#This season is definitely more focused on the cures as a family

[revolutionary-thoy]

It took Hirogaru Sky 35 episodes to have it's first "helping out a random person at school" episode, the plot that's usually like,, every 3rd episode in a typical season. Pretty wild

[quibbs126]

Ninjago “Reboot” notes (Part 2: characters)

Alright, let’s talk about the characters

So Lloyd is adopted and a normal human. When he was little, his town was destroyed (but we’ll get back to that), and Garmadon happened to be in the area and saved his life. Since Lloyd’s family was dead, and the kid wouldn’t leave him alone, Garmadon just sort of decided to take him in

In the incident, Lloyd’s left side got pretty horribly damaged, and he’s got scars on that side, being blind and deaf on that side, and eventually needing his arm amputated. He’s cool with it though, it happened when he was young and he’s spent far more time without those things than with it

Lloyd does have a mechanical arm, given to him by a friend (whom we’ll also get back to), but he only uses it sometimes, since it’s kind of heavy and he’s just not used to it

Lloyd’s older in this world, being around the same age if not a bit older than the others

Lloyd had a biker phase, and also had a girlfriend who was a biker (this version of Camille), but they broke up and Lloyd eventually grew out of it. They haven’t talked since but if they were to, they’d probably be able to talk amicably, once the awkwardness was out of the way

Lloyd is also fully aware his dad is an Oni, and they actually have a pretty good relationship with each other (especially given they don’t spend super long stretches of time separated from each other)

Also I don’t think I’m gonna give him an elemental weapon, though he does have a staff, since I have a plan for him to get his normal green powers later on

Lloyd also has a fear of white haired ladies, but not old women

Let’s talk about someone else now

Jay is a Serpentine in this au, and was almost definitely adopted (or should I make Ed and Edna Serpentine too? I’m not sure)

Jay wears a wig to cover the fact he has no hair. While he’s fine with being a Serpentine, he wants hair. It’s like this whole thing with him

Jay is still an inventor, and has no problem with the fact that he grew up in a junkyard. Also might be a bit of a hoarder

He sometimes just makes random inventions with no real purpose

Zane is still a robot, and aware he’s a robot, but he also has no memory of who he is. He lives with Jay in his family’s junkyard while Jay tries to repair him (he might have just found him there one day all broken and decided to try and fix him, only to find Zane’s fully sentient)

Cole’s something of the team mom of the group

Also something about Cole, so his family is cursed. Some generations ago, a member of his family went to the Shintaro mountains and fought an evil sorcerer, like in canon, and was a wielder of the Earth weapon, but at the end they (and the rest of their bloodline) got cursed as a final act by the sorcerer, and basically over time it would spread and they’d eventually crumble to rock. And the curse spreads faster after using elemental powers

Cole’s mother ended up dying to the curse (maybe she used the Earth weapon at some point as well, causing her curse to work faster), and since his mother first fell ill to it (well, to the extent it would kill her), Cole’s been looking for a way to cure it

The curse first manifests as something like his lava arms, only black, and it spreads further and further up the arms and then to the rest of the body until it completely envelops and they crumble

Cole is the only one aware of it as he doesn’t tell the others, as he doesn’t want to worry them, and he hides his curse with increasingly longer gloves. The others do get a bit suspicious when they realize just how long they’ve been getting and that they’ve never seen him without them, but he doesn’t tell until it’s relevant in whatever season focuses on it

Also yes, because he uses his Earth powers, his lifespan gets shorter and shorter each time. While currently he’s not in too much danger, if he doesn’t find a cure, he could end up succumbing to it before he’s 30

One thing I had for Kai was the idea of genderswapping him, mostly because ROTTMNT did it with Casey, and I think because there was a female Kai in Pokémon Conquest, but I’m not sure about it

But regardless, Kai thinks he is and tries to be the cool one, but he usually ends up more like a team mom like Cole, having to be the responsible one

At the beginning of the story, he works at Chen’s noodle shop with Skylor as his coworker. They’re friends

Also this Chen probably isn’t a villain, but in the past there was someone more closer to the original show Chen, but we’ll get to that

I don’t really have much on Nya though, other than she’s a lot more chill than her other counterparts and will sometimes prank people

Sorry I don’t remember much on her

Also she and Jay get along very well, but I’m not sure if they get in a romantic relationship 

Pixal is here too, but here she’s a cyborg, whether because of natural health complications or because of a terrible accident, and is also Borg’s biological daughter 

Her real name isn’t Pixal, it’s (I believe) Cynthia Borg, but she likes Pixal more because it sounds cooler

She’s also Samurai X, and is definitely a bit more flashy

Her cybernetics aren’t just “limbs but metal”, as she can do stuff with them, like turn her arms into cannons or swords, or stretch them far. Because of that, Samurai X is largely speculated to be either a robot or cyborg 

Samurai X is already an established thing by the time this show starts, with the ninja showing up after her

Pixal and Lloyd used to be good friends (and she’s the one who gave him his robotic arm), but they had a falling out and are still bitter about it (Lloyd more than Pixal, as he didn’t really have many friends at the time and it stung a lot more for him)

Oh also about the Serpentine thing, so the Serpentine War did happen, but it was centuries ago, and unlike the show, had a peaceful solution as both sides realized they were being manipulated (possibly after Wu and Garmadon stepped in) and got rid of the people responsible, and over time they eventually found peace and both humans and Serpentine live in relative harmony, hence why no one raises an eyebrow at Jay

Morro is also here, but he’s a centuries old ghost. It’s a long story, but basically he was from a farming family that had the golden scythe, but it got stolen and he spent his life trying to get it back, only for him to be turned away and eventually meeting a horrible end, then coming back as a ghost demanding the scythe. But the scythe couldn’t be found so he just wanders the area bringing horrible tempests

Lloyd eventually finds it and gives it back to him, giving him peace and letting him move on, though he tells Lloyd to find a proper successor

Harumi is also here, but she’s kind of two people

“Harumi” is just the name of the girl being inhabited, the character more resembling Harumi being an Oni that Garmadon once fought

Her power was sealed away into the Oni Masks, meanwhile she body snatches people to try and get her power back, while Garmadon tries to stop her when he can

I’m thinking when she body snatches people, she turns their hair white like hers

One of her previous bodies was the one that destroyed Lloyd’s town, since it had one of the masks, but Garmadon was able to stop her and destroy that one. This is what left Lloyd with a fear of white haired women, since he knows she was the one to destroy his village and left him for dead, and that she uses different bodies

She does eventually show up, and this is where Lloyd’s fear is explained. Prior to this it’s just shown as a weird fear of his that isn’t explained

I’m thinking maybe the original Harumi gets saved (though her hair’s still white), but I’m not sure what to do with her afterwards

Also, is she too similar to Lady Bone Demon? That wasn’t my intention but she feels that way

Anyways yeah, next part will be plot. I haven’t finished everything for that, so I don’t know when I’ll post it. But I thought I should talk about the actual characters

[sigmasolveinc]

Importance of Predictive Analytics in Healthcare Industry

Background

Healthcare does not only define the world of medicines but also influences the socioeconomic aspects of society. ObamaCare and the global response to covid are stark examples to reflect on. The global healthcare industry may have witnessed transformative changes in the last decade, but the scars of covid are still visible.

From free or cheap health insurance to free vaccine doses, healthcare technology has made the sector travel a long way but is too far from the desired zenith. We may have excelled in clinical research, but we are far from forecasting epidemics, their impact on societies, their antidotes, and ways to strengthen human bodies against diseases.

Synopsis:

Technological advancement and the healthcare sector are two sides of the same coin. We couldn’t have produced antidots of covid hadn’t we progressed technologically. Medical equipment, wearable devices, and mobile technology have been transforming our healthcare experiences into more efficient and personalized. Simultaneously, the same devices are collecting enormous amounts of health data. However, storing and processing these data in big data analytics is a massive challenge.

This blog discusses how these challenges can be converted into opportunities. It also explores how businesses can leverage this healthcare data and process it accurately to draw precise conclusions that help medical professionals dive deep into healthcare predictive analytics to predict future health problems and remediate them even before diseases strike. This blog goes deeper into predictive analytics.

Demystifying Predictive Analytics

Did you bet on Real Madrid lifting the Champions Trophy in 2024? Making money through gambling is a little tricky, isn’t it?

However, thanks to predictive analytics in healthcare, it has become easy for medical practitioners to predict people’s health, diseases they may be attracted to, and responses to remedies. Emerging technologies in the healthcare sector are growing by leaps and bounds. They are empowering healthcare professionals to leverage the abundance of health data like symptoms, family history, test results, history of prior diseases, and health history.

Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and big data analytics ensure healthcare professionals can draw definite conclusions and predict patients’ future health conditions.

Medical professionals can leverage various types of healthcare predictive analytics to evaluate and address diverse aspects of human health.

Classification: identifies patients based on various groups of existing data.

Regression: focuses on unique numerical values of data retrieved from patients.

Survival Analysis: observes specific health events within specific timespans.

Anomaly Detection: evaluates deviation from standard health conditions.

Text Mining: extracts health data from unstructured data collected by doctors.

Imagine if your family doctor knows what your body will go through in the next fortnight or a month. Predictive analytics solutions enable doctors to predict health conditions based on data to ensure you are treated well in advance to prevent being fallen to disease.

Emerging technologies revolutionizing medical diagnoses

Prevention can only be better than cure when diagnoses of health conditions are accurate. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are now beating even seasoned doctors when it comes to diagnosis. Predictive analytics services can leverage AI and ML solutions to process an ocean of health data to recognize specific patterns and identify the signs, symptoms, and stages of the disease.

ML algorithms are fed vast, anonymized datasets of various health conditions with which to train. AI automation makes the algorithms run through the datasets for quick and precise diagnosis. Consequently, healthcare practitioners can make informed choices for diagnoses, medication, and treatment.

Unveiling the Power of Predictive Analytics

In a post-Covid world, the healthcare sector is receiving considerable attention from communities and governments. Consequently, healthcare is witnessing a tremendous revolution. Imagine a scenario where a doctor does not go through your physical test reports, your disease history, or medical records but only evaluates predictive healthcare analytics generated by predictive analytics solutions.

Early Disease Detection:

Fed with various data patterns, predictive analytics can identify disease patterns and symptoms in advance to promptly alter doctors’ recommendations on potential treatment and medication to prevent the body from succumbing to the disease. Resultantly, medical practitioners can improve health and reduce healthcare costs.

Personalized Medicine

Every human body is different. Therefore, medication and medical treatment should be planned individually. Predictive analytics solutions help doctors identify the most suitable treatment based on disease data and patient history to minimize side effects and gradually improve health parameters.

Readmission Reduction

Who would like to go to the hospital again and again? Predictive analytics identifies risk factors that lead to rehospitalization and alerts doctors to take immediate preventive measures to mitigate the risk of hospitalization. Consequently, it prevents patients from being broke and improves overall health.

Resource Optimization

Hospitals are usually at their critical best and can never predict patient flow. The scarcity of blood, medicines, and equipment hampers patient care. Predictive analytics solutions, on the other hand, can prognosticate patient flow and help hospitals allocate resources tactfully to meet the challenges.

Clinical Trial Optimization

Antidotes are not unintended discoveries. It takes years of clinical trials to analyze the effectiveness of treatments, medicines, or therapies. Healthcare data analytics can tell researchers who’s the best candidate for trial and expedite the development of new drugs or methods to diagnose patients with new diseases.

Considerations for Implementing Predictive Analytics

Have you ever learned a new bike trick? It never comes without a few bumps and a lot of practice. Isn’t it? Predictive analytics is definitely euphoric, but implementing it has its own challenges. One of the major challenges is related to the quality of the data, and another is about data training, which must be fair and unbiased.

Also, convincing medical practitioners of predictive analytics’ usefulness is a challenge. Moreover, it is essential to be ready for challenges and overcome roadblocks in advance to draw a conclusive and definite implementation strategy. Let’s recognize a few key challenges here.

Data Quality and Integration:

What if a couple of puzzle pieces disappear? You won’t be able to complete the game. Similarly, incomplete, unqualified, or scattered data do not depict the complete picture. Healthcare predictive analytics companies must ensure the accuracy of their qualitative data collection.

Model Bias and Fairness:

A level playing field is an undisputed virtue regardless of the field. Predictive analytics solutions should be absolutely fair and transparent to avoid injustice to patients in their diagnoses. If AI and ML solutions are trained with inaccurate, one-sided, or manipulative data, doctors may discriminate.

Ethical Concerns and Data Privacy:

Medical practitioners and data analytics solutions providers must maintain the complete privacy of patient’s healthcare data and medical histories. Businesses need to be responsible when using this data to avoid governmental penalties and prevent patients from suffering.

A Collaborative Future for Healthcare with Predictive Analytics

The significance of cross-discipline skills is growing because of the collaborative nature of emerging technologies. Doctors don’t develop predictive analytics solutions but provide data and leverage it. AI and ML solutions providers don’t diagnose but evaluate data and train models. Similarly, data scientists have no idea of diseases nor train AI and ML models but accurately analyze data to prepare predictive analytics for patients and doctors.

Healthcare is one sector where collaboration between AI engineers, data scientists, and medical practitioners can prove a catalyst for upgrading healthcare services to reduce the mortality rate and maintain good health forever. From predicting specific health conditions to personalizing treatment, a healthier future is only possible when technology professionals and medical practitioners work together transparently.

At the onset, the future of predictive analytics in healthcare looks promising. AI-based diagnostics and individualized treatment have been revolutionizing the healthcare sector. Quick and accurate diagnosis and precision in recommending treatment are critical to transforming the healthcare sector. Simultaneously, it is of vital importance that these core components function ethically and honestly to build trust in technological advancements, achieving new milestones for the healthcare sector and patient care.

Unlocking the Power of Predictive Analytics

Imagine a doctor’s room messed up with scattered patient documents. Tech companies such as Sigma Solve can help clean this mess with predictive analytics solutions. The enterprise software solution providers can help automate data collection, segregation, and processing and train machine learning models to leverage the full potential of emerging technologies and healthcare data.

Tech companies stay updated with emerging technologies, techniques, and tools to help healthcare professionals use predictive analytics.

Tech companies’ engineers, analysts, and data scientists have the skills to train tailored ML models for unbiased accuracy.

Tech companies can integrate various tech components into each other and clean data for healthcare needs.

Data security and privacy can only be assured by the data analytics solution providers to ensure that doctors and patients stay safe.

Tech companies can provide continuous support and maintenance to ensure optimum uptime for sustainable performance.

Conclusion:

If technology and medical professionals work in isolation, they may hamper the transformation in the healthcare sector. However, scientists, engineers, and doctors are seen working together to infuse the healthcare sector with new technological solutions, such as predictive analytics, to revolutionalize patient care and maximize the potential of data in preventing diseases, diagnosing them well in advance, and maintaining a healthy future of individuals and communities.

Enterprise software solution companies must be at the forefront of offering data analytics solutions and predictive analytics solutions to ensure fewer diseases and more preventive care for everyone. OriginalSource:https://techinfobeez.com/importance-of-predictive-analytics-in-healthcare-industry/

[ledenews]

Roxanne Bruce: Smiling Because That's What She Wants to Do

Fun. You know, F. U. N.  If and when the term is looked up in the dictionary, the curious will find “fun” is a noun (enjoyment, amusement, or lighthearted pleasure), an adjective (amusing, entertaining, or enjoyable), and a verb (joke or tease), and if there was a photo? You guessed it. Roxanne Bruce. Especially now that the Fall season has arrived because there’s so many ghosts and goblins to paint at this time of year with, of course, a sip of something called seasonal silliness. And then she enjoys what follows the oranges, browns, and yellows of the annual harvest season because there are, for St. Nick’s sakes, elves and reindeer and Santa Claus to conjure at her Artsy Accents events. Now, in this Q&A format, Roxanne may seem a lady of few words, but that’s only because she’s not used to people inquiring about her incessant smile, that ever-so-present pop in her step, and her gleeful existence. Maybe it’s because they take her giddiness for granted, but it’s not a gimmick in the least.  Ya see, this American veteran is a happy individual. As odd and rare as that may seem, Roxanne is a pleasant person because she’s adopted a productive and positive mindset that apparently is impenetrable. Join in and say it with us out loud: “Good for you, girl.”    Bruce runs two businesses associated with Paint n' Sip events throughout the Upper Ohio Valley. Which holiday seems more popular among the paint-n’-sippers crowd in the area, and what do they paint at that time of year?  Once it’s pumpkin season everyone comes out of the woodwork for classes, it’s great! The weather cools down, school has started and everyone starts getting into fall mode! That energy continues right into Christmas and winter it’s my busy time of year I love it.  How have your years in the military helped – and hurt – your life as a civilian?  The Army helped make my life what it is in so many ways. It started my adult life off with knowing I would have a college education. It helped me learn to be self-sufficient and head into the world away from my family on my own, which was terrifying at first and quickly exciting.  By far the biggest impact it brought me though was meeting my husband of 20 years. That one decision of joining the Army gave me my beautiful family.  What activity do you prefer more – a walk on the beach or a hike in the mountains? Why?  Definitely a hike in the mountains, I am a very active person and run every day. I love to challenge myself and have even started upping my races this year and just did my first half-trail marathon.  What do most people not realize about their local Rotary Club?  Honestly, most people that I meet have no clue what Rotary does at all, and I’m always very happy to tell them about it because it’s such a great organization. I actually just finished up my one-year term as president and I am currently serving on the board.  The Rotary of St. Clairsville focuses on raising money to cure polio on an international level. But even more than that, our local focus is to raise funds throughout the year with our fundraisers and put that money directly back into our community.  Roxanne is an artist herself and she has entered competitions in the areas. So, what are your plans for the Halloween costumes you and your husband plan to wear this year?  You can tell us … we promise, we won’t tell. (Have some fun with it!) We are torn between The Trumps, the Simpons or maybe the Bundys! Read the full article

[cloudywithchanceofrainestorm]

Honestly "Thems the breaks, kid" just made me realize how truly selfish and impulsive Lilith was when she cursed Eda.

Just the fact that, when they had to duel for the emperors coven, instead of talk to her sister about it she immediately jumped to "Im gonna loose if i dont do anything." Like she immediately threw her sisters wellbeing out the window when it suited her.

But its even worse when you consider that the consequences of her curse went way beyond just her individual magical ability.

As a result of Eda's curse:

Eda attacked their father, causing him to become disabled and no longer be able to work

Their mother became a victim to medical scams, using family heirlooms and going on dangerous jouneys to try and cure her daughter

The pervious two situations caused Eda to run away from home at a very young age, making her look out for herself at way to young of an age.

Ruined her relationship with Raine, the only friend she had aside from Lilith she had (and her one true love)

Made her isolate from anything and everything until she found king (and by that point she was middle aged)

By all account Eda's life was considerablly more miserable then it had to be. And sure there was no way that lilith could of known the curse would of caused these things, cause she didnt understand how the curse worked in the first place. By all accounts she seemed to think that the consequences of this would be as far as making Eda slightly weaker so she could win that duel, not life altering.

Don't get me wrong, this isnt an anti lilith post by any means, cause this makes perfect sense given her situation at the time.

Lilith was a youngish teenager, who felt ignored by her mother and undermined (unintentionally) by her sister. Of course shes gonna make a stupid mistake like this. I can remember so many times as a younger teen i made horrible mistakes that blew up in my face because I couldnt fathom consequences past the end of that week.

Lilith making one singular mistake, that then snowballed into several mistakes, is something that happens with kids her age so often. Because of this it's far more forgivable that it would be for anyone else.

However, what if far less forgivable is her actions as an adult.

Lilith didnt tell anyone that she was the one to curse Eda, most likely out of shame. But that sense of superiority over her still exsisted through out season 1. Lilith couldnt help but feel smug that she was in a position of high respect while Eda was a pursued criminal.

But even with her higher position, she can't capture Eda. All her effort means nothing because in the grand-scheme of things, Eda is still the more powerful witch, even while cursed.

In their battle at the end of season 1, Lilith still needs to resort to trickery in order to win (by capturing luz), and when she screams out "Then why were you so easy to curse!" In response to Eda saying she is better than her, alot of people pointed out that Eda was both sleeping in her own bed and also trusted lilith because shes her damn sister.

Lilith wants to be seen as a powerful witch, but she keeps having to resort to trickery to achieve it. And experienceing the curse first hand throughout season 2 definitely works to humble her, as she finally stops focusing on whether shes a failure or not and instead focuses on developing personal relationships to enrich her

By "Elsewhere, Elsewhen" shes finally realized that she doesnt need to be told shes great to be happy, becoming suspicious of Philip Wittebitch when he starts telling her what she wants to hear.

Honestly this went from "Eda's curse really messed her up huh" to "The life and times of Lilith Clawthorn" and i ain't sorry.

[thepettymachine]

A Different Kind of Jam Legacy Challenge for TS3

Honestly I just wanted to make another challenge that involved colors and had a theme but then it changed into something completely different so I thought I share. 

The Jam Legacy is a 9 generation legacy challenge based on fruits you can put into jams/jellies and has a specific color palette if you choose to go with it. Each generation is a quirky bunch and meant for some weird gameplay. So if you enjoy weird gameplay, nice fall colors, and maybe 9 generations of fun, this might be your jam.

For those who wish to do this in TS4, @nadzicle​ created an excellent conversion  of this.

Tag: jam legacy or “@” me

Rules:

All requirements that are needed for the generation are in the “Ingredients” section. 

Have fun and do what you want.

Gen 1: Strawberry

Everyone loves strawberries. They are sweet and popular just like you. You love getting to talk and meet new people at every chance you get and everyone loves how friendly you are. But your desire to help people has been the main driving point in your life. As you tend to others, you also tend to neglect taking care of yourself. As a workaholic, your house is a mess, your children don’t get to see you anymore, and your personal life is in shambles. Need to take some PTO if you ask me. 

How to make Strawberry:

Ingredients:

Career: Doctor

LTW: Super Popular

2 Traits - Workaholic & Slob

20 Friends

Skill - Charisma

Directions:

Must have the Workaholic and Slob traits

Have 20 friends and maintain those relationships until the next generation.

Neglect your children’s skills (No teaching toddler skills, helping with homework or teaching teens to drive)

Can only clean the house once a week.

Must cancel any other interaction and no outside help

Master the Charisma skill

◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇ ◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇

Gen 2: Peach

Peaches are nice and juicy, just like your creative process. You enjoy creating as it brings joy to you and those around you. But as a child, your parents neglected you as they were focused on anything and everything but you. So you found love from others and in other places where you felt like you mattered. You deserve a treat and you also treat your children to whatever they want. They’re spoiled rotten.  

How to make Peach:

Ingredients: 

Career: Self Employed (Painter/Writer/Sculptor)

LTW: Illustrious Author

3 skills - Painting, Sculpting, and Writing

10 Lovers

Found Family

5,000 dollars

Children

Directions: 

Master the Painting, Sculpting, and Writing skills.

Have 10 different lovers throughout your lifetime/at the same time

Go to the spa/stylist once a week because you deserve it

Have a maximum of 5,000 in household funds. Any amount over you spend on unnecessary items/furniture/activities

Have a close relationship with your children (spoil them rotten)

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Gen 3: Grape

You’ve always had a dream where you had a big beautiful ranch that would allow for you to take care of your horses in peace as you flaunt your wealth to those who envy you. But working hard for that money is just too much of a hassle unless someone has already done the work for you. If you want to maintain your dream, I guess you gotta marry big or have them die trying. In the meantime, you invest your money into the local businesses around town and have a side gig for nectar making. Then invite those haters to your ranch only for them to be reminded just how much better you are than them. Have a sip of that wine.

How to make Grape:

Ingredients:

Career: Equestrian

LTW: The Jockey

Skills: Nectar Making, Mixology, and Riding

3 pieces of property

2-3 horses

A ranch

Directions:

Own a ranch/farm that’s worth more than $150,000+

Have 2-3 horses

Master the Nectar Making, Mixology, and Riding skills

Host a big party at least once a week

Own 3 pieces of property in town

Win a competition on the highest level for Racing

Marry a rich sim and have them mysteriously die from unknown circumstances

◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇ ◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇

Gen 4: Plum

You’ve always believed that the universe has the answers to the questions you’ve always wondered. Like why is the sky blue? What really happened to Bella Goth? Was my parent really killed for the insurance money or the inheritance of the ranch? Sometimes these questions are left unanswered which is why you investigate the truth, supernatural or not, because it is waiting out there to be solved. Might as well document it for the views. 

How to make Plum:

Ingredients:

Career: Private Investigator

LTW: Pervasive Private Eye

Skills: Logic and Social Networking

A 5 star blog

1 death

1 death flower

A death cure (ambrosia & death fish)

Directions:

Master the Logic and Social Networking skill

Have a 5 star blog

Have a death flower in your inventory so you can meet the Grim Reaper and beat death once

Have a sour relationship with your living parent and bring back your dead parent (if you can/applicable)

Be turned into a supernatural and then find the cure to be turned back (optional to be human again)

Be abducted by aliens and have an alien child.

◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇ ◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇

Gen 5: Pumpkin

There’s always been an obsession with finding ways to tinker and fix things with you. You’ve always  found comfort in creating something with your bare hands and you tend to enjoy your own company and make few friends since you live far away from everyone else. It’s mostly because you need the space for your inventions and experiments with time travel. Wait what?!You also pride yourself by living off your own land and deciding not to feast on your animal companions you find in the wilderness as they are your only friends.

How to make Pumpkin

Ingredients: 

Career: Inventor

LTW: Renaissance Sim

Skills: Inventing, Handiness, and Science

3 children

5 woodland creatures

Trait: Vegetarian

Directions:

Master the Inventing, Handiness, and Science skills

One of your children have to be from the time machine

No more than 3 kids in the household

House must be as far away from the town as possible

Own at least 5 small pets in your home.

Everything you cook must come from your garden, so no grocery shopping from the fridge

Must have the Vegetarian trait.

◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇ ◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇

Gen 6: Pomegranate

As a child, you’ve always wanted to see the sights and travel from your little corner of the world. But your heart has always yearned for a big family you never received for when you were younger. To have two worlds come together, you decide to do most of your traveling in spring/summer and stay at home in the fall/winter seasons. When you’re at home, you spend time with your children and cook their favorite meals all while joined by the fire. And when you’re not at home, you are traveling those big adventures you’ve always dreamed of doing and to bring home the stories and souvenirs your loved ones will enjoy. What a good life indeed.

How to make Pomegranate:

Ingredients:

Career: Stay at Home Parent

LTW: Seasoned Traveler

5 children

Skill - Cooking

Directions:

Spouse has to be from a different world than you

Have 5 children and have a great relationship with all of them

Master the Cooking skill

Celebrate each holiday at least once.

Cook everyone’s favorite meal at least once

Own a complete collection of artifacts from any destination

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Gen 7: Orange

Listening to stories growing up about meeting new people and exploring new worlds has put the call of adventure into your heart. But with the limited time in this world and so many resources on your hands, you’re kinda indecisive about what to do. So basically you just do about everything on an impulsive whim. Joined a band, check. Streak in public, check. Fought a shark, check. Got eaten by a cowplant and lived, check. Turn everybody into a zombie, thought about it. Go to the future and create a dystopian future, oh there’s an idea. Yeah you’re not settling for a while. Not until you find your greatest adventure.

How to make Orange:

Ingredients:

LTW: Jack of all Trades

1 best friend

10 skills

10 jobs

3 moves

1 great adventure

Directions:

Know 10 skills but never master any of them

Spend your life finding the greatest adventure that no one else in your family has done before.

Greatest adventure is defined by you and what you believe is an adventure.

Marry your best friend as an adult

Move 3 times in your lifetime

Have at least 10 jobs under your belt (but you don’t have to reach the highest level in any of them)

Do the most dangerous inappropriate stuff at least 3 times a week.

Streaking/Skinny dipping/making out with a married person/fighting a child/etc

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Gen 8: Kumquat

You can’t stand the status quo of things and you definitely can’t stand the injustice that society normalizes. So something has to change, rather through art or always fighting the system, you believe in changing the world. One step at a time. 

How to make Kumquat

Ingredients:

LTW: Street Credible

Rebel Status

2 local protests

1 skill - Street art

3 enemies

1 change to the world

Directions:

Pull pranks as a teenager on all your neighbors

Get kicked out of college

Reach level 10 of the Rebel status

Protest at least 2 times a week

Master the Street art skill

Have 3 enemies

Can not have a typical career/9-5 job

Contribute to the future - create a utopia/dystopia for the future, become a politician as an adult or become a teacher to teach the youth. Up to you. 

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Gen 9. Blackberry

Growing up, you’ve learned how to always fight for the things you love. Through the strums of your guitar, you’ve created a melody that others can get behind when they are sad, angry, or happy. It’s the battle cry of your performance and the applause of the crowds that keep you going. It’s just that sometimes you wish you had someone to keep you going when things get rough as well. At least you have your bandmates, right?

How to make Blackberry

Ingredients:

LTW: One Sim Band

Career: Band member/Singer

4 Skills: Guitar, Drums, Piano, and Bass

2 failed relationships

1 comeback tour

1 true love/soulmate

Directions:

Master the Guitar, Drums, Piano, and Bass Skills

Create/Join a Band

Have 2 failed relationships before finding the one

True Love Checklist - Attractive, Compatible Sign, 2 similar traits, and the Virtuoso trait

Become a 5 star celebrity

Quit the band to have a solo career as a Singer

Reunite as elders for your comeback tour

Thank you for trying this challenge. Feedback is always welcomed.

Edit: 10/22/21

[femalechibiblogger]

My Top 10 Underrated Anime Series

1. Welcome to the NHK

Plot: The main protagonist is Tatsuhiro Satō, a university dropout entering his fourth year of unemployment. He leads a reclusive life as a hikikomori, ultimately coming to the conclusion that this happened due to some sort of conspiracy. One day just when his life seems entirely unchanging, he meets Misaki Nakahara, a mysterious girl who claims to be able to cure Tatsuhiro of his hikikomori ways. She presents him with a contract basically outlining that once a day they would meet in the evening in a local park where Misaki would lecture to Tatsuhiro in an effort to rid him of his lifestyle. During these outings, many subjects are discussed, though they almost always pertain in some way to psychology or psychoanalysis. One of their first meetings in fact deals with interpreting Tatsuhiro's recent dreams. Both Tatsuhiro and Misaki, however, have a tendency of over-doing things, such as hiding the truth, especially from each other and themselves. Despite Misaki's offer and pressing attempts at salvation, it is Tatsuhiro's neighbor and high school friend, Kaoru Yamazaki, whom Tatsuhiro often turns to in moments of need and support. Despite his own idiosyncrasies, Yamazaki is one of the more stable characters in the story.

While many may not know about this series, those who do know of its existence can see it’s appeal. This anime shows that some people, like the main character, are shut-in’s due to social anxiety holding them back from living a regular life. The anime deals with subjects such as social anxiety, hiding depression from loved ones, paranoia, and a crippling fear of never being accepted by the outside world. 

Throughout the series, Sato tries to go outside more often and is pushed to do this by a high school girl, Misaki, and his old classmate now neighbor, Kaoru. All the while, Sato meets some people from his past who cause him to go down a different path, such as becoming part of a ponzi scheme or joining a suicide group, because they themselves have problems that he unknowingly becomes a part of. This goes to show that if you have struggles with batting depression or have family problems...seek proper help before bringing others down with you.

2. Tiger & Bunny

Plot: The series takes place in "NC 1978" in a fictional, re-imagined version of New York City called Stern Bild City, where 45 years before, superpowered individuals known as "NEXT" (an acronym standing for Noted Entities with eXtraordinary Talents) started appearing and some of them became superheroes. Each of the city's most famous superheroes work for a sponsor company and their uniforms also contain advertising for real-life companies. Their heroic activity is broadcast on the popular television show "Hero TV", where they accumulate points for each heroic feat accomplished (arresting criminals or saving civilians, for example) and the best ranked hero of the season is crowned "King of Heroes". The story mainly focuses on veteran hero Kotetsu T. Kaburagi, a.k.a. Wild Tiger, who is assigned a new partner: a young man named Barnaby Brooks, Jr. However, Barnaby and Kotetsu have trouble working together, as they have conflicting opinions on how a superhero should act, while at the same time they are trying to crack the mystery of the murder of Barnaby's parents. In addition, the appearance of a homicidal vigilante NEXT named "Lunatic" stirs up the public and makes them question the place of heroes in the city. 

The main heroes, Kotetsu and Barnaby, do not like each other at first...but a strong bond grows between them as they protect the city and help each other from the tragic moments of their pasts. They even help each other with the problems that they face within the series’ current timeline: Kotetsu slowly losing his powers, and Barnaby being manipulated by someone who he thought of like family. 

While not as big as My Hero Academia, this series still has lots of good moments, terrific super heroes, and powerful storylines. Tiger & Bunny is definitely worth watching for anyone who loves superheroes and anime.

3. My Roommate Is A Cat

Plot: Novelist Subaru Mikazuki, who is shy and not good with other people, and Haru, the cat that has been living a severe stray life. This is a story of them suddenly living together and describes the happiness of living together from both point of views.

This series is definitely underrated. My Roommate is a Cat is filled shows how much of an impact a person...or in this case a cat...can have on a person who has lived a life of solitude and books. The main character, Subaru Mikazuki, begins to slowly open up to those around him thanks to the help of a stray cat: Haru. From Haru’s point of view, Subaru is someone whom she desires to protect and take care of, as she fears that he cannot survive without her. Subaru also comes to term with his parents’ deaths and learns to move past his guilt, and realizes that there are many people who love and care for him.

This series shows that it’s ok to open up to the people around you, and that no one is truly alone.

4. And Yet The Town Moves

Plot: Hotori Arashiyama loves mysteries, but there’s one she just can’t solve: why does the solution to one problem inevitably seem to lead to another? Like how when Hotori has to start working at the Seaside Maid Cafe after school to pay off a debt and her friend Toshiko fortunately knows exactly how a Maid Cafe should be run. Which is fortunate since Hotori has no clue. Except that, unfortunately, Toshiko has no interest in working at the cafe—until she discovers that Hotori’s childhood friend Hiroyuki is a regular. Which SEEMS fortunate. Except that Hotori doesn’t know that, while Toshiko likes Hiroyuki, Hiroyuki secretly likes Hotori, while Hotori secretly has a crush on… No, no more spoilers!But if that’s not enough drama, there’s work, angst with a certain math teacher, table tennis between her classmates, her younger brother versus the school’s bad girl… And yet, even though everything seems like it’s going to crash at any moment, somehow Hotori’s life keeps going hilariously forward.

Sure...it doesn’t have sexy and cute maids that most maid-theme anime has... But And Yet The Town Moves is still a series worth watching. The series features cute, slice-of-life storylines filled with antics by the mystery-loving Hotori Arashiyama. Because of her crazy antics and goofy nature, Hotori brings laughter and new experiences to those around her. 

If you want an anime featuring klutzy maids and funny slice of life, then And Yet The Town Moves is definitely the right choice. 

5. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!

Plot: Midori Asakusa wants to create an anime, but she's too disheartened to make that first step by herself. By pure chance, she meets Tsubame Mizusaki, an up-and-coming socialite secretly dreaming of becoming an animator. Together with Midori's money-loving best friend Sayaka Kanamori, the energetic trio start the "Eizouken" club and slowly work towards making their "greatest world" a reality.

This anime is truly a one-of-a-kind masterpiece. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! has animation that is truly breathtaking and filled with the imaginations of aspiring animators. Throughout the series, our three protagonists: Midori, Sayaki, Tsubame experience the hardships of running their own studio, all the while dealing with the Student Council and School Board who wish to shut down Eizouken. But no matter how hard they try, there is no stopping these three girls from making anime and running their studio. 

Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! has such brilliant animation, creative storylines, and normal looking characters who viewers can relate to. If your dream is to become an animator, than you certainly learn a lot from this series.

6. Angels of Death

Plot: 13-year old Rachel awakens to find herself trapped in the basement of an abandoned building. Without any memories, or even a clue as to where she could be, she wanders the building, lost and dizzy. In her search, she comes across a man covered in bandages. He introduces himself as Zack and he wields a grim-reaper like sickle.A strange bond is struck between them, strengthened by strange, crazy promises…These two, trapped in this strange building, don’t know why fate has placed them there. But they will work together desperately to find a way out…

Rachel and Zack are quite an unlikely duo...yet their skills and personalities are what complete each other: Rachel is calm and calculating, while Zack is aggressive and strong. But they have something in common: They both suffered their whole lives, became killers, and being killers is what got them trapped in the mysterious building in the first place. Together, they face various serial killers who want to keep them from escaping: A doctor with an eye fetish, a pumpkin-headed child who wants to bury Rachel in his graveyard, a female-prison warden who’s obsessed with punishing ‘sinners’, and a faithless priest whose goal is to test the faith of those who fall victim to the killers within the building. 

Angels of Death is filled with such mystery and psychological thrills. While it is not for the faint of heart...it is definitely for those who wish to find a good psychological thriller to watch.

7. Zombieland Saga

Plot: In the year 2008, high school student Sakura Minamoto is abruptly killed by a truck on the morning she plans to submit an idol application. Ten years later, Sakura, along with six "legendary" girls from various eras of Japan's history, are brought back as zombies by a man named Kotaro Tatsumi, who seeks to revitalize Saga Prefecture by putting together an all-zombie idol group known as Franchouchou.

Unlike most ‘pop idol’ anime series, that feature cute girls whose music can save the world...this one features cute girls who are zombies who were brought back to life to save a city as a pop idol group. While it seems unusual, Zombieland Saga shows the viewers all the things that Saga has to offer...because it basically advertises the entire prefecture. The members of Franchouchou: Sakura, Saki, Ai, Junko, Lily, Yugiri, and Tae...are determined to become a great idol group while keeping their true identities a secret. Thanks to their mysterious manager, Kotaro Tatsumi, they are given a second chance at life and learn more about each other...but they also help each other move on from their deaths and give closure to the loved ones that they had to leave behind. 

If you are looking for a ‘pop idol girl’ anime that is different from others...then Zombieland Saga is definitely a good choice, as it does differ from the usual plots that anime featuring pop idol groups has.

8. Mitsuboshi Colors

Plot: Set in Ueno. The series follows three elementary school girls, Yui, Sat-chan, and Kotoha, who together form an organization known as "Colors". Together, they perform various deeds and errands to protect the peace in their town.

This series is very adorable and is filled with a lot of hilarity. What makes it hilarious, are the crazy antics of the crybaby Yui, the rambunctious Sat-chan, and the dark-humored Kotoha as they try to help others and maintain the peace in the town that they love so much. They recieve help from local shop owner, Pops, who gives them clues to solve, and are often coming into conflict with police officer Saito, who sees them as nothing but trouble while dealing with their childish antics. 

Mitsuboshi Colors really does make you want to go to the real Ueno in Japan, and see all the shops featured within this series.

9. Lovely Muco

Plot: The series depicts the life of the pet dog Muco and his owner Komatsu, who lives in his glass-making workshop in the mountains.

Lovely Muco shows life through the eyes of Muco, a shiba inu who lives in a mountain town with her owner, Komatsu, who works as a glass blower. Muco is an energetic dog who finds everything around her fascinating. Muco loves Komatsu more than anything in the world, who gives her lots of love in return. Muco also interacts with other people such as Komatsu’s long-time friend, Ushikou-san, bar owner Bouda and his energetic daughter Rena. 

Lovely Muco shows the viewer how the world looks through the eyes of a dog, and what goes through their curious minds.

10. Chi’s Sweet Home

Plot: A grey and white kitten with black stripes wanders away from her mother and siblings one day while enjoying a walk outside with her family. Lost in her surroundings, the kitten struggles to find her family and instead is found by a young boy, Youhei, and his mother. They take the kitten home, but, as pets are not allowed in their housing complex, they try to find her a new home. This proves to be difficult, and the family decides to keep the kitten. While being housebroken, the kitten mistakenly answers to "Chi" (as in shi- from shikko, the Japanese word for "urine") and this becomes her name. Chi then lives with her new family, learning about different things and meeting new people and animals.

This series is filled with so much love and cuteness that it could give you diabetes. Chi’s New Home shows viewers how the world looks through the eyes young kitten ‘Chi’, as she grows to love her human family and makes new friends along the way. Chi and her family love each other greatly, and cannot imagine living without each other.

Chi’s Sweet Home shows us just how important family is, and how a new member of one’s family can bring so much love and joy into one’s life.

[fuckingdeadbutroyal]

Jasonette July- Soulmate AU- Part 4

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5

!Season 3 spoilers coming right ahead!

A tiny sigh escaped Maris lips as she felt her body filling up with energy. “He ate. I think I’ll be fine in a few”, she told her partner, who was currently swimming next to her. She hadn’t dared to detransform for a day now, knowing that doing so would mean her finally collapsing. The duo hasn’t been wasting time, though. Theyvwere trying to come up with a new plan. Ladybug told him all about her being the new Guardian of the Miraculous, about Chat Blanc and Bunnix. Pointed out how if Bunnix hasn’t turned up yet, that meant that they could handle the situation. Explained why she wouldn’t dare share her identity with him, even though she wanted to, because of how she couldn’t afford to risk him turning into Chat Blanc again. Ladybug told him about her soulmate. Now he finally understood how she had such incredible stamina and... had a hard time agreeing to the two of them staying as nothing more than friends.

Adrien did not disregard their friendship as something unimportant. Knowing that he was Ladybugs best friend and feeling that she was just as well his... best friend, his partner, the person he could rely on the most. It was amazing, unique and so very very important to him.

That didn’t mean he wasn’t hurt, though. He loved her and she liked him, they both knew that. It just was never enough. Not for Adrien.Now was not the time to grieve his broken heart, though. He was used to suppressing his emotions due to Hawkmoths terror. He could keep it together for a little longer.

Now that all their cards were laid out on the table, they were ready to come up with a plan.

“Look. I can’t cast my cure while the akuma is still out there. Creation doesn’t work with destruction working actively against it.”, Ladybug told Chat who, though currently detransformed as Adrien, winced. The word “Destruction” has already intergrated itself as a trigger, setting off a bad reaction in the teenagers mind. Plagg did not like that in the slightest. “Kid, you’ve gotta get it together. Yes I am the god of D-Trigger, but I’m also the God of Chaos and let me tell ya, I can’t sense a hint of chaos on that dusty dirtbag out there.” Adrien smirked, a drained, sarcastical smile forming on his lips. “Are you trying to tell me I have another power you’ve just forgotten to mention?” 

The heroes knew they still weren’t off age and therefore didn’t have access to their full potential. That didn’t stop hope from lighting up in the backs of the duos hearts. They already couldn’t use the other Miraculous power, since all of the previous Miraculous holders were eliminated on day three, due to Hawkmoth already knowing their identities (thanks to what he had done on heroes day two years ago) and him finding the civilian heroes’ hiding places before Ladybug and Chat Noir could even locate their presence in Paris. Searching for new holders was clearly not a good idea. They couldn’t risk throwing someone inexperienced and terrified into a battle they didn’t know how to win yet.

But if Chat could use a new power? 

That would be the element of surprise they needed! Adriens 18th Birthday was just around the corner, there's a chance it could work!

"Nah, he's not in the right condition to try, too young and way too exhausted"

Bye bye little flame of hope.

"But if you were to get some ACTUAL sleep and eat some fucking food? You would totally make it."

"Wait what?", Marinettes eyes were the size of asteroids. They had a chance! She just had to get him to one of those bunkers so he could get some sleep and then..."Then we'll have to go without it. I'm not leaving you alone milady."

Oh, yeah, there was that tiny detail she had forgotten. The two of them were too protective of each other to leave their partner to their own devices and Ladybug entering any building was not an option.The girl let out a frustrated huff, "Cha-" "I understand what you mean, Ladybug.”, Adriens voice was solid and left no room for argument. Batman would have been proud. “But this is not up to debate. I'm not leaving you alone, not while you are in this state nor during any of our battles. It has never ended well in the past and it sure as hell won't end well now."

Plagg' and Maris' annoyed sighs were absolutly identical, which would've made Adrien laugh, if it weren't for their current situation. He knew he was right, though, and he knew she did as well.

Mentally, Marinette was feeling better. Less on edge, more focused. It was surprising to all of them. Of course she still was incredibly tired, even more fatigued than yesterday, which was understandable since she has not slept for about a week now and spent most of her time swinging around Paris, thinking her head off and crying her eyes out while trying to save as many civilians as possible. Nontheless, even though her body was about to shut down, her brain was working at a thousand miles per hour. She knew it was thanks to her soulmate, who was currently fueling the both of them by ingesting loads of energizing substances and getting closer.

Marinette was now certain her soulmate was a man. He was in Paris, in danger and aware of her dependance on him.

Who could he be? How did he get here? Why now? Why hasn’t he ever tried to find her before? 

She didn’t judge him, of couse. Did not expect him to put everything aside just to find her. Who if not Ladybug could understand what it meant to have duties holding you back, chaining you to the ones who claim to love you? (While they only do so because they need her, Marinette believed. Paris didn’t actually love her, no-one cared about her wellbeing unless it was important for their safety. No-one would jump into fire for Ladybug if they wouldn't trust her to sacrifice her sanity to resurrect them. No-one has ever jumped to rescue Marinette in her civilian identity, after all.)

Marinette was spiralling. Memories and repressed emotions suddenly jumping to the surface, reminding her of all the ways she had offered her very self to help anyone in need and receiving nothing in return. She had people who were nice to her, she had friends and family and people who loved her for who she was. Sadly, Mari only just now realised that love wasn't enough. It has never been enough. She would spend many nights awake, working on gifts and projects and helping her friends out or even just simply entertaining them over the phone. What for? Why?!

"Marinette is a saint", her parents would say, "She can do anything." Mari knew that wasn't true. She wasn't almighty. She couldn't even say "No".

That’s where the spiral came to an end. All those thoughts were standing at a cliffs edge, staring down into the abyss right beneath their feet. A tiny step forward, a minimal lean in and she would fall. Where would she go? What would she encounter? Was it okay to do this? Was it okay to change?

For once, Mari felt sure of herself. In a place she would've never thought she'd be, swimming under a god damn Ladybug themed boat in the middle of the Saine. Her mind was clear, certain. She opened her eyes and her mind jumped.

"Well fuck no I can't always do everything.", Mari heard Ladybugs voice, only partly recognizing it as her own.

The black cat duo next to her winced, having been discussing the topic of whether or not Adrien could leave Ladybug alone for a few hours. Not at all have they been expecting the sudden change in the star of their argument.

"Bug...?"

She looked at him, face straight but full of rage. Eyes sharp but full of thought. She didn't need to look around to figure out how to use her lucky charm, instead she had a horrible, unstable and unfinished plan she was absolutely going to follow.

"I have an idea."

------------------

Hawkmoth was nervous. The akuma was stronger than he had expected and definitely much harder to control. He hasn't yet decided whether or not it was a good idea to akumatize a homeless man, especially considering his educational history in architecture and geography.

It was like the Akuma was thinking, not just feeling like all his previous ones did. It could either mean victory or the literal end of the world. Gabriel was hoping for the first option, of course.

Another reason for his nervous state of mind, were the unexpected members of the justice league, who for whatever reason just now decided to enter the battlefield. He hasn't been expecting them anymore, once the first year of his reign had passed without a droplet of attention from Gotham and the rest of the world. If they've never cared before, why now? Did they suddenly have more free time or did they only just realise they were literal vigilantes and could therefore ignore any and all international borders?

Or was Hawkmoth finally on the right track, finally about to win so they sent the last of their forces to come and save his enemies? A grin split his masked face in a horrifying grimace. His secret weapon was still leashed, still waiting for his order. Agreste Senior had the upper hand, this was his time to shine, his time to win.

Finally.

----------

Much clearer air seeped into Jason's lungs. He even went as far as removing his mask, just so he could properly breathe in something that wasn't poisoned with a literal mist of dust and the stench of death. His heart, no, their hearts were beating faster. Jason stood right by the river. He felt the cold water numbing her legs and reaching for her throat. He felt her dizzy fatigue and her clenching stomach. He knew her thoughts were just as clear as his. It felt as though their minds were finally complete, as if their brains could finally grasp the whole situation. Their body's were so close, they could finally function the way they were meant to. Together, helping one another.

"Red Robin. I found her. The boats are meant for shelter, the akuma can't come out in the open and it’s afraid of water. The heroes must be somewhere underneath those fat kanus."

"Copy."

"I'm going in."

"Hood wai-"

Jason was already underwater, hearing but not listening to Tim's voice.

Red Hood was about to find his Red Lady and no one could stop him.

-------------

Marinette had just finished explaining her plan to Adrien, who was now transformed and ready to move, when she felt it. "He's here.", was all she could muster. Chat didn't have to think twice to guess what she had meant and subconsciously started to brace himself. He couldn't help but think that now really wasn't the time for her soulmate to interrupt. They were at war, which meant that her uninvited lover was putting himself and Ladybug at risk. Risking her safety meant risking Paris safety which meant that over all, Adrien felt like they were being royaly fucked by the Kwami of Timing.

The Duo felt the water underneath their feet moving. (The rivers flow has been stopped right at the beginning of the akuma battle. It was a safety precaution the mayor has ordered after a particularly unpleasant spread of akuma poison. Now, whenever the Akuma-alert went of, the city shut down, sealed shut and closed up. Not a single soul could enter and not a single twig could leave.

The heroes had formerly agreed to that being a great idea, now that they were short on everything, though... let's say they have learned that isolation wasn't always the best solution to their problems.)

Ladybug felt him before she heard him, a weird sense of Deja-vu overcoming her.

He came up behind her. Her spine felt like it was buzzing with electricity.

"Pixie?"

Jason didn't know why he called her that, but it sure as hell felt right.

Another shiver went down their spines. Marinettes reaction caused by her soulmates voice, while Jason's body just seemed to mimic hers even more intensely now.

She turned around.

Their eyes met.

Their scars felt like they've lit up in flames.

Two sleeping bodies were sinking towards the floor of the river Saine.

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Hey ho, friendioh

I am so tired, my eyes are so done, je suis juste come Jasonette in my story.

You comments though? I LOVE YOU. Thank each and every one of you lovely message-leavers, my heart is now full of love and excitement and it’s your fault!

I can’t stress this enough, your feedback is shooing my depressay far far away.

Now back to the content. I am not finished yet, there’s more coming and the end is still uncertain, even to me. I have my plotline and my scenes, but this story has kind of started writing itself (which in my opinion is what makes writing so great). So I guess we’re all looking into a future just as uncertain as Dukes vision :)

My taglist has grown! Message me if you are interested in joining that cute group you are about to read the names of, I’ll be happy to add you ^^

Tag List \o/

@maribat-is-lifeblood @lokilex @amayakans @readingismyoxygen 

Thanks for reading ^^

[sepublic]

Lilith’s Curses- The Crane Wives

           I really feel like Curses by The Crane Wives just… FITS Lilith perfectly as a song- Specifically a song from Lilith’s perspective, how she feels about Eda, her own guilt over the curse, the moral dilemma she’s facing, and the loneliness that Lilith feels. Looking at the lyrics;

There’s a fire in my brain and I’m burning up

Oh my, oh my

Keep running for the sink but the well is dry

Oh my, oh my

Every word I say is kindling

But the smoke clears when you’re around

Won’t you stay with me, my darling

When my walls start burning down?

           I’ve talked before about how Lilith has a bit of a Fire motif going on, and how Fire seems to be related to the Emperor’s Coven, as well as characters who want to join it (Amity) or subscribe to the same ideas of hierarchy and power (Boscha). Belos’ own throne room is lit up by burning braziers… And we see Lilith with spells that cast blue fire. And, I think this motif is symbolic of just how destructive these characters can be, both towards themselves and others- And how Lilith is someone who no doubt felt a lot of immense pain over cursing Eda, over her one-time mistake as a child that spiraled far beyond anything she could’ve expected.

           Lilith is hurting herself by joining the Emperor’s Coven, indoctrinating herself into its toxic beliefs and cult-like mentalities… And she hurts others; Such as wild witches, Eda, Luz… And there is that horrible implication that some wild witches are burned at the stake as execution, given that one poster in the library, as well as the giant furnace in Belos’ castle. Not only that, but ‘Fire in my BRAIN’ specifically? I think this can apply to how Amity tried to burn Willow’s memories, so they both could get forget and pretend the past never happened… And I think this could create the image of Lilith willingly burning away her own memories just to cope, and/or how she damaged Eda’s memories with the curse. Lilith, like Amity, set a fire that hurt someone’s mind- But it’s Lilith herself who is the victim, it’s Lilith who tries to blind herself and ignore the corruption of the Emperor’s Coven, and hopes that Eda can one day join her.

           You have Lilith ‘running for the sink’ but the ‘well is dry’, because she doesn’t know how to cope, she definitely can’t in a toxic environment like the Emperor’s Coven. Every word she says is kindling- The propaganda she preaches just buries Lilith further into her sins, each lie uttered by her about the curse just contributes to the unnecessary pain… And every word that Lilith says during her confrontation with Eda in Agony of a Witch, culminating to her specific confession of the curse? One might say it nearly burned the bridge between her and Eda…

           But the smoke clears when Eda is around- Because then Lilith remembers, Lilith finds comfort, she can go back to those old days when they were happy together and not in this kind of pain. One could also interpret the smoke clearing, because Eda combats the Emperor’s Coven and its fire motif- I’ve talked about Eda having a Wind motif, and we know that wind can blow away smoke… Of course, even when Belos is ‘burning down’ the Boiling Isles, Lilith asks for Eda to be with her, at any cost- Even when the walls are burning down, even if being in the Emperor’s Coven is going to hurt Edalyn in the long run; Because Lilith wants her sister back so desperately that she might just hurt her, as we see when she willingly depletes Eda’s magic to capture her.

           Obviously Lilith believed that it’d all come back as soon as Belos cured the curse- But there’s the idea of Lilith being possessive of Eda, wanting her sister by her side at all times… Downplaying Eda’s connections with other people, with Lilith finally taking the step to disregard Eda’s freedom when Belos threatens her. Lilith traps Eda with her, in a bubble, in the Emperor’s Coven- Inside a throne room with two massive, burning braziers… And Lilith’s walls are burning down because her world-view is collapsing around her, Belos is threatening to execute her, Eda is fighting her, her belief in the Coven System is being shattered.

          She just desperately needs Eda’s guidance throughout this process, even if it’s at Eda’s expense. Lilith wants Eda to help and provide for her, but… She’s not quite ready to give Eda what her little sister truly deserves, either- Lilith’s offered some support by bending the law, but she needs to give true unconditional love and support, by siding with Eda openly against the Emperor’s Coven. Lilith wants Eda’s validation- But she still has plenty to give to her own sister. In the season finale, we even get the two being executed together; Had Lilith not acted to capture Eda, it would’ve been JUST her… But thankfully Luz saves them all in the end.

          Still, there’s that recurring theme of Lilith being toxic to Eda, dragging her down, inhibiting Eda’s freedom and expression of self by bringing her sister down with her, just for Lilith’s selfish sake and comfort. Lilith asks Eda to stay with her, even as her walls come burning down… Just as Lilith’s spell-barrier is breaking apart, and her ‘walls’ come down as she opens up, and reveals the truth about the curse, about how she’s been feeling, as her mature and innocent façade falls apart. And when the truth and who Lilith really is, is laid bare to Eda- Lilith tries to negotiate, in essence desperately begging Eda to still love her sister and be with her, and to stay with Lilith even after her guilt is unveiled, all in the midst of Lilith using Luz as a hostage.

This house is my name like an elegy

Oh my, oh my

Echoing where my ghosts all used to be

Oh my, oh my

There’s still cobwebs in the corners

And the backyard’s full of bones

Won’t you stay with me, my darling

When this house don’t feel like home?

When this house don’t feel like home?

           We don’t know where Lilith lives- But we did see concept art of Lilith’s room, and the window implies it could be within Belos’ castle. Belos’ castle, Lilith’s old childhood home where she cursed Eda- Both work here as places that no doubt feel largely empty and haunted to Lilith for a number of reasons… Her old home because it’s where her happiness and childhood both thrived and died, where the young Lilith we saw disappeared and was replaced by the dark-haired one without glasses; And Belos’ Castle, because of how cold and cut-off it is, how isolated and lonely Lilith feels within the massive, empty architecture. Regardless of where she lives, Lilith doesn’t feel like she’s at home, because home is where you feel safe, where you feel like you belong…

          That’s the importance of the Owl House, as a location that provides belonging and comfort, and the freedom to be oneself- A TRUE family… The Emperor’s Coven is no family for Lilith and she knows it, so she asks Eda to come over and MAKE it that way… She wants Eda to be with her ‘real’ family, or make that family for her real. And that’s what Lilith tries to do, ascending the ranks, looking up to Belos- But Belos doesn’t care, he just sees her as another tool. Lilith also mentions an ‘elegy’, she’s mourning her past self and how it ‘died’, she’s lamenting her lost connection with Eda, and the Eda she loved- Acting like she’s dead, when in reality she still lives on in spite of the curse… And this was who Eda always was.

          Perhaps Lilith’s ideal image of Eda was shattered, who knows? Lilith misses the young Eda, the simpler one that wasn’t cursed and wasn’t defying the Coven System, and she mourns for her like she died… Eda still lives, Lilith just wishes she was different, that she’d be like she used to be, because then they could be in the Emperor’s Coven together like they dreamed- Lilith wants Belos to ‘resurrect’ the Eda she missed. And Lilith- Lilith might mourn her old, innocent childhood self as well. She certainly doesn’t look like her anymore… The backyard’s full of bones- Lilith’s skeletons in the closet, as well as the fact that Belos’ castle likely has a LOT of people dead or dying in it thanks to his executions.

Oh ashes, ashes, dust to dust

The devil’s after both of us

Last my curses out to rest

Make a mercy out of me

           Lilith has been burning the bridge between her and Eda to ash, and she wishes she hasn’t- But she’s too scared to defy the Emperor’s Coven, and she doesn’t fully understand Eda’s reasoning, even if deep-down she kind of wants to. The ‘Devil’ is of course Belos, hunting down wild witches or recruiting them into his coven- He’s horned, monstrous, and burns people. The devil could also be retribution for one’s sins, and boy does Lilith have plenty! And she sees Eda as having a few due to being a ‘criminal’. We also have Lilith, who just wants to lay her guilt to rest, lay the curse to rest by killing it with Belos’ help… She just wants mercy from others, from herself and Eda through forgiveness. She wants mercy from life, Lilith wants to finally be freed from the curse, but she never will be…

          She can never rest, there’s even more work to do now that she’s changed her heart and needs to make things right. Though because Lilith is no longer focusing on just the curse as of the finale, and has finally shared it with Eda- Perhaps that issue has finally been put to rest, at least for now, so Lily can repair her relationship with Eda. Lilith confessed and now the secret is gone… And Lilith gets mercy from Eda, who tries to strike down her sister at the Conformatorium, until King vouches for Lilith’s defense. Lilith also wanted mercy from Belos, wanted him to be forgiving of her mistakes- But she finds the only person she can get this from is someone who DOES love her, Eda.

This tired old machine is a-rumbling

Oh my, oh my

Singing songs to the secrets behind my eye

Oh my, oh my

All my aching bones are trembling

And I may yet fall apart

Won’t you stay with me, my darling

When the war starts in my heart?

When the war starts in my heart?

           Lilith is tired, she’s getting older now and wasted so much of her life in the Emperor’s Coven, and trying to cure the curse. She’s tired of the guilt, tired of the work, etc. The Emperor’s Coven reduces individuals to mindless, robotic followers… And Lilith is beginning to break at the seams and give away, she can’t handle this anymore. She’s too lonely, and Lilith knows that she and Eda are running out of time in a lot of ways- In regards to their lifespan, Belos’ patience, their time before the curse takes over, their time before it’s too late to fix things between them…

           Lilith is about to have an emotional breakdown, and then she finally does- That’s why she confesses to cursing Eda during their duel. The mask is breaking and who Lilith is, how she really feels, lonely and guilty and afraid, uncertain, it’s coming out… Lilith’s got secrets behind her eye, all right; The knowledge of the curse, and now that secret IS on her eye, as of the season finale. And that happened because of a verbal spell that rhymes, the way a song might…

           Even after it’s revealed, Lilith still wants Eda to be with her; She NEEDS Eda to be with her, to help Lilith settle the conflict in her heart, as she’s torn between loving Eda, feeling resentment… Wanting to join the Emperor’s Coven, wanting to be with her sister; Knowing deep-down that the Emperor’s Coven is corrupt, but being too afraid to defy it openly… Hating herself but paradoxically buying into the propaganda that she’s superior to others.

          Lilith is having a crisis on what to do/believe, she’s a walking contradiction pulled between two options, and she needs Eda as comfort- Either to encourage Lilith to side with Eda, or to have Eda go with her to the Emperor’s Coven. Lilith needs to be told what to do, because her life in the Emperor’s Coven taught her not to think for herself, she cursed Eda not because of her own judgment but because she thought it was what Belos would do. In the end, the decision ultimately boils down to just Lilith, as all of the effort in the world to change someone’s mind won’t do a thing, if they don’t wantto change.

           Lilith has to choose between what she really loves, wants, and values in life- She has to choose between the Coven System and Eda. And Lilith desperately wants Eda to recognize that she’s having a crisis herself, that she’s not as perfect as she claims, that Lilith too is struggling… Lilith wants Eda to acknowledge this, that Lilith IS working and trying to make things better between the two of them, and why can’t Eda just acknowledge and appreciate this?

          That’s why we have our last new line from this song, with the rest being repeated lyrics; “Tell me I am good enough”. Lilith has struggled with not being good enough for the Emperor’s Coven, not good enough for Belos… Not good enough for Eda, not as strong as her… Not as independent and brave, and Lilith feels like Eda is judging her for this, with Eda apparently thinks she’s always been better. Lilith wants, she desperately NEEDS and craves validation- To be told she’s good enough, just like her apprentice Amity.

          She’s tired of feeling undervalued, of feeling terrible and inferior, insignificant, that she always makes mistakes- She just wants someone to tell her for once that she did what she could, that Lilith tried her best, and it’s enough! Lilith wants someone to ignore her shortcomings and say she’s perfect and has nothing to improve on, that for once she DID make the right decision and has nothing to apologize for, hence why she’s stubborn about acknowledging how kidnapping Luz was unjustified because it’s for and Eda’s sakes. Lilith wants to be told that her victories against Eda were real and valid, and not the result of cowardly tactics and Eda not even giving it her all… Lilith wants to believe she’s good enough to be by Eda’s side, maybe even better- Or good enough to cure the curse, to have her efforts at least appreciated by Eda.

          But at the same time, Lilith wants someone to tell her that she never needed to ‘prove herself’, not by joining the Emperor’s Coven or anything else- And that this reassurance can help her leave and finally reconnect with Eda. If only Lilith had been told she was good enough, she never would’ve tried to take Eda’s spot in the Emperor’s Coven away from her… Lilith’s insecurity and feelings of inferiority are at the root of all of her flaws and mistakes in life, and if she can be told that she’s good enough, just this once, or that she feasibly CAN be at least- Then maybe she can finally make things right.

          And now, as of the finale- Lilith wants someone to tell her that she’s good enough, that her efforts have been recognized, that either she’s earned love, or has always been worthy of it- Lilith wants to be reassured that she deserves love and can even get it in the first place. She wants to be told that she doesn’t have to earn anything, after feeling like she’s had to work for everything in her life, Lilith is already entitled and due just for existing.

          And, at the Owl House… I really think she will get that kind of validation, and finally be able to heal as a result. Lilith can learn to agree with Eda that nobody has to prove they’re worth of dignity, respect, and love- Everybody is, that’s a right you really have to work to forfeit by being cruel to others. Lilith wants to be absolved of the guilt and blame in ways that aren’t productive, such as ignoring her own flaws… And ways that ARE, by recognizing that the Coven System has genuinely hurt and indoctrinated her, and failed to provide in ways it promised.

[quicksilversquared]

Move to Safety: Chapter 2 (of 6)

After Adrien just happens to spy Nooroo in his father’s office, he’s sent into an panic. His father is Hawkmoth, which means that Adrien is in serious danger.

Thankfully the Dupain-Chengs are more than willing to step up to the plate and lend a helping hand.

links in the reblog

The next akuma attack was three days post-discovery. Adrien had been concerned- or, rather, frankly paranoid- about the sudden lull, but Plagg had reminded him that his father was busy at this time of the year, the end of the school year and exams lining up almost perfectly with the push to finalize the summer line, coordinate the summer runways and photoshoots, and in general make sure that Gabriel was in the best possible position going into the summer season. It meant long hours going over designs and then making sure that the finished product lined up with the vision, of making sure that staff were lined up for all of the events, of ensuring that Gabriel's international locations were doing well...

Well, it was really no wonder that Hawkmoth's activity had slowed for the time being.

During his first year as Hawkmoth, his father had left the coordination of pretty much all of those things to Nathalie and a couple of the senior designers, presumably so that he could keep akumatizing people at the same rate as he had before (the official excuse, of course, was that he had still been suffering from grief because of Mrs. Agreste's disappearance and wouldn't be able to juggle everything). Apparently things hadn't gone quite as perfectly as Mr. Agreste had wanted (and it was really hard for his designers and other staff to get last-minute things done when akumas were interrupting them practically every day), forcing Mr. Agreste to switch the majority of his attention to the company during the frantic rush. That in turn meant that his attacks had to step down for a period.

Of course, dialing back on the attacks didn't mean stopping them, as evidenced by the akuma alert lighting up Adrien's phone.

Adrien swallowed a groan as he silenced the alarm, sliding his phone back into his pocket before anyone could notice it. At least the akuma had showed up between classes, making it easier to slip away. He headed to the bathrooms, hiding in a stall until the other boys in the bathroom had cleared out and it was safe for him to transform. Chat Noir slipped out the bathroom window, then charged across the city to join Ladybug, who had gotten there before he had. She was already focused on the fight, eyes narrowed as she spun her yo-yo and sent bits of the melted marshmallow that the akuma was shooting at her flying away.

Chat Noir really, really wanted to taste the marshmallow and see what it was like- it smelled amazing- but Ladybug had had words with him about eating akuma-generated food before and he really didn't want to get scolded again.

(But marshmallow...)

"It's a chocolatier," Ladybug told him breathlessly as he dropped down next to her. "He was trying to make something with marshmallow filling and his intern accidentally tipped the entire vat over and spilled it. Or that's what I'm guessing, at least. It's hard to tell."

Chat Noir frowned as he extended his baton, pushing the Chocolatier back. "He got this upset over that?"

"It wasn't the first time that the intern has spilled stuff, I'm guessing."

"Gotcha."

Soon enough, their battle was in full swing. Chat Noir focused on the akuma as much as he could, but in the back of his mind there was the constant reminder that it was his father behind this. The same person who had (occasionally, rarely, once in a blue moon) tucked him into bed at night when he was younger, the same person who had used to proudly smile when Adrien first started modeling and showed a talent for it, the same person who Adrien had spent years of his life trying to please- that was the man terrorizing Paris, preying on people's emotions for- what? Presumably Mr. Agreste was trying to get Mrs. Agreste back, to prevent whatever it was that had made her vanish.

She wouldn't have wanted all this to happen, of that Adrien was sure.

The lump in his throat only went away when he remembered something Marinette had said the previous night as they had worked on their homework together shoulder-to-shoulder on the floor, wrinkling her nose in disgust as she pointed out that Gabriel Agreste, world-renowned fashion designer had been (perhaps somewhat indirectly, they didn't know how the akuma victims' personal preferences played into their outfit design) responsible for the parade of what were frankly fashion disasters. He had been the one to come up with the names, presumably had some hand in dealing out the powers, had definitely been the one responsible for his own (incredibly tacky) design as the Collector, and yet...

Audrey Bourgeois had just written a scathing column about the akuma designs, in an odd twist of irony. No wonder his father had been in a bit of a foul mood right after that.

"Well, that was a bit of a sticky situation," Ladybug joked as she released the purified akuma at the end of the fight. She watched it go, fluttering over the sagging mountains of melted marshmallow. "Not a bad akuma, though." Her teasing grin turned towards him. "Good job not eating any of the marshmallow."

Now that the fight was over, guilt and anxiety promptly weighted down his gut like lead. He should tell her about Hawkmoth now, before they had to split and go back to their respective schools. But the lump in his throat was back in full force now, and he could barely form words around it. How was he supposed to tell Ladybug without letting on who he was? He hadn't figured that out yet. "I- yeah."

He didn't want to tell Ladybug who he was, not yet. He was worried about her treating him differently and thinking that he couldn't handle the fights anymore, worried about her judging him for not figuring it out sooner, worried- well, that it could mess everything up. He had begged Marinette right away after they got back up to her living room not to tell Ladybug who he was, in fact. Not that he thought that Marinette would go behind his back to do that, but he just- he wanted to be sure. He couldn't handle another reveal, not even with his partner.

She had tried to- to protest, he assumed, or at least tried to say something, but he had cut her off. With her family's support, he could manage his father's defeat without adding more identity reveals to the mix.

Ladybug's expression turned anxious, even as she tossed her Lucky Charm into the air to cast the Cure. "Are you okay, Chat Noir?"

"I-" He was choking on his own words. Ladybug's fingers ran down his arms, wrapping around his wrists steadyingly. "I, uh-" He had to spit it out, he had to!- "Yeah, I'm fine. Just- just tired."

Ladybug's eyes scanned over him, then nodded. "Okay. Take a nap? I want my partner feeling his best."

Chat Noir managed a smile. Today wasn't the day he would be telling his partner about his father, apparently. Next time, for sure. He had to pull himself together soon. "Right."

  Adrien couldn't help but be thrilled to be allowed to have dinner with the Dupain-Chengs that evening. Nathalie hadn't even needed to consider the request before allowing Adrien to go, which was a relief.

If she or his father had noticed that he wasn't sleeping at home anymore, she wouldn't be allowing him out. The fact that he was still getting his freedom meant that so far, his nightly escapes were going unnoticed.

Of course, it was still early. Not even an entire week had passed yet.

"It's going to be weird to go home and then come right back," Adrien told Marinette with a small laugh as he helped her chop the veggies for dinner. He had headed over to her family's house right after school, and was going to be staying there until the Gorilla came around to pick him up (walking to and from Marinette's place to his own and without supervision could only happen during broad daylight, apparently), and then staying at home for all of thirty minutes or so before going right back over. "I'd rather just stay over, but I know they wouldn't allow it. I mean, it took how long for them to allow me to sleep over at Nino's house, and he's, uh..."

"Also a guy," Marinette filled in when Adrien floundered. She reached over to scoop up his chopped vegetables and toss them into the frying pan. "I get it. And I know you've mentioned that you aren't planning on telling Nino about, uh, everything, and you staying over here, but you could probably tell Nathalie that you're going to sleep over there on, like, a Friday or Saturday evening, so then you can sleep in on the weekend instead of having to wake up super-early. Unless she would check in with Nino's family ?"

Adrien blinked at the suggestion, pausing mid-chop and then setting down his knife to properly consider it. It was really, really tempting- they were just coming up on their first weekend with the new arrangement and even the thought of having to get up early so that he could go back to the mansion without being spotted sucked- but would Nathalie check in with Nino's family?

Ugh. He really, really wanted to, though. Being able to sleep in and then actually properly get to sit down and eat a Dupain-Cheng breakfast? That would be amazing. But did he dare risk Nathalie finding out that he was lying about his whereabouts?

"We could also claim that we're having a sleepover for all four of us here," Marinette offered after a minute had passed without Adrien saying anything. "That might be more acceptable. We can say that it's so we can do lots of studying for finals together, without wasting the time to go home and then meet up again the next day."

"Maybe," Adrien agreed, liking that more. "And we can actually study, and invite Nino and Alya over during the day." He grinned, remembering their last "study" session. "As long as they actually study and don't pull us off-track again. We'll have to tell them that they'll get booted if they start making out or flirting with each other again." He glanced over at Marinette. "This weekend, do you think? Or next weekend, so that I can be more fully rested going into finals?"

"Why not both?" Marinette smiled at his startled expression. "Mention both at once, and see if she'll go for it. If she says that two is too much, then decide which weekend you want to go for."

Adrien smiled. Marinette was so smart. "I'll do that."

They worked in silence for a few more minutes, Adrien finishing with the vegetables and Marinette taking over the cooking from him, expertly stirring things together and adding in spices. It smelled amazing. Adrien hovered, not sure what he could do to help, but he knew that if Marinette could think of anything for him to do, she would tell him.

"Ah, Adrien, I was hoping that you would be here!" Mrs. Cheng said cheerfully, sticking her head around the door. "I need something from your room and I was wondering if you could grab it for me."

Adrien blinked in surprise. "I- I mean, sure, I can go in, but- why do you need to wait for me? It's your house, you can go in."

"Oh, I couldn't! That's your room, sweetheart. I'm not going to go in there without your permission." Mrs. Cheng smiled at him. "It's your space now, and I don't want to intrude on it."

Adrien frowned, still not quite understanding. "But... it's a guest room. In your house."

"And we gave that room for you. We don't want to intrude on your space. It's your room now, not the guest room." Mrs. Cheng glanced over at Marinette, then back at Adrien. "Would it help to have you redecorate a bit? I know it feels like a guest room, but we can change it up a bit if it would make you more comfortable."

"Yeah, we didn't exactly have much time to redecorate for you when you moved in," Marinette chimed in right away, before Adrien could protest. She reached over and shut off the burner. "We can go do something about that right now, if you want. Dinner can wait for a little while."

Adrien glanced at Mrs. Cheng, but she was nodding and sliding into the kitchen behind Marinette to take over the cooking. "You two go do that. I'll take over this, and then I can come help once this is in the oven."

Blinking in surprise but not resisting- there was no protesting when any of the Cheng women put their minds to something, Adrien had learned that long ago- Adrien let himself be dragged down to the guest room's door, then nearly ran into Marinette when she drew to a sudden stop in front of the door. He blinked, then realized what was going on when Marinette stepped aside and looked at him expectantly.

She wasn't going to go into his room before him. He had to go in first and then invite her in.

"I'm really fine with you guys coming in," Adrien told her with a small, self-conscious laugh as he pulled the door open to the guest room that he was staying in. "I'm used to it. I mean, at h- at the mansion, the maid comes in when I'm not there all the time. And then Nathalie and my father just come in when they want- I don't know if they come in when I'm not there, but when I'm there, they just come in if they have something that they want to tell me. The Gorilla always knocks before coming in unless it's an emergency, but he doesn't always wait for a response before he does."

Marinette was frowning. "That's not right. I mean, sometimes my parents come into my room, but it's only when I've given them permission, or there's an emergency, or- okay, maybe sometimes they get a little over-excited when I have, uh, friends over and then they pop in, but they've gotten better about it after I talked to them about that. It's important to have privacy in your own room."

Adrien smiled slightly. "That sounds nice. I'd love to have- well, I think it sounds nice, to have a space that's private. To only have people come in who I want to come in, and when I want them to come in..."

"You'll have that here." Marinette waited until Adrien waved her in before entering the room. She glanced over the room, then winced. "Oh, this really looks like a guest room. It doesn't look like you've used the bed at all!"

"I wanted to keep it tidy!" Adrien protested. "In case...uh, in case anyone came in, I guess." He ran a hand over the top blanket. It had taken a few minutes that morning to get it perfectly straight, with sharp corner folds. "I wanted to keep it looking nice."

Marinette was staring at the bed in- surprise? Horror? "I think I was the one to make the bed last before you came, and it didn't look nearly this neat. And I only make my bed, like, half of the time when I get up. You don't have to get up early to make the bed to- to photoshoot standards."

Adrien swallowed. "Right. Okay."

"I mean, if you want to, that's a different story," Marinette said hastily, apparently completely misunderstanding his expression. "Then it's fine! But if you're just doing it because you think we expect it of you...that's not the case, not at all."

"Right." Adrien shuffled from side to side, looking at the room. "So, uh... where are we meant to start?"

He honestly didn't know. After all, it was a very nice room- a pale blue on the walls, some decorations that Mrs. Cheng had probably brought back from China and family photos hanging on the walls, some with Dupain-Cheng family members who Adrien recognized and others with people that Adrien didn't know- the Cheng grandparents, he was guessing, and some other extended family members on both sides. There was a bookshelf with an assortments of books- some baking, some cooking, some about family histories and culture in China. There were a couple books in Mandarin, and others in Italian. There was a dresser with an attached mirror part that had a gorgeous embroidered piece of fabric draped over it, with a couple knick-knacks placed on top of that, and a very standard bed: sheets, two pillows, a couple plain fleece blankets that had been folded at the foot of the bed, since it was too warm to use them. Under the windows there was a radiator, painted gleaming white. A storage chest sat at the foot of the bed, and a small table was next to the door, the perfect spot to set keys or a bag to grab on the way out.

In short: it might have been smaller than he was used to, but it was cozy and, like the rest of the house, had been put together to reflect the Dupain-Cheng family and their interests, instead of just being pulled from an interior design magazine.

"The bed," Marinette decided after a moment. "We have a bunch of sheets that we can use for this one, actually- uh, we keep them in this closet, actually."

Once again, it took Adrien a second to realize what Marinette was doing, and then he smiled. She wasn't going to go digging in his closet without him going first. He rounded the bed- there wasn't as much space as he was used to, but it was hardly cramped- and opened the closet, stepping aside so that Marinette could step in front of him to scan the piles of linens.

No matter how important Marinette found it for him to take the lead in his own room, the fact remained that he was significantly taller than she was and if she was going to help him out at all with figuring out which set of linens to pick, she needed to be able to actually see the options. The closet was pretty full of sheets and blankets, and Adrien had no idea which ones were the right size for his new bed.

"Okay, so this bed is the same size as mine," Marinette said, glancing back at the bed. "Which means that you'll be looking at this side of the closet. And, uh, I really had a thing for having a differently colored bed every week when I was younger, so that's why, uh..."

Adrien laughed. "That's why you have an actual rainbow of sheets in that size, you mean?" He reached out, running his fingers over the pile. There were a good eight or nine colors at least, which... well, that was pretty impressive. "How long did you spend in 'zillion-different-colors' phase?"

"A couple years?" Marinette shrugged at Adrien's expression. "I don't remember. But there were enough sheets that they never really got worn down, so we just stuck them all in here when I grew out of that and decided to decorate my room in a pink theme instead."

"Ah." Adrien looked at the closet again, then reached for a set that was a blue that reminded him of Ladybug's eyes. "I like these."

"D'you want help switching out the sheets?" Marinette asked, reaching in to help Adrien pull the sheets out without disrupting the rest of the stack. "And- hmm. We have a couple blankets that could go with those sheets. Not that you really need a blanket right now, since it's almost summer and it's getting hot, but if there's any cold nights and you get chilly, it's better to have them out and ready."

Adrien nodded as he picked out a green blanket to go with the blue sheets, though he had a really hard time imagining ever feeling cold here. Aside from the fact that they were above a bakery- the warmest possible business Adrien could possibly imagine, the entire building just smelled warm, if warm could have a smell- the whole atmosphere was just so warm and friendly and welcoming. "Help would be good. I can tidy up a bed in the morning, but making it from scratch I'm not great at." He grinned, remembering the one and only time when he had tried to make his bed at the mansion, after the maid had to leave early due to a family emergency and had only gotten as far as washing and drying Adrien's sheets. He had assured her that he could handle the actual bed-making so that she could go right home and... well, he had tried.

Fitted sheets were hard, that was all he was going to say. It did not help that his bed at the mansion was so large.

(There might have been some less-than-optimal language that he let loose while wrestling with the fitted sheet. No one could prove anything.)

"It's easier with two people, at least," Marinette said cheerfully, setting the linens down at the foot of the bed so that she could start stripping the sheets that were there. "Easier to wrestle with the mattress that way."

Adrien grinned. "Yeah. I've only got a white belt in mattress wrestling. Just a beginner."

Marinette snorted. "Does wrestling have belts? I thought that was karate."

"You question my qualifications? How dare!" Adrien flopped down on the bed dramatically, pressing the back of his head to his forehead. "...but you might be right."

Marinette laughed and gave his side a gentle shove. "Get up and help me, you lump."

"And now I'm being bullied!"

Adrien loved Marinette's unrestrained laughter.

It didn't take long to remake the bed with the new sheets. The blanket that Adrien had grabbed was a little large for the bed, but it didn't seem to bother Marinette. They just made sure that there was an equal(ly large) amount of blanket hanging down either side of the bed, placed the pillows on top, and then stood back to admire their work.

"You can bring some of your books and things over and we can make space on the bookshelf," Marinette said, leaning over to look at the bookshelf. "My parents can get another bookshelf and stick it in the living room and move their books there so that you have the space. They just have things in here because it had just been an extra room. And then I know I have pictures of you and Alya and Nino and I, and one of you fencing, and- oh, we can look. These others can probably find a new home, too. And the storage chest- that should be empty. It's mostly there so that visitors could put their suitcases inside and have them out of the way."

Adrien stared at Marinette. "That- that's a lot. Like, getting another bookshelf and moving it- that's pretty permanent. Like, Ladybug and I will defeat my father by the time summer starts, probably."

"Yeah, well, you'll need somewhere to live afterwards, won't you?" Marinette sat down on the bed, patting the space next to him. Adrien settled next to her, unable to resist the invitation. "And maybe the city will try to make arrangements for you to be able to stay at the mansion, but you can stay here, too. I know it's not as big, but..."

"I love it here," Adrien assured her, leaning back on his hands and admiring the room, too-wide blanket and all. He didn't need things to be perfect, or huge, or expensive. "If your parents are all right with me being here, I'd love to stay. I've had enough of the mansion for a while, I think."

Marinette's head rested against his shoulder. "Okay." He could feel her shift as she settled. "I'm glad you like it here. We just want you to feel like it's actually your space."

He still didn't think that that was entirely necessary, but Adrien wasn't going to argue with them. Instead, he leaned back into Marinette's side, enjoying the quiet warmth. After a few seconds, though, he couldn't keep quiet any longer.

"I haven't told Ladybug yet," Adrien said quietly, dropping his head back against Marinette's. "I tried, during the last akuma attack, but I chickened out."

"I- I can tell her, if you can't," Marinette offered after a moment. "Next time she comes nearby during patrol, or during an attack."

Adrien shook his head. "I swear that I'll tell her at the next attack. I just needed more time to figure out how. It's only been a few days." He swallowed, remembering the way that his throat had closed up around his words. He had wanted to tell Ladybug, but he didn't know how. "I don't- I've been trying to think of how to tell her without giving away my identity, but I just blank."

He could hear the frown in Marinette's voice. "Are you sure that you don't want to just tell her who you are? I don't- she doesn't seem the type to judge you about the whole situation, and it seems like it would be easier-"

"Not right now. It's not safe." Maybe the final battle was (in theory) in sight now that he knew Hawkmoth's identity, but he was leaning towards the safer option of not letting any more people find out who Chat Noir was. He had seen the downsides of when superheroes knew each other's identities in action with Rena Rouge and Carapace, and they did not need anything like that happening again. "Like, whenever we have distractions going on in our civilian lives, it shows during battle, even if we try not to let it. It's the same when we have superhero stuff that we're distracted by. This would probably be the same. Like, what if we know each other? What if we slip up and yell the other person's civilian name during battle?"

Marinette nodded, an odd expression on her face. "Yeah, I can see where that would be bad."

"It would be awful. Our advantage would just be gone." And since they currently had a serious one-up on Hawkmoth and Mayura, they really didn't want to lose that. "So I'm not going to tell her until Hawkmoth is defeated. And like I said, I don't want her treating me differently, either, and I worry that she might if she knew that Hawkmoth is Chat Noir's father. I can still fight."

Marinette was watching him consideringly, but she smiled when he looked up at her. "That's understandable."

"I just want to be careful, and not knowing each other's identities has worked out for us pretty well so far." Adrien let out a long sigh, trying to let go of the stress that he had been holding on to. "After he's in jail, though, I want to tell her. Hopefully we'll be allowed to then."

"I'm sure you will be." Smiling, Marinette leaned forward to give his hand a gentle squeeze. "But for now, let's not worry about that. After all, we have a room to redecorate."

  By the time dinner was ready to come out of the oven, the guest room was...well, not quite Adrien's room, not yet, but it wasn't nearly as guest room-esq as it had been before. Marinette had pulled some photos she had of him and their friends from her room and put them in some empty picture frames that they had around so that he could put them up in his room, and Mrs. Cheng had cleared off the desk and dresser surfaces so that he could put some of his things on them. There was space on the bookshelf, too- apparently Marinette's parents had an extra bookshelf in their bedroom and could move things there- and even a little in the closet, though Marinette's parents were still brainstorming where they could move some of the stuff in there so that it would be accessible when they wanted it.

Adrien still thought that it was overkill, but the idea of having a room that he knew people weren't popping into without his knowledge was- well, it was really, really nice. And he couldn't deny that being able to make the space his own was a fun idea, and if he was going to stay there after Hawkmoth and Mayura were defeated, like the Dupain-Chengs were clearly planning... well, he would feel more comfortable if he felt like the space was really his own, Adrien knew that.

It was just that they were going so out of their way to accommodate him. Marinette's parents were busy, he knew that, and yet they had spent a not insignificant amount of time clearing out the guest room so that he would be able to move in more fully.

"You can bring more stuff over tonight, or whenever you have the time," Marinette was saying as they sat down around the table. "Books and more pictures and whatever knickknacks you want to have here."

"The Jagged Stone CD you signed," Adrien said immediately, grinning when Marinette blushed. "And the posters!"

Mrs. Cheng laughed. "Any possessions that my daughter didn't make and sign?"

Adrien had to think about it. "Uh...there's the jacket that Marinette made me last year. That isn't signed."

"I embroider my signature on everything I make," Marinette reminded him. "So that's signed, too."

That made Adrien pause. "Oh. Uh, then I guess other gifts that I've gotten from friends? I'll see as I go along, probably. And I'll probably wait to move a lot of stuff until after school is over." The and until after my father and Nathalie are in jail went unsaid.

"We can help," Mr. Dupain assured him. "We might need one person working the counter at all times, but the rest of my staff can keep the kitchen running in back. Just say the word."

Adrien couldn't hide his smile. "Thank you."

"And now- did you have a good day at school?" Mrs. Cheng asked, changing the topic, and Adrien couldn't help but smile as Marinette chimed in, telling her mom about the exam review that they were doing at the moment.

He loved having people who he could talk to about his father, because it made the whole process a little less lonely and he knew that he didn't have to handle it all alone (excluding Plagg, of course), but it was nice to talk about normal things, too. To be part of a normal family that sat down and ate dinner together, instead of sitting alone at his family's long dining room table and hoping that his father might show up.

Adrien wasn't going to be hoping for that anymore, that much was obvious. Even when he had dinner at home- and he was going to have to, he knew well enough that he wouldn't be able to get away with going to Marinette's house for dinner every night- he would be hoping that his father and Nathalie were busy, or even better, out of the house entirely.

It wasn't likely, but he could still hope.

The Gorilla picked Adrien up after dinner and he spent a cursory hour in his bedroom at the mansion (no one even checked in on him, which was unsurprising) before zipping right back over to Marinette's house. She let him in via her balcony, and Adrien gave her a quick hug good-night before heading down to his room.

As Adrien settled into his bed, he couldn't help but smile. The room felt a lot more comfortable now, even though they had only really changed a few things. That, and knowing that the Dupain-Chengs considered it his space, not just an in-use guest room...

He hadn't even known that he wasn't fully relaxing before but now, Adrien could sleep soundly.

[stonedgilbert]

do you have a meta post about why jeremy has no relationship with elena and what lead to having no contact? if not, would you like to share now? i'm very interested in what you have to say! (especially considering i wholeheartedly believe jeremy has every right to hate her)

why THANK YOU FOR ASKING NONNIE! i don’t know if i’ve ever formally written out something fully, but i’ve definitely done mini-metas here and there that sort of point out SOME of the reasons he has no relationship with her - but, in reality, it’s a combination of a lot of reasons, both canon from the show and things i’ve come up with on my own. so... here we go.

ONE : the lack of pictures of jeremy in the gilbert household. this is something i’ve expanded on in a few ways, but really - it’s canon. if you actually pay attention, in the show, you see pictures of miranda and grayson, of elena, but... the ONLY picture you ever see of jeremy is a picture that elena has on her bedroom mirror. point blank, you never see anything else of him/his childhood in the household. now, i’ve sort of created this headcanon that, as miranda would have fallen pregnant with jeremy when elena was only a few months old (as i believe? that she is supposed to be sixteen at the beginning of season one, and jeremy is 14 in the first few episodes, and has turned 15 by the time 1x05 comes around - the closest i can get to an estimate, considering his birthday is october 13th, and 1x05 is the halloween episode, which mind you, i will never NOT be mad about the fact that even though he Has a canon birthday, his birthday is never actually celebrated on the show), they had sort of taken this effort, given their children were so close in age, and elena was adopted, that they made this... effort to make sure that elena would never feel second best, like less than because she was adopted, but within that effort (and because miranda most definitely had a closer relationship with elena, with that mother/daughter relationship), jeremy sort of... fell through the cracks. combined with my own headcanon that jeremy has a few learning disabilities that makes/made school incredibly hard for him, and the MAJORITY of his “quality time” with his parents was them helping him with him homework (which he hated, because he hated school), inevitably getting frustrated in that very “smart white wealthy suburban family doesn’t understand learning disabilities when it’s in their own child, even if they’re supportive of it in other kids” way, and then simply giving him the answers because it’s late and they’re tired and there’s just not enough time in the day to hold his hand through all of that work, thank you very much. (i also headcanon that miranda had been looking into getting him formally diagnosed before the gilbert parents died, but unfortunately it never happened, and he doesn’t actually discover he has a legitimate disability until denver) and then, he is never actually shown as having ANY friends before the accident. we are thrust into him being in with the stoner crowd, but that he only became involved with them because of his parents’ death, so... where are the friends? it’s my own particular headcanon that he was simply so bad at school, that doing his homework took so much time out of his day, that there just WASN’T enough time in the day to form legitimate friendships with anyone, so when they died, he sort of just... stopped doing homework. withdrew, and then had nobody, which is how he ended up with the stoners. but, all of those things combined, jeremy felt incredibly INFERIOR when it came to elena. the rest of the town heard “gilbert child” and IMMEDIATELY thought of elena. jeremy wasn’t much else other than the “other gilbert”. second fiddle. an afterthought. so in a lot of ways, he resents her because of that. it’s not HATRED... it doesn’t turn into hatred until you combine it with everything else, which brings me to...

TWO : jeremy was fourteen when the gilbert parents died. it is, arguably, old enough to be left home alone for an hour or so while they go pick up elena from a party she’s not supposed to be at. but that doesn’t change the fact that the both of them didn’t NEED to go. but they chose to, because (in jeremy’s mind) their first thought was always elena, and he was an afterthought. because they are not alive to say otherwise, there is a part of his mind that firmly believes that when they got the call from her, they didn’t even stop to think that he was (probably) in bed/asleep, and they would be leaving him alone. so he wholeheartedly blames her for their parents dying - both for going to the party in the first place, and for being so much of the ‘golden child’ that both miranda and grayson left without a second thought, when really, only one of them needed to go. to this day, jeremy has a certain degree of PTSD from that night, where if someone knocks on the door without him knowing that they’re going to be knocking (so, he needs someone to text him like ‘almost there’ so he can prepare), he is IMMEDIATELY thrown into a flashback of that night, of being woken up by the police knocking on the door and telling him that there’d been an accident, that he needed to go to the hospital, where he had to sit and wait for jenna to show up, which, since she was away at college, i also envision took at least a couple of hours. a couple of hours of him being completely alone, all because of elena (at least, that’s what he sees).

THREE : the memory tampering. after he discovers what she had damon do, he gets incredibly angry, and resents her for it. because the pain of vicki never went away (which, i headcanon for different reasons than the show gave, but still valid nonetheless), he really just saw it as a control tactic. she wasn’t helping him, because he still hurt, he still felt empty. and all of these things coming together, given that jeremy is still very young (this all happens in season 1, mind you), and not fully emotionally developed, so all of this pent up rage just builds inside of him, and it gets focused on the only thing he can find to focus it on - her. he doesn’t have a healthy outlet for it, so he attacks her, because it’s the only way he can find relief for what he’s going through. hating elena is easier than anything else, really.

FOUR : also, please note that if you pay attention in the show, there are MULTIPLE TIMES where they end the episode with jeremy angry at elena, and rightfully so, but because the the writers didn’t care about him, in the next episode, they’re back to normal (or whatever is normal for them at the time, at least), without elena ever saying she’s sorry or apologizing in a meaningful way, because 99% of her on-screen apologies to him are “i’m sorry you think that” and not actually owning up to what it is that she does. so, basically, when it comes to my jeremy - HE DOESN’T IGNORE WHAT SHE DOES. it’s why i’m a strong proponent of ‘if i write with an elena and she actually apologizes, jeremy is willing to have a marginally better relationship with her’, because... she just. never actually apologizes.

FIVE : then she drags him into the mess. and he hates her, for all the reasons i listed before this. and he’s just so angry that he firmly just “i do not believe your life is worth the trouble we are all going through for this”. ESPECIALLY when more people die on her account. his mindset at that point is just “just kill her and get it over with” because he is quite literally watching people around them die, time and time again, for her. he dies HIMSELF a few times, despite the fact that he certainly never wanted to, not for elena.

SIX : and then she sends him away. and he doesn’t hate her for that. his life is actually pretty good in denver - but he DOES hate her for bringing him back after sending him away, because they’re inconvenienced and need his ability to see ghosts, and he hates her because she literally takes away possibly the only chance he has at a normal life, a chance for him to actually get real help with his learning disabilities so he can get an education, and he just... doesn’t have a choice in the matter. she and damon show up like “okay time to come back” and he gets no. say. and when he’s back in mystic falls, that support for learning is no longer an option because everything is so hectic there, around them, so he... loses that. he loses his chance at a future, away from mystic falls, to be a normal man.

SEVEN : then they quite literally force him to become a hunter. he starts seeing the tattoo, literally out of nowhere, he can’t explain it, and they go “great so you need to kill more vampires so we can get the cure for your sister”. he never WANTED to be a hunter. there is literally a scene where they essentially force-trigger the hunter in him so he will kill a vampire to further progress his own tattoo, so they can use him as a map. and then there’s the fact that them FORCING him to do this leads to his death. and not even his first death, just one of the literally many deaths he’s gone through. something he NEVER WANTED TO DO, gets him killed. it just further fractures their relationship, and at that point, it’s basically beyond repair for me. BUT I STILL HAVE MORE DON’T WORRY.

EIGHT : then i do write him as having a bit of an affinity for kai, regardless of relationship status. in the end, it doesn’t actually matter if he’s dating kai or not, he just... develops this entrancement, attraction to him that draws him in and makes him pick kai over mystic falls and everyone in it - mostly because of how broken his relationship with elena already is, but i have also written a full meta on why jeremy is so protective of kai, and can see things in him that a lot of people ignore, mostly stemming from the idea of that just what jeremy went through growing up made him hate his sister, but after finding out how kai’s father treated him? there is a large part of jeremy that believes if he’d been put in the same situation, he would have turned out exactly like kai. and then ... kai dies. because of elena, really, but at that point, it really has nothing to do with elena. all jeremy knows is that the one person he truly cared about, the one person he felt that he had (regardless of how kai felt about him in return, and whether or not he was just manipulating him, or whatever) is gone. and he... breaks. he’s an adult at that point, and he crumbles, he’s angry, and i headcanon that the mystic falls gang had to hide elena’s magic-coma body not only from vampires who might want the cure that she has in her veins, but because of the fact that jeremy is actively hunting her, trying to find her so he can kill her, both as revenge on damon for taking away the one person he cared about (very ‘an eye for an eye’), and because he feels he has nothing left to live for, so if he dies in the pursuit, he’s okay with that. there’s even a part of him that believes he might get to see kai again if he dies, even.

NINE : this is the final Big Reason, and it’s sort of subjective. what makes jeremy FINALLY cut off all contact with elena, to the point of not even really telling his daughter that she has an aunt (cali literally thinks that she and jeremy are the only gilberts left in the world), is elena marrying damon. granted, some elena’s don’t take it into account, and it doesn’t even really make a difference overall in the relationship if they don’t get married, because jeremy’s already too lost in his hatred to ever have a real relationship with her again. but the way he sees it, it’s... damon killed him. and yes, later on, they become sort of friends. but because jeremy already hates elena so much, when she gets engaged, he sort of just sees it as a slap in the face. a sort of... “yes, i forgave him, but it was ME who he killed, you have NO RIGHT to forgive him for it. i am the only one who can do that”. and he sees it very much on her part as this idea of “my brother’s life doesn’t matter as long as i get what i want.” whether that’s true or not, it doesn’t matter, because that’s what he truly believes. granted, it’s only been cemented in his mind considering he has died multiple times for “her cause”, even when he specifically did not want to. he genuinely believes that, at that point, elena sees him as a means to an end, and not as a brother. again - WHETHER IT’S ACTUALLY TRUE OR NOT DOES NOT MATTER. what matters is that that is how he perceives it.

so uh. yeah. that’s why jeremy hates her and has no relationship with her. MIND YOU, i probably forgot something bc i didn’t actually sleep last night and i’m tired and this is super long, but AT THE VERY LEAST, these are the important bits.

[callmemythicalminx]

The Last Of Us 2: We Need To Talk About It

*Spoilers ~ ye have been warned!

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I’ve held this off for as long as I could, but I’ve given up resisting- we need to talk about The Last of Us 2. It’s an incredible masterpiece, there’s no doubt about it. The graphics are beautiful and incredibly realistic, and the gameplay has made bounding leaps in progress since the first game, offering a more exciting and intense experience for the player. The actors have of course done incredible jobs and the sound design is amazing. Altogether, a pretty amazing game… Except for one thing- the story.

The first game was widely loved for many reasons, but most prominently, and I’m sure many will agree with me on this, the story and the characters are what made it stand out and still hold up to this day. Joel and Ellie are amazing characters, incredibly complicated and realistic. The former was a man we as players grew to love, after seeing the horrible pain he had to go through and the hardships he faced. We saw him do unspeakable things, hurting and killing many, all in the name of survival. But still, we cared for him, because we saw him grow to love too, risking all to keep his new daughter safe. Ellie was a young kid, forced to grow up too soon in a world that didn’t really care about her. Faced with the fact that she was the possible saviour of humanity, she had the weight of a brighter future on her shoulders. In each other, these two characters found someone to care about again. Joel saw the daughter he lost and couldn’t protect. Ellie saw a father who wouldn’t leave and would help keep her safe.

After seeing the bittersweet ending of the first game, we waited for 7 long years to see Ellie and Joel return to our screens once more. Trailers promised new adventures with the pair, as well as the much-anticipated impact of Joel’s actions after taking Ellie from the Fireflies and stopping the creation of a possible cure. Even when leaks about the story were released, the majority of fans held strong to the belief that Naughty Dog would lead us well and would give us a great sequel to finish off an incredible generation of progress, leading us into a new age of video game storytelling.

Oh, how wrong we were…

Make no mistake here- I know Joel isn’t a hero. What he did at the end of the first game was incredibly selfish. I’ve always seen him as an anti-hero because of his sometimes cruel and violent actions and that can’t be forgotten. Undeniably though, he is still such a beloved character, who we can’t help but connect too because he’s human and vastly complicated. He was also living in a world where people are doing much worse things to survive. Darker, more evil actions that weren’t close to anything Joel ever did. Can he really be blamed for some of his actions, when seeing what other surivors had done? When I first played The Last of Us, I couldn’t help but sympathise with him, especially as I saw him slowly become more caring again after meeting Ellie. He’s incredibly interesting too in terms of characterisation because he’s neither good nor evil- he’s just human, trying to survive in a nightmare world.

Obviously, playing as Joel made a world of difference as to how we perceived him and whether or not he was a hero or villain. If we’d been playing as a completely different character, perhaps a Firefly, we would have most definitely seen him in a different light. This is where Abby comes in. I’ll give Naughty Dog credit here, it is a really interesting concept to introduce a playable character who’s seen the other side of our famous duo’s actions. It’s a great way to make us think even more about the consequences and the effect we have on our environment. As the daughter of the lead surgeon meant to operate on Ellie, Abby has seen the negative effects of Joel’s actions first hand.  This opens up a widely explorable concept for the player to experience, offering a new complicated character who has seen her own pain and hardships just like Joel and Ellie did. She’s sure to be liked… Right?

Unfortunately, no.  

In the span of two weeks, Abby has become one of the most hated gaming characters of all time. The reason why- bad storytelling.

I understand what the game was trying to do, I really do. I see what the story was trying to tell and portray, but the writing and pacing ruined this before the game had barely even started. I know I can speak for most when I say that I was expecting Joel to die, either it be naturally or inflicted by someone (or something) else. Naughty Dog know how to tug players’ heartstrings, as we saw at the start of the first game when Sarah was killed. It was bound to happen, though I didn’t really want it to. Joel deserves a worthy death, one befitting of his character which would complete his arc and bring a conclusion to his story. What we got instead was single-handedly one of the worst character deaths ever presented in a video game.

Joel dies at the hands of Abby, less than 2 hours into the game after we’ve seen him for only 10 minutes or so. He and his brother Tommy willingly walk into a very suspicious situation, in the most stupidly uncharacteristic way, revealing their names and where they’re from. They say this to a group of 10-20 strangers, in a building where they can easily be ambushed and restrained. Abby is at the helm of this group, driven to Jackson for one thing- the need to avenge her father who Joel killed. After hearing who they are, the group is obviously more alert and ready to strike. Joel then says, and I quote ‘Y’all act like you’ve heard of us or something’… Bear in mind here, that our Joel from the first game knew he was a wanted man and that he couldn’t trust anyone. Hell, he didn’t even trust Ellie for a good while before he started to care for her. But here he willingly gives his name and acts shocked when it’s recognised? This is not the Joel we know, who’s incredibly smart and can see a trap a mile off.

In one of the most sickening occurrences I’ve ever seen in a video game, Abby then shoots Joel in the knee with a goddamn shotgun. Tommy, of course, jumps into action to help his brother but is quickly restrained and knocked out. While listening to Joel’s horrific groans of pain as he lays wounded on the floor, Abby then has the audacity to ask him to ‘Guess’ who she is? Other than the fact that this is incredibly cringy, there’s no way in hell Joel would have the faintest clue who she is. He doesn’t run a family check on everyone he kills, does he? She could be the daughter of a random soldier he killed or some other nobody.

Ever a badass till the end, still having no clue who she is, Joel tells Abby to get on with whatever she has planned. She gets someone to tourniquet his leg while she collects her weapon to end his life- a golf club of all things. After calling him a ‘stupid old man’, something that both upset and pissed me off too much, Abby then begins to start beating Joel to death. You play as Ellie now, as she tries to find him. She enters this group’s hideout to see her father hunched on the ground, curling in on himself, spasming because of numerous brutal hits he’s received to his head. His face is bloody and bruised, his eyes barely open as a pool of blood spreads around him. We feel the horrendous pain Ellie does as she’s quickly restrained and forced to watch Joel meet his death. She begs, rambling for him to get up and leave, but there’s nothing she can do.  Ellie’s horrified cries are ignored as she begs for mercy and with a sickening crunch, Joel receives one final brutal blow to the head.

And he’s gone. Like that.

If this was written true to the character we know and love, Joel would have never entered that building and given his name that easily. Neither would’ve Tommy. These are two seasoned veterans of a zombie outbreak, who have seen the horrid measures people will go to when provoked or desperate. Is the game really trying to tell me that they’d trust a bunch of suspicious-looking kids, walking willingly into a crowded area with no weapons, standing apart instead of together? Joel didn’t trust anyone in the first game, why would this change?

Regardless of the fact that he’s in Jackson now, which is ‘friendly to travellers’, and that he’s grown ‘softer’, he’s still not gonna be trustworthy of strangers. By and by, Joel is still a wanted man and he knows this, he took away the world’s chance at a cure for Pete’s sake. Secondly, this is plain and simple a terrible death for Joel. Not because of how he died (because this is a zombie apocalypse, after all, it’s going to be brutal even if it’s awful to see) but the fact that this happens the way it did and the placement of it. There’s no closure to his character arc or to the rift between himself and Ellie that’s, at this moment, unknown to the reader. He didn’t die saving Ellie, which as cliche as it sounds, would have juxtaposed beautifully with Sarah’s death at the start of the first game. Imagine how satisfying it would have been to see that Joel would be willing to die for Ellie after he’s been focused only on surviving and himself. Imagine if he’d died in Ellie’s arms just like Sarah did in his…

The timing is also really bad considering we’ve barely seen any of him in the two hours we’ve played. When we see Joel die, it doesn’t feel as impactful as it could’ve been. We haven’t seen any new or old encounters with him and Ellie, except for the small seconds at the start as he retells the end of the first game. We haven’t had a chance to fully reconnect with him. His odd actions further distance us away from him because he’s not acting like he usually would. Therefore we’re left with a horrifying death that feels hollow, strange and disconected.

Abby does not help make this scene any better, which is a shame, because I think if different choices were made to push this death further in the game, we could have had a chance to care for her or at the very least begin to like her. Instead, we have no clue as to who she is or what her motivations are before this. All we know is she’s looking for someone. To then see this new character kill someone so beloved, in the most brutal way… Players are gonna hate her immediately! I hated her immediately! And like I said, her dialogue in this scene is atrociously bad, especially when she insults Joel. That really felt like you were adding salt to the wound there Naughty Dog.  

Imagine if you will, what a better death or a change in chronological order of Joel’s death could have done to help the story. If we’d got to know Abby more, playing as her for longer than two hours, she might not have been as hated. The player could have begun to like her and sympathise with her, slowly realising who she is and at the same time, seeing the damage Joel has caused in his selfish decisions. She could have still killed Joel, but towards the end of the game, so that the player would have felt more conflicted about her doing it after seeing her past, seeing the pain that she went through. The game could have reminded us that Joel is still an anti-hero. Imagine that? If the game had made us admit to ourselves that, though it’s painful to watch, his death might have just needed to happen to make up for the loss of everyone he killed? It could still have fit the environment they’re in too, with a brutal and harsh death that could’ve come out of nowhere, but still felt justified in the story. Tess in the first game had a brilliant death, befitting of her badass character, yet still shocking and realistic to the world she lived in. Instead of becoming a zombie, she instead let herself be shot after bravely standing outnumbered against the enemy while Joel and Ellie escaped. It was a great death and Joel had every right to one of his own. 

Maybe he didn’t even need to die for his actions at all though? Let’s not forget that he’s not the only one who has done bad and unspeakable things in this broken world the characters live in. He’s not irredemable, he’s a complicated human being who has had to adapt to the world around him. Think about some of the groups we came across in the first game- is Joel really worse than them? Yes, he took away the world’s chance at a new begining, but did it even deserve to start again after seeing how horrid people had become? Imagine if your loved one was sacrificing themself for a world that didn’t deserve it? Imagine if the cure might not even work or be possible to create, would you really just let them die? Joel’s only human, he acted with his heart instead of his mind. I have no doubt that Abby would probably do the same, or Ellie, or any other character who had those same choices ahead of them. Joel’s actions were selfish, yes, but he shouldn’t have to die for it. I wouldn’t want to lose someone I cared deeply about, just for a possible cure that would save an unworthy world.This is why we aren’t finding fault with the fact that Joel died, it’s HOW and WHY it happened that’s got us so pissed off.

What makes his death and the story even worse is the ending of the game. All the pain and trauma Ellie goes through killing all of Abby’s friends to find her becomes worthless. Why- she lets her go free. After fighting her twice and losing her fingers during one of those fights, Ellie suddenly has an epiphany and realises that revenge isn’t the answer. She lets Abby go. Once again, I understand what Naughty Dog were trying to do here and once again it could have worked.

‘Revenge is bad’. It’s been in many games and this message has worked beautifully in most too, like in Red Dead Redemption 2 for example. It worked beautifully in the game because it’s something that Arthur makes reference to a lot, reiterating the fact that ‘revenge is a fool’s game’. We see that pan out when John gets revenge at the end of the game and pays the price for it. The reason it fails in The Last of Us 2 is that this message comes from nowhere. Ellie has killed hundreds of people leading up to her final fight with Abby and she’s lost even more in the process too, including friends, her family and now her ability to play the guitar which was the final big thing linking her back to Joel. She’s brutally murdered many, torturing others so badly that she turned into a shell of herself afterwards. She suffers from PTSD because of Abby’s actions, seeing the death of Joel repeatedly, leaving her physically and emotionally weak. It doesn’t make any sense that after all this traumatising violence and pain, she suddenly gives up on the notion of revenge when she’s just about to kill the murderer of her father. The most disappointing thing is this message could have still worked if done correctly. If she could have realised revenge is pointless sooner, this wouldn’t feel as out of place as it does. Why does this one person, the murderer out of all people, change Ellie’s mind, after killing so many? Sure, you could say she has a family now and she was reminded of them, but then why would they have such an impact at the point of Abby’s near death, when Dina begging Ellie to stay didn’t work in the first place? It’s. Bad. Writing.

Abby and Ellie have both hurt each other equally, killing family, close friends and their fathers. Instead of killing each other, the story could have led them to realise together that Ellie is still the key to saving humanity, and with Abby’s link to the fireflies, they could somehow still create a cure.

Imagine. That. How fulfilling that would have been? Instead of the horrid, pointless ending we got instead.

Joel’s death could have brought the two together, connecting the Fireflies once again with the cure to right the wrongs he did. He could have realised that Abby was looking for him and willingly sacrifice himself to make up for what he did, completing his arc like I mentioned while also dying a fitting, badass death. He could have left a note for Ellie to read, explaining his actions, to say sorry and to show that he knows this is the only way to fix what he did. At the end of the game, Ellie could have looked out on a recovering world, singing her own rendition of Joel’s song, this time full of new beginnings in the face of great sacrifice.

That’s how you finish a story and a character’s arc. I’m no world-class writer, but I could imagine many different ways this same story and message could have panned out but with better writing, pacing and time, telling a tale of angst and sadness, while opening up a new chapter of hope and healing. The real end of the game leaves you feeling hollow and depressed, unfulfilled in the journey you’ve just experienced. Games are at their basic principle means of enjoyment, we play them to escape our lives and to have fun. They can be dark, harrowing and painful but still an absolute pleasure to play. What doesn’t help in defence of the game’s story is that the game director Neil Druckman said himself ‘For us, with The Last of Us specifically (Uncharted is a little different in our creative approaches), we don’t use the word ‘fun’. That feels… wrong to hear. If video games are not enjoyable, then what is the point in playing them?

I think it really says something in particular when the most enjoyable part of the game is a flashback between Joel and Ellie where there’s no real action. It’s just them, exploring a museum for her birthday, talking and joking and it’s the best part of the game hands down. It doesn’t include any of the new brilliant gameplay and while stunning, doesn’t really have much visual impact either. What makes it so special is just seeing the characters we love interact and have fun like it’s a scene cut straight from the first game. After 7 years, us fans were yearning to see more of Joel and Ellie’s cute relationship, so to only have that and a few other small scenes is so… unsatisfying. If we had more of their adventures before Joel’s death, I know that many people would have been much more accepting of it. It would have definitely been more impactful, having given us the chance to reconnect with them both again. Going back to Ellie on her revenge path after that museum scene was so depressing. It’s such a shame that further interaction between them was just forgotten about and thrown aside. They were such a big factor in the first game’s success, so to see them barely together felt too strange. Though we play as Ellie for the most part, it began to feel less and less like Last of Us and more like some new zombie game. Playing as Abby so suddenly too and for so long just further implemented that weird feeling. It’s a real shame because I really can’t stand her at all now. But she could have been a great character if the story was much different.

I can’t help but feel that the story feels patronising and degrading to its audience in some ways. Some of the choices and plot lines feel very disrespectful to the characters and fans, simply because of what it expects of you after forcing you through unwanted pain and misery. Let’s not forget also that we were lied to in the trailers. Showing numerous clips of Joel as his oldest self to reel us in, then change them to be flashbacks? Flashbacks which happen to be the only good pieces of storytelling in the whole game. It’s just wrong. And quite frankly it’s disgusting. Video games are expensive nowadays. We already knew many fans were gonna buy it anyway because we’re loyal to what we love. But to intentionally make that push, using lies, to secure sales for an expensive game from a huge fan base… it’s disrespectful.

As a whole, I can see what Naughty Dog were trying to do. They were trying to create something different, do what they wanted instead of what the fans wanted. That’s not a bad thing at all, it’s ballsy and creative to do something like that with a well-loved franchise. Rockstar took that same leap when they created Red Dead Redemption 2, forcing you to play as Arthur instead of the beloved John. It worked for them because they wrote the story well enough so that you’d have time to explore this new character and grow to love him, especially when faced with his actions and his mortality. Arthur dies brutality but fans still love the game because it was a fitting and wonderful way to finish his character arc.

This idea fails with The Last of Us 2 because the player isn’t properly engaged with the story before shit hits the fan and their favourite character is dead. I have no doubt that if it was written differently, if we’d been able to see more of Joel before his death and had more than two hours played with Abby that this story could have actually worked. The message that ‘revenge is bad’ could have worked. Ellie and Abby both have the same arc, experiencing something traumatic, being consumed by revenge, then ultimately realising it’s worthless to kill. We could have followed the same arc with a much better version of the story we actually got.

Instead, it feels like the game is intentionally pissing us off, continuously ruining that idea, first by making us watch as Joel is brutally and stupidly killed so soon, then secondly, by then forcing us to play and connect with Abby for 50% of the game when that seed of hate for her has already been planted. This is another one of the moments in the game where I feel like we’re being patronised. Is it really fair to paint us in such a bad light for not wanting to play and grow to like Abby, when we saw her as a stranger brutally kill our favourite character? Is it really that bad for us to hate her after she has caused so much pain when we’ve only known her for two hours? It’s such a shame because she could have actually become a new well-loved character.

I’d just like to say that while I think the story is bad, no one who was involved in the making of this game should be attacked for it. Video games, especially in this age, are such hard things to make because so much goes into them and I don’t want to discredit anyone’s work. Regardless of my or anyone else’s opinions on the game or its story, the team at Naughty Dog have still poured hours of time and effort into making it. They shouldn’t be receiving attacks or hate, we can still discuss the game and our opinions while being respectful. The actors shouldn’t be receiving hate either, they acted brilliantly with what they were given. Ashley Johnson and Laura Bailey especially should be credited for their work. And Troy Baker, though he was only in it for a short while, deserves an award just for that final ending scene between Ellie and Joel- it made me cry buckets. He made this character come alive beautifully and he deserves all the praise for it. And so do the rest of the cast, who did exceptionally good jobs.

In my eyes (though it sounds bad) The Last of Us 2 doesn’t exist as a game. In my own perfect world, it’s actually just badly written fanfiction posted to Tumblr or Wattpad. As goes in my made up ending, Joel and Ellie move to Jackson and restart their lives after the end of the first game. Eventually, he tells her about what happened and there’s a rift between them for some time, which is, of course, to be expected- it was a momentously selfish thing for him to do. Over time though, Ellie learns to forgive him and the rest is history. Because there’s no real canon ending, anything can happen. So… Did they eventually create a cure? Who knows. Did they stay in Jackson, happily living out their lives? Maybe. Did Joel die a badass and sacrificial death protecting Ellie? Possibly. Or did Joel die eventually in old age, surrounded by his family, holding his daughter’s hand as he passed away?

I hope so…

He may have been a complicated anti-hero. He may have even been a villain. Regardless, he still deserved a respectful death and in my perfect makebelieve ending…

He got it.

🌟🌟/5

Photo Credit ~ some from @ inora_miller on Instagram

[muthaz-rapapa]

HealPre Final Review: Not terrible but not entirely laudable either...

*sigh* Where do I start?

Well, one thing I’m pretty sure of is that COVID definitely affected production somehow. By that, I don’t just mean the show needing to go on hiatus, resulting in a shorter run compared to previous seasons. I’m also talking about any possible changes that might’ve been made to the original narrative, if there was one.

Much like how Suite’s story had to be altered in the wake of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami disaster, I believe Heal underwent a similar treatment in response to the pandemic becoming more widespread as 2020 went on.

Especially since it dealt with health and nature, HealPre is probably the season that has come the closest in relevancy to real life events.

Frankly, that can be quite scary because this virus was and is still a fucking nightmare on a massive global scale. From that view, I can understand why the writers/producers would be concerned of the anime hitting too near home. At least for their main demographic’s (children) sake, maybe they were compelled to shift to something lighter and less edgier so that the kids could find some comfort and enjoyment in the midst of the world’s current crisis.

So I can’t fault Toei for that, if that’s really the case. Going through a pandemic is terrifying, infuriating and exhausting and UGH. We could use something that can help ease our worries or momentarily distract us even a little bit. 

Though would it have killed them to dedicate one episode to the importance of wearing a mask or washing hands? (-_- ;;)

HOWEVER! Seeing as I am not a fragile child, I’ve still got several (oho~) criticisms to air out before I put this season behind me. This review isn’t particularly scathing but...there is a lot of discontent so you’ve been forewarned.

But first, let’s tediously review what structure means in Precure.

We all know that there are certain things that will forever (?) remain fixed in the series formula.

The plot is always going to be “magical girls fight evil doers threatening to ruin the world”.

There are plot points to indicate story progression but in reality, are put there to correspond with toy releases which are usually marked by these five: introductions, first power up, midseason Cure, second power up, and build-up to the climax + finale.

There is usually a specific message (a theme) to be told with every season and motifs (narrative tools) to aid in getting that across. For HealPre, the theme is “living is fighting” and its motifs are “health” and “nature”.

I left out “animals” b/c 1) it didn’t hold as much significance as the other two did, 2) animals are part of nature anyway and 3) let’s be real, it’s just a synonym for “mascots” which we already get every year. :P

Right. I’m probably forgetting something but for the most part, these are immovable pillars of Precure.

Story, on the other hand, has more variables you can work with.

Story is how you tell the plot, how you convey the message.

Precure, as a tv series, is unarguably carried by its main stars, the Cures. So it only makes sense that a huge percentage of a season’s success owes itself to how much of an impact its characters had on the audience as well as how effective their individual story arcs were as sub-plots tying back to the bigger picture (the message/theme).

Ideally, these arcs would shine the brightest in the filler episodes, where the plot  (“good guys vs. bad guys”) is less of a focus so there is more space for personal development and growth.

Also, not all character arcs have to be directly related to the plot but they ought to be written well in order to support the overarching message (the theme).

Now, has HealPre done that? Has each girl’s story demonstrated a good example of what “living is fighting” means?

...nnnnnnyyeeee... look, even I can’t give a straightforward answer on that because while technically they did, by virtue of Nodoka’s observance in ep 44 recounting it as such, there’s also actually not enough to make it feel substantial from a viewer’s standpoint.

At least, that’s what I thought while watching HealPre.

With the exception of Nodoka’s, there was a lot of saying but not much doing to convincingly back the other girls’ arcs up. The fillers themselves were very weak, loosely composed in relation to the motifs and, if I may be so blunt, downright boring that if Nodoka didn’t phrase those episodes as things that counted towards the theme, I probably would put up more of a fight on disagreeing. so shoot me, I’m soft for her :P

And I know that sounds confusing right now but I will elaborate as I continue.

Before that though, to be utterly fair, some seasons keep their respective themes shrouded in vagueness until they’re given a more concrete form in words around the finale. So it’s not like we can do much except make educated guesses on what they really are. Most of the time, we’re just measuring everything against our perception of a standard in the fog. Or maybe that’s just me?

Nevertheless, you can just tell, y’know? By simply watching and observing the whole show, you can tell if the characterization, the development, and the outcome (essentially the content given) really live up to what the season claims is endgame.

So let’s go through that first then. The characters, starting with our lead Cure...

Nodoka being the only Cure in her team to have an arc deserving of the praise “exceptional” should come as a surprise to no one.

She was the most solid in terms of direction on how her story was going to proceed. Out of all the girls, her journey had the greatest connection to the subject “health”, repeatedly delved into it every time the spotlight was on her and fulfilled everything it seemed to promise from her debut in episode 1.

Her struggles on the road to recovery from a long-term illness and the strength she’s drawn from that traumatizing experience as well as her time as Precure did more than establish her as the strongest character in HealPre.

She has also rose to become one of the most memorable Pink Cures in the entire franchise (personally, I rank her in the top 5).

And it’s not hard to see why she’s earned such high regard in a lot of fans’ hearts.

The writers clearly worked a lot on her character composition to the point where she can pretty much embody the theme of “living is fighting” all on her own.

She came into HealPre fresh out of the hospital and full of earnest desire to make the most of her newfound freedom but she also wasn’t without knowledge on what hardship is. From there, she only got stronger, even when she was stumbling and trying to figure things out along the way. She grew more fortified in her beliefs on what it means to be truly live a healthy life.

She bravely defied the ones who attempted to take advantage of her and twist her cause against her. And she learned that taking care of herself is equally as important as wanting others to be safe from harm.

It was never about winning or coming out on top. It was about protecting a fundamental yet precious truth. That one thing any decent human being should never have to concede: the right to live well.

Honestly, Nodoka is absolutely inspiring all around, as a fictional character, a heroine and a normal everyday person.

Everything about her arc went satisfyingly right like it was meant to and the best thing is, we don’t need to question it because we saw how it all happened with our very own eyes.

I sincerely wished I could say the same for the others but sadly, they were just too flawed.

And Pegitan can throw flippers with me all day if he wants but as undeniable as the above statements are about Chiyu, her arc failed to leap over the increasingly mounting disappointment I had with every episode that’s been assigned solely to her.

Two of which weren’t even about Chiyu. One centered on Pegitan’s admiration for his partner and the other focused on her brother, Touji. Which, while nice to give to supporting/secondary characters, is a fat waste of valuable screentime and not what I’m here for.

It also didn’t help that the conflict of her arc (the indecision over choosing between two dreams) started really late in the game and was resolved so quickly within two episodes. There was no time for me to get invested into it, there was no powerful sense of conviction like how Go!Pri or Hugtto handled theirs and really, it just felt like Chiyu was only following what the script dictated for her rather than genuinely awakening to her own competitive passion towards track and field.

It was almost like it didn’t matter. Almost as if the writers procrastinated in thinking up something worthwhile to further her development...but then settled on grabbing an old idea off the shelf without refining it to suit Chiyu when they ran out of time.

This happened similarly with Minami in Go!Pri and Elena in StarPre, both of whom left me angry at how their arcs were executed. Yet theirs don’t compare to how pissed off I am about Chiyu’s. Because while Minami’s took a while to arrive, it wasn’t done poorly and linked back to Go!Pri’s theme well enough. And while Elena’s was over crammed last minute, at least it was unique to her character and had lots of potential ways to play out if they actually started it earlier on in StarPre.

Chiyu’s arc is like a discount version of the former with hardly any of the intriguing qualities of the latter. Sure, she had two early episodes that laid out the two most important aspects of her life (her family inn and her dedication to her sport) but after that, they weren’t brought up again until we were only weeks away from the ending. Y’know, just to fill up episode slots and meet the minimal requirement of saying they did give Chiyu some issue to resolve. 

It was not engaging at all.

Furthermore, the fact that her arc had very little to no relation with either “health” or “nature” hurt my appreciation of her character somewhat. I just...don’t think her kind of story really matches with the central topics of HealPre?

...but maybe I’m being bitter about this all wrong and that’s screwing up my rational thinking on this matter.

Because Chiyu’s arc is valid under the logic of the overall theme, I would never say it isn’t. And again, character arcs don’t have to be close to the plot nor is it necessary to employ the “suffering builds character” method to make them interesting.

Chiyu always does her best every day. That’s sufficient argument on why her story does fit within the frame of HealPre’s premise.

Guess I’ll just have to wrangle my resistance into acceptance somehow.

...still, her arc could’ve been done so much better than what we were given. Chiyu at least deserved that much.

Next, Hinata.

Since the beginning, I knew she was gonna be runner-up to Nodoka for having the (for lack of better term atm) “best” arc because it was heavily implied that she has ADHD and therefore, immediately checked off the “health” trait. She was even more obvious about it than Nozomi was.

Difficulty paying attention, hyperactivity, impulsiveness. Hinata didn’t just display all those signs, she also showed how hard it was for her to deal with the downsides to them on a regular basis.

She kept apologizing and put herself down excessively for inconveniencing her friends even though they never blamed her for her condition. Got them annoyed a few times, yes, but didn’t stop them from staying friends with her and definitely didn’t make them hate her either.

Everybody was understanding of Hinata...except Hinata because she always took her failures to heart and considered quitting several times to avoid the crushing dejection of making mistakes over and over again.

She got better, though, and no one could have summed it up more heartwarmingly than Nyatoran with the encouraging words he gave her at the conclusion of her arc. 

But it still feels like there’s a huge chunk of development missing between the start and finish. Or rather, it seemed like all of it occurred offscreen and we were only informed later that it did in fact, happen.

To recap, iirc, Hinata had around 5 episodes that focused on her (ep 9, 13, 23, 35 and 40). Ep 18 doesn’t count because that was a Nyatoran-centric filler more than anything.

Ep 9 and 13 did their jobs of introducing and highlighting the details of Hinata’s troubles while also suggesting she will eventually learn to overcome her insecurities. The ones after, though? They pushed those issues to the backseat.

In Ep 23, she had to share the (uneven) spotlight with Asumi. Hinata’s improvements were briefly mentioned but the majority of the ep went to teaching Asumi what “cute” meant and how to get along with puppies. I mean, I get that Asumi recently joined the group and bonding with her was mandatory by tradition. But since each Cure only gets a limited number of eps to herself, it would’ve been more beneficial for Hinata if she didn’t have to split screentime with someone else’s growth schedule.

Ep 35 is slightly better but not by a whole lot. Sure, Natasha was able to reconcile with Elizabeth which was very sweet and heck, it was the goal for that episode. But again, nothing was really done or addressed about Hinata’s main conflict. She tossed it back with the rest of her homework to deal with later. ahaha, a TroPre hint

Then ep 40 came to formally close the curtains on her story and apparently, Hinata screwed up lots of times since...whenever but she picked herself up every time after and kept on trying. Awesome. So WHY didn’t we get to see that? 

I’m not asking for the impossible here. I’m not asking for Hinata to be cured or anything miraculous like that. There is treatment available for ADHD but it is not curable.

Also, forcing Hinata to find a way to get better at studying, the thing she struggles with the most, is not the solution either because that would only make her more stressed and anxious over her own disorder.

What I want is to see how she moved from wailing “I can’t do it! I don’t wanna! I’m so scared of failing so why bother?!” to determinedly declaring “So what if I failed 1 or 100 times? So what if I fail another 1000 times? What matters is that I don’t let that stop me!”

That confidence is not something that can be built up overnight. It’s gradual and it takes numerous tries to reach from where Hinata was to where Hinata is now.

Telling me she grew emotionally stronger can only allow me to believe so much. I need to actually witness the changes as well.

If it weren’t for that, Hinata’s arc would have been a lot more impressive. Shame.

Finally............... Asumi.

Asumi, Asumi, Asumi, Asumi, Asumi, Asumi, Asumi... *sighs & drums fingers*

...she has no arc, ok? Seriously, what story is there to speak of, much less write a hefty analysis on?

A spirit born for the sake of Latte who just went along with the Precure ride because Latte didn’t want to abandon her duty. She made friends with those who aren’t Latte, extended her knowledge and understanding and gained valuable human experience during her stay on Earth. But ultimately, she will always define her entire existence around a puppy. 

Nothing is more important than this puppy.

...... to be honest, Asumi not having a storyline isn’t what bothers me. It’s her lack of depth that does.

Hell, even the giant burger she ate had more depth than she did!

Oh, Asumi does have a personality alright. She’s consistently and unfailingly polite, utterly devoted to her raison d’être and in crucial moments, gives pearls of wisdom when the girls are in a pinch. She’s good.

But if that’s all she is, then she’s also painfully dull.

She has nothing to contribute to the discussion of health or nature, despite being created through an element of the Earth so you’d think she’d have an opinion of her own. At least worry about the planet that gave life to her as much as she frets over Latte all the time. But nope.

She shares the exact same face as Teatine’s past Precure partner so you’d think we’d explore that connection to see if it would influence or affect her in any way. But nope.

90% of the time, her role was just being Latte’s constant, fawning satellite.

Not only did that irritate the hell out of me but it just reinforced my stance that this type of character is one of the worst you can ever insert into any narrative.

Because if someone keeps reiterating how much they’re obsessed with this one thing and seldom talks about anything else without bringing their obsession into it... then what’s so special about them on their own?

You’ve practically surrendered the different qualities you could have had for worship of something else. That’s not a fair trade-in.

Asumi’s character is so packed with Latte-related stuff that there’s not much space left for anything that can be considered uniquely Asumi.

I mean, maybe it’s because I can never see myself or any normal person comfortable with living like that.

Living for the sake of being together with the one you love? Okay. But living with your whole universe revolving around that one thing? Making most if not all decisions based on this one thing?

No. That’s absolutely crazy, alright? Nobody with a healthy amount of awareness and self-worth would live like that.

And you can counter that Asumi’s just born like that. That she can’t help her origins because Teatine’s wish to protect her daughter is essentially what brought Asumi into existence so of course, her biggest concern would be Latte. At least, she wasn’t forced into it, right? As long as Asumi chose of her own will to follow Latte, it should be fine, right?

You can even use the fact that Asumi isn’t human. That she’s a spirit and we shouldn’t apply our human standards too strictly to her.

Yea, but those are feeble defenses in the face of her being a good main character, a good main heroine. 

There are many ways to make a decent MC. The way Asumi was written proves she certainly does not possess traits that can classify her as true protagonist material. A protagonist has to be more than one amplified feature, which Asumi is not.

For the record, I don’t hate Asumi (she’s not interesting enough to generate a feeling that intense). I'm just severely let down because even if I don’t end up loving the midseason Cure for whatever reason, I can usually count on them to bring something intriguing to the table to dissect and analyze. At least I should find something to care about them.

Didn’t happen with her. :(

Oh god, I’ve been working on this post for days now and I’ve got a headache and with the baton pass happening in less than a few hours as I type this, I just really need to get it done and over with so please forgive me for speeding up through the rest, I’ll try to keep it as coherent as possible. NYARGH! (@_@ ;;)

Mascots.

Would you be surprised to hear that I’m not surprised that they were actually written very well?

Like I said early on, I suspected the return of fairy partnerships were going to improve the mascots’ significance in the story and, well, I was right. 

This time, they didn’t just fill in the usual expectations of relaying exposition, serving as the Cures’ transformation devices and looking cute for the merchandise. The Healing Animals had to make progress on their own training to become doctors as well.

And they did through their relationships with their human partners.

It was a refreshing take on the mascot aspect of the series because the friendships felt really symbiotic. When the trainees arrived on Earth, they relied on the girls to help them perform their jobs as well as provide them with shelter, food, the occasional peptalk about their trainee status, etc.

Then as the story continued and they got to know each other better, the mascots were able to return the favor by giving support when the Cures needed it. Rabirin when Nodoka was frightened and confused about how to deal with Daruizen, Pegitan when Chiyu was having trouble choosing between two dreams and Nyatoran who made sure to always lift Hinata’s spirits up when she got upset at herself.

In short, they achieved their objectives of learning what it means to be good doctors by being there for their friends! How wonderful! :D

My memory for Latte is hazy, unfortunately, since she’s coddled by everyone all the time (can’t blame them, she’s friggin’ adorable! <3) but I’ll never forget how she stood firm on the battlefield to see things through, to fight for the Earth like she promised her mother. She started out so babie but showed us all there was enormous bravery behind her cute face and ugh, we should all be very proud of her! <3

The only major issues I had about the mascots were these:

1) Too many irrelevant fillers went to them. They only needed a maximum of two for their entire mascot group.

2) Latte kept getting sick even after she acquired a Precure partner of her own. I was hoping it wouldn’t hurt her as much as it did before Asumi arrived or that she would build up a stronger immunity but noooo, they insisted on torturing the poor pupper! T_T

Villains + Finale Battle

Not a lot needs to be said for the first part. We’ve had mediocre antagonists before. HealPre’s just happened to be extra annoying as they were despicable. 

Which is worse because jerks you can just leave in the trash but assholes won’t stop harassing you unless you pummel them into their graves, set fire to their corpses and leave no trace of them behind! >:(

Y’all know who I’m talking about. Opinions on him continue to vary depending on who you talk to and if they’re avid fans of his face or not but whatever. The son of a bitch served his purpose and is dead now. That’s all that matters to me.

Anyway, the King was flat like his two lesser generals. He was neither intimidating nor distinguished enough in the brand of evil to really make us think of him as a serious threat and because of that, it ended up making the boss fight look like any run of the mill boss fight.

I know, they tried so hard with all that shiny animation but it just didn’t have that glorious sense of vindication that previous seasons (or ep 42) gave and I blame it all on this Rumiko Takahashi reject.

Also, this strategy was pretty useless?

They built it up like Earth was gonna sacrifice herself and die or something (she wouldn’t and even if she came close, deus ex machina would’ve kicked in to prevent that and COVID-induced caution too I guess). 

But there were no signs of pain (well, that’s a relief) after absorbing Shindoi-ne and they really pissed King Byogen off more than they did any damage with the absorbed byo-gen power.

...so yea, this tactic was just to kill some time and budget, nothing more. Meh.

By the way, did Asumi eject Shindoi-ne’s pathogen out of her body yet or did they just leave it in there to bounce around until it eventually dissolves on its own?

Because that’s eww. I mean, it’s obviously not gonna hurt Asumi they can both relate on hyperfocusing their affection for someone so maybe the compatibility helps :P but still, ewwwww.

Fillers + Underused Motifs

In hindsight, perhaps HealPre didn’t exactly promise the content we I wanted about “health” and “nature” if their objective was to teach that any manner of “fighting” can count towards “living”.

......but fuck you Toei, you’re still cowards! >:/

Fillers will be fillers but it’s always better to try and make some of them as meaningful as possible. And they wasted the opportunity to inform an impressionable audience (during a very crucial period of our time, I must add) on a lot of things related to the HealPre’s motifs. Especially about the environment which for some ridiculous reason, they chose not to touch on for the main stretch of the overall story.

Proper hygiene, good diet plan and sleeping habits, regular exercise (already done by the girls a few times but could use another example), meditation, counseling/therapy (especially for mental health!), etc.

Real life pollution, climate change/global warming (IMPORTANT!!), deforestation, preservation vs conservation, endangered species, recycling, volunteering to clean up your community, etc.

These just came off the top of my head but yes, there’s more and no, I’m not saying that the writers need to cover all of them in extreme detail or replace the slice-of-life episodes.

But they should be able to mesh both serious and light-hearted together in harmony somehow. Like those fillers where the mascots saw people cleaning up littering at the park or that interaction with that arborist who taught them about wild animals and trees when the group went to visit a lake.

For health, maybe let the girls visit patients with chronic illness in the hospital or have them converse with a medical professional on some matter. Particularly if it’s got something to do with mental illness because stigma in Japan on those who are afflicted with such conditions is still prevalent and has caused a number of sad and shocking tragedies that could have otherwise been avoided if people didn’t have such outdated, judgmental mindsets.

That last part might be too dark for a children’s anime but there’s a lot more out there that is doable.

Do that without reducing it into a footnote, Toei. It is so necessary for your target audience to be aware of these issues at the age they are now. You have an almost 20-year old franchise to serve as a very effective platform. Make better use of it if you truly care about the message you’re conveying through your show!

Also, what the fuck.

The last episode was a mess. Why are you only mentioning this now when the season is already over?

This should’ve been brought up months ago!

All the things we could’ve seen the Cures done to protect the Earth without magic.

The excuse of “I didn’t know humans were so horrible!” is a shit one because everybody knows humans are deplorable trash when it comes to abusing the Earth. All the more reason why you have to persistently drill it into people’s heads that they should not be like those who don’t care or choose not to care.

One crack episode isn’t going to cut that.

God, I so want to unsee this ep just so I don’t have to end HealPre on a more sour note than it already was. *big aggrieved sigh*

Lastly (and this really is the end of my long ranting, I promise), the missing undisclosed lore.

There are few Precure seasons without a past lore of its own in the recent years. Is it a wonder, though?

Lore is mysterious and fascinating. If it involves a past Precure, even more so.

Sometimes fans might just hang onto a show because they’re curious about what happened before the main story. We’d never get the full tale of those adventures but at least, it’s fun to imagine the “prequel”.

Also, past Precure are just badass. Fact.

Strangely enough, we didn’t get that for Heal. All we know is that she was called “Fuu” and was very close to Teatine. 

Hmm. Probably one of those changes caused by COVID interference cuz I can’t imagine the writers choosing not to tell her past in the original draft.

With all that finally off my chest, I’m ready to part ways with you girls until the next All Stars (Nodoka, I’m gonna miss you so much! T_T)

HealPre wasn’t the worst and it was nowhere near the best that it had the potential to be. But it’s passable. At least for those who loved it even with its flaws, I’m genuinely glad it was good for you.

For those who are thinking about picking it up (although why you would read this spoilery post before watching, I have no idea), if you’re looking for a standard magical girl anime to enjoy casually, then this is a safe pick. If you really want to invest your attention and heart into it, though? Then perhaps it would be in your interest to ask someone who saw it already to help you filter out the episodes that are worth watching. You don’t need to worry about the rest, they’re inconsequential. :P

Ok then! Thanks for reading as always, brave souls who have reached this point. 

Stay healthy and safe out there and I’ll see you at the beach next week! Tropic underwater paradise here we coooooommmmmeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!! xDDD

[mitchipedia]

Incompetent coupsters, dastardly Prince Charles and more links for Monday, 12/7/2020

Trump and his supporters are staging an armed coup to steal the election – they’re laughably incompetent, but don’t kid yourself it’s not happening. Also on NextDraft: Millions of hungry Americans are turning to food banks for the first time. The pandemic "nightmare scenario" is here, as hospitals and health care are overwhelmed. And "Rudy is gonna leapfrog about 100,000 hospitalized patients to get the antibody cocktail to cure his Covid-19." December 7th | NextDraft — The Day’s Most Fascinating News

‘The Crown’ casts Prince Charles as a villain. Here’s why it’s wrong.

Ben Judah at The Washington Post:

I’m not a natural monarchist. In fact, I’m rather the opposite. At times I’ve thought of myself as a republican. But that doesn’t keep me from thinking that, should he ever get the chance, Prince Charles will in fact be a very good king.

That might sound like a strange thing to say after millions around the world have just binge-watched Peter Morgan’s “The Crown.” Moody, callous, a bit silly — the lovesick and philandering prince brilliantly portrayed by Josh O’Connor is easy to dislike.

We’ve been enjoying this season of "The Crown" – though I don’t know if "enjoying" is the right word, because it’s very dark, at least so far as we’ve been watching.

We’ve watched three episodes, and so far, it’s basically a horror story. A charming, pretty girl lands a fairy-tale marriage to a prince, where she will live a life of extreme luxury. Instead, she finds her fiance is a sullen, distant, man-child who loves another woman, and her new family are monsters. Later, we will see her psychological destruction at the hands of her new family, until her marriage finally destroys her in a fiery car wreck. The end.

And Charles is definitely the villain of this piece. He is without sympathy. I just want to punch him in the face every time he appears on-screen.

But I’m a little disgusted to hear that fans are pouring hate-mail at the real Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla. Because the guys onscreen are fictional characters. And, yeah, the real Prince Charles apparently had an unhappy marriage, and maybe behaved cruelly. But that’s true of a lot of people.

In the Washington Post, Ben Judah makes the case that the TV series "The Crown" does the real Prince Charles a disservice, that he will make a good king, exercising authority beyond the purely ornamental:

There’s a temptation in liberal Britain to laugh off the monarchy and dismiss it as if it hardly exists. But I’ve always thought that Tom Nairn, the prophetic Scottish Marxist thinker, was correct to warn the Left to take Buckingham Palace more seriously. The monarchy, wrote Nairn, is like an “enchanted glass” that invites Brits to see ourselves in it.

In this, the moods and personality of the sovereign matter. The monarch runs the Church of England, meets weekly with the prime minister and sets the tone for the British upper classes — all of it exercising a powerful gravitational pull over British life.

Unlike Queen Elizabeth II, who is " a child of empire" who focuses on Britain’s former colonial possessions, Charles is a European.

Just two weeks ago in Berlin, in a speech in the German parliament, the heir to the throne pointedly referenced the poet John Donne, who wrote that “no man is an island.” In case anyone missed the allusion to Brexit, he added: “One might equally submit that no country is really an island either.”

There’s more.

The Rise of the Guillotine – Ian Welsh has a stark reminder that oppression – like what we’re seeing in the US right now – historically ends in blood. The French Reign of Terror, the Russian Revolution. He does not name the US Civil War, but it is certainly a perfect example.

Maybe the terror ends in something good. Or maybe instead you get Maoist China or the USSR, which are just as bad – or worse – than what came before.

And even if the terror ends up in something good, the butcher’s bill is too high.

I think we can still pull the US out of the nosedive. This may be my heart overruling my head. At least two retired generals with distinguished careers are urging Trump to declare martial law and overturn the election. That is certainly not encouraging.

‘Makes you ask why the hell we even bother.’ Infectious disease experts face disillusionment as COVID-19 pandemic worsens [Hanna Kreuger/The Boston Globe] – Infectious disease experts are facing public apathy, hate messages, and literal death threats. They’re disgusted.

"I’m just astounded by the dysfunction, the willingness to just stay the course as hundreds of thousands of people die, and the unwillingness to innovate in literally any way,” says [Michael] Mina, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, who has been advocating for widespread at-home rapid antigen testing since March with little success. “I’ve realized that when we need to rise up as a country, we have truly no moral capacity to do it. It’s just the most mind-bending, complete Twilight Zone experience that makes you ask why the hell we even bother.”

How 700 Epidemiologists Are Living Now, and What They Think Is Next [Margot Sanger-Katz, Claire Cain Miller and Quoctrung Bui/NYT]

I’ve been wondering about this myself: I’m hearing that the general population can expect to be able to walk into any pharmacy in the US and get vaccinated by April. For me, personally, what next? Can I get the shot in the morning and then go safely out to dinner that night in a windowless restaurant in a crowd of unmasked people?

Magic 8 Ball says: Answer hazy, try again later. Might not be able to have that dinner for months or a year or more.

I’ll just keep reading the Times and the Atlantic and listening to Dr. Fauci and NPR, and see how it goes.

If You Recognize Any Of These 35 Pictures, I’m Sorry, You’re Officially Old [Buzzfeed] – I recognized all but one. WTF is #6?

[cherry-valentine]

Summer 2020 Anime Season

What I’m Watching:

Deca Dence is one of the better shows this season, probably the best one that started fresh this summer. It has a very strange setup that I won’t detail very much here to avoid spoilers. It’s strange in that it’s a fairly unique twist and in that they waited until episode two to actually drop that particular bomb (whereas most anime would definitely try to cram it into episode one). The bare bones premise of episode one is that there is a huge, mobile fortress that contains some of the last remnants of humanity as they try to survive in an apocalyptic world overrun by monsters of unknown origin that range in size from tiny insects to huge kaiju. A young girl named Natsume dreams of being one of the warriors who fight the monsters, but is instead given the lowly job of armor maintenence, where she meets the older, gruff Kaburagi whom she learns was once a famed warrior. Natsume’s relationship with Kaburagi sets off the actual plot, but the story takes several turns that I honestly didn’t see coming. The series is quite violent, with literally tons of monster blood flowing and plenty of human death, but it maintains an overall upbeat, adventurous feel, with some well-done humor and genuinely touching moments. The art is colorful and bright, with some truly impressive animation. It clearly has high production values. Natsume is a fun character (even if we’ve seen characters like her many times before). She’s your typical optimistic, never-give-up, spunky sort of girl but she works really well as a hero in this kind of story and is generally entertaining to watch. Kaburagi is also a fun character that we’ve seen the likes of before (the stern former soldier type with a heart of gold). Overall a great series and very high on my watch list.

Gibiate is an oddity. It’s a series that had the potential to be top tier. I mean this show could have been not only the best of the season, but possibly the best of the year. It has gorgeous character designs by Yoshitaka Amano. The voice acting is top notch. And the premise is awesome: In 1600, a samurai and a ninja are both suddenly transported to a modern, near future Japan that has been completely ravaged by a disease that turns humans into powerful, grotesque monsters. They fall in with a small group of survivors that have gathered around a couple of scientists and a doctor who are working on a cure. Sure, it’s not 100% original, but it’s an exciting premise that results in some great samurai and ninja action. The problem is, for all the show’s great ideas, the execution is totally flubbed. For starters, the animation budget is obviously quite a lot smaller than it needed to be. What should have been thrilling battles of katana and shuriken on monster violence end up just being sort of bland. Too many cut corners. The writing also suffers, with often nonsensical dialogue and character behaviors that are so illogical that they end up being unintentionally hilarious. A good example of this is how practically everyone in the group of survivors just takes the fact that these two guys are time travelers from the past totally in stride. Hardly anyone is surprised at all or even questions it. The show tries to dismiss the stupidity of this by having one character say, “Well we have these monsters running around so why not have people traveling here from the past?” Which is still dumb because he’s a doctor who has been studying the virus and knows how it works, scientifically. But he has no questions for the guys who show up out of nowhere claiming to be from 1600? Another example would be how the samurai and ninja react to modern technology. Basically, there’s very little reaction. They don’t even react to a freaking helicopter! They should be losing their minds over this stuff! Still though, despite the show’s many shortcomings, there remains a small nugget of greatness. I can almost imagine how fantastic this show would have been with decent production values. And because I can see that potential, I’m still watching and I’m actually enjoying it very much. The characters, poorly written as they are, somehow remain interesting. The visuals, despite being sabotaged by clunky animation, are still appealing. I know it’s strange to watch and enjoy a series because of what it COULD have been, rather than what it IS, but here we are. Surprisingly high on my watch list.

Koi to Producer is an otome series with very pretty art and a supernatural plot. It’s based on a Chinese phone game that I’ve never played but sounds a lot like Mystic Messenger in how the game is played. It follows a young woman trying to produce a television show about various rumors, urban legends, etc. who gets mixed up in the world of Evolvers (humans who have developed special powers). Of course four of these Evolvers are handsome single men who are very successful and clearly attracted to her. She also ends up becoming a target of Black Swan, a shady group studying Evolvers. The show is somewhat plot-heavy, in that it tends to focus a bit more on the overarching story than on the romance. This is fine by me. The men are handsome, but two of them look a little too similar to each other, making it hard to tell them apart when they’re both in the same scene. It’s nice that the heroine is an adult and a big part of the story is about her career, but other than that she’s a bit bland and could be switched out for any other bland otome heroine and no one would notice. So far the series has hinted at an interesting back story for her so I’ll just have to hope it follows through on that. I’m enjoying the show because it’s pleasant to look at and not boring, but it’s the lowest title on my watch list.

Appare Ranman is my overall favorite of the season, which is ironic because it actually began last season. It was put on hiatus due to the pandemic and resumed this season. If you remember the old cartoon Wacky Races, this is basically the anime version of that. It focuses largely on two Japanese men who end up stuck in California after some crazy hijinks: Appare, an aloof and eccentric mechanical genius, and Kosame, a straight-laced but genuinely kind samurai who had been given the thankless job of keeping Appare in line. Broke and lost in an unfamiliar land, the two of them decide to enter a cross-country race and use the prize money to get back to Japan. Along the way they meet a whole cast of wild, crazy, and fun characters (including my favorite, the lovely, badass, and determined Jing Xialian, the only woman in the race, who had to fight against sexism and discrimination just to get the opportunity to drive in the race). The series has a very fun vibe, but has enough serious moments to keep it from being a straight up comedy (the aforementioned discrimination felt very realistic, and at least two characters are still suffering emotional trauma from losing family members to violence when they were children). One of my favorite aspects is Appare himself. He pays absolutely no mind to social norms and doesn’t care in the slightest what anyone thinks of him. This resulted in his family back in Japan being ashamed of him and everyone else viewing him as a weirdo. But Appare doesn’t mind any of that, and happily pursues his dreams. An interesting scene early on is when Jing is grappling with the fact that she’ll never be accepted as a racer because she’s a woman. She’s clearly in emotional turmoil. Kosame, who is the kinder, more compassionate of the two leads, can’t really help her. He can sympathize with her plight, but his own rigid regard for social norms prevents him from telling Jing to just go ahead and be a racer, society and their expectations be damned. It’s Appare, the guy who seemingly has very little regard for, or interest in, other people, who encourages Jing to follow her dreams. To Appare, there’s absolutely no reason why Jing can’t be a racer. The fact that society refuses to accept her means nothing. Jing has the skill to be a racer. She should be a racer. The scene did a lot to endear Appare to me. Aside from great characters (and there are so many that I can’t possibly mention them all here), the animation and design work are amazing. The characters as well as the vehicles look fantastic. The music is also great, with my favorite opening and ending themes of the season. If you want totally fun and wild romp, you can’t go wrong with this series.

Carry Over Shows From Previous Seasons: Black Clover Ahiru no Sora Major 2nd Season 2

Best of Season: Best New Show: Appare Ranman Best Opening Theme: Appare Ranman Best Ending Theme: Appare Ranman Best New Male Character: Appare (Appare Ranman) Best New Female Character: Jing Xialian (Appare Ranman)

[that-fandom-world]

Station 19 3x16

i can’t believe it’s the finale already // spoilers

i love the friendship between all of them, that little scene of them all waking up was adorable

massive L to catherine, who must be losing a fuckton of money because someone blew up her shitty revenge hospital

i cannot get over the fact that andy was SO focused on her aunt & mom & dad drama that she couldn’t pay sullivan any attention

this episode made me miss Grey’s so much, it was so nice to see amelia and mer and even teddy

meredith out here actually back to her old likeable self

if maya doesn’t kill her dad i will, how DARE he do that,,,,big stan for all those people ready to help maya if she needed it (which, ofc, she didn’t)

im So Glad dixon got his bitch ass arrested, but also like i said before, i was so ready for ben to take him down and then sullivan just kinda?? swooped in? bold

ummm station 19 just singlehandedly cured cancer and you cannot get me to believe otherwise, but also rip cancer research doctor, she saved her research AND the team so we stan

maya looks sO good with short hair,,,but also a fantastic way to represent her realization...i’ve been so mad at her for not realizing and i’m happy that she came to her senses

jack is becoming Such A Good Human Being, full redemption arc for being gross at the beginning of the season (not all his fault imo but that’s another story)

also,,jack building a little family with marsha and the mother & son? absolutely adorable i hope we keep seeing this jack bc he’s grown so much

poor emmett, but also at least travis was able to help him get to a better place in his life

hhHHH i still don’t like the whole ‘dean loves vic’ thing, i know it might have been kind of set up for a while but i just don’t think it’s really a strong storyline and i much prefer their friendship

YES maya,,,thank god she realized her mistakes and also listened to jack instead of just giving up because carina and maya together is Fantastic,,,,also i hope this means we get to see carina more next season

i am MAD at andy, she just left sullivan to be alone in pain and having to face it together with the threat of relapsing? just to do something she could do next week?

the AUDACITY,,,i get she’s having a lot of emotions bc her dad died and her mom might be alive, but the way she just leaves sullivan alone?? and i was so hoping they would survive as a couple

ok ok i get it,,,Big Surprise, her moms alive,,it just didn’t feel like the Huge Revelation that it was meant to be, probably bc the random flashbacks and all the other storylines made everything feel very rushed and out of the blue

not a terrible ending to the season, we’re definitely in a MUCH better place than where the season started out, and i liked a lot of the character development that happened. i’m excited to see where we go for season 4 for sure