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the---hermit · 1 year

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What Lies In The Woods by Kate Alice Marshall

I really didn't like this. I have not dnf-ed it because I was listening to the audiobook and was curious to know the ending but it's definitely an avoidable book that I am glad I didn't spend money on. The ratings for this novel online are very high and I genuinely don't understand why. This book is an adult thriller narrated in first person by the main character, Naomi. She survived an attempted murder when she was a child while she was in the woods with her two best friends. After the man who allegedly attacked her dies in prison the three of them meet up again. We know right from the beginning the three girls didn't say everything or lied about some stuff after that awful day, and the story is mainly focused on that. I will not say much more, because since this is a thriller many things could cound as spoilers. My spoilery complaints will be under the cut, everything that follows is spoiler free, so fear not. As I said I didn't like this book. Firstly the main character is incredibly annoying, I couldn't empathize with her for the life of me, and I have yet to understand whether I hated every single character because we see them from her perspective, or because of the writing. In any case I did not like any character in this story. Most twists were very predictable, I think I didn't see one thing coming at the very end, and that didn't really save the book for me. The main twist was exactly the first hypotesis I had at the very beginning of the book and that I had dismissed because I thought it would be a meh solution for it (v technical terminology, I know). The main character spends the entire book saying "this would be the best/most logical thing to do" and then proceds to do the exact opposite all of the time. I think she is supposed to be in her 30s but it never really felt like it? At least from the way she acted. It's not that easy to say what I didn't like without spoilers and in general I just had such a bad time with this book I could never remember all the details that seemed off for me while I was reading it. Overall I wouldn't recommend spending money on this book. The premise seemed very intresting, there was some potential in the idea, but the overall execution really lacked for me. I think I just didn't like the writing at all, and I doubt I'd read more by this author. This definitely wasn't my thing.

I read this book for the thirller prompt of the 2023 genre bingo.

This part contains some spoilers so read at your own risk (it is in fact a random list of potentially spoilery thoughts and complaints).

The moral of this story is do not trust anyone because they are all liers that will betray you somehow if they haven't betrayed you yet. And this it mostly due to the fact that the authot litteraly gave every single character some sort of twist one way or another. The main character looks like a fool by the end of the book were clearly everyone knows way better than her what happened when she was a kid and lied to her. She also is described as this sarcastic ad cynical person all of the time, full of secrets who doesn't open up with anyone, and then in a matter of a few days she tells all her deep dark secrets to a guy she has just met (that also didn't get into her life in the best way, because podcast guy definitely didn't seem that trustworthy when they first met). She claims to be in love with him after knowing him for a week, and to be honest it was clear from his first appearence they would end up together no matter how they met. I also thought the way Oscar (is that the name of Cass' brother? I can't even remember at this point) was portrayed was kinda weird. He is described as this awful guy, it's very clear from the beginning that he assaulted Naomi when they were younger, but at the very end it almost seems like the author is trying to make him look better without never really developping his character? Like you found out he wasn't the killer, so he's now a good character even though what he did in the past? I don't know if I interpreted it wrong, but it was very ambiguous. Then as I said the big twist of it's been her friends who stabbed her all along didn't feel like a big twist at all? From the start when she said they lied about something and it was implied they played the goddess game, my first thought was "her friends did it". I dismissed it because if felt kinda obvious? Or at least it didn't really feel as shocking as the author intended it to be. I could go on with complaints, on how much every single character is unbelievable annoying and all but to be honest I have spent enough energy complaining about a book that clearly wasn't for me.

Save some time and money and go for another thriller. If on the other hand you are one of the pople who read the book and liked it I would like to know your point of view, what were the things you liked and why? I clearly didn't have a good time with it and I'd love to understand the point of view of those who gave it such an high rating.

#book #books #bookblr #booklr #book cover #book review #book rec #book recommendation #thriller #bookish #studyblr #bad book reviews #reading #mine #the---hermit

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dans-den · 1 year

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Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Review

Hey what’s going on everyone?! It’s Dan here and today I’ll be reviewing Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves!

Warning!: May contain some spoilers!

I’m not gonna lie to you guys, March has been Medieval March Madness for me. March is my birthday month and I’ve been going to the Medieval Renaissance Festival, then I saw a Jousting show and now I'm watching D&D movies. I even bought a mug at the Jousting show. I enjoyed all of it, now I just need to play actual D&D and it’ll all come full circle. Honestly this movie looked dope when I saw the trailers and seeing the actual movie, the trailers are different from the actual movie, but in a good way.

When I saw the trailer for this movie, I was under the impression that it would be about taking something from the Red witch lady or stealing something from her. I was under the impression she would be the main focus of this film but it turned out that was only half the battle. Turns out the main focus of this film is Edgin Darvis (Chris Pine) breaking out of prison and reuniting with his daughter, Kira (Chloe Coleman). However, she’s been manipulated by Forge Fitzwilliam (Hugh Grant) into thinking her father abandoned her and now Edgin has to gather a group of misfits like an amateur wizard, a warrior lady banished from her tribe, and a shapeshifter to go and save his daughter all while taking Fitzwilliam and the witch down. You’d think that would be an average movie premise but the way they executed it, is awesome. This movie is better than I would have expected and it does go above and beyond in terms of VFX, witty writing for the characters, the action, even the acting flowed well bringing these characters to life.

Let’s start with the VFX, I think these effects are better than what Marvel is pumping out nowadays on Disney+ or even the Modok memery. I loved the effects in this movie and they did an excellent job bringing the fantasy world creatures to the big screen. The magic was done well too, it didn’t look cheaply done and it was all smooth transitions. The VFX doesn’t really have any bad moments or times where it looks janky. I know the budget is like 150 million but that’s money well spent on the visual effects.

The cast of this film did a phenomenal job with their roles. Each character had their chance to shine in one way shape or form. I will say the least amount of character development I saw was from Doric, but even she came to her own conclusion about humans and how she originally felt about them. Though I will say that one of my nitpicks about this film is the relationship between Simon and Doric, they do have a history together and at the end where they consider revisiting that, felt a bit underwhelming despite this being from the amazing growth from Simon. One of my favorite characters in this film is Xenk Yendar who is a Harper but also a Paladin. He’s someone who takes everything literal and it's funny shit, he’s like the Knuckles of the group (he’s with them for a single mission which is a shame).

I will say that for the writing, it’s hilarious, witty, charming, and above all fun. The writing pokes fun at certain movie cliches as well as narration to sum up the plot or situation. The writing works especially with Forge since he’s more of a comical villain. He does have his ruthless moments but I feel he was written to be more of a comedic relief villain, kind of like Modok but actually funny and written to be a real threat. There are times where I feel the movie’s writing is a bit meh but honestly those are blink and you miss it moments that I can forgive. I did feel the final battle was rushed a little but like I said it doesn’t bother me that much though I did wish there was more build up to that final battle.

Overall the movie itself was definitely one of the better movies I’ve seen by far this year. While Paramount shows can suck major cheeks at times, I will say their films are bangers. D&D is a fun game and the fact that they brought it to the big screen in the best way is great. I know there are other D&D movies dating back to the 2000’s and I heard those weren’t as great but I am glad that this one was done so with fun writing and great effects in mind.

Rating this film I’d give it:

8.5/10

I highly recommend seeing this film, it’s a fun time for everyone even if you’re not into D&D or fantasy. I hope more fantasy or D&D related stuff takes notes from this movie while improving on the weaker areas. That’s all I got for today

See ya!

#dans den #dungeons and dragons #honor among thieves #eone #hasbro #fantasy #movie review #paramount #paramount pictures #role playing games

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asbestos-11 · 10 months

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controversial opinion but:

galaxy > ie s2 > chrono stone > go > ie s3 > orion > ie > ares

ares fucking sucks and the only good things about it are nosaka and haizaki. idgaf about the plot, the characters are ass and idc about it enough to rewatch it.

the original is cool and all but i have no want to rewatch it and the original raimon is boring. some plot points are interesting, but overall i just don't care much for the plot. it is iconic tho.

orion can be infuriating and plot points/ characters are dropped so fast. irina's whole motive makes no sense and kageyama is pointless in this one. tho it's so funny bcuz it's so bad, kinda the room vibe yk? personally i really enjoyed the attempted murders, ichihoshi being a menace and kidou bullying him. probably would rewatch only select episodes. oh also i hate how ichihoshi's did is treated and how his ndness is cured by getting the fubuki treatment.

the ffi arc is cool and very iconic. i rewatch it every now and then. appreciate fudou being developed but i wish there was more to his arc. fubuki gets character nuked which is sad :( kageyama dying is cool and the payoff of the whole garshield daisuke kageyama plotline, while silly, ties the series off nicely. very iconic very pog.

i think go is my most rewatched season and for good reason. i like the conflict and the plot + the characters are interesting and i get so invested in them. tho i hate gouenji during the movie and him condoning god eden is just yikes. tho go introduced keshins which i couldn't care less for and i think they are used as an asspull most of the time (ie majin pegasus/majin pegasus arc, matei gryphon, taiyou's keshin bullshitery). i hate that they didn't do much with kariya, hikaru and the rest of raimon cuz they deserve to be explored.

cs has a special place in my heart as it's the 1st season i watched subbed and not on prime time television. also it was the 1st time i interracted with the fandom (even if it was just reading fics). appart from that i am a sucker for time travel and history in general. i love fei and kinako's arcs and that sweet sweet angst. tho i'm a bit mixed on miximax since i find it aesthetically pleasing and cool, but also kinda meh on it's execution plot wise. i really dislike el-dorado and the ssc conclusion and the way the ssc are talked about/treated. i also hate asurei lol

s2 my beloved you have introduced me to blorbo from my show. love the premise and the plot, the drama and the copious amounts of angst. fudou is a thing /pos and while i find the whole dark emperors match iconic i also don't care enough about it. i love the aliea kids as they're the highlight of the season to me. the only thing i dislike is hitomiko's treatment of raimon but it is understandable story wise, still i am miffed. also fubuki merging is kinda meh to me.

i don't think i need to explain galaxy as a fave bcs i think it's quite obvious that i really really like it. hell my bio literally says that. i do have my problems with galaxy, like sakura's character being forgotten, kageyama being alive and the anime being worse than the game. surprisingly i like souls.

#ina11 #fei's talking corner

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gunkreads · 2 years

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I saw your post on where you described your favourite niche and it sounds right up my alley! Would you have any books to recommend that you have found since you posted it? I would really appreciate any suggestions - I just finished the long way to a small angry planet and I would love to find some similar books!!

Well... unfortunately Small Angry Planet is one of the few good examples I have of that niche. I think that, actual book recs aside, the best general advice I can give is to pick up books that look kinda shitty. Something published 20+ years ago with terrible cover art where the first page is like "the Skuverthians cross the Ghru-Nkle mountains in Phuzgerland every Huffer season to hunt Yngrang". It really helps to understand exactly what you want out of a book and, more importantly, why. Once you read some meh books, likely not finishing them, you'll have a clearer picture of what you like because you'll have read something that you dislike most of, but like one thing enough to read it.

The gist of this idea is that if you can learn to read a book for the one thing you like, you'll be able to find this found-family getting-by trope in a lot more places.

A good example that... might be up your alley? Probably not. Is an incredibly silly, pretty dumb, quite bad military sci-fi book called The Excalibur Alternative by David Weber. The premise goes: a medieval English fighting force is abducted by aliens and taken to strange planets to fight other primitive civilizations. That's it. The writing is chunky, the characters are one-note, and the plot is hamfisted and contrived, but I had a DAMN good time reading it because the premise was awesome! It's basically "what if humans are the toughest sons o' bitches out there". It's a wonderful exercise in defamiliarization to a sci-fi reader; it shows you all the standard alien tech and cultural differences through the eyes of a stereotypical English military commander. A lot of the time is spent with the guy and his wife and kid just trying to figure out how to make a life in slavery to these aliens. It's a really, really fun concept with questionable execution and very little elegance, but reading it taught me so much about what I want out of a book. I can put up with a ton of "bad" as long as I love the premise and the author is earnest.

And I'm dying right now trying to remember the name of this book I read the same summer about a disabled alien guy whose race accidentally wrecked their planet and made it uninhabitable, but he goes on an expedition to scout it because someone heard a radio signal, so he goes down to this planet and finds civilization rebuilding itself. It's KILLING me that I can't remember the title or the author, but it's an amazing "what is this actually about? oh, the human condition" book. I'm sorry to tease you like this but I'm hoping someone has read this obscure paperback and recognizes it.

Another example might be Slaughterhouse Five, oddly enough. More of a classic, so more people are likely to have read it, but it's VERY much about a guy trying to get by in a SUPER weird situation. It's a super fucked-up book with a lot of Vonnegut-standard weird shit that a lot of people find distasteful, but fundamentally the idea is there.

Similarly, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has this vibe. The first book is less so, but the second and third are TOTALLY just "how is Arthur gonna get through his day." Small, Angry Planet is basically a tamer version of Hitchhiker's Guide, honestly; much less absurdity in the universe but just as much heart.

The one of these you're most likely to have read is the Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie, starting with Ancillary Justice. It has a lot higher immediate stakes than Small, Angry Planet but has a similar "how do these people live here" tone.

I didn't finish it, but Mars by Ben Bova seemed like it would have some of this? It's very hard sci-fi and I only read about 150 pages of it, but it had a lot of interpersonal relationship questions e.g. "how do you handle a 2 year spaceflight with 10 other people."

Half-Life by Hal Clement I also didn't finish, but seemed similar in tone to Mars, though it was a bit softer sci-fi.

I'm currently watching The Expanse, which is based on the book series of the same name, and while it's not a great analogue to Small, Angry Planet, I can say the show has some similar crew relationship plotlines in the early seasons, especially s1. The story is a lot higher-stakes and gets a bit scary, but the core is there.

I guess I'd also compare the Last Herald-Mage series by Mercedes Lackey, starting with Magic's Pawn, in this category? It's also got a more defined driving plot than Small, Angry Planet, but most of the first book (which is all I've read) is just about the main character trying to keep his life from falling apart while struggling with depression. It's an emotional rollercoaster, but not much happens, so... make of that what you will.

I'm really scraping for examples at this point because I tend to forget books I read, but I hope at least one of these tickles your need.

#book recs

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legacysam · 2 years

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Okay so I watched season 3 of Two Sentence Horror Stories (because that was the season netflix started me with? weird but okay). Mixed quality as one might expect from an anthology show, but I took some notes in case anybody wants to know which ones are worth watching (content warnings under the cut):

Crush: meh, I don't know if I'd call this horror exactly. twenty minutes of two aging sisters being cruel to each other, bit of a twist at the end but not really worth watching for it, imo.

Plant Life: okay I loved this one. maybe if you didn't want to be [spoiler] by a houseplant you should have been a more attentive boyfriend! black mirror vibes. 🌈

Toxic: not bad. starts off being about teenage boys who are too into pranks and being mean to each other, which does not interest me, but it gets better when very bad things start happening. Better in the sense of more fun to watch, not better for the boys lmao.

Teatime: creepy child, creepy dolls, 10/10 very good take on a classic (also includes one of my favorite horror tropes but shh spoilers)

Teeth: 🌈

The Killer Inside: more of a thriller with some supernatural flavor. pretty good if you enjoy the whole "people doing horrific things out of love" trope, otherwise skippable.

Patel Motel Cartel: this entire episode happens because of Families Keeping Secrets For No Good Reason, which is one of my least favorite tropes. it also feels kind of like a clunky pilot for a kids/young teens show, which sucks because the worldbuilding concept it sets up toward the end is pretty fun.

Erased: this one has a really great premise (the erasure of native Hawaiians by white colonists/developers as a literal supernatural threat), but the execution of the supernatural elements is pretty rough. I feel like the concept could be a whole movie on its own with tighter writing.

Heirloom: Get Out meets Haunting in Connecticut 2, ie. the real horror is racism and the ghosts are a reminder that it's not over. good concept, a bit predictable, but this was DEFINITELY a movie pitch that got cut down to just the most dramatic moments to fit the 20 min format. I love that it takes place in the northwest and references racial history outside of the south, it's just a shame it didn't have time to deal with uh. any of it, really.

Homecoming: Mmm love some horror about families and generational trauma, especially with themes of storytelling and truth/memory. *chef kiss* delicious.

Content warnings (aside from general "this is horror, there is violence and there are creepy things and jump scares and stuff"):

Crush: violent animal death and remains, cancer mention, elder abuse

Plant Life: body horror (being turned into a plant)

Toxic: typical zombie horror

Teatime: body horror (being turned into a doll)

Teeth: brief flash of an animal getting hit by a car, intimate partner violence (woman puts a chokehold on her gf so she'll be unconscious and not see the fighting that happens next), blood/gore, mostly after-the-fact due to the aforementioned gf being unconscious for most of the action. Honestly the choking thing feels weirdly extreme and gets glossed over a bit too easily for my taste.

The Killer Inside: terminal illness, kidnapping/imprisonment, medical abuse/malpractice, nonconsensual surgery, blood

Patel Motel Cartel: none really. general jumpscares, bad guy that cocoons victims if that freaks you out.

Erased: body horror (disappearing limbs/features), family members vanishing, predatory developers trying to coerce native Hawaiians into selling their land.

Heirloom: a missing child, ghosts, a little gore, racism.

Homecoming: adult sons come home because their father is dying, and one of them remembers him as abusive while the others don't, so there's some gaslighty stuff here plus parent death. monster horror, references to drug addiction.

#horror

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duchezss · 2 years

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Top 10 Criminal Minds episodes imo

Heyo, so over the past two months I found myself absolutely binge watching this show, and clearly I fell in love considering the pace I was going. There were a lot of meh episodes, some were good, fewer were great, and even less were superb. My list probably won’t be anything new or groundbreaking, but idc I’m making it anyway so let’s dive in.

10. Lo-Fi S3E20

One of my favorite finales from the show, and easily my favorite two parter. Most of the time when this show did a two parter, one of the two episodes would fall flat, usually the former. This is not the case with Lo-Fi. It started off ominously, and the more it unfolded and developed the more horrifying it became. I loved the deviation from the single unsub, and perhaps it’s just me, but I really liked this two parter because it went season finale-season opener, and not season penultimate-season finale. Adds more tension that way. Just a really interesting case that started off the story great and left me excited for more.

9. The Fisher King Part 1 S1E22

These two parters am I right? Fisher King part 2 barely missed this list, but both episodes are so strong, and stick to my favorite season finale-season opener strategy. The first part is definitely slower than the second, but honestly that’s why I liked it more. I loved getting to see the personal lives of the group, and the way the fisher king slowly contacted them was very creepy. It built suspense by taking it’s sweet time, and that’s why it was so good. The more the audience learned, the more they almost sympathized with the unsub. Overall it was just a great finale for the first season, and really set the tone for the rest of the show.

8. Mosley Lane S5E16

One might argue that this episode is too low on the list, but man these top 10 were just so hard to place except for the top 3. Mosley lane needs no introduction because it’s rightfully iconic. Still can’t believe this was MGG debut as director, he truly belongs in that chair. It’s such an intriguing premise that hooks you right off the back. Pair that with the amazing acting all around and you get this work of art. This ep was also unique because of the heartbreak most of the parents feel when their children don’t return, mainly the couple of the kid that was just killed. It brings an unusual melancholy feel that really pulls on the heartstrings. Just a fantastic ep that makes one want to hold their loved ones a little closer.

7. Riding the Lightning S1E14

I really didn’t expect for season 1 to be so prominent on this list but here we are. This was the first cm ep that really made me sit back and think. It’s simply so powerful, and is one of the few eps that brought me to tears. I love the stark difference between the husband and wife and how Gideon and Hotch investigate them. There’s just something so poetic about this ep, from it starting with Gideon attending the son’s concert, to the clear illustration that a mother will do anything for her child. It also very clearly shows that good and evil aren’t as black and white as they seem, and sometimes grey is the only solution.

6. Mayhem S4E1

This episode is the second part to the previously mentioned Lo-Fi. The opening is easily one of my favorites from the whole series. It slowly paints a picture to the audience and then it takes off running. I absolutely loved Edward Allen Bernero’s direction in this ep, it was his best imo. There’s a lot happening with the team, between Hotch and directors car exploding, to Morgan helping him because of no first responders, and the rest of the team figuring out they’re part of a bigger plan with this unsub. It was just fantastic, and practically every twist had me jumping out of my seat. Simply a great opener that had as much as action as it did character moments.

5. True Genius S7E11

Probably the most underrated episode on my list. True Genius had an excellent premise and an even better execution. The use of the zodiac killer can be overused, but in this case I thought it was well done. It starts off strong, and the taunting of Reid mixed with the doubts he was already having is great. I loved how the unsub’s friend is first framed as being innocent, and at the end we learn he’s just as bad. It wasn’t a double unsub case, but it sure felt like it. Not to mention the complexity with which the unsub planned the crimes, it’s brilliant and I’m a sucker for chess metaphors. I loved the ending, seeing all the team together for Reids bday. Finally, this ep built on the real crisis of adults expectations of children effecting them later in life, and how that shapes young kids. It makes one sit back and wonder about how easy it is to become like the unsubs we watch.

4. Demons S9E24

Demons wasn’t an episode I expected to like as much as I did. While I did enjoy it’s predecessor “Angels”, it didn’t knock it out of the ball park by any means. It was very clear early on that the main suspect was a red herring, but I didn’t imagine the case would spiral as much as it did. I loved how it ended up being an inside job, and the secrecy the team had to maintain was another layer of suspense. There were a lot of settings with the characters all scattered around, and that made this ep super action packed. Not to say there weren’t slower moments though, I liked how the used the women to help frame the story, a good alternative to Garcia just spouting info (nothing against her I love her, but I liked the change of pace). I know the ‘inside job’ is common trope, but it’s so well done in this ep so it doesn’t bother me. I was simply hooked from start to finish, and this is hands down my favorite finale.

3. Mr. Scratch S10E21

Mr. Scratch has gotta be one of, if not the, scariest episodes the series ever saw. Generally had me covering my eye with my hands. MGG perfectly illustrates the horror the unsub puts both his victims through, and what their own victims go through. I love the fact that MGG was the ‘monster’ himself and it’s easily his best directed ep imo. The idea of someone making us see our own worst fears is terrifying, and one can’t help but have sympathy for the victims, even if they killed someone. Peter Lewis is one of the BAU’s most notorious unsubs, and while I feel like the stretched and ruined his story in the end, this was such a powerful debut. The case was well paced, and the final 10 minutes had me on the edge of my seat. Hotch himself getting drugged was scary, but it became heartbreaking when the audience realizes his worst fear is his team getting hurt. The ending with Peter taunting the team and Hotch in the ambulance was phenomenal, the way it cuts in the middle of the high tension situation was pure genius on MGG’s part. Couldn’t have asked for more this ep, and perhaps my love for Hotch is blinding me to put this too high, but I generally think this ep is so good regardless.

2. Entropy S11E11

These next two are probably very predictable, but they’re iconic for a reason idc. I loved how this ep started nice and slow, with Reid simply going on a date. Aubrey Plaza is fantastic as Cat, and I love how they don’t shy away from making her cynical. Her and Reid’s stand off is great, and I love how they stitched the rest of the team in there as well. Rossi and JJ were simply distractions, and I’m still in love with the shot of them leaving and Cat celebrating her win, only for the camera to zoom out to Lewis and Morgan clinking their glasses together. Heather Capiello was a phenomenal director, and I truly wish she would’ve done more eps. This ep was so different from the rest, because while there is the looming threat of a gun and a bomb, the main part of this ep is psychological. Reid and Cat are basically trying to outsmart each other. I also thought the way the weaved Reid’s emotional new discoveries in there was smart as well. Entropy managed to be high stakes and high tension, without having any weapons drawn, now that’s impressive. One also can’t help but almost feel bad for Cat. She was so convinced that she won, only for Reid to swipe her feet from under her. Just a great great ep, and nice sentimental closing as well. Reid feels like a ticking clock once again, but the group gives him comfort, and I for one, will never get tired of that.

1. 100 S5E9

You knew it was coming. Listen as the only ep in this show to have six credited writers it was bound to be great. The opening gave me so many chills, it set the stage for the rest of the ep incredibly well. Of course as Hotch centric episode it made me love it even more, but it wasn’t just because of him. I thought the interview flash forward scenes were a little too much, but it wasn’t enough to ruin the ep. The premise was bound to be interesting since Foyet was introduced the prior season, and obviously the danger Haley and Jack were in. It was abundantly clear that so much thought and passion was poured into this ep, understandably so considering it was the 100th ep of the series. I simply think the work behind it really showed. As always EAB had great direction, even the simplest scenes were stitched with tension, and it was clear that everything was leading up to a big moment. Foyet was such a clever unsub, and this ep showcased that very well. He’s just so convincing. The scene where Hotch realizes Foyet is at their old house, and he starts driving and calls Haley, quite literally broke me. Definitely one of the hardest I’ve ever cried because of a show. It was so emotional, and the following scene where he kills Foyet is just as impactful. Shemar was right when he said this ep will be remembered for showing how family-like the bau are. They were all there for Hotch through it all, and I’m still not over how this ep took my breath away. Simply the best, and cm revival or not, this ep will never be topped. It’s widely regarded as the best ep of the series, and I think it will rightfully always hold that title.

#criminal minds #cm #now someone tell me why I spent so long on this #writing essays is simply my hobby I think #love this show so much mwah <3 #this took me so long to write though wew

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ddarker-dreams · 3 years

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FINALLY SOMEONE SAID THE TRUTH.

I admit that i enjoyed act 3 but it feels like really rushed i have so much complain with that.

The build up until act 2 was so good it give us so much premise but the final blow si meh. Sorry that i want to share thing long rant with you

1. Why the final talk is with yae, no offense to her but we need ei to explain not to mention she witness khaenriah downfall so she can give us more information, i feel like they do it for the plot armor so they can just keep dragging this

2. So many things that quite inconsistant, the shogun is show no mercy to anyone that even did a little thing outside what she think its right, how come she can still have a talk with signora, when sara is falling like that, and also there is no clarification about sara right now.

The traveler was so done at first they refuse to help thoma and ayaka at the beginning. But they seem so happy and forget everything how come they are not RAGE ( okay maybe this is to bias and personal) when this nation provide nothing about our siblings information and also why they are not mention anything about their problem in ei stroy quest. Its nonsense! She is right in front of youu, ask about your siblings, ask about khaenriah, ask about ukmown god!!. How come they can just forget like that. Also mihoyo really waste the potential about twin things i thing ei will give us so much help bcs of the sympathy that we both rn lost our twin but noooo.

3. Kokomi seem lost some brain cell, she make a very succesfull grand intro but she become meh in act 3, how come a great strategist like her let the sus sponsorship slip just bcs they are desperate, not to mention her screen time is really small and her role seem so unsignificant and it feels lile she is a plain npc.

4. The awesome world quest that we have done doesnt get any mention at all! Inazuma owe us so much with cleansing sakura, thunder sakura, tatarigami, obarashi quest. It has so much potential that yae or ei or anyone else aknowledge what traveler has been done but nooo.

cracks knuckles... i suppose it's time for my promised dissertation. interestingly enough, you touched on a lot of the main issues i had with chapter III.

i think that if i had to pin the main issue, it's a lack of overall cohesiveness? we were jumping all over the place without the chance to ever flesh things out. inazuma is a smaller cast, but i feel like we didn't get to see any of them shine. since i'm most interested in the genshin characters, i'll break down my problems by going over everyone and their (lack) of impact on the story.

was ayaka not questioned or placed under suspicion for being close to thoma before his escape? i wanted to see her broken up over her duties as they relate to the yashiro commission, paired with having someone she genuinely cares about in danger. it would've been an interesting struggle if she was forced to choose one or the other. instead she just kinda took a back seat.

speaking of thoma, i don't even have anything to say, because he just... was there? for .0001 seconds. said "lol this sucks ig" and that's about it. i know we're going to get a story for him in the future since he's a 5* but i'm not getting my hopes up 😭 then in the raiden shogun's character story, man is peachy keen! be upset with the raiden shogun! have some inner conflict! even if it's just using loaded language because he's under surveillance for going against the raiden shogun, that'd be so cool. saying something like,

"Traveler, what's with that expression? Oh please, there's nothing to worry about. We're under the Statue of the Omnipresent God's protection. Nothing bad has ever happened here." *wink*

i also don't know what to say about gorou. he was... there....... i think. what is he fighting for? what are the stakes for him? what makes him place so much trust into kokomi? i'm out of things to say about him because i don't remember anything he did or said.

kokomi... oh kokomi... i was so hyped. so excited. i thought that maybe we could see a foil to the raiden shogun. that she'd have a moment where she's forced to realize, just like her opponent, sacrifices must be made that will hurt people who will never understand why she made them. or maybe something to show her military prowess. but instead she just accepts a mysterious patron's help (?), sees her people aging like the grateful dead from JJBA, and goes oh well. that sucks. what can ya do. oh bye traveler i guess, good luck with that. ????????????? HUH... similar case to thoma where she's gonna get a character story but like. she won't be the leader of the resistance anymore. that was her whole shtick. they took her shtick away. also she forced me to interact with more NPCs whose names i've already forgotten so i'm tilted about that still.

KUJOU SARA... AN INJUSTICE. A DISGRACE. a slap to my woman loving face. the build up was there. yae miko's comments about sara probably knowing the tenryou commission is involved in shady dealings, but is choosing not to think about it. sara being forced to confront reality and challenge her adopted father with the truth. being able to blaze a new path for herself in the process. when she started running to the raiden shogun i was ultra hyped up. sara, a devotee to the shogun for so long, was about to see her god interacting with the same people who led inazuma to this awful state. how would she react? would she stay ignorant, like yae miko so coyly said, choosing to look away in favor of following her god's footsteps? or would she be forced to recognize the raiden shogun isn't as divine as she once thought, and challenge her belief system?

we open the door to see the raiden shogun. the loading screen ensues. the camera pans to the ominous room, clouded in darkness, hinting at the ominous confrontation that is to come. the music takes a serious timbre. and then...

well fuck that potential character arc i guess. (we still don't know what sara made of any of this since she poofed out of existence from the story at this point)

kazuha also was handed a similar treatment. we've been with him for a while longer now. he is our introduction into inazuma, the one who first gets us emotionally involved by regaling us with the bittersweet tale of friendship that led him to becoming a wanted criminal. a kind soul who loves nature yet was dealt a cruel hand by fate, forced to watch his home nation turn into a hostile place, where his dear friend ultimately perished as a result. we get the scene with his friend's vision lighting back up. he parries a block from the raiden shogun, in the same area where his friend was killed by her. the parallels. the drama. except this time, he wasn't too late. he protected the traveler where he "failed" to protect his friend in the past. did he feel redemption at this? or was it a bittersweet reminder of what could've been?

WELL i guess we'll never know because we didn't get to talk to him again 😭 idk who got a bait and switch worse, him or sara. jesus christ mihoyo.

then we have signora. why is the raiden shogun talking to her? does she know about the gnosis being taken, and if she doesn't, what was her plan to get it from the archon? what does she think about scaramouche? and oh, okay, we're fighting here now. good fight + god tier music. pog pog. okay, now we've beaten her up, and raiden shogun wyd— wait no not signora her lore is still on CUPS not YET raiden shogun and— ah she's dead. okay. non nerds who didn't read artifact lore are going to know nothing about her. signora has such an interesting story, and yet... well. ok.

then we get raiden shogun redemption (?) arc. i was hype for this as well, though at that point, idk why i bothered being hype. i knew they were gonna do a cute power of friendship something or another, and i'm good with that, so long as it's executed well. what i was envisioning was like seven different buffs to correspond with the seven different visions, the dreams of those whose ambitions were stolen serving as the spear to penetrate the raiden shogun's heart of stone. maybe a hydro vision giving us extra healing for a time, with the voice acting over it being like,

"Even if the rest of the world forgets us, let our will carry you through this one final time. Succeed where we couldn't, Traveler."

so on and so forth.

but instead we got— you get the idea at this point. why bother spelling it out anymore.

at that point i was surprised the raiden shogun didn't go "oopsie woopsie!! we made a fucky wucky!!!" because that was the vibe i was getting. i love ei, don't get me wrong, but i wanted to see her challenged with what she had done to inazuma in the past year. maybe meeting NPC #2345259 who lost her sister to the vision decree or something, reminding ei of the love she held for her sister... being forced to come to terms with the extent of what she's done in pursuit of eternity.

anyway. please for the love of god mihoyo hire better writers for the main story. that is all i ask. thank you.

#genshin impact spoilers #answered #Anonymous

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small-round-and-angry · 3 years

Text

My opinions about the Loki (2021) series. Spoilers and all that.

I took some time off the fandom until I felt it was time to make this post, if only to get it out of my system, so I can finally rest. I thought, since I was so pumped for the series to begin with, before it was launched and everything, and how I waited to expectantly for every episode that was airing weekly, that the empty feeling I was experiencing after it was all done was just because, well, it was all done.

I thought maybe it was the normal empty-chested-feeling you get when you finish a movie, series, or book that you really liked / waited a lot for.

It was not it. It didn’t pass. It got worse.

I’m going to put this under a cut, and under the anti-tags, because I know some people liked this show and not everyone has to be miserable with me.

I want to preface this by saying that I respect everyone that was involved in this project, and I know that it may be gut-wrenching to receive criticism on something that you worked in, but I feel cheated. I feel lied to. It’s one thing to work hard and be thoughtful and still receive bad reviews, but I don’t think this is the case at all.

To start it all, I was so excited to see Loki again. He’s the only character that I maintained any attachment to throughout so long, sometimes more, sometimes less, but I always considered myself a fan since I saw The Avengers (2012) with my parents in the theaters, at the ripe age of 12. To be honest, Loki was what got me into superhero movies, and into the marvel fandom at all. And I knew, or at least suspected, that they would do something different with the character. I was ready for that, after reading the comics and realizing that MCU Loki and Comics Loki are two different versions of the same character (more on that later). And I thought it was even going to be for the best, since Tom Hiddleston, bless his heart, was one of the executive producers and, I thought, would have more of a say on Loki’s character arc during the series.

What I watched was, to be completely fair with myself, not Loki. I couldn’t really pinpoint it at the time, but I keep expecting something to happen after he was captured by the TVA to show us his mind at work. A scheme, a plan, anything remotely smart that he cooked up. And yet, nothing. He kept acting…Not Loki. As time passed, I hoped he was biding his time, fooling everyone, that he would reveal his masterplan at the season finale and go back to the main timeline. The series ended and I didn’t see Loki, any of them, act as Loki once.

Maybe it’s because I am a fan of the older version of MCU Loki. The darker, more complicated one. I didn’t want a redeeming arc at all, I don’t think all villains or anti villains need a redeeming arc. That’s boring. And, to my interpretation of his character, shouldn’t be in his future at all. Loki thrives on the gray area. I love not knowing what he is to the other characters, the chaos, the lying and manipulation, the grand schemes. This new content we’ve been getting, since Ragnarok, depict him as a more comedic, campy character (which is …fine? Meh, I don’t care for it).

And of course, that’s not to say Tom Hiddleston didn’t do a good job. Poor man did his best with what was given to him by the writers. It’s hard to keep a character consistent, however, when every director and screenwriter seems to have a different idea of who they are. He kept it together fairly well when Taika attempted to assassinate Loki’s character, but Kate Herron snapped his neck harder than Thanos ever could. And for what?

Sylvie.

Now, hear me out. There’s nothing wrong with the concepts of Sylvie, Lady Loki, and a Love interest. Separately. In trying to bring everything together in one character, the writers not only could not come up with a compelling woman character, but also had to bring down an already well established character, the TITULAR character, no less, so she could look somewhat presentable, which is insulting. And they Still failed. I don’t like the pairing either, but that’s not what I’m talking about (right now). The truth is, I don’t know Sylvie. She just got here, I have no emotional attachment to her whatsoever, so I won’t feel for her the same I feel for Loki, who’ve I watched for almost a decade. And instead of trying to build an emotional connection between Sylvie and the viewer, they chose to spoon-feed us a romance between her and Loki.

Well, more between Loki and Her, and not even that. I felt like Loki was always trailing her like a lost puppy, and big eyes and expectations, and she was giving him…Absolutely nothing. All the sweet moments between them were initiated by him, all the talking about feeling were done by him, all the looks and gestures…And although I understand Sylvie grew up in apocalypses and Loki grew up in a palace, she still claimed to have romantic partners. Multiple, man and women. And still, showed no visible interest in Loki up until the kiss scene, which I suspect was more to shut him up and send him flying that anything.

Excuse me if I want Loki to have a love interest who is actually invested in him too.

And Why make her a Loki variant at all if she is adamant she isn’t Loki? Why go to the extent of dying her hair blonde (where in the apocalypse did she manage to get her hair blonde? WHY?) and then give her horns? If she was taken as a child, where did she get the very Asgardian like leather armor she used? WHERE IS THIS INFORMATION?

If they were going to go so far to alienate her from the identity of being a Loki variant just so they could pair her with Loki and it not be weird (it was), why make her a variant at all? If you’re going to make a selfcest pairing, at least commit to it. Sylvie Lushton, from where they got the name, isn’t a Loki Variant, if anything She’s an Amora Variant. Why name her Sylvie if she has no relation to Amora?

The plot has so many holes and is so disappointing. I was promising Loki playing around and causing havoc with time traveling. When I saw Richard E. Grant had been cast, I imagined the big bad would be King Loki, like in the comics! Something about Loki seeing what he becomes if he let darkness completely consume him, and finding balance in his chaos, after all. The premise of Loki healing though observing himself, or variants of himself, was honestly good. His variants, however, where so underused, poorly used, made Loki look like a fool. Even he was ashamed of their interactions. And Kid Loki apparently Killed Thor, which makes him the leader (???) and that’s never mentioned again. President Loki, who was a big part of the appeal of the trailer, is gone in two minutes. And then there’s the mirror scene from the trailer, that didn’t even make it to the series.

There are other things that bother me a lot about this too, but it’s not my place to discuss them in dept. To list, if anyone is interested in knowing: The underdevelopment of black character, and the reaction of the fandom, to my knowledge, to said black characters, in special Ravonna and Boastful Loki. The misrepresentation of gender fluid people, which if I can recall was one of the points they sold to us as something they would touch into Loki’s characterization. Some people have pointed out that it was biphobic to pair Loki with a woman after he “came out” on screen as bisexual. I am bisexual, and I disagree, but I can see why it’s an issue for a lot of people, as mlm relationships are rare in MCU canon. What I thought was Biphobic, however, was having Loki not show us he was bi, rather than telling us.

In summary, I am very disappointed, and I am mourning. This series managed to do what End Game didn’t, which was kill all hope I had to ever have Loki back. He’s gone.

#anti loki series #anti sylki #anti sylvie x loki #loki series criticism #loki series spoilers #loki series negativity

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forthegothicheroine · 2 years

Note

terribly sorry if this is a bother, but i would Love to hear your ranking of the Into the Dark movies.

Looking at the big list, it looks like I actually missed a couple, so this is my ranking of the ones I did see. Some incidental spoilers.

19. Treehouse

Man, of all the horror movies not to kill off the main character...

18. Uncanny Annie

Working with board games for a living, there is so much more you could have done with the idea of an evil board game than just giving it a creepy little girl horror host! Make fun of Arkham Horror and its intricate and convoluted rules system, where the players die if they forgot one stupid expansion special rule! Or do a low budget adaptation of LJ Smith's Forbidden Game, that would kick ass.

17. They Come Knocking

There's just nothing really to say about this movie, which is a shame because the Black Eyed Kids are very visually creepy, and the idea of them haunting an RV where you can't easily escape them has a lot of promise. It shouldn't be trite and boring. Alas.

16. The Body

This was apparently based on a short film, and that makes sense, since after we learn the genuinely entertaining premise it kind of devolves into padding. I will give it points for a hot villain, even if he's bargain basement Johnny Lee Miller playing bargain basement Patrick Bateman.

15. Good Boy

Great premise, mediocre execution. I love the idea that a dog can also be a werewolf, and I love taking the fact that dogs react when their owners are anxious to a deadly conclusion, but the movie just sort of petered out instead of going somewhere.

14. All That We Destroy

This should probably be higher up since it's very well made, but I hate the main characters. True, I am supposed to hate the main characters. Still, if I'm supposed to hate the main characters and I do hate the main characters, is that good or bad?

13. Down

I was conflicted about where to put this on the list since I love the first half and hate the latter half. Turning a romantic comedy premise into a bottle episode thriller is done really well, with the tension rising as we see the truth behind these characters past their sexual chemistry, but then it becomes a psycho chase movie, and just a meh one at that. Maybe just watch it until the reveal.

12. Midnight Kiss

This is just kind of a basic slasher (or a giallo? Maybe that's a better word for it, what with the black gloves and the fact that the killer has an actual motive), but I've rethought it upon reading reviews pointing out how cool it is to have a shlocky genre movie about gay people. They don't get killed because they're gay, the bad guy isn't a bad guy because he's gay, but the gay characters and setting are still vital to the plot, and that is indeed pretty cool. And even before considering these things, it's fun with a stylish bad guy costume.

11. A Nasty Piece of Work

This one is basically a worse version of the movie Cheap Thrills, but it has Julian Sands and is arguably less of a bummer, so that's not nothing. I wouldn't be surprised if evil rich people forcing their workers to perform increasingly fucked up things for monetary prizes becomes its own whole genre.

10. Pooka

This one is has actual ambition, artistry and a very creepy monster design, but I don't like movies that tell you two thirds of the way through that it was all a dying dream and didn't really matter. I don't even like Mullholland Drive.

9. Flesh & Blood

This one should probably be lower down since it's not breaking any new ground and you can instantly see where it's going, but I have a special appreciation for it because in my opinion, it handled its plot much better than critically acclaimed Hannibal handled the very similar Abigail Hobbes plotline. Flesh & Blood understands that a girl rebelling against her emotionally incestuous serial killer father figure is her goddamn story, not something to make some other man sad.

8. Pure

Very genuinely creepy! Even creepier knowing it's only barely an exaggeration of actual father-daughter purity pledges! But I actually think it might have worked better without the supernatural angle; all the most disturbing and striking moments were the mundane ones.

7. Crawlers

Am I the only one who likes this movie? It has bad reviews on letterboxd but I thought it was fun! I like the drug-dealing survivalist heroine, I find her narration very entertaining, and I was satisfied with the concluding 'spot the imposter' test with the shapechanging aliens. They could have done more with the pub crawl premise, though (I think the movie Grabbers is supposed to do that better.)

6. School Spirit

As soon as I saw that this was a slasher movie pastiche of The Breakfast Club I was fully on board. (The kids are arguably more sympathetic than their Breakfast Club counterparts!) The villain reveal gets a little silly, but I appreciate the Psycho reference, and the final girl's speech to the killer is absolutely iconic.

5. Pilgrim

The first one I saw, cheesy yet engaging enough to make me want to see all the others! I would watch a whole franchise about either the villain or the final girl. (I also want to mention that I like how Into the Dark's colorblind casting gives us a mixed race family with a black heroine, which adds some unspoken subtext to her conflict with the pilgrims.) I should request this for Yuletide one of these years.

4. New Year New You

This was a very good thriller riding on its very realistic villain; most of us don't personally know a Jason Voorhees, but plenty of us know childhood bullies and all of us know of loathesome influencers. Unfortunately, the realistic characters make the increasingly unrealistic easy kills and resolution harder to accept. Still worth watching. And it's cool that it has an all-female cast!

3. Culture Shock

I probably would have enjoyed this more if I hadn't spoiled myself for the twist, but it was still very good! It's very interesting how it turns from a gritty real-world thriller to a full on Twilight Zone episode. The way classic Americana becomes grotesque reminds me of the Fallout games, which in this case is a compliment. And it actually had something to say, which not enough horror movies do.

2. I'm Just Fucking With You

This one is the best actual horror movie, genuinely disturbing and scary. The line between petty internet trolling and cold-blooded sadism gets blurrier and blurrier. It lets you know that if you actually met the Joker you would fucking hate him.

1. Pooka Lives

This is probably not actually the best movie, but as a former reader of Slenderman blogs it warmed my heart. (You don't have to watch the first Pooka movie, though the tonal shift is artistically interesting.) It's such a funny take on the evolution of creepypasta, plus Rachel Bloom kills Will Wheaton! This is what I want from low-budget horror comedy.

#into the dark #horror movies

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asleepinawell · 3 years

Text

Book Recs

I was gonna do one of these at the end of the year, but I’ve somehow managed to read 26 books this year already (12 novellas, 14 novels), almost all featuring queer authors and/or characters so this is already a long list.

Note: There’s a few on here I was kind of meh about, but in most of those cases it was a ‘book might be good but it’s not for me so i’ll mention it to put it on people’s radar anyway’ type of thing. Insert the usual necessary tumblr disclaimer about all of this being only my opinion and your opinions are valid too etc etc.

In order of when I read them:

Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower by Tamsyn Muir - Fantasy novella from the author of gideon the ninth that’s a twist on the classic princess trapped in a tower waiting for a prince story. Quite fun. (novella)

The Monster of Elendhaven by Jennifer Giesbrecht - Dark fantasy about revenge and magic. m/m couple but like I said it’s pretty dark and twisted all around so definitely not a happy queer romantic story. My opinion was interesting premise that could have been executed better and probably should have been a full novel to embellish on the world building potential. (novella)

A Memory Called Empire & A Desolation Called Peace - Arkady Martine - Probably tied with murderbot as the best things I read this year. Scifi, f/f couple, wonderfully done exploration of what it means to fall in love with a culture that is destroying your own. More of the many queer anti-imperialist books that have come out recently and certainly some of the best. The second one is a direct continuation of the first. (2 novels)

The Tyrant Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson - This is the third in the Baru Cormorant series (The Masquerade) and was my favorite so far. The second and third book were originally one book that got split I believe and the second book didn’t stand alone as well (though was still great), but the third book really made up for that. Dark fantasy world starring a queer woc whose country and culture is destroyed by the imperial forces of that world colonizing and assimilating them. She vows revenge and decides to work her way up within her enemy’s ranks to enact it from within and bring an empire to ruins. Really really fascinating study of so many different aspects of our own world and the systems which enable and allow bigotry and how bigoted and violent narratives are used to control minorities. This is definitely a darker series and I was particularly impressed with some of the commentary on the racism prevalent in non-intersectional feminism as depicted through a fantasy world. Can’t wait for the last one to come out! (3 novels, 1 forthcoming)

The Murderbot Diaries - Martha Wells - There’s six of them--5 novella and a novel--and the first is All Systems Red. Told from the point of view of a self-aware droid/android that is rented out by a corporation to provide protection in a dystopian capitalist hellhole future that isn’t that unlike our current capitalist dystopia but is in space. Muderbot hacked the chip that controlled it and instead of going rogue just wants to be left alone to watch its favorite tv shows. Murderbot is painfully relatable and the books are both funny and poignant. Highly recommended. (5 novellas and a novel).

Winter’s Orbit - Everina Maxwell - This was a m/m romance novel with a scifi backdrop of royal intrigue. Generally I’m more into scifi with a queer relationship in the background than vice versa, so it wasn’t my favorite, BUT I think it was still well written and someone looking for more of the romance angle would enjoy it. Has all your favorite romance tropes in it, especially the yearning. (novel)

The Divine Cities - Robert Jackson Bennett - Three book series. I’m very conflicted about this one. Set in a fantasy world where an enslaved nation overthrew the country enslaving them and now rules over them. It’s a story of what happens after the triumphant victory and within that it’s also a murder mystery tied into the dying magic of the conquered nation. It also has a six foot something naked oily viking man fist fight a cthulhu in a frozen river. The second book was by far my favorite, mostly due to the main character being brilliant. My conflict comes from the fact I don’t feel like the story treated its women and queer characters well. Like it had really great characters but it didn’t do great by them overall. That and the third book didn’t live up to the first two. But still definitely worth a read, can’t stress enough how cool some of the world building was. (3 novels)

Into the Drowning Deep - Mira Grant - This might be the only one on here I disliked. It’s got a doomed boat voyage and creepy underwater terror and monsters and a super diverse cast of characters, but I just didn’t enjoy the writing style. While having a diverse cast is great, there were a lot of moments where it felt like characters were pausing to explain things about themselves that felt like a tumblr post rather than a normal conversation you might have while actively being hunted by monsters. I also bounced off all the characters. But a lot of people seem to have liked it so if you’re into horror and want a book with a f/f main couple then maybe you’ll enjoy it. (novel)

Dead Djinn Universe - P. Djèlí Clark - Around the early 1900′s, a man in Egypt discovers a way to access another world and bring Djinn and mysterious clockwork beings called Angels through. As a result, Egypt tells the British to get fucked and Cairo becomes one of the most powerful cities in the world. So Egypt, magic, djinn, a steampunk-ish vibe, oh and the main character is a butch queer woman who enjoys wearing dapper suits and looking fabulous while she investigates supernatural events. Her girlfriend is also mysterious and badass. And she has a cat. There’s three novella (one of which technically might be considered a short story) and then the first novel. You should absolutely read the novellas first (A Dead Djinn in Cairo, The Angel of Khan el-Khalili, The Haunting of Tram Car 015). Super fun and imaginative series. (3 novellas and a novel, more forthcoming)

River of Teeth & Taste of Marrow - Sarah Gailey - From the book description

“In the early 20th Century, the United States government concocted a plan to import hippopotamuses into the marshlands of Louisiana to be bred and slaughtered as an alternative meat source. This is true. Other true things about hippos: they are savage, they are fast, and their jaws can snap a man in two. This was a terrible plan.”

Queer hippo riders!!!! Very much a western but with hippos. Main couple included a non-binary character. Loved the first one. The second one I was more meh about due to one of the characters I was supposed to like having obnoxious man pain that a woman had to take the brunt of the whole time. Also there were less hippos. But queer hippo riders! Definitely read the first one, and they’re both novellas so no reason not to read the second as well. (2 novellas)

A Psalm for the Wild-Built - Becky Chambers - I may be the only person who hasn’t read the long way to a small angry planet at this point, but I did grab her new novella and I loved it. It made me want to go sit out in the woods and feel peaceful. The world it’s set in feels like a peaceful post-apocalypse...or diverted apocalypse maybe. Humans built robots and robots gained sentience, but instead of rebelling they just up and left and went into the wilderness with a promise that the humans wouldn’t follow them.The remaining human society reshaped itself into something new and peaceful. It’s the story of a monk who leaves their habitual monking duties to go be a tea monk and then later wanders into the wilderness and becomes the first human in ages to meet a robot. Very sad there’s no fan art yet. (novella, more forthcoming)

The March North - Graydon Saunders - This was such a weird book that I’m not sure how to explain it. The prose style is hard to get used to and I suspect a lot of people will bounce off it in the first chapter. There’s no third person pronouns used at all and important events get mentioned once in passing and if you blink you’ll miss them. Set on a world where magic is extremely common to the point that rivers sometimes run with blood or fire and the local weeds are something out of a horror movie and most of the world is run by powerful sorcerer dictators, one country banded together (with the help of a few powerful sorcerers who were tired of all the bullshit) to form a free country where powerful sorcerers wouldn’t rule and the small magics of every day folks could be combined to work together. The story revolves around a Captain of the military force on the border who one day has three very powerful sorcerers sent to them by the main government with the hint that just maybe there’s about to be a big invasion (there is) with the implication of take these guys and go deal with this. The world building is extremely complex and very cool...when you can actually understand what the fuck is going on. There is also a murder sheep named Eustace who breathes fire and eats just about everything and is a Very Good Boy and belongs to the most terrifying sorcerer in the world who appears as a little old grandma with knitting. It had one of the most epic badass and wonderfully grotesque battles I’ve ever read. But yeah, it is not what I would call easy reading. Opinions may vary wildly. I did also read the second one (A Succession of Bad Days) in the series which was easier to follow and had a lot more details about the world, but overall I was more meh about it despite some cool aspects. The chapters and chapters of the extreme details of building a house that made up half the novel just weren’t my thing. (novels).

The Space Between Worlds - Micaiah Johnson - In this world parallels universes exist and we’ve discovered how to travel between them, but the catch is you can only go to worlds where the ‘you’ there is already dead. This turns into an uncomfortable look at who would be the people most likely to have died on many worlds and how things like class and race would fit into that and what we would actually use this ability for (if you guessed stealing resources and the stock market you’d be correct). The main character is a queer woc who travels between worlds with the assistance of her handler (another queer woc) who she has the hots for. She accidentally stumbles on a whole lot of mess and conspiracy and gets swept up in that. Really enjoyed it. (novel)

Witchmark - C.L. Polk - Fantasy world reminiscent of Victorian England (I think?) where a young man with magical gifts runs away from his powerful family to avoid being exploited by them. He joins the army and fights in a war and comes home to try and live a quiet life as a doctor, but a murder pulls him into a larger mystery that upturns his life. Also he’s extremely gay and there’s a prevalent m/m romance. This one was a fun-but-not-mind-blowing one for me. (novel, 2 more in the series I haven’t read)

The Priory of the Orange Tree - Samantha Shannon - This was one of those that everyone loved but I couldn’t get into for some reason. I tried twice and only got about halfway through the second time. It’s got dragons and queer ladies and fantasy world and all the things I like, but I wasn’t that invested in the main story (which included the f/f couple) and was more interested in the smaller story about a woman trying to become a dragon rider. There are few things that beat out a lady and her dragon friend story for me and that was the storyline that felt neglected and took a different turn right when we got to the part I’d been waiting for. But, I know a lot of people whose reading opinions I respect who loved it, and if you like epic fantasy with dragons and queens and treachery and pirates and queer characters then I’d say you should definitely give it a try. (novel)

Bonus: I didn’t read these series this year, but if you haven’t read them yet, you should.

Imperial Radch (Ancillary Justice) - Ann Leckie - Spaceship AI stuck in a human body out for revenge for their former captain, but that summary does not come close to doing it justice. Another one examining imperialism and also gender and race.(3 novels)

Kushiel's Legacy Series - Jacqueline Carey - This is two series, six books total, and starts with Kushiel's Dart. Alternate universe Renaissance-y Europe in a fantastical world where sex isn't shameful and sex workers are respected and prized. Lots of political intrigue and mystery. A lot of BDSM and kinky stuff too (the main character is a sexual masochist, oh and also bi!). I first read this series when I was fifteen or sixteen and it definitely made a big impression on me. Same author also wrote the Santa Olivia series which I’d also recommend. (6 novels)

The Locked Tomb (Gideon the Ninth) - Tamsyn Muir - I mean, if you follow me, you know. If you don’t follow me you still probably know. I’d have felt remiss to have left them off though. Lesbian Necormancers in Space. Memes! Skeletons! Biceps! Go read them. (2 novels, 2 forthcoming, 1 short story)

Books On My To Read List:

Fireheart Tiger - Aliette de Bodard

The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water - Zen Cho

Black Sun - Rebecca Roanhorse

This Is How You Lose the TIme War - Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Ninefox Gambit - Yoon Ha Lee

Also, if anyone has any recs for scifi/fantasy books starring queer men (not necessarily having to do with a queer relationship) and written by queer men I’d love them. There’s a lot written by women, and some of them are great, but I’d love to read a story about queer men from their own perspective.

#book recs #books #mp

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skullsandwineglasses · 3 years

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My Girlfriend is an Alien Review

I don’t normally review modern romance dramas because first of all, I’m more or a xianxia/wuxia/historical drama kind of person so I don’t watch too many modern dramas in the first place, and second, when I do watch modern dramas, I choose the simple, fluffy kind, so there’s not much to critically review anyway. I mainly watch them between dramas to cleanse my palate.

But I finished MGFIAA yesterday and I have thoughts, mostly good ones.

1. First Impressions

I was really skeptical about this drama at first. It’s a rich guy CEO/poor girl drama, and I normally hate that trope. The last CEO dramas I watched were Boss and Me and My Sunshine 6 years ago, but that was because I wanted to watch Zhao Liying and Tang Yan respectively.

But, after reading comments on reddit about how people thought MGFIAA was Wan Peng’s best comedic work so far, I decided to take a leap of faith and gave this drama a shot. I went into the drama mostly blind and had no expectations. I had just finished You Are My Hero and My Little Happiness, both dramas in which the FL and ML have different careers (which is a dynamic I really like), so I wanted to watch something completely different that would prevent me from comparing it to these last 2 dramas.

The drama starts of kinda meh. The FL uses her alien powers to save the ML from a car crash. The ML is a stereotypical alpha male CEO. Nothing too surprising or enticing yet. But the scene that sealed the deal for me was when the FL starts stealing and trying on clothes while window shopping at the mall. Wan Peng was just gorgeous and glowing in that scene. And then the next scene that confirmed it for me was when the FL freezes time, but the ML is unaffected by it and he sees her for the first time but is unsure if he’s hallucinating or not. After that scene, I decided to stick with the drama to see what all the hype was about.

2. Simple, sweet, no-non-sense plot

There’s only one plot line in the drama, which is the romance between the main leads. There are no supporting couples or subplots. All supporting characters are either helping the leads get together, or are plotting against the leads, so everything directly relates back to them. I really like this because it makes the story more focused on just one storyline and one couple.

This is different from most dramas where it’s common to have a subplot with a supporting couple. My Little Happiness had a supporting couple whose plot line was completely separate from the main leads, while You Are My Hero had two supporting couples, which dragged out the drama.

I suppose this is because Wan Peng and Hsu Thassapak were not that popular at the time, so the plot could be more focused on them to promote them. On the other hand, when you have a drama where the leads are already popular, the production team will try to leverage that popularity to bring attention to lesser-known up-and-coming actors in the supporting roles. I remember how Yang Zi and Deng Lun had less and less screen time towards the end of Ashes of Love, and Tang Yan and Luo Jin also didn’t have much screen time in The Way We Were, and Yang Mi used Eternal Love to help promote the actors under her agency, like Dilireba (although Yang Mi managed to keep the drama mostly focused on her storyline).

3. Comedy

Despite being a sitcom comedy, this drama didn’t make me laugh out loud like some scenes in my Little Happiness and You Are My Hero did, but there were a lot of scenes where I couldn’t help but grin like an idiot because of some of the adorably awkward antics the FL and ML did. They also mock the CEO romance genre in some scenes by exaggerating the trope, which was amusing (but still cringey) to watch, but I guess that was the point.

However, I will admit that there were some outright cringey scenes that were hard to watch. A recurring plot point was the the FL’s fascination with the male body and pheromones. So sometimes, she can’t help herself and reaches out to touch the ML’s abs. This plot point works because she’s an alien who’s curious and doesn’t know better, but the second hand embarrassment you still feel is strong nevertheless. I think physical clinginess just makes me really uncomfortable in general.

The kiss scenes were very PG, probably because Hsu Thassapak is married with kids, but there are a lot of innuendos in the dialogue and physical comedy.

4. Acting

Wan Peng is effortlessly adorable and bubbly, and the voice acting really helps sell that as well. (The voice actress, Qiao Shi Yu, who dubs her is the same one who usually dubs Zhao Liying and who also dubbed Yuan bingyan in Love and Redemption. I think the voice actress is often used for cutesy characters. Wan Peng has a much lower voice, which I already guessed when I saw pictures of her. She gives off a vibes of someone who would have a low voice).

Hsu Thassapak has a chiseled face that looks too sculpted, and so I was skeptical about whether he would be able to emote, but he actually carried the emotional scenes quite well. Again, the voice acting also really helped. Hsu Thassapak has a higher voice than his voice actor, who I think also dubbed Luo Jin in Princess Weiyoung.

Wang You Jun was great at playing the ML’s younger brother and love rival. I was surprised to learn that he’s actually younger than Wan Peng because his acting felt mature (even though he’s character isn’t).

5. Story Originality

I can’t make an assessment of how original the story is because they do rely on a lot of predictable tropes, but I can say that it was well-executed. It’s not easy to insert fantasy elements into a modern drama and make it believable, but I was on board with the ridiculous premise. Not only is the FL an alien, but the ML has a type of amnesia where he forgets all the women he meets whenever it rains. And yet, I was hooked and invested against my better judgement.

6. Overall Impression

8/10. The drama is exactly what is says it is, so I can’t really complain. The plot progresses logically, even if there are some frustrating moments, but you can understand why the characters made the choices they made. It will take you some time at first to get used to the outlandish premise, but after the first 2 episodes, you’ll be rooting for the FL.

The FL’s character is also reminiscent of xianxia dramas where the FL has no idea what romantic love is (e.g., Love and Redemption, Love and Destiny), and slowly learns how to love. I’m apparently a sucker for that trope, so it was actually quite easy for me to fall for this drama, despite being initially skeptical about it.

#my girlfriend is an alien #外星女生柴小七 #cdrama #wan peng #hsu thassapak #万鹏 #cdrama review #romance

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textpost-ronpa · 3 years

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May I ask for your opinion on the DR series? sorry to bother you i do that a lot hehe

Not sure if you mean DR in general or like specific things about the series, so I'll just talk about the games (while trying to keep things as spoiler-free as possible)

DR1: First got into the series when I was 14 because I saw a clip of the first trial's execution (yes the first chapter was spoiled for me but it was on me) and thought the premise was kinda cool. I was absolutely mindblown the entire time I played after the first chapter.

SDR2: The ending felt meh to me the first time I saw it, but I did like the rest of the game. Since I was still thinking abut pursuing a career in the health care industry when I first played, I also connected so much with Mikan that it was almost kinda sad.

DRAE: I sucked ass when it came to the gameplay, but I still enjoyed the story since it gave me a much better appreciation for Toko.

DR3: I really liked Future Arc since it had more of a VLR-esque feel to it (especially w/ the bracelets), which is interesting since ZE is another Spike Chunsoft series. Also the Future Arc OP freaking slaps. Despair Arc was fine, no real specific feelings towards it.

DRV3: I like the DRV3 cast the most. I also love the fact that this installment somewhat deviated from the usual hope/despair motif to focus a bit more on truth/lies. Also, I bawled my eyes out at the end of Chapter 4 bc HE DESERVED BETTER

And now some other misc thoughts:

- This may seem weird coming from someone who goes by Mod Tsumiki, but I'm kinda neutral towards Junko. Like, I don't hate her, but she's not one of my faves either.

- Kaimaki is my biggest DR OTP, with Tsumioda as a close second

- The games' English voiceovers are great for the most part, but I can't quite say the same about the anime dubs (I can't take DR3's dub seriously at all)

- I'm surprised by how the series is suddenly skyrocketing in terms of popularity in 2020. Like apparently even Game Grumps is playing the first game now.

- While I'm a big fan of DR, I probably would've loved Distrust/Beta-Danganronpa; as a bit of a horror fan, the gritty atmosphere and elements of trust/distrust would've appealed to me.

- DR is also what introduced me to Zero Escape, another series that I love.

I might do a character tier list but idk yet

#admin post #mod tsumiki #anonymous

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guardianreadersofthegalaxy · 3 years

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The twelve most underrated stories of modern Doctor Who

Where I defend the episodes that dared to have ropey plots and poor production design... also more Mark Gatiss than I expected

Sleep No More: If you watch it with your Cinema Sins-plot hole hat on, there’s plenty to nit-pick. But thanks to the found footage gimmick, this does at least have a unique tone that evokes sci-fi horror and video games. And I’ll take a fumbled gimmick over unimaginative monotony any day.

Robot Of Sherwood: The golden arrow solution is ridiculous but with this much swashbuckling, who cares? It’s not like people seem to hate it, but it doesn’t get enough credit for how fun it is. Tom Riley is the best Robin Hood since… err, Kevin Costner?

Daleks In Manhattan/ Evolution Of The Daleks: This checks all the boxes for a decent historical/Dalek story: social commentary, the Daleks doing something other than just invading, even a frigging dance number! And director James Strong takes things the extra mile in part 2 with some brilliantly creative shots

Tooth & Claw Ok so it’s not that deep, but this is a romp AND a thriller – a ‘thromp’ if you will. The CGI’s bad but the music makes up for it, plus the deaths are super violent, which I liked as a 13 year old, and still do now.

Boom Town: FFS get over the Slitheen! Ok, the start and end are meh but the middle section is amazing: Nine and Blon have a tense ethical debate while Mickey and Rose have relatable relationship drama.

Love & Monsters: Why do people fixate on cheap production design so much? Zorbs is only in it for 5 minutes! It’s easy to forget how ground-breaking a Doctor-lite episode was back in 2006. This blew my 13 year old mind.

The Lie Of The Land: It borrows heavily from the series 3 finale, but if you’re gonna steal, steal from the best. As we continue to live in separate bubble realities and people show a McCarthyist devotion to the status quo, this only gets more relevant. The execution’s just a bit off.

Aliens Of London/ World War Three: people think that the problem with this is the farting and the bad CGI. It’s not, it’s all the time spent watching the news on council estates. Part 2’s exciting and the Iraq allegory is solid, even if the “massive weapons of destruction” line is a bit on the nose.

Night Terrors: Sod the Weepy Angles and the Edgy Child, 6 foot dolls slowly stalking you through a giant dolls house is as scary as the show gets for me. The story’s ok too. I dunno, maybe the council estate just reminds me of the Davies era.

Victory Of The Daleks: Why do people act like one bad design choice ruins an episode? I think if Moffat hadn’t caved to the fans, we’d have gotten used to the new Dalek design. Otherwise, this episode is spectacularly average.

Hell Bent: It’s the Gallifrey stuff that really makes me cringe. Clara’s resurrection – bad as it fundamentally is – once you’ve accepted it, plays out in a sweet way. The writing sucks but everyone else does their best to sell a bad premise. There are more redeeming features than people give it credit for.

Orphan 55: This isn’t the worst episode of the show ever, it’s the third worst (behind Name Of The Doctor and Kill The Moon). The whole Chibnall era is shot and scored like a dark, shaky-cam survival horror film. At least here, the content matches that tone. Hurray for a lack of tonal dissonance.

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beneaththetangles · 3 years

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Review: The Stranger by the Shore (Movie)

Good Morning, Good Evening, Good Afternoon! Josh here! You know, I’ve been an anime fan for a little over 20 years now, and over the course of those 20+ years, I’ve watched shows or movies where I’ve said to myself, “I really don’t think I’m the target demographic for this one.” When I heard the premise of The Stranger by the Shore, I originally thought, “Meh, this just looks like one for specific fans of this genre. Probably not for me.” But this past Sunday, I saw Twitter go crazy over this movie, heaping prodigious praise for this rather short film, so I figured “Meh, why not? I need to watch something to wash the tastes of Girlfriend, Girlfriend out of my mouth” and checked it out.

Three viewings later, and I can honestly say that I was, in fact, exactly in the target audience for this one. Why? Because it’s about love. And after watching the farce of Girlfriend, Girlfriend, I kinda needed to be reminded what pure, genuine love looks like, and how this particular kind of love has many challenges both internal and external.

So what makes this movie so good? Let’s get into it. I’m Josh, the Cajun Samurai, and this is my review of The Stranger by the Shore...and interestingly enough, this is my very first review of an LGBTQ+ anime!

Okay guys, time to be a bit serious here. I know, it’s weird coming from me, but don’t worry, it won’t last long. I am duty-bound to let you guys know that this movie is rated “TV-14” on Funimation’s website, and honestly, were I in charge of the rating scale, I would probably rate it a little more mature as it does feature talk about sex and features characters engaging in intimacy. While nothing is seen, much is implied. If you decide to watch this film, but are put off by this sort of thing, it starts at 47:00, and ends at 49:30 if you’re streaming on Funimation’s website. Okay, end of disclaimer. Let’s get into it.

The Stranger By The Shore is based off a manga series by Kanna Kii. It begins with Shun, a writer living in Hokkaido with his aunt after running away from home. Why would he run away? Simple. Shun is gay and would not enter into an arranged marriage with his childhood friend. His parents were naturally upset over this revelation (How dare you not marry the bride we picked out for you?! And how dare you have other preferences for who you love?!) and so Shun hot-footed out of there to his aunt’s house to work on his book.

One night, Shun sees a young man making like Otis Redding and sitting on the dock of the bay watching the tide roll away. Shun’s aunt explains that the boy, named Mio, is now an orphan after having recently lost his mother (his father died earlier). Shun decides that he wants to try and befriend the boy, but Mio is having none of it, misinterpreting Shun’s advances as pity over the loss of his mother. However, this misunderstanding is quickly cleared up and Mio apologizes, saying that he was actually glad and didn’t mind if Shun was trying to flirt with him. After a day of unsuccessful fishing and a delightful dinner of curry, Mio reveals that he’s being sent to an orphanage on the mainland of Japan, and would only be able to communicate with Shun by phone once he arrives. Shun is pretty down about this.

Time passes and Shun’s cousin is moving out to live with her girlfriend, leaving an open spot at the house. Who could possibly fill it? Why, it’s Mio of course. Our boy is now 20 years old and is able to make his own decisions in life, including but not limited to love. Mio is fully ready to start up a relationship with Shun, not caring what society thinks, but Shun, having been on the receiving end of rumors and teasing about his sexuality, tries to get Mio to think twice about his decision, not wanting him to be ostracized as he was. This results in a couple awkward moments where Mio really wants to take their “relationship” to the next level, but Shun dragging his feet, just barely able to say “I love you” to Mio.

Oh, and if that weren’t enough, later on, Shun’s former fiancé, Sakuraku, comes to the village with some news: His father is gravely ill and wants to see his son before he punches his ticket on the Midnight Train to Georgia. Naturally, Shun is not too excited to see the parents who shunned him, nor is he excited to see the woman who he was once engaged to (albeit through an arrangement). Mio meanwhile is showing some signs of jealousy and a little insecurity at this new arrival. Is this new girl going to take Shun away from him? Will Shun actually go back to the girl that he left at the alter? Find out next time on DragonBall Z!

So yeah guys, I really and truly like this one. As I mentioned, I’ve watched it three times so far since it came out. The first time I watched it on my own just to see what all the commotion was about. Then I watched it a second time to take screencaps and offer up Twitter commentary as I typically do, and the third time…well…it was because the movie is just that freaking good.

It’s awesome just viewing a romance play out over time and watching two people deal with their respective issues to find one another. That’s part of what drew me to shows like Toradora, Kare Kano, Yuri on Ice, Wotakoi: Love is Hard for an Otaku, and Horimiya. Watching a romance from the very beginning and see it work itself through to its inevitable conclusion is beautiful, and that’s what you get with this one.

I also love the fact that this just isn’t a typical high school romance story. Yes, I know how ironic that sounds after the last sentence where I praised a bunch of high school based shows, but still… sometimes you just want a story with two mature adults instead of two crazy kids who are probably operating more on hormones than true love…even though there are times when Mio, young lad that he is, REALLY wants to make his relationship with Shun more physical, bless his heart.

Another thing that I really loved about this story are the differences in how Shun and Mio see the world with regard to their sexuality. While Shun sees their relationship through a somewhat wary lens, and doesn’t want Mio to be hurt like he was, Mio is much more of a free spirit, not allowing anyone or anything deny him from what he really wants. Part of me feels like the differences between these two are because of the times they grew up in. Shun is older than Mio, and no doubt grew up in a time where being LGBTQ+ was something to be scorned, mocked and bullied for. Mio, being a more modern and in some ways a more mature young man, understands what he’s in for and yet has no problem with it because he knows he loves Shun and in his mind, that’s all that matters.

One other thing that I find refreshing with this movie is that it doesn’t have any complex or mystical story lines. While I enjoy movies like Weathering With You and Your Name, sometimes those movies can just be too complex for their own good, adding mystical elements to a story that can at times clouds the waters. In fact, there are two moments where the characters seemingly pass out at different times during the movie after highly stressful situations, and I couldn’t help but think, “Okay, here comes the magical mystical stuff…these two are the reincarnation of some long lost, Feudal Era star crossed lovers that are bound by fate by the red string of something-or-other and they have to find the mystical key of the twilight or something…” But to my great surprise, these dorks were just TIRED. No magical journey, no mission they have to accomplish, just…tired. That is surprising. The Stranger by the Shore pretty much makes the characters the standout elements. These guys don’t have mystical powers, there’s no legend they have to figure out in order to save the world, there’s no time travel or dimension portals… it’s just a love story like any other.

Speaking of things that aren’t a big deal… I feel the need to address the elephant in the room. Yes, the intimate scene between Shun and Mio. Honestly… it’s a non-issue, as it should be. It’s two characters that are of age sharing an intimate moment with each other and they just so happen to be two males. It happens in loads of different anime and it’s not a big deal. Honestly, I found the way the moment was executed to be very realistic, gentle and tastefully done. If you avoid BL anime entirely, (and no judgement whatsoever–it’s not for everyone; watch whatever makes you happy) I suggest you check out our recent articles examining yuri and yaoi anime and see if those give you some food for thought, and maybe make you more likely to try out The Stranger by the Shore. Yup, I’m a true southern gentlemen–offering up Food for Thought. You always offer food to your company, thought or otherwise. Now go and get your grub on.

If I could find any faults with this movie, it’s probably that it’s too short and doesn’t give the characters enough developmental time. There’s just so much more I wanted to know about these adorable dorks: What was Shun’s life before the arranged marriage? How did he end up becoming a writer? What was Mio’s father like? How was Mio’s time in the orphanage? At just under an hour including credits, it feels like this movie could’ve explored so much more and expanded this beautiful world it created. This movie does a great job giving us endearing and lovable characters, but not enough time to fall even deeper in love with them.

Also, as a somewhat unrelated complaint, Funimation, please do the streaming anime community a favor. Please, please, PLEASE fix your video player! It’s just a mess! Sometimes the volume bar would be stuck on the screen long after I adjusted it, thereby ruining any screen captures I wanted to get. Also, please add closed captioning to the English dub video. It’s really a drag that the hearing impaired can’t enjoy the writing in the dub like everyone else, and it also sucks when bloggers like myself don’t have the text at the bottom of screen captures for context of a particular scene. You are partially owned by Sony Pictures… you can do better than this! But, I digress…

Speaking of Funimation, this movie was dubbed and released by Funimation Entertainment with director David Wald in the director’s chair. Honestly this was quite a shock to me as I would’ve expected Sentai Filmworks to put out a title like this, as they have never been shy to license and dub anime with LGBTQ+ themes. Yes, Funimation has put out a few here and there, the most famous being Yuri on Ice, but in my eyes, Sentai has always been THAT company to go to for movies and anime series like this. In fact, Hi Dive, Sentai’s streaming service, has an entire section devoted exclusively to LGBTQ+ anime and movies. Funimation? Not so much. But I digress.

Director Wald does an amazing job with this production, getting outstanding performances out of Josh Grelle (Shun) and Justin Briner (Mio). These two are just AMAZING in their roles, and captured these characters perfectly. Just try not to think about that when watching the English dub of Dr. Stone, as these two guys also play the bodyguard brothers Kinro and Ginro respectively. Speaking of Dr. Stone, listen closely and you’ll hear Senku Ishigami (Aaron Dismuke) as one of Shun’s classmates in a flashback.

So where does that leave us? Simple. This movie ranks a prodigious 9/10 for me. A must see. The Stranger by the Shore features a story that’s simple yet beautiful, adorably awkward and engaging characters, and acting that is just top notch in the English dub. The only thing that you may find a problem with is that there isn’t more of it. By the time the ending credits roll, you’ll want more of this one. Trust me.

Yes, I know that the story of two guys starting a romantic relationship might not be in everyone’s wheelhouse and the intimate moments might be something that gives you pause, but honestly, wherever you fall in the sexual identity debate or however you feel about it on a religious level, I can’t stress enough that you owe it to yourself to give this movie a chance. Because, at the end of the day, A has much to say about love and acceptance, things we ALL know a thing or two about and long for—gay, straight or otherwise.

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The Stranger by the Shore can be streamed through Funimation.

#Anime #Anime Reviews #Anime Movies #The Stranger by the Shore #Umiibe no Etranger #Yaoi #LGBTQ #Articles #Author: Josh #Author: The Cajun Samurai

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