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ordinaryschmuck · 1 year

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Alright, last time ever that I’ll talk about Velma. I promise.

Because I’ve been extra salty towards this show all week, and I don’t want to take it further than that. Talking nothing but bad stuff about this show for the entirety of its run is exactly what the writers want. They want us to hate watch it so we can talk about each new atrocity the show brings up week after week, and call us haters or anti-woke propagandists. When, in reality, they don’t give a FUCK about any of that. They don’t care about other races, genders, or sexualities. They just WANT you to think they do. Know how I can tell? Because I’ve SEEN genuine attempts of representation.

THIS is a genuine attempt of representation. Matt Braly, the series creator of Amphibia and a Thai-American, felt like Thai culture was underrepresented in media. So, he not only made his main character and her Thai, but he also dedicated subplots and entire episodes showcasing the culture he wanted to represent.

THIS is a genuine attempt at representation. Dana Terrace, series creator of The Owl House and open Bisexual, wanted a main character that was explicitly bi to finally help kids feel like they’re seen. To help give the representation SHE always wanted.

But when I look at Velma? None of it hits the same.

This isn’t a genuine attempt for representation. This is Mindy Kuling turning a character into a self-insert to make herself look smarter than everyone else and the most important person in a narrative. Truth is, this Velma is nothing more than a sociopath, narcissistic dipshit who thinks she’s better than everyone else but is actually more aggravating than endearing.

So...Good job representing YOURSELF there, Mindy.

And this?

This isn’t representation. This is a shield.

A way to protect the show from any criticism because it couldn’t possibly be bad. They have gay characters! Gay characters are good in everything!

Except that is the LAST reason you should include gay characters! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE more LGBTQA+ representation in media. What I don’t love is obvious attempts to pander to audiences just to avoid criticisms. And keep in mind, this is NOT the first attempt a creator wanted to make Velma gay.

James Gunn wanted to make her gay in the live action movie, but WB said no.

Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated (the GOAT of the Scooby-Doo franchise) wanted to make Velma gay, but could only imply it because Cartoon Network didn’t greenlit Steven Universe yet.

THOSE are genuine attempts to make Velma gay, to represent people because the creators of both products agreed that it was the least they could do.

But making Velma and Daphne a thing just to protect a show is nothing more than shallow and inconsiderate of the hard fight dozens of people put up with for the sake of representation.

And, honestly, I’d be a little more forgiving if the writing in Velma was good. But it’s not.

Within the first minute, this show features...

Cockroaches having sex...

And fifteen year olds taking a shower to make a joke about how over-sexualized a series’ pilot can be.

First of all: FUCK YOU FOR MAKING ME FIND THIS SCREEN SHOT FOR A POINT!

Second: You lose every ounce of credibility that you actually care about people when one of the first moves you make in your series is to sexualize minors for the sake of a joke.

A joke that doesn’t make sense at that. Point me to a series pilot that’s over-sexualized. If you get more than ten, I’ll say you have a point. I won’t say that sexualizing minors to make it was a good thing, but I’ll at least say that, “Yeah. You’re right. So many pilots do this. SO STOP DOING IT!”

That’s the level of writing Velma has. And it’s why they have their “representation” to protect themselves. Meanwhile, you want to know the level of writing you’ll find in The Owl House and Amphibia?

Villains who prove that the most dangerous people are the ones who make the rules.

Jokes that are actually funny.

Likable main protagonists who are kind and caring to the people around them.

Protagonists who have heartfelt relationships with other great characters, to the point that it breaks your heart to see them leave each other.

And on top of that, actually good representation. But here’s the thing: The representation isn’t only genuine. It’s a bonus. Something great to add onto everything else the writers and the creators do right.

What it isn’t is an attempt to protect a show from what it does wrong.

And that’s it. That’s the LAST time I’ll ever talk about Velma. I really mean it this time.

Talking about this show past it’s premier is already more attention it deserves. And if you were smart, you would not only stop watching, but stop talking. The best attention to give something you hate is NO attention.

If you really want to waste time, waste it by watching something good, like The Owl House and Amphibia. They may be kids shows, but they have more maturity than a single second of Velma.

#velma series #velma series salt #the owl house #amphibia #luz noceda #anne boonchuy #cw: naked minors #cw: velma

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blingblong55 · 10 months

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Tall Child- 141

Based on a request:

Currently thinking of feral R/n (my specialty, the shredded wall saga) then sort of started to sort of reflect on my childhood and got sad :( Could I request like a feral R/n origin story (if we can call it that lmao) of like R/n always being told to grow up even from being young? And never really being able to do child things, and then they joined the military which is dehumanising in its own right, so then when they go to the 141 and end up stabbing a wall or desk of something repetitively and gets caught, they’re expecting to be marched to Price’s office to be reprimanded, but instead whoever found R/n is just like “come on kid, let’s get you something to do that isn’t property damage,” and they go and get like a little archeology set or go dig holes outside together? And that’s how R/n ended up being feral it’s just because they’re finally allowed to be a kid again. This is such a long-winded ask I’m so sorry 💀🫧

A/N: R/N is like Penelope Garcia from Criminal Minds in my opinion...kinda

GN!Reader, some angst (don't think so...but just in case), fluff

Long ago, r/n was a child who never got to enjoy the word. Never grew up being covered in dirt, laughing over silly little things, destroying stuff and enjoying it, and living life as any normal child would. You see, long ago, the r/n we know of today never grew up with such memories. Always forced to be an adult in the mind of a curious and innocent child. The days when r/n would want to run through a pile of leaves during autumn, blow bubbles and try to burst as many as possible, never to be lived just be dreamed. Never did they get the chance to live a life most adults now long for.

Life, what a funny word.

Back then, you wanted a castle, tea parties, jump-through puddles, plastic dinosaurs on the floor, and race car toys to be used as a child would. Now that you are an adult, that life is more than a faint memory. Instead of watching cartoons in your pyjamas, at times, you wake up in a trench, snipe in and some dead comrades or enemies in your area, a dead field is your new show. What would you ever tell your younger self if that 6-year-old r/n would be standing there, looking up at you with tears in their eyes because mum and dad said no more cartoons?

For a while now, your team Task Force 141 have noticed how things in their part of the base have been 'damaged' no clue how walls, floors, or doors are being damaged. Until one night when Captain Price walks into the common room. There you stood, giggling at some wall you were making holes to. Ahhh, his very own little monster, having fun as a child would.

He knows you, knows how you are and as a soldier himself, he understands why you are this way, how bubbly you are, just like a child. His whole team was like this behind closed doors, especially you. As you giggled and made jokes to yourself, he stood there, arms crossed over his chest and a small smile on him. He doesn't have any children to spoil or watch grow, he only has you and Soap, the youngest in the task force. His very own children, maybe not by blood or adoption but being in his team makes him a father to both of you.

He never admits your little actions bring him a sense of happiness and the fact that he has accidentally talked to Laswell about you, showing pictures and sharing stories as a father would. She makes fun of him for it, "The man who didn't have time for wives or kids, having two tall children by his side, what a sight, John." she chuckles.

He taps your shoulder, "Grim, what're you doing?" Always the father younger you felt safe with. "Nothin'" you, like a child about to get scolded say. A small smile on you, trying to convince him you were still his innocent kid.

He sighs, how could ever be mad at you. Never could he stay mad, those puppy eyes looking up at him.

"...Sorry...?" you softly spoke, he chuckles and offers a hand. "C'mon, let's get out of here before Ghost gets us both scolded." You get up, his hand at your back, guiding you out. "you know, that is considered damage to government property, lucky for you...I'll get you some stuff to avoid any charges" he winks and guides you to his office. For a good hour or two, you two searched the internet, looking at things that maybe he could order for a grown soldier and said soldier use without looking weird.

He found a large sandbox that could be used as a kids' archaeology box kit. His excuse if anyone asked what Soap and you were doing would be "assigned on a mission where they have to dig some things up, it's a two-person mission, classified." What a great lie he'd give Ghost.

At times, when he'd "help you two train" he would sit on a lawn chair, rest against the fabric and chuckle when either of you found a "dinosaur" bone. There was a moment when he was so entertained he joined the two of you. For hours as Soap and you giggled, Price took the job seriously, dusting off sand, a smile on him, "I found it!" the missing bone to the dino Soap and you called 'stuffin'.

From a scope, Ghost and Gaz watched you three 'train' telling jokes and taking pictures. "Old man desperately needed that." Ghost comments. "Bet they go for ice cream after this," Gaz adds.

"Yeah." a sad sigh from both of the men followed along.

"Want to join them?" they said at the same time.

Price ended up buying a bigger sandbox because this time, his whole team would be digging up some stuff on a mission. His children, you being the favourite and Soap competing for that title win.

A tall child crying as they sat in their bed, looking back at the old photos of a 6-year-old. Now they can look back and think, 'Maybe I was raised to be an adult because I'd find a family who would let me be that child who is now let out of the shadows.' This is the life you earned after suffering for years, watching people die, and losing so much. Now that life you dreamed of, is there.

Life, what a mystical word.

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weirdmarioenemies · 7 months

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Name: Spider

Debut: Cut the Rope

Hee hee. As much as I love seeing attention to anatomical accuracy in stuff, it is even more delightful to see a creature so abstracted, yet so instantly recognizable! This spider is such a classic Cartoon Spider. A spindly little fuzzy ball with big ol' eyes. It even has only six legs! And yet it's so distinctly spider, while lacking all the most iconic spider aspects! Do you think it's recognizable no matter what, or is it something learned? If someone never witnessed this type of stylized spider in any media, would they recognize it as a spider at all? I don't know, and I'm not planning to raise a baby and shield their eyes from funny cartoon spiders to find out. Do that on your own time! If you're a monster.

I've always adored the way these spiders are animated! By default, they sit on the peg, legs hidden, looking even less like a spider than usual. Just some lint you should probably wipe off. But with big ol' eyes! The Lint That Looks®

Then, the moment a candy is attached to its peg by a rope, the spider springs into action! Up it goes, legs straight up! A good indicator that you should be aware of what it's about to do, and it is also just cute as the dickens, especially with the tilt of its head. It's always just felt so Right to me, like the exact thing that a spider that looks like this should do!

Finally, this actually starts to feel like a spider! Don't you see? It's been spidery this whole time. It's been lying in wait, always alert, for the moment a morsel ends up in its trap. That's so spider! And now that the candy's rope is attached to its peg, the spider crawls along it, again, very spiderly, with the leg joints on display. Will it catch its inanimate prey...?

No, it shall not! It is an Enemy to the player, and if it gets the candy, you must try again. But don't feel bad for Spider! I believe this is the best result for it. These spiders have been living in boxes for who knows how long, waiting to capture insects who will never enter them. They've become so desperate they try to catch hard candy, which a spider could not eat! By Cutting The Rope and sending the spider falling, it is given a wake-up call, a chance to leave the box and live the life it was meant to. It can be free!

I also combed through a compilation video to ensure that Spider does, indeed, appear in Cut The Rope Mass Produced Promotional Cartoon For Babies. Here it is unimpressed by a grape! It later goes on to be involved in compulsory spider heterosexuality with a Spider With A Bow. Goodbye!

#spider #cut the rope #not mario #funky friday #mod chikako

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melonteee · 3 months

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When opla was announced I was guarded, but trailers and learning that Oda would have first and last word about everything made me hopeful.

But I knew that live action are never for the actual die hard fans.

Too much need to be cut because of time, as real actors cant look like they only age two years for 26 years, and some cartoon stuff doesnt translate well to live action *cough* garps fist of love *cough*

So I was able to convince my friend to watch opla with me.

She had read the manga when she was little, up to syrup village, so she was excited to see Kuro because she actually liked him back when she read it.

I was mostly there just to observe my friends reaction to it instead.

My favorite moment was watching her freak out after the "grandpa?" reveal.

I dont like that Garp was included that early on, I didnt mind him being there at rogers execution. But more than that seemed too much. I watched some Netflix guy explaining that they wanted to add a reason why the strawhat had to keep moving from island to island, but no marine would do because who would bother chasing a pirate crew with no bounty. I understand that reasoning. Still dont like it, but I understand.

But my friends reaction made it all better.

Did you know netflix wanted a romance between Nami and Zoro? Thank god Oda was there to stop it.

Also my friend and I quote "Oregano is for savages!" a lot now.

I'm truly glad you liked it anon and I do understand the excitement that came with it, but I honestly could not stand it. Nearly every scene and every line was like "Sanji wouldn't say that. Nami wouldn't do that. Why is this happening? Luffy definitely wouldn't say that."

An adaptation must adapt to its medium, true, but that is not what this did. This was an insanely loose reinterpretation that took so much charm away for me. I've talked about it on this Tumblr tons now but I've finally had the time to watch through all of it now that the hype's died down, and it just made me angrier per episode?

They had to shorten things down, but they included so many new scenes that added nothing? They had to explain the Strawhats going from island to island... WHY? They literally had a spine to go off, the original property had them going from island to island to find a crew and get to the grand line. That's literally a very solid reason. WHY did they need any marines chasing them? It just sounded like an excuse to add a fan favourite character so the Garp fans could scream about it.

And I've said this many times, but Oda being part of the process genuinely means nothing to me. Netflix infamously do not listen to their creators, and not only did they admit Oda HATED the Garp addition and they STILL added him, you can tell so much of his original vision was thrown aside for non-anime fan audience convenience. Usopp and Sanji felt like side characters for god's sake, Buggy felt comically evil for a LIVE ACTION, Mihawk's fight was literally so empty due to the fact no one was THERE? NAMI was the one who yelled she believes in Zoro and they'll always be friends??

I truly do not believe Oda would agree to most of that, and considering we know he was ignored for Garp, we know for sure he was definitely ignored for many other things.

As always, if you loved it, great! I'm glad the excitement was met. Maybe I'm cynical, maybe it's not to my tastes, but it screams Netflix cash cow to me and the whole time I watched it I thought "This is not One Piece at all."

As a reinterpretation? Great!

As an adaptation? It failed miserably. None of the characters felt like themselves and the additional scenes were so nothing. Sorry for the sour reply anon but for those on here who know, I indeed have a sore spot for that entire production.

I honestly think a lot of people got blinded by the pretty actors and the millions of dollars that went into production and promotion to really look at it for what it was trying to be.

#ask #melonask #oplatalks

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thewiz9062 · 23 days

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Smiling Critters AU: Dogday's Psyche

NOTE: THIS IS NOT RELATED TO CANON IN THE SLIGHTEST. An accurate description of this au is that I took every playtime.co poster art and promotional material from the game and lit up the rest of canon in a bonfire. Meaning that EVERY character is part of one big cartoon. Thats it. No bigger bodies project, no child souls, no experiments, just a depiction of a cartoon. PLEASE do not ask me to do anything suggestive with anyone.

OK I know it's been a while since I posted one of these but bear with me here this one was interesting to write

So dogday

In my other posts, I've already made him a constant in everyone's lives (as he's the main character) but I want to go into how he thinks because that explains alot of his actions and most importantly, his interactions with catnap.

Tldr, dogday is elation (que demoic giggling if you get the reference)

Now usually when you see a happy go lucky character you immediately go "they've either had the happiest childhood ever and are genuinely like this or they didn't and they're faking it" and that was gonna be my original assessment with dogday. But yk.....that's bland. So i decided to mix the two: pretty bad childhood but they're happy....unhealthily so. Hear me out here:

In my au, dogday was abandoned as a baby at a foster home. So they "raised him" (they just did just over the bare minimum, I don't wanna villianize the workers though because they did have like a bunch of other kids there as well, not excusing them of course) but he was mostly left to his own devices. Normally this would dampen a child's spirit but dogday is quite a fighter, finding joy or happiness wherever he could. Whether it be picture books or TV shows, he found a way to make himself happy. And All the media he knew subtly shunned sadness or anger or anything of the sort. So now all dogday knew was happiness, as anything else was 'bad' and needed to be fixed.

The people around him didn't help his mindset either. After interacting with the other kids there, they usually had some semblance of an uplift in mood for the rest of their day. It usually didn't last long, though, because while dogday lived there their entire life, the others were there due to...unfortunate circumstances. He also could notice how the workers felt like he was a breath of fresh air compared to the other children, who mostly needed consoling, while dogday was 'self-sufficient' (they try I swear they're just not good at it)

So all in all, after 13 years of this dogday... was in a very unique state of mind. If you want a simple explanation, then he has this mental limiter. Anything happy or can bring joy can stay, and any other thoughts get snuffed out immediately. So he's not faking happiness. In a way, he just doesn't know anything else. Present him a situation where someone is sad his first instinct is to cheer them up, and usually it works, but in the situation it doesn't, he'll pretty much blue-screen. Cuz after all, it's always worked before, what else does he know?

So enter catnap.

Catnap is essentially his foil, and his main purpose is to help him see the other side of things because sun and moon dynamic yk I had to do it

Someone like catnap won't be cheered up normally, catnaps sort of nihilistic when it comes to problems, believing nothing can be done about it, cause in his situation he had no control over what happened, so why try and fix what he can't, that's meaningless. So letting his emotions pass by and move on is his way of 'comfort' So dogday's attempts at cheering him up doesn't work, and as Dogday does in those situations, he blue-screens. Normally when dogday fails to cheer someone up and he visibly panics, they'll give him a smile or a laugh, and seeing that instantly fills dogday with relief, even though he doesn't see that it doesn't reach their eyes.

Catnap won't do that however, because of his own coping mechanism. So dogday will panic, quietly spiraling into thoughts like "why isn't it working, what do I do, how do I fix this" and catnap reads his face and tells him to stop, he just needs a moment. Dogday wouldn't understand, he's never seen sadness be good for someone.

And from there his learning journey begins (aka how to feel other things)

God I love making them mentally unstable

#poppy playtime #smiling critters #smiling critters poppy playtime #dogday #catnap #alternate universe #angst #sorta?#btw the refrence was hsr

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verdantmeadows · 7 months

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I've been meaning to post this for a bit, but, in the (live action) TV shows I often see in the background that my mom watches (shows like hospital shows, drama shows), the amount of interracial couples, even if the characters are very racially/ethnically diverse, is incredibly small. Not only that, but black characters usually end up with black characters, latine ones with latine ones, white ones with white ones, Asian ones with Asian ones....and honestly not much consideration for people who might not fit into those categories, but, if they are in the show, almost always with each other. If there is an interracial couple, it is usually of people with similar skin tones. Seeing a dark-skinned character with a light-skinned character is very rare. And this makes me so, so sad. Normalization of interracial couples has so far to go. As a kid, I truly thought it wasn't something most people cared about. But as I've grown older, I've learned that most families do care, whether on a small or large level, if their child is in an interracial relationship. Much of many societies do. Within any group or community of any race/ethnicity, it is almost always generally frowned upon or completely acceptable to make jokes about those or directly to those in interracial relationships.

In my experience with ("Western") cartoons, interracial couples are far more common, although still not as common as I think they should or could be. But I am very happy about every year they get more prominent. I do not usually watch live action TV shows, so I don't have as much experience with them, but I think it's often common for cartoons to be more recognizably diverse in their characters, ranging from things like sexuality, gender identity, disability, race/ethnicity, and more (although this still is far from where it should and could be).

That's just a really long amount of text to preface a relationship that means a lot to me that has come about recently, and is canon. In Fionna and Cake, we see a gay M/M couple, which is incredibly rare in cartoons (and if it does occur, usually only happens between gay dads, for meaningless background characters, or is immediately sidelined—I can only think of one gay M/M couple in "Western" cartoons that isn't the first two and is then immediately sidelined). Gay men (as in all MLM) are incredibly underrepresented in cartoons (and in general). All forms of queer people are, but gay men are noticeably represented less in comparison to other queer people, especially in cartoons.

Not only are they a gay M/M couple, they are also an interracial couple and one with a very visible difference with their skin tones. Marshall Lee is inarguably a black person, and Gary is presumably a white person. And their relationship is so, so cute and healing. They are truly loving towards each other. They are supportive. They are incredibly relevant to the plot, not sidelined, and are given their time to shine. We get to see a visible, gay male, interracial couple. One of them is even likely bisexual, and the other commonly and easily relatable to autistic people. They are an on-screen couple. They are relevant. This is the first time the part of me that's MLM has actually felt and been represented in a cartoon that didn't make me feel belittled or frustrated. I'm so, so happy from this.

I have seen very few people talk about how genuinely revolutionary this relationship is for the representation of queer men and queer men of color as well as for interracial and interracial queer relationships. In fact, I've seen many QUEER people be frustrated or upset by it, feeling as if it takes away from other queer people and queer relationships in the particular show/series, which is disheartening.

However, rather than focus on the negatives (although I think it's important to examine why those might come about), I want to focus on the positives. This is genuinely such an amazing push in representation on so many levels that we have. And I am so, so happy about it. I can't even express it in words. I hope that there are other people out there who realize just how big of a deal their relationship was. I am genuinely astounded by it. I don't have much more to say, so I'll just end this post with an image of them.

#book of kells #fionna and cake #gumlee #garylee #marshall lee abadeer #marshall lee #gary prince #lgbt #lgbtqia #lgbtq community #interracial love #lgbtq #queer representation #poc representation #<- dont like the phrasing of that but that's what the popular tag is :/#gay men #gay representation #mlm representation #mlm

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sirfrogsworth · 6 months

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Review of Blue Eye Samurai on Netflix

There are some spoiler-ish things below, but I think most of it is in the trailer, so I don't think I will ruin anything. I'll warn you during the most spoilery section, though the show makes the "twist" pretty obvious from the beginning.

Premise

Blue Eye Samurai is a Kill Bill-style revenge tale that takes place in 17th century Japan. The samurai is half white/half Japanese. The show states that no white folks were allowed in the country back then, so the samurai tries to conceal blue eyes with some sweet BluBlocker™ orange glasses. The Samurai is displeased to have white heritage and decides to try and kill all the "white devils" hiding in Japan.

Will some reactionaries complain there is a show all about someone trying to murder white people? I have no idea. But they're all bad white people, so I'm hoping it won't become a thing.

My Hot Takes

A few episodes meandered a bit, but I enjoyed the series as a whole quite a bit. If nothing else, the sword fights were epic and bloody. I would have watched it for that alone. And there is some gorgeous art direction where they really take advantage of the 2D styled, 3D animation. Plus, Japan is just really pretty. There is also a puppet show that was brilliantly mixed in with the story and the way they animated it was next level awesome.

They fell into cliche a few times. I think they were trying to do homages and tributes but ended up in Derivative Land and some of them felt a bit cringe.

They used "Battle Without Honor Or Humanity" which is that rousing instrumental song from Kill Bill and it was way too on the nose. Like, yes, this show is obviously a 1600s version of Kill Bill, but you're not supposed to make it that obvious.

Also, there was a Metallica song that equally made me roll my eyes and think, "That is badass" so I give them a pass on that one.

And there were a few sections where it felt like you were watching someone else play a video game. I don't know how else to describe it. As if the narrative melted away and suddenly a bunch of Prince of Persia obstacles appeared.

That said, the story was enjoyable, the actors were great, the characters were interesting, the animation was solid, and the fight choreography was top notch.

The nice thing about animation is you don't have to do any jump cuts during the action, so you get to really *see* the fights develop. Thankfully they didn't make use of a lot of impossible-in-real-life camera moves, so it all felt very grounded. As if these fights could actually be filmed in live-action. I suspect they may have even used motion capture or closely adhered to reference footage. Most of the non-fantastical choreography felt like something a stunt performer could actually do. They even had some legit Japanese samurai-style sword fighting moves before it got to the "John Wick with a katana" part of the show.

Back in the day, samurai duels were more akin to jousting than fencing and usually only lasted one or two moves. It can be pretty exciting as long as you build tension and anticipation. But if every sword fight in the show was like that, it would probably get boring. But it was still nice to see it toward the beginning.

So the quality was a bit roller coaster-y at times, but I think it was a solid first season. And I am really hopeful they get a chance to smooth things out in a second. But it is Netflix, soooooo...

As far as content warnings, there is a lot of blood and sex and nudity. Women are very subjegated and some of those depictions are rough. There are some brutal torture scenes. And I think there is implied rape, but it isn't made super clear.

The nudity was surprisingly balanced which felt refreshing. So get ready for boobies and floppy cartoon peens. All the genitals get screen time.

Quick aside about erotic scenes...

There has been recent discourse about nudity and sexy time in media. My biggest issue has always been that men's bodies are rarely shown aside from the patoot. It is never balanced and I always felt uncomfortable with that arrangement. I know movies are a bit stuck because the MPAA has decided dicks in a sexual context are an automatic NC-17. But even in newer HBO-type content where they do show penises, they are usually prosthetics. Hyper real fake dicks on top of real dicks that probably cost tens of thousands of dollars to develop and apply.

Like, the folks with boobs don't get expensive prosthetics. Only the most famous actresses can opt for a body double. For years, if an actress wasn't willing to get naked they would just say, "Well, I guess we'll just have to find another actress."

And now if a guy doesn't want to get naked, apparently the response is, "Don't worry, we'll raise Stan Winston from the dead so he can make you a perfect megadick."

Women are usually asked to do the brunt of the nudity and I have long felt that wasn't fair and it was exploitative whether intentional or not.

I just think if you are going to ask actors to be vulnerable, everyone should do it or no one should do it.

I also think we need to see more normal non-porn genitals. Like, you can't brag about your progressive all-inclusive nudity if you slap a giant fake wang on every time.

/end tangent

And now, the spoilery part...

The big twist, which is really only a big twist for a character in the show and not the audience, is that the Blue Eye Samurai was born a girl. To avoid capture and death they essentially hid in a different gender identity. And I'm trying to decide if this is a trans story or not.

Sometimes it felt like the show was bluntly saying, "She's a girl. See, she has boobs and no penis. And we make a big deal about her getting caught naked. It's like Mulan!"

But then the show kinda/sorta implies that while identifying as a man was a tactic at first, the Blue Eye Samurai came to feel much more comfortable as a man most of the time and only revealed their feminine attributes to a select few. They also had a binding scene which felt like intentional trans imagery.

Since there wasn't the same concept of trans-ness in 1600s Japan as we understand it in modern times, I'm having trouble determining if this is just an homage to Mulan that wasn't thought very deeply about, or if this is allegory exploring a trans identity.

It is unclear if the identity was chosen purely out of necessity or if there was more to it.

Was it like... they tried on a coat because it was cold, but then they really liked how it fit and made it an essential part of their wardrobe?

Or was it just pure pragmatism? If they don't wear the coat they will die from exposure.

I'm worried they wanted to stay close to that line where they could say it wasn't a trans story if that ended up being more convenient. I don't know. I'm fine with allegory and I really enjoyed how they did it with Nimona, but this felt more deliberately ambiguous and it frustrated me a bit. It would be nice if we could just have blatant trans stories that didn't need to hide in ambiguity to avoid controversy. But maybe there were more obvious things I missed and my confusion is unwarranted.

I also think an argument could be made for ol' Blue Eye being genderfluid. Actually genderfluid would make a lot of sense. Their masculine side is the stoic warrior and their feminine side is their vulnerability, love, and humanity—reserved only for those most trusted. And when the two blend and they are a warrior woman they get super horny. So the entire spectrum is there.

I'm sure there will be a long complicated video essay analyzing this gender dynamic.

/end of spoilery section

In any case, I think if you liked Kill Bill, this might be a show that interests you. It has much less cultural appropriation and blatant stereotyping. No Pussy Wagon, but there is a cool horse. And they did use an all East Asian voice cast, so that representation was cool. And the co-showrunner was Japanese, and I think that influence definitely made a difference.

I give Blue Eye Samurai 7.5 Froggies out of 10.

#long post #blue eye samurai spoilers

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kirasgirl · 7 months

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TIME LOVE| jujutsu Kaisen x reader

Part 1| Part 2 | Part 3

He observed how the wind subtly beat against his soft face, his ears sharpened when he heard the thousands of voices around him and the flowers of the shade softer than the clouds that fell to the ground and were crushed by hasty steps on that long and almost infinite street, crowded with people.

People who, from that girl's point of view, were so innocent, and this in a way made her confused. Knowing that those same innocent people lived their lives foolishly, as if the end could not come in days, months or even years. People who didn't care if there were monsters or not, people who just went to work and would live their lives without worry.

She thought it was incredible until, in her eyes, living a life like that of these innocent people would be good, not worrying if she had a curse at her disposal.

She laughed at her flying thought that lasted only a few seconds, but took her a sincere laugh.

Paying attention to how an unknown young man in front of him seemed to have dropped his ice cream on his blouse. Looking angry while uttering angry words to which the girl could hear perfectly, even though she was far from the person.

He seemed to go to work, the ice cream in his suit staining the clean tissue was what annoyed him, for sure.

It was good to see things like that on a daily basis.

It's funny.

She sighed, this time, feeling a severe headache.

Again.

She was confused and a little irritated because of the headache she would have recently felt a few days ago. It was almost unbearable, having already taken medicines and even gone to some of the medicinal sorcerers to seek some answer to it. But as always, it was just tired for them.

She scratched her head lightly, sighing painfully.

"Aaaah, Digimon's latest magazine was sold!!!"

The young girl was scared again, her eyes heading towards the melancholic voice that screamed dramatically as she walked to the female figure.

The figure of the tall and well-structured boy walking to her, a pout on her lips, seeming upset to have missed the release of the new chapter of her favorite cartoon, Digimon.

His white threads falling awkwardly on his forehead while his eyes were protected by sunglasses, his hands inside the dark coat of the Jujutsu school where he studied.

She sighed briefly, knowing that she threw her time away by waiting so awkwardly for the boy that it only took her a long time to look for a certain fight to take the last magazine left, which shows that he had not succeeded.

"And you made me wait so long in this sun..." the girl hissed, a little angry, knowing that the clothes they both wore were warm, since they were in the summer of Tokyo.

Just dreaming of the end of this summer, that no matter how much the foliage and nature became even more beautiful, she couldn't stand the heat it made. Especially for spending most of his day in this warm uniform, but essential for the missions to which they were assigned.

Like now.

It wasn't a mission against curses or demons. Maybe that would be better.

But their mission was to spend the rest of the day with Gojo since they would have to stay around downtown Tokyo for any help that was needed, but the truth was that they were just forged, running away from the heavy activities that the master had assigned to the duo.

"It was necessary, but how humble I am, I brought you mochimochi!" He said victorious, as if his action were the most spectacular of all centuries.

Delivering the small box of mochimochi, which she happily picked up, thanking the existing gods for the boy in sunglasses for being kind at that moment when she was so sensitive because of the heat and pain.

A smile from ear to ear before opening the box.

"Uh... Just two?!" She screamed, an angry wave in her voice while rubbing the box in Gojo's face, who scratched the back of her neck, knowing that she had eaten most of the mochimochi but leaving only two for the girl to satisfy her hunger.

He laughed nervously, seeing the girl's fury watching him, he almost thought it was adorable, seeing that she was shorter than the same.

"Thank you for at least I remembered you!" He responded by pouting and rolling his eyes.

"It doesn't even kill my hunger, Satoru!"

She slapped her, which for her was simple but a sharp pain came in the back of the neck of the light-haired boy, feeling the burning in the place where he had been slaughtered.

Murmuring lamentations about how cruel the girl was to him most of the time, being almost dramatic as always.

The young woman rolled her eyes, totally ignoring Gojo's lamentations, picking up the small mobile device that touched noisy in her pocket.

Watching the screen of his cell phone shine with the family name on the screen before pressing the green button that showed that he had answered the call.

"Where are you?" The voice on the other side of the line asked, the voice almost calm.

The girl looked behind herself, watching the child in an older body than Gojo was pouting while looking at her, still lamenting something.

"I'm taking care of a curse," she said, giving a last disgusted look at Gojo, who was making fun. "And when I say curse, I'm talking about Satoru."

She can gently hear a laugh on the other side of the line, knowing well that if he were here with her and Gojo, he would certainly be laughing in the same way, already knowing the boy's relationship with Gojo, who was almost always in a fight for something stupid.

"Go back to school, we will have a meeting with the master and we will have some special guests." Geto said, making the young woman raise an eyebrow, confused since it was rare for them to receive visitors to the Jujutsu school.

"Special guests? What?" She admitted her doubt, hoping that Geto knew.

But the boy just shrugged on the other side of the line, certainly not knowing how to answer it.

"I don't know, they didn't explain it well, but don't take too long. It must be something special to have guests."

She ended the call, ensuring that they wouldn't take long.

Keeping her cell phone in her pocket, she turned again to Gojo, who now seemed to take pictures of the sky on her cell phone, like a child who just got the cell phone.

"Let's go back to school!" She yelled at the boy.

"Hhhmm noo , just wait a little" Gojo replied, still keeping his attention on his cell phone, ignoring the girl.

"Satoru. Now." She said, an order in her voice.

The white-haired man rolled his eyes, keeping his cell phone in his pocket.

As always grumbling while obeying what the girl said.

Almost like a puppy.

タイム

Japan, Tóquio

16:36

Jujutsu highschool

The hours seemed to pass slowly, the place illuminated by the huge windows of the room showing that it was late, the birds singing on summer day happily while the trio seemed to melt with fatigue.

The slow minutes that passed while the three waited patiently for the master who had summoned them both to a meeting.

"I can't take it anymore-" Satoru was interrupted by the door being opened abruptly, typical of the master who came in with three more people behind him.

The girl's bright eyes widened, quickly arranging her posture that was maladjusted seconds before when she saw who was entering behind the master.

Stuffing your chest in a proper posture, a proud smile on your soft and pink lips.

The old-looking lord behind the master was followed by two men in suits, as security guards. The empty look of the old man not looking at any of the students who seemed to hold their breath at every step the old man took, realizing the aurea so heavy and strong that he emanated.

The master coughed, drawing the attention of the three students, who were briefly frightened before paying close attention to what the sorcerer would say.

"We received a visit from the Nagaō clan" began the older sorcerer. "And as you already know, Master Nagaō is part of the main council of the ancient clans to which he is in the care of Mr. Tengen."

O trio que estava na sala se curvou levemente, em respeito ao velho antigo que ainda mantinha seu olhar frio sobre os adolescentes.

"He would like to personally summon the three best special grade Jujutsu sorcerers, hoping to count on your collaboration and disposition." The master said, waving briefly to the old man who took a step forward.

As old as he was, his structure looked good for his age, his height and size showing that he was in shape, despite his age so old.

He sighed deeply, eyes attentive to each one.

Especially the girl who held her breath in approval.

"As sorcerers of special levels, you were handpicked by me to be in the care of young Rico Amanai." He started.

"Rico Amanai? Who will that be?" Gojo, in turn, intruded, receiving a look of judgment from the slightly younger master, reprimanding him mentally for having stuck himself in the speech of old Nagaō.

"Rico Amanai is the carrier of the exclusive plasma for immortality, Mr. Tengen, the perfect receptacle for Tengen sama." Nagaō explained, his hands keeping behind him, the kimono perfectly adjusted with his posture.

"And why do we have to take care of the girl?" The young woman asked, a feature of doubt on her beautiful face.

"Criminal groups are after the same target as us, seeking to disrupt Mr.Tengen host, without removing that the young woman will be the target of many curses. And because I will be very well known to the school, we chose you to take care of this service."

The trio nodded, still not understanding why such a sudden meeting was so sudden, since it was something they both did not find so dangerous.

Not knowing what could happen.

The master said goodbye to his students, accompanying the Old sorcerer out of the room he gladly accompanied.

The young woman carefully observed every step of the former sorcerer. A look of admiration in your eyes.

"I can't take so much work..."

"Stop being soft, Satoru!"

She ignored the ignorant conversation of the other two boys who were in the same room.

Walking outside, hoping that the old sorcerer was still in the corridors.

And the gods heard his appeals, smiling mentally when they saw the sorcerer on his back, making his way through the long corridor of the school.

"Mr. Nagaō!" She called him, making him turn around.

A look in doubt and almost irritated, waving to his security guards to move on that he would soon go. To which it was done by the other two tall men who accompanied him.

He waited, with an eyebrow raised as the girl approached.

"You didn't tell us the degree of the mission." She said, hoping that her doubt would be removed since it was not expected that a mission that seemed so simple would be summoned by the Nagaō clan to invite.

"Special degree." He responded immediately.

Taking the young woman by surprise who felt surprised, but waved briefly, I understand her doubt now.

"Now, don't do that anymore." He rebuked her, her firm voice so that he scared the young woman. Lowering her head, feeling ashamed to have a so informal attitude feiticism with a respected sorcerer.

"Uh, right." she replied timidly, her head is still down.

The old man didn't say anything, his kimono swinging as he turned around to go his way. The young woman listened carefully to the sound of her cautious footsteps in that empty corridor.

Before they stop.

A low sigh.

"Be careful and control yourself, (name)." He just said it.

Not expecting an answer even when making your way to the corridor ahead.

The girl's shiny eyes widening smoothly.

His chest squeezing by the small affectionate and respectful interaction that was so rare to have such a bond with the sorcerer.

She would not understand why since her childhood the word control was always in the voices of those who addressed her, as a warning to the young girl who still seemed innocent, but in a way did what was asked.

And as much as he was a strict gentleman, he still cared about his family.

She was your family.

And she can't feel more confident.

Knowing that he would do whatever it took to be the pride of his grandfather.

#jjk toji #jujutsu satoru #jujustsu kaisen x reader #gojo x reader #gojou satoru x reader #getou suguru x reader #jujutsu megumi #sukuna #jujutsu sorcerer #jujutsu kaisen toji #jujutsu nanami #gojo saturo #geto suguru #gojo satoru #gojo smut #jjk smut

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reallyhardy · 5 months

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Loren, have you started watching Scott Pilgrim Takes Off!? I'm on episode 5 rn, interested in your thoughts if you have started watching

YES hello!

i thought it was brilliant! i loved the subversion of expectation (i mean i WOULD deffo have been happy to sit there any just watch The Story I Know yet again, but it was SO exciting when i realised they were doing something different.) i love love LOVED the animation, all the action sequences looked so fantastic, and... i loved the addition of the sparks ✨ i thought it was SO so cute. SPOILERSSSS below:

i thought will forte playing older/even older scott was a fantastic choice (channelling phil tandy miller from the last man on earth for sure)

i also adored the scene with kim and knives bonding through music, and all of knives becoming part of the band... the whole thing with todd and wallace was absolutely nuts...

i thought it was nice expanding on all the exes stories and having ramona go in and make up with (most of) them. the story with roxie was particularly good and had me tearing up! and i was absolutely sobbing by the end of the series haha although i think a lot of it had to do with the nostalgic angle for me and how much i'd loved the movie as a teen hahaha and then having the story come back for a third time in my life in a way that felt kinder and more redemptive was really something.

at first i was sad they didn't get into things like steven being gay but then i realised... ofc with it ending in a similar place 'let's try this' but also really it actually ended chronologically not long after the original story starts... it had me realise oh actually there's still so much possiblity for these characters and their lives. they could still have a lot of those adventures and discoveries that happen in the later comics even if we don't see them, it ends on the hopeful note that lets you know they're all going to try, even in the face of knowing that it Could All Go Wrong as shown by older scott & ramona's story, that there is always hope and they may as well give it a shot. BUT i also thought that part with Ultimate Ramona saying "i'm probably going to struggle with this later, so let me tell you this now, i love you" IDKKK i know to that-timeline scott that's early af but to ultimate ramona it's a real present thing since she's got all of that knowledge and history inside her. ANYWAY MADE ME EMOTIONAL also loved the visual reference to the kiss from the end of ponyo :')

.............ramona RE-BLEACHING and dyeing her hair THAT much was absolutely insane though 🤣 i've seen ppl say 'WITH A DEVELOPER BASE!?' too although I PERSONALLY believe she was maybe. mixing with conditioner. that's the only thing i could think of that would make it even remotely acceptable to bleach it that much (but also its a cartoon so ofc not realistic haha)

also i THOROUGHLY enjoyed the nicholas angel & danny butterman cameos 🤣 i was like wait why are these two security guards english.....? oh wait. oh okay. i see.

#edgar wasn't even director LMAO but somehow pegg and frost were still squeaked in there #i also thought calling the director 'edgar wrong' was so funny #loren talks #scott pilgrim takes off #ANYWAY it's made me want to go re-watch the movie and then re-read the comics and then #re-watch the series again haha #also hi es if ur seeing this im making slow progress on sketching for u #may still be a while but the ideas ARE flowing

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bogslob · 2 months

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I think zukos character development is kinda missing in the live action. In the original he does bad things and hurts people, here they let other people do his part. Just to make him more likeable? Just like taking sokkas sexism away, it's not a bad thing as long as he grows out of it.

Hi, this is so exciting, my very first one of these question thingys.

Okay so I kinda agree with you. I do feel like Zukos anger has been kinda watered down, but he still does bad things and I honestly dont feel like his character changed that much . For example in the cartoon his attack on Aang set Kyoshi on fire and it didnt in the live action and I don’t feel like this has any repercussions on his character because I never felt like it was intentional to set the fire it was just a by product of Zuko trying to capture Aang, and I feel like if it had happened in the live action Zuko would have reacted the same way. I think Zuko never wanted to hurt people, but capturing the avatar was so important to him that if people got hurt on the way so be it, capturing Aang was worth it, but I don’t think in either version he would have hurt people if he could have avoided it.

I think thats what makes Zukos character development possible, he never wanted to cause any harm. I think it’s important that we see that what ever is going on with Zuko he truly cares about people. I think one of the key moments that shows this is when in “the storm” (cartoon) Zuko momentarily gives up on capturing Aang and prioritises his crews safety. I think another key moment was when Zuko attempted to save Zhao from koi-Aang, it seemed so poignant that even when he was the bad guy he would try and save his enemy.

I think it’s his desperation thats missing in the live action. The absolute drive to capture Aang and regain his honour. I think the reason he was willing to put other people in danger is because he valued capturing Aang over all else, at the end of the day, it was Zuko who was in the most danger every time, he was always the one to fight Aang head on. I think this is best evidenced when he swims through the seal holes to enter the northern water tribe. I just don’t feel like live action Zukos heart is truly in it in the same way. I think this is so important for Ozais and Zukos relationship, and without Zuko having this same desperation it seems less plausible that he would re join the fire nation at the end of season 2. We have already seen that the live action Zuko has fought Ozai at the agni kai, which makes me feel like he is allready further on his journey towards rebellion. Although to be fair his lack of desperation may be in part due to the fact that live action Ozai seems to have a slightly better relationship with Zuko, almost seeming proud of him for finding the avatar (although we also have no idea how he acted when he was around Zuko), but he does still burn Zukos face off so I think this is unlikely.

At the end of the day, I think both Zukos loyalty is to the fire nation, but I think in season 1 cartoon Zukos loyalty is to Ozai and live action Zukos loyalty is to his people.

But obviously this is all subjective and from the point of view of someone who has watched the cartoon many times and therefore my opinion is heavily influenced by this. I also feel like live action Zuko may be better than he really was in my brain because honestly he was the only character I liked. I am very curious how someone new to the series would view live action Zuko though.

#that was a very long winded way of saying I agree but also dont #i definitely need to watch both series’s again #and compare the differences #i havent seen the cartoon in years #and to be honest I didn’t pay that much attention to the live action #what are the seal things called i cant remember #nahvatar the last airbender #atla live action #atla netflix #atla #natla spoilers #natla #netflix avatar the last airbender #avatar the last airbender live action #avatar live action #avatar #Zuko

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tuktukpodfics · 8 months

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Hi! I'm thinking about making a podfic of one of my favorite fics and I wanted to ask for a couple of tips because I adore your podfics and I have run into a couple problems very early on.

how do you do deeper voices? my voice is fairly high (I'm a soprano that can occasionally deep down into lower alto) and most of the voices in the fic are male. I also always sound about twelve in recordings lol

how do you make distinct voices? again, I have a lot of different voices (probably 5-7 that talk the most, with many many other reoccurring characters).

pacing of reading. I tend to speak/read very quick and in my practice recordings, it sounds like I'm talking much faster than I felt I was. any tips on that?

what recording programs are best? currently I'm using voice memos on my phone. which. is clearly not going to give me the best sound, regardless of the app I use, but I don't have many options.

I am living in a dorm right now and live in fear of my suite mates hearing me (my roommate not quite as much as she likes to dub and does a lot in our room--though she does it in mandarin so I cant understand it). not to mention background noise of doors opening and whatnot. if you have any tips on that as well, that would be great!

I love your podfic, you put so much soul into them, and I hope that I could do that too!

Hello fellow podfic-er! I’m so excited for you to make a podfic!

The nice thing about podfics is that I usually don’t have to create characters from scratch, they already exist in the TV show. If I’m struggling with a character, I just rewatch some clips of them talking and imitate it!

Deep voices: I, too, have a high, childish voice and struggle with deep, Manly Men. I guess the main tip I have is to...give up. What I mean is focus less on pitch and more on tone. If you speak too low, it’ll be less expressive and will probably hurt your throat. It can work for minor, 2D characters, but don’t do it for main characters that have a wide range of emotions (you may notice that my Mighty Oaks Fire Sage Zuko voice swings higher when he’s emotional oops). Instead, use your normal pitch, and make a character sound adult by using an authoritative tone. Another thing I do is play up the childish and feminine voices. We might not be able to make the adults sound adult, but we can make the kids sound extra kiddish by comparison.

Distinct voices: I’m a tactile learner, so for me, it’s all about the physicality. Every time I do Azula’s voice, I make a pinched face like I’m eating a lemon. When I record Ozai, I sneer. For Sokka, I jut out my chin and flail my arms. It looks silly, but no one is around to see. There’s lots of YouTube tutorials about how to make different voices by varying speed and tone and nasal quality, but I get kinda lost in the sauce with those theory lessons. The only way I can really get myself to do different voices is if I’m working off of a reference. I just watch videos of other cartoons and live actors and then copy them.

Pacing: Pacing is hard. I especially struggle with the editing and often end up cutting things wonkily. Audiobooks tend to be slow because you’re less likely to get tongue tied that way. If I have a big hunk of text that I find myself racing through, I slow myself down with physicality again. I’ll lean in on important words or mime out the actions. For example, on the line, “Zuko turns, grabs the bar at the side of the ship, and throws himself back over,” I'll turn my body on the word “turn,” grab an imaginary bar on the word “grab” and then lurch forward on the word “throw.” Adding in movement can bring variation to those big blocks of text.

What recording programs are best: I don’t know! I use Audacity because it’s free. Adobe Audition is great too, but it’s expensive. I am very lazy with the podfics. I don’t have a professional set-up. Basically, I make a comfortable nest of pillows in bed or my closet, use an iPhone VoiceMemos app to record straight into the phone mic, send the audio file to my computer, convert the audio to a WAV file, put it in Audacity, add a Noise Reduction effect, and then cut it down. Once I’m done editing it, I export the Audacity file as an mp3, upload it to archive.org and Spotify, and then embed those links into Ao3. Feel free to DM me if you have other tech questions. I am not particularly savvy, but we can Google it together? If any voice actors on Tumblr have professional advice, please chime in.

Silence and privacy: Background noise is a big headache for me too. I live in a noisy area with lots of planes and a squeaky elevator. I usually record now in my closet surrounded by pillows and blankets, so it’s fairly soundproof. If there’s a noise, I usually wait for the sound to stop, record the line again, then edit out the mistake in post. At the end of the day, though, sounds will slip in. It’s just a podfic; we’re doing this for fun not professionally, so it doesn’t need to be polished. I think most listeners’ attitudes is that something is better than nothing. If you’re in a school dorm, there might be music practice rooms, a radio recording booth, or empty classrooms you can use instead.

Storage: Something I didn’t realize going in was how much storage the audio clips take up. Make sure you save and delete projects as you go. One time I finished editing an Audacity project, but it wouldn’t let me save it because I ran out of storage and I had to start over.

I’m so glad you like the podfics I’ve done and that it could help inspire you to make one too! I started making podfics because I fell in love with @pixieinthesky’s fantastic Salvage podfic (it's an absolute gem). Keep the chain going!

Have fun!

#podfic #how to podfic

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they-call-me-haiku · 9 months

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one thing that i love about infinity train is how REAL the characters are, despite being in a fantasy setting, and the narrative of how experiences shape individuals. the way they speak and act are so realistic, their choices are understandable and their arcs are so well-written. all of the characters have glaring flaws they need to work on, but it's also clear that these flaws are the results of some kind of trauma or the way they were treated.

tulip was disillusioned with the world, angry and distant. and this is a direct reaction to her parents' divorce and her inability to cope with it. which is sympathetic, of course, it's a hard thing to go through as a child. the show also reveals that tulip blames herself for her parents' divorce, which can hit close to home for many people.

lake was similarly angry and defiant, even outright hostile in certain situations. again, this comes as a response to the way she was treated in the train, the way she was never granted her freedom and individuality, and how she was trapped in a role she didn't want to play. it's no wonder that many queer people identify so much with lake, because the rules of the train mirrors real life.

jesse has people-pleasing tendencies that reach the point where it actually hurts people. we've all seen protagonists who are people pleasers or eager to appear likeable to people, but usually it only hurts themselves. jesse's case is the prime example of "a friend to all is a friend to none". you can't please everyone, there are people you should oppose or ignore. otherwise, you end up hurting people who actually matters in your life.

simon and grace are straight-up villains, or anti-villains at the very best. grace is manipulative and cunning, playing on people's feelings and insecurities to serve herself. simon is controlling and somewhat egotistic, refusing to change his mindset, regardless of what happens. again, both these characters are shown to have reasons for why they became what they are, even if it doesn't justify their actions. grace grew up in an environment where she was neglected and felt lonely, and found out that her only sure way of making any sort of connection is to manipulate people. simon is implied to have dealt with someone's death before he got on the train, since he seems to have an idea of what funerals are like. that, paired with samantha the cat accidentally leaving him behind in a crucial and dangerous situation, he develops some very intense abandonment issues. again, both these issues can be very relatable to a lot of people, even if we aren't as bad as either of these characters.

min-gi was shown to be insecure and uncertain, but at the same time, arrogant and condescending. the pressure he recieved from his parents has fueled his gifted child syndrome while simultaneously making him depressed and burned out. ryan is probably the closest we have to a "conventional main character", hyperactive and quirky. but he is also not exactly perfect in all other aspects, as he wants to push things forward and refuses to give min-gi some time to think and make a decision. as a child who grew up with lots of other siblings, ryan struggles to prove himself to his family, since they don't seem to pay him much attention. both these scenarios are especially relatable to asians, but of course, anyone who may have trouble pleasing their parents and living up to expectations.

i just gave a character analysis of each protagonist, but my point is that while other cartoon protagonists tend to lean more on the heroic side, the characters in this show doesn't. in most other animated shows i've watched, the flaws a protagonist is allowed to have are either "heroic" flaws such as being too forgiving or being self-sacrificing, or shallow flaws such as clumsiness or being kind of an idiot.

but not in infinity train. the protagonists in this show aren't heroes, they are normal people. they don't have a magical destiny, they don't have to fight for the good of the world, they aren't the "chosen ones". their ultimate goal is to get out of the train (or in simon and grace's case, to be superior to everyone else, to "win").

so it really feels good when one of the characters does choose to do something nice. when tulip chooses to empathize with and help amelia, when lake bonds with alan dracula and jesse. when grace chooses to change for the better and face the consequences of her actions. when ryan chooses to stay with min-go despite getting a door, and when min-gi does the same later on.

i watched this show about a year ago, and it's still one of the best animated shows i've watched. it's so uncomfortably real sometimes, you stop and go "am i like that?" when a character does something wrong, you know that the show addresses it and their actions have consequences. the show doesn't hand out redemption arcs to everyone or sweep things under the rug like some shows *cough* steven universe and she-ra *cough*

there's a reason why a lot of people seem to relate more to villains than heroes, because villains are allowed to be flawed while also being sympathetic. infinity train managed to create a cast of protagonists who are exactly like that. they are more than heroes, they are people.

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13eyond13 · 1 month

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For book ask game, no. 13, 14, 18, 25, 26. Thx :D

Ooh thanks for sending me more book asks!

13. Name a book with a really bad movie/tv adaptation:

Watchmen (2009) by Zack Snyder was a pretty mediocre adaptation of the graphic novel by Alan Moore, from what I remember of both of them (haven't revisited either of them in a long time, but distinctly remember having this opinion back when I first read it... like oh ok, so THIS is what it's actually supposed to be like).

I feel like as a director Zack Snyder is very good at creating epic movie trailer moments or music videos with stylish visuals (this trailer for it looked pretty exciting to me at the time it was new):

youtube

BUT then once you go to the theater and try to sit through one of his movies they usually just end up being just the most soulless drawn-out superficial and boring stuff, like watching a 3 hour long commercial. From what I remember a lot of the creative and innovative storytelling and the depth in the original Watchmen comic comes entirely from how it is presented to the reader on the page, too (with stuff like the layout of the panels and the stories-within-stories "Black Freighter" chapters that were cut out of the film entirely that cleverly parallel the present-day action, etc). Definitely recommend reading the graphic novel over watching this movie!

14. Name a book where the movie/tv adaptation is better than the original: Requiem for a Dream (2000) was a better experience as a crazy edgy depressing movie than it was as a novel by Hubert Selby Jr. to me:

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I first saw this movie without having any idea what to expect when I was about 16, and even though it's pretty shocking in parts and upsetting to watch I remember really loving it back then and thinking of it as one of my favourite films at the time (I think I had a higher tolerance for certain kinds of edgelord stuff in my stories back in those days sometimes too, haha). This movie has always felt bit like a comic or a live action horror cartoon to me somehow? I think that it kinda goes too far a bit and nearly verges on comedy instead of tragedy at the end due to just how absurd and nightmarish it gets, but perhaps that almost unbelievable heightenedness of it all is kind of why it often feels a bit like a comic or a cartoon to me, too. And I still think there's quite a bit here to enjoy even despite the edginess as well. I think the acting is often very good, the soundtrack and the sound effects and the stylish visuals are great, and that the whole thing effectively creates a lot of very strong emotions like tension and dread and tenderness and wistfulness and loneliness and horror. It's maybe the only Darren Aronofsky film I actually like?

HOWEVER whenever I read the book that it was based on a few years ago I could barely get past the stylistic choices of the writer to enjoy what was being said (he wrote it in the 70s in sort of a dated stream-of-consciousness type writing style without many paragraph breaks or any quotation marks for separating the dialogue or the inner monologue from the prose, which I just found really annoying and off-putting to read). And the part about the book I liked the best, which was the colourful and extremely memorable dialogue and the slang that the characters use, was taken almost verbatim from the book and brought to life well on the screen too, so the whole time I was reading it I was just wanting to hear it said by the movie characters again instead. idk, I think it's a movie I'd definitely watch again sometime, but not a book I'd ever read again. Just more entertaining and less of a slog that way.

18. Which character from a book is the most like you?

Oh, very good question! Hmm... there are certain characters I relate to a lot for various reasons, but i don't know if anybody would say I'm extremely like them, probably? Of the books I've read more recently I feel like I'm sort of a bit of a Frodo character or something, maybe... his personality and his peaceful lifestyle before he gets sent on his adventure just feel very much like how I'd probably be living and socializing with everybody in the Shire myself, and the way he handles stuff like the burden of the ring on him and his reasons for doing things and how he worries about his friends who insist on sticking by his side and acts sort of secretive and more reserved feels relatable to me as well.

25. If you could be a character from a book for just one day who would you be and why? (Bonus: any specific day in the story?)

I want to be Wilbur the pig from Charlotte's Web getting a buttermilk bath and then eating the trough full of leftovers he gets (as a kid I remember thinking the lengthy descriptions of all the table scraps he was eating sounded really good for some reason, and the buttermilk bath sounded delicious to me as well lol).

26. If you could be a character from a book for their entire life who would you be and why?

I think it'd be pretty fun to be Lestat from the Vampire Chronicles because from what I remember he never feels guilty or angsty about much for too long, and he just knows how to have a good time no matter what. Even when he gets super bored or super depressed and then goes catatonic for a while he always eventually manages to bounce back and find something or someone new and interesting to get enthusiastic about and involved with again. He experiences things deeply and in an open-minded way while still never getting too burnt out by it or jaded about it either. If ever I were cursed to become immortal then I think his is the kind of personality that would make it the most enjoyable, anyway.

[bookish asks]

#ask #anon #books #movies #p

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ofpineapplesanddawns · 4 months

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"we didn't mean to kiss. it was never supposed to happen."

Arthur and that oughr. Uh. The guy. The robot dad. The cartoon robot dad DT plays in the show you recommended me. (No I don't know how he can kiss without a mouth that's not important) Or did you have a non cartoon policy? I have written this so i cannot go back and look because mobile and there is cat on my lap so i cannot check laptop. If cartoon is nogo as i am now beginning to suspect it is, i mean. Does DT play any live action robots? I forget. Is there an android tenth or fourteenth doctor copy out there? Surely by now there must be. There are so many david tennants in doctor who. Or just 14 maybe.

You mean his character from Eden? I do have a policy on cartoons, but it's mostly any animal based ones. Also, no one has ever asked for a cartoon so this is a first, haha.

He also played a droid in Star Wars named Huyang (who came to the Jedi temple in a, I'm not kidding, a blue box thousands of years ago, so technically a droid Doctor exists), and I think he was an android in a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles thing, but I never watched it so I don't really know.

Anyway, since I've never written E92 before and I don't think there's any, ANY content of him within the good omens extended universe because no one ever talks about this series, I'm going for it. I'm making him kiss the bartender.

On with the fic!

It was Earth, that much was clear.

Long occupied with robots, androids only came into being here with the arrival of The Avalon years ago. It had been meant to go to a whole new world while other humans slept for ages back on Earth as it repaired itself.

Now these humans were back, and humans, androids, and robots were living together, trying to make a new life for themselves.

Arthur had been one of the few androids, the most human of them all, to become part of the new Earth. He was still a bartender, as that was all he really knew, but he worked with other androids and robots, helping them learn about humans. He had the most knowledge, he was meant to talk to them, to interact and be part of their lives.

In order to do that, he was given legs to help him move about the robot's old city. It was strange, they were more spider-like than human, but it helped him move about, they would do. He stood out among the other robots and androids, and among the humans.

It was...

He wasn't sure how to put it.

Luckily, he found robots that were kind to him, even if he was different from them. A small group that had learned of humans, who had even raised a child together, a human child. From what the child's 'parents' told him, she was found in a pod as a baby, and they rescued her.

They couldn't leave her to die, even though taking care of a human went against their protocols.

They did a lot of things against their protocols over the years to protect their daughter, and they told him they always would.

A37 was the mother, she was kind and a bit more open to things than her counterpart, E92.

He was the father figure, and the more reserved one, but Arthur had found a kindness in him that was rather human-like. He seemed to have picked that up from his daughter, Sara Grace. E92 had been the one to take him in and help him when he arrived.

He didn't have to do that, but Arthur was grateful for it. He was also grateful for Sara helping to give him legs and for E92 and A37 to get him some sort of work with the other robots instead of just doing things for the humans.

It had been a day of helping both populations with the continuous need to adjust to things, and Arthur felt worn down. He needed to recharge, and found E92 getting ready to do the same after a long day of work in the fields, a job he honestly seemed to enjoy.

"There is only one charging station left." The robot said, voice its usual calm down.

"I am sure we can share it, or we could take turns, depending on battery depletion." Arthur suggestion.

A quick scan indicated that the second option was not ideal, as both were under 20%, and being the advanced systems that they both were, they constantly spent battery power.

"Sharing is better than one of us going into offline mode." E92 offered, gesturing to the pod. "You may enter first."

"I think it's better if you do, I can squeeze in afterwards."

E92 looked at the pod, gave a slight nod with his body, before entering it. Arthur squeezed in, it was tight, but it would work if he wrapped his spider limbs around the other robot's legs. There was some adjusting, but they found a bit of comfort with E92's arms loosely wrapped around Arthur, keeping him close but not too close.

"Will this work for you?" The taller of the two asked.

"I..." Arthur looked him up and down, at the faded paint on the blue and red casing. He had never been this physically close to his friend, how odd that he felt his systems start to overheat, his fans spinning internally. "I think it will do well for the situation."

"Then we shall rest for the night. Good night, Arthur." E92 said quietly, he didn't need to lower his voice, the other robots were already in sleep mode, they would not wake them.

"Good night, E92." He replied just as softly, a hand placed on the other robot. He could feel him powering down, going into sleep mode himself.

But Arthur was awake.

He had been here on Earth for a few months now, adjusting as well as he could here. He was thankful for the few friends he had made here, considering his only other ones were long dead now. He cared about Sara Grace, and A37, along with the other robots from their little family.

But E92 was different. He was someone that Arthur could talk to, spend time with, without having to put on the customer service act in his programming. It was odd, he didn't understand it, didn't know if he could.

But he enjoyed this other robot's company.

He wondered if there was something strange in his programming since coming to Earth, or at least to Eden 3.

Because he was sure it wasn't in his programming or protocol to do what he was doing now.

His lips were pressed to the cool casing in front of him, and he felt his insides running faster, louder, hotter. Arthur blinked twice, and then pulled back.

He didn't mean to kiss him. it was never supposed to happen. It wasn't something robots or androids did.

He tried to put himself into sleep mode, to not think about this. But he was distracted, just for a moment, when those loose arms around him tightened, just a little, bringing him closer to E92.

Best to think about this in the morning.

Arthur has feelings and doesn't understand what they are. E92 has had much longer to feel human emotions so... >.>

Also, I need to watch this again.

If I had a nickel for every time David Tennant played a character associated with the color blue and strong emotions towards a human alongside a villain played by Neil Patrick Harris, I'd have two nickels.

#good omens extended universe #john's drabbles

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