#'it'd really even out my team's composition'

[ddarker-dreams]

yan chrollo feeling conflicted over your first formal request to him being an additional copy of pokémon + the game's hardware so you can evolve your haunter into a gengar

[twomiddlefingersforthehaters]

_Art Book of Naruto Uzumaki_ Part-5

も��単純に普段と違う絵が描けたのが楽しかった。 こ それはもうほとんど、 ナルトとサスケを描いた、という よりカエルとタカを描いて喜んでました。

This one was fun simply because I got to draw in a different style. It was great to depict Naruto and Sasuke, or I should say, toad and hawk.

ナルトとサスケが 対立していく本編の図式を、一枚の絵で表現したかったんです。共にお互いのことを良く分かっているので、 刃を交わしながらも険しさは見せず、表情はむしろ冷静なくらい。ここでわざとらしく表情を 露にしてしまったら、冷めてしまうと思うんです。感情を出さない、その静けさが逆に恐いかと���背景にも対立・対比を表現するために、"空と海”という2つのモチーフを入れ込みました。決して交わることのない緑と赤、空と海ですね。

I wanted to express the concept of the main storyline, where Naruto and Sasuke come into conflict, in a single image. Since they know each other so well, they aren't showing hostility even as they cross knives. They look rather calm. I thought that if I gave them obviously antagonistic expressions, it would come off as too deliberate. By hiding their feelings, I hoped the calm atmosphere would seem chilling. I put the two motifs of sky and sea in the background in order to express a sense of the characters' conflict and contrast. The green and red, and the sky and sea, represent things that never mix.

対称をイメージした構図で、ナルトがサスケの背中の上をぐるんと回っています。ふたりとも手足が同じ様なポーズになるようにして、背景に物を印で配置することで全体のバランスをとってます。��らにナルトの巻物が◯印になっていて ...そう、実は◯と×にもなっているんです(笑)。とにかく対称ということで、バランスをすごく意識して描きました。 今見るとアニメの影響からか、絵柄が少し変わり始めてるんじゃないかな? 結構お気に入りの一枚です。

I wanted a sense of symmetry in this picture with Naruto rolling over Sasuke's back. I positioned these two with their arms and legs in similar stances, then I balanced the overall composition by putting two crossing scrolls in the background. Also, the scroll Naruto is holding forms a circle...yep, it's an X and an O (laugh). Basically, it was symmetry that kept me focused on the overall balance in this one. Looking at this picture now, it appears that my drawing style has changed a bit since then. Maybe I've been influenced by the anime? This is one I like a lot.

これは好きな絵ですね｡この構図も、左右対称を意識して描きました。鎖と紐... あと腕も対称なんです。こじんまりした絵になっちゃいそうだったので、マントで風を表現して動きを出しました。ナルトとサスケのからみ合っている手足が うまくいった かな、と。

This is one of my favorites. I focused on making a symmetrical composition here too. The symmetrical elements include the chain and the cord, and Naruto and Sasuke's arms. To keep the picture from looking cramped and static, I added the cloaks blowing in the wind. I think Naruto's and Sasuke's tangled limbs turned out nicely.

ジャンプの表紙に載った絵ですね。戦隊モノっぽいものを描いてくれ って言われて。戦隊モノって見栄切るじゃないですか。決めポーズですね。で、サスケがキャラ的にそんな ポーズをとるものか? と悩んだわけです。でもナルトはノリノリで、サクラも楽しそうにポーズをとっている。じゃあサスケは恥ずかしそうに･･･みたいな感じならOKかな、と。

This was on the front cover of Jump. I got a request to draw something like a superhero team for kids. Those heroes really strike great poses, don't they? This is Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura in hero poses. I wondered if Sasuke's personality would allow him to pose like that. But I knew Naruto would be willing to pose for sure, and so would Sakura, so I thought it'd be okay for Sasuke to strike a pose, if somewhat bashfully.

[p5x-theories]

(Originally a reply on the Haru info post, responding separately since that's kind of a long post and I don't want to reblog it again, heh)

@lolipopman416 Ah, yes, I think I listed them out for an ask in the past, but I'll just give you an updated list here! (And maybe add it to my FAQ, so the info's a bit more convenient to find, heh.)

Resist: good at targeting single enemies (Wonder (Janosik), Fleuret, Mont, Bui, Sepia, Messa, Skull, Queen). This tends to manifest as followup attacks that hit one target, or status effects/damage buffs that apply against specific targets.

Control: good at dealing with groups of enemies (Closer, Summer Motoha, Joker, Panther, Fox, Noir). This tends to manifest as lots of multi-target attacks, and bonuses for using those attacks in certain ways.

Surrender: focused around applying debuffs to gain an advantage (Key, Rin, Vino). This tends to manifest as a focus on a particular status effect, and the ability to do extra damage/effects to enemies once they're inflicted with it.

Rescue: focuses on healing companions (Cattle, Summer Tomoko, Marian, Mona). This has so far always included at least one healing skill, but often other healing abilities can be triggered as well.

Superior: good at buffing teammates and improving their effectiveness (Moko, Leon, Riddle, Chord). This has so far always manifested as unique buffs/status effects, sometimes becoming fully triggered by additional conditions.

Defense: good at protecting teammates and keeping them alive (Soy, Yuki, Cherish). This tends to manifest as shield-focused abilities, but Soy instead draws fire to himself, and buffs the team's max health temporarily.

Elucidation: the designation used for navigators (Wind, Okyann, Puppet, Phoebe, Oracle). This obviously has a wide array of specific applications, but tends to revolve around unique buffs or debuffs that the navigator can grant/inflict, and obviously each navigator has their own fights/team compositions they're most suited for.

These categories also apply to all of Wonder's Sea of Souls Personas, but I doubt you care as much about that in particular, and it'd honestly be way too time-consuming to list them all out, haha. But I hope this was what you're looking for!

For the most part, these combat roles/designations don't really matter in the game- there's no inherent penalty for having a team of three Resist characters and an Elucidation, for instance- but there are two places where you need to pay attention to them: Marthym Tasks, which often require 1-2 characters of a specific role, and certain Door to Ominous Dreams fights, where the survival-type fights require you to have at least one Rescue or Defense teammate, making the enemies much stronger if you lack one.

That said, the roles are also a bit useful for speculating what a character will be like as soon as they're announced! I remember it was interesting to first hear that Summer Tomoko was a Rescue instead of a Superior, because that implied a distinct change in skill set for her. We also had an idea of what to expect for Cherish, since we knew he was Defense before we'd even confirmed which character he actually was, haha!

It may also be a useful avenue for future theorizing- right now our story team lacks any Surrender or Superior teammates, so that may be what we're getting next! In general, we're lowest on Superior and Defense teammates (though they did just add Cherish), so we may be seeing more of them in the near future.

[itzymidzy]

GRAMMY

In the concept trailer, each member embodies a distinct character in a unique setting, but the final message, "Our World Is Still Different," unites them all. Why did you feel highlighting the concept of being unapologetic yourself was important?

Yuna: It's been a while since we all came back as five, and we really want to show the audience that our friendship is always unique and fun. I think the key elements [for our group] are respect and consideration, and these acts have built trust — creating a stronger and deeper bond.

Lia: The message from our debut hasn't changed. It has always been the same, but with [diverse] themes and perspectives on every comeback. We just thought it was nice timing together as five to remember that message [of being different]. We still feel the same way as we were five, or six years ago, and we will continue to spread it.

Which song from your new album do you believe best reflects this core belief, and in what ways does it connect with your individuality?

Yeji: I believe the title track "GOLD" best represents our individuality, especially because it conveys the message of how we shine most when we are all together and how our world changes after "meeting you." We wanted to portray this feeling to [our fans], MIDZY, and also how we just shine by comparing it to gold.

Chaeryeong: We really want to show very different sides of ourselves. I want to show that ITZY is a team that can pull off and express all kinds of feelings.

In the past, I used to approach things with the mindset of "Let's do well with what we've prepared," but now, depending on the stage, I do what I've prepared, while also expressing what I feel at the moment. Personally, I feel more connected to "Imaginary Friend."

The contrast between "GOLD" and "Imaginary Friend" is striking. What song proved to be the most difficult to record yet left you feeling the proudest? And what aspects of the experience made it so demanding?

Yeji: I'd say it was "Imaginary Friend," and I was a bit worried [initially]. We've never sung a song that feels this dreamy and fantastical before, so the vibe of the track itself felt like a challenge for us. But as we went through it, I realized it wasn't that we couldn't do it — it was just that we hadn't tried it yet. It became a recording session where I rediscovered the members' voices and talents.

Ryujin: I think "GOLD" was a little bit more difficult because we had to show that [atmosphere] that we hear from the original [demo]. I felt that the song was wild yet youthful, lively but still weighty, so I prepared for recording by analyzing even more the pronunciation, trying to figure out which parts gave me that feeling.

With a song called "Bad Girls R Us" listeners might expect a heavy-hitting instrumental, but instead, we encounter an elegant, dynamic composition. What were your initial impressions of this composition, and how is ITZY redefining or expanding the concept of a "Bad Girl" by blending this tempered sound with a bold title?

Lia: It’s one of the tracks that I listen to the most from this album even before its release. Once you put on your speakers or your earphones and listen to it, you feel very bad but powerful. [Laughs]. Listeners can also get into that character, and I also thought it'd be a fun song to perform in a concert maybe in the future.

Ryujin: I love a song with minimal sounds, and "Bad Girls R Us," is a good example, so it's my favorite song [from this album]. I put a lot of effort into making this song more charming, and I love the results. The "bad girl" in this song is more about a cool vibe.

"Supernatural" is made of beautiful and ethereal melodies, and it feels like a journey through the sky. What emotions surfaced for you inside the studio? Or what personal experiences inspired your creative expression in this song?

Chaeryeong: I wanted to portray that I’m an angel. [Laughs]. I thought it would sound even more beautiful if we blended in more breath, giving it a mystical and nostalgic vibe. It was fascinating to receive such an ethereal and emotional song, and I loved it as soon as I heard it!

In "FIVE," how does the song's message resonate with where you are now as a group? Is there a particular lyric that holds special meaning for you and that you'd like listeners to pay close attention to?

Yeji: I feel like this song captures the fact that ITZY shines the brightest when there are five of us. We weren’t perfect from the beginning, but as time passed, we laughed, cried, and grew together, making the number five even more meaningful.

Ryujin: Since the lyrics carry the meaning that the five of us are the most perfect together, I think MIDZY, who’s been waiting for our full group comeback, will relate to it the most. The line "But nothing is better than five" seems to best capture the message of the song.

"VAY" stands out for its collaboration with Changbin from Stray Kids, who's known for his intense rapping style. How would you describe your dynamic with him during the recording process?

Lia: It was a very comfortable and nice experience. [Changbin] knows our voice and singing, so it was more convenient for him to direct us throughout the session, for example, when dividing parts or whatever expressions we had to use — it was much easier working with someone who understands us.

I remember him telling me to have more confidence because, at the start, I was worried if I could express the right emotions. He was very nice in complimenting us; he told us, "You guys are already good at it."

Lia, from all the songs the group re-recorded from Born To Be, which one were you the most excited to work on and why?

Lia: It's hard to pick one, because the previous album also had different sides of songs, and they were all very nice. One of my favorite songs was "Escalator" because when I was at the concert, I thought it was really cool and amazing. It’s just a sophisticated song in a style that I like.

Finally, could you delve into one personal objective you hope to accomplish during this era?

Yuna: The choreography of "GOLD" is very powerful, so while having our performances, I want us to do it very safely and well. I plan to consistently stretch and get treatments with my physician.

Yeji: Adding to Yuna's answer, I want to show ITZY, more clearly as a team, to a much larger audience. And to MIDZY, I want to say thank you so much for waiting for us. We will have a great time during this [promotional cycle].

[z0urcherri]

Not really a full review but just the thoughts at the forefront of my mind If they'd of just cut some horror references (Shining elevator especially) down into shorter scenes (it'd also work as an unobtrusive background element) AND made it easier to tell apart future and past characters that happen to be in the same scene together, this film would honestly be damn near perfect. It was still an enjoyable experience, though. Alot of scenes genuinely come close to freaking me out, like the respawn terminal failure. Having a fully voice acted cast and some custom models was a treat, i just don't see why some were custom and some were just Scout with a mustache slapped on. Plus, in the funeral scene, it's too noticeable how detailed Redmond and Blutarch are compared to everyone else in the room. I joked at one point that they blew the character budget on those two and couldn't afford to detail everyone else. The voice direction also felt lacking, with certain actors (excluding Scout's and Soldier's bc DAMN i actually asked a couple times if they got Rick, posthumously, and Nathan to do the voice work) focusing more on sounding as much as they could like the original mercs than the actual performance. Mind you i'm not saying they did a BAD job, they did after all do a fantastic job with the emotional line deliveries. Usually, you would complain about the cartoony art style of TF2 clashing with someone's high-end attempt to make the shots photorealistic or so, but since Fortress Films went to all the trouble of touching up everything with grit and keeping it consistent throughout scenes, it honestly works well even if non-TF2 models end up being used. The contrast actually fits. The plot...honestly, again, this is where i wish certain horror tropes got cut way down. Did we really need a whole scene of zombie mercs doing stereotypical zombie things? I don't even think it added anything to the plot, it just happened and was pretty easy to forget right after they're all killed. It's just how it never gets referenced again once it's over. I'm...also not really a fan of the shoehorned Christian imagery around the end. It's basically another trope and again it added pretty much nothing. It's also fun trying to figure out who can and can't actually die. This, ironically, might be the only thing from the zombie scene worth any salt, if the implication is RED mercs zombify after some time while BLU just infinitely respawns (Jules wouldn't be dead and therefore would not need saving if this were the case, which is inch resting) The attention to detail otherwise is fantastic. I keep finding parallels i didn't catch the first time. Along with shots that are legit drop-dead GORGEOUS, or even cutting-edge as far as cinematography goes and are incredibly rare to see in other SFM animations, the mo-cap is some of the best i've seen. It's rough sometimes and makes for some funny facial expressions, but when it works it WORKS. The theatrical feel is just...unmatched. You almost wonder if Valve themselves produced this because of how good the scenes look. I was also really impressed with the sound design, and also the fire and water effects, prominent throughout the film. Obviously, i think the film was really, really good, it's just that some parts feel like this project started as a shitpost animation, before getting stitched together with the parts where the team decided "no, we need to put actual effort into this". I also don't understand why, if the soundtrack is an original composition, the artist couldn't be credited anywhere. Anyway, go see Emesis Blue and come back with your own thoughts.

[selicyoats]

my opinion on every pokemon rival + tier list (spoiler warning for those who even care)

i am not posting this on twitter because people will only hear what they want to hear and they will come at me like seagulls divebombing on a french fry without hearing me out, and i know tumblr users are smarter than that (hopefully) !!!!!!!!!!!! HEY LOOK HERE NOW !!!!!!!!!! now that i've got your attention, this is MY opinion. you can have your own, so discard that reply or ask you're no doubt sending me after taking one glance at the tier list. I care more about you being happy, and I'd rather agree to disagree instead of argue forever about it. S-Tier Silver Silver is such a damn good rival, and his character growth being portrayed through how his Pokemon only evolve once he fully understands they are more than just tools is legitimately a brilliant display of gameplay mechanics being used to tell a story. Seeing the culmination of his progress in the Dragon Den was a fantastic and satisfying conclusion to his character, and he sets a damn strong precedent for every other rival. N N is such a brilliant rival; it's incredible how much detail went into him. For example, every time you fight him (minus the champion fight), he uses pokemon from the previous routes, and the next time you fight him, they don't appear again. While unspoken, it is so so cool how it is implied he releases his friends after battling. In addition, him challenging whether or not it's right to use Pokemon for battling was also a great question to ask, especially in such a story-heavy game like Black and White. But seeing him think about his motives and morals when he keeps getting beat by your team, only to eventually come around at the very end, thinking about it just puts a big smile on my face. N was truly something special. A brilliant rival that was legitimately threatening (especially in the Nimbasa fight where he had a fucking SIGILYPH). A-Tier Truth be told, these characters aren't too far behind the S-Tier picks, but it'd feel weird saying they are on the same level as those guys. Blue The CLASSIC rival. He's always one step ahead of you, and his snobbish attitude is perfect for what a textbook rival should be like. Beating him down for the final time in the champion fight is what truly makes him such a satisfying rival to face. Plus, seeing him be much more chilled out in the sequels is great, especially when he returns in Alola with Red. Barry He's somewhat similar to Silver in the way his character development is showcased through his team composition. I think it REALLY shines when you pick Turtwig as your starter, because it means Barry gets Chimchar; which is such a perfect parallel for him due to the hothead getting the Fire-type (also, Monferno and Infernape have similar animations to Barry, which is pretty cute). He's always in a rush, constantly bumping into you. However, as the story progresses, he stops being so impulsive and starts slowly mellowing down, as you can see by him getting slower pokemon like his Snorlax and Heracross. It eventually culminates in the final battle in the Pokemon League Center, where he finally stops himself from bumping into you. It's a neat display of his growth. B-Tier These characters are pretty much alright. They're good enough. Nothing too exciting, but they're here n' there. Bianca Bianca is pretty simple, but that's part of her strength as a character. She has her struggles with her dad here and there, but what I found to be most striking about her character is how she adapts. She knows she's not as good at Pokemon battling as you or Cheren, but she never feels too bad about it. In fact, it serves as motivation to be useful in other ways, and you can see her stalwart personality really kick in, like how she volunteers to bodyguard in Icirrus, and how she later becomes Juniper's assistant. It's nice to see her find purpose in her journey.

Gladion I will be honest. It has been a modicum of time since I last played the Alola games. But from what I recall, Gladion was a pretty strong character that had great chemistry with the cast. Him showing up with this never-before seen odd Pokemon really helped build up his mystique and seeing the ""asshole""* trope again after a while was great (*although he's not really that much of an asshole, he just cares for his sister and wants to stop his crazy ass mom). You really gain a lot of respect for him after you come across the Type:Null documents. If I replayed the games and got a better grasp on them, I would probably put him a bit higher (or maybe lower, who knows, USUM kind of biffed a lot of things). In any case, please give your thoughts on Gladion in the tags or replies or whatever. I'd appreciate it. Cheren He's basic, that's for sure. But it's nice to have a competent rival to really gear up against (although his team is kind of... carried by his starter and monkey. that purrloin and unfezant are not doing him any favors lol). Seeing him incorporate item use made him much more slippery than the typical rival, and it's a welcome challenge, even if the difficulty increment isn't actually that drastic. That said, as a character, he's kind of a nothingburger, but he serves the "friend" role pretty well. Moreso than most of the other "friend" characters like the XY cast. He's got your back for the most part, and he even acts a little bit like a guide, particularly in the beginning portions like the Pokemon School (Gives you Oran berries and teaches the player about item use) and when you first enter Nacrene (Gives you Chesto Berries for Lenora, a HUGE lifesaver). He's neat. Hau Good ol' Hau. Most people say he's the herald of the "friendly rival" curse, but you could argue the same of XY or even the Hoenn games. But enough about that, let's discuss Hau. Hau doesn't particularly go through any character development, but that's actually one of his character's strengths. He acts as a static character rather than a dynamic one, which you would think would hurt him, but it actually plays to his strengths as he acts as an anchor for the dynamic characters (mostly talking about Gladion and Lillie) to bounce off of and show proof of their character growth. Hau, overall, fits the aesthetic of the Alola games like a glove. He's laid-back, he's relaxed, and he in general just acts like a chill friend you'd like to have around in real life. The story doesn't suffer as a result of his static-ness, but it rather benefits from it. Hau's great.

Hugh Purrloin man. Hugh is a little bit of a rough character to really define, but he's not bad, that's for sure. You see shadows of his gripes with losing his sister's Purrloin all the way in the beginning (such as when he tells you to take good care of your starter) and how vehement he becomes when the rancher family tells him they can't find their Herdier. It's fantastic show-don't-tell, and I find it to be something the later games tend to sadly lack. Hugh is also a pretty good "bro" type of character. He's definitely a "ride or die" character, which you can feel pretty intensely in each of his encounters with Team Plasma. All-in-all, Hugh's good. He unfortunately lacks a little bit of relevancy in the later-game, but he has a pretty stellar early-game showing.

C-Tier This is where things slowly start to droop lower and lower. Not bad, but not exactly great either. You may also notice the more modern rivals here, and that's not purely because I'm a nostalgia-fueled cretin, but rather because modern consoles set a modern & higher standard; one that Pokemon consistently fails to hit the mark on. Hop Hop is so, so close to being a fulfilling character. He's actually one of the rivals that has his character growth portrayed via his team, as seen with how he handles his Wooloo. At first, it's his classic entry mon, but once he begins doubting himself after having a pretty rough lose to Bede, he ends up benching his iconic Wooloo in an attempt to improve. However, once he comes around and realizes he doesn't need to force himself to ditch his friends, his Wooloo makes a triumphant return to a Dubwool in the Champion Cup (with a BANGING soundtrack to boot!) It's a neat character arc with a little ribbon at the top wrapped around it, right? Well, my problem mainly comes in his motivations. He wants to become Champion and surpass his brother. That's all fine, that's respectable, even. However, when he gets beaten by you at the very end, he realizes that maybe he should reconsider. Now, think. What would you do in your shoes if you loved battling but got your dreams dashed in a decisive match by your good friend? If you were as persistent as Hop, you'd probably start by setting your expectations a little lower and build your way up. Maybe you'd try becoming a Gym Leader, forming a nice sort of parallel of Raihan/Leon and Hop/MC, right? With Kabu getting old, he's bound to retire sooner or later, so why not prepare for that position until the day you can finally get your runback? That would make the most sense, right? Right? NOPE HE CHOOSES TO BECOME A POKEMON PROFESSOR OF ALL THINGS WHAT, WHY??? That's like you losing a cooking competition, and instead of refining your skills and maybe taking a sous chef position instead, you chose to become a FARMER. Sure, they're technically related, but why?? Granted, in retrospective, maybe C-Tier is a little harsh, but his ending is completely nonsensical and leaves a bad aftertaste in my mouth.

Bede Ah, yes, jerk rival. Bede is, admittedly, kind of a breath of fresh air. No unknown motive besides just being a plain ol' badly-raised kid who's father figure is an evil corporate millionaire. There's honestly not a lot I can say about Bede other than his arc feels "incomplete", in a way. He has good progression, and not a lot can really be said about him; but I think SwSh is where you start to notice the games are rushed products, and you see the story suffer because of it. The reason I bring that up is because it felt like there was a scene missing from when Bede gets kidnapped by Opal and when Bede shows up in the Champion Cup. It feels too sudden; there should've been a scene where you see Bede slowly learn more from Opal. Maybe a scene where Bede is complaining at first about the new predicament, but eventually Opal confronts him about how she's not going to be able to be a Gym Leader for much longer, and how she's getting old. She then tells Bede that she is entrusting the future of the Gym to him, and he shouldn't waste the new chance she gave to him. Just a minor scene like that would have been enough to make Bede's come-around in the finale a lot more satisfying.

Wally Classic Wally. He's mostly a non-character for most of the game, and you only fight him like, three times? Since the standard for the GBA games wasn't necessarily that high, Wally is, for the most part, pretty inoffensive. He gets a massive glow-up in the remakes with his own battle theme and an impressive battle scene, but he's mostly just an "oh right this kid exists" character. Overall, a kind of forgettable character. He's not bad though, don't get me wrong. May/Brendan Kind of in the same vein as Wally. The GBA games were more focused on exploration and new mechanics rather than having a good story, and it does kind of reflect on the characters. They manage to be passable for the most part. May does get bonus points for having that brutal May 2 fight.

D-Tier This is where things really plummet. Again, if you managed to somehow not read my very colorful disclaimer at the top, I will rephrase it here. You are entitled to your opinion. I care more about you being happy than right, especially when it comes to harmless fictional characters. Marnie Marnie, Marnie, Marnie. So, so close to being not-a-piece-of-stale-white-bread. The heartbreaking thing is that she has a legitimately interesting motive for becoming champion. She wants to become champion and then use her status to help her hometown of Spikemuth prosper after the Pokemon League has been fucking them over due to them not wanting to put a big stadium in their city. A pretty cool motivation. Where is it revealed? Maybe a moonlit discussion at night on the hotel balcony? While riding on the train to the next Wild Area? Maybe even at the Champion Cup, where all her hopes and dreams are on the line? Haha, no, it's ON THE BACK OF HER FUCKING LEAGUE CARD THAT LITERALLY NOBODY IS GOING TO READ. Classic, and I mean it, CLASSIC Gamefreak move. I'm not surprised. Calem/Serena Well, they're... there, alright. I legitimately don't have ANYTHING to really say about them. The only reason they're lower than May/Brendan happens to be because they followed up Black and White, which were VERY story-dense games. Having a sudden shift to these very boring characters was a nasty shock to the system. That being said, they're not at the bottom for two good reasons: 1. I like their designs, the young-adult portrayal of the protagonists is a great progression of how the player characters matured with the players. 2. They have a somewhat memorable lead: Their Fake Out Meowstic. It's nothing terribly scary, but when you do a Nuzlocke, you learn to appreciate it.

Shauna She is only above the other XY "Friends" because she has more screentime in the Furfrou palace (and technically the Team Flare base). She's probably the character with the most personality in the Friend Group, but that's really not saying much, now is it? A damn shame she didn't get a Triple Battle with Serena and the MC in the Flare HQ; She's actually got a half-decent team. F-Tier Tierno and Trevor These guys are actual non-characters. They don't exist for any reason. The only thing I remember about Tierno is that his Roserade only has 1 move. Actually comical behavior.

Nemona Look, I know this is what 60% of you scrolled down here for. If you didn't already, read the colorful disclaimer at the top. I know you have your opinions, and truth be told, I've probably heard them already. So, what's the issue with Nemona? Well, not only do I find her nonsensical random Spanish-word inserting annoying (and before you get on my case, I am a native Spanish speaker. It is my ULTIMATE gripe with how Spanish-speaking characters are represented. I hate it so much. I hate it with a burning passion), but I find that she is the ONLY rival that ACTIVELY BRING DOWN MY ENJOYMENT THE STORY. As milquetoast as the XY crew was, they didn't impair my enjoyment of the game much. If anything, they were just there. But no, Nemona is the only rival that actively makes me roll my eyes when she shows up, and I want to talk about why that is (apart from her Spanglish nonsense that no other character does except maybe the dumbass Team Star grunts that also suck). The Nemona being a stalker memes from the game's launch didn't come out of nowhere; she is INCREDIBLY ever-present throughout the entirety of Victory Road. – "But she's supposed to be the rival, of course she's going to show up a lot!" Yes, but I feel like she overstays her welcome a lot more than she should, especially when most of the time when she shows up, she provides absolutely ZERO dialogue worth of value. For the most part, it's "WOW YOU'RE GOING IN THE GYM WELL GOOD LUCK!!!" and when you leave she goes "WOW YOU'RE GETTING....,.,,S TRONG!!!". It's NOTHING with substance, you could cut it out and make Nemona feel less of a stalker with zero personal boundaries. Imagine if you were playing a Hoenn game and everytime you entered and completed a gym, you had May/Brendan pelt you with "HAHA WOW AREN'T YOU STRONG" over and over. There's a reason people will tell you to cut the fluff when you write something. It doesn't do anything but just waste time if all you're doing is repeating the same goddamn dialogue in a different package. Nemona's dialogue often comes off a lot like the fake positivity one would have to put up with while being pressured by someone else. – "But that's part of her character! She's so good that she pushes everyone else away so the player is her last chance at making an actual rival!" Her basically, for lack of a better word, grooming the player into being her rival feels off-putting. Especially when you consider how much she keeps showing up, and how little she seems to respect normal boundaries. In fact, her obsession is so comically exaggerated (ex. she lets herself into your house, makes several "hey fight me fight me you wanna fight right", and often brushes off whatever you say if you pick a negative option to her) that I was expecting her to have a development that maybe she shouldn't be so forceful. Maybe a moment where she has an epiphany and realizes "maybe pressuring others just because of my loneliness isn't the way to go", and tries to start again on the right foot. Maybe she'd also get the Silver treatment and have a friendship evo evolve when she reached this epiphany. But no, that never came. If anything, her habits become even worse, they become even more obsessive and self-indulgent. They're played for laughs, but it only makes me roll my eyes even harder. !!! WARNING !!!! I suppose this is where I should put a trigger warning of some kind? If you don't want to hear about PTSD or hurt animals, you should probably scroll all the way down. I don't know how to do trigger warnings, but I can at least tell you that you've been warned.

I think the absolute worst moment she has, the moment that turned my dislike of her into disdain, happens in Area Zero. But before I get into that, imagine the following scenario: You have a dog that you love very much, let's call him "Fido", Fido has been with you ever since you were a child, and he was the only one who was ever truly there for you in life as you had very absent parents. When you laughed, he was there for you. When you wept, he was there for you. When you slept, he was right beside you. Now imagine you've grown up and decide to take Fido out for a walk, as you do. However, as you walk across the street, a drunk driver in a pick-up truck barrels towards you, and you only manage to live because Fido shoved you out of the way in the nick of time. After that, the drunk driver speeds away and now you're scared shitless because you're not sure whether or not Fido is alive or not. You can't possibly imagine a life without him, so you do the most reasonable course of action. You take him to an emergency vet and have them try to do anything to help Fido. When he comes back, he is essentially crippled, and the vet says there is nothing more they can do. You're in a state of pure distress. The only friend you've ever known is teetering on the edge of death and there's nothing the people who are supposed to save him can do. So you go out and try to find the solution yourself. You finally make yet another friend in a strange new classmate. With their help, you're able to slowly, but most definitely surely, help Fido recover. And sure enough, you do. Fido makes a full recovery, and you feel the greatest relief you've ever experienced in your life. But the trauma still remains. That sort of shock doesn't leave your body, and it's not unlikely that you gained some sort of trigger as a result of the event. Now imagine you go back to that street, and your friend has brought two other people with them; one of which you don't get along too well but they're friends with your friend, so whatever. You begin to talk about what happened in that street. The memory is still fresh in your mind about what happened to Fido. And how you still remember seeing Fido's body covered in blood, not sure if he survived. And then this friend has the utter audacity to say the following: "HAHA WOW THAT TRUCK SOUNDED PRETTY BIG, I WONDER IF IT WAS A CHEVY OR A FORD" Do you understand how fucking sick it is to say something like that? Do you understand how fucked up it is to say that to someone explaining a traumatic event they went through?

Well that's pretty much what Nemona said to Arven after he explained that. Intentional or not, it made me feel DISGUST towards this character. I don't know what the fuck Gamefreak was smoking when they made that dialogue. I've been through traumatic shit myself. I don't like to mention this, but I still suffer from PTSD, which is what made Arven such a relatable character. To see a character I already dislike say some heinous shit to a character I saw myself in, it made me feel nothing but contempt for her.

Anyway, edgy tangent aside, I think that's pretty much it. I don't have much else to say except leave a tl;dr. tl;dr s tier silver's growth being shown through gameplay is some genius shit for a gb game n is such a fucking cool character in both his gimmick and character development a tier blue is a fantastic baseline for rivals, THE textbook rival barry's character development being shown through gameplay is great, even better if he has infernape b tier bianca finding ways to be useful is nice a character highlight gladion is a good twist on the asshole rival "trope" cheren acts as a great tutorial-esque character while remaining a challenge throughout the entire game hau acts as a great static character to show gladion and lillie's character arcs come to fruition hugh is a huge ride or die bro c tier hop is great except his ending wtf were they smoking bede is missing literally 1 (one) scene wally is mostly there. cool theme though may/brendan they're there, they're fine. d tier marnie's backstory is hidden in the worst possible place calem/serena have good designs and an iconic meowstic but that's about it shauna is there sometimes f tier tierno and trevor are there almost never why do they even exist nemona is a tactless and insensitive character that's about it

[vyvesvi]

saw all the ep 3 performances but not the actual ep lol.

voting list (week 3)

all of these girls are criminally low compared to how they performed imo.

first round commentary (copied from my twitter 🫶🏿)

1. team: hard

my winner(s): like 6/7 but emma jaoying & P.AMP stood out, it's a shame geumhee was hidden for her high note

this team is great but who decided the concept/outfits 😭

2. team: 7 rings

my winner(s): WANG KE (and vita)

the other girlies didn't stand a chance against wang ke this was legit brutal 😭 i do wonder if they were all comfortable with the concept though, this doesn't seem like something liliana wouldve chosen?

also rei is my girl but this performance doesn't play to her strengths at all im devastated 😭

3. team: one more last time

my winner(s): DUNA, rose

duna's experience really shone through, plus she fits this concept super well. very glad she got center. rose also did super well, i only wish she had the second main part 😭 praying this saves her

devi also did great, but i don't think this'll be enough unfortunately:/

4. team: i like you

my winner(s): zoi, TEGAN, tk

i had to think about this team bc once again, so insanely hard to pretend this is live. zoi was just good onstage, tegan has that voice, and tk surprised me. they clearly want preemy gone tho i hate it hereee

5. team: kick back

my winner(s): QIAO YIYU

honestly i love love love this team composition but i don't think the stage really showed their strongest points...i think a different wayv song would've made all the difference tbh

6. team: booty bomb

my winner(s): yeham, coco, MAO XIUTING

tbh there are some people here with lots of screentime who i don't understand the hype for, although both of them did better than their auditions. anyways yeham!!! she barely got screentime apart from her lines but i loved her voice with this concept tbh, it added a much needed freshness? brightness? to the performance. i need to see a full stage ver with no cuts though

7. team: love destiny 2

my winner(s): PANGJANG (everyone did well though)

pangjang just has the voice, what is there to say really. i feel soooooo bad for ninnint, she did well but this was really not the song for her. fly high girlie 😔✊️

8. team: play with me

my winner(s): YEAN, elyn, caith

seoyeon has greater ability than a lot of the contestants but her energy really isn't there to the point where i can't help but wonder if it's on purpose...?

9. team: i'll do it how you like it

my winner(s): ?

the chaba krista rjing vocal meal in the beginning was so sick omg

the rest of the performance didn't really click even though no one was bad at all. need maliya to be saved though like that's a Face

picking a winner is tough for this team because you have some singers who can't dance/perform & some dancers who don't sing as well. in truth pream, rjing, xueyao, and maybe maliya are the most balanced, but xueyao in particular didn't really stand out. pream stood out because of her center time, but this is far from her best (her presence is usually a lot stronger). maybe id go with rjing? but id need to see a full stage with no cuts

10. team: pieces of love

my winner(s): KITTIE

you have to suspend your disbelief a bit with these shows but i couldn't even pretend this was live & it's so distracting 😭 yuan ke & jessica are my next picks but i need them to focus more on facial expressions

my top 9?

honestly i've had a really hard time coming up with a group, if only because i genuinely like 47ish of the contestants (others i dont like or simply don't know). also, i do think it'd be nice for most of the group to be thai. i scrolled through the contestants and just picked the first 9 that i saw who made me go "yeah, you" lmfao and this is what i ended up with:

yean feels virtually indispensable at this point. she can dance, she's a great pop vocalist, and she can fit any concept. the show is also very on her side.

wang ke's performance in 7 rings convinced me of her star power (honestly she's been hit or miss to me until this point). wang ke didn't need to be the best singer or dancer to stand out on stage, it's her energy that really sets her apart and that's a hard skill to learn.

tegan...she's just a surprisingly strong contestant. i wasn't really a fan of how she acted during the theme song arc (all 7.5 minutes of it, lol) but i do understand that she was trying to lighten the mood. from the theme song to round one she showed that she really could hold her own on stage if she put her mind to it. other factors: star quality, demographic appeal, growth idolism, unique tone/strong vocals

rose is my underrated pick. she has a great voice and i think she can be styled to fit a number of concepts. she hasn't gotten much screentime, but i really hope she makes round 2, just to force the show to show more of her strengths. in some ways she's a little bit filler here, but i think she's necessary for the group to gel

ruan, our summer dream center...idk i just like her a lot. she suits different concepts and is super super hardworking & serious about this, while also being really kind. i want to see her learning/speaking more thai and english hopefully!

qiao yiyu is a talent & demographic pick (and one of my overall main picks at this point) she's another member who i see as indispensable. she's a main dancer who can fit multiple styles (but she's also for the girlies). in this pic she kinda looks like yuqi? lmfao

p.amp, my other totally biased pick 🥲 she's so gorgeous onstage and has so much presence i don't understand why the masses aren't seeing her 😭. she's a filler visual here but hot take, we don't need a wannabe gangsta rapper who can't dance self proclaimed quote unquote "real rapper" in the lineup when so many gg raps are pre-written and last for max 4 lines. p.amp can do it while dancing, being charming, and looking hot. i rest my case

geumhee is my pick of the csr members, although duna's rank is the best & seoyeon is the one getting a storyline. geumhee would be slightly filler here, but her singing ability would make her a lead vocal, and he experience and preexisting intl audience would make her indispensable. tbh she's the first member i personally noticed in csr, but i think that csr could live for a couple years without her and then benefit from her return.

mingming is good, although im generally on the fence about her. she has great lead vocal potential and is very likable. i kind of think the mindy members will be fine if none of them make it, but i do feel her voice is a little wasted there.

nationalities: 4 thailand, 2 china, 1 usa, 1 japan, 1 south korea

other contestants to consider:

pailiu! i really like her (and she's currently rank 2) but im not seeing a group that she fits into in the top ranks. maybe if maliya, jessica, xueyao, yuanke, p.amp, jaoying, etc were a bit higher. it's too soon to tell though i suppose

elyn's (#1) fanbase is really showing out for her considering the relatively minimal screentime she's had. her vocals aren't as strong as rose's, but she could potentially replace her in the lineup and add more (in terms of fan loyalty & demographic appeal).

emma not making my off the top of my head top 9 was really unexpected! i make the top 9 and then went wait where's emma? i think i would replace mingming with her, although honestly? emma's a star and should probably try to go to a company with some power, like perhaps yuehua china. for a survival show group, it's good that she stands out as an individual but in terms of cohesion...eh. she couldn't be filler, but she also probably couldn't be the star with the rest of this lineup. it's tough

absolutely LOVE krista's voice, but the reason i stopped voting for her is that she is kind of an absolutely miserable dancer. the great part is that she's super young, and can train to work on her dancing & her stage presence + facial expressions. krista (and others) make me wish that chuang was like produce japan, where the funding company (there lapone, here ryce) takes on trainees from the show for future permanent or temporary groups. krista would be a great candidate for that.

kitty, natty, & jaoying i noticed for the first time this round. i don't have much to say but they would be very solid filler members (not a drag, btw). im looking forward to seeing more of them!

yuan ke & wan yan jiayi are growing kind of indispensable if they want to have a foothold in china it seems. my personal pick would be yuan ke, but i think jiayi is moreso on the rise.

TBH i have 21 more contestant photos saved but let me just move onto another potential top 9

all i did was replace rose & mingming with elyn & emma, which brings the nationality count to: 2 thailand, 3 china, 1 japan, 1 usa, 1 malaysia, 1 south korea. see but now i'd say they need at least one more thai member! now sort of i want to put jaoying in over elyn lol. oh well 🤷🏿‍♀️

[tyrorexdmzapp]

What are your opinions on the recent rise of Paper Mario-like games like Bug Fables? And have you played any of them?

I'd say it's a good thing in some ways, a bad thing in others. Good, in that it keeps that style of game alive and vindicates it as a great foundation. Bad, in that it might galvanize or incite...certain people... on the current Paper Mario team to go "oh, since those games exist, we don't need to do classic Paper Mario anymore!"

---

I've played two so far- the aforementioned Bug Fables and Outbound Ghost.

The former, Bug Fables, is very good, surprisingly sticking much closer to classic Paper Mario than even I would expect or try in a similar situation. The game has two great leads in Vivi and Leif, as well as the straightman lead Kabbu who does get a few cool moments later on. As a way to make up for only getting these three in the main party, the three learn a plethora of field moves and battle abilities. The game also offers a plethora of content and ways to play, especially when it comes to bonus bosses.

The only three issues I have are that the party's base ATK stays low for the adventure, with only some special items able to increase it, unlike how Paper Mario had base ATK increase with the Jump and Hammer upgrades. In addition, health doesn't seem to increase much per character. I get that it would get complicated to regulate things if HP increased by 5...but only 1 seems too low. Last, one thing I wish they didn't copy verbatim from Paper Mario 64 specifically was the lower than expected level cap. If there's a Bug Fables 2 and those three issues were fixed, though, it'd be great.

As for Outbound Ghost, I appreciate how the ghost idea was picked at all, as a pragmatic way to save development time. It's also impressive how someone as young as Conrad was able to do all this (with help, of course, but still). Shirley really stuck out to me as a fun, yet punky character. I liked how you get a bigger selection of battle ghosts to form differing parties a la Pokemon and Etrian Odyssey (moreso the latter), and can unlock more by fighting the EX boss ghosts at crypts. I like how, despite there only being one kind of action command, it is used in a lot of ways for different moves to make up the difference. As someone playing the PC version and who's been making 3D models, I was stunned in a good way how the game runs good with all that billowing grass.

On the other hand, battles seem kind of slow. While there is a way to adjust battle damage in options, the way the damage parameters are set at the intended x1 multipliers makes fights drag on. I also don't like how only the first battle ghost you get and one other much later gets their own scene, while the rest just...show up. There's also only story, non-battle characters following the leading character on the field, despite not battling. I get that the rules of the story means if the regular ghosts DID battle, yet still "left", you'd have new holes in the team composition, making them as battling teammates unreliable.

There's also not many moments of levity in the story. ...I mean, considering what causes the game's story to happen, it's understandable, and it's not dour all the time, but I feel there should have been more lighthearted moments. The story also drags, despite there only being 4...actually 3...chapters, and most of one of the chapters is going through past locations with some new areas. Part of this is the dialogue doesn't catch my attention for some reason- I kept getting my attention drawn away from the screen despite playing the game being the only thing I was doing. And the postgame...so grindy, with one other spoiler detail that puts it at odds with the main story.

I'm kind of saddened that I'm so hard on Outbound Ghost on review, since I wish for Conrad to keep trying, and understand this was his and his team's first rodeo in making a game of such scale. On the other hand, as long as those indies push themselves and don't rest on their laurels or take customers/players for granted, they're in a much better place.

Oh, and the music in both games is great!