Vespa desu

Hi, I'm Vespa, a 30-something-year-old she. This blog is mostly inactive at this point, but I pop in occasionally with random reblogs and write-ups.

[vespadesu]

Sailor Moon Filler VS Plot List

Hey so awhile ago I went through every episode of the original 90's anime series of Sailor Moon and put together this list for a friend who was trying to speedrun it, and I figured folks might find it useful, starting with some definitions:

"Real main plot progression": absolutely necessary. They tell the story of the season, and are the most important parts of the plot. They may also include major character introductions or deaths. "Plot progression": technically skip-able if you read a summary, but things will make more sense if you watch them. May include minor character introductions or deaths. "Character exploration": generally mostly or all filler. Watch if you enjoy casually spending time with the characters. "Filler" is filler. Has no bearing on the plot whatsoever, and can be safely skipped. It may contain some fun or interesting elements, but if you're rushing, you can skip it without confusion.

Sailor Moon Classic 1: series premiere, real main plot progression 2: filler 3: filler 4: filler 5: filler 6: filler 7: filler 8: real main plot progression 9: filler 10: real main plot progression 11: filler 12: filler 13: real main plot progression 14: plot progression 15: plot progression 16: filler 17: filler 18: filler 19: plot progression 20: filler 21: filler 22: plot progression 23: plot progression 24: real main plot progression 25: real main plot progression 26: some plot progression 27: plot progression 28: plot progression 29: plot progression 30: plot progression 31: Wild fucking filler episode with a small amount of plot progression 32: plot progression 33: real main plot progression 34: real main plot progression 35: real main plot progression 36: character exploration, some plot progression 37: filler 38: filler 39: filler 40: filler 41: plot progression 42: plot progression 43: filler 44: real main plot progression 45: real main plot progression 46: real main plot progression, season finale

Sailor Moon R 1: season premiere, real main plot progression 2: real main plot progression 3: real main plot progression 4: real main plot progression 5: real main plot progression 6: character exploration (cute) 7: character exploration (cute) 8: character exploration 9: character exploration 10: character exploration (funny) 11: filler, some character exploration (funny) 12: real main plot progression 13: real main plot progression, arc ends 14: new arc begins, real main plot progression 15: real main plot progression 16: character exploration (serious), some plot progression 17: plot progression 18: real main plot progression 19: plot progression 20: character exploration (cute) 21: weird fucking filler episode, some wild shit goes down. 100% filler, but it's worth the ride. 22: real main plot progression 23: some real main plot progression 24: plot progression 25: plot progression 26: plot progression 27: real main plot progression 28: real main plot progression 29: real main plot progression 30: plot progression 31: plot progression 32: character exploration (funny) 33: character exploration (funny) 34: character exploration (serious) 35: character exploration, some real main plot progression 36: real main plot progression 37: real main plot progression 38: real main plot progression 39: real main plot progression 40: real main plot progression 41: real main plot progression 42: real main plot progression, season finale

Sailor Moon S 1: season premiere, real main plot progression 2: real main plot progression 3: real main plot progression 4: character exploration 5: filler 6: filler 7: character exploration 8: character exploration 9: character exploration 10: filler, some character exploration 11: character exploration 12: character exploration 13: real main plot progression 14: real main plot progression 15: filler, some character exploration 16: character exploration 17: character exploration 18: character exploration 19: filler, some character exploration 20: character exploration, some real main plot progression 21: real main plot progression 22: real main plot progression 23: real main plot progression 24: plot progression 25: filler 26: plot progression 27: filler 28: plot progression 29: plot progression 30: real main plot progression 31: plot progression 32: plot progression 33: plot progression 34: real main plot progression 35: real main plot progression 36: real main plot progression 37: real main plot progression 38: real main plot progression, season finale

Sailor Moon SuperS 1: season premiere, real main plot progression 2: real main plot progression 3: real main plot progression 4: filler 5: character exploration 6: plot progression 7: filler 8: filler 9: filler 10: filler 11: filler 12: filler 13: filler 14: filler 15: filler 16: plot progression 17: filler 18: filler 19: filler 20: filler, some plot progression 21: plot progression 22: real main plot progression 23: real main plot progression 24: filler, some plot progression 25: filler, some plot progression 26: filler 27: filler, some plot progression 28: filler 29: filler 30: character exploration 31: plot progression 32: filler 33: character exploration 34: real main plot progression 35: real main plot progression 36: real main plot progression 37: real main plot progression 38: real main plot progression 39: real main plot progression, season finale

Sailor Moon StarS 1: season premiere, real main plot progression 2: real main plot progression 3: real main plot progression 4: real main plot progression 5: real main plot progression 6: real main plot progression, arc finale 7: new arc begins, real main plot progression 8: plot progression 9: filler 10: plot progression 11: plot progression 12: plot progression 13: filler 14: filler 15: real main plot progression 16: real main plot progression 17: filler 18: character exploration (cute and funny) 19: filler, some real main plot progression 20: filler 21: real main plot progression 22: real main plot progression 23: plot progression 24: real main plot progression 25: filler 26: character exploration 27: real main plot progression 28: real main plot progression 29: real main plot progression 30: real main plot progression 31: real main plot progression 32: real main plot progression 33: real main plot progression, series end

I even went ahead and did the same treatment for the 2003/2004 live action drama, which in my opinion is the best adaptation of Sailor Moon that exists:

PGSM 1: real main plot progression 2: real main plot progression 3: real main plot progression 4: character exploration 5: character exploration 6: character exploration 7: character exploration, some plot progression 8: character exploration 9: real main plot progression 10: real main plot progression 11: real main plot progression 12: real main plot progression 13: real main plot progression 14: plot progression 15: character exploration 16: character exploration 17: real main plot progression 18: real main plot progression 19: character exploration 20: real main plot progression 21: real main plot progression 22: real main plot progression 23: character exploration, some plot progression 24: real main plot progression 25: real main plot progression 26: real main plot progression 27: real main plot progression 28: real main plot progression 29: real main plot progression 30: real main plot progression 31: plot progression 32: real main plot progression 33: character exploration 34: character exploration 35: plot progression 36: real main plot progression 37: plot progression 38: real main plot progression 39: filler, some character exploration 40: character exploration 41: plot progression 42: real main plot progression 43: real main plot progression 44: plot progression 45: plot progression, character exploration 46: real main plot progression 47: real main plot progression 48: real main plot progression 49: real main plot progression, series end.

They also did two additional specials for the live action series: Special Act: filler Act ZERO: plot progression

[popculturepagan]

My school created a God.

I am a student at an art university.

There is an infamous building on our campus, called “Montgomery House” or more commonly, “Monty.” Monty is the building for animation, game design, special effects, sound design, and basically everything that requires highly powerful, highly specialized computers and software. The building is infamous for a couple of reasons. It’s located pretty far away from any other building, for one. The building itself used to be a coffin factory, no joke.  Another is the building has no windows. None. There are also no clocks anywhere. Once you enter Monty, you are completely separated from the flow of time and the light of day.  Probably the reason Monty is most known though is because students in the “monty majors” have to spend a lot of time there. A lot. It is not uncommon for somebody to spend more than a few days exclusively within the sunless, dark walls of Monty. If you go to the building, it is not surprising to see students sleeping on the floor, on the few chairs available, on the computers. Some bring sleeping bags and rations. Some just forgo sleep, buy espresso shots and work. The entire building just smells of coffee and sweat. It really seems like an exageration, but its not hyperbole. 

Why I bring this up is because of something that’s started recenetly. Inside the building, the school has hung up artwork on the walls from other majors as is typical on campus. One of the artworks was a self-portrait painting of a man with long, scraggly brown hair and a full beard looking pensively off into the distance. The painting became known as “Monty Jesus.”

Students, in their desperation for their files to render, or the computers to work, began to offer prayers to Monty Jesus. Soon, they began writing their prayers and taping them next to the painting. The wall is now covered, completly plastered, in prayers to Monty Jesus for things like “Fix the wifi” and “let me live through finals” and more simply “help me.” Candles have been added. Literal candles are placed around Monty Jesus in hopes he will help them.

This is how religions are born. Monty Jesus is considered a “joke”, but people at Monty still hold…. quite a lot of superstitious faith in the concept. There is even talk of a “Monty Satan” that creates software failures. It might be in jest, but these students really are hoping for some force to help them. And they’ve given it a name, an image, and respect.  Monty Jesus is real, and I’m sure of it. The desperate students have created their own spirit and their own form of worship, out of need.

Religion, spirituality, didn’t stop being relevant. It didn’t stop being something people need and want, and have the desire to create. It’s still happening, and it always will as long as their are people.  The spirit of creation, new deities and new worship, is alive and well today and should not be ignored simply because it is “new” or “a joke.”

[kaible-deactivated20181205]

Monty Jesus is Real and Strong and Our Friend

[beyoursledgehammer]

SCAD is such a weird and magical place.

[m0nk3y-bl0g]

As soon as I saw “Monty” I knew this was about my school

[metalheadequestrian]

I go to this school and I can confirm he is real. Another weird happening that occurred in the dorm adjacent to Monty is the smashed fly incident. Basically, someone smashed a fly on the stairway wall in the dorm and, because no janitor in this building ever bothers to thoroughly clean the place, the fly stayed there for a good few weeks. Eventually, one of the students wrote “ART” next to the fly with a sharpie, and a few days after that, someone made a tiny frame and name tag to accompany the art piece

Eventually some fool took this beautiful art piece down, and someone wrote a goddamn article about it in our school newspaper

which prompted several students to erect a mini shrine on the stairwell in honor of the smashed fly. Art school is truly a magical place.

[vespadesu]

I want to see the fucking shrine, omg.

[vespadesu]

(CW: mention of domestic violence in a fictional setting, includes some details of controlling emotional abuse and brief mention of physical abuse, all taking place between fictional characters; brief mention of alcohol and drug use in a fictional setting; brief mention of mental health issues and suicide in a fictional setting)

I typed this up on FB, but decided I didn’t want to post it there -- but I’d already put the work in to write it, so.... welcome to my first tumblr post in like a year?

There's a special kind of anxiety that is born while watching a show that's supposed to be a romantic drama, that (accidentally?) includes a character dynamic that is clearly abusive.

(Details below the break. )

The villain / The Hero's Romantic Rival is supposed to be a clear bad guy, but the initially subtle (and later extremely overt) hints that he's emotionally abusive to The Heroine's Romantic Rival, are pretty hard to take. This is a dynamic I've seen a surprising amount in the past, and it's always really anxiety-inducing -- particularly because the shows often include scenes that indicate that we are supposed to find this villain somewhat sympathetic. In this particular show, Romantic Rival is her boss and secretly her boyfriend. He owns her apartment, her job, everything she "owns" is actually his, and he mentions this to her several times -- that if she leaves either him or the company (which he equates), that she will have nothing. He has intentionally held her back in her career, he has policed her relationships with other men (especially the Romantic Hero of the series, with whom she has A Past; additionally, she is never shown having any friends or connections other than him), and he shouts or slams things whenever she displeases him. When she's stressed out by him, she drinks heavily or, more often, takes pills from a bottle we haven't see the label of. The more she stands up to him, the more he lashes out at her, until just now he destroyed her laptop. I think this is the first incident of him breaking her things, though I may have forgotten some. Just as I was saying aloud "oh god, he's going to hit her," he did -- he slapped her across the face, and basically told her that without him she's nothing. She walked out (thankfully), but she's walked out on him before, and always came back. I want to believe she's gone for good this time. It's hard to believe that the writers intended this reading of it, but if not this, then what??? The most distressing thing about this is that no one around her seems to realize how bad it is. The Romantic Heroine has never seen his temper, but the Romantic Hero *has*, and does nothing. He ignores her calls after blow-ups he's witnessed, he tells her to go back to Romantic Rival when she shows up at his place, and her isolation and clear distress make me worry that she's a danger to herself. I don't know what else to say about this, but it's just... I dunno. Not nice.

Also, added after the fact while setting up this post -- Heroine’s Romantic Rival appears to have attempted to overdose on those mystery pills. Faaantastic.

[patrochillesismyshit]

i absolutely love this review

[verylostpenguin]

It’s my grandpa’s birthday next week and he said “I don’t want to be 85” and my grandmother, his wife of 59 and a half years, said “well your only alternative is to die”, I can’t believe how affectionate they are

[verylostpenguin]

I was having lunch with them today and my grandpa started throwing napkins at my grandmother, and she balled it up and looked all set to throw it back but then she put it down and said “I will not throw it because I was brought up properly, you were dragged” she has spent ¾ of her life with this man

[verylostpenguin]

I thought I’d let you know how they’ve been getting on during lockdown, so here’s some of the FaceTime conversation from today:

“My goodness, the way technology is advancing - in 20 years we’ll be able to shake hands through the screen!”

“Rex, I don’t think we’ll be here in 20 years.”

“Well you make your own plans, I shall only be 109.”

[corporation-cats]

[elsastan]

Arendellians when Elsa started singing Into the Unknown

My vid. Someone else posted it on here before me but oh well 😆

[foureyesbitchdragon]

Happy Crimmus!

[foureyesbitchdragon]

It’s Crismn!

[foureyesbitchdragon]

Merry Crisis!

[foureyesbitchdragon]

Merry Chrysler!

[atemypencil]

i drew a cute milla for something else and i thought i drew her really nice so i decided to make it postable

[fuckyeahyoga]

[vespadesu]

[viralthings]

[goldensweetcheeks-deactivated20]

Who playin jumanji

[timemachineyeah]

IDK if I’ve mentioned this before, but since there’s talk of how to approach an accurate/nuanced translation of the word “baka” in anime on my dash, I thought I’d share one of my other favorite bits of oft-overlooked translating-Japanese nuance and how it applies to Sailor Moon. 

Basically every Sailor Moon fan knows Sailor Moon’s catchphrase, “tuski ni kawatte oshiokyo!” which translates more or less into “In the name of the moon, I’ll punish you!”

The fun part, that I learned a few years back from my half-Japanese friend who has, since high school, lived full time in Japan, is the “oshiokyo” bit. 

Oshiokyo does, in a literal sense, mean “I’ll punish you”. It’s a perfectly fine translation. But what it doesn’t get across is that the main people who use the phrase are parents, especially mothers, and it’s primarily used against children. 

There’s not a perfect English equivalent, but it carries a similar tone to “someone’s getting a spanking!” or “you’re going into time out!” or “you’re in big trouble, missy!” 

Basically, it’s not particularly threatening, and anyone who would think it was would be pretty childish. The fact that Usagi uses it as a legitimate threat is adorable in how much is reveals her age. It’s also badass and kind of condescending in that she’s basically treating the villains as unruly children instead of legitimate threats. 

So there you go. Take this information and put new joy into one of the most well-trod parts of the Sailor Moon universe. 

[heavenslittlemachine-deactivate]

u think she's hot now, just wait til she draws her longsword

[goreisforgirlsreviews]

horror films for people who don’t like horror films

i’ve been asked this a lot: what horror movies would you recommend to people who try to stay away from the genre in general, for whatever reason? some people don’t enjoy being scared, some people find horror too unrealistic and outlandish, and some people don’t enjoy the repetitive tropes that are admittedly often present in horror films. 

that being said, when i do give people recommendations for horror movies to dip their toe into, they’re often the same ones, or very similar ones. so i’ve gathered them here today, in case my horror loving followers have any friends who ask them the same questions, but aren’t sure of how to answer. 

Q: Why don’t you like horror?

A: “I don’t like jumpscares.” 

Try: 

The Silence of the Lambs

The Orphanage

Rosemary’s Baby

The Shining

A: “I can’t stand gore.” 

Try:

The Babadook

The Others

Ringu

The Conjuring

A: “I don’t like horror’s cheesy tropes.” 

Try:

It Follows

Pontypool

Teeth

A Tale of Two Sisters

A: “I don’t like the way horror treats women.” 

Try:

American Mary

Girls Against Boys

You’re Next

All Cheerleaders Die

Excision

The Loved Ones

A: “Horror is too unrealistic.” 

Try:

Hush

The Girl Next Door

Wolf Creek

Almost Mercy

Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer

A: “I’d rather watch something funny.” 

Try:

Life After Beth

Jennifer’s Body

Zombieland

Shaun of the Dead

Re-Animator

[skarchomp]

Someone: Why does Remoraid, a fish, evolve into Octillery, and octopus?

Pokemon nerd: In addition to both being based on projectile weapons (a gun and a cannon, respectively), Remoraid and Octillery are both based on aquatic animals with suction cups, thematically tying them together

Someone: Why does the skinny, snakelike Dragonair turn into Dragonite, a larger dragon with limbs?

Pokemon nerd: It’s based off a Korean legend about a serpentine creature that can become a true dragon over time.

Someone: Why does Exeggcute, six eggs, evolve into Exeggcutor, a palm tree with three coconuts?

Pokemon nerd:

[drtapeworm]

exeggcute turns into exeggutor because it aspired to be the best pokemon ever and it succeeded

[dentula]

I can’t find the original post, sadly, but I did find the images! Exeggcute aren’t eggs.. They’re seeds!

[jakesisland]

EGG TREE

[russiawave]

please don’t knock, the cat has the keys

[assassinationtipsforladies]

So to visit them you must first catch their cat? That is some task for potential suitors in medieval epic poetry shit

[gendertrickery]

Befriend. If the cat doesn’t like you, human inside probably won’t either.

[lifeofkj]

Real life videogame level.

[thefingerfuckingfemalefury]

Sidequest

Befriend the cat who is the KEEPER OF THE KEYS