#But that's just because out of these three Assassination Classroom is the most well written by like a mile

[greetings-inferiors]

give me manga reccommendations (please)

i think i'm gonna start reading again

i'll start with the classics like tokyo ghoul and black butler and death note because i did already read the first few volumes of them (like 2 yrs ago tho so ill have to reread)

but i want reccommendations :3

Why are you awake at 3am

Anyway my actual recommendations -

Tokyo ghoul and death note are GREAT starting points, two of the best mangas ever written.

The middle of death note does drag a bit, but the ending makes up for it imo. And obviously the first half is some of the best manga ever written. It’s also really short so you may as well, you won’t regret it.

Tokyo ghoul is fantastic, and I really recommend it, ESPECIALLY if you haven’t watched the anime. I wish I read the manga first every day. One of the most beautiful manga I’ve ever read.

I’ve never read black butler but I’ve heard good things.

Now, for my new recommendations (from least to most recommended)

One punch man is gut achingly funny, though I haven’t been keeping up with it

If you get into one piece you won’t run out of entertainment for months, what I’ve read it pretty good and apparently it just keeps getting better.

Spy x family is similarly gut achingly funny, but with a fantastic and gripping plot, especially the newest chapters. It’s one of two mangas I still keep up with for every chapter.

Assassination classroom is hilarious, but heart wrenchingly sad. It’s fantastic. It was my favourite manga for a long time.

And, of course, the big one. Jojo’s bizzare adventure is my favourite manga of all time. It’s one of my favourite pieces of media ever made. There’s genuinely nothing like it. Every part is completely unique, from the martial arts of part 1, to the murder mystery of part 4, to the heists of part 9. I am not kidding when I say that every part is its own genre. It’s also all really good. There’s an argument for all parts to be the best. And the title isn’t lying. In fact, it may be lying by omission. It’s not just bizzare - it’s batshit. In the best possible way. The only problem is that part 1 drags a bit, even though it’s short and imo still really good, so it’s a bit difficult to get into (and you are NOT part skipping, I WILL DISOWN YOU). It’s better than the anime though, so if you’re going to do jojo it’s best to start with the manga (the first three parts are MUCH better as mangas). But once you get to the end of part 1, it’s non stop PEAK. The ending to part 1 is phenomenal. Part 2 has one of the best jojos. Part 3 is a great journey and villain of the week format (along with having the best fight in the entire series). Part 4 is some of the best slice of life I’ve ever read??? Part 5 is basically an anime of the godfather and it’s brilliant. Part 6 is a jailbreak movie, with one of the best endings to anything ever. Part 7 is out of nowhere a literary masterpiece, unironically one of the greatest works of art I’ve ever read (it’s the second highest rated manga of all time for a reason). Part 8 is the pinnacle of Araki as a writer, storyteller, and artist, with a great coming of age (I guess lmao) story. And part 9 is thrilling heists with (imo) the best jojo in the series. The worst part is really fucking good, and the best part is one of the greatest pieces of fiction ever written. I truly cannot recommend it enough. It’s not everyone’s thing - the title is NOT lying, it is weird, at times nonsensical, but never uninteresting. Give it a shot, at least the first 3 parts, they’re not long and if you’re not interested by then you’re not human I think (/j). Once you get to 4 and onwards they keep getting longer, and while they do keep getting better and better, if you’re not into the vibe and stands then you don’t want to read 800 ish chapters more. Oh yeah it is long tbf, the first 3 parts aren’t that long, the next 3 parts are decently sized, then the next 2 alone are longer than a lot of the other manga I’ve recommended lmao. But that’s kinda what happens when you release a manga without any major hiatuses for 30+ years. He only started releasing it monthly in about 2008, so it would be way longer lmao. But the monthly releases are worth it, it instantly gets wayyyyyyy better. You’ll notice it in steel ball run (part 7). And once you’re finished you’ll be able to wait with me for part 9, which has been FANTASTIC so far, and I’m really excited to see more.

The only problem is: how do you read it? Answer: I don’t know. Probably mangadex? Don’t read the official translations, they change almost every name in the series due to copyright (every stand and a lot of characters are named after songs and bands) and it a.) works way less and b.) will make communicating with other jojo fans really difficult. I read the first 8 parts using Jojo’s coloured adventure (though I don’t recommend the coloured manga, the black and white is much better), which was an all in one place fan translation, but I don’t think it exists anymore. I recommend researching which translations are the best and then reading them on mangadex. The thing about it is that the translations I read are only for the newly released chapters I’m pretty sure, so giving you their names wouldn’t help at all. I’ve read a few chapters of phantom blood on mangadex and like… it’s alright. The phrasing is a bit clunky, but overall it’s good.

Some last things: the early parts are a bit sexist at times, the women are still really well written like erina, Lisa Lisa, and suzi q, but the first 3 parts have the odd “beaten by a mere woman!!?” And stuff. But even then there’s a lot of subversions of sexism, like Lisa Lisa being really fucking strong (and even then Araki regrets having not written her as more of a main character). But once you get past part 3 it basically stops. Araki is really progressive with his writing, he wanted part 5 to have a female jojo, but his editors didn’t let him, but once part 6 came around he put his foot down and made half of the cast women (and even then he still was forced to change someone to a man). I’m pretty sure he even said the quote “the fact that readers don’t want the jojo to be a woman is exactly why she needs to be a woman” or something similar. Part 8’s best written character is a woman, and in part 9 we’ve got a weird genderqueer thing (I love dragona but it’s really hard to say whether they’re trans or not lmao. Imo they are, but obviously you shouldn’t assume. At the very least they aren’t out yet. Tho they take hrt. Lmao). Basically what I’m saying is it gets a lot better.

Once you’ve caught up I really recommend the anime! The first 3 parts are a downgrade imo (especially part 3, yikes they completely massacred it. The beginning is great and the last fight is phenomenally done though), but part 4 is an upgrade, especially since they had the hindsight of the villain (Araki originally wanted 3 to be the end, so part 4 didn’t really have a plan for the first half of its story) and could sprinkle him throughout. I haven’t watched 5 or 6 yet, but apparently 5 is fantastic and 6 is really good. But I’d definitely recommend reading it first, and then watching it once you’re obsessed.

If anything you should read the first 6 parts as homework for steel ball run. I love the first 6 parts to death, but 7,8, and 9 are so so so good, and steel ball run is, like, a classic manga. It’s the fucking great gatsby of manga. Or maybe to kill a mockingbird? Idk.

Anyway I’m sorry this is long I really really really like Jojo. Like I said, it’s my favourite manga of all time, and one of my favourite media franchises in general. I could gush about it for hours (and I guess I just did whoops lmao).

Also if you read it you’ll get the jojo references (important)

[obsidianstrawberrymilk]

Naruto hot takes part 3: can I PLEASE get a waffle?

1) Kushina and Minato’s relationship was so fucked up. Like seriously she was a genocide survivor and he was a literal war criminal who killed thousands of people. 2) Also the fucking power imbalance - Minato was a prodigy, chosen young to be the Third Hokage’s successor, had close ties to the three Sannin aka the most powerful ninja in Konoha, and seemed to have some connection to the Second Hokage. Kushina may have been a Jinjuuriki, but she was also a refugee without a family or connections. 3) Also Minato was probably a psychopath lmao. He literally doesn’t care about anyone’s problems unless they’re shoved in his face, has no reaction to two of his students literally dying, and puts the third one - as a traumatized child - in murder corps. 4) Yk if he was alive he probably would have been a dad in a similar way as Principal Asano from Assassination Classroom. 5) Konoha probably had a part to play in Ushizo’s demise and it’s why no one ever mentions them despite that the literal Hokage was married to an Uzumaki. 6) Sasuke isn’t the amazing radical savior his fandom think he is lol. 7) Yeah, he was the closest to a radical character throughout the series, but the second he found out why Itachi decided killing his whole clan was a good idea he immediately sided with him and never questioned any of his decisions. When he did claim to want a revolution, his ideas were a) becoming a dictator (Kage) or b) killing everyone in Konoha. 8) He has every right to be mad and you could probably make him an actual revolutionary easily, but still lol. 9) Shikaku was a kind of bad dad based on what hints we get of Shikamaru’s home life. 10) Literally everyone’s characterization - Sakura included - was more interesting, well rounded, and had more potential in Part 1 than Part 2. 11) Sakura should have been a ROOT agent. It makes a lot of sense, especially in Part 1. 12) For how interesting Sai’s backstory was there was very little point to his character. The only reason he was there was to be Sasuke’s replacement. 13) The fact that he could have and should have been more is true, but he wasn’t. 14) Tsunade had a shit ton of privilege as both a Senju and the granddaughter of the First Hokage and that really should have been explored. 15) Both Jiraiya and Orochimaru give me pedophile vibes and I do not like it. 16) There was literally no reason why basically all of the Rookie 9 had to be clan heirs. It makes no sense. 17) Sarutobi Hiruzen was probably senile and should probably never be seen ever again. Please someone destroy his face on that stupid Hokage Wall or whatever it’s called. 18) Hashirama wasn’t the happy-go-lucky guy everyone seems to think he is lol. He was manipulative as hell and probably killed a shit ton of people. 19) The Last is a really stupid movie that showcases all of Studio Perriot’s fetishes in like two hours. 20) The one thing that is realistic is Hinata caring more about knitting a scarf for ‘N-naruto kun’ than her sister being kidnapped. 21) Both Sakura and Hinata are shittily written characters who’s entire arcs in-story revolve around guys. The difference is Hinata is a slave owner and Sakura knows jack shit about politics because no one tells her anything. 22) Hey Kishimoto give your main heroine an actual fucking thematic and plot relevant role that makes her equal to her male teammates as she’s literally supposed to be as their deuteragonist challenge. 23) Oh yeah Rin being a ROOT agent also makes a lot of sense. 24) Please sort out Naruto’s backstory. Did he have no friends or were Shikamaru, Kiba, and Chouji his friends? Did he not give a shit about Hinata or did he save her from a copy-pasted version of Sakura’s backstory? Please. 25) Naruto isn’t empathetic at all he just trauma dumps on everyone and expects them to gush over his oh-so-sad backstory because he had it the worst out of everyone, awwww. 26) And the worst part is it works lmaoo. 27) Kakashi has white man energy. 28) The whole reincarnation plotline was stupid and added absolutely nothing other than making Naruto’s whole thing about being an ‘underdog’ even more obsolete as he was literally destined for power. 29) Honestly if the ramen girl (Ayame?) was younger I probably would have shipped her and Naruto. It would’ve been cute. 30) Fugaku wasn’t abusive lol. Yeah, he wasn’t a perfect dad, but he did care about his kids and didn’t purposefully hurt them. The only reason people make him out to be Sasuke’s abuser is so they can make Itachi into this uwu savior instead of a nationalist responsible for a genocide.

[solarsavoy]

WIP Wednesday, Life in Retail

Even though it's already being posted, it isn't complete and is technically still a WIP. I've got a lot of plans for this series and have even made a bit of a timeline for it.

I plan on adding three surprise guests that start work at Convenience, one from the Assassination Classroom fandom! I also plan on drawing Nagisa in a costume for each week of October and am open to thoughts or suggestions for the first three weeks. It'll also interact with Kristmas Karma II in December when that starts up. For the most part, they don't cross with each other, but Life in Retail ch40 and Kristmas Karma II ch 24 will be very closely interconnected to the point of needing to be read together.

Which reminds me, I've added "Timeline Links" to anything in the AC universe that I've written that is canon compliant with the main anime and then continues on afterwards. I post these on the day they're supposed to happen, so you can pretend it's happening now while you read it. The Timeline Links are listed at the bottom of the end notes and will help guide anyone willing and wanting to follow the timeline through all the fics. Life in Retail will be sort of special as it is a long term fic and thus interacts with all of them. So keep an eye out for Timeline Links listed in the end notes if you aren't reading live. And if you've been keeping up with Life in Retail up to now, I'm sure you noticed the note in the beginning notes saying a Timeline Link was added to previous items, which will be unique to Life in Retail, so hopefully that helps. Of course, Life in Retail will be fine to read on its own for the karen stories. 😏 Which I'll try to add at least one karen story or retail specific irritations to each chapter. I hope I don't run out of ideas... 😅

Life in Retail will be a total of 52 chapters since there are 52 weeks in a year and if all goes well and I'm able to keep up with it, I'll start a Life in Retail II for a second year. So, lot's of plans.

The next story Life in Retail will directly interact with will be an ASD story (Any Ship Dates) for Karma and Gakushuu, which I'm sure some of you will really appreciate. (You know who you are.) I'm also considering doing an ASD fic for Sugino and Kanzaki at some point, but I haven't quite worked them into my version of the AC universe yet. This may be my muse telling me to wait, or my brain saying I need to slow down because it's already so complicated as it is. Even so, I really wanted to work them in somehow after my fic "For Your Amusement" that I did for Karmagisa week. (I know, inspired to write about a different ship than Karmagisa during Karmagisa week. -_-)

I think that's about all I've got planned that isn't a major spoiler. There will be a secret event in November, a fic that interacts and affects Life in Retail, and it's sad. 😟 Just know it's coming.

As for the coworkers, here are your hints if you'd like to try and guess who they are.

Employee 1 is 18, a couple years older than he is in the anime. I'm bringing him into this world from another place so I'm changing stuff up a bit so things in this world line up with his roles and interests in his original anime and he's going to be an archaeology student working on trying to find an internship, so his work at Convenience is temporary. He'll stick around until after Christmas though. All of them will, actually.

Employee 2 is from the Assassination Classroom fandom. If I give any other hints, it makes it obvious who it is, so that's it for hints on this one. 😅

Employee 3 is a young man looking to try and get into college to become a doctor. He works hard and this is his third job and he studies all the time to try and prepare for his entrance exams into college. So, his work is also temporary. Should line up with canon in his original anime though, so I'm pretty excited about this one. 😊

And finally, someone will be replacing those that leave when Life in Retail starts up for a second round in March of 2023. This one, however, I plan on making permanent. No hints available on this one as just about anything I say could give it away to those who know me. 😏

And that's it for WIP Wednesday! Let me know your thoughts and guesses for those first 3 employees. I will refrain from verifying anything on the fourth one that starts in part II though, because like I said, it'll be an easy guess for those who know me if I say anything.

See you tomorrow for the next cover of Life in Retail! (Edit: Which is surprisingly done already! Look at me go. ^^)

[firehananas]

Writing Commentary - 2021 edition

I used to do this before on my ffnet account (in French) but I think this could be more interesting to post it here. To have a back trail, you know.

Note most of the fanfic are in French.

Amont of works publish this year: 8

Fandoms:

* Tenkuu Shinpan (2+1 translation)

* March Comes In Like a Lion (1)

* Pokémon (2)

* Assassination Classroom (1)

* Forgotton Anne (1)

* Angels of Death (1)

Ongoing (total): 11 Complete (this year): 2 (+1 translation)

This is the first time I try to write in English (all my thanks to rdfa (she’ll recognized herself)). I’m still nervous about it but, well, if you never try you’ll never be good, right?

It’s also my first time writing in the “x reader” genre. If you try to not give gender or use the “y/n” stuff, I find it quite stimulating and engaging (otherwise, I tend to think it’s pretty useless to put descriptive such as e/c or whatever. Like, what’s the point. I know what kind of color my eyes are, I don’t need you author to made me think of it. Be honest and says it’s an OC, nobody will be mad). Anyway, that’s fun and not as easy as you can think in first glance.

I try two different things — two with the classical second point of view, one with the third point of view. Two out of three were gendered female because self-fanservice I suppose.

Made also some translations - one of my own writing (Midnight Still <=> Minuit s’éternise [Tenkuu Shinpan]) and it was very interesting how to stay ambiguous on the gender, because French loved to gender every stupid thing in the world. I loved to subvert it. Fuck gender. Incredibly surprise and “disappointed” of the popularity they get tho. Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing people enjoying my writing! But I’m disappointed because it’s not something I’m particular proud of and I wish other stuffs I made was this popular. But, it can’t be help! That’s just how it is. Once I would finish Anges [Dé]chus saga, I don’t think I’ll come back to “x reader” again. 

Speaking of gender, I started Autumn’s naps [March comes in Like a Lion] which features my very first nonbinary protagonist OC, Kotone. It’s not apparent yet, but’ll be more explicit later on. Poor Kotone, they’s lost in the city for months now; I promise they’ll find their way at one point and second chapter will be fully publish. I also need to update the link on my tumblr, I swear I think of it each time I open the app ufeziutg It’s supposed to be short multi-chapter fics, and everything is written for the red line. Just need to put some form. Light hearted kid fic with terminal illness, family, friends to lover and growing up thematic. I try to stay close to the MCLL spirit. And in case you miss it, it’s in ✨English✨

Which leads to the others works I publish this year.

Terre-à-Terre : Ash’s Planet for the anniversary of Pokémon Diamond & Pearl and the remake (who completely sucks if you didn’t know btw, I’m crying bitter tears but at least I didn’t buy it) who promise to be a goddamn long fic (three parts of ~30 chapters). My goal here is to write a believable and not too much annoying love triangle between an OC/Commander Saturn/Mars, after the fall of Team Galactic. Saturn thinks everyone is an idiot, but he knows deep down he is the biggest fool. Curse, nobody take the Team Galactic seriously except when they do, atonement, rehabilitation and of course romance themes. Mostly canon-compliant and a bunch of OC grunts.

Noces Funèbres [Angels of Death] is suppose to be short (2 or 3 chapters), but it was taking dust in my pc so I need to work on it. I’m honestly very surprise of the warm received it gets, especially for something written in French. So I better not letting it died (ahah). A deviation if Rachel escapes from Danny without the help of Zack and meets Eddie. Canon dark themes, ambiguous relationship between Eddie and Rachel.

Sans peur et sans reproche is a parody/pastiche of fantasy and shonen genre with the settle of Pokémon. I have other thing to write right now so I’m not currently working on it, but I wanted to see what people would think about it. For now, nothing much but hey, who knows in the futur? Medium fic, I hope. Family, friendship and epic battles are excepted. Featuring talking Pokémon.

A fic “p/rn with plot” also that is not finish yet, but I won’t go in the detail. Honestly, it’s not really easy to write sm/ut, I can’t help myself but find it stupidly narm. Shouldn’t be long either — 6 chapters max.

A character study with Balles Perdues [Forgotton Anne]. I’m thinking about making a translation when I’ll have time. Magnum is a very interesting character and I’m a little sadden there is just me who had make something for him. Angst, mourning, death themes. Heavy spoilers too, and inspired by my own let’s play.

Still ongoing but didn’t really write for them this year:

* Le Dragon de Cristal [Eldarya]: I’m stuck at the chapter where Leiftan is supposed to met Erika and Ashkore; I’ve no idea how to make it right yet. * La princesse et le Sorcier de la forteresse [Hetalia]: Each year, I said I’ll finish it. Each year, I open the document of the fic, read it, and forget about it. Maybe next year? * True Self or Trust Yourself [Pokémon]: I really love this fic, but I need to read it and correct it. And I should make a real red line — like written on a doc and not mental note that I’ll without a doubt forget. * Le Baron Rouge : Autodafé [Pokémon]: This fic is so dark and depressing that I couldn’t work on it this year without feeling super awful. I hope I’ll be in better mood next year, because I think it’s one of the best thing I have ever write. (Also thinking about changing the title?)

Thinking to deleted: 

* Deux fleurs jaunes [Hetalia & Ib]: I have said long ago I’ve gave it up, but I’m thinking about making definitely gone. I really dislike having unfinished stuff on my profile... * Anima : le Souffle [Harry Potter & Hetalia]: Between my growing disinterest in Hetalia and JK being unquestionably a TERF, I no longer want to write for it anymore. Which is a shame, I have think about this fic for years... but well. I’ll probably deleted it soon.

Coming Soon (if it’s not out already):

* Spider Lilies (crawling in our skulls) [Tenkuu Shinpan]: Basically, canon deviation where Kuon meets Yoshida and Rika prioritizes rejoining his sister instead of helping people. Will your faves survive? Make your debt! Will maybe have a sequel, and it’s in ✨English✨ (probably followed by a French translation)

Also, I have a memoire to do this year so I don’t know how much present I’ll be in 2022. We’ll see!

[medea10]

My Review of Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni GOU

(a.k.a. When They Cry Gou)

I know what you’re thinking. Why the heck am I reviewing this anime again? I’ve already written a review in 2009 and re-polished it in 2016. (Here it is BTW) I’ve made my point on who I like, hate, what ships are worthy, and poked fun at all the deaths that happened throughout the series. I think some time has passed that I should say some thoughts on this…um, story. After all, Higurashi is one of my favorite animes.

STORY: Ah shit, here we go again!

Higurashi or When They Cry is about a boy named Keiichi Maebara who recently moved to a place called Hinamizawa. And ever since moving to this town, he’s found his days are filled with fun mischief with fellow friends Rena Ryuuguu, Satoko Hojo, Mion Sonozaki, and Rika Furude. But little does Keiichi know that there’s a little murder mystery that surrounds the town. During a town festival known as Watanagashi (or Cotton Drifting), there’s usually one or two people that go missing or turn up dead. And this year, Keiichi is next. So let’s relive the horrors that plague the town of Hinamizawa and…

One episode later.

Wait, what the…?! It’s episode 2, why are we seeing Hanyuu? I don’t remember that in the manga. The visual! THE VISUAL! WHAT THE FUCK?! ISN’T THIS SUPPOSED TO BE A REBOOT? WHAT THE FUCK?! WHAT THE FUCK?! WHY IS THERE AN ADULT RIKA?! WAIT, IS THAT ADULT RIKA OR BERN? IS THIS GOING TO BE THE PARALLEL UNIVERSE TO THE WITCHES OF UMINEKO?! THE SHADOWS IN THE OPENING ARE TOO FAMILIAR FROM OTHER WORKS! Ryukishi07, you magnificent, fucking troll master for keeping this hidden until the second episode’s air date!

Many of us did not see this coming. When they announced a new Higurashi series that was going to be done by a different studio, many of us speculated whether this was going to be a reboot or a sequel. But then we got the PV trailers and it looked like we were going to get a reboot to correct the mistakes Studio Deen made years ago. Rika’s head doesn’t look like its gonna snap off because her body is so small in comparison. Improvements! I mean, they showed everything we were already used to like the yandere girls, the original soundtrack, the original freakin’ cast, and death by baseball bat. Hell, the first episode ended with an Eiko Shimamiya song! It was on track to being a reboot! A better looking reboot!

Here in lies the sequel aspect! After episode one, we get a scene that isn’t usually seen until the Kai part of Higurashi (a good 4-5 arcs away). And they give away the secret that Rika Furude is repeating the timeline of June 1983 over and over because she keeps dying. And as the series progresses, you notice little things different from the original series. Many of the well-known storylines end much differently than what you remember. Instead of Keiichi killing Rena and Mion with a baseball bat, you’ve got Rena going psycho on Keiichi. And Rika’s fate is somehow worse than the stories of the original series. So let’s head back to Hinamizawa to hear the cicadas cry and watch a murder mystery unfold.

THE SUB: All the original voice actors have returned to voice their respected roles. Perfection in a nutshell!

LICENSING: You’ve gotta be shitting me!

As I’ve mentioned years ago in my review, the original Higurashi anime went through a turbulent time being licensed in the states. It was originally licensed and dubbed by Geneon. But once Geneon collapsed, FUNimation licensed it and did absolutely fuck all with it. Geneon could only manage to squeak out one season. At this point, FUNimation was picking up titles that Geneon used to have before it fell under including Familiar of Zero, Kyou Kara Maou, and yes, Higurashi. All of these titles mentioned here were done absolutely nothing with despite having cult followings, second seasons, and OVA’s.

A year or two after licensing it, the license expired for Higurashi. For nearly six years, the only copies you could get were out of print and estimating at $500 at the very least for a full collection. Single DVD’s could be found in rare shops, but it would take like 13 years to complete the fucking collection if you did it that way. And that was only for the first season. Second season, the best all of us could do was bootleg DVD’s from Japan Town or fansubs with glaring errors for the best season to Higurashi. We had to deal with this shit until Sentai Filmworks licensed and released the first 2 seasons and the Rei OVA’s.

AND NOW YOU’RE TELLING ME FUNIMATION IS CLAIMING HIGURASHI ALL FOR THEMSELVES?!

Where the shit was this love 10 years ago when we were asking politely to release Kai? People ignorantly blew Higurashi off for years because season two was never released in the states until 2016 because they thought the damn anime ended after Rena held up the school. I’m already irritated with FUNimation after the Interspecies Reviewers debacle and I’m still quite butt-hurt over them re-releasing Nichijou with a dub to make a quick buck. Licensing Higurashi just brings back old anger. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy Higurashi is legally licensed and can be seen on at the very least Hulu. It’s just that I hold grudges and this was a big one.

THE DUB: Holy…um, okay! This is a rather big gulp to take in. As I’ve repeatedly mentioned in past reviews, the Higurashi dub was a mixed bag of okay, bad, and oh gasperts kill it with fire. So, not great! The good folks at Geneon (before bankrupting in America) dubbed the first season with a good chunk of folks that put their fake names to the credits. Again, not great! To me, there were some aspects of Megan Hollingshed, Mela Lee, and Grant George’s performances of Mion, Rena, and Keiichi that were okay. SOME! John Snyder and Karen Strassmen as Ooishi and Takano were the best out of that dub. Everything else was just irredeemable! It needed a redub, an overhaul, and a spit-shine. For years, I’ve wondered who would be the dream cast. Sentai Filmworks unfortunately never dubbed the remaining seasons when they released them. Would Luci Christian be the heavenly voice to do Rika Furude? Could we get Hilary Haag to do Satoko? Okay, that never came to pass.

This dub is a breath of fresh air. Rika doesn’t sound like Mihoshi. Satoko doesn’t sound fake, Keiichi doesn’t sound like a weird Sonic the Hedgehog. It’s perfect. ESPECIALLY BRITTANY LAUDA AS SATOKO! I knew the second she was cast as Satoko that she was going to excel the fuck out of this role. And I was not disappointed! The only voice I’m still not quite used to is Michelle Rojas as the Sonozaki twins. Probably because I was somewhat okay with Megan Hollingshed’s voice in the 2006 version that it’ll take some time! And we FINALLY got a voice for Hanyuu. I am super excited that Xanthe Huynh is the voice and I know she’ll do great with this role! With all of that said, here’s what you might recognize these folks from.

*Keiichi is now played by Khoi Dao (known for Kiriyama on March Comes in Like a Lion, Murata on Demon Slayer, Chaka on Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Pt. 3, and Iskhan on SAO: Alicization)

*Rena is now played by Emi Lo

*Mion/Shion is now played by Michelle Rojas (known for Shizu Delta on Overlord, Touka on Assassination Classroom, Minase on Psycho Pass, Kanan on Love Live Sunshine, and Kusakai on Keijo!!!!!!!!)

*Rika is now played by Apphia Yu (known for Rio on Assassination Classroom, Marie on Black Clover, You on Love Live Sunshine, Victorique on Gosick, Natsumi on Danganronpa 3, and Laki on Fairy Tail)

*Satoko is now played by Brittany Lauda (known for Riko on Made in Abyss, Meidri on Interspecies Reviewers, Lessar on Index III, and Ichigo on Darling in the FranXX)

*Hanyuu is played by Xanthe Huynh (known for Menma on Anohana, Haru on Persona 5, Hanayo on Love Live, Hidomi on FLCL: Progressive, PallaPalla on Sailor Moon Super S [redub], and Sachi on SAO)

ANY CHANGES IN YOUR HATE-O-RADE:

Okay Medea, let-a-rip!

*inhales and exhales*

Teppei Hojo is trash. He is ultimate trash. This fucker needs to be murdered in every timeline. He is a turd in a Glenn Quagmire shirt. Him and his wife are trash. And when this pile of trash is cheating on that pile of trash, he sleeps with peak trash named Ritsuko. Teppei Hojo needs to die in every timeline. Whenever Keiichi bashes this cum-burger’s head in with a blunt instrument, I scream at the top of my lungs, “DIE SCUM, DIE”! And nothing, I repeat, NOTHING will change my opinion of Teppei Hojo.

Episode 23.

Oh, fuck you Higurashi Gou!

MUSIC: Okay, thank you for proving me wrong. I did not despise the opening theme. Having Higurashi with no Eiko Shimamiya is like having Pokemon with no Rika Matsumoto. Or Rozen Maiden with no ALI PROJECT. But this new opening is fine by my standards.

That’s right, get the niceness of the review before I get angry down below.

THESE TIMELOOPS: Rika tries to find solutions to end her time-loop in June 1983. Much like the original series, we follow stories from the Onikakushi-hen, Watanagashi-hen, and Tatarigoroshi-hen arcs (the first three stories to Higurashi, although now these have different names). However, all of these arcs have different endings. And after a positive turnaround with Satoko escaping from her abusive uncle, shit goes south when Detective Ooishi, who up to this point has never suffered under the Hinamizawa Syndrome or died a painful death goes on a murderous rampage. Higurashi style! That means, he’s after Rika Furude, will slaughter anyone in his way, and scratching his neck because he sees maggots (part of the hallucination effect).

What the shit? Ooishi for the most part has been a great guy. With the exception of the Tatarigoroshi-hen storyline, he was a nice guy! In the limbo with Hanyuu, Rika now remembers who has killed her. Every time Rika dies up to this point, she never remembers who was the cause of her demise. Hanyuu implanted that power to remember the deaths and a clue for Rika to use and then she disappears.

Now seriously, imagine Rika’s plight here. She has been repeating the month of June 1983 for over a hundred years. And each of these times she repeats, she’s horribly murdered. Rika got the shit-end of the deal in the murder department in the original series, including being dissected on while alive. Then, leaving her bloody, naked corpse out in the open of the Oyashiro altar! She’s tired of this shit! She wants to live a happy life away from Hinamizawa. She wants to grow older, become a teenager, and have fun. And this series made it worse by having her die four times in one episode. Not just that, but murdered by the most unexpected people including Akasaka, Chief Kimiyoshi, Mion’s mother Akane, and Keiichi. Keiichi has never killed Rika in any of the timelines up to this point. He has killed Mion and Rena, but never Rika. Keiichi loves Rika! Welcome back to A Million Ways to Die in Hinamizawa.

I’ll just add decapitation, drowning in a lake, set on fire, drowning in a sewage pipe, and death by…um…

Alexa, play Chandelier by Sia.

ENDING: We all know by now that in the original series, Miyo Takano is the betrayer and the reason behind all the murders during the Cotton Drifting Festival. This time, it’s someone closer to Rika that’s causing Rika so much pain. After we watched the worst kinds of murders happen to Rika, the episode after gave us our answer. Satoko, Rika’s friend and confidant is not happy that Rika is turning her back on Oyashiro and Hinamizawa. All the while pulling out her intestines!

Oh Higurashi, don’t stop being gory!

Yes, Satoko is aware of past timelines much like Rika and is almost on a god-like state. So what the hell happened to her? I know Satoko’s past has been a cluster-fuck of horror with her brother disappearing, her parents dying, and every form of abuse from her uncle. But she was able to prevail after all that. After surviving 1983, a lot has changed in Hinamizawa. The three big families of Hinamizawa put an end to the Cotton Drifting Festival and claiming there is no curse of Oyashiro. Mion and Shion moved on and are going to high school. And Rika decides she wants to move away from this village. By attending St. Lucia! And she wants to do this with Satoko.

Oh, if you don’t recall St. Lucia, Shion attended this academy until she escaped during the Meakashi-hen arc. It was also the same school that Ange from Umineko attended. But of course Ange attended it in the 90’s and we are clearly in the 80’s. Moving on!

Rika and Satoko studied their butts off for years and their hard work paid off as both were admitted into St. Lucia. Now Rika was able to prevail and fit in with everyone. Satoko on the other hand couldn’t do the same as her grades took a dip, her manners are atrocious, and she doesn’t seem to fit in with anyone. And this caused a drift between Rika and Satoko! And so during a trip to Hinamizawa, Satoko went to the old shrine where she ended up getting sent to that limbo place Rika and Hanyuu were at many times before. There, she meets Eua (God, I hope that really isn’t her name). She’s much like Hanyuu except a lot more condescending. Oh, and she’s that mysterious shadow during the opening theme. She bestows the power to Satoko of reviving on death and returning to a certain point in time. In the hopes that Satoko is able to stop Rika from going to St. Lucia! But Rika is not going to budge. She wants out of Hinamizawa no matter what. And Satoko just wants to be with her friend no matter what. Satoko is even shown Rika’s past and still no dent in…Okay, this is bugging the fuck outta me. Pause the Ending portion!

MY GRIPES WITH SATOKO: Satoko, girl, the fuck is wrong with you?! I know Rika is like your main chick and everything, but for fuck’s sake loosen the grip you have with Rika. This season has changed you and not for the better. You made a connection with ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS from Hinamizawa. Big connections! At least in the original series you did. Look at your moments with Keiichi and Shion. Are you just going to shove them off? And what really sets me off is that Satoko literally had the opportunity to learn about Rika’s hundred year’s loop of death. And feels nothing about it! Only that it’s a challenge to break her herself! God damn, at the end of season one, Keiichi learned the truth and he was remorseful. This bitch doesn’t care that her friends were murdered in such a way. And Rika’s been shot in the head, had a live dissection performed on her, and other forms of torture…AND IT DOESN’T FAZE SATOKO!

I know in my original Higurashi review, I felt sorry for Satoko as she did seem to get the short-end of the stick living in Hinamizawa. I mean, her parents died right in front of her, she suffered abuse from her uncle, abuse from her aunt, ostrisized by the town for years, and a myriad of all types of shit to befall her. But Higurashi Gou has ruined this character. Rika didn’t really do anything wrong to Satoko. She didn’t snitch on her when Satoko got in trouble. She offered help to Satoko when she thought her grades were slipping. Satoko just held onto this petty vendetta. Satoko acted like Rika sexually assaulted her and have two other people gang rape her while drugging her. Okay, that’s a call for revenge, not your petty shit.

YOU SEE WHERE I’M AT WITH YOU SATOKO?! Your actions are so bad that you have me siding with the protagonist from Redo of Healer.

REDO.

OF.

HEALER!!!

I’m done with you! Girl, bye! We now return you to my talk about the ending already in progress.

BACK TO THE ENDING: Sorry, had to get that off my chest. Yeah, Satoko is leaving a bad impression on many of us who have been following the Higurashi story for years. And it just gets worse as she uses her new power for petty shit and abusing it at that. I mean, we saw Rika use her power in order to find a way to live past June 1983. Satoko is just using that shit to win some games and have things go her way. What else could this series bless us with? How about an epiphany from Teppei Hojo?

What?!

Teppei changes for the better.

What?!

Look, I admit that these moments with Teppei and Satoko were tame compared to the shit she’s pulled in the last several episodes. But this is Teppei Hojo! The same guy that used Satoko as his personal punching bag! The same guy who fleeced Rena’s father! The same guy many of us who cheer every time we see him on a moped because we know someone’s going to bash his head in with a baseball bat. Even my best friend knows how I am with this guy. When she gave me Higurashi free swag, I took everything except for Teppei. I don’t take trash. So seeing him so remorseful makes me…conflicted.

So now Satoko’s got things turned around for her. Her uncle has…changed?! Add to that, her God-like power. Satoko decides to change the past for her own advantage. This includes changing one of the biggest stories in Higurashi Kai with the kids vs. Miyo Takano. If Rika doesn’t experience the pain in those timelines, she won’t think about leaving Hinamizawa. And if she doesn’t leave Hinamizawa, she’ll stay with Satoko forever.

Oh what a tangled web of crazy Higurashi Gou was! I gotta tell you, Higurashi got me excited all the way up until we learn it was Satoko. And then it went straight to Hell. They turned Satoko into a straight-up selfish monster. Totally unlike the Satoko we’ve all grown to love in the original series. Yes, Satoko had those moments where, yeah, you would want to throw a chair at her and beat her ass with it. But that was only temporary! You would always see the good in Satoko despite that mischievous laugh and those episodes in Higurashi Rei. And God help me, I was a shipper of Rika x Satoko 10 years ago. Not a big one, but a supporter of it. Now, I would rather support Amourshipping from Pokemon than root for this. And I despise the living fuck out of Amourshipping. That should tell you something!

If original Satoko were bestowed the powers from Eua, I think things would be different. Satoko would probably use her powers to prevent all the bad stuff from happening to her friends and to her brother Satoshi. I mean, my goodness, not once did I see her think, hey maybe I should find a way to help my ailing brother. Change a few timelines, make him all better! And of course, feel sympathy for Rika’s plight. Do it for Rika’s sake, not your own selfish desires! Rika has died horrificly for hundreds of years. And I seriously just can’t get over Satoko’s reaction to that when she learned the truth. Instead, she wants to treat Rika like a caged bird. Best friend my ass!

Now can Higurashi SOTSU fix the hot mess of Satoko? Time will only tell! And good on them for having Higurashi air in the summertime. Summertime is for Higurashi! Autum is for Umineko. Speaking of, it’s been since 2009. Any chance you want to give Umineko the old reboot or sequel it sorely needs? Oh forget it! My likeness for this season is conflicted. I was annoyed by it, but I didn’t fully hate it. It’s just that last arc with Satoko really burned my beans. And I’m sure a lot of you all feel the same way.

Guys, if you want to watch Higurashi Gou, do yourselves a favor and watch the original series first. Let that swirl around your heads for a while. I know the creator tricked us at the beginning of this series thinking it was going to be an honest-to-God retelling. It is not! It is a sequel. And a sequel that isn’t based off a game or manga of all things. So fans are jumping into this with eyes closed! And if you’re a fan of Satoko Hojo, I’m sorry. I’m just sorry.

If you want to check out Higurashi Gou, it is available to watch on FUNimation and Hulu. But please, if you haven’t watched the original series, go to HI-DIVE now and watch “When They Cry” and “When They Cry Kai”. I think you can manage without watching any of the OVA’s.

I’d rather watch that Kira OVA where the fanservice is thin, you can practically lick off the whipped cream from the Sonozaki’s tit.

That should tell you something if I’m starting to say something nice about Higurashi Kira.

See you in a few months when Higurashi SOTSU comes out.

[nightowlfandom]

ROUND THREE- PROMPT LIST (REQUEST NOW, READ ALL OF THIS)

 So this is the THIRD installment of my “x reader” prompt list. HOORAY! In light of leaving for so long it’s made me realize that I feel dead inside without writing so, I’m gonna do it again and hopefully this time stay. Also since I don’t eat, breathe, sleep, and shit kpop and actually like some other things too, I feel it’s a good opportunity to share how I’d like various anime characters to fuck me up in more ways what one (wink wonk). I will also say I might only do “character x reader” because I am absolute shit at doing ships. It’s just not my thing and plus I love making peoples personal fantasies come true, it is a big hobby of mine. 

Also if you request a character (assuming you’re asking for an anime request)  that is portrayed as a young teenager, then most likely (scratch that, the word I’m thinking of is “absolutely”) he/she will be written in a universe as a young adult/older than 18 because I’m all about legal consent to doing the fun shit either that...or not at all. (I have to make this big because I cannot stress enough how important this rule is and if you can’t comply, then I have every right to reject your request) Don’t argue with me please.

Rules- You may choose up to 5 prompt numbers if you can’t choose, talk to me and we’ll go through it together because I’m here to capture your horny ass vision. (Example- You wanted to request 3, 4, 12, 45, and 23). Please start with telling me which character you’d like me to write for and give me some insight. (Example- You want a J-hope office AU, then explain the preface like hate to love, secret affair, cute office shit. Or let’s say for example you want something Levi Ackerman related and you talked back to him and he don’t like dat so he “punishes you” ;) ). Get it? Also I take kinder asks more often so keep that in mind, I won’t take your request if you seem rude or whatever.  

Before you ask, yes I do AUs. A lot of my entries are in fact AUs and they are actually my preferred method because who doesn’t love a good AU!!?!! But yeah do not be afraid to ask about AUs

So I usually write for k-pop groups, mostly BTS but I’m broadening my horizon sooo ayye so you can request for Got7, Winner, The Rose, Day6, EXO, if you aren’t sure what other groups I write for you can always ask! 

Anime- Attack on Titan, Black Butler, Fairy Tail, Naruto, BNHA, Kageguri, Tokyo Ghoul, Assassination Classroom, Diabolik Lovers, (ESPECIALLY THIS ONE, I freaking love Diabolik Lovers) once again if you aren’t sure, then please ask. These are just examples but I try to reach every aspect.

ANYTHING BY VOLTAGE- Kissed By The Baddest Bidder, Our Two Bedroom Story, Enchanted In The Moonlight, Butler Until Midnight, Scandal In The Spotlight,   PLEASE REQUEST IT BECAUSE AAAAHHHH I LOVE IT. I do not care which game, just tell me which guy from which game and I will make it happen because Voltage Games are a huge part of me. Just tell me which guy from which game.

Now onto the good stuff! (Also please note that some prompts won’t make sense with some characters and the only reason that is is so everyone can find something to attach to who they want) 

So this first part, is going to be what was on the previous prompt, after number 55 will be the new added on stuff just in case any one of my followers recognizes these. 

1- “How miserable must I be before you’re satisfied?”

2- “Guess I’m not cut out for this dating thing, huh?”

3-“Damnit! Do you have any idea how amazing you are?! Stop being so damn insecure”

4- “Don’t argue with me on this!!”

5- “I can’t just be friends with you…I can’t.”

6- “Do you have to be so annoying all the time?”

7- “No, you can not stay here…I don’t care that it’s raining!”

8- “Why can’t you see that I-….that I-”

9- “Stop pretending to be asleep..”

10- “ Could we go four seconds without you being annoying?”

11-“do you not know what the word ‘mine’ means?”

12- “Shhh, wouldn’t want anyone to hear us now would we?”

13- “I dare you to finish that sentence…”

14- “Someone’s a little irritable today…”

15- “We can’t all be a perfect prettyboy popstar!”

16- “You just…you just kissed me!! *Insert freaked out face here*”

17- “We’re only sharing a bed, it isn’t the end of the world.”

18- “Only make that face in front of me.”

19- “If you wanted my attention…all you had to do was ask.”

20- “I’m bored, wanna fuck?”

21- “Can’t you see that I…I…forget it”

22- “…I can’t kiss you the way I want…”

23- “It was foolish of me to think you could ever want a relationship with me…forget it.”

24- “I aim to please…”

25- “When did this topic even come up!”

26- “You’re so boring, haven’t you ever been wild?”

27- “Hm…I like when you do that.”

28- “I’m more than capable of being rough with you babe. You just watch.”

29- “Where the hell did you learn that?!?!”

30-“Well, the boys accidentally…saw that picture you sent…Have I ever told you how much I love you?”

31-“You need to be taught a lesson…”

32- “Shh, wouldn’t want the boys to hear us, now would you?”

33-I don’t understand you sometimes…but I like it.“

34- ” Don’t pretend that wasn’t on purpose…come here.“

35- ” I’m not so happy about doing a duet with you of all people…but could you at least try and not be a..” ( obviously used for kpop requests but this can be modified so don’t worry :) )

36- “Don’t pretend to care when you obviously don’t.”

37- “Am I making you nervous, Y/N?“

38-“I never thought I would see the day you actually take my advice ”

39- "Just admit you want fuck me…if you behave, I might just let you.”

40- “I…I think you’re wonderful…those horrible people you’ve dated…they didn’t deserve you.”

41- “It’s you and me, not us and them. Fuck what they think.”

42- “Oh my gosh, we didn’t…HOLY SHIT WE DID. You tell anyone and there will be one less idol in the world!” 

43- “You’re so quiet…is something wrong?”

44- “Maybe, if you beg, I might….”

45- “Go to sleep, I promise I’ll wake you up.”

46- “This could be more than just another one night stand…”

47- “It’s amazing what the internet will teach you” *casually holding handcuffs*

48- “…you deserve better, someone who cares about you.”

49- “Can’t I do something nice without being suspicious??”

50- “Finally alone…”

51- “Maybe, we could…be boyfriend and girlfriend.?”

52- “You can’t call me cute!”

53- “Have a nice sleep?”

54- “How stupid do you think I am?”

55- “ Are you shy? Around little ol me?”

... 

 56- “Is this how it’s gonna be between us, just fighting all the time?”

57- “You know after all that, you can still look at me and see something worth loving?”

58- “Avoiding me won’t fix your undying love for me, many have tried but all have failed Y/N.”

59- “Me? Self-centered? No no never!”

60- “You are the complete opposite of subtle and it’s amusing.”

61- “No! What are you afraid of?!? Why is is so hard to believe than someone like me could have feelings for you!”

62- “What did they do to you, I won’t ask again....”

63- “I want...to stay with you for as long as possible. Please...let me?”

64- “Even if I have to rip (your enemy’s name) heart out with me bear hands, I will always protect you.”

65- “What? (innocent face) I’m just massaging your shoulders.”

66- “You’re pretty cute for such a clumsy buffoon. Hmm Maybe I’ll keep you!”

67- “Hm, When you put it that way, it makes me sound like a monster.”

68- “ Oh honey, I treat you like a maid because that’s basically all you are.”

69- “Hmmm...turn your body around. Just like that, I wanna try something.” (You all saw this coming and shame on you if you didn’t)

70- “You want me to name all the reasons I love you?....We’d be here forever.”

71- “Oh baby, you’re terrible at hide and seek....but I’ll play along.”

72- “ Oh look, she finally stands up for herself...hmm. I like this side of you.”

73- “The guy you saw....isn’t me...give me a chance to change your mind.”

74-” What? Why are you crying??!! Oh for fu-”

75- “I bully you because it’s fun....no other reason really.”

76- “Why are you so breathtaking god-damnit!”

77- “I know you’ve never....done anything with anyone before...so I’m gonna make damn sure your first time is special!”

78- “ Call me cliche, but you really do look great in the moonlight.”

79- “ What’s this? A sketchbook? You won’t mind if I take a peek, right?”

80- “Shut up! I’m not blushing!”

81- “You look so...inviting all tied up.”

82- “You’re so good at taking orders. I wonder what else you’re good at.”

83- “Okay since when did getting into a fight for your honor become a bad thing?!!?”

84- “What’s the word I’m looking for?....Pet!”

85- “I’ll be the best boyfriend you’ve ever had, I promise!”

86- “ Me? Y-you like me? Y/N, If you’re joking you aren’t really funny y’know.”

87- “That’s pretty bold for something whose only wearing a towel.”

88- “So you didn’t think I’d catch you looking at some other guy right in front of me?!?!’

89- “ Me? A jerk? Hm...I didn’t know you felt that way....I’m-”

90- “Okay stop it already! People are gonna think I’m bullying you if you keep sobbing like that.”

91- “Hm, do you even have friends or is hanging out alone in an empty classroom/room all you do all day?”

92- “How do you expect me to focus when you’re practically begging for me to come over there and show you who you belong to??”

93- “Let’s say...for example...I was the one who left the love letter by your door...what would you say?”

94- “Do you enjoy being bullied by me? Are you a masochist or something?”

95- “ It’s not everyday I let you be in control...enjoy it babe.”

96- “Someone’s been messing with you? Are you gonna tell me who or not?”

97- “Is my heart just some sort of game to you!?!!?”

98- “You’ve got a lot of nerve showing your face around here after our last....interaction.”

99- “Oh don’t stop because of me, you looked so cute dancing around.”

100- “ I didn’t know...you were so talented. You’re amazing.”

101- “ Please never give up, for me, for us...”

102- “What does it look like I’m doing? I’m hugging you.”

103- “If I can eat your cooking every day, I’ll be happy.”

104- “ What can we say....sharing is caring.” (...best paired with threesome requests but haaaayy can be used for anything else.)

105- “ You need to learn some respect...bend over.”

[charlierejouis]

So, @gabbaray tagged me into this game. I need a good excuse to not do homework. Jokes aside, let’s do this.

1. What’s your favorite social media platform?

In terms of format and content, I’d say Tumblr is my favorite. In terms of community, I prefer Youtube. If that doesn’t count, I got a Reddit account and they’re not too terrible.

2.  Which parent/guardian/family member do you look the most like? (Alternate: With which parent/guardian/family member do you share the most personality traits?)

Though I think the answer to the first depends on who the person answering knows more, I think I get a lot of my personality from my dad.

3. What’s your favorite fanfic trope?

One trope I’m becoming more and more appreciative of is Chekov’s Gun. To over-simplify, if something is mentioned, it can become important later. For fanfics specifically, it’s always interesting to see what random details from source material people rely on to make their stories.

4. Who’s your favorite character type? (What’s a trait or archetype that your favorite character in different series share?)

There are two different archetypes I personally find interesting. The first is really loud characters who don’t give up on their lofty aspirations. The second is snarky characters who are annoyed by the world asking too much of them. These two are close to the opposite of each other and I don’t know how I ended up with these tastes.

5. Who are three people, dead or alive, you would invite to be on your podcast?

This is definitely a weird trio, but I’d get Hiro Mashima (because of course, I would), C.S Lewis (master writer of fiction and non-fiction) and Alan Menken (favorite living composer). Depending on who couldn’t come, I’d go with Watari Wataru, Tim Keller or Sergei Rachmaninoff.

6. You get one song to convince a potential significant other that you love them, what are you going to play?

As a composer, I’m genuinely concerned that I can’t think of a good answer. For now, I’ll just go with their favorite song, until I’m able to write something better.

7. Where would you take your best friend(s) to surprise them with an all-expense paid trip?

Japan or Italy. At this point, I’m sure that the right answer could be “Out of the United States”. 

8. What’s a television/show/movie that impacted you in a major way?

Obviously, the answer is Fairy Tail. It’s not an exaggeration to say that being able to talk about Fairy Tail has changed both my writing and thinking over the past three years. I genuinely can’t wait for this final season to come out.

9. What’s the last album you listened to for the first time?

I don’t care how this will sound: The Original Broadway Cast Recording for The Spongebob Musical. I’ve listened to it like 8 times, it’s so good. It might be the second best soundtrack I’ve heard for a Broadway musical in years.(And yes, one is Hamilton.) The fact that this exists is insane and, considering the nature of the songs written, Tom Kitt better get the Tony for Best Orchestration or I’ll go hunting. 

10. Time stands still for 24 hour(s didn’t you mean to add the ‘s’?), what do you do?

Finish copying all my old sheet music. I have years worth of music, serious and otherwise, I want to make a digital form of. I’ve barely put a dent into it. If I have extra time, I’d finish rereading Fairy Tail for a project I’m working on.

11. *Mom voice* Are you taking daily multivitamins?

You think I have multivitamin money?

Well, I have to come up with some questions.

Your two favorite main characters get in a fight. (Physical or argument.) Who wins?

What’s the craziest idea you’ve had and don’t regret?

Has there been something so bad, it’s sparked creativity for negative reasons?

What are your thoughts on fanfiction as legitimate art?

Favorite period of art?

You have to kill anyone ever in history, even if they were actually executed/assassinated. Who do you pick?

Is there a thing the rest of Tumblr seems interested in, but you don’t see the appeal of?

What is your philosophy on reading indecent language out loud in public, like for classroom settings?

Is there a series you love even though most people don’t like it?

What is the worst thing about Tumblr?

What is the worst music?

 @rainbowcitrin @charlottec21 and @sassyhazelowl - You’re up. (and anyone else who wants to)

[stacks-reviews]

New Releases 10/3/17

Happy New Release Day! 

In Books --The Name of the Wind 10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition by Patrick Rothfuss “My name is Kvothe. I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that would make the minstrels weep. You may have heard of me. So begins a tale unequaled in fantasy literature - the story of a hero told in his own voice. It is a tale of sorrow, a tale of survival, a tale of one man’s search for meaning in his universe, and how that search, and the indomitable will that drove it, gave birth to a legend.”

This book more than likely did not require me to provide a description. But I just love the description so much that I just had to put it up. This is my current top favorite book. I really love it and I am very excited to see an anniversary edition for it. I have been wanting to retire my mass market paperback for a while. I did get to meet Pat at a book signing a few years back and got that copy signed, as well as my copy of The Wise Man’s Fear, and my hardcover of A Slow Regard of Silent Things. I’ve been wanting to retire these signed copies so that nothing happens to them so this anniversary edition is just what I’ve been waiting for. At least until I can meet him again and get this one signed.

This edition has a new cover by designer Paul Buckley and artist Sam Weber. I’m not crazy about the cover. I prefer the standard cover used now. I’m having some trouble trying to understand just what all the images represent in the story so that’s what is really making me not like it as much. There is also some never before seen illustrations by artist Dan Dos Santos. Nate Taylor created a updated and detailed map of the world. An appendix of the calendar system, the currencies, and a pronunciation guide was added. And Pat wrote a new author’s note for this edition.

As of this writing (around 10:30pm Monday) it has not arrived at any of the bookstores near me but I have seen where it it out at other locations. I’m hoping it will arrive near me sometime today. Then I guess I’ll have to plan a fourth (or maybe a fifth. I don’t remember) reread of it soon.

--Anime Supremacy! by Mizuki Tsujimura “Japanese animation - the globally acclaimed, family-friendly theatrical features are the exception rather than the rule for a TV-oriented industry that has been pushed into late-night slots in an era of fragmented audiences. When only three titles among fifty might turn a profit, topping the charts is hardly an overambitious aim. Yet as three women, a producer, a director, and an animator, survive in a business infamous for its murderous schedules, demoralizing compromises, and incorrigible men, moments of uplift emerge against all odds - and how. More than just a window into an entertainment niche, here’s a kickass ode to work.”

A new; though only volume, manga about the animation industry in Japan. It sounds like a good look into this industry and it follows three women as they try to make their way in an industry full of ‘incorrigible’ men. Which this might be the first manga to follow women in this industry. I’m not positive but I’m fairly sure most of the manga that has used this type of story has mainly followed men. I can think of maybe one or two that has some ladies but I can’t recall for sure.

--Assassination Classroom Volume 18 by Yusei Matsui “Nagisa and Karma travel to the International Space Station in hopes of learning the secret to saving Koro Sensei’s life. Meanwhile, Yanagisawa and the upstart Grim Reaper II train ever harder to assassinate him. Then, when academic setbacks lower the spirits of his students, Koro Sensei comes up with an ingenious - or perhaps idiotic - way to cheer them up. Next, Valentine’s Day arrives! Will any of the 3-E students or teachers find true love? And will the meddling and teasing of the others help or hinder Cupid’s arrow in finding its target...?”

I’m reading this volume right now. But in Volume 17 Nagisa and Karma faced off in their fight to determine if they should save or assassinate Koro Sensei. Nagisa won and they learned that information about Koro Sensei was on the ISS that could potentially help them save his life. It ended with Nagisa and Karma sneaking into a rocket prototype to retrieve said information. Which was handed over fairly easily in this volume. The part with Yanagisawa and the Grim Reaper were short which is for the best to keep us wondering what they will try to do to kill Koro Sensei. I last left off during the start of the Valentine’s Day chapters which I will finish sometime today.

--Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Illustrated Edition by J.K. Rowling and illustrated by Jim Kay Finally! I love the illustrations in these editions and just how full and how many are used in them. PoA is my favorite of this series, mainly because of this is when we are introduced to Sirius (my favorite) and Lupin.

Though as the rest of these are released I start to wonder how much longer they will be released as a single volume. At some point; either for money or for the binding of the books, they will probably be split into volumes. For my bookshelf’s well-being, I hope that is not the case but it could happen.

--The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli “In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laugher wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be dark - and so there was also the Iskari. The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death bringer. These are the legends that Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, has grown up hearing in hushed whispers, drawn to the forbidden figures of the past. But it isn’t until she becomes the fiercest, most feared dragon slayer in the land that she takes on the role of the next Iskari - a lonely destiny that leaves her feeling more like a weapon than a girl. Asha conquers each dragon and brings its head to the king, but no kill can free her from the shackles that await her at home: her betrothal to the cruel commandant, a man who holds the truth about her nature in his palm. When she’s offered the chance to gain her freedom in exchange for the life of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard, she finds that there may be more truth to the ancient stories than she ever could have expected. With the help of a secret friend - a slave boy from her betrothed’s household - Asha must shed the layers of her Iskari bondage and open her heart to love, light, and a truth that has been kept from her.”

I have a few questions regarding this book. Mainly revolving around the Namsara since it isn’t mention again in the description except in the beginning. Is Asha’s betrothed the only one who knows that she is the Iskari? If so, is she being blackmailed into marrying him? My theory right now is that by killing all these dragons it makes her the Iskari but since light and dark are two sides of the same coin, she has the possibility to turn into the Namsara. Cause I expect the legends to end up saying that it was the same person.  It sounds like it could be pretty good. There’s dragons, fights with dragons (don’t kill dragons cause they are awesome), and the classic light vs dark. 

--The Water Dragon’s Bride Volume 3 by Rei Toma “Unable to return home, Asahi grows into a lovely young woman. As a priestess, she must spend time with the water dragon god for a ritual every year, but because of her connection to the water dragon god’s power, someone kidnaps her! Will Asahi be able to escape unscathed?”

Such a cute and still surprisingly dark series. The first two volumes were kind of dark because her best friends; Subaru, mother tried to have her killed a few times. And the water dragon god didn’t care if she lived or died. He only really intervened when the other gods started annoying him. 

This volume came out early where I live so I read it over the weekend. The volume was mostly about Asahi being kidnapped, then rescued by Subaru, which then started a war between her village and the one that kidnapped her. The water dragon god does sorta intervere and helps them out a little. But he slowly seems to be changing and might eventually develop feelings for Asahi. Which will interesting since Subaru obviously loves her and she him. Though she may not realize that herself yet. 

--Yona of the Dawn Volume 8 by Mizuho Kusanagi “Jaeha, the Green Dragon, joins Yona’s party after their harrowing adventure together in Awa. Now the group must find the Yellow Dragon - the last dragon from the prophecy that Ik-su told Yona! Meanwhile, Su-won visits Chishin Palace and tells General Geun-tae, chief of the Earth Tribe, that he should hold a mock battle and festival. But what could be the true intent behind Su-won’s proposition?”

I think the last volume I read was six. Seven never came in near where I live and I haven’t been able to order it. Last I read was Yona and Yoon got themselves onto the pirates boat so that they could try and send a signal for the others to attack the right boat. 

I can’t wait to see what the Yellow Dragon is like and I’m interested to see what this mock battle will be about.

In Movies --Revolutionary Girl Utena Set 1 (Blu-Ray) “‘Never lose that strength or nobility, even when you grow up.’ When Utena was just a child and in the depths of sorrow, she found salvation in those words. They were the words of a prince, who wrapped her in his rose-scented embrace and bestowed upon her both a ring and the promise that it would lead her to him again. She never forgot the encounter. In fact, she was so impressed that she aspired to like the prince and also help those in need. Now a spirited teenager, Utena attends the prestigious Ohtori Academy. However, her strong sense of chivalry soon places her at odds with the school’s student council and thrusts her into a series of mysterious and dangerous duels against its members.”

For the first time the hit anime is being released on blu-ray. I have only seen the series and the movie once. One of my friends can explain it a lot better than I can. The next time I watch it I will not be putting so much time in between each season. There is a lot of symbolism throughout the show so it can be easy to forget or miss something. It is a really good show and worth checking out. The manga of the same name (by Chiho Saito) that it was based on is also available in an awesome box set that was released by Shojo Beat. 

This set contains the first twelve episodes. Set two is not street dated until 11/7/17 but is now available on Rightstuf. Set three is set for 12/5/17, might also be out before that day but not at this moment of writing, and includes the movie. There is also a box set coming out on 12/5/17 that contains the complete series, the movie, a replica Rose Crest Ring, a replica Black Rose ring, and a 264 page art book with sliver foil numbering.

[papermoonloveslucy]

Lucy Gets Her Diploma

S6;E5 ~ October 9, 1967

Synopsis

When Lucy finds out the bank has a new policy of only employing high school graduates, she must go back to school to get her diploma in order to keep her job. 

Regular Cast

Lucille Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Gale Gordon (Theodore J. Mooney)

Roy Roberts (Mr. Cheever) and Mary Jane Croft (Mary Jane Lewis) do not appear in this episode, although Mr. Cheever is mentioned.  

Guest Cast

Doris Singleton (Doris) created the role of Caroline Appleby on “I Love Lucy,” although she was known as Lillian Appleby in the first of her ten appearances. This is the second of her two appearances on “The Lucy Show.” She will also be seen on four episodes of “Here’s Lucy.”

Doris has very little to do with the main plot of this episode.  This scene might have been originally meant for Mary Jane but reassigned to Lucy’s old friend Doris Singleton due to a conflict in Croft’s schedule or illness.

Lucie Arnaz (Patty Martin) was the real life daughter of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. She previously appeared on “The Lucy Show” as Cynthia, a friend of Lucy’s daughter Chris. She also did background appearances, most recently with her brother Desi Jr. in “Lucy at Marineland” (S5;E1). She will do one more credited episode of “The Lucy Show” before becoming a regular on “Here’s Lucy.”

Arnaz met her future husband Phil Vandervort (Alan) filming this episode. The two were married from 1971 to 1977.  Patty’s surname is not mentioned in the dialogue.  

Dave Willock (Mr. Willock, Math Teacher) has more than 200 screen credits including the film classics What Ever Happened to Baby Jane (1962) and Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964).  This is his only appearance opposite Lucille Ball.

The character is credited only as ‘Math Teacher’ but referred to as 'Mr. Willock’ in the scene.

Sean Morgan (Johnny Harris) played Sean on “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet” from 1964 to 1966.  Morgan was sometimes seen on the Desilu series’ “Star Trek” and “Mannix.”  He will also make an appearance on “Here’s Lucy” in 1969.  

Donald Randolph (History Teacher) started his screen acting career in 1946 and appeared in the Hitchcock classic Topaz (1969).  This is his only appearance opposite Lucille Ball.

Olive Dunbar (Biology Teacher) turns up as a Librarian in a 1970 episode of “Here’s Lucy.”  Dunbar passed away in February 2017 at age 91.  

Barbara Babcock (English Teacher) is probably best remembered for playing Grace Gardener on “Hills Street Blues” (1981-87) for which she won an Emmy Award.  She was also a regular on “Dallas” (1978-82) as Liz Craig.  This is her only dramatic appearance with Lucille Ball.

Amy Appleton (Amy) according to IMDB, this is Appleton’s only screen credit.

Robert Pine (Steven Josephs, left) has more than 200 screen credits to his name. He is the real-life father of actor Chris Pine.  This is his only appearance with Lucille Ball.  

Phil Vandervort (Alan, right) makes the first of his two appearances on “The Lucy Show.” He also does 3 episodes of “Here’s Lucy.”

Vandervort met his future wife Lucie Arnaz (Patty Martin) while filming this episode.  The two were married from 1971 to 1977.  

George E. Carey (Mr. Potter, Principal) was seen in the 1967 low budget film Riot on Sunset Strip, which dealt with the famous Curfew Riots.  “The Lucy Show” also dealt with this event (albeit comically) in “Viv Visits Lucy” (S5;E15).  

The character is credited only as 'Principal’ but referred to in the dialogue as 'Mr. Potter.’  Potter was the maiden name of Ethel Mertz (Vivian Vance) on “I Love Lucy.”  

Roy Rowan (TV Announcer, uncredited) was the off-camera announcer for every episode of “I Love Lucy” as well as “The Lucy Show” and “Here’s Lucy.” He was also the voice heard when TV or radio programs were featured on the plot of all three shows. His first on-camera appearance was in “Lucy Takes Up Golf” (S2;E17).

The other high school students are played by uncredited background performers.

This episode was filmed on June 29, 1967.  It was written by Ray Singer and Milt Josefsberg.  A  script from this episode later turned up with handwritten notes from Lucille Ball about the episode’s writing:

“I expected more comedy from me after I went to school, not just from the jibes of the kids — I think we’ll throw away a good opportunity if you don’t see me trying hard at something — somehow, I’m too goody-goody doing everything right. Too much preaching from the minute I get there — too soon for preaching. Gotta save it — goof a bit & then get in your sermons — I don’t have to be teacher’s pet from start to finish & that’s why it ain’t funny — schmaltzy yes, but not funny. Talk to you later.”

On the official Season 6 DVD package, one of the extras is this episode with a dubbed Italian soundtrack.  There is also a completely different title sequence that features a neon design and the theme music from seasons 2 and 3.  

The day this episode was filmed (June 29, 1967) Jayne Mansfield was killed in an automobile crash at age 34.  Only a month earlier saw the release of A Guide for the Married Man, in which both she and Lucille Ball had cameos.  It was her last film appearance.

The day this episode first aired (October 9, 1967) Che Guevara, who had led the Cuban Revolution, was assassinated in Bolivia.  The Cuban Revolution was about to come to a head when Desilu crews were in Cuba to film second unit footage and establishing shots to be used in “Lucy Takes a Cruise to Havana” (1957).  Producer Desi Arnaz, who fled the oppressive Cuban government in the 1930s, ordered his team to get whatever footage they could and get out.  

Lucille Ball also never graduated high school.  She left to go to Drama School in New York City.  In 1989 she was to receive an honorary degree from Jamestown Community College (which she financially supported) but passed away before the ceremony.  

In Lucy’s apartment, Doris wants to watch The Slimy Monster from Outer Space on TV, but Lucy is obliged to watch an interview with Mr. Mooney on a public service program instead. When Mr. Mooney calls himself “Thoughtful, compassionate, considerate, kind” Lucy’s TV promptly explodes! The next morning Lucy tells Mr. Mooney what happened and says she can’t wait for the summer rerun.  Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball are largely credited with the concept of 'reruns’ in series television.  

In Biology class, Lucy is asked to explain the skeletal system, which, of course, she does in song.  “Dem Bones” (also called “Dry Bones” and “Dem Dry Bones”) was composed by James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938) although some sources also credit his brother, J. Rosomond Johnson. It was first recorded by The Famous Myers Jubilee Singers in 1928.

After Steve pours itching powder down her back, Lucy recites Hamlet’s soliloquy. The line “Ay, there’s the rub” is particularly funny in this new context as Lucy seeks relief by rubbing up against the chalkboard.

Lucy is attending Wilshire High School whose motto is 'Seek Honor Through Service.’  This seems to be a fictional high school, although there was a Wilshire Junior High School in Fullerton, California.

During her honorary valedictorian speech, Lucy says that her generation was famous for fads like swallowing live goldfish and seeing how many kids can fit into one phone booth. Both of these are actual stunts popular with students in the 1920s and 30s.  Lucy also compares the music of today with that of her generation, which had such important tunes as “The Hut-Sut Song,” “Mairzy Doats (and Dozy Doats)” and “Three Little Fishies (Itty Bitty Poo).” Again, all three are actual novelty songs from the 1930s and 40s.  In closing, Lucy quotes Socrates. The speech is purposely dramatic and inspirational rather than comic. Lucy’s initial assessment of the script is right on target: Schmaltzy.

Callbacks!

Back in Danfield, Lucy went 'back to school’ (night school courses) in “Lucy and Viv Take Up Chemistry” (S1;E26).

Lucy also has to publicly deal with itching when she has an allergic reaction at a fancy soiree in “My Fair Lucy” (S3;E20).  

Blooper Alerts!

Lucy supposedly didn’t graduate high school because of measles during the final exams, but this directly contradicts the premise of “Lucy’s College Reunion” (S2;E11) in which she returns to her alma mater, (fictional) Milroy University. “The Lucy Show” was notoriously inconsistent, perhaps due to the show having so many writers.  

The portrait of George Washington that turned up behind Mr. Mooney’s desk in “Lucy Gets Trapped” (S6;E2) is hanging in the math classroom.

“Lucy Gets Her Diploma” rates 4 Paper Hearts out of 5

[metalandmagi]

February Media Madness!

Hello and welcome to “see how I wasted my time” the post where I keep track of all the media I consume in a month. If you’re new here, this is mainly just my excuse to shout into the void about my feelings on things I’ve watched or read in a month. And it’s almost been a year!

Movies!

Ocean’s 8: Sandra Bullock assembles a team of ladies to steal a super fancy diamond necklace. As someone who has never seen an Ocean’s movie before, I thought this was fun. I like heists, and I LOVE jewel heists. The characters are all great, not particularly deep, but they don’t have to be. And Anne Hathaway steals the show. However, there’s a glaring problem with this movie, and it’s the fact that everything seems ridiculously easy for them, taking away any sense of tension. There’s a lot of points where things should cause significant problems but...don’t. So if you stop asking questions and just go with it, it’s a good time. 7/10

Boku no Hero Academia- Two Heroes: It’s the BNHA version of Die Hard. Seriously, All Might and a bunch of other heroes and citizens are taken hostage by villains in a skyscraper, and the most popular characters from the UA class have to save them. And it’s good. Just like the show. I’ve never gotten hyped up for this series as much as everyone else seems to, but it’s enjoyable and the movie has more of the good action and fun characters! I did feel like it went on a little long, and I wish we had gotten more of the characters doing stuff on the island instead of mainly just the villain plot. I think it’s because it reminded me a lot of the vacation arc in Assassination Classroom. But whatever, it’s still fun and worth watching. 7/10

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Awkward magizoologist Newt Scamander accidentally releases a bunch of magical creatures into 1920s New York and must round them all up with the help of lovable muggle/no-maj Jacob Kowalski. And there’s some horror movie type stuff going on with a creepy kid and Grindelwald in disguise. It’s the spin-off/prequel to Harry Potter that we all know and...love? I know some people resent this movie just for existing, but I like it. I like the creatures. I like going to new places in the wizarding world. I like Newt. I like Tina. I LOVE Queenie and Jacob, both separately and together. The plot is a little...stretched, but I don’t mind that much. And no one had the good sense to keep Colin Farrell as Grindelwald. However, I haven’t seen the second movie yet, so I should probably have my Harry Potter super fan card revoked. I honestly think that this could have been a fine stand alone movie or maybe a duology, where the second movie focuses on the backstory between Dumbledore and Grindelwald, and Grindelwald’s rise to power. I certainly don’t need five movies of this though, and I think everyone would rather see a prequel of Harry Potter’s parents in the marauders era instead. Oh well, I still like this movie for what it is. I just don’t need five of them. 7.5/10

How to Train Your Dragon 2: Five years after the viking village of Berk has accepted dragons instead of fighting them, a mysterious villain with a dragon army wants to...idk take over the world or something, so naturally it’s up to a wiry 20 year old Hiccup to stop the seemingly inevitable war. I love this movie, both as a sequel and a solid story in a trilogy. It has its issues, mainly the fact that it glorifies/glosses over absentee parents and its final act seems like it was hastily rewritten as a merchandising opportunity...but dang other than that I can’t really say anything bad about it. I’m even one of the few people who like the side characters. The time jump feels natural, and I liked seeing everything come together after watching the TV series. It also of course has great music, stunning animation, and a lot of heart and effort put into every minute. I alsothink this sequel has an interesting message about how different people view peace and war and whether or not people are capable of change. So yeah, this is one of those series that I think has something for everyone. 9/10

The Lego Movie 2- The Second Part: Five years after the first Lego movie ends with “aliens” invading, the Lego universe has become a post-apocalyptic society where everything is not awesome. And after another invasion, all the important characters except Emmet get kidnapped, and he has to save everyone from an...evil(?) queen. But really it’s a story about getting along and seeing things from other people’s perspectives. It’s fun, and it has incredibly creative music (and please for the sake of all that is good, watch the credits song). But there are times when I wished it wouldn’t lean so heavily on the...fourth wall breaking from the first movie. I felt like I would have completely understood what must be happening outside the Lego world to drive the plot, and then they would just cut to the human characters to explain everything. But it’s still a great time and hilarious as expected. 8/10

Books!

(To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before) P.S I Still Love You by Jenny Han: The second book in the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before trilogy. It serves to give you a glimpse into Lara Jean and Peter’s life as a couple. It’s like a sweet slice of life anime where some notable things occur, like the hot tub video plot that was in the movie happens AND JOHN AMBROSE MCCLAREN SHOWS UP..but there’s no real plot. And that’s fine! This was a super fun read, just like the first one, and John Mcclaren is amazing. There’s really only one major problem I have with this book, and it’s Gen’s and Lara Jean’s relationship. Throughout the book LJ knows something bad is happening with Gen’s family. We know that Peter is still Gen’s friend and promised her he wouldn’t say anything, which is justifiable as something friends do! I wish we could have seen Peter trying to convince Gen to apologize or explain the situation to LJ, but it is what it is. However, we also know Gen did something truly terrible in posting the hot tub video, and literally nothing going on in her personal life or her past justifies her being a life ruining bitch just because she feels bad. So what I really wanted to see was LJ marching up to her and saying “I know you’re going through something, but you ruined my fucking life for no apparent reason, so I demand an apology and an explanation” like the boss she is. And, as anyone who watched the movie knows, Gen tries to be the martyr and gain sympathy by placing the blame on LJ because of something that happened in FREAKING MIDDLE SCHOOL!  I cannot stress enough how out of line Gen’s character is, and no amount of hastily garnered sympathy or backstory reveals will make her better. But yeah other than that, it was very enjoyable. And if Lara Jean doesn’t want John Ambrose Mcclaren, then I’ll take him. 8/10

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo: It’s the start of a new series in Bardugo’s “Grishaverse”. And yes you absolutely need to read both the Grisha Trilogy and the Six of Crows duology to read this. KoS centers around the now King Nikolai Lanstov who has been possessed by a monster created by the Darkling. Also Ravka is once again on the brink of war, Nikolai must think about getting married, and there’s a cult that wants the Darkling to made a saint. But actually, this book is split into three different stories: one following Nikolai and Zoya trying to get rid of the monster, one following Nina on a secret mission in Fjerda, and one following what's happening in Ravka while Nikolai is away. So basically, one part Nina being a badass, one part eldritch horror story, and one part The Prince and The Pauper. And it was pretty good...except for the fact that I understood almost none of Nikolai and Zoya’s story after the second half of the book. I wasn’t into the...saint business because it seemed so out of place for this series. I also feel like she missed out on some great characters meeting each other. Oh well, it’s still a great study in world building and character interactions, the ending is buck wild, and Nina continues to be a bisexual disaster...so it’s worth it. 8/10

The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis: Several decades before the Pevensies stepped through the wardrobe, young Digory Kirke (aka the Professor) and Polly Plummer are roped into a traumatizing adventure of their own. Only instead of saving Narnia, they accidentally release a younger but just as intimidating Jadis from her own dying world into London, and in an attempt to get her out of Earth, end up letting her loose in the newly created Narnia. This is probably the book with the most similarities to TLTWATW, with a truly terrifying villain, a winding but whimsical plot, and a lot of humor. Digory and Polly are the most well written children so far. They are both hilarious great characters in their own ways, and I love seeing them fight and make up like actual kids who are friends. While Digory has to go through his own redemption arc similarly to Edmund, Polly is always there as the voice of the audience telling him to not be a dumbass. Not to mention whenever he tries to get away with saying something sexist, she’s shuts him down like a badass. And there’s also a London cabby who literally tells Aslan that he’ll be king of Narnia if his awesome wife gets to come too...and there’s a horse named Strawberry that turns into a Pegasus. So what’s not to like? People may complain about all the religious metaphors and creationism, but come on lighten up. At least it’s not horribly racist, and you’ll long for the simple biblical similarities when you’re faced with the layers of religious offense in The Last Battle. 9/10

The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis (mild spoilers): The final book in the Chronicles of Narnia series, in which the world ends because a talking ape convinces a donkey to dress up as Aslan to trick all the Narnians into giving them stuff. There’s a lot more to this plot, but those are the basics. There is a TON of stuff to unpack in this epic conclusion, and this isn’t even the half of it.

This book seems like the Last Jedi for this series, in that some people are incredibly moved by it and are very happy with the conclusion our main characters have been given, and some people think it’s a pile of crap. I think there is good in this book. But, putting aside my good feelings for a second, THE LAST BATTLE IS ONE OF THE MOST UNCOMFORTABLY RACIST THINGS I’VE EVER READ...voluntarily anyway. Seriously, if you thought The Horse and His Boy was bad, you ain't seen nothing yet. There are many layers of why this particular plot in the series is so offensive I could write essays on why this book should be thrown out the window. Not to mention the Susan problem. So I'll say, that even though there were good things in this book, it doesn't excuse...everything else. Also Eustace isn’t as snarky in this one...I miss my sarcastic sass boy.

HOWEVER, unlike some people, I think it was exactly the conclusion that the series has been leading up to since the beginning. I think the plot of an imposter Aslan and the effect it would have on Narnians is cool. And much like the book of Revelation, the end of the world is weird, confusing, and dark as fuck considering this is a children’s book. He invokes an amazing sense of fear and sadness, considering we just saw the birth of Narnia in the last book. And I am one of the people who loved the last few pages. It was an interesting take on heaven, theology, and the questions of “is Aslan also Tash? Is one religion better? Are all gods the same?” are dealt with very well considering that was one of the most problematic aspects of the book. I love literally all the characters you can think of reuniting in the end...except for Susan. I will say, Susan no longer being a friend of Narnia was led up to throughout the other books, and I think what Polly says about her wanting to be grown up rings true...in a sense. What we really need is a new series for Susan where she becomes a friend of Narnia again and gets her happy ending, rather than just “oh look makeup, guess I can’t be in Narnia anymore.” AND YET Lewis finally abandoned the idea of “girls shouldn’t be fighting” and made Jill a super secret ninja spy/badass archer warrior woman. So...I can’t even say it’s as sexist as the other books. There’s also a male talking unicorn who is best friends with the current king...and it kind of seems like they have a thing for each other...so there’s that.

Some people are angry that it is so religiously based and the allegories are so in your face, but at this point if you're reading the Chronicles of Narnia and are upset that there's religion in it, I don't know what to tell you. Truthfully, I thought he did the allegory for the church controlling the population very well, and the idea judgement based on whether you actively hate Aslan instead of being about how you’re either a good or bad person was so cool and different. But honestly, I just don't know what to feel. I'm happy for the characters in the end...I liked the overall idea of this final book...but man it can be super uncomfortable to the point that I don’t even want to rate it.

TV Shows!

Kitten Rescuers: Why yes, it is the incredibly wholesome British TV show about the RSPCA going around and rescuing cats from bizarre and/or dangerous situations, like being stuck up chimneys or drain pipes. And yes, it is the purest thing you will ever watch, even with My Roommate is a Cat in the running as the best cat themed show of the year. I don’t care if it seems like a big commercial for the RSPCA sometimes, I just want to see some cute kittens get their happy endings. My only complaint is that there’s only 8 episodes on Netflix, and I’m desperate for more. 100 adorable feline friends/10

Re: Zero Starting Life in Another World: You know, the anime everyone lost their shit over in 2016? The isekai where the main protagonist keeps re-spawning every time he dies in the fantasy world he is magically transported to and does nothing but suffer? But hey it has those two twin maids with the pink and blue hair in it so it’s all fine? That one. The English dub finally released the second half of the show, so I finished it. AND YES THE DUB IS ACTUALLY GOOD! And the show is fine too. But I feel like I sort of...lost the gist of why everything was happening in those last 12 episodes. However, there was a lot to like about this series overall, and yes Rem truly is best girl. I was just more invested in the first half of the series. 8/10

Honorable Mentions

I watched Christopher Robin again...and I still love it.

I read the first volume of the Tsurune light novel. It’s fine, but I liked the anime better.

Shadowhunters is back for its final...half season?

I’m currently watching The Umbrella Academy, and it’s AMAZING! I can’t wait to finish it!

The Masked Singer (U.S version) has finally ended. And now there’s a trashy hole in my heart. 

[duaneodavila]

From Threatening A Federal Judge To Arresting A Child Over The Pledge, A Lot Of Ridiculous Crap Happened This Weekend

One would think that Roger Stone implying that he’d like someone to assassinate a sitting federal judge and then quickly and ineptly backtracking would be a bigger story today if only because Roger Stone is a hilarious Medieval chaos imp somehow still running amok in contemporary politics.

He’s the most ludicrous person in his own neighborhood and his neighbor is Chad Ochocinco.

Or perhaps that there’d be more to say about the decision to arrest a sixth-grader for not standing up for the pledge of allegiance — the sort of thing that you thought was settled in Gobitis and a story steeped in both the dangerous school-to-prison pipeline mentality and the toxic backlash against the kinds of peaceful protests identified with Colin Kaepernick.

At least you’d suspect more talk about ATL’s 2018 Lawyer of the Year and recent podcast guest Michael Avenatti announcing that he’ll be giving up financial control of his firm amid accusations by a former partner — and, as discussed in the podcast, Avenatti disputes the attorney’s “partnership” status — that the firm has millions in assets that have been hidden from the court.

Frankly, overlooking Avenatti’s news can be forgiven because it’s just another step in the long battle with this guy that we’ve all talked about before.

However, the three-day weekend dumped so much more misery upon us that these stories failed to capture enough bandwidth to be more than a blip on the national consciousness. But with Stone and the story of the student, there is, unfortunately, a common theme that requires a closer examination. A thread that should guide our understanding of our times through the touchstone of these stories.

It’s a stunning indictment of the news cycle that putting crosshairs on Judge Amy Berman Jackson — a move not-too-dissimilar to Sarah Palin’s infamous “crosshairs” ad about then-Rep. Gabby Giffords — is being pushed to the backburner. The Giffords shooter wasn’t acting out Palin’s fantasy, but the ad was one of the many canaries in the mine that America ignored at the polite request of gun manufacturers. The militarization of political difference and the casual introduction of murderous violence into mainstream political discourse probably should have tipped someone off that there was a deeper cancer metastasizing within the conservative movement.

Roger Stone, the aggressive pancreatic tumor at the core of that cancer, has spent decades railing against the “rule of law” in favor of the tinpot dictatorship his hero Dick Nixon always favored and as he finds himself on the wrong end of the criminal justice machine, he’s responding with his usual grace. On Monday, Stone took to Instagram to place an extreme closeup of Amy Berman Jackson next to crosshairs, which I suppose was a nice move since it implied her attacker would miss? Maybe?

In any event, he’s backtracking now:

“Please inform the Court that the photograph and comment today was improper and should not have been posted,” a statement signed by Stone read. “I had no intention of disrespecting the court and humbly apologize to the court for this transgression.”

So far, the relentless stream of partisan attacks on the federal judiciary from questioning their loyalties to calling justices a “disgrace” haven’t whipped someone into a violent frenzy. But it’s only a matter of time. Much like the Giffords target image, no one is going to take a shot at Judge Jackson over Stone’s Instagram stylings. But the fact that someone tied at a senior level to a successful presidential campaign feels comfortable using their social media to imply violence against jurists should worry people. Alas, it’ll just be another dead canary we look back at a year from now when some judge is tragically lost.

Do you recall when we hashed out the constitutional right to not stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance? In like, 1940? Well, we’re right back to where we were at the 20th-century crossroads before America decided to fight a war against fascism. Over the weekend we learned that a sixth-grader at Lawton Chiles Middle Academy was arrested earlier this month. His crime is officially designated as “disobedience,” but in reality he was arrested for having the audacity to exercise constitutional rights in a way that unsettled white people.

A substitute teacher began the day with the Pledge of Allegiance, a disturbingly “Young Pioneers” tribute that doesn’t worry Americans as much as it should. According to the teacher, a young black student refused to stand for the Pledge. Rather than treat this with a shrug AS SHE’S CONSTITUTIONALLY OBLIGATED TO DO, she asked the student why:

The substitute teacher said in written statement that when she asked the student, who is black, to say the pledge, he “answered that he won’t because the flag of the country is racist. He then started to explain why the national anthem was offensive to black people.” The teacher’s statement made after the incident to the school district, was obtained by CNN affiliate Spectrum Bay News 9.

That official statement, by the way, includes this gem:

In a statement to the district, the substitute teacher reported telling the 11-year-old boy “Why if it was so bad here he did not go to another place to live.” She said he then said, “they brought me here.”

And boom goes the dynamite.

The teacher continued with some nonsense about how she came from Cuba and it was worse which says exactly zilch about the concerns the kid raised. But hats off to the substitute teacher for believing so deeply that they were about to solve hundreds of years of institutional racism with a kid they met 30 seconds beforehand. That’s exactly the sort of condescending tete a tete that they make movies about and then give awards to all the white people involved.

So the school district also doesn’t require students to stand for the flag — not that it legally could — so certainly the school stepped in and told the substitute to apologize and get on with the actual teaching for the day.

Just kidding. No, even though the child has broken no rule let alone any law, the school suspended him for three days and then had him f**king arrested:

A school administrator and the officer asked the student to leave the class, but the 6th grader refused, Lakeland police said. Lakeland police said the student, who left the classroom, created another disturbance, and made threats as he was escorted to the office.

Now I can see at least one apologist out there putting their lips together to explain, “Well, actually he was arrested for his behavior after the flag incident.” Amazingly, these are the same people who throw a temper tantrum when a server miscalculates their tab but feels an 11-year-old needs to show some grace after they’ve been escorted from class by the police for having done nothing wrong. It seems as though the “but for” disruption here was the teacher, but whatever.

This is the danger of turning schools into police states — a move “required” by the rise of school shootings. In this case, maybe it’s a good thing the police were there because there are some out hoping to cut police out of the equation and arm teachers directly and in that world it’s safe to say this kid might well have been killed for having a conscience.

Guns, fascist iconography, unleashing the police state upon people of color — the tale of an affluent conservative gadfly and a young black child may seem to have nothing in common, but beneath the surface, the one strand that connects them both comes into sharp relief:

Both Stone and this kid live in Florida. Florida is America’s least common denominator, people.

From Threatening A Federal Judge To Arresting A Child Over The Pledge, A Lot Of Ridiculous Crap Happened This Weekend republished via Above the Law

[tenspontaneite]

Fundamentals for the Aspiring Assassin (1/?)

Nagisa was the first to notice when reality split apart, most likely because it happened directly beside him.

It was just a glimpse. Something appearing in his periphery that hadn’t been there a moment ago. Distracted, he turned his head towards it, knife lowering from the ready stance, and saw it. Just a glimpse, where it looked like light was bending and fracturing, like the air itself was paper, like something was pushing through-

A thunderclap resounded directly beside him, shockingly loud, and hot winds from nowhere blasted him off of his feet along with most of his assassination volleyball team. He heard alarmed screams and yells erupting around him, and he just barely made use of his lessons to take the fall properly, wincing at the impact of his leg and arm on the ground. Still, it wasn’t a bad fall, and he was among the first springing back to their feet after the unexpected blow. A small storm of dust had been whipped up by whatever-it-was, particularly where it had originated. Nagisa squinted in the direction he’d been thrown from, and could just about make out the sight of something…metallic?

“What the hell was that?” Maehara screeched, on behalf of probably everyone. Nagisa looked towards his voice, waving the dust from in front of his face. The redhead was on the other side of the net, which incidentally had been blown over. It looked like he’d been caught under the net, and had perhaps narrowly avoided a pole to the face. Terasaka had been caught by the net as well, but it seemed like everyone else on that side had been clear. On his side, though…

“Is everyone okay?” Karasuma-sensei demanded, rushing over from the sidelines. “What happened? …Did someone detonate a bomb?” It was a marker of their weird classroom that this seemed a perfectly sensible question to ask in such a circumstance.

Unexpected sort-of explosions weren’t so unusual, here. And, well…Despite the grenade incident being quite far in the past, everyone still looked at Nagisa. He wilted slightly under the stares. “Ah…Not me?”

From the floor, Okajima squinted at him. “You were closest to where it went off.” He was only now picking himself up, which was either an indication that he needed more falling practice or that he had a terrible reaction time. Maybe both.

“I saw something just before,” Nagisa mumbled, and looked back to the thing he’d seen. The dust was still swirling, catching unpleasantly in his throat as he breathed, but it had calmed enough to view the shape of the mystery object. “And there’s something there.” He resorted to pointing, because apparently looking at him and Karasuma-sensei was so interesting that no one else had thought to look towards the source of the impromptu wind-blast yet.

Obligingly, twenty-seven sets of eyes looked to the side. It would have been twenty-eight, but Karma was skipping – he always seemed to miss the interesting things. The dust obligingly settled into a restless stirring by the ground as they stared, revealing what certainly seemed to be an extremely large suitcase. Or maybe a safe with handles? It was a large, heavy-looking thing, with a hard shell and expensive-looking lock that covered a fair portion of one of its sides. A thing which had, apparently, appeared from nothing.

“…It’s a suitcase.” Sugino observed, baffled, as the other half of the team pulled the net off of their fellows and rushed over to investigate. “ A suitcase. That wasn’t there a minute ago, right?” he looked around, almost pleadingly. “Right?”

“It wasn’t.” Isogai agreed, staring at it. For a moment, no one spoke or moved, more than slightly flummoxed by the spectacle. Then, shrugging, Maehara stepped forwards and strode up to the suitcase.

“Stop.” Karasuma-sensei’s voice cut sharply across the field, even though he didn’t speak especially loudly. Maehara froze in place along with all the rest of them – their teacher had a pretty commanding presence to him, after all. He pushed through the crowd, waving Maehara out of the way, and cautiously regarded the case from three metres away. “A suitcase just appeared from thin air. That is not normal.” He pointed out dryly. “It would be irresponsible for me to allow any of you to come into contact with it. It could be dangerous.”

Nagisa blinked, rubbing a residual ache out of his arm as he watched.

“Back up. All of you.” The man added, crossing his arms. He stared out impassively at them until, reluctantly, the closer students backed away. His stare remained until they were all a good ten metres away – excessive, by some standards, but Nagisa could see the logic. If it were a bomb of some sort, for example, ten metres might not be nearly far enough.

Karasuma-sensei sighed at them, then turned warily to the case. He stared at it for several seconds in silence. Nagisa wondered what he was looking for. Triggers? Signs of a countdown? All he could see from this distance was the lock on the side, which seemed to have some sort of intricate mechanism on it, even a small screen. It looked more like something you’d expect to find on a high-security door than a suitcase.

For that matter…the suitcase looked very well-armoured. Nagisa would flat-out call it a large safe if not for the obvious wheels and handles. He shared a bemused glance with Kayano, wondering what Karasuma-sensei would do with it. Would he approach it himself, or was he too wary? Would he call his bosses before approaching, or investigate himself?

“Nagisa-kun.” Karasuma-sensei said, out of nowhere. Nagisa looked up, startled. “What do you know about this?”

And, suddenly, everyone was looking at him again. “…Sensei?” He ventured, taken aback.

“The case has your name on it.” Their assassination instructor informed him, plainly. He pointed to the locking mechanism, presumably at a set of characters too distant to make out.

…What? Nagisa stiffened, his first inclination to deny it, but...Karasuma wasn’t really the sort to joke about anything. “I-it does?” Why on earth would a suitcase appearing from thin air have his name on it? The idea was absurd. His next breaths came too quickly for his liking, and he clamped down on the panic with rigid control.

“’Shiota Nagisa’.” Karasuma-sensei read out, slow and measured. “You can come and stand beside me to read it, if you don’t believe me.”

Feeling the weight of his class’ eyes on him, Nagisa swallowed, forcing his muscles to loosen. After a careful breath, he walked out from beside his classmates and approached his teacher, peering forwards. From this distance…the characters stood out in relief, plain and dark on the metallic lock. His eyes widened.

“Is it really your name, Nagisa-kun?” Nakamura called across the meagre distance. He glanced back, and found everyone stewing in varying flavours of curiosity and impatience.

“Ah…it is.” He confirmed, probably a bit too quietly for the furthest people to hear him. He nodded, hesitantly, if only to confirm it to himself. His name was on a spontaneously appearing suitcase. What on earth was someone meant to do in such a situation?

“I will ask again, Nagisa-kun. Do you know anything about this?”

Nagisa looked back at Karasuma-sensei. He was, admittedly, quite fond of the man. He was a good teacher, professional, and had respect for his students. It was nice to have the honest regard of an adult like him. He had no desire to disappoint the man. The only thing he could really do was be honest, even if the truth was difficult to believe. “I don’t know anything, sensei. I think it appeared next to me, but…” he trailed off, shaking his head. “Sorry.”

Karasuma regarded him calmly for several moments, then nodded. “Alright. Well then, what to do about this…”

Nagisa relaxed, very slightly, at the indication that he’d been believed. “Karasuma-sensei, do you think we should get Korosensei to look at it? If it’s dangerous, he’s least likely to be hurt.” And, naturally, if it was dangerous and he was hurt, all the better.

“Quite true.” Karasuma nodded, pensive. “Logically, however, this is related to that octopus or assassination of him – something so unusual happening here is unlikely to be unrelated. If it is related to assassination, it could be a bad idea to let the target see it. It could be a weapon, and secret weapons are best kept hidden.”

“Ah…” Nagisa dipped his head, frowning lightly. “Who would send us a weapon by teleportation without leaving something more to go on?”

“Who would send you a weapon, Nagisa-kun.” The man pointed out. “It has your name on it.”

“Is there anything else written on it?” They both turned at the sound of Maehara’s voice, calling across the distance mandated by their instructor. Both of them absorbed the question and turned to investigate.

Nagisa scrutinised the case. It was at least a metre long, laying on its front with a liberal coating of dust and dried grass. It was also thick enough that the lock was basically a large metal plate on its armoured side, where the large characters of his name were written. But on the screen, which was darker, something could conceivably be written in small letters. “Can I go closer to see, sensei?” he asked, after a moment.

Karasuma scrutinised the case and sighed. “It hasn’t exploded yet, so I will go closer. You stay here and be ready to run.” He said, and walked forwards to close the meagre distance, kneeling down to read. He paused. “Hm.”

“Sensei?” Nagisa inquired, noticing that his classmates were inching closer in what they probably thought was stealthy. He made a face at them, receiving several rude faces in return. Maehara even stuck out his tongue.

“It says ‘present thumbprint’.” Karasuma said, and after a second did precisely that, demonstrating none of the caution and restraint they might have expected from him.

“Karasuma-sensei!” Nagisa, plus at least four of his classmates, protested – far too late to be of any use.

“Hm!” Karasuma expressed, this time sounding quite surprised. He looked at Nagisa, and then frowned, eyes fixing on the troupe of disobedient students that were certainly quite a bit closer now. “I said to stand clear!” he snapped.

“You’re letting Nagisa-kun near it, sensei.” Okajima pointed out, dropping the pretence of stealth and flat out striding over to the classmate in question.

“Risking one student may be preferred to the whole class.” Ritsu’s voice observed, at a slightly-too-low volume. Nagisa looked over and saw Kayano holding out the host phone. “However, this item isn’t showing any signs of imminent combustion, and hasn’t moved since it arrived. It may prove dangerous, but most likely not until it is opened.”

Kayano pressed her finger to the volume button on the side of her phone as she asked “Opened?”

“The display is a fingerprint scanner.” Ritsu stated brightly. “It must be connected to a locking mechanism.”

“Did it reject your fingerprint, sensei?” Isogai inquired, coming to stand beside Nagisa.

“…It did.” Karasuma confirmed, and shifted out of the way to allow their view of the little screen. “Nagisa-kun, see for yourself.”

Nagisa leaned forwards and squinted to read it. “’Incorrect print. Two attempts remaining.’” He said aloud, narrowing his eyes. “...sensei?”

“It has your name on it.” The teacher stated, looking directly at him. “Will you try?”

He swallowed. “It might explode.”

“It might.” Karasuma acknowledged. “If yours doesn’t work, I’ll call my bosses and try to have it opened by professionals. It seems sensible to try your print first, however.”

Nagisa looked at his classmates, uneasy. As expected, all of them were staring at him. Some seemed a bit too eager, considering the potential danger of this. He looked back. “I’ll do it.” He said, settling slowly into the calm resolve that assassination called for.

With the same serious, respectful nod as he had that time, Karasuma stood up and stepped back. “Good. Everyone back up again – all the way to the school steps. If it does explode, there’s no sense in us all dying.” There was a fair bit of grumbling at that, but a sharp glance and a sharper word cut through it. “Now!”

“Harsh, sensei.” Terasaka grumbled, rolling a shoulder as he walked away with the others. “Oi, Nagisa, try not to blow up.”

Nagisa sighed, appreciating the irony of being told that by someone who’d once given him a grenade to suicide-bomb their teacher with. “Aa.”

Karasuma-sensei watched with a hawk-like eye until he deemed all of the students sufficiently distant. “Alright then.” He said, and Nagisa took it as the go-ahead it was. He shuffled forwards, kneeling down by the case to stare at his name, and the little screen. ‘Incorrect print. Two attempts remaining.’ It read, unchanging. He exhaled, and reached out, pressing the thumb of his right hand firmly to the screen.

A moment passed. A light bleep sounded, and across the screen characters flashed – ‘Print accepted – Shiota Nagisa’ – and then the front panel….hissed? There was a hissing sound, and a brief click. He removed his thumb, hesitant, and the panel immediately lifted away, springing up slightly on a mechanised hinge. He flinched back, wary of the potential of dire contents – but the case didn’t open. Only the front of the lock.

“Nagisa-kun?” Karasuma questioned, kneeling beside him.

“It took my print.” He murmured, carefully lifting the panel further up to see what was beneath. There was…another screen, a larger one, as well as a number pad. The screen bleeped, and text appeared on it. “…’Broadcasting’?”

“What does it mean by that?” Karasuma-sensei muttered, as if expecting Nagisa to know the answer.

“Sensei!” A voice called from a good distance, all the way over by the school. Kayano?

Karasuma didn’t look, eyes fixed on the display. “Stay there!” He ordered.

“Sensei!” Kayano called again, which was quite unusual for her. Nagisa looked over, and saw her brandishing her phone. “Something happened to Ritsu!”

At this first sign of trouble, Karasuma didn’t seem especially inclined to abandon the case. He had shown regard for Ritsu in the past, Nagisa had noticed, but certainly less than to the other students. That sentiment quickly shifted when all of their phones abruptly bleeped, buzzed, or otherwise indicated that they were restarting and installing upgrades.

“All of the phones…?” Kayano murmured, as Nagisa and Karasuma reached the crowd. “This can’t be a coincidence, can it?”

“Probably not.” Karasuma answered, checking a good five phones before he confirmed that they were all still loading. “The screen in the case said ‘broadcasting’ – most likely, it has broadcast something to your phones which has disrupted them.”

“What about Ritsu? Is she alright?” Nakamura demanded, staring at the screen of her phone with consternation.

“She had numerous hard copies. Even if her data is corrupted on every one of your phones, she should be fine.”

“Sensei?” Kayano presented the screen of her phone outwards, demonstrating the lit-up display. “Mine is starting up again.” Quite rapidly, the ranks of her classmates closed around her.

“Is it broken? Will it work?” Isogai asked the white light emanating from the screen, almost pleadingly. “I can’t afford another phone, it has to work!” He stared at his own device, which was still loading, a nervous tremor in the fingers gripping it.

“I think mine is finishing, too.” Okuda piped up, waving her smartphone.

“It’s finished booting.” Kayano said, quickly tapping in her passcode. Nagisa leaned over to watch as her phone desktop loaded, and a second later – “Ritsu is loading?” The screen had gone pink in the way that indicated Ritsu’s processes taking over the phone.

A moment later, as had become quite familiar, the pink-haired avatar of an artificial intelligence commandeered the screen, a lush and verdant background appearing behind her. There was a noteworthy difference, though. “Ritsu?” Nagisa asked, incredulous, and heard a ripple of shock pass over his class.

The avatar blinked the same unusual eyes that they were used to. The hair was the same style, and the same colour, but the face was indisputably older. Ritsu looked like a young adult, still fresh and bright, but certainly not someone you could mistake for a fifteen-year-old.

She smiled. “Good morning, everyone!” She chirped from the phone speakers. A moment later, she loaded on Okuda’s phone, blinking from another screen, and took up her speech with two sets of speakers on the next sentence. “It’s wonderful to see you all again!”

“What happened, Ritsu?” Nagisa asked her as she activated on his own phone, and Sugino’s, and Kimura’s… “All of our phones suddenly crashed – was it something to do with that case?”

All of the Ritsu-phones paused, simulating a slow blink. It seemed most of the phones had booted her up by now. When she spoke, the voice came from over a dozen phones, and honestly the effect was more than slightly eerie. “Yes, it was. The case broadcasted data intended for me.” She paused, which for her was a careful simulation of hesitance. “The data provided upgrades. I have updated myself on all of your phones, and that is why I look different.”

“Ritsu.” Karasuma-sensei spoke clearly and calmly, his voice instantly cutting through the chatter as always. “Did the data include information about the case?”

“It did.” Nagisa noted with amusement that Ritsu seemed to be present on twenty-six phones now, despite the fact that none of them were technically meant to have them during P.E class. The only person without one was their teacher himself.

When Ritsu did not elaborate, Karasuma frowned. “Please tell us everything you know.”

“I am not permitted to tell you that.” Ritsu answered, far too cheerfully. A resounding silence fell at her flat-out, downright happy, refusal. Maehara whistled lowly, the sound carrying rather well in the hush.

“Why are you not permitted?” Karasuma demanded, stepping close to directly address Nagisa’s phone.

The avatar appeared to consider the question for a moment. Considering her processing speed, this was almost certainly another artifice. “The entirety of the information I have is only available to certain individuals under certain circumstances.” She oriented her eyes towards Karasuma-sensei, most likely using the front camera as a reference. “There are some things I can tell you all. Firstly, I can induce this case to explode. Also, if anyone attempts to force it, it will detonate. The blast radius will be about forty metres.”

Muttered curses swept around the clearing. The closest was Okajima, who uttered an impressed “Damn!” and inched backwards.

“Will anything else cause the case to explode?” Their special forces teacher asked, shoulders more intimidating than Nagisa was used to, and a rather severe expression settling onto his features. “Is there any other risk associated with it?”

“I am installed in the case as a security precaution. If unauthorised individuals attempt to access the contents, or force their way in, I will make it explode.” Ritsu informed him, as though she were discussing ice cream flavours instead of what was essentially a bomb threat. “There are items inside the case which can cause considerable harm if handled improperly, so improper handling is not advised.”

“Why is my name on it? Why did it have my fingerprint?” Nagisa cut in, making all of the closest Ritsu-phones orient their eyes and faces in his direction. It was quite unsettling. Karasuma looked up at him, but didn’t say anything against the question. Clearly, he considered it pertinent.

Ritsu beamed at him. “That’s because the case is for you, Nagisa-kun!”

Nagisa stared. “Um…”

“Why Nagisa?” Karasuma cut in, swiftly.

Her voice was almost sing-song in cadence. “I am not permitted to say.”

Their instructor scowled. “Are you permitted to tell Nagisa, if the case is for him?”

Ritsu ruminated on the screen, averting her gaze demurely. A bird landed on her hair and chirped disarmingly. “Nagisa-kun is allowed access to certain parts of the case, provided he follows instructions.” She said, hunching a little, as though feeling shy. “But…I can’t tell you everything yet, sorry!”

Karasuma sighed. “Right. And does this have anything to do with assassination?”

Ritsu’s young adult avatar widened her eyes, blinking endearingly. “Ah…I can’t say.”

“What I really mean by that is, should we avoid letting that octopus know about this case? Would it decrease our chances of a successful assassination?”

Bizarrely, the question seemed to alarm her. “I can’t say. But...my opinion is that keeping Korosensei out of things is likely to be useful, at this stage.”

“Right.” Karasuma-sensei nodded decisively. “Okay, everyone,” he pitched his voice to carry. “Since this might be related to assassination, no one is to mention it to your octopus of a teacher. If he asks about the damage to the field, you will say that an experimental assassination tool caused the damage, and that you sustained only very light injuries. You will refuse to give him more details if he asks, because giving too much information to your target is a bad idea. You should also attempt to keep him distracted during afternoon classes, where possible.” He turned to stare pensively at Nagisa. “Nagisa-kun, you’ll be working with me. It seems I will need your help to determine the facts about this case.”

“What if Korosensei asks where Nagisa-kun is?” Kayano asked, sensibly. “Nagisa-kun doesn’t usually skip class, so he probably won’t ignore it.”

“Hmm.” Karasuma frowned at Ritsu’s face on the screen. “You will tell him that I am giving Nagisa a special assassination tutorial related to the experimental tool, and that he isn’t allowed to interfere.” He was silent for several moments, and then continued. “No one is to ask Ritsu about this when he might be listening. Ritsu, can you simulate your previous appearance in class?”

The image on the screens, between one moment and the next, reverted quickly to the fifteen-year-old Ritsu avatar. “Of course, sensei!”

“Then it’s settled. I will be cancelling class to deal with this issue. You should exercise until the end of the period, don’t waste this time. Don’t practice with weapons without supervision.” Karasuma glanced sharply towards Nagisa, who had to admit to feeling exceptionally on-edge by this point. “Nagisa-kun.”

“Yes, sensei.” He nodded, and fell in line with the teacher as he strode back towards the case, Ritsu still occupying his phone screen. “Ritsu, is the case safe to move?”

“Yes, but handle it gently. There are fragile things inside.” She paused, and added “Isogai has sent you a message saying that the others want you to tell them anything you find out later.”

“Don’t just say it out loud, Ritsu!” Nakamura shouted in the distance.

“Ehehe. Sorry?”

Karasuma emitted a very beleaguered sigh. Nagisa could sort of sympathise.

---

“Is there anything else you can say now that it’s only us, Ritsu?” Karasuma asked, once he’d set the case carefully on the floor in his office. Nagisa hovered awkwardly in the corner, not especially comfortable in what was clearly a teacher-only space.

“You do not have special permissions, Karasuma-sensei.” Ritsu chirped from the phone, still in Nagisa’s hand.

“What about me?” He inquired of the device.

“You have special permissions, Nagisa-kun, but they will only be activated if you follow a particular set of instructions.”

Karasuma motioned at him to be quiet, and demanded “Who issued the instructions?”

Ritsu smiled. “Nagisa-kun did.”

There was a very protracted silence. “Eh?!” Nagisa spluttered, unable to keep the shock internal, because…what? “Me?”

“The contents of this case, and of the data upgrade I received, were assembled by you, Nagisa-kun.” The AI proclaimed, cheerfully indifferent to the emotional crises she was presenting him with. “I am a security measure, and also a backup. If you decide not to carry out your instructions, I will detonate the case and carry out my own orders.”

“W-what instructions?” Nagisa asked, unable to keep quiet. A glance to the side revealed an extremely sceptical glower on his instructor’s face. He didn’t believe her, then? Or, at least, he thought there was foul play involved.

“My own instructions are classified. Yours will likely take a while to complete.”

“What are the instructions for Nagisa-kun?” His teacher cut in, leaning a little closer to the phone than Nagisa was comfortable with. He quickly put the phone on the desk to make it more mutually accessible.

Ritsu’s expression brightened. “On the panel that opened on the side, you should see another screen. Please place and hold your finger on it, Nagisa-kun. Until it tells you to remove it.”

Nagisa glanced at Karasuma, who held up a hand. Obediently, he remained still, and watched as his teacher interrogated what was technically another student. “Do these instructions pose any risk to Nagisa-kun?”

Ritsu was silent for at least three seconds, which was not reassuring. “Completing the instructions will be physically unpleasant, and require an adjustment period. Full side effects are unknown. However, it is not expected that serious or permanent injury will result, provided the instructions are followed carefully.”

He eyed her with alarm. “What if the instructions aren’t followed carefully?”

Ritsu made a face at him. “Do you really need to know? If you’re careful, it’s not important.”

“You can’t expect him to do something unless he knows the risks involved.” Karasuma pointed out. “Especially if he doesn’t know what he will gain from it.”

“Hmph!” Phone-Ritsu crossed her arms, looking quite put-out. “Nagisa-kun thought it was worth the risk, or he wouldn’t have given me the instructions!”

“Just give an overview of the benefits and the risks, Ritsu. Please.” The man sighed, rubbing at his temples. Nagisa nodded fervently.

Ritsu stared out balefully from the screen. “In the case, there are items which will allow Nagisa-kun to learn many new things very quickly.” She said. “When the process is complete, he will have decades worth of information, including useful data on how to assassinate super-beings like Korosensei. He will also know everything about the case, including why and how he sent it.”

Nagisa exchanged a wide-eyed glance with his teacher. “That…sounds very useful.” He said, a little reluctantly. “It also sounds like cheating, though.”

“That’s silly, Nagisa-kun.”

“I agree. Information is an assassin’s greatest weapon.” Karasuma concurred quietly, the initial surprise settling into a considering frown. “And, if Ritsu is to be believed, you were the one to arrange all of this, despite how ridiculous it sounds.” His voice implied, very strongly, just how ridiculous he found it.

Nagisa was quiet for a moment while he thought. “Ritsu-chan,” he said. “Tell me the biggest risks, please.”

She pouted. “Mou…well, the items necessarily act on your brain. If they are damaged, or interfered with improperly, they might do the wrong things and cause damage.”

His heart gave a sudden, distinct, heavy thump in his chest. Nagisa swallowed, thoughts of his mother’s violent mood swings searing through the front of his mind. “That sounds horrible.”

“We were careful, you know.” Ritsu said, plaintively. “We don’t want you to get hurt, so we made it as safe as possible. Please just open the case? I’ll show you the items.”

Nagisa looked uneasily at his superior. Carefully, the man nodded, and Nagisa exhaled. “…Alright.” He approached the case and knelt down, flipping open the outer panel to expose the screen inside. He regarded it warily. Instead of ‘broadcasting’, it now read ‘present your thumb, Nagisa-kun!’. Moreover, the text was pink. Ritsu didn’t seem to be lying about her presence in the case, then.

With trepidation, he pressed his right thumb firmly to the screen and kept it there. In short order, the screen heated up, the characters ‘analysing!’ flashing at the top.

“The screen will feel hot until it finishes, Nagisa-kun. Please keep your thumb where it is.”

Nagisa winced as the heat, slowly but surely, became painful on his skin. He took a deep breath, and remained still. By the time the screen cleared, he felt like he’d seared the finger on a stove, and it throbbed painfully.

“Thank you, Nagisa-kun!” Ritsu chirped, and her words flashed on the screen in front of him. “I can open the first portion of the case, now!”

He backed away hastily as the central portion of the case’s lid unexpectedly lifted away. He wondered what the number pad was for, if it just needed some other sort of print to open. “It has separate sections?” Maybe the keypad was for the other sections?

“Only this first section is available until you have completed your instructions.” Ritsu proclaimed. “Have a look inside!”

Karasuma knelt beside him as he pushed the lid back and looked.

The middle compartment was relatively small. The interior was extremely well-padded, with the shock absorption and thick walls taking up most of the space. Nagisa carefully lifted away a padding layer, and found a befuddling array of items.

There were two sturdy metal bottle of maybe half-litre capacity, and two syringes, complete with uncomfortably thick needles. There were also two metal cylinders. The largest item, though, was something that for all the world looked like a helmet. A thick metal helmet with lots of wires, and also some sort of neck plating.

“What is he meant to do with this?” Karasuma asked, once enough time had passed with Nagisa unable to find his voice.

“The bottles contain a fluid to be injected by the headset. The cylinders contain pills – one for pain, and the other to prevent bad reactions from your immune system.” Ritsu explained. “This process will take anything from three days to two weeks. The first time you equip the headset, it will carry out a comprehensive scan of your brain and determine how long the process will take. You should do that now, Nagisa-kun – it won’t take long.”

Nagisa stared at the headset that would apparently be manipulating his brain with no small amount of apprehension. “Will I be able to take it off?”

“The headset is very advanced. For the scan, you will need to press a button and wait a few minutes to make it safe to remove. During the actual process, you can’t take it off at all.”

He looked up. “…Sensei?”

Karasuma looked him directly in the eyes. There was no condescension there; not a hint of derision or cruelty. Only quiet, serious respect. “It’s your choice, Nagisa-kun. Information is very valuable, but we know too little about this situation to have any guarantees about the risks.”

Nagisa remembered another moment like this, another thought. ‘If he’s the one handing me the knife, I know I can trust him’, right? But… “Ritsu, if somehow it was myself issuing these instructions, I would find it easier to trust in them.” He said, softly. “But it doesn’t make sense. How could I have done all of this and not remember it at all?”

Ritsu blinked at him from the smartphone screen. “Eh? You didn’t figure it out?” She asked, surprised. “Obviously it’s time-travel!”

A pause.

“What?!” Both of them shouted it; not quite at the same time, but almost.

Ritsu rolled her eyes and huffed. “What did you think I meant, when I said you’d sent me? Some sort of complicated plot where you had your memory wiped?” Ritsu rolled her eyes at them, as though time travel were any less ridiculous than complex memory-wiping schemes. “Sending objects back in time is quite easy, but we’ve found no way to make it work on living creatures. Thankfully, artificial intelligences like myself are easy to send back! Especially for me, since I already had a past self I could hack and overwrite!” She looked exceptionally pleased with herself at that.

“S-so, when you say I arranged this and wrote the instructions, you mean it was me in the future?” Nagisa asked, feeling more shocked than he ever had in his life. He’d been quite sure that nothing would ever compare to the surprise of learning Class 3-E had become an assassination classroom. Clearly, he’d been very, very wrong.

“Of course. I was an excellent candidate for time travel, but I am restricted to technology. You decided we needed to try restoring you, Nagisa-kun. That’s why this headset is primed with the details of your future brain.” Ritsu pointed towards the side of the screen closest to the case. “The technology has never been used to change an immature brain before, so we’re being very careful. There are other treatments in the case we can use to help you recover, if things don’t go well.”

“So when you say decades of knowledge, that’s decades of future knowledge.” Karasuma exhaled slowly.

“Does that mean we killed Korosensei, if the memories are from more than a year in the future?” Nagisa asked, not certain he actually wanted to know the answer. On one hand, he swelled with anticipation at the possibility of such success, but on the other…he thought it might seem sort of hollow, finding out like this.

Ritsu frowned at him, an unusual expression for her face. “I can’t tell you, Nagisa-kun. You’ll have to find out for yourself.”

Karasuma looked at him. “…I hate to say it, Nagisa-kun, but if this involves decades of memory, it’s possible the problem is larger than your class’ assassination.” He pointed out. “Again, it’s completely your choice what to do.”

Nagisa stared into the case, thoughts and emotions at war. A large and sensible part of him was adamant that one should not risk permanent brain damage on the word of an artificial intelligence claiming borderline-unbelievable things. Unfortunately, the rest of him was quite stuck on the words time travel, and was slightly too shocked to listen. He took a deep breath, and reached for the headset. “I can do the first scan, at least.”

“Put it on, and press the button on the middle of the forehead.” Ritsu instructed, perking up at his apparent acquiescence.

The headset was heavy and cold in his hands. The interior was padded, and studded with odd ring-shaped pieces of metal. A large flap came down from the back of it, looking like it would envelop his neck, though he couldn’t see the fastenings. Carefully, he lifted the headset and put it on, feeling his hair ties prickle against his scalp. “Should I have my hair up?” He asked, a little uneasy.

Ritsu paused. “Do the ties contain any metal?”

“A little.”

“It’s best you take them out, then.”

Nagisa removed the headset, setting it gently in his lap, and reached up. His hair, as much as he detested its length, was relatively well-behaved; it took mere seconds of careful tugging to pull out the ties, allowing it to fall softly around his neck. He glanced to the side, finding a trace of curiosity in Karasuma’s eyes, and looked away. He put the headset on again, and reached up to his forehead to find the button. Pushing past his clamouring fears, he pressed it, and waited.

Abruptly, the neck-piece stiffened and closed around the sides of his neck, connecting at the front in a series of quiet clicks. Nagisa repressed the flash of panic at the feeling of pressure on his throat, and waited. He very determinedly did not raise his hands to tear at the thing tightening on his neck, no matter how he disliked any sort of constriction near his airways.

The padding inside the headset seemed to expand, pressing against his scalp. It grew warm. The neck-piece tightened in several places, and loosened in a few others. Then, abruptly, he felt a stabbing pain at the back of his neck, like a thick needle. “You didn’t say anything about needles, Ritsu.” he muttered, clenching his fists. He shuffled to sit cross-legged on the floor beside the case, Karasuma kneeling seiza to watch him carefully, setting the Ritsu-phone beside him. The tightness of the neck-brace made it hard to move his head.

“The headset is injecting a compound that will allow for more detailed scanning. This will take about fifteen minutes to complete.” She informed him.

“…Okay.” He made a face.

“Is everything alright, Nagisa-kun?” Karasuma requested, voice and face a little grim. He seemed tense. Was he worried?

“There was a sharp pain at the back of my neck. I can still feel it, but it’s not as bad now.” He answered, carefully keeping his hands still in spite of the urge to rip the helmet off. “…It’s only fifteen minutes.”

“This time.” His teacher reminded him, bleakly.

Nagisa frowned at his lap. “…Yeah.” He looked at the screen of his phone, his head far heavier than he was used to it being. “Ritsu-chan…you said the actual procedure will take days. Did…did we plan for how to do that? It’s not like I could let my mother see this thing.”

“…Oh.” Ritsu looked a little worried. “The plan was just to have you go missing for the duration. I can access the headset’s scans and supervise you, to make sure you’re doing alright.” She hesitated, and added “But...having someone to help would be very useful. You should really be unconscious for the active parts, and I don’t like the idea of you being vulnerable then.”

Nagisa looked at his teacher expectantly, receiving a light grimace in turn. “I could supervise, but not for very long.” He said. “I can’t justify significant absences without informing my bosses, and somehow I doubt you will want that.”

“Your bosses are very curious, Karasuma-sensei!” Ritsu said, bright and cheerful. “If they try to interfere with the case, I will have to blow them up!” She sounded utterly unconcerned about the possibility.

Karasuma did not seem surprised in the least. “That is why I feel it would be a poor idea for me to be absent.”

“Aa…you might just have to mysteriously go missing then, Nagisa-kun.” Ritsu concluded, regretfully.

“I haven’t agreed to do it, yet.” He pointed out, closing his eyes. “Can you not tell me why this is important? It seems a lot of effort for me to go to when you know everything already. You could just tell me what I need to do.”

She blinked wordlessly for several seconds. He thought that such a span might be remarkable – what was she processing, for it to take her so long? “A lot of our plans will need someone with a body who knows the things that you do, Nagisa-kun.” She said, finally. “Knowing isn’t enough. You need to remember.”

“And you can’t say why?” Nagisa asked, tiredly, opening his eyes again to look at his phone. He’d barely had a few days to get used to the idea that, maybe, he actually had some talent for assassination – and then something like this was dropped on him? “Or even why it was me?”

Ritsu, again, was quiet for an unusually long time. “We edited my code so that I would have to obey the last orders you gave.” She said. “If you undergo the process successfully, I will be able to tell you anything. Until then…I only have a little leeway in my instructions. I can’t tell you why you did this, or when, or how.” A pause. “But I can tell you that we did the bulk of our planning and research off-planet. I can also tell you that Earth would have had better facilities, with better resources.” She waited.

Karasuma eyed her from above. “…Don’t tell me – Earth was destroyed?”

“I can’t tell you that.” Ritsu asserted.

“Can you tell me why you didn’t do the research on Earth?” Nagisa prodded, feeling the neck-cover tighten again. He twitched against the impulse to raise his hand to it.

She smiled. “No.”

“What planets were available as potential research bases?”

A pause. “Mars was the only planet available.” She presented them with two thumbs-up, the sunlight brightening in her background. It was not especially congruent to his mood.

Nagisa swallowed, tension bearing down on him. “So, something bad happened to Earth, whether or not it was destroyed.” He concluded, heaviness settling into his veins. If that was the case, and his future self had organised all of this, then…did he really have a choice? “I…suppose I have to, then. I have to try.” In a way, it was reassuring, knowing what he needed to do. On the other hand, anything with brain damage as a potential consequence terrified him.

“Is this so much more frightening than being told to kill a super-being of a teacher?” Karasuma asked, glancing at his watch.

“Korosensei isn’t going to hurt me.” Nagisa said plainly. “This could.” He watched as the man’s head dipped in acknowledgement, and looked down at Ritsu again. “You must have prepared for the idea that I wouldn’t believe you about the time travel. Isn’t there anything else you can tell me? If you have information, do you have things like pictures, too?”

Ritsu bleeped. “We didn’t think about the possibility of pictures.” She said, sounding surprised. “I have some in my database, yes, and some might not count as off-limits information. What would you like to see?”

“A picture of whatever happened to Earth.” He said, immediately.

Ritsu paused. “I’m sorry, that isn’t allowed.”

Nagisa pondered it. “A picture of myself, then. As recent to the time travel as possible.”

“Retrieving data.” A moment later, her image was replaced with a picture of him taken from the front, cropped so that only his head and shoulders were visible. Nagisa leaned in, fascinated.

He looked noticeably older. His hair was short – yes, wonderful – and a little paler than he was used to. There were noticeable wrinkles around his eyes, and the eyes themselves…

He was smiling. The same smile he’d given to Takaoka-sensei, approaching with steel in his hand. He could read the earnest bloodlust in his own features, clear as day.

“How old was I?” He asked, after he’d considered the picture for a while. He didn’t think he was any older than his mid-forties, but then, he’d always looked young. Maybe that persisted.

“I can’t say.”

“Figures.” He sighed, and looked up at Karasuma. “What about a picture of the research facility?”

She appeared to ponder the idea. “I think that counts as classified information about the research, sorry.” She said, apologetically. “Five more minutes until scanning is complete.”

“What about a picture of where I live?”

“That’s the research facility.”

Nagisa blinked. “I’m a scientist?” Even if he weren’t in the end class, it was not a profession he’d ever considered.

“That,” Ritsu said. “Is-“

“Classified?” He interrupted. She beamed at him. “Of course...I suppose we should just wait for the scan.” Karasuma nodded at him, wordlessly, and they dropped into silence. It would have been completely quiet if not for the noises outside – his classmates yelling in the distance, birdsong from the roof, an odd scratching at the walls…

Nagisa turned to stare suspiciously at the outside wall, below the window. He caught Karasuma’s eye and gestured minutely in the direction of the quiet sounds. The agent held the eye contact, followed it, and then inched quietly towards the window. He looked down.

A brief pause.

“Get back to the field! No eavesdropping!” The sudden volume of his shout made Nagisa wince, glad that the headset covered his ears. He heard two voices screech a little in shock, and craned his head as best he could to see Maehara and Okajima fleeing in terror.

“…If they heard anything, they won’t keep it quiet.” Nagisa pointed out, a little wearily.

Karasuma breathed very slowly and deliberately for several seconds, irritation twitching his brow. “Ritsu, please let the students know that I’ll be briefing them later, and that information leaks aren’t to be tolerated. Be subtle.”

“Yes, sensei!” She chirped, and then presumably followed his instructions. It was hard to tell, given that she remained precisely where she was on the phone’s display.

The remaining minutes passed quickly. Nagisa had never been so grateful for a beep as the one that sounded from the headset, directly before the neck brace released him. His hand went up instantly, touching lightly at the skin of his throat. “Can I take it off?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t wait for further instructions, pulling the thing off. His hair had become sweaty and unpleasant, sticking to his neck. There was also a small smudge of blood on his finger when he pulled it away from the injection site.

“So, how long will the procedure take?” Karasuma asked while Nagisa set to work tying his hair back up. There was a dull ache where the needle had been.

Ritsu hummed. “Including rest cycles, it will take six days.” She said. “After that, you will be able to remove the headset. However, it is likely you will need a further recovery period of at least two days.”

Nagisa grimaced. “Finals are only weeks away…”

“If this works, Nagisa-kun, you will easily get the best mark in a number of things. If nothing else, you are fluent in English.”

Karasuma raised an eyebrow. “Useful.” He commented.

“Well, that’s a definite benefit.” Nagisa murmured. “How can we do this, sensei?” He put the headset carefully back into its case, and stood up with his phone.

“…It might be difficult.” He said. “Depending on how often you need supervision.”

“If you make sure to keep your phone charged, Nagisa-kun, I can try to remind you of when to take your medication. And I can call people if you need outside help.” Her avatar looked towards Karasuma. “Sensei, could you supervise Nagisa-kun during the active modification cycles?”

“How long are the active cycles?” He asked.

“Five hours. With twelve hour recovery before the next active session.”

Karasuma held his hand to his mouth, brows furrowed in thought. “If he stays at my flat, I can supervise evening and night cycles. Anything else, though…”

“Aa.” Ritsu nodded. “It will have to do. Maybe the rest of the class can help?”

Their teacher grimaced. “And then I’ll have you all knowing where I live. Lovely.” Taken aback at the sardonic almost-humour from such an unlikely source, Nagisa let out a surprised laugh. “At any rate, if we’re going with the idea that Nagisa will vanish for a week, what will the story be when he returns?”

“…If it’s anything traumatic, my mother might not react well.” Nagisa admitted. “Even without that…I don’t think she’ll let me out of her sight for a while.”

“You can always pretend amnesia.” Ritsu pointed out. “It’s difficult to disprove, and if we let you reappear while you’re still recovering, there will probably be symptoms to support the idea of head damage.”

“Then I’ll be stuck in hospital for ages.” Nagisa pointed out, grimacing at the mention of ‘head damage’. “The bills will be horrible.”

“Well, we’ll have time to figure it out.” The assassination instructor decided. “For now, we should brief the rest of the class quietly, and arrange a way for you to disappear.”

“Are we telling Bitch-sensei?”

Karasuma grimaced. “If necessary.”

“Sensei, I can use the students’ phones to tell them what’s going on.” Ritsu offered.

“That’s probably the most secure way to do it. Thank you, Ritsu.”

“…I usually walk home, so if I leave late tonight from after-school lessons, it could be believable for me to disappear on the way home.” Nagisa mused.

“Hm.” Karasuma considered his words, his near-perpetual frown light and thoughtful. “I drive, so I’ll get back first. I’ll cover my license plates, disguise myself, and then drive to abduct you, and take a very circuitous route home. How does that sound?”

“…Terrifying, sensei.” He replied, quite honestly. He wondered whether being able to make abduction plans on the fly was a special forces thing, or just a Karasuma-sensei thing. He had very little idea what the man had done for a living before this, after all.

“Then it’s settled. I’ll put the case into my car until then.” Karasuma nodded decisively. “You should return to class, Nagisa-kun. Perhaps try to kill the octopus when you arrive.”

“I’ll coordinate with him, sensei.”

The two of them who were not artificial intelligences blinked with surprise as the middle panel of the case, as well as the locking panels, closed on their own with a few whirrs and clicks. The older man shrugged, and bent to pick the case up, utterly ignoring the wheels. Nagisa took a moment to feel jealous of his obvious strength.

“I’ll see you later for after-school lessons, Nagisa-kun. Ritsu, try to brief everyone discreetly.” He nodded to them, and left the room.

Nagisa looked down at his phone, feeling quite overwhelmed. “…Alright, what now?”

“Now, I prepare my fixed artillery body, and you prepare your knife.” Ritsu said. “I have enough experience shooting at beings like sensei that I should be able to score some hits if you distract him.”

Back on the reassuring ground of sensei-killing, Nagisa felt some tension leave his shoulders. “That sounds good. Can you give me any tips?”

She giggled. “Nope!”

“Naturally.” He sighed at her, slipping her into his pocket. “Alright, I’ll try to get him when I apologise for missing class. Please be ready to support me with your guns.”

“Of course!”

---

Naturally, he did not succeed at killing Korosensei.

Ritsu did hit two tentacles, though, so he counted it as a minor victory.

---

 End chapter.

 Notes: As this is my first try writing for this fandom, I don’t feel I have a very good grasp on the characters yet. Please forgive beginning clumsiness, especially given the dialogue and exposition heaviness of this chapter. Also, the time travel methods and reasons in this story are extremely sci-fi, so bear that in mind.

If I write more of this, I’ll start posting on AO3 too.

If readers could provide feedback, that would be lovely.

[medea10]

Medea’s Top 10 Saddest Moments in Anime

[blazardragon]

What are your least favourite and most favourite Assassination classroom pairings?

You know, usually when I see a post or meme about fandom, Imust nod my head in embarrassment and agreement. I get absolutely ecstatic whenmy favorite characters appear on screen for even a single millisecond, and Ifeel like sobbing tears of joy whenever something good happens to them.However, one of the only things where I feel like I’m not on the same page asthe rest of Tumblr is pairings. I’m just not much of a shipper. Mentor/student,parent/child, and sibling relationships have always been the strongest forcesin my life, not romance, so those are the relationships that tend to capture myheart. Hence all the Asano family antics in my art. I’ve actually contemplatedmany times making artwork for this ship or that ship, but I get artist blockwhenever I try to actually make something.

A side effect of my lack of shipping is that arguments aboutOTPs and NOTPs confuse me. I know that chemistry doesn’t occur between everypair of individuals, but it doesn’t bother me to see a character paired withdifferent characters. I’m always happy to see my favorites interact with othercharacters since those interactions bring out different aspects of theirpersonality, so seeing a wide range of ships for a single character is excitingfor me, not anger-inducing. That being said, I do have a few preferencesregarding pairings, which you can read under the cut if you’re curious about myopinions, but they’re mostly based on character representation. It’s a littlelong though. I divided it into three categories instead of two: my mostfavorites, my least favorites, and my non-negotiable nopes  

My most favorites (andothers I like)

Anything featuring my favorite characters being happy to behonest. They can suffer a bit too, pain is part of what makes them who they areafter all, but as long as I see my favorite characters getting attention andlove (from both the character they’re interacting with and the writer/artistbehind the scenes), I’m as happy as a clam. The only exception is if the shipinvolves what I listed under my nopes.

Examples of ships involving my faves that I have had the privilegeto enjoy include:  

Gakuho x Karasuma:Since Karasuma is even more serious and reserved than Gakuho, I get to watchGakuho put some effort into this ship. Also, Gakuho teases Koro and Gakushuu inthe canon sometimes, yet even though I’m sure he would have done the same withKarasuma, who’s probably the easiest character to joke around with, it neverhappened. This ship fixes that.

Gakuho x Korosensei:I’ve always loved the way Gakuho calmly accepts Koro’s spazztastic antics inthe canon, so seeing that expanded upon is fantastic. The mutual respect theyhold for each other is also a big plus. Bonus points because Korosensei is alsoone of my favorite characters of all time.

Gakushuu x Karma:Where I get to see Gakushuu’s fiery side. I’m pretty competitive myself, so I likerivals in general. They can both challenge and support each other to do betteras equals.

Gakushuu x Kevin: Ilove how Kevin attempted to defend Gakushuu in the canon, so seeing this big,warm-hearted American boy bring Gakushuu’s feelings out a bit more makes mesmile.

Gakushuu x Nakamura:I like seeing Gakushuu interact with her because they’re both successfulacademically, yet their core values couldn’t be more different. Nakamura wantedto be normal, but Gakushuu wants to be as exceptional as possible, and thatclash of ideals is fascinating. I’m sure they could both learn a lot from eachother and grow to appreciate each side.  

But you could probably write a story about the Asanosand a cactus and I’d probably like it. I’m really not picky. None of these haveto be romantic for me to enjoy them either.

 There are a lot of ships I like that don’t need to involve myfavorite family as well. All you need to do is draw/write a healthyrelationship about any set of characters in AssClass and I’ll probably like it.Examples include:

Takaoka x GoD (2ndgen):  Two characters that I didn’t reallycare about in the canon. I didn’t feel like I had anything in common with them,nor did either of them ever inspire me to become a better person. That’s about theworst start a pair of characters could have in my heart, and yet there’s somuch fanart of them having fun together that the pair now feels canon to me. They’relike the friendly, happy newlyweds living next door, and I feel like I mustsupport them.

Mimura x Sugaya: There’susually at least one reason to like each student in Class E. In the case ofthese two, I always have a soft spot for artistically inclined characters. Watchingthem draw out each other’s creativity and inspire each other to keep reachinghigher is something that resonates with me. Maybe it’s because my sister is anartist.  

Terasaka x Takebayashi:Going to maid cafes together seems like a great way to bond. These guys share aunique common interest in spite of their physical differences, which I findquite compelling.

Yuuji x Nagisa:Yuuji really grew as a person after meeting with Nagisa, and I’m sure there’sroom for even more growth. They both seem like rather gentle people too, so readingabout them hang out and relax, whether as friends or as more, is prettyenjoyable.

There’s a lot more, but these are the ones I get to enjoythe most since they end up on my dash a lot ^^;

My least favorites (whichare still negotiable)

Gakushuu x Lea:  It feels weird to say this because I’m theone who posted the English translation of Korotan C, but it felt like Lea wasintroduced as a character solely to give Gakushuu a female love interest. I don’twant to be too harsh on her since she barely had a chance at character developmentto begin with, but I never got a chance to love this girl. I generally don’tlike forced relationships for the sake of having relationships, and it’s a forcedrelationship involving my orange son, so this is probably the closest I’ll everget to having a NOTP. However, if someone were to appear in the fandom and startwriting fics or drawing fanart depicting the growth of their relationship in acompelling manner, I could probably grow to like even this ship.

The only other pairing that comes to mind as one that I feelless than neutral about has more to do with one of the characters more than theship itself. In spite of the mutual respect established by Karma and Nagisa inthe canon, why is Nagisa treated so disrespectfully so very frequently inKarmagisa works? I’m sure that Nagisa would be able to protect and provide forKarma as much as Karma could for Nagisa. I don’t dislike Karmagisa as a concept,but I do dislike it when Nagisa devolves into a crying sex toy, and thathappens enough for me to hold a certain level of fear in my heart when I seefanfiction tagged Karmagisa. Have mercy on Nagisa.

Non-Negotiable Nopes(or NNNopes)

I love Gakuho. It’s been ten years since I’ve loved a characteras much as I love Gakuho, but boy oh boy, looking through his fanfiction islike stepping through a minefield. He somehow manages to cover all of my nopes.For example:

Teacher x Student:  I really like mentor/student relationships,but not THOSE kinds of relationships. Mentors are there to unselfishly supporttheir students, but adding sex/romance to their relationship adds an element ofselfishness that really shouldn’t be there. And yet, Gakuho keeps gettingshipped with Isogai.  This same line ofreasoning also applies to Parent x Child relationships.

Relationships withNon-Con:  I’m pretty much okay with anysituation if the characters are okay with it. Similarly, I hate reading thingswhere one of the characters doesn’t like it. Simple.  I’ve read some fics where Gakuho startsphysically torturing someone (usually Gakushuu, goddammit), and I nope out ofthere as fast as I can, but I still feel like I lost a few minutes of mylifespan.  

I’m not going to personally track down a person’s blog and sendanonymous hate messages to anyone for writing these. Exploring differentemotions, even the darkest, is probably a necessity for some people to understandand tackle their own darkness. It probably takes some practice to write aboutdark themes in a responsible way too, I’m sure (I’ve never written a fic so I’mactually not sure). But will I ever read any of these? NOOOOPE  

 Thanks for the ask :D  I hope it doesn’t feel like I dodgedthe question since I didn’t list any ‘most favorite’ pairings, but these are myhonest feelings on the subject. I like a lot of characters in AssClass, so aslong I feel like those characters don’t get horribly misrepresented, and aslong as they look happy together, then I’m happy too. And if it involves acharacter I love, I love it!  

[nyxelestia]

Teen Wolf's sounds are great, but its visuals are terrible, and THAT is its weakness

I just read some great meta from about how worldbuilding was probably Teen Wolf's greatest failure. It really hit the nail on the head about how we never really see the kids doing normal, teenage things in between all these abnormal, supernatural things. I can't reblog the post, but I did really want to make one addition to it.

It's not that the writing started to decline throughout the show. Writing was never the problem, nor was its biggest corollary (acting). It was everything else - and very specifically, things like set design, and setting in general.

This is unsurprising for an MTV show, but "sound" has always been one of the biggest features of Teen Wolf. Ranging from extraordinarily well-acted dialogue to fantastic music, and including more subtle developments about the supernatural world based on sound. Think about how much of the supernatural world thus far has been about the way things sound. How much of the werewolves' power or developments are in their roars? Have you ever noticed that Lydia mostly only hears things that aren't there, but rarely ever sees them? (And when she does literally see things, it's almost always someone else trying to manipulate her, rather than her own premonitions/meta-cognitive capabilities.) And that's before getting into all the ways Season 5 was about what people do and don't hear across different frequencies.

Writing - as in the quality of the script - was never really the problem, because the sound of the show has never been a problem.

The show's biggest weakness is visuals - and/or the lack thereof.

And this isn't just another joke about the show's shit lighting - though that is absolutely a part of it.

A lot of the emotional impact of the first three seasons came from the fact scenes would often start with the kids doing normal, teenage things - only to get interrupted by the supernatural shenanigans.

We see Scott carrying groceries (I thought his mom did all the grocery shopping?) to the car when Derek suddenly hunts him down as a werewolf training method. Jackson gets attacked by a werewolf when trying to rent a movie (way to show your age, writers!). Stiles was making out with Heather and made a dash for some condoms when she got kidnapped (and then, when Stiles saw she wasn't in the cellar anymore, his first assumption was that she got cold feet - which a lot of teenagers would when faced with the prospect of losing their virginity). Part of the horror of the wolfsbane punch at Lydia's birthday party, was the fact that it was happening at her birthday party.

In all those instances, the most of the 'screentime' for the scene is something supernatural, but that scene is opened with normal, teenage life, and that normal life continues to be a visual background to the events of the scene, even as the action and audio take a left turn into supernatural shenanigans.

(Which isn't to say Season 1 was perfect about this, either. Where the hell were the doctors, security guards, nurses, orderlies, and other patients when Peter's beatdown of Derek in Season 1 trashed half the long-term care clinic?)

Think about all those slow-mo scenes. Pretty much everyone complains about how pointless most of them are. i.e. From Season 5, why do we need a slow-motion shot of someone running slowly through the woods? The emphasis was on the music to try and make the moment dramatic. A far better method would've been to keep the motion at regular speed, but instead of showing kids running through the woods or an open field, show them running through the alley behind a mall, or away from their home neighborhoods, or a montage of them running through various teenage hang-outs in town (which would've given a secondary emphasis on subtly demonstrating supernatural speed). The best part is that the "sound" could've stayed the same (dramatic music, huffing-and-puffing, footsteps, etc).

We may not have needed to see a big, family gathering for Scott - just some pictures of family members on the walls of the McCall home would've done the job (and possibly even a better one). This would've been especially powerful if we got to see lots of family pictures all over the McCall house, and yet almost no family pictures in the Stilinski house. Think about how different the Sheriff revealing his father's abuse would've been, if this was done with several pictures of Scott's extended family - including HIS grandfather/Meliss'a parents - in the background. Just imagine that after the Sheriff describes how he got that scar, Scott glances over to a picture of himself, his mom, and a very old man with a warm face on his smile. This would've had no change in dialogue/audio, and would've been a short enough moment that it could've been done without even affecting the screentime - but it would've conveyed so, so much without ever saying a word.

We do still see hints of attempts at this in Season 5 - i.e. the girls are sneaking in some stereotypically illicit driving practice, when Lydia leads them to a dead body. But using daily life as the background for un-daily events is so rare by that point, the 'normal life' moment felt contrived.

Thankfully, Season 6 is actually getting a lot better about this. The first episode was rife with things like the kids taking yearbook pictures, completely failing to ditch classes, and talking about homework (with only hints of the supernatural world, rather than abrupt segues into really big events). This made the Ghost Riders suddenly popping up to take someone away from all this even more horrifying, because we are shown what Stiles is being taken away from. While the night-time and "indoor" scenes are still pretty dim, compared to the last few seasons, the rest of the scenes are actually much better lit.

I bring that last one up because, while lighting isn't all of the show's visual problems, it is a huge part.

Case in point, remember the scene where the school PA system is talking about the police curfew in Season 5, and the lights are all inexplicably dimmed? That scene was overwrought and melodramatic. Compare that to Season 6, where all the daytime scenes are happening with the sun shining brightly through the open windows - and how that makes the little supernatural intrusions all the more shocking and devastating (i.e. Lydia's hallucination of the doctor in the classroom).

Having another pack next door was very much an ass-pull in Season 4, one written to quickly kill off a lot of supernatural beings without actually killing off any of the pack. Imagine if, instead of this, we just got a montage of different people being hunted down and killed, all of them with small hints towards their supernatural side.

i.e. Someone with scales who gets killed while trying to swim to safety, or an assassin shooting into the sky and suddenly a dead body with wings falls to the ground, or people whose eyes glow colors other than the werewolf red/yellow/blue. Imagine if instead of the stereotypical claws and fangs, someone fought to the death with talons, or horns, or a tail? Imagine if we did see someone sprout claws and fangs, but right when we expect to hear a wolf/canine roar, we heard something that sounded like a lion or a tiger instead?

We could've had a LOT of visual hints at other supernatural creatures and a bigger supernatural world/environment, with very little change in screentime or audio/dialogue. (And most of what just described could've been done relatively cheap in terms of costume/make-up and special effects, i.e. you don't need to show someone with wings flying through the sky - just a body with limp wings falling to the ground.)

tl;dr - It's not the writing that's the problem, because MTV is a very audio-oriented company, and the show 'sounds' fantastic. It's the lack of visual complements that are the real problem.

[currentbalochistan]

Why I Left Home: The story of a Baloch refugee

Noroz Hayat September 19, 2019 Featured

I am obsessed with reading novels, short stories, or any literature about people who left their homes, were expelled from their countries or persecuted. A part of keeping informed is I don’t get weary of watching movies and documentaries about the lives of refugees or victims of torture and imprisoned for unjust reasons.

Of course, watching these movies now is different from when I was a kid in the late 90s, enjoying the silver screen with friends and cousins. Now the movies I watch are about real life, and they feel close to my real life.

When I go to bed after watching a movie in any language, I wake in the middle of the night, scared, reliving the scenes as if I am being abducted or tortured, or our village is being burned or evacuated, or I am running away from some army man, always afraid of what lies ahead, just like in the movies. This is painful, but is now a part of my life, part of why I left my home. I cannot run away from the reality of confronting it. Being aware of the trauma and the trials of others has made me realize that I am not the only victim of war, subsequent loneliness and homesickness. Which is why I decided to share my story too.

I was born in a small village called Khairabad, near Kech, in the south of Balochistan. I imagined in my wildest thoughts that one day I would be sitting alone, lonely, in the corner of a coffee shop writing the story of leaving my home, my family, friends, relatives, and carry along the childhood memories. I now understand how important they are and what they mean to a person.

Not only watching movies was fun, but my childhood was, as most childhoods are, innocent of the country’s political situation. As the only son of my parents, I was privileged to receive an abundant amount of love and affection from my cousins, aunts, uncles, and extended family. Daily life was going to the mud-built structure that served as a school, playing cricket after school with cousins and friends and occasionally herding the sheep to the fields. In the summer during school break, I would join my uncle and grandfather at date-palm farms, where my grandfather would sell the dates to city folks from Karachi who would come to buy Makurani dates at rock-bottom prices that only we offered.

Getting older was exciting, because our world expanded, or so we thought. Together with my cousins, we could not wait to go to Turbat, the nearest city that was 40 miles (64 kilometers) away. The only public transport from our village were Toyota pickups that took over an hour to reach the city on dirt roads. Once there, we would buy Balochi Chawat (traditional footwear) and walk around the streets of Turbat city.

Rahmat-e-Sheeren, Gadi Chok, and Balochistan Music Center were my favorite places in the city. Whenever I would go to Turbat, I would buy one Balochi cassette of music and never missed the Rahmat-e-Shereen sweets and samosas. It was a different world full of more adolescent kind of fun. My mother had promised me that when I graduate from high school that she would send me to Turbat for higher education. So, whenever I went to Turbat and looked at the buildings of Atta Shad Degree College, I told myself that I would be there someday, attending college classes in those buildings.

It wasn’t until I graduated from high school that I came to know that the land where I was born had already seen three political battles between Baloch nationalists and the Pakistani military. All of the conflicts involved much bloodshed, including of course people who were fighting for their land and justice. The people of Balochistan suffered the killing and persecution of numerous political leaders and as many activists, of whom if they weren’t killed took refuge in Afghanistan and the neighboring province of Sindh. Fortunately, Turbat, and the town where I grew up had not been affected by these trials as much as other towns, hence I was able to grow up somewhat innocent and enjoy being a child safe under the watchful eyes of my family.

Kech

My mother was good for her word: In 2006, I gained admission in Atta Shad Degree College and moved to Turbat. There were three dormitories for students on campus known as New, Old, and Complex. I was assigned to room six in the Old building. Four students, who were all from different villages and towns in the Kech district, and I shared the room. I also shared an education with these friends and roommates that wasn’t limited to the classroom.

As I learned my way around campus, I saw much writing and graffiti written in red paint and spray paints. It was written by the Baloch Student Organization (BSO). The various graffiti messages read:

“We didn’t accept the state census in Balochistan.”

“Kalam may tawar kitab may rahsoon. (The Pen is our guide, the Book our Leader!)”

“BSO ke rehnumabo ki griftari ryasati deshatgardi hai. (The arrest of BSO leaders is a form of state terrorism!)”

“Warna raj e bandat ant. (The youths are the future of the nation)”

“Army, get out of Balochistan.”

“We need education, not jail.”

This wasn’t the first time I had heard of the BSO. The first time I heard the name of the organization was in 2003, when I was in school. One of my cousins told me that some BSO walas were visiting our school and arranging a study circle type of event for the students. It was the first and last event of any kind that was conducted for students during all my school years. This organization seemed to care.

Apart from seeing BSO footprints around the campus and my singular knowledge of its existence from my cousin, I felt like a person who was given a new set of eyes, who had just popped out of his old environment into a contemporary world. College life was an entirely new experience for me. Not just the interaction with my roommates, but the daily interaction with several students from different towns and villages gave me a broader perspective on people.

Reading various works of literature that I had never before encountered, gave me a more reflective understanding of life. I made new friends and occasionally attended BSO study groups, where I sat around sipping the bitter and sweet tea at Pyary’s Canteen and smoking cigarettes like a grown-up man. I had crossed the threshold of adulthood by now.

Little did I know what lay beyond that initial step into being “grown-up”. How things would change so fast or how I ended up here sitting at this coffee shop writing, in exile. I am still asking myself these questions.

On August 27, 2006 the military entered the college grounds armed with loaded weapons and the arms of war. Faster than anyone could raise an alarm, almost one hundred students and staff of the college were taken becoming hostages of the military. Knowing this was illegal, just one of the offenses the military was committing, the principle of the school went out to tell the army Major leading the invasion that, without any official notice, he was not allowed to enter the college premises. The military man started shouting. I still remember his exact words: “Who the hell are you dictating what I can and cannot do? And what my authorities are!!!”

Naturally, the petrified students who were not taken by the military, were left to stand by, unable to believe what was happening. Remember, we were from an area that had not been directly affected by the political upheaval, this was not comprehensible to us.

The teachers themselves told us that the military had never forced themselves on college property before. This was an escalation of a situation none of us were well-informed of at the time. Unbeknownst to us at the college, the day before on August 26, a Baloch politician named Nawab Akbar Bugti, was assassinated in a military operation in Dera Bugti, his home town. Reacting to the assassination, student activists and politicians were out protesting against the military. In response, the military then put a curfew on the city of Turbat and other parts of Balochistan. The military had come to our school, as they had to colleges and universities across Balochistan to cordon off the areas and prevent students from going out and protesting against the military. When the security forces left the campus, I breathed a sigh of relief – as I’m sure everyone else did – packed my bags and left the city.

The invasion of the military was too much for me. But there was nothing for me to do at home and no space to smoke my cigarettes. I got bored. Even though I didn’t want to return, it was for me the only place to go at the time. So, after a week I returned to Turbat and college.

Returning to the college, I picked up where I left off from and started the same routine. However, it was not the same anymore. Turbat city had changed now, and it seemed to have spread throughout Balochistan. There was a feeling of trepidation. Students were caught up in politics, demonstrating and protesting against the state for the exploitation of Balochistan’s resources and the mistreatment of the people. The assassination and military incursion had awakened everyone to become involved, to be heard.

Of course, the military didn’t stand this. This was what they had tried to prevent in the first place, when they first showed up at the colleges and universities. On the other hand, some Baloch nationalists were holding political gatherings and raising the issue that Pakistan has been exploiting not only the resources, but the education and culture of Balochistan for the past six decades. Regardless of any negotiations that took place, the military seized and threw students in jail all over Balochistan. In an injustice as old as time, these activists were being put in jail for believing in and voicing the rights of Baloch to have a say in the governance of their own land.

The BSO

Although Aristotle wrote that the man is by nature a social animal, it is not entirely the reason I took the steps that I did leading to further escalate towards my exile. An intellectual capacity for seeing and understanding moral imperatives and wrongs was awakened in me. Being part of the Baloch students community, I started attending political gatherings at the college. There were two tiers of academic study at the college: one was regular classes with professors and the second was the Study Circle, which was arranged by students once or twice a week to talk and get insight on international politics, the political situation surrounding us in Balochistan, and literature and writings on democracy and liberalism. To add to our learning in the study circles, we invited Baloch intellectuals from different specialties to educate us.

From this training, I learned that as a people, we Baloch have a distinct culture and history which is different from the other nations in Pakistan, especially from the ruling majority class. I came to know a different version of history, one which was always hidden by the state from us. This different version of Baloch history is a history of subjugation and manipulation of our people by the state. This most recent version of Baloch history that I learned made me more critical of the everyday injustices that were occurring – had been there for a long time – in Balochistan.

Despite the very important learning that was taking place, I left Atta Shad Degree College after a year and a half. One day I just took my clothes, folded them in a dirty bag, and left the dorm with teary eyes. But I left my books in my room, just for the self-satisfaction that I would come back some day. There were two reasons I decided to leave. First was financial. My father had passed away when I was in 8th grade at school, and the amount of money he left behind was not enough to continue my higher education. The second reason was the city was getting more fraught with fear. The student dormitories were under watch by the Pakistani intelligence agencies. There was a big military base and secret service building near the college. Every night unknown people freely roamed the college grounds and went through the dormitories. There were suspicious cars with tinted mirrors that followed students when they arrived and left the main gate of the school. I was disillusioned, I knew I couldn’t stay.

Once home, I tried to ask relatives in the gulf countries to get me a labourer’s visa to get me out of there. But this wasn’t the path my mother was willing to let me go down. She was convinced that I must finish college. When I insisted that I could not go back to college in Turbat, she refused to give up on me following a higher education. She suggested going to school elsewhere. “Why don’t you go to Karachi? Karachi is a safe city. I will arrange some money for you.” And that’s just what she did. After staying at home for four months, I went to Karachi in August 2007 because of my mother’s persistence.

Karachi

It was a challenge to go back to school, and I faced a dilemma even though I had reached Karachi: Should I continue in school or should I return home and try to find a visa? This time I asked some relatives in Oman, Qatar and UAE, but did not receive any response. Which led to my decision to stay in Karachi until I finished my master’s degree.

Four other students, all from my village, and I rented a two-bedroom tiny apartment in Gulistan- e-Johar. The others had arrived before me and knew the lay of the land. Just to help me along, one of my roommates wrote on a piece of paper the names of three buses and where they would take me: ‘11-A will take you to the Liaquat Library, 4X will take you to the tuition center, and Lucky Star brings you home.’ That piece of paper and it’s directions were the start of a new life in Karachi.

In Liaquat Library, I met with several Baloch students who had traveled a hundred miles to come to Karachi to fulfill their desire for knowledge. Some of whom I met at the library were students enrolled at colleges, some from different universities. We were all there for the same reason: we had all learned a thing or two from the study circles of BSO back in our hometowns or and brought that knowledge to Karachi with us.

During this time in Karachi, my friends and I were treated as if we were illiterate, ignorant people. We heard many times, both in our classes and in public places that we Baloch lived in the mountains, were not civilized people, violent, uneducated, did not know how to speak proper Urdu, and just don’t wear decent clothes. We were frightened to go into non-Baloch dominant areas.

Despite being citizens of Pakistan, we were considered and treated as third-class citizens. My perspective and understanding of myself and fellow Baloch’s standing changed when I faced these biases. Luckily, during this time I was learning other things too which was strengthening my resolve, and the easy access to books, libraries, and the internet was aiding the person I was becoming. I had always wanted to be a social worker and accomplished this goal, first earning an undergraduate degree in 2009 in Sociology and then a Master’s Degree in Social Work in 2013.

Subsequent to completing my education, I worked for a couple of non-governmental organizations helping people as a social worker. However, despite my developing character and working in my chosen field and corporeal self being in Karachi, my thoughts were in Balochistan, my homeland.

My thoughts were soon to be cemented forever with Balochistan as it became harder to visit. In 2009, the Pakistani military started a new tool, a program called “Kill and Dump” to quell any kind of resistance, imagined or real, to their authority. This was intended to stop the Baloch political movement which was gaining more and more popular support in every corner of Balochistan. It was much stronger than the three previous political movements and especially since the Baloch youth were participating in it from the beginning.

The army first abducted those Baloch leaders and activists who condemned state absolutism in their public gatherings and demanded justice from the West, calling out to human rights organizations to intervene in Balochistan to stop state forces from exploiting Baloch resources. The military’s ruthlessness didn’t end there. Within a couple of years, the state deployed a hundred thousand security forces in different towns in Balochistan, built more security checkpoints on highways, where they checked every passenger’s identification card. It was also announced in print and electronic media that the state will punish the supporters and facilitators of the Baloch movement.

Mostly student activists, guilty only of trying to have their voices heard, were abducted from security check-posts. Every two to three days, they would “disappear” people from Bozi checkpoint, Gwadar Zero Point, Uthal checkpoint, and Khuzar checkpoint, and their decomposing bodies were dumped in Murgap, Turbat, Uthal, Quetta, Khuzdar and other parts of Balochistan.

My journey of social work and helping others didn’t go far because of the “Kill and Dump” operations. I was afraid I would be abducted and killed like many other students and activists. From 2009 to 2015, during my time in Karachi, we lost several BSO’s activists and some close friends. Zakir Majeed, a M.A English literature student and Senior Vice Chairman of BSO, was forcibly disappeared in Mastung in June 2009, and is still missing; no one knows about him. Qambar Chakar, 24, a student of Balochistan University of Information Technology Engineering and Management Science (BUITEMS), was abducted with his cousin in November 2010 from his home. Later his cousin Irshad Baloch was released, but Qambar Chakar’s decomposed body was found dumped in Murgaap, Turbat along with another missing student Ilyas Nazar, only 22, in January of 2011. Raza Jahangir, a good friend and Secretary General of the BSO, was killed in August 2013 with another activist Imdad Baloch in a military operation in Turbat. BSO’s Chairman Zahid Baloch was abducted in March, 2014 in Quetta, and he is still missing along with others.

With tensions and apprehensions escalating, traveling became more difficult. I had to cross ten to eleven security check posts, show my identification card to the army-guard whenever I went home from Karachi. I was asked numerous prying questions at the security checkpoints, and I had the feeling that they were just trying to pinpoint my movements and get information that was innocent enough, but that would be used against me for some unknown reason. It was getting more and more dangerous.

The last time I went home to Khairabad was in June 2014. After that, I stopped going back to the place where I grew up, and the place where my father, grandfather, grandmother, and uncle are buried. The place I call my homeland. My home.

In August 2015, I landed in the United States with the hope of finding a safe shelter to live peacefully for the rest of my life.

The author tweets at @noroz_hayat