beki

I don't feel like icenetwork is taken that seriously, even in the US. It's a PR outlet. Even the articles by good writers are basically propaganda. The only part I like is the ice talk podcast. Misha Ge and Charlie White have been very good guests. And their streaming is horrible. Not worth paying for.

In the end, it matters more to me that he gets recognition than that we international fans do. Although the two are somewhat related. I think it diminishes him a bit when he is portrayed as some sort of Japanese national craze, as opposed to a widely-recognized genius.

(off-topic, re: clean skates) The quad race will be the main theme for Olympic coverage—and that might be a good thing if it finally gets casual viewers out of 6.0 thinking. It's strange how we are all still subject to it, judges, fans and coaches as well. Not that I don't love the magic of a clean skate, but I don't expect it every time. I always think Yuzuru is purely an IJS skater and it's hard to imagine him under 6.0. In that awful, tragic skate at CoC, he found the hidden exploit in the system: as long as he rotated, he could get away with falling. It was very gamer of him.

I hear he likes McDonald's actually. Oh really? I was thinking of what Nobu said about him hating fried food, especially during spins. But it was funny during the Rio Olympics how all the athletes went to McDonald's after they were done competing. It's the definition of a cheat day for sure. Fay, bald eagle is a perfect and hilarious suggestion. :goe:

Hmm, what should I put on my American banner... guns, cars and hamburgers? They're all so unYuzu :sadPooh:

Lol, I guess I have a wild imagination! In every situation, I find it funny when people say "just go clean!" as if that's a matter of course. The men's difficulty is already too high for that and has been for years. Water down to 2010 levels and then you'll see more clean skates. Yuzuru's plan is so much better: raise the average.

I've been reflecting on Javi's season—and one undeniable thing is that he was playing it a bit safe with his choice of programs. I wondered why he wasn't stretching himself this year. But maybe he wanted to have an easy, secure base to add something that wasn't quite ready. Perhaps he has been practicing new elements this whole time. The challenge is that he must project confidence in what he's already doing. It's not like he and Brian will come out and say they're under pressure and vulnerable. In my opinion, we have been taking Brian too much at face value, while he is actually politicking. I would love it so much if Javi and Patrick are able to bring out new quads and beat the kids at their own game. Here's hoping.

Aww, now I'm getting sad Meryl and Charlie aren't coming back. It's know it's right for them... but they've still got it!

This is what I like about Yuzu, these Yuzusthetics. Because you can appreciate his programs on a straightforward level, or you can go all the way down the rabbit hole. There's always more, more, more.

I'm eagerly awaiting it as well. I've been missing him a lot lately.

I'm kind selfishly glad for my mental health that I wasn't around at that time. My blood level would have exploded out of the roof :hachimaki: I missed it too because of real life stuff, but for some reason I looked it up yesterday and :O

Many people showed their true colors in that affair

Yes, that's really the only reason I care if he improves in English. I'd like to be closer to his true thoughts, which are obviously pretty deep. But I do read the translations of his Japanese interviews. Maybe we should all learn Japanese instead :smile:

Please go ahead! :coffee: A new thread idea? Hahaha i am but a language enthusiast who over analyzes things :P i have talked about his english progress and quirks before :D I remember (from the dearly departed FF) :space: Always happy to hear more

Please go ahead! :coffee: A new thread idea?

This is good, Altie. Fire up his competitive spirit and maybe we will get fluent!Yuzu. He should also catch up to Tursynbaeva :s_wink But I also want to be encouraging. He's getting better!

I have nothing against Canada, I actually really like a lot of them - Kaetlyn & Gabby or V/M for example. I just like team Russia even more :pbow: I like Team Russia too. May the best team win! (I guess I should be rooting for Team USA, but I fail at patriotism. Get a medal! Maybe not bronze! Woot.)

I'm actually rooting for Canada to win Team Gold. I'm not holding Patio against the rest of them... :devil: And I've softened on him anyway. Like Yuzu, he keeps improving his skating. If not his public speaking :rofl2:

Poor Zhenya, everyone teases her about Yuzu now! But she gave nice answers. She's well-spoken.

Sui and Han have gotten so sexy! I remember way back when they were doing their cowgirl/boy routine and looked like a couple of kids.

What a killer cast FaOI has, even without Yuzu. And with Yuzu... We need to figure out the streaming and have a viewing party.

Just my thoughts, but I think Frank saw Gracie's problems were bigger than skating. He's had experience being unable to help someone struggling in the past (Christopher Bowman). Not that he was necessarily the best person to help her anyway. I hope she finds the best situation for herself.

Of the three, I am most interested in Boyang's longterm development. Because he might stick around long enough to become a complete skater. And with hard work and some creativity, his deficiencies are fixable. There is progress already. When he first came on the scene, his programs were emptier than Nathan's. Shoma has the best second mark, but I don't think he can fix his jumps.

OMG YES!! Will you have a banner? I forget if those are even allowed, but hopefully :pbow: :bow: :love:

I hadn't really understood how dangerous going off-axis in the 4A would be until Yuzuru explained it. Here is an English-subbed video of the tv spot with the 4A animation: https://yuzufairy.blog/2017/05/06/yuzur ... b-dl-link/ I have to agree with everyone who says his voice and facial expressions showed a lot of confidence (at one point he had a sh*t-eating grin), and he may already have landed it.