#I dont know how to write their dialogue so I kinda didn't

[blazeball]

watched my friend play the first episode of new tales and i just gotta say that it wasn't super enjoyable or well written. </3

[springcatalyst]

this movie is permanently implanted in my retinas. it's not even that good

[theetherealraphael]

sometimes you just sit down and write around 500 words of rambling about your new family!

featuring @darthpastry, @nanochittle, @gibbish-anon-from-gell, @shakespeare-official-account, @thesmallestclown, @i-bless-your-heart, and two others who i dont know the url of!

uh yeah theres not an awful lot of dialogue but eh whtvr!

When Raphael (also known as Ralph, and occasionally as Rafe) woke up that morning, he was one of the few people awake, as per usual. It made sense, since everyone had such conflicting schedules, and as such there were people living in the house Raphael had never even met, but that didn't make it any easier to be nearly alone in the giant house. It didn't help that he was still relatively new compared to everyone else, but whatever.

"Good morning guys!" As usual, the only on up and at home was Darth, who waved. Nano was probably awake, but at school, and Gibbish was heading to bed around now. Other than that, Starbucks normally awoke in about an hour, and then everyone else would wake up in their own time.

"Good morning!" Darth responded from the sofa, and Raphael sat down nearby after getting breakfast - after all, it is the most important meal of the day - and he scrolled through Tumblr for the next hour or so.

"Morning," Starbucks said, stretching as she did so.

"Good morning!"

And the morning continued like that, with Clown appearing randomly mid morning (did they ever go to sleep? Raphael wasn't entirely sure the answer was yes) and Starbucks heading off to school around the same time.

After that was afternoon, when the majority of people would really wake up. Occasionally people like Bing would pop in around this time, but generally it was the same six or so people all afternoon.

Shakespeare woke up around this time, and would pop in randomly and act all sappy with Clown before disappearing for anywhere from a few minutes to an hour, and Vivaldi, also known as Ipod Nano, would get up around mid-afternoon. Nano would also make their appearance and start interacting with people regularly, and as usual they were... Well, just look.

"HELLO EVERYONE!" Nano burst through the door around the same time as Gibbish woke up, and startled Raphael so badly he fell out of his chair.

"Hi Nano!" Darth responded, and the others copied suit.

"HELLO DARTH! AND CLOWN! AND GIB! AND RALPH! AND SHAKESPEARE! AND EVERYONE ELSE!!!" Nano ran around, being affectionate to everyone currently up, and somehow people who weren't.

It was a few more hours before Blessie would wake up, but when she did everyone got excited all over again, with Gibbish and Nano being the loudest of all, as usual, and Raphael and Darth being the quietest.

Seriously, how were Darth and Raphael the two most normal people here?

Shakespeare had disappeared off again, so for some reason Clown was... being weird with Gibbish? The incest in this family is insane, honestly!

(Although Raphael hadn't exactly made it better, considering Gibbish was also his kid... Although technically that was his spouse's fault! Raphael hadn't adopted Gibbish!)

Anyway, Clown was clowning on Gibbish, and everyone else was kinda just watching, so Raphael decided to go literally anywhere else.

"I'm gonna go to bed now, good night!" Darth said, heading upstairs, and Raphael figured he should probably head up as well.

After saying his goodnight's, he went to bed, and prepared to do this all over tomorrow.

[intramoon]

hi aj !! i have a question i dont want to sound rude please know im not trying to be rude. i came back to simblr after a long time and its been really hard not to get discouraged. :/ my account is really dead no one interacts with me anymore. stuff is so different. i remember you used to be kinda popular but how do you deal with people not interacting with you as much as they used to?? i dont mean that in a mean way!! i dont want to quit simblr but idk how to get back to how things were

Hi! Don't worry, I don't think you're being rude, I understand where you're coming from. ♡ My response will be long because I have a lot to say about the topic, hopefully, it will help you.

If you were mostly active when I was in my "prime" (assuming that's what you mean by "kinda popular"), like 2018-2021, things will never be how they were then. The community, trends, and how we interacted with each other was so much different, I don't think it will ever go back to how it was then. I am kind of happy about that. Although my relationship with that time on Simblr is nostalgic (despite being too young and miserable to enjoy it), I think the community is in a healthier place now (mostly). I have had to adjust to a couple of things since coming back. One is that the content looks different now.

In my "prime" people were just getting into editing (that was a time before ReShade). Heavy editing and experimental editing were really celebrated, partly because everyone was learning and learning from each other. We just wanted to see what was possible. Now, maybe partly in reaction to that trend and how demanding it was, people have found an appreciation for the base game, simple screenshots with really only ReShade/gshade, CAS screenshots, etc. Not to say the former doesn't exist anymore because it absolutely does and people have become truly incredible at it. In some regard, it is an acquired taste especially if that's all you do. I've thought to myself many times should I stop editing the way I do, does that impact the way people take in my content? Do I have editing blindness? lol I like how I edit, I enjoy the process and, even if I do have editing blindness, I like how it looks. Even being an alpha creator, they are fewer and fewer as people opt for MM and MMix. I've thought, do people really not like alpha content anymore? Even my story at times felt like it didn't fit into the current story ethos. I thought about stopping it. I bring that all up to say, when you're coming back to a very different Simblr it can feel like what you used to make doesn't "fit in". And it might not. I don't think that should be the goal. The community now is so much more diverse, content-wise, that anything you want to make is possible. If you sacrifice your artistic vision, you'll end up leaving again. You have to make what speaks to you, regardless of the other noise.

Two, you have to find your reason for making your art. For a moment, I really lost touch with what I was even doing here. I took some time to figure it out. I first started because I wanted to tell a story that talked about intimacy through the lens of a sex worker and someone who had no romantic or sexual experience. I wanted to do this without over-sexualizing my sex worker character and infantilizing my other character. I wanted to write some of the dialogue I was having internally. Way back when that was all I wanted to do, I didn't struggle with being seen as much because I was posting with a purpose. That purpose wasn't likes or reblogs, but to tell a story and have a conversation. Everything else came after. Anyone coming back (or looking for a reason to stay) has to find, within themselves, why they want to be here and what they want to get out of it. I promise you if you reconnect with that, posting will be easier regardless of the outcome.

I know I took a lot for granted way back when. Asks about me or my characters, comments, tags, and even people wanting to join me in a Discord server or stream. Sounds like we both, a one point, wish we could go back. That just means it's something to appreciate more now. You can be and make really whatever you want, which wasn't always possible. Maybe think of coming back as a small rebirth and trust that if you keep at it, you will find your people. I am still in the process of finding mine but I trust they are out there. If you're passionate people will feel it. Best of luck and I hope something in this novel helps you! ♡

[claire--delune]

I'm a creator for the Rhythm Doctor Sight Reading Tournament 3 (RDSRT3), and I made the level "For The Goat" by one of our wonderful in house musicians, 3xp0 (song link)

I'm very proud of it, and I'm excited to share it with you all.

You can find this level, and many other great levels at rhythm cafe and the Rhythm Doctor Lounge discord, and future RDSRT3 streams (and VODs) on the Rhythm Doctor Lounge youtube channel.

recording by Random Guy JCI (twitter)

Super rambley levelmaker commentary and other wacky stuff below the cut

So this was originally going to be a story driven level. I some dialogue planned but i didn't like how it sounded and no one else was particularly interested in helping me write

The general story was as following: Cole would be telling Hailey (who's doing an interview for school) about a friend of his that he met on an old music production forum he frequented when he was younger. They were this niche internet microcelebrity called ballfart2001. They became friends, and generally just hung out and whatnot. At some point though, Cole would do some shit that pissed ballfart off, and they stopped talking to each other. At the end, there was originally going to be rank text, being a message that ballfart sent to Cole before the messageboard went down. If you did well, it would be the two exchanging discords so they could keep in contact, and if you did poorly, it would be ballfart telling Cole off, or even blocking him.

Now for what's actually in the level, starting with ballfart themself.

I worked hard ballfart's custom character (raw sprites below). Their neutral and missed expression are based on (new) Cole's neutral and barely sprites. I was trying to give the implication that these mannerisms of ballfart rubbed off on him (though i realize it may have been a bit subtle). I designed their outfit to be simple, but "cool" (but also like. a bit slobbish (they're wearing sweatpants and a half tucked shirt for fucks sake))

Now the vfx part.

Depending on how familiar you may be with rd, you may be familiar with the kaleidoscope from 2-2, 2-2n, and 2-x. You may also have noticed that I have something similar in the level, but it's a different color, a different amount of divisions, etcetera. These are done through custom methods, an advanced technique which allows you to do a lot of really cool stuff. Most of the custom methods I used for this (kaleidoscope roll, offset, repeat, symmetry, and color iirc) were released relatively recently (aside from the colors, that method has existed for ages). IN FACT, this level was created BEFORE those custom methods were released, I added kaleidoscope specifically so I could use them (because they're awesome)

Anyways the rest of the vfx yeah fuck. The custom hitstrip was added because I thought it looked cool. ditto... most of it really.

Now, for the gameplay. Act 5 had recently released, this song was unveiled to the rdsrt levelmakers as a priority song, and while listening to it, I noticed that sometimes there would be a second snare, but earlier then the regular snare. And I thought "oh dope kinda like subdivision beats. but like reverse". (Normal subdivision beats require you to hit after the snare). That's where the whole gimmick came from, and the rest of the charting sorta stemmed from trying to compliment that and fit the song as best as possible.

FINALLY, we can get to the notorious ballfart incident.

So for clarity, since I removed the dialogue, no one would normally know that that character is named "ballfart" unless they heard it from me or went inside the level folder.

HOWEVER.

I did something really stupid.

I left the placeholder thumbnail in.

[dr-spectre]

Sonic x Shadow Gens Review.

(MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD!!!)

So, gamers, i have played and finished Sonic x Shadow Generations, both campaigns, and i just wanna say.... GOD. DAMN.

I cannot believe that Sega released a Sonic "remaster" and it actually TURNED OUT GOOD!?!? WITHOUT ANY BUGS!!? NO GRAPHICAL GLITCHES FROM MY KNOWLEDGE!!?!? WHAT HAPPENED!??!

I will quickly go over Sonic Generations before we talk about... the big boy.

So, how is Sonic Generations? Welp. It's.... it's the same game!! And as someone who played it on PC for years, it looks identical to the original release! Maybe the colours are tweaked? The UI looks way nicer with the resolution boost and the chao rescue stuff is really cute.

Uh, i will say though. i do like MOST of the rewriting that they did. But here's the thing, Sonic Generations' story is like eating a McDonalds cheeseburger, but it's only the patty and buns. The rewrite just adds some cheese and a dab of tomato sauce. It's better, but you're still eating a damn McDonalds cheeseburger. And to add on to this, the VAs didn't sound... good, this time around... Idk, something seems very off about their performances? Mike Pollock especially, bro lost ALL OF HIS ENERGY in his Eggman performance. Tails' VA sounds kinda... bleh too, i dont know what happened here. Roger Craig Smith sounds bored playing Sonic, and i feel bad for him because Ian Flynn's writing can be pretty damn wordy. He's a skilled voice actor FOR SURE, but i never clicked with his Sonic, ever. (Jason Griffith, i miss you every day, my sweet prince... They took you away too soon... At least i still have the definitive Sonic voice in the Japanese version...)

The story also continues the trend of turning Amy into a boring side character with zero personality or spice because GOD FORBID A CARTOON CHARACTER ACTS CARTOONY AND A LITTLE CRAZY! SHE IS NOT AN ABUSIVE STALKER WHO WANTS TO FORCE SONIC INTO THINGS HE ISN'T COMFORTABLE WITH! SHE IS A FUCKING FANGIRL OF SONIC WHO WANTS TO HANG OUT WITH HIM AND SHE LOVES HIM AS A PERSON!!!! IF YOU PLAY THE OLD 3D GAMES WITH RETRANSLATED MODS YOU WILL SEE!!!!!!!! GOD!!!

But i could make a whole post about Amy man... I really could...

Okay enough about Sonic Generations, it's time to talk about Shadow Generations and what do I think of it?

First, I'll brush over the story, NO SPOILERS DON'T WORRY!! I will say this, there were plenty of moments that easily got tears out of me and the stuff involving Maria and Shadow? Oh.... oh baby... PEAK!!!! Black Doom is really dope too, Shadow was pretty well written in this, too, and his VA knocked it out of the park!!! Kirk Thornton, I'm sorry that i doubted you... And Maria's VA too? Love the performance!!

However... This story feels... underdeveloped? Undercooked? it feels like there needed to be MORE! I think that the pacing felt a litttleeeee too fast and i kinda wished there was just more to chew on! It's like eating some damn good chocolate ice cream, but the ice cream is just one scoop. LIKE I WANT MORE!!! I WANT TWO SCOOPS!! I WANT SOME CHOCOLATE CHIPS IN THE ICE CREAM!!! UGH!! It's good, BUT I WANT MORE!!!! There needed to be more on it's bones, more screentime with Maria and Gerald, more time fleshing out stuff and properly explaining Black Doom's return instead of it being optional dialogue in the white world or prologue animaton on YouTube that you could skip. There's all this cool optional shit that is well... OPTIONAL!!!! And it actually enhances the characters, BUT I DIDN'T SEE IT UNTIL I LITERALLY BEAT THE GAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DIDN'T READ GERALD'S DIARY UNTIL AFTER I BEAT THE STORY!!! THE LAST TWO PAGES ARE LITERALLY AT THE FINAL SECTION OF THE GAME!!!!

There is this one moment with Maria and Shadow and like.... it gave me the biggest damn smile on my face. And the ending too man, my god.

ALSO THE CUTSCENES ARE FILMED REALLY WELL?!? HOLY SHIT THEY ARE ACTUALLY GOOD?!?!? It makes Frontiers look like a PS1 game in terms of quality like holy mother of god, the cutscenes and animations have improved so MUCH in the span of one game... It makes me so so excited for what's to come....

NOW! GAMEPLAY TIME! How does Shadow control? How does this black and red alien hedgehog play?

I'll put it like this... Imagine Sonic Forces, BUT!!! The air control is better, platforming feels smoother, the homing attack is better and more satisfying and 2D control feels actually good. it's just like Forces but everything feels a lot better, it's WAYYY BETTER THAN VANILLA CYBERSPACE FROM FRONTIERS!

Good controls don't mean much if the levels aren't good, BUT THANKFULLY Shadow Generations level design is actually pretty damn solid, and each level made me feel satisfied and wanting to go again!! There's plenty of optional pathways but the pathways don't really go to brand new exclusive areas. It's not on the same tier as Sonic Generations, BUT! It's close.

My favourite level is either Sunset Heights or Radical Highway. YES! THE SONIC FORCES LEVEL IS MY FAVOURITE! HOW CRAZY IS THAT?!!? THEY TURNED MID TO GOOD!!!

I also love how the collectables are placed on the harder pathways and reward you for skillful play, unlike in Sonic Generations where most of the red rings ARE ON THE BOTTOM PATHWAYS!!!!! WHY?!!? THAT'S THE PLACE MOST PLAYERS WON'T GO TO!!!! Ugh. I hate collecting red rings in Sonic Generations but thank god the collectables are actually fun to grab in Shadow Generations.

Now i wanna brush on the white space because i have some words to say on that too.

White space was really fun to explore and unlike Frontiers, you could see things in the distance and platforms don't just pop in!!!!!!!!!! I loved doom surfing around, finding chests, bolts and just running around. It's really fun. It's not as in-depth as Frontiers, but i want the next Open Zone game to take a lot of inspiration from this white space. Also, seeing Omega and other characters in the hub and talking to them is really cute stuff.

Finding ALL the chests and bolts tho makes me wanna wish a thousand year torment onto someone.

And speaking of Doom Surf... The Doom powers and Chaos Control, i.... LOVE THEM! They are the perfect way to make Shadow more unique from Sonic and give the levels that extra level of flavour. Doom Spears add some spice to the standard homing attack chains you do in 3D Sonic levels, Doom Blast is really fun to use and opens up new pathways, Chaos Control is AWESOME!!! I LOVE HOW IF YOU USE IT AT THE RIGHT TIME IT OPENS UP COOL PATHS!! MY JAW DROPPED MULTIPLE TIMES SEEING THE PATHWAYS THAT I FOUND FOR MYSELF WITH CHAOS CONTROL!!! Doom Surf is fun to use and it spices up Kingdom Valley a lot, but... Doom Morph? The squid? THAT ONE SUCKKKSSSS!!! Awful turning, awful speed control, awful jump arc that makes Super Mario Bros. from the NES look like a top tier platformer, they don't properly explain the grappling mechanic which left me feeling so frustrated at certain points.

And... of course... The Doom Wings...

THE DOOM WINGS.... THE STUFF YOU COULD BREAK WITH THEM AND THE LEVEL DESIGN ACCOMINDATES FOR THEM TOO?!?!? SO IT DOESN'T FEEL LIKE YOUR GLITCHING THE GAME?!?!? SONIC TEAM DID SUCH A GOOD JOB OH MY GOD!!!!

Now, let's talk about the bosses...

Bosses are pretty fun!! They feel very satisfying to beat down and have some awesome dialogue. Although they are kind of one note, like the strategy to beat them doesn't REALLYYY change but hey, It's Sonic bosses, they've never been that amazing since the beginning of the franchise. But i would rather take this kind of boss design OVER SONIC SUPERSTARS!! BLEHHH!!!

Also I'm not gonna go too much into it but what they did with Mephiles, story wise for his boss fight? Oh man, I LOVE IT!! THEY DID SUCH A GOOD JOB! (the new VA for him, Robbie Daymond was kinda.... okayyy. Needed to sound deeper and it would been damn great. I know he played Akechi from Persona 5, he just needed better direction.)

Alright.. Let's discuss arguably the most important part of any Sonic game, the music, and um, I'm gonna be for real, it's kind of a mixed bag? DON'T GET ME WRONG!! There are some bangers, some top tier tracks that will get that blood pumping! But for every banger, there's a Space Colony Ark Act 2 and a Chaos Island Act 1....

The music can be summed up with this handy chart!

I wanna quickly brush upon the challenge acts too, i liked most of them but having to complete 4 OF THEM FOR EACH ZONE TO ADVANCE THE STORY IS SOME MASSIVE PADDING!!!

And.. I think that is it!! Overall, Shadow Generations is great!! The story has some cool moments but it felt VERY underbaked, the level design has improved a lot from previous games, i like the white space and the simple enjoyment of going around and collecting things.

It is a good to great game but it definitely has some flaws and i wouldn't give it a 9/10 and say it's PEAK overall like what some are saying online. Yeah it's good, but, it has flaws. It isn't perfect, however it is VERYYY fun!

Shadow Generations really does give me hope, this isn't yet another "step in the right direction" no. This is a LEAP!

[brilliantfantasticgeronimo]

Rogue thoughts and reactions--->

not taking many notes this time cause i wanted to Savour this one tbh and what a blast so far

rogue and doctor so far is like. rtd striking gold potentially here (i kno he didnt write this one i mean more like. in the long run. i could see fans going crazy over this Type of ship and spending sweet $$$$ on it lol).

ruby looking at this "scene" like it's a tv show………. live…….. honey u best believe in ghost stories hyper post-modern genre tv show seasons cause u are in one

cushy… wordsmiths-ing count…

"ruby: you know how i forget about a man?" with a woman? (shot)

the parallel of these guys "dishonoring" these ppl while the doc and ruby do kind of the same all the time sdkflj

mmm second time i see a triangle logo (it was there last ep on the door to the MEP area that lindsey and rickey ran into. camera held on suspiciously long on it…) (triangles…. three…. susan TRIAD???)

doctor this says you're single and available. oh another word. "very" available.

COME ON ACE WE HAVE WORK TO DO

"wow" boner dialogue

mention of gallifrey.... "i might take you one day" oh man. oh man………..

"random barren dimension" yes this is not an equivalent to a silent confinement analogue at all don't think about it too hard guys

"i lost everyone"

they're leaning on……………. oh yaz just broke a coffee mug somewhere

maybe the real enemy was fandom all along

THOSE TV SIGNALS BEAM OUT ACROSS THE STARS. TV SIGNALS. TV SIGNALS. TV ISNGALS TV

SIGNASLKDJASLKDJASKLJ1!!SKLFDJDSLKJFSDLK JF SHUT UPTJSDLFKSDJ (i die)

ok im enjoying The Concept a lot, as expected…….. but gotta say rogue does feel a bit two dimensional so far :/ (maybe even a bit cliche?) i feel jack in his first ep had more depth at first for example (bounty hunter but also lost his memory. doing amoral things but being swayed by the doctor at the end. etc). but there's time THERE'S TIME. DONT LE TME DOWN EPISODE PLEA SE. there's always a twist-

you people and your bridgetons. in my time this would all be a big ass downtown abbey reference

sad thing is this is def one episode i wont be able to watch with my homophobic parents at all oof lmao

this dialogue.... kinda thoschei acadamy years coded ngl

"tell me what your heart wants or i shall turn my back on your forever" defining 15 character dialogue……….

(commitment phobe doctor moment. my girl hastn changed at ALL) (btw intrigued by rogue's "i lost them" bc it could mean a lot right. it's the most delibarely ambiguous of pronouns dklfjsd like it could be a nonbinary character but could also be a couple characters? or maybe im reading it wrong sdlkjf)

play our games on a magnificent scale…………… games motif……….

"i thought i was interesting- but you??" exactly!!! doctor who>>>>>>>> bridgerton/all other tv shows. case made.

god i feel so stupid. i dint catch that twist at all TOT

wedding season finale. chuldur's know where it's at.

oh finally there's the scene from the trailers!!!!!!!!!

"how long do they live for?" oh he's gonna says A Thing "thats a long time to suffer" I WASN'T WRONG /GOES FERAL ( i knew the family of blood coding was leading somewhere…)

the doctor beatiing these cosplayers with his "i object" tv tropyness……….. the meta of it……… theory gang we're gonna make it yet i swear

ok yes this is sad poor ruby but like. but literally last month 14 killed/sacrificed donna w/o sm hesitation so sdklfjdsklfjsdklfj (yes im still like. HEY THAT WAS A SIGNIFICANT THING THAT HAPPENED. WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABOUT IT.)

oh is rogue a chuldur as well? he feels too invested in the trolley problem of it all sdlkfj

im gonna say it.... i thought that resolution was kinda........ as the kids say..... weak sauce sfkdj

like oh nooo he got teleported oh noooo. like he's gonna be fine slkdfjsd didn't really hit that hard :/ should have had a proper death sacrifice thing.

"im sorry....." "....AAAANYWAY , it is what it is!!!! " my man is so broken holy shit. holy shit.

it's ok to be sad. !!!!! TOT

CONCLUSIONS!!

sdlkjf ya'll i really wanted this to harder but idk i didnt feel the depth or sensibility this called for was there tbh. but it was a blast!!! but … it missed a bit of that x factor thing. like some kind of universality to the romance w/ the rogue. i feel he was too sketched-in.... i was also a bit disappointed that ruby's friend was not her friend bc it meant her whole thing this ep of connecting to that woman was for nothing (and up until that point it was feeling very Important specially after the marti thing) (and speaking of, the chuldur's were kinda very sketched-in / surface-level as villains as well) … yeah. idk. kinda disappointing ngl (diodati > this i think). pretty fucking gay tho so that was nice.

[yeyinde]

I found your COD works on ao3 and there is quite literally NOTHING else that makes me ascend higher than your writing AAAAHHH your prose is incredibly seamless and blends so beautifully together that i find myself on the ground afterwards because EXCUSE ME?? They didn't tell us you could do that with words?? (youre the reason im researching a game ive never played before in my life at 3 am) how you are real

Anyway!!! I dont know if this was already asked, but i wanted to know about your writing process and how you got to where you are now

Thank you for always giving us your best work!! 🩷🩷🩷

it's only Thursday and here i am. just bawling my eyes out. this is incredibly sweet, and you are being way too nice to me, honestly!!! 😭 thank you so much!! and i'm so glad you've been enjoying what i write so far 🖤

i did my best to actually answer this in a way that was somewhat coherent but it's really hard to type through the tears.

i don't have much of a writing process, tbh! i mostly just shape things around a concept or a scene i want to write about, or one that i kinda picture in my head. the rest is mostly just filler to get us there.

i think i spend the most time on words—the placement, the meaning, the sound, and the way it looks/flows with everything else. i'm very particular about the ones i pick. i know a lot of it might seem like regurgitating a thesaurus (which it def is, tbh!!!), but i really love etymology. everything has a purpose. even though a lot of what i write is just gratuitous smut lmao

i also really love scripts. i don't write multiple drafts. what i end up posting is usually the first draft with minimal editing (because i am egregiously lazy and also hate re-reading my own work), but as i write, i like to make the outlines for scenes in the same style as a script. i think it gives me more flexibility to really dig down into what i want from a particular moment by framing it like a beat from a movie or play. it might not be for everyone, but it helps me focus on what i need to do—especially with dialogue.

as for how i got to where i am now: i definitely got much more confident in my particular style, which i think is obvious if you read my earlier stuff to now. i was very worried about how i came across in writing (like using rare words, dabbling in wordplay, going on very obscure tangents and making strange metaphors), but i'm a lot more willing to experiment with things than i was before. i also don't take myself seriously at all. everything i do is for the fun of it, so i've never felt pressured to stay within a certain genre or style. i just do what i want, mostly!

[diodellet]

So many good options for the art appreciation asks but let's go with 3, 4, 13, 14 and 27.

hi hi ner! thanks forda qs!! these are all prettie incharestinge!! (<-girlie who didn't know she'd be Yapping-Yapping)

3. and 4.) Go to [fandom] tag and reblog some art you like that has under 100 notes ++ Go to the art tag (or similar) and reblog some art you like that has under 100 notes

noted, i will undertake this mission with great care 🫡🫡

13. What are your go-to Ao3 filters?

ok i have a confession, i used to be a sort by word count++completed works only++exclude crossovers-kinda person 🤧🤧ANYWAY that was changed, now i only really exclude chat fics (ahaha,,,,theyre not really my go-to genre, like sure they're amusing but i read a really good one once* and it ruined every other chatfic for me)

*this one's for u haikyuu-natics, esp team captain stannies

hm.... i'm not super-duper picky so most of the time i can just scroll through each work's summary and tags.

but if a fandom is popular (or if i dont have the spoons for sifting through works), i stick to just reader inserts HAHAHA, maybe oc x canon if there haven't been any new x reader fics and if there's rlly nothing oough ig i have to write her myself 😭😭 sometimes doe, the curiosity strikes and i'll try looking if there are any fanfics in filipino... i really find it interesting to see how a chara's dialogue reads if theyre speaking in tagalog (tbh i think one would have more luck finding filo socmed aus on twt? but i only know about haikyuu socmed aus)

14. Best fanfic tropes ever?

oH...there are too many... u can't make me choose the best out of all my faves that's unfair 🥺jk lol

i read* this jamikali fic (i like my ships with a bit [read: a LOT] of tragedy/disaster-ness to them. it's so so so compelling to read!) and i just love the "Dubiously Unrequited Love" tag. bcs yes, the feelings are technically mutual, but there is a whole slew of other factors keeping the relationship from being a thing, which it could be a thing, but there's also that awareness that it won't last, sometimes a couple doesn't have to be endgame for the love to mean something, ykw?

this entire oneshot series....has me in a chokehold... my introduction to "Non-Sexual Intimacy" (and "Non-Sexual Nudity" i guess?) like??? holy shit??? the tension?? the way op just encapsulates the poignancy of being in such a vulnerable position without teetering too much into the cliche of roëmænce it has me On My Knees!! (like i love my smut and romance cliches, but some days i jus want a liiiitle bit more spice and variety)

Shoutout to the "Unreliable Narrator"++"Ambiguous Ending" combi that reaaaaally makes you work for understanding the plot, idk how to word it but being able to leave Just Enough Breadcrumbs and having enough trust in your readers to Get what ur implying, also forcing me to reread the fic immediately is so foul (in a good way). like there's an enjoyment in a good satisfying read, and then there's the Itch of never being sure in your interpretation, the feeling that u just need to go over it another time, spot another detail u missed, get wrecked all over again, rinse and repeat. idk i love fic.

27. If someone wanted to make you a creative gift, what's the thing that would make you the happiest?

oh anything featuring my fave charas is sure to make me happy! i mean i'm just not super picky abt gifts. well, maybe a creative gift has to be smth that can last a long while? (a strong hoard-ability kaya idk im senti??)

as long as the thought and intent was there, i'm already happy enough🥰💕💕 but i guess in the context of getting fic gifted to you, probably what matters most to me is that the writer enjoyed the process of making it as well. (i'm kinda drawing off of my experience writing this fic for one of m'oomfies and the vdays drabbles*** so i could be just rambling who knows?**)

(art appreciation ask questions, please bug me to rb some underrated art and fic)

[laggs-cringe-corner]

once again posting the whole ending because why bother rerecording it on my awful mic. unenthusiastic yapping under the cut

I still think this is one of the weaker endings, but I remember being a lot more frustrated about it the first time i watched through all the endings at once. I think what happened was I mentally mixed up Baldhead's ending with Chipp's ending, because Chipp has a bit where he kinda argues with Justice about survival as a philosophy(?) and it didn't really get much across, character-wise. Or maybe i just dont like chipp so i'm not getting why that was important to his arc. Anyway

I think most of my problems are translation-specific. Like, the script is legible enough, and it gets the ending across, it's just that it feels clunkier than it should be? The part where the only words are fragmented bits of dialogue, i like this in concept, but there's just not enough room for the words to get all the conflicting emotions across while individual ideas still get space to breathe.

I'll point at one example, to keep it brief.

<…octor…? Um, doctor…? I'm getting better, right…? Oh, boy! I can't wait to…>

Ok so the purpose of this line is clear: this is the voice of the kid who Baldhead was gonna save, but then died. She's talking to him before the operation. My gripe is,, why would a kid going under anesthesia say "[D]octor? Um, doctor? I'm getting better, right? Oh boy, I can't wait to [go home]!" It just feels too cartoonishly artificial, like someone was trying to pull at the reader's heartstrings, but then just went and slapped at them with a rubber chicken. I mean, I can't read japanese directly, I don't know if this problem existed in the original text and the translators didn't have much to go off of, but from what I've heard through the grapevine from people actually translating these things, the localization hasn't had much of a problem being inaccurate with other lines.

If you'll allow me to put on my writing-critic hat, I think this was a missed opportunity. With so little room to work with, the utility of word choice is more crucial here than anywhere else. Not to mention, this feels like the place to put some kind of detail that could be expanded upon with speculation or later context. Imagine if the kid said something about being scared of the dark, or saying that everyone else gave up on her, or her parents didn't even visit because they think it's hopeless. Maybe even,,, something about how the nurses said it would be risky, but she trusts the 'miracle doctor.' How it looks like she's getting more sick, but if the doctor says she's getting better, then he'll believe him.

Take this critisism with a grain of salt; all those ideas are probably too wordy to have made it in. It's a functional ending, that's all. My entitled ass is a little frustrated that it wasn't one of the ones that had more meat on its bones, but I should be greatful there's anything to chew on at all.

[stormikins]

Ao3 mememe

Tagged by @swaps55 thank you!!! <3

no pressure tags: @commander-krios @xoshepard @omniblades-and-stars

(and my ao3 is here lol)

How many works do you have on ao3? 34!

What's your total word count? 189,941 over three years

What are your top fics by kudos?

One Step Closer (HFW: Aloy/Kotallo one shot that turned into two chapters lol)

Cold Hard Facts (Mass Effect: Mshakarian getting together fic)

Better From You (HZD: Aloy/Avad face painting fluff)

The missing piece (Mass Effect: Mshakarian didn't know they were dating. its garrus. garrus didnt know they were dating)

Distraction (HZD: Aloy/Avad pre-relationship Aloy has feeeelings)

Do you respond to comments? Why/why not?

I try my best to! Someone actually decided to leave a comment about my fic and I want to make sure that they get appreciated the same I way I feel appreciated. But sometimes I don't know what to say in response thats not just thank you! lol I think commenting is very important for fic writing and i want to encourage more people to comment

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Ohhhh boy. an end, once and for all first comes to mind which is where Shepard dies post crucible firing, Tali POV. I still get shouted at for that. The consensus is shattered remains aka Shepard goes to Alchera. I cry every time I read this so. take that as you will.

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

Ehhhh SSV Normandy: mobile home for the galaxy's most competent fools probably. Basically, Shepard and Wrex get together early in me1, and throughout the games' story, the others don't realize they're together. So it ends with the crew realizing they are and that Shepard and Wrex have been fucking with them the entire time.

Do you write crossovers?

Not necessarily a huge thing for me, but I am writing an Alien(s)/Mass Effect thing where Shepard is Ripley. So it's basically the first two movies, but with ME characters and setting and stuff.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

No, but i did receive a weird comment where they mentioned something that did not have to deal with the fic. no hate, just weirdness

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I do, and i dont really know how to answer the second half of this lol. i guess some of it is emotional but that's when there's like 50k of fic before that. my smut oneshots arent very emotional. they're there for one reason and thats okay theyre fun

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Not really, no. I've helped people write their fics, but nothing has ever been formally stated to be co-authored by me (which is all good). I'm kinda hesitant about co-writing bc I can be controlling so i don't wanna clash with a friend yknow?

What's your all time favorite ship?

I feel like the answer would be Shepard/Kal'Reegar. bc i go bonkers over it. Which does make sense since I designed both of them and i know what i like. they mean a lot to me these two

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

Everything? I got over a hundred (probably close to two hundred) wips in varying states of completion but the main one that haunts me i don't think I'll finish is a Aloy/Varl which is my first fic posted to ao3. Maybe one day.

What are your writing strenghts?

Dialogue! I'm real good with it, and I enjoy writing character interactions through it, I really excel in this area. Another thing I'm good at, is taking small details and expanding upon them and/or turning them into something more important.

What are your writing weaknesses?

Description and internal monologue. I'm very much what the characters are doing is how they are feeling type of writer

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I personally don't do it because I only know English and I prefer if someone is writing a lot in a different language ( looking at mando'a ) translations are provided at the end of the fic or smth like that. its just nice but obviously not required and its not really a thing at all lol

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Percy Jackson back in 2016

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

I want to write for Arcane and I do have a little bit written but I am deep in Mass Effects so we'll see how far I get lol

What's your favorite fic you've written?

the glow of stars or Pull Me Into Orbit PMIO is my rewritten (in progress) Kal'Reegar/Shepard fic that i have spent so much time on and put in a lot of thought and care and love. When im in the groove with this fic and its universe, I am truly happy.

the glow of stars is something that I'm really proud of, not only in a technical sense but also in the content of the fic. Shyrik, Shepard came back wrong and it's just very interesting and captures what I enjoy from a comes back wrong fic. It's one of the best things ive ever written and im very proud of it (i didnt think it was gonna be this good but people have said otherwise!)

[glove23]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I WAS TAGGED BY @nooowestayandgetcaught THANK U ILY

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

- 158

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

- 325,837

3. What fandoms do you write for?

- any and all that I know/like!! I have the most fics in kinnporsche, hp, and grishaverse, but I write for a lot of different fandoms

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

- Meeting Your Maker (Literally)

Harry Potter, Time Travel AU, 64,543 words

- a colorful past

The Batman (2021), Jim Gordon/Bruce Wayne, 688 words

- Your Makers Meet (Figuratively)

Harry Potter, sequel to MYML, 30,726 words, incomplete

- I'm not leaving your side

Love in the Air (2022), Whump, 1,307 words

-no body, no crime

Kinnporsche: The Series (2022), MURDER, kinn kills vegas, 943 words

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

yeah! I try to at least, I have a huge backlog to get through whoops. I started writing in the era of ffn where like half the experience was talking back and forth in the reviews and then pm-ing and that's how I made a lot of friends that I still have today. and without that kind of comment culture and the author replying to messages, I might not have ever started writing.

someone replied to my review very kindly and asked why I didn't have any fic, my ideas were awesome (hair flip) and that made me realize oh. I don't have to Just read, I can also write the stories

and the rest is history

but fostering that kind of community, just talking to people who love the things you love, is such a fun part of the fandom experience for me and so I'll always reply to comments (eventually. I'll always get there eventually.)

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

KDHAJCHSJXJSJZ I DONT KNOW HOW TO TELL YOU THAT I HAVE A WHOLE SERIES WHERE I JUST KILL PEOPLE AND WATCH THEIR FRIENDS GRIEVE

but that being said, the answer is

into the wind (Love in the Air (2022), prapaisky, MCD/suicide

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

uhh. this one I don't actually know but imma say

love me there (His Dark Materials, lyrawill, fix-it, lyra finds will again after the events of s3)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

yeah, sometimes! 👍 don't do that

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

sometimes. not very often, it's usually M-rated if I do, but just. yeah. I don't know how to answer this

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

nope!

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

yep!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

nope!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

yes, many times! back in my OG ffn days, and then a few times with @nooowestayandgetcaught

14. What’s your all time favourite ship?

I'm gonna say percabeth but I don't think there Is a real answer to this question, bc I love so many of my ships So Hard that just thinking about them makes me cry

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

......I will finish every wip leave me alone (I WILL FINISH YMMF I PROMISE) work in PROGRESS and the progress may be slow but it's PROGRESS

16. What are your writing strengths?

dialogue I am so fucking good at dialogue, and character interaction. definitely my strengths

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

descriptions. I am too lazy to do them all out the way I want to and so I just kinda. skate by

except in guess I misjudged you (gods I loved you) that one is PACKED bc I spent 9 months on it so

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

mmm unless I know someone I can talk to and get accurate translations, I don't really do this bc I am so afraid of conjugating wrong and google translate is SHIT. but when I do I try my best

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Percy Jackson! in 2012 on ffn on an account that still exists but I will not give u the name of. 🥰🥰

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

as of rn (October 2023) it's

guess I misjudged you (gods i loved you)

Percy Jackson, Royalty AU, Arranged Marriage AU, 56,438 words

it is my BABY and I think one of the best things I've written tbh

#2 would be

if you don't like it (lie)

KinnPorsche, kimchay, MCD, 3,516 words

it's just so delightfully painful and it's the one I show to everyone I show kp bc I'm obsessed with it

ANYWAYS THATS ALL THANK YOU!!!! if you wanna do this feel free to say I tagged you 💞

@seaweedbraens @perseannabeth @karin848 @waitingondaisies (y'all don't have to do this. but ✨✨)

[basofy]

ON UR LATEST POST I HATED THAT ENDING SO MUCH LOL they were both so out of character?? i do like the idea of buddy verbally breaking buzzo down but idk they did it so badly it didnt feel like the two of them at all especially him being all GRR YOU BITCH like eben if thats just the joy getting to him IDK it just. felt so :/ to me SORRY FOR THE LONG ASK

oh hi lolll dw about the ask i like getting asks(as long as i can think of a reply)

yeah much like with other stuff in the definitive i liked some of the concepts in the dialogue/ending but not the execution, as some people have already said it the stuff buddy tells buzzo feels more like the game is trying to make up for the fans's mistakes when misinterpreting lisa instead of trying to work through the mistakes it had made with the characters in the past, much like buddy's words about brad later on don't feel like it's her talking but it's instead austin talking agshgahgf i think all this happens because joyful continues failing to fully put itself on buddy's shoes so she becomes hard to write she barely even has a personality and it's sad, i did like some of the new stuff but the way it was set up and concluded is kinda goofy

i was surprised to see that the definitive edition managed to expand lisa's character nicely (save for that one implication buzzo made about hearing her voice and blah blah) but it didn't do the same for buddy as much as it tried. i think the stuff buddy says is especially weird because it all feels like conclusions we didn't see her reaching we didnt get to see the process and some of the stuff feels unfair to her as well, and making buzzo lame feels like a desperate attempt to get people to understand this guy isnt good he's just saying shit!!!! and it's funny some fans still dont get it lmao, i feel like it tried so much to make buzzo look bad and it didn't do it in the way it could've done it?? buddy could've had beef with him about how much he mistreated her, they dont even talk about the nipple thing even though it was aknowledged in the dream segment, also i would've preffered if buddy learned about lisa through buzzo instead of through weird ghost stuff but i'm wondering if she really knows at all?? i admit i cant be too mad cuz i understand that making joyful better would require rewriting soooo much stuff which was maybe not possible i dunno

i think austin understood that lisa needed more told about her as a human being rather than a haunting memory and that was rly nice to see yet it failed to understand that buddy's issues is that the story doesnt feel like it's about her that much, it tries to solve so much stuff for everyone that buddy is left with so little

[apopcornkernel]

poppy's watched cdramas

與君歌 stand by me/dream of chang'an

i... did not finish this drama 😭 i only watched this because my mom was watching it and we were stuck in quarantine together, so. it was fun i guess but ultimately mid

蒼蘭決 love between fairy and devil

loved it, the ending was a little too abrupt for me but it still ended well! lived for the villain romance, had so much fun booing changheng (sorry), had even more fun staring at dylan wang's cheekbones. also i love how ride or die the main couple is for each other, it's absolutely not one-sided in that regard which <3 yes. and also episodes 30(?) to 36 i cried nonstop it was so cathartic. episode 35 specifically....... aha

琉璃 love and redemption

STUPIDLY long and rather cringe at times im not even gonna lie but the main characters had me by the THROAT i could not stop watching. yu sifeng is so so so unfairly pretty with bangs and chu xuanji in god of war mode,,,, i lvoe her sm. i loved how the gender roles of a typical cdrama relationship was more or less flipped, with sifeng always being the damsel in distress (not even joking or exaggerating about this one) and xuanji being the badass hero. i feel like a lot of cdramas tend to say their female mc is the hero and stuff but then in execution its ALWAYS the male lead saving the mc from danger and its just,,, idk i'm a little tired of it so i like that chu xuanji exists <3 and fuck haochen

傳聞中的陳芊芊 the romance of tiger and rose

REALLY REALLY GOOD one of the most perfect dramas ive ever watched. cinematography really high quality, an mc that i never got annoyed at and is so lovable, a petty murder cat love interest who is unfairly handsome at every angle. i was smiling and giggling with every episode. it's the true definition of a happy pill. i only wish Those 2 Specific Scenes did not exist

星落凝成糖 the starry love

i did not finish this 😭 i onyl watched it because it was the only thing i had downloaded on my phone. i don't recommend it tbh, sorry, the concept was interesting but the execution didn't do it for me. it was also really obvious how low budget it was and the acting & writing didn't really make up for it enough so,,,

今夕何夕 twisted fate of love

THIS IS THE BEST CDRAMA IVE EVER WATCHED I KNOW IM BEING SUBJECTIVE BUT LET ME BE SUBJECTIVE THIS IS MY BLOG okay okay so general travels back eight years to stop a great war but unfortunately she lands smack dab into feng xi's residence, who is an ally of the Bad Guy and very morally grey politician who will not hesitate to kill people for his goals. she keeps trying to assassinate feng xi's ally (the Bad Guy) meanwhile feng xi is just trying to put a ring on it. they are SO so funny and you KNOW i love villain(ish) romance so i ADORED this cdrama even though it was objectively mid and even though the last episode was trash. I DONT CARE i will defend this one with my life JUST WATCH IT im very incoherent ik but in my defense it's kinda hard to explain just trust me

星漢燦爛 love like the galaxy

currently watching!! it has zhao lusi who i trust with any drama, and the cinematography is great! some of ling buyi's dialogue i dont like but im still on board the main ship,,, i think i wouldve liked lou yao but i keep remembering he's daole from twisted fate of love and it jars me so bad.... also i have this thing where i automatically boo the second/third leads so really lou yao had no chance im sorry 😔 i find it really funny how obviously down bad ling buyi is update: i dropped this drama :(( i got all the way to episode 20 something and then i just couldn't be bothered to continue, i was honestly bored :((((

雲之羽 my journey to you

my sister rec'd this drama to me and oh man i tried. i was so ready to be hooked. but i just couldn't. like, it had gorgeous cinematography and beautiful costuming and i was happily surprised to realize the leads were clj's changheng and xiaolanhua, but omfg gong ziyu (changheng) pisses me off so bad he's like omg guys im an underdog they all hate me im struggling so bad i'm being oppressed etc etc AND THEN HE'S BEING OPPRESSED FOR BEING A RICH BABAERO NA PALAGING NAGBABAR LIKE BE SO FOR REALLL also shangguan qian and gong yuanzhi's scenes are infinitely more interesting than anyone else's, their one battle of wits already had me more interested than the entirety of the previous 5 episodes... and then when it switches back to include shangjue or gong ziyu or yun weishan i immediately feel all my energy get sapped. like they're so boring it hurts fgksjhg and the way yun weishan and gong ziyu speak don't help at all it's like 有時候……我也……睡不着…… DO NOT WASTE MY TIME LIKE THIS AND ALSO PLEASE SPEAK NORMALLY so yeah i got fed up by episode 6 and dropped it despite my sister's urging

天盛長歌 the rise of phoenixes

started watching this right after i dropped my journey to you BECAUSE FUCK YOU i swear that cdrama made me see cdramas as a chore again. anyways im loving it. ning yi looked so miserable in the first episode which is a great portend for things to come, and feng zhiwei is great i love her already and the cinematography is not bad as well, i'm just worried i'll get lost on the machinations and everything but i'm still having fun so far anyways hehe update from episode 19 or something!! i'm really enjoying it this is so good!!!! a little slower paced so if that's not your thing be warned but i am really liking it hehe

[crest-of-gautier]

pq posting before i go to bed! a shorter session (3 hours) but it was nice and i'm happy to say that i finished you in wonderland!

THIS WAS SO FUNNY... honestly i don't think i give enough credit to akihiko and mitsuru's dynamic they're literally so good i really enjoy how well they know each other but also they're like.. a constant in each other's life and i do enjoy their interactions a lot even if i never vocalize it...

wow yosuke, who would've thought that you two are partners, this guy literally introduced himself as your wife /s (i kinda regret naming souji yosuke wifey but im glad i wrote the y in lowercase bc otherwise i wouldn't be able to tell their dialogue apart 💀

and finally, yosuke <3

some more elaborate thoughts (aka speculation) under the cut because i learned my lesson from last time

ok unfortunately i can't say that im going to go AS INSANE as i did last time when i was spitballing in the tags for the second pq posting just because i feel like i aired out most of my "AAAA WHO IS ZEN AND REI??" there but.

i do have to say that i'm very glad i'm at the point where p3 and p4's casts are able to interact! i can't tell if it's because the writing feels like it shines a little bit better here rather than the solo casts (sometimes i roll my eyes at how junpei and akihiko are with some of the traits the writers play up), or if it's because i'm a guy who's very endeared by crossovers and interactions from characters who didn't exist in the original source material.

i had a lot of times where i was writing things down in my notes software during the crossover segments and im just?? really endeared and creatively inspired by it, to be honest. i really like this aspect of pq.

i think something that catches my interest with zen and rei at the moment is the difference in how they're.. regaining their memories. like... it's interesting to me that zen is able to get some of his memories back from the stuffed rabbit marked with "niko," but rei doesn't. i don't really know how much i can speculate off of this atm (i feel like this is something i'd get more info on when i progress through the second labyrinth, or it's something i'm missing out on because i can't use intertextuality to piece things together. i dont know shit about alice in wonderland.)

like it does make me think that maybe these two are like.. separate entities in that respect (rather than a shared one? but i could be wrong, and i welcome that!). but also there's something that makes my brain go "AAA" about how adamant zen is about wanting to protect rei despite not having any memories, because my brains like "WELL WHAT IF ZEN'S TRUE IDENTITIES AND MEMORIES ARE ACTUALLY THE OPPOSITE, AND DON'T WANT GOOD THINGS FOR REI." poorly phrased but like, it's about the irony, y'know.

i have no fucking clue what rei is supposed to be if we're going under the notion that they're two different things that have lost their memory (she is so head empty only food and its precious tbh). but like my brain just thinks that zen is just... going to end up being some awful incarnation or something like idk. there's something about persona characters with amnesia that make me raise my eyebrow... like just look at ryoji and marie and teddie...

and i guess as another thought on the matter, the way zen and rei work mechanically speaking does make me ponder a bit because like.. obviously, yeah, they can't equip a subpersona because they're... GESTURES. not persona users but FUCK, the way zen and rei have very distinct skillsets just make me wonder if those can allude to what they symbolize. like zen's skills are much more.. destructive and im just like (AIGIS VOICE) "YOU ARE DANGEROUS."

anyways. i am very much invested in the identities of zen and rei but i am also glad that the crossover stuff is here too because i think the sillies will keep me inspired... and also im just happy to see yosuke... i really like yosuke even if i forget that i do a lot of the time..

last thought, after seeing souji talk and move, i think i'd definitely want to look into p4 side... because um. 🥴 i'm really simple guy. i need more minato in my life. (everyone rolls their eyes. i'm predictable!) i want to see minato move and talk. i want to think about him. he's my boyfriend. he's my wife. he's my universe. im being so cringe about him but I DONT THINK THIS IS A SURPRISE TO ANYONE... i like him a lot (NO SHIT, LIZZ). but!!! idk if this'll be something that i watch or play, it depends on what the NG+ functionality in this game is like...

anyway gn!! thanks for reading my delusions im very much enjoying this game and im happy to be playin git.

[felikatze]

bashing my head against a wall. i could fix binding blade's story. i could. and i am going to ramble about it and you can't stop me.

so long. this is so long.

Feli special usual features:

- tangents

- no apparent structure

- probably many typos

- getting emotional over the 2 moments i will actually deign to call well written

- i might as well just write fanfic at this point

- if you're me you understand

- actually dont even look at this. dont look at me.

first off one thing i actually really like about it compared to other FE games. everything, every location or name that ever gets mentioned, also shows up. every country can be visited and has more than one representative in the cast. additionally, you always know who to recruit people with if you paid attention to dialogue.

playing blazing blade rn and the augury really clutches it for that game. but in binding blade? the only characters i had to look up how to recruit were karel and gonzales. that's it. somebody's trapped or also fighting your enemy? talkto them with roy. anybody else? oh look, it's the brother clarine mentioned! that's the girl noah was hanging out with! that's sue's grandpa! character relations are clear and evident right from the introduction.

in short, the story is incredibly cohesive.

...doesn't stop it from being narratively weak though.

i've seen suggestions for changing who the main character is, and yeah, that works. the first suggestion is always lilina, which would work incredibly well. she fits more typically into the mold of FE lords, and hector's death gives her a more concise motivation for revenge against bern and zephiel. another suggestion i've seen is Fae, since she's the focus of the dragon conflict, and binding blade 100% undervalues her narrative potential (see: my complaint that she doesn't even get unique battle quotes against jahn)

(side note: for how cohesive the story is, jahn kinda spawns out of nowhere. like, he's the only guy not mentioned beforehand somewhere. wack.)

but the story could work with roy, i think.

so there's this part with roy and guinivere, when roy gets the binding blade. he asks if anyone could've pulled it, and she says yes. anyone could've pulled it with the fire emblem, but what matters now is that it's roy specifically who does so.

roy doesn't have anything to do with the conflict at large. he doesn't. the scouring? well, lilina's the descendant of one of the eight heroes. etruria and bern? elffin is actually the prince who faked his death, and he's the one percival and douglas care about. dragons? well, fae's the last divine dragon besides idunn.

but i think if you just like. made that the point. like echoes, except instead of undercutting your everyman protag by having him be a secret prince, he just stays.. some guy.

some guy who was in the wrong place at the right time, and it all just kinda spitballs until he's leading the etrurian army. ike is a protag who does this well, i think. it's just a job for him. and once he's done and paid, he leaves to do the next thing.

it's like. roy is kinda bland. but he doesn't have to be. this is ABSOLUTELY me honing in on minor character details because dissecting bland protags is a personal hobby of mine, but, dude was studying to be a bureaucrat. land management and shit. he's brains over brawn (if his stats didn't already show that). fucking string bean of a unit.

he is ardently chill about everything in the plot, but what if instead it like.. started to actually weigh on him. he struggles to live up to all the expectations suddenly on him, when all his life he just expected to be head of the second most important house of a minor nation. now there's un-dead princes and vengeful kings and dragons running about- and he has to unravel all these things as quick as he can to keep himself and his home safe.

what if he figured out that elffin is etruria's prince and had to weigh telling the three generals to gain their support, or potentially feeding an ally to the wolves? what kind of decision is dismantling the government of the nation you're supposed to be helping?

he just Does The Right Thing, Unquestionably, and that's it.

as for the dragons, introduce jahn earlier, by god. or, find some other way to exposition dump everything about idunn. hell, maybe fae has heard of idunn before, of a divine dragon who didn't make it to arcadia, and roy slowly reveils the horrifying truth of the demon dragon with what snippets he hears from bern's soldiers. maybe have an earlier fight with idunn actually staying on the field as a mysterious figure. anything. i bet you could just cut out jahn altogether if you did that.

like, make roy and everyman and commit to the bit. he wasn't born to step into hartmut's legacy. he just wanted to save his dad from a random attack. but he chose to do it anyway.

and one moment i do really like. from the atrocious exposition dumb of ch24. is when jahn says the binding blade conforms to its user's will, and that's how hartmut spared idunn, i could feel it just click for roy. in that moment, he knew how to save idunn. and he knew he would save idunn long before that.

play into the theme of legacies. hartmut's legacy is, on the surface, of the man who killed the demon dragon. a legacy of violence that roy finds himself in. but, beneath that, it was a legacy of kindness. of only as much blood as need be, and not a drop more.

put this against zephiel. he's like. i dont know how to phrase this. but the opposite of what the previous paragraph is. zephiel has a gigantic legacy as crown prince of an empire, but it's one that's denied to him out of petty jealousy by his father. i think his motivation is actually pretty compelling; he's lost faith in humanity. so he claims his birthright through murder, and uses it to end all legacies to ever exist. whereas the legacy roy obtains is kindness cloaked in violence, zephiel's is violence cloaked in kindness. by trying to end all conflict, he will only create an empty world. he doesnt really care about the dragons, either; it's idunn's soulless war dragons that are his ideal, not fellow creatures of ego like jahn.

and guinivere. god. the potential. zephiel has become to her what his father has become to him. it's again, legacy. zephiel's father broke his faith in humanity, and he has broken guinivere's. she is an ardent pacifist until the end.

....until she gives roy the tool he needs to kill her brother, that is. she first steals the fire emblem in the hope it will force a peaceful resolution. and she gives up. not in humanity. just in her brother.

GOD. THE TRAGEDY OF IT ALL?? in my head it could be so good. it's again just all cycles of violence and kindness. she's trying so so hard to break violence with kindness but it doesn't work. but she chooses to see the good in humanity despite it all. she really embodies that philosophy that roy brings up in his speech against zephiel. it may be humans who do wrong, but it's humans who stop them. we're all just going to keep making the same mistakes over and over, but we're always going to try to do better, and that's what matters. history isn't moving upward. just forwards. but we're trying. hartmut tried, and he didn't quite succeed; just prolonged it. but hartmut was just some guy who tried to save idunn, and that vain attempt was what allowed her to be saved for real.

(clears throat)

OTHER CHARACTERS!

so. since this hypothetical binding blade remake would cater to me specifically.

first of all, replace merlinus with lilina. binding blade's story with her is really hampered by the fact that lilina is killable.

only unkillable characters (i.e roy), characters who 'retreat' instead of dying (elffin, merlinus) or NPCs (Guinivere) are allowed to have narrative importance for more than their intro chapter and relevant gaidens. this blows.

make lilina the deuteragonist. there's already a clear trajectory for her; she calls herself a warrior, she says she must stay strong in the face of adversity, she cannot allow herself to cry now, but still she fiercely believes in the good of others. she's an incredibly good judge of character, and chooses to bet her life on kindness, as seen in how she can recruit both gonzales and garret.

she's, as brought up occasionally already, a much more archetypical FE lord, with a weighty legacy and a dead dad. it would be fun if she just bottles everything up and it crushes her. maybe she has her dad's temper and is trying to be a Proper Marquess in conduct. she n roy can find solidarity in fellow imposter syndrome. they'd both believe they're not good enough, think the other is so much better, only to end up as each other's biggest supporter.

and. listen. the lilina ogier support haunts me. and it gives a terrifying opportunity. like choosing your legacy and not being bound by blood but by shared conviction?

hey. what if lilina was adopted.

i dont know where exactly i'd put a reveal like this. second half of the game, surely. how would she find out? who knows. i don't. i'm just rambling about random points of potential. maybe she encounters someone in the enemy army who fought hector; murdock, maybe? and then it's pointed out how odd it is for hector to have a daughter when he died a bachelor. reverse alm.

and then she'd remember something incredibly distant, long buried as unimportant; of being young and alone and abandoned and seeing a city for the first time.

it would be crushhhingggg for her, since she relied so much on "blood of a warrior" as a crutch. BUT THEN! thematic coherence. it doesn't matter whether she's of his blood or not; there's no doubt in anyone's mind that she's hector's daughter, through and through. and she chooses to keep that legacy, to believe herself worthy of it. she didn't get so far by being roland's descendant; she did it on her own strength, her own smarts, her own merits. hector could've picked anyone off the streets, but it happened to be her, and that's what matters. the paths life offers are infinite, but we are here, and these are our choices.

and that's what i'd do for lilina! yay!

if it wasn't difficult to figure out logistically considering theme-ing and pulling an alm again i would also ABSOLUTELY make ninian!roy canon since blazing blade pushes elinini anyway. yeah i talked about the unimportance of blood but also. manakete roy is REALLY fucking funny.

"dragons still exist?" listen to me boy you are for real a dragon asking this.

also fun recontextual reading of his desire to learn all he can about dragons to learn more about himself since he would've thought his mother was the last dragon in elibe, which would've given it a more tragic slant. and additionally his very existence would be proof that dragons and humans can live in peace, which feels poignant. imo you could still push the everyman angle since ice dragons are largely irrelevant to anything happening with the demon dragon, and all the shenanigans nergal pulled had no effect on binding blade's plot outside of worsening zephiel's already bad relationship with his dad.

it's also just so so so funny to me. on god. it really is.

also allows for solidarity moments i.e sophia as part-dragon people. and also a reason for him to be invested in the dragon plot. and maybe a motivation for him to want to save idunn too. and the sheer irony of wielding a dragon-slaying weapon.

feli is this hypocrisy. maybe a little bit. But Also you can still push thematically. It Just So Happened that roy pulled the binding blade. there are dragons already living in harmony with humans. sophia may well have been the one to lead instead. she just happened not to be.

it also extends the just some guy-ness to eliwood i guess. he kind of is. to me. a gentleman, maybe. a righteous guy. but not the most important guy ever.

anyway! yeah! this was my word vomit about binding blade!

don't let me know what you think! i don't want to hear it because i am doing this to exorcise thoughts from my brain! thank you for not reading! bye!