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sortasirius · 3 years

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What the Fuck Happened to the SPN Finale?

Okay so here it is, my Charlie Kelly style manifesto.

Before I get into it, I recognize that I will look like this to many of you, and that’s okay, I understand:

Secondly, your personal Takes about the writers don’t interest me, I don’t need to hear them. This, as I’ll explain, is going to remain a writer positive blog, and that’s the end of it.

Third, and most importantly: some of what I’m going to talk about is fact, and some is highly educated speculation. I will notate what is speculation, just so there’s no confusion or hot takes in my inbox that I’m a conspiracy theorist or stirring shit up for no reason.

A list of what I’ll be discussing

The episode in regards to the rest of the season

The episode issues: length, editing

Scene placement and speculation of scenes cut

The scrubbing of Jack, Cas, Eileen

Network involvement and general timeline of when things were cut

Misha: theories on where he was, official company line, why we can’t expect to hear anything directly

The silence of the cast post episode (in Misha’s case, mid episode) and what this might mean

Jensen speaking with Kripke about the ending: why it doesn’t mean what you might think (also why kripke remained positive on the ending)

Walker, and why this episode had a major shift

Why the network would do this or get involved

Why the writers of the show simply aren’t the bad guys here, and what I “want” out of this post, since I know it’ll get asked

This is very long and under a cut, but I hope you’ll give it a read.

The Episode In Regards to the Rest of the Season

So, I’ve discussed this already here, but it’s the most obvious thing to me, and that’s the way this episode simply doesn’t fit with the rest of the season.

These people in this room have, truly, been nothing but consistent when it comes to their arcs, especially this season, and the marked dropoff in quality for the finale episode is just too sus to discount to me. Dabb’s whole focus has been character-based. In his seasons, we’ve moved far away from MOTW and bro-codependency, the found family taking it’s place. Does it really sit right to anyone that that was all thrown away in literally the last episode of the entire show?

This is speculation on my part, but as a writer myself, there is no way I would be happy or willing to stamp my name on something that I didn’t think would, at the very least, wrap up the season+ character arcs that I and my team had been crafting.

And before anyone comes in here saying, “well GOT did that!” Bruh. The writing was on the wall for GOT long before the final episode. You could tell that the showrunners just wanted to be done (not only from the plot, but from the fact that they lobbied for a shorter season). Miss me with that, it doesn’t apply here. Andrew has, besides Singer and J2, been with the show longer than anyone. He cares, he is meticulous and detailed, and this ending feels worse than anything Bucklemming has ever written, let alone Dabb.

Additionally, I’ve seen a lot of people say that Dabb was never behind Destiel, that it was all Bobo and Meredith and no one else. That is reductive to the point of insult of the work Dabb has done to get this greenlit. This man did not write the s13 Dean grief arc to be slandered like this. That being said, YES, Bobo and Meredith were the leads on the DeanCas arc this season, but ANDREW IS THE SHOWRUNNER, TO GET EVEN THE CONFESSION APPROVED BY THE NETWORK HE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE THEIR BACKS. AND HE DID.

Finale Issues

So, now that we’ve gotten the fact that this episode doesn’t hit on any of the major themes the show was barrelling towards all season, let’s discuss the fact that the episode is just...weird.

Not only is it shorter than any other episode (I think with the intro and the credits/crew thing at the end, it was around 38 mins), but it was also...idk, 90% filler?

One of the lovely humans in the POLOL server did the legwork here, and broke it down:

This is weird, y’all. Most series finales are LONGER than normal (Lost, SOA, Longmire are the ones I can think of off the top of my head), and for the final episode to be this? I saw more than one person point out that we only really needed 19 episodes, what was the point of 20? AND THAT’S EXACTLY IT? WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THIS FINAL EPISODE IF THIS WAS ALL WE WERE SUPPOSED TO GET?

It simply doesn’t make any sense, the first half of the episode was rushed, a final monster hunt gone wrong, but in the second half? Nothing really happened? Sam lived his entire life and Dean just drove around. It doesn’t make sense to have all the emotional arcs left unaddressed in an episode that definitely needed some kind of spark.

Here’s the speculation I have: the episode seemingly went through a lot of changes between the initial inception of the final season and when we actually got it, but I think it would have been passable (as in, we wouldn’t be sitting here asking each other why each arc feels incomplete) until the editing room got ahold of it. The only think that makes this episode make sense is network fuckery. Truly, that is the only thing. It explains the weird, cuts, the rushed pacing of the first half followed by nothing in the second half, the double montages of “Wayward Son” back to back, and Dean just...driving around for the last half of the episode.

Scene Placement and Speculation of Scenes Cut

Before I get into this section, the info of the shots in the episode I have come from a source that @occamshipper got a week or so before the finale. She’s talked about this here.

So here’s what Min was given:

1-5: 1 INT MEN OF LETTERS – DEAN’S ROOM Dean is greeted by Miracle

6-10: 6 INT MEN OF LETTERS – HALLWAY/SAM’S ROOM Sam has his routine

D1 1 11-15: 15 EXT FARM HOUSE Establishing

N1 1/8 16-20: 19 Dad’s journal, marker, drawing of masked man in journal.

21-25: 23 INT IMPALA – PMP Driver picks the music

N2 1 3/8 1,2 26-30: 28pt2 INT BARN: A face from the past

28pt3 Sam and Dean say goodbye

28pt4 Shot early for technical reasons, presumably the overhead shot

N2 31-45: 41 INT MEN OF LETTERS – SAM’S ROOM Sam’s alarm goes off D4 1/8 1 46-60: 56 INT N7glasses for Sam, laptop.

So...it all fits right? It all tracks with the actual episode, where it lands, etc. The issue is between shots 29-40 which were apparently “too big to spoil.” Uh. Where are they? And where’s 28 pt4?

After Dean dies, the next scene is Sam burning him, then shot 31, the shot of his alarm going off.

So. Where are those 11ish shots?

PLUS we have the boards, which are scenes we KNOW were actually shot:

As well as scenes for 20 that were shot in 19.

It’s just...weird, it’s weird and again hits on the fact that the episode is so short and like 80% montage.

The Scrubbing of Jack, Cas, and Eileen

So now we have to reckon with the fact that Eileen was last mentioned by Sam after she got snapped by Chuck, Jack’s last mention is that he’s off being God somewhere, and Cas’ last mention is a ~knowing look~ between Dean and Bobby.

I’m sorry, make it make sense:

???????? That’s the end if it? They don’t need to be discussed after this??? It’s just simply not something a writer would do, they would not introduce these characters, these arcs, without thinking there’s going to be some kind of follow through here.

So not only were three major characters (including two leads and both of the original characters’ love interests) completely wiped from the finale episode, it was as though Sam and Dean never even needed them, which just...ain’t it.

So why Eileen and Jack too? Why not just take Cas out of it if they were afraid of the gay? Because, ultimately, the episode went back to Kripke’s original story: just the bros, they only need each other and no one else. They don’t want anyone else, they don’t need anyone else. Easier to go back to something they knew was successful than trust the writers and their audience and take a big leap.

Alex even said he shot for 20 with “some of the guys” here. What happened to that footage?

The complete 180 of it all still shocks me, I still cannot believe that we were essentially at the finish line, and the network just stopped short, and decided to go run another race, at the expense of the arc of this fifteen year legacy show.

Network Involvement and When Things Were Cut

Okay, now into the juicy stuff.

So I’ve pretty well established that network fuckery is clear, but how much did they get involved, what was the original intent?

Well again, we may never actually know what Andrew’s original script was, but I think, at the least, it would involve Dean speaking his truth to Cas and Sam living a life with Eileen.

Now, it seems today, that Misha said that Jimmy Novak was supposed to be in the finale in one iteration of the script, and while initially my brain was like “that truly makes no sense and he’s either straight up lying or telling a half truth,” I think what may be happening is Misha talking about as much as he can right now.

So Jimmy right. Weird as fuck. Why would he been in the Roadhouse and not Cas? My current thought (this is about as reachy as I’ll get) is that Jimmy had no lines, could he have been in the Roadhouse as a red herring, like it said “Jimmy” in the script but it was just Cas in human clothes, a way to get around the network saying Cas couldn’t be in the final scene. Also, you’ll notice that Misha didn’t say that Cas wasn’t supposed to be in the ep at all, just Jimmy in the last scene.

All this to say, there have clearly been multiple versions of the script, getting lighter and lighter with Cas and Eileen as the network pulled further and further back. Remember, Dabb has to get things approved before they get shot, and if the network kept asking and asking and asking to cut Cas and Eileen, he had to find a way to work around it. Granted, I still think that if we had been able to get a Dabb script that wasn’t torn to shreds in editing, it wouldn’t be so bad. It may not be what a lot of us wanted (Dean speaking his truth to Cas and a reciprocation), but doing everything he could to give it to us in subtext or visual clues.

Plus, in all honesty, my man can’t keep his story straight anyway. He said twice in his panel that the Empty and offscreen Heaven ending weren’t his original ending either.

In addition, remember that Jensen did ADR post episode 18, AND said in a meet and greet last weekend that Dean’s reaction to Cas’ confession was “cut down.” (Source here). Many of us clowns got excited when we first heard about ADR, because we thought it would be upping the ante on Dean’s reaction, but I remember being a little sus when it was just crying. My speculation on that is that they cut out Dean actually SAYING something, @winchestersingerautorepair spoke about that here.

The biggest sins were, in my opinion, committed during editing, where the network got too gun shy and sliced the episode until it was nothing but a heartless bro-fest of a finale, not mentioning anything about the other major characters that we all love, and letting the boys just suffer in separation until Sam died and finally joined Dean in Heaven. The editing came by cutting all the major emotional beats between anyone other than Dean and Sam, leaving the skeleton of the story intact, just shorter and less...poignant than it was ever supposed to be.

Misha

We know Misha was in Vancouver, we know he quarantined, but we also know he wasn’t in the final scene, when he spoke about being in the last moment of the show months ago. We were not crazy, he was there, he quarantined, and, in all likelihood (speculation but fitting with the timeline), he actually may have shot something (not much, but something).

I have sources here, here, here, and here showing where Misha was at that time.

Remember, the man was completely open about coming back until they finished shooting (look at this thread). The switch happened, just like everything else, halfway through them shooting.

Please also remember Jake Abel posting his “Where’s Misha” video here. Jake isn’t malicious, he isn’t being nasty here. Misha was there, and everyone that’s trying to convince people he’s wasn’t just...isn’t telling the truth about it.

This is one of the things that makes me really mad, because they’re literally attempting to gaslight people into thinking, “oh we were totally wrong he was never supposed to be there” WHEN HE WAS THERE, WE KNOW HE WAS THERE.

So we’ve already heard from several people (Meghan Fitzmartin, Jay, a PA on the set of 19 (WHO WAS NOT WORKING FOR 20), Misha himself) that this was all down to Covid restrictions. Ultimately, as this post says, we’ve heard FIVE versions of where Misha was. None of it makes sense, but the Covid protocol seems to be the company line that others are repeating.

You may ask: why? Why lie to all of us when we have questions? Why, in Jay’s case, say that we’re all spreading false lies to stir up trouble, when we just have questions and things that do not make sense. Simply? Warner Brothers is absolutely massive. These people have their careers to protect and are likely all under NDAs. They want to work for WB again and don’t want to burn bridges, including Misha. It sucks, but that’s why it’s unlikely that we’ll hear someone come out and say, “yeah we’re lying to you.”

Silence of the Cast Post Episode

So this is...probably the worst part of all this, at least in my opinion.

The guys had all been pretty excited about the end of the show (especially Jared, but Jensen’s panel last week was Jensen as happy and jokey and positive as I’ve ever seen him. He was so excited about episode 18, about what it meant for Dean and for Cas, and I just cannot buy that he would have been that excited unless he thought there was something more in the episode.

Misha live-tweeted the episode, and was watching it with his kids. It’s well known that Misha and the kids don’t watch the show because it’s too scary, and let’s ask ourselves, why would he have them watch an episode that he’s barely even mentioned in?

He also stopped live-tweeting at a very specific point in the episode (Dean’s death) and has not mentioned Supernatural since then.

None of them, not Jared, Jensen, Misha, or even Alex, said anything about the episode for nearly 36 hours, when Jensen posted a salty photo on instagram. It’s just...not what you’d expect for the end of a 15 year show, when the cast and crew are so close to the fans, so close to each other.

My theory? They didn’t know. They thought Misha was, at least, going to be in the episode in some way, and when he wasn’t, they decided not to say anything.

You really think that Jensen “Heller” Ackles would have been so excited about the end of the show last week if he thought Cas wasn’t going to be in it at all? Nah son, doesn’t make any sense.

Even today, in Jared and Misha’s panels, they seemed sad and...more than a little careful, both saying that there were things they couldn’t say, both talking around things that we all have questions on.

Jensen Speaking with Kripke

So this is where a lot of people are getting fodder to take shots at the writers, saying that Jensen hated it from the beginning, but I don’t think so. I actually think I know what Jensen went to him about, and it wasn’t the lack of Cas or the weird pacing or the montages (which I don’t think were there when Jensen got the script); I think it was the manner of Dean’s death.

I know a lot of people were upset about that, upset with how...normal it was, coming off an episode where they literally beat God. I actually didn’t mind it, I thought it was an interesting thematic take to be like: you can be a hero all your life, but sometimes shit happens, and you just die.

But imagine how hard that was for Jensen to read. He would run to Kripke for that, because for him, Dean dying by being impaled by a piece of rebar had to be tough to swallow.

So, why didn’t Kripke say that? Why didn’t he say, “oh well he had a problem with Dean’s death, none of that other stuff was in the script.”

Guys. Why would he get involved? He’s not going to burn bridges any more than anyone else is. He said the ending was good because it’s the easy thing to do, it’s simple, will cause him no problems in his career, and he can just ignore the people trying to engage with him on it.

Walker

Something else to talk about is the major shift this episode had from the rest of the season: the shift from Dean to Sam. I am NOT saying that Sam isn’t important, he definitely, absolutely is, but it was DEAN who really needed to wrap up his arc, Sam just needed to move on, get married to Eileen, become the leader he was always meant to. So what changed? What was with the shirtless scene, the Austin number and random case there, most of the episode being heavily Sam focused, going through his entire life in a montage?

Anyone else notice the 375 Walker promos, or Jared’s little spiel about Walker and how he hoped SPN fans would “come along for the ride.”

It’s...kinda obvious? CW wanted to appeal to who they think the key demographic of SPN and Walker is: rural areas in the South. It would explain a lot, why so much editing, why so Sam focused, the Austin number, the number of Walker promos, all of it.

I’m not saying this is fact, I don’t know that it is, but it is a little suspicious that even in Jared’s panel today, he talked A LOT about Walker and how he hopes SPN fans will watch it.

Why Would the Network Get Involved?

Simply put: $$$

If they think Walker can be the new SPN, and that those crazy SPN fans liked it originally, it’s a lot safer to go with the “original intent” of the show than do something risky (like making one of your two original leads queer).

And? They don’t care. They don’t care that the episode didn’t make sense, they don’t care that all the emotional arcs were left hanging, they don’t care by (potentially) smashing together two of Dean’s monologues (one to Sam, one to Cas) that it came of as...gross. ( @curioussubjects wrote a beautiful post showing how part of that death speech was likely meant for Dean here). They don’t care, they never have, they just want to make their money and move on from the too-loud fandom that fought for representation too hard for too long.

It can’t help but feel insidious, which, honestly, it might be, but it really all comes down to the next cash cow, which, they think, is Walker, even at the cost of the fifteen year legacy show.

The Writers and What I Want

So here it is, all this weird, sus shit laid out on the line. And you know what? To me, there is no way to blame the writers, because they didn’t want this.

I don’t think Dabb and Bobo would have gone ahead with the confession in 18 without thinking that there would be some closure to that arc, they wouldn’t have done that not only to the fans, but for the sake of their own story as well: no writer wants to start something that they can’t finish. (And this applies to both Cas and Eileen).

Here’s a basic rundown of what I think happened: they had a clear arc from 18-20, ending in reciprocation at some level from Dean, Sam marrying Eileen, Hunter Sam as the new Bobby, Dean in heaven with Cas and big roadhouse reunion at the end. Covid prevented a good amount of that. Network had to stare at big gay 18 for six months, got cold feet. Thought about Walker, target audience and alienation of the rural areas if it went full gay. Misha quarantined and likely shot something (not much), he was then cut by execs and went home. They likely added in lines referencing Eileen and Cas to make it clear but more subtextual. They wrap, editing gets it and hacks it to pieces, so we get a shorter episode that’s mostly montages and jarringly bro-centric with nothing else. Arcs are left hanging. Dabb gets episode but it’s too late, there’s nothing he can do. Actors aren’t told so they can continue to do positive PR for the ending, they all found out at the same time we did: hence almost complete silence about the finale.

And you know what? They warned us. I talked about it here, but they’ve been telling us all season that Chuck wasn’t the writer, he’s the network. I don’t think, still, that they thought it would be cut up like this, into something so unsalvageable that it’s been panned by almost everyone, even people who didn’t care much about Dean and Cas.

Finally, a masterpiece can be ruined by editing, and while I’m not sure even the script they ended up shooting on was a masterpiece (due to the network meddling already), but to me it’s blatantly obvious that it’s no one but the network that caused this, that took away closure for Dean, Cas, and even Sam.

So what do I want? Nothing really, there’s nothing we can do, but I wrote this mostly to show people that the writers are not your enemy. In fact, to the people trashing them? You’re doing exactly what the CW wants you to: blame the obvious targets, blame Misha, blame Jensen and Jared, blame Dabb. Scream and yell at them on Twitter and about how the show is ruined because of them. The network keeps their engagement levels high, they don’t get as targeted for their behavior, and just keep moving along.

Just, please, think about who did this, Mourn the show, be angry, but not at the people who fought tooth and nail for this for literal years, not the people who wanted it more than we did, not the people who cannot say anything because of their careers and the NDAs they’re bound by.

Someone is going to spill eventually, but until then, we just have to wait, and continue to be loud.

#my writing #my meta #supernatural #spn #spn finale trash fire #MY MANIFESTO IS DONE

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antiloreolympus · 3 years

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10 Anti LO Asks

1. im sorry i just noticed the "her butt looks like an upside down heart" panel (which is already gross lmao i hate him) literally just looks like a ball sack 💀 like what is this??? kids read this??

2. FHGSKDFDS i love the ppl who are like 'well the art sucks anyway that could explain why the pay is so bad' like?? 😭

3. Smythe's treatment of the Minthe story is so bizarre. Minthe is a low-ranking nymph, Persephone is among the most important gods, a child of Zeus. The idea that Minthe is a genuine threat to someone like Persephone and cheering for her demise is so odd, it's like claiming that mortal Semele could ever have the upper hand in a rivalry with Hera, the queen of gods. The power imbalance is insane and it's weird that this is hailed as a yass queen moment for her, like Minthe ever stood a chance

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From OP: To clarify, the assistant would have to do 20 panels for a week (from what was stated). However, it definitely has to be done before a week since it has to be ready by Sunday. With the pay of $450 USD total, that’s $22.50 per panel. I think the assistant would spend 30 - 45 min per panel if RS is hiring someone who can do it fast.

I’m iffy on the payment but I still need to clarify because I feel some of these asks have some misleading information or misinterpreted the post in this next section.

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4. im sorry but rachel going "i work 150 hours a week on LO!" is such bullshit lmao. girl if youre spending that much time on it why does it look that bad then? also if it takes that much work then the ppl should be paid MORE for it, not under min wage like she's trying 💀 also thats basically admitting shes fine with subpar and even bad work when its like ... girl just take a few months off, the terminally online persona aint working.

5. rachel doubling down saying each LO ep is 60 panels and how she spends 150+ hrs on it a week is so like ... ma'am you know that makes you look worse, right?? especially bc we know damn well shes not doing all this extra stuff she claims (lettering, backgrounds, shading, inking, panelling, etc) so like??? is she just admitting she's bad at time management??? bc if she actually (or rlly her team) spend that much time a week on an ep and it still looks like That after all of it... 🤡

6. you know what the nastiest part is about this pay discourse? rachel is purposely ONLY posting this on her social media instead of through actual artist scouting, because she knows theyd laugh at how much work shes demanding for such little pay, but her fans would do anything to "be friends" with her, so they wont question her or her actions. this is so shady of her to do.

7. rachel should prove the haters wrong and actually do the art instead of having five other people who get no character sheets and only sketches to work off of and paying damn near nothing for it, that'll show em.

8. tbh the most insidious part about rachel scamming her fans out of work is that we know not only will they not get a cent out of the FP money, but eventually she'll put them in a print book, meaning she'll be making even MORE money off their work, while they don't get a cent from it. more so, unlike other comics with actual backgrounds, VFX, lettering, etc, lineart and flats are the ONLY thing that goes into LO, so they are quite literally doing all her work. i'm disappointed by unsurprised.

From OP: You know, that’s actually a really good point. Especially if they aren’t going to be a long term artist.

9. the amount of LO stans defending how badly rachel is paying and then going "id work for free just to brag i worked with her!" is so??? bad??? just because you like LO does not mean you should let her pay so low or even get free work out of you, bc at the end of the day SHE is getting all the fp money, the merch sales, and eventually she'll put that underpriced work in a book and make even more money off of it while you get nothing out of it. shes banking off "for exposure" instead of actual pay.

10. rachel deleting her tweet showing shes shit at paying for labor only she benefits from and being roasted in the QRTS about it ... name a more iconic duo than her and her easily bruised ego, ill wait.

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#anti lo #anti lore olympus #lore olympus critical #lo critical

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argumentl · 3 years

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The Freedom of Expression Ep 42 - Filling up at old style sweet shop 'Kamikawaguchiya'.

Part 1 (Part 2 here)

00:14 K: This is Dir en grey's Kaoru with this week's episode of The Freedom of Expression. Today is a little different from the usual white background.

J: Its totally different.

T: Its good isn't it? It feels nice.

J: It does.

K: Yeah, Joe san, Tasai san, Im forgetting the order of things, haha. Uh, where is this?

J: So this is in the neighborhood Zōshigaya, and this place is called Kishibojin. I think most Kantō people know of this place. Its really near Ikebukuro. By train its either the Toden-Arakawa line, or the Fukutoshin line, and about 3 mins walk from Zōshigaya station. Kaoru, is this your first time here?

K: Yes.

T: What do you think of the atmosphere here?

K: Well, I like temples, so...

J: Oh, you like temples?

T: (*speaking off mic*)

J: Yeh, so Ikebukuro Sunshine City is quite close to here..

K: Is it that close?

J: Yeh, its close. You could walk it if you tried. Its not that far. But this area has had temples and shrines on it since long ago.

1:33 J: So, inside here is Japan's oldest sweet shop.

K: The oldest?

J: Yes.

K: Ah, we talked about this before.

J: Yes, thats right. Shall we go inside? You know, I've not eaten all day so that I will have room for sweets.

K: Really??

1:56 J: Here we are. The name of the shop is 'Kamikawaguchiya'.

T: Established in 1781?

J: Really. How many years is that? I can't work it out immediately...200....240 years ago?

T: Yeh.

2:16 J,T: Hello, sorry to disturb you.

J: This shop was founded in 1781? What generation are you?

Old lady: 13th generation.

J: 13th??

T: 1781 was in the..

Old lady: Edo era.

J: The Edo era?? Well, this place is very unique, and Im already feeling hungry. Do you remember this? *picks something up* Its plum jam. I used to put this on soft rice crackers.

K: Oh yeah!

J: We used to eat this, right? Plum jam. Its so nostalgic, I really wanna eat this. What else..

T: Should we just choose one each?

J: Once each?

T: To start with.

J: Oh, to start with, yeh. Kaoru, what about you?

3:11 K: This has a lot in..

J: Oh, it does.

K: So, I might be full after just this.

J: Haha, yeh. You chose quickly.

T: Oh this is nostalgic.

J: So nostalgic!

Old lady: Please put them in a basket.

J: Ah, ok, we'll put them in this.

T: These are 'lottery sweets'.

J: Excuse me, do you have those rice crackers to put plum jam on? Oh, these! Its this!

Old lady: Thats a pack of them. The individual ones are down here.

J: Oh, right.

K: This is really good. (*looking at the sweets box lid *)

J: Haha, yeh.

K: I feel like Im back in my hometown.

3:58 T: Ok, im gonna pull out one of these sweets.

J: So nostalgic!

T: Look, (*points to Ginko leaf*) the Ginko tree is shedding here.

J: Remember this yogurt type thing?

K: Oh yeh yeh! I've eaten that.

J: I'll have this too.

K: Hang on, lets eat the first ones before that.

J: Right, the first ones.

K: Ok, money...

J: Our staff will pay.

K: Ok, we'll have these, and one of those please.

T: Yeh, one of the lottery sweets.

Old lady: Please pull one out.

T: This is nostalgic too!

J: Its a type of gambling.

T: Yeh, this is the moment you turned from a child to an adult. Ahhh, its small!

J: Ah, it is small.

T: Im in shock. Thank you, I'll eat it later.

K: So, this and this aswell please.

Old lady: Ok, pass it over, I'll work it out.

J: Please do.

Old lady: ¥30, ¥50....ok, thats ¥119.

J: ¥119.

T: I'll get this.

J: This is on Tokyo Sports? haha.

K: Thanks for buying us this!

J: So cool! haha.

Old lady: ¥81 change.

T: Thank you.

Old lady: Thank you very much.

J: She's so thankful just for ¥120.

T: Yeh, it makes me happy.

J: Ok, lets try these. Look at this..

T: That looks good.

J:(*opening packet, Tasai holds the the rice crackers for him while he squeezes the jam on*) Oh, im sorry, can you help me. I feel like the colour is different.

Old lady: Ah, thats because the maker is different.

J: Oh?

Old lady: The old maker closed down three years old.

J: Oh really?!

K: Are you using all of it.

J: Of course!

Old lady: The newcomers can't make it the same. ???*1 This one tastes okay.

J: Its ok?

Old lady: ???

J: Ok, I'll try it. Ah, yeh, its ok.

T, K: Hahaha.

J: Its just like you said, its ok. Ah, but its nostalgic! It tastes like old times.

K: *To Tasai* You're eating already?

J: Eat while the camera is on you!

T: Haha, it tastes good.

J: Please, we're on location!

T: I can't take it out of my mouth now.

J: We didn't come here to eat only.

6:29 J: Ok, Kaoru, you next.

K: *opening packet* Oh, it has a tooth pick.

J: So it does.

Old lady: Would you like this?

T: Oh, no Im ok, thank you.

K: *eats sweet* Mm, yeh this is how it tasted.

T: Haha

J: I've actually never tried that before.

6:55 J: What is it? Is it a hard sweet?

T: Isn't it gum?

Old lady: I think its gum.

K: It says its candy.

J:Oh, candy?

Old lady: Like a hard type candy.

J: It might be like a gum style gummi sweet. We had gummis in elementary school.

7:12 J: Ok, me next. What should I go for? Oh, this type of thing..

K: Ahh.

J: You suck it. This is nothing but food colouring.

T: Oh, look at this.

J: Ah, this. Oh, also this. *Opening box* This, this, this!

K: Ah, plum.

J: Plum! This is so sour! I might go with this. But Kaoru, you choose yours first. This is exciting.

7:44 J: So this is our second round.

T: Yeh.

J: Everyone's like, I don't care, just choose, haha.

K: I've had a sweet one, so I feel like getting a sour one this time. Maybe I'll go with this.

J: Oh, you're picking that one? Yeh, thats a good one.

T: Yoguru

J: Yeh, its Yoguru. Thats so nostalgic too. You eat it with a spoon, right?

Old lady: The spoons are in there.

8:23 J: This too, right? Kinako sticks.

*Old lady and Tasai talking in the background*

J: I think I'll go with this. The sour plum. I'll take the plum..

T: And I'll go with this old fave..*holds up bag of snacks*

J: Ah, that!

Old lady: Oh, thats delicious, isn't it.

T: Yep.

Old lady: This one (Yoguru) has a lottery. Ok, its the same as last time, ¥119 yen please.

J: ¥119? Thats great.

T: Thank you

J: *getting money out*. No, no, this feels great, haha. Paying for you two adults like this.

9:05 J: Oh, the smell of this.

K: *smells the plum* Ahh

J: The smell makes your mouth water, right?

K: Its sour! You've gone for another sour one.

J: *smells the plum* So sour!

Old lady: You drink it with the straw.

J: Oh, were you supposed to drink it??

K: You should have opened that first *points to straw*

J: I've done it in the wrong order again, I just can't get it right.

K: While you're doing that, I'll eat mine.

9:28 K: I didn't win.

J: Oh, yeh! That comes with a lottery.

Old lady: Someone won with that before and just threw it in the bin.

K: Ehh? What a waste.

Old lady: Customers just eat them and throw them away.

K: *eats* Ahh, this is nostalgic.

J: What exactly are the ingredients in this? haha. Its not yogurt, is it? At least.

K: Its best not to think about it.

J: Haha

10:06 J: *Drinking plum juice* Ah, it sour!

K: Haha.

J: Did I really drink this as a kid?? I cannot drink all of this.

K: Does it irritate your throat?

J: Mm..*drinks* Agh, sour! This makes my face frown!

T: ???*2

J: Honestly, I've got tears in my eyes! Do I have to drink all of it?

K: Yeh, you have to.

J: Really?

10:34 J: Ok, watch this. *drinks*

K: Ahh, the straw is little..

J: Agh, so soouuuuur. Ah, its sour. But its cause its vinegar, right?

K: Its good for your health.

J: Yeah. No mistake.

K: It has artificial colours in it though.

J: It does, yeh. I'll eat the plum just as it is. *eats plum* Ah, yeh, i remember this taste. *To Tasai* You want this one? I can't eat two.

T: I've still got this sweet in my mouth from before. I've totally messed up this job.

K: Hahaha

T: Its still in my mouth.

J: And you're holding everyone's snacks. You look like the sweet shop guy /駄菓子おじさん

T: Haha, Kaoru, do you want the plum?

K: Nah, im ok.

T: Haha, you're ok?

K: It looks difficult to eat.

J: It is difficult to eat, for sure.

11:35 J: Ok, should we go for a third round?

K: Yes. I havn't brought money, Toru can pay.

J: Thank you

11:50 K:*picks up snack* A long time ago, was it my previous band? We used to eat these in the all night studio.

J: Haha, these?

T: A nostalgic taste.

K: Yeh, we had no money. We used to eat stuff like this.

J: ???*3, its big right?

K: Yeh, I would have it if I got tired and hungry, and wanted a sweet snack.

12:19 T: Is this a stick lottery?

Old lady: If the end is red, you win.

T: Should the three of us play?

K: Yeah.

Old lady: How many do you want?

K: Three.

Old lady: Just three? ¥33yen please. *Takabayashi pays*.

T: Ok, lets try these lucky sticks.

J, T, K: *eat snack* Ahh

J: Oh, look! I won!

T: Thats a success.

J: I thought the plum food colouring had just gone on it.

K: Haha, no.

13:02 J: *getting another stick* What happens if I win again?

Old lady: You just carry on, no matter how many you win.

J: Ok, I'll try this one. *eats* Ahh, I didn't win.

13:24 K: *opens packet, eats* Ah, there's no mistaking that taste.

T, J: Hahah

T: Can I try? *takes a snack from bag, so does Joe* No mistaking?

K: Its kinda sweet.

T: Ah, tastes great!

K: This is so good.

T: It is.

13:40 J: What is this thing again?

K: This? If you look closely, they are different.

J: Oh, I used to get this one, Mochitarō.

T: It says 'sauce flavour'.

K: I used to get this one.

J: I got Mochitarō.

Old lady: Mochitarō is the strong flavour, the other one is sauce flavour.

K: I might go with this.

14:23 J: This is fun.

K: Oh, its chocolate barley.

J: Chocolate barley? Its hidden there.

K: And these. *points to snacks in basket*. Um, near my parent's home, they would come and shoot these out. It was on the back of a truck.. (*image here*)

Old lady: Yes, thats right.

K: And you would take your rice, and there was this handle that they turned, and made it into this snack. If you helped out with turning the handle, they would give you it for free. And at the end, they would shoot it out.

Old lady: ???*4

K: Yeh yeh yeh.

J: Really?

K: You could make it with macaroni too.

Old lady: Its also nice as popcorn.

Click for Part 2

#dir en grey #the freedom of expression #tfoe #��#kaoru

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jess-rewatches-prodigalson · 3 years

Text

Bad Manners (S2, E5)

My time-stamped thoughts for this episode. As always I reference Malcolm’s mental health. A lot. So if that’s going to be a trigger for you, don’t keep reading.

SPOILERS AHEAD:

0:35 - Martin totally thought John Watkins abducted and killed Ainsley. Mark my words.

0:44 - Holy. Shit. Ainsley is FIVE years old (or younger) here right? A five year old with that much determination?!?! She literally stayed silent in that clock for probably hours......and no one was concerned about this kid when Martin was arrested because...?

1:09 - Anyone else impressed with Malcolm’s aim here? Just me?

1:20 - Gil and Malcolm talking about sleep and murder is so freaking sweet. <3 Honestly, they’re acting like friends instead of co-workers and it warms my cold dead heart.

1:29 - Does Gil become a grumpy old man when he doesn’t get 8 hours sleep? I really want to know now.

1:39 - OMG. Gil pointing at Ainsley here is hilarious. He’s totally acting like some weird mix of a stern pissed off high-school teacher, and a step-dad trying to discipline an unruly teen. hahaha AND MALCOLM’S FACE. Look how done Malcolm is. He looks so so tired, sad, and exasperated.

1:44 - Wow. Girl power. Ainsley has those camera guys bending to her will. I honestly would’ve thought they would just read the situation and turn the camera off themselves.

1:47 - “It’s not a game.” Yikes. I have thoughts about this:

Malcolm is right - it’s not a game.

Malcolm is a bit of a hypocrite for saying that to Ainsley. Although, to his credit even when Malcolm is excited/inappropriately happy about murder it’s always pretty clear that he thinks murder is wrong, and that he has sympathy for the victims and their families.

Ainsley does not have that same sympathy for the victims. That much is clear later in this episode.

Pretty sure the writers are trying to turn Ainsley into a serial killer this season.

2:13 - “You know I like to share these things with my friends.” .....does this mean Malcolm thinks Dani and JT are his friends now? Last I checked (Ep 1x05) Malcolm didn’t have friends. This absolutely melts my heart. <3 I’m honestly so happy that Malcolm considers someone other than Gil to be his friend.

2:18 - “We lost Dani to vice.” .....What is vice? AND WHAT IS THE REAL LIFE REASON THAT DANI WASN’T IN THIS EPISODE?!?

2:19 - Edrisa has a medical degree right? She has to know how dangerous consuming that much caffeine is right? Plus aren’t energy drinks super dangerous if you drink a lot of them (or maybe that’s just what adults in my neighbourhood told kids)?

2:30 - Edrisa SHINES in this episode. She’s so funny and awkward and I just love her.

2:36 - hahaha Gil has adopted the whole team. Look at him throwing the “Dad warning stare” at Edrisa.

3:31 - Why does Edrisa start bouncing around looking upset when Malcolm says, “rejection is a powerful motivator”?!?! Has she recently been broken up with or something? Is this a reference to how she has a crush on Malcolm (who doesn’t reciprocate)? I WANT MORE INFORMATION.

3:47 - TWIZZLERS!!! <3 Damn I love how this tiny detail about Malcolm’s character keeps coming up.

3:55 - Ainsley is on a rampage this episode. She’s so determined ...actually she’s acting a lot like Jessica (think girl in the box bracelet). However, unlike Jessica, Ainsley’s motives aren’t about justice or the safety of her loved ones. Ainsley is chasing personal gain (career) with a side of (a subconscious?) need to be exposed to murder and her father’s twisted world.

4:05 - This whole interaction between Ainsley and Malcolm is really interesting. Ainsley is knowingly manipulating Malcolm to get the answers she wants. We’ve seen her do it in 2x4 and 1x19. She knows her big brother would do anything for her. It makes sense, they’re five years apart and after the trauma they experienced as children Malcolm felt responsible to protect Ainsley. He never wants to disappoint Ainsley. Not a burden he should’ve had to deal with but I digress. PLUS Malcolm looks weary of Ainsley here. He knows what she’s doing. He’s scared that she’s turning to the dark side. But he still gives her the answers because if he doesn’t - that means something has changed. He thinks that would make Ainsley suspicious and then she might remember what happened to Endicott. He’s scared of and for Ainsley.

4:32 - OKAY. I’ll say it. The thing that annoys me the most about this episode is that it suggests that Ainsley was a debutant when in 1x6 AINSLEY TELLS MARTIN SHE WAS NEVER A DEBUTANT. She went to etiquette school - I guess that doesn’t strictly mean she also did debutant balls but it sort of suggests it in the context of this episode? Did she actually graduate from the etiquette school (there was bullying, maybe she was expelled/dropped out similar to Malcolm and Remington?)?

4:59 - “No stabbies” OMG. How is this show not classified as a comedy?!? Istg I laugh harder watching this ‘drama’ then I do watching most of the shows that call themselves ‘comedies’.

5:35 - It’s honestly kind of amazing that Ainsley and Malcolm are as ‘sane’ as they are. They were raised by a stubborn predatory psychopath and a stubborn rich meddling socialite. They had no chance of normalcy. Look at the amount of pleasure Martin is currently getting by throwing his son under the bus with regards to Jessica.

5:45 - “No actually, I cleaned it up.”.....does this have a dual meaning? Did Martin do something to make Malcolm dispose of the body? We already know that Martin has tried some sort of conditioning on Malcolm (remember ‘C’mon boy!’ from 1x14? The stabbing?). What if Martin said some sort of trigger word to control Malcolm and coerced Malcolm into getting rid of the body? What if this isn’t the first time?

6:05 - Ainsley is a sociopath. I’m calling it again. I called it when I first watched Q&A (1x7) because the way she treated Malcolm was more than just selfish/careless. It was cruel and she didn’t feel any remorse for literally broadcasting her brother’s private health details on television. That is messed up. I honestly won’t be shocked if the writers make Ainsley a full blown serial killers (although I’m not sure I want that because I don’t know how Malcolm would remain the main character if the story goes in that direction?).

6:12 - Poor Jessica. I honestly feel really bad for her. Sure, she’s a headstrong alcohol dependant crazy rich woman. She also has a good heart. She’s been dealt a pretty shitty hand when it comes to relationships (minus Gil but she ruined that because she’s a MORON) and now she’s terrified that her own children have become monsters and she blames herself. She definitely hasn’t been a perfect mother but I don’t think she’s to blame for Ainsley and Malcolm’s obsession with murder. If these kids had a different bio dad, they would probably just have a low-key drug problem or some other common rich kid baggage.

6:15 - “You know that’s not how cancer works right?” LOL. hahahaha

6:33 - Martin kind of has a point. There’s no rehab for murder. That’s why he’s been in jail for 20 years and he still wants to kill people. In my opinion, given what we’ve seen of Ainsley’s personality: as soon as she fully remembers that night - she’s gone. She’ll go full serial killer and Jessica and Malcolm will lose her forever.

6:40 - Jessica’s little jazz hand finger twinkle as she spins on her heel and leaves Martin kills me. It’s so extra. It’s so funny. And it’s sooo Jessica.

6:47 - Damn. Martin is pissed. I’m worried. That’s murder-level rage. If he escapes ISTG Martin is going to try and kill Gil. For so many reasons 1) because he hates Gil, 2) it’ll hurt Jessica, and 3) killing Gil will eliminate his ‘Dad’ competition.

6:54 - Edrisa on caffeine is AMAZING.

7:43 - I love Edrisa but her blatant, unreciprocated crush on Malcolm is honestly getting a little creepy.

7:52 - Gil spent all last season drinking out of a Yankee’s mug. Doesn’t that mean he’s a baseball fan? Why doesn’t he know this pitcher guy?

7:56 - hahahaa “Where is JT?” Because obviously JT is the team sports fan.

8:22 - Does Gil get nightmares about cases? He always seems really uncomfortable around the dead bodies.

8:45 - “And suddenly I’m wide awake” SERIOUSLY - is anyone else laughing every 60 seconds when they watch this show? Is my sense of humour just super dark and messed up?

8:54 - YES. The liquorice is BACK.

9:00 - I love Malcolm talking to JT about his obsession with candy. I love how Malcolm doesn’t even hesitate before giving JT an honest answer. Malcolm is acting like JT’s annoying little brother and I am here for it. One thing I did notice though - Malcolm specifically mentions candy+dopamine but doesn’t mention his depression/anxiety. Processed sugar can be a short-term (unhealthy) way to boost your mood. It’s why some people eat their feelings. I really want more backstory about Malcolm with the lollipops and licorice though.

9:19 - “But you didn’t do anything wrong.” Awwww Malcolm is so soft here. I love how much he genuinely cares about JT. <3 I love how JT is comfortable enough with Malcolm to give him an honest answer. <3 THEIR RELATIONSHIP HAS GONE THROUGH SUCH A GLOW UP. <3

9:32 - “Like toy dolls?” hahaha the way Malcolm perked up here. All I could think was “SQUIRREL!” hahaha.

9:41 - Malcolm is doing better than he has been the past few episodes? I mean he’s still suffering and he’s still in a terrible mental state. BUT he also seems happier? IDK maybe he’s just entered the more manic nervous energy stage of his emotions as opposed to the depressed and scared stage.

9:49 - “Deep childhood trauma”. So we’re looking for a debutant killer with childhood trauma who is chasing perfection? Debutant = rich lady culture. Like Ainsley. AND Ainsley went to the same etiquette school as the first two victims. The writer’s wanted us to assume the killer was Ainsley for the first 15 mins of this episode right? I’m not the only one seeing it?

10:04 - “My sister went there too.” ....why is there something super attractive about the way that line was delivered?

10:08 - I’m so done with this absolute tom foolery. Why does the team keep splitting up into two teams - where one team is JUST MALCOLM. The one who is unarmed and technically a civilian?!? This makes no logical sense to me (except for plot).

10:25 - Was Martin just about to say, “Just like the old days”?!? Is Martin referring to Endicott? OR is Martin referring to something that Malcolm’s repressed from his childhood?

10:30 - “I always root for the bad guys.” .....finally some truth from Martin.

10:40 - Soooooo I guess Mr. David doesn’t know? I promise you Mr. David has suspicions though. How could he not?!?!

11:24 - “It was brutal for Ains.” Look at how sad Malcolm is! Ugh. This hurts so much. He clearly loves his sister so so much and what she’s done is slowly killing him. I honestly think that part of the reason Malcolm helped Ainsley dispose of the body is that Malcolm doesn’t want to loose his sister. His sister is one of the only good things he’s always been able to count on. If word gets around that she’s a killer - Malcolm’s fragile world gets shattered a little more and I don’t know if Malcolm can recover mentally from that.

11:36 - “Teasing made her capable of...stuff.” C’MON. There’s no way Mr. David doesn’t know.

11:45 - Sooo is Martin saying that he recognized that Ainsley was a sociopath when she was a small child? Or did she just respond to his (or John Watkins’) grooming much ‘better’ than Malcolm?

11:56 - “Because she’s her mother’s” Okay. So I see the point. I can see that Ainsley is driven and stubborn like Jessica. BUT it feels like Martin is suggesting that Jessica is capable of murder? Which - I honestly don’t think she is. If anything - Malcolm is more like Jessica than Ainsley is.

11:59 - There was a look in Martin’s eyes when he was comparing Ainsley to Jessica that really freaked me out. I can’t figure out why. It makes me wonder if Martin still somehow views Jessica as ‘his possession’ (he refers to her as his wife all the time but I always assumed that was just to get a rise out of people?). Martin’s dream from 2x4 certainly suggests that he still wants Jessica romantically. I honestly think he’s going to try to escape and rekindle the romance with Jess; and it’s going to go very poorly when Jessica rejects him.

12:06 - Preach JT. Preach. This is creepy af.

13:00 - Ugh. Of course this creep has a history of indecent exposure. Now I understand why Gil and JT were hostile with the dude right from the start.

13:12 - Man. People will use the Bible to justify anything. No wonder people hate Christians ( I say this as a practicing Christian).

13:18 - JT is such a good dude. I’m so glad he’s a dad now. <3 He’s going to be such a good one. <3

13:26 - “One phone call and this place will be shut down.” OH SHIT. GIL THAT IS VICIOUS AND I RESPECT THE SHIT OUT OF IT.

13:35 - I soooo thought that dude was going to sprint out of that room.

14:30 - THIS. YES. This is why I have a problem with Ainsley’s enthusiasm for murder vs. Malcolm’s. Ainsley’s enthusiasm is centred on her nee to ‘get the story’. She’s obsessed with forwarding her career and as a result she’s treating crime like a competitive sport. Malcolm’s obsession (while it can border on creepy and reckless) is always centred on his need to find the killer and stop the murders. Malcolm is seeking justice and his heart is in the right place. I can’t say the same for Ainsley.

14:31 - “We’re brother and sister, everything is a competitive sport”.....whoever wrote this doesn’t have a sibling they experienced trauma with as a kid (and as a result was raised by a single parent). Seriously, my dad was abusive he lived with us until I was 10 and my brother was 7. Then my parents got divorced and my mom was a single parent (he didn’t pay child support or see his kids after the divorce). Are my brother and I competitive? Sure sometimes. But the way we grew up forced us to become partners. Annoyed with Mom? Let’s rant about it together. Is he struggling in math? I’ll tutor him in exchange for a Reese cup. Am I struggling at daycare because I have massive social anxiety? He’ll include me in whatever he’s doing so I’m not sitting alone in a corner. My point: siblings who experience trauma together don’t have the typical sibling relationships that are widely televised in North America. There’s a lot less fighting and competition and a lot more teaming up and commiserating.

14:39 - “It. It’s terrible.” - Notice how Ainsley didn’t actually say how it made her feel? She gave the standard “TV response” to a murder “a terrible/horrific/tragedy has occurred”. She doesn’t feel bad that these women are dead. She’s too consumed with getting a story to even stop and let herself feel anything. I’ve been saying it since last season - the way Ainsley shows no regard for other people and their feelings when she’s obsessed with her job is concerning.

14:50 - “Remind me of the people who cut us off after Dad’s arrest.” ...Are you kidding me?!? The whole fandom has been speculating about this since early season one and they’re not going to elaborate on that line?!? I’m going to need some more information about this and it better be in the upcoming episode where Jessica’s younger sister appears.

15:40 - She thinks of her students as family? Sooo what does she think of Ainsley? Wasn’t Ainsley bullied at this school? Did she do anything about it?

16:00 - this is like a ‘weekend/evening school’ right? Kids aren’t living in this house like a boarding school/summer camp?

16:01 - “Mr. Whitly” UGH. This bitch preaches etiquette and she doesn’t even have the common courtesy to call Malcolm by the name with which he introduced himself? Nah. I don’t like her.

16:13 - Ugh. Ainsley, seriously? Why don’t you help your brother solve the case. AND PREVENT MORE MURDERS. Why are you indirectly but purposely obstructing justice?

16:37 - “Of course.” Huh. Do you think Martin might try and manipulate Ainsley into killing Malcolm? Ainsley definitely capable of it. She doesn’t actually seem to care about Malcolm nearly as much as he cares about her.

17:17 - WTF?!? That’s creepy af. How did no one in this show think this assistant was a suspect? She has a super creepy doll that she ‘forgot’ on the floor the middle of a hallway. AND THE DOLL WAS STANDING UP. Not sitting, not dropped carelessly, STANDING UP.

17:30 - Look at Malcolm’s face. He’s definitely going to be having nightmares about that doll.

18:25 - OMG. This was amazing. JT just totally bulldozed his way into catching that dude. Very badass. Also kind of funny (maybe that’s just my messed up sense of humour again?).

18:44 - Ugh. This dude has a thing for dolls. I don’t want to kink shame but - no. no. There’s something really gross about that.

18:48 - I’ve seen some people say that this doll looks like Ainsley and how that’s supposed to be some sort of foreshadowing/symbolism. I kind of see it? I mean the hair colour is similar and if you pause the screen at 18:48 the angle kind of looks like Ainsley? It would be an interesting metaphor though - Ainsley played with dolls as a little girl. John Watkins gave her angel statues. She is Watkins’ and Martin’s doll’ in the sense that she was the object that murders manipulated/groomed.

18:53 - Then again, pause the screen here and there’s something about the facial structure that looks like Dani to me.

19:00 - Jessica lets Ainsley work in the murder office?!? No. No she doesn’t. This is garbage. Jessica would’ve forbade it. Jessica would’ve bordered up this room immediately after Watkins.

19:57 - Poor Jessica. She’s clearly terrified that she’s losing Ainsley and terrified of Ainsley. BUT Jess, sweetie, running to Europe won’t fix this.

20:16 - “She wanted the dolls to look like her students.” AND PEOPLE SEND THEIR CHILDREN TO HER?!? WTF?!? NO. NO. NO. NOT OKAY.

20:31 - HAHA look at Gil’s face when Trevor tells him he can make the ‘perfect woman’. Gil’s like WTF - can I arrest you for thinking you can fabricate a ‘perfect woman’?!!?

21:06 - Malcolm is having so much fun playing with Trevor’s doll head. Look at how excited he is. It’s kind of adorable but his manic energy is showing which is concerning.

21:10 - Why is Trevor giving his doll fancy 1940s(ish) names?

21:31 - Props to LDP. I honestly believed Gil was annoyed with Malcolm for barging in on the interrogation the first time I watched this.

21:42 - “They got a word for everything.” hahaha OMG. This is so reminiscent of a teenager explaining some new tech to their tech-illiterate parents.

22:00 - I can’t tell if Gil feels sorry for this creep or if he just thinks the dude is really gross. Probably a mixture.

23:00 - Oh we’re bringing up the chloroform again. At least Malcolm knows not listen to Martin about this nonsense.

23:25 - “It doesn’t feel fun.” - THIS. This is why I honestly don’t think Malcolm will ever become a serial killer. His guilt complex is just too big.

23:56 - Are. You. Kidding. Me? This is next level. Ainsley is so out of line here. AND SHE SHOWS NO REMORSE. SHE DOESN’T THINK SHE’S DONE ANYTHING WRONG. THIS GIRL HAS GONE DARK SIDE (she was already halfway there).

24:17 - I’m getting papa!Gil vibes when Gil is talking to Ainsley and I want more scenes of them interacting. Seriously, did Gil have a relationship with Ainsley when she was a kid? I MUST KNOW.

24:45 - Ainsley has no conscience. I honestly don’t think Ainsley has a conscience.

25:00 - “Who is that!?” Malcolm is totally acting like he’s Ainsley’s father-figure right now. I’m here for it.

25:22 - SORE LOSERS?!? I’m sorry. What? If you weren’t concerned about Ainsley you damn well should be now. That is seriously messed up. People are dead. This is not a game. Do you know who else thought murder was a game? Martin Whitly.

25:31 - Okay. Ainsley has a point. Malcolm lecturing anyone about being reckless is pretty hypocritical. But at least Malcolm cares about her.

25:54 - Heart. Shattered. Look at how terrified Jessica is. Look at how gentle and reassuring Gil is. UGh. WHY DID SHE BREAK UP WITH HIM??! I mean, I know why I just think she’s a moron for doing it.

26:00 - Poor Gil. He’s so confused and so concerned. The whole Whitly family is acting crazier then usual and he doesn’t know why.

26:11 - “Both you and Malcolm are at an 11 and I’ve never seen Ainsley like that.” FIND YOURSELF A MAN WHO CARES LIKE GIL AND NEVER LET HIM GO. <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 Seriously. The love and concern he shows for this family warms my cold dead heart.

26:16 - “Her father?!” Oh shit. Now Gil knows there’s something BIG happening. Jessica would never run to Martin unless she absolutely had to.

26:19 - annnnd Gil’s also being a prideful man who’s feeling are hurt. “You went to him?” He’s right to be though - the woman he loves went to a serial killer for advice before going to the guy who practically co-parented with her.

26:33 - “I’m here. Whatever you need. I’m here.” <3 <3 Gil is the definition of a good man. <3 I’m in love with it.

26:48 - “You were right on time for me.” ....*snort* subtle Gil (and in front of JT!!)

27:08 - Edrisa is hysterical on caffeine. hahaha. This whole scene is perfect.

27:20 - You know someone is acting manic when Malcolm Bright is concerned about their eccentric behaviour.

27:34 - Annnnnd Tom Payne was a split second from breaking character here. I don’t blame him. hahaha

28:05 - EDRISA flipping and dropping that pencil. HAHAHAHAHAHA

29:10 - “Absolutely not.” hahaha this is funny but also really sweet. Malcolm knows that Edrisa hopped up on caffeine isn’t safe to have near an active killer. Who knows what’ll happen. I wish he’d care that much about his own well being. Looks like calling for backup last episode was a one time thing.

30:37 - I’ll give the writers one thing - Miss Windsor makes a convincing murder suspect.

31:22 - GIL. STANDING. UP. FOR. JT. IS. EVERYTHING. Where is O’Malley’s back up? Oh yeah, they’re not brave enough to defend him.

32:00 - Huh. Bright texted for backup. This is growth. I’m proud of him.

32:15 - YES. This JT arc was handled right. Sure JT could’ve complained. It would’ve been episodes upon episodes of bureaucratic nightmares and injustice. This show isn’t about racism. They showed enough to portray that the system is broken and they had JT act like a responsible adult. It’s not fair that JT had to go through this or that he’ll likely experience something similar to it again. But the fact that JT is acting like a bigger person is perfect. JT will protect his family. Always. That includes Malcolm. So JT avoids putting through a formal complaint because he knows that will take time away from doing his job, from protecting others, from hanging out with his wife and kid. JT’s taking the higher road, it might not be gratifying or fair but I respect the hell out of him for taking it.

32:28 - Gil is so so proud of JT. Look at him. <3 <3

33:40 - Look, Miss Windsor is a bit of a stuck up bitch but she has a good heart. Look at the way she immediately tells Malcolm where Ainsley is when she realizes what’s happening.

34:14 - This confused me during the first watch - Ainsley obviously didn’t drink any tea - so why is she drugged? (obviously I know now).

34:17 - Big brother Malcolm frantically looking for Ainsley is so so sweet. <3

35:42 - The music, the dolls, and Miss Windsor’s speech here. There’s something about this part of the episode that is strangely reminiscent of 5x16 of Criminal Minds.

36:20 - ......does Miss Windsor have some sort of mental illness? She’s talking to herself and ranting erratically. Is this just emotional stress or something deeper?

37:00 - This is why Malcolm’s not a serial killer. Even now- looking at a killer - he’s trying to sympathize with her. He’s trying to understand why. He’s trying to calm her down, diffuse the threat, and get her mental help.

39:00 - Oh yeah. Ainsley was definitely going to kill without remorse. Again. I’ve seen some theories that Ainsley only ever tries to kill to protect Malcolm. I disagree. I think Ainsley’s trying to protect herself. Ainsley is pissed off that this girl tried to drug her and kill her because she thinks Ainsley is wicked. Ainsley was pissed at Endicott for whatever he did to Ainsley before Malcolm got there. I think Ainsley felt threatened and scared so she reacted. I don’t think this has anything to do with protecting Malcolm.

39:41 - Malcolm isn’t a killer. Look. He smells gas but he takes the time to carry an unconscious murderer (who literally just tried to kill his sister) out of the building.

40:00 - The drama. Holy hell. What a weird ending to this case.

40:48 - Who gave Ainsley a police jacket and let her keep it?

41:14 - She almost died and she’s still obsessing over ‘winning’. This is seriously unstable behaviour. Way more concerning than anything Malcolm’s done since 2x1.

41:45 - “My father was a serial killer also.” Anyone else super irritated by that phrasing?!? Just me?!? Something about the ‘also’ feels super wrong to me.

41:53 - Oh sweetie. I’d argue that you are more messed up than Malcolm.

42:06 - Jessica went to see Martin twice in one episode. THIS IS BAD.

42:15 - “Maybe even more so than Malcolm if that’s possible.” Jessica knows her kids. I’m on her side here.

42:20 - Martin is way too happy about Ainsley showing signs of serial killing.

42:30 - Jessica? You married an act. That man never existed. He’s always been a serial killer. You just didn’t know it. He’s manipulative and you were a victim to it.

42:50 - “A partner.” OH THIS IS NOT GOING TO END WELL. ESPECIALLY FOR THE GIL/JESSICA ARC.

Okay....so definitely the weakest episode of the season so far. AND the fact that we got no mention of Tally and/or the baby this episode is a crime.

BUT I’M SO SO SO EXCITED FOR THE NEXT EPISODE. It’s going to be a televised fanfic and I can’t wait.

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aylinaliens · 3 years

Note

I am officially caught up on Oxygen and I started it yesterday, so that’s a new record. I’m so freaking obsessed! And, I’d love some recs because I need more to watch. My first step into the world of Bls came from My Engineer which was brilliant and frustrating, but I loved it. Now, I’m just looking for more and more and more, and this started in July 😂. I’d love some recs and to pop in randomly to chat about the bls if you’d be up for it because they all kill me ~♉️

Sorry for the delayed response but I wanted to take some time to compile a list of recs for you. I tried to mainly rec ones that are mainly available on YouTube, Viki, Line TV, and Netflix but if you need help finding links to watch them let me know!

I highly recommend these (based on the previous ones you’ve seen or ones that I personally loved):

Cherry Magic: This is a Japanese BL that’s currently airing but it’s so good and easily my favorite of the year. It has a wacky premise but it’s very heartwarming, realistic, and soft.

Like In The Movies (aka Gaya Sa Pelikula): This recently ended like a week ago but it was a masterpiece. GSP accurately depicts the struggle of being the LGBTQ+ community and is just generally really well made in terms of the script, cinematography, and OST. There were quite a few BL’s from Philippines released this year but IMO this was the best.

He’s Coming to Me: Incredibly underrated which sucks because it’s really good. The premise is very unique and it’s another accurate depiction of the struggles that LGBTQ+ individuals have to go through. This is pretty angsty but hilarious/heartwarming/adorable at the same time.

Theory of Love: People either absolutely adore TOL or absolutely despise TOL. I personally adored it because I’m a big fan of angst, flawed characters (oh boy were they flawed), and OffGun so it’s one of my favorites. But fair warning the characters are frustrating. So frustrating that you’ll probably want to reach through the screen to smack them but if you hang on till the end it’s worth it. Plus they just released a special episode like a month ago and it really improved any issues I had with TOL.

The Untamed: this is technically labeled as being a ‘bromance’ because of China’s censorship laws but like...it’s extremely obvious that the two ML’s are more than just platonic bros. In the book it’s based on they were together romantically and the drama does a good job of expressing the love they share with subtle (and not so subtle) looks, dialogue, cinematography, touches, and music. The Untamed is very long and at times confusing but 100% worth it.

History 3 Trapped: This was my first introduction to BL and it spoiled all other ones for me. It’s about a gangster and a police officer who go from enemies to lovers. The plot is messy but the chemistry between the leads + second leads makes up for that.

Where Your Eyes Linger: This is a Korean BL and almost everyone I talked to ended up loving this. Sadly this is really short (only 8 episodes that are 10 minutes long) but it’s worth it. It’s about two childhood friends—one of them is the son of a wealthy family and the other is his bodyguard. It handles the friends to lovers excellently and plus the leads have a ton of chemistry.

Mr. Heart: Another Korean BL that was produced by the same company that did WYEL. It’s also short but it’s fluffy and adorable which is a big shift tone from WYEL but I loved both equally.

Life Love On The Line: Another Japanese BL! It came out this year and I feel like it’s really underrated. It’s based on a short manga so the length of the series isn’t that long (4 ep that are 20-30 min long) but it still manages to effectively tell a beautiful love story.

Kinou Nani Tabeta? (What Did You Eat Yesterday): I’m only on episode 1 but...woah. People need to stop sleeping on this. It’s a slice of life drama centered around two men in their forties who are already together. It’s wholesome, soft, and makes me feel all warm inside. Please give this a chance okay?

I Told Sunset About You: I haven’t finished this yet but it’s honestly a masterpiece. The cinematography...the OST...the acting...the script...I’m in complete awe of the whole thing.

Gameboys: Another wonderful PINOY BL! It’s set during this year when the pandemic is going on and it was really good—so good that it got a GL spin off (Pearl Next Door, I highly rec this too even if it’s not BL) and a season 2 which comes out next year.

Hello Stranger: Honestly the Philippines are thriving this year because this was another stellar BL! It’s kind of like Gameboys in how almost the whole drama is filmed over video chat/social media but it was very cute. I believe Hello Stranger is also releasing a movie next year.

Ingredients: This is literally just a very long supermarket ad that’s been going on for 8 months now but it’s adorable. It’s a very low stakes fluffy BL where nothing happens plot wise yet you can’t put it down. Plus...they were roommates ;)

Sotus/Sotus S: not one of my favorites but it’s one of the OG bl’s for a reason. So many people loved the first season but didn’t care for the second (but it was the complete opposite for me). This is kind of the one of the most quintessential Thai BLs out there so feel free to give it a try.

History 2 Right or Wrong: Bls rarely center around mature individuals let alone parents so when I found out the premise of this I was sold. Its only 4 episodes so it’s not the most fleshed out thing ever made but it was incredibly adorable, fluffy, and as honest as they can to address LGBTQ+ parenting. Basically it’s about this college student who ends up as a babysitter for his professor (yeah okay that premise is not for everyone so just be aware if you don’t like that kind of thing) and they fall in love. The whole thing is so fluffy and heartwarming!

Ossan’s Love: This is a Japanese BL about this thirty year old office worker who finds himself in a weird love triangle between his married boss and roommate. I know it sounds like a mess and trust me it definitely is but it’s hilarious. It was a wild ride start to finish but I loved (and hated) every second of it.

Diary of Tootsies: Okay this isn’t a typical BL I guess but it’s about three gay men + their lesbian best friend so you know what? I’m including it on this list. It’s hilariously dumb yet also addresses serious topics like homophobia/sexually transmitted diseases. It’s underrated and I’m so sad about it because it’s genuinely a delight to watch.

YYY the Series: do you know those crack videos on YouTube full of memes and references? Yeah. That’s basically YYY summed up. The whole thing makes zero sense because of how chaotic it is but despite how it’s constantly makes everyone ???? it also has a TON of heart. It’s so dumb but it had me reflecting on my life all the time. I really rec this not just because of how hilarious it is but also because it breaks the mold of other BLs! Don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t have a comedic show and talk about consent and how important healthy communication is in relationships because YYY does it perfectly and so much more.

Dark Blue Kiss: I didn’t love this but you might. It’s a sequel/spin off to like two other series (Kiss Me & Kiss Me Again) but you don’t have to watch the others to understand this. Just know that the leads have been dating awhile before the start of the series.

Great Men Academy: People debate if this is a real BL because the main character is a girl who can transform into a boy but I think it still counts. I really enjoyed this and thought the whole cast had a ton of chemistry between them—it was sweet, funny, and had the right amount of angst.

HIS: this is a Japanese movie (I know you said dramas but I enjoyed this so I figured I would include it too). It’s beautiful, angsty, and sweet. There’s a prequel series this is based on but you don’t have to watch it to understand what’s going on.

I have way more recommendations but I figured I would stop there. Hopefully if you give these a go you enjoy this and my asks are always open if you ever want to talk about BL :)

#♉️ anon #kay answers #bl recs #i left out so many because i didn’t want to make this really long + i wanted provide explanation as to why they were worth the watch #I also didn’t include dramas that just had bl side stories/characters

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jazzstudied · 4 years

Text

5 Study Album Recommendations

The term “album” is used loosely here as I have included EP’s as well! I have been listening to full length albums and EP’s during study sessions for as long as I could remember so I decided to share some of that with you!

This post may be the first of many seeing as I was in a great amount of pain of only choosing five. You may have stumbled upon these albums before (and for that, I commend your music taste) or have not (to which I hope to be the bringer of enlightenment to you) and regardless of taste, I hope you give these wonderful albums a listen.

There is no particular order of favoritism but I did rank them according to amount of focus. For example, number 5 is recommended for tasks that require less brain activity due to ultimate ‘jamming beats’ (making flashcards or re-writing notes) compared to the number 1 album which has more of a calm demeanor so can be used during focused activities (typing up research, brainstorming, reviewing notes).

5. Don’t Forget Me, Demos - Dominic Fike (2018) (8 Songs, 17 min.)

Lo-fi, gentle, low key banging hip hop vibes.

I can feel my stress literally melt away when I listen to this EP. An easy listen, and ultimately very enjoyable.

The reason why it’s on number 5 is because it is too much of a banger and I get distracted. Honestly though, that is a me problem. I usually listen to this album during my break (sends good vibes my way for 17 minutes) or when I am doing a repetitive/ less focused task such as making flashcards or re-writing notes.

Around 17 minutes, which is ample time for most tasks that don’t require that much focus.

3 Nights and Babydoll are my absolute favorites in this EP.

Looking at the stars while listening to this album is magical. I used it a lot for pulling all-nighters.

4. Super Clean Vol. I and Super Clean Vol. II - The Marias (2017) (14 Songs, 38 min.)

Yes, I have included both Vol. I and Vol. II at number 4, technically two very separate EPs, and no, there is nothing you can do about it!

Overall, a mellow flirt of an album.

It’s groovy but not a distracting type of groovy. It’s a just right amount of chair wiggling for a study session.

Perfect for a 30 minute study session and an 8 minute dance break.

I can imagine strolling through fields in a cute little dress but at the same time write in my journal during a hot afternoon haze with both of these EPs and I love it.

Basta Ya, Ruthless, and I Don’t Know You are my recs concerning these EPs!

But all songs are good! Just listen to all of it!

3. The Slow Rush - Tame Impala (2020) (12 Songs, 57 min.)

Hypnotic album with electronic beats. Makes me feel like I belong in the future and the future is now.

I felt conflicted putting it at number 3 or number 5 because some people might not like it? But I like this album a lot.

It has a certain grooviness to it and I’m sure some people might find it distracting during study sessions. However, I find this album quite balanced with real bops and real study flow inducers!

It is less distracting that the videos titled “Brain Waves for Brain Power” videos on Youtube, in my own personal opinion. I hope I didn’t offend anyone on Tumblr belonging to that niche. I too, still have a back-up playlist of Brain Waves to induce my brain cells in ceremonial dances exclusively for midterms and finals.

This album helped me a lot in getting into the flow of things. I hope it does the same for you!

Lost in Yesterday and Posthumous Forgiveness are the tracks I repeat over and over again from this album.

2. Relaxer - Alt-J (2017) (8 Songs, 39 min.)

Again, another well-balanced album

This album is an abomination of grunge, post rock, and alternative music. Somehow, it works even though most people stick to lo-fi when studying.

The tracks Adeline and Pleaser honestly makes me lose track of time as both songs are about 6 min. long each.

Hit Me LIke That Snare and Deadcrush are bops that have that expected signature “Alt-J” sound. Probably too loud for some people, ok for a loud person like me. It has similarities to the An Awesome Wave album, which is, by the way, needs a listen if you have never heard of this band before.

1. Carrie and Lowell - Sufjan Stevens (2015) (11 Songs, 43 min.)

Now this! This album! Throughout my high school years, this album has helped me a lot! From getting up at 5:30 a.m, stressing about school, up until I am wide awake at night worrying about my grades- this indie, cottage-core, guitar plucking album has helped me through it all.

The vocals of Sufjan Stevens are so soft, vulnerable in this album.

Despite being so catchy- I can sing Death with Dignity in my sleep- it still serves as the superior study album.

For those in light and dark academia, cottage-core, vintage-core or of any other similar aesthetic (actually anybody can still thoroughly enjoy this album) this is such a worth while listen.

It makes me feel like I’m at the countryside tending to my plants and my humble home or writing letters to my friends who live in the city. Perfect for a productive ambiance.

Drawn to the Blood, Blue Bucket of Gold, and Fourth of July are my personal favorites.

Compared to the other albums listed today, even though I said I wouldn’t rank by favoritism, I rank this as my favorite. Good for all types of tasks and can last 40 minutes for your work!

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waejinyoung · 3 years

Text

Can’t Swim - EP . 8

Can’t Swim 8

word count: 3.2k+

a/n: you might be questioning where I have been for the past couple of months. I have one word to say that should be a good enough answer. College. I’ve been studying none stop and found no time to write the next episode after university started. The posts will no longer be regular so just keep yourselves updated. Hopefully I will have another 2 episodes up between now and the end of the year at least but don’t quote me on that. I hope you enjoy!

I’m deeply sorry for my absence again x

warnings: nothing

EP . 1 , EP . 2 , EP . 3 , EP . 4 , EP . 5 , EP . 6 , EP . 7 , EP . 8 , EP . 9

THIRD PERSON POV

The afternoon continued with Y/N and Jinyoung discussing life and getting to know one another whilst Y/N replied to her emails.

“It’s mind b-boggling how you and J-Jackson may have crossed paths back in 2012…” Y/N had just mentioned how she was training for the London 2012 Olympics to compete for swimming.

“Similar to Jackson, I switched career paths and decided to study architecture. Dad wasn’t the biggest fan until he saw the passion and success I had gained in the industry. He soon came to terms with everything.”

“Wow… do you r-regret it at all?” The clock marked 10:30 pm. You guys had been talking for the past 90 mins, getting to know each other.

“I think I regretted not swimming after deciding to study architecture. I didn’t choose to not compete in the Olympics because I no longer liked swimming so I do regret not continuing although I must say, studying architecture might be the most time consuming degree out there. That’s why later on I decided to apply to become a licensed swimming teacher to undergo lessons. I’d be teaching people how to swim whilst fulfilling my love for swimming.”

“Best of both w-worlds, r-right?”

“Exactly.” Y/N had now placed all her work to aside with her back against the wall, legs crossed enveloped into the conversation.

Some seconds went by and Y/N wanted to know about Jinyoung’s initial dreams.

“What about you? Did you always want to be a singer?”

“Always. I took up d-dance lessons when I was around 15. Then went to a-audition and got in to JYPE. That was when I met J-Jaebeom. We actually d-debuted together as a d-duo group called JJProject to later on d-debut with the r-rest of the g-guys as GOT7. Since t-then they’ve been my f-family rather than just my m-members. I think it’s g-getting to the p-point where I might have spent m-more years of my l-life with them then I did without. Time flies…”

“I could definitely sense the brotherly love you guys all have for each other. So how did becoming an actor happen?”

“I r-requested from the c-company to find roles I could take part in a couple years b-back. First it was small roles in small d-dramas and then being c-casted by more known d-directors to p-play bigger roles. All of that has l-led me to play s-second male lead for ‘When My Love Blooms’.”

“When do the episodes start airing?” Y/N had grown eager about Jinyoung’s talents.

“Hold your h-horses… we haven’t e-even started f-filming yet and won’t be until I r-recover… The original airing d-dates will probably be p-pushed f-further.” Jinyoung’s words drifted into a sudden realisation for his career.

“If only-“ Y/N was about to blame herself again.

“We’ve been through this m-multiple times Y/N. None of this is your f-fault so s-stop blaming yourself for t-things you have no c-control over.”

Y/N had her mouth open ready to retaliate but if she had to be honest… she couldn’t be bothered to fight back considering it was now coming up to 11:00 pm.

“Fine.” Y/N yawned and covered her mouth. Work had been extremely busy today especially with all the news floating around now.

“S-someone’s tired.” Jinyoung eyed Y/N’s tired state and decided to call it a night.

“I still have so much to do. I can’t fall asleep now.”

“C-could you n-not spare an e-early n-night just for t-today?” Y/N recollected her thoughts weighing up if she could possibly sleep early tonight and get all the work done tomorrow.

“I could…”

“Problem s-solved then. Clear up your b-bed and get your pjs on. I d-don’t want to f-face a t-tired Y/N tomorrow m-morning.” Y/N eyed your mean comment and huffed to your orders.

“Yes, sir.”

2 WEEKS LATER

Y/N’s POV

“Miss, Jinyoung has been recovering quicker than expected. He should be perfectly fine to attend the event. If anything unsettling happens you can give me a direct phone call.”

“Thank you so much Doc.” You gave the doctor a large smile and she reciprocated a reassuring smile.

You entered Jinyoung’s room with your outfit for the architecture awards festival along with you.

“Am I allowed to come?” Jinyoung asked as soon as you entered the room. You gave him a nod.

Jinyoung’s voice was more or less back to 100% and his eye had completed healed by the end of last week. There wasn’t much left until being fully recovered. Possibly parting from the hospital quicker than the original 2 months the doctor had estimated.

“I knew I’d get the green light. I even prepared my outfit because I was so sure I’d be able to come.” You hadn’t seen someone so ecstatic for an awards festival.

“As expected… I’m not even surprised. Will you be able to get dressed? Need any of my help?” Jinyoung was still a little instable since he’s been lying in bed for the past 2 weeks. His legs tend to give out for the first 30 mins.

“I think I can manage. I’ll get dressed quickly and then the bathroom is all yours.” You chuckled at his assumption that you’ll take really long in the bathroom for the event.

Jinyoung heads towards the bathroom and you are left there practising a speech you’ve written for all the awards you and your company have been nominated. This isn’t because you knew you were going to win any of them but… the unprofessional scenes if you guys were to win an award and to not have a speech ready daunted you. There was nothing wrong with being prepared.

15 MINUTES LATER

You must say… I don’t think you had ever laid eyes on someone so handsome in your life before. You could swear that this man was carved by God himself.

“How much deeper are you going to fall into my looks?” You hadn’t realised but you had been staring Jinyoung up and down for the past 30 seconds of him leaving the bathroom. Hair all styled. The suit was literally made for him. His cute bow tie was a little wonky leading you to let out a chuckle.

“What?” Jinyoung’s face turned serious thinking something was wrong with how he looked.

“Your bowtie is wonky.” You stood up from your seat and reached out to fix his bowtie. Your eyes were fixated in straightening the bowtie and all Jinyoung could do was analyse your face and how focussed you were.

“There you go. Looks better now.” You lightly let go off the tie and looked up at Jinyoung who was already staring right back at you. Those bambi eyes were going to be the death of you.

“Thank you. Now go and get yourself ready.” He pinched your nose and then you entered the bathroom with your dress, makeup bag and accessories.

20 MINUTES LATER

“Jinyoung~~” You called out for Jinyoung. You were done with everything but couldn’t reach the zipper on the back of your dress. You had been procrastinating on what to do and just gave up. There’s no way you could zip the dress up alone.

“Yes, Y/N. Is everything alright?” You could hear his footsteps come closer to the bathroom door.

“In a bit of sticky situation… could I ask you to do a favour?”

“Sure, what is it?” You went ahead and unlocked the door for him. He took a step back and couldn’t contain the sight in front of him. You were in a red bandeau strapless dress which had a structured skirt that was shorter at the front and longer at the back with. A very slight trail. Unsurprisingly your makeup was the bare minimum and you had left your natural hair out. His mouth was agape as you stepped out of the bathroom.

“How much longer are you going to stare for Mr Park?” He had been in the same awe you was when he had stepped out of the bathroom earlier on.

“Yes…right… the favour?” His soul re-entered his body trying to compose himself. You could only smile on the effect you had on the prince himself.

“I can’t reach my zipper, could you zip up the back of my dress for me?” You saw his cheeks blush a light pink below the thin layer of bb cream he had on. Without the zip done neither of you were going anywhere so he had to do it.

He wasn’t able to give a verbal response and just nodded. You turned around to have your back facing Jinyoung. He moved your hair to aside exposing half of your back to him. He was blushing so hard right now and was happy to have you facing away from him even though in a matter of seconds you’d be facing him seeing the shades of red planted on his cheeks. Jinyoung gently placed one hand on the zipper and the other hand on your back holding the fabric of your dress still. His fingers grazed your skin and they were a little cold leading you to jolt a little by the surprising cool touch. He notices.

“Did I hurt you?” His voice was a little worried. The slightest worrying reaction you make, and he’s so concerned. He’s too sweet.

“Nope, your hands are just a little cold that’s all.” You say whilst you chuckle.

He apologises with his soothing voice and zips up the dress, letting out a quiet done when finished.

You turn back round and thank him for his kind gesture. You also noticed the flush of his cheeks. He’s so cute, you thought. You quickly put your heels on and left Jinyoung’s patient room and entered the hall of the hospital. Expectedly, you guys received some stares and some whistles by the old women sitting outside their patient rooms. The event manager had organised a limousine to pick up each nominee for the awards hence why there was a lovely jet black limousine parked at the entrance of the hospital. The driver spotted you two and guided you the way and kept the door open for you two to enter the fancy vehicle. He ran back to the wheel and started driving towards the venue.

“Anything I need to know beforehand? Who should I present myself as?” Jinyoung had started with the questions during the car drive.

“Who’d you like to present yourself as Jinyoung?” You wanted to fish out his intentions from him.

“Preferably your boyfriend in order to stop those punks from hitting on you but I’d never want to force you into a relationship with me…” He side eyed you as he kept looking out the window. You so wanted him to be your boyfriend.

“Logical. Agreed. If anyone asks, you’re my boyfriend.”

“What an honour.” You slap his thigh due to his sarcastic tone.

“Whatttt? I’m serious. I’m going to be the boyfriend of an amazingly talented architect who’s bound to receive an award tonight. It’s a genuine privilege.” You could only look at him in awe as he described the so called ‘privilege’ he was taking part of.

“If you say so…”

The humming noise from the motor of the limousine was really calming but Jinyoung broke the silence once again.

“Are you nervous?” His tone was much deeper and serious compared to how he was a second ago.

“A little. These awards happen once a year and we’ve progressed so much as a company but so has everyone else in the industry. It’s hard to tell if we’ll be receiving the major validation from the institute. With or without the award tonight I’m so pleased with my company, but it would be nice to get a recognisable achievement for all our hard work.” Jinyoung listened to you as you let out your insecurities for the upcoming night.

“In the little amount of time I’ve met you, I think you’re the only person who deserves all the awards you’ve been nominated for this year. No one can change my thoughts and it’s going to be a pleasure to witness your achievement first hand. I can’t wait.” He rubbed his thumb over your knuckles trying to calm your nerves down. It was going to be a long night.

30 MINUTES LATER

Your limousine had rocked up to the red carpet laid out on the floor outside of the venue of the awards. You took a deep breath as the driver ran around to Jinyoung’s side of the limousine to let him out. Jinyoung agreed to open your door for you so he exited the vehicle first. Like he had planned, he went around to your side and opened the door for you to step out. The cameras started capturing every single moment as you wrapped your arm around Jinyoungs, and he gave you a reassuring nod. You gave him a smile and the two of you walked towards the entrance of the building slowly as you waved to the cameras and press greeting the two of you. The cameras were close to blinding, but you pulled through until reaching the entrance where the bodyguard escorted the two of you to your spaces in the main hall.

The building was full of white and gold decorations. You could definitely tell that the theme was highly influenced by Greek culture. The budget of the awards keep growing as the number of sponsors increase. The bodyguard escorted you to the table that Beck was already sat at with his fiancé. Beck realised your presence as well as Jinyoung. He stood up to give you a hug and shook Jinyoung’s hand. Beck’s fiancé shook both of your hands too and took your seats.

“The famous Mr Park. It’s nice to meet you in person. I’m Beck, the other shareholder.” Beck gave Jinyoung a warm smile.

“It’s nice to meet you to Beck. It seems like you already know of my name, but I’ll reiterate for the norm. My name is Park Jinyoung, you can call me just Jinyoung.” You let out a scoff because of how formal Jinyoung was being with Beck.

“He’s younger than you so you can ignore the formalities.” You said to Jinyoung and then Beck and him opened the conversation about age and their Chinese zodiac signs.

The evening began at 7:30 pm with the award winners due to be announced at 9:00 pm. Until then there was butterflies in your stomach ready to be set free any minute now.

Jinyoung came closer to your ear and whispered, “Loosen up a little. There’s no need to be this tense. Here hold my hand.”

Jinyoung offered his hand and you took it immediately as he gestured his open palm. Your hands were tiny compared to his manly hands. They encompassed all your digits giving you’re a sigh of relief because of the security they exerted. You let out a large sigh and continued with the discussions on your table with the new clients that were interested in your company. Having Jinyoung at the event really helped scare away the useless men who would only be interested in your physique and nothing more. His presence filtered out all the nonsense that would usually be taking place at the table.

The clock finally struck 9:00 pm and everyone went back to their designated seats in order for the awards to be presented. The event holder went through all the minor rookie awards to then move onto the company categories.

“Here are the nominees for Best Project of the Year.” The event holder signalled to the larger screen behind him as the nominees including your company are mentioned in no specific order.

“I was personally really fond of this project myself too. The meaning behind the design and the immense detail put into the façade really makes me excited for the future of this company. I’ll stop blabbing on and open the envelope.” You looked at Beck and then back at Jinyoung who was really eager to know the result.

“The award for Best Project of the Year goes to…” The event holder lifts the flap of the envelope and takes out the white sheet of paper inside. You hold your breath waiting for the result to be spoken.

“The Chamberlain project, designed and constructed by Chevrel Architects.” The whole community around your table started roaring and cheering for you and Beck to claim the award. That was one award written down in the books for Chevrel Architects, a company you and Beck had started years back. You and Beck had decided that if this award was given to you guys then he’d give the speech for it. Beck was the reason for the Chamberlain project happening and hands down you could state it was because of him the project turned out well. You, Jinyoung and everyone else in the hall stood up clapping as Beck walked up to the stage and shook hands with the event holder along with receiving the award. He then walked up to the mic and started his speech.

“I’d like to first start off with a large thank you to everyone at Chevrel Architects. The amount of hard work that was put into the Chamberlain project is indescribable, without everyone’s help it wouldn’t have been possible to achieve such a great outcome. I’d like to also thank Y/N for coming on this journey with me and trusting in me when I said that this company will create its own legacy. This is only the beginning…” Beck continued to thank more or less everyone he knew and came to an end with another roaring applause by everyone.

He jogged back to your table and you admired the award he placed on the table. You felt Jinyoung squeeze your hand in encouragement for you to realise how much you guys are capable of although he still knew you were a little iffy because the individual architect awards hadn’t been announced yet. You couldn’t help but smile at the gleaming object right before your eyes. Having received this award you doubted that another award would be given to someone of the same company.

Minutes went by and the event holder had reached the most awaited award of the night. Architect of the Year. You were surprised that you hadn’t left to use the restroom to throw up all this anxiety already. You were so ready to go home and relax. You wanted your normal heart rate back. You looked at Jinyoung and he gave you a look that melted your heart in seconds. He started massaging your knuckles with his thumb again and you could feel your body ease into his touch. The event holder for the last time of the night directs our attention to the screen for the listing of the nominees. Beck unfortunately wasn’t nominated so he was rooting for you to win the award.

“I know for many of you this is probably the most important part of the night. I’d like to first mention that to be able to be nominated for this award is ana achievement in itself so, you architects should all be proud of yourselves. It was a very hard decision that the committee made but we were able to make a decision. The award for Architect of the Year goes to…”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I think it was mean of me to have ended this episode here, but it is 2:30 am right now as I write this episode. I hope you guys liked this episode. I shall be back somewhat soon so make sure to come back to check if an episode has been uploaded. Like always let me know your opinions on the story line and check out the other episodes if you haven’t. It would be nice to get some feedback :)

See you next time

writer-nim x

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tsnbrainrot · 3 years

Text

Rules: tag people you’d like to get to know better

was tagged by the lovely, big-brained, and very kind @helloamhere ! i think i actually also need a distraction atm so cheers for that xx

Last song: i was listening to my soft instrumental playlist while reading poetry in the bath earlier so it’s this piano cover of ‘once upon a december’ altho lately i can be found listening to jensen ackles’ cover of simple man for hours. rip in fucking pieces.

Last movie: i.... barely watch films lately. my 2020 watch list was shameful and 2021 is looking to be the same. i’ve found out that without the cinema i’m a very sad cinephile and my viewings at home are almost only comfort rewatch. and very rarely. i tend to binge tv at home. idk if it’s because i’m not in the mood to get into new things or if i just miss going to the movie theatre that much but *shrug*. last film i watched was ‘the day after tomorrow’ with my mother a few nights ago. it’s one of her favourite films and i hadn’t seen it in years so i joined in while i was working on retagging my lotr posts haha. speaking of, this is not what the question asks but i’ve been hitching for a lotr rewatch recently so that’s probably going to be my next film.

Currently watching: well. anyone who follows me knows i’m very slowly making my way through all the supernatural i haven’t seen yet. currently halfway through season 8 with 9, 10 & 11 left to watch before i can claim to have seen the entirety of cw’s spn. shameful. i’m also watching ‘upload’ for the first time, mostly when i’m eating because they’re only 30 min eps. i’m almost done with the season and it gives me some good place vibes while being a little less profound... but i’m enjoying it so far! cool worldbuilding! i’m also kind of rewatching castle because acab but also i do like procedurals :/ but that one is kind of my .... in the background while i do other stuff show of the moment. so i’m not like... watching it watching it? i need noise otherwise my brain gets anxious. next i really want to watch bridgerton because it’s so right up my alley! and the boys! and i need to finish s6 of the flash before s7 starts airing in march. and i really want to finishing watching star wars rebels and the mandalorian. and like a million others; there’s so much tv D:

Currently reading: i’m rereading red, white, & royal blue atm because i finally got a physical copy of it so i’m annotating it. and i kinda needed a palate cleanser after reading this series of essays by philip pullman that i didn’t super enjoy. i’m also reading the star wars ‘doctor aphra’ comics. i’ve just finished vol. 2 and i’m about to start vol. 3. i really enjoyed the character in the vader comics but jury’s still out on her solo adventures. i also just started margaret atwood’s latest poetry collection, but i’ve barely made a dent in that one so idk. me + poetry is a complicated relationship so i might wait until i’m in a better mood for it. i’m actually kind of looking for what i’m going to read next. i’ve been thinking about mexican gothic, which i heard is really good and sounds like my jam. but.... unfortunately the lotr rewatch desire has made me think about FINALLY doing lotr reread. i’ve only ever read them when i was ten years old. in french. and have been meaning to read them in english for years. but. that’s a huge commitment and i’m already. four books behind on my goodreads challenge and it’s only february......... so yeah.... i don’t know. anyone has any easy fun recs for someone in a weird mood? reading rwrb rn makes me feel like romcoms might be the way for me atm, it’s lifting my spirits so much haha

Currently craving: ppppppppffffff. honestly? friendship i think. ever since december i’ve been feeling super lonely. lowkey cripplingly so. idk if it’s the harsher lockdown that’s getting to me or just like... fucking winter..... it’s cold and dark and i’ve been working super hard on establishing a routine for myself to keep morale up (which has actually been helping) but through it all i just feel..... really alone rip. i guess i should text my friends more... gosh this is ending on a depressive note :/// i’m kinda craving chocolate too?

i’m ... not going to tag anyone i think, but do do it if you feel like it xx

#about moi #you can tell im on my p*riod because i got whiny at the end there rip

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absolutebl · 3 years

Text

This Week in BL

April 2021 Part 3

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Second Chance Ep 3 - this is proper YA, they are dealing with actual high school issues, picking uni, first crushes, online dating, etc... We even got a senior prom trope which almost never happens in Thai stuff (just the freshman uni competition variant). Standard plot pacing means PaperFah’s kiss was too early, might indicate we’re moving to uni in the second half of the series? Tropes included: let me feed you, hand hold, black & white striped shirt, floppy drunk & first kiss.

Y-Destiny Ep 3 - the first MaxNat ep. Such fun to see them playing different characters. This one is enemies to lovers, tutor/student, but it’s using the “poor little rich kid loose cannon” archetype. Nat is doing his best, but it’s leaving me cold. Lots of tropes tho: boyfriend’s closet, floppy drunk, pillow clutch, the loom & water bottle.

Lovely Writer Ep 8 - solid installment, good use of many tropes. I really like the leads and I’m glad there isn’t much side dish action, SibGene gave us: punish, touch your face, boyfriend claiming, kissing, sleep cuddling, symmetry, rooftop, cheek kiss, hand hold, and pillow clutch.

Call It What You Want Ep 3-4 - couldn’t find the subs, don’t really care, will watch if it crosses my radar, otherwise I’m just not into it.

Brothers Ep 11 - the “everyone wants Chol” show continues (but WHY?), he and Tri are cute together, and now I kinda just want Prab to end up with the twins. I’m confused by the teachers, but Boston showed up (from UWMA), and my boys KhunKaow got together (YES!), so I’m ultimately delighted with the episode.

Fish Upon The Sky Ep 2 - the makeover happened, and we go from cute with glasses and braces to cute without them. (I’m reminded of those 90′s Pygmalion teen movies where the girl has glasses + ponytail and then *GASP* does not and *GASP* she’s HOT. This was the BL version.) Meanwhile, writers better be careful with Pi, he’s getting too tsundere to like. Did you see they gave AJ a 2gether music intro & pick up line? Well, it’s actually his brother JJ who plays Ohm in 2g. I cackled. GMMTV - you so cheeky.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

HIStory 4: Close To You (Taiwan) Ep 5 - half way point. My poor confused babies. It was a really sweet episode... if what happened before hadn’t happened in the way that it had. Also, these boys have a GREAT friendship but are probably the worst advice givers ever.

Most Peaceful Place (Vietnam) Ep 3 fin - so cute! Our boys confessed and got together. There was an adorable mutual kiss (I love me a mutual, like Ingredients). Afterwards, they actually seemed to communicate with each other about both sex and their relationship. OMG. How original for BL! This was the last episode, so the series is short, but I still enjoyed it very much. RECOMMENDED.

My Lascivious Boss (Vietnam) Ep 1-2 - oh boy this one is rough, we started out with homophobia child abuse and moved on to family drama + drunken dub-con one night stand. But production values and subs are better than normal for Vietnam (You Are My Boy levels) + our queer babies are out & proud + it’s higher heat + I’m weak. So I’m watching.

Word of Honor (China) Ep 25-27 - honestly not much happened, lots of back story. Things are looking dire for the ghosts unless they can turn the Scorpion (I LOVE HIM, he’s my precious deadly baby). Don’t know how they managed to make loosing a battle with an immortal sword god ex-friend cute... but they did. Did some calculations and at 36 eps, mathematically speaking, ep 30 will be the equivalent of a standard BL ep 11. Should I be scared for next week?

Nobleman Ryu’s Wedding (Korea) Ep 1-2 - it’s so effing adorbs, soft bois do old fashioned tropes like arranged marriage + evil stepsisters meets the more modern fake relationship + secret identity in a surprisingly comfortable mix. It launched with baby is a floppy drunk, forced proximity, performative I saw you feed him, and some fun gay panic. It’s a lot lighter and faster paced than I was expecting, but this is Korea so I don’t know why I’m surprised.

Stand Alones

K-pop band OnlyOneOf dropped a new MV that is basically BL bait, using many of the tropes we know and love. I promise I’m not trying to lure anyone into K-pop I just thought it was interesting how consciously they’re yaoi dipping.

Spin-off We Best Love Fighting Mr. 2nd, Shou Zhen | the Only Love Letter Once Written (SERIOUSLY WITH THE TITLES TAIWAN?) anyway there’s a something or other 25 minutes featuring Pei Shou Yi and his boy that aired Friday. It’s about 10 minutes of reboot footage with 15 min of new content, mostly set in the past. It entirely rests on Chih Tian Shih’s acting, fortunately for us he’s great. However, it doesn’t substantially change or add to these characters’ arcs from the finale of WBL season 2. I don’t know if there will be more or if this was just an extra footage fan service.

COLOR RUSH GOT ITS MOVIE!!! Okay this is almost the tipping point for me to get Viki Standard. It’s listed at 1:56 minutes long but the original series had only c.120 running time - that is a lot of new content. Although i was disappointed by To My Star’s movie I loved Wish You’s, so I am hoping Color Rush got Wish You level treatment. That said, I feel Color Rush the series is damn near perfect already, hard to improve on perfection.

Breaking News

Close Friend the series got an updated trailer featuring MaxNat (no subs) so if you like them in Y-Destiny or in Why R U get ready for them to play different characters again, this time for a sports romance segment. Like Y-Destiny, Close Friend looks to be another series of vignettes (Original trailer) coming April 22.

2gether the movie (Thai trailer) was intended release April 22 but is now postponed due to a surge in C19 cases in Thailand.

Tell the World I Love You, a Thai BL movie that was supposed to release last week, is similarly delayed.

My Ride has been postponed indefinitely with no airing date.

The Miracle of Teddy Bear got a teaser vid, no eng subs.

Gossip

Thai BL actors Nanon (Bad Buddy), Yoon (YYY), and Mark Siwat (LBC, Bite Me) have tested positive for C19. Press releases stated they’re fine, tho filming has paused fore their various projects, obvs. (No word on whether Nanon’s current project was Bad Buddy or not, although it seems likely given his recent Arm Share episode.)

Next Week Looks Like This:

Some shows may be listed later than actual air date for International accessibility reasons.

Upcoming 2021 BL master post here.

Links to watch are provided when possible, ask in a comment if I missed something.

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ryanberga · 4 years

Note

TMA has 5 seasons. One season = 40 episodes one episodes = let just say 30 minutes. One week = 8 days. 40 : 8 = 5 episodes. 5 × 30 minutes = 150 minutes = 2 and a half hours ( or idk 3 hours.). So TECHNICALLY i can finish TMA by the 5th week or atleast 1 month plus a week. Yes, i want to actually finish this. Cause i really love your reaction it made it seem so interesting. Also i went anon im afraid that my math is wrong. If my math wrong. Ryan ghost wrote this. I went off anon if im right.

From that tma math ask, yes i know there is a non cannon also q&a but im talking about the cannon one btw. Still it might be wrong ahskdldl-

omg FIRST OF ALL i'm no mathematician so i'm not gonna double check your work here lmaoo except to point out that a week is 7 days not 8?? also most episodes are closer to 15-25 minutes, very few are actually 30 mins or over! but if you want to listen to the magnus archives you definitely should! i think dedicating a couple of hours to it a day or setting a goal of listening to a few eps a day would be a good idea to get thru it quickly especially for the first season or two because you don't really see the meta plot much until the end of season 2/season 3 iirc. season 1 took me forever to get through because i wasn't too invested in it yet, but after season 2 i became addicted and listened to it literally whenever i was able to. so definitely keep that in mind if you don't feel like you vibe with the first season, just stick around and see if things improve in season 2 because everything does connect together and form a much bigger plot that you initially think

SECOND, i'm not sure if you mean you want to finish it in 5 weeks or if you want to finish it before the 5th season is over? but either way, the 5th season finale (and the grand finale!) isn't set to air until march, so you have plenty of time to catch up, don't feel like you're in any rush!! enjoy it for what it is instead of trying to meet a deadline :)

THIRD, i'm glad you enjoyed me crying over tma ahsjdks it was so much fun listening to it and tbh not at all what i expected it to be when i first started it. it's definitely the most interesting fiction podcast i've ever tried listening to, it's got horror and mystery and a great complex meta plot and emotional depth and great characters and wonderful character dynamics and explores really complex issues (such as morality, mental illness, trauma, etc etc), and it's also got great social commentary and draws fantastic parallels to real-life situations. i promise you, it's so much more interesting than i could put into words

and LASTLY, i'm not exactly sure what you mean by non-canon q&a? i'm not in the tma fandom or anything so idk all the ins and outs of it, but i know alex (the director of tma and the voice actor for martin) and jonathan (the writer and the voice actor for jon) do a q&a after every season ends, and those are all "canon" (unless they say otherwise, which they have done). regardless, while the q&a's are not at all necessary to listen to, they are HIGHLY interesting and i'd definitely recommend you listen to them when you're done with the corresponding season! not only do they answer some questions about things you might have missed otherwise, but they also go into their creative processes and talk about behind the scenes stuff, which is super fascinating. not to mention, alex & jonathan have a great dynamic and are very fun to listen to, you can tell that they mesh really well and are very good friends :)

sorry this answer got so long but uhh tl;dr this is my plea to all of you to please listen to the magnus archives🥺

#anonymous #answered #seriously im sorry this got so long #also if i didnt answer your question or misread what you were trying to ask me #please let me know!!!#not watcher

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superbolt · 2 years

Text

Quiz Eps.

— 11:03 pm // 02.16.2022

I started a quiz today at 11:30 am with classes in between. It took me almost 12 hours to finish it but I guess I could have passed it an hour early only if I did stick with my idea on a 3-point question. Not the stressest yet, I dont think so hahaha. But todaaay, it’s the “Peace tayo, peace” HAHAHAHAH

— 1:45 am // 02.19.2022

It’s a pre-quiz craming time. How can i even fit all these 31 vidlecs in a night? hahahah galing half way to go. Ok tuloy tuloy.

The quiz was so awful, I can't even...

— 11:48 pm // 02.21.2022

Okayy so, I am currently reviewing for our sepa exams tomorrow and duuude my answer in my recent quiz was so bad, like supeeer bad brooomam. Tipong nakakahiyang ipacheck, its beyond disaster HAHAHHHA. UGHHH. K tuloy tuloy. 🙃

—9:13 pm // 03.04.2022

not quiz-related pero funny. So i assumed na there is no class kaninang 4:30 and nagpost din yung prof ng assignment. Okay, so aware ako na may gagawin but then i didn't even have the plan of checking the due date kasi naman sanay na day/s ang duration hahaha pero pagkabukas ko ng around 7:50, due na pala nung 7:30. Edi i told my friends, thank God we really are friends. Walang nagcheck ng due date hahaha. Yung lang hihi.

— 1:18 am // 03.07.2022

grabe im taking so so long already with this SA. ive manipulated the formula pero di ko parin makuha kuha huhu. Maglab na yata ako.

— 5:29 am // 03.10.2022

discorded from 9 pm to 5:27 am. kinda felt productive, really. tho im not finish yet. zZz. dont wanna have my 7:30 class later- hopefully none.

— 6:28 am // 03.15.2022

discorded from 8:30 to pass 6 and cooked some rice before going to sleep. all my dues are done except for lab, tho im done answering but i didnt turn it in yet

— 2:30 am // 03.17.2022

was planning to finish my el62 and start with my lab computation tonight kaso I just couldnt think straight and fast so tulog nalang muna hihu. My el62 prof is so extra lang in making our quizzes, it makes you work really hard for your score haha. night!

just to share sumthin about this^... so it was around 5:15 pm already when i asked my friend how many pages she was able to do, and out of surprise she told me that she was STILL about to do it. lokang loka si ghurl, our due date is 6:30 that day, and how can u even think and search that fast within approx 1 hr 40 mins. time left (ang hirap kaya magsearch and all knowing that it requires a "detailed" output daw) hahahah grabe samantalang if Ill calculate how much time i spent to finish it, dude thats half day for me hahahha baka more pa. Plus, I was able to fill up full 5 pages including references hahhaha. I cannot with that kind of risk and pressure lang. Power to my friend hahaha. IBA.

— 10:51 am // 03.18.2022

finished video A, did half of the lab computations last night and slept at 6:18 am kanina. i woke up around 9 to eat my breaky and now im back to bed, planning to wake up by lunch or 1 so i can immediately start reviewing for my quiz tomorrow < so sad that i cant make it to the province with my mom huhu > k, l8ers. " 2:44 pm -- woke up at pass 1 to review and kakaend ko lang since i feel sleepy na. im left with 3 vids for video B and another 3 from video C grabe ang hard to understand :€ nakakastress, idk if im still gonna finish it all or just push thru on practice probs. im literally having an absorption crisis. 💀

— 12:38 // 03.18.2022

stopped reviewing already, sleep is more important especially when u know that there is nothing's going inside your head na. haays. hoping for the best or atleast better tomorrow. thank u Lord agad ~.~ gnight and best of luck!

— 3:31 am // 03.25.2022

had a research night with my besties, it was a productive and a fun one. these baes never failed to be so cool. I kinda laughed a lot too and even discorded alongside it. :>> waiting for dad to wee, so i can immediately paint the ceiling part after hahahaha, tibay yarn. ~ seg lang, i really want to eat shawarma from the sharwarma in bloom bukas or sa sat. Di pwedeng matapos nang di ako nakakakain ng tinda nilang shawarma hmm lets see.

— 2:48 am // 05.16.2022

answered our solution thermo quiz ng 11:30 am and submitted it pass 9 pm. After dinner, I immediately started with my PhychemLab quiz and natapos ko naman din by pass 12 then reviewed sobrang a little lang on CRE. Ang sakit parin talaga ng back ko huhu. goodnight. Buy ako ballpen tomorrow.

— 12:25 am // 05.18.2022

no naps for today. Quiz whole noon to evening. Im more of tired than drained? anw ill get things done tomorrow na hopefully all. And go buuuuy ballpen refill for real na tomorrow.

#Spotify

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inazuma-eleven-translations · 6 years

Text

Inazuma Eleven Revival Festival - Review!

WARNING - I will mark SPOILERS for Reloaded and the 2 Ares episodes below!!

Personal Reflection: I’ve been an Inazuma fan since roughly 2010, but TRULY became obsessive from 2013+ when I saw Kirino and fell in love. Inazuma has a special place in my heart because it’s one of my strongest connections to Japan. I learnt Japanese through watching, reading about, listening to and eventually translating for this anime. To actually get to go to an event which marks the start of a new Inazuma series was a dream come true. Being SURROUNDED by a sea of fans wearing cosplays, badges, scarves, uniforms… To know what we have in common is a love for this dumb sakka series - it felt amazing. It would be an even bigger dream come true to make friends with EVERYONE who also loves this series. I hope IE EXPLODES over the next 3 years and I 100% believe IT WILL. And I will do whatever I can to help the JPN-ENG translators!!

Apologies if I’ve forgotten anything important.

Okay! Let’s go!!

Attendees: There was about 2,000 people at the live event.

Before the Event: The merch went on sale from 10am, and you didn’t need a ticket to the event to queue to buy it. I arrived at 12ish and the queue looked to be about 2 hours long, so I decided I wasn’t interested in buying anything for once in my life. I’ll post a list of the merch later.

There was an area to trade merch and take photos with the cosplayers.

The doors opened at 2pm and the event began at 3pm.

START

It began with Endou explaining the rules: no filming, photography etc… during the event.

Then a ‘memory reel’ where they showed screens of all previous characters. Endou CHEER Gouenj CHEER Kidou CHEER Kazemaru HUGE CHEER Atsuya and Shirou HUGE CHEER Reize HUGE CHEER Go Raimon HUGE CHEER (and Araceli cries) Kirino and Kariya ENORMOUS CHEER Shindou CHEER Torb SILENCE… then laughter… Alpha, Beta, Gamma CHEER Fei CHEER Galaxy HALF ASS CHEER

Opening Songs

Preformed by pugcats and King Cream Soda. During the song, the characters came to the audience to dance. There was Endou, Gouenji, Kidou, Fudou, Fubuki, Hiroto, Kabeyama, Asuto and Kazemaru. Unfortunately they never went on the stage so we couldn’t see all of them. Endou high-fived a few people.

Introduction

Hino and Mo appeared. Hino said he’s so happy to see so many people gathered here to celebrate Inazuma Eleven, and the huge crowd is proof Inazuma is Avery loved series. Mo adds it’s been 4 years with nothing yet still so many people are here or watching the live-viewing. They introduce themselves formally - Hino as president of Level 5 and Mo as an employee - and Mo said she will do her best with Japanese today too (Mo, PLEASE your Japanese is AMAZING)…

Hino says this event marks the start of a new Inazuma series.

All-Star Cast Line Up

Guest stars were Nojima Hirofumi (Gouenji Shuuya), Terasaki Yuka (Matsukaze Tenma), Tomatsu Haruka (Nishizono Shinsuke/ Kudou Fuyuka, Hattori Handa) and Kamiya Hiroshi (Haizaki Ryouhei).

Tomatsu’s outfit was really pretty, like a long white dress-shirt and blue jeans. Kamiya wore a black and red jacket that looked really cool. By the way, he seems like a very funny person, so I was surprised he’s playing so many last boss characters.

Before Reloaded, there’s a recap of the story so far. Reize’s opening monologue. Fans went wild.

Hino says this will be the first time the voice actors (minus Nojima) see the completed episode, so they will watch it together on stage with everyone. The sit around their own TV. Tomatsu says it feels like being in a living room. Nojima comments there’s no drinks. Mo and Hino sit with them too. Hino says the reason they made Reloaded is because they had to have a reason to connect the original series to Ares.

WARNING! BELOW HERE CONTAINS SPOILERS!

Inazuma Reloaded Opening: Remastered Stand Up Tachi Agariyo

Raimon return after the FF. The whole school is so happy to see them. They’re crowded by fans. There’s a scene of Miyasaka hugging Kazemaru and the audience went nuts. Endou is so overwhelmed he runs to the toilet as an excuse. Kidou and Gouenji call him into the clubhouse.

Comment - Their body language is WONDERFUL! It’s so realistic the way Endou can’t sit still, or Kidou leans forward to speak.

Gouenji/ Kidou say next is the world as Endou gets excited over the idea of playing new opponents.

Hibiki arranges an exhibition match against Barcelona Orb - the team came from Spain to Japan for this match. The match starts and Gouenji tries Fire Tornado right away. It fails when the goalkeeper stops it with his finger then throws the ball back to Gouenji. They next try the Inazuma Break, which also fails. Kazemaru, Gouenji and Ichinose perform the Phoenix, but that doesn’t work either.

It’s shown Hakuren, Zeus, Sun Garden, Teikoku etc are watching the match. This got a huge reaction from the crowd.

Barcelona’s captain the rest f the team start to attack. The captain scores without using special moves. The score becomes over 8 (to zero) and Barcelona’s teammates tell the Captain to give them a taste of their real level. The Captain uses his special move - Diamond (don’t remember the second word, possibly ball) where he carves the ball into a diamond. It’s very beautiful. He scores before Endou can even react. Endou seems reluctant to pick up the ball after that shot, like he’s almost in fear - but that doesn’t last for long.

Raimon lose, exhausted, as Endou lies back and laughs to himself, reflecting on how great soccer is.

Raimon are called into an office to talk. I didn’t catch the guy’s name, but an official looking person tells them that Raimon vs Barcelona proves that Japan’s soccer is not at world level. He wants them to join soccer teams around Japan and strengthen Japan’s soccer as member of the strengthening committee. Endou agrees to it.

Raimon are gathered outside their club house, seemingly worrying. They don’t want to split up. Kurimatsu says it’s okay for the Captain and the others but some f the weaker members don’t feel they have what it takes. Kidou says no matter what happens they will all be connected by their hearts.

Domon and Ichinose are going to America, and the managers see them off at the airport. Aki’s wearing a cute pink hoodie. She’s mad that they’re going to America and tells Ichinose that he should represent Japan. Ichinose says he needs to gather strength in US before returning. He doesn’t know yet if he’ll play for a Japanese team or an American one.

Natsumi, along with the managers, are also given roles as members of the strengthening committee but it’s not revealed what they are. Natsumi has her laptop in any case.

Final scene - Break Trio are on top of the hill talking. Endou still doesn’t fully understand what a strengthening committee member is, and Kidou asks if he was can listening at all. Endou seems to have just heard the word soccer and agreed to it.

They say the next time they meet on the pitch they’ll be rivals. None of the 3 plan on losing. They part ways.

Closing theme:

Remastered Seishuu Oden showing scenes from the Raimon kids’ school life. E.g., Kazemaru and Makksu in class, the kids eating lunch, Kabeyama doing science, the team playing soccer…

There’s a chat session with the voice actors - their thoughts about the episode. Pretty predictable - it was very interesting and great and the animation and remastered moves were great. It’s commented that the leg movement for Fire Tornado is very different, because Gouenji is longer.

They talk a bit about the Captain of Barcelona Orb and the rest of the team. He’s not good-looking but still kind of cool - that’s the kind of character Hino wanted to make. Mo comments on his ‘bear eyes’.

It’s the new characters’ turn to be introduced. The voice actors Ayumu Murase (Inamori Asuto), Michinari Tatsumi (Kimura Ryouhei) and Hanae Natsuki (Okuiri Hiro) come to the stage.

A picture is shown of Baddap, Haizaki and a character from another anime he plays. They all have grey hair and tanned skin and are Last Boss type roles. Kamiya says Baddap was his first villain role and then his second Inazuma role is Haizaki. He wonders just how does Hino see him since he keeps getting villain roles?

Since the topic of villains comes up, a pic of all previous enemies is shown. Terasaki points to each GO character and says alien (Ozrock), future boy (Saru), ghost (Shuu) and human (Hakuryuu). There’s only one human, compared to the original series.

They go through the new 11 members. Some notable comments were:

Michinari - Hino says Michinari is a Captain like Shindou from GO with many worries.

Okuiri - He wears glasses like Megane’s but he’s a much more serious character.

Iwate - He and his voice actor look alike to the point it’s scary.

Mo and Hino say they feel like something is missing from this voice actor chat session - oh yes, Endou! Junko has left fans a message that will be played on the screen.

A word from Junko: She really wanted to come but couldn’t. She says she assumes Hino is talking and talking and talking. She gave her own proverb: everyone, please enjoy today’s event!

There’s a break for 30 mins where they showed Outer Code eps Hakuren, Teikoku and Sun Garden. Fans screamed for Shirou, Atsuya, Someoka, Hiroto, Midorikawa, the group of Sun Garden kids, Sakuma, Genda, Fudou and Kazmaru.

Inazuma Ares 1 (note - some scenes may be out of order)

Opening Theme: Teppen Mezasou! It was epic! The start focused on Inakuni Raimon, we see Haizaki’s GORGEOUS school uniform!!! Like a blue blazer ~ Sakuma, Aphrodi, Hiroto etc appear~

It opens with the Inakuni kids playing soccer. Goujin makes a shoot but Norika saves it. She said he’s getting better. Sasuke is watching them. They take a break. Norika says soccer is great: it can let you forget about all your worries. I think it’s Hattori who is surprised that Norika has worries. Asuto and Michinari decide to ask the principal if they can play a practice match against another team. The principal (Fuyukai) says instead the soccer club will be demolished because they have no sponsor)

Workers are demolishing the pitch. Asuto runs to stop them but they forcefully push him away. Eventually Michinari had to hold him back. Later Norika is bandaging him up. She said she understands his worries but he was too reckless. Asuto asks her is she okay with not being able to play soccer? She says, of course not. Kirina runs over saying there’s bad news about Asuto’s Mom.

Asuto runs to hospital. His Mom apologizes and says she can’t stay with him. Asuto is upset to lose not just soccer but his Mom too. His Mom assures him he won’t lose soccer - soccer will be there as long as he needs it.

Kirina wonders if Asuto will be okay as he runs off. They guess he is going to the highest point in the island. Asuto reaches the top of the hill and screams.

The next day the Inakuni kids are called into the office where they ware told if they can win one match they can get a sponsor if they transfer to Raimon. That means leaving the island and moving to Tokyo.

It’s revealed Sasuke is a recent transfer student.

The kids are shown wondering about their decision to go to Tokyo.

Hiura tells his Grandma he’s going and she comments things will get lonely around there. By the way, she calls him Ki-chan.

Hattori rides on top of Iwate’s back as he rides a bike. Hattori wonders if the food will be good in Tokyo.

Michinari is walking with his father. He feels like his Mom will protest if he goes to Tokyo, but his Dad assures him he’ll talk to her.

Mansaku is at his Dad’s sushi restaurant. His Dad gives him his specialty sushi, and tells him to eat. He says he won’t lose to the food over in Tokyo.

Norika, Hiyori and Okuiri are together that evening. They comment going to Tokyo would be Norika’s first time to ever leave the island.

Raimon vs Seishou. Sasuke makes the First Goal with Fire Tornado. This wakes up the Devil of the Field, Haizaki. He goes wild, scoring again and again. Their are 2 special moves - Overhead Penguin and the Death Zone. Kidou does not appear in this match.

Proverb: Soccer will be there as long as you need it!

Inazuma Ares 2

Haizaki and Seishou are beating Raimon. Agirls are watching the match from a box, making fun of Raimon being from the countryside. Anna tells them to be quiet.

Flashback to 1 week before Raimon vs Seishou.

Inakuni Raimon at outside the clubhouse. Norika tries opening the door but it won’t budge. They comment that Raimon/ Tokyo is very different to their island.

The group of girls come over (perhaps members of the student council? Managers?) with Mikado Anna, who introduces herself as president of the student council. The girls are dismissive of Raimon winning their match against Seishou, but Asuto says they will.

Next the kids meet Ootani Tsukushi (do you remember her? A game only character!) who is very bubbly and friendly. She shows them around the school.

The team get their uniforms and are very excited. Ootani is so excited she’s about to cry. They also get the Inazuma Band - a wristband that measures their exercise levels. It’s also a communication device - the coach can use it to contact them. He does so immediately, summoning them to the field.

They are surprised their Coach is from China. He said he prefers Kung Fu to soccer. He made them a crazy training schedule (think: worse than Kidou from GO). Like 100 laps, 100 push ups etc. He asks them what they have to do? Goujin/ Asuto say train and win their next match. Coach says no - they have to NOT LOSE.

The start with laps through Inazuma Town.

Back to the match. Haizaki’s still demolishing them.

Flashback to a new scene.

Haizaki is showering. Another boy comes in. You see the infamous goggles and Haizaki calls him by his name, so we know it’s Kidou. We only see the bottom half of his face and legs by the way.

Back to the match. Seishou win. Raimon are disappointed but Asuto says while they’re in Tokyo they should do something fun like go to Sky Tree.

Inakuni Raimon are at Tokyo Sky Tree. Suddenly Asuto starts crying. He wanted to play soccer more. The others start crying too, except for Sasuke who is annoyed they are crying in public.

A man walks over and introduces himself as a member of Island Travel - a famous travel agency. He says he he would like to sponsor Raimon. Asuto is surprised because they lost. The man says that the fact they were able to score even one goal against Seishou and the way they fought their hardest to the very end of the match moved him emotionally. There’s more than just winning and losing.

Asuto reflects. They may have lost but in the week before the match they trained all over Inazuma Machi, getting to know the local community.

So Raimon get a sponsor. The kids are so happy they start dancing and hugging each other.

Proverb: I can’t fully remember but I THINK it was something like, you’ll make your own future out of the path you choose to walk??

Closing Theme: All of Inakuni Raimon jump out of a scales in different poses. Then we see everyone’s ‘battle’ suits. Asuto - knight Nosaka - mage Hattori - Robin Hood/ Cupid Okuiri - Some kind of wizard Sasuke - Shirtless gladiator (by the way everyone laughed)

2 Questions from fans

Boy: Is it relevant that in the ending theme all of the players are divided into 3 'sets’ to showcase their battle armor? Hino says it might be.

Girl: She was very excited. First she said she loves Mo. Her question is - what’s up with Kudou’s redesign/ why is he coach for Seishou? Hino said, history has changed!

Voice Actor Talk: The VAs were asked to draw their most memorable scene.

Nojima Hirofumi: Gouenji didn’t appear! He is literally like… So… Gouenji didn’t appear??? Why am I here again?? I was looking forward to seeing him! He does add the episodes were very exciting, with no boring parts.

Kamiya Hiroshi: OVERHEAD PENGUIN and Sasuke. He said he wants to know what the balance of Ares is.

Kimura Ryouhei: Sasuke’s Fire Tornado. Mo comments Sasuke shoots Fire Tornado with his right leg but Gouenji used his left.

Hanae Natsuki: The ending theme where Okuiri jumps out of the scales, he makes a cute pose like 'kyaa’ waving his arms and legs. His VA is surprised because it seemed unlike him.

Murase Ayumu: Hattori riding on Iwato’s back

Terasaki Yuuka: Kogarashi Manor is brand new!

Tomatsu Haruka: The scene where everyone cries together! OR ~shower scene~ she drew a questionable picture of Haizaki showering. The way she drew his legs were awkward and looked like something… else lmao.

Mo comments that the pose Haizaki makes while he showers is very strange (head down, hands against the wall)

Terasaki comments that it’s strange Kidou took his goggles off in the shower of all places. She thinks they would be useful to keep shampoo out of his eyes.

Apparently Hino argued with staff over whether or not the shower scene was necessary. Hino felt it was.

Kamiya comments that he was watching the fans react to that scene, he’s like - I heard you! I saw your reaction to that! I know you liked that!

Hino reveals that since Ares is a parallel world he wants to redo the whole series up to FF International. He says he really wants Inazuma to run for a very long time.

Terasaki asks Hino to please make a new GO. Hino said he wants to. But this not an official statement, more like ‘if possible I’d like to do that’. Personal opinion - if IE becomes very popular I would say there’s a 40/60 chance of a new GO.

Future of Anime Preview:

Two picture were shown that showed future plans for the anime. One was young Hiroto and Tatsuya. It’s implied there will be an episode with them as children (personal speculation - possibly all the Sun Garden as kids??). Second was Haizaki getting very worked up over trying to win a stuffed bear from an arcade game (personal speculation - it’s not actually for him, but the girl in the flashback).

Game Info: It will be released on Switch, PS4, IOS and Android.

The showed gameplay: Inakuni Island, Raimon Chuugakkou, Match vs Seishou, Kidou running and tackling, Sasuke’s Fire Tornado. Quality was very high, like Breath of the Wild.

Mo made a comment that the story mode map looked very big and it seemed it would take ages for the character to run far distances. Hino said they are working on that.

Next Walker: March 10th 8PM

Closing Words (that I remember):

Nojima: He said he can’t wait for Gouenji to appear. Why does Gouenji always keep us waiting?

Terasaki said she’s so happy to stand on the stage and play an Inazuma character again.

Mo said it’s an honor to stand on the same stage as Hino as a foreign Inazuma Eleven fan (Mo is from China).

Ending Live: Ryuusei Boy by a two girl idol group (name??). Then pugcats and King Cream Soda joined them to sing Saikyou de Saigo and Maji de Kansha. The voice actors joined in and the character suits too. Confetti exploded. Fans waved their glow sticks and cheered.

#inazuma eleven #inazuma eleven ares no tenbin #inazuma ares spoilers #spoilers #inazuma spoilers #inazuma revival festival #inazuma festival #endou mamoru #gouenji shuuya #kidou yuuto

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stupendousbananatiger · 4 years

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EP 12 | You Knock on My Door (Sen Çal Kapımı) 12.Bölüm/Episode 12 [ENGSUB] FOX Türkiye

Watch You Knock on My Door (Sen Çal Kapımı) Season 1 Episode 12 1–2–3–4–5–1–7–8–9–10 Full Episode You Knock on My Door (Sen Çal Kapımı) Temporada 1 Capítulo 12 Sub English / Español 2020 ➤ http://watchepisode.online-tvs.com/series/383383/1/12 VISIT HERE ➤➤ http://watchepisode.online-tvs.com/series/383383/1/12

Finally in the end Serkan made his declaration of love. Now it is Eda's turn. But it is not going to be easy to obtain Eda's declaration. Serkan waits patiently in order to hear that Eda is in love with him. Now we also have to deal with keeping this a secret from the families. Since Eda's aunt learned about the engagement agreement, she cannot tell her that she and Serkan and now a real couple in love. With Eda's insistence, Serkan agrees to keep this a secret. But they and their relationship is going to go through many adventures while they keep this secret.

🎬 You Knock on My Door (Sen Çal Kapımı) Episode 12 Online Free 🎬

Title : You Knock on My Door Episode Title : Episode 12 Release Date : 30 Sep 2020 Runtime : 120 minutes Genres : Comedy , Drama , Romance Networks : FOX Türkiye

You Knock on My Door (Sen Çal Kapımı)

Eda, who ties all her hopes to her education, confronts Serkan Bolat, who cuts off her international education scholarship and leaves her with high school diploma. Serkan Bolat offers Eda to give her scholarship back if she pretends to be his fiance for two months. Although Eda rejects the offer of this man as she hates him, she has to accept it when the conditions change. While pretending to be engaged, Serkan and Eda begin to experience a passionate, challenging relationship that will make them forget all they know right. Because love is difficult. And that's why it's amazing.

Show Info

Network: Turkey FOX Türkiye (2020 - now) Schedule: Wednesdays at 20:00 (120 min) Status: Running Language: Turkish Show Type: Scripted Genres: Drama Comedy Romance

With dozens of films genre being released each year, a typical one that gets overlooked by the more popular ones (action, drama, comedy, animation, etc.) is the subgenre category of religious movie. These films (sometimes called “faith-based” features) usually center around the struggles and ideas of a person (or groups) identity of a religious faith, which is, more or less, has a profound event or obstacle to overcome. While not entirely, the most commonplace religious type movies focus on the religion of Christianity, sometimes venturing back into the past in cinematic retelling classic biblical tales, including famed epic films like Ten Commandments and Ben-Hur (the original 1959 version) to some more modern endeavors from Hollywood like Risen, The Young Messiah, and Paul, Apostle of Christ. Other Christian “faith” films finds a more contemporary setting to tell its story, with some being “based on a true-life account” like the movies Unconditional, Heaven is Real, Unbroken, I Can Only Imagine, Indivisible, and Miracles from Heaven, while others might find inspiration from literary novels / fictionalized narratives like The Shack, Overcomer, War Room, and Same Kind of Different as Me. Regardless, whether finding inspiration from true life, references from the bible, or originality, these movies usually speaks on a person’s faith and the inner struggle he or she has within or one society’s views, spreading a message of belief and the understand of one’s belief. Now, after the success of 2018’s I Can Only Imagine, directors Andrew and Jon Erwin (the Erwin Brothers) and Lionsgate studios release the 2020 faith-based film / music biopic feature I Still Believe. Does the film walk a fine line between its religious aspects and cinematic entertainment or does the movie get entangled in its own faith-based preaching?

THE STORY

Its 1999 and Jeremy Camp (K.J. Apa) is a young and aspiring musician who would like nothing more than to honor his God through the power of music. Leaving his Indiana home for the warmer climate of California and a college education, Jeremy soon comes across one Melissa Henning (Britt Robertson), a fellow college student that he takes notices in the audience at a local concert. Falling for cupid’s arrow immediately, he introduces himself to her and quickly discovers that she is attracted to him too. However, Melissa holds back from forming a budding relationship as she fears it will create an awkward situation between Jeremy and their mutual friend, Jean-Luc (Nathan Parson), a fellow musician and who also has feeling for Melissa. Still, Jeremy is relentless in his pursuit of her until they eventually find themselves in a loving dating relationship. However, their youthful courtship with each other comes to a halt when life-threating news of Melissa having cancer takes center stage. The diagnosis does nothing to deter Jeremey’s love for her and the couple eventually marries shortly thereafter. Howsoever, they soon find themselves walking a fine line between a life together and suffering by her illness; with Jeremy questioning his faith in music, himself, and with God himself.

THE GOOD / THE BAD

Sorry if this sounds a bit familiar pieces from my review of I Can Only Imagine, but it definitely says what I feel about these films. While I am a devout Christian (not a crazy zealot or anything like that) for my bases of religion and my outlook beliefs in life, I’m not a huge fan of the “faith-based” feature films. That’s not to say that they’re bad or that I find them deplorable to the other more popular movie genres out there, but sometimes they can a bit preachy and corny / honky in their religious overtones and overall dramatic direction. Personally, I like the more biblical tales that Hollywood as put over, with Cecil B. Demile’s The Ten Commandments and William Wyler’s Ben-Hur; both of have proven to stand the test of time within filmmaking. Of course, Hollywood’s recent trend of put out more “remakes” movies puts an overcast on those biblical epics with 2014’s Exodus: Gods and Kings and 2016’s Ben-Hur; both of which failed to capture a sense of cinematic integrity and had a messy religious outlook in its zeal aspect. Of late, however, Hollywood as retreated more into contemporary pieces, finding narratives that are, more or less, set in a more “modern” day and age to their Christian-faithful based features. As I mentioned above, some have found success in their literary forms (being based on a book and adapted to the big screen), but most derive their inspiration from true life accounts, translating into something that’s meant to strike a chord (with moviegoers) due to its “based on a true story” aspect and nuances. Again, some are good (as I liked Unbroken and The Shack), while others kind of become a bit too preachy and let the religious overtures hamper the film, making them less-than desirable to mainstream audiences or even members of their own faiths. Thus, these religious-esque films can sometimes be problematic in their final presentation for both its viewers and in the film itself; sometimes making the movie feel like a TV channel movie rather than a theatrical feature film. This brings me around to talking about I Still Believe, a 2020 motion picture release of the Christian religious faith-based genre. As almost customary, Hollywood usually puts out two (maybe three) films of this variety movies within their yearly theatrical release lineup, with the releases usually being around spring time and / or fall respectfully. I didn’t hear much when this movie was first announced (probably got buried underneath all the popular movies news on the newsfeed). My first actual glimpse of the movie was when the film’s movie trailer was released, which looked somewhat interesting to me. Yes, it looked the movie was gonna be the typical “faith-based” vibe, but it was going to be directed by the Erwin Brothers, who directed I Can Only Imagine (a film that I did like). Plus, the trailer for I Still Believe premiered for quite some time, so I kept on seeing it a lot of time when I went to my local movie theater. You can kind of say that it was a bit “engrained in my brain”. Thus, I was a bit keen on seeing it. Fortunately, I was able to see it before the COVID-19 outbreak closed the movie theaters down (saw it during its opening night), but, due to work scheduling, I haven’t had the time to do my review for it…. until now. And what did I think of it? Well, it was pretty “meh”. While its heart is definitely in the right place and quite sincere, I Still Believe is a bit too preachy and unbalanced within its narrative execution and character developments. The religious message is clearly there, but takes too many detours and not focusing on certain aspects that weigh the feature’s presentation. As mentioned, I Still Believe is directed by the Erwin Brothers (Andrew and Jon), whose previous directorial works include such films like Moms’ Night Out, Woodlawn, and I Can Only Imagine. Given their affinity attraction religious based Christian movies, the Erwin Brothers seem like a suitable choice in bringing Jeremy Camp’s story to a cinematic representation; approaching the material with a certain type of gentleness and sincerity to the proceedings. Much like I Can Only Imagine, the Erwin Brothers shape the feature around the life of a popular Christian singer; presenting his humble beginnings and all the trials and tribulations that he must face along the way, while musical songs / performance taking importance into account of the film’s narrative story progression. That’s not to say that the movie isn’t without its heavier moments, with the Erwin, who (again) are familiar with religious overtones themes in their endeavors, frame I Still Believe compelling messages of love, loss, and redemption, which (as always) are quite fundamental to watch and experience through tragedy. This even speaks to the film’s script, which was penned by Erwin brothers playing double duty on the project, that has plenty of heartfelt dramatic moments that will certainly tug on the heartstrings of some viewers out there as well as provide to be quite an engaging tale of going through tragedy and hardship and finding a redemption arc to get out of it. This is especially made abundantly clear when dealing with a fatal illness that’s similar to what Melissa undergoes in the film, which is quite universal and reflective in everyone’s world, with the Erwin Brothers painting the painful journey that Melissa takes along with Jeremy by her side, who must learn to cope with pain of a loved one. There is a “double edge” sword to the film’s script, but I’ll mention that below. Suffice to say, the movie settles quickly into the familiar pattern of a religious faith-based feature that, while not exactly polished or original, can be quite the “comfort food” to some; projecting a wholesome message of faith, hope, and love. Personally, I didn’t know of Jeremy Camp and the story of he and Melissa Henning, so it was quite a poignant journey that was invested unfolding throughout the film’s proceedings. As a side-note, the movie is a bit a “tear jerker”, so for those who prone to crying during these dramatic heartfelt movies….get your tissues out. In terms of presentation, I Still Believe meets the industry standard of a religious faith-based motion pictures. Of course, theatrical endeavors like these don’t really have big budged production money to invest in the film’s creation. Thus, filmmakers have to spend their money wisely in bringing their cinematic tales to life on the silver screen. To that effect, the Erwin Brothers smartly utilized this knowledge in the movie’s creation; budgeting the various aspects of the background and genetic theatrical make-up that feel appropriate and genuine in the film’s narrative. So, all the various “behind the scenes” team / areas that I usually mention (i.e. production designs, set decorations, costumes, and cinematography, etc.) are all relatively good as I really don’t have much to complain (whether good or bad) about them. Again, they meet the industry standard for a faith-based movie. Additionally, the musical song parts are pretty good as well. As mentioned, I really didn’t know anything about Jeremy Camp, so I couldn’t say what songs of his were good, but the songs that are presented in the film were pretty decent enough to certain highlight points throughout the movie. Though they are somewhat short (assuming not the whole song is being played), but still effectively good and nice to listen to. Might have to check out a few of the real songs one day. Lastly, the film’s score, which was done by John Debney, fits perfect with this movie; projecting the right amount of heartfelt tenderness in some scenes and inspirational melodies of enlightenment in others. Unfortunately, not all is found to be pure and religiously cinematic in the movie as I Still Believe gets weighed down with several major points of criticism and execution in the feature. How so? For starters, the movie feels a bit incomplete in Jeremy Camp’s journey. What’s presented works (somewhat), but it doesn’t hold up, especially because the Erwin Brothers have a difficult time in nailing down the right narrative path for the film to take. Of course, the thread of Jeremy and Melissa are the main central focus (and justly so), but pretty much everything else gets completely pushed aside, including Jeremy’s musical career rise to stardom and many of the various characters and their importance (more on that below). This also causes the film to have a certain pacing issues throughout the movie, with I Still Believe runtime of 116 minutes (one hour and fifty-six minutes) feeling longer than it should be, especially with how much narrative that the Erwin Brothers skip out on (i.e. several plot chunks / fragments are left unanswered or missing). Additionally, even if a viewer doesn’t know of Jeremy Camp’s story, I Still Believe does, for better or worse, follow a fairly predictable path that’s quite customary for faith-based movie. Without even reading anything about the real lives of Jeremy and Melissa prior to seeing the feature, it’s quite clearly as to where the story is heading and what will ultimately play out (i.e. plot beats and theatrical narrative act progression). Basically, if you’ve seeing one or two Christian faith-based film, you’ll know what to expect from I Still Believe. Thus, the Erwin Brothers don’t really try to creatively do something different with the film…. instead they reinforce the idealisms of Christian and of faith in a formulaic narrative way that becomes quite conventional and almost a bit lazy. There is also the movie’s dialogue and script handling, which does become problematic in the movie’s execution, which is hampered by some wooden / forced dialogue at certain scenes (becoming very preachy and cheesy at times) as well as the feeling of the movie’s story being rather incomplete. There’s a stopping point where the Erwin Brothers settle on, but I felt that there could’ve more added, including more expansion on his music career and several other characters. Then there is the notion of the film being quite secular in its appeal, which is quite understandable, but relies too heavy on its religious thematic messages that can be a bit “off-putting” for some. It didn’t bother me as much, but after seeing several other faith-based movies prior to this (i.e. I Can Only Imagine, Overcomer, Indivisible, etc.), this particular movie doesn’t really rise to Cursed in Love and falls prey to being rather generic and flat for most of its runtime. As you can imagine, I Still Believe, while certainly sincere and meaningful in its storytelling, struggles to find a happy balance in its narrative and execution presentation; proving to be difficult in conveying the whole “big picture” of its message and Jeremey Camp’s journey. The cast in I Still Believe is a mixed bag. To me, none of the acting talents are relatively bad (some are better than others…. I admit), but their characterizations and / or involvement in the film’s story is problematic to say the least. Leading the film’s narrative are two protagonist characters of Jeremy Camp and Melissa Henning, who are played by the young talents of K.J. Apa and Britt Robertson respectfully. Of the two, Apa, known for his roles in Riverdale, The Last Summer, and The Hate U Give, is the better equipped in character development and performance as the young and aspiring musical talent of Jeremy Camp. From the get-go, Apa has a likeable charm / swagger to him, which make his portrayal of Jeremy immediately endearing from onset to conclusion. All the scenes he does are well-represented (be it character-based or dramatic) and certainly sells the journey that Jeremy undergoes in the movie. Plus, Apa can also sing, which does lend credence to many of the scene’s musical performance. For Robertson, known for her roles in Tomorrowland, Ask Me Anything, and The Space Between Us, she gets hampered by some of the film’s wooden / cheesy dialogue. True, Robertson’s performance is well-placed and well-mannered in projecting a sense of youthful and dewy-eyed admiration in Mellissa, especially since the hardships here character undergoes in the feature, but it’s hard to get passed the cringeworthy dialogue written for her. Thus, Robertson’s Melissa ends up being the weaker of the two. That being said, both Apa and Robertson do have good on-screen chemistry with each other, which certainly does sell the likeable / loving young relationship of Jeremy and Melissa. In more supporting roles, seasoned talents like actor Gary Sinise (Forest Gump and Apollo 13) and musician singer Shania Twain play Jeremey’s parents, Tom and Terry Camp. While both Sinise and Twain are suitable for their roles as a sort of small town / Midwest couple vibe, their characters are little more than window dressing for the feature’s story. Their screen presence / star power lends weigh to the project, but that’s pretty much it; offering up a few nuggets to bolster a few particular scenes here and there, which is disappointing. Everyone else, including actor Nathan Parsons (General Hospital and Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water) as musical talent and mutual friend to both Jeremy and Melissa, Jean-Luc Lajoie, young actor Reuben Dodd (The Bridge and Teachers) as Jeremy’s handicapped younger brother, Joshua Camp, and his other younger brother, Jared Camp (though I can’t find out who played him the movie), are relatively made up in smaller minor roles that, while acted fine, are reduced to little more than just underdeveloped caricatures in the film, which is a shame and disappointing.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The power of faith, love, and affinity for music take center stage in Jeremy Camp’s life story in the movie I Still Believe. Directors Andrew and Jon Erwin (the Erwin Brothers) examine the life and times of Jeremy Camp’s life story; pin-pointing his early life with his relationship Melissa Henning as they battle hardships and their enduring love for one another through difficult times. While the movie’s intent and thematic message of a person’s faith through trouble times is indeed palpable as well as the likeable musical performances, the film certainly struggles to find a cinematic footing in its execution, including a sluggish pace, fragmented pieces, predicable plot beats, too preachy / cheesy dialogue moments, over utilized religious overtones, and mismanagement of many of its secondary /supporting characters. To me, this movie was somewhere between okay and “meh”. It was definitely a Christian faith-based movie endeavor (from start to finish) and definitely had its moments, but it just failed to resonate with me; struggling to find a proper balance in its undertaking. Personally, despite the story, it could’ve been better. Thus, my recommendation for this movie is an “iffy choice” at best as some will like (nothing wrong with that), while others will not and dismiss it altogether. Whatever your stance on religious faith-based flicks, I Still Believe stands as more of a cautionary tale of sorts; demonstrating how a poignant and heartfelt story of real-life drama can be problematic when translating it to a cinematic endeavor. For me, I believe in Jeremy Camp’s story / message, but not so much the feature.

#drama #comedy #romance

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