Love Actually (does suck a bit)

So I recently watched the much acclaimed (and equally derided) Christmas movie Love Actually for the first time after hearing so much about it. Here are my thoughts:

I wish there had been at least one LGBT couple portrayed in the movie. With so many different relationships, they could have done more than just allude to the fact that gay people exist (in the Liam Neeson scene with his step son when he's first learning about the boy's crush, and in the scene between the aging rock star and his manager), they could have presented a gay relationship as well. They did not. The aging rock star and his manager was shown to be platonic love (as evidenced by the fact that his manager jokes about him "turning gay" when he breaks down and admits that the manager is the person he loves most in the world and the ending where the rock star has a girlfriend). Although it only portrayed straight relationships, it did portray them all as complicated. Here are the relationships I liked the best, the ones I absolutely hated and those I really didn't care either way.

I hated the Hugh Grant story arc. Loathed it. He was presented as a man in power, she was a woman in his employ. When he gets a fit of jealousy after seeing another man in power exerting his influence to sexually harrass this poor woman, instead of realize that is what happens he has her fired. Are we supposed to believe that this is love?

I also hated the Keira Knightly story line where the best friend of her new husband reveals his long-standing crush on her (creepy much) and especially hated how they tried to make it out to be romantic. It would have been better if he'd had a one-sided crush on his best friend to be honest. Although confessing it to either of them would still be creepy.

I was meh over the Alan Rickman story-line. The aging man getting attentions from a younger woman arc has been done to death. I did feel that Emma Thompson's performance as the wronged wife was very moving, but overall I could have done without this arc and its less than satisfactory conclusion.

The Laura Linney storyline was very sad, and was not given any kind of conclusion at the end when they're all meeting at the airport either. Presumably, the woman is still without boundaries towards her brother because she assumes he cannot understand boundaries since he has some kind of mental health problem. I do understand this story-line of her putting her own wants and needs on the back burner for years so she can tend to the needs of someone she loves, however, I would have liked to see her gain some boundaries or something. It was just so obvious that she felt harangued by her brother and the whole martyr character trope doesn't sit well with me. No one is that selfless. In real life she would have snapped and said something mean to her brother when he called during the one chance she had with the guy she's been mooning over for years.

I was much more impressed with the Colin Firth storyline where he is a bumbling idiot writer, she is his temporary maid and they have a communication gap because neither speaks the other's language. Not so impressed that I bought him proposing to her the first time they have a real conversation, but impressed nevertheless. I liked how they kept saying the same things even though they didn't know what the other was saying.

I was especially impressed with the asexual nature of the Martin Freeman story arc where even though they are playing a couple being sexually intimate on screen, they are simply having normal conversations about everyday things. It felt refreshing.

I loved the Liam Neeson arc because it was about him bonding with his stepson. I could have done without the part where he met the hot mom of one of his stepson's friends near the end. The fact that he just wants to help his stepson despite his own grief at the recent loss of his wife was moving. I also loved how ready he was to accept that his stepson might be gay and didn't just assume that the person he was crushing on was a girl.

The older rockstar and his manager being the only platonic relationship represented did feel a bit offputting. I mean, obviously there were other relationships, familial relationships between the characters, but the main interactions were always with the love interest, except in this instance (and the father/son dynamic). I was hoping (before the kiss) that the Martin Freeman arc would be platonic in nature, but I like that it was asexual at least.

All in all I agree with the synopsis that there are too many different story lines and none of them gets developed enough. The ones that are good seem rushed, I'd like to just cut out all the ones I didn't like and further develop the ones I did. Also, make the rock star bi at least and the relationship with his manager romantic. Why not?

Better Omens: Comparing the 1990's book to the 6-episode series

 First off, I'd like to say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book Good Omens. There was nothing wrong with it (apart from the occasional use of the f slur to refer to gay men), it was a very good book. I think there were a few things that dated it. I liked that they updated those for the special. I also liked that they made God a woman by casting a female actress to narrate (as God) even though they kept Metatron (the voice of God) as a man. There were some things they added to the plot for the special, a special bit at the end, for instance. I'm going to warn you right now that this post is going to contain spoilers for the show Good Omens. If you don't want to see these (although you really should have watched already, I mean I covered this show in my blog once before) stop reading now.

Okay. Moving on. The book explores the human characters a little bit more (especially the Them and Adam in particular). I really liked this aspect of the book the best and it was worth the read if only for the added bits you uncover about these characters and their interactions with each other. The book insists that Aziraphael is not gay even though he bears all the hallmarks and most people assume he is, because angels don't have a gender. I think this, added to the fact that Neil Gaiman (one of the authors) has previously confirmed he and Crowley love each other, could have been a way to get their relationship past the gay panic of the 90s and has less bearing on the story than people give it credit for. Their interactions in the book are mostly the same (except there are fewer). There is a lot of back and forth banter between them that is in the show only.

Another thing they changed with the show (besides making God a woman) was that they made Pollution an enby (non-binary individual). I really liked this aspect of the show as well. The bit at the end that was added to the plot was the bit about Aziraphael and Crowley swapping bodies to face each other's punishments. In the book their last interaction is right after everything is set to rights. There is no kidnapping and no judgment. I really liked the addition of this scene because it made their relationship so much more intimate.

I also liked the addition of scenes showing their past together. The book gives a vague indication that they've known each other and been seeing each other all this time, but it does not give any details about their past. My favorite part is when Aziraphael is about to be discorporated by the French revolutionaries and Crowley saves him. I really like their exchange about the oysters as well. 

The original story is well written and I liked the characters but the best part of the story is the improvements that were made to it for the special. I rarely say that about an adaptation, but this is one that I feel it suits.

Thank you for reading. I have not yet decided what my next post will be about. Catch you next time.

Comparing Sherlock with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's works

 I'd like to start off with a disclaimer. Although I have consumed quite a bit of Conan Doyle's original work, I am by no means a Sherlock Holmes expert. I have read at the very least: A Study in Scarlet (the introductory story where Watson and Holmes meet), The Hound of the Baskervilles (a book length Sherlock story), A Scandal in Belgravia (the story that introduces Irene Adler aka the woman), and a few others whose names I cannot recall at the moment. I know a bit more about the character quirks of our favorite sleuth than someone who has consumed a similar amount of these works might because my dad's friend was super into Sherlock Holmes and used to write fanfiction about him. This meant that he would talk with my dad about the detective in front of me and I would pick up tidbits that I hadn't gleaned from my own reading. I have also watched many adaptations. We used to watch the Masterpiece Theatre adaptations starring Jeremy Brett as the titular detective when I was a child and I know more stories from this adaptation than from reading the original books, although my father owned The Complete works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and I reread my favorite A Scandal in Belgravia about a half-dozen times when I was a kid.

That being said, I do remember quite a bit about what I did read from the original and I was able to recognize little easter egg nods to it as well as appreciate the ways in which Sherlock became its own story entirely. The first element I'd like to discuss is the characters.

In the original, you don't get much insight into Sherlock's actual character because you always see him through the lens of JohnWatson. Now, I'm not saying that John is necessarily an unreliable narrator, but he's definitely not as observant as Sherlock. Watson always views Sherlock with this kind of respectful awe, but he also notes that he's different. In one of the original stories, Watson notices that Sherlock lacks some knowledge that is common knowledge to other people simply because he deems it unimportant. Sherlock tells John that his brain is like an attic and it can only store so much stuff so he throws out extraneous knowledge. The line in the show is updated to "My brain is like a hard drive, it only has so much space so I delete unnecessary files." Little things like this made the show for me.

Throughout the show Sherlock refers to himself as a "high-functioning sociopath" correcting a police detective who likes to call him a psychopath. I like the little details about Sherlock's character that remained the same and he does seem like he might be asexual although I know there are a lot of people who ship him with John. I'm not denying that the two have an amazing friendship and great chemistry, but I think Sherlock works better as an asexual character. However, Sherlock is shown to care deeply about the people he holds dear, which isn't common in people with sociopathy. When they are threatened, for instance, he allows his reputation to be tarnished to keep them safe. I would say Jim Moriarty is more of a sociopath/psychopath. 

Sherlock is a good actor. He often changes his tone and inflection to elicit a response from others, whether that is anger and outrage or sympathy. He does this in order to learn things he has yet to observe or things he can't figure out from the information that he already has. All these little facets of Sherlocks character are nuances that the show added because it was necessary to flush out his character a little bit more than oddly brilliant detective who gets bored and does drugs or plays the violin to keep his brain busy.

John's character is also flushed out a bit in the series. He is an adrenaline junky, which explains why he hangs around Sherlock. This added element to his character elevates their relationship a couple notches from what it was in the books. No longer is Watson a passive observer, he invites the danger and he loves the chase.

In the first episode John kills a man who is trying to manipulate Sherlock into taking a poison tablet. So the case, A Study in Pink is a modernized version of A Study in Scarlet. A woman is found in an apparent suicide one of a string of similar cases which no one seems able to link. She has scratched a message into the wood with her fingernails, not an easy task. It is Rache which someone observes is a German word, but Sherlock, based on other clues, decides it is a name she didn't get to finish writing. He takes in the entire scene and asks where her luggage bag is. This is because he can tell from the splash that she had one and that she doesn't appear the type to leave it somewhere. He looks around and finds it in a dumpster. Her phone isn't in it. She planted it on her murderer. So Sherlock is able to meet with the man who has been murdering people and he explains what he's been doing. He has two identical pills, one contains poison, the other is harmless. He lays them out in front of the victim and has them choose one. Sherlock asks him what happens if he doesn't choose. The man draws a gun, which Sherlock immediately recognizes as fake. He tells the man to shoot him, calling his bluff. But the man is trying to goad Sherlock into playing anyway. John figures out what Sherlock is doing and traces him, but he goes into the wrong building and ends up in the building next door to the one Sherlock and the murderer are in. Just before Sherlock can take the pill, the man is shot.

After the police get there, Sherlock privately observes to John that the man who did the shooting must have been in the military, indicated that he knows what Watson has done and he doesn't intend to tell. This cements their friendship which is a large part of the show and a driving element of what makes it so good. Many of the elements of this show, the unexplained deaths, the carving of a message from one of the dying victims, etc, were in the original story. The cool thing was how they modernized the story to fit modern times. Sherlock and John's first meeting is a prime example of this. In the book, John has just come back from the war and he is looking for an apartment but doesn't seem to think anyone would be willing to share the expense with him. The friend he is talking to tells him he is the second person to say that two him today. The first person being Sherlock. It plays out exactly like this in the show as well. When John meets Sherlock, Sherlock asks him "Iraq or Afganistan" in the original it was something similar, but I'm pretty sure it was two places soldiers were commonly stationed at the time and I don't remember exactly which places they were. John reasons that someone must have told Sherlock about his military service, their mutual friend perhaps. Sherlock instead tells John everything he has observed about him including from his phone (in the story it was his watch) when he borrowed it briefly, and everything is spot on.

There are some characters that were added. Anderson, who is a pithy side character always exchanging jabs with Sherlock. Anderson works with the forensics branch of homicide investigation. The chief inspector has the same name as the one in the stories, Lestrade. His character is way more nuanced in the show, though. In the stories, he's kind of an idiot. In the show, he's just in over his head. There is also the added character of Sally Donovan, a deputy inspector who dislikes Sherlock and warns John that he should stay away from the man. Donovan is a chief player in Moriarty's eventual scheme to bring Sherlock down, but she doesn't do it intentionally. She just leaps to the conclusion that Moriarty has guided her towards. We don't see much of Donovan in the last two seasons, if I recall. Perhaps that is because she served her purpose.

The character of Molly Hooper is an added character that I thoroughly enjoyed. I believe she is supposed to be a fan self-insert type character. She is a mortician who has a huge crush on Sherlock. Despite all his observational abilities, he seems completely oblivious to this fact. It is through this crush that we see how Sherlock's use of his skills can hurt the people around him. For instance, he observes that he thinks the man she is dating is gay (it turns out to be Jim Moriarty in disguise, so only kinda gay) I mean there is a certain homoeroticism to his relationship with Sherlock. In another instance, Sherlock observes that Molly has taken extra care with one of her Christmas presents and muses that she must have found herself a new boyfriend, she runs away and Sherlock sees that the name on the present is his own, but it is not until the very last season that this comes to a heartbreaking climax. I will not spoil it for those of you who may not have seen it, but it is totally worth the watch if only for this moment.

Now we come to the character of Mary Watson. As anyone who has read the stories knows, Mary Watson does not live long. She is killed at some point, so I knew when her character was introduced that this was the probable inevitability. So Mary is introduced in the first episode of season three. Everyone thinks Sherlock is dead. Watson has moved on, he is dating someone. Sherlock shows up at the restaurant where he is about to propose to the woman and disguises himself as the waiter. John doesn't notice at first and when he does, he goes ballistic. Sherlock let him think he was dead for two whole years, there's a lot of anger there. So after getting kicked out of the restaurant for having a fist fight, then another place because John attacked Sherlock again in the middle of his story of what happened. Mary tends to their wounds and calms John down. Then, John proposes and Mary says yes.

Mary Watson has to be the best development of a character who, in the stories, was just a distraction, into the most nuanced and beautiful character that the moment she dies rips you in half. I loved her character. I loved that Sherlock ended up loving her (in a completely platonic way of course) despite the fact that she kept secrets. It could be argued that all of the people Sherlock cares deeply about have some hidden side to them. Mrs. Hudson has some kind of a shady past connection to a drug cartel. John is an adrenaline junkie. And Mary, Mary is an assassin. Or, at least, she was. This doesn't come out until after the wedding. I love how Sherlock reveals how much he cares about John in his best man speech despite trying to catch a killer who has somehow infiltrated the wedding and is gunning for one of the guests. It's great character development to show flashes to Sherlock standing speechless as he explains all the ways he thanked John for the offer, but he finishes by saying "it turns out I had said none of this aloud". 

Okay, so lets talk about the villains. Of course you all know the big bad Jim Moriarty (James in the original stories). He stays mostly behind the scenes in the first few episodes, only coming out to play in the last episode of the season where he has Sherlock complete a series of puzzles culminating with him kidnapping John and threatening his life. Sherlock gives in to Jim's demands and rescues John just in the nick of time from the bomb that is strapped to his chest. As the series continues it turns out that, just as Sherlock is what they consider a consulting detective, Jim is a consulting criminal. He has his hand in every pie and he just loves playing with Sherlock. Jim is the perfect foil to Sherlock. He is brilliant and there is no limit to what he is willing to do. The rooftop exchange between the two of them and Sherlock's subsequent conversation with John is some of the best writing I've seen in a drama series ever.

Besides for Jim, there are minor villains. Irene Adler (who is more of a grey character than all out villian) who bests Sherlock, but perhaps also has feelings for him. She ends up being on Moriarty's payroll as well, but the culmination of her character arc was brilliant. Since the story with her character in it is the one I read the most growing up, and my favorite Sherlock story of all time, I was super interested in how they were going to portray her character. I loved that they made her a dominatrix and that she chose to greet Sherlock naked for their first meeting to confuse him. Everything about her arc was done brilliantly and I really appreciated how they modernized it.

Magnussen was a villain only brilliant in that he was thoroughly detestable and the only qualm the audience has with Sherlock killing him at the end of season three is that he is going to face some kind of consequence for doing it. You see, Magnussen is the reason that Mary Watson's secret comes out, and he is blackmailing her with it. To protect her, Sherlock meets with Magnussen and learns that he doesn't actually have physical copies of the documents he's using to blackmail her, they are filed away in his brain. In other words, the only way to destroy them is to destroy him. So Sherlock does what he needs to to protect the people he loves. Because Mycroft is basically one of the highest people in the British Government, he is able to make it so as long as Sherlock leaves the country he doesn't face charges. Sherlock gets on a plane and the season ends with all TV screens playing a video short with Jim Moriarty's face saying "Did you miss me?" on loop. They decide not to send Sherlock away after all.

Other notable villains: the driver from A Study in Pink, the tribute to HH Holmes, and Sherlock's sister Euros. I'm not really going to talk about these villains much as I've already written a pretty long post, but they are all interesting in their own right, especially Euros.

Sherlock is one of the few pieces of media that I would say improved on the source material. It is, without a doubt, the best adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's character that I've ever seen. It is brilliantly acted. The writing is excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed the character development and the dialog. All the plots are nuanced and well executed. It is just a brilliant piece of work. I'd like to see more, but it's at the point that I don't want them to ruin it by making more.

Thanks for reading, tune in next time as I compare Good Omens the mini-series to the book by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett.

Comparing Anne of Green Gables to Anne with an E and other adaptations

 I first read the Anne of Green Gables series when I was a child. I reread the series aloud to two of my siblings as a teen and read some of it to my own kids as well. One thing I always loved about Anne was how she was ever curious and inventive. I also liked that she tried to help others and accepted them without judgment. That is why I think Anne with an E is the best adaptation because it really captures what her character was like even if it changed certain parts of the story.

Anne with an E is a modern adaptation (not set in modern times) which adds things that wouldn't have been possible to explore in a series written at the time Anne of Green Gables was first written. Anne with an E does a good job of highlighting Anne's past trauma before coming to Green Gables. It differs from the books in several ways. The first major diversion is added for dramatic effect (which I didn't like because I rarely like it when they change the story for purely dramatic reasons), it is them sending Anne back to the orphanage and Matthew needing to go after her once Marilla realizes that Anne did not (in fact) take her brooch. In the books it was much less dramatic, Marilla just banning Anne from going to the ice cream social and making her stay in her room.

The major changes that I liked revolved around including LGBT issues and issues of class and race which would have existed at the time but not been talked about. In Anne of Green Gables, Diana's great aunt is rich and eccentric and crochety. In Anne with an E she is all of those things, but also gay. It was so well written, and so in keeping with the spirit of her character that it made me doubt my own memory about the actual books not containing even a hint of this aspect of her character. I know for a fact that the books did not contain Anne learning of this or anything like that (which happened in the series). The fact that Anne is so open to and accepting of Aunt Josephine even after learning this was so in character for her that I loved it even more.

Another major change was the inclusion of  Ka'Kwet who belongs to an indigenous tribe that lives nearby Avonlea. This wouldn't have been included in a major publication at the time Anne of Green Gables was written, but the indigenous peoples of Canada and their struggles would have been happening and it is really good to see a work that was previously entirely anglo-centric being adapted to include people of color. Also, the entire struggle with her being sent off to a conversion school is in keeping with the policies of the day when dealing with indigenous peoples. There is also a side story with Gilbert befriending a black man after his father's death when he goes off the sea. This is an entirely Anne with an E storyline as Gilbert and Anne exchanged letters because she was working while he attended medical school (see Anne of Windy Poplars) not because he went to sea following his father's death. Even so, I liked this development of Gilbert Blythe because the one in the book isn't really very well developed, especially not compared to Anne or even several other characters around her.

One character that hasn't really been adapted into any of the movies or television series that I've seen is Lavender Lewis. I really liked her character when I read the book (Anne of Avonlea) and I have always been disappointed not to see her character appear in any adaptations of the series.

I have also seen the movies starring Megan Follows as Anne. The series of three movies stays pretty true to the story for the first two movies changing only a few details and skipping a great deal of both Anne of Avonlea and Anne of the Island by combining them into one movie, but it goes an entirely different direction with the third movie. It seems to have moved the timeline up as the war (which started when Anne's youngest Rilla was a teenager) is already in full swing and Gilbert is fighting. I didn't like this change much. I would have preferred to see Rilla of Ingleside adapted. I loved the books focusing on Anne's children, but especially Rilla of Ingleside. I wish Anne with an E would continue its adaptation after Anne's marriage to Gilbert and follow her children, or that an adaptation would be made that focused solely on the last two books of the series. I can completely see Walter being gay, from the way he is described and his whole tragic story, given that he is Rilla's favorite brother I would say that Rilla possesses a lot of her mother's open-mindedness.

Thanks for reading. Tune in next time when I talk about the BBC adaptation Sherlock as opposed to the original stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Book/American Film comparison

Steg Larsson's book The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and its two sequels are not for the feint of heart. The books challenge the idea of a female being helpless simply because she is weaker or smaller. From the moment the protagonist of our novels Mikael Blomkvist meets Lizbeth Salandar we the reader can tell she's different. She's brilliant, she's mysterious and she's strong. She's also physically smaller than even the average woman. So today I want to examine what the movie got right and ways in which it messed up in order to wrap everything up neatly.

The characterizations are pretty much spot on for most of the movie. That is, until our protagonist and Lizbeth sleep together. For whatever reason the movie decided that Lizbeth would bare her soul to Mikael after they slept together which she did not do in the books. This is completely out of character for her. In the book series it took lots of working together and him having her back and vice-versa before she revealed anything to him. She wouldn't have become vulnerable just because they had sex and that the movie changed this about her character is a little discomforting to me.

The movie only covers the first book of the series, at the end of which Mikael still knew very little about Lizbeth. He learned that she was a hacker (on his own) and confronted her about it, after which she admitted to it, but apart from that, she's still very mysterious. Even the reader doesn't know much about her character that Mikael doesn't. We do learn that she's resourceful, and that even when victimized, she finds a way to rise above. We also learn that she is willing to do a lot of morally ambiguous things to get where she has to be. After being raped (for instance) she does not kill her rapist, despite considering that as a possibility, because she knows the job of guardian will go to someone else and she sees an opportunity to control her guardian the way he intended to control her so that she finally has control over her own money. The movie did a good job at capturing this aspect of her personality and I love that she's still the one to save Mikael from the killer. I would have loathed the movie if they had made her a damsel in distress.

I also feel like the movie really glossed over the fact that Lizbeth is bi (or pan) sexual in favor of concentrating on her relationship with Mikael. While I believe it does show some of her relationship with the girl that had been her sex buddy before she started working with Mikael, the very act of her opening up to Mikael in the movie changed their relationship. In the books, she sleeps with him on a whim and it is made clear that the act meant more to Mikael than it did to her. She just likes sex. When she is accused of murder in a subsequent book, even Mikael doesn't know if she's innocent (though he wants to believe her and ends up working with her to help prove she wasn't involved). The movie wanted to resolve their relationship right away (presumably because they didn't intend on making the subsequent movies that explained more about her character).

So while I think the American movie adaptation was good. I would definitely say you need to read the books. I've heard that the Swedish movie series is better, that it does a good job of staying faithful to the books, but I don't think I've seen it to be able to make that analysis. For now, if you want the best version of Lizbeth Salander, stick to the books.

Thank you for reading. Tune in next time when I talk about the Anne of Green Gables book series vs. The first movie adaptation series and the series Anne with an E.

Comparing Pride and Prejudice the book with many adaptations I've seen

It is a truth universally acknowledged that Jane Austen was a writing genius. And if you don't get the reference, the first part of that sentence is how Pride and Prejudice begins. But if you don't get that reference, you probably won't be interested in reading the rest of this post, because this is all about that particular story. I have watched three film versions of Pride and Prejudice, one was a mini-series starring Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy one was the Bollywood production Bride and Prejudice, and the other was the newest adaptation with Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Bennet. I will be examining how impressed I was with these adaptations as well as diving into the modernized versions I've seen and the fanfiction adaptation Bridget Jones Diary. I have read the original book through at least twice, I have also gone over certain passages for different classes I took during college, and written a few papers on it. This being said, there may be a few things I misremember since it has been a few years since my last reading and all the films have been viewed over the course of several years as well. So bear with me and if you notice any glaring errors, feel free to address them in the comment section and I'll be sure to fix them.

First, since it is a miniseries instead of a Hollywood film, the Colin Firth adaptation is able to stay fairly true to the original source material. All of the adaptations I'll be examining kept most of the key plot points, Mr. Wickham and his wickedness, Mr. Darcy's clandestine manipulation of the situation allowing what would have been a huge scandal to blow over quickly and saving Elizabeth's entire family from a ruined reputation, The sister element is not present in Bridget Jones Diary to my recollection, but all the other adaptations I'm going to examine have a version of Jane and a version of Lydia who are the most important sisters to the plot. Mary and Kitty are just kind of there, they don't really progress the plot at all. I also don't recall a Mr. Collins-esque character in Bridget Jones diary (correct me if I'm wrong Bridget Jones fans). But Mr. Collins is a part of all the other adaptations if I'm recalling them correctly. The person that Mrs. Bennet is just salivating to matchmake to one of her daughters but who, because of Elizabeth's refusal ends up marrying Elizabeth's best friend Charlotte instead. What each of the stories do differently is mostly in their portrayal of the main characters and in the direction of the action so I'll be examining all of those in my analysis.

In the Colin Firth adaptation, Darcy is shown as being conflicted between his pride and his love for Elizabeth Bennet. We see him agonize after her rebuttal of his proposal and we see him play with his dogs. These are character building moments. In the original novel. Jane Austen writes from Elizabeth's perspective. We cannot see Darcy's attraction to her until she is able to see it but we see her attraction to him before she does. The letter changes everything. In the Keira Knightly version, we see the passion between them in the rain scene where he declares his undying love for her and an argument fraught with sexual tension. In fact, all the scenes of Darcy and Elizabeth together, even when she is cutting through him with her sharp wit, are charged with that same tension. The director did a fantastic job of showing this especially in the dance scene where everyone else fades away and the two of them are the only ones left showing that they are so focused on each other that it's as if the rest of the ballroom doesn't exist. I also loved the portrayal of Mr. Collins in this one simply because he is just as slimy and unlikeable as he is in the books, with an added layer of awkwardness after he gets married (stumbling on the word intercourse while exchanging a glace with Charlotte, for instance).

Of course, no analysis of the Pride and Prejudice series starring Colin Firth would be complete without talking about the swimming scene. This scene only exists in this version. It is not pertinent to the story, it simply serves as eye candy for the female audience, but I love it all the same. In it, Darcy goes for a swim at a pond on his estate and Elizabeth and her family are touring the estate at the time and he sees them right after while his shirt still clings to his wet body. The sexual tension in this scene is almost as high as it is in the Keira Knightly scene at the pavilion where Darcy proposes for the first time.

One of the things I really enjoyed about the book, and one that is best captured in the Colin Firth version, is the dialog. I really loved Elizabeth Bennet's quick wit and her exchanges with all the other characters. I think, however, the character of Mr. Bennet is best captured by Donald Sutherland (such an amazing actor) in the Keira Knightly version. My favorite exchange between the two is included in both adaptations. It is where Mrs. Bennet is in a dither about Elizabeth turning down Mr. Collins' proposal (since all she can think about is marrying her daughters off without a single thought to whether or not they'll be happy) Mrs. Bennet seeks her husbands aid in convincing his daughter to accept the proposal. His response is epic: "From this day, you shall be ever estranged from one of your parents. Your mother will not see you again if you do not accept Mr. Collins, and I will not see you again if you do." The Keira Knightly version does this scene beautifully, setting it in the woods where Mr. Bennet is going on a walk when approached by Mrs. Bennet. Keira Knightly does a fantastic job of seeming anxious when Mr. Bennet starts talking and then throwing her arms about him in her relief. It's just so well done. This is my favorite scene with the two of them.

So now that we've explored both actual adaptations of Pride and Prejudice, let's turn our attention to the Bollywood production and the fanfic. I loved the Bollywood decision to make it so the scandal of the young Ms. Darcy's involvement with Wickham went beyond just eloping. In the Bollywood version, Wickham got Darcy's teenage sister pregnant and she had to have an abortion. This is as modernized as I've ever seen the scandal. I also love that Darcy finds Wickham in a theater and attacks him in front of a movie that's playing. The songs were good, but some of them did distract me from the overall story. I liked the dynamic of a culture clash between the American Darcy and the Indian Lalita (the Elizabeth Bennet character). In this version, however, the main character is there to witness Darcy's interference with Wickham and her sister, she does not hear about it second hand as she does in the original story.

Finally, in the fanfic Bridget Jones Diary. Mark Darcy is a stuffy lawyer type and the Wickham character is Bridget's boss Daniel Cleaver. The misunderstanding of why Darcy and Cleaver hate each other is (just like in Pride and Prejudice) facilitated by Daniel's lying to Bridget about something by making himself out to be a victim and painting Darcy as the bad guy. Eventually, Bridget learns the truth, but not from Darcy because it's too personal for him. In Bridget Jones' Diary, it is not Darcy's sister who Cleaver has wronged, but Darcy himself by Cleaver's cuckolding him on his wedding night. Bridget learns of this from a third party who knows about the situation. There is also an awesome Mark Darcy and Daniel Cleaver fist fight after Cleaver says something to make him snap. The sister scandal in Bridget Jones' Diary is not actually Bridget's sister, but her mother who runs away from home and gets into financial straights thanks to her new boyfriend swindling her. Darcy ends up helping her out on the DL because that's just who he is after a distraught Bridget turns to him for comfort about the situation.

I liked all the versions I've seen and though I would never say any of them are "as good" as the book, they all have their own charms. Every adaptation that I've seen did some things better. The Colin Firth version was the most faithful to the original story, the Keira Knightly version had the most passion, the Bollywood production was the most modern while staying with the original story and the fanfic was the most creative adaptation. I loved them all, but I'll continue to read the book because there's nothing like the original story and Jane Austen does it so well.

Thanks for reading. Tune in next time for my analysis of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo book series vs. the American movie version.

A Silent Voice: Manga/Film comparison

 So I've been thinking recently about how I like to read, I have all these books and manga that I've read and also watched the film or anime counterparts and I thought it would be interesting to compare what I thought of each. The one I've chosen for today's analysis is a movie I've watched several times, and even though I've only read the manga through once and it was a while ago. That being said, let's dive right in.

So the first thing I want to say is that the manga is pretty long so it was only going to cover everything if they had made it into a series and they made a movie instead. It was natural that some things would get cut. The first thing on the chopping block was most of the childhood bullying. The manga really shows Shoya's state of mind throughout. How he's trying to alleviate his boredom and show off to his "friends" who join in as well and then throw him under the bus when shit hits the fan. The movie relegates all of this to the opening montage, which is a perfectly fine artistic choice. The bullying is the backdrop, the main focus is the affect it had on the kids after they got older anyway.

Next, a lot of the friendship with Tomohiro gets cut, but enough of it is left that you get a good sense that this is Shoya's first friendship since he was like ten and he doesn't want to mess it up. I really loved that they kept the x's on the faces and the camera angled to show that he's always looking down was a good choice as well. I also really love the musical accompaniment they picked for the most emotional moments because it really fit in nicely.

The only thing they cut, which I understand they didn't have time for, that I would have liked them to keep because it had such an impact on me, was the movie. You see, in the manga, the friend group that starts to form around Shoya and Shouko decides to make a movie. The movie requires them to talk to the elementary school teacher at the school where Shoya bullied Shouko and you see just how much the teacher's attitude factored into the hostile environment where the kids thought it was no big deal to bully one another for being different. Shoya finds out just how devastating this can be when he becomes the target instead of the bully, but you also see something else and that is the development and exposure of Toshi as a character. In the movie, his character is kind of a backdrop character, necessary only as the fuse that ignites Miki Kawai to show her true colors since she has a crush on him. In the manga, he is a staunch protector of bullied kids because he endured that as a child and he goes off on the teacher for allowing it to happen in his school. When he finds out that Shoya used to be a bully, that sets him off which is the beginning of the friend group unraveling. It is also the movie that eventually brings the friend group back together as Shouko gets everyone back together to finish it and they show it to Shoya at the cultural festival as proof that they all love him. 

The other thing they downsized for the movie was the extent of Ueno's animosity towards Shouko, especially after the suicide attempt. In the manga, Ueno keeps Shouko from visiting Shoya in the hospital when he won't wake up. She physically baracades the door so Shouko can't get in. Some of this animosity is shown in the movie because the rooftop attack scene is kept in, but the majority of it, and the final culmination of Shouko actually getting Ueno to agree to help with the film is a progression that I liked seeing in the manga. 

Overall I would probably rate both of them a 10/10, both were very emotional. I also have to say that this is one of the handful of anime movies I can watch in dub because they did such a wonderful job with the VA for the dub. I still prefer hearing the original Japanese, maybe someday I'll be able to read the manga in the original Japanese script as well.

Well that has been it for this episode. Hope you enjoyed and tune in next time when we discuss one of my favorite authors Jane Austen and the many adaptations of Pride and Prejudice that I've seen.

"Yes, God, Yes" Movie review

 Sorry, having trouble thinking up a clever play on this movie name. I watched this last night on Netflix. The MC is played by the same girl who plays Nancy in Stranger things, which is what initially caught my eye. The story follows a young girl going to Catholic school as she goes through a sexual awakening despite being told by everyone around her that anything sexual outside of marriage is a sin that will earn her eternal damnation.

The movie was made in 2019, but seems to be set in the early to late 90's because of the technology and computer chat rooms. The MC Alice is currently the object of a rumor that she "tossed someone's salad" a phrase I'd never even heard before that apparently refers to anilingus. Anyway, Alice doesn't know what it means either but that doesn't stop everyone (even the teachers) from believing it as unequivocally true. Alice goes off to a retreat sponsored by the school where you're not allowed to have your phone or watch (the better to brainwash) but Alice keeps her phone at first so she can play the snake game on it if she gets bored. Eventually she figures out that the vibrate feature meant to keep you alerted while it's on silent can have other uses.

Anyway, having grown up in a super religious household I kind of get it. I mean, I never went to school or anything, so the being bullied and the object of unfounded rumors part is foreign to me, but the idea that if you step out of line you're going to hell (or as my father called it, the lake of fire) struck home with me. I was appalled at the double standard the people around her seemed to have. The father at her school teaches in class that masturbation is a sin, but Alice accidentally stumbles on him watching porn on his computer and masturbating to it. Alice also sees one of her group leaders giving another a blow job and she tries to tell her friend about it and her friend accuses her of lying.

Eventually, Alice realizes that this life isn't for her and decides to stop letting it box her in. She also, finally, finds out what it is that everyone has been saying she did. The movie ends with her watching the sex scene in Titanic and using a vibrating toy to get herself off. Showing that she has accepted her sexuality and is comfortable with it now.

I'd say this movie is a pretty good portrayal of how it feels to grow up in a super religious context and try to be the "good" one only to find yourself constantly falling short. At least my parents didn't teach masturbation as a sin (although pornography was considered to be one). They did, however, drive home a particular homophobic message that haunted me well into my adult years. Thankfully, as I got away from people who shared this obnoxious point of view, I realized that there is nothing wrong with attraction to the same gender and that some people are just born like that. 

I was happy that the movie showed her moving past that brainwashing hypocritical ideology that was being shoved down her throat. The fact is that trying to suppress sexual urges is the worst way to manage them. Masturbation is a completely healthy alternative if you're not ready for sex yet and a young person should never be shamed for doing it. They shouldn't be allowed to do it out in the open, of course, but they shouldn't be taught that it's wrong or that there's something wrong with them for wanting to do it. 

Favorite Anime Characters List

Time for a new kind of list. This time I thought I'd list some of my favorite characters from shows and movies and maybe a few books. When applicable, I will tag them as LGBT in honor of pride month.

Daru (Stein's Gate)

What I love about him: Besides being smart and loyal, he's also funny and kind. I like that he's a bit of a perv (he makes dirty jokes anyway) but in an innocent kind of way. Like when he's actually presented the opportunity to be with a woman (in the sequel Stein's Gate 0) it's cute how embarrassed and self-conscious he is IRL as opposed to the jokes he makes. I like that he is able to get through to Okabe when he's freaking out from PTSD because it really helps Okabe out. I also totally called the surprise reveal that concerned his character and it made my day since he's my fave, but it also made one of the dirty jokes he made even funnier when you go back and look at it in context (which by that time in the show I'd already guessed it). You know what I'm talking about if you've seen it, but I'm not going to spoil for those of you who haven't.

Accelerator (A certain Magical Index / A certain scientific Railgun / A certain scientific Accelerator) headcanon ace/aro not confirmed

What I love about him: He has an amazing character development arc where he goes from full on villian to not such a bad guy to a real good guy with a few badish traits. His self-sacrificing move in A Certain Magical Index actually made me cry. I love it when I start off hating a character because they're hurting people or something and then over the course of time the story brings them full circle to where I love them more than anyone else. That's good story telling.

Omasu Dazai (Bungo Stray Dogs)

What I love about him: He's quirky, he's smart/brilliant, he's got a powerful ability and he's morally grey. What's not to love? I really like complex characters who are OP because they make for some really interesting dialog and some really interesting plot twists. Also it's unclear if he's seriously suicidal or just trolling everyone with his comical attempts. I know that's a serious issue, but I do like a little bit of dark comedy now and again.

Rei (March Comes in like a Lion)

What I love about him: His smile. It's so rare because he's depressed but he's got a support system now and he's learning to lean on them and when he actually smiles, it's beautiful. It's beautiful to see how hard he tries, his inner conflict, and his soul. He is just a wonderful character.

Hirano (Highschool of the Dead)

What I love about him: Whenever he gets a gun (or something close to it) he completely changes his personality from shy/introverted to leadership material. Also, it was his quick thinking and action that saved the little girl from the zombie attack even though the others were going to just let her die prior to that. So, yeah. Lot to love about this character.

Shirosaki (Kawai Complex guide to Manors and Hostel Behavior)

What I love about him: His whole sub/dom relationship with Mayumi. It's pretty obvious to me right away that he is in love with her and she relies on him too even though she's out there searching for love with someone else because she can't quite accept the way she feels about him. Everyone sees him as a perv because he has this masochist streak and likes being tied up. What I loved about that side of him was that he wasn't shy about it. This is what he likes and he's okay with being that way. I loved how he always tries to make Mayumi smile when she's upset or does stuff to cheer her up, like the bubble game. I love that he's smart and caring. And his rope skills really got useful when they encountered that flasher. Most of all, he's a writer, and a good one at that. And I love that his writing is what he's shy about. Like seriously, everyone in the show doesn't get how he doesn't blush about his sexual proclivities but when you mention his writing he gets all bashful. I get it, though.

Miyamura (Horimiya)

What I love about him: He's such a gentle soul. So sweet, caring, helpful. Outside of school, he expresses his individuality through tattoos and piercings, but he hides those at school because he doesn't want to cause problems or get into trouble. He's so open and honest with Hori about everything that I completely believe she doesn't want him to get another piercing because he told her exactly why he started piercing his own ears in the first place (even though that would have happened off screen). I love that he is slowly coming out of his shell and gaining new friendships. It breaks my heart when he has the dream about encountering his past self who asks him "can I die?" because I just want to wrap him in my arms and tell him it's okay.

Misaki (Pet Girl of Sakura Hall)

What I love about her: She's lively, artistic, and she knows what she wants. Sure she may be stalking her childhood friend (but not to the point where it's causing him any real harm). I love that she's just always so open and honest about everything. 

Roy Mustang (Full Metal Alchemist/Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood)

What I love about him: He's badass, loyal, and stern. He has a goal, to overthrow the corrupt government that would plunge the country into war to meet its own ends, and he's not shy about trying to get there. When his best friend is killed, he almost loses himself to the revenge as he loses himself when Hawkeye is put into danger, but it is Hawkeye who saves him from doing the same thing to Envy that he did to Lust letting him see that his anger and hatred is blinding him. I also love the line "It's a horrible day for rain" after Maes Hughes funeral, it's just so overwhelming because Roy Mustang is a fire alchemist he can't really use his power in the rain. He feels powerless. I cry every time. I'm tearing up just remembering it.

Armin (Attack on Titan)

What I love about him: He's a good guy. He's smart and loyal. He knows what's right and he doesn't want to hurt other people but he will if it's necessary. He may get a bit scared and unsure of himself from time to time, but that just makes him all the more human and therefore more loveable.

Yato (Norigami)

What I love about him: Two words, morally grey. Morally grey and complex characters are so good. As I've said before, they allow for so many interesting plot developments and such well developed dialog. Yato is a minor god. In the past he was a god of calamity who murdered people. His creator, the one he calls father, has been manipulating him to think that if he stops listening to the prayers of people who want revenge that he'll disappear, but Yato isn't giving up on being a good god who makes people happy. He may not have the best relationships with his shinki, but he'd never abandon them to save himself. His whole relationship with Bishimon and why she hates him so much is very compelling as well. I just really liked his character.

Shoto Todoroki (My Hero Academia) headcanon as ace/aro but not confirmed

What I love about him: He's quiet and unassuming but really badass. He's determined not to be like his abusive father, but willing to learn from him to become a better hero. He has the same motivation to be a hero that Deku and Bakugo have, but he approaches it differently. His character evolves over time. I also feel like he's somewhat neurodivergent.

Saiki Kusou (The Disastrous life of Saiki K) ace/aro

What I love about him: His antics are hilarious. He just wants to be normal, but can't be because he's so OP. He cares about people. He just wants to blend in (pink hair and antennae not withstanding) but he's too different. He always attracts interesting and unique individuals who get in the way of the peaceful, unassuming life he's trying to lead. He's so adverse to cockroaches that he'll teleport to the other side of the world if he sees one.

Simon (Durarara)

What I love about him: At first Simon is just this foreigner who doesn't speak Japanese very well, but he always has some pretty good lines nonetheless. Then, as the show wears on you begin to see that Simon has more to his character. I really love the end of the first season when Simon speaks in Russian for the first time on the show. (I won't spoil anything, but it's amazing). 

Chitanda (Hyouka)

What I love about her: She's so curious and sparkly and full of life. Every time she says "I'm curious" I want to help her solve the mystery right along with Oreki. I love that she was so concerned about the fact that she couldn't remember what her uncle said to her, only that it was important, that she would engage Oreki's help in figuring out what it might have been.

Rimuru Tempest (That Time I got Reincarnated as a Slime) agender

What I love about him: He's strong (he's got insane skills), loyal, and just trying to create a better society. That doesn't stop people from trying to get in his way. I love the way he handles situations with a combination of skill and smarts. I love how he's able to turn powerful enemies into allies. He's just a really badass character and I love to watch him kick ass.

Rikka (Love Chuunibyou and other delusions) 

What I love about her: She has a big, wonderful, imagination and her learning to love is so adorable. I love the development of her character and their relationship as he helps her despite her chuunibyou (a phase where the kid, usually middle school age, pretends to live in a fantasy world and actively pretends to fight monsters and such) which he finds cringeworthy because she's old enough that he thinks she should have outgrown it like he did and she helps him to see that normal isn't always the best thing ever.

Zenitsu (Demon Slayer)

What I love about him: Okay, so I see Zenitsu getting a lot of hate for being a little girl crazy (which is probably more about his age) and for crying/not wanting to rush into danger. I don't see it that way though. Yeah, he's afraid, but who wouldn't be. Despite that fear, Zenitsu is incredibly kind and protective of others and he pays attention. Just look at the episode where they fight the drum demon. Zenitsu hears the ominous drumming coming from the house and he's afraid to enter it, sure, but he does so along side Tanjiro. He also pays attention to what Tanjiro says despite complaining himself while Tanjiro is talking because he protects the box when Inosuke tries to attack it. He also knows that a demon is inside the box because he can hear that the noises aren't human. Also, I really love his character development, how he slowly is able to gain courage and eventually rushes into danger without even batting an eye while wide awake. I love that when he falls asleep he's a total badass, and look forward to the point in the story where he'll be a total badass while awake too.

Haruhi Suzumiya (The melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya) headcanon as bisexual but not confirmed

What I like about her: She's always up for some kind of crazy antics which keep Kyon and the other characters on their toes. That and she's a literal god who can make stuff happen just by thinking it. She's also kind and loyal and she's a terrific singer. There's just so much to love about her (endless 8 notwithstanding).

King (Seven Deadly Sins)

What I like about him: King rises to other people's expectations of him and is constantly exceeding them. He selflessly erases Diana's memories of him when he knows he'll probably never see her again to ease her pain at losing their friendship. He also takes more than his share of the guilt when things go wrong. He's kind and loyal, and despite learning about Ban's role in his sister's death he is able to forgive the man and move on from this. 

Ruka (Stein's Gate) Gay or Trans

What I liked about them: They are a beautiful character. I don't really like that they made the wish to be born a girl all about Rintarou Okabe. I felt like that confused the issue of Ruka's identity. Is Ruka a gay man or are they a trans woman? It's not really clear. I did, however, like their character overall. They are sweet and loyal and kind. Also hated the groping scene (so unnecessary and not okay even if Okabe had been right and Ruka had a male body).

Natsume (Natsume's Book of Friends) headcanon as ace/aro but not confirmed

What I love about him: Natsume is a beautiful soul who just wants to be accepted but rarely finds it amongst humans. He has been passed from relative to relative, all of them finding him weird because he has the ability to see and speak with things other people do not. He finally gets placed with a couple who are actually good people and he begins to blossom there. He meets Madara, who protects him for dangerous yokai and he begins to deal with the mess his grandmother left behind with her "book of friends" which lists the names of various yokai and thus give the holder power over them. Natsume sets out on a mission to free all those yokai that his grandmother have in her book and he begins to understand what kind of woman his grandmother was in the process. I really love the development of his character. The whole show is just so sweet and evenly paced.

Haruki Nakayama (Given) bisexual

What I love about him: He's the motherly type. He takes care of everyone in the band, helping them out when needed. He prioritizes his friendship with Kaji over his own selfish crush on the man. He's very sweet and very perceptive. 

Morgiana (Magi)

What I love about her: This powerful ex-slave is a fighting machine, but that doesn't stop her being feminine when she wants to. She's bad-ass and she's bright, and she's new to friendship and love and her journey is amazing. It is hard, at first, for her to break the Stockholm Syndrome she's developed over the course of her enslavement, but eventually she comes out of her shell and when she does, she shines.

Yukino Yukinoshita (Oregaru)

What I love about her: She's smart, she's beautiful, you'd think she had it all, but she has trouble making friends and she can't really talk back to her family about what she wants. That's where her relationship with Hatchiman helps her out. He is able to figure out ways to work around the problems she has and he supports her. I really like their relationship together, and her relationship with Yui as well. If any anime deserved making two members of the harem into a throuple with the main guy, it is this one. Hatchiman, Yui, and Yukino just fit. Eventually, Hatchiman chooses, and I think he made the right choice, but wish he didn't have to. 

Twenty-faces (Trickster) gay

What I love about him: This is going to be the first truly dark character on my list. Okay so his relationship with Akechi (who heads a boys detective agency kind of like in Bungo Stray Dogs except with mostly teens instead of ranging ages) is kind of like the relationship that Sherlock Holmes and Jim Moriarty share in the hit TV series Sherlock. It's a lot of him playing with Akechi, and using other people to make him solve mysteries but only because he thinks Akechi wants excitement. He's sadistic and unstable, but he's interesting. He's kind of a male yandere character with a brilliant intellect and the ability to disguise himself as whomever he wishes. Before the series end, it comes out that Twenty-Faces was in the army with Akechi and that is where he got the idea that Akechi gets bored easily. He is in love and just wants to be acknowledged by the man he loves. Yes, he goes about it in a horrific way, but I still couldn't help but feel for his character when their history came out.

Ymir (Attack on Titan) lesbian

What I love about her: She is fierce and loyal. She ends up revealing the one secret that she knows will hurt her most to protect everyone else. Her love for Historia Reiss is beautiful and genuine and made me cry when she had to say goodbye. Sometimes she's willing to throw other people under the bus in order to do what she can for Historia, but I don't feel like that's a bad thing. It just makes her more morally grey.

Yuu Otosaka (Charlotte)

What I love about him: He starts out as a really horrible person. He has a power to possess other people, but only for five seconds at a time. He uses this ability to get whatever he wants, be it cheating in school to get good grades or causing a traffic accident so he can "save" a girl and become her boyfriend. He's really despicable at first and that's what makes his character so interesting because, after being scouted for a school where people with different abilities go, his character goes through such enormous growth. Eventually he even sacrifices his own sanity to save the world. It's a pretty amazing character arc.

Takahito Kumagami (Charlotte) headcanon gay but not confirmed

What I love about him: When this character is first introduced he does not talk at all. He comes in the room soaking wet and hovers his finger over a map so that a drop of water indicates the location of the next teen with an ability. It is eventually revealed that this whole ritual was completely unnecessary because he could talk and he could find abilities just by thinking about it. What I like most about his character is the relationship with his best friend (the identity of whom I won't reveal for those of you who don't want to be spoiled because this person's existence is a pretty major one). There is enough in their relationship to indicate that Takahito might be in love with this person, and that it's very possible this person feels the same way about him.

Eiji Okumura (Banana Fish) bisexual? not confirmed to be romantic love

What I love about him: Eiji is smart, loyal, and protective of those he loves. He may come from a background of relative innocence compared to Ash, but that doesn't stop him from leaping into danger when necessary to try to help those around him. I love that he can't just let Ash go, despite it being in his best interest to do so.

Alciel/Ashiya (The Devil is a Part-Timer)

What I love about him: Fiercely loyal and protective of his master Maou, he is also a very adept caretaker. He handles the practical side of living in a world where they don't have access to their magical powers and he's very good at it. He also works just as hard as Maou to make the necessary funds and tries to make sure Maou is eating healthy as much as possible.

Maou Sateo (The Devil is a Part-Timer)

What I love about him: When given a choice between helping people and benefiting himself, he tends to choose helping others. He is a strong leader. He is kind. He may derive his powers from the agony of others, but that doesn't mean he's willing to cause it just to get them back. He's also insanely OP when he has his full powers.

Najimi (Komi Can't Communicate) non-binary

What I love about them: They are lively and quirky and friendly. They are similar in character to Misaki who I mentioned earlier in temperament, but they also have the added benefit of being friends with almost everyone they meet. They also don't seem to have the drawback of being obsessed with a single individual. They just want their friends to be happy. Usually, they are quadruple booked, but they can still manage to carve out some time for Komi and Tadano. I also love that the show doesn't ever emphasize their birth gender calling it (unclear) when referring to whether someone is male or female. When they go places that have gender binary options, like baths and such, Najimi always goes alone instead of going with either the males or the females. They also changed in the gender neutral 'family' changing room at the pool instead of choosing the male or female side. Even their school uniform is gender neutral as they wear a skirt along with the same tie that the males wear.

Yona (Yona of the Dawn) 

What I love about her: Despite being raised as a spoiled princess in what is a very lopsided class-based society, when she gets out and sees what's really going on in her kingdom, it makes her want to fix it. She also learns to be bad-ass so that those around her wont have to protect her all the time, most importantly Hak who has always been her bodyguard but who very obviously has feelings for her. I like the development of her character from naïve spoiled princess to justice warrior.

Shirayuki (Snow White with the Red Hair)

What I love about her: She's not your typical damsel in distress. She's strong, willful and capable. Does she end up falling for the prince? Yes. But only because he's worthy of her. In contrast to most stories with a prince, it is she who saves him upon their first meeting with her knowledge of herbs and remedies. She needs saving once in a while too, but their relationship is by no means one-sided and she is not helpless.

Nino (Arakawa Under the Bridge)

What I love about her: She is quirky, accepting, and loveable. Sure she may be a bit delusional, but that adds to her charm rather than taking away from it. She treats a makeshift home on a bridge pillar as if it's a high-rise penthouse and despite being offered more by the rich Kou who can't stand to be indebted to someone but whose life she's saved, she is content to live where she is with an assortment of quirky characters who may or may not also be delusional. She doesn't have to convince Kou that this world of hers is just as valid as his, she just needs to keep being herself.

Rika (Haganai: I don't have many friends)

What I love about her: She's a bit of a perv, which is rare in a girl character without them being the type who actively assaults or stalks people. She's quirky. She's funny and she's surprisingly shy. I love that she's the first one to tell Kodaka that they are already friends. And her hilarious way of getting him to listen to her.

Senku (Dr. Stone)

What I love about him: He's smart. He's capable. And he's got an insane amount of scientific knowledge stored up. To the point he can recreate almost any modern convenience with privative tools and resources. Is it a bit unrealistic? Sure. Do I love watching him rise to the challenge anyway? You bet.

Kurz Weber (Full Metal Panic)

What I love about him: He's funny, brave, loyal, and interesting. I also really love his dynamic with Melissa Mao. The one scene from the anime that always gets me (although I'm pretty sure it is anime-only because I don't remember it in the manga) is the one where Melissa is fake seducing that bad guy and after knocking him out, Kurz shows up to help and there is some serious sexual tension in that scene before they're interrupted.

Melissa Mao (Full Metal Panic)

What I love about her: She's sexy and smart. She's like the perfect blend of mind and body. She also takes no crap from anyone. She's quick thinking, so she's able to help her colleagues out on numerous occasions and save the day. I like the one where they had to sneak past a Chinese guard and she pulled on her Chinese heritage to convince him that she wasn't a threat. I also really love that scene because they're speaking Chinese and I love hearing them speak languages other than Japanese or English, it always makes me wonder how badly they're butchering the lines though, since I don't speak those languages.

Greed (Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood)

What I love about him: He's complex. He doesn't want to go along with Father's plan, so Father liquidates him and recreates him, but he comes back and defies Father in different ways. Greed cannot be controlled because he wants everything and everything includes independence. I love that he has a major role in defeating Father in the end (not going to say exactly how so I don't spoil it for anyone), but that was such an amazing culmination to his character arc.

Tada Banri (Golden Time)

What I love about him: It's really hard to say what I love about this character without spoiling anything major. Let's just say that there's more to him than it seems at first. He lost his memory in an accident, so he's having to start over from scratch and he kind of feels like he shouldn't have to be made to feel guilty for the fact that he's lost it so he tries to make new memories. What I love about his character though is something to do with the memories he's lost and that's all I'm going to say about that.

Akihito Narihisago (ID Invaded)

What I love about him: He's a morally ambiguous character with a dark past who is smart and capable. The story is about him solving crimes by entering into a criminal's psyche and ferreting out what makes them tick. They do this because they are able to pick up traces at a crime scene of that criminals intent and put it into a machine. In order for a person to enter the machine, they have to have killed someone, so you already know that Akihito has something dark in his past. In the machine he's always solving a murder, but in real life it's often other types of cases that he's trying to solve. I just really love his arc and how they portrayed his past and the mystery element to his character.

Yashiro (K)

What I love about him: Talk about a mystery character. This guy seems as sweet and innocent as a newborn babe, but there are a bunch of people after him because they have a video of what appears to be him murdering one of their friends, then deadpanning the camera and laughing. Not to mention the fact that all of them have superhuman powers. Luckily, he finds someone who believes that he didn't do it who is able to protect him, but for how long? They go about trying to solve the mystery of what happened and Yashiro begins to realize he's not who he thought he was and that it's possible he's guilty after all. I'm not going to spoil how it pans out, but it's a really fun ride.

Neko (K)

What I love about her: She's loyal, she has this amazing ability to create illusions that fits nicely into the story, she's a cat woman who can freely transform from cat to human and back, which leads to some comedic elements where she doesn't understand why she should wear clothes in her human form since she doesn't in her cat form. She appreciates kindness and warmth (I guess that's partly from being a cat, I would assume a cat would figure out who was kind and not just from how they were treated by those humans).

Kurou Yatogami (K)

What I love about him: He's loyal, he's a good cook, he's very motherly towards Yashiro. He's open-minded to learning the truth, unlike everyone else who is willing to take the video at face value, he wants to solve the mystery with Yashiro. He's a total badass when it comes to fighting and protecting.

Kino (Kino's Journey) could be non-binary, not confirmed

What I love about them: Kino is a young person who journeys from town to town never staying in one place more than 3 days. They have a talking motorcycle called Hermes who keeps them company. They are smart and quick thinking, but also very kind. They are able to make tough decisions when necessary to get themself out of trouble.

Souya Ishida (A Silent Voice)

What I love about him: He is a reformed bully. In his bully days, he mainly did it because he was bored. He didn't think about his victim, he just thrived on the reactions of his peers and it didn't help that his scumbag teacher basically told him that the girl he was bullying was a pain and he didn't like her being in his class. But things took a turn and Ishida started getting bullied instead. All his friends threw him under the bus to save themselves and then the whole class turned on him. After walking in those shoes for about six years (through the rest of grade school, through jr. high and most of high school) Ishida is depressed. He can't look anyone in the eye (this is awesomely depicted through putting x's on all the faces of the people around him) he always thinks people are talking about him when they whisper. He basically just hates life and doesn't want to live anymore. He's even planned his own suicide, paying his mom back for the hearing aids she had to pay for because of his bullying, he sets out to do it but realizes that he still hasn't made amends with his victim. That's when the story really starts because he realizes he wants her forgiveness more than he wants to die. He wants to make it up to her and be friends. I really love the evolution of his character from thoughtless bored bully to self-loathing but kind to finally accepting himself through friendships.

Touru (Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid) Lesbian

What I love about her: Touru is a dragon from another realm who found herself wounded in ours. Initially she hates humans, or seems to. When a drunk Kobayashi came upon her and offered her kindness and a place to stay and to help her heal her wounds, Touru fell in love and would do anything the woman asked even donning a maid costume. The two begin to live together and Touru is very open and honest with her affection for Kobayashi. I love how unabashed she is. I love how she can be sweet and thoughtful, but also mischievous in the same moment. I love her back story with Elma because it is proof that she's always been into women.

Shiroe (Log Horizon)

What I love about him: He's a super good strategist. Like amazing. I love whenever he pushes back his glasses because that generally means he's just come up with something brilliant and I can't wait to hear it. I love learning more about him, why he didn't like guilds because of his old guild breaking up. Why he named the new guild Log Horizon. 

Akatsuki (Log Horizon)

What I love about her: She's feisty, badass, and loyal. I don't know if I'd say I ship her with Shiroe, but I love their dynamic anyway. 

Alice (Sword Art Online: Alicization)

What I love about her: She's complex. She's a badass fighter, but she's also caring. She tries to do the right thing, but doesn't always know what that is. She takes care of Kirito after he goes comatose. She stands up to someone who's had a huge influence on her life and risks everything by breaking her programing, which oddly enough is what makes her the essential piece of the puzzle later.

Eugeo (Sword Art Online: Alicization)

What I love about him: He's loyal and he'll do whatever he can to protect those he loves. He also breaks his programming, but since he sacrifices himself before the end of everything he is not sought after like Alice is. It is unfortunate, because he was also an amazing character. Unfortunately, he blames himself for Alice being taken when they were children because he couldn't break his programming then. That makes him dive into danger far more readily than he should.

Nyanta (Log Horizon)

What I love about him/them: This is a cat person. If I'm remembering correctly, masculine presenting but not sure. I like the air of mystery surrounding them. It always seems like they know more than they're letting on and they jump in to save the day on various occasions as well.

Alibaba (Maji)

What I love about him: He knows what he wants and he's not afraid to stand up to anyone or anything. He's lived a life of destitution, but he is willing to put himself on the line protect other people. On several occasions he stands up for Aladdin and Morgana despite it not being in his best interest to do so. 

Chise (Ancient Magus Bride)

What I love about her: Even though she's only 16 at the offset of this story, she's seen so much hardship that's she's basically given up on life. She goes from that, to actively trying to make the world better and her character growth is just splendid. She's kind, she's badass, and she's adorable. 

Ruth (Ancieth Magus Bride)

What I love about him: Chise's familiar is such an interesting character. He's loyal, as you would expect of a dog, but he's also a bit sassy. It's fun to see his personality develop as his bond with Chise deepens.

Ruijerd Superdia (Jobless Reincarnation)

What I love about him: Another badass with a heart of gold character. This one is the last of his kind which makes him a little jaded when he comes upon our heros, and he's also feared/loathed by almost everyone, but that doesn't stop him trying. I love how frank he is about things too. He's really the best character on this show. I mean, sure Rudy has a lot of character growth for a former shikimori (shut in) but I don't really like the pedo vibes he gives out sometimes. It's one thing if you (with an adult mind) see the children around you as children until they're grown and then you start seeing them like adults, but this is not at all how Rudy acts towards children. Yes, he is physically a child, but that doesn't make it any less creepy to me. I was on the fence about this show for a long time because of things like this, but Ruijerd actually salvaged the show for me. I still didn't like some of the things it did, but I kept watching and a lot of the bad stuff was toned down in later episodes anyway, so the show got better.

Madara (Natsume's Book of Friends)

What I love about him: He's badass, he's snarky, he's loyal, and he's pretty morally grey. You know he's on Natsume's side, but he still has his own way of doing things. Sometimes he goes off and does his own thing and usually Natsume gets in trouble when this happens. I also like that Madara can shapeshift into anything he wants but spends most of his time disguised as a neighborhood cat.

Nezumi (No. 6) Gay

What I love about him: 

Makoto Sunakawa (My Love Story) headcanon ace/aro not confirmed

Kai Ichinose (Forrest of Piano) Gay

Golem (Somali and the Forest Spirit)

Somali (Somali and the Forest Spirit)

Tanaka (Tanaka Kun is always listless) ace/aro

Minori Kusheida (Toradora)

Inko (Toradora)

Yasaburou (Eccentric Family)

Tomoko (Watamote)

Zen (Snow White with the Red Hair)

Hajimaru (Shikimori's Not just a Cutie) headcanon ace/aro but not confirmed

I'm sure there are more, but I've exhausted the list I have updated on MAL at the moment, so that's it for today. I have started the process of writing notes detailing what I loved about each of these characters, but I'm going to have to finish that later. Stay tuned.

Anne with a Twist

 So today I'm going to talk about a show I finished a while ago. The name of the show is Anne with an E and it is loosely based on L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables series which I read as a young girl (several times in fact). One of the things I loved about Anne was her tenacity and individuality. I did think it was silly that she took so long to realize she had feelings for Gilbert (I mean seriously, it was obvious to me from the time he rescued her in the pond). Anyway, they changed up quite a bit of stuff in the Anne with an E adaption, but I liked most of the changes. Like, for instance, they made Aunt Josephine (the crochety rich aunt of Anne's bff Diana who initially had a bad impression of Anne only to be won over in the end) not just a spinster, but actually a Lesbian who was unmarried by choice and kept a traveling companion (code for lover) but whose lady had recently passed on (so she was kind of widowed). I liked that change. It seemed completely in character for the woman. It was so true to her character in my head that I couldn't be absolutely positive there was nothing in the original about a traveling companion that just wasn't emphasized in the same way.

They added this whole bit with the Canadian indigenous peoples that I thought fit snugly into the story as well. They went in a whole different direction with a lot of it after the first episode, but the important part of the story was that the characters were all so very much like the ones they were based on that I believed it. I was truly sad to see it end and I really hope that they continue the story into Anne and Gilbert's marriage because I feel like the could continue to do the same justice to their married life as they did to their courtship. The only real quibble I had with the show was that it kind of rushed their relationship more, although I did think it was ridiculous that it took Anne so long to come to grips with her feelings, in the books it wasn't until the end of her college career on PEI that she finally confessed to Gilbert after learning he was deathly ill and thinking he might die. That was a good three to four years after the show ends with them already having confessed to one another and gotten together. In the show Anne never goes back to Avonlea to teach like she did in the books before college. 

They introduced some different characters and left out some of my favorite characters from the book (like Lavender, the beautiful lady with the snow white hair) or the guy who was the crotchety neighbor who ended up having a funny secret. Still, I loved the adaption the way it was, even with all it left out or changed. I feel like they are two distinct stories (kind of like Full Metal Alchemist vs. Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood). I would even hesitate to say which one I like more. The original is, of course, filled with lovely memories of how I fell in love with storytelling and the idea of being a writer so it's a bit nostalgic. The newer version is more like the newer version of me, more inclusive, more open-minded but still basically the same at its very core.

Some more of my favorite Anime Shows

Just a few more of my favorites. Even though it's pride month, I won't just be including shows with LGBT characters (at least not canonical ones). 

Toradora

This slice of life follows Ryuuji and Taiga in their quest to help each other win over their crushes. Ryuuji is a sweet boy who cooks and cleans for his overworked mother. Taiga lives alone and can't even cook or clean for herself. Both of them have a crush on someone, but don't have the courage to let them know. It starts with a misunderstanding, Ryuuji takes the wrong bag and ends up accidentally stealing the love letter Taiga had written to her crush. Taiga breaks into his apartment to get it back and the two form an unlikely alliance since Taiga is friends with his crush Minori. Some things I liked about this show: I liked the slow burn romance. I've heard a lot of people complain because the two should have figured out their feelings much sooner, but I liked the way it played out. Sure I would have preferred Taiga to end up with Minori. I would have preferred that Minori's joke teasing Ryuuji had not been a joke. Minori tells Ryuuji at one point that she's a lesbian and that she's in love with Taiga. I wish the creators had made it pan out like that instead of making her actual crush be Ryuuji. Oh well, missed opportunity. I liked several of the side characters, especially the parrot Inko. But my absolute favorite thing about the show is the theme song. I can't see a picture of the show without hearing the song start in my head. It's just so catchy. Hard to pick a favorite character, but I'm actually pretty fond of Ryuuji for the fact that they had him break gender stereotypes. 

Re: Zero

What if you woke up in a fantasy world one day and realized you couldn't die? That's the reality for Subaru, but it isn't fun. It turns out that when he dies he returns to a save point (the same point until he clears whatever the objective is) but he has no powers, no special intelligence or magic to help him figure out what he's supposed to do. So he has to die until he gets it right and he experiences every agonizing moment. Along the way he meets a bunch of interesting people. The first is a girl name Emilia who for whatever reason first gives him the name of the witch Satella who she's always mistaken for. After he dies the first time, he tries calling her by that name and she is understandably upset by this. Anyway, lots of stuff happens, Subaru gets PTSD more than once, there are multiple unique and lively characters. Emilia has a familiar named Puck who watches over her like a father. He usually takes the form of a cute animal. She lives in a mansion with a man named Roswaal who wants her to be chosen to be the next ruler of the land. He is the lord of the nearby territory, the people of which don't really trust Emilia because she is a half-elf just like the witch Satella was (Satella has a bad reputation). In fact, most of the people in the land don't really like Emilia and Subaru finds himself defending her on more than one occasion. Rem and Ram are twin demons who serve as maids at the Roswaal mansion. They do a lot to help teach Subaru how to help out when he first decides to stay and both of them become staple characters. I really love the complexities of the Roswaal character, he is shrouded in mystery for the first season, but eventually you learn a lot more about him. Eventually Subaru meets a gender non-conforming fox-person named Felix, I like that character but I don't like the way the story uses them to tease Subaru (the "trap" trope). There are lots of other characters that get introduced later. Garfiel is one of my favorites that gets introduced later on in the series and a lot of that has to do with the fact that I really like his VA. And sorry Rem fans, but Subaru x Emilia is the best ship. Warning, this show has a lot of graphic violence and blood. It might be enough to bother some people.

Bungo Stray Dogs

I really like this show for a lot of reasons. This is a story about a detective agency full of young men and women with powers. All the characters (and I only learned this after getting into the show) are named after famous Japanese authors and all their powers are named after one of that author's most famous works. The main character of this story is Atsushi, a boy whose life keeps on being upended by this mysterious tiger. It's only after being taken in by Dazai and the other members of the Armed Detective Agency that Atsushi learns the tiger that has been plaguing him is himself. He can transform into a tiger, but he has no memory of the transformation or what he does while transformed. The members of the ADA want to help him learn to control his power so he can remember what he does as the tiger and use it to help the agency. My favorite character in this show is Dazai, who is brilliant but slightly odd. A lot of people ship Dazai with his ex-partner Chuuya who works for the enemy organization Port Mafia which Dazai defected from. I think this is because Chuuya's power is so destructive he can't let loose and go all out unless Dazai is around because Dazai possesses the power "No Longer Human" which allows him to negate any and all other powers with the touch of his hand. I will admit that the two have pretty good chemistry and I'd buy it if they became canonical. I like the story, all the characters are really interesting in their own right. I love to see Dazai in action because you always know he has something up his sleeve. Sometimes it seems like he might be a double agent for Port Mafia, and other times it's pretty obvious that he's not, but either way he's a super complicated and intriguing character. He's also pretty morally grey, unlike his partner Doppo who is the very definition of an upright character. One thing that might trigger some people, Dazai has a death wish and is constantly trying (unsuccessfully) to commit suicide, usually in very comedic ways.

Erased

This is an unusual take on time travel. Basically, the main character Satorou can project his consciousness into the past. At the onset of the show, this is limited to about 15 minutes and he uses this power to stave off disaster when he can. But after finding his mother murdered, the police think he was the culprit and Satorou inadvertently projects himself back to his childhood. He begins to unravel a mystery that might solve his mother's murder and save the life of a little girl who was killed when he was 10. This show is very intriguing, and kind of messed up. I really enjoyed the mystery element and the time-travel element. The animation was also top-notch. This show was a thrill from start to finish. Trigger warning: this show contains depictions of child abuse/neglect.

Okay, that's it for this edition. I'll probably do another one in the future. Honestly, I have so many shows I like that I would recommend it's not even funny.

I am not "not okay" with this show

So, in following my Pride Month theme. I'm talking about a story with a lesbian MC today. The Netflix series "I am Not Okay with This" is about a teenager who, in addition to dealing with the usual teen angst and bullying and the recent death of her father learns she has some kind of super powers.

It is pretty clear from the start of the show that main character Sydney has a crush on her best friend Dina. The fact that Dina has a boyfriend creates a lot of tension for her character. Dina's boyfriend being a total douche creates even more. Sydney's younger brother Liam is being bullied and she can't go in their basement because that's where their father killed himself. So, her therapist recommends that she write her thoughts in a journal.

Sydney narrates the story through the journal entries she makes where she talks about getting angry and things happening around her. She gives Dina's boyfriend a nosebleed at one point and throws a sign at another. As her emotions escalate, so do her powers. It's not a spoiler because it's in both the preview to the show and in the first episode as foreshadowing, but the discovery of these powers culminates in a pretty horrific way. I'm not going to say exactly what happens, but the foreshadowing makes it pretty obvious, so you'll probably figure it out while watching.

I said Sydney is a lesbian even though she experiments sexually with a guy. That is because she likes him platonically and she's frustrated about Dina and since he's into her she thinks "what the hell". The guy in question Wyatt is a pretty good character. I'm glad his character was added, and it doesn't make Syd any less of a lesbian because she had sex with him once. Especially since she realized she wasn't into him and that it was a pretty huge mistake immediately thereafter. Many women don't come out as lesbians right away or realize before they've experimented with a guy, that doesn't make them bisexual. Bisexual women are attracted to both men and women, although they may have preferences towards one or the other. 

I liked the way they explored the platonic bond between Syd and Wyatt and contrasted that to the bond between Syd and Dina (who she's in love with). Despite containing more than its share of messed up stuff, this show is pretty good. The only real beef I have with it is the way it ended on a cliffhanger of sorts. I'm not sure if it will be renewed for another season, so if you don't like to be left hanging you might want to skip this one. I would also warn that there is some gore towards the end (but you are definitely foreshadowed this several times during the series), so if gore bothers you maybe this isn't for you.

I liked Syd as a character. I liked Wyatt. Appropriately named Richard (Dick) was a very hate-worthy villain (not a super villain, mind you, just a homophobic, misogynist, entitled white guy villain). Dina was a good character as well (though I'm not sure I believed her relationship with Richard, kinda lop-sided). That brings me to something I just noticed. When a show wants you to root for two characters to get together, often they'll have one of the characters dating a total douche, even if that's completely unrealistic for their character. I guess that makes it easier to swallow than if both the love interests are equally likeable. Like if Dina had been dating Wyatt, it would have been harder to root for them to break up so Syd and Dina could get together. I guess that's because you don't mind if a douche gets dumped, but you don't like to see a good person get heartbroken. Although Wyatt still gets heartbroken because he falls for Syd, so it would have happened either way.

Weirder Things Have Happened

So the new season of Stranger Things (at least the first part of it) has hit Netflix and of course I can't talk about most of the things about it because it's new and spoilers would be immanent if I were to share my feelings about the show itself. So let us instead, since it is pride month, focus on the one or two LGBT characters the show offers. I say "or two" because it has not been confirmed (as of where I am in the show) what Will's sexuality is (I'm leaning towards ace, but it's cool if he's gay too. JS he's probably not straight).

So Will is portrayed kind of stereotypically if he does end up being gay. That's kind of why I'm hoping he's not to be honest. There does seem to be a little bit of jealousy towards Mike's relationship with El, but that may just be the loss of a good friend (not romantic jealousy) as Will does show legitimate concern over El, showing that he considers her a friend as well. We will see, moving forward. Everything in the show so far (seasons 1-3) has pointed towards Will being LGBT in some regard. Joyce's homophobic ex notwithstanding, I'm not 100% convinced that he's gay. Like I said, he hasn't really shown any interest in romance at all so far.

So that leaves Robin. Robin was introduced last season and (to the delight of all viewers) it turned out she was not a potential love interest for Steve, but the first canonically lesbian character on the show. There is some question as to whether or not Barb was in love with Nancy but it's never confirmed, and she was killed off rather early on. 

Robin is just so many things. I love her character. I love that she is able to translate the Russian message at the mall. I love her huge crush on the other girl in band with her (that's this season, but not really a spoiler since you already knew she was gay). I love that she's a total nerd, but rocks it. She is just an awesome character overall and that she's LGBT, that's just icing on the cake.

Was never a fan of Steve, and if they get him back together with Nancy I'll be super pissed, but I wouldn't mind seeing Nancy and Robin hook up. It's possible that Nancy's bisexual. I did like her best with Jonathan, though. Well, I'm not going to finish this season (or part one of it anyway) tonight, and can't really talk about anything significant anyway. Just that some things are really pissing me off about it and hopefully it ties everything together nicely (but if the second episode is any indication it'll probably just be a massive rewritten history). There is so much we still don't know about the upside down that I hope this season will shed some light on. It would be cool to have a stranger things/ x-files tie-in at the end since we're getting close to time the x-files opened up, but pretty sure that the writers don't have those kind of rights. Ah well, some things just aren't meant to be.

Thanks for tuning in, catch ya later.

Happy Pride Month!

So to kick off LGBT pride month, I thought I'd do a post focusing on some of my all-time favorite LGBT ships from series, both anime and live-action, and describe their relationships as well as pointing out what problematic elements (if any) I spotted with their relationship. I will not include Ashe and Eiji from Banana Fish since that is not confirmed in the show to be a romantic relationship (despite the serious romantic undertones it seems to take), or any other non-canonical ships that I would like to see (e.g. Taiga X Minori from Toradora). I may include more than one couple from the same show.

Sato X Uenoyama M/M (Given)

What I liked: This is a very wholesome couple. Sato is still grieving from the death of his boyfriend when Uenoyama fixes a guitar string for him. The two form a friendship, and become closer as Uenoyama invites Sato to join his band. There are lots of cute moments as Uenoyama discovers his feelings for Sato and as Sato processes his grief so he can learn to love again.

What I found problematic: Not much really. This pairing was pretty well done.

Kaji X Nakayama M/M (Given)

What I liked: I enjoyed seeing Nakayama's character bloom, he was my favorite character on the show. It was a pity that Kaji took so long to acknowledge Nakayama's feelings (it doesn't happen until the movie). 

What I found problematic: Like many BL relationships that feature adult men, there are the usual troubling tropes. For one thing, Nakayama's more feminine appearance already hints at him being a "bottom" long before it is established. Kaji is kind of a jerk some of the time, although he does give good advice to Uenoyama when he's trying to figure out his own feelings for Sato. Can't say much more without spoiling stuff.

George X Mae F/NB (Feel Good)

What I liked: Their characters had good chemistry and felt realistic. Their relationship was also realistic, being full of various types of real-world problems (like George's internalized homophobia and Mae's past with drugs). Their love evolved over time. It started out passionate and interdependent, but over time it blossomed into something more.

What I found problematic: Not much. If I'd choose one thing, it might be that their relationship starts out pretty toxic (both hiding important things from each other), but since it evolves into a healthy relationship, I think it's okay.

Lito X Hernando M/M (Sense8)

What I liked: They are very loving and passionate when they are together. They tackle any problems together when they can. They are very cute together.

What I found problematic: The whole Daniella thing. I understand it was a plot device to get Lito out of the closet, but I found it to be troubling that they took it to the level they did.

Nomi X Amanita F/F (Sense8)

What I liked: Pretty much everything. These two have each other's backs. They are in a very stable and loving relationship. They accept one another for who they are. Pretty much the only obstacle to their happiness is when the outside world tries to separate them.

What I found problematic: Didn't really find any problems with this pairing.

Ellie X Aster F/F (The Half of it)

What I liked: Despite Aster not knowing about Ellie's feelings for most of the movie. I liked the relationship we did get to see blossom between the two. It may have leaned more towards the friendship side, but there was definitely an attraction on both sides. Aster is more attracted to intellect anyway.

What I found problematic: Nothing. They didn't take it far enough to introduce any problematic elements and it was very well done.

Charlie X Nick M/M (Heartstopper)

What I liked: Everything. This was such a sweet romance to see blossom. Very wholesome. More chaste than most. Also loved how Nick figures out that he's bisexual because he's still attracted to girls too. Representation matters.

What I found problematic: Nothing really. 

Darcy X Tara: F/F (Heartstopper)

What I liked: Their relationship was very sweet and supportive. Liked how Darcy was able to build Tara back up after people kept trying to deny her sexuality (e.g. 'you don't look like a lesbian') and harassing her because they were homophobic. I liked getting to see that part of their relationship.

What I found problematic: Nothing really.

Well, that's all I can think of at the moment. If I come up with any more, I'll be sure to add them later.

edited to add:

Sasaki X Miyano: M/M (Sasaki to Miyano)

What I liked: Very sweet school time romance about a high school senior who falls for his junior. Their relationship starts off as friends, although Sasaki is immediately attracted to Miyano. Miyano is a fan of BL (boys love) manga and after recommending one to Sasaki, the older boy finds he likes the story even if he's never read the genre before. This leads to the two of them sharing what they liked about various different stories and the friendship grows. When Sasaki confesses to Miyano, Miyano doesn't know what to think because (despite being a BL fan) he's never considered dating another guy in real life. This leads Miyano on a road to self-discovery. I would classify Miyano as bi, since he was attracted to a girl in middle school. Unlike most BL anime stories this story prioritizes consent.

What I found problematic: Maybe the crossdressing contest the school throws or the way Miyano ships his classmates with one another, but other than that this story was very wholesome and sweet.

guilty pleasure honorable mention:

Takato X Junta: M/M (I'm Being Harassed by the Sexiest Man Alive)

What I found problematic: As the name implies, this story does not have a lot of emphasis on consent. It is the usual BL trope of the top being forceful until the bottom consents. I don't really like this element of the show. I did, however, think that the two of them made a cute couple after the initial problematic stage. Also, there is a scene where Ayagi almost date-rapes Takato, and afterwards Junta thinks he's been cheated on. I didn't care for that one. I was yelling at the screen "No. It's not his fault. He is the victim!"

What I liked: Takato is not your typical weak-willed or weak bottom. He doesn't just going along with whatever Junta wants, and he actually takes the initiative when he thinks Junta is being distant. (It ends up that Junta has a cold that he doesn't want Takato to catch). And he does what he can to try to protect Junta when their relationship is discovered by a tabloid reporter even if it means giving up everything himself. Also, I like it when Takato inadvertently flubs Junta's first name because he's embarassed and then won't admit to flubbing it and creates his very own nickname for him: Chunta. I'd say that Takato was my favorite character, and I liked the dynamic he had with his manager as well. Did not like the character of Ayagi at all. I also loved their backstory about how they met initially and what made Junta fall for Takato in the first place. I kind of wish the story had started there, but I guess they started it the other way for comedic purposes.