if it was immediately or a few hours later, seeing as how i have a bad concept of time and the post-dates are right on the edge between nov 30 and dec 1, but i went to their blog - because anyone who has been on the internet knows the opportunity to vague post is near irresistible. and...what do ya know

fair! it’s their blog. however i am an emotionally fragile egg girl and immediately got freaked out. the odds that they were the only one who thought this were low. and, again, i’ve been very open on my blog about how important it is to respect boundaries; my posts are absolutely prone to breaking those boundaries people have created for themselves.

so i made my own, semi-vague post, letting my following know (and i’m pretty sure i’d answered asks about it before, but this is going to be long enough w/o me searching those up too) that i understood if they wanted to block me or unfollow or whatever - people need to create their own safe spaces. the tension is pretty clear in the tags, i’m not trying to hide that. i felt that the way this woman slid into my dm’s was pretty abrasive (just my opinion/how it made me personally feel) and i let myself be a lil emotional about it in the tags of my post.

alright! maybe this is the end. maybe we both go our separate ways and post happily on our own blogs... except it’s not the end. later in the day (some of this was happening like 1/2am, so now its Day day, i believe - again, not good w time passage lol)

clearly, i’m upset. my groupchat double checked that i didn’t get too emotional in my response - did i mention im anxious about discourse lol - and apparently.. it did the trick. she didn’t message me again. great. it was over.

at this point, i decided i needed to make an even bigger change. so a few days after i’d calmed down i created an entirely new tag for my thirst posts so if people hadn’t already hidden the notsfw posts or just blocked me outright, they’d have a third option to escape the madness. at this point, id had my blog about 6? weeks, but there were still 2k posts for me to sift through - some of them were completely untagged. i also had to do it post by post, because one of xkits features - the mass re-tagger - was getting blogs deleted for some reason, and i wasn’t going to do that. so i spent a few days going through all 2k+ posts, adding the “fhg” tag.

YEEHAW! a brand new tagging system, no more hopping into the bill hader tag (minus one or two really funny, not super explicit asks, like the bill hader farquaad meme), and, tbf, i’d completely put this woman out of my mind. i don’t seek out drama and do my best to stay in my lane. yesterday, i checked my activity for the first time in awhile since id put out a couple new original posts that had started to get traction and i Love reading tags. i noticed a mutual had @’d me, and realized i havent checked my @’s in...ever, maybe. i see a post from my good pal billhaderanti.

since i dont follow them and never check my @’s, i’d completely missed it. however, once i did see it, i was horrified. id gone through all that fucking work to keep my blog My Blog and also respect everyone’s boundaries and it still hadn’t been enough. i’d been awake for almost 24 hours and went. a little crazy. and i didn’t reply immediately because i just had no words. i sent it to my friends because i... i just wasn’t going to be able to figure it out myself.

there’s a lot to unpack in this post alone, but whatever, i’m gonna put my own grievances with the immaturity of 1. making a callout post to begin with when i’d been nothing but civil 2. making a callout post about something as (in the grand scheme of Life) minor as some tags where i refer to a someone’s genitals as a “whack pack” and 3. making a callout post in such a rude way - aside. at the end, she calls me (and whoever else!) a demonic mlw (man loving woman, we assumed, and then later confirmed with a post further back on her blog).

which - yeah, we started scrolling. at first we were looking for more vague blogs, and then we just...started finding things. billhaderanti is a self proclaimed lesbian separatist, which... fine. but it’s already pretty clear that this woman hates me on some level simply because i am a bi woman (demonic mlw, remember!) which is just. damn man i can’t believe we are still fighting the biphobic fight lol. so the more we scrolled, the more we uncovered - and not just the biphobic / vaguely mtf transphobic things they posted (or put in tags), but we also found that they had their OWN thirst tags. certainly not as hyperbolically comedic as mine, but they were there, talking about his body and his person the same (and, frankly, a bit creepier for other reasons) as mine.

there’s one post in particular that snatched my wig in it’s creepiness - and i say creepiness in the sense that it feels personal. like this woman feels like she knows bill to some degree where she can say these things. my tags have always had a sense of distance, as they’re written for humor. and maybe this particular post was written for comedic purposes, but it doesn’t read that way, and if it WAS, then she has no right to call ME out for MY comic tags and posts.

i’ll let it speak for itself, mostly because i don’t want to read it again.

i also won’t be going through her blog again to find the posts with biphobic and other Interesting:tm: tags because there are plenty and i just really! want to be done with the whole ordeal! her blog is public and i’m sure you can all find it and look to your heart’s content.

feeling a bit feral and a bit pissed off now that we knew the depth of how rotten this woman’s vibes were, a couple of my pals made a post or two similar to what my tag’s are like except turned up to eleven (if possible) - and tagged them with “bill hader” (and notsfw!!). yes, a bit childish, but at this point, the entire situation was childish, and making jokes was truly the only way we were going to get through it. another vague post went up on her blog soon after.

talking down to us, calling us children, and then for whatever reason calling us virgins... whatever, weird post. around this time most of us (est) went to bed, because it was nearing 3 or 4 in the morning.

and then today happened. i woke up fresh and ready for the day after a wonderful 4 hours of sleep and found that jane had made an incredibly intelligent post in response to the situation. i won’t ss it, but i’ll LINK in case you missed it. attached there in the reblog is my own response. i think they can speak for themselves.

after that, things were kind of jumbled, since i wasn’t online a lot and when i was i was Not checking my activity simply because i was afraid of what i’d see. for the most part, it ended up just being support (which i am very grateful to all of you for - it means a lot that you all enjoy my content to any degree).

there was some more vague posting from both “““““sides”””””” of the “““““argument”””””” - mostly just people restating the fact that this is a public space and we should All be aware of how we effect others. i still hadn’t heard directly from billhaderanti, so i assumed we’d all be dropping and disengaging and moving on. i still wasn’t blocked, though, so who really knew what would happen.

eventually, it culminated in this last post. tw for mentions of rape

i’m going to start by saying that

1. there are nearly no teenagers that were involved in this. im turning 23 in january and most of my friends are 20+. maybe one or two are 19.

2. none of us sent any sexually violent asks - most of us didn’t send asks at all. i believe one or two of my friends admitted to sending asks however they assured me their nature wasn’t bad; as far as i know, everyone remained civil in whatever went on (again, unclear to me as to what was being sent; no one was actively posting or talking about it. if billhaderanti wishes to elaborate, they can, but i don’t have anything to put in).

3. before i finish this, i would like to apologize to billhaderanti. as a comedian - not just my stupid tags, i mean in real life, too - i know that humor can hurt. it’s not always funny, it’s not just stupid hahas. sometimes things that are supposed to be jokes just hit people differently and cause bad things. i recognize that. i never meant to trigger you (if you’re reading this) or cause you any severe mental/emotional harm. i apologize for my humor bringing up your trauma, and i never meant for that. regardless of my own thoughts and opinions about the nature of my posts/the thirst tags themselves, they hurt you, and i’m sorry.

anyway, i’m going to wrap this up (i’m bad at endings, what can i say! steven king and i took the same writer’s class!). if you read all this... sorry. i probably won’t be taking any asks about it, because i find the whole “drama” of this to be stupid and rooted in some seriously biphobic issues this fully grown woman has.

tldr; i attempted to contain my blog so this woman could exist and function safely on her blog, but it wasn’t enough for her, so she called me out, and then some of the fandom called Her out for being biphobic and mean and overall just immature about the situation. as of now, she’s yet to block me, though her and her wife have blocked a few of my friends. her wife continues to clown on my friends. this post was made for clarity’s sake. the end, i’m getting a drink.

#discourse #biphobia tw #transphobia tw #rape tw #ok goodbye im done with this im back to #only posting gay clown movie #Anonymous

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precuredaily · 5 years

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Precure Day 114

Episode: Futari wa Precure Splash Star 16 - “Dreams, Hopes, and Kenta’s Worries!” Date watched: 20 April 2019 Original air date: 21 May 2006 Screenshots: https://imgur.com/a/9tLWpZb Project info and master list of posts: http://tinyurl.com/PCDabout

Kenta overhears Avengers: Endgame spoilers

I’m not sure if Splash Star is a bit more on-the-nose with its life lessons than FW/MH were, or if I’m just more acclimated than I was when watching those seasons, but this is another episode with a very clear moral theme, and also parallels to an episode of Max Heart... and a conclusion that almost (almost) undercuts the whole thing.

Kenta is in a bit of a slump, and after some pressing from Saki, he admits that he overheard his parents having a conversation that seems to be about how they want him to take over running the boat rental shop eventually. He takes this to mean that they don’t really believe in or care about his dream of being a professional comedian, and he’s not sure what to do next. Mai mentions that her brother’s dream is to become an astronaut, which her whole family found silly at first, but when they realized he was serious, they decided to support him fully. Kenta is unconvinced, so Saki suggests they all go to Mai’s place after school and talk to Kazuya directly. Meanwhile, the Kiryuu sisters are eerily standing behind a door, listening to all of this, confused about the concept of pursuing dreams.

creepers gonna creep

Kenta doesn’t see any value in this, convinced that his dream is over and his parents don’t care, but Saki drags him along to Mai’s house anyway.

that wasn’t hyperbole, she literally drags him

The talk with Kazuya is less inspiring than they might have hoped, as he admits that his dream may not come true, but he’s got to work for it or it will definitely never come true. Kenta is still not very convinced and goes home to ruminate on it.

The next day at school, he’s still feeling down, and Saki calls him out on this. They argue for a minute and he says he’s already given up on his dream before storming off. Michiru speaks up from behind a surprised Saki to ask if she thinks dreams are really that important, because the twins don’t think they are. Kaoru starts to speak up about her own dream....

homework, sports, world destruction, you know, the usual.

You may have noticed Dorodoron creeping in the background of that shot as well. He did not go unnoticed by the sisters, and after Saki walks off he talks with the two of them and asks that they not get in his way today, as he has his own dream.... to defeat the Precure and become Akudaikaan’s right hand man.

((doubt))

Saki isn’t letting Kenta’s depression get her down though, and she goes to an extra training session after softball practice and works her heart out. Mai similarly decides to live in the moment and put her all into her drawing at the art club. Kenta watches the softball practice and cheers on Saki, starting to reconsider her words. Saki’s training is interrupted by Dorodoron of course, who has an Uzainaa made out of pipes that shoots mud. Saki is angry at him for interrupting when she was trying her hardest, which he responds to with scorn. Mai quickly appears and the pair transform. Without missing a beat, the monster shoots mudballs at them, which they block with their spirit power but are visibly weakened. Dorodoron taunts them, since he chose this time to attack thinking Saki would be weak after expending all her energy in practice. (That’s actually smart!) Unfortunately for him, he’s just pissed the girls off, and they respond that nothing is impossible for them if they never give up! Then they knock the Uzainaa on its ass before blowing it away with Twin Stream Splash. At least he tried!

After the dust settles, Saki wakes up a sleeping Kenta and he admits that watching Saki practice has reinvigorated his interest, and he vows to take the first step towards his dream that day. Saki and Mai follow him home, where he confesses to his parents that he really wants to be a comedian and he can’t take over their shop. They’re confused, because they never had any doubts about his future or any expectation that he would take over the business, and it turns out the conversation he overheard was about them leaving for a weekend vacation, where he’d be needed to man the shop, but not a permanent takeover. Oops.

MECHOKKU - wait am I allowed to say that this early?

The trio go out on the dock to absorb this information, which mainly consists of Kenta moping while Saki and Mai can’t stop laughing at his misunderstanding.

He does say, though, that this has set him on his path, and tomorrow at school he’ll take his first step toward his dream.

The next day, the two friends are wondering what Kenta’s “first step” could be as they arrive to see a crowd of students around the entrance to the school.

It turns out Kenta is in the middle, recruiting for his new Comedy Club! He makes some absolutely terrible jokes and the episode ends on a still of him laughing.

Obviously, the theme of this episode is pursuing your dreams, no matter what, and hey, even the villain gets in on it!

I can list several reasons that’s not likely to happen

They touch on a point Max Heart once made that you don’t have to know exactly where you want your life to go, just pursue your interests right now. Mai’s brother Kazuya is, as usual, a dispensary of good advice on the subject, and it’s always pleasant to see him. Maybe I’ve just seen too many misunderstanding plots lately, but I really don’t like the fake-out at the end where Kenta’s foks reveal that he misunderstood. At the very least, I wish they’d resolved the misunderstanding earlier, or started it later. Maybe have the episode start with Kenta struggling with comedy and thinking about giving it up, and then in the middle he overhears the conversation about him taking over which gets him in a downer mood. It was just super obvious to me, given his limited understanding of the situation and how vague the conversation he overheard was, that all was not as it seemed, and that undercut my ability to get invested in Kenta’s concerns. Self-doubt is a powerful feeling, and I’m all for it being explored, I just wish it came from a more emotionally resonant source.

This is mainly Kenta’s episode, but Saki has a large role in motivating him, intentionally or unintentionally. The episode opens with her at softball practice, doing catching in the outfield and missing a bunch of balls. The coach tells her to do extra practice after school, which is what she’s doing the following day when Dorodoron attacks. She’s not doing her best, which is why she vows to work hard at her goal of becoming a better softball player. It’s Saki’s drive and commitment that really helps encourage Kenta to talk to his parents and move forward in pursuing his comedic dreams. She also, to a lesser degree, encourages Mai’s artistry. That is Pink Precure Energy. There’s a particular scene that stuck out at me because of the tone and use of music, and that’s Saki’s after-training practice with her coach, catching balls in the outfield. It’s not a long montage, but it is moving, and punctuated with a lovely song from the soundtrack called “Konjou, Konjou, de Konjou!” or “Spirit, Spirit, Lots of Spirit!” It’s a marching theme with drums and heavy brass and while it’s been used before in the show and will be used again, it stood out to me more in this scene than usual. It’s that perfect blend of visuals and music that just sells how hard Saki is working to improve herself, and in turn motivating Kenta. Give it a watch:

vimeo

Michiru and Kaoru don’t have a lot to do in this episode, but they are fun when they appear. The shot of them eavesdropping on Saki, Mai, and Kenta’s conversation on the school balcony is visually interesting because of the use of distance. Not only is there a physical wall separating them, but they’re also a good distance down the walkway, which speaks to the amount of separation between them and the heroines, despite their apparent closeness. Also they’re cast in shadow, and I don’t think that’s just because they’re indoors.

Reading even more into it (probably too much, I don’t know how deep the symbolism goes here), the sliver of light on their faces may represent their growing curiosity about the Land of Greenery and its residents and their behaviors, and lack of loyalty to Dark Fall. In other words, it’s a sign of the light within them starting to shine. But again, maybe I’m reading too much into that. It’s fun to speculate though. Normally they would try to hatch a plot to undermine the girls’ dreams or otherwise disrupt their day, but today they stay out of it. Sure, it’s partly because Dorodoron asked them to, but they didn’t show any indication that they were going to launch an attack (or tell him what to do to get to them). Their observations of the humans and their kindness seem to be having an effect.

But also this bit is hilarious, when Saki is like “Don’t you two have dreams?” Michiru is like “not really” but Kaoru says “Yes” and Michiru just looks over at her in confusion, before she starts to say “My dream is to destroy -”

Michiru’s face is priceless and she quickly ushers Koaru away before she can reveal that they’re evil. Somehow Saki didn’t pick up anything.

There’s a few examples of really unique camera angles that I want to showcase real quick, but I don’t have much to say about them.

They all happen back to back and I’m not sure what the intent was except just to avoid the usual shot/reverse shot for this conversation with Kazuya.

Also you may notice that the characters are looking a little sloppy. The art is not up to par this episode, especially in the mid- and wide angles.

I remember reading somewhere that poor quality control on the artwork and a slow plot led to a ratings slump in the show that they never quite recovered from, even when the storyline picked up (around this part really). I’ll look more into that. The art is noticeable but not awful, and of course we’ve seen much worse. So much worse.

Never forget

I think I’ve exhausted everything I wanted to say about this episode. It’s a nice turning point for the show. Next time, Mai and her mother have a heart to heart. Look forward to it!

Pink Precure Catchphrase Count: 0 Zekkouchou Nari. There was a “Zekkouchou” on its own, by Kenta (as part of a joke) but I’m not counting that.

Miracle Drop Count: 3

#Precure #Pretty Cure #Futari wa Precure Splash Star #FWPCSS16 #PCD114

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franeridart · 7 years

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after watching the new episode i was wondering if it possible for TodoBaku or is there moment that show Bakugou doesn't really mind about Todoroki in the later chapter ? and what's your opinion in TodoBaku ? how do you see their relationship ? Thanx :)

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh what a good great unexpected question - personally, I don’t ship it romantically one bit, but it is one of my favorite dekusquad/bakusquad relationships - I guess you might consider it something similar to an accidental sort-of-friendship neither of them seem to actually have noticed yet? It’s definitely a unique relationship for either of them, at least… they make it clear more than once that they Do Not Give A Fuck about the other’s personal struggles, I just can’t see them talking and finding sympathy in each other, but that just ends up giving them a kind of blunt and no-bullshit relationship that doesn’t stop them from working together when needed. I don’t know how to properly explain it, honestly, but they’re fun!

I don’t know how much spoilers you want so I’ll keep this as vague as I can, but they do happen together more than either of them would like, and their relationship is a really amusing one for me - Todoroki actually cracks jokes with Bakugou around, though always with his neutral face and making fun of Bakugou himself when he does, and the way he has of just straight out ignoring Bakugou’s insults and fire-spitting and answering as if they were having a civil conversation is weirdly entertaining tbh

I wouldn’t say that Bakugou “doesn’t mind Todoroki”, but he does end up having way more important things to think about than his one-sided rivalry with him, and once he starts settling things with Deku the narrative mostly moves to push in that direction, which means that every interaction he has with Todoroki is either on neutral grounds or in the middle of forced cooperation, pushing any antagonism they might have to the background, really - also, the more the story goes on the more Bakugou becomes civil with the rest of the class, so there’s that too! Anyway, they’re fun to me, I wish to draw more of them in the future tbh

Anon said:I do laugh at Bakugou’s reaction on the podium bc visually its animated funny. But u r right that the whole thing is fucked. How is that even appropriate to do to him? And it takes until after his fight with deku many arcs later for All Might to say “we maybe sort of neglected this kid’s mental health.” Like wtf. It upsets me sometimes to think just how much All Might just doesn’t even *see* Bakugou. So much is wrong about this, from putting Bakugou on display to forcing the medal on him.

Blessed words all of them - it’s why I’m such a fan of the idea of Bakugou without even noticing switching his role model to Aizawa, actually? Aizawa’s the only adult figure in the whole manga who’s constantly been there for Bakugou, he has his future and mental health and reputation constantly in mind and works his ass off to try and help him along as much as possible, he takes note of everything Bakugou goes through, every switch in mood and worsening in personality and interpersonal relationships, and he’s always incredibly fast in nudging him towards the right path again - and Bakugou noticed. He trusts Aizawa to know him, follows his directions and accepts his advices, believes he’ll have his back without an ounce of doubt, that’s the tutor/student relationship Bakugou deserves

I understand that All Might has a lot of problems of his own and he’s just learning to be a teacher anyway, but he found it in himself to be there for Deku, while Bakugou has been obviously staring at his back for the whole length of the manga and it took All Might 120 chapters to notice, that’s just plain sad

Anon said:What’s your favorite Bakugou headcannon?

BOI I have a lot! One is mentioned in the ask up there, actually haha but generally you can see most of them in my art? I like the idea of him being an artist a lot, given how both his parents are into it, I like to think he’s a rock-music type of kid, I have weird headcanons about his dorm room all including too fancy-looking designer furniture and one too many hero figures stuffed under his bed - he might have a fire extinguisher or two in there as well. Also, he’s a restless sleeper (more like a fighter sleeper) and never wears socks ever

I like to think most of his clothes are black because it’s the color on which the soot from his explosions is the least noticeable, and that he unironically honest to god thinks skulls are the coolest thing ever and can’t stop himself from buying every piece of clothing with them on it (first time he entered Tokoyami’s room he died what a cool place he never wanted to leave ever again); that he really doesn’t like the sea - or taking long baths/showers - because water washes his sweat away and he feels defenceless and it’s horrible, and that rain makes him useless like it does to Mustang from FMA (haha)

He names everything after fire arms (has an extensive, nearly to the point of being uselessly detailed knowledge of those) be it his special moves or his pets or his toys when he was a kid or every and each of the pokemon he’s ever had in any game he’s ever played - he’s a gamer! Mostly into fighting games, though they frustrate him because now and again he blows the controller up without realizing and he’s forced to stop playing, but he also likes strategy-based rpgs a lot (all his characters are called King Of Explodo-kills. All of them)

He talks in hyperboles most of the times, means a thing but uses a word fifty times stronger than necessary to express it instead, and he’s so not used to positive emotions that the first time he feels them it takes him a while to figure out exactly what it is that he’s feeling - he’s an affectionate friend, though he has weird ass ways of showing it, and this part of him is new to him as well since it’s just coming out now that he’s got the squad (he was nearly sure the kids in middle school were his friends, but what kind of friend leaves you to be saved by Deku when a villain attacks?) (meeting the squad made him realize he’d never actually had friends before, it was a bittersweet feeling)

………..okay enough, you asked for my fave and I just blabbered half an hour. I don’t even know which one’s my fave tbh hahaha

Anon said:as much as I like the anime, seeing the sports festivals always makes me sad because bakugou is still an angry kid, but at that time thats pretty much the only thing people see, while after in the manga, yes hes still angry but hes softer? in a way? idk he grew up so seeing him back at the first point makes me sad (sorry for the rant I have a lot of feelings abt this lmao)

He HAS grown, hasn’t he! I hadn’t realized just how much until I saw him back at the beginning of this season yelling at Todoroki the he should stop thinking about Deku and start worrying about him - it’s? Painful? He’s in a constant fight against the whole world, while now you see him way more with his guard down and just… existing. I’m so proud of him and all the good great amazing relationships he’s built ;u;

Anon said:What episode 12 needs is the bakusquad getting angry at how Bakugou was treated because you can’t convince me they were okay with that.

Hmmmmmmmmmm boy I would love that, but all things considered at that point, given how Kaminari and Mina and Sero reacted to Bakugou’s fight with Uraraka, I can kind of safely assume they didn’t think much of it cause they honestly thought Bakugou would flip and destroy the world if not restrained - Kirishima might have found it eccessive, possibly, but in that case too his relationship with Bakugou was just being formed, he didn’t know Bakugou enough to be sure he wouldn’t just lounch himself at Todoroki as soon as he was free

What I can imagine is all four of them some months in the future thinking back on it and going, man, fuck, that really was messed up, what the hell, and for a whole week Bakugou’s highly confused and kinda creeped out by how nice they’re being to him (at some point he starts thinking it’s a quirk) (they stop and go back to normal once they realize he’s honestly trying to figure out a way to unmake it)

Anon said:have you ever thought about…. ojinari (denki and ojirou) beings best buds or just hanging out? and i always liked the idea that baku and kiri get a little jealous whenever denki fawns over ojirou’s soft tail

I have!! It’s also pretty much canon, they’re seen interacting a lot - I don’t know about jealousy tho, mostly because I like to think Baku and Kiri enjoy Ojiro’s friendship a whole damn lot too haha Ojiro’s probably the only one who trains just as much as they do, really, he must be a great gym partner

Anon said:Holy mother of–the medal around Bakugou’s neck is just–I have no words but it’s such a really thoughtful and beautiful way to represent just *waves hands* I can’t explain it but it was really perfect and you’re such a great artist aND BAKU DESERVES BETTER

Holy smokes thank you!!!!!!!!!!! Oh my god!!!!!!!!!!! ;;;A;;; I’m so glad you liked it, oh b o i and yessssss at least he deserves a lot more respect than he ever gets from anyone that isn’t his friends ;~;

Anon said:I know the chains and muzzle were probably(?) for comedic effect like “hahaha he’s so angry we had to restrain him” but dang I’m with you that was just wayyy too far. Crossing into inhumane territory there

;-; I’m so glad I’m not the only one that feels like this about that

Anon said:Okay…. but have you considered in the recent chapters….. platonic kirideku….. (please, I need more of their pure friendship)

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm I have, they’re pretty cute and pure and Kirishima’s a ball of excitement and fighting spirit as usual and Deku is kinda there trying to keep up all wobbly smiles and good intentions (he’s not used to the hype people poor child *pats his head*) which is amusing, I don’t mind their relationship at all! But as of now I still haven’t found anything about it unique and interesting enough to make me want to draw it? They’re cute! But they feel… sorta superficial? Like, Kirishima’s friends with everyone, and Deku’s friends with everyone, so of course they’re gonna be friends with each other too! But that’s about it right now. I dunno, maybe it’ll develop more in the future and I’ll decide I want to draw it, who knows!

Anon said:Have you seen that vine with the drunk guys recording singing backstreet’s back? The guy recording is kiri the guy angrily carrying the other drunk guy is baku and the guy being carried is kami

Oh my god this is the best thing I’ve thought about all day, bless you anon hahaha I can’t stop laughing send h e l p the angry look is just so Baku how did they even get him to carry Kami rip

Anon said:I’m sorry if this is annoying of something (mostly bc it’s not a question really) but I REALLY needed to tell you your art is awesome and you made me giggle like a little girl (especially at your kiribaku stuff), and I spent hours at it. You’re amazing!!

It’s not annoying at all!!!! Oh my god, thank you so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:Sero giving Bakugo some kind of tape corset is just… omg Fran.

It’s not easy keeping the explosive friend at bay, but someone gotta do it (usually it’s Kirishima) (Sero works well enough when the target of Baku’s yelling is Kiri himself, tho)

Anon said:I just wanted to let you know that bnha has been all over my dash forever but the only reason i’m watching it is you. I found you through your haikyuu art (the bokuku.roteru comic to be specific) and I was sad that you don’t post much hq anymore, so I figured I would watch bnha so that I could enjoy your art to the fullest 😅 I’m only 8 episodes in but i like it so far!

I’m!!!!!! So happy you’re liking it, holy smokes!!!!!!!!! *O* thank you so much for deciding to try it out only for my art, oh myyyyyy ;u;

Anon said:Okay so… This is going to sound honestly terrible but… If Suneater needs to eat something to get his abilities, what would happen if he ate a human with a quirk? Would he be able to use it too?? Gosh. This is so morbid. Sorry for the ask.

DON’T!!!!!!!!!! worry anon this is a home open to every and each speculation as far as quirks go I live for this shit - also I might or might not have thought about this too (I have) and I guess as long as quirks are classified as physical attributes then he would gain the quirk? Mutations, for sure, but stuff like Bakugou’s sweat works too (he can use the venom in the animals he eats so nitroglycerin sweat is fair game) and probably body-shifting like Kirishima would work as well… I’m not sure about stuff like Shinsou’s quirk, but if there’s a gene or an actual mutated part of his body that can make him control people, then probably it’s be okay too

Please Jiki don’t ever eat anyone, tho lol

Anon said:I also am weak for the need vs want. I’ve actually said that to people. Don’t need you, I want you hahaha love you, Fran!!

Anon said:OMG Fran the comic !!! the soft kiribaku !!! and i love that Bakugou can still live without Kirishima but his live will be colourless, just LOVE IT !!!!!!

THANK YOU BOTH SO MUCH OH MY GOD!!!! I’m super glad you liked it!!!!!!!!!!!!

#fran answers #GUESS WHO FEELS CHATTY TODAY #i do #this is the longest ask post in the history of this blog #ship asks #and #bakugou headcanons #metaing all around #there's a lot of blabbering in this but i don't feel good enough to draw so asks answers it is #yaaaayyyyyyyyyy #anonymous #i just realized but probably my fave bakugou headcanon is that he's in love with kiri anon #tho that was pretty obvious wasnt it #lmao

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ramajmedia · 5 years

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Jumanji: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Making Of The Original Movie

If you grew up in the '90s, chances are you have fond memories of Jumanji. Based on a children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg, director Joe Johnston’s fantasy-adventure box office smash has won over countless fans since hitting theaters in 1995. Indeed, the franchise’s recent resurgence—in the form of 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and the forthcoming Jumanji: The Next Level —serves as an undeniable testament to Jumanji’s enduring appeal.

RELATED: 10 Best Board Games Based On Popular TV Shows And Movies To Own

While the cast and crew behind these sequels have done the Jumanji brand proud, the original movie will always hold a special place in our hearts. We can’t help but be impressed by everything that went on behind the scenes to make Jumanji such an instant classic.

10 Tom Hanks Was The Original Choice To Play Alan Parrish

Jumanji may have been an unqualified commercial success, but the film’s critical reception was decidedly more mixed. That said, one aspect of the film that was universally appreciated by critics was Robin Williams’ turn as adult lead Alan Parrish. Indeed, it’s virtually impossible to picture anyone else in the role—unless you happen to be director Joe Johnston.

As we’ve reported before, Johnston and producers Scott Kroopf and William Teitler originally had another Hollywood icon in mind to play Alan: Tom Hanks. One of the most versatile actors of his generation, Hanks certainly has the chops necessary to juggle the dramatic and comedic aspects of Alan’s character, but we’re nevertheless glad the role ultimately went to Williams.

9 The Screenplay Went Through Substantial Rewrites

As anyone who’s even vaguely familiar with the movie-making business will tell you, it’s standard practice for a screenplay to undergo multiple rewrites before the cameras roll. Jumanji was no exception: the script was heavily revised prior to shooting, in large part because Robin Williams passed on the first version he read.

For those keeping score, Jumanji’s first treatment–which incidentally was strong enough to get the project greenlit by TriStar Pictures – was penned by the book’s author, Chris Van Allsburg. This treatment was then fleshed out into a full screenplay by Jonathan Hensleigh, Greg Taylor, and Jim Strain, who jettisoned the more surrealist elements Van Allsburg had retained from his book in favor of a more mainstream story that met with Williams’ approval.

8 ILM Developed Custom Software To Create Realistic CG Animals

The computer-generated imagery in Jumanji hasn’t aged particularly gracefully in the 24 years following its release—but back in 1995, it was groundbreaking stuff. That’s not hyperbole, either: the visual effects artists at Industrial Light & Magic didn’t just raise the bar in terms of creating realistic CG animals, they invented brand new tools to do so.

Arguably the most impressive innovation devised by the legendary effects house was iSculpt, a tool which enabled animators to develop entire libraries of convincing facial expressions for each animal. ILM also utilized proprietary software when it came time to render the fur on Jumanji’s artificial wildlife, with the pixel-perfect monkey and lion hair in the film setting a new standard for photorealistic CGI.

RELATED: 10 Awesome Ruby Roundhouse Cosplays That Look Good Enough To Be In Jumanji

7 Bradley Pierce Spent Nearly Four Hours In The Make-Up Chair

Halfway through Jumanji, Bradley Pierce’s Peter is transformed into a human-monkey hybrid, courtesy of the titular boardgame’s supernatural powers. Although the film pushed contemporary CGI to its limits to accomplish many of its outlandish visuals, back in 1995, the only way to create this “monkey boy” effect was via prosthetics.

This was bad news for Pierce, as it meant spending 3.5 uncomfortable hours in the make-up chair every morning for nearly 70 days. Most adults would struggle with such a grueling start to their day, but for 12-year-old Pierce, it was an especially trying ordeal. On the plus side, Robin Williams kept him company early on, offering the child star tips on how to cope, which he’d picked up during his similar experiences filming Mrs. Doubtfire.

6 Robin Williams Dialed Back The Improvisation

Robin Williams was renowned for being a master of improvisational comedy. Not only did it make him a popular guest on the late-night talk show circuit, but it also added extra spice to many of his big screen performances. But for Jumanji, it became clear to director Joe Johnston early on that Williams' penchant for going off-script would need to be reined in if the movie was going to work.

Fortunately, Williams agreed. For each of his scenes, the star would do several takes that followed the screenplay word-for-word, to ensure that all the necessary plot points were covered off. Once those takes were safely in the can, he would film an additional take, this time incorporating some restrained ad-libbing, which Johnson was free to either use or discard.

5 Samuel Parrish And Van Pelt Are Played By The Same Actor

It’s an oft-overlooked casting detail that has launched more than a few fan theories: Jonathan Hyde plays both Alan Parrish’s stern father Samuel and Jumanji’s resident big game hunter Van Pelt. It’s easy to miss on first viewing, as the flamboyant mustache, wig and costume Van Pelt sports are more than enough to distance him from Samuel Parrish’s more staid aesthetic.

But once you do realize that the same actor plays both parts, it really does add a new (and totally unexpected) layer of subtext to Jumanji. For what it’s worth, we think most of the theories floating around online overcomplicate matters, but this one makes sense: The Samuel/Van Pelt connection is a subtle way of reinforcing Alan’s emotional journey of learning to face his fears and accept responsibility for his actions.

RELATED: 15 Crazy Things You Didn’t Know About Jumanji

4 Robin Williams Gave The Cast Autographed Gifts

It’s common for filmmakers to celebrate the completion of principal photography with presents for their colleagues. For example, when shooting on Jumanji wrapped, Robin Williams handed each of his fellow cast members hardbound copies of the shooting script. What’s more, each of these tomes was autographed by the Hollywood A-lister, adding to their value considerably.

But we highly doubt any of the recipients will ever sell their gifts. Why? Because Williams’ signature was accompanied by a handwritten, personalized message, which elevates these hardcovers from thoughtful gesture to priceless keepsake status —especially following the actor’s untimely demise in 2014.

3 Kirsten Dunst Blew Her Castmates Away

Despite only being 12 when the cameras rolled on Jumanji, Kirsten Dunst already had several high-profile film credits under her belt. Among the more memorable roles at this point in Dunst’s burgeoning career were Claudia in Interview with the Vampire, Campbell McCoy in Bonfire of the Vanities and the young Amy March in Little Women.

As a result, Dunst possessed a degree of professionalism uncommon for someone her age. Bradley Pierce even recalls how his co-star (who’s only six months older than him) mentored him on set! It wasn’t just Pierce who was impressed, either—veteran thespians like Bebe Neuwirth were likewise in awe of Dunst’s skills and on-set poise, as well.

2 The Final Scene Was Shot First

Big budget outings like Jumanji are rarely filmed in sequential order. Instead, scenes are shot in the order that makes the most sense from a logistical standpoint, based on factors such as actor availability, weather considerations and so on. As we’ve observed before, in the case of Jumanji, this translated to the film’s final scene being shot first.

This decision by director Joe Johnston and his team was motivated by purely practical considerations. Since the sets constructed to represent the Parrish mansion were going to be put through the wringer during the movie’s many chaotic set pieces—think rhinoceros stampedes and in-door flooding—all footage featuring the house looking its best needed to be captured early on.

1 Scarlett Johansson Auditioned To Play Judy

Already a rising star when she landed the role of Judy Shepherd in Jumanji, Kirsten Dunst’s career would nevertheless receive a welcome boost when the movie proved to be a box office hit. Interestingly, Jumanji could have helped to launch the career of another famous actress—Scarlett Johansson!

Then a relative unknown, Johansson auditioned to play Judy, but obviously failed to outshine Dunst. To be honest, upon viewing her audition tape, it’s kinda easy to see why – still just a kid, Johansson wasn’t the seasoned pro she is today.

NEXT: 10 Things We Learned From The Jumanji: The Next Level Trailer

source https://screenrant.com/jumanji-original-movie-behind-the-scenes-facts/

#screenrant

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yes-these-obsessions-are-healthy · 7 years

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PewDiePie Defense Post

\(o_o\) (LONG POST AHEAD) (/o_o)/

Jokes are jokes are jokes are jokes. Just because someone supports someone doesn't automatically mean that the person being supported wants to be supported by that person/people. People find weird things to admire in others, things that are not supposed to be commendable. Those people don't care, they'll admire someone regardless even if the guy says "Dude, no, I'm not one of you. Fuck off."

Let's look at iDubbbz just as an example. He makes self-deprecating jokes about being a "gay retard" or a "nigger faggot" because it's rude a shocking use of bad language. Quite a few stupid fans of his don't read the context and think it's totally okay to call him a "gay retard" or a "nigger faggot" 24/7 as if they know him and it’s an in-joke . Those idiots don't realize that the joke is way past stale and it's *not funny*. They're not funny people. They just sound like the edgy sociopathic 15 year olds they are.

Some people think it's okay to *actually* be politically incorrect just because one of their favorite YouTubers acts like that in the safety of a comedic platform. It isn't. Jokes require a bit of self-awareness. If you don't realize that the person telling such a joke actually doesn't put 100% stock in what they're saying, it sounds genuine and hurtful and in a sense it *is* because that context is missing. And even then, it may hurt people regardless because it's too personal for them. You can do anything in stand-up because it's supposed to be a box in which horrible things are said as a joke. They're not meant to be hurtful, they're usually not even meant to reflect the views of hte person saying the joke. If anything, *a lot* of jokes are meant to ridicule people who *sincerely believe in them*. George Carlin was a master at doing this, and Louis CK and Daniel Tosh's stand-ups have a similar approach. It's hyperbole, it's exaggeration, it's *not meant* to provide fuel to or to validate someone's shitty opinion, but to passive aggressively shame them. We laugh at those jokes and in doing so we laugh at the people who take them seriously. And we laugh even harder because people who don't get that they're jokes are so stupid that they think someone is actually saying "Yeah, that racist/sexist/homophobic/bigoted thing you believe? I totally support that" when it's fucking clear they don't.

I know PewDiePie isn't Anti-Semitic. I know he's not a Nazi or a fan of Hitler or racist or sexist, at least, no more than the average *good* person can accidentally be (we all say insensitive things sometimes, we're human, we make errors). He did it to be funny. He did it for shock humor, which is effective when you very much don't expect it. I sure as fuck didn't.

I mean, yes I understand that America seems to be heading into a very disturbing and alarming route towards Fascism. Our Hair Fuhrer is becoming more and more bellicose and ...just UGH. PewDiePie is Swedish and lives in the UK as far as I know, so there is that history of what Fascism did to a whole continent way back when. We Americans have our own clusterfuck of history ddealing with Anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, and the like. The Western world is currently seizing in trying to compromise globalization with differing attitudes and beliefs that people have. Europe has never been that good at doing so, whereas America is a surprising case of somehow making it all fucking work thus far.

But anyway, *I see and hear why his jokes are alarming. I do, I honestly do understand why you think they're not funny, especially with the political climate the way it is now*. But if some people are so mentally retarded (racism and Fascism is known to stunt brain development, in my experience) that they see someone like PewDiePie--a dude who for the past year and a half has been churning out a dry, self-deprecating, sarcastic sense of humor--actually and honestly advocating for racism, xenophobia, Anti-Semitism and shit? I don't know what to tell you. Maybe they need to go to a professional and see if autism isn't a possible disorder they may be suffering from.

I ain't defending PewDiePie just because I like him or because I've been a fan for a long time. I'll defend "offensive humor" like PewDiePie's (apparently), FilthyFrank, iDubbbz, Daniel Tosh, Louis CK, George Carlin, whomever the fuck makes people upset because humor is one of the purest forms of freedom of speech. Even if their jokes are based around wrong assumptions, even if their humor doesn't sit well with me or it misses my funny bone by a country mile, I'll still defend it. Fuck, Aries Spears makes fun of Indians and Mexicans and I think East Asian people as a black man.

I do appreciate PewDiePie's acknowledgment that it is not necessarily peoples' fault for not taking a joke. You don't *have* to accept *anything* as funny, honestly.

But you cannot say that certain things are "not funny" for some people. Fuck, some people think that beating up homeless people is funny.

I think those people are fucked in the head, but whatever. In this day and age, IN THIS DAY AND AGE WHERE LEGITIMATE NEWS IS BEING QUESTIONED FOR ITS RELIABILITY, Wall Street Journal does THIS shit?! Well fuck, if their biggest scoop is making PewDiePie look out to be a racist, what the fuck are they doing. What the fuck are WE doing.

And I find it offensive that you think that people are so mentally retarded that they can’t watch or read something that negatively portrays a group and not automatically think “Oh wow guess those people are scum of the Earth!”. Seriously, we’re not all sheep. Some of us have discerning minds. Give us some fucking credit, for God’s sake.

#pewdiepie

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aion-rsa · 4 years

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Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Episode 7 Review: The Totally Excellent Adventures of Mack and The D

https://ift.tt/2Zbm8x9

This review contains spoilers for Agents of SHIELD.

Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Episode 7

References to the 80s are all the rage in pop culture, from Stranger Things to The Americans, so it should come as no surprise that Agents of SHIELD wanted to have fun with its time travel storyline now that the team has reached the decade of excess. Unfortunately, although the movie allusions were entertaining and appreciated, the stylistic narrative choices felt very much out of place. The use of Deke’s perspective provided an explanation of sorts for the over-the-top antics, but the lack of a bookend for that technique at the end of the episode left the whole episode feeling a bit like a parody of itself.

“The Totally Excellent Adventures of Mack and The D” had good intentions, and not everything missed the mark. Early scenes of Sybil persuading a computer support specialist to help her began as a text solicitation similar to WarGames’ “Shall we play a game?” and went down a decidedly Weird Science path as the nerd decided she sounded like a real girl who needed a new body to inhabit. Even though the end result was decidedly more robot-like than human, the clear resemblance to Johnny 5 of Short Circuit (a nod later confirmed by Mack’s trademark nickname for his enemy) with the bonus cylon-like eye was a real treat.

The more poignant aspects of Mack’s recovery and altered personal timeline were also enjoyably dramatic; Agents of SHIELD has always done well with these character moments. Awful beard notwithstanding, Mack has always had family trauma as a significant part of his back story, from the loss of his daughter Hope in real life and in the Framework to the conflict with his brother who joined the anti-Inhuman Watchdogs, and his work on the model cars was an apt reminder of his origins as a mechanic while providing an oblique explanation of how he may have earned an income during his time alone. As a result, his frustration with Deke’s shenanigans when he was finally pulled out of isolation felt very authentic.

But let’s be real: Deke’s team of misfits were nothing more than 80s film archetypes meant to elicit the same appreciative smiles that the many successful robot references (such as the Dalek-esque “Exerminate!”) did. But machines don’t have the burden that human characters have to be believable and deserving of the audience’s interest as they interact with the people we actually care about. Agents of SHIELD fans may have felt they deserved the type of organizational rewind Captain Marvel provided, but instead they got an abandoned Lighthouse filled with wannabe agents in a decade when SHIELD would have been in full force.

The minimalist approach shouldn’t be too surprising given that this is a bottle episode of a series in its final season, but to add insult to injury, Agents of SHIELD chose to throw in fountains of blood as the Chronicom hunters attacked in a misguided attempt to amusingly allude to 80s horror flicks like Halloween or A Nightmare on Elm Street. At first, it seemed as though the exaggeration came from the manner in which Deke may have related his adventures to May in his debrief, but the narrative style continued even after the Zephyr crew reunited with their missing team members in 1983. Having Deke say, “I told you you wouldn’t believe me,” wasn’t enough to forgive these clunky spoofs.

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Sure, we’re glad Coulson was saved to a hard drive, confirming that death is indeed his super power, and the fact that Sybil was able to do the same helped temper the convenience of that plot device. Plus the Max Headroom appearance of Coulson’s image was quite fitting as was the use of a VCR and other 80s tech Deke was able to cobble together, no matter how implausible. Maybe it was the combination of so many comedic, hyperbolic references that cheapened the overall effect, who knows? Giving Mack action hero lines like, “Somewhere, somehow, someone’s gonna pay,” or “Looks like more metal for the scrap heap,” for example, undermined his emotional journey elsewhere in the episode.

After all, the fact that Deke was taking care of young Alfie and Ruben Mackenzie was quite sweet, and hopefully Mack and “The D” will carry their 20 months away from the mission with them as fond memories. In the meantime, Nathaniel Malick, none the worse for having tried to take on Quake powers seven years ago, has his hands on the time stream device the Chronicoms have been using to try and change SHIELD history. As usual, Agents of SHIELD packs a punch in its epilogue, and we can hope for a return to the style of adventure to which we’re accustomed in the back half of the season.

The post Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Episode 7 Review: The Totally Excellent Adventures of Mack and The D appeared first on Den of Geek.

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recentanimenews · 6 years

Text

When War Comes Home: The Loss of Innocence in Invisible Victory

The skies are clouded as Sousuke overhears form the cockpit of his camouflaged mech that his enemies are going to get serious in their fight against Mithril. The sun sets over the Student Council room as the soon to be departing Student Council President informs Sousuke that he can no longer cover for him. Innocent Japanese bystanders are seriously wounded, and Sousuke and Chidori’s mutual friend is nearly killed. Amalgam infiltrates a once peaceful Japan, threatening Sousuke's once off-limits school and friends, and demands that Chidori surrender herself to avoid any further violence – and that Sousuke let her surrender.

For anyone who’s followed Full Metal Panic! from when it first aired to now, this new development in Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory may come as a shock.

Full Metal Panic! is a classic anime series composed of narrative opposites so pronounced that Kyoto Animation split the parts of the story it was responsible into two separate shows – one for the comedy and one for the drama drama. Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu was a rip-snorting comedy that aired in 2003, and Full Metal Panic! Second Raid was a heavy and dark drama that premiered in 2005. From its inception in anime form by Gonzo in 2002 to today's 2018 Xebec production, the Full Metal Panic! franchise has always been a narrative hodgepodge of often tonally dissonant laughs and grit – its creator, Shoji Gatoh, milking every hilarious slap-stick and sadly traumatizing narrative juice he could squeeze out of the story conceit of a soldier boy meeting a civilian girl.

Gatoh took this premise of a soldier Sousuke Sagara and civilian Chidori Kaname in radically different comedic and dramatic directions, to the extent that its gory battlefield scenes often feel like a completely different show from the one its high school shenanigans reside in. The Sousuke who gets Chidori caught in another hyperbolically wacky situation due to his military awkwardness is the same Sousuke who has no problem indifferently and mercilessly gunning down obstacles to his military missions. From the beginning, Full Metal Panic! has these Sousukes live effectively separate lives. Sousuke goes to war without Chidori, and returns back to her like little’s changed.

Gradually, though, as though the story's own sanity gradually devolves into a panic over the difficulty of reconciling its high school innocence with its wartime brutality, the lines between innocence and brutality grow harder to distinguish. In Full Metal Panic! Second Raid, Chidori follows Sousuke into a battlefield where she experiences the kind of danger and brutality he puts up with as a soldier. Now, in Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory, the brutality Sousuke puts up with follows Chidori into her hometown. The clear narrative distinction between battlefront and homefront collapses in burst of explosions, a hail of bullets, and a spray of debris. Sousuke and Chidori’s amusing but peaceful school life where their friends troll each other in a safe space is at an end… for now.

The Student Council President does Sousuke – and the fans of the school life and comedy shenanigans of the series – one last favor before he fully graduates. He announces that Sousuke’s released poison gas in the school, and the entire student body books it to safety, saving everyone from the bombs planted on the grounds by Amalgam. As the story passes the point of no return into a new status quo of regular violence, there won’t be another time in probably a long time for guilt-free laughter.

It’s been over a decade since content from Full Metal Panic! was last animated, and its new season is a significant change from what long-time fans of the show may have be expecting. Invisible Victory is a reckoning come to a franchise over its tonally dissonant assets of comedy and drama, and for now, that comedy is taking a backseat to the drama. Those innocent days have gone, and harder times for our protagonists are to come.

Part of the vibrant beauty and appeal of Full Metal Panic!, though, its heart, has always been come from the relationship between Sousuke and Chidori, how the two of them learn to navigate and complement each other’s lives and skills despite how different and disjointed their backgrounds are from each other. It will be interesting to see how their love for each other wears and grows with the challenges in store for them in this sequel.

How are you enjoy Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory so far? Have you been surprised by the grim tone its taken? Let us know how you feel about this latest season of an anime classic down below in the comments!

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A social scientist and history buff who dabbles in creative writing and anime analysis, ZeroReq011 has a Twitter you can follow and runs a Blog called Therefore It Is. In addition to writing for Crunchyroll, he has contributed articles to Anime Feminist, Anime News Network, and Genki Life Magazine.

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