TV Review: Mask Girl

This was one of the best tv shows I've ever seen! It has everything I loved: a female focused thriller that critisizes patriarchy.
Each episode set up something new, revealed something from the main plot and at the end of the episode turned the viewer's exceptations. First I wasn't sure If I liked the multiple POV structure because I was so invested in the main character's story but I ended up liking it.

Some things I liked about it
- Dramatic plot twists and structure like in a Park-Chan Wook film
- Amazing cinematography. I was never bored during the story.
- The Themla and Louise roadtrip -type of sapphic romance vibes from Kim Mo-mi and Kim Chun-Ae
- Critique of the beauty industry and how violently it affects women's relationship with themselves, other women, and men
- Disgusting men getting murdered
- Complex female relationships at the heart of the story (friends, classmates, mothers and daughters)
- The cycle of violence, abuse, and bullying
- How the main character lived many lives

 

5/5

GL Review: I'm in love with the Villainess (anime)

The anime just finished and I followed it from the very beginning when the first episode aired. I went to it without reading the light novel it's based on, but I'll definetely check them now! This is my first GL anime and it's been quite popular and for a good reason.

Here's some things I liked about it:

- Episode structure: Each episode has it's own well-written plot, unlike some other anime I've been watching recently that hasn't had very strong episode structure. It kept me interested in the story!
- Magical academy: Feels nostalgic because the first gl's I read when I was young were set at all-girl boarding schools (although the one in wataoshi isn't stricktly for girl's only)
- Class conflict: The people are divided into nobles and commoners. There is also an commoner uprising and lot of classism in the story but it is actually discussed and confronted which I found suprising. I think the story will dive deeper into this later.
- One-sided love: Rae is a full on simp for Claire without expecting her to return her feelings. She's like a fangirl who idolizes her crush and keeps herself distant because the possibility of a relationship seems unrealistic. She is only confronted by this in the last episode by a love rival, which I really loved! It also feels realistic portrayal of queer women to have crushes and expect nothing back and just convincing yourself that if they're happy their love interest is happy. It's such a destructive and masochistic way of thinking. Both Rae and Claire evolve during the story although at the heart of their ship is their cat-and-mouse dynamic.


5/5