#munecat

Oh hey, two creators I follow posted videos after a long time

They both are multi-hour giant projects.

They posted around the same time

tw: cringe

making this mostly bc i consume a LOT of content in a year

münecat in general is a phenomenal and severely underrated Youtuber (seriously, please check out her work) and she recently released this banger of a video debunking the "body language expert" phenomenon.

As a neurodivergent person and a true crime enthusiast, I cannot express how much I fucking despise the way people pick apart body language/facial expressions in things like the aftermaths of crimes or during court proceedings. I'm depressed/autistic and tend to have a flat affect when I'm not masking; if someone told me someone I knew was murdered I would be very upset, but I probably wouldn't start sobbing hysterically and collapse on the ground. It takes time for my emotions to process and even when I cry it tends to be a lot more subdued. Also, I probably wouldn't care as much about masking and looking super neurotypical after just finding out that someone I know had been murdered.

According to body language "experts," this is super suspicious is "proof" that I already knew about the murder/don't care about the murder/whatever. Because they literally don't acknowledge that neurodivergent people exist. Or that abused people who have learned to hide their emotions exist. Or that in general it's entirely fucking possible (in fact, very likely) for your body language to not reflect your emotions/mindset.

Harry Potter (Shaun)

if you are familiar with shaun you’ll know he’s more about that breadtube pipeline compared to those who stick to critiques and essays about media, but this video works as a blend between these two. it’s not necessarily focused on the narrative thread of the story, but things will pop up about it every now and then, and having read the books back when i was a teen it was interesting to hear his thoughts and how he breaks down the story. what i find great about this video (and what i would say sets it apart from other dissections of this franchise) is the focus on the characters and story-beats from the context of who is writing it. this includes discussions of other book she’s written and some context about her real life, so if you’re tired of the discourse surrounding this woman, then i would suggest you don’t watch it. otherwise, this is a nicely paced, calmly delivered exploration of some of the most controversial aspects of this book saga.

viewing recommendation: it serves pretty well as a podcast, although there are some visual elements that pop out here and there that you might want to look at. since shaun’s voice is pretty slow and steady, 1.25x speed works just fine.

Elden Ring - A Shattered Masterpiece (Joseph Anderson)

i discovered joe this year through his odyssey video (also pretty good!), and having gotten into a lot of gaming content in 2020 i felt like my hunger for critiques and video essays about games was finally being satiated. that said, joe’s video on elden ring doesn’t necessarily focus on the narrative: the meat of it is on the gameplay and how the game fails to live up to his own hype as you approach its final stretch. having experienced the release of this game through the eyes of other content creators, i was under the impression that this game was universally loved and admired (and even won Game of The Year), so this perspective was incredibly intriguing to me. i do recommend watching this if you’ve ever had any sort of experience with dark souls/bloodborne/sekiro, be it even just being aware of what they’re about and what they’re known for. otherwise i don’t think you’d get that much from this video, as there’s not really a narrative analysis to get a hold of the plot and story of the game. it’s not like joe doesn’t explain most of it (he has to justify that 1.5 hour runtime), so give it a try nonetheless.

viewing recommendation: there are some sections that flow better as a podcast and others where you’ll want to see what joe is talking about, so judge for yourself. joe is also a slow speaker, so 1.25x will do the job.

Why Stranger Things 5 (Probably) Won't Be Good | Story Analysis (Local)

while this is a relatively new channel, the quality of the production and the structure of it is pretty astounding. if you were in tumblr at any point this year you MUST have heard about this season so maybe this will satisfy your curiosity about the series - that, if you haven’t watched it. to everyone else, well, go feast my children. what i really appreciate about this video is that 1) although i am biased towards longer videos (this is the shortest of this list, at ten minutes) not a single moment of this video feels wasted, and 2) the clear focus on the show as a narrative device, and treating characters as what they are: inventions meant to serve the story. while this is not necessarily a fresh perspective, i do feel people sometimes forget that characters don’t have a life beyond what’s presented in canon, and it’s good to reel that in. i also recommend checking this channel in general: there are few videos, but maybe you’ll find some other media he’s analyzed that you’ll vibe with.

viewing recommendation: it’s just ten minutes long... just sit and watch all of it. i’m a big believer of SPEED in my youtube videos, but this one feels too fast in anything above 1x speed.

The Forgotten Disaster of the SS Eastland (Ask a Mortician)

i came to know about this video through the “controversy” surrounding it - fret not, as it was simply about youtube’s flawed policy around age restriction, which another famous youtube channel (SummoningSalt) had also talked about around that time. while i’ve never had any interest in the channel, i decided to take a look at the offending video out of spite for youtube being a cunt and i ended up loving it. it’s a really well put together investigation about, well, the disaster of the ss eastland, presented in a documentary form. i’ll say right now that i’ve never been fond of documentaries because i feel like they explore every subject extremely superficially and i hate not getting answers to my questions, but this video delves into every topic it presents all while still having great pacing. more than anything, you can feel the love put into every part of this video: the images used, the testimonies, the people interviewed, the care in which it treats this tragedy. it’s a great viewing experience and i cannot state how glad i am that my time wasn’t wasted, at all.

viewing recommendation: since it’s pretty much a documentary, i’d say just watch the entire thing. i’m a 1.25x speed addict, as you sure have noticed by now, but i guess anything between 1x and 1.25x is fine.

Why WandaVision Is Bad At Mysteries (James Woodall)

another show i expect you to at least know half a thing about. of course, as the average hater™ i love to see criticism of popular media, but james goes the extra mile by analyzing the show by the standards of every story involving a mystery. it’s a well researched video and very fun to watch, and what felt missing from other people talking about this show.

viewing recommendation: the video has a pretty high production value, so i had the most fun actually watching it. 1.25x speed works fine too.

(looks like i can’t embed more than 5 videos, gosh darn it, so i’ll get creative for the rest)

I Debunked Every "Body Language Expert" on Youtube (münecat)

i’ve been starving for a good video that covered this topic and this one does the job pretty well. granted, it’s presented in a humorous way you might not like (i’d say just skip those sections), the audio quality is surprisingly not good (maybe watching it not on headphones could help?), and the person who talks is british (i can’t do anything about that, sorry), but it’s very well researched and worth it for the information it presents alone. i’d even say it’s a must watch if you’re in any way keeping up with celebrity “drama”, since we both know you won’t read any of the papers münecat presents in her video.

viewing recommendation: i have a short attention span when watching long videos like these, so i did it while doing mindless stuff on the side and switching back to the video whenever i deemed it appropriate. 1.25x could be a little overwhelming in certain sections.

The Lesbian Gaze (verilybitchie)

i’ve taken a likening to verilybitchie’s videos because, although i do not always agree with her opinions, i can always appreciate how they bring a fresh perspective to different media and historical events. i cannot tell you how BORED i am of 15 minute videos about topics that have about the same substance as me searching said topic on twitter and reading the top 10 tweets about it. i really like how the video uses this interesting premise to actually say really interesting things about the male gaze and movies about queer women. and i would say, don’t stop there: maybe verity’s already talked about some other topic or media you’re interested about, and whatever her takes are, they’re never boring.

viewing recommendation: gaze is in the title, so watching the video is actually crucial to its content. however, the video is heavily censored for very obvious reasons. they do have a non-censored version available, although you’d have to sign to their patreon to get it.

from my fair lady to he's all garbage (julia cudney)

i can say julia’s content has aged as she has: while her first videos were very nitpicky, cinemasins style of rapid-fire vapid criticism, now she’s put on the work to have a really interesting video analyzing the media that inspired “she’s all that” and its very recent gender-bent remake. you can be a hater™ while also learning about other works that are crucial in understanding the trope “she’s all that” borrows from. we all win.

viewing recommendation: i am very fond of julia’s editing. maybe it’s because she just strikes the zillennial style that caters specifically to Me, but i do recommend watching the video to get the most out of it. and as usual, 1.25x speed is a welcome tool.

YMS: The Lion King (Part 1) (YourMovieSucksDOTorg)

if you have ever encountered adam’s channel before it’s probably because you can’t resist to the innate clickbaitery of his channel name, and i’ll admit i’m not fond of some of his content. i don’t like to waste time with people that think movies are trash because they have a few plot holes or some other bazillion nitpicks you can poke through it. it’s the same reason why i tend to avoid discussions on one piece of media above 4 hours: to me, a video that long has long lost its value and only wants the credits to say “hey, i once made a 5 hour long video essay :D”. some of adam’s YMS videos fall on that trap and it infuriates me, as i feel like my time has been lost. but his video on the lion king 2019 remake is a genuine, loving exploration of how great the original work is - and how it remains one of the best animated movies of all time - all while tearing its cash-grabbing remake to shreds for not understanding what made the movie great in the first place. a MUST watch if you also hate these soulless “live-action” remakes.