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embracing-the-ineffable · 7 months

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The Ineffable Detective Agency Presents: The Main Bookshop Clock's Hands are BACKWARDS and Other Revelations!

(Good Omens Season 2, Episode 1)

We can't trust the way we've been reading the bookshop clock next to Aziraphale's desk, because the Hands are Reversed* for some (or all?) of the season!!

Plus a Time/Clock Disruption shortly before the double half miracle!

And possibly another Time/Clock Disruption when Gabriel first arrives at the bookshop! Did Gabriel (or whatever he had in the box) cause the hands to reverse?!

And more questions about Gabriel and what Other Thing might be going down in the up!

*Sound unbelievable? To us - @meatballlady and @embracing-the-ineffable at our new @ineffable-detective-agency - too, but let us share our proof:

Welcome to our Ineffable Detective Agency! We've been doing some digging the past few weeks; among our research has been recording each sighting of in-universe timestamps - Crowley's watch, Nina's phone, Maggie's watch, Aziraphale's clocks, and more! Our main findings are summarized here (if you're looking at a reblog, you can check for updates on the most recent version, here), with detailed screenshots below.

Main Findings - Episode 1:

Aziraphale's main bookshop clock next to his desk is frowning for Reasons! Maybe this is one: during most or all of episode 1, the minute hand is the one with the wider arrow, and the hour hand is the thin long one. (Proof is in the very next section, and it changes everything we think we know about reading that clock!)

Edit - New Finding! There may have been a time/clock disruption when Gabriel first arrived at the bookshop, which could have CAUSED the hands to reverse.

There's ALSO a big time/clock disruption when Gabriel appears at the top of the stairs, after the apology dance and before the double-half-miracle. Perhaps the clock's ability to show the time accurately is disrupted by something like a powerful 25-Lazarii miracle?

Shax and Crowley initially discuss something "going down in the up", far sooner than when Gabriel shows up in the bookshop. ("my arms were aching 'cause I had to carry that box for so long....")

Shax later tells Crowley that the previously-discussed trouble involves Gabriel, and even that conversation next to the Bentley (at 10:35 or 11:35) was well before Gabriel arrived at the bookshop (at 4:20, no matter how you read the clock's hands; screenshot below). Is there some OTHER trouble in heaven that started before Gabriel left?

Or, if Gabriel's arrival caused a time/clock disruption, perhaps Aziraphale forgave Maggie's rent at 11:23 and Gabriel arrived shortly after, which lines up more neatly with Crowley's 10:35 or 11:35 phone call/conversation with Shax.

This all might mean the time jump (or clock disruption) after The Kiss is different than we thought. (Yes, we know Neil is misdirecting everyone about there being a time jump at all by calling it a "continuity error"; he's performing magic for us, and we're still in the middle of his act! His misdirection is part of the trick!) The times are still weird in the last episode, whether you read them the typical way or the new, reversed way that we're suggesting, and we're still working on getting clearer images. Stay tuned - or help us research!

Quick sidenote: If anyone would like to verify our work or join in future sleuthing (ESPECIALLY IF YOU CAN VIEW/ SCREENCAP IN 4K), we would be very grateful!!

Now, let's talk about the clock hands.

Typically, in typical clocks all over the typical world, the hand with the big wide arrow is for the hours, and the thin long hand points to the minutes. But the main bookshop clock next to Aziraphale's desk is frowning, so who knows what it's doing? Here's the A-B-C sequence from episode 1 that convinced us to read the hands in reverse:

A) Jim shows up naked, knocks, and Azi stops his music with a dramatic groan. Both clock hands point to 4, so this should be 4:20 no matter what hand is for the minutes:

B) Jim tries hot chocolate when the wide arrow hand has traveled just past the 5. This is either 4:26 (reversed) or 5:20 (typical):

C) Aziraphale opens the box, and Gabriel says "I love you". It's now 4:30 (reversed) or a misaligned 6:20 (typical):

Ok, the sequence of A) Jim arrives, B) Jim drinks hot chocolate, C) Jim says "I love you", fills about 6 minutes of onscreen time. If we assume A-B-C makes more sense as 4:20-4:26-4:30 than 4:20-5:20-6:20, that means the wide arrow hand is sweeping across the minutes and NOT indicating hours!

Those three time points are also bookended by the moments Azi reads Maggie's note and forgives her rent, and later, Crowley's discovery of Jim in the bookshop:

As Azi reads Maggie's note, let's play "spot the clock":

Did you see it?! Yep, we catch a tiny glimpse of the clock through a space in the bookshelf, in what might be the most cleverly concealed but clearly deliberate bit of staging in the entire season (!!). If you've been thinking that we're looking too closely at little unimportant details that don't matter, the way the clock is so carefully made visible here - and in focus - strongly suggests to us that this is important:

It looks like 3:58 (reversed) or 11:20 (typical); given that Azi is interrupted while listening to his 21 minutes of Shostakovich at 4:20, it would make sense that he read the note at 3:58. That means the wide arrow hand is reversed, pointing at the minutes there, too.

[ Edit: BUT, there's also this moment, when Maggie's rent is forgiven; her watch shows 11:23 or possibly a reversed 4:57 (turn it the way Maggie would read it):

So one more possibility is that the bookshop clock hands were typical when the episode started, Azi read the note at 11:20, and forgave Maggie's rent at 11:23. Then when Gabriel showed up, the bookshop clock jumped ahead to 4:20 and its hands reversed!? ]

Later, Crowley meets Aziraphale at the coffeeshop, then they return to the bookshop. Right after "I. Am. Dusting." - there's the OTHER bookshop clock on the west side of the building. It's hard to see, possibly 5? That could fit with Azi and Crowley meeting at the coffeeshop sometime shortly after 4:30pm.

So, if we continue reading the main bookshop clock in reverse, let's see what else happens in episode 1:

Maggie and Nina, trapped in the coffee shop, are freed by Crowley. Just before Nina's phone starts receiving messages, it reads 21:02 (ie, 9:02pm):

During the apology dance, the clock behind Aziraphale says 9:06 (remember! read the hands in reverse!) This makes sense, if Nina's phone said 9:02 a few minutes earlier:

The clock behind Crowley (the one on the west side of the bookshop) says 9:02 or a misaligned 11:45; if its wider arrow hand points to hours like a typical clock, and not like the sad reversed clock next to the desk, then it could be reading 9:02, possibly a few minutes slower than the desk clock:

Then Jim appears at the top of the stairs and nothing makes sense; the sad clock next to the desk looks like it says 12:40 - a forward jump of 3 hours and 36 minutes!! (Alternatively, it says 8:02, which means it went backwards by an hour! Either way, it's weird, and we'd love a better picture if you can get one!):

And the clock still shows the same time after the miracle, just before the episode ends:

As episode 1 ends, we certainly have even more questions. Did time jump when Gabriel first arrived?! And again, after the apology dance? Or were there whole scenes or conversations that we didn't see? Or did time actually jump forwards or backwards in that moment? Or was the main bookshop clock's ability to accurately show the time interrupted by something like Gabriel's arrival with the mysterious contents of his box, and again by a powerful 25-Lazarii miracle before the double-half-miracle??!

There are 5 episodes to go! Will our sad bookshop clock consistently tell time with reversed hands for the rest of the season? Maybe! Is it becoming untethered from Actual Time as it reacts to the Eldritch forces around it? Possibly!

And what about our other findings? What ELSE is going on in Heaven? Where did Gabriel go after he left, and how long did that take? How long does the elevator ride last? Why was his box heavy, and what was inside?

Stay tuned for the details as we collect them! We'll add links to new posts here, so check the latest version for any updates! And please get in touch with @meatballlady or @embracing-the-ineffable if you would like to help with sleuthing, including getting better resolution screencaps of clocks and all the tiny watches!

Be well, fellow ineffables! Solve Clues and share your findings!

PS: There's a huge list of Clues and metas, here!

#good omens meta #good omens analysis #Ineffable Detective Agency #Ineffable discontinuity #good omens timeline #Good omens clocks #Good omens mystery #good omens clues #Clues with a capital C #good omens screencaps #good omens spoilers #good omens season 2 #good omens 2 #timey wimey #renew good omens #aziraphale #crowley #good omens gabriel #good omens

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the-traveling-poet · 8 months

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Attention

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Captain Y/N has shown great effort with her valiant efforts to aid the Scouts, and this doesn't go unnoticed by Captain Levi.

Set on finding a way to compliment her efforts, despite his usually indifference, Levi might first fight for her ever sought after attention.

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Pairing: Levi Ackerman x Y/N reader

Warnings: None. Just slow burn fluff. Language.

(SFW)

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Another day, another meeting.

Levi sighed. As much as he prioritized the safety and well being of the Corps, these weekly meetings were growing tiring. Not to mention, time consuming. How many reports he could finish within this time, how many cups of tea could have been made....Yet here they were, once more going over old information with nothing new to show for their endeavors.

"...And so I should ask of you all once more; Does anyone have anything to add?" Commander Erwin finished from the head of the mahogany table they all sat around.

After a moment of murmuring amongst the group, Y/N, a fellow captain in the corps, leaned forward and raised a hand confidently.

Erwin nodded to her, allowing her to proceed.

"Pardon me if I misunderstood, but if I understand correctly, you mean to set four squads into two teams to scout the southern section of the forrest five hundred meters south of Shiganshina?" Y/N spoke slowly.

"That would be correct, Captain Y/N." Erwin confirmed.

"If I may suggest, shouldn't we have each separate squad enter both north and south of the forrest to track the titan's numbers and movements more efficiently? I understand spreading our numbers so thin is a risk within itself, but if this is merely an observation expedition, I should think we would need as many eyes in as many places as possible to calculate the titan's activity more accurately. We have flare signal guns and acoustic rounds; we can easily alert nearby teams to imminent dangers." Y/N spoke quicker as the excitement of her own idea spurred her on as she voiced her thoughts.

For a moment, the room was silent as everyone absorbed her words. Levi was left speechless at her revelation, though his mask of indifference remained.

Why didn't I think of that? He wondered.

Immediately, his respect and awe for her increased. Though, if he were honest with himself, he wasn't sure how she could continue to surprise him so. After all these years working alongside her team out in the wilderness, her cleverness never ceased to amaze Levi.

Finally, Erwin stood, his deep blue eyes trained souly on Y/N.

"Y/N....I think you may be onto something here. Keeping my men alive is, of course, one of my first concerns. But your strategy seems to be the more logical one. I think we should bring this to the attention of our comrades in Rose and Sina for further verification, but you have my respect and admiration for such cleverness." Erwin smiled brightly at the younger Captain.

Y/N's eyes grew large at her Commander's words, which seemed to irk Levi slightly. Though he agreed full heartedly with Erwin's words, he couldn't help but feel aggravated with the man's presentation of his admiration.

"So, you're telling me, we've spent weeks in here plotting our next expedition, when we could have asked Y/N for the perfect solution from the very beginning?" Captain Mike chuckled in disbelief from across the table from where Levi sat.

"Y/N, you could have saved us hours of time with this!"

Y/N blushed in embarrassment.

"Well, I've been thinking about this event ever since our first meeting a couple weeks ago, and this morning it finally clicked in my head, so I thought I'd share it," she modestly admitted.

"Are you kidding? Y/N, that's genius!" Hange also stood and reached over the table to grab at Y/N's shoulders. "Erwin, I think if she wanted to, she could replace you!"

Levi unconsciously shot Erwin, Mike, and Hange a scowl, to which none of them noticed with their attention trained on Y/N. He himself wanted to say such kind words to her, for reasons he couldn't quite understand yet, but he lacked the vocabulary to convey such thoughts to her. Much less in a crowded room.

"Alright, I think this meeting is adjourned! This is the most progress we've had in awhile, so it's safe to say we can all take a break." Erwin chuckled, much to Levi's relief.

Finally.

Levi, Y/N, and Mike stood from their seats and joined Hange in saluting Erwin, of which he returned. Everyone began to file out of the room in a line; with Erwin, Levi and Y/N near the back.

With the other's attention trained on leaving to room to go about their days, Levi made up his mind that he would take this opportunity to congratulate Y/N on her brilliance like the others had. But the moment he subtly gained her attention and opened his mouth to speak, Erwin approached them both and placed a sturdy hand onto the woman's shoulder.

"Y/N, would you mind taking a moment to sign your signature onto a form I must send to Commander Pyxis in regards to this meeting? Keeping him informed on our movements is one of my requirements. And since this was your idea, I want you to have the honors of taking the credit."

Erwin smiled brightly down at the younger Captain.

"But, sir, are you sure?" She asked breathlessly.

"Of course, Y/N. I value you, and as such, I want you to take the credit for your own genius; as Hange put it." Erwin reassured.

Levi shot a look up towards Erwin, but the Commander didn't seem to notice. With a scoff, Levi made for the door.

As much as he wanted to speak with Y/N, he knew it was pointless to try now. He would simply have to wait.

As he left, he heard the sweet sound of Y/N's laughter as she agreed and thanked the Commander when he handed her a form sheet.

Though he hadn't meant to, Levi closed the door behind him with a bang.

Slightly embarrassed and confused by his behavior, he clicked his tongue and made for his own office to finish his unattended work. Perhaps this would distract him from the odd pinging feelings in his heart…

…Pining?

═══════════

Around two hours later, Levi was finished. With nothing else left to do, he stood from his desk and stretched. Before he could even make up his mind as to what he should do now, he heard voices outside his closed office door.

Y/N? He immediately wondered.

Briskly walking to his door, he flung it open and darted his eyes back and forth up and down the hall. And indeed, there she stood.

Y/N and one of the cadets in her squad walked side by side down the hall, engaged in some sort of chit chat.

Combing his hair back with a hand and straightening his uniform, Levi left the safety of his office and closed his door behind him.

Maybe now, he could congratulate her.

Thinking about this, he couldn't help but scoff.

He'd never thought this hard about praising someone for their work before. Actually, as he thought about it, he'd never congratulated anyone on their work before.

What does this mean? He wondered.

When Y/N's eyes met his, she suddenly faltered in her step and stopped mid sentence. She awkwardly waved to him, and quickly averted her gaze. When he awkwardly waved back, not knowing how else to react, she quickly sent the cadet on their way and approached Levi.

Once in front of him, she stammered for the right words to say.

"Good afternoon, Levi," she smiled.

"Afternoon," Levi struggled to reply, a sudden knot forming in his throat.

Get it together, Levi…

As Y/N opened her mouth to speak, Levi also spoke.

"So, I-"

"You did well."

They simultaneously paused to understand what the other had said, both taken aback.

"I-I'm sorry, you first, sir." Y/N stammered out after a moment.

"Uhh..." Levi felt his face grow hot, which both embarrassed and aggravated him. He cleared his throat and attempted to start over.

"I...apologize. Please, you first."

"Oh!…Well, I was just on my way to see you, actually," Y/N admitted, unconsciously turning her face away.

Levi suddenly forgot all he had planned to say to her, instead just settling to watch her as she awkwardly looked at anything but his face. Suddenly he felt overwhelmed by her presence and wasn't sure how to react. But after a moment, he composed himself and decided how he wanted to continue from here.

"I'm glad you were. I'd like a word with you, if you have the time to spare," he finally managed.

Y/N's eyes lit up, but before she could respond, a loud screech followed by the thudding of footsteps filled the corridor around them.

"Y/N!!"

Both Levi and Y/N turned sharply towards the noise, only to see Hange running full speed up the hall their way towards them.

Levi couldn't believe his luck today. First Erwin, now Hange? He folded his arms across his chest and stared Hange down as they finally came to a stop, yet they didn't seem to take any notice. Instead, they ran directly towards Y/N and came to a stop less then two feet from the poor girl's face.

"Y/N, you have to help me!" They blurted.

"Hange? What's wrong?"

Y/N was immediately distracted.

"You see....My poor test subject broke free of his restraints during testing...I could use some help subduing him?" Hange gave Y/N their best pleading look, which seems to do the trick. Sadly.

"Okay, okay, I'll be right there! Levi just needs a word with me first..." Y/N turned to look at Levi with a hopeful smile, but the man couldn't help but sigh.

"Go, this is obviously more important than a few words," he scoffed.

A slightly hurt look flashed through Y/N eyes before Hange grabbed her by the arm.

"Thanks shorty, I'll bring her back!"

With that hasty promise, Hange soon disappeared with Y/N in tow.

Once again, Levi stood alone.

"Damn them," Levi cursed under his breath as he wandered off from his office to find something else to distract his mind from her with.

═══════════

At this point, the sun was beginning to set below the horizon. The halls were near silent and completely empty. The only movement to be seen was the flickering of candle light produced from lanterns in the halls, covering the stone walls and floors in unique shapes and patterns.

Once more, Levi sat at his desk; a mug of warm tea in one hand and an ink quill in the other. Yet he had nothing to write, despite the many words that swam around in his head.

"Shitty brain....shitty feelings," he muttered to himself. Still, he couldn't figure out these strange sensations plaguing his mind and heart, despite the three years he'd spent trying.

Just then, a quiet knock sounded at his door. Barely lifting his head to investigate, he grumbled out a quick 'come in'.

The door opened, and light footsteps made their way over towards his desk. Still he didn't look up, already fed up with his day.

That was, until the person cleared their throat nervously.

Whipping his head up, he met the gaze of a rather sheepish looking Y/N.

"Hey, I uhh, finished helping Hange," she grinned. Upon seeing her smile, Levi couldn't help but return a small one of his own, though to most it appeared as more of a grimace than a gesture of relief.

Y/N took a seat opposite him at his desk, and so began their little chat.

A little chat turned into an interesting conversation. A conversation led into a lengthy discussion, which in turn led to their opening up to one another. Neither of them paid any attention to the passage of time, which flew by them in what felt like the blink of an eye.

And at lost last, he finally found his moment to compliment the enchanting woman sitting across from him, in his own way.

Finally.

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whateverisbeautiful · 4 months

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♥️ Ranking Richonne

#30: This Is It (S7E12)

Their smiles in this 7.12 scene will forever warm my heart. 🥹 And after seeing the palpable yearning Rick and Michonne have for each other in each of these TOWL trailers, you just know that it’s moments like the one on this rooftop that they both long to return to. (Side note: when they said TOWL would be an epic love story they were not playing around 🔥 every teaser and trailer is showing why this is the most epic husband and wife and this is some crazy love for real. 😍)

Now y'all know Richonne's honeymoon episode 'Say Yes' is gonna make multiple appearances on this Top 30 list. Starting with this lovely moment right here where our power couple is so visibly enamored with each other...

(And y’all, at first I really thought I was gonna make these posts a lil paragraph each, but then I saw a post that said, “I’m my target audience on Tumblr,” and I was like - you know what that person is right lol. And I love me some detailed Richonne insights, both to nestle in and read and to write, so instead of short and sweet, these posts are about to be my signature-length and sweet. Cuz truly I can’t help but go all out when it comes to reveling in Richonne)

Lemme start by saying we are so fortunate to have Andy and Danai as the captains of this ship and that this extraordinary TV relationship is in the hands of two extraordinary actors. The way they give their all to these characters and always speak so beautifully about Rick and Michonne’s relationship is just a blessing. 🙌🏾

I remember Andy saying that he likes to think “I love you” is communicated every time Rick looks at Michonne, and it really really is. And this moment in 'Say Yes' is a prime example. The way they look at each other throughout this scene was a loud and clear “I love you” from them both, and I absolutely love to see it.

Ok so refresher - because the universe was like Richonne deserves to keep winning on this honeymoon, they climb on that roof and find a boatload of guns at a carnival. And I love that they let Rick and Michonne’s run take place at such a date-like environment.

And I am smiling uncontrollably seeing the two of them smile when they realize this is it. They’re so beautiful and their joy brings me joy. It’s great seeing that they’re in such a good mood after being so down in 7A, and I adore every glance and synchronized smile they share.

I love Rick saying, “I think this is it” and Michonne smiling as she agrees. This line is pretty accurate to their relationship too. This relationship is it. This is the one for them. I mean, Andy said it himself - Rick found the greatest love story of his life in finding Michonne.

Rick asks, “Think we can?” which is also cute cuz he def knows they can. As was shown in the 7.10 ep 'New Best Friends,' Rick thoroughly enjoys the fact that he and his woman are such a power couple and there’s nothing they can’t do. (and the CRM finna learn there's nothing this husband and wife can't do together real soon 💁🏽‍♀️)

When Rick asks if she thinks they can, Michonne is like let me find the coolest way possible to say 'yes we can' when she gets a determined look on her face and shoots those cans from a far distance. It’s nice cuz when she went out practicing her shot in 7.04 it was a very frustrating experience for her, but now with her man by her side and fighting the fight with him, she’s having a far more fun and successful time. And this would be how two of the baddest in the land have a carnival date. 😋

I love how happy Rick seems to be here to see Michonne in her element. He knew she had been practicing out there alone, and now he gets to see that of course his boss of a wife has got good at it. And their smiles and laughs. Food for the soul.

You can just feel Rick taking in every moment he has with her and cherishing it. His adoration for this woman is so visible. And as we know, at this point, Rick had come to terms with the fact that he may not make it out of this Saviors war and that they’d lose people. So seeing him be so present in this moment with Michonne like they were the only two in the world, is all the more heartfelt cuz he’s trying to enjoy this moment like it’s his last. Cuz realistically, it could be.

And if his days really are numbered, then spending quality time enwrapped in Michonne's love and smiles is a major part of how Rick wants to enjoy what valuable life he has left.

Michonne is so glowy and happy in this scene too. 🥰 This is the face of a woman whose heart is being cared for by a good man who will be by her side through anything. Her adoration and fulfillment with her man are so fully on display, and she's so deserving of this kind of love and happiness. Also it’s sweet how Rick has this impressed look at her as she knocks down those cans.

And truly what makes this a top 30 scene for me is their reactions after she says that. Because Michonne gives Rick the most sincere sweet smile that is just so clear she loves him. And then the lingering way Rick looks at her 😍…based on that look it just feels like my man Rick was a bit overcome with his love for her. 🥹

It was most definitely a moment of Rick thinking, 'How’d I get so lucky finding you?' And I love that Rick can never hide his feelings for her. This is a man who is so deeply in love with his wife. And how he quietly soaks up this happy moment with her melts my entire heart. You can genuinely see that this moment in time with his true love is one Rick treasures and wants to hold onto for as long as he can.

And I just so respect that with his character so aware that life can be cut short, he’s really presently basking in each moment with her. Time with Michonne and their family is what Rick most wants. And it's refreshing to see them both be so fully present in their Richonne bubble and enjoying what they've always wanted in this scene.

The scene ends with them falling through the roof, but then after a moment of silence, you hear them laughing yet again. I love it. Nothing was bursting that Richonne bubble.

Andy and Danai understand the assignment every time when it comes to depicting Richonne’s relationship. And I love that they knew in an ep where they get to just have all this alone time, they would be so smiley and on cloud nine. And this was one of the moments that beautifully portrayed that.

Joy wasn't often depicted on this show, but whenever Rick and Michonne got alone time together it was joy’s time to shine. They know they can get through anything together so they’re able to just take a moment and enjoy each other and laugh and smile and that is a rare and wonderful thing only the two of them could give each other in this way.

So if you were to ask me what true love is, I’d show you Richonne scenes like these and just have three words - This. Is. It. 😌

#richonne #top 30 #reveling in richonne #number 30 #say yes #twd 7.12 #rick x michonne #twd towl #the ones who live

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danwhobrowses · 5 days

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One Piece Chapter 1114 - Initial Thoughts

And we are back

TCB uploaded on a Thursday for the first time in yonks, but it had to be midway through my trip back from work

but anyway, GLOBAL WARMING! Vegapunk is pouring the tea, the world is sinking, so what more does he have to say and how will the world react?

Spoilers for the Chapter, Support the Official Release Also!

Yamato's pilgrimage involves taking the long way around Wano to bring Yasuie's sword to the Enma shrine (the god of the underworld not Zoro's sword)

We'll likely encounter a bunch of characters on the trek but it surprises me that he's bringing back Yasuie's sword and not Shusui to Ryuma's grave. Either are still fine but I feel like that had more narrative significance, though if that was the task then Zoro wouldn't have been able to visit his grave off-screen - which should've very much been on-screen!

You know the tea is spilling when the chapter title is 'The wings of Icarus'

Naturally, the world takes in the revelation we left off on

The Navy reacts first, the Vice Admirals in disbelief but Akainu silent

Mock Town of all places is next, filled with nonbelievers of dreams, they mock the smartest man on the planet and deem themselves wise

Water Seven are shocked too, finding it difficult to believe that it's the whole world and not just them

Paulie and Pepe Lulu cameo too (love Franky but in another life I would've liked to have seen Paulie as a Straw Hat, would've been a perfect foil for Sanji too since he's a bashful perv, plus Nami would totally abuse how bad he is with gambling)

Doflamingo of course is revelling in the news, mocking Magellan about how this affects Impel Down

It's so surreal to me how we all know that Doflamingo is a menace, his debut literally involved him pitting marines against one another, but now he's in Impel Down he's just chilling, on his back just vibing with people like Magellan and Tsuru

It seems the Mother Flame's flooding did cause some problems for Impel Down

Doffy predicts that it'll take 5 more meters for most of the world to be flooded

He also implies evacuating 'somewhere high up' - like the Red Line maybe?

Fishman Island also reacts to the news, like everyone else they find it hard to believe

Back at Egghead though, the Buster Call don't care if it's valid, it's coming from Vegapunk so it holds weight but either way it's bringing unrest and discourse

The Gorosei meanwhile are livid, even considering going scorched earth to stop it

York is also annoyed, suck on it

Vegapunk makes a prediction, accurately pointing out the weather effects of Lulusia being wiped out

That for sure has got people more convinced, given how it's pre-recorded

Surprise Smoothie and Mont D'or cameos too!

And another already flooded island is surprised how much to a tee Vegapunk got the prediction right

Damn even Tonjit from Long Ring Long Land is getting a cameo!

Aokiji bandaged up also listens from Fullalead

Vegapunk also calls out that the earthquakes were not natural, which really sets the Gorosei off

The Straw Hats continue to fend off Saturn to protect Robin, with Lilith also in on the fight

Most of them get knocked away though, being caught by Robin's Spider Web

Saturn does still appear to be showing some damage, so still props to the crew for doing the job

Because Saturn has shifted his priority from Robin, making his way to the power station to protect it

Saturn crashes in, as Vegapunk explains his obsession with finding an unlimited energy source

Back to his 'human' form, Saturn basks in the Mother Flame

I was expecting something different, but it is a tiny flame kept in a giant tank

I wonder if the S-108 and the A&Mu stand for something? The latter are not elements on the Periodic Table

Also it's a flame inside liquid, A FLAME INSIDE OF LIQUID!

The Sleeping Giant still is on the move, passing unfazed through fire and flame

Even the Giants are struggling in the flames, still in pursuit by Warcury

Luffy however is back in Gear Fifth, that fermented shark meat must've done the trick

Marejois is stirring though, because Vegapunk has just brought up the void century

Most of the Celestial Dragons are in uproar, blaming the marines and feeling big enough to take on Vegapunk to kill him themselves

Though, interestingly, Saint Shalria - Charloss' sister - seems almost intrigued, it appears not all the Celestial Dragons know about the Void Century

Vegapunk goes on to talk about how the Poneglyphs are key to the void century

In a woodland a giant lounges as he takes in the news, the familiar laugh of Dereshishishi coming from him

I'm still not certain it's Jaguar D. Saul mind you, why hide his face for so long?

Man we're even going as far back as Orange Town!

With the Mayor and Chouchou!

The benefits of having a 20+ year manga is how you can bring back so many minor characters briefly to just show the entire scale of the world that's been built

We also see Margaret from Amazon Lily, her face seems conflicted

Vegapunk however explains that his second sin was trying to decipher the Poneglyphs, using documentation gathered from Ohara

Since Luffy could hear the broadcast I'm sure Robin is hearing it too, I wonder how she feels about Vegapunk about to lore drop a bunch of Poneglyph stuff she didn't get to discover herself

Brook is also calling for Zoro and Jinbe, not sure what their status is, same with Franky, Bonney, Atlas and Sanji vs V. Nusjuro

'History is a story, after all' is a lowkey banger line

But the Labophase is behaving differently, the clouds are stretching

Edison's plan has come into action, making the clouds wider so the Sunny can drop off into the ocean

Credit to Usopp for figuring it out too

Seems like the little tyke isn't making it out, it may end up being just Lilith at this stage

Vegapunk keeps going, stating that he only knows little about the void century, so he'll give the world some of the only facts he knows

Luffy strikes Warcury again with a Gear Fifth big punch, but the result hurts his hand all the same

Meanwhile Vegapunk details the story of a person born 900 years ago to a bountiful and advanced kingdom

Just like Nika, he had an elastic and stretchy body - which the world will very much connect to Luffy - called Joy Boy

Joy Boy was the first man to take to the seas: The First Pirate

But a break again next week, I know last week was a SJ break than an Oda break but c'mon I feel like he does this every year!

Oda sure loves to set a stage huh? What do you mean Joy Boy was the first pirate? That'd imply he's rebelling against something right? Was the advanced kingdom too restrictive maybe? So much still yet to be said

For the most part, what the characters were doing this chapter were secondary to this announcement built up, it's still cool that the Straw Hats deterred Saturn away from Robin - though we are overdue seeing Jinbe and Zoro do something of substance. Ju Peter and Mars are still kinda floating around, Doll and Bluegrass were circling the island last we saw them too. But yeah, lots of unique and surprising cameos, the mystery deepens as the plot continues somehow to thicken.

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waitmyturtles · 1 year

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Turtles Catches Up With Old GMMTV: Together With Me/MaxTul Ship Edition

[What’s going on here? After joining Tumblr and discovering Thai BLs through KinnPorsche in 2022, I began watching GMMTV’s new offerings -- and realized that I had a lot of history to catch up on, to appreciate the more recent works that I was delving into. From tropes to BL frameworks, what we’re watching now hails from somewhere, and I’m learning about Thai BL's history through what I’m calling the Old GMMTV Challenge (OGMMTVC). Starting with recommendations from @absolutebl on their post regarding how GMMTV is correcting for its mistakes with its shows today, I’ve made an expansive list to get me through a condensed history of essential/classic/significant Thai BLs produced by GMMTV and many other BL studios. My watchlist, pasted below, lists what I’ve watched and what’s upcoming, along with the reviews I’ve written so far. I’ve covered Love Sick, SOTUS, and Make It Right so far, and today I offer my thoughts on Together With Me and the MaxTul ship. Thanks to @manogirl for your encouragement to add this to my watchlist!]

Okay! Together With Me. Well -- well, well, WELL.

First off: I’m VERY glad I added this drama to my list, and I want to give big ups again to @manogirl for being the loudest supporter of my adding this to the OGMMTVC and learning about the first high heat ship in Thai BLs. Secondly, I have to admit a mistake. I put Together With Me in-between the first and second seasons of Make It Right on my watchlist (pasted below), but I got the airing dates mixed up -- MIR2 aired before TwM, but I watched TwM first. Womp. I’ll fix my list below. (Thanks to @bengiyo for filling me in on important details about MIR2 so that I can make accurate comparisons in this piece!)

Even though I haven’t watched all of MIR2 yet, I can project from the early episodes what happens -- more heat, more chaos, more teenage angst. (MY DEAR CONFUSED FUSE. MY DEAR HEATY FRAMEBOOK.)

Nevertheless, TwM still provided some fabulous comparative material for me to understand where BL had gone from the time of 2014/2015 Love Sick to the 2017 moment of TwM’s airing.

2016 was a big year in Thailand, I now realize. SOTUS premieres as the first BL-BL -- the first show that was a BL, that focused solely on a main queer coupling. Then Make It Right airs, and it’s pulpy, wild, open, longing, full of implied teenage sex and direct communication about the befores, the durings, and the afters. Make It Right, as the dear @bengiyo stated, depicted a world in which teenage boys are able to explore queerness without being punished for it.

Then we get in 2017, and the second season of MIR2, which has more implied heat than the first season. AND THEN, THEN: we get Together With Me. And just, WOW -- did this show ever benefit from the road that Love Sick, SOTUS, and Make It Right/MIR2 paved.

Why?

One thing I wonder is: could we have EVER gotten two JACKED jocks like Max and Tul in a BL ship if LS/SOTUS/MIR/MIR2 had NOT aired before TwM?

I would actually love to entertain that as a question to the family that reads these posts. Because my own thinking is: no. I’m thinking that Captain and White walked so that Max and Tul could do it on camera run. They warmed up the censors to maybe relax a little. I would argue that the previous BLs and BL-inspired material gave MaxTul the safety, as two clearly masculine-presenting men -- stereotypically jacked, jocky, college-aged, huge, masculine, male-men -- to be the first big heat ship, as @manogirl stated, in Thai BL.

I think audiences were likely primed and ready, if they were following SOTUS (with no heat) and MIR/MIR2 (with high school-teenage heat), to GET some HEATY detail from some VERY BEAUTIFUL, SLIGHTLY OLDER MEN -- men who were also about to have some very moving queer revelations happen between them.

In other words -- the audiences had been titillated enough. As @bengiyo has reminded me: yaoi manga was tremendously popular in Thailand at this time, and showmakers were taking notice. The audiences were likely ready for ACTION-action. And MaxTul were up to the challenge.

(Also for context, I also want to acknowledge a note that @bengiyo sent to me about what Thailand was likely paying attention to across the rest of Asia -- as more BLs were coming out of Japan, Taiwan, and China before censorship. From those perspectives as well -- those different cultural reads on yaoi -- Thailand was likely also inspired. I seriously welcome input from the whole OGMMTVC family -- I’m thinking, besides @bengiyo, @absolutebl, @nieves-de-sugui, @so-much-yet-to-learn, and others might have insight on this -- about what outside cultural factors I’m likely missing from my analyses. I’d love to be filled in by the experts on any cross-cultural context y’all think is helpful from the comparative worldview of what was happening at this moment in time.)

So we get to MaxTul, KornKnock, that first scene of episode 1 that had me going WHOA -- I mean, I don’t know what I’ve missed in the intervening years, but even today, we don’t have many series just going STRAIGHT to it.

I was impressed.

Now, AFTER THAT? Oy vey, ha.

I wrote in a post right after I finished watching TwM, that I felt like while I had watched a show in a university setting, that for some reason, a lot of the show took me back to high school.

I wouldn’t criticize TwM as necessarily missing something by way of tone. Rather, I would argue that TwM experimented with a kind of tone that at least I haven’t experienced yet in my otherwise chronological watching of early Thai BLs. Namely -- TwM approached its material with a kind of...flippant tone, if that makes sense.

The script was larded with sexism and sometimes crude insinuations about queerness. The show went into VERY questionable territory with two ethical boundaries of doctor-patient relations and teacher-student relations. (I admittedly could not help but think of the recent debates around the Wat-Sani ship in the recent Our Skyy 2 x The Eclipse episodes -- but I think the Kavi x Phu ship was on a different, much more problematic level, as there was active engagement by a teacher to ultimately not separate herself from a student.) (And that didn’t even come close to approaching the problematic nature of the Dr. Bright x Farm ship.)

Really quickly about the sexism, before I get back to the boys. It was really interesting to me when it was used, and when it was NOT used. Plern is, in the words of @lurkingshan, the ultimate faen fatale. Bitchy, conniving, smart-but-not -- a true villain. Aim of Love Sick couldn’t even try to compete. Prae was a ditz, and Miki was vengeful, but Plern thought she was smart, had it all, and deserved everything she wanted without trying.

But Yihwa presented with LOYALTY, intelligence, insight, and grace. And Faii presented with a chill demeanor and analytical skills, and surprisingly -- even while she was ASSUMED to NOT be athletic -- was shown playing soccer/football BETTER than the boys, which I think was VERY NICE to see in a 2017 drama. (That pushed a neat kind of boundary for me.)

Yihwa and Faii in particular defy the paradigm of setting up female characters against stereotypes of male success. What made them possibly the strongest female characters I’ve seen in a BL is that they used the characteristics of their enemies to get back at their enemies. That was smart. They broke through a lot of what could have really sunk this show, and lifted the show intelligently.

So what COULD have sunk this show? List time:

1) The Dr. Bright x Farm ship. I was honestly so grossed out by this that I don’t even want to spend time writing on it. And I am HELL-FUCKING glad that I am NOT going NEAR the second season, because I understand that there’s a redemption arc for Bright. I’m very disappointed by this storyline, as I think it saddles an out gay man with stereotypes about sexual preferences that can be done safely (like group activity), and instead presented those preferences as predatory. And then Farm goes from played-to-player. In my opinion, when the Tumblr fam warned me about this show being toxic -- this ship was toxic factor #1 by far.

2) Knock and his cluelessness. Holding on an actual MaxTul analysis for the moment -- Korn and Knock were interesting characters for me to see interacting with each other. I mean, Korn’s admission to Knock, I would argue, actually came (HA HA) a little fast (HA HA) for Knock to process. No, but seriously. A passionate hook-up, Knock’s VERY adamant reaction towards Korn afterwards, and then Knock’s warbling back-and-forth between Plern and Korn. Knock had everything happening to him and at him -- gay-for-you, lingering girlfriend, the inching back to his same-sex lover -- and I’d argue that Knock was just a little...let’s say....diluted and bro-y about it all. I could have seen a little more emotional passion. I could have seen a little more real and introspective struggle (save for the internet posts). I did like that conversation Knock had with Bright about “gay for you” -- where Bright, as an out gay man, kind of corrected Knock to say, yes, it’s a little gay, what you’re feeling -- but that’s okay, it’s normal, and I’m here for you.

3) Jocks in love. But Knock’s behavior, and to an extent, Korn’s behavior as well, was, well -- jocky. Knock, I think, was very much like -- “why is this all happening to MEEEEE, my broooosss, crying on my beddddd??” To me, at least, what reminded me about high school with this show WAS this jockish approach to romance. The show presented Knock posting on the internet, for instance -- but not spending time thinking exactly about what those posts and answers meant.

For comparison, Bright and Farm, as the other same-sex ship in the show, were presented in a predatory match-up. We didn’t have femme-presenting characters (like Christina in MIR) or other trope-y or stereotypical elements of queer behavior that we had seen in dramas past.

I think the jocks-in-love approach to this show, which came naturally by way of how Max and Tul LOOK and CARRY THEMSELVES -- was risky. Knock was kind of the perfect nickname for that character. He wasn’t a dude that was very able to read between any lines. His true revelation about Plern came when idiot Plern spilled her beans to other people, that dumbass. And I think a lot of the way Knock accused Korn of Korn’s own feelings, and Korn’s behavior in “taking advantage” of Knock, came out of jockish cluelessness. When Korn said, “I love you, dipshit!”, “dipshit” was ABSOLUTELY the right word to use to the continually clueless Knock.

ALL OF THAT BEING SAID. (Leaving Bright and Farm aside forever, let us never speak their names again.)

I think Max and Tul themselves were a revelation. Were they AS SKILLED ACTORS as Singto in SOTUS, or Ohm and Toey in Make It Right? Oh god, no. Were they AS BAD as Krist? No, no, no one comes close. And were they AS INEXPERIENCED as Captain and White when those two first debuted? Also, no.

Max and Tul, I think, seized a different damn moment. I’m actually not sure I’d say there was electric chemistry between them. I think they both acted WELL, but there wasn’t EMOTIONAL sizzle, at least the kind I look for. They were certainly bros and homies -- but longing gazes à la Tee and Fuse, they did not have.

What they DID do, with their PHYSICALITY, was break boundaries by way of what we could SEE, without needing to read between lines or analyze shit. We just SAW THEM DO IT, tear off shirts and make out and bounce around and show off their muscular anatomy, and I think THAT was actually groundbreaking. I think IN THAT -- the boys knew EXACTLY what they were doing, they KNEW they could do it well, and they DID do it well -- and I didn’t see an iota of hesitation from either of them. And I thought that was really impressive. And I think these guys knew -- by DOING THAT SO WELL -- that they were breaking important ground in the world of television BL. The viewers -- those viewers who, like Knock, don’t like or WANT to read between lines -- THEY GOT what Max and Tul were serving.

What I also find impressive is that these guys IRL are serious allies. Their social media profiles, for the both of them, are gilded with allyship. That’s huge to me. (Tul at NYC Pride, come awn.) They’re owning their ownership of a slice of representation -- again, as jocky dudes in real life who engage fearlessly in queer material. (I now can’t wait for The Outing.)

Honestly? Yes, TwM was at times either painfully and/or hilariously toxic. I think the Bright x Farm ship is violent and harmful, and I truly wish it didn’t exist.

But I’m glad I watched TwM because -- well, fuck it, I’m an old mom, and I like to see jacked, shirtless dudes sometimes.

BUT ALSO: I think the makers of TwM knew that there were VIEWERS who WANTED TO JUST SEE QUEER MEN BE QUEER MEN WITH MEN, and you know what? I think the show’s creators said to themselves -- well, hot damn, maybe we have something here. And now’s (in 2017) the time for it. Sometimes I don’t want to read between the lines, too -- sometimes, I want a show that I can watch with a damn martini in a Solo cup and just be like, ooooh, man tiddies!

And the show creators found Max and Tul for Bad Romance, and realized, yes -- let’s spin this off, because there’s an audience out there who wants this. And I think that was accurate then, and now. Award-winning actors, Max and Tul are not. But they are VERY important to my historical understanding for how queer representation was progressing in BLs at the time of TwM -- in a vastly different fashion than Love Sick, SOTUS, and MIR had set up in their own worlds and their own paradigms.

I think TwM created a paradigm of its own -- one that I think has helped BL to grow at least in quantity, maybe not in quality, but at least paved a road that allowed creators to think and to say, well -- if we lead with the sex, we can still make a show. I see the OG BL fans on Tumblr marveling often at the sheer volume of BLs we have now. I want to think that that happened in part for what TwM created -- the permission, the openness, and the standard to do just that. And for the fans that want that content? We live in a world now where we have our fair share of shows to choose from. I think TwM created a paradigm that we didn’t know we needed in 2017. And I don’t regret -- even if it’s not my preferred style of drama -- having the option to watch a cheesy, jocky show every so often. Instead, I feel lucky that in 2023, I can have my choice.

[Alright! It was so much fun late-night liveblogging TwM and hopping on the Yihwa bandwagon, and I’m getting back into doing it for Make It Right 2. Thanks to everyone who answered my questions about TwM along the way: @manogirl, @nieves-de-sugui, @absolutebl, @crowie, @clairificusrex, @respectthepetty, @bengiyo, @shortpplfedup, @kyr-kun-chan, @telomeke, @miscellar (I will always be looking for the BBS connections, friends telomeke and miscellar, haha), @lurkingshan, and apologies if I’m missing anyone else -- thank you, family!

Watchlist update below, which is corrected for chronology for Make It Right 2. And...unbelievably...I’m adding something else to this list. I’m gonna add SOTUS S. I vowed I wouldn’t because of Krist, but. Since I am NOT, EVER, going to watch the continuation of TwM, I want to watch the continuation of another early series, besides Make It Right 2/FrameBook, to see the maturing of a relationship, as I’ve been involved in excellent convos with @bengiyo and friends about how length-and-depth-in-committed-relationships is NOT the most popular of BL themes -- but it’s a theme that literally brought me to Asian BLs via Kinou Nani Tabeta so many years ago. (I’ve read a lot that SOTUS S is better than SOTUS anyway, and it has my beloved Nammon in it.) I’m wondering if seeing a relationship developing and maturing is an important movement for Thai BLs at the end of 2017 into 2018, maybe a theme that hadn’t been explored YET, before TwM’s continuation, and one that might feed into the shows of 2018 and beyond. And I’m wondering if it’s important, as MaxTul was, for seeing the KristSingto ship move forward -- especially as I get prepared to FINALLY get to He’s Coming To Me, and getting to understand the impact of what Aof, Singto, and Ohm Pawat did to split the KristSingto ship. As always, I welcome any feedback!

1) Love Sick and Love Sick 2 (2014 and 2015) (review here) 2) SOTUS (2016) (review here) 3) Make It Right (2016) (review here) 4) Make It Right 2 (2017) (watching) 5) Together With Me (2017) 6) SOTUS S (2017-2018) 7) Love By Chance (2018) 8) Kiss Me Again: PeteKao cuts (2018) 9) He’s Coming To Me (2019) 10) Dark Blue Kiss (2019) 11) TharnType (2019) 12) Theory of Love (2019) 13) Dew the Movie (2019) (not an official part of the OGMMTVC watchlist, but I want to watch this in chronological order with everything else) 14) Until We Meet Again (2019-2020) 15) 2gether (2020) 16) Still 2gether (2020) 17) I Told Sunset About You (2020) 18) A Tale of Thousand Stars (2021) (review here) 19) I Promised You the Moon (2021) 20) Not Me (2021-2022) 21) Bad Buddy (2021-2022) (thesis here) 22) KinnPorsche (2022) (tag here) 23) The Eclipse (2022) (tag here) 24) My School President (2022-2023) 25) Moonlight Chicken (2023) (tag here)

#together with me #together with me meta #maxtul #korn x knock #knock x korn #kornknock #turtles catches up with the essential bls #turtles catches up with thai bls #turtles catches up with old gmmtv #the old gmmtv challenge #ogmmtvc #max nattapol #tul pakorn

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billpottsismygf · 3 days

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And I've finished Dead Boy Detectives! I'm sad it's over, especially as it's been really nice taking my time with the episodes rather than bingeing the whole thing. So much happened in this episode, but I'll try to keep it brief.

Crystal's revelation about her parents was devastating and so well played. The same goes for her memories more generally. I loved her chat with Jenny - who finally knows everything - about it being best to know your own life, even the bad parts. Kassius Nelson did such a great job portraying the range of emotions Crystal goes through in this one.

Esther! She's so much fun and I love how big a part she had here. Obviously, she's terrible and her downfall was very satisfying, but I just enjoy having her on screen so I will be sad if there's another series and she's not in it. Her showdown with Crystal was good, and I loved the neat twist that it's Lilith herself who brings her down. Although they don't explicitly say it, I like the detail that it's a "harmless memory", but this is still an image of Lilith and she can be contacted through any image of her.

I also really loved resolution with the higher authority from the afterlife. I reckon the Night Nurse will come round, since she did in fact come to like them before they (well, Niko) got one over on her in the last episode. I wonder how this will affect the jobs they take on now, as they'll presumably have an incentive to investigate cases more likely to lead to ghosts moving on.

Now, Niko. I love her so much. Her and Edwin's friendship is one of my favourite things about the whole show, and yet again I loved their little rooftop talk. The way her death happened feels simultaneously quite cruel and ineffective. In that, I was in a weird limbo where I didn't get emotional over her death because I knew she had that charm, but was worried it was going to just end without confirmation that the charm had done anything, especially since the sprites were gone. Mick's line about the good you do coming around being said by the lady from the afterlife gave me hope and, indeed, we did get that final shot, but I'm left feeling frustrated more than anything.

What does it mean for her to have survived? Her body is being shipped back to Japan. Will she be a ghost? Fully alive again? Something else entirely? Will she be able to keep living her life, maybe finishing school and finally talk to her mother? Or will she be like the dead boys, only able to communicate with particular people and otherwise barred from normal life? I know these are questions we are meant to ponder through the medium of the cliffhanger, but again it's this weird limbo of sadness. It doesn't feel emotionally satisfying.

Ah well, apart from a couple of bumps along the way, I've really enjoyed this show. I've streamed it a couple of times through while doing other things as well, which I hate that I feel the need to do, but we can only hope that it will get a second series. I have no faith in Netflix that it will get renewed, so I'm prepared for disappointment, but I will definitely be very sad if my pessimism turns out to be accurate.

Small things

Crystal had literally lost her marbles.

I'm still iffy on the unrequited love confession between Edwin and Charles, so I don't know what I think about Edwin saying it's made them better friends than before.

I loved Edwin's farewell conversation and cheek kiss with the Cat King.

Monty got to help them in their mission! Now where is he?

#dead boy detectives #The Case of the Hungry Snake #mine #dbd #dbd mine #reactions

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miraculouslbcnreactions · 5 months

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Today's episode was Revelation, where Lila becomes class rep and Chloè's cheating is outed.

We start with the reveal of Lila's multiple moms. SO immediately stopped the episode and said, "I think I'm done with this show." After I was done laughing, we kept watching. (I did say that we could stop, I'm only watching this for love of him)

We got to the scene where Chloè's cheating is outed and both of us are confused by Marinette's reaction. After hearing that Chloè will need to do extra work to catch up, Marinette gets upset because Chloè doesn't deserve help as if Chloè getting extra work is a privilege that takes resources from others, but it's really not? Or, if it is, they don't explain how. Both my SO and I would have been thrilled if our bullies got outed and was then made to do extra work after years of cheating. Like yes, make her work, please! It's about GD time.

This was followed by lots of ranting about how fake Lila comes across and how stupid the class is and how dumb Hoaxers lies were, which I enjoyed, but it's just preaching to the choir so I'll skip the fine details. Safe to say, the only time Lila's lies working feels realistic is when she's powered up as Hoaxer.

We both have one questions about the Lila as class rep thing: Why in the world would Lila improving Chloe be a legitimate campaign strategy? Why would anyone blame Marinette for not doing that? French schools don't actually expect student representatives to act as counselors for their classmates, right? Because that's utter insanity. We're assuming this bit is as accurate as the reach of Andre's mayoral authority, but please confirm that if you know because it bothers me!

We get to the scene where Nathalie spills Gabriel's secrets to Lila and it's another "we're forcing this for plot reason, not because it makes any sense to the established lore" right up there with the BS way that Ladybug's yo-yo worked in the season four final. Why didn't Gabriel notice this was happening? He's always been fully aware of his akuma's actions before. And why he didn't have Nathalie remove her ring since he was worried about Lila in the exact same episode? Why does Lila retain her consciousness while other akumas don't?

All in all, this is just a generally aggravating piece of television and I didn't even touch on Alya and Nino's writing. STOP MAKING THEM BAD FRIENDS!!!

Fun fact: this was the episode that made me stop watching the subs as they came out. I stopped caring about spoilers and waited for the dub so I could tune out when things got too annoying. I just didn't care anymore.

#ml writing salt #ml writing critical #ml season 5 salt #suffering through a rewatch of season 5 for love of my SO #ml revelation

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teecupangel · 10 months

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What if Revelations Ezio dated a woman while he was in Istanbul who was a belly dancer had 2 teenage boys who didn't like him because their real dad would abuse their mom which is why they're very protective of her. How would he win them over?

According to wiki, the most accurate thing we can do is make the woman be a Romani who learned this from Egyptians musicians and dancers who were in Constantinople at the time.

If she and her sons are Romani then Ezio’s in for a bit of trouble as his sons wouldn’t trust Ezio as far as they could throw him, not just because of what their biological father had done but because of the socio-political standing of the Romanis in Constantinople during that time.

The best Ezio could do would be to show his sincerity with his actions and help the Romanis out any way he can (which he did do in canon if we consider the 100% sync to be canon).

But it’s gonna be a long road for Ezio to do such a thing so yeah…

He’s gonna be doing this for a while.

#ask and answer #does this count as #ezio x reader #or #ezio x oc #idk #tagging both i guess #ezio auditore x reader #ezio auditore x oc

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revelation19 · 1 year

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How do you defend Christianity if someone talks about Kemetism or Ancient Egyptian beliefs being the source of certain ideas in the Bible as Egyptian religion is dated to 3,000 or 4,000 BCE?

Some believe we have evidence that this religion dates back further than Judaism.

Well, first of all, every time they show some parallel, if you dig into what the actual Ancient Egyptian's believed it's radically different from what they say. Those alleged parallels almost always dissolve into total non-issues.

Second, even if they were close parallels, that doesn't really mean anything. When they say that Kemetism or any other Ancient Near Eastern religion pre-existed Judaism, what they mean is that it might pre-exist the post-exodus establishment of the nation of Israel and it's established tabernacle structure. That's what they mean by "Judaism." The problem there is that the people of God long predate the exodus and God's special revelation goes back before Abraham, before Noah, back to the foundation and creation of the earth. There is no Ancient Near Eastern religion that predates creation.

Third, even if it could be established that Kemetism or whatever else somehow does predate Judaism, this is still all basically a big genetic fallacy. Just because it came first doesn't mean that it has a greater claim to truth, nor does it mean that Judaism was borrowing from them as a source. It is more likely that the Ancient Near Eastern religions were trying to do a sort of natural theology where they inferred theological ideas from the world around them (God's general revelation). They came up with the wrong conclusions, but they were interpreting God's revelation. In the Old and New Testament we have the true and accurate interpretation of general revelation in the form of God's special revelation.

So, ultimately, Scripture is going to be the only source of theological authority. You measure truth by that, not by playing a game of "which source is older."

That's more or less what I would say.

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tietensgo · 8 months

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note: spoilers

As I did for Squid Games and Alice in Borderland, I am going to jot down my thoughts about One Piece Live Action, which turned out to be an overall good watch, even though I was /genuinely/ afraid it would suck.

OPLA had big shoes to fill, as the One Piece IP is quite well known and beloved. In my view, the Netflix show understood where it could bring a unique perspective, which helped the execution greatly. For example, the speed, superhuman movements, and over-the-top expressions of the anime would be a stretch to represent accurately in live action; even with cgi, I struggled to feel the epic nature of the devil fruits or fighting abilities being used to their full effect (the initial fight against Captain Alvida, for example). Instead, I enjoyed when the show leaned into amplifying the setting of the world and emotions of the characters, which was amazing! The grime of Alvida's ship, Luffy's backstory on Dawn island (the young!Luffy casting was spot. on.), watching Usopp try to load a cannon for the first time, the exploration of what Zoro and Nami talk about when they're not keeping the captain out of trouble - in my opinion, these were the moments that shined brightest for the show.

Pacing. If you've sat through 1000+ episodes of the anime as many have and felt the buildup of tension over /years/, the treatment that the show gives some plot points can feel frustratingly brief. Sanji's goodbye at the Baratie was not half as emotional as it was in the anime, and the moments when the crew was supposed to band together (e.g. feet on barrel on the Going Merry) felt less impactful because we hadn't had as much time to be endeared to the Straw Hat Pirates and root for them as a group. (For example, if the show had included Morgan's backstory of cruelty from the anime, his defeat would have felt farrrrrr more satisfying). However, I have to acknowledge that rapid pacing is expected in the live action, because the anime is decades old and OPLA has to condense a lot of material into a reasonable run time; for an eight-plus hour series, it managed to rarely feel slow (though it did happen), and that's a feat.

Characters. Koby was perfect. The right amount of nervous, the right amount of ambitious. Buggy was a revelation. His character is kind of a running joke in the anime, so I was ready to wish him off screen as soon as he appeared, but I loved Ward as Deke in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the genuineness he added to Buggy's CLAP FOR ME OR DIE behavior made the performance not just intense but somehow nuanced. Nami asking (after Sanji's wink) if there was something wrong with his eye. Luffy drinking milk while others ordered beer. The adaptations of Hawkeye and Garp. You can just imagine the work that went into the fishmen makeup- the list goes on. As I mentioned, I think this attention to detail in adapting the appearance and interactions of the characters was probably what the series did best. Of course there were... interesting takes (bright neon hair in a world of muted color, Nami turning from dollar-sign-eyes loving money in the anime to eat-the-rich in the show, Nami keeping the secret of her involvement with Arlong from Nojiko) but these differences I think make OPLA its own production - a TV show with its own lore - and leave room for people to go back and watch the anime and fall even more in love with the characters and their deeper stories there.

Helmeppo. Helmeppo is so much. I love the 'let's all shit on Helmeppo' jokes. More. Moarrrrr of this.

Extras. I appreciated all the extra touches like the title screen of each episode being modeled after the focus character of the episode and the wanted posters being half anime half live action; it made the production feel like it was made by people who cared that the adaptation was done right. I loved hearing hints of We Are in the soundtrack, and the den den mushis were toooo cute. Altogether, good stuff for my one piece brain. It helped me get through the scenes of Go with Garp.

TLDR; The interpretations of the characters and the realistic settings were highlights of OPLA. The Going Merry, Kaya's mansion, Morgan's naval base, the Baratie and Arlong Park were all stunning to see in live action. However, while the fight scenes were well made, they didn't quite compete with the heights set by the anime, and the story is really condensed, leaving some heartfelt moments coming off as shallow or leaving them out of the plot altogether. This can be a struggle if you're looking for the intricate, mysterious, multi-layered world from the anime. But those still traumatized from memories of live action atla (2010) or dbz (2009) can breathe a sigh of relief as we hold out for sustained quality for this adaptation in future seasons: overall, OPLA is worth watching. A great introduction for newcomers to this amazing series and a pretty good adaptation for long time fans as well.

#opla #opla spoilers #one piece #one piece live action

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dragynkeep · 2 years

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antisemitism in the rwby fndm, or hey aisling why are you still beating this dead ass horse, by fallout boy.

mostly because it’s nearly 6am, less than a week away from tisha b’av — one of our fasting holidays that is specifically about our suffering, feel free to read about it here! — & the antisemitism from the last couple of days has really just left me exhausted personally. i’m not going to speak for other jewish people in the fandom but i do just wanna highlight how normalized antisemitism has really become in the rwby, & by large, rooster teeth fandom.

we’ve already been over how the goyishe (read : non jewish) writers in camp camp, miles & kerry, were incredibly antisemitic in their mockery of the shoah & jewish suffering overall in the show camp camp. that was dissected on a deep dive here which was written months ago in regards to rooster teeth & the antisemitism in their actions / writing. the show was not written with mocking hitler in it’s aim, but to mock the various ways of jewish suffering & ways jews survived the shoah & violent persecution / genocide by the nazi regime.

we have also been over coco adel being inspired by the nazi coco chanel is incredibly uncomfortable because the revelation of her nazi ideology was already exposed by time of her creation. not to mention coco chanel cannot be divorced into “fashion designer” & “nazi” because she was a famed antisemite nonetheless & gained that fashion empire via the means of stealing it from a jewish man. taking inspiration from coco adel in any way is by means of congratulating or drawing favour to that antisemitic legacy, there is no way around that. this character should’ve never been made & at the very least, should’ve been killed off in the fall of beacon to avoid further antisemitism; but now they cannot get rid of her without byg & i frankly have no sympathy.

but that’s rooster teeth, right? what about the fandom?

well, we’ve had a ww2 au where-in a jewish cinder works for salem, a nazi. emerald, mercury & neopolitan also worked for nazi salem; despite the fact that historically if this were truly accurate, she would have them all thrown into camps for the “genetic stains” they were as a woc & disabled people respectively. this doesn’t even get into the painful history of the sonderkommando, actual jewish people forced to work for the nazis, in order to burn our own deceased.

there’s also been “putting people in camps” ‘jokes’, because yay. those are always fun.

we’ve also had multiple goyim speaking over jewish people in the fandom, speaking over us in the facts that there is rife antisemitism in rooster teeth as a company & that it has clearly seeped into the fandom. those same people have spoken over us in specific characters we headcanon as jewish, specifically because of the axis of oppression those characters face & how well it lends to the jewish experience. even if they didn’t like it, it was never their place as a non jew to “hold us accountable” for those headcanons.

we have now also had a “satirical” site make light of the nazi regime, especially the ss soldiers, in order to further attack fans of a fictional character they dislike. never mind that the self identified white writer miles luna completely misused the term of genocide when talking about this character, james ironwood, but that it has then been spread amongst the fandom & clearly endorsed by miles.

there were, of course, multiple responses to the outrage from jewish people & ironwood fans alike. “it’s just a joke!” “it’s satire” “whatever you’re so sensitive.”

let me be clear, goyim do not get an opinion on if a “satire” of anything surrounding the shoah was appropriate or not. the only people who can reclaim jokes around this tragedy are jewish & romani people as the two sections of society singled out for genocide & outright extermination.

this “satire” was wholly inappropriate. the two situations are incomparable & the trauma / tragedy surrounding the nazi regime & the terror imposed by the ss command specifically is not to be trivialized over a fake anime written by shitty ass antisemites. especially by fans of a ship where one half of it is voice acted by a jewish woman. this was wholly inappropriate & disgusting.

antisemitism is called the oldest hatred in the world for a reason; it is baked into every facet of every society & needs to be challenged at every turn. yes, even in the “jokes” you think aren’t that serious. even when it’s “not that serious.” because in the period of the pandemic, antisemitic hate crimes have reached heights they had not since ww2. that is fucking frightening. & in a fandom space so supposedly “safe for jewish people” as per one of rooster teeth’s employees, the actual seriousness of antisemitism is derided at every turn & jewish people are spoken over by goyim. it’s disgusting & it needs to change.

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rab1dm1ke · 2 months

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Smg4 Rewrite Ramble

So i have some issues with the Smg4 universe to the point where i both love and hate it. (please know i ain't haven’t watched all the episodes and all arcs so I’ll try to keep hands off on certain arcs and characters)

I’ll start with my complaints on the arcs and characters then I’ll talk about the changes.

[Complaints]

Arcs:

Lawsuit:

Redesign 1: the designs were sloppily made

Mario’s trauma: They show that families were ripped apart and mention violence but yet we never see it actually affect anyone and Mario is the golden child and it’s weird he knows about what Nintendo has done but yet walks freely and even during the arc Mario shows know fear which kinda bothers me

Trial: Personally I kinda wish they had it be more accurate with the DMCA and also Meggy not being a real lawyer and Kirby not being an actual judge really bothered me since it means the DMCA would still be in effect and everyone should still be dead and Meggy appearing even though she should be dead and not even a real judge saw the Parody paper.

ITS GOTTA BE PERFECT:

4’s not getting check up on : I think they could’ve made it a bit more obvious on 4’s reasons and should’ve made it more obvious but hidden as he was going down hill. No one brought up a concern about 4 until Mario day which bothers me cause no one really tried until the countdown which is after Mario Day which tells me that nobody actually checked on him other than those few times and Mario bothering him. So no one basically mentioned their concerns to him before he went insane.

The movie: The movie was supposed to be about 4 and how he was mentally unstable and got corrupted but to me the movie felt more targeted for 3’s character development than 4’s which bothers me since 4 didn’t get any character development except for getting closer with 3 and he went a month without sleep and walked out perfectly fine.

Western spaghetti:

Tari screen: I never understood that part since Meggy and Mario never gained or lost knowledge from that so it kinda felt like a filler since it didn’t really mess with dynamics so I kinda wish it was something to progress the story

Souvenirs: How did 3 get the stuff from the simulation

Genesis:

34 rivalry: in my opinion 3 and 4 automatically hating eachother on looks is weird to me and their dynamic make it seem it’s more but nope it’s on looks. It was better in YouTube arc when 3 hated 4 over being better than him so tbh they should’ve had that from the start with jealousy or one of them hurt the other in a way

Anime: (I have to remain bread since I only watched part of the arc)

Desti’s death: I hate she was created to be killed so it leads the question of why make her at all

Revelations:

Why is everyone there: I have a good question. WHY IS EVERYONE AT COLLEGE!? I mean sure 1 and 2 teaching memes and 4 getting dragged along makes sense and so does Meggy, Melony and Mario but Bob, Boopkins and others doesn’t cause it’s college. I wish they made more sense about everyone there.

Niles and Melony: Niles only being present for Melony I don’t have an issue but how do people know about him if he’s only present to her and sure they found out but no one actually knows what he looks like.

God box’s death: how does the death of bod box make sense if it’s one of the creations keeping the world alive, including the fact they break 4th wall I ain’t a fan of since I can tell their trying to be funny with someone coming in confused about the box but it ain’t funny in my opinion

WOTFI 2023:

Build up: I didn’t really like the build up since it was the notebook going missing then “oh Mario has it so let’s rob a casino” it just felt stupid and the other 2 seemed more serious and yet this was the run of the joke and it sucks

VS: they didn’t have the traditional Fat Italian war and they didn’t add the Vs part which sucks cause why give that up? Why now?

Non-serious: it’s kinda stupid that the other 2 arcs were more serious but somewhat comical but then this had mainly funny instead of the more serious which bothers me cause it’s in the TV arc but yet it didn’t feel like it should be apart of it

Corrected characters:

[unfinished]

#smg4 #smg4 fanart #smg4 rewrite #unfinished

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insipid-drivel · 4 months

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I cannot express enough how important it is to look up and research any diagnoses, especially those regarding mental and behavioral health/development, before fully accepting what a diagnosing therapist or doctor has handed down. Especially if the diagnosis is of a highly stigmatized or rare condition.

I see these posts a lot on tumblr from people who spent years, even decades, with fairly common presentations of ASD, ADHD, and other relatively common conditions misdiagnosed to some of the societally-bleakest ones possible. BPD? Bipolar (especially Bipolar 2)? Schizoid personality disorder? Those aren't diagnoses that are going to help someone who doesn't have them.

First off, I want to say one thing: A label is only as good as the information attached to it applies to you. If you're happy to be diagnosed, that's great! If it's still taking time to reckon with a diagnosis? That's totally okay. A lot of people need to spend a long time with support, friends, and loved ones to adjust to having a daunting label assigned to them. This isn't to say that you should completely fob off your diagnosis, either.

Here's the biggest thing I came to understand when it came to the world of diagnostics: A correct diagnosis is like receiving your own Dewey Decimal number at the library: It can take you to where the research and peer-supported information about your condition is available for you.

When I first began seeing my psychiatrist of now over 5 years, he tried to diagnose me with Schizoid Personality Disorder. There is nothing wrong with that, except that it wasn't the right diagnosis for me. I went home after his big revelation with me, looked up what credible sources like the NIH, WHO, and DSM-5 to read about what defined a Schizoid personality and how people who have agreed to interviews and published studies attest to feeling.

When I read the description of the symptoms and common mental and emotional traits for people with Schizoid Personalities, it was like reading a long-form antonym; the opposite of a description of how I felt and what was really going on in my mind.

So, I took that information with me to my next session with him, and after having found other related conditions in the same general family as Schizoid Personality Disorder, I found that I was really Schizotypal, which is a very, very, very different diagnosis. To be sure, I texted the links to the articles I'd read to my psychiatrist, and told him at our next meeting, "I don't feel you have an accurate grasp of what my experience and behaviors are. This [Schizotypal] is a more accurate summary of my life experience, while Schizoid sounds like a different person's diagnosis. Can we try this over again?"

My psychiatrist asked me some more detailed questions, including questions about whether I was showing him an accurate reflection of my normal personality when we were in-session. I answered that I didn't, and so my personality was much more reserved and cool toward him than how I usually felt and behaved around people I'm comfortable with.

I walked out of his office that day with a new diagnosis: Autism, and Schizotypal Personality Disorder.

About 2 years later came the biggest revelation of all: Dissociative Identity Disorder.

My life became very lonely after I came out publicly about that one.

Nevertheless, never be afraid to do your own research, ask questions, or debate differential diagnoses. If the shoe fits you, then it fits you, and you and your therapist or healthcare provider can move forward from there. If trying to study it reveals it's shaped for a horse and you can barely walk around with it on, then it may be worth a longer discussion.

#mental health #stigma #diagnosis #did/osdd #traumagenic #plurality

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