#I love slapping code onto artwork it’s so fun

[aria-greenhoodie]

“Maybe it’s just inter-dimensional sickness…?”

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[beevosmeower]

Kink Ask Game for my PCs

@worlds-tiredest-sub made this ask game originally but I slapped it onto my ocs cause it sounds fun and I love doing this shit to Juno esp. Some questions also got ganked cause they didn’t fit Rapechestershire well.

Any unexpected ways kink has improved their life? If so, what are they? Luka: mm getting hurt is good actually. He feels pretty nice and more soft now that he can be vulnerable and give over control to someone on the regular. There’s no need to CONSTANTLY pretend anymore. Roman discovered that mm yes blood is good actually. They’re a lot more casually calm and at ease than before.

Are piercings sexy? Juno finds specific piercings fun. If you had some crazy piercings, she'd pause her regularly scheduled sex program to go through each of them and admire a bit. If you had like a huge crazy piercing then she’d probably ask about it too. Luka is biased as the resident piercing haver. He loves piercings on others, and he especially loves getting them. He’s the type to get bored during a sleepover and be like “hey wanna give me a piercing?” He’ll regularly let Roman give him piercings then when he gets bored of them he’ll take them out and let it heal over to repeat the process. Infections fear this guy… Roman, resident sadist woof woof bark bark. Literally drooling over ANY piercing. They don’t care if it’s a normal lobe piercing. They’re on top of you heavy breathing “haha, tell me about it~” FREAK. In Rapechestershire, Roman somehow takes the cake on being one the biggest freaks which is a very competitive sport- They adore any and all wounds.

Are tattoos sexy? Juno will stop and admire them if it’s interesting artwork, or has a lot of intricate line work. If it’s something else though she probably won’t acknowledge them. Luka is BITING at the bit to be able to get a tattoo one day, but he’s also very indecisive and doesn’t wanna ruin the experience with something he doesn’t wanna settle with. He lets Roman regularly draw on him though. Roman REALLY enjoys tattoos. Extreme fascination towards anything and everything that hurts others, and the fact that tattoos are something so painful people choose to go through is even more interesting to them. Absolutely feral over tattoos in the same way they are with piercings.

Are there any sex toys they want to try? Living in Rapechestershire and all, Luka and Juno have both gotten the chance to try anything their hearts desire. Roman on the other hand is a bit restricted by the Angel TF, but they have a laundry list of things they wanna try with Luka when they decide to ditch it.

Are they more of a dominant, submissive, or switch? Juno and Luka swing it as switches but in like- parallel ways. Juno and Luka are both puppy coded but Juno is an excitable, shallow loving the neighbor kinda puppy while Luka is puppy in the way a dog loves an owner. Roman is completely dominant, if they had a choice in things, anyone in Rapechestershire would explode when they try to make her submit to them when she’s just trying to walk home.

Are they rough or romantic? It depends on how close you are to them. If you don’t have high or even just mid Love with Juno, then you’re getting the impersonal Rapechestershire encounter special. It’s not rough per say, but she’s not taking her time at all. Luka likes things as rough as possible because he sees it as romantic, and if he's giving it's an intimate sort of roughness. Roman on the other hand likes it rough and dishes it out the same.

Are they the jealous type? Juno is a max level hedonist to the point dropping her in Ancient Greece would be perfectly fine for her. Fuck everyone love is love past hippie to ascension level. If you have her Love at max and you ignore her for too long, she’ll start cock blocking you a little. Getting into their cursed polycule isn’t nearly as difficult as romancing Juno, but getting out IS. Luka is dog coded in a lot of ways, hunting dog included. He doesn’t care a lot about people wanting to come and go, but Roman DOES. If you begin to dismiss them and push them both away, they don’t care emotionally as much as “you are mine (possession)”.

Are they vocal during sex? Juno and Roman do NOT stop talking during sex but it’s very different things they’re saying. Juno expecting you to handle a full conversation despite her fucking your brains out?? Besides whatever that is, she’s also taking constant consent checks. Then Roman is mostly just mocking you or laughing at the other person. Very degrading 10/10. Luka on the other hand is pure sobbing, whining, crying. An encounter with him at high love is a great way to speed run raising your sadism stat because you don’t need it to be high to hurt him during one.

Do they have a gag reflex? Juno and Roman don’t. Luka… used to not have one but Roman fully messed with him into getting it back. Roman lacks a gag reflex to a point where it’s almost jarring. Jaw-ing….

Do they kiss on the first date? Eh it’s Rapechestershire. If you initiate a kiss, Luka and Juno would accept it. Roman wouldn’t care too much if you pushed it, but they’d prefer to pretend to be shy and pure.

Do they like being blindfolded? Juno couldn’t care less. Forever winning the idgaf war. Luka loves any kind of loss of control. Roman has a soft spot for anything that lets them play into dramatic theatrics ESP if she can use the Angel TF to make it even gaudier.

Do they like dirty talk? Juno continues to win the idgaf war. They give a lot of dirty talk, but in general she doesn’t care much about sex. If you have a romantic encounter with her then she has a lot of dirty talk included, otherwise she won’t acknowledge it unless it’s a direct question. Luka’s FROTHING for it. Make fun of him!! Be mean!!! Mock him!!! Simple way to make him get attached and have a good time. If he’s on top though, there’s NONE. You get growls and bitten. Roman is a menace. Constant harsh dirty talk. Keeping that Angel TF and making sure that unless you’re into the type of sex that they provide you will not want to come back to them. Also just has no interest in hiding how they are if you’ve gotten as far as fucking them.

Do they like hair-pulling? Juno hates her hair being tugged on. Good way to immediately get your shit rocked during an encounter with her and end it early. Luka loving his hair pulled 🤝 Roman who loves to pull on people’s hair.

Do they like it rough or romantic? Juno only initiates sex with someone she's romantically interested in. She sees it as something to express love to the other person and take care of them similar to buying your partner flowers. Luka is a max level masochist. He adores having it rough during any encounter. He sees being hurt as another way of being loved. Roman also really enjoys rough sex and sees it as romantic too. They see another person trusting them and letting them hurt a person as incredibly romantic. Roman ripping out Luka’s piercings when they first met and him enjoying it was love at first encounter.

Do they like it when their sexual partner moans? All of them do for different reasons. Juno is taking sounds as another marker in the data of how her partner is enjoying themselves. Luka loves moans because we should both be loud!!!! Hell yeah!!! If he’s bottoming to another loud person, he takes it as a competition. If he’s on top and the person is loud, his grunts and growls get a bit whinier too. Roman LOVES anyone being loud in any way. They’re taking it as a sign to push more and do more. They adore the sounds and it’s the one thing you’ll get any bit of praise for.

Do they like name-calling in bed? Same as dirty talk. Juno actively doesn’t care or acknowledge it while Luka and Roman love it.

Do they like seeing the evidence (bruises, bite marks, hickies)? Juno can appreciate the art of leaving marks on another person or having them herself. If you have high Love with her, there’s a big chance she’ll leave one somewhere your pc can cover up if they choose. Looks at Luka and Roman. Luka is already covered in marks from Roman at all times. Even if they can’t redo some hickeys or bite marks for a time, they’ll always have scars left on Luka.

Do they like teasing or being teased? Juno enjoys teasing people a lot in and out of sex. She enjoys seeing how she can manipulate someone’s emotions in a small amount, and she loves the reactions she can get. Luka enjoys being teased a small bit. He’s not much for foreplay unless it’s getting to give head , and then he won’t let you get away for hours. Roman enjoys teasing others. They’re holding back a lot of things that they let go with on Luka, one of which being their urges to bully and be mean to others. Only reason they don’t is how much they enjoy being adored.

Do they like to cuddle? Juno and Luka love cuddling up to others. Juno is friendly with everyone, so she’ll initiate physical touch with anyone. Luka only will with a high Love or sadistic PC. Roman is fine with cuddling if you’re lovers. Otherwise they’d prefer to preserve their untouchable purity persona.

Do they like to swallow? Juno and Luka are swallowing for opposite reasons. Juno doesn’t want it to get everywhere and dirty up her clothes. Meanwhile Luka wants it to dirty his insides. He also just loves the taste of all cum… Roman won’t be swallowing unless you’re max love and it’s your birthday or something-

Do they like watching or being watched? Juno is watching from the cuck chair taking color coded notes and giving academic feedback. Probably an insane sex combo with Doctor Harper. Luka likes being watched under specific controlled situations. It’s not high on his list of likes though. Roman enjoys watching and controlling the situation but in a watching someone masturbate sense. They’d have a crazy JOI audio list if they made them.

Do they prefer having foreplay or getting right to it? Juno prefers getting right into it if it’s a noncon encounter or you have low Love with her. If not then she thinks sex with someone you like oughta have some bells and whistles to it. Luka will provide head as foreplay and you need max skullduggery to even try and talk him into getting it before sex. Getting head from him is also a death trap cause he gets so cock/pussy drunk that he just WON'T let you go anytime soon. If you consider it under sex is penetration, Roman is kinda all foreplay. Sex with them ALSO takes ages. They’re gonna make a scene last ages, a person with ADHDs nightmare if you aren’t into them. If you are then they’re gonna lead you into your head melting and suddenly 16 hours passed and you feel like you’ve found a way to turn humans into liquids.

Do you prefer long hair or short hair? They all chronically give zero fucks about the appearance of their partners.

Do you prefer to give or receive when it comes to sex? All of them prefer to give. Juno wants to get it over with and doesn’t feel sexual need. Luka ends up receiving but his mindset is all about receiving it for the other person. Roman is functionally the opposite where they’re giving for themselves.

Do they watch porn? Juno watches porn for knowledge. The pondering. Porn scholar of you will. When she was about to reenter society she was given a cursory sex ed course, then another at Oxford. In general she just took sex as another thing to task herself with in order to do well in Rapechestershire. Luka and Roman are generally uninterested in porn, but sometimes they’ll put it on while they’re fucking to make it a game.

Do they listen to nsft audios? Same as porn for Juno, she has before but it’s not interesting to her. Actually she’d listen to the cursed ASMR on YouTube a lot. Luka doesn’t mostly because he has sensitive hearing, headphones bother him a lot. Roman will when they can’t see Luka for a long time. They listen to mostly ramblefaps and extremely whiney stuff. If their headphones ever unplugged they’d have a LOT to explain even while living in Rapechestershire.

Do they read erotica? Juno has read lots of erotica before. It’s also one of the things she continues to read just out of curiosity. 457 notes on a 30 chapter book about every grammatical error, relationship flaw, and sexual inconsistency. Luka hasn’t and isn’t interested. Roman has before and does sometimes.

Have they ever cried during sex? Juno hasn’t. Roman and Luka have, but Luka cries regularly. It’s incredibly easy to overstimulate him.

Have they ever faked an orgasm? Yes, all around. Roman and Juno have for the same reason: “Man, when will this person cum already so I can DO MY SHIT.” Luka has before cause the one night stand was AWFUL and he wanted to just go home so he could jerk it.

Have they ever had sex in a public place? Juno avidly avoids it. She doesn’t wanna do anything that’ll get her in trouble ESPECIALLY with the law. Luka and Roman first met fucking in an alleyway though. Luka is a regular to adding cum onto the floor of the residential alleyway, but Roman tries not to overdo the public aspect. They like to take things slow, but getting to spend time in Luka’s house is a bonus.

Have they ever had sex in the shower? Roman and Luka do constantly, but Juno never invited anyone into her house before PC if they trigger that event.

Have they ever spanked or been spanked in the bedroom? Juno has before and allowed it once. Didn’t react, didn’t enjoy it. It was during an encounter with a random person in town too who KNEW her vaguely, so it was really jarring for them to see her go from her puppy persona into dead face vague annoyance. Ended the encounter soon after. Luka enjoys being spanked but impact isn’t on the top of his list. He prefers actual wounds over impact play. The longer it’ll last on him, the hornier he’ll feel about it. In fact you can instantly start an encounter with him by bringing up a wound you gave him if you have 40% love or higher. Roman enjoys slapping people but not spanking as much. They also don’t have much strength besides grip strength to be spanking people anyways. For sex it’s all about THEM, and hurting their wrists is like… eh.

Have they/would they have a threesome? Rapechestershire doesn’t really give you a choice there. Juno rarely cares for people enough to initiate sex in the first place, and Roman wants to keep appearances of purity as much as possible. Luka has and wouldn’t mind them again if Roman brought it up.

How do they feel about public displays of affection? Juno is public enemy number one of casual PDA. Also with how people see her like a puppy, no one bats an eye when you have friendly PDA with her. On the other hand, if you kiss her, people will treat it like being annoying with your dog in public. Luka doesn’t enjoy much PDA tbh. He kinda values his infamy and intimidation around town. It was defense at first and now it’s a habit. He also wouldn’t wanna put a target on anyone’s back since the underworld knows they can’t get to him. Roman is visibly and audibly praying for god to smite you down. Which one? They’re going down the list. Half for their purity facade but also because they find couples sucking faces in public as a nuisance.

Is it good sex even if they don't cum? Juno probably won’t. Unless the person is REALLY good at it and has max stats then she isn’t gonna wanna deal with that. Her stance is that bodily responses can be cleaned up later, but if the other person has max stats that gives her a new goal to one up them. Luka and Roman are hard cause they both enjoy overstimulation over edging, so they’re already in a mindset to cum easily so they can go again and stack it. Before they met though, it wasn’t the case. Neither of them care too much about not cumming during casual sex with people they don’t care about. Roman definitely wants to cum if they’re in control though, whether it’s with Luka or not.

Tongue or no tongue while kissing? Tongue. Juno prefers no tongue if it’s casual sex, but tongue absolutely if she’s taking her time. She needs your head to be melting with her. Luka has a fat yappers tongue and will be making you dizzy from oxygen deprivation. Huge hand on the back of your neck holding you steady while he goes in for more. The rule of thumb for him and sex is that if he’s bottoming he’ll take ANYTHING and everything that you give him, and if he’s on top he’s actually still taking everything. Roman actually prefers no tongue. It feels more taboo to them. It has a dirty defiling aspect to it that they enjoy.

What is their most taboo kink? Roman and Luka hold hands with his “please beat my ass”-ism.

What are their thoughts on friends with benefits? I mean it’s Rapechestershire. Juno wouldn’t care, that’s the most common type of sex she has considering a lot of people see themselves as friends with her. Luka had mostly friends with benefits before meeting Roman. Typical Rapechestershire encounters weren’t for him, but he couldn’t really have the sex he wanted most of the time. Roman has such a specific way they like having sex, and if it’s not in that way, they aren’t into it. There’s just a lot of talking and establishment that people in town aren’t willing to deal with. If they’re close to someone to wanna have sex, they’re probably not the type of person to want it or expect it, plus the whole having to preserve the TF. TLDR: they’d be open to it, but they take a while to let people even know they like sex at all, so chances are they’d be officially involved with someone before bringing it up.

What do they like and dislike about oral sex? Juno and Roman dislike giving oral. Juno prefers it over having to take anything else, but it doesn’t mean she enjoys it unless she can take her time with someone she’s at least friends with. Luka is a certified oral freak. He loves receiving, but he loves giving even more. The dude just loves the taste of sex. His least favorite part is when the person tries to get away from the overstim.

What do they think about toys in the bedroom? Juno probably would use them. She’d unretire her vibrator if you have a romantic encounter at her house. Luka and Roman regularly use them. Roman really enjoys toys as much as using their own hands. Luka prefers direct touch a bit more though. Something something, break me apart with your own hands.

What do they wear to bed? Juno wears a Victoria Secret pj set. Luka wears a shark blanket cape on top of a shitty tank top and pair of shorts. Roman wears a cute white chemise.

What do they wear when they want to feel attractive? All of them have really good confidence. They feel attractive in anything even if it’s not their style.

What is something that never fails to make them horny? Juno doesn’t really get horny, but something that makes her want to kiss others and make out just casually is mornings with others. Waking up with people is nice to her considering she didn’t wake up to other people in the house growing up, and since she was always home it made mornings empty. Nothing gets Luka off more than pointing out marks you’ve left on him. Instant way to make him soggy and barking for you. To be honest, Roman can get turned on by a lot of things. Nothing is the top thing for them, but there’s a few. The easiest one would be just begging towards them in any way.

What is the first thing that draws their attention when they meet someone new? Lots of things can get Juno’s attention. She’s watching a lot of people casually, and she finds everyone interesting in some kind of way even if it’s just them being a type of person. She also just enjoys approaching people and getting to talk to them. Juno doesn’t look at physical aspects from people until she knows them well, once she’s already attracted to them, she likes peoples lips. Luka enjoys confidence in people. Someone approaching him aggressively would put him on edge for a fight, but someone being very clear and curt about what they want would be attractive to him. Physically he tends to look at peoples collarbones first. Roman is also pretty observant towards others behavior like Juno is. They tend to notice a person’s demeanor first, but opposite to Juno, they’re looking at what will be the most useful aspect of their temperament. Physically, Roman tends to look at people’s faces first, but they linger more on shoulders.

What is their biggest turn-off? Juno will end any encounter with anyone if they try to drag her into the public. She is NAWT getting dragged into something illegal. Luka really hates someone just trying to degrade him without any set up. He’s a strong believer that both parties should be enjoying themselves here. Roman has a lot of turn-offs, but the biggest is when people in town try to force themselves on top. They are NOT putting up with sex that doesn’t give them the control they crave.

What is their favorite color to wear? Juno: Pink (Accents of teal, blue, white, and yellow. She likes a race car vibe a lot.) Luka: Grey. (He likes neutral colors like browns, muddy greens, and dark blue.) Roman: White (They like wearing angelic colors. They’re a monochrome kinda person with some yellow accents if they’re gonna do a color.)

What is their favorite kind of foreplay? Answered in another one but I’ll keep it here for other people to use.

What is their favorite kink and why? Juno enjoys sensation play a lot. A very close second is gagging for a 2-1 deal. Luka likes marking a lot, both for the mess and time it stays of it. In his eyes, hurting him is also a part of forcing affection onto him. He also really enjoys the marking aspect of things. Roman enjoys blood play a lot. They just enjoy getting to indulge in their own urges to hurt people in a safe(r) environment.

What is their favorite part of their body? Juno… m. She shamelessly enjoys her own chest as a low hanging fruit answer. Her second favorite part of herself is her biceps. She’s beefy! Mention it!!! I mean she covers it up cause sensitive shoulders- but still. Luka.. thumbs down. He loves his own dick. Also loves his hips. And his pecs. He’s usually wearing a ton of layers, but it’s out of utility. He really likes his body. Roman really loves their own face. All of it. They have a lot of pride in the expressions and features they’ve worked hard to perfect.

What is their favorite pet name? Juno enjoys being called pet. No further comment. No preference on what she calls others, and she’s GONNA ask you, so be mentally prepped. Luka will take anything, but he likes mutt. He likes calling others good though. He can and will be growling in your ear, good girl/boy, no gender? No problem. He’s gonna still be sobbing about how good it is into your shoulder. Roman enjoys being called Dearest, but they’ll take anything traditional. They don’t have a preference on what they call others.

What is their favorite position in the bedroom? Juno and Roman both like straddling and having the person sit in their lap as they hug them from behind. Juno prefers being intertwined with people while Roman prefers them in their lap. Luka loves spooning. No further. He likes being wrapped up with people as closely as possible. Absolutely menace going to bed at night.

What is their favorite type of non-sexual contact? Juno likes hand holding a lot. Luka likes kissing people but it’ll probably turn sexual for the other person. He just likes kissing and making out but for the other person they’re light headed by this dumbass eating them. Completely no room to turn it sexual answer is he likes hugging a lot. He’s always hanging off of his friends from behind (kinda hard being huge). Roman enjoys lap pillows, both giving and receiving. They only give them if they’re in a great mood though, so feel honored.

What is their newest kink? Roman and Luka both discovered the mutual blood kink together.

What is their top sexual fantasy? Juno probably fantasizes a lot more about aftercare and mornings after. Luka hasn’t talked about it yet, but he’s been itching to be put in a collar and dog bone gag. Roman……….. not gonna lie their deepest top secret fantasies are probably just all snuff. Another one would be getting worshipped in the Temple and fucked on the altar when they’re super stressed and annoyed by them.

Which part of their body do they consider the most sexy? Answered in 49. They all have self confidence in their body and draw attention to the parts they find most attractive on themselves.

Would they have sex on the first date? Same for kissing on a date. Juno and Luka don’t care but Roman will put up an act at least.

Would they rather be handcuffed or blindfolded? Juno would prefer to be blindfolded, but Luka enjoys the fight in being bound up. You’d probably need a bit more than cuffs for him though- Roman doesn’t have much of a preference. They can enjoy the art in both.

Would they rather make out or cuddle? Juno would rather cuddle but Luka and Roman prefer making out. Luka versus his massive oral fixation.

[0poole]

Some Retrospective Thoughts on Gen 7

Galar’s making me go nuts. You already know. Let’s look back on Alola because why not. I feel like I have stuff to say about it. Also, I just watched the last episode of the Alolan Anime, so there’s that.

Whenever I first think back to Gen 7, I think “Eh, it was alright. Nothing special, I guess.” The Pokemon were decent, apart from being almost universally slow, apart from like 3 speed demons, the starters weren’t much, the story was alright, the location was alright, etc. etc. 

Then, I ACTUALLY think back, and I realize… I have no idea why I was thinking that. This generation was actually amazing.

First of all, they finally put the motif of the Sun and Moon into game types. It’s definitely a breath of fresh air after they tried to use the fucking dimensions in 3D space for titles in Gen 6 (Loved that gen too, but seriously “Life” and “Death” would both be more fitting and not as strange. Maybe they don’t want “Death” as a title tho). Really fits in with how naturally themed everything is too, which is obviously for the best, since this is the most “natural” game to date. Even though we technically already had an America-based region in Unova, Hawai’i is so unique in its own right it definitely fits for a region. I’m usually the type who doesn’t like super overt themes in things, and kind of just wants a very generalized experience, but it’s probably for the good of everyone that they don’t actually follow through with that idea. 

Probably the biggest thing to come out of this generation is the new habit of them posting short little videos on Youtube revealing new Pokemon/features/etc. Obviously they were super trigger happy with them then, but now it seems they’ve taken a step back a little. I do love this idea, though, because it actually hypes me up more than anything else ever could. I remember before, even though I was kinda-sorta trying to follow the updates on Gens 4-6, I never really felt like I could, and even though I was going to get the games no matter what, now I realize I really want to know what I’m getting into. 

I remember exactly where I was for some of the major announcements. For the starters, I was in my high school geometry class, where I watched and re-watched that video dozens of times just so I could keep looking at them. I started off on Rowlet’s side of course, but once I realized he was getting all the attention and ol Popplio was getting basically none, I changed my allegiance and stayed there to this day. Ignoring the fact that I don’t really like any of the final evolutions enough to actually use them in game, I LOVE Popplio himself. It’s seriously a shame that he didn’t become some clown seal like everyone was speculating. Unlike how it seems, I really, really like “normal” clown characters (as in, not “horror” clowns), so he could’ve easily become one of my favorites in that case. Decidueye is definitely my favorite of the final forms, and Incineroar I think is still underrated. Sure, whatever, he’s bipedal, and it’s weirder than it otherwise would be, but for some reason I love how his mouth was an actual modeled mouth and not just an image slapped on there like most Pokemon. It really made him more expressive than the average Pokemon. Plus, the animation for Darkest Lariat is really cool, with his hands flashing against a flat back background for a second before actually doing the move. Even better, it’s great meme potential when hacked onto other Pokemon, like Wailord.

I don’t remember if Solgaleo and Lunala were introduced in that first trailer too, but either way I love both of them. I was a bit more drawn to Solgaleo at first, but Lunala has since grown to be one of my favorite legendaries of all. The starry wings, golden rims, and white skeleton-y body are such a great combo. And yeah, sure, Solgaleo would’ve been more fitting as a fire type or whatever, but since stars form the heavy metals that make it onto planets it’s fine. I won’t accept that Lunala should’ve been a dark type, though. The Moon is a major embodiment of light in the night sky, so if anything it shouldn’t be related to darkness. As for Necrozma, I love his base form a lot. It’s such a strange look, especially how the back of his head is transparent. It’s the perfect “evil prism” pokemon. I really just wish Ultra Necrozma had more detail to him, though. He looks so flat for such a major figure in the games… At least he had a good battle and an even BETTER theme song, hot damn

Guess that’s a good transition to talk about the music, and I guess tangentially about Team Skull, since they were probably the best possible departure from the usual “Evil Team” formula. Them just being random hooligans causing trouble instead of a formal organization trying for world domination is a good change of pace, as pretty much everyone agrees… It wouldn’t have been so great if they didn’t at least try to incorporate rap/trap music into their themes. They’re probably the most music-oriented Team canonically speaking, so they’d have to have a great theme. Also, the idea that they feel left behind by the traditions of the Trials really makes sense, since something so important in their culture would definitely make someone feel left out if they couldn’t get through it. 

Other themes for the more calm situations, like Hau’oli City’s night theme, are also extremely good. I didn’t even realize how much I loved that track until I heard Insaneintherain’s cover of it. It almost sounds like something out of Steven Universe, for how pleasant it is (apart from the piano). Lillie’s theme still gives me the warm fuzzies every time I hear it, too. I don’t think a single game before this has ever done the credits so well, too. Apart from the fun artwork, the last shot of Lillie and the game’s legendary actually just kills me every time. She’s such an adorable, pure soul, it’s crazy to think that when she was first revealed, we thought she was the secret supervillain of the game, just because she looked kinda peeved in her official art. We weren’t far off, though, with the Aether Foundation and all. I love both the calm theme of the Paradise itself AND their evil battle theme. Even though one is obviously an evil theme, it does feel like it came from the same source. Same goes for Lusamine’s theme. I really love the Aether Foundation as a whole too, where we can now have “Good” Foundation archetypes to counter the Evil Team archetype. Plus, their designs all involve white with gold accents, which is basically my brand. I tried to design my own Aether outfit the instant I saw them, since I love their look so much. 

As for battle themes, I love how jazzy Galdion’s battle theme ended up. It made him so much more interesting than just a generic edgelord. The Elite Four’s battle theme might actually be the scariest theme to date for some reason, and yet all I can picture when listening to it is Acerola bobbing joyfully back and forth… Basically the same way, the Tapu battle theme is also pretty crazy, with tribal chants in the back of it. The Tapus are probably the coolest group of legendaries in the game, considering how unique they are, with their oddly wooden shells that represent animals. It really makes them feel like spirits brought about by the people of Alola themselves, instead of just some being that came out of nowhere. Probably the one theme that is the most nostalgic (yes, I know it was only 3 years ago, you can still feel nostalgia damnit) for me is the Kahuna battle theme. It was probably just some random comment on Youtube, but somewhere someone said that it was the perfect theme because it starts off intimidating, but quickly switches into a super fun melody, because ultimately, the Island Challenge is for fun. I just love that. I’m always looking for “Fun” stuff in pretty much everything, so I like a theme that represents that. Also, it’s just super catchy, and even expanded upon in Pokemon Masters. Let it be known that Hapu is the best Kahuna by the way. She cute. Also, watching her become the Kahuna is the best world building you could possibly muster up for this kind of setting. 

Of course, I’m intentionally leaving out a certain group…

You know what I think of when I think of Hawai’i? Pearly white sand beaches… Palm trees… Fruity drinks… oh, and let’s not forget fucking interdimensional aliens. 

The Ultra Beasts are the exact type of thing I’d want to insert into the Pokemon world, and that’s why I love them. They’re so weird in the best ways possible. When they were introduced in a trailer, I had the same reaction as I did with Type: Null. They put him up on the screen for a bit and was like “Haha here’s ‘Type: Null,’ okay next” like EXCUSE ME? YOU CAN’T JUST SHOW ME A POKEMON CALLED “Type: Null” AND NOT EXPLAIN WHAT’S GOING ON. Of course, that’s kind of what the games were for, but it was seriously a shock to the system to see Pokemon with code names instead of actual names. You also can’t convince me that Pheromosa wasn’t designed after Lusamine, and to a lesser extent that Xurkitree wasn’t designed after Guzma. I think it’s canon that Lusamine styled Lillie after Nihilego in her crazed state, but the uncanny likeness between those other two is pretty darn notable. I think from the first batch, Celesteela was my favorite of them all, being like a rusted copper rocket ship or something, who can even smack you with her two giant rockets. Also, Pokemon directly based on folktales are always welcome, no matter what. Meanwhile, with the Ultra games being the first sequels to introduce brand-new Pokemon, Blacephalon easily took top spot. I did say I liked clowns, didn’t I? Plus, the biggest evidence that he’s best boi is that in the anime when he appeared, he didn’t even try to attack anything. He just wanted to show off (specifically, believe it or not, by moonwalking… Whoever’s idea that was needs a raise). I also love detachable heads, which is a great idea to mix with clowns, and I guess also fireworks in this case… I just love him. I really hope that there will be future instances of Ultra Beasts, since it’s apparently super easy to just make them however the hell you want them, and since you’re not limited to a region’s natural environment. Lord knows whoever designed Buzzwole didn’t have any limitations. Exploring his, and really all of their worlds in USUM was extremely fun. It’s a damn shame Blacephalon and Stakataka (again, what a name) didn’t get the same privilege. 

As for the Pokemon as a whole, like I mentioned, off the top of my head I don’t feel super crazy about many of them, even though that’s a total lie. Shiinotic appealed to my inner mushroom-character-lover so much that I basically designed a character that looked identical to him. He’s easily the best mushroom Pokemon to date, where he looks pretty cute while also being just slightly creepy enough, with those souless eyes. The concept for Araquanid is amazing, where he’s a reverse Diving Bell spider. I might’ve designed him a bit differently, but he still looks super cool. The ideas behind Oranguru and Passimian are also cool, since we haven’t delved much into intelligent ape Pokemon enough. Wishiwashi is another great concept, and probably the best fish Pokemon in my opinion because of it. Lurantis and Minior are total cuties, the latter being one of those Pokemon that isn’t always in the forefront of my mind, but the instant it is it reclaims its place as one of my all-time favorites. Golisopod and Kommo-o are two of the coolest Pokemon designs to me, the latter being my all-time favorite Pseudo-Legendary. Vikavolt looks awesome, despite being deceptively slow. Dhelmise looks weird until you realize it’s actually insanely large (like, Wailord large). Mudsdale is just an all-around good-looking horse. Oricorio also looks really cool, especially in her fiery form. Tsareena is, well… Tsareena… That’s not even including the adorable Magearna and Marshadow, who are in generational limbo… Also, I think Mimikyu might be the overall best addition to the franchise ever. No Pika-clone could ever compare. 

I mean, specifically as far as a single Pokemon goes, Mimikyu is definitely the best addition to the franchise. Meanwhile, as far as concepts go, the absolutely HUGE idea of Regional Variants is the best addition. Again, I remember where I was when I heard the announcement: it was some sort of weird fantasy house, with a ton of cool details in it to make it look like a setting in some movie or something. It was awesome there, even if we were staying for only a night or so I think. Either way, the concept of different Pokemon adapting to different conditions in the region is the most perfect way to bring attention back to older Pokemon, and I’m so glad they seem to want to keep the idea for all future generations too. It’s especially fitting for Alola, since it’s a super remote island. I love how goofy Alolan Exeggutor is, especially because everyone else seems to love his goofiness too. Same sort of goes for Dugtrio, since his hair is actually based on a real thing… Marowak becoming a spiritual fire dancer is definitely the best possible iteration for him. My favorite might be the colorful Alolan Muk, though, even if Alolan Vulpix is infinitely cuter and better than fiery Vulpix in every way. I cannot be convinced otherwise.

Also, she’s a perfect fit for Lillie, so I guess I’ll use that as my transition into talking about the characters/anime. I’m just gonna be real with you. I’m not going to hold back. Alola has some of the cutest girls in the entire franchise. But first of all, let’s divert that train and instead lust after a man who is easily the hottest professor in the games yet, Kukui. What self-respecting researcher wouldn’t wear his professor-mandated lab coat without any undershirt? He needs his bulging abs as target practice for his Pokemon’s moves, people. He needs to let them breathe. Also, I was kind of enamoured with Sycamore before him, but you can’t deny the tinted skin gets to you a little. Burnet’s a lucky gal, let’s just say.

Okay, now that we’ve established that my pants don’t discriminate, we have to talk about Wicke. So now that that’s covered, can I just say I love Mina? I’d say she deserves more attention, but she was the only Alolan to make it into Lets Go for some reason, so I guess she’s well off? First of all, I love hippie-esque girls (idealized hippies, at least), so that’s a major plus… I mean, I should probably stop using the word “cute” altogether because it applies to every girl in the game, but yeah. Lana’s highly deserved spotlight in the anime made me love her too, where she was a perfect combination of extroverted while still more soft-spoken. I don’t know if that kind of characters’ an anime trope, but lord knows it’s not in western media, so I love how unique her personality is. Her interacting with Mallow and Lillie in cute, girly ways felt so wholesome. If the anime’s anything, it’s wholesome. 

One sec, though. I have to mention that I really like Hau. He’s obviously the one pinned as “Boo, he’s not a giga-asshole! That means he’s bad!” because I guess the fandom’s hive mind has collectively agreed that the only good rivals are assholes now. Like I said before, this stuff’s more about fun now. Hau’s a fun friend to fight, to the point where you beat him as the Champion you kinda feel bad for knocking him down so much. You feel bad because you like him, you know. Also, I forgot to mention this earlier but even though he isn’t entirely difficult himself, the trials in these games are actually both a difficult and interesting challenge. A 2v1 where you’re at the disadvantage is a great boss battle idea, especially with the strategies set out by a Pokemon’s different abilities and moves. Probably the best was Totem Lurantis, who of course summoned a Sunny Day-based Castform to activate her Chlorophyll and buff her Solar Blade, while adding a diverse fire type into play. It was really difficult, to be honest. Those who say it wasn’t either got lucky or have insane standards that cannot be met because they’re Pokemon Veterans who know every little thing about everything. I’m pretty much in that camp, and I still had to actually plan during the fight. Same goes for Totem Araquanid in USUM. I literally had to poison (not toxic, base poison) stall that guy because I couldn’t do anything to him otherwise. He was pretty much one-shotting everything I sent out, anyway, so I had to stall however I could. You can’t argue that that means it was “easy” because I knew how to beat him. It’s only “easy” if you can just send out pretty much whatever and do whatever and still win. Then there’s the Rainbow Rocket episode in USUM, which is just crazy… There’s not much to say that isn’t obvious there. It was fun seeing the villains that were victorious in a different dimension.

Anyways, for the anime, I also have a similar stance. It really seemed like the only people who started off hating it were anime nerds who had no concept of an in-between frame. I will say that it was a step down from XY/XYZ though, but those seasons’ quality was unusually high. Compared to the animation quality of every other season, it was so much better. First of all, I really don’t even like “anime style” that much, so a slightly more western style was very welcome. Like pretty much every show ever, the animation quality is seriously high where it counts, so there’s not much to be said about that, but I’d say the overall animation quality is a step up in general. The more simplified style only really looked weird in Ash because we’re so used to his more pointy style. Every other character looked totally fine, in my opinion. 

As for the story, I will say I would’ve wanted the scope of the plot to be much larger, like how with the other seasons Ash was going on an adventure, whereas here it was very contained, and centered around the Pokemon School. But, still, like I mentioned, I did enjoy the casual wholesomeness of it all. Not only do I just like mindless fun, but it made the crazy shit feel even crazier. The episode where Faba was trying to catch Nebby is a perfect example. It begins with a nice fun game of all the Pokemon and people jumping rope and having a good time, with some slapstick humor with Faba failing to capture Nebby. Then he does, and shit goes down. First of all, he’s torturing the little thing. Then, ASH (not his Pokemon, Ash himself) tackles Faba. Tell me, what other season had humans fighting other humans? I honestly can’t think of a single time when fighting was done with fists and not Pokemon (although surely I’m forgetting something, there’s gotta be at least one other example, right?) Then, Lillie re-experiences her past trauma of almost being abducted by Nihilego, except now her mom gets abducted in her place… Like, what happened? It was so cute a second ago. That’s always the selling point for any cartoon, for me. Stay casual for a decent amount, then break it with some uncharacteristically high tension. The same goes for the segment where Ash goes into Guzzlord’s post apocalyptic dimension. As for mega-feels, It’s great that they made Litten/Torracat an actual character instead of just some random Pokemon, with Stoutland and whatnot. The episode where they go into Tapu Fini’s mist and Mallow meets her mother, and Torracat meets Stoutland just destroyed me. It was strategically remedied by Lillie and Gladion not seeing their father, suggesting he’s still alive. There were some really great episodes in the season, for sure.

So, yeah… Alola was a good time. Don’t deny it. Galar’s gonna be great too. No game’s ever going to be perfect, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be fun.