#I’m so invested in the mining community portrayed

[mycological-mariner]

Cornish history person just started watching Poldark. A friend said she had a theory it was all just funded by the Cornish tourism board and tbh, valid. Lead guy is just too conventionally attractive to be attractive. Everyone has nice hair. Only antagonists have period-appropriate hair (at least for the gents). I don’t like this. I don’t really care about the romance either (obviously) BUT the economic and political side of things is pretty good. I did appreciate mention of the Welsh mines thriving as a part of the reason why Cornish mines were shutting down (obviously not the whole reason and an oversimplification but still). On the topic of the Welsh mines, back in the day, it was Welsh coal that was used to fuel mines up the north coast (Botallack, Levant, Geevor, etc) because it was just more cost effective; Wales was coming up with so much coal they had a surplus and ships could easily come from Wales to Cornwall instead of by land from much farther north and at greater expense. Welsh coal is rare nowadays but if you go up to any mines you might be able to find some burnt chunks. Kind of wished they’d mentioned it in the show because the use of Welsh coal was a part of what kept the mines in Cornwall going. A sort of historical irony.

My main takeaway is basically rich people Fucking Suck

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL

April 2021 Part 2

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Love Poison 2 Ep 3 - incomprehensible plot, confusing characters, terrible audio, I’m dropping this one. 

Second Chance Ep 2 - they are my adorable babies and I LOVE THEM. Must protect Jeno at all cost. Chris, come on, boy needs you. (They’re the jock/nerd pair.) Then there’s the friend-to-lovers (Paper & Fah) and cafe cute boys (M & Near). We got artful injury tending (finger & lip) and some jealousy or something. Is the script good? Hell no. Is anything happening? Nope. But I’m INVESTED in the nothingness. 

Lovely Writer Ep 7 - mostly set in the past, but the child actors they got were decent. I actually liked how they explained Sib’s behavior (I mean losing your BFF + figuring out you’re gay at the same time gotta mess with your head). We got touch my lip, carry baby to bed, let’s sleep facing, face touch, hair touch, and a hand kiss as well as The Kiss. With so many intimacy and caring tropes, I’m well pleased.  BONUS: NO SOUND EFFECTS. Please make then have fired the sound tech. OHPLEAESEOHPLEASEOHPLEASE. 

Fish Upon The Sky Ep 1 - I like it. Might as well break the 4th wall if you’re gonna do a voice over. Some super cringy moments but I think that’ll improve post makeover. Yet again we have a BL poking fun at its own tropes. 2021 is definitely the year of meta. Oh and Phuwin’s English is really good. 

Call It What You Want Ep 1-2 - it’s slow and more arty than I expected. The actor playing the main character looks eerily like Up (Gene in Lovely Writer) + an ex of mine - it’s disconcerting. 

Brothers Ep 10 - my two got together and ARE ADORABLE. I actually really like how they dealt with Khun’s seme ownership freak out. That’s some sexy communicating, boys! So many couples (and triads) I’m well confused, but I only love KhunKaow so no one else matters.  

Y-Destiny Ep 2 - cute, bit raunchy, kinda fun, about a million tropes in one tiny ep. I’m getting So Much in Love meets something from Strongberry. No bad thing... no real good thing either. But I was expecting a lot worse. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai 

HIStory 4: Close To You (Taiwan) Ep 4 (AKA Ep 7-8) - I don’t wanna blog about it. I can’t even think about it. I’m still gonna keep watching it. Conclusion? I’m trash. 

Word of Honor (China) Ep 22-24 - Wen is as much as a drama queen as Gene (in his own special way). Most of his past is now revealed plus obligatory bathing scene. (Is Gong Jun contractually obliged to be topless in all his dramas or is it just for the good of the planet? Asking for a friend.) A good 60% of the time I have no idea what is going on (so many names! who is this Lovelace putz allasudden?) but I don’t care cause they so pretty. 

Most Peaceful Place (Vietnam) Ep 3 - didn’t drop this week, or was it only 2 episodes? I’m so confused. 

We Best Love 2 (Taiwan) Ep 6 fin - It’s GREAT, they’re great, everyone’s great, the world is great. So pleased to get Shu Yi and his dad talking Japanese. I love it when Taiwan makes use of bilingual actors (see Because of You) almost as much as them flexing their marriage equality muscles. The full circle pool kiss was adorable and this series is officially a favorite. (@heretherebedork your boys don’t end unhappily but they don’t get an HEA either, everyone else does. I think you’d be okay with this one.) 

Stand Alones 

Tell the World I Love You (Thai BL movie) released into theaters? Or not? Haven’t heard anything about it. 

Breaking News 

Bite Me got a full trailer and it looks GOOD. Mark Siwat seems to be carrying this one, which is fine, we all know he can (especially if you’ve seen his non-LBC stuff). Quality controls seem relatively high, although this may only be a fund-raising trailer. No eng subs at last check but I’m disposed to be hopeful. It feels like we are in Oxygen territory and that was one of my favorites last year. 

You’re My Sky dropped what they’re calling an “official pilot.” No eng subs. I think this is a tester trailer to raise funds. MDL listing makes this sound like a standard college BL, but trailer portrays a sports romance. Stars almost-familiar new faces from Y-Destiny. It’s like we have a new crop of BL actors chomping at the bit to take over from MaxTul or MewGulf, and with the 91 line aging out*, maybe they aren’t wrong? 

* Don’t crawl into my craw, they’ve most of ‘em said they don’t wanna keep doing BL after turning 30 and frankly, why should they? 

Gossip 

Nitiman dropped BTS from their publicity shoot. No eng subs. 

Next Week Looks Like This:

Some shows may be listed later than actual air date for International accessibility reasons. 

Upcoming 2021 BL master post here.

Links to watch are provided when possible, ask in a comment if I missed something.

Spring Line Up:

Close Friend the series (Thai trailer) April 22.

2gether the movie (Thai trailer) April 22 to Thai theaters.

Nitiman (Thai) May 7 on One31.

I Told Sunset About You 2 (Thai) May 27 on LineTV

Ossan’s Love (Hong Kong) June to Viu

I joined MDL under this handle AbsoluteBL. Find me there if you like, currently it’s just ratings, tracking, & three lists: 

Japanese BL & Live Action Yaoi Manga

Korean BL

Taiwanese BL

[captainkurosolaire]

I challenge you to pick five Tumblrs in your social circle and tell them something you admire about their blog!

Only 5? I could probably do 500. However, that's determined by what's considered my social circle. I'm often in my head being incredibly social continuously is really a challenge of mine. I'm always actively marching to something, my flame of passion when I have it, I can do some crazy stuff but it diminishes relatively quickly, so I try to cling. But I'll up your thing and list 25 of my fave people. Ask me this same thing in a Month, I'll keep doing 25, until I do all the people. How about that? (If anyone wants to be taken off mention let me know.)

@eligos-venator

- Has one of the most intelligent and sophisticated minds, I've had the pleasure to know. Literally admire all his aesthetics, work, head-cannons, ideas. It's only a benefit that the dude shares some OC characteristics to my own (Winning features). I really enjoyed the short-thread we did. It was incomplete, mainly because of my faults. I want to actually be better to give him a proper delivery and RP worth his time, but he's incredibly worth the investment of eyes.

@mischiefandmystics

- If there was a Mount Rushmoore of writers who kept me in this endeavor, encouraged me. Sun'ra is one of them. His characterization skills, writing, the delivery and how believable his character is, they're masterful acts.

@mishivymendi

- I wouldn't be nearly tamed or as creatively freed if it wasn't for this gem. She broke my shell, I really didn't at a time ever see myself being anything really beyond a smut writer, but Mishi not only saw potential in me, but brought it out. Her stories and world's she brings to life are so majestically colorful.

@asymphonyofash

- My go-to. He's another pillar individual who saw things in me past just the obvious perception, (Probably second longest XIV RPer I know.) Taught me a lot of the lore, I shot him up and he's sort of become my stapled rock. He's right aside Sun'ra met them about the same, both took me under their wing's as I quietly observed and absorbed.

@lavender-hemlock

- We're always up and front with each other, never feeling like I couldn't say anything around, extremely rare to share that these days. Her gif's are legendary, something on my own terms I want to soar in quality. The writing she does is astounding. Character has so many mysterious pages that are quite addictive to want to explore and learn them. (Encore 20 below-cut)

@under-the-blood-moonlight - Her sweetness and artwork and overall is just a friendly presence to be around. I cherish them so much. One I can jive with more darker undertones with. She's one the most hardworking and ambitiously creative people. I'd mail them infinite hugs if could. Thanks for being you! @roxinova - I owe a lot of credit to her. She's constantly OOC and everything was nudging me too be more inclusive to things and involved heavenly. It's rare for me. I'm really horrible about that my autism sets me back socially, I constantly will be drowned by the next day and be reverted back to better off alone, that's my major crux and weakness. But her thoughtfulness, these things, aren't ever foreign to me, I do pay attention probably better than any would ever give me credit. She's a beacon model to have as a friend. @corpse-dancer - Haven't ran into many words with them, but her character, screenshot game, expressiveness, they're all a marvel to constantly see, alongside her attitude and bringing life character. I do think if I were better, we would click quite splendidly. They've recently reminded and motivated me to pick-up my daily-practice, or try too. Keep being a rockstar. @fair-fae - Few who wouldn't know who she is in this community. She's been in my opinion a huge core. I'm certain she's inspired many who weren't even RPers too try it by seeing her at the Quicksands or elsewhere, a tyme ago. Making no exception, I was even one of those. I used to be in QS every-single day and was often doing my shameless stuff. Though her presence first did show me there's a lot more. I admire her in all fields. Also appreciate her adopting me to the FC and her always thinking of others and giving events, or her aesthetics and portrayal, its the epitome of swan elegance. @thorcat - One of my most treasured friends. Been RPing with them for a longtime. There's never anything complicated between us or a rift of drama, it's just let's go and have fun. We really mesh well, I've welcomed nearly ever character and got the privilege to RP with nearly all them. They always open up envelope and help me, settle on back and just laugh. Whether used to be waking up to their characters humping my afk one or use randomly having a hardcore banter between Ufah and Captain and capturing them as a voidal pet. Memories with them isn't something I'd ever want to lose. I love ya! Never stop enjoying life for anything. @lukawarrioroflight - I get in the gutter find myself lacking motivation or writing, discouraged even... But I never have felt, I could ever do any wrong with this person, they bring the light out of me. So no matter what, how many hospital-beds I yearly visit, it's because of this rare nature, that I come back, even if they're the only one's ever to read my stuff. I would do it for them alone. @scholarlybreadbun - I've only been back recently and they've so much warmth. Their presence is the sun of inviting. The couple and posing all the shipping that stuff makes me even melt. I'm not particularly talented in regards to posing couples, but I took notice of them along time ago and set on quietly improving. Really like them for them, wouldn't ever want them to change that. Ideally look forward to be in their orbit longer so I can bask in them. @seascrapes - Been mutual with them for a while. Their aesthetics and character is all S+ level. I appreciate throwing back tagged prompts with them, one of many people I really think would be enjoyable to collab with any other seafarers. The artwork and pieces of Tal Brook, are breathtaking as ever exceptionally too, not to mention. Love your stuff matey, you're a king. @mai-takeda - Is a myth. Her absolutely sheer friendliness and her attitude, are so positive influencing, I was so thrilled to be welcomed with her and boosted by them early on. I couldn't see myself, wanting to exist where they didn't have happiness like the same she always delivers by just doing so many soft-things. Not to mention her writing... She's a whole world to throw yourself gazes

under. @zhauric - It doesn't go far either without the same breath of Mai, I could say about Zhauric. He's someone worthy to look-up and also recognize they're passionate and inviting, hoisting up literally everything. Could easily find any of their characters comrades with my own, or jiving alongside. Not to mention last XIVWrite, they slaughtered it. So enjoyable to read them all. I like how organized their blog is too, motivated me recently to redux my entire thing. @cadrenebula - They have so many diverse characters and their entire roster is vibrant and is imbued with a massive flux of life. They are able to encapsulate so many character's voices and portray them so effectively too, I really admire that greatly. They've made me think bigger and try myself recently at actually undertaking a huge roster of characters too. I've taken many breaks, but I always am so graciously returned often with them close-by and that's so incredibly sacred. I've seen a lot of people get discouraged or quit, leave, departure, etc. But they always seem to have a bigger house then they had last I took a break and I enjoy peaking in. @silvernsteel - Her artist and gif-work are awe-aspiring, there's little unrecognizable by her photo-sets and edits. They helped me even tip-toe into uncharted with giving me the recipes to try incorporating gifs into my arsenal. Plus so delightfully pleasant to actually talk with and just chill. I want nothing less in life, than the beauty they give, to be returned to them for eternity in all their glorious air. If ever needed anything of me, they've got me. @spotofmummery - We talk about passion or friendliness or overall a person to even remotely try to be, I got to include them. Their web-series and writing, screen-work, everything they do is fantastic. And that's furthered back nearly any I've met showcase or immortalize how just genuine of stellar person they are. I wish them always the energy to create and sparks. @snow-covered-moon - They've never been anything less but absolutely a diamond to know. I enjoy their character, their almost always abundant of energy that's very rub inducing. Their WoL character stories, writing, screen-shots, everyday they open up a new pandora box of joy, there's no mistaken love behind their character and that's infectiously easy to also enjoy something when the author does too. Always healthy to be around, I never feel short of vitality when they're close-by. @letheofthelost - Always cheerful or least encapsulates with me, they're a carnival ride. Just pure epic story-telling and engaging equally as passionate, constantly writing characters, not looking for anything outside of RP or anything really just being their selves, they fade all others. I love their presence, them as a person. Enjoy any character they'll ever come and throw under me, or a change of pace. Always feels easily understandable between one another. @crow-iv - Together we're an unfiltered, unstoppable wake of pure passionate writers and art. But I would say they're far ahead of me, in every regard. Already able to portray multiple characters in a scene and do such in-depth thinking, alongside even sketch or draw right afterwards or a scene. They're so talented, huge reason I set-out on giving them a Crew of cast and actual stories to-tell when I'm actually caught up and if they interested and we both have the room, I really think if further myself, I can be better and supply more for them to draw and I want to see them soar. I want to give them all my improvements and effectiveness. @trishelle - They've such a reinforcing personality and aura around them that easily bolsters anything that dares thinking they're about to be depleted so energizing. Aesthetics, characters, all them are so lively that further compliment their own mun's great welcoming presence. Worth hundreds of smiles and stars, keep high. Wish I had more time to dedicate to learning you! But I do notice and appreciate you. @fracturedfantasia - One of my people, I like to retreat and just talk my full

head-cannons with or learn, share insightful and inquisitive thoughts about philosophies and multi-culture things. Or plotting and in-general, they're a well of information and brimming ideas, they are every making of what makes a quality friend. When you can generally be open-about-all that's a real one right there. Their characters and tarot readings, I always would implore if they're offering. Thanks for giving me any-time. You're truly a treasure. @violet-warder - Never have even came to words with them yet unfortunately but didn't mean as a mutual, I haven't admired all their screenies, writing, or the aesthetics they bring of their character. Glamours is real end-game, I like all what you've done and put together. I care strictly about what represent and give, I don't want to see them ever think anyone want's them gone, they are abundantly so talented and possess things only they can deliver. I think recently came back too, and I'm glad to share, hopefully, overtime I can build you better up. Or eventually even talk, but I'm certain you are a busy-body person too, so we're relatable. @layla-grey - I have a lot of underline issues that set me back as a flawed person, but I've never not been anything but someone who's open, it's why I always do include my f-list in anything or etc. I'm not here to present this facade, and really don't care to be an image crafted by another. No one as of recently or now, am I close with as an RP partner or friend with then this stunning masterpiece. I never let-up on story-telling or anything so I can eventually use my Crew or other Characters, to give them anytime a master entertaining day, they push me to not be short-changed. IC and OOC I would devote my full attention too cause they've never shed from me. Didn't ever matter how much silence or anything, they're always around. And don't expect anything out of me or pressure. Just accept me and I equally share that sentiment, I want you to have everything in this world has to offer. ----- This is just a fraction of people, I've paid attention, noticed or know. I've been around in this Community for many years. There's a lot of things I could say about it, more probably then anyone else. But what matters to me, is recognizing the people who are here, that work hard, build others up, support, constantly are a beam. I don't need to interact with everyone, to know when someone is generally out for good. Or they're out for bad I've learned inquisitiveness longtime ago, I had to survive and remain afloat. I just go out and be me, and along the way, I get to find people like these, who help bring out the best me. I am nothing without these people, creators, writers, artist. I'm a terrible friend, horrible person, I don't have the energy to interact NEARLY with as much as I'd like with you all, If I could clone myself, or if things were different, I would drop it all to be in your orbits more if could. But, do know I appreciate you. And even if you ever do depart from this whole community or anything, know that anything you share, or give, that stuff does matter, somewhere, someone was aspired, if nothing else, by me. ONLY you can give the worlds you see and I am thankful. Do love yourself.

[gingersprites]

2020 Fic Year in Review

Total number of published stories: 6 completed, 1 WIP

Total published word count: 64,830

Fandoms written in: GoT/ASoIaF, 911

Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d expected? Definitely more! But that’s mainly due to “running down to the riptide”, which has completely gotten away from me and grown so much more than the July monthly challenge I’d started it as!

What’s your own favorite story of the year? No surprise, “running” has basically become my baby, and as much as I want to finish telling it I know I’ll miss working on it.

Did you take any writing risks this year? Not sure this quite counts, but organizing and running the Theonsa Yule challenge was a big step out of my comfort zone. I’ve never partaken in a gift exchange, much less run one, but I think it’s turned out wonderfully, and I hope to do something similar again in the future!

Do you have any fanfic or profic goals for the new year? I really want to revisit some of my shelved ideas, namely my Sansa goes to dragonstone AU and surprise 🍆 fic. I’d also like to branch out a little, maybe add a follow-up to “let the years we’re here be kind” aka Jonmund’s hippie commune.

Next up: Finally finish “running”! I’ve got two more chapters planned, and I think the next one will really blow your minds.

Most popular story of the year? By kudos, “light switches” with 466.

Story of mine most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, “the blessing”- people just aren’t as interested in character study fics as they are in ships ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Most fun story to write: “Traditions and Tribulations” was an absolute delight to write, which I credit entirely to Tee for her adorable prompt!

Most unintentionally telling story: If I’m being honest, “running” might as well have been titled “watch Ginny project like hell onto Sansa”, though I’d like to think it’s still (mostly) in character.

Biggest disappointment: I never did finish “Metal Bones” like I’d planned; I’ve grown a lot as a writer since I started that fic and I think I’ve just sort of lost interest in it. I still want to finish it, but more for my own personal satisfaction than because I’m that invested in finishing the story.

Biggest surprise: I never expected “light switches” to get the kind of traction it did, and frankly I’m still blown away by the response, but I’m incredibly grateful for the comments, especially those from trans readers who thought I, as a cis writer, did a good job portraying Buck as a trans man.

Tagging: @benhargrieves, @sapphire-reverie, @partialconstellations, @spacekrulesbians, @thecoolestfreakyouknow, @pseudonova

[guerilla935]

My Favorite Games That Made Me Care About How I Looked

I’m very self conscious about the way I look in video games. Not only is it normally very easy to change an outfit or get a haircut in a video game it also says something about how I’d like to be perceived, especially in an online game. There are a lot of games that allow their players to express themselves in a lot of really fun and unique ways and I think that it’s really special when you get to celebrate a style that you would never get to portray in real life. These games that I am about to talk about are all games where I was able to look at my character and feel some ounce of pride at something that I had created. Some full disclosure for these images, I pulled them from official gaming outlets and developer blogs but none of these that you are seeing are my original characters. If anyone would like to request to see any of my characters from these games (or any other games!) I would be happy to go and grab screenshots of those characters.

Grand Theft Auto Online

This is a pretty easy choice for most people. I chose specifically GTA Online over any GTA game or Red Dead game because I think the really special part about this is its setting. Your image is not only your character and your outfit in GTA Online but also your car, your house, and your business. There are a lot of different places to choose to call home and there are a lot of things to get “invested” into. For example, my good friend mojo5 runs a night club and wears suits and spends a lot of time gambling at the casino. That’s a character that would be different than mine who dresses and acts like a street racer. It gives your character a kind of personality and back story that is hard to achieve in other games. I have always kind of considered Grand Theft Auto Online to be a modern MMO of sorts, a playground. And as much as it is a huge lobby where you wait to start activities, it is also a sprawling city-space where you can essential live, make money, create this fun fictional life for yourself. And as far as fashion goes, the outfits, the cars, and the real estate help you shape that fantasy. Basically, I can tell you that I spent way more time customizing my character than I spent in actual activities in Grand Theft Auto Online.

Saint’s Row Series

I love Saint’s Row. It is very similar to the last entry in this article but has this unique and goofy style that makes a lot of things okay that I would never do to my GTA character. In Saint’s Row I can have a neon blue Mohawk wielding a 10 foot melee weapon that is designed to look like something extremely unmentionable while driving a night rider space car that is also a tank and it’s totally fine because in the next cut scene you are about to fight Roddy Piper in Keith Davids nightmares. The games are incredibly wild and I love how I can let loose with a lot of different styles, and in the same way that I feel like I am creating my gritty street racer in GTA, I can make my goofy crime lord super hero secret agent in Saint’s Row. I think specifically in Saint’s Row 2 I took it a little more seriously because the tone of the game is a little more serious than the other entries however I have a specially place in my heart for how wacky each game allows me to be.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons

You knew we couldn’t just not talk about Animal Crossing: New Horizons. With the current situation, the Animal Crossing community is insanely huge. I cannot avoid the heap of Animal Crossing videos and screenshots all over social media. On my island of Sandover Village, I am patiently awaiting the Able Sisters to set up shop so that I am able to put in codes from everyone else’s custom designs that I’m seeing on twitter. That is because I have on my phone a stockpile of sweatshirts, sweaters, robes, and hats that I am actually really excited to show off in game. I tried to create some of my own but I am not one of the gifted seamstress’s that there seems to exist on the internet. I am not very far into Animal Crossing but by looking at other peoples games I know that I have only scratched the surface of my options in the game. I have to commend Nintendo on the amount of individualization that the design pro feature gives to its players. I have never seen a game give players the option to design their own clothing and it makes the social experience of the game feel so fresh.

Dark Souls III

One of the most badass games that I have ever played as far as character design is concerned is Dark Souls III. When I put on a new set of armor I sit in awe of how it looks because I can see each tiny tear in the cape, every dent in the helmet, and the wear and weight of the armor. I was dragged through this game by some friends (because I could never in a thousand years have the patience to beat it by myself) and I followed them to every cursed swamp and death crypt because I wanted to see every weapon and every armor set. You look absolutely ghoulish in every armor set and I love it to death. This game allows so much in the way of customization and I think it helps that almost every gear set is good enough to get you through the entire game and that allows you to play with a lot of different looks and game play styles. This game is tough, really really tough, but you look really good even when you die.

Splatoon 2

Splatoon 2 is a really special online shooter. I think in the month that I played this game religiously the thing that kept me playing was coming back to the stores to see what kind of clothes were in stock and what kind of items I could steal off the players in the lobby. I think that the developers of Splatoon 2 knew that the players were in it for the threads because every reward for playing the game was most likely a piece of clothing. The clothing options kind of vary from academy prep to Patagonia camp wear to skater outfits. And it comes together in this very hipster overall aesthetic that blends really naturally. The game features a mechanic that I really like wear you can walk up to anyone in the online lobby and look at what their wearing and order it. By the time I logged on the next day I had (a noticeably weaker version of) the exact same item but it really makes you feel like anything you see, you have access too which is really cool. And the ordering of the items kept me coming back to play every day.

Final Fantasy XIV Online

I’ve heard it said many times that the real end game content of Final Fantasy XIV Online was the glamor and housing systems, and for most people they aren’t wrong. I will never stop being surprised at the outfits that players can put together in this game. I have seen millions of players in my 750 hours in Eorzea and I have not seen two characters look the same. The customization options are really limitless and I truly believe that. I played a healer mage and in my time at max level I had outfits that made me look like a cowboy, a thief, a fox spirit, a grim reaper, and even one that made me appear like a real healer mage. The clothing options throw a Final Fantasy twist on every kind of style that they set to replicate. So even though all the outfits can be wacky they never feel out of place in the world. If you want a game that you can make almost 50% just about customizing your character and taking it out to the town to show it off or in big raids to flaunt your style then this might be your game.

Pokemon Sword And Shield

Pokemon is still trying to get it right but Sword and Shield is Game Freaks best attempt at trainer customization. The clothing options in the game are very European, well, they have always been that way but they are ESPECIALLY European in this one. Probably the greatest customization offered is the hair which in the world of anime characters is the most important one. I loved designing my character in this game but it was just so brief because shopping in this game is so boring as most clothes in the actual stores are very samey which makes the act of shopping pretty boring most of the time. I would roll up to a new town really excited to see what kind of stuff they had in the shop but it was just new colors for the same weird duffel bag that your character had already. Note that the game is mostly about the Pokemon so they really didn’t have to put any trainer customization in the game to make it a good game but they did a half decent job putting this much customization in the game and I feel like it’s going to keep getting steadily better the more times they implement this feature into their games. Big plus, you can design your trading card in the game and it is the most adorable thing and feels like a huge payoff to have a cool card if you’ve put a lot of effort into your trainer.

Soul Calibur VI

So I haven’t actually played Soul Calibur VI, I bought the game and went immediately into character creation and started making my own roster of fighters that I ended up using maybe once or twice and moving on from. The character creator in this fighting game is really special. So the idea is that you choose a character that already exists and you keep their move set and fighting style but change how they look and immediately the things that came out of the community were hilarious. Some are kind of terrifying but they come shockingly close to being somewhat recognizable. For me it almost comes down to that being someone who is unfamiliar with the cast of Soul Calibur VI I cannot tell the difference between actual characters from the game and characters frakensteined together in the character creator. As on of the most fun character creators I’ve ever used I think it’s at least worth googling what other people have created.

God of War (2018)

The newest God of War introduced something that we never got in the older games and that was the ability to change out what Kratos was wearing. While it was important in the game to maximize his stats, it also made you look cooler and cooler as the game went on. I wouldn’t say that you have a lot of options of things to wear in this game but I always felt bummed when I picked up something with relatively low stats that looked amazing. Later on the armor sets become more like trophies for completing hard tasks. The design of each piece of armor is really intricate and amazing to look at and while you can’t just pick whatever you want, I really wish that you could.

Diablo III: Reaper of Souls

In the Reaper of Souls expansion pack a new vendor was added to Diablo III that changed the way that I looted in the game. The vendor was called the mystic and she would make a piece of gear look like any other piece of gear of the same type. This meant that I could look amazing all the time without sacrificing strength. The way that the database of appearances you could pick from expands over time gave so many options that I couldn’t decide at some points. The coolest armor in the game was now accessible at any time. And the armor in Diablo III looks tight, sometimes I would argue that unless you pick some unique stuff it doesn’t make that big of a difference because of the isometric point of view in the game but it is really fun to have an added layer of customization in Diablo.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

So this is actually a section dedicated to Nexus Mod Manager because Skyrim in itself doesn’t actually have a whole lot of variations in the ways you can dress. But with the powers of modding you can now do absolutely anything and there are a whole group of 3D modelers out there getting you immersive and lore friendly items that make you look a whole lot cooler. The wonderful world of modding can turn kind of creepy very fast, a lot of very suggestive mods are out there and a lot of very inappropriate things so you know, a fair warning. It’s incredible when you can make it work and keep it from getting to the level of ultimate Skyrim. You can change and add clothes and weapons, add hair styles, and even add entire races into the game. Sometimes though I really believe that I like browsing mods a lot more than I like actually playing with them but I found that it is really satisfying to download a mod like Immersive Armors and see just how much it changes how diverse the selection of armors that not only you but everyone in the game now wears can be.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

So I believe that some other previous Zelda titles had the ability to change Links outfit but never to this extent. What I think is the coolest part about the clothing system in this game is that you wear certain clothes to survive certain climates but you can also forget all that and make a yummy meal instead that lets you be warm wearing the desert clothes in the snow. The amount of armors that you can amass in this game starts off kind of underwhelming but becomes really fun and interesting and serves all sorts of fun fan service for fans of the series. This game doesn’t have the versatility and variety of some of the other games in the series but any game that lets you cross dress to sneak into a city of warrior women is credited for its costume design in my book.

League of Legends

I have spent a shameful amount of money on skins. I hate League of Legends and I hate most of the business practices of Riot Games but their skins just look good. I can appreciate when someone I don’t like makes something good and they consistently pump out awesome looking skins that are frankly worth the money if you play the game regularly. Back when I played this game daily I put up way too much money, even I think about 18$ just on a skin that changed colors when you typed a specific command. Anyways that’s really all I have, there aren’t a lot of games where I like the skins, especially the fact that they are mostly behind pay walls but League gets a pass I suppose.

Destiny Series

I used to be really into playing a specific game mode in Destiny named Iron Banner. I played a lot of it in Destiny and a good portion of them in Destiny 2. When you played enough Iron Banner in a year you were able to collect an armor set to commemorate the achievement. Almost all the cool armor in Destiny has purpose to it. Not only do you get to decide how you look but it also is you showing off the fact that you completed a raid, were really good at sparrow racing, or kicked major ass in the crucible. Each armor was recognizable and everyone knew what it meant. I think that is what makes the customization in Destiny so rewarding, its that it is in itself an actual reward for completing hard tasks that not everyone will be able to complete.

Code Vein

Out of all the anime games I’ve played I think what stands out to me the most is that their character creators have all been really bad. This is where Code Vein really shined. Code Vein has this dystopian vampire aesthetic that is really unique and allows for a lot of ways to make cool characters that fit into the look of the game. I don’t think that what they’ve done here is completely new but they have this style that is exciting to play with. Making a revenant is fun and builds this anticipation for the rest of the game. I also respect the games decision to allow you to make modifications to your character after the game has started which is not something that most games would allow. Code Vein has these cape’s that you can wear to gain abilities and those are cool to add onto your outfit but I don’t think that it outshines what the character creator has done here. It’s a niche thing I guess but if you have always wanted to make your own anime vampire then this is it.

A Persona

I really like making characters for a reason. I think a lot of the escapism of video games hinges on me placing myself into the character on the screen. That’s why I love what you can do in games like Animal Crossing that is all about creating exactly what you want and Final Fantasy XIV Online where you get to exist and share in a world as a persona of sorts. Being able to customize a character in a video game does not make that game good or bad, but I think that when you are given the option the developer is given an opportunity to make it a very special experience and allow you to be unique within a community of people online. And the internet has made that sharing of characters really special, allowing everyone to see how unique of an experience you can have with a game by beating it with “your character”.

Special Shout Outs For Stylish Games And Characters

SSX series being dripping in 90s style

Also NBA Street Vol. 2 for the same reason

Persona 5 for being the most stylish game ever

Halo because space marines rock extra style points

Katana Zero for being badass and 80s neon will always be in style

Specifically Graffiti Mario in Super Mario Sunshine he had flair

Samurai Legend Musashi for having a stylish game case but being a horrible game

Devil May Cry just for existing

[calzona-ga]

Beginning with Thursday's episode, titled "Save the Last Dance for Me" and directed by Jesse Williams, ABC's long-running medical drama welcomes deaf actress Shoshannah Stern to Grey Sloan for a multi-episode arc as Dr. Lauren Riley, a renowned diagnostics expert recruited by Dr. Andrew DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti) to help heal a supposedly incurable patient, played by Suits alum Sarah Rafferty.

Stern's introduction on Grey's is a monumental one, as her character marks one of the only times a deaf doctor will be prominently featured on primetime television. (Previously, deaf M.D.s have included Heroes' Emma Coolidge, a file clerk at a hospital, and ER's Dr. Lisa Parks, who appeared in two episodes.) For Stern, who co-created the deaf dramedy This Close alongsideJosh Feldman and has appeared on shows like Supernatural, coming onto Grey's was an opportunity to shine a light on a community that hasn't been given its time in the spotlight.

"I think having a deaf doctor on a show like this could change, even save lives. But I think what’s most incredible about it is the level of collaboration that happened behind the scenes in order to make this come to life," Stern tells ET. "Grey’s didn’t just collaborate with me, they also reached out to several other deaf doctors to make sure that what they were writing was accurate. I really don’t think Dr. Riley could or should have happened any other way. Maybe that’s why she is one of the first. Maybe that’s how she had to be brought to life."

In an interview with ET, conducted over email, Stern revealed how a chance conversation with showrunner Krista Vernoff landed her with a guest arc on Grey's, her experience being directed by Williams and what she hopes the introduction of Dr. Riley adds to the narrative of deaf storytelling and deaf characters on television.

ET: In 16 seasons of Grey's Anatomy, we haven't seen a character quite like Dr. Lauren Riley. How did the opportunity to join the season come about? Was the character written with you in mind? Shoshannah Stern: I’ve always wanted to be a doctor on Grey’s. Always. And when I got the opportunity to meet Krista Vernoff, the showrunner, we talked about inclusion because Grey’s has done really wonderful things with that. One of the reasons I love the show is because it really embraces using the platform it has to educate people. A lot of other shows are afraid of doing that, but not Grey’s. And Krista is brilliant. I think she’s the kind of person who would rather listen than talk. One of the other things we were talking about when we met, was how I was personally affected by the writers' strike. She asked me if I needed a job in the writers' room and in a moment of complete stupidity I said to her, “No, because I want to be a deaf doctor on Grey’s.” In my defense, I was stupid delirious on cold medicine at the time, but the moral of this story might be that I need to be more stupid, because she invited me into the writers' room as a result. I got to sit down with her and all the writers and talk about our ideas for this character for a few hours. It was incredible. I know I’ll never forget it.

This is one of the only times a doctor who is deaf will be featured prominently on primetime television. How does it feel to be at the forefront of crucial cultural moments like this one? I couldn’t believe it when I found out Dr. Riley was going to be one of the first deaf doctors not just on Grey’s, but on all of television. I was like, "No, that can’t be right?" There is a whole organization for deaf people in the medical field called the AMPHL that I followed even before I did this, because I’m a nerd like that, so it’s something that is very real but hasn’t been represented before. And they work tirelessly to make real and exciting change in the field. I’m so incredibly honored to help shine a light on what they do. I think having a deaf doctor on a show like this could change, even save lives. But I think what’s most incredible about it is the level of collaboration that happened behind the scenes in order to make this come to life. Grey’s didn’t just collaborate with me, they also reached out to several other deaf doctors to make sure that what they were writing was accurate. I really don’t think Dr. Riley could or should have happened any other way. Maybe that’s why she is one of the first. Maybe that’s how she had to be brought to life.

What conversations did you have with the producers and writers about making sure Dr. Riley's experiences and abilities were portrayed accurately? Did they seek out your guidance throughout the process? Grey’s was the most collaborative experience I’ve ever had on a show that was not mine. Apart from that initial two-hour-long conversation we had in the writers' room where I brought folders of research I’d done and the ideas they’d inspired, I got to share thoughts on the scripts when they were ready. It didn’t matter if they were bigger character thoughts or tiny things like me not being able to pronounce a specific word and needing to swap it out, they were always super-receptive to them. Jesse Williams, who directed Dr. Riley’s first episode, also asked to meet with me before we shot to map out not just how Riley would communicate, but also the kind of stuff I’d need from him blocking-wise as a deaf actor. He honestly blew me away. I’ve never met someone who understood the deaf experience as immediately and viscerally as he did. Krista even allowed me to work with the editors in order to give visual notes on the cuts. It was next level amazing.

What was important to you in your portrayal of this character? It was important to me that rather than Dr. Riley overcoming this insurmountable obstacle of deafness in order to be great at her job, her being deaf actually made her better at what she did. It was also important to me that her being deaf wasn’t central to her character, and that she didn’t have to continually explain to everyone else that she was a deaf person existing in this world. A lot of times when deaf characters are shown on television, they show the struggle and that’s not authentic. It’s not because it’s never a struggle, but it’s always executed as if it’s something that’s happening for the very first time. And most of the time, deaf people have already been deaf for a very long time, so they’ve got this. In reality, it’s the other people around them who struggle because they’re like, Oh, OK, I have no experience communicating with this person in this particular way. That’s what the new experience actually is, and I think we got to show that in a very organic way.  

You've been vocal about your desires for deaf storytelling and deaf characters to be written and approached in a respectful, fully-dimensional way. How do you think the introduction of Dr. Riley adds to the narrative?She’s an incredible example, hopefully, for how collaboration can and should work when incorporating deaf characters, or really, any character from a minority community. I think a lot of times, people are afraid to collaborate because they don’t want to give up ownership. And as a creative, I totally get that. You feel like the characters and the stories you create are your babies. But ultimately collaboration is about empowerment. And empowerment is not about sacrificing power. It’s saying, “I don’t know about this because I haven’t lived it for myself, so please tell me more.” And doing that makes the project stronger as a result. I didn’t write, produce or direct any of the episodes that Dr. Riley is in. But I think the common goal all of us had was simply that we had the project’s best interest at heart, so I was allowed the space I needed to make Dr. Riley as authentic as I possibly could within their parameters. I didn’t come in and set these parameters. It’s not my show, it’s their show, and I’m so honored and grateful to be on it. That’s really the model of how it should be, and that’s so incredibly important. Can you set the table for how Dr. Riley comes into the fold at Grey Sloan? We met Suzanne Britland, played by the awesome Sarah Rafferty, a couple weeks ago. She’s been in and out of the hospital and nobody can quite figure out what’s wrong with her and it’s kind of haunting DeLuca. So he decides to turn to this master diagnostician who’s a genius at what she does to help him figure out what’s going on with the case, and that’s Dr. Riley.

You work closely with Giacomo Gianniotti on a medical case involving Suits star Sarah Rafferty, and you even share a moment with Ellen Pompeo. How would you describe your experience on set working alongside this cast? It’s the craziest thing because when Giacomo was introduced on the show, he resonated with me because he spoke Italian. That episode where DeLuca and his sister, Carina, argue in Italian in subtitles and nobody around them understands them, as well as him dating someone who didn’t know his native language and was learning it for him, all that reminded me of This Close. There was just a feeling I had about that character, so when Krista told me that DeLuca would be the character that Dr. Riley would work with, I was just like, "OK, yeah." It was almost like something that had already been written. I have to say I was totally shvitzing about working with Ellen just because she’s a legend, but she’s so refreshingly and passionately invested in what she does. She asks a lot of questions and was super great to work with. Sarah is a dream. She’s so cool and talented. I had just started watching Suits when I was sick in bed a couple months before, and so I asked her lots of questions about all her awesome outfits! This is just the beginning of your time on Grey's. What is in store for your character beyond this episode?  I think her first episode is a lot about establishing her as a force because Dr. Riley is a fighter. I think a lot of that is because she knows she has to be kind of like a dog with a bone with the sort of job that she has. If she spent her time educating everyone in the room about how they should communicate with her or making sure that everyone was OK with her personality, the patient would be dead by the time she finished. She literally doesn’t have the time for that. But I think the more Dr. Riley hangs around, the more we’re going to learn about who she is beyond that initial impression. She’s had a lot of practice with advocating for herself, so she’s definitely someone who’s not afraid to speak her mind or stand up for herself and others. I think that might end up having an impact on other people and their interpersonal relationships in ways that may be surprising. 

[sweetgirl-haz]

My Top 10 Kdramas

I was reading @overthinkingkdrama‘s list on her top 10 kdramas thus far and that got me thinking about mine. It’s been a while since I’ve evaluated my favourites and their ranking so thought it’d be interesting to check in. *frantically checks mydramalist completed list*

The problem is that after most dramas, I forget the characters and stories. There are many dramas that I have rated 10/10 right after having watched them many years ago but now I cannot remember what exactly I liked about them. There are some I remember because they’ve been rewatched multiple times. So do I include the ones that I’ve rewatched/are more recent that I remember or the ones from a couple of years ago which I remember enjoying but I’m not really sure why?

Let's start with notable mentions. These are rated 10/10 by me but I couldn’t fit all of them on the list so .....

Notable mention 1: Dear My Friends

Somewhere after the saeguk phase and before the crime thrillers phase, I was in a slice-of-life phase of kdrama watching. I picked this up during then. There aren't many stories that are focused on the lives of older people. They aren't that well represented in dramaland apart from the sweet/mean grandparents. This was such a heart-warming drama that made me laugh and cry. It was slow paced and probably boring for some but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved the friendships and the relationships between the characters. Their stories were so touching and heartbreaking at times. This drama was very realistic, calming and meaningful. I definitely want to give this a rewatch some time in the future. 

Notable mention 2: Tree With Deep Roots

A couple of years ago I went through the saeguk phase. I think a particular mindset is needed to watch a saeguk (or 10). You know it's going to be heavy, with multiple characters and intrinsic details. There won't be many fast forwarding opportunities without missing key plot points. This probably explains why I haven't picked up a saeguk in recent years - I cannot commit to it. This show is far from the romance genre, it is a saeguk about Hangul. I remember it being an incredible story with brilliant characters and mix of fiction and history. And with 24 episodes, never once did it get boring. What a performance by Han Seok Kyu! Jang Hyuk and Shin Se Kyung did a wonderful job too, plus there a short performance by Song Joong Ki. Time for a rewatch?

Notable mention 3: The Princess’ Man

What I vividly remember is me crying whilst watching this drama. I shed too many tears. Too many. The story can be compared to Romeo and Juliet - two people who fall in love in spite of their family's bitter rivalry. I remember it being well written with a balance of romance, drama, action, suspense, friendship, betrayal, war, politics and revenge (the usual mix really). Probably the best work I have seen of Park Si Hoo and Moon Chae Won. They did brilliantly individually and also together. Great chemistry. I wish I remembered more. Writing this list will tempt me to rewatch all of these. Cannot recall specific songs from the OST but I think I have a few in my Spotify Korean OST list.

Notable mention 4: You Who Came From The Stars  

I think I am the most upset about this not being in the top 10. The reason for it not being in the top 10 is because I did rewatch it a year or two ago and it wasn’t as enjoyable as the first time. 

Shall we start right at the beginning, with the intro. I loved that intro and despite being a serial fast forwarder, I made sure to watch it at the beginning of every episode. This was the first show where I thought the female lead was relatable. Jun Ji Hyun was vulnerable, sweet, goofy, not the smartest in the room and she made Song Yi so real to me. I loved her more than Kim Soo Hyun in this show. I loved the internal/external monologues she would have with herself. As a couple, they had incredible chemistry and remain to be one of my favourite on-screen couples. The story was complete and flowed well. I liked the second male lead and the side characters too. 'My Destiny' by Lyn is still one of my most memorable and most listened to OST. I'm not sure why I didn't enjoy it the second time. Writing this is tempting me to rewatch this gem.

Notable mention 5: Her Private Life

I have to agree with Deok Mi: Kim Jae Wook is so annoyingly beautiful. 

The female character was particularly relatable to me. I am a fan girl (not to the extent of the character) and a life outside where people don't really know the extent of my fangirlness. This has to be my favourite (truly) rom-com. There are so many things that I loved here, but what made the drama that enjoying were definitely our main leads Sung Deok Mi and Ryan Gold. Park Min Young and Kim Jae Wook's chemistry was so natural. I loved how mature their relationship was - they sorted out all misunderstandings quickly and acted like adults. There was no pointless drama. The leads tried to understand each other and also give the other space. Ryan Gold seems like the ultimate male lead, he has raised those standards even higher. Side note to appreciate Deok Mi's wardrobe. Those pant suits were gorgeous - I wish I could pull them off. I guess there was a lack of real obstacles and conflict. But I liked that for a change.

10. Queen In Hyun’s Man

The premise was interesting and story was executed really well. A truly romantic drama. The mix of old and modern world was done so well. Yoo In Na and Ji Hyun Woo are absolutely adorable together. Love this show.

9. Bridal Mask

GAKSITAL! I was raving about this drama to everyone who would listen to me. I think this drama is a masterpiece. The amazing storyline with complex characters, excellent actors, epic cliffhangers, and breathtaking music (that loud/epic tune still rings in my head). The storyline was engaging and each episode always left me wanting more. The story is unique and I love how it explores a different part of history. The friendship and conflict between the two male leads Kangto and Shunji is the heart of this show.

8. Rooftop Prince

Every time I think about this show, I'm reminded of the comedic and quirky scenes of the characters adjusting to the modern world (post time travel obviously). I like how the stories in the old and modern world are integrated. There is a shift from romantic, light hearted comedy to sad and melodramatic later in the show. The sad scenes were truly heartbreaking. Enjoyable watch, great acting, wonderful OSTs that I still listen to!

7. My Wife is Having an Affair This Week

Another slice of life drama. I loved how the show explored marriage, relationships, cheating and divorce. It was only 12 episodes so didn't drag at all. The characters are so complex and human and the story is so beautifully written. Song Ji Hyo and Lee Seon Gyun are amazing as the leads, portraying every emotion of a struggling couple from start to finish. You need to go in with an open mind to watch this show.

6. 49 Days

Everyone has that one show, which isn't brilliant but somehow touched your heart and you love it despite its flaws. This is mine. 49 Days has a unique story and I knew I was going to be crying as I come to love these characters. I did cry, lots. I cried each time I rewatched it. I cried because it was sad and it made me so frustrated that life was so unfair to these characters and they're not going to get the happy ending that they deserve... The writer stayed true to their vision. It wasn't all rainbows and balloons at the end with loopholes to give each character their happy ending. I think I love this show because it really pains me to watch these characters and their lives. I really came to love Jung Il Woo and Lee Yo Won. LOVE the OST.

5. Signal 

What a story! And the execution of that story. Amazing from start to finish. I can still hear the sound of the walkie-talkies in my head. One of the best crime thrillers I have seen. Cases were well paced. The mystery would leave me at the edge of my seat every time. A couple of the cases were REAL cases, which was terrifying but brilliant. The music was mellow and fit the scenes so well. This show and the ones below were truly an experience. Loved the actors and the acting.

4. Father is Strange

Ah another phase of my - the family drama/soaps phase. After seeing a couple, I didn't go into this show with high expectations. It has the typical family drama elements: illegitimate son/birth secrets, sick family member, horrible in-laws, evil side character/bully. What made it stand out from the other shows was how the characters dealt with these issues. It wasn't the same as previous shows, the characters were more mature and real and dealt with these issues in a more progressive and refreshing way. The show also touched on issues including parenting, bullying, marriage, career vs pregnancy and societal pressure. I was so invested in everyone's stories and arcs. Lee Yoo Ri though. My favourite character, she made the show for me.

3. Reply 1988

This is such a nostalgic, true-to-life trip from start to finish.  Reply 1988 exceeded my expectations, after Reply 1997 it was hard not to. What made it stand out from the previous Reply series was the focus on family and friendship instead of the romance. This meant we got to know EACH and every character and feel what they were feeling. The story isn’t fast paced with big ups and downs. It depicts the true day-to-day life, which made it feel even more real. I didn’t expect to cry as much as I did in this drama. And it wasn’t because someone was dying. They were the small acts, unsaid things that truly touched my heart. Junghwan’s and Jung bong’s terrace scene watching stars, Jung bong in the hospital, Bora leaving to go to the hostel, Dong ryong wanted to spend time with his mum, Sun woo’s wedding invitation to Taek’s dad, Bora and Bora’s Dads letters to each other, etc etc. I truly felt like a part of the Ssangmungdong community. Even though I didn’t enjoy the ending, this would be one of my favourite dramas ever. The length of the episodes and the ending has stopped me from rewatching it but every once in a while, I think about how beautiful this drama was.

Also, as an epilogue to the show, everybody should watch Youth Over Flowers: Africa.

2. Healer

Ji Chang Wook. That's it. Do we need to say anything else. Solid romance, great story, brilliant action scenes, gripping, wonderful OST, good acting and JI CHANG WOOK. Love this show. Ji Chang Wook. Watch it for him.

1. Age of Youth

This is such a precious show. I have rewatched it and am planning to watch it again for the nth time. This show really defines slice-of-life. I am sure everyone watching this drama could relate to one of the girls or even just a situation faced by the girls. I was able to relate to different situations and aspects of many of the girls personally and also have seen other friends/family facing similar situations. I was really glad that the plot focused on the girls the most and not the boys. It didn't take a detour. It was consistent. This show touched my heart in the way no other show probably will (for now atleast). The relationships were realistic. The casting was perfect - Age of Youth 2 was great but changing the actor changed the dynamic for me. The music was beautiful - I still loop 'Butterfly' by Sogyumo Acacia Band. I have no complaints or flaws for this show apart from it being too short.

Just realised I've left Forest of Secrets/Stranger out of this list. EURGH let's add that in somewhere.

If Be Melodramatic carries on the way it doing, it's going to be in my top 10.

[hopevalley]

What's your opinion on the child characters of the show? What do you think makes a good child character or not?

This is a tough question, mostly because it’s more complex than it initially appears to be, but I have answers!

The child characters of WCtH are a solid meh/10. I mean this as a collective whole, of course: “the children” are slapdashed third and fourth placers at best when it comes to continuity, continuum, and consideration. They don’t come across as important to the story, they don’t feel important to the other characters, and I think it could be successfully argued that there isn’t really a solid child to child connection at the core, either.

Most child actors aren’t wildly amazing; they don’t have the skills and experience yet to be so. That’s fine. I think all the kids who have been on the show did their best with what they were given, which…sometimes wasn’t much. Go back into S3 or so and listen to some of Cody’s lines and then come back and tell me to my face you think the actor is bad! Nope, some of the lines he was given to say are just terrible, and there’s only so much anyone can do with bad dialogue.

The biggest issue I have with the children on the show is the lack of continuity. This is the kind of community where people spent their whole life here (as long as a job remains for the breadwinner of the family). It’s bad enough that the adults come and go, but it’s worse for a teacher to do that. 

I don’t have the connections to do a deep-dive into the show’s spending, but if I had to wager a guess, Hallmark wasn’t really willing to keep on the same core group of children (and pay them for staying on, vs. looking for other roles or just paying starting wages to random children). Maybe I’m too cynical to assume everything boils down to money, but let’s be honest with ourselves: it usually does.

The unfortunate side effect of Elizabeth’s Carousel Classroom is that the children as a collective whole suffer from it. Their bonds don’t feel strong, their stories weaken, their closeness in S1 in the wake of tragedy becomes meaningless.

The first season did reasonably well with its children because the group remained the same and many stories revolved around the different ways people in town (children, adults, newcomers) dealt with/handled/considered the mining disaster.

It gave us all kinds of little stories that felt interconnected. Molly’s relationship with her daughter Rosaleen. Rosaleen’s friendship with Anna. Cat’s relationship with her children and her husband, the children’s relationship with one another and other students, with Jack and Elizabeth, and with their father. We established these stories, made them (and the relationships portrayed within) meaningful, and these things made the viewer care and feel invested.

Then those children were stripped away, making all the work put into them…dust in the wind.

Cody was one of the only children who showed up and meant something and maintained a role on the show with consistency. You could argue that Emily and Anna have been around longer, but their roles have been nil for more seasons than not, and with Cat gone, Emily’s presence no longer makes sense, anyway. A shame, because later seasons did make the effort to build her up.

Becky was an abysmal failure of an addition to the show, if only because her role was eliminated before it even really began. She was then used as a prop in one of the holiday movies (to stir up imaginary drama against Henry), and promptly disappeared forever. Harper’s entire personality was written in a contradictory way by writers who don’t actually talk to each other. Robert barely has a personality when Cody isn’t around. Opal’s entire personality is “cute widdle kid” even though the actress is much older and is probably capable of much better work than making cute faces and saying things that would be cute for a four year old to say. (At this point just write her as being 8 or 9 and still wanting to carry around a teddy bear. IT’S FINE.)

Allie took the show by storm because she feels like a fairly realistic child character, and she’s been given development. If the show keeps that up, she’ll at least remain interesting and likable. If they let her down, though, her role will stagnate and people will start hating the character/role she plays just like they started side-eyeing Cody.

–

As to what makes good child characters? The same thing that makes good characters in general, honestly. 

Good writers. Consistent characterization. Character development that feels like a natural evolution due to their environment/circumstances. Attention to detail. Playing to the actor’s strengths and weaknesses. 

They had all the time in the world to build Cody up and give him storylines that felt meaningful, but they made him “comically” bad at baking and treated him like an 8-year-old character and not a pre-teen. They eliminated his dog from the show with no real warning (when they could have given us an emotional goodbye storyline that would have resonated with most viewers because we have pets of our own that we’ve had to say goodbye to). They relegated him to background discussion and a trophy child for Abigail instead of a human being in her life she cared about and loved. They never followed up on Cody’s desire to stay in contact with Frank, either—though I’ll admit they weren’t given much time for that, they sure put in the time to give Abigail another love plot in S6 that nobody wanted, so make of that what you will!

I’ll shill Road to Avonlea until I’m dead. It’s an ensemble show like WCtH with two core groups within the show:

The Children

The Adults

They even have a third group (The Elderly) though to a lesser extent. This is a period drama that takes place before WWI on Prince Edward Island, and primarily deals with shenanigans and emotional connection between people. It’s wholesome family fun and manages to be extremely heartfelt while also giving you plenty to laugh about.

The first thing I have to admit is that Road to Avonlea was undoubtedly better funded than WCtH, and double+ the length per season, so they had a lot more room to play around in. Throughout the series we follow a group of children (largely siblings, cousins, and friends from their one-room schoolhouse) and their parents (many of whom grew up together or have histories with one another). The children don’t change too much over the many years of the show, and this helped immensely in giving the viewer continuity. First of all, it’s safe to like the characters because they’re around for the duration of the show (and in fact, we follow most children to adulthood); secondly, these children are written as…children? But their role in the show is JUST as important and JUST as impactful, and JUST as hilarious (when applicable) as those of the adults! When one of the actresses left (over a pay issue, I believe), they replaced her and it worked fine.

What made this show work so well was its dedication to telling good stories, not its random abundance of amazing child actors. The actors weren’t THAT amazing (though I’ll not dunk on any of them, particularly Sarah Polley who went on to help produce the Alias Grace miniseries on Netflix) but they had heart, their stories had heart, and the writers made the effort to write the children as children. (The older children acted like older children. The younger kids acted younger. IT MADE SENSE.)

And I think most importantly the children made mistakes and learned from them. WCtH could certainly take a page out of Road to Avonlea’s book, or at the least recognize where their own writing strengths lie and stick to them. I don’t need child storylines in WCtH, so if they’re going to bother with them at all, PLEASE just make them good! (And don’t tempt me to make a RtA blog. It’s my favorite series of all time.) 

–

The short version of all of the above: writing characters like people is what makes good child characters; they’re exactly the same as adults in that regard.

WCtH has mediocre child characters at best right now (with Allie being the only good one, just by virtue of being the only one who has gotten any real material to work with).

[mschevious]

The Vincent Problem (VG: Catherine)

Catherine is a puzzle game released by Atlus (bought out by Sega in 2013) in 2011 in Japan and America, 2012 in PAL regions, and remixed and re-released in 2019. I played it when it first came around, and it hit a few sore spots back then (I found myself in an oddly similar situation at that time in my life, it wasn’t pleasant!), and decided to invest in the Full Body Remix this year as it was a favourite of mine. I like anything a bit unusual, and Atlus were always the Kings of offbeat.

It follows our protagonist, Vincent Brooks, a 32-year old programmer, as he finds himself caught up in the charms of a beautiful young woman named Catherine, leading him to cheat on his girlfriend of five years (Katherine). In the Full Body version, a new interest is added; a young, naive stranger that goes by the name “Qatherine” (usually shortened to “Rin). If you think this is confusing in English, it’s even worse in the native Japanese; the Japanese alphabet is phonetically based, meaning all three names are spelled exactly the same. To circumvent the difference in choices that might happen near the end of the game, English subtitles often replace the name C/Katherine with the word “her”, or skip over it altogether if it’s not part of a sentence, adding to the confusion and mystery.

As Vincent finds himself caught in a web of lies and torn between each love interest, he starts to suffer strange nightmares that are rumoured to have the power to kill.

Beyond the admittedly sexist reasons for the nightmares, my issue isn’t with Vincent and the nightmares. My issue is with his partners of choice, primarily Catherine and Katherine.

Katherine has a pregnancy scare early on in the game, and she uses this to attempt to force Vincent into being ready for things he’s just not prepared for yet - marriage and offspring. The day after her “I might be pregnant” speech, she confirms that she is pregnant. She then proceeds to enter a big speech about Vincent meeting her parents, and how she’ll be in control of the household finances and other decisions that (in my mind) should be made together if the intention is to enter parenthood as a couple. Whilst I understand that that’s just how she might be, or how their relationship may work better, there’s not even a conversation about how these decisions are best made; they’re just made on the spot by Katherine. 

Later on in the game (this pertains to the Full Body version, I don’t think it comes up in the original version), you hear her muse to herself that she “should have been straight with him” and, after a particularly nasty nightmare and the fallout thereof, Katherine tells Vincent that she ISN’T pregnant and has “known for a while”. However, up to that point, she has continued to use the pregnancy as a way to almost entrap Vincent into the life that SHE wants with no discussion and little effective communication. Even if the “Good” or “True” ending for Katherine are achieved and the two get back together/get married, it’s made abundantly clear that life will be on HER terms and she won’t relinquish control over the relationship or Vincent. If the genders were reversed and a male was exerting this level of control and (let’s face it) manipulation, it would be classed as an abusive relationship, but it’s almost portrayed as “fine” because Katherine “deserves” that level of commitment after a relationship of five years that (in her eyes) hasn’t gone anywhere.

Catherine is a whole other can of worms. From the apparent ability to erase the Vincent’s memories of his time with her to her absolute insistence on being with him despite protests, she comes across as needy and manipulative. She emotionally blackmails him (”I’ll die right here”), which quickly turns into threats of violence when she finds something off or Vincent tries to get her out of his life in a gentle fashion (”I die, or I kill you”). In a optional phone call one evening, she even veils a threat to cripple Vincent so that she can have him all to herself (”Maybe I’ll make it so you can’t go to work any more, then I can be at your place all day... But then we wouldn’t be able to go on dates!”). When Vincent actually directly attempts to break up with her, she pleads, saying he can be with them both as long as she’s “his girl” and, when that doesn’t work, beats him up in the bar bathroom. She even goes so far as to use a phrase sometimes used by abusive partners whilst beating him (”I’m protecting you”). Whilst the relationship has the appearance of improving in her “Good” and “True” endings, her “New” ending (exclusive to Full Body) shows her manipulating time itself to be with Vincent in High School, thus eliminating his choices entirely.

As in the case of Katherine, if the genders were switched and it was a man doing these things to a woman, her friends would be yelling at her to get the hell out of that toxic relationship. As is it, his friends just make fun of him for being a cheat. They don’t even seem to try to get him to actually solve the problem of him cheating, they just chide him and make guesses as to what this girl is like, even asking to see the pictures she’s sent to him.

Between two very different, but equally manipulative prospective partners, the only truly good endings for Vincent seem to be the ones where he ends up alone (either through choice or circumstance) or with Rin (Full Body exclusive). The other endings just seem to perpetuate the whole “suck it up” culture that has surrounded men for decades, implying that he’s lucky to be with either of the other girls.

Whilst Catherine is an extremely interesting game full of moments that make you question yourself and unique gameplay, the end result is, accidentally, a game that serves to contribute to the toxic masculinity our culture is steeped in, showing it detrimental to men as well as women. Our society has changed a lot in the years since its initial release, the portrayed themes and problems were more widely accepted as the norm seven years ago. However, the Full Body Remix has revealed a game that hasn’t aged well. It’s a shame, really, because Atlus have successfully tackled some really interesting and controversial themes in recent years. And whilst this new perspective has made me rethink even my own stance on the issues in Catherine, it’s still a game experience that I find interesting and even enjoy, despite its issues.

[the-council-of-new-york-vampires]

OOC: Hey friend, it's rocket-scientist, just saying bye. Someone has threatened to kill me, faked evidence against me to prove I've "harassed and threatened PB writers" and of course, people believed her. Now the whole Tumblr is against me, even people I used to consider friends. Good luck with your blog and fics, your plots are way more awesome than anything PB ever wrote.

Out of Character:

…

So, I wake up today, find this message, check the tag and conclude: What the fucking hell?

Rocket-scientist was one of my Tumblr friends, not a close but a more casual one, and people actually pushed her to delete. That is nasty.

Now, I don’t know what exactly happened, but I assume that she commented on PB’s new Friday book, demanding to know what this’ll mean for BB, since it was a Friday book as well. As the only one who doubted the return of BB publicly, she had been receiving hate for who knows how long, and now it apparently escalated. There are numerous posts in the tag, some more and some less educated, some more and some less disrespectful.

Why the hell would she harass and threaten writers? Stop portraying PB as gods, because they aren’t. Are they good writers? Of course. Are they creative? No doubt. Do we like Choices? Well, obviously! But that doesn’t make them good people. Rocket isn’t the only one who has negative experiences with PB. A friend of mine has, too, and I have myself. Stop praising them like gods. They are story liners who are getting paid, and who do a great job, creating fascinating stories of good quality. But good stories don’t make good people.

Rocket herself has been told in October by one of the writers that they never planned to write BB 2. Believe that or not, that’s on you. But don’t send people hate, neither publicly nor on anon mode, for making their opinion clear. I understand that many people found it annoying, because she used every opportunity to state it, but, unlike any other BB stan, she at least fought for what she wanted, and made it clear that there was a demand, that many fans would gladly invest in BB.

Rocket had clear reasons to believe BB 2 isn’t being written and she was free to state them. The fandom is diverse enough for dissidents to ignore what they don’t like. How many angry posts and jokes about Vega have I ignored? How many Adrian fanfics am I ignoring to this day? It may be annoying at times, but it doesn’t give me the right to shit on the people who request and write Adrian fanfics just because I don’t want to read them. In the same way, people who stan villains don’t want to be shit on either.

I am mentioning the post of @yall-play-it-cool right here, because I got mentioned in theirs (thank you for appreciating my work, it means a lot!). I agree with its core, but I’d like to bring attention to the fact that some people have no idea how much a story or character can influence a person’s life. I can’t stress this enough. Most people in the fandom have a character they love in every book, but that’s not the case for everyone. For example, Rocket and I only love one character from one book, and that, to an extreme amount. Apparently, people can’t understand that and say shit like “It’s only an app, lmao”. No. It’s more than that to some of us.

I definitely didn’t know Rocket very well, but I believe one hundred per cent that BB helped her manage her depression. The fact that some people ridicule that is nasty. I’m truly sorry for whoever doesn’t have enough empathy to put themselves into her shoes and to understand that BB’s absence has a significant impact on her well-being. I have no idea in what way Rocket has apparently “harassed” or “threatened” any writers, but the way I know her, she wouldn’t do that and I believe her when she says it’s fake.

Some posts in the tag regarding the issue are so damaging, created by people who didn’t know her and had no idea about the entire issue, but who are apparently only here to shit on anyone whose opinions are negative or different. Most of them are parrots who repeated what once has been said; that BB 2 is coming and that it should rather take a long time and be good than be rushed and crappy. These parrots repeated their shit every time Rocket spoke up even now that she has deleted, while none of them know better than her. She used her voice to make a change while they used theirs to silence her.

Worse than those people who know nothing and solely repeat what they picked up somewhere is that “””poem””” about someone asking for BB 2 and being told to die. What the fuck??? Do you have any idea what impact your words have on people??? I’m not tagging the creator, because they way I know her, she’s a nice person, and I don’t want to start drama on this blog. However, my advice is to delete it, because it’s obviously harmful as hell. People with a big reach can apparently post anything and a mass of people will support them and blindly share their opinions. This is not okay.

In any case, the damage has been done. It’s sad to see that someone who was solely repeating an opinion rather than others who are admiring PB blindly was bullied to the point of deleting. She’s considered deleting her account before, but I never thought it’d actually escalate the way it did. Not only is it sad because she was a very passionate Kamilah stan and a great writer, but it is sad on a humane level, because someone who already had depression was bullied out of a community that was supposed to be accepting, solely for repeating an opinion. I have no way to contact Rocket, but I’m praying she’s okay.

Everyone who contributed to this should be ashamed of themselves. You might have bullied someone into suicide.

[hisband]

3 , 8 , 9, 38 !!

 meme: carling shares her honest opinions. || status: no longer accepting.

3. what current rp trend do you hate?

   i find that the rpc as a whole has gotten a lot more… idk, picky & shallow about which characters they interact with? of course, no one is obligated to interact with anyone and i would never guilt-trip anybody for not being interested in specific muses of mine or not following me back. but i have notice a shift over the last four years that i don’t particularly like.

   to give you guys a better idea what i’m talking about, let me give you an example. i roleplay captain spaulding from r.ob zombie’s firefly f.amily trilogy on my multi @mnstrsqd. he’s currently my longest running muse; i’ve been writing him publicly since spring 2015 and have moved him across multiple blogs. spaulding, despite being a chubby, ill-tempered, unhygienic guy in his late 50s / early 60s ( what can i say, i have a type ), was once my most popular character. not because he was pretty to look at or digestible, but because i was told he was interesting. people were drawn to his personality. for that reason, i wasn’t afraid to approach people on him or to follow first ( though i tried to be mindful because he Is a clown character and there are people on this website with coulrophobia, which i completely understand ). it wasn’t difficult to get interactions on him at all.

   nowadays? i’m fairly reluctant to approach people on characters that are considered unconventional, like my main horror muse belial or half the roster on my multi or even murdoc himself, because it seems like the rpc has devolved in the sense that the majority of writers on here ( based on my Own Personal Experience, at least ) are looking for characters that are easy. easy to get along with ic, easy to ship with, easy on the eyes. my buddy ruben made a much more detailed post on that here if you guys wanna check that out, but yeah. shallowness ( or perhaps an extreme reluctance to go outside one’s comfort zone ) is a rampant problem on tumb.lr these days, and it wasn’t like that at all when i first started out. people were a lot more willing to give others a chance no matter how fucking weird or obscure their character was, and i miss that a lot. had the community not been so accepting when i first joined, i probably wouldn’t have stuck around.

8. name any three things about the rpc that bother you.

   besides what i mentioned above? let’s see…

here’s a controversial one: people who feel the need to go around blocks and demand to know why you cut them off. like, dude, all you’re doing is proving to me that i made the right call by removing you from my social sphere. i find this behaviour incredibly entitled & invasive and i don’t like it one bit. i don’t like the idea that you owe people explanations as to why you left, especially if the person in question has been exhibiting abusive or triggering behaviour ( unknowingly or not ). just accept you’re no longer welcome in that person’s life and move on. the length of time you’ve known that person - or favours you’ve done for that person in the past - should not be used as bargaining tools to keep them around. you can tell someone why you’re ending a friendship or writing partnership, but you shouldn’t have to.

on the flip-side of this, i don’t like vague-posting. i try not to follow people who vague-post unless they have a damn good reason to do it ( i.e. trying to warn people about a past abuser but not wanting to say the person’s name for the sake of their own safety, or somebody else’s ). i strongly dislike when vague-posting is done for the sake of guilt-tripping others or making them uneasy. that’s passive-aggressive, petty & not at all a mature way to deal with conflict. if you’re having issues with someone ( and yes, there is a Huge, Huge Fucking Distinction between miscommunications in a relationship and legitimately toxic and abusive behaviour ), talk to them or else the issue is never going to be resolved. don’t drag everyone else down because you’re feeling upset or frustrated with one person.

people making assumptions about other people’s characters seems to be a problem that’s on the rise. just… don’t do it, even if you truly believe you know the other mun’s character. even if you’ve been writing with that character for years. even if you’ve written that character before yourself. it’s really rude & disrespectful, and most writers i know don’t appreciate someone else coming in and telling them how to portray their own muse, or acting like they know them better than they do. if you’re not sure about something in regards to a partner’s character, just ask. it’s that simple.

9. what is your opinion on exclusivity? do you practice it? why / why not?

   i don’t mind exclusivity & have never seen it as a big deal! if you’re really attached to a friend’s portrayal ( and i personally get very attached to the way my friends write their characters ), i think it’s fine to stick with their interpretation and their interpretation alone. the only time it’s ever been a problem for me is when i’ve written in really small fandoms ( i.e. the fire.fly family trilogy ) and felt the need to give everyone a chance. i think that’s a little bit different than when you’re developing a whole ship or story arc with one specific character, y’know?

38. what advice would you give to someone new to rp?

   don’t make rp your only hobby - that can turn unhealthy super fast. if you rp because you like to write, as i do, find other ways to write if you ever reach a point where you don’t wanna rp but still need a way to express yourself artistically ( and believe me, this Will happen ). if writing isn’t cutting it, then try something new, like drawing, or podcasting, or scrapbooking, or arts & crafts, or even cooking. these are all creative hobbies with very similar pay-offs! 

   don’t become too emotionally dependent on rp. i understand getting invested in characters & ships - believe me, i do - but when it becomes your only source of happiness or when you can’t see yourself being able to function without these things in your life, there’s a problem. similarly, don’t become too emotionally dependent on your friends & writing partners. that isn’t fair to them; they aren’t objects or bots here to cater to you, they’re living breathing people, usually with multiple things going on at once. no one’s life should revolve around one thing or one person, period. that’s recipe for disaster.

   and please, please, don’t treat rp like a job. don’t beat yourself up over things like not writing fast enough, or not writing enough threads, or not writing with enough people or not being online enough. this is a hobby, and should be treated like a hobby, and should absolutely not take priority over things like finding / keeping a job, doing well in school, taking care of your responsibilities & spending time with loved ones. the sooner you stop taking tum.blr rp super-seriously, the happier and more fulfilled you’ll feel. promise.

[thatyanderecritic]

Yandere Simulator

Title: Yandere Simulator

Media: Game, created by Yandere Dev

Yandere(s): Yandere-Chan (Ayano Aishi)/ Yandere-Kun

Yandere Scale: 0/5

Criticism written by: Kai

Editor: Julie

The Review:

(Warning! This is one of our most highly opinionated critic piece on our blog so far. Be wary and come to your own judgement in the end. m(_ _)m )

It was only a matter of time till we finally reviewed Yandere Simulator… With both the game and the main protagonist sharing the name “Yandere”, it made sense for the Yandere Critics to swoop in and see if this game truly lives up to its name (spoiler alert: it doesn’t). What horrors will our two critics discover in their pursuit of the truth?

This time on ThatYandereCritic…

Hello everyone, Kai here! It’s no secret that Julie and I absolutely hate Yandere Simulator and how the Yandere Dev is handling everything (from how he’s creating this game to the sort of person he is). We would state time and time again how we think that Yandere Simulator is pretty much hot garbage and is a bad representation of yanderes in general. Good concept but awful in execution. Now it is time to give a proper critic to the game that’s became the “face” of our community.

I would like to clarify that we’ll only be looking at the story and the main character (Yandere-Chan/Yandere-Kun). We will not be discussing about the Yandere Dev and his drama. If you want that, there’s plenty of “Yandere Dev rants” videos on youtube that goes in depth about the things he done and currently doing. If you’re curious, I recommend watching this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YY-aqqCFjnc With this being said, now for the proper review!

Let’s kick things off by talking about the story… The game starts with our protagonist, Yandere-Chan, accidentally running into her Senpai on her way to school. It was love at first sight when she first saw him. But Yandere-Chan soon found out that a girl named Osana plans to confess to Senpai under the school’s cherry blossom tree. This is like, totally bad! Everyone knows that confessions under that specific cherry blossom tree is guaranteed to be accepted! It was at this moment, Yandere-Chan knew what she needed to do… she must eliminate everything that stands between her and her Senpai.

First, can I just start off by saying how laughably lazy this story is? It’s one thing if this game was just some sort of parody or comedy. A game that is self aware that it’s just a joke and nothing more. But with how much the Yandere Dev hypes about the story and give it a “deep lore”, we can’t give the excuse: “It’s not that deep. It’s just a joke.” No. This game doesn’t have that shield anymore. The story is half assed and it can’t give a well developed yandere character a proper chance to shine. But… let’s ignore the story for now. We have seen examples of an awful story but a fantastic yandere (Example: Joe from the TV show, You). Let’s look at Yandere-Chan.

Thanks to Yandere Dev’s channel, we got a plethora of lore and background about the characters from the game. The office website is also a gold mine of information that we can analyze as well. So… thank god that Yandere Dev is more invested in those two things than his game. Can you imagine if we had to actually play his buggy game to get this information? Lol.

Let’s get on the same page here about Yandere-Chan’s backstory: Yandere-Chan had an odd childhood. Throughout her childhood, she was inflicted with an incurable condition that made her have no emotions. Growing up, she was bullied at school (because she couldn’t feel I guess). But Yandere-Chan learned how to fake having emotions and live the easy life. Oddly enough, Yandere-Chan’s mom had the same condition as well when she was growing up. Yandere mom reassured Yandere-Chan that “When she finds that special boy, [she’ll] be able to feel.” But Yandere-Chan’s dad went “Nah, bitch. I’ll make Yandere-Chan have feelings.” Of course, that didn’t work. In the end, Yandere-Chan lived her life as an empty shell till she finally met Senpai. Yada yada yada…. Start of the game.

So… what the fuck?

This is the literal definition of a psychopath, dude. Why are we skirting around what Yandere-Chan has?! “Incurable condition” my ass. It’s psychopathy (maybe sociopathy but the evidence leans more towards psychopathy). Next, in the video, why would a general practitioner know that Yandere-Chan is a psychopath?! At most, the doctor would notice something is odd about her before recommending a child psychiatrist to examine Yandere-Chan. Mr. Yandere Dev, you make it sound like Yandere-Chan has a cold; not a mental illness. It was also mention in the video that Yandere-Chan felt pity for her father who was struggling with her mental illness. If she can’t feel any emotions, as you said, then please explain how she felt pity for her father? Can I also point out that Yandere-Chan started faking her emotions for her father’s sake AND THEN started getting bullied because she wasn’t normal. But wait a minute… Yandere-Chan learned how to fake emotions because of the bullying. So how does this logic work? Did she take two steps forward but ten steps back? Why did we have the whole doctor fiasco if Yandere Mom already knew all this about her daughter? WHY DOES YANDERE-CHAN’S BACKSTORY HAVE MORE HOLES THAN A SLICE OF SWISS CHEESE?!

Kai.exe stopped working… now resetting program… reset is now complete

Phew… sorry about that everyone. I was going insane after going through a bunch of videos by the Yandere Dev and the Yandere Simulator website.  

For a character called Yandere-Chan, she’s more like Psychopath-Chan. Like geez. If it isn’t obvious, everything about this character screams “psychopath”. Sure, she is portrayed to have “lovesickness” but Yandere-Chan breaks so many rules that her “lovesickness” can’t save her.

A couple of rules she broken:

1. The yandere shouldn’t go on a random killing spree as if she’s/he’s in an all you can eat buffet. Bottomline, a serial killer isn’t a yandere but a yandere could be a serial killer.

2. Shallow background, shallow person. Why were you even created man?

3. Instalove is a pretty cheap cop out for a female yandere to start liking someone. We noticed that sometimes they would fall in love for shallow reasons like: “Kyaa, he passed me the salt shaker, I think I’m in love!” This logic makes me cringe, honestly.

“But, Kai! This game is all about killing the rivals! It isn’t fair to Yandere-Chan to tick her off on that!”

Um… there are many different ways a yandere can get rid of a rival without killing them. Mr. Yandere Dev even suggested a mechanic where the player can hook up love rivals with other NPCs.  Yet the core ��tactic” Yandere-Chan (and the player) would chose would be to kill the rivals. Not only that, it’s also encouraged to go on a killing spree for extra points for Info-Chan and the Yakuza (not yet implemented). So… this absolutely is a tick against her.

Moving on! I also find it incredibly hard to even call Yandere-Chan a proper “yandere” considering her creator doesn’t even know what a yandere is. On Yandere Dev's website, he defines a yandere as: “A Yandere girl is a girl who loves a boy so much that she is willing to threaten, harm, or kill any other girl who seems interested in him.”

Uh… W.H.A.T.

That’s literally the definition he puts on his website, people. And don’t even get me started on the definition he uses during videos (“A yandere is a person who is crazy for someone else”). Okay, let’s give Yandere Dev the benefit of the doubt and say: “He sort of right… if you squint hard enough”. But if we refer back to our Yandere Actions post, just using the “yandere snap” doesn’t make Yandere-Chan a yandere. In the end, Yandere-Chan is nothing more but a psychopath.

To those who are reading this: As individuals who are part of the yandere community, I am appealing to you right now. We may disagree on a lot of things. We may disagree on what is and isn’t a yandere. We may disagree on some characteristics of what makes a yandere. But I hope to agree with everyone that “Yandere Simulator” is not the thing we want to define our community.

I’ve heard people compare Yandere-Chan as the “New Yuno Gasai”. I’ve heard people call Yandere-Chan as “the perfect example of a yandere” or “the ideal yandere”. I’ve heard many misinformed comments about yanderes thanks to this game. It may have brought to light our community but this is a double edge sword. It’s one thing if there’s only a couple misinformed users out there. It’s expected and no offense to them. But what’s troubling is the popularity of this misinformed game and the spreading through popular youtubers (again, no offense to them since they don’t know). This game is basically our face to those outside of the community. I talked to several people who are quick to judge me as “one of those perverts” thanks to this game’s reputation (water off my back). You can still like the game or the characters. I know Yandere-Chan generates lots of yandere aesthetics and the fandom has done way better with her than her own creator. But can we all agree to denounce this game as a “yandere icon”. Use it as a conversation starter and use it to point out myths about yanderes… but don’t let this define us. I believe we’re better than that… we’re all better than that. “Romance turned Horror” and “Horror turned Romance” lovers… Aesthetic yanderes, Yandere Recommendations, and Yandere Analysis blogs… We’re all in this together. Let’s shake on this, friends.

Overall score: 0/10

(Post-edit: I forgot to mention Yandere-Kun; there is a bit of a difference between him and Yandere-Chan. He is the genderbend version for Yandere-Chan (for those who want to play as a guy) but Yandere Dev stated that Yandere-Kun’s reasoning for chasing Senpai is purely sadistic. So, regardless how you paint things, Yandere-Kun is just as psychopathic as his female counterpart)

[ithacamoma]

20 QUESTIONS FOR: TAMMY SALZL

image courtesy of the artist and DC3 Art Projects

1.Name:

Tammy Salzl

2.Occupation(s):

Artist, Sessional Teacher in Senior Level Painting at the University of Alberta.

3.Where are you from and what is your education?

I was born in Edmonton, AB, into a gigantic dysfunctional family with 18 aunts and uncles, 42 first cousins and barely one parent. I spent my summers being tortured as an English speaking city slicker in French speaking prairie farm communities. Retreating into art and stories and animals was the salvation I didn’t find in the fundamentalist religion I was periodically thrown into. For my undergrad I did 2 years at ACAD (Now called AUArts), and finished my BFA at the University of Alberta.  I received my Masters in Studio Arts (Painting) at Concordia University in Montreal 2014 and have been expanding my practice to include video and multimedia installation since graduation.

4.Where do you live/work (neighbourhood/city/country)?

For the past 3 yrs I’ve been splitting my year between the Southside of Edmonton, AB. and Parc Ex in Montreal QC. I have family in both places, which makes this both possible and necessary.

5.Does your location affect your practice?  

Definitely! Emotionally, psychologically and logistically. I’m lucky to be able to spend time in both eastern and western Canada. Sometimes they seem like entirely different worlds and it’s a privilege to be able to step into both. It broadens my field of vision.

6.What is your favourite tool in the studio?

I have two favourite things. My glue gun, because I love glueing stuff, it makes me feel like a little kid again! I also love it when I have a fresh, unused brush in hand.

7.Where do you look for your source material?

Everywhere! Movies, books, (I love sci-fi books, and I just finished 2 books by Yuval Noah Harari - Sapiens and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century - so gooood!) mythology, ecology, weird/wondrous animals (like the barrel eye fish or the Aye-aye), bus stops, Edmonton’s River valley, back alleys in Montreal, weird stop motion animations, the fresh sights, sounds and smells that come with travel, looking at art and, occasionally, the bottom of my wine glass.

8.What is you daily art world read?

I email subscribe to a bunch of art blogs (like Hyperallergic and artdaily.org etc), and I also try to read Border Crossings and Canadian Art magazines, but honestly a lot of my art world reads come from instagram. Cuz you know… pictures.

9.What is your daily non-art-world read?

I love science and nature blogs. I really enjoy nature.com, naturecanada.ca,  futurism.com/, and for quick global news stuff I like Quartz Daily Brief. It’s hard…you don’t want to be ill informed yet it’s so bleak out there…I think overexposure to media can be harmful. I try to find a balance.

10.What role does writing play in your practice?

Sadly, not much. It’s an inescapable task for every artist, and one I dearly wish I could escape. That said, aside from the necessary evil of artist statement/proposal/grant type of writing, I sometimes play at creative writing. I make little one page tales that turn into paintings, or I write a short narratives based on something I’ve made. I’ll often have automatic writing embedded in my underpaintings, and if you look hard enough you can sometimes find traces of a word here and there.

11.What role does research play in your practice?

Because I peddle in tales, I research the history, culture, psychology, pop culture, philosophy of whatever traditional tale or mythology I’m referencing, and how others have interpreted those tales over time - even if I’m referencing something like Dr. Seuss. I often tie that into the research I do out of my interest in ecology and nature. For me, working representationally means there is intension in everything. I try to have layers of meaning and make work that engenders multiple interpretations. I research the symbolism and history of objects, places, animals, colours , etc. With my installations there is a lot of material research involved as well.

12.What role does collaboration play in your practice?

Since expanding my painting practice into intermedia work, I’ve done quite a bit of collaborating in the form of “I don’t know how to do this technical thing so I need to find someone who does”. It’s taught me a lot in terms of learning to communicate and work with others. As a solitary person, it’s a challenge for me, but I also find it incredibly rewarding and enriching. Also, a couple of years ago 4 female artist friends and I began an art collective called IFPP (incubator for phantom pregnancies) We’ve staged a couple exhibitions and have some upcoming shows, and it’s been really great. You learn a lot about yourself in a collaborative process, and it’s exhilarating ending up with this thing you helped create, but in a mind hive kind of way.

13.How does success affect your practice?

Ideas of success are pretty subjective, no? Speaking in terms of non-commercial success, I would say it helps drives my practice forward. It gives you the incentive and confidence to keep going, to make more, to take risks and think bigger. Sometimes commercial/monetary success can do the opposite because you’re expected to make more of the same, sellable stuff - to keep the formula and not colour outside those lines.

14.How does failure affect your practice?

Failure is an opportunity to learn, and can lead to amazing things. I suck at it. I can be super stubborn and fight with a painting that’s not working for days and days. I’m often my own worst enemy. I’m learning to walk away, to turn the bloody thing facing the wall and only come back to it when I can be more objective - when I’m in a better place to paint over the 100 hours invested and start over.

15.What do you identify as the biggest challenge in your artistic process?

My own stubbornness! My own rules and obsessiveness and need for control. I can get restrained by fear of making something ‘bad,' and I struggle to let myself play more, to let myself ‘fail’. I can get too caught up in my own head. I struggle with a lot of self doubt. A dear friend of mine recently sent me a beautiful quote by Robert Hughes in an attempt to assuage my doubt:

 “The greater the artist, the greater the doubt. Perfect confidence is granted to the less talented as a consolation prize.” 

I’m not so sure this is the case, but it’s nice to hear!

Also, like so many of us, I struggle socially and will hide in my studio rather than go to an art opening when I know I should be trying to make “connections”. Wine helps tremendously in all my struggles.

16.Who are some historical artists you are thinking about?

This fluctuates a great deal. I often find myself interested in artists I thought I didn’t like years ago, and will lose interest in artists I thought I loved. Art crushes come and go. I just bought a Frida Kahlo book and am rediscovering my fascination with her.

17.Who are some contemporary artists you are thinking about?

Everyone and no one in particular. I was in LA last January and saw an amazing Outsider Art show at LACMA. There was a piece by Greer Lankton titled, “Candy Darling” depicting a transgender actress who was featured in several of Andy Warhol’s films and was one of Lankton’s icons she looked up to as a trans woman. It’s exquisite with an edgy sexuality - totally blew my mind. I also saw some Mark Bradford works at The Broad that really surprised me. You have to be in front of them to understand how profound, beautiful, raw and sophisticated they are.

18.How do you describe what you are making now?

Right now I’m bouncing all over the place with various mediums. I’m working on a new series of oils, sort of taking the piss out of patriarchal old fables and the misogynistic way they portrayed women by retelling them through a contemporary lens. I’m also making a series of small, intricate “naughty fairies” made out of Sculpey (imagine tinker bell-like creatures going down on each other), some larger installation pieces that incorporate a variety of materials - video, sound, found and crafted objects, and I just completed my first short narrative video with footage shot on an artist residency I did in Norway last year. 

Sometimes I feel like I’m spreading myself too thin and there’s an invisible pressure to focus on one thing, but I’m a storyteller and I use whatever mediums best suites the tale. I think everything I do remains distinctly me, it all has connective threads. Generally I paint in the morning and move onto video and sculpture in the afternoon/evening. Painting is mentally challenging in a very singular way; it’s super humbling and I need a fresh, rested brain to do it.

19.Who is an artist that you think deserves more attention?

Oh man. Too many to count. Seems to me art world trends often translate into amazing artists not getting their due. I think Canadian artists in general deserve more of the international spot light. There’s so much talent here.

20.How can we find out more about you (relevant links etc)?

I keep my website pretty up to date, including upcoming shows and press links etc.

www.tammysalzl.com

[rcleplayer]

NAME: Trashbag ; aka Yas/Yasmin.

TIMEZONE: GMT

PREFERRED PRONOUNS: She/Her

WHO DID YOU APPLY FOR? OR ARE THINKING OF APPLYING FOR? So, I just have the one character right now, but I have every intention of bringing in a second shortly, I just wanna start off the RP with one character to focus on and develop. Because I suck, and if I come in with two, I will die. No joke.

          INTRODUCING — ESMERAY (es-mer-ay) HAZAN

So, this here is my little corporate boss af bitch, ESMERAY HAZAN, who is currently TWENTY-SEVEN years old.. Don’t be fooled by the ‘sweet and innocent’ gif that Kenny suggested I use; because she is far from it. She’s one half of a whole, her sister being Freyza, of course identical twins (we wanted you to have double Ayca beauty on the dash, what can I say?) She’s very much into the business aspect of her inherited company, which she had thrusted upon her when her father was murdered by the Corinthos’, alongside her elder sister. As you can expect, the Hazan’s are very much interested in the sweet taste of revenge, and will do just about anything to secure that. They may be tiny, but my God are they a force to be reckoned with. Esmeray, or rather, Esme, for short — you can expect the formal office wear and briefcase aesthetic that Ayca portrays in The Protector, as that’s her to a T. With their so called ‘company’ specialising in illegal oil drilling, and the diamond mining business, she’s decked out with a fair share of cash to support her lifestyle. Diamonds for days, and a jet to Paris for the weekend? Why not, right? That being said, you can also expect her to have secured herself many connections throughout the Quarter, both genuine and those she has manipulated into her circle for sources/intel etc. That’s all I’ve got for her right now, though I’m about to be writing up her biography in full, so if I add anything crucial that isn’t mentioned here, you can expect me to come back and update this shit.

GIVE US THREE HEADCANONS ABOUT YOUR CHARACTER(s). CAN BE ANYTHING!:

ONE : Esmeray is entirely devoted to the cause that her family has put together, to avenge her father’s death. So much so that she refuses to get involved with anyone that could cause her distractions, but that being said, she was in love once. And only once. She went into it as a source of intel, but quickly realised they had become more and called it quits. After all, she’s a business woman, she has an entire illegal company to keep tabs on, and her family.

TWO : Freyza is and always will be her priority. She would take a bullet for her twin, and if she ever came to realise she was in danger, she’d pick up a gun herself and hunt for the son of a bitch. Usually, she’d be more inclined to hire someone to do it for her if it was anyone else — so hopefully that puts that into perspective.

THREE : Her sister was just 11 when she died in the car bombing, but there was a necklace that her sister owned at the time, a gift to her from their mother and father; that quickly became a prized possession. Esmeray asked her mother for the necklace, which was soon handed over. The necklace hasn’t left her since, and is probably one of, if not the most, sentimental item that she owns.

WHAT SORT OF PLOTS ARE YOU HOPING TO DO?:

Due to her keeping tabs on the Corinthos family, and her sisters entanglements with them, I’d love a connection there somehow. Somebody with whom she’s invested time into, developed a strong standing with — whether that’s business wise, friendship wise, or that she’s had a little flirt with. Whatever it is that gets her that intel, she good boo.

I’d honestly love as many connections as we can possibly come up with. They can range from anything from best friends, to sworn enemies. Literally, anything. I’ll admit that I’m a total sucker for brotp’s and anything squad related, where there’s just a group of friends who always seem to be together. Think F.R.I.E.N.D.S. but badass mofo’s in the illegal industries haha. So, just come at me, and we can come up with just about anything, just be warned I’m likely to spam you with muse posts, so if you’re good with that, HMU.

DID YOUR CHARACTER HAVE ANY RELATION TO ELIZABETH?:

Sort of! They were more acquaintances than anything, crossed paths, considering it’s hard not to in a community as small as theirs, but as prominent in the city. They had mutual friends, which usually meant that the pair were at events, our for drinks together, and were rather friendly. Nothing over the top, so Esmeray wasn’t exactly broken up about her death, but it was still enough for her to recognise the stir it was going to cause, and to miss her face around.

WHO DO YOU THINK KILLED ELIZABETH? DO YOU HAVE ANY THEORIES?:

Donald Trump? — I feel like this is a valid theory.

[celestriakle]

I keep getting people who ask me what podcasts I listen to, what they’re about, and which I recommend, SO. Please note: these are solely my opinions, and your taste may differ from mine.

If you ever want more recommendations, check out Radio Drama Revival, which features all sorts of shows, singular and serial, and interviews with their writers and creators.

(This list is regularly updated. Last update 10/31/21.)

Top 3:

Archive 81: Dan is hired to organize some tapes about a very strange apartment building. Really ramps up in season 2. Horror. Good characters, interesting worldbuilding, intriguing plot, good voice acting, the best sound design of everything I’ve listened to so far. The whole package, really. (Ongoing.)

The Magnus Archives: An archivist for an institute of paranormal research reads aloud witness testimonials that turn out to be connected. The most tightly written podcast yet, perfectly paced, amazing use of framing device, fascinating world-building, wonderful slow-burn character development. Pay attention to the details in this one. (Completed.)

The Penumbra Podcast: There are a handful of stand-alone stories, but the two primary ones are a medieval-adjacent fantasy featuring knights facing monsters and a scifi detective noir story. Good breadth, and all the stories are fun and interesting, the characters endearing. Really excellent dialogue and genre play. (Ongoing.)

Great:

Alice Isn’t Dead: An anxious trucker is looking for her missing wife. Done by the Nightvale people but nothing like it. American Gothic variety horror. Lovely descriptions, a good protagonist, an interesting world, well-paced. (Completed.)

The Bunker: A black comedy about three guys who survived the apocalypse broadcasting a radio show to the wasteland. The episodes are long, but clearly and easily segmented for easy listening. Does an excellent job building up the world and characters and maintaining its bleak humor throughout, while going in depth on its themes and the chosen topics of each episode. (Completed.)

The Bright Sessions: People with powers in therapy to learn to cope with them. Contrary to what one might expect, this isn’t about superheroes, but the way it handles healing and growth and relationships are fantastic. A satisfying ending. Very character-driven. Sequel series are now available on the feed as well. (Completed.)

Caravan: Two best friends are on a camping trip together, when one falls into a midwestern fantasy world. So much fun, the characters are full of charm and heart, and the voice actors portray them well. Another heartwarming whisperforge work, funny too. Mildly NSFW. (Ongoing.)

The Deep Vault: In the near future, a small group escape the apocalypse by taking shelter in a legendary abandoned bunker, but they’re not alone. A 7-ep miniseries made by the same people who did Archive 81, and they’re able to develop their cast and the relationships in it quite effectively in the short span given. A fast paced adventure great for a long drive or quiet afternoon. (Completed.)

The Far Meridian: An agoraphobic young woman wakes up to discover her lighthouse is teleporting around. Gentle surrealism with a focus on story. Even the one-off characters are charming, and there are well-written latino characters everywhere. (Ongoing.)

Girl in Space: Just a girl, in space, taking care of a star with only a glitchy AI for company (for now). The girl’s very charming, and the AI is one of my favorites I’ve seen written. (Ongoing.)

Gone: A woman wakes up one day to discover she's the last person in the world. No apocalypse, everyone's just... gone. Very, very strong voice in the protagonist; she's rough and fascinating. Incorporates a mental health angle often neglected in these types of stories. Another season was promised, as season 1 ends on a cliffhanger, but it hasn’t yet materialized. (Abandoned.)

Greater Boston: In an alternate Boston, the Red Line railway becomes it's own city, and the ramifications of that. A story about community, with the focus on a group of people dealing with the aftermath of a single man's death. Both deeply emotional and very, very funny. There are cheese robots, Atlantis, and guinea pigs. A delightful and very well woven wild ride. (Ongoing.)

Kalila Stormfire’s Economical Magick Services: A pleasant slice-of-life record of a young witch’s attempt to start a business. It takes a little to get going; I didn’t get much invested until episode seven, but ever since then, it’s continually ramped up. The final season especially is a delight. The crossover specials are very fun. (Ongoing.)

Liberty: In a distant Earth colony colony, there is the city of Atrius ruled by the dictatorial Arkon, and outside are the cannibalistic Fringers. Three stories in one. Critical Research, the first and roughest, follows a crew of Atrians going out and studying the Fringers. Tales of the Tower are is an anthology of horror stories aired by the Atrian government. Vigilance is an Actual Play story where the players are Atrians trying to track down three missing persons for community service, and get stuck in a deeper conspiracy. All of them are excellent, amazing soundscaping, good VAs, and intense writing. Vigilance and Critical Research are over, but Tales from the Tower is still ongoing. (Ongoing, but has several completed stories.)

The London Necropolis Railway: A short listen about a railroad that ferries the souls of the dead. A ghost dodged their train and one of the ticketers needs to chase her down. Short episodes, exciting, funny and fun. (Ongoing.)

A Scottish Podcast: A self-absorbed asshole tries to get rich by starting his own supernatural podcast. A parody of The Black Tapes and its ilk. Hilarious and a solid plot. (Ongoing.)

Startripper!!: An alien office worker buys his dream car and quits his job to go have adventures and live his best life. Genuinely the happiest, most feel good podcast I’ve heard. An absolute pleasure. (Ongoing.)

Uncanny County: An anthology series about strange events happening in a backwater town. Mostly has a goofy, off-beat tone, so it’s all good fun. Stories range from a couple that moves into a a house with a bathtub that reduces aging to a couple trying to get over the husband’s fear of clowns by staying a clown hotel. The stories are connected by place, but there’s no overarching plot; it’s just good fun. (Anthology.)

Welcome to Nightvale: The community radio show for the small desert town of Nightvale, where every conspiracy theory is true. You probably know this. WTNV is credited with kickstarting the new age of audio dramas for good reason: it's weird and wonderful with expansive storylines and amazing characters. I first discovered it back in 2015, but dropped it and didn't revisit it until now, five years later. Even with every other show I've heard, even with its own massive backlog, it still holds up with the best of them, still evoking new emotions and unveiling new secrets. WTNV is still very much an amazing podcast worth listening to. (Ongoing.)

The White Vault: An international repair team goes up to a base in Svalbard and becomes trapped by a storm after making an amazing discovery. Arctic horror. Novel framing, excellent suspense, good sound design and voice acting, a well done show. Uses actually international VAs. (Ongoing.)

Within the Wires: Tales from another world told first through relaxation tapes, then museum guides, then a government official’s notes to his secretary. The delicate unveiling of the world, and the complex relationships depicted through these restricted forms is absolutely masterful, allowing a deep understanding in spite of hearing only one voice. It starts off very strange and surreal, but it’s worth listening through that initial bump to get to the meat. (Ongoing.)

Wolf-359: The crew of a deep-space outpost begins receiving a series of strange transmissions. A sci-fi classic in the podcast community for good reason: beautifully plotted, excellent emotional arcs, a cast of characters I loved in their entirety. (Completed.)

Wooden Overcoats: A comedy about two competing funeral homes in a tiny village. Absolutely hilarious. Each character has their trope, but they are never bound by it and all are allowed to grow and develop beyond it. (Ongoing.)

Good:

2298: In a dystopian future where human lives are guided and curated by the Network, resident 24 is haunted by a beautiful golden bird. A modern take on a Big Brother-style dystopia. Quite short, but fun. Connected to the canon of Girl in Space. (Completed.)

36 Questions: An estranged married couple attempts to reconnect by asking each other 36 questions that are supposed to help people fall in love. A musical, only 3 episodes long. Very good, excellent sound design, and this podcast would easily be in the great category if it weren’t for the ending, which I found unsatisfying. (Completed.)

Ars Paradoxica: A scientist accidentally sends herself back to the ‘40s and gets picked up by a military organization and tries to use their resources to get herself back to the present. One of the earlier audio dramas, so it’s a little tropey, but it existed before many of those tropes were established. I’m still listening through! (Completed.)

Beef and Dairy Network: A comedy podcast that made me laugh! The news from a fictitious network, like if Nightvale was about beef and dairy exclusively. Enough plot and fun to keep it fresh, that it really only wears down after 40 or so episodes. (Ongoing.)

The Bridge: The caretakers of Watchtower 10 on the largely abandoned Transatlantic Bridge are all there for a reason. There are frightening things in the water, and a wealth of stories. A little spooky, but not really horror. Big lovable cast, a good format, and several interesting plot threads to put together and follow. (Ongoing.)

Gal Pals Present Overkill: A ghost tries to figure out how she died and navigate the afterlife in a very haunted park. Sweet, does very interesting things with ghosts as a concept. All girls, everyone’s gay, that latina representation I always crave. (Ongoing.)

Kane and Feels: A pair of PIs (Paranormal Investigators) investigate a trail of subconscious strangeness. A very beautiful and surreal story that blurs the world of reality and dreams. Lovely prose and aesthetic. Episodes release extremely sporadically with no clear season breaks. (Ongoing?)

King Falls AM: Two guys host a radio show in a little town full of strange happenings. A similar premise to WTNV executed quite differently. Charming but underwhelming for the first 50-ish episodes, then ramps up sharply and becomes very intense and very good. (Ongoing.)

Lesser Gods: In a post-apocalyptic future after which humans lost the ability to reproduce, the final five youngest on earth attempt to cope with and solve a murder after one of their ranks dies. Like a YA novel in the best way. Very flawed and complex characters. Episodes stopped coming midseason. (Abandoned.)

L I M B O: A dead man meets people from his past. Manages to bring to life several interesting characters in a very short time, though it leaves questions. Connected to the canon of 2298. (Completed.)

Mabel: Live-in caretaker for an elderly woman won’t stop leaving voicemails for the woman’s estranged granddaughter and discovers many strange things in the strange house. Very narrowly got edged out of my top three, but still very good. Gothic horror. Great use of format, well-paced, mellifluous writing and good music that makes it a pleasure to listen to in sound alone. (Ongoing.)  

Middle:Below: A man with the ability to travel to the spirit world helps ghosts move on. Very cute and quirky and sweet. The cast’s charming, and the ghosts they deal with are interesting, and there’s still quite a number of mysteries about the world. (Ongoing.)

Outliers: An anthology collection rather than a narrative, each story tells the tale of a lesser known British historical figure. Well-written, well-acted--mostly--with a bonus of some learning on the side. (Completed.)

Passage: Two skeletons on a lifeboat from a ship that supposedly vanished a century ago washes up on the shore of a small town. A mystery miniseries, only 7 episodes long. Half the reason I listened to this is because it takes place in the PNW. A good mystery, an enjoyable quick listen. (Completed.)

Pleasuretown: A western about a small desert town that got wiped out, and the stories of all the inhabitants who used to live there and the strange supernatural encounters they had. It weaves together beautifully with top notch sounds. Starts out very white/male/cishet, but the stories get more diverse and inclusive as the podcast goes on. It’s episodic enough that the stories are enjoyable on their own, but the large overarching story thread never got resolved. (Abandoned.)

Radiation World: A boat full of strangers on a quest discovers a bunker full of people who survived the apocalypse and they help each other out. Shenanigans ensure. Incredibly fun and funny with a great plot and series of twists. The ending implied another season was planned, but there are no major questions left, so it stand on its own. (Completed?)

Station to Station: A researcher is looking into the circumstances of the disappearance of a beloved coworker no one seems to remember. Sporadic update schedule has made this one a bit hard to keep track of. (Ongoing.)

Alright:

Bubble: A hipster human colony that lives in a bubble on a foreign planet occasionally deals with monster attacks. A comedy that knows its type very well: I have an intimate understanding of the people it’s poking fun at, and that made it at once incredibly fun and also hard to listen to. It implied there would be a second season, but one hasn’t yet happened. The first season stands alone well, however. (Completed?)

Big Data: Seven thieves steal the seven keys to the internet to try to take it down. Each individual heist is really interesting and fun with a great thief, but the frame narrative left me wanting. The ending implied there was going to be a sequel series, but one never materialized. (Completed?)

Congeria: A detective searching for a missing girl gets caught up with cults and murderers. A well produced podcast, well acted and well plotted, this is perfect if you love hardboiled detective stories. Honestly, this is only in alright because it’s not my usual genre. It was just a heavy listen. (Completed.)

The Dark Tome: A dark fantasy podcast where a troubled young teen reads a magic, potentially evil book that sucks her into another world and allows her to witness stories. Very much has the feel of a YA novel. Each stories within the frame are written by different authors, so episode quality varies. (Ongoing.)

Deadly Manners: A classic murder mystery at a grand house party. It was enjoyable, the characters reasonably fun (with one massive racist/homophobic/antisemitic exception), but the whole thing still felt very run-of-the-mill nevertheless. (Completed.) 

Dreamboy: A depressed musician gets caught up in a conspiracy surrounding a dream and a killer zebra. Honestly, that synopsis isn’t even the half of it. This podcast is incredibly strange (and explicitly NSFW) but quite fascinating. Also, it has fabulous musical numbers. (Completed.)

Empty: Several humans and an AI wake up on a colony spaceship alone, with no memory. Interesting characters, a new favorite AI, but their season finale was more of a cliffhanger than a finale that wrapped up anything. (Abandoned.)

Hadron Gospel Hour: A comedy podcast about a scientist who broke the universe, his everyman sidekick, and the supercomputer helping them fix it. It’s episodic, and there are standalone shorts in it that are funny. Some jokes haven’t aged well, to put it kindly. At least one episode contains a racist joke. The seasons posted are complete, but the overarching plot never finished resolving. (Abandoned.)

The Infinite: The last surviving member of a deep space exploration mission receives a mysterious signal and contemplates if it’s worth chasing. It preceded many of the more popularized space operas and says many of the same things as them. (Completed.)

Janus Descending: A research team of two get killed while on an expedition to an alien planet. Told nonlinearly. There’s so much here that’s good, but the main characters are afflicted with a whole lot of stupid that diminishes the effect. (Completed.) 

Joseph: The Revenge of Opus: A far future scifi story where some dude saves the world and the girl. I'm writing this about nine months after first listening, and honestly that's about all I retained. I remember it being fun, and having very excellent sound design, but the story was very predictable and thus forgettable. (Completed.)

LifeAfter/The Message: A pair of discrete podcasts on the same feed. The Message is about a team of scientists trying to decipher a sound that triggered a pandemic, and LifeAfter is about an FBI agent offered a chance to reconnect with his dead wife through an AI. They were both interesting, though The Message hit uncomfortably close to home, since this is being written in Nov 2020. LifeAfter had a stronger plot regardless, though the likability of its protagonist is questionable. (Completed.)

Magic King Dom: One of the few survivors of an apocalypse grows up alone in Disneyland. Cute and well produced, but the pacing is very fast, and Dom’s characterization stretched my suspension of disbelief. Connected to the canon of Girl In Space. (Completed.)

Misadventure by Death: A trope-aware person is hired to take care of an almost certainly haunted house. The writing feels a little amateur at points, but it’s enjoyable and had decent pacing so far.  Updates stopped coming midseason. (Abandoned.)

Tides: A xenobiologist who has been stranded on an alien planet that’s regularly soaked by a large tidal wave. It’s acted well enough, the sound is good, and the premise is good along with the dialogue, but a bit too much time is spent on the visual descriptions of alien creatures and the pacing of the main plot has yet to catch up. (Ongoing.)

What’s the Frequency: Something strange is happening with the radio, and two detectives are on the case. Anyone who knows me knows I’m not a fan of avante guarde storytelling methods, and unfortunately, this podcast makes plentiful use of them. It took several episodes for me to grasp a basic idea of which characters were which and what the basic plot was, due to nonlinear narrative, unclear characterization, and similar sounding VAs. In spite of this, the charm of the characters I did grasp and the bits of plot I put together kept me interested and listening. (Ongoing.)

Not Recommended:

The Angel of Vine: A hardboiled PI attempts to solve a grisly murder. A very generic example of its genre, it doesn’t bring anything new or interesting to the table. Just boring.

The Black Tapes: Reporter looks into the unsolved cases of someone who disproves the paranormal for a living. Season one was fantastic, but they start to lose it in season two; the pacing and focus go astray. Season three is worse, and then the finale they put out was one of the most disappointing endings I’ve endured in years. It was bad enough I don’t intend on looking into their other productions, Rabbits and Tanis.

The Blood Crow Stories: S1 is about a malicious entity that haunts a ship, but each season is different. I listened only to s1. If you like villains who get away with all their plans perfectly and face no challenge from the protags whatsoever, then this podcast is for you. The villain is also incredibly overwrought to near laughability and relies on gore and shock value for its fearsomeness. The rest of the cast is alright, but nothing special. Uncomfortable interactions with the creators sealed my decision to not proceed with the other seasons.

Everlasting Beholders: Some aliens attempt to influence an alternate Earth. The changes made are uncomfortable, and it’s a bit hard to follow. Supposedly it connects to Empty, but not in a way I could figure out. It was never finished.

Organism: An alien of some sort learns about the world. Slow, simplistic, boring, with a very strange twist ending.

Ruby and the Galactic Gumshoe (2020): A scifi noir that's a new adventure in a series started in the 80s. Honestly, I loved the narrator and the soundscaping; the feel of this show was amazing. However, I don't recommend it solely because one of the characters is a deeply racist caricature. Ruby has a hi-tech car with an inbuilt AI described as a "big black genie", and whenever he speaks, it's with a thick Indian accent and "mystical" language.

Spines: Amnesiac survivor of a cult ritual tries to find out what happened and where her missing soul mate went by interrogating people with weird powers. Horror. The world is cool, the imagery is very cool, the story is reasonably interesting, but the voice acting is bad. Both voices we hear deliver all their lines, even ones that sound as if they should be deeply emotional, in the same flat, disinterested, apathetic, tired monotone. Not only that, but the pacing and narration destroy any sense of suspense this epic story should have.

Subject: Found: S1 was about a bigfoot hunter, and s2 was about a murderer who loved to kill women. The second story is very much not my thing--especially in light of how s1 treated its main female character--so I only listened to s1. As mentioned, the main female character, the protagonist’s wife, gets her needs constantly deferred or invalidated in favor of her husband’s as part of the story, but he’s the hero so of course he gets the girl. The plot choices that aside are very strange, a bit nonsensical, and the voice acting, main couple aside, is bad.

Dropped:

(Not bad! Just not to my specific tastes.)

Alba Salix, Royal Physician: A grumpy witch tries to keep a kingdom healthy with the help of a fairy and unwilling apprentice. Comedy. I loved Alba, but I’m extremely picky with comedies, and this one wasn’t enough for me to keep with it.

Aqua Marianas: I couldn’t finish the first episode thanks to poor audio quality. From what I heard, it also seemed a bit tropey.

Control Group: A historical fiction about a woman committed to a mental institution for a crime she didn’t commit. I can’t handle this sort of horror; it’s too dark for me.

Counter Worlds: An anthology told audio book style, with narration, which I simply can’t focus on.

Darkest Night: A horror anthology with the frame narrative of a mysterious, suspicious organization doing research into memory. Rather gruesome. Very mainstream sort of horror; some episodes were good, but others indulged too many misogynistic tropes for my taste.

Hector Vs The Future: There was a laugh track and I didn't like that. I didn't make it very far in.

Herbarium Podcasts: A collection of miniseries. Honestly, I can’t even provide an accurate synopsis. My audio processing issues made listening to more than five minutes of this impossible; the inconsistent audio quality was way too distracting and broke my immersion.

Inkwyrm: Intergalactic haute couture. Everything about the concept of this podcast spoke to me on a fundamental level, but I couldn’t even get through all of episode one. The characters didn’t appeal to me, and the sound quality isn’t great. I couldn’t understand the AI character they introduced. When I skipped ahead to see if the audio quality got better, it didn’t, and just like with Herbarium Podcasts above, poor audio is a dealbreaker.

Love and Luck: Two men in love discover they’re witches, told through voicemail. Really, my problem here was just that I wanted more angst. They’re very happy and loving and they work through every relationship problem they have very quickly, and I just plain wanted more conflict and struggle.

Otherverse: Broadcasts from another world where aliens are subjugating humanity. Enjoyable and interesting enough to keep me subscribed, but nothing special. It’s all a little basic, and the audio quality leaves something to be desired. Got bored and the update schedule got sporadic, so I dropped it.

Palimpsest: A girl moves into a haunted house and attempts to cope with the death of her sister. This podcast improved as I listened. The voice acting is solid, but the writing and audio editing in the first few episodes felt very overdone. They picked up as things progressed, and the ending downright surprised me. Season 2 switched protagonists, and the new protag had such a poorly done accent, I couldn’t tell if it was supposed to be Scottish, Irish, or Southern, and that bothered me too much to continue listening.

Poplar Cove: They made an asylum joke within the first five minutes of the first episode and that’s a hard no from me.

Sable: From the episode I listened to, this podcast appeared to be about urban legends and monsters, but admittedly I don’t know much. This podcast is told audiobook style, with a single narrator also performing the character voices and no sound effects. I have a very hard time focusing on those sorts of tales.

Saffron and Peri: Comedy podcast about a fairy godparent school. As mentioned previously,  I’m extremely picky with comedies and none of the characters pulled me in, so I dropped it.

Tales of Thattown: Effectively, it’s Welcome to Nightvale in the south. Yet another comedy podcast that failed to strike a chord with me, though the creator’s a sweetheart.

Thrilling Adventure Hour: A series of standalone stories. No real complaints; the couple stories I tried just didn't catch my interest. 

Tumanbay: A historical fiction podcast surrounding citizens of the imagined city Tumanbay, based on the Mamluk empire in Egypt. Honestly, I'm n the fence on if this should be in my outright "Not Recommended" category. Everything about the production quality was good; the voices and story were interesting. However, this podcast is written and produced by two British men who profess they invented Tumanbay as a separate place because they thought adhering to historical accuracy would be too restrictive and difficult. Little things like the escaped slave who used Slave as his preferred name, or the fact that the more intelligent/cerebral characters all had British accents, while the more brutish ones had Middle Eastern ones, when this is supposedly an entirely Middle Eastern area, got under my skin enough to make me drop it.

Tunnels: A mystery podcast inquiring about a mysterious series of tunnels under a town. The format and tone are rather closely modeled after The Black Tapes, and as I ultimately wasn’t a fan of that, I elected to drop this.

We're Alive: A surviving the zombie apocalypse story. Supposedly, another major pioneer in the rise of modern audio drama. But I didn't realize until I started that the protagonist was a soldier, and I don't care for soldier stories.

Violet Beach: Strange time shenanigans happen to teens when the sun sets purple. The monologues it’s told through tend to meander, and lackluster VAs and no sound design made it especially hard to focus, so I dropped this.

Zoo: An FBI agent attempts to solve the mystery of a traveling zoo home to a variety of cryptids. Lower production value than most other podcasts here and occasionally makes strange choices, but develops its plot steadily and does some interesting things with its premise. Unfortunately, the developments weren’t enough to keep my attention on the long term, so I made the tough choice to drop it.

[holbyconfessional]

Holby City S20 E39 - Undoing

Dear lord, when is this evil maniac finally going to get his comeuppance?  I suppose it shouldn’t be a shock that he was so casually able to commit outright murder, since he basically more or less did it last week when he left the clip in Roxanna’s brain (lots of talk this week about how interruption of blood flow leads to brain death, so essentially last week he was hoping for a slow brain death for her, whereas this week where her brain seemed able to create it’s own bypass and allow her basic communication abilities, he just had to do something far more immediate and overt). It’s funny, really.  Roxanna has never been a favourite of mine, although I’ve been ok with her, but I still feel massively robbed by her presumed death.  I say presumed, because it’s pretty clear that she’s dead (especially if you use Twitter!), but I always prefer to have it spelled out within the show.  Out of the two characters, I’d far rather someone killed Gaskell!  I really can���t be doing with this storyline going on for too much longer, but I will say, for all I hate it, McGann really does play the arse out of his character, so I guess acting props to him.

Thing is, how much more can Hanssen take?  I can’t bear for him to have to face this!

The whole Fletcher storyline.  I have to say, I’m pretty meh.  I have no real investment in Fletch reuniting with his father.  Fletch Snr is uninteresting to me, Fletch Jr is tolerable, but his kids are turning into pains in the arse.  I merely shrug at their screentime.

Sacha was great tonight.  I think it’s great that having done such an epic job at portraying Sacha’s mental health breakdown, that the show is now addressing the perceptions of those around him, and how people who are suffering with depression don’t just have their own demons to fight, they also have other people’s uninformed reactions to deal with too,  I mean, Ric is a doctor, and he couldn’t even say the word.  How is someone supposed to cope with their own chemical imbalances when the people around them make out like their illness has turned them into a freak?

I enjoyed his screen time with Petrenko.  Watching Petrenko’s legs and super toned midriff didn’t hurt too much either!  But I am down with watching her interact with as many characters as possible, considering previously her interaction pool has been very limited.  And watching her box with Sacha also allowed us to see Sacha’s incredibly lovely smile, too.  So, pluses all around.

Anyway, now, I need to go and get thoughts of Mengele out of my head, since I’m feeling more and more like I’m watching a modern day version each week, and it’s not good.