#Oh and FMA of course for manga

[sarcasticmirage]

I'm feeling my fma 03 obsession returning and just putting it out there that if you're a brotherhood prefer-er, who needs to tell 03 fans how much better it is:

don't

mainly please don't just say it follows the manga, I SWEAR that whoever was posting about it already knows that 03 doesn't and I'm also pretty sure that they don't care

[noxtivagus]

getting back into a lot of my old interests again lately hehe

[cafejulii]

Kurapika being deemed by the hxh fandom as one of, if not the most, aesthetically pleasing character in all of hxh is ironically hilarious to me.

While I agree with this sentiment to an extent, as someone who is very keen to elements that make up an inherent sense of asethetic, canonically speaking; it should be expected that Kurapika has almost everything that would go against having a cohesive one. If anything, I am in firm belief that the main reason why he holds such a title is due to the manga covers along with the elegantly crafted filler added in hxh 1999 in which depicts the suffering intertwined with the discovery of his nen ability in such an artistic manner, which then created the baseline aesthetic for the lovely artists of this fandom to further expand upon.

But outside of this? Even so, many hxh fans still agree that he holds a sense of aestheticism to him. It truly does not matter that his color palette is all over the place, or that he would absolutely not care for style, and that, when not his cultural attire or a suit; he dresses as though he had walked into each of his friends closet's, picked out one item from each one, and wore them all together and called it fashion. (They absolutely do not match at all and Killua would absolutely have a stroke at the sheer sight of such grievous combinations).

Specifically talking about these 2011 official arts in which he is one step away from becoming Armin Artlert. (Even complete with the seagull)

Either that, or he dresses like a recently divorced wine mom. Or a butch lesbian. Not to feminize him in any way of course. It’s just the observed truth. It’s just the, pure, unavoidable reality when you dress in those particular color combinations, wear flannel or an oversized sweater, and have that oh so particular “fuck ass bob.”

Specifically talking about these 1999 official arts. A friend of mine had pointed out to me that the one on the right reminded them of Major Hughes’s wife from FMA and I couldn’t stop laughing. Poor 1999 official art Kurapika they did him so wrong.

Though there also many instances in the 1999 official arts in which he does a complete 180, and dresses as though he were the most insufferable character in a shitty 90’s mafia movie. While yes, in the manga, he is technically a mob boss as of now, I genuinely could not fathom watching the absolute mess of succession war unfold with a straight face if he dressed like this.

Yet even still, we have a multitude of artists making the most breathtaking artworks that depict him in agony while holding the eyes of his people almost as if he were some sort of sacrilegious patron, a lot of which are usually inspired Catholic/ Orthodox paintings. (I love these types of arts so much)

Now thinking about it, I suppose, maybe he is so aesthetically appealing because he is an androgynous presenting man with heavy backstory that has many symbolic ties to Christianity as he is representative of Lucifer in juxtaposition to Chrollo who is seen as this twisted version of Jesus Christ. And as we know, it was Lucifer who was considered to be the most “ beautiful of all the angels.”

But anyway, I digress. Bro is just ethereal. Congratulations togashi for creating a character so intentionally-unintentionally aesthetic.

(also this is very much a shitpost please I beg don’t take this seriously at all)

[musicfeedsmysoul12]

I'd just like to say, you put FMAB on my radar again. I never really looked into it before, however I've been considering either reading the manga or watching the anime, how would you describe the series to a newcomer?

A tale of loss, trying to regain your own autonomy, family secrets and the realization of your own fuck ups?

Like the story revolves around Edward and Alphonse who are genius brothers who try to bring their mom back from the dead. They don't, and instead come face to face with truth. “Who am I? One name you might have for me is The World, or you might call me The Universe, or perhaps God, or perhaps the Truth. I am all and I am one, so of course this also means that I am you. I am the truth of your despair."

Like it's NEVER DISCUSSED if this is God. We know them as Truth.

Truth takes Ed's leg, and Al's WHOLE body and then Ed gives up his arm to bind Al to a suit of armour. They are looking for a way to give Al his body back. And like... it's intense.

I honestly would say it's my fav anime series of all time. It's about these boys who were arrogant enough to try to beat Death and got smacked down. They're smart, skilled. They are on top of the world in the beginning. But then they get confronted with 'everything you know is a lie' and they have to face this. They have to come to terms with this.

Their father walked out? Well, turns out he had a reason to! (He's still a shitty dad)

Oh hey, you know that thing that could save your guys lives? Guess what it's powered by! Human souls! Meaning you have to go against your morals if you want to use it!

Hey, so everything you thought was true? NOT.

Then the side characters? Oh my god, they're amazing. Badass women, dorky but skilled men, the villains are epic, and I just.... AHHH.

And the ending?! No spoilers but it is one of my fav endings because most anime/stories start with someone being raised to godhood, but FMAB? No, this is someone stepping down from their pillar and it is BEAUTIFUL. (I still want to keep Alchemy/Automail for ed though...)

ALSO THIS IS SOME OF THE BEST DISABILITY REP? Like, Ed is disabled. He has prosthetics. They function like his old limbs but they also DON'T.

He lost his dominate arm, and his automail isn't built for writing, so he has to use his other hand. They're so heavy his growth has been stunted. He can't swim. The cold can kill him easier, and the desert? YIKES. Plus they can/do break.

I fully recommend it. I found this old reddit thing once saying to watch the first 23 or so episodes of the 2003 version, then FMAB and I do recommend that. 2003 was being produced while FMA the manga was being written, so they got a good chunk of episodes before they went off the rails. It's not a bad off the rails, but I prefer FMAB for the fucking stellar ending.

(Also again the CHARACTERS. Just YES.)

[tare-anime]

Fullmetal Alchemist

Welp, finally I read this manga.

So very late, yes I know, but this and that happened and I've finally able to binge read this amazing 10 years work (2001-2010) in a little more than a week.

Tbh, the first book was mostly world building and kind of slow paced, but starting from the last half of second book.... I can't stop reading.

Wow. Just wow.

As a reader who usually has to wait a week or two between each chapter, being able to read a series from start to finish in a week is quite a different experience, tbh 🤣🤣 I need two days to take a breath and comprehend the story. There must be details that I missed that I need to reread.

Overall, the highlight of this series is the impecabble characterizations and the growth of each character, and character dynamics.

And not only Ed and Al as protagonists, or Winry, Roy, Izumi as the closest support characters but also the people around them up until the minorest characters. I love Scar, Barry the Chopper, the Homonculus, and even the main antagonist Shadow in the flask.

All of them get their moments to shine. All of them got their share of development, and most important, all of them got to do something in the plot!

The world building and plot also been done amazingly. From the current timeline, up until events in the past, and all loose ends being tied up in the end that give me the most satisfactory endings. It is still an open ending, but at the same time the epilogue feels enough.

And of course, this manga contains so many amazing female characters, and each one of them is so badass. They have their strength and weakness and impact to the people around them.

My favorites mommies.... Izumi Curtiz and Olivier Armstrong.

OmG!!!! Especially in these badass moments??? 🛐🛐🛐🛐 My Queeeennn!

Of course, I will always love black haired beauty with knives. LanFan my beloved 💖💖💖💖

And last but not least, Granny Pinnako!

I mean, this person has been there, and will always be there through sweet moments and sorrows. Supporting Trisha and Hohenheim, Ed and Al, Winry. She stands strong for them. She is there when these people needs some strong hands to steady their wobbly legs. And pushes them to carry on with their life.

That is.... one amazing woman right there!!

As far as pairing ships, being a TwiYor fan I am, I've always been bombarded with Royai fanarts (and I'm not complaining). Yes, I noticed the tragic pasts, the relationship, and how supportive Royai can be (and it is quite similar to TwiYor in a way), but I think for FMA, I lean more to Ed and Winry ship.

Don't get me wrong, I love both ships.

But seeing Ed and Winry grow from little boy and girls, do their share of hardships, realize their feelings, and finally voice their awkward proposal. Auugghhh!!!! 🥰🥰🥰🥰

My favorite moments for these ships are:

Yes yes, I will still love angst and hurt/comfort whenever I go 🤣🤣🤣

Oh, other ships that I like: LanFan and Lin, Izumi and Sig, May and Alphonse, Mr and Mrs. Hughes.

All in all, what an amazing series. I'm glad I finally able to read this 🥰🥰🥰🥰 and will do a reread while waiting for the next spy x family chapter.

[beanghostprincess]

You’re welcome! I honestly imagine Husband!Ed and Dad!Ed like a Hughes 2.0 - in the good sense of course, not in the tragic sense. Like I can totally imagine him going to visit Roy sometimes just to a) talk about his beautiful wife and their wonderful children for as long as possible and b) tease Roy about Riza and ask him WHEN he plans to propose to her, if ever (especially if Edwin gets married first which will prob be the case)

And totally agreed on Al - he’ll be the best uncle. He’ll love those kids so much (and I bet Mei will be a really fun aunt too)

Oh and I almost forgot, if you like Royai the most, you’ll be well fed because they have SO many fanfics. And SO much fanart. They are the FMA ship with the most fics on AO3, maybe FFN too. The manga may be a bit lacking there but the fandom content isn’t 😂

YOU'RE SO RIGHT!!!!!!!!! I think he's the most annoying, sweetest dad in the whole world. He won't stop playing with his kids, hugging them, and crying if he has to go for a while. He says he is not like that or as emotional as Hughes but Al mentions it once and it's stuck in his mind forever. And look, it's not a bad thing to love the people around you okay <33 And he definitely keeps teasing Roy about Riza and,,, Those two are complicated. I just know he'd tell Roy about proposing to Winry and Roy instantly would go crazy because "this kid can't do this shit first. I need to be the one doing it first" because the beef these two have is amazing. But he's a bit of a failguy so you can imagine how that plays out. And Al and May??? Those kids love it every time those two come over. This family is just adorable.

No, yeah, I figured I'd be well-fed. It's really funny because my friend (the one I watch anime with and the one who showed me Fmab) and I usually go through the main Ao3 tags in the fandom like mid-show?To see the most popular tags just because. I mean, he goes through the tag and tells me the ships without spoiling anything lmao. The thing is- I knew from the start there was a lot of Royai content and I was like "?? That's surprising. Idk. Aesthetically they don't look like the type of couple to have that many fanfics and fanbase" and then I watched the show and I completely understand why everybody needs to consume Royai content because if I don't I'll probably die. They live in my mind rent free.

[wickedcriminal]

you’ve made me want to get into fma where should I start

Oh dear that's a tough one hdhdjsksabha. So personally, I watched 2003 first, then watched Brotherhood, then read the manga, and I would recommend that! But that's not the only way you can do it!

The cool thing is that there's no wrong answer, here! You can consume the three versions (the manga, the manga-divergent 2003 series, and the manga-accurate 2009 series) in any order, because they're all complete stories. The fandom is of course split on what version tells the story best.

Me personally, I have no preference, I love them all equally. However there are definitely different strengths to each medium that might make your experience better!

The manga is best at pacing, imo. There are certain story beats that both anime revealed a bit quickly that were better told in manga slowly over time, as well as certain scenes that were taken out entirely that were supposed to enhance the story and characters (particularly the Ishvalan War in Brotherhood's case). It's also the full story that Arakawa wanted to tell, which includes its fair share of comedy, angst, philosophical introspection, and moral dilemma. ALSO you get to read all the omakes from the manga. I cannot stress enough how funny Arakawa is, I highly recommend them.

2003 is best at character!! 2003 breaks away from the manga's story around halfway through (and the fandom is still mixed about the ending), but in return it explores its characters in an extremely profound way that enhances the source material, which makes you care a whole lot more when bad things happen to them. It's also a lot darker and more morally gray than the source material, and it gets pretty heavy at the end. I've heard several people describe it as closer to a seinen than a shonen (though im not versed enough in anime genres to say for sure). Personally I found the philosophy and moral nuance of this one to be my favorite of the bunch.

Brotherhood (2009) knocks it out of the park with presentation!! It's the manga accurate adaptation, but it does cut some of the beginning chapters from the manga to speed past the things that were already explored in 2003, which makes it kinda clunky. Eventually though it does slow down and get really good in its delivery. The fights are amazing, the character wardrobe is varied and fun, the music (especially the OPs and EDs) are phenomenal, the voice acting in both sub and dub are brilliant, the colors are bright, it looks great and the story just doesn't stop moving. It also adds in a few details that weren't in the manga to make certain scenes hit that much harder.

So, which one first? There are multiple ways you can do it! You can follow the order in which it came out; manga first, then 2003, then Brotherhood. This is probably the most effective way to do it, because it's the way the anime producers have expected you to do it while they were still coming out! There are patterns you'll pick up easier in this order.

If you don't want to read the manga, you could still watch 2003 first and then Brotherhood second and still get the same experience! (Some people even suggest watching up to the divergence point in 2003, and then pick up Brotherhood from the beginning, which contextualizes the stuff Brotherhood cut, but that's only if you're not interested in watching 2003 in its entirety, which I'd personally recommend.)

And if 2003's more melancholy and bittersweet tone just isn't doing it for you, that's alright because even by itself Brotherhood is a brilliant watch and it along with the manga is more optimistic in nature. Brotherhood by itself tells the manga's story beautifully, if a bit fast at the beginning. You can always go back to the manga later if you wanted to catch up on the story beats Brotherhood cut. It's up to you!

While I'm here, this is my chance to tell Brotherhood Only's that if you haven't seen 2003, I'd definitely give it a chance!! It really does enhance the source material with its different perspective and exploration of the characters!! Also the animation and soundtrack are absolutely gorgeous and really set the tone for the a very profound anime. Really, don't knock it till you've seen it.

[theliteraryluggage]

Winry Rockbell + 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 25, 26 (If you had to pick one, what real or mythological sea creature would you associate with her?)

Thank youuu! you're the MVP as always!

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

Hmm I think you put it very well when we talked about it yesterday, I like all the serious things about her. I like her determination and her dedication to her craft and her skill, I like how much she cares about people and how insightful she is in some matters. I dislike the casual violence/the "i hurt you because I care about you" mentality that is played for laughs.

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

I love that while her skills are very different from those of e.g. Ed and Al, she is not portrayed as being any less competent or intelligent as them (though this is something fandom likes to forget about sometimes).

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

Well, see above. I hate that she's always hitting Ed and that it's played for laughs and never really reflected at all in canon. I know it's a (esp shonen) manga/anime trope and it's not that deep but it still just really bothers me.

7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

Well, this entirely depends on which corners of the fandom you hang around in. Like EdWin fandom is gonna be very different from the Gen corner (where I mostly hang out) and very different again from other ship corners. But what I really love to see regardless of that is when fandom also fleshes out Winry's friendship with Al (and other characters), where in canon she is centred so strongly on her relationship with Ed.

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

Again this isn't true for the entire fandom but, well, as above. I really can't stand when fandom carries on the casual violence trope with no reflection at all. And of course when they portray Winry as less competent/intelligent, but that's actually not something I've encountered all that much in the corners of the fandom that I move in.

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

Oh god how do you expect me to still remember what my first impression was?? I first read FMA like 14 years ago. But presumably the same things that are bothering me about her now were also bothering me then. I do think though that spending more time with the source material and analysing it in more detail I do understand much more of the complexity of her character now.

26. FREEBIE QUESTION!! If you had to pick one, what real or mythological sea creature would you associate with her?

Ohhh that is a very interesting question!! I'm not sure I can entirely explain why, but squid? cephalopods are intelligent and skilled in using tools, with squid being the most social among them. But mostly it's just vibes 😂

Thank you for the questions!!

Character Ask Game

[ruinsofxerxes]

Hi Nikki! I just read through your answer from your most recent anon ask and your amazing tags too, of course. anyways. pls say more things.... 👀

I love this post-cos HC. so interesting!

HI!!!! First off, I have to say I’m quite honored you messaged me because you’re one of my fav fma artists!! When I think of my early years in this fandom, your art is one of the things I think of 🥰🥰

OKAY. SO. POST-COS. Like I said in my previous post, I think they definitely fudged Alfons’s papers for Alphonse. Ed was his roommate, he would have had possession of all the stuff Alfons, my poor boy, left behind, and it was the 20’s, it wouldn’t have been too hard to forge the documents a little further to match Al’s age, appearance, etc. Idk why, but I feel like they would have lied on the papers and said Al was older than he was, maybe to get government agencies off his and Ed’s backs in case they wanted to force Al into school or foster care or something. I could see them saying he’s like 15/16, and since he is mentally like 16, I don’t think it’d be too hard to pull off. He’d just be a little short for his supposed age (oh how the tables have turned!!)

Anyway, I think directly post-movie, Ed and Al (and Noah!) went on to have adventures all over Europe while trying to find and destroy the bomb, similar to how they ran all over Amestris to find the stone. And this is a more lighthearted hc but imagine them getting to travel to all these amazing places and learning all these brand new cultures!!! I know Al’s had his body back for a while post-CoS, but I think he would absolutely love all the new foods, experiences, etc.

Did they succeed in destroying the bomb? Either they did (great!) because the Axis powers didn’t use uranium bombs, or they didn’t and somehow it ended up with the Americans. Oppenheimer who??

Either way, personally, I think the boys stayed in Europe through the war. I mean, it would have been difficult to leave after a certain time, but they’re also not ones to leave a fight when they can stay and help people. Also, I feel the need to point out, by the time the war was in full swing, Ed would have been late thirties, so for this next headcanon, you need to be envisioning older, Hohenheim carbon-copy Ed. But I think Ed and Al would 1000% join the underground resistance. Can’t you see them doing that?! Secret missions to blow up or set fire to government buildings to destroy as many records as they could, sabotaging railway lines, things like that. They both have incredible knowledge of science, especially chemistry, and Ed was in the military, these things would have made them super knowledgeable and super effective to a resistance.

But I also think they would have been in constant danger, I could see them having to stay hidden or be on the run constantly (but hey! They’ve done that too, so they know how to do it!). Idk, I just feel like they might hide out with a resistance and help others to hide with them. And there would definitely be some doppelgängers in their midst, you just know it!!

That’s all I’ve got tbh. They would probably stay and try to help rebuild too after the war, but at the same time, I can see them just being tired of the constant fighting and running and turmoil they would have been through for over 30 years at that point. I can see them taking a step back and trying to lead more or less peaceful lives once the war ended.

As for how they ended up in Japan? I have absolutely no clue haha. I feel like after the war, maybe they continued to travel in search of knowledge, similar to how they did it at the end of the manga, and somehow it lead them to Japan, and they liked it, so they settled there!

Also, 84 year old Ed was definitely in attendance for the grand opening of the first Hot Topic in 1989. Just kidding (sort of…)

Sorry to everyone that has to scroll past this, this ended up much longer than I thought it would! Lol. Anyone who has post-CoS headcanons, feel free to come share them because honestly I think there’s a lot of directions they could’ve gone after the movie!

[lezbianxion]

oh shit i forgot to send you the things back 🧡💖💕

🧡- What is a popular (serious) theory you disagree with?

this is a hard one mostly bc i tend to not bother with theory stuff bc i just. don't care fjfs;kfsa or at least i don't care when it concerns brotherhood lmao. 💖 - What is an unpopular opinion that you have about the series? that it's not as progressive or revolutionary as everyone thinks it is LMAO. fma is, for whatever reason, a fandom that will act like you killed their dog if you dare to criticize the author's politics (or just criticize fmab in general). idk why fans are so resistant to hearing that arakawa's politics are shit, but they are. even today, i still see posts that unironically say shit like "oh well of COURSE you're not supposed to sympathize with the military, THAT'S THE POINT BC THEY'RE WAR CRIMINALS!!!!" (i won't say Which post it is but if you know...then you know) and yet.... the series makes you sympathize with the military characters lmfao, not to mention how arakawa villainizes scar but we been knew that. and more than half the fandom genuinely thinks the "mustang becoming furher so he can (somehow?) fix amestris and change a corrupted system fRom tHe InSiDe" plotpoint is good, when, real talk, it's fucking shit. it's very liberal-ish, if i'm being honest. you can't change a system that's corrupted. despite mustang becoming furher at the end, he doesn't change shit. none of them do. also, the way that mangahood is like "oh btw the REAL cause of racism and genocide in this universe is bc of the homunculi :)" and people eat that shit up and call it good storytelling.... like be fucking serious lmfao fuck outta here with that liberal-ass shit. if i had to give one piece of advice to any fma fan, it'd be to watch fma 2003. it's not perfect, bc nothing is, but it treats the ishvalan characters with respect, it actually tackles the reality of ed being a child soldier in the military and it doesn't really force you to LIKE mustang and co. if anything, 2003 is very explicit in the fact that amestris is a military dictatorship and (rightfully) places the blame of the ishvalan genocide on the amestrian military which is way more than i can say for the manga.

there's way more, but i'm gonna cut it short here lol otherwise we'll be here all day.

💕- What is an unpopular ship that you like?

ednoah!!!!! maybe some spoilers here bc idk if you've seen cos but the way that ed is so protective of her is fantastic, and i LOVE how he asks her what she wants to be called. you can tell he's come a long way and that he's grown as a person, and this is a definite sign of that. which is more than i can say for mangahood ed lol who's racist from the start to finish of the series but anyway--

[lampmanliveblogs]

The Lampman's Conspiracy Corner

Lamp Entertainment presents...

The new and improved Conspiracy Corner! It is bigger! It’s better! It has red string!

(note for any newcomers: I'm currently doing a mostly blind watchthrough of The Owl House. The last episode I've seen was Reaching Out. No spoilers please)

Isn’t it beautiful? This legitimately took me hours to set up.

Here’s a closer look at the Timeline. I’m very happy with how it turned out, I especially like the detail of the clock. It’s five to twelve, because the Day of Unity is soon upon us!

So, as I discovered in my last liveblog, the series doesn’t actually take place in 2020, but I had already written all of this. So I just hung up that thing as nod to that.

The thing that this timeline does a really good job of establishing is that Philip really went for hundreds of years seemingly doing nothing. What was he up to during all that time?

Here’s a closer look at the Wittebanes page. It has a simple family tree, as well as some info on the known members. I had the great idea to make some of the spots modular, so if/when new information is revealed, I can remove them and fill it in for real. You’ll also notice that string connected to the paper beneath…

(don’t ask why or where I got the british airways paper from because I’ve no idea)

Here is all the information on the Grimwalker that I’ve gathered. Which isn’t all that much. The only thing about the sad pedestrian that I’ve brought up before that isn’t mentioned here is that there is an emphasis in Philip/Belos’ notes on its eyes. That’s because I can’t draw eyes.

That blue thing is a periodic table. It’s the very one I got in high school chemistry, finally getting put to use. Oh stars, there is an actual interview where I said I might go into chemistry after I graduated… haha! Year 2 of high school Lampman was a very different person.

So, yeah. In Eclipse Lake, I brought up a certain possibility, but dismissed it almost immediately. Then, in Any Sport In A Storm, I brought it up as a joke.

The thing I’m talking about is the possibility that Hunter is the Grimwalker. That would explain how, you know… he exists despite the fact that his father died hundreds of years ago.

If you look on the left, I listed a few possible inspirations or things that were brought to my mind when thinking about what this Grimwalker might be.

First on the list is a Homunculus. It’s real term that was used in alchemy and means ”little person.” Maybe the most famous example in popular fiction though is from Fullmetal Alchemist.  Dana Terrace has referenced Fullmetal Alchemist when talking about The Owl house before (Luz is a fan of Hiromu Arakawa and used to trace her manga; hence why she’s so good at drawing glyphs). So that is a possible inspiration. And I recall reading a post once that compared Belos to Father from FMA. And, well… if Hunter is the Grimwalker, then in some way, that would make Belos…

The second on the list is something I stumbled upon when researching the third item on the list. Bakru. According to one of  my books on mythological/folklore creatures and monster, bakru are unruly children created from wood by witches and wizards. They require powerful magic to control and are often sold to ordinary people.

The third item on my list are a few creatures from Swedish folklore. Because of course I have to reference that. There are a few stories about witches creating helpers like milk hares. They were often created from wood, fabric and other items. Some of them require things like dirt from churchyards, a blood sacrifice (three drops of blood from your left pinkie) and a magic spell. These creatures were used by the witches to steal from their neighbors, usually milk from cows. Hence, milk hare.

And while I have your attention; did you know that the ”mare” in ”nightmare” comes from another creature from swedish folklore? The mara. Maras are at day regular women. Exactly how they become maras is not known. Some say it’s a curse, others say it’s because their mother used dark magic to lessen the pain of childbirth (if the child is born a boy, he becomes a werewolf). At night, maras turn into an oily mist. They can slip through any crack, so you can’t lock them out. They will sit on your chest while you sleep and cause bad dreams and difficulty breathing. To protect yourself, spread flaxseeds around your bed; the mara will have to count them before it can do anything to you.

N-no, please don’t leave! I’ll move on, I swear! No more nordic mythology or folklore!

Here are some miscellaneous things. A note on the portal door, the Titan, The Collector. I put a star on The Collector’s note because he’s associated with stars and moons (and I couldn’t draw a good crescent moon)!

Okay, so I lied before. On the note about the Titan, I bring up a figure from nordic mythology. That being Ymer (or Ymir). It’s a primordial giant from which the world was made. I belive I mentioned that connection in a season one liveblog… I think it was Adventures in the Elements? I could be wrong, and I’m too lazy to go check.

I also drew the glyphs! And the spells Luz has learned so far! They’re not very good, but hey. I tried.

Funny story: I like to doodle the glyphs on random pieces of cardboard occasionally. I ended up showing a coworker a light glyph I drew. She told me it looked like a failed christmas tree. I have not been the same since.

Oh, and I also listed the elemental symbols from the Engelsfors Trilogy. Because I felt like it.

So, this was the new conspiracy corner. I had a ton of fun making it and I hope to bring it back again.

[the-nysh]

Do you ship any canon ship, in manga/anime? I can't bring myself to ship or even support like 95% of canon ships in manga, they're just... very bland. The dynamics are boring most of the time, there's always some mysoginistic element going on (even in shojo mangas. Why can't the heroine physically save the male love interest for once :/ w h y), and the parties included most of the time have way better chemistry with their same-sex "best friend" (I'm talking about canon straight ships).

Depends on what kind of stories you're reading, how good the author is at setting up and committing to their romance, and how you even define what's 'canon' at all really. Cause the only 'canon' I care about is whether a pair has an interesting canon dynamic (meaning they're a core part of or the focus of the story already) that piques my interest and keeps me invested in their story. To see how they turn out. Otherwise I usually don't 'ship' if their relationship has no focus/development or if the story isn't even about the pair's journey together. Cause not all stories even have romance, or are even structured in a way for a mutual confession at the very final chapter either - cause some, like in Mob, subvert that 'expectation' with no canon couples anyway. So it really depends.

Most shoujos (with clearly advertised romance) that spend their real-estate building a 'main' pairing (unless there's triangles for more twists and drama to keep readers unsure and guessing) usually end up together as....the story properly tells, cause that's literally what those stories are about. Ex: like in Skip Beat, the slowest of the slow burns where the main paring dances around each other indefinitely - some might not consider them technically 'canon' if they haven't openly confessed yet, but if the story is literally about them navigating their developing relationship and growing as people, then...by definition that's what's canon. BLs that focus on a 'main' pairing and properly develop them as advertised are the same. (Oh, and I've read some 'bad' shoujos where the author tried to appeal to both sides of the love 'triangle' but it just turned into a wasted mess that pleased no one. So do yourself a favor and don’t read past the first half of Vampire Knight; ohh what a wtf that became.) More 'harem' type stories with a huge cast of 'suitors' usually end up favoring one pair over another as the story progresses...with extremely obvious hints from the author about where their story's going. Ouran Host Club and Fruits Basket turned out like this, where you could tell who was going to be 'endgame' based on how the drama unfolded, and sure enough, the main 'ship' became a satisfying established item just as I hoped. The authors played their cards right and I have no complaints!

In stories like shonens where romance is not the main focus, but more a side thing or B plot, I can say that fma is probably the most satisfying that developed it naturally (without any bs) over the course of the story, and is probably the only ‘married with kids’ ending that felt genuinely deserved. (So I cheered when Ed/Winry finally became an established item!) Say for Bleach I actually did not have a problem with Orihime, since the story spent several arcs developing her side and how the feelings were mutual, so that becoming endgame was not a surprise to me at all; I was fine with it (even tho I had dropped the manga much earlier for other reasons.) Let’s see...other stories like Inuyasha and Full Metal Panic I was on board with their main pairings too. So for the most part, yes, if authors do it well (with proper setup and payoff) then I have no problem supporting their main het couples.

The only time it’s really a problem to me is when it’s rushed and feels like it comes out of nowhere (Kny, Naruto), or say...when the author heavily teases it the entire story but never commits (aaaah Soul Eater was so close!) Some leave it as a more open-ended thing (Kekkaishi) and that’s ok. Others completely sever it and leave it tragically hollow, unaddressed, and unsatisfying (Blade of the Immortal, damn wtf that felt almost cruel to simply part ways forever.) Others end up with no pairings at all if the story never needed them (or romance) to tell their messages (ex: orv, a korean novel which isn’t a manga or japanese, but it refreshingly had no romance at all despite the many teases going both m&f ways for the mc.) Edit: and also who could forget Blue Flag, where instead of the ‘main’ m/f pair, the mc chose his male best friend for a m/m ending instead!

So...what can I say? (Read more mangas beyond shonens not advertised as romance??) Cause most of the mangas I have read with properly advertised romance between their main ‘canon’ pairs turned out just fine to me - and it’s more of an outlier where they turn out ‘bad,’ but that’s also due to poor planning or rushed endings on the author’s part. Also if the (often male) author knows they don’t do romance well, then it’s preferable they don’t add it in over trying to shoehorn in something unsuitable last-minute. But for the most part, I’m here for the ride, and if I don’t like where the canon story is going, regardless of whether it even has ships or not - cause that’s more a secondary thing, then I’ll drop it. (But I also think...if an unfinished story’s not about a het pair at its core, then it’s presumptuous for readers to assume they’ll become ‘canon’ at all...if canon itself doesn’t even care about them - so yes I’m talking about bnha here, where nothing’s confirmed ‘canon’ yet, but it’s obvious even to Japanese readers what m/m relationship already represents the canon heart of the story.)  

[ladynahimana]

I thought it time to give an update on my doujinshi progress for Teach me and sharing my thoughts on the topic of AI-generated art and how I came to drawing these doujinshi.

Progress is slow, because I'm not satisfied with the cover and I'm doubting ths appeal of this series in general. Its topic and atmosphere is not my strength and therefore I feel it's not enough. My mentor probably also felt this. She didn't like the script, but couldn't pinpoint what exactly was wrong with it. Maybe it's the kink. Neither of us know and since then I struggle. How to improve something you don't know where the exact problem lies? I still managed to finish the storyboard and my mentor now likes it and encourages me to finish it completely. After working on the cover and not being satisfied with it, I stopped working on it. Procrastination at its finest. Recently I at least finished the draft of the script for the next part, which will probably be the last of it, ending this series with three parts. Instead I want to go back in my comfort zone and that is heavy romance. My sister calls my works cheesy, but I like them the way they are and the most important thing for me is to feel proud of what I created.

So yeah, enough about my struggles with this new series. I started creating doujinshi as part of my manga lessons, which are part of the rewards I get on Patreon. When Covid-19 hit and cons all over the world got canceled, I decided to raise my pledge to one of my favorite artists to support her in these difficult times. The one-hour monthly lessons started out with how to draw in chibi style and after that, to continue the lessons, I decided to draw doujinshi with her guidance and feedback.

I love doujinshi and have collected four boxes full of only FMA ones. *cough* I rarely read a BL manga I end up enjoying, because I, as the reader, usually don't feel like the mangaka drew them with passion and more like because it's just a job they try to earn a living with. It's also why I'm not a fan of manga where writer and artist are different people. On top of that there’s this generic art style for the BL genre and the characters are really stereotypical and nowhere near as deep as the characters that can be used in fanworks (which is no wonder due to the short length of most BL manga).

And this leads me to AI-generated art. I'm just a hobby artist. I don't earn money with any of my art and therefore I personally don't have to fear for paying my bills. But I fear for the artists that do and the world of art in general. An AI will never be able to create something with a heart. It has no emotions. It does not think about happiness and the joy of creating something. It is soulless and their art will always lack something truly beautiful.

The sad thing is that so many people don't care. What they define as "beautiful" is different. They want to see “perfect” drawings. They don't see the beauty that is imperfection and criticize the work of artists, when they see it. Human faces are not symmetrical, not perfect and drawing them that way will always be more beautiful to me than an artist drawing one side of a face and then digitally mirroring that to create a perfectly symmetrical face.

Society doesn't see artists as essential, which Covid-19 already highlighted and now those artists are getting abused by stealing their art and training AI designed to replace them. When Clip Studio Paint announced the inclusion of Stable Diffusion into the program and advertising it with how easy and fast backgrounds can be created, I was like "oh no" and so relieved, when they canceled it after getting much negative feedback. Of course, drawing things like backgrounds is time-consuming and not the focus for readers of comics. In the age of webtoons it's all about being fast and productive, but at what cost? Ripping the artists off that fed the AI without consent to enable mass-production? To me an elaborate background created with 3D-models converted to lineart will always be inferior to a background that is self-made with wonky lines and a perspective that is a bit off. It's the heart, which created the artwork, that counts. It's not mass-produced and passionless. It's art that can even touch the soul. That being said, I would be really happy if my so far shared doujinshi were able to accomplish that for someone. Art is a passion I hope to never loose, even if there are times of struggle and uncertainty.

[animehouse-moe]

New Viz Manga Announcements

So, I won't be taking much of a look at some of the questionable and lazy licenses in much detail, but I will give an overview of them. I'll be going into detail on the good ones though, and that includes the Shojo Beat licenses.

So let's start with lazy. Why was Viz so lazy with these announcements compared to last year's? Well, the answer is that Viz believes themselves to be overextended in the NA market currently, which is somewhat of an understatement. They've put themselves in a deadlock by refusing to raise volume price and having tight margins. They can't expand printing operations because they don't have enough, so they don't license much in turn causing an overall slow down. It's a dumb position to be put in, and one that has a lot of solutions. Regardless, I'm here to talk licenses, so let's get that going.

Jojo's: Stone Ocean and Another Junji Ito Collection

These are no surprise, Viz has a hard on for Junji Ito and his style of horror, and Jojo's is a staple of similar caliber. The only complaint is how slow Viz is to release Jojo's, considering we'll only be starting part 6 in NA when Part 9 will be ongoing in Japan, effectively putting us three entire parts behind (which is an insane 68 Volumes based on the Japanese release). And Junji Ito, well, it's Junji Ito. It's cool, I guess. It's just boring to have 20 volumes of horror manga from the same creator and nothing else.

Naruto and MHA Coloring Books

I don't really think there's any explaining for these. Announcing they licensed these was borderline pointless, and just feels like Viz is padding out their catalogue with easy items.

FMA and Demon Slayer Side Stories

These are certainly not serious offenders in the grand scheme of things, but just sort of boring announcements? They're guarantees, so to speak. It was inevitable like Viz getting JJK and CSM, there's nothing really incredible to hearing about them, you're just sat there thinking, "Oh, that's pretty nice I guess".

Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Spy x Family Fan & Guide Material

Truthfully, Spy x Family's is the least bad on this list. The Demon Slayer fan book was February 2021 in Japan, and JJK's was October 2021 (Spy x Family was May 2022). That means that there's a wait of at minimum a year and getting close to even 3 years of wait time. For fan books. For anime. Demon Slayer is entering its third arc, and JJK Season 2 will have aired before we get the fan book for the anime's first season. It's just... depressing. Spy x Family's is the best, and even then it's cutting close to releasing before its second season and movie. I get that beggars can't be choosers, but the bar can only be placed so low.

Tatsuya Endo and Spy x Family Content

Tatsuya Endo is the newest cash cow for Viz, clearly. They now have every non-one shot/single volume series licensed by adding Blade of The Moon Princess (left). It's not that I'd say no, but what room are these licenses taking up? What other series that would be better or more interesting than some of Endo's older work? And the Spy x Family novel was a given, waste of space in this announcement and should have been announced along CSM Buddy Stories.

Chainsaw Man Box Set

One of the biggest manga titles in recent years, Chainsaw Man finally get its Part 1 box set... with no announcements for Part 2 in sight, of course (this is the actual image they shared). And what do you get for purchasing this 11 volume box set? Why a poster, of course! It's 11 volumes, Viz. Incredibly far removed, really halved, from the normal volume count of a box set. Which, you know, you buy to save money on a series and collect it faster when there's more than 20 volumes. This is pointless. No nicer covers, no bigger trim size, no real bonuses. A waste of money aside from people that want the box.

Shojo Saviors

Unironically, Shojo Beat came out with the best stuff overall from the Viz announcements. A trio of series, two ongoing and one completed. The first two images are series already by authors that have other works in English as well. Sakura, Saku! by the author of Ao Haru Ride (is ongoing), and Neighborhood Story by the famous Ai Yazawa. The third, Tamon's B Side, is the new author Yuki Shiwasu. As a trio, it's very promising, and has nice range overall. The first two are very easy to recommend to anyone, especially those that have read any prior series from either author, while the third is more of a wild card.

The Good Ones: Takopi's Original Sin & #DRCL Midnight Children

And at the end of our list, we find the two new (and good) licenses from Viz out of this entire announcement. Takopi's Original Sin is sort of like an Inio Asano style affair from new author Taizan 5 (who currently has The Ichinose Family's Deadly Sins in serialization), and #DRCL Midnight Children is a retelling of a version of Dracula's story by author Shinichi Sakamoto, who also has Innocent releasing under Dark Horse this year. Both are very solid series, as I've taken a peek at each online (even before they were announced), so they will fit very comfortably within Viz's lineup.

Final Thoughts - A Letdown

Really, that's all I need to say. It was a letdown. You look at the prior license announcements for other publishers and they're all far better than this, and Viz is the biggest publisher by a large margin. This is what they manage, a bit of housekeeping and effectively two new series, Takopi's being complete at 2 volumes and #DRCL in print at currently two volumes. It's not a stretch to say that Shojo Beat had the better announcements. Which is depressing because Shojo Beat has been getting outdone by Yen Press as of late, and Seven Seas is constantly steamrolling them. So where does that put Viz? In a hole. Their current catalogue is massive and popular, but the effectively added nothing to the list with this announcement, so we'll have to see what they end up doing with the next ones.

[random-anime-obsession]

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series)? And why do you love them? Thanks....

Hi! Sorry it took so long to answer! I made a list pretty quickly but I feel like I’m probably forgetting some people since my interests are constantly changing. Also some characters have more reasons I love them than others. Sometimes my brain just sees a character and is like “oh yes that’s the one”. So these are all very stream of consciousness/kinda word vomit. Hope you like it! 😅❤️

In no particular order…

1. Xie Lian from TGCF - I want to protect him with my life. He’s gone through so much yet remains such a good person. He deserves the world. Also surprisingly funny (he made me snort multiple times).

2. Hinata Shouyou from Haikyuu - I am so weak for sunshine characters and Hinata is the Sun personified. He works so hard and I love every step of progress he makes. Also gremlin. Probably my all time favorite character.

3. Kenma Kozume from Haikyuu - Kenma is a very relatable character for me. Also he’s adorable and super smart. I love moments where people underestimate Kenma before realizing they’re playing his game. Also cat boy.

4. Reki Kyan from Sk8 the Infinity - Another sunshine! Reki is also kind of relatable to me though with his struggles! I love him more for it and how he finally realized his love for skateboarding. I just want to give him a hug. Baby boy.

5. Edward Elric from FMA - Another character with amazing growth over the course of the series (both literally and figuratively lol)! He’s one of those characters that make you feel like you grow with him. Super smart and resourceful! Love his determination and journey throughout the series. Also he’s a little shit.

6. Killua Zoldyck from HxH - Literally the reason I started watching HxH was for Killua. He has amazing character development and I love seeing him get away from his family and become happy! He’s super badass when he fights too! Also kind of a cat boy lol

7. Wen Qing from MDZS - Beautiful, smart, sassy, amazing. Literally fell in love with her at first sight. She’s a doctor but can also knock you out with her needles. Doesn’t put up with bullshit. An amazing sister to both Wen Ning and Wei Wuxian. She made me cry a ton.

8. Olivier Armstrong from FMA - Also a strong woman (my types are literally sunshine guys and badass women lol). All of the women in FMA are beautifully written and I just want to clap every time Olivier is on screen. The queen.

9. Lio Fotia from Promare - Super pretty but also super gremlin. Freaking love his design. Kind of reminds me of a chihuahua (thinks he’s bigger than he is). Can hear him yell “KRAY FORESIGHT” in my dreams.

10. Yona from Akatsuki No Yona - Another badass woman! Yona has such growth from the beginning of the manga being a spoiled princess to currently being a badass warrior and leader! She fought for every single bit of progress she made and it shows! But I also love how she doesn’t lose her femininity or kindness to get to that point. She is just as strong with those things.

[coruscatiio]

There is something that has always bugged me about the assumption that Deliora's attacks happened somewhere that was not Fiore. Key being that four minors, under the age of ten, were able to get to Fiore without much hassle (?). Those minors are Gray, Sherry, Tobi and Yuuka who all wind up in Fiorean guilds. I know that there is a Gray-centric manga that explores his journey, but really? We are supposed to believe that he crossed several countries without any serious intervention from a responsible adult who says "wait, it's kinda screwed up that a kid travels this far!" I know that no one really seems to care about orphans in this manga and does not mind them being raised in questionable circumstances and places (like a guild that pretty much doubles as a bar), but Gray being able to travel that far seems like a stretch even by the logic of the manga.

It is also strange to me that a non-Fiorean Gray would have known about Makarov/Fairy Tail to the extent that he would place his entire hope (remember, he initially goes to the guild to ask Makarov to undo Iced Shell) on a faraway wizard. Sure, Makarov is a wizard saint and likely famous. However, we have since come to learn that there is a ranking among the Saints which might explain it beyond the obvious answer (Gray needed to have heard about the guild and its master so that he could go to Magnolia and join the guild). There are just two issues: a. Makarov does not rank particularly high, able to be fifth spot at most and b. Makarov is not a dedicated ice magic user. If he was famously an ice user, it could be overlooked and even called logical—Gray would of course seek out another powerful ice user for answers.

However, due to what has already been outlined, this logic does not track. It simply does not exist.

Disbelief might be suspended if there was any main story mention of Gray having sought out more local mages that specialise in ice magic and that going to Makarov was a desperate last ditch effort, but there is nothing in the story that would convey the emotional distress of Makarov being the last resort. It is also just a touch strange that after travelling, allegedly, across continents and countries alike, Gray would just go 'oh okay' when a non-ice user tells him that undoing Iced Shell is impossible. Sure, Makarov is a wizard saint, but what exactly is his qualification to make a definite statement about Iced Shell? The only people we have ever seen use or try to use the spell are Ur and her students, adding to my theory that Ur created Iced Shell. Due to the circumstances, it would make more sense for Gray to take Makarov's word for it if he had not just vaguely heard of Makarov's magical prowess but if he had grown up in an environment where Makarov had been discussed more frequently.

So, here is a proposed and hopefully more logical sound explanation: like almost anything else in the manga, Deliora's attacks happened in Fiore. Probably along the border to Bosco which would account for a few things. The location where Deliora met its end is called Brago. The only thing really known about Brago is that it is not on the map that was shown at one point, early on. (It is also known that Mashima only really planned out Fiore and that the surrounding countries are just there to fill in the spot. Which is fine.) It is also supposedly in 'Isvan'. We later (much later) learn that the continent that Fiore is on is called Ishgar.

This following point is a bit of a stretch and admittedly based on my experience with FMA where the same location was called both Ishval and Ishbal, depending which FMA adaptation is considered, and Ishbar in the German Translation, but I think that those two places---Isvan and Ishgar---are the same thing which allows me to proceed without further ado, especially that all we know about Isvan is derived from one sentence Ur said---that there are more powerful mages west of her location---which seems to indicate that the location is in the east. If we assume that what Isvan equals Ishgar, then what she might have meant is that more powerful mages can be found in the more densely populated areas of Fiore where the guilds are.

One could spitefully say that this is supported by the fact that in the war that, according to canon, hit the entire continent, only Fiorean mages did anything remarkable that was worth any screentime.

Also---if Gray is from Fiore, a lot of plotholes close or are not even opened to begin with.

Note: I generally assume that most canon events take place in Fiore due to the aforementioned fact that pretty much every other place is terribly underdeveloped and I would hope that Mashima would have at least some idea about the place one of his main characters is from. (This does include my belief that the Magic Council is a Fiorean organisation that deals with Fiorean mages since otherwise, I envision it to be one gigantic mess as it is more or less canon that the Royal Family does not really have much to say about the mages living and working in Fiore. Which, uh, sure is a narrative choice that absolutely does not create messy legal situations!)

Why did he know about Fairy Tail/Makarov? Insert any explanation, ranging from a Fairy Tail mage having done work in his hometown prior to Deliora to Gray having read about them in the newspaper. Again: Makarov is a wizard saint. So is Jose Porla, of course, but to a child, Fairy Tail has to sound more appealing than Phantom Lord. And those two are the only wizard saints that are easily accessible to a child as they are guild masters and guilds (at least Fairy Tail) appear to be public spaces that can be entered by non-members.

To refer back to the earlier thought: that Gray might have heard of Makarov before. This really is not a stretch. Makarov is of course not going to show up in any publications like the Mage I Want To Be My Boyfriend ranking the way (I'm fairly sure) Siegrain did, but there is a canon interview that the Sorcerer Weekly magazine conducted with the entire guild. To think that Gray would have had access to newspaper articles or other publications does not seem like much of a stretch---he was born a mage, after all, and why would his parents keep him about information about other mages?

Why did he speak the Fiorean language? Well, he is from Fiore. It is generally doubtful if there are even multiple actively spoken languages in Earthland due to the fact that no matter where the characters go (and that includes a Mirror World), they can be understood and they understand others. The only character speaking a different language is Minerva when she calls upon the God of War. Then there is the script Freed uses for his magic, but I cannot recall if he or somebody else ever reads the script out loud.

A lot about Deliora, actually. The entire Deliora Plot that is witnessed during the actual manga also unfolds in Fiore. We can assume that Sherry's magic played a big role in getting Deliora to Galuna Island for the Moondrip Ritual, but even with that in mind, the entire story unfolds much smoother if Deliora was already somewhat in the vicinity of the island when Lyon started his plan.

His silence about his backstory. In a previous headcanon I said that one of the reasons why Gray and Natsu clashed as children was the very different way they dealt with their respective trauma. Natsu copes by telling everyone about Igneel---perhaps because saying it again and again helps him feel reassured that it was real, that despite what some adults say, it did happen. Gray copes by bottling his trauma about the deaths of his parents and Ur's sacrifice up. He cannot talk about it. He feels guilty* about his role in it. Makarov obviously has to know about where Gray is from and what the kid went through as Gray would have had to tell him in order to ask for help. I think Gray's silence becomes a lot more impactful and interesting if Deliora did happen in Fiore. If people around him know about the demon and heard the whispers about the end it met. If for ten years, Gray stewed in the knowledge that his choices spelled the end for someone who is now revered as a hero. As a saint.

* This guilt is obviously not healthy and it is undeserved. Gray should not feel guilty as it was not actually his fault but more or less a chain of events that, once triggered, could only lead to a bad outcome, but if guilt was rational, then there would be much less angst. Likewise, if anyone in this manga would seek the help of a therapist, then they might actually be well-adjusted.