#And we can get back to our regularly scheduled art and shenanigans!

[ninhaoma-ya]

Chapter 1086 — The Five Elder Planets

What a great chapter to leave off on a break for! The theorizing will go wild…

First, Igaram's concern for Vivi is touching:

…while Pell and Chaka are looking out for their king, as the guardian deities of Arabasta should.

Something is in the air, if the faces of the other royals are anything to go by. They don't look like a happy bunch; rumours from the last leg of the Reverie?

Second, have I already said how much I love the WE HQ? It's a flying kettle! That shoots out News Coos!

I love it.

I wonder at what point Wapol caved and told Vivi what had happened to her dad. They said she'd been crying when they arrived at the WE HQ, so before current day events, but here he's still trying to deflect her questions. Maybe she figured it out from his denial? Maybe he just told her? Who knows (I want to know).

And then, totally unnecessary fandom speculation!

About a ship!

(Poor lil' Bonney. I'm sure being pint-sized helped her get aboard the ship easier, but it also underlines her quest: she is literally a child on her way to save her father.)

(By the way: in our universe, Tajine is a North African dish, also known as maraq or marqa.)

The drawing order and perspectives makes it look like Sabo is lying in the stem/front. Normally the sides mainly bulge outward from the keel, but here the planks curve distinctly up. However, when looking at traditional sailing ships, the shape doesn't work that way there:

(Link)

It can look like that in the aft:

(Link)

The other explanation might be an assistant's perspective mistake when drawing the bilge, or Lulusia's ship has a quite rare inward-bulging bow.

One of the few examples I found is the dhow, an Arabic ship:

(Link), although the 3D model can give a better view of the keel and curvature:

(Link)

So either Lulusia has a really, really cool royal ship, or there's some perspective shenanigans going on.

And now, back to our regularly scheduled analysis.

So.

…the floor is so horribly at odds with the rest of the room. Just sayin'.

Presenting: the SECOND tangent of the post.

During the 15th to 17th centuries, so covering reneissance, baroque and rococo, intricate decorations were the thing to have. The exact style and execution varied, of course, but you still were supposed to have so much detailing all over the place, both due to structural reasons (hiding those load-bearing columns and beams and servants and such) and style (look at all the money I have to put on this stuff).

Pangea Castle looks quite a bit like the Château de Chambord, so smack dab French reneissance architecture. Normally, you'd do parquet floors in the fancier parts of the castle, which means geometric and rectangular, like so:

(Link)

Of course, you could do circular, but then it'd probably be inspired by Roman mosaics, and thus geometric and repetitive, like so:

(Link 1, Link 2)

The floor in Pangea Castle is… just weird. I know there's probably art-related reasons for it (looks interesting, not as boring as a grid, etc), but the polka dot pattern really sticks out.

End of second tangent, s'il vous plaît.

Oda truly is a master storyteller.

The readers have been going bonkers for a few months now, trying to figure out what Devil Fruit powers Imu has based on the complete eradication of Lulusia. Is it star power? Is it nuclear? Is it pure light? Is it something completely different?

And then it turns out to be the One Piece-version of nuclear weapons, completing the parallells between Vegapunk and Einstein: both brilliant scientists who wanted to work for peace and the good of humanity, but whose insights were quickly weaponised.

It i also interesting to see how quick the Five Elders are to accept that Imu wants to eradicate a whole kingdom who is part of the World Government. I figure this might lead to more rebellion. After all, what is it worth to be a member of the WG if you're still not protected against horrible acts of violence? The only reason shown so far for people want to join the WG is based on pirates and the navy: they get protection and pay for the Celestial Dragons upkeep. I can't see this continuing much longer when the news about Lulusia get out – because at least Vegapunk will put two and two together. It was his invention being used, after all.

We have names!

Which might change when the official translation comes out!

But still. Interesting selections. Finance might comprise all financial activity, but why is then agriculture (food production) separate from environment (nature itself)? Mercantile activity is quite far from macroeconomic theories, which makes the lumping of all economic stuff under one heading quite interesting.

THERE IS A S-FLAMINGO!

My life is now complete.

I wonder why S-Croc looks so sad, though. S-Gecko and S-Flamingo looks like they're having the time of their lives, after all.

Also: what powers do they have? All the possibilities!

I wonder what Dragon is wondering about. He has a lot of ellipses this chapter and few words to spare. Does he agree with Sabo's decision to keep silent and live the lie? Does he disapprove? What does Iva-chan think about it all?

Ancient weapon, my old friend? The Arc Maxim 2.0? Something Completely Different?

(Also: traditional European-style ship depicted here as Lulucia's vessel. Yet the dream for a dhow still lives on!)

Jumping a bit, but Iva puts all our thoughts into words here so neatly:

In Egghead, Vegapunk says it's his dream to create the ultimate energy source. However, he doesn't say he's managed to do so yet: he's still working towards it. Therefore the thing Sabo saw probably wasn't an ancient weapon – or if it was, it wasn't at full power. Or then it was a "fire once and find another mother flame"-solution.

Whatever it was, it was horrible news for the people of Lulusia.

And then: the identity of Imu.

There's so many theories going on, tying Imu to the Roman emperor Nero or the city of Verona or the small coastal village of Nerano , also in Italy. From where we get to another Roman emperor, who is actually called Nerona: Tiberio Nerone, also known as Tiberius, an able politician who spent his last years on the island of Capri.

I'm sure we'll see where Oda draws his inspiration from sooner or later.

And the other big reveal of the chapter: the Figarland family.

(I don't think Oda will kill off Mjosgard. He is sentenced, he is not dead yet. Will the solution be banishment, a figurative death? We'll see, I'm sure.)

(I like the moon hair!)

(Edit: The cake line had me wheezing. Seriously. Scared the cat.)

I haven't seen Film Red yet, but as I gather from others, it's revealed that Shanks is a Figarland. He was also found on God Valley by Roger, so putting two and two together, we get a family connection.

However, what I'm interested in is the rankings of Celestial Dragons.

a) Saint Figarland Garling was a king

b) He is a Celestial Dragon

c) He has the power to be both judge, jury and probably executioner

How does it all fit together?

CDs are hitherto shown to just laze around in Mary Geoise and sometimes descend into the plebeian world for their own amusement. None of them is shown to be involved in the world as kings – that's the thing they specifically abdicated from 800 years ago. So why was Figarland a king? What was his role on God Valley – and what was God Valley?

So interesting! Much to think about.

I give the chapter thumbs up for lore drops and the chance for a well-deserved rest.

[popfizzles]

That sucks! Halloween is my favorite holiday!

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Moe Moe Mallekei Kyun~

In which Malleus and Cater go to a maid café, and shenanigans ensue.

... I’ve been wanting to write this for a long time.

***Warning: mild spoilers for Malleus’s PE Uniform personal story!***

Imagine this...

“Lilia-sama.”

Two bodyguards fell into line, saluting simultaneously to their vice dorm leader.

“We just finished combing through the prime gargoyle locations around campus,” Silver reported. “Unfortunately, there was no sight of Malleus-sama to be found. The accounts of the various students we interviewed also corroborate that the Young Master has not recently been spotted in the area.”

“I see. Thank you, Silver.” Lilia sighed, cupping his cheek in one hand. “Hm, this is a bit odd. Wherever could he have wandered off to this time?”

At that moment, a ping! sounded off. Lilia fished his phone out of his pocket and, with one glance at the screen, his expression softened.

“You don’t suppose some dastardly villain has… kidnapped the Young Master and is holding him for ransom, do you?!” Sebek’s eyes nearly bulged out of his skull at the thought. “If that is the case… THEN WE HAVE FAILED AS MALLEUS-SAMA’S KNIGHTS!!”

“Now, now--let’s not jump to conclusions. Even if that were true, I’m certain that Malleus would be able to easily fend off assailants on his own. Perhaps he has simply lost his way, or headed off campus to run an errand.”

“... Without warning us in advance?”

“I would have happily accompanied the Young Master wherever he went--EVEN TO THE ENDS OF TWISTED WONDERLAND ITSELF!!”

“Kufufu. Malleus is still young at heart. Let us allow him this moment of independence, just this once. He will find his way home eventually.”

“Welcome home, my masters!!”

Malleus skidded to a stop in the doorway—for beyond it laid unknown territory. The interior sported cream walls, with fairy lights, streamers, and paper flowers strung up. A number of tables and chairs, populated with people, were set against flowing white curtains.

Young ladies flitted about, balancing trays of food and drinks, cameras, and microphones. Each wore the same outfit, consisting of a frilly headdress, an apron, and a black dress with lace trim and ribbons.

And now, one of those uniformed girls extended a hand to him and a warm, welcoming smile.

Malleus frowned and turned to the orange haired young man beside him. “... Diamond. What is this strange establishment you’ve brought me to?”

“Mm? It’s a maid café,” Cater chirped, glancing up from his phone. “You said you’ve never been before, right?”

“Well, yes… However, when you invited me to join you for an outing, I did not expect this to be our destination.”

“It’ll be fine~ We’re already here, so let’s get seated!” Cater insisted cheerily, ushering the fae through the door. 

“Right this way, my masters!” The greeter giggled and led the way, eventually stopping at a vacant table set for two. As the duo slipped into their seats, she handed them menus and moistened towels. “We have a wide selection of special services and delicious dishes for your enjoyment!”

Malleus hesitantly flipped open the (very pink) menu and ran his eyes down the page of available items. Along with the expected offerings of desserts, savory foods, and beverages were odd listings: massage, ear cleaning, karaoke, game, arts and crafts, picture, spoon feeding, live song and dance...

He stared quizzically at Cater, who seemed to be taking everything in stride.

“I’ll take a plate of omurice! How about you, Malleus-kun?”

He stared back at his menu, trying to make rhyme or reason of the unique names. What in the Great Seven was a Pyon ❤ Pyon Sunshine Bar…? Or a Lucky☆Happy☆Cookie? Malleus’s brows furrowed in both concentration and confusion.

“I… I shall have the local specialty, whatever that may be,” the fae prince declared at last.

“Excellent choices! And would you like a bunny, or a kitty?”

“You hand out animals at this eating establishment? Is that not a health code violation?”

“Aaah, Malleus-kun, she doesn’t mean real rabbits and cats. Look--you’ll see when she brings them, okay?” Cater laughed awkwardly. Then, turning to the waitress, he held up his index finger. “One of each, little lady~”

“Of course!” She scribbled down a few words on her heart shaped notepad before prancing off.

“... Diamond. Are you certain this is the fabled maid café of which you spoke of?” Malleus asked, folding his arms. “I find it difficult to believe that every patron here is descended from a high class lineage. Furthermore, the servers are wearing attire entirely unlike that of a traditional household servant.”

Cater blinked once, twice—then chuckled.

“Maid cafés are like normal cafés. Anyone can go to them to play pretend and chill for a while! The difference is that the waitresses are dressed cutely and offer fun services. Singing, dancing, playing games—that kinda thing!”

“I do not understand.” Malleus swept a hand at their surroundings. “The purpose of this establishment is merely for… amusement?”

“Yup! People get tired of the daily grind sometimes, so they go to places like this to see cute stuff and just take a load off.”

“I… I see.” Malleus tucked his thumb and forefinger under his chin. “We do not have anything like your maid cafes in the Valley of Thorns.”

“You don’t? What sort of things do you do back home for fun, then?”

“I was not allowed to venture far from the palace grounds. Most of my time was spent indoors, studying spells or honing my magical abilities.”

Cater inclined his head. “Oooh, right! Because you’re a prince and all, you weren’t able to do much—but hey! Things are different now! You’ve got Cay-kun to show you a good time!”

“Ah, yes. A ‘good time’...” Malleus attempted at a smile, which came out more wary than he had intended.

“Thank you for waiting!” a girlish voice chirped—their waitress had returned, wearing a tray of food in one hand and two headbands in the other. “Here is your omurice and Nyan ✨ Nyan ✨ Kitty-chan Parfait, plus one pair of kitty ears and one pair of bunny ears!”

She handed Cater his dish—a bed of ketchup flavored fried rice, sealed by a wobbling omelet and garnished with a sprig of parsley.

“Mm! Smells delicious. Thanks a bunch~” Cater grinned, winking at his server.

The maid giggled and placed Malleus’s dessert before him, along with the headbands.

“Would you like me to draw or write something special for you on your meal, master?” she asked, gesturing to Cater’s omurice.

“Sure thing! Could you write ‘Mallekei’? Oh, and a couple of hearts would be cute, too!”

“As you wish!”

As the maid set to work, Malleus marveled at the sight of his parfait.

Colorful scoops of ice-cream, granola, and sliced fruits were layered inside of a tall glass cup. A generous crown of whipped cream and a drizzle of strawberry sauce topped it off. Sticking out from the whipped cream were two wafer triangles and dots of chocolate candies, forming a cat-like face.

How adorable.

… But not adorable enough to be spared.

“Thank you for the food.” The fae raised his spoon to demolish the poor parfait kitten—

“Stop, stop, Malleus-kun!!” Cater cried, frantically waving his arms. “N-Not yet!!”

Malleus lowered his spoon with a frown. “Food is meant to be consumed, Diamond. Is there an issue you have with my table etiquette?”

“Well—no, but…” Cater played with a lock of his orange hair and sighed. “There’s certain rituals we need to do first!”

“Rituals? Oh, my apologies. I was not aware. Please proceed with your regularly scheduled… rituals.”

“Ahaha, you’re a quick learner! First thing’s first, let’s put on our headbands!” Cater swept up the cat ears and passed them over. “Here, to match your parfait! I’ll take the rabbit.”

Malleus gingerly nestled the cat ears on his head, copying Cater’s movements. It was a bit tricky maneuvering around his horns, but somehow, he managed.

“Oh!! Those ears suit you so well!” the waitress said, glancing up from decorating the omurice. Carefully placed splotches of ketchup spelled out ‘Mallekei’, hearts and little sparkles littering the space around the boys’ combined names.

“... Do they?” Malleus doubted it.

“They do!!” Cater reassured him with a laugh. “Ne, ne, miss! Can you take our picture so my friend here can have a souvenir to take home with him?” 

“Certainly!” She replaced the bottle of ketchup and hurried off, returning shortly after with a polaroid camera. “Are you ready, my masters?”

“Ready, Malleus-kun?”

“Hmph. Of course. I will have you know that my posing abilities have improved considerably since our last encounter. Do not underestimate me.”

“Oh, that’s great! You’ve been practicing! Then… on the count of three, we nyah, okay?”

“... What is ‘nyah’?” Malleus inquired, his confidence suddenly waning.

“Eh?” A blip of surprise crossed Cater’s face. “Like, y’know… nyah!”

The influencer curled both of his hands into balls and made a pawing motion at his friend. “Now you try!”

“Like this?” Malleus mimicked him. He was more stiff—definitely not as practiced—but the general motion was still recognizable.

“Very good, master!!” the waitress gushed, raising the polaroid up. “On three?”

“1, 2, 3… Nyah!”

A flash went off, sending stars into Malleus’s vision. As he rubbed the daze out of his eyes, Cater’s voice called out to him.

“Are you okay there?”

“I am well. There is no need for your concern,” the fae insisted. “This ritual… it is more confounding that I took it to be.”

“Eeeh? It’s not meant to be hard or anything. Just relax, relax!” Cater paused before adding, “It’s part of the ritual’s requirements! You need to be nice and loose for the last step!”

“What is this last step?”

“We need to cast a magic spell to make your food taste extra tasty!” the waitress declared cheerily.

“Hoh?” A smirk found its way onto Malleus’s face. “That can easily be arranged. Allow me to do the honors.”

He put his hand before his parfait, an eerie green glow emulating from his palm. The sinister light engulfed his dish and Cater’s, sending them floating midair. Radioactive ice-cream and omurice hovered above their heads, causing both Cater and their maid to recoil in shock.

Other customers stared at the spectacle from their own tables. One man’s jaw dropped, the forkful of spaghetti bolognese in his mouth clattering onto the floor.

“You, who provides sustenance to the masses, become that which is delici—“

“H-Hold on a sec, Malleus-kun!!” Cater practically leapt over the table to seize his friend’s glowing hand. “Not that kind of spell!!”

Eyes wide with surprise, Malleus allowed his magic to settle down. The parfait and omurice gently floated back onto their table, and the maid sighed with relief.

“Is there a different spell needed for this occasion? I assure you that I am well-versed in practical magic—you need only speak its name, and I can conjure the proper…”

“No, no! It’s—“ Cater casted a look at their server and nervously chuckled. “Ne, Maid-chan~ Think you can give us a demonstration of the right spell?”

“Yes, master!” the girl, ever professional, flashed a perky grin. “Please watch carefully!!”

The maid set down her polaroid on the table. She then arched her fingers into C-like shapes, thumb extended straight. Pushing her hands together, she formed a heart and aimed it in the direction of the boy’s dishes.

“Moe moe kyuuuuuun!”

“What an odd spell. In all my years, I have never heard of such an enchantment…”

“Well, there’s a first for everything, right?” Cater flicked one of his floppy rabbit ears. “Plus, it should be no problem for the great Malleus-sama to pull off this spell, right?”

“This is child’s play,” Malleus’s laugh was like the earth itself rumbling. His lips quirked into a small smile. “You will join me in performing this sacred ritual, will you not, Diamond?”

“Of course~”

“Very well.”

They made hearts and thrust them upon their meals. And together, they uttered those three magic words.

“Moe moe kyuuuuun!!”

“Welcome back, Malleus,” Lilia greeted. The vice dorm leader nonchalantly hung from the ceiling, his raven and magenta bangs suspended midair. “Did you have fun on your outing?”

“Lilia. You knew?” Malleus slowly shut the door behind him, chasing away the cool air of the night. He spoke softly, knowing that sounds carried in the dusty hallways of Diasomnia and could disturb its residents.

“The wonders of modern technology,” Lilia trilled, expertly landing beside his young master. He brandished his phone in a gloved hand, a text message displayed on the screen.

hey hey lilia-chan! gonna steal malmal-kun for the day~ he’ll be back later, but do me a solid and keep it a secret from s&s til then, ‘kay? thnx!! (✿˶˘ ³˘)~♡

“It looks as though I have been exposed.”

“There is no shame in making new friends. In fact, I’m proud of you for expanding your horizons.” Lilia beamed. “Though what a shame it is that I was not present to grab a few pictures. Hopefully Cater fulfilled that task for me.”

The ancient fae tilted forward in his toes and peered up at his prince. “Soooo? Where did you sneak off to?”

“Fufu. Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“My. Is that any way to treat the man that kept Silver and Sebek from hunting you down?” Lilia teased, wagging a finger.

“Such loyalty,” Malleus smirked, hands on his hips, “deserves to be rewarded.”

He produced a polaroid photograph from his breast pocket and presented it with a flourish. The image, forever captured in time, was that of Malleus and Cater—the former with cat ears, the latter with bunny ears—with hands balled to resemble paws. Cater cheekily winked, while Malleus looked slightly bewildered.

The edges of the polaroid were dotted with stickers—smiley faces, flowers, and hearts. Marker had been used to scrawl on whiskers and blushes over both boys’ cheeks.

Overall, cutesy—overwhelming so.

But the Malleus and Cater in the picture were happy.

Their eyes shining like jewels.

Nyah-ing their hearts out.

[buzzdixonwriter]

Our Regularly Scheduled Program Vs Binge Watching

Every now and then the little light comes on and I grasp an insight into something that previously stared me in my oblivious face.

I was watching episodes of a popular sit-com* from 35 years ago, not a huge hit but certainly a cult favorite popular enough to stay available on recorded media and now streaming.

Not having seen it in well over two decades, I plopped down and started watching episodes back to back.

I got tired by ep. three.

The problem, I realized, lay in how the material was originally presented.

It used to be we’d have to wait every week for a show to come back at its appointed time, and present us with whatever shenanigans the characters got themselves into that week.

Most episodes were standalones, there was little forward progress in the stories and the tiny bit that did exist was mostly in the backstory, not the main plot.

Every week they gave us the same thing, only slightly different.

Mind you, I can appreciate the diametrically opposed tension facing shows of that era -- I wrote and story edited for TV at that time.

The audience wants the same thing they liked the last time…

…only different.

With daily shows like G.I. Joe and Transformers and Jem, trying to come up with something new enough not to be a dull repeat but not so different to alienate the audience was a challenge.

Luckily, the Sunbow series were awash in Joes and Autobots and pop stars and Little Ponies, so we could always find some underused character to build a novel story around, or to add a fresh twist to our old standards.

But even there, I don’t think one can binge watch too many at a time without feeling a certain sense of sameness.

Modern streaming series take that into consideration, but for me that works against them:  I like my stories done in one.

Your mileage may vary, of course.

I’ll watch a 3 hour epic movie without qualm, but I start balking at 7 - 13 - 26 episode story arcs.

I loved season one of Daredevil, never watched season two.

I loved season one of Luke Cage, never watched season two.

I hear people telling me how great The Mandalorian is and I believe them 100%.

No desire to watch it, however (though this may be more the fault of seeing too many Star Wars features films).

Likewise zero interest in any new Star Trek, or for that matter any of the various Star Trek imitators out there.

One and done ripoffs / parodies excepted, of course.

I have the same problem with old movie serials, a genre and format I adore.

Nowadays I tend to watch serials by viewing the first three and last two chapters.

Everything in between tends to be padding.

The Sopranos seemed to be the exception, but then the show lost Nancy Marchand, who played Mama Soprano, and with it the entire raison d’etre of the series.

I clung with it for several seasons past that before abandoning it long before the final blackout.

The Venture Bros. still grabs my attention, but like the Sunbow shows it has a large enough cast to give it the needed flexibility to keep the stories varied yet part of the same universe as well.

It’s reportedly coming to an end with season eight, and to that I say good:  Better to go out at the top of your game than jump the shark and flounder.

. . .

Modern audiences -- at least modern audiences with cable / satellite / Internet access --  no longer have the tacit sense of an appointed time and often and appointed place to enjoy media.

Prior to the electronic age, few people could be entertained whenever they wished unless they or a family member sang or played music or read aloud or told stories.

There were kings and nobles who kept musicians on tap and theatrical companies close at hand but even they were constrained by time and space.

Today’s audience can just whip out a phone and listen / watch / read whatever they want.

As a result, the sense of being an audience seems vanish.

An audience used to be those who came to a performance of some kind, even if it meant simply showing up in their own living room on Tuesday at 8:30pm (5:30 Pacific) to listen to Fibber McGee and Molly.

Even in one’s home, it meant setting aside a time to come in and listen or watch as a production presented its entertainment.

One may or may not like what one experienced, but the audience placed itself at the disposal of the program.

Transistors started changing that.

Transistors made small cheap radios easily affordable and eminently portable.  

People could take their listening pleasure with them, and that marked the rise of recorded popular music programs instead of live scripted broadcasts.

It proved the first technological step in a long line of dominoes that completely upended the relationship of audience to entertainment.

The audience used to come and absorb patiently.

Now the entertainment needs to break through a thousand and one distractions.

It does so by escalating the sensationalism -- and by sensationalism I mean anything that’s designed to grab an audience’s immediate attention, no matter how well or thoughtfully executed.

It undercuts the lower key / slice of life popular entertainment audiences enjoyed generations ago.

(And, yes, Shakespeare & co. are filled with blood and thunder tales, but again, those were things one committed oneself to experiencing as the performers intended; audiences didn’t walk out en masse and go to a neighboring theater in mid-performance.)

. . . 

The problem with ongoing stories is this:  At any point they can be upended by fiat, negating all that’s come before.

Go ask a comic book fan how many times DC has destroyed the universe.

My reluctance to enjoy open ended fiction is that I like being able to mull over a story once it is completed, teasing out the full measure and meaning of what I’ve just experienced.

I’ll risk a program like The Queen’s Gambit because I know it’s a limited series withn a finite ending.

I wouldn’t watch an open ended series based on Walter Tevis’ book.

My career as a writer and an editor enables me to see the gears turning behind the scenes in a story.

More often than not I’m already several plot beats ahead of any movie or TV episode I’m watching.

I bailed on a highly recommended current program recently just halfway through the first episode.

I got the joke.

I knew where it was going.

Nothing about it enticed me to keep following.

The classic sit-com mentioned above wore thin because it was the same damn joke every time.

It’s a funny joke, mind you.

And when seen the way originally intended, I’d have a week to forget about the details of the previous episode, to be hungry of that particular brand of humor for a bit, and be willing to take a repeat of material a week later.

But back-to-back-to-back?

No.

Legendary writer / producer Stephen Cannel sold the first story he ever pitched to a detective series called Ironside w-a-a-a-y back in 1971.

Cannel began his pitch thusly:  “One morning Ironside wakes up with the worst toothache he’s ever had in his life…”

And instantly everyone in the pitch session paid rapt attention.

Why?

Because they knew that whatever came next, it wasn’t going to be something they’d heard a thousand times before.

I’d rather have one simple thing that grabs me than a million and one fireworks attempting to get my attention.

And I’d rather experience that one thing and be able to process it rather than see another installment that undoes everything set before.

. . .

As I’ve posted elsewhere, there’s a place for comfort food TV.

My wife and I enjoy Emily In Paris.

It reminds us of our trips to France and the stories and characters are just interesting enough to be amusing but not so demanding as to require full attention.

Nothing wrong with comfort food TV.

But the real nutrition is found elsewhere.

And for me, this applies to all modes of art and entertainment.

    © Buzz Dixon

  * No, I’m not going to tell you the title.The point of this post isn’t the particular show, it’s the manner in which televised stories are told now as opposed to how they were told the

[pixelbitesgames]

Beyond Logic, There is Fear

Game: SOMA Played On: PlayStation 4 Format: Digital Release Year: 2015 Developer: Frictional Games Publisher: Frictional Games

The mind is a funny thing. It helps us express our creativity, solve complex problems,  communicate with and relate information to one another. In many ways it defines who we are and how we perceive the world around us.

But our mind can also be our worst enemy. It can make us illogical or rash, see things that aren’t really there and with the right stimuli force us to act against our better judgment. Fear is a powerful force that controls many of our basic instincts and Frictional Games hopes to exploit this with their wonderfully crafted game SOMA.

Frictional Games is no slouch when it comes to making creepy games and with acclaimed series such as Penumbra and Amnesia under their belt they’ve made of name for themselves in the horror fandom. I’ve followed their releases since Amnesia: The Dark Descent and have been fascinated with the buzz that each of their games has generated.

As a fan of all things horror (video games, movies, comics, you name it!) I was eager to give one of their games a try, but until recently they have only been available on PC. I’m not going to lie, my PC is a bit of a potato and can barely run the word processor I’m using to write this! So that was unfortunately out of the question.

When I heard they were going to be releasing their latest horror-fest on the PS4 I was more than ecstatic! I would finally be able to experience first hand what Frictional Games had to offer.

Like most games though, I rarely buy them the moment they are released Then when I saw SOMA pop up in one of Sony’s Flash Sales a while back I jumped on it immediately. Now all I needed to do was mentally prepare myself and work up the nerve to play it!

It didn’t sit in the backlog nightmarescape for too long and in the spirit of the Halloween season here we are!!! So let’s plug in those headphones, turn up the volume and turn down the lights!

Fade to black… WHOOOSH…

Scary noises! Flashing lights!! Disturbing imagery!!!

Presentation

With one look, the cover art for SOMA makes you uneasy, there isn’t really anything particularly scary about it but it subtly unnerves you, hinting at some of the themes you will encounter when you play the game. The glitchy esthetic coupled with a distorted face that stares into the depths of your very soul do a wonderful job of making me want to play this game with all the lights on! I just can’t shake those eyes!!

The uneasy feeling the game gives you doesn’t stop there either. As the game loads it carries the  visual themes forward, but it’s not just the visuals that get you, it’s the sound design!  The atmosphere that Frictional constructed instantly entombs you with sounds that are haunting, pulsating, mechanical and electronic. There is something unnatural about it yet familiar and I think that’s what makes it so effective. And we haven’t even left the menu screen yet!!

To say Frictional knows what they are doing is an understatement. The fact that I momentarily hesitate before clicking New Game is a testament to their genius.

But would be a snooze-fest of a review though if I stopped there. So I tightened up my suspenders and pull up my socks and prepared myself to dive into the unknown.

The Game

If I could use one word to describe SOMA it would be uncertainty. The game never lets you feel too comfortable and just when you are starting to become familiar with what’s happening around you it’ll uproot everything, give you the runaround two or three times and then throw you back out to the wolves (or maybe it’s psychopathic sentient robots!).

The opening of the game is a great example of these transitional periods as well. Your character wakes in his apartment after having a dream about an accident he suffered in the past that resulted in him having severe brain trauma. He is scheduled to meet a man named Dr. Munshi who is studying a scanning technology that can hopefully help patients with brain injuries. From what I gathered the machine can scan your brain and allow them to unobtrusively study it and determine the best course of action to a full recovery.

You sit in the machine. The visor closes over your head. Everything goes black and you wake in what looks like a worn down space station from the Alien franchise. I ask myself, is this a result of our character’s brain injuries? Is he hallucinating or dreaming again? Or could this be real and the machine transported us to a different location or time?

And just when we get “comfortable” with our new surroundings, out of nowhere we discover we are actually deep under the Atlantic ocean!!!

All throughout the game the environments are thematically consistent (oppressive, claustrophobic) but this is especially true of the underwater portions. Where in space you may feel isolated and overwhelmed by the vast volumes of nothingness, deep within the ocean everything seems much more foreign. This all induces a sort of paranoia where you hesitate to turn each corner and move forward. You are constantly worrying if it’ll be the pressure that kills you, the lack of oxygen or the creatures that lurk in the watery darkness.

You can hear the air bubbles as they expel from your diving suit, the creaking structures as they fight against the massive pressure of the immense amount of water pushing at their foundations, and of course the sounds of the unknown that echo from all directions. This is all topped off with a ambient soundtrack that increases its intensity at exactly the right times.

The gameplay loop on the other hand consists of quietly exploring creepy environments, unraveling the mysteries of Pathos-II combined with “What the eff is that!” and “Run the eff away!!”, repeat. Since there are no weapons or any real way to defend yourself, running is usually your only option.

Honestly on the surface that gameplay doesn’t seem like much but luckily the mysteries you do uncover while you explore SOMA’s world are fascinating, and coupled with it’s atmosphere, the game as a whole makes you want to come back for more. It’s the contrast between the exploration sections and the frantic “I need to get out of here!” moments that make it all so compelling.

If I was to complain about one thing it would be how the story is delivered. As interesting and thought provoking as it can be, for the most part I am only interested in how this all affects our main character and the state of the present situation. The revelations you come to discover and their consequences are what I care about.

I do understand that we need some backstory to fully grasp our motivations for what we need to do, but most of it is locked behind computer terminals and audio logs. The game would only benefit by making these story beats reveal themselves more organically instead of having to break from the flow of the game to stop and read something.

SOMA is a stressful and thrilling ride from beginning to end that’s more than worth your time. As a psychological horror it artfully plays with your audio and visual senses and heralds themes that will make you sit back and think.

Truly a great game that I would suggest to any horror fan!!

Happy Halloween!!!

Social Media Stuff

As we conquer each game look out for let’s play videos on my YouTube channel PixelBites and let me know what you think!

We’ll occasionally do live gaming sessions as well. Keep an eye out and stop by my Twitch channel at PixelBitesLive when we do!

You can also find the entire list of games in my collection on

PixelBites’ Backloggery

The list will be updated regularly as I start and finish games as well as when I get new ones. Don’t hesitate to take a look and let me know what you would like to see featured in the future!

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Rant about band-related shenanigans

 Well since it’s the first week and I’m kinda free (I have an Econs tutorial to complete but meh screw that shit), here’s a rant about my university’s harmonica band coming up.

While I was still in my JC’s harmonica band, I sort of knew that my uni’s harmonica band existed because there aren’t a lot of school harmonica bands to begin with and my conductor also conducts the band (so some of the scores we use were originally transcribed for the uni band). For some reason or another, I always thought that the band was really good, maybe because their performances put on Youtube sounded pretty solid, or maybe I had a preconceived notion that tertiary level bands were of a much higher standard.

I didn’t really set my sights on joining the band when I admitted into uni, but I casually decided to try out and somehow or another I ended up being a regular member (I switched instruments though - I used to play the soprano chromatic but now I play the contrabass). 

Now here’s where I go to my main point. There are good players in the band, and some are pretty much at the competency of a soloist. But as a whole...the band is underwhelming.

You see, the thing about university CCAs/clubs unlike those in secondary school and JC is that it is fairly unregulated - it’s not compulsory to join a CCA, you can join at any year of study and quit as and when you want to, although being in a CCA and committees accrues points for staying in the halls (which is important for foreign students and locals who stay really far). And this means that a significant number of members don’t commit to come regularly. This is not an issue if we’re just playing music for the fun of it, but heck, we have a concert in 2 months’ time.

I shouldn’t be judgmental about peoples’ reasons for not turning up, but the thing about performing arts is that you have to commit. If you only turn up for every 3 or 4 sessions or disappear halfway, you’re not going to make any progress and you’ll pull the overall quality of the band down. Without consistent practice, you wouldn’t be able to play decently, and we’re not even talking about concert quality. I know many of the serious members don’t usually practice at home (me included) because life is busy, but if you attend almost all the sessions and actually seriously practice during the sessions, it’s already sufficient. Maybe I’m being picky here, but even till now, the first few ensemble pieces we’re playing still sounds rough around the edges - instead of sounding like one whole, you can hear the individuals playing within the same section, and for band/ensemble peeps, you should know that that’s not good. Like I said before, there are good individual players, but as a whole, we don’t sound great. And like what many band people say, the quality of the band is determined by the worst member. It’s alright if you aren’t musically inclined to start with, and it’s pretty common here because most of the people usually have no prior harmonica background and some don’t even have musical background, but if you’re serious about it, you still can manage to catch up and blend in. So, really, if you’re gonna half-ass your effort and attendance, then...don’t participate. It’s quite apparent if you’re joining for the points and not for the enjoyment of the club’s activities, and to the people who joined because they genuinely love playing music, it’s just frustrating and dampens the enjoyment as a whole.

Ok I don’t like being petty and bitchy and judgmental, but I really have to say this: the student conductors - possibly the most important people in the band other than the president and vice-president - really can’t conduct. I personally never conducted or played the role of the section leader before so I can’t pinpoint too much, but as a member under their instruction...man, I just feel like there’s much to be desired. Most of my disgruntlement comes from being a bass player and feeling neglected. It’s true that the bass lines are usually quite mundane and “easy” so to speak, but in every combined practice, we get freakin’ sidelined. If we’re fine then I have no issue, but there were several instances where the bass/chord clearly needed to have their parts sorted out and co-ordinated with the other sections, but it was just not addressed. Combineds isn’t purely just going through the entire piece together as a band - it’s the opportunity for different sections to hear how everyone sounds like together, and as a student conductor, you’re supposed to facilitate this by zero-ing in on the important portions. I’m going to go off on a tangent for a bit here, but I feel that majority of the band doesn’t listen to the bass/chord section (we usually have sectionals together aka the not chromatic harmonica section haha). As compared to the melody, we may sound insignificant, but as the rhythmical part of the music, our parts are pretty darn important in holding everything together. When I used to play the chromatic harmonica, the section I always listened out for was the bass, because it’s pretty difficult to keep the tempo on your own, and hearing the bass lines always kept me in check. So now that I am playing the bass, I expect everyone else to be following the bass (ok technically everyone’s supposed to actively listen to each other), but I feel like I’m chasing and keeping up with the melody instead (maybe it’s just that one song).

Another issue I have with the student conductors’ “style” is their ostensible incompetence in guiding the band with a piece. I get it if our regular conductor glosses through the songs relatively quickly, because he doesn’t have a lot of time with us. And as an external conductor, you sort of expect the band to have this certain level of competency in this piece before combining with them. But as a student conductor, you have to be more thorough and detailed in combineds. It’s alright to go through a couple of songs in the repertoire just to make sure the band isn’t too rusty in certain neglected songs, but you gotta focus. Perfecting a piece of music is a lot of drilling and practice - you practically go over the challenging parts countless times until it’s stored in your muscle memory. Going through an obviously tricky section, repeating it a few times until it sounds somewhat okay, then moving on the another section which also trips some people up and repeating the whole process is not going to improve the piece in the long run. I’d much rather they just put their focus on a few lines in the session and make sure EVERYONE can get the hang of it, instead of going through the entire piece with half the band getting lost in several parts (a few straggling members getting lost is understandable, but I’m seriously talking about half or even more than that losing track, which is OBVIOUSLY an issue). And also, take things one step at a time. Practically every decent musician knows that the first step to mastering the piece is getting the rhythm and notes right, before working on the dynamics and expression. But here, there was one point in practice today when the student conductor decided to add in the freakin’ ritardando/a tempo (aka slowing down and going back to the original rhythm) when they can’t even grasp the notes at the original tempo! Like what the heck is there a schedule to keep up with or what just TAKE yOUR tiME.

In their defense, you can’t entirely fault them for the shitty quality of combined songs. If members turn up sporadically, any drilling and practice will come to naught, and only the regulars will manage to benefit. Also, I’m not dissing them as good players, because to be a student conductor, you definitely need to have a certain level of competency. But knowing how to play music well and knowing how to teach music is completely different, and obviously the latter is a lot more difficult to achieve. Because I’m only a first year and I don’t really know them well, I can’t really voice this out, but heck, how do they even do sectionals for the other sections. My seniors/section leaders can conduct sectionals way better than them.

Well after dumping this entire mountain of salt on tumblr, it may seem that I hate harmonica band, but no, I don’t actually dislike my band. There are nice people and the seniors/graduated seniors in my section are pleasant and competent players, and there are plenty of other members who are pretty committed as well. Perhaps these frustrations stem from my enjoyment in doing what I do, which reflects my desire for the betterment of the band and others to treat CCA with the same amount of seriousness as me.