archaeren

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Since Tanakamigi Chui does not have an official birthday, Archaeren and I have decided that is fanon birthday is now January 31st.

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The thesis of JackJeanne is that gender is a performance. It's a game. Specifically, it's an unskippable rhythm game--

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If you're wondering what to get for him, he would very much like a transparent vessel. <3

Since Tanakamigi Chui does not have an official birthday, Archaeren and I have decided that is fanon birthday is now January 31st.

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I know we all start there, but it's still so surprising to me every time I see someone say Chui wouldn't be sexual because he's too obsessed with theatre. (Thespians, of course, you know. Notoriously un-horny.) The dude who keeps indicating his interest in Kisa by offering her his hand to take? The guy who communicates with her via dance in one of the most 'unresolved sexual tension'-heavy scenes in the game? The 'Tachibana Kisa is everything I desire' guy? yeah he's got his special interest but examine him for five minutes and you suddenly realize our poor boy is also practically screaming 'my love language is physical touch'

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neji and his 3 boyfriends (gender neutral)

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Oh yeah, sounds like you'll be fine on Sou route! c: Don't get me wrong, Neji's the most divisive but I wouldn't call him weird taste! From what I can tell, he and Fumi are the two most popular. If he's for you, you'll have lots of people to gush about him with. c: I think how Neji comes off to different people is largely affected by their own trauma. If you take him at his word and believe he's being honest with you, you're more likely to like and sympathize with him and appreciate his route. If he pings the 'manipulative liar' alarm bells for you, his route is gonna be a rough ride. (Unless you find that personally relatable, which is a valid third option! I do know Neji fans who like him for this reason.) I don't actually have a problem with the summer competition thing either. Like, I absolutely understand why the characters are mad about it, but I'm like... well, he did it to make her better? It wouldn't really be the end of the world if she transferred to Rhodonite or Onyx... I'm pretty fine with anything Neji does to push people's talent tbh, like... that's what you guys are here for? The goal IS actually learning the craft, not winning the theatre festival or being the best class. Don't lose sight of the forest for the trees! (Though Neji can also lose sight of that sometimes for sure) Like, kinda not cool that he didn't respect her autonomy there by not asking her opinion, let alone giving her a choice in the matter, but otherwise I don't have a problem with this. I was actually completely fine with everything he did in common route, even stuff other people have said is 'mean' (mostly stuff in winter arc). I don't see an issue with any of the things he does to force the others become better performers (and this is why nobody questions why I'm a Tanakamigi Chui fan lmao... no, actually sometimes they do, and then I give them an essay XD) It wasn't until I actually played Neji's route that I was like, oh HELL no. XDDD oops... I do appreciate that this game allows Kisa to Be Cool And Good At Things. She doesn't really get downplayed at all from what I remember. I adore Kisa. I would fight Suzu and Sou to be her Jack Ace and I would win. I'm glad the guide was helpful and interesting! Though if you're currently on track for the bad end, you might need to focus your stats a little more. You need to max out your current man's stat at 30 to get his best end and it gets harder the higher it goes. If you're on track for the bad end, that means you must be spreading out your stats evenly. And apparently none of the LIs like it if you're too multi-talented...? (what's the meta on this?? XD) It's easiest to do the bad end while you're doing Kisa route, because you need to be on Kisa route to get the opportunity for the bad end to happen. Personally, I think it also makes more sense if you've played Kai's route already, but that could just be based on how I interpret the events of the bad end (which are, admittedly, super fucking vague. XD)

Why is this woman targeted otome game making me feel seen in a way no overtly transmasc media ever has (Jack Jeanne on Switch)

For context the MC (Kisa Tachibana) is a girl crossdressing as a boy to go to an all boys drama school called Univeil, since it’s all boys some of them play girls for the plays, the ones who play boys are called Jacks and the ones who play girls are called Jeannes

I was guessing since it was a female protag they would make her a Jeanne for the whole game as not to alienate their audience but for her second performance she’s given a male role as a Jack, she struggles with the role at first and has some lines that resonated HARD with me when looking at them through a transmasc perspective:

I’m sure I don’t need to explain much how a transmasc could relate to this, but it was such a nice surprise to have this nuance in a game I really wasn’t expecting to touch on gender this much; I’m not an avid otome game player so maybe I went into it with a lot of bias as I though it would be targeted towards a straight female audience but it was really nice to see them explore Kisa’s gender expression like this. There are more examples I could talk about with the gender commentary but I don’t want to spoil it too much. If you’re interested in the game I should also mention half the guys look like girls it’s literal transmasc bisexual heaven

Overall I’m really enjoying this game so far, I know the community for it is kind of small but if any other Jack Jeanne fans are here I’d love to hear some more opinions too. I’m only up to around the end of the summer holidays/hotel training camp and when they’re moving into the fall performance practice, so I’d appreciate if you could avoid spoilers past then.

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THANK YOU!!! I've been waiting for this to be seen by someone who happens to have played both of these games even if they have extremely limited audience overlap... XDDD I was certain that anyone who had played both would get it, it's just too obvious. Thank you for validating me XD

A friend got me into Cult of the Lamb and it was only a matter of time before this fanart happened tbh. If any of you have played both of these then you know that this needs absolutely no explanation.

In the stage play adaption of Cult of the Lamb, The One Who Waits would undeniably be a Tanakamigi Chui role. The parallels between them are just too good.

Which also means Narinder has to be shirtless. I don't make the rules. (Sorry, CotL fandom. Or maybe you're welcome...?)

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Ohhhh, starting with Neji's route and following it up with Sou's route... The two most divisive ones... OP, depending on your taste, you might be in for a rough time. >.< For Sou, I would say see how you feel about him in the lead-up to the fall performance. If all of that just makes you like him more, you're probably good. If it makes you side-eye him a bit, maybe do a different route second and give him a little more time to cook. XD Neji's route is probably the most divisive; in my experience people either really love him or want him fifteen feet away from Kisa at all times. XD I'm in that second group and basically spent his entire route yelling at the TV screen... @_@; Fumi is the safest, I would say, because I'm pretty sure I've yet to find someone who dislikes Fumi. However, he really works best as a final route, or at least a late game route. Otherwise it feels a little strange how much Kisa has to work to keep up with him. Kai and Suzu are my recommended starter routes. Kai's sets up a lot of lore and character stuff that imo is a great jumping off point for the other routes. The drawback is that he has the best CGs, so he can set your expectations a little high for everyone else. Suzu's is just generally regarded as being a pretty chill and lighthearted route. Mitsuki, of course, is the best route for leaning into that 'transmasc Kisa' vibe. ;) My partner and I made our own customizable recommended route order guide here

Why is this woman targeted otome game making me feel seen in a way no overtly transmasc media ever has (Jack Jeanne on Switch)

For context the MC (Kisa Tachibana) is a girl crossdressing as a boy to go to an all boys drama school called Univeil, since it’s all boys some of them play girls for the plays, the ones who play boys are called Jacks and the ones who play girls are called Jeannes

I was guessing since it was a female protag they would make her a Jeanne for the whole game as not to alienate their audience but for her second performance she’s given a male role as a Jack, she struggles with the role at first and has some lines that resonated HARD with me when looking at them through a transmasc perspective:

I’m sure I don’t need to explain much how a transmasc could relate to this, but it was such a nice surprise to have this nuance in a game I really wasn’t expecting to touch on gender this much; I’m not an avid otome game player so maybe I went into it with a lot of bias as I though it would be targeted towards a straight female audience but it was really nice to see them explore Kisa’s gender expression like this. There are more examples I could talk about with the gender commentary but I don’t want to spoil it too much. If you’re interested in the game I should also mention half the guys look like girls it’s literal transmasc bisexual heaven

Overall I’m really enjoying this game so far, I know the community for it is kind of small but if any other Jack Jeanne fans are here I’d love to hear some more opinions too. I’m only up to around the end of the summer holidays/hotel training camp and when they’re moving into the fall performance practice, so I’d appreciate if you could avoid spoilers past then.

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Make Up！

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don't get me started on my 'the Gashadokuro's portrayal in ending CGs becomes less monstrous in direct correlation with how much influence Kisa had on Takihime during the route' theory. Or how that plays into my larger 'Kisa is the lens that can let others see Chui as human' theory. "A transparent vessel shows the deepest parts of a person" - Tanakamigi Chui on 10/16. What is it you're so desperate to communicate about yourself, Chui?

thinking about the fact that tanakamigi looks inhuman in almost all of his i am death cgs in every route but in his bad ending he looks like. just a normal kid looking at kisa. i’m gonna be SICK

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I'm honestly feral for Sou crashing out over Chui+Kisa's partnership/relationship, and Momonashi making it worse could only make it better I have definitely thought about this more than might be expected

no because soshiro yonaga really went double platinum with figaro and fugio one after the other. i totally agree with kasai’s speculation that he’d go to amber if quartz was dissolved.

BUT i also think he’d become a mini neji who’s delusional in how he sees kisa but So Much Worse because of his obsession that would probably grow watching her on stage with tanakamigi, the “Only Guy Ever Who Can Really Bring Out Her Talent,” and with the devil momonashi in his ear LMAO

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don’t ever talk to me or my 4500000000 niche AUs ever again

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Still on my mind.

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Please help save a sad bendy theatre goth from loneliness this January. Post a new Chui/[any character] JJ fic to the JanChuiary 2025 collection on AO3 between 01/01/25 and 01/31/25 and receive an illustration of a scene from it! Further details at the link below. Reblogs appreciated! <3

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Utsuri Kamiya - Visual Novel: Jack Jeanne

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This was, in fact, the moment that I knew I would have to share this game with anyone and everyone who spoke to me for more than five minutes.

this scene is so important to me.

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Hi Ren,

it's lavenderlight over from ao3!

I'm crossing my fingers that the infamous tumblr-ask-box-situation won't swallow my message! xD

I hope I'm not overstepping (and I don't expect a reply) but I just thought I'd check in - I know you've got discord but I don't think I have the spoons currently to make an account lol

So, good old tumblr it is :D

Anyway - I wanted to wish you happy holidays and let you know that I've been thinking of you (and your depiction of Chui ( 〃▽〃) ) and that LC:LS meant quite a lot to me over the past year - and continues to mean a lot to me.

Honestly, I keep thinking (constantly!!) about all of the chapters so far, imagining how the story might unfold in the future -

So, yeah. I hope you're doing alright and I'll look forward to any possible updates!! <3

Wishing you nice company, a warm blanket and a hot drink of your choice for the holidays!!

OMG hello!! You're not overstepping at all, this is so sweet aaaaa!! <3 <3 <3 I don't know how to say that it means a lot to me that the story matters to you so much. I look forward to your comments on every chapter SO MUCH, they're so thorough and thoughtful, every one of them is like a little gift. I'm so curious what other kinds of things you find yourself thinking about the chapters so far and the ones that have yet to come! It really does mean a lot to know someone else is thinking about it so much. It's a rarepair--the number of English language authors including the migikisa ship at all (let alone focusing on it) can be counted on one hand!--in a tiny fandom. (Someone recently asked me about how many longfics were in the Eng JJ fandom and I was able to rattle off all their titles and author names... because there are only three of them, and one of them is mine. XD) In such a niche pairing, it's easy to feel lonely, especially as one of the sole creators for it. You can't help but wonder sometimes if other people think you're weird or even annoying for being so invested. It can feel isolating. So for someone to say it means that much to them... it's really validating. <3 I got a bit sidetracked lately by doing fanart instead of writing, which is most of why I haven't updated recently. The art brain has a stranglehold on the writing brain! (I started writing again on Friday so I could update on Sunday and then on Saturday I was gripped by the drive to draw Chui as a character from Cult of the Lamb and that consumed my entire weekend... oops.) Actually, you're the one that inspired that art shift. It was that comment you left on Chapter 14, where you mentioned reading a quote that said, “People hate their own art because it looks like they made it. They think if they get better, it will stop looking like they made it. A better person made it. But there’s no level of skill beyond which you stop being you. You hate the most valuable thing about your art.” I thought about that a lot after you said it and it really changed my perspective on my own art. I draw more now than I have in years, and I usually even like what I draw! Even though I can still see its flaws and still see my own influence on it, I've really made a lot of peace with that. It's been really eye-opening and empowering. I really want to get an LC:LS update out today or tomorrow because we're finally hitting the winter performance and the timeline of coinciding with IRL Christmas is just too good. I wish I could post one today and one tomorrow for the timing but I'm not sure I'll have time to finish them both and I'm not sure people would have time to read them anyway! I will probably content myself with one. XD Anyway, if you ever do decide to make a discord I would love to talk more! You can also just lurk in the server that's linked on LC:LS, though I feel like you would be a great addition to the culture c: Thank you so much again for messaging and I hope you have a wonderful holiday (with a few moments to spare for thinking Chui thoughts! I know I will be, hehe <3 )