Fans say Netflix’s dub of ‘Neon Genesis Evangelion’ erases queer subtext

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Some fans are not happy with the new dub Netflix put on Neon Genesis Evangelion

It’s a time-honored media pastime at this point to bend over backward in order to avoid describing gay relationships as, well, actually gay. Just look at these gal pals! Just a couple of guys being bros! Those aren’t lesbians, they’re, uh, cousins

But there’s a difference between an animation studio choosing to keep LGBTQ relationships subtle, and censorship of queer themes and language. Translation falls right into a grey area between the two.

Neon Genesis Evangelion, one of the most popular and influential anime series to come out of the ’90s, was recently released from licensing hell, and has found a new home on Netflix. For unknown reason, Netflix updated the whole series with a new script translation. Read more…

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10 brands that tried too hard during Pride Month in 2019

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It’s Pride Month, the time of year when corporations do their very best to prove just how supportive they are.

Rainbows are everywhere: in clothing stores, on public storefronts, and on nearly every brand logo on Twitter. And while some of the profits from specialty Pride merchandise do go to worthy nonprofits, other brands donate a paltry amount, and some merch is simply used to generate additional profit. (It’s worth noting as well that many companies that plaster their brands with rainbows for Pride also donate large sums to politicians who actively oppose LGBTQ rights.)

Then there’s the merch and branding that just takes it a step too far. Either these products are far too corny for public consumption, or the brands themselves are too hypocritical to be involved.  Read more…

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New giant squid footage shows they’re not terrible monsters, after all

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We love tales about monsters.

Especially monsters that dwell in the dark, and have only been glimpsed alive in grainy, murky pictures or videos. But recent footage of the legendary giant squid — including a new video captured during a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) expedition on June 19 — shows the elusive cephalopods likely aren’t beasts of horror. They’re a somewhat cautious, though huge, deep sea species.

“When we think of the giant squid we think of the Kraken dragging sailors to their deaths and images of doom,” said marine biologist Nathan Robinson, who helped seek out and find the recent giant squid.  Read more…

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Wendy’s just sent everyone a mysterious Google Calendar invite for a lunch date

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It’s not every day that you receive a Google Calendar lunch invite from Wendy’s. Yes, the entire corporation, Wendy’s, is going to wine and dine us.  

Today, Wendy’s official Twitter account teased us all with the promise of something when they posted a subtle GCal link with the caption “Let’s hang.” Since using something as official and business-y as Google Calendar to announce a potential new item is new territory for brand marketing, I’ll bite — but the internet has so many questions. Is this a casual hang, a professional lunch, or does Wendy’s want something more? Do we have to bring a greasy bouquet of french fries?  Read more…

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IKEA lets you design your own couch and Twitter is busy exploring the endless possibilities

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In the market for a brand new couch? If the answer’s yes, IKEA’s website is here to help. If the answer’s no, that’s OK. You should still visit IKEA’s website.

Why? Well, the furniture store that also sells the weirdly delicious Swedish meatballs has a bunch of planning tools on its website, which customers can use to get a better idea of how they want to furnish their space. One of the features lets you design your own sofa, and because there are essentially no rules and very few restrictions in the digital design tool, you can make a virtual sofa look however you want.

Twitter user @rudermensch, for example, made this “extremely powerful $15,000 couch.” Stunning. Read more…

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Woman fell asleep on an Air Canada flight and awoke to find herself alone on the plane

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Most people know that flying can be scary, but it turns out simply sitting in a stationary plane at the airport can be a nightmare, too. 

We know this thanks to Facebook user Deanna Noel-Dale‎, who shared a post to Air Canada’s page on Wednesday on behalf of her friend, Tiffani Adams. The post detailed a terrifying experience that Adams had after she fell asleep on an Air Canada flight and woke up hours later to find that the plane had landed and she was the only person left onboard.

Apparently, Adams had a row to herself on a flight from Quebec to Toronto that was about a quarter of the way full. She got comfortable and fell asleep less than halfway through the hour-and-a-half flight, only to wake up around midnight, freezing cold and on a pitch black plane. That’s when she realized everyone had deplaned without waking her. Read more…

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Knitting and crocheting community Ravelry bans vocal Trump supporters

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Ravelry, a wildly popular social media site for knitters and crocheters, is taking a stand against white supremacy, which includes supporters of Donald Trump and the Trump administration.

In an announcement made by Ravelry on Sunday, the site plainly states, “We are banning support of Donald Trump and his administration on Ravelry.” The new policy was set in the spirit of inclusiveness, and Ravelry states that allowing white supremacist rhetoric on the site goes against that spirit.

We are banning support of Donald Trump and his administration on Ravelry. We cannot provide a space that is inclusive of all and also allow support for open white supremacy. More details: https://t.co/hEyu9LjqXa

— Ravelry (@ravelry) June 23, 2019 Read more…

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Researchers trained seals to sing ‘Twinkle Twinkle’ and the ‘Star Wars’ theme song. NBD.

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Seals are a lot more talented than we give them credit for. Sure, they swim, dive, bark, and clap, but with a little vocal training they can actually sing.

Thanks to researchers at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, three gray seals were taught to mimic sounds and even sing songs like “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” and the Star Wars theme.

Footage shared on YouTube by the Associated Press shows the focused seals intently listening to sounds, flexing their nostrils, and repeating the noises via a hum that sounds a bit like if a human baby were to whine into a kazoo. It’s cute, we promise! Read more…

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Microsoft bans its employees from using Slack, Google Docs, and more

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Keeping your company’s data safe can be tricky when your competitors are begging you to put all your conversations, projects, and hard work right into the palms of their hands.

To make sure its competitors aren’t able to look behind its tightly drawn curtains, Microsoft has a list of online services that it forbids its workforce to use, according to a report from GeekWire. They’re familiar names for most modern professionals: Slack, Google Docs, and Amazon Web Services (among others). 

Despite the popularity of some of these services that allow for easy communication between employees and data storing and sharing, Microsoft wants to make sure everybody is keeping all their information in-house with its own programs. Actually, not even all of its own programs are safe, as the Microsoft-owned GitHub is also off limits. Read more…

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