#aa is just one of my biggest interests so that's like. most of what I draw anyway

[chibubird]

do you only take ace attorney and Pokémon requests?

no anything goes as long as it stays within my interests

[pharawee]

I think it's no secret that I'm not all that much into gmmtv BLs. I used to think that it's because I'm just not that into the romance/slice-of-life/ensemble cast genre and it's pretty much all gmmtv focusses on in their BLs. Or maybe I'm really that shallow and I just don't like anything mainstream.

I can't really talk myself out of the mainstream thing because it's unfortunately kind of true, but also I like plenty of romance/slice-of-life/ensemble cast shows by smaller companies, like Gen Y or Future or Our Days (the list goes on and on and on).

There's just something about gmmtv BLs these days that loses me every single time. A series starts out strong with an interesting concept and characters and then it just gets... boring to me:

The things and characters and issues I find interesting are never delved into, and (probably because of that) everything just feels so shallow and formulaic and palatable. Shows like Never Let Me Go and Be My Favorite and My School President completely underwhelmed me towards the end, to the point where I was relieved when they ended and I no longer had to gif them (which is an entirely different thing that I'm trying to work on 🙏).

And now the same thing is happening with Wandee Goodday and it makes me really sad because I really like Great and Inn and the rest of the cast.

Mind you, I'm not blaming gmmtv for this. They're mainstream for a reason and good for them! I'm also not saying that their approach to making series or marketing their actors is bad because clearly their success and their many fans prove them right.

But there's just something about how smaller or indie companies work that appeals to me so much more. I like shoestring budgets, I like it messy and rough around the edges. I like it when they're so passionate and ambitious about their projects that they try to make it happen no matter what. I like it when they take risks with genres and stories that bigger companies wouldn't touch because they're not as marketable. I like when they say "fuck it, let's do wonky sound and rookie actors because if we don't we won't have the budget to make it happen at all."

I suppose it's similar to gaming for me, where I appreciate indie games and ambitious AA titles much, much more than AAA games that tend to appeal to the biggest possible audience.

Ultimately, I'm glad there's a market for both, but it's sad to know that many smaller productions will never be as commercially well-received as mainstream titles (while ironically being held to the same standards). And it's also bittersweet to know that whenever gmmtv contracts one of my favourite actors (which is fine of course - it's one of the best things that can happen to an upcoming actor in Thailand), I know that I won't get to see them again in the kind of series that I prefer.*

*Sometimes they contract them out to non-gmmtv productions. That's how I became a fan of Marc Natarit. But as soon as they're in a fixed acting pair it's basically over.

I guess the easiest solution is to just stop watching BLs from gmmtv (I'm explicitly only mentioning BLs here because I like most of their gen shows a lot more - The Gifted is still one of my favourites and just recently Enigma and Midnight Museum and Mama Gogo were absolutely amazing) but the problem is... their pilot trailers actually get me excited. Right now I'm really looking forward to Kidnap and ThamePo. Plus, once in a while gmmtv DOES take a risk and then you get incredible shows like Not Me (which apparently didn't do very well numbers-wise, so from a business pov it makes sense not to invest in them too heavily).

In the end, I think I need to get a lot more selective with the Thai BLs I want to watch. After all, there's now so many of them that we can finally afford to be picky (and that has to be a good thing, right?).

[bg3fandomcritical-active]

First of all, I apologize for bringing back the discourse about the ascended Astarion. My biggest takeaway from the Astarion Ascension discourse is that Astarion is merely window dressing in the stories of AA wives; they do not care about him in the game. Instead, they are more offended by the implications that the ascension has on their OCs and the romance narratives they have created.

The in-game Astarion romance is interesting but dark. It offers numerous opportunities to role-play your character, but regardless of the reasons behind Astarion's ascension, Tav is doomed—ranging from being affected for a few weeks in the best-case scenario to being affected forever in the worst-case scenario. A kind-hearted and naive Tav? They’re in trouble. An ambitious and powerful Tav? They’re in trouble. An evil Tav? One can only hope that the tadpole's mind control is stronger than Astarion's vampire mind control. While all of these are intriguing situations, they do not lead to happily ever afters, although they do present a lot of role-play potential.

These scenarios are interesting but differ from what AA wives seek. They desire a happily ever after with the Astarion from Act 1. One might argue that their Tav consents and that Astarion isn't abusive, but the potential dialogue lines suggest otherwise. I wonder why that is?

Another interesting point is that Astarion himself, if he ascends, remains somewhat miserable, which is woven into the story. He continues to play the vampire fetish role and remains forever trapped in a state where he cannot move past his trauma and start anew. He is anchored to the same state in which he began the game, experiencing no real growth. This is likely why large portions of the game and his narrative are dismissed by AA wives; reading them would shift the focus from Tav to Astarion for more than just a brief moment. Act 2 is when Astarion begins to express the most autonomy, alongside the scene with Araj—so, it's no wonder that it is not part of the popular AA narrative.

Ironically, there are other characters in the game whose romances offer exactly the narrative that AA wives want from Astarion—Gale, Minthara, and even Lae'zel to some extent. The big, possessive, happily-ever-after romances are in the game; they just do not involve Astarion.

.

[accirax]

Literature Girl Insane and the Color Connection Theory

(Spoilers for DRDT’s Literature Girl Insane MV, as well as through Chapter 2 Episode 11. Vague spoilers for Super Danganronpa 2 and New Danganronpa V3. Because the images in this post are mainly designed to showcase the colors presented in the MV, there will be no image IDs in this post.)

Wow! Literature Girl Insane is… so much!! There is literally so much to look at that I don’t know how we’re supposed to handle it!!!

I mean that all in a glowingly positive way, to be clear. The DRDT creator has granted us an exciting puzzle that may take months to fully solve/analyze (or maybe we’ll never finish it), with so many facets that there are still things that I haven’t seen much of anybody talking about.

Speaking of, I’d like to take a look at the colorization of some of the lyrics! As per my eye, there are 15 distinct colors that appear in the lyrics of the MV. I distinguish the lyrics as “the words that are outlined in black (or white, when the color is black),” so any of the colored text in the background, such as the literary passages, will not be included in my analysis.

An important piece of information that I’ll reference a lot is the official colors that have been assigned to the students. That being, the color that the first letter of each of their first names gains when the students enter the Class Trial.

Because Xander never attends a Class Trial, he has no confirmed color, unless I’m forgetting something. However, based on his bright hair, I would have to assume that the color of that letter would have been a fiery red. It’s even on the opposite side of Teruko on the color wheel.

David has two colors; one for his inspirational speaker persona (yellow) and one for his depressed theater kid persona (gray). I don’t think J’s color changes between being listed as J Rosales and J Moreno. Although I didn’t put it on the chart, MonoTV appears to have no color, with all of the letters in its name remaining white. Some of my personal assignments will go against these color choices, but I think it’s still important to keep in mind.

Since Tumblr doesn’t want to let me use as many colors as I want, I will put in an image of what each color looks like the first time it appears. I’m going to analyze each color in order of how many times it appears in the MV, from most to least. That means the first color is…

Red

are all just idiots (final verdict); Bye; whatever; Goodbye.; go mad; together; are all just idiots!; Bye; broken; go insane?; ignorant; God; go mad; great applause!!!; Aa; won’t change; original; you’ve killed so many; and disappear!; 1; medicine; [untranslated characters]; [untranslated characters]; [untranslated characters]; go mad; self delusion; isn’t it!?; ah,

(If you want time stamps and pictures of the characters, I wrote them down in the document Venus and I compiled together)

Red appears 28 times throughout the MV, and as you can tell, they’re very… edgy. It’s a very interesting color, given that there are multiple characters I think it could apply to.

The first option is Veronika. Her color is a bright red, and she’s no stranger to creepiness. Things like “go mad” and “you’ve killed so many” could definitely be words she’s spoken to her problematic faves like Arturo or David. The selection of “broken” could apply to her hidden quote: “once something is broken, it can never be pieced together in quite the same way again. The same goes for people.” If Veronika herself is something that is/was “broken,” going insane could apply to her as well. Some people have already called her delusional, which could fit right in with “self delusion.” With her chaotic attitude, I can also easily imagine her using the intense punctuation (!!! and !?) seen on some of the lines.

The biggest problem with this interpretation is that, frankly, I don’t think Veronika merits this level of importance in this MV. Now, that’s not to say that I don’t like Veronika, or don’t think she’s important– I love Veronika! I just don’t think she’s that important to David, who this MV is about. 

They could have more of a connection in the future, given that Veronika has started simping for his dark side, but thus far they’ve barely interacted at all. The most damning rebuttal is the cast list at the end.

Would the color that appears the most in the MV really go to a character that doesn’t even make the supporting cast list?

The main way that I can imagine that Veronika actually is red is if she is the mastermind. That would explain how she could claim such a prolific color in general, yet why she wouldn’t yet be listed as a Main Role– because David (presumably) wouldn’t know that she’s the mastermind. If David survives for a while alongside mastermind Veronika, it would also give more of a chance for their relationship to develop down the road.

Still, it would make more sense to me if red did belong to a listed character; even better if one of the main roles. Someone like…

Option two: Xander Matthews.

Xander is obviously a key player in this MV, and like I said, I would guess that his character color would be red. Even if it was, say, yellow (for his eyes) instead, I don’t really think anybody could complain if he showed up as red in the MV.

The focus on the word “bye” would also fit Xander. He’s dead now, and David has clearly been thinking about him, so he could constantly be saying “bye” to Xander after the rebel “and disappear!”-ed from life. Xander had to treat his eye in the infirmary, so “medicine” could make sense for his character. “You’ve killed so many” could be something that David could imagine Xander saying to him in his guilt-ridden spirals. Although, as far as is confirmed, David has never actually killed anybody, including in his secret. Venus adds that “You’ve killed so many” could be Xander speaking to himself, stewing in his survivor’s guilt about the death of his family. She also says that “go mad” sounds like something a British person would say. You never know what she’ll have to contribute /lh.

Speaking of things Xander could say, though… I have a hard time imagining that he would say some of these things. I’m sure Teruko would tell me that I’m naive to have any trust left in the guy, but some lines just seem out of character for him, to me? Like, calling everyone idiots and telling people to “go insane” feels very different from how he acted in Chapter 1. Maybe if Xander was reflecting on his own “going insane” after he stabbed Teruko, it could work?

The line that stood out to me the most for not fitting Xander was actually “won’t change,” though. Man’s the Ultimate Rebel. He’s all about inciting change in people. Whatever this thing is that won’t change– David’s attitude, the mastermind’s wickedness, the continuation of the killing game– would he really be chiming in to say that it’s immutable? But, if I don’t really think that it’s Xander or Veronika, then what red person could be left?

Ah, right… the classic copout option, #3, Mai Akasaki.

I say “copout” because, overall, we know very little about her personality. Therefore, it’s easy to put words like “idiot” and “insane” into her mouth because there can’t be too much of a counterargument. It does seem like a pretty big contrast to her characterization as Unnamed Student (assuming that’s her), but given this series’ penchant for moral bankruptcy, I wouldn’t be surprised if her nice exterior hides a more sinister slant.

However, there are some genuine points in Mai’s favor here. First is the red color– Mai’s hair is red, and Teruko even notes that Xander’s red hair reminded her of Mai’s. Thus, if I speculated that Xander’s color could be red, Mai’s could be too. She’s at least in the Supporting Cast, unlike Veronika. “Bye” and particularly “and disappear!” would also fit Mai well, given her absence in the killing game. “God” is also of particular note, as it’s the first word in Mai’s roman numeral quote, “God is dead.” Mai also seems to be worshiped like a god among those who remember her (Teruko potentially excluded), and the MV notes her as “someone dearly loved.”

Those three aspects of God could be leading us to the conclusion that red represents Mai in this MV, and it’s that interpretation that I’ve decided to roll with. I promise I’ll pick up the pace for the next colors, okay?

Yellow

game; Bye; cat; is what you’re told; ambition; the falling slanted sun; Bye; “happiness”?; dead; make noise; The acclamation is; live; original; 2; Let’s do that! [translated]; shout; ah,; miserable

While Eden is the only holder of the color yellow as of Chapter 2 Episode 11, I think this color has to go to the man, the myth, the now-starless star himself, David Chiem. I mean, c’mon. It’s his MV. He has to have one of the most prominent colors.

But even beyond the yellow, there’s a lot that points to David here. Since I just mentioned the fading of the stars in David’s eyes, let’s start with “the falling slanted sun”. As the sun itself is a star, this line could represent both how the stars have fallen out of David’s eyes and how he, a star, is falling in the public’s perception. Given his determination to save his career, “ambition” certainly fits David’s character, and he “make[s] noise” every time he gives a speech, making people believe “what [they’re] told”. But despite his stage persona, he’s always felt “dead” and “miserable” on the inside.

Perhaps the most interesting line here is the “Let’s do that!”, which can be seen here.

(It’s the only line in Japanese we were able to translate ourselves T-T)

Even if it’s a “let’s do that!” instead of a “no, that’s wrong!”, which means that David is arguably only agreeing with himself, the protagonist imagery here is exceptionally clear. Not to mention, every canonical protagonist post-Makoto has been able to access consent points as well.

I’ve definitely seen people out there theorize that David may become Despair Time’s protagonist one day, and while I found the concept merely amusing at first, the more evidence piles up, the more I’m forced to believe it may be true. So, if David is represented by the color yellow, this could be further evidence/foreshadowing towards his future role. If so, I’m particularly intrigued by the fact that yellow has both “dead” and “live”. It seems like David’s alignments and beliefs are still up in the air.

Green

this guy →; Bye; a life full of much shame; make noise; this guy; anonymous; Bye!; substance of the arts; this guy; original; 4; make noise; clown

Similar to yellow, there are two primary candidates for the color of green. And while Hu has a better argument than Eden did on yellow due to being listed in the supporting cast, her greatest competitor, Teruko, is also in the supporting cast.

Did you know that green appears thirteen times throughout the MV? Of course it’s fucking Teruko.

There’s a good argument to be made that, with her tragic backstory, Teruko is one who’s lived “a life full of much shame.” Doubly so if you believe that she has the “the killing game is all your fault” secret, which I personally do. Because she’s moved around so much and doesn’t seem to have many attachments to people, you could say that she’s “anonymous” in a lot of her actions.

Teruko “make[s] noise” frequently in both Daily Life, when she refuses to avoid the subject of murder and thrusts knives at people, and Deadly Life, where she maniacally laughs her way through solving the entire trial for those idiots twice in a row. However, due to her over-the-top lack of trust in anybody, I could still believe that David would see her as a “clown”. A smart clown, but a clown nonetheless. (She also had her sillier moments as well, especially when Xander was alive.)

The line that makes the least sense to me is honestly “substance of the arts,” especially given that it’s part of Veronika’s roman numeral phrase. Teruko doesn’t seem particularly artistic to me. Maybe it’s just meant to imply that she’s a girl with a lot of substance? If “the arts” were theater, it could be saying that her life is very tragic and dramatic? And if Teruko is a substantial, dramatic character, maybe Veronika would appreciate that? I’m obviously reaching, but I still do believe that green represents Teruko here.

Cyan

dog; No Longer Human; game!; I; isn’t that; original; LET’S LAUGH; just like that; 3; cry; foolish; “kapukapu”

While it might seem like this color should belong to J, given that it’s quite similar to her character color, I actually believe that this color represents someone else. Namely, MonoTV.

MonoTV’s official character color is white, but its face is obviously a bright cyan. It even tells Teruko that its favorite color is blue in Chapter 2 Episode 3, so I don’t think that calling MonoTV cyan is a stretch at all.

The most obvious clue that MonoTV could be cyan is “dog,” which is pasted over “cat” (in yellow) at 0:37. The replacement of “cat” isn’t written in the original lyrics of the song, so the creator definitely intended for this to relate back to MonoTV. Why not give the mascot itself the line correcting the species? “No Longer Human” fits along with this creature angle as well.

“game!” is another obvious one, as MonoTV is the excitable host of this killing game. While “LET’S LAUGH” seems sweet out of context, in the killing game, it could seem much more heartless and robotic. The all-caps approach also makes it feel threatening. “cry” could also be a command to the students, like when MonoTV encourages them to create more drama in Chapter 1. I don’t remember a specific instance of MonoTV calling the students “foolish”, but it doesn’t seem out of character at all.

I couldn’t figure out exactly what a kapukapu was, unfortunately. It’s a reference to Yamanashi, a children’s book by Kenji Miyazawa, but they don’t actually describe what a kapukapu is in that book. When I googled “kapukapu,” it came up with a Sega character described as an antagonistic “orange cat creature with yellow eyes, a zigzag shaped tail, and big sharp fangs.” The creator definitely knows more Japanese than I do, but if they were similarly struggling on this one, they may have also googled kapukapu, seen “evil cat” and said, “yeah, that sounds enough like MonoTV.”

I should also probably talk about the “1”, “2”, “3”, and “4” portrayed at 2:43, which has shown up in the red, yellow, green, and cyan sections so far. These numbers representing Mai, David, Teruko, and MonoTV definitely feels plausible to me, especially if you throw in the wrinkle that David could become the protagonist. The qualification could be “mysterious characters with a darker side,” “characters related to the formation of the killing game,” or even “the most actively important characters at the end of the killing game.” This interpretation makes me more confident that these assignments are correct, although there’s obviously room for debate.

Pink

anonymous hopes,; heart; Rolling with laughter and turning into clowns; brainwashed; degraded copy; original; [untranslated character]; clown; painful

And now, onto a color for which I feel there’s basically no debate. If these text colors do correlate to characters, this color has to be Whit.

For starters, he’s the only character assigned the color pink, probably because it’s so prevalent in his design. I can imagine “Rolling with laughter and turning into clowns” paired with his XD laughing sprite, fitting how he’s the biggest canonical joke-teller in the cast. “heart” fits his Ultimate Matchmaker talent perfectly, while also representing how his empathic ways can make him the heart of a group. MonoTV literally mentions that he has “too many damn hearts on [him]” in Chapter 2 Episode 2. “painful”, meanwhile, can represent his secret, and how he represses the painful memories of loss regarding his loved ones.

The most concerning and confusing lines here are “brainwashed” and “degraded copy”. You could definitely pull these for mastermind Whit analysis, but since I’m not a strong believer in that theory (perhaps because I just desperately don’t want it to be true), I’ll go with another interpretation. Brainwashing could be something that Whit essentially does to himself, controlling his mental state and forcing himself to be happy. “degraded copy” could be how Whit feels about himself in regards to his mother. Although we don’t know too much about her, we know that he doesn’t relate to his dad, and he dyes his hair to be more similar to his mom. Since he idolizes her so fiercely, it’s possible he feels like he can never be as great as she was.

There’s always a lot to unpack with Whit “repression” Young, but… for the sake of post length, we’re moving on.

Gray

(after all); whoever else; (turbatus); XI.; whoever else; [untranslated character]; thing

Despite the fact that we’re running out of colors at a rapid pace, I actually think this one is David again. Specifically, clipless David, after his color turned to gray. C’mon, he’s the star of the show! He gets special privileges.

The gray character feels very depressed. It doesn’t seem to care about anything, using vague terms like “whoever else” and “thing,” as well as taking “turbatus,” AKA “troubled.” David has already claimed to have a family history of depression, and although he’s a liar, I don’t know if he was bs-ing that one. Based on his worldview as portrayed in Chapter 2 Episode 11, it’s not much of a leap to assume David feels this depressing gray way.

The inclusion of “XI.” is quite interesting, given that that’s Mai’s roman numeral, “God is dead.” In my mind, this further cements a potential relationship between Mai and David (and that Mai is red and David is yellow/gray). Just look at the colorization of the quote “XI. God is dead”!

That’s both of David’s colors on either side of Mai. Maybe, as the protagonist, David will be the one to take down Mai, the “God”?

If gray isn’t a second David, I would suggest that this could be Rose. While she isn’t particularly associated with the color gray, “(turbatus)” is part of her roman numeral quote, and she has plenty of troubles of her own. Based on her hidden quote, “In the end, the only thing I can do is watch my wretched life go on,” it would be reasonable to believe she is also depressed. “whoever else” and “thing” could refer to her absentmindedness, and how she tends to forget things that aren’t important to her (despite her photographic memory).

Orange

← that guy; shout; that guy; let’s play!; that guy; original

So it’s a little random, but my best guess is that orange is Ace? Mostly because he’s the only true orange color in the class trial– Min and Rose have sort of orangey colors as well, but to me, they don’t fit the lyrics super well. Not to say that Ace does, but there’s more of an argument there to be had.

“shout” is the most Ace-like lyric to me. Most of his (amazingly) voice acted lines are screaming in some way. He yells a lot, whether due to stress, excitement, or anger.  On that angry wavelength, “let’s play!”, though it sounds innocent, could be something bitterly yelled out at an opponent. Like, “oh, if you wanna play, let’s FUCKIN’ play, Nico/Levi/etc!!” Given that Ace identifies as a man, he would be a more classic “guy” choice than Min or Rose would be as well.

The repeated “that guy” puzzled me at first, but I did find a solution. The thing that was tripping me up was that the orange “that guy” is always paired with the green “this guy.” If Teruko is green, then why would David be putting Ace on the same level of importance as Teruko there? He and Ace have barely interacted!

But then I remembered that there’s one key place in which they did interact, and that was in the second class trial. Ace takes part in revealing David’s secret when he exposes the conversation David and Arei had in the relaxation room. And then Teruko agrees with him, saying that she’s always found David’s behavior suspicious. David could pair Teruko and Ace together in his mind as “this guy” and “that guy” as the main ones who exposed his secret. Whoever else was there doesn’t matter; they were the main ones at fault.

Plum

change!; like that; original; change!; a cup of poison

Purple time! This one is Charles, I’m pretty sure.

Charles has probably had the greatest positive character arc thus far (other than maybe Arei?), so him being “change!” is very fitting. He’s certainly urged Teruko to change for the better, and maybe he’ll do that for David in the future too. “like that” is part of “Do it like that / let’s live together!”, which could refer to Charles warming up to his classmates. Notably, that is part of VII., which is J’s roman numeral. J did possess Charles’ secret and tell him about it, but it’s not the strongest connection.

“a cup of poison”... does not bode the best for Charles’ survival! However, it could just be referring to his custom weapon being strychnine. Rose’s secret weapon is also poisonous in nature, but (spoilers for the post) I’m not sure she actually has a color in this MV. Thus, if the creator wanted to give one of their poison recipients the “cup of poison” line, Charles may have been their only option. It could also indicate that Charles’ strychnine is more important to the story than Rose’s turpentine (a concerning concept, given that the turpentine has already been involved in an attempted murder), but… who can say! (I am in denial)

Black

you; the track to the ideal country →; you; you

We’re running out of colors here, and it would be pretty weird if the second member of the main cast didn’t have one. That’s right, I’m saying that black refers to Xander, despite his red leanings. However, his color was never officially assigned, and his gloves are black.

David seems very fixated on Xander in this MV and its associated content. Thus, the triple repetition of “you” could indicate David repeatedly thinking about Xander throughout the days. Although, if Xander is the black text, Xander should probably be the one saying “you”. Perhaps instead, it’s about how Xander cares about and fixates on specific individuals, like how he noticed that Nico was alone at lunch and went to go talk to them. I’m giving the guy a glowing review, but it kinda seems like David is doing that too.

“the track to the ideal country →” also reminds me of Xander. As the Ultimate Rebel, he calls for country-wide reform. So, he could believe that he’s leading the way to the ideal country. Abstracted a bit, this could also relate to his motivations for attempting to kill Teruko. He may have believed that killing her was “the track” to save everyone and get them out of the killing game.

Although I wish I could give him a color with greater importance, this one makes a lot of sense to me. It is the first color that appears, for what it’s worth.

Dark Blue

cry; original; big

This one is… hard. I’m not super confident about it– “cry” and “big” do not give me a lot to work with. I’m going to give this one to J for the time being, mostly based off of a fringe theory I developed about “original”.

Yeah, “original”. That 8-color madhouse that I’ve been ignoring so far. To be honest, I don’t know what to do with it. It’s possible that “original” itself is meant to apply to all of the characters featured in it– the word is generic enough that I believe it could apply to all of these characters.

However, I was trying to figure out if this could be hinting at a Chapter 6 trial composition. Eight people seems like way too many for Chapter 6, but if you say it includes Mai (red) and MonoTV (cyan), you only need six surviving students. While casts usually roll up to the endgame with 5 people (based on how SDR2 and v3 went), all you need is to skip a double victim case or have a blackened-less trial to get up to 6.

Under this theory, that would put Teruko, David, Charles, Whit, and Ace in the Chapter 6 trial. (Do I really believe this is true? Not really, but, man, what a dream.) I don’t know exactly how much the creator is paying attention to balancing their final cast, but I have to imagine they would notice that Teruko is the only girl listed there.

That was the deciding factor that swayed me into calling this J over Arturo, as both of their colors are blue. I can see J as a survivor much more easily than I can Arturo, and she would be a second girl (or third, if you count Mai) in the trial. I’m definitely not super convinced, though, so take dark blue with a grain of salt.

Light Blue

cry; cry; idk!!!

So, this is… bleak. This person is not having a great time. Based on color, I’m saying this one is Nico. (That’s also why I didn’t mention them as a non-male blue person on dark blue).

While Nico is definitely less of a crybaby than people might have assumed based on their first appearance, it’s still true that they have multiple sprites with tears in their eyes. “idk!!!” could reference how they struggle to communicate with others, and never know what’s considered “polite” to say. “idk!!!” is also part of Nico’s roman numeral, connecting it to them again.

You could also read “cry, cry, idk!!!” as a timeline of what Nico has done so far in the story. They were anxious, got bullied, and cried a lot, until something in them snapped. What are they gonna do after they snap? Idk!!! Kill Ace, maybe? Either of these options, along with Nico’s official color, are enough to convince me that they could be light blue.

Soft Blue

You’re called an; the world

Hang on, isn’t there another blue non-man you haven’t mentioned yet? You’re right. It’s because I think soft blue is Arei.

Even without her class trial color, Arei is a character covered in blue from head to toe,  so she would definitely fit one of the blue options. “You’re called an” reminds me of her for multiple reasons. One, she’s a bully who gives people mean nicknames, so it could be her calling someone else something cruel. Two, many aspects of her personality were derived from her sisters bullying her, so you could say that she’s defined by what she was called as a child. Classic cycle of violence type stuff.

“the world” is a little iffier, but there’s definitely still an argument to be made. In her rant to David and Teruko, Arei makes clear that she believes the world is an inherently cruel place, and that she’s only one piece of that meanness. If she ponders the state of the world frequently, “the world” could be related to her character. (She’s also my world, so–)

Mint

“Idiot”, pointless

Another character who is not having an excellent time! Well, if this alternative green isn’t Teruko, it’s probably Hu, as she’s the other character assigned green. That would also mean that we’ve cleared every character in the cast list, other than the mysterious M__ N____i(___).

While this is not my opinion, I think David currently sees Hu as a “pointless” “idiot”; another person in the long line of manipulable people that he was destined to control. He literally calls her a “fucking idiot” at 18:30 of Chapter 2 Episode 11. It’s also possible that this is how Hu is feeling about herself right now– she says in that same episode that “If no one relies on [her], then [she] won’t be useful anymore.” Since she wasn’t able to prevent Nico from attempting murder or see through David’s lies, she could believe her existence here is pointless.

Kind of an L, but I think this makes sense.

Orchid

doubt; shout

…um.

So, in the assigned colors, the only people with purple-ish pink-ish colors are Charles and Whit, but they’ve already been assigned colors– purple and pink, no less. The next closest person to being purple is Levi, so I guess I’m giving this to him?

It’s not like “doubt” and “shout” are terrible for him. He definitely has moments of doubt when it comes to understanding Arei’s mind games, or when apologizing to Ace. Speaking of Ace, “shout” could refer to the moment in Trial 1 where Levi snapped and threatened to strangle Ace.

I also don’t know if it has any significance that these two words rhyme. Probably not, just because I don’t really see how this would point us to any character, but it’s something worth mentioning.

We’re almost at the end!

Periwinkle

world

Part of the reason why I disliked giving Levi the orchid quotes was because his color fits this periwinkle color much better, but I digress.

For starters, let me say that I’m pretty sure this is its own color, but it could be that my eyes are deceiving me from staring at this MV for too long, and this is actually part of purple. In that case, Charles is also my world, so we good. (The other color assignments are subjected to my opinions as well. I tried screenshotting everything and bringing it into Photoshop, but it was coming up with different hexcodes for colors that were clearly meant to be the same thing, so I gave up and went with subjectivity. If you think something is assigned wrong, let me know!)

As I just mentioned in the orchid section, there aren’t really any more pink or purple characters left in the cast, which leaves us with a problem. Based on the answers I landed on for all of the other colors, I found myself left with Min, Eden, Arturo, Rose, and Veronika. I sort of associate Min and Rose with purple based on the colors of their outfits, but officially, they’re both sort of brownish.

That’s why… I actually think this might be a character we haven’t met yet. Namely, Diana Chiem (should she actually exist), the woman in the video/the hand holding the acceptance letter, the class’ teacher that Min mentions, or M__ N____i(___). Or, some combination of these people, should any of them actually be depicting the same person.

Periwinkle is the last color to appear, which could correlate to how this character will take a while to appear in the story. Their one and only quote being “world” matches how this person is currently in the outside world, not the killing game. They could also be a connection David has to the outside world.

I’m aware this is even more of a copout than calling Mai red, but I honestly believe in this more than any of the other students.

And with that, we’re finally done! I’m always a sucker for matching things to other things, so this was a lot of fun. I might have more to say on this MV in the future, or I might not, but either way, it’s been an honor to piece this thing together with you guys.

[1960z]

Some Final Thoughts About AJ:AA

so, a lot of people, myself included, used to give this game kind of a hard time and looking back now with fresh eyes, I don’t think it was really deserved. it’s a really good game with some solid cases, in fact it has a first case that I would say overall is among the best in the series. it tried a lot of things and subverted expectations established by the previous games which was fun to see, making it feel very fresh

that being said, there are still some pretty major issues I have with it. I’ve talked about my dislike of the mason system already but ultimately my biggest issue with the game is that for a game called “apollo justice” it still feels very much like phoenix’s story. it’s about phoenix’s plan, phoenix’s perspective, how phoenix took down kirstoph gavin. you even play as him for most of the final case.

and I think this kind of makes sense, if you look at this game as one that really assumes it’s going to be a start of a trilogy, or at least a game that’s going to have a a sequel. see the first 3 games can all kind of function as if they’re the last game you play if you go chronologically - there are very little loose threads in any of them. aa1 is a satisfying experience on its own, in jfa we get a short scene at the end of case 2 implying morgan fey is still scheming in prison but still there are ultimately very few loose ends and t&t acts as the grand finale on everything. they’re all satisfying.

meanwhile there’s a lot of stuff in aa4 that feels as if it mostly acts to be set up. you’re introduced to all these tantalising threads, all for them not to be completely solved, and apollo is wrapped in the biggest one: he’s thalassa gramarye’s daughter and trucy’s brother and he doesn’t even know it yet. you also have the jurist system that doesn’t seem like it’s just supposed to be a story plot point in the final case but a new gameplay mechanic that’s going to be implemented at a later date (the great ace attorney all that proves it). plus there’s the whole business of black psyche-locks and specifically kristoph’s black psyche-locks that feel like it should be revisited at a later date.

so looking at the game as set up for something greater, it makes sense that the character arcs are set up like this, it’s a story about phoenix passing on the torch to apollo, beginning what’s supposed to be a new era, which ties into the themes of the final case well as so much of it is about stepping out of a mentor’s or a family member’s shadow (it’s literally called turnabout succession lol)

but the thing is, that new era never happened - at least not at all in the way it expected to. so the game has just been left to languish as this weird, in-between game that ultimately didn’t end up baring a lot of relevance to the rest of the series but isn’t able to completely stand on its own. which is a shame because a lot of what it was setting up was really interesting, there was a lot to like and I wish we’d gotten to see where it was going and it’s a shame it didn’t.

regardless though I’m still really glad it exists and happy I decided to replay it. it’s both a fun game and an interesting bit of aa’s history

[light-wolf]

Ok, time for some of my Nintendo Direct thoughts! I'll go in announcement order:

Mario & Luigi: Brothership: Well, this came out of nowhere! After the closure of AlphaDream, I assumed the M&L series was dead, at least for the time being, so this was a really cool surprise. Mario RPG fans are eating good lately. Game looks really fun and charming and I'm looking forward to it!

Fantasian Neo Dimension: I'm not super familiar with this game but I've heard cool things about it so it's nice seeing it on Switch. I have soooooo many JRPGs in my backlog already though...

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD: This one was a bit of a disappointment, to be honest. Not that I don't like seeing a great game get an upgraded version available on a modern console, but man... it's been 10 years since the last original DK game, and all we can get is yet another remake? This is one of Nintendo's biggest and most iconic franchises and it feels like all they do with it these days is using it as Mario spin-off fodder. It's just sad. Oh well. Great game, though, highly recommended.

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake: I haven't played much DQ outside of DQV (which is one of my favorite RPGs of all time) but this one is said to be a classic and I like the HD-2D look so it's definitely on my radar. Nice to see the first two games get remade as well. But I can't help but feel that what I really want is a DQV remake in this style. xD

NSO stuff: Great to see Four Swords live again in some form! Also ZERO MISSION FINALLY!! I've been wanting to replay that one lately. I'm not really interested in Turok or Perfect Dark but I guess it's a good thing that the West also has an "adult" version of the N64 app now, as that opens the door to more games.

Super Mario Party Jamboree: I've never been much of a Mario Party fan, but this one looks quite fun! At least it seems more interesting to me than the other Switch ones. I probably won't get it since I'm more of a solo gamer but I'll keep an eye on it.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom: HOLY SHIT!!! YES! YES! YES! Oh man, I'm soooo glad that this game exists! I LOVE 2D Zelda and I've been wanting a playable Zelda for so long. Also the gameplay looks so creative and fun! Not a huuuuge fan of it reusing the "toy" art style of the Link's Awakening remake (even though I loved it in that context) but I feel like this game has enough differentiating stuff to have its own identity, so I'm fine with it. Absolutely love this. Probably my favorite thing about the Direct, and it's releasing quite soon too! Can't wait!

Stray: Not a lot to say about this other than it's a game I really wanted to play back when it first released but I didn't have access to it. So it's great to have it on Switch! If the port doesn't suck I'll probably get it at some point.

Ace Attorney Investigations Collection: YESSSS!! These two are the only AA games I haven't played yet, and while I've considered emulating them for years, this is even better! Also great to see the second game get an official localization. So all around a great thing. AA7 when, Capcom? :P

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond: Oh man, what can I say? It's real. Seven years after being announced with just a logo, we finally got a real first look at it. A very short first look that didn't really show much, but a first look nonetheless. It was a bit disappointing seeing it get a 2025 release date, but oh well. I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being a cross-gen release. We'll see. Can't wait to see more, and find out what's the deal with Sylux.

Overall I'd say it was a pretty good Direct! Nintendo is still giving the Switch a lot of love during its final years and that's great to see. Now, to keep working on that backlog...

[zombolouge]

BRACE YOURSELF ITS QUESTION TIME

What’s your current writing project(s)? How do you feel about it, how far along are you? Anything else you want to share about it?

I LOVE YOU JELLY you sent me so many kickass asks that I can't wait to answer. I shall do one every other day so I don't spam my followers and also so I can mull over all the answers in a ponderous, serious manner. ;)

Currently still poking the rapidly expanding middle of Fanatical, my sequel to Indefensible in my Ace Attorney series. Indefensible picks up about a couple months after AA6: Spirit of Justice and follows through an original plotline in the AA universe. I wrote my own cases for it and tried very much to make reading them feel just like it would if you were playing a new game, except I showed all the emotional bits in between the investigation/trial scenes. I also gave full arcs to like...all the fucking characters so this bitch was long lolol but I am exceedingly proud of it and will show it to anyone who even remotely expresses an interest in AA with big, pleading eyes, hoping that they'll read it.

Fanatical takes place about 7-ish months after the epilogue of Indefensible, picking up with a certain auspicious wedding and then immediately plunging all our favorite lawyers into further mysteries. I found while writing Indefensible that I absolutely love writing mystery, even though it also makes me insane, and there were (unbelievably) a few things I didn't get to cover in the first 500k words I wrote. So as I approached the ending of Indefensible, I started thinking about if I had enough to build into another fic, realized I did, and got to work on that. It currently has about 90k of it posted, another 50k written (out of order, which is why I can't post any of it yet lol).

It's been vexing me for a few months because there were some details of the plot my brain hadn't fully visualized yet. I'm getting much, MUCH closer to having a clear vision of it, though. I've finally got the plot beats mapped out, and I can finally see which characters in particular needed a little more attention to their arcs. It's pretty hard to write mystery, even harder to write it when I have at least 21 individual characters to map out an arc for, and something so complex definitely takes time to fully consider. I feel bad that it's been so slow going and that I had to take a break from it, but I haven't put it on full hiatus yet since it's still the project I'm focused on.

So far the theme is clear to me, though, and the biggest plot beats are firm, it's just a few of the subplots that need some TLC. Not every character has to be active for every part of the plot, but I do need to know where their head is at and what they're doing, and how that will intersect with the parts they are actively participating in.

I'm hoping that I can get it on the page before the new Dragon Age game comes out, because that WILL force Fanatical into hiatus because I'll immediately be working on DA stuff. If I don't have most/all of Fanatical done by end of September, it's hiatus will probably be another long one, and I'm very stressed about that. Hoping those that have read it will forgive me, since they already had to weather a years' long hiatus on Indefensible. Did my best to make it worth the wait, tho. ;)

Thank you for giving me a chance to ramble about these things, I LOVE talking about my work and processes and thoughts about characters and stuff, so I always welcome asks. <3

[characteroulette]

👋 I left you a comment on AO3 earlier on the AA prosecutor meta, but seeing as you did cover the one-off prosecutors in Investigations (as well as the Paynes), I'm curious about your thoughts on Lana Skye especially. I really like RFTA as a window into the legal system's politics, and Lana as a character is especially intriguing in comparison to the other prosecutors we defend (e.g. Edgeworth/Blackquill/Nahyuta/Barok) because we never actually face her in court...but they still draw on RFTA's themes and character beats for some of those cases, especially in 6-5 and DGS2.

Oh hello!! Awh thanks for reading my meta essays I wrote mostly in the span of two days! XD

Lana Skye is a very interesting one, mainly because, as you noted, we never see her prosecuting style in court and that's really one of the biggest ways I draw characterisation notes from our rivals in these games. Seeing how they are presented to us as obstacles and how we are meant to slowly warm up to them was my main goal with those lil essays, but I definitely got off track a bit hahaha.

(Got a bit carried away here, too, so. Read more!)

Lana is an interesting case, though. She's our first defendant (if you play these games in order from the ds release on) we're really unsure if we can fully trust. She is trying to confess to the crime, and only by the grace of Ema's belief in her does Phoenix also agree to believe in her. She's short with us and pushes us away, giving the distinct impression that something is pretty wrong.

However, we also get told multiple times that this isn't her usual personality. That she "changed" once she became Chief Prosecutor. So it's a little harder to grasp her personality on top of take anything she says with a degree of belief. Her actions are more about sowing seeds for the mystery of why she would be so determinedly trying to get convicted instead of establishing a solid character for her. We do get the sense that she's a hard nut to crack, that she cares too deeply for Ema, but otherwise her cold and stoic personality is a complete front, we're told. A means of pushing those who used to care for her further than arm's length to keep them from discovering what's happened, to keep them from getting caught up in the splash zone.

There's also the odd note that she was close with Jake and Neil Marshall enough so that Ema was fond of them, too. Specifically the Marshall brothers, not Angel Starr or Bruce Goodman. I always found this interesting because Lana kept Ema away from Gant, but didn't mind letting her get close to the Marshall brothers. Gant was far more dangerous, especially as we learn about his all but framing Ema for Neil's murder, but it's still an interesting thing of note that comes up once at the beginning and kind of never again.

Even when you finally get a chance to talk with Lana about Gant before the final day of the trial, she's still composed and cool. Still completely under control. It's not until Ema is actively in danger of being found guilty of murder does she lose it. The final day of the trial is her at her most desperation mode, renouncing Phoenix's defence and running for that Guilty verdict. She has to keep Ema safe no matter what and it's interesting that the game lets us ruin that for her! This is probably why there is a slight bad end scenario where we don't play our cards right; it's all in service of these high stakes and connects to Lana's own desperation.

It is another interesting note how, at the end of the second trial day, she admits to the forged evidence. She has realised, on some level, Phoenix will claw his way to the truth no matter what. So she admits to this thing she knows would just get proven anyway. She's the one to cause the uproar and delay the trial one last time. It's all a part of her cool and calculated control, but it's also an admission that we've done well to get this far. It's a victory, but one delivered the same way she stabbed Bruce Goodman's body. The only person spared was Gant; everyone is going down with her.

It really is a fascinating mindset to see. I'm not a huge fan of the whole "stoic woman smiling at the end to show she's come out of her shell" anymore because AA uses it a bit too much (when will we get the male equivalent, huh??? Blackquill and Barok were right there!!! Make them smile, damn it!!!), but it is refreshing to see that Lana no longer has to keep her heart frozen over. She ans Ema hugging is the MUCH better payoff, even as Phoenix waxes poetic right behind them. XD

So yeah!! Despite this case saying on the surface that we shouldn't trust Lana, it really leads us along to trusting and liking her pretty much from the start. She's compared to Mia, after all. She is also the only defendant to date to turn their back to us and I still think that's funny as hell.

I... had more to say than I thought!! Hope this satisfies a bit of what you wanted!!

[nightcrawlerzincorporated]

i have some more bc now i’m curious about your mysterious least favorite and also i’m enjoying your analyses :)

the gang turns black, charlie has cancer (for the mac/carmen plot line), a lot of charlie gets crippled, the gang gives back, sweet dee’s dating a r person (love the rock band storyline tho), thundergun express

it’s hard for me to say i dislike episodes entirely bc there are always parts i like but yeah as a whole i would say these are in my bottom 20

The Gang Turns Black: disagree. I was shocked to learn this one was so hated honestly. I love musical episodes, and I think all their singing is perfectly fine (I don’t know why people say they sound bad??) and the songs are mostly funny and catchy. And I know people think the Quantum Leap thing is stupid but I like it. I like the idea that the gang are so racist it would take a literal magical scenario for them to learn how to be better. I like that the final message of the episode is the reality of systemic racism and police brutality, but I get that’s heavy for a sunny episode and some people find it tactless and I understand completely if anyone feels that way.

Charlie Has Cancer: agree. Honestly I’ve seen this episode so few times specifically because of that plot line. But because I’ve seen it so few times I barely remember it and so don’t have a big rant prepared. But my biggest take away is—it’s one thing to show the characters being transphobic, because they’re horrible people that’s just what the show is, but when the camera is transphobic that’s just the writers thinking the idea of a trans woman having a penis is funny and expecting the audience to find it funny too. Awful. Honestly maybe this one is my least favorite I’ve just seen it so few times and so long ago it’s hard to even remember for me. I don’t even remember the Charlie plot at all or what Dee was doing if anything.

Charlie Gets Crippled: I think agree depending on what you mean by “a lot of”. The stuff about being in a wheelchair getting them free strippers is stupid and based on the false idea that life is somehow easier for disabled people because of pity (wrong and bad). And pretending to be disabled to get attention does make sense for the characters to think of and again it’d be one thing for the characters to be proven wrong but the episode plays it like they’re right and being disabled does get you adoration which uh. If you’ve ever actually been in public with an assistance device you know how wrong that is. But I like the Dennis and Dee stuff and of course our dear friend Mr Tibbs (RIP). I love the opening where Dennis runs Charlie over in his haste to flee from his shitty dad. I love that Frank is introduced as being “manically depressed” for most of his life—it’s a good way to set up the way he acts throughout the rest of the show. But yeah a lot of bad with the good. I don’t watch it often.

The Gang Gives Back: disagree! I love this episode! The gang are so horrible I think there’s a lot of humor in pairing them up with kids (also why I love Frank Reynolds’ Little Beauties). I love Mac and Dee competing to be head coach and I love the horrible dangerous things they tell the kids to do. I love that Frank “trying to bond” with Dennis turns out to be a ruse for Frank’s gambling, something Dennis doesn’t at all seem surprised by, which says so much about Dennis and Dee’s childhood without even directly mentioning it. I even think Charlie using AA to flirt with The Waitress while she’s only interested in Dennis is funny. And it’s hilarious that Frank chastises Dennis for sleeping with The Waitress when he knew Charlie likes her when Frank did literally the exact same thing lol. Just a very funny one for me I think all the character dynamic are really good and the kids are funny.

Sweet Dee’s Dating a: Agree! You found my least favorite episode! Congratulations! I hate it so much even the band parts and Dennis’ slutty little outfit don’t save it for me, which trust me is saying a lot about how bad the rest of the episode is. It’s just. Ugh. Similar issue as the others where it’s one thing for the characters to be ableist, but the narrative itself is ableist too. And it’s not even funny like. Even the band parts aren’t funny beyond their outfits to me. Yeah the scene of Dennis helping Charlie when he’s upset is cute but even that doesn’t save it for me. It’s hard for me to even think about this episode without my blood pressure rising. It’s both boring and offensive! Worst combo. I’ve watched this one as few times as I’ve watch Charlie has Cancer but this one sticks in my mind more in a bad way which is why I say it’s worse for me but who knows maybe if I rewatched both I’d feel differently. But I don’t want to lol.

Thundergun Express: disagree. This one’s another really funny one to me. The whole “we’ll come back for youuuuu” running gag is great to me every time, I love Frank’s awful boat tour where he just rambles about his chaotic life, I love that they’re all so excited for the dong, I love Mac stealing a motorcycle, failing to drive it, and abandoning it in the middle of the street, I love the sewer (yeah, that’s shit in my hair) and I think Frank calling in a bomb threat because he’s so upset he didn’t make it is a fantastic ending. Dennis’ plot is pretty weak but that’s my only criticism, the rest makes me laugh and there’s a lot of great quotable lines from this one.

[aquilamage]

💫💞💝💋💌

💫what is your favorite kind of comment/feedback?

First thought: any kind of comment lol I am such a slut for the few scraps of attention I do get on my writing.

Second thought: the ones that spark further conversation but especially the kinds where the other person just gets exactly where I'm coming from because that's also how they happen to approach the story/character(s)/whatever. because usually that leads to a lot of mutual excitement and more cool story ideas (has happened with a few people but biggest shout-out to unnecessarygayfeelings if you read this sorry I've just kind of dropped out of aa)

💞what's the most important part of a story for you? the plot, the characters, the worldbuilding, the technical stuff (grammar etc), the figurative language

Characters! The biggest thing I find myself caring about and worrying over in my writing is about whether people in a fic are in-character/at least a believable take on them/interesting. Probably from a combination of that being one of the biggest things that matters to me in reading fics, and also like. characters are what make stories interesting for me in the first place, most of the time. Also for my writing a small offshoot of that concern is whether I'm writing characters internally consistent as in, do the ways they act and think and change make sense and flow consistently? (of course whether or not I succeed at any of this is another thing altogether)

💝what is a fic that got a different response than you were expecting?

probably the one motw aa fic where two or three separate people were like "is Sebastian secretly the monster" which I have no idea where they got that from but it was kinda funny

💋when you leave comments on a fic, do you want to hear back from the writer?

It's always nice to hear from them, particularly when it turns into longer/deeper discussions about the fic or the media the fic is based on, but I try not to go into writing a comment expecting a response esp not anything in particular (both to be fair to the author because they don't owe me a response and also so to avoid potential disappointment if I did create expectations)

💌share something with us about an up-and-coming work (WIP) that has you excited!

so...being honest here, I've had very little motivation to or excitement over actually writing for this whole calendar year, overall. and even less actual writing. so while I do have some things that I abstractly want to work on, I can't accurately describe anything as "up-and-coming."

I mean...I want to finished my chaptered hk fic, both for its own sake and so I can finally have completed a thing with chapters. I sat down after writing the previous paragraph and reread what I have for my one moth family agenda fic and I like it, I just don't have much further I know where to go with it. And. I'm still enjoying tossing around the 'mothiva gets fired' stuff in my head (like. the idea that she's trying to dodge like three different things that could get her fired only to get hit by something else. and her completely fucking up with being horrible to zasp. and then just her being a bitch while living with team snakemouth. and wrestling with "ok but how would mothiva/jaune happen as a dynamic" because it's funny and I kinda want to stick it in there too)

uh. I don't know if that answers the actual question at all. but I am tempted to post some of the snippets I have from something now

[nerdnag]

Sure, let's go! 🥑🍬🔪🦷🐝🧩?

Yayy!! And sorry this took so long! My adhd refused to let me answer it yesterday 😬

🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help?

@wild-moss-art without question. They always offer good advice and also they would probably most definitely know how to get rid of a body

🍬 ⇢ post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character

Waah 🙈 I normally avoid this kind of question like the plague because it makes me so uncomfortable to expose myself to Potential Discourse, but I'll give it a shot!!

Since we're both in the AA fandom... I don't know how much of an unpopular opinion this is since I have seen others mention it, but. I much prefer AA4 Phoenix to his other versions, and I'm sort of disappointed he seemed to revert back to the old Phoenix in AA5. I think AA4 Phoenix is freaking awesome. My kinda guy. (I did read a sort of fan essay recently though about how Phoenix was actually always AA4 Phoenix in some manner, and always will be, and that a lot of the difference in AA4 comes from the fact that you are barely inside his brain/POV at all, which makes him look more mysterious and random and incredibly freaking cool when we all know deep down how he's mostly just very lucky, lol. And that did convince me somewhat that it wasn't just a one-off thing, but still. I think his secretive, will-do-whatever-is-necessary, smug-ass attitude was incredibly interesting to engage with and it's sadly absent in the other games.)

🔪 ⇢ what's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project?

I'm running out of things to say to this question. XD Uhhh. Oh! I went deep into Brazilian favelas in 2016!

🦷 ⇢ share some personal wisdom or a life hack you swear on

Alright, here's some personal wisdom courtesy of Sara von Nerdnag-Nuvelle!

I try to think of being wrong as something positive. So although I was very defensive when I was younger and still sometimes struggle not to be, I've managed to reprogram myself so that I usually instinctively respond by admitting to being wrong whenever I see a chance to do so. (I still struggle to do it in emotional situations though, it's easier when it's something more factual.)

And if it feels difficult to admit to being wrong, here are some reasons why being wrong is great, actually!

You get to learn new things and improve as a person.

Other people will view you as humble and tend to like you more.

Also related to the previous point: In the cases that you do not admit to being wrong, people will tend to take you more seriously since they know you're not just being obtusely defensive.

Each time you admit to being wrong and therefore learn something new, you get a cool new sword that you can then defeat other people with!! (Metaphorically speaking)

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

I've already tagged Nic and Eifie, who are the two biggest supporters for my writing, so I'll answer from the perspective of my art instead! And in that case, I'd say @wild-moss-art is likely my biggest supporter!! They found me on tumblr because they liked my Constance art, and I was so intimidated at first because oh my god artworld beyoncé. Their art - especially the Constance art - is so good!! And not only that, they turned out to be incredibly cool and helpful and thoughtful. They leave such nice comments on my art, and have helped me several times to fix anatomy or other stuff I wasn't getting right. Also they're really nice to talk to. 💕

🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately?

Ooooh, hm. There are probably a few things, but if I'm choosing just one, I guess it would be that I see immediate signs of it being a little too badly/awkwardly written for me to be able to get through it. And... I'm not entirely sure what these signs are, but I know they are very instinctual and I can usually catch them within a few paragraphs at most.

[some-zer0]

This got really long so I decided to reblog it instead of commenting :) I'm not sure how many of these you've already read, so I apologize if nothing on this list's new to you! Also, I know you said no AUs, but I wasn't sure at which point an AU got to be bad for you, and I tend to gravitate towards them, so some of these are AUs but you can just skip them.

In the Kingdom of the Moon by potatomin (T) -- A fantasy-setting case fic with Miles as a prince and Phoenix as a baker/magical thief (pulls from the Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright concept art). Pretty angsty at certain points, but not exceedingly so, and the lore's really neat.

love most definitely requited by The_Eclectic_Bookworm (T) -- Somehow manages to make Hanahaki fluffy. Miles is never in any real danger of dying, and he accepts his feelings pretty much instantly, so there's minimal angst.

all the ways to love by hi_its_ellis (E) -- Comp Het Phoenix realizing he's gay/in love with Miles. And then they have surprisingly heartwarming sex lmao. Extremely well-written -- I don't view Phoenix as gay (I go with bi for him) but the characterization is SO good.

You Ever Been In Love? by hechima (T) -- Apollo and Athena accidentally figure out that Edgeworth's in love with their boss and end up trying to get them together. Lots of angst and uses the miscommunication trope a lot, but still very well written. Angry waltzing is included.

pressure (pushing down on me) by ApprenticeofDoyle (M) -- If I had to choose one fic from any fandom to recommend to someone, it would be this. It's just a retelling of AA with a few tweaks (to paraphrase the tags: "sowing the seeds of canon divergence until the author fires a live round at AA4") but the writing is phenomenal and it does a really good job of examining just how serious a lot of the stuff the characters in AA go through is. This fic actually made me like Larry, which is arguably it's biggest achievement.

Trust Issues by chameleonwrites (T) -- Phoenix finds a one-way ticket to Germany in Edgeworth's office and immediately jumps to conclusions. Angsty, but it's a one-shot so it gets resolved really quickly, there's humor sprinkled throughout to soften the angst, and the writing's really good too. One of my favorite fics to reread.

Unseaworthy by palant1r (T) -- Selkie!Edgeworth who's just so incredibly touch-starved. It's really cute, but takes the topic seriously.

Folding the Crane by poodlepunk (M) -- Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth gets attacked and develops amnesia, throwing him back to his AA1 mind. Focuses less on the narumitsu and more on Edgeworth trying to figure out what he was working on that got him attacked before something bad happens. I love poodlepunk's fics, though, and seeing AA1 Edgeworth react to his post-AA4 life is interesting. The mystery in this is actually so good -- I didn't see the plot twist coming until it happened, but once I knew it the foreshadowing was super clear.

Chicago Noël by canolacrush (T) -- A chapter-a-day fic written last December. Set in the mid-1900s in Chicago with Mafia!Edgeworth and Baker!Phoenix. A+ characterization and has a lot of overarching mysteries. Plus canola's really good at replying to comments, so the comment section has a bunch of people's theories and whatnot that you can read through.

Investigations of the Heart by poodlepunk (E) -- Edgeworth invites Phoenix to a beach-side resort in the hopes of finally confessing to him. And then someone gets murdered and they have to investigate together while Edgeworth tries his damndest to not, like, jump Phoenix's bones. The case fic aspect of this fic is really well done.

it gathers fast by pheenick (G) -- Pre-slash narumitsu taking place right after Farewell, my Turnabout. It was part of the Laws of Attraction zine, and was one of my favorite fics from that. Basically, Edgeworth and Phoenix get a late meal after Edgeworth gives Franziska's whip back, and they finally, actually talk to one another.

inconsolable time traveler by Wrightworth_Anonymous (T) -- Edgeworth and Phoenix dance at the Sprocket wedding and then end up getting together after Edgeworth drives him and Maya home. Very bad description on my part so you're just going to have to trust me when I say it's good.

The Evolution of Friendship by cold_flame (T) -- Edgeworth thinks that Phoenix's increasingly intimate behavior over the years is just them getting to be better friends. Larry's the one who has to point that no, that's not a friends thing that Phoenix is doing.

res ipsa loquitur (the thing itself speaks) by griffonage (T) -- Edgeworth asks Phoenix out but forgets to, y'know, actually say it's a date so Edgeworth thinks they're dating and Phoenix is in pining hell.

Let me know if any of the links are off, and I hope at least one of these works for you!

actually does anyone have wrightworth fic recs.... i will consume anything except for AUs at this point (i really don't know why i dislike them, but i just do). give me your most horrible chatfic and stupidest case fic, i'm here for it all

[banglatown]

[tldr]

[beevean]

I haven't played TGAA, but I find the double standard in the way Barok is treated vs the way Miles, Fran and the rest of them are treated kind of strange. Barok is supposedly insufferable, plus he's racist and xenophobic. I ain't excusing that, but that's just how 19th century England was.

Miles and Fran have most likely sent innocent people to jail or even landed them the death penalty, simply because they cared more about securing a guilty verdict than actual justice. Godot is a literal murderer, and I've heard some unpleasant things about Simon and Nahyuta as well.

Yet, all (or most of) these characters are redeemed. Barok's biggest crime is...upholding the views of everyone else at the time. And that somehow makes him irredeemable, despite him actually warming up to Ryonosuke later. I'm not saying everyone should like Barok, but if Barok is irredeemable, so is every other prosecutor in AA.

This has been pretty much my point ever since they announced GAA's localization.

Barok is obnoxious, that is undeniable. Nipponese this, Eastern island that, his mocking of Ryuu easily crosses a line that leaves the player uncomfortable, as it should, because if his xenophobia doesn't bother you it says more about you than about the game.

But. Being obnoxious is all he does.

He does not present forged evidence, or use loopholes in court, or coach witnesses, like Edgeworth and Franziska used to do.

He's never ever physically violent against the defense, unlike Franziska, Godot, Simon or Nahyuta - he breaks his own glasses and bottles when frustrated, but he never harms anyone. (it says something that the entire series so far had only three prosecutors who are decent human beings)

His objective as a prosecutor is simply to find the truth. While he pushes very hard to prove the guilt of the defendant, it's clear that it's because he genuinely believes in his case - once Ryuu manages to convince him his theory makes sense, Barok drops most of his hostility and helps him. Unlike Edgeworth pre-heel face turn and Franziska, he couldn't care less about his own record, which means that he never deliberately gambled with the lives of potentially innocent people for his own ego. He is biased towards Ryuu, not only because he's Japanese but also because Barok admits to personally taking his cases even if they're banal, but he's not completely driven by a petty grudge like Godot - like I said, he'll help Ryuu win if he does a good enough job in his book, no matter his personal feelings towards his learned Japanese friend.

Both he and Edgeworth post-heel face turn share the same goal of finding the truth. However, Edgeworth has hurt at least one person in his quest, infamously Adrian Andrews when he threatened to reveal her mental illness in court and even said "if you kill yourself, that is no concern of mine". Compare this with Barok, who has shown himself capable of kindness as soon as his second appearance, when he (spoilers for Case 4 of GAA) subtly implied he would allow Roly Beate to keep his job despite tampering with the crime scene, because he could empathize with the poor man wanting to spend one day with his wife.

He's genuinely competent in his job, relying simply on cold hard logic to dismantle the defense's arguments as a good prosecutor should - to be honest, it may be the different writers, but Klavier, Simon and Nahyuta never struck me as being especially good at their job, with Klavier having to deal with a rather incompetent Apollo in AJ and Simon and Nayhuta happily abusing the old "attacking the defense" and "asking evidence for every word you say" tricks. (to be fair Simon gets to demonstrate his interesting manipulative skills in one case... Turnabout Storyteller, when he's Athena's ally. Also, I can't remember anything particularly horrible he does beyond being an ass like usual, in fact he may be the best prosecutor of the second trilogy)

Speaking of Nahyuta, the reasons I can't stand him while I love Barok are that Nahyuta is nothing but repetitive, unwitty, painfully realistic obnoxiousness propped up by a shallow twist revealed at the tail-end of the game; he has no real character development, because "sowwy guys i was good all along" is not development; he prosecutes simply to win even if it means insisting that a young girl committed murder in spite of the defense's reasonable arguments; there is no in-game justification for shit like him tormenting Athena in Japanifornia, or even him being an asshole in Japanifornia at all; and there's no weight in the realization that he let hundreds of innocent people being sentenced to death while he stood aside to protect his sister (like, that has got to mess you up a bit right? Can you show me that, game?). Barok not only has a much more fleshed out, drawn out backstory that explains most of his behavior (although I have my reservations at tying his racism to One Trauma); not only he slowly (... very slowly) warms up to Ryuu; not only he has humanizing traits like feeling horrible about being branded the Reaper of the Old Bailey, like it would happen to anyone being rumored to be a death bringer; but he is, most important of all, an overdramatic bitch and the contrast between his intimidating demeanor and the shit he pulls behind the bench is infinitely more hilarious than being told for the umpteenth time that you're a putrid lawyer who's going to hell. It doesn't sound like much, but a good AA game masters the art of "love to hate".

You know how Klavier is a base-breaking prosecutor because some consider him too nice? Barok is what happens when you take Klavier's honest, well-meaning demeanor and give him enough presence to be hated and loved at the same time. I completely understand if people find him too annoying (he's testing my own patience lmao), but I still think he is one of the best prosecutors in the series, both as a job and as the role of the rival.

[treesandtheirberries]

Dad!Harry talks to his daughter about her questioning sexuality

A/N: might make this into a blurb series? so presh. if you have any concepts around this, send them my way. 

wc: 2,249

June was Harry and Y/N’s first baby, their biggest accomplishment before they were soon having another child. June was currently 13, the awkward age of Middle School, puberty, and overall questioning of identity. Y/N and Harry wanted this weird stage to be a smooth transition. They always encouraged her to express herself, with clothes, in hobbies, with their conversations. Although their first child, they both felt as though they managed to get through the difficulties of becoming a parent easily (thanks to the massive amount of parenting books, from birth to adolescence, that Harry kept buying while June was still in the womb). 

Yet, there is only so much you can prepare your child for, and surely you can’t be there to guide them through every difficulty. Harry and Y/N weren’t sure if June would question her sexuality as both of them weren’t straight, they didn’t know if the process was the same for heterosexuals. But they never skirted around the topic. If anything, they encouraged watching same-sex couples in movies and such, even having many friends who had families with someone of the same gender (or a partner that was non-binary). 

Harry hoped that this would be an excellent way to acclimate their children to the varying diversity of the world. Y/N grew up with racial diversity, but anything deviant from heterosexuality or cisgender was heavily frowned upon. They hoped that with their lack of omission of the varying aspects of identity their children would have the opportunity to understand themselves easier rather than constantly question their identity. 

They forgot to take into account that this was simply a stage in adolescence they had to endure though, as Eric Erickson put it: a fight between identity and role confusion. And June was currently right at the center of it.

June, even as a child, was usually calm and they rarely had problems with her being fussy like they do with the twins, Mazzy and Mick (named after the artists constantly playing on their home turntable). Thus, any changes were quickly noticed in her behavior. 

-------

Picking up the kids from daycare and June from school was on the top of Y/N’s list of things to do for the day. She adored seeing everyone’s faces after a day at work and seeing their warm smiles and tight hugs always brightened her mood. 

Today, things seemed different. 

June jumped into the front seat with a grunt, a frown, and even went as far as throwing her bag onto the floor of the car forcefully. This was generally out of character, except Y/N and Harry have noticed these bursts of anger more recently. 

“What’s eating at ‘ya bug?” Y/N calmly asked, wanting to maintain a balance of emotions although knowing June was perhaps all over the place as most teenagers are. 

June rubbed her hands on the top of her thighs and noticeably took a few deep breaths; a calming tactic her father taught her when she was younger to calm herself. She took a few more breaths until facing her mother to talk. “Sage didn’t want to hang out this weekend,” she finishes, the frown being found on her face once again.

“Oh, is she busy? Thought you two were having a sleepover at home?” Y/N inquired. She knew Sage and her daughter were best friends since the beginning of sixth grade, and she hoped they would maintain their friendship although she knew the ups and downs adolescents faced it might not be possible.

“She said she’s going to the mall with Rye.”

“As in the bread?” Y/N chuckled, trying to lift the mood.

June rolled her eyes, another behavior that has risen in frequency. “No mom. A boy. That she likes.” She grumbled crossing her arms and sinking further into the seat.

“Oooooh I see what’s going on here, Sage is going on a date!” She rose her voice to a pitch of puppy love, which didn’t sit well with June. 

“We promised we wouldn’t date boys in Middle School. They’re all so stupid and ugly. I don’t get why she’s ditching me for him.” 

Y/N was a bit surprised by this. Harry and she have talked about the day they’d have to worry about June’s infatuation with others and they were dreading it. Hearing that June didn’t have interest in it now was a relief, but of course, this whole conversation was concerning. 

“I understand, not the nicest to make plans with someone when she already made some with you. But June-bug, you guys are teenagers. Of course, she’s going to take an opportunity to go on a date with a freaking boy!”

“Language momma!” Mick yelled, the three-year-olds’ well acquainted with naughty words.

“I guess. Just rude s’all.” June finished with another grumble. She wasn’t known for throwing huge fits, and her outbursts were usually this short. 

Still, Y/N knew that this would be something that would affect her for the rest of the week. Her daughter is calm but incredibly sensitive, and the two parents have learned how to work through her internal struggles. She decided to ask the usual question during June’s turmoils: “wanna talk to dad about it?” 

“Yes please.”

--------

Harry was finishing washing the plates as Y/N was getting the twins ready for bed. The small domestic moments like these reminded Harry of how lucky he was to have a family like his. He noticed June’s mood as soon as everyone entered the house, and once Y/N confirmed they would need to talk later, Harry was preparing himself to support his daughter through her problems. Y/N and he were definitely lucky with their firstborn being like June. Sometimes he’ll credit his efforts in teaching June meditation early, and depending on the day, Y/N agrees. 

As he dries the plates to put back in their cupboards, June walks in. 

“Hiya bug. C’mere give Poppa hug.”

June rolls her eyes (he’s having a hard time adjusting to these teenager habits) and walks closer to her father. Although she’s extremely close with both of her parents, there is a timeless connection she has with her father. “Not a child anymore dad. And please, do not call yourself poppa again. You’re not that old yet.” She mumbled in his chest, clearly needing the affection.

“Mom said you wanted to talk? Want her there?”

“Uhm. Maybe we could just talk in my room please.” 

“Of course, let me just put these plates all back” Harry smiled, only letting go of the hug once he felt June move away. A small trick he learned from his mother after she attacked him with countless parenting trips: never let go in a hug with your child, let them determine when the hug is over. It gives them more comfort and stability in their lives and although he saw this as minimal, he understood its significance.

“I’ll help.”

----

As they walked to June’s room, they caught Y/N walking back from the twins’ room. “Hey baby, twins are done for. I’ll be in the room. “ She pecks Harry quick on the lips and turns to June to wrap her in a hug. “Love you cutie,” she winks at June as she goes to her room.

“Love you momma” June smiles, happy that she has a supportive family like this one. 

“I’ll be there in a bit,” Harry smiles, his arm going back to June’s shoulders, giving it a squeeze. 

Once they get to her room, both take a seat on June’s bed. Her back is on the headboard while Harry sits at the edge facing her, cross-legged. Every once in a while June would request to speak to Harry, Y/N,  or both of her parents on the issues bothering her. Harry and Y/N were proud of having a daughter that felt comfortable enough to communicate with her parents, and they always were looking for new ways to enrich themselves with the issues kids have a different ages. 

“Speak to me June, what’s on your mind lady?” Harry starts, initiating the push. He can tell that she’s struggling to bring her thoughts to words.

“Did you....well. How did you ... realize you didn’t like ... uhm, just girls?” She hesitantly asked, too flustered to look at her father on such a strange topic. 

Oh, it’s happening, Harry thought. “Well, I was pretty young, I guess around your age, and I realized that I just wasn’t fully straight. It developed from there I guess, I talked to a few friends about it, spoke to your grandma, and eventually met a boy I really liked. It was really scary, I’m not going to lie, figuring out my feelings at that point. After that, it wasn’t a big deal and everyone in the family understood. I just knew something like gender wasn’t a big deal to me, and if I liked someone I liked them. But it’s different for everyone. Your mom can tell you how she found out she’s bi.”

June was soaking in the information her father gave her. She knew both of her parents weren’t straight, but hearing how they found it out was something entirely different. It wasn’t that she was foreign to the concept, but in personal terms, it was utterly confusing. 

She finally looked to her father, giving him a small smile at the personal information he shared. They were a very open family, but something about this felt even more personal. “But, did you ever think you were faking it?” 

“Not really, but you already know how pretentious your father is,” he chuckled, lighting the mood. “Your mother, as she’ll tell you, had a completely different experience. Said she struggled for years thinking she was either faking it or actually completely gay! She once told me that she just couldn’t disclose it with anyone, and that led her to a lot of contemplation. But if you’re feeling this way too, I need you to know your mother and I are here to support you in any way we can.”

“Dad,” June scrunched her eyes looking down at her crossed legs. “I think I might like girls. Or at least, I think. After Sage told me she’d ditched me I just realized I don’t like her just as a friend.” 

At this moment, tears began to form in her eyes from all the confusion. Instantly Harry brought her into aa encompassing bear hug, keeping her safe in his chest. It hurt him to see her going through this dilemma, the inter-workings of adolescents were never fun. 

“It’s just,” June suddenly choked on a sob, grasping her dad’s hoodie. Harry began to rub her back for support. “I like her I think. Like really like her dad. I don’t want her to date a boy, I want to date her. But she won’t like me and...I don’t know! Why did this have to happen to me!” She continued, clearly soaking his hoodie.

“Oh baby, please don’t ever think this is a bad thing. Sexuality is a spectrum, many of our friends are somewhere on it, and you already know Elizabeth and Mary are married. This is a beautiful thing to discover baby. But yes, I won’t lie to you, it’s going to be hard. There may be times you like someone who doesn’t like girls but bug, that’s simply life.”

“What if I am dad. I don’t know if I like boys at all.”

“Then you are. As simple as that. You can label how you feel or not, it’s all about what feels most comfortable to you. As you know, your mother and I will be here to support you in any way we can. If you like girls, so be it, you’re still our daughter and you know that. If you like boys, which I mean yuck,” he imitated a gagging noise, rising a laugh out of June “then okay. Both or everyone? It’s all okay bub. I do want you to think about it, It might take some time to accept it but we’re accepting you any way you are. You’re so beautiful and strong, and your sexuality doesn’t diminish that in any way.” He made sure to hug her tightly as he said this, expressing his full support. 

“Dad, thank you.” June exhaled, releasing herself to wipe her tears. 

“Of course, June. I’m so happy you were able to tell me this, I know it must’ve been hard.”

After a deep breath, June looked calmer after her small crisis. “I knew you guys would be okay with anything but it’s just, much harder than I expected to really like your friend who doesn’t like you.”

“It’s hard, so so hard. Ask your mum, seriously I swear she told me she also liked one of her friends at your age. Universal gay experience perhaps?” Harry pondered. 

June gave a small laugh to that. “Yeah, I’ll ask. I don’t want her to think I left her out of this, it’s just that I’ve heard about your sexuality in the media more.”

“Pesky things, but I understand. It was so hard for your mom in comparison to me. Do you want me to let her know first, is it okay that I let her know you might be questioning?” He gave her daughter a sincere inquisitive look, valuing consent over everything. 

“Yeah, of course. Probably talk to her tomorrow after we drop the twins off. I really appreciate it, dad.”

“No problem bug. Let’s get you tucked away.” 

__________ part 2

OH MY GOD this is my first I HOPE YOU LIKE. please any feedback would be so sexy. 

[roseschuu]

OKAY SO THIS IS LONG. SORRY. AND MIGHT NOT MAKE SENSE.

I'm not actually a big fan of ADeuce..... Blasphemy I know. I just simply do not personally find them interesting in a romantic relationship.

Like- I don't know. It could be my preference for other Deuce ships that prevents me from liking Adeuce but ~ They work better in my opinion as Rivals and Best friends.

One ship I do really enjoy for Ace is (bare with me) JamilAce. Thank you, my brother's disastrous crack shipping.

But basically for me it works due to the fact Ace isn't stupid. He's Lazy. He's really smart in actuality, in Ch5 he does pretty complicated math really quickly in his head, He's surprisingly more pragmatic and practical than Deuce, and when it comes down to it, he is fair when it comes to what he says and does. If anything I would say Ace is a lot smarter than most people give him credit for. He's quite literally just lazy, hence his pitfalls during the Heartslabyul and Octavinelle chapters.

Sure Ace is a tease. He's not very serious, he plays up the stupid personality he puts forward, and it doesn't help that he's selfish.

But Jamil? Jamil also plays into a 'dumber' personality. not in the silly way Ace does, but as we know from his overblot in ch4, he plays to the most average way possible to make Kalim look better.

Anyway before I rant fully about the fact Jamil and Ace both mask things as much as possible to keep the publics perception of themselves a certain way, I just.

Sure it's unconventional. It's a little silly. Did this start because Basketball Boyfriends is a silly ship name? absolutely. But Jamil learning over time how to love someone After learning to love himself, and it just happens to be the biggest asshole in the school (/hj). I just think it's silly.

What appeals to me about Ace ships in general is just. He's such a fucking jerk. to literally everyone. He's self centered. But he's also falling behind his classmates because of it. He's overconfident in himself, and yet out of the first years He and Sebek are the only ones without unique magics, and Sebek's very talented with magic compared to Ace. His biggest talent is Magic Analysis, which imo it's almost implying that compared to someone whose best subject is magic-related, Ace is less skilled. He's got issues under the surface and I WANT TO UNPACK THEM. I want to study Ace under a microscope. Because like- He's a dickhead to basically everyone, but if we're honest it's aa mixture of a way to keep people at arms length so he doesn't get too close, and a lack of learning in social fields.

Ace is my blorbo I want to study him under a microscope.

Ace ships are so interesting to me like..... I could talk about them for hours.