#sk8meta (forgot to put it in the tag for that feed)

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
there's a lot i have to talk about in this quote, but one thing i think is important about it is that it highlights that what the characters hear about adam, especially in earlier episodes, isn't always accurate. they're hearing things other people say and assume about him.

#sk8meta
i think the wording here (あなたにもお嫁さんを) could actually indicate they were involved with arranging aiichiro's marriage? with how they take charge of it all with the head of the family and no input from ainosuke (obviously) later, too

"What are you getting so worked up over?"

"Dude, why are you getting bent out of shape?"

"Am I getting too worked up about this?"

"Okay, maybe I am a little worried."

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
i touched on parts of this in the thread on dropped parallels, but the dub makes some pretty notable characterization changes to langa through ep 5's first half, starting with replacing langa's reflection on reki saying he's "worked up" with him being worried about the race

Chibi official art of Adam and Tadashi from SK8 the Infinity dressed as a peacock and a snake

An image of a peacock eating a snake from the Girona Beatus illuminated manuscript

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
speaking of the animal chibis, there's actually some interesting symbolism with peacocks and snakes - there's a lot of mythology around peacocks eating snakes, including in buddhism and in medieval christian imagery, where it represented immortality and resurrection

A screenshot of episode 5 of SK8 the Infinity, showing Reki looking at his friend in the hospital in a neck brace

Reki's nightmare of Langa breaking his neck (1)

Reki's nightmare of Langa breaking his neck (2)

Reki's nightmare of Langa breaking his neck (3)

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
i was rereading a short doujinshi about reki's friend that delved a little bit into his injury, and it made me realize something: in ep 5, in the flashback of reki's friend in the hospital, he's in a neck brace, and in reki's nightmare about langa, he sees langa's neck break

Pictures of the SK8 the Infinity Blu-ray volume 4 insert booklet and the Winter 2021 issue of Otomedia, showing that both Adam's favorite food and "What kind of sweets would Langa be?" are answered with petit gâteau/fondant chocolat

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8tl #sk8meta
in the winter 2021 issue of otomedia (published in january), producer kyoko uryuu said, when asked what dessert langa would be, that he'd be petit gâteau

in june, vol 4 of the blu-rays came out with character profiles, listing adam's favorite food as petit gâteau

A screenshot of episode 5 of SK8 the Infinity; Langa is standing in the light on his board and Cherry is watching him from the shadows behind a fence

A close-up on cherry watching Langa through the fence

Joe taking a forkful of chocolate cake

"Maybe a little too sweet?"

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
there's an interesting bit of foreshadowing and wordplay that gets lost in translation in episode 5: this cut from cherry watching langa to joe declaring the cake he's taste-testing "too sweet." the word for sweet here is 甘い (甘すぎた), but that's not the only thing 甘い means.

Adam from SK8 the Infinity with his eyes glowing rainbow

Langa from SK8 the Infinity in the zone, with his eyes glowing rainbow

Langa skating with his eyes glowing rainbow

Adam and Langa skating in the final episode with both their eyes glowing rainbow

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
the other thing on the whole topic is how much otherwise thorough discussion of queer subtext there is that does not touch on "two male characters have a near-supernatural magnetic draw to each other that's symbolized by their eyes glowing rainbow" as potentially relevant

A chart comparing the Japanese lyrics for Dimensions of the Wind (left) and Behind the Mask (right) from SK8 the Infinity, with words highlighted in different colors to compare the two songs.

months after first talking about this i'm still yet to figure out how to break it down in an actual Post but the japanese lyrics for dimensions of the wind and behind the mask connect to each other a lot
#sk8meta

"In the language of flowers, they mean passionate love."

"Don't tell me you're having wedding blues?"

"Obstacles are an unavoidable part of love."

"Because you're the Eve I found."

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
people do often say things like "nothing explicitly gay happens in sk8" and that always makes me kind of lose my mind because a guy being in love with another guy and saying so out loud multiple times and considering him his soulmate is something explicitly gay actually

"Skating is dangerous."

"It can lead to serious injuries, too."

"I know that."

"And it's seen as indecent in society."

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
wow i wonder why that's the specific line in this exchange where the camera focuses on the bed in the love hotel room these two male characters are having this conversation in

#sk8meta
yknow in talking about how this episode mirrors adam's arc in miniature that did actually give me a thought about this reading. that simultaneously does not illuminate the general fandom trend at all because it's one i largely see from people who have no interest in or sympathy for adam BUT

A screenshot of SK8 the Infinity showing Nanako messaging Langa

A screenshot of SK8 the Infinity showing notifications on Reki's phone

A screenshot of SK8 the Infinity showing Reki's messages on his phone

A screenshot of SK8 the Infinity showing Langa's messages to Reki

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
in the voice drama from at the sk8 event in okinawa this january, there's a mention of the characters messaging using an app with IDs. considering this along with the look and customizability of the app, and especially the green speech bubble icon, i'm 100% sure this is LINE

#sk8meta
i also actually missed another specific time indicator in the first episode: when langa's first time at S is. it's two days after langa's first day at school with reki!

Concept art for Adam's board from the finale of SK8 the Infinity

#SK8THEINFINITY #sk8meta
some fun attention to detail that might be easy to miss: the skeletal design on adam's board in the funeral beef is missing a rib on one side

Langa and Reki from SK8 the Infinity watching a video on Reki's phone

Adam from SK8 the Infinity sitting at his desk and looking at his phone

Miya Chinen from SK8 the Infinity smirking at his phone

Shadow from SK8 the Infinity looking at his phone very angrily

SK8 CELL PHONES (🧵)

just a silly thread showing off the characters' phones from the sk8 design works concept art collection, because there are some cute design details!
#sk8meta #sk8tl #SK8THEINFINITY

"Well, this is the last one. What's your type (in girls)!?"

"Okay, last one. What's your favorite animal?"

"Softies that feel good to have in my arms."

"Fluffy ones I can snuggle."

#sk8tl #sk8meta
it's one of the lesser issues in the grand scheme of everything that happened in the dub, but whether intentionally or otherwise, they completely erased the joke in the ep 3 preview

#sk8meta

Part 1 is here:
#tadaai #sk8 #sk8meta
#sk8theinfinity #sk8adam #TadashiKikuchi #sk8Tadashi

bsky.app/profile/tire...

Shame & Devotion: The Queerness of Tadashi Kikuchi (Part 2)
Tadashi's devotion to Ainosuke & their master/ servant relationship suggest queerness. There's a historical element but these patterns of homosexual relationships branch into modern Japan which Tadashi's story reflects
#tadaai #sk8meta #SK8

#sk8meta
and the thing that does get drawn attention to, noted as weird, or reacted to in shock/disgust is *langa's interest in adam* (and lack of negative reaction to him), for what it's worth

#sk8meta
related to the whole doesthedogdie situation: i decided to throw together a quick thread of all the reactions to/discussions of adam's flirting with langa in the show, because it's an aspect that gets misrepresented in discussion a lot, specifically that other characters ~call him out.

#sk8meta #SK8THEINFINITY
a really interesting thing about kiriko is that she'd be a heroic character in anything that at baseline presents cops in a positive light and i think that plays into what goes over people's heads about her, on top of just the bias against adam

#sk8tl #sk8meta
"According to Sakurayashiki-sensei! Yojijukugo (four-character idioms) perfectly suited to you!"

(rather than just translating the idiom and his comment as-is, i'm also going to try and explain what each idiom means)

thinking about the sports anime broken base mentor + young angry cat-themed protege influences again
#sk8meta

SK8 SEASON 1'S TIMELINE - A COMPLETE ANALYSIS (🧵)

i previously made a thread focusing on sk8's timeline as it related to adam's career, but there are elements in that thread i glossed over, and i realized it would be helpful to lay out my reasoning for the whole timeline.
#sk8meta

#sk8meta
the first scene with beethoven's 5th symphony also cuts directly to the first ever instance of langa's heart-pounding motif, and the same song is playing when the same heart-pounding occurs in the ep 5 race (the first time since the first ep that it happens while langa's skating)

#sk8meta
one of the interesting changes from the broadcast version of sk8 to the blurays is that this whole sequence is swapped from being adam's POV of the empty track to langa's POV from behind adam, which is interesting in the momentary editing here...

#sk8meta
also speaking of the ep 1 "fate" scene, the very first instance of langa's recurring heart pounding motif is a direct cut from that