im actually sooo sad i didnt get into TOH earlier bc now its fucking ending and its SOOO GOOD 😭😭😭😭😭 i want so badly for there to be more, so hurtful of me to get into it like a couple months before the last ep is being put out 💔

Cooking Crush Ep. 11 Cut Scenes

I've been reporting on the missing scenes from YouTube's version of Cooking Crush [first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth], so here's this week's!

Prem goes back to his house after making out with Ten in the school's kitchen and sees the basil outside of his house. He decides it's time to take it back to Chang Ma.

Chang Ma sees it outside of his restaurant with a note that states Prem is thankful for all the opportunities Chang Ma has given him, but he cannot accept them.

When Ten gets home from their make out session, he encounters his father who witnessed Ten asking to step into the competition live since he watched the show as it was airing.

His father is heated that Ten is still seeing Prem, to which Ten argues back that he has done everything his father has asked including going to distant places and bringing up his grades, so he will continue to see Prem because he wants to. The father tells Ten his need to win against his father is troubling and when he gets into actual trouble, not to run to him.

Y'all, this fight was gooood! Ten tells his dad this isn't about winning against his dad or even about his dad. This is about TEN, and he likes Prem. He ends the conversation with telling his father that there will be no trouble. Period.

Well, we know trouble happens. Dy and Samsee are on the couch watching the video and reading comments. Dy wants to respond with anger to all the comments, but Samsee tells him no since it would only cause more issues.

Prem is fretting at the table, when the other boyfriends show up to comfort their guys.

They are worried about Ten since he isn't answering their calls, but Ten finally calls Prem and goes over to Samsee's.

Ten goes to apologize to Chang Ma, but we see the conversation Chang Ma has with Prem in the unedited version (with Ten keeping a watchful eye on Chang Ma, as he should!). Chang Ma tells Prem the reason he liked Prem was because Prem is determined, but this competition might be too much. He finishes with telling Prem he'll respect whatever decision he makes.

And this was in both versions, but after seeing Chang Ma's speech, which was good, it makes it even more obvious why Ten is superior. Chang Ma framed the conversation to be about what he saw in Prem but that this might be overwhelming, yet Ten made the conversation specifically about Prem and what is within Prem, which is why he knew Prem could succeed. It's small and it could be just be the translation, but it's important that Chang Ma spoke about how he views Prem, while Ten reminded Prem who Prem is.

These boyfriends are amazing, and I don't give men compliments lightly.

Now which one does Pang have a crush on? Metha or Samsee?

So I started Not Me... (IT'S SO GOOD)

(@wen-kexing-apologist It took longer than planned but I have begun)

I am watching SLOW with people in rather different timezones from me and I had planned to wait till after OF (cause how much First can I cope with yk) but then @anon451 sent me this gif...

...and did I really have a choice?

I just finished Ep 5, I watched Ep 1 three weeks ago, waiting is torturous but I am excercising patience.

SO while I have been thoroughly distracted by how much I am enjoying this show (It's so ENGAGING), have some notes so far.

THOUGHTS

...uuuuuuuhhhhhhhhh

Why is everyone so pretty in this show for reals????

ANYWAY

Oh My God I LOVE IT SO MUCH

Young boy seperated from half his family takes on his twin brothers persona to find out who tried to have him murdered honestly DOES NOT sound like my thing...and yet...

...I'm starting to think I'm wrong about what my thing is.

Young man goes on journey of self-discovery and exploration where he is exposed to his own privellege and confronts both the extremism that it can forge but also his own self and views and how he is benefiting from the system and how he can fight it...(from the outside? from within?). Told through his own thoughts, his growing relationships with the "friends" of his twin brother and the contrasting conversations with said friends and his father...

I JUST LOVE IT SO MUCH OKAY

AND we have this story explored in a different thread of "rebelling from within" in our newly discovered cop/artist storyline, cannot wait for that to pan out more!!

(Hey Gawin is totally in this picture okay??)

I never really thought friends were the one's who beat Black up so if that ends up being the case I WILL be shocked

EP 5

This ep however I started to feel uneasy about Todd...

(OMG seriously what's with the PRETTY did they put something in everyone's water??)

We got two different convos which seemed a bit more interogatery than I'd like, maybe he just really wants to know who hurt Black, or maybe he's using White to figure out what the friends are up too...

He IS being presented as very rich and privilegedin this show, in ways that the show is making a point of pointing out problems with (mostly in regard to Black/White's privilege but this also applies to our very rich Todd I would think...)

So is Todd being a good friend?

...idk

Is he Blacks emergency contact? I mean he must be if the hospital called him? or was he there for the beat down and then took Black to the hospital and that's why he was there?

What about the mum, what happened with her? Does she know Black nearly died? (discussed more in a mo)

Todd was the one the hospital called when Black nearly flatlined...

Also the beat down happening so soon after White arriving from Russia...did Todd know he had returned?

Also the ENTIRE car convo felt weird

W: Have you talked to my mum? She might be able to help

T: I reached out, she said she would leave it to the authorities. She wan't no involvement

(How bad was this falling out? Does she know White's back?...or is Tod lying??)

W: Todd, should I go see her?

T: You can but I don't think it'll help. The fight between Black and her was huge. It was so bad they decided to cut each other off. You know that Black got involved in some unlawful business, and your mother is a judge. They're on different sides.

(Todd casually starts prying for more info without pause...(left out B's answers))

T: When you said you'd quit, what did those guys say?

T: Do they want to keep going?

T: Do you know what they're next move is? Is it about Tawi?

T: If you're to do something you must learn all about their plan, it's too risky otherwise

T: Are you going to stop them?

It...it just feels like a lot, although given the nuance of the show so far I don't necessarily think they'll go with Rich = Bad so maybe I am reading too much into this.

I certainly WANT him to only be motivated by helping Black and White get to the bottom of whatever is going on.

I mean obvious answer is Tawi sent people to beat up Black, but why Black specifically? did they know he was the ring leader? Have our gang damaged Tawi's properties before?

We also have Eugene the girlfriend, who Eugene thought Black had broken up with...

Plus whatever maybe feelings are going on/have been going on here

(So is White's theory that Eugene made that but never gave it right...or did Black actually give it to Eugene??)

(Also I know they won't but can I at least get one kiss?? Look at this chemistry ugh please please??)

Although this IS working for me too, which I was a bit worried about, OffGun are not really a couple I've responded too before. But I am enjoying their dynamic in this a lot

Summary

I love the visuals, I love the characters, I love the story, I love the growth, (I keep getting distracted...)

Can't wait till next time!!

@plantsarepeopletoo @shouldiusemyname

Don't know when the next update will be...let me know if you want/don't want to be tagged!

Also I know I asked questions but I don't want answers!!

Currently watching - December

Because I love a good little list 😊

Regularly updated during the month, latest update 30.12.2022, colored = finished

This may contain spoilers!

I am sorry if you can't open the links on mobile!

The director who buys me dinner (6/10 on iQiyi)

I read the webseries and I loved it! So no pressure Korea 😅 But I did enjoy the first two episodes. It is funny and I had some really good laughts! It has an interesting story, if they keep up with the original. I am really looking forward to the next episodes.

Never Let Me Go (3/12 on Youtube)

The tension between the two mains is definitely there and noticeable. I already love the little shimmers of jealousy and the fact that it was love at first sight. I really enjoy their story and the plot around them. Nice show to watch.

Ameiro Paradox (2/8 on Viki and Gaga)

An enemies to lovers story with journalists and cute smiles? Count me in.

A man who defies the world of BL (2/4 on Gaga)

A man who tries to avoid the world of BL, in which he lives, by reading Yaoi mangas to get to know all the tropes he has to avoid in order to not get involved with the world as a main character. It is hilarious and makes fun of not just the viewers, but of the industrie itself. Really good so far.

The New Employee (2/8 on Viki)

I just finished reading the manhwa and I loved it. Now I am curious how it is realized. The first episode was good, just as I expected and Moon Ji Yong is quite an excellent cast for the role of Seung Hyun.

War of Y (10/20 on Gaga)

I finally watched the next chapter...And yeah, I think I can't watch the stories week for week. I need to wait until one chapter is closed and binge the five episodes. This is one of the few bls I watch with a lot of tension in my body and no smile on my lips...I need to calm a bit before I can dive into the next drama...

Between Us (8/12 on Youtube)

I like it, but I am not super hyped about it. I liek their connection and that both are not perfect, but perfect for each other in their own way.

Love Bill (8/10 on Youtube)

A vietnamese drama about a young man falling in love with a screenwriter. Well, of course there are some other things happening in between, but this is the heart of the story. Our boy Nguyễn Bá Vinh is doing a great job! I really enjoy this drama so far.

Till the World ends (9/10 on Youtube)

It is something else. Kind of brutal and gory and a little bit explicit. Not your usual bl. I like it, no wonder 😅 The end of the world is coming and Art and Golf try to survive the last days on this chaotic planet, to get to the safety of the last bunker which lets people in, chased by some lunatics with a special taste in meat...and with ep 8 we finally got the long-awaited kiss and damn they delivered!

My School President (4/10 on Youtube)

Set in highschool we meet Tinn (the school president) and Gun (head of the music club). Tinn has a huge crush on Gun and Gun sees in Tinn the enemy who is standing between the success of his music club and the win of the Hot Wave Music Contest. The plot is predictable, but sometimes you just need a good old high school bl without the deep drama. I enjoyed this series so much. And the music is so good!!!

HIStory 5: Love in the future (1/20 on Viki)

Hm. This was kind of meh. I hope it is to early to judge and it will get better! Right now the story is a little bit...confusing. I hope for a little bit explaination or at least some help from the magical figure.

To Sir, with love (2/17 on Youtube)

Okay, it is finished by now and I looked up for spoilers. I didn’t have the emotional strength to watch it til now. But I will give it a try soon, because the first two episodes were really good!

Remember Me (12/14 on Gaga)

Okay what happend? I am emotional invested in this story! Why did it become so good within two episodes? I love the domesticity and the wholesomeness of the third episode so much! It touched me and moved me and now I am looking forward to the next episode! And the next episode was good too. I love Em and Name! Don’t hurt them, especially Name! JUST STOP HURTING NAME!!! This hurts so bad!

2 Moons: The Ambassador (10/12 on Youtube)

It is just bad.

I will knock you (1/12 on Youtube)

So Thi steps on the Lotus of Noey which is symbolic for his heart and now Noey wants his heart back so he can give it to the girl he has a crush on and Thi can't find it and gives him in exchange a charm for fortune, but in reality it is for love and soulmates...And Noey happens to be the leader of a gang which members wear khaki-shorts or way too colorful dresses for a street gang...the cringe radar is very strong with this one, but it is hilarious!

Something in my room (3/10 on Youtube)

I saw people talking about this one and how good it is. Well, it is quite okay. I guess it will get a little bit deeper with more episodes, but I haven’t had the time to watch more.

Finished in December

Series

Choco Milk Shake (11/11 on Youtube) - perfect recommandation score

Well, I love this one with my whole heart. On the one side it is light and comforting and the acting is on point and on the other hand it deals with grief and what happiness can be. The biggest message would be to love with your whole heart and live life to the fullest. Carpe Diem if you will call it that. You don't know how much time you might have left in the end, so cherish every second with what brings you joy and makes you happy. Choko and Milk made me really happy. The story was unusual and it is not explained why they could come back again just as they wish, but to be true, I don't care. I want them all to be happy! 10 out of 10 choco milk shakes

Happy Ending Outside The Fence (Happy Ending Romance) (on Gaga) - highest recommandation

This one was so good. The pasting was nice. The story itself is very complex. In the end Junghyun was the right person for Jungwoo when he needed to hide, to suffer and to feel the pain. But Jungwoo doesn't want to be this fragile, this hurt forever. He wants to go outside and live and that is when he meets Taeyoung. A literal ray of sunshine and he is exactly what Jungwoo needs to see the beauty in life again and to finally believe in himself again and lets face it, to say fuck you to all the haters and just don't give a fuck about what other people will think. The story and the complex relationships moved me deeply. It is a very mature story and so are the relationships built. Nothing is easy, but stagnation is no help in the end. 9,5 out of 10 manuscripts

Eien No Kino (8/8 on Gaga) - highly recommended

The aesthetics of this one is so beautiful. The story itself about a young love that is so strong that the one who dies can't leave this world because and comes back as a living corpse is both, unique and tragically beautiful. It broke my heart, especially the talk between Mitsuru and his father. The ending didn't wreck me the way I feared it would, because it was overall a great ending for their situation. 9 out of 10 loves at first sight

His - Koisuru Tsumori Nante Nakatta (5/5 on Viki) - highly recommended

Oh this was beautiful. The amount of thought that was put into this piece of media is amazing. I liked the dialogues and the dealing with coming out and the difficulties for lgbtq+ people in Japan and first loves and so much more in five fucking episodes. I wish there were more! Really good! 9 out of 10 surfboards

My Tooth Your Love (on Viki) - recommended without a doubt

I guess this could be called a nightmare for people with a fear for dentists. It is a slow burn, but when the fire was lit it was burning with a cozy and constant heat. I like Bai Langs and Jin Xun Ans story. And I must admit the last few minutes killed my cold heart with all the fluff and domesticity. As for Alex and RJ I wish we could have had a real reveal of their emotions. But it was a cozy last episode. 8,5 out of 10 plushies

Oh! My Assistant (8/8 on Viki) - totally recommended

This was funny and fluffy and cringy and lovely and I am in love with it! I don't know what it is exactly, but it brings me so much joy and a really good laugh! Even the fall-on-you-by-accident is just funny and predictable. The bi-awakening of the main is so simple and rational and I love this series for it. 8,5 out of 10 sexy drawings

Nitiman (10/10 on Youtube) - yeah sure, why not recommending

I read a review which said nothing happend in this series...and they were correct. The conflicts most of the times results in misscommunication or not communicating at all. What it is about? Well, college boy A likes college boy B and hits on him. They become friends and college boy B falls for college boy A. Some jealousy and some weird get-togethers of their friends to make a plan to get those two together. And college boy A and college boy B become secret boyfriends before going official. And you know what? I like it! It is just the right show to watch on a cold sunday afternoon to warm your heart. 8 out of 10 dumb reasons to get jealous

Ai Long Nhai (12/12 on Youtube) - recommended only if you want to laugh and love a slow death

Ai likes Nhai. Nhai likes Ai. They test a possible relationship. It works, they have a relationship and nothing more happens, okay yes, after knowing each other for like ten minutes, Ai asks Nhai in the last five minutes if he wants to marry him...Why? Just why? And I know, I said nothing happens in Nitiman, too, BUT! Nitiman has a decend acting, kind of likable characters and charisma, but this mess? I dont know...The story is flat and bland, the acting is not good in my opinion and I can't see the chemistry between the main couple for most of the times. The subtitles were one thing that made this whole experience funny. 4 out of 10 yellow ducks

Short films

Summerdaze Christmas together - recommended

This was a cute one. And a special chistmas episode? It is in my nature to love it. But it is really very cute and cozy. 8 out of 10 cozyness

Summerdaze (youtube) - recommended

It is so short! nd there is no dialogue. And yet the short film managed to tell a story. I am amazed. It is more of a trailer for a bigger project and we got a christmas special this year, which is so cute. Just have a look. 8 out of 10 good story telling

Movies

Sematic Error: The Movie (on Viki) - highest possible grade of recommandation

Well I rewatched the series a few days ago and now just watched this three hour long movie. There were only a few new scence, but I don't care. Every minute spent watching it was worth my time! I just love Semantic Error 💗 10 out of 10 gorgeous red outfits

rec (on Gaga) - recommended for the different type of view

Well, don't judge a book by its cover. I have to admit, that I needed to start this one for a second try. At first I was deterred by the way it was shot. The shaky cam and the amateur like filming was difficult to get used to. But I got used to it. I started to dislike Song Young Jun. He was a little bit too loud and too annoying. And I really thought, that they would break up, because his partner was annoyed by him. But they loved each other, dearly. And this movie can break your heart. It is deep and political and sad and yes, the nudity was part of this whole scheme of two people being vulnerable with each other, but not honest. It hurts. This movie hurts. 7,5 out of 10 beach scenes

What I’m looking forward to in December:

Oh! My Assistant (Dec 1)

My School President (Dec 2)

The Third Solar Term (Dec 5)

Lockdown (Dec 7)

Midnight Tod (Dec 12)

Never Let Me Go (Dec 13)

The Director Who Buys Me Dinner (Dec 15)

Ameiro Paradox (Dec 16)

The New Employee (Dec 21)

HIStory5: Love in the Future (Dec 28)

Sin (Dec 28)

This Week in BL - Decent Line Up, Actually

Sept 2022 Wk 1

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying the most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

The Eclipse (Fri YT) Ep 4 of 15 - It’s a good thing the two leads are excellent at loooooooooooong ... pauses.... and.... the.... longing.... look..., since GMMTV seems to be bent on using them for that 90% of the time. Akk is learning teachers are bullies too, which Aye already knew of course. The single tear was s nice touch. Multiple “crash into mes” this episode. Who does Thailand think they are, Taiwan?

My Only 12% (Fri iQIYI) Ep 4 of 15 - these two put the codependent back in codependent and I don’t see how this can possibly end well. Ho boy are we in for a rough ride. I do get Love Sick vibes off this show on occasion, New discovering his roots. PAIN iS COMING! Also, second lead syndrome strikes again! Also baby noona romance side dish action. Yay!!! Also what a pleasure to see Earth stretch his acting chops again, it’s seems like forever since UWMA. Also what an identity crisis to see ones self on screen. But also THIS IS WHY WE NEED WIDELY distributed queer entertainment. So kids can see themselves on screen. Did his sister know, of course she did.  

The movie Eiw and his sister watch is The Love of Siam from 2007, widely regarded as Thailand’s first BL (it’s not BL, it’s a queer coming of age movie but it is a precursor to BL). It’s about childhood friends who grow up together and fall in love, but do not end up together. It’s sad. For anyone confused during that section. This does not bode well for out heroes. 

Vice Versa (Sat on YT) Ep 8 of 12 - I’m actually getting pretty bored with this one now, the movie within the movie plot line doesn’t jive with me. And I’m just frustrated by Tun intentionally keeping his real identity secret from Talay. I’m starting to watch it on speed and a half, which honestly I rarely do with GMMTVs products. Hi Perth! The time has come, Thailand, for us to have a conversation about 90s fashion. Here’s the thing, if you put an already small person in oversized clothing they just look smaller and even more childlike. Perth looks 12 in this ep. It’s an okay kiss. Presumably, now that Tun got what he wanted in terms of “somebody liking him for who he really is inside and not for his actor cred or appearance” he should tell Talay who he really is now. RIGHT? 

21 Days Theory (Sun YT ) Ep 4fin - The coming out to friends thing was cute and well handled. The reason for the split was also good and the resolution was logical with Frank being the one seeking an explanation. Why it didn’t end with a dash to the airport and a kiss, I will never know. This would have jumped high in my rating if they had bothered to finish it like the YA romance it clearly was. But this ending was ultimately disappointing. 6/10 I’m not mad, but I’m not happy either.

Coffee Melody (Mon Viki) Ep 7 of 10 - Jean is full of snark and I love him. But I feel like Yi has had no character growth whatsoever. He just gets what he wants or reacts badly to not getting what he wants. That’s it, that’s his whole personality. He hasn’t matured at all and he hasn’t learned anything from his prior experiences, it just makes him frustrating and childish. Not innocent but immature. He is another one of those characters that I don’t understand why anybody likes him. He only thinks and talks about himself and his own feelings, and he’s never depicted being kind or generous as a friend or sibling or anything. I really am only watching this one for Jean and his bf: Mr. magical pink hair. 

Love in the Air (Thurs iQIYI) Ep 3 of 13 - Continues it’s odd liguistic Dom gaslighting MAME agenda apace. DUMPSTER FIRE TRASH WATCH ALONG HERE.

Unforgotten Night (Weds on GaGa) Ep 11 of 12 - i moved it to double bill with Love in the Air for drinking purposes and this is a good idea. Just really boring this week but I was so tipsy I barely noticed. TRASH WATCH HERE!

Check Out (Sat IQIYI) Ep 12fin - Well Tee & Ice were cute. I liked the other guy better though. And that’s all I got. 4/10 FATALLY FLAWED NOT RECOMMENDED 

What If (Mon WeTV) Is on WeTV but for VIP only (pay wall). Neighbors who grew up together and have special feelings for each other but keep it to themselves. And then... university. Still on my TBW. 

Work from Heart (Thurs WeTV? YouTube?) from DV8 an office BL featuring lots of other couples. Stars Love With Benefits pairing Gameplay & Folk. It isn’t even listed on WeTV streaming in my territory, but it is airing to WeTV Thailand. No word on distribution. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Minato’s Laundromat (Japan Weds GaGa) Ep 10 of 12 - I just love how gentle this series is with its characters and with us. Japan can be so harsh about both. SQUEE WATCH ALONG 

About Youth (Taiwan Mon GaGa) Ep 1-2 of 10 - It’s truly great. Taiwan's Love Sick featuring a modern queer take on AePete: popular but painfully lonely rich kid, Guang (complete with evil pressure-cooker tiger parents) meets and is basically adopted by poor nerdy (secret rockstar) Qizhang. HE EVEN HAS AE’S TOTE!!! Secondary couple is Guang’s adorable bestie Ray and a cafe boy (we think). Lots of BL trope drops but also this is seriously queer and very Taiwan with an earnestness I haven’t seen since My Ride. it’s got the charm of Takura but with more depth to it, less surface cute and more real world authenticity. Not that I normally like that in my BL, but I’ll forgive Taiwan (and the Philippines) for their sticky almost dirty style if it is this endearing and engaging (see Gameboys). I didn’t even mind the singing, and that’s saying a lot.  Did you see our boy Wilson Liu (H3:MODC & H4) showed up? 

Takara-kun and Amagi-kun (Japan Thurs GaGa & Viki) 3 of 8 - also really flipping good. It’s just so great with both of them liking each other, and already in a relationship, and both so nervous about what to do. It’s just completely and totally high school first love. I have no good reason for loving it as much as I do. The twist of Amagi admitting to everything and his confusion over sex was absolutely brilliant, especially as we can all understand Takara’s reaction (leave the room) except poor Amagi. Also Takara’s dead pan “this boy is fucking killing me” expression is brilliant. Can’t wait until we get his POV next week.

Papa & Daddy 2 (Mon GaGa) Ep 5 of 8 - This was mostly the dads being dads and dealing with dad problems. And since that’s the name of the show, I’m not too upset about it. Honestly, I would’ve ended the series on this episode. 

Want to See You (Vietnam YT) Ep 14fin - And now it’s suddenly slapstick and comedic? Tonally, this show was all over the place, hugely inconsistent in characterization and motivation. No clean narrative through line. Nothing anyone did actually ever made sense. As a VBL it probubly should get a 6, but it gets 5/10 out of pure frustration. WATCH ONLY IF YOU HAVE NOTHING BETTER TO DO 

In Case You Missed It

Kiss X Kiss X Kiss - Perfect Scandal can be found on Billibi, these are SHORT 5-8 minutes sample pack micro-romances: 2 feature BL-ish setups. The one with the idols I got excited about last week (Idol Kiss) and another featuring a reluctant boss and flirty subordinate (A Sweet Kiss). Both are cute but mostly just, ya know, kissing. (Reminds me a bit of Korea’s early Triple Do You Want). The interesting thing about the idol one, is one of the leads is ALSO in a het installment. He gives great chemistry with both his partners. And I think he’s a good example of an actor being just, ya know, an actor about the physical part of a romance. Which I take about in terms of never assuming queerness based on performance, here. 

BL Express posted a review of Fudanshi Bartender no Tashinami (AKA Accomplishment of Fudanshi Bartender). It sounds A LOT like another kind of Absolute BL thing from Japan, but focused on the fudanshi side of the equation and I could not be less intersted so I will not be watching. 

Gossip

New Pinoy BL from OXIN Films (Rainbow Prince) announced, called Tie The Not.

Semantic Error the movie (with a re-edit + added footage) aired for Korean, Taiwanese, and Vietnamese audiences. No idea on further distribution. 

EEEEEEEE!!!!!!!! Strongberry's upcoming romantic-comedy Choco Milk Shake will be 8 episodes with total run-time around 80 mins! A full length KBL from Strongberry!!! Yay! 

Next Week Looks Like This:

Ending: Unforgotten Night thank effing heck. 

I posted a full September line up here! 

This week’s best moments?

Ironic much? (Check Out reviews itself) 

Supportive friends are the best (21 Days Theory). 

The brave little tote bag that could LIVES!!!! It is reborn. It has crossed oceans! (From Love By Chance to About Youth.) 

More guest cameos for Taiwan! 

The Viki translations won, this week on Takara & Amagi’s weekly sub-off (no D/s pun intended) 

Noona romance side in My Only 12%!

Perceptive boy. (The Eclipse) 

Way better if it’s just: I’d eat it right from your face. (Vice Versa) 

Just such a classic series of yaoi shots (visuals) to end this week’s ep of Minato’s Laundromat. 

(last week)

current earworm? Jang Woo Hyuk’s Echo

Vyla's Sunday wrap-up!

Hello lovely people on my screen! I've been getting really into podcasts these last few weeks since finishing Wolf 359 and I am DYING to talk about them! This is my way to talk about what I've been listening to this week and dumping my thoughts since I do not have friends that listen to podcasts lol

Cry Havoc! Ask Questions Later (ep 14) (minor spoilers)

I'm a die-hard Cry Havoc! fan. It's one of the few podcasts I've caught within the first few episodes and it is quickly one I will jump to every time a new episode comes out. Who would've thought a workplace comedy set in ancient Rome would be so good! The humor is dry and mostly situational and works so well.

This episode had a bit more heart than Cry Havoc! has had before and it worked so well! Listening to Octavia and Charmian have a serious discussion that helped further their relationship beyond "ooh haha sexy morally grey lesbians" was really refreshing and nice to see such character growth within just a few episodes.

And the entire plague plot with Gaius and Mark was a great way to balance it out. I love Cry Havoc!'s style of humor. My only qualm is I couldn't find a transcript for this episode but I might've been looking in the wrong place.

Arden (eps 1-4)

GUYS I LOVE ARDEN SO MUCH!!!

This is also a Shakespeare inspired piece! Season 1 is inspired by Romeo and Juliet, which I realized embarrassingly late in, and the little R&J easter eggs I have been picking up are really cool and make me feel like I remembered something from 9th grade English haha.

I used to looove true crime podcasts but I got uncomfortable by how the hosts would discuss the killers and victims so Arden, as a fake true crime podcast, is a great middle ground! I heard season 3 is coming out soon so hopefully I can catch up in time! I love Bea and Brenda's banter and honestly the two just need to kiss or something, but I digress. The writers make this a really compelling story and even though only one aspect of the cold case is examined per episode I am hooked and not at all bored or frustrated when we divert to Bea and Brenda's side convos. I have listened to this when going to bed and gotten scared once or twice, and for a fake true crime podcast I consider that a win!

Wolf 359 (finale)

I don't have the word count to say everything I want to say about Wolf 359. If you know me you might have seen the post I made about finishing Wolf 359 this week and how it was just so world alterting for me because I've been listening to it on and off for about 8 years. It really is the end of an era. It didn't go down the way I thought it would and it was a very bittersweet ending. I feel like everything was tied up well but I do have some questions about Bob. I am going to miss Lovelace, and Eiffel and...everybody! Maybe not Kepler. Truly is an end of an era for me. I was podcast-hungover the whole day.

Stellar Firma (ep 1)

I gave the first episode of Stellar Frima a try, I'm a big Rusty Quill fan so I had high hopes but guys, I don't think this is for me. The pilot episode didn't click for me the way I thought it would and it just didn't seem my speed. What do you guys think about Stellar Firma? Should I give it another shot?

Malevolent (ep 6)

Malevolent is another show I'm trying to get into since everybody loves it but the pace just feels so slow to me right now. I know more overarching plot points develop later on so I'm willing to stick this one out. I like malevolent but it just feels like all the places and things they're doing right now are building toward something I'm not at yet and that's just frustrating.

Time:bombs (1 -3)

What better way to get me out of my Wolf 359 hangover than a podcast made by the Wolf 359 folks? This one came recommended to me by anon so thank you whoever you are! I listened to the entire podcast (3 episodes) in one day and loved it! I miss you Radio Bob. I hope you're doing well. Humor was elite but what else should I have expected from Gabriel Urbina? I loved the character development they were capable of in 3 episodes. I can see myself relistening to this soon!

The Kingmaker Histories (prologue....ep 0?)

another podcast I heard had a new season coming out soon. I don't know how I feel; about fantasy podcasts but I liked season 1 of The Two Princes so I have high hopes. I only listened to the prologue so far and haven't even met the MC so I don't have many opinions yet.

Liminal Criminals (ep 1)

I listened to the first episode twice. It was so funny. Few podcast make me actually laugh out loud. I interrupted my roommate making dinner to tell her about this because I kept laughing. The dry voice the narrator has while he explains the most ABSURD FAKE TRUE CRIME sold this for me. "Mr. Breadsticks stays. Mr. Breadsticks stays. I will kill you with a fork. Mr. Breadsticks stays." is my discord status and no one understands me. I hope the rest of these episodes are as funny.

Alright well that's my week! Thanks for dealing with my ramblings folks! Tell me your thoughts on these shows, what's worth it what's not? I'll be shitposting about some of these shows throughout the week, but we'll see what the Pod Gods hold. Til next week lovely people!

~Vyla

media list (15.01.2024 - 21.01.2024)

👂 Listened:

Albums:

The Truth About Love by Pink (2012) [6.5/10, kind of suffers from being too long - I loved all the songs in the first half, but barely any from the second half.]

Sorry For Partyin' by Bowling For Soup (2009) [6/10, fun album - though I think I liked this artist a lot more when I was younger.]

SOS by Sza (2022) [7/10, this album really grew on me as I listened to it - big fan of F2F and Nobody Gets Me.]

Podcasts:

RedHanded [Murder in Ulvila was my standout episode, just because of how the injustice felt so irreparable for those involved. And that's not even getting to the fact that it's unsolved.] Episodes: ⤷ EP 327: Murder in Ulvila ⤷ EP 326: Sarah Payne - Into Thin Air ⤷ EP 319: Lam Kor-wan - The Rainy Night Butcher

Morbid [Leonarda and The Bonebreaker case were the standouts to me this week - the former because of why she committed her crimes and how her upbringing and state of mind impacted her actions, and the latter because it related a lot to my question regarding minors being tried as adults.] Episodes: ⤷ EP 479: World's End Murders ⤷ EP 504: The Sauchie Poltergeist aka Wee Hughie ⤷ EP 505: Leonarda Cianculli - The Soap-Maker of Corregio ⤷ EP 476: Bobby Mackey's Music World ⤷ EP 465: The Devil Made Me Do It ⤷ EP 456: The Bonebreaker Case

National Park After Dark EP 196: The Slenderman Stabbing. Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. [This is the podcast episode that started me thinking about juvenile incarceration and had me doing this poll; it's also what inevitably got me doing more research into prison abolition. Really interesting episode.]

Ghost Story from Wondery [This one was intriguing, and I was super shocked to hear actual Hugh Dancy appear in it. It's absolutely what eventually led to me re-trying Hannibal, I just found him charming and smart and introspective and supportive - I would say the last episodes were a bit repetitive - especially with the psychic - but otherwise highly recommend.]

📖 Read:

Articles:

What About The Rapists and Murders? by Angel Parker from Medium [Article trying to formulate a response to the question of what should be done about people who commit violent crime should prison abolition take place - I found this article was not what you should read if you're truly looking for answers to this question. While I appreciate what the author is trying to do, in terms of highlighting the injustice that happens to those who are incarcerated, and the corruption that occurs within the penal system, it was a frustrating read for someone who was trying to learn more about the more practical aspects of prison abolition as a movement.]

NYC to pay $125K to woman who accused two NYPD cops of rape in last-minute civil suit settlement by John Annesse from Daily News

Should police officers be able to get away with having sex with detainees? from Daily Times [Has some good statistics about police who commit rape. "In 2015, after a year-long investigation, the Associated Press revealed that in the six-year period from 2009 to 2014, about 550 police officers had lost their badges for rape, sodomy and other types of sexual assault; and a further 440 for possession of child pornography and other sex crimes; or sexual misconduct such as propositioning citizens, sexting juveniles, or having consensual but prohibited sex while on duty."]

The Mysterious and Lonely Death of Joyce Vincent from Historic Mysteries

Books:

Luck In The Shadows by Lynn Flewelling [in progress, pretty much no progress since last week due to me being totally distracted by trying to read a 40 page article on prison abolition - that I still haven't finished!]

📺 Watched:

Television:

NBC Hannibal EP 1 & 2 [I wrote a post about this. I'm enjoying it so far. Incredibly dark, but also a lot of subtlety in the characters' dynamics! Definitely something to watch slowly.]

Burrow’s End 3!

Starting this at midnight, will likely pause at some point and finish tomorrow morning :)

Yayyy new party name

And new british thing! How did we get to #36 already?

Just now realizing that these people are the reason that ‘famously’ has entered my lexicon

Yeah they all leveled up A Lot

Character makeup!!

What’s going on with Viola. The makeup has me concerned.

YESSSSS Lila arcane trickster rogue my fucking BELOVED I’m not just saying that bc I’m currently playing an arcane trickster I’m not biased at all what are you talking about

Oh I was so caught up in the arcane trickster stuff that I forgot an important lore thing was happening lemme go back and watch it

God those tongues were horrible

Aabria’s hair looks really nice in this episode

The way we declare things like sidebar in my home game is by loudly saying PAUSE and it’s funny every time

Present tense???

“I’m not him, but I’m here” jesus man

I’m reading way too far into everything but the fact that Jasper’s scar makeup has moved is interesting to me. Why. Was this just artistic choice? Is this indicative of a character thing? Idk

Swifter than the sun faster than the hills oh babe

You’re trying to be good and make your uncle happy but also cult. Be careful babe.

Ooh Erika’s makeup and hair are really cool

Look, check it out :D

Full macbeth

YES I’M NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO THOUGHT THAT

Ohhh their colors. Everyone in earth tones except for Rashawn/Viola. Brennan/Tula and the kids in lighter colors, Erika/Ava in darker tones and shades of grey. Jasper/Thorn in dark tones but also blue. God this is why I love costuming. So cool.

Latin?? Dura Mater, Pia Mater

Children?? Prophetic vision??

“It always is what it is” cmon man

How does this cis man so deeply understand what being a daughter is and distill it so perfectly

Am I detecting some envy in having a husband who listens?

Oop

A mErRy BaNd

Ohhh the warning in saying that something she’s interested in is also one of their mother’s interests. That’s a family thing.

Custom background called stoat mom. Full long rest in short amount of time would be such a good feat and make so much sense for it.

Sometimer’s 😭

Funeral rite for the bear oh my god

Oh tears. Just tears.

TWENTY SEVEN INSIGHT

So many of your deeper thoughts must be put away for the sake of moving forward.

Oooooof

Familial duty is such a mindfuck

The FACE

Awww Ava backstory a bit <3

Thompson’s gonna make partner!

The white mascara is such a good touch it really makes the look

Ooh lore time

HAZMAT SUIT

Testing your power through blind fury? Super duper safe.

Let’s hear it for making bad rolls work within the plot!

Augh

Oh yeah this has all been ONE DAY

Healthy coping mechanism!

That was excellent

Speaking of their long rest. I’m gonna go to sleep. I’ll finish the ep in the morning! (Editor's note: I did not. I finished it the next evening. Such is life.)

Yes that is for real how sleep works and how I act when something insane happened in the middle of the night that I couldn’t deal with in the moment

Effective lessons in communication!

OOF

She wants to save her familyyyy

Siblings!

Those aren’t transferable 💀

No one should be mad at anyone, so if you’re ever feeling mad… don’t.

GOOD ONES

Ooh Jaysohn level of Rogue!

I love the overlapping conversations

Izzy and Siobhan are so good at embodying children’s randomness

Izzy WHAT

He’s a cool dude, he’s just being weird right now

Character choices :D

Ooooh the music being so heavily electronic is so interesting to me

Follow your instincts towards the Light?

Why would it have been bulgarian babe

Jesus

Oh that’s actually such a good way to explain that

Love a shenan!

Solid pigeon impression

Yeah a cult leader would have a +9 to performance wouldn’t he

I feel like this should be a wisdom save or smth to not go insane at what’s happening to him rn

W h a t

He is actually so cursed

WOOOOOOO

Oh that is HITTING

She’s so TIRED

Oooh okay next week looks Wild can't wait

D20 - Dungeons and Drag Queens Ep 2 Notes

Oh man, I am so far behind. I will try to finish the other two episodes within the next week if possible. Let’s see. 

---

I love Jujubee placing herself in the middle of the group. No one will come at her first

"But you're the oldest one here trying to die bitch" LOLOL

"But I'm not dead. [...] And since I'm not alive...Bitch!" That is Jujubee's second retraction after accidentally eating the magical seed. Love the table just falling over themselves at these antics. "What did you roll a one?  A one on steath?"

"If you roll a one, we are going to end up with a guppy.: Bob with the incredible quips once again.

"Did she lose her sense of fashion" Brennan just losing it while Monet just looks so done and disappointed.

Alaska's expression whenever she goes into character is top notch, that growling face

"Dinner is served!" "Is she going to fucking eat us...we're rotting?!" LOL

Monet jumping into the explanation before Brennan even asks her to. So excited, so cute.

Gertrude's attack was so cool.

Here we go with Brennan making all his players cry again. This man's storytelling abilities are awe-inspiring

"What the going gets tusk, the tusk gets going." All of these character taglines are so on point.

Awww this uncle is so sweet.

Lol Troyan forgeting the spell letting them take characters across the river is so perfect.

Them rushing to write down the name of the Goddess is also very nice. They are great first time DnD players!

Damn Nyruth is handsome too. The character artists for this season really went all out (But then again, they always do at D20).

Oh my god Jujubee is so chaotic, the others spend half the show just trailing behind trying to clean up their mess. Brennan must love her for it.

"I wanna get wet." Brennan stop! God why does it always make me blush when he just says stuff like that!

Jujubee is so proud of the Monet X Change pun lololol

"I can disguise myself as a flashlight" Lol, I don't know how much jujubee genuinely wants to play, and how much she just wants to cause chaos, but I love her for it.

I kind of wish we had gotten a chane to see Brennan's expression as the Queens are discussing this double crossing plan.

Unbelieve Brennan, oh my god. Just playing on the Paula Abdul bit.

I like the flash cuts to Alaska's reactions to the antics of Bob and Jujubee, where she is just mentally rolling her eyes, like what is happening right now?/are you serious?

Oh my god, "Dispel his Dispel Magic". So convoluted

Holy shit, three ones! Oh no that jack that is going to eat them.

Did Monet just try to trick Brennan the DM abut what dice to use? Lol

"D'Hamia - Snatched and Thirsty" the captions are superb

"I pour your tea in a bucket" Glad to see them all remembering Princess's size lol.

All of them playing out what's the best plan is actually so nice. Like they are really leaning into the RP this season, because for newbies, a ton of combat would be heard. And it's nice seeing the Queens trying to logic out what would be the best moves to do. Even if their dice don't always let them.

"4" "Hundred" Twyla is so chaotic, my god, she always just does the most insane choice. ...I really want her to play with Emily (RIP their poor DM)

Ooooh Troyan's mom is only saving herself...

"She sounds like an alcoholic" Brennan has been wheeze laughing so much this episode, it's delightful

Oof, brutal revelation

"It wasn't like 'Hey girl!'" Brennan's expression is so funny

D'Hamia interactions with Princess are great

"We are going to pimp out our orc friend." Bob is just killing it with the one liners.

---

Oh god this preview is so dramatic lol

---

That was a good episode! I can see the campaign will likely be very light in combat, which makes sense, the Queens are making the RP and character choices that are so entertaining and fun to watch. Excellent season so far.

The Mechanics of Automail

Table of Contents

PART ONE: PLANNING AND SURGERY

Pre-Surgical Readiness

Before a person can be outfitted with automail, it must be determined if they are even eligible to receive it.

In general, a potential outfittee must be at least sixteen years of age and in good physical health to be considered. For prospective patients younger than sixteen, parental consent is required. Oftentimes, a young patient will meet with a mechanic and receive basic prosthetics until they are of age to decide if automail is right for them. Even then, most outfittees wait until around the age of twenty to undergo automail surgery, so their bodies have mostly finished growing. 

If a child or adolescent does receive consent for automail, they will likely need to undergo multiple corrective surgeries over the years as they continue to grow. The static internal structure of automail can stunt bone growth and even break during growth spurts if not adjusted. This is why most children and parents opt for standard prostheses until the growing process is complete, as well as why child automail is a bit of a taboo in the field. 

As for physical health, a potential outfittee must be in good condition to undergo surgery. As such, one cannot be outfitted immediately following amputation. At least two weeks of healing are required to even consider it, and oftentimes, the patient will train with standard lower-limb prosthetics before going under the knife. 

The patient cannot be sick or injured in order to receive surgery, and preferably would be in acceptable mental health as well. Malnutrition, viruses, infection, and even serious depression are tickets to immediate denial for surgery. Of course, surgery can always be done once the patient recovers. 

So What About Ed?

In my timeline for FMA, Edward’s journey from human transmutation to automail is much longer than most fans have depicted it. 

Edward and Alphonse commit the taboo in early-mid August, after being back in school for only a few days. Edward, having flatlined on the operating table, is unconscious for six days following his near-death experience, then suffers from a half-conscious, half-comatose state for another eight days. In week three, he has the stitches removed from his leg, but can’t have the ones in his shoulder taken out until at least a month later. 

Because of the risk of his shoulder wound reopening, he cannot be fitted for a prosthetic leg like most amputees can once the incision heals. (I made this decision based on the fact that the bandages on his shoulder remain even after the ones on his leg are no longer seen [Brotherhood, ep. 2]. In real life, lower limb amputees are often healed within three weeks of amputation, and can begin the prosthetic fitting process soon after. But, with a second, much more vulnerable wound, Ed could not take part in this typical sequence of events.)  As such, he can only be mobile by wheelchair, and it is also during this time that he begins to fully understand what’s happened. As seen in BH and the manga, he grows severely depressed, rooted in his guilt over what he did to Alphonse and his mother. This depression, mixed with the frustration of dependency and pretty much just being stuck in his thoughts all day, deteriorates his condition further. I imagine by the worst of it, he’s malnourished, sickly, even selectively mute; his poor health slows his shoulder’s healing process further, and leaves him even more dependent, worsening the depressive cycle.

In my timeline, Colonel Mustang’s visit occurs about two months after human transmutation. This means Edward has been in poor health for five weeks, and is physically incapable of handling automail surgery. 

…Not that Pinako was even considering it up until this point. With child automail being such a taboo and with no parental consent to speak of, I believe the Rockbells were originally going to take the safe route and outfit Ed with a standard prosthetic leg until he turned sixteen. It’s only with his sudden interest in living again that breaks Pinako’s willpower and forces her to agree to do automail surgery. 

Still, Edward’s body has been neglected for over a month and he is nowhere near ready for automail surgery. So, he has to go through intensive training for a month to prove he is serious about wanting automail, and is physically and mentally capable of handling it. This involves working with a basic prosthetic leg (which I concluded due to the existence of Arakawa’s side story “Long Night”, featuring an armless Ed using a basic leg), as well as exercise and a managed diet. 

A month passes and Edward is finally ready for the operation. But just what does that entail?

What the last show you HAD TO BINGE, as in you physically couldn’t get yourself to pause it (and even bathroom breaks were only on an emergency basis)?

I don't really... Do that? I've had this ask in my inbox for like a year now waiting for an opportunity to answer it properly, but no xD I think the last show I watched more or less in one go (so like... an episode or two a day over the course of one or two weeks) was either Hannah or Good Omens, both in 2019 (just the first season of each was out at the time, I've not continued Hannah since but I do plan to watch GOmens S2 once it's out though mostly because @neil-gaiman is perfect advertising and now my curiosity beats my inability to commit to a show)

I'm not sure whether I've even finished a single show since then! I'm in the middle of most star trek shows, I haven't even finished my fav DS9, I'm at the beginning of Witcher S2, watching random eps of NUMB3RS and Rizzoli&Isles whenever I'm at my parents' place bc they're slowly going through the pile of DVDs (calling the show after the Rizzles shipname for brevity's sake so much now my dad does the same, I'll call that achievement accomplished) and sometimes rewatching randoms eps of shows I already know...

And I think the last TV I've watched at all was LotR Appendices stuff with @toboldlynerd uhh what was that two weeks ago?? So yeah, no actual binging to be found here xD I'm always fascinated by people who do that. There's a reason I like shows with episode-long story arcs best - I want to go to sleep after finishing one! Then again, I'm totally capable of binging when it comes to reading: both when it comes to books (Eifel-Krimis, Discworld, Agatha Christie,...) and especially fanfics, I've binged the entire Ava/Deborah tag on Ao3 through continuous reading within 2 weeks (during semester break - so i really didn't do much beside reading, at one point I realized a week had passed bc dance practice was again and it felt like I just went there the day before bc everything blurred together!)(and without watching the show beforehand or at all), and currently the only reason I'm not binging through @purlturtle's amazing Star Trek self insert series anymore is that I'm with family and can't be glued to my phone to the point of not noticing my surroundings which is what would happen if I continued reading that right now xD Sunday I'll be back at it tho! Anyway, so I'm just not a binge person when it comes to TV for some reason? Still, thanks for the ask! <3

Part 5!! Re-reading Lore Olympus :) Ep. 41-50

I just finished reading the new episode too so I have things to say about but that can wait for like in two weeks when I get there lmao Last part:

Ep 41

Simple dialogue is nice once and a while

I know they are supposed to be love at first sight but its so awful to see how they act even if i was crushing hard on someone if they acted like that id be weirded out

“Lets go the scenic route” nah she almost died let her breathe

“Who is that woman” shes 19 you referred to her as a kid

Ah yes the barley mother part of the storyline

It so weird to me its like rachel wanted her to be rich bc she loves painting poor people in a poor(heh) light

Why is it raining atm

Ep 42

PERSEPHONE STOP STANDING LIKE THAT

What a poor way of thinking hades yes you two shouldnt be together but your thought process is unhealthy talk to your therapist

You are so gross hades just dont look at her

Hades really says “sexualise her outfit”

I hate to be that bitch but apollo was right. Not about her needing to change but like in the presence of hades apparently anything is too hot for him

Why does his have a hair comb

“Youre a fertility goddess” ok so thats a whole thing bc later its seen as a myth within the community and everything so what

“This is out of the question” and it shouldve ended there

Ep 43

Also he has the right to turn it down lmao its his company

Hera wont think youre weak

Or maybe she will shes a lil fucked up

“Little goddess, I said no” wow what a normal and healthy power dynamic that isnt questionable at all

Rachel really went all out for unhealthy dynamics, boss and employee, king and citizen, 2000 smth y/o and a 19 y/o. Lets throw in teacher and student why not. Maybe even parent and adopted child

“Im king here” like i said, unhealthy.

“Oh shit i cant make her rich that would make no sense to her problems” dont worry, just make it to where she doesnt use her moms money

Also hades how stupid are you to not see shes hustling you i mean maybe at first but

I do like her wanting to be her own person even tho i think that gets muddled throughout the story

Why is it snowing now wtf

Also shes not gonna die from snow hades wtf

She can go outside on her own

Ep 44

What a weird thing to do introduce an intern

Like wtf let your employees go home

Minthe has a point

Its a very cute scene but then you like remember everything else and its like omg

Like him laughing and her being a lil embarrassed is so fun but tied with everything its a tad weird

Yeah you shouldnt persephone and yall should get boundaries

Persephone why didnt you tell on her genuinely

Dont be rude hades

Persephone has a point, no reason to be super mad

Oh btw heres apollo just incase you forgot he was bad. Did i mention hes bad?

Ep 45

I like this episode while hes contemplating his feelings and then he goes “her ass looks like an upside down heart” and i lose any happiness i had

Like youre 2000 control urself

And im not saying persephone isnt allowed to be sexual or sexualized but the age difference, hes her boss, and also at this point in time she doesnt like it so

Why did you bring the paper from work what

Ep 46

This is one of the prime episodes where minthe gets fleshed out but then rachel says sike later on

ALSO ITS ONLY BEEN 4 DAYS SINCE THE PARTY

Please people can have a day of relaxation where nothing happens

“Neither of us are relationship material” yall definitely let those lines blur

Shes right to be worried

Also hera is so racist to nymphs

“I know im trash already” me in like middle school

No its good to expand on her character

“Thats what everyone expects” is it? I mean how long have you been acting this way yknow

Like i want more context for that line

Idk is hades monogamous

Also zeus does cheat on his wife a lot maybe hades would

He dosent but

“I thought we were supposed to be messed up together” and i think showing a two sided toxic relationship is a great idea but rachel forgets to show hades being bad too most of the time

Also please see a therapist

Ep 47

He has a typewriter old man

“Why do i pay that hack” good point i mean you dont seem to listen to them

I dont get why he gets back with minthe like fear of being alone or what

I like the letter episode though, its nice to hear all of the feelings

Why is she on the roof lol

Ep 48

I love the furies(?)

Hes supposed to be so spooky in this episode hes so lame

Like i agree with them hes a dork

Wow everyone either likes or despises hades/persephone they are such characters

Has anyone heard of a neutral opinion

Minus his employees i guess

Ope he has glasses

Ep 49

I love the random characters getting names its so silly yet fun to me

Hecate please unpop ur collar

Good talk hecate

Does he not care thats the king

In the “salutations” panel hecate loses all meat and becomes very long

Also if these are laws why does no one follow them

Or wait is weekly nark an olympus based newspaper

I always thought he asked “which eye did you take the picture with” but he doesnt so ig im thinking of something else

Also what the fuck just ban him or smth

Ep 50

Yeah artemis maybe it would be easier too if you paid better attention

Shut. the fuck up apollo

Also how is artemis getting taken advantage of here

Love hermes

Hc him as a gay man personally

“There are rules” that literally are never listened too

Also artemis sucks at listening wtf

Like wanting to talk and getting onto someone are two different things

Also like once again, artemis feels likes choosing to be unaware yknow

《降魔的》 (2017)

Even though I have largely given up on TVB series since the early 2010s, childhood nostalgia is still keeping me from abandoning them completely and I still check out their stuff now and then, even when I know it will be largely utter cr*p.

I did hear good things about this though, and the plot summary sounded interesting and atypical of TVB's usual fare — TVB hardly ever does ghostly-supernatural stories and when they do, it often ends up well, super boring/just plain bad…anyway, I had been half keeping an eye on this. Finally got the chance to check it out recently.

Season 1 did pleasantly surprise me! The characters were interesting, plot pacing was good, few dull moments especially in the latter half, when the story and characters really started moving along.

Even though I thought the resolution with the main villain was handled rather lamely, and I wish the series had concluded nicely rather than led on to a Season 2, overall, Season 1 indeed lived up to its hype (among TVB viewers at least) and I found myself easily managing to binge-watch and finish all 21 episodes within a week!

Acting wise, nothing much to say, really. Kenneth Ma is a likeable guy but those who have followed his progress long enough know he's a limited actor. He's great at these nice guy, rather lackadaisical kind of roles, but any role that requires more than that and he falls short. Didn't expect and didn't get any character growth from him.

As for the other main/main-supporting actors, besides veteran Susan Tse (謝雪心) who's great in almost whatever role thrown her way (and she gave a great performance as usual), I can't say I know them well enough to judge.

In short, everyone's acting was…serviceable. Nothing outstanding, but nothing extremely bad either.

Besides the general enjoyability of Season 1, there was the added bonus of seeing a guest appearance by Law Lan (羅蘭) in Episode 1, which I thought was a very fitting and amusing cameo appearance considering 羅蘭姐 (Sister Law Lan) has made much of her later career through playing ghostly old ladies or ghost mediums in numerous movies and TV series before!

↑ 羅蘭 in Ep. 1 (S1)

廣東話：「又危險，又容易嚇親人」

Spoken Cantonese: “It's dangerous (to move about at night), people may get frightened (of you) too.”

I also enjoyed seeing the brief — don't think hers are considered as ‘guest’ — appearances of Winki Lai (賴慰玲) as the younger version of Susan Tse's character.

↑ 賴慰玲 in Ep. 4 (S1) & Ep. 3 (S2) respectively

Have liked Winki since first seeing her in 2014's 《女人俱樂部》 (Never Dance Alone), where she also played a younger version of another older character, in this case it was Angie Cheong's (張慧儀) character.

↑ 賴慰玲 & 張慧儀 at a promotion for 《女人俱樂部》 in 2014

Speaking of NDA, I'm finally watching this again too since it's currently available! Still really funny and relatable in many ways!

I also recently learned that Asako will be starring in the Japanese musical version of “Sunny” (the Korean movie upon which NDA was based, and there's also a Japanese movie remake) next year, if all goes as planned.

Even though I didn't enjoy the original Korean movie much (I actually preferred TVB's adaptation), and a musical version of a movie I didn't much enjoy doesn't sound very promising, it's still kind of exciting to know Asako will be in a project that is somewhat related to something I like, even if not the original! Heh!

(P.S.: I do wonder how Winki came about her Western moniker…very HK flavour I must say! I've noticed Hong Kongers tend to choose some of the most unusual sounding “Western” names for themselves sometimes! Sometimes, you can tell it's derived from their Chinese name, other times…it can be a real head-scratcher! Heh!)

Third bonus, I especially loved the cute rendition of the 石敢當 (sek6 gam2 dong1, aka shí gǎn dāng, aka ishigantou) that played a pivotal role in this series. 石敢當 aren't usually so cute, from what internet research tells me…

Someone in production obviously got heavily influenced by Japanese/Okinawan culture as the rendition in this series looks more like the 石敢當 found there. In the series' 2nd season, this was even affirmed by the introduction of the miniature souvenir figure version. Susan Tse's character supposedly bought it from Okinawa.

(P.S.: thanks to this series I guess, there seems to be copies of the exact same 石敢當 sold on the likes of Taobao now!)

↑ Ep. 5 (S1) & Ep. 2 (S2) — cute! (=^・^=)

《降魔的 2.0》 (2020)

Sadly, this rare success from TVB (nowadays) could not last beyond one season…

While S1 was great and a refreshing take for TVB, looks like S2 is back to the same old TVB problems: lack of focus, pacing issues and probably going out on a whimper.

S2 started off well enough, continuing directly where S1 left off. I was happy to revisit the characters again and follow whatever development was in-stored for them. Up until around Ep. 8 or 9 I was still quite enjoying this sequel, but it began to lose focus soon after that. Sigh…and it was going so well…

Can't say it wasn't expected though! Most sequels fail to live up to its predecessor, and TVB sequels have an especially bad track record. That was also the main reason I wished things had ended nicely in S1.

Thinking of this sequel thing, Hong Kong series in the past (say…around more than 15 years ago) rarely did sequels, most series wrapped up in a season (and this term ‘season’ wasn't even used back then), but lately I've noticed more sequels happening…can't say I like that! I hope this isn't going to become a standard! I like my shows short and sweet!

But not too much of a problem for me I guess, if I'm mostly going to stick to old (very old, by some people's standards) series from the noughties and before! Heh!

Anyway, back to 《The Exorcist's Meter》. In summary, enjoyed S1 a lot, S2, not so much but given that it's TVB, it's not the worse series they have churned out in recent years and now that I'm more than halfway through, I guess I'll see it to the end.

At least the theme and sub-theme songs from both seasons sung by Hubert Wu (胡鴻鈞) are nice! Putting a note here to check them out in full at another time:

S1: 《到此一遊》，《遙不可及》

S2: 《十字路口》，《凡人不懂愛》

I have been nominated for a total of 9 awards by the Indie Music Channel, the premiere source for indie/alternative music in North America, and I'm going to talk about the songs that have been nominated. This is Woke AF (the clean version, that we call "Woke AF minus F"). This song got us nominated for Best Alternative Band.

Earlier this year I was invited to join a group of artists who were to undertake the challenge of writing and recording an entire album or EP during the month of May 2023. Seemed like a fun idea, and I came up with the concept of a protest EP about the horrific events and decisions that the political right has foisted upon the rest of us here in the US. I would call it "Hatey". It would include a remake of Nick Lowe's "I Love the Sound of Broken Glass", transposed into the relative minor and produced like a Pink Floyd song, a reworking of Elusive Green to make the environmental message more obvious, and a couple more including this track (II'll get to the other one on the next post).

This sone started out as a dare, when I once said to a newscast "I should write a song and call it 'Woke As Fuck'. Stick it to the people ruining Florida." As often happens, my wife said, "Then do it!" It took about 15 minutes to write and arrange, and I knew I could put it together pretty quickly. In fact, it was the first song finished in the project.

I had made substantial progress on the whole project when on May 22nd disaster struck. My main studio computer went all Klingon on me and decided it was a good day to die. A complete crash - hard drive destroyed. Now I had a lot of everything backed up but without that hard drive I wouldn't make the deadline for the album project I had been invited to. So I had to bow out and I bought a new computer.

I sent the hard drive to a specialty facility and they were able to recover about 60% of my data, and fortunately for me all of the data I didn't have backed up. I got everything back and up and running the second week in June and decided to unleash the song on the world on July 1st. I had the simple video above commissioned and unleashed it on the world.

Within a week it had been streamed over 10,000 times. The video got over 3,600 views and a few truly bizarre comments - the kind of thing you'd find on a family slideshow of the reunion.

In either case, the whole "In your face" approach to the madness going on right now in Florida struck a chord. This was originally going to be just a bass, drums and guitar song but the moment I had the guitar tracks down I realized that it needed organ and clavinet. The keyboard solo was an accident - I was noodling around between takes and came up with the recurring sound you hear there. As for the guitar solo: it's probably the wierdest one I've ever done.

2005 Top CD Releases

2005 - A crazy year for music with a ton of hellektro releases. Tons of re-issues (Cure, Cabaret Voltaire, and more) making me feel old. A resurgence of EBM (making me feel young again). Noise became more popular... genre lines continued to blur or be oblitrated even more... And And One's "Panzermensch" still did not go away! Anyways, here's my list for 2005. I have a bit different ear for things than other individuals and other DJ's, strong likes and dislikes... Top 10 Full-Length CDs 10. VNV Nation – Matter and Form (Metropolis Records) So much debate over this release when it first came out. Fans were really divided right down the middle it seemed. Half were lightly disgusted on the new more techno-trance direction that Ronan had headed in and the other half still found a few tracks they liked and wrote off the rest as filler. Maybe because Ronan is a good friend, maybe because we spoke earlier about non-industrial influences (he’s a HUGE Underworld and Placebo fan) and maybe because he told me before this release was even half-way finished to expect something more “Leftfield” (now I realize there was a pun there) I was prepared for this release. From the first listen I can honestly say I loved every track. VNV are to be commended for successfully doing what few in the electronic scene have failed to do – make a CD that doesn’t COMPLETELY alienate existing fans and then show some alternatives for where the band could be headed in sound with coming releases. Let’s face it, VNV can’t ride this futurepop thing forever can they? Matter and Form shows growth and a band looking to push boundaries. 9. [:SITD:] - Coded Message:12 (Accession/Metropolis) Nothing too exceptionally different than their last full-length outing “Stronghold” , but when you’ve so quickly established yourself as one of the leading darker electro acts in the club scene why tamper with the direction of that successful approach? Again nicely constructed songs, great and catchy chorus’, driving synth work that’s both dark and powerful yet entirely danceable. Coded Message:12 is just what you’d expect from [:SITD:] 8. Headscan - Pattern Recognition (Art of Fact) Released just a few weeks prior to the close of 2005, I’ve seen this popping up on many Top 10 list this year. After the highly praised and sold out “Shaper and Mechanist” debut and several successful EPs, the Montreal-based duo of Headscan have released their stunning and visionary second CD. “Pattern Recognition” is packed with futuristic dance floor pounding music and entangling dark vivid sounds capes. Their haunting vocals fuse with relentless beats and powerful hypnotic sequences with a strong and upfront presence, but at times dives into the abyss, lurking within the driving rhythms and loops only to resurface again like a haunting message from another dimension. Headscan showcases their talents by impressively combining the best elements of electro, techno, and industrial that all result in a sound that is fresh, exciting and that always holds true to its predecessors in electronic music. Another great CD from these guys, they haven’t done a bad one yet. 7. Kill Memory Crash – American Automatic (Ghostly International) Absolutely superb release and it makes me even happier that the Ghostly International label who put this out is (duh) internationally known and acclaimed and resides right in my hometown of Ann Arbor, MI. Label owner Sam lives directly next door to the lofts I work in. This Chicago (former Detroit) duo’s disc is the best exemplification of electronic body music’s past merging with the Warp-records-like modern electronic-techno. It’s a mash of Nitzer Ebb like bass lines and rhythms merged together with glitched-out electro, traces of IDM and cyberpunk punch. Every track made for the dance floor. There’s parts of Kill Memory Crash’s “American Automatic” that remind me of the brilliant “Twitch CD by Ministry (surely an influence on KMC) and there’s more forward thinking, experimenting and tinkering than many of today’s (stuck in minimal territory) techno artist. However, the end result is neither an update of past industrial influences or one that comes off overtly future-forward. This sits nicely in a spot of the significance of industrials past and shows the possibilities for where techno could (should?) be heading. I’ve played this disc during ebm sets, during noise sets and just causally at home and it always serves to be a great listen/crowd pleaser. 6. Fractured - Only Human Remains (Dependent) Just one of the numerous “hellektro” CD’s I purchased this year. Was joking that it would have been easy to make a top 10 list with 1 harsh artist and then put them in a 9-way tie with other similar artist. But Toronto based Fractured somehow avoid all the pitfalls of the genre and release a CD way above average and certainly not redundant. Great programming and careful attention paid to clever vocal effects. Musically the disc ranges from dark electro floor-fillers to slower tempo tracks rich in depth and dedication, similar to Mentallo & the Fixer. Released on the new Dependent sub label (Noise Terror Productions) led by Suicide Commando’s Johan Van Roy – This STRONG debut is enough to give Suicide Commando a run for their money. 5. Rotersand - Welcome To Goodbye (Dependent/Metropolis) How Rotersand could outdo their last CD “truth is Fanatic” was always going to intrigue me, but with “Welcome to Goodbye”, they surpassed every expectation. This disc pushes them even further to searing perfection. Exceptional synth work provides a HUGE variety of styles from harsher and noisier pieces like “Storm” on through to the ballad-like “All in All”. Vocalist Rasc elevates every track with often-fearsome yet equally human delivery. The guy can sing and never lacks aggression or emotion. Impossible to select just one stand out track, cause they all stand out. The clubs were all about playing the 4/4 futurepop bangers “Almost Wasted” and “Exterminate, Annihilate, Destroy”. With that being said however, this disc remains the one from my list this year I could throw in for anyone (even non-industrial fans) and have them identify with liking at the very least one song (most fell in love with the whole disc in the process). There’s so many moments to savor on “Welcome to Goodbye” and Rotersand just continues to progress in several areas of synth-driven music without losing focus and control. Rumor has it they’re on their way to the states in 2006 as an opener for Covenant’s tour. Here’s hoping Rotersands live show is as explosive as this album is. 4. Combichrist – Everybody Hates You (Out of Line/Metroplis) So why is it in 2004 when I first played Combichrist the request sheets were filled with scrawlings of ‘Dear DJ – YOU SUCK!’ but now in 2005 on any given request sheet it’s just jammed pack with request for Combichrist??? No matter, as it’s excellent to see this release and Combichrist getting the attention. This is the disc that seemed to slip into everybody’s hands this year. Offering more attitude, more humor and more noise like-techno-body music than his main band Icon of Coil, Andy LaPlegua delivers a monster of a release. Huge beats, killer synth lines -all wrapped in cynicism and aggression. Certainly not an odd blueprint as other bands have tried it (Check Siechtum’s Diagnose:zeit CD out in 2001) but maybe it’s because Combichrist pushed these noise elements into a more structured song flow that “Everybody Hates You” becomes accessible & instantly addictive to the masses. The limited 2cd version disc featured a second disc that features some IDM, ambient and repetitive noise. If you didn’t get Combichrist this year – you’re missing out on a fun listening experience. 3. Terrorfakt - Cold World Remixes (Metropolis) A diverse batch of remixes from the more harsh ebm fueled E-Craft and Imperative Reaction on into the punishing noise of Cervello Elettronico and Synth Etik. There's some darker ambient tracks as well such as "Elimination Chamber" and "Black Hoods in Brooklyn" (which sees Pneumatic Detach pair up against Terrorfakt!!!). Every remixer puts their signature on whatever selected track ("newcomers" Re_Agent and Life Cried you'll be hearing tons more of SOON)- there's stuff on here that packs serious punch and there's programming trickery that is simply outstanding and breaks away from the monotony trap of most rhythmic noise these days And if that isn't enough there's five EXCLUSIVE tracks not found on the original version of Cold Steel World. Not all noise all the time either, just the perfect mixture of hard-edged-industrialized-electro-dance floor-noise-EBM. 2. S.K.E.T. – Aktivist (Hands Productions) Whoa! Came across this band this year while reading an online review and being blown away by the sound clips. Beginning in 1995, they really didn’t move into the rhythm-noise sector until 1998. Two earlier releases are now long since deleted. “Aktivist” is their first release for the legendary Hands Productions label and just about everything on Hands is done with quality. Hard rhythmic noise, aggressive and industrious with tracks like “Center of Evil”, “Isolator III” and “Updated Reality” BUT equally suitable for the adventurous club with tracks like “Stalinoper 2004”, “Revolution of the Pigs” and my favorite “Phreax in Intoxication of life”. Rich with influences from history, revolution (check that cover artwork), literature, film, propaganda art and more, “Aktivist” sets the atmosphere for a reflection on the battles fought and the rebellion ahead. 1. XOTOX - Psi ( Limited Edition ) So yeah, powernoise or harsher noisier electronics really became my forte more so this year than in years past. The criticism from others was that it all often sounds the same. For those of you saying such things, clear your head and check out the 2 CD limited edition of “Psi” from Xotox. All the proper necessary ingredients are included such as, distorted and destroyed (and rather diverse) rhythm patterns, plus layers of synths that attack the listener. With exception of "Winterblut" (featuring vocals by X-Fusion), this album is entirely instrumental, but never does this drift into the endless redundancy of so many other noise artist. The limited version offers up a second disc featuring a live video, a video clip of “Psi” and remixes by [:S.I.T.D.:], Noisuf-X, Mechanical Moth, Kiew and others. And while I LOVE the work of [:S.I.T.D.:] there mix pushes “Roboterkrieg” into some futurepop territory and is my least favorite mix of them all. Not that it’s inadequate by any measures, it remains a great remix, but when a band I highly admire is surpassed by other remixes you know they must be rather exceptional and the disc must be extraordinary. When you tire of Combichrist, move onto this… Honorable Mentions: Chiasm - Relapse Glis - Nemesis Limited 2CD Mind.in.a.box. - Certainty Accessory - Forever And Beyond Culture Kultur - Reborn Painbastard - Overkill Analogue Brain - Electroshock Negative Format - Moving Past The Boundaries NOISUF-X Antipode Stromkern - Light it Up Mono No Aware - Kotaku Keep your eyes on: Analogue Brain Reaper Head-less The Operative Re_Agent Life Cried Tonikom Necessary Response 2006 disappointments: Nine Inch Nails – Without Teeth Nice one Trent, make us wait 5 years for this piece of electro-rock shit. Was really hoping you’d turn me into a casual fan again. Nope. The Killers and Michael Buble disc held my interest more than this. Project Pitchfork - Kaskade Never going to completely rule this band out cause it seems they go in cycles of releasing something bad and then following it up with something killer. Will see what the next effort holds. Shorai - 40 Minutes Into The Future WTF happened??? The first CD from this Hands artist showed a lot of imagination, sound creativity and potential. The tracks on the 2005 Hands comp were stompy. Then the newest full-length sees them go REALLY electro like a broken Pong machine. Rather disappointing… Neuroactive - N-Gin   Sadly another band that has just declined with every release after the first three absolutely brilliant releases. They moved studios during the recording of this release. Band members were quoted as saying “New album will sound harder and more electronic than ever before...” Then when the release date arrived and it was finally available "This album has been hard release to finish. There has been tons of material made for this album, but only a fraction made into the final release." NO KIDDING! I think any fan would have rather waited say 5 years for another stunning Neuroactive CD than have to listen to this. Top singles (too busy to come up with 10, so here’s 7) 7. Unter Null - Sick F**k DJ EP (Alfa-Matrix) You either love or hate Unter Null. Seems she (yes that’s a she) became the target for numerous hate-fest directed at her. Not concerned with what was being said, I took a real quick liking to the “Sick Fuck” EP. This is evil RAW stuff on par with Suicide Commando. The C-Drone Defect mix is my favorite just waiting and building in intensity before it just explodes in crunchy rhythms and hissed, distorted vocal angst. This EP delivers an onslaught of uncompromising, distorted and manipulated sounds/vocals coupled with harsh elektro assaults and a touch of power noise. To strengthen this release are diverse mixes from Grendel, Implant, Manufactura, Tamtrum and Everything Goes Cold ( aka Psyclon Nine ) . A bit overkill with so many mixes perhaps but it was targeted to DJ’s looking for variety. A great teaser to the full-length but when the full length came out I was rather disappointed that Implant (who produced) had really smoothed over much of that rawness and polished things up. I like that underdone sound of the EP a bit more than the tried-perfection of the full-length, it just seems to compliment the edginess of the music better. 6. Painbastard - Storm Of Impermanence EP (Accession) Taking the firestorm of a CD that was the full-length (which would have made the top 10 but there were just too many similar sounding hellektro releases this year) and advancing the club-electro / EBM sound even further with remixes from Lights Of Euphoria, [:SITD:], Conetik, and Reaper. Often found myself reaching for this at the right moments for club play. 5. Leaetherstrip - Suicide Bombers EP (Alfa-Matrix) A much welcome return for one of the electronics scenes biggest legends So nice to see the master active once again and “Suicide Bombers” continues to define this influential artist. “Suicide Bombers” offers up darker EBM, full of aggression, harsh bass lines and pulsing synthetic sequences. So many other newer acts have cloned the Leaetherstrip sound (and never as good as Claus can do it either) but on this EP he really reclaims all the trademark sounds and style. From the opening title cut, which condemns suicide terror attacks, the EP continues to explore more political assaults with "Shame Of A Nation" which features a compelling song structure ultimately reaching an amazing climax in the second part of the song... "This Is Where I Want To Be" and "Death Is Walking Next To Me" are what we could call "classic Leaetherstrip" tunes that showcase Claus Larsen's trademark characteristics: a punishing rhythm pace and aggressive electronic style with distorted vocals. With "Til Far". The EP takes a darker and more symphonic turn before the aptly titled "Reborn" plunges us back into the powerful dark realms of Leaetherstrip's rebirth.   4. [:SITD:] - Odyssey:13 EP (Accession) Remixes and additional new tracks that continue to strengthen [:SITD:} as a leader of darker electronics. More attention to the vocals here sounding more natural with less reliance on effects. Favorites are the newer club mix of “Wegweiser” (which really didn’t need much of an improvement from the CD version yet pushes the song with further dynamics) and the Grendel remix of “Crusade” which opens with a chilly reminder of the London bus bombings from this past summer, crisp synth stabs and that strong arpegiation work that is becoming Grendel’s trademark. Sadly the Absurd Minds mix of “Ascension” really misses the mark slowing the original album version down, stripping most of the elements back to the barest traits and in the process of doing so the song loses all it’s character. That’s the only sour spot on the CD however and with this disc clocking in at around 50 minutes, fans get their moneys worth. 3. Ladytron - Destroy Everything You Touch MCD (Island Records) I’ve always passed this band off as a piss-poor electroclash band never really taking much of an interest in them. I think it was Jon Noble who adventurously one night threw this on at City Club and my ears opened. Sheer bewilderment when it was discovered it was Ladytron. Finally the band has begun to grow distant from that childish 80’s retro sound and show some more modern tendencies. Utilizing excellent synth programming, some clever (gasp!) indie-inspired guitar, and a wonderfully catchy chorus the result is a great pop song, albeit a REALLY black-hearted pop song (like the kind Anne Clark or Propaganda might do) Damn shame the full-length didn’t live up to the greatness that was this MCD. 2. Stromkern - Stand Up (Dependent EU/ WTII (US) You knew this was coming. This single EXOLODED everywhere and quickly. Stromkern restores many jaded music fans faith in the genre that is industrial. Sticking to no restrictions and defying the usual characteristics of the genre, Ned Kirby unleashes one of the best SK tracks ever. (maybe the best? But I still have a stronger liking for “Perfect Sunrise”) Insightful lyrics carried along by rap styled vocals and bombastic electronic compositions “Stand Up” instantly become an anthem. And the bonus tracks too are not simply filler – strong in their own aspects. Great teaser for the full-length, which also delivered big time (I just didn’t listen to the full-length enough for it to make my top 10 – shame on me) 1. Grendel - Soilbleed (Noitekk (EU)/Metropolis (US) I don’t think I could ever tire of playing this track. From the day I bought it, up to just this past week even, every time I’ve stepped into a DJ booth I’ve managed to spin this track. A sure-fire floor- filling classic of roughness melded with remarkable synth layers. Sure there’s been a handful (maybe two handfuls) of industrial bands that have sampled “Full Metal Jacket” but nobody has rhythmically synced it as well into darker aggressive EBM music than Grendel. Two additional mixes of this track by OBSZÖN GESCHÖPF and Agonoize offer even harder versions. Now then if that track doesn’t satisfy you (trust me, it will) there’s additional tracks here that could have warranted their own singles – “Interrogation Leash” and “Aspiration Feed” continue Grendel’s evil-attack. Not forgetting the fun aspects of music, Grendel give us an updated 2k5 cover version of “Zombienation” that originally appeared on the limited bonus disc of “prescription medicine” . This versions less harsh than the earlier version yet equally enjoyable. Finally closing things out is a somber soundtrack-like piece “Dream II (Feat. Ordo Rosarius Equilibrio)” showcasing Grendels talents in a different approach. Supposedly fans will get a full-length Grendel release in 2006, keep you eyes and ears ready for that! Top 5 Compilations 5. Various Artists - Endzeit Bunkertracks ( Act 1 ) (Alfa-Matrix) "Endzeit Bunkertracks" hits straight ahead offering a HUGE selection of the best dark, harsh elektro acts active in the scene today. Here’s what you get -- 4 (!!) full length CD's (including 50 (out of 60) rare or unreleased exclusive tracks!) delivered in a deluxe box packaging limited to 1.666 copies. The leaders of the genre such as Hocico, Suicide Commandi, :Wumpscut:, Yelworc, The retrosic, God Module, Tactical Sekt and so many others are presented right next to talented newcomers like Noisuf-X, Tamtrum, Fractured, Dunkelwerk, Unter Null and so many more. A great value for the money, Endzeit Bunkertracks presents the new generation of dark elektro really well. 4 disc of the same harsh style of music might seem too much but keep in mind, A Different drum released a 6cd (!) set of synthpop, and of the 2 collections I’d rather have this (LOL). Act 2 is in the works now. 4. Various Artists - Awake The Machines Vol. 5 ( Ltd ) (Out of Line) OutofLine records newest compilation is again a spotlight on that labels activities offering a plethora of goodies, remixes or simply representative tracks by every act from this label. From the ever popular hellektro sound – here represented by artist such as Hocico, Decoded Feedback, Amduscia, God Module and Aesthetic perfection, on into more futurepop styling of bands such as Angels & Agony, Necessary Response and Destroid followed by further explorations into Orkus flavored electro-goth (Tristesse De La Lune, Blutengel, Terminal choice) and then old school body music from the likes of Proceed, SOMAN and Spetsnaz (who’s “that perfect body (flawless mix)” is the BEST mix yet from these guys). A great collection of the OutofLine artist and for electronic fans unfamiliar with this label a really good starting place. 3. Various Artists - Infacted Vol. 2 (Infacted Records) A spotlight comp on another German label releasing quality material. Infacted is run by Torben Schmidt who’s not only a DJ but also the musician behind Lights of Euphoria and live member of Suicide Commando. He’s had past label experience working for legendary label Zoth Ommog and then Bloodline. His experience and connections within the electronic music community have led him to be able to work with many musicians and partner with many labels worldwide. Infacted’s roster of bands run a pretty diverse range. Bands holding more futurepop characteristic are well presented here such as Colony 5, Les Anges De La Nuit, Endanger, Diskonnekted, State of the Union and more. Darker electro is represented in two tracks from [:SITD:] with the Heimataerde remix of “lebensborn” and Garten der asche. Infacted is usually first to capitalize on the latest trends in the scene and with a resurgence of EBM happening they present exclusive remixes from both SOMAN and Reaper that I personally found myself spinning more than the regular versions because of there different intros, instrumentation and breaks. A great collection at a moderate price that presents some of the biggest names and some of the biggest club hits today. 2. Various Artists - Techno Body Music Vol. 1 (Out of Line) Music Non Stops description says it best - Bringing together some of the most creative talent from two disparate scenes - This is TBM : Techno... Body... Music ! … TBM ? Based on the roots of legendary acts such as Kraftwerk, DAF and the 80's electronic New Wave movement in general, "Techno Body Music" builds itself upon the solid framework of minimal, rhythm-based electronic sound structures directly aimed at getting the body in motion. Fittingly this musical style was soon christened "Electronic Body Music" or EBM in short. Later, at the end of decade of its birth the EBM sound was simplified, its basic structure reduced to four-to-the-floor-beats generated by electronic sound devices, this style was simply called Techno. With no strict borders DJ's would cater to fans of both genres due to fact that the basic goal of both ravers and EBM aficionados was the same : to dance to electronic music ! In the Nineties, the two scenes started to alienate themselves from each other ( although the musical roots and goals still basically remained the same ) though artists involved with either scene still continued to actively exchange styles and ideas, albeit passively. With acts such as Combichrist, VNV Nation ( who both present EXCLUSIVE tracks here ) and Fixmer / McCarthy to one side and DJ Hell, Sven Vath, T.Raumschmiere or Chris Liebing ( who regularly heads his set list with Nitzer Ebb's "Murderous" ) to the other, this creative sequence appears to have traveled full circle with TBM - "Techno Body Music" being its logical consequence. "Techno Body Music" innovates, breaking down barriers and walls - putting together ONE essential collection of two scenes across two essential discs. A new trend in electronic music ? Techno Body Music could well be it.... It brought back so many memories of working at Blitz Records, Absolute records and zipping around town with my buddy Zalix listening to tons of Wax Trax, Play it Again Sam, Nettwerk and more label stuff. Can’t wait for volume 2. 1. Various Artists - Advanced Electronics Vol. 4 (Synthetic Symphony) A double CD collection of all the tracks that stormed up the DAC, the German Alternative Charts. Compiled in a collaboration between Hardbeat Promotion (who represents nearly every larger German industrial act) and Synthetic Symphony (who has Covenant, FLA and Skinny Puppy amongst there artist). So big names are represented well here. And as with earlier version of the Adv. Electronic series the listener gets special versions, unreleased stuff, remixes or other goodies.   HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: the extended remix of “Ascension” done by [:SITD:] (Far better than the Absurd Minds remix). SOMAN’S remix of VNV NATION’s “Chrome” that push there newer mix into storming techno territory. SUICIDE COMMANDO give us a preview of a preview of the next full-length release “Bind Torture Kill” with the track “Bleed For Us All”. More aggressive than recent stuff reminding more of the “Mindstrip” period. IMPLANT who team up with legendary vocalist Anne Clark here present a killer trance track with “Tune Up Your Chips And Circuits” that should give Juno Reactor, Underworld, Hallucinogen and Praga Kahn a good scare. Holy shit has this track got momentum and effects galore. Implant is doing some of the best hard trance out there today. Not to be missed. ZOMBIE GIRL – The new project of Renee Cooper-Komor and husband Sebastian R. Komor of Icon of Coil. A campy electro-romp through B movie Zombie creepiness. So many good artist represented here (Rotersand, Glis, Grendel, Melotron, Mesh, etc…) and the compilers have also given some attention to newer unheard of or upstart artist like Individualdistanz, File Not Found, The Promise, S.K.E.T. (here with an exclusive mix of “revolution of the pigs”) and more. So much great club stuff this year and if you missed some of it, you can catch up by checking out Advanced Electronics 4. Looking forward to 2006...

Utena thoughts...about 2 weeks later

I've been putting it off for way too long and so most of my thoughts stopped being fresh. On top of watching way too many analysis vids post-watch, but still I do at least want to put my 2cents of Revolutionary Girl Utena out there for the world.

Utena is perhaps one of the most famous "magical girl"/shoujo action shows out there for not only it's transgressive themes of relationship abuse and low-key pretty much being the poster girl for like actual feminist perspective on/in anime...but also just doing it all in both a heavily allegorical and understated, yet super over-the-top stylish fashion

But that's it's reputation preceding itself, is Utena worth while all these years? The answer is Yes, but it also really shows it's age and budget in pacing and repetition, tho as an appreciator for "behind the scenes" compromises in art, it's more showcasing Ikuhara's talent in working around both taboo and long-form budget constraints with just well-thought out and iconic imagery that - while episodic and formulaic - is just very good at filling the 39 eps with feasts for the eyes.

Utena broadly is about tomboy Utena with memories long ago after her parents died being "saved" by a princely figure like a princess...except she's so enthralled by the nostalgia that instead she becomes a full on Prince herself and receives a dueling ring to fight in the Ohtori Acadamy secret duels for "engagement" to Rose Bride Himemiya Anthy.

Utena is divided between 4 arcs, only the first and last being Manga adapted from hearsay:

1: Student Council Saga

2: Black Rose Saga

3: Akio Ohtori Saga

4: Apocalypse

From back to forth I'd say that Akio + Apoc is more just escalation into the finale while Black Rose being anime original comes off as a glorified side-character study which while complementing the secondary cast, feels like one of those Anime movies that has to say "but if you don't watch this part, it's pretty much optional for the main plot" despite it also actually introducing the most important antagonist within it's margins.

More importantly, it's the Student Council (arc and the actual people) that lay the foundation but also a large part of the show's focus which ironically puts Utena in the background until like almost the finale and some in-between developments, so it's less "Utena (and Anthy Himemiya)'s story" until the very end, but more like a showcase of how fucked up the system at large is (pin in that).

By the Council themselves is:

Kyouichi Saionji: The biggest jobber, like actually introduced as the most despicable loser ep 1 and proceeds to be a complete arrogant joke for the rest of the show. Honestly in another shojo "love" story, they'd find some way to redeem him but semi-compellingly they turn him into like an Aqua-lad type pathetic brat with an inferiority complex to the actual Student head

Miki Kaoru: the naive "nice, non-threatening soft boy" that also just never actually listens to the girls around him. Probably adds more complexity to the whole patriarchal idea on analytic reflection since yeah, the whole "nice guy finishes last" plays up better when the kid comes off as that "ally" energy of wanting to save Himemiya from being the Rose Bride but also low-key won't actually not just do the duels and win her cuz he's that sorta wishy-washy hypocrite. Arguably the least hateable guy in the cast (minus mascot Chu-Chu)

Juri Arisugawa: TRAGIC LESBIAN TRIANGLE LOVE. Probably the biggest point to of both "not-explicitly homosexual" but also really freaking obvious since her entire story is her girlfriend stealing her "boy crush" when actually she was crushing on her and being pretty much frustrated throughout her story as pining most of it. It's quaint by today's standards but also like damn girl, get over her she was like the worst back stabbing bitch (literally if Black Rose counts)

Nanami Kiryuu: SPEAKING OF QUEEN BITCH, it's been a long time since I've watched a High School girl bully and honestly it's kinda refreshing. If Miki is "soft-boy uwu" Nanami is a brat that gets her come-uppance often, featured prominently as an anime only with the MOST filler/comedic episodes but also not low-key, being the most out-spoken actual brother complex ironically spins perhaps the biggest twist and ironic relationships of "I love my brother but not-like-that but also like-that" by the end. Mostly comedic relief but I find her inclusion to actually add a lot more to juxtapose...

Touga Kiryuu: Big Student Council Prez himself, the first arc antagonist and also a strong foil to Saionji and later a stepping stone for Akio. Touga is THE image of a Princely Playboy Heart-Throb that in any other Shoujo romance would have the main girl win him over from all those "other girls" despite him being apathetic if not outright manipulative of them. Good thing Utena is better than that and really puts a spotlight on just not-actually-ok his power hunger for "the power to bring the world revolution" that leads him to heavily objectify Anthy, arguably even more than Misogynist Trophy Girlfriend beater Saionji, since he doesn't even see her as more than a means to an end despite professing and looking the Prince part but lacking all the actual virtues.

The Student council matters more since they're characters and subsequent tragic flaws are the ACTUAL meat of the show and on second rumination actual shows more how fucked up the system/gender dynamic/power hierarchy is since - while it blatantly fucks over Juri who can't just outright say who she likes - also show almost it's own sub-text of Masculine failings: Saionji desperately clinging to being TOXIC MASCULINE™ and completely falling short underneath Touga; Miki's "nice boy" act belying him trying to replace his low-key nostalgia for his sister (also a bitch, but apparently was more like Nanami in the manga); and best yet Touga being the quintessential "Prince in all but actual behavior" by emulating a cutthroat and Machiavellian world view but coming up empty because well, he's just an illusion of a prince...but that leads in way more to the big finale piece where I'll reintroduce the actual story's main trio

Utena Tenjou: Tomboy Prince with brain empty except for lesbian thoughts. Honestly probably what every western "STRONG INDEPENDENT WOMAN" archetype wishes they were since while having very tomboyish personality in athletics, blunt speaking and also VERY oblivious to the actual plot for REAL DRAMATIC IRONY, but also never actually demeaning her being feminine partially due to her love of an childhood prince and how she maintains her relationship with both her friend Wakaba and later Anthy. Honestly mostly a plot device after S1 until she gets ACTUAL development by the very end and instead kinda bumbles her way into undoing the entire REVOLUTION OF THE WORLD. I kinda wish she felt either more cognizant or at least felt like she was developing/properly rebuking the rest of the cast's power obsessions but I guess that's for the movie.

Anthy Himemiya: Actual Trophy Wife with a dark secret (darker than ski- wait no that's terrible scratch that). Set-up very much as an immediate princess in distress while also being the most femme Yamato Nadeshiko, Anthy being the Rose Bride as a literal prize who acts and behaves as whom she's "engaged" with desires while otherwise being quiet, wry, mysterious and noticably submissive, by the end it actually plays up into THE BIG REVEALS of just how abused she's been into a hopeless acceptance...like y'know actual abuse victims.

Akio Ohtori: Grade A Antagonist, probably the most insidious I've seen a villain in a while, Akio is notable for, back in 1997, being perhaps the big go-to of actual deconstructing the facade of a whole shoujo genre's "hots for a teacher/sexy man putting the moves" and highlighting how actually exploitative and abusive a person like that really is. Being Himemiya's brother (somewhat justified in the manga by both being a weird Sailor Moon-esque reincarnation of gods/godesses of Dios), despite how much of his motives are runing the background and how the entire back story is  uh...brought up in like barely in the last arc with little lead up (some scenes feel like they'd be a full melodrama season and they just have like 1 scene in the final arc episodes) he manages to one-up Touga (in the plot as well) by instead of "just" objectifying girls, not-just-flat out saying Utena looks best as a princess, but y'know the fact that he is implicitly yet constantly exploiting and victim-blaming Anthy for her own suffering for "the power of Dios/Revolution of the world" turns it on its head

I've spent all this time on characters but in truth a lot of the meat of the show relies again on the Council Members fleshing out the issues of system leading to outright divorcing "being a Prince" (heroic altruistic virtues) and "being a man" (considering like all but maybe the comedic relief have some deliberately misogynistic behavior) and beyond just the plot (or rather character) synopsis, the talent goes far more in how it's framed, the symbolic/allegorical shots, the repetition adding a good episode formula flow to character showcases, probably the most "tasteful" allusion to uh...*ahem* sexual abuse that so many other edgier/prentious shows fumble. Both in how intimidating yet understated it's foreshadowing is until they hard-reveal it despite never explicitly naming it even tho it sends Nanami into hysterics

Really it's both a massive blessing and reason for it's cult beloved status for it's aesthetics but also it's burden, for being a full 39 episodic season by season character development study of everyone BUT the main trio except for snippets and the very end that makes it greatly appreciable as a legitimate work of art.

What I wanted more to say however (long overdue) is that a large part of following is, visibly at least, western feminist critiques and yes while it almost seems like Utena fits the "deconstructing patriarchy" story like a glove...it's weird how almost none of them actually can give a good historical account of actual Japanese female/gender/sexuality norms nor Anime contemporaries actually were. Like Tenchi Muyo and Berserk came out the same year (Cardcaptor Sakura the next) and despite how you can "feel" the influence in lots of modern shows like SHAFT's signature visual imagery cuts or many WESETERN shows having straight scene references to Utena....almost no one has a similar feel to Utena until like Princess Tutu comes out.

Really tho probably should've watched Utena and then Tutu because while it's undeniable that Utena is a major pillar of shoujo re-codification - what with everyone before Utena was saying they thought it'd be like a Rose of Versaille or Lady Knight rip-off...whose laughing now? - it's almost like there's a missing link between it and it's major western fanbase (probably with what few anime did get overseas, this one probably rose to the top), or how very noticeable there IS an influence on it's genre in Japan

Almost none of the big analyst fans actually know A) it's not "a deconstruction of Magical Girls" since despite Ikuhara working on Sailor Moon just before this, almost none of the tropes line up and instead more with Shoujo genre as a whole. or  one of the major inspirations was Takarazuka theater.

And this is not to dismiss how inspirational it is to it's western fandom, but while I am notably cynical towards placing things on pedestals, there's probably something about cultivating the whole pop-culture feminist reading commune with people making weird time-loop theories while kinda most of it is just filling in a mad-lib mostly thanks to Ikuhara just keeping things on the vague and letting the audience take away their own perspective.

Again, most of the show is completely sub-textual or visually/symbolically depicted and never stated nor properly defines it's weird key words (End of the World, Revolutionize the World, Power of Dios, Rose Bride, all things said constantly but never really said what they "mean". But that's also perhaps its charm, in it's allegory and very Death of the Author approach, it has definitely allowed it's fan theorizing and appreciation to flourish so there's something there for that.

Ultimately I'd say Utena the TV series is great more so for what it isn't...or rather I should say it's great for not just subverting Shoujo tropes and archetypes for the Japanese audience but also that despite dealing with some very serious and heavy subjects in obtuse and perhaps understated ways for the time, people have allowed it to be put on it's pedestal because they can easily fit it in themselves.

Honestly though, not that a more "straight forward" approach wouldn't detract from Utena but I will say that the movie, Adolescence of Utena, is very much the best encapsulation of what Utena strives to be (for another big blog post) and while the TV series has plenty of time and flexes it's directorial muscles with budget constraints and season pacing UNrestrained, the movie will trim a lot of the fat