#I do think it’s a bit soon for another new iteration but eh

[bluewithpurplepolkadots]

Honestly I’m fine with the idea of Leonardo having a crush on April in mutant mayhem.

I am however deeply concerned from clips that we’ll have something like 2012 Donatello.

I mean not only was that aspect very badly handled in that show anyway: but even if it had been well handled it’s simply boring to do the same old thing. Having it be a different turtle should at least mean a different take on it.

[baxterstockmanisthecenterfold]

how many versions of Claddia do you have

Eh I think like 6 or 7. Y'all already met her 2012 version. But I've put her in other iterations too. Keep in mind tho, all of my Claddia's are in the process of being redesigned & updated. Starting with cartoons.

(old design on left)

This version of her was originally Korean because when I was first creating her in general, I didn't know if I wanted Claddia to be black or Asian. But I decided on black for other versions since there's a lack of said race in TMNT in general. Although I've since then redesigned her & made her black since it just doesn't make sense to racebend her at all really & I definitely want to avoid the assumption that she isn't black here because 80s Baxter wasn't. As for her role in this incarnation she has a history with Baxter. The two were really close friends & science colleagues in their college years plus (maybe even more) but lost contact after Claddia moved out of New York, to continue her research. Granted she would eventually return to the big Apple especially to reconnect with Baxter. Unfortunately by this point in time he had already been mutated & it's basically a Simon & Betty situation with them especially since she'd later try to cure him & restore his memory even at the cost of her own normal life.

In the 2003 cartoon. She's a member of the EPF & Agent Bishop's right hand woman & the original leading scientist until Baxter was recruited after the Exodus arc. To put it bluntly. The two hate each other & are constantly budding heads especially regarding the other's IQ & overall importance on even being here. They do eventually start to grow a bit of respect for one another & become frenemies at most.

(old design on left)

Once again as y'all noticed, she's in the 2012 series. This version of her is an inventor & scientist that doesn't take crap from anybody (as much as it bites her in the ass). She's also really egotistical & even short tempered. She met Baxter through coincidence as she's also had a bad run in with the turtles, & pretty much bonded & became close since then. Acting as a black cat gf to his golden retriever bf. It also helps that she knows how to fight without technology helping her.

In the Rise series she's pretty much a successful scientist & took Baxter's usual role as untrustworthy celebrity as she was secretly kidnapping & using mutants for her own purposes even teaming up with Baron Draxum in the process. But she's not one bit of a pushover & has backup plans for backup plans on how to screw over people. After the events of "The Mutant Menace" she bailed out Baxter & took him under her wing as her apprentice/mentee forming a little mother & son relationship.

In the Comics.

(soon to be updated design)

In the mirage universe, Claddia's a science nerd & huge fan of Baxter & even still remained loyal to him even AFTER what he did with his mousers & his terrorist stunt. It eventually led to her visiting him in prison & even helping him escape, secretly conspiring together & her falling in love with him as well. She also played a hand in his eventual break in to the DARPA facility for his robot rampage. Unfortunately, Stockman was only using her the whole time to succeed in his goals & betrayed & killed the poor woman.

Finally, in the IDW continuity she once again works for the EPF & is Bishop's top scientist. She's very different from most of the previous versions as she is pretty timid & just sticks to doing what she's informed to. As for her relationship with Baxter. She's once again a big fan of his work as a scientist & soon to be Mayor. Although two only met briefly when Baxter met with Bishop. Something that MIGHT change in her re-write. Tho one thing is the same. She was there in person the night of his election victory, including being in mutagen bomb distance

Yes Claddia does get mutated in 3 of these continuities. No I can't share them yet because I want to redesign em a bit & also because I'm at the photo limit & I don't feel like retyping all of this on desktop so I can do the more than 10 limit. But uh yeah. That's Ms. Brackston for y'all.

[kiranatrix]

Technology Liaison

Written for @deathnotetober [Day 3-- Leather]

Characters: Light and Ryuk / Rating: G

-------

“Ryuk, what exactly is the Death Note made of?” Light paused in his writing, swiveling his desk chair to face the shinigami lounging on his bed. It had taken no time at all for Ryuk to make himself at home in Light’s room.

“Eh?” Ryuk licked some apple bits off his chops. “Uhhh...lemme think.” He wracked his brain— or whatever shriveled up organ was up there— while tapping a long talon against his teeth. “I dunno.”

Light sighed, “You’re really useless, you know that?” He turned back to look at the Death Note, closing it to get a better look at the cover under his desk lamp. His curiosity had been piqued and now it was bothering him. “The pages feel like paper but you said they continually replace themselves so it can’t really be paper.”

“Uh huh. Yup, I did say that.” Ryuk couldn’t remember saying that but Light was correct so he must have at some point. “Makes more pages when you fill ‘em up. Convenient, right?”

“And the outside cover...it feels like leather.” Light traced his fingers over the embossed white letters and the pebbly black cover. “Are there cows in the Shinigami realm?”

“What’s a cow?” Ryuk scratched his chin until he suddenly remembered. “Oh that’s right, that  big animal that’s kinda dumb, eats all day, lazes around?”

“Sort of reminds me of someone else,” Light snickered. “But do you have any where you’re from? Or any animals?”

“Nope!” Ryuk tossed back another apple, crunching it loudly as he talked. “Nothin’ but dust and shinigami up there. Told you it was boring.”

“I guess it’s not leather then.” Light tried to scratch the surface of the notebook with the tip of his mechanical pencil but it didn’t make a mark. “And indestructible?”

“Naw, fire can destroy it. Don’t see what you’d wanna go and do that for though.” Ryuk eyed him warily. If Light burned it up then his precious fun would be over.

“Don’t worry, I’m not thinking of doing that.” Light tore off a piece of the Death Note’s paper and dropped it in his glass of water, watching it sink. “The paper doesn’t get soggy either, hmm.”

Ryuk floated over to look in the glass as well. “Whatcha care so much for? The notebook does what you want it to do. Pfft, never had a human be so curious about it before.”

“You’ve given others the notebook before?” Light looked up with real interest. He loved to hear that he stood out among Ryuk’s other humans. “Who? When?”

“Against the rules to tell you their names. Nobody real memorable, though.” Ryuk hovered in mid-air on his side, head propped up in his hand. “But, uh…it was probably several of your human centuries ago. Passed like a flash for us.”

“Hmm.” Light flipped back to the first page, which had been blank when he’d gotten it and was now filled with names. “The Death Note couldn’t have looked like this several centuries ago. It’s meant to look like a modern school notebook, from this era.”

“Nope.” Ryuk snapped his fingers and the Death Note in Light’s grasp suddenly morphed into a heavier tome, with gold script lettering on a red leather cover. “Looked like that.” He snapped again and it became a scroll of thick, rough paper, tied in the middle with a black ribbon. “And like this, the time before. Think the first time I dropped one down it became some kinda rock, hyuk hyuk. Had to be more careful where I tossed it.”

“A rock!” Light gazed at the Death Note in awe as it flashed through earlier and earlier iterations, until indeed there was a flat, square rock in his hand. “What did they do, carve names into it?”

“Uh huh. Took a little while and wasn’t as sneaky as what you got. You’re lucky huh!” Ryuk laughed and changed it back into the recognizable slim black notebook.

“Yeah, I guess so.” Light wasn’t really any closer to understanding what the Death Note was made of, but it wasn’t any substance found on Earth. “I wonder what will happen when nobody writes anything anymore. People use computers more and more these days, Ryuk. Eventually humans might forget how to write by hand at all.” He grinned at the worried look on the shinigami’s face, teasing, “Maybe in the future it’ll have to be a digital Death Note or you won’t get to have any fun.”

“Wha?? I don’t think the Shinigami King knows anything about computers!” Ryuk briefly stuck his head inside Light’s desktop computer, groaning at all the complicated wires and circuits. “Damn. Maybe I should bring this up at the next shinigami committee meeting.”

“Committee meeting?” Light giggled. “Are you serious?”

“We have ‘em once an eon or two. Justin Armonia sure has fun gripin’ about how lazy we are and how the Realm’s gone to hell.” Ryuk wasn’t sure another meeting was coming up anytime soon, though. “But Justin don’t know about computers either.”

“Sounds like your King needs a human who does.” Light smiled and leaned back in his chair, an interesting idea springing to mind. “A human who isn’t afraid of your kind and could teach you about technology.”

“I guess so, but…well then they’d have to come to the Shinigami Realm and we’re supposed to send ‘em to Mu after we write their names.”

Light frowned slightly, pretending to be dismayed. “That’s too bad. Guess the shinigami won’t be able to keep up with the times much longer.” He turned back to the notebook, humming to himself as he got back to writing. Any moment now.

“Uh…what about you? You’re good with that stuff, aren’t ya?” Ryuk poked Light in the arm hopefully. The prospect of not being able to come back and watch a human use his notebook—ever again!— was too awful to entertain.

“Yeah, but like you said, I wouldn’t be any good at helping the King if I’m in Mu.” Light turned on his TV to watch the news, acting completely nonchalant. “Pity.”

Ryuk was quiet for a while, looking between Light and the notebook and the TV. “Guess we’ll talk about that when you die.”

Light looked up with a slight smirk, nothing too obviously triumphant. “Guess so.”

[lonelier-version-of-you]

God, that was such a good episode. I mean, I still don’t like Lucky’s SL but even that had redeeming factors (the romantic subtext between her and Max, plus Vineeta Rishi’s acting), and the rest of the episode was great!

Henrik and Oliver, my disabled genderqueer bisexual beloveds. Seeing these two share a storyline has been SUCH a treat, you have no idea. I’d forgotten just how much I love Ollie!

James Anderson is already giving some truly brilliant performances and he’s only been back for one episode. He is just so. damn. good. (I remember reading in the Holby book, an interview he did where he mentioned Ollie’s brain injury SL - mentioned it vaguely, of course, because it hadn’t aired yet, but he was saying how important it was to him to get it right and do the topic justice. And you absolutely can see how much effort he’s putting into it even now. What an amazing actor.)

Guy Henry was fantastic too. That scene with Henrik and Ollie in the garden was one of the best scenes to come out of Holby in a long, long time - beautifully written, beautifully acted. It actually felt unfair how good that scene was, it was much higher quality than you could ever possibly expect from Holby these days.

And I am SO glad they haven’t forgotten Ollie’s brain injury or magically cured it. Really, really glad. They’re actually putting the effort into portraying it long-term (even if it is a bit ridiculous that he’d work as a doctor again this quickly, but I’ll put that down to the fact that the show’s coming to an end soon so they couldn’t exactly wait some more years before bringing him back). For a show that usually sucks at disability rep, I am quite impressed by this.

Speaking of disability rep, even Jason was good tonight! He actually felt like a person tonight and not the 5-year-old in an adult’s body he’s usually written as. I think it helped MASSIVELY that his primary interactions were all with other disabled people (Ollie and Henrik), so they couldn’t really write him to cater to the abled gaze like they usually do.

Meanwhile, on the Weekly Henruss Watch: we didn’t get much content for them tonight, and Russ just disappeared after the first half of the episode, but what we did get was very enjoyable. They just SCREAM “here’s another one of those ‘I hate you but actually I secretly fancy you and I’ll probably end up making out with you in the middle of an argument’ Holby pairings”. And Russ breaking into Henrik’s office just to flirt with him (ok, and to talk to him about Ollie, but mostly to flirt with him)? Absolutely ICONIC. I love them.

Also, tonight Russ demonstrated the classic queer inability to sit properly. And he wore an outfit that was so terrible it looked great. I love him so much already.

Lucky’s storyline... eh. NGL, I find this storyline rather boring. It’s the same story that’s been told in media a million times before, did we need another iteration? I get that no one’s going to exactly react well to the news that they’re paralysed for the rest of their life, but I can’t imagine that literally everyone’s reaction is to jump to the extreme end of that and decide they want to die. But god, the media would have you think that’s the only way it ever plays out. Even just a slightly different take on things would’ve made this storyline more interesting.

Admittedly, it may be slightly more justifiable in Lucky’s case, given they seem to be trying to indicate (they certainly made it pretty clear last week) that she’s no picture of mental wellness herself and hasn’t been for a long time - in fact, that her career as a mental health nurse may be about helping others because she doesn’t know how to help herself - and this is simply what’s pushed her over the emotional edge.

Also, I like the romantic subtext between her and Max, like I said earlier. They really are just pretty much being written as girlfriends at this point, aren’t they? And Vineeta Rishi’s performances these last few weeks have been amazing - I feel really bad for thinking she was mediocre before, because it turns out she can give a great performance when it counts.

Josh’s storyline has a lot of potential, but they NEED to make sure they don’t mess it up. It’s a subject that needs more awareness in the media, and they’ve got a more than capable actor for it - Trieve Blackwood-Cambridge is incredibly talented. If they get it right, then maybe before the end they can finally redeem themselves for all the terrible mental health storylines we’ve had over the last few years.

Also, this isn’t really relevant to anything, but it was nice seeing both Eli and Henrik stimming a lot tonight.

[kc-anathema]

I’m so sorry I did another long post so soon...

So a long time ago, I received a flame on Spec Ops 98: Jazz's Interrogation at Soundwave's Pedes. I hadn’t received a flame in a long time, and I haven’t received one since (which is amazing, since this was on chapter 26 back in...dear heavens, 2015. This fic is officially an epic.)

In fact, I stopped reading the flame once I realized it was a flame, about four chunks in. 2015, five years ago, I was changing principals, changing schools, trying to figure out how to marry my Canadian then-fiance and figure out immigration. (Fun type--marry her in Vegas, wait a couple years, bring her over. Use a lawyer to make sure it’s all kosher.) So yeah, didn’t read.

And then a concerned reader mentioned to me that I didn’t deserve this awful flame and that they loved the story. And I thought...oh yeah, there was a flame on this. That was a couple months ago.

I finally decided to break the flame apart like I used to. This feels very nostalgic to me. I found out that this is really the flamer’s only claim to fame--they flame fics and troll writers. I’m not going to name them then, although you can find the easily on the ff.net review page for this fic.

My father once told me that, if anyone ever spraypainted slurs across my house...leave the slurs up. Don’t pay to remove them. Let the awful words stay up until everyone in the neighborhood is begging us to take them down again.

I think leaving the review there says more about her than me. And I’m going to enjoy clawing this apart, I think, like a cat scratching apart a lizard.

Flame begin:

We’ve got a problem if Soundwave is involved here and he’s not pulling his usual ‘Decepticons, Superior��� line. Add on a fic about perverts and we get this. Ah, well. What are you gonna do?

Remember the character Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory, and how he said “Bazinga” all the time? That kind of went from a joke to an overused character crutch. Like ‘dynomite!’ or ‘did I do that’? Is it really good to rely on a character line to the point where we can call it ‘usual’?

“I’ll take my pleasure and that sweet aft” – Sounds like a cheesy commercial for Robot Chicken. Fireflight is locked up in a dungeon and is about to be whipped by a BDSM Starscream. That’s not at all OOC. Basically it’s a fanfiction that talks about fanfiction.

I...um. Yes. Yes, it’s an OOC line modeled directly after pulp fiction zines and tijuana bibles. I literally looked up several of those on the Internet Archives and various old men’s magazines covers. It’s not fanfiction directly, although it’s certainly what fanfic evolved out of.

Do these look subtle? Low key? Classy? Tasteful? It’s cheap trash and it’s fun as hell. I don’t think readers at the time thought that these were in any way true. This is right along the lines of drawn hentai. So I think the flamer admitted despite themself that I did good.

“We’re stuck here in the middle of a war...we don’t have time for sex” – That’s right. But that fact doesn’t apply does it?

...reading trashy, porny magazines is not sex. It’s actually something you do when you can’t get sex for whatever reason. I would know. A lot of us would know. Apparently not the flamer. No one thinks that “hey, I got a chick/dude willing to bang right now...but the new issue of Men’s World is out! Can’t miss that!” Unless you have some serious fetishes that your partner is too weirded out by, I think this does indeed apply.

Then Jazz gets captured and lo and behold, Soundwave is revealed to be the Christian Grey of the story. I hope he has some maid outfits for Jazz.

...our flamer hits the sludgy bottom of the joke well and grabs their shovel. They do not try very hard for originality in their insults. And, while Grey was a jerk, Fifty Shades wasn’t quite a prisoner of war scenario. No, that was a cheap romance for chicks. I’m writing more akin to men’s...oh.

The flamer is a chick.

Their only bdsm or bad romance experience is with Fifty Shades.

I don’t think they read much.

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd we have a shower scene. Damn if it’ll be Carrie!

Iiiiiiiiiiiii did not write a shower scene?

Dudette, did you even do the reading you say you did?

There’s no point in adding moral ambiguity, especially in regards to Soundwave. He won’t be swayed easily, or at all, by Jazz’s speech. He’s cold hearted for a reason. He serves the Decepticon cause until the very bitter end. He’s a lot like Shockwave that way. Highly doubtful he would find meaning or even the relevance of writing pornographic fanfiction, but eh, this was never meant to be serious, was it?

...no. It’s a humor fic. The flamer is criticizing a humor fic for being humorous. Kudos for identifying the genre? I mean, the flamer is also complaining that I did not write Soundwave as a one-dimensional factionalist without examining what that means for him and how the mission creep has left the original political crusade behind. It’s not like I took pieces of Soundwave from Gen1, IDW, and the comics and blend them all together.

This reminds me of the fanboys in the TMNT fandom who keep pushing for every iteration to simply rehash their nostalgia boner for the original toon. I feel like I’m getting the Transformers version of wanting less of this:

because it isn’t the familiar characterizations of this:

“So what’s the down low?” – You, Jazz. You’re going to give the down-low to Soundwave. I can’t wait to read how shiny his robo-vagina is.

...wow. Classy there, flamer. Also I really don’t think they read anything. This whole fic is plug n’ play. There’s exchanging of cables, talk of code and positronic souls and sparks and revving engines. There isn’t a drop of sticky, spike, or fluids.

Chapter 15’s sex scenes bore me. Nothing is worse than having a guy ask to remove every bit of clothing. Just do it already! And why is Jazz a virgin? Come on!

Look--the thing about sex and fetish and whatever revs your engine is that it’s not going to rev everyone’s engine. You don’t like the type of interfacing here? Fine. I don’t like those kind of sex scenes in my porn either. But I wasn’t write that scene for porn. I wanted write warbuild Jazz dealing with violent subroutines while interfacing with Prowl. I had fun with it.

Why is Jazz a virgin? The previous 15 chapters discuss that.

I really don’t think the flamer read the fic.They scanned for anything remotely sexual, so I don’t think I’m going to take anything they say about this fic being ooc for perversion’s sake.

“Everyone here is damn pervy” – In which a character talks about the author.

“We gotta get Soundwave to finish writing his story” – Why? I mean, what’s the point? It’s not doing anything for them, unless it’s to show how castrated Soundwave is. I’ve seen him act better in Mary-Sue fics.

There is a whole plot about Starscream and Skyfire, and I thought I could trust the readers to be intelligent enough to make the leap with the parallels between Soundwave and Jazz.

This is literally the only review that questions why Jazz said that.

The Mary Sue shot just echoes the Fifty Shades swipe. I think this flamer did most of their flames roughly ten years ago--the insults are pretty dated.

The Decepticons don’t know about Ratchet? Why? I mean, he’s one of the oldest dudes there. He has a reputation. When you have a reputation, people know about you. It’s inevitable. I think your inner logic slips a lot.

At this point, I literally have 21 previous chapters of world building.

I am not surprised that the story’s logic was slipping away from one of us.

It’s funny to read the forum responses in the story. It’s like the author is trying to make fun of detractors yet ends up making fun of herself.

Okay, this part is hilarious for a reason only briefly noted in the fic. I think that the only things this can refer to are the comments from the chapter titled Flames of the M4gn1f1c3ntSkyPr1nc3--because those are literally the first flames/comments I put in the fic. And I didn’t write them!

My wife wrote them! I don’t write Starscream well but she just poured those out like water--she’s seen more of the hysterical side of fandom, particularly the earlier TF fandom, and I snipped out pieces for the fic.

So...I mean, we’re pretty happily married, so I don’t think she counts as a detractor. ^___^ Ultimately I started writing this fic for her.

“Your optics make me crazy” – Not at all a cliché.

Good thing I didn’t write that, then. Here is that little section in the Prowl/Jazz section. (Took me a bit to find it since I plugged that into the Find and couldn’t bring it up.)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I like what you do to me. Jazz allowed him in, tilting his helm. I never really understood it, y'know? How mechs could lower their guard so much. Let someone this close.

And now? Prowl drew back, wanting to see Jazz for the answer. With a quiet ping, he warned the other mech even as he raised his hand, touching Jazz's visor.

I still think you're crazy always going on about my optics, Jazz said, venting even as he disengaged the locks and let Prowl gently remove the blue polycarbon.

Your optics are perfection, Prowl corrected him. And you let me see them. Hundreds of mechs wondering what's under that visor, but I get to see.

Still shy about letting someone else see them, Jazz turned his head, only for Prowl to touch his cheek and turn him back, coaxing his optics to open with a soft brush of his thumb.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not bad for an asexual, I think. I mean, it’s not like I have a ton of hands on experience, being kinda broken that way. But I have read plenty of pulp magazines and pulp radio shows!

This didn’t take long. I skimmed through this work, because there was so little content. Lots of ridiculous shit, though. Soundwave writes fanfiction, the Autobots are weirded out/turned on, capture Soundwave, Soundwave realizes that his whole life was a life and decides to defect. Yeah, about that. He wouldn’t do it lickety split, let alone EVER. Hell, the reactions in the forum bits show what some would think of this, if they weren’t too busy fapping.

The funny thing is I don’t think the mechs can even fap. I don’t write them doing that. But yes, flamer, I do believe that you skimmed through the work. Particularly since you’ve recounted it backwards...Soundwave captures Jazz as the capstone to a long internal conflict within himself, but rather than go through chapters of internal monologue and Decepticon politics, I started the story as close to the inciting action as possible, not quite in media res.

I won’t hash out why Soundwave defects. I mean, I spent 22 chapters at that point explaining it. But it’s my fault the flamer skimmed, I guess?

Needless to say: the romance bored me senseless. It was poorly written, and overall there’s really no skill attached to this. You don’t grip the audience and Jazz’s virgin mode made me roll my eyes. Reads like a first-time waifu manga.

Nah.

I’ve been writing way too long and am more than self-aware enough of my own failings that I’m also pretty self-aware of my own strengths, too. And no. It’s not poorly written. I definitely feel I could improve the first few chapters a bit, but that’s because I wrote those over five years ago and I’ve improved since then, too.

Empty insults. Maybe if the flamer had gone so far as to give a critique beyond a couple of misquoted lines and their own headcanons, I might have listened, but there’s literally nothing of substance here beyond a child tantrumming that I’m stupid and bad and should feel bad.

As for the other pairings, booooooooooooooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrring.

Usually I have a fun time setting these fics on fire, but this one bored me senseless. Yes, it was stupid, but the author’s attempt to authenticate it are just as sloppy as anything else.

“Authenticate”?

Is this person talking about using fandom tropes as my setting?

There are 22 chapters at the time, and now 51 chapters, building up this world and using roughly 20 years of fandom background to inform the fic.

Maybe if they hadn’t skimmed, they might have found something interesting. But considering that they skimmed over anything character related and stopped for the sex scene--I don’t think that says anything about my writing and more about their own proclivities.

They were trying to read one-handed. A plug n play fic. A long meta look at fandom in war in a humor fic. And they came here for the sexy times.

I don’t have to draw the conclusion here, do I? Well, for the flamer, probably. And then they’d glance at it for a second, call it sloppy, and say I showed nothing, and what I showed was boring, and that boring stuff was ooc anyway.

One thing I am thankful for is the fact that it is not long.

51 chapters later and I’m still not done.

Nothing’s worth remembering in this and I don’t need to tell you that these characters either act like simpering imbeciles, or are virginal waifus. All I’m missing is a senpai in the bed, some tissues, and some high quality lotion.

...why do they keep referencing gay human sex? I mean, I get it, they’re saying that it’s similar to yaoi fics, but.

This is anti-yaoi with its last hurrah, isn’t it? The late 90s, early 2000s, rising from its sludgy well to try to shame the easily cowed and intimidated, the young writers easily startled by long lines of text. No wonder the citations used are so...15 years ago. I mean, who was talking about Sues even 5 years ago. That criticism kind of faded a long while ago, even then.

I think the sad thing is, even the badly written Sue sex fics end up being more interesting than this. If Ebony Darkness D’Mentia Raven Way were to come along, I think this story would get better. What with her ‘I shot him a gazillion times’ lines.

...and there’s the cherry on the top. Third cheap shot firing blanks. Sue + Fifty Shades +...shit, I can’t even remember the title for that infamous fic. It’s that old.

...this fanfic flamer is old.

Like, don’t get me wrong. We’ve got fandom moms and grandmoms who cut their teeth on fandom print zines in the earliest conventions. They’re not “old” in the same way.

This person has lost any joy, humor, or playfulness that fanfic comes from. No one should go into fanfic expecting fine art. I mean, sure, it happens sometimes, but this is a playground of pulp, experimentation and just plain childish fun.

All in all, not worth remembering. It’s makes me tired to read it. It’s not even stupid enough to make me laugh. You’ll still get a fail rating for me, especially with the shitty version of Soundwave here.

Yes, fanfic flamer. You are indeed tired.

He should be on Big Brother. He’d be great making soy lattés and purees.

Big Brother in 2015 was in its 17th season. There were roughly around 6 million viewers at the time. The demographics for the tv viewing audience were graying even by the 2000s, and by 2015-18, it was significantly older.

Granted, it’s a very tenuous conclusion to draw, but combined with the old fandom references, the anti-yaoi vibes I’m getting, and the fanboyish desire to curate their own headcanon of a character to the point of insulting writers on the internet...

Flamer grew from being a reader to a bitter, old person angry and the whipper snappers for writing stupid, trashy crap that they criticize with broad, unspecific insults.Flamer is the stereotypical mean adult in any 90s cartoon or heavy metal rock video.

A little depressing. Poor flamer. I do hope they found more creative, engaging, and positive things to do.

Me? I just wanna rock.

Thanks for coming to my ted talk on pulp fiction and bitter cultural creators.

[kumkaniudaku]

Three’s Company (4K Fic Fest)

A/N: *runs in panting with papers balled up in my fist* I’m so sorry I’m late. I should’ve submitted my entry to @brianabreeze  ‘s fic fest a week ago. I’m so happy you made it to 4k with your content and wish you the best in everything you do. This went through so many different iterations before I landed on this one. It was inspired by a video that I’ll link at the end. Enjoy! 

“So, guys, here’s what I’m thinking.” 

Tasha balanced Noah on one hip and set up her hidden vlogging camera, searching for the perfect position that offered balance and a full view of the kitchen.

“Okay, so, Chad has been gone since Wednesday to scout some locations for something he’s working on this summer.”An alert from Chadwick updating her on his whereabouts made her giddy with excitement for several reasons. 

“That was him. He said he’ll be home in 30, so let me explain what’s going on. I’m about to tell Chad that I’m pregnant. Micah is at her god mother’s house, giving me the opportunity to do this without having the news spread everywhere before I can get it out. Daddy will be home soon so Noah and I will see y’all in a minute.”

When the action resumed, viewers were met with an excited dance from Tasha before she was forced to calm down and greet Chadwick. The alarm chime sparked a round of babbles from Noah as he heard his father’s footsteps in the foyer.

“You hear Daddy, big man,” she cooed before sliding a spoonful of chili into his mouth. “Daddy’s home to see us!”

“It smells like home in here. Where you at, baby?”

“We’re in the kitchen, babe!” Removing Noah from his high chair gave Tasha ample time to change her demeanor into one that carried less of a telling grin.

When Chadwick rounded the corner into the kitchen to greet his wife and son, it was time for Tasha’s life to get ready to spill the beans.

“There’s my boy,” he exclaimed, grabbing Noah from Tasha’s arms and smothering his chubby cheeks with kisses. “You been taking care of your mama and sister for me?”

“He did go to bed and stay in bed all night for me, so we’ll count that.”

Chadwick gave the growing infant’s stomach a few more tickles and raspberries before focusing his attention on his wife. “How you doing, baby? You look pretty.”

“Yeah, right,” Tasha scoffed as she walked into her husband’s open arms. Chadwick’s unexpected grip on her butt made her squeal into their shared kiss. “I look like I overslept for class.”

“Then let me be the reason you oversleep tomorrow too.” The thought of his suggestive comment coupled with a light pat to her backside being shared to thousands of subscribers in the morning nearly produced a giggle that would expose her secret.

Swallowing the urge, Tasha took her position on the other side of the marble island to keep her body in the frame.

“Tell me about the trip, Aaron. Did y’all find what you needed?”

“Eh, kind of. We found some options, but Cole is gonna look in Atlanta next week to see if there’s a better location there. I told him I couldn’t come, but to keep me updated. Is that chili?”

“It sure is. You want a bowl?”

“C’mon, Co. You know the answer to that. We both want some, huh, big boy?”

“Nuh uh! He just ate. Don’t give him more.” Though she knew Noah would ultimately end up consuming a second helping of food, the stern instructions buy her a bit more time before she had to come clean.

Chadwick gladly accepted the warm bowl of his favorite winter dish, immediately giving in to his son’s fake whines for a taste. “You feel better, baby? What ended up being wrong with your stomach?”

Remembering their conversation from earlier in the week, Tasha knew that this was the time to drop the bomb.

“Um, yeah, I did,” she started, shifting her face to reflect the serious nature of the situation. “We should talk.”

“Okay. Should I brace myself for something bad? You aren’t sick are you?”

“I might be for a few mornings after this one.” Tasha caught eyes with Chadwick who presented her with a blank stare as he shoveled food into his mouth.

“You on an antibiotic or something?”

“Noooo.” Chadwick scrunched his face at Tasha’s sing-song voice while watching her slide a plastic bag in his direction.

Skeptically, he grabbed the clear container and examined the contents in silence. One glance earned a shift in posture as he stood straight up with a large hand on Noah’s body to keep him balanced. Another look at the two devices made him grow still and tense before focusing his attention on his nervous wife.

“Cookie, what is this?”

“You see what it is. It’s pregnancy tests.”

“Yeah, but why are they here? And why are they positive?”

“They’re positive because I’m pregnant.” Tasha watched Chadwick shift his weight to his left leg and look at the bag again.

“When you say pregnant, you mean, like, having another baby? In this house? In 10 months? A fourth pregnancy? Third child?”

“Boy, yes!”

“How that happen?”

For the first time since she began, CoCo could release a laugh. Chadwick watched her giggle with dead eyes, not finding the humor in the situation.

“Babe, we have sex. Often at that.”

“I mean, yeah, but we wasn’t having that kind of sex. Not the baby-making kind.”

“Oh yeah? I didn’t know there was a different kind. I thought unprotected sex could result in pregnancy no matter what.”

“I wasn’t giving you ‘get pregnant’ strokes. I was giving you ‘call me daddy’ sex at best. Shit, maybe even just make me some tacos strokes. Not baby strokes though.” Chadwick took one last look at the tests before dropping them on the counter and scratching the top of his head with his eyes closed.

“You don’t look excited, honey.”

“Shit, I don’t know what I am right now. I feel like I’m about to pass out. Am I crying,” he asked as he looked up to give her a better view of his face. “I feel like crying. You just playing?”

“No! Where would I get two positive pregnancy tests?”

Silence hung in the air for several minutes, leaving Tasha to stare at Chadwick while he tried to distract himself by playing with Noah. She watched with hidden amusement as his eyes flickered toward the tests he thought confirmed a third child before looking away.

“Where is Micah?” The abrupt nature of his question indicated that he was beginning to wrestle with the truth in his mind. 

“She’s with Vonne and Ja’Niyah at the movies. She should be back in the next hour.”

Chadwick let out a soft grunt to acknowledge Tasha’s answer, “Hey, can you grab him real quick? I’m gonna, uh, go outside for some air. I’ll be back.”

“Yeah...yeah! Okay! You want me to put your food away?”

Chadwick answered with a stiff nod, barely acknowledging his wife as he made his way to the French doors leading to the backyard. When he was out of range, CoCo turned to the camera to sum up the recent happenings.

“Alright, yall, I can’t move the camera, but he’s outside walking back and forth. I didn’t expect him to react like this, but it’s kind of funny. He is stressed!” 

What followed was a two-minute time-lapse that covered 15 minutes of what went on in the kitchen while Chadwick questioned God outside. When he returned, he was greeted with a bottle of water and concern.

“Everything good,” Tasha asked as she cleaned the counter and entertained Noah in his highchair. “You feeling okay?”

“Co, what we gon’ do?”

“What you mean? We’re going to have a third child. Hopefully another little girl.” Tasha’s excitement didn’t transfer to her visibly stressed husband.

“Baby, we’re too old for another child. Noah isn’t even a year old yet!”

“We’re not that old!”

“You a got damn lie! We old as hell. Especially you with all that grey hair in your twist outs!”

“Aaron!” Another bout of unreciprocated laughter filled in gaps of tense silence. When Tasha was finally able to regain some semblance of her composure, she noticed Chadwick’s dejection and sadness. “Oh, baby, come here.”

Chadwick accepted her warm hug, resting his forehead on her shoulder for a moment as he took a deep breath. “I’m glad you think this is so funny.”

“I don’t think it’s funny. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“You know I love you and our kids, but this wasn’t in the plan. We always said we would discuss when or if we were having a third,” He confessed. “It’s time for me to go back to working in a few months. What would I look like leaving you here with two kids and one on the way at any moment?”

Tasha was floored by her husband’s admission as guilt was slowly began to creep in. For every pregnancy announcement before this, it was almost impossible to keep a smile off of his face. While the conversation of one more child had happened in passing, both of them promised to thoroughly weigh the pros and cons of another baby before making such a life-altering decision. Neither Tasha or Chadwick were getting younger, leaving the possibilities of complications and life with younger children past 50 as major realities to consider.

The glassy veil covering Chadwick’s eyes was the sign that Tasha being some damage control. Taking a deep breath, she began a confession of her own.

“Aaron, look at me. Let me tell you something.” Chadwick reluctantly followed Tasha’s instructions, tightening his grip on her waist. “You don’t need to worry about me being here with three kids because I’m not pregnant.”

Noah’s giggle sounded like a pre-recorded laugh track on a sitcom as Chadwick tried to piece together what was happening. His eyes darted back and forth between his wife and the rest of the room, presumably looking for the camera or a sign that she was being truthful.

“Is this a prank for that YouTube thing?”

“Yes,” Tasha confirmed, finally breaking the act and smiling. “It’s a prank. I got you!”

“Why are you like this? You for real, or is this still part of the prank?”

“I’m serious this time. I’m not pregnant! There’s the camera.” Tasha pointed to the hidden device before picking it up for a closer shot. Chadwick groaned at the realization that he’d been pranked, releasing equal parts relief and laughter. “Did I get you, baby? You believed me, didn’t you.”

“I still do. Are you sure you not pregnant? Where you get those from?”

“I’m sure! TiTi is the one that’s pregnant, so she let me use some of her pee.”

“And you let me touch it,” Chadwick exclaimed in disgust. “Nah, I don’t believe you. Go take a test real quick.”

“Really, Chad?”

“Hell yeah!” CoCo watched in shock as her husband situated Noah on his hip and pulled the handheld camera from her hand. “Don’t look at me like that. Go ‘head. We’ll wait.”

Chadwick continued the recording, catching all of the gripes and groans from Tasha while she searched the house for another pregnancy test. He captured Noah attempting to walk during the process, though the 10-month-old ultimately decided to crawl instead. After four minutes of waiting for the entire process to conclude, he was invited to join Tasha in the bathroom for the big reveal.

“See, I told you I wasn’t pregnant! One line!” Tasha danced around the master bathroom in victory, earning a smile and laugh from the men in her life. “Ha! I got you for the first time ever! I’m the queen of pranks!”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. You damn near gave me a heart attack.”

“You were about to cry, babe.”

“Damn right,” he exclaimed. “We already have our hands full with the two we have. What the hell we gon’ do with another one?”

Tasha laughed at Chadwick’s animated facial expressions as he explained his fear of a new addition to the household.

“Well, maybe we can get a dog as a baby step to possibly having one more. No pun intended, of course.”

“With this stunt you pulled, you’ll be lucky to get some gas money from me. Now turn that thing off so we can get ready for my princess to come home. She wouldn’t lie to me like this.”

“You’re so dramatic,” she laughed, flipping the camera around to capture a shot her standing in the mirror. Tasha wore a triumphant smile as she prepared to sign off. “Let it be known that I am the queen of pranks in the Boseman house. Feel free to make clips of this and tag Chadwick in all of them. ‘Till next time, see you later lovelies!”

INSPIRATION VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dozJyW3GkA

TAGS: 

@k-michaelis

@wakandanmoonchild

@idilly

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[kusunokihimea]

                                                  [ Art || Background ]

     [ Hey y’all! So uh...while this iteration of my dinky blog isn’t three years old, I have been lurking around this site in total (for RP) for three years now, as of...technically yesterday, eh heh. And good golly there has been a LOTTA growth since then. My muses and I have come a looong way, in regards to writing, editing, and getting to know so many people over the course of three years. Some have come and gone, and some have stayed...though few since those beginning days when Sylvie had NO idea what they were doing, ha!

     And though I’ve only recently gone through my second revamp, there’s still a gaggle a’y’all that have stuck around. Some even from those very beginning days. So, I’d like to take a minute to just...gush about some of ya, cuz you’ve made being in this community fun, welcoming, and honestly like a second family to us. While I don’t have time to ramble about EVERYONE, I’m gonna do my darnedest to do as much as I can, and just...say thank you for making me able to stay this long, and have as much fun as I’ve had. It means the world to me <3

     Now, on to the ramblin’! Under a cut, cuz...it’s probably gonna get long xD Still, I’ll try to be brief so it doesn’t get too out of control, lmao ]

     [ The Fam Jam ]

     So these are the peeps that have stuck by me through thick, thin, and many blog changes xD Those who have consistently interacted with us, and have developed amazing bonds between muns and muses alike. <3

@13lilypetals - Little sib Ghost. Fellow SH trash. Also a multimuse juggler. You’ve been someone who’s become a close friend, wonderful RP partner, and a great member of the community as a whole. Keep up the awesome work!

@ascxndinggg Matt, my son, darling baby boy =P With such a creative, intelligent mind, wonderful diverse muses, and one of the few things keeping me sane both on this hellsite, and in life in general. Love you bud.

@duckbuttavenger / @cutelittlemuffins / @straycatanbu Sanjiii, such a sweetheart. I love your beans, and I love you! You’re always a blast to write with, even if we know some muses better than others. They’re all 11/10!

@despairinghxpe / @masterofwar Phoenix, omg I’m so glad you’re back. I’ve had some of my most in-depth threads with you and your boyos. I always look forward to your replies. And you’re such a darling - always a joy to talk to ooc about our beans!

@gentlegraceful-and-fatal Dani, I know you’re not on much anymore, and I hope life’s not kickin’ your butt too hard. You put so much love into your muses, and I love when they interact with mine. Here’s hoping you can creep around more soon enough x3

@frogprinceus / @redlineoffate / @red-winged-hero-hawks Omg Mitsuki where do I even start with you xD You have such a wonderful cast of muses, so many of which have bonded so wonderfully with mine. I always enjoy our interactions, no matter what combo of beans!

@flakclad I know you’re not on too much anymore Rhi, but I still love your boys (tho I think this is the only one I’m currently following after remaking, whoops). You give them such wonderful personalities, and I love writing with them any day of the week.

@yukaikokoro Another OC bean! Star oh my goodness, you’re such a great friend and writing partner - you let me drown you in all my OG verse shenanigans, and I love it xD

@twojackalsandahedgie Apricot! I’ve stalked you around through a few blogs now, haha! You’re such a sweetheart, and your muses are great. I can’t wait to see how your blog takes shape once it’s even MORE of a multimuse!

@hotmessofmuses I’ve loved all our threads, Bailey - you write all your muses so well, and I’ve been so psyched to get to interact with them, especially in the famjam verses. It’s so much fun. And good luck with all you’re doing irl!

@roaringxflames Lief dear, I know you’re not active much anymore, but I just want you to know I’ve enjoyed all of our interactions, here and on other bloggus. I hope life is treating you well, and you find greener pastures in new fandoms :3

@cinderspewed / @bitebxck Oh goodness Verona, you’re just! Such a cool person, and your muse is so dynamic and intriguing and drives my marshmallow nuts xD I hope school isn’t crushing your soul too badly, haha! Good fortune, friend!

@kyuuzuchiha / @thebubbledome / @xkaekox BOOOOO I LOVE YOUR BEANS. I know that feel about having trouble writing/catching up lately, but! No matter your pace, we love writing with you, and I hope you find your groove soon!

@quiet-kunoichi Ahaha, Jack, another fellow OC bean. I love your muse. I think you know that but just to be sure, lemme say it again. And you’re great. You’re both great. I love ya. And I hope you’re well!

@abyssaldespair Meeeg...your boyo has stolen my gorl xD We’ve had so many shenanigans since we met I can’t count them, but gosh you’re so fun to write with, and even tho you’ve abandoned me (jk, jk), I still love writing our babbs in drabbles. I will sink with this ship xD

@wanderingmelodies MEEEY I know you’re super swamped but I hope you know I love ya and your beans and I hope you get your zine work done! Good luck and stuff, and hopefully life lets up for you soon, dear!

@multicanon-rp Bruh, I love your Itachi (and I’ve seen snippets of your other beans, they’re great!). It’s been so much fun to see him and Ryū get to know each other from that initial drama. I love writing with ya!

@hushedsunflower *squints at* Who even is this nerd? Oh right, you’re the one responsible for me even being here! Not to mention one of my oldest friends, nbd =P I love your Hina, and I’m glad you’ve gotten back into RP, my friend~

     [ The Inspirations ]

     These are the ones I’ve maybe not RPed with as much as I’d like, but who inspire me to be better in my writing, my lore creation, and characterization! <3

@hyugainterior / @clanburden Your storytelling skill just...blows my mind, holy smokes. Though I miss bits and pieces, your narrative on HI has been enrapturing, and I always try to catch all the drabbles. I never know what’s gonna happen next, but I can’t look away - it’s like a beautiful, horrible car crash! With Hinata in the driver’s seat!

@sennenryuu / @raikirisms N, your OC is just...so amazingly in-depth. As someone who adores making lore and characters, yours has been one I’ve looked up to since being introduced to your blog. And don’t even get me started on your Kakashi, or how beautiful your art is, my goodness. I love it all!

@houndnin / @mactabilis A blast from the past! I know you’re uber busy so you prolly won’t see this, but omg your muses are the bee’s knees. Another well-crafted OC, and an awesome take on Kakashi. Definitely a blog that inspires me to keep improving!

@masshirohebi Oh goodness, this blog is one I’ve looked up to for a long time. You write Orochimaru so beautifully. They’re so intricate and full of life and detail. Your replies are so well put-together, it always blows me away. I know our interactions have been brief, but I’ve enjoyed them so much!

     [ The Neat Beans ]

     Those on the ‘outer fringe’ - maybe we’ve poked at each other’s muses once or twice, but we’re still workin’ on getting muses to know each other - here’s to more! <3

     ~*~ @silverfaxg ~*~ @ketsuekki ~*~ @i-minato-chan ~*~ @kotoanatsukami ~*~ @crackuzu ~*~ @the-younger-umino ~*~ @origami-goddess ~*~ @inumbratte / @willsoffire / @leafstruck ~*~

     [ The Lurkers ]

     And last (but certainly not least), the beans I’ve not really talked to, but appreciate for bein’ around nonetheless! Never be afraid to say hi <3

     ~*~ @betterhealing ~*~ @tennome ~*~ @hiramekxrei ~*~ @tentaiiled / @sandsharrk ~*~ @dirt-ninja ~*~ @strengthwilled ~*~ @silentyoru ~*~ @blossomfury ~*~ @inotheflower ~*~ @cxmpetitivecaptain ~*~ @malacusleana ~*~ @granddiviner ~*~ @avengeriiism ~*~ @xchidoriisms ~*~

     All right, I really hope that’s everyone - my following list is still rather short after the move, so I wanted to at least give everyone a mention and a lil thank you. Here’s to another three years, fates allowing! Thank you all again for your support - it means the world <3

[goldenhaircd-moved]

A few handy time management tricks

So, since a few people did want to know how the hell I manage to do everything... I put an overview over my favourite time management tricks and studying techniques under the read more sign! It’s divided into  General Anti Procrastination and Time Management,  my personal Time Management Method for the anxious people who hate multitasking and Study Techniques divided into different categories of the stuff you need to study! Bear in mind, I am studying Computer Science and Business Systems Research, so I do not know how well this translated for people who study something with literature or social stuff, but I assume it is still worth a read! Also, warning: it’s long because I have a lot to say

General Anti Procrastination and Time Management

There are really cool Apps for phone and browsers that let you block certain sites, either total or just for a while. Very useful: if you block tumblr.com/dashboard you can still access your own blog, activity, asks etc, but cannot go and scroll around uselessly on your dash! I honestly can recommend installing something that will keep you away from the sites you usually waste most of your time on! 

Go and talk to your senior students. Ask them about the lectures/classes you are taking, their knowledge and experience can be gold - you hit the jackpot if someone maybe even has old exam questions. Honestly, I cannot stress this enough, this is valuable knowledge about professors and their exams that gets passed down and it can really help you figuring out what to focus on. 

This is a suuuuper effy one because I definitely do not want to encourage anyone to skip classes but - trying to decide which classes to attend definitely helps. Personally, if I know that the lecturer is only going to read off a slide he will upload on the internet, or if I know that the exam has nothing to do with the lecture, I tend to think twice whether I want to invest two hours into attending if I could take these two hours to already work on this lecture on my own. Obviously, this is something you ABSOLUTELY must take with a grain of salt. If you have mandatory attendance, this tip is out of question anyway. 

Do not work at home. I cannot stress this enough. DO. NOT.WORK.AT.HOME . You write two sentences. you google something. end up on a funny meme site. check tumblr. write another sentence. get a snack. Read a page of your literature, get sidetracked - try working in the library instead, where you have to focus more on your shit. Also, if the university offers good computers, consider using them. You are automatically less inclined to go on all kinds of distracting sites if you are not working on your on laptop. Again, does not work if necessary programs are on your pc, or if your school has shitty PCs i guess?

Don’t study with your best friends, study with loose acquaintances. Your good friends are much more of a distraction than just people you casually know. You get to know each other better and might make new friends that way! 

If there is a kitchen where you can make tea near wherever you do your studying, do it. Getting up, waiting for the water to get hot, making the tea, getting back - you take a super short break, move a little, and you stay hydrated. If you have the opportunity to make tea at your school, seize it, it definitely helps because unlike regular water or tea you brought from home, you are also forced to move and take this short break.

don’t put off things until later. If you summarize one chapter each week during the semester, it feels like significantly less work than summarizing everything two weeks before the exam. Starting assignments, homework and summaries as soon as possible will allow you to stay on top of everything. You never know what lies ahead, so it’s always better to already have done as much as possible as soon as possible.

Try to have your weekends off and try not to study at home - you need breaks, you absolutely need them. Always try to plan in a way that will allow you to still get some breaks!

Be honest with yourself. If you know you are a slow reader who gets sidetracked easily, don’t tell yourself you will read that book in a day. If you know you cannot study for more than six hours  a day, don’t plan to stay up all night studying. It won’t work. 

My Time Management Table

so THIS is the secret as to why I am often done with studying for exams when others just started - my time management. Of course, this requires some self discipline. However, this method is super effective, especially if you have multiple things to do at the same time with several due dates within a short time span. To me, this method is not only good to make sure I don’t neglect stuff, but also helps me calming my anxious ass down with “if you do this and that, you can manage” 

So, this is a little example time table - as you see, I keep track of each thing I do for each class to see how much time I actually spend, and how much I intend to spend - feel free to estimate generously, it’s easier to plan too much time than plan not enough time. Also, as you see, I greyed out the weekends because no, I want a break. The “Total” Section is also a help - like, I know I cannot do more than eight hours a day, so I need to fit my schedule in a way that will make sure that my plans are actually feasible and realistic.

Naturally, making such a plan can take half an hour - but it’s better to take a bit of time to make a good plan than just going at it without any plan at all.  Adding estimated times that you correct later with the actual time you took will also help you gathering experience on your own abilities and estimation accuracy, so that the next time you plan, you can give better guesses. And remember, you cannot stick to a plan you know to be not feasible, so it’s okay to give pessimistic estimates - that way you will walk on safer ground.  The main advantage of this method is kind of obvious - you see everything on a batch. You have less of a risk of neglecting one subject in favour of another if you have this good overview. Of course, this still takes discipline, but you can easily see in advance if there is not enough time for something - then, in bad cases, I just throw in a saturday or even a whole weekend, but I think I only do it like twice in a semester. 

Study Techniques

Now, not all techniques work equally well for everyone and all materials, so here are just my personal faves depending on what I have to study:

A lot of shallow content: the typical “It’s not difficult, but a lot to memorize”. My personal method of choice is writing a glossary - 

you define all technical terms in your own words, sorted alphabetically. You study by writing definitions and by trying to decide whether something is important enough to have its own point, or whether it should be a sub-point of another term, or maybe even only added information to something you defined already. That way, your study through explaining, structuring and kind of repeating, since you need to access previously written things and evaluate them to decide where a new word should go! 

I need to write a text - okay, n that one I am not so experienced because I don’t actually need to write any papers but anyway! Start out with the structure. Like, the headlines. You can change them later. You can re-arrange them later. Just start with something. Now. You got a bunch of headlines. Add some key words underneath. You can re-arrange them as well. Add some explanations to your key-words. Add and add and add. Basically, in each iteration, you add a little bit more detail - that way, your paper grows almost everywhere the same, instead of having one perfect paragraph and 20 empty pages. Of course, it’s often icky because it feels like an ugly first draft but, you are on a pc and can just copy and paste your paragraphs back and forth to put them in the right order - for that, you will first need an overview over the while thing. eventually, you will have so many individual key words, phrases, explanations, addendums etc that you just need to do one more round of re-arranging things until you can go ahead and turn your phrases, keys, explanations etc etc into an actual text. there you go, your first draft from which you can continue. This approach will help you keep an overview over the whole work and takes the pressure of one perfect paragraph by one perfect paragraph away. 

I need to do calculations - having fun with math or something like that, eh? practice. I don’t think much of youtube videos and math boards because while videos are again distracting because hi youtube and math boards tend to be too technical... look for exercises. many pages with exercises walk you through a few examples before you are on your own. Most important: the math does not bite you. sometimes you will have to look at multiple websites until you found the one explanation style that helps you. Don’t worry, it’s feasible! The most important thing is staying positive and checking out a variety of different sites until you find one whose style of explaining just clicks with you. 

I need to understand something very complex - this one is a tricky one and actually, in this case, I recommend asking one of your seniors or even someone youi take this class with - discussing things together or asking for help is perfectly fine. Complex stuff is usually just a thing of hearing the right explanation style - I swear, one of my profs did lectures I could barely follow, yet when his assistant explained the same thing just in other words, everything was so simple? That’s why you should not be afraid to seek out other sources, eg. checking the library or asking someone who already delt with the subject!

So, thank you for reading this, and I would be happy to hear if any of this was helpful to someone, or whether someone would like to add something! c:

[emilyplaysotome]

Part 36 - Dirty Pop

Down the Voltage Rabbit Hole is an ongoing story about our MC, who could easily be anyone in voltage fandom. She woke up in hospital bed only to discover that she’d somehow been transported Voltage universe.

This story is ongoing, so if you missed a part, or are new to the story, please use the link to the masterpost below to catch yourself up:

https://tinyurl.com/k4rrxna

Part 36 - Dirty Pop

As promised, we were taken backstage once the concert concluded and I watched as the band maintained their designated personality types in the presence of their fans.

Sakiko was over the moon to walk away from the night with both a photo of all us, and one of her and Kyohei. She stayed with me backstage for approximately an hour or so, and upon realizing how late the night had gotten, decided to leave me behind. 

She was extremely apologetic about leaving me alone with the band and a handful of groupies, but had promised Eiki that she would swing by his place later and didn’t want to accidentally neglect her new relationship (even if that meant skipping out Revance).

I assured her that it was no problem, seeing as how the band wanted to speak with me about additional lyrics anyway, and with that Sakiko wished me luck and was on her way. 

As it was to be expected, Revance’s “new” song had blown up Tweeter, with people sharing out snippets of the night’s performance, under the hashtag #RevancePopUp. Soon after their new song hit the internet, the tag was one of the top trending Tweeter hashtags for the entirety of Tweeter Japan, and their fan forums apparently blew up as a result, crashing their “RevanceNet” server as fans clamored for more information surrounding their upcoming LP and new song.

It was clear that the song’s positive reception had only added to the urgency in which Ryo, Iori, and Kyohei wanted me to sign on to the group, but I knew that wouldn’t be happening. 

For now, I waited patiently to discuss things further, awkwardly biding my time until the band was ready to leave. After must discussion and flirtation, the groupies that would be joining us were selected, and I followed the group as we all headed to the “after party” at Revance’s home. 

From the games, I knew that the band liked to celebrate after a successful performance, but found myself surprised at how real the situation felt considering the fact that the band brought along a smattering of attractive young women to keep them company. In that moment, they did not feel like romanticized otome men whose routes I’d played, but real pop stars, who were escorting home a collection of women they deemed attractive enough to spend the night with. 

It was the first time I’d ever experienced anything like this and to be honest, it made my skin crawl a little at how dirty these pop stars were. 

Considering how smoothly they’d transitioned from signing autographs to whittling the group down to the select few present in their limo, it was clear that this was a regular occurrence for them and I quietly tabulated the estimated number of women that each of these men had probably slept with. 

With the exception of Iori and Ryo (both of whom stayed by my side the entire night), the rest of the band was getting cozy with a woman of their choosing (two in Kyohei’s case). 

It was behavior I expected from Kyohei and Nagito, but in truth I was surprised to see the real life iterations of Kota and Takashi engaging in such obvious flirtation. The trip to their house felt like a scene straight out of a reality show, where a group of horny 20-somethings are forced to live in a house together and end up going at it, completely unconcerned by the lack of privacy surrounding their torrid hookups. 

My general rule of thumb is that I do not oppose sexual behavior that occurs between two (or more) consenting adults. Everyone is different, and varies in comfort, kinks, likes, and dislikes, and in my opinion as long as all parties are on board, and nothing illegal is happening, I say go for it.

However, I myself, never consented to an awkward limo ride in which I was subjugated to what the games would most certainly describe as “lewd” behavior. Furthermore when it became obvious to me that each member of Revance must have slept with hundreds of women (50 cities, 3 nights, estimated 1 woman per city, with this being their 4th tour), I felt myself inadvertently scrunching my nose with worry, wondering if they at least had the good sense to practice safe sex and get tested regularly.

Iori and Ryo were so clearly desensitized to it all that they kept up a normal conversation with me the entire ride, initially inquiring as far as why I’d run off the previous day, until finally steering the conversation back to the additional lyrics they were hoping I’d write for them.

I told them that I had just accepted a full time job at the advertising agency Addison & Rhodes, and based on conversations with my coworkers it was unlikely that I’d be able to help them further. I made it clear that signing on to be a full-time ghostwriter with the band was out of the question, and upon providing this clarity I watched as Ryo glanced at Iori, with a frantic look in his eyes. 

His expression only confirmed my suspicions that he was in a slump of sorts and needed my help. 

I felt bad, and racked my brain in an attempt to think of the right thing to say but, I found myself unable to concentrate, thanks to the consistent background soundtrack of light moans and lips smacking, which made me feel as if I’d walked onto the set of a softcore porn flick. 

As I wrestled with how to best move forward, the limo pulled up to their house.

I watched the scene unfold before me as Kyohei draped an arm around the two girls he was sitting with in the back of the limo. 

Whereas Nagito, Takashi, and Kota had spent the ride preoccupied with a single lady of their choosing, Kyohei had been on overachiever of sorts, oscillating his kisses and attention between the two women. I looked on as he confidently whispered something in each of their ears, before exiting the limo with one woman on each arm, and a triumphant expression on his face.

Even though it had been obvious from the onset of the car ride that Kyohei would most likely end his night in a threesome, it was still sort of crazy to have watched the scene play out as it did. 

Having never engaged in a threeway myself (considering that my one-on-one sexual encounters are always awkward that first night), it was bananas to me that adding another person would somehow make the experience less uncomfortable. 

I silently said a wish to Leon that the ladies on each of Kyohei’s arm would derive as much pleasure from the experience as the man between them and watched as the rest followed suit and exited the limo, shooting Iori and Ryo a knowing look before heading to their designated rooms.

With the majority of the hookups now happening in private, I followed Iori and Ryo to the living room to finish the conversation surrounding Ryo’s slump and need for lyrics in order to move on with my life. 

I felt indebted to both of them (Ryo for his kindness a couple of days ago and Iori for caring for me when I’d arrived), and despite not knowing exactly what to say, I knew that I didn’t feel right leaving them empty handed when they were clearly so desperate. I’d gleaned from the concert that Revance was reaching the end of their tour with this LP and needed to release some new songs or run the risk of being forgotten about. 

Considering how eager they’d been to perform “Cry Me a River” it was clear that they needed additional material, and quick, to keep themselves on the top spot in the charts. I’d overheard Kyohei and Ryo in the greenroom, talking quietly about a rival boy band Grenade who was hot on their heels, and was certain that Kyohei was putting a massive amount of pressure on Ryo in order to deliver what they needed to ensure that they stayed the number one boy band in Japan.

Now that their performance of "Cry Me a River” had blown up on Tweeter, I could tell that they knew they needed to keep their momentum up. Iori and Ryo both bowed low before me, imploring me to help, saying that I could have or do whatever I wanted. 

I sighed, slightly conflicted that my assistance might accidentally trigger another trap to keep me pinned to this world, but with an offer too good to pass up I found myself smirking.

“Whatever I want, eh?”

They needed 12 songs and I had provided 1, which meant that Revance needed 11 more. 

Initially, they’d wanted me to write onsite at their apartment, but there was no way I was going to do that for fear of triggering one of their routes which I didn’t seem to be a part of. 

Clearly Kyohei, Nagito, Takashi, and Kota were unconcerned with my presence in this world (made all the more obvious by the occasional moan coming from the upstairs bedrooms), and both Iori and Ryo seemed more concerned with the future of Revance than women or potential love interests.

I found it a bit surprising that Kyohei wasn’t more invested in my lyrics, but upon thinking back to Ryo and Iori’s dynamic realized that I possessed a vague memory in which Iori had felt slightly responsible for Ryo’s departure. I surmised that in this world, perhaps my existence was helping to curb the rift that might eventually happen between them, and I hoped that my actions might help me make it out of Scandal in the Spotlight without any scandal.

After Iori and Ryo had agreed to my terms, I let them know that they’d have everything they needed in their inbox by the end of the weekend. 

They both eyed me skeptically, and I assured them that I’d amassed a rather large collection of unused lyrics in my years of writing as hobby. I said that if they were unsatisfied with what they received at the end of the weekend we could renegotiate the terms of our agreement. I also let Ryo know I planned to assemble everything in the cafe where he worked part time, and he eagerly let me know that he’d be far more comfortable having some proximity to me while I did so in case questions were to arise.

Even though he was working this weekend and we’d no doubt see each other, the pop stars still looked dubious as they walked me to a cab which was waiting to escort me back to the Gods’ mansion, and before leaving I felt compelled to assure them once more that they’d be satisfied with what I’d be able to provide.

After all, I had an entire decade of another world’s proven top pop songs at my fingertips. If it was good enough for Justin Timberlake or Bruno Mars it’d be good enough for Revance.

It was around 2 in the morning when I opened the door to Zyglavis’ bedroom, and made my way over to the fridge to grab a late night snack. 

A part of me had wished he’d be present upon my return, and I felt myself hoping that I’d find him on the bed waiting for me. When it was clear that he was nowhere to be found, I felt a bit of lonliness bubble up. The bulk of today had been spent reclaiming my independent spirit, and while I knew it was for the best that we be apart, I couldn’t help myself from gravitating towards the chocolate gateau cake he’d left behind.

Perhaps it was a result of my period, but I suspected my craving for chocolate had more to do with missing Zyglavis, and I cut myself a slick of cake all the while wondering what he was up to in the heavens. As I brought the slice over to my Operation GTFO HQ desk, I licked my fingers, dropping the plate with the cake next to my laptop. 

Even though I wanted to devour the cake in a rather unladylike fashion, I decided it best to change out of my sweaty concert clothes before digging in.

I went to grab the fluffy pajamas Aigo had gifted me, and got an unfortunate whiff of post-concert Naomi. Despite being lazy, I realized that it was probably best I take a quick bath before I changed seeing as how I didn’t want the pajamas to get ruined, forcing me to do a load of laundry which I’d been putting off (as I worried it wouldn’t be as simple as Zyglavis simply snapping his fingers). 

With that in mind, I wrapped a towel around me and headed to the bath in order to take a quick dip. 

I was surprised upon opening the large doors to the bath to see it occupied so late. 

Thankfully, the person enjoying her soak wasn’t one of the Gods, but the MC I’d met back at the planetarium. She was resting her eyes, clearly luxuriating in the bath and wore a towel, no doubt for fear she’d accidentally get walked in on by someone other than her beloved Huedhaut.

I announced my arrival as to not startle her, and in hearing my voice she offered me a warm smile and invited me to join her. 

With no reason not to, I slowly lowered myself next to her, as I rinsed away the sweat and body glitter that still lingered from the concert. I felt slightly uncomfortable seeing as how our last encounter consisted of some awkward bathroom eye contact and an overly emotional exit, but I tried my best to be friendly and make pleasant conversation with her.

“You’re up late...can’t sleep?” I asked.

She shook her head no and added, “There’s an upcoming event at the planetarium that I’m in charge of. All the Gods have been helping me prepare but it’s proven to be quite an undertaking and the stress has been keeping me up.”

She sighed deeply and then force a small smile as she continued to address me.

“I was hoping a soak would help me relax so I could finally get some sleep. How about yourself?”

“Oh, I just got back from the Revance concert.”

“Revance? The boy band?”

I nodded, pleased at her reaction which seemed appropriate for a grown woman. She did not exclaim excitedly, or swoon over any of the members, but instead seemed puzzled as to why a grown woman like myself would want to attend such an event.

“It’s a long story, but I ended up writing them a song that they performed tonight so…”

“Oh wow! Are you a writer?”

“Something like that…”

We made small talk for a bit, and when the conversation led us down a road which allowed for it, I capitalized on my opportunity to apologize for my juvenile behavior. Of all the MCs I’d met in this world, I realized that I liked her the best, and was worried that she wouldn’t want to be my friend after having witnessed such a ridiculous display. I could feel my anxiety building, but forced myself to spit out the words I’d been holding on to since I’d stepped foot in the bath.

“By the way, I’m sorry about the other day,” I said timidly, “I hope you didn’t take any offense - I assure you it had nothing to do with you.”

“Oh? And who did it have to do with?”

I could tell that this MC was clever, yet kind as she asked, keenly aware of my reasons for acting so erratically. 

Seeing as how it was no secret at this point, I came clean, figuring that if anything she would understand the plight of a human woman who had a sizable crush on a man that was a God.

“Zyglavis...”

“Mmmm,” she said with a knowing smile, “I see.”

She let out a quiet chuckle and I was struck by how elegant she was in her mannerisms. It was evident that she had lived her past life in the heavens, and I found myself feeling a bit insecure as I thought about Zyglavis potentially being surrounded by women like her in the heavens.

“Of all the Gods you had to go and fall for the one who loves law and order...”

“Tell me about it,” I said disparagingly.

“He is one of the most loyal men you could ask for, and in truth, I think he cares for you more than he realizes.”

The former Goddess of Fate’s eyes twinkled as she quickly surveyed the area around us to ensure that there was no one present who could overhear. She leaned in, still wary of being too loud and whispered in such a way that her breath tickled my ear as she spoke.

“After you ran out, he was so panicked and emotional...when he returned unable to find you, certain the worst had happened, I asked him if he loved you…”

“And?”

“Well, you should really ask him yourself but…”

She giggled girlishly and nodded, indicating the answer had been yes, quickly adding, “He wouldn’t say it because it’s forbidden but...a woman knows these things.”

Upon hearing her words, I placed my hands on my heart with the hope of calming it. The thought that Zyglavis loved me back was making my heart accelerate, and I found myself hoping her read was correct.

She didn’t seem to realize how flustered the conversation was making me, and continued on casually sharing her two cents as to the matter, “I’ve known him for some time now, and I’m sure he’s somewhere in the heavens trying to pull himself together and ignore everything you’ve ignited. If you love him back, if you really love him, you will not let him hide behind his logic or the rules. You will have to fight, but I really believe that if you’re willing to do that, he’ll be yours forever.”

“But what if I’m not sure,” I blurted, “I...he’s not the only person I have feelings for and…”

“I know you’re not sure Naomi but this is your chance to be happy...be it with Zyglavis, or Jin, or who was the other one?”

“Shun.”

The name tumbled from my lips at a volume which was barely audible. Not only had this MC just called me by my real name, but she seemed to be omnipotent when it came to my goings on, and I found myself backing away from her, suddenly wary.

“Are you going to take it or not?”

I nodded, “Yes. I’ll figure it out before I leave.”

“Good,” she said, before turning around to pull herself out of the bath, “You have only a week’s time so I suggest you figure it out quickly.”

I nodded, and looked away from her, completely caught off guard by everything that had happened. 

When I turned back once more in an attempt to shed some light on the situation, I realized that I had been fooled. I felt my eyes widen as it sunk in who I’d really been speaking with, as it was not clear to me that the person I had been sharing a bath with had not been Huedhaut’s MC.

No, her form had been used as an illusion to disarm me, and instead I found myself standing before the King of the Heavens who was smirking, clearly amused by the Goldfish from another world.

To be continued…in Part 37!

If you’ve enjoyed the story, please show your support by sharing it with a friend or buying me a coffee! My goal is to create an original web series so if you like my characters please consider donating something to help me get it made.

Thanks for reading :)

@suzunesays

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Sorry if I missed anyone and let me know if you want to be added/removed!

[furederiko]

Wanted to post this yesterday, but couldn't make it because... well, life happened. And also long weekend, which means traffic both in real and virtual world *sigh*. On the bright side, this last Random News Digest for April 2017, gets to be the final post of the month as well. Enjoy!

Disney Live Action

Itching for another live action revisit of your favorite classic Walt Disney animated movies? Then you only need to wait a little longer, because the coming years will be a BLAST. Guy Ritchie's "Aladdin" is expected to begin filming very soon. Likely this very summer, as that casting call suggested. Meaning, it's probably aiming for that UNTITLED August 3rd, 2018 opening. Niki Caro will later move forward with her 'extremely muscular' rendition of "Mulan". A movie that is set to be released on November 2nd, 2018. And guess what will come after? Jon Favreau's "The Lion King"! Yes, Favreau himself announced via Twitter, that the movie is now expected to arrive on July 19th, 2019. Does this mean, the sequel to "The Jungle Book" will need to wait a bit longer, then? Hmmm... I hope Neel Sethi doesn't age up too fast to reprise his role. Otherwise, it would end up becoming a "Tarzan" movie instead.

We know that Donald Glover is voicing Simba, and James Earl Jones will reprise his role as Mufasa. We also aware that Disney is openly pursuing the one and only Queen-Bey, Beyoncé Knowles to voice Nala. What about the other characters? Well, guess what... apparently two actors are currently in final talks to voice Simba's jungle guardians, his foster fathers, the never-ever-worry outcasts, Timon and Pumbaa. The scene-stealing dynamic-duo carefree-combi who are responsible for Simba's growth in the movie. And these actors are... Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen. Ain't that an interesting choice, eh?

While I'm a bit disappointed that Favreau decided not to ask Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella to reprise their roles, the thought of Rogen's voice coming out of an adorkable gruff-voiced fat warthog is just too good to dismiss. What can I say, I AM a bit biased when it comes to Rogen. As for Eichner, I'm honestly not that familiar with his work (don't ask why I haven't seen "Parks and Recreation"). But from my quick research... it's obvious he's a genuine HILLARIOUS guys, and does sound like a younger version of Lane. His real life rambunctious mannerism basically screams, "that's how the snobbish meerkat Timon would look as a human!". In fact, I think he'll make an awesome coupl... I mean duo with Rogen *grins*. Nope, I'm not kidding, go ahead and watch their one time togetherness on Eichner's "Billy on the Street"! Doesn't that feel like Timon and Pumbaa already?!... So yeah, I wholeheartedly APPROVE of this pair!!! b(^o^)d

I do hope that these two goofballs' singing ability, is as good as their comedy though. After all, this movie WILL be a musical as planned, right? At least that's how I have been assuming until now, because "The Lion King" without "Hakuna Matata" would totally sound off. But perhaps we shouldn't worry about that, because Favreau is determined, if not feel a bit daunted to deliver and live up to audience's expectation. Especially because the original animated movie was such a beloved title, that still has a strong fanbase with "an emotional connection" until now. "When you direct it, you have to love it, especially one of those that takes like two or three years to do,... Love it to the point of obsession. So there are things that I might want to see or be involved with or act in but that's a lot different than I have to live, breathe, sleep it, dream it. If I'm going to do my best work, I have to be completely immersed.", he said, which was definitely a reassuring point of view. Let's just cross our fingers that Favreau will be able to replicate the same success of "The Jungle Book", whether in modernized storytelling, nostalgic music, or through dazzling photo-realistic visual effects.

The Hollywood Reporter also revealed, that there's another popular animated title freshly entering the live action circuit. This new one is "Christopher Robin", and yes, it's about that one and only boy who is best friends with THE Winnie the Pooh!!! Does this mean it's a Winnie the Pooh live action remake? Probably... but it comes with a twist. Our gentle Christopher has become a dashing handsome middle-aged man! HUH? Yes, this movie will focus on an adult version of the character, who has lost his sense of imagination. Marc Forster is currently working on it, and the actor being approached to portray Christopher, is the dashing Ewan McGregor. Fantastic choice, because I totally can see him as a much older version of this character. Allison Schroeder is said to be working on the script's third rewrite, which doesn't sound encouraging. Then again, the idea of the movie alone is already a make or break situation. Will this even work? Yes and no, it's still anyone's guess. I just hope the animal characters are still an important part of it, otherwise, what's the point, right?

Disney have also announced new release dates for two UNTITLED live action movies. On April 3rd, 2020, and on March 12th, 2021. Is "Christopher Robin" one of said title? How about Tim Burton's "Dumbo", "Cruella", "Tinker Bell", "The Little Mermaid", and those other titles currently in development? Hmmm... this is getting confusing. All I can say is, the House of Mouse is totally on a roll. So it's a good time to be a Disney fans!

Disney Animation

If you think "The Lion King", as well as the fourth Avengers movie from Marvel Studios are enough a reason to make you anticipate the year 2019, then you'll be ecstatic to know what comes next. "Frozen 2", the sequel to that 2013 mega-hit animated movie, is also set to arrive on November 27th, 2019! Directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee are returning, alongside the cast members like Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, and Josh Gad. Eventhough most of them are not yet confirmed. I have to admit, I'm not too certain if the first movie even needed a sequel, nor that it's necessary. But its massive success alone would be more than enough to attract a lot of audience, particularly those little girls who grew up with, and likely are still humming the tune of "Let it Go" until now. Yep, that song is EVERYWHERE, isn't it? Personally, I think the Pacific Island version is a better and stronger number (That's "How Far I'll Go" from "Moana", in case you don't get it), but who am I to argue with popular opinion, right? Here's hoping the SIX years gap would be worth the wait. After all, the original audience should be teenagers when this sequel finally arrives. And you know how it is when children grows up!

Unfortunately, this news arrived alongside several release dates shuffling for upcoming Walt Disney's releases. This covers all of their divisions, which means the animation titles are inevitably affected as well. "Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2" will now open on November 21st, 2018, which is a 7-months delay from its initial March 9th release. "Gigantic", which is Disney's long overdue take on classic "Jack and the Beanstalk" tale, was initially scheduled to be out on that precise date. It will now open on November 25th... 2020, which is a two-years delay! Ouch. An UNTITLED animated movie that was supposed to open on that date, will now arrive on November 24th, 2021, alongside a Pixar release on June 18th of the same year.

Indiana Jones

Through the same release date announcement, Disney also revealed that "Indiana Jones 5" has been delayed from July 2019, to July 10th, 2020. According to Collider, it might be caused by director Steven Spielberg, who is pushing in his other projects beforehand. This movie has limited Spielberg's availability to work on this sequel, which can only begin production on Fall 2018, if not Spring 2019, at the earliest. For the time being, actor Harrison Ford is still set to reprise his role as the legendary Professor Jones, and David Koepp is currently working on the script. But one can never tell nor predict what's going to happen in the future, so their participations have easily become uncertainty thanks to this delay. Let's just hope the best for this project, okay? But of course, no matter how you see it, this is definitely Disney's way of world domination! LOL.

Star Wars

Whooa, there! Wait a sec, apparently I'm not done yet with Disney *sigh*. This time it's from their Lucasfilm divison, as the much anticipated and tentatively titled "Star Wars: Episode IX" has received an official release date. Unlike the first two modern-era movies, the 2015 "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" and "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" that's coming later this year, the 9th core iteration of the franchise will NO LONGER open in December. Instead, Disney has moved it forward to premiere on May 24th, 2019. Yes, Christmas comes early that year for "Star Wars" fans! I guess with no other Marvel Studios' releases in 2019 following UNTITLED Avengers movie (don't forget, the Spider-Man sequel is distributed by SONY), "Star Wars" has no problem vacating its usual December spot to jump into the Summer slot. Which could either be a good or bad news. Good, because in a way, the franchise does belong as a Summer blockbuster. But bad, because of the inevitable fierce competition. Forget about other studios, Disney's own Avengers 4 should still be playing that week! Risky move...

Of course, I agree with Collider, in that the primary intention might be to not keep "Star Wars" fans waiting too long. "Han Solo: A Star Wars Story", also a tentative title by the way, is set to be released on May 25th, 2018. If Episode IX sticks to its December landing, then there will be a long 18 months hiatus between them. Add to that, the absence of "Star Wars REBELS", which should have ended its final season months prior to the Han Solo movie? It can end up damaging the franchise due to the lack of hype. A gap too long can always produce negative result to a franchise. Colin Trevorrow is set to helm the final part of this new trilogy. If his previous experience with "Jurassic Park" worries you, then you need to remember that Rian Johnson is the one writing the script. That clearly ensures the connectivity between his Episode VIII to Trevorrow's Episode IX. I'm sure we'll be hearing more about this movie, as soon as "The Last Jedi" is released later in December. May the Force be with this franchise. But seriously, 2019 (particularly in Summer), is shaping up into one massive of a year for movies, eh?

Jurassic Park

Speaking of Colin Trevorrow, the sequel to his 2015 movie, "Jurassic World 2" has been in production for a while. But that doesn't stop the J.A. Bayona movie to add more star power to its roster. It's a familiar face too, someone who's no stranger to being chased by dinosaurs, having starred in the first two movies of the franchise. Yep, Jeff Goldblum... is set to reprise his role as Dr. Ian Malcolm in the upcoming movie. He'll be joining the new leads, Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, fellow actor from the original movies in B.D. Wong, and new faces in the franchise like Justice Smith, James Cromwell, Geraldine Chapling, Ted Levine, and Toby Jones. This would be Goldblum's second comeback role, after returning for "Independence Day: Resurgence" last year. A movie that had a Hemsworth, before he took on the older brother in the upcoming Thor movie. Looks like he only needs to co-star with the third, eldest one, to score a Hemsworth-Jackpot! LOL to that!

As I said above, if there's something you need to worry, then it's not "Star Wars: Episode IX". It's THIS movie that I believe you should be concerned with. Why? Because eventhough Trevorrow isn't directing, he's the one writing the script with Derek Connolly. In case you forget, it's the script to "Jurassic World" that bogged the movie down among critics. I can't help but feel concerned that the same thing is going to happen with this one. But as always, we'll see if that's the case or not. After all, the first movie did become financially success despite being challenged critically. "Jurassic World 2" will arrive next year, on June 22nd.

X-Men Universe

In case you missed the news last week, FOX has dated "X-Men: Dark Phoenix" to arrive on November 2nd, 2018. I didn't discuss about it much, because the news arrived mere hours before my queued post went up. Thus, I was only able to make a quick minor update for it.

For that reason, I feel like talking about it now. And by talking, OBVIOUSLY it means 'ranting', what else? LOL. Nope, I won't point out the similarity of powerset between Jean Grey's Phoenix and Carol Danvers' Captain Marvel, whose solo movie is set to arrive just a few months later. It's about my issue with Quicksilver. No really, call me crazy, but I actually wonder if FOX is intentionally pushing "Dark Phoenix" just to exercise their copyright property with him again. After all, there IS a rumor that Marvel Studios is going to feature their version of Marvel's famous speedster again in the next Avengers movie. Whether that 4chan originated report is credible or not (NOTE: it didn't get it right for Sylvester Stallone's character, so there's that). But seriously, it's the timing that intrigues me. Why? Because both movies will be released in the same year! Coincidence much?

Judging from past experience, in how the studio managed to pointlessly shoehorn Quicksilver in "X-Men: Apocalypse"... the movie that suspiciously arrived in the SAME year to "Captain America: Civil War"? I doubt it. Just stop and think about it. Had the Marvel Studios' version survived "Avengers: Age of Ultron" in the previous year (remember, Aaron Taylor-Johnson even filmed a scene wearing a new official Avengers costume, which could be briefly spotted in the Bluray featurette), his next logical step would be to show up alongside his twin-sister in "Civil War". Things clearly did NOT go that way, and instead, we got a FOX version who raced through time to reenact a now-boring slow-motion sequence last year. In a movie so dull and bad, I feel openly ashamed to have seen it. So yeah, feel free to consider me as a conspiracy theorist, but I sure will NOT be surprised if Evan Peters' Quicksilver is somehow included again in "Dark Phoenix".

I also didn't have time to talk about who might be directing this dreaded-sounding (I'm praising and being sarcastic at the same time) movie. We know for sure, that producer Simon Kinberg (who wrote "X-Men: The Last Stand", the Brett Ratner movie that misguidedly butchered the story in the first place), IS writing the script to this movie. But since Bryan Singer might be out of the picture, Kinberg is stepping up by openly thinking of making this his directorial debut as well! Here's what he said, "I definitely would love to take another stab at the Dark Phoenix story. The seeds of Phoenix definitely are planted in (Apocalypse). She can’t control her powers unless she either fully stops them or lets them all loose, and that’s kind of Phoenix. I think in future movies to come we’ll definitely see a bit more of that.". Ignoring the fact that Kinberg has a messy understanding of the source material... emphasis on the phrase 'take ANOTHER STAB', perhaps? Because that already spells like sinister trouble *sigh*. These guys have failed Phoenix the first time. They made Magneto a borish nagging character. They've wasted the Silver Samurai into an ugly mess of CGI. They turned Apocalypse, into one big joke/meme. Will they have better luck with Phoenix redux? We'll see...

Kingsman

The good news is, even with the atrocities of their X-Men franchise (not talking about solo movies like "Deadpool" or "Logan"), FOX DOES have a strong trump card on their sleeve: the "Kingsman" franchise. 2015's "Kingsman: The Secret Service" was an unexpected pleasant surprise. The whole James Bond-esque nod and satire worked, it had amazing and likeable cast of characters, and the R-rated action scenes were bloody thrilling albeit religiously controversial. Suffice to say, director Matthew Vaugh definitely hit the ball off the park so far, that he even did something unprecented: agreeing to do a follow-up!

Its sequel, "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" is already showing off signs of equal greatness! The first trailer for this sequel has been released last week, and it's looking fantastic. The swagger, the action, and the style? WOW!!! I became a fan of Taron Egerton as soon as the first movie ended, and here, we get to see him fully owning his role as Eggsy. Ain't that a sight for sore eyes! This Eggsy is no longer the apprentice, he's a full-blown Kingsman now, and takes on a far crucial role in the organization. Particularly when it is directly targetted, and well... literally blown to pieces. Thus they need to cooperate with the US counterpart, the Statesman, and this is where the cowboy Channing Tatum comes to play. It's always fascinating to see and hear American and British clashing heads and accents with one another. That alone already sold the movie for me. But really, this movie is loaded with great actors, including the return of Colin Firth. Dang it, this feels amazing already! So yeah, September 27th, 2017 is the date to look out for!

The Chronicles of Narnia

Turns out, we're getting the 4th movie after all! So... yaaaay, I guess? According to Variety, director Joe Johnston is set to direct "Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair". Which itself is the title of the sixth volume out of seven, if Wikipedia is not mistaken. This movie series might feel a little under-appreciated, but there are people who are looking forward to see more. Particularly, those who are fans of the author C.S. Lewis, like several members of my extended family. The benefit of this particular chapter, is that it will focus on a separate story from the first trilogy. So Johnston won't need to bring back all of the old characters, some whose actors have already retired from acting. Only Will Poulter would be needed to reprise his role as Eustace Scrubb. But he has grown up since the third movie, while the story requires a younger age. This means, Johnston has the benefit of working with mostly, if not entirely new cast members this time. A set that possibly lead towards more sequels in the future. No release date has been set for the time being, but I won't be surprised if it will arrive late next year. Let's just hope this one will be more faithful to the book, unlike what happened with the third movie.

Gintama

This live action movie looks interesting as well! Yes, a new 30 seconds trailer for "Gintama the Movie" has recently been released, and it's showcasing new footage from the movie. That includes Gintouki and Shinpachi's first meeting. I'm not familiar with the series, so I can't say anything about it. But the slick action, and level of talents who are participating in this title, is enough to make me excited. Yes, Shun Oguri is everywhere, and has played numerous lead characters from various manga/anime adaptations. But dang it he's a good actor, who gives it all when it comes to building a character. And that's a good reassurance to the quality we can expect from this adaptation. If anything, I sincerely hope it would be as delightful as the "Rurouni Kenshin" adaptation several years back. It's certainly looking that way. "Gintama" will open in Japan on July 14th, 2017.

DC Films

Hmmm... I didn't want to talk about this, but it's a rather interesting news so I've decided to make a quick detour. Remember "The Flash"? The movie that was supposed to arrive next year, but has fallen into a circle of development limbo? Well, according to Screen Junkies, director Robert Zemeckis is being approached by Warner Bros to take on the movie. This is BIG news, because Zemeckis is famous and beloved for his "Back to the Future" movie series. Problem is, as soon as the Youtube Channel reported this news, El Mayimbe of The Wrap debunked it on Twitter. He said that Zemeckis only had a meeting, and that WB is talking with other directors for the project. Hmmm... perhaps Screen Junkies got it wrong, or they could be right, who can really tell. But the fact that El Mayimbe doesn't have a good track record with many of his latest scoops, is also something important we need to consider. The good sign that we can take from this report however, is that WB is still intent on making the movie. So that could serve as an encouraging news to DC Fans out there. But as always, don't get your hopes up too soon. Please also consider the studio's track record, particular for this exact project...

SONY Marvel Universe

Collider talked to actor Liev Schreiber about his upcoming voice role as the mysterious villain for Miles Morales' "Animated Spider-Man" movie. He didn't really reveal any major hints about WHO the character will be, but he did mention that he has seen the script and will soon be recording his lines in the coming months. According to Schreiber, the story will "feel very familiar, in a good way, in a kind of throwback way", especially for real hardcore Spider-Man fans. Considering Morales himself is a new character who was created in 2011, the word 'throwback' becomes a big question mark. If I need to make a wild guess, I say his character is going to be the Goblin, or Norman Osborn. Morales might live in a different universe to Peter Parker, but it's a parallel world, so most of Peter's adversaries are his as well, albeit in different form/look. I guess we'll have to wait and see if my prediction is correct or not. This movie will arrive on December 21st, 2018. Will you be watching this family-friendly animated movie, or WB's "Aquaman" instead? Hmmm...

Marvel Studios

As you can guess from my rather-melancholic review, "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" has opened early in several countries, including mine. The North American region won't be seeing it until later this week (on May 5th), but it has been expected to arrive with an approximately $150 million domestic opening weekend. That number would be the second-biggest number of the year, following the $174 million of Disney's very own "Beauty and the Beast". I say, that estimation sounds quite plausible, despite the fact that some of the critical reviews are calling out this movie as 'Not so fresh'. After all, the general idea that negative reviews would affect audience's response and the movie's overall revenue, has been negated gracefully by "Beauty and the Beast" last month, or "The Fate of the Furious" earlier this month. As of writing (April 30th 01:00AM local time... don't ask why), the Rotten Tomatoes score for "Vol. 2" is sitting comfortably on 87%, which is admittedly a bit lower than the 91% of the first movie.

I need not to remind you, that "Vol. 2" IS a visually gorgeous and compelling character-driven movie that will undeniably attract families and die-hard Marvel fans. Yes, it's a risky sequel that might not work with everyone. Yes, it did hit me hard emotionally. But the fact that I'm already itching to see it again, is a clear sign that... yes, it's THAT good. I honestly want to go back to retrace those abundant Easter Eggs, as well as seeing it in again 3D. Because darn it, my country's a jerk. It didn't held any 3D viewings on the day of premiere! Otherwise I would've chosen that feature instead *sigh*.

Speaking of Easter Eggs, director James Gunn reached fans through his social media, to explain about his friend, Nathan Fillion's statement regarding his deleted cameo. As has been spotted before on set by keen-eyed fans, Gunn confirmed that Fillion was supposed to appear as Simon Williams... "in some movie POSTERS in a scene cut from the movie.". This could be that 'Easter Eggs loaded' scene that Gunn admitted had to cut during editing. He added that, "It was a way to have fun with one of my best pals.". It's possible that the sequence will later be made available on the Bluray, but I'm not so certain. Without spoiling anything, while the movie did take place on Earth several times, I can't help but wonder where exactly this particular scene would've taken place. Oh well, I hope Fillion will still be playing the character in future Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, because that's a brilliant and spot-on casting for the superhero turned actor!

Director Peyton Reed has revealed that "Ant-Man & The Wasp" will start filming very soon in June. This statement was inline with Kevin Feige's word during the press junket for "Vol. 2". Confirming that Evangeline Lilly will not be in "Avengers: Infinity War", Reed expressed his excitement to promote Lilly's Hope van Dyne, into becoming a full pledged superheroine alongside Paul Rudd's Scott Lang. Reed said, that Ant-Man and Wasp has always worked as a team for him, and that sentiment would be the prime focus of the movie. Reed even assured that "It’s every bit as much her movie as it is Scott Lang’s". "Ant-Man & The Wasp" will arrive on July 6th, 2018, but I'm sure we're going know more and probably see bits of the movie in this year's San Diego Comic Con International, and/or during Disney's D23 Expo that will take place just several days earlier.

Production for this 'duo movie', will certainly run in parallel with the UNTITLED 2019's Avengers movie, or as many would love to call it, "AVENGERS 4". The "Infinity War" team is expected to proceed with its production in August. Which means, the chance of Lilly's Wasp and also Brie Larson's Captain Marvel (her movie is scheduled to begin production afterwards, in February 2018) to have crucial part in it, has become significantly higher. The title for Avengers 4, is still being kept tightly wrapped by the folks at Marvel Studios. Feige casually agreed to Cinema Blend, that revealing the title too early might be a spoiler for "Infinity War". Intriguingly, the European premiere for "Vol. 2" took place the following days, and actress Zoe Saldana accidentally worded out some interesting statement that caused the fans buzzing. Why? Because it was indicated, that the title would be something along the line of "Avengers: Infinity Gauntlet". Makes sense, but... not so spoilery, huh? Indeed, because her director had gone out to clarify that it's NOT the title. Talking to Yahoo.UK, Gunn said that Saldana might have merely misspoken. Which is good, because now we can continue speculating about it! LOL.

Of course, Saldana's interview still confirmed that the Guardians will also appear in the movie. Meaning the crossover with the Avengers will not take place in "Infinity War" alone, which CAN be considered spoiler on its own. More interestingly, Feige revealed that while "Vol. 2" only took place several months (with its own valid reason) after 2014's "Guardians of the Galaxy", the gap towards "Infinity War" would be four years. That means, during such time span, Earth would have been challenged by various events that ranged from Ultron's sinister plan for humanity's extinction, the disassembling of the Avengers in "Captain America: Civil War", Dormammu's dimensional breakout in "Doctor Strange", up to whatever is going on in "Black Panther". Naturally, there will be more character growth and 'changes' among the Guardians themselves, and that is indeed the case. Members of the Guardians "will have evolved slightly, in some recognizable ways", Feige said. Having seen "Vol. 2" a few days ago, I can personally attest that these gang of misfit has already changed 'emotionally' through the course of the movie. And that its mid-credit scenes took place at least months if not a year or two afterwards. It's definitely going to be interesting to see how far they have become when we see them again in "Infinity War".

As I have mentioned last week, "Avengers 4" will mark a conclusion, and migration to a new era. Feige already said that the MCU will be VERY different after that. Even the 'Phase' system might evolve into a different concept starting in 2019. With the infinite ways it will take shape (remember the Multiverse?), fans everywhere are chiming in with their own speculations and personal hopes about it. But what about Marvel Studios themselves? Turns out, talking to Fandango, Feige himself thought that "it’s a little early to know what it’s going to look like. I think things are going to look very different at that point". He did however, reveal the reason why Gunn had signed up early on for "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3". A little something the studio will call, the 'COSMIC UNIVERSE'. Indeed, just like how "Doctor Strange" paved way for the existence of Multiverse, in a way "Vol. 2" also worked as a gateway towards bigger, broader, and more outlandish cosmic adventures. And yes, several (of five) mid-credit scenes of "Vol. 2" HAVE already alluded the vastness of the cosmic side alone. At the very least, it has shown us what kind of story or character we can expect to see in "Vol. 3".

Last but not least, in case you forgot or are not aware of this, Marvel Studios had already put three 'UNTITLED' placeholders for the year 2020: May 1st, July 10th, and November 6th. But since it is a division of Disney, one of its future release date also got affected by the recent shift. Namely, the July 10th has been pushed into August 7th. Why am I talking about these future dates? The current common sense is that, "Vol. 3" would be taking the May 1st date. But now I can also see it taking the August 7th one, because the first movie DID open in that month. Especially if the studios wishes for May to be Earth-based. Perhaps, "Doctor Strange 2" then? Remember, the first movie was initially meant as Summer movie, but was delayed to accomodate Benedict Cumberbatch's theatre schedule. What about the third date then? Just a wild guess, but it's likely going to be a new property, and if Feige's words is any indication, it'll be something that takes place in the Cosmic Universe. Nobody knows what it will be for now, but here's a wild guess: "Nova"!!! Let's just wait and see if I'm right or not! ;D

Marvel TV

This one will be another quick one! After doing several memorable episodes on Marvel's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.", there are signs that director Kevin Tancharoen will be involved in Marvel's "The Inhumans" as well. Which is a GOOD news, because the guy has a good taste when it comes to action scenes. And boy, judging from the result of showrunner Scott Buck with "Iron Fist"? This show needs ALL the help it could get. Of course, the report was not official, and was only deducted through stalking observing his activity on social media. But Tancharoen has maintained a tight-knit relationship with ABC Studios in recent years, not to mention AoS is produced by his own sister and brother-in-law. So it makes A LOT of sense for him to take part in this series as well. At the very least, we can look forward for the episode he directed, even if we might end up skipping the rest... *sigh*.

Netflix

Earlier this month, some fansites reported that Marvel's "Luke Cage" has begun filming. I even stated that on last week's R-N-D. As it turns out, that was inaccurate report! *mindblown* LOL. Lead actor Mike Colter was present at the Chicago's C2E2 Convention, and aside from revealing fun little details during the production of Marvel's "The Defenders", he clarified the report that filming for Season 2 will begin later in June. Perhaps the ones spotted in New York was merely second unit doing prepping work? Who knows. But there you have it folks, right now, only Marvel's "Jessica Jones" is in production. Colter did share a little hint about "Jessica Jones" second season as well, having worked closely alongside Krysten Ritter throughout "The Defenders". According to him, audience can expect the vibe of the new season to be "dark and heavy". That's intriguing, right?

Meanwhile, Jessica Henwick shared to Entertainment Weekly, that "The Defenders" will take place one month following the ending of Marvel's "Iron Fist". She also added that her character, and possibly Finn Jones' Danny Rand who will be actively busy hunting members for The Hand, will not be in New York when the mini series begins. This helps explain why both Colleen Wing and Danny are rarely seen alongside the other Defenders during filming. But not to worry, she also teased that seeing different characters from different series interact with one another, will make Marvel fans excited. "They’re going to see Colleen and Misty... they’re going to love seeing Luke Cage with the Iron Fist, Danny Rand. I think fans are going to freak out.", she teased. Well, no kidding girl! This will be the ONLY show where we'll be able to see those, right? To think that we could have had it more, had we have a "Heroes for Hire" show. Such a waste of potentials...

DC Television

WB Television has been toying with this one idea for quite some time, and looks like it's finally happening. "Titans", a live action adaptation of the popular "Teen Titans", is set to debut on 2018. Remember back in 2014 when "Vampire Diaries" star Steven R. McQueen stated his desire to play Nightwing? He even pursued it for quite some time, especially back when TNT was still interested in the project. Well, with opportunities opening in both movie and TV side, looks like he might finally have a shot after all. "Titans" is expected to star Dick Grayson as the leader of characters like Starfire, Raven, and others. So it sounds like the roster will be precisely like in the comics.

Greg Berlanti, the godfather of all the recent DC series on CW Network, is of course one of the man behind this. He's teaming up with Akiva Goldsman, a very excited Geoff Johns, and Sarah Schechter to write and produce the series. Intriguingly, these guys chose the name "Titans" while dropping the 'Teens' part completely. Does this mean the characters are going to be grownups, then? I actually thought this would be WB/DC's attempt to enter the young adult market, following Marvel's foray with their upcoming new shows. Looks like that might not be the case. But hold on right there... apparently, this show won't even air in the CW (so don't expect crossovers with "Arrow" or "The Flash"! LOL)! It will arrive in a whole new platform, a DC-branded, direct-to-consumer digital service. Developed by WB Digital Networks Group, this service is designed to deliver immersive experience for DC fans. So general audience aren't allowed, right? Bummer. It remains to be seen if this is a good strategy, but I guess we'll see what happens next year.

The good news is, that new series will not be alone in the new service. "Young Justice: Outsider", the long awaited third season of the fan-favorite series, will also arrive in it. In this new season, the teenage heroes will take on meta-human trafficking and terrifying threat it creates. Sam Register, Brandon Vietti, and Greg Weisman are producing, while Phil Bourassa is tackling as the art director for WB Animation. All of these names are people who are experienced in animated series/movies. For the time being, both series are still in early stages of production, so it might still take a while before we get to know about them.

Many fans of the series have been asking for this new season, and some like yours truly, have wanted a Teen Titans live action show. Looks like, we have received our request. But here's the big question: how would people react with the fact that it won't air on broadcast network like CW or Cartoon Network? I'm aware that the popularity of "Young Justice" and the hype for "Titans" alone could attract audience to check out this new DC-only service. But it's also still unclear whether the service is free or comes with a price. If it's the latter, would audience be willing to pay a sum amount of money, just to catch these two shows? I kind of doubt it. Perhaps if they also move "Powerless", "Gotham", and all those CW shows? Hmmmm. I personally would decide it after proper consideration first, because just like what's happening with Marvel's "Runaways" that will only be available on Hulu... I need to make sure if it's really worth the price. Because if otherwise, it's totally a no go!

Dynasty Warriors

Previously announced in December 2016, updates regarding "Dynasty Warriors 9" can soon be expected to arrive next month. While the cause for such long delay was never explained, producer Akihiro Suzuki did openly apologize for it via Twitter. Since May is just a day away (LOL!) in the Asian region, can we expect some information real soon? I hope so. Let's just wait and see...

Marvel vs. Capcom

The first story trailer for the "Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite" game has been released, and several new characters have been confirmed. Uhmm... okay, perhaps the phrase 'new characters' is pushing it a little too much. I think the better term would be 'returning characters'. Why? From the Marvel side, we're getting the jade giant Incredible Hulk, Thor Odinson, Hawkeye, and Rocket Raccoon... AGAIN. While from the CAPCOM side, we'll be seeing Interpol agent Chun-Li, cyber ninja Strider Hiryu, and the hunky zombie-killer Chris Redfield... AGAIN. These characters sounds all too familiar! Yes, because they have all been featured in previous titles before this. Which means... the game's more of the same, huh? And here I thought we're going to see fresh names like Star-Lord from "Guardians of the Galaxy", or even Rashid from "Street Fighter V"!

The only new characters announced to be joining Captain Marvel, are Ultron and Sigma (who will sadly be available as post-launch DLC). They serve as villainous characters from both sides, who will form the game's main villain when they combined into... *drumrolls* Ultron Sigma. In theory, this idea makes sense, since both are digital and mechanical beings. But will this work story-wise? It sure looks like it, because the trailer looks tense and serious, but honestly who knows. It's a pretty gutsy move though, because I don't recall CAPCOM have done this before in previous title. CAPCOM have also released a new gameplay video, that focused on the recently announced characters. Dang it, seeing Hawkeye teams up with Chris makes me all giddy with joy! LOL. We also get to see the Space Stone in effect, as it is used to trap opponents in a limited force field. That looks fun!

The game is set to be released for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on September 19th, 2017. Pre-order has been made available at most online/offline retailers, and there are two premium editions that devoted fans can choose to purchase. You can read the pricing and details on the Capcom Unity blog. So far, we only have 14 characters (8 from Marvel, and 6 from Capcom) in the game, so there will be at least 10 others or even more. Here's hoping that we'll be getting actual new characters like Scarlet Witch, Vision, or unexpected Capcom characters like Miles Edgeworth in the next update. Crossing my fingers...

Nintendo

The sale of their console, the Nintendo Switch has successfully topped 2,74 million worldwide so far. In just one single month of release! And the company has just recently announced the arrival of Nintendo 2DS XL. The latest in the 3DS family that already looks slick and colorfully better than its tacky non-flippable original, and might be primed to mark the final stage of the 3DS era. After all, there was that rumor that a handheld only Switch Mini is in development to replace it.

Yet Nintendo isn't stopping with the news front, no sir! It just made another surprising statement that undeniably turned people's head: they are skipping E3... AGAIN! Sure, they are famous for being notoriously absent in the recent years, but one would assume that they would be go all out this year to promote Switch and its relatively small catalogue of games. And some of us have also thought that the company will be using this opportunity to announce the heavily rumored "Pokemon Stars". A title that would totally benefit the console's appeal. I guess we're all caught off guard, eh? Then again, it seems they might be holding a Digital Event once again to compensate, because they ARE extremely comfortable with their "Nintendo Direct". So I guess, the likelihood of "Pokemon Stars" being announced still exists after all, huh? Crossing my fingers again...