Rewatch - Tumblr Posts
So why did I do it? I could offer a million answers - all false. The truth is that I'm a bad person. But, that's gonna change - I'm going to change.
This is the last of that sort of thing.
Now I'm cleaning up and I'm moving on, going straight and choosing life.
I'm looking forward to it already. I'm gonna be just like you.
The job, the family, the fucking big television. The washing machine, the car, the compact disc and electric tin opener, good health, low cholesterol, dental insurance, mortgage, starter home, leisure wear, luggage, three piece suite, DIY, game shows, junk food, children, walks in the park, nine to five, good at golf, washing the car, choice of sweaters, family Christmas, indexed pension, tax exemption, clearing gutters, getting by, looking ahead, the day you die.
— Mark “Rent-Boy” Renton, as portrayed by Ewan McGregor in Trainspotting (1996), directed by Danny Boyle, based on the novel by Irvine Welsh
Me rewatching a movie/show so I can remember everything for when I shift and I see my S/O either with a love interest or die
Me: alright time to prepare myself for the new Green series tomorrow!
*casually rewatches all of AvA*
About to rewatch Disneys Fantasia for the millionth time
🍌🚛 in this house, we stand the Banana Man!🚛🍌
So Pb dressed up as Finn's dad and took a sucker punch to help him learn about revenge, pretty clever idea tbh.
🌊🚤Talk about character progress, s1 Finn would have a heart attack!🚤🌊
↔🎵Loved how Hall of Egress and Flute Spell gave Finn amazing growth and sets up the budding romance with him and Huntress Wizard, kinda sad that I'm almost finished with the show!🎵↔
why cant people just let Maya mourn the way she wants to mourn in season 12?? holy crap, theres no one correct way to react to death!! everyone especially her sister Katie is being so judgemental of her after Cam's death.
Sometimes I think about how when Fitz asked Jemma about their wedding night she just says OH it was WONDERFUL and really that’s all I need to get through the day
Did some drawing today!!! (With shading)
Was also rewatching the owl house
The Dragon Prince Rewatch Thoughts and Ideas About the Future
Since season 3 is right around the corner I have decided to rewatch the first 2 seasons of the dragon prince. And the show was better upon a rewatch than I remember it being. Knowing certain things that are going to happen changes how you read scenes near the beginning and allows you to notice the seeds for future events or character choices. There is a scene in the second episode, before we are told of Rayla’s fear and dislike of water, where she is determined to set her mistakes right and she gets to a river and hesitates, gathers her berrings, and then crosses. This scene is only a couple of seconds long, if that, but you can tell that she is wary of water even before you’re told. There are plenty more moments like this and it astounded me while I was watching.
The pacing also feels better while rewatching. When I first saw the dragon prince I remember thinking the pacing felt off. In some moments it was really fast while others it was really slow. I’m typically not that affected by pacing, but there were certain moments that I felt needed more time to develop that were rushed through and some that were given too much time that weren’t that important to the story. I still think that some moments were rushed, but the slower moments fit a lot better now. For example when I first watched season 1 I was genuinely surprised that it ended at episode 9. It didn’t feel like a finale at the time, but going immediately into season 2 felt a lot more organic.
Now to get into talking about my thoughts on the show as a whole. And my predictions for the future.
Characters:
Rayla- Rayla is my personal favorite character. Our introduction to her manages to showcase the characteristics of her that will become the driving force of the story, her compassion which clashes with her mission and immense skill. It only takes a single scene to set up her most important characteristics to the story. It was interesting to learn how her culture affects the way she sees herself and the people around her. And how it lead to her negatively viewing herself because compassion and fear are frowned upon. She also didn’t just get over her bias against humans. Her view changes gradually and her decision to travel with the princes didn’t come from her being more enlightened than other elves, but from her unique set of circumstances with her past and inner conflict. The writing of Rayla managed to impress me yet again while watching the show. I couldn’t believe that they managed to create a character that was able to organically kick start the plot without neglecting the societal biases that would affect her character. I believe Rayla is a really well written character that has a lot of potential to grow. We will probably get to explore a lot of it in season 3. I hope to get her backstory and a greater expansion of Moonshadow elf culture now that her and Callum are in Xadia.
Callum- Callum really becomes a great character in season 2. Season 1 felt like it was setup for his character and season 2 was the season where he actually got to shine. His insecurities and disposition made for an interesting, yet predictable, starting point that was enhanced by how well it juxtaposed with Rayla’s insecurities and personality. They used it to create an interesting dynamic between the two. This insecurity lead to him gaining an intense focus on magic, because it was the first thing he felt he excelled at, until he finally learns how to perform it without a primal stone or resorting to dark magic. This also lead to a juxtaposition between him and Claudia, which I have no doubt will be explored more in depth later. Claudia is falling farther and farther down the hole that is dark magic and becoming over reliant on its “quick fix” nature, while Callum is taking the long path to learning primal magic which seems to be a safer, longer term fix than dark magic. Callum is a character I find the most interesting when he is mirroring other characters. He manages to put the journeys of others into a different perspective.
Claudia and Soren- These are the characters, other than Rayla, that I think will benefit the most from season 3. There is a lot of setup with their relationship between their father, the princes, and each other. They seem to be set up to take different paths within the third season to either follow their father or find some sort of redemption. Soren is the one with the most interesting relationship to their father in that, while Claudia ultimately seems to care more for her brother’s well being than their father’s opinion of her as shown with her decision to save Soren not the “egg” during her moment of truth, Soren wants so badly to make their father proud that when he’s paralyzed he’s happy because now he can’t do the bad things he felt he had to do to make his father proud. This moment changed the way I saw his character. He no longer seemed mean spirited or “evil”. And it lead to me believing that he could be heading toward a path of redemption where he eventually breaks free of his father’s influence. Claudia on the other hand has relied more and more on dark magic to where she will find herself at a crossroads where she will acknowledge the negative aspects of dark magic and choose either to continue down the rabbit hole or reject it. I want to believe that Claudia will make the decision to reject dark magic, but I have the feeling that Claudia and Soren will find themselves on separate paths where Soren will reject their father and try to save Claudia from herself and Claudia will continue down her path of dark magic and by association down the path of her father’s acceptance, at least initially. She is characterized as someone who cares a lot about the people close to her and she will do anything for them, so I think in the end she will make the right choice unless something drastic happens.
Ezran- The final member of our trio. He’s the character who’s future I’m the least sure of/have the least ideas of where it can go. He’s finally grown enough to stop running from his problems like he did so many times before, but he hasn’t shown an affinity for leading, mostly due to his young age, which leads me to believe he won’t hold the throne for very long in season 3. Ezran running from his problems and him liking hide and seek become sort of intertwined. In the first episode Ezran plays hide and seek with Bait and later runs away to hide in the secret tunnels in the castle when Callum harshly told him the truth about the moonshadow assassins. Later in season 2 he plays hide and seek with Bait and Zym while Callum and Rayla are defending the dragon, which he realizes was a bad idea when he can’t find Zym. He later “runs” away after learning the truth about his father’s death, but actually goes to talk with Claudia to go back and take the throne. The realization that hide and seek was a bad idea can be paralleled with his realization that he can’t run and hide from his responsibilities like he tried to before. Him actually playing hide and seek with someone other than Bait, who is easily found, made him realize that “hiding” actually created more problems, possibly losing Zym, than it solved, combating boredom. This was an interesting parallel I found on my second rewatch that once again hints at what is going to happen before it actually happens.
Story:
The dragon prince is a show that finds its basis in darker themes such as the cycles of war and vengeance, societal bigotry, that neither side is entirely just in war, etc. These are all heavy themes that the dragon prince handles surprisingly well. The pilot episode alone shows all of these things directly and doesn’t shy away. It ends with King Harrow and all the elven assassins but Runnan dead with Rayla, Callum, and Ezran on the run in hopes that while they have lost today they may be able to stop future all out war if they manage to accomplish a near insurmountable task with everyone seemingly against them. There isn’t a victory, just a quiet desperation that they must succeed later. This is very different from most animated shows aimed at the same demographic. This starts out dark and then gets lighter then slowly becomes even darker than before. Shows I’ve seen this compared to like Avatar: the Last Airbender, the Legend of Korra, etc all had much lighter pilot episodes before delving into much darker territory. This sets the bar right out of the gate. The story does a much better job than a lot of cartoons I’ve seen at dealing with the messiness of war. Both the humans and elves have done bad things in the name of “justice” and the show acknowledges this instead of naming a side that is “right”. This is rare in shows that thrive off of good vs evil. With the dragon prince no one seems truly evil. Even with Viren, who is the closest to a big bad this show has, is steeped in shades of grey. This is the major thing that sets the dragon prince apart from its contemporaries. The basic premise of the story is pretty straightforward and something that has been done before, but the way it does it is unique.
It’s a bit hard to put into words all the things I think about the dragon prince, but this is my best stab at it. It looks like the dragon prince will continue to raise the stakes with this upcoming season and become darker and more morally nuanced with the upcoming season. I’m really excited for season 3 to release and hope it manages to continue the great things that it has done with its previous two seasons
She-ra Season 2 Re-watch Thoughts
Season 2 is much more tonally consistent than season 1. The tone doesn’t shift as much episode to episode as it did in the first season with more of a mix of humor and seriousness within the episodes themselves without comedy dampening the drama. For example the episode “Roll with It” did have a lot of comedy in it, but it didn’t dampen the revelation as to why Adora was being so meticulous. In fact I thought that moment hit harder because of it. They did a very good job of showing Adora’s frustration being in stark contrast to everyone else’s carefree attitudes towards the planning. The most jarring episode in terms of tonal shifts is probably Ties that Bind and that episode is actually pretty great on the whole despite the swift wind humor falling flat for me.
You can’t talk about season 2 without mentioning its magnum opus episode light spinner. This episode manages to be a linchpin in the series moving forward tying together the fates of all the main heroines (Adora, Catra, and Glimmer) with shadow weaver in the past, present, and future. This show puts an emphasis on cycles and learning how to break them and this episode masterfully shows those cycles that shadow weaver creates.
I do think this season suffered from dreamworks or netflix deciding to split up seasons 2 and 3. This season, while having some great episodes, was mostly build up to season 3. Everything that was set up and established in this season was paid off in season 3: Hordak and Entrapta’s portal experiment and Catra’s desperation for motherly love that was denied her and jealousy over shadow weaver’s preferential treatment of Adora all come to a head in the third season. This made it so that I enjoyed this season a lot more the second time around than the first. The first time around it felt very cut off and I couldn’t help but be disappointed to not get the climax the episodes were clearly building to. I will say the payoff was well worth the wait, but that just makes the decision to cut the season in 2 to be more ill thought out in my opinion because the pacing works much better when you can go right into season 3 without the wait.
She-ra Season 3 Re-watch Thoughts
I don’t think there’s a single bad or even just okay episode this season. I loved every single episode. I think this is when she-ra became great. There were kernels of the potential the show had here and there throughout the first two seasons (especially the episodes promise and light spinner), but this season really capitalized on all the tension built from the first two. It had a strong focus on the effects of abuse on Adora and Catra. This led to Catra and Adora’s moments of truth. Both aren’t yet able to break free from the effects of the abuse, but while Adora makes steps toward trying to work through it Catra starts to give in and become what her abuse made her. It’s a tragic arc for both actually.
Adora’s guilt complex and crushing expectations make it so that she can’t see her own worth past what she does for others. She starts to stop taking the blame for what others have done with her telling Catra “You made your decision. Now live with it.”. She’s realized she can’t save Catra from herself. If Catra is to be redeemed Catra has to make the decision. Catra falls into denial of her own faults and lets the pain of abandonment fuel her. And in the end every moment breaking Catra down lead to this conclusion. The breaking point for her was when everything she actually wanted was right there, Adora was by her side and shadow weaver was proud of her, and then it was all yanked away.
Adora right after her breakthrough with not taking fault for Catra’s mistake sadly has a major setback when Angella sacrifices herself in Adora’s place. The lesson Angella imparted on Adora was what Adora needed to hear. It was that Adora, not she-ra, was the one who inspired the rebellion and Angella. It is Adora’s courage and character that makes she-ra a hero not she-ra’s abilities. And it’s really sad that this doesn’t have the intended effect because Adora feels like she should have died in Angella’s place and now Glimmer has lost a mother because of it. It gets even worse in season 4 when Glimmer and her fight and there is a rift between them. Adora’s guilt becomes overwhelming.
Season 3 was a turning point for the series. This is where things became serious, where the lines between characters and their opposition to each other was cemented, where mysteries that effect the main characters and change their world start to get revealed, the stakes and consequences are real and everything isn’t fixed by the end. This season finale was game changing. It once again has the Catra and Adora dynamic at its heart and it’s once again complicated and crushed by shadow weaver. The shadow weaver, Catra, and Adora dynamic is the most complex and complicated of the entire show.
Catra’s pain and anger over shadow weaver’s abandonment of her in the fright zone and her preferential treatment of Adora making it so that Catra misplaces her anger about shadow weaver onto Adora is so heartbreaking and emotional. The emotional climax to the season in my eyes is the confrontations between Adora and Catra in the portal reality. All the pain, anger, and sadness is just on full display.
The scene where Adora tells Catra “Everything will be okay as long as we stay together” played right next to the “Promise” scene with the music box playing showing the corruption or distortion of an innocent childhood promise that has brought about so much pain into both of their lives was so impactful to me. And Catra’s breakdown where she tells Adora “I won’t let you win. I’d rather see the whole world end than let that happen.” hurt so much. I kept replaying that scene once I finished the season. I think that scene and the episode “Remember” are my most re-watched until season 5 came around (though it may be promise and the cliff scene that are my most re-watched. I’m not entirely sure.). This show excels at its emotional moments and confrontations. It’s fights aren’t really flashy and it makes up for it by making them highly emotional. The two fights they have in the final two episodes of this season are no exception.
I couldn’t believe what had happened. Everything about this season blew me away when I first watched it. The way shadow weaver revealed Adora’s origins, Adora’s struggle with how everything about her life was forced upon her, Catra’s breakdown over shadow weaver’s abandonment of her, corrupted Catra, both of Adora and Catra’s fights, the entirety of remember, Angella’s sacrifice, and much more. I liked almost everything about this season. The tone was pretty consistent and there weren’t any moments or episodes that I found to be in jarring contrast with the rest of the season. This is actually the season that is the most tonally consistent. I can’t say enough good things about the character drama. Thinking about Catra and Adora’s arcs this season always makes me emotional. I just feel so much for both of them. It’s so tragic how they both got to this point.
Just finished s1 of my Steven Universe rewatch and honestly it's better than remember it being and the finale still goes hard fr
TV Shows - 3 Body Problem
So, once again, a new series. Since I've read the books by now, I think 3 Body Problem is a good choice. A quick warning: it’s hard to discuss without spoilers. If you want to enjoy the three books and the series without any spoilers, you might not want to read further.
This is a rewatch, so it's not exactly a first-time review, but that's common with my series reviews.
The first 10 minutes almost made me stop watching. I remember taking a break to check if the Cultural Revolution in China really happened. Sadly, it did!
I noticed that the cast is very diverse. It's somewhat like that in the book too, but not exactly the same as in the series.
A lot of elements from the three books are mixed together here. I didn’t know this the first time I watched it. But once you've read the books, it makes sense because a lot happens and it fits the timeline. However, the author uses a different storytelling structure (nonlinear narrative) in the book.
I liked the development a lot because, before the end of this episode, we see something incredibly fascinating. Sure, later they explain how it was done, and it’s not as fascinating anymore, BUT the explanation is mind-blowing.
It's the superlative that spans so much. Also, the game looks very different from the book’s description, but that's due to the time. The first book came out in 2012, and now, 10 years later, technology has advanced.
Otherwise, the first episode sets many points that will develop further in the first season. Mainly, the characters are introduced, presented, and shown in slight development or reaction to the events. I think it's a very good first episode; it’s very calm but has quite an impact.
There are many differences from the books, but also many similarities. This will be very exciting in the upcoming seasons because Netflix wants to cover all three books in three seasons. Why this will be very challenging and what will be left in or taken out, I'll discuss in later posts. It might happen, though I will try to avoid it, that I mix up the titles of the books or events a bit. This is because I am writing in English, but I watch everything in German and also read the books in German.
I mention this because the whole trilogy is called the Trisolaris Trilogy (Trisolaris-Trilogie) in German and Remembrance of Earth's Past in English, which is a much more fitting title considering the ending of the third book. Additionally, each of the books has its own name, which I hope will be reflected in the Netflix seasons. There is also a difference in the title of the third book, which is called Death's End in English and Beyond the Time (Jenseits der Zeit) in German.
TV Shows - 3 Body Problem II
Okay, I'm seriously considering whether I should write one or two posts per episode because I haven't even really started the second episode yet, and I could already write books about the first episode.
During my last rewatch, I had just finished the first book. As I mentioned, I have now read all three. I'm currently fascinated when I see Jin Cheng (Jess Hong) because, thanks to the books, I know what will happen to her in the future. In my fascination, I assume she is Cheng Xin from the book. I know, the names are similar, but the characters in the book are changed in a lot of ways in the series, so I don't know what will happen in future episodes.
The bar scene at the beginning of the first episode is very relatable to me; that kind of place was never my thing, and when it changes for the worse, it's always super annoying.
The way they depicted the countdown here is also very interesting because, in the book, they are images taken with a camera. Here, Auggie gets them projected directly onto his retina.
Oh, by the way, the Netflix series is not the first adaptation of the books. There is also an original Chinese series with over 30 episodes and a CGI series that, unfortunately, was never released. I hope this changes because the trailer looks incredibly good.
Here is the link to the Chinese series (through the Viki Rakuten portal).
This series is incredibly close to the book, but I only watched the first two episodes back then because I didn't want to spoil myself. But I will change that in the future. Therefore, I don't know how far the series goes and if it really covers all three books. I have an uneasy feeling that Netflix might decide to include only part of the trilogy in the series.
Of course, a lot has to be cut either way, but whether it finds a good middle ground to really reach the end of the third book is questionable.
TV Shows - 3 Body Problem III
The universe winked at us! Man, I can't get enough of this visual representation. Just imagine that you’re coming home one evening or on your way. The night sky isn’t too obscured by the city's background light, so you can see many stars. Suddenly, everything starts blinking like a TV constantly turning on and off. I praise the creators' creativity here because this visual event is just amazing and surpasses the book’s depiction, even though the same thing happens!
I always have to think about Saul, wondering if he is Lou Ji, as it fits with what happens later, especially in the conversation with Ye Wenjie as they mourn her daughter Vera.
Auggie is definitely Wang Miao. In the book, he is practically used to introduce the story, and he is also the person who sees the countdown. Again, the visual representation in the series surpasses that in the book.
But with all the comparisons, we can’t forget Da Shi, played by Benedict Wong. Interestingly, his character's name was changed in IMDb; he was originally called Clarence Shi. I found him fascinating in the book, and it's the same in the series, even though he is portrayed a bit more moderately in the series than in the book. Still, his traits from the book are recognizable.
In general, the series explains a lot, which the book, being hard science fiction, does less often. Although there are explanations for various names and terms at the end of each book, the characters don't always explain everything in the book.
Please excuse all the comparisons with the book; I’m just fascinated by how some things were implemented. Sure, I could sit and complain about all the changes, but what would be the point? I prefer to enjoy the portrayal and explore the differences.
Jin Cheng now really experiences the game for the first time, and we also learn more about the Trisolarans. I understand that they had to cut some parts, and thus we don’t learn much about this civilization yet. In the books, this information is also spread out but with higher intensity. I hope more will be revealed later.
One thing I want to highlight is the music, which was excellently chosen and composed by Ramin Djawadi.
In the German dubbing, she has a great voice (yes, I have a strong affinity for voices and dubbing), and in the second episode, we meet her for the first time, Sophon! That’s her name in the series and on IMDb, but in the book, based on her description and role, she should be Tomoko. We’ll get to know her better later, but she is already a fascinating character.
Jack is actually a character that annoys me a bit. I can't think of an equivalent in the book, and I don’t know why he is portrayed so drastically in the series. The question is if he is only there to give Will his money so he can buy the star for Jin Cheng, thus setting further events in motion.
This brings me back to the thought that Netflix might make a cut and not show everything from the books, but rather end at a certain point, though I wouldn't know what the right place would be. I also wonder what from the books will be included because there are many main locations and also some side plots. Yes, the character development is super exciting, and I am looking forward to that, but what’s coming and how it will be portrayed is another level of excitement. Especially the events from the last book—there's one thing I’m curious if they will include or not, because the way it's depicted will be, in my opinion, a real challenge. I'll reveal exactly what I mean at a later time.
What I find pleasant, and this aligns mostly with the book, is the location. Not in big America, but in England, which is just as fascinating and a nice change since it’s not so overdone.
I’m curious why some things were "toned down." The fate of the Trisolaris civilization is much more devastating in the book than shown in the series. The planet they live on was torn apart many eras ago. The civilizations that have gone through it number over 900 in the book, but a bit less than 300 in the series. They could have amped up the drama here, just like the later event involving Will.
TV Shows - 3 Body Problem IV
At the end of the second episode, I wanted to make a separate post.
The reason is that I’m wondering if this is just a dramatic portrayal in both the series and the book, or a form of social criticism. I mean, Ye Wenjie, due to all her experiences, believes that humanity is so messed up that it’s not worth continuing.
I also wonder how Netflix will handle these questions and reflections that come up repeatedly in the book. I don't want to say that this becomes tedious in the book, because I think it’s important to think about such things. But a voice inside me says that it could become tedious in the series. Especially when I recall some critiques of the series, saying that they had never seen a series where so little happens. I’m sorry, but I think those critics lack any understanding and ability to process events that go beyond the usual standards of today's series.
In the books, an important point is that characters think far beyond their own lifetimes and make decisions based on that. The author consistently paints a very interesting picture of the future and spends a lot of time explaining it. This is another balancing act the series must manage, because in the third book, the scope of this becomes even greater, and I feel that this could easily ruin the tension and structure of the whole story.
I also hope that the cast remains the same and that no one has to be replaced due to any foolishness. I've already pictured some actors in certain scenarios while reading, and I can hardly wait to see these in motion.
And yes, as I write, I realize that the next two seasons could be challenging. The line between disappointment and fascination is very thin, and I need to make sure my own expectations don't get in the way. A disappointment might not necessarily be the series' fault but rather due to my high expectations.
Yes, it remains exciting, and I've already written so much, even though we’ve just finished episode two. This could turn out to be a longer project than I initially thought.
Hopefully, Netflix won’t take too long and will quickly produce the next two seasons. Right now, we can see with Marvel that the long wait between series and movies doesn’t do the overall experience any good.