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strangertheories · 1 year

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The Stranger Things Q&A panel at a convention today (actors of Chrissy, Alexei and Karen)

I was not able to ask any questions, sorry guys! The queue was long and I dislike crowds a lot so I avoided it. However, the panel host pointed at me when talking about the cosplay in the fandom and complimented my cosplay- people clapped! Except she said "oh my goodness chips ahoy!" (I am a Robin cosplayer) and I am in fact not cosplaying chips ahoy.

I've included most answers here, nothing really about S5 though except confirmation that filming begins in June for Cara, what they'd like to happen and no Byler. There was a lot for the Hellcheer shippers as well since Grace got asked about that. There were a few questions they refused to answer, most of which were about their fellow cast members. Except for when the crowd wanted to kill Mike when asked which of the party should die (bit harsh). One person said Will and Grace was outraged.

Cara (Karen)

Her daughter cosplays anime

Audition - started in 2015, in person followed by a series of auditions, only one to meet Duffers before set

Huge Walking Dead fan, loves Star Trek, anime vicariously through child, Genshin Impact

Likes the nostalgic bits - happy it's introducing 80s music to younger generation

Favorite part to act was the scene where she first met Billy as it was fun to shoot and they were laughing between takes

Cara never learnt to swim so had to get lessons to film a shot of backstroke in S3

Sad that Benny died, as well as Eddie and Chrissy because she wonders what could've been

Her daughter was 2 when she started stranger things so she grew up with the cast and it's bittersweet to see kids grow

Thinks pineapples DO belong on pizza

Wants Angela to die in S5 (because she's mean) with a whack to the face from another roller skate

S5 shooting begins in June!

She was surprised at how gruesome Chrissy's death was even though she'd read it in the script but thought it served as a good departure from previous seasons

Carnival scene was best location to film on as they built a carnival and you could go on the rides when it wasn't being filmed

Grace (Chrissy)

Audition - sent in a tape, only had to try once because she was the only one to play her nice

Grace is a big Doctor Who fan, particularly number 10

Would be a demodog if she could play anyone else

Favorite part of shooting was working with Joe Quinn as he's super talented and fun

Most stressful scene to shoot was running from Vecna (crying, screaming, running, etc was exhausting) especially since Jamie Campbell Bowers walks super slowly

Would kill Vecna to save Eddie

She thinks Eddie and Chrissy would've been together but says that "they are [together] now" (💀💀) which got a huge laugh

Says third season is the best

Would be a potato if she could be a food

Not tired of Chrissy Wake Up. Was asked to sing Chrissy Wake Up but she didn't

Was nervous people would be glad she died so she'd be out of the way so was pleased people love Chrissy

Dear Billy (04x04) is the best episode in her opinion

Thinks pineapples don't belong on pizza

Enjoyed dying for the first time but actually found it hard to watch. They wouldn't let her keep snapped Chrissy to hang from her ceiling

Alec (Alexei)

Audition - just generic scenes, wrote the character around him

Big anime fan (Demon Slayer, Hunter X Hunter)

Says the 80s nostagia shows the power of music (and marketing)

Favorite people to work with were David and Winona (mother and father figure of set)

Favorite part to shoot was the scenes with the slushies. It was cherry "because it was in the script" (he was asked why he chose a cherry slushie)

Would be "Cool Dustin" if he could have played anyone else (he is his favorite character, loved Gaten's performance from S1 as he's unique)

First shot outside of Murray's house was very scary to film as he wanted to impress the cast

He says the first season is the best season

It was unexpected that people clung on to his character and the reaction from social media although he did anticipate people would be sad from the death

Doesn't want Eddie to come back, says more main characters should die

So that's that! I got to speak to Cara as well and she was lovely, I'll be seeing them later today as well for photos/autographs (:

#stranger things #st5 #karen wheeler #cara buono #alexei stranger things #alec utgoff #chrissy cunningham #eddie x chrissy #hellcheer #chreddie #grace van dien

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dawnbreakersgaze · 26 days

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-nine people I'd like to get to know better:

The wonderful @zaynesaurora tagged me for this ♡♡ and she's an absolute doll pls go check out her amazing works if you haven't yet 😊

Last song:

Call me Yours- A foreign Affair (working on my Xavier Playlist atm)

Favorite colour:

Purples and blues. More on the cool tone side. I'll also never say no to a nice emerald green.

Currently watching:

SW- Bad Batch, S3 Ep 10. I'm not okay emotionally (no spoilers, but I'm so so sooo sad about the loss of a particular character who was my absolute favorite and UGH idk man I hurt).

Spicy/Savory/Sweet:

I'm bisexual 💅🏼 I'm canonically unable to pick anything lmao. It depends on my mood honestly. All three 😅 (this is a theme with me I'm sorry lol) but I reach for sweets a lot less than the other two.

Relationship status:

Married! Celebrated my 16th wedding anniversary this past February ♡ He's the cutest, sweetest person in the world honestly.

Current obsession:

Aside from the obvious LnDS one, Dungeons and Dragons takes a big chunk of my life (I play in two games during the week and run one game on Saturday nights), so I'm definitely your ~classic nerd~. But that might not surprise you if you've been around here long enough to remember me talking about my dice making history lol. Other obsessions are invert keeping (I have a pet tarantula collection), and Demon Slayer (I'm soooooo excited for the next season!! I saw the new episode in theaters and ahhhhh seeing my man Gyomei and my wife Mitsuri again was so healing 🥹 I'm so ready for them)

Tagging @nobodys-saviour @seaofgoldensand @anxiousgoddest @adoreddestiny @roll-of-royces

(I know it's not 9 but I think everyone else has been tagged like 3 or 4 times and I don't wanna pester lol. But also ignore this if you've done it already and I'm sorry 😅😅😅)

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elizadushkudaily · 7 months

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BTVS - S3

Tuesday October 13, 1998. Eliza Dushku plays Faith in episode 3x03 Faith, Hope and Trick. (IMDB rating: 8 / 10)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 3, Episode 3: Faith, Hope and Trick. "A charismatic Slayer visits Sunnydale and wins over many of Buffy's friends."

This was the first appearance of the character Faith and Eliza's first TV show role. Faith is in a total of 13 episodes (average IMDB rating: 8 / 10) of BTVS S3, including the two part season finale. In May 1999 she concluded her S3 appearances.

Previously on BTVS: "A young woman, destined to slay vampires, demons and other infernal creatures, deals with her life fighting evil, with the help of her friends."

(credit to IMDB)

related gifs and posts: 3x03 Faith Hope and Trick 3x04 Beauty and the Beasts 3x05 Homecoming 3x07 Revelations 3x10 Amends 3x13 The Zeppo 3x14 Bad Girls 3x15 Consequences 3x16 Doppelgangland 3x17 Enemies 3x19 Choices 3x21 Graduation Day Part 1 3x22 Graduation Day Part 2

#btvs #faith lehane #poster #episodes #episodes: BTVS S3

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embossross · 4 months

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2023 in anime

i give ratings out of 10 stars based on a rubric that considers the following:

2 points / ambition of what the anime is trying to achieve 3 points / effectiveness of the anime in achieving its aims 4 points / my personal, subjective enjoyment 1 point / pacing +1/-1 miscellaneous

so with that said… ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (2 anime)

revolutionary girl utena – heavy breathing panting crying what a fucking roller coaster nanami the child you are anty the child you were utena the child you choose to be – just one of the true masterpieces of all anime. took a few episodes to realize that this show understood tone and comedy perfectly and wasn’t just a wonky children’s show and by golly! the nanami in season 3 gutted me unlike anything else

attack on titan: final season (for real this time) – decent conclusion to maybe my favorite anime of all time

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (10 anime)

school rumble – so goddamn funny and i cared about every goddamn character. it’s witchcraft!

trigun – good ole saturday morning cartoons

golden kamuy s3 – how does it keep getting better???!?!

fruits basket – i was a certified hater after s1, but slowly but surely i gave into the melodrama. akito and shigure were EVERYTHING

nana – the most disappointing ending of all time! for one of the greatest anime of all time. manga pls save me!!!

rascal does not dream of bunny girl senpai – i’m embarrassed. i cried.

princess tutu – expressionistic, dedicated to storytelling, tremendously kind-hearted. you have to let it move you

blue lock – i’m officially a sports anime girlie

cyberpunk: edgerunners – this was just so slick!

chainsaw man – nothing needs to be said here

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (8 anime)

yamada-kun to lv999 no koi wo suru – adult romance that hasn’t been stripped of all conflict and maintains momentum nearly to the end

oshi no ko – my expectations were non-existent after ep 1 but then it crept up on me. i can’t even fully put my finger on what works so well? but it does! it knows when to take itself seriously and when to be nonsense.

demon slayer s3 – best season of demon slayer to date, i actually cared

durarara!!x2 shou – this is a confession. my inner edgy teen loves durarara. i appreciate huge casts of characters acting in opposition in atmospheric tokyo.

gintama – i finally finished gintama one of my favorites of all time. the end pulls all the threads together but it does so at the expense of the laughs so loses some points

chihayafuru – amazing background anime. just consistently fun and engaging.

perfect blue – i feel stupid and uncultured to not give this a 10

vinland saga – askeladd is so hot wow

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (7 anime)

buddy daddies – funny and sincere in degrees but a truly annoying little girl character

serial experiments lain – god you’ve gotta appreciate the wild swings creatives were taking in the 90s

durarara!!x2 ten

great teacher onizuka – ugh he’s a creep but also heh he’s funny

trigun stampede – they yassified them!

mob psycho 100 s3 - meandered a bit but the characters are forever favorites

to your eternity – the first 3 arcs are extraordinary. march is one of the great child characters of all time. the end drags.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (8 anime)

zom 100 – crazy good first episode that earns its premise and then a slow descent into mediocrity; cool colors though!

terror in resonance – utterly forgettable

dororo – way too long with way too many hit or miss episode arcs

bungou stray dogs s4 – the cracks are showing but the rampo backstory is dope

lycoris recoil – those cute girls shoulda been lesbians

classroom of the elite – is it edgy? yes. are the quotes frustratingly misused? oh yes. is it fun? ugh yeah actually

romantic killer – pretty cute and the edge of danger at the end really sells it

free – solid watch but it left my brain like sand in a sieve

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4 anime)

wolf’s rain – what passes as deep when children are your primary audience

hell’s paradise – boring and i liked the manga so.

durarara!!x2 ketsu – the conclusion falls short

land of the lustrous – bold but was too slow for me

⭐⭐⭐⭐ (3 anime)

tomo-chan is a girl! – sometimes funny but the conceit does not justify 13 episodes and it loses steam fast

mushishi – some of the vignettes were beautiful but felt repetitive

bleach: thousand-year blood war – sleek, hype, plagued by all the old bleach problems

no game no life season 1 - confused that this was such a phenomenon when it came out. it’s fine i guess.

⭐⭐⭐ (5 anime)

kamisama kiss – trite imo

given – god save us from anime about perfect people being perfect with each other – but this time set to music!

tokyo revengers s2 – 🤷

natsume’s book of friends – i don’t need vibes this cozy

sasaki to miyano – and i really don’t need vibes this cozy

⭐⭐ (0 anime)

⭐ (0 anime)

& then ongoing shows that i’m not going to rank until i finish them (but actually all are pretty good so far) – skip to loafer, heavenly delusion, spy x family s2, apothecary diaries, jujutsu kaisen s2, frieren: beyond journey’s end, vinland saga s2

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ichigopanhpff · 7 months

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More VAs announced for Tenjiku Arc

Yesterday was the early screening event for the 1st episode for TokRev's S3. Majority of the voice actors appearing this upcoming season were there.

What's more is they announced the VAs for Haruchiyo Sanzu and Kawata "Angry" Souya!

The VA for Sanzu is Okamoto Nobuhiko aka Bakugo from "BNHA" aka Nishinoya from "Haikyuu!" Honestly, I'm a little surprised because voice I had in my head for him was a bit more calm and flat (in this version of him, at least). I can definitely picture Nobu's voice being more fitting for the Bonten arc.

Source: https://twitter.com/anime_toman/status/1708072581981712861

Angry's VA is Kawanishi Kengo aka The Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito from "Demon Slayer" and Hashida from "Blue Period." I say Kawanishi's voice suits him perfectly. Kawanishi is also voicing Smiley. Hope he gets 2 paychecks for that.

Source: https://twitter.com/anime_toman/status/1708072478998945935

They'll be reusing "White Noise" by HiGeDan for the opening for S3, hopefully with an updated intro sequence cus it'd be kinda awkward to have Black Dragons on there still.

S3 of TokRev will air 10/3 and Hulu will be simulcasting it.

#tokyo revengers #tokrev news #angry kawata #sanzu haruchiyo #tokyo manji gang #tenjiku #tokyo revengers s3 #tokrev s3 #tenjiku arc #tokyo manji kai #tokyo manji revengers

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formulaorange · 10 months

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Spring 2023 Anime Review

Sorry this is late - I was in Japan for a month and a half

Oshi No Ko The series that easily stole the #1 spot this season. It really stands out, I've never seen a story like this one and it really hits hard. The episodes feel real and definitely show a side of the film/idol industry that a lot of people brush over. It's such a great concept and I'm thoroughly looking forward to future seasons. 10/10 - Masterpiece

Demon Slayer - Season 3 I really can't stress how next level Ufotable's animations are and you really get to see it in this season. The story itself is also picking up the pace with my guess of 2 more seasons before the series is completed, it's such a great feeling to really experience the series moving forward and being able to get to know more of the key characters introduced in season 1. A really killer season packed into a reasonable amount of time and episodes. 9.5/10 - Amazing

Hell's Paradise I can't put my finger on exactly what it is, but this really didn't hit as hard as I thought it would. The manga was impeccable and I guess the anime just didn't live up to it. I also felt that some of the animations were lackluster, which is surprising for MAPPA. Maybe they're really starting to feel the weight of having to work on so many titles. I'm hoping the next season feels better, the second half of the series is really where it picks up and is what makes everything worth it. 7.5/10 - Good+

Mashle Honestly one of the best comedy series I've seen in a while, I kept thinking maybe it wouldn't hit as hard the next episode but it always did. Excellent Harry Potter memeage and overall comedy. 8/10 - Very Good Dr. Stone S3 This took me a second to get back into but once I started watching, I really got into it, it's honestly such a good series. I feel like we're really headed toward the main story now and things are picking up the pace. Was a solid season for the story. 8/10 - Very Good My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999 I loved this series so much. It was a bit of a slowburn but so very wholesome. I think it reminded me a bit of a younger wotakoi if that makes sense. just realistic and cute, the last episode is 100% a killer payoff, very much like jdramas where it's not over the top and you're stoked about the tiniest thing. definitely a couple i support all the way. 8/10 - Very Good Heavenly Delusion This season did such a 180 for me. I loved the initial concept of post-apocalyptic survival vs the captive kids but man did it get uncomfortable fast. There were just way too many naked kids and borderline harassment scenarios that I felt super icky watching the show. It could've gone such a different direction without all that stuff and be amazing.. End of the day the series was novel and that stuff wasn't the whole show. 7/10 - Good Gundam: Witch from Mercury Season 2 - Part 2 I was a huge fan of the first season, the story was solid, the characters were great and in general it was just a really good season. I had a much harder time with this season, it felt way more political and felt a little more rushed than i'd like. 6.5/10 - Fine+ With the new season coming out this weekend I'll post this and add to it when I complete the following 2 shows: The Dangers in My Heart Skip to Loafer

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sattosugu · 1 year

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tag 9 people you want to get to know better

tagged by @akmu, thanks for the tag!!

three ships: bkdk, vanoe, & itafushi

first ever ship: inukag

last song: trails of zero ost - scene of a street corner

last movie: demon slayer s2 episode 10/11 and s3 episode 1 (that’s the last movie i saw lol)

currently reading: bnha, jjk, & blue lock

currently consuming: mild chicken tenders

currently watching: bnha s6, the mandolarion s3, blue lock s1, & tokyo revengers s2.

currently craving: nothing right now ^^

tagging (optional): @kilruas, @shizukku, @apparently-artless, @ttoya, @tomiokasensei, @boo-kugo & @ravenliz

#tag game

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sunnydaleherald · 2 years

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The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Tuesday, September 13

Buffy; Oh, um, so maybe do you wanna do something? Parker : Sure, we could do that absolutely. Buffy : So what about tonight? Parker : Oh... Uh... I think I'm supposed to get together with some people later ... Buffy : Parker, did I do something wrong? Parker : Something wrong? No, of course not. It was fun. Didn't you have fun? Watch out how you answer that. My ego is fragile. Buffy : You had fun? Was that all it was? Parker : What else was it supposed to be?

~~Buffy Episode #59: "In The Harsh Light of Day"~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Justice (Giles, T, Case Files of Young Kindachi xover) by madimpossibledreamer

Welcome to the Family (Angelus/Darla/Drusilla/Spike, M) by Gabriel_Is_My_Guardian_Angel89

Baby's days out (Giles/Jenny, T) by Aragorn II Elessar

[Chaptered Fiction]

Bound Part I: To Paris With Love and Demons Ch. 1-3/3 (COMPLETE) (Buffy/Spike, E) by RavenLove12

Bound Part II: Last Train to Scotland Ch. 1-5/5 (COMPLETE) (Buffy/Spike, E) by RavenLove12

Bound Part III: Awkward Moments of Faith Ch. 1-2/2 (COMPLETE) (Buffy/Spike, E) by RavenLove12

Bound Part IV: Vampire Dust Will Get Ya Ch. 1-4/4 (COMPLETE) (Buffy/Spike, E) by RavenLove12

Bound Part V: Love a Handyman Ch. 1-2/2 (COMPLETE) (Buffy/Spike, E) by RavenLove12

Bound Part VI: Underground Ch. 1-4/? (Buffy/Spike, E) by RavenLove12

Fragility Ch.1/? (Buffy/Spike, M) by TheClowniestLivInExistence

How Love Saved the World Ch. 14 (Willow/Tara, M) by Bellalocke

Sweet Surrender Ch. 39 (Spike/OC, M) by Crossbows-and-moonshine

What Should Have Been Ch. 7 (Buffy/Tara, M) by susan19

13 Years Later Ch. 21 (Buffy/Spike, M) by ShadowXMoonlight

Red on Red CH. 5 (Ensemble, T) by Empire of the Words

() by

Devouring Time, Chapter 1 (Buffy/Spike, M) by Sigyn

The Slayer and the Vampire, Chapter 73 (Buffy/Spike, T) by violettathepiratequeen

Mirror Reflection, Chapter 16 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Electric Heart

Extra Ordinary, Chapter 7 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Twinkles

Rewrite, Chapter 21 (Buffy/Spike, E) by hopelesswanderer

Come Back to Me, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Spike, E) by honeygirl51885

Overboard!, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Spike, E) by bookishy

Met You in a Bar, Chapter 1 (Buffy/Spike, E) by bookishy

take me out, and take me home, Chapter 6 (Buffy/Spike, G) by MillennialCryBaby

[Fandom Discussions]

How would the Scoobies react to Cordelia's death? by garfan

Rewatching buffy and noticed this mistake (S1, ep8) by samonaspectrum

Question about S3 E15 by Smthplanty

Buffy slapping Spike by chemeli888

Who was the most enjoyable petty villain of the whole series? by GoblinQueenForever

Favorite campy Dark Willow line by hthbellhop76

Why did Knox just tell Gunn about Illyria? by rapbarf

Buffy returning home in Helpless by Tuxedo_Mark

[Articles, Interviews, and Other News]

PUBLICATION: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Funniest Episodes, Ranked by MovieWeb

PUBLICATION: Angel Ending Explained: Let's Go To Work by Slash Film

PUBLICATION: Buffy The Vampire Slayer: 10 Memes That Perfectly Sum Up Buffy As A Character by Screen Rant

Submit a link to be included in the newsletter!

Join the editor team :)

#spike btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #angel the series #meta #fan fiction #fan art

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herinsectreflection · 3 years

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I Don't Sleep on Bed of Bones: The Slayer as a Killer Across the Seasons

A pretty constant question throughout Buffy's arc - arguably the central question of the entire show, that Buffy must answer, is "what is a slayer? What does being The Vampire Slayer mean?". And a major part of that is the question of whether a slayer is just a killer. It's a question central to S5, but ripples throughout the rest of the show too, with some of the most iconic scenes in the show in converstion with each other around it. Inspired by an ask I received about this from @potterkid, I took a look at how this idea develops and resolves itself over the course of the show.

In S1, being the Slayer means accepting responsibility. It's metaphor for growing up - a metaphor that recurs throughout the show along with other ideas, but is strongest in S1. Buffy is torn between her teenage/human wants and her adult/supernatural responsibilities. She accepts her mortality and her duty (fighting the Master), and wins when she manages to integrate that with her personal desires (fighting the Master in a kickass prom dress with her friends and boyfriend). There's some stuff around the classic superhero idea that being around the hero is dangerous -e.g. in Never Kill a Boy on the First Date, but not much on the idea of a Slayer being a killer exactly.

In S2, being the Slayer means making hard choices. It means accepting that sometimes all your options are bad ones, but choosing one anyway, even at personal cost. This is introduced through Ford's story in Lie to Me, with Buffy's words to him forming one of the core thesis statements of the show ("You have a choice. You don't have a good choice, but you have a choice."), and it's climaxed beautifully in the tragic ending of Becoming. There's not much direct allusion to the idea of Buffy being a killer here, but this is a vital moment in that discussion. Ultimately, Buffy does make the decision here to kill Angel - not to slay Angelus, but to kill him. To take the life of her ensouled lover in order to save others. It's kind of the opposite of the decision that Ford makes - the best of two bad choices. It's the classic trolley problem, and Buffy's hand is on the lever by design - she has to make that choice because she's the Slayer. We will see this moment returned to again and again as this Slayer-vs-Killer theme develops.

Also, Ted is a very important episode for later. Buffy herself feels guilty specifically because she used her slayer powers on what she thinks is a regular human, and therefore killed him. Specifically, being the Slayer made her a Killer. It's also notable that this is where the idea of Buffy having a free reign to kill is first introduced - by Buffy's original shadow self in Cordelia no less.

Cordelia: I don't get it. Buffy's the Slayer. Shouldn't she have... Xander: What, a license to kill? Cordelia: Well, not for fun. But she's like this superman. Shouldn't there be different rules for her? - 2x12 Ted This isn't explored massively here but will be revisited again and again going forward.

S3 is where this theme really comes into focus. Faith enters as Buffy's shadow self and a representation of hedonism. How that manifests is as a Slayer who gives herself a license to Kill. She posits the idea that as slayers, they can and should decide who lives and dies.

Faith: Something made us different. We're warriors. We're built to kill. Buffy: To kill demons! But it does not mean that we get to pass judgment on people like we're better than everybody else! Faith: We are better! - 3x15 Consequences

Obviously, this is something that Buffy has to reckon with and fight against. But there is a glimmer of truth here, because at the end of S2, she does take the power of life and death into her own hands. She is faced with the choice between Angel and the world and decides that Angel should die. She had to, that's the position she has to be in because she is the Slayer. She has to be a Killer because she is a Slayer. So the two are intertwined.

More than this, Faith is someone who at least appears to revel in the kill. Up until now, we hadn't really seen Buffy enjoy being a slayer, but Faith does. Buffy is genuinely drawn to that, to slaying for pleasure. The equation of slaying/killing and sex for Buffy is first explicitly drawn by Faith in this season. ("Isn't it crazy how slaying always makes you hungry and horny?"). Slayers are very much like vampires in that respect, blurring the line between sex and death. In general, Faith introduces the idea that Buffy is drawn to killing - not just to protect people (the ideal of a Slayer), but for its own benefit. That's something that Buffy continues to struggle with going forward.

I have said before that Faith in S3 is an echo of Angel in S2, both in Buffy's relationship to them both and how that shifts mid-season, and in how it ends. In Graduation Day, Buffy again is given the power of life and death. This time, it's more personal - she can stop Angel dying by killing Faith. It's not such a straightforward (for want of a better word) decision as Angel .vs. the literal entire world, it's just the value of one life against the other. Another trolley problem, and it's not an easy choice, but it's still a choice. Just as she chose the lesser evil in killing Angel in S2, she kills the person filling the Angel role in S3. And this time, the choice is explicitly tied to the idea of being a Killer. Faith is set up as the person that Buffy could be in a slightly different world, and that person is a Killer, as Faith herself claims.

"What are you gonna do, B? Kill me? You become me. You're not ready for that, yet." - Faith Lehane, 3x17 Enemies

"You did it, B. You killed me." - Faith Lehane, 3x22 Graduation Day

In the act of choosing to pull the lever, Buffy has to kill. In the act of killing, she has become her dark mirror. In the act of defeating/becoming Faith, she becomes again the sole Slayer. Being a killer and a Slayer again intertwined. It's interesting here that she then makes the decision to feed herself to Angel. She unravels the trolley problem by throwing herself on the tracks. It's fascinating that between the dual trolley-problem finales of Becoming and The Gift, where in the first Buffy chooses to pull the lever, and in the latter she refuses and chooses a third option, Graduation Day exists in the middle as a stepping stone where she kind of does both.

The bulk of S4 is a little lighter on this theme, instead examining The Slayer as a role that must be juggled amongst a series of competing roles as Buffy's life as an adult becomes more fractured. There are flavours of it in Fear Itself, where Buffy fears that her friends will leave and her destiny lies with death and the dead, but otherwise not too much jumps out at me. Except, of course, for Restless, which is so heavy with this theme. It's one of the many reasons why I kind of consider Restless an honourary part of S5, as it's setting up the themes and arcs of S5 as much as it's wrapping up the like from S4.

RILEY: Hey there, killer.

BUFFY: We're not demons. ADAM: Is that a fact?

RILEY: Thought you were looking for your friends. Okay, killer...

TARA: I live in the action of death, the blood cry, the penetrating wound. I am destruction. Absolute ... alone. BUFFY: The Slayer. FIRST SLAYER: No friends! Just the kill.

OK, so SO much to unpack here. This is all within the under-10-minute sequence of Buffy's dream, and in that sequence she constantly shows a fear that she is in fact a "killer". It's clearly strong in her mind. Riley calls her "killer" multiple times, and Adam equates her with him, and with demonhood. I also find it very interesting how she responds to Tara's words, which are very literally describing the act of kiling ("the action of death...the blood cry...the penetrating wound"). She hears that and immediately identifies her as the Slayer, so slayerhood and killing are clearly bound up together in her mind.

Central to her concerns is the dichotomy between friendship and death. This was built up in Fear Itself, and it's central here. Riley and Sineya both frame it as a choice, between friendship and "the kill". This is a fear that Buffy has already, since S1, that her Slayer life will stop her ability to have a "normal" life of friends and family, but it also sets up her arc in S5 nicely. She chooses her friends over becoming a pure instrument of death in Restless, but that does not resolve her ongoing fears. They existed before and continue to dwell even more strongly in her mind, with words that both Sineya and Dracula repeat.

"You think you know ... what's to come ... what you are. You haven't even begun."

This sets the stage for S5, and her arc of choosing between family and being the Slayer. Friendship and family are presented as more of less one and the same a few episodes later in Family, and the choice Buffy is faced with in S5 is another trolley problem - the life of Dawn against the world. This time, it's more specifically tied to the Slayer/Killer dichotomy through the prophecy that Buffy is faced with ("Death is your gift"). This frames the similar choices she faced in Becoming and Graduation Day in the same light, with Buffy even specifically comparing this to the former.

BUFFY: I sacrificed Angel to save the world. I loved him so much. But I knew ... what was right. I don't have that any more. I don't understand. I don't know how to live in this world if these are the choices. If everything just gets stripped away. I don't see the point. I just wish that... I just wish my mom was here. The spirit guide told me that death is my gift. Guess that means a Slayer really is just a killer after all. - 5x22 The Gift

S5 is soaked in this Killer-vs-Slayer idea, and that's part of why I love it so much. It opens with Buffy having gained an appreciation of killing. She goes out not to patrol, but to hunt. To revel in the enjoyment of the kill, just as Faith did. There's also a constant theme of people identifying Buffy as a Killer. Importantly, it's a theme of her believing them. She knows that there is a kernel of truth there, and it develops from a subconcious worry in Restless to a more concrete fear in Intervention, where Buffy explicitly says that she is afraid that being the Slayer means losing her humanity and ability to love, and become nothing more than a "killer". Eventually, Buffy is so ground down by it that when The Gift rolls around, she simply accepts that the Slayer is "just a killer" as an inevitability.

BUFFY: Yeah, I prefer the term slayer. You know, killer just sounds so... DRACULA: Naked? - 5x01 Buffy vs Dracula

SPIKE: Death is your art. You make it with your hands, day after day. That final gasp. That look of peace. - 5x07 Fool for Love

FIRST SLAYER: Death is your gift. - 5x18 Intervention

I also like the way that Joyce is repeatedly linked to this idea. Buffy's response to Sineya points to Joyce's death as a rebuttal to the idea of death being a gift ("Death is not a gift. My mother just died. I know this."). Buffy talks about Joyce just before accepting that "a slayer is a killer" in The Gift. Spike's speech about Slayer's having a death wish comes immediately before Buffy finds out that Joyce is going into hospital. The idea of the Slayer as an instrument of death, killing every day, is juxtaposed against the mundane horror of what death is really like, as demonstrated in The Body. As the Slayer, Buffy must cause death, but this is what death looks like. It's hard and painful and mortal and stupid. Eventually Buffy reaches a point where she just can't do this anymore. She can't live in a world where she must choose to be a killer, because she understands death more now than ever.

It's here that the show explicitly connects the ideas of utilitarianism and being a killer. Buffy says that killing Dawn to save the world (and by association killing Angel to save the world, or killing Faith to save Angel), would make the Slayer "just a killer". This goes back to S3, and Faith arguing that the death of one innocent was washed out by the many people that they save, and that being Slayers gives them the right to make that calculation. Tara points to Giles in this episode, the voice of utilitarianism, and identifies him as a killer. Giles himself identifies himself as one when he kills Ben, and here draws a line between being a utilitarian/killer, and being a hero.

BEN: Need a ... a minute. She could've killed me. GILES: No she couldn't. Never. ... She's a hero, you see. She's not like us.

Some people criticise the moral absolutism of this, and could very justifiably argue that killing Ben, or even killing Dawn, would be the most moral thing in this situation. Who are we to say that Dawn's life is more valuable than the lives of a thousand other 14 year old girls, with families of their own that love them just as much as Buffy loves Dawn? But within the context of the show, I think it makes sense for them to reject utilitarianism. Buffy is a Sisyphean story. There will always be another apocalypse after this one is stopped. There will always be another impossible choice with innocent lives in the balance. Through that lens, the idea of "killing one to save a thousand" becomes meaningless, because there's a thousand apocalypses, and if you kill one to stop them all, then you've killed a thousand. That's how Buffy feels - she killed Angel, she killed Faith, now she has to kill Dawn? Where does it end? Eventually it all just gets stripped away, so what's the point? There's no winning move here. The only way to break the cycle is to change the game.

We should also keep in mind Buffy's words at the start of the episode. She fears that the Slayer is "just a killer", but she is also identified by the guy she saves in the alley in the opening scene as "just a girl". And Buffy agrees ("That's what I keep saying."). Buffy is The Vampire Slayer, which dictates that she must make these impossible choices, but she's also Buffy, which means she is a human being with the power of free will. She gets a choice - not a good choice, but a choice. As a human being, she can reject the options in front of her and find a third way. She can transform the whole game, and turn "Death is your gift" into an empowering statement. This was heavily foreshadowed of course - the Guide in Intervention outright stated that Buffy was full of love, and that "love will bring [her] to [her] gift". But it takes Buffy working through these fears and emotions and realising that she simply can't take Dawn's life. She chooses a new way. She avoids being a killer by rejecting utilitarian ethics. To paraphrase The Last Jedi, she wins by saving what she loves. Ultimately, she's not a killer, but a girl, a friend, a sister, a Slayer - a hero.

So season five is very much the climax and resolution of this theme. Very few themes ever disappear entirely from this show though, and this one continues to echo throughout the show. In S6, Buffy again fears she is slipping into darkness. That there is some kind of darkness that is innate within her. But where in S5 this was a fear that she recoiled from but at times seemed inevitable, in S6 it is something that she is drawn towards, that disgusts her but that she takes a kind of comfort in, because it's easier than facing the mundane reality of her depression.

This yearning for her own darkness takes the physical form of Spike, who she uses for what is basically sexual self-harm. Spike steps into Faith's role as Buffy's shadow self for much of the later seasons, and , and like Faith he represents killing as hedonism, and as sex. There's no vampire who so aggressively blurs the lines of sex and death/violence as Spike. Her fear that killing is part of her nature, and her fear of her own sexual desire, are very much one and the same. When she breaks down in Dead Things, she talks about the darkness within her, and of her shame over her own sexuality.

Spike also repeats Faith's utilitarian justifications from Consequences in the episode which forms the climax of Buffy's self-destruction, Dead Things. When Buffy attempts to metaphorically commit suicide by turning herself into the police, she does it while constantly identifying herself as a killed. She repeats some variation on "I killed her" four times in just two scenes. She wants to be punished for being a killer, and not protected for being the slayer. She has grappled with this several times, and is still resolute that being the slayer does not give her a license to kill, but this time she is desperate to be seen as a killer, to give justification for her own self-hatred.

The final way S6 explores this idea is with Willow. When she is after Warren, Buffy tries to stop her, not for Warren's sake but for Willow's. She knows that taking a life changes a person, and implicitly draws on the first time she chose to take a human's life, the moment she "became a killer" on that rooftop with Faith.

Buffy (re: going to kill Faith): I can't play kid games anymore. This is how she wants it. Xander: I just don't want to lose you. Buffy: I won't get hurt. Xander: That's not what I mean. - 3x21 Graduation Day

XANDER: She should be coming down at some point, shouldn't she? I mean, back there she was out of her head ... running on grief and magicks. BUFFY: Doesn't matter . Willow just killed someone. Killing people changes you. Believe me, I know. - 6x21 Two to Go Killing Warren might have been justified given what a complete piece of shit he was - just as killing Angel was justified, just as killing Faith was, just as killing Ben was. That doesn't matter, because Buffy still recognises that the act of killing leaves permanent psychological scars, which she is still bearing.

In S7, we get the final major exploration of the "does the Slayer have a right to kill" idea in Selfless. Here, Buffy seems to have reached the conclusion that Cordelia, Faith and Spike (all her shadow selves) were right, and she does, in fact, have the right to pass judgment because she's the Slayer, when she decides she has to kill Anya.

"It is always different! It's always complicated. And at some point, someone has to draw the line, and that is always going to be me. You get down on me for cutting myself off, but in the end the slayer is always cut off. There's no mystical guidebook. No all-knowing council. Human rules don't apply. There's only me. I am the law." - 7x05 Selfless

However, I don't think the show wants us to take this as gospel. Buffy is conclusively proved wrong in this episode, since killing Anya doesn't work, and it's Willow who finds a third option that saves the day. In S7, the idea of the Slayer-as-Killer is more an incidental theme, while the central exploration is the idea of "one girl in all the world". It explores the nature of that tragedy, that Buffy is by definition alone. Because of this, she necessarily must be a killer. She does have to pass judgement, because there is nobody else capable of it. She has to be the one to hunt and kill vampires. She has to face the choice to kill Angel, to kill Faith, to kill Dawn, to kill Anya.

This is where the theme ends up - as a tragic inevitability. Buffy must always make that choice. Making the selfless choice to kill her boyfriend doesn't stop it. Avoiding the choice and dying herself doesn't even stop it. That boulder just rolls down the hill again and again, and Buffy is the only one who can push it back up. The Slayer is a killer because the Slayer is alone. So the only way to break that cycle is for the Slayer to no longer be alone. There are still elements of The Slayer, and of Buffy as a person, that are linked to death and killing, but she has mostly made peace with those parts, and now can be free of having to be "the law" too.

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midoriima · 2 years

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RATING ANIME SHOWS I'VE WATCHED

not all.... or maybe i should do all?

HAIKYUU!! — ♾/10

the first series after 3 years (where i kinda stopped watching anime) that i watched, and the first sports anime i've ever watched. twas the best however, my first years of my haikyuu phase was SHIT. absolute cringe, i want to get rid of that me. i was one of the weirdest hoes in that fandom before i changed, but honestly, it was a good time.

anyways, haikyuu was my escape, i watched it 24/7 and have rewatched the whole 3rd season for almost 8 times already. i would also watch this show from 10pm to 6am which is crazy???

ANOTHER — 9/10 first series i've ever watched. literally. the FIRST one and i loved it, but the op and a few scenes with mei was scary so i'll take away one point. i watched it when i was still in elementary and my dad kinda scolded me for it but as long as it didn't have sex, he was fine with it. but cos of this show, i have a fear of the tips of umbrellas and going down the stairs with it 😢

BLOOD C — 3/10. watched when i was still a dumbass. i only watched up to the third episode though cos i was only waiting for the gore but i didn't really come. i mean, it did, but it was actually kinda scary as well so i'm taking 7 points away. might watch again tho

MY HERO ACADEMIA — 10109103910/10. LOVE LOVE LOVEEEEEEE THIS SHOW. I LOVE IT SM AND I STARTED IT IN THE AFTERNOON WHERE THE VIBES WERE GREAT. sero has my heart. i have nothing else to say

TOKYO GHOUL — SPOILER WARNING FOR S3 EP 11-12 ////////////////////////////////// dropped at this episode cos someone died. i loved him sm but he died and i cried my heart out. however, i did very much love LOVE LOVEEEE this show, i'll give it an 11/10 cos i finished a season in a whole day?? idk how but i did and it was the best but i cried sm and stopped watching at this ep "in honour of ---"

ATTACK ON TITAN — 929192019/10. i watched cos my dad was watching and this show just happened to be in my to watch list. one of the best shows i've ever watched. i love the manga as well and honestly, i can't believe it already ended 💔 not much to say tbh except i rly loved this show. the erwin jokes on tiktok (by a certain acc) are so funny 😭 andddd i also watched this show from like 11pm until 2 or 3am...

PSYCHO PASS — ♾/10. LMFAO I'M SORRY FOR THIS GIF BUT ANYWAYS 😭😭 this was the second show i watched after haikyuu!! i loved this show sm, the vibes, art, and story were immaculate. I CANT BELIEVE NOBODY RLY HAS FICS OF KAGARI... i also watched this show late at night

DEMON SLAYER — ♾/10. I ALSO LOVE THE MANGA SM BUT THE FIGHT SCENES ARE HARD TO FOLLOW COS MY EYES ARE BAD. i watch kny if i don't wanna watch psycho pass so i watched these two at the same times. first crush was zenitsu, now it's inosuke. the jollibee & zenitsu jokes were funny 😭😭

BALANCE UNLIMITED — 28922829/10 COS OF SUZUE 😍⁉️⁉️ i'm in love w her gtfo daisuke. anyways i love everything about this show and i'm still like 5 episodes way from finishing it but it's almost been a year since i've last watched this. not much to say tbh? i did say i'd rate these shows but i didnt say i'd give a whole essay for it 😭

i'll make another one

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orumad · 4 years

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Rules: Pick 5 shows, then answer the following questions. Don’t cheat. Tag some people. tagged by: @tigereyesmuse <3 tagging: @floralege ; @untamedshe ; @beliefruined ; @holyfailed ; @jennyorjanna ; @youhavemyrespect ; @hotpreist ; @veiledhostilities ; everybody everybody!

Dawson’s Creek

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Roswell

Friends

The X Files

Who is your favorite character in 2? dawn foreva! knew it from when i was liddol watching btvs, maybe bc i, too, am i whiny brat bby? which she’s not even, the girl is Miss Unda Stood. she’s dealt w the death of her mother, her sister, and the concept that she used to be a floaty orby incorporeal “weapon” and has only been alive for like 5 years ok give her a break.

Who is your least favorite character in 1? dawson “doodoo crybaby” leery. jvdb honestly did the best he could, it’s not his fault he was standing next to pacey.

What is your favorite episode of 4? prob predictable to say the one where no one’s ready but!! secretly my actual fave is the one where everybody finds out.

What is your favorite season of 5? ooooooh GOD i wanna say s3 but s5 is def my most rewatched. bad blood is just. iconic.

Who is your favorite couple in 3? michael/maria no question! if michael/liz had been an actual couple i might need to really consider, but they remain my au fave!

Who is your favorite couple in 2? soooooooo riley and buffy *adrienne maloof vc* and let me tell you why. riley had his problems, he was very macho, gender norm-y, sensitive male ego-ish esp when he was in the military, don’t get me wrong. he also didn’t handle his “unrequited” feelings toward buffy that well (him being blood bag is a fascinating moment for his character that i rly need to get into one of these days), but he genuinely loved buffy and imo he was the best one for her. he’s human, he’s a demon fighter, he’s a rly good man! he def has the capacity to be dynamic and get on her level, if she’d allowed him. they could have been GREAT and that’s that on that.

What is your favorite episode of 1? the all-nighter might actually be one of my most watched? pacey getting his shine time is just :’) the best. the halloween episodes are classics, still get chills when they realize who joey was talking to. ALSO every pj-centric episode just all of them, stolen kisses, winter’s tale, castaways everything.

What is your favorite episode of 5? oh maybe actually bad blood. first of all luke wilson. the premise is just so perfect for their dynamic and is so fun to watch idk. also whichever one they kiss in, love it.

What is your favorite season of 2? five tbh! best baddie, some of the best episodes of the entire series (looking at you, the body), just the most dynamic season for btvs.

How long have you watched 1? lol forever. probably since i was like 10.

How did you become interested in 3? tbh i think it was literally just rec’d to me on netflix and i was like ok sure whatever. boy did netflix have my number.

Who is your favorite actor in 4? actor ooooo ig matthew perry. just a great comedian.

Which do you prefer, 1, 2, or 5? shiiiit. prob btvs, but i think if the dawson’s creek fandom was bigger it’d be a very tough call.

Which show have you seen more episodes of - 1 or 3? dawson’s creek, but it’s really close i’ve seen both of them a bunch but i owned dc so!

If you could be anyone from 4, who would you be? rachel mf greeen you already know.

Would a crossover between 3 and 4 work? omg. lemme just say no.

Pair two characters in 1 who would make an unlikely but strangely okay couple? they all dated each other already it’s difficult. oh wait duh joey and jen!!! tell me that tension wasn’t even a lil bit sexual.

Overall, which show has a better storyline, 3 or 5? wow close call. between roswell and the x files...... objectively it has to be roswell, right? like it’s ABOUT the aliens rather than someone trying to find them. execution/writing wise, x files obviously wins tho.

Which has better theme music, 2 or 4? btvs theme was sick as hell.

#( ooc . )#( dumb bitch tag . )

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untapanimedraw · 4 years

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Anime of the Decade 2019

Alright, now we start breaking down this current year. There was a fuck-ton of anime that I watched and to get this done on time and without going crazy I can only highlight some of my favorites, but it was a damn good year. Lets get into it!

Winter:

Dororo - This is a remake of an incomplete anime series from the late 60s. And besides this show having an absolute banger of an OP and ED, it has some gorgeous art and a story full of heart and ambition. Party is over.

The Promised Neverland - Definitely the suprise show of the season for me. I hadn’t read into the manga and was fortunate to not have been spoiled on anything going into it and that was definitely for the best. For a show based on suspense and mystery, keeping the thriller aspect is of absolute importance. This show was absolutely spectacular.

Kaguya-Sama: Love is War - Oh man, this show was so much fun. Just so much fun from start to finish. The mind games, the banter, the character interactions are all so entertaining. There’s a surprise ED too that is too adorable to even describe.

Mob Psycho 100 S2 - Ok, so this is my AOTS and a strong contender for AOTY. This second season takes everything we loved about the first season and cranks that up to 15 and then they have the absolute gall to throw in some super strong character growth as well! And as if that wasn’t enough, there were multiple EPISODES this season that had some absolutely mind-blowing animation.

Spring:

One Punch Man S2 - Oh man oh man, I so wish this had kept everything the same from a production standpoint as the first season. This story is arguably slightly more interesting than the first season, and this could definitely have benefited from a 2 cour airing. And nothing has been able to top that season 1 ending fight and animation. This was a troubled season, and I hope if there’s another one that the production will be able to keep up with everything.

Demon Slayer - This was such a great surprise of a show. I hadn’t heard about it or anything about it before starting and I was quite pleasantly surprised. One of the best new shounen shows of the last few years.

Attack on Titan S3 Part 2 - And here is my AOTS. This second part of season 3 is just everything good about Attack on Titan PLUS... FINALLY! THE basement reveal!!! This is the building culmination of years of waiting and dozens of episodes and it is truly great.

Isekai Quartet - Talk about the biggest surprise of the season, this show came completely out of left field. It’s an isekai show about 4 isekais. Like, this show is so fucking meta it’s insane. Also everyone is chibi, even Ainz. And there’s going to be a season 2 and they’re adding Shield Hero to the case. Truly insane.

Carole & Tuesday - I really wish I could give this my AOTS, that’s how much I love this show. Particularly this first half. It’s basically a 90′s show that somehow got missed and is now being made and that still feels like it belongs. This is really an anime that’s a love letter to music and it succeeds wholly.

Summer:

Dr. Stone - This is my AOTS. I absolutely adore this show. This season there were a LOT of shows that aired on Fridays and this was the first one I watched every single time. Humanity has been petrified for over 2500 years and this story follows Senku a science obsessed high school student who decides to recreate the entirety of scientific evolution in record time. Bill Nye meets prehistoric era shounen series. What an awesome idea, and I absolutely love it.

Fire Force - Fire Force is like a love letter to fire animation. The only thing that holds this show back is some completely unnecessary, ill-timed, and ill-executed fanservice with a particular character. It really feels like a block that keeps me from wholeheartedly reccommending it to people, but besides this it’s an absolute treat for the eyes.

DanMachi S2 - Wooooo season 2! AND we’re getting a season 3 and a MOVIE!!

Vinland Saga - Holy shit, this show is beautiful. SO good.

Fall:

My Hero Academia S4 - Hell yeah, more HeroAca. This first part of season 4 has been a slow-burner, so we’ll have to see what the rest of the season has in store for us next year.

Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-kun - This is such a charming show. It’s got all the appeal of the fun shows of the 2000s and reminds me of a less ecchi Rosario Vampire. And it is absolutely worth checking out.

Vinland Saga (second cour) - I’m going to cheat a bit and include this in my fall selection. It is a 2 cour show, but the second part of the season is almost drastically better than the first part and I thought the first part was a solid 10/10. This takes it up to another level both in the visuals and the story and characters. Definitely my AOTS.

Alright, so we have Mob Psycho 100 S2, Attack on Titan S3 Part 2, Dr. Stone and Vinland Saga. I am having some legitimate struggles right now. Dr. Stone wins on straight entertainment value, Mob wins on character growth and animation, AoT wins on payoff and action, and Vinland Saga wins on beauty and story and characters. I think it all comes down to Vinland Saga as AOTY, but damn that’s a hard choice.

#anime #anime of the year #anime of the decade #Mob Psycho 100 Season 2 #Attach on Titan Season 3 Part 2 #Dr. Stone #Vinland Saga

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ettadunham · 5 years

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A Buffy rewatch 4x15 This Year’s Girl

aka surprise bitch

Welcome to this dailyish text post series where I will rewatch an episode of Buffy and go on an impromptu rant about it for an hour. Is it about one hyperspecific thing or twenty observations? 10 or 3k words? You don’t know! I don’t know!!! In this house we don’t know things.

And today’s episode is SO GOOD. It is soo good, you guys!!!! Just as good as you remember it.

What I love about This Year’s Girl is that even some of the meh-y s4 plot elements work in it. Adam as a background invisible threat doing demon autopsies is legit chilling. Forrest is still the worst, but Riley mostly works as the guy who didn’t watch s3. And I love the running gag of the Scoobies checking him for hidden chips because foreshadowing.

The Scoobies themselves are working together and yet still scattered. Xander and Giles running into Spike and asking for his help, and him reminding them once again that he’s evil is priceless.

And of course the scene between Willow and Tara is adorable… even if it uses way too much slut-shaming language.

(To be fair though, it unfortunately isn’t a rare occurrence for the show or Willow to use that kind of language. Especially with Faith who we know she has a grudge against. You could almost say that it’s in character. I just… you know… wish it wasn’t. Not to mention that a writer chose to write it that way…)

Now that we’ve got all that, let’s talk some about the main attraction of this episode - Faith.

YOU GUYS DON’T UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH I LOVE FAITH IN THIS EPISODE, YOU GUYS!!! GUYS!!!!!!

And you know what, hands down to Eliza Dushku, because the way she’s playing Faith when she’s alone is such a wonderful and subtle performance. It feels especially powerful when contrasted with the Faith we see in a confrontation or a fight, often with Buffy. That Faith is full of posturing and manic energy, and yes, innuendos. So many innuendos.

The Faith we meet in the quiet however, is much more reflective. And sad. I love the score in the episode too, as it both underscores (heh, get it) that and fills it with an ominous atmosphere. We feel sympathy for Faith, but we’re also supposed to wonder what she’ll do next.

It doesn’t really help that the Scoobies clearly have no idea how they’d be handling a Grey Faith. Riley jokes about how he doesn’t know how to handle grey the way Buffy does, but when it comes down to it, the Scoobies’ response to the idea of Faith’s Heel-Face revolving door doesn’t really support that.

Willow and Xander are Pro Kick Her Ass, which I just realized… Is a s2 finale callback? It must be. And this time Willow is the one saying it. Oh my God. You guys… Willow did tell Buffy to kick her love interest’s ass at some point, it’s true.

(At least she didn’t lie about Xander saying it. He just straight up agreed with her in person.)

Giles does say that ‘perhaps there’s some form of rehabilitation’, but he lacks any conviction or specifics. And as much as Buffy theorizes that maybe Faith is scared, she’s still thinking in binary. Faith is either sorry and is ready and willing to be redeemed - or she’s angry and a threat that needs to be dealt with.

This isn’t an unfair assessment though, and in many ways, a necessary mindset for Buffy to have. She’s compassionate, but she also has a responsibility. If someone poses a supernatural threat, she can’t just Power of Love through it and hope for the best. She has the power to fight, and she’s often the only one with the power to stop them. She is the law.

(This theme of course will come up even more so in s6 and s7, especially in the context of Willow and Anya.).

Whatever the motive, at the end of the day, her and the gang’s attitude only works to reinforce Faith’s outlook. She can’t go back and she can’t move forward. She’s stuck with no one to fall back onto, now that the Mayor’s gone.

And the Mayor’s last message to her is both adorable (look at her little smile in the screencap) and highlights the inherent toxicity of that relationship. As much as the Mayor may have cared about Faith, it still wasn’t the kind of love that recognizes the needs of the other.

Telling someone you love that there’s nothing else in the world for them once you’re gone? That’s the work of pure evil, my friend.

In a way, I feel like Faith mostly goes along the body-switching plan because it gave her something to do. Faith is all about action - good or bad, she must keep moving.

The way she acts with Joyce especially felt like a performance. She’s playing the part of the psycho murderer more than anything - and maybe that’s just because she’s executing a plan… Or maybe it just feels that way here, because we see her in those quiet moments as well in this episode.

Faith’s dreams are another part of that puzzle. And the way Buffy is portrayed in them is especially intriguing to me.

There are three layers to this.

1) Bufy and Faith are connected as Slayers, and therefore can appear in each others dreams. This especially seems true in the first dream, where Buffy’s dream persona is the closest to her actual character.

This dream is also very similar to the one Buffy has in Graduation Part 2. I then suggested that it might actually be the same core dream, only shaped differently by the dreamer’s perspective. Even the foreshadowing and metaphorical language is in a similar vein (clean sheets that smell like Summer which Faith wouldn’t know about).

Except this dream ends with Buffy twisting the knife in Faith. Which brings me to my next points.

2) The Buffy Faith sees in her dream is also informed by how she perceives Buffy. She felt betrayed by Buffy long before she went over to the dark side. Her Slayer gal pal stabbing her to save Angel? That was the final twisting of the knife, reminding her that Buffy would always choose him over her.

I suppose Faith also sees Buffy as the person who took her last connection away from her in the form of the Mayor. Which is what we see in Faith’s second dream, but I’m more prone to interpret that as…

3) …Faith projecting herself onto dream Buffy, much like Buffy did with Drusilla in Surprise. This interpretation especially jumps out in the third dream, where Faith is running away from a Buffy that’s stalking her with the knife she stabbed her with.

But Faith can’t keep running from herself, and as she slips and falls into a grave, it gives enough time for her past to catch up with her. And as she re-emerges, accepting the killer as part of her, she wakes up.

Of course, there’s also just the trauma itself of being stabbed by Buffy that gives a much more obvious layer to these dreams. There’s a lot going on here, as is the case usually with dream sequences on this show.

On the other side of this, we’ve got Buffy. I personally feel like there’s an understanding here that she feels guilty about how things went down between them, but it’s not explicit.

In the scene where Riley is trying to get her to tell him more about what else happened with Faith, and what Faith’s done to her, I feel like the intention may have been to show that she’s keeping the Angel-related details from him… But my mind immediately went to how Buffy might be thinking about what she’s done to Faith.

The first (real) interaction between Faith and Buffy is also just super loaded, but it’s telling that neither of them are making the first move to fight… Not until the cops show up. There’s taunting and innuendo, of course, and Buffy makes a half-hearted plea to Faith.

“It doesn’t have to be like this.”

But Faith is not ready to let down, and Buffy is quick to match her pace. Maybe too quick, but remember… Murder… Also, responsibility.

Here’s one more thing I want to leave you guys with to think about though. Buffy receiving the call from the hospital means that she was Faith’s emergency contact. And sure, you can take that as Buffy leaving her information at the hospital after Faith got into her coma, to make sure that she knows if (and when) she wakes up…

…But imagining Faith listing Buffy as her emergency contact at some point in some form beforehand is much more fun, and causes much more pain to me.

You can’t stop me from making myself sad with Fuffy. It’s what I do.

#buffy rewatch 2k19 #btvs talk #btvs

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courage-a-word-of-justice · 5 years

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Shield Hero 20

Motoyasu getting dragged by Filo was funny…not enough to get a proper laugh though. Just a smirk or two.

Stop narrating and just get on with it, Naofumi and friends…!

“I was saying we should fight together all along.” (from Itsuki) – Were you, now…? (skeptical)

Ass-pull! I call “ass-pull” at the power to swallow the phoenix flame! Seriously, when did the dragon get the opportunity to teach Naofumi how to do that???

How did Naofumi not die after losing so much blood…?

What does the Q even stand for in the queen’s name…?

Sarazanmai 7

The seagulls…so fluffy…

For some reason, I expect a fakeout, but then it never arrives…these boys are really connecting…

I found some kappa croquette thingy online, but it referred to a “Shiki City” which probably isn’t in Asakusa…

The shirt…Kazuki’s shirt says “frog” but I get the feeling it also means “return”.

Shirohasu water. It’s Irohasu in Japan.

Was the lyric to Kawausoiya (the otter song) “gonna take ‘em”…?

Nice ET reference, Sara.

Balls…not just sport entendre, but…y’know. The sort of humour I don’t like as much.

Ooh��Keppi is shaping up to be the bad guy. But what plans does he have? Am I speculating too much and is he being framed? Hard to know until next time…

BSD 32

When Kyouka is eating the sundae, she looks like the Tofu Kyouka from Mayoi…hmm.

Can I confess something? Before I saw the illustrations for s2, I thought Louisa’s hair was much darker than what it is in the anime…hmmm, indeed.

I don’t think we were ever told (in the manga or the anime) what Louisa’s wish was…

This bit with Fyodor…I don’t think it was in the manga.

Subarashi-sou is a pun on “it seems wonderful”. That wasn’t in the manga, but it’s a great pun (because it’s right up my alley).

Fitz laughing at the neighbour’s TV wasn’t in the manga either, but that’s just the anime director’s humour peeking through.

“Blalack Daniel’s”, LOL.

Ohh…a quick Google reveals TJ Eckleberg is from the Great Gatsby. In there, he’s an eye doctor, but here, he’s an engineer.

George B Wilson is also from the Great Gatsby…Here be spoilers, but…George dies in his original work too.

Manhasset is a place in New York…I assume it’s connected to the Great Gatsby as well…

Oh yeah! Random Poe moment. That’s in the manga, so Igarashi (or whoever’s responsible for the terrible humour) doesn’t have to fake that bit.

Cue “Objection!” by Fitz, lemme guess. Even if I know the outcome and how it was done, I’d like to have my memory refreshed (by stabbing in the dark…and making an Ace Attorney joke in the process).

I already know, without googling, that Tom Buchanan is part of Great Gatsby as well…

Bank of Amerigo…LOL.

Fruits Basket 8

“If you show up for the banquet now…”

“The banquet sounds just like the folk tale!” Honestly, subbers, proofread…

Haa-kun and Haa-san. No distinguishing between them (aside from honorifics), even though they’re two completely different people.

Hatori’s squinty face was…hilarious, to put it simply.

Oh…I forgot the dance seems to be something the animal of the year does. So if Yuki was 3 years ago, it makes sense Momiji is doing it this year.

Best seat in the house for a sunrise, huh?

Kimetsu no Yaiba 8

I’ve seen Muzan being described as “Demon Michael Jackson” and now I can’t get that out of my head when I see him…sorry.

Tsukihiko, huh? It translates to “moon’s radiance” or something like that. That name is appropriate for a bad guy, isn’t it?

This is the first time I’ve really listened to the OST (aside from the OP and ED), so it’s…really something.

Ooh, I didn’t realise until now, but Ufotable even imitated the paper Jump is printed on with the next-ep previews…

OPM 2 8 (OPM 20)

Er…I haven’t mentioned it for the past few episodes, but Suiryu is hotttttttt. (No? I said that? Okay, next step.) That’s basically the only reason why I’m watching anymore…I can’t seem to find anyone who thinks positively of this tournament arc enough to do reviews of it that I can read, which has made my own opinion of this beloved series go down the drain…Also, if you weren’t aware, my taste lies not in Suiryu’s huge bulk, but rather in the fact he’s got long hair.

Didn’t Suiryu get pierced in the abs??? Where’s the blood coming from his injuries??? Update: He does have injuries there, they’re just not bloody…that’s all.

The main criticism for OPM 2 is the fact that it keeps cutting between different events, so it’s hard to follow. Well, I’ve had worse (see Concrete Revolutio) so that’s why I’m still here.

People say that clothing changes you – say if you put on a new outfit, you feel like a new person. (Of course, that’s all glamorising and praising consumption, but that’s beside the point here.) I think that’s what’s up with Max and Snek.

Shield Hero 21

“…the Shield Hero is worshipped.”

Really? Boob jiggle, at a time like this??? (Context: Malty is getting th slave crest painted on her.)

Wait, was there ever a Shield Church???

Okay, that felt like a real seasonal ending. What the heck is going to happen in the last few episodes, I wonder…?

Sarazanmai 8

Chikai knows the real meaning of YOLO…heh. I’m only kidding…

To be honest, I think I like Toi best out of the main trio. I tend to like the boys in blue…and no, I don’t mean the otter police.

Kazuki’s service provider is “Kappa Phone”, LOL.

When Reo held up the gun, I was yelling, “Enta! Get it for him!” (i.e. take the bullet) I didn’t expect him to actually do it…

…and here I thought tragic yuri was common enough and we don’t have enough Tragic Yaoi Dudes…

Notably, Toi was registered on Enta’s phone as “Kuji”, while Kazuki is registered as “Kazuki” (katakana) on Toi’s.

Shots fired…!

Update: I didn’t notice this, but the evil dude with kamome written behind him (I think it’s in this episode, but it might have been in the last one instead) must be based on a seagull…because that’s what kamome means.

Bungou Stray Dogs 33 (BSD S3 Ep 8)

I think it was around here I stopped reading the scans, because the series was picked up legally anyway…but I can see the death flags for a certain Port Mafia man…one who stands at the top.

As expected…butt shot. Igarashi (or whoever’s responsible for that shot) likes butts, so between this and Sarazanmai…*imagines image of kappa!Kazuki holding a shirikodama* There’s absolutely no buts about it (LOL), there’s no shortage of butts this season.

“To think that the rabbit being hunted would show its face…” – I think it’s hard for you to say that, Akutagawa, when you yourself have no face in that frame…

Why are both Akutagawa and Fyodor Naruto running today???

“So you’re doing this for that woman.”

What is “Mukurotoride”? I don’t seem to remember…maybe I never learnt what it was. Update: Apparently a tower in Dead Apple is called Mukurotoride.

Conspiracy time! This book sounds like Kunikida’s Ability…so imagine if it were under Dazai’s nose the entire time…

Fruits Basket 9

I love how the synopsis for this episode goes, “Kyo fights Yuki, Yuki fights a cold…”

Hatsuharu’s wearing such an ostentatious fluffy jacket…LOL, I love it.

Holy cow (LOL), I forgot how old Hatsuharu is…so that means he’s 15-ish, right?

Come to think of it…I see Fruits Basket characters in Ro Te O, which I started writing at about this time in 2013. The Azrael of that time was a hybrid of Hatsuharu, Ritsu and Ayame, Tetsuya is basically Yuki and Ryou is Kyou…hmm.

Apparently, Shigure had in the 2001 anime a song that went like, “High school girls, high school girls, cute high school girls for me.” So that’s where it was??? (Context: I haven’t seen Fruits Basket 2001, but read the entire manga.)

Kimetsu no Yaiba 9

Recap time, recap time…so the lady’s in the back room and Tanjiro conveniently forgets the man is in the basement…? Wuh?

Moya was complaining about how repetitive this show can get when it comes to the script (i.e. it repeats itself because it doesn’t trust its audience, but I think that’s because this is originally serialised on TV week by week that people may forget if they’re not bingeing, taking notes or following the manga). I’ll talk more about that in my KnY collab post, I guess…

When Yushiro said “watch your back”…he really meant it, huh?

Temari are the balls, but kemari is when you kick the balls.

“…the eyeballs on his hands are creepy.” – LOL.

Shield Hero 22

The ep title just says “Hero Council”…not specifically that there are 4 of them.

My stream’s been buffering more than usual, so I went “like mother, like daughter” before Naofumi did…

It would’ve ben massively funny to hear Melty call Malty either “Trash” or “B****”…especially the last one, because that’s always a fun way to end a sentence (especially for a girl as young as her). Update: She does, but the way she does it isn’t as funny as I thought it would be (and she doesn’t end her sentence with her sister’s new name).

Wait, I thought they got rid of her slave pact??? I thought it was only for the duration of her trial that she needed it for.

L’Arc and that lady seem like they’re foreshadowing for later…hmm. Update: The next-episode synopsis says “yes”. So does that new visual.

Sarazanmai 9

I can’t believe this show’s almost over…That means I gotta get a move on with RobiHachi, but to be honest? Non-anime things are probably going to kep me busy until…a few days from now. So I’ll get RobiHachi watched then.

Characetrs are dying en masse in this episode, aren’t they??? I saw a spoiler that (well, SPOILER) Chikai’s gonna die, but I don’t know about Enta or Keppi…Update: To be honest, I thought Chikai was going to become the next monster – a gun monster, perhaps. Maybe now that I’ve finished the episode, he’ll become a real zombie. (Hey, see what I did there with the bolding…? How’s that for hiding spoilers, eh???)

Oh yeah…I forgot Enta’s sister was Kazuki’s teacher…

There was a sign behind Masa that said”Hinode Asakusa” – “hi no de” meaning roughly “under the sun” or “leaving the sun”.

Tokarev…? The gun? Gun monster, maybe? Is this a critique of the American gun…(exaggerated voice) Nah, can’t be…this is Japanese.

Lionel…Lionel…for some reason, that name in relation to soccer seems familiar...I just can’t put my finger on who it reminds me of, though. Update: Is it, perhaps, Messi…? Yes, I think that’s the guy I was thinking of…!

Aw…I’m not crying, you are…But these words were running through my head before Toi chucked the bag of money away and yelled, “F***!”: “Everything I do, I do it for you.” Isn’t that cute…?

Bungou Stray Dogs 34

“…one by one?” Junban means “sequentially”, so I don’t see why you have to use the phrase “one by one”. Or “one at a time” would also work.

Hardbank…to contrast Softbank (a phone company in Japan).

Face-stealing aliens strike again…(re: Atsushi)

Oh flip. This reminds me of my Kunikida fic…yeah, I bet you don’t remember it.

Hey, this dude! Apparently he’s from one of Kunikida’s stories. I really am approaching the end of what I know of canon…*gulp* Update: Oops, we already passed that part…

I wonder if the real Fyodor could play cello…? Or is this just a thing to make him ominous and villanous…?

The cross on the wall behind Kunikida…makes this show more like Eva than Kekkai Sensen…exquisite. Absolutely exquisite, isn’t it?

Another cool cross, behind Tanizaki!

What’s a tatamigatana? Also, I didn’t know other people could be synchronised using Doppo Poet and Ranpo’s deduction…

Does Kouyou mean (by “the one I most despise”)…Chuuya? Or herself? It’s definitely not Ace.

Kimetsu no Yaiba 10

Headpats for Yushiro as well! Headpats for everyone!

There’s a lot of Tanjiro being terrified in this episode…

Wait…Kizuki? I thought they were the 12 Moons? (Well, “tsuki” means “moon”, but then what’s the “ki”?) Update: The “ki” means “demon”, so the Kizuki are the 12 Demon Moons.

Being alone with the body…that’s always a scary thought in murder mysteries…for the people who dissect them to determine the cause of death, that is.

Considering the name of the episode is “Together Forever”…nup, I don’t see Nezuko and Tanjiro separating anytime soon…

The Kasugai crow is what happens when you can’t turn off your Google Assistant…or GPS…or Siri.

If Tanjiro knows the name of his crow, how do the crows get their names? Do their trainers (is that the right term for a crow breeder in this case…?) give them names?

OPM S2 Ep 9 (Ep 21)

LOL, that one shot of the ants…JC Staff really don’t care about this series, do they…?

I kinda forgot about Genos after a bit more than a week…sorry, I was watching other anime in between. (More than usual, at least. I started playing Chibi Tamago – a forum game for AniList where you collect badges for watching anime - that’s why.)

Did he (Pri-Pri Prisoner)…store his phone in his butt…?

#simulcast commentary #Bungou Stray Dogs #one punch man #Sarazanmai #Fruits Basket #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer #the rising of the shield hero #Chesarka watches Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari #Chesarka watches BSD #Chesarka watches OPM #Chesarka watches Sarazanmai #Chesarka watches KnY #Chesarka watches Furuba #Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari

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