#these reviews are very old now and i've had many more since but I haven't made another post like this
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#50 List of 10 favourite manhwa ><
Hello ^^
Oh my god this time it's really been a very long time since I last wrote 😭. Yesterday I finished the last thing I had left to do from my degree. Now I'm officially graduated!! I'm so happy ><
Also this is post #50 and it's been a whole year since I started this tumblr. So I thought I should make something special. After thinking a bit I thought that I could do a 10 favourite manhwa list. I hope you enjoy it ☺️
First I would like to say that I've had a rough semester so I couldn't read many manhwas. Also, the website I used to read them had some problems and it doesn't update like it used to, so many manhwas that I would have read I couldn't read them.
Most of these manhwas are webtoon, let's start with the overview of the list:
After school for unrippen apples
Act like you love me!
The spark in your eyes
Romance 101
'Til debt do us part
A stepmother's märchen
Carrier falcon princess
Maybe meant to be
A whirlwind campus affair
Twilight poem
And now we'll do a quick review of every manhwa:
1.After school for unrippen apples
It's been several months since I started this manhwa and it has never disappointed me. There is comedy, romance and friendship. The story is set in the 80s and the emotions descripted by all the characters are sublime. If you haven't read it yet, trust me when I say it's wonderful ☺️
2.Act like you love me!
Okay now I bring you a great romcom ! We have a handsome and cute actor and a hardworking woman. Guess what? He falls for her first !! I love that 🥰 It's a very funny manhwa and the story only gets better and better with each chapter.
3.The spark in your eyes
Surprisingly I didn't post about this historical manhwa. The male lead is pharmacist who looks very big but actually has a very good heart. The female lead is the sun witch and as the name sounds she is very powerful. The plot is very interesting and it shows us the point of view and backstory of each character. I really recommend it !
4.Romance 101
It's such a cute and wholesome manhwa ! There are already more than a 100 chapters and yes it is so much worth it ! The romance builds up slowly but it doesn't get boring at all. The main character is very relatable which makes you loving her a lot. Without realizing you get to see the development of all the characters.
5.'Til debt do us part
When I read the manhwa it hadn't been officially translated yet to webtoon. It's a typical "from enemies to lovers". It's not really enemies, it's just that the characters didn't like each other much at first but when they get to really know each other they start catching feelings. I honestly enjoyed reading it a lot ><
6.A stepmother's märchen
This historical manhwa is so beautiful ! The main character is smart and strong. Even if she is young she is able to take care of all the children and give them all the love that they deserve. I can't wait to see how the story will develop. I root for her happiness and love ☺️
7.Cavier falcon princess
This historical manhwa is different but very nice. Lately there hasn't been many updates but the current chapters are great. It focuses more on the war but there is still romance. And I'm sure the romance will be worth the wait !
The next ones that I bring you are newer ones so I'm not sure if I'll keep liking them but for now I'm loving them :)
8.Maybe meant to be
I'm not sure what it is, if the plot, the characters or the art but it I've really taken a liking to it. The female lead is a tomboy but relatable woman. The male lead is a geek but sweet man. And they marry on the first episodes ! It awaits us so much fun 😂. At first I thought that they didn't look very good together but after they start getting to know each other you realize they make a great couple. So give it shot.
9.A whirlwind campus affair
This webtoon has a drama set but oh there is a lot of comedy too. The main character seems weird at first but you realize that she is a strong and nice girl. The art is very beautiful and the characters have secrets that with time they will help solve the mystery that surrounds the story.
10.Twilight poem
This pretty new historical manhwa is absolutely stunning ! The female lead is pitiful and the male lead for now is a jerk. But I'm sure he will end up being a good man. There is also supernatural stuff which makes it pretty cool. I can't wait to see more of this story and to finally see the female lead happy.
These are all the manhwa that I currently love.
Now that I have more free time I'll try to post a bit more.
I hope that you are alright ☺️
Bye bye ❤️
PS. I spent hours making the post and it got deleted so I had to do it all over again 😟. It was hard but anyway I hope you enjoy it ☺️
#manhwa#manhwa recommendation#webcomic#webtoon#comics#after school lessons for unripe apples#act like you love me#the spark in your eyes#romance 101#til debt do us part#a stepmother's marchen#cavier falcon princess#maybe meant to be#a whirlwind campus affair#twilight poem
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maybe it's a little bit early but i'm ready to do the Review and Reflection of my 2022!!
where the past two years were very static years for me with only subtle changes (yes there's a pandemic but i still had to go to work and it all blended together into a soup), THIS year set off the rube goldberg machine of Theo Quit His Job To Move To Sweden And Started Watchmaker School. SO YEAH i think i can make a list again >:)
- I QUIT MY HOTEL RECEPTIONIST JOB THANK FUCKING GOD!! on one hand, i've been incredibly glad to have had the income and stability, especially during a pandemic even though holy fuck i sure had to go to a public facing job during a pandemic, and there were many aspects of my job that i genuinely enjoyed, and i felt quite good at it. that said, thinking about my job now triggers a spike of anxiety through my brain, and i was planning to quit sometime already last year. all of my good and cool coworkers quit shortly before me and i had to train all the new ones (including the new manager!) and i hope i never have to work at a hotel ever again or interact with cops that much. i gave myself so many headaches trying to accomodate all the guests to the best of my very limited abilities - there's only so much i can do with old building inaccessibilities (the elevator didn't even go to the top floor) (most of the bathroom doors were not wide enough for wheelchairs) (COULDN'T WE AT LEAST BUY SOME SHOWER STOOLS?) and the lack of AC. and while my wages were livable enough, i don't think i got paid nearly enough to compromise my personal morals and ethics on a regular basis. that's capitalism for you i guess. ANYWAY GLAD TO BE OUT OF THERE
- i got into watchmaker school!!!!!! i was looking into this and preparing for it already last year, trying to figure out what to DO and where to GO, and it's a huge relief to me that i actually got in!!! a new and exciting step for whatever my future will turn out to be!! :D
- as a result i didn't only move out of my town but out of my country. for now. but now i get to live in an itty bitty garage-turned-house by myself and it's WONDERFUL. this is my first time living entirely by myself!!! i love it!!!!!! yes i will have to temporarily move out in the summers when the houseowner wants to use the space as a tourist season airbnb, but getting to be in control of my own environment is very healing and affirming to me. i spent so much of my teenage/early adult years thinking i'll never be able to handle adult life, but here i am!! thriving!!!!! i am more self sufficient and capable than i ever thought i'd be!!!
- my summer was incredibly chaotic due to all of the moving out and moving in and uncertainty of whether i'd get into school or not et cetera, BUT i did get to visit the czech republic again for the first time since december 2019. it was good to see my family and my childhood best friend again.
- i got to meet several close friends i haven't gotten to see in person for a long time. i got to spend some good quality time with friends i lived close to, as well (that i now miss so so much). i made some new friends that are very dear and important to me.
- i got really super into S & D tier this year, and my brainworms have calmed their wrigging since i've been busy with school and all these other life things, but it's such a wonderful series that i'm absolutely thrilled to have discovered. it even got me making fanfic, and it felt really good to get back into writing again!!
- i think i got a new tattoo earlier this year? so much has happened since march that it feels like a completely different year! it's also very small compared to all the tattoos i got during 2020 and 2021, but i didn't have much else going for me then. so.
- i wish i had like, anything to report regarding my gender transition, but all i've done has been like... 2? video consultations with the trans clinic? and zero progress? i don't want to think about it too hard because it makes me want to tear my hair out. I'M HANGING IN THERE
TO CONCLUDE. this year has been one of huge changes in my life!! i am thoroughly overwhelmed by it but doing my best to ride the waves!! i am being so so brave and pursuing the things i want to do!!!! every now and then things turn out Good and i have to confront the reality of Sometimes Things Are Very Good and it's a little bit like a blinding light too bright to look at directly, because i'm a little burnt out, i'm lightly toasted, and i'm taking on these big things and trying to change along with them, and it's a lot but ultimately worth it, yes? yes.
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Bungo Stray Dogs Season 3 Anime Review
Includes Spoilers
Now this was a season that covered alot and I loved every minute of it. so far each season I swear gets better and I'm so in love with the plot, characters, everything. I've come along ways from when I first started but think my top 5 stand strong now Chuuya, Akutagawa, Atsushi, Dazai, & Kunikida. Don't get me wrong when Sakunosuke Oda was alive he was my number 4 over Dazai but since he isn't anymore thats my new order based on season 3.
I honestly wasn't expecting to like the show down between the two factions with Yukichi Fukuzawa versus Ōgai Mori. I haven't once ever cared for Mori and even in this season I still don't. Its not like he wouldn't be a good character however he is so stuck on his daughter with her powers saving his filthy ass. I just read over this character and seems like its not his daughter yet sometimes he calls her his wife... I'm gonna leave it at that cause that just got weirder for me. Like grow some balls dude. Then there is Fukuzawa he oh my god he is a bad ass. His personality to me is like Kunkida you don't see his gentle side right off the bat and he grows on you in time but once he does you can enjoy the character how should have be. When he got killed I was gonna lose my shit so I was happy his death didn't stick.
Up until this season I always felt for Higuchi being in love with Akutagawa but by this season you realize she has a very unhealthy obsession over him not quiet the same. Bot sure where there future can go from here and I really do feel like she is in love with him but sadly I feel like he doesn't think he is worthy of love which is why he shows none to no one more than his sister really. What I don't get is how she couldn't look at gin beside her brother and tell they were siblings I could. Her jealousy streak kicked in and that was the end of that, even to the point she was willing to push Atsushi into dating her to keep her sweet Akutagawa to herself. I feel what you saw in the first season of how she would die for him and how he thanked her I think if he thought more highly of himself he might actually could be accepting of something with her. She is the only one who cares not on what he has done but would be willing to stand by and die by his side.
Now lets take a stroll back to Chuuya and his past as a 15 year old and up. Damn he was hot even as a kid FFS. Anyways so many people ship him with Dazai but by this season if there was a ounce of me that thought it should happened it died here. Now let me explain so you see how they meet and they hate each other from the start. Chuuya is in a mission to take down port mafia for destroying the city he calls home. He works along other kids to do this, however Dazai brings him into Mori and this is where Chuuya's life gets changed. However he still hates them he is willing to work with them to get to a bigger picture in what he sees as a way to still take them down.
Then you have Dazai who goes out of his way to let Chuuya's friends know he is with the mafia now even though he hasn't actually signed on. Dazai is a master manipulator and when Chuuya had his friends try to kill him because they thought he was a traitor Dazai stepped in telling him only if he joins the port mafia will he protect the kids and wipe the rest out so he agrees. Like seriously how can someone ship that bullshit Chuuya is such a better man. Only reason Dazai stays on my list is because he still is a likable character but he has fucked over alot of people. I mean he wonders why Chuuya hates him yes he trusts him with his life but still hates him because after dragging his life into the mafia Dazai just leaves one day without even a word. I will say though I love his attitude from the start its super hot in my book.
So I'm not a fan of these two together and the fact they ended up at one point because of her powers naked together I just was a bit irritated. She is like a hateful tsundere chick yet always blames him for everything. He is so much better with Kyouka and more chemistry too. Plus even though I know some ship these two its one sided on Lucy. I saw this because time and time again he has showed he would die to protect Kyouka even sleeps in her closet to be by her side. We all know Lucy is selfish she has no issue sacrificing him if need be but Kyoka won't she has time and time again put her life on hold for him as well I think thats why I think they are a healthier ship.
Kyouka and Atsushi are just too cute together and don't get me wrong the closet scene is from the movie I had forgot to mention it but after showing proof him and Lucy should never be together I felt it was necessary to show this when talking about these two ships together. There is nothing else that works for me and I will ship them too the end. Plus I think they need each other like nothing else.
Watching Atsushi struggle with the only man he knew as a father die was heartfelt. I understood why he hated him and why it hurt to even think about however Dazai was right in one thing he said to him that he wouldn't be the man he turned out to be if he hadn't been raised the way he was. Then when he started crying after that made me tear up I love Atsushi his heart is so good he is the cinnamon roll of this show.
Then when they showed Kyouka as a child after watching her parents killed right in front of her broke my heart. Like seconds before it all happened her father was talking about how happy he was to spend more time with his wife and daughter then all this goes down and her life is forever changed.
Watching Kunkida break after watching the child that Fyodor had kill herself in front of him. No matter what this man loves kids and I think would make an absolute great father. Like seriously to me he reminds me alot of Sakunosuke for that with his orphan kids. These men would make the best fathers of all the men on this show. It so hurts to watch him hurt though so I felt for him in this scene.
Ok am I the only one that hates Fyodor like sure he is hot in a psychotic kind of way. I feel like he would be the yandere of this show thats for sure but I don't know he is just heartless I can't like him in any way. Shoot I like Mori more than this son of a bitch. I can see going fourth I'm going to hate seeing him on the show over and over again.
Ok Ranpo taking on Chuuya was pretty hot not gonna lie. Like his attitude his confidence I think the first time I found this man sexy as fuck. I think Chuuya is better but still you go Ranpo bout time you step that sex appeal up.
That moment when Kyouka tries to kill Akutagawa was very memorable but even more so that when she didn't succeed and for the first time he tells her he sees she has changed and found happiness and that he is happy for her. He proved even to her he isn't all bad he does have a heart no matter how much he tries to hide it.
These two fight and tell each other off but in the end they fight well together. I also believe they understand each other way more than they even realize. You even see when he lends him his powers so he can beat the bad guy in the end of this season. He asks why he fights and I guess he liked and respected his answer so instead of them both dying they both fought to survive as they always did. Its funny to see how Atsushi is coddled by Dazai making him better but yet he Dazai was also the man to break both Chuuya and Akutagawa.
#anime#bungou stray dogs#bungo stray dogs#bsd dazai#dazai osamu#bungou stray dogs dazai#akutagawa ryūnosuke#osamu dazai#gin akutagawa#higuchi ichiyo#akutagawa gin#akutagawa ryunosuke#tachihara michizou#Gin Akutagawa#ichiyo higuchi#ryunosuke akutagawa#chūya nakahara#yukichi fukuzawa#tanizaki junichirou#naomi tanizaki#kunikida doppo#doppo kunikida#nakajima atsushi#atsushi nakajima#reviews#anime review#review#season 3 bungo stray dogs#Kyōka Izumi#fyodor dostoyevsky
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Danmachi 19
Author: Fujino Omori
Illustrator: Suzuhito Yasuda
Label: GA Bunko
Release Date: 14 September 2023
My Score: 4/5
English Release: Yen-press is currently releasing this series in English under the title of Is it Wrong to try to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon?.
Note: this edition of volume 19 came with a drama CD that I still haven't had the time to listen to. I'm not the best with just sitting still and listening to something without having anything to stimulate me visually. Hoping to get around to it soon. It seems like it features the Astrea Familia so it should be fun. Maybe I'll write a review of it when I've finished listening to it if it's really good.
This volume starts off with following up on the events of volume 18. We learn what everyone is up to after the war game, with many of the former Freya Familia members now working at the Hostess of Fertility pub. We also get to see a development that I never thought would happen: Lyuu officially joins Hestia Familia. After reuniting with Astrea, she's ready to move on with her life and Hestia Familia is the place where she wants to be. I seriously didn't expect this but it feels like it's been a long time coming. Lyuu being part of the Hestia Familia just feels right. I am disappointed that there were no level ups after last volume though. I really feel like Lili deserved it. I know the level ups are meant to take a long time to happen but Bell levels up far too quickly compared to the rest of the characters.
The main plot of this volume concerns the arrival of the School Grounds*, a ship for students to study all kinds of subjects, including battle. It returns to Orario once every three years and the familia's send a representative there to recruit new members. Thanks to Hermes being up to his old tricks, Bell ends up enrolling in the school under the name Rapi and disguises himself as a rabbit demi-human to get some more experience. There he meets the student Nina Tulle who, along with sharing the same last name, strongly resembles Eina.
It's been a long time since we've had a one volume arc and this is definitely a good breather volume. The new characters were all charming enough, especially Nina, who gets quite a bit of character development and would be a welcome addition to the main cast if she ends up joining it. Aside from being a good breather, this volume also focuses on Bell and it was nice to see just how much Bell has matured since volume 1. Bell's learnt a lot from his experiences and from his friends, and it's nice to see him use those experiences to help the young students. I loved seeing him take on the supporter role in the party, since fighting would surely reveal his true identity. He's able to reflect on what an amazing job Lili does and being a supporter helps him to form strategies for the Hestia Familia as well. Overall, I thought this was a really good follow-up to volume 18 and a perfect way to let the characters breathe before things will surely get hectic soon.
I still have one volume left to read before I've finished the thirteen months of Danmachi releases and that's the new Familia Chronicle volume featuring Lyuu. I'm really looking forward to reading it soon. I've head a lot of fun reading Danamchi this past year. I hope Fujino Omori and the artists are able to get some well deserved rest now. Also, a season 5 for the anime was announced which is very exciting. I hope it gets a similar treatment to season 4 and is a bit longer due to the length of volume 18. I am really excited to hear all of the voice performances for that arc, especially Minori Inase's.
*the wiki calls it the "School District" but as there is no official English release of the volumes where it features yet and I called it the "School Grounds" in my Sword Oratoria 13 review, this is what I'm sticking with for the sake of consistency.
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I started playing Infinity Strash: DRAGON QUEST The Adventure of Dai. It was difficult to get the Switch version running smoothly on my Steam Deck, but at least it runs now... more or less. I'm only a few levels into the second chapter, but that means I've at least seen each type of level. Pretty much everyone is saying this, but the cutscenes are too numerous. The in-engine 3D cutscenes are watchable, but the anime slideshows... As someone who hasn't seen any of the anime incarnations, it's too boring to get into. But even for players who are die-hard fans, wouldn't they hate sitting through the recaps instead of just watching the anime? So who is this game for?!
Anyway, I like the levels where you run along fighting enemies the best. Popp is my favorite to play with his ranged spells. As I saw in a review article, it's a bit hard to know which enemy you're aiming at when there are lots of little ones. I picked Storyteller difficulty because I'm not very good at action games, but maybe I'll increase it later once I get used to the controls. Especially block and dodge, I can never react with the right button to time it perfectly. How I miss my beloved Dragon Quest Treasures! That game had everything. Jump, roll, slash, heal, slingshot. The party member AI in this game is fine, but I wish I could at least direct them to go forth or retreat to me like in Treasures. For Dragon Quest fans deciding between these two recent spinoff games, I can't recommend Treasures highly enough. Even though it's a prequel to DQXI, I had no problems despite not playing that one yet. ANYWAY.
Screenshots under the cut. I hope I unlock the tower of recollection or whatever soon!
The beautiful Dark Forest. It didn't have THAT many textural glitches, but this tree was glowing.
Action shot! Except actually my game froze at this point. Luckily it didn't happen again after restarting my system. I suppose that's actually a feature of this game with short, linear, auto-saving levels: I won't lose much if it crashes. Besides this freeze, I've only had to deal with crashes on the loading screen before I adjusted my settings and some lag during combat, which admittedly can be frustrating at times. Since I picked the easy difficulty level, at least I haven't had any character deaths due to lag. Yet.
The little video player takes me back to the good old days of watching Netflix on my 3DS in 2012 lol. I will say, these segments would be much more tolerable without the ANNOYING GRAINY FILTER CONSTANTLY LOOPING OVER THEM.
I admit that the little party on the loading screen that adds members as you recruit them is cute. I'm prepared to get invested in the friendship of this trio, at least Popp and Maam. I know there's more Avan content in the franchise eventually, but also that this game doesn't even cover the whole story. That can't be all for him in this game, can it?!
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in lieu of a moon cake
aug 29 - sept 11, 2022
where have the ilcb posts been the last four weeks, i hear you cry? well genuinely, the end of summer took me and i wandered out of time and thought. did watch the moon rise rich and golden last night, though, so--on balance--we're doing just fine.
reading finished my ancillary justice re-read this morning and i got so much more out of it the second time, newly attuned to the little differences between this and all the other space opera i've been enjoying. also finished obernewtyn (isobel carmodie), one of the growing list of YA sci/fantasy i'm catching up on using libby. spent a lot of last week reading or what you will, jo walton, which i think i will have more to say about when i finish it, and listening to ann leckie's the raven tower as an audiobook on various commutes-- perhaps not the best medium for it, but the reader's absolutely eating the accent work which does liven things up. i also acquired a romance novel from @dimir-charmer which is Certainly Something, not quite up to the level of some of the classics @pandolfo-malatesta would review but which has made me say out loud 'stop using that word, i do not think it means what you think it means!' every time this poor author tries to call someone 'contemporaries.'
listening so i know we all remember (for better or worse) passenger's 'let her go' from 2013 or whenever, but i have very specific tender feelings and memories attached to that whole album. a recent re-listen, followed by a tour through his recent, extensive new discography (like five albums since i last checked, holy shit), has shown me that i'm not even remotely capable of being objective, but i do think? that none of the new stuff has grabbed me? like it all sounds consistent, it all sounds, uh, the same, and the nuances and things i can pick out in the tracks from all the little lights (2012) or hell even whisper (2014) are just...not discernible (is this just a question of production)(possibly). to quote one of the new songs, uh, it leaves me cold? whereas 'feather on clyde' is still revealing and teaching me new things to get teary-eyed about (this time it was the line 'well god knows that i've failed, but he knows that i've tried'), and just...plus the string duet at the opening of 'things that stop you dreaming,' the way it builds up so, so sweetly, the lyrics taking you by surprise by leaving no breaks or breaths until the chorus, playing with pace and rhythm--still not tired of it.
youtube
watching i spent most of last week cycling between 'sandman', 'doulou continent', and 'oath of love', with a brief detour to the mdzs donghua with @hematiterings as per us-- sandman is good, though i haven't finished it. i got to the death episode and did briefly cry actual human tears about the old violinist and the young honeymooners, only to have the rest of the episode with its chronological humor (reminding me of ep 3 of 'good omens', what with the 'let's put our cast in several different centuries and enjoy what that does to their hair', thank you neilman) give me slight emotional whiplash. the problem with my cdrama habit is that, especially with duolou continent, i've had a hard time believing i've seen as many episodes as i actually have (also viki is...incapable of keeping my place) so i tend to back up to whichever episode number sort of feels right? which means i've seen episodes 11-15 like three times each. at least now i'm getting people's names.
playing finished up summer and fall of year two in stardew, won the grange fair and the ice fishing contest now that it's winter, and just bought a duck! (her name is fern)
making i think the garden is fading, we're still harvesting tomatoes but a lot of the leaves have turned yellow and crinkly, meanwhile the squash (?) vines have all withered except for one, perplexingly round little green squash (?) with a few nibbles out of it courtesy of the neighborhood fauna. when do i pluck it? is it still...getting anything out of being on its vine?
working on *cue panicked laughter* chapter 1! also that presentation / conference paper based on chapter-1-or-possibly-the-old-book-practicum! also that presentation based on chapter-2-or-possibly-chapters-1-and-2-OR-possibly-the-diss-proposal! with all the complaining i've done to various friends and colleagues, its no wonder there's not been any. further writing. distracting myself by insisting on doing things for the incoming students, which has been very fun and diverting since they are cute and much easier to help.
#yup everything's fine#had a nightmare the other day and yes it did involve phd stuff#the more i socialize in places where i have to describe my research the more i realize how much i need to workshop my diss pitch#which is a useful exercise anyway#in lieu of a commonplace book#ilcb#weekly roundup#or in this case#seasonal roundup really
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Review Everything 40 - Barbie
I don't think there's much I can say about this movie that hasn't been said over and over again so I'll boil it down here.
I was expecting the movie to be groundbreaking. People were talking about it as if it had said something that had never been voiced before, had a true revelation in it.
And I can see how that would be true for people who haven't been wading through internet Feminism like I have been for the last decade plus. It's nice that lots of people found a sentiment that they thought was private being voiced, I can see how that would be very powerful for them. For me, it was just the biggest stage these things had most recently been shouted on. But I do recognize that it's important that these sentiments make their way into pop culture, so that they're more accessible.
It's not that I didn't find some moments in the movie deeply touching. I cried when Hari Nef popped on screen the first time. The scene were Barbie sees an old woman for the fist time, that "You're Beautful."/"I know it." Interaction, that's making me tear up as I write this. "What Was I Made For" is a song I've been avoiding listing to since the movie came out because damn does that shit cut deep. I don't know if it's Billie's soft voice reminding me of my mentor and the hours she spent playing When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We All Go, or being just the right age, or being Queer in a world where there aren't life goals laid out for us, or rounding out the last fresh arc of a truly awful experience of getting dumped by someone I thought was my soulmate, but man that song wasn't a gut punch, it was a face slap. Shocking, unexpected, painful, personal.
Like I said, it wasn't as if parts of the movie didn't touch me deeply, but they were balanced out by many conversations I found pat and shallow. "I'm a real woman now, which means I have acquired a vag, which you must apparently have to be a real woman, off to the gyno I go." Ugh.
It was too bad the movie was so binary. I understand that the movie is based on Barbie and in the world of that toy, so far as I know, there are just men and woman, and the movie struggled to balance tackling men's issues on the side of woman's issues. But as a non-binary person the movie saying "being a man is hard, and being a woman is hard" "this is what it's like for a man in our world, and how it's different for a woman" and not having really experienced either of those things? Felt like two people having a conversation that was not meant for me, like I was eavesdropping.
The clothes were really fun. Waiting for the movie was fun too, the marketing was excellent.
Writing this I realize I'm just not the audience this movie was made for. And like, that's okay, but Barbie was really important to me as a kid. The dolls, and the dress up CD game where you could print out clothes after you designed them for the dolls, were one of the earliest things that got me into fashion, something very important to me now.
In Summary: The movie wasn't bad, it just didn't have anything novel to say about the statements the movie rode on, despite a few tear jerker scenes. Very pretty to look at for about half of it, though.
Overall: 6/10
#review everything movies#review everything#review#spoilers#the barbie movie#barbie#fandom#not queued
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Rejoice! Salvation Is Free, Just Accept Jesus Into Your Life Today!
Wow, hello!
I'm going to make an example of you since you've so kindly wandered into my asks. I'm 99% sure that this is either a bot or some sort of copy/paste, but heck, you've given me a unique opportunity.
I've wanted to talk about my experiences with faith and religion (separate things) for a while now, but haven't really been able to think of a reason to bring it up. Of course I don't NEED a reason, but it's just one of those things that's not very fun to just drop on people unannounced. So, without further ado, please make sure you read this post slowly and carefully, as I don't intend to repeat myself.
I am an ex-xtian who has good faith in xtians regardless of my trauma. (xtian = abbreviation of christian)
This is to say, I myself do not have any good faith left untoward xtianity as a whole. I believe that the organized religion in itself is corrupt from the core, and has effectively lost sight of what truths it actually has within itself in favor of worldly pursuits and powers. What I have good faith in, however, is xtian people who actually practice what their holy texts preach. There are xtian people who do this, and as a former xtian, I know exactly what I'm looking for when it comes to this assessment.
So, if there are any xtians among my tumblr followers here, (especially queer ones), I'd like to kindly request your attention, because I am hoping that you will find this post refreshing in terms of non-xtians having reviews/critiques of the behavior of xtian things, as opposed to yet another queer post about how religious trauma has made them a hater of xtians and xtianity (which most of the time, if I may be frank, are valid).
If you are to follow the teachings of Yeshua of Nazareth, the "Christ", the "Messiah", you are to fully disregard the teachings of the old testament as little more than old lessons; perhaps looking to them as guides, but no more as religious law. As he has said, the old is done away with. "I am the new word/law." depending upon your translation of the verse, at least.
This is to say... there are many xtians that seem to ignore this in favor of using ancient text to support their shitty world views. As a person who has read the bible cover to cover twice, -and took notes-, I can tell you for certain that there are just... SO many verses I am tired of hearing upon the lips of bigoted xtians who want to use their religious practice as a sheepskin to cover their hateful ways in some sort of 'valid' excuse. But we've all dealt with that at one time or another as queer people.
No, the folks that are fine in my book are the ones that read the damn book for themselves, or absorb the information in some way that is not some prewritten adventure guide (bible study). This isn't to say that xtians who haven't or can't read the bible in its entirety aren't "real" xtians or something, but I mean to say that if you ever get the chance to, you really should, because it'll really help you fully understand what the faith aught to be about and what you, as a xitian, aught to focus on as a xtian. Not to mention... Lutherans literally fought for your right to be able to READ the damn thing, since catholics were absolutely fine with the arrangement of hoarding the knowledge to themselves so they could take advantage of the message and use that power to manipulate the masses, so fucking read it? (Lutherans of course are not based or perfect in any way, Martin Luther himself was hellishly racist and had all kinds of problematic takes, but you know what I mean).
So, little bot or random copy/paster, this is me telling you outright that no, I will not be accepting any saviors into my heart, yada yada. I had at one time done that whole song and dance, and I paid my nickle to the cause. I've read the book twice, I've studied, I know what I'm doing in terms of saying, "No, I don't believe this to be the one and only truth in the world." and so I am an ex-xtian, and will happily remain so.
And I had momentarily considered making this response into some sort of short, throw-away dunk on xtians with a meme or something, but I decided instead to make a long-form statement so I hopefully don't have to do it ever again. And if any of you have read this far down, thanks, first of all! I know this is a long one.
I have not yet read the book, but if there are any xtians among my followers, I want to recommend the book "Christians Against Christianity" by Obery M. Hendricks Jr. as a little side-study you can conduct. I think you'll find it refreshing to see that people within your own faith are just as disenfranchised with it as you may be at times, but that there is of course, hope. "Hope," I say, for xtians who actually practice the faith instead of using it as a thinly veiled excuse to be bigoted fuckwads to others.
So, finally, this is my overall message I wish to convey:
I am not xtian, and will never again be xtian. If I identify as anything, I am an omnist (not omnitheist, it's different); I believe that there are truths and wisdoms that can be found among all faiths, and so I aim to instead study all faiths as a way to better understand my fellow humans, humanity, and my own understanding of the world as a whole. I wish good fate upon anyone who practices something in its entirety, but I also deeply encourage others to study other faiths if ever you find yourself not understanding something. Ask questions. Look deeper. For example, there are just so many people who have thoughts and opinions on Judaism and Islam without having even once looked into what these faiths are about at their cores, so... you know, go and read about them? Learn? Be a good neighbor, damn you.
If folks have more specific questions they want to ask me, feel free! But I will not be making any more posts in regards to folks trying to evangelize me via motherfucking tumblr anon. Lmfao
-Admin (Cake/Arthur)
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Hi, I have a question regarding the books you read each month. Do you buy the books, or rent them from a library? If you do buy them, do you always make sure you're going to like the book, or do you just find a book with an interesting summary and hope for the best? I'm asking this because I'm amazed at how you're able to find and read so many books, while I can only read a book or two in a month because it's difficult to find something that piques my interest, and even then I rarely buy the book in fear I'll get tired of it and never read it again.
Hi!
It is definitely a mix!
I try and see if anything I'm looking for will be at my nearest library locations but sometimes it's limited or the newer releases are all checked out. A lot of the time I can find the manga I'm looking for at the library which is nice! Especially because buying a series could mean like 20+ volumes, and I go through them so fast it can be a bit of a bummer if the manga was just okay. (I read Ouran all from the library and then desperately bought the volumes I didn't have because I wanted to read them forever)
As for purchasing - I try to buy from smaller independent publishers if I can! It's more of a recent development, but I like the overall approaches of Tilted Axis, Honford Star, maybe New Directions Publishing enough to think 'I will be able to finish this, it will be worthwhile'. Perhaps some New York Review Books too.. but that doesn't mean they're all winners!! I follow a few translators and like to see what they're reading lol!! I think that's it.. after 1 or 2 examples of thinking 'I trust your taste' I'll pick up anything they mention even if just to look into it.
I like to get all other sorts of novels from a store if possible!! same for indie comics. Attention-span wise I get a bit distracted reading a 600+ page comic unless it's right there in paper form.
It is hard though... very annoying to buy a book and then have it collect dust... I think I try to read previews if they're available!! Maybe for 5-10 pages just to see if I can get into the voice, whatever it may be. Maybe it'll be slow or maybe the plot won't be incredible but will each word be an uphill battle to read? or will it flow easily enough? If at the library I might sit and read a few pages before checking it out to see if I can commit to it. Since they're rarely time sensitive I usually just go with what sounds interesting right now and sometimes read a bundle of related things or return to something I like or a new release from an author I admire, but overall try to shake it up a little...
I have a few friends whose recommendations I trust!! That usually accounts for a lot of the choices. I like to keep up with the Booker Prize nominees and a few other literary prizes - I haven't bought them all, but I like to see what's on the list and read the summaries and previews and decide if I want to buy them.
I think... at least if it's not for an assignment or you're not particularly trying to research for something - reading should be fun!!! whatever that means to you! I have a fun time reading old Greek tragedies or contemporary novels or shonen manga but I think if something feels like pulling teeth to read it's just not worth it! not worth reading or buying lol...
But I also think it's a bit like a muscle... and I definitely had to work up my reading stamina (still working on it... it's gone down this summer lol) I like to read something fun - like Percy Jackson lol, as almost a palate cleanser? to get the ball rolling, and then refreshing, up-tempo novels in the 150-300 page range, read some comics, and then maybe throw in a 700 pager in there. But personally, I need to mix it up or I'll just get sleepy!!
Of all the books in all those forms, some were from the library, some purchased in stores (I live by Skylight Books now - which is awesome!! I've never lived by a bookstore like that so close except for one year in college lol!) and some were ordered online - usually Bookshop or Thriftbooks or the publisher directly (I don't like to buy from Amazon if I can find a book anywhere else).
So it's a bit of testing the water? Word of mouth? Still, there are certainly flops... I'm trying to reduce the ratio though, and I really read them all to the end even if they're not my favorite. (Literally only one book on my shelves remains unfinished and it is The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James) but I try to give them to friends or sell them lol!!
#sorry this is wandering and confusing and not really a clear answer!!! but... i think about it a lot#went to bookstore just this morning and had the whole 'is this worth buying?? what do I get for the month! now or later?' etc etc crisis...#i think i have slowly figured out what I like and keep expanding that net but it's all trial and error...#if something is painful though just drop it...
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Release week craziness and lessons learned
What a week!
The Accidental Summoning went live on Tuesday and is now available on KU and paperback. Yay!
Release weeks are absolutely bonkers. Like most indie authors, I don't have a PA (sobs how I wish I did) and so all the marketing and promo is down to me.
Of course, I fucked up several times.
First of all, I was trying to finish my reader magnet (the short story that you use to get people to sign up to your newsletter). I had to get it done since I had linked to it at the back of the book, but I had decided to make this book into a series so I had to change what happened in that short. It was a flurry of writing and editing to get that done on time, but of course, then I had to set up the newsletter automation.
I've only just created a newsletter. I'm new to using Mailerlite but I plodded through and was sure I'd figured it all out.
I had not.
After you create the automated message and set up all the rules for it, apparently you have to then turn it on. Alas, I did not see this step. I only figured it out because last night I figured I'd torture myself and visit Goodreads to see some of the reviews (since I haven't had many on Amazon). One of the reviews mentioned how they'd not been able to access the story and how annoying it was that authors make people sign up to newsletters to access those short stories, etc etc.
And I realised that my little mistake, of making it almost impossible to find the short, has potentially lost me readers of the series. Because it wasn't until feedback from ARC readers that I found there was some desire for me to continue, I hadn't mentioned in the book that it would be a series. I do, however, state in the short that I will be turning this into a series and that there will be more.
The short is now available on my website and FB page as well for people to find it easier. You can also get it here if you want to read it, but it does happen after the events of the book so you'll want to read that first.
I also fucked up a few times with formatting on scheduled FB posts. Some of it was issues with links (apparently the links don't work if you've copied and pasted from another post). I've also found that for some reason, the paragraph spacing used in the draft doesn't always work once the post is scheduled. I have no idea why and it's annoying as all hell because when the post goes live, you just have a wall of text, like an 11-year-old's first AO3 fic.
Anyway, these are things I shall fix and keep in mind for next time. If I've learned from the process, that's what counts, yeah?
I very briefly got into the top 100 of New Releases in Gay Romance and so that was very exciting, getting a glimpse of how the big kids play. I've been booted down the order to the kiddie table since, but that's okay. I wasn't expecting anything huge from this release. It was a lovely little bonus.
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Wintering DisconTENt
One of these finally fell on a day off. i mean, that has happened in the past too; i just haven't always seized the opportunity? i am so tired.
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One of the biggest disappointments if the servers stay shuttered is that i never archived chronos' Demo series. i've got an old review of Demo (LittleBite-sizedPlanet 07/21/19 episode 144b), and we've played the three levels comprising it on stream many, many times; but i don't have dedicated LBsA episodes for them. This eats at me more than i care to admit, and i care to admit probably more than i generally ought.
As for D???, it's a very solid look at what Demo would have looked like if all of chronos' plans had come to fruition. We see a number of enemy types that come up later, and the bullet spreads, as well, will be repurposed. i really liked the way this one hits some of the main platforming gameplay biomes of Chapter Zero; it's a really neat look, and lets us see a bit more of them than we otherwise might have. i do note that we don't see Episode 0.2. Maybe chronos felt as wibbly about that one's look as i did.
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And wrapping up Chapter Zero we have some cut content. It was really neat getting hands-on look into chronos' thought process wiv these. They're both pretty neat, but i can see why they eventually got scrapped. Episode 0.1(5) is just so very busy, and winds up being a lot more aggravating than fun, and while the gameplay in 0.3 is solid, it's got a poppiness to it that doesn't mesh all that well wiv the tone of the other parts of the Adventure.
i will point out, once again, that chronos has a lot of behind the scenes footage up on his YouTube
and they really make for a fascinating look into the brainmeats of an amazing creator. Am i selling chronos a little hard? i dunno. Maybe? i'll stand by every word tho'.
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Ahhh LBP2, when everyone had a whole-ass passel of OCs, and couldn't wait to show them off to everyone. So... i guess tumblr wiv platforming? That probably reads snarky, and i really don't intend it to; i love seeing folx's characters, and being able to interact wiv them in the limited way that LBP provided was always a hoot.
i knew picked-punk from around this time, tho' we've long since been out of touch. My vague memories were of his being a pretty decent chap, and that i had a good time interacting wiv him. Wonder what he's up to these days. Hopefully nice things.
Awesome Gingers' Cardboard Garden (that misplaced apostrophe honestly bugs the heck out of me, but it's in the original, so i have to assume it was intended) is a fun, and pretty expansive metaplatformer(?). Maybe not meta, exactly, but directly referencing that there are Creator Curators (us) who are making all these community levels. i really liked when levels could play wiv that membrane, and still manage to pull off being enjoyable from a mechanical "i am a player interacting wiv this through gameplay mechanics" sense. i've played a lot that were just up their nose in the pretense, and kinda forgot someone would be experiencing this.
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i really, really enjoyed this one; even if sometimes it could be a little difficult to track just where it wanted me to go next. Continuing wiv the conceit that this is Ginger's creation means that the level doesn't need to be completely tethered to making a cohesive environment, so you wind up wiv "realistic" setpieces strung together wiv more abstracted pure platforming bit, and that's always been a style i've enjoyed.
Fun fact, but the Yellow Sign sticker you can just see in the upper-right of the title card here? i made that. pickled-punk and i had done a sticker trade, and i used one of his stickers (now sadly lost) for a trigger in my Bloomin' Oni-ons level. i still wonder what that was supposed to get you. Probably a bunch of scorebubbles.
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i am so glad i went back and grabbed this one. We'd played it on stream, and i had such a blast wiv it. Straight-forward, and not super-challenging, but extremely high on the charm scale, and all around a smooth, fun experience. Cookietovar put together some extremely solid platforming-for-platforming's-sake-but-still-enjoyable-to-look-at platformers, and i really should have given them more archive space. At least we got Roasting Oranges 2; that one was also a delight.
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All three of these use a Mr Beaver Says No sticker switch, and for the life of me i could not figure out where the hell the trigger was. i'll tell you it bugged the living hell out of me, tho'. If i had to guess, and that's really all i can do, it probably triggered some form of fast travel, maybe a tetherless jetpack, to let Qugz get to the different setpieces quickly in Play Mode and making sure they were running properly. Wiv levels as expansive as these, getting to a specific point in them would be a lot; and wiv resetting logic being as fiddly as it was, Create Mode testing could be a real chore.
All the Maxed out levels are chock-a-block wiv neat ideas and mechanical bits, and really push the envelope on what we could get done in LBP1. Wiv the downside being they are fragile as all get out, and there was a lot of b-roll footage left on the cutting room floor of "ope, this bit is irreparably broken from some unexpected physics interaction, guess i'll have to play the whole damned thing over." i know we give the changes in engine and physics moving into LBP3 a lot of shite (some of it deservedly, but let's face it, the move from LBP1 to 2 didn't do a tonne of favours to some of the old levels either), but levels like these are a good reminder that things could just as easily get breaky as fuck in native LBP1; you can see how Qugz has included workarounds in the vehicles sections, so those bits must have broken so consistently that even they recognized there was a problem, but not enough of a problem to scrap the concept entirely.
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We just talked about this one a couple of days ago. Are you telling me you've already forgotten a couple of days ago? i mean, fair enough. i have too. Don't feel too bad about it. But, like, do me a favour and just scroll back to Friday so i don't have to repeat myself?
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Honestly? i kind of thought this one would do slightly better numbers. i know it was, by design, up for only a short window, but, like, it was on the heels of A Totally Reasonable Response (sitting at around 750-ish plays when the servers went down, and still getting plays on a relatively consistent basis). The last check put this one at something like 12, and i don't know how the LBP algo worked, clearly. Maybe it was the totally pants level badge. i was a bit pressed for time getting it published.
The fortune teller was a lot of fun in concept. i actually wrote out those kanji myself using the Move lolipop, and either my hands have gotten shakier, or it's a lot harder to get a straight line, and i just forgot. The actual logic behind it was a super pain in the arse, tho'. Originally it was set up to be just a one shot, and whatever fortune you got, that was it. The problem was, it would only show "Worst Luck;" something fucky wiv how i had the randomizer set up, i guess. In the end i had to do it so you could get multiple fortunes, and just leave it to the players' good will that they would only try it once.
i really liked the little environmental pieces, and was keeping them around to use in an actual level-level, but who knows how likely that'll be given the state of things right now.
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So. The penultimate(? maybe?) TENspot. Some really good levels in there. It'll be a shame if no one gets a chance to play them again.
i was doing the edits for b-roll on LittleBite-sizedPlanet 292 last night, and it really started to settle in that this might be one of the last times i do that, and it made me feel all kinds of ways. Yeah, not really that much more to say about it. Or at least not anything i really want to unpack right now. Just feeling pretty bummed out.
Gonna see a friend today, and we're going to a protest, which is one of those "good things to do, but i really wish we didn't have to do it" kind of deals.
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Matilda is Still the Ultimate Comfort Movie
I think we all know the story of Matilda by now, we've all either seen the movie or read the book and I think there's even a musical out now. The Matilda book by Roahl Dahl was one of my favorite books growing up and I remember reading it whenever I could, I took it out at 3 different libraries 3 different times. I haven't read it since then so it would be pointless for me to try to compare the two using solely memories and I've got no time to read a Roahl Dahl book right now, I'm supposed to be reading Aristotle's essays on rhetoric. So I'm only going to be talking about the movie which also happens to be one of my favorite movies of all time. From when I first saw it up until now when given an option of what movie to watch I'd pick Matilda if it was an option. For family movie night when deciding what movie to watch, my sister always picks Breakfast Club and I always pick Matilda.
This movie earns its classic status for being unconventional. A lot of movies place their emphasis on family, biological family to be specific and most movies or TV shows push the message that you're stuck with your family whether you like it or not. This is very narrow-minded, there are many reasons why someone would not want to be apart of their biological family. Even my favorite movie of all time, Back to the Future, pushes this message but there will be no criticism of Back to the Future on this blog. Even though I come from a very loving household and feel no need to leave my family, I like to imagine that this movie provides some comfort to someone out there with unfavorable familial circumstances, I like to think that someone out there watched it and thought that everyone would turn out ok in the end. Matilda places an emphasis on found family and we all know the found family trope but where would that trope be without Matilda. I don't think Matilda invented this trope but it did put it out there and I think this movie deserves some credit for that.
I have mentioned that the found family trope is probably the main reason why this lives on as a classic comfort film but there's many more reasons why I love this movie. As a kid, when I first watched Matilda, it changed the chemistry in my brain and I'm still witnessing the repercussions of this chemical change. The specific clip that altered the hardwiring of my brain was this :
Imagine being like 10 or 11 and seeing Miss Honey for the first time. When I rewatched this movie, I saw Miss Honey again and realized that she was my type and she's only my type because as an 11 year old I watched Matilda. I think most of us had a crush on Miss Honey as kids or hell, even now.
Anyway, the review must go on as Douglas Walker (nostalgia critic) once said. I still have to talk about the weirdness of it all. Why were adaptations of children's books so dreamlike almost or even children's movies in general. There was a specific time period in the 90s and 2000s where all children movies felt Lynchian and we just watched them like there was nothing wrong with it. I guess it's supposed to be creative and from the perspective of any child watching at home. It's a bit of a shame though, now most kid's movies are just copy paste and I know most of the strange, fever dream 90s nostalgia movies were bad and terrible but they weren't bad to me, this movie certainly isn't bad and any of the other movies that I grew up with that have rotten tomatoes scores below 30 aren't bad either. Maybe the critics are looking at it the wrong way but then again, I've never trusted Rotten tomatoes critics. I encourage all creativity in art, even if nobody likes it, atleast it's creative and making you form opinions about it. Not that movies today lack creativity but rather there's an emphasis on the safer option and the more creative alternatives are pushed out of the spotlight. I just watch this movie and all I can think about is how much I miss movies like it.
I guess I should close this review now. Watch Matilda, even if you've seen it, watch it again.
Thank you for reading my incoherent ramblings, I should change my username to RamblinEvilShroom but that's beside the point. The point is that I'm still getting into the groove of reviewing stuff and it's kinda difficult having all these thoughts and ideas and formatting that into a review. I have written movie reviews in the past but they weren't good and I'm unhappy with my writing, especially after that Pikmin review because I'm so proud of my Pikmin review. I know that's the standard now and I'm going to shoot there for all my reviews moving forward.
Next time, I want to do like an overview of my night as a waiter because it was an experience. I also have a few plans in future but it's not concrete enough to mention yet.
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2, 4, 5, 7, 11
2. What was the film that scared you the most?
There are a few, actually, but I think 28 Weeks Later takes the cake, considering how much it affected me irl. I mean, I never even watched it (still haven't), but the clips I've seen + the plot description was enough to make me:
a) be afraid of the English countryside and its small villages. Like. the way they look? this was because of that one scene where main guy runs away from the horde of zombies (I mean "infected"). and since they get to London later in the movie, my view of London ALSO got tainted... which is saying something, since I was a bit of an anglophile back then. Just. the entirety of Great Britain was something I didn't even wanna THINK about for a couple years at least. all because 28 Weeks Later takes place there.
I've gotten over it NOW, but I'm not exaggerating about the sheer amount of time that took me, lmao
b) be afraid of disturbed's song "down with the sickness". why? because I watched a fanvideo someone had made about the movie with that song playing over the clips. this sucks because I loved that song back then too, but for a while I just couldn't listen to it, cause it'd make me all anxious, lol. (good song choice tho because the tension and rage in that song fits so well, it seems to be almost made for this movie)
Here's some honorable mentions of movies that scared me a lot, also on a more.... profound level: The Mist, Dawn of the Dead (1978), Evil Dead (the original, obviously)
4. What film is TERRIBLE but you love it?:
BIRDEEEEMIC, DON'T YOU FUCKIN' FORGEEEEET IT!!!! I would say The Room too, but in its defense, The Room at least had some production value, whereas Birdemic..... uh. you know.
5. What is the film you once loved but watching it now you realize it’s terrible?
Hmm, tough one. Overall, I don't really subscribe to that whole argument that some movies don't "age well". I'm like who cares? Everything made this year is also gonna look laughable in the future, so please Sit Down, lol.
I think the only movie I can think of that comes close in this case though, is the Dungeons and Dragons-movie from 2000. I remember thinking it was so cool back when we first watched it, but years later when I saw a review of it, I realized how dorky it was. I used to be scared of Jeremy irons' character when I was a kid (kind of in a "Noooo why is he so weird?? I don't like it :(" way), until I saw the review later in life and realized he wasn't scary at all, just funny
7. What is the sexiest film?
The Hitcher (1986) of course!! (irdk)
11. What’s the worst film you’ve ever seen?
It would be low-hanging fruit to pick a movie that was meant to be bad, so I won't choose Sand Sharks for this one. No, I feel like trashing Sweden's equivalent to Lars von Trier in terms of ego and pretentiousness; Ruben Östlundh...
You see, his movie The Square wasn't very good. Sure, it LOOKED good, but other than that, it was just a big old nothing of a movie. Just like Michael Bay's Transformers-movies, the pretty visuals serve to distract the viewer from the fact that beneath it, the movie has no substance; no message. The lights are on but no one's home.
The Square had nothing but unlikeable characters who's motivations were unclear and who's relationships never felt believable. There were so many red herrings put in place that made you think they had significance, but ended up amounting to nothing. Like-- imagine a movie built up of moments like that? That's The Square. Pretty much nothing gets resolved, and when something happens that makes you think that "OMG that's messed up! this has gotta be the turning point that delivers the movie's message!", then I'm sorry to say this but nope. Not even big, supposedly significant scenes wind up leading anywhere.
Main guy accidentally pushes a kid down a staircase bc the kid was annoying him? Whooaaa what's gonna happen? Will the kid die? Will main guy apologize?? Answer: after fighting with himself abt it for a while, main guy decides to go to the kid's place and apologize (kid survived), but oops the kid and his parents have moved away now. That's literally where that plot point ends.
Not even the movie's Big Moment selling point; the ape-man scene, truly leads anywhere, which is too bad because that scene was easily the most interesting one. But nah, the guy just acts like an ape, making everyone laugh at first until he starts to push the limits and the audience gets more uncomfortable. Were lessons learned? Was there a point? DOESN'T MATTER LOL OH RUBEN ÖSTLUNDH U SO QUIRKY 🥴
So yeah. I was NOT impressed, lol
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Where I've Been/What's Next
Warning: the following post is very long and if you don't want to read it, I don't blame you. But for the best understanding of what's been going on and those who really want to know I suggest reading. If not, tldr is included below.
tl;dr: I've grown as a person, my content should reflect that. I'm deleting stuff eventually, so not goodbye but I'll see you all around! 💕
So if it hasn't been painfully obvious, I've not actually done anything here in a long time. I've been wanting to write or say something about it for a while now but was too afraid to say anything until now.
I genuinely don't want to post here anymore. It's a combination of a lot of things honestly. Ranging from the community itself, lack of inspiration, my own perfectionism, interest straying, etc. I could talk for hours about all those things but what it really boils down to is something I knew all that time ago when I first started typing this post months ago that I was too afraid to admit to myself then. I've outgrown this chapter of my life. It's not to say I think I'm too old for Sims or Tumblr or anything like that, I'll certainly still be here. But I have outgrown what this phase of my life represented.
When I first joined Tumblr, and then later simblr, I was only 14. I had a hard time making friends, had a tumultuous home life, and was severely depressed. I desperately needed a place to express myself and this place was it. And this space did just that for many years. I meet some amazing people, created stories I still cherish, Sims I cringe and laugh at, and grew as a person. But for the past year or so, I haven't been able to do that here anymore. Part of that is the community changing itself but what I've realized is most of my issue is that I've changed to.
I'm now 21, I'm confident in who I am more so than ever (still working on it), navigating my first healthy relationships both platonically and romantically, about to graduate college, and learning to be my authentic self. For more context, I was diagnosed with bipolar type 2 at the beginning of 2020 and ever since then learned more and more about myself and my true identity. From realizing my own pansexuality and suppressed trauma to trusting myself and learning what I truly want, I'm a very different person from that 14 year old girl who started here. And that's a good thing that I should celebrate and embrace, not push away in fear. Within this journey, I've learned to be more open and honest not only so I can love those around me properly, but also myself. And part of that is being honest here too by saying, my heart just isn't in this anymore, at least not the way it was. The way I desire to tell stories, the stories I want to tell, the characters I want to portray, everything is different because I'm different.
So what does that mean for anemoiasim? Well, right now nothing. I still have my final semester to finish and don't have a lot of time to spare right now to do much else other than studying and try and keep up. But during this time and afterwards I plan on deleting everything that I no longer resonate with including my legacy and any story before novelty. Novelty is a story I still enjoy but I want to review it and see if this is truly the best home for it. It's incredibly long in terms of telling it here so I'm not sure if I'm up to that task if I'm being completely honest and even so I think I might need to do some tweaking. Then, I want to delve into making the spin off from Novelty. It's a bit of a passion project at this point that I honestly have more pinned down after about 2 years of planning in my mind, Pinterest, and writing. It's shorter, more accurate to my current self, and tackles subjects that are close to my heart.
All in all, this isn't a goodbye like I had feared a couple months ago, but a new era. A new, happier, healthier, me that I can't wait to share with you all who've watched me grow the most and I hope continue too.
Love you all,
Savannah 💕
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PERKS OF DATING A YOUNGER GUY I LEARNED AFTER WATCHING CHINESE DRAMA FIND YOURSELF + REVIEW!
1. He has less baggage
This means that he has more time to attend to your needs and wants unlike an older guy with a demanding schedule and lots of responsibilities at hand.
2. He's more open-minded and adventurous
They are open to having new experiences and won't judge you for veering off the path you should stay on.
3. He's infectiously energetic *ehem*
Need I say more? A younger guy's youthful sense will surely find unimaginable ways to impress you!
4. He puts you on a pedestal
A younger man will appreciate your maturity and experiences and will admire you for it. They're also most likely take advice from you without letting it bruise their ego.
5. He'll make you feel young
Be prepared to relive the fun parts of your younger years with him.
It's not so wrong to say that the May-December relationship is taboo, especially among Asians. Most people I know had this inkling that when a younger guy hooks up with a woman way older than him, it could prolly mean one of two things — the guy's a paramour or she's a sugar momma. I'm honestly not a fan of it either on the premise that women mature faster than men. Let's be real, an immature relationship is a disaster. But now that I'm in my late 20s, and a hopeless romantic single at that, I kinda pondered over this. It suddenly occurred to me, what if one day I’m caught up in the position of being pursued by a younger man? Will I let the stigma affect me emotionally? Or will I take the risk ‘coz all is fair in love? I still don’t have a definite answer to this question. However, watching Find Yourself served as an eye-opener for me to look at things from a different perspective.
Find Yourself is a 2020 Chinese drama starring Song Wei Long and Victoria Song. It tells the story of a 32-year old Executive Director who never *even once* experienced dating. Given her age and career stability, she receives constant pressure from the people around her to find someone to marry and has since frequented blind dates arranged by her family, friends, or colleagues. But this girl is just someone who swears by the "spark" - no spark, then no point to the relationship. She may be old for fantasizing over first love and such, but she still yearns that it'll naturally come to find her someday. Until her thirst for real romance is quenched by a 22-year-old guy who started working as an intern in her company at his brother’s request.
Although hesitant at first due to their huge age difference and the societal views, she went out with him on the condition that they'll keep it a secret for the first 3 months. If everything went well, she agrees to publicize her relationship with him.
Let’s start off with the good things...
I just can't with this drama...! This so beautiful, cute, relatable - especially for a woman in late 20s like me.
Plot-wise, it was well-imparted and makes perfect sense, touching a looooooot of relationship aspects in 41 episodes. Not only did I enjoy the happenings between our main couple, but our side couples' stories are very interesting too.
This drama pretty much straightened out my prejudice about age-gap relationships.
Light-hearted, just the way I like it! Every episode will make you smile and/or laugh hard.
Sexual tensions overload and superb kissing scenes! Let those hormones rush in. Not awkward to watch 'coz They. Did. Not. Hold. Back. Ack! If you're single, be prepared to feel MORE SINGLE watching this drama.
Well-written lines that will make you feel real emotions. The words will shoot you straight to the heart.
Acting-wise, the casts, from the mains down to the sides, did a super fine job in conveying the sentiments of their characters. My highest admiration goes to male lead Yuan Song, not (only) because he’s young, hot, and handsome, but because his youthful vibe made me reminisce the paradox of my early 20s awww. Anyways, in the beginning, I am sort of confused why (of all girls) he fell head over heels with our female lead He Fanxing who's obviously out of his league. I even suspected him of taking advantage of her naivety in matters of the heart. But as the drama went along, our dude proved himself genuine... That he's sincerely just a guy who's deeply in love with a woman... That indeed, true love can exist in this kind of relationship. Both Yuan Song and Fanxing emotionally benefited from each other and it's so lovely seeing that.
⚠️ AND SORRY BUT THIS IS A SPOILER ALERT⚠️
Halfway through the drama, our main couple called it quits. I'm somewhat grateful that it happened. Their break-up scene is just so powerful I had to rewind it many times. Not because I liked seeing them suffer from the consequences of their incompatibility. Rather, I loved it 'coz it became the turning point of their relationship.
Their love is premature, to begin with — trust isn't mutual, commitment is one-way, only showing each other's good sides in fear of the relationship turning sour, one is willing to compromise while the other wants to avoid responsibility, filled with doubts and insecurities. During this break-up phase, we were shown the difference between how kids and adults behave and decide in a dilemma. I suddenly remembered this one line delivered in the drama which I agree with — "Only kids would choose one or the other. Adults find solutions". The break-up also served as our main couple's period of contemplation about who and what they want in life. It taught them how to fully embrace their offbeat romance against the norms. Fortunately, things wrapped up into a sweet end.
And of course the bad...
Hmmm... Maybe I'm just not used to it but am I the only one who thinks that this drama is quite lengthy? Yes, I enjoyed it but it's not a good one to binge-watch. It took me almost a month to finish this I nearly drowned haha. Honestly, there were parts they could've just compressed instead of dragging it for too long. One example is Ye Luming and He Fanxing's relationship trial. Ooohhh I hate this part it brought shivers down my spine ugh. Well truth be told, Luming and Fanxing are compatible and better off as friends. They jive so well, and I give it to them that they're both adults who can only understand adult things.
But when Luming all of a sudden became a sneaky character to an intolerable point... Ah, I don't know anymore! Seeing how compelled Fanxing is to being Luming's girlfriend got under my skin. Although these ugly parts eventually became a good contributory factor to Fanxing's realization of her true feelings towards Yuan Song, but still...! I also hated Fanxing at one point for being so gullible in love. But yeah, I had to swallow it because that's her character setup in the first place. It should be expected of her to be hasty and dubious about it.
On the other hand, I wished they've been generous in showing us more about how Yuan Song and Fanxing's relationship is going after the public reveal. I've been waiting for this the entire time (they could've done so much more in 41 episodes' length!) so I'm quite disappointed.
After watching the second season of Well-Intended Love, I admit I lost interest in Chinese dramas. So watching this restored my faith in them. I even have a list of C-dramas lined up now! But I have to move on from this one first before I start another. It's not as easy as I thought ㅠㅠ
What do you think about this drama? Are we on the same frequency? ❤️
If you haven't watched this yet, watch it now. As in 지금부터 RIGHT NOW. Highly-recommended!
#find yourself#下一站是幸福#song weilong#victoria song#chinese drama#romance#comedy#drama reviews#yuan song#he fanxing#chinese#romcom#cdrama#may-december relationship
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Emma. (2020)
I watched this movie in late January. After multiple viewings and re-reading the book, I have a lot of thoughts about this adaptation.
It seems rather strange, given that Emma is part of my holy trinity of Austen novels, that I didn't watched the most recent adaptation earlier. I think it was mostly due to my initial impression that Anya Taylor-Joy's otherworldly looks didn't quite match what I had in mind for the titular character. I decided to give this version a try after watching Queen's Gambit. Not sure that Anya's looks will ever grow on me, but she did impress me as a young actress who seemed to have a maturity beyond her years.
Long story short: really wished I had seen this movie earlier! It is absurd and heartfelt at the same time, imo, the version that best imbues Austen's humor. It is now my favorite adaption, with the possible exception of Clueless, and I'm not quite sure how much of that is just nostalgia.
From the casting to the direction to the script to the costumes to the set to the soundtrack, I could tell the creative team really put a lot of love into this project. It's always a joy to watch something that's made with love and made well.
Direction
Autumn de Wilde's directing is quite good. I would never have thought this was her first feature. She certainly has a unique and colorful style, which is probably to be expected for such a famous photographer.
Funnily, while watching the movie I kept thinking it reminded me of early Hollywood romantic comedies like Bringing Up Baby (incidentally one of my favorites) or The Philadelphia Story, and then reading interviews and seeing that she had tried to bring in some of that style of humor made me feel rather validated. Also the servants' reactions were awesome!
Absolutely loved the fact that they decided to show that Knightley and Emma were in love with each other very early on in the story, with Knightley more aware of it. I've read some people complaining about the surprise of Emma's being in love being ruined. But come on, did anyone reading two chapters into the book think it wasn't going to be the two of them together in the end?
Loved how much of Knightley's point of view we got in this movie. This is one repressed pinning man. I can totally see this Knightley riding ventre a terre from London in the rain because he thought Emma was heartbroken.
The only gripe I had was the lack of Frank and Jane's subplot. As it seems they shot some scenes for that, I assume it was the director's discretion to take them out. I remember thinking while watching the movie that they must have expected the audience to be familiar with the story because some things just didn't really get explained or extrapolated on a lot. If you hadn't read the book it'd be 30 minutes or more into the movie before you put two and two together and figured out why Mr. Knightley is always at Hartfield.
Script
The script takes most of the dialogue directly from the book, which is awesome. I love Austen's writing because there is a certain musicality to it and retaining that in large part for the movie really made it better for me. The deftness with which Eleanor Catton moved dialogue from one scene in the book to a totally different one in the movie was quite brilliant. Everything flowed so well.
The scenes that differed from the book were also excellent - namely, I really loved the Jane/Knightley duet, the infamous nosebleed and first kiss scenes. 💖 I thought the screenwriter used those changes to quickly establish plot points and character arcs well.
Costume/Hair
Not a Recency expert so can't say much about the costumes and hair as far as period correctness but from reading other reviews it seemed like they were very true to the period. Obviously appreciated them taking the time to show the audience how men got dressed in that time (purely for research purposes obviously 😜).
Emma's dresses were all quite beautiful. I especially loved the black evening dress, the pink one with the roses and the proposal dress. Also loved the little pop of red shoes that went with the proposal dress. As someone who wore red shoes with her wedding gown I heartily approve.
Absolutely loved how Emma's curls unwound as her life unravels. Similarly think they must have done the same for Knightley to a lesser extent. His hair during the card playing scene at the Westons was quite terrible.
Set
I! Loved! Hartfield! It looked just like a doll house. Really most of the sets looked good enough to eat. So much pastel. Reminded me of French macarons.
I liked how everything in Donwell Abbey was shrouded in Holland covers. Makes a good point that Knightley barely lives there at all, that his home has been with the Woodhouses for quite a while now. Which, of course, makes his sacrifice at the end just a little bit less of a sacrifice?
Soundtrack
Isabella Waller-Bridge's music really meshed well with the tone of the entire film. The male and female opera singers, sometimes sounding as if they are bickering with each other and other times seeming to be in duet, was a brilliant touch. The folk music was a little jarring at first but really grew on me.
Johnny Flynn's end credits song "Queen Bee" is amazing. I love that we get Knightley's perspective at the end with a song written and sung by Knightley. It's a lovely coda to the movie. And now, if the next Austen hero doesn't write one for his SO I'm going to think him a very poor sort of lover.
Cast
Anya's Emma was really great. I'm glad they allowed Emma to be her bitchy self. Lol. I haven't watched the 1996 and 2009 versions in a while but I distinctly remember them making Emma too nice. I recall writing after watching the Garai version that Emma was actually mean and they should have let her be mean! If she's not a brat in the beginning, how will we see her change for the better later on? I love what a snob and how manipulative this Emma was and so assured of her place in her little society but still had the vulnerability of almost an imposter's syndrome which I feel most people can relate to.
Her chemistry with Johnny Flynn's Knightley was off the charts. Pretty much every scene they had together I half expected them to reenact the library scene from Atonement lol.
Mia Goth was a wonderful Harriet. She really captured Harriet's inexperience, naivete and diffidence. The orgasmic sounds she was making during the gypsies attack scene were awesome. Although, I could probably have forgone a few of Harriet's scenes for more Frank and Jane.
Not sure why they made Mia go brunette since the book specifically mentioned Harriet was fair? Perhaps having all three leads as blondes was just a bit too much. I'm also not sure if I liked Harriet's ending as I really don't think Emma, even in her most contrite mood, would invite further friendship from a tradesman's daughter and soon-to-be her husband's tenant farmer's wife. This seems a piece of modern day wishful thinking on the part of the creative team.
Bill Nighy was so good as Mr. Woodhouse. He made it so believable why everyone would do everything in their power to accommodate his whims. The gag with the screens was too funny. He was able to sketch out a lonely quirky old man who is afraid to lose those close to him in very limited screen time. Absolutely loved the scene where Emma was heaping blame on herself and he just sat with her in sympathetic silence.
Miranda Hart's Miss Bates was excellent as well. She has long been one of my favorite British comedic actresses but she can also do drama well. Her reaction to Emma's teasing on Box Hill and her forgiveness of Emma later brought me to tears.
Josh O'Connor's Mr. Elton was deliciously creepy. The carriage proposal scene was at once a little scary and hilarious. I actually liked the portrait scenes a little less because I found the acting there slightly affected and veering into 1995 Mr. Collins territory. But as Austen described Elton as having "a sort of parade in his speeches", this was much more forgivable. Really loved Mr. Elton's determination to eat cake during the Eltons' visit to Hartfield.
Tanya Reynolds was an excellent Mrs. Elton and in very little screen time was able to bring to life this meddlesome nouveau riche. Adored her little shimmy during the ball.
Amber Anderson's Jane really looked as if she were in a decline. Callum Turner did a good job as a slightly restless, mischievous and immature Frank Churchill. I did feel his looks were a bit too modern but that's just my personal view.
Given how many scenes they had I thought they used the time they had pretty well with furtive glances and sly smiles at each other to establish the relationship.
Connor Swindells was such a love sick puppy as Robert Martin. Did this role ever get cast in other adaptations? I don't seem to recall at all.
Special shoutout to Oliver Chris's John Knightley. Absolutely had me in stitches.
And last but never the least, Johnny Flynn's Mr. Knightley:
To preface, I will never not fall for Mr. Knightley in any version that I watch. And really, get yourself a good looking enough actor with good enough chemistry with Emma and good enough acting chops and you should have a fairly successful Knightley.
I judge all my Knightleys by the Box Hill scene. And up to that point in the movie, I really liked Johnny Flynn's Knightley. He was playful and sexy and jealous and slightly bitchy as well. The duet scene was lovely because I always appreciate a man who can play instruments and sing well. The sexiness and chemistry of the dance scene was off the charts. That's all well and good. And like I said before, given any well cast actor, I probably would have liked them in those scenes as well, just as I've liked Northam's and Miller's Knightleys.
But, the Box Hill scene absolutely blew me away. To make sure I was not just biased towards the last Knightley I saw on screen, I did go back and compare each version's Box Hill scene and I am, actually, even more blown away. Some of it is a credit to the directing and script, but a large part of it is Johnny Flynn's acting in that scene.
As far a script and directing, the set up to the fight scene was fantastic. Loved Anya's expression changes after she makes the joke. Loved Miranda Hart's Miss Bates as she realizes what Emma meant. The silence that followed. Knightley's shocked face and how sympathetic he was to Miss Bates. Can probably write a whole thing just about this scene alone.
I loved the fact that Knightley had an internal struggle as to whether or not to approach Emma and reproach her for her behavior. I know the book has him tell Emma about his struggle but that just doesn't work as well for me on screen.
During the scene you can just tell how frustrated and disappointed in her he is even though he tries to keep his voice low. But the way he reprimands her does not at all feel lecture-y and I feel like part of it is because it seems like he starts to lose control a little bit as well. His voice starts to crescendo as she stubbornly refuses to admit she was in the wrong and culminates in "badly done, indeed!" with actual fingerpointing. Yikes.
Then he losses steam and looked regretful, almost devastatingly so, at his own outburst and perhaps felt that he was losing her by giving this speech and looked as if he would have said something more - an apology or some words of comfort to soften the blow? - but didn't.
This remorse and the struggle at the beginning really bookended the scene for me.
Absolutely loved his Knightley, and, really, him as an actor after that.
The proposal scene as well was very good. His delivery was just really good. The way he said "If I loved you less then I might be able to talk about it more." with some regret and then closing his eyes as if he can't believe what he just said. Soooo good. Also, he cries very pretty, lol.
The delivery of the three "yes" during the kiss scene as Emma asked for confirmation that he really was ok with giving up his house to come live with them was also brilliant. It just kept getting softer and softer but he never breaks eye contact. Absolute chef's kiss. His closed eyed little smile of content after Emma kisses him just made me melt into a puddle.
Yup, overall I'd say I rather liked his interpretation of Mr. George Knightley. 😜
I did wish they hadn't giving him such sideburns but after watching some Emma interviews I can totally understand. If he didn't have the sideburns there'd be more complaints about how young this Knightley was. He's got such a baby face.
...I seemed to have written an entire essay on this movie...yeah, I just have a lot of feelings and thoughts about this version...
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