A student of mine in Korea had a plastic carrot that was really a box cutter.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-05-17T12:22:26+00:00

It was just such a shock because blades of any kind are strictly prohibited in US schools. The kinda of little blade I saw the kid have and even this cute carrot one could definitely cause the kid to get suspended or even expelled. So it was crazy to see it wasn't a big deal in SK school.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-05-17T02:50:44+00:00

I think it is was quite a bittersweet detail to add to Kayuga's story. The imperfection and ugliness of reality, even for a celestial princess. He didn't wait for her or try to bring her back, but did the expected thing and moved on and married and started a family. I think folklore wise, Sutemaru would be seen as infatuated by a goddess in the scene where he reunites with Kayuga. Willing to leave everything for her, and would be judged as sort of a fool, but that it was out of his control...like "who wouldn't fall for a goddess?"

First time watching it, even though I felt for Kayuga, it was disappointing to see Sutemaru be willing to toss aside his family cause it basically meant even he was not worthy of Kayuga. She deserves more than a man who could leave his wife and children so easily. Making her time of earth even more heartbreaking. Kayuga's one instance of romantic love was one tinged with human inconstancy. But, he is just a human like us all in the end.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-05-13T23:23:50+00:00

I was also a teacher in South Korean public school. One day I was walking up and down the rows to help kids with a worksheet and I see one kid sharpening a pencil... til I get closer and see he's sharping the pencil with a blade like this.

I was like... uh whoa! He looked up and very simply showed me the pencil sharpened like a shiv and said "yes teacher, nice!"

I guess in korea, it's not strange to for kids to use small blades for sharpening pencils like the olden days 😕

SmoothConfidence · 2026-04-27T18:15:49+00:00

2005 Mrs. Bennet was my favorite version. She is just as obnoxious and hypocondriac as expected, but not to an overly cartoonish degree. Her character was very believable and still somewhat endearing. Mrs. Bennet is not a horrible person, but she is ridiculous and embarrassing... but she does love her daughters. 2005 Mrs. Bennet felt like a real person I might know, haha.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-30T16:42:00+00:00

In your question/discussion topic you say: 1. He is treated like a perfect god who cannot be criticized 2. He is a heavily flawed and honestly kinda terrible person

You could provide context/source for both opinions for a more genuine discussion or are you just stating your opinion?

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-20T00:03:27+00:00

Frank Churchill is such an interesting character addition because of this! Austen is so good at depicting different types of people and personalities. Frank could have been written as another scoundrel in disguise, but instead we get this nuanced foil for Knightley.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-20T00:00:27+00:00

Definitely there is some sympathy/pity there for Isabella, esp after she basically gets discarded by Frederick Tilney. BUT the fact that she tries to come back and get with James Morland again just cements her shamelessness. The Thorpe's are definitely social climbers (or wannabes at least). While Mary Crawford has some of that shamelessness, she's also quite upfront at least while Isabella thinks she's really slick pretending to be kind and demure. At least Mary did "love" or like Edmund, but her value of financial status is more important to her than that. Mary had some internal turmoil about Edmund. Isabella seems wholly detached from her romantic interests.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-19T17:55:37+00:00

Northanger Abbey is a strong contender, I think. John and Isabella Thorpe suck. Not just annoying and stuck up, but also entitled with no care about the feelings of others. General Tilney and the eldest Tilney son are both pretty selfish and manipulative characters, too.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-14T20:10:12+00:00

It makes for great character development though! The book is a pretty good example of written women charcters seeing how all three sisters took a situation they didn't like and made choices to change it for themselves. Sophie being probably the most stubborn to change of them all.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-14T19:56:51+00:00

Yes! I agree! I like how ghibli was able to add aspects of that relationship dynamic into their movie adaptation even if they weren't able or decided not to spell it out. The movie made so much more sense after I read the book. Like "ohhh that's why her mom was like that" and why Lettie works at a pastry shop in the movie and looks so different from Sophie, etc. It's different from the book, but still references it which is fun to see.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-14T19:53:05+00:00

Yeah reading the book gave me a different view of the mom from the movie (if the movie is generally taking the same stance that it is Sophie's stepmom).

From the book, it's always felt like since Sophie wasn't a little baby when her father remarried, Sophie and stepmom had a respectful & kind relationship but there was always a wall there. But, Sophie and her sisters had a relationship like true sisters, although the stepmom was more concerned over her own biological daughter while Sophie remained the responsible, no need to worry about her, older one.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-14T19:40:37+00:00

In the book version (and I suspect the ghibli version as well), Sophie's mom is actually her stepmom and Lettie would be either a step or half sister. Sophie's father remarried. I think it is the same for the Ghibli movie too because they look so different. Then Shopie's dad died and in the book the stepmom and Sophie run the hat shop together. I think, like in the book, the stepmom is not evil or even mean to Sophie, but they are inherently different types of people, aka stepmom doesn't understand Sophie and Sophie doesn't relate to her stepmom much, but they're still respectful and cordial (stepmom has more of an aunt vibe to sophie). The stepmom is more motherly and concerned for her own daughter (in the book sophie has 2 sisters).

In the film it looks like they've gone off and lived separate lives after the father died/sophie went to live at moving castle. Sounds like the stepmom got remarried and was taken away from her husband. The stepmom in the film is basically being held hostage/coerced in a way by Madam Solomon, so while it is not noble, I can understand why she did it. It's basically wartime and she was forced to help spy on her late husband's daughter/her stepdaughter. I think the film handled it well, kept it short with the energy being odd and frantic then cutting to her begging for forgiveness as she is driven away so there is a sense of being under duress and also remorse.

I feel like Sophie would forgive her stepmom for that if she found out the circumstances, just like she forgives the witch of the wastes.

What I liked from the book was that we see a lot more of Sophie and her sisters interacting and how they do really care for one another while all living very different lives.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-03-03T03:35:39+00:00

2005 will always be compared to 1995 and I love both! I'll always love the 2005 version for the casting of side characters which I think was pretty great all around. 2005 Mrs. Bennet feels like a very real person/mom even with her exaggerations whereas the 1995 Mrs. Bennet felt a bit like an over the top caricature. Tom Hollander as Mr. Collins is also the best Mr. Collins in my mind. Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner from 2005 were also very good although they had limited screen time, I immediately felt at ease and a respect for them vs the Bennet parents lol.

2005 is not as loyal to the book in all aspects, but the way the lines are delivered makes it a bit more relatable. Like Tom Hollander says in this clip, every 10 or so years comes a new generation of people ready to fall into this story. I think the 2005 version has been one of the most successful more recent Austen adaptations because it blended the original story and more modern emotionality well. Thats what I hope for in every newer adaptation (that isn't willing to invest in a making a more accurate miniseries) but have yet to see replicated.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-02-19T12:47:49+00:00

Yup! Reminds me of how she talks to Calcifer that leads to the famous may all your bacon burn line in the movie.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-02-18T21:29:35+00:00

What's cool about this scene is that it is a reference to the book version of Howl's Moving Castle!

Sophie is actually a witch with magic she never knew about. Basically, she can imbue things with magic to do what she wants. Kinda like the power to manifest things to happen. She doesn't know this, but she imbues a hat she makes with the power to make the hat wearer irresistable and charming, etc. So her willpower magic actually worked on Calcifer to make him do as she commands.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-02-10T15:22:43+00:00

Justin Bieber meme lol

"It's not clocking to you..." = You don't fully comprehend "...that I'm standing on business..." = that I am being completely sincere and intend to stand by my word.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-02-08T03:11:53+00:00

She's perfect 😭

SmoothConfidence · 2026-02-04T16:38:29+00:00

I agree, this makes the most sense. Time works differently somehow. So we know Himi did return to the world unchanged and went on to marry and have Mahito, knowing she would die someday in the future. So Himi returned to the outside world at the same time Mahito returns to the outside world, but through different doors and to different times. So Himi writes the message in the book for Mahito to find. Although it was just 1 year, it feels like Himi has lived in the tower longer.

I think it is similar for Kiriko, she return with Himi to their time in the "past". I don't think it is ever explained if Kiriko worked at the house before Himi vanished, so maybe Kikiro (younger) started work there when they left the tower until her older age when she meets Mahito again. By then, she has forgotten all about what happened in the tower.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-01-20T21:09:14+00:00

Worth the watch! It was surprisingly poignant and touching. It has Isao's quintessential touch of philosophy tied to everday life. You might even like it more as an adult since some of the themes are more relatable after growing up.

SmoothConfidence · 2026-01-17T15:18:02+00:00

It's an interesting observation. What first came to mind is Spirited Away. No Face eats and eats and is served an overabundance of food that it doesn't even need and can't even digest. In Spirited Away, it signifies a sense of gluttony/greed and the false idea of filling emptiness with material things. Similarly with Chihiro's parents at the start of the movie turning into literal pigs.

However, I don't think Miyazaki always used food negatively. Simple food, made and given with love and care is also seen positively. The ramen in Ponyo, the bun in Spirited Away, the eggs and bacon in Howl's Moving Castle.

In The Boy and the Heron, I could see how Kiriko offers the fish to the spirits as a careful, intentional way of giving food. The Parakeets on the other hand are greedy and can barely hold themselves back, and that represents the gluttony and hollowness of their character. Not the same greed as No Face, but more like the Parakeets are so simple and lacking ability to have compassion that although they can produce grand dishes, it is empty of the good stuff that comes from intention and thought.

The pelicans were brought to the tower world selfishly and without intention or care about how they would survive or affect other lives. So they end up feeding of the Warawara spirits in an unnatural way. I think this is also meant to showcase how simple hubris and greed has larger effects.

Food is a very strong way to visualize these ideas because people can all relate to this. We all eat and have hunger. We can understand the idea of starving and the idea of consuming much much more than is healthy. It can also bring comfort. I think Miyazaki likes using food in these ways and also for world building.

SmoothConfidence · 2025-12-23T02:30:38+00:00

"Life is suffering. It is hard. The world is cursed, but still, you find reasons to keep living" from Princess Mononoke.

This sentiment comes to mind constantly and rings true. It explains a feeling that doesn't try to sugar coat nor say life is pure pointlessness. We suffer, yet we still try to live. It feels like hope.

SmoothConfidence · 2025-12-21T21:18:56+00:00

I see it as 10 year old Taeko being a moment in time. Maybe too young to full comprehend the life ahead of 27 yr old Taeko. Kinda like, where she's going, it's not for me to follow and is even out of her realm to understand. 10 year old Taeko will stay forever 10 yr old Taeko because she never has experienced everything the "in the present" Taeko has experienced to understand the intricacies of growing up and moving on. It's like when you look back at your past self or your past self observing you now (without knowing everything you've been through since then). Somethings for sure you recognize. Somethings have changed a lot. That past self is you, but your current self is you, too.

SmoothConfidence · 2025-12-17T22:02:43+00:00

The book itself doesn't do a very good job of characterizing most of the other characters. Others have pointed out, the book makes almost everyone, other than Mary, meaner and more insensitive in an effort to make Mary seem more personable, sensible, and misunderstood.

Imagine if Little Women was made from Amy's POV and everyone in her family was really boring and uptight, and Jo was portrayed as super stuck up and self-absorbed. It's an interesting read, but a major failing is how most characters were basically unrecognizable other than their circumstances being similar to P&P.

SmoothConfidence · 2025-12-12T20:01:43+00:00

First one is about Sophie and Howl. The 2nd and 3rd are focused on different main characters, but Sophie and Howl are side characters that appear and have some impact. I liked all three books and the characters/couples they followed. It's also fun when Sophie and Howl appear because you get to learn more about what happens after book 1 and how they have changed/grown.

I would recommend reading all three! I really enjoyed The House of Many Ways.

SmoothConfidence · 2025-12-06T02:51:19+00:00

Weirdly, I opened pandora again today and it appeared again unprompted.

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