#16 - 17 February 2024 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

renthony · 1 year ago

Text

Nimona: a Story of Trans Rights, Queer Solidarity, and the Battle Against Censorship

by Ren Basel renbasel.com

The 2023 film Nimona, released on Netflix after a tumultuous development, is a triumph of queer art. While the basic plot follows a mischievous shapeshifter befriending a knight framed for murder, at its heart Nimona is a tale of queer survival in the face of bigotry and censorship. Though the word “transgender” is never spoken, the film is a deeply political narrative of trans empowerment.

The film is based on a comic of the same name, created by Eisner-winning artist N.D. Stevenson. (1) Originally a webcomic, Nimona stars the disgraced ex-knight Ballister Blackheart and his titular sidekick, teaming up to topple an oppressive regime known as the Institution. The webcomic was compiled into a graphic novel published by Harper Collins on May 12, 2015. (2)

On June 11, 2015, the Hollywood Reporter broke the news Fox Animation had acquired rights to the story. (3) A film adaptation would be directed by Patrick Osborne, written by Marc Haimes, and produced by Adam Stone. Two years later, on February 9, 2017, Osborne confirmed the film was being produced with the Fox-owned studio Blue Sky Animation, and on June 30 of that same year, he claimed the film would be released Valentine’s Day 2020. (4)

Then the Walt Disney Company made a huge mess.

On December 14, 2017, Disney announced the acquisition of Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (5) Industry publications began speculating the same day about Blue Sky’s fate, though nothing would be confirmed until after the deal’s completion on March 19, 2019. (6) At first it seemed the studio would continue producing films under Disney’s governance, similar to Disney-owned Pixar Animation. (7)

The fate of the studio—and Nimona’s film adaptation—remained in purgatory for two years. During that time, Patrick Osborne left over reported creative differences, and directorial duties were taken over by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane. (8) Bruno and Quane continued production on the film despite Blue Sky’s uncertain future.

The killing blow came on February 9, 2021. Disney shut down Blue Sky and canceled Nimona, the result of economic hardship caused by COVID-19. (9) Nimona was seventy-five percent completed at the time, set to star Chloë Grace Moretz and Riz Ahmed. (10)

While COVID-19 caused undeniable financial upheaval for the working class, wealthy Americans fared better. (11) Disney itself scraped together enough to pay CEO Bob Iger twenty-one million dollars in 2020 alone. (12) Additionally, demand for animation spiked during the pandemic’s early waves, and Nimona could have been the perfect solution to the studio’s supposed financial woes. (13) Why waste the opportunity to profit from Blue Sky’s hard work?

It didn’t take long for the answer to surface. Speaking anonymously to the press, Blue Sky workers revealed the awful truth: Disney may have killed Nimona for being too queer. The titular character was gender-nonconforming, the leading men were supposed to kiss, and Disney didn’t like it. (14) While Disney may claim COVID-19 as the cause, it is noteworthy that Disney representatives saw footage of two men declaring their love, and not long after, the studio responsible was dead. (15) Further damning evidence came in February of 2024, when the Hollywood Reporter published an article quoting co-director Nick Bruno, who named names: Disney’s chief creative officer at the time, Alan Horn, was adamantly opposed to the film’s “gay stuff.” (16)

Disney didn’t think queer art was worthy of their brand, and it isn’t the first time. “Not fitting the Disney brand” was the justification for canceling Dana Terrace’s 2020 animated series The Owl House, which featured multiple queer characters. (17) Though Terrace was reluctant to assume queerphobia caused the cancellation, Disney’s anti-queer bias has been cited as a hurdle by multiple showrunners, including Terrace herself. (18) The company’s resistance to queer art is a documented phenomenon.

While Nimona’s film cancellation could never take N.D. Stevenson’s comic from the world, it was a sting to lose such a powerful queer narrative on the silver screen. American film has a long history of censoring queerness. The Motion Picture Production Code (commonly called the Hays Code) censored queer stories for decades, including them under the umbrella of “sex perversion.” (19) Though the Code was eventually repealed, systemic bigotry turns even modern queer representation milestones into battles. In 2018, when Rebecca Sugar, creator of the Cartoon Network series Steven Universe, succeeded in portraying the first-ever same-sex marriage proposal in American children’s animation, the network canceled the show in retaliation. (20)

When queer art has to fight so hard just to exist, each loss is a bitter heartbreak. N.D. Stevenson himself expressed sorrow that the world would never see what Nimona’s crew worked so hard to achieve. (21)

Nimona, however, is hard to kill.

While fans mourned, progress continued behind the scenes. Instead of disappearing into the void as a tax write-off, the film was quietly scooped up by Megan Ellison of Annapurna Pictures. (22) Ellison received a call days before Disney’s death blow to Blue Sky, and after looking over storyboard reels, she decided to champion the film. With Ellison’s support, former Blue Sky heads Robert Baird and Andrew Millstein did their damnedest to find Nimona a home. (23)

Good news arrived on April 11, 2022, when N.D. Stevenson made a formal announcement on Twitter (now X): Nimona was gloriously alive, and would release on Netflix in 2023. (24) Netflix confirmed the news in its own press release, where it also provided details about the film’s updated cast and crew, including Eugene Lee Yang as Ambrosius Goldenloin alongside Riz Ahmed’s Ballister Boldheart (changed from the name Blackheart in the comic) and Chloë Grace Moretz as Nimona. (25) The film was no longer in purgatory, and grief over its death became anticipation for its release.

Nimona made her film debut in France, premiering at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 14, 2023 to positive reviews. (26) Netflix released the film to streaming on June 30, finally completing the story’s arduous journey from page to screen. (27)

When the film begins, the audience is introduced to the world through a series of illustrated scrolls, evoking the storybook intros of Disney princess films such as 1959’s Sleeping Beauty. The storybook framing device has been used to parody Disney in the past, perhaps most famously in the 2001 Dreamworks film Shrek. Just as Shrek contains parodies of the Disney brand created by a Disney alumnus, so, too, does Nimona riff on the studio that snubbed it. (28)

Nimona’s storybook intro tells the story of Gloreth, a noble warrior woman clad in gold and white, who defended her people from a terrible monster. After slaying the beast, Gloreth established an order of knights called the Institute (changed from the Institution in the comic) to wall off the city and protect her people.

Right away, the film introduces a Christian dichotomy of good versus evil. Gloreth is presented as a Christlike figure, with the Institute’s knights standing in as her saints. (29) Her name is invoked like the Christian god, with characters uttering phrases such as “oh my Gloreth” and “Gloreth guide you.” The film’s design borrows heavily from Medieval Christian art and architecture, bolstering the metaphor.

Nimona takes place a thousand years after Gloreth’s victory. Following the opening narration, the audience is dropped into a setting combining Medieval aesthetics with futuristic science fiction, creating a sensory delight of neon splashed across knights in shining armor. It’s in this swords-and-cyborgs city that a new knight is set to join the illustrious ranks of Gloreth’s Institute, now under the control of a woman known only as the Director (voiced by Frances Conroy). That new knight is our protagonist, Ballister Boldheart.

The film changes several things from the original. The comic stars Lord Ballister Blackheart, notorious former knight, long after his fall from grace. He has battled the Institution for years, making a name for himself as a supervillain. The film introduces a younger Ballister Boldheart who is still loyal to the Institute, who believes in his dream of becoming a knight and overcomes great odds to prove himself worthy. In the comic, Blackheart’s greatest rival is Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin, with whom he has a messy past. The film shows more of that past, when Goldenloin and Boldheart were young lovers eager to become knights by each other’s side.

There is another notable change: in the comic, Goldenloin is white, and Blackheart is light-skinned. In the film, both characters are men of color—specifically, Boldheart is of Pakistani descent, and Goldenloin is of Korean descent, matching the ethnicity of their respective voice actors. This change adds new themes of institutional racism, colorism, and the “model minority” stereotype. (30)

The lighter-skinned Goldenloin is, as his name suggests, the Institute’s golden boy. He descends from the noble lineage of Gloreth herself, and his face is emblazoned on posters and news screens across the city. He is referred to as “the most anticipated knight of a generation.” In contrast, the darker-skinned Boldheart experiences prejudice and hazing due to his lower-class background. His social status is openly discussed in the news. He is called a “street kid” and “controversial,” despite being the top student in his class. The newscasters make sure everyone knows he was only given the chance to prove himself in the Institute because the queen, a Black woman with established social influence, gave him her personal patronage. Despite this patronage, when the news interviews citizens on the street, public opinion is firmly against Boldheart.

To preserve the comic’s commentary on white privilege, some of Goldenloin’s traits were written into a new, white character created for the film, Sir Thoddeus Sureblade (voiced by Beck Bennett). Sureblade’s vitriol against both Boldheart and Goldenloin allowed Goldenloin to become a more sympathetic character, trapped in the system just as much as Boldheart. (31) This is emphasized at other points in the film when the audience sees Sureblade interact with Goldenloin without Boldheart present, berating the only person of color left in the absence of the darker-skinned man.

The day Boldheart is to be knighted, everything goes wrong. As Queen Valerin (voiced by Lorraine Toussaint) performs the much-anticipated knighting ceremony, a device embedded in Boldheart’s sword explodes, killing her instantly. Though Boldheart is not to blame, he is dubbed an assassin instead of a knight. In an instant, he becomes the most wanted man in the kingdom, and Queen Valerin’s hopes for progress and social equality seem dead with her. Boldheart is gravely injured in the explosion and forced to flee, unable to clear his name.

Enter Nimona.

The audience meets the titular character in the act of vandalizing a poster of Gloreth, only to get distracted by an urgent broadcast on a nearby screen. As she approaches, a bystander yells that she’s a “freak,” in a manner reminiscent of slurs screamed by passing bigots. Nimona has no time for bigots, spraying this one in the face with paint before tuning in to the news.

“Everyone is scared,” declare the newscasters, because queen-killer Ballister Boldheart is on the run. The media paints him as a monster, a filthy commoner who never deserved the chances he was given, and announce that, “never since Gloreth’s monster has anything been so hated.” This characterization pleases Nimona, and she declares him “perfect” before scampering off to find his hiding place.

It takes the span of a title screen for her to track him down, sequestered in a makeshift junkyard shelter. Just before Nimona bursts into the lair, the audience sees Boldheart’s injuries have resulted in the amputation of his arm, and he is building a homemade prosthetic. This is another way he’s been othered from his peers in an instant, forced to adapt to life-changing circumstances with no support. Where he was so recently an aspiring knight with a partner and a dream, he is now homeless, disabled, and isolated.

A wall in the hideout shows a collection of news clippings, suspects, and sticky notes where Boldheart is trying to solve the murder and clear his name. His own photo looks down from the wall, captioned with a damning headline: “He was never one of us—knights reveal shocking details of killer’s past.” It evokes real-world racial bias in crime reporting, where suspects of color are treated as more violent, unstable, and prone to crime than white suspects. A 2021 report by the Equal Justice Initiative and the Global Strategy Group compiled data on this phenomenon, focusing on the stark disparity between coverage of white and Black suspects. (32)

Nimona is not put off by Boldheart’s sinister media reputation. It’s why she tracked him down in the first place. She’s arrived to present her official application as Boldheart’s villain sidekick and help him take down the Institute. Boldheart brushes her off, insisting he isn’t a villain. He has faith in his innocence and in the system, and leaves Nimona behind to clear his name.

When he is immediately arrested, stripped of his prosthetic, and jailed, Nimona doesn’t abandon him. She springs a prison break, and conveys a piece of bitter wisdom to the fallen knight: “[O]nce everyone sees you as a villain, that’s what you are. They only see you one way, no matter how hard you try.”

Nimona and Boldheart are both outcasts, but they are at different stages of processing the pain. Boldheart is deep in the grief of someone who tried to adhere to the demands of a biased system but finally failed. He is the newly cast-out, who gave his entire life to the system but still couldn’t escape dehumanization. His pain is a fresh, raw wound, where Nimona has old scars. She embodies the deep anger of those who have existed on the margins for years. Where Boldheart wants to prove his innocence so he can be re-accepted into the fold, Nimona’s goal is to tear the entire system apart. She finds instant solidarity with Boldheart based solely on their mutual status as outsiders, but Boldheart resists that solidarity because he still craves the system’s familiar structure.

In the comic, Blackheart’s stance is not one of fresh grief, since, just like Nimona, he has been an outsider for some time. Instead, Blackheart’s position is one of slow reform. He believes the system can be changed and improved, while Nimona urges him to demolish it entirely. In both versions, Ballister thinks the system can be fixed by removing specific corrupt influences, where Nimona believes the government is rotten to its foundations and should be dismantled. Despite their ideological differences, Nimona and Ballister ally to survive the Institute’s hostility.

The allyship is an uneasy truce. During the prison break, Nimona reveals that she’s a shapeshifter, able to change into whatever form she pleases. Boldheart reflexively reaches for his sword, horrified that she isn’t human. She is the exact sort of monster he has been taught to fear by the Institute, and it’s only because he needs her help that he overcomes his reflex and sticks with her.

Nimona’s shapeshifting functions as a transgender allegory. The comic’s author, N.D. Stevenson, is transgender, and Nimona’s story developed alongside his own queer journey. (33) The trans themes from the comic are emphasized in the film, with various pride flags included in backgrounds and showcased in the art book. (34) Directors Bruno and Quane described the film as “a story about acceptance. A movie about being seen for who you truly are and a love letter to all those who’ve ever shared that universal feeling of being misunderstood or like an outsider trying to fit in.” (35)

When Boldheart asks Nimona what she is, she responds with only “Nimona.” When he calls her a girl, she retorts that she’s “a lot of things.” When she transforms into another species, she specifies in that moment that she’s “not a girl, I’m a shark.” Later, when she takes the form of a young boy and Boldheart comments on it, saying “now you’re a boy,” her response is, “I am today.” She defies easy categorization, and she likes it that way.

About her shapeshifting, Nimona says “it feels worse if I don’t do it” and “I shapeshift, then I’m free.” When asked what happens if she doesn’t shapeshift, she responds, “I wouldn’t die-die, I just sure wouldn’t be living.” Every time she discusses her transformations, it carries echoes of transgender experience—and, as it happens, Nimona is not N.D. Stevenson’s only shapeshifting transgender character. During his tenure as showrunner for She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (Netflix/Dreamworks, 2018-2020), Stevenson introduced the character Double Trouble. Double Trouble previously existed at the margins of She-Ra lore, but Stevenson’s version was a nonbinary shapeshifter using they/them pronouns. (36) While Nimona uses she/her pronouns throughout both comic and film, just like Double Trouble her gender presentation is as fluid as her physical form.

Boldheart, like many cisgender people reacting to transgender people, is uncomfortable with Nimona. He declares her way of doing things “too much,” and insists they try to be “inconspicuous” and “discreet.” He worries whether others saw her, and, when she is casually in a nonhuman form, he asks if she can “be normal for a second.” He claims to support her, but says it would be “easier if she was a girl” because “other people aren’t as accepting.” His discomfort evokes fumbled allyship by cisgender people, and Nimona emphasizes the allegory by calling Boldheart out for his “small-minded questions.” While the alliance is uneasy, Boldheart continues working with Nimona to clear his name. They are the only allies each other has, and their individual survival is dependent on them working together.

When the duo gain video proof of Boldheart’s innocence, they learn the bomb that killed Queen Valerin was planted by the Director. Threatened by a Black woman using her influence to elevate a poor, queer man of color, the white Director chose to preserve the status quo through violence.

Nimona is eager to get the video on every screen in the city, but Boldheart wants to deal with the issue internally, out of the public eye. He insists “the Institute isn’t the problem, the Director is.” This belief is what also leads the comic’s Blackheart to reject Nimona’s idea that he should crown himself king. He is focused on reforming the existing power structure, neither removing it entirely nor taking it over himself.

Inside the Institute, the Director has been doing her best to set Goldenloin against his former partner. Despite his internal misgivings and fear of betraying someone he loves, Goldenloin does his best to adhere to his prescribed role. As the Director reminds the knights, they are literally born to defend the kingdom, and it’s their sacred duty to do so—especially Goldenloin, who carries Gloreth’s holy blood. This blood connection is repeated throughout the film, and used by the Director to exploit Goldenloin. He’s the Institute’s token minority, put on a gilded pedestal and treated as a symbol instead of a human being.

Goldenloin is a pretty face for propaganda posters, and those posters can be seen throughout the film. They proclaim Gloreth’s majesty, the power of the knights, and remind civilians that the Institute is necessary to “protect our way of life.” A subway PSA urges citizens, “if you see something, slay something,” in a direct parody of the real-world “if you see something, say something” campaign by the United States Department of Homeland Security. (37)

The film is not subtle in its political messaging. When Boldheart attempts to prove his innocence to Goldenloin and the assembled knights, he reaches towards his pocket for a phone. The Director cries that Boldheart has a weapon, and Sureblade opens fire. Though the shot hits the phone and not Boldheart, it carries echoes of real-world police brutality against people of color. Specifically, the use of a phone evokes cases such as the 2018 murder of Stephon Clark, a young Black man who was shot and killed by California police claiming Clark’s cell phone was a firearm. (38) The film does not toy with vague, depoliticized themes of coexistence and tolerance; it is a direct and pointed allegory for contemporary oppression in the United States of America.

Forced to choose between love for Boldheart and loyalty to the Institute, Goldenloin chooses the Institute. He calls for Boldheart’s arrest, and this is the moment Boldheart finally agrees to fight back and raise hell alongside Nimona. When Goldenloin calls Nimona a monster during the ensuing battle, Boldheart doesn’t hesitate to refute it. He expresses his trust in her, and it’s clear he means it. He’s been betrayed by someone he cared about and thought he could depend on, and this puts him in true solidarity with Nimona for the first time.

During the fight, Nimona stops a car from crashing into a small child. She shapeshifts into a young girl to appear less threatening, but it doesn’t work. The child picks up a sword, pointing it at Nimona until an adult pulls them away to hide. When Nimona sees this hatred imprinted in the heart of a child, it horrifies her.

After fleeing to their hideout, Nimona makes a confession to Boldheart: she has suicidal ideations. So many people have directed so much hatred toward her that sometimes she wants to give in and let them kill her. In the real world, a month after the film’s release, a study from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law compiled data about suicidality in American transgender adults. (39) Researchers found that eighty-one percent have thought about suicide, compared to just thirty-five percent of cisgender adults. Forty-two percent have attempted suicide, compared to eleven percent of cisgender adults. Fifty-six percent have engaged in self-harm, compared to twelve percent of cisgender adults.

When Boldheart offers to flee with her and find somewhere safe together, Nimona declares they shouldn’t have to run. She makes the decision every trans person living in a hostile place must make: do I leave and save myself, or do I stay to fight for my community? The year the film was released, the Trans Legislation Tracker reported a record-breaking amount of anti-trans legislation in the United States, with six hundred and two bills introduced throughout twenty-four states. (40) In February 2024, the National Center for Transgender Equality published data on their 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey, revealing that forty-seven percent of respondents thought about moving to another area due to discrimination, with ten percent actually doing so. (41)

Despite the danger, Nimona and Boldheart work diligently against the Institute. When they gain fresh footage proving the Director’s guilt, they don’t hesitate to upload it online, where it garners rapid attention across social and news media. Newscasters begin asking who the real villain is, anti-Institute sentiment builds, and citizens protest in the streets, demanding answers. The power that social media adds to social justice activism is true in the real world as it is in the film, seen in campaigns such as the viral #MeToo hashtag and the Black Lives Matter movement. (42) In 2020, polls conducted by the Pew Research Center showed eight in ten Americans viewed social media platforms as either very or somewhat effective in raising awareness about political and social topics. In the same survey, seventy-seven percent of respondents believed social media is at least somewhat effective in organizing social movements. (43)

In reaction to the media firestorm, the Director issues a statement. She outs Nimona as a shapeshifter, and claims the evidence against the Institute is a hoax. Believing the Director, Goldenloin contacts Boldheart for a rendezvous, sans Nimona. From Goldenloin’s perspective, Boldheart is a good man who has been deceived by the real villain, Nimona. He tells Boldheart about a scroll the Director found, with evidence that Nimona is Gloreth’s original monster, still alive and terrorizing the city. Goldenloin wants to bring Boldheart back into the knighthood and resume their relationship, and though that’s what Boldheart wanted before, his solidarity with Nimona causes him to reject the offer.

Though he leaves Goldenloin behind, Boldheart’s suspicion of Nimona returns. Despite their solidarity, he doesn’t really know her, so he returns home to interrogate her. In the ensuing argument, he reverts to calling her a monster, but only through implication—he won’t say the word. Like a slur, he knows he shouldn’t say it anymore, but that doesn’t keep him from believing it.

Boldheart’s actions prove to Nimona that nowhere is safe. There is no haven. Her community will always turn on her. She flees, and in her ensuing breakdown, the audience learns her backstory. She was alone for an unspecified length of time, never able to fit in until meeting Gloreth as a little girl. Nimona presents herself to Gloreth as another little girl, and Gloreth becomes Nimona’s very first friend. Even when Nimona shapeshifts, Gloreth treats her with kindness and love.

Then the adults of Gloreth’s village see Nimona shapeshift, and the word “monster” is hurled. Torches and pitchforks come out. At the adults’ panic, Gloreth takes up a sword against Nimona, and the cycle of bigotry is transferred to the next generation. The friendship shatters, and Nimona must flee before she can be killed.

After losing Boldheart, seemingly Nimona’s only ally since Gloreth’s betrayal, Nimona’s grief becomes insurmountable. She knows in her heart that nothing will ever change. She’s been hurt too much, by too many, cutting too deeply. To Nimona, the world will only ever bring her pain, so she gives in. She transforms into the giant, ferocious monster everyone has always told her she is, and she begins moving through the city as the Institute opens fire.

When Ballister sees Nimona’s giant, shadowy form, he realizes the horrific pain he caused her. He intuits that Nimona isn’t causing destruction for fun, she’s on a suicide march. She’s given up, and her decision is the result of endless, systemic bigotry and betrayal of trust. Her rampage wouldn’t be happening if she’d been treated with love, support, and care.

Nimona’s previous admission of suicidal ideation repeats in voiceover as she prepares to impale herself on a sword pointed by a massive statue of Gloreth. Her suicide is only prevented because Ballister steps in, calling to her, apologizing, saying he sees her and she isn’t alone. She collapses into his arms, once again in human form, sobbing. Boldheart has finally accepted her truth, and she is safe with him.

But she isn’t safe from the Director.

In a genocidal bid she knows will take out countless civilian lives, the Director orders canons fired on Nimona. Goldenloin tries to stop her, finally standing up against the system, but it’s too late. The Director fires the canons, Nimona throws herself at the blast to protect the civilians, and Nimona falls.

When the dust settles, the Director is deposed and the city rebuilds. Boldheart and Goldenloin reconnect and resume their relationship. The walls around the city come down, reforms take hold in the Institute, and a memorial goes up to honor Nimona, the hero who sacrificed her life to reveal the Director’s corruption.

Nimona, however, is hard to kill.

Nimona originally had a tragic ending, born of N.D. Stevenson’s own depression, but that hopelessness didn’t last forever. (44) Though Nimona is defeated, she doesn’t stay dead. Through the outpouring of love and support N.D. Stevenson received while creating the original webcomic, he gained the community and support he needed to create a more hopeful ending for Nimona’s story—and himself.

The comic’s ending is bittersweet. Nimona can’t truly die, and eventually restores herself. She allows Blackheart to glimpse her, so he knows she survived, but she doesn’t stay. She still doesn’t feel safe, and is assumed to move on somewhere new. Blackheart never sees Nimona again.

The film’s ending is more hopeful. There is a shimmer of pink magic as Nimona announces her survival, and the film ends with Boldheart’s elated exclamation. Even death couldn’t keep her down. She survived Gloreth, and she survived the Director. Though this chapter of the story is over, there is hope on the horizon, and she has allies on her side.

In both incarnations, Nimona is a story of queer survival in a cruel world. The original ending was one of despair, that said there was little hope of true solidarity and allyship. The revised ending said there was hope, but still so far to go. The film’s ending says there is hope, there is solidarity, and there are people who will stand with transgender people until the bitter end—but, more importantly, there are people in the world who want trans people to live, to thrive, and to find joy.

In a world that’s so hostile to transgender people, it’s no wonder a radically trans-positive film had to fight so hard to exist. Unfortunately, the battle must continue. As of June 2024, Netflix hasn’t announced any intent to produce physical copies of the film, meaning it exists solely on streaming and is only accessible via a monthly paid subscription. Should Netflix ever take down its original animation, as HBO Max did in 2022 despite massive backlash, the film could easily become lost media. (45) Though it saved Nimona from Disney, Netflix has its own nasty history of under-marketing and canceling queer programs. (46)

The film’s art book is already gone. The multimedia tome was posted online on October 12, 2023, hosted at ArtofNimona.com. (47) Per the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine, the site became a Netflix redirect at some point between 10:26 PM on March 9, 2024 and 9:35 PM on March 20, 2024. (48) On the archived site, some multimedia elements are non-functional, potentially making them lost media. The art book is not available through any legal source, and though production designer Aidan Sugano desperately wants a physical copy made, there seem to be no such plans. (49)

Perhaps Netflix will eventually release physical copies of both film and art book. Perhaps not. Time will tell. In the meantime, Nimona stands as a triumph of queer media in a queerphobic world. That it exists at all is a miracle, and that its accessibility is so precarious a year after release is a travesty. Contemporary political commentary is woven into every aspect of the film, and it exists thanks to the passion, talent, and bravery of an incredible crew who endured despite blatant corporate queerphobia.

Long live Nimona, and long live the transgender community she represents.

_ This piece was commissioned using the prompt "the Nimona movie."

Updated 6/16/24 to revise an inaccurate statement regarding the original comic.

Like this essay? Tip me on Ko-Fi, pledge to my Patreon, or commission an essay on the topic of your choice!

Notes:

1. “Past Recipients 2010s.” n.d. Comic-Con International. Accessed June 10, 2024. https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/past-recipients/past-recipenties-2010s/.

2. Stevenson, ND. 2015. Nimona. New York, NY: Harperteen.

3. Kit, Borys. 2015. “Fox Animation Nabs ‘Nimona’ Adaptation with ‘Feast’ Director (Exclusive).” The Hollywood Reporter. June 11, 2015. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/fox-animation-nabs-nimona-adaptation-801920/.

4. Riley, Jenelle. 2017. “Oscar Winner Patrick Osborne Returns with First-Ever vr Nominee ‘Pearl.’” Variety. February 9, 2017. https://variety.com/2017/film/in-contention/patrick-osborne-returns-to-race-with-first-vr-nominee-pearl-1201983466/; Osborne, Patrick (@PatrickTOsborne). 2017. "Hey world, the NIMONA feature film has a release date! @Gingerhazing February 14th 2020 !!" Twitter/X, June 30, 2017, 3:16 PM. https://x.com/PatrickTOsborne/status/880867591094272000. ‌

5. “The Walt Disney Company to Acquire Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc., after Spinoff of Certain Businesses, for $52.4 Billion in Stock.” 2017. The Walt Disney Company. December 14, 2017. https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/walt-disney-company-acquire-twenty-first-century-fox-inc-spinoff-certain-businesses-52-4-billion-stock-2/.

6. Amidi, Amid. 2017. “Disney Buys Fox for $52.4 Billion: Here Are the Key Points of the Deal.” Cartoon Brew. December 14, 2017. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/business/disney-buys-fox-key-points-deal-155390.html; Giardina, Carolyn. 2017. “Disney Deal Could Redraw Fox’s Animation Business.” The Hollywood Reporter. December 14, 2017. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/disney-deal-could-redraw-foxs-animation-business-1068040/; Szalai, Georg, and Paul Bond. 2019. “Disney Closes $71.3 Billion Fox Deal, Creating Global Content Powerhouse.” The Hollywood Reporter. March 19, 2019. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/disney-closes-fox-deal-creating-global-content-powerhouse-1174498/.

7. Hipes, Patrick. 2019. “After Trying Day, Disney Sets Film Leadership Lineup.” Deadline. March 22, 2019. https://deadline.com/2019/03/disney-film-executives-post-merger-team-set-1202580586/.

8. Jones, Rendy. 2023. “‘Nimona’: Netflix’s Remarkable Trans-Rights Animated Movie Is Here.” Rolling Stone. July 3, 2023. https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/nimona-netflix-trans-rights-animated-movie-lgbtq-riz-ahmed-chloe-grace-moretz-1234782583/.

9. D’Alessandro, Anthony. 2021. “Disney Closing Blue Sky Studios, Fox’s Once-Dominant Animation House behind ‘Ice Age’ Franchise.” Deadline. February 9, 2021. https://deadline.com/2021/02/blue-sky-studios-closing-disney-ice-age-franchise-animation-1234690310/.

10. “Disney’s Blue Sky Shut down Leaves Nimona Film 75% Completed.” 2021. CBR. February 10, 2021. https://www.cbr.com/nimona-film-abandoned-disney-blue-sky-shut-down/; Sneider, Jeff. 2021. “Exclusive: Disney’s LGBTQ-Themed ‘Nimona’ Would’ve Featured the Voices of Chloë Grace Moretz, Riz Ahmed.” Collider. March 4, 2021. https://collider.com/nimona-movie-cast-cancelled-disney-blue-sky/.

11. Horowitz, Juliana Menasce, Anna Brown, and Rachel Minkin. 2021. “The COVID-19 Pandemic’s Long-Term Financial Impact.” Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends Project. March 5, 2021. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2021/03/05/a-year-into-the-pandemic-long-term-financial-impact-weighs-heavily-on-many-americans/.

12. Lang, Brent. 2022. “Disney CEO Bob Iger’s Rich Compensation Package Revealed, Company Says Bob Chapek Fired ‘without Cause.’” Variety. November 21, 2022. https://variety.com/2022/film/finance/bob-iger-compensation-package-salary-bob-chapek-fired-1235439151/.

13. Romano, Nick. 2020. “The Pandemic Animation Boom: How Cartoons Became King in the Time of COVID.” EW.com. November 2, 2020. https://ew.com/movies/animation-boom-coronavirus-pandemic/.

14. Strapagiel, Lauren. 2021. “The Future of Disney’s First Animated Feature Film with Queer Leads, ‘Nimona,’ Is in Doubt.” BuzzFeed News. February 24, 2021. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/laurenstrapagiel/disney-nimona-movie-lgbtq-characters.

15. Clark, Travis. 2022. “Disney Raised Concerns about a Same-Sex Kiss in the Unreleased Animated Movie ‘Nimona,’ Former Blue Sky Staffers Say.” Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/disney-disapproved-same-sex-kiss-nimona-movie-former-staffers-say-2022-3.

16. Keegan, Rebecca. 2024. “Why Megan Ellison Saved ‘Nimona’: ‘I Needed This Movie.’” The Hollywood Reporter. February 22, 2024. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/megan-ellison-saved-nimona-1235832043/.

17. St. James, Emily. 2023. “Mourning the Loss of the Owl House, TV’s Best Queer Kids Show.” Vanity Fair. April 6, 2023. https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/04/loss-of-the-owl-house-tvs-best-queer-kids-show.

18. AntagonistDana. 2021. “AMA (except by ‘Anything’ I Mean These Questions Only).” Reddit. October 5, 2021. https://www.reddit.com/r/TheOwlHouse/comments/q1x1uh/ama_except_by_anything_i_mean_these_questions_only/; de Wit, Alex Dudok. 2020. “Disney Executive Tried to Block Queer Characters in ‘the Owl House,’ Says Creator.” 2020. Cartoon Brew. August 14, 2020. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/disney/disney-executives-tried-to-block-queer-characters-in-the-owl-house-says-creator-195413.html.

19. Doherty, Thomas. 1999. Pre-Code Hollywood : Sex, Immorality, and Insurrection in American Cinema, 1930-1934. New York: Columbia University Press. 363.

20. Henderson, Taylor. 2018. “‘Steven Universe’s’ Latest Episode Just Made LGBTQ History.” Pride. July 5, 2018. https://www.pride.com/stevenuniverse/2018/7/05/steven-universes-latest-episode-just-made-lgbtq-history; McDonnell, Chris. 2020. Steven Universe: End of an Era. New York: Abrams. 102.

21. Stevenson, ND. (@Gingerhazing). 2021. "Sad day. Thanks for the well wishes, and sending so much love to everyone at Blue Sky. Forever grateful for all the care and joy you poured into Nimona." Twitter/X, February 9, 2021, 3:32 PM. https://x.com/Gingerhazing/status/1359238823935283200

22. Jones, Rendy. 2023. “‘Nimona’: Netflix’s Remarkable Trans-Rights Animated Movie Is Here.” Rolling Stone. July 3, 2023. https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/nimona-netflix-trans-rights-animated-movie-lgbtq-riz-ahmed-chloe-grace-moretz-1234782583/.

23. Keegan, Rebecca. 2024. “Why Megan Ellison Saved ‘Nimona’: ‘I Needed This Movie.’” The Hollywood Reporter. February 22, 2024. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/megan-ellison-saved-nimona-1235832043/.

24. Stevenson, ND. (@Gingerhazing). 2022. "Nimona’s always been a spunky little story that just wouldn’t stop. She’s a fighter...but she’s also got some really awesome people fighting for her. I am excited out of my mind to announce that THE NIMONA MOVIE IS ALIVE...coming at you in 2023 from Annapurna and Netflix." Twitter/X, April 11, 2022, 10:00 AM. https://x.com/Gingerhazing/status/1513517319841935363.

25. “‘Nimona’ Starring Chloë Grace Moretz, Riz Ahmed & Eugene Lee Yang Coming to Netflix in 2023.” About Netflix. April 11, 2022. https://about.netflix.com/en/news/nimona-starring-chloe-grace-moretz-riz-ahmed-and-eugene-lee-yang-coming-to-netflix.

26. “’Nimona’ Rates 100% on Rotten Tomatoes after Annecy Premiere.” Animation Magazine. June 15, 2023. https://www.animationmagazine.net/2023/06/nimona-rates-100-on-rotten-tomatoes-after-annecy-premiere/

27. Dilillo, John. 2023. “’Nimona’: Everything You Need to Know About the New Animated Adventure.” Tudum by Netflix. June 30, 2023. https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/nimona-release-date-news-photos

28. Reese, Lori. 2001. “Is ‘“Shrek”’ the Anti- Disney Fairy Tale?” Entertainment Weekly. May 29, 2001. https://ew.com/article/2001/05/29/shrek-anti-disney-fairy-tale/.

29. Sugano, Aidan. 2023. Nimona: the Digital Art Book. Netflix. 255. https://web.archive.org/web/20240309222607/https://artofnimona.com/.

30. White, Abbey. 2023. “How ‘Nimona’ Explores the Model Minority Stereotype through Its Queer API Love Story.” The Hollywood Reporter. July 1, 2023. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/nimona-eugene-lee-yang-directors-race-love-story-netflix-1235526714/.

31. White, Abbey. 2023. “How ‘Nimona’ Explores the Model Minority Stereotype through Its Queer API Love Story.” The Hollywood Reporter. July 1, 2023. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/nimona-eugene-lee-yang-directors-race-love-story-netflix-1235526714/.

32. Equal Justice Initiative. 2021. “Report Documents Racial Bias in Coverage of Crime by Media.” Equal Justice Initiative. December 16, 2021. https://eji.org/news/report-documents-racial-bias-in-coverage-of-crime-by-media/.

33. Stevenson, N. D. 2023. “Nimona (the Comic): A Deep Dive.” I’m Fine I’m Fine Just Understand. July 13, 2023. https://www.imfineimfine.com/p/nimona-the-comic-a-deep-dive.

34. Sugano, Aidan. 2023. Nimona: the Digital Art Book. Netflix. 259-260. https://web.archive.org/web/20240309222607/https://artofnimona.com/.

35. Sugano, Aidan. 2023. Nimona: the Digital Art Book. Netflix. 7. https://web.archive.org/web/20240309222607/https://artofnimona.com/.

36. Brown, Tracy. 2019. “In Netflix’s ‘She-Ra,’ Even Villains Respect Nonbinary Pronouns.” Los Angeles Times. November 6, 2019. https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2019-11-05/netflix-she-ra-princesses-power-nonbinary-double-trouble.

37. Department of Homeland Security. 2019. “If You See Something, Say Something®.” Department of Homeland Security. May 10, 2019. https://www.dhs.gov/see-something-say-something.

38. University of Stanford. n.d. “Stephon Clark.” Say Their Names - Spotlight at Stanford. https://exhibits.stanford.edu/saytheirnames/feature/stephon-clark.

39. Kidd, Jeremy D., Tettamanti, Nicky A., Kaczmarkiewicz, Roma, Corbeil, Thomas E., Dworkin, Jordan D., Jackman, Kasey B., Hughes, Tonda L., Bockting, Walter O., & Meyer, Ilan H. 2023. “Prevalence of Substance Use and Mental Health Problems among Transgender and Cisgender US Adults.” Williams Institute. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/transpop-substance-use/.

40. “2023 Anti-Trans Bills: Trans Legislation Tracker.” n.d. Trans Legislation Tracker. https://translegislation.com/bills/2023.

41. James, S.E., Herman, J.L., Durso, L.E., & Heng-Lehtinen, R. 2024. “Early Insights: A Report of the 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey.” National Center for Transgender Equality, Washington, DC.

42. Myers, Catherine. 2023. “Protests in the Age of Social Media.” The Nonviolence Project. February 11, 2023. https://thenonviolenceproject.wisc.edu/2023/02/11/protests-in-the-age-of-social-media/.

43. Auxier, Brooke, and Colleen McClain. 2020. “Americans Think Social Media Can Help Build Movements, but Can Also Be a Distraction.” Pew Research Center. Pew Research Center. September 9, 2020. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/09/americans-think-social-media-can-help-build-movements-but-can-also-be-a-distraction/.

44. Stevenson, N. D. 2023. “Nimona (the Comic): A Deep Dive.” I’m Fine I’m Fine Just Understand. July 13, 2023. https://www.imfineimfine.com/p/nimona-the-comic-a-deep-dive.

45. Chapman, Wilson. 2022. “HBO Max to Remove 36 Titles, Including 20 Originals, from Streaming.” Variety. August 18, 2022. https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/hbo-max-originals-removed-1235344286/.

46. Iftikhar, Asyia. 2023. “Netflix CEO Slammed by LGBTQ+ Fans over Cancellation Comments: ‘They Are NOT Allies.’” PinkNews. January 24, 2023. https://www.thepinknews.com/2023/01/24/netflix-ceo-ted-sarandos-cancelled-shows-lgbtq-fans-reactions/.

47. Lang, Jamie. 2023. “Netflix Has Released a 358-Page Multimedia Art of Book for ‘Nimona’ - Exclusive.” Cartoon Brew. October 12, 2023. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/books/nimona-art-of-book-aidan-sugano-netflix-233636.html.

48. “Wayback Machine.” n.d. The Internet Archive. Accessed June 10, 2024. https://wayback-api.archive.org/web/20240000000000.

49. Lang, Jamie. 2023. “Netflix Has Released a 358-Page Multimedia Art of Book for ‘Nimona’ - Exclusive.” Cartoon Brew. October 12, 2023. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/books/nimona-art-of-book-aidan-sugano-netflix-233636.html.

#original essays #original post #nimona #nimona movie #nimona 2023 #nimona film

2K notes · View notes

febuwhump · 2 years ago

Text

FEBUWHUMP 2024 PROMPT LIST

this year's prompts were chosen through a suggestion poll (in which we recevied 2,281 prompts) and a subsequent vote, where over 1,000 people voted for their favourites. the top 29 make up the core prompts, and a mixture of the next most popular - and this blog's personal favourites - have become the alternates

i’m so excited to see what you all create with these prompts, and hope they’re inspiring enough to trigger a whole month’s worth of creativity for you! if you have any questions, please check out the blog's faq before sending an ask, or check out the previously asked questions on the blog!

please note: this year, notifying the blog of completionist status will happen through a google form that will be released closer to the end of febuwhump.

full write-up of prompts and rules under the cut:

FEBUWHUMP 2024 PROMPTS:

DAY 1: helpless

DAY 2: solitary confinement

DAY 3: "bite down on this"

DAY 4: obedience

DAY 5: rope burns

DAY 6: "you lied to me"

DAY 7: suffering in silence

DAY 8: "why won't it stop?"

DAY 9: bees

DAY 10: killing in self defence

DAY 11: time loop

DAY 12: semi-conscious

DAY 13: "you weren't supposed to get hurt"

DAY 14: blood-stained tiles

DAY 15: "who did this to you?"

DAY 16: came back wrong

DAY 17: hostage situation

DAY 18: too weak to move

DAY 19: "please don't"

DAY 20: truth serum

DAY 21: unresponsive

DAY 22: "you weren't meant to be there"

DAY 23: presumed dead

DAY 24: "i'm doing this because i care about you"

DAY 25: waterboarding

DAY 26: "help them"

DAY 27: left for dead

DAY 28: "no... not like this"

DAY 29: not allowed to die

ALTERNATE PROMPTS:

is there a specific day’s prompt you don’t want to fill? here are ten alternatives you can switch them out for!

ALT 1: human shield

ALT 2: "i love you"

ALT 3: found footage

ALT 4: human weapon

ALT 5: cpr

ALT 6: immortality

ALT 7: last words

ALT 8: killing game

ALT 9: lightning strike

ALT 10: last man standing

RULES:

SOFT RULES:

prompts should be answered in the form of whump

creators can produce whatever kind of media they want

you don’t have to complete all the prompts! you can create however much you want to

you can use the prompts after the event ends and can complete them in tandem with any other event

you can post on any platform you want, however this blog will only be sharing those posted on tumblr

if you want to be featured on the hall of fame then you have until the 3rd of March to inform this blog that you completed all the days

if you have questions consult the faq before asking

HARD RULES: (specifically for being featured on the blog)

when uploading febuwhump content to tumblr, please use the tags:

febuwhump (i’ll also be checking febuwhump2024)

the relevant day’s tag e.g. febuwhumpday1, febuwhumpday2…

nsfw (if relevant)

and any trigger warnings that may be important!

you can also tag the blog, @febuwhump

i cannot guarantee your work will be archived on the blog because I have no idea how many participants there will be. a random selection of works tagged in accordance to the rules above will be reblogged every day of february.

#febuwhump #febuwhump 2024 #febuwhump2024 #prompts #whump #whump prompts

4K notes · View notes

hye5nly · 1 year ago

Text

rent a boyfriend! - lhs smau

PAIRING rich girl!y/n x broke college student!heeseung

SYNOPSIS in which jeon y/n is desperate to find a boyfriend ASAP because she needs a date for her family's mixer. her best friend, ningning, introduces her to a website perfect for this situation!

OR.....

drunk heeseung unknowingly signs up for a website on the dark web.

FEATURING miso of dreamnote as y/n, aespa, nana, enha hyung line + other idols occasionally

GENRE(S) fluff, crack, angst, love triangle, rent a boyfriend trope

WARNING(S) suggestive, kys/kms jokes, friends are mean to each other (lightheartedly), bit of parental neglect (daddy issues), y/n's indecisive af n accidentally hurts ppl 🧍‍♀️

STATUS DISCOUNTINED april 29 2025

STARTED february 26 2024

COMPLETED -

KAIA'S NOTE taglist is closed, ignore timestamps... i am really looking forward to this smau! i will try to be consistent this time but i won't make a schedule since i never follow them....

PROFILES kwangya quest | super flops | y/n's fam

PROLOGUE technical difficulties

01 needy y/n

02 WOAH hes fine.....

03 cheating on you

04 cocktail party!!! 💬 1.0k + smau

05 roses are red

06 belieber vs jungkooker

07 cardboard jungkook

08 #JeonYnIsOverParty

09 jhené aiko is goated

10 who the hell is chaewon?!

11 lover boy

12 sea in the fish

13 eternal sunshine

14 mary cooper

15 girls is players too

16 when 2 people love each other....

17 i know

18 bitchless no more!

19 get help

20 2 man trumpet???

21 go easy on me baby

22 blues

23 split in half 💬 0.3k + smau

24 exxing on the job

2K notes · View notes

fairy-grotto · 7 months ago

Text

I am finishing at 4pm which is early but not as early as we were all hoping for (given there are 0, count them, 0 things to do in our inbox currently)

I also just watched our CEO leave at like 2pm so there’s that, so good of her to see us out to the end of the last work day of the year with us :D

Crossing my little fingers that I will be released from work early tomorrow as a treat for working so hard all year :)

#fairy is rambling #I am already in a bad mood cause I had to deliver bad news to my cousin this morning #we booked tickets to a music festival next February #flights had been booked we’ve got a place to stay #and they just announced this morning that their youth tickets that cover people aged 16-17 are being refunded #because their youth entry application was denied by the local council this morning #so my cousin isn’t old enough to go now and I sure as hell am not going to a music festival by myself #we have such a ridiculous drug and alcohol problem in this country which is likely why this decision was made #but all that tells me is that I’ve paid almost 200 dollars to go and hang out in a dangerous situation by myself #basically just praying that I can get my ticket refunded also lmaooooo #FREE FAIRY RIGHT NEOW #dec 2024

5 notes · View notes

dontmean2bepoliticalbut · 1 year ago

Text

On 7/31/2019 Trump has a private meeting with Putin. On 8/3/2019, just 3 days after his private meeting with Putin, Trump issues a request for a list of top US spies. By 2021 the CIA reports an unusually high number of their agents are being captured and/or being murdered. During the search executed at Mar A Lago the FBI find more documents with lists of U.S. informants on them.

A Timeline

• FBI wiretapped Russian gambling ring headquartered at Trump Tower for two years - March 21, 2017

• Trump revealed highly classified information to Russian foreign minister and ambassador - May 15, 2017

• Trump, Putin Meet For 2 Hours In Helsinki - July 16, 2018

• Rand Paul Goes To Russia And Delivers Letter For Trump, Marking Our Era Of Irony - August 9, 2018

• Following the Money: Trump and Russia-Linked Transactions From the Campaign to the Presidential Inauguration - December 17, 2018

• The US extracted a top spy from Russia after Trump revealed classified information to the Russians in an Oval Office meeting - September 10, 2019

• Trump’s Loose Lips Force US to Extract Spy From Kremlin - September 10, 2019

• Was Mar-a-Lago Trespasser a Tourist or a Spy? A Judge Said Her Story Didn’t Hold Up. - November 25, 2019

• Trump downplays massive cyber hack on government after Pompeo links attack to Russia - December 19, 2020

• Russia has been cultivating Trump as an asset for 40 years, former KGB spy says - January 29, 2021

• There was Trump-Russia collusion — and Trump pardoned the colluder - April 17, 2021

• Longtime GOP operatives charged with funneling Russian national’s money to Trump, RNC - September 20, 2021

• Captured, Killed or Compromised: C.I.A. Admits to Losing Dozens of Informants - October 5, 2021

• Files Seized From Trump Are Part of Espionage Act Inquiry - August 12, 2022

• Ex-Clinton aide implies 'President of France' file found at Trump's home during Mar-a-Lago raid could be valuable to Putin as 'kompromat' - August 13, 2022

• Inventing Anna: The tale of a fake heiress, Mar-a-Lago, and an FBI investigation - August 22, 2022

• Russians used a US firm to funnel funds to GOP in 2018. Dems say the FEC let them get away with it - October 30, 2022

• Trump makes shocking comments about trusting Putin over US 'intelligence lowlifes' - January 31, 2023

• Russia's Prigozhin admits links to what US says was election meddling troll farm - February 14, 2023

• GOP operative sentenced to 18 months for funneling Russian money to Trump- February 17, 2023

• Trump allegedly discussed US nuclear subs with foreign national after leaving White House: Sources - October 5, 2023

• 'So appalled': What witnesses told special counsel about Trump's handling of classified info while still president - April 24, 2024

🤔🤔🤔

#us politics #news #republicans #conservatives #donald trump #gop #trump administration #classified documents #cheri jacobus #2024 #twitter #tweet #russia #vladimir putin #spies #foreign intelligence #espionage act #cia #my thoughts

1K notes · View notes

just-barrow · 2 months ago

Text

An overview of interviews with Lou Ferrigno Jr, subdivided into read, watch, and listen.

Note: some of these will overlap (for example podcasts that are also on Youtube). This post is a work in progress.

READ

GRUEmonkey (January 4, 2017)

Paradigm Treatment (August 4, 2017)

Swagger Magazine (2021)

Flaunt (2021)

Vulkan Magazine (March 5, 2021)

Pop Culturalist (March 13, 2021)

Medium (April 5, 2021)

TVBrittanyF.com (April 12, 2021)

Men's Health (June 16, 2021)

The Pop Culture Principle (January 14, 2022)

A Book Of (2023)

PhotoBook Magazine (February 8, 2023)

The Hollywood Reporter (April 11, 2024)

TV Insider (April 11, 2024)

TV Fanatic (April 12, 2024)

Fangirlish (November 7, 2024)

Decider (November 8, 2024)

But Why Tho? (November 21, 2024)

Felix Magazine (Fall 2024)

Digital Journal (February 22, 2025)

But Why Tho? (April 25, 2025)

WATCH

Tahoe Show (December 29, 2014)

Muscular Development Magazine (January 16, 2017)

The Red Booth (August 28, 2017)

TLC Unleashed (November 25, 2017)

Mellow Riot (June 5, 2018)

TLC Unleashed (June 16, 2018)

Corridor Cast (February 20, 2019)

Howie D and the Lesser Knowns (August 1, 2019)

FOX5 Las Vegas (February 16, 2021)

FOX5 Las Vegas (February 17, 2021)

Geekscape (March 2, 2021)

Paltrocast with Darren Paltrowitz (March 2, 2021)

Celebrity Page (March 3, 2021)

WorldFilmGeek (March 3, 2021)

Good Day Sacramento (March 16, 2021)

Howard's Haunt (March 4, 2021)

Reel Talker (March 12, 2021)

Men's Health (March 31, 2021)

The Story Box (April 4, 2021)

REALPOLITIK (April 9, 2021)

The Buzz (January 10, 2022)

Stauros Entertainment (January 10, 2022)

Bionic Buzz (January 16, 2022)

Great Day Houston (January 24, 2022)

Passionflix (July 19, 2022)

Good Day Sacramento (February 23, 2023)

Access Hollywood (May 23, 2024)

But Why Tho? (April 25, 2025)

LISTEN

Corridor Cast (February 20, 2019)

Robby D and the Lesser Knowns (August 1, 2019)

Geekscape (March 2, 2021)

Good questions...with Cameron Dole (March 5, 2021)

Comic Book Central (March 6, 2021)

The Scott Sands Show (March 9, 2021)

Culture Pop Podcast (May 16, 2021)

Shots to the Dome (November 30, 2021)

Hollywood at Home with the Creative Coalition (March 14, 2023)

#lou ferrigno jr #lfjr interviews

182 notes · View notes

tkdb-encyclopedia · 2 months ago

Text

Tokyo Debunker Lore Timeline

━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ Last Updated: May 30th, 2025 Notes under the cut. Disclaimer: Due to the scale of the timeline, there may be inaccuracies. Please let me know if you see any, or if there are dates I missed. Formatting for 2024 is a bit odd due to Tumblr character limits. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━

1974

July: Hanae Numata kills herself and her son Hanao

2020

Unknown: Yu Kunishige vanishes

2021

Unknown: Keiko Takamine gets divorced; Father of Yu Kunishige kills himself ◦ ❖ ◦ July 10th: Suspicious person's report filed against the Unknown Caller

2022

Unknown: Lyca locked up by Darkwick ◦ ❖ ◦ March-ish: Jin's mother dies[1] ◦ ❖ ◦ September: Subaru tasked with investigating Lyca; Obscuary Established September 2nd: Third year students' entrance ceremony

2023

Early August: 4th Years return to Campus[2] End of August: Darkwick Gala occurs; Frostheim wins Laurel Crown One Week Later: Darkwick Graduation ◦ ❖ ◦ September: Second year students' entrance ceremony[3]; Haku transfers to Frostheim[4]

2023 - 2024

Unknown: Immortal inpatient cursed[5]

2024[6]

Unknown: One Eyed Sleeping Beauty Murder occurs[7]; Clash occurs; Zenji killed by rogue anomaly[8]; Darkwick Gala Discontinued; Dionysia escapes; Unknown day marked 8 on Towa's cave; Unknown day marked 0 on Towa's cave; December(?) or February(?) marked unknown number on Towa's cave; Unknown day marked 3 on Towa's cave; Unknown day marked 1 on Towa's cave ◦ ❖ ◦ March-ish: Mister Long Legs impersonation starts; Haru transfers to Jabberwock[9]; Tohma transfers to Frostheim[10]; Yuri transfers to Mortkranken[10] ◦ ❖ ◦ April-ish: Taiga becomes Sinostra captain[11]; Casino opens ◦ ❖ ◦ May: Romeo started hunting Kaito[12] May 4th: Marked an unknown number on Towa's cave ◦ ❖ ◦ June: Inmate 1241 jailed ◦ ❖ ◦ July 15th: Marked an unknown number on Towa's cave July 20th: Takeru dies July 27th: New video uploaded by Takeru ◦ ❖ ◦ End of School Year: Haku transfers to Hotarubi[13] ◦ ❖ ◦ July - August: Complaints about the anomalous dealer in casino begin August: Unknown day marked with unknown number on Towa's cave; Dionysia, Clementia, and Ultio defunct[14] Early August: 4th Years return to Campus[15] August 8th: Marked 0 on Towa's cave August 9th: Marked 10 on Towa's cave August 15th: Marked 8 on Towa's cave August 20th: Jun dies End of August: Darkwick graduation ceremony ◦ ❖ ◦ September: Naoki goes on a low-ranking mission and is cursed. September 3rd: Final concert of MC's fave band, MC cursed[16] September 4th: MC brought to Darkwick[17], Entrance ceremony; Dante starts as Frostheim advisor; Ghoul-Only Captain/Vice-Captain Rule Established; Sinostra put on probation September 5th: First day of class; Frostheim assignment begins; Ren's first day at the diner; Kaito bets this date against the Oblivion Dealer September 6th: MC's first health check; first official investigation day September 7th: MC attempts to run away again; investigation ends September 8th: Celebratory Ball[18] September 12th: YaBoyGhostGuy dies September 18th: Jin applies for boat permit; Sho and Luca almost fight September 19th: Vagastrom Investigation start; Alan and MC investigate the mountain, Leo and Sho investigate the apartment[19] September 20th: Vagastrom investigation day two; Leo and Alan question people; Tohma and Alan talk in private; Vagastrom R&R permits revoked for a month September 21st: MC and Alan question people; Leo livestreams at apartment; Takeru Tulpa destroyed September 22nd: Leo appointed vice-captain; Vagastrom punishment waived September 24th: Haru puts a tracker on Ren September 25th: Marked 5 on Towa's cave September 28th: Boat let out distress signal, crew all died

◦ ❖ ◦

October: Inmate 1258 (Vagastrom prologue guy) jailed; Natalie Hunt murdered October 1st: Haru clears Ren's schedule; Calamari acquired and given to Jabberwock[20]; Haru and Towa visit investigation site; Jabberwock boat breaks October 2nd: MC asks Jin for a boat; Haru gets tetanus October 3rd: Odaiba Seaside Park boat pickup; Towa and MC go underwater; Marked as 3 on Towa's cave; Haru passes out October 4th: Haru wakes up; Ren and Haru go underwater; Calamari's mother freed; 34 year old apprentice monk at Gen'enji Temple dies October 5th: Jabberwock case report submitted; Sinostra assignment received; Peekaboo kidnapped October 6th: Sinostra assignment begins; Ren's first day back at the diner; MC and Ritsu discuss laurel crown and get it reinstated October 7th: First time visiting Sinostra; Peekaboo rescued; Kaito gambles with Oblivion Dealer; Kaito kidnapped October 8th: Romeo admits to kidnapping; 20 year old apprentice monk at Gen'enji Temple dies October 9th: Jiro hands over a prototype; Taiga eats the Like Dove; Mortkranken attends a workshop; Anomalous Dealer final showdown occurs October 10th: Sinostra case report finished Mid-October: Day 1: Hotarubi assignment received; Visit to Hotarubi Day 2: First investigation day; We visit Gen'enji Temple Day 3: Investigation continues; MC overhears Alan and Dante; Haku cleanses a ghost; Abbot of Gen'enji Temple dies Day 4: Investigation continues; We all meet Lyca; Cause of deaths discovered and destroyed Day 5: We meet Zenji; Doll registered as a special artefact; case report finished ◦ ❖ ◦ Three Days Ago: Lyca admitted into Darkwick Medical Center Day 1: Lyca sorted into Obscuary; Obscuary assignment received Day 2: Lyca's first day at school; Girl and Barometz meet; Lyca and MC work at Rui's bar; MC visits Towa at the tree Day 3: Investigation at Ome School; Taiga robs the bar; MC learns she will become the Kyklos Day 4: Barometz eats MC; Lyca transforms[21] Day 5: MC healed; Obscuary case report finished ◦ ❖ ◦ October 25th: JobxJob exclusive fanclub stream[22]; Naoki kills himself October 27th: Mortkranken assignment starts[23]; Body found outside of Frostheim; Jiro goes to Obscuary in search of herbal medication October 28th: Visit to Darkwick General; Towa and MC visit tree again October 29th: Return to Darkwick General; Immortal anomaly issue October 30th: Emergency repairs for Darkwick and Darkwick General; Mortkranken case report finished; Mandatory assembly about Gala; Romeo and Sho are given special missions by Hyde

◦ ❖ ◦

Early November[24]: Day 1: Sinostra auction mission assigned; Investigation begins; Romeo and MC earn money; Taiga and Ritsu investigate; Taiga and MC eavesdrop on Romeo Day 2: Ritsu and Taiga find Institute Agent; Truth about auction revealed; Mask acquired and eaten Day 3: Case report finished; Taiga visits Hyde ◦ ❖ ◦ Day 1: Graveyard mission assigned; Samhain prep in full swing; First investigation day; MC, Jiro, and Zenji find the ghost child Day 2: Graveyard investigation continues; Arachne anomaly destroyed Day 3: Case Report Finished; Romeo talks to somebody on the phone ◦ ❖ ◦ One Day Ago: Mai and the others arrive at the Takamine mansion Day 1: Samhain's over; Mission assigned; Rui contacts the mansion; Moby buys Christmas concert tickets; Romeo tells Haru 'they' are awaiting sentencing Day 2: Obscuary rides the Bullet Train; First day on the job; Rui and Lyca prepare food while MC and Ed sweep near the front gate Day 3: MC has night duty (laundry task); Ed tries to vampire us; Rui and Lyca continue kitchen duty; MC and Ed clean the library Day 4: Meal night duty; Everyone goes to the basement; truth about Keiko revealed; Rui's curse kills Keiko Day 5: Case report finished; Ed and Towa talk at the tree ◦ ❖ ◦ November 25th: Inmate 1022 burns to death in solitary A Few Days Later: Inmate 1148 dies from a great fall in solitary

◦ ❖ ◦

December: Director and Vice Director of National Museum visit France; Man sets himself on fire[25] Early December: Inmate in solitary begins to go crazy December 9th: Prison mission assigned; Subaru offers to babysit Bonnie December 10th: The mission begins; Sho meets the Vagastrom prologue guy again; Alan meets Iwata again December 11th: Alan visits solitary; Subaru struggles with Bonnie; Vagastrom discovers it's a ghost December 12th: Ghost gets caught and killed December 13th: Alan is taken away for murder; we return to Darkwick; Subaru gets an R&R permit December 14th: Case report finished; Alan reveals he murdered Dante to the others Mid December: Day 1: Heater in the Jabberwock dorm breaks; Father Farm investigation permit gotten Day 2: First day of investigation; Towa breaks off his costume horn; Haru and Ren make wishes Day 3: Father Farm closes due to weather; Ritsu sees someone in Jabberwock Day 4: MC sees Towa speaking to the Cat; the god restores Ren and Haru to normal Day 5: Return to Darkwick; Haru visits Taiga ◦ ❖ ◦ Day 1 [26]: Frostheim mission assigned; Tohma catches Leo in the staffroom Day 2: First day of the masquerade; MC encounters the mirror anomaly; Tohma, Alan, Leo, and Jin confrontation occurrs Day 3: Gaspard found dead; Kaito encounters the mirror anomaly; MC and Tohma returned to Darkwick Day 4: Marius found dead; Hugo found dead; Dullahan neutralised Day 5: Case report finished; Jin and Alan talk

2025

Mid-February[27]: Four Days Ago: A Global History of Infectious Diseases opens; National Museum Director kills himself Two Days Ago: CEO's wife kills herself Day 1: Case file recieved; Jiro and MC attend class Day 2: Investigation begins; First visit to the museum; Jiro has a seizure Day 3: Investigation continues; Yuri asks Hyde to make a duplicate mask; Frostheim students confront Yuri Day 4: Yuri fails to treat Jiro; MC sees a woman kill herself; Anomaly revealed as Oui, C'est Bon Day 5: Yuri treats Jiro; Yuri reveals Aizono Hospital's misdiagnosis and coverup Day 6: Case report finished; Hyde calls Romeo ◦ ❖ ◦ March[28]: Day 1: Rui and MC visit library; Hotarubi issued investigation order; We visit Hotarubi Day 4: Interview at Yumeyashiki; Zenji has writer's block; We are hired Day 5: Orientation at the amusement park Day 6: Job begins; MC hears wind Day 7: Yumeyashiki slogan contest; MC encounters caller; Subaru reveals research Day 8: Third day on the job; Subaru is recognised in public; Moby delivers documents Day 9: Subaru and MC encounter Hanae and Hanao Day 10: Hanao dragged away by the ghosts; Case report finished; Subaru stares at scissors at Tree of Severance ◦ ❖ ◦ May: Waves of Love begins filming for the first time May 28th[29]: MC has counselling appointment; MC given Warding Card; Mission assigned; Visit to Dionysia; Mission begins; Lyca fights with the Jabberwock fox May 29th (Artificial World): Romeo is cursed by the Hundun; MC almost dies; Hotel collapses due to rain May 29th (Real World): Haru calls Taiga[30]; Sinostra leaves the Simulated World[31]; Haru finds Lyca at Jabberwock May 30th (Artificial World): Fortune teller killed by Hundun; Taiga takes a call from Haru; Hundun shot by Taiga ◦ ❖ ◦ A Few Days Prior[32]: New interhouse mission assigned; MC asks Benkei to buy a swimsuit After That: Benkei gives MC a nenju bracelet June 17th: Filming for Waves of Love begins; MC meets the Bachelors on the mission (First Impressions); Jiro has an episode; Anomaly appears June 18th: Investigation continues; Second Impression's paintball battle; MC's bracelet explodes; Jin investigates June 19th[32]: Zenji's birthday; Jiro has an episode; Final Impressions (Barbecue + Dinner); Anomaly destroyed; Filming wraps June 20th: Case report finished

Footnotes:

[1] Episode 1, Chapter 30: Masterpiece Newscaster mentions that Jin's mother died two and a half years prior. This is two and a half Calendar years prior, meaning it is roughly in March. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [2] Interestingly, this is a JP note. In Episode 6, Chapter 5, the English has Moby mention that the Gala is at the end of August, when the fourth years return. The Japanese script has Moby saying that the fourth years return when it becomes August to prepare for graduation, and that at the end of that month, the Gala takes place. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [3] Given the fact that the other known entrance ceremonies both take place in September, it is an educated guess that this is the case for the second years as well. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [4] Episode 15, Chapter 25 has Haku mention that he was in Frostheim for a year before transferring to Hotarubi. In Chapter 2, Rui says Haku transferred suddenly after becoming a 2nd year (in the JP text), meaning that it was most likely September when Haku transferred to Frostheim. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [5] Episode 7, Chapter 26 says the immortal inpatient was cursed during a mission 'last year', though whether that is last school year or last calendar year is unclear. If it was last school year, there is still a chance he was cursed in 2023 (if it happened early on in the year). The implication is that he was cursed prior to March 2024, due to Nicolas saying Yuri wouldn't recognise him nor would Jiro. March-April, 2024 is roughly when multiple events related to the Clash occurred, including transfers, so it is likely that it happened before this point, as it would prevent him and Yuri from meeting. As for Jiro, we don't actually know when he was woken from his coma, so… shrugs. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [6] This one is kinda a doozy. Multiple moving parts place the prologue in 2024. To begin, in Episode 15, Chapter 27, there is a Suspicious Person Report filed on July 10th, 2021. In a subsequent chapter, Chapter 29, Haku discusses the disappearance of Yu Kunishige, who vanished five years ago. Following this disappearance, her father kills himself a year later, and becomes the Unknown Caller anomaly. He is a newer anomaly (also mentioned in Ch27) compared to the other ghosts. Assuming the Unknown Caller is already an anomaly (given that he knows Hanao Numata and was not asking about Yu, as reports said he would do when he was alive), this means Yu vanished no later than 2020. And, if Yu vanished in 2020, and her father killed himself in 2021, that would place Episode 15 in 2025, given that Chapter 5 has Zenji mention it is almost blossom season (Blossom season occurred in Late March) and MC explicitly say it is March. This matches up with Episode 14 taking place in February, and Episode 13 taking place in December.

Furthermore, in Episode 16, Chapter 11, Ritsu mentions it has been 266 days since Sinostra was placed on Probation, which would place that chapter in May. It can't be 2024 at the time of that statement because it was a leap year, and it would mean his count is off by one. It can't be earlier either, because of the aforementioned Yu Kunishige issue. That issue is also why it can't be set in the future; if it is 2026, for example, Yu disappeared in 2021, and her father would be looking for her when the report is filed. Similarly, if it was 2027, there would be no report to file, as Yu would not have disappeared at the time of its filing. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [7] Considering how many Clash related events take place in March or April (which is halfway through the school year), it is unfathomable that it wouldn't take place in 2024. Could it hypothetically take place in 2023? I guess so. But there's no reason for there to be a minimum 3 month gap between major events. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [8] MC speculates in Episode 5, Chapter 31 that Zenji's death happened during the Clash. Haku also states that he died during the 'thick of [all the problems last year]', so it was Likely around the Clash era. Zenji also didn't know the gala was cancelled, as that happened after he died. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [9] In Episode 3, Chapter 11, Haru mentions it took him six months to learn Jabberwock's ropes, and later on in Episode 16, Chapter 8 that Haru transferred suddenly, so it was likely in the middle of last school year. However, horrifically, while the English says it took 6 months for him to learn the ropes, the word he uses in Japanese is 半月; half a month. Further investigation into Kansai-ben shows no special other meaning, so... Um. Yeah. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [10] Episode 2, Chapter 26 Leo mentions that Tohma was in Vagastrom until the middle of last school year, which would put it Vaguely In March. This more or less aligns with the Clash. In Episode 1, Chapter 1, Yumiko and another Frostheim student gossip briefly, and mention that people believe Tohma had something to do with Yuri's transfer. I placed them roughly around the same time therefore, but it is totally possible Yuri's transfer happened Earlier or Later.

━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━

[11] In Episode 4, Chapter 10 Ritsu says Taiga became Captain approximately half a year ago. Given that it is October, six months earlier would be April, though as always it could be March that he transfers, given the sheer amount of Clash-specific issues that happen around this time. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [12] Episode 9, Chapter 5 has Kaito reveal that Romeo has been hunting him for half a year at the time of saying that. Once again, given that it is November, and given that the Casino opens roughly around April, and given that Kaito also mentions he didn't see Romeo prior to this, it would make sense that this starts around May. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [13] Once again, Episode 15, Chapter 25 has Haku say he was in Frostheim for a full year before transferring again. Since he is in Hotarubi and seemingly well adapted to it by the beginning of the story, he likely transferred sometime in July or August. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [14] Multiple mentions to when Dionysia became defunct occur, namely Episode 5, Chapter 2 (where it is mentioned they closed last school year) and Episode 16, Chapter 5 (where it is reiterated that Dionysia became defunct at the end of last school year). In the English script, Elias mentions in Ep16 Chapter 7 that Dionysia has been Abandoned for six months, however the JP says that it went defunct Over six months ago, meaning it is still reiterating that Dionysia has been out of commission for quite some time. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [15] Another assumption that this is a yearly event that always reoccurs at the same time every year. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [16] In the Prologue, Chapter 1 it is 7:13pm when MC is on the train coming back (based on timestamps from her group chat). However, in Chapter 3 (and reiterated again in Chapter 4), it is suddenly daytime after MC is cursed. When it is daytime, it is known to be September 4th, and morning based on how much happens during the Prologue in one day, meaning it is likely MC was cursed on September 3rd, and Kisaragi Station OR Kyklos caused time discrepancies.

Another more unhinged reason is that the prophecy says the Whisper of the New Moon would lead the Champion to the isle. In 2024 in Tokyo, the new moon for September occurred September 3rd, roughly around 11pm. Does this moon chart line up with anything else? No, basically just this. However it's a neat coincidence regardless. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [17] In Episode 4, Chapter 21, Kaito says he bet September 5th of that year to the Oblivion Dealer. Later in Chapter 29, he says it was the day after the entrance ceremony, meaning that the entrance ceremony took place September 4th. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [18] Not only does the dates line up with the days that pass throughout the chapters, MC also has the option to bet September 8th of that year in Episode 4, Chapter 24, which is mentioned as the Celebratory Ball in Frostheim. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [19] Once again, Episode 4, Chapter 24 allows MC to wager September 19th, noting it was the Vagastrom undercover investigation where they first used the Fox Robe. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [20] Once again, Episode 4 Chapter 24. MC wagers October 1st, noting it is when she meets Jabberwock.

━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━

[21] In Episode 6, Chapter 34 Edward says it's the full moon that night, which is important for the purpose of reiterating the moon thing is likely a coincidence, given that the full moon for October when this chapter occurs is October 17th, which is genuinely impossible for Obscuary to reach, given that this is the fourth day for Obscuary's investigation, and there's a minimum 3 days timeskip between the end of Hotarubi, which is already a week, and Sinostra ends October 10th. Womp womp. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [22] Interestingly enough, in Episode 5, Chapter 9 Moby mentions needing money by the 25th of the month to pay for a ticket to an exclusive stream, which lead me to believe this is when it takes place. However, the Japanese script says he needs it by the 25th of next month. So shrugs. It's not super important, just strange. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [23] Episode 7, Chapter 7 ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [24] Beyond other dates firmly placing the Episode 8 in November, Ritsu mentions in Episode 16, Chapter 23 that the auction took place in November (in the Japanese script, at least). ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [25] Episode 14, Chapter 27 says that the gap between the Director contracting Oui, C'est Bon and his trip to France was 2 months, meaning it is roughly December when they go. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [26] Episode 13, Chapter 1 has a student mention how it is almost time for the Christmas Ball, meaning it's not yet Christmas, and therefore still December. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [27] In Episode 14, Chapter 7, Kaito says he was hoping to get slightly late Valentines Day sweets from MC, meaning it is somewhere around mid-February. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [28] Episode 15, Chapter 5 ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [29] Episode 16, Chapter 11, Ritsu says it has been 266 days since Sinostra was placed on probation, meaning it is May 28th as of that statement. Furthermore, in Chapter 27 (after a day from Ritsu's perspective), he states it has been exactly 8 months and 25 days since Ritsu entered Sinostra, meaning it is May 29th as of that statement. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [30] This is roughly where I'd place the phone call given the time discrepancy between the simulated world and the outside world.

━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━

[31] Given that they spent no more than 72 hours in the simulated world, they were gone no more than 7.2 hours in the real world. If they left at vaguely 7pm as was mentioned in Chapter 14, that means it is definitely May 29th or 28th. I assumed it'd be the 29th to give ample time for everything to happen, but it could have been the 28th too. Either way. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [32] The exact time of this event is Unknown. It's no more than like, 5 days before, since it's before 'this weekend', but the JP doesn't say like. Waohhhhh one whole day has passed! And also Benkei has to order the swimsuit and have the wrong one arrive with enough time for it to be Too Close To The Leaving Time. So.... Shrugs. ━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━ [33] Episode 17, Chapter 29

#timeline information #tkdbe #toyko debunker encyclopedia

159 notes · View notes

makeitworse · 3 months ago

Text

MISSING YOU

ji-yong wants you back bad— and he couldn’t be any more obvious about it.

your pov | ft. @aizshallnotbefound . ݁₊ contains: 2ne1!reader x gdragon. social media au collab. relationship timeline. angst to fluff.

notes: 300 follower special. thank you for all the love ♡ here’s something zenny and i cooked up together! (make sure to check out her part too)

Liked by yournamexx and others

2ne1_updates Y/n photographed with rumoured boyfriend G-Dragon at Chanel Cruise 2015/16 Show in Seoul. 4 May 2015

user okay so they’re not even hiding it anymore user Y/N LIKED THE POST OMG?! user my otp ❤️❤️

xxxibgdrgn ✓ “Act III, M.O.T.T.E” in #LA 17 July 2017

user wasn’t y/n in LA?? did anyone see her at the concert? user i don’t think she went.. user is it just me or has he been losing weight? :(

xxxibgdrgn ✓

13 August 2017

user pls just post a pic with y/n user are you doing okay jiyongi?

r/bigbang [Discussion] GD and y/n break up

according to Dispatch they’re over. what do you guys think? i really hope it’s not true.

user i heard she hasn’t been going to his MOTTE concerts. listen to the new album too, sounds like he’s lonely. ╰ user his instagram posts too? he just seems so sad lately.

user i’m not believing anything until YG releases an official statement

user well y/n hasn’t been very active since 2ne1 got disbanded last year. they must just be going through a rough patch.

gd.daily GD seen deleting posts on his private account peaceminusone following rumours of breakup with former 2ne1 member y/n. 4 January 2018

user y/n’s been removing anything gd related from her page too. they’re really over 😭😭 user NOT MY PARENTS NO user pls say sike rn im so serious.

xxxibgdrgn ✓ Please take care of me this year, kid😿 everything will be fine😌 9 January 2018

user the caption 😢😢 user is this confirmation that they’re over?? user looks like it :( user guys i commented asking about the breakup on y/n’s account and she blocked me. brb gonna go cry

vipnewss GD hanging out with CL last night 🍒 14 July 2024

user my y/n x gd heart is screaming at this user CL PLS BRING Y/N AND GD BACK TOGETHER 🙏 user does this mean y/n and gd could be talking again?? 👀 user watch out she might block u LOL

Liked by xxxibgdrgn, yournamexx and others

chaelincl ✓ Reconnecting from where we Started 25 July 2024

_minzy_mz ✓ 🔥🔥 user gd liked!! user yall they both moved on, leave them alone user the queens are backkk

xxxibgdrgn ✓

29 July 2024

user he def posting this after seeing the paparazzi photos 🤣 user aww jealous much jiyong? user gd chill out bro y/n has a man 😭🙏

gd.daily GD at MAMA awards caught looking at where 2ne1 was seated. 25 November 2024

user WE ARE SO BACK user he was SO looking at y/n omg user didn’t y/n have a bf?? user not confirmed. but who wouldn’t date gd instead

xxxibgdrgn ✓ 🗿Übermensch ➦ 2025.02.25🚩 8 February

user anyone else think this album will be about y/n… user ibelongiiu will be his eyes nose lips i’m calling it now emmiesoverthemoon i want u fine shyt (don’t tell my gfs)

gdrgnupdates GD via his instagram story 280225 28 February

user his dramatic ass posting this the same day as y/n’s post with her guy bsf lmao user oh so he wants her back BAD huh user THE THIRST TRAP W/ BONAMANA IM CRYINGGG user can she just text him back already💀

bigbang__vip jiyong, daesung and youngbae hanging out last night! (cr: fakesickness) 7 March

user surprise bigbang return at ubermensch tour?? user y/n was just on zip daesung omg… no way they’re not in contact rn user “daesung, can you hook me up w y/n’s new number?” -gd probably

xxxibgdrgn ✓

Liked by yournamexx, __youngbae__ and others

9 March

user ik he was giggling n kicking his feet when y/n finally liked one of his posts user y/n ignoring all of his thirst traps but liking a pic of his cats is so funny user he got custody of the kids in the divorce 💔

jiyongsthighs i’m beginning to notice a pattern here… 13 March

user yeah there’s literally no way they’re not back tg. user soft launch icons user OTP IS ALIVE AND BREATHING 🌹🌼

G-Dragon & Y/n Allegedly Back Together

NEWS 15 March 2025

This morning, G-Dragon posted a picture to Instagram of what fans recognised to be 2ne1 member (and rumoured former girlfriend) Y/n holding his cat, Lye.

It seems he had intended to post it on his “secret” private account instead, as the post was promptly deleted— though not before netizens could capture screenshots.

Speculation about the couple began in 2015, supported by numerous sightings, matching accessories, and hints on their social medias.

Following 2ne1’s disbandment in 2016, break-up rumours started circulating during GD’s ‘M.O.T.T.E’ Tour in 2017. Fans noticed that Y/n had been absent from any concerts, as well as posts on GD’s socials alluding to being lonely.

However, fans began to hope for a potential reunion, after 2ne1 and GD both announced their 2024 comebacks from hiatus.

Speculation spread like wildfire at possible contact between the two— which was all but confirmed with (not so) subtle hints of each other in their posts.

Now, the return of their romance has been practically announced by GD in his now-deleted Instagram post.

vipnewss GD & Y/n spotted shopping yesterday ❣️ 18 March

user she heard gyro-drop n unblocked him LMAO user idk who to be jealous of but i’m sick user war is over…. it’s been 7 years…

tags: @lightinbug @michelllleee @ferrarifinnick @namsgyu @riddlerloveb0t @ttturnitup @pinkpunkdynamite @heartubeatusalon @breakmeoff

#gdragon x reader #g dragon x reader #kwon ji yong x reader #kwon jiyong x reader #bigbang x reader #bigbang smau #bigbang social media au

232 notes · View notes

curiouspupsicle · 6 months ago

Text

Good Omens Fan Fiction Recommendations - Pinned Post

Thought it might be helpful to save links to my weekly fan fic recommendations. Organized by theme, each post gives you the rating and enough information to give you an idea of whether it's a good choice for you to read. And you'll find more great suggestions in the comments and reblogs. Just one more option for a fan fic reference desk. Scroll down for links--oldest first. Recommended WIPs at the bottom.

2024

11/8/24 - Fics that Made Me LOL - These are the funniest fics; the ones that actually had me laughing out loud. I'll definitely need to revisit this theme. So many to add to the list.

11/15/24 - Current Best of the Best - Snapshot of my absolute favorite fics at this moment in time. Fics I loved and can't imagine ever forgetting.

11/22/24 - Human AUs - These are the fics that finally convinced me to read our ineffable pair depicted as humans. And I've never looked back.

11/28/24 - Banter - Who doesn't love saucy banter? Here are my fave stories with witty dialogue.

12/6/24 - Illustrated Stories - It's in the name. These include comics and traditional fics with illustrations.

12/13/24 - Smooth Criminals - Fics that involve criminal undertakings.

12/20/24 - Christmas - I limit myself to one, very special Christmas fic. Hard to imagine any story better than this one.

12/27/24 - Through the Ages - Do you really need an explanation? My fave fics that show our ineffable pair in different time periods.

2025

1/3/25 - The Bentley - Fics in which our favorite sentient car gets her due.

1/10/25 - "Mixed" AUs - Stories in which one of the ineffable pair is mortal and the other is supernatural.

1/17/25 - Animal Shenanigans, pt 1 - Fics in which animals play an important role.

1/24/25 - Animal Shenanigans, pt 2 - One week was not enough to contain so many charming, animal-centric fics.

1/31/25 - Resistance - My favorite fics centered around resistance against powerful forces and nasty people.

2/7/25 - Read the Footnotes, pt 1 - I highlight two writers who write particularly clever and fascinating footnotes for their fics, in the style of Terry Pratchett. More to come in a future post.

2/14/25 - Be My Valentine - Recommending 3 Valentine's Day fics and 3 more that are about wooing, but not necessarily in February.

2/21/25 - Read the Footnotes, pt 2 - I share more favorite fics with clever footnotes.

2/28/25 - Alt Season 3 Speculations - These are my favorite post-season 2 fics that aren't what you might expect.

3/7/25 - Timey-Wimey - Some of the best fics that deal with time being weird. The first on the list is a unique treat.

3/14/2025 - Magic in the Air - My favorite fics featuring Fell the Marvelous (and yes, Crowley too) as magicians.

3/21/2025 - Ineffable Reality TV - Our ineffable pair end up on reality tv. Amazingly, three of them are not human AUs. Does not include any dating/marriage shows.

3/28/2025 - Spies in Disguise - Fics in which spying is a major part of the story. Lots of fun.

4/4/25 - Epistolary - Stories in which hand written letters are the centerpiece. Does not include texts, diaries, or emails.

4/11/25 - Top-Rated One-Shots - These are the single chapter works that get my highest ratings. Some will make you laugh. Some will make you cry. But they're all terrific.

4/18/25 - Texting - These fics center on texts. They range from the silly to the spicy with a sweet, tender love story in between.

4/25/25 - Sexy (but not explicit) - Focusing on moments in fics that are sexy but not explicit. Note: some of the fics themselves are explicit, even if the moment I highlight is not.

5/2/25 - Demon Summoning - These fics, both sweet and funny, center on Crowley being summoned by humans. See reblogs for even more recs.

5/9/25 - Muriel - Fics that feature everyone's 2nd favorite cinnamon roll.

5/16/25 - Heaven & Hell - In which we enjoy the shenanigans of The Bad Place and The Other Bad Place.

5/23/25 - Sea Creatures (Mixed AU 2) - Check out a great selection of fics where at least one of the ineffable pair is a creature of the sea. Check out reblogs for even more great suggestions.

5/30/25 - Characters with Disabilities - My recs for fics featuring characters dealing with disabilities. A little bit of sweet, a little bit of spice, and a bunch of great reads.

6/6/25 - Aspec Omens - A small selection of Good Omens fics with aspec characters showing the diversity along this spectrum.

6/13/25 - Queer Guardians - Notable fics in which humans (or human-shaped beings) provide safe spaces for queer people.

6/20/25 - Acceptance - Fics in which someone doubts they'll be accepted when they reveal their true self and are happily wrong.

6/27/25 - Let's Hear it for the Girls - A small selection of spicy and sweet Sapphic fics.

7/4/25 - Memory Loss - Explore our ineffable pair in fics featuring memory loss or amnesia.

7/11/25 - Saw the Tags; Read it Anyway - You know how we're supposed to mind the tags? I didn't. These are challenging and dark fics I loved anyway.

❖❖❖

And finally, I've started recommending WIPs. Listing them here and marking them complete as they finish.

2/2/25 - Cayuga Blush (M) by asparkofgoodness/@thetunewillcome - Human AU with amazing link to canon in which Crowley and Aziraphale operate competing vineyards. COMPLETE

2/5/25 - Pages About You; Pages About Me (T) by D_Cocca/@dcocca - Aziraphale the bookstore owner and Crowley the comic shop owner become close while recommending reading material for each other. COMPLETE

2/19/25 - You Can Have It (E) by @voluptatiscausa - Aziraphale gets unwanted flowers from an ex. An empathetic delivery person helps him realize he's worth more than he's settled for in the past. COMPLETE

2/26/25 - Moonstruck (E) by @foolishlovers - Crowley is a single dad struggling with his responsibilities when the angelic bartender at his monthly stop shows him he deserves to take care of himself as well. COMPLETE

3/5/25 - Bonded (E) by AppleSeeds - Aziraphale travels to his grandfather's quarry to suggest how things can improve. He's entranced by the worker, Crowley, who has a mysterious secret. COMPLETE

3/12/25 - Chef's Kiss (E) by @joyandotherstories - Aziraphale is a positive, YouTube chef who appears on Crowley's food network show famous for nasty treatment of the guests. Human AU but well integrated into Good Omens canon.

3/19/25 - where the nodding violet grows (M) by @omens-for-ophelia- Crowley suspects there's a fairy living in his garden. But the fae creature only appears once Crowley offers a gift suitable for his standards. Lovely story and art.

3/26/25 - Dead Right (E) by @anatomic-girl. A cut above even the best fake marriage trope with loads of characters as charming as our ineffable pair (including two adorable cats).

4/2/25 - A shoutout to @raxacoricofallapatoriusrulez, a prolific writer with several fics in progress.

4/9/25 - In Night Blooms by @gaiaseyes451, Aziraphale is drawn to a familiar but neglected garden where he picks some blooms to brew into a tea. Soon he starts having mysterious dreams. COMPLETE

4/16/25 - Wavelengths & Frequencies by @shadesofecclescakes and imposterssyndrome/@maaikeatthefullmoon is a hilarious romp through the friends to enemies to friends to (?) journeys of DJs Crowley and Aziraphale. LOL funny!

4/23/25 - Parliamentary Procedure. A rare, themed WIP rec of Honourable Members (E) COMPLETE by @groovynightstrawberry and Crossing the Floor (M) by AlwaysTuesday.

4/30/25 - A Smell Can't Be Ineffable (M) by @thinkinginscripts, in which Aziraphale tries to help Crowley recover his sense of smell and taste after Covid. But Crowley responds differently to the therapy than expected. COMPLETE

5/7/25 - Of Lions and Leviathans (E) by @drconstellation, the continuation of a series that has Aziraphale and Crowley watching their backs for criminal elements in Australia.

5/14/15 - Panic at Eastgate Abbey (E) by @ezomind-the-other-one is a charming take on Wodehouse's Jeeves and Wooster story with the addition of our ineffable pair.

5/21/25 - On a Storyteller's Night (E) by harlot of god/@harlotofupdog has our ineffable pair renting the same cottage by accident. By the third chapter, we have a thrilling twist making this not your typical one-bed, forced proximity story.

5/28/25 - The Trouble with HELL (E) by @beerok23 is a tantalizing mystery wrapped in the rivals to (well, guessing from the E rating, I'm going to guess lovers)... story of podcaster and mystery writer Crowley and mystery book reviewer turned investigator Fell.

6/4/25 - No Rest for the Wicked (M) by ReinaDragon139/@dragonqueen139 has Aziraphale seeking justice his wife's murder with help from bounty hunter Crowley in the Old West. It's a taut read and the English version of a Spanish story being published concurrently.

6/11/25 - Ineffable Gravity (E) by @enderhuntresss elevates the Crowley/Aziraphale arguments to a whole new level in this human AU in which the rockstar astrophysicist has to learn to work with the creative writing prof. COMPLETE

6/18/25 - Still We Know Each Other So Well (E) by @paperclipninja answers the question, "what would happen if both Aziraphale and Crowley lost their memories?" Absolutely worth reading as a WIP to watch the story unfold.

6/25/25 - On this Bumpy Road to Love (M) by @hermiola is the actors AU you'll love that you never knew you needed. COMPLETE

7/2/25 - Accidentally in Love (T) by @wildespyder tells the charming story of Aziraphale advertising to meet new friends and finding more joy than he could have expected. Regular updates several times a week.

7/9/25 - You and I, Stargazing (E) by @altsernative following Crowley through training at NASA (where Aziraphale is a chaplain) for a mission aboard the International Space Station.

If you're seeing this as a reblog, you can find the original (most-up-to-date) version here.

And if my tastes match yours, check out my AO3 bookmarks highlighting the top 10% of all fics I've read.