#I haven’t finished reading the manga yet but this is their dynamic so far

[funkyboxofinterests]

the triguns when they stampede

[tenrousei-kuroi]

I did read Angel Sanctuary! I never finished it, though. I remember that what got me to start was the author’s art style. Her characters are so pretty!

I’m not familiar with A Cruel God Reigns, but by your description, it’s right up my alley (also, with a brief search, I see it has a very traditional style from the 90s/00s mangas that I find very nostalgic). I’ll definitely take a look into it.

As for the Black brothers, I think I discovered the ship around 2017-18, so there was a fairly good amount of work by then, but Blackcest has definitely grown a lot in the past couple of years. I’ve not read many James/Regulus works, mostly because many have a 'cleansed', fanon version of both – which also applies to the Marauders as a whole – and I have very picky views of Regulus’ characterization (my boy canonically had his own fan board of Voldemort 😭 and as far as we know, he never fully – or at all – quit his bigotry, yet in many works, his Slytherin friends and himself diverge completely from this).

But I do think Sirius/Regulus will remain somewhat popular for a long time. The Black family seems to have an appeal within the fandom that I don’t see as much with other families, such as the Lestranges, for example. Also, the idea of two good-looking, rich boys in a complicated family is intriguing (or at least I hope so; if not, you’ll see me signing up to your mailing list). On that note, I'm still hoping for the day Rodolphus/Rabastan gets popular lol

Anyway, thank you for the link, and I'm looking forward fest postings (ngl, I'm pretty confident in my abilities to recognize your writing style in anon fests. Sometimes I read a title and I think "this looks like a title ten would use". Is it a little stalker-ish of me? Maybe 😅).

Yeah Moto Hagio’s a bit more old school, she was most prolific in the seventies and eighties, and her art shows it. I could be misremembering but I believe her work “Sunroom” is typically credited as the first boy/boy manga kiss. And she’s one of the pioneers of the modern boy’s love genre. Real “culture award winning” sort of author.

Jegulus fics are hilarious to me and there’s a reason I call my stuff James/Regulus when I tag it, because that portmanteau has become its own thing. Whenever I read a Jegulus fic in my brain I’m thinking, “you know you can just write Timotheé Chalamet RPF, right? He’s not gonna’ come for you” 😂 And honestly that fanon “style” is bleeding over hard into the Sirius/Regulus section.

No shade, I’m glad people are having fun. Makes it harder for me to find the kinds of fics I like but I’ll survive lol. There’s just a larger selection now. And popular as it all is, I do truly feel people will move on. Because it’s less an attachment to the characters and more to these seriously altered fantasy versions of them, which can be easily grafted onto the next popular thing.

If you had told fifteen year-old me my weird incest and incest-adjacent pairings where two of the three characters aren’t even alive in canon would one day be as common as they are now I’d’ve thought you were high 😂 yet here we are.

I’ve dabbled a bit in Rodolphus/Rabastan but they always end up coming out so similar to my Sirius and Regulus that I don’t like it. I’ve kind of tabled the pairing until I can force myself to be a bit more creative with them. People already put up with all my Sirius/Regulus nonsense being basically the same, I don’t need to be grafting their dynamic onto other pairings 🤣🤣

When I pick prompts for fests I always try to ignore the promoter names until after I’ve chosen, but it doesn’t seem to make much of a difference, roughly 80% end up being yours anyway. Talk about wavelengths.

And let’s blame 2009 LiveJournal for my pretentious and easily-spotted titles, shall we? Specifically a Sirius/Regulus fic from forever ago called “A Thousand Years Good Wine” which basically flipped something in my brain and I haven’t been able to title anything like a normal human since.

That was a stellar fic, by the way. And if anyone ever ever ever finds it back for me I’ll…I don’t know…write them a 100k commission of their choice or engrave their name on my tombstone or something because that fic is LOST beyond belief and it causes me literal pain sometimes lol.

I’m feeling rather inspired today so I might spend my Saturday night plinking away at one of my fics. Odds are it probably won’t be the one that’s due in three weeks but we can always hope TT.TT

[ripplestitchskein]

As a Fandom Old I find it SUPER interesting from a fandom/shipping dynamics perspective that there are like 20k fics on AO3 for Dazai and Chuuya in the BSD fandom, which is a pretty significant number based on what I’ve seen so far for anime pairings and they seem to be far and away the most popular pairing for the franchise considering how little interaction we see for like 75% of the manga?

I’m not sure if the anime is different, I like to watch after I’m done with the manga, and I haven’t finished the manga yet (I’m on like chapter 88) so maybe there is something in the next arc or in the anime I haven’t gotten to that really casts them into prominence but in terms of screen time interaction so far I would not have placed bets on that being the main ship. Ive been really surprised by HOW little interaction they have, I was expecting a lot more just based on how much I’ve seen of the ship just in passing through adjacent fandoms.

Like obviously it’s a ship dynamic I’m drawn to so yeah, I’m on super board, and Chuuya is prob my fav side character that I’m always delighted to see show up, but if I was just reading this, with no idea of how prominent the fandom was for the pairing, I would not have picked them as the most popular.

I wonder if it’s BECAUSE there is so little and the little that is presented is intriguing enough that it allows a certain level of freedom with head canons and fanon? Or maybe because manga and anime are a little longer in production time it allows more speculation in between the few scenes they do share? I dunno, once I finish the manga and watch the anime and start reading the fic I’ll have better information but I’ve been mulling it over how interesting fandom can be with regards to what really captures people’s imaginations.

I’ve just been binge reading over the last couple days expecting more scenes with them and then not getting any and moving further and further along in the story like “What made everyone so feral about this pair that they blow any other pairing in the space out of the water?”

I’m really interested to see if there is something in these final like 18 chapters or in the show. It’s really adding to that sense of anticipation which I appreciate but I’m also just kinda fascinated tbh.

[pendinghope]

Lift. A movie I watched on Netflix. It’s about a team of con artists planning a heist. I enjoyed it, fairly true to the heist movie/show themes. I should really finish the next season of leverage. The new one, I already watched the old one. Love that show.

Plus and Minus. Appears to be a cute romance story so far. Highschool friends to lovers I think. Still on episode one so I shall see.

Mr. Queen. Seems really fun. Same actor from zombie detective is in this one. Though it’s mainly his voice that’s there. I love how expressive the characters are and how well the actors bring out their characters personalities. They all feel so natural and fun.

History 3: trapped. Love this show. A mafia member and police detective have a long standing rivalry as they try to figure out the murder of a parental figure. As they clash and fight these other two lovely side characters have such fun. Honestly, just a nice fun show. (Still has police and mafia stuff though so there is violence, etc.)

History 5: love in the future. So far it seems interesting and fun. I’ve only watched a couple episodes and am currently unable to watch the rest so I’m not sure if it has a happy ending.

Blue Period. I read the manga, haven’t fully watched the show yet. I love the manga and from what I’ve seen of the show I think it’s gonna be good. A Highschool boy floating through life gets introduced to the world of art. What will he discover there?

Yuri on Ice. I finally finished this show. Love it. Beautiful animation and powerful emotions shine throughout it. A sports anime about ice skating. Yuri, a skater who recently took a break from skating due to a crushing defeat, returns to the rink. A famous skater makes an entrance, claiming to be Yuri’s new coach. Oh what will happen now?

Insect detective. So far so interesting. I don’t totally vibe with the romance in this show but otherwise I think it’s pretty good. The way they discuss insects and investigate crimes is quite interesting. While some bugs make me squeamish so it can be difficult to watch if bugs bother you. There is violence and it is a detective show so crimes and unalives happen in it. The characters all have fun connections, especially the insect guy and police crew.

The silent criminal. I’ve only seen clips from this show but it seems fun. The main trio seems to have a highly amusing dynamic. A man disguised himself as a soldier (? Not exactly that but I can’t remember the name of it right now) to uncover the corrupted mess of the current government. Or, a fake guard, a cowardly detective (not really cowardly but I couldn’t think of a better word), and a bandit walk into a tavern. And something happens… imma assume chaos and honestly it just looks really interesting.

Anti fraud league. I have no idea what this one’s about. I’ve seen clips but otherwise not a clue. The main characters seem interesting and fun.

The mysterious class. A class of Highschool boys discover that one of them is in fact, not real. There’s a ghost among the students, but who could it be? I liked this one. Made me cry.

Ah there was this one super cute Chinese drama I watched a while ago. I can’t remember its name though so I shall describe it in hope someone may know what it was. So this guy travels back in time but then the thing that sent him back breaks. So he’s stuck. He gets taken in by this woman’s family and so he helps them out against the rival lands. He was super charismatic and upbeat. An inventor from the future gets sent back in time only to get stuck. The last thing I remember was the he had built one of the planes like the weight brothers made to help escape over a chasm? I’m not sure. If anyone knows what this is please let me know. Have a wonderful day/night!

[cassielovesanime]

Since one of my friends asked for anime suggestions, I figured I would make a small list for them here as a post.

1. Welcome to demon school Iruma Kun

Type: comedy and school life

My personal summary: a hilarious anime about a boy who gets adopted by the king of demons. The protag is very likable in my opinion as he is a good guy but also a doormat so it’s fun to see him grow with his friends. Just genuinely very fun, but also follows somewhat of a story line and can have its touching moments. Just 10/10 if you want a good light hearted laugh I would say. Highly suggest for those who want to watch a casual anime that will make them laugh.

2. Toilet Bound Hanako Kun

Type: fantasy and school life (also bit romance)

My personal summary: girl meets spirit boy with a dark side and now is his assistant because she effed up because she is a little boy crazy for handsome guys. But it’s okay cause now she goes on whacky adventures with spirits and is trying to get to know the spirit boy who kinda saved her and continues to save her. This one is both funny and sweet, but also can be dark at times. The characters all have very interesting personalities and dynamics, and the cast is actually pretty small so you get to see a lot more of the main characters develop. Very good story wise and character wise. Highly suggest to lovers of fantasy but are also not too into anime.

3. Assassination classroom

Type: Comedy, coming of age, and School life

My personal summary: Teenagers are earths last hope to be saved from destruction as they are tasked to kill their teacher who looks like a man and an octopus had a baby that has super strength and speed. This is my all time favorite anime, and it is a very, very, VERY touching underdog story. It has so much humor but also so much darkness but so many of the characters feel real and it still to this day has arguably the saddest yet most satisfying endings in anime that I have seen, and I watched it back in 2017ish. It just has a bit of everything and the storyline is amazing, the characters are so well written, and the concept is very interesting as well. I just would not recommend this to those who aren’t comfortable with fan service, as it does appear a bit often in this one. Highly suggest to anyone who wants to watch a found family or underdog story. Also, amazing English dub, one of the few animes I suggest the English dub over the English sub (English sub is good too, but I love the dub so much).

4. Bloom into you

Type: romance, coming of age, school

My personal summary: very gay, and very well written. It’s a story that follows Yuu Koito who is a late bloomer who doesn’t get love, which she has constantly read in the media and had this big expectation for. She then meets her schools class president who takes a liking to her knowing Yuu doesn’t think she can fall in love with someone. This is very good I think for lgbtq+ rep as it takes the topics very seriously and handles them respectfully. It handles questioning sexuality and finding yourself, as well as taking pride in it. It expresses both being a lesbian and asexual, as well as late bloomers and domestic lesbians. It also handles topics of mourning and bad ways of coping and expectations from what I remember. I am more of a manga reader but I have heard splendid reviews about the anime, the only thing is that this series is a lot more serious and the anime isn’t finished (the manga is though, so I suggest this path more if you can afford it.) highly suggest for anyone wanting lgbtq+ rep.

5. Rascal does not dream of bunny girl senpai

Type: sci-fi, romance (this one doesn’teel like school at all but they are high schoolers)

My personal summary: a sci-fi take on high schoolers teenage years and problems, following Sakura as he tries to help and solve the cases of people with “adolescence syndrome”, which is surrounded by their problems and insecurities in life that causes abnormal and supernatural things to happen. Very compelling story and again is more serious, but it also knows how to hit you in the feels. The main characters are lovable and have one of the best romances I have seen in anime, and all the other characters are really likable too. I highly suggest to anyone interested in a good story because this one just takes the cake.

6. New game!(!)

Type: slice of life

My personal summary: mc is a girl who gets a game designing job right out of high school and now must work on a team with her idol. Very light hearted, and also quite gay in my opinion. I personally like slice of life yuri genres and etc., but this one is my favorite. The cast is lovable again (always important), and it has this theme of working hard and going after your dreams. It is one with a bit of fan service (far less than others, but still a warning for my younger friends following), but it makes up for those moments with very heart felt moments between characters. I genuinely adore the second season as for a slice of life genre, it follows a bit more of a story and it gets a lot gayer. However, being a slice of life it isn’t really explicitly lgbtq+ rep, but there is one couple that has major subtexts and moments and a really cute scene at the ending. I do suggest this to those who like the slice of life genre and perhaps want a bit of lgbtq+ rep, but not to anyone who doesn’t like slower paced stories. Oh, and also the art style is adorable.

7. Rampo Kitan: Game of Laplace

Type: mystery, bit of a thriller

My personal summary: just a really good detective series. I haven’t watched this one in two years, but whenever I think about a dark mystery series, this is one of the top 3 to come to my mind, and is the most underrated one. It’s just very dark but also very compelling, so I suggest this to anyone who likes those sort of things. It also has an amazing English dub.

8. Little witch academia

Type: coming of age, fantasy, school life

My personal summary: another underdog story about a girl who dreams of becoming a witch like her idol and going to witch school… must I say more? It’s the gay witchcraft vibe that we all adore, a funny and lovable story that follows a girl chasing her dreams to become a witch. Again, likable characters, and an interesting story. It also has a unique art style that is adorable, and is very accessible seeing as its on Netflix. I highly suggest for younger viewers as this one is very kid friendly from what I know, but is also an amazing story with a nice fantasy aspect. Also, there is a bit of gay subtext and a hell of a lot of diakko shippers for wlw content if you like that (with a rival to lovers dynamic). MC can be paired with a guy or girl depending on how you wish to interpret it, and that screams bi rights to me :)))

[honeybeeadventures]

ALICE  IN BORDERLAND || a honeybeeadventures review

FULL DISCLOSURE: This review may be a little bit biased and that's gonna have to be okay this time because boy, do I LOVE this show.

If you're a fan of foreign tv shows and you haven't heard of Alice in Wonderland by now, then you may be living under a rock. This show, which premiered during the holiday season of the treacherous year known as 2020, is Netflix's most popular live-action adaptation to date. Yes, that's right, adaptation. That is because Alice in Borderland is based on the manga of the same name written and illustrated by Haro Aso.

This time, I will try to hold back all of my spoilers since this show is full of twists and turns and honestly, deserves a blank first impression going into it. I want to make sure that everyone who watches this show because of my review gets to experience it fully without my recapping the events haha. I will try to summarize without ruining anything, though.

Alice In Borderland is a Netflix Japan Original Adaptation of the manga that bears its namesake by Haro Aso which originally ran from April 2011 to April 2016. The show premiered on Netflix on December 10, 2020, and just 14 days later, a second season was confirmed by Netflix.

The show follows Arisu Ryohei and his friends after they witness fireworks in the middle of the day and are dropped into another world where most of the people in Shibuya are gone and the only way to survive is to risk their lives playing games that extend their visas and their right to live in that world. Every game is treacherous and usually ends with a loss of life, though some games do have finite solutions that can save players and preserve their well-being. Along the way, Arisu ( a name which is the Japanese way of pronouncing Alice, by the way ) meets a cast of characters that will seem fairly familiar to you if you've ever seen, read, or really have ever even heard of Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carrol or any of its adaptations.

I typically talk about diversity when I review shows, however, as this is a Japanese show, it's not really fair or easy to judge them on that metric because of course, everyone in the show is Japanese ( as they should be since the manga is set in Tokyo ). However, I will say that in the show, there is a character who says that everyone is free to sleep with whoever they want, no matter what gender and there is also a character that is a part of the Alphabet Mafia ( LGBTQIA+ ... I should make a glossary for this blog lol ). While only one ( confirmed ) members of the Alphabet Mafia isn't a lot, it is based on a manga, and considering the manga is written/illustrated by a Japanese man who was in his 30s at the time, I'm gonna chalk that up as the progressiveness of Haro Aso while still wanting to keep his audience.

Now, down to what you really came here for. I'll list the scores below before we get into why I gave them these scores.

Originality of Content: 8/10

Production Quality: 9/10

Resolution: 6/10

Acting/Cast Members: 10/10

Ability to Keep Interest: 10/10

Provocation: 8/10

Obviously, this show did really well by my standards, and here's the breakdown so you can see why.

Originality of Content: 8/10

If we're being honest here, Alice in Borderland definitely isn't the first manga/anime based on the premise of playing a game to survive or get somewhere in the world ( see: Kakegurui, No Game: No Life, .hack//, Gamble Fish, etc. or Rengoku Dead Role which is actually...very similar to AIB ). However, despite this, it still feels like there's some strong originality brought to this concept. Combining the Japanese love for games and a classical western story gives Alice In Borderland just what it needs to easily become a fan favorite. As someone who really favors game-based anime and manga ( because I really favor game design ), I think that the way that Alice In Borderland is a refreshing nod to the genre.

There's a couple of reasons for this but I'll boil it down to just two. The first is that it's not predictable. The issue with a lot of the game-based animes that I'm familiar with is that they are fairly predictable since most games work the same way, but with Alice In Borderland that is different. The rules to each game that is played seem so simple that they seem deceptive but they also seem complex in the way that a riddle is simple yet complex. Every answer that first comes to your mind is probably going to be wrong and you need to think about it more deeply than that. Sometimes, when the rules of the game were being explained, I found myself wanting to pause to see if I could figure out the solution of the game, too, as I watched Arisu think of it, as well.

The second reason is that Alice In Borderland keeps things fresh with its cast of characters. Rather than some characters being evil because that's 'just the way they are', Alice In Borderland really speaks to the effect of the pressure that is put on young people to succeed and how that can end up in them being more mentally lost than they were, to begin with. It also highlights struggles with gender identity, self-worth, complex family relationships, and living up to one's potential. It does this in such a way that even when a character is downright evil, such as Niragi ( IYKYK), there is almost a feeling of pity for them. This isn't because you sympathize with their actions but more so because it isn't difficult to see how the pressure of life turned them into this monster that you are now watching there. I also enjoyed the fact that there wasn't as much dramatic irony in this show as in many others. While dramatic irony is never a necessarily bad thing, it was nice to genuinely be surprised when a character did something instead of knowing that someone was plotting behind someone else's back.

Production Quality: 9/10

This is a statistic that comes with an asterisk of context and that context is that before this, I had been watching Uchu Sentai Kyuranger and if you know what the production quality of that is like then you understand how it may have influenced this show's score a bit. Even without the comparison fallacy of the two, though, AIB scores high in production quality for one reason more than any other to me. For a show with a lot of blood and death, I wasn't unwilling to believe that these people had actually died. Yes, I'm sure that no actors were harmed in the making of this series, however, if I was a little more naive, I might've doubted that a bit. After all, Live Action adaptations are definitely not known for their believability. I will give AIB the benefit of the doubt in saying that this concept wasn't that difficult to pull off since most of the injuries were similar to what you'd expect on your typical action movie set ( compared to...you know...something involving sci-fi or fantasy) but even in the scenes where people get their necks blown off by explosive collars, it looked like they were nearly decapitated...the way that you would expect if someone's neck was blown off by an explosive collar. All in all, if you want to believe it, you will. It's definitely not a hard stretch.

Resolution: 6/10

Okay, okay, so if you've read the manga or have even glanced at the r/AliceInBorderlandLive subreddit then you know this is kind of an unfair score since...well, they're not done. There's more to the story and the eight episodes that we've seen thus far are only about a third of what AIB has to offer since the manga has two sequels, one of which will be finished on Feb. 18 of this year. However, I will see that statement and raise it with "What if it hadn't been such a great success?" I'm all for ending on cliffhangers to force the network or in this case, Netflix to continue your show but since the first season of AIB covers so much of the storyline, it almost feels wrong to end it short the way that it did. I did like how they had the big reveal of the villain at the end and the way they showed what was coming next but it did feel a little anti-climactic when I realized I was on the last episode since it seemed more like a mid-season break type end instead of a season finale. Since there is a sequel to AIB, I wasn't feeling too discouraged but it's definitely something to think about when watching. If you don't plan on reading the manga, you might be left content starving and questioning until sometime near the end of 2021.

Acting/Cast Members: 10/10

If I was just scoring this show on acting, then it would've gotten an all-kill because each and every single actor in this show from the side characters like Nijiro Murakami and Dori Sakurada to Kento Yamazaki who plays Arisu himself is beyond talented and amazing. It is important to remember that all of the characters in this show had a life before they were transported to the Borderland and in this twisted world, something about the changes that make them different than before so in a way, these actors are responsible for not only playing the characters but also the characters past selves before this growth period in which they change into something either completely opposite or completely different than who they were before.

Somehow, this cast manages to take characters that are already so established ( in the manga ) and become them to the point that looking at them within the role and looking at them outside of the role, it almost seems as if they are really two completely different people. As I said before, some of the characters in Alice In Borderland have a correlation to characters from Alice in Wonderland and have their own unique backgrounds on top of that. This gives to the depth of the characters and makes them dynamic but on top of that, it makes them complex, and yet, these actors seem to have the act of embodying these characters down so well that it astonishes me to see them in other roles and know that it's the same person.

I'll be breaking down my three favorite performances to give you a bit of insight on the reason why this show's cast is well-worth looking into.

Dori Sakurada as Niragi Suguru

So let's be honest here, as much as we all like to pretend that we're immune to someone being attractive just because they also prove to be an awful person, but if we're being honest with ourselves, we're not and I am most certainly no exception to that rule. Dori Sakurada is a handsome man whose good looks are only matched in quality by his amazing acting skills. If you're familiar with his work then you know exactly what I'm talking about and if you're not, then I'd recommend watching 3B no Koibito ( Available with English subs on Youtube ) or Scum's Wish ( Available on Rakuten Viki )  to get an idea of how varied this man's acting skills are. In AIB, he plays a character that is somewhat villainous and can almost be classified as your stereotypical movie sociopath. Yet, still, there's something intriguing beyond just his good looks. Dori Sakurada's performance breaths new air into the lungs of the character of Niragi by not only becoming the villain but also, by picking up the mannerisms and master gestures associated with the character that make him such a memorable part of the story. I haven't seen Dori's full Filmography but the character I have seen outside of AIB are a complete left turn from this character which makes me think that the casting director at Netflix Japan needs a raise for having chosen someone who looks so sweet to be such a villain.  

Nijiro Murakami as Chishiya Shuntaro

When it comes to characters that become scene-stealers, Chishiya Shuntaro is definitely one of them. This character is so powerful that I, even, named my cat after him. That is a fact of which I am not ashamed. From the second episode of the show, when we are first introduced to him, he becomes an integral part of the framework of the game he is involved in and it is obvious that we will see him again. That being said, there is no way to word Murakami's performance besides 'integral' as my friend put it, "I literally could not imagine anyone else playing this character." As Chishiya, Murakami takes on such a life and ease in the character that it's almost difficult to believe that the sly facial expressions paired with his nonchalant air are not in his nature and are, in fact, something that he donned for the role. I look forward to seeing not only more of Murakami as this character but exploring more of his filmography in general.

Aya Asahina as Hikari Kuina

Kuina as a character is someone that the protagonist does not meet until a few episodes into the show but when it comes to backstories and characters with rich personalities, she shines compared to a lot of other characters I have seen like her. I won't spoil her backstory for you since she's definitely someone who represents something that's a little bit rarer in stories from more reserved cultures but she definitely deserved a mention in this category due to her amazing acting skills and her flawless stunt scenes.

Ability to Keep Interest: 10/10 || Provocation: 8/10

While the rest of my stats got their own individual evaluation, these are going to be combined and the reason for this is because they have the same reasons for their scores. As I mentioned before, Alice In Borderland takes a new spin on the 'play games to live' genre that is so common amongst anime and manga and for that reason, it was able to keep my interest so much so I finished watching it over the course of two days. It was also a deeply thought-provoking situation because the nature of the games and the backgrounds of the characters forced me to think up my own games and my own ideas of where the characters whose backstories are not explained could've come from. That being said, a lot of the thoughts that the show provoked did end up becoming depressing, especially after reading the manga because I discovered that some games could not have had a better outcome due to their simple rules and that made me very sad because even if I am not attached to or fond of a character, I still do not enjoy their downfall.

Overall: 8.5 = DING! DING! DING! WE HAVE A KEEPER!

Overall, I enjoyed Alice In Borderland enough to have rewatched it one and a half times since I first watched it a few weeks ago. As someone who rarely goes back to shows that involve plot twists and suspense because I already know what's going to happen, that really says a lot for not just the storyline but also the acting and amazing intricacies that are in the show. I still feel like each time I watch it, I glean some new detail or fact that I hadn't thought of before and I come to understand the games a bit more with each passing scene or episode. I also feel that the more I rewatch the show, the more I sympathize with even the villains and come to value and understand their motivations and roles. 8.5 out of 10. I WOULD RECCOMMEND.

Thanks for reading!!

[midnight633]

Hiiiii midnight it’s been a while! I’ve been pretty the air at school is pretty chill rn and I haven’t been as stressed as normal! Anyways I just finished reading the haikyuu manga and none of my irl friends are going to read it so I’m DYING to talk to someone about it while it’s still fresh on my mind (also I remember you saying you read the manga but if you didn’t don’t continue reading for spoilers!) well ANYWAYS the nekoma match took YEARS of my life let me tell you and the cage metaphors and tsukki and kuroo’s battle of the blockers it was probably one of my favorite matches. And KENMA at the end actually having fun ahahah I loved loved loved this match.

And then fukorodani’s match with akaashi was hard to read but the “we are the protagonists/stars of the world” made my bokuaka heart go places but akaashi just breaking was so surprising to see and the fact that they don’t even win nationals makes me sooo sad I wanted at least one team I knew to win nations also

AND THEN THE NEXT MATCH HINATAA the day that scene gets animated is the day I combust someone give HINATA a hug he just couldn’t play for w h a t and then they losttt and he was crying alone and coach ukai and takeda were absolute kings in this scene. Buuuuttt we did get to meet the tiny giant and I thkught he’d look real intimidating and scary but he actually seems pretty cool! AND THEN KAGAYAMA unpopular opinion I actually can’t STAND him sometimes he really went I win while hinata is really cryingg and I know it’s for plot but hsjajsjs

The time skip omggg okay yachi saying that date tech went to finals and the Miya twins beat karasuno actually made my heart really happy. I do wish when they were third years they could if won but getting third is also really incredible and YAMAGUCHI WAS CAPTAIN I really need the crew as their years fics. The beach part was so fun to read I loved meeting them new people and OIKAWA I never though hinata and oikawa would get to the point of being good friends but I loved seeing it

AND THEN RHE MATCH BETWEEN HINATA AND KAGEYAMA okay kags backstory was sad but the “one day you’ll okay with someone who is even better then you” and that someone being hinata he finally beat kagayama it makes me sooo happy. Also bokuto making everyone clap for him I love it AND THE NEXT PART WITH OIKAWA ahahshd I don’t even want to know the outcome of the match but I was sooo sad it ended (and is it weird that I want a spinoff with natsu hinata playing volleyball that would be so cool)

I’m so sorry for the long ask it’s just I have NO ONE to talk to about this and you don’t ever have to answer I just like ranting so if you made it this far thank you and have an amazing rest of your day!

@ren-likes-muffins ?!! HOLY SHIT??!! You did it?!

I don't know what's with Tumblr not giving me notifications (also I haven't checked it much) so I'm late at seeing this but I AM SOO HAPPY U READ THE MANGA BECAUSE WE CAN NOW SCREAM AT EACH OTHER! I actually read the manga then went back and rewatched the series and started rereading the manga till the end of nekoma match then a week of exams happened and I became antisocial.

Deep breath

Like I was so pumped up for the nekoma match when I realized that was not yet animated and reading the first few pages of the manga was hard cuz my dumbass brain didn't wanna read right to left and interpret instead went rushing through the panels ( hence the re read to savour the storyline and characters) . But once I got into it the match was soo good? Like Kenma really went I don't care you're my friend I'm gonna tear u from limb to limb and did so calmly? I agree with the cage metaphor when he broke through it I was so giddy and I remember Suguru ( Nohebi's captain) commenting how he didn't like Tsukki's vibes and realising that it was same as Kuroo's and hating them both :)

The Fukorodani's match fed my bokuaka heart and was a precursor to Bokuto's 'im a normal ace' part. The tiny giant was kind of a disappointment but that's life for you.. and the kamomedai match man the battle of the little giants - I was so rooting for Hinata but when he collapsed I didn't get it at first but then it hit me and takeda's talk about taking care of body being a part of volleyball and all made me cry. Also Kenma coming to check up on Hinata? Soft. Heart breaking. Cue waterworks.

Somewhere deep inside I always expected Karasuno to win the nationals but they lost and I wasn't even bothered by it at the end

So.. unpopular opinion I kind of don't like Kageyama? He is always being insensitive and a dick to Hinata and when says I'm going forwards or some shit when Hinata collapses really made me dislike him very much. I don't really think their dynamic is healthy so kagehina became a big no-no for me.

But post time skip I loved that they could settle it and work together as equals. But Brazil?! My god, little Hinata become so accomplished-Ninja Shoyou- and the bit abt Kenma sponsoring him, Oikawa meeting him and becoming friends, seeing all these great high school players in the same team- let me tell you Atsumo and Sakusa on the same team with their competitive vibes with Bokuto - man I laughed like crazy at the Bokuto Beam, its so dorky and utterly him- and Hinata was perfect. Is it weird I want spinoff of the MSBY jackals and their shenanigans? I loved how they showed every ones career and Tsukki still playing 🏐 after saying it's just a game - he must have been more hooked than he let on-

I agree a spin off with natsu playing 🏐 would be soo Cool - going all like but Onichan you can't come to my game then everyone will want your autograph and you'll embarrass me-

I wanted more but with the open ending I can now imagine anything and subsequently my haikyuu brainrot is spreading

I too don't have any irl friends who watch it and I resigned myself to being alone in this but man ranting is so satisfying isn't it?

My haikyuu phase doesn't seem to end soon but it's just that I can't get into the head space for ATLA and I feel so guilty for it, I have so many updates from fics I've subscribed and I can't muster any interest in checking them out.

On another note it's so funny in a show where the only confirmed couples seem to be Tanaka and Kiyoko yet I ship so many of them!? In my mind they are all gay and I ship them. My fav ships are probably- iwaoi, daisuga, BOKUAKA, kuroken, and weirdly enough I was kinda obsessed with sakuhina, atsuhina, oh and sakuatsu. I. Just. Think. They're. Neat.

Oh well this is way too long and if you've read all this you have the patience of a saint and I'm proud of you. If you want let me know your fave ships and other manga bits that caught your attention ( random- but I love that Kita is a rice farmer and supplies for onigiri Miya)

Here is a fanart that I love that reminded me of the ' we are the protoganists of the world'

Byee!! Take care and Have a lovely day! Ily<3

[helena-thessa]

Do you have any favorite Levi x Mikasa Fic's you could recommend? Please and thank you!!

Ooh, I think I’m the worst fan to answer this. I would hate to hurt other writers I respect greatly, so I am going to start with an explanation. First, I haven’t finished reading the manga so I have avoided SnK fanfiction in fear of spoilers. I really have not read many Levi x Mikasa stories -- yet. 

But more than that, I have such a narrow perspective on what I personally like to read fanfiction for, even though I know for a fact there are great stories and writers in the fandom. (I don’t read AU/modern, it has to be canon-divergent or as close to canon-compliant as possible. In ffn, I do not care for Eren and prefer reading stories where she’s processed and moved on from him. Even if he’s too heavily on her mind, I don’t read it. It is problematic that in canon Levi is both her supervisor and much older, both of those are inappropriate power-imbalance dynamics, so it has to either be an aged-up Mikasa, set further down the timeline, or be a writer that responsibly handles those circumstances. Then, I love the angst of a moody Levi and know that he is obviously capable of great violence in canon, but if he’s too emotionally unavailable or too violent toward Mikasa, it’s a quick turn off for me. Lastly, I work in the mental health/trauma field IRL, so trauma symptoms have to be woven in safely, which is not always a realistic expectation. And so, all that to say, my personal list is limited. Heh?)

I would very much love to hear from you and anyone reading this what your recommendations are, though! :) I’m new on tumblr and love to connect on these topics. 

- Straight Shooter by riverMika (infinitelystrangemachine_old) / @infinitelystrangemachinex is my absolute favorite ffn. Due to the factors I mentioned above, I honestly can’t recommend it enough. It’s only a one-shot, but incredible writing, clever plot, and perfect tension/chemistry between Levi and Mikasa. Absolutely realistic and feels just like canon. The first time I read it, I immediately reread it. Several times. The writer mentioned picking it up or developing a multi-chap from it, and I am desperately hopeful.

- Surviving Peace by die-forellex (heatinfreezing) / @die-forellex was the first multi-chapter one that I read and really appreciated. Slow burn, a patient pace, some trauma-informed self-sabotaging/realistic behaviors, and great characterizations. It’s been so long since I’ve read it, I can’t remember details, just that it stuck with me. 

- Just Until the Storm Has Gone by MoraLeeWright / @moraleewright is my favorite multi-chap, favorite Levi, favorite smut, etc. Dynamic tension, unforgettable scenes, great character / relationship development. I’m new here, but in my mind, this story made Mora the Queen of rivamika. 

- I’m currently reading All but Forgotten and then part two, Yet Never to Remember by Seraphy / @riva2mika. It doesn’t fit all the criteria mentioned above, it’s a twist on canon that is not my usual reading zone, but I connected with the author @riva2mika and am glad I made an exception. :) Only a few chapters in, but so far, an appropriately brooding but well-tempered Levi, humanized Mikasa, and real poetic lines-- I’m a sucker for poetic lines. 

[formerxformerxemo]

I decided to do a list of the top manga series I’ve read so far. This is purely for my own entertainment and in no particular order.

1. Ten Count

This might be cringe but I love BL a lot. Ten Count is a complete series and I finished it practically right away. It’s hot, yes, but I feel like the portrayal of mental illness in this series is handled pretty well. Really it had me in tears near the end, but I’m a sap.

2. Chobits

Perhaps another controversial choice? I bought the dark horse comics omnibus and finished the second one in one night. Really on the surface it’s kind of stupid. Falling in love with pretty robots? Boring and weird. But CLAMP imo just hits it out of the park with this one. It takes that insecurity that women feel being compared to these robots who have been modeled to be the perfect female companion in every way and addresses that. It could also be seen as an analogy (if that’s the term) for just normal human insecurity when faced with anyone we perceive as better than us. Also I thought it was a good metaphor for accepting the fact people can’t choose who they fall in love with and that’s valid. I infer this because of CLAMP’s other works like Wish and even Cardcaptor Sakura. Anyway Hideki is a sex crazed young adult male but he vows to be true to Chi who he can’t be with in that way. Talk about true love.

3. Kimetsu no Yaiba

Ah. My favorite series ever. No lie. Demon Slayer is such a fascinating and well woven tale. I think the overall theme of humanity’s spirit being unbreakable in the face of so much pain is just... idk I feel the more I like something the harder it is for me to talk about it. Okay let’s try again. Tanjiro is our main character and probably one of my favorite characters ever. He is so sweet and fights so hard. He does have weaknesses (though not many) which make him slightly more relatable than he could be. I believe the love he has for his family is what keeps Nezuko from completely giving into her demonic urges. Love is another theme here as well. Another thing I like about Demon Slayer is how the backstory of many characters are revealed. Tanjiro has pity on the demons after they die because he knows they were once human. The demon’s backstories are some of my favorite. I won’t go into anymore detail because I just can’t formulate the words but anyway highly recommend. This series is complete in Japan but the official English translations haven’t finished coming out in print yet so I haven’t finished it yet.

4. Bungo Stray Dogs

I think the thing I like most about this series is the fact that I am being introduced to famous Japanese authors I wouldn’t have heard about otherwise. In the states are world lit classes are predominantly white with some Latin American exceptions. I only read a Japanese novel my senior year of university because my professor had taught in Japan for many years and insisted we read Snow Country. Moving on. There is action in this manga but also tons of hilarious moments. The dynamics between the characters is also priceless. Chuuya and Dazai... don’t get me started. I am also obsessed with the Light Novel spin offs. I’ve read manga volumes 1 through 8 and currently our beloved detectives are fighting against the Guild whose members are based on authors from the English speaking world. Like the Japanese characters these Guild members have powers that the author based off of their respective works. I just find that very clever.

5. Rin-ne

From the beloved creator for so many iconic manga series comes this little gem. I find it so funny. So funny it’s almost absurd, but it always cheers me up. I believe it’s already complete in Japan with 40 volumes? But I’m too lazy to look it up. I’m also aware that real fans go by chapters not volumes but again I am lazy.

6. Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun

The title turned me off. Toilet bound? But I was unaware of the common tale of Hanaka-san of the toilet. Now I am. This series is at times sweet, funny and slightly scary. I don’t regret picking it up.

[carriagelamp]

Book Review - Summer Summary 2020

I didn’t get around to doing an individual post for the books I read in June/July/August, so I decided to choose a dozen that I read over the summer... I’d separate the wheat from the chaff for you so to speak. Though like you’re about to find out, that doesn’t necessarily mean they were all good by any means...

Crave

My girlfriend got this for me to “tide me over until Midnight Sun”. Between you and me, I think she was taking the piss. Anyway, Crave is very... standard fare paranormal YA school romance with the added flare of being written by an adult erotica writer, meaning the rhythm and tone of this novel is fucking bonkers. If you want to read the novel without reading the novel, just take Twilight and the entire Vampire Academy series, shove them in a blend, and force down the sludge you get from that. Normal Average Girl Goes To Secret School In Alaska For Vampire, Werewolves and Dragons. That’s this book. It is so big and so so so bad. I finished it out of spite, please don’t do that to yourself. Unless you are really craving (hurr hurr) some top tier trashy paranormal romance, in which case... no judgment.

The Last Firehawk

The Last Firehawk is a Scholastic “Branches” series, written for beginning readers (grade 1-3ish, depending on the child’s reading level). It has short stories, big text, and awesome pictures on every page. Guys. I unironically am adoring this series. It’s simple and is introducing children to a number of classic elements in the fantasy quest genre, but it is so charming. Friends Tag and Skyla discover a firehawk egg, and species that is supposed to have disappeared long ago. When Blaze hatches from it, the three are tasked with going out and finding the magical ember stone which was hidden long ago by the firehawks and which could be used to defeat the evil vulture Thorn and his dark magic... I read the first two books to second graders who ate it up and read the next four books because I personally wanted to continue the series. If you have young readers in your life (or just want a fun kid adventure) then please try these they’re the literary equivalent of nibbling on a chocolate chip cookie.

Lupin III: World’s Most Wanted #3

All the kind people that still follow my tumblr and haven’t tried to murder me because of my Lupin obsession are not going to be surprised by this one. I finally read one of the manga for this series and honestly I’m delighted. Somehow even hornier than the show, but hilariously funny. I felt like I was reading a more adult version of Spy Vs Spy. It’s a bunch of short, individual bits/adventures with lots of visual gags and an artstyle that is really different and delightful.

River of Teeth / Taste of Marrow (American Hippo series)

I’ve talked about River of Teeth before, but I finally finished the American Hippo duology and need to sing its praise. This is an alternate history series composed of two novellas that explore the question What would have happened if the States had decided to import hippos as livestock...? Anyways, my pitch for you: queer hippo cowboys. That’s all it took for me to read it. You have a gay gunslinger who loves his hippo to death, a nonbinary explosives-expert / poisoner who is the main love interest, a fat con artist who spoils her hippo and is the only voice of reason in this entire series, and a latina mother-to-be who is the scariest assassin in the entire series and is obviously scheming. The four of them are brought together on a job to deal with the Mississippi’s feral hippo problem.

IT’S A QUEER HIPPO COWBOY HEIST NOVEL GUYS I DON’T KNOW WHY I’M STILL TALKING AND YOU HAVEN’T JUST GONE TO READ THIS YET.

Petals to the Metal (The Adventure Zone series)

The graphic novel adaptation to the McElroy family’s DND podcast The Adventure Zone. Most of you are probably aware of this? It’s a great adaptation, it hits all the important beats, shows off the characters really well, and still gets lots of good gags in even while condensing entire arcs into single book stories. This one is probably my favourite so far just because Petals to the Metal was one of my favourite arcs in the show... but you can also see how the art has improved and the chaos of the race is fun to see drawn out.

If you like The Adventure Zone but haven’t tried the graphic novels yet -- would recommend! If you’ve always wanted to listen to The Adventure Zone but don’t have time for such a long series or struggle to focus on podcasts then pick up the first book of this series (Here There Be Gerblins) and try reading it! It really is an enjoyable adaptation.

Pony to the Rescue (Pony Pals series)

I continued my April/May theme of reading old-school chapter book series to combat Covid Brain Fry, so I picked up a few Pony Pals books. I read these as a kid and always enjoy them -- there’s just something so appealing to a child about having a horse. It gives your child characters a level of independence and ability to explore that you wouldn’t get otherwise. These books definitely read young, but they were nostalgic to revisit.

Small Spaces

A really cool middle grade horror novel I picked up. Maybe it’s because I live around a lot of corn fields, but farm/scarecrow themed horror absolutely does it for me. One evening, after seeing a woman try to destroy a strange, old book, eleven year old Ollie doesn’t stop to think, instead stealing the book and running. That’s how she becomes wrapped up in the strange, sinister story of a cursed family and creature called the Smiling Man that seems to live out in the foggy fields. While unsettling, Ollie tries to remind herself that it’s just a story... but this becomes more challenging when her school bus breaks down one day out their own set of fields, and a fog is rolling in...

“Avoid large spaces. Stick to small.”

Snot Girl #1 - #2

A Canadian graphic novel series by the creator of the Scott Pilgrim series! I love his work so I decided to give Snotgirl a try, even though it’s not generally my genre. I’m glad I did! First book took a while for me to get into, but by the time I hit the second I was really wrapped up in the mystery and character development. Snotgirl is about Lottie, a self-consumed fashion blogger whose biggest struggles are dealing with her allergies, frustration with her fellow-blogger friends, and how entirely her self-esteem is tied to her “beauty” and how people view her. But everything shifts in strange and horrifying ways when Lottie starts taking a new allergy medication, meets a new friend... and then witnesses that girl’s death. Or does she?

Seriously, or does she? I have no idea, I need to read the third book. This book is full of intrigue, complicated relationships, murder (or not?), and a healthy dose of magical realism to keep you guessing. If you like slice-of-life, crime, and abstract reality then this series is world a try. Plus the art is gorgeous.

Summer Wars #1 - #2

I recently rewatched Summer Wars (still one of my favourite movies) and decided to read the two-book manga adaptation. It was a really neat little adaptation. The creator of the movie gave the writer free range to tweak things to fit better in a manga format, which means some movie elements were allowed to fade into the background, whereas other aspects were fulled into the forefront and fleshed out to a greater degree. It was very cool, it kept the same story but gave you new things to think about which I wasn’t expecting. Reading this as a stand alone works just fine, but honestly if you’ve never watched the movie Summer Wars you should give it a try! It’s a great mix of slice-of-life, sprawling family dynamics that I relate to a little too well, cyber adventures, and fantasy. Super feel good.

This One Summer

Okay, last graphic novel, I swear. This One Summer was... weird and intense. It’s a coming-of-age Canadian graphic novel that follows a pair of pre-teens who meet up like they do every year at their family’s summer cottages. You see them both in the awkward phases between childhood and growing up to become teenagers, as they’re confronted with things like maturity, friendship, self-esteem, family problems, and sexuality. A beautiful read, but probably the heaviest out of all the books on my list.

Wild Thornberrys Novelization

I rewatched The Wild Thornberrys movie with my girlfriend earlier this year, and decided I wanted to hunt down the chapter book novelization because I’m kind of a sucker for novelizations. Honestly, this was about what you would expect from the era. 90s/00s novelizations, especially young novelizations, are generally just a transcript of the movie without much thought or effort put into them to make them anything but. That’s what this was. It was fine, and it really let me revisualize the entire movie, but honestly you’re probably better off just rewatching the movie unless you also really deeply love The Wild Thornberrys.

The Willoughbys

I saw that Netflix had done a funky looking adaptation of The Willoughbys and I decided I needed to read the book first before watching the movie. This was a little bizarre, I’m still not sure how I feel about it. Over all, I think it was a net-positive experience. It’s an obvious satire on classic children’s novels, especially the likes of Mary Poppins (real Mary Poppins, not the Disney version) and while a little heavy-handed, it does a Series of Unfortunate Events vibe that redeems it. The story is about a group of horrible children (The Ruthless Willoughbys) who decide they are sick of their parents and would rather become Worth Orphans... and to do that, they’re going to have to dispose of their inconvenient parents, obviously. Conveniently their parents are also sick of having children and decide to do away with them as well. The Willoughbys sets up three (or four?) different subplots that are gradually woven together through a series of schemes and exploits. It’s definitely more ruthless (hurr hurr) than the Netflix version, which tried to make the children more sympathetic, and in some ways I think that’s a definite point in the novel’s favour. I’m not sure I would go out of my way to recommend it, but it was a fun romp if you want something short and off the wall (and a lot more fleshed out than the Netflix version).

[rhetorical-ink]

Rhetorical Ink Reviews: Seven Deadly Sins - Season One

**SINFUL SPOILERS BELOW** 

My brother and I have been doing “Sibling Streaming” since the start of the Covid-19 quarantine -- catching up with Haikyuu!!, which we both wanted to watch, and then we watched my pick: Demon Slayer, which I’ve reviewed. My brother’s pick was Seven Deadly Sins, and so with us having finished Season One, I wanted to give you all --

My Top Ten Thoughts on Seven Deadly Sins - Season One:

10. Probably my favorite aspect about the show is the character dynamics between each other -- the “Seven Deadly Sins” (or 6 at this point...we haven’t met the “Pride” sin, yet) all interact in unique and fun ways with one another. Obviously, my favorite dynamics so far are Meliodas and Ban’s interactions along with Diane and King’s -- since we’ve been with those four the longest so far.

9. The show isn’t afraid to get gory...but is there a consequence? I appreciate that the show does not shy away from blood and gore from the get-go. The only aspect that is a little frustrating is, as my brother notes, “anime logic” on bleeding out. Seriously, these guys have like 200 liters of blood in them. It does make the stakes seem a little lower at times, when you know the characters can get healed rather quickly or survive certain blows.

8. I will say that I like the side characters we have introduced! Gila and Jericho are fun, Howser is basically “The Yamcha of Seven Deadly Sins” and my brother and I are here for it, Arther Pendragon is so lovable (probably doesn’t help he has the same English dub VA as Tanjiro for Demon Slayer), and then we have Margaret and sweet, “little Gil.” 

Not going to lie, I hated Gilthunder at the start of this show. He was an annoyingly smug antagonist and for most of the season, he just ticked me off with how he wasn’t being open-minded as Howser and Gila had become learning the “truth” about the situation the Seven Deadly Sins (SDS) were placed into. However, once Margaret gets involved, and we have the reveal that they’ve been “cursed” this entire time, and the curse is lifted, then Gil becomes a good character, and I’m here for that!

7. About that -- probably my biggest critique/pet peeve about the show is that it tends to “show” you things happening, but doesn’t follow up with the “tell” until much later. I do appreciate that there’s more “show” than “tell” to begin with, but when you don’t understand what’s happening, it can be confusing.

With the Gilthunder and Margaret curse-lifted moment, I was so confused watching. My brother, who has read the manga, was like, “Don’t you get it? It’s ____” but because I hadn’t read the manga, I had to wait until the next episode started to get the backstory and explanation. Waiting on exposition in a fantasy world that has some crazy world-building elements can be frustrating, especially if you’ve watched shows that handle it slightly more effectively (a la Demon Slayer).

6. I do like Meliodas’s character a lot -- he’s a fun, yet powerful character, and reminds me a lot of Bleach’s Ichigo  and his hollow when his demon side lets loose. However, there is one aspect I’m not a fan of, and that’s his constant groping of Elizabeth. I get it...it’s a common trope in manga/anime, but I still am not a fan of it and it does make me uncomfortable, especially in a scene when he does it in front of Elizabeth’s father. So...there’s that.

5. Speaking of Elizabeth, I will admit that at first, I was weary of her character, seeing her as a “damsel in distress” -- but, a few episodes in, she starts to establish herself as more than that, and by the end of season one, she’s basically a healer and someone capable of saving themselves and those around them. I also really like the angel vs demon dynamic that her and Meliodas have together, and I’m looking forward to that expanded in later seasons!

4. So, in terms of favorite characters, I would have to say that while I love all of the SDS’s equally, my favorites are Ban and Gowther at this point. Ban is just such a fun “badboy” trope that I really appreciate getting more depth in this season. His love for Elaine is just adorable and I really hope we get more on those two in future seasons. It’s also fun that he’s basically immortal, so there are a lot of gags they can get away with that are hilarious and effective.

While I said I wasn’t a fan of the groping, I would be remiss to not mention that there is some “man service” given with Ban’s character typically at the center of it, so I can understand if someone thinks there’s a double-standard there. Although...no one is groping Ban. I do appreciate the joke that his outfit keeps getting ripped and there just happen to be people running around with red leather suits on.

On the opposite end of the “man service” spectrum is Gowther, who is just a badass psychic who can create mental illusions and has some powerful magic surrounding him. He’s basically a robot personality-wise, so I hope we get more developed with his character two...especially as...is he in a relationship with Gila? Not going to lie...I’m kind of all for these two emotionless powerhouses teaming up.

3. In terms of antagonists, of course Hendrickson is the main baddie of this season -- I’m not entirely convinced he’s gone, since he’s been set up as such a threat and his goal of combining their world with the demon realm seems to still be the central conflict of the show. However, while he does turn into the “frieza-style-transformed-monster” by the climax of the season, I did appreciate the uniqueness of the “New Generation” and how he was using demon blood to corrupt and control the Holy Knights -- it was a neat plot point and I liked how that same demon he was using connected back to Ban, King, and other characters. I’m wondering where that story arc goes from here...

2. While I did nag on the show being confusing at times with showing us information and not telling us other information, I DO appreciate the world-building in terms of all the fantasy elements. There’s fairies, immortals, angels, demons, giants, and other creatures just out and about and it helps to establish a variety of types and varieties of creatures to interact and have unique abilities...now if only I could keep them all straight.

1. Overall, I am happy to start watching Seven Deadly Sins, if for the characters and to see where the story goes from here. Is it my favorite anime I’ve picked up this year? No, but now that we’ve at least established the world, the characters, and I have an idea where the plot can go, I’m curious to see how it’s expanded upon and hopefully to get backstory on some of the SDS we haven’t been able to focus on -- and to see the last one! Also, Ban’s left the group to go on his own personal side quest, so I’m excited to see that unfold as well.

[snowwhite-andtheknight]

I’m going to preface this off with the fact that I’m a multishipper, and ship quite a variety of pairings, so this list might go all over the place. (Also, I’ve never written a fic rec before, though I have recommended fics and gushed about several often enough.) First of all, Above and Below Surface by Whitehorse102 immediately comes to mind. It’s probably my favorite AU fic that I’ve ever read for ZenYuki and possibly, my favorite I’ve ever read in general. It’s a Mer!AU; a type of AU that I’m always reading, but Whitehorse102 writes it so differently than any other Mer!AU, I’ve seen. The world building is insanely good, and the story reads a lot more like a published novel than a multichapter fanfic; there’s world building that even takes in parts of canon and plays around with them a bit. The ZenYuki is built up slowly. It’s a work in progress of the writer’s, and such a lovely read, that you absolutely would not regret reading it or rereading it. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12201172/1/Above-and-Below-Surface Apparently, the first fic I read was Of Assassins and Apples by Realm-Leaper, though since I sometimes accidentally refavorite stuff, changing the date that I favorited it or may have read stuff I didn’t favorite, I might not be accurate with this. It’s an Obi-centric oneshot collection with two oneshots, that I vaguely remember reading. (Eventually, I’ll share stuff that aren’t on Fanfiction.net, because I read all over the place.) I started rereading it, and it has almostly amazing Obi headcanons. The first oneshot is an Obi and Zen friendship piece, and honestly, maybe this is where most of my Obi headcanons came from as far as backstory. This oneshot collection of two oneshots is well worth your time! I’d wondered if the Mukaze and Obi scene was canon, had convinced myself that the talk they had was canon and took place during the Tanbarun Arc, but it was this fanfic, the second oneshot has an absolutely incredible and in character scene where Obi and Mukaze talk a few things out. (Honestly, it’s on my mind whenever I read a story where the two of them talk or interact in any way, and it a hundred percent affects the way I remember canon.) So do check it out! It’s a lovely two oneshot collection centering on Obi. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12933248/1/Of-Assassins-and-Apples

My favorite ANS OC right now is Setsuko/Vixen/fox, from Nostalgic Family by your1ocalpotato. I decided to read some of Potato’s work on a whim a few months back, once I realized that Potato wrote stories, and I absolutely adore Setsuko, especially within Nostalgic Family; I just love that universe, the added backstory for Obi, the found family dynamics, the way that Setsuko may be rough around the edges from the life she lived, but she cares deeply for her family, especially Obi. Just the sibling bond that Setsuko and Obi have in it is absolutely incredible, and in that particular universe, Setsuko has barely met Izana, so there’s a chance that that slow burn will eventually pick up, and Izana/Setsuko is such a lovely pair; they contrast very beautifully together, and it’s got to be my favorite Izana/OC pairing. Honestly, Potato’s stories are really good and more people need to read them. https://archiveofourown.org/works/22926751/chapters/54800950 (The Den Series is the name of the particular series I’m talking about, though there is a different story with Setsuko, where she has a different backstory, and it’s pretty much all slowburn Izana/Setsuko. Both are worth a read, though I haven’t finished the longer, slow burn fic yet.) As for An AU I Took A Chance On (And Now Love), it would be the Quarantine AU, that Muselover1901 wrote: Here With(out) You. I figured I’d read a Quarantine AU, and that one was really beautifully written. It’s one of my favorites by Muse. (I may throw in a few other stories that I recommend by Muse, because she’s a super talented ZenYuki writer.) I usually avoid writing any Quarantine AUs or Pandemic AUs unless I really feel like I need to. The same usually goes with reading them; I’ve found at least one good Quarantine AU in about four or so fandoms now. (I usually only read one per fandom, if it seems interesting.) Honestly, this is probably my favorite Quarantine AU ever. It’s longer, and the world is pretty well established. (And it’s a really lovely domestic ZenYuki oneshot.) https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13668279/1/Here-With-out-You I’m going to cheat a little on the next two, because I actually reviewed them (and reviewed them around the same time). First, I want to mention a fic that Made Me Laugh Out Loud; the first one that comes to mind is A Snowy Surprise by MuseLover1901. It’s the first one that pops into my head, though I know that I’ve laughed out loud at probably plenty of other stories. I actually was unsure before I read it whether it was a romantic story or not, and had been a bit nervous about jumping in and reading it, but once I started to read it, it was love at first sight. There’s a snowball fight in it, and I’ll have to say one particular hit made me laugh out loud. The story is mostly a friendship story. (The kind of story that I always long for more of in any fandom, because I love friendship stories as much as I love romance stories, and I also love family stories just as much.) But it’s lighthearted and doesn’t contain too many manga spoilers for me, since I’m terribly behind in the manga right now. (I haven’t read all of Muse’s work yet, because some of them have more manga spoilers than I’m ready to read. I’m biding my time for the day that I can just binge read them obsessively. It will happen.) https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13668260/1/A-Snowy-Surprise So, here’s the story, I’m cheating by mentioning instead of the above one. (I reviewed them around the same time, so it works, I think.) For A Fic That Made Me Friends With The Author, I’d have to say A Quick Library Visit; it’s a short, sweet read, and if you want quick ZenYuki fluff, it’s a go to. I read it around the same time as the above two Muse fics, and for some reason, some of Muse’s newest stories didn’t have reviews, so I figured I’d review. Shortly after, I reviewed A Quick Library Visit and A Snowy Surprise, Muse messaged me to thank me. (She’s really cool by the way.) And then, a little while later, I joined the old ZenYuki Week Server, and Muse invited me over to a ZenYuki Writing Collab Server, and we became fast friends after that. (She remembered me based off of the two reviews I’d left on her stories, which was pretty cool and definitely humbling.) (Also, heads up, I’ll post the fanfiction links to Muse’s stories, but she also posts them on AO3, so they’re there as well.) (I wish there was a reverse for this panel, because through the ZenYuki Writing Server; I met phenomenal writers and began reading their work as well!) https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13668268/1/A-Quick-Library-Visit As for A Fic That Got Me Involved In The Fandom, I may be cheating by mentioning this too, since I starting writing fanfics for ANS practically right after I finished watching Season Two. The Mistress, the Plan, and the Secret by MisusedEllipses really made me long to write for Prince Raji/Shirayuki, and really kicked me off in that little rarepair haven, that Season Two won me over towards. This is an incredible fanfic, has absolutely amazing characterization throughout, and is incomplete on Fanfiction. (I’m hoping that somewhere online, it sits pretty and finished, waiting for me to rediscover it. I may be overly hopeful.) Okay, it ties in onesided!ObiYuki feelings, onesided!PrinceRajiYuki feelings, and wonderful characterization and sibling banter between Eugena and Rona! Honestly, Raji is written so well that it practically reads like canon: a very hard feat indeed for any writer to accomplish. Just, wow! I don’t know who to root for: Raji, Zen, or Obi! It diverges from canon right before the kidnapping, so Shirayuki never gets kidnapped, and eventually a rather interesting Raji and Obi friendship forms, though that’s right where the last current chapter is. It hasn’t been updated in four or five, I guess now or soon, years, but it’s well worth a read. I will recommend this to anyone if given a chance, regardless of whether the person is a multishipper or not. I love the friendship, the romance, the family, and humor that comes along with Raji’s siblings’ banter. It’s just a phenomenal canon divergent fic, and it’s what really made me realize there was a need for more Raji X Shirayuki fanfics, and it left me crazy about filling that gap. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12156186/1/The-Mistress-the-Plan-and-the-Secret I’m going to make a rather honest claim here, even though I’m not sure how often this writer will come up in what I gush about here, but this writer should: genee is one of my favorite writers in the fandom. (I’m not sure if genee is still active.) When I eventually thought of a fic with A Favorite Minor Character of mine, this particular story came up. history doesn’t repeat itself but it often rhymes is an absolutely amazing precanon story where it focuses entirely on Ryuu, gives him some backstory! (It’s an amazing read, and it follows his journey to becoming a Court Herbalist.) Honestly, the fandom needs a lot more Ryuu fics. (On a side note, a fic by a different writer also came to mind with this, but since that’s more romantic than this gen fic, I figured I’d stick with this one. The other one that comes to mind is the only fic where I could find Kai as a main character. It’s by a different writer, but if I can stick it into this recommendation, I will tell you more about it.) Genee writes really good fics. I know genee has a fanfiction account, but I think genee might have an AO3 as well. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12687531/1/history-doesn-t-repeat-itself-but-it-often-rhymes For Pre-Canon, I want to mention a lovely story by an incredible (mostly?) MitsuKiki writer that may not actually be active anymore. (Unless the writer uses a different site now.) (This story is actually not a MitsuKiki fanfic, though it is still one of my all time favorite stories by fiesa.) Roses, Violets by fiesa. It’s a beautiful story that focuses on Zen, Mitsuhide, and Kiki during the years since Kiki came there. Zen develops a crush on an OC, who doesn’t like him like that, who actually likes Mitsuhide, interestingly enough. It’s not really a romance story, as it focuses on the way time passes and uses summer and flowers to express that. The perspectives shift, so some parts may need to be reread to understand who is feeling that way, but it’s all written so beautifully. You get to see Zen develop a crush and get heartbroken, Mitsuhide trying to be really nice, knowing Zen likes the woman and sort of trying to let something happen between Zen and the OC. Though, Zen feels that that’s hopeless, since she likes Mitsuhide. It’s more a story of the friendship between Zen, Mitsuhide, and Kiki, and what growing up entails. It’s Zen before Shirayuki, and it makes for a rather lovely, read. (It’s a multichapter, though it’s not a super lengthy one as far as chapter count goes. It’s well worth a read though.) (fiesa and geneee I discovered around the same time, and I love what both of them write so much.) (So, if you like it, it’s always worth checking out the rest of fiesa’s work.) https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12864975/1/Roses-Violets I was just thinking over how to mention an incredible writer, that wrote two ZenYuki oneshot that I’ve read and fell in love with. (Spotted the oneshot section. If I have to refill part of the Bingo Board later, so be it.) The Art Of Watching Stars Fall by Zen Wisteria on Tumblr. The metaphors and images are just so pretty and beautiful and with gorgeous meanings. (The writer feels a bit like a poet, and since I love poetry, that’s a definite plus in my book.) It’s really fluffy and sweet and contains pretty much all of the wonderful reasons to ship ZenYuki. It’s a delight to read and to reread. It’s highly recommended by me. https://zen-wistaria.tumblr.com/post/117283326416/it-feels-like-years-since-shes-seen-his-face AU That Made Me Find The Source Material: Lyrias Station by Eclectic80. I’m cheating here too. Shh… I’ve been slowly getting into Star Trek over the years very deliberately, and I just loved this fic so much! I found it first on the ObiYuki Community, going through a lot older fics, and then fell in love with just the way that Eclectic80 wrote it! It’s an absolutely incredible Star Trek AU, and a lovely ObiYuki story. (I think I did start with reading Historical Fiction, and it surprised me by being a Star Trek AU.) (On the note of really great AUs, there’s a Star Wars AU for ObiYuki that’s incredible, that I’ll have to refind at some point, and an incredible Harry Potter AU. I actually asked a lot of questions to people who know Star Wars lore far better than I do, in order to work through how much of the Star Wars AU for ObiYuki could plausibly happen in canon. (I think it was all of it. It was a great and engaging read too!) The Harry Potter AU left me obsessed with it, and the accidental soul bonding spell, whoops. But, since I don’t remember their titles or who wrote them, I’ll have to recommend them some other day. (I think they are also far back on the community page. I haven’t finished exploring it, since I took a break a while ago.) Back to Lyrias Station, it’s an absolutely incredible read whether you know very little about Star Trek, nothing at all, or a lot. I fall somewhere in the middle, and honestly, it’s a fantastic read, whenever you want to dig in and explore. (I may have reread certain oneshots in it way too much for my own good, practically back to back. It’s a really wonderful reread as well.) https://archiveofourown.org/works/14414148/chapters/34487988 For A Fic That Gave Me A New OTP, though my OTP is hard to define, so I’m technically cheating here, but Let Me Be Bold by Kaedix. It’s an IzanaYuki story, and that is a pairing that I was curious about, but hadn’t really shipped until I read this oneshot collection. I absolutely need to read the third oneshot; it’s new, and bound to be incredible. But, the first oneshot had me sort of falling in love with Izana right alongside Shirayuki, and the second oneshot had me cheering for Shirayuki, and all in all, it’s an incredible read that is well worth your time, whether just to read something new or different or whether you are on the fence about this fabulous rarepair. (Since it did win me over to the ship, I’m including it here.) It’s incredible! Go read it! https://archiveofourown.org/works/20982494/chapters/49894448 I was trying to figure out a fic that I loved that was under a thousand words, and since I haven’t paid a huge amount of attention to the word count, I couldn’t think of one at first. So, I was going through one of the writers that I really like the writing of, and stumbled upon one that I immediately remembered. Importance by bountifulnuggets. I remembered it strictly as the wedding story where Zen and Shirayuki hugged Obi, who desperately needed a hug. I’ve never read anything like it before, and it’s saturated with friendship. (Nugget is a phenomenal writer, so basically anything by her is really good, so if you haven’t heard of her, go check out her writing. You won’t be disappointed.) (I got temporarily sidetracked before going through Nugget’s stories, by a story I hadn’t read by Eclectic80, a ZenYuki(!) story, that if for some reason, I extend and do more than a Bingo Board (or find another way to include), I’ll tell you the title of. Either way, the story by Nugget is a lovely hurt/comfort fic that is more comfort than hurt, and it’s definitely a beautiful read. https://archiveofourown.org/works/26433481 I’m going to pause here for now, even though I haven’t gotten a Bingo yet, because I’ve spent way too long today, compiling this list, and kind of want to share how far along it’s come so far. I recommend every single last one of these fics and several more, honestly they’re all so amazing!

[jayda-starrjones]

My Top 10 Favourite Animes (So Far)

1. NANA

I've loved nana since I was 10, it was my first anime. I'll prolly love it forever, it makes me cry and I just feels so real and nostalgic idk the aesthetic of this anime is my most favourite thing in the world. It's about two 20 year old girls who are polar opposites but have the same name meeting on a train to tokyo; and their worlds end up colliding. With Nana Osaki, the punk singer in a band trying to make it big and Nana Komaru, the girly romantic, it ends up being a story of young adults trying to figure out their lives. It's emotional and real, with emotional and real characters.

I'm also a nana osaki kinnie

2. Devilman Crybaby

First of all: I LOVE ryo. His character depth is EXQUISITE. Second of all: I loved loved LOOOOVED the ending. It hurts but it's realistic and makes sense. It's complex... I enjoy complexity 😌✋ The plot is introduced as childhood friends trying to save the world from "devils," but I think it's REALLY a story about love and the complexity of it; how if you're greedy and narrow minded then you'll fuck up love for yourself. If you've seen the entire show then you know why.

I'm also in love with the shot of ryo pulling out his gun and shooting the devils at the sabbath party in episode 1

3. Ouran Highschool Host Club

The characters are S O endearing. Except for Renge, she annoys me 💀 but honestly this anime is just really fun to follow. It's a girl who joins the host club as a boy in order to pay off her debt to the boys from the host club, while also making great friends with them in the process. The characters have a good dynamic and they work well with each other, especially cause they're all quite different from each other. IDK MAN I JUST REALLY ENJOYED THIS ANIME OK

4. Danganronpa

Ok so tbhhh I don't really know if this one counts cause I love the games, not diggin the anime, but I think it's referred to as an anime so whatever lmfao. Again, the characters? Great, amazing, tasty. Like I'm being fed a full course meal with a bunch of different shit in it. Danganronpa is so diverse with it's characters, like some of them are kinda out there lmao. Yes, yes, I am also a Toko kinnie 😌✋ I enjoy the story of the main games and the antagonists are MMMM M W A H CHEFS KISS. The style of it is pretty cool too. It's about kids who wake up in a school only to find of they're being held hostage there unless they kill the others to be set free, if they can also escape the Phoenix Wright style court trial without being caught.

Side note: the games were supposed to be a LOT darker than they already are, like sickeningly dark, I almost wish they were what they were going to be just so i could see how they would have turned out.

5. Black Butler

I am enchanted by the dark plot. I started watching Black Butler when I was like 13 and fell in love with it's universe. It's dark, cold, fun and thrilling. Did I mention dark? It's about a boy who makes a deal with a demon just so he can survive the trauma that was sprung onto him. Ciel is crafted as a kid who hasn't been able to heal, and probably never will. The manga is better than the anime, a lot better; but the series is SO good. This is wack to think about for me but this anime actually got me through some hard times. Not in the most healthy way, but It helped me grow a THICK ass skin because I would relate to the feeling of loneliness and revel in the only other feeling I had in me; rage. I used to kin Ciel so hard bruh

6. Beastars

This anime gives me like a sorrowful depression afterward lmao like I can't put my finger on it but every time I've gone through it and binged it it's made me like sad, even tho it's not very sad?? I still love it tho. I love the idea of a wolf falling for a rabbit and having to fight his instincts just to be with her. Also, if you're an ARMY, legoshi has Namjoon's eyes. CAN'T EXPLAIN IT HE JUST DOES MK

7. Attack On Titan

K ya it's a popular anime everyone likes BUUUUUUT it has a nice big place in my heart so it's going on this list. The development between characters throughout the anime and manga is intense. I didn't expect where the story is to this day; I don't think anyone did lmao also? When I first started reading the manga it was cause I needed to finish where the anime left off cause I couldn't wait any longer lol THE MANGA?? GIVES ME LIKE CHILLS?? Idk the manga is scary to read sometimes lol again, I can't place it, but sometimes it's so gritty I can hear the screams in my head and feel the ambiance and death in the air. I like an angry ambitious story 🤷‍♀️

8. Yuri On Ice

GREAT love story. I also love yuri plisetsky a lot. The anime is really pretty and conveys a warm feeling. The pacing is really good as well. It moves pretty fast, considering it has like what, 12 episodes? I also loved the ending because like :') yurios debut dudes :') did u see the tears :'))))))

9. Death Note

Ok so I recently rewatched this anime for probably the 4th time with a friend and realized that the pacing isn't too bad but sometimes it feels slow. Nonetheless, I love it a lot. A killer and a detective working together to capture that same killer is fun to follow. It has a really nice aesthetic and I think it's clever with various things handled in the anime. It's very entertaining, I love playing it in the background while I'm painting. Also, I have a death note 🤪

10. Cowboy Bebop

This anime is different from most animes I get attached to, mostly because it loosely follows a plot but REALLY i think you could prolly tune into any episode and grasp what's going on. It's JUST space shananagins dude. Again, beautiful aesthetic. Cute characters. I love how cyborg man has a bonsai room like cmon that's such a cute character detail.

VERY Honourable Mentions

One Punch Man

K but one punch man is so funny wtf and it's very quirky and fun. Just the thought of a low budget superhero who isn't recognized as a superhero & can only kill bad guys with one punch & hates it is kinda funny idk man, mf does his deed of the day and then panics cause he needs to make it to the supermarket on time for the sale that's going on lmao

Soul Eater

Of course, great characters, great plot. Really good animation style. Funny with a dark aesthetic ♡

Your Lie In April

Okay hear me out. I haven't actually finished it yet. I just know that the characters have so much depth that I've been sucked in. I also don't think I've ever seen an anime THIS beautiful. Like really, this anime blows me away with how beautiful it is sometimes. It makes me rlly sad for some reason tho. Pretty music romance that'll remind you of your childhood mmmm

My Future Diary

mmmm taystey yandere

[peekychu]

hiii ray! we haven't talked in a while but i still get happy whenever i see you on my dash :D i hope you're doing well! it's pretty cool that you're more active on tumblr nowadays, i missed u :'3 if u want to use this ask as an excuse to rant about any hyperfixations or special interests that u have rn please feel free bc ive been super pumped about being neurodivergent all day and want to share that :D it's just been *thinks about my favorite characters having adhd* *thinks about my favorite ch

Warning! This got long, you DID say I could rant, but thought I’d let ya know xD

Hi Avery!!! Aw, I’m so glad my goofy posts can make ya happy, it’s nice to hear!!!

AND YEAAA relating to favorite characters is a super nice thing, I know what you mean!! ^o^ Seeing Undertale trending again recently for the anniversary made me nostalgic for all the self-indulgent headcanon art I used to draw of Alphys, haha!

I will say, it’s kind of weird because lately I haven’t had One Big All-Consuming interest like I usually did in the past (except for maybe Game Grumps and Ninja Sex Party which have still been staples for me xD), I’ve been trying to expand my horizons during quarantine and I’m starting a lot of new shows & games!!! I gotta give my partner tons of credit for introducing me to new things I never would have checked out on my own, without him I’d probably still be watching the same old Game Grumps compilations and nothing else, lol. It’s been AWESOME discovering new interests!

During lockdown I have:

- Watched all of the Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure anime and just finished part 6 of the manga! You don’t even know how hard I resisted getting into this series, but sometime around part 4 I got nearly as obsessed as bf xD Emphasis on nearly, hehe. But seriously, I love this series! I met some awesome new characters too! I really love some of the sillier characters like Narancia and Foo Fighters, but Jotaro has grown on me like a LOT!! I love this fella, especially in part 4. Joseph was the first person that made me interested in the show!

- Watched and read all of Beastars so far! Excited for season 2 to be animated! The manga is definitely all over the place, but still made for some really interesting friend discussions! 

- Started Hunter x Hunter 2011, as well as some of the 1999 episodes! It got to a SUUUPER slow point so I haven’t finished it, but people have been convincing me to stick with it for the Chimera Ant arc which is supposedly the best xD Mostly I just ADORE Gon and Killua’s dynamic, as well as their friends Kurapika and Leorio! I feel like the series is a little bit confusing and isn’t storytelling to its max potential, but I have some favorite bits for sure!

- Re-awakened a Spongebob obsession xD I got the game Battle for Bikini Bottom Rehydrated and beat it, SUCHHHH a good game!! It inspired me to watch a ton of old episodes (seasons 1-3 of course) which was very nostalgic and made me remember how genuinely hilarious of a cartoon it was.

- Played tons of Animal Crossing! I sort of burnt out on ACNH like most ppl stuck at home with a Switch, but I’m happy with my island (named Daffodil!) and the love I put into it! It served as some crucial escapism at the start of this wackiness, lol

- Beaten Mario Galaxy for the very first time!! This was a hyperfocus-y highlight for me, I beat the game in under 3 days and LOVED every second!! Mario Galaxy is such a delightful game!

- Started Majora’s Mask 3DS! My mom also got a copy so the two of us could play together! I ended up getting MUCH farther in the game than her since I’d played the first part a few times when I was younger, but I don’t know if I’ll ever beat it, haha. The 3DS remake made some changes from the original that bummed me out, so I’m taking a break until I’m inspired again :P Maybe I’ll just play through Ocarina of Time again?

- Played Fall Guys with my pals!! Honestly I’m craving this game again, maybe after typing this post I’ll play some, hehe.

- Started Pokemon Journeys (the anime) with bf!!!! I LOVE this show, I think it’s the best Pokemon anime yet! Lots of very cute Pikachu moments which is important to me, and lots of content that really takes full advantage of the Pokemon world!

- Got into Rock-Afire Explosion with bf! I feel weird talking so much about him on here since he doesn’t have a tumblr account and most likely doesn’t read these posts, but he’s been a huge part of my life :P Anyways, this guy is the Rock-Afire KING, it’s been a lot of fun listening to their (shockingly) good songs and seeing the project he’s been working on for it! I’ve grown a huge fondness for Billy Bob, he is a sweet boy with a sweet voice.

- Started Neon Genesis Evangelion! I’m actually super close to finishing this anime, it REALLY got cool and interesting! I’m glad about not being spoiled Too much despite seeing it everywhere online for most of my teenagehood, haha. One of the more serious things I’ve watched lately, but I find stories like this to be cathartic :P

- And arguably most importantly, Avatar the Last Airbender!!!!!!!!!!!! Holy MOLY! This is one of those things that ppl have been pressuring me to get into for Years, and now that I have, I wish I could go back in time and pester myself alongside my friends, haha! I binged a whole season’s worth on a sick day, I just really Really love every character, and the writing, and the worldbuildinG, it’s all fantastic and it’s all been said before xD I also caved and bought the entire collection of The Search and The Promise of the comic series!!! Just read the rest of it last night, I am in awe over how fantastic Avatar really is!! I think that alongside Jojo, Avatar has been a world that really helped me through the weirdness of these past months xD

I also have been thinking a lot about my furry characters, lol :P I’ve commissioned and drawn  so much art of my OCs, they just all make me so happy! Especially my fursona Twinkie of course, I feel so connected with this goofball cat! I want to maybe develop a comic for my characters and make a world for them, but all of my motivation is being dedicated to art classes :P

ANYWAYS!! Thanks for letting me ultra infodump, this became less of an interest-gush and more of a quarantine update xD I don’t love talking about the current situation because it’s All anyone talks about (I mean, I get why but yknow) but I’m really grateful that I found some inspiration and enjoyment in new things during my time at home!

[demoiselledefortune]

You post and reblog a lot of MDZS, Heaven's Official Blessing and Scum Villain and they look interesting but also a little intimidating due to the length and large amounts of side material. Are they related in any way and is there a preferred reading order or does it not matter? If I like things like old-school CLAMP, Basara(manga), Akatsuki no Yona and BL would I like it? How interesting are the female characters or will I mostly just be enjoying it for the BL dynamics and plot?

The three of them, MDZS, Heaven’s Official Blessing and Scum Villain are completely separate work. You don’t need to read one to read the others, they just happen to be by the same author.

None of them actually have a lot of side material, it’s just different adaptations to different media.(some of the adaptations drop the canonical BL stuff because of Chinese censorship, especially the adaptations for TV).

Scum Villain is the shortest work, in novel form, but only accessible in novel format at this time (there’s an animated and a manhua version forthcoming but not out yet). It’s also the one with the worst translation. In tone it was the author’s first work and it shows, it’s got a few tone shift as the story progress and it feels more rough overall. It’s also the more comedy of the three, with a premise that’s a parody of power fantasy harem series (stallion novel) while still having some darker and dramatic aspects, especially as the story progresses. And if you like fanfics, it’s got the best fandom for them.

Mo Dao Zu Shi is the middle work. The novel has a good length but I don’t think it should be too intimidating. You can also get to the fandom via the donghua (two seasons of animated series, unfinished, about 30 episodes of 30 minutes each at this point in term of length), the manhua (i don’t think it’s finished but it’s very very close to the novel), the audio drama (also very close to the novel as adaptation, i think it might be finished? not sure), and of course the TV drama, the Untamed (which I haven’t seen, but is a nice number of episodes so probably would take some time to watch, and is a bit campy in look in the style of Chinese xianxia drama with no real budget). Mo Dao Zu Shi is a great story with good characters and should make a good starting point to see if you like that sort of works I think. It’s probably the darkest of the three, overall, but I wouldn’t call it altogether pessimistic even then. The writer is good at showing the humanity of all her characters which is one of the thing I like about her writing. The fandom is the biggest because all the adaptions have drawn in a lot of people, but it’s also the most wanky.You don’t have to check all the versions, just try the one that seems to appeal the most to your taste.

Heaven’s Official Blessing (or Tian Guan Ci Fu) is the last completed work of the writer and the longest. As a novel, it’s a genuinely long morsel! It’s also the most mature in term of theme and structural craft. I think it’s got a more optimistic tone… it’s still got some very dark and depressing moments; but the overall story is very much about striving to do good in the face of adversity, even in a complicated world where doing so is not easy and can drive you to despair. That’s one of the way in which I like to compare it to Revolutionary Girl Utena (it’s got a few similar motifs).

In term of adaptation, there’s a manhua that has only recently started for it (so is far from being complete) and a donghua forthcoming. They’re both going to be very pretty!! but if you want to check the work in full going with the novel is the best at this point lol

In term of whether you might like them; well, I do and I also love Akatsuki no Yona, CLAMP and Basara lol. I know the AkaYona fandom actually really plunged into MDZS the way fandom migration sometime happen (that’s kind of how I got to it too, even if once removed). I think in term of having a cool fantasy world with depth and breadth and epic drama and intrigue in it, Cnovel Xianxia cater well to that taste and I think it’s one of the reason I’ve been attracted to that genre. (I would say there’s a specific side pairing in MDZS that really reminds me of Seishirou and Subaru, too, since you mention CLAMP.)Unlike Basara and Akayona, they’re BL novels so they don’t have as many female characters and the female characters aren’t center piece, of course.

They *do* have female characters (so unlike most BL manga on that front), especially MDZS and TGCF, who have several meaningful female characters who are genuinely interesting and have depth and their own agency. They don’t necessarily *fare* well. At some point in MDZS you realize that every single female characters in the story except one of the most minor one *dies* at some point in the story. Most of them don’t even get to the present time (MDZS in structure alternates between present time and flashbacks to the past which take as must “screen time” as the present).

TGCF’s female characters aren’t necessarily better (in term of being better written, having more importance in the plot, having more agency) but they don’t end up quite as badly. Of my two favorite characters of TGCF, one is female, the other is genderqueer. That said the first story/part of TGCF is kind of bad on the female front, it takes a little while to get past that and to the cool ones. And I think in term of female characters who are given genuine depth, they’re actually fewer than in MDZS. But holy shit Ling Wen is

So if you want to check those works out mainly for female characters, I wouldn’t recommend them, but if you can get into it for the BL dynamics and plot, then you can also enjoy the female characters on the side. MXTX is really good at investing the full ensemble cast with interesting characterization and their own agency, and that includes female characters, which is one of the thing that makes it pop up as alive and intriguing for fanfic purpose.

I think as someone who enjoys Akayona and Basara, Cnovel xianxia in general could appeal to you, but the breadth of what you can try out is limited by what’s accessible in translation. MXTX has the advantage of being already very translated, something I wish we could say of, say, Priest’s work. If you want to look up some female centered het works, I think there’s also a lot of that on novel updates, including fully translated, which might be another entry point for you to xianxia.

Hope that was useful, anon!

[blacknovelist]

Hi 👋 I love the ageswap AU it’s cute! So what’s the relationship between Mentor Shigaraki & Student All For One is like compare to canon? Sorry if this has been ask before but I’m curious to see your opinion? (Thank You For Reading.)🙏

Hi!! I’m so glad you’re enjoying Ageswap – content for the AU’s pretty inconsistent in coming around (the au itself is pretty inconsistent sometimes but shhhhh we’re just here to have a good time) but it always makes us happy, haha. This isn’t a question that’s come up, actually, tho I’m really glad u asked?? Because I only got caught back up to the manga recent-ish, so me n @guardianlioness got to hammer out a whole bunch of details on that end out while we were conferrin’ about this

hang on to ur seats folks bc im here to finish my school work and talk a lot

and i’ve just finished my school work

(also, as an aside: me and lioness always want to talk about ageswap. I don’t think i’ve deleted a single ageswap ask, they’re still here, waiting for me. they’ll happen eventually, probably, I guess, one way or another, and thank u to everyone for bein’ patient

Also also, spoilers abound bc of some names I’m dropping! If you haven’t made it through that one League of Villains arc with the Liberation Army and don’t want spoilers, this isn’t the post for you.

So in the much broader sense, we’ve at least discussed the history of One for All and All for One to some degree over here, but we’re gonna expand, add, and shift stuff around a smidge probably, in actual AU context. The important tl;dr is basically that the League is just a group that opposes the users of One for All after a vendetta when One for All first manifested, and All for One (who henceforth will be referred to as AfO, probably, because although Shigaraki’s his name it’d be confusing, I think, to just leap wholesale into that) was the child of Izuku’s as-of-yet unspoken of OfA mentor, who was assumed dead along with the rest of the mentor’s family but was instead taken in by Tomura (as we’ll be calling Mr. Shimura Tenko from here on out, to try and reduce confusion still and also bc in the beginning he didn’t have the name Shigaraki ) when Tomura lead the league to wreck OfA mentor’s shit bc he’s petty like that.

Now I don’t necessarily need to get into the big details – for the sake of brevity, I’ll make a separate post on AfO, his goals, the brother whomst he loves a lot that we’re giving him for canon parallels in spite of how much we’ve already bungled stuff up, and AfO’s relationship with Toshinori now that that’s all been hashed out – but I do want to point out that, for a time AfO was unaware that Tomura was the one who destroyed his home, only that Tomura was there and saved him and his little brother. OfA mentor hid/went underground/stopped using their family name of Shigaraki after the rest of the family died in grief, so Tomura used that to persuade AfO to not run back to his parent until AfO was swayed to his side, so to speak.

For the most part, Tomura and AfO’s relationship in Ageswap is something of a twist again on canon. See, and this is fun because we love drawing those lines between characters, Tomura (in both Ageswap and canon) is a fascinating emotional sort, both in relation to his mentor/student AfO, but ALSO to Izuku, who does studies on quirks and mumbles a lot and has incredible observational skills, whereas Toshinori is a beast of instinct and feeling, which again foils him to the far more calculating AfO and his logical student! That is to say, the parallels are criss-crossing: Toshinori could be attributed towards Tomura, where AfO could be towards Izuku. Now, obviously, it’s not a 1:1 ratio because nothing is, but it means that when we flip the dynamic we get something just as dysfunctional and unhealthy as in canon, but in a totally different way!

Tomura’s something of the Worst Mentor Slash Elder Sib Figure Ever in this world. He’s a hot mess to AfO’s young meticulousness, and through him AfO kind of. learns to live a little, so to speak. Or at least, relax and also take what he deserves w his quirk bc hey, he has the power, why not?

The general attitude we’re giving Tomura in this AU is kind of…. unnervingly touchy-feely or close physically, esp given what his quirk is. AfO isn’t quite so scared of it, because it’s Tomura, who’s a beloved teacher and friend, but it’s something of a (possibly unintentional, haven’t decided) way for Tomura to keep the League metaphorically close. Because he acts so relaxed and familial, it draws the League together and makes them less inclined to leave, later. And even if they wanted to, well… Tomura’s right there, and we all know what his quirk is. The relationships he’s fostering are just as unhealthy as in canon, just differently.

I think the dynamic might be that Tomura’s encouraging AfO to go apeshit, basically. Kind of like “you have this quirk you barely use/barely know about, and you can do all these things, so why don’t you?” ish, pushing him to overhaul a world/society that condemns his quirkless brother and keep his own power so tightly wrapped he suffers, you know? There’s a weird extra-close obviously openly familial aspect to the League, which is meant to parallel how awkward Izuku is with Toshinori and how they maintain a distance even though they also care and love each other a lot, and it has everything to do with the way Tomura acts and holds himself. Also, the League all refers to him as Tomura in private, to kind of…. sit on those close pseudofam vibes.

As for what AfO thinks of his mentor… well, AfO is the one who offered his family name “Shigaraki” for Tomura to use, a name that even Izuku hadn’t known because his own mentor never told him in their attempt to separate from their grief. So, you tell me what his thoughts might be.