Ran's JUMPer

I'm just another Hey! Say! JUMP and 9nine fangirl. ~KYA~ And thanks to Person of Interest, The Blacklist, Game of Thrones, Teen Wolf, and Girl Meets World, I'm being drawn back to Western fandoms too!

[kaypeace21]

I feel like you’re the right person to tell this to, but Mileven makes me REALLY uncomfortable. I’m an adult fan (I watch the show mostly for Winona Ryder) and I felt really gross watching the scenes of them making out, knowing that adults wrote those scenes and shot them, and how many people would’ve been there during shooting. Please tell me I’m not alone.

I agree that it makes me feel uncomfortable and gross, too. But, I actually think the Duffers wanted you to feel uncomfortable (and I think mileven was portrayed as ‘off’ and ‘too much’ for that reason).  Think about it, when it comes to almost all their other cannon couples- they use kisses sparingly. Jancy has only kissed, romantically 3x (2 of those times were simple kisses- not full blown make-outs), and their first kiss (and only make-out) was quickly obscured as they closed the door.

(x)

Jopper has never kissed, and lumax had an innocent kid-kiss once (and even when back together in s3, they never kissed).

The duffers are sparing with kiss- scenes, unless they are portraying a relationship that won’t work.Most of the relationships that are cannon (with the exception of mileven) focus almost completely on how they communicate with one another- and relationships that lack this (spend most of their time just making-out).  What’s the ship that has had the most kiss scenes in the whole series? In the bathroom, library, bedroom(s), garage, in a car, multiple places at school (and has probably had at least 6-7 kiss scenes or more - and  who even made out on a bed to corny romance music just like mileven (pre-s3?)- Stancy.  Heck, we even see Nancy lose her v**ginity to Steve- but didn’t see Jancy do-it. Because we aren’t supposed to focus on their physical relationship but their emotional one.

Stancy and mileven have had alot of parallels. The wheelers (Nancy and Karen) already made a habit of pretending they’re in love with people- because that relationship is what is deemed the most socially acceptable. Nancy rebelling with the cool-jock (Steve), trying to not be like her parents. And Karen with Ted. Nancy even says in s1 “I don’t think my parents ever loved each other. My mom was young. My dad was older… but he had a cushy job, money, came from a good family. So they bought a house at the end of the cul de sac and started their nuclear family”. Ted  & Steve were paralleled to each other, having them both eat chicken as their partners  (Karen/Nancy) stormed off upset (and they did nothing). And El was paralleled to Ted by sitting in Ted’s laz-boy chair. And Dustin even refers to mileven as “bullshit” just like Nancy described Stancy as “bullshit”.  

(x)

So to reiterate , Mike is doing the same thing as Nancy & Karen- being with someone they don’t love. And only staying with them becuause they are the more socially acceptable/’correct’ option…because El’s a girl (unlike Will). 

Also, the fact that Murray’s line to Nancy sounds more queer coded than applicable to Nancy - “ Afraid that if you’d accept yourself for who you really are (cough queer-subtext), and retreated back to… name, name? Steve. Steve! we like Steve (El) but we don’t love Steve (El).”

So, the over-top kisses were done as yet another parallel. And again s2 made fun of (kids who are) mileven shippers ( I’ll talk about that later). 

But , S3 was the Duffers criticizing the adult mileven shippers- who are obsessed with mileven kissing. 

Like don’t get me wrong there’s some weird byler shippers (but the majority of byler shippers focus on the emotional not physical part of their relationship).

Think about it. Look how they framed this scene of mileven kissing- making us the viewer feel like a peeping-tom, watching them through the crack in the door. Then El sees the viewer and subsequently gasps and slams the door in front of our faces. YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE! 

The Duffers and their crew (like good directors) were manipulating your emotions- without you realizing how or why. They were also calling-out the adult-mileven shippers (not all of them but the ones) who are obsessed with their kiss scenes - creepy AF. The duffers never even wrote for mileven to kiss in s2- but Millie said they “had to for the fans”. And so the Duffers conceded and put in a song about a bad-breakup during the mileven kiss - and their backup-song-choice was even about a divorce. XD

So the 2 mileven make-out scenes were supposed to make you uncomfortable- because not only are they kids (who are making out on a bed , but the way they were framed).

So that 3rd and last kiss. Was 100% supposed to make you uncomfortable (but just for a different reason).

Like it or not Mike either forgot that he said he “loved her”. Or just LIED to El (despite this being the reason they broke up in the first place)- and pretends he didn’t confess to her . He  has never said “ I love you’, once to her face! He even tries to take the words back (before the kiss) and says about the prior love confession “ Oh! Oh, yeah that.Man, that was so long ago. Um…”  and starts to scratch his head and says everything he said at the cabin was “in the heat of the moment stuff and we were arguing… I don’t really remember. What did I say exactly?”

  And , after that discussion, they frame El (before she says “I love you”), strangely. They make El look large and imposing, as she approaches the motionless Mike (who feels both physically & emotionally cornered) .You the viewer, subconsciously are feeling claustrophobic/trapped/and stuck along with Mike. Which is why you are so uncomfortable watching this scene, unfold.

(x)

When she says “I love you”, he looks genuinely confused- or just uncomfortable ( his eyebrows are still scrunched-up).

And then… cue the most awkward kiss in the history as Mike doesn’t kiss her back and keeps his eyes open the whole time… it’s just weird/awkward (sorry).

(x) 

We even see El’s reaction , after the kiss (happy, smiling and giddy). But then we blur the screen to see Mike’s opposing expression. He looks confused, bewildered and even furrows his brows again.

And In s2 they insulted the young-girls who are obsessed with mileven (since they can frankly,  be the most toxic of the milevens). 

In the Montauk pitch (later named Stranger things) they describe the Mike and El dynamic by saying “ If Mike is the Eliot of our show,Eleven is our Et.” (AKA they’re from different planets)

And In s2 , Erica  is forcing He-man and barbie to make out. Lucas angrily separates the two. And then this discussion happens.

Erica: “Hey , They’re in love!”

Lucas (livid- and standing right next to a rainbow): “No, actually, they’re not. They don’t even exist on the same planet.”

And again the Duffers have described El in multiple interviews as “similar to ET”, and “like an alien” (even after s3). And in s1, they alluded to El being like “an alien from another planet”  by comparing her to ET (with the Reese’s pieces vs eggos moments,  the bike-scene, and the makeover). 

S3 portrayed mileven as toxic in a myriad of ways. And these other examples, might be stretches, but Mike saying to Max in s2  “How can I hate you, I don’t know you.” could also be a ‘dig’ at mileven.(Because: he knew Max for a week, just as long as El- so how could he hate or love either of them?)

And Mike saying to Dustin incredulously “ You have a bond? Just cause he likes nougat (eggos)?” Could be another subtle jab.

Especially since it’s cannon Mike isn’t the biggest fan of eggos to begin with.

Don’t even get me started at how much the st writing staff- makes fun of mileven - more details about it here.  But just one example is when the ‘Stranger writers’ ( the official account of the ST writing staff ) got into a huge text-chain with ‘Stranger Things’ (the official account of the show) where they just low-key dragged mileven together.

Mileven was never meant to be end game-they planned for her to die in season 1 (which I’m glad didn’t happen). But, regardless, it was always supposed to be a simple fleeting crush … but the viewers decided to take it way too seriously. After s3, the Duffers reiterate that mileven is just that.

 And the Duffers are smart guys, I bet they’re are 100% aware of how toxic the milevens are to bylers (and how they can also be creepy and harass Finn). Not to mention, as writers, who put so much effort into the show- having people hyper-fixate on mileven (which they don’t even like), instead of the plot must drive them insane.Especially when those shippers can be toxic, homophobic, and entitled. The fact people don’t realize the Duffers hate mileven- is honestly hilarious XD.

[11byers]

just wanted to add to the whole thing about, if a couple in the show has more kisses/more of a focus on their physical relationship rather than their emotional one, it screams they’re not endgame. the duffers aren’t subtle about this.

each season - each FIRST EP of a season - we’re introduced to a couple with a make-out scene. and if more kisses = no endgame, being introduced to a relationship like this guarantees no endgame. s1 was stancy

s2 was joyce and bob

so OFC, in s3, us being introduced to m!leven through a make-out scene is 100% intentional

the duffers ARE. NOT. SUBTLE about this at all. jancy has had like 2.5 kisses throughout 3 seasons. lumax has had 1. jopper still hasn’t kissed, but they might in s4. and imma wait patiently for at least a byler cheek kiss.

the duffers really want their audience to differentiate between a physical connection and an emotional one. physical connections don’t last, bc it’s not real romantic love. a relationship based on a physical connection isn’t healthy. it’s a way to stifle any sort of conversation and verbal communication between two people.

im p sure the first time we see sandra and hopper together, they’re literally in bed naked. (and just from the way this is shot, you can tell it’s not a happy relationship.)

hopper is troubled by will’s disappearance, he gets out of bed, she finds him outside later on, and he seems to try and talk about the whole situation w her.

turns out, she doesn’t care to talk about it, and instead tries to bring him back to bed

people in this show who have physical relationships like this don’t talk to each other. at least, they don’t communicate clearly enough to understand each other. they’re emotional closed off from one another think about how mike struggles w just being honest w el, compared to how easy it is for him to talk to will.

the morning after nancy and steve sleep together, they barely say a word to each other before nancy just leaves. steve doesn’t even say words, he just mumbles into his pillow.

oh look at this more parallels:

ive seen a couple m!leven shippers complaining about the make out scenes too, and how they would’ve liked to see them just talk to each other. sorry to break it to you guys, but there’s a reason for that. it’s not fanservice. mike and el just don’t talk to each other. at least, not a lot - not enough.

couples on this show such as jancy, lumax, jopper, and byler all have more down-to-earth, open, vulnerable conversations w each other, instead of just kissing scenes. the duffers are trying to tell their audience that they believe a healthy romance requires things such as communication, honesty, and vulnerability, and a relationship is unhealthy when physical affection stifles open communication.

[kaypeace21]

@janebycrs I love this addition so much! People just assume the make-outs are for fan-service but all of s3 establishes (just like the rest of the doomed pairings). Mike and El don’t communicate properly (and because of that along with just being naturally not a good-fit for each other) they don’t understand each others feelings/ values.

Mike breaks her rule of not lying. And El breaks his rule of not spying.Mike even said “that’s against the rules!” And  this clearly upset him, because he brings it up multiple times (after this) ! Max even calls Mike out for “not trusting her.” But why should either trust each other? Neither one even apologized for the lying or spying? Or promised to not do it again? Why would you trust your partner when they never apologize for the thing that upset you/felt like a betrayal of trust? It’s obvious mileven will not last as a couple , at this rate.

[ran-satori]

Noted. I just love how the fandom is able to progress from simply just shipping to a more thought-out analyses of the character dynamics taking place across three seasons.

[marzipanandminutiae]

reading letters from 1818 is wild

“it’s that time of the year when I get colds for no apparent reason again” have some Clairitin hon

[marzipanandminutiae]

But also we’re not becoming allergic to everything nowadays like certain white moms fear. Allergies have always existed. They were just talked about differently

Like “oh clams always ~turn my stomach~”. Or “what a pity he was taken from us at age 5”

[rosslynpaladin]

“Well we didn’t have all this fancy chronic illness stuff in the Olden Days, what did people do then??”

They died, Ashleigh. 

[explorerrowan]

This is a picture tracking bullet holes on Allied planes that encountered Nazi anti-aircraft fire in WW2.

At first, the military wanted to reinforce those areas, because obviously that’s where the ground crews observed the most damage on returning planes. Until Hungarian-born Jewish mathematician Abraham Wald pointed out that this was the damage on the planes that made it home, and the Allies should armor the areas where there are no dots at all, because those are the places where the planes won’t survive when hit. This phenomenon is called survivorship bias, a logic error where you focus on things that survived when you should really be looking at things that didn’t.

We have higher rates of mental illness now? Maybe that’s because we’ve stopped killing people for being “possessed” or “witches.” Higher rate of allergies? Anaphylaxis kills, and does so really fast if you don’t know what’s happening. Higher claims of rape? Maybe victims are less afraid of coming forward. These problems were all happening before, but now we’ve reinforced the medical and social structures needed to help these people survive. And we still have a long way to go.

[twodotsknowwhy]

This is one of my favorite anecdotes to show how clever rewording of statistics can make them say the opposite of what they mean:

Every time a state makes riding a motorcycle without a helmet illegal, the number of ER patients seriously injured in motorcycle accidents skyrockets. Every single time.

When you phrase it just right, it makes it sound like it’s more dangerous to ride a motorcycle with a helmet than without one. Of course, the reality is that before those laws, those patients were going to the morgue, not the ER.

[meredithalden]

[ask-dr-knockout]

This.

a public service announcement

[lackyannie]

and i thought only bob ross knew what was up

[poppypicklesticks-blog]

this single post is more useful to me then four years of art school 

[lulukbraz]

We did it in color study class on my college and it’s incredible the difference between using red/blue/yellow than cyan/magenta/yellow. The purple was colored like shit, so as the greens. Than we tried the actuall primary colors and it FELT SO GOOD!

[zachdanielswhisky]

I JUST TESTED IT IN MY ART PROGRAM AND HOLY SHIT 

IT WORKED REALLY WELL

[idoko]

On the left we have dissapoinment; on the right, love.

[emeraldmercury]

Then why do they teach us that RBY are primary colours in Pre-KG????

[kamiyu910]

To mess with our heads….

Or because they think that cyan and magenta are too difficult for kids to learn? Lame either way

[skrappy-deactivated20221123]

Reshare to save lives

[jheselbraum]

Okay, no. No no no no no no no no NO.

Listen up you fucks because I’m not wasting thousands of dollars on an art degree to watch y’all fuck up basic color theory.

Red, yellow, and blue are the primary colors

If you’re using p i g m e n t.

Do you hear me? When you’re using traditional media, fucking actual goddamn paint, Bob Ross style, your primary colors are!

When you use paint, your primary colors are red yellow and blue and don’t forget it.

NOW THAT CHANGES COMPLETELY WHEN YOU GO FUCKING DIGITAL.

THE DIGITAL PRIMARY COLORS ARE RED BLUE AND GREEN IF AND ONLY IF YOUR WORK IS GOING TO STAY DIGITAL, ON THE SCREEN, AND NEVER LEAVE THE SCREEN, AND OF COURSE IF YOUR WORK IS GOING TO BE PRINTED. ON A PRINTER. WITH INK. THEN. AND O N L Y  T H E N.

ARE YOUR PRIMARY COLORS.

CYAN. 

MAGENTA.

AND YELLOW.

So say it with me folks!

Red yellow and blue, are the primary colors for traditional pigment that’s mostly used in paints and shit. You use red yellow and blue when you’re painting traditionally, Bob Ross style. 

Red blue and green is light, which is what you’re painting with when you pick up your tablet and go digital.

CMYK is ink, and ink only. You could use cyan, magenta, and yellow as your primary colors in paint if you wanted to be a complete dick, but they’re not your primary colors unless your work is going to be printed using. i n k. The only time they could be considered the primary colors in a traditional medium is if you’re using ink.

Good day.

[jheselbraum]

Also thatswhiskytoyou’s color mixing is bullshit because THIS:

Is my icon. I painted this using RED. GREEN. AND BLUE. AS MY PRIMARY COLORS and they turned out fine. Of course, I used the finger smudge tool first and then the color mixing tool and then the blur tool, but hey what do I know.

Clearly using the blur tool only doesn’t cut it.

“Oh but Leo!” You say. “You used cyan and magenta in that color wheel!”

Well bitch guess what.

this is the digital color wheel. I’d say I mimicked that pretty well, don’t you think?

Oh and one other thing, notice how Blue and Yellow are directly opposite each other on this color wheel? That’s because we’re dealing with light, and with light, yellow and blue are complimentary colors.

Which is why when you mix them, it looks like this:

Which is a pretty neutral gray tone: They cancel each other out on the rgb color wheel when you mix them together.

BUT WITH PIGMENT THE PLACEMENT IS DIFFERENT

If you’ll notice, yellow and violet are now opposite each other, meaning they’re complimentary colors and if you mix  them, they’ll make a neutral gray.

But if you mix yellow and blue, same colors as before, YOU GET THIS:

Now keep in mind that the person in the video uses a darker blue, so they get a darker green, but the point is that it doesn’t make that neutral gray.

Now what happens when we mix yellow and violet paint?

Ah yes, you get a bunch of muted colors the more evenly you mix them.

What happens when you mix yellow light and purple light?

I see, I see.

[jheselbraum]

OH AND ONE MORE THING.

They didn’t teach you about red blue green and cmyk in pre-k because when most of us were in pre-k digital art was still in its early stages and what fucking seven year old knows how to use a printer.

[jheselbraum]

GUESS WHO’S NOT FUCKING DONE YET:

The reason the primary colors for light are so dramatically different from the primary colors for paint and ink is because your eye only receives combinations of red light, blue light, and green light. Our eyes do not have a sensor (cone cell) for yellow light. So when we paint with light, red green and blue are our primary colors. Because of our eyes.

Furthermore, paint primary colors are colors that cannot be created by mixing other colors together. For paint, they are red yellow and blue, because you cannot mix orange and green to get yellow. Mixing orange and purple paint does not make red. And mixing green and purple paint does not make blue.

Mixing blue and green paints will make cyan. Mixing red and blue paints will make magenta.

That’s why cyan and magenta aren’t primary paint colors.

However, you can’t mix yellow and blue ink and get cyan. You can’t mix red and blue ink to get magenta.

And that’s why cyan and magenta are the primary ink colors.

Brighter and stronger paints are created through tints and shades, through a thorough understanding of color theory and a few quality paint recipes. Not by bullshit posts on tumblr designed to mislead you.

[inkytomes]

Art side of tumblr saving lives with color theory education

[ran-satori]

FYI: Colors 101

[ran-satori]

Where’s the rest of the Numbered Subjects?

If there’s one thing that Season 3 of Stranger Things has disappointed me (a bit) on it’s the fact that there were no other numbered subjects introduced this season. Kali/Eight didn’t even make an appearance this season.

Instead we got Suzie-poo.

LOL.

And that in itself is a consolation and another hope that she will make an appearance next season.

Maybe have another memorable duet?

[ran-satori]

On Murray Bauman...

Oh I hope they find a way to bring Brett Gelman back (and not die) on Season 4.

P.S. Maybe even have him team up with Owens (Paul Reiser)?

[accountnameholder-deactivated20]

i saw this on imgur and well, even if something like this is going around on tumblr already it is important.

link to imgur post

[technolojeeesus-blog]

Idk why you’d give a dog fruit but cool! Here’s some safety tips.

[theresnorevolution]

“Idk why you’d give a dog fruit” because dogs love fruit and it’s a 100% healthier alternative to baked treats

[pepoluan]

DOGS ARE ALLOWED TO EAT BLUEBERRIES!! THE SWR FANDOM IS IN UPROAR!! “PROTECT THE BLUEBERRY 2K15″ BECOMES THE BATTLE CRY!!

Okay, but seriously:

Please Reblog, you might Save a Life.

Not just the life of a dog, but also the life of its human(s). Many people have therapy dogs. If they inadvertently lost their dogs because they do not know these facts, they might get into depression and that might not end well.

[mining-pup]

Time to throw apples in my pups mouth

[a-rude-elven-mage]

remember

[cryoverkiltmilk]

1) one time i dropped a grape and had to essentially drop-kick my senior doggo to keep him from diving on it

2) there is no consistent threshhold for what amount of raisins or grapes is safe/dangerous/lethal to dogs. Vet techs i’ve chatted with share stories that run the gamut from ‘ate one single grape and died’ to ‘emptied the entire damn fruit bowl and just got some bad farts for a week’.

[seraphijade]

Also please don’t use this guide to justify feeding a dog a vegan diet. While fresh fruits and vegetables are a good way to add new textures and varieties to your pupper’s diet, they still need meat or they will become malnourished.

[ran-satori]

Because our pets and animal companions deserve better care than most public servants.

[whatsnew-lgbtq]

Platonic love is real love and shouldnt be treated like less becuase it isnt romantic. Defining love as only romantic is a terrible concept. You should be able to love people in a platonic way as much as romantic way and not be seen as less

[melissatreglia]

The Greeks were so much wiser than us modern folk, when talking about love. They believed it existed in eight different forms:

1. Eros (erotic love). This is, simply put, the sexual attraction you feel towards someone. In its best form, passion can be transformative… but it can also become destructive if not kept under control.

2. Philos (friendship). This is the love we treat as lesser in the modern world. Ironically, the Greeks considered it superior to eros as philos was considered a love between two equals and free of the animalistic pull of sexual desire. Philos is the kind of love two warriors who’ve shared a foxhole feel for one another.

3. Storge (familial love). This is the love and pride we take in our kinsmen and lifelong friends. For those who are deeply attached to their family name, who remember family members who pass on with great fondness… This is the name the Greeks, a culture based very much on accruing honour to one’s name and descendants, bestowed on this form of love, as it was so very important to them.

4. Ludus (playful love). The affection between young lovers, this is what we modern folk call “puppy love.” The flirting, teasing and childlike euphoria at being in a new relationship is all part and parcel of this form of love. The Greeks felt that love should have a sense of fun and play; it need not be serious 100% of the time.

5. Mania (obsessive love). This is what happens when love gets scary, and is the purview of stalkers and the most deluded among us. The Greeks believed that this occurs when there’s an imbalance between the presence of ludus and eros in one’s psyche. Those who experience this form of love also become codependent, and may be perpetrators of abuse of their loved ones.

6. Pragma (enduring love). This is a mature form of love, having aged like fine wine with time. It’s commonly seen in couples who have been married for decades, and is something we all secretly yearn for – the companionship that looks beyond our limitations, yet loves us for our frail humanity. A love where we are accepted unconditionally and will never stray from us. It’s hard to find, and takes a lot of time and patience to cultivate.

7. Philautia (self-love). This is where having a “positive mental attitude” and engaging in self-care comes in. The Greeks understood that, in order to care for others, we must first tend to ourselves. This is not a sense of vanity, but an awareness and acceptance of who you really are, showing yourself compassion in darker times.

8. Agape (brotherhood). This is the greatest form of love there is, and the hardest to aspire to. It demands nothing less than feeling love for all human beings, compassion for all creatures, an acceptance and forgiveness of the flaws of humanity, and the desire to ease the pain of those who suffer. To see in the eyes of every human being your brother, your sister – when humanity, in your mind, becomes your extended family. It’s not about paying lip service to religions that preach compassion, it’s about showing love for others in every word and deed.

So, if you thought romantic love (eros) was all there is to knowing and feeling love? You thought wrong. Let’s learn to love love in all its forms.

[lewd-plants]

Awesome

[ran-satori]

And they say that the heart can't ever be rational.

[the-future-now-deactivated20170]

That’s Louis Rossman, a repair technician and YouTuber, who went viral recently for railing against Apple. Apple purposely charges a lot for repairs and you either have to pay up or buy a new device. That’s because Apple withholds necessary tools and information from outside repair shops. And to think, we were just so close to change.

Follow @the-future-now

[dopeluminarydreamer-blog]

Reblog if you:

Have an iPhone and are in need of repairs

Have a friend with that problem

Hate Apple and are more than happy to spite them in some way

No one will know which is it

[renthebarbarian]

Reblogging this from my iPhone, ironically.

[st-r-trk-fangasm]

Reblogging from my 2011 macbook pro that has threatened to die for years.

[ran-satori]

Tsk, tsk, tsk. Change is still scamming. Like the MAGA tagline is actually just MAHA in disguise.

[fiona-widdershins]

Are you ready?

[ran-satori]

It’s amazing how Dylan Kingwell could both 1) pass for a girl and 2) maybe even Malina Weissman’s female relative in these scenes. But that’s the decaffeinated me talking. I actually forgot that Quigley was the twin that had a crush on Violet and just wound up thinking of some sapphic stuff at past 2 AM in the morning. Time to get up and wash down the end of the series with more black coffee to keep me awake for a CAoS binge-watch. 

[ran-satori]

Jamona for S05

Be forewarned. Spoilers abound in this rant.

I was all set to see it happen sometime in Season 3B but alas that “endgame” eluded the entire season hoping to somehow tackle it the next season. After just binge-watching through Season 4, I keep seeing Ramona being more kind and amazingly being more attentive to Jackson (and his quirks) - don’t forget she exactly called out how it was going to go down when Lola dumped Jackson the previous season. So I just settled with the fact that this endgame is never going to happen unless Kimmy and Ramona finally moved in with Fernando next door - which also didn’t happen in Season 4 due to Kimmy carrying and subsequently giving birth to Steph’s and Jimmy’s baby. But that would also partially destroy the entire premise of doing “Fuller House” to begin with which is why Kimmy and Ramona moved in with DJ in the first place. At least they are talking more to EACH OTHER in their scenes together. And not just the witty repartee but actual teen-relevant conversations.

In as much as I want to see Ramona and Jackson get together, I also have to accept the fact that there’s no way it can happen unless one of them is no longer living under the same roof. By then, I hope that Ramona has managed to see Jackson in an even better, more promising light. Popko’s and Chad’s reappearances were kind of an eyesore for me but still I was happy to see Ramona not falling back into those relationships just as Jackson had moved on from Lola. And maybe just maybe after he realizes that he’s going nowhere with Rocki... Jackson might see Ramona too in a better, more promising light. Well, Rocki has good plot armor to begin with. So... fat chance of this happening easily.

P.S. And could they make Jackson a bit less quirky and more of the kid in the first two seasons? He was more collected back then and his portrayal in Season 4 reminds me sometimes of Jimmy Gibbler.

[ran-satori]

The end of a journey? Not really. I’m already looking forward to the next series.

When ever that will be...

But for now, I’m on a Star Wars Rebels-you-will-surely-be-missed mode.

Such a shame that neither the MCU nor the DCEU can’t even do this with their already respective expansive universes on both TV and film. Even with all the multi-verse - deus ex machina plot device, they still can’t seem to make it work after a decade. It would have been great if Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. were able to tie up things with a resurrected S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. Still hoping for it to happen.

If a ‘likable nobody’ like Ezra Bridger can unite generations of Star Wars material and fans of different decades then I don’t see why an equally likable character like Phil Coulson can’t for the Marvel Universe. It’s really not too late. I hope. So, Marvel please make it happen!

P.S. In hindsight, we might get to see the two characters (that got blasted off to parts unknown) in some future SW-related installment. Dave Filoni did confirm it after all.

[ran-satori]

Ellen Page "Would Love" to Return for Tim Miller's Kitty Pryde Movie

After playing Kitty Pryde in two X-Men movies, Ellen Page admits she would love to return for Tim Miller's upcoming solo movie.

Back in the 90s, I always hoped that Natalie Portman would make the role her own seeing as she and the character have so much in common - cute, cerebral, and Jewish. A female Jewish lead character was a rarity back then. It still is today. Kitty underwent a lot of character development for the first decade of 2000 further compounded by the introduction of an Ultimate version where she frequently made cross-over appearances in other titles. Part of the allure of Kitty Pryde was that she was a young tech prodigy - in the same vein as Pidge/Katie Holt of the new Voltron series. And let’s not forget that she had a loyal pet dragon named Lockheed that was easily forgotten and never included as Fox continued to crank out X-Men film adaptations over the years. 

By the time, Ratner’s X-Men: The Last Stand came out, I had long since accepted that Natalie Portman was never going to play the role. (Though I still hope she would play the Jane Foster-Thor role, this time, more on her own terms). So I looked forward to Ellen Page’s performance and she did not disappoint. And it took a few more years before another team-oriented X-Men film came out. Both Ellen’s portrayal and Kitty’s plot changes were kind of ‘wasted’ in Days of Future Past. Fox couldn’t get it right. What came out was more like cramming more mutant characters haphazardly while still anchoring around Wolverine. 

Sometimes I think the X-Men are nothing without Wolverine because of how the films portrayed them so far. No offense to Mr. Hugh Jackman. I even had this pathetic wishful thinking that it would’ve been better if the X-Men were adapted earlier so that Sirs Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen would play their roles longer and maybe even on a TV show format! He-he. Like I said: wishful thinking. So now I’m hoping that Kitty gets another adaptation and that her role would go to an equally capable young actress. 

For me, it’s either Rowan Blanchard or Kiernan Shipka. But I’m also curious what Malina Weissman and Jodelle Ferland can bring to the role. But Ellen Page did make the role her own. And I thank her for mirroring the geek-and-cheekiness in me.

[ran-satori]

The Gifted Season 1 - Finally Over

I can’t even begin to state how relieved I am that the season is finally over. While most of the plot was nuanced from most teen and family dramas abound, I never did warm up to The Gifted. Well, they did bring in new characters like Marcos/Eclipse, the Struckers and Sentinel Services but my beef is with how they made so liberal changes to the more familiar characters.   

 Anyway, below is my usual rant and rave segment:

It didn’t really help that Andy Strucker was too emo to sympathize with throughout the second half of the season. I’m sensing that the drama might be leading us to a more tragic confrontation (than the current finale) before the series finally concludes.

I did welcome the fact that Thunderbird survived the season considering that he got killed off in the comics in just a few issues. 

I loved the Blink in AoA too much that I hardly gave this Blink a chance. I was kind of expecting a character treatment like AoA - that there would be a Victor Creed-like surrogate relationship in the works. Sure the drama was there and she was aged up but it kind of felt forced especially the romance with Thunderbird. Jamie Chung and Blair Redford deserve better for their characters.

I like Lorna’s goth and spunky appearance but her character deserves to be surrounded with more familiar X-Men like Havok and Iceman. We kept hearing her ties to Magneto all season that I honestly got tired of hearing it and the finale didn’t really do justice to that special lineage.

Sage’s character was way underrated. I don’t know... it’s either maybe the actress doesn’t strike me as more Sage-like or she just needs a bigger role in order for me to get vested in her character. Well, she walking off to side with the Hellfire Club does mirror what she did in the comics - if that was meant to be an Easter egg to begin with.

So the X-Men “left” - what does that exactly mean anyway? Kind of frustrating considering how Disney is buying the rights to the X-franchise from Fox. On a side note, I expect Disney to be hands off from all Marvel Comics R-rated material like Deadpool and maybe a more mature future X-Men film in the works.

Reed Strucker is supposed to be a mutant who underwent subtle gene therapy to suppress his mutant gene. If there’s anything I’ve learned from reading through American comics it’s the fact that nothing stays dead or suppressed for long. He-he. So if Reed is going to power up, it’d better be to on time to knock some sense to his idiot son and bring him back to the fold.

Am I supposed to believe that Amy Acker’s role is just that of a flatscan/human? If there’s anything I learned from her outing in Whedonverse, she’s going to get powered up soon enough. Who knows? She might be also a latent mutant.

While I am still looking forward to a second season, I hope it’s centered less on the Strucker family drama and more on introducing new characters especially more X-Men-related characters. I just find it odd that Thunderbird, Sage, Blink and Polaris are relegated to mutant underground leaders when the characters are even actual members of the X-Men who are many times mentioned throughout the season as being their mentors/benefactors. It’s just that I expected better treatment for their characters in this adaptation.

[ran-satori]

Cranberries Singer Dolores O'Riordan Dies at 46

The performer died suddenly Monday in London, according to her publicist.

Another one of my influences going off to rest among the stars.

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How Kitty Pryde Could Bring the X-Men into the MCU

She already rebooted the X-Men once.

I would love to see Rowan Blanchard play Kitty Pryde if ever they do recast the role for a younger or alternate version.

P.S. And is it too much to ask for an X-Men TV series featuring material like X-Men Blue?

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I became a fan when I first saw her in the Hope trailer.

Her lineage and story within the Old Republic is source material worth adapting onto the silverscreen.

I don’t know about you but she does tend to remind me of Rey in the current film storyline. I know that Rey’s origin was recently revealed to be “normal” or “ordinary” but I can’t help but think otherwise. While it may be attractive as a populist stand, I think “The Last Jedi” didn’t do justice to Luke Skywalker’s role and just proceeded to end his appearance with Episode VIII when he could have had a more fitting end in Episode IX to cap everything.

This is the one Jedi whose story should be adapted next.

P.S. And yeah, please get Gemma Chan to play her!

[ran-satori]

Shipping: Mileven vs. Fillie

There’s a reason why it’s called a ship. It’s a slow burn but full steam ahead to the inevitable.

But DON’T, more like NEVER, ship real people. They tend to sink even before they leave port.

Let Millie and Finn breathe and live their lives and hone their craft in acting. Stereotyping them all the more as a ship will just ruin their careers.

We’re better off shipping #Mileven because that’s where it all began anyway. And it will be awhile before we find another romance as pure as theirs.

Let’s just content to be entertained and support the actors and actresses.

Millie and Finn don’t owe us anything. They don’t need to show us anything else besides being professionals and role models.