#seeing so many familiar faces in the new trailer makes me so dang happy you have no idea | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

fleurmarigold · 5 years

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BROOOOO i just watched klaus?? and??? (SPOILERS)

i hadn’t heard ANYTHING about it up until now so i had no idea it was so eagerly anticipated but i can completely see why, when i first saw screenshots i either thought it was 3d or more akin to something like tangled’s flash animation, but... WOW! this is EVERYTHING 2d animation could be if it were still practiced (still waiting on that nostalgia cash-in renaissance) and more - the beautiful blending of 2d/3d like treasure planet, the gorgeous detail, effects and vividity of princess and the frog, the strong geometric 3d turn-style of el dorado and spirit, the showstopping scenery, lighting and colouring, the fantastically unique character designs, expressions and gestures, and the storybook stylization, texturing and natural look to everything akin to cartoon saloon and other indie studios... i’ve been waiting for a movie that makes every second feel like raw ART and this one had by eyes glued to the dang screen not wanting to miss a single second!

the trailer made it look a little more cheesy & literal, something more like you’d expect from a kids’ xmas movie, kind of like those indie movies that are a little on the corny/below average side but that you forgive or endear out of artistic ingenuity, but it turned out sooo much better than i’d hoped and beyond, my only real gripe in that area being that one or two of the better jokes were spoiled in the trailers but they were far outbalanced by the in-movie ones. the characters were a mix of pleasant surprises (i didn’t see many trailers but the advertising would NOT have made me of jesper as the kuzco type) and familiar faces (klaus’ wife is a story heard before but it’s still felt as genuine and heartfelt), the story so layered and clever, the setting and interactions so charming and lovable... augh

i feel like people are going to be quite open with their criticisms on account of how good the movie is otherwise so here are my main critiques that i’ll get out of the way so i can keep gushing: - geo setting is a subject but could definitely have included some racial diversity (though the saami being handled so respectfully was a breath of... icy fresh air) - alva is a little too close to disney pixar same face design (pale, thin, round and smooth but pointy chin/nose) especially in comparison to the exaggerated and whacky features of the others - romance didn’t feel necessary (plus being rushed) but alva was fleshed out beyond love interest and it felt done without making too big a scene that i can’t really complain (though the ‘of course she did’ line is -_-) - i loved the subtle commentary through the inter-clan grudges! maybe a little more on that topic and how overcoming differences and finding similarities can be so empowering - i can’t tell if they were fat jokes or just big tall strong people jokes? there was only one but it still would’ve been cool without it - some music choices were a little on the dated/pop/distracting side but nothing too bad - i LOVE the ‘you were using us?’ ‘yes- no- well, at first, but-’ trope but it HAS been done in this way many times before, and the reveal felt a little weightless when jesper’s bad side wasn’t really known to the townsfolk so i’m not sure why they’d assume the worst of him automatically (someone mentioned making him more openly arrogant but still entertaining would’ve been useful), but knowing it would be wrapped up well took away most discomfort here

the entire viewing was filled with my FAVOURITE emotion to be filled with when watching anything new: surprise! i had absolutely no idea how gorgeous, entertaining and delightful watching this would be, and i kept having to yell about how great everything was to my brother any time there was a quiet moment. the witty dialogue, visual & situational humor were all freaking hilarious, the development of the townsfolk and the heartfelt nature had me ‘aww’ing’ nonstop, alva’s story of devoting herself to teaching in a happy and encouraging environment was gorgeous, their efforts to include nonenglish speakers in the festivities, the sneaky and unintentional explanations for the santa mythology... ALL great stuff. and of course the star of the show klaus was an absolute darling sweetheart ;__; i love... unconventional santas and he’s definitely up there in my faves alongside rotg’s, having him be cold, quiet and even scary is such an awesome way of doing things... i almost wish he’d stayed in that atmosphere a little longer but watching him open up, regain his joy and realize he’s safe to laugh and help others feel the same in the process was just 8′) having him hardly say a word and communicate so much of his intent through action, be it silly or tragic or toothachingly sweet (the birdhouses........ the reindeer ;o;) made him a treat to watch!

which brings me to by far my favourite part! this might be the only christmas movie i’ve ever seen that actually FEELS like a christmas movie, y’know you get all those ~true meaning~ and ~magic~ and ~family~ messages that try to make it deep but not once has one of them felt genuine until i saw klaus’ face upon seeing the pure, glowing childlike wonder his gift gave to the first child, realizing just how much it meant to him from that singular frame it just. guh. shoots me right through the heart. the setting for it was perfect too, having an entire TOWN play the scrooge role was wonderfully inventive and sooo satisfying and uplifting and purely FUN to see even the grumpiest of characters show change... it made me especially sad thinking about all the children trapped in such a horrible and unloving place, and knowing their parents had been born the same and forced into the cycle of violence to survive, so having them be the main focus of the letters, having innocence and good will and PLAY be the driving force that changed not only the heart of the town, but that of jesper too, is just... something i’d never get sick of watching. that scene where they gift margu her sled and she tries it for the first time? THAT scene is... pure, unbridled magic unlike anything i’ve seen before. i don’t think there’s any point in discussing ‘meanings’ of contemporary christmas unless it captures a feeling like this

i’ll likely add to this as i remember more (/rewatch a whole bunch) but i really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it! it’s something i feel like i could watch people’s reactions to and still get the same wonder and elation i got from my first viewing for years to come :’) which is great for a yearly rewatch hehe

#klaus #netflix #jesper

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marshmallowgoop · 6 years

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Okay, so I keep seeing all this stuff about how the 2018 film Venom is just a live-action Kill la Kill, but most of the time, this content winds up being another usage of the “In this essay I will” meme.

And, like, yes, I admit, I haven’t even seen Venom and really ain’t too familiar with Venom lore, but I WILL FINISH THE ESSAY ANYWAY.

First, lemme get the basics outta the way. Venom, just like Kill la Kill, involves a protagonist (Eddie, Ryuko) bonding with a space alien outfit (Venom, Senketsu). While the alien is viewed as a dangerous parasite, the protagonist becomes much stronger from the partnership, and together, the two are able to battle the various threats around them.

But while, say, the Spider-Man 3 adaptation of the Venom story didn’t really go much further than that sorta basic outline, it seems that the 2018 film takes the concept of a human/alien connection to a whole ‘nother level. Just as in numerous comics, movie!Venom is not depicted as little more than a monstrous power-up with zero personality besides “evilz”; they, like Senketsu in Kill la Kill, are a sentient, sapient, and emotional character in their own right. And, as @agendervenom argues in this fantastic post (which is also where I am getting all of these Venom comics images from, thank you!), Eddie and Venom “consider their entire story in the comics to be a love story.”

Which is also super the vibe I’m getting from this latest flick.

I mean, like. Most everything I see about the film is that it’s a love story between Eddie and Venom and a goofy rom-com and Venom is the Best Monster Boyfriend and... yeah. If the Venom comics are a love story more than anything else, it seems like there’s a hecka lotta consensus that the recent movie is the same way.

It’s not as easy to make a similar case for Kill la Kill. Everyone kinda has a different idea of what the show is all about, and these ideas can be anything from a warning about wearable technology to some giant metaphor about puberty.

But. Look. Kill la Kill has been described by its head scriptwriter, Kazuki Nakashima, to be his attempt to “make a form of intimacy that transcends love and species.”

And IN THIS ESSAY I WILL ACTUALLY contend that Ryuko and Senketsu’s relationship—just like Eddie and Venom’s in Venom—forms the heart of the whole narrative.

So, yes, this post is going exactly where you think it’s going. Controversial titty anime Kill la Kill is literally a love story between a teenage girl and her alien shirt, and if you don’t believe me, consider the following:

✄ The cover art for the final volume of the series (pictured at the top of this post)—or, you know, the number-one thing that the show wants you to take away from it—is an illustration of Ryuko and Senketsu wrapped in a tender embrace, presumably just about to Synchronize and become one. To further bring my point home, this image is constantly featured on the homepage for the official Kill la Kill website.

✄ (Plus, an earlier draft that character designer Sushio drew (pictured just above) is maybe even more intimate and adorable.)

✄ In Nakashima’s comments for the final episode in The Complete Script Book, he notes that he felt the story had to end with Ryuko saying goodbye to Senketsu because it began with the two saying hello.

✄ Which, I mean, is a pretty blatant acknowledgment that Kill la Kill is ultimately all about Ryuko and Senketsu’s bond.

✄ And while voice actors are generally largely uninvolved in the writing of a TV series and can’t exactly state any “canon” information, Ami Koshimizu, Ryuko’s VA, has argued for the significance of Ryuko and Senketsu’s partnership herself, saying, “Senketsu and Ryuko are like family, like friends, like lovers, are in a very comfortable/close-fitting relationship. Had they both been human, it would not have been possible for them to have this relationship. I think that is what this wonderful work depicted.” (Emphasis added.)

In short? Maybe Ryuko and Senketsu don’t get a cute fairytale ending with a little heart like Eddie and Venom do in one of the comics, but it’s kinda undeniable that their love for each other is just as crucial to Kill la Kill as Eddie and Venom’s love for each other is to Venom comics and the new film. In both cases, that human/alien connection is legitimately the bread and butter of the story.

And the similarities don’t end there. Oh, no. The human/alien connections here also resemble each other greatly.

Eddie/Venom: We are two-in-one, Hawk.

Ryuko: No. Senketsu and I are two in one.

Again, I haven’t seen the movie, so I’m gonna rely on comics caps from here on out, but given that Venom appears to follow the main comics story of the alien symbiote much more closely than, say, that aforementioned Spider-Man 3, I figure that the film can’t be too far off.

And in the comics? Eddie and Venom say the exact same thing about their relationship as Ryuko says about hers with Senketsu: they’re two in one.

And I am just scratching the surface.

Venom: Where we bonded, Eddie. Just like marriage.

Senketsu: This is literally Life Fiber Synchronization!

Venom and Eddie’s relationship gets compared to marriage in the comics, and while it’s hard to capture in just a single image from Kill la Kill, there is some pretty in-your-face wedding and marriage symbolism regarding Ryuko and Senketsu’s relationship, too. Their act of coming together is termed Jin-I-Ittai, and though this was officially translated as “Life Fiber Synchronization,” it can be more literally translated as “Human-Clothing Unity.” Given the connotations that “union” has with marriage, and that a similar alien to Senketsu is quite literally described as a “wedding dress,” which Ryuko also quite literally tears off of her body and consequently drenches herself in her own blood so that she can reunite with Senketsu... yeah.

Just like Eddie and Venom, what Ryuko and Senketsu have is akin to marriage, but it’s also way, way more than that.

Eddie/Venom: —married in a way no human can ever under—whoa!

Ryuko: I’d rather be dead! I have to take this [wedding dress] off even if I die! Because if I don’t... I won’t be able to wear Senketsu again!

And I can keep going.

Eddie: I used to hate going to the movies alone. That was before the other and I found each other. Now, I’m never alone. Life doesn’t give you many happy endings like that.

Ryuko: We’re not the same. I’m not alone. Senketsu and I fight together!

Both Eddie and Ryuko emphasize how they’re never alone and always have their alien by their side; even the short trailer for the upcoming Kill la Kill video game stresses this point, which is perhaps especially noteworthy because the game’s story is actually focused on another character altogether.

And while Ryuko and Senketsu may not go on lovey-dovey dates together in-series, there is an official card where they hold hands just like Venom and Eddie do at the movies in the comics, happily frolicking around together in what’s legitimately, seriously titled “Senketsu’s Date with Ryuko.”

(Plus, there was even a whole figure made outta this date image. So. You know.)

And I can go on some more.

Eddie: Yeah... Ohhhh, yeah. That’s it, baby. Wrap those tentacles around me.

Senketsu: We’ve never been so in sync before! Right now, you and I are one! This is literally Life Fiber Synchronization!

Ryuko: You can say that again! Doesn’t this feel awesome?!

Both Eddie/Venom and Ryuko/Senketsu have fusion sequences that ain’t at all shy about playing up the innuendo that comes along with, well, two characters “becoming one.” In one scene, Eddie loves the feel of Venom’s tentacles around him. In another, Ryuko cherishes her connection with Senketsu and starts glowing after expressing how good the sensation of being Synced with him is.

But, you know, it’s sweet! These aren’t just dirty jokes. They are expressions of these characters loving each other and loving being together.

And, like. I could really go on and on here, folks.

I could talk about how Venom declares that no one will break the bond they have with Eddie, just like how Senketsu raps in his duet with Ryuko (which is also the main theme of the show, btw) that they should “let no one break the bond that is [theirs]”:

Venom: Important place, Eddie. Bonded forever. No one will break that bond.

Senketsu: Let’s let no one break the bond that is ours

I could talk about how Eddie refers to Venom as his symbiote just like Ryuko refers to Senketsu as her Senketsu in the official English subtitles and dub:

Eddie: So, it’s true. The symbiote is here. My symbiote.

Ryuko: That’s my Senketsu! You can do anything if you try!

I could talk about how both Eddie/Venom and Ryuko/Senketsu want to be together forever:

Venom: We want to be together, Eddie. Forever.

Eddie: Yes, love.

Senketsu: I want to be worn by you.

Ryuko: I’m never taking Senketsu off.

But, y’know. I think this post is probably long enough by now, and I’ve hopefully made my point.

tl;dr? Venom is basically a live-action Kill la Kill because, if it’s anything like the comics (and I take it that it is), its entire main focus is, just like Kill la Kill’s, the similarly loving relationship between a human and alien clothes.

And if Venom can be recognized for telling a story all about an impossible love that’s really not impossible at all, Kill la Kill deserves some dang recognition for doing the same thing, even if its “monster” isn’t maybe as unconventionally attractive as Venom is.

And if I can write a ginormous essay on this subject without even seeing the film and knowing basically nothing about Venom lore, just imagine what’s possible with that knowledge.

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