#She's usually super cold and villainy but like

[strawberry-seal77]

Happy sashy!

[internal-orchids]

Holy shit another AU? This time it’s a super hero AU, but there are three sorts of groups, the heroes, the villains, and the anti-heroes (or the people who don’t take sides/are more fluid then others). The story in general will follow the revolving door of switching sides and double crossing and team ups and break ups. Descriptions, code names, and powers are below.

Sayaka Maizono, a.k.a Treble. While her codename might suggest music, her real power is the knife-like spikes she can force out her hands. During her time as a hero she never used her power, believing it to be a girt for a truly evil person. After her mother, Mitsuki -better known as Angel, a beautiful healer- was charged with armed assault, she gave up on her dream of being a hero like her mother.  Leon Kuwata, a.k.a. Firebrand. He comes from an old villain family, and he was forced into villainy because of it. He has the same flame powers as his father does. He hates his team, more because he hates that he has to be a villain and less that he finds his teammates annoying. After a fight with them, he ends up joining Kiyondo in the middle ground.  Chihiro Fujisaki, a.k.a Binary. They have the ability to actually enter code, and send themself to other places, like malware. They work with the heroes, but they feel left out after, and aren’t usually listened to so they do their own thing. They are still proud of themself for sticking to being a hero, and really helping even when they aren’t recognized. Mondo Oowada, a.k.a Iron Wolf, later Diamond Wolf. He has the ability to turn his skin into a sort of armor, tough as diamonds. He chose Iron Wolf because he  felt naming himself after diamonds would be disrespectful to his brother. Daiya meets the same end in this AU as he does in canon, and it has weighed on Mondo’s heart, driving him into villainy because he believes that’s all he can be. He later joins the heroes and finally calls himself Diamond Wolf, in an act of remembrance. Kiyotaka Ishimaru a.k.a Avenging Dragon  Taka. He can partially shapeshift, but only one body part at a time, and only into a dragon, which he finds bothersome because he has to ensure that body part has to be taken care of like a cold-blooded animal. He tries to lead the heroes, but he’s very pushy and doesn’t take criticism well. Most people don’t even take him seriously. The only reason he is even working with the heroes is because he has a legacy on his shoulders, even if it’s crumbled. Kiyondo Ishimaru a.k.a the Dove. They can fully shapeshift in a dove, but nothing else. They work for neither side, usually acting as a catalyst to fight to keep things interesting. They don’t care about legacy, in fact they have mostly separated themself from their family, choosing their own path. Celestia Ludenburg a.k.a Werecat. She can shapeshift fully into a cat, but nothing else. She also works mostly for herself, but she will sometimes ally herself with either side in order to mess with them for her own amusement. She views the feuds like a personal pantomime for her, and takes advantage of that fact. She works with Sayaka often as a sort of neutral force of discord. Hifumi Yamada a.k.a Alpha. He is capable of creating living drawings, that live as long as he can keep his life connected to them, and when they fall it hurts him. He occasionally works with Celeste, but he prefers works with the heroes, more specifically with Chihiro. He isn’t listened to much, either, and he has proved to be very helpful when he’s called in. Sakura Ogami a.k.a Spring Breeze. She creates powerful forcefields that can be used both defensively and offensively. She is the secondary leader of the heroes, acting as the emotional center. She can usually handle the group well, but she can’t always include everyone, which upsets her. She believes that if people are left out the group suffers, but because if the dissonance in the group it is nearly impossible. Aoi Asahina a.k.a Axolotl. She is amphibious, so she can breath in water and on land. She acts as a sort of moderator for the heroes, usually the one who forces everyone to make sure everyone has a job and is listened to. It rarely every works. (Aoi bastardization arc?) Yasuhiro Hagakure. He doesn’t have a codename, since he doesn’t ally himself with anyone. He uses his clairvoyant powers to help anyone who comes and asks, completely unbiased. He sometimes hangs out with the heroes just because he’s friends with most of them. Byakuya Togami a.k.a the Saviour. He is literally the iron man of this AU. He acts very above everyone, and uses his machines to spy on both sides, double crossing for his own delight. (No I will not talk more about this bitch) Toko Fukawa a.k.a Ink Blot. She works with the villains, because Junko ended up seducing her to her side when she was still hurt by abandonment. She can manipulate her reality through her writing, a great power that she uses all to often to make herself happy. She actually gets close to Mondo as he is worried about her and the fact she just leaves reality. Kyoko Kirigiri, the true leader of the heroes. She keeps everyone in line, and her plans are always calculated and through. She has trouble understanding other people, so her plans are often flawed because of that. Sakura usually tweaks the plans with her to help, and Kyoko is fine with it. Makoto Naegi a.k.a Four-Leaf Clover. While his power isn’t super helpful, he usually hypes up the team and raises morale. Honestly, he act like more of a shadow to everyone, unable to do his own thing because his fear or fighting, and his self-doubts. (What if, hear me out, Chihiro, Hifumi, and Makoto splinter off into their own group) Junko Enoshima a.k.a the Queen of Chaos. You know those weird manipulations in Doctor Strange, where the buildings move and gravity changes and shit? That’s what Junko does. She’s your typical bad guy, wanting to take over the world for shits and giggles. She leads the villains, and she can be controlling as hell. (You thought Taka was bad...) She’s the only person who doesn’t fluctuate sides. Mukuro Ikuasba a.k.a Knightmare. Their power is a lesser version of their sister’s. They act almost completely subservient to her, but they don’t like being under her thumb. (I’m tired and can’t write anymore for them sorry.)

[eujazmine]

all gifs from christianscody !

JAZMINE HARPER - TV TROPES

manipulative bastard

The Manipulative Bastard is the master manipulator of people, in essence, a character who manipulates others through their emotions, perspectives, psychologies and any other way they can get them dancing to their tune. This is the guy or gal who gets off on playing head/mind games—clever and dangerous and lacking comedic overtones (usually). She always has a plan ready, but rather than do any work, the Manipulative Bastard prefers to play on other characters' emotions and mental states and then watch the victims destroy themselves as they waste their energy on fighting against fake dangers or their friends.

are we surprised? with a lack of loyalty to others, including her own family, jazmine will gladly step on others and use their weaknesses to her advantage to get what she wants. she’s been a manipulative bastard since she was a child, ever since she first discovered how much her mist control could control the perceptions of others. observant and resourceful, jazmine has no qualms using her talents to gain unauthorized information about others and using it for her personal gain. she views people as her pawns, and her selfish way of thinking gives her little guilt about physically or mentally forcing others into submission. this is a trait she’s picked up from her own father, which we will delve into in the next trope.

daddy’s little villain

mention of emotional abuse tw

She's the daughter of an Evil Overlord, who shares her parent's ambition, cunning, and cruelty. She could be anything from a simple Spoiled Brat to an Overlord in waiting. She's also likely to be a Princess (since even villainy is improved with that), although she will still prefer wearing black or dark colors over pink. 

jazmine’s mortal father can largely be thanked for the way she is now. from as young as she can remember, he was training jazmine to be a powerful force in both the demigod and mortal world. while he raised her to think she could accomplish anything she worked toward, she was mostly a pawn to satisfy his thirst for power. he didn’t care much for her as a daughter; mostly for what she could do for him. she started to recognize this during her formative middle school years, consequently turning her childhood role model into her worst enemy. when she started rebelling against him and acting out, he sent her away full-time to a camp on the other side of the globe. since then, the issues only progressed, eventually leading to a falling out in which she hasn’t seen or spoken to her mortal family in many years. 

this upbringing has fueled her desire to constantly be the best in her fields of expertise, which is partly why she quested for years in hopes of some type of recognition. with the heavily hidden hope that she could one day rub in his face that she had succeeded without him, all her life she has fought to try to ‘prove her worth’ to others despite being the daughter of a minor goddess (or titan). because her father only loved what she could do for him, she places everyone in two categories: the puppets, and the puppeteers. 

and she will never be the puppet again.

broken ace

He's tall, charming, strikingly good-looking, well-spoken in five languages, and classically trained in even more instruments. But inside, he's an ugly, writhing mass of self-hatred and Parental Issues. Expect him to have at least one bizarre trait or ability that should not be overlooked, as well as an unhealthy attitude about love, life, and humanity in general. He most likely doesn't have anyone that loves or respects him for what he really is. This may be justified. This character is usually male, but not always. Also, he may just be a perfectionist crumbling under his own standards. The chief difference between the Broken Ace and the usually female Stepford Smiler is that the Stepford Smiler wants to appear normal at all costs, often to the point of hurting herself emotionally (or because she's sociopathic). This guy has the same setup, but is more talented and wants to be the best, loved by all, and accepted.

although the timeline wasn’t as accelerated as she had hoped when she was a child, jazmine was making waves in the world of deities before her last quest against zeus had occurred. now, as a semi-retired quester, she is captain of the football team and starting to make a name for herself in the mortal fields of business and sports. despite the air of nonchalant superiority that she constantly tries to present, she is in a constant state of despair. right when she starts to undergo some development in her relationships with others, they leave, and she is constantly failing her own impossibly high standards. she’s crumbling, and at any point she is ready to run away again.

ice queen

Much like a Tomboy, the Ice Queen is a major character archetype which is somewhat hard to define. Her signature characteristic is that she is cold; the ambiguity comes from what "cold" means. She has a cold heart, a frosty demeanor and very often a resting bitch face; she attracts but will never be wooed. The Ice Queen is considered dangerous to love because she will not (or cannot) love back. She's not much for friendship either, preferring to be alone. Situations where an Ice Queen "thaws" and learns to enjoy the company of others are so common that they have their own trope.

she’s cold and takes no shit. she holds people at a distance, even those that could potentially be considered friends. she doesn’t believe in unconditional love, and she believes that most affection direct toward her is generally a ruse to get her guard down. she’s unnecessarily rude to others, almost relishing in the negative reactions at times, but to her, she’s just keeping it real.

the trickster

A trickster is a character who plays tricks or otherwise disobeys normal rules and conventional behavior. The Trickster openly questions and mocks authority, encourages impulse and enthusiasm, seeks out new ideas and experiences, destroys convention and complacency, and promotes chaos and unrest. At the same time, the trickster brings new knowledge, wisdom and many An Aesop. Even when punished horribly for his effrontery, his indomitable spirit (or plain sheer foolishness) keeps him coming back for more. Tricksters can be anything from gods of chaos, bedeviling heroes for a few laughs, to master manipulators who use cruel ploys and sadistic choices. They can also be heroes (or more likely Anti-Heroes) who make up for a lack of strength or bravery with manipulation, planning, or just plain cheating. The trickster is often a Master of Disguise and may have magical or super-powers. They're often found Walking the Earth.

although this description was much more relevant when she was younger, jazmine has a penchant for drama and chaos. she genuinely has fun engaging in pranks and tricks, and she gladly lifts a symbolic middle finger to authority in any chance that she gets. in middle school, she was nearly expelled from a mortal school because of all her tricks, and she spent a sizable portion of her adult years before eonia traveling and engaging in casual mayhem. when she isn’t getting revenge or fulfilling a paid request, she generally has fun toying with others.

deadpan snarker

A character prone to gnomic, sarcastic, sometimes bitter, occasionally whimsical asides. The Deadpan Snarker exists to deflate pomposity, point out the unlikelihood of certain plans, and deliver funny lines. Typically the most cynical supporting character. In most cases, it is implied that the snarker would make a good leader, strategist, or consultant given their ability to instantly see the flaws in a constructed plan. More often than not, their innate snarkiness is the only thing preventing the other characters from comprehending this for themselves. In other cases, the Deadpan Snarker resorts to sarcasm because they're the Only Sane Man. Tends to be shot a Death Glare when they go too far (and probably isn't without one of their own, either). Note that due to the definition evolving, the "Deadpan" part of the title has gradually become The Artifact and a deadpan delivery is no longer a necessary part of the trope.

jazmine is no stranger to delivering biting remarks coupled with foul language. she’s quick to point out flaws, opting for the brutally honest approach more times than not. she’s aware that her language can hurt others, but she finds it easier to escape the frivolities and get to the point. depending on the person, she exaggerates this trope by trying to draw out a bad response from them, mostly for her own entertainment. people already view her as heinous, so why not embrace the reputation, right?

survivor guilt

death mention tw

You might be the Last Of Your Kind or someone else made a Heroic Sacrifice for you or you lived through a Restricted Rescue Operation, but whatever the reason, you're going to feel a massive sense of guilt. 

although the quest with adelphie and celeste was technically a success, with the trident successfully being returned back to poseidon, the team had faced major losses. adelphie had lost her life, and celeste had suffered debilitating injuries. physically, jazmine suffered the least, and it’s a guilt that she continues to carry.

aloof big sister

to the majority of the hecate family, especially @rostameu

He's smarter, stronger, faster, more talented, and more refined than the hero, and — just to add insult to injury — he's probably sexier, too. His only problem seems to be moving his face out of that expression of bored, dignified disdain. And he just happens to be the elder brother of one of the main cast, which often gives them a raging inferiority complex. Will most likely double as the Ineffectual Loner and Noble Demon, thereby running the risk of becoming an Ensemble Darkhorse. May or may not be evil, strictly speaking, but is almost guaranteed to fight against the protagonists at one point, and spout off Cryptic Conversation to prove how much better informed he is. May or may not be a Stealth Mentor and/or consider his younger siblings annoying. Often an integral part of a mysterious organisation, and may be the Enigmatic Minion or even a Hero Antagonist in that case.

OKAY, so the running joke with jazmine is that she dislikes her siblings, which is very true tbh. i’m not going to speak for rostam and say most of that stuff actually applies, but jazmine is very cold toward her younger brother and views herself as much better in every way. with loner tendencies, disdain toward her brother, and shady side hustles, she matches this trope very well, and it was only fitting to add a trope about disliking siblings to jazmine’s task. and yes, she’s technically one of the youngest right now but hush.

[simkjrs]

you're one of my favorite presences on my tumblr dash and i love all your stuff and really want to read your saiki x worm fic, but the problem is i have no idea what worm is. how much of a time investment would it be to catch up on it?

it’s over a million words long so probably a long time. no worries though i have not read worm either. i think that the story is fairly readable without knowing worm, but here’s a quick and dirty guide to the worm universe:

this is a dark and gritty “superheroes vs supervillains” universe. people who have superpowers are known as “parahumans,” or “capes” if they’ve taken up a life of villainy or heroing. 

parahumans get their superpowers through “trigger events,” which are basically the worst/most traumatizing day of their life. you can imagine how well that goes

unbeknownst to (most) humans, the source of all parahuman powers are “shards”, which are portions of these large parasitic aliens who are basically using humans as guinea pigs to find cooler and more creative ways to use their abilities, in an effort to discover a way to escape entropy/heat death. 

parahumans are categorized by type and rating, i.e. blaster, mover, shaker, changer, master, stranger, trump, etc. usually rated on a scale of 1-10 per category. most of them are exactly what they sound like 

the main setting is brockton bay -- city where the government-run parahuman organization, the  PRT, is in a tenuous cold war / standoff with the parahuman-led gangs of the city:

E88 - white supremacist gang. has the most parahumans of any faction in the city. no one likes them. 

ABB - pan-asian supremacy gang, led by lung and oni lee. fewest capes of any faction in the city but people are still cautious of fucking with them because lung’s fight with the endbringer leviathan resulted in the island of kyushu sinking. 

the merchants: they just deal drugs

faultline and her mercenaries: they are fairly well-behaved when not on a job and keep their heads low, so the PRT mostly ignores them. 

coil: aka thomas calvert, a high-ranked official in the PRT; wants to rule the city legally as the PRT director and also illegally as the boss of the underworld. his power allows him to simulate two timelines, and he can choose which timeline to keep. he is the secret boss of the undersiders, a group of small-time criminals. lisa/tattletale is there under duress, and the rest have their circumstances as well. 

the triumvirate (3 most powerful capes in the world): alexandria (super strength, flight, eidetic memory & stupid fast processing/thinking that let her do shit like sensing emotions), legend (controls lasers), eidolon (can have any 3 powers he needs at any given time). 2 out of 3 of them are involved in a shady conspiracy, called cauldron, to save the world at any costs. 

endbringers: 3 giant monsters that take turns attacking cities at regular intervals, costing millions of lives with every single attack. heroes and villains have a truce whenever endbringer fights roll around, so they can focus on fighting the endbringers. 

behemoth: giant beast with versatile dynakinesis, picture earth/ground, irradiation, lava, explosions, whatever.

leviathan: giant beast that controls water

the simurgh: aka the hopekiller -- a pure white angel-like figure. the more you are exposed to her screaming, the more she alters your mental patterns, which allows her to turn people into psychological ticking time-bombs. combined with her potent precognition, she uses this ability to set up “simurgh plots” that cause a lot of devastation across the world. she has extremely potent telekinesis and the ability to tap into the powers of nearby parahumans to build dangerous weapons. cities usually get quarantined permanently if she attacks, in order to prevent her simurgh plots from advancing. 

slaughterhouse 9: a group of 9 parahumans who are infamous for, well, slaughtering. wherever they go, they slaughter people in horrific ways and if you don’t die from encountering their attack, well, you’ll wish you were dead instead 

about the only other thing you would need to know is that sophia hess is shadow stalker, one of the wards in the ward program that the PRT runs for underage heroes. in her civilian identity she and emma barnes bullied taylor hebert (protagonist of worm) so badly that taylor triggered. 

(thanks @meltyfaust for the corrections!)

[recentanimenews]

Sympathy for the Devilman: The Legacy of Go Nagai's Magnum Opus

I've always had a thing for villains. Unlike my brothers, as a kid I'd always choose the "bad guy" action figures. If they went for the ninja turtle Leonardo, then I'd go for the uber-buff Super Shredder. I personally identified with villainy because of how it connected to the idea of "evil." I personally see evil as a generalized concept that expresses antagonism toward violent and dominant societal structures. Due to a coercive religious upbringing, I now see how my younger self unconsciously found ideologically-oppositional comfort in "evil" art. This eventually led me to one of my most cherished pieces of fiction: Devilman.

Devilman has left an indelible mark on manga and anime creators over the last few decades, inspiring major industry heavyweights such as Hideaki Anno, Kentaro Miura, and Kazuki Nakashima. The series was created by Go Nagai, a manga auteur also responsible for Mazinger Z, Cutie Honey, and Violence Jack (which is a Devilman sequel). Although Devilman retains much of the explicitness native to Go Nagai's usual fare, it uses these graphic elements uniquely to deliver a haunting, unforgettable, and compassionate message.

Let's explore the surprisingly relevant political and social significance of Devilman, along with a few of its animated offshoots. Read on but be forewarned, this article contains major spoilers!

  Devilman (original manga, 1972) 

via Seven Seas Entertainment

  The Devilman manga is a dark antiwar narrative in deep contrast to the standard monster-of-the-day, "evil fights evil" set-up of the anime (which ran at the same time as the manga). Ryo Asuka — who turns out to be Satan, the leader of all demons — helps convince the world that anyone dissatisfied with the status quo could turn into a demon and needs to be killed. Every nation starts a war with each other, and Japan creates the "Demon Busters" to murder anyone suspected of being a demon. This plot twist is the most explicitly political angle in Devilman and a clear critique against the genocide of marginalized peoples. One page features a taste of the global hate brewing around the world: a collective white desire to murder Black communities, the renewal of German anti-Semitism, and hatred for any protestor. There are also many moments that display the horrors of historical genocide when Akira and Ryo travel through time.

Devilman builds additional nuance around this theme with Ryo's character. In the manga's final scene, Ryo describes how demons were once oppressed by God, and that they in turn preyed upon humans in the same way that God preyed upon demons. Ryo recognizes that he continued the same cycle of genocidal hate and marginalization he once suffered. This is a striking moment that functions as a cautionary warning against abusing imbalanced power dynamics, and how even once marginalized groups are still capable of enacting horrors against those with less power. 

via Seven Seas Entertainment

  Ryo's character also made a groundbreaking stride in the representation of marginalized gender and sexual identities. His true form as Satan is easy to interpret as trans, possessing emotional, mental, and physical traits that defy the standard gender binary. The manga also makes it clear that Ryo considers Akira more than a friend, and is actually in love with him. Amazingly, Go Nagai does not use Ryo's trans-coded self or his queer love for Akira as fodder for insulting or disrespectful commentary from other characters. Ryo's gender-variant form is certainly mentioned, but it's never negatively framed or conflated with his murderous attitude toward humanity. Additionally, the manga never suggests Ryo is evil because of his romantic feelings for Akira (a simple, yet important distinction). It feels all the more impressive when you remember that this was made in 1972. Devilman's subversive portrayal of non-normative gender and sexual identity could still be considered groundbreaking even by today's standards.

Devilman OVAs

  The first OVA, The Birth, covers Ryo and Akira's discovery of demon existence, with a very brutal early sequence that shows the bloody survival-of-the-fittest origins of life on Earth (which beautifully expands upon and mirrors the same sequence from the manga). It concludes with a gore-soaked finale where we see Akira's fateful transformation into Devilman. The sequence is filled with face stabs, top-notch body horror, and decapitations galore as Devilman rips apart demon after demon in a nightclub setting.

  The second OVA, The Demon Bird, had the same crew that worked on the first OVA and contains a very similar feel. This OVA is more action-oriented than the first since it doesn't spend time on the build-up and exposition leading to Devilman's initial appearance. The animation and art design is probably even better than the first episode, which is most notable during the fight with Sirene. On a side note, the Manga Entertainment dubs for these first two OVAs are absolutely essential if you're seeking a fun evening with fellow anime nerds with a decent sense of humor. Their typically sleazy dubs — where Manga Entertainment excessively hyped up the seedier, more "adult" side of anime in order to market their products as wildly different from cartoons for kids — contain an assortment of unnecessary profanity and generally crude dialogue compared to the Japanese source material, to great comedic effect.

The third OVA, Amon: The Apocalypse of Devilman, is based on Amon: The Darkside of Devilman manga, an alternate-universe offshoot by Yu Kinutani. This OVA contains a reworked version of the end of Devilman and has a much darker edge compared to the first two OVAs. This entry in the series has an ugly, grim quality to it – such as the horrific depiction of Miki and her brother getting slaughtered by an angry mob — that initially felt off-putting to me. I started to enjoy it more on subsequent viewings however, when I remembered that, well, the entire Devilman mythos is pretty damned bleak in general. I think the desolate mood would have been more bearable had Akira felt like the compassionate, tragic hero of the manga.

Actually, overall I'd say that Akira's portrayal is one of my biggest complaints about these OVAs. He displays a cold lack of care for human life — like in the Demon Bird when he unconcernedly tears through an airplane while fighting Sirene and allows its passengers to presumably plummet to their deaths — that for me, offsets one of the biggest strengths of Devilman's core: that although Akira has the body of a demon, he never loses the tender heart of a human. With that in mind, let's explore Devilman Crybaby. 

  Devilman Crybaby

Devilman Crybaby is my favorite animated incarnation of Devilman, period. I might be in the minority with that opinion, but I think there's a lot to love. Masaaki Yuasa is already one of my favorite recent anime directors — Kaiba, Mind Game, and Lu Over the Wall are highlights  — so it's no surprise I'd be head over heels for his take on a classic Go Nagai story.

Yuasa impressively shifts the '70s setting of the original into modern-day Japan: The group of surly highschoolers from the manga are replaced with rappers and smartphones are everywhere. In the hands of a lesser writer, a modern setting would be no more than a cosmetic, surface-level change of scenery to an already-written narrative. In contrast, Yuasa avoids this trap by using the modern setting to make incisive social commentary relevant to our times: social media is the means for both horrendous and beautiful moments in the show. It leads to Miki's murder when she posts on Instagram to defend Akira, but also serves as the online catalyst that unites Devilmen across the globe (in contrast to the original manga, where a set of demon-possessed psychic monks unite the Devilmen). Yuasa explained this in a 2018 Japan Times article:

"Today's situation is a lot closer to 'Devilman' than it was when Nagai wrote it in the '70s," he says. "The popularity of social media means people are a lot more connected, for good and bad – like someone getting shot over a video game. We learn about unarmed black people being killed by police, people being tortured and the rise of nationalism in politics. In Japan, too, where a lot of problems are openly blamed on foreigners.

"But it can also help spread good that we wouldn't otherwise know about. We see people coming out as gay or trans on social media, and there's a greater opening up and acceptance of different opinions and lifestyles."

  Another beautiful aspect of the show is how Yuasa amplifies the queer elements present in the manga. Ryo and Akira's relationship feels even more loaded with romantic undertones, and Yuasa also introduces two queer characters unseen in the original manga. One of the characters is named Miki Kuroda, initially portrayed as a jealous antagonistic foil to the Miki we all know and love. Miki Kuroda changes as the episodes progress and she becomes a Devilman, and we eventually see her sacrifice herself in an attempt to save Miki Makimura, who she confesses her love to before dying. It's refreshing to see a queer woman represented in a story that previously had none, and incorporated in a way that feels organic and thoughtfully integrated within the larger narrative.

  In contrast to the Akira of the OVAs, I absolutely adore this incarnation. Yuasa did a stellar job showing not only Akira's horny goth-jock side but also his compassionate traits. As the name implies, there's a lot of crying in Devilman Crybaby, and Akira is responsible for at least half the tears throughout the brief 10-episode series. Akira evokes such intense compassion and cares for people around him, which is a noticeable deviation from his cold demeanor in the OVAs. The human heart at the core of Devilman is on full display here, taking the emotional elements from the original and turning the volume up to 11. Though the art style and setting might be drastically different from what you'd typically expect of a Devilman remake, Yuasa did a masterful job honoring the source material while injecting it with fresh life and even fresher modern resonance. 

What other aspects of Devilman  — or its many incarnations  — did you find important or interesting? Let me know in the comments below!

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By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[quirkydahlias]

A Plus Ultra! Holiday (Christmas Special) (Everyone x Reader)

The plan was to make a good-hearted fic between class A and B but it’s beyond evident that nonromantic writing just doesn’t appeal too much. So, my gift to everyone is a large headcanon of the characters with the reader on Christmas!

Jesus, help me write this. It’s gonna be a long one.

Akira Shiryoku

Christmas is that time of year for Akira

His chance to break out the cheesy and ugliest Christmas sweaters from his wardrobe and wear them with pride whether you want to or not

“Come on, it looks great!”

“Minty... I know you can’t see, but if you could see what this sweater looks like- let’s just say it’s something even you won’t wear...”

“Haw haw haw!

“...”

“Bet.”

“It’s a ripped Santa with a red bag in his hand.”

“Ooo~! Go on~.”

“The bag is labeled 'Gains' and running shoes and dumbbells are all over this sweater.”

“...What are you talking about? It’s a masterpiece.”

He even gets you a matching pair too! Couples who look like fools together stay together after all

And if he can find one that fits, he’s certain to have Wan wear a sweater as well so he can join in on the fun

One of the best things about the Christmas season is how easy work is for him. There’s just something about the cold that heightens his senses, making the air smell even crisper- his fingertips ever so slightly more sensitive to any and every sensation.

Sure makes tracking the baddies a cakewalk.

Another great thing about the holidays is GIFTING

And boy does this man have fun gifting you and his friends

Of course, he’ll give his favorite people to pick on gag gifts, but he’s always certain to put something they’d actually like alongside his little prank gifts

Still doesn’t mean that it doesn’t suck getting a box of sea salt taffy labeled “Ear Wax Cubes”

One drawback of the winter season is the terrain

As much as he enjoys a nice walk with you and Wan, if he’s not careful he’ll probably end up slipping on some ice or snow and face planting or at the very least, tripping a little

“Uh, are you okay Minty?”

“Of course, never better!”

“Then why are you moving so slowly?”

“You said that the ground wasn’t salted. So I’m being... cautious.”

“I think you’re fine, want me to help?”

“Carry me~?”

“... You know what, I think I’ll just hang with you instead...nevermind the fact that I can’t lift you in the first place.”

Ejirou Kirishima

Kirishima loves the holiday season! Nothing warms his heart more than friends and family getting together and having fun before the mark of the New Year.

As a student at UA, he gets a nice week off starting Christmas day to spend time with his friends and loved ones, so of course, he tries to get everyone to stay in the dorms together for Christmas.

“Come on dude, it’s Christmas! How about spending it with (Y/N) and me?”

“Fuck off! Stop trying to get close to me you ass!”

“Aww, come on! It’ll be fun~.”

“My mom doesn’t want me back for Christmas, said something about traveling with my dad out of the country for the weekend.”

“Whoa, you got an answer that quickly? School ended like an hour ago-”

“Shut. It. I’m stuck with you, so cut it out.”

“Sweet! Let me go check if Mina or Sero are staying!”

A handful agreed to his plans- including you, seeing as either their home life wasn’t a very pleasant to return to or nonexistent in the case of Momo.

But for the rest, this was their chance to sign out for the week and spend some time with their parents and make up for lost time

Now, Ejirou had a family to return to as well

But this was the first time he could spend Christmas with his friends!

So naturally, his family pushed him to stay home at the dorms that year

Kirishima isn’t the type to be easily deterred, leading the charge in class 1-A’s celebration of the holidays

And amongst the chaos, he’s certain to drag his friends into helping him plan his gift for you, either by putting together a huge pillow fort in the living room just for the two of you

Or if Katsuki is there, to help him make a nice meal for the two of you to share 

As a pro hero, the holidays are much more hectic for him. Fresh out of high school and college, Kirishima has to patrol in order to catch those ready to steal potential gifts.

It’s for Christmas’ sake.

But family and friends still remain the most important thing to him, so the fledgling pro is certain to bend his schedule backward in order to take Christmas day off and host a nice Christmas party with you, inviting both his family and friends over for a nice time and meal

Fumikage Tokoyami

Darkness has no place during the Christmas season

So, to some extent, our bird boy has no place during the Christmas season

At least, that’s what he likes to think

Celebrating Christmas with him is a real hoot, as he manages to take his dark persona and apply it successfully to such a cheery holiday

For example, he’ll use skull shaped ornaments to decorate a small tree he’s placed in his dorms

Or a pure black or monotone colored Christmas sweater

Just imagine how the Addam’s family would decorate their home

That’s Tokoyami

As a bird hybrid, he picks up small traits that are endearing to any onlookers

So just like crows and ravens during the winter, it’s not too uncommon to see him bundled in a blanket and spending more time “roosting” or napping on or near you

And when caught, he often flushes in embarrassment, finding it to be immature to let those small urges take over

“H-huh?”

“Have a nice nap?”

“Damn it, I fell asleep again, didn’t I?”

“Yep, it’s kinda cute, to be honest. No need to be hard on yourself, Tokoyami.”

“(Y/N). The truest, loneliest moment in one’s life is at the hour they witness their world falleth apart, and all they can do is stareth- expressionless...”

“There, there...can you move your head off my lap though? I think I’m loosing feeling there.”

When Christmas day comes a-knocking, Tokoyami takes the initiative to make breakfast for you, as a small gesture of love and appreciation. 

His gift is usually either something for you to remember him by or something he knew you’d like- either from passing conversation or by knowing you well enough

And once the sun sets, he’s ready for his big surprise.

Preparing some popcorn and some hot chocolate (with a convenient straw for him), Fumikage is ready to introduce you to his annual Christmas tradition

Watching the Night Before Christmas

Hawks

This guy is super busy

And the holidays are certainly no exception

But there’s just something about working during the cold, wintry seasons that really makes him warm on the inside, as odd as it may sound.

Maybe it’s the lovely views he can see from above and in the skies

Or perhaps its the cold air, the dense air allowing him to fly faster and with ease

Or it’s how cute you look bundled up from head to toe

“Nice look, (Y/N)~! You should keep up the look year round.”

“Ha. ha. You look ridiculous in your winter costume too, so don’t you give me that look Hawks~!”

“Ouch, my pride! And for your information, I definitely rock the extra feathers.”

“Uh huh. Sure.”

Living life on the fast lane, he’s confident that he can finish his patrols in time to spend a nice night with you on Christmas, probably ordering some fried chicken and browsing the TV for some sort of Christmas special to watch together.

However, should you be out and about too, either because of hero work or just because you happen to be when he’s finished with work, he makes a spontaneous decision to cancel all your Christmas plans for something much, much better

“HAWKS!”

“Well hello to you too, baby~.”

“You can’t just p i c k me up off the ground out of nowhere!”

“Yeah, yeah. Hey, can one of you guys grab (Y/N)’s things and drop them off at the office on your way out? Thanks, seeya,haveaniceChristmas!”

“Oh my goodness-”

“Hey, hey. Calm down a little (Y/N), I stopped flying up. Although...I wasn’t even going at my full speed, you know~?”

“Speed doesn’t matter! We’re hundreds of feet in the air! Not to mention the fact that you just ditched your sidekicks with all my Christmas shopping too!”

“We were just wrapping up anyway and you just happened to be in the area, its fate if I do dare say so myself~.”

“This is kinda kidnapping if I do dare say so myself~.”

“Oooh, great comeback. It’s good to see your sense of humor alive and well~.”

“You’re just lucky you’re charming. Why am I up here anyway?”

“Well, I heard from a little bird that Disney was having the parade a few miles away. And nothing’s stopping us from giving it a flyby, what do you say?”

“...You could’ve just asked me if I wanted to go from the start. Like a normal person.”

“Yeah, I definitely could... but where’s the fun in that? You’re cute when you’re scared~.”

Himiko Toga

The truest Christmas tragedy is being a villain during the holiday season

Not only are heroes crawling all over the place, catching petty thieves and criminals left and right

But surveillance is super high!

Don’t get Toga started on all the long lines and waiting that one has to endure during this Christmas season.

Unlike her colleagues, she has the ability to go about in public as long as she’s wearing a person’s identity

So for this holiday, she finds a pretty girl to knockout and kidnap, draining her of a substantial amount of blood before locking the poor girl somewhere so she can drag you out for a night of fun and mayhem in the town

First on the list is some thief, to get your her Christmas shopping done!

There’s no way she’ll want to put you in danger, as the love of her life, but she’s certain to use you in other ways to get what she wants.

“Oh (Y/N)~! Could you pretty please distract the manager when we walk into the store? I want to snag that pretty watch!”

“For me or for you?”

“Either one works! Now go, go, go, go! It might get a little bloody in the back hehehe~!”

Another thing on her to-do list for Christmas is a romantic walk to admire all the lovely decorations and lights. Something that, thankfully, requires no crime or villainy.

At least it shouldn’t

But eventually, you’re forced to persuade her to not steal an innocent’s cat-themed decorations.

And the final docket on her Christmas list is to do something “nice” to ensure that she’s on Santa’s nice list this year although it’s highly doubtful that one good deed would cancel about all her wrongdoings.

Not to mention the fact that she legitimately believes in Santa, though that could easily be because everyone is a little fearful of breaking the bad news to her.

Her good deeds can range from freeing the poor girls she kidnaps or buying (with her own money), gifts for all her friends and of course- you!

“Merry Christmas!”

“Thanks, Himiko! Er...what is it?”

“You’ve gotta open it to find out, silly!”

“...It’s not a human heart again, right?”

“Gross, that’d be boring. Hurry, hurry! I want to see your reaction!”

“Alright, you can stop bouncing, haha.”

“...well?”

“It’s a nice jacket, fits me well too. But, isn’t this the same jacket that girl you kidnapped had on?”

“Maybeee? She didn’t seem to mind giving it to me when I asked nicely, I didn’t even have to pull out my little knife either!”

Hitoshi Shinsou

Hitoshi loves the winter season

It’s just a great excuse to sleep in for him or laze about like a cat

Unlike many others, already planning their holidays with loved ones and friends, he lacks one because of his relocation to the dorms and the other because of the stigma surrounding his quirk

Even after joining into the hero program, he feels iffy around his few found “friends”, wanting nothing more than to train nonstop through the holidays and ignore those who chose to remain behind during the winter break.

And as dead set as Shinsou is, wanting to do anything to rise to the top and become a great hero, you can easily see the burnout in his eyes

So Christmas is a yearly endeavor to rescue him from his own work ethic, coaxing the purple haired boy with cats and naps

“Hey, Shinsou?”

“Hmm? What is it (Y/N)?”

“You’ve been training with that punching bag for the past two hours, want to take a tiny break?”

“You know I’d love to-”

“Cats.”

“...excuse me?”

“I got you a cat for Christmas. Mr. Aizawa said you could keep in your dorm.”

“Heh, either I’m too easy to read, or you know me better than I thought. You win, (Y/N).”

“Nothing out of the ordinary~! See you downstairs, Shinsou- got a cup of hot chocolate with your name on it.”

Another thing that he really enjoys is a nice bike ride to blow some steam

Granted, the streets are slippery and icy, but he has a pair of tires built for it

So Christmas night, you two sign out and take a long bike ride around the city, taking in the atmosphere and bright lights, Shinsou taking in far more than the sights

“Heh.”

“Oh? What are you snickering about, Shinsou~?

“We passed some lady on her phone a few blocks back, apparently, she was just cheated on. Her boyfriend was caught going out with her cousin, of all people.”

“How scandalous~!”

“Right? The things people say when they don’t think others are listening...”

Hizashi Yamada

Christmas may be super busy for all heroes during this time of year

But he may have pulled one of the shortest sticks when it comes to working during the holidays

Without a doubt, he can expect to hear his station manager call in and request for him to do a Christmas show, which means that he’ll have to stay up all night for Christmas and thus, not with you

And it’s not like he can just say “no” to his fans! So he humbly apologizes to you each year, always reassuring to you that he’ll make it up in spades the next day

And like many popular musicians, Mic’s radio show releases a cover of some classic Christmas song- sung, of course, by yours truly~!

It’s amusing to many of his friends, to hear both Mic’s voice on the radio, and to receive a copy of his Christmas album for the holidays

That alone produces a multitude of amusing reactions from both friends and family, Aizawa calling you to ask you to stop Hizashi and Midnight calling, on the other hand, to encourage you to continue pushing him to do his thing

Midnight even tried to get the voice hero to sing a cover of Santa Baby so she can have a good laugh for Christmas

Needless to say, he refused.

As for you, it’s often your tradition to listen in on his radio show, lounging around the house and enjoying the holiday air.

Even if staying at home during the holidays isn’t your thing, he’s always certain to make sure that you’re listening in on his radio show as his number one fan and partner!

Not just to show your support, but for you to listen in on his side of your little Christmas tradition

“Alright, alright listeners! Sorry to interrupt the scheduled programming and don’t worry, we’ll get back to more Christmas cheer and chill music as soon as possible. But first, a small announcement to a special listener out there! Now I know I do this every year, but I just gotta send out some good vibes over to my lovely (Y/N)! Hope you’re enjoying the holidays, even if I’m not over there with ya! Wait on me, baby, I’m coming home soon!”

When he does return home, it’s past Christmas and around 2:00 AM.

By that point, if you’ve fallen asleep, he’s happy to turn in with you, carrying you to your shared room and plopping into bed with you 

But if you’ve managed to keep yourself awake, he has your gift in hand, ready to spend a few more hours with you before the two of you physically can’t continue maintaining consciousness.

Inasa Yoarashi

He is the living embodiment of a kid on Christmas during the holidays

He loves everything about the holidays!

The lovely, soft snow

The bright lights and festive cheer in the air during this time of year!

E V E R Y T H I N G

He goes all out too, even trying his hand at baking Christmas sugar cookies for you and all his friends, just because he feels like he’s gotta do his part and spread the cheer around for the holidays

And there’s just something about his passion and the holidays that makes him even more infectious than usual

I mean, can you really say no to someone as bright and polite as Inasa offering you a plate of cookies?

Determined to do it without help, he always tries his best to look for something you’d like on Christmas. It’s, at least to him, the best way for him to test how much he really knows you and your tastes and by proxy, how attentive he is a boyfriend

Should he succeed, he’ll be a-glow with pride and happiness for the rest of the evening

Should he fail, however, he slams his forehead into the ground bowing for your forgiveness, hoping that his gift didn’t offend you

Buying a gift for him, on the other hand, is the easiest thing to do in the world.

And that’s not an exaggeration in the slightest

Hell, you could buy him a pack of crayons and he’ll thank you with sincerity and earnest in his voice, spending the rest of the day coloring and drawing with you

Give it a week’s time before he’s showing you his pretty amazing artwork and thanking you for inspiring him to dabble in a new skill and hobby

What would really make his holiday is you showing your love for him in some way, as his love for passion extends to you as well.

“Merry Christmas, Inasa!”

“Whoa! What is this, (Y/N)?”

“I saw you browsing for this online a few months ago, but it was super expensive, so it took me a while to make the money to-”

“I LOVE IT!”

“Haha, I’m super glad you’re excited, but you haven’t opened the box yet, Inasa!”

“That doesn’t matter, what matters is the hard work- the love, you put into getting me this gift! So please accept my humble thanks, (Y/N)! You truly are the best partner I could ever ask for!”

“Jeez, you’re gonna hurt yourself. Your welcome, now open it up! I want to see your reaction myself.”

Izuku Midoriya

Christmas for Izuku was usually spent with his mother, the green haired boy having a nice meal with his mother and receiving his gifts- usually the latest All Might merch before leaving to see the heroes work during the night, patrolling the streets and saying “hello” to fans as they conduct their patrols

But now, he’s attending UA

So Christmas for him is a little different.

As he is the subject of plenty of conflicts, either with his quirk or his involvement in many of the serious altercations throughout the year...

USJ attack, Training camp attack, Katsuki Bakugou’s rescue, etc, etc.

It was highly recommended that he stay on campus for the break

The school, however, was generous enough to bring his mother to him, giving her a visitor’s pass and allowing her to spend her holiday with her dear boy

This is also his first Christmas with you, so he’s excited to have two of the people he loves the most with him

Gifting for him is a no-brainer during the holidays, both Inko and you pairing together to get him a pricey piece of All Might merch

And boy, his face when he sees his gift 

P r i c e l e s s

There has never been a face more adorable than an Izuku Midoriya in awe

Being the dork that he is, his gifts for you are similar, in the sense that he appeals to what he knows you like.

Even with the perfect gift in hand, his presentation needs a little work

“Oh, hey Deku!”

“H-hey, (Y/N)! Um...here! I hope you like this gift I got you!”

“Ooo, what is it?”

“I know you love that character, I think it was from a movie we watched a few months ago? So I found some nice merch that I figured that you’d like. Um. You like it, right?”

“Of course! But um, Deku?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you wrap this yourself?”

“I did...it’s not that obvious, is it?”

“You used three pieces of tape to keep this flap down and the bow is a little crooked.”

“Oh jeez, it’s bad, isn’t it? I’m sorry, (Y/N)...”

“Oh no, it’s lovely Deku! I love it~. It’s very you~.”

“That can be taken to many places.”

“All positive, I swear. It’s cute~.”

Katsuki Bakugou

This guy is a little Scrooge during the holidays

Big surprise

But it’s not because he hates Christmas or the whole be nice and give presents to others bit of the holiday

He just dislikes the excessive noise

Even the slightest thing, if repeated over and over again can irritate this ash blonde. Usually, it applies to the chattering of his classmates or friends or Deku’s overbearing determination

But for the holidays? It’s all the noise that the city has to offer

From the increased traffic, both pedestrian and otherwise

To the fireworks and parades

As a guy who appreciates a good night’s rest, he is displeased.

So for Christmas, he spends it at UA to escape from the noise, happy to have some peace and quiet with the majority of the student body leaving for the holidays

And with you, it’s even better. The metaphorical icing on top of the cake

Speaking of food, this expert chef automatically puts himself in charge of any Christmas cooking. Not because he’s being nice, though that does play a part in it, but because he’s not gonna trust anyone with being able to make food efficiently for those remaining in the dorms.

“Come on Bakugou, you can just leave the slicing to me!”

“No.”

“Why not, I wanna help a little, you can’t just do all the cooking!”

“Last time you wanted to help, you used your own hands to cut the fucking food. Go fuck off to the couch, shitty hair.”

“Oof, you won’t even say my name anymore, my feelings are kinda hurt, dude.”

“Fuck. Off.”

“Why do you let (Y/N) help? That’s unfair!”

“Because I trust they won’t do anything as unsanitary as cutting food with their bare hands. Unlike y o u.”

It was one time! And I swear, my hands were washed!”

When it comes to gift giving, Katsuki is surprisingly very good at it.

Even when it seems like he’s irritated and not listening to the words coming out of your mouth, the fact that he always picks up on your interests and dislikes well enough to pick you the perfect gift speaks volumes otherwise

As for gifting Katsuki anything, the blonde will behave in a rather tsundere manner, huffing and telling you that he doesn’t want anything every. Single. Damn. Year.

Honestly, just get him something practical, he can appreciate it much more than trying your chances with a random, generic gift.

But if you know him well enough, gifting him some mountain climbing gear is the key to his heart.

“Hey, Katuski.”

“What?”

“Oh come on, wipe that frown off of your face. Merry Christmas~.”

“...”

“It’s a-”

“I know what it fucking is. It’s a Black Diamond Viper Ice Axe.”

“Ooo, you know your stuff~. I figured you’d like it.”

“...thanks.”

“What was that?”

“Nothing. Merry Christmas, (Y/N).”

Kyoka Jirou

Kyoka’s house is filled to the brim with music during the holidays

And it’s not those songs you’d hear on the radio or on TV specials

Oh no

Her family makes their own music

And with her bringing you over for the first time for the holidays

You get to make your own music

Her dad will be the first one to try and coax you into grabbing the mic and singing karaoke with you

Her mother will be the first one to see if you can play any instruments and provide the instrumental for a handful of Christmas songs

And Jirou will be the first one to want this entire holiday to be over from pure embarrassment at her overbearing parent’s behavior

But it’s a jovial time in the Jirou household

And if anything, you’ll leave the house knowing how to play two to three more instruments then when you entered. 

So that’s a plus.

Gifts in the Jirou family usually are music based, so you can easily expect your gifts to be the same

Jirou however, takes Christmas to be a little more sentimental with her gift, although she knows full well that doing so in her household will lead to another huge wave of embarrassment

But for you?

“Yo, (Y/N).”

“What is it, Kyoka?”

“Merry Christmas, I...got you something.”

“Is this an album? A weird cover. I don’t even see the band on it.”

“Oh, it’s probably just-”

“Hey, give it over here! We’ll play it and see if we can figure out the musican~. Kyoka’s father is very good at discerning these things, you know?”

“NO. MOM. We absolutely don’t need to-”

“...Hey, er.. Kyoka. Is that your voice.”

“Kill me now.”

Mirio Togata

Oh boy, does this guy love to play jokes during the holidays

Nothing ill-intentioned, of course, just harmless gag gifts and playful behavior from this little angel

For example, he’d throw a snowball, striking you directly in the back of your head and because of his quirk, there was no way you could hit him back.

That is- until he ends up hopping around trying to get his clothes back on in the middle of the frigid cold

Honestly, it’s one of the more amusing sights to behold when it comes to Mirio Togata

However, he doesn’t have his quirk forever.

Losing it was a huge blow to him, both physically and mentally.

But if given the change, he’d do it over and over again if that meant that he could save Eri from Chisaki

That doesn’t mean that he’s immune to the long-term effects, however, the snow and cheer bringing back memories that make his heartache

Depressing feelings pushed aside, Mirio is determined to make sure every holiday with you is as special and fun as it was when he had his quirk.

Sure, the playing field is even when you two have snowball fights

And sure, Mirio can’t playfully threaten to get some sneak peeks at this year’s presents

But in place of that, he gets to help Eri make her first Christmas- her first real Christmas a special one.

And he enlists you to help him do it.

“What do little girls like anyway (Y/N)?”

“How should I know?”

“Hmm, I don’t know if she’s had many toys. Maybe a doll?”

“That’s a good idea Mirio, but remember, you bought her one for her birthday a while ago. Doing it again would be a little...lazy.”

“You’re right... maybe a cute dress?”

“I think Mic and Aizawa said something about taking her out to pick out her winter clothes.”

“Darn. Hey, look at this. What do you think about it?”

“I like it, but I don’t think Eri would.”

“Well, let me buy it for you. Think of it as a thank you for helping me, and... as an apology. I know you were looking forward to spending some time together this year, (Y/N)”

“Mirio, you don’t have to apologize for anything, I’m happy to be here. Besides, I don’t know about you, but we’re kinda spending time together already.”

“Haha, alright. Let me just go to check out, keep on searching, alright (Y/N)?”

Momo Yaoyorozu

On occasion, her parents and Momo move out of the country to their winter home for winter break- somewhere warm and tropical, to escape the bitter cold.

However, those are rarities 

Most years, Christmas for her has always been a bit... empty

Not in a physical sense, however, as she was raised in a spacious home. So she’s comfortable with a large estate to roam around in.

What does bother her is her family

Both her parents are especially busy during the holidays and often leave her with a ton of presents and call it a day with a small voicemail when she wakes on Christmas day

And she’s forever thankful for their yearly generosity

But...

Every time she looks on the television or takes a walk amongst the public, her eyes are drawn to the families holding hands and crossing the street.

Or the couples snuggling on a bench, warm drinks in hand.

Living at UA has changed all that for the better.

She’s surrounded by friends, some even staying with her for the break in the dormitory

And she has you. Someone who’s able to fill the void of the holidays, even if all her friends did leave for the break

Unable to ship her friends expensive gifts like a summer home up north or their own speedboat, Momo opts to keep her shopping small, visiting the mall and various department stores with you to pick out gifts for everyone.

And man, the moment she stepped into the mall, Momo was in awe.

“Oh my goodness! (Y/N)!”

“Hmm? What is it? Did you find something for Sato?”

“No, no, no. Look! This pretty dress is so cheap!

“Um, Momo, that’s 8,300 yen. Even with the discount.”

“I know, isn’t it amazing? I wonder how many other items offer in the shops here. Oh my, look at the clearance table!”

“Did you find a good deal?”

“I can’t believe these socks cost 100 yen. Could we please purchase a whole box of them?”

“For everyone?”

“Er...yes?

“Momo, what are you going to do with all those socks?”

“Use...them?”

“We grab a bundle, maybe pass a few packs to the other girls if they need any. Let’s move on, alright?”

“That sounds fair. I’m sorry for getting too excited.”

“It’s not a problem at all, it’s pretty amusing to see how excited you are holiday shopping~”

Naomasa Tsukauchi

Naomasa is astonished at how many villains try their luck every year, trying to commit crimes amongst the heightened police force, increased scrutiny against criminals, and increased hero presence in the streets.

And unsurprised at the amount who fail

He’s a little disappointed, wanting to spend his Christmas day with you and kicking back a little, but duty calls

However, he has a lifeline in his sister, entrusting Makoto to entertain you during the day with her company, though he knows that could easily go south with her rather strong will and penchant for trouble

Nevertheless, he knows you’ll be relatively amused around her for the time being while he files villain after villain into police custody

Once he does manage to escape the confines of work, he knows that he has to make it up with you somehow

And what better way than with food?

So he grabs some fried chicken and cakes and heads home

Entering the apartment the two of you share is always a gamble.

Either everything is just where it needs to be, meaning that his sister ruined something and the two of you spent time fixing the house

Or the place is overly decorated from the closet space to the bathroom in holiday decorations

Which meant that he had let her spend too much time in his house.

But regardless of the state of the house when he arrives, he’s always happy to see your face, wanting to give you your gift immediately 

However, he manages to resist the urge, opting to settle down first

But once he is settled and the three of you are sitting in the living room, his sister always wants to make a game out of his gifts and make you guess what’s inside before you open it.

“Okay, okay, you go (Y/N).

“Is it jewelry?”

“Nope.”

“He’s telling the truth. Next question.”

“Is it clothing?”

“No.”

“That’s a fat lie.”

“Naomasa!”

“It’s not really clothing...”

“Oooo! Is it lingerie?”

“Makoto! NO. It’s not!”

“Booooo. Boring”

“Wait, then what is it, dear?”

“Accessories. I just thought you’d like them.”

“And while you’re opening that one, I’ll grab the next present!”

“Can we not play this game, sister dear?”

“...Nah. We’re definitely playing this game.”

Nejire Hadou

Neijre loves gift giving!

It doesn’t have to be the holidays, just the act of giving someone something and seeing their face light up fills her little heart with joy

And now she has a special someone to gift things for the holidays~

Another great thing about gifting people stuff is you can gauge their likes and dislikes from their reactions and for the sake of doing just that, she gifts you a ton of small gifts ranging from the normal to the obscure

“Merry Christmas!”

“Thanks, Hadou, but this is the 14th present you’ve...”

“Do you like it?”

“Neijre.”

“Yesss~?”

“You bought me uranium ore.”

“I know! You’d be surprised to see what you can buy online these days.”

“What am I supposed to do with this??? Isn’t it, you know, radioactive???”

“Yep! Dangerously so! But the container says that it’s safe inside there and that there’s only a tiny amount.”

“Well, thank you? I guess?”

“It’s no problem, do you want me to get you it again for next year?”

“Please don’t. I love you. But please.”

“Wow, you really don’t like uranium. Do you have particular elements you like or are you just afraid of the radioactivity?”

“No and yes?”

“...interesting. Carry on!”

Weird gifts aside, she’s always jumping at the chance to drink her favorite tea and what better time than during the coldest months of the year? And with strawberry shortcake too!

These little tea parties of hers are an annual occurrence, a bit of a Christmas tradition between her and all her friends, and you by proxy

In fact, a lot of her friends will either bake their own goods or buy complimentary sweets, the entire group huddling together under a kotatsu to chatter amongst themselves about everything from everyone’s individual holiday plans to the latest occurrences in the hero world, be it new upcoming heroes or the latest line of support gear

Once her parties are over, however, there still leaves a ton of sweets and goods left over. So she naturally, drags them and you to the bed to snuggle and relax, taking in the latest specials on TV and watching the parades that go by.

Overall, it’s an uncharacteristically quiet end to such a cheery holiday and with one of the most cheery girls in the UA too.

But it’s a lovely one.

Nemuri Kayama

Romance and Christmas in Japan go hand in hand

So Midnight, of course, is excited to see the holiday season arrive in Japan

Although she has plenty of hero work lined up ahead for her in addition to whatever work she has as a teacher, she does her best to make time for you during the holidays because she would want you to do the same for her

Using her contacts, she manages to hook the two of you up with a reservation for two in a fancy restaurant, enjoying the entire process of dolling up for your little Christmas date

“Oooh, red or white?”

“Hmm, both look pretty nice on you, Nemuri.”

“Why thank you, darling~...But really, which one?”

“Red. It matches with the holiday.”

“Good choice~. Now to find the perfect jewelry to match the outfit.”

“Do I look okay?”

“Of course you do, (Y/N) could do no wrong~. Okay. I take it back. You need to change up your outfit. You have to match me.”

“Ha ha ha, alright. Is it because we’re a couple?”

“Is there any better reason~?”

When the two of you do go out, however, Nemuri enjoys teasing you along the way, pointing to the storefront of a boutique and asking your opinion on which lingerie set would suit her more

She’s also fond of embarrassing you, showing a little more PDA than ought to be shown just to see you blush in front of strangers

There’s just something about your embarrassment and flushed face that makes her heart flip~

But date aside, Nemuri is fond of dragging the two of you out to bother her coworkers during the holidays

Whether it's going out with Vlad and 13 for some bar food or dropping my Eraser and Mic’s place for drinks and good old fashioned fun, it’s bound to be a good time with Midnight around

Once Christmas ends, however, the exhaustion of traveling around, shopping, and visiting friends finally gets to Nemuri, the pro hero reluctantly beginning to feel her age as she prepares a nice cup of tea to lounge with

Honestly, it’s not an uncommon sight to see her passed out on the couch, booze, and food finally putting her to rest for the night.

Of course, she could always reserve herself and celebrate with moderation, but the two of you wouldn’t have your holidays any other way

Ochaco Uraraka

Cakes, sweets, and more

That’s what Christmas is about for Ochaco

Her family is by no means rich, so she’s learned to spend her money during the season on more practical items then on luxury goods.

For her father, she’ll buy some multivitamins that were on sale so he can continue to work hard without sacrificing his nutrition

And for her mother, she’ll snag a nice coat that was on sale, even if it doesn’t fit her mother exactly right in the hopes that she stays warm during the winter months

And for you, she’ll buy practical goods like shampoo and conditioner, choosing scents that she thinks would suit you the best

As frugal as she may be during the season, it’s not too hard to deviate her from her normal habits

All you need are sweets and cakes

Because Christmas is a holiday where cake is almost a requirement, many bakeries naturally put their goods on sale to attract more customers

Therefore, the lines are egregiously long (as if it could deter someone as persistent as Ochaco though from joining the rest of the masses in getting their cakes for the holidays)

She will not hesitate to go the extra mile and leave the house early on Christmas day to grab a cake for the both of you (mostly her) to enjoy.

Her love for sweets, if anything, makes her really easy to shop for.

Just beware, buying anything too pricey will without a doubt, backfire and make her feel really, really bad since she’ll compare her store-bought cake to whatever you’ve gotten her

Moving away from gifts and cakes entirely, the holidays are also a time for loved ones to get together

But for Ochaco, that was never the case

Her parents were busy people after all, and demand for workers only grew during the holiday season as more and more people took leave from the workforce 

Ochaco didn’t mind, however. She genuinely didn’t. To her, this was a good opportunity for her parents to make money

Besides, she had you

And her friends of course~! She could never forget about them

Inviting Deku, Iida, and the rest of her friends over to her house, Ochaco often moves to display all the cakes she bought with some tea for her annual flow of guests to enjoy with her, the sweets and company lighting up her small home

“Oh my, what a quaint home!” 

“Thanks, Momo! Sit down, (Y/N) helped me slice up all the cake for everyone. Strawberry or chocolate?”

“Strawberry, please. I heard you had cake so I was hoping that the tea I brought would be adequate.”

“...How expensive is this box?? (Y/N)! Look! It even has jewels on it!”

“It has been sitting in the kitchen cupboards for a while, so I figured that the two of you could ensure that the leaves aren’t put to waste.”

“We will! Oh, thanks (Y/N)! Here, take this slice, Momo. Merry Christmas~!”

Shouta Aizawa

The holidays just aren’t his thing

It was nice to get a break from work and to be away from his students for a while...but all he did was nap around the house. 

Doesn’t really make for an exciting holiday for you in all honesty

He’ll still get you gifts every year, so that’s a plus. But his gifts, for the most part, are all practical gifts, the man preferring to gift you something to help you with your career than something like accessories or fanciful gifts

He doesn’t mind if you don’t get him anything too, simply because he’s well aware of the fact that he’s a hard person to shop for. 

Honestly, get this man some fluffy blanket and he’ll be satisfied 

And as the Christmas day dies down, it’s his own little tradition to take a few gin and tonics and relax with you in the living room, just enjoying your presence in a blissful silence

And thus, ending your holidays on a quiet note

However, everything changes the year he adopted Eri

Well... the year the school adopted Eri

She had celebrated Christmas before, even receiving presents from a few of Chisaki’s goons

But with all the terrible memories surrounding her life under Overhaul's guardianship, she was in dire need of new, better Christmas memories

So naturally, Aizawa was placed with the task to oversee her safety and happiness for the holidays

Not wanting to involve you too much with his pro hero work like this, he tries to do everything himself

And for a person who doesn’t care too much for the holidays, he gets a surprising amount of progress done before eventually falling short and being forced to request your assistance

“Um...Shouta?”

“Yo.”

“What is that?”

“...a present.”

“Why didn’t you get the store to wrap it? It looks a little... tight.”

“What exactly is that supposed to mean, (Y/N)?”

“Honey. Sweetheart. Love. You tie people up for a living. I think that poor present is unrippable.”

“...Damn it. Can you hand me my knife? It’s my costume.”

“’Course, as long as you tell me what all this is for~.”

“Work.”

“Come on, Shou! I know you want to keep ‘home life separate from work life' but I’m i n v e s t e d now. Please?”

“...It’s for a little girl the school adopted, Eri.”

“The school? Or you?”

“...”

“Wait, is this the one from the Hassaikai Raid you told me about??”

“Yeah. I’m put in charge of making her Christmas...special.”

“Okay, I’m not taking no for an answer, I’m helping~.”

“Do what you want.”

And so began your involvement in Eri’s Christmas, Aizawa splitting up the work with you and leaving the wrapping to you for the most part

A couple of days before Christmas hits, he takes both of you out to shop for winter clothes for Eri, the little one taking an immediate shine to her adoptive father’s lover.

It was as if the three of you were like a real family

Once Christmas arrived, Eri was brought to your home, the little girl gawking at not only the presence of her friends and heroes, Mirio and Deku, but the numerous presents hidden underneath a beautifully decorated tree, the rest of the house decorated to perfection (Thanks to your help)

While she caught up with the two boys, Aizawa pulls you to the side to get some much-needed air on the balcony

“Here.”

“What is it, Aizawa? Is this a present?”

“Just open it.”

“...It’s... a necklace?

“Put it on.”

“Thank you, really. It’s lovely.”

“Eri suggested to me when we were shopping yesterday.”

“That’s...honestly the cutest thing in the world. But why would she suggest this, it’s pretty incomplete-”

“...”

“Shouta. Is this one of those split necklaces? For couples? Are you wearing the other half?”

“Yes...don’t look at me like that (Y/N), you know I can’t wear it to work. It’d be too dangerous.”

“I know, I know~. This is honestly the sweetest thing you’ve ever given me, thank you~.”

“It’s for helping me with all this.”

“Righttt. And that red face is just because of the cold. See you inside, Aizawa. Merry Christmas~.”

“Merry Christmas, (Y/N). Hey.”

“What?”

“What happened to the cat decoration we put outside?”

Shouto Todoroki

Shouto has always favored the cold simply because it reminds him of his mother

The white snow reminding him of better times with his siblings, his sister keeping the boys from getting too rowdy and overzealous while he happily watched from the sidelines

But those days are long gone.

If anything, he still looks forward to the holidays because of the infamous busy schedule of many pro heroes- his father taken out of the picture on an annual basis

Nothing is set in stone, his sister’s insistence that he come home for the holidays already setting off alarms in his head

Was his father going to be home for Christmas?

Not wanting to deal with that mess, he politely declined his sister’s invitation to come home and remained at the dorm

It was nice, to be with you and his friends for the holidays

It was also a little surprising to see how many stayed behind during the holidays, didn’t they have families to visit this time of year?

Just musing about his friend’s family, however, brought back the thoughts of his own family

It was awfully cold out. Though his mother was more acclimated to the cold than most, he hoped she turned up the heat in her room and drank warm liquids to keep her healthy

“Shouto?”

“...”

“Todoroki.”

“I’m sorry, I was just in thought.”

“Is it about your family again?”

“My mother.”

“You worried about her?”

“A little. I just hope she’s doing alright. The post is a little slow during the holiday season.”

“Maybe we could visit her? Ooo! We could buy her a nice gift!”

“...that’s a lovely idea, (Y/N). Let’s do it.”

And so the two of you set out one day during the break to go shopping for possible Christmas gifts 

That’s where the two of you were met with a dead end.

“So, what does she like?”

“...I’m not sure.”

“Really? What do you talk about when you’re with her?”

“Me, mostly. She always wants to hear about my progress in school and about my friends and you.”

“Darn it. Maybe a cake?”

“What flavor?”

“...ughhh. Shopping is the worst.”

“Don’t worry, we can figure something out.”

Eventually, the both of you decided that the gift should be of sentimental value. Something that helps her connect more to the ones she loves, her children.

But that meant that you’d have to brave his household.

Shouto’s family was accommodating enough, both of you skirting around Enji in order to search the house for something, anything to gift Rei

And that’s when you found it.

Up in the attic were pictures. Tons of them. All stuffed into a makeshift album, something Rei or Fuyumi must have kept. Everything ranging from Shouto’s first steps to Fuyumi’s first time at the train station was photographed and sealed away in the pages of the book.

After giving a rather informal goodbye to his sister, blatantly ignoring his father, Shouto walked right out the front door, Fuyumi knowing full well where he was headed with that old book shoved under his arm

“Hmm, it’s late... who’s there? Shouto?”

“Hello, mother. Merry Christmas...I hope you like it.”

Taishiro Toyomitsu

Ugh, being a hero sucks.

Especially when so much good food is on display and all you want is to ditch patrol and go grab something to eat

But Fat Gum takes his work seriously, so he forgoes the snacks and patrols the streets, a silent source of reassurance for the passing civilians going shopping

“Taishiro!”

“Huh? Oh hey, (Y/N)! How are you doin’?

“Great! I figured you’d be hungry so I grabbed some dango for you- it was a two for one special~!”

“Whoa! That’s amazing! Thanks (Y/N), you’re the best~!”

“How long are you going to be on patrol for?”

“Eh, Tamaki said that he heard that I was off at 10 tonight.”

“Heard?”

“Kid was too shy to ask my replacement or his sidekick about it”

“Well. Maybe I could grab you some food while you patrol?”

“Is this really how you wanna spend your holiday, (Y/N)? You could go home and get out of the cold.”

“I think I’d like to spend Christmas with the person I love the most. Besides, if any trouble happens, I’ll get out of line and out of sight, alright?”

“...fine. Just promise me one thing.”

“Sure, what’s that?”

“You’re gonna go home if you get too cold, I don’t think getting sick during the holidays is what you want this year, ha ha ha.”

“Reasonable. You have yourself a deal~.”

So for the majority of the Christmas day was spent with you accompanying him along with his patrols, Taishiro happy to cough up the yen for you to get yourself (and him) food and drinks as you two walked the streets

Once it did get late or once you had enough of the cold and left, Fat Gum was certain to bring home all the food his office got- thank you’s and gifts of appreciation from his fans, all edible.

“Whoa! how did you get all this food up the stairs?”

“Amajiki helped me, good kid. Gave him a cake and sent him home for the night.”

“I have some of your favorite specials recorded and some hot chocolate ready by the way. It’s on the counter.”

“You really are the best! Thanks (Y/N), Merry Christmas!”

“Come on, we can sort through the treats later. Grab a cake and meet you on the couch.”

“Roger that!”

Tamaki Amajiki

Oh jeez

Why are there so many people out and about during the holidays

Living in Musutafu, he figured that he’d be used to the hustle and bustle of the city, but it just isn’t the case for someone as shy and anxious as he is

His friend, Mirio, does his best every year to try and pull the introvert out of his shell a little, getting him to go out for lunch at a nearby cafe that was hosting a holiday special or to go catch a movie or two with him

But this year, Mirio was busy with Eri and his family, leaving the two of you to celebrate Christmas together instead

Wanting to try and be a good partner to you, he figured that he should do something for the holidays. Maybe a date or a nice present would suffice.

And as great as those ideas were, it was the execution that had him all flustered

Should it be food? Was food a good gift? Fruit maybe?

Or maybe you’re secretly allergic to something? What if he accidentally gives it to you!?

He’d love to take you out on a date, but most places are so packed, everything is reservation only

Which means that he’d have to talk to someone. A. Real. Person.

He’d have to talk to them over the phone and ahhh! It’s too much!

Deciding that celebrating the conventional way wasn’t going to work out very well, he opted to order everything he needed and have it delivered to his house, inviting you over for a small date

“Hey, Tamaki! You sounded a little panicked on the phone, are you alright?”

“I-I did? Oh...I was trying to ask you out on a date...”

“Haha, that part I understood. I didn’t get the rest though since you mumbled the rest as fast as possible before hanging on me.”

“Sorry, (Y/N). I’ll work on that. Do you want to, er, come in?”

“Sure, are we headed out for our date or is this an indoorsy one?”

“I wanted to stay in for the holidays, everywhere else is just too much.”

“Hey, it’s perfectly fine if you don’t want to leave the house! Please look at me, Tamaki. Aww, your cheeks are all red~.”

“(Y/N), you can stop teasing me now. I don’t know how much my heart can take...”

“Alright, alright. I’ll have mercy. Let’s go cuddle on the couch, I brought your gift over and I want to see what you think of it.”

Unsurprisingly, staying inside and out of the cold turned out to be a pretty good idea, Tamaki making mental note to do it more often when the winter months rolled around.

When it came time to give you your gift, he was certain to choose something he absolutely, 100% knew you liked or wanted.

That way, he decreased the likelihood of having that awkward situation where you’d reluctantly accept a person’s present just to be polite!

Seeing your positive reactions to his various presents just helps to build up his confidence year after year, eventually helping the hero voluntarily choose to spend the holiday with large groups of friends and even in crowded public areas

Tenya Iida

With his brother in a wheelchair and forced into early retirement, Tenya wants to forgo everything and everyone else in his life during the holidays to return home and be there for his older brother

But shutting out everything isn’t going to help him in the long run, it simply isn’t the answer

So unlike many other couples, making plans for the holidays and going out on dates, you show up uninvited and concerned for your boyfriend

He was certainly surprised to see you, but in the end, was far too polite to try and turn you away since you did give the extra effort to see him over the holidays

Upon seeing you in the doorway, his family turns into a tizzy, his brother wheeling himself over to greet you properly while his parents prepare another seat for the holidays

Figuring that you were here for his little brother, Tensei pulls back from his little brother, wanting him to spend less time worrying over his older sibling and more time actually celebrating the holidays. Even if Tenya is stubborn about it.

“B-But, brother! I can’t just leave you here to go shopping today! It wouldn’t be right!”

“Dude, just go have fun with (Y/N), school is going to come back sooner than you think. Enjoy your break while you can. I’ll be here with mom.”

“...Are you certain that this is really okay?”

“Yep. Thought about inviting a few of my friends over too so you two kids being occupied is fine with me.”

“Alright, I guess I did need some fresh air, did you need anything?”

“Eh, maybe an order of Hayashi rice? Mom keeps trying to feed me ‘healthy’ stuff for my recovery. And, it is Christmas. So a cheat day is in order.”

“Okay! I won’t return until (Y/N) and I have found the best possible Hayashi rice for you!”

“There’s a place a couple blocks down the-.... anddd he’s gone.”

During your little outing, Iida regrettably finds himself enjoying it a little more than he ought to have

His brother was still recovering for Christ’s sake! And what was he doing?

Enjoying a hot drink with you and shopping for presents for his family and loved ones, you specifically being included in the latter group

Even if he didn’t verbally voice it, his body language speaks volumes- the boy is an open book after all.

By the time you wrapped up all the needed last minute shopping, the sun was setting, marking the perfect time to sit Iida down and get him to loosen up.

“(Y/N), we really should be back home. The rice is getting cold-”

“Iida, Iida, Iida. Calm down a little, we just got the rice. Come sit with me.”

“...Alright, but we’re gonna head back in 5 minutes.”

“Sure.”

“...”

“Hey, Iida, you know why I’m here, right?”

“You were worrying for me, weren’t you?”

“That’s the sharp hero I fell for~.”

“I really do appreciate you visiting, thank you, (Y/N). Truly.”

“Your whole family wants you to be happy, Iida. Why else would your older brother shoo you out the house?”

“For rice?”

“Ha. Ha. But really, the stress is in your face, Iida! We can’t have our class representative returning to school all down, can we?”

“Y-You’re right! The break is meant to keep the morale of the class high, and if I were to be the sole one to return to campus-”

“Sad?”

“Yes! It’d be a travesty! We should make the most of the break while we can, (Y/N). To alleviate my family’s worries, for the eventual return to school, and ... for...myself.”

“Hey now, sit back down, Iida. You said we had 5 minutes! Just take a breather~. Besides, look around us.”

“What?”

“The lights, they’re all being turned on, one by one. It’s pretty romantic, isn’t it?”

“Yeah...it is...it’s nice.”

“Look at you, relaxing~! Merry Christmas, Tenya~.”

“Merry Christmas, (Y/N). Thank you again, for coming for me.”

Tsuyu Asui

The holidays are extra stressful for Asui in particular

Her parents work late hours during the holiday, which she doesn’t mind since it’s nothing out of the usual for her

Her siblings, however, are another story entirely

They were manageable on a day to day basis

But during Christmas?

They were bouncing off the walls with excitement, always wanting to do something or go somewhere

Which, again, was something she was used to.

However, because of the cold, wintery weather, she often felt drowsy and keeping up with her sibling’s antics was a difficult challenge

Thank the skies above that the effects worked both ways, so her siblings could only be excited for short bursts of time.

Tsuyu invited you to her place for the break, figuring that you could visit and meet her family in the process

However, she was certain to accompany her invitation with a disclaimer, apologizing in advance for the rowdy kids and hectic home life she has during the break

Upon arrival at the Asui household, it’s buzzing with life, her father, Ganma, and mother, Beru already preparing to head out for work, leaving Tsuyu and you in charge of her two siblings, Satsuki and Samidare.

First on the docket for Christmas day was breakfast, Tsuyu cranking up the thermostat so she could stay awake and finish making everyone something to eat.

The next was the presents, Tsu slipping yours, something small to say “thanks” for joining her when you could easily spend your time with your own family

“I hope you like it, (Y/N).”

“Wait, how did you know I wanted this? I don’t think I told anyone...did I?”

“Nope, ribbit.”

“Tsu, how did you know? Or are you some mindreader~?”

“I just picked up on the fact that you wanted it by watching you. You’re a little obvious when you like something, (Y/N).”

“Well, thank you, Tsu! I hope you like my present for you~.”

“It’s very functional, hopefully, I can add it to my costume to keep warm during the winter. Wasn’t this in the latest Christmas catalogs?”

“Yep, took me quite a bit of yen to pre-order it, I really hope it’ll help.”

While she stays bundled whenever she leaves the house with you during the break, it’s a little cute watching her frog instincts kick in.

For example, the two of you could be sent out to fetch some cakes for Christmas, Tsu dosing off on your shoulder on the train ride to the mall.

Or another example would be her small yawns, trying to not show just how severely the cold was affecting her and the adorable warmth in her face when she’s caught and you hand her a warm drink you bought- priceless.

Yagi Toshinori

Every year, around Christmas, the latest support items are released to heroes across the nation, many pros treating themselves to a nice upgrade for the holidays

When he was still in his prime, All Might would always keep an eye on the various catalogs, wanting to stay sharp and ahead of the villains.

However, he’s far past that point in his life

So this year for Christmas, All Might wanted to spend some time with his closest friends and family.

But his master was gone, Gran Torino preferring to stay warm in his home during the holiday season.

And as for friends...

He didn’t really have many of those. At least not the ones that knew of both All Might and Yagi Toshinori.

Naomasa was busy with the villains during the break, so he couldn’t really contact him. And even if he wasn’t, Yagi knew that the detective cared for his sister and was probably with her over the break

Shield was across the seas, working on support items in the west, the very same ones that end up on every pro hero magazine and catalog in the country.

So all he really had was you.

For his co-workers, he’s certain to leave them all gifts before taking his leave for break, just out of the pure desire to build rapport with them and deepen their friendship

As for you, he doesn’t want to be too overbearing for the holidays, pushing you to go and be with your family for the holidays. It’s not often that everyone has free time on their hands like this after all

But please, dear God. Invite the poor man with you. He needs the company.

Graciously accepting your invite, he’s a bit nervous on what to bring his first time there. But if this isn’t his first time around the block, then he’s far more confident in his ability to pick an adequate gift for your folks.

In all honesty...

Never in his life did he ever think he’d make it here.

Being with someone he loved.

To meet and hang out with people he could hopefully call his own family

It was uplifting, extremely so.

And as the holiday ends, he’s certain to pull you aside for a final, quiet moment. Just the two of you.

“It’s very lively, isn’t it?”

“Of course it is, Yagi. My family and friends tend to be a little rowdier than usual this time of year. I think the season just does that to people.”

“It’s pleasant. Thank you for letting me in for the holidays, (Y/N).”

“It’s no problem at all, I love you. So, isn’t it natural that I’d want to spend my time with you during this holiday?”

“Haha, I guess you’re right! Still...you didn’t have to.”

“Are you alright, Toshi?”

“Perfectly fine. It’s just... so difficult to put my feelings into words.”

“Then don’t.”

“Wha-”

“...”

“...that. Was very pleasant.”

“Kisses tend to be like that. Merry Christmas, Toshi~. Hey, you’re definitely coming over next year right?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, (Y/N)”

Yuga Aoyama

Christmas has always been a time for his family to stop working and huddle together, enjoying their time together before school and work pulled Yuga apart from his family

Memories of the bright, sparkly Christmas tree his parents always put up every year always flows into his mind around this time of year

The scent of sugar cookies and cinnamon always bring back the memories of the large meals his family would share when he was younger.

But then those memories are corrupted, replaced with the one time his quirk went out of control, blasting the tree he admired so much with his naval laser.

The scent of cinnamon and spices burning in his nose as he remembers accidentally blasting the chair opposite him when eating with his family, thankfully, an empty chair

With the mixed feelings brewing in him concerning the holidays, Yuga spends a bit of time every year browsing all the websites and catalogs he can, searching for the latest support items released for use of all pro heroes around the world.

Hoping that one day he could find something more efficient at containing his naval laser

And considering his faulty quirk- anything to improve his abilities, so he’s able to use his quirk for longer lengths of time or to improve the strength of the laser itself

Just watching him brood over the various magazines is enough to squeeze your heart

It eventually becomes an annual endeavor to cheer him up in time for Christmas, which is honestly not too hard to do.

After all, he’s been dealing with these issues for a majority of his life.

Taking him out on walks to see the lights being put up always puts a small smile on his face, being an avid admirer of all things lovely and shiny

He also finds it fun to bring you out shopping. No need to buy anything, Just the process of browsing and trying on clothing is enough to entertain him for hours on end.

But make no mistake, if he really likes something on you, he’ll buy it.

There’s just something about being with you that takes the edge off of the holidays, making the season more palpable and pleasant for him

It’s as if being with you paves over all those memories he has of the holidays, the beginning of his relationship with you truly marking a fresh start in his life

Besides, what kind of boyfriend would he be if he let his mood drag down the entirety of Christmas for you?

“Here, I figured you’d like it~.”

“Oh, shampoo and conditioner? Rose scented?”

“Something to remind you of me~.”

“I love it, Yuga~. You always do smell lovely.”

“I do? I MEAN- ahem, of course, I do, it’s only natural that someone as stunning as me smells just as stunning~!”

“Alright, alright. Open up my gift now. I want to see that ‘stunning’ smile of yours~.”

“Haha, as my (Y/N) commands-...Is this a support item?”

“I spotted it in a small catalog from America, it helps to focus light. And while it’s supposed to be for people with laser vision, I think we can make adjustments to make more out of your quirk~.”

“I love it. So, so much. Thank you, (Y/N)”

“Oof! Your hug is a little tight there, sweetie. But I am glad you liked it. Merry Christmas, Yuga.”

“Merry Christmas, (Y/N). I swear, I’ll make it up to you next year. I promise~.”

[patronusofthepugs]

Team Coon And Friends

Part Three of South Park Super Hero AU. Or the Quirk AU? Or maybe SP Sky High? God damn, help me name this thing please. Whatever, the kids have powers and they be angsty about it.

Stan Marsh: His power is shape shifting, specifically into animals. In his early years, he usually shape shifts  into animals that would help him avoid situations. Mom wants him to take out the trash? 

 “Checkmate Sharon, I’m a butterfly now. What do you want me to do? To lift those bags with my tiny insect arms? Are you trying to kill me, Mother?” 

“Oh, you want me to present my biology report? Yeah, how about I just turn into a mole and you guys can observe me. Is that science enough for you?”  

He’s  mostly apathetic about his powers and the whole debate about being good or evil. Stan is neither, he’s just super average. Thanks to his dad. 

  Randy has the power to manipulate plants. If he wanted, he could squeeze the life out of a man with vines or quickly make a flower trampoline for jumping survivors out of a burning building. But instead, he just grows a lot of weed. Like A LOT of weed. Any superhero or villain ambitions  was lost to the art of the bong. His mom is marginally better, she has the power to control wind. But just small breezes, enough to be pleasant, comfortable even.  Both of his parents had applied themselves to living in obscurity and Stan figures he’ll follow in their footsteps. 

 After all, he’s a little selfish and honestly he can live with that. Sometimes, in this shitty world, you need to look out for yourself. But then he starts to date Wendy, and her light begins to cast some unforgiving shadows on him. Because she doesn’t hesitate to do the right thing. While Stan? Well, he’s always hesitating, he doesn’t feel strongly about anything. He doesn’t see the point in throwing himself in danger. For what? Some pat on the back, and a couple of cheers? But then he also doesn’t see the point in being evil.

 Unsurprisingly, Wendy breaks up with him in middle school and it isn’t pretty. Some choice words gets thrown out mostly about Stan’s selfishness and wish-washy nature.  Stan tries to summon the anger and self righteous but all he feels is numb. And empty. He enters Hero school with a desire to change. To find something worth fighting for. No matter what, whether it be good or evil.

Kyle Broflovski: He controls lightning. His powers are specifically lightning manipulation that he controls with his hands. It sounds cooler than it actually is. Right, now he can only cause little sparks that barely feels like a zap. And his hair is always fluffy. No matter what. He usually accidentally shocks himself or deliberately tries to zap Cartman. Kyle is lawful good. While he isn’t as serious as Kenny, he’s pretty sure that his path is down the hero route. 

  He wouldn’t mind going the business route either, after all his Dad is a lawyer that  advocates for heroes and helps them navigate the lawsuits around property damage. And his Mom? Well, she’s super cool too! She used to be a big shot villain in the day but has since reformed herself. She runs a support group for all the former villains and henchmen in South Park. It’s mostly an informal book club/gossip session but still she’s doing real good work.

 Kyle is pretty confident as he enters the Hero school. He figures he has his head straight, there’s no second guessing or doubt from him, unlike some of his other peers. Yup, the only thing Kyle has to worry about is the way his face flushes and his heart beats faster every time Stan takes off his shirt to use his powers. But even that, he isn’t too worried about. After all everyone probably realizes their best fried is super hot. It’ll pass. 

But after finding out about his Dad’s double life, Kyle realizes that he has way bigger problems to worry about. He has the chance to be the big hero, to be part of the greats and take down evil but in doing so it will destroy his family. For once, Kyle is torn between his heart and his head. He stands on the precipice between good and evil.

Eric Cartman: His power is his skin is literally rubber. Anything and everything will bounce off of him. He’s also super strong and sturdy. Often times, he’s the muscle of the group, a fact that he won’t ever shut up about. Cartman lives his life barreling forward, heedless of the chaos that he leaves behind him. He doesn’t feel pain so of course he’s going to crash through doors and walls. His Mom eventually installs titanium doors and walls in their house because while she loves her Pookums, she can’t afford the constant repairs. Even though he  hates to admit it, Cartman has something in common with Kyle. He’s sure of his path that he’s going to take.

 He’s a villain all of the way, Baby. Hell yeah, sign him up! Fuck that hippie good doer shit. He knows where the real power lies so of course he’s going to take it. He’s insufferable and smug all through out school, constantly jeering at their teachers and at the hero kids like Wendy. What a bunch of losers. 

But then their team is assigned to their first mission and everything goes tits up. They fuck up. Badly. Kyle is too distracted, Stan panics and is unable to settle onto an animal to change in to and Cartman? Well, he did what he does best. He got super pissed off and charged in.

 He sets off a minefield. He’s fine because he’s Cartman but once the smoke clears, he sees Kyle’s and Stan’s limp bodies. And for the first time, in his life he feels honest to god fear shoot through. It’s ice cold with a bite, it paralyzes him as he could only watch as his best friends in the world bleed out in front of him. 

They shoot a lot of shit with each other and he’s pretty sure they hate each other on most days. But they always come back together, like magnets they’re never apart. He realizes that he actually love these guys, they’re his god damn family and they’re about to fucking die in front of him. 

Kenny and his team end up rescuing them that day. Butters is too shocked at the sight of Eric’s tear stained face to say something dopey. And Wendy is shaken at the sight of Stan’s burnt body.  Kenny is also silent but he also gives Cartman a tight hug, one that makes his heart throb painfully. Fuck. Not this asshole too. 

That night Cartman lays in his race car bed and thinks how close he came to losing something that he didn’t know was precious to him. He also thinks he’s in some deep shit because if he is to continue his villainy path, well that means means being on the battlefield against his friends. And it would break him. But if he was to turn his back on the dark, he’s going to be in even deeper shit. 

  Cartman is an ambitious bastard. He already has evil connections across the city, connections that would slit his throat without hesitation if he thought about betraying them. And he owes a number of them confidential Intel about the school and its defenses. If he doesn’t deliver, Cthulhu is gonna hang him by his balls and fry him in gravy. But if the super villains storm the school, his friends will die. No question about it.  Either way, he’s fucked. God fucking damn it. 

Part One Here       Part Two Here

[catsafarithewriter]

"You trusted me when no one else would, so now I will always return the favor" or however the prompt is written. Feel free to edit to fit, but make it Super Villain AU. Or, Film Noir Detective Baron AU. Wuv u

A/N: One Super Villain AU coming up! I know I usually default to Haru & Baron, but I couldn’t get this line to work in the AU yet (they don’t know each other well enough yet for this line to have any pathos) so I detoured off with a Toto-centric ficlet. Enjoy! 

(And wuv u too, Shelbs)

For all the other lovely prompts I received, I shall be working on them over the next week, and you should see them appearing once they’re done. But, for now, enjoy this ficlet!

Toto Morrigan, doctor, birdwatcher, part-time baritone, liked to consider himself a fine, upstanding member of society, except that fine, upstanding members of society didn’t usually cavort with super villains. 

Super was perhaps a bit rich though, even if Baron did have super agility and strength and other super skills that Toto had never asked about. Toto had known Baron long enough to remember the cape phase, and it was difficult to take anyone seriously after spending several afternoons untangling them from their cape. 

Most fine, upstanding members of society probably didn’t keep a freeze-ray in their top right kitchen cupboard either, but there were certain precautions needed when one was the go-to doctor of the city’s most-wanted super villain. 

As the sound of fine china clinking echoed along Toto’s otherwise silent house, the doctor, birdwatcher, part-time baritone gently removed the freeze-ray from the cupboard. It looked a lot like a hairdryer - possibly because that’s what it had started life as - and might have gone entirely without comment if it hadn’t been hiding away in a kitchen cabinet. He switched the safety off and stalked through into the lounge. 

When he saw the identity of the uninvited guest, the freeze-ray lowered, but not by much. 

“Humbert,” he greeted. 

The man seated in Toto’s favourite armchair looked like the type of person who would run a bookshop, or perhaps an artisan cafe. Since Humbert did actually run a tea shop, Toto had never quite been convinced that Humbert didn’t dress deliberately with such a fashion in mind. It was a casual outfit, comfy and non-threatening, with a woollen cardigan and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. 

Humbert smiled, and Toto had to make an active effort to remember that the super villain had just broken into his house. 

“Toto. My dear friend.”

“It’s Thursday,” Toto said. 

“Indeed it is.”

“Thursdays are my day off.”

“Well then, it’s just as well I’m just dropping by then, isn’t it?”

Toto scowled, but he could already feel the irritation draining away. He sighed and lowered the ray. “What are you doing here, Humbert?”

“Can’t a super villain make sure his favourite minion is recovering well after a near-death experience without suspicion?”

“Not a minion,” Toto amended, although the objection was more out of habit than anything else. “And, no, you can’t. Not without warning, and certainly not by letting yourself in.”

Humbert motioned to the table before him. “I made you tea.”

“With my best china set,” Toto noted, doing his best to sound disapproving. He had to bite the inside of his cheek to stop the reluctant smile from rising to his lips though. He closed his eyes, partly to look pointedly frustrated, but mostly because it was easier to not be charmed if he wasn’t making direct eye contact, and sat down in his second-favourite seat. It sagged in the middle. “Humbert, you cannot just break into my house like this–”

“Do you see anything broken?” Humbert asked. 

“My trust.”

“You wound me.” 

“What if anyone had seen you?” Toto persisted. “How am I going to explain you picking the lock on my front door?”

“Do you really think I need to pick the lock anymore?”

“What other way would you–?” Toto sighed. “How long have you had a copy of my key?”

“Since you asked me to housesit your plants.” 

“That was–” Toto groaned. “Really? Have you been sneaking into my house for the past two years?”

There was a pause from Humbert. “I may owe you some tea and milk.” 

“You have your own house! With tea and milk! Why…?”

“Villain?” Humbert offered. He passed across a cup, which Toto reluctantly took. Admittedly, Humbert knew how to make a damn good cup of tea. 

“Don’t make me regret patching you up all these years,” Toto muttered, but it was mostly into the cup. He eyed the super villain. Humbert did indeed look unharmed, so he probably wasn’t here to request a new scar being sewn up or bandages applied. Toto lowered the tea. “So if you’re really not here on… business,” he eventually settled on, “then what are you doing here?”

“You were pretty seriously injured after the Scourge incident last month.”

“That wasn’t your fault,” Toto said. “There were a dozen other people in that tram carriage. It just happened to be someone you knew who got shot.” Toto gave Humbert a meaningful look. “You’re not doing your villain reputation much good by worrying over civilians.” 

“Maybe not, but I can still worry over a friend.” 

“Hmm.” Toto took another sip. “No, there’s something else,” he decided. “Something you’re not telling me.” 

Humbert gave a light chuckle. “You know me far too well, Toto.” 

“Far better than any law-abiding doctor should,” Toto agreed. “So, what is it? What dark and terrible secret have you come to burden on me now?”

“When have I ever burdened you with a dark and terrible secret?”

“I could certainly do without being an accessory to super villainy.” 

“Ah, but you would miss me.” 

Toto snorted and deliberately avoided making eye contact. He mumbled something that might have been confirmation into his tea. “Just tell me, Humbert,” he eventually managed. “What have you done?”

“Such little trust, to have assumed I have done anything,” Humbert teased, but even as Toto watched, Humbert’s eyes turned serious. 

Humbert had strange eyes. Glittering, almost feline eyes, green in some lights and golden in others. Toto had always wondered if that was some side effect of his super powers, but had never quite steered the conversation in a direction where he could ask. He also didn’t want to admit just yet that his own eyes were drawn to Humbert’s at an alarming rate. 

“I don’t suppose you remember that week you took off, back in September?” Humbert asked slowly. 

“Unsurprisingly, I do remember my holiday to Spain,” Toto confirmed. “Would have been a rather disappointing holiday otherwise. Why?” His eyes narrowed as suspicion set in. “You said you were going to keep a low profile while I was gone.”

Humbert wet his lips as he considered his next confession. “I may… have had a building fall on top of me.” 

“Goddammit, Humbert!”

“My mistake, admittedly, I should have been quicker–”

“One week, Humbert. One week! I go away for one week and you nearly get yourself killed!”

“–but,” the super villain continued, “as you can see, I was not. So, I think that counts in my favour, something that you should consider when I tell you how I did not die.”

“And how did you not die?” Toto asked flatly. 

“I had help.”

“From…?” Toto prompted. “Tell me it wasn’t Muta. That butterball has the medical prowess of my little finger - less. At least my little finger has seen surgery.”

“It wasn’t Muta.” 

“It better not have been Louise. Your sister will get into so much trouble if she’s found harbouring a super villain under her roof.” 

“It wasn’t Louise,” Humbert confirmed. 

“Not Persephone. Please do not tell me you got the mayor’s wife to stitch you up. She doesn’t even know who you are!” 

“No… but that’s not a bad idea–”

“Humbert!”

“Right. Yes, back to the subject at hand.” He inhaled. “I did not die because I was helped by the president of the Baron Fan Club.”

“That’s not a real thing.”

“Au contraire, my little minion--”

“Please don’t call me that.”

“--for, behold!” Humbert triumphantly held up something small and round and with tiny shiny lettering surrounding a sparkly top hat.

Toto squinted. “Did you make that yourself?”

“Of course not. That, my dear friend, is official merchandise from the Baron Fan Club, provided by none other than the president of this distinguished society.”

Toto watched as a little of the glitter shedded. “Distinguished, huh?” he echoed, fighting to keep his voice neutral. “And, pray tell,” he said, somewhat mimicking Humbert’s cadence, “how many members does this distinguished society have?”

“Ah, now that would be telling.” 

Toto bit his tongue to keep himself from calling Humbert out. “Oh, I bet it would,” still slipped out, regardless. He overlooked the apparent existence of the questionable fan club long enough to register where Humbert had been going with this. “Hang on, when you said you were helped by the president...” Toto’s eyes narrowed, “does that include your usual penchant for breaking and entering, or did you forgo that particular foible that time around?”

Humbert’s eyes darted guiltily to one side. “She helped, and that is the important part here.”

“Oh god, tell me you did not break into this woman’s house.”

“She took it rather well, all things considering.” And he was considering it now; Toto could see the cold realisation running across those ridiculously curious eyes. “In hindsight,” he eventually admitted, “not one of my better ideas, but I was running out of options.” 

“Would’ve served you right if she’d called the police on you,” Toto muttered. “So, that’s it? You crashed on some poor woman’s sofa for a night and demanded she stitch you back together? I hope you paid to have the blood cleaned off.”

“She refused,” Humbert said in a small voice. “Said something about not wanting to raise questions by hiring out a cleaner, and knowing how to remove blood stains anyway.”

Toto took a long, patient breath and rose to his feet, his cup empty. “Well, as enlightening as this was, this is still my evening off. So unless you have anything else to confess--”

“I saw her again.”

Toto sat. Rather heavier than planned. “What?”

“It was when you were poisoned by Scourge’s gun. She was the scientist in charge of identifying the toxin and developing an antidote.”

If Toto concentrated, he could just about remember the woman. Admittedly, he had been slightly out of it following the poison, and the memory was mostly comprised of white overalls and the smell of apricot. “That was her?”

Somehow, he’d imaged the President of the Baron Fan Club would look... different.

Humbert nodded. 

“And you’re telling me because...?” Toto trailed off, unease quickly replacing bafflement. “She doesn’t know your real identity, does she?”

Humbert waved the worry away. “No. At least, I don’t think so.” He frowned. “I hope not. I’ve never seen her at the tea shop anyway...”

Toto waited for Humbert to get to the point. He usually did, eventually. 

“But, I’ve been considering dropping by her place again... intentionally, some time... when the situation isn’t quite so dire. As one would drop by a friend - like I’m doing now.”

Toto decided against reminding Humbert that he had stolen into this particular house with an illegally copied key. 

“You want to get to know her,” Toto translated. 

“Would that be such a bad thing?”

“Yes?!”

“I suppose I’m flattered,” Humbert continued, “that she formed a fan club devoted to me, even if she did admit it wasn’t done in all seriousness--”

At least that meant the woman had some common sense, Toto couldn’t help but think. 

“--but what harm could come out of seeing her again, perhaps just drop some flowers off to thank her for her help...?”

Toto leant a hand on Humbert’s arm and tried to ignore the way his thoughts scrambled at the contact. “Humbert,” he said gently, “do you trust me?”

Humbert looked up at him with those eyes that glimmered like gems. “You trusted me when no one else would, so now I will always return the favour.”

Dammit. How was Toto supposed to think when Humbert came out with unnecessarily heartfelt things like that?

“Good,” Toto eventually managed, when he felt he could speak without making a fool of himself. It still took him several more moments to follow it up. He patted Humbert’s arm and consciously leant back. “I mean, thank you.” Words. Form words, dammit. “Then please trust me when I say that is a bad idea. Look, if you were talking about a one-off thank you with this woman, that would be one thing. But you’re not, are you?”

Humbert met his gaze, and Toto saw he was hitting the mark. He continued. 

“Humbert, me, your sister, Muta... we’re all people who were already invested in you or involved with the underworld, but this woman... she isn’t. And she doesn’t have to be. She could still go on to have a relatively crime-free life, even with her rather strange hobbies. But if you keep muscling your way into her life, she’s going to lose that. Is that what you want?”

Humbert was silent for a good long moment, and then he finally nodded. He patted Toto’s arm in the same manner Toto had previously. “That’s why I came to yours. You always have such good advice.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” Toto said dryly. 

“I probably should thank her for sewing me back together after the building incident, even so,” Humbert said. “An one-off, of course.” 

“Of course,” Toto echoed. 

“But what?”

“Well, there’s always the classics: chocolates, roses, promises you don’t intend to keep,” Toto rattled off. At Humbert’s disapproving look, he rolled his eyes. “I was kidding. Kidding. Just buy her flowers. She’ll love that.”

“You think?”

Toto stared for a long moment. “Seriously, why are you asking me for ladies’ advice? Go ask your sister, she’s the one with actual experience - and interest.”

“Good point. Thank you, Toto.”

Toto snorted. “Buy me flowers and then we’re even.” He watched as Humbert got to his feet - with feline grace, as always - and, with a defeated sigh, leant back to catch him as he went. “Hey, it might not be a great idea for this woman to get to know the Baron, the super villain, but... there’s no reason why she can’t get to know Humbert, your local tea shop owner.”

Humbert’s eyes lit up. God, he was obvious. “Duly noted. I owe you flowers for this.”

“And tea and milk!” Toto shouted as Humbert vanished out. “Pay me back for all the goddamn tea you’ve been stealing first, you skinflint cretin!” There was the slam of the front door, and Toto collapsed back into his seat. Only the cups left any sign that he hadn’t imagined the whole encounter. 

“He could at least have washed up.”

Toto Morrigan, doctor, birdwatcher, part-time baritone, liked to consider himself a fine, upstanding member of society, except that fine, upstanding members of society didn’t crush on their local super villain. 

Well, usually. 

[dlamp-dictator]

Allen’s Rambles about Magical Girl Spec Ops

Well folks, since the second half of MGRP: Limited isn’t going to come out for likely another 4 months I’ll have to talk about different Edgy Magical Girl series for awhile. Thankfully, I’ve been reading for a while that’s finally got enough material for me to talk about, Magical Girl Spec Ops -Asuka-, or MGSO as I’m going to be calling it. I was originally going to talk about this one in another Seinen Adventure, but... I won’t have enough material for that part of my blog for at least another few months, and I want to talk about this manga now before the anime of it comes out in a few weeks.

But moving on, MGSO is about Asuka Otori, a retired magical girl that fought in a war against the Disas Beasts three years before the story the begins. She’s in high school now and wishes to just live a normal life after the horrors of war she saw during the Disas War.

As for why such a war was trauma... well, the the Disas Beasts in question are basically...

This... So I think the horrors of a war with them explains itself. They also explain how Magical Girls and magical items are used as tools of wars, some stuff about global politics, things like that. 

Eventually, Asuka is forced back onto the frontlines as Magical Girls and magical world items start to be traded around by criminal organizations and terrorist groups around the world, with said groups finally coming to Japan. And... 

Well, that’s the main reason I’ve been hesitating on writing about this series for so long folks. There’s only 4 volumes of the manga out as of the time I’m writing this. Through those 4 volumes have so far shown us how the world works now that Magical Girls are essential super soldiers working for their countries with all the political nonsense that goes with it, but that’s all it’s done.There’s an overarching plot of the Disas Beasts being artificially made and sold by a secret organization called the Babel Brigade that’s been drip-fed to us, but there’s not enough concrete stuff about them to say what their main goal is, nor the big players within it. I really wouldn’t expect much in terms of actual plot development until the next volume coming out in late January. So far it’s just been Call of Duty: Black Ops featuring Magical Girls.

That said, this series has gripped me with what it’s shown. I was originally going to have those plus sides in paragraph form, but... again, with no streamlined plot as of yet and not enough information on anyone aside from Asuka to talk about, I’ll just stick it all in list form. There will be some spoilers ahead, but I’ll try and keep them brief and vague.

Asuka is treated less as a traditional magical girl and more as a soldier coming back to service after a big war and I love that. She even has some PTSD flashbacks at times that make her want to back out of most military operations, but trudges on for the sake of her friends and former teammates. Her struggle to keep a normal life while doing secret military operations and the mental toll it takes on her just makes me want her to succeed even more.

As for as much as politics move the plot and the girls we’re thankfully not subjected to seeing a bunch of suits sitting in a room and debating politics. There’s enough of a political aspect is there enough to show that these girls and these soldiers are political tools, but not so much that there’s more talking than shooting. 

The fact that all of Asuka’s original squad was ethnically diverse was a pleasant surprise, with the main group of survivors being her, a former classmate of hers, an American, a Russian, and... a Hong Kong magical girl. Among the original girl there was also a French and Mexican magical too, but going any further is spoiler territory. 

Yes, the American and Russian magical girls are petty as hell with each other and it’s hilarious.

“Yo, Russkie!” 

“Long time no see, Yankee. Are you still hotheaded and stupid as always?”  

“Oh, says you! Your cold-fish robot vibe hasn’t changed one bit.” 

This is my favorite exchange in the manga yet.

The side characters are pretty good as well. Asuka’s non-magical girl friends provide some levity to the tenser moments, and you really feel worried for their safety when Asuka’s soldier life intertwines and interferes with her student life and puts her friends in danger. That balance between the two feels a lot more serious than most magical girl series.

I’m also excited to see the newest magical girl villian, Chisato. Her rise to villainy makes her pretty sympathetic to me. She chose to work for the bad guys, but let out of spite and more to show appreciation for how they helped her despite their evil deeds.

There are some other points I found interesting as well, but those would really spoiler the series. Overall, I’m excited to read more of this manga in the coming weeks, and for the anime that’ll be coming out soon, but like usual I’ll probably stick with the manga unless some cool fight scenes get animated.

Actually... I think I’ll explain this now since it’s second time I’ve done something like this and for the same reason I didn’t watch the Goblin Slayer anime.

I’ve said this several times before, but for me, between my Ramblings, my digital drawings, my video game habits, I frankly stare at enough screens in my day. I like to use manga and books as a way to give my eyes a break from all the lights. I usually don’t watch anime adaptations of manga I’m actively reading because I already know what happens, and I already have certain expectations of how certain characters sound and deliver lines. Even the Japanese dub tends to irk me at times when something isn’t what I expected, and I don’t want to turn into a venomous fanboy constantly making comparisons between the two sources. I don’t think it’s good to compare an adaptation to the original too heavily, and when I’m so invested in a series both emotionally and financially I tend to get a little... rabid. Besides, as I said before the real plot of the manga with the Babel Brigade hasn’t kicked off yet, and I don’t want to be spoiled on that by the anime, so I’ll wait a few months after the winter season ends to binge it. I know that sounds a bit arrogant, but in this way I won’t start whining about every little difference like a fanboy, so... make of that what you will.

In any case, I think that’s it for this Rambling. Still not up to my preference in terms of quality, but MGSO is still drip-feeding it’s main plot, so maybe my next essay will be better. I’ve got... some plans for these next few essays.

[aotopmha]

I saw the Broly movie in a specific way (as it is I have no other ways to see it anyway - low or high quality) and have been stewing on it a little. I'm probably going to write a much more elaborate post once the highest quality version is out. I'll also try my best to not give many spoilers here and keep it vague, but I will address the big spoiler everyone knows - Gogeta.

So, here's the stuff I really liked:

-Goku's character. He cares about getting a good fight going into it all and as always, is naive in not entirely good ways, but you also see him be very empathic and sweet and care about protecting the Earth. The usual, technically, but above all, I appreciate the balance here. I was never bothered by DBS exgaggerating Goku's traits at points to the point where I hated his character (some of those points are actually very interesting to me), but it did bug me a few times. Here, the balance is pretty much perfect to me. Aside from that, he does have a pretty interesting character moment at the end of the movie (not the obvious one, but rather something the moment implies) - it's something that will only be obvious if you think about Goku's initial story in OG DB, perhaps even something that could entirely be nothing or unintentional, but a bit of character writing I think that potentially creates a parallel between Goku and Broly that I regardless found interesting. I even thought they would make it one of the central points of the story, but it's there in a much more subdued way, to the point where it could potentially be unintentional, but I chose to think it's not.

-They fixed Broly and actually made me feel for him. He has a pretty clearly defined personality, and above all, motivations that make sense and are very human. He's still pretty basic, in that he is reserved and barely speaks, but that's part of what is also unique about him to me. Much of his personality comes from his expressions and manner of behaviour, rather than a very complex perspective on the world or elaborate dialog. The complexity he has also comes more from the circumstances and the interaction/relationships with other characters around him, rather than a straight-up clearly defined character arc. However, out of any new characters introduced in Super, I think he is the best example of a character that could have an arc that could go in several different directions. Out of most of Super's new cast I feel like he has the most room to do something with. Rather than being just a story that is finished by the end of the movie, this movie feels more like a beginning for Broly.

-Paragus. Paragus is an interesting villain because he's 100% a villain, but you can still get where he comes from - and he actually even has an arc that leads to his villainy.

-Chirai is really fun and very likeably justice-driven and proactive. She's the "heart" within the movie along with Goku and I love her for being so empathic. Lemo is the crusty old man sort of counterpart to her, empathic, but more passive about it.

- Freeza is entertaining humor-wise, but also still very hateable as a villain. I like his further development into a more effective villain. He's kinder to his subordinates, ready to retreat when things look bad, rather than just doing everything to get a victory right away - undoubtedly evil and self-serving still, but much more calm and collected about reaching his goal. It wouldn't surprise me if being so lax with him would later lead to very bad things.

-The more diverse portrayal of the Saiyans. They're not just a cold-blooded warrior race, but we also see regular workers like Gine or Beets and the social stratification of the whole society plays a big role in why the story takes place at all. Basically, we get a much more nuanced look at the Saiyans.

-Piccolo's brief role. I really liked his moment with Goku and his moment with both, Goku and Vegeta later on was a blast.

-Animation and music were mostly spot on. Great, great stuff. I thought there was some odd music placement in one scene, but beyond that, I think even some of the sillier-seeming music choices fit. There were a couple of CG moments, but they didn't distract me all that much and outside that I thought the movie looked pretty excellent throughout. This is in fact probably the best Dragon Ball has ever looked and the other big reason I can't wait for the high quality version of the movie.

I had parts of the movie I wasn't as big on as others, but I didn't straight-up dislike anything in it.

-The fights took too long. Particularly the Gogeta fight felt too long. It was a pretty-looking battle, but that was just it. The fights with Vegeta and Broly and Goku and Broly, plus their double-team at least had character stuff going. The Gogeta fight is pretty much 100% fanservice stuff outside of the finale, which did a very cool perspective thing with both participants of the fight. But, again, at the very least, it was REALLY pretty-looking fanservice stuff.

-Related to that, while it fits the more focused nature of the story, it's really odd that nobody else but Piccolo seems to notice the battle. In fact, I think Broly could've been restrained by Gohan and the other fighters just as well as Freeza.

-Gogeta is pretty much the weakest link to me in terms of plotting, though. Again, imo, nothing that ruins the whole thing because I think the outcome would be same no matter which way - getting the Potara (Goku could have just gotten them from Shin by quickly teleporting there, the movie does not address this, it just says they don't have the Potara or Senzu) would've just prevented maybe some of Freeza's beating. I think a Fusion or something of that level was actually needed considering Broly's green-haired form clearly kept up with Gogeta and he went into it after being pushed by Gogeta, so I can believe Goku and Vegeta individually would've been beaten if they pushed him.

That is, if you don't consider Ultra Instinct. Ultra Instinct probably could've also done the job, but they dance around that by having Goku do the smart thing and retreat before it could happen that he is pushed too far and have him opt for the Fusion instead. If that didn't work out, Ultra Instinct probably would've done the job, too. You could replace any of them because with any option Broly would probably be pushed into his green-haired form and defeated. Gogeta has just never been used before, so it's a more unique option.

-The Minus stuff went past pretty quickly and I actually think the rewrite is very much better than the initial Minus story, but it's still kind of bland. Bardock's story fits in what the Saiyans' life is like much better, but Gine is still boring and I still basically felt nothing for this part. In this case though, the purpose for it was just setup, which is another reason why I'm more alright with it.

I think the series has had much worse writing moments than these and it makes me happy this is the most I have to complain about. It's all mostly quality of life stuff to me and doesn't break the story or it's ideas.

Above all, I appreciate that this movie took something soulless like Broly's character and gave it soul - portions of it are clearly there to just please the fans, but the whole thing is tied together by pretty strong and heartfelt character writing and themes.

I want to definitely recommend it. If you can, support it. I want DB to continue have such heartfelt stories and look so good. This is a very good direction for the series, even if I'm bummed about the older side cast not getting to do much.

I have much more elaborate thoughts on basically all the characters and, again, 100% can't wait for the HD version. I also can't wait to dig in the themes. It has a very simple, but human core.

Right now, is it my fave DB movie? Not sure. I think it's up there.

Right now, out of those I've seen, I think only BoG tops it, though. We'll see how I'll feel on rewatches.

[aion-rsa]

The Most Intense Better Call Saul Moments

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At the beginning of the month, Better Call Saul star Bob Odenkirk picked up his fourth Golden Globe nomination for his lead role in the Breaking Bad spinoff series. In the midst of preparing for the sixth and final season of the AMC drama, Odenkirk found out about his nomination while walking his dog, and let slip to Deadline that filming for the new season will begin in March.

That’s not the only nugget of info that Odenkirk gave Deadline in regard to Better Call Saul season 6. In a phone interview, Odenkirk told fans to expect a combustible final batch of episodes. 

“I can’t wait for the fireworks, really,” Odenkirk said about the upcoming season, which is expected to feature more episodes than the usual 10. “Our show is a bit of a slow burn over the past few years, and [series creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould] build up. There’s certainly exciting moments throughout, but towards the end, it gets super supremely intense.”

“Slow burn” is a common phrase used to describe the prequel series that finds earnest lawyer and ex-con man Jimmy McGill slowly transform into the shameless criminal defense attorney and sleazeball Saul Goodman. In comparison to parent series Breaking Bad, which saw milquetoast chemistry teacher Walter White undergo a far more dramatic transformation into the drug kingpin Heisenberg, Better Call Saul is seen as a smaller stakes story far more focused on interpersonal relationships than thrilling set-pieces and explosive showdowns. 

However, that reputation betrays the fact that Better Call Saul also offers plenty of high-stakes thrills and hard-charged moments. Below we’ve compiled the five most intense moments of Better Call Saul so far. These scenes offer a different type of tension than Breaking Bad, but are nonetheless arresting in their own way.

Chuck’s Court Room Blow-Up 

Season 3 Episode 5 “Chicanery”

The relationship and struggle between the brothers McGill is the lifeblood of Better Call Saul. Even after Chuck’s death (which is itself quite the intense moment), the psychological impact of the jealousy experienced and their falling out still informs so many of Jimmy’s decisions. “Chicanery” features the moment that their relationship deteriorated beyond repair in a stunning courtroom sequence that found Chuck revealed to be the true villain in Jimmy’s story.

Without stunning scientific feats, shootouts, drug deals, or fiery explosions, Better Call Saul captivated audiences simply by showcasing two brothers destroying their relationship. No Machiavellian efforts necessary, just Jimmy’s accomplice Huell slipping a harmless battery in a pocket; no surprise hitman at the door, just an unannounced appearance by a concerned ex-wife. The stakes are significantly smaller than a Breaking Bad setpiece, but far more personal and more than capable of keeping viewers at the edge of their seats. 

Chuck’s unraveling takes place in one room, but director Daniel Sackheim keeps things interesting by utilizing the reflections in clocks or by keeping the background action in focus. Michael McKean stuns with an incredible, spiteful, and vulnerable performance, making Chuck utterly despicable yet somehow sympathetic at once. But only sympathetic to a point. 

Though Chuck’s mental condition is clearly something to worry about, his gross jealousy and resentment shown toward his brother, a brother who respected and selflessly helped Chuck time and time again, is unforgivable. In this tense courtroom blowup, the man that Jimmy looked up to as a monument is reduced to pitiful rubble.

Gene and the Cab Driver 

Season 4 Episode 1 “Smoke”

Prior to the beginning of season 4, co-creator Peter Gould said that Better Call Saul was envisioned as a “romp.” However, the first episode of the fourth season is most definitely not a romp. “Smoke” takes place in the immediate aftermath of Chuck’s death, with Jimmy seemingly trying to ignore his complicated feelings over his brother’s passing. But before we get to that, we spend a little time in the post-Breaking Bad timeline with Gene, Jimmy’s new alter ego living and working in Omaha, Nebraska, trying to exist under the radar and escape the fallout from his criminal past.

The time spent with Gene is the best part of the season premiere. Almost every season starts with a Gene check-in, but season 4 begins with a moment that almost scares Jimmy into abandoning his life in Omaha and starting over again. Jimmy has two close-calls, first at a hospital in the aftermath of a fainting spell. A nurse handling his registration says that his social security number is incorrect, causing the hair on the back of Gene’s neck to stand up. Before he starts hyperventilating, the nurse reveals she simply typed his information into the computer incorrectly, which gets a huge sigh of relief out of Gene. 

The second encounter isn’t as harmless. Gene is picked up at the hospital by a cab, and notices the cab driver staring at him uncomfortably. Finally, Gene notices that the cab driver has an Albuquerque air-freshener hanging from his rearview mirror. With just the thought of being recognized, we can see Gene’s blood run cold. It may not sound like a momentous moment, but director Minkie Spiro ratchets up the tension and makes us feel every bit of Jimmy’s intense fear of being discovered.

Mike Kills Werner 

Season 4 Episode 10 “Winner”

Most of Mike’s season 4 story revolves around him watching over the German team assembled to build Gus Fring’s super lab, the same lab that Walter White would use to perfect his meth cooks. It’s not the most exciting use of the hard-boiled hitman’s time, but it eventually leads to a moment that signifies Mike stepping over the morally grey line into full-blown villainy. This isn’t Mike’s only revealing moment of the series, as the sixth episode of Better Call Saul dives into Mike’s background and the revelation that he was directly responsible for his son’s death, but this is the moment of no return for Mike, the act that would solidify his involvement with Gus Fring’s operation and lead to his eventual demise. 

After Werner, the engineer lead, escapes the underground facility after specifically being forbidden to do so, Gus orders Mike to hunt Werner down and tie off the loose end. Mike must find Werner before Lalo does, as Gus doesn’t want the Salamanca heavy to learn of his plans. The search and capture of Werner harkens back to the hardboiled delights of Mike’s scenes in Breaking Bad.

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Also, the resolution of Mike’s search, ending with an expertly staged wideshot depicting Werner’s murder along with Mike’s wordless confirmation to Gus that the job had been done, shared some symmetry with Jimmy’s story. “Winner” finds Jimmy finally flashing the Saul Goodman seediness we’d come to know in Breaking Bad, so the episode depicts both characters seemingly shedding the last vestiges of their humanity.

Kim Faces Off Against Lalo

Season 5 Episode 9 “Bad Choice Road”

Lalo Salamanca was the big bad that Better Call Saul was missing. He’s the perfect villain and foil for Jimmy, someone that has as much swagger and charm as the slimy lawyer, but with a mean streak that rivals the best Breaking Bad villains. Lalo’s inclusion in the series has created nothing but chaos and danger, and the man has never felt more dangerous when showing up unexpectedly at Jimmy and Kim’s home.

 Jimmy’s near-death experience in the previous Season 5 episode “Bagman” may have been the most action-oriented episode of the series to date, but the follow-up features perhaps the most intense moment of Better Call Saul. In the middle of a fight after Kim abandons her position at Schweikart & Cokely, an argument that positions Jimmy as the selfish Chuck to Kim’s selfless Jimmy, the warring couple are interrupted by an urgent call from Mike; Lalo is at the door, and Mike demands that Jimmy keep his phone on so he can eavesdrop on the dangerous, impromptu visit. Lalo abandons his plans to return to Mexico after discovering Jimmy’s Esteem in the desert riddled with bullet holes and struts into their apartment to make himself comfortable. He’s ready to hear Jimmy’s story again, looking to catch him in a lie.

Throughout Lalo’s grilling, Jimmy gets noticeably more nervous and begs for Lalo to let Kim leave. During all of this, we watch Mike observing through a sniper scope on an adjacent building. Jimmy would typically have some sort of story ready to satiate Lalo, but he’s still in a fragile state and frankly appears shell shocked. His abilities as a bullshitter and impervious to Lalo. Fortunately, Kim steps up and speaks on his behalf, remaining tough with Lalo and poking holes in his concerns. 

The entire encounter is a nail-biter because Lalo is so unpredictable; if you come at him with the wrong tone, he won’t hesitate to display his disapproval. Fortunately, the bold strategy works, and Lalo promptly heads out. Still, this moment signifies that if Kim wasn’t already in the game before, she certainly is now, and that’s a terrifying prospect for the beloved character. We know that Jimmy won’t fall victim to Lalo’s violence, but the same can’t be said for Slippin’ Kimmy. 

Nacho’s Betrayal and Lalo’s Escape 

Season 5 Episode 10  “Something Unforgivable”

When creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould first floated the idea of a prequel series titled Better Call Saul, many fans salivated at the thought of getting to learn the backstories of two of the most popular characters from Breaking Bad, Saul Goodman and Mike Ehrmantraut. While Better Call Saul has certainly delivered on fleshing out the origins of the beloved antiheroes, it’s also been successful in creating its own memorable supporting cast. 

New to Gilligan’s New Mexico crime universe was a young Salamanca soldier and dealer, Nacho Varga, whose business frequently intersects with our familiar returning protagonists. Nacho’s story finds him struggling for survival as he’s caught between the warring Salamanca and Fring factions. Nacho is depicted as a smart character with a decent moral compass, but he’s gotten himself mixed up in a bad situation that frequently looks keen on making Nacho collateral damage in a cartel war.

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With his family threatened, Nacho is coerced into working as something of a double agent for Gus Fring, which has led to plenty of tense moments, but none more nerve-racking than the final episode of season 5, when Nacho attempts to aide Gus’ men in assassinating acting Salamanca boss, Lalo. After an uneasy meeting with Don Eladio, Nacho has to wait until 3 AM and unlock a gate located on Lalo’s ranch. When he walks outside in the middle of the night to complete the deed, Lalo is waiting in front of the gate, holding court around the fire. The tension erupts when Nacho uses a sneaky decoy to distract Lalo and open the gate. He walks out of the estate trusting that the trained killers will do their job, but Salamancas aren’t so easy to dispatch. 

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In a thrilling sequence, Lalo out-maneuvers and decimates every would-be assassin. Lalo’s genial spirit is erased while surveying the damage. A rage boils inside of him seeing the bodies of the innocent people that Nacho was hoping would be protected. Lalo hobbles off-screen Terminator-style, looking to enact his revenge. If Lalo was a frustrating presence before, now he’ll return to Albuquerque like a plague.

The post The Most Intense Better Call Saul Moments appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[deathitsclff]

RULES.  Repost, do not reblog !  Tag 10 !  Good  luck ! Tagged by: @untolikeiron​ Tagging: @wholemeasure​, @silverheartsilverskin​, @mercmouther​, @notafossil​, @backoffbub​, & anyone else who wants to do this

BASICS.

FULL  NAME :  Elektra Alexandria Natchios  NICKNAME/S :  ‘Lektra, Ellie, Weapon, Lost One, Perfect Death, Tainted Death, Lady Luckless BIRTHDAY :  August 13th ETHNIC  GROUP :  Biracial - Cambodian and Greek NATIONALITY :  Greek LANGUAGE/S :   Greek, English, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish  SEXUAL  ORIENTATION :  Bisexual ROMANTIC  ORIENTATION :   Biromantic RELATIONSHIP  STATUS :  Single (verse dependent) CLASS :   Upper HOME TOWN / AREA :  Island off the coast of Greece CURRENT  HOME :   Moves around a lot thanks to her job.  PROFESSION :  Assassin. 

PHYSICAL.

HAIR : Black EYES :  Brown NOSE :  roman FACE :  Oval LIPS :   Full COMPLEXION :  Warm with gold undertones BLEMISHES :  None SCARS : once described as covered in scars.  TATTOOS : none PIERCINGS:  ears HEIGHT :  5′5″ WEIGHT :  114 BUILD :  athletic, slender FEATURES :  long curly black hair that’s so dark it catches light and then destroys it. a face that’s to “die for.”  ALLERGIES :  None USUAL  HAIR  STYLE :  long and loose.  USUAL  FACE  LOOK :  resting bitch face.  USUAL  CLOTHING :  if she’s not in red silks then she is the height of Fashion. she likes classic clothing with clean lines. not a fan of high heels. 

PSYCHOLOGY.

FEAR/S : Bullseye, loss of control over her own destiny  ASPIRATION/S :  find peace POSITIVE  TRAITS :  loving, intelligent, loyal, protective, compassionate NEGATIVE  TRAITS : violent, ruthless, can be cold if you don’t know her.  MBTI :  ISFJ-A ZODIAC :  Leo TEMPERAMENT :  dramatic, romantic, fierce  SOUL  TYPE / S :  warrior ANIMALS :  phoenix VICE  HABIT/S :  literally murders people FAITH :  raised Greek Orthodox but she’s kinda nothing now.  GHOSTS ? :  Yes AFTERLIFE ? :  Yes REINCARNATION ? :  Yes ALIENS ? :  Yes POLITICAL  ALIGNMENT :  socialist ECONOMIC  PREFERENCE : idk this question either. elektra honestly doesn’t care about money.  SOCIOPOLITICAL  POSITION : upper class woman of color EDUCATION  LEVEL :  two years of ivy league schooling

FAMILY.

FATHER : Hugo Natchios  MOTHER :  Christina Natchios  SIBLINGS :  Orestez Natchios  EXTENDED  FAMILY :  Demetrios Natchios, Alexia Natchios, staff at her family house - Stavros, Theos, Athos.  NAME  MEANING/S : amber HISTORICAL  CONNECTION ? : Greek. In Greek myth she was the daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra and the sister of Orestes. She helped her brother kill their mother and her lover Aegisthus in vengeance for Agamemnon's murder. 

FAVOURITES.

DEITY :  None MONTH :  None SEASON :  Summer PLACE :  By the sea, or at the wall.  WEATHER :  Sun.  SOUND : waves hitting the shore SCENT/S :  jasmine, ocean spray, fresh baked bread.  TASTE/S :  all tastes  FEEL/S :  fresh linen ANIMAL/S :  Killer Whales NUMBER :  No preference COLOUR :  red

EXTRA.

TALENTS : killing, martial arts, meditation, yoga, dancing, playing piano, horseback riding, gymnastics, swimming  BAD  AT :  cooking, small talk, social interaction in general, knowing when people are flirting  TURN  ONS : kindness, understanding, loyalty  TURN  OFFS : cruelty, sadism, greed, treating waitresses like shit HOBBIES : yoga, reading, travel  TROPES :  action girl, back from the dead, chronic villainy, death by origin story, dodge the bullet, the dreaded, dual wielding, impaled with extreme prejudice, kung-fu wizard, made of iron, more deadly than the male, sai girl, super reflexes, waif-fu AESTHETIC  TAGS :  silk & iron 

[thisiswhatwereupagainst]

X-Men First Class Hellfire Club Re-Design

I was going through some old stuff of mine and found ideas for a version of the Hellfire Club in First Class that would be more comics-accurate and enjoyable for me. I think I might have posted it before, but in case I didn’t, here it is! In this version, the Hellfire Club has the same history and origins as its comicverse counterpart: Founded in the 18th century as a society for the most wealthy and elite, and is so to this today. However, while most of its members see it simply as a social club for them to enjoy mingling with fellow people of their status, it has a secret Inner Circle made up of some of the most powerful and influential people on the planet, who seek to dominate the world economically, politically, and socially through wealth. And now, that Inner Circle is made up of mutants. Their goal is the one that Sebastian Shaw originally espoused in their early appearance in the comics, but never quite seemed to get around to: Owning the mutant genome. Mutants are emerging, and the Hellfire Club sees in them the potential for profit if they can get there first. They want to get their hands on every mutant they can and use them for the development of bio-weapons, medicines, anything and everything that could be done using the literally endless potential abilities of mutantkind. They don't care about mutant rights or human acceptance or any of that---they care about profit, and they will happily put other mutants on the dissection table for it. They're also equally happy to profit from human bigotry, which they are already preparing for, developing and testing anti-mutant weapons so that when humankind becomes aware of mutants and panics, they'll already be ready to sell them the goods before anyone else. As with the original move Club, they're also doing the whole "trying to start the next world war" thing, justthey're instigating it for profit rather than propagating the mutant species. Unlike their comic book counterparts, their image should not evoke the 1700s/1800s or BDSM themes. Instead, they should be dressed in chic corporate business-wear most of the time; in combat, however, they switch to one-piece battle uniforms like the X-Men have. However, their uniforms should have a sleeker, more regal look, and admittedly a little on the sexier side too. They should just look 'cooler' than the X-Men, somehow; it fits with their 'better than you' attitude. Also unlike the comics, the Inner Circle are not named after chess pieces, but their comic book codenames are alluded to by being given these names (Black King, White Queen, etc.) in something like a government file, or over a secret radio transmission, something like that, either by themselves or by the government or by the X-men (ex: “White Queen incoming, over” or the like)

Hellfire Club Members:

Sebastian Shaw - Definitely not Kevin Bacon, definitely never a Nazi. Sebastian Shaw has the same background as his comicverse counterpart---born a poor steel worker, became a billionaire industrialist--and has the whole "tall muscular guy with sideburns and a ponytail" thing going on, as he should. He also is going to rip his shirt off at least once. Shaw should basically epitomize the "all business, nothing personal" approach. Profit and power are his first/only concerns, and he openly sneers at Erik's beliefs as much as he does at Charles'. Like Bacon!Shaw, he initially offers the X-Men the option to join him, but unlike Bacon!Shaw he makes no pretenses about being unwilling to "harm another mutant" if they don't. He should be a brilliant strategist, and incredible in physical combat (and not just because of his mutant abilities either) as well as classy as fuck (although there should a scene where he loses it and his poor Pennsylvania miner accent slips out and he looks mortified because he worked so hard to lose it) His big weakness, and the weakness of the Hellfire Club on the whole, is an inability to understand or trust people; he has recruited others based only on their powers and use to him, but he doesn't trust them or vice versa. Any of them would sell any of the others out in a second, in contrast to the solidarity between both the X-Men and, eventually, the Brotherhood. As with Bacon!Shaw, he has the prototype anti-telepathy helmet, invented by his labs and Dr. Essex, which both he and Dr. Essex wear (and which Magneto will take from Dr. Essex like he did with Bacon!Shaw, see Essex's section below) Emma Frost - Unlike Shaw, Emma doesn't come from a working class background, but was instead born into upper-crust society. However, she didn't coast by on her family's cash, but instead chose to build a fortune of her own as a businesswoman. While her mutant abilities are what made Shaw recruit her, it's this work ethic that gained his respect. Like Shaw, she's incredibly classy and intelligent, but she understands people much better he does because of her telepathy, and this makes her far better at manipulation. He makes battle strategies, she makes people strategies. While she lacks the physical combat skills of Shaw, her diamond form helps her make up for it, making her pack a hell of a punch and be immune to almost all physical assaults. She speaks with either a British accent or a posh WASP-type one, and she is very clearly equal to Shaw, not subordinate to him (in other words, no, she does not get him fucking ice for his drink, and if he dared ask, the movie would end a lot sooner BECAUSE SHE’D KILL HIM) Tessa/Sage - Their living version of Cerebro, the movie-verse Sage's abilities are limited to being able to detect other mutants. However, she also displays incredible combat abilities, which could either be the result of a super-human physique or simply of very dedicated training. Like the comicverse Tessa, she's the usually-silent assistant/secretary of Sebastian Shaw in both business and super-villainy (which, for him, are the same thing), rarely speaking or displaying personality, virtually a flesh and blood robot. She's practical to the point of ruthless, but also lacks any cruelty or sadism. Cold, detached, polite, but never mean, and even attempts to warn the X-Men away from messing with the Hellfire Club for their own sake. Selene Gallio - An eccentric heiress from Rome, she possesses telekinesis and pyrokinesis. She's secretly scheming to eliminate Shaw and Emma so as to put herself in the most powerful Inner Circle position, and uses the conflict with the X-Men to do so. Shaw and Emma, meanwhile, are also secretly trying to bump her off too! Again, this ends up being a big part of the reason that they're defeated by the X-Men, who use the backstabbing and manipulative nature of the Hellfire Club to play them off each other. Shaw also personally dislikes her for having only inherited her money, never worked for it, while she looks down on him for the reverse reason. While Shaw and Emma seem to see things as a business venture, she views it more as a game, and is less concerned with profit, more concerned with fun. Her opinion of mutantkind is that they have evolved to be predator upon humans, since humans have not had any natural predators for too long a time and nature abhors a vacuum; she is quick to note, however, that she herself is equal-opportunity in her selection of prey and thus happy to kill mutants as well, just like the rest of the Club.

Additional Hellfire characters:

Dr. Nathaniel Essex - Obviously, Magneto's story was the most powerful one in the First Class movie, so I of course want to keep it. But how, since this Sebastian Shaw won't have had anything to do with his past or Nazis? Well, Dr. Essex will take his place! Many fans have noted that movie!Shaw is much more like Mr. Sinister (Dr. Essex)--fascinated with mutants from a scientific POV, amoral, heartless, all about experiments and outcome, and worked as a Nazi scientist in the concentration camps (young Magneto even met him!) And since he also was affiliated with the Hellfire Club in the comics too, yeah, it fits perfectly. Just take the plot with movie!Shaw and Erik and stick in Essex in movie!Shaw's place. Movie-version Dr. Essex is originally from England but joined the Nazis in order to enjoy more "scientific freedom" regarding the experiments he was allowed to perform. He agreed with the idea of a master race, just one other than Aryans: Mutants, who he had become aware of through his work in England. At an unknown point after this, he is hired by the Hellfire Club to work in their labs. He himself is human when he works in the camps and puts young Erik through the torments that awaken his powers, but by the time Erik encounters him as an adult, he has used science to alter himself with mutant DNA, equipping himself with a regenerative healing factor, metahuman strength, endurance, reflexes, and resistance to injury. He lacks the strange appearance of Mr. Sinister, and is never referred to by that name, just as Dr. Essex. Donald Pierce - A human who was deposed from his spot in the Inner Circle by Shaw due to not being a mutant...and lost all his limbs in the process to Sebastian Shaw, nearly dying (he now relies on prosthetics) He is a prominent industrialist as well as very good with machinery/robotics, and he lends both his company and his own hands to the government in addressing the problem of the Hellfire Club. He's supposed to work together with the X-Men, but the moment the Hellfire Club is defeated, he turns on them, claiming that what the Hellfire Club did to him is what all mutants are going to do the moment they get the chance and "I won't give you that chance." Magneto kills him with his own machinery/weapons/prosthetics, but in the end credits, his severed head is seen in the labs of his company, attached to wires and cords, and the eyes open. Jetstream - A young mutant taken in by the Hellfire Club, he fights Banshee and Angel in aerial combat. Like his comic-book counterpart, his powers destroyed his lower body, and so he uses prosthetics built for him by Pierce prior to Pierce being ejected from (and nearly killed by) the Hellfire Club Catseye - Another young mutant basically adopted by with the Hellfire Club, she's a felid shapeshifter. Her comic book counterpart took the form of an enormous purple cat, but since that's a little goofy for the big screen, this version instead becomes a sort of human/black panther hybrid, and functions as a counterpart to Mystique and Beast, both of whom she fights Roulette- A young mutant with luck powers who works for the Hellfire Club. She is shown briefly during a montage that shows how the Club is using various mutants for their own profitable purposes; in Roulette's case, she uses her luck powers to manipulate the stock marker in favor of the Inner Circle. Benazir Kaur- A mutant who works for the Hellfire Club, shown in the same montage as Roulette. She can causes sickness and disease in people, and is used in the medical labs. A few other mutants will be shown in the montage too, I just haven't picked which. I'd ideally like for them to have been associated with the comicverse Hellfire Club instead of just random people like Riptide, though. I'd especially like to get in a cameo of Harry Leland. I don't see him as needed for the plot, but since the other members of the original comics Inner Circle---Shaw, Frost, Pierce, Tessa---are included, it seems unfair to leave him out entirely. We could also keep Riptide and Azazel too, if you want. I'm neutral on them. A teleporter is useful, but the comics canon Hellfire Club has two we could pick from (Lourdes Chantal and Trevor Fitzroy) and while I'd prefer Lourdes, I guess Azazel keeps the whole nod to Nightcrawler's parentage. Of course, I don't really care about that either, so whatever.

Story differences:

So, FC ends with Erik embracing the ideals of Shaw and the Hellfire Club, and taking over the latter to make it his Brotherhood of Mutants. Obviously, in this version, that won't happen because the ideals of Shaw and the Hellfire Club aren't what Magneto believes in at all. Instead, what happens is that the Hellfire Club and their exploitation of mutants shows Magneto the danger that mutants are in, and he agrees with the Hellfire Club that when humans realize mutants exist, they are indeed going to react with panic and want to wipe them out (which he points to Donald Pierce as evidence of). And like the Hellfire Club being prepared to sell anti-mutant weapons to the masses, Magneto wants to be prepared too. The Hellfire Club also shows him the danger of what will happen if mutantkind isn't united, if they don't come together---it will become mutant on mutant, selling each other out to the humans just to save their own skins. That's why it's so imperative to him that Xavier and every other mutant agree with him, because there can be no room for division in their ranks or else this will happen again. So he still walks off and takes Angel and Mystique with him, as well as possibly some Hellfire-affiliated mutants that like his ideals better than being exploited for profit by the Inner Circle (which could include Riptide and Azazel, and/or some of the ones from the brief montage). He kills Essex just like he did originally with Shaw, complete with helmet and Charles screaming and mind-linking and all...obviously Essex doesn't have Shaw's abilities so he wouldn't have the "absorbed nuclear bomb level power" situation but I'm sure there could be something else set up. As for the Hellfire Club themselves...they're a worldwide organization, they can't be eliminated. It's more like they just get defeated in whatever they were trying to do, but they still succeed to some degree too through cleverness and backup plans, and it's very clear they're still around and going to come back again. This still has a lot of the flaws of the original (namely, that Magneto hating humans doesn't make as much sense when the first danger to mutants he runs into is OTHER MUTANTS, but at least it fixes the fact a mutant killed his mother in FC, which is really stupid story-wise/for his character, imo) but it has a Hellfire Club that I would have much preferred to see onscreen. If the canon FC version of the Hellfire Club worked for you, hey, great, I'm glad, this is just for me and what I would have liked.

[theconservativebrief]

As far as superhero movies go, it’s usually pretty easy to tell who the villain is. In Ant-Man and the Wasp, it seems to be Ava Starr (Hannah John-Kamen), also known as Ghost, who shows up in a cool (but creepy) super suit to throw a wrench into our heroes’ plans. Where Scott (Paul Rudd) and Hope (Evangeline Lilly) can shrink or grow, Ava can phase through objects — hence the moniker. It’s unsettling to see her in action, especially given how ruthless she seems to be.

But director Peyton Reed isn’t interested in a clear-cut villain vs. hero dichotomy. As the movie progresses (be warned of spoilers), Ava’s story turns out to be a tragic one. And unlike the first film’s Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), she isn’t trying to sell Pym technology to Hydra or engineer any kind of mass chaos for profit: She’s only trying to save herself. The way her body phases isn’t really under her control, and she’ll die if she doesn’t stabilize soon.

Ava is sympathetic to the degree that the revelation about the involuntary nature of her power leaves the movie with a bit of a villain vacuum. It’s ostensibly filled by Sonny Burch (Walton Goggins), who, in the best way possible, is a caricature of many of the fast-talking roles Goggins has played before. Burch is so relatively one-note in a film that’s meant to accommodate shades of gray, however, that his cartoonish villainy almost seems like a cover-up for the fact that one of the movie’s ostensible protagonists might be less heroic than he seems.

However indirect this is, it’s Hank Pym’s (Michael Douglas) sense of pride that made Ava the way she is. And lest we forget, although Darren certainly had issues of his own, a lot of his emotional baggage came from Hank, too. As the two Ant-Man films have increasingly blurred the line between good and bad, has Hank Pym become a villain? Though his research is arguably for the greater good, the collateral damage he’s wrought to accomplish that research spins a darker story.

The origins of both Ant-Man movies’ apparent villains can be traced back to Hank. He’s a surrogate father to Darren. And Hank’s eventual abandonment of Darren (which wounds him so deeply we see him come close to tears recounting it) is what drives Darren to create the Yellowjacket suit. Notably, when Darren asks Hank why he turned away from him, Hank’s answer is that he saw too much of himself in the young man.

That acknowledgment of Hank’s darker side is easy to overlook in 2015’s Ant-Man, given that Darren turns out to be a full-blown psychopath (and suffers a true supervillain’s death of being crushed into nothingness). But it’s impossible to ignore in the franchise’s second installment.

It’s revealed that Ava’s father, Elihas (Michael Cerveris), used to be a colleague of Hank’s. Though Hank calls him a research-stealing traitor, Ava and Bill Foster (Laurence Fishburne) — Ava’s surrogate father and another one of Hank’s former colleagues — have a different story. They say that Hank abandoned Elihas while they were working together on researching quantum energy, leaving him to struggle through trying to get to the Quantum Realm and to die in the resulting explosion. I’m inclined to believe Ava and Bill, if only because Hank’s track record with regard to keeping friends isn’t exactly stellar.

Hank also doesn’t seem to feel for Ava’s predicament at all. To a certain degree, I get it: Hank wants to find his lost wife, Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer), and Ava is threatening to ruin any chance he has by using Janet’s quantum energy to restore her own body. But at the same time, unlike Scott and Hope, Hank doesn’t really seem to consider trying to find an alternate method to help Ava. As far as he’s concerned, Elihas was a traitor and so is Bill, and Ava’s being caught in the crossfire is inconsequential.

In a story that’s modeled on Elmore Leonard’s work — in which double-crosses are part of day-to-day life — the continued inspection of Hank’s less-heroic attributes seems to be pushing him ever closer toward villainy. For any other movie, it’d be easy to imagine him fully tipping the scale. But in Ant-Man and the Wasp, Sonny Burch comes in to prevent that from happening.

Once it becomes clear that Ava is more antihero than outright villain, Burch picks up the villainous slack. He’s there solely to help himself — that is to make a profit. He also serves as a blatantly antagonistic counterbalance to keep Hank from seeming too evil. With such a shameless, self-centered mercenary running around, who would ever look twice at Hank?

The catch is that Burch is a little too flamboyantly bad. Every other character in Ant-Man and the Wasp possesses a certain degree of nuance that’s absent from Burch, which, in the contemplation of the nature of evil, starts to draw Hank into the question of who Ant-Man and the Wasp’s villain really is. After all, Burch’s actions have only a surface-level effect on the ostensible heroes; he’s the character equivalent of a speed bump. Hank’s influence runs deeper.

Much of the conflict that drives both Ant-Man and Ant-Man and the Wasp would be null and void if not for Hank’s selfishness and disregard for others. The problems that he — or rather, Scott — has to deal with are of his own making. This doesn’t make him a villain outright (yet, at least). But there’s no question that the more we learn about him, the more it becomes apparent he’s had a supervillain’s effect on the lives of the people around him. (Even Hope could have been a supervillain, what with her initially cold demeanor and Darren-like yearning for her father’s approval. Plus, she’s sporting a very “Cate Blanchett in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” bob throughout the first movie.)

When Ant-Man and the Wasp comes to a close, the Pym family has been reunited, Scott is no longer on house arrest, and Ava is on the road to recovery. But even that happy ending can’t quite quell the doubts raised about Hank Pym. Twice, we’ve seen him as the maker of his own misery and that of others. Going forward, it’ll be interesting to see if Marvel intensifies the way Hank is a menace to himself as well as to those around him, or if it will sub in more straw villains so as to maintain the idea that Hank Pym is completely good.

Original Source -> Ant-Man and the Wasp’s true villain is not who it appears to be

via The Conservative Brief

[thewhacko-blog]

Fractured: Chapter 1

Chapter 1

 While Central City wasn't nearly as dangerous as Gotham when the sun set, it still certainly had it troubles, most of whom preferred to get their business settled after the sun had set. It didn't really help to avoid The Flash's ever-vigilant watch over his hometown, but it was so ingrained in the brains of most criminals, even some of the costumed ones, that it was more of a force of habit than anything else.

 Shade, however, just preferred the dark. Not surprising, considering the fact that the Nightstick was a tool of the shadows, a power that it had demonstrated quite well tonight. For once, this job had gone smooth. The sack of jewelry was heavy, but that just made him enjoy the success of tonight even more. Everyone was milking the opportunities while Flash was out of town dealing with...nobody was sure what, but it was off in Kasnia, so it wasn't like he needed to worry about that jackass' interference. Kid Flash didn't even warrant a worry in his mind, and he shook his head with a laugh as he started the nondescript van, his haul resting securely in the trunk. He'd have to move fast if he was going to fence this stuff. He had a buyer that was paying fifty cents on the dollar, so he was looking at an eight hundred thousand dollar haul here after the finder's fee, and the cut to his crew for this job. Not the most impressive take ever, but it was respectable, and it would be paying the bills for quite a while.

 Then his phone rang. It surprised him enough that he almost swerved into a fire hydrant, swearing and feeling damn lucky there wasn't a cop car in sight. He didn't want to get caught by some cruiser thinking they were dealing with another drunk driver only to find him and the jewels inside. That would just be embarrassing. Growling with frustration he answered the phone with one  hand, pulling into an alley while he spoke (He wasn't that careless a driver.)

 ���What? This ain't exactly a great time to be talking.” He said in as annoyed a tone as he could muster.

 “Got a business proposition for you. I'll spare ya the details for now and cut to the chase; My employer needs some real muscle out here in Jump City. Was told to mention the sum've 1.5 million for initial involvement.” Came the voice on the other end, rough and deep, probably middle-aged. 1.5 mil, eh? That was a lot of money. Which only meant one thing. Deathstroke (or was he going by his name now? Didn't matter.) was trying to form another Injustice Gang, or something else just as crazy. In most circumstances, Shade probably would have been inclined to hang up right then. The Injustice Gang didn't work, he know. Hell, he'd been in two different incarnations, and both ended up being failures (the second even turning out to be some crazy-ass Amazonian gendercide scheme). But Jump City...that place was easy pickings. Those kids, the Teen Titans, were used to fighting other dumb kids on a daily basis, or that joke Killer Moth. The Minor League of villainy. Shade? He was in the Majors. Compared to the Justice League, the Titans were a merry happy fun times walk in the park. Plus, again, 1.5 mil was a lot of money.

 “...I'm listening.”

 TTTTT

 One more call to Central City, two to Metropolis, and two to Gotham. It took around two hours in all for Nick Sharpes to finish his given chore. He felt just a little bit insulted at being given the job of messenger boy, but the money Slade was paying him right now was enough to placate those feelings. He'd be able to retire to Honolulu after this, live in real style like he'd dreamed up back when he was a kid. Or maybe he'd just get a nice, big condo out here. He didn't miss Gotham in the slightest, not with Batman still around, and sure as hell not while Joker was still kicking.

 He and Greg Deych were professionals, damnit, wasted talent on messanger duty. They'd done work for just about all of the bosses in Gotham at one point or another, and they'd made a name for themselves working for King Barlowe before he finally bit it to the cancer. Slade had brought them over to Jump City about two months ago, and so far he'd been one of their better employers, even if he did seem to have some weird obsession with getting one of those Titan kids as an apprentice. The last one had gone native, though, so now they'd gone to Plan B, which as far as he could tell was getting together a bunch of scary-ass supers from the big league for....well, he didn't have any clue about what came next. Boss didn't trust him enough for that kind of information. Typical of these supervillain types.

 Sharpes let out a sigh as he picked up the phone again, starting to dial the number for the Central City International Airport. It was going to be a long night.

 TTTTT

 It was a quiet day for the Titans, a rarity these days with Slade's plans escalating by the week, and with the increase in general supervillainy-related nonsense. Sure the League kept most of the big players out of Jump City, but they still had their fair share of trouble, what with HIVE and the influx of guys coming in from Gotham thinking that they would have easier pickings here (Oh, how wrong they were). Four of the Titans were gathered at their usual pizzeria. Terra looked far better than she had only eight hours ago, her face back to the usual smiles and radiance. Cyborg was sure she was forcing it a bit, but she did genuinely seem better. Beast Boy of course was right by her side at the table, in the middle of a story from his Doom Patrol days, complete with highly animated gestures. They were trying not to think about what had happened last night. Robin was off doing his own thing, and Cyborg wasn't sure where Starfire was.

 “So Robotman throws Mallah across the room straight into this vat of...I don't know what it was, but it stuck him to the floor for hours! I thought about telling him to stick around but that would have been too easy.” He was standing on his seat now, pizza in hand for effect. Terra laughed, as always, smiling up at the changeling while Raven rolled her eyes. They'd heard this story a few times.

 “So...uh...not to sound weird or anything, but...from all those stories you told us it...kinda sounds like Mallah might have...y'know....had a thing for the Brain.” Cyborg said a bit tentatively, absently chewing on his own slice of pizza while Beast Boy looked down at him with some horror in his face.

 “.....Dude, I don't wanna know if that was true or not. That's just....ah, man now I'm never going to get that image out of my head!” Terra looked a little horrified at that, too, while Raven was completely unphased.

“I've heard of odder pairings before. You should look into one of those fanfiction websites sometime if you think the idea of those two is bad.”

 “No! Never again!” Cyborg and Beast Boy screamed almost in unison. They had....discovered some of the odd, terrible thoughts that some fangirls could conjure given time and a computer. About them. In very, very graphic detail. It took a few minutes for the two to shake themselves of the memory of that horror. Raven just looked pretty happy with herself.

 “So...getting the elephant in the room out of the way. Terra, did you see anything useful about any plans that Slade might have in case this whole situation happened?” Raven said, turning to look Terra in the eye. Terra paused, the guilt coming back to her expression for a moment before she forced it to leave as she thought on the question.

 “Nothing very specific as to what he had planned in case...yeah, this happened. Just a lot of phone numbers and names.”

 “What names?” Raven pressed, while Beast Boy looked at her a bit defensively.

 “Dude, come on, don't do this so soon.” He tried not to say it too sharply as she scooted closer to Terra, his face a far cry from his usual goofy friendly smile. Terra put a hand on his gently, offering him a smile of her own before she turned back to face Raven.

 “It's alright BB. I think I remember most of them. Lester Buchinsky...Joseph Martin...Lawrence Crook...Richard Swift...Rudy Jones...Leonard Snart. That's it. There was a lot of talk about Venom too. Not sure what that means.” Raven frowned at that. Obviously she didn't like what she heard.

 “Do those names mean anything to you?” She said to Cyborg and Beast Boy. Both of them shrugged.

 “Not one of 'em. Might be some guys he works with?” Cyborg said it without much certainty. “Personally if that talk about Venom is what I think it's about, I'm more worried about that more than those names.”

 “Why? What's Venom supposed to mean?” Beast Boy said with genuine baffelement. Raven just sighed and rubbed her temples.

 “Uh...Beast Boy, that's the stuff that makes Bane so damn scary to fight.” Cy pointed out. That got Beast Boy's attention.

 “Oh. That's....really, really bad, then. What do you think he'd do with the stuff?”

 “I don't know, BB. But whatever it is, it can't possibly end well for anyone.” All four were silent for a long time, their food left unattended and growing cold. Raven was the one to break the silence.

 “We need to tell Robin. This sounds like it's going to make for a bad week.”

[viralhottopics]

Critics can’t agree on anything about ‘Fate of the Furious’

Where's Dom?

Image: Universal pictures

It’s “the most spectacular one yet” and it’s “the worst of these films since 2 Fast 2 Furious.” It’s “bloated,” “exhausting” and “narratively unnecessary” with “sentiments as fake” as the “lifeless action scenes” and its “Fun!”

It’s … pretty much all over the damn road.

SEE ALSO: First look: ‘Fate’ takes the ‘Furious’ franchise into James Bond territory

Critical reaction to Fate of the Furious is like watching Fate of the Furious: confusing, highly conflicted, but you pretty much knew what you were getting into here.

The embargo on reviews for Fate lifted Sunday morning (Mashable‘s Angie Han will have her own take this week) but for now, here’s a sampling of the hot-and-cold reactions to the latest installment in this franchise that is so loopy, you can literally write two separate reviews one good, and one bad and get away with it.

Charlize Theron is a supervillain that no one can agree on

Jim Vejvoda, IGN

The real standout among the cast is the series’ new adversary. Charlize Theron brings the proper degree of icy cruelty to Cipher, who is essentially a Bond villain. … Theron underplays the role, making Cipher’s head games and willingness to kill anyone and delivering it all with a cobra-like stillness all the creepier.

Owen Gleiberman, Variety

Theron proves an ace villain: imperious yet personable, with a leonine cunning and directness. Cipher is some sort of vaguely left-wing power-mad cyber-warrior (she doesnt want the usual money or chaos she wants to force the worlds nations into accountability), and even her curled finger-taps on the keyboard dance with personality.

David Ehrlich, Indiwire

It stalls the moment Charlize Theron shows up. As dull and uninspired here as she was riveting and iconic in Fury Road, Theron plays Cipher, an embarrassingly named super hacker who plunges F8 into the most half-assed story of cyber-terrorism since Live Free or Die Hard … her villainous plot is so stupid that the film tries to pretend it doesnt matter, and most of Therons performance is confined to cut-away shots where she says things like Get ready for this before hitting a button that triggers some bad special effects halfway around the world.

John DeFore, THR

Theron, on the other hand, carries plenty of weight in the story, however, she appears to have little fun doing it.

Scott Mendelson, Forbes

Charlize Theron is a compelling baddie, yet she spends most of her time in a single location pushing buttons and making threats. Not since John Malkovich in Eragon has a villain spent so much time doing so little, and she also gets zero action beats.

If there’s one thing we can agree on, it’s Jason Statham

Jim Vejvoda, IGN

Jason Statham also gets several cool action moments, but it’s these two rivals’ verbal sparring that proves even more ridiculously macho as their insults grow increasingly crude yet funny as the film proceeds.

David Ehrlich, Indiwire

Jason Stathams Deckard Shaw makes for some of the most fun moments in F8 (the best of which is too good to spoil), but the ease with which Doms pals allow the Furious 7 villain into their club is not only a fatal misread of what fans loved about these films, its also a tacit admission that their sentiments are as fake as their stunts.

But overall, it’s … the best and the worst Fast movie

Boom.

Image: Universal pictures

Owen Gleiberman, Variety

If this series, over the last 16 years, has taught us anything, its that just when you think its about to run out of gas, it gets outfitted with an even more elaborate fuel-injection system.And thats never been more true than it is of the eighth film in the series … which may just be the most spectacular one yet.

David Ehrlich, Indiwire

F8 is the worst of these films since 2 Fast 2 Furious, and it may be even worse than that. Its the Die Another Day of its franchise an empty, generic shell of its former self that disrespects its own proud heritage at every turn … feels like a heap of random parts that were thrown together in the hopes that fate might somehow weld them into a roadworthy vehicle. Its exhausting.

Mike Ryan, Uproxx

Like, how did it escalate to this? What has to happen in someones life to go from a person who races cars and steals DVD players to a person who has to fight a submarine with a fast car? Oh, yes, the gang also fights a submarine in The Fate of the Furious. This movie is insane. I cant help but love these movies.

Scott Mendelson, Forbes

For much of its running time, Fate of the Furious goes against what has made the franchise so enjoyable of late. The plot, with Dom being forced to go rogue and work for the side of villainy, keeps the core cast separate from each other for most of the film and keeps most of them in a state of misery and gloom. This eighth installment must depend on the relative chemistry of its dwindling ensemble. The picture cannot escape its arbitrary nature, existing as the first episode since the third with no real reason to exist.

Dan Callahan, TheWrap

A jaunt through Russia and a chase over ice arefar less interesting, and the plot twists in The Fate of the Furious suggest the kind of games that 11-year-old boys put together on the playground during recess, with women in peril and so many different parts for everyone to play that you begin to lose track of who everybody is and who they are supposed to be to each other. When this gets to be too much, of course, another car will soon be sailing through the air to distract us.

WATCH: Here are 7 ‘Fast & Furious’ facts every ultimate fan should know

Read more: http://on.mash.to/2nx22fJ

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