#Introduction to Taiwan

[nainaiii1010]

Self-Intro ʚ♡ɞ

⸝⸝ 🎨  ̼യ 📔 ꊞ₊⍤ !˚ Name : Nai Country : Taiwan Age : 16 Gender : Female Language : Chinese, English, Korean 🤏, Russian 🤏 Pronoun : She, Her MBTI : INFP-T ꒷︶  ̇  ̟ ෆ ‿୨♡୧‿ ෆ  ̟  ̇ ︶꒷ Hobby : Draw, Sleep, Play music game, Dance Anime : Rem Sports : Ice-Skating Subject : Science Instrument : Flute Colour : Pink, all kind of light color ๑ ⋆˚₊⋆────ʚ˚ɞ────⋆˚₊⋆ ๑ History of Depression : First time : 2022/11/20 Symptoms : Depression & Anxiety & Schizophrenia  ꒰🧸꒱ Something to say Hi ! I am Nai, and I am very happy to join this big family. I will upload my Depression Diary to this Account, and I am also interested in making friends, I hope my condition will get better soon. ᐢ..ᐢ

[lurkingshan]

First Note of Love hooked me instantly. I’m so excited to get another high quality Taiwanese bl this year. Core premise:

Neil and his brother Matt were a famous music duo until Matt died in an accident. Neil has been deep in grief, a general wreck, and unable to perform or make music since. He has to produce an album this year or his contract terms will be violated, losing him both his source of income as well as the copyright to the music he made with his brother. His manager recruits a hot young composer, Sea, to work with him on the album, who has his own connection to Neil from the past.

I love this premise and the show feels really solid. The character introductions were great and we already got a chance encounter, a childhood connection, and an accidental kiss by the first episode (this is Taiwan, after all, the tropes will be plentiful but they’re using them well). This is a GagaOOLala original so that’s where you can find it along with Viki. The first two eps are already up!

ETA: @pharawee reminded me this show is co-produced by Thailand’s Star Hunter and one of the cast members is Thai. I’m so intrigued by these cross-country collabs we’ve been getting.

[yamayuandadu]

The real life inspirations behind new characters in Touhou 19 (Unfinished Dream of All Living Ghost) While I haven’t been posting much about Touhou as of late, I felt obliged to put together the customary post about the inspirations behind the new characters. The new game genuinely renewed my interest. In contrast with similar write-ups pertaining to previous games the research is not entirely mine - some of the sections are a result of cooperation between me and @just9art. Without further ado, let’s delve into the secrets of the new cast. Find out if Biten is the first “Wukong impersonator” ever, when a tanuki is actually a badger, and why Hisami both is and isn’t an oni. Naturally, the post is full of spoilers. Also, fair warning, it's long.

1. Biten Son - sarugami + Sun Wukong

Sarugami means “monkey kami”, the monkey in mention being the Japanese macaque.To my best knowledge, the term is actually not used commonly in English - the results on jstor and De Gruyter are in the low single digits, Brill outright has nothing to offer. Translations are much more common.

Sarugami are particularly strongly associated with Mount Hiei. You might have heard of it because of its association with Matarajin, though in this case he’s not exactly relevant. Instead, it is believed the monkeys act as messengers of Sanno (the “mountain king”), Sekizan Myojin and Juzenji. Sanno himself could take the form of a monkey according to medieval texts, while Juzenji can be accompanied by a deity depicted as a man with a monkey’s head, Daigyoji, known from the Hie mandala. Sarutahiko is also associated with monkeys based on the similarity between his name and the word saru. Bernard Faure notes that despite the clearly positive portrayal of monkeys as semi-divine beings in service of these deities, their perception in folklore and mythology can nonetheless be considered ambivalent, because they could be viewed as aggressive. There are even examples of sarugami being portrayed as monstrous antagonists to be defeated by a hero. The best known tale of this variety is known simply as Sarugami taiji. It is preserved in the Konjaku monogatari. Here the sarugami is a fearsome monster who terrorizes a village and demands the offering of one young woman each year.

In contrast with the sarugami, I do not think Sun Wukong, one of the protagonists of the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, needs much of an introduction. We reached the point where even in the west he is recognizable enough to warrant toys based on him (there’s a Lego Wukong on my desk right now). Biten's design has many callbacks to traditional portrayals of Wukong, including the staff (which in the novel is a pillar stolen from the undersea palace of a dragon emperor) and a very distinctive diadem (in the novel making it possible to pressure the unruly Wukong into obeying the monk he is meant to protect). As a curiosity it’s worth noting that “fake Wukong” is not a brand new idea - in the novel itself, one of the enemies of the heroes, Six-Eared Macaque, actually impersonates him for a time. Wukong is effectively himself a “divine monkey”, seeing as despite his origin as a literary character he actually came to be worshiped as a deity in mainland China, Taiwan and various areas with a large Chinese diaspora. The topic of Wukong worship itself came to be an inspiration for literature, starting with the excellent The Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal by Pu Songling, a writer active during the reign of the Qing dynasty, in the early eighteenth century.

2. Enoko Mitsugashira - “immortal yamainu” + Cerberus

Enoko gets the least coverage here, because there really isn’t much to say. Yamainu, “mountain dog”, isn’t really a supernatural creature, it’s an old term for either the extinct Japanese wolf, a type of feral dog, or a hybrid between these. It can also be used as a synonym of okuri-inu, a youkai wolf believed to accompany travelers at night.

There’s actually a distinctly Journey to the West-esque component to Enoko’s backstory, but I have no clue if this is intentional. In the aforementioned novel, many of the antagonists, who are generally demonic animals, are motivated by the desire to devour the flesh of the protagonist, the Buddhist monk Tang Sanzang, because it is said to grant immortality. Granted, given the obscurity of the figure Zanmu is based on - more on that later - perhaps this is an allusion to something else we have yet to uncover. Cerberus, being probably one of the most famous mythical monsters in the world, does not really need to be discussed here. The illustration is included mostly because I like Edmund Dulac and any opportunity is suitable for sharing his illustrations. I do not think it needs to be pointed out that Enoko's bear trap weapons are meant to evoke Cerberus' extra heads.

3. Chiyari Tenkajin - tenkaijin (+ mujina) + chupacabra

While my favorite animal youkai not yet featured in Touhou is easily the kawauso (otter), I was very pleased to learn we sort of got a mujina since I wanted to cover this topic since forever, but never got much of a chance. Technically Chiyari is actually meant to be a tenkaijin, which is not a mujina but a slightly different youkai (a will-o-wisp or St. Elmo’s fire-like creature, specifically) who in the single tale dealing with it takes the form of a mujina after dying, but as there is not much to say about it beyond that you will get a crash course in mujina folklore instead.

Today the word mujina is pretty firmly a synonym of anaguma - in other words, the Japanese badger. The animal does not substantially differ from other badgers, so I do not think much needs to be said about its ecology. However, historically the term could be used to refer to the tanuki regionally, or interchangeably to both animals, so in some cases if insufficient detail is provided it is hard to tell which one is meant. This ambiguity extends to the folklore surrounding them, and generally if you know what to expect from tanuki tales, which I’m sure most people reading this do, you will instantly recognize many of the plot elements typical for mujina ones. In other words, it is yet another yokai which typically takes the role of a shapeshifting trickster. Some supernatural phenomena could be basically interchangeably attributed to mujina, tanuki, kitsune or kawauso. Mujina are commonly described taking the form of Buddhist monks, which is one of the many similarities between them and tanuki.

The most famous depiction of a shapeshifting mujina comes from Toriyama Sekien’s Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki (The Illustrated One Hundred Demons from the Present and the Past). The accompanying text compares the creature to the supernatural versions of kitsune and tanuki, and states that the artist relied on a tale according to which a mujina was able to successfully impersonate a Buddhist monk until accidentally revealing its tail. 

What makes the mujina special is that it is actually the oldest recorded example of a youkai of this sort. A mujina tale already appears in the early Japanese chronicle Nihon Shoki, dated to 627. It reports an incident of a mujina transforming into a human and singing somewhere in the Michinoku Province. I feel like this alone is a good example of why you should be wary of people who seek to present Nihon Shoki or Kojiki as historical truth. Western audiences as far as I know were first introduced to mujina by Lafcadio Hearn. To my best knowledge, the fabulous shapeshifting badgers however failed to gain the popcultural recognition enjoyed by tanuki and kitsune. They did appear in Shigeru Mizuki's stories every now and then, and I found a mascot character based on them, but overall there isn't all that much beyond that.

Naturally, there isn't much mujina in Chiyari's design, and she instead most likely owes her distinctly spiky appearance to the other inspiration behind her character, the chupacabra. Mujina are not really portrayed as bloodthirsty, but the poorly documented tenkajin apparently is, which is presumably why ZUN decided to connect Chiyari with the chupacabra, the best known modern blood-drinking creature, who first appeared in tall tales from 1995 and subsequently took popculture by storm after spreading from Puerto Rico to mainland USA and Mexico. I am not a chupacabra aficionado so I have little to offer here, sadly.

4. Hisami Yomotsu - yomotsu-shikome

Judging from what I’ve seen on social media and on pixiv, Hisami is shaping up to be one of the most popular new characters (she’s my fave too). In sharp contrast with that, her basis is pretty obscure. So obscure that there isn’t even any historical art to showcase, as far as I can tell (note that this blog claims night parade scrolls might have something to offer, though - I was unable to verify this claim for now, sadly). As we learn from her bio, she is supposed to be a yomotsu-shikome. They’re called the “hags of Yomi” of Yomi in Donald L. Philippi’s Kojiki translation. The term shikome can be literally translated as “ugly woman”. Nothing about them really implies femme fatale leanings we are evidently seeing in Touhou but I’m not going to complain about that. Yomotsu-shikome appear only in the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki, and in both of these early chronicles they are portrayed as servants of Izanami after she died and came to reside in Yomi, the land of the dead. Nihon Shoki states there are only eight of them. The distinct grape vine motif present on Hisami’s clothes seems like an obvious reference to Izanagi’s escape from Yomi following his meeting with Izanami, portrayed in the myth recorded in both of these sources. When the yomotsu-shikome started to pursue him, he threw a vine he used to hold his hair at them. The plant instantly bore fruit, which the entities started to eat. They later resumed the chase, but were once again held back, this time by a bamboo shot. According to the Nihon Shoki, they eventually give up after he creates a river from his piss (sic) to keep them away.

Yomotsu-shikome are sometimes compared to oni by modern researchers. Noriko T. Reider in her monograph about oni argues that alongside hashihime and yamanba (pictured above) they can be effectively grouped with them. Another researcher, Michael D. Foster, is more cautious, and states that despite clear similarities it’s best to avoid conflating oni-like female demons with female oni proper, especially since the latter have a distinct iconography and a distinct set of traits. Norinaga Motoori, the founder of kokugaku or “national learning”, a nationalist intellectual movement in Edo and Meiji period Japan, claimed that oni were based on yomotsu-shikome, which is a pretty dubious claim. It is ultimately not certain when the term oni started to be used, but it is safe to say it has continental origin. And, of course, oni permeate Japanese culture in a way yomotsu-shikome do not.

5. Zanmu Nippaku - Zanmu

This was the toughest mystery to solve, and I am fully indebted to 9 here, since they figured it out, I am merely depending on what they directed me to. Research is still ongoing, and it feels like we just started to untangle this mystery, so you can safely expect further updates. Zanmu appears to be based on the Buddhist monk… well, Zanmu. You can learn a bit about him here or on Japanese wikipedia; it seems there are quite literally 0 sources pertaining to him in English, and even in Japanese there is actually very little. Their names are not written the same, ZUN swapped the sign for “dream” from the original name for one which can be read as “nothingness”. If the unsourced quote on wikipedia is genuine, the reason might be tied to the personal views of the irl Zanmu. What little we’ve been able to gather about him is that he was active in the Sengoku period, and apparently was regarded as unorthodox and eccentric. This lines up with Zanmu’s omake bio pretty well. Seems the real Zanmu was also unusually long lived, and was able to recall events from distant past in great detail, though obviously the figure of 139 years attributed to him in a few places online has to be an exaggeration.

Yet more puzzling is the reference to Zanmu’s familiarity with Ikkyo you might spot in the linked article. Whether the famous Ikkyo who you may know from the tale of Jigoku Dayu is meant is difficult to determine. The chronology does not really add up; on the other hand the logic behind associating one eccentric semi-legendary monk with another in later legends isn’t particularly convoluted. As 9 pointed out to me, if ZUN was aware of this link, and the same Ikkyo really was meant, it is not impossible the connection between Zanmu and Hisami is meant to in some way mirror that between Ikkyo and Jigoku Dayu. As you can easily notice, it’s pretty clear the historical Zanmu was male. It does not seem his Touhou counterpart is, obviously.  I would say we should wait for more info until declaring that we have a second Miko situation on our hands, with a male historical figure directly reimagined as a female character without any indication we are dealing with a relative rather than the real deal. There’s still relatively little info to go by so I would remain cautious (though naturally this is not meant to discourage you from having headcanons).

Neither me nor 9 were able to find any connection between the historical Zanmu and oni… so far, at least. Therefore, what motivated ZUN to make Zanmu an oni remains to be discovered. As a final curiosity, on a semi-related note it might be worth pointing out that while not as common as their male peers, female oni are not a modern invention, and already appear in setsuwa from the 13th century. A particularly common motif are tales describing a woman turning into oni due to jealousy or anger. Further reading:

Jason Colavito, The Secret Prehistory of El Chupacabra (2011)

Bernard Faure, Gods of Medieval Japan vol. 1-3 (2015-2022)

Michael Daniel Foster, The Book of Yokai. Mysterious Creatures of Japanese Folklore (2015)

John Knight, Waiting for Wolves in Japan. An Anthropological Study of People-wildlife Relations (2003)

Noriko T. Reider, Japanese Demon Lore (2010)

[bird-inacage]

CALL ME BY FIRE (SEASON 3): Participation of Jeff Satur

Now this has been the most uncanny crossover I never saw coming. A show I've been watching for years, and my introduction to thai BL which initially put Jeff's name on my radar. Here's some context for any fans who have heard of his participation and want to know more.

Call Me by Fire is a mainland Chinese TV competition show. They invite 33 established male celebrities with the goal to form an ultimate "boy band" by the show's conclusion. What tends to be the incredible pulling factor is they'll invite a combination of singers, musicians, actors, dancers, idols, presenters - incredibly well known faces in the industry - many of them hugely respected OGs in their field. (The demographic is usually late 20s+) so there's an intentional sense of maturity, experience and wisdom amongst the ensemble. The emphasis isn't really on forming this 'fictional' boy band, it acts as a mechanism for us to get more up close and personal with these artists. Allowing viewers to appreciate their creative genius, as well as who they are as people.

This show came as a spin off of another series 'Sisters Who Make Waves' which has the exact same premise but for female celebrities. Because it became such an instant hit, they made a male version shortly after.

As a Chinese speaker, I've been watching both shows since they started in 2020. Both are in their third season (with Call Me by Fire broadcasting right now). This year they've decided to include more participants (of mainly Chinese/Asian descent) from America, Korea, Japan, Vietnam and Thailand - along with the majority from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Why I find this show both incredibly entertaining and compelling is because you get to watch spectacular collaborations between some of the most talented artists of this generation, and witness them embark on a journey of brotherhood through a shared love for performance (they live, work and perform together for the duration of the show). For me, theres also a massive nostalgia factor, because a large portion of these artists will be people I grew up watching.

There will be a lot of new attention on this show due to the Jeff's involvement (whose dubbed ‘Luo Jie Fu’ in Chinese). We’re only on Episode 2, and he's already making a huge impression, earning one of two MVPs spots after their first live performance - his group ranking 2nd out of 8, and his personal ranking being 7th overall (based on the live audience popularity vote).

The show is uploaded onto Youtube in full (post-broadcast on a Saturday). Just to warn you, the episodes are usually very, very long (sometimes between 2-3 hours in total), but I personally really enjoy that. There are English subtitles but the translations don’t always capture the nuances.

Jeff is doing a superb job so far and he's very brave for taking this on. He brings something distinctly unique in his showmanship and personal sense of style. It's a daunting prospect for someone who can't speak or understand Chinese, but the other brothers are doing their best to help him feel as welcome and settled in as possible.

If anyone has any questions about the show or clips featuring Jeff they'd like to know more about, I'm more than happy to translate.

[komatsuyuko]

Finally announced!!!! I'm so excited~~~~!!!!

"A whisper, resonance , secret in spring" my new solo exhibition is in Seoul since next week! Please share it for me to your friends!I will be there at the opening for book sign and easy talk! This is a whole new exhibition with new love.

See you soon! Our Seoul soul friends!

[Exhibition Introduction]

This exhibition features the artist Peiyuuue, who is actively showcasing her works not only in Taiwan but also in Korea. The character 'Happy,' which appears prominently in the artist's works, may seem simple and innocent like a child's drawing at first glance, but it is actually the artist's closest friend and alter ego, supporting and encouraging her to overcome dark and difficult times. As a result, when looking at Peiyuuue's artwork, it feels as if the inner child within oneself is being comforted by a warm embrace. With the arrival of the gentle spring, may we encounter the 'Happy' within our hearts along with Peiyuuue's exhibition.

[Artist's Message]

Let's bask in the sunshine and fall in love with our shining self. 

The theme of this exhibition is consisting of three series of works. 

A whisper is a little secret told to you when someone whispers your name, a simple story started by self-talk. No matter what you like to do or what you are looking for, although there may not be an answer, the process is the scenery. 

Resonance lives up to its name, simple joy in its purest form. Small mosaics spell out your favorite happy moments this year. Having these joys gives breathing space in a busy life. Only when such happiness is constructed in life will we know that happiness is simple. 

Secret in spring is a series of paradises constructed under the artistic conception of spring. My world view is peace, contentment and joy.

If this is a world with only Happy, come in and take a look inside.

[Exhibition Event]

(1) PEIYUUUUE Exhibition Opening Event

Join us for the exhibition's opening event on Saturday, April 6th, on the PRNT 4th floor rooftop. From 3 PM to 5 PM, there will be an artist signing session, along with light refreshments.

*The reservation link will be released soon.

*Event schedule subject to change due to rain.

(2) PEIYUUUUE New Book and Merchandise Sale

(3) PEIYUUUUE x PRNT Collaborative Sticker Sale

[Exhibition Period]

April 6th (Sat) - April 28th (Sun), 2024

[Opening Hours]

Thu-Sun 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm

*Closed every Mon-Wed and on public holidays

[Exhibition Venue]

Manyang-ro 1-gil, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, PRNT 2F

[zaobitouguang]

The Sounds of Taiwanese

I'm back to posting about Taiwanese after... we don't have to say how long haha. In this post I'm going to break down the vowels and consonants of Taiwanese! We'll save the tones for later because I think they deserve a post of their own. Transcriptions in this post are in the Tâi-lô romanization system.

Taiwanese Initial Consonants

The four main places of articulation used in Taiwanese are bilabial, alveolar, velar, and glottal. These correspond to the places of articulation used for the English/Mandarin pinyin letters p, t, k, and h.

The nasal consonants in Taiwanese are similar to their English/Mandarin counterparts, except that ng can appear at the beginning of syllables, as in the word 扭 ngiú "to twist". To practice this sound, say a word like "singing", then take off the si-.

Taiwanese distinguishes three types of stop and affricate consonants: voiced unaspirated, voiceless unaspirated, and voiceless aspirated. The latter two are about the same as b and p in Mandarin, which lacks fully voiced consonants. Most English speakers (to my knowledge) don't produce fully voiced stop consonants either, so this distinction can take some practice and listening.

Taiwanese aspirates are alveolar in most contexts, meaning they are pronounced like the ts in a word like "cats", but alveolo-palatal when they come before the vowel -i, meaning they are closer to a Mandarin q/j/x or English ch sound.

Taiwanese l can vary between an l sound and a tapped r, like the r in Spanish or Japanese.

Taiwanese Vowels

Taiwanese's six vowel system is actually pretty straightforward compared to Mandarin's. i, e, a, and u are pronounced similarly to Spanish (as opposed to English, in which we like to make our vowels into diphthongs). oo is like a Spanish o, produced with the mouth slightly more open.

o is pronounced like a Spanish o in Northern Taiwan and a schwa (the vowel in English "but") in Southern Taiwan.

Taiwanese has a diphthongs (combinations of two vowels) and triphthongs (combinations of three vowels). They are: ai, au, ia, iau, io, iu, ua, uai, ue, and ui.

Taiwanese also has syllabic nasals! The consonants m and ng can appear as the final of a syllable without a vowel, as in the words 毋 m̄ "not" and 遠 hn̄g "far".

Taiwanese also also has nasalized vowels, as in French "non". Most vowels and diphthongs can be nasalized, but not all. In Tâi-lô, a nasalized vowel is represented with two n's, as in ann or iunn.

Taiwanese Final Consonants

Taiwanese syllables can not only end in -n and -ng, like in Mandarin, but also -m.

Taiwanese syllables can also end in stop consonants! These consonants are generally not released. This is similar to the how final consonants of the English words "stop", "cat", and "back" are commonly pronounced.

The glottal stop doesn't so much have a sound of its own, but it makes the preceding vowel sound short and cut off. The sound in the middle of the English word "uh-oh" is a glottal stop.

Final Notes

There are rules governing the ways that these initials, vowels, and final consonants can be combined, but I don't think memorizing them is that useful to a beginning learner.

I've provided IPA and the best explanations I could come up with, but if you want to learn to pronounce Taiwanese the best thing to do is listen! Most resources come with audio, as does the dictionary https://sutian.moe.edu.tw/.

The sources I used for this post include Taiwanese Grammar: A Concise Reference by Philip T. Lin, Short Takes: A Scene-Based Taiwanese Vocabulary Builder by Pin-chih Chi, Southern Hokkien: An Introduction by Bernhard Fuehrer and Yang Hsiu-Fang, and the Wikipedia page for Taiwanese Hokkien.

[arkipelagic]

[OPEN ACCESS] “How Taiwan Became Chinese: Dutch, Spanish, and Han Colonization in the Seventeenth Century” by Tonio Andrade

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments Preface Reader's Guide Introduction 1. Taiwan on the Eve of Colonization 2. A Scramble for Influence 3. Pax Hollandica 4. La Isla Hermosa: The Rise of the Spanish Colony in Northern Taiwan 5. The Fall of Spanish Taiwan 6. The Birth of Co-Colonization 7. The Challenges of a Chinese Frontier 8. "The Only Bees on Formosa That Give Honey" 9. Lord and Vassal: Company Rule over the Aborigines 10. The Beginning of the End 11. The Fall of Dutch Taiwan Conclusion

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

After Eunuchs: Science, Medicine, and the Transformation of Sex in Mondern China by Howard Chiang

goodreads

For much of Chinese history, the eunuch stood out as an exceptional figure at the margins of gender categories. Amid the disintegration of the Qing Empire, men and women in China began to understand their differences in the language of modern science. In After Eunuchs, Howard Chiang traces the genealogy of sexual knowledge from the demise of eunuchism to the emergence of transsexuality, showing the centrality of new epistemic structures to the formation of Chinese modernity. From anticastration discourses in the late Qing era to sex-reassignment surgeries in Taiwan in the 1950s and queer movements in the 1980s and 1990s, After Eunuchs explores the ways the introduction of Western biomedical sciences transformed normative meanings of gender, sexuality, and the body in China. Chiang investigates how competing definitions of sex circulated in science, medicine, vernacular culture, and the periodical press, bringing to light a rich and vibrant discourse of sex change in the first half of the twentieth century. He focuses on the stories of gender and sexual minorities as well as a large supporting cast of doctors, scientists, philosophers, educators, reformers, journalists, and tabloid writers, as they debated the questions of political sovereignty, national belonging, cultural authenticity, scientific modernity, human difference, and the power and authority of truths about sex. Theoretically sophisticated and far-reaching, After Eunuchs is an innovative contribution to the history and philosophy of science and queer and Sinophone studies.

Mod opinion: I haven't heard of this book before and while it does sound interesting I feel that it might be too specific for my own interest in academic trans literature, but I am excited to hear that a book like this exists.

[celluloidrainbow]

刻在你心底的名字 | YOUR NAME ENGRAVED HEREIN (2020) dir. Kuang-Hui Liu Martial law ends in 1987 in Taiwan. A new student, Birdy, arrives at an all-boys Catholic high school, where he and A-han soon become best friends. The two boys take a trip to Taipei—ostensibly to mourn the death of President Chiang Ching-kuo—and grow closer through their adventures in the capital. Despite mutual interest, the pair remain hesitant to act on their budding attraction. The introduction of co-educational schooling adds a wrinkle to their relationship, as the arrival of female students irrevocably transforms classroom dynamics. Birdy catches the eye of a female classmate, who offers the hope of socially-acceptable heterosexual romance, but A-han holds onto his affection for Birdy. Repeated incidents of conflict and reconciliation draw the pair together and break them apart, before fate finally takes them in different directions. (link in title)

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Week in Review (January 7-13, 2024)

Hard to talk about the Monarch: Legacy of Monsters finale without spoilers, so if you haven't watched it yet, skip ahead to the next item. No flashbacks this time (time dilation aside), just our surviving heroes finally all on the same page to solve a seemingly impossible problem. The momentous reunion between Lee and Keiko got the space it deserved, although I was a touch disappointed that the obvious budding romance between Cate and May got shortchanged. And of course we finally got our first kaiju fight of the series, with Godzilla dispatching the Ion Dragon in a quick but ferocious battle. Fun to see this version of the character take on a low-stakes, low-power challenger for a change. I am routinely frustrated by TV seasons ending on cliffhangers (some of which are then never resolved), but they managed to conclude this season's storyline while setting up the next one, should they have the chance to tell it. Good to have some payoff to the Apex episode earlier in the series. I'm wondering if the series is planning to pivot to Kong now. Since Godzilla: King of the Monsters still hasn't happened yet, the Big G still can't make any public appearances without breaking continuity, which is quite the writing complication.

@bog-o-bones has blessed us with an excellent feature-length video essay on the history of the kaiju genre. Even for a walking encyclopedia like me, it was fun to have it all laid out so cleanly—the way the three genre pillars of Godzilla, Gamera, and Ultraman rise and fall in popularity, never entirely in sync and consequently keeping us steadily entertained over the decades. So many narratives about the genre in print are decades out of date and/or act like barely anything past the sixties was worth making. This one's up-to-the-minute and gives the seismic influence of films like Cloverfield and Pacific Rim their due. I have my quibbles (last-minute re-records accidentally omitted GAMERA -Rebirth-; the original Mothra deserved more attention), but I acknowledge the amount of works covered here is staggering and every fan would tell this story a little bit differently. Highly recommended.

IDW's biggest Godzilla comic ever is coming in May, a one-shot anthology called Godzilla: 70th Anniversary. It'll have nine stories over 100 pages, with the writers including Joëlle Jones, Michael W. Conrad, Matt Frank, James Stokoe, Adam Gorham, and Dan DiDio. (Some of these folks will presumably be illustrating their comics as well.) The solicitation doesn't offer many plot hints, given that scope: "From the American Old West to modern Tokyo and beyond, this collection features stories of the King of the Monsters fighting with its allies like Mothra, against old enemies like the terrible Mechagodzilla, and reshaping the lives of all who fall in its path!" I'm surprised they're not waiting until November—hopefully it doesn't get delayed into November.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire will now release in the U.S. two weeks early—March 29. It's taking the place of Bong Joon-ho's Mickey 17, which is now undated. I can hardly complain about being able to see it earlier, though the move comes with some risk, as it's now opening the week after Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire.

SRS Cinema has opened preorders for their Yuzo the Biggest Battle in Tokyo Blu-ray. Or is it Yuzo: The Biggest Battle on Tokyo? That's what the product page says, but on the cover the title's unchanged. Oh, SRS. Anyway, bonus features are scant: just trailers and something called "A Brief Introduction To Ishii Yoshikazu."

Here's the teaser trailer for Volcanodon, a short film from Taiwan's Creator Union of Tokusatsu. They're aiming to have it uploaded to YouTube sometime this year, and I'll happily watch it. Obviously low-budget, but it's well-shot and it's nice to see a kaiju movie outside of Japan go all-in on practical effects.

[heffy1111]

°☆Cherry Unlimited ☆°

Own gg dr.

Debut: 20th March 2024.

Introduction: "Hello, we are Cherry Unlimited."

Concept: lovesick.

↳ Kprofile

Cherry Unlimited.

Cherry Unlimited profile and facts.

Cherry Unlimited ( ) is a ten member K-pop girl group originating in Seoul, South Korea. They are under the company Team Wang Korea. The group consists of ten members; Holli (홀리) Hayami (速水 / 하야미) Vivien (비비안) Lihua (梨花 / 리화) Shūhuì (淑惠) Mali (มะลิ) Pensri (เพ็ญศรี) Su-a (수아) Seo-yeon (서연) Ha-eun (��은).

Fandom name: pips

Official fandom colour: Deep red.

Socials:

Cherry_unlimited_ on insta and tiktok

WWW:https//Cherry_unlimited.//

No personal socials as of yet.

Member profiles:

Holli (홀리):

- born in Cymru Bach in Incheon to Welsh Expat parents.

- biggest idols in the industry are exo, mamamoo and nuest.

- started training at 17

- debuted at 21

- leader of cherry unlimited

- first trainee under the company ever.

- hates snakes (literal and metaphorical)

- helped CEO Jackson wang reorder his files. which led to the discovery of Hayami (速水 / 하야미).

Hayami (速水 / 하야미):

- born in Osaka, Japan.

- lived there until she was 15 when she moved to South Korea to try out for any talent agency possible with her background in ballet.

- gets scouted after two months by Team Wang Korea.

- trains for three years.

- debuts at 18.

- can do anything but focuses her talents on rapping.

- biggest idols are itzy and nct.

- really really hates mint ice cream.

- didn't know jackson wang was an idol in Korea before opening his talent agency. (He still is one in both China and Korea, so that's funny)

Vivien (비비안):

- born in Los Angeles to Vietnamese Parents.

- lived there until she was 18.

- came to Korea to train, and after 11 months, she debuted at 19.

- her idols included super junior (or well, they did until Holli provided a slideshow presentation on their controversies) so now she really likes Kard.

- she is a sub Vocalist and sub dancer.

- despises the sound of people obnoxiously chewing.

- big fan of GOT7. However, she was disappointed not to see her Bias Mark Tuan for the first few months.

Lihua (梨花 / 리화):

- She was born in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.

- Lihua has cited IU and Taeyeon as her biggest idols.

- Lihua trained for several years under different companies, which included time spent training in China and Korea.

- lihua is a powerhouse Vocalist.

- didn't know jackson wang had member and thought he was a soloist.

Shūhuì (淑惠):

- Shūhuì is known as the main rapper and sub-vocalist of Cherry Unlimited.

- She was born in Taichung, Taiwan.

- Shūhuì has mentioned CL of 2NE1 and Lisa from BLACKPINK as her biggest idols.

- Shūhuì is multilingual, speaking Mandarin, Korean, and English fluently.

- she debuted at 21.

- she really appreciates that Team Wang Korea as a label does not debut people who are too young.

Mali (มะลิ):

- She was born in Bangkok, Thailand.

- Mali has expressed admiration for Lisa from BLACKPINK and Sunmi

- Before debuting in cherry unlimited, Mali was a well-known dance cover artist in Thailand. Her dance covers of popular K-pop songs gained her a significant following, which eventually led to her being scouted and trained in Korea.

- she likes Korean food but maintains that spicy Thai food is better.

Pensri (เพ็ญศรี):

- She was born in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

- Pensri holds the position of lead dancer and sub-vocalist in KISS OF LIFE. She plays a crucial role in enhancing the group's choreography

- Pensri has a passion for traditional Thai dance and often incorporates elements of it into her choreography.

- she likes sticky mango rice

- idol used to be hyuna now she's her number one anti.

Su-a (수아):

- She was born in Seoul, South Korea.

- Su-a looks up to Taeyeon from Girls' Generation and IU

- Su-a has a keen interest in fashion design. She often experiments with styling and fashion in her personal life, and she enjoys incorporating her fashion sense into her stage outfits and public appearances.

- Su-a enjoys Korean comfort foods like bibimbap (mixed rice) and kimchi stew. She also has a fondness for sweet pastries

- debuts at age 20 after two years training.

Seo-yeon (서연):

- She was born in Busan, South Korea.

- Seo-yeon is a skilled calligrapher. She developed an interest in calligraphy during her school years and often uses it as a relaxing hobby

- her got7 bias is yugyeom

- Seo-yeon enjoys Korean barbecue and spicy noodles. She also loves tteokbokki

- Seo-yeon is the main rapper and lead dancer of cherry Unlimited.

- debuts after six months at age 22.

Ha-eun (하은):

- She was born in Gwangju, South Korea.

- Ha-eun admires Ailee and Hwasa.

- Ha-eun has a passion for photography. She often takes her own photos during tours and events

- Ha-eun enjoys Korean comfort foods such as kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew) and sundubu jjigae (soft tofu stew)

- she is an all rounder and can do everything like Holli.

- she debuts at age 23, making her the oldest.

[pastel-charm-14]

+*:ꔫ:*﹤the history of hello kitty﹥*:ꔫ:*+ﾟ

hello kitty made her debut in 1974, created by japanese designer yuko shimizu for the sanrio company. she was originally conceived as a simple, kawaii character on a small vinyl coin purse.

however, her popularity skyrocketed in the 1980s with the introduction of a wide range of merchandise, including plush toys, stationery, clothing, and accessories. her cute, minimalist design and universal appeal captured the hearts of people around the world.

over the years, hello kitty has evolved into a cultural phenomenon, with her image adorning everything from airplanes and theme parks to cafes and even a maternity hospital in taiwan.

despite being depicted as a little girl with a bow on her ear, hello kitty's creators have deliberately kept her age and species a mystery, allowing fans to project their own interpretations onto her character.

today, hello kitty continues to enchant fans of all ages with her timeless charm and innocence. she serves as a symbol of friendship, kindness, and happiness, spreading smiles wherever she goes.

[xiadong1024]

Self introduction! ! !

Hello!My name isXia Dong!

I am a creator from Taiwan.

I mostly create things related to undertale and au here

If possible, I also want to make many friends here

And because my English is not very good, I mostly use a translator. Please forgive me if there is any strange translation😭😭😭

About my creation：

Please don't take away my drawings without telling me.

You can freely create the characters I own.

I have a lot of ideas, and there may be many incomplete settings in the AU I created, but I will slowly fill them in!

The AU I created:

pawtale:

thank you for your patience!

[j-chineseenglishdidstuff]

hello! i’m wondering, is there any chinese equivalent of (fictional character/)introjects, fictives, etc? my native language isn’t english, and there are small OSDDID communities in my language, but we just end up using the english words. i was wondering if it’s the same way in other languages.

Hi! I think I've seem a mental health introduction site giving different common types of alters their Chinese translation, though I can hardly find Chinese DID/OSDD personal story sharing community like the English ones. I don't browse many social network though, and I don't have accounts for the ones that's popular in here/mainland China/Taiwan, so I can't be very sure of it.

Though I think we could easily translate that into Chinese with the idea that introject means a projection of something as an alter, I'd call it something along the line "投射型子人格". For fictives, maybe "虛擬事物子人格"? It means "fictional stuff sub personality".

This reminds me that I'm still glad that I'm good enough in English and familiar enough to communicate with foreigners online/irl in English. It's so hard fo find good representation of DID (and let alone OSDD) even from news column written by licenced doctors.

[mementoboni]

Kaoru and Hong Kong Movies

X ( Long post!! )

It's been a while, but I found that Kaoru mentioned a lot of classic Hong Kong movies in this tweet.

These are the movies I used to watch when I was a kid, and I never thought I'd ever hear them from Kaoru one day, so I want to give a brief introduction to these movies. 😀

01. スパルタンX (Spartan X)

繁體中文：快餐車 / English: Wheels on Meals

Wheels on Meals is a 1984 Hong Kong martial arts action comedy film written and directed by Sammo Hung (洪金寶), with action choreographed by Jackie Chan (成龍). The film stars Jackie Chan (成龍), Sammo Hung (洪金寶), Yuen Biao (元彪), Lola Forner, Benny Urquidez and José Sancho.

In 1984, it was adapted into the video game Spartan X (released as Kung-Fu Master internationally).

The final fight between Jackie Chan and Benny Urquidez

🎥 Best Fight Scene 👇

02. 五福星 (ごふくせい)

繁體中文：奇謀妙計五福星 / English: Winners and Sinners (or 5 Lucky Stars)

Winners and Sinners is a 1983 Hong Kong action comedy film written and directed by Sammo Hung (洪金寶), who also starred in the film. The film co-stars Jackie Chan (成龍) and Yuen Biao (元彪), the latter serving as one of the film's action directors.

The film is followed by My Lucky Stars (福星高照) and Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Stars (夏日福星), insofar as the "Five Lucky Stars" concept (福星系列) and many of the same actors return in those latter films. However, the character names and indeed their roles differ - Stanley Fung's character is the nominal "leader" of the quintet in Winners and Sinners (奇謀妙計五福星), whereas Hung's character takes the mantle in the latter films.

🎥 Best Fight Scene 👇

03. 霊幻道士 (れいげん どうし)

繁體中文：殭屍先生 (or 暫時停止呼吸) / English: Mr. Vampire

As this is one of my favorite movies, I will introduce more 😃

Mr. Vampire is a 1985 Hong Kong comedy horror film directed by Ricky Lau (劉觀偉) and produced by Sammo Hung (洪金寶).

The vampire of the film is based on the jiangshi (殭屍/ㄐ一ㄤˉ ㄕˉ), the hopping corpses of Chinese folklore (similar to both zombies and vampires).

"殭" means "to die immortal" (死而不朽) or "stiff" (about the same as "僵"), and "屍" means "dead body".

The film was released under the Chinese title 暫時停止呼吸 (literally: Hold Your Breath for a Moment) in Taiwan. This is because most (not all) of the 殭屍 can't see with their eyes, they can only tell where people are by their breathing, so if you hold your breath you won't get caught by 殭屍.

🎥 ※ This video is dubbed in Mandarin (with Eng subs) 👇

The film is set in the late Qing Dynasty to the early Republic of China (清朝末年~民國初期), that is, the late 19th century to the early 20th century, and most of the 殭屍 are wearing the costumes of Qing Dynasty officials.

(That's why, when I first read about the Qing Dynasty (清朝) in the history textbook, I wondered why people were all dressed as 殭屍 🤣)

🎥 ※ This video is dubbed in Mandarin (with Eng subs) 👇

The box office of Mr. Vampire success led to the creation of a Mr. Vampire franchise, with the release of four sequels directed by Ricky Lau (劉觀偉) from 1986 to 1992, and subsequent similarly themed films with different directors released between 1987 and 1992, with Lam Ching-ying (林正英) as the lead for the majority of them.

The film was the breakthrough success of the jiangshi genre, a trend popular in Hong Kong during the 1980s, and established many of the genre's recognisable tropes.

🎥 ※ This video is dubbed in Mandarin (with Eng subs) 👇

I highly recommend this movie!!

Also, I love the the movie song - Ghost Bride (鬼新娘).

🎥 ※ This song is in Cantonese (廣東話/粵語). 👇

04. Mr.Boo

繁體中文：半斤八両 / English: The Private Eyes

The Private Eyes is a 1976 Hong Kong comedy film written, directed by and starring Michael Hui (許冠文) and co-starring his brothers Samuel Hui (許冠傑) and Ricky Hui (許冠英) as well as Shih Kien (石堅) and Richard Ng (吳耀漢) in his second film role. Sammo Hung (洪金寶) served as the film's action director and Jackie Chan (成龍) was also a stuntman.

In 1979, when Jiahe Corporation (嘉禾公司) promoted Bruce Lee's (李小龍) kung fu film in Japan, it added "The Private Eyes" and changed its propaganda department to "Mr Boo!" as a call to action, it became a huge hit, earning a billion yen at the box office in Japan, followed by several Huh Brothers (許氏兄弟) comedies featuring "Mr. Boo!" as the title.

It is worth mentioning that Hsu Kuan-chieh's (許冠傑) character was voiced by the famous Japanese actor Kitano Takeshi (北野武). In 1981, Takakura Ken (高倉健) starred in "駅 STATION ", there are also male and female protagonists watching "The Private Eyes" kitchen fighting scenes. Japanese manga master Akatsuka Fujio (赤塚不二夫) has written the preface and Japanese lyrics for this film.

🎥 The kitchen fighting scenes 👇

#吳耀漢

繁體中文：吳耀漢 / English: Richard Ng

Kaoru mentioned 吳耀漢 in the tag because he passed away in April 2023. 吳耀漢 is a famous actor in Hong Kong, and he has appeared in all the movies mentioned above except Mr. Vampire.

※ In fact, 吳耀漢 appeared in 霊幻道士3 (繁體中文：靈幻先生 / English: Mr. Vampire III), a sequel to the Mr. Vampire series, which was released in 1986. I guess this is the movie Kaoru was referring to.

Speaking of 吳耀漢, I would like to recommend another Hong Kong movie: Rigor Mortis

05. Rigor Mortis

繁體中文：殭屍(2013) or 殭屍 七日重生

Rigor Mortis is a 2013 Hong Kong horror film directed by Juno Mak (麥浚龍) and produced by Takashi Shimizu (清水崇，the director of 呪怨 Juon). The film is a tribute to the Mr. Vampire film series. Many of the former cast are featured in this film: Chin Siu-ho (錢小豪), Anthony Chan (陳友), Billy Lau (樓南光) and Richard Ng (吳耀漢). *吳耀漢 is the 殭屍 on the poster. 👆

Unlike the usual Hong Kong comedies, the overall atmosphere in Rigor Mortis is very depressing. The whole movie is full of nostalgia and reluctance for Mr. Vampire, which reminds people of the glory of Hong Kong jiangshi movies back in the day. Personally, I think it is the best jiangshi movie of the last 20 years.

🎥 OFFICIAL TRAILER 👇

🎥 The Hallway Scene in the movie also uses the song Ghost Bride (鬼新娘), and the song is even more creepy as it slows down. 👇

--- --- ---

It's really happy to know that Kaoru has watched these movies.

💜 Thanks for reading 💜

Btw, today (2023/08/30, the 15th day of the 7th lunar month) is The Ghost Festival (中元節).

[darkmaga-returns]

By Earick Ward

As I wrote in “A Left-centered, not a God-centered, nation” from October 2021, “throughout America’s existence, our elections have moved between conservative and liberal philosophical paradigms….”

While I believe that this has been the case historically, let me proffer that I believe that the 2024 election, and its subsequent governing period, will be revolutionary in nature, not business-as-usual.

Whether it mirrors our American revolution and the re-affirmation of our republican ideals, or France’s “reign of terror” will be determined through the ballot box, and/or subsequent shenanigans, which coincidentally always benefit the Democrats.

If Kamala Harris prevails (not wins, or earns the nomination, but prevails), our worst fears will be realized:

20–30 million illegal aliens will be granted amnesty;

Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico will be recognized as states, with additional senators and congressmen being installed;

Democrats will stack the Supreme Court;

Democrats will end the filibuster;

Donald Trump, his attorneys, his advisers, and family members will very likely be tried, convicted, and imprisoned;

Hate Speech codes will be instituted on public platforms, and Democrats will shut down any platforms (X, Breitbart, Fox, AT) that don’t conform to the government’s dictates on “acceptable” speech;

Censorship will be weaponized to shut down “misinformation” which is any information that doesn’t comport to leftist orthodoxy;

Americans could be imprisoned for questioning the election, and/or for “hate speech” violations;

A national abortion policy will be implemented, permitting abortions through the ninth month of pregnancy;

The “trans” agenda will accelerate, with more and more boys and men permitted into women’s sports and private spaces;

More “reparations” for blacks, Hispanics, and any other non-white demographic;

Introduction of price controls with government regulating all sales, increasing inflation exponentially, supplies will be limited as resellers become unsure of the profitability of their production, and rations will be instituted for food, water, and power;

EV mandates will be enforced, and the sale of internal combustion vehicles will be banned by 2030;

Blue state deficits will be bailed out by the federal treasury;

American troops will be deployed in Ukraine;

American support of Israel will be curtailed, with no new (or previously approved weapons being supplied to our once-close ally;

China will invade and subsequently take Taiwan;

and America’s sovereignty will be subjugated to Davos, and our Constitution will be supplanted with the globalist charter of the World Economic Forum. 

If Donald Trump is elected, and by the grace of God sworn-in as the 47th president of the United States, he must take revolutionary actions to reform the entirety of government—not the Constitution and our founding principles, but a government that has become bastardized beyond its intended form. He should: