#Aikawa Sho

[rin-hanarin]

FMA 03 is the show of all time because it gets more difficult and traumatizing the older you get. I've watched it when I was 12 and obviously didn't understand how complex it was, but it burned itself into my brain anyway; I rewatched it when I was twenty something and somehow got re-traumatized despite it never leaving my memory. It can be depressing and mentally draining and nothing compares to the despair I feel rewatching it, but it's just something else in the best possible sense.

[olvaheiner]

[makimacult]

um. that fma 2003 ova where roy and ed have a mock battle during the military propaganda festival holiday and it's all fun and games except they both escalate it and end up in a mexican standoff and then roy has a flashback to the time he genocided kids in ishval. yeah. formative media moment tbh!

[cubedmango]

cherry magic is getting a musical adaptation! 🎶

+ commemorative art by toyota sensei 🍒

the musical will be performed in tokyo from april 11-20th 2025 at tokyo dome city hall, and in aichi from april 25-27th 2025 at ai plaza toyohashi

list of cast and crew (listed on the official website) below the cut!

adachi: ryo matsuda

kurosawa: yoshihiko aramaki

tsuge: daichi saeki

minato: satsuki nakayama

rokkaku: sho sakai

fujisaki: kaho takada

mari: yui hasegawa

asahina: naoya gomoto

ensemble: ito shuma, daiki iwama, okomura takuma, aoi shindo, kiya setokuchi, ryo tachibana, taiki hisakado

script and direction: keita kawajiri (sugarboy)

theme song: 「デモね。」 "demo ne", produced by agehasprings party

music: arai futoshi & miyajima jun

art: kei ishihara

choreography and staging: ebato & hakolog

lighting: ohata hideki

sound: sachie aikawa

video: kazuki watanabe

costumes: hiroko sogawa

hair and makeup: akenoko▲

vocal coach: junya yoshida

assistant directors: akihiro hashimoto & rina shiraha

stage director: tsubasa tanaka

promotional art: chutte

promotional photography: daisuke yamashita

production cooperation: andem

production: nelke planning

[wingsofescape]

@503week the only fitting song for Ghosts

Fullmetal Alchemist 2003, Sho Aikawa//Lord Huron, Love Like Ghosts

[ghoul-tutor]

Uriel Homescreen lines

Thought it would be fun for him to have these :p. Its all under the cut fro those scrolling

[Aikawa is used as a placeholder for MC’s last name. I know there’s no option to input it, but it’s my house and I make the rules!!!]

[Upon completion of Episode 16, Uriel will drop the honorific -San with the player, and lines marked with * have a chance of appearing.]

Specialized:

Login: “Hello Aikawa-san, good to see you today.”

New Mail: “You have new messages. I suggest checking them before it gets too out of hand.”

Idle (<13 Affinity): “Catching up on your studies, I see.

Idle (13+ Affinity): “Alone… At the edge of a universe, humming a tune…”*

Absent: “Welcome back. Lectures are posted online for you to catch up on if need be.”

Player Birthday: “Here. Haizono-San told me I should give this to you. He said it was your birthday. …What did I get you…?”

Uriel Birthday (Nov 25): “Ah. Today’s the day, I see. Oh, Haizono-San set my birthday in the files as the day I started working here. …This is for me? Interesting.”

Christmas: “No, I’m not free this evening. Yes, I have plans. With who? That’s none of your business.”

New Years: “…I see, a new year. I suppose that’s something to celebrate for you all.”

Valentines: “Chocolate? Fine. I’ll add it to the pile.”

White Day: “A friend of mine told me that this is the day I should repay you for your kindness. I have a couple paintings lying around if you have the space. …Why do you look so surprised?”

April fools: “Haizono-San thought it would be funny to put a round ball on my nose… He’s not laughing anymore.”

Additional April Fools Sho: “Saw Hyde with a nasty bruise on his face. (Laughs) Wonder who he pissed off?”

Halloween: “…Oh, it’s just you, Aikawa-San. You should take off that mask. Halloween? Ah… she did say something about that today…”

Halloween - Rare: (Sighs) “No, I’m not going out to help you- Oh, it’s just you. Do you need anything?”

Default

“Do you need anything?”

“Move, you’re in the way of my sketch.”

“I have a tutoring session soon, if you need something, make it quick.”

“You can watch me draw, but don’t be disruptive.”

“Haizono-San is- …What do you mean which one? Isn’t it obvious?”

“What am I? You tread dangerous waters, human.”*

Rare - [Humming a song without lyrics from his playlist.]

Seasonal:

Spring

Anytime - Rare, during Cherry blossom season: “Miror… num hic tibi placeret?” [I wonder… Would you like it here?]

Anytime - Rare, during Cherry blossom season: (Sighs) “Desidero te.” [I miss you.]

Morning: “I wish it wouldn’t rain so much, it ruins my paintings.”

Afternoon: “The new leaves have an interesting color.”

Evening: “The puddles make for an interesting composition.”

Night: “The nights are getting shorter. Hmm…”

Summer

Morning: “It’s been getting brighter lately, hasn’t it?”

Afternoon: “How am I staying cool under these layers? That’s not your business.”

Afternoon - Rare: “I wonder what those birds were…”

Evening: “The sky will be clear tonight, good enough for seeing stars.”

Night: “I’ll have to try drawing fireworks sometime…”

Fall

Morning: “The morning frost… such a beautiful pattern.”

Afternoon: “What am I doing? Sweeping the leaves, of course.”

Evening: “Such warm colors… I should get my pastels.”

Night: “‘The wind howls in the night, heralding the oncoming winter.’ Oh, that’s not mine. Ignore me.”

Winter

Morning: “I seem full of energy? Yes, that might be the case.”

Afternoon: “Perhaps tonight I’ll find a fire to sit at.”

Evening: “I suppose I’ll have to get my compass out to draw these snowflakes.

Night: “I wonder if there will be a snowstorm tonight.”

Affinity:

1 - Morning: “Good morning, Aikawa-San.”

2 - Afternoon: “I have a tutoring session with Fuji-San tonight. I hope he can make some progress.”

3 - Evening: “If you’re having problems, we can schedule a session tomorrow.”

4 - Night: “Dinner? I’m not hungry.”

5 - Morning: “You have homework due today, Aikawa-San. I hope you’re better than Fuji-San when turning it in.”

6 - Evening: “Thank you? I’m just doing my job, Aikawa-San.”

7 - Afternoon: “Darkwick gave me this tablet to keep track of my schedule and other things. It’s quite cumbersome to use.”

8 - Evening: “Haizono-San is late to class so often. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to drag him in. He’s not even doing anything important.”

9 - Night: “Haizono-San has me grading papers all night. I think he’s using me as an excuse to be lazy.”

10 - 10pm-12am: “Why are you up and about at this hour? Curfew was hours ago.”

11 - Morning: “I’ve noticed a group of students following me. Am I worried? No. As long as they don’t disrupt anything, they’ll be fine”

12 - Afternoon: “You got me lunch? (Sighs)…Fine. I’ll eat.”

(Affinities 13+ are gated behind Episode 16 Completion)

13 - Evening: “My Name? It’s probably strange to you, but you’ll find it much more sophisticated than yours.”

14 - Morning: “I have a meeting with Haizono-San to look over his lesson plans today. Hopefully they don’t run into class time.”

15 - Morning: “Don’t you have other things to do besides sit with me?”

16 - Afternoon: “Yes, I don’t need to eat. I find the concept revolting, actually.”

17 - 10pm-12am: “Yes, I don’t sleep. It helps when Haizono-San lumps more work on me.”

18 - Night: “A friend of mine is taking me out for dinner tonight. No. It’s a private meeting. Though I wouldn’t be opposed to an outing with you on another day.”

19 - 10pm-12am: “I may be capable of functioning at this hour, but you are not. Go to bed, Aikawa. Your work will be there in the morning.”

20 - Morning: “…I won’t tell Haizono-San if you take a nap in class. Why? Look at yourself. You’re exhausted.”

21 - Afternoon: “Do I have any friends on campus? Yes. …No, you don’t know her.”

22 - Evening: “Some of the Ghouls are hard to work with, but if I could pick a favorite… Mido-San is the one that’s easiest.”

23 - Night: “You made this? The shading needs improvement, and the contours are shaky… but it looks good enough.”

24 - 10pm-12am: “…You’d look good in blue, Aikawa.”

25 - Anytime: “My wings are showing? I know. Don’t worry, nobody can see them except you.”

[skivampire]

anime/manga of the day- AD Police Files

AD Police Files~ written by Sho Aikawa was released May 25, 1990. With only 3 episodes it is set in 2027, it is a prequel to the Bubblegum Crisis OVA series, focusing mainly on AD Police officer Leon McNichol, the future rival and love interest of Knight Saber Priscilla Asagiri.

[byneddiedingo]

Pulse (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2001)

Cast: Haruhiko Kato, Kumiko Aso, Koyuki, Kurume Arisaka, Masatoshi Matsuo, Shinji Takeda, Jun Fubuki, Shun Sugata, Sho Aikawa, Koji Yakusho, Kenji Misuhashi. Screenplay: Kiyoshi Kurosawa. Cinematography: Jun'ichiro Hayashi. Production design: Tomoyuki Maruo. Film editing: Jun'ichi Kikuchi. Music: Takefumi Haketa. 

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Pulse is a quietly unnerving movie about the apocalypse, which comes not with a bang but with a slow (very slow) fading away. It seems to be brought about by technology, particularly the internet, which causes people to become lonely and isolated. The film is also a ghost story, which posits that the afterlife is a place of intense loneliness and isolation. As the film progresses, cities thin out and some of the characters simply fade into blurry splotches on the wall. One crumbles into flakes and is blown away by the wind. Unfortunately, we expect more from movies than melancholy disintegration, so the impact of Pulse disintegrates too, as it takes its long slow time to create a mood at the expense of telling a story. 

[denebsapphic]

Engine Sentai Go-Onger: Boom Boom! Bang Bang! Movie Bang (2008) by Sho Aikawa

3/5, Tokusatsu, Action Adventure

This was fine, I don't really have much else to say about it.

[izdatazn]

S.U.I.T.S - Terran's Hidden War

TERRAN 29 - ENEMIES AT THE GATE

I woke up to the continuous chirping of birds in the morning, as rays of sunlight streamed through the blinds. The room was filled with brightness, although my vision took a few minutes to clear. I lay in bed, with only half of my body covered by a blanket. Beside me, I noticed that Asuka was also awake, completely wrapped up in her own blanket. Our eyes met.

With a shy giggle, she blushed as I planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. "Good morning, Issei," she said with a smile, reaching out to firmly hold my hand. "You were amazing last night," she added, her eyes sparkling mischievously. "I hope for more private audacious moments like this for the next two days.” She winked at me playfully while pursing her lips.

Suddenly, we heard a distant blare coming from outside. It continued for some time before we realized what was happening. We were startled by aggressive banging on the door and were shocked when Viktor burst into the room.

"Kobayashi! Our enemies are here!" he exclaimed. “The enemies are at the gate!”

Miyoung entered the room swiftly and delivered a quick slap to his face. "Don't you see they're occupied?" She then proceeded to pull him out of the room and kicked him away, sarcastically commenting, "Well, look who we have here! The sneaky love birds who snuck away from last night's festivities. I'm sure those multiple sessions took a toll on both of you." With that remark, she walked out while Isabel closed the door behind her and gave us a playful wink before slamming it shut.

Asuka's face flushed instantly upon hearing her comment.  "Miyoung, why would you say that?!” She quickly sought shelter under her covers and exclaimed, “I wasn't that loud!" Frustrated, she threw a pillow towards the door and buried herself deeper into the comforting embrace of her blankets. Her voice was muffled as she cried, “That’s so embarrassing!"

I immediately hugged her tightly and laughed reassuringly, saying, "Come on, we need to go." She cried and complained as I continued to console her.

We assembled our teams in the main room of The Bertha II. Nanako, Amy, Kumiko, Isabel, and Miyoung approached Asuka with excitement before darting into a private room like giggling teenage girls gossiping. Aikawa wrapped his arm around me, flashing me the brightest smile.

“Aikawa asked, whispering with Hideki and Sho as they huddled near Aikawa and me. "We noticed both of you leaving the ballroom in a rather indiscreet manner. How was your daring and splendid night with the lovely lady named Asuka Shigihara?" I blushed intensely as silence encompassed me, with everyone eagerly awaiting my response.

“It,” I stuttered. “Was nice.”

"I-i-it," I stuttered, my voice shaky. "It was nice."

From the private room, we could hear the muffled squeals of the girls. Despite the door being soundproof, their excitement exceeded its capabilities. The guys leaped with joy, offering congratulations for having successfully performed the devil's tango.

“My boy became a man last night.” Aikawa slapped my chest and laughed heartily. “That’s the way to do it.” 

Aikawa and the others departed as the girls finished gossiping. Asuka, who was the last one to rejoin us in the main room, stood next to me. Her face was flushed, clearly displaying her embarrassment from the confession she had made. I discreetly glanced at Nanako and Kumiko, and they reciprocated with knowing glances. They unsuccessfully tried to stifle their mischievous giggles and smiles as they averted their gaze. Asuka and I remained quiet, while our friends persisted in snickering and giving us discreet looks.

The Bertha II departed from the hangar. Kumiko and Shota's squad were also with us. A holographic figure emerged from the table - it was Charles Miller, joining us.

"Mr. Kobayashi and Ms. Shigihara, I would welcome you physically, but we are short on time," Charles greeted us. "We underestimated their arrival time, and our opponents will be here earlier than expected. You will be joining Empress Xaba on the front line. We must gather information quickly and put an end to the siege. You have your objectives; I wish you the best of luck. The world is watching us." With that, his hologram disappeared.

I spoke next: "Today in our garage, we have Asuka Shigihara's medium assault class known as Lady Himiko, Kumiko Kobo's medium light assault class named Izanagi, and Taishi Fujita's medium heavy support class called Issun-bōshi. Our objective is to defend the wall, capture the enemy commanders, and swiftly put an end to this siege. We have been assigned designated spots on the front line. Let's not disappoint our veteran agents."

I watched as numerous news cameras from around the globe hovered above the city and near the wall. It was nerve-racking to see Noxolo's army advancing towards the wall alongside SUITs agents in their own assault craft - this was no ordinary situation. The news channels switched off momentarily before returning with Noxolo Xaba giving a speech.

Asuka stood by my side while gripping my hand tightly as Noxolo addressed all of us passionately: “Today, I speak to my citizens of United Africa! My army stands united with my dedicated friends in defending our beloved city that we have worked tirelessly to make a utopia out of! Our enemies in the North seek to destroy our prosperous lifestyle and destabilize what we have built. You trust me to defend this country, and I will not let that happen. Rise, my citizens, and defend the country with me. They surround us with their fleet and outnumber us three to one. But then it becomes an even fight. What did they say when we refused to surrender?"

The monitor then switched to a recording of our enemies declaring, "We will blot out the sun!"

As we tuned back into Noxolo's speech on the monitor, her words were filled with unwavering determination: "Then we shall fight in the shade!" The views on the monitors shifted, revealing walls emerging along the coastline, extending from east to west and then south. "We will fight in the streets and within the confines of our own homes! We will defend our city until every citizen is secure!" Not only did we notice the walls, but we also witnessed a transparent shield slowly encompassing the entire country. Our right to live freely shall not be confiscated from us. My fellow citizens, let us unite and stand with me in protecting our cherished nation! The monitors panned and shifted focus as three massive allied ships materialized above the capital city. The illuminated energy tether suddenly dissipated, severing its connection to the ground station and simultaneously merging with the shields to create a complete safeguard for our country. "We will persist in fighting until our very last breath!" The monitors scanned across different regions of the country, where citizens cheered fervently at Noxolo's impassioned speech. "I vow to you, my fellow citizens," stated Noxolo as her image reappeared on the screen, "I will defend you with my life!"

Noxolo's flagship remained stationed above the capital city, while the other two ships headed northward to join the rest of the fleet for defense. We met up with the others behind the wall at our forward base of operations. Charles Miller temporarily took command and addressed us, explaining our positions before the invasion began. He informed us that there was a no man’s land between the wall and mountains, which stretched 10 clicks or approximately 160 km/100 miles. While it seemed like a vast empty field on foot, it would be different with advanced vehicles. This morning was filled with chaotic troop movements both on the ground and from above. Charles assigned us our objectives which we willingly accepted. Asuka, Kumiko, and Taishi were grouped together until we received approval to proceed. Leaving the forward operating base behind, we followed the road leading towards the gate beneath those imposing guns atop of the wall.

Passing through both gates and defensive trenches along with their accompanying guns made crossing no man's land feel incredibly daunting due to its emptiness. We took up our positions and gathered as much ammunition as possible to store in our vehicles. They believe we won't have enough resources to withstand a siege, with logistics being behind by a week. We hope to hold out until SUITs can provide us with resources as soon as possible.

I was taken aback by the sudden blaring of horns. Numerous monitors appeared on the central table, displaying various peculiar warps occurring in different locations. Three enemy ships materialized precisely above the ocean near United Africa's shores, while a few more appeared far away from the wall. Our attention was immediately drawn to the enemy flagship, which swiftly descended into the atmosphere accompanied by three other enemy vessels. They encircled us from all directions. 

We quickly noticed thousands of enemy dropships descending from the sky, originating from these four vessels, while enemy aircraft swarmed around them. The situation felt frighteningly real, and some of us were unprepared for what lay ahead.

The monitor shifted focus and we saw Noxolo's royal vehicle approaching through the gate to join us in battle. She spoke with determination, "My friends, I will not back down from this fight. I understand that many of you are apprehensive about what awaits us. I too am nervous but let me assure you this: we must trust in one another. We have each other's backs and together we will endure and emerge victorious from this siege!” Her soldiers erupted in cheers and even within my heavily fortified vehicle walls, I could hear their jubilant shouts reverberating throughout.

“She knows how to make a speech.” Asuka chuckled.

“That’s reassuring I guess.” Kumiko added.

We assumed our defensive positions and patiently awaited the approach of our enemies. A strange silence surrounded us, not within the confines of our vehicle but outside, as if all sound had been swallowed by the howling wind. After a few moments had elapsed, we noticed countless adversaries emerging over the hillsides. My breath shook with trepidation as we observed from Bertha's cockpit, Asuka gripping my hands tightly. The assault was not confined to a mere wall siege; our foes were also launching attacks from the ocean, encircling us from every direction.

"I'll take care of you," she whispered.

"And I'll do the same for you," I replied reassuringly.

Noxolo commanded, "Extend the shield to four clicks!"

The rail cannons, anti-aircraft guns, and machine guns attached on the all adjusted their aim towards approaching soldiers as they held their positions until they were six clicks away before opening fire.The anti-aircraft guns launched projectiles at incoming enemy aircrafts.A single ship carrier hovered above the wall, releasing thousands of aircrafts. Admiral Charles Miller led the skies in this battle. Our enemies reached the shield walls. The machine guns and cannons began to open fire as well as our hovercraft.

"Noxolo exclaimed, 'We must not give up! We must not let them get through this wall!' She demanded, 'Find me the leader who is leading this siege!'

The enemy's long-range cannons breached our shield and fired upon our defensive structures. One of the defense guns next to us took a direct hit but remained functional. Chaos ensued as our enemies continued to advance while we unleashed a tremendous amount of fire upon them.

Kumiko spoke urgently, 'We need to get into position,' and walked away with Shota.

Asuka suddenly embraced me and kissed me on the lips. Stepping back, she gave me a gentle smile. 'I'll see you later.' I released her hands and watched as she ran towards the garage with the others. I continued to watch chaos happened in front of me. They were getting closer to our position.

We noticed thousands of enemy transport changed position and open up their vehicles. We watched millions of enemies pour out of the transparent as they headed towards us. They released a swarm five clicks away from us.

Noxolo gave us permission to attack, so we moved forward without hesitation. Thousands of SUITs and United African army hovercrafts drove towards the swarm.

'Lady Himiko launching,' Kumiko announced.

'Issun-bōshi, launching,' Taishi added.

'Izanagi, launching,' Asuka declared.

One by one, the ramps lowered as they exited the garage and followed behind The Bertha II. Riding alongside other hovercrafts, we advanced towards the enemy. The Bertha II absorbed a direct hit from an enemy laser beam but it deflected harmlessly towards the ground – it had no effect on us. Shortly after that Viktor and Miyoung began firing upon the swarm.

I heard Viktor whisper, 'This is suicide.'

Shit.

The Bertha II's auto cannons started firing as thousands of hovercrafts plowed through the swarm and enemy vehicles. For now, we held steady amidst the chaos that surrounded us up close. Holding my breath, we continued mowing down our enemies while slowly breaking away from formation to do whatever was necessary to halt their advancing army.

We noticed thousands of massive creatures joining in on the fight. Our weapons inflicted hundreds of direct hits on them; however, I witnessed one up close effortlessly ripping apart an allied vehicle. We couldn't allow it to proceed any further.

'Bertha, take the wheel. Viktor! Isabel! Follow me!' I commanded.

They agreed as we rushed out of the cockpit, leaving Bertha in control. We headed straight for the garage and entered our individual vehicles. Once again, the ramp dropped, revealing immediate chaos surrounding us.

'Viktor,' I called out to him. He looked at me expectantly. 'Smash.' He flashed a huge smile and laughed.

'Viktor!' His voice echoed as he drove off. 'Smash!'

'Right behind you, Kobayashi,' Isabel responded.

I accelerated and Isabel followed suit. Swiftly maneuvering through the battlefield, we fought amidst ongoing chaos.”

Viktor fearlessly charged towards the colossal creature, smashing through his foes with his vehicle. As he collided with the creature, he leapt off and skillfully landed on its shoulder. Maintaining a firm grip, Viktor rode atop the thrashing beast. With determination, he plunged his weapon deep into its back and swiftly decapitated it, ensuring its immediate demise.

After dismounting from the creature, Viktor observed multiple similar monstrosities closing in on him from all directions. He let out a booming bellow. "Viktor is bored! Will you all entertain Viktor?" Playfully swinging his weapon, he declared, "Excellent! Wilma, let's have some fun.”

In contrast to Viktor's approach, we did our best to evade direct attacks from our enemies and instead focused on eliminating those near Bertha. However, my time on my vehicle was short-lived as a creature lunged at me, snatched me up, and hurled me off alongside it. Reacting swiftly, I drew my sword and dispatched the creature before being immediately besieged by more of its kind. Isabel joined me in battle as we swiftly dealt with the creatures assailing us from all sides. Meanwhile, Bertha maneuvered around us attempting to prevent further swarming by these creatures. This wasn’t fun at all.

Engrossed in defending ourselves against our surroundings, I failed to notice a tall muscular two-footed creature approaching me until it tightened its grip around my body and pulled me closer to its face.

It hissed menacingly at me saying,"I didn't realize humans would be so small." Its hold grew tighter as Isabel struggled to free me but found herself besieged by other creatures making it increasingly difficult for her. "A powerful being like you can easily bore me," it chuckled darkly. "Perhaps if I squeeze harder your existence will turn into nothing more than a puddle."

As consciousness slipped away under increasingly constricted breaths caused by its tightening grip on my body,I suddenly witnessed a war fan flying past, cutting off this creature's wrist. As I fell to the ground along with the creature's hand, Isabel helped me release myself from its grasp.

"Don't you dare touch him, you bastard!" Asuka's angry voice echoed through the air.

Asuka emerged from underground and swiftly threw another war fan before catching her second one. The second war fan pierced through the creature's thigh but failed to stop it. Unfazed, Asuka hurled her first war fan with even greater force at the same spot on the creature's thigh.

The creature pulled out and discarded both war fans with a chuckle. "You really think that will stop me?"

Suddenly emerging from underground herself, Kumiko spoke up confidently: "Not really." A wooden tail sprouted from beneath the ground and impaled through the creature. When this failed to halt its movement, Kumiko threw two more tails at it until they successfully restrained its progress. She then added one final tail through its mouth.

"Now that last one is because you talk too much," she remarked coolly as her tails retracted into the ground and caused the creature to fall backwards.

Asuka helped Isabel remove the creature's hand while others joined us, forming a protective circle around us and preventing the creatures from getting any closer. Asuka slapped me lightly before immediately embracing me. Miyoung and Viktor joined us right after. 

"That was reckless," she gasped. "I almost lost you."

"And I nearly lost you too," I replied, finally able to breathe normally again.

"Guys, this reunion is great," Hideki spoke, "but we have more urgent matters to address."

"The acting leader is right nearby," Noxolo interjected. "Detain him on my behalf and we can temporarily stop this siege. I will give you the coordinates. The acting leader's position is just ahead, about half a kilometer away."

"What should we do?" Kumiko asked.

"We keep moving forward," I replied. "As instructed, our objective is to detain him for Noxolo."

"Viktor, Isabel, and Hideki will lead the way," I declared. "Kumiko, provide us with shield protection as we advance."

"I'll do my best with my tails," she answered.

"Twelve of us against millions of them blocking our path," I joked. "Next time, I won't accept the invitation."

Without hesitation, we charged towards the location of the enemy leader, defeating creatures attacking us from all directions. Kumiko stayed at the back to protect us while using her tails to attack enemies within reach. Our vehicles also supported us from the sides and back as we continued moving forward. We only had to deal with a couple hundred that managed to get past our vehicle’s perimeter. It wasn't too bad, but it was slowly becoming increasingly difficult to reach the position of the enemy's acting leader. I noticed that it was the same creature as before but larger and more muscular than its predecessor who had grabbed me earlier on.

"What do we do?" Asuka asked anxiously."The swarm won't let us pass."

"Kumiko, do you want to push us towards him?" I suggested.

"Sure, but I'm coming with you," she replied bravely. “If you two are going to do dumb things together, you might as well add me into this mess.

"She's not wrong," I chuckled in agreement.

The wooden stumps emerged from below us, propelling us into the air and towards the commanding general. We observed the creatures leaping towards us, doing everything they could to impede our progress, but we managed to take them down with our vehicle's weaponry.

The commanding leader noticed us and aimed their guns in our direction. Asuka threw her war fans at one of the creatures, but they simply bounced off its armor. The leader fired a barrage of kinetic rounds at us, causing Kumiko to use a stump as a shield. Taking charge, Kumiko shattered the stump into pieces and hurled them at the commanding leader. The stump fragmented into numerous smaller splinters that impaled the creatures surrounding their leader.

We dodged the commanding leader's attacks as we soared through the air and safely landed on solid ground. While Kumiko focused on dispatching enemies around us, Asuka and I confronted the formidable leader. I aimed my sword at the leader's shoulder armor, but it easily slid off as I dove past him. Overpowering such an experienced commander wasn't easy, but we did everything we could to bring them down. However, before we could incapacitate him/her, they swiftly neutralized both Asuka and myself before Kumiko had a chance to react.

"Three against one and still not enough to disarm me," laughed the leader arrogantly. "This planet is a joke.”

"You should pick on someone your own size, Commander Draven.” Nehir stated firmly.

"Or perhaps someone more experienced," Jade added confidently.

"Ah! Long time no see Nehir... Jade," Draven hissed sarcastically. Asuka and I struggled back onto our feet while others quickly joined us. We formed a defensive circle around Nehir, Jade, and Draven without allowing our enemies through.

Nehir demanded sternly: "Tell me General Stakil's whereabouts along with Tefari Xaba's location."

Draven laughed scornfully: "You already know where they are located Nehir! But if you want their precise coordinates you'll have to go through my cold dead body." Draven unsheathed a massive long blade from his back.

"I intend to gather intelligence," Jade sighed. "And then I will put an end to your life, Draven."

Draven swung his weapon at them and they retaliated with equal force. The close-range battle raged on with neither side showing signs of defeat. Their fight persisted for several minutes as Nehir managed to land a few shots on Draven's body. Yet, it didn't hinder him; he continued attacking relentlessly.

"Such feeble attempts won't hinder me, Nehir," Draven laughed.

"I am not here to eliminate you, Draven," calmly replied Nehir. "My purpose is to delay you."

"Delay me from whom?" Draven questioned. He threw his weapon but was instantly blocked just inches away from Jade.

"From me," Noxolo spoke up.

We witnessed Noxolo's magnificent entrance as she joined the fight alongside Nehir and Jade. Bayu and Nala stood by her side, forming a protective perimeter around us. Bayu raised a thick wooden half dome above us as chaos erupted outside its boundaries.

"You haven't learned from your past experiences, have you, Draven?" Noxolo said confidently as she stood in front of him. “Just because you became a commander doesn’t mean anything to me..” Noxolo skillfully evaded Draven's attacks while Jade and Nehir watched silently. She continued. “You’re still at the bottom of the barrel.”

We observed how Draven swung directly at her but missed every shot against the queen—an amusing sight considering an experienced leader failing to land a hit on royalty.

"Stop playing games with me!" growled Draven.

We watched as blood pooled out of the body of Commander Draven while Noxolo controlled it, gradually wrapping around her. She extracted enough blood from Draven for him to lose consciousness. He fell to the ground and was promptly bound with wooden restraints. Soon after, we heard rumbling from outside the dome as it slowly crumbled apart revealing our enemies retreating fully from the siege.

"Noxolo spoke urgently to Kobayashi, 'I have received a message for you from SUIT's network, sent by Daisuke Model. While we will do our best to defend our country, you must continue pursuing the remaining Clubs. It is believed that Zaporg has been located on the moon, but that's not the only concern you should have.'"

[gokaiju]

DEAD OR ALIVE 2 逃亡者 (Dead or alive 2: Birds) (Takashi Miike, 2000) Alternative poster by Gokaiju

[iliketigers]

[wingsofescape]

Lord Huron, The Balancer's Eye // Fullmetal Alchemist (2003), written by Sho Aikawa

[hazardous-arcadia]

That's Sho Aikawa baby!

But for real, Sho Aikawa was the mainw writer for 03 and the primary source of FMA 03's weirdness. To quote another person who said it better: “His (Aikawa) stories tend to be multi-layered and symbolically complex, but often suffer from a lack of time to tell them. This leads to intended subtle of ideas going completely under-the-radar for the sake of the narrative completing in the allotted time.” My guess is if FMA 03 had had a longer run, some of the weirder stuff might have not been so weird in the end.

Some of it might have been because Arakawa herself hadn't worked out the fine details yet either. Remember, development for 03 started back in 2002, at which point no more than 16 chapters of the manga had fully completed.

On the other hand, Termin-Archer.

Yeah, not gonna lie. I like 03 more than Brohood, but there are bits of 03 that were… yea.

I just watched the 2003 Fullmetal Alchemist and no offense to anyone

But whaaaat the hell?

I’m extremely confused how the people writing the adaptation came to the conclusions they did based on the information they must have been given concerning the story. Obviously some is derived right from the comic and.. I’m assuming other stuff was just explained to them by the creator in broad strokes maybe?

No offense I’m sure people love it and that the writers worked hard but the whole.. crossing over into our real world reality is.. nuts!

Also there was a… terminator. Hawkeye shot it him to death. Lust wanted to be real, that was interesting- I guess the take on homunculi was interesting! I actually kind of liked that.

The ultimate lesson of the show was sort of lost in all of the weird stuff they did to shoehorn a mushroom cloud in there. It feels like at some point someone either gave up and wrote what they were personally interested in or took a maaaaaassive rip off a bong before sitting down to write hahaha

Unhinged. I’m one step closer to madness now, thanks!

(Ps- does anyone else notice some of the set designs in 90s and early 00s anime have a somewhat… uncanny feeling to them? Especially interiors, they look kinda surreal! Would love to have some insight on that)

[fullmetal-scar-simping]

No nuance no fucks given:

Sho Aikawa >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Hiromu Arakawa

[nutriblast28]

This Week On Triple Thoughts!

We look at GoGo Sentai Boukenger! A show that greatly speaks to me as a fan, but doesn't perfectly land to me as a critic! If you want insight into this one-of-a-kind yet perfectly familiar adventure check it out!