#// FUNNY THING IS... this isn't even the whole cast either!!!!

[brokentoys]

The people in Eddie's life (masterpost)

A short bio & explanation of people who are important in Ed's life, or will be important in Ed's life! A lot of it's from my own lores and ideas (well, since I did say this was an original take on Eddie in the pinned post ✌️😉)

Frank Nashton

Frank was the youngest out of 8 other siblings. The Nashton family was full of belligerent, dishonest cheats who claim to be religious, but clearly wasn't much at all. They were known for constantly getting in trouble with the law due to stealing, and getting into fights with neighbors as well as themselves.

Having no money and a family that doesn't give a damn about him. Frank knew he wasn't smart enough for those white collar jobs, or even the blue collar jobs. Therefore, he began branching out in the underground for any big crime boss that would be interested in hiring him as another disposable goon.

Not longer after meeting a rather wild, but lazy young woman named Amelie Boucher, Frank had a child with her - a child he wanted her to 'get rid of' from the beginning. But Amelie insisted on having the baby, whom she named Edward Frank Nashton, the middle name was likely to appease him and what love they did share back then. Since Eddie was an unwanted child, Frank felt no love for him. And due to his temper, Frank often lashed out on the child - both verbally and physically. Amelie never cared, rather the man direct his anger toward someone that wasn't her. And Frank's anger toward his own son became severe after finding out what good grades Eddie was getting in school. Out of envy, Frank did all he could to deter Eddie's success.

Not long after Eddie finished college and acquired a job at the GCPD, Frank was killed in a shooting with a rival group. A moment that Eddie's still bitter about, feeling as though he missed out on killing the man himself.

Amelie Nashton (Née Boucher)

Amelie's parents were French immigrants who moved to the States in hopes of starting a culinary business. They moved to Gotham thanks to its low rent rates. Amelie was a very intelligent young girl. However, she was always too lazy and unmotivated to use her intelligence for anything. Because of this, she was constantly shunned and highly disliked by her parents, who preferred her hardworking and subservient brother, Edward. And because of that, Amelie grew envious and resentful towards her brother. Even having near once pushed him into a well.

Amelie had a baby not long after meeting troublemaker Frank Nashton, who brought even more shame for the Boucher parents. She named the baby Edward, if it's because she wanted to impress her parents, or because deep down, she does have a soft spot for her older brother, is unknown and she refuses to say. Amelie thought her parents would love little Edward, as they've been pushing for her brother to have a child. Amelie was wrong. Her parents disowned her. And Amelie, who never really wanted a child, neglected little Eddie in favor for alcohol.

However, when Eddie entered his teen years, Amelie started developing an uncomfortable interest in Eddie. Something Eddie had initially dismissed just because he wanted the attention from one of his parents.

The Puzzler (true identity; Edward Boucher)

After experiencing the treatment of his sister at a young age, Edward became desperate to appease his parents to avoid similar treatment. Which worked, however it was at the cost of his own identity. Edward felt forced to be something he wasn't in fear of disappointing his parents. He felt imprisoned, and eventually became perpetually bored with his life, and wanted more excitement.

At 17, Edward began committing various crimes for thrills - some as small as theft, and eventually getting as big as murder. Although he never gave himself an alias, the media dubbed him "the Puzzler" due to his habit of sending crossword puzzles to the authorities with alleged hints to his next crimes, and his identity. A way to add to the thrill if there's a chance in getting caught. His talents were acknowledged by a crime lord of Gotham. Not as big as the Falcones or the Cobblepots, but still a sizeable mob family. Edward joined and began carrying out deeds for the crime lord. Until three years later, when he conspired with comember False Face, and killed the crime lord and took the mob for themselves. Many superheroes keep secret alter egos, usually villains don't. But Puzzler always wore a mask and kept his true identity a secret, initially in fear of disappointing his parents.

Despite his parents insistence on grandchildren from him, Edward never cared to have a child. He couldn't see himself loving one. Until his sister had a baby, and Edward met little Eddie and instantly fell in love. He couldn't explain why, but Eddie was everything he wanted in a child. After two years of spending time with Eddie, Edward realized he wanted a child. But not just any, he wanted Eddie. However, after many times babysitting Eddie, Edward realized his lifestyle was too dangerous for a child. Even with keeping Puzzler as a secret identity, the crime life called for his attention too much to make time for a child. With a heavy heart, Edward decided against kidnapping Eddie.

After many years of being the Puzzler, rumors about his identity began circulating. Especially after the police had solved many puzzles he had sent to them over these years. Edward acknowledged it wouldn't be long until the authorities, and the rival mobs, discover he's the Puzzler. He'll surely be bored to death in prison. To escape his identity coming out, upsetting his parents, and getting Eddie potentially wrapped in such a life, Edward faked his death with his favorite doctor - who intentionally wrongfully diagnosed him with terminal brain cancer with only months to live. Thanks to False Face, 'Puzzler' continued operations after Edward's 'death' and all accusations were dropped. Edward ran off to England with his doctor to pursue a relationship with him, and live a new life. Eddie, not knowing Puzzler and his uncle are the same, assumed his uncle didn't leave anything for him as a way to build character, rather than the real reason - which was to protect Eddie from getting involved in the underground life... but how long could Puzzler even stay away from it?

False Face (true identity; ? ? ?)

Not much is known about False Face, and who or what he even is. To himself, he's a mystery. Ever since he was a child, False Face has had this plastic mask-like thing attached to his face, and he can shapeshift into any person he wanted to. Of course, that much power is too tempting to not abuse. False Face used his powers to pretend to be other people in order to steal from many properties such as banks and stores. False Face eventually found greater opportunity for money if he was in a gang - posing as a made up person named William Throne. False Face never revealed his "true" plastic face to anyone; most don't even know he exists, and others knows him as multiple people.

Because he's spent most of his life lying and pretending to be other people, False Face believes most people to be fake themselves, and rarely believes in honesty. Except for Puzzler - his "coworker" within the mob. The two formed a close friendship as they felt they were the only two who could understand each other. They both struggled with identity issues, both were compulsive liars, donned masks, and craved excitement. Ironically, they began to trust each other enough to reveal their identities to one another, and together, they hatched up a scheme to take over the mob they worked for.

After Edward Boucher's "death," False Face played his role as the Puzzler, and William Throne. It fooled the media. However, False Face didn't feel as confident without the real Puzzler aside him. After 10 years, he "retired" the Puzzler identity, and continued living life as William Throne - another ordinary crime boss of Gotham City.

This remained until Edward returned from England after 28 years - with news that his life in England has "ended" as his husband died from, ironically, terminal cancer. With the real Puzzler coming out of retirement, the two decided to take over Gotham City together. Now, if only an annoying investigative journalist doesn't try to crack the riddle as to WHOM is the Puzzler...

Beverly "Bev" Madison

Eddie never knew her well - only a sex worker he's hired a few times, since Bev would come around to Eddie as she admired his intelligence. Bev strongly believed smarter people were rare in the current age, and the government is dumbing the masses down with technology and propaganda. She disappeared from her usual spot after the last time Eddie bought her services. Eddie had assumed she retired - which he was right about that. Bev met a man named Edison Alarie and his peculiar "family." A family of the only intelligent people left in Gotham. Feeling lost, and having gotten recently knocked up by one of her clients, Edison offered Bev salvation with a home. Impressed by his mental prowess, Bev joined the "family" and entered a romantic relationship with Edison. Everything is now happy within the family.

Just don't ask where her right arm went...

Edison Alarie

A man in his early 50s who once was an archeologist in France. However, after finding an ancient book with tales of a demon and prophecies of how it will return. Edison immediately quit his job and moved to America, Gotham - believing that is the place the book speaks of, and believing he is worthy to be a vessel for the demon as he's the only one smart enough for it. As the book shunned the ignorance of mankind, and every ignorant human will be killed, but those who are intelligent will be spared. Edison started a cult family based on this concept, and to seek out the few remaining intellects of Gotham city.

Eddie met Edison not long after reforming. However, he remained unaware of Edison's book. And for the longest time, though he was an eccentric man who could sometimes be spotted at the public library. Because of their similarities, and that two heads are better than one, Eddie and Edison were even friends for a period of time.

That was, until Eddie learned more about Edison's "family," and discovered his "book."

Elaine Nigma Madison

Bev's three year old kid who lives with her and the rest of Edison's "family." She's a sweet, albeit a bit antisocial toddler who, seemingly to Edison's frustrations, exhibits strong signs of autism. Despite Bev's claims that she's Edison's - Eddie can't help but notice Elaine bears a strong resemblance to someone familiar...

By default, in Ed's reformed verse, Elaine lives with Ed.

Sphinx (previous identity; Maria Scromulski)

Maria was raised by very strict, catholic parents who believed in harsh punishment. The punishment didn't deter Maria, but instead encouraged her to act out even more. Maria was kicked out of her home at 18, but found refuge at Pandora's Box. As a sex worker there, she adopted the name "Sphinx" - after her interest in riddles, as well as her desire to be as monstrous as the mythical creature.

At 19, she was arrested for manslaughter following an argument she had with her boyfriend at the time on the interstate when their car broke down, and she eventually pushed him into the ongoing traffic in anger. Although it was unintentional, she did feel a bloodlust awaken in her. Sphinx was sentenced to prison, but was released after 5 years on good behavior.

A year after her release, Sphinx went back to work and became acquainted with Gotham's newest menace, the Riddler, who became a frequent visitor of Pandora's Box. The two started officially dating within a mere week of knowing each other. Sphinx introduced Ed to more exciting substances than mere alcohol and cigarettes.

Sphinx's and Ed's relationship began to deteriorate due to Sphinx's aggressiveness, and her constant jokes about how easy it would be for her to kill Ed and everyone in Pandora's Box. Their relationship came to an end after a trip on a train and Sphinx had the rather exciting idea to rob the entire train to allegedly help Riddler's plans, as well as more money for drugs. Eddie, being new to meth, had smoked too much and was too far gone to protest, or say anything other than have a drug-induced panic. It was known as the Gotham station massacre after several lives were lost since Sphinx just wanted to have fun. Eddie vows he was a victim, too, but the media didn't believe him. Eddie was readmitted to Arkham Asylum, and Sphinx was sentenced without parole afterward.

Antoine Moray

Ed's boyfriend back in college. Initially, the two were known as "closer than peas in a pod." And even though Eddie wasn't studying for it, he'd often act in Antoine's plays. However, Antoine became busy with his acting aspirations and Eddie began feeling neglected. Then seeing how much the audience adores Antoine, Eddie felt bittered and jealous - both of Antoine receiving fame, and of Antoine seemingly preferring the attention of strangers over his boyfriend's. Because of Ed's overbearing jealousy and temper, as well as his alcoholism, the two eventually cut off the relationship.

Now Antoine is a world famous A-List actor who has played in many movies. He has never once brought up the fact that he dated Eddie back in college, and likes to keep that hushed for the sake of his reputation. Eddie rarely mentions their relationship, too. But he does own every movie Antoine stars in. Even the bad ones.

Miyu Tangram

A former small bit criminal. She was mostly involved with cybercrimes such as cyberextortions. Miyu met Eddie not long after he reformed. She thought they could "grow better together." Which worked. For six months. Until Miyu grew exhausted from the constant stress Eddie's life put on her. From her being a damsel in distress to Eddie's enemies, to Eddie's drug addictions. After one night of seeing Eddie passed out on the floor from an alcoholic binge - Miyu left a goodbye note to him, knowing if she broke up with him in person, he'd beg her to stay and she'd feel bad. After, Miyu left Gotham to find a more peaceful town.

Artie Paris

Eddie's former classmate from high school - whom Eddie used to relentlessly bully. Artie was always the smallest teen in school, and was painfully mediocre. Being the weakest kid made him an easy target for Eddie to take his own anger out on. But instead of resenting Eddie for this, Artie idolized Eddie, and the idolization was stronger after Eddie became the Riddler. Artie wished to have Eddie's intelligence, and fame.

Artie went to a life of crime and bank robberies in hopes to be just like Eddie. He's spent years stealing enough money to fund plastic surgeries to look just like Eddie. ( Yet everyone still doesn't think he looks like Eddie ) He's tried to buy clothes that matches Eddie's style, albeit with more black colors to it for an edge.

After Eddie fell into a coma for a year after a malfunction of his own death trap, Artie tried to swoop in and take over Eddie's place as the Riddler. However, no rogues took him seriously, and his "riddles" were so bad, Batman wasn't even needed for the police to find him.

After Eddie awoken from his coma, and reformed, Artie came to the conclusion that he will never be Eddie... until he wears Eddie's very own skin. Artie makes several attempts to kill Eddie, but pathetically fails every time.

[gachagon]

Wolfgang's deceit and hypocrisy

A deconstruction and analysis of Wolfgang's behavior based on what he said and did during Chapter 1

I kept thinking about why Damon didn't exactly get along with Wolfgang because it seems obvious that he doesn't like him due to Wolfgang's somewhat pompous attitude towards the idea of Ultimates. Wolfgang contrasts Damon's view of Ultimates in that Wolfgang believes all talents are equally valuable to society, and Damon doesn't.

Wolfgang says he doesn't believe anyone there was capable of murdering their "friends" and that the killing game wouldn't even kick off because he believed in the inherent goodness of Ultimates as a whole.

Damon disagreed with this notion and believed everyone had the capacity for violence regardless of their Ultimate status or not. He also disagreed with the idea that all talents are equally valuable to society and that some are more frivolous in nature than others.

Wolfgang believed in a lot of "hopeful" ideals however, I don't think he was telling the truth when he said these things. His actions spoke louder than all of those inspiring speeches he gave to the rest of the class.

In fact, I think Wolfgang agreed with everything Damon said, but he didn't want to admit it for some reason. Wolfgang said he believed in a fair trial and letting people explain themselves, but when Eva claimed she was the Ultimate Liar he immediately resorted to turning the others against her by casting suspicion on her.

He said he believed that all talents are equal in value, but when Eva was revealed to be the Ultimate Mathlete, he didn't stop any of the others from mocking Eva over it. (I will also point out that while as hilarious as Cassidy's Bargain Bin joke is at Damon's expense, he doesn't tell her off for making said joke at all either.)

And Wolfgang said he didn't believe anyone there would kill anyone, but he was constantly taking "precautions" for the Killing Game. "Just in case" someone decided to do something. He agreed with Desmond's idea of bunking together, he at first doesn't want to investigate the pharmacy but decided it's a good idea to let everyone know what's inside anyways, and when he got the mysterious letter telling him to meet in the boiler room he brought a knife with him from the kitchen "for protection" supposedly.

Wolfgang says a lot of things that he clearly doesn't believe, him and Damon are exactly alike. But the difference is that Damon is honest in how he feels about the Killing Game and Wolfgang is not.

Where his hypocrisy comes in is how he judges Damon for his honesty, and makes it seem like he too isn't distrustful of others during the game. And I think the reason for why Damon specifically doesn't like Wolfgang is not just because he is a hypocrite but because he's purposeful about his hypocrisy. He isn't like the rest of the class in his hypocrisy in that he's not doing it by accident, he's doing it on purpose because it keeps him in control of the group.

And the funny thing about it is that it's kind of Damon's fault that the others adopted Wolfgang as their defacto leader. During the mock class trial, Damon was the one who defended Wolfgang's integrity and instinct as a lawyer to get the others to continue to believe in him so they could solve the murder.

But Damon didn't defend Wolfgang because he had some belief in the inherent goodness of Ultimates. He did it because Damon believed Wolfgang's *talent* as a lawyer is proof enough that he's well versed in situations like this. It wasn't about Wolfgang as a person, but his ability as a lawyer. And I think this is why when Damon just says what he thinks Wolfgang is confused by it because he thought Damon was like the rest of the class, hopeful and naive.

And obviously, later on Wolfgang states that he sees people, Ultimates, as more than just their talent. But I don't believe him. I think from the way he treated both Eva and Damon that he silently agreed on the idea of some talents being lesser than others. And he just puts himself in the position of not believing in what Damon says because it's unpopular with the rest of the class.

Wolfgang can subtly take all of the credit for solving Cara's murder, while Damon gets no recognition and because Damon has an unpopular opinion about Ultimates and Talents and the Killing Game, Wolfgang can become their leader very easily (which is exactly what happened)

But he doesn't truly believe in any of it, he's a biased person through and through who has his own selfish goals, and egotistical opinions just like Damon. I think he just didn't come out and be honest because being honest would've shafted him with the likes of Eva and Damon.

Wolfgang is leading them all with blind optimism, when he himself isn't that optimistic. I think this is why his Blackmail letter mentioned him having a Wolfish mind as well, because he is essentially a wolf in sheep's clothing leading a herd of sheep to their potential doom. Keeping them in the dark on purpose so he can continue to be seen as the leader and beacon of hope.

And if you think "Wolfgang wouldn't be that self centered to do this" I think he is, purely because of how he behaved during his death. Diana mentioned him saying things about being seen as great, trying to prove himself to someone, and not being able to measure up to another person.

I think Wolfgang is the exact type of person who would feed on other people's admiration in a situation like this. "It doesn't matter if they believe in me for a foolish and naive reason, because they believe in *me*. And as long as they have their faith in *me*, nothing else about this situation matters. Anyone who doesn't put their faith behind my ability to lead is irrelevant and isn't a part of the group."

(hence why Eva and Damon were constantly shafted by Wolfgang as outsiders)

[theyapper0]

THE HEAVEN CAST!!!!! WHOOOOOOO!!!!!

So first off, we got a redesign for the Exorcist Angel armor. I wanted to keep the colors light so they stand out when in Hell. I was also hugely inspired by Crusades armor, since the Crusades fought for religious territory, I thought taking inspo from there made sense.

Then we have Lute, Emily, Sera and Adam's designs. I'll explain it all under the cut if you're interested!!!

LUTE!!!!!!!!!! Sorry guys but she's basically a different character with the same name at this point

So I think that Lute was like a mentor figure to Vaggie, she was the closest thing Vaggie had to a (sorta) mom but it's defiantly like a student-master relationship.

I think that Vaggie trusted and cared for Lute deeply, she devoted all her time and energy into training in order to make not only Heaven better, but to make Lute proud. Lute was a HUGE driving force Vaggie's martyr complex.

But they were close!!!! The care wasn't just once sided, I think Lute did love Vaggie. I think they both care for each other SO much, that's why it will hurt SO MUCH when it's LUTE as the one to de-wing and banish Vaggie. She LOVED her, she TRUSTED HER!!!!!

Trust that I will be delving deeper into this in the future ✊✊✊

So Emily and Sera's designs and roles in the story are pretty much the same, I liked them in canon! They were fun and offered an interesting addition to the show!!!!

The main thing I chose to change was basically their hair and skin color tbh. I understand what the show was TRYING to do, w the fact that they're supposed to be black (and apparently those are supposed to be dreads in Sera????) but.......... It wasn't good.

With their canon skin color, I know a lot of angels have gray skin but to me, it looked like the designers didn't know whether to make Sera and Emily (especially Sera) gray or flesh colored, which then resulted in them trying to meet it in the middle and left us with this,,,, really ashy looking black skin in some shots which I didn't like.

I decided to just make them a darker gray so they can both be seen as black and also keep consistent with angels having gray skin :)

ALSO THAT ONE DOODLE WITH EMILY LOOKING AT CHAGGIE, I PROMISEEEEEE THAT SHE DOESN'T LIKE EITHER OF THEM LIKE THAT, I JUST DID IT TO BE FUNNY!!!!!!!!!!!!

(I think the ship is cute but personally, it's not for me ^^)

And finally..... ADAM!!!!!!!!!!!

So like Lute, Adam is basically a completely different character with that same name just slapped on.

I REALLY didn't like him in the show to be honest. I think we was an enjoyable character at times but he's totally like my second to last fav character (with my LEAST favorite being Lucifer LOL). I think it was an interesting take on Adam definitely!! To see him so cocky and full of himself bc of his title but....... It was just very...... Viziepop with the whole "original dick" thing......

Adam is the literal FATHER of humanity!!!? He is EVERYONE'S FATHER!!!!!! I don't understand the point of making him mean aside from the fact that he's supposed to be an opposing force in the show, but even then, just because he's the opposing force, doesn't mean he's gotta be a huge jerk!!!!!

I think it could be more interesting and add more nuisance to the story is Adam WAS this sweet, caring guy who, like the protagonists, is only doing what he thinks is right!

I'll delve more into Adam in my next post BUT everything he does is out of his trust in God and the Seraphims, he trusts them wholeheartedly and despite the fact that the Sinners of Hell were once his children too, he does what he must because his flaw isn't that he's egotistical or an asshole, it's that he cares and trusts with his entire being.

He's also best friends with Kris Kringle

[slowlysoluminary]

Still working on that chapter. Don't worry, it's coming along! Yesterday i was trapped at a party for 10 hours and, being the introvert i am, decided to take a break from drawing for an animatic by trying to draw for this au instead. don't know why i didn't just do artfight lol

FULL KING REFERENCE PACK + SIFFRIN DUO POSTGAME REFERENCES

Notes and details under the cut

sooooo howsabout postgame content?

the original post talking about postgame can be found here but it doesn't go into too much detail

So post-game resetfrin and gloop. they go with the party, kinda like a lot of twohats aus? resetfrin goes with the party because they know mirabelle and kinda know isabeau from when he would get apprenticed by the king (long story), but also because resetfrin acted so much like the old siffrin they used to know that it felt odd to leave him behind.

gloop, however, WAS the old siffrin! the party knows this, they found it out in the last loop, and they've formed such a bond with them that it's as natural as it is in the original game. the only issue is: gloop has changed SO much. physically, mentally, even a pronoun change - the party wants to help her out, but they want to explore who this New Siffrin is, too. Isn't it ironic that the new addition is the one you know far more of than the old addition?

resetfrin stays siffrin because... uh. because he's always been siffrin? there's no conflict there. gloop, after getting their memory back, ALSO goes back to siffrin, because that's who they really are and they acknowledge that loop is their own person. they don't want to be reminded of their time as gloop, either.

so... they're both Siffrin. And they're both technically the same person. do you see the issue?? the two of them didn't. the party did.

there's a comic I'm thinking about making to explore the processes and conversation that happened to initiate the name changes. the long and short of it is they can't BOTH be siffrin, but neither of them want to be siffrin if the other one can't also be siffrin, so they go on separate journeys to find a new name. they come back together with the party afterwords and they both ended up picking the same name so it's back to square one.

they talk to the party the second time and after a lot of brainstorming land on Orion for resetfrin and Lux for gloop. it helps the party distinguish between them and helps me establish the difference between postgame content and in-game content

(plug moment but these names were suggested by @the-bitter-ocean who gave me like. a whole list of things i could choose from. oh the life saver. i didn't even think about what names they would've picked until xe helped. and ohhh theyre so good. he also has some amazing aus including a miraloops au that you should go check out. pretty please)

the hair thing is SUPER IMPORTANT i originally only did it because they needed a way to separate themselves from eachother, but i realized they would also have done it to separate themselves from the old people they used to be. very poetic. 10/10 thank you brain for the excuse

the colors for orion's alt outfits are just a limited color pallete, they're not actually the colors afaik. (<- says the creator) but Lux's colors are 100% the colors, yes. their star body is different from loop's, where loop's body is solid black and lux's seems to glow on it's own. do you see where the name lux came from.

it's really dysphoric. imagine being turned into a ghost against your will and losing your memories, and them after gaining your memories back you turn into a completely different body AGAIN and it's STILL not the original body you had. i would cry.

gloop/lux's eye is still blind. even as a ghost they lacked depth perception. L. since resetfrin wasn't with the party to lose his eye they don't have any vision impairment

actually, about that. funny little thing. if siffrin wasn't there to protect bonnie, who did? haha hehe. hey why does odile have her arm in a cast...

KING TIME

okay i got a lot of questions about it so i double-checked on the original post and. yeah it DOES say the king's name. both in the text and on the image. but you'd be forgiven for missing it because it's pretty small on the image and there's a lot of text to read through

anyway pre-madness king's name is Lazare!! he originally looks like the lithe dude on the left. he's scholar-ish, came to vaugarde on vacation before losing his memory, yadda yadda... a lot of his information is on the original post so I won't repeat anything that's already been said

he picked Lazare a few days after losing his memory. he never told his name to anyone in the town he was staying so all he got was "travelling one" and he really genuinely thought that was his name for a hot second until he realized that Vaugarde really likes adding -one to titles

i made his hair curlier! after drawing the king for the chapter cg i realized i did NOT makw his hair curly enough when drawing Lazare. his hair type is almost exactly mine, though mine has more define curls, so drawing it is a BLAST!!

Defender arc Lazare! He bulked himself up to come off more physically and mentally strong. is this a trans allegory? is the King trans or was the body craft just to match his perception of himself? not sure. At this point in time he's already travelled with siffrin for a bit so i like to think he's a teensy bit protective. somewhere between friend snd father figure. cool guy

you know who's not cool? this guy vvv

this is where the King becomes the King :3 his hair is OBNOXIOUSLY long, almost rapunzel-like but nowhere near as bad. it always covers one eye but it doesn't really matter which one.

the crown happens like... VERY shortly before he makes the wish and starts freezing people in time. hes lonely and isolated and its something like coping with his delusions about everyone being out to get him

that's not the way he thought in the original loop, but after the reset his descent is much faster and harder than the last. when Siffrin starts climbing the tower, yearning becomes animosity as he thinks Siffrin finally betrayed him like he "always knew they would." or something.

hey 16yo sif jumpscare!!! wasn't he on the original post too?

.

anyway!!! that's it! that's all! i swear it's all. inevitably I'll have to make gloop and resetfrin full references but I'm happy with the ones i drew in the original post which I'll probably end up pointing people to if they want to draw either of them. the king was the one i worried about most because he's so different from canon, and same goes for the postgame designs. even coming up with new names was worrying because they're practically not even the same person from canon anymore

but that's the fun thing with aus, isn't it? lol

cya

[vicmillen]

Why Danny should be tossed into the Gotham cast

A short medium long list of reasons, by me:

It funny.

Lady Gotham being an nuisance. A mostly benign one but still a nuisance.

Danny being a even bigger nuisance in retaliation because men can be so petty.

Ol' Batsy getting multiple headaches. Must be his age catching up.

Jason.

Oh sweet, a whole species of enslaved undead waiting to be rescued and rehabilitated. Hmm wonder what's the deal with all the owl motifs?

Did I mention Jason? Oh I did. But how about his magic sword? You know the glowy lightsaber that's powered by his soul or something?

Bird watching is fun. Bat watching is even more fun. Until they start watch you back but eh

The rouges here feels more homely then elsewhere. More malicious to the living then your average Amity haunting, maybe. But the commitment to a theme is very familiar, as is the frequency of attacks.

Another fake clown to soup up! Huh? What do you mean he's human? Humans can't get souped like that don't be silly lol.

Wait. Huh. Well that explains everything and nothing.

How To Manage A Ghost Kingdom 101: a joint lecture by Timothy Drake-Wayne and Jason Peter Todd, teenaged entrepreneur and crime lord, respectively. Targeted student: one future Phantom King.

Advanced Anger Management with Jazz. Targeted student: one Jason Todd and one Danny Phantom.

How To Not Be A Cult Leader Part I, a group therapy lead by Tim. Attendee: one ol' Batsy, his son Stabby Robin, and one Ghost Boy.

So many liminals for a place without a 24/7 portal to the afterlife. Wait what's that green pool underground?

Why and most importantly, How is there ecto detectors in the batcave- wait no actually that explains how the Fentons got their first funding for their cursed research.

'It's good to practice for the future.' -Clockwork, probably.

'Enrichment is important for the growth of a Protector.' -Frostbite, probably.

'Peace is not an option.' -Paraphrased by Danny, probably.

Moving from most haunted city to most cursed city isn't exactly an upgrade, but it isn't an downgrade either, so.

Have you ever considered fighting the bad vibes of your city with cutesy lil blobs? Well you should. Not it's not causing a slime infestation what are you talking about.

Finally someone that is both willing (untrue) and able (we'll see) to deal with the various curses in Gotham. Yay...

No but seriously Danny-make friends with rouges while actively beating each other up-Phantom would fit right in with the Robins.

It's Jazz's dream job working in Arkham... Well it's actually working on dismantling the cursed thing, but baby steps, baby steps.

Imagine the everlasting trio getting onto the bats watchlist within a week. Separately.

Sam for Ivy The Second tendency; Danny because he's poking around old dionesium researches that he shouldn't know about; and Tucker because he's having fun (one-sided) with his new online friends. Oracle is deeply unamused.

Ellie should never meet Damian. They'll be such good bad influences for each other.

[kimbap-r0ll]

Can I request you the Dorm leaders with gender neutral S/O, Disney known for making musical, so I was thinking making S/O sing all the time, background music just come from nowhere and even others around then sing too

Hi, thank you for the ask! This is a really cute and funny idea ^^

Dorm leaders x gn!s/o who sings all the time and brings a musical ensemble with them

Riddle

While he would usually hate noises when he doesn't expect them (ie loud voices in the library caused by Ace and Deuce) he absolutely loves your singing

Will he tell you this to your face? No, probably not at first. He has made hints towards it in the past, saying things like "hey you sound really good!" but then there's the part where suddenly you get a whole background cast singing with you. NOW he's shooketh

I think he would've first thought it was a bit weird? Like is this your unique magic? But overall, I think he wouldn't mind as long as it doesn't cause any damage or breaks any of the Queen of Hearts' rules

Definitely try to get some of the animals that are around the dorm gardens to sing or at least dance with you like they do in Disney films lol. I think he would find it adorable

Leona

He found it annoying but then got used to it haha. Like he just thinks it's funny now when you suddenly burst into song and the whole classroom gets filled with passing students also singing about how Professor Crewel's class is too hard

You singing alone though, he loves. He's also too shy to tell you upfront but you have definitely caught him looking at you with a warm look in his eyes when you hum and accidentally get eye contact

Probably assumes this whole musical situation is your unique ability. If it's not, he's just confused even more. I think you should use it during a Spelldrive competition!

Have you tried waking him up using this? Definitely will make him throw a pillow at your face, but it might be worth a funny prank

Azul

While he says he loves the arts, he was not expecting musical theater as his forefront. Now he's here, with whom he sees as the love of his life, singing and dancing about how you are going to get "your head in the game" for Spelldrive with like 30 other students

He's not the greatest with crowds, but does find it somewhat amusing how you are able to conjure up so many people at once. Does this mean the Monstro Lounge gets hella packed from time to time on accident? Maybe!

I think he would love you singing by yourself and will constantly tell you this. Ursula much? He probably tried to steal your voice when you two first met haha. Either way, he wants to hear you a lot

Believes it's your unique magic whether or not you think so. I think he'll be stubborn about it for some reason. But! He does think it's really cool, perhaps you could teach him how you make it happen

Kalim

Absolutely loves it! He's also singing along if it happens to be a song he knows. For example, everyone suddenly bursting into "Prince Ali" would be awesome!

Does Jamil appreciate this? From time to time like when Scarabia is throwing a party then it's sort of like a big moment and you're technically helping him with managing the whole event.

Kalim also isn't shy about telling you that your voice is amazing. He's probably said that first when you two met and you were mindlessly humming to yourself while doing homework with him.

If it happens to be your unique ability I think he would think it's the coolest one he's ever witnessed (even though he can basically conjure water). Definitely sing tunes he knows, since that will make students and him all join

Vil

Y'all were made for each other haha

While Vil is strict and loves quiet times, he's also a theater kid at heart. You two know basically every musical song out there so whenever you burst into song, not only will students (maybe animals?) join you but he might as well!

You guys need to do duets PLZ. It will be soooooooo cute. Sure, that doesn't mean 40 other students will suddenly start singing so it's not as big, but it's very heartfelt. I think he would love random singing

If it's your unique ability, he definitely thinks it's cool. Just keep in mind not to cause a musical to erupt when he's stressed out though, since that could result in him laughing or throwing magic in your direction

Idia

He hates crowds. The first time you caused "That's How You Know Her" to begin in the middle of you two hanging out at the courtyard he ran away because you made literally every student in the periphery start dancing and singing

He thinks you have a beautiful voice. He's shy about telling you this, but I think he would absolutely cherish every tune you hum or sing. If you happen to record them, he keeps it on a device so he can listen to you when he's sad

If this is your unique ability I think he would be amazed since this doesn't seem like weak magic at all. He does wonder if you enjoy crowds a lot since you cause people to join you for a little musical number, but overall he does think it's neat

I would say he appreciates you singing alone more than in a crowd. Ortho, on the other hand, might appreciate your big musical numbers more!

Malleus

Thinks it's really neat, he loves the energy you bring!

He wasn't expecting a big turnout for his birthday party at all when he invited you, but seeing so many fellow Diasomnia students very wholesome made him tear up a bit :')

Outside of your musical endeavors, I think he also appreciates your voice a lot. He can sing (literal evidence in the games) but he doesn't do it often. He likes to listen to you more than anyone else, but you two should totally do duets

If this happens to be your magic, then he's impressed! It's not every day that someone can make people appear out of nowhere or people nearby join you in a musical number. If Malleus is proud, then you should know you're literally one of the strongest magic users out there haha

[superkooku]

Have you listened/watched epic? And if you have what’s your thoughts?

Personally I think it’s a good thing to show to a friend new to Greek mythology. I just finished watching the last saga and I have to say I loved it, beautiful. Sad it ended tho :(

It might not be very accurate but I love the hardwork the cast put into it and so I love it very much

My thoughts on Epic the musical

So yes, I know about Epic. I even participated in the secret santa thing and am what we may call 'a winion'.

I just finished watching the livestream too ! I especially loved seeing the cast members were reacting to the sagas (Luke Holt was so funny in this 🤣. Also, Jorge carrying Mico like a baby in 'Just a man' and Mason being extra the whole time... so many gems in that livestream)

Since Epic is finished AND I have animatics of the Ithaca saga, I'll use this opportunity to make a more in-depth review of the musical. Instead of separating it in "good" or "bad", I'm reviewing it criteria per criteria.

The cast

Like I previously said, I LOVE the cast chemistry. They're all so fun and lively. I follow some of them separately, like Janani or Troy Doherty, and they're just delightful. Especially Troy as Hermes, he always manages to make me laugh. Every single time 😂.

Also, he gives me a bit of Mettaton vibes since he's extravagant, always over the top and a bit self-absorbed (the Hermes persona, I mean, not Troy Doherty himself). Maybe that's why I like him so much :3

And of course, there's Jorge, mr. Jalapeño, the man with the plan. I love how both passionate and humble he is, how he takes the time to thank everyone and just how much of a bundle of positive energy he is. I know it's an internet persona, but what I can see from him is some hopefully really nice guy in real life too.

Anyways, awesome cast chemistry, everyone made me laugh and they're all having a good time.

The music

This music is so beautiful 🥰. All the motifs, the emotions, the instruments, the voices ! If I had to rate Epic from the music alone, it would be 5 stars. I'm not saying this in a professional angle or anything, it's my personal feeling.

Seriously, I don't really have that much to say about the music because, to me, it's just that good. I love the variety, how different instruments synch themselves and, yeah.

The characters

Annnnd that's where the blind positive praise stops, unfortunately 😂.

Don't get me wrong, it's not awful either and there are good points. My favorite Epic characters are Hermes and Athena.

The rest ? It's mixed. In order not to make this too long, I'll focus on only some of them.

The story is very character-driven so I won't really delve into it in detail.

Odysseus : he's a good protagonist, especially in the first act. His dilemma is interesting, he has a strong personality and I like that he is just a broken man and not some mighty overlord... except in the Thunder and Vengeance sagas. I feel Jorge exaggerated the monster message a bit too much, imo. Odysseus is supposed to be a witty liar, a warrior of the mind. Not someone like Achilles who solves problems by fighting or fights gods like Heracles, much less freaking Poseidon.

Poseidon : okay ! I liked him in the first act, because FINALLY Poseidon isn't a surfer dude. He's a terrifying force of nature that was angered by mortal hubris (though the hubris thing isn't explained by Epic). In Get in the water, he kept his intimidating side. Because he's, yk, the king of the oceans, one of the most powerful Olympian gods. But his defeat partially ruined him for me 😂. It just doesn't make sense. Why is Odysseus afraid of Scylla and even tip-toes around Hermes, who is friendly, when he can stabby-stab Poseidon ? Why didn't Poseidon counterattack? So many questions.

Zeus : my problem with Zeus is easier to explain. Again, he was awesome in the first act, less so in the second. What I loved initially is how regal he was. Powerful, intimidating, kingly, but not evil either. He warns Odysseus of the gods' will and of fate, which always realizes itself in mythology. In Thunder Bringer, he's fine. His lustful and flighty side is shown, but we could interpret his intervention as avenging Helios and punishing the ones who ate the cows, instead of "Zeus is evil". But in God Games ? He's so pettyyyyy and childish. Where is the kingly attitude ? This "Beast Zeus" should come against Kronos or Typhon, or maybe when Athena and the others threatened his position. Not after a freaking game ! He just strikes Athena with thunder because she won fair and square. At LEAST Luke Holt absolutely killed it, so it's cool to listen to.

Penelope : she's underdeveloped :( . Okay, her bond with Odysseus was respected, they're adorable together. On her own ? Eh, she's fine. Which is a shame because she simply didn't have enough room to exist outside of Odysseus. Also, the fact that she doesn't interact once with her son is criminal imo.

I do have some other issues with characters like Circe and Calypso (basically they're declawed compared to the Odyssey), whereas I'm completely fine with others like Eurylochus, Telemachus or every god except Zeus and Poseidon. Though they're not perfectly accurate either but I don't have problems with them.

The crew in general is also underdeveloped, so I didn't feel much for them (until discovering the scrapped Elpenor and Perimedes songs/lh). They played their roles correctly.

I hated the suitors (that's a positive in Epic) and laughed when Antinous died. Though I wished they were more pathetic and less threatening. Musically it'd be worse but story-wise more fitting.

The story

Overall, it's fine. Most of the best points come from the Odyssey itself, the one change I liked the most was having Odysseus and Poseidon meet (not the way it ended though).

Also, story-wise, I prefer act 1 over act 2, because it's less over the place and more grounded.

But emotion-wise and music-wise, forgetting about the Odyssey, act 2 wins the cake.

Those were my thoughts on Epic :3

I tried not to judge it too much according to the Odyssey and some of my friends are more demanding on that plan (for perfectly legitimate reasons btw). But it's hard to separate Epic from the wonderful work of Homer and it's lacking in some areas.

Still, this journey was very fun, I love all the passion Jorge, the singers and the animatic artists put in, there are a lot of good things about it (I can't mention everything). I don't want to rate it because it's too rigid of a system. I listen to the songs on loop and, ultimately, I'm thankful Epic exists :)

I may come back to this post and reblog stuff if I have new relevant thoughts to add. I'll probably rank the sagas in another post.

[witchofthesouls]

AHHHH, I KEEP THINKING ABOUT IT!

Okay, I think the handling TFP/Aligned Orion Pax was weakened by the background inconsistencies that were supposed to ground his personality and motivations.

And that's why Orion Pax can come off as an asshole, weirdly tone deaf, or very naive, yet deep inside the revolution as a competent head.

It's as if the writers took so many cool things to prop up the guy, but let it compete with "How Orion Pax and Megatronus were Different" and made a mess.

And, depending on your view, it either was half-heartedly addressed or done masterfully.

Saltysaltdog did a really great analysis on Megatron's feelings of betrayal and humiliation of letting Orion Pax so close to everything, and it's found here: click

The biggest gripe I have with the whole thing with the characterization of Orion Pax is twofold: 1) the writers didn't leverage Orion Pax's unique, and let's be honest, precarious position, and 2) didn't expand deeper the fundamental differences that essentially broke Orion Pax and Megatron apart and started that catastrophic civil war.

The setup is there. Megatron and Orion Pax are distorted mirrors of each other. The major differences are driven by what was socially appropriate for them to consider as pathways.

The Cybertron that came to was deep in the grips of a well-established and well-entrenched caste system. In that kind of society, it isn't just money that decrees social mobility. The very hierarchy of the society is driven by cultural and religious norms on the "worthiness" of each group at various set levels. And from that "worth," it not only dictates the rights of the members in a caste but decrees the appropriate behavior and outlets as well as dictates how relationships between members of different castes are maintained.

So Orion Pax is a giant "FUCK YOU" to all of that. His very presence would have pissed off so many parties that isn't funny.

As in, I honestly believe he's alive because his initial seclusion from civilization had given him key skills and behaviors that saved his ass and Alpha Trion's personal care.

Yes. There would have been bullying. Yes. There would be complete resentment and hatred. Yes. There would have been social orstracism from his own colleagues.

Even individuals who are lumped with him as "caste climbers" or just sympathetic/pitying would have stayed away by the dangers of their own reputation being tainted.

"You're nothing but a bauble and an ornament. Merely a prized pet for Alpha Trion. One day, he'll lose interest, and that day, you'll go back to where you belong."

Orion Pax defied the appropriate ways of inclusion to their occupation and way of life. He doesn't have a frame or a specialized ability that's related to information. He has no achievements, no accolades, and doesn't even have a sponsored education from a prestigious university or any useful connections.

Orion Pax is both an outsider and a representative. He needs to be extremely mindful of everything: his words, his tone, his body language, his own work... are all subject to scrutiny.

(And it either shows his sneakiness that he's able to shake off all eyes when he descends down to the gladiatorial game, his ability to lie by omission or obfuscation, or his colleagues relief with him out of sight.)

That very grey area would have left deep impressions on him. It would explain his passiveness, the perceptiveness, the way he speaks, and the careful plans he quietly does by the sides in a need-to-know basis.

Violence can come in many forms. And in a world where your worth is tied to your caste, then Orion Pax should be deeply familiar with the various ways it can be soft, sweet, and utterly insidious. A velvet wrapped steel glove. A dagger from the shadows. A poisonous treat. A deal of bad faith. A betrayl from a kind face.

Remember: Ratchet went through the proper channels and with the appropriate frame to match his function. Of course, he has that shield against so many grievances and injustices as well as many prejudices that color his perceptions. Look at the differences in how he recounts the brotherhood between Megatronus and Orion Pax and the outcome of before the High Council.

Orion is both given privileges that Megatron and his cohort wouldn't have, but it's also a noose around his neck. He is severely handicapped by Alpha Trion's deliberate meddling to keep the reincarnated Thirteen/the Matrix's newest Prime nearby and simultaneously well-informed and in the dark.

Unlike the miner-turned-gladiator, Orion doesn't have that option for bloodsport. His too low-caste for the avenues of security by the high-caste, but too high-caste to partake in the low-caste culture. It's acceptable for them to be physically violent, to be in bloodsport, to solve their grievances with their fists.

It's vastly different to the complete ruination of an individual's life that Orion got thrown into the deep end: reputation, finances, personal and professional relationships, involuntary reformat... The power games of the higher-castes are completely different ball-game.

He's stuck with his own thoughts because there's no way he can voice doubts to Alpha Trion (the mech who gave him such a position, advice, and unrestricted access to the archives) nor to his colleagues (who either hate his guts or would sell the information because information is power and the Hall of Records is a major point of power).

Look at the people he attaches himself to. They're rather straightforward: Megatronus, Ratchet, Jazz, Bumblebee, Arcee...

He's drawn to their ease yet still holds himself in a certain degree of formality because that's how he managed to survive in a snake pit. And that's too deeply ingrained into him at that point. People read that negatively. Megatron once saw that but didn't understand what it truly meant. Megatron saw his willingness to give up so much and his privileges, but he didn't understand the extent of the scars that Orion mentally and emotionally has.

Ratchet would be one of the few that really perceives that. The medic may not fully understands but he keeps trying, and the war eventually breaks down the barriers.

It would make so much sense about his strange notions, why he doesn't allow Megatron explore "his" world, why he keeps everything to himself, why he relatively comfortable with others outside his "caste."

This guy would literally ruminate the entire work day (both legal and subversive) until he fell asleep after rechecking the locks 27365837 times so an assassin or unfortunate "pet" didn't come into his room.

This could explain why he basically highjacked the damn meeting. Orion Pax has unrestricted access to many records. He knows his history. He can read between the lines. His A-game was on, especially in this endeavor.

Was it a well-intentioned plan to draw fire to himself because he had Alpha Trion’s strange degree of protection compared to the others? Was it panic because he knew all the ways to kill a person until death was mercy? Was it Plan 27-b because he thought all the ways it could go wrong? Was it his well-honed instinct demanding him to divert and pacify, but careful with the words (soft and fluttering with hidden danger with what is unsaid) to keep avenues open because to have the Primacy bestowed upon them would be an honor and completely legitimized the movement? Did he see the noose closing around Megatron and couldn't bear witness to have it strangle him, too?!

There's so much going on here. It all hinges on cultural absorption and clashes and the meddling by an ancient fart of an oracle, and it's just so tragically fascinating.

[meanbossart]

Alright, I am like 90% sure there is ONE line in A Novel Experience touching on Gale GTFOing rapidly, so I don't think there are answers in there for me. So I come to you and ask-WTF went on between Gale and Drow???

Alright, so

There are two versions to what happened to Gale in my first campaign (the OG DU drow campaign that this whole universe is based around), lets begin with the technical version. As I've only somewhat recently come to understand, my Gale was bugged. I had 1 interaction early in the game that slightly veered into romance which didn't go anywhere, and first chance I had I clarified that I was not interested in him that way (the whole reason why It happened in the first place was because i misunderstood his dialogue). Despite this, and despite me turning him down in every romantic interaction following, I kept getting them and my interactions with him were as if we were romantically involved. I even got one exchange (the one about muscles glistening and cheeks flushed) twice, and rejected him both times.

So, later in the game once DU drow and Astarion sucessfully 5d chess-ed their way into falling In love, I was surprised to still be informed i had to "break things off" with Gale if I wanted to get with him. Which I did. And he gave me a whole spiel about it.

Now it's crucial you understand this was early in the game's release, I went into it completely blind and I had never played a game like Baldur's Gate before, so I was not familiar with the mechanics at all, which... Kind of led me to believe Gale was just like that normally.

From that point on I was highly amused, but for roleplaying purposes I decided my drow would have been highly annoyed and a little creeped out. And so I proceeded to be extremely rude to the guy at every chance I got. This eventually resulted In him pursuing the crown of Karsus despite me (rudely) telling him that was a very dumb idea.

The second version of what happened, as I already touched on above a little bit, Is the Narrative one. As I mentioned I had no clue what was and wasn't supposed to happen, so I just... Went along with it within the role-play.

So our beloved DU drow gets worms. He goes on a grand adventure with this weird possy of people to find a cure. When the tiefling party comes everybody except Astarion wants to get into his pants (because I left him on the beach for like a week and then proceeded to be The Rudest to him, sorry babe, I didn't see your pale ass and the asshole dialogue options were Really funny).

Someone else who Didn't seem to wanna fuck him was the wizard. He said he just wanted to show him a magic trick and he (and, I'll admit, me) really thought that was just that. The scene unfolds, Gale tries to teach DU Drow to cast a spell but his 9 intelligence says No. The unsolicited date ends abruptly because Gale is upset that a champion fighter without a single cantrip makes for a shitty wizard. DU Drow thinks thats the end of that - It's Not.

Then what proceeds to happen is a long, annoying, somewhat unsettling dynamic where Gale continually tries to pursue him throughout the game, coming to the point where the guy I'm Actually interested in thinks we are together - and when DU drow tells him verbatim that he had no idea they were even a thing in Gale's mind, he has to hear him whine about it. Add to that the fact that all Gale talks about is his ex-girlfriend, DU drow is (kind of justifiably) led to believe he must be a Profound weirdo to whom he cannot ever say even a Neutral word to again lest he becomes any more infatuated with him - 0r whatever the hell is going on.

Whether it be DU drow's own inflated ego or the actual truth, when Gale begins to pursue the crown he also assumes he's just doing it to spite him - so he isn't the kindest to him about that either.

And within this narrative that I concocted around a simple bug that didn't let me end a romance, I cannot imagine Anyone getting on particularly well with Gale within my main party. Drow thinks he's madly in love with him, Shadowheart is probably a little confused but she trusts DU Drow's word on the matter more than the Wizard's, Astarion thinks... What Astarion thinks.

So, no, they didn't part on the best of terms.

Before anyone gets mad, I assure you - I've completed the game again since then, I realize this is Not the intended Gale experience. He's a hysterical and deeply interesting character and only Slightly clingy and weird.

But, you gotta admit, this is way funnier.

[burning-academia-if]

Heyyyy em! I stole an ask... I'm gonna send it around lol

So Spell gone wrong ROs get transported to some place in time where little bitty MC is the one to find them...

How does that go??? 😏😭🤣

Omg baby MC...back before their Whole World collapsed

Rook: Rook meeting MC at an even younger age than when the two became friends and feeling incredibly odd about being allowed to see you at every stage of your life so far. He's actually pretty good with kids, and I can see him entertaining MC and playing them before sending them on their way (also resisting temptation to say something to MC's dad, which I find very funny considering how MC's dad would not like Rook either)

Beck: I think he'd find MC as a child the cutest thing, and would immediately want to spoil them lol he's the best with kids out of the whole cast, and he'd play with them or tell them stories to distract them before returning them to their parents (with a sugary treat as well, although shh it's a secret from your parents ok?)

Rhea: It takes her a moment to realize who this small child is that has bumped into her. She isn't entirely sure how to interact with kids, but she'd smooth out her usual stern expression and try to make herself gentle, asking where MC's parents are and if they'd like her help to find them. Feels a strange pang in her chest when she hands you off, although she can't tell why

Zoe: Another one of those moments where their Older Sibling mode is activated lol quick to make sure MC is fine before hesitantly asking about their parents. When MC points them out, Zoe feels an instant weight on them. You, small and innocent, and your family rushing to collect you, whole and complete. There's nothing they can do for you, and they can only watch you run back to your family with a heavy heart

Lars: Please, he finds you annoying enough as an adult, let alone as a Small Child LMAO I think his reaction will vary depending on what kind of child you were, but he neither knows how to interact with child or really would want to, even if it is MC. Plus, I think he's too wary of the potential consequences of it so he just acknowledges it's you before moving on

???: Strangely enough, they don't feel they have a right to approach you. Instead, they watch as you interact with your family, anger flaring in their chest at the knowledge of the future. The image is false now, lost to the sands of time. If only the young child they see could have stayed unmarked by the trials to come in the rest of their life

[nellie-elizabeth]

What We Do in the Shadows: The Finale (6x11)

It's so wild to finish watching this finale and then hop over to Tumblr to see people lamenting and grieving for this epic queer-bait on one hand, and then other people throwing a party because Nandermo is canon now, and I'm just like... what show did you all think you were watching? lol. This was a fun finale.

Cons:

This finale cemented once and for all that the Guide was pretty useless as a character, and I hate saying that because I love the actress and I wanted her to have more to do. But her final character beat is that Cravensworth's Monster is really horny for her? The alternate ending where she's a detective on the case of the vampires was really funny, and it was the first solid bit they've given Kristen Schaal all season, and that bums me out. They even get in a last mention of Nandor's feelings for the Guide, which again goes nowhere and isn't funny or clever or interesting. So that's a bummer.

Also, I want to be careful here because there's all this extra weight put on finales to be some big thing that both shatters and preserves the status quo and that's an impossible standard to live up to, but, the one thing I do wish for was a bit of a resolution or at least an escalation on the whole "the vampires have fallen down on the job of conquering the new world" plot. It's just that the season started with that, and I didn't need some gigantic world-altering payoff, but some sort of circling back in a way that felt like things ended with a bit of momentum into the nebulous future might have been nice? Not the end of the world, but whatever.

To give space to the people who are sad about Nandermo, I will say I wish this show had had a bit more of a substantial relationship to the queerness of all the characters. For all that every single one of them is casually mentioned to be sexually attracted to multiple genders in a way that's really freeing, the only core romantic relationship on the show that has story-lines and gets narrative weight, is between Nadja and Laszlo. I honestly would never have expected or even wanted this finale to be some big grand "Ross and Rachel are finally together" moment for Nandor and Guillermo, but if I reflect back over the show as a whole... yeah. I do wish the queerness of the entire cast had been slightly less incidental in some way? It's more a reflection on some adjustments they might have made over the years, rather than a complaint about this finale in and of itself.

Pros:

Honestly, as I said above, finales have such a weird heavy lift in the TV world, especially when it comes to a comedy like this show. You have two options: either the show ends with a big change, the status quo splintering off and leaving you with a bittersweet sense of time passing (i.e. Friends), or else you basically say: and things go on thusly forevermore, and even if you're not here to see it, they're still out there being themselves. And frankly for this show, any ending that wasn't a preservation of the status quo would have felt disingenuous to me. Because the core tenant for these characters is that they're vampires and they'll continue on indefinitely being who they've always been. It's the core tension of Guillermo as a character, that he's a human with the impulse to grow and change, and his chosen family is frozen in time in a way he can never fully understand or be a part of. It's the thing about the show that makes it a good sitcom, but also doesn't lend itself naturally to some big climactic moment where everything snaps together.

So what do they do with it? They go meta! The episode starts with a setup as if it's going to be about Cravensworth's Monster turning horny and offering his dick as a gift to the Guide, and what they're going to do about this situation. But then, just as everyone's discussing it and giving their cut-away interviews to camera, the documentary crew suddenly declares that they have enough footage and they're done. Everybody else takes this completely in stride, but Guillermo is devastated and confused. So many years, basically his whole adult life, he's been followed around by these cameras, he's had his life structured into narrative arcs, and now... what? What was it all for?

One of the core strengths of the "found family" thing in this show is that the jokes can keep rolling while there is actually a subtle underpinning of sweetness to certain moments. So here, nobody takes Guillermo's reaction all that seriously, they all play off the end of the documentary filming like it makes no difference at all. But, at the same time, they all do something to acknowledge Guillermo's pain in their own way, and try with the typical clumsiness of this gang of vampires to offer him something in the way of comfort. Early season Colin and Nadja and Laszlo and Nandor wouldn't even have bothered to pretend to give a shit that Guillermo is upset, but here we have Laszlo offering to play a tune on the piano, Colin giving empty platitudes and talking about the nature of found family (even though he says he lost his found family in the early twentieth century and has been forced to hang out with these people instead). You have Nadja, using her new keen insight into human psychology to explain to Nandor why Guillermo must be upset, hitting the nail on the head by remarking that Guillermo probably feels like his opportunities for growth and development have passed him by. She uses her hypnotic powers to give the audience the perfect ending they would want, and we'll get into those alternate endings a little later on. And Nandor - Nandor gives Guillermo the stage to speak to the cameras and offer his own resolution, and makes earnest entreaties for them to stay together and be partners in fighting crime.

It's silly, and they all fumble it, and it's not actually reassuring or comforting except that the very effort in and of itself proves that they care. And that proves that these vampires are capable of change, doesn't it?

Guillermo really got the Main Character treatment here at the end, which is honestly his due: he's the one who has to grapple with the documentary ending, with the knowledge that this isn't even the first time his friends have been followed by cameras, that life is cyclical and that everything he's been through isn't new or original. He has to come to terms, in a meta sense, that he's a character in a sitcom. And so he goes for the sentimental ending: he helps put Nandor down to rest in his coffin one last time, acting as a familiar in all ways, and then he tells Nandor goodbye: that it's time for him to move on. He calls Nandor "Master" and when Nandor says he doesn't have to do that, Guillermo says: "I know. But you'll always be Master to me." And then he closes the coffin, slowly and with finality. Both actors give genuinely solemn and touching performances in this moment.

The end.

Of course, a camera still rolling in the corner of the room picks it up when Guillermo doubles back right away, interrupting the crew packing up their equipment. Nandor is pleased to see that Guillermo hasn't left after all, and Guillermo explains that he just wanted to give a satisfying conclusion to the documentary. He has no intention of leaving Nandor! And Nandor treats him as a friend and an equal, inviting him to share his coffin (although not, ostensibly, in a sexy way). Turns out, despite Guillermo's worries that the whole crime fighting thing was a whim and that he'd have to do all of the work, Nandor has actually been working hard on his secret underground lair, accessible only through a secret coffin-shaped tunnel through the earth. Our last glimpse of Nandor and Guillermo in the narrative proper is the two of them plunging through the earth in a coffin together, on their way to Super Hell. Or, I mean, their secret underground lair from which they'll fight crime.

I loved it, honestly. Guillermo's awareness of narrative convention, this whole season being about him stepping back and making his own choices, and then Nandor asking for Guillermo to come back, and Guillermo ending up where he wants to be without any false promises between him and Nandor. They are not a Master and his Familiar. They are friends, and equals, and it was honestly exactly the ending that makes sense for these two. A balancing point between the stagnation inherent in a character like Nandor, for whom change is almost impossible, and a character like Guillermo who had to go on a whole journey to figure out where he wanted to end up.

And then, we've got to talk about Nadja's three proposed "perfect" endings for the viewer. She hypnotized us into three parodies: the first is a Bob Newhart thing, where Nandor wakes up next to his husband Guillermo in bed, having had a crazy dream that encompasses the whole plot of What We Do in the Shadows. I saw some people saying that this was "making fun" of the viewers who shipped these characters, but like, guys, this show is nothing but making fun of everyone. It's all that, it's all jokes, it's all goofy. We got to hear some version of Nandor call Guillermo "honey," we got to see Guillermo kiss Nandor on the cheek. It made me giggle, it was so delightfully absurd. And it really revealed that the creators of the show understand what the Nandermo part of their audiences were picking up on - it's saying, yeah, some of you wanted this as an ending, but can't you see that the two of them having some grand romance at the last second would be genre-and-tone-breaking? I loved the line where Nandor was saying that in his dream, he and the other vampires all were having a lot of sex with each other, and "not you, Guillermo." Amazing.

The other alt "endings" provided by Nadja, available at least on Hulu as extra features, are great also... and I saw by reading some of the reviews of this episode that it seems people genuinely got different endings somehow when watching live - people reacted to the Nandermo Bob Newhart thing as one of the "alts," but I saw it as the actual content of the episode. The reviews that I saw all had the "Usual Suspects" ending as the one in the actual episode, with the others as the alts. That is fantastically troll-worthy behavior and SUCH a good note to go out on, the idea that some people might see one of the three endings and genuinely not know there's more out there. Through these endings we get to see Sean and Derek and some other frequent guest characters play bit parts, which is a fun way to give some of the extended cast a last hurrah.

I want to end by saying that if you're feeling hurt or betrayed by how this show ends, I want to honor that feeling as legitimate to you. But for my personal take? I don't think this show did anything wrong. Like, politically or structurally or tonally. My personal opinion is that this has always been an irreverent show where nothing really matters and nothing really changes, and this finale managed to actually feel like a sweet sendoff to the characters. Evidence of growth like I mentioned above, as this vampire family actually does make space for Guillermo's feelings, albeit in an unconventional and insufficient way. But this was never going to be a show where everybody got suddenly sentimental and sincere and confessed their deep personal truths to each other. It's a show that might wink at you, that might have Nandor say he's glad they won't be on film anymore, that might have Guillermo hopefully pushing to find out what he means by that... but that will always end with Nandor not picking up what Guillermo is putting down, that will always have another silly punchline waiting around the corner. This is a show that made me smile and felt really special in how bizarre it could get. And I did feel, on a genuine, emotional level, like this was the perfect way to end the show for Nandor and Guillermo's relationship.

As Nadja says, nothing is going to change - they'll keep on doing what they've always done, but now there will be nobody to film them doing it. And as Laszlo says, "We’ve had lots of laughs. Sucked lots of blood. And then fucked each other senseless."

This final episode gets high marks from me!

9/10

And the show as a whole, I don't feel like there's much more to say that hasn't been said above, which is probably another sign of a good finale: this was a real wrap-up of the chaotic and goof-ball energy of one of my favorite comedy outings of all time. It kept me good company these past few years, and Guillermo de la Cruz is always going to be a Character of All Time in my book. I'm sad to say goodbye, but what a send-off!

8/10

[chrysanthemumgames]

Hi again!

This time I come back after re-reading the entire thing! Of course, aside from fixes to small continuity error and other stuff like that, it didn't change much from the last time I've read it, so I won't be saying anything new in terms of how much I love it and so on! It's just awesome as usual!

But I have a few questions I'd love to delve into, that I just didn't ask when the book wasn't finished, either because I didn't think of them or because I sort of preferred to wait for it to be actually done.

Sorry in advance for the long post though! It seems I'm unable to keep things short!

On a Hades romance playthrough, especially with a reserved MC who doesn't overtly flirt… Who among the other ROs and other people close to the main cast notices or suspects that there's a spark of "something" between Hades and the MC at the end of book 1? Considering just how much of a slow burn this route is, there isn't much to see yet, romance wise, but I feel like some people may realize something is starting to "shift" there.

When dining with Hera during her visit in chapter 6, if the MC tells her they like the Undeworld and what not, she ends up commenting "A shame". This line always had me reeling, but I didn't re-ask about it after first reading the entirety of the book so I'll do it now. Did she know what Demeter had planned to do? I always wondered why she'd think it's a shame, and it's pretty clear from the climax of the story that Zeus prefers the MC to stay in the Underworld, so I don't imagine it would be something like Hera knowing her husband wants to bring the MC back against their will. And there is no reason for her to have wanted MC to be unhappy for whatever reason. So it only leaves the option of her knowing about Demeter's plan in my mind, but maybe I'm missing something?

After the whole Eurydice and Orpheus thing, Hades says "There are some fates which very much deserve the fight. I know not what yours is, but if it turns out to be one you don't want, I am glad you have the power to change it. Not that this means I wouldn't do everything I could to help as well, of course." - it makes me wonder… Since for the duo of lovers their fate should have been for Orpheus to fail and that changed in my playthrough's case with my Dionysus' influence, I was wondering if in the scope of this story, the MC's "fate" should be the original outcome of the Persephone myth, with the "spending half a year in one realm the other half in another", and any other outcome is a result of having changed fate? Or is this not a part of their story that's truly decided by Fate in this interpretation of the myth? Also side note if it's the case, I think it's funny and kind of poetic that my MC basically traded his fate with Eurydice? Because his fate should have been spending half a year here and half there, and her fate should have been being separated from the one who came for her again after he failed and returning to the Underworld alone. But here, she managed to make Orpheus sort of succeed thanks to MC and now THESE TWO will spend half a year in one realm and half in another, while my MC managed to make Demeter fail and make it so he could go back and stay in the Underworld full time.

And final one! How much did Pirithous and Theseus get to know about what happened after Demeter dismissed them? At the very least in a scenario where they actually kidnapped the MC, not one where MC followed willingly. Not only I'm curious of Pirithous reflected upon his actions, but I'm also intrigued as if Theseus was "satisfied" of sorts that MC managed to go back (if that was indeed the case), considering he seemed against the kidnapping at least to a degree. If they even COULD keep informed, since they are demi-gods living as mortals as far as I understand their situation. I was just always interested in these two since they only appear in that short part of the story but what they do is HUGE.

And that's it. Sorry again for such a long post, and thanks for indulging me if you decide to answer even only some of the questions!

So!

I think a few of the others have picked up on things. I would say Charon and Hekate definitely know something is going on there, and friend!Hermes might have picked up some vibes as well. Even Alekto might have had a passing suspicion, though she doesn't quite consider it her business, and so doesn't devote much thought to it. People will tell her things when they want her to know them, you know?

Hera didn't have specific information about Demeter's plans, but she did know that it was likely she would take some form of drastic action. From her point of view, the arranged marriage was something Zeus did to screw with her (Demeter), and he was likely to reverse his decision once he'd had his fun with it/gotten some kind of concession from Demeter. So to Hera it seemed likely the PC had just found someplace they enjoyed, but their being taken away from it was basically a given.

There isn't really an assumed or default end for the story (or rather, not one that is more mechanically likely than another), but sort of yes! The PC ending up with a different outcome from the source story could be seen as their fate-subverting power at work. :)

Pirithous and Theseus are basically aware of the trajectory of events after they left, and this is because they're eventually brought to the Underworld for trial by the Erinyes. This is dealt with in the first chapter of the sequel.

Thanks as always for your kind words, and no worries about the questions!

[mycurrentobsessionis]

I get why people are so mad at Milo, I really do...

(spoilers for The Night Market)

But, first of all, accidently summoning fucking Cthullu because you literally Do Not Know how to do your job is, uh, relateable somehow. Then proceeding to stab Cthullu because you panicked is objectively funny. Like. I got over the initial shock of that ending (because wtf, Milo?!?!?), and the confusion (like what did I do to get the bad ending???), and then it was ALL laughs. Like, daaaaamn, Malcolm is gonna be pissed, dude!

Legit, Milo isn't even malicious here, y'know? He's, like, a horse loose in a hospital -- he's just as confused as you are! He's never been in a hospital before!

Also, on a serious note, it's like, fair enough, okay. Because Hazel won't leave the Market, because she won't leave without Malcolm (living, dead, or undecided). Malcolm either can't or won't leave. Every probably can't leave. Milo probs doesn't care if he dies, but that's his family. And, I mean, the MC was dying irregardless. In his brain, this was the thing that would save them, too. All he had to do was give up their trust and love (platonic or otherwise), and they walked away. Limping and heartbroken, sure, but alive. Not saying it's fair, but you know. People do massively fucked up shit for love and for fear, and Milo has both. What he does is selfless from a certain point of view -- he gave up the affection and goodwill (that he probably thinks he doesn't deserve anyway), and everyone lives. He loved them all enough to lose them. And yeah, it was in fucked up way that is not the way to do shit, but.

As a future trauma-informed clinician, Milo's brain is legitimately built different. That man is on fight-or-flight 24/7, and I'm not convinced he isn't in a manic episode for at least part of the book. We know he's not sleeping and is drinking pretty heavily toward the end. That does not bode well.

Honestly, it was a shocker ending only because I didn't expect the author to go there, but it makes sense. This is a severely mentally ill man who spent ten years literally carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, on top of his own unprocessed grief and trauma, and trying to make sure his equally mentally ill friend is alright, and sort of single-parenting a dead child. Then you have the fact that he was meeting pretty regularly with Baron fucking Palpatine, who was probably manipulating him. And yeah, you can say that he's a grown man but... When you live your life focused on survival, you literally do not develop the kind of executive functioning skills you need to withstand that shit. You can develop them later in life, but it is significantly more difficult.

In a lot of cases, I do not argue for mental illness being a defense for the kind of fuckery that he got up to, but shit, man. Milo has such a deep-seated sense of self-loathing, and the amount of vitriol thrown against him so intense and utterly unsympathetic. The whole cast uses the MC for their own ends. They all put the MC at direct risk. At least Milo believes he's saving them.

Anyhoo... romanced him because Zinnia won't let me play as his therapist LOL.

[kerubimcrepin]

Live-Read: The Remington Comic [PART 1]

(but only the bits with Joris)

While I usually try to go about this blog in an in-universe chronological way, I have to jump forward to Wakfu era here — because the next stop in this blog's plan is the actual, released games of the franchise. Which will take around... a million years, I assume?

TOME 10

Worlds most mentally stable demigod. This excerpt from Otakia is included for my Ush-loving readers, and also to give some context: this guy is keeping some of Remington's besties captive, besides turning his brother into a cat.

"Wait… you're taking me to a… bazaar? am I dreaming?" "Pff… wait till you see what's inside."

In the past tome of this comic, Remington and Grany received a tip, that there exists a magical item that can help them, and an address to a shop, as well as the name "Beating Heart".

ALSO. The store has door chimes. Cute.

"Anyone?" "Yeah, I've seen enough." "They have potions, at least." "Grrr..." "What is that thing?" "??"

They don't seem to really like the place, lol.

"Let's see… "The Treasures of Kerubim"… O.K… We're looking for someone called "Beating Heart."" "Is he the owner of this store?" "Anyone home?" "If we can't find this clown, we could compensate ourselves for the trip." "Hello, sir."

SDGJSAHGUISREHGVDSFHGHHAFGSDFKJGDKSFGSDFGSFDHJS

If you think this is awkward, don't worry. It gets worse from here. Also — apparently, the name of the series is officially the name of the store. The more you know!

Well done little fella… You managed to surprise us.

AND YES. They use tu/toi for the., the 600yo ambassador of Bonta. who is also the owner of the store. who also just overheard them discussing shoplifting.

We're looking for a guy named… sir Beating Heart. Y'know him? Maybe that's your father? It is not my father… It is an object. And… the owner of this store, then? Where is he? In front of you. ... So… uh… you say "beating heart" is an object. Sure. And... could we perhaps see it, that beating heart?

HE'S SO FUCKING DONE ALREADY. he HATES them. also him saying he is the owner is so funny, even if it ISN'T a lie. Like. The store is named and themed after a whole different guy.

Insane.

Beating heart... beating heart... Listen to the rhythm of the heart, replace the rhythm of the body. Beating heart, beating heart... Out of sight… Out of mind… Will you give your soul the time?

Very cool poetry, Joris. I do wonder if this is him talking to himself to remember where it is, him liking this rhythm, or him fucking with Remington for his own amusement.

Please wait here. Careful, Mr. Curious. Small chests can contain big trouble Let's have a closer look. Yeah, bring it quick. Here it is, Beating Heart.

He's so used to shitty rude customers. The fact that he keeps vous/vous'ing them is funny. The fact he only calls Remi "mr. curious" is pretty emblematic of his saintly patience.

Say hello to Beating Heart first. Huh? Say hello to a watch? You have to be kind to objects… each one has its own story to tell. Say hello to Beating Heart… you too, funny talking bow meow. Hello? Hello, Beating Heart… delighted to meet your needle. And how does it work? No idea… Objects do whatever they want. I already have a hard time putting them away. One day, a set of table knives wouldn't stand next to an old sword… a real headache, those two.

I refuse to believe that this scene is not Joris deciding to simply fuck with Remington and Grany, by saying insane things for his own amusement, and making them talk to a clock.

That or he's more mentally ill than I thought. Oh well.

You talk to objects and they talk back! better and better… I know how to listen to them, but that doesn't mean they talk to me. But how can this watch help me? Listen, little guy, my brother suffered a kind of curse. An ecaflip named Ush cast a spell on him that turned him into a bow meow. Ush? The bontarian nobleman?

Either Joris sensed he was being taken way too seriously and backed down, or he decided to go "nah they don't talk to me i just listen to them" route because he knew it'd be a way to confuse the two further and he finds that amusing, or he didn't want to come across as crazy.

But in the end, his reign of making them confused as fuck ends with their mention of Ush — with whom Joris has history, and yet, all Joris says is "bontarian nobleman"... He's hiding that history. Because now he's interested.

And it seems that this Beating Heart could help me become a rogue again. Beating Heart has the ability to give its wearer what they desire most. But to use Beating heart, you need the proficiency in magic that you don't have. It's not for sale, sorry. But for your time, I've got a magic hat that curls your hair. Do you know where you can stick that hat? You little piece of…. brat! Come on, come on… excuse him… he's having a bit of a bad hair day right now.

Notice how fast Joris switches gears: he brought these two this amulet, and was showing it off, before, immediately after Ush's mention, rapidly going "you won't be able to use it, I will not sell it, also your hair sucks ass".

As we will see later, you don't need deep magical skill to use it — you need some self-control, so I really doubt Joris was genuine here.

I have multiple theories:

Joris doesn't want beating heart, a powerful magic item, anywhere near Ush's schemes.

Joris wants them to steal it so that he has an excuse to involve himself in Ush's schemes like the noisy curtain twitcher he is. If this transaction is legitimate, he has no excuse like "UMMM YOUR VICTIMS BROKE INTO MY STORE REPLY TO ME IMMEDIATELY ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING???"

Considering the fact that he puts it away under a glass dome, as Remington and Grany, rogues, watch (and they HAVE talked about robbing him) — I am leaning more strongly towards theory #2.

Thank you for everything, dear friend. No, no, you're not going to tip him on top of it! Hey bro? what's not for sale is up for grabs… As we rogues say. That's right… tonight, beating heart will be mine… he he he.

If my theory of this being a honeypot by Joris is right — then hook, line, and sinker.

On one hand, he doesn't exactly look like he's scheming, on other — he doesn't look too worried.

I think at this moment, his main concern is Ush.

(side note, he's drawn really well in this panel...)

[chuckeroo777]

Dungeon Meshi Volume 6 Part 1

Welcome back to my liveblog! As a reminder, this is a re-read, so expect plenty of spoilers!

Don't intentionally spoil people or get thwacked in the face.

Huh. So they have been here for about a week. Makes Rin's exasperation even more understandable.

Wow, rude. I feel like if you actually knew her, that's kinda the last thing she would do. She hates eating weird stuff.

Batting 0 for 3 Maizuru. Honestly, I originally thought she was kind of a jerk, but between this and "Ninja Art: Babysitter", I think her observational skills are just really bad.

See? She doesn't have a clue why this is an atrocious idea.

I mean, it was an elf who was around during Delgal's day, and was using exceptionally potent ancient magic. Who the heck else would it be? Plus the orcs confirmed his identity. And of course Laios thinks Thistle is mad about the food.

Asebi is not amused.

Hmm... another depiction of the winged lion with horns. Also, there was no need to bring up the black magic. Marcille used a regular resurrection spell, just using ancient magic to boost the power level. If the dragon hadn't been soul-bound by Thistle, it would have gone without a hitch. People like to joke Marcille did nothing wrong, but in this one case, I think she was totally in the right. There is plenty of time for her to commit war crimes later.

Chilchuck: Gasp! You were drugging him!

Kabru is here for ALL the hot goss. From a distance.

I love how the canon explanation for why Faligon has feathers is that Dragons = Dinosaurs. It's like an atavism or something. Idk, it looks cool. Stop asking questions.

God. Marcille may be my favorite, but I relate so much to Laios. This chapter and the next are painful. (And I'm not talking about the part where everyone dies)

If only Chilchuck won the coin toss, we could've avoided this drama. (At least until Shuro saw Falin)

Now that's a trustworthy face if I ever saw one.

Well well well. If it isn't the consequences of my actions.

I know I just got done explaining that her actions were fine. Just let me be funny.

Eh, it's worth a try. It works in at least one alternate universe.

She's beauty, she's grace. She's gonna eat your face.

What's all the more heartbreaking is you get little moments where Falin shines through. She wants to pet the doggie! But then the dragon reasserts itself.

Even freakier, I think this is actually Falin too. You can see her pupils oscillate throughout this scene between normal, and elongated.

Like, I don't think it did that on purpose, but the dragon is more than happy to exploit the opening it creates.

Holm? Holm, are those golem cores? Have you been holding out on us?

Man, no wonder she freaks out. Imagine you've been a dragon for who knows how long, covered in scales of iron, and suddenly this dude manages to stab you five times like it's nothing. Heck, Laios just stabbed her in the foot with a normal sword. This dragon must be fearing for it's life like crazy.

Obligatory Whoa Hey!

An important image.

No you dummy. This is standard dungeon procedure. There's a reason healers like Holm and Falin wear those silly robes. So that they get priority resurrections.

Hold up a sec. My drama senses are tingling.

I am genuinely curious what this insult was in the original Japenese, if only because I can't see that coming from either of them.

You know, when I first read Dungeon Meshi, I kinda glossed over the secondary cast a lot. Hard not to when you have my attention span, and like two dozen characters. I didn't even notice the Asebi stuff.

I know people dunk on Toshiro a lot, but I really have to question his relationship with his retainers if a simple thank you and sorry elicits this sort of reaction. Honestly, I mostly get the impression that his dad isn't great, and Maizuru is too loyal to do anything about it.

I also have to wonder why he left Asebi behind. Did he just not want to bother? Or is he rethinking his whole relationship with his retainers, and is offhandedly giving her her freedom?

Like brother like sister.

Image limit reached! I'll be back in a bit. Need to get some meshi!

[3rddimension]

On the whole confidence thing, I honestly think Shayne wasn't really too confident back before he and Court started dating either. Like, I think he gave the impression of outward confidence really well, and compared to someone like Courtney the changes he's gone through have been more subtle, but he's also really come into his own a lot.

Like, I think it's funny when people compare Angela's loudness to Shayne's, because frankly, Shayne has gotten quieter over time. I don't think Angela comes CLOSE to 2018 Shayne. Shayne's always been hilarious but he kinda used to drown everyone else out. He leaned so hard into "loudness" being his gimmick that he started to seem less like a person and more like a force of nature. He would fully derail videos by doing solo bits and taking away attention from anything else that was going on. He got away with it back then because he was easily the most talented person on the cast, but nowadays with Smosh in its prime I don't think people would be as appreciative of it.

This isn't a dig at Shayne, I'm just trying to articulate a certain way I feel about him when revisiting Smosh's old content. Shayne has always been the type of guy who is afraid of failure more than anything, and while this still is the case as he's talked about on Smosh Mouth, it used to be VISIBLY worse. This is kinda why he used to derail videos. If any competition was involved, Shayne would rather intentionally fail and be funny doing it than try his hardest and take something seriously and risk failing all the same. It's burying yourself in irony to protect yourself from judgement and criticism.

I think this is why the old Smoshcast was so eye-opening to a lot of people because Shayne used to be a very different person from when you asked him to be funny versus when you asked him to just be himself. It was an incredibly loud, overly-silly person who refuses to take anything seriously versus someone who's down to earth and cares a lot about small things that most people wouldn't pay any mind.

I think Court has changed him a lot because she's someone who, and I mean this in the best way, is used to failure. She's always been very real and authentic, and unlike somebody like Shayne who used to bury all of his bits in several layers of irony to protect himself, she's always been very vulnerable and willing to put herself out there even if it meant floundering on a TNTL or looking like an idiot during a Board AF. This part of her that's willing to fail has never died either, you just see it less often now because she's gotten better at succeeding.

Currently, I think Shayne is so much more of a delight to watch than before. He was always great, but now it feels like you can see more of himself in his funny guy schtick. He's less loud, more down-to-earth, and more willing to actually participate in competition. He's so much more cool, calm, and collected than he used to be. I also feel like his current brand of comedy also lets his dynamic with the rest of the cast flourish more. Back when he used to bury himself in irony, all of his dynamics(except with Olivia) felt like "Shayne and his caretakers", whereas now they moreso feel like "Shayne and his friends".

He still has some ways to go. As I said, he's stated directly on Smosh Mouth that he's still afraid of failure, and that he's sometimes to afraid to try and experiement with things because he's too focused on doing them "correctly". You can also still see him burying himself in irony from time to time, my recent example being when he was brave enough to bring his journal for an episode of Smosh Mouth but not brave enough to read from it in his normal voice, putting on a Chosen voice to avoid engaging with his old writing on a surface level. However, I think he's come leaps and bounds from where he used to be and just like Courtney, deserves praise for that.

I think this is why we all love their relationship so much. I don't just like their on-screen dynamic, I straight up think they bring the best out of each other.

This is like the best essay i've read about Shayne's growth during Smosh tbh. Recommend read for everyone. Thanks for sharing your thought and I wholeheartedly agreed on what you said. He's really opening up a lot since he's in a relationship and being more vulnerable than ever before. It's still work in progress but you can actually see how much different he is back in the day.