diff --git a/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParser.kt b/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParser.kt
index 6887d7e41..5d7777e0a 100644
--- a/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParser.kt
+++ b/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParser.kt
@@ -26,6 +26,11 @@ internal object MetaDetailsParser {
             ?: error("Expected top-level JSON object in response")
         val meta = root.extractMetaObject()
             ?: error("Response did not contain a valid meta object")
+        meta.string("name")?.let { name ->
+            if (isAddonErrorSentinel(name)) {
+                error("Addon returned an error placeholder instead of meta: $name")
+            }
+        }
         val links = meta.links()
         val videos = meta.videos()
 
@@ -117,6 +122,16 @@ internal object MetaDetailsParser {
     private fun JsonObject.looksLikeMetaObject(): Boolean =
         string("id") != null && string("type") != null && string("name") != null
 
+    /**
+     * Aggregator addons answer a failed upstream lookup with a well-formed meta object whose
+     * `name` is the failing sub-addon tagged `[❌]` and whose `description` carries the error
+     * text. It parses cleanly, so without this guard it gets stored as real metadata -- that is
+     * how a series ends up titled "[❌] Anime Kitsu" with the timeout message as its synopsis.
+     * Rejecting it lets the caller fall through to the next addon.
+     */
+    private fun isAddonErrorSentinel(name: String): Boolean =
+        name.trimStart().startsWith("[\u274C]")
+
     private fun JsonObject.ageRating(): String? {
         val appExtras = this["app_extras"] as? JsonObject
         return listOf(
diff --git a/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsRepository.kt b/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsRepository.kt
index 94e467eb2..5300dcc1d 100644
--- a/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsRepository.kt
+++ b/composeApp/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsRepository.kt
@@ -140,7 +140,9 @@ object MetaDetailsRepository {
 
             for (manifest in manifests) {
                 val result = withContext(Dispatchers.Default) {
-                    tryFetchMeta(manifest, type, metaLookupId, includeMdbList = false)
+                    withTimeoutOrNull(LOAD_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS) {
+                        tryFetchMeta(manifest, type, metaLookupId, includeMdbList = false)
+                    }
                 }
                 if (result != null) {
                     publishLoadedMeta(
@@ -220,6 +222,14 @@ object MetaDetailsRepository {
     }
 
     private const val FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS = 5_000L
+
+    /**
+     * Budget for one addon on the details screen. Larger than [FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS] because this is
+     * the interactive path and some series carry very large payloads (One Piece is ~1.3 MB), but
+     * bounded: without it the screen sits on an empty loading state until the 60s HTTP read
+     * timeout fires for every addon in turn, which reads as a permanently black screen.
+     */
+    private const val LOAD_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS = 20_000L
     private const val METADATA_PROVIDER_READY_TIMEOUT_MS = 10_000L
     private const val TMDB_ENRICH_TIMEOUT_MS = 5_000L
     private const val MDBLIST_ENRICH_TIMEOUT_MS = 5_000L
diff --git a/composeApp/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParserTest.kt b/composeApp/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParserTest.kt
index 3cedc3173..c01fdf9c2 100644
--- a/composeApp/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParserTest.kt
+++ b/composeApp/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/nuvio/app/features/details/MetaDetailsParserTest.kt
@@ -15,6 +15,44 @@ class MetaDetailsParserTest {
         }
     }
 
+    @Test
+    fun `parse rejects aggregator error placeholder instead of storing it as meta`() {
+        // Verbatim shape an aggregator returns when a sub-addon lookup fails: a well-formed meta
+        // object whose name is the failing addon and whose description is the error text.
+        // Accepting it is what titled a series "[\u274C] Anime Kitsu" in stored watch progress.
+        assertFailsWith<IllegalStateException> {
+            MetaDetailsParser.parse(
+                """
+                {
+                  "meta": {
+                    "id": "tt0988824",
+                    "type": "series",
+                    "name": "[\u274C] Anime Kitsu",
+                    "description": "Request for meta for Anime Kitsu timed out after 30000ms"
+                  }
+                }
+                """.trimIndent(),
+            )
+        }
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `parse keeps titles that merely contain brackets`() {
+        val result = MetaDetailsParser.parse(
+            """
+            {
+              "meta": {
+                "id": "tt0988824",
+                "type": "series",
+                "name": "[Dub] Naruto Shippuuden"
+              }
+            }
+            """.trimIndent(),
+        )
+
+        assertEquals("[Dub] Naruto Shippuuden", result.name)
+    }
+
     @Test
     fun `parse accepts bare meta object response`() {
         val result = MetaDetailsParser.parse(