#〘 comic commentary 〙┊and this is how the story goes

[thankskenpenders]

And now for something new

So, here's something I was never planning on doing, but I just couldn't shake the idea... Thanks Ken Penders is gaining a sister blog featuring an entirely different comic franchise!

Introducing... Thanks Steve Ditko, a blog where I read the Earth-616 Spider-Man comics, starting all the way back in the '60s! It's gonna be much more casual and less thorough than how I run things here on TKP, though, which I'll explain in a sec.

If seeing me post weird bits from old Spider-Man comics sounds fun and you need no further info, then just head right on over to Thanks Steve Ditko. But for longtime TKP readers, I know you probably have questions...

Number one: Why?

Spider-Man's always been my favorite superhero, and with the Spider-Verse movies kicking ass and my excitement building for the new Insomniac game, I've been in a Spidey mood. Inevitably, a thought occurred to me: Maybe I should actually read the comics that everything else is built off of and see the wildly varying contributions of all the original creators, rather than filtering them through big budget adaptations. If I can power through One Piece and all these other manga with hundreds of chapters, it can't be that hard... right?

And, well, after a few issues I quickly realized that my options were to either clog up my other accounts with random Spider-Man panels for years, or to just make a side blog. And so the side blog was born.

Two: Will this blog replace Thanks Ken Penders?

NO!!!!!!!!!

Okay but prove it

To allow the two to exist side-by-side, Thanks Steve Ditko will have a different format than what Thanks Ken Penders developed. Rather than an in-depth guided tour that critically analyzes every story beat of every issue, TSD will just be a place for amusing panels and brief thoughts as I casually read the comics at my own pace.

If you've seen me make a few tweets about reading Spider-Man recently, I'm basically just moving that to a dedicated Tumblr. It's a place for me to dump these things so that it doesn't fill up my media tab on Twitter for the next decade. (You know, assuming Twitter is still around in a decade.) There will be many issues where I only post two panels that I thought were funny. There will be issues where I don't have anything to say at all. Maybe I'll reach a run that I just cannot get into, and I start skipping around more. Who knows!

This may sound similar to what I thought this blog would be before it blew up. Aside from the simple fact that there's already mountains of Spider-Man commentary out there and therefore less of a void for me to fill, one of the main steps I'll be taking to avoid repeating the past is not enabling an ask box on TSD. I do not need people to ask me to go into ten times more detail on everything. I do not need to write seven essay-length responses to questions about Spider-Man minutiae every day. I do not need a place for people to chide me for not covering certain scenes, issues, or ancillary series.

It also won't have any kind of update schedule. I'm trying to keep it very casual. I'm reading these comics at my own pace, and if I feel like sharing a moment or commenting on something while doing so? It goes there. That's it.

(On the subject of format changes, I'm also listing the issue, writer, and penciller in the body of every post. This is a thing I wish I'd done on TKP so that people didn't misattribute every weird Archie Sonic panel I post to Penders.)

Three: So when will TKP come back from hiatus? You said it'd come back after you finished SLARPG!

I don't know! Sorry. I have a couple things on the backburner right now for TKP, but I'm not sure when I'll get back to proper updates where I read more comics.

I wanted to bring TKP back this year, and that's still possible. The main hurdle is that I want to reread my own archive (again) as a refresher, which is, uh. A lot of posts. I've developed a high standard for myself on here, and I feel like I wouldn't be doing my job right if I forgot half the ongoing subplots and character arcs and didn't bring them up in my analysis. Especially when I'm discussing the work of an author as obsessed with continuity as Ian Flynn. Unfortunately, the nature of this blog means that every time I go on another long hiatus for Life Reasons I have even more comic continuity to catch up on than last time.

(This is a big part of why I'm making Thanks Steve Ditko an extremely casual blog instead of promising to become a Lore Expert on 60+ years of Marvel.)

Mostly I've just been very burnt out this year after having finally finished a video game that took almost eight years to make. I haven't really had the energy for any creative projects, including TKP. But I feel a little bit of a spark here with Spider-Man, so I'm chasing that feeling to try to get back into the swing of blogging about comics - no pun intended.

So, basically, bear with me on this as I start this low-energy side project. But hopefully folks will enjoy Thanks Steve Ditko as its own thing, too.

Look forward to goofy shit like this

#tkp post

[thelastharbinger]

I’m already seeing male reactors get very verbally defensive about that scene in She-Hulk where Jennifer describes how, simply as a woman, she has more experience in suppressing rage than Banner because speaking out will get you labelled “hysterical”, “emotional”, “difficult”, “too much of a feminist”, the list goes on. And if you snap back at the wrong cat-caller, you can get murdered. So now mcu bros are rushing at the opportunity to cry out “this is just another ‘marvel throwing in another woke scene for woke’s sake’. But like...it isn’t untrue. Comic nerds are all for female superhero protagonists until she, god forbids, talks about the dynamics of what it’s like to live within the confines of patriarchy.

MCU fans are always clamoring for the social commentary to be more “subtle” and not so “in-your-face”, just so they can mindlessly enjoy a punchy fighty show and not have to confront any real-world intersections with racism, misogyny, xenophobia, transphobia, all the -isms and -phobias you can imagine. Additionally, even when the social criticisms are embedded into the story, the conflicts are routinely either overlooked or watered-down and discussed at the individual-level as if these are just isolated incidents and not reflective of larger phenomena. Dudebros forget that superhero comic media, from the very beginning, has always been political. A lot of the mainstream characters we know and love today were created in response to the anti-war and peace movements during the seventies in the United States (this is also not to say that there isn’t some definite war propaganda and Red Scare-inspired comics out there either).

Comics are teaching grounds for morality, human good, and bad, power, greed, corruption. Comics have been about the social commentary from the get-go. The idea that the government (and by extent society at large) is villainizing and surveilling a specific minority group who carry varying physical and genetic traits contrasting to that of the “ideal national subject” because of a perceived inherent aggression or difference based on their physical attributes *ahem ahem mutants*...where do you think they got that from?

I literally sat through a dude being like “IN MY EXPERIENCE AS A MAN, THAT IS NEVER THE CASE! IF A WOMAN GETS UPSET AND MAKES A SCENE IN PUBLIC, THE MAN ALWAYS LOOKS LIKE THE BAD GUY BECAUSE IT IS ASSUMED HE DID SOMETHING WRONG. MEN ARE THE ONES WHO CAN NEVER BE ANGRY.” (Obviously for Black men, my argument is different because when Black men express rage, they are viewed as a threat or turned into spectacle, but the person who made this rant was not a Black man, nor was he factoring race into his argument). As if masculinity and gratuitous violence have not become nearly synonymous. When male celebrities are accused of beating their partners, fans run to their defense to say “well she shouldn’t have provoked him.” When Will Smith slapped Chris Rock, the internet rooted for a televised boxing match between the actors/comedians. We all watched the Trump and Hillary debates right, where his belligerent behavior was coddled while she had to maintain composure?

We’ve collectively grown up watching male newscasters, talk show hosts, and reporters make jokes about angry women in sports, in the media or in news reports being on their periods, as a way to minimize the stressful and abusive circumstances, or people, women are subjected to. The world expects women to react to harassment with class and elegance; women’s anger, Black women especially, is never not mitigated. For male fans to come away from that scene wanting to eye roll is why the commentary is so “in-your-face” because a lot of y’all still don’t get it! Men are still finding ways to make women’s issues about them and the “loss” of their rights. In a world where Brock Turners are able to walk free, are you really trying to argue against this scene? Really? What else do you expect out of a series whose main character is AN ATTORNEY? Y’all are just not going to enjoy this series then, as per usual.

#if you're wondering who the youtuber in question is it is jaby koay from the channel #getjaby #he also has another channel but im not trying to promote his shit #he does reactions to loads of things but i literally want to beat his ass everytime he opens his mouth to make some social hot take bc #you might as well be talking to fucking ricky gervais #he gives major centrist vibes nd he's so fucking condescending nd will jump at any opportunity to mansplain things to his female co-reactor #he's like i'm woke but only to a certain point #anyways fuck dudebros #also are we gonna act like this she hulk scene is more shoe-horned in than that scene in endgame? let's be real #just say you hate hearing about any issues that affects anyone ever who isn't a white man #she hulk #she-hulk #marvel #mcu #mcu rant #tatiana maslany #jennifer walters #hulk #bruce banner #reactors

[weirdmageddon]

since hes open to feedback im considering talking to james roach about giving jade the justice she deserves after her narrative shafting in act 6 and one-dimensional ooc-ness (and also being a plot device deprived of agency) in the epilogues. if i do im probably going to link to this post……

so james if i sent this to you and you’re reading this, hi! :)

you say, “i want you to know if youre having problems with the story you can come to me with it and i will hear you out”. first of all you are such a good dude and have such a good open honest approach to the fans. i need to get that out there, because i know you’re just as much a fan of these characters and world are we are. secondly, i don’t know what your plans for homestuck beyond canon are, but dave and jade’s poor handling is a problem in both homestuck canon (act 6, even act 5 fucking them over with “tell, don’t show”; see the latter half of section 1 of the post at > Dave: Deploy cloning apparatus. and section 2) and post-canon that has yet to be addressed.

i understand the nuances of making things flow in a story; things that have already been established can’t be simply retconned. i wrote this post knowing that in mind and hopefully working around that into believably timed and justified/needed arcs gives it more potential

jade is a character i care about so much, and many fans also. her dynamic with dave was one of my favorites but the resolution to their separation…is not even really a resolution. it’s hard to talk about one without the other since theyve always been narratively intertwined. or at least jade has

remember how they musically collaborated more than the other kids? (crystalanthemums is their surprisingly tender song dont forget. i saw that the weird troll grub versions of objects make a comeback in the upd8; make music a relevant part of homestuck in-universe again too </3) dave sending her sbahj furry poster in the mail? the first ones to use a collaborative fraymotif in the comic? kringlefucker and conksuck boot? literally collaborating on creating the right seed for the new universe? and then dave died in jade’s arms and they were separated for 3 years and then that never gets touched on because of the retcon and all the other endgame shit going on (and lets be real grimbark jade from before the retcon wasn’t a satisfying reunion either). we get like, a brief exchange of dialogue at the very very end that made you want to see MORE of them after the battle but it. doesnt happen.

and then in the epilogues jade gets warped into this oddly hypersexual ooc one-dimensional character meant to narratively get in the way of davekat and it’s so awkward and uncomfortable for them. and even THEN in meat timeline gets her agency revoked by the narrative with alt calliope. and in candy dave realizes he’s gay (i thought he was explicitly bi? didnt he call jane hot multiple times both pre-and post-retcon, and once call roxy a “choice babe” in pajamas before he knew it was his ectomom?? if you’re actually gay and in denial why would you have these subconscious freudian blunders). and being married to jade gnaws at him because of it which is. unsatisfying i guess and isn’t consistent with dave’s established sexuality…and then he dies leaving his probably concerned wife and becomes a robot. even if the “point” is that the epilogues are metanarrative commentary about storytelling and candy represents the kind of fanfic that goes off the rails with fanservice it doesn’t feel good when i still care about these characters and their established canons. and a lot of people are in the same camp as me regarding this. it’s still an uncomfortable resolution for their relationship

i really want to see jade’s arc overcoming being used as a puppet by the narrative and the space aspect. just some things to think about / consider that have been running through my head: she’s a witch, right? isn’t what she’s supposed to do is actively bend the rules of her aspect? feferi bended the rules of life by asking the horrorterrors to create dream bubbles so the deceased could still sort of “live” which had a massive narrative impact. who exactly determines that being spacebound means you are fated to be passive and alone? the author? alt calliope? how do we know alt calliope can be trusted or if she’s just projecting her experiences as the most passive class possible onto jade, who ironically has an active manipulation class but is forced to be passive for some reason? normal calliope wasn’t right about everything classpect-related either.

ultimately these things are up to you. you’re still the director of course. but i’m speaking to you, as equally caring of these characters as you and everyone on the team, as a hypothetical suggestion or just something to consider for a jade arc: i think it would do such good to jade and the comic as a whole to see her speak to the manager and recognize the power she has and take back the reigns over her own life and dignity. jade is MAD that she had her own possibilities for socialization and agency taken away from her. and with floralmarsupial, my beloved mutual floral who i went to homestuck high together with, i KNOW the potential they possess to write a compelling arc for jade harley. i think everyone knows too lol floral is THE compelling deep jade harley fanwork big name fan. i dont know what we got to lose. with you guys in charge now, and with the last we see of jade in hs^2 (now hs:bc) fighting callie’s influence and advocating for her own agency, really the only way to go from here for jade is up. (assuming she doesn’t permadie of peanut but i doubt that’s going to happen since she’s one of the original kids and it wouldn’t be satisfying storytelling. and it’s homestuck)

this statement so ripe with potential to me ^ and we’re left on a cliffhanger with jade going in this direction

i want jade and dave to be close friends who care about each other a lot and do silly stuff together again. this isn’t even a call to make davejade canon; it doesnt have to be romantic—i dont want a davekat davejade war to break out, you know? i know you’re trying to balance fan demands. but i just loved their dynamic a lot and i MISS it so much, homestuck act 6 didnt give us this and i wish their reunion had more that went into it. we’re past that point though

i want jade and dave to have a talk that’s like old times. something that isn’t awkward as hell or about sexual relations or drama or whos fucking who. just something for the two of them. something that grounds them in what made homestuck so compelling in the first place: character and friendships and these kind of interactions

i want to see them collaborate again. an idea i have is maybe they start a band or something since they’re both musically talented and also live together so they can make stuff together in person now. you’re a music guy you get it. tangle buddies. jam buddies

and maybe something more serious that concerns just the two of them. post-retcon dave never talked to jade about his thoughts when they fought bec noir right? knowing that jade would inevitably kill him with bullets through bec, but he couldnt warn her because he knows she wouldn’t go through with it, creating a doomed timeline? so jade thought all that time she killed him by accident…..what about all that guilt she must harbor? the first person she had in-person contact with since she was probably four years old, her best friend online, and accidentally killed him within just a few hours of meeting him? and never got to talk about it with him, let alone anyone, after three years? hello?? :(

these are the final lines of the last pesterlog between jade and dave before their 3-year separation (and basically all of act 6)

so uh…..this exchange really openly invites some kind of talk to take place even if it’s long overdue. among other things maybe. they need to hug or something. jade’s touch starvation is real, but not everything needs to be sexualized about touch. she’s lonely and starved of affection but i feel like it would be more meaningful if it wasn’t sexualized. just really basic platonic primal cloth mother needs. just like..both being human beings and having basic needs like this that jade’s been deprived of. who’s the person she would feel most comfortable going to? who does she have the richest history with throughout the webcomic? dave, right? her online best friend since childhood that always cared a lot about her? they have stuff to talk about

i feel like that would address the issue people had with jade’s out of left-field promiscuity in the epilogues and even leftovers of it in hs^2. not only do i think primal platonic touch starvation would be a more meaningful and evocative type of interaction to give them at some point, it wouldn’t rock the boat or create any ship drama (davekat has long since sailed and most people seem to be on board with it) and it would probably be really positive representation of these sorts of things which not only throws a bone to aroace people but just depicting this sort of thing normalizes the fact that two people can be close and not necessarily in an official relationship.

this is a good transition point to this post also which is basically an extension to this one. it’s exactly the issues i had. it’s on the nature of what they had going and how much they mean to each other but how the storytelling held them back when it was unnecessary

this breaks my heart. mr. roach and hs:bc writing team please i miss my favorite blorbo duo being happy in each other’s company. they were such good friends but circumstances pulled them apart. i miss when they created music together and talked about their interests and exchanged quips. i am such a well of ideas for stuff like this. show us how much they mean to each other again

if youre still reading this james thanks for hearing me out. if you wanna pass on to the writing team to look at and get their feedback on this i’d be so so thankful

“and to think that after all this he still chose to save her, like always, probably knowing he had little to no chance, just because he cares for her, her life and who she is beyond this moment, really meant a lot for them. i really, really was mad that this would be the last time they would truly ever be together in a way that to me mattered” — vintagegamebro

#homestuck #homestuck meta #jade harley #dave strider #hs2 #hsbc #hs

[lorem-ipsum-2099]

I feel like it’s been long enough now but here are my unsolicited thoughts about Miguel O’Hara: Spider-Man 2099 Issue #1.

MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD

Tw: mentions of past abuse

Alright, I’ll get the bad stuff out of the way first.

Are we seriously trying to redeem Conchata?? You know, the same woman who verbally abused Miguel his entire life, the raging narcissist who killed people in order to escape back to Nueva York solely to fake her death in front of her two sons for sympathy???? HOWEVER, that’s not nearly as bad as how ready Miguel is to receive her???? Like huh????

(I know comparing the newest release to the first cancelled volume is not 100% valid BUT in this case it’s for comparing characterization)

And don’t even get me started about Conchata feeling bad about the horrible things she said to Miguel while zombified.

(Which is such a shame since this page is so pretty).

This seems like it’s gonna be a continuing plot line throughout this volume and I feel like it can go either way. Ideally (as awful as this sounds), Conchata responding negatively to Miguel failing to perform his responsibilities as Spider-Man would not only be most in character but would also allow Miguel a moment of growth. Giving an ab*ser a second chance is a noble but often misguided especially if it’s a parent. This could potentially be a moment of deeper commentary but based off Steve Orlando’s previous writing it’s hard to tell what direction the story will be taken.

Another thing that didn’t sit 100% right with me is some of the remaining Zeros to another planet?? (Especially when it’s heavily implied that Southey targeted disenfranchised non-white communities I may be reading too deep into it but still worth mentioning).

Although I will admit I enjoy the idea of the problem not being 100% solved immediately, sending the infected to another planet is kinda ridiculous even by comic book standards.

NOW the good stuff!!

The art direction was absolutely phenomenal! Each page is a piece of art and the colors are to die for!! And the fight scenes??? INCREDIBLE!! Especially Miguel’s one-on-on with The Zombie, their dialogue and action were incredible not to mention the gore level that is being established for this issue.

I also readily enjoyed the references to Carnage and The Hive throughout, makes me excited for their their reappearance. Honestly, the art and fight scenes are what saved this issue.

If I had to give a score I would say about 3.5/5, writing is questionable so far but I’m curious to see where it goes.

#miguel o'hara #spiderman 2099 #comic miguel #spider man 2099 comic #across the spiderverse #spider man 2099 #miguel o’hara spider man 2099 #Miguel O’Hara spider man 2099 comic #comic review #I guess #this is what I do now apparently #nothing screams nerd louder than writing about a comic book release on my blog #who am I

[the-dove-is-recuperating]

In the past few years I’ve been seeing increasingly outlandish takes regarding the MCU’s role in Bucky’s (and to a lesser extent Steve’s) characterization, both in the movies and the comics. They all start from a premise that I generally agree with:

The Captain America movies set up what is in essence a love story, romantic or otherwise.

In view of that love story, Steve’s Endgame ending makes very little sense and was at least partially motivated by the Russos’ homophobic reaction to the Stucky fandom.

The MCU’s portrayal of Steve and Bucky has since affected their portrayal in the comics.

However, people seem to have lost sight of the fact that Stucky as an even remote possibility has only ever been an MCU thing. But because so much of the fandom proceeds from the basic idea that “movies bad, comics good,” I have now seen multiple people claim that the movies made the comics homophobic … because there is still no Stucky in the comics?

As someone who loves Bucky in all his iterations and especially the way these iterations have impacted each other, I just really want to set the record straight:

Stucky is an MCU thing. Soft Bucky is, at least originally, an MCU thing. Bucky as Steve’s only reason for doing anything is … you guessed it, an MCU thing.

You can’t decry the MCU bleeding into comics and simultaneously complain that Steve is still hanging out with Sharon Carter. I mean, you can, but that would be just fucking silly. Steve/Sharon is the comics doing its own thing, without any regard for the MCU! In fact the very reason that CA:CW’s sad attempt at making Steve/Sharon happen failed so abysmally was because Bucky had already taken her place by then.

The original comics’ Bucky was a little kid who (for whatever unfathomable reason) was allowed to fight in WWII. Later on, Ed Brubaker aged him up to teenager and created what was in essence a new character: the Winter Soldier. MCU went further and blended that new version of Bucky with a minor (but pretty revolutionary) character from the 80s: an openly gay Jewish man called Arnie Roth.

Arnie’s backstory, revealed in a two-page flashback in Captain America #270, goes something like this: growing up in New York he was scrawny Steve’s bigger and stronger best friend and protector from bullies. As a young adult he was also ostensibly a ladies’ man, while Steve decidedly was not. Sound familiar?

However, the similarities end there: Arnie and Steve drifted apart before Steve became Cap, and while they briefly reconnected during the war, they did not actually fight together. Plotwise, Arnie does end up filling the same damsel-in-distress slot that MCU’s Bucky does, but his role in Steve’s life never becomes as outsized as MCU Bucky’s. Steve has his love of his life (at the time), and Arnie his.

Moving on to Winter Soldier era, I have now seen people claim that Brubaker aged Bucky up to set up Stucky, and I can hardly express just how patently absurd that take is. Both Steve and Bucky in his runs are almost aggressively straight in that their respective relationships with Sharon and Natasha play a big role in their lives.

What’s more, the early 2000s Brubaker was, unfortunately but unsurprisingly, not free of the period-typical homophobia. In his “director’s cut” commentary he says that his main problem with “Cap in the late 80s and early 90s” was that “they [had] completely sissified” him. Now, what he meant was that it was an unrealistic portrayal of Steve as someone completely unwilling to kill, given what he must have had to do in the war. But that wording is hardly a hallmark of someone who could even conceive of Stucky back then. That he has now, almost twenty years later, liked some Stucky tweets or whatever is completely irrelevant. His views have evolved, and you can see it in his more recent writing too (which I love, by the way). And he must recognize that the MCU Steve and Bucky are different characters from the ones he wrote. You can’t possibly write comics for Marvel and not have made peace with characters having multiple, sometimes conflicting iterations.

#stucky #bucky barnes #arnie roth #marvel #mcu #meta #stucky is an mcu thing #apparently I’m dying on this hill now

[sweet7simple]

Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye, Volume 3 Issue #9

So I thought the story of how Drift and Ratchet met would be in one of the Drift comics, but nooOOoo, it was heeere in MTMTE. Drift is retelling the story at Swerve's bar with some commentary from Ratchet.

Going to feed this to Tumblr for the Dratchet peeps and writers. Please feed me content.

Again, I apologize for the blurriness. I take pictures of the strips with my phone and crop them and my phone doesn't like glossy comic book pages.

(Story continues under cut)

(The reason for the red handprint on Drift's face is that Ratchet just got his hands spray-painted. No one in Swerve's believed him when he said this and laughed. Now who's laughing? It's me. I'm laughing.)

(The story goes on, but this was the important Dratchet moment that spawned a hundred+ Dratchet stories. I hope this serves the Dratchet fans well.)

#macaddam #tf comics #transformers #transformers g1 #dratchet #mtmte #tf drift #tf ratchet #orion pax #Unreliable Narrator Alert! #Ratchet spray paints his hands

[fractualized]

hi!! i hope you don’t mind me asking this but i recently read harleen (specifically issue 1) and wondered if you might know of any other comics that have an outsider perspective of batjokes? thanks !!

I don't mind at all, anon! I also enjoy in-universe outside perspectives on Batman and Joker's relationship (and I've included quite a bit of it in fic). Harleen #1 does have a pretty great one:

The most common commentary on Batman and Joker from other characters is the ol' "why haven't you killed him yet?!" but that reflects more frustration than any inkling of the connection between Gotham's most famous nemeses. So with the help of @distort-opia, I wrangled panels from a couple dozen comics that show characters having a better (even if incomplete) understanding of what the heck is going on there.

Many of these may already be familiar if you've been around batjokes fandom long enough. Regardless, spoilers abound!

I've ordered these (mostly) in cover date order.

June 1996 - The Batman Chronicles #5

This is a flashback that takes place shortly after The Killing Joke. Barbara is understandably bitter about being fridged, and it's clear that officers who saw Batman and Joker laughing together have spread the word, because heyyyyy wtf?

October 1996 - Catwoman (1993) #38

Selina knows releasing other rogues is a good distraction; Batman is always more concerned about Joker than her.

May 1997 - Batman: Batgirl

Before this, Joker was firing his gun willy-nilly, hitting his own men, and he hit Batman accidentally. Barbara doesn't seem to think he fully understands the consequences of killing Batman, especially given the surprise he shows when Batman goes down.

Five years later, this story gets retold (with a worse rendition of Joker's fantastic oufit):

July 2002 - DC First: Batgirl/Joker 

In this version, Barbara more actively realizes she needs to get at Joker by laughing at him, because he's caught up in a reality where Batman is the only other real person. (Not sure if this is the first comic to posit that idea, but it has shown up elsewhere.)

February 1999 - Catwoman (1993) #65

Joker has been terrorizing Catwoman for Batman-related reasons for a few issues, and she knows that saying she's killed Batman will devastate him. (You know, the more stories like this I see, the more I see Tom King actually didn't have too far a walk to jokerize Selina.)

August 2001 - Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight (1989) #144

Alfred has noticed that Joker's presence affects Bruce's behavior. 

September 2003 - Batman: Gotham Knights #43

This take from Barbara is set before TKJ and meant to foreshadow (aftershadow?) it. Here she shows a better understanding of Batman and Joker's relationship than Bruce does.

October 2003 - Outsiders (2003) #3

Luthor knows just how to get under Joker's skin.

March 2011 - Streets of Gotham #19

Hush also knows how to get under Joker's skin.

March 2011 - Gotham City Sirens #19 

Selina and Harley are thinking more about themselves here, but it's not hard to connect the dots. Joker is part of the criminal morass that Bruce is focused on fighting, and Joker's focus is constantly on how to best the Batman.

November 2011 - Batman: Noël

Bruce has been told that Catwoman has information about the Joker's whereabouts. Note that Selina isn't saying she's aware that Joker is up to something right now; she implies that Batman is always thinking about Joker. It's a fact she can bank on.

May 2013 - Injustice: Gods Among Us #4 (digital release #11) 

Perhaps the most infamous example. This is related to the "why won't you kill him?" trope, but Clark's accusation takes it further by directly saying it's because Bruce loves fighting Joker more than he loves his friends and family.

Clark says something similar about Joker being Bruce's playmate in another comic:

August 2014 - Adventures of Superman (2013) #14 (digital release #41

Even outside of the Injustice universe, Clark knows Bruce's priorities are out of whack when it comes to Joker.

January 2013 - Catwoman (2011) #14

Selina just stating the obvious here, again after a now-faceless Joker has tormented her for Batman-related reasons for a couple issues.

April 2016 - Batman (2011) #49

Heartbreaking example from Alfred here. He watched Bruce's obsessiveness and understood that Bruce, consciously or subconsciously, saw dying with Joker as his destiny. He probably suspects that Joker didn't really die either and knows they're going to end up back on the same track.

April 2016 - Batman: Europa #4

These panels sum up Europa. Bane, always looking for fresh ways to break the Bat, saw Joker as a clear catalyst (even if he had to make up a convoluted plot to make Batman see it first).

January 2017 - All-Star Batman #4 (backer)

Duke is pretty much repeating Bruce's soliloquy from Death of the Family here, so he's not saying anything Bruce doesn't really know, but he doesn't know that Bruce knows. lol Interestingly, this happens before Dark Days: The Casting, in which Duke watches Joker demonstrate his love in a more positive way by trying to stop Bruce from blundering into everything that happens in Dark Nights: Metal and beyond.

January 2018 - Batman: White Knight #2

White Knight is problematic from a batjokes standpoint (and other standpoints!) but poor Harley presents another infamous outsider perspective here.

October 2018 - Harley/Gossamer Special

She's right and right to say it!

August 2020 - Birds of Prey (2020) 

This take is interesting in how it posits that Joker already felt unfulfilled by Batman by the time he met Harley and that she was kind of a rebound.

August 2020 - The Joker 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular

This is from "The Last Smile," in which Harley reveals Joker's recurring nightmare about Batman mocking him as he's put to death. Joker didn't picture Harley appearing to save him, but perhaps he felt like Batman's respect was "saving" him all the long.

September 2020 - Batgirl (2016) #47

Nooooo! That's the thing he's sensitive about!

April 2021 - Batman/Catwoman #3

I have… a lot of thoughts about Batman/Catwoman, few positive, but if you can push past the muddling storytelling technique (and the batcat if that's not your thing), Selina has a lot to say about Bruce and Joker's relationship, like in this and the following example.

May 2021 - Batman/Catwoman #4

Catwoman describes how Batman treats all his rogues and then equates that with how he treats his lovers. How much do you know, Selina? Who is Joker's main competition?? It's Harvey, isn't it?!

May 2022 - Detective Comics (2016) #1058 (backer)

Even newbie F-level antagonists like The Forgotten know what's up!

Well, that was a lengthy but surely not exhaustive account of what other DC characters think about the vibes between the Dark Knight and Clown Prince of Crime. (May they be bewildered for years to come!) I hope you spotted some comics that caught your interest, anon.

#batjokes #joker #batman #analysis #kinda

[hrodvitnon]

Oh ok you’ve seen it cool.

We need to talk about this then. Obligatory spoiler warning.

(Ignore the dubious quality I took this on a phone )

Ok- like- what do you even do in this situation if you’re Kong? That thing needs four Titan-sized chain leashes to keep it down, charges up like Godzilla, and is half its size by virtue of being on four legs. It’s already double his size if proportions are accurate.

Insane. Titan among titans. Can’t wait to see her try to murder him ❤️

SCYLLA. SPIDER.

In Rome clearly, you can see statues. Wonder why they’re fighting? Scylla must’ve gotten peeved at something and Goji’s stopping her from stomping on his favorite sleepy place (the literal colosseum).

SHIMO FUCKEN BIIIIIIIG!

Regarding Scylla, there's actually a prequel comic – Godzilla X Kong: The Hunted – setting up the Goji-Scylla brawl, and I'll put details (or as many details I can recall) under the cut in case you want to track it down. If not, read away!

So the antagonist of The Hunted is this billionaire tech bro with a cybernetic arm who kidnaps superfauna from the Hollow Earth and uses them to test his Mecha up on the Topside. As for how he gets away with this with a Monarch outpost set up in the Hollow Earth, maybe he's got signal blocker tech, or his cyber arm can cause SIGNALIS-style feedback loops or something, who knows. What a cartoon character this guy is, dude decorates his island mansion with Titan statues, or stuffed displays or something. This dude's building himself up to bigger and stronger fights so he can one day fight Godzilla, because it turns out that oh no! He lost his family and also his arm in the events of 2014! I think his family was in Las Vegas at the time, which makes it darkly funny, because Tech Bro is on a revenge kick and Femuto was literally just going for an after lunch walk.

Godzilla knows some shit is happening, so Tech Bro throws the Big G off his trail by futzing with some signals which, if I recall correctly, ends up causing Scylla to go on a Nuclear Power Plant Feeding Frenzy. Bernie's keeping tabs on the situation and provides commentary/narration. One power plant goes full Elephant's Foot by the time she's done. Goji's chasing after her but can't catch up to make her cut the shit out... until Rome, which is where we get Godzilla vs Scylla. Also, JAYSUS WEPT, but did they amp up the spidery aesthetic for Scylla?! She's activating my arachnophobia, damn!

But what happens to Tech Bro? Lemme tell ya: Tech Bro suits up in his We Have Pacific Rim At Home-ass Mecha and goes fucking around in the Hollow Earth. One of the new critters introduced is this thorny tailed puma cat thing, and Tech Bro spots two cubs playing. Like a scumbag, he goes to kill them. Mama Thorn Cat intervenes to protect her babies but is killed, and Tech Bro (having gleefully become the same sadistic family-destroying monster he views the Titans as) chases down the cubs to brutally kill them...

But Kong shows up to save the day! Tech Bro puts up a fight and he's yammering all about how Kong's just a big dumb monkey and has nothing to him but his size (dude must have slept on the Hong Kong Fight, because only a Hubristic Dumbass would underestimate Kong), and that "I, as a cool big dick human man with money and a TRAGIC BACKSTORY am the REAL HUNTER AND NOT YOU" and long story short Kong drops his Mecha down a cliff and bricks it. Tech Bro escapes his busted ass mecha whining about the cost of his Mecha, and ends up killed by the same cubs he tried to kill. Circle of Life, you love to see it.

#tosho89 #frostbite814 #godzilla x kong: the new empire

[ben-talks-art]

Trapped and Dreaming Freedom

So I've been reading these two webtoons lately about female leads stuck in very toxic and unhealthy relationships (while being aware of it), and I'm loving every second of it!

If you know me, you know I just love a badass cool female lead and I also love seeing characters stuck in very difficult situations and watching how they use their brains and/or skills to get out of it, and both comics excel at these aspects!

First series is "Trapped", a comic about this taxi driver who got tangled by accident with a vampire who develops an obsession with both her and her blood after she manages to outsmart him a couple of times, something that hasn't happened to him in years.

It feels very "Tom and Jerry" with both characters trying to get the upper hand on their relationship, and you would think it would be super one-sided but vampires actually have quite a bit of annoying rules on how they work that severely limit their freedom and our female lead exploits as many of them as she can to make him eat sh*t! It's just glorious!

"Dreaming Freedom" is... somehow less dark, and at the same time way darker of a series.

It's not as violent or gory but it deals with more realistic problems that hit closer to home for some like school bullying, abandonment, harassment, family abuse, and so on.

The premise is that our female lead teams up with a guy that has the power to use dreams to affect people in the real world, and they use this ability to get revenge on all the girl's classmates that harassed her, but the more our female lead does that, more the male lead gets obsessed with her and we later find out that he has some serious anger issues making him extremely dangerous.

Our lead basically goes from "I can use him to get payback!" to "Oh my God, I'm the only thing that's keeping this dude under control and away from people!"

It feels like you're being handed a living knife that you just pray won't run out of control or turn itself against you. It's so uncomfortable but at the same time so thrilling!

While I really don't like when unhealthy relationships are glamorized and used to send some kind of "Oh, he's kinda dangerous... But at least he loves you, so it's okay, right?" message, I do like it when the unhealthiness of the relationship is the focus AND is painted as a problem that needs to be fixed.

I like how both female leads always call the male leads on their bs and keep them in check whenever they start going too far, and it's fun to see how they use them whenever they're backed into a corner by the antagonists of the stories.

Also like the themes these series explore, about how when you keep dealing with people that act like monsters you see yourself slowly turning into a monster yourself and start to attract other monsters as well, eventually making you question how far can you go? How far should you go? Can you get back from it? And so on.

But most of all, I like that both series make sure to show that these "bad boys" were their last freaking options. Not the first, not the second, but the very bottom of the barrel. They went to them only after they felt they had no other choices and were sure that nobody else would take their side.

This isn't just "Oh, I went to him because he's a hot bad boy", this is "The world turned its back on me so I'm gonna use the only cards that I have left."

They basically made a deal with their devils and now the fun is watching to see how/if they're gonna get out of it.

This is how I like to see problematic relationships. You don't paint them as something normal or something good, you paint them as a hardship that needs to be dealt with and use it to do clever commentary on the worst aspects of humanity so we can learn how to be better and as a source for good and intense drama to make us worried for the main characters and invested in seeing them get out okay.

#dreaming freedom #free in dreams #trapped #olgami #webtoon #Kkum-eseo Jayu-ro

[thagomizersshow]

I said a few days ago that I’d share my criticisms of Jurassic Park, so here goes. At its core, JP is a movie that has one message in the text and another in the subtext, and this all comes down to why of the park’s failure.

The film’s dialogue famously ascribes the failure of the park to hubris; don’t mess around in god’s play place (aka genetics) because you don’t know what will happen. Ian Malcolm’s "life finds a way” criticisms of the park are portrayed by the characters as correct. Malcolm even says that “he hates being right all the time.” It’s also worth mentioning that Michael Crichton and Steven Spielberg have both been interviewed on the message of Jurassic Park, and they both said it is about the misuse of science, in agreement with Malcolm.

That is the text. This all-too-common sci-fi story about humanity meddling in the domain of the gods. Which, BY THE WAY, did not originate with Frankenstein as I said in one of my earliest videos. I’ll argue now that lumping Frankenstein in with JP and other “man’s hubris” stories is an oversimplification and possibly even a straight up misreading, but that’s a WHOLE ‘nother post.

Now, when we look at the events of the story, rather than the dialogue, a different message is revealed. Looking at the actions that actually lead to the failure of the park, it’s clear scientists failing to account for something has nothing to do with it.

Yes, the dinosaurs turn out to be breeding, but this has zero effect on the events of the film. Maybe if they had included the raptors changing sex, like they do in the novel, this argument would have a leg to stand on, but as the film exists the discovery of breeding dinosaurs makes no difference to the plot. You honestly could cut this scene out and the film wouldn’t miss a beat.

The real reason for the park’s fall is much more mundane: Hammond didn’t pay one of his workers enough.

Dennis Nedry is honestly one of the most disgusting portrayals of a “disgruntled employee” ever put to screen. He’s written to be the least sympathetic character possible; he’s messy, annoying, gluttonous, physically inept, and to top it all off, of course he’s fat, a trait most often given to characters who are either comic relief or villains. So, when he complains about not being paid well enough, the audience is already primed to think of him as unworthy of sympathy.

This in spite of his clearly incredible feat of automating the entire park single handed. Nedry’s decision after being fucked over by a multi-billion dollar company — like anyone with a backbone — is to try and fuck them right back. In this case, it was by stealing their shit, which may not have been the best choice (workplace organizing, man, c’mon), but I honestly can’t fault him for it. He deserved better than to be the audience’s hate sink, and we can put full blame on the writers and director for creating such a vile representation of a worker.

All this to say that the theme park’s failure, and all the deaths it caused, fall on John Hammond’s shoulders. Not because he “didn’t stop to think if he should.” Not because “life finds a way.” But because he treated a worker like shit who knew more about the thing they made than he did.

Now, finally, I want to address the fact that I’m not the first person to make a Marxist analysis of JP. In fact, Idea Channel made a video on this topic forever ago, and there are literal academic papers on this topic well worth reading. The point I want to make is not just that JP says something about capitalism, but that the subtextual message about capitalism is at odds with the textual message about the hubris of scientific advancement, AND this degrades the film’s quality massively in my eyes.

If Nedry was portrayed as sympathetic, if Hammond’s abuse wasn’t glossed over, if someone called Malcolm out on how he isn’t right all the time, then MAYBE this movie could be an actual good commentary on capitalism. But as it stands, it feels like it ignores the questions its own story brings up, and even worse, is really mean spirited towards fat people and workers who’ve been wronged.

As much as I love SO much about Jurassic Park, including acting, cinematography, effects, editing (honestly SUCH good editing), the script itself falls apart so badly at the seams I struggle to enjoy it the way I used to. This, combined with the fact the series has turned into a nostalgia driven sludge machine, and I just can’t bring myself to engage with this franchise in a positive way anymore. 

#jurassic park #movies #crit post

[blueikeproductions]

And it begins, the EarthSpark toys are on clearance.

So far it’s just these size classes, but it’s not looking long for this toy line. None of it really moves super well. The store I was in moves the Tacticons a little better, but probably only because they’re so cheap.

Among the Deluxe line, Nightshade continues to shelfwarm, with the ROTB and Legacy toy lines still doing better by comparison.

If this changes for TFOne’s toy line later this year remains to be seen, as we still have no clear idea on what the movie is like or what the TFs look like. A candid shot of an Orion Pax popcorn bucket is the best we got, and most people are playfully making fun of how chunky it is like Energon Optimus Prime.

(Art by staticoctopus on Twitter, it’s cute and fits very well with the topic, lol).

Meanwhile, Skybound’s still knocking it out of the park, and is garnering far more discussion and speculation that EarthSpark can ever hope to have.

It’s doing what Bob Budiansky had been making a point of from the start: you need Earth and humans to properly tell the stories of alien robots that turn into vehicles, just having them only on their own doesn’t work unless it’s Beast Wars or Beast Machines. Because you get WFC, Prime Wars, and Cyberverse when you strip Transformers of its humanity figuratively and literally.

It’s why EarthSpark is so weird, because it is trying so hard to make statements it has no qualifications to make, and pretty much treats most of its non Megatron, non-Mandroid and non Jawbreaker male characters like morons. Robbie practically dies and the show treats it somewhat as a joke, instead having Alex & Dot love up Mo while Robbie lays there probably thinking of the worst retirement homes he can shove his parents in to. The human X Transformer relations are still frankly terrible unless you’re a Malto. If modern writers despise the Chosen One story, they’re sure going all in on the Maltos as being chosen for a vague destiny, aren’t they?

Meanwhile, Skybound does this:

Telling a much better and heartfelt story about humans and Autobots coming together with future trials yet to come. There’s a reason people criticize the inept and some that shady EarthSpark Optimus (his only saving grace currently is being voiced by Alan Tudyk), but most universally praise Skybound Optimus as the return to form Transformers desperately, desperately needed.

On top of that, spoilers for context, Sparkplug sacrificed himself to save Optimus, by merging with the Matrix, revitalizing it. Now Optimus is guided by the human wisdom of a repentant Sparkplug, who previously was consumed by the horrors of the war he served in, the death of his wife & eldest son and his alcoholism used to drown it out.

Now Optimus is seeing what appears to be Sparkplug’s memories due to his influence of the Matrix.

It’s led many to assume this is Optimus stepping into the role of father to Spike, mirroring Star Saber & Jan. I think that’s terrific idea, Optimus better understanding humans from the get go but now having Sparkplug as his Jaga to potentially guide him further.

It also seems to be a reverse Hi-Q from the Marvel comics.

And that resulted in Hi-Q evolving into a new Optimus (mostly because of the Action Master toy at the time, but still.)

This is what EarthSpark wants to be but refuses to do, it’s what IDW thought it was trying to be, but absolutely failed, and now we’re at TFONE.

Hasbro is now trying to properly advertise it with an animated logo on places like Instagram. The movie is set to come out this September if all goes well with the toys trickling out around that time (though toy distribution being what it is, probably January 2025 at this rate).

Like EarthSpark, One is stated to have “political” commentary and characters like Nightshade according to leaks and rumors. This I guarantee will kill this movie faster than EarthSpark if the story and characters aren’t up to snuff. Thankfully, audience test screenings have been very positive so far, but another problem we’ve all anticipated. Comments about the official logo now have people incredibly confused and hesitant to go near ONE because they don’t know if it’s Bayformers, Bee/ROTB, or something new, and being told it’s a new thing doesn’t seem to be helping…

Skybound remains the best thing Transformers has had in a long time. One has the potential, but I think its main “non politically driven” deterrent is it being another movie with vague ties to Bayformers and being a cartoon movie. (Some are actually angry it’s an animated movie and not a live action thing, it’s confusing…) There’s apparently plans to to make TMNT: The Last Ronin into an R movie under Paramount, as it too is the only good thing TMNT has going for it (besides Mutant Mayhem, but we’ll see how that goes for its TV show), so it’s entirely possible Hasbro may chose to do the same with the Energon Universe, as it’s the only thing period Transformers has going for it right now…

#blueike #blueike productions #transformers #maccadam

[meenah]

dark souls/ds3 narrative that despises the player for playing vs homestuck postcanon narrative that despises the reader for reading. my favorite comparison for how to do it in a way that works vs how to do it in a way that doesn't.

the hatred dark souls's narrative has for the player isn't founded out of the hatred from the game's makers, in fact they quite love the game they make and for people to play it, but out of a desperate plea from the world within to stop its suffering, to stop dragging it on any longer. this resounds hardest in ds3 where the game was made incidentally by its creators out of a desire to finish a cult classic trilogy, and the theme of "forced to live despite the suffering it feels" is pressed harder, and you really feel it.

you know deep down inside as you walk through a darkened anor londo that all of this is your fault for wanting to see more from a world barely hanging on. you caused the pontiff and you caused aldrich because you couldn't simply let go and let the world succumb to the dark it wanted. you have to be the one to snuff out the last dregs of life in the empty world, just so you might finally set it free. even the last boss of the series takes place in an empty wasteland, just you and a single slave at the end of the world, fighting over the last remnants of the world that once was. the world of ds3 is alive and its goal is begging you to stop its suffering.

the postcanon of homestuck on the other hand has the same snark homestuck has always had, though much less jaunty and with more pessimism than ever before. it laughs at the reader for wanting a continuation. and it works! it does work for some of the story within the epilogues. the beginning in particular, where you know the story will go nowhere, and you are simply forced to watch as these characters become more and more bastardized.

The fault that happens is that postcanon goes too far. it forgets why people read homestuck in the first place. even in dark souls, there's still these shining moments of kindness from the world. these tiny moments that make you quietly wonder if it really is worth it to continue the suffering if it means you could do something like helping the painter continue her work to give the people of her world somewhere to escape to.

homestuck's postcanon ignores this in favor of pushing toward a narrative that mocks the reader for reading, simultaneously jeering for even opening the pages, while also taunting the reader when ignoring it. it begs to be read and paid close attention to while throwing sand in the eyes of anyone who does read it. none of the characters are who they once were, instead now caricatures of who the fandom thought they were, going for overused tropes in a bid at metanarrative commentary, but falling flat when a reader would eventually become ambivalent to the taunting, and true apathy toward the comic's postcanon took hold. the narrative relevance of homestuck's epilogues and postcanon only matter as much as a reader cares to actually read them.

a narrative that hates the audience is something that must be toed very carefully, as it will either make or break the story being told.

#grace post #im so normal i promise #rambles

[naokiscoffee]

What makes Itazura na Kiss: Love in Tokyo so special?

This is probably my twelfth thousand re-watch of this drama, but this is not like all the other rewatches. I have decided to make this one special by using it to analyse the drama in more depth, and attempt to uncover why I love it as much as I do, despite all it’s flaws. I am writing this as I watch the episodes, so it might be considered somewhat of a commentary.

Season 01 Episode 01

Starting off with the first episode, the opening scene is fantastic in my opinion. I love how we are getting introduced to Kotoko in the comfort of her own room, and getting a peek into her hearts deepest wish. I honestly think that this might be what made me like this version of Kotoko from the get go.

However, technically, the actual first scene of the story is the iconic confession scene (if you would even call it that). I am going to go on a tangent here and just say that I am an absolute fan of her letter, but I will get back to that in a later episode.

The way she is nervous and excited before confessing and the way he flat out rejects her before she even has the chance to confess always makes me feel crushed for her, and is the reason why I initially disliked him. But now that I am actually analysing it, it is less harsh than how I’ve always perceived it (or this might just be me trying to explain it away).

Hear me out, consider the implication that he has a whole queue of girls that like him, drool over him and confess to him in school, his reaction/rejection is really not that surprising. Imagine receiving confessions from a bunch of girls, when you just want to live your life in peace … that must get old and tiresome fairly quickly. Additionally, the fact that the whole entire school is talking about the rejection might explain why he didn't accept her letter; had he accepted it (even if he rejected her afterwards), the whole school would probably assume that they were dating. On the other hand it makes me think, why would the whole school be interested in someone confessing? are we back in kindergarten?

We see later on that she still has that card with her. I think that for her, getting rid of it would feel like getting rid of her feelings for him, which is why she holds on to it.

Anyways, I find it quite ironic when Kotoko’s friends tell her “you and Irie are from different worlds” . Their worlds are literally going to forcibly merge under one roof very very soon.

Another random thought I got, like a lot of my thoughts are, was why did Kotoko like Naoki, and not like Kinnouske? I mean he might not be handsome, he might not be smart, he might not be rich, but he is hardworking, talented and most importantly, he liked Kotoko, and was always nice towards her. This version’s Kinnouske has always been my favourite one. I think this version does a good job at portraying him as a three dimensional person, rather than a comic relief kind of personality *cough* Itazura Na Kiss 1996 *cough*.

When I started to pay more attention, I realised that although I do love Kinnouske, I do find him to often do things based on his own feelings, and does not consider what Kotoko wants. For example, I cant help but feel that he is a bit insensitive for being happy when Kotoko is sad after deciding to ‘give up’ on Naoki. This is a small detail, and perhaps I am reading too much into it, but I do feel that Itazura Na Kiss is all about the details. He sort of redeems himself for it by asking his friends to come and help her move, but soon it goes to shit again, which I will come to later on.

I really like — at this point, everything really, but anyways — the reoccurring mentioning of “less possible than getting hit by a shooting star”, which is a kind of teaser to what is to come later on in the show. Although I’ve always thought that the reason for their house being destroyed in this version to be a bit dumb, I admit, I do like the thought and metaphor behind it, so I will turn I blind eye to it. I also find it hilarious how it ended up all over the news.

Kotoko’s extremely optimistic outlook despite everything that happened is perhaps her most charming personality trait. It makes me feel that her optimism is somehow what everything work out for her in the end.

Now, to one of the scenes I dislike most in this story. I am always tempted to skip the first episode altogether to avoid it. And that’s the scene where Kinnouske is collecting donations for Kotoko. Here we see Kin-chan’s good intentions having not so good results. I get the feeling that he does what he thinks is helpful for her, and never once stops to consider her feelings or ask her opinion on it, and the way she gets annoyed with him tells me that she’s not that fond of this either, despite what his intentions were.

Back to Naoki. Looking at the size of that entrance, he could have 100% just walked around Kotoko and Kinnouske and gone in. Heck, following the little pattern we have so far, wouldn’t he purposefully avoid them to maintain a quiet and peaceful life? Now, he did just the contrary and approached them. Considering the fact that by the end of the episode he already knows about the arrangement (of her going to his home to stay there with her father), it would be safe to assume that at this moment in time, he already knows that she would stay in his house. This is supported by his response to her “preferring to die over taking his money”; “are you sure you want to tell me that?”. Therefore I assume that he approaches her out of curiosity.

If you pay close attention to this interaction, you will notice that Naoki did not say one thing that was wrong or out of line. Naoki giving Kotoko the money was not very nice. But more than anything, it was quite confusing. He told her “If I donate this money, you won’t argue with me anymore”. Now, Kinnouske was the one arguing with Naoki, so why would Naoki tell Kotoko that? Is it because he sees her as the most reasonable one, or rather, is it because they’re ‘her’ friends (thus making her responsible for them)?

Kotoko was the one with an explosive reaction in this situation [although she was in the wrong, I like how she stood by her friend eventhough they were fighting a few moments ago (if she realised the previously mentioned point that is).], and was more than a bit mean when saying “do you even have friends?”. Here we see just how much of an opposite to her he is. Instead of having an explosive reaction like Kotoko had, Naoki just finds her reaction amusing and leaves calmly.

Now to when she goes with her father to the Irie household. Naoki’s mother’s (Noriko’s) comment of “you and I seem like we were meant to meet” and the fact that she knows that she’s in the same school as Naoki tells me that he told her about Kotoko; which in turn makes me think that she left a memorable impression on him. Kotoko’s reaction to seeing Naoki is Hilarious, especially te part where she’s too shocked, and is not shy to say “I’m just do surprised … because Iri-chan-san and Irie-kun don’t look alike at all” (I really am starting to realise and understand why Naoki finds her amusing).

Another one of those small details; the way her father scoots away right off the bat when he saw Yuki asking her a question about a kanji character, and pretending to look at a random décor piece kills me (It’s nice to keep in mind; despite how similar Kotoko might sometimes be to her dad, he still has more awareness of his own ‘stupidness’ than her).

I recently watched one of @Machitsuki2 ‘s analysis videos, and like she pointed out, I did in fact notice how Kotoko was going straight to the food and cakes, while Naoki was mainly only sipping coffee (even during breakfast). This will become really important later on.

Lastly, I love the interaction between Noriko and Kotoko when she takes her up to show her her room; Kotoko found a mother she never had, and Noriko found the daughter she never had. They are the first puzzle pieces that fit into each other perfectly.

When Naoki comes in and tells Kotoko that she took Yuki’s room, I get the feeling that rather than an insult it served to make Kotoko understand why Yuki disliked her so much. I might be a bit delulu, but I kind of feel that Naoki did this on purpose? anyone?

When Noriko asks Kotoko “do you like(suki) Sukiyaki?” and Kotoko looks at her (in Naoki’s direction) and confidently answers “I like it! (suki-desu!)” almost feels directed at Naoki. It is in fact the first time he hears her say it. This next part I had to go back and watch once more; Naoki only starts being mean to her when she pulled the bag from him (not wanting his help) and he saw the letter she wrote him drop out of it. I do wonder if he is mean to her because of that letter, or maybe because he thought she was rude towards him?

To be continued…(maybe)

#itazura na kiss #itazura na kiss love in tokyo #aihara kotoko #miki honoka #irie naoki #yuki furukawa #Ikezawa kinnouske #yuki yamada #character analysis #story analysis #drama #jdrama #japan #s01e01 #episode 1 #recap #review

[susandsnell]

The Batman/Reevesverse Scarecrow Speculation Post

So, with the hope that the Reevesverse Scarecrow spinoff still goes through (what with WB's currently tenuous position under Zaslav), here are some speculation points I've had for a while with regards to how dear Dr. Crane could fit into the Gotham universe of 2022's The Batman --

The Drops Trade: Probably the most obvious thread wherein to integrate him. As some rumours about the Penguin spinoff TV series have hinted that they'll pick up on this subplot (since we do see Oz is involved in it in the movie), and there is apparently already an epidemic in this universe's Gotham City, lacing a new strain with fear toxin would be an easy way to spread it massively through the city. This could easily tie him in with the mob characters (Oz et al), and would work well with the Se7en-esque mystery/detective story approach they're taking to Batman's character, with the inexplicable terrifying effects of this new strain of Drops leading Bats down a trail that ends with a disgraced former professor of psychology. What works against this is that it's argably too similar to the very rapidly abandoned drug dealer Scarecrow plot in The Dark Knight. But given that as with every Nolanverse Scarecrow plot point, that kind of just happened and went nowhere until Crane Barbied his way into a new job, and the fact that the series hasn't shied away from similarities/nods to TDK trilogy, there's still a solid chance for there to be a unique spin on it here.

Riddler leaks: Since this universe's Edward Nashton is big on exposing corruption and has a strong online presence, maybe he - or one of his following, acting in his name - will kickstart the start-of-darkness plot by prompting his firing from Arkham or Gotham University (if he works at either in this continuity) by leaking Dr. Crane's more unsavoury dealings and/or unethical practices and experimentation. Perhaps the Renewal Fund flowed through Gotham University and Crane siphoned from it to finance his fear toxin research? While I love the "this man fired a gun in his classroom to illustrate a point and got extremely mad that there were consequences" origin to death, I can admit this origin might be either considered either too silly or in poor taste for a grounded universe like the Reevesverse that does have at least some social commentary. Points against this route, however, are whether they intend to do much more with Edward Nashton; Paul Dano is reportedly signed on for more entries to the series, but given he had a whole movie to himself, and a prequel comic run, they might not want to saturate us on him. On the other hand, Matt Reeves has expressed an interest in building a full and robust Rogues Gallery, and the most successful visual adaptations that have done this have understood the value of the Rogues' relationships amongst themselves.

Arkham Doctor: A usual starting point for Crane, but nonetheless, we've established Arkham already in this universe, and with named and known characters staying there. There's also rumours of an Arkham Series that could bridge with the Scarecrow spinoff proper, and while Crane experimenting on the patients is rather typical, we do have some interesting opportunities -- a chance he interacts with Riddler and Joker, who are set up to be there, again laying the groundwork for a new Rogues Gallery (Poison Ivy is also confirmed to have a spinoff in the works, so she might be involved also), but moreover, an access to the records on Martha Wayne, nee Arkham, could bring him into the leverage/Wayne family drama, which would be especially fun if he still doesn't figure out Bruce's identity as Batman, he just resents the Waynes. Then again, even though Scarecrow's class struggle angle goes back to the earliest comic appearances, this ground has already been well-trodden with Edward Nashton and Selina Kyle in the first movie, so it depends on whether they want to take a new tack or expand Gotham's class disparity to be a major theme of the series.

anyway, these are just a handful of ideas - would love to hear other thoughts!

#scarecrow #jonathan crane #the batman #the batman 2022 #reevesverse #bat-tag #cranerot

[xforce11]

Amos Burton on The Expanse: (Disclaimer I’ve have listened through Book 6 and watched the series, but I have not read any further at this point 5/29/2023. I’ve also read no commentaries or podcasts about the character.) From reading “The Churn” and reading Book 5/Season 5, I know Amos grew up rough and the trauma he endured shaped him. Whether his character is shaped by having to cut off emotions to survive, PTSD, a flavor of Autism, or something else. Or two or more or all of those things combined shaped Amos I don’t know. But he is one of the most endearing characters in the series. Each of our main cast of characters have some trait or more than one that help us identify with them and shape them as outsiders to the universe. 

Amos is ready to fight, ready to do what is needed, ready to drink and enjoy the pleasures available to him.  But while he could be shaped as a wild west outlaw that is not who he is. Those things sit on the exterior, but under it all lies the resolution of loyalty and respect. We see it in his attachment to Naomi at first. But we see the other members of the crew slowly earn it through out the series. Woe to anyone who comes at the people he has called family! I’m not going to go into his relationship with all of the main crew. But want to focus on some who come in along the way. We see him adopt people through out the series. Some people wards under his protection, some as friends, some as siblings, and some as something more. I’ve put a few photos above showing him and them. But not all. Prax is someone he adopts to protect him and help him, but he quickly becomes a friend. Amos has all the power in the relationship, but Prax shows him respect, drive for family, and loyalty. Amos learns from Prax and grows because of it.

Reverend Anna is both idealistic and realistic. Her faith is strange to Amos. He again seeks to protect her and help her. She shows him what the balance of idealism and realism looks like and how faith comes in.

Bobbie and Amos have a strange relationship. They are equals in so many ways. Her strength and drive earn his respect. He admires her and would lay his life down for her. It is almost like a twin relationship, but with a very non-family sexual tension there. But sex and romance are not exactly tied together for Amos, again because of his upbringing. I think he could see himself with Bobbie sexually and it would not change his relationship with her. But I think he sees that that it might not be the same for her.

Lastly up is Peaches. Here is a woman who was driven to end the life of Amos’s brother Holden. So she is set against his crew family. Yet she redeems herself. Something about her intrigues Amos. She has strength and drive he appreciates. Yet I think it is her emotions and depth that pull him in the most. Enough that he goes and visits her and ends up rescuing her. I think he has grown and changed through the series. I could really see the two of them in a relationship that extended beyond found family and physicality. It would look very different from the traditional. But that is not who Amos is, even with all his growth.  So even with a couple of books/comics left to read, I think we will see Amos as a part of his crew family, but not in a relationship at the end. That makes me a bit sad, but feels true to his character. But no matter how it goes I’m excited to see where it takes this crew that I love so much. I’ve decided to read the comic story before listening to book 7 through the end. So I’ll have to wait a bit. But I’m fine with that. BTW:  If you are looking for a GREAT podcast on the series, check out Solo Talk Media’s The Expanse Podcast - Tales From The Rocinante!

#TheExpanse #amos burton #The Expase

[madhare0512]

A Comprehensive List of Spideyfist Interactions (pt.7)

Hello and welcome back to: reasons Spideyfist is canon. A series where I take you through each episode of The Ultimate Spiderman and show you why I believe that Peter Parker and Danny Rand are dating in canon, or at least that they are each other’s favorites- and also give you commentary on the show itself as I do

Warnings for: episode spoilers, season spoilers, action/injury description, unsolicited commentary, probable cussing, violence, caps lock

this part features episodes 14 through 20 of season 2

S2E14 The Incredible Spider-Hulk

- No notable interactions

- Fuck SHIELD and their bullshit Hulkbusters

~

S2E15 Ultimate Deadpool

- I'm not gonna lie to you, in the process of making this post, Tumblr glitched and I lost a lot of progress, this episode and the entire episode above. I'm not rewriting it, so the gist of the first 2 minutes is: I don't like that Deadpool just stole the show and the audience from Peter because Peter is "boring." I also don't like how Fury has set up the team against Peter.

- taking deep, calming breaths Shooting your ally/trainee in the back is akin to telling them that you cannot be trusted or relied on. Fuck Coulson.

- "Not impressed." Yeah, well, you shot your trainee in the back with zero warning or previous experience. Fuck you.

- Also, you can only hear Sam and Ava laughing in the laugh track, so honorable spideypowerfist mentions. Also counts to spideyfist

- You're showing your fucking favoritism you asshole. Do fucking better

- You are spraying it RIGHT IN HIS FACE

- "Somone explain. Now." Nova goes to explain "NOT Nova" Reason number whatever why I don't ship them

- If Peter replaced Deadpool in the show does that mean that Deadpool was the leader before Peter?

- Listen, I fucking love Deadpool in the movies and the comics, from what I've heard, are fucking superb. In this iteration? No. No, I hate him. I hate Deadpool and SHIELD in this show

- There is WAY too much emphasis on this alleged agent for me to believe a word Deadpool says.

- Peter is being singled out for training and it's disGUSTING

- There are no snitches among the Ultimates. Not today anyhow

- Deadpool is a liar and master of manipulation

- My poor dumb boy

- Okay, the more I rewatch, the more it becomes clear to me that Deadpool and Peter are supposed to be parallels or mirrors

- "I'll give you 1000 bucks for your brain!"

- "Sleep them with the fishes"

- "Nice of you to finally visit my school" Forshadowing~~~

- Okay I hate him but he's funny

- SEE? SEE???

- Deadpool is scary when he's actually trying

- "How about telling me the truth?"

- Deadpool's origin story is so wack

~

S2E16 Venom Bomb

~ Is this the-? looks at the episode number Oh, no. Not yet, I think.

- Saving the teammates like a boss!

- The nightmares Peter must have every time he faces the Goblin

- In the fight, Danny strikes after Peter, which counts

- Danny and Peter are standing RIGHT next to each other after a battle againnnn

- Peter WANTS to be able to take the win, but he knows his adversaries too damn well for that

- Hey, they're standing right next to each other again!

- Peter doing his best with Harry when he's Spiderman

- Ock just gets weirder and weirder looking the more time goes on

- They're gonna study the fucking symbiote but not try to find a cure for Osbourn?

- Infectious Venom disease!

- Goblin being absolutely AWFUL to Venom

- Where's the team in all this??

- One of the worst things you can do to Doc Ock's character is pretend he's evil for fun. This show doesn't do that, but the fact still stands

- And again I say, people forget that Peter is an accomplished chemist just the same as he's a wonderful hero

- Because you're Spiderman and Spiderman is a hero and you're a wonderful, selfless, brave person, Peter Parker

- Peter and Ock working together lmao

- Peter’s a goof, I love him

- At least Peter gets his damn props

~

S2E17 Guardians of the Galaxy

- Oh!! This episode indirectly has big evidence!!

- Peter using his abilities to shove garbage into the can

- PETER SEES A TALKING RACCOON AND ASSUMES HE LOST IT OMG

- Okay, so remember how in The Journey of Iron Fist, Peter follows Danny to his home country to find out what's going on and get Danny back? That's not exactly what's happening here. Peter was accidentally abducted in this one

- Peter was so fucking respectful and kind when regarding Danny’s home country and turf, but when it's Sam, he's snarky and complains the whole damn time

- Rocket is just so fucking casual about this

- See, even under attack, Peter is complaining about Sam getting him in trouble!

- Peter demands answers from Sam, he didn't do that with Danny, he was very calm and respectful when asking for answers with Danny

- Peter doesn't listen to a WORD Sam says ever, he's oblivious and not a good listener, reason number whatever why I ship what I ship

- It's literally only after he figures out Earth is a target that Peter decides to work with the Guardians

- Peter gives these "Ki-ya!" shouts that sound almost exactly like Danny’s

- This episode and The Jouney to K'un L'un are literally parallels

- Even if he doesn't LIKE Sam, Peter still considers Sam a friend, still loves Sam as a brother

- Peter didn't accept Danny going back to K'un L'un for a single second, but when Nova says he wants to stay with the Guardians, Peter accepts it without hesitation

- And then once Sam's back on Earth, Peter's right back to fucking with him like nothing ever happened

~

S2E18 The Parent Trap

- No notable interactions

-One of my favorite things that Luke does is he just fucking throws people for funzies. That's his whole thing, he THROWS people when he's fighting and needs to team up

- We're going through the team's backstories this season, which I think it's fun, and it's actually kinda funny

-Yes, Peter, 'parents' parents

-They're so fucking biased against Peter and it pisses me off

-I love the way these guys protect and look after each other, it's super cute and lovely

-See this is what happens when you start harping on your teenage heroes. They start ignoring you and don't listen when you try to offer important information

-Luke wanting a perfect reunion is so fucking relatable

-Spiderman only calls his friends by name on missions when it's important or in an emergency, the team members who know his identity don't call Peter by name unless off mission

~

S2E19 Stan By Me

-No notable interactions

~

S2E20 Game Over

-Danny talks about how fun the LMDs are and Peter immediately starts going into detail.

-I love that the team gets to go all out here

-Danny wants to retreat, Peter says "looks like we're gonna have to 'assess' with our fists" which I count because Peter's not the kind of guy to retreat even if it's deadly and he talks like he was going to agree

-Annd we're in a slow zoom (in the ready room lol) and Peter and Danny are sitting right next to each other

#the ultimate spiderman #ultimate spiderman #thoughts and headcanons #mad writes #things i write #spideyfist #spiderfist #spiderman/iron fist #analysis #season 2 #character analysis #peter parker #danny rand #peter parker/danny rand #spiderman #iron fist #media commentary #commentary #honorable spideyfist mentions