Final Review: Titanic 1997

Ah, Titanic, the infamous maritime disaster. By far the most recognizable but not the deadliest tragedy in the world. 

The stories of the Titanic are well-known even to those who just have the gist. The debated last song, the breakup theories, interest in the passengers, and so on remain in discussion. 

The films cemented the foundation of a disaster film. The 1997 film was the culmination of all the Titanic films that came before it including references to dialogue.

Titanic is a fascinating topic as it’s a tragic accident that didn’t deserve its fate. For everything done wrong, there are still things done right to save as many lives as possible. 

The tragedy is so well-known a permanent exhibit was set up in a fake pyramid in Las Vegas. On an aside note, the recreation of the famous scenes from the movie takes me out of the otherwise somber exhibit. I understand why but it’s hard. Compared to other Titanic museums (looking at you, Branson), it’s so small out of the entire exhibit whereas Branson has events in the museum that are just so why??? A valentines and business dinner??? Sure why not give the Titanic the Christmas decor she never had but why??? On the outside seeing a replica of the infamous iceberg scraping scene was alarming and should be a red flag because everyone knows the Titanic but to see it like that just for attraction's sake is just alarming. Just imagine the Word Trade Center with the airplane inches from the diorama/attraction. 

We are so divorced from the Titanic tragedy regardless it wasn’t the deadliest disaster in history that people can take a museum attracting attention by building a replica of the infamous iceberg scraping scene outside of films and television. It’s best that any scenes of the iceberg are in that medium than the horrid attraction for a museum just for attention. 

You know it's bad when the musical version is not the animated version which largely used minimal sets and either hydraulics or actually setting it on a lake. 

Everyone knows the scene, it just… we’re craving a visual Titanic museum. Titanic Honor and Glory were trying to be this had it not been under the ambitions and arrogance of its former leader and face. I don’t think AAA studios want to touch it. 

I’m digressing. 

The 1997 film is the culmination of everything that came before it, a melodramatic love story and all. Seriously, if you just look at the Titanic on film, a star-crossed love story is not out of place. Fuck, fictional love stories were told, it’s just in 1997 one featured one of third and first class as the lovers. So anyone decrying the love story and melodrama is just not educated on the film history of the Titanic. 

I mean one of the maids fell in love with a steward in the real-life Titanic. Telling a romance story on the Titanic is not new. 

Titanic's overall story even with all the myths associated with it made it a Greek myth or a fable or a morality play. Ignoring the complexity of humanity, archetypes were seemingly at play during the voyage and the sinking. 

For better or worse, the Titanic fascination will remain just based on so many factors. 

And well, time to discuss them as objectively as possible with the movie.

Plot

Now everyone knows the plot. The first half is dedicated to the love story of Rose and Jack, the second half is dedicated to the sinking, and the present-day scenes are largely about Brock Lovett. 

The romance and the characters are often criticized for their simplicity and cliches but it doesn't mean that it's bad. Really, for all the thin plot and characters that aren't that explored outside of Satine Moulin Rouge had been criticized, it's a tongue-in-cheek melodrama of Bollywood influence. 

I was a child when I first saw the movie on VHS as my cousin originally had it on the shelf. I was far more interested in the ship and only rewatched the movie as a teen with a more appreciation of what the romance and characters are supposed to represent. 

Honestly, the criticism of the melodrama is just stupid. The Titanic disaster have been romanticized long before Cameron came around. The idea of a touted unsinkable ship sinking on her maiden voyage with the captain intending to retire is melodrama and that’s not taking the band’s final number and class stratification and inequality into consideration. Yeah, it’s melodrama but on the other hand, it was a melodramatic historical event hence its romanticism.  

Seriously, did you see the 1953 version?

Please when we got a real-life story of a husband kidnapping his two sons in a bitter custody battle from his wife and dying in the sinking. His body was recovered! The reason I even knew about this was that I researched. 

If people just know the inherent melodrama, a star-crossed lovers' story is nothing. 

The romance itself had been derided and nowadays I see a small minority saying that Cal is the better choice because of money and protection. 

...Buddy, Cal at the end of the story may have been more regretful when he tried to search for Rose but recall how much Cal acted Rose was a possession than a woman of her own right. He literally tried to kill Jack for fuck's sake, someone as I will point out again represents the loved ones lost. 

Cal does not offer Rose the happiness she desired, the need she sees in falling in love with someone who is indeed penniless. 

Seriously, just because Jack does not offer much does not mean he is the bad choice in the love triangle that is obviously going to have Jack be chosen. Jack is literally the Manic Pixie Dream Guy in this situation with his flaws being in the periphery and the memory messing things up. I’m pretty sure Jack knows he doesn’t offer much to a rich girl who had everything but he sees the fire in her. 

If we also think in the same black and white of Christian and the Duke in Moulin Rouge, then the Duke by that same thought process should be the better choice. 

Fuck, the musical version of the romance seemed to be written by the Duke as the Duke is seemingly the better choice while Christian will try to kill himself just so Satine can say she loves him. Unlike the movie, Satine slept with him and the Duke basically wanted her as his wife lest he will not invest whereas the movie threatened the pull out of the investment after Satine refused to sleep with him and he tried to rape her. Satine had the choice to break up lest the Duke kills Christian or be the Duke's wife and remain her short life as a trophy wife with all the luxury she can imagine in exchange for her loved ones' safety in the new Moulin Rouge. The Duke had implied to be violent in business matters before but that was apparently getting out of agreements rather than forcing into one. Here, the Duke gave her agency on top of them sleeping together. In the musical, Christian represents the romantic love that Satine feels she cannot return as the Moulin Rouge had been her home longer than the movie Satine's. The star-crossed lovers' aspect of a prostitute who cannot fall in love and a penniless writer is still there just done badly in the musical version. In the stage musical, Satine kept her TB a secret from her loved ones but in the movie, Satine didn’t know until the day of her death because movie Satine was the golden goose of the money squeezing her talents out of just as Christian wasn’t informed because he’s the writer to make the play as successful as they can. 

Whereas Christian humiliated and throws the profession that he knows Satine only used to keep herself off the streets but still rather leave her life than do anything else than that whereas the Duke actively tried to kill Christian regardless of Satine breaking up with Christian and even after he didn't bother further investing to keep Satine's memory alive. 

It was only because Satine saw that Christian, the man who loves her for her, was about to leave her life forever and she does want him, willing to die for love. In the last few minutes of her life, she was happy with her love. To Satine, Christian represents freedom from her cage; she did really want to run away with him before she learned she was gonna die that night and that she had to break his heart to save him from the Duke. She could choose to see Christian gone from her life or she would die shortly after the play alone and she chose love. The only choice she could make at the end of her short life. 

The musical still had the break his heart to save him trope but that was quickly dented by Christian threatening to kill himself just so Satine can say she does love him. No Orpheus and Eurydice here, folks, no walking away and turning back. Just straight-up abusive behavior from the man she loves. Again if you thought Christian was bad in the movie, the musical just made him even worse than our supposed villain.

It's even right there in the visuals with her costume in the Tango de Roxanne scene where she was given that expensive necklace that stranded her to the Duke's mercy. 

The Heart of the Ocean was as much as a prison chain to Rose as that necklace was to Satine. 

Rose never wanted to be with Cal who had that outburst when they were in their private promenade. She obviously never wanted to be with Cal who while never cartoony emphasized the negative traits of the first class on the Titanic disaster. Come on the bribing and using a child to save his own life, are negative traits associated with the men who supposedly survive that way, particularly the first-class men. 

I’m honestly thinking that people thinking that Cal is the better choice forget about Rose’s character development, why the story was written the way it is, and the sheer symbolism of certain characters fitting roles in the tragedy. By saying Cal is the better choice because of money and protection, it denied Jack’s sacrifice for Rose and his role as the loved one lost for Rose in the tragedy where so many lost their loved ones. It also denied that Jack should be fully aware of his class and let Rose choose including that kiss. Rose knew he was a bohemian so his records are lost. Really, did these people forget the scene where Rose try to say she loves Cal in front of Jack and that Jack likes the fire in her scenes or what?

The historical accuracy outside of the ship itself has been broadly noted. I'm not picky about history despite being a history lover. 

Honestly, I was so fascinated with the ship that I didn't care the lights were everywhere in order to let the viewers and crew see the ship while shooting. The blue shading when the lights were turned off permanently 

The ship itself was so beautiful with its framing and sweeping shots to indicate the grandiose beauty. With the exception of some parts of the boat including second class which we don’t see outside of a few real historical people (Thomas Byles and the band), there is no denying we are appreciating the ship. The way we were able to get into the mindset that tragedy was so far away as we witness so much hope and optimism from the beginning of the boarding and the days in a freaking flashback and just hoping the ship will dodge the iceberg even though we know from the present day scenes where we look back at the science and physics (how the boat sinks, Lovett commenting the ship was too big to turn) is a testament. That is a flashback, we were able to push the ship’s inevitable sinking to the back as we want to see these characters get their happy ending. 

Even though we know they aren’t.

The second half, the disaster film sequence, was just so great. 

Normally, other disaster films focus on the disaster entombing the world but not the people. The rare clips I do see of disaster films that don't focus on the apocalypse were the people running away with all the panic and fear permeating everything. 

Titanic's approach was just so humanist. We do not just see Jack, Rose, and the other fictional characters' experiences in the overall terror of the dark desperate night. We see the historical characters and the minor characters who don't even follow but their panic and fear pervade the screen. Even as a child, I was frightened for everyone even though I know that only a few will come out of the ship alive. It was enough for me to not seek out other disaster movies until high school because that's how bad Titanic scared yet fascinated me. 

I remember watching The Day After Tomorrow in my high school science class. While the teacher was showing it just to show the science albeit far more escalated than normal that it would've been in real life, I distinctly remember forgetting a group of people that left one of the main cast of character groups because they didn't listen and suffered a horrid icy death as the other group of main cast stumbled across their dead bodies. It was that bad because the disaster did not see the deaths of those people as we do see the deaths or even the implied deaths of those on the Titanic. At this point, I know the ship carried people with dreams even as a kid and to see the dreams destroyed alongside the people’s desperate terror it feels human that other disaster movies failed to capture. Even to this day, I actively seek out the sinking scenes and then the grandeur. I feel the people and the event in the movie more than any other disaster movie I have seen. I feel the fear and terror than I do other disaster flicks that focused primarily on the disasters than the actual people trying to escape death. 

Coupled with the grand choral music, we see the deaths of people screaming and running in terror as the water rise and floods and the ship breaks. In the movie when we saw the Grand Staircase before the dome imploded, the Honor and Glory Crowning Time clock was 2:15 aka only five minutes of Titanic's life were left. Godoka and then the floods that destroyed the skylight dome and the hallway was just as tragically magnificent as the scene where the sweeping shot was used to show the souls on deck running for the stern. 

We know it was a cold desperate night full of panic and fear. As much as people try to paint that there are people who bravely remained on board, there are those who were trapped. I want to emphasize that, there were trapped people who want to get off the death ship. 

Cameron wanted to show the disaster was exactly that. There’s no gentle pool of water enveloping the gentlemen. It was a flood of water destroying everything on its path. 

I’m pretty sure the men left behind died horrible deaths. It’s not a gentle rush. Funnels fell and the ship broke. How was it elegant? Oh I'm sure the men who dressed up in their best romanticized the inevitable but it didn't have to be 

If you know the basic percentages of death via class, you know the fictional third-class passengers will die. Trudy, unfortunately, has to die because she’s a connection with Rose’s old life. Because Ruth obviously won't die in the sinking given only four 1st class women die and it fits her character to be on the lifeboat with Molly Brown, it just made sense. Likewise, Cal would prove himself a coward with his attempted bribe only to barely survive when he climbed onto a lifeboat safely somehow with a child. 

As a kid, I cared more for the ship and did feel half of the intended impact as we saw the sinking from so many angles. However, with the love story and other fictional characters we have grown to care about, the impact is even stronger growing up. The love story enhanced the disaster as the disaster enhanced the love story. 

I also have to talk about the ending. People said that Rose is selfish for not selling the diamond when selling the damn thing would say that she's alive to her mom and ex-fiance both of which she did not want in her life. Her ex-fiance filed an accidental insurance fraud but it's still the point that Cal's family will notice the diamond circulating around in the US after being known it was lost to the sea. How did the diamond come to the land when the Titanic sank to the deepest darkest depths of the ocean? 

Also, Rose valued her life with her husband and kids. She lived her life how she knew Jack would've wanted her to have. Jack fucking gave her his blessing to marry another man prior to his death. Jack knew he isn't likely to survive as made evident in the text. 

Jack was the Manic Pixie Dream Jack and does not deserve his fate. Jack changed her life just as the most traumatic memory of her young life happened. She made peace with her tragedy and Jack which she passed on the memory of to her granddaughter, Brock Lovett, and his crew. 

Whether or not she died at the end should be a matter of discussion. Just because she seemingly reunited with Jack and all those who died in the disaster does not mean she neglected her husband and children for a fling. A 'fling' that changed her life. 

Characters

Rose is the only fully realized character in this whole movie. The historical people are from popular legends whereas the original fictional characters are archetypes but still have a fleeting gleam of life to them. 

The other fictional characters marred the most from Rose’s memory. They are usually archetypes we see by now including the Manic Pixie Dream Jack. Minor nitpicks like Jack’s origins can be seen as Rose not knowing enough or her memory failing her. 

Jack at the end of the day was a free spirit who didn’t have a character arc. He’s a static character meant to represent those loved ones lost in the disaster. He’s likable hence why people reacted so strongly to his death. 

On an aside note, I was just frustrated by Leonardo Dicaprio’s need to get out of being a teen girl’s star as if it damaged his career. Yeah, go out and take manly man jobs including getting mauled by a bear. Thank god for people still in the industry making you half of a love story equation. Just look at MovieBob’s review. Honestly, I’m just frustrated that women’s interests are denigrated that the lead actor went so far because he wanted to get a serious job yet still highlighted the serious problem of seeing feminine interests as lesser and invalidating to the overall film field. Really, Baz Luhrmann who made unrepentant romances never gave him pause? He never gave a shit that his films get mixed responses, why should he care ultimately women are more likely to like him because of his focus on romance?

Ruth’s actor attempted to make Ruth more three-dimensional but Cameron refused. To his credit, Cameron didn’t want a cartoonish villain so he rid the scene of Fabrizio being bludgeoned to death by Cal from one of the lifeboats to Fabrizio being one of the victims of the funnel’s collapse. 

Just as Jack represented those loved ones lost to those who had been saved, Cora represented the children lost. 

The minor fictional characters originally had larger roles such as Helga being Rose’s foil by being the dutiful daughter who stayed with her parents till death and fell in love with someone in the same class but nope. Cameron was apparently adamant the movie ends with the two hours and forty minutes spent exactly in the past.

The historical characters need much more attention and it’s hit or miss. 

On the one hand, EJ Smith did stay on the ship and died. On the other hand, he was just so complacent and did little to help the situation. He tried his best but he knew that over a thousand will die.

The regulations were what truly killed Titanic in the end. Smith and the officers did the usual speeding because that was the usual thing to get the hell out of the way of hazards; the Marconi operators are from the company, not the officers hence the priority of private messages over warnings; the lifeboats wasn't filled to capacity for multiple factors such as unwillingness to head out into the cold, unease about the lifeboats when they had already been tested in Belfast, and the whole ferry thing; 

I am of two minds about Ismay. While it is true that his scapegoating was cruelly spearheaded by an enemy of his and didn't deserve the level of infamy as he did help women and children escape, he also still did not go down with the ship, only there at the right time on the right place and rightfully feared for his life. We still cannot forget that hundreds of White Star employees were still on board including Ismay's personal staff died a dreadful death. Why did so many employees were left to die a horrible watery death when their rich boss lived? 

Even though Thomas Andrews has been martyred, we know that he had been helping people until the last time he was with EJ Smith. 

I have so many mixed feelings about EJ Smith. I don't want to speak ill of a captain who did go down with the ship with passengers stranded with no way out and no help to come. He did cancel a lifeboat drill on the day of the sinking which would've greatly helped the evacuation. 

The evacuation was botched when they should've evacuated as soon as possible. 

The Murdoch thing had already been said. The fact he was seemingly villainized was just not good, accepting Cal and accidentally killing Tommy was just not good. However, there is a possibility he could have committed suicide because he, Wilde, or any other officer had a gun. We can still say that he saved the most lives while saying that he could've still committed suicide due to the stress. Lightoller saw Murdoch crushed by the first funnel though so really who knows who really killed himself that night? 

I would be hard-pressed not to mention Titanic itself is a character. We first saw her as a gray ghost then transitioned into the beautiful ship brought to life by a proud crew and passengers in awe of her grandeur. We knew the ship sunk, heck, it's in the present-day scenes where we learn the forensic science of how she will sink. But we were taken to many of her decks including sweeping shots and even down below in the boilers in her voyage and her eventual death. Now the sweeping shots that used to show her majesty are now used to helplessly watch the people running in terror from the rising waters. 

When she sank, we are not only watching the sinking of the Ship of Dreams but also the death of the dreams of many. There was so much hope and optimism imbued into her that nobody on the damn ship in 1912 thought her to lead them to their deaths. In the final ten minutes of her life that we saw onscreen at least (the entire flashback takes place in the time it takes Titanic to sink), we see Titanic as a dying beast taking down 1500 lives with her to the depths of the cold North Atlantic. 

Even though Rose initially saw Titanic as a prison, she came to see Titanic as a place where she met Jack and a place she dreamt often as the Ship of Dreams in all its glory. That was how survivors eventually came to see Titanic even though her twin sister was right there. Yeah, she got a Parisian cafe later on but Olympic was effectively still her twin. Titanic just got changes that Brittanic later got and would've gotten a longer career than her eldest sister had it not been for the mine. 

By the end of the movie where we see the submersibles going up leaving her in the dark alone and that final shot before she slowly regained her former glory in the dream/heaven, Titanic did not deserve her final fate to be alone at the bottom of the cold Atlantic. 

Themes

Making every day count for you never knowing when your day is your last is the driving theme. 

That pairs well with Titanic’s own stories of sacrifice, heroism, and cowardice. The stories of the band playing till the last thirty minutes, the priests staying to comfort, the engineers and stokers staying till near the last, Thomas Andrews and Smith helping the passengers till the last few minutes, Murdoch and Moody trying to get the collapsible lifeboat on the still intact davit but running out of time but washed away and Murdoch ended up crushed by the funnel, and other stories. 

Rose was trapped in her life and only began living in her time with Jack. She made a promise to Jack and lived a fulfilling life and died an old lady of natural causes in her warm bed. That is how Jack always wanted her to live her life and fully support her in finding someone else to start a family. He knew he was gonna die and knew he wouldn't keep his side of the promise to her but the fact that he met her and sacrificed himself for her safety is more than enough for him in his short life. 

The ship was full of promises of hope for a better future. The sinking was so unthinkable for these people because just days before they could reach New York, they died tragically. 

It's understandable why Jack has to die. This was a tragedy. Not only are people divorced from the tragedy generations apart who cannot comprehend that this was the Edwardian 9/11, everyone who had survived lost someone on that ship. To empathize with those survivors, we have to get into the headspace therefore Jack has to die. Jack symbolized the many loved ones who were lost. 

Killing characters off for the themes is not unusual. MHA's Twice was killed off for the themes too as well as the deaths in Persona 3 and The Great Gatsby. Not that these characters can't be saved in fanfiction. Go off and save them from the hands of the themes while still keeping the themes intact. 

It’s essential to the story Jack must die. In fanworks, save him if you can because there are alternate ways than just attempting to switch. It made no sense for the period and the situation for Jack to think he has a chance of living but he can save a loved one.

Costumes/Visuals

The fashion deservedly won the Oscar. Rose's intro suit was on point. Her dresses remained icons today. 

Course, it’s not always perfect as Cameron admitted to taking liberties with the fashion to tell a story. For example, Rose walks out of the cafe after rebelling without a hat despite the conduct where women wouldn’t go out without a hat. I understand the story standpoint as well as the historical standpoint.

Cameron placed lighting fixtures for both the cameras, actors, and the audience to see what was going on including places where the lights didn’t exist. The makeup was far more pronounced as at that time lipstick was worn by prostitutes and other women like actors I think, don’t take my word for it. 

I do have to give credit to James Cameron. For more or less accuracy to how the ship would've been built, the sets became a control test in how we understand our understanding of the disaster. 

The most obvious (ie the first-class dining saloon was all set up for breakfast the next morning. Of course when that room floods, everything will float) to the surprising (ie the Grand Staircase breaking away from a steel-reinforced structure, pinning stuntpeople unexpectedly, reinforcing the theory that Grand Staircase simply broke away from being submerged as the dome imploded and caused a suction. Archibald Gracie was the one who was the closest to the Grand Staircase as he said suction and gave that testimony with many survivors noticing the amount of wood that came to the surface. Perhaps it broke away piece by piece but regardless we know that the entire staircase didn't come out of the dome implosion, just pieces.) is a goldmine for researchers. Historians were surprised to learn such details that gave volume to theories thrown around but now the possibility it did happen was all the more conceivable. 

Even though the davits are built to specificities, the lifeboats aren't and even then those lifeboats are just as precarious that no wonder passengers who weren't aware of the danger won't go on there, not helped they want to stay in their warm cabins when their warm cabins won't be warm much longer. It gave insight to historians into the mindset of the passengers who refused to get into safety. 

In fact, as they play out the events like one lifeboat nearly toppling another while seamen frantically cut the ropes, I bet it was like reliving what happened. 

Even though the sinking and the breakup were based on the nineties' understanding of the disaster, it turned out that in the end, it was only half right and half wrong. To this day, we likely won't know what happened to the ship. Not just the listing and the direction of the stern in its final moments but the band's final number and the final places where many famous victims were at the time of their deaths. While it was agreed upon that Thomas Andrews was in the First Class Smoking room, evidence has proven that he stayed trying to help people before he jumped with Edward Smith. 

Outside of liberties with history and using the popular legends to tell the story where we know Rose didn't see happen, the science was fascinating to learn as it gives a glimpse into the sinking. 

We aren't likely to know the truth of how the ship sank and all of that sort. We really don't know as we only have only a third of the story. The rest are dead and nobody can speak to the dead. 

While A Night to Remember is best for its accurate portrayal of the sinking with this movie coming a close second, this movie is best for accurately portraying the ship and its interiors because Titanic itself is a character. 

Overall

It’s a well-made movie. It deserved its accolades. The flaws are heavy but it doesn’t detract that much as we can see the intention why certain foils are cut from the final piece. It's in the end Rose's story and memory of a traumatic event. 

Romance epics aren’t a thing. Not just because feminine interests are trashed even more so when romances that get big and make lots of money are seen as not true filmmaking, and other movies that followed cliches of romances are disregarded. 

While I don't think this movie is anything bad, a modernization of A Night to Remember with all the known survivor accounts that can at least align where they once stood and not have Lightoller be the protagonist who did the duties that his fellow crew did. Just a thought, yeah, because at the same time knowing that we will never know what truly happened that night, the details that we do know should've been the elevation. Also keep the replica that was destined to sink and break up, keep that and use it as a museum. 

While I really don't like Julian Fellowes' Titanic 2012, the only good thing that came out of the whole mess was a survivor's perspective from the last ten minutes of Titanic's life. It's far more accurate as from far away, the breakup occurred at a much lower angle and the stern still sank upward. Even though it's horribly written with Downton Abbey rejects and dereliction of duties, the sinking sequence from a survivor's perspective from the water and onto a capsized lifeboat is the best thing. 

Ah, Julian Fellowes, what an upper-class twit. His classism and that the gentry liked the servants and vice versa even though the maltreatment was historical evidence and his Shakespeare comment can only be understood by Cambridge. Never mind that in America, Romeo and Juliet are taught in the high school curriculum and much of the language is much closer to our language with so much of our language coming from him (the words had dwindled because it's because Shakespeare heard the way women speak at the time and utilized the language for his plays). 

Honestly, I don't know who is worse. James Cameron colonized his own fictional world when his colleagues literally created something alien in both music and fauna and not something heard from Oklahoma to South Dakota and not analogs of our animals or Julian Fellowes, an elitist twit who is unwilling to see the servants won't like the aristocrats and likewise, aristocrats cared more about themselves even in the last gasps of the aristocracy.  

*sighs* It comes to this. It was so unexpected that somehow Titanic claimed 5 more lives with the Titan submersible. 

On one hand, it’s hard to feel pity for billionaires who have so little oversight on the safety precautions that the Titanic - the Titanic, infamous for the disastrous dominoes of disaster in which after the disaster inquiries about the safety at sea were at its utmost discussion - was basically spit in the face of. 

On the other hand, the 19-year-old didn’t deserve that. The wife who was the descendant of the Strauss couple didn't deserve that. The loved ones did not deserve that. 

However, my point of contention was how the Titan submersible destruction spit on the face of the Titanic disaster. That just grinds my gears of the arrogance of the rich to flout safety while in the past, Titanic did what they always did while not considering the worst possible thing that could happen to them as they botch the evacuation. There is a damn good reason why the Titanic myths exist. 

The Titan really spat on its face with its name and its flouting of safety. Its name, the fact there was nothing about it that could be considered safe, the prices to pay, its construction… 

It’s not a repeat of history but more so a flouting of history. Titanic was built with safety and comfort in mind while so many conditions drove the ship to its grave because the worst possible outcome fatefully killed the beautiful ship and her passengers. In fact, the Olympic class truly was strong, just that Titanic simply didn’t have high and attached bulkheads that killed it. That’s one of the very few flaws, not the damn fire or poor steel or poor shipbuilding. Titan was not built with safety in mind hence its implosion. 

Unlike Titanic, there were no inquiries but like Titanic, more attention to the 1% took attention away from the poor immigrants as seen with the Greek ship disaster with the immigrants drowning while the Coast Guard did not bother for an illegal ship. 

There should be rescue for the illegal ships too as well as saving lives because Titanic’s legacy should be reduced to this. The prevalence of the Titanic disaster and its lessons have ever been more needed. 

Titanic will never ever go away as it lasted over a century of fascination. 

Yet for the rich, the fascination turned deadly if they don’t take in the lessons their ancestors learned from the disaster. 

Is it so hard for the lessons that people took from the Titanic to learn and expand? We got the Ice Patrol and ship advances to make safety the priority. 

But ships and submersibles are just not even with the recent advances with the kites, not masts. Safety precautions and life-saving protocols are needed at this time more than anything. 

I’m just shocked. I just can’t believe this. I thought nobody was sane enough to not think about safety but nope, arrogance led to death here. A combo of ignorance and arrogance led Titanic to doom but here, all arrogance killed them all. 

Just to be clear, James Cameron was not asked for interviews because he made Titanic. He’s an expert on undersea engineering and made contributions to oceanography. He dove into the Mariana Trench solo and proved himself in the field of ocean science. 

Award Shows

 

I never cared about award shows. When I was a kid watching them, my interest is mainly the celebrity dresses and shiny trophies. 

There are award shows for a bunch of things, even porn. I was admittedly mildly fascinated by gay porn award shows. 

You wouldn’t see me catching any news on any award shows. 

That happened solely because of the Oscars' category of Best Animated Feature. They made that because Beauty and the Beast should be the only one-time incident but even then, Up and TS3 occurred their nominations in that category too but it shows that it's only Disney Pixar, no anime or Dreamworks or Laika or anybody. It must not happen again and they continue to denigrate animation again and again. The last time I ever watched that category was when Frozen won. Frozen won by the Disney name alone. This didn't even have to do with my feelings with Frozen shouldn't win even though they definitely shouldn't. The anonymous voters said they were dragged there by their kids and animation is basically suffering for them. They won't even watch any of the nominees or see animation as a medium. Just a slog because adults can never understand them. 

Wow, no wonder the live-action Disney remakes blossomed so much when animation was so derided. Even though they know the live-action sucked out whatever the animation had, it's still in their superior mind the better medium or genre altogether. They don't give a shit that animation is a medium that the animation community and whoever uses what kind of animation, 2D or 3D or both, sees animation as something more to tell a story best told in that medium. 

Guillermo del Toro won and let him say that animation is for everybody and a medium. Because the years with animation on the guillotine for tax write-offs and adult animated comedies showing their relative lack of creativity despite the animators basically carrying them, the release of so many good movies and shows showed that animation is still thriving and would not back down to be known as only the kids' stuff. 

The award shows regarding BTS even in their home country exempting the KMAs have always been weird. The Kpop idol industry has been seriously affected by BTS’s success so much that it’s funny. SMA split the main daesang with digital and album until going back the next year, MAMA got the Worldwide Icon daesang, Brits (this one was bad, really bad since I know about the Rina situation and I vaguely heard about the treatment with female artists) took away the international group category, Grammys up in their usual shit, and Oscars only dealing out awards to who knows even when these nominations are deserved. 

The only award show portion that I even bother to watch was the Best Animated Feature. After Frozen's 'win' and the revelation that voters only chose Frozen for brand name power and disdain for animation, I was furious. I vowed to never watch that section again even when Into the Spider-verse won deservingly.

Ugh, Moulin Rouge Broadway shouldn’t have won Best Orchestration. It’s an insult to the movie’s transformation of the music. Going backward to making straight-up covers for belting instead of the timeless songs the movie used and still transforms is an insult. Fuck those belting showcases. Just give me what the movie has done instead of the piss poor Broadway. Outside of a few gems, Broadway was a disappointment. 

No award shows ever receive a full watch from me. Even when award shows deservingly gave awards and a spotlight to people who finally got it after who knows how long for recognition, these award shows still need to catch up on the uptake. 

They were supposed to be the best of the best and even then it's not recognized. Seriously, BTS won again and again but still did not receive the recognition they deserved from the Korean media which had been nasty to them before their rise but even during their rise, and now the nastiness remains because they didn't help BTS. 

But when the Grammys used their name for the viewing power of ARMYs, the Grammys are the villains. Sending back their filmed performance to a later time just for the views because they know after the fiasco with the pre-show award showing, they have nothing, not even Beyonce who was shown. Seriously, after looking like they could win even staying up just for their award nomination, there is not much the Grammys have as after the entire thing showed they want to have their cake and eat it. Seriously, the Grammys is nothing more than what looks like they are the best when they are not. Hence why I couldn’t take the optimistic takes on fanfics that depict the Grammys as this great thing, knowing many deserving artists never got their dues until they submit to the corrupt practices or never had a chance in the first place. Godoka, I want to laugh at the Kpop peers who submit their work without scoring anything on the Top 100 or having enough streams even when they did payola on Spotify but they still have their grimy paws on US attendance award shows. 

These accolades are when they are deserved showed what the award shows could be at their best. 

But when there are negligent and vague rules that can be changed on a whim with the company in charge of the show wanting name power and designate attendance awards to people who came, yeah, they deserve no respect even when putting on a great show. 

The VMAs are a huge example of this. They aren't part of the Big 3 music award shows in the USA. Instead, they make do with wild performances and attendance awards. They don’t give a crap about respectability, just attendance. 

Award shows already have below-average or worse views. These attendance awards no matter how insane the performances are have nothing going for it. 

Hence taking advantage of ARMYs because other music awards saw a huge showing. Not enough to save them but still the largest since. 

I mean with award shows nominations right now aren’t showing anything that is deemed rightful. Snubs have always been painful but what about the nominations that are certainly deserved but the chance of winning is slim? Yeah, I’m not looking forward to any of the ceremonies. 

I won’t even discuss the current nominations. There is enough about them. 

These award shows at face value looked prestigious. 

Because these award shows look prestigious with all the rules to look fair when it’s never been, they maintain the impression of the arbiter of good media they are overseeing. While I’m not expecting them to see greatness or about the future, I do think they should’ve granted recognition to others for achievements than rewarding white performers or whoever owns them or bribing them. I mean Moulin Rouge is still talked about to this day as opposed to some movie crusty white male Academy sees as something that’s up their alley. 

On one hand, it's understandable that most people never heard about the movies. Even to this day, Crash is well-regarded as one of the worst wins over the well-deserved Brokeback Mountain. Despite my misgivings about Brokeback Mountain, I at least know how important it is. At the same time, what the Oscars see as Best Picture is often not what they think not to say that played into it too but often the cultural trend at that time. 

No award show is ever going to reward the flowers to those who broke new ground and proved themselves. That's probably never going to happen but only rarely it does. It's only when they are forced to according to their rules. 

Just imagine having a Grammy in the BTS museum at Hybe would be amazing. 

BTS has a lot of deserving awards. Yeah, they blocked off many of their peers but have a fighting chance against the soloists and bands that aren’t Kpop. Because Kpop is the equivalent of Disney Channel stars over there. Then again those Korean award shows prior to BTS’ wins have always been given to the Big 3 groups with the occasional small groups. I’m not even apologetic remembering that fact. Those award shows are for idols with the occasional soloists and bands who are actually popular on Melon. 

If you think the Korean award shows are myopic, just see the Tonys. I mean Aaron Tveit won against literally no one. It set up a precedent. 

The Tonys are all about Broadway, a very tiny slice of musical theater that only exists in New York. The Great White Way that advertised as the best of the best musical theatre the American musical theatre had to offer. That is a sheer lie. 

The Tonys don't give a fuck about any off-Broadway and any shows that aren't even staged off-Broadway either. Any plays or musicals not produced by the big companies and if they are luckily managed to stage there. Lin-Manuel Miranda got a friend who made sure Into the Heights was staged there making his name easier to get out. 

Sure there are previews outside of Broadway but it's just previewing, not the opening night wherein that night is eligible for the Tonys. 

The Tonys gave away awards to people who didn't have that performance as one of their top fives or just the only viable person or don't have enough eligible nominees for certain categories on a regular basis. Getting awards on people's hands is a far more tangible result than just having a separate category that has only 2 or 20 nominees. 

Besides, as much as the Tonys are myopic, there are good results when they do things right. 

I firmly believe Moulin Rouge Broadway shouldn't have won those awards because outside of the good performances, it's still a bad book and has bad orchestration of its music usage outside of just sounding musically great but in no way transform or keeping the focus on the damn story and characters. Moulin Rouge Broadway only won due to the poor season at Broadway and Moulin Rouge does deserve some but not a lot of it especially Best Musical and Best Orchestration. I wanted to wretch the Best Musical and Best Orchestration out of their hands onto the Moulin Rouge movie's hands. 

Avenue Q deserved the Best Musical than Wicked and Moulin Rouge at the Tonys any day of the week. 

At the end of the day, even when awards at the Tonys can be deserving, at most it's a self-promotion marketing tool afterward. Most Broadway people either stay at theatres or go on to Hollywood. There's a possibility Gaten might've always wanted to be a theatre actor but when he auditioned for Stranger Things, he became famous for the world to know and have doors open for him in both the theatre and screen acting. 

Anyway, as much as Andrea Riseborough does deserve at least an Oscar nod, there’s just too much there as the Oscars are going to keep her nomination anyway. There’s not much that anyone can do but talk. What I would say is that she's a white woman and BIPOC actresses won't even have a chance on doing what they could just to garner it on a grassroots scale. Well, as grassroots as a rich kid using connections than an actual grassroots because a BIPOC grassroots would not be enough. It’s telling white actors and actresses rally for Riseborough when none of these guys spoke about the nuances or even supportive of how Davis and Deadwyler put in so much effort with an Oscar-favorite historical drama with black lead roles only to show it means nothing, just David and Goliath the big bad white male industry. I see Riseborough's reputation taking a hit because of this, regardless of her talent. 

EEAAO is a surprise hit involving Yeoh as the big name. Yeoh deserves the Best Actress award for so long. 

I mean there’s Al Walser who ended up scamming the Grammys. 

I mean even the Razzies are getting criticized now for their mean-spirited categories that are only there for that one movie to be laughed at more. At least the Tonys know that it’s myopic even by award show standards by just not having categories regularly due to not having enough nominees. 

Like, do the Tonys want to end up like the BRITs? Because in combining two categories, they showed their true colors the following year with more male nominees over female and heck even nonbinary nominees because it's a system they like and only changes on a superficial level. 

I mean is the Oscars any better at addressing BIPOC actresses? 

Yeah, award shows are trying desperately to be relevant with all the comedy. Regular PR celebrity interviews are boring enough. It has gotten to a point where I know BTS US interviews are less about their artistry or about them as people but about RM learning English from Friends for example that they brought up constantly. BTS isn’t doing that kind of interview anymore, just ARMY, not the audience at the US interviews, seeing the interview experience they choose as the quiet and introspective ones. 

Hot Ones have been a source of envy for talk show hosts who went to great lengths to make their show exciting. I don’t think BTS wants to do any interviews there anymore. Oh, they’ll submit to more Grammy categories that their peers will follow, but make no question that they are jaded years after going into the US with wide eyes after their US debut in 2017. 

Like talk shows trying to be relevant, award shows have shown they are dinosaurs in a world that sees them as archaic. Sure it is great to see people rightfully awarded and given the time to shine but it’s an award show that heavily favored campaigning and neglected certain genres. 

I love musicals but I don’t like biopics. The rare biopics I prefer are from my high school days. Musical biopics vary in quality but saving graces are the performance. Rocketman is different because at least that one made the songs fun. Movie biomusicals are a different breed from jukebox biomusicals though there are overlaps. When BoRap and Elvis are just bad with the only saving grace being the performances, Rocketman sticks out like a sore thumb for not straight-washing Elton John and his troubles. It was produced by Elton John so that's a plus rather than the clean makeover of BoRap or the irreverent reverence of Elvis because the only way I could take Elvis is that it's in the view of whoever telling the story. 

It’s a hard trek for proper recognition in award shows, not when they are still embroiled with incest with loads of companies in the system they perpetuate. They might look like they could include queer and BIPOC communities but it’s only the slimmest chance. 

There is a chance BIPOC people, particularly women, can get their dues. Seeing how the system still favors white people no matter what, they can't afford to subvert the system, knowing that, unlike Risborough's kept nomination, their nominations would be punished. I don't see Riseborough's nomination process will make things any better moving forward, especially if white women and men will rally for other white leads in indie films than for BIPOC indies with BIPOC leads. Fuck, if they can't even understand the nuance of what happened with studio lead BIPOC leads who done everything right according to their rules and a white woman subverted it so easily and they can't, then what on earth are they going to do?

Who knows what will happen moving forward for these award shows? Some might as well try but others just don't care and reveal their true colors in incidental ways that showcase how much they don't like anybody but the white privilege and those tastes among themselves. 

Gatekeeping Fandom As a Treat

 

Since just how fandom has become mainstream as of late with the Harry Styles pipeline and the content consuming of fandom itself through anything profitable that the original author did not benefit from, it's a mess since the revelation AO3 is backing lore.fm. 

I knew since I got AO3 after seeing that I couldn't easily get past the warnings that I had to have an account and got one. 

I participated in the fandom by creating fandom blogs and curating reclists. There is no right way to be a fully committed community member. 

I love fanfiction. I love anticipating what the author will give. In my upcoming reclist, I went deep into that spiral. 

That's the difference. Instead of respecting the author's time and authorship, these modern fans just don't. 

They act like these free gift stuff are essentially free for-profit and lack any understanding of nuance or tropes. 

Podfics are a thing and essentially dying since there are so few out there. The way these guys are about lore.fm acted more like tech bros and used buzzwords like 'ableist' and 'classist' when they're the ones who are directly profiting from it and didn't have any permission to create an AI system that scraps and make up endings that don't respect anything from the author. 

The author makes fanfiction and gifts to the fandom for free. In the fanzine days that aren't expensive, it's dispersed via cheap paper to reach out as much as possible. 

They don't care about the author's agency and control over their property in the end. 

I have been in the fandom as a lurker primarily for nearly 20 years. I'm so used to waiting for fics to update and often a surprise update is what gets me going. That's why I can wait for a long time for pin makers from samples to ship it to me. As long as it comes from a reliable pin maker that is. But even reliable pin makers can fall from grace like Pin it on Magic whose divorce got to him that his small business shuttered its doors, whose preorders were forgotten in the mess and people just lost money. 

Anyway, fandom clout does not matter when it's outsiders profiting from that clout and not the person inside it. There are famous authors in the fandom. 

On the other hand, I can be assured my fave fics won't suffer the same fate as Dramione fics. Godoka, I don't care much about Dramione fics since I've seen a lot of them in the pin community. 

Even if they are popular fics within that ship's fandom, I don't think they'll be popular enough to be an intro to fanfic. 

Fuck, I don't know how to introduce my cousins to fanfics properly if they want to explore it. I can tell which anime or manga to get into. Heck, those in the know how much I love magical girls that someone who hasn't been in the animanga scene for a long time but has an older sister who is into magical girls as I am knows how much I love them. 

Barring my Pokemon collection (growing consistently with Mamo alone. Really, I'm considering different ideas for my Dark and Light boards regarding the Mamo pins I have. With the last of the Eevee Fusions coming up, I need to finalize. Candlelight is magnificent and will go well with the rest of the dark designs), my magical girl is consistently growing one way or another through Sailor Saturn, Serenity, PGSM, and other magical girls like CCS, Princess Tutu, and Shugo Chara. If I was somehow finding magical girls, it's my brother who finds harem anime. How else would I know about Zero no Tsukaima to the point that I knew what I was getting into when I saw a Pokemon crossover? 

I feel that using fandom as a goldmine for outsiders with the clout of said creation without the creator receiving that clout is pretty bad. 

I respect the fanfic writers’ time and space. Certainly, there are comical stories of the varied lifestyle AO3 writers get into on the notes but I’m willing to wait and even if a fic may not be updated in years, context clues and foreshadowing are helpful tools as well as any comments made in any social media or the comment section itself. 

How else is it to see that in Icarus’ Dilemma's second half, I just know that Lelouch would succeed as the Viceroy with Nunnally as the Sub-Viceroy? I might not know the finer details but I know based on other works, Lelouch and Nunnally will be as beloved as Princess Diana. 

How about Gravity’s Burn where I just know Touya and Keigo are gonna elope? 

Again, might not know the finer details but I can guess. 

These tourist fans see the fandom with its generous gifts and sharing in the love as profit and content. Demanding authors to finish that Wattpad would punish them under readers’ complaints and using AI to make up their own endings are just one of the many disrespectful things done.

The theft had happened before in fandom but this is just too large scale. 

Not helped there is just so much entitlement, puritanical overwhelming simple basics, and poor literary skills all around. 

I know there are many different forms of AI that can be helpful but scrapping fandom and stealing it is not the right way. None of these guys aren’t rightfully getting paid or credited or anything. 

In the eyes of the big corporate from tech bros to tourist fans, it’s all about money and content. They could care less that these writers write in their free time just as artists who run small businesses have to make it work for them in ways that they can still get money with their art. 

I say we gatekeep. 

These people should make an effort to go through hoops just to access them. I’d rather they be forced to do things just to get access to the 'content' they desire. 

Since I usually engage with the media I get into and the fanfiction that comes from it, I don't see these as content. 

Unlike small businesses that are based on art, they have to have new art and run it somehow in long term. It's heavily advised that unless they really want to go into the pinmaking business, understanding customer service and how to make it work for you is best. 

Are you just going to make a sticker club? Or sell only stickers? You can even do acrylic charms beyond stickers. 

Cara is still not known to the wider public so artists who wish to have new customers, they still have to post on Instagram. From what I have seen, it's not like you can create group chats with customers on Cara. Cara is for artists but less so for actually having customers outside of commissions. Yes, there are community members, but I have yet to see a clean transition to doing similar stuff such as creating groups. 

It’s the same on AO3. Despite lore.fm being the head honcho’s idea to assist, the writers having nowhere else to go have to lock their fics. 

All these AI folks will use buzzwords to guilt to get their way. The thing is that just because it’s free doesn’t mean they own it. They aren’t owed anything regarding fandom’s free gifts.

Yeah, it would be great for disabled folks but podfics are limited as they are already. Get permission from the author and make that podfic. 

It’s better that the author gets the profits. 

At least when artists get commissioned to make pin designs (the vectoring is left up to the pin maker and the art proof is up to the manufacturer but always make sure to triple-check everything and I do mean triple-check everything to get everything right. It might even take a while but unless you get a relatively easy file for you to do and them to use, then it's much easier to do from what I heard from Mamo at least. Apparently, Mamo and Nuwa are the best at having the easiest vectors and art-proof approvals), they get a pin version as well as payment. 

Though some deserve better than others when a design of theirs. Man on the Moon and Nyxxi’s commissioned artists deserve so much more than one being stuck as an exclusive. At least David J Brunson is making a killing off his Disney pin designs, being an exclusive artist for two very expensive Disney fantasy pin makers. 

I know Dalton was and still is the most popular Klaine fic. There were YT read-alouds but I never heard it past going beyond some chapters or completion. 

I know some fanmade stuff was sent to the author but I'm not sure if they sold anything to the wider fanbase. 

At least they aren't making money off the Weebly. 

Outside of the fandom itself, the author does not get the clout. They aren't the ones making a profit from their own fics that they write in their free time. 

When authors do make a killing, it's through their own resources such as Patreon that allows them sneak peeks or WIPs of other projects. Sometimes if they are the main mod behind a zine, it will be for-profit. 

Again, the Dabihawks one I got was explicitly for profit. 

They, in the fandom, have clout when the zine becomes a success either through their clout in the fandom or from the popularity of their fics. 

In the fan merch community, they are explicitly open to make anything. I mean I received my Dabihawks pin because of it. 

However, these guys are making a profit on their own. They aren't making a profit from another's gains who received that adoration through their hard work of their free writing that they took in their free time. 

A fanfic writer is always grateful to have their works have fanart and be discussed among their dedicated following or spread elsewhere. They are fully willing to get into discussions of thought processes why each event happens in their fic. I have seen this happen be it through the comment section, Discord, Twitter, and anywhere they are willing to discuss any questions asked. 

Also, I feel since the comment section isn't used much at all, please use them. The fanfic author won't know themselves unless you first comment there rather than discuss where they can't follow, such as a Discord server with no access. As long as they can access those servers, the author will answer your questions and provide anything you ask for barring spoilers. 

Outside of just participating in fandom, whether making a blog of your fave ship, whether it is rare or not, writing, or recommending, you are an active part of the community. 

Making a profit off of someone else without permission or collaboration isn't part of the community. 

There are different ways to be part of a fandom community but being this selfish enough to make money on someone else's free time spent to freely given gift to the overall fandom is bad. 

So News about OPLA....

 

Aside from waking up to the news with a lot of people decrying it as a bad idea and lots of theories thrown out the window, it does seem the original plan of ending at Enies Lobby is still ongoing at this point. 

That's quite a non-sequitur but still I remember reading that the plan was not Marineford but Enies Lobby and end on that note. 

With the fact they are ending on Drum instead, there's a probability that next season or season 2 part 2 will be Alabasta/Jaya and having Skypeia as its own season. 

People arguing that it's best ending on Alabasta when there on itself so big and needed time.

It's disappointing in itself that we will see Lera Abova as Robin for only one episode. Considering we'll see more Coby and Helmeppo this season instead, they should focus on the development on the main cast. 

Of course other than suspense that we haven't gotten a Bon-chan announcement at all. I hope that any transphobic people who tried to decry Bon-chan will be met with the ferocity of the OP fandom who adores Bon-chan and call them out for being fake fans or trying to stir up controversy where there was not and ever was considering how much Bon-chan is loved in the fandom. 

To be honest, we don’t have to worry about the inevitable reactions from reactionaries anytime soon unless they are explicitly casting Bon Clay. Alabasta won’t be until the next. 

Missteps aside from not casting MENA for money, the casting has been spot on. Bon Clay as a fan favorite should be given the same dignity. 

In the other end, while I understand the desire to have Robin be a Hispanic for the whole Ohara genocide, being Russian does not negate that either. Yes, it’s another white woman in the cast and the only two in the Strawhats live action but Arceus, blaming her Russian ethnicity is not enough to not be Robin supposedly. 

The MENA casting is just not there as it’s easily for money. The Russian ethnicity alongside she’s white is just the issue here for people that it’s just stupid to rhyme and reason. 

There haven't been a word about another Season 2 part 2 or even a season 3 at this point. 

Yes, Netflix needs a new flagship series since Stranger Things is ending and Wednesday is overstaying its welcome. Yes, Netflix is going full throttle with the One Piece. 

However, lest we not forget, Oda wanted the series to get newcomers into the manga and it worked! 

For all its flaws, the goal was met. 

Even if the discord for OPLA is disappointed whereas everywhere was welcomed that news with open arms or at least hesitation

I have zero expectations about the second season. Even before or after this announcement, it does not hurt me as a fan of the source material. I know the gains of getting new fans when even Oda knew they aren't likely to go beyond pre-time skip at best. That's a pipe dream. 

As much as we would like to see Yamato and the Elbaf giants, time skip will be so much of a pipe dream. 

Best case scenario, we get to Enies Lobby or even Marineford. Maybe if we’re lucky to even get Wano…I doubt getting time skip so much hence pipe dream. I’ll just happy to even get Enies Lobby as my favorite arc. 

Impel down would be great with Inaki Godoy, Jeff Ward, and David. Jeff preparing to fall fail upwards will be amazing even if he’s more adaptational badass this time around. 

With even more news of the casting including Indian casting for two MENA characters, apparently, there was a mix of things that went wrong behind the scenes for the casting. It seems they wanted to go through but in the end money talks. 

If Cobra's casting is this much, I fear Vivi's casting announcement officially even though everyone knows by now who it is. I just worry about the reactions from there from the more worrisome members. 

Also I cannot believe I have to spell this out: JUST BECAUSE MARTY ADELSTEIN TURNED OUT TO BE A BAD PERSON DOES NOT MEAN THAT OTHERS ARE LEFT TO ROT. 

We need the show to do well to even get near Marineford or at the very least Enies Lobby. Boycotting because of an attachment no one on the show didn't think would occur is stupid stuff. Matt Owens and everyone else is passionate about OPLA and being respectful. Be angry at the unexpected connection that nobody asked for when we should be supporting what could've been done in the first season where the cast couldn't promote it the way they wanted. 

Honestly, look forward to the press tour rather than the actual show. What little we got during the strike was so good: the fashion, the chemistry, the everything. 

Again, I don't know how much this is true of whether or not the execs want to skip arcs altogether or Netflix being finicky even though they need a new flagship show long enough to secure another flagship show alongside it. 

Again, no expectations from here. I know some live-action onlies are probably looking forward since they have lots of big names or moderately popular ones getting added to a cast of relative unknowns. 

I do worry about momentum but so many factors goes into making a show. Considering how much people don't see how long an anime creation can take, it's gonna take awhile. Considering how people do not understand on all fronts regarding the production of a show of any kind, animated or live-action, it's going to take a while. 

At least we got future Strawhat interactions to look forward to regardless. I still love the scene of the Strawhats sailing before running into Garp after Syrup Village in the live action. Can’t wait to see more of that coupled with much needed development for both live action Sanji and Usopp.

I would love to see Taz act the shit out in Whole Cake Island. I would love to see Inaki go Gear 5. I would love to see Inaki punch a Celestial Dragon. I would love to see Morgan’s Coby be the great marine he wanted to be and react to Luffy’s titles. I would love to see Jacob become Sogeking and God Usopp. I would love to see Mackenyu get Shusui and Enma. I would love to see Jeff Ward’s Buggy fall upwards with Alvida and Mr. 3 beside him in the chaos. I would love to see Steven John Ward’s Mihawk go crazy in Marineford and future Cross Guild interactions with Buggy. Fuck, I would love to see this version of Mihawk slash a frozen tsunami. I would love to see the Strawhats leave with happy citizens waving them off. For the love of Nika, I would love to see the Strawhats learn about the Road Poneglyphs and how to reach Laugh Tale. The faces of the live-action Strawhats are marvelous in my head, all their awe and joy. I would love to see Inaki Godoy's Luffy's first Conqueror's Haki or instances thereof because I can take what I can get. Godoka, I want to see the crew in-universe sing Bink's Sake! 

Can we at least see the flashbacks to Buggy and Shanks' time as cabin boys on the Oro Jackson? We didn't get that in the first season and we need that at least. Show that on Loguetown at least so that live-action onlies can get the taste of the mysteries we fans have been fed with for years and now only missing two last pieces of the puzzle. 

Arceus, seeing all the known Strawhats declaring that Luffy will be the Pirate King will be an arrow to my heart. Love to see Jacob be the first to air that out not that soon but hopefully in a few years in the Alabasta arc. I will be screaming to see that in live-action. 

There are scenes in season 2 I'm already looking forward to such as Drum and entering Reverse Mountain. 

Honestly, I just hope to see the Roger Pirates flashback with young Buggy and young Shanks considering they did cast them. Can the live-action onlies get the Rogers Pirates teases and the mysteries that we got, please? 

I'm freaking screaming just thinking of the raw moments of emotion that will definitely get newcomers and general audiences teary-eyed and feeling so wiped out from the emotion. 

Godoka, if Transformers One was able to convince on one iteration or a few considering there are only so much iterations in the public sphere (hey, just as not everyone know every Pokemon that ever existed or that Yugioh is still continuing its anime), they can at least know the iteration and what inspired it if they bother to look it up. 

Honestly, the very fact Matt referenced Cross Guild that went over the heads of LA-onlies is very funny. I got it but they don't. 

I would've love to see who would play live action Law and so many more. Ah, Vegapunk whom we were teased since forever, if we ever going to make it, their experience of waiting to see their faves again and the long game foreshadowing would be magnificent. If we have to suffer so long so does the newbies. 

I know Taz has stated they don’t want OPLA to go on too long. Obviously, they don’t want to be zombie shows like Supernatural but they can be long-term writing shows like Criminal Minds. Again, not as long, just enough to fulfill a story that can best end on its own terms while allowing live action onlies to go and complete the story in the intended medium it was meant to read. 

One Piece has an endpoint. We're in the final Saga for Godoka's sake! 

Again, it’s unlikely we’ll ever reach post-time skip. It’s a pipe dream. 

I would love to see Lera Abova actually tackle the famous I want to live scene. It was the audition after all. Godoka, I hope that just win gold everywhere in award shows no matter how award shows just aren't doing it right. 

Narratively, it makes sense to end things after Marineford but Enies Lobby will do great. Heck, after Enies Lobby, you can just show the rest of the crew future where they are and future with showing of everything without context to live action or lies to figure out when they finally read the thing. 

For what's its worth now, all we do now is cross our fingers that OPLA's chances to be at least long-term enough to reach Enies Lobby are better than normal. Hopefully, they can secure an S3 with Alabasta since they are going hard with Crocodile and Robin even if their true names haven't been revealed yet to the wider public that doesn't know shit about OP. 

Speaking of, what is with the entitlement regarding a short break Oda took to Cape Town? He always wanted to visit the set first season around so he finally got the chance to see it this time. Not to mention, he deserved a break and taking a break would not compromise the quality of the final saga. 

Oda took breaks longer than those two weeks. I distinctly remember a one-month break. Why are these guys in an uproar over a short break that will not hurt anyone? 

Fuck, the hate towards OPLA for supposedly compromising the quality of the manga is stupid. Oda gave his okay to what goes into the live action as he understands the difference between the medium and the chance to expand to new eyes who wouldn't look at his work otherwise. Elbaf wouldn't be ruined just because of a two-week vacation, not when there are theories on how it will play out with Vivi's message and Loki and so on. Are they really unimaginative about seeing how the story might play out while anticipating that Oda will throw you for a loop? 

My cousin wouldn't have looked at One Piece had it not been for the OPLA. 

Whether or not these stupid purists think, the point of OPLA was to reel in new people who wouldn't look at the source material either because of its vast depths or another reason altogether. 

I know my cousin wouldn't even though she's pretty much a newbie when it comes to anime. They know I'm the watcher and still keep up the news on it. The fact she even considers watching the anime at all is a feat even though she found OPLA Luffy annoying. 

We will always have the original source material. The OPLA is there to reel in new people. If OPLA bothers you in any capacity, just remember that Oda wants the general public to know and really know the story and heart of his story. There are OP creators who make no noise about OPLA or largely ignore the adaptation, but at least they are far more understanding in just shutting up and not mentioning to not bring down the negativity and gloom on the normies who were brought in by the live-action adaptation. 

Please, a two-week vacation is just nothing compared to years of hiatus that other people have to deal with their beloved mangas. 

One Piece fans have been spoiled so much with a manga going on its final saga, the anime with all its flaws, specials, movies, remasters, and a live action adaptation bringing in new fans. 

Having a life outside One Piece is a thing, y'know. I have dedicated a part of my life to One Piece due to falling down the rabbit hole but I have not forgotten my other loves in my life. I have loads of OP merch but my love for magical girls is transcendent. Sailor Saturn is basically the only thing growing the Sailor Moon portion whereas I desperately want more CCS but the ones I do find are either too expensive or just can't find the more affordable ones at the sizes I want with having three Princess Tutu pins. 

Pin Collecting and Collecting as a Hobby

I keep getting myself into expensive hobbies. Gunpla, figure collecting, manga, books… Thankfully, they aren’t the first edition. 

Since I’m a veteran collector, I have seen complaints raised against pin makers that aren’t about money fulfillment of orders or updates about anything. It’s about quality and quantity. 

I know my limits. Heck, the Thanatos figure was a grail for a long time that it relied upon they rereleased it for the anniversary. 

I know that at this point in time, I don’t have enough speed to get anything that doesn’t have PayPal/Shop Pay. 

I know by now I cannot hesitate when it comes to drops. Mamobot trained me well with that lesson when I got cart swiped and paid more for it when preorders went up after it sold out. 

I know that I’m better at limited-time preorders than LE preorders. I cut my losses pretty naturally. I mean I can try to attempt but if it's like a pickup for a convention, it's a tossup if they can get it before sellout. Heck, I made my peace I didn't get one. 

No amount of guilt-tripping should have a pinmaker send personal copies to these guys. Listen I get you want the item but you are no more special than anyone who trying to buy the pin you wanted in question. 

If that was the case, they probably should've known how the pin community worked by now or arrived at a drop late. 

Not to mention drop buddies are a maybe, not a demand for satisfaction. I haven't drop buddy for anybody since I'm wary of my own money and that needs to go to necessary orders I want to keep. Still so happy with the pins I got in. 

Heck, I wasn’t expecting to get my beloved Pokemallow Dragonair at all. I was just one of the many who wanted the AX exclusives and I was lucky enough to get mine. She’s forever homed, my fave of all faves. 

I did not ask my pickup buddy for more than asked for and was willing to compensate if they had managed to snag that one. They didn't and it's fine. I didn't think I was deserving of it more than anyone else who was there. Heck, I managed to get it later even if it hasn't shipped at all at the time of writing. 

With scouring around reliable pin makers and their grading systems alongside people's experiences with the said grading system, I know reliable preorders that I will get the pin and the grades that aren't flawless because they're handmade. 

I know that pin makers have varied standards. There were lower grades that looked like it doesn’t have a flaw and there were those that people couldn’t believe it’s that bad. 

I can trust PSS’ B-grades for instance given the praise from people who bought from her hence I can buy off her that way without guilt. With her BOGO, she tried to match it with the pin you bought. I know somebody in the pin server I’m in got a Zelda freebie with the Xiao pop she got so I got an idea. Given I’m pretty much buying Genshin and HSR off her, yeah. 

If they can understand that pin makers have varying eyes for standards, then they should be able to make peace that it wouldn’t be perfect. 

I perfectly understand if a pin doesn’t have an art proof at ready by presale or you want to see a sample, hell if it weren’t for the fact that I needed to snatch a spot, then I wouldn’t be preordering as much. Sometimes preorders might be the only chance to get it. 

If people are unable to get past they won't be getting flawless pins completely and utterly, pin collecting isn't the hobby you should be in. All pinmakers including the bad ones outright said that they're handmade and thus prone to errors during the process. 

It has gotten to the point that I have seen a reliable pinmaker and popular one too forced to add mixed grade mention to any big three more pins, a size that should get more flaws with the more details it gets, or a pin set that will be prone to human error like hand mixing pearl or painted by hand.  

If they are forced to add that much detail albeit brief or even showing examples of what counts as each successive grade in their book, then maybe these complainers shouldn’t be in this hobby if they all want perfection. 

I won’t collect C-grades unless it’s my own chance for the pin or if I can trust people’s experiences. 

Even a detailed grading system is needed considering another maker had to try to set up a new one. 

No pin is ever flawless. The maker will try to quality check for the best ones to send out for preorders and won't ever send out their worst grades to those who preordered, those who waited for months. The worst grades are typically at a discount or explicitly said; if they are willing or don't care about it as long as they have it, they can have it. 

I don't know why these people are this mad about flaws even regarding standard or A-grades in general. I only collect lower grades if I can trust others to deliver or if it's the only chance I can get it. I got my Moulin Rouge pins at a B-grade. At the point in time, I really don't care as long as I have it. 

Now this is about the quantity. Depending on their lives, they can have open preorders or not. More often or not, they are often LE with the occasional reruns. 

Mamo and Nuwa leave their preorders open for a week with some going on for a few days. There are people who run on the higher ends that have extended preorder limits in the same way as they do such as Witchxing and Abigeyedowl. 

Not every pinmaker can make every pins they have open preorders. Maybe within a limited timeframe sure but limited nonetheless. 

LE is simply easier on what these pin makers can do. They might increase the numbers with more interest than they thought. 

Participate more if you want the numbers raised. If you want the number raised, comment. 

If you want the LE, go practice with the website, just don't press buy at the moment. Just click the buttons as fast as you can without buying the practice product. 

Practice makes things easier for you. It's how I managed to secure some of my snags for LE pins and gacha that sells out within a minute or two. 

After getting cart swiped which is not a great feeling, I know I have to have no hesitation. Actually, it was amazing that I wasn't cart-swiped with the Neuvi and Meg preorders I got probably because of the Shop Pay. 

Again, know your limits and if you want it, practice your speed with the preferred method of payment. 

Nobody is entitled to enamel pins, a hunk of metal. You can ask how to purchase but at the end of the day, ISO is there and given the right help, the pin might come to you. My Espeon Pokemallow was this. 

Now, I pay for keeps. I don’t preorder as often as I have seen others do in a month. I'm pretty sure people spend at least a thousand a month. I barely cracked 500 on my worst spending months. I already warned my wallet in July 2024 that it would experience pain. 

Sometimes there are preorders that came up that threw me off course from my intended budget for the month. I know this feeling all too well. Either it's pins that have been on my list forever, surprise art reveals, or characters I never intended to collect but will make an exception for this one. 

I wasn't intending to make a Disney collection by any means. I saw Nuwa Evil Queen and I fell down the rabbit hole. It does help that the Evil Queen was threefer (love the classic Disney Princesses as I watch it all the time as a kid so it's a great symbolism for that era, my love for villains, and it's a beauty). I saw Nuwa Mali and wasn't that interested but I'm awaiting her Lady Tremaine. 

I always planned to start an HSR pin collection but it kept pushing back until May. ORV is still pushed back due to budget reasons. If it weren't for the fact that Penacony finally pushed me into buying it, who knows how long it would take to get that into gear. My misgivings about the final execution of the entire Penacony in its totality aside, it's still the final straw for me to finally collect it with Aven being the main drive. 

I didn't intend to get a Jing Yuan in any case but the Midnightmoon Purple Chrome variant did the job for me and I made an exception for getting him. I do not plan to get the Minty Jing Yuan anyhow. 

If Sunday is indeed a makeover with black clothes, oh I'm so tempted to get him that way. That's an if. There’s one Sunday but I don’t know. Again, my primary focus is on Aven, Ratio, Acheron, and misc characters at this point. 

I'm honestly waiting for Abigeyedowl to release the Ever After pin set because, unlike others, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna get hers and put it on my Cinderella board. If she does indeed make the other Cinderella such as Ella and Kit, then I'm a goner. Again, the only exception for a Disney Princess I will collect will be Cinderella. Witchxing is on the radar for that alone for her Girl with Sword series which I made the exception of getting Punzie. 

All in all, a hobby should make you happy. Pin collecting is just one of the many expensive hobbies I partake in. Concentrating on a hobby makes you money rather than making you happy wouldn't make anybody happy.

Singularly focusing on a pin and nothing else isn't really good for the psyche and maybe they should take a step back from the hobby if they are that happy for not getting a pin. 

Because of my previous expensive hobbies, it's no harm done if I don't get the pin immediately. Fuck, I still haven't gotten to the Real Grade Gunpla my brother bought for me for my birthday because I don't feel that I'm not at that level yet. 

It’s simply for the peace of mind that I get the pin at preorder. 

Heck, I easily let pins I won't be able to get pass through me once I see I have no chance and maybe one I might possibly get it. 

What I won't let pass me are Mamo's preorders because from what I heard from him, the second wave of the Eevee Fusions have in-hands but for some of them, there won't be in-hands at all. Thank Arceus, I snagged them all. 

I understand if a maker won’t make extras or can’t. I have a bunch of miscellaneous men from Genshin and Honkai that I can sufficiently make an ita bag day for it if I feel like it. If I’m feeling Pokemon Chandelure one day then hot Hoyo guys next then Cinderellas next, who knows. Though with abigeyedowl I’m refusing to let that out of a shadowbox if the Cinderellas would ever be released for presales. 

My Yugioh collection is tiny. KHR, GX, Digimon, and even CCS suffered from being on the back burner. Been trying to get in the groove with my fave animanga CCS by getting a pin at last for it after so many Sailor Moons. 

It's also fine if art doesn't jive with you. I passed on a few artists because they simply aren't for me. Some styles just don't do it for me and it's okay. Honestly, given how many hours passed since then, I was able to live with that and didn't suffer any FOMO. 

I passed on several that won't ever have restocks again or have limited extras that I know will sell out quickly. Though some had been pushed to buying need once I saw the full art. God, I got a Kaveh at last to balance out the Aven now in time for Kaveh’s birthday too. 

If Pris.pins is doing her half of the HSR pins which includes the Ratio Chibi I needed, I will cry. I've been waiting for that Chibi to be in my possession one way or another. Putting Aven and Ratio next to each other is so nice. 

Again, I think my main problem was the temptation. So once the temptation solidified after months wait, yeah, it's going on the list. There had been solidified choices that made my wallet cry in terror. 

There are common themes to my collecting: As of note, I don't have traders usually. I would offer the pins I don't like that I either have to buy to get. I was able to offload one now even if I got it in presale. I have yet to sell the Link I have as I decided not to collect LOZ. 

I’m pickier than most people but my budget will balloon if something I had been eying have a surprise drop and I somehow snagged it. I knew July was gonna be a big spending month but it ballooned my budget through surprise drop and designs. Ugh, I’m pretty sure what my ballooned budget doesn’t even touch others and even my cousin’s combined budget for both gacha and her love for board games whether through kickstarters or bargain. She has two petting Sprigatito dolls. 

• Fave characters from a series that I have major love for in the past 10+ years 
• Fave characters from recent series that have my heart or still feel love even after not getting into since then only through the peripheral grasp of other means 
• Purple - depending on the design, I have to get it. If it’s one of the two variants, so far I picked those two already. I didn’t intend to collect Jing Yuan but have a purple variant nor do I intend to collect Punzie but have Witchxing Girl with Swords purple variant. I don't collect all characters who have the motifs of purple in them such as Raiden Ei or Punzie. I much prefer Sailor Saturn or Kafka. At least I’m collecting the purple characters I like. 
• Pretty art that is up my alley. See Witchxing Girl with Swords Punzie purple variant and so much more. I do not collect Apothecary Diaries yet have one. I’ll likely get PSS Sunday but Aven will remain a priority with Acheron and Ratio due to being buff as he is going to be in the limited ones like Haitham. Maybe get Minty Sunday but since I wasn’t a fan of the Minty Kafka design, I’ll stick with PSS topper for the preference that the Pop didn’t entice enough with the purple. I'll just gift these Sundays to my cousin after a while of displaying and keeping them for a bit for the art alone. 
• Encapsulation or telling a story - I'm a sucker for stories so it's a given if it's an encapsulation of say foils or relationships to an extent, I'm more driven to get it. Hence the only MHA and AD pins I will ever own. Nuwa's recent series The Landscapes is up my alley in these terms but I'm not feeling a need, only temptation.

From what is above, do not compare your collection to others. You do not need artists and pinmakers' pins that are out of your reach if it's out of your budget or another. 

For example, I'm still wary of spending 100 on a pin and that's without shipping. I can spend if it's just a little over 100 only if the shipping goes over that. I can spend over 100 and even some 200 on a set and that's because it's a set. 

I struggle to think of spending over a hundred for a pin so that's why I prefer to buy presales from Witchxing than in-hands or aftermarket for her to keep it down. 

Just know the limits of your budget and yourself and decide what matters most to you in your collection. You know your collection and comparison aren't good for your mental health, be it jealousy, cockiness, or another negative emotion. 

Staying in pin clubs especially when I previously missed out on exclusive drops for said pin club is what I know I want to do. I refuse to step out of Mamo and Nuwa's pin clubs because what if I missed an exclusive drop that is for Patrons only?? 

I’m attempting one and hope to Godoka and Arceus I snag it. I need the Neuvi for my board and I’m so happy I snagged it. The beauty would go great on that board. The colors would do well even if I put my Childe on there or heck my Suicunes. 

I followed Reylo shipper pinmakers. The ship itself is more of a pesky fly than something I prefer not to see in my feed hence me unfollowing any maker even making a mention about EndHawks. Sorry, that ship gives me psychic damage whereas Reylo is an annoying fly. Honestly, lucky them because I would’ve avoided the hell out of more great artists if Reylo became the level of avoidance for peace of mind that only one ship had. NaruHina a popular ship in the pin-making community just make me sigh and move on while I try to out that movie out of my mind, and worst case feeling uncomfortable. I don’t want to unfollow these artists. 

I dedicated a chunk of my budget to Witchxing Girl with Sword Punzie which I know is a need. Nuwa, as the one who careened me into collecting Disney with her beautiful Evil Queen, is tempting me with the Kiss the Girl Landscape in particular but if she had done Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, I would've bought it. Again I only collect Disney if they are villainous, Cinderella, or if it's misc, then it has to be something that I really love for my collection. As someone who loves Sleeping Beauty art, I would love that. Again, Nuwa only with misc hoping to Abigeyedowl and Witchxing. Maybe Mamo would have continued the Fashion Disney because I would've purchased the Yzma. I joined Nuwa's patreon mainly for her FTD though I did get her Sakura once a spot opened up for her but with FTD expanding to others than just Disney, I'm happy enough to hope one day to get an FTD of the others she's drawing that is not Disney if the design drives a need. 

For budget reasons, I have to pick and choose. For example, in August, since between a series I like and a character I love, it’s the one design of a character I will love forever that gets me. I had to choose. It’s for the sake of my wallet, I’ll go with my collection than something I promised myself I can’t collect. 

I collect Disney very casually for peace of mind. If anything, my wallet is mainly screaming in pain due to the magical girls, Genshin, and HSR purchases. Hence, I reserve my Disney purchases to Nuwa mostly with special occasions going to Witchxing and Abigeyedowl. 

I've been trying to look for Sailor Saturn filler pins so I've been on the lookout for LavenderxSilvy Outer Senshi filler pins and Cutematter's Kickstarter which I know will feature Saturn. I know that with any upcoming Saturns I will get, filler pins are the way to go at this point should I get the board that satisfies my favorite scout. 

I know I'm switching between an ita bag or a board or both for my Kaveh collection. Aven has the same amount too. 

Saturn exceeds the number but nowhere near others’ collections. Even my Pokemon collection which far exceeds Saturn in number has different Pokemon with the only Dragonair getting 3 and Mimikyu 4, Psyduck at 2. By number, Pokemon is my largest with magical girls coming in second with my Sailor Moon purchases inching it closer. By individual characters, Saturn won by a long shot with Kaveh and Aven coming close behind at 4 each. Serenity, Sakura Kinomoto, Cass Cain, and so many more sat at 2 or 1. In the case of Zhongli, Chiori, Acheron… it’s nothing even though I want to collect them. Ironically, despite not wanting to collect SatoSugu as an exclusive OTP, I got 5, technically 4 since it's a variant so about the same length as my fave sailor senshi... I'm stubbornly going to put together an OTP board so SatoSugu is not getting a board of their own I refuse. 

Compared to my cousin's spending on her hobbies, I'm more restrained even when I spend close to 3000 in the course of a year, it's nothing compared to her addiction to her gacha games and her board games addictions. She spent more in a year than I did in a single year of my pin-collecting hobby. 

Just putting down what I want in future presales barring any surprises just makes my soul go up in smokes. I got my credit card but a slight decrease in paycheck might hinder if I plan everything right barring a few surprises. I’m still considering any Mamo Moon Prism Project Serenity and that’s it since I collect Blonde Serenity (white haired Serenity isn’t my thing or at worst a shade of gray that isn’t in the original art so forgive me I want the blonde ones more) only as well as eying a variant about FTD Neo-Queen Serenity. Again, I turned into a Serenity collector by an artist and it was so slippery that I utterly refused to do that again with other characters of any media I love. Fuck, I am stopping myself at 4 Sundays, literally zero chibis. Luckily, I found almost nothing regarding PGSM pins so I have to wait to see Dark Mercury again from Mamo. At least unlike Serenity, there is almost zero Darkury I can choose from. 

At least with Disney, I allow myself to have all except Frozen, Pocahontas, Wish, Raya, and Brave. I'm open to everything but those. Because it's still under the Disney umbrella, I can collect pins from Nuwa. 

I do not have enough props at home to make pin pictures. Just showing it in bags and shadowboxes is enough for me to decorate. I still have to make my shrines and boards because that's far more of a priority than having a pin pic with a background I barely use. Giving shrines to my fave characters and fave designs is enough to push me through the pin box purgatory. My pins are stuck in boxes and I really love to decorate them. I have so many ideas for my beloved Saturn, Kaveh, and Aventurine boards or at least interchangeable swapping from board to ita with Kaveh in particular. I do not have it in me to have that many pins to flex more or less. Even my one of my insta highlights became a pin mail but it's not all of them. I was too lazy to take pics of then pin mail and only used the pics I had in my photos at that time sent to people who knew my hobby. Some individual pins will get their own special singular board. I have some ideas for some already but I have to spice up the board a bit. 

I can do work-in-progress photos of pinboards and ita bags that I will just end up putting on the walls or bookshelves whereas pin mail would just be photos that I had sent to others that I later used for stories.