#SV Cycle 1

[stereax]

HOW TO FANTASY: THE PRIMER

Hey there! Are you looking to join your first fantasy hockey league this year? Or maybe you need tips on how to dominate your league. In both situations, you've come to the right place. Sit down and let's talk fantasy hockey!

The Scoring

Before you begin even thinking about your draft, make sure to check the scoring system in place in your fantasy league. Are you in a points or categories league?

Points are more standard, where different actions like goals, assists, and blocked shots are worth a different number of points and weighted accordingly. Categories instead count per action, with a focus on winning a majority of the categories. To explain, take this example: in a standard points league, a goal is 2 points and an assist is 1. In such a league, one goal and two assists is the same as four assists, points-wise. However, in categories, the 1G/2A combo wins the "goals" category, while the 0G/4A combo wins the "assists" category.

Additionally, check whether you're in a "roto" league. Most leagues play week-by-week, where each week you're given a new opponent to beat in either points or categories; roto leagues don't do this, instead having you play the entire season before tabulating up all the points and seeing who wins. This isn't to be confused with a "dynasty" or "keeper" league, where you get to keep some of your players from one year to another.

Generally, I recommend a points league for beginners. It's simpler to grasp and offers a robust array of players that are good. Categories can get needlessly complex; roto is a more advanced way to play; keeper leagues are maybe not the best idea for a new player, either.

This is the "standard" ESPN scoring for a points league, but many variations exist. Some leagues give positive points to penalty minutes, while others subtract points for bad behavior; drafting a high-PIM player like either Tkachuk can be a slam dunk or asking for trouble, depending on which you're in. Some leagues add points for takeaways and subtract for giveaways. Personally, I like to add an extra point for game-winning goals and hat tricks, and up the points from 0.5 to 1.5 for short-handed points. These changes don't make major differences in scoring but are still fun to play with - plus, hatties should get rewarded!

Skaters

Some leagues split forwards into LW, C, and RW, and require you to have a certain number of each on your roster; make sure to take note of this and draft accordingly. Others just split into F, D, and UTIL - the utility slot where you can play either a forward or defenseman. From my experience, centers tend to bring in slightly more points than wingers, but it's not a marked difference. Defenseman score less in the goals/assists/SOG categories, but are helped with block and hit stats. Some defensemen like Jeremy Lauzon, Jacob Trouba, and Chris Tanev are mostly fantasy-relevant due to those blocks and hits. Other defensemen, like Quinn Hughes and Evan Bouchard, rely on their scoring generation to be fantasy-relevant.

A normal ESPN league has a 9-5-1-2-5 set-up, where there are 9 forward slots, 5 defensemen, 1 util, 2 goalies, and 5 bench slots to draft. (Bench slots are for players who aren't playing on a specific day and can be F, D, or G.) Save one bench slot for a third goalie - more on that in a second - and use the other four bench slots on skaters so you can cycle them in based on who's playing.

Goalies

Goalies are... special, both in hockey and in fantasy. This is because, unlike skaters, goalies can end up in the negatives for points. In a standard ESPN league, a goalie gains 0.2 points per save, but loses 2 points per goal against. This means, to break even, a goalie needs to save 10/11 shots against, around a .909 SV%. Obviously, not all goalies will do this every game. Some get buried to the tune of 10 goals against in some games. No matter how good MacKenzie Blackwood or Petr Mrazek are, they will get buried sometimes because their defenses are not great. However, all one has to do is remember the crazy 10-7 Canucks-Wild game last season to know this isn't uniquely a Bad Teams phenomenon. Thus, the goalie position is extra risky in fantasy.

Sheltering a goalie is a more advanced strategy that is incredibly important if you're trying to lock down a matchup. Simply put, "sheltering" the goalie means benching him for the night, even though he's playing a game. Got a matchup that's Lukas Dostal versus the Florida Panthers? Might want to shelter Dosty. How about Dan Vladar against the New Jersey Devils? I'm sheltering Vladar. While you will not gain any points if the goalie does pull out the win, you are protected from the goalie bleeding points. If you think it's significantly more likely that the goalie loses than he wins, consider sheltering him.

I recommend drafting 3 goalies for this reason. Having only 2 makes it difficult to shelter a goalie. Additionally, switching in goalies as needed makes it easier to gain more goalie game points. You can usually have up to 4 goalies, and having more definitely can help, but I think 3 is a sweet spot.

On backups - drafting a near-guaranteed backup (think Jonathan Quick, Semyon Varlamov, Joonas Korpisalo) generally won't have its benefits. Those guys are better off as streaming options on nights when they get easy matchups (more on streaming later). However, picking up a 1B who can take over the net if things go south injury- or luck-wise (think Arturs Silovs, Philipp Grubauer, Joel Hofer) may be quite helpful. Again, this is play-by-ear territory.

The Draft

Before you draft for real, do a mock draft. Or several. I'm an advocate of mocking multiple drafts before the real thing. It's similar to a practice test - the more times you do it, the better you get at it. At least one is almost necessary if only to understand the drafting interface, which can be complex all on its own. Doing more mocks allows you to pick different players at different picks, giving you more of an idea of players you want, players you don't, and players you're willing to draft over or under their ADP (average draft position).

The day of the draft can make or break a team. Do not autodraft if at all possible. If you cannot make it to your draft date/time, set an extensive auto queue to try to secure as many players you like as possible. Trust me. I didn't do this in one league and I ended up with Ivan Provorov and Tony DeAngelo. Ew.

If you draft first overall, you should probably pick Connor McDavid. Don't go for a "spice" pick like Sidney Crosby, who is incredibly unlikely to hit McDavid's point totals. While McDavid was almost always the consensus 1OA in previous years, this is no longer the case - you can make solid arguments for Nathan MacKinnon or Auston Matthews as the 1OA pick in your league. Checking the ADP of players in the Research stats view is helpful here to see where people are valuing certain players outside of projected stats. This will also help you figure out your strategy of who you'll draft where - if Mikko Rantanen and Jack Hughes are both available at pick 10 of a draft, you should take Rantanen, as his 7.9 ADP means he's likely not going to make it back to you, whereas Hughes's 26.2 ADP means he's much more likely to come back.

A side note, though - know thy enemy. Is your league full of Devils fans? Load up on Western Conference players and Rangers, who will likely be undervalued by them. Got a league full of Avs fans? Break out the Red Wings livery and snap up players like Moritz Seider and Dylan Larkin. I took advantage of this in a Pens fans league, grabbing Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Matthew Tkachuk, and Jack Hughes in my first few picks when the rest of the league was drafting all their favorite Penguins and ex-Pens. Also, Sam Reinhart with a 20th round pick didn't hurt, either. Use your fellow drafters' blind spots to your advantage.

The first few rounds should be your star players - the types of players you rely on night-in and night-out to pick up solid points. Depending on the size of your league, the stars may dry up sooner or later. A six-team league may have rosters with most, if not all, stars; a sixteen-team league will likely be leaning on bottom-sixers.

Generally, players on better teams do better. However, better players also do better. Don't draft a bottom-sixer from the Oilers just because of the team they're on; Tyler Toffoli of the Sharks will outscore Brett Kulak seven days a week and twice on Sunday. However, if you're debating whether to pick up a middle-sixer from the Kings or from the Predators, I'd lean towards the latter.

"Should I draft my blorbos?" I can't stop you. What I'd recommend is trying to draft said blorbos in later rounds, if possible. Ultimately, fantasy is personal - maybe you only want to win if it involves dragging your favorite scrappy fourth-liner along for the ride. However, I don't think you'd have gotten this far into this primer if you plan on drafting solely based off sentimentality...

Now, about goalies. Goalie strategies are weird - you can either try to lock top goalies in/around rounds 3-7, or you can try to pick up goalies later in the draft - even at the end. Goalies are voodoo. Whichever floats your boat. While there are a handful of genuinely "elite" goalies (Connor Hellebuyck, Sergei Bobrovsky, Igor Shesterkin) that are worthwhile in early rounds due to their consistency, all three of them struggled at points last year. Other "elite" goalies (Juuse Saros, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Ilya Sorokin) struggled even more. Meanwhile, goalies that were not considered "elite" at all (Cam Talbot, Charlie Lindgren, Connor Ingram) had incredibly solid seasons. Play goalies by ear - if you see an early run on G, you may want to pick up a good one before they're all gone, or try to goalie by committee with several less "elite" picks. If people wait, you may want to get the best goalie first, or wait it out with them to pick up more skaters first. There are also teams that do a "zero G" strategy, where they pick up, you guessed it, exactly zero goalies. This lowers the goalie risk, but also lowers the goalie reward. Personally, I think they're mildly cowardly (accept goalies into your heart!) but it's a strategy you can definitely consider, especially if you're risk-averse.

Also, don't forget newcomers! Players who are entering the league this season, such as top draft picks Macklin Celebrini and Matvei Michkov, are often overlooked, yet can be massive boosts to a team. Drafting one or more of these newer players can be a wild card in your fantasy team, giving high potential points if things work out right.

Watch for breakout players as well, who may have a great season with a bit of luck - players like Alexander Holtz and Matt Poitras can do serious damage if the stars align. Did I write this just to mention Holtz? Possibly. You can't prove it though.

In many of these cases, you need to keep an eye on preseason lines and watch who's playing with who on which lines and which powerplays. If a player isn't on the powerplay and is in the bottom half of the lineup, he's likely not going to get great opportunities. If he's skating next to a franchise centerman, on the other hand, the points are likely to roll in.

This is also where your tolerance of Listening To Other People Talk About Hockey comes into play - over the next few weeks, many of these Other People will be putting up articles and a lot of podcasts and videos about fantasy sleepers. Reading or listening to a few is a good way to get an idea of some late-round picks you might want to consider. They are kind of grating, though.

One last thing to consider is "stacks". Stacks are essentially drafting several players who play on the same line/powerplay and letting the points roll in. For instance, if you draft Nathan MacKinnon with your second overall pick, you should strongly consider picking up Mikko Rantanen or Cale Makar with the next pick you have, then adding to them with Jonathan Drouin in a later round. The thinking is, when MacKinnon scores, those other players are likely to pick up assists off it. However, you need to be careful with stacking, as you can't simply draft the entire Dallas Stars roster and press play; there's got to be a balance between careful stacks and spreading out your talent between teams so you're not stuck with very few players playing on any given day.

Injured Reserve

Similarly to the real NHL, fantasy usually has one Injured Reserve slot, sometimes two or more. You can only stash a player here when he's nursing an injury. This allows you to add an extra player in that guy's place, which is useful because some points is better than none points.

Do not use an IR slot on a player with a season-ending injury. Drop him and move on. If the player is out long-term as in months, but not the season, it's a play-by-ear situation. You will likely be able to drop said player and pick them up when they're healthy again. IR is best used for shorter-term injuries (think 1-3 weeks) or on players who you cannot or are unwilling to drop (think Mitch Marner last season).

Playing the Waiver Wire

The main mistake many make is that they draft, then "set and forget", walking away in October and coming back in March or April. This won't win you championships. I generally try to check my rosters daily and move players on and off the bench and IR as necessary - remember, benched players don't score, and not everyone is playing every night. You can set lineups for weeks in advance if you like, which is convenient if you don't want to check every day. Personally, I think of it as a little break-time ritual to go through my leagues and set myself up for success. Unless you're in a crazy amount of leagues, it shouldn't take you more than 5 minutes or so to bench and unbench players and then figure out your IR and streaming situations.

That reminds me, streaming. What's streaming? "Streaming" is a tactic used to pick up extra points from a single roster spot. Remember how I mentioned the IR earlier? Well, when you put a player on IR, you open up a free spot in your lineup for a free agent. But free agents don't play every day. You can cycle free agents daily - if the Sabres are playing today and tomorrow, I'll grab Jason Zucker for the back-to-back, then drop him when he's not playing for Garnet Hathaway of the Flyers, for example. Watch the schedule for back-to-backs, but also watch for opponents. I'd rather have Jonathan Huberdeau against a Sharks-Ducks back-to-back versus Tomas Hertl against a Stars-Leafs one. Make sure, however, that you keep an eye on matchup acquisitions as well. Most leagues only let you pick up a certain number of players a week, and nothing ruins your day more than missing out on a great streaming option because you used all those acquisitions by Thursday.

Also note that you can no longer add/drop players for the day, including IR movements, after the FIRST game of the day starts. Sometimes, with the Global Series or weekend games, this will be early in the day, so make sure to get your streaming done as early as you can (or even the night before) so you don't miss out.

Keep an eye on the standings and how teams are doing. If the Predators are in the middle of an 18-game point streak because Barry Trotz cancelled U2 at the Sphere again, you might want to pick some of them up. If the Sharks are in the middle of a miserable stretch of hockey, you might want to pick up their opposing goaltenders (remember when I mentioned streaming earlier when talking about backups, this is what I mean).

Keep an eye on lines and how they're utilized. Your Connor Brown late-draft flyer is great, as long as he's playing with McDavid and scoring consistently. He's on the fourth line and not scoring? Might want to move off him. Similarly, if there's a player who's getting increased time and a better role, keep an eye on him too, and be ready to pounce.

Keep track of who's getting powerplay time as well - if Timo Meier isn't on PP1, he's not scoring at such a high clip. Unless you're the Penguins, powerplays mean points, and whoever's on the first powerplay has a good chance of bringing those points in.

Keep track of who's getting goalie starts too. Did Charlie Lindgren lose the net to Logan Thompson? I'm dropping the former and picking up the latter. There are usually a few of these cases a year; jumping on them early will benefit you greatly.

Be flexible. Is there a player massively breaking out this season who's still a free agent? Pick him up and drop one of your struggling players to do so. There's no use in sentimentality if you're going for a win. Be a Vegas Golden Knights GM and kick players to the curb when they're underperforming. Don't worry, they still have a place in your heart! Just not in your lineup.

Trades

Want a player from a friend? You're going to have to trade for it. Trades work similarly to in the real NHL, just without picks (as long as you're not in a keeper league). You'll need to reach out to the friend in question and engineer a trade you both agree to. No swapping Leon Draisaitl for Pat Maroon - if you see a trade that's clearly cheating like that, you should be able to bring it up to your league manager and fellow teammates to veto it.

But to trades more generally - I personally don't trade very much, preferring instead to stream for extra points. However, if there are certain players I want, or certain players I want to move off of and get a return, that's when I trade. Again, both parties must agree, so you need to convince your friend that you're giving them a sweet deal, which is part of the fun! Can you sell Jeff Skinner for Tom Wilson? You sure can try! This is another reason why "setting and forgetting" doesn't work too well - you can miss out on valuable trades that can boost your team in the short or long-term.

Playoffs

The playoffs in fantasy don't actually occur during the Stanley Cup playoffs. They're in the last few weeks of the regular season. This is for hopefully obvious reasons (half the teams being gone in the playoffs). Check your league for how many teams get to make the playoffs and how many don't - if you intend to have a playoff team, you need to know how many people you need to beat. Additionally, check to see how the scoring works during the playoffs. Some leagues do two-week matchups during the playoffs; others only do one. Knowing that is important to planning how you want to line up your players.

If you don't make the playoffs, no worries! You should be able to take part in the consolation ladder. Ditto if you're knocked out early, so don't give up hope if your first-round matchup isn't going as planned.

During the last few days of the playoffs, players will be playing their final games. Obvious, right? But this opens up another streaming avenue (at least, if you're not in a keeper league). Let me explain: the Avs this season have their final game on April 13. All other teams end between the 15th and 17th. There's no point in keeping Artturi Lehkonen or Alexandar Georgiev past April 13, as they won't be playing in games anyway. Drop them on the 14th and bring in fresh blood for the final push. Some points is better than none points!

Well, class is dismissed! If you have any other questions, see me during office hours with an ask or drop me a DM, either on Tumblr or Discord (same username).

If my schedule allows, I will try to actually stream a mock draft or few onto a Youtube channel and comment while I do said drafting, probably next weekend (August 30 - September 1). This may help you understand the thought process behind a successful draft! But that's to be determined. If that's something you'd like to see, let me know so I'll make sure to do it. If I do it, I'll give y'all a heads-up as to when the stream is so you can catch it live, as well as a link to the VOD.

[nyaagolor]

Your SV headcanons are a pure delight to read through. May I ask two questions?

Which ScaVio character do you think or would consider a 'horse girl'? I personally HC Rika as one (she deserves to ride a Mudsdale alongside Geeta and her Gogoat Esmeraldo).

What do you think Arven's Mabosstiff's relationship would be with Nemona & Penny and vice versa? Arven had one-sided beef with Nemona and probably didn't get along with Penny at first, but I wonder how Mabosstiff would feel about those two? At least I do think their interactions would lean towards the positive for the most part. What you do think?

You can ask as many questions as you want i loveeeeee asks. Also WAUGH thank u for the kind words ᏊˊꈊˋᏊ

I thought this would be short enough that it didn't have to go under a readmore but lmfao. Lol even! It got long

Ok so to start I want to clarify that there's like a horse girl classification system. Type 1, to me, is just People Who Ride Horses. Rika is a horse girl in the sense that she has a horse and likes horse-riding, but I think she's normal about it. She's capable of being a functioning member of society without bringing up horses, but definitely goes to and participates in horse shows and races and stuff. To me she just seems like the type to ride around for the fun of it all and finds it relaxing. Type 2 is the horse girl that they make the TV shows and books about and stuff. The one who finds the stallion in the fields and is the only one who can tame its tortured soul. They dream of being the special girl who can see into the heart of this beautiful animal and ride together into the sunset. Nemona is trying to pull this off with Koraidon so badly. She wants it to eat sandwiches out of her open palm and to motorbike across the plains of Los Platos. She can see it in her dreams. Type 3 is the horse girl that all the schoolteachers are like vaguely concerned about because they know far too much about horses and have the social skills of one too. Horse girls that are complete fucking freaks. Weirdos. Losers. This was Geeta in middle school. She doesn't like to talk about it but still loves the horse movies

This ask made me realize that while I've talked a lot about the pre-story, during-story, and immediately post-story interactions between the characters, I haven't talked about afterwards. I think that immediately post-game they're all recovering and learning about real friendship for the first time and so they just don't get along well. Healing is hard and they lash out a bit, especially Penny and Arven, and it's only through the protagonist that they stay in touch. As the months go on and they heal, however, they become closer and closer, eventually becoming inseparable friends who all care so deeply for each other. I'll make a post about it later because Oh Boy do I have ideas about it. ANYWAY. Whether or not Arven likes Nemona, Mabosstiff does. That doggy loves to battle by Arven's own admission, and who gives a better battle than Nemona? I think Mabosstiff, knowing Nemona from Arven's childhood, adores her and is super friendly to her. She always gives Mabosstiff the battles he wants and treats and pets so Arven ends up having to interact with her because Mabosstiff will bound up to her every time he sees her. It drives Arven insane that Mabosstiff and Nemona are practically besties. It's the meetcute that begins the "enemies to friends" part of their childhood friends to enemies to friends again relationship cycle. As for Penny: I think Mabosstiff is just friendly and likes everyone, but Penny is a little bit scared of him. She's covered in eevee fur and smells like old pizza, so when she met Mabosstiff for the first time he chased her and jumped on her and tried to lick her face and she definitely thought that dog wanted to eat her. She's still apprehensive, but Mabosstiff is very affectionate and doesn't do much more than beg for pats and give sloppy kisses. Eventually though, she realizes that Mabosstiff is cute and big and harmless, so when they have picnics and Mabosttiff gets tuckered out he runs over to her (since she's usually sitting away from the group) to nap and get pets. She's still a lil nervous around such big pokemon, but gets along with him just fine. Mabosstiff likes her a lot because she's always down to give him some good scritches and has a nearly endless supply of treats. Also she's quiet and sometimes that's good for an older doggy like him

[vairiance]

Gen 9 is actually my favorite gen so far and I feel so conflicted about it becuase it’s fun but it’s also objectively buggy and full of missed opportunities. Like it’s a lot of fun but it’s easy to get why it’s not liked. :l

Honestly I don't care about the bugs, they're annoying and shouldn't be there but besides the unacceptable crashing none of them are game breaking to me.

I do like a lot of Gen 9, but my main complaint with them is how incredibly unoriginal they are. It's just another game desperately trying to be Breath of the Wild again. Some games are good despite this; take Genshin Impact, which understood both a) the essence of BotW and b) how to improve upon those elements and mesh them with the existing concept they already had. The result is, gacha aside, a really good game, at least in terms of evaluating it within the genre.

Everyone is praising SV for being fresh takes on the series, and while they are to an extent, they also aren't, to another extent. They're very similarly structured to the Gen 1 games, and add very little beyond a modern(ish) coat of paint and scale increase. Rather than try to mesh the essences of the formulae they had to work with, they just defaulted to the most barebones concepts they could get, possibly due to a rushed development cycle like everyone likes to speculate, but also possibly due to just this being the idea all along.

The fact that the exact locations and typings of all the objectives are thrown at you as soon as you begin the quests is one of the biggest examples of this in my opinion. Like, you know the titan enemies or whatever in BotW? The entire point of those was just walking around in the woods and then suddenly, out of nowhere comes this giant cyclops skeleton. The rush of discovery combined with the thrill of the incoming fight makes them memorable and fun things to find and look for.

But if everything is given to you right away what's the point? If I know exactly where they are, and also by process of elimination usually what they look like, it's just a chore. It's also lore breaking to an extent (what do you mean you can't find the titans, Arven? There's literally an app for that), but no one cares about that except me.

At the end of the day I feel the way about Gen 9 the way I do about almost every modern game nowadays. Not necessarily bad, but I'm keenly aware that the main reasons I like it are because it just copied an existing property/ies that I already liked.

[bahamutgames]

AFTERTHOUGHTS - ROUNDUP ROUND 14

August 2024

As I'm writing this. It's 12 AM on September 1st. So I think it's fair to assume I prooooobably won't be beating any other games in August unless I decide to bumrush something RIGHT NOW... But I don't wanna do that.

Usually when there's so few games for one of these posts, I'll save them and combine them with next month until I have a chunkier collection... But I don't wanna do that. Guys. This is the SpongeBob one. I'm finally gonna talk about SpongeBob.

Stardew Valley (February 26, 2016) - PC

OH MY GOD YOU GUYS IT'S STARDEW VALLEY! Yeah, farming games aren't usually my thing, but this one was a little different and required my attention for personal reasons. For starters, it's my mom's favorite video game of all time! She plays any farming game she can get her hands on, but this one is absolutely her #1. So I had to check it out for her. And also, because she loves it so much I took her to the Stardew Valley Festival of Seasons concert a month or so ago. I had only played a little bit of the game to get familiar with what music I could the day before the concert, but I enjoyed what I played and loved the music at the concert so much, I decided to go ahead and keep playing. Now, these games don't really "end" in a traditional sense. But I figured my goal for SV would be Grandpa's Review because my mom and people on reddit suggested it's the closest thing the game has to an ending.

And, ultimately, yeah I loved this game! Where to begin with the positives? I think it has some REALLY lovely sprites, the game never has a screen that doesn't look good (certain beds exempt). Environments look great, some scenes and areas are genuinely gorgeous like the jellyfish festival, I think a lot of the characters have really cute designs, and the whole game just feels nice to look at. Like I said earlier, the music is FANTASTIC! It's all very pretty and every season's music is wonderful to listen to. My favorite songs are probably from the mine though, they're all so somber but really nice. And my personal favorite song over all being 'A Golden Star is Born' from the Community Center quests. Speaking of the mines and community center, I actually think these things are what made this game so approachable for me. Farming games are great and cute, but I've never made this much progress in any of them (the closest being A Wonderful Life on GC maybe.) But I think having some surprisingly in depth combat with multiple weapon classes, equipment, and fucking parrying?? In the farming game??? Okay... And also having something of a story mode with rebuilding the community center and trying to find the perfect ingredients for each bundle really helped me press along in the game rather than getting stuck. Like, it gave me a goal to work towards whereas most farming games are truly endless. If that makes sense? I'm also shocked by the sheer amount of content in this game, I barely scratched the surface of what there is to do over the 2 years I played it. The characters are all cute (for the most part I don't fw Shane), I love seasonal cycles, I love all the hidden easter eggs and stuff, I love Korbus, I loved the cute festivals, I loved Leah my hot artist wife. There's a lot to love in this game.

But like every game it isn't perfect. Just the way it is. And I have 2 specific issues with this game that come down to how you interact with NPCs. The first issue: Your Dog. Why can't I do ANYTHING with this damn dog? I can pet it, and sometimes he gives me things. But I can't play fetch, or take it for a walk, or even buy it presents? IT'S MY DOG!! I think even potentially having heart events as you become better friends with your pet could be super cute. Though I guess they don't do this because there's a lot of pet variety. The second issue: Your Partner. I've seen other people complain about this and I TOTALLY agree. Your partner just doesn't do enough. When you ask them out or propose there's basically no fanfare (maybe that's how it is irl too for all I know lmao) And once you're married, they are just GONE. They don't have a daily schedule anymore, you very rarely see them working, and there isn't much you can do together. Sometimes they make you coffee or feed the animals but it's just so sad to me! I think they should have some sort of daily schedule that just incorporates being at your house MORE rather than doing nothing. Maybe having more dates would be nice after you're married? Maybe having you two go to the festivals TOGETHER??? Mayhaps? Idk I just do kind of feel like marrying Leah ruined her life lmao. I probably would've changed her story specifically so that she still occasionally goes to her house to use it as an art studio for work.

But that's pretty much all I have for Stardew. Yeah, I get it now. This game is adorable. And I will certainly come back to continue playing it eventually (there's still ONE LAST community bundle left to do). But for right now, I'm happy to call it here. If you're interested you can see my farm here! And if you're curious, I finished the game with 4 candles on Grandpa's Shrine! Neat!

Spongebob Squarepants: Battle for Bikini Bottom (October 29, 2003) - Gamecube

GUYS CAN WE TALK ABOUT SPONGEBOB I'VE BEEN DYING TO TALK TO YOU ALL ABOUT SPONGEBOB!! OKAY HERE WE GO:

So, recently I said to myself "man it's been a while since I've watched the Spongebob movie." That was a dangerous start to a larger rabbit hole. For context, I ADORE that movie. And even though I like Spongebob, I wouldn't consider myself to be a huge fan of it or anything. But then I thought "well, why not watch Season 1-3 all the way for the first time so I can watch the movie as a finale?" Which lead to "man it's been a while since I played the Movie game. I loved that as a kid. Which led to "holy shit don't I own Battle for Bikini Bottom on gamecube? Why haven't I played that yet?" And... well, now I've done it all, boys. I'm a regular spongebob expert. And you're gonna read my thoughts! Basically the way I consumed it was SpongeBob seasons 1-3 > Battle for Bikini Bottom > SpongeBob Movie > Movie Game. But I'll start with the game afterthoughts, then I'll treat you all to a rare afterthoughts about a show, rather than a video game.

So, Battle for Bikini Bottom. I know this is the one that EVERYONE loves... And honestly, yeah I love it too lol. I think it's a SUPER cute game that captures the chaotic energy and feel of the show INCREDIBLY well. The original plot is really cute and absolutely feels like a special they would've made, and I'm glad they bothered making an original plot at all because they easily could've just made it... idk, nothing? And even for a bit of a SpongeBob newbie like me, the novelty of actually getting to run around all the locations is not lost on me. Like actually seeing stores from Spongebob in downtown, or even visiting stuff from one episode like Rock Bottom (even though I thought the level sucks imo, I just liked that episode a lot lol). And seeing them replicate gags from the show genuinely got a lot of laughs out of me. Like a bridge falling from the plane, or the bus coming out when you go to the vending machine. It's cute and is clearly filled to the BRIM with love for the show.

And the gameplay is just fun, simple platformer goodness! I liked having 3 playable characters with their own unique abilities, though I do wish Sandy could've been fleshed out more. It's got nice collectathon energy, the visuals are bright and colorful, and the soundtrack is surprisingly killer. Particularly the main theme to the hub world has been stuck in my head since beating it and the Poseidome theme rules. Probably the best aspect of this game though to me is the boss battles. They're all great (except maybe having to hit robot plankton with the homing bubble, he's SO FUCKING TINY STOP MOVING-) But seriously I think the way they handle the bosses are great and having the talking fish commentate over the bosses RULES! And like, was actually a little insightful. I remember getting hit trying to deal damage to the first boss and when the fish was like "I don't think Spongebob will be winning that way" I immediately knew I was doing it wrong. Idk, it's small and maybe would be annoying in other games but it works here.

So yeah they game is lovely and filled with that wonderful Spongebob charm. But it's not perfect. Particularly they couldn't get all the voices, which wouldn't be the end of the world if the replacement voices weren't insanely off lmao. Mermaid Man in particular is just nuts. Some of the levels aren't that amazing either. Like the Kelp Forest is REALLY dark and hard to see. Rock Bottom was INSANELY confusing and I'm still not sure how to navigate most of it. And the audio mixing in this game could be DEMENTED! Idk how to show it to you but if you ever get near a waterfall in this game... Good lord. The sound of that waterfall will be SO LOUD and completely drown out all other noise. It's filled with weird super loud ambient noises like this. And while I think Spongebob's health being underwear is funny, idk why health is even in this game because getting hit by an enemy once just sends you FLYING. A single hit of damage is basically a guaranteed death because you'll be knocked back so insanely far and fast that you almost always fall off the stage. It's nuts. The game also just isn't super polished in every area, and I think the sequel really improves on some aspects like how special moves are done as well as how it handles its generic collectibles. But, like, this game was so cute and so well done and so funny. I couldn't stay mad at it. What a surprise treat this was!

The Spongebob Squarepants Movie (October 27, 2004) - Xbox

But, the whole time I was playing BfBB I kept thinking "oh man this gets recycled in the movie game and it's SO much better there." I played this one as a little kid and I ADORED IT!! Just like I adore the actual movie. So after rewatching it, I was stoked to come back and play my old childhood copy of it again :)

And boy howdy was I wrong, this game is not as good as Battle for Bikini Bottom. Yes, it certainly does do the things I said earlier better. I like that it has RPG elements where you can actually upgrade special moves and health, that RULES. And I think making the generic collectibles work like EXP rather than currency for more of the main collectibles is cooler. But... idk man, this one is rough.

So, this game was made in like a year. And it shows. Instead of the charming in engine cutscenes from the first game, this instead uses stills from the movie where the narrator tells you what happened over it. These are worse than you remember. By the time you reach the ending, they full on don't even have screenshots from the movie and have to make their own using stock assets and what seems to be drawings done in paint? Take a look, it's bizarre.

Particularly that last one. Notice the stray pixels inside Spongebob's eyelashes. Is that where the fill tool failed to color in the edges? Or how about the miscolor around SpongeBob's mouth. It's INSANE this is in the final game. Again though, this game was made in a year. This is almost certainly Nickelodeon's fault for not giving them access to the movie for... some odd reason.

And it's not just this, cutscenes that do use animated models tend to just have them idling while occasionally moving to talk. I don't think Mindy even has a full model cause she's only ever seen over her magic mirror. The game is also full of a lot of repeated missions, like enemy fights or platform challenges or ring challenge and time challenges. And the first game had this too, but it had a LOT more missions to do so you could better pick and choose your battles. But here you need basically every goofy goober token. Which forces you to do a lot of the game's worst levels.

There's other oddities too, like Dennis using a seemingly scrapped design during his rematch. Hasslehoff obviously not being able to return for it. But let's move onto some of its positives because no game is truly awful.

Aside from the Patty Wagon stages, the actual levels themselves are good. The platforming levels are a lot of fun, the tub slide levels are okay, and the bosses are generally all good and creative I'd say. I think there's also some other polish made over the first game like tons of hidden extras like concept art or alt costumes. I also think Goofy Goober Tokens are a cleaner mcguffin than golden spatulas if that makes any sense at all. It's improved visuals and they actually got back EVERY voice actor. Including Mindy. Which doesn't mean much cause most of the cast never talks in this game. But it's cool they pulled it off! Music is fantastic, the final boss theme is genuinely such a banger. The desert theme rules. This games OST still really holds up and I may prefer it over BfBB still honestly. I also think the enemies are a little less annoying than BfBB.

Yeah it's odd. I don't think it's a TERRIBLE game. But man I'm shocked I finished it as a kid. It's clearly rushed and didn't get the time that BfBB did. And ultimately I think being more polished can't save it from the slideshow cutscenes and the annoying amounts of grinding you have to do to beat it.

Spongebob Squarepants (May 1, 1999)

Okay, so that's the games. But what are my thoughts on the show? I've seen some episodes of it as a kid. I had some VHS tapes I believe and we would rent episodes from the Library. But I didn't have cable so most of these episodes I hadn't seen before. And certainly not all at once like this. Which was very interesting to finally do. Again, I watched the first 3 seasons and then the Movie.

Thoughts? Yeah SpongeBob is a funny as fuck show! I think it has a great premise that's actually very unique. Taking place completely underwater with aquatic characters. The cast is all great, I love Spongebob and sometimes I really fuck with Patrick. Sandy is great, and Plankton + Karen may be some of the best characters but they're not in it enough, especially Karen. And personally I kind of don't fuck with Squidward (he's responsible for his own problems 99% of the time don't let revisionists tell you it's spongebob and patrick fucking with him he's not relateable) and Mr. Krabs is basically a straight up villain. They're still funny. And it also has some nice visuals, the animation is great and I particularly think the skylines with the flowers are super cute. And they do a lot of odd things I wasn't expecting like a TON of live action and really surreal junk.

Actually, one of the most surprising parts of the show to me is how WEIRD it is. It's a BIZARRE series. With lots of weird closeups, some INSANELY weird visuals and surreal(?) jokes. To a true SpongeBob fan that's probably a really weird thing to notice but. Idk I just wasn't expecting it to be so random. But it does it well. Like the seahorse episode where randomly for one shot SpongeBob has a mustache and it's never addressed. And the fucking Gorilla. You know the one.

But my favorite kinds of jokes from the series, with pretty much no contest. Is when SpongeBob gets mad at people. When he snaps it creates the best scenes in the series. Like him getting mad at Squidward when he's jobless, or when he cusses out Mr. Krabs when he's crushing on Ms. Puff, or the absolute best and probably my favorite scene in the whole series: LISTEN HERE YOU CRUSTACEOUS CHEAPSKATE!! SQUIDWARDS BEEN LIVING AT MY HOUSE- ect ect. It's so good. And they save it, they don't use it often so when it happens it's out of nowhere and so funny. The show is just so funny and there's very few moments where it's boring or not hitting.

But yeah it's certainly not perfect. I can't remember exact moments but there are some jokes that feel oddly mean spirited or even inappropriate like a few suicide jokes. And sometimes the characters can be so stupid it's nerve-wracking. But it's a kids cartoon that's par for the course lol.

---

Then there's the movie. This is a whole separate beast. The finale to the series (or at least the first 3 seasons.) And it's pretty much the perfect movie. It keeps all the same funny and chaotic energy. But it's somehow not too over the top, like it's still respectful for the big screen while still being insane. And I of course love stories with big stakes in universes you wouldn't expect and this absolutely delivers. I love Plankton being an ACTUAL threat, and Karen gets some nice jokes here too. I love SpongeBob and Patrick being heroes and actually dealing with some crazy threats. Dennis is cool. The whole premise with the crown and Plan Z is great. And even though the movie is constantly jumping between multiple stories it doesn't feel scattered or weird or poorly paced. It's really well done. And I LOVE that they do some of the different animation styles by actually going to live action places towards the end and even fighting a live action enemy. And the whole scene with the tear of the goofy goober is so sad and so well done. And I love SpongeBob having a real adult problem where he wants to be manager and no one takes him seriously.

But in particular the ending of this movie is so special. SpongeBob realizing that being a kid is fantastic and him gaining insane power from it is so goofy and him becoming a guitar wielding wizard who uses his music to free everyone is SO RANDOM AND CHAOTIC AND SO SPONGEBOB!! And the whole Goofy Goober rock scene just absolutely rules and the speech before hand makes me so emotional. I fucking love this scene it's one of my favorite "final battles" in a movie I guess you could call it. Please watch it if you haven't seen it in a while. It's better than you remember.

And having SpongeBob prove himself and become manager, it's basically the perfect ending. I love it. The series is good, but this movie is perfect. It's the perfect finale. And it's still my favorite SpongeBob thing in the series even now.

But yeah, that's my thoughts on SpongeBob. I honestly never considered that I'd do something like this so this was a real surprise and treat for me. But I loved doing it. SpongeBob is really good and I basically haven't stopped thinking about it. Not helped by the fact it turned out to be the series 25th anniversary this year, so I cannot escape the series at the moment. Idk. SpongeBob was good. I enjoyed this. But I don't think I'll be doing this for any other shows, at least not any time soon. It was all just a delightful coincidence that I had access to all this media without even needing to pirate it all at the same time. But again, I'm glad it happened. Happy Birthday SpongeBob!!

[travelnew]

PUBLIC CLOCKS OF MUMBAI - 3/3

TIME KEEPERS OF MUMBAI - Part 1 and Part 2 is here.

Gamdevi Mandir, Charni Road, South Mumbai.

Police Gymkhana, Marine Lines, South Mumbai.

Garden near Mafatlal/ Thackers, Charni Road, South Mumbai. Clock will be seen from above.

Babu Amichand Panalal Adishwarji Jain Temple, Walkeshwar, South Mumbai.

Ebee's Arts & Artifacts shop/ gallery - Walkeshwar, South Mumbai.

Shri Pant Bhuvan, Charni Road, near Chowpatty, South Mumbai.

Aquinas International School, next to Church of Our Lady of The Rosary, Goregaon West.

Dargah Masjid, SV Road, Malad West - has a digital clock that even displays prayer timings in English, Urdu and Hindi or Marathi!

Shree Hanuman Mandir, Gorai, Borivali.

Madina Masjid, Poinsur, Kandivali West.

Digital board displaying Air quality index (pollution) and time, Charkop, Kandivali West.

Rajni Kunj, Kandivali West (The building with a sky bridge in suburbs!)

Shree Panchanath Mahadeo Mandir, Malad West. (There may have been a public clock inside the circular space, which now has some names painted inside it).

Junction of SV Road and Ram Mandir Station Road, Goregaon West.

Matushree Pushpaben Vinubhai Valia College of Commerce, Borivali.

Origin of the phrase "Once upon a time" at Kandivali.

Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Borivali (Could you spot the second one too!?)

Opposite Orlem Church, Malad.

This is how Mumbai metro cares for its clocks during monsoon. A nice raincoat for the platform clocks.

A private bungalow in Gorai showcases a public clock. Unique, that it has been put up by a person for others' benefit.

Church of Our lady of the sea, Uttan.

The Prince's Triumphal Arch of 1905 at Mahalaxmi.

Borivali West, S.V. Road.

This blog post will keep getting updated as we cycle to the public clocks of Mumbai.

[doubleddenden]

I see people talking about how Pokémon "listened" by giving LZA a 2025 release. Idk if I'd go that far.

I know people don't tend to like negative opinions ruining a good time- trust me, I'm excited about it too- but I take issue when we start praising companies and especially TPC and GF for something good they probably didn't intend to do.

I have some takes as to why I think we should wait before praising them for "listening" to us, but more or less it boils down to "we don't know what else they have planned for 2024 or 25."

1. It could be another January release like Legends Arceus was- keep in mind that's only a couple months extra from a normal release schedule. Now if it's later revealed to be like November or something, okay, but I don't feel that will be the case tbh.

2. This probably has the same amount of dev time any other game freak game had- assuming this is from the Legends Arceus team, 2025 is still a 3 year release cycle, just a NEW one. The question now is whether this will be their ONLY 2025 release, or if they wait til 2026 to reveal gen 10.

Understand that would probably be the best move here, since if they did so then we'd get an extra year of dev time on a new gen AND they'd get to be symbolic and release a new gen on the 30th anniversary like they did gen 7 and 4 on the 20th and 10th. But they could get greedy again like in 2022.

Continuing on-

3. The COO said they want to maintain the "cadence" of releases- basically 1 game or dlc a year as we understand it. With that being said-

4. They don't just announce Pokémon games on Pokémon day. I know it's been the norm for the last few years, but ORAS, Ultra Sun and Moon, and Let's Go were all revealed around the May to July area of the calendar.

Keeping 3 and 4 in mind, there's still a likelihood something else can drop. Could be a smaller remake, could be a port, could be a side game, who knows.

I think this take I heard recently is probably the real explanation

5. There's been buzz from a bunch of credible gaming news, articles, and reporters that the Switch successor was supposed to drop 2024, but Nintendo pushed to March 2025 due to supply issues and worries about scalpers.

This being said, we know Pokémon has had Switch 2 dev kits in hand as recently as SV's DLC development, as per the first Indigo Disk 4chan leak that revealed that it was in Unova, revealed Walking Wake and Iron Leaves, etc- but most relevant was that they were testing getting SV to run more efficiently on the next console.

So, while there's no conclusive evidence, one can infer they probably DID have a game set to release this year as a Switch 2 launch title, but had to delay when the console did.

In any case, I'd rather we not give them credit for "listening" if we don't have proof they did just yet- this isn't a streamer apologizing for a bad joke or your neighbor turning down their music, this is a corporation that knows buzzwords and marketing strategies, and money is their first and foremost goal over integrity and respect. For all we know we could get something else half assed this year anyway.

[everythingonindianrealestate]

Northern Hills: 5 Top Reasons Why These Flats in Dahisar East Are a Good Investment

For many aspiring homeowners, it is a dream to purchase a flat in Mumbai, and if that home blends convenience, comfort, and natural beauty, there is nothing better. If you are in the market for properties in Dahisar, Northern Hills by N.Rose Developers in Dahisar East check all of the above boxes and more.

Nestled amidst the lush greenery and natural beauty of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park which encompasses Dahisar East, the spacious 2 BHK and 3 BHK flats of Northern Hills capture the essence of peaceful living while ensuring seamless connectivity to the heart of Mumbai thanks to metro connectivity and the Western Express Highway 

This project is one of the tallest in the vicinity, giving you amazing views of the surrounding area due to its thoughtfully designed architecture.

The ample use of glass and open spaces help to maximize natural light and ventilation so that you can relax and enjoy the magnificent views of the nearby Yeoor Hills. 

Besides its convenient location, Northern Hills offers a variety of amenities and security features.

Investing in Northern Hills comes with the added assurance of MahaRERA registration, providing transparency and quality assurance for your peace of mind.

In this article, we will take a closer look into Northern Hills, revealing hidden gems that make it a dream home selection.

Site Address:- Northern Hills, Bharucha Rd, Hyland Park, Dahisar East, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400068.

Project Details:

Project Size- 1.29 acres, 841 units

Configurations- 2 BHK (701.01 sqft) 2 BHK (636.88 sqft ), 2 BHK (622.89 sqft), 3 BHK (1100.51 sq ft)

Price- Starts from INR 1.43 crores

Project Possession: December 2026

No of Floors in Tower: 66

Reason 1: Location of Northern Hills in Dahisar East 

Situated in the serene and picturesque neighborhood of Dahisar East, Northern Hills enjoys the best of both worlds - it offers a peaceful ambiance away from the bustling city while ensuring effortless connectivity to key areas of Mumbai.

As it is certain from the map above, Northern Hills is well situated. Western Express Highway is just 210 m from the gate of the project, while another significant road is SV Road which is about 130 m from the project. And if you are someone who would also like to rely on public transportation, then Ovaripada Metro Station is just 800m, a stone’s throw away from Northern Hills. 

Aside from the convenience of seamless connectivity, the area is surrounded by the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, approximately 9 minutes away, which guarantees fresh air and stunning views for a lifetime. 

S V Road: 130 m

W E H: 210 m

Ovaripada Metro Station: 800 m

Dahisar Station East: 450 m

D Mart Link Road: 1.9 km

Sanjay Gandhi National Park: 2.4 km

Entertainment, Hospitals and Schools Near Northern Hills

Thakur Mall: 2.2 km

Metro Mall: 5.2 km

Pulse Diagnostic Centre: 20 m

Universal High School: 1.5 km

Rustomjee Cambridge School: 2.4 km 

Reason 2: A Wide Range of Project Features in Northern Hills 

Architecture and Design of the project

Soaring 733 ft. into the sky with 66 floors, Northern Hills stands tall as an architectural marvel in 

the heart of Dahisar East. The project offers 2 BHK and 3 BHK homes in Mumbai with Sky and Podium amenities. The aesthetics of the project perfectly complement the surrounding landscape, and the strategic placement of each building ensures ample natural light and cross ventilation. While the project is developed in a modern style, special focus has been on making it sustainable too, making the project eco-friendly and energy efficient.

Amenities: 

What truly sets Northern Hills apart is its impressive range of 25 plus amenities that cater to residents every need and desire.

The list of amenities that Northern Hills boasts of are 

Fitness Zone

Terrace Movie Lounge

Podium Turf

Multipurpose Lawn

Infinity Pool

Kid's Play Area

Multipurpose Hall

Jogging Track

Toddler's Cycle TracK

Gymnasium Outdoor Lap Swimming Pool Skating Rink Multi-Purpose Court Children’s Play Area Table Tennis Indoor Games Area Snooker & Billiards Yoga/Dance Room Business Centre Creche Amphitheatre Library / Reading Lounge

Security Features:

The safety and security of the residents are paramount at Northern Hills. The project is equipped with state-of-the-art security measures, including 24/7 CCTV surveillance, manned entry points, and intercom systems, ensuring complete peace of mind for all residents.

Reason 3: Superior Buid Quality of 2 and 3 BHK Flats In Northern Hills 

The apartments at Northern Hills are a testament to luxury and elegance. The meticulously designed living spaces have an exterior made of an RCC frame, that gives strong protection from earthquakes, while the walls are Gypsum finished with low Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) paint. 

These 2 BHK and 3 BHK flats in Dahisar East come equipped with air-conditioned living, dining, and bedroom spaces with split units. Large formal flooring with vitrified tiles is used throughout the house, which is an excellent choice, particularly for areas that see frequent movements like kitchens, bathrooms, and hallways. Along with being durable, this kind of flooring is quite easy to maintain too. False Ceilings with lighting are also present at certain locations in the flats. Special care has been taken to ensure good planning of the electrical layout and the usage of modular electrical switches.

The bathrooms in the homes are designed with utmost care and attention to detail. They feature anti-skid flooring to ensure safety and prevent slipping accidents. The bathrooms also come equipped with premium sanitary fittings and water, providing functionality and durability. Additionally, a geyser is installed to provide hot water whenever needed, offering a comfortable and convenient bathing experience.

Reason 4: Developer With A Trusted Legacy 

The reputable developer behind Northern Hills has a proven track record of delivering high-quality projects. Their commitment to excellence and timely delivery instills confidence in homebuyers and adds to the allure of Northern Hills. N Rose Developers Private Ltd. (NRDPL) is a renowned real estate company that was established in 2004 by Late Shri Parshuram Shinde. 

Since its inception, NRDPL has been dedicated to creating luxurious living spaces with an unwavering commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction.

With a wealth of experience spanning over two decades, N Rose Developers' portfolio boasts an impressive array of completed projects, each exemplifying the hallmarks of quality, innovation, and attention to detail. From commercial complexes to residential towers

Here are some of the other 3 BHK homes in Mumbai by N Rose Developers  

Reason 5: Price Trend in Dahisar East Dahisar East has witnessed significant real estate price appreciation due to its improved infrastructure, strong connectivity due to the Western Express Highway, SV Road, and metro connectivity. The area's proximity to major commercial centers, along with its access to green spaces and recreational areas, has made it a sought-after destination for both homebuyers and developers alike.  Steady development by reputable real estate companies has further boosted the area's popularity, offering high-quality residential projects that cater to modern homebuyers seeking luxury and convenience. This makes Dahisar East an attractive investment option in Mumbai's competitive real estate market.

In conclusion, Northern Hills is a haven of luxury, comfort, and tranquility that offers a lifestyle unlike any other in Dahisar East. Whether you seek a family-friendly environment or a peaceful retreat to call home, this project with its well-planned amenities, breathtaking views, and attention to detail undoubtedly sets a new benchmark for real estate projects in Dahisar East.

If you need more information about the project, call us at (022) 6849 3649 or visit dwello.in

FAQs 

Is Dahisar East a good place to live?

Dahisar, a charming neighborhood in the northern Mumbai Suburbs, has become a top choice for homebuyers. Thanks to its excellent road and rail connections and well-established social amenities, it offers a desirable and convenient living experience.

What is the RERA number for Northern Hills Dahisar?

The RERA number for Northern Hills Dahisar is P51800020350

[stardust-falling]

@nadharz

Look, I have a whole other post about YQY's situation that I will write someday, but for that I'll have to explain some things about the cultivation genre/tropes/etc. that SV doesn't really go into, so that's not what this post is for.

Also note that I never said LBG was not abusive/an abuser either. He very much was! In fact, he's the same as SJ, he was a product of the cycle of abuse in a very similar way-- he became that way because of what SJ did to him, but there came a point where he was fully responsible for his own actions.

The same way that SJ was a victim of his circumstances on the streets, in the Qiu household, with Wu Yanzi, but became a perpetrator as a peak lord.

Also, SJ was NOT "just as abusive as any ancient china teacher. Otherwise, YQY wouldn't have been so uncomfortable about the way he treated LBH (see chapter one). SJ deliberately and intentionally abused a child under his care because he was jealous. "Any ancient china teacher" might be strict and do things considered abusive by modern standards. But attempting to get their students killed/sabotaging their progress/severely beating them to the point they were barely recognizable on a regular basis? That's far beyond what "any ancient china teacher" would do.

SJ was not just being a normal teacher for the time-- he was literally trying to ruin this child's life and get him killed.

Since people like to say "it wasn't that bad" I'm just going to pull quotes here and now.

Chapter 1:

“Shizun.” The youth spoke respectfully even though his movements were unsteady, and he still managed to stand perfectly straight. The small smile that had been forming at the corner of Shen Qingqiu’s mouth froze. He was definitely dead! Before him was the face that would, in the future, infatuate everyone who saw it, from eighty-year-old women to infants still in their swaddling clothes, the Gary Stu protagonist’s face—and he’d beaten it to this extent?! He was dead! But even though this face bore clear evidence of abuse and was covered in injuries, the protagonist was, as expected, still the protagonist.

“No need.” Shen Qingqiu stopped Luo Binghe, and with a flick of his wrist, he tossed over a small bottle. “This is medicine.” He paused before adding in a mocking tone, “Don’t let anyone see; they might think my Qing Jing Peak abuses its disciples.”

The very first time LBH appears, it's made very, very clear that he is being abused. It's stated on several occasions. The fact that if others were to see LBH's current state, they would think QJP abused its disciples, is telling that this is not normal.

But just in case you plan to argue that this is just SY's opinions, like I've seen so many times, then here's evidence from SJ's own POV about his intentions.

Chapter 24:

Luo Binghe was using the incorrect cultivation manual that Shen Qingqiu had handed him; he should have long since died bleeding from the seven apertures, his body rupturing down to his bones, skin, meridians, tendons, and flesh. But not only had this failed to come to pass, Luo Binghe’s cultivation was steadily improving.

Shen Jiu deliberately intended for Luo Binghe to die. This is not the actions of a teacher just holding to current standards. This is explicitly an act of sabotage.

Truly, I don't understand why this fandom is so obsessed with trying to excuse the fact that Shen Jiu literally tried to kill a child under his care.

You can like a character who isn't a good person! It's okay to do that! It doesn't say anything about your own moral character!

LBG and SJ are parallels. They are both victim-perpetrators in the cycle of abuse. This is the entire basis of SVSSS. You cannot excuse one and not the other, you cannot condemn one and not the other.

They are the same.

Lastly, allow me to leave behind my favorite quote in the book, which I believe sums up this fandom quite well:

When written within the bounds of the original genre, this kind of character was extremely difficult to handle. You could say he was scum, but he was also pitiful. But if you tried to acknowledge his pathos, his ruthlessness was real too. Characters that were both scummy and tragic always drew aggro, and they were a hotbed for wank, leading comments sections to devolve into massive flame wars. Better to hack him down into a formulaic asshole and let the protagonist step on him. Easier to write, and the readers would find it satisfying as well.

Shen Jiu is an abuser. Shen Jiu abused Luo Binghe and (depending on how you interpret certain parts of the novel) most likely others. He was a profoundly unpleasant person to be around by his own doing, not just some poor misunderstood baby.

Just because he didn’t murder Liu Qingge or sexually abuse NYY doesn’t mean that he was innocent of everything. Especially not his abuse of LBH which is a fundamental part of SVSSS’s story— about cycles of abuse and how someone’s life experiences can shape them in different ways.

Learning about Shen Jiu’s backstory humanizes him. It explains his actions and how he got to where he was.

It does not, and should not excuse him.

Humans can be both abuser and victim. That’s how the cycle of abuse fundamentally works.

I love Shen Jiu. He’s one of my favorite characters of all time. He’s still an abuser.

You can feel sorry for him, but don’t make him innocent. He knew what he was doing. He did it intentionally. He wanted to spite LQG, he wanted to hurt LBH, to destroy his cultivation and even his life.

Shen Jiu is a brilliant portrayal of a truth people are afraid of— that sometimes survivors are not inspirational. Sometimes they’re mean. Sometimes they’re bad people. Sometimes they carry the worst parts of their abusers with them because that was what they feared, and if others feared them then they would have the control they so desperately needed.

Shen Jiu is not a one dimensional villain who is evil for the sake of it. He’s a human character with complex reasons for being the way he is, and a traumatic upbringing he didn’t choose or have any control over.

He’s still an abuser.

[moonlight--falls]

TAMARA: “You have a baby? And you’re not even helping to take care of her?!” 

CLAIRE: *scoffs* “Nope.” 

JARED: “Shut up, Claire! Tamara, it’s not what you think.” 

TAMARA: “And then you tell the mother of said baby to shut up?! You know what? I can’t do this. I knew I shouldn’t have gotten carried away with you…”

[wolfbetweenrivers]

I’ve seen a lot concerns about the working conditions of Game Freak because of the apparent speed at which they’ve been releasing new games. They released Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl in November 2021, released Legends Arceus two months later and one month later announced Scarlet and Violet which is slated for a late 2022 release.

At first glance it may appear that Game Freak employees are under pressure and should perhaps unionize, but I believed there is something important to point out.

1. BDSP wasn’t even developed by Game Freak. GF only oversaw the development. Meaning that they were developing LA at roughly the same time that ILCS developed BDSP.

2. These messy release dates for the first two games are most likely the result of delays caused by the pandemic. LA was probably planned for 2021 but had to be pushed.

3. People have been complaining about how the graphics of SV in the trailer look incomplete. We’ve gone through the same cycle over and over guys. What you see in the first trailers is NOT FINAL. They are showing footage that was recorded at earlier stages of development.

4. These games were in development for years just like every other games of every other generation. Just because they managed to announce SV right after LA was released doesn’t mean that SV was rushed. These things are planned way ahead. That’s not how game development works. 

TL;DR: Game Freak worked on Legends Arceus while ILCA worked on BDSP both of which were planned years ahead. The release dates are mostly the result of delays caused by the pandemic and but most likely didn’t affect SV as much at the time of the early stages of development. Games Freak is working at the same pace that they have always been working.

[phoenixtakaramono]

So I'm here to say that I really love your Bingyuan fic! The research you do for it and share with us is just amazing! I also have a q regarding LBG. From SV we know that he felt admiration for his Shizun so do you think that if SJ wasn't cruel to him LBG's admiration would've grown into love and attraction like it did in LBH's case for SY? Which then also raises a question: would LBH/LBG fall in love with any Shizun who was kind to him? Or was he just drawn to SJ's type of personality. WDYT?

Hi there, Anon! I’m glad you’re liking the Untold Tale! Thanks for reading! I think it lowkey helps when the story I’m writing (in general) is from a culture I’m familiar with and that I know some of its language nuances (just general Mainland dialect; I’m unfamiliar with Shanghainese, the Beijing dialect, etc etc). So fortunately for me, as someone who is Chinese but was born in the Western side of the world speaking Mandarin to family and friends, emulating the Chinese aesthetic and atmosphere in TUT comes a little bit easier to me than someone who did not grow up with this culture. I bet if I had been raised in China, I would be able to write something even more multilayered and deep but, alas, the youthful rebellious me of the past hadn’t taken my pinyin and Chinese character writing lessons seriously so I can only communicate verbally and understand audibly 😫. It’s very special for us writers in fandoms to be able to write a story of a culture that we actually know and can identify with. But high key it’s been immensely fun injecting some references of things I’ve come to notice from watching period C-dramas and the C-novels I’ve read, and I’ve come to learn interesting things about Chinese history and mythology even I didn’t know! So the story really writes itself.

Shen Jiu (OG!Shen Qingqiu)

To answer your question 🤔, to be honest this is why the SVSSS fandom is great—because there’s so many interpretations of the original source material. That’s why we have our headcanons and fanfictions to explore these many different possibilities. So for me personally, I can see it happening both ways: *1) LBG does develop a crush/falls in love with SJ, or 2) no matter how SJ treats him LBG regards him respectfully or coldly. I think Possibility 1 is more likely, since SY transmigrated into SQQ and we saw what happened with “Bunhe.”

Now, mind, for Possibility 1 to be more likely to happen, the SJ in PIDW will have to undergo a massive personality change/ a change of heart/ develop a good conscience and will need to clean up his image aka clear up the massive misunderstandings from PIDW canon (like him being mistaken as a pervert for Ning Yingying, visiting whorehouses, killing LQG, etc). It’ll be difficult though considering who Airplane has changed SJ into for his stallion harem novel (reading through SVSSS, my impression of PIDW besides it being the harem stallion novel is that it sounds similar to a “dog blood plot,” where audiences tune in to see how the villains are brought to justice). I literally have a line from TUT in a future chapter where SY says this about SJ since I will resurrect SJ and bring him into the story for closure:

People like Shen Qingqiu naturally had a set of deeply-rooted values. If one wanted to change them, it’d be easier to just have them reincarnate. (—TUT, ch???)

At his core, he’s a flawed man (which makes sense with the underlying cycle of abuse theory, considering his upbringing and backstory). He’s jealous and petty and prickly. His image is that of a proud and cold immortal. In Chinese terms, he’s the type of character archtype who I can see being àojiāo (definitely not canon characterization; this is just a stray thought that amuses me) in a romantic relationship.

LBH will have to recognize that^, or be in a position where he finds SJ’s caustic side endearing instead. He will also have to be extremely patient with him (although, since the joke in SVSSS is that LBH is an incurable M, it shouldn’t be that hard).

A fun thing about OG!SQQ is that he’s the cannon fodder scumbag villain of PIDW. He’s the reason LBG blackened from a white lotus. And, as you know, villains aka antagonists aka bad boys resonate strongly with people for a reason. That’s why we see a lot of Enemies to Lovers tropes, etc. It squicks me to use this phrase but “the allure of dating a ‘bad boy’ is strong.” SJ is that type of bad boy we could identify as a “fixer-upper project” (ugh, that phrase)—even with the red flags and warning signs—especially for those said to have a troubled past with rejecting neglectful parental figures/ family members/ friends and have have not outgrown their wish to convert that sort of person into a loving, accepting person. When we want something we can’t or shouldn’t have, our desire for it grows exponentially. In fanfiction this is a concept writers and readers can explore safely in a world of the imaginary.

From a Meta Perspective

Although, if we look at it meta-ly, the cold and proud and/or knowledgeable Shizun (teacher/ master) character who comes to know love and “is redeemed” by whomever is the love interest (typically a cute and quirky girl who may or may not have started off as naive to the innerworkings of the Cultivation World and therefore needs an established and mature mentor to guide them) is a very well-known archetype for a reason in Chinese fan culture.

Seeing a terrible person change their ways and try to become a better person because of the influence of the one they love is also a popular depiction for a reason.

It’s almost like gap moe. The crueler and aloof one starts out as (arrogance is a staple), the more impactful the shift is when we see such characters soften their edges.

The draw of the sacred master/disciple relationship is that it’s taboo, so I think it’s fair to say that such a relationship in fiction is a popular trope precisely because of this aspect. From a writer’s perspective, the main appeal is to show that there is someone out there who can cause this respectful figure to lose control (undergo emotional change) and go to great lengths to protect his/her precious person. That precious person also has to fall into the “not like other girls” trope (so they can show the ML a different world he would not have seen the beauty of before). On the other side, we look forward to the point of the story where the love interest has their “Oh” moment and realizes their admiration has somehow shifted into love and attraction over the course of events.

Other Romantic Possibilities

It’s very likely. I personally like the fanon headcanon where anyone with Heavenly Demon blood running through their veins feels a compulsion to “obsessively fixate on one person” (TLJ —> SXY, LBH —> SQQ). Personally I don’t recall if this was canon or fanon, but someone had written something about LBH imprinting on one person in his lifetime on the account of his demon nature. And I like that theory (I think it’s likely more fanon than anything but it’s an intriguing idea full of possibilities!).

For him to fixate romantically on one person, I personally don’t think the prerequisite is just by being kind to LBH (but it probably adds to the person’s appeal). There’s probably other factors that go into this to capture the male protagonist’s eye, such as him finding someone attractive (or passes his own personal standards) and/or having good chemistry with that person. So I could see him being into other Shizuns and whomever else. Personally I also think there is appeal in the unobtainable. It’s one thing to have someone’s affection (see LBG and his harem of 600 wives who definitely aren’t shy about giving him affection), but it’s another to know you’ve earned the affections of someone you really like and respect (especially if it’s someone thought to be unobtainable).

As long as the writer can provide a plausible justification for me to suspend disbelief and they set up events to justify it, I can swallow just about any ship possibility. It doesn’t necessarily have to be SJ’s type of personality. (For example, I read a very good fanfiction before where the writer paired Luo Binghe with Ming Fan. Ming Fan, people!!! And they actually pulled it off! What a madlad! Mind, it’s Shen Yuan who had transmigrated into MF in that premise, but the writer set up events that showed how these two characters came to bond and develop a deep friendship which inevitably had LBH developing a crush on his shixiong. I use this as an example because this is the type of unexpected (crack)ship, but because the writer did their work trying to make it seem plausible, we can only admire their hard work and effort at pulling it off.)

As the saying goes, there are plenty of fishes in the sea! As the protagonist, LBH/LBG can have many OTP possibilities with just about anyone as long as the writer can make it plausible. It’s all about the character development and the story/ central themes they wish to tell with the ship!

(Note, these really aren’t hot takes, lol. I’m just having fun answering to this casually from the perspective of a writer. Thank you for your Ask, anon!)

[wetsteve3]

1927 HUMBER 349CC SPORTS MODEL REGISTRATION NO. SV 9222 (U.K.) FRAME NO. 10802 ENGINE NO. 10780

It is so rare to have one Humber 349cc Sports Model in a sale – but to have two is quite exceptional and here is the second from this British Collection, this time a highly original machine which has been restored and campaigned in appropriate events. The marque Humber was first associated with motorcycles in Coventry as early as 1900, Humber initially using the ubiquitous French-built De Dion Bouton engines in their three-wheelers before moving to motorcycle production. Early models were built under license from the Yorkshire company, Phelon & Moore, and included 1½hp and 2¾hp models. In 1911 Humber enjoyed its first major competition success when P J Evans carried off the victor’s laurels in the Junior TT on the Isle of Man. In those years which straddled The Great War, long distance reliability trials were highly popular in the U.K. and manufacturers were quick to recognize the importance of success in such events when marketing their machines. Humber were to enjoy such successes in the arduous English and Scottish Six Days Trials and these competition successes contributed significantly to the sales figures for standard production models. The Humber motorcycle range for 1927 was mixed and varied, the company offering side-valve, overhead-valve and overhead camshaft models at prices for all budgets.

This machine was first registered to an English owner living in the Home Counties whose wife – so the story goes – fell off the pillion seat and vowed never to get on it again. So upset was its owner that he put the bike away in the garden shed where it remained until it was acquired from that first owner’s widow in 1966. After 40 years or so standing untouched it fired up and ran within one hour. A two year restoration was embarked upon, carefully retaining originality wherever possible and only the control cables, foot rest rubbers and engine bearings were replaced. The machine retained its Watford speedometer, Lucas horn and period Lycett saddle. 

The brake linings presently fitted are believed to be the originals! Upon completion of the restoration in 1968 this machine took part in the Humber Centenary Rally in the ancient cathedral city of Coventry where it was built. Since then the machine has been used only sparingly but did take part with success in ten consecutive Vintage Motor Cycle Club Banbury Runs – no mean achievement indeed over this testing course. Perhaps the bike has covered just 3,000 or so miles in the last 30 or so years.

There is no questioning the originality and textbook restoration quality of this machine, which comes with its original tool roll, sales leaflet, handbook and parts list and British registration documentation. This is a machine of museum quality from one of England’s premier motorcycle manufacturers.

[lauer303]

(J A M E S L A U E R)

DEEP Cuts by Cinthie, Rick Wade, Lance Desardi, East End Dubs, Panthera Krause, Chicagodeep, Jordan Fields, Magic Pincher, Mr Barcode, Jeff Mills, Samo DJ, HDSN, Tin Man, Alexander Robotnik, Seb Zito & more..

(  (  svs 051 traxlist  )  ) Seb Zito - 95-96 (Chris Geschwindner Remix) / 90s EP / Seven Dials East End Dubs - Freak / Eastenderz Sakro - Delirium / Universal Glory EP / Tied Panthera Krause - The Naked Now / Uncanny Valley Lance DeSardi - What We Are / Skylax Daniela La Luz - When You Go All in and Wait / Uncanny Valley Rick Wade - Dirty Wave / Another Galaxy EP / Rawax Killer Loop - Someone (Juan Atkins Remix) / Sushitech Jeremy Olander - Saigon / Balance Chicagodeep - Last Stand / Exhibition EP / Fundamental Sounds Michael Zucker - Parisian Nights / Syncrophone Makcim - Van Dep Pup / Raum...Musik Move D  feat. Seebase - Deep (DJ Oyster Edit) / Misfit Melodies Moody Waters - Hindsight / Volume 3 EP / We're Going Deep Jordan Fields - Excitement / Descendants of The Deep The Lowry Boys - Shag Carpets / Erotic City Chikyu U - Track A 01 / Unknown 01 EP / Chikyu-u Magic Pincher - Savon / Le Fit Club EP / PLPFCT Maroki - Birchgrove Pleasure Gardens / E-Beamz Alexander Robotnick - You Have Time (Kai Alce Ndatl Remix)/ Adeen Matt Thibideau - Transported / Vaude Mecum Ka One & St-Sene - Minds / Cycles Vol.1 /  Flyance The Barking Dogs - Your High (feat. Tom Trago / Toy Tonics Kenny Dixon Jr. - January / Soul Sounds EP / Soul City Loosefingers aka Larry Heard - Acid Bounce / Alleviated Mr Barcode - The Rise Of The Machines (Ricardo Villalobos Factory Closed Remix) / Into The Wizard's Sleeve Tin Man - Nonneo (Donato Dozzy Remix) / Acid Test Iron Blu - To The Bone / Science Probe Vessel EP / Flight Recorder Jeff Mills - G-Star / AXIS Audiophile Series Bel-Air Ltd - The Loft / Planet E Dream 2 Science - Breathe Deep / Rush Hour Talaboman - The Ghosts Hood (Samo DJ Remix) / R&S Phil Weeks - Show You Love (4 U Dancers Mix) HDSN - Life Is Good / For My People EP / NBASTWAX Purveyors of Fine Funk - Ux2 / Vessel Helium - Out There / The Work EP / Kalahari Oyster Cult Cinthie - Together / 803 Crystal Grooves M5 - Celestial Highways / Rawax Motor City Edition Holden - The Illuminations (12" version) / Border Community

[retrauxpunk]

sv 6.04

spoiler-filled recap post under the cut

WHAT THE FUCK

i swear every single episode is gonna have me feeling like that because IT’S SO INTENSE i think i’ve forgotten how intense this show is because it’s prior to the release of s6 it’s been 2 years since i watched new episodes? and so i just know the storylines quite well and am familiar with everything?

but jesus christ!!

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

okay let’s start at the beginning:

FUCK ethan!!

WHAT THE FUCK

I had the vague inkling of a feeling that bringing on ethan would be the same as bringing on the carver, russ hanneman, jack barker, etc. in that it would seem to be good at first and then it would magnificently blow up AND THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED WHAT THE FUCK

there were so many intertwined storylines in this episode? i feel like there were more than usual? there was: richard and his conflict with ethan; gavin’s book thing; monica’s misadventures with feminism; gilfoyle’s budding friendship with john stafford (I STAN); jared’s story with his parents and gwart

THERE WAS SO MUCH.

last episode my fingers couldn’t keep up with my thoughts because it was such an amazing uplifting kickass episode, but this time i just feel, i dunno, kind of clogged with feelings/thoughts because there was a lot that happened in this episode and it was................ MOSTLY SAD????? mostly unpleasant?????? like it was a great episode but all the things that happened to the characters were like ... real shitty

HOLY SHIT the guy who plays ethan is SO GOOD at playing the role of the emotionally manipulative jackass prick who mistreats you and then acts like you’re the shitty one if you don’t ‘play along with the fun’ and so on like HOLY MOTHERFUCKER those types of people are the fucking worst and god i wish richard’s punch hand gotten him in the mouth instead or something (more on that later)

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! he was so terrible to richard! it fucking hurt! i was with dinesh! i watched richard’s balls getting kicked and my balls hurt in solidarity!! fuck!!

????!

richard what are you doing

it was, no lie, a little nice and fuzzy and heartwarming to see dinesh like sticking up for richard and trying to help him

even if it’s through the ‘dumbest thing i’ve ever seen’, that alpha male video. 

WHAT WAS THAT

THAT WAS LEGIT like something out of IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA what the FUCK

i don’t object to it being in the show because, y’know, it’s within the bounds of the absurdities of the show and so on, but

WHAT! that had the exact same energy as the fight milk ads!!

i really like that richard’s initial reaction was ‘this is the dumbest thing i’ve ever seen’. what a shame he succumbed to it!!! ........but at least it wasn’t something worse that he succumbed too i guess???

POOR RICHARD

this is one of those episodes where i am entirely on richard’s side and have no complaints about him, he didn’t do anything wrong

omg i just remembered when he caught ethan’s eye in the opening scene and waved him in because of ‘dumb social shit’ (#relatable) ................WAS THAT BECAUSE HE WAS REFLEXIVELY REGRESSING TO HIS DOWNTRODDEN WAYS from when he was ethan’s report and was consistently having to defer to him and put up with his shit? and that’s why when ethan motions to like invite himself into richard’s office, that’s why richard just invites him in?

yeah that’s my opinion now

........

IT HURTS

IT HURTS WATCHING RICHARD GET KICKED AROUND BY ETHAN

WHAT THE FUCK DUDE

this is one of those times when richard’s like, trying to do a good/right thing and be nice and so on WHEN HE SHOULDN’T BE. like when he was ‘trying to respect’ erlich by refusing to hire jared patakian despite erlich giving him his blessing. and (to a lesser extent) when he went to have those chats with seth after gilfoyle stole the endframe login credentials, and when he gifted laurie some pied piper credits (where they credits? don’t remember the word)

UGH he was trying to be ~chill~ and not so uptight and so on BUT NO THIS IS NOT THE TIME RICHARD and no this is not what being a cool/nice person is! it is not putting up with this kind of shit!

i just felt so bad for him!!!

WHAT THE FUCK IS ETHAN’S PROBLEM

god what a cock

I’M SO GLAD RICHARD PUNCHED HIM IN THE FACE and honestly??? i wish the punch had fucking landed!! for once i’m sick of richard being an ineffectual klutz! i want him to try to kick ass and succeed!!! god!!

that’s what i want out of season 6, one (1) time when richard tries to do something physically badass like socking a deserving douchebag in the face and actually succeeds

can’t fucking believe he bought into dinesh’s dumbfuck alpha male video. UGH RICHARD

i mean at..........at least it makes him........feel better? idk

(in my personal hc richard manages to watch that fucking always sunny style video and not develop misogynistic tendencies as consequence because that would be lame if it happened)

I JUST HAD TO TAKE A BREAK FROM WRITING THIS RECAP BECAUSE IT WAS SUCH AN INTENSE EPISODE

6.3 was intense in the same way that like an adrenaline-fuelled ultimately victorious battle is intense, or like, idk, the lovechild of MDMA and acid???

6.4 is intense like the COMEDOWN. god

IT IS THE COMEDOWN, it’s the terrible fucking low that occurs in the wake of the soaring high of buying hooli!! fuck!!!!!!!!!!!!

okay so that’s the richard storyline covered

um

y’know i was suspicious when ethan wanted to move things onto hooliphones, i thought it was maybe some kind of thing to sabotage pied piper in some way? but now i see maybe it’s just a way to get himself a job. and the bullying of richard is a way to soothe his own fragile ego i guess? hmm

gilfoyle’s friendship with john stafford! I LOVE IT! i love that the guy from the underground pits of jack barker’s box plan has returned! and he announces each hooliphone the way he announced each box ... excellent callback. AND THEY PLAY CHESS! AND HE BEAT GILFOYLE EVERY SINGLE TIME! YES!!! 

GILFOYLE WHY DID YOU DELETE HIS FRIEND REQUEST

YOU WERE GONNA ACCEPT IT

YOUR CURSOR WAS HOVERING

WHY THE FUCK

some kind of lame-as-fuck attempt to maintain an idea of power in the dynamic? viewing the vulnerability of accepting a friend request as somehow being weak/lame?? just upset because he lost so many chess games??

hope it’s the the last one becaues that’s the least lame/sad of the three i thinkkkk

also his fucking feed full of dinesh hate. what a loser lmao perfectly suited to dinesh

i want them to kiss

ummmmmmmm monica!! lmao i enjoyed how they made her a female character who is successful but not actually personally interested in being a feminist activist, because i think that’s a thing that’s pretty real/relatable. like, you can be a woman who believes in gender equality but who doesn’t actually do stuff to actively advocate for it, and i think that’s a lot of people, and honestly i don’t think i’m quite like monica (i wouldn’t say the things she said about foxhole HAHAHHA) but i relate to it! i’m not a very politically active person at all, my ~activism is limited to being generally educated on stuff and calling out/discussing shitty things if friends/colleagues say them. so i guess i felt seen? #guiltyfeminist

when monica went to the panel........... and then priyanka totally outshone her ........ i felt a little bad for monica but she was pawning off foxhole to priyanka entirely selfishly because she herself didn’t want to be involved and so i didn’t feel too bad for her :pp

good on priyanka! all that stuff  she’s doing sounds awesome!

except the beginning where she referenced her ‘network of awesome women coders’ or something like that, i found that phrasing uhhhhhhh cringey. cliquey. didn’t like it, but that’s just my subjective feeling. also i suspect it was meant to be a little satirical of uberwokeness so fair :P

richard giving monica foxhole ‘for optics’ and then doing the handwavey ‘just make it work, for women’ ........ a brilliant sad-funny representation of extremely superficial and empty meaningless ‘feminism’

laurie lasering in on gwart because she’s also eating that vegetable in a weird way! nice.

OKAY JARED? JARED

FUCK

we see him set up in pied piper’s offices meaning he at least took up richard’s offer which is nice

his parents?

fuck ‘em

they deserve to rot, obviously

sociopaths

i............................... it was an upsetting scene, i’m not sure why it’s in the show............ perhaps to give rise to jared’s whole ‘i must have rejected them and rejected everyone else who’s been kind’ thing that he’s doing in a desperate bid to understand/make sense of his suffering ....... which gives rise to his thing about rejecting richard...

i guess maybe he’s doing that thing where he’s repeating past cycles of trauma/abandonment? that’s what’s (at least partially) driving his stubborn refusal to rejoin richard? is it that he (on some not-necessarily-conscious level) believes himself unworthy of happiness and self-sabotages? and all of that mixes with his fear of fucking up pied piper with his feelings (the way he did in 6.1) and that keeps him away from richard?

I DON’T KNOW IT’S COMPLICATED AND MAKES ME SAD

that thing he said about how he has to stay with gwart . .............. god this stupid entirely arbitrary rule he’s set for himself, it’s so fucking painful

ETHAN’S REPENTANCE WAS DUE TO THREAT FROM HOLDEN? WOW

um

good on you holden i guess!! .....?

i HATE the whole ‘jared threatening holden and emotionally abusing him into the perfect assistant for richard’ arc because that was painful and i feel like it was played for laughs but i didn’t find it funny or good at all

so in this case it was kinda vindicating to see holden no longer terrified of jared and kind of sassing him (’don’t you have somewhere to be’)

..............what was with the end of the cold open where richard’s like ‘holden i wanted water’??? or something? didn’t holden give him the water partway through ethan’s presentation? ugH

GWART FIRING JARED

FUCK YES! THANK YOU GWART

JARED TALKING ABOUT HOW HE’S FREE TO GO WITH RICHARD

HOLY FUCK

YEAH SO OF COURSE OUR BOY JARED WANTS TO BE WITH RICHARD and now that gwart (his temporarily chosen ‘leader’/person to be devoted to) has given him orders (and therefore permission) to fuck off, he CAN BE WITH RICHARD without feeling like he’s, i dunno, being disloyal.

HURRAH

so the episode ENDS on jared asserting that there is a space for him to be with richard? homg seems like 6.5 is gonna go HEAVY ON THE JARRICH again?????

HNNNG

this was a tense episode and i’m upset

like it was a decent episode, i didn’t think it was bad quality, i’m just sad

[moonlight--falls]

JARED: “Tamara, wait!” 

TAMARA: “No. I’ve been working so hard to become the mature woman I know I can be, and you’re not going to be the one to help me do that. Goodbye, Jared.” 

JARED: “Tamara!”

[michaeldempsey]

Serendipity in Venture Capital is BS...(and other views on the seed VC landscape)

Disclaimer: I believe that unless you are one of a few firms, there is no possible claim that there is a “correct” way to do venture, only to treat people with respect along the way.

Venture capital started as a network heavy business and arguably still is to many. I don’t think that is dominant anymore.

The Early Days: VC was the ultimate network business

Venture capital started as the ultimate network business, with a tight-knit web of humans for decades. It looked like this:

After the web 1.0 bubble, there was not an abundance of capital, and thus power swung back towards VCs as the market cooled. Those VCs, based on 2008 data, were an average age of 46, 79% were men, 87% were white, and 53% had MBAs (of which 60% went to Harvard or Stanford). Based on demographics like that, it’d be pretty difficult to not be a tight-knit, network-driven industry.

Then, 2-7 years before the 2012 Facebook IPO, came the first wave of elite seed firms like Baseline, First Round Capital, Floodgate, Foundry Group, SV  Angel, True Ventures, SoftTech, and others.

As company formation costs fell due to a variety of technological drivers, paired with startups being “hot” again, we saw institutional capital want more exposure to private market technology risk. Partners spun out, founders started funds, and angels institutionalized.

The Birth of Seed & Verticalized Funds

“In angel investing, you don’t really have competitors. You go ahead and do your thing…I don’t look at Internet or Internet investing as competitive, generally.” — Ken Lerer, 2010

We all know this trend accelerated, with some seed funds graduating to series A+ firms, and quickly everyone (especially non-GPs who were stuck underneath partners unwilling to give up meaningful carry) wanted their own seed fund. The issue was, LPs had been hit up with the seed pitch now for the past 5+ years. And in the same time period, re-ups had come more and more often as fund deployment periods went from 5 years to 3 years. 

These newer seed firms needed to differentiate as the “seed” story was played out.

This led to a wave of vertical-centric seed firms. Lemnos (2012 incubation fund I) and Root Ventures (2015 Fund 1) became known for hardware, Forerunner (2012 fund I) became known for consumer, Lerer Hippeau become known for NYC/Web (2010 Fund 1) and on and on it went.

The Venture Capital Explosion

Between 2003 to 2010, an average of 58 seed funds were raised each year but in the past 7 years, that average spiked to 137 (or a 2.3x increase). - Eric Feng, 

And now it’s 2019. The deployment periods for some funds have collapsed to as short as 18 months, there is a seed fund for everything, and series A+ firms have grown into full-stack financing machines with $1B+ funds designed to take companies from A to IPO, and many with scout programs to build the top of the funnel.

This hyper-crowded market has swung the pendulum back to old times, with LPs being sold either more explicit networks, or similar economics as the 70s.

The former manifests itself as unicorn-mafia funds (ex-uber employee fund, ex-airbnb employee fund, etc.) built around the idea that people want to raise money from their ex-coworkers and/or access will be materially better because of this relationship. The latter manifests itself as startup studios that have outsized ownership economics.

So we’ve got a ton of seed funds, plenty of post-seed capital, and some moderate differentiation. We also have a 7x increase in $1B+ outcomes from a decade ago.

But when I look around at seed stage venture, where the universe of companies is truly unknown, I still believe firms are relying on serendipity. And there are many firms that are trying to engineer serendipity at a high rate by sending analysts (and the partners themselves) to events 3–4x/week, actively trying to setup deal flow catch up calls, or aggressively stalking demo day lists, all born out of the fear that they will miss the next Stripe/Uber/etc.

And how do they scale up these teams to chase these competitive deals in an ever-expanding seed stage funnel? They raise more money.

As their seed fund gets bigger, they now need to write a $1.5-$2M check to get the proper ownership to 3–4x their $100M+ seed fund. At the same time it’s become more likely that interesting deals don’t get sent to them because…well the math doesn’t work for other investors to hit their ownership targets. 

Or as Rob Go astutely points out, “firms that have built their models around aggressive deal trading will struggle.”

Now we have:

1) Larger seed funds, that are hyper-competitive (and often generalists due to fund size and scope creep).

2) Which means that seed funds need to tell founders that it is best for their business to only have them and no other meaningful checks in the round, so they can write $1.5M+ and get ~15%-20% ownership.

3) But unless you’re a top tier firm, your capital could be viewed as a commodity, and thus it’s clearly not dominant for a generalist firm to be the only investor (which is ok because...we’re humans, and we can’t be everything for everyone), and thus you are at massive risk of being pushed down in ownership and allocation.

4) And then in order to make the math work you’re reliant on multiple $1B+ outcomes, despite a large % of VC-backed M&A transactions happening below $300M.

5) So we now have some seed VCs telling investors that they will be able to increase ownership from seed to A/B or at worse do full pro-rata to maintain. The problem is that in reality, pro rata allocations from Series A+ remain increasingly difficult to maintain, as those $1B+ funds, that have infrastructure (and fees) to in theory actually be everything for everyone, need to put more money to work in their rounds. So you don’t get to defend ownership nearly as efficiently as even 5 years ago. And often any pre-empted offer for a pre-series A round could just turn into a pre-empted full series A process.

All of these things boil down to the core truth that most Seed stage firms today have to be small (either ridealong checks or non-hyper competitive leads), early, and/or different enough to be one top-priority thing for a subset of founders.

I recognize that I just doomsday scenario’d a bunch of components of seed stage venture capital, so I figured it’d only be fair for me to share my own (highly biased) view on what does work at some >1 firm scale at the seed stage.

First, forward looking macro-factors that I strongly believe in:

VC returns have been persistent, but with each new innovation cycle turn (infrastructure to personal computing to web to mobile and onward) new successful VCs have been birthed that have become part of the persistence. The power law of venture will remain, but will be slightly more distributed.

Private markets are going to continue to capture the returns in many sectors, and thus it will be attractive for LPs to be invested in a larger subset of tier 1, tier 2, and maybe even tier 3 VC firms from a returns perspective. This will be even more evident as we potentially enter tumultuous public market performance that shows lower yield over the next decade than the prior decade+ bull-run we’ve had.

The compounding effects of venture as an industry are unique vs. any other industry. Brand flywheels are strong absent of results due to opacity of quantitative measures (i.e. we both bury the dead slowly and quietly on failed startups, and cheer the good loudly on less-than-incredible fund exits/performance).

Brand signaling can create unfair advantages. I.e. If Sequoia invests in a company, statistically that company is more likely to raise money than if another investor does. Building a lasting brand matters.

More specifically the seed fund strategy that I believe in:

Keep fund size small — Leading a round today is rarer than we think, and just means conviction and ability to put down a term sheet (and large check), but not necessarily 60%+ of the round. There has never been more follow-along capital at the seed stage and rallying investors around your conviction and lead check is a powerful thing that solves for some disadvantages of smaller funds.

Remove noise and keep focused — Small fund size enables myself (and other similar funds) to not care about missing the next billion-dollar marketplace business. The funnel has widened (as seen above) , and only looking at a piece of the funnel is scalable/realistic. Yes, hit rate needs to be better, but I’d argue that while it’s gotten statistically harder to identify a fund returning company, it’s become exponentially harder to win meaningful allocation in that deal.

Build an informed view of the world - This allows investors to compete on the axis of both having a deeper understanding of a space versus the average investor, theoretically have an ability to know what they are looking for at a faster pace (and thus move faster), find/track things earlier due to focus, and meaningfully compete via outbound deal flow by using ammunition that they’ve built up in research.

These last two points specifically are the only way in which I feel I am able to advantageously do venture. However, as I said before, it’s not immediately clear to me that one strategy in seed stage venture is dominant. 

Small funds have dominant return profiles for today’s fundraising dynamics, high velocity funds have dominant statistics for today’s outcome distributions, full-stack funds have dominant funnel building for today’s growing prices, and concentrated funds have dominant return distributions if you can pick.

What is clear to me is that venture is changing rapidly and if you aren’t thinking about these things in real-time, you’re not doing your job.