#AUGH they make me SICK

[benderclub]

chat. chat is this real. chat are you listening to me right now. chat.

[quiddlegoose]

SHOOT.

(original panel under the cut)

Trigun Maximum, chp. 10

[dykekarkat]

girl who just remembered andrew was so used to not being cared about or seen that he genuinely thought he was hallucinating neil's behavior. who wants to join my jumping off a cliff party.

[skywerse]

[palossssssand]

Kinoga's squad picture, taken a year after the group was formed.

[kenzan-brainrot-mp4]

Idk more random small details about the pyih ending that make me insane because I can't shut up about this stupid game:

Idk how deliberate this was from the translation team (and I have my own mixed feelings about the caption translations from more recent rgg games) but I really like the (potentially unintentional) double-meaning from Saejima saying "Guys our age are supposed to be smart enough not to go chasin' legends." You'd think that because the entire conversation revolves around and constantly repeats the words "dream/yume" (cough cough Yakuza 5) he'd say "not to go chasin' dreams", but I think by using the word "legend" instead he's able to refer to not only the legend of the treasure that everyone's been pursuing the whole game, but also the living legend himself, Kiryu Kazuma (in jp and eng he is referred to very often as a legend/legendary ("densetsu no ryuu/yakuza" - "legendary dragon/yakuza")). Not only was Majima chasing after the legend of some miracle treasure but he's also been chasing the "legend" that is Kiryu himself (something something idolization, something something Majima always wanting to bring back that strength and vitality Kiryu had at the peak of his "legend" days (see: yakuza 1 with Majima trying to fight Kiryu constantly to help him regain his strength, trying to especially hard to support him since yakuza 3), even as the chance of that happening dwindles, even if reality is literally telling him to his face that they can't go back to those days, that everyone's getting older and not what they used to be). Which imo makes Majima saying "Well, still just a dream in the end." all the more heartbreaking. It's resigned, not only to the fact that he'd never find that miracle fix to save Kiryu's life but also the fact that he can't, no matter how hard he tries, keep Kiryu around forever, that he can't keep up the image of the legendary Dragon of Dojima up for him forever. Idk I just think that was very cool and sneaky as hell if intentional, especially since they don't switch out the word "dream" for "legend" anywhere else in the conversation.

Saejima mentioning how Daigo said "Majima's runnin' around like he's forty again". Okay honestly I'm just putting this because I think it's funny that even while Daigo was going through his emo era and pissed off at Kiryu for "killing" his dad, he still remembers how enthusiastic/energetic Majima was over Kiryu all the way back in ~y1, even though we never saw him in that game. I mean it's painful as hell to think about now, considering the present day in-universe and what would end up becoming of that enthusiasm as the years went on but uh, hey.

Majima being so god damn deflective while Saejima's in the middle of revealing all his motivations for going to Hawaii. He says 3 whole lines during that part of the cutscene but it's all so Majima-like it hurts (this part's gonna be Long):

• "Told him that, huh?" (responding to Saejima recounting what Majima told Shigaki about not wanting to go to Hawaii) - Majima trying to act nonchalant/aloof while knowing what Saejima's about to start bringing up, trying to act that way even though we all know damn well that he remembers perfectly (and probably painfully) well how he acted/what he said before going to Hawaii, considering the circumstances surrounding the whole situation. His body language also starts to change from here; he turns his head to look directly at Saejima when talking to him less often, spends more time looking ahead/up/down/avoiding direct eye contact in general even when Saejima turns to look him while speaking multiple times/for prolonged periods of time (istg I could talk about Majima's body language in serious moments like these literally forever but I'll try to keep it brief) • "Kid's always been a ball breaker" (lmao) - Paired with the line before this one (Daigo's reaction to Majima). He tries to sidestep the actual point of mentioning what Daigo said, (directly exposing just how much Majima changes when Kiryu is around/involved) with feigned exasperation, and once again does not actually acknowledge Saejima's point. His body language also changes again to something more restless; (adjusts his posture from the previously relaxed way he was leaning against the car, looks away from Saejima completely, starts tapping his foot/bouncing his leg, lifting his cigarette without actually taking a drag from it) • And then of course the big one: "Well, still just a dream in the end. Stupid or not." Up until this point, Majima hasn't said anything of any actual substance until Saejima directly namedrops Kiryu. It's about the most he actually says of any worth regarding his feelings towards Kiryu himself, but that line alone reveals so much about his feelings not only in that moment, but likely the feelings he's had throughout the series towards Kiryu. It's totally unfiltered, for once, showing off his resignation from not only his inability to help Kiryu by the end of this game but likely also the weight of chasing after Kiryu all these years (again, "Guys our age are supposed to be smart enough not to go chasin' legends." Cue Majima always chasing after Kiryu/what Kiryu wants for literal decades). It's a Singular straight answer after two deflections but it says so damn much, especially coming from Majima himself. • I also just wanna note the quick range of expressions Majima's face goes through when Saejima says "Yeah, too bad about that 'elixir of eternal life.'"

↓

‎

Apart from the different expressions he makes themselves, I think it's so fucking interesting (read: painful) how this occurs when Saejima (who, by the way, is at that moment not looking at Majima) is technically supposed to be the one that the player's eyes are focused on in that moment, since he's the one speaking. The camera doesn't try to manipulate the focus of the shot to hide Majima's expressions/feelings, they don't cut him out of the frame, they don't actually do anything to directly hide Majima's face at all, but most people (including Saejima himself) would miss this regardless, because it's done in a moment where, theoretically, nobody would or should be looking. Hell, even when the camera gives us a Direct close-up shot of Majima's face when Saejima mentions Kiryu ("Kazuma Kiryu. You never could give up on that one.") his expression doesn't betray too much of how he feels, but it's only once focus is finally taken away from him that he becomes most expressive. (rgg has always been so good with showing off characters' feelings with microexpressions and I feel like this applies to Majima especially. the same kind of thing happened in y0 when he saw Makoto at the end of the game (another scene that I could analyze for hours). The times when he doesn't speak and just. Reacts subtly and potentially subconciously with his face are ironically some of the moments where he says the most about himself. Go off king don't openly express your thoughts or feelings at all 🔥🔥🔥) • And then after all that (when Saejima looks at Majima again) Majima changes the topic to Noah. You could argue that Saejima, with bringing everything before that up, was trying to open up the opportunity for discussion on Majima's part about his behavior/feelings towards Kiryu, however this was largely unsuccessful. He only succeeds in this when he finally just says Kiryu's name outright (which, by the way, surprised me so much when I first watched the cutscene. I thought they were going to keep dancing around saying Kiryu's name directly/only implying him for the rest of that conversation, but I straight up gasped when Saejima said his whole name like that. It was significant, and Saejima wanted it to be, too), and even then that success is only marginal. It's enough for Majima to finally give away one of his "real" thoughts, completely unfiltered, about as straightforward as it's gonna get, just Once in that whole part of their conversation, but after that he immediately goes to pivot the topic of the conversation to something else. Which like, damn. Damn. That's pretty crazy.

The final detail I wanna mention, (this one I think mostly everyone got) was the way that Majima repeats his line from the beginning of the game "Where do I begin? That's right… (etc)." I love how they decided to have Majima say that line again differently, because the differences say so much. The version from the beginning of the game is said in a deeper more "intimidating" tone. The whole point of it is for story-telling drama, the theatrics, specifically to entertain/pique the interest of an audience, but the way he says it to Kiryu is much more easy-going and authentic. Ironically, it's once he leaves the player's sights and once he's with Kiryu that he discards the theatrics, where he simply shows off his fully genuine self re-telling the story. (One thing I will note is that the eng sub/dub translated that line so it would be different in the beginning and end ("Alright -- let's set things straight." (to player) -> "Where do I begin? That's right." (to Kiryu) even though he says the same thing twice in the japanese audio. I know that this is so that they can match up Majima's audio with his animations in the english dub, and they reuse the eng dub captions even for the japanese dub, and while I do not neccessarily. Like that. It does hammer in the tone difference between the way he speaks to the player vs. to Kiryu further (again, trying to be more intimidating vs. more easy going), which is an okay consolation if nothing else). I just think it's crazy to hear him talk like that with Kiryu after all this time, considering that he usually only talks this directly with Kiryu in fleeting moments. No high-pitched voice/fluctuating tones, no "Yo, Kiryu-chan", just being straightforward and to the point. Man. God.

It's been 4 days since I beat this game and everytime I see someone post about it or think about it for more than 10 seconds I die and explode into a million pieces. At some point I want to 100% this game so I can get as much dialogue/as many details as possible (also the game's just really fun lol), but for now I am just rotating this cutscene in my head forever and ever in an endless cycle. I am so sorry for posting about this game like everyday but I am so unwell over it it's not even funny I hope you can forgive me </333

[mossiishroom]

“If I have to apologize to someone it’s to you. I dragged you into this.” - Pili

“If I didn’t wanna be here, I wouldn’t be friends with you. And look where I am.” - Pangi

“Friends until death.” - Pili

(Paraphrased I couldn’t get it all)

[wassupmygays]

"we messed up dally, we messed up bad!"

no because thinking about Johnny Cade, the 16 yr old kid who jumps at his own shadow and wouldn't hurt a fly (ponyboy's words). the kid who everyone loved and looked out for. the kid who stayed and craved the love of his parents even though they beat him horribly. the kid who was just too damn good for growing old...

that boy. showing up to dally in the middle of the night covered in blood like this. shaking, scared, a murderer. a kid. its so heartbreaking to see the blood on his hands, all over him. that poor kid.

how heartbroken do you think dally felt, when he opened his door at Buck's to see Johnny and Pony shaking in the cold. to see his little brother covered in blood. blood that splattered from the knife that dally gave him

no wonder dally broke so much. the kid he let into his life, vowed to himself that hed protect, had just killed another boy with the knife he provided. with the technique that he showed him. and that eventually led to johnny himself dying. in dally's eyes, that was partly his fault. he blamed the world and their town and the socs and everything else, rightfully so, but i know he blamed himself as well.

"sorry i failed you..."

[instantpansies]

STRANGE NOISES FROM THE HOLE IN THE WALL HEADCANONS/INTERPRETATIONS UHHH OBVIOUS SPOILERS. CLARISSA CENTRIC CAUSE. HOLY SHIT

clarissa is to locomotion as clara is to the nutcracker. she's the kid who dreamed him into existence hundreds of years ago. i know he says he's older than the devil - i think that's still plausible, he's existed since thought but wasn't attached to the Silver Line or brought into physical existence until clarissa, lonely or in danger or just bored, imagined a world where she could escape from her everyday life and live as a grown-up(? maybe? since benjamin/timothy/billy seemed to age up as soon as he went through the portal?), with freedom and whimsy and eventually a relationship with the friendly driver.

why do i say this? because otherwise im really fucking confused lmao, that first scene where clarissa and loco are introduced is strange in the context of the end of the play. they seem to have known each other for a good while before they get on the train. they act like a young couple who's stumbled upon the silver line as an escape from danger and now they're excited for their new life in a new, safe world. except that loco also says he's been driving the train for years.

(looking back, that very much feels like a scenario from a child's imagination - or perhaps a dream - where of course he's been doing this for years, that's his job, but of course they're glad they've found the train together, this is a new experience for her so it's just an extension of her perspective)

but clara is, she says, a child when she gets on the train. idk how old "little girl" is, but if we run with this headcanon and also assume that the timeline is both linear and literal, she's imagining herself in some form of a sexual relationship with loco at a pretty young age.

i posit that this can be reconciled in several ways (some more disturbing or inappropriate than others), but one thing that could be considered is that the first scene where loco and clarissa are introduced is symbolic of their relationship over the course of the train's history. depending on how old clarissa was when she first dreamt the world into existence, she might not have even been very aware of loco, and spent her time just enjoying the escapism or whatever. after a few years or however long, she starts to get older and decides to learn how she's actually done this, maybe spends a long time trying to understand exactly what's going on. maybe her research leads her to a relationship with loco, i don't know. they do get on the train together, maybe, when they're both young (or, well, relatively speaking) and new to the world, and loco eventually has been driving the train for years and years and clarissa makes it a bit more tolerable with some companionship after a long lonely time. but those things don't happen simultaneously, because i think those things don't really work simultaneously. that scene is a sort of speedrun/amalgamation of how the two of them have interacted over the years. and yeah i guess that means they fucked at one point in there

(im going to be transparent, some of that is a bit of cope/rationalization. i think loco and the conductor are very exes/begrudging coworkers vibes, but i do like clarissa and loco together as well - unsettlingly powerful girl x eldritch being with a soft spot is a very good trope. and im trying to make it work out okay? give me a break lol. you don't have to agree with me on this, but once i see a luke and tom couple with a fun and compelling dynamic i will not let them go even if the ethics get a bit hard to explain later on. sorry, anyways moving on)

additionally, and i probably should have said this earlier, a reason i think this whole nutcracker theory holds up is because clarissa holds a sort of unique power in the world. she's been on the silver line for hundreds of real-years, who knows how many train-years, and still remembers her name and something of her old life. loco isn't hostile to her, even confirming her memory of her name and reminding her of her birthdate. with everyone else (ex. benjamin), he actively discourages them from remembering their lives. despite seemingly being one of the oldest passengers, she doesn't transform for hundreds of years. she obviously has some significance.

you know how that ties in? if this is clarissa's world, if her mind is what created the whole thing, then i think it makes sense to assume it's tied to her. as she begins to question her surroundings, then panic as she realizes she can't leave, her emotional and/or mental state becomes less stable, less utopic, less perfect. the dream begins to turn into a nightmare. and it becomes. well. an ouroboros. the snake eats its own tail and the train goes in circles and the escapist fantasy clarissa once loved becomes a prison of her own design. trapped in the very thing that was supposed to save her.

maybe that's why anthony and benjamin can get out when they do - as clarissa's world decays, as she finally begins to become part of the nightmare, as she melds with the train, the world has to shift a bit. it's reaching the point of no return - once clarissa has been fully sucked in, the train will never stop again. falling into an infinite nothing. but in that moment, there's one final chance for the conductor to stall locomotion, one final leap that could at last pull benjamin and anthony and everyone who's been sucked in by clarissa's black hole of a nightmare out of the portal and back into the real world.

and now, clarissa has lost three hundred years of a life that should never have lasted so long. gained perhaps thousands of years of memories of joy and connection and despair and panic and forever forever forever. and she is once again trapped in a vessel of her own making - her body is that of the child she has not been for lifetimes. her world is dead and gone - not just the world she created, but the world she escaped from as well. what of locomotion, that brief flash of connection? does he even exist anymore? who is she, now? who was she? where can she possibly go from here?

shoutout delirium_undead on discord for going along with the nutcracker theory and helping me flesh this out. your ideas are so galaxy brained and i am forever in your debt

[71eh]

Baby, I'm in love And it's not in to tell Only thing that I can do is hold it in

[sunn-mechanic]

[ID in alt]

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to the AU I literally almost never talk about ;-;

anyway,, they make me unwell and they'll make you unwell too if I can ever get the fic written <3

[thymeisasocialconstruct]

You guys remember that this is the 10 year anniversary of his girlfriend’s death right.

[uriayx]

do you feel it, Andrew?

[sympathytea]

Spoilers for S2Ep3 of PVP Civilization

Alright! That was a lot in there. Gonna break down some fun details and major moments that I really liked and uh. Don't worry we're gonna be talking about. That. In a different post. I have. A few things to say regarding it. SO! Disturbing (and not so great) things aside. Things that happened. Iron axes are in fact being sent into the civilizations. Tabi and Clown are just there to get the Eternal weapons rather than doing the majority of genocide. Trident Civilization is again, very stone brick. But atl east there's actual water pools so i got SOMETHING right with my previous civ prediction. I'm still salty about the lack of high ground and cover for bow civ but. hey. it looks pretty neat

The maze inside of trident civilization is interesting. I do see what looks to be housing on the right, but below is a giant network of hallways that someone could easily get lost in. Glad to see that the trident is well guarded but clearly not guarded enough for say, a native to their own civilization who clearly doesn't have. very good intentions for their people.

Zam has infiltrated my brain and also, now has a way to kill Evbo and anyone else who uses that damn respawn armor stand. Scary!

And of course who is the first guy he thinks to use it on?

The whole scene with him and. Tabi is very sweet and unfortunately gets instantly ruined by the dandelion devil smiling behind his target. Tabi does mercy kill to of course keep Evbo safe, because she clearly DOESN'T want Evbo dead permanently. She could've done that herself if she wanted that. Clown also, spared Evbo so...maybe its rubbing off? Speaking of which...

When i tell you I. Wholeheartedly squealed irl. When I saw this. Its so cute. The implication that they wanted to y'know. actually understand. Why he video journals. I think Wemmbu got them into this, if I'm gonna be real. Traitor Wemmbu please. please turn out to be a good guy. You have friends don't do this to me man,,,,you were so good this episode,,, Also the flashback with Ferre meeting up with the other swords, they trust Ferre. I could honestly write a whole fic about just them meeting up, and figuring how to get down to the bottom with his help. Also. GAH. Clownpierce being the one to convince Ferre to give up his power. The implication that Clown is also, using the immortality? Maybe? Also bro got. so badly spawncamped that would make me give up too that's humiliating as fuck That guy that managed to get a diamond sword from Evbo's stupidity with the item frame...interesting. I wonder if thats gonna come up again later.. Prison situation part 2? Maybe. Maybe not. The guard friend is clearly proving useful for the bow civilization and well. guess someone is trying to get immortality for themselves. Good luck Toph.

But yeah. Thats...most of my thoughts. This is getting long lmao sorrryyy :333

[fun-k-boards]

I want y'all to realise Rayla and Callum probably would risk mass and self destruction just to ensure they get to keep the other alive. And, technically Callum already has done the second one, with the whole dark magic stuff...

Anyway they're the best ship ever and idc if they destroy the entirety of Xadia and the human kingdoms, it'll all be worth it for another on screen kiss <3

[waywardstation]

I'm too much of a nervous bean to reach out not anonymously. But I wanted to say that your stories are my favorite iterations of Ingo and Akari and are what sucked me fully into submas. So thankyou and I look forward to seeing everything you come out with 😊

AHH thank you kind anon!!! ;w; <3 that means so much to me!! I’m also looking forward to getting more out!! I have so much I want to get out. I realize most of my writings that have most solidified how I currently write their dynamics are still not out yet. I have so much to get out and the most important parts of them I realize still are not public, so people can’t see the characters how I currently headcanon them.

I haven’t even posted anything yet that sets up the AU I’ve developed around them. It’s called Savepoint AU and it’s been in my head since 2023, regarding the tags I left in this post.

It’s very important to the narrative leading up to everything in I Won’t leave You Behind, but I feel I cannot post about it until I get Rain Check and its accompanying sequel Entropy Syndrome out. One group of people knows a little about it and has seen art related to it but that’s it haha.

ANYWAYS these are where Ingo and Akari’s dynamics really shine and I am hoping I can pull it together enough soon to be satisfied with the smaller details and get it out. I don’t want to rush it or I know it’ll bug me forever, as I feel that way about some stuff in HFBE haha. (DW I will fix these eventually)

Once again thank you anon!!! I’m so happy you like my work specifically, and I’m looking forward to getting more out!