Anne With An E + Found Families

Kit Snicket? Jacquelyn Scieszka? Olivia Caliban? All stanned

I will die on the hill that Julie and the phantoms went about the act of creating a gay character so flawlessly. When you first found out he was gay it was just acknowledged and then left alone until he was given a love interest. His sexuality wasn’t made to be a big deal or constantly talked about but rather something normal (which it is). And they didn’t try to make him based off of a stereotype. They created the character and then added him simply liking boys. I feel like in lots of shows they make being gay like it’s own personality so characters don’t have a fully formed personality with likes or dislikes but Alex does.

Madison Reyes as Julie Molina in Julie and The Phantoms Season 1 Episode 1:

"What would you say if I told you there are three ghosts living in my mom's studio?" You'd say I'm crazy."

the gmw writers really showed their inability to think outside the box and I have gone on a million rants about this (mostly to myself in my room lol) but just to pick up one of the many things that made me roll my eyes: when Maya is asked why she likes Lucas her response is he’s a nice/good guy and that’s all she says. And while I don’t begrudge her that, I do find it a little ridiculous that that is all the writers could come up with when there are at least like 5 obvious reasons (very clear/present in canon) for why Maya likes Lucas:

1. He challenges her, and honestly as far as I can remember he is the only one that does actually go toe to toe with her. (Lucas:”You wanna tangle with me?”/ Maya: “You think you can take me?”)

2. He makes her smile and laugh despite herself. Maya enjoys interacting with him. It’s all over her face when they play their little games or she teases him. She gets a thrill from flirting with him (and, yes, it’s flirting. It’s so obviously flirting that if you look flirting up in the dictionary you’ll find a picture of the “mad dog” scene where Lucas is asking Maya “well, what do I seem like to you?”)

3. He supports her (”I don’t want that for Maya, I want her to be happy” “They’re taking away something you’re very good at”) like homeboy was actually fired up about the arts program because he knows how much it means to her and that support resonates with her (she literally can’t stop staring at him when he says that and when Riley tries to get her attention she’s in a daze)

4. He KNOWS her, arguably better than the people who have known her for a lot longer. Lucas sees Maya and her selflessness even when others don’t (“Maya did that for Riley because that’s who Maya is”). 

5. He gets her! He’s been in her shoes before, making a mess of things, getting into trouble and letting his anger at the world get the best of him (This isn’t just shown in the show, I think he even straight up says this to Maya at one point) They also both see themselves as their friends’ protectors. In so many ways, they really are two sides of the same coin. 

6. She is attracted to him. Body language y’all. Maya is always finding herself leaning into Lucas’s personal space, yanking him towards her, touching him unnecessarily and ya! I’ll say it! He totally turns her on. When he gets all strong angry boi she finds that shit hot. That’s literally in canon.

To conclude, when Maya is asked if she likes Lucas it’s fucking dumb that her only response is “he’s such a nice guy” when her response could have been “I can’t explain it, he makes me laugh” or  “He’s the first guy in my life that’s ever been supportive and showed they cared about me” or “I feel like we just understand each other” or even “I don’t know why, but I’m drawn to him.” Literally any of those responses would have been more in line with what we are actually shown. 

(also, all these things that Maya likes about Lucas are very distinct to her relationship with him- they are NOT the things Riley likes about Lucas, which does pretty much amount to “he’s a good guy.” Hence, another reason it’s total BS that Maya only likes Lucas because “she’s turned into Riley”) 

Anyway, I just wanted to make this post because I’ve been thinking about season 3 a lot lately and just how messy and all over the place the writing is. I hate that the writers lost sight of the natural arc of the show, I hate how they wasted everyone’s time with the triangle arc by essentially just invalidating the feelings Maya and Lucas had for each other, having literally no one experience growth from it, and putting all the characters back to square one. And I hate that they didn’t take the great opportunity that was before them to subvert tropes/expectations. Legitimizing Lucas and Maya’s feelings for one another would have allowed all three characters in the triangle to grow, develop and be further fleshed out as characters. And, also, it would have meant that Lucas isn’t just Riley’s love interest and Maya isn’t just Riley’s unlucky sidekick. When you have a chance to give characters nuance so they can break away from 2D tropes/clichés seize on it! That’s what makes entertaining stories! The writers walked themselves into a storyline, realized that relationships were inevitably gonna change and characters were inevitably gonna get hurt (which is okay! why do the writers avoid hurting Riley at all costs? disillusionment and disappointment is simply an unavoidable part of growing up) and then turned around and ran to the exit rather than deal with the actual consequences of the story they set up/developed from (arguably) season 1. It was cowardly, lazy writing and that’s on that.

Apple Podcasts

‎Julie and the Podcasters on Apple Podcasts

‎TV Reviews · 2020

It’s officially here and I’m not going to lie, I’m super stoked on this, guys!

Our first episode of Julie And The Podcasters has dropped — it’s out in the universe, available for all to hear (and participate in)!

We put a LOT of love and care into this podcast, and I am so thrilled we are able to extend the conversation about this magical little show called Julie And The Phantoms.

In the first ep, were discussing WHY we love this show, what we think makes it resonate so deeply in so many people, plus breaking down all aspects of the pilot, “Wake Up.”

We’re also diving into theories, behind the scenes tidbits, fangirling over Kenny Ortega, and of course obsessing over all the amazing music, fashion and incredible talent.

Please take a listen, then rate review and subscribe! Also, please don’t hesitate to shoot us an email with your thoughts on the show — we will be sure to give you a shoutout on pod!

And of course, don’t forget, TELL YOUR FRIENDS (re-blogging helps, too)! The more we talk about JATP, the bigger shot we have of a season 2, and we DO NOT want to be crying for 25 years like Alex if this show gets cancelled!

@ toy story 4

a hard pill to swallow: if an audience can pick up on where the story is going, it’s a good story.

that time chat was ready to die for ladybug and ladybug was ready to kill for chat

RICKY BOWEN #1 Gina Porter spokesperson, advocate, & defender

I am disappointed. I am disappointed in Disney Channel for not only censoring Girl Meets World from its full potential but also for cancelling it before its last season. I am disappointed in all of the venues that didn’t see the potential in taking over Girl Meets World and creating a show even better than it originally was.

However, I am not disappointed in the fandom. We fought for months, and for those first ten days, it was amazing to see the entire fandom come together even though we usually fight over trivial things such as our ships.

I will never forget this show–just like how I will never forget Boy Meets World. It ended too soon, but I’ll never regret the ship wars, the endless rants, the cries, or the laughter. It was beautiful, but all good things must come to an end.