raven-at-the-writing-desk

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

If you were to be a dorm leader of any dorm, which would you pick?

Ooh 👀 I love this question, it’s so much fun!!

I definitely don’t see myself leading Savanaclaw or Ignihyde. I’m not much of a jock or a tech nerd (which are the archetypes those dorms seem to attract + the people they seem to most respect)… though I do love the idea of being a small noodle-limbed boss surrounded by a mob of muscular dudes willing to basically do whatever I tell them to 😭 It’s just funny to me.

I don’t see myself vibing with Diasomnia (with its horde of huge egos) well. I feel like I’d constantly be fighting to prove my worth as their leader. With Pomefiore, I feel like I’d be constantly stressed trying to be the example of beauty everyone else looks up to. Similar story for Octavinelle, except my source of stress there would come from the students, who give me the vibes of shark circling prey and waiting for a moment of weakness to close in and claim the seat for themselves.

That leaves… Scarabia and Heartslabyul. I definitely like their ideals (mindfulness and strictness, respectively) and think they suit me. Their student populations don’t seem to be as problematic as the others or full of particular archetypes I find hard to fit in with. I guess between the two, I’d pick Heartslabyul to lead only because I cannot deal with Scarabia’s climate (even though I think I resonate with mindfulness more than strictness). I would die of heat stroke 5 minutes in because MY threshold of what I can tolerate before melting is 21 Celsius (~70 Fahrenheit).

I asked my friends which dorm they see me as the leader of, and most of them also said Heartslabyul. Their reasoning is as follows:

“You’re a rule follower”

“You have (strict) routines and plan stuff way in advance” (I have a monthly planner, look at menus of restaurants and choose what I want to order the day before I go to them, and plan each day by the hour)

“You already like things like whimsical aesthetics, AiW, and tea”

“You’re very logic oriented”

“You’re good at calming rowdy people (misbehaving kids) down”

Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I believe I’d be pretty happy as Heartslabyul’s dorm leader! chisbekwks Guess I’m staying true to my namesake’s origins 😂

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

twst anime merch

***Please note:*** Sharing merch images + news is not intended to encourage and/or to pressure anyone into making purchases. It is up to the individual consumer to be informed and to choose how they spend their money.

Yup, you heard right… A merch line using key visuals from the anime. Even Yuuken is featured!

The items include:

Character hair ties

Character acrylic standees

Character cards (2 styles; 1 tarot-card style and the other more portrait style)

Post cards

A blanket featuring the lovable Ramshackle Ghosts!

Clear files

Glitter can badges

Die-cut pass cases

Acrylic keychains

Preorders come with a random sticker:

… ABC-Mart also made a pair of collab loafers so now you can officially step on the Heartslabyul boys’ faces :DD

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

[ Original doodles here! ]

WAH 😭 Thank you for the belated birthday gift!! I wasn’t expecting it at all.

bcsjavjwnLwvwhj I guess Miss Raven had a fancy night out in celebration of her birthday… I love how the wind is tossing her hair and how you’ve captured her shyness (she’s glancing away, lol). It looks like she managed to muster her courage to finally look her date (?) in the eye at the very end 👁️ Wonder who it is…? Please treat her well!

You did a great job conveying a story here 🎵 and, as always, big fan of your painting style 🎨

Happy (belated) birthday to @raven-at-the-writing-desk 's Miss Raven 🥹

Her Valentine's outfit was too pretty not to draw

Alt version where I tried to show her shifting her gaze towards whoever's off screen – dunno how well I executed that so hiding it under the cut lmao

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Now with Leona's sleepwear out of the way that just leaves Ortho and Riddle!

Considering Ortho's an android I'm curious with how his sleepwear will look since he doesn't really sleep like any of the other students. I feel like he just shuts himself down and charges himself like a phone 😂

Do you have any theories on how his sleepwear would look and why he has a sleepwear at all?

My personal idea for why and how he has a sleepwear is maybe he wants to know how normal humans sleep so he asks Idia to program him to 'sleep' like a human.

Or another idea is that first-years are planning a sleepover at ramshackle dorm and Ortho wanting to fit in with the aesthetic asks Idia to make him a sleepwear body.

Ortho’s vignettes also include the final of the dorm washrooms!! Excited to see how blocky Ignihyde’s is. (I’ve previously speculated as to why Ortho, a robot, would be going to the washroom.)

He does appear to have a bed in his room…? So it must serve some function. I wonder if those three holes on the backboard are where Ortho plugs himself in to recharge. It might also be cool if the bed itself was designed to be like one of those wireless phone chargers, so just being near it or sitting on top of it would grant Ortho that recharging effect.

I don’t know what Ortho’s pajamas would look like (I’m not very good at describing metal and electronic devices 🧍‍♂️), but I’m sure it’ll be cute! It would be nice if it’s like pajamas with stars/Star Rogue on them, sort of like how a little kid might have pjs that match their latest obsession or hobby, or favorite cartoon character.

I have nothing to add on to why Ortho would have pajamas in the first place. My initial thought was the same as yours, that Ortho wanted to have the authentic human experience! As much as I love the first years having a sleepover idea, I’m not sure if this will be canonized since the idea of the vignettes is that it’s meant to show us the character’s nightly routine, not a special occasion.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Hmmm something something beginning of the game “take the hand & don’t let go” something something Malleus always offering his hand hmmm…

https://x.com/gikkvn/status/1948483753463959663?s=46

This post had me thinking, & I’m starting to wonder if it’s Malleus’ hand Yuu took (or whatever that quote at the beginning of the game was meant to mean), but i can’t say anything else because as far as i’m concerned we have no evidence for this 💀

From the mobile game’s opening, Crowley’s entire speech is:

“Ah, my dear esteemed benefactor... My proud, beautiful flower of evil. You are truly the fairiest one of all. O magic mirror, thy wisdom I entreat... Reveal unto me the visage I seek… You, whose image the Dark Mirror did beckon forth... If your heart bids it, take the hand of the one reflected in the mirror.”

[Here, there is a break to allow the player to pick any single SR Ceremonial Robes character. Note the visual of a nondescript hand extended to you in the mirror.]

“As flame reduces even the stars to ash / As ice seals away even time itself / As great trees swallow even the sky / Fear not the power of darkness. Now­— demonstrate your power.”

[Here, there is a break in which we engage in a battle with a scripted loss to what we assume is OB!Grim.]

“To me. To them. To yourself. The hour grows long, and time is scarce. Keep steady your grip, no matter what may come...”

[Here, the Prologue begins to play out.]

We do NOT see this entire thing in the manga adaptation; we only see a single full-colored page with the beginnings of Crowley’s speech.

In the light novel, we open with “Ah, my dear esteemed benefactor... […] Reveal unto me the visage I seek…”. It is missing “You, whose image the Dark Mirror did beckon forth... If your heart bids it, take the hand of the one reflected in the mirror. […] Now­— demonstrate your power.”

We get a passage describing Yuuya in a ruined ceremony of some sort and being attacked by OB!Grim. There is no hand in the mirror reaching for Yuuya. Instead, we get a voice in Yuuya’s mind telling them “To me. To them. To yourself. The hour grows long, and time is scarce. Keep steady your grip, no matter what may come...”

Interestingly, chapter 1 automatically begins with a “hooded figure” reaching out and Yuuya feeling compelled to grab ahold of it. The hand ends up belonging to Grim.

As you can see, each adaptation presents slightly differently. Let’s try to pick it apart bit by bit.

While the manga is vague, the LN seems to imply the hand Yuu is grabbing is Grim’s. The game is more vague, and uses the taking of a hand as a free gift. The “hand” you select is the free SR Ceremonial Robes unit you’ll get. Of course the game, the most interactive medium, is the one that is open-ended. (However, I really doubt this choice will influence the game’s story at all.)

The hand depicted in the mirror seems to resemble Crowley’s. He is the one narrating the opening, had pale skin, and seemingly long nails (albeit these appear to be golden claw rings on his fingers). Furthermore, this would align with theories about how Crowley intentionally summoned Yuu into Twisted Wonderland for some hidden agenda.

I don’t see anything that would imply the hand being taken is Malleus in particular. As I’ve explained thus far, it could be Grim, Crowley, or literally any NRC student from the main cast.

It’s true that Malleus has a recurring line about taking his hand, but it isn’t necessarily related to the opening. The instances cited in the provided tweet all refer to the same incident: book 7. Malleus offers his hand multiple times in order to invite others (members of Diasomnia, not specifically Yuu) to his world of dreams. The Diasomnia CM and Malleus's character song are both based on his struggle in book 7 and what ultimately drives him to overblot: loneliness. It makes sense that the CM and character song would repeat the motif of taking his hand. The same could be said of recurring motifs in the other OB boys' CMs and songs. For example, a lack of freedom in Jamil's or the concept of contracts and deals in Azul's.

The idea of taking another person's hand is also not an idea that is exclusive to Malleus. In fact, hand holding is commonly used as a symbol for forming or strengthening bonds with others, and it's used a LOT across Twst in general.

Characters grab onto the hands and/or arms of their respective OB boy sinking into the darkness of their dreams in book 7. Many groovies--including Crowley's--also feature a hand outstretched to the viewer (who, oftentimes, is NOT Yuu). Some live 2D model animations have a single hand held up as well. Rollo asks for Malleus's hand for a dance.

I think this feeds into the reading that the hand in the mirror is meant to be representative of any character and the bond you form with them. If it does belong to a specific character, I see a stronger case being made for Crowley or Grim than for Malleus. Who knows though, Twst has gotta explain the opening to us eventually so we may just get the answer sometime in the future 🤔

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

What did you think of Bunny Floyd? His art, card, and outfit? Cute? Creepy? Mad Hatter-like? And how do you think Miss Raven, Azul, Jade, Jamil, Ace, and Riddle would react to seeing him dressed like that, or if he offered them tea?

[ Referencing the Twst JP August schedule! ]

(Picture taken in a Tokyo train station by Twitter user @/anego_! 👆)

xbjssbksbskwkwn I love… Alice in Wonderland… 🥺 👉👈 so I would have been super excited for a new Rabbit Costume SSR anyway, regardless of which character got it. I’m so hype about Floyd being the new bunny boy though, he wears the outfit so differently from innocent ol’ Deuce… and I adore the monocle on him, it makes Floyd look classy but his smile is still so unhinged 😭 He poses like an actual mob boss serving his guest tea (which may or may not be poisoned) before they get down to discussing illegal matters. I think this framing is intentional?? Like, Floyd is presented as the March Hare that accompanied the Mad Hatter, whereas Deuce is the more straight-laced White Rabbit rushing to make it on time.

Riddle starts off being satisfied that Floyd is well-groomed for once (the full suit, the collar done up!). “I suppose even a hooligan like yourself can clean up decently.” He’s instantly set on-edge when Floyd shoves the tea in his face, but feels obligated to accept it because tea is such a beloved drink both in Heartslabyul and in the Queendom. Warns Floyd that there had better not be any funny business here…!

Ace’s immediate reaction is to point and laugh. Like, he doubles over and clutches at his stomach because it hurts so much. He says Floyd looks so friggin’ ridiculous in those colors and bows, they don’t suit him at all!! Floyd shuts Ace up real quick by squeezing him until he agrees to shut up and/or force feeding him cups and cups of tea. Ace is so full of tea by the end by he topples over, ill and totally sloshed.

Azul is disturbed that Floyd is so… well-put together, since he never knows how long it will last before his switch flips. He’ll eye his tea cup suspiciously and INSIST that Floyd have some first to make sure it’s safe to drink. He still remembers when Floyd mixed up some foul concoction using customers’ leftovers and then slipped it into his morning coffee! Jade would chuckle and tell Azul to relax, does his precious twin brother look like he would harm a fly?? (“He most certainly does…!!”)

Jade’d praise how “dashing” Floyd is in the Rabbit Costume (while also subtly poking fun at him) and drink the tea offered without issue. Then he smiles and fucks with Floyd by laying into him with serious critique about the taste and preparation method used. After all, Jade’s talent is making tea, and it’s his brews that are often added to the Mostro Lounge’s menu. Surely there’s nothing wrong with a little “constructive criticism”! (“Hah? You’re really pissin’ me off,” Floyd would tell him.)

Jamil has a similar reaction as Azul. He’s instantly alert and questions Floyd about where he got the suit (did he steal it or bully it off a student from the Queendom?) and why he is wearing it (is this a prank?). Doesn’t believe him when he says it was a “gift”. Declines any tea Floyd offers, not trusting it to go down his throat. Does the Basketball Club mom thing and nags him to behave, don’t ruin the clothes, and don’t thrust unknown liquids at his peers.

chsvwjwjdos I picture Floyd actin’ a little shady by wrapping an arm around Miss Raven’s shoulder and acting all buddy-buddy with her. “Look, Black Pearly~! We match!!” 😭 (They are NOT friends.) She just stares at him warily and plays along to placate him. Makes an excuse about how she’s “allergic” to avoid drinking his tea. Floyd calls her out on her bluff and says he sees her chugging Jade’s suspicious drinks, so it’s only fair that she down his suspicious drinks too!! “I am NOT touching my lips to that, Floyd-senpai…!” she squeaks.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

how common is magic in twisted wonderland? there’s multiple magic schools but some students family doesn’t have any magic..

The light novel establishes that this varies by species. About 1/10 humans can use magic, but that most of those only have enough magic to “basically move a cup onto a table or light a fire without a match.” Only the cream of the crop manage to get into top schools like Night Raven College (which has ~800ish students) and Royal Sword Academy. And remember, not every magic school is the best, so there are probably magic schools out there that take on the less magically gifted students.

We do not know what the rates for merpeople or beastfolk are. However, there are cases when the term “human” refers to all non-fae, so it’s possible that the 10% value also applies to merpeople and beastfolk.

We can assume most, if not all, fae are capable of magic since we are told magic is used for daily occurrences in Valley. This includes travel (via levitation) and lighting fires for cooking.

If we extrapolate from the main cast, it seems that humans are the dominant group in Twisted Wonderland. I’d therefore guess that most of Twisted Wonderland’s population is magicless despite seemingly having entire educational systems and industries (magic medicine, technomancy, etc.) dedicated to mages.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Do you know where I can buy the twst perfumes?

[ Referencing this post! ]

Aaah, that would be on the NOZ website 😅 but be warned that they ONLY ship within Japan.

You’ll have to find a proxy service to acquire the item for you. This isn’t unusual, as most Twst merch—especially collab items—are not sold outside of Japan. Please also keep in mind that the shipping for very fragile and potentially flammable items like fragrances may either not be possible at all or will be VERY expensive.

You know what I recommend as an alternative though? Looking for small businesses that makes fragrances you may like ^^ Those are more accessible and usually come in smaller sizes or even samples! You can even find businesses that make character or fandom-themed fragrances or bath products. I’ve found several that do anime-manga-themed products and even Twst-themed ones, which you can always choose to support instead of Disney.

Here are a few shops I know of that do Twst fragrance goodies and have personally purchased from myself!! :> (And if you happen to know any yourself, please send them my way because I love checking out different creators’ takes on the characters!!)

Twootietarte

MerMerrySoaps

LumisCandleCo

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

alright, i’m gonna say it

I have NOTHING to support this headcanon, but I think it would be really ridiculous if…

***Content warning: suggestive content below the cut, though nothing explicit!***

… Idia had an alternate online alias by the name of Goonurai (Gloomurai but NSFW), which is the pen name of his 18+ doujin artist persona. So when Mrs. Shroud looks into his computer files in book 7, she not only finds the raunchy fan art and fics he consumes, but also the stuff he himself produces 😭

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Hi Hi! Thank you for responding to my ask about Rumi & Sebek! I loved hearing about your opinions on my idea!

So two different but similar things hit me at once just now (i’m posting them jointly so it doesn’t become spam for you, but of course it’s your choice if u wanna hit both or one separately ^^)

1) Still thinking about KPDH, i think the move is so well written, & I agree with you when it felt the end was missing something, & it feels like there are a lotta other plot holes, but What do you think some of Vil’s opinions on the overall quality of the KPDH movie would be if he were to see it?

2) What do you think Vil would think of The Last Unicorn movie would be? (ITS SOOO BEAUTIFUL!!)

[ Referencing this post! ]

I think Vil would enjoy the film on just a purely artistic level. It’s both a visual and musical treat, with excellent performances from the VAs and singers. Vil has some pretty high expectations for everything in general (skincare, food, manners, etc.) so he’d probably have standards for the quality of writing too. Can’t say how picky or what exactly he’d critique though… I don’t pay much mind to Vil and his entertainment industry opinions🧍‍♂️

I haven’t seen The Last Unicorn, so 😅 I can’t really answer the second part of your ask. Sorry!

Just as a heads up!! It’s not a guarantee that I’ll be familiar with every piece of media brought up (which could lead to me not replying to the ask at all) so keep that in mind before submitting something ^^ I’d also like to preemptively say thar appreciate it if we avoided follow-up asks saying things like, “you should read/watch it!” Thank you.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

hello, miss raven! this might sound stupid, but sometimes, when i see characters buy stuff, i always wonder: where do they get the money? sure, some might be given pocket money from their parents, but what about those that has no parents?

although the only character i could think of is lilia.. does his old 'job' pays well to the point he has enough money to support himself and silver for hundreds of years? or was he given money by malleus?? or maybe he currently has a side job??? (disc. i haven't finished book 7 so idk much)

I mean 😅 there are people in the main cast without parents, but most characters have a guardian or relative looking after them in some way, shape, or form. (For example, Granny Bucchi for Ruggie or even Fellow for Gidel.) The only exceptions I can think of are Neige and the Seven Dwarves, who are said to live with each other since they don’t have "help" (I assume guardians) in their lives. (You can find a compilation of family member lore here!)

Given that NRC is an elite boarding school, most families with children in attendance are from decently well-off families. Within just the main cast of 22 students, roughly 70% of them easily count as upper middle class. Some individuals are even outright members of nobility/royalty (Malleus, Leona) or are filthy stinking rich through other mean (Kalim). These families would probably be able to give out pocket money for spending.

For those whose family budgets are tight or students who don't want to ask their parents/guardians for money, they can get part-time jobs. Two on-campus options are the Mystery Shop and the Mostro Lounge. Those enrolled in the Master Chef/Culinary Crucibles course are also paid for their labor.

It’s also possible for students to get part-time jobs in Foothill Town. Jack, for example, mentions working at a restaurant during a vacation break.

Vil has cut back on modeling and acting gigs so he can focus on his school life, but he seems to still be active on Magicam as an influencer. He probably makes money via sponsorships and ads he does on there.

I'm not sure if this counts, but you could be an entrepreneur like Azul and start your own business. Even just selling foraged items or used belongings might net you money. Of course, if you have a skill or service to offer others, that's a plus. Ruggie usually does these, although he seems to be fine with a bartering system ("you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours") instead of always demanding cold, hard cash payment.

I'm not sure if fourth year internships are paid or not, but that's another potential route.

If we want to talk specifically about Lilia's financial circumstances, I’m not sure what he’s paid, if at all. According to Sebek, "When major leaders retire [...] they typically take up residence in large manors not too far from Draconopolis". However, the Briar Valley senators blamed Lilia for abandoning their princess to die in battle, which led to him resigning in disgrace and being banned from the capital. He and Silver ended up living in a remote part of the forest, far away from Dragonopolis.

It seems that their way of living was quite humble and not requiring a lot of money, surrounded by nature and seemingly relying on it for a lot, such as firewood and foraging for food. They even save a lot on things like electricity, gas, and water bills because a lot of that is covered by magic in Briar Valley. For example, Silver says cooking is typically done with fire magic rather than on a modern day stove.

Whenever Lilia traveled (~220ish years from the end of the war to the present), it didn’t seem to cost much money either. He could rely on his magic, physical strength, survival skills, and even the kindness of strangers to get around.

Lilia only adopted Silver ~17ish years ago, so he only had to worry about looking after himself until very recently. The Zigvolts would help Lilia with watching Silver, and Malleus has even had the palace deliver some supplies (such as milk formula) to help with raising the human infant. This further lightens the financial load.

Now, even if Lilia quit and left in a state of dishonor, he would still have been paid and have savings from his service in the army. He would have received basic pay as a regular old soldier, but the pay would have jumped substantially once he became a general/high rank or senior officer, although it’s hard to gauge the exact amount or even a range because every country would pay differently. There may be additional benefits (like retirement funds) he qualifies for depending on things like years of service. It’s not entirely unreasonable to think that Lilia would be able to support himself and Silver given the low cost of his simple lifestyle + whatever money he’s sitting on from his service.

Lilia doesn’t seem to currently work a job, but he does hover around Malleus and guide him + Silver and Sebek. I don’t know if it’s in a formal capacity (like, is Briar Valley paying him to do this???) though. He does appear to make occasional trips to the capital and do favors for Maleficia upon her request, but again, I’m not sure if this is anything he is paid for. I'm also not sure if attendants like Sebek, Silver, and Jamil are technically paid for the work they do??? But that's another entirely separate discussion.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Notice how Ace almost hold his neck in the promo? I love it's just foreshadowing the start of the chain of events.

[ Referencing this post! ]

Think you dropped something, king 👇 Chat, he’s cooked 💀

bxbevejekes It’s such a funny little detail 😭 Only the current Twst fans will know what it’s alluding to, so it feels like a little fandom secret or Easter egg.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Hello, Miss Raven! I'm just want to ask about your opinion regarding Twisted Wonderland developments lately. I remember reading one of your post that Twst slowly turns into a 'franchise' now, not just a game since we got fed with many contents. Somehow this kinda reminds me of Touken Ranbu, I wonder if next time we'll get a twst stage play as well someday..

I have a friend that seems afraid with the growing fandom too as the anime coming up... (I think you understand what I mean (・_・;)) Well, it is unavoidable after all. I'm glad people would recognize twst more tho!

[ Referencing this post! ]

I mean… I don’t mind that Twst is making more extra content (merch, pop-up shops, music, collab cafés, various adaptations. etc.). It just gives us more to be excited about and to experience. The fandom is seemingly always buzzing about something, even if the game itself isn’t getting any particularly huge updates, and that keeps me invested!

Since we recently got character songs (and it was announced they were working on drama CDs in a livestream like 1-2 years ago), I think a stage play’s fair game too. Maybe even a cursed live action adaptation too/j After all, a few of Twst’s VAs (such as Rook and Jamil’s) are experienced stage actors and could easily reprise those roles.

This kind of growth isn’t a thing with just Twst or a select few games either; many highly successful mobile games eventually expand into other areas to get the word out about their product and make even more profit. (Conversely, highly successful properties in other mediums may eventually get a mobile gacha game of their own.)

However. (Very big “however” 😅) Even though I usually enjoy the extra irl Twst content, I do NOT like the direction the in-game contents seem to be heading in. There’s more banners but fewer vignettes, more pushing of the Disney connections (I have very little fondness for The Mouse), and really inconsistent quality on the groovies. For example, I found all of the C&D Diner groovies awkward and/or off-model. I also do not like the current point we’re at in the main story. Book 7 crashed and burned for me as soon as we hit the part where we had to jump into each student’s dream to wake them up. That ending left such a bad taste in my mouth too. I have no clue how book 7.5 is supposed to follow up on that dumpster fire 😭

Regarding concerns about the anime and how that will affect the Twst fandom 💦 I’ve already talked about this at length in a handful of older posts. Please see this, this, this, and this for that discussion, as I don’t want to repeat myself. Ultimately, I feel like a lot of this worrying is for nothing and feels more like fead mongering over something that should have little impact on our own enjoyment of Twst.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Ms raven ms raven ive always thought it was pretty fun imagining characters in the future so i was wondering if you had any hcs of what the first years would be like in the future when they're like in their third years perhaps? Me personally i think i can see sebek being a housewarden after silver and malleus graduates, to uphold the pride of the dorm or something like that HAHA

As a matter of fact, I’ve written headcanons for the first years as their respective dorm’s dorm leader and “10 years later” headcanons as well.

The only caveat here is the first years as dorm leaders headcanons don’t include Ortho since they were put out before the book 6 ending where Ortho is formally made into a student. Lemme quickly fix that!

Curiouser and Curiouser…

As an android, Ortho executes his dorm leader duties with slick and deadly efficiency and precision. He’s never late for dorm leader meetings or submitting official documents by their deadlines.

Having found his own independence, Ortho likes to tinker around in his own lab to create new gears and attachments for his new older adolescent body. Problem is, sometimes a mob student will walk in on him and find themselves staring at a dorm leader missing a limb or two, and that’s sort of freaky.

Ortho’s the first extroverted dorm leader Ignihyde has had in like… forever. It freaks the Ignihyde mobs out when they’re shuffling down the hallway to collect or deliver of ramen noodles or anime merch, only to have a cheery voice greet them by full name. They started nicknaming him “the friendly ghost”.

He tries to encourage his dorm mates to get out and “touch grass” more! Ortho says that human beings are meant to be social creatures—and besides, vitamin D (which the sunlight promotes the production of) is healthy for you!

In an effort to promote more socializing, Ortho hosts weekly game tournaments and anime/movie nights. (He even provides snacks to incentivize the nerds to come out!) The attendance rate was low at first, but over time they’ve accumulated more people. These events have genuinely helped lighten up the dorm and get its students to connect with one another.

… Actually, the reason why attendance improved was because Ortho threatened to leak their internet search histories to the entire school. (Yeah, he’s unfortunately not opposed to using a little blackmail or violence to enforce his will.) He’s always privy to stuff that no one else is, meaning there’s plenty of valuable info at his fingertips to keep people in line!

“Hello, new students!! I’m Ortho, Ortho Shroud—a technomantic humanoid. The line between man and machine… Ignihyde is where that line is blurred. Let’s get along, okay? When we come together, we can produce our own innovations!”

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

With the club wear ending soon, it makes me think about the team choosing the clubs first to last. I couldn't remember which club but I presume to be Light Music Club. But I'll focus on the basketball club wear and remember how in Octavinelle Dream arc that Jamil wore in his basketball wear.

Why am I talking about this? I checked Scarabia Manga and there's a panel of Floyd, Ace, and Jamil wearing basketball uniforms. Imagine if their club wears weren't released before the Scarabia Manga, I'm sure we would see their PE attire like in one of the anime trailer. Same reason we wouldn't see Jamil's basketball wear in the Octavinelle Dream arc if his club wasn't release before that. (It's like how Kalim didn't wear his sleepwear in the manga because his sleepwear was recently released, just like with Leona)

This leads me to believe that they specifically choose which clubs go first before the next based on on the main story. In chapter 5, the main story shows some of the arts clubs with their displays and everything. Of course they didn't have their club wear that time but i wonder if the Pomeferio Mangaka might add it. It would be cool to see Trey in his club wear attire, Lilia and Cater in their light music attire, and Jade in his mountain camp club. I am not sure about the rest given story reasons like I'm sure Malleus didn't wore his club wear given he wasn't around. This applies to how Idia would likely not wear his club wear given he will be doing a presentation. It is also possible that the sports club didn't have their uniforms since they aren't the main focus of the VDC event. But I can imagine the Equestrian club wearing their club suits in the Ignihyde Manga, same reason to the Board Games Club.

Since Vil was the only member of Film Reasearch club among the main cast before Ortho came in and how Chapter 5 and 6 does not involved any of it, that might be why they are last club to showcase it because knowing that the Film Research Club used much in the main story.

It makes me hope that the Manga and Anime include outfits not just club wears but everything like sleepwears and many more that hasn't shown in the main story like how Riddle's chef attire was shown in the Heartslabyul Manga. It's possible to see Silver's and Sebek's chef attire in Diasomnia.

It also makes me curious on future main story events having outfits. Given that Spelldrive competition is coming soon, it will likely have the Spelldrive club wearing uniforms to compete.

For reference, the Clubwear releases (from first to last) is:

Light/Pop Music Club (Kalim -> Cater -> Lilia)

Basketball Club (Ace -> Jamil -> Floyd)

Science Club (Rook -> Trey)

Track and Field Club (Jack -> Deuce)

Magift/Spelldrive Club (Ruggie -> Epel -> Leona)

Mountain Lovers Club (Jade)

Gargoyle Studied Club (Malleus)

Board Game Club (Azul -> Idia)

Equestrian Club (Silver -> Sebek -> Riddle; Riddle has NOT been released yet)

Film Research Club (Ortho and Vil; both are not out yet so we don’t know which of the two will come out first)

Maybe Gastronomy Club (Grim)?

Mmm… I’m not sure how much merit there is to this theory given we don’t know if the game devs communicate with the other teams (mangaka, animators, etc.) + to what extent. Like how do we know the mangaka aren’t just doing this on a whim??? (One of them (Heartslabyul + Octavinelle) works with Yana on the game itself, so they’re already very familiar with its contents and another (Scarabia) previously contributed to the Manga Anthology so they’re probably already an avid Twst fan.) Some illustrations of characters in limited outfits aren’t even related to the actual main story content, but are artworks released to coincide with real world events as promotions.

I also feel this theory doesn’t hold water when so multiple opportunities arose for new outfits to appear in events and the main story, yet they weren’t really implemented until late book 7. This, combined with the fact that the new outfits so scarcely used in places like the manga, makes me think they’re little nods of fanservice to reward long-time fans and not necessarily an indicator of Clubwear release order.

If I had to give an example of this… Ortho formally becomes a student at the end of book 6. In his College Gear vignette, he’s searching for a new club to join. Literally the entire focus of his vignette is on clubs and finding one where he belongs. Ortho ends up witnessing the Film Research Club underway—so why wouldn’t this club be first to release if it plays such an integral role in the identity of one of our main characters? Why would Light/Pop Music Club be first to drop when it had little to no relevance in the main story? Clubwears started releasing in 2023; by this point, book 5, where the club would be performing music, had already wrapped up. They wouldn’t be relevant again until, again, late book 7, when Cater wears his in Riddle’s dream to gain trust. If importance to the main story’s content release truly mattered to the Clubwear line, then Light/Pop Music Club would come much later.

It would be nice to see more outfits (besides the ones in the permanent pool) feature in adaptations + retroactively added to earlier bits of the game but 😅 I don’t think that’s realistically going to happen, at least not for extended scenes. It’s unfortunately not animator/artist or budget friendly to have so many different and elaborate outfits on the characters. Not to mention it’s also spoilers for people experiencing Twst for the first time vis other mediums… And imagine being hype for those outfits, only to play the game and realize you missed ALL those limited banners?? It would suck. The light novel doesn’t seem to be retroactively fitting the boys in new outfits either, so I wonder if the outfits will stick with that basicness.

As I’ve said earlier in this post, I have the strong suspicion that limited outfits made a huge appearance in book 7 for the purposes of fanservice in such an important book. I’m not sure if this will carry over into future installments of the main story.

In regards to the Spelldrive/Magift tournament at the end of the school year, the club actually ISN’T playing. It’s stated in book 2 that one member from each dorm will be in NRC’s team. (This seems to be a detail that is often confused or overlooked, so I don’t blame you for forgetting!) So if Twst uses the club uniforms at all, they’d need a really generic version for every chosen player to fit into.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

I have another one for the would you rather? Would you rather…

Openly disrespect Malleus in front of Sebek

Or

Intentionally break a rule in front of Riddle?

[ More Twst #would you rather asks + my replies under the associated tag! ]

Oh, this one’s easy for me 😭 I’d openly disrespect Malleus in front of Sebek because that’s something I would realistically do. Meanwhile, I would never break a rule in front of Riddle because I’d be making myself uncomfortable too (I’m a ruler follower, lol) 💦

Sebek has SUCH a loose definition of what counts as “disrespect” to Malleus that even a slight critique (or the threat of one) could trigger a reaction. For example, I bet I could ask Sebek “Hey, so if Malleus is such a great leader then can you provide examples of what he does to lead Diasomnia?? Cuz it sure seems to me like Lilia doing the bulk of the dorm leader responsibilities,” and he would still be set off.

But like… what’s the worst Sebek can do to me in retaliation??? Shout at me?? Nag me??? 😭 Cuz I’ve never seen him actually put hands on others just for saying stuff about Malleus; he only physically retaliated the one time Magicam Monsters actually made Malleus angry and Malleus initiated the battle against them. (Sebek was following his lord’s lead.)

I can deal with some lecturing and shouting, especially knowing that Sebek is the one overreacting and being intolerant of my opinions. And—to be frank—I’ve had some (NOT all) overzealous fans harassing me in my inbox when I’ve critiqued his character before or even said “I don’t like Malleus” so 🤡 this unfortunately wouldn’t be anything new for me to deal with. I’ve built up some pretty thick skin, so Sebek can come at me all he likes and I still won’t crack.

I don’t think I can handle Riddle because, unlike Sebek, Riddle does retaliate. He’ll not only shout, but he may also collar me or assign some task as a punishment. That’s punishment that extends way beyond a simple scolding, and I don’t want to deal with those consequences 🧍‍♂️

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

So the anime will premiere on October 29th? Later than I expected, but this franchise has always loved Halloween, right? And is it true that the anime will only have 8 episodes? What do you think of this? Do you think it's a good episode count? Even adapting the manga, the manga has 4 volumes, although I think they might want to rush the prologue a bit.

That’s right, the Disney+ JP Twitter account announced that the Episode of Heartslabyul animated adaptation launches October 29th. (There’s a new visual too 👆) Yup, this year’s Halloween (Twst’s biggest annual event) is going to be WILD with the timing of the anime basically dropping a few days before the actual holiday 😭

A new episode will be released every Wednesday. There are going to be 8 episodes total, so it seems like the final episode of the season will be out December 17th (NOT all 8 episodes dropping on October 29th).

So this is the expected schedule:

Episode 1 on Oct 29th

Episode 2 on Nov 5th

Episode 3 on Nov 12th

Episode 4 on Nov 19th

Episode 5 on Nov 26th

Episode 6 ob Dec 3rd

Episode 7 on Dec 10th

Episode 8 on Dec 17th

I honestly think the prologue is short enough to fit into only one episode and the other seven are fine to cover book 1. However, I worry about 8 episodes being sufficient if Twst decides to stick with this count for future books (assuming they get greenlit) because 8 will definitely not be enough to cover everything un the later installments like 7. I just hope the episode count is flexible and increases depending on the book 😅