STUDIO MAPPA (2011— )

I don’t know if this is the most obvious thing, but Viktor was indirectly responsible for Yuuri losing at the Grand Prix Final. 

So yesterday I was watching yoi again and as I was watching the scene where Yurio and Viktor were talking before Yurio hit the ice (you know, this one)

I realized something. Viktor was playing Yurio like a fiddle (assuming he knows how to fiddle. Probably doesn’t. Moving on.).

Now, when I first watched this scene, nothing made sense to me. Not Yurio’s urgency, not Viktor’s ominous answer, not even why they chose to give Viktor the Serious Anime Profile Shot, the one they usually give to villains and the like. It all went straight over my head. But as I was watching this the second time through, it finally clicked; why this scene was pivotal, important, why it had to be included. 

My conclusion is based on four things: the aforementioned scene, Viktor’s reaction to Yuuri’s retirement, Yurio’s free skate at the Rostelecom Cup, and another scene I didn’t understand back in episode ten. It’s the scene where Viktor is overlooking the beach and Yurio decides to kick him in the back because what are friends for, you know? This one:

See, when I first watched this, I had absolutely no clue what was the reasoning behind this scene. Why would Yurio kick Viktor’s back? Why would Viktor just take this angsty fifteen year old’s shit? Why would Yurio say that he doesn’t look up to a five-time world champion? I imagine you’re thinking that he was lying because Yurio is a teenage shit that we collectively love. With that I agree, that yes, Yurio was not being completely honest. When would he ever admit he admires someone? It’s simply not in his character. But there may be some truth in his statement. Yurio may admire and respect Viktor for his skating skills, but he may not be who he truly views as competition, and Viktor’s private revelation supports my theory twice over.

This reveals three things. One: Yurio is an extremely competitive person. Two: Yurio is most competitive when he is facing off against Yuuri. Three: Viktor knows all of this (obviously. These are his thoughts.). Now you’re probably a bit skeptical over one and two, so let’s break those down.

Firstly, I believe we can all agree that Yurio is a competitive person. However, Viktor’s thoughts reveal what drives this competitiveness. Viktor says that if he had stayed in Russia as a competitor, Yurio wouldn’t be as motivated. When Viktor says “as a competitor” he reveals that Yurio is motivated not by a drive to outperform himself but to outperform others. Yurio wants to win, and he actively wants the others to loose. He is driven by the competition, not just by himself or the prize.

Secondly, Yurio is most competitive when he is competing against Yuuri. If Viktor had stayed in Russia, he would never have coached Yuuri and Yuuri would never have improved so much. This entire series would never have happened. Yurio, of course, would most likely have made it to the Grand Prix Final, but instead of facing Yuuri he would be facing Viktor. The only factor that definitely changes, at least from Viktor’s perspective, is Yuuri’s participation in the Grand Prix. Therefore, by him saying that Yurio wouldn’t be as motivated if he had stayed in Russia, he reveals Yurio is motivated more by Yuuri. Need more proof? Look no further than our second piece of evidence; the Rostelecom Cup from episode nine.

As you remember, the Rostelecom Cup was the second time Yuuri and Yurio had gone toe to toe, and first time in the Grand Prix series. During his free skate, Yurio does something peculiar for someone who scored well on his short program.

Yurio put six jumps in the second half of his program so he could score higher. Why would someone who has scored so high feel the need to raise the difficulty of his program? Since we are dealing with Yurio here, it is because he wants to make sure that he outperforms his competitors. This is supported by the next scene, when he judges his program against others:

He deliberately upped the ante to beat them because he is such a competitive little dude. And what does this result in? Well, according to Yuuri:

A performance beyond his limits. Yurio is so competitive that he pushes himself to the breaking point to beat JJ and yes, our little katsudon Yuuri. Yurio respects and admires Yuuri’s skating ability. He first thinks about Yuuri’s three quads as opposed to JJ’s four. Why would Yurio think about Yuuri first when JJ is objectively stronger competition if he didn’t view Yuuri with more respect? You could argue that he doesn’t respect Yuuri because of his behavior at the last Grand Prix Final, when he told him to “just retire already,” in the bathroom. In which case I shall point you to the Onsen on Ice, episode four. Yurio had just watched Yuuri’s performance, and he leaves before even hearing the results. He knew Yuuri had beaten him, and for someone so competitive, I doubt such a defeat would rest easy with him. I theorize that is when Yurio began to view Yuuri as a true threat in competition, and thus admired his skating skills. So when Yurio shows up and kicks Viktor in episode ten, Viktor now realizes this. He is aware of what drives Yurio’s most astonishing performances, what makes him tick and what makes him push himself beyond his limits. 

Moving on to our third piece of evidence. The next scene that supports this theory is at the beginning of episode twelve, when Yuuri tells Viktor he wants to retire. Viktor reacts angrily, correct?

It’s pretty clear he is not just accepting this. I mean, you’ve got this guy crying out of anger. He is on a whole new level of not okay. Knowing Viktor, do you really believe he is going to just let Yuuri retire when he believes he has so much to offer to skating? 

He knows Yuuri can do better, and as a supportive fiancé, he wants him to. This guy isn’t going to let Yuuri leave; at least, not without trying to stop him.

So what is a five-time world champion, first-time coach to do when your fiancé is about to win a gold medal and then immediately retire despite having so much to offer skating? How could he get him to stay? Well, by making sure he does not win gold.

We already know Viktor knows that Yurio is extremely competitive and thinks Yuuri as a top contender. Viktor also knows that Yurio is an excellent skater, and a strong rival to Yuuri. So is it not natural that Viktor goes and seeks out Coach Yakov just before Yurio is about to go skate, when he knows Yurio is going to be with him? When he knows Yurio is going to hear every word of his conversation? That he gives cryptic answers that provoke a dangerous level of rage in the angsty little guy who is driven by competition?

Look at him. Yurio is in shock. He is fricking pissed. He does not want Yuuri to retire, not his greatest rival, not someone who could (and has) actually beaten him! How can he compete against him if he’s retired? He can’t! Who is going to push him in competition if he’s gone? No one! Yurio is aware of this; you only have to look to his thoughts during his performance just minutes after this encounter.

He is pissed that someone he respects will retire if he wins the gold. He wants to challenge himself by competing against Yuuri and damn it, he can’t if Yuuri just up and leaves! He won’t let this happen! He can’t! Yuuri cannot win gold! So what does Yurio do?

He adds another quad. Specifically to keep Yurio from retirement. He pushes himself to the limits just like in the Rostelecom Cup, just so he can win gold and keep Yuuri skating and therefore, competing against himself. 

And, just like in the Rostelecom Cup, Yurio has a breakdown on the ice. Except he’s crying and so is my heart.

So, back to the point. Now I know what you’re probably thinking: This was all a coincidence, Viktor didn’t want Yuuri to loose, he didn’t anticipate Yurio’s vehement reaction! In which case, I have one last bit of evidence to show you!

Let’s go back to a bit earlier, just after Viktor hinted at Yuuri’s retirement to Yurio. Remember that Serious Anime Profile Shot I mentioned earlier? The scary one where the animators somehow made Viktor Nikiforov look intimidating? Well just after he sees Yurio’s visible reaction:

where we actually see the disbelief and coming rage on his face, the camera shows us that Shot of Viktor.

THAT SMILE. That smile is the smile of a man who knew exactly what reaction Yurio would have and how it would play out. He was distraught that Yuuri was going to retire, and knew knew exactly how to use Yurio, the only person who could possibly score above Yuuri, to ensure that Yuuri would not win gold. He had motive and means. Case closed. 

Tl;dr: Viktor, upset over Yuuri’s decision to retire, manipulated Yurio by hinting at this and thus inciting rage within Captain Angsty Teen to have him outscore Yuuri and not win the gold medal. 

The Well and Spindle.

Anime/Animated films to look for 2017/2018

I’ve only seen two of these films so far since not all are subbed in English yet, but I have it in good faith that they will all be very good, so here they are, that you may know of them and seek them out.

I don’t have much time today, so I will only give some minor details and standard summary with these recommendations, plus my personal ratings which you may take as you like.

A Silent Voice

A deaf elementary school girl, Shoko Nishimiya, upon transferring, meets a boy named Shoya Ishida in her new class. Shoya, who is not deaf, leads the class in bullying Shoko, because she is deaf. As the bullying continues, the class starts to bully Shoya for bullying Shoko. After graduating from elementary school, Shoko and Shoya do not speak to each other… until later, when Shoya, tormented over his past, decides he must see Shoko once more. Shoya wants to make amends for what he did in elementary school and be Shoko’s friend.

A story with excellent character portrayal and development. 5/5

Napping Princess/Ancien and the Magic Tablet

A young girl dreams of a world called Heartland, a place where she has magic powers. When her events in Heartland begin to parallel her waking world, she realizes that she will have to outmaneuver the bad guys in both worlds.

Lu Over the Wall

The story centers on Kai, a gloomy middle school student whose life changes after meeting Lu, a mermaid.

The Breadwinner

A headstrong girl in Afghanistan dresses like a boy to provide for her family.

Mary and the Witch’s Flower

A strange flower grants a young girl magical powers, which leads to the adventure of a lifetime.

In This Corner of the World

As she combats her daily struggles In Hiroshima during World War II, an 18-year-old woman gets married and has to maintain the will to live. Heartwarming. 4.5/5

Bonus: 

These films have been out for several years, but if you haven’t yet seen them I am making a mention so that you can seek them out at your own discretion, because I find them all to be very good.

Ocean Waves

The arrival of a pretty transfer student from Tokyo sets in motion a change in the relationship between two best friends. This film was a made-for-TV attempt to sharpen the skills of the younger Ghibli animators. They may have bitten off a bit more than they could chew. The story is done with sensitivity and it is interesting, but something about the soul of the film seems to have suffered under the pressure to impress that those younger Ghibli workers must have been feeling. Still, I like it. 2.5/5

The Wind Rises

A lifelong love of flight inspires Japanese aviation engineer Jiro Horikoshi during the trials and chaos of his life in WWII Japan. The first time I watched The Wind Rises I was left a little unimpressed. It seemed strange and “too childish” for me. But I have since rewatched it with a more open heart and understood that this whimsy is intentional. That the atmosphere is a cry for the pure heart of the leading man, despite the reality of his time and place. It is truly a very deep and moving piece of work. I’d highly recommend watching in original Japanese. 5/5

Only Yesterday

Unmarried career woman Taeko Okajima takes her first extended trip outside her native Tokyo when she travels to rural Yamagata to visit her sister’s family during the annual safflower harvest. On the train, Taeko daydreams about her pre-adolescent self. As her vacation progresses, she has extended flashbacks about the frustrations and small pleasures of her childhood, and wonders if her stress-filled adult life is what the young Taeko would have wanted for herself. 

This one is only just freshly dubbed into English. Way back in the 90′s when Takahata actually made this film, his particular style of movie making, and the Ghibli brand in general hadn’t quite taken off in American cinema, so they chose not to dub this one. But with the explosive popularity of Ghibli since Spirited Away and the sudden lull in films produced since Miyazaki’s “retirement”, this film got it’s dub in 2016 in order to wrangle in some extra cash in the international movie market. 5/5

From Up On Poppy Hill

Umi Matsuzaki is a sixteen-year-old student attending Isogo High School living in Coquelicot Manor, a boarding house overlooking the Port of Yokohama in Japan. Her mother, Ryoko, is a medical professor studying abroad in the United States. Umi runs the house and looks after her younger siblings, Sora and Riku, and her grandmother, Hana. College student Sachiko Hirokouji, and doctor-in-training Miki Hokuto, also live there. Each morning, Umi raises a set of signal flags with the message “I pray for safe voyages”.

One day, a poem about the flags being raised, is published in the school newspaper. Shun Kazama, the poem’s author and a member of the journalism club, witnesses the flags from sea as he rides a tugboat to school. This starts a complicated but sweet romance between the two. The story is quiet and subtle, but this is intentional and well crafted. 5/5. Directed by Miyazaki’s son Gorō .

A Letter to Momo

Momo is recovering from her father’s death and her mother’s decision to move their family from Tokyo to a remote island when she discovers a message from her father that causes strange events to occur. 3/5. I enjoyed it, but it seemed like it was padding it’s run-time.

Giovanni’s Island

The story follows two brothers, Junpei and Kanta, who live on the island of Shikotan, shortly after World War II. On August 15, 1945, Soviet soldiers land on Shikotan and occupy the island. Junpei and Kanta, who live with their grandfather, a fisherman, and their father, the head of the firefighting force of the village, are forced to move to the stables while the Russian commander’s family, among them the commander’s daughter Tanya, move into the main house. The story follows the friendship that develops between the three children in the midst of the war.

4/5

Summer Wars

The film tells the story of Kenji Koiso, a timid eleventh-grade math genius who is taken to Ueda by twelfth-grade student Natsuki Shinohara to celebrate her great-grandmother’s 90th birthday. However, he is falsely implicated in the hacking of a virtual world by a sadistic artificial intelligence named Love Machine. Kenji must repair the damage done to it and find a way to stop the rogue computer program from causing any further damage.

Clever stroyline, likable characters and a respectable ending. 4.5/5

The Garden of Words

A boy named Takao trains to become a shoemaker and meets with a mysterious woman in the park when it rains. 3.5/5 for content 4.5/5 for heart.

Your Name.

Your Name tells the story of a high school girl in rural Japan and a high school boy in Tokyo who swap bodies. It is a very touching, very funny and very relatable film. Taki and Mitsuha are perfect in this sci-fi mash-up. 4.5/5

Ugly sobbing!! This is so beautiful full credit to the artist and this amazing piece!!

Here’s the full 24 hour comic I drew yesterday, called “The Fish Wife”.  Thank you to everybody who followed along on twitter and cheered me on <3

I told you what would happen if you acted up again. No buts. Face down. Ass up. Now. Of course I’m going to fuck your ass. I’m only going to fuck your ass until either I turn you into a slut who loves getting their ass fucked -or you learn how to behave.

Bee Magick - Save the Bees

This post is dedicated to the bees, make sure you do your part to save the bees! 

Facts to increase your love for bees:

They have personalities.

They can recognize human faces.

Their honey contains all the substances needed to sustain life.

Eating Honey can make you smarter.

Honeybees can only sting once.

They beat their wings up to 200 times per second.

Honeybees are the only insects that produce food for humans.

Bees don’t sleep.

All worker bees are female.

Ways to attract bees:

Plant flowers that attract bees.

Build a bee houses.

Place bee waterers and bee baths around your garden.

Do not use pesticides or herbicides of any kind.

Plants that attract bees:

Bee balm

Lavender

Crocus

Snow Drop

Wildflowers/Any native species

Catmint

Borage

Anise hyssop

Heliotrope

Sunflower

Oregano

Yarrow

Coneflower

Black eyed susan

Asters

Goldenrod

Foxglove

Marigold

Pansies

Sweet peas

Nasturtiums

Bee folklore:

It is unlucky to kill bees.

Believed to have the knowledge of the future and all secrets. 

If a bee lands on your hand, it suggests money is on it’s way.

If a bee lands on someones head, they will become successful in life. 

If a bee flies into a home, it means either good luck or a stranger is on their way. If you kill the bee it means the stranger will be bringing bad news.

Seeing a single bee will bring luck.

Bees buzzing around a child’s head foretells a happy, successful life.

Bee mythology:

Ancient Egyptian pharaohs used the bee as their royalty symbol. They believed honey bees were born from the tears of the sun God, Ra. To the Egyptians, bees represented resurrection and protected against evil spirits. 

Druids believed that bees represented the sun, the Goddess, celebration, and community.

The Greeks thought that a babies whose lips where touched by a bee would become a great poet or a great speaker. In ancient Greece it was also thought that they symbolized industry, hard work, messengers of the dead, and obedience. Honey was often used as an offering to their Gods. They also believed bees were the surviving souls of the priestesses who served the Goddess Aphrodite. 

They have been seen as a symbol of sacredness and could be associated with the Great Mother or Divine feminine. The Mother can be symbolized as the queen bee. 

In Celtic mythology honey bees had great wisdom and thought to be messengers between worlds. Honey was sacred and used in rituals.

In some cultures they can be associated with purity, health, and wealth. Some also believed bees were a symbol of the human soul.

The druids believed that bees symbolized the sun, the goddess, celebration, and community.

Deities associated with bees and honey:

Aphrodite

Ra

Vishnu

Pan

Vishnu

Cybele

Mellona

Melissa (Melisae)

Neith

Apollo

Artemis

Freya

Thor

Demeter

Bees in Magick:

Bees are closely associated with the fae and their presence in gardens which indicates blessings of fae. Encourage the bees, by putting up bee houses, hives, planting bee-friendly plants and waterers and not using pesticides. Thus, encouraging the blessings from the fae, while harming bees can anger them and cause them to seek revenge. 

The symbol of a bee can be used to seal a spell with sweetness for one who appreciates good will and a sting for one who takes it for granted or doesn’t keep his end of the bargain. 

Honey stirred into your tea can ‘sweeten’ your day. 

Honey is used often in magick to sweeten a situation.

Anointing your lips with honey will make your words sound sweeter. 

Bees in your dreams:

May be a good omen.

Bees in your dreams may be telling you to take a look at your social networks. They may be pointing toward a desire for more harmonious and functional relationships, or celebrating the ones you already have.

A visit from a bee in a dream may also be notifying you that a friend or family member needs to speak with you. You will know as this person will also pop into your mind somehow. It means call them or perhaps, that you will hear from them soon.

Dreaming of a beehive usually relates to the home and family or your business and coworkers. A happy, buzzing hive means a happy, buzzing home. It may foretell incoming abundance, and fruitful times ahead. If the bees are swarming around the hive, rather than working in it, proceed with caution. There is a lack of harmony that is interfering with productivity.

A swarm of bees may indicate that you feel that a group of people upon whose cooperation you rely is becoming chaotic and out of control. Perhaps the need to balance your own interactions with your different business and social groups for your own sanity.

Beehives bring to mind abundance and prosperity: bees seem to work hard and are rewarded by flowing stores of honey. An empty beehive, then, represents the opposite: lost opportunity and financial misfortune.

A beehive can also represent a home. The fullness or emptiness of the beehive may indicate unconscious feelings about family life, marriage, children, or the house itself. Honey may represent your property or belongings.

A beehive on fire or burned bees are often interpreted depending on your emotional and physical condition. Burned bees may mean you are overcoming fear and want to take control of life and anger, are you’re progressing through life with more confidence without any fear of obstacles. Burned beehives can also mean you have lost something precious, like money, a relationship, or some valuable information that you’ve forgotten or ignored.

If a bee or a swarm of bees is chasing you in dream, it may mean there is some unsettled business or a memory that haunts you. Make sure you let it go from your mind or deal with it in order to avoid these bees.

If you dream about getting a bee sting then something may be bothering you, or you have a persistent annoyance in your life. Concerns about your relationship, career, finance, or some unknown issue is bugging your subconscious mind. Find out what it is and sort it out.

Magickal uses for Honey:

Can be used in binding spells to symbolically stick things together.

Used for offerings to fae and deities.

Can sweeten a person or a situation.

 Honey is sacred to Aphrodite.

Can be used in spells corresponding to purification, health, love, happiness, spirituality, wisdom, good fortune, fertility, 

Use certain types of honey that corresponded with your spell.

Bathe in warm water and honey to attract love.

A dish filled with honey can attract angels and beneficial spirits.

Do your part to save the bees they are an important part of our life and in our magick practices. 

May the moon light your path!

==Moonlight Academy==

Sources: witchipedia.com, kitchenwitchuk.blogspot.ca, exemplore.com

Ahhh why god why!!!!

this video is so cute i’m hyperventilating

I’ve just discovered my new favorite painter, Vittorio Reggianini - those smarter than myself probably already know of him as an Italian painter from the 1800s who made satin look even satiny-er than satin. I just cannot get over how much he loved painting women who were NOT. HAVING. A. MAN’S. SHIT. 

But there was one hottie that everyone seemed to like, and I can’t blame them…

Vittorio knows what the ladies like. 

Fuck you!!!! Damn you Hobi fucking bias wrecker

cr: chunen_

i can’t stop watching this on repeat and you have to see it too 

Burnette Estate