#absolutely wild. and what a fun tournament overall too!

[gaycrittercentral]

Congratulations to these two idiots for somehow sneaking into first place on @thegreatbigdetectivepolll and thanks to the poll runner for a super fun time!! :D

now GO HELP THEM DEFEAT THE ACCURSED SECRET FINAL BOSS

[original-jade]

Mortal Kombat OC Questionnaire

This wonderful collection of questions from @mkdecimation lit a fire under me! I started filling it out for all of my OCs before realizing it was originally intended as an ask game, but by that point I was having too much fun with it. Oops.

Factions and Alliances

1. What faction is your OC aligned with? Why? Shadow isn’t officially part of any one faction. They drift where they believe they are needed to protect the realms. That goal, however, most closely aligns them with the White Lotus, and they do confer with Raiden and Fujin when any potential threats rise.

2. What is their role - either in their faction or in the overall events of MK? Overall, they fill the mentor archetype with the confidante role. Shadow becomes a trainer of sorts with their own style, choosing to teach people to build on their own pre-existing strengths rather than pass on a textbook technique. Instead of giving answers, they prefer to give others the tools to find the answers, though it earns them a reputation of being seen as cryptic.

3. What are their thoughts on their faction? Do they enjoy being there? Do they want to leave? They admire the members of the White Lotus for both their dedication to Earthrealm’s defense and their selfless support of anyone in need. They feel most at home among them, but even so, there are still times they feel like an outsider.

4. What are their relationships like? Do they have any friends within their faction? What about rivals? Mentors? Friendship for Shadow is complicated due to their solitary nature. While they don’t form bonds easily, what bonds do form run deep. At first, they are wary of Liu Kang because of their knowledge, and he of them because of their mystery, though overtime they grow close. Bo' Rai Cho takes them under his wing as more of a social mentor, and Fujin becomes their confidante and support. There is a mutual respect and uneasy situational trust between them and Raiden for a multitude of factors. As for Kung Lao…well. They would break the world for him.

5. How do they feel about other factions? Do they have any enemies? Shadow sees nuance in every faction, judging individuals instead. Some choose their path with glee, some play the cards they are dealt, and some are unwilling participants. They are surprisingly neutral towards the Special Forces, mainly due to its more aggressive tactics. The Black Dragon and the Red Dragon both earn their ire for their exploitation and treatment of innocents, though their attention is focused mainly on the clans’ respective leaders. As for the Brotherhood of Shadows, Shadow absolutely despises both Shinnok and Quan Chi. If they could have a one on one fight with either of them with no consequences, they would do so in a heartbeat. When it comes to enemies, however, their one true antagonistic rival is Sovereign Aster, their literal dark double.

Origins

1. What realm do they originate from? Outworld

2. What species/race are they? Outworlder

3. What timeline does your OC originate from? NRS/MK9-11; By technicality, they don’t belong to any canon timeline, and instead crossed over from a timeline that branched off of Midway/MK-MKA millennia ago where Shang Tsung never betrayed Earthrealm after the first tournament.

4. What do they fight for? Why? Simpler said than done, Shadow fights for the universal right to live rather than survive. They can’t stand suffering, especially when that suffering is inflicted by tyrants and bullies.

5. Describe their childhood. What events led them to where they are now? Though the memories remain lost and faint, Shadow, born Aster, was raised alone by their mother Lucine on a makeshift farm. The two lived modestly yet happily, content with staying on the fringe of society and sustaining themselves. Shadow was a rambunctious child with a wild imagination. They could entertain themself for hours on end and spin story after story for their mother, yet would also become rather shy when faced with someone from the nearby village. Though their father was unknown to them and would always remain a mystery, they did inherit his green thumb and made their garden thrive once they were old enough to do so. When they were just barely an adult, however, their worldview was shattered when soldiers moved into the area on Shao Kahn’s orders. The threat the soldiers posed led to the young Aster’s powers awakening, and their defiance combined with their albeit weak display of magic made them a target. They were overwhelmed by the soldiers and chose to surrender as a prisoner in exchange for Lucine’s safety.

Fighting Style

1. Does your OC have any special powers/skills? How did they gain them? Through ancestry, they have innate magic, though their actual skills had to be honed through centuries of study and practice. Most of the techniques that Shadow uses are ones they developed themself. They could have channeled their fledgling magic into any school, and still could if they so chose, but their interests lie in the bonds of space and reality. They can teleport and phase through objects alone or with others, form temporary physical structures or sense altering illusions, even look through and step between realities, but their calling card is their mimic ability. With enough study of someone’s technique, they can form an avatar of that person around themself, taking that person’s weapons, abilities, and fighting style for themself as long as the avatar holds. They are a literal echo fighter.

2. Describe their fighting style. Do they practice a specific style of martial art? Or do they rely on magic/their powers? Physically, they can hold their own. They are trained in basic hand to hand combat and self defense, but their true strength lies in their ability to utilize the environment surrounding the fight. They excel at winding around an opponent, turning a corner into a trap, ensuring they always have the high ground. While they can easily force an advantage with their abilities, they do prefer to limit the energy they expend just for the challenge of it, usually only calling their signature spatial daggers.

3. What weapons does your OC use, and how proficient are they? Who taught them? How did they learn? They prefer to use magic constructs as weapons, favoring twin spatial daggers. They’re able to dismiss and recall these daggers at will, allowing them to control the flow of the fight. If they were given physical daggers of the exact same dimensions, however, they would not be nearly as proficient. Traditional weapons are not Shadow’s strong suit. Sparring has given them experience with basic melee weapons, but not near enough to truly utilize them. On the other hand, their mimic grants them theoretical knowledge of how to wield any weapon that lingers quite a bit after the avatar expires. As an example, while they normally would be clumsy with Kabal’s hook swords, if they mimic him for a few minutes and let the avatar fade, they would be able to give him pointers on his form despite not being able to physically demonstrate any longer.

4. How quick are they to fight? Are they aggressive, or do they prefer to talk things out? Shadow is very much a talk first person. Whenever possible, they limit bloodshed, regardless of the opponent. If it does come to a fight, though, they also won’t hesitate or hold back. Limiting the collateral damage by limiting the duration of the fight is just as, if not more, important to them than securing a win.

5. What is their last resort? (Think of an all-out attack that they would be used only if there were no other option.) Their last resort is letting go of their control. There’s an ability they don’t know they have until well after they’ve used it, and it horrifies them when they learn the truth about it. Major, major spoilers, this one.

Appearance

1. Describe or draw their outfit/armor. Shadow’s main outfit can be found here in their ref sheet. As for alternative outfits, they have one that Johnny bought for them and calls their “urban camouflage.” That outfit consists of a plain pair of jeans, black converse, a graphic tee, and a bright multicolor neon windbreaker.

2. Make a mood board for your OC.

3. Does your OC wear any jewelry? What is its significance? Nope! Shadow doesn’t have any objections to wearing jewelry, but they don’t have any attachments to it and don’t wear any day to day. They’ll wear borrowed pieces if the occasion calls for it. The only exception is rings due to their scars - they don’t even wear a wedding ring.

4. What physical characteristics make them stand out from the other fighters? While they keep them hidden, they do have a network of scars over their fingers and hands. Both their scars and their eyes glow violet when they use magic. If a stranger saw them outside of a fight, however, they would appear completely unassuming and wouldn’t leave an impression.

5. Does your OC have a particular style? Why? They favor function over fashion, not caring what others think of them day to day. The unique style that emerges because of that is a blend of Outworld tradition and Earthrealm advancement. It drives Johnny just a bit crazy that they’ll openly wear spandex but won’t touch an elastic hair tie or zipper if they have a choice. If need be, they’ll wear something out of their comfort zone to blend in, whether that be to just not draw attention to themself or to infiltrate a particular group. Doing so means they don’t have to worry about keeping up a constant illusion.

Relationships

1. Do you ship your OC with anyone - canon or otherwise? If so, tell us about their relationship! Shadow falls for Kung Lao despite their initial determination to stay uninvolved. They try to pull away at first, convincing themself it wouldn’t end well if they made any sort of connection with anyone, even when Lao tries to confess first, but nearly dying makes them realize how short sighted that was. The two take it slow, navigating their places in the world while discovering the ways in which they fit together. Their differences, even when they are opposites, compliment each other, such as Shadow being more of a quiet observer and Lao being nearly always ready to entertain a conversation. They both care deeply, much deeper than they let others see on the surface, and are both ready to lay everything on the line to protect their home and those they love. One aspect that defines how their relationship evolves is their honesty. After a particularly jarring revelation, one that Shadow at first tries to hide out of fear, they promise each other no more secrets. Sometimes Lao has to gently coax Shadow into talking about particularly bad nightmares, but talking through everything, especially when its something rough, brings them closer and makes them stronger. It doesn’t surprise anyone when they get married.

2. Does your OC have any friends? How did they meet? Most of the krew considers Shadow a friend in one way or another. Despite their social reservations, they do hold closer bonds with a few people. They first reach out to Hanzo when he was still Scorpion, when everyone else considered him an irredeemable enemy, and worked to show him that he was still himself and still so much more than the monster Quan Chi wanted him to be. After a rocky start and a hard conversation, they and Liu Kang become closer than either of them expected. Johnny more or less pesters his way to their side.

3. What is their family situation? Are they close? Are they still alive? Family is tricky for Shadow. When they start getting bits and pieces of their memory back, they can remember their mother, but not her fate. In addition, as far as they’re aware, they can’t go back to their original reality. When they go to Outworld to try and find answers, they do find their mother’s counterpart in a remote village not far from where the farm would have been. It’s a very emotional reunion on both sides. To Lucine, it doesn’t matter that Shadow isn’t really Aster anymore, and it doesn’t matter that they aren’t her Aster. They’re still her child, and she loves them all the same. Whenever Shadow gets a chance, they make it a point to visit. Still, their relationship takes time to build enough to be considered a familial bond.

4. Do they have any pets? Tell us how they came to be! No pets in this universe.

5. Do they worship any god in particular? Elder God, Titan, One-Being, or otherwise? Shadow respects all deities and their individual authorities, but they don’t worship any of them. No deity has a true constant across the branches of the universe, so they don’t view any as being infallible or worthy of blind trust.

Game Mechanics

1. Describe their intro animation. A crack of light appears in the air that then widens into a violet glowing portal. Shadow steps through with their hands outstretched and eyes glowing, and with a flick of their wrists, the portal closes completely behind them and the light in their eyes fades. If equipped with a gloveless skin, their scars glow and fade with the same timing of their eyes.

2. Describe their victory animation. Shadow spins their spatial daggers around their fingers a few times before letting one of the daggers fade, jumping to one side and teleporting away. When they reappear, they are right in front of the camera and slash it with their remaining dagger, breaking both the lens and the fourth wall. Their eyes glow the entire time, and if equipped with a gloveless skin, their scars glow as well.

3. Describe their fatality. Own Worst Enemy: Shadow mimics their opponent and uses their own default fatality against them, copying any weapons or abilities needed with spatial constructs.

4. Describe one of their brutalities. Heart to Heart: Shadow teleports behind their opponent and stabs them in the back with a spatial dagger. Then, they twist the dagger before ripping it free, pulling their opponent’s heart with it.

5. Describe their mercy animation. While their opponent is stunned, Shadow holds a hand out to conjure and manipulate spacial mannequins that steady the opponent until they are ready to rejoin the fight.

6. Describe their taunt(s). Turning away from their opponent, Shadow pulls a tome from a pocket space (most comparable to an invisible bag of holding) and begins to flip through its pages, appearing bored with the fight.

7. Describe their weaknesses. While they can string together a great number of hits, Shadow’s damage output per strike is relatively low.

8. Describe their strengths. Shadow is unpredictable and hard for the opponent to read. They move fast, and with their teleportation, it’s near impossible to zone them.

9. What gear could a player customize for your OC? Spatial Daggers: Changes the design and type of blades conjured. Default are hilt-less curved boot daggers.

Gloves: Changes what covers their hands. Includes full, fingerless, and sheer gloves, torn fabric wraps, and gloveless. Default are black leather gloves with adjustment straps at the wrists.

Sash: Changes design, color, and tie type of sash. Default is plain crimson wrapped over itself and secured with a knot at their side. [Mechanic only; remains unchanged in series]

10. What would their konsumable be? Blossoming krystellion branch: Shadow conjures small shields to block incoming projectiles for a short time.

11. Does your character have a special stage? If so, what does it look like? Does it have a theme? Reclaimed Shores: This is the section of Shadow’s (formerly Shang Tsung’s) island where visitors are greeted. To the far left and far right are twin wooden docks each with a lantern atop a relatively high pole. The white sand beach extends endlessly beyond the boundaries of the stage and into the background against the tree line. The forest is dense and unyielding, and as the island slopes up from the shores, it also keeps the sky from being seen by the camera during a match. At the midpoint of the stage, a path of carefully laid stepping stones cuts through the forest, marked with its own posts and lanterns, and though the stones continue onto the beach, they do not reach the fighters. At night, all four visible lanterns are lit. During a match, the fighters leave visible footprints in the sand as well as imprints from any slides, rolls, or falls. Occasionally, a wave will roll onto the beach and wash away any marks left behind in the sand. The two dock lanterns at the edges of the stage are interactables. They each have a rope attached to the top with the free end loosely wrapped around their respective poles. If a fighter is near, they can grab the rope and swing the lantern at the opponent as an improvised flail. The theme for this stage is a slower, softer version of the Genesis’s Palace Gates theme, while Shadow’s individual battle theme is Storm from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

12. What nicknames would Announcer Johnny Cage give them? -Slim Shady -Houdini -Mirror Match

[akihabara-division03]

Anika’s Thoughts on Kyoto Division

Lana Alarie

“You know, it’s nice to see so many people around my age in this tournament,” she chuckled. “Lana Alarie, I know her to be one of the more wild ones we have. Maybe a tad bit brash, but that’s just the way she is! That’s her charm. Incredibly skilled with her artwork, too. She’s a fun time overall.”

Itsuki Kamiko

“Kamiko-kun, Kamiko-kun… I’ve been told he’s more on the reserved side. Glad he has two friends who can help him out. And he can back up his friends. Glad to know this guy is doing well.”

Kanade Alarie

“Oh, this young lady! She’s kinda all over the place, isn’t she? She’s been over here a few times, I see her with Makina every now and then. She’s just an absolute sweetheart. You know, if her shows we’re just a little accessible, I for sure would love to see what she’s got. But it’s pretty much pointless because, you know…” She turned her head to the side and pointed at her ear. “But anyway, I’m excited to see where life takes this girl and I hope life treats her well.”

Starlight Specters

“Shian’s filled me in briefly about their early days. My heart truly does go out to them… Despite their background, they seemed to have bounced back pretty well. Paperwork, aside, I’d love to see them stop by my office sometime. I’m a therapist, I’d like to help out any way I can. Of course, without crossing any boundaries.”

“But as for the DRB… I still don’t intend to lose. I can’t lose. But I’m looking forward to a fun bout. Good luck, guys.”

[minetteskvareninova]

Minette watches Medici, part 17 (Survival)

-YES WE ARE DOING THIS I DON'T KNOW WHY I SHOULD BE STUDYING RIGHT NOW-

-Especially since season 3 is going to be much the same as season 2, which is real bad news since season 2 kinda sucked.

-Look, I have a higher than average tolerance for exposition and the amount of dialogue in this show that just that was way too much even for me, which should tell you about the efficiency and elegance of writing on display here.

-This show: Let's add some nuance into this conflict by having the pope be a genuinely good person. Also this show: The pope's nephew just irrationally hates the entire Medici family to the point that he's just itching to shank a random bastard just because his most likely father is a Medici. Never change, Il Medici, never change.

-I mean I don't think his character is completely unsalvagable; his character motivations (as stated in a monologue to his wife, because the show wins the lack of subtlety tournament against fucking Magnificent Century) are sound and even desperately wanting to destroy the Medici because of his (totally justified) fear of reprecussions for Giuliano's murder. But like. This guy not only murders a child, but also a guy for failing to murder a child after asking him to hand his own dagger. Be for real, old Albizzi this guy ain't. He's barely Cheekbones Pazzi.

-Also, even though the pope is supposed to be one of the good ones, he is still implied to hold Carlo in markedly worse conditions than Lorenzo holds his nephew. Which I call immense, steaming pile of bullshit on.

-I do like what they are doing with Savonarola tho! See, this is how you do nuance, people! Even if his backstory doesn't seem to be historically accurate and his real backstory involved him becoming a famous preacher before fucking Pico della Mirandolla recommending him to Lorenzo, which I regret wasn't in the show, because. Well. You could've added Pico della Mirandolla in your show and you didn't. For shame. This show in general seems to try its hardest to ignore the humanism part of renaissance and humanism, which I am not wild about.

-The central dilemma of this episode and the negotiations around it are actually good, but the show as always shoots itself in the foot by its inability to give any and all moral greyness to Lorenzo's character. And like. I would absolutely be down to the golden boy Lorenzo who is good at everything, but also just a bit of a bastard who is inconsiderate towards his loved ones and willing to play dirty in politics. Why did I get this borderline Gary Stu instead, I don't know.

-The Giulio subplot is as made up as it is full of cliches, but it's not THAT bad so far. I am mostly annoyed at the tedious, manufactured drama of having his mother murdered for no reason that I can tell except angst when the real Giulio's mum just died when he was a baby (most likely). Even if I do like the little detail of how the murder was done - when we saw her face fall to the floor from Giulio's POV... Man. I literally SCREAMED.

-Overall, second verse much the same as the first, instant regret, do not recommend. I am going to finish this show, if only because making fun of it is rather relaxing after work, but I don't think anyone else should follow my example. People, watch season 1 of Medici, then nothing else. It's not even bad enough for real masochists, like The Empress will give you way more bang for your buck if that's what you're looking for (seriously, I turned that show off after watching ten minutes from the first episode, I haven't been in that much pain while watching something since that Austrian Maria Theresa show).

[insomniac-arrest]

how NOT to do a tournament arc

It’s kind of sad, I really enjoyed the first book in the “Darker Shade of Magic” series by VE Schwab, I even rated it 4 stars on my Goodreads! People told me that the second book, A Gathering of Shadows, was even better and I was pretty excited.

However, I cannot get myself to finish the last 80 pages or so. I am really close to the end, but I just Do Not Care. I have stopped caring about these characters or what happens to them. I think the main problem is that I actually really love “tournament arcs,” they are literally always my favorite arcs in Shonen manga.

the tournament arc in the Naruto series?? life-changing. the tournament arc in My Hero Academia? literally the only full arc I’ve seen of that show. The tournament arc in Yu Yu Hakusho? so much fun. even outside of manga, the second Hunger Games book is my favorite of the three because I think the arena/game itself is really interesting and I’m a shallow bitch.

Lee vs Gaara?? 😩👌

I think it’s this love of the trope that kind of ruined the book for me because Schwab fundamentally mishandles why audiences care about our heroes joining or winning these things. *SPOILERS AHEAD*

So I literally hated the reason for every single character joining the tournament. Not only are most of them way too OP to be joining this tournament (it’s like the reverse underdog trope and I hate it), but the reasons they join are generally weak and actively make me want them to lose.

Why does Naruto do the tournament arc? He wants to go up in the ninja hierarchy and it’s a stepping stone to his overall goal of becoming a hokage. And, as always, he’s trying to prove his self worth as a person by punching people real good. He is an underdog and seeing him win is thus satisfying. You want him to win for practical, emotional, and cathartic reasons. It’s not that complex.

None of the heroes in A Gathering of Shadows want to join the tournament for practical reasons and seeing them win achieves no catharsis. They do have emotional reasons for joining it, but their emotional reasons actively make me want to bully them. Let’s get into it.

Lila wants to join the tournament to test her magic and also run away from her cool pirate life she always wanted because of Issues I guess. I found her reasons for joining the most acceptable of the 3, but also frankly vague and boring. She kind of just has this sense she has to join. The thing that really got me is how she goes out of her way to kidnap and replace this rando in the competition.

She is technically an underdog here, but having guessed by this point she is a *SPOILERS* Antari, I already know she is super powerful and is way too magically gifted for being in this normal-people magic Olympics. I don’t watch Haikyuu for the tall people dunking on other teams! I watch it for the short king overcoming height-ism! Your stories about genetically superior magic people suck!!

If she had like, an actually compelling reason to insert herself into the competition-- such as being in poverty and needing prize money or seeking revenge or political sabotage or wanting to win the heart of a girl, I might be more forgiving. But the fact she just kinda wants to . . test herself, and fucks up someone else’s life to do that, just made me angry. I get that’s she’s a spunky, wild-card, the author describes her as a “self-serving badass,” but she was just so weakly motivated that the self-serving part made me root against her. She’s out there messing with someone’s entire profession just to “test her abilities.” This is some villainy shit.

This and the fact her “not-like-other-girls” fuckery was all over the place in this book (one of her love interests literally says “you’re not like other girls”) rubbed me the wrong way.*

*Note: the first book also had this problem too, but I was kind of willing to forgive it bc I was interested in the magic stuff going on. But Schwab did NOT course correct and I had to have this whole do-I-dislike-Lila-bc-of-internalized-misogyny debate with myself. Luckily, I discovered that the only character I really liked in this book was Rhy regardless of gender.

Alucard is also there. I don’t clearly remember his motivation for joining, but he is already wealthy and has status and allies and doesn’t really need to join this tournament so I also did not particularly care if he won or lost. He’s also just, very pompous. Which, yeah, made him likable enough, but again, pompous characters in tournament arcs are not the ones you’re rooting for. That’s not why you watch.

Finally, Kell, king of the Over Powered angst trope, wants to join the tournament because he dreams of violence. He wants to fight other people. He has some bloodlust which he feels real bad about, but also damn does he want to use his magic powers to punch people. Like, dummies and training are not enough, it has to be real flesh and blood people to pummel.

I can’t emphasize how thoroughly this turned me off. Characters who join tournaments literally just for the purpose of smacking other people around are villains in these type of stories. They aren’t doing it for the prize or redemption or self-worth shit or love. And I wanted Kell to lose so bad!! I wanted him to get water-slapped across the stage! Not only was he way too overpowered in this tournament for me to care, but the reasons he’s in the tournament actively pissed me off. You want to find freedom in violence Kell? :( absolutely not.

And like, he does lose, but it’s only because he lets Lila win. No struggle. No gay little speeches. No random heartfelt trauma reveal or character development.

I hate it here.

Naturally, a western book does not have to follow random anime tropes, but shouldn’t readers be a bit invested in this staging since it takes up a large part of the book?

None of these characters are in the tournament for interesting reasons that make me want to root for them. Some characters who I was neutral on to begin with, literally made that Sims relationship thing pop up above my head when I read this

I know what you’re thinking: But Insomniac! The book isn’t about the tournament! It’s just the set-dressing! You must have noticed, the tournament fight scenes were really brief and boring. The main conflict is between the real villain and the main characters.

And I’m like . . . then why were the magic olympics there? Also, the fact all these characters were joining this important sports event for shallow reasons really did a number on my perception of them. None of them even want to be Hokage. This is ridiculous.

Anyway, as a side note I was interested in the Rhy/Alucard interaction, but I’ll probably never finish this book so  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[bsd-elle]

Thoughts on the SK8 The Infinity Episode 12

So the final episode just aired. And I’m having majoorrr mixed feelings.

This show was truly something that kept me going, with it’s story, animation and the whole found family thing. I have loved this show from the beginning and I will till the end.

But as a lot of people in the fandom I do have some strong opinions on the finale

First off, I just want to say that everyone is allowed to have their own opinion but please do not send hate or any negative energy to studio Bones and Hiroko Utsumi. They have worked incredibly hard on this series. In fact I put them on a pedestal for giving us something so poignant and wonderful during such trying times. I looked forward every Saturday to watch the new episode and that feeling, that rush while watching it, never changed throughout the show’s run!!

Now on to my thoughts on the finale.

1. Shipping

I saw many people in the fandom criticizing the studio for queerbaiting. Now I can definitely not give an accurate perspective on this, as I am not part of the LGBTQIA community, though I am a strong ally.

Let’s talk about the main ships: Renga and Matchablossom

Renga: In my opinion they’re pretty much canon. All the hints, the loving looks, Langa jumping to hug Reki, Langa basically saying Reki is his happiness, Reki wanting to skate beside Langa (Infinitely). In my eyes, they’re canon.

Of course it would’ve been amazing to have a canon queer relationship, but we have no idea what happens behind closed doors. The rules in Japan, unfortunately are totally different from other progressive countries. As someone who lives in a country where they just decriminalized gay marriage, seeing canon queer relationships is honestly rare.

I think they did whatever they could to show that Renga is canon.

I mean come on, Langa basically said he liked Reki in episode 8

I think it would be very very cool and progressive to have a them outwardly admit to it, but we know both these dumbasses never finish their sentences. lol

I’m happy with the way their relationship evolved.

Matchablossom: I honestly can’t give a clear reasoning to this, because personally I don’t ship them. But the thing is, they could be canon, who knows?

I mean everyone was talking about how Joe went out with 2 girls in the end sequence and because of that they aren’t canon. But by that logic we couldn’t ship them from the beginning, since Joe kissed girls in the first episode.

I mean I totally headcanon that Joe is a bisexual king, so that means he could be hanging out them girls while still majorly crushing on Cherry.

Who knows, maybe Joe brought the girls to Cherry’s signing on purpose to make him jealous. Lol

Let your imagination run wild, people. It’s up to your own perspective. I personally don’t ship them, but I don’t think it’s queerbaiting when you pretty much have several hints to them caring deeply (love) about each other.

2. Story

This is where the critiquing comes.

One of the main reasons why I loved and still love Sk8 was one, obviously because of Renga and two because I absolutely loved the story.

From eps 1-11 the story was so compelling and written in such a fantastic way. Every week I’d have some assumptions and every time it would completely blow my mind.

In particular ep 10. When I originally saw the title “Dap not needing words” I was so worried.

They need to talk, they have to communicate. But wow, that episode was just phenomenal, if you guys want me to make a review on each episode I would be happy to, I have so much to say.

Sure, ep 10,11 was wayyy too rushed, but I just know it’s because they had to fit a lot of story in such a little time period. If they had maybe 24 episodes, they would’ve knocked it out of the park.

Either way I had no complaints.

My issue with ep 12 is the beef: Adam Vs Snow

I thought animation wise and as a beef it was really impactful (similar to Reki Vs Adam)

But why God, why did they give Adam a redemption

I’m sorry but he doesn’t deserve it.

I knew for a fact that as much as I wanted Adam to go to jail (so badly), I knew it wouldn’t happen. That was just not possible (in my eyes). I thought they would take a page from Fugou Keiji: Balance Unlimited, where his family (those evil ass aunts) and send them to jail (for clear mental, physical abuse and who knows what else), and Adam would go in isolation somewhere.

There he could properly heal from his trauma and abuse, work through it, heal his relationship with Tadashi and just work to be better.

There was a part of me that expected the show to end with a typical “oh we’re all friends and everything is forgiven” bullshit and I prayyedd that wouldn’t happen

But boy was I wrong

Why did they try to sympathize with him?!?

I get it, he’s clearly had severe trauma and abuse, and he uses skateboarding and entering the “zone” to get away from his terrible reality.

But why did they have Langa say this to him??

“Skating is fun because you can do it with your friends!”

It’s sweet that he’s trying to teach Adam what Reki taught him, but this implies that Adam is his friend. Or atleast that’s what he wants

“hey, you’re a crazy monster and you assaulted my friends (boyfriend), but I still wanna skate with you, cause it’s fun with friends”

I’m sorry, in what universe is this.. your friend?

Your actual friend, Langa, who taught you everything you know, who’s been with you from the start, he has been attacked and traumatized multiple times by Adam. Not to mention several other people.

I could’ve accepted it if they used the line

“Don’t ever end up on your own”

That makes more sense in this context, it’s like saying “hey you evil monster, you’re crazy but don’t end up alone, treasure the people in your life”

I think that implies more on the sense that Adam has to figure shit out on his own, by himself. Not with Langa and the people he’s assaulted.

Then it would make atleast a bit more sense to heal Tadashi and Adam’s relationship.

You just cannot build up a character like Adam, for 12 episodes and then completely forgo that for the sake of “friendship”, that just makes no sense

Not to mention, Kirako the detective, the fact that she worked so hard and got absolutely nothing, is preposterous.

That whole thing put a really bad taste in my mouth.

Also, during the beef, like I mentioned, Langa basically implies that they should have fun because they’re skating with friends.

This basically just throws out Langa’s friendship with Reki.

I mean Reki was so badly hurt and injured after their beef, both the times.

Yes, he did have a lot of fun and that was the point of ep 10, 11 to show Reki that he didn’t have to skate to be the best (like no one ever wass.. dun dun dun. If you know that reference, here’s a chocolate) he skated to have fun(even though in my eyes, he’s the best)

Ep 12 was that arc for Langa, for him to realize he also skated to have fun.

But when you’re condoning and encouraging Adam, idkk.. it just rubbed me the wrong way.

I didn’t like it at all. They made him into a gag character in the end scene, which is literally the opposite of what he’s been pictured for the past 11 episodes.

3. Side characters

Shadow did not deserve that in any way whatsover.

He was completely glossed over. I thought his injury would be a pivotal plot point for improving his relationship with the manager, but they just used it as a way to remove him from the tournament

Tadashi, babyy, that’s Stockholm syndrome

When I saw that dog comment:

Godd... he deserves so muchhh moree..

So, overall the finale, honestly disappointed me. But my love for sk8 is everlasting and the finale will never change that

4. Future

Hopefully, and I pray for this

A season 2, movie, OVA or anything tbh.

There’s so much potential

Reki and Langa go to Canada, they visit Oliver’s grave, Langa teaches Reki snowboarding

Kirako finally arresting Adam

Tadashi becoming true friends with Langa, Reki and the gang

Shadow getting the love he deserves

Matchablossom canon

Renga canon

Miya getting the apology he deserves

But whatever it is, Sk8 the Infinity owns my heart and I don’t know what I’m going to do with my life.

Other than reading Renga fanfiction

[logsfm]

hey my loves   !   i’m mia  ,  21 from the east coast   !   i have not roleplayed in sheeeesh   ...   like five or six months   ?   but i am so excited to be here for opening with all of y’all   .   i spent like all morning trying to weed out this gal logan right here   ...   she’s a trip   ,   that’s the best overall description i have for ya   .   anywho   ,  lets get to the actual thing you’re here for her lil intro   .   also if you wanna mssg on discord here ya go   𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐬 𝖜𝖍𝖔𝖗𝖊#7040   .

logan samara-de jaager was spotted in the fashion district adorning  air force 1’s university blue  , with some airpod pros on . they’re most likely listening to  benz i know by kelvyn colt  . you may know them as  @delogan  or as that  bella hadid  lookalike . their  twenty fourth  birthday just passed . while living in  the upper east side  , they’ve gained a bit of a reputation . they’re known to be  querulous  but on the other hand  passionate  . wonder if they’ll be the next person to hit the headlines . ( cisfemale / she/her +  mia / twenty one / she/her ) + ( “ logan de jaager seen shoving ex in hotel footage during heated argument , not so sweet huh? ” / “ miss de jaager was spotted sneaking into ex beau’s apartment , what could she be up to? ” / “ sweet socialite or greedy trust fund baby ? milan de jaager publicly accuses daughter logan of stealing $1M … ” )

born into the true lap of luxury . the daughter of real estate magnate & high - profile attorney milan de jaager and his wife , british born socialite lana samara . the two of them held high favor within the 1% but were also able to find a perfect balance . they did a great job of separating personal life from the tabloids . it was rare to really know the happenings of their day to day . they had this particular kind of mystery to them , if you will .

it wasn’t long before lana began to instill the very same rhetoric she received as a child into her own   .   quality over quantity   ,   was the motto   .   just not in the way you’d assume   .   the quality at which a de jaager presented themselves to you was much more important than than quantity of time you spent with them   .   looks   ?   they’re everything   ,   in the de jaager household   .   time was simply a societal construct implemented to catch you on a bad day   ,   for that very line of thinking they embodied being late   .   rushing out of the house to finish your make up in the car   ?   a literal sin in the eyes of her mother   .

she was encouraged to take part in ballet and beauty pageants growing up   .   anything that could showcase how beautiful their daughter was lana and milan were on board for   .   personally logan hated ballet but she couldn’t deny she loved the applause the night of a showcase   .   she also couldn’t stand pageants but loved having all eyes on her as she went on stage   .

it became quite clear as the years went on that her parents were much more like close friends to their daughter than like rule - instilling guardians   .   she would text them to dismiss her from school   ,   get them to buy her   &   her friends alcohol for sleepovers  /  parties   ,   was very much so that kid who got high with her parents   .   really anything you could do with your friends   ?   was fair game with logan   &   her folks   .

at sixteen a friend of her moms who was going to be a designer for spring fashion week that year asked if logan would want to walk for him   .   she was quick to accept the offer and before she knew it she had multiple offers to walk in that years fall fashion weeks   ,   because of how easy it came to her   -    though   ,    she’s the first to admit she never really took modeling all that seriously   .

it was just a year later that her way of life changed drastically , logan and her twin brother had been caught by paparazzi on a friends boat in the hamptons snorting a white substance , anyone with eyes knew exactly what the group of teenagers were doing . upon returning home the two received the crackdown of the century . their once friendly parents turned to strict jail like guardians . often reminded that they put the families reputation at stake . the pressure to be perfect was something logan had never had to deal with until now & she almost cracked under the pressure at every turn .

it wasn’t until she left for college that she was finally given some room to breathe , attending the university of florida was the best choice for what logan truly wanted to do with her life - become a sports analyst . growing up she was infatuated with sports & and would have been involved in much more than just cheerleading had her mom allowed for her to get so much as a speck of dirt on her . during her time in florida the paparazzi seemed to find her more often than not , something her parents often denounced both over the phone & in public . the longer she spent away from the upper east side the more she became america’s sweetheart & simultaneously a thorn in her parents side . she graduated from university in 2018 , only returning back to new york for the sake of work . she’d been offered a reporting job with espn , on top of taking up modeling gigs here & there when ever she felt necessary .

personality …

one thing is very true about the de jaager’s & is very much so the same for logan ; she is not to be trusted . she can be extremely charming when she wants to be . she could sell a bag of rocks to a beach & get a princess to sell her sole to sex work . she knows exactly what people want to hear & when they want to hear it and has no qualms about lying straight to someone’s face if it means she gets something out of it . in fact sometimes , she might lie to your face just for the sheer fun of being able to call you gullible .

she’s very much so a spoiled brat although she hates when anyone call her one , she feels like she has more layers to her than that broad term . hand in hand with that is her drama queen like tendencies , any situation were there is a simple solution she will find a way to blow vastly out of portion .

due to her mother’s heavy influence growing up , she can be rather vein & materialistic . catch her like “ i can’t date a garbage person ” to someone simply because they’re not as rich or known enough for her liking .

it’s rare that you’ll ever see her jump out of character . she’s very calculated & aware of who she is ( or who she needs to seem like ) so if you ever see her emotions getting the better of her , you’ve really broken her .

she’s the type to dabble in a little bit of anything   ?   she’s a rich nyc party girl who’s been partying well before anyone should have allowed her to so she’s done it all   .    you’d be kidding yourself to think you could surprise  /  scare logan on a wild night out   .

she’s quick   &   creative with her sense of humor   .   she has both a crude / dry sense of humor   ,   as well   ,   and really just doesn’t find goofy things to be funny but more or less embarrassing   ( so if she ever tells you you’re goofy , remember it’s not a compliment ) .

her upbringing   &   parents sentiment on tabloids once reflected massively on logan   ,   but now she couldn’t quite care less about it all . after all she spends hours in front of cameras on a regular basis for work . although she does tend to shy away from people who she deems are hungry for fame or attention   .   she’s been used in the past for fame   &   will never let it happen again   , plus she’s the type to lap up attention so she likes to have as little fame whores around her as possible , more shine for her .

when she isn’t being a total nightmare though she’s actually really fun to be around ? she’s playful & loves to keep the party alive . often can be found claiming “ i’m high on life ” although everyone saw the pictures , logan , we know what you’re really high on , girl .

very chatty girl , too . victim of foot - in - mouth syndrome , big time . she doesn’t try to be disloyal & spill people’s secrets ( or does she ? ) but she can’t help herself . if she has piping hot tea she’s gonna spill it because she doesn’t wanna burn herself .

very observant girl , who loves to people watch but her observations can sometimes get muddled when she starts judging people a little too hardcore .

she’s also a undercover couch potato    &    by that i mean if you give her an option to go out   &   do something she’ll never outwardly choose to stay home to watch netflix and snuggle up under the blankets but secretly she’s hoping   &   praying she gets a chance to do so   .

plots   ...

END THIS ( L.O.V.E ) / her first love   .   these two brought the absolute worst out of one another   .    they messed her up so much that she has a weird perspective on what love between two s/o’s should even feel like now   .   maybe they had another s/o at the same time as her   &   kinda just strung her on   &   when it came out were able to lie so much to her that she believed them   .   idk   ,   in truth we could really plot something completely different as to what they did   &   inevitably what the breaking point was   .   maybe they broke up with her   &   had they not ended it maybe she would’ve still been okay with being in the relationship   .   idk i just feel like this one could be fun as hell   .     also they’d be the one whom she was caught arguing with in one of her headlines   .   ( 0 / 1 )

AFTER PARTY / this is a more reckless take of party buddies   .   im envisioning a group of people who when the parties over they all pull up to close by gulf course   ,   indulge even more in their choices of substance   ,   there is a naked gulf tournament going on   ,   there are drunks driving golf carts   ,   swerving and pouring bacardi all over the course   .   running from security when they pop up   .   it’s tradition at this point   &   if someone doesn’t come it’s almost disrespectful at this point   .   idk i just love the thought of this kinda vibe   .   ( 2 / ? )

SECRETS / okay so this one is messy   .   basically logan was very private for most of her life   (   thanks mom   &   dad   )   and during the early stages of highschool she lied to everyone saying she was a virgin   .   she told each one of these individuals that they were her first whether it be to make them fall for her   “   innocence   ”   ,   want to chase after her   ,   or whatever else we might be able to plot out   .   inevitably they compare notes at some point and find out that she’d been lying to them all   .   we can plot out how they confronted her i feel like we could make this real dramatic though   .   this would also be a backstory plot so   ,   we  can also plot out how things have transpired since for them   .   ( 0 / 3 or 4 )

BEST FRIEND / these two girls take best friends to the next level   .   they relate to one another on every level and are there for one another at all times   .   there is never a moment where they are competing with one another because they know that their #1 in there respective category   .   they are one another’s ultimate hype beasts   .   they truly embody chaotic goddess vibes   .   it’s like they were placed on this earth simply to be friends because they compliment one another that well   .   ( 0 / 1 )

LETS FALL IN LOVE FOR THE NIGHT / they are the one that’s there whenever she’s down   .   they have the ability to make her feel like they have some sort of old love whenever she’s around them   .   those feelings only last for the night though   .   they enjoy when she rambles on about sports or the novel she just recently read or really just anything she enjoys can put a smile on their face   .    they know better than to ever confuse what is going on between them though   ,   they know that she’ll never be theirs   .   whether they’re okay with this or not we can definitely plot out   .   ( 0 / 1 )

MOANA / they are not a fan of logan   .   they see her for what she is   :   an attention seeking   ,    spoiled brat and the fact that they don’t want anything to do with her makes her want them all the more   .    when they finally slept with her it was only to prove a point to her s/o at the time   ,   to prove that she’s not the sweet girlfriend she claimed to be   .   basically they’re the person who outed her for being a ho ho ho but despite knowing that they outed her for that she still tries to hook up with them because they were the best she ever had    .   they often turn her down but after a while not even they can deny that they’re attracted to her   .   they still don’t fuck with her though   .   also i think it’d be cool if their were two of them   &   maybe they worked together to out her to her s/o that didn’t believe she was a cheater   ( 0 / 2 )   also bring the s/o that they outed her to   ( 0 / 1 )

ELEVEN / the type of relationship that is stuck in the grey area   .   they’re more than friends but they don’t necessarily admit to having feelings for one another   .   honestly they probably don’t even think they have feelings for one another   .   it’s a weird dynamic   .   they spend the most of their time together late at night   .   there meeting time    ?   11pm   .    they go on wild joy rides to the beach   .   heads out of the sun roof as they let out a loud woo   .    the only thing accompanying them is a big bag of weed   .    sometimes they have deep talks   ,   honestly they probably know more about one another than anyone else   ?   because of these adventurous of theirs   .   when they aren’t having deep talks they’re running across the beach aimlessly   &   rolling around in the sand with one another   .   it’s really just a very pure plot that i need in my life   .  ( 0 / 1 )

TRUST NOBODY / this is someone who used logan for fame / attention   .   they either became close friends or even started dating   &   they used everything they learned about her or what went on between them to relay back to a tabloid / would call paparazzi to come and take pictures of them together whenever they’d go out   .   ( 0 / 1 )

some other plot ideas i’d love to see   :   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   ,   x   .

[slicksquid]

“it’s been a wild past 24 hours” 👀 what happened??

okay so this is going to be long oops: in response to nintendo not allowing melee players to hold their big house tournament over pretty shitty reasons, a bunch of teams and players in the NA Open changed their names to something related to #freemelee. in response, nintendo cancelled the livestream for the finals, citing “unexpected executional challenges.” So everyone is pissed and it gets a lot of attention from people, especially smash players and big people in the smash community and there’s a lotta uproar and backlash directed at nintendo. Then, endgametv, an organization that streams and holds smash and splatoon tournaments, decides to have a stream for the final four to duke it out in instead of in the NA open, with a starting prize pool of $1000, rather than the like 25 nintendo gold points and random trophies that nintendo was offering or whatever. So the top four ditched the open, anf a bunch of people hype the new stream up and show support, and come stream time, there’s a LOTTA people watching, and people could donate to the prize pool. so if i recall correctly the stream peaked at around 7.5k viewers, which i believe is the highest viewer count in splatoon history? So that’s cool. Even more incredible, the prize pool received enough donations to get it to an entire TWENTY EIGHT THOUSAND DOLLARS, with the money for the winners capping at 25k and the rest going to charity. a lot of big creators and players in the smash and splatoon community donated too and it was sick. in terms of the tournament, it was pretty wild too, as the set between bocut nation (nicknamed melee nation for this) and southern lights (melee lights) resulted in a reverse sweep and big upset that was CRAZY to watch. FTWin ultimately won the final against southern lights 4-0 because they’re crazy good, and I believe the top four teams split the money proportionally so props to that too. some big smash players like mew2king and dabuz streamed splatoon for a while afterwards so that was also fun. Overall though, it was just like... an insane amount of support and love for splatoon that at least I’ve never seen before, and hopefully it’ll help widen the scene and place more eyes on splatoon as the incredible game that it is. it was just absolutely wild, also SORRY THIS IS SO LONG

[volleyball-dontknowher]

Can you do nsfw alphabet for hinata?

A?N: Ugg thank you for this, this is the first time I have really written (or thought about) NSFW for Hinata but I enjoyed it because he is totally a lovable goofball in the bedroom but also makes sure to treat his girl right. I love a good request and y’all are on the thirsty train and I am living for it!! If anyone else has requests I am happy to do them!!! 

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)

He gets giggly after sex, he just thinks the world of you and can’t stop kissing you all over and just gives you a big goofy smile and tells you over and over that he loves you. He is so amazed by you and would do anything that you asked, he does get tired after and doesn’t love changing sheets after if you didn’t make a huge mess but he’s going to give you one of his shirts and loves to cuddle. 

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

Hinata loves your legs he just loves how you wrap your legs around him when you’re cuddling him or when you;re doing it, he also loves how long and sexy they look when you are wearing shorts or a skirt, he loves leaving hickeys on your inner thighs and just it makes him really happy

Hinata loves his smile, it was the first thing you ever complimented about him and it just has stuck with him forever and he just gets so happy that you love seeing him smile. (Not NSFW but so true and so pure) 

C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)

When he cums it is always messy, it doesn’t matter if he cums in you, on you, or in your mouth, he literally cannot keep it clean. He loves cumming on your face, he just thinks that it is really hot like it just makes his entire being glow, he loves that you trust him enough and that you are literally coated in his cum. Hinata will never ever argue with you on where you want him to cum he is already so beyond himself that he has you to make him cum. 

D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

He would actually love to fuck you on a volleyball court while you’re wearing his uniform like something about the two things he loves would do absolutely everything for him and he would love to have the courage to ask you to do something like that for him 

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)

The first time he has absolutely no idea what he is doing like it is almost embarrassing looking back at it now, he didn’t know where to put his hands or what foreplay is but after the first time he started to do some research and really try to learn because he wants to be the best (even though there isn’t a competition). 

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

Hinata loves doing it with your legs over his shoulder, he likes how much control he has like that, and  that he can see your face as well as your boobs. You swear that he hits deepest like this and it has you cuming faster than anything else (which is why he loves it so much). He is also willing to try almost any position with you because he trusts you and if it goes wrong he’ll just laugh it off. He also loves cowgirl like you just are bare and on top of him and he couldn’t ask for anything better not even in a dream 

G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)

Hinata is a goofball all the time and this doesn’t change in the moment, he is going to give you his big goofy grin and tell you you’re pretty and if you both are making out he is going to tickle you or poke at you just because he likes how it makes you squirm and he thinks that it’s cute. 

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

Carpet is definitely a little bit darker than the drapes but just as unruly, he doesn’t bother doing too much with it but will trim it if he notices that it’s out of hand. 

I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)

He makes his focused face once you really get into it because he wants it to go smoothly and to keep up his pace but he is also super loving, he likes to give you kisses and just tell you all of the amazing things about you and what made him fall in love with you. Sometimes he gets distracted and will start going on tangents about you when you are doing it and you have to pull him into a kiss or something to get him out of it because he could tell you how much he loved you forever. 

J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

He isn’t actually doesn’t masturbate that often, he really only does it when he has way too much energy pent up from the day. When he does though it is a whole ordeal for him, he likes it to be dark, in his bed with no pants and a locked door, he likes to imagine you there with him and doesn’t need much else because his imagination will run wild. He moans and whines when he gets close and has to grip his sheets with his other hand to refrain from losing it. He does however love to send you a “I wish you were here” text beforehand to see if he can have sex instead.

K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)

Hinata totally has a praise kink and loves hearing you tell him how good of a job he is doing. Hinata also has a thing for role playing. He loves seeing you dressed up and will try and play a cool character who gets to join in. 

L = Location (favorite places to do the do)

He is a simple boy, he loves it in one of your bedrooms where he can take his time (or not) and actually sex but that doesn’t mean that he won’t do it anywhere else, he just doesn’t want to be caught. Loves car sex though, in the back of his car where people could see but not actually makes him giddy and is great for quickies. 

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)

Literally anything you can do he loves, if you laugh around him and he finds it cute, bam he wants to do it. If you brush against his shoulder then he is excited, it is the smallest things that make hinata really turned on. He doesn’t need a lot of the flashy lingerie because he will just take it off of you so he can kiss all over his body but he does get happy that you were willing to go through all of that effort for him ,

N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

He will not get caught, he cannot and will not get caught, if he did his soul would leave his body and you can expect to not have any sex any time soon. He also won’t really want to share you or hurt you, he has a big heart and thinks that sex should be fun and not painful or degrading. 

O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)

He prefers giving because seeing you moan and squirm under him gives him the biggest ego boost of all time, like it shows him that he really can do anything that he puts his mind to. He will literally eat you out with such passion and when you cum he is going to be like wow I can make a girl cum so I can absolutely *insert whatever he was unsure about here* and then will go and do that. Like he eats you out to prove that he can do anything. He also cannot get enough of you and when you pull his hair while he does it you are going to fuel the fire. When you give oral to him he is going to be as respectful as he can at first, he is going to tell you that he loves you and he likes to try and watch you do it but after you take him all the way into your mouth he cannot help but throw his head back and close his eyes. He will then tangle his fingers in your hair and lightly mouth fuck you so that he can get to his release faster. 

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

He is either slow and goofy making you feel like the most loved girl in the world and like the Earth is yours and the two of you are the king and queen. Or he is in energy release mode and he fucks you like a god damn rabbit, he will literally pound into you and just tell you how much he loves you over and over again. 

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)

He is a quickie boy, he loves them if he is still wide awake at the end of the night or if he needs to get energy out. He also likes them to calm his nerves before a big match because they really help him be distracted and he likes knowing that you are his when there is a big tournament of all guys. He likes quickies frequently like the two of you can always find time to have a quickie and just kiss each other all the time. 

R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)

He is not a big risk taker, like maybe he wil try and do some dirty talk or try handcuffs and blindfolds but he cannot make himself try and do a lot of the really weird stuff. He did learn that he loves when the two of you masturbate with each other like it is lazy and sexy and really shows him what you like and it is super hot to him. He also learns that he enjoys shower sex from experimenting. Overall will try a lot of things but just will not want to get caught and will not want to hurt you. 

S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)

The boy is an athlete, he can go for three rounds on average and will literally give you all he’s got. When he’s trying to get rid of his extra energy he could go for 5 rounds and literally pound the shit out of you every single time. He surprisingly has a lot of control of when he cums and likes to wait until after you do so typically each round is about 10 minutes and the later rounds last closer to 5 

T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?)

He experiments with toys on both you and on him, he would be into trying a vibrating cock ring just to feel what it was like and holy shit he loved it, he ended up cuming way faster than he thought he would and has used it while masturbating because it just adds a lot to his pleasure. On you he is willing to use a little vibrator on your clit during sex or will rub a vibrator across your nipples to keep them hard for him. He isn’t really isn’t dildo’s because a lot of them are bigger than him and it makes him self conscious 

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

He is not a big tease, he will verbally tease you a little bit but you know that he doesn’t really mean it, when it comes to sex he is all for pleasure for both of you. BUTTT when he is eating you out he is absolutely going to tease you, he will lick you once and then move and go kiss your boob or suck on your clit then suck a hickey onto your neck, you whining for him to eat you out hits him so different and boosts his ego like nothing else in the entire world. 

V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)

He is going to be a loud moaner, he has absolutely no shame in letting you hear how good you make him feel. HInata does a mix of moans and groans throughout the entire time, but nothing compares to the high need whines when he is close to cuming, he starts whining and praising you for feeling so good around him, the moans are breathy and whines are high pitched and it just hits every spot right. 

W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character)

He loves listening to music while you have sex or whie he masturbates, it just makes him calm and helps cover some of the sloppy sex noises. 

X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes)

He is a little taller than average but not by much, he is probably a 6 but definitely knows how to use it even though some may seem it as too small, people say that he is too small and look what he can do so imagine what he can do with his above average dick. He can literally rock your shit. 

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

Yknow I think that Hinata doesn’t NEED it every x amount of days or whatever but instead is always down for sex, if you are feeling it then he absolutely will be too, he likes to know you both are in for it. Soooo if you wanted to do it three times a day he will go three times a day, or if you want it a few times a week then you will get exactly what you want. 

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

He is up for a while after, it’s a huge adrenaline rush for him and he already has a hard time falling asleep. If you cuddle with him he falls asleep way faster but always after you do. 

[welcometomy20s]

February 6, 2021

February 8th is the 3rd anniversary of Nijisanji, and to celebrate I want to give you a quip about every single extant member of Nijisanji... since there are over 130, that’s including ID, IN, and KR... but not VirtuaReal, because they are not on Youtube and also.... China... it’s split into three parts. Part 1 covers everything up to the merger that happened on the beginning of 2019.

First Wave

Tsukino Mito - The iinchou. One of the original seiso gone wrong. Mito is something else, a term I used for Haato, but Mito’s degeneracy feels very different. Mito is much more cynical, definitely likes gore like Korone, and definitely one who calculates things. Haato is just beginning to figure out how to play out her degeneracy, to great effect, but Mito knew the future. In that sense, she fits the Student Representative nature.

Remember that Mito is kind of like Sora in Hololive. This comes as the major source tension, for Hololive, it’s the tension of being an idol and being oneself. Here, it’s more like how to best express oneself within the limitation of the medium. It seems similar, but the feeling is quite different, and that’s what makes Nijisanji so different from Hololive.

Higuchi Kaede - I heard she plays the trumpet. Hmm, that’s all you need to know about this person. If you were in band, you know the instrument determines your personality. Trumpet people are outgoing, brash, but ultimately a nice group of people. The girls, in particular, have a cool side to them, even if they present feminine. They are going to be good friends, with no worries of love blossoming. Usually referred to as Deron, which roughly translates to a slobbering napper... and part of JK Gumi with Mito and Rin.

Shizuka Rin - The functional leader of the group. She’s the competent one, pretty good at gaming, pretty good at hosting, good at being both boke and tsukkomi, also good at drawing apparently. Also good at language as well.

Yuki Chihiro - A soft spoken loli who plays a lot of shooters, and is pretty good at them. Also quite pervy at times. So, just your typical salty gamer, who happens to be a magical girl, apparently... so in another word, a brat.

Elu - Full name, Snow White Paradise El Santo Flow Wasurena Pure Princess Livre Love Heidern Dokodoko Yattaze Valkyria Passion Alfr Noel Chakoboshi Eluaria Frosia Made-in Bloom Elu. Shares the illustrator with Hal Shibuya, Toya, Sister Claire and so on. Started out as a talk streamer, known for her wide range of voice, she shifted to playing Minecraft as you usually do. A bit lacking at top, but tries her best.

Shibuya Hajime - Not to be confused with Shibuya Hal, who was affiliated with upd8. One of the more proficient players in Nijisanji, from his start as pro Getting Over It player, to giving tech advice, and eventually establishing himself as a pro PUBG and Apex player. Apparently did some odd tweets that got him under fire, but he’s better now, apparently. Probably why he did so good at the imagination tournament.

Moira - A goddess, you know with ara ara and everything. Apparently seems to have her head above her clouds... which makes sense considering she’s a goddess.

Suzuya Aki - We have a cross-dresser, everyone. According to TVTropes, he’s affably evil, you know the type. Apparently the most normal of the first wave... and as you have might have guessed Toya really likes this kid. It figures.

Second Wave

Morinaka Kazaki - Another loli character, but has an adult form. Formed a duo with Gibara for some goddamn reason... childhood friends with Emma August, and strangely seen as mother-like, although she looks ten half the time. It’s odd.

Mononobe Alice - Not a loli, despite the appearance... and some of her acts. Has a decent grasp in English, which is really pretty cool. Not much other than that.

Suzuka Utako - The shotacon of the group, and just the most perverted person. Usually has a deep voice, but actually has a pretty wide range, and therefore a really good singer. First Nijisanji member to get banned, apparently.

Fumiko Tamaki - Very much Nijisanji’s own Okayu, including the bad live streaming environment, and having a cat of her own, who is just the most bad of kitties... but even more like a cat in how her schedule is what she feels like... apparently got 250 grand by sleeping. Well, sleeping cat is a staple. Also has a tendency to get her jaw taken out... you know those people. As you might garner, very clueless with technology.

Yuhi Riri - She’s from the future... She has a nice boyish voice, but usually is the butt of the joke due to her lore, so no one comments about it. She seems nice.

Ienaga Mugi - Shares the illustrator with Rin, a shut-in who loves video games and her onii-chan, one of the few who actually grows in age. Pretty good musician, likes to flirt with Riri... which is interesting. Had her identity revealed at school... yikes.

Ushimi Ichigo - She’s a strawberry milk sea slug, which is just the coolest thing. Has a father-daughter relationship with Belmond, and good at drawing. Got some cool advice from Matsuri... which actually, uh, isn’t really a good idea, isn’t it?

Kenmochi Toya - Speaking of not being a good idea to be next to lolis... many people point to the double standard about female vtubers being creepy as kind of a quirk, compared to men, who would go straight to jail... and I point to Kenmochi Toya.

He’s a good host, strangely like Matsuri or Marine, apparently the son of Mito, which Mito likes but Toya doesn’t... go figure. Has that v-line chin that is parodied a lot, and likes to rap... which also feels like a Marine thing. Sorry... he’s pretty good on his own.

Fushimi Gaku - Cheerful man who does a morning show and plays horror games. Kind of plays the father figure for the second wave... but also has a dark side, which makes sense considering the children above. Also fit with the horror games above.

Gilzaren III - Rarely streams, but hangs around in the chat a lot, like he’s some kind of an official lurker of Nijisanji. Also speaks with a pretty high tone, which doesn’t quite fit, although this might be a ruse... it’s unsure.

Nijisanji Gamers

Kanae - Kind of have his head in the clouds, which fits the lore of having amnesia. Kind of the leader of the Gamers, and one of the best at gaming. Does long streams and everything, likes PUBG but venturing to Apex and the likes. Good at Minecraft, too. Usually works with Kuzuha, leading to that famous clip... such a good classic.

Overall, a really solid streamer and personality in general. A real gem for the crew.

Akabane Youko - Rarely streams, but she is good at gaming. Has a wild laugh and so people still like her... huh, in some sense she’s the female Gilzaren.

Himawari Honma - Gamers 2nd Generation is an absolute goldmine. There were three, one of them retired, but you still know her (wink wink), and all three are just fantastic. Probably the best is Hima... one of those empty-head people that is really good at gaming... you know, Aqua, but somehow better, least to me.

Like Aqua, she's a pretty good singer and she likes vocaloids. But Hima-chan is like a sunflower while Aqua is an... onion. I mean onion could be sweet, but it always gives off a bad taste at the end, while a sunflower is a pure delight. Just look at her, her emptiness is a light, while Aqua’s emptiness is dark. (You can tell my bias here.)

I never like the dumb sterotypes, but Hima is so warm and comforting in her emptiness that you cannot help but smile at the airhead. She’s just such a good vtuber.

Sasaki Saku - She’s the hot-headed of the three, well two. She picks fights with everyone, including people like Belmond or Yashiro, and they fight back because she’s just an entertaining fighter. She’s entertaining, period.

Kuzuha - Probably one of more well-known male Nijisanji members. Went on the Suisei route, as in, he was independent before joining Nijisanji. Plays FPS with Kanae as mentioned before. Pretty good player, but better at banter. Kind of a mischievous person who is actually quite shy... a little of Pekora in the person, except Kuzuha is more annoying than truly like a villain that is Pekora.

One of the people who says cannot sing, but can actually sing very well. Just overall, a great talent to have and just fun to watch, especially in collabs.

Shiina Yuika - Likes Nintendo, and also does a radio show on YouTube. Actually did a radio show as well once. One of the brutally honest people, and a trouble-maker.

As you kind of expect, Sasaki Saku was the one who really got her into the groove, and during her what-turned out to be an absence, Shiina did feel a bit down. Likes to sleep, which makes sense in the context. Not the best at gaming, but still a fun player.

Aqua really likes her, which is interesting since she shares the illustrator with Okayu, and therefore the two are close friends... and they would go after the poor onion.

Makaino Ririmu - Supposedly a succubus. Definitely headstrong and kind of a loli, so there’s a pretty wide fanbase for her... but she’s honestly a good-hearted person. Just look at her collabs with Kou or Lize... she did calculus for a stream?

SEED 1st Gen

Ryushen - Real name, Sengawa Midori. Singer of uncertain gender, so I’ll use ‘they’. Known to be the planner, and a good one at that. Friends with Sister Claire, and their junior, Kakeru and Hayato. Is part of the group, ‘Rain Drops’ with five other members. Originally stated to be part of VOIZ, a male pop group, but as stated... ‘they’.

As for personality, they are a cool kid, friendly with others. Not a bad person to watch.

Hanabatake Chaika - Muscular Okama Elf who wears a maid dress. Very cool personality, a rough and tumble kind of person. As with the description earlier, the concept is odd, but the person is odd in a more palatable way. Honestly, one of people I would try to seek to watch in Nijisanji. Apparently the cross-dressing thing was enforced, rather than a personal choice. Got turned into a robot once.

As for an example, his 3D debut was actually months after he has gotten them and actually used them in collabs and TV interviews, so Chaika skipped right to the shenanigans instead. Perhaps this spontaneity is what makes Nijisanji 3D better.

Yashiro Kizuku - Concept is a systems engineer, likes rhythm and retro games. Friendly with a lot of people, especially with Sasaki Saku, which they host a gaming show. It’s really fun! They are a good bickering couple. The show is kind of a good gateway for Nijisanji as a whole, I believe. Oh, right the intellectual test with Hima...

Yeah, the blandest concept, but one of the most likable members in Nijisanji.

Dola - She’s a fire dragon. Act as an elder to the SEED group, kind of an admin at the minecraft server, so she’s treated like a god here. Good singer, great dancer.

She’s in a group with Yashiro, Hima, and Kuzuha, where the concept is that they are a family, with Dola and Yashiro being parents, and Hima and Kuzuha being their children, and they are one of the best groups to come out of Nijisanji. You can’t miss them.

Sister Claire - Usually does really short talk streams, which was reformatted to a radio format. One of the last seiso people, but strangely gets along with many of the members, mostly because she wants to be funny, and honestly... succeeds for me.

Also a great singer... who would have guessed? Sometimes treated as a cult leader.

Todoroki Kyoko - A 19 year old gyaru. Self proclaimed normie, but obviously not the case anymore. Great at drawing, but only in 2D. As with gyarus, really nice!

Suzuki Masaru - A chunni cross-dresser. Wants to be cool, but obviously cute. Actually doesn’t really like cross-dressing, but it does get the views. Honestly, he looks cool.

Uzuki Kou - A rich teenage boy, well liked by other people. Great singer but doesn’t show often... he does have a rap about hot pot ingredients that is well-covered by others. Friends with Ririmu, I believe. He’s a nice person to watch.

Azuchi Momo - A 14-year old illustrator who did her own design, and one of the most dangerous members of Nijisanji. Yep, known for her curses and drinking cocktails... and yes, she’s supposed to be 14. But even she recognizes that she’s an adult woman...

SEED 2nd Gen

Takamiya Rion - A student at a magic school. Supposed to be a lass, but in reality becomes like that sketch where two beautiful women are dubbed by kids? Yeah, she becomes like that. Just the least intelligent person... good for moron-sexuals, I guess.

Apparently this is more a debuff, as she can act smart and lady-like in late night streams. She was the one who hosted the imagination event. Also really likes SAO, and therefore fell into Genshin pretty hard last year, and who can blame her?

Asuka Hina - Is sometimes called a succubus, kind of works a producer and did a special producing session as a result. Can be calm and outgoing at once.

Maimoto Keisuke - Originally a farmer, but got tired of it. Does gaming and sport commentary, usually wrestling or baseball. Became someone who always gets tortured by his female peers... strange but not a bad character. Oh, this harassment leads to a lot of anger and there’s a tradition where they burn people virtually... and he always gets lumped in as a person to be burned. Friends with Subaru and Ui, and forms the Oozora family, believes to be a middle-aged man, but others don’t treat him like that.

Amemori Sayo - Typical high school student, but we’re sure she’s a ghost. Does a lot of special effects, leading to tech problems. Kind of a quiet speaker.

Kanda Shoichi - typical college student, has a buddy relationship with Gundou Mirei. Good at gaming, singing and hosting, which means he got his due even though it was a little late. Doesn’t really like Korea, though, which is a problem.

Rindou Mikoto - An oni queen, likes girls and booze. Can hold down a liquor, and hold down a girl... a quick learner in everything, therefore excellent at everything.

I knew her as Marine’s coach at Mario Kart... and now I know the reason.

Joe Rikiichi - He’s a joker, a real comedian. Good at improv. Pretty poor. Does late-night radio with Maimoto as well. He’s always a fun person to watch.

Debidebi Debiru - Demon koala who dabble in the occult. He’s the kid in the family, with all the stubbornness and gumption included. Likes to make nicknames, good in collabs. And as with kids, ultimately a good person at heart, which is why he does collabs.

Probably one of my favorites... I’m kind of miffed his section is so short, honestly.

Sakura Ritsuki - A fairy from another world. Basically only plays minecraft as the resident builder in the area. Got a new outfit, and suddenly got a ship going on with Kuzuha, which is good for her, I guess. Yeah, she does what she does.

Machita Chima - A great singer and bit of a psychopath. Went dark to study for exams, but soon returned to herself. Kind of a younger Suisei is what I’m getting at.

Belmond Banderas - The Corpse of Nijisanji. Low voice, and very kind to everyone. But he can be funny too. If he’s drunk, he’s just your average guy who agrees on everything. Also incredibly lucky, apparently, enough to make a religion with Lize as worshipper.

Yumeoi Kakeru - Singer-songwriter who got calling as a host. Really likes Ryushen to a psychopathic degree, but they are good friends as well. Seriously, he’s one of those well-adjusted psychopaths. Apparently he was a biochemist before singing. Sara calls him papa... which, okay, I guess. Did some shady stuff like catfishing in the past...

Overall, he’s that person who came from a rough background, and that means there’s some edges and some of his strength. Definitely an important asset.

Kuroi Shiba - She’s a four year old dog, but acts like an old lady and eventually earned the suffering characteristic and works at a shady company. But what’s the most fascinating thing is her deep lore. Seriously, it might be one of the most interesting lore before Haachama/Haato became a thing.

Yaguruma Rine - A eleven-year old girl who says the first thing on her mind. Also went dark during exam season, but returned after the summer exams. Practices English a bit during her streams, so there’s that going for her. Also her phone disappeared for a bit.

Harusaki Air - Air here meaning ‘spring’ in Greek. Kind of interpreted as a cleaner version of Toya. He’s a prince, so he’s usually busy... unlike a certain princess.

Naruse Naru - Remember has a different look! Although now he can switch it back and forth... apparently it was management issues? Whatever, won the current mario kart tournament (Mikoto was second) and that’s pretty much it, honestly.

[metalandmagi]

Summer 2020 Anime Worth Watching!

Apparently it’s time for the summer anime season, even though it feels like time is meaningless at this point. But somehow, there are still new shows coming out, so if you’re looking for something to watch when you’re stuck at home, here’s a list of the first impressions I got from this season. I don’t really know if it’s going to be worth it, considering how the spring season delayed so much, but here we are. 

As always, not all of these are available on Crunchyroll, but I’ll put a * next to the ones that are.

And if you’re looking for a bit more variety, I have lists for 2019 and the rest of this year’s seasons too...because remember when there was good anime being released instead of just everything being an ecchi or a second season?

2019 master list

My master list for every season of 2020 anime

New Shows!

*The God of High School: An over the top action anime consisting of one big tournament arc! It follows a group of teenagers competing in the epic “god of high school” martial arts tournament to determine the best fighter in the country. Following in the footsteps of Tower of God, this is the newest “crunchyroll original” that is being adapted from a South Korean webcomic. You can tell from the first episode that this will be a spectacle with crazy characters and lots of wild action and humor!

Great Pretender: When a Japanese con man pickpockets the wrong person, he ends up hopping on a plane to Los Angeles and getting wrapped up in a scheme with a sassy Frenchman named Laurent...who basically runs the mafia. There’s humor, there’s plot, there’s great characters, and it’s kinda gay. It’s an exciting original anime from studio Wit, so the animation is bursting with character, and both the music and the general vibe remind me a lot of Baccano or even Lupin III. And since it takes place in America with several foreign characters, there's hilarious English and accent shenanigans abound! The bad news is it’s still in Netflix jail, so if you want to watch it legally you’re kinda stuck for now. 

Japan Sinks 2020: A giant earthquake hits Japan, and a family must cope with the mayhem together. Because what the hell else could possibly go wrong this year? This is a new series (based on a novel) made by Masaaki Yuasa, the guy behind Ride Your Wave and Walk On Girl, if that tells you anything about the style of this anime. I’ve only watched the first two episodes so far, but I heard it goes from being a gripping realistic disaster series to a balls to the wall adventure. To be honest, disaster shows/movies freak me out, and this one is pretty devastating so far, which is a testament to how well it's made. But I appreciate that they include glimmers of hope when they’re needed. The best moments are the quiet ones that focus on the actual people and the narration that juxtaposes the time periods. There’s so much atmosphere, and the music really enhances the experience. And it’s all out on Netflix now, with a dub and a sub!

Deca-Dence: When humanity has been pushed to the edge of extinction by monsters called the Gadoll, the rest of civilization is forced to live in enormous mobile fortresses and send groups out to battle the unknown monsters. So basically like Mortal Engines but the fortresses can turn themselves into giant fists and punch the monsters. We follow a girl named Natsume who wants to be one of the soldiers who fight the Gadoll, but she is constantly rejected because of her prosthetic arm. So she ends up with five years of cleaning duty supervised by a stern but mysterious badass named Kaburagi. I honestly don’t care at all about the plot of the anime, because for me the characters are what drives everything, and these character dynamics are great. I’m not going to say it’s the most original story, but I think it’s fun so far. 

*Rent-a-Girlfriend: A typical harem/romance anime that follows the world’s most annoying protagonist named Kazuya. After Kazuya is dumped by his first girlfriend, he seeks out a rental girlfriend out of self pity….BECAUSE APPARENTLY THAT’S A REAL SERVICE THAT EXISTS IN JAPAN?! Like you can actually rent moms/dads/girlfriends/boyfriends and so on. Anyway, his fake girlfriend is the picture of anime waifu perfection...until Kazuya starts being his typical asshole self and she reveals her true nature of being an absolute sass master who don’t take no shit from no boring ass main character. Shenanigans happen and the two of them end up having to pretend they are in a real relationship. And I’m just calling it now...Kazuya’s grandma is the real best girl of the series. If you want a harem that’s actually funny and doesn’t mind roasting the protagonist, give this one a shot. Although I wish this were just a straight up romance instead of a harem because there is no way in hell that any girl, let alone more than one would want actually to date this guy. 

Next Seasons and Continuations!

*Fruits Basket 2019 (Season 2): Thank goodness Fruits Basket wasn’t delayed or cancelled last season because sometimes I feel like it was the only thing getting me through the spring. I’ve ranted about how good it is enough by now. If it can’t brighten your year, then nothing will. Just watch it if you haven’t already. 

*Re:ZERO-Starting Life in Another World (Season 2): Subaru is still trapped in another world, and he’s still as angsty as ever, but that’s not going to stop him from constantly putting himself through hell when he keeps dying horribly every time he needs to reset the timeline! There are mysterious new villains, nobody knows who Rem is (again) and I think there’s a plot somewhere under all the suffer porn. Seriously though, this show is pretty cool (even if I was two years late to the party). It’s one of the most interesting isekai anime I’ve ever seen, and it feels like it’s acting as a deconstruction of the genre, kinda like how Madoka Magica is for magical girl anime...both shows certainly have enough crying. The story is weird but interesting, the world building is cool, the villains (and sometimes the heroes) are batshit crazy to watch, and I like its moments of humor. 

No Guns Life (season 2): The story of Juzo, the hard boiled detective who plays by his own rules continues in the second season of No Guns Life. In case you missed the first season, this is a mystery/action anime that feels like an old noir film had a cyberpunk baby. There’s underground conspiracies, there’s interesting side characters, and...oh yeah the main character has a gun for a head. That’s right. we came to see a bara detective with a literal gun for a face, but we stayed for the world building and mysterious plots!

*Fire Force (Season 2): I’m going to be honest here, I really didn’t know if I should include this one or not. I have a major love hate relationship with Fire Force, but I figured there may be other people out there who would like it more than I do. So in case you missed the first season, this show follows a group of firefighters who puts out fires caused by spontaneous combustion using a mixture of guns and super powers. It was created by Atsushi Ōkubo, aka the guy who made Soul Eater. So it’s bound to be amazing right?

Not necessarily. Strap in for this one lads. 

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed with this show overall. Its main characters just aren’t that interesting most of the time, it can’t decide on what kind of show it wants to be, and so much of it just dragged for a good part of the series. I don’t know if it was a problem of pacing or if the plot was just that uninteresting for a while. The first couple episodes set up a very unique plot, filled with intriguing moral dilemmas. And then it proceeded to abandon everything interesting in favor of badly timed fan-service. It just couldn’t strike the balance that Soul Eater had between its humor and its sincerity. If they wanted to make an ecchi show, they should have just made one instead of inserting the same overplayed scenarios into every episode. I don’t care if a show has fan-service as long as it fits the tone, or if it only has certain episodes dedicated to playing up the humor. But Fire Force has a habit of just inserting it wherever it wants regardless of what’s actually happening in the episode. Also, some of the humor revolves around one of the main female characters who has a really messed up self image because she’s slightly more muscular, and not a tiny delicate flower like some of the other girls. Not going to pretend that doesn’t bug me. 

But that doesn’t mean there is nothing good about it! If there wasn’t, I wouldn’t have finished the first season, and I wouldn’t be including this one. So far, the second season has actually been funny because it made the first episode more like filler, instead of cramming in too much plot all at once. And to the surprise of no one, the animation is absolutely god tier. I wish it was being used for something other than clumsy fan-service, but it’s still really something to see. The world building is super creative and 100% my aesthetic, and there were a couple side characters I really loved later in the series (Benimaru). And I did like the twists and turns the series took later in the season when it actually focused on the conspiracy behind the fire force and the cult. When it follows the mysteries it sets up, it’s more fun to watch. Who would have thought? 

TLDR: There’s good stuff and there’s bad stuff. This show is really something you have to watch for yourself to decide if it’s going to be worth it. I’m going to at least try the second season, because I want to see where this goes, but it’s on thin ice. 

Honorable Mentions

Isekai edition! Both of these came out last season, but I hadn’t mentioned them when I made my spring list. But they’re both getting dubs now so I’m still counting them.

*My Next Life as a Villainess- All Routes Lead to Doom!: A twist on the isekai genre where our main protagonist wakes up as a character in her favorite otome game...only to find that she’s actually the bitchy rival side character who ends up either dead or exiled in every route of the game. So naturally she does everything she can to prevent this by becoming a sweet and caring supporting character...who inadvertently makes every single other character in the game fall in love with her. I ignored this show for the first few episodes because I need another isekai in the world like I need a hole in the head, but after hearing everyone rave about it, I caught up with it in no time. It’s a fun take on the otome game tropes, and it manages to be funny and sweet while not committing to any particular pairing.

*Ascendance of a Bookworm (Season 2): That’s right, it’s another isekai where an adult is reincarnated into the body of a child in a fantasy world. But this time, it’s a nerdy girl whose entire purpose in life revolves around reading books (can relate). However, when our main character Mine is thrust into this fantasy world, she quickly realizes that this particular fantasy setting is a little too...medieval  for her tastes...meaning a family of commoners like hers would have no clue how to read and books are only meant for rich people or the church. So of course Mine has to figure out how to either get her hands on some books or make them herself. This is a super cute show that I waited a long time to finally watch, and since the second season is finally being dubbed I wanted to shout it out. It’s just a wholesome isekai version of Dr. Stone. There’s no real action, but it’s a relaxing watch if nothing else. 

Well, there you have it. Hopefully nothing else gets delayed or cancelled because it’s pretty slim pickings as it is. And before anyone asks, I didn’t include GIBIATE because I thought it was a massive disappointment that somehow made a time travel horror anime plot boring. There’s also My Teen Romantic Comedy Snafu, but it’s been 5 years since I watched the other seasons and don’t remember anything about it. But there’s that too in case anyone is a fan of the series and didn’t know it got another season. 

See you next season…if the world is still here by then?

[thesffcorner]

Pokemon: Detective Pikachu

Pokemon: Detective Pikachu is a live-action/CG animated film, set in the universe of the Nintendo Pokemon games. It follows Tim (Justice Smith) who goes to Rhyme City, a metropolis where Pokemon and humans live side by side, to find out what happened to his father, detective Harry Goodman, after disappearing along with his Pokemon partner.

At Harry’s apartment, Tim runs into a Pikachu, except this Pikachu can talk, and Tim seems to be the only one who can understand him. The two set off on their own investigation to figure out what happened to Harry.

I really dislike when people justify the quality of a movie by saying “well it’s a kid’s movie”. That’s no excuse; Zootopia, the film Detective Pikachu is desperately trying to be, is also a kid’s movie, and that film deals with racism, discrimination, prejudice and even drug abuse, while still being incredibly entertaining and funny. Even the OG animated Pokemon films had more bite than this wreck; at least the first Pokemon film was about animal abuse, and the limits of power. This, is a toothless film that does nothing new, and has no story; it only exists to sell merchandise.

Let’s start with the positives, because there really is only one; the animation.

It’s clear that the budget for this film went all into the Pokemon designs and animation. All the Pokemon are beautiful; they are lovingly rendered and animated, and their designs manage to walk the really thin line between being adorable, and photo-realistic. They are still Pokemon, brightly colored and out there, but they look perfectly at home in the noir setting that is Rhyme city, and for the most part make perfect sense in this context.

Unfortunately, the film doesn’t know what to do with the. There are very few scenes that are inspired, and actually use the Pokemon in anything fun or creative. There is a scene with some giant Torteras that was pretty fun, and later on a scene with a flock of Bulbasaurs that was beautiful, but it also reminded me a lot of Avatar. However, most of the film doesn’t have the Pokemon do anything; they hang out in the background of shots, they look cute or adorably gross, and sometimes they are part of a small gag, like the Kubone at the start. The most fun I had in the film was just pointing at the different Pokemon, and calling out their names, like a 5 year old child (which I imagine is exactly what Nintendo wants me to do in this film).

Because Rhyme City doesn’t allow Pokemon being caught in Pokeballs, training, or Pokebattles, we only get a single illegal battle that’s hamstrung by the fact that Pikachu doesn’t remember how to use his powers. Most of the appeal of Pokemon as a franchise is the collection and battle of the various Pokemon, and that element is almost entirely absent here.

This film’s other big selling point is Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu. Once you get over the initial shock of hearing his very recognizable voice coming out from the mouth of a yellow, electric rat, the appeal diminishes pretty quickly. Reynolds just isn’t funny in this film; he talks a lot, but makes very few jokes, and the ones that do land are far too few. Additionally, there is a pure dirth of visual gags; having your lead character be the only one who can hear his Pokepartner and understand him in a world where no one else can is a goldmine for comedy, but there was really only one gag that landed for me, and no it wasn’t the one where Tim loses his pants.

Moreover, I feel it’s maybe gauche to complain that Pikachu’s characterization was inconsistent in this film, but it really was. Even without the twist, when Reynolds is voicing Pikachu, he flip flops wildly between comedy, and serious drama, and a lot of the more dramatic elements aren’t justified in the film. He has a very strange mental breakdown at the end of act two, where he claims he hurts the ones who are close to him, and he’s dangerous and it’s like… where on Earth is this coming from? He’s been nothing but incompetent for 70 mins of this film, where was this characterization before?

This wouldn’t be so bad, if the film didn’t insist on telling both an engaging, noir detective story, and hard hitting emotional drama between a father and a son. But that’s the hill they are willing to die on, and it’s at the expense of all the stuff that makes Pokemon fun.

Let’s talk about the ‘mystery’ first.  It’s just a rehash of the first Pokemon film; there is a billionaire benefactor obsessed with Pokemon, a corporation wanting to control them and manipulate evolution, Mewtwo is here. How Harry ties into all this could have been interesting if the film had a consistent through line and allowed Pikachu and Tim to actually be detectives and retrace Harry’s footsteps, rather than constantly having various other random characters drop in and tell them what happened.

Even ignoring that, it’s still unavoidable that this plot is a poor and obvious rip-off of Zootopia: we have the unlikely pair of detectives, a convoluted mystery that links to the government, a creepy abandoned experimenting facility, a drug that makes the Pokemon/animals go feral, and EVEN a missing person’s case no one wants to touch or investigate.

The difference is, Zootopia committed to the story and tropes it was using; the relationship between Judy and Nick was a mirror into the larger conflict between predators and prey in the city. They kind of try to do a similar thing here, where Bill Nighy’s character has a strained relationship with his own son (Chris Geere), but it’s a poor, muddled attempt. We don’t care about either of these people, and the revelation that Harry knew Nighy’s character comes too late in the film to change that. The film is too inconsistent and lazy to make any real points about why experimenting on Pokemon is bad, other than in the most simplistic animals shouldn’t suffer message.

The absolute worst part was definitely the relationship between Tim and his dad; mild SPOILERS for this part.

When Tim was 11, he was about to enter his most important Poketurnament, but he missed it, because his father had to take his mother to the hospital due to some kind of accident. Tim was mad at both of them, but then his mother died on that day. Unable to cope, his father moved to Rhyme city, and then invited Tim to live with him, but Tim refused, because he was 11, and depressed, and his father had LEFT him and SENT HIM A TRAIN TICKET, instead of picking him up like a normal adult would.

The whole film, we spend watching Tim, who is lonely, awkward and doesn’t have a Pokepartner, or like Pokemon bond and grow to care for Pikachu, only for then to have his father come back, and he ends up without a Pokepartner again. So why were we building up this Pokemon-master relationship the whole film?

Everything to do with Tim’s mom and his dream to be a Poketrainer was done really poorly. Until my friend pointed it out, I didn’t even realize Tim had stopped training Pokemon because he missed the tournament the day his mother died. There could have been some real drama there, about a child being angry at his parents for not taking him to his then most important event in his life, only for him to then lose one of those parents and have to live with the guilt of being angry at his mom the day she died. But we get nothing like that in the film; Tim is just angry at his dad, with good reason, I might add.

His dad was a shitty parent; he left Tim alone after losing his mother, and he couldn’t even bother to come pick him up and take him to the city, sending him a ticket instead. He then never contacted Tim for the next 9 YEARS. I can’t blame Tim for thinking his father didn’t care; I’m more shocked he so quickly decided he did care because he saw the picture of Tim’s mother in his dad’s house. And then his dad thought it would be a wise idea to send him another train ticket for his 21st birthday? I feel like there are some steps he could’ve taken in between, like I dunno, maybe CALLING HIM.

There is also a twist in the film, that is so obvious and predictable, it’s insulting to call it that. Throughout the film, we never see Tim’s dad; he’s always in silhouette, or obscured or out of frame. The only other big name actor in this movie, outside of Bill Nighy is Ryan Reynolds; hmmm, who could Tim’s dad be.

Let’s ignore the fact that Smith and Reynolds look nothing alike, not to mention Reynolds doesn’t look a day above 30, so him having a 20 year old child is wild, we are supposed to find it heartwarming when Tim throws the stupid train ticket away and stays in Rhyme City. But Reynolds acts nothing like what he did when he was Pikachu, and we spent the whole movie watching Tim bond with Pikachu, not his dad. So for us, this is a complete stranger, who is even less funny than when he was playing a yellow rat, so how is this a win for anyone?

Overall, I only recommend this film if you really, desperately want to see CGI Pokemon, or you have young children who are into the games. I promise, you will have more fun just watching the first movie, or the show, or heck, just playing the games. It’s uninspired, it’s predictable, and it’s not really funny; watch anything else instead.

[junker-town]

The start of Western Illinois’ NCAA tournament run in Year 20, continued

We pick up with the Leathernecks facing No. 5 Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA tournament in our College Hoops 2K8 sim.

Welcome back to our simulated dynasty with the Western Illinois Leathernecks in College Hoops 2K8. You can find a full explanation of this project + spoiler-free links to previous seasons here. Check out the introduction to this series from early April for full context. As a reminder, I simulate every game in this series (even the ones we watch on Twitch) and only handle the recruiting and coaching strategies.

We pick up with Western Illinois in the first round of the 2027 NCAA tournament. Here’s a recap of everything that has happened so far this season:

Western Illinois entered the season seeking redemption after losing to Cal in the first round of the NCAA tournament last year. We began the new season rated as a 96 overall with three new starters. We went 3-6 against a difficult non-conference schedule before sweeping the Summit League and again capturing the conference tournament championship.

We enter the tournament as a No. 12 seed. Our opponent in the first round is No. 5 seed Minnesota.

We recruited for one scholarship and are in position to land five-star JUCO shooting guard Edwin Wolfe in the spring.

READ: Western Illinois, Year 20, 2026-2027

Here’s a look at our roster heading into the 2027 NCAA tournament:

Not going to lie, there’s some real pressure heading into this tournament run in my 20th season as head coach at Western Illinois. We saw our season end in the Elite Eight in Year 16, Year 17, and Year 18. We lost in the first round last season. While I already have a strong case as the greatest mid-major coach in college basketball history, we all know this is a “what have you done for me lately” culture. It will be so hard to face the fanbase if we bow out early again.

Unfortunately, our shaky non-conference slate means we got a raw deal by the selection committee. It’s going to be a tough road through the bracket for us as a No. 12 seed, and it starts against a talented Minnesota team. Both teams enter the game rated as a 98 overall.

Minnesota is real good — you can check out the Golden Gophers’ roster here. Their senior shooting guard Carlos Klatsky is rated as a 95 overall — only four players are rated higher entering the tournament — and he’s matched up against our redshirt freshman Mathew Alloway. Their front court is stacked. Their five best players are either juniors or seniors. I am expecting this to be tough as hell.

The one thing giving me confidence is how we performed in the regular season against No. 1 Louisville in a game we watched together on Twitch. We gave the Cards all they could handle in a true road game before losing in the end. I love our inside-outside combination with senior small forward Wilky Henry and junior power forward Allan Cunningham. I trust our guards more than I did last year. While we have struggled in quick sim games, the pieces on this squad fit together better when we watch full games together on Twitch, I think. We need to take care of the ball, dominate the glass, and hopefully get a stellar performance from Henry as our go-to option on the perimeter.

We streamed this game on Twitch on Sunday night. As always, I’m not controlling Western Illinois; we’re watching a simulated game played by the computer. I’m not playing any of the games in this series, I only do the recruiting and set the coaching strategies. We did do something new this year, though: for the first time, I’m allowing myself to make in-game substitutions. Why not? There’s too much pressure to let poor rotation choices cost us.

The game should begin when you press play. Let’s go!

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Win, 89-72! We’re onto the round of 32 where we will face No. 4 seed Ole Miss.

“SECOND HALF TEAM” has become a rallying cry for our Leathernecks during the Twitch chat, and it paid off once again. Thank the heavens, because that first half was tense. Our defense looked good, but Minnesota was still matching baskets with us the entire way. We couldn’t get anything going from three-point range early. I was wondering who was going to step up to be the hero, but instead the whole team pretty much raised its level of play in the second half.

A few shout-outs:

Wilky Henry was outstanding — he was up to 24 points on the night when we pulled the starters with about five minutes remaining. Henry didn’t do anything in our first round tournament loss to Cal last year (7 points in 33 minutes), so it was great to see him splashing threes and using his size (6’8, 240+ pounds) to bully people at the rim. That is exactly the type of performance we need out of him to keep winning.

Allan Cunningham is simply an all-time Stream Team performer. Dude is so big (6’11, 290 pounds) but still so graceful, and has three-point touch to match. For all the praise we give Ham — read our beat writer Matthew Morrow on Cunningham coming into the season — we often overlook his passing ability. Not anymore: Ham was dropping dimes like a vintage Chris Webber in this one, beating constant double-teams in the second half by kicking out to open shooters. Beautiful stuff.

Our center Pat Giddens has been generally maligned by the fanbase for being too short (6’9) and too overweight (close to 300 pounds), but he’s also the highest rated junior in the NCAA tournament. I was waiting for his production to match his ratings, and it finally happened. Giddens looks formidable offensively and held his own protecting the rim. Good stuff — we need more of that is we want to keep winning.

Reader Abby blessed us with clips from the win. My favorites: this three-pointer from Silky Wilky:

Manual subs! Featuring a Cunningham steal and finish:

Nice block by backup center Kevin Brazzle + a knockdown jumper from freshman guard Mathew Alloway:

Bring on Ole Miss.

No. 12 Western Illinois vs. No. 4 Ole Miss, round of 32, 2027 NCAA tournament

Another tough matchup for our Leathernecks. Ole Miss enters the game as a 99 overall, which is one point higher than us. They have five players rated in the 90s, though most of their talent is in the backcourt and on the wing rather than in the front court. Here’s a look at the roster:

We need Cunningham and Giddens to eat inside. Waiting for us in the Sweet 16 would be a matchup with top-seeded Dayton, who are led by junior big man Matt Boswell, the player we created for the first-ever winner of our bracket contest. That would be such a fun game.

We also streamed this game on Twitch on Sunday night. Again: we’re watching a simulated game, I’m not controlling the teams. The game should start when you press play.

LET’S GO!

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Win, 116-85! We’re going to the Sweet 16! Here are the tempo-free team stats from @akulawolf:

@SBN_Ricky not sure it's possible to be much better than this offensively pic.twitter.com/zRvek6XJfz

— Steven (@akulawolf) August 17, 2020

We just witnessed the best NCAA tournament performance in program history. Wilky Henry, have yourself a day!

Here’s what I wrote about Henry at the start of the season: “Henry needs to be a superstar this year for this team to play up to its potential.” It happened in an epic way, and we’re going to the Sweet 16 because of it. Henry was absolutely unconscious, pouring in 46 points on 10-of-16 shooting from three-point range. He shattered the program’s previous tournament scoring record of 34 points set by Kim Kone in Year 17.

Honestly, it felt like he could have scored 60 easily. We pulled the starters with 9:35 seconds left as we were up 22 points. I tried to manually sub Henry back in to get 50, but the game took him out right away. LOL. Still an unreal performance either way.

Seriously, man: 46 points on 27 shots in 26 minutes. We might never see a performance like that again in Leathernecks history. Let’s go the clips from reader Abby, starting with a three and then a dunk from Wilky:

More Wilky:

Nice pass from Wilky to point guard Tron Whaley:

Silky Wilky forever. We’re going to need him to keep going, because we’re moving onto the Sweet 16 to face No. 1 seed Dayton.

No. 12 Western Illinois vs. No. 1 Dayton, Sweet 16, 2027 NCAA tournament

Dayton enters the game as a 97 overall — we’re a 98 overall. This is how the two teams matchup:

Here’s a look at Dayton’s roster led by one-time bracket contest winner, studio host, and created baller Matt Boswell. This is going to be an all-out battle. And we’re going to watch the simulated game together on Tuesday, Aug. 18 at 8:30 p.m. ET on Twitch. Please join us.

Here’s how to watch Western Illinois vs. Dayton in the Sweet 16:

Game: No. 12 seed Western Illinois vs. No. 1 seed Dayton, Sweet 16, 2027 NCAA tournament

How to watch: My Twitch channel

Date: Tuesday, Aug. 18

Tip-off time: 8:30 p.m. ET // 7:30 p.m. CT. The stream will start a little earlier.

If we win: Elite Eight game against the winner of No. 2 Indiana vs. No. 6 Pitt will follow immediately after.

Put Lakers vs. Blazers on one screen and the Leathernecks on the other. This is going to be a blast. A few links before I get out of here:

Join the Leathernecks Reddit for continued discussion on the team. We also have a fan-started Twitter account (with spoilers of Twitch streams before the recap goes out) and Instagram page you can follow.

Reader Evan’s Leathernecks recruiting database now includes size progression over time. He wrote about it on Reddit, but it’s wild seeing some of these changes. For example: Wilky Henry has gained three inches and 43 pounds since he committed. I hope no one gives him a PED test before the Sweet 16.

We had 130 entries in the bracket contest this year. Hell yeah. Check out Sean’s Blog Team app for the current standings, which works on desktop and mobile.

Reader Thanh Nguyen wrote a fan-fiction e-book on the first eight seasons of Ricky Charisma at Western Illinois.

WESTERN ILLINOIS VS. DAYTON

SWEET 16

TUESDAY NIGHT ON TWITCH

I’LL SEE YOU THERE

GO ‘NECKS.

Would you like email updates for this series? If so, add your email to this Google Form.

[onlineholly]

2017 wrapped

Hey Holly, it’s Holly. How are you? Did 2018 go ok? Or is everyone saying “2018 did me so bad omggg” like they do with every year? 

Here’s a little recap of every cool thing you did in 2017, just so you don’t forget, but mostly so you can feel nostalgic as you read this back later. 

In January, you went to the women’s march in Portland and wrote this here poem, because Trump was elected president. I know, crazy, remember that? After campaigning for Bernie in 2016 and attending one of his rallies, you had been filled with a glimmer of hope for the future of America, but this election was a gigantic step backwards. Like, 20 years backwards in progress. 

In February, I’d say the coolest thing you did was attend the Live Salted conference in Portland with Hayley, your old Young Life leader. You felt so connected to a group of people whom you had never met before, but they welcomed you in and loved you so well. Here, your faith began to bloom more in 2016. Continuing with the blooming of faith in February, you also attended a campaigners camp at Washington Family Ranch as well, where you felt at home somewhere, and like you had a place in Young Life. (Honorable mentions for February: Lilli’s birthday and, oh yeah, getting your license finally!!!!)

By March, your campaign with Cam for Junior Class Presidents was in full swing, as you had dragged him into running with you. I think he actually did like it through, I mean, he must have, because he decided to run with you again for ASB! (How does that turn out, by the way?) March was also the month that your student government journey began. Ms. Stone asked you to join Core Council in place of the social media coordinator, and I think it is safe to say that it really saved your high school career. Student government has made me into someone I never thought I’d be, but I enjoy being for every second. It’s crazy to think that in only a span of 10 months, student government has become your entire life.. like, it’s literally what you live for. Cookies were handed out and smiles were exchanged in your campaign, as march was filled with your very first leadership committees and initial Core Council meetings as well. (Honorable mentions: the Panic! at the Disco concert with Destiny–this was the second time you had seen them–and DRIVING ACROSS THE STATE BY YOURSELF OMG HOLLY WHAT WHERE YOU THINKNING?!! But really, spring break consisted of driving on the freeway by myself for the first time ever for 5 hours to see Grammy and Grandude in Fossil for a week. It was a wild trip that I think I learned a lot about myself in, and being alone with myself as well.)

By April, you had lost your election with Cam for class president, but it didn’t end your student government career or stop you from continuing on (obviously). Looking back on it, April was sort of a trivial month, with no real huge events in it, but smaller ones. Like running your first ever blood drive! (Little did you know that in this year you would run two more!) You also got into photography more, even with Grammy’s shitty old DSLR, you found out that you could potentially have talent in this, and people told you that you did.This new self confidence sparked a whole potencial career path and jump started your creativity again, as you were beginning to leave web design and computer science major ideas behind (spoiler: coding is easy, hosting websites is not, and the inner workings of the internet is too complicated). 

May was the beginning to a great summer, and just a taste of the fun that was to come. School nights were spent sitting by campfires with new friends in their backyards, tailgating at high school baseball games, and traveling to new outdoor adventures. You even saw blackbear for the second time at his own show, which was beyond amazing. Digital Druglord is one of your favorite albums of all time, and the performance did not disappoint (unlike cybersex, his newest album). 

June was the end of sophomore year, with a lot of bittersweetness, but an overall good ending. Somehow you made it through without failing chemistry and still being in NHS. You probably wouldn’t have though if it wasn’t for your high school counselor, Robbie, you owe him a lot. You got to help with prom and see the entire committee’s work come to fruiting on that night, and you were already thinkning of ways to make yours better for the next year. And of course, YOU GOT A JOB!! You got an interview with Jamba Juice sometime in March maybe, but they asked you to come in again in June and Nikki hired you on the spot. The summer was off on a good foot with a job at a juice bar. 

July was filled with independent Oregon adventures with you and your friends who could both drive! Having this new found sense o adult-ness and freedom opened many doors. In between shifts at Jamba, you and Elora drove to Newport in search of a great beach day (which was found), you, Lilli, Payton, Elora, and Destiny wandered down to Irish Bend to swim in the sun, and you and Adelaide traveled to the cabin and Sahalie Falls while capturing pretty cool pictures. July was the epitome of a 16 year old Oregonian’s summer. Your second blood drive in the summer went well too, and you even made 50 bucks from it! And of course, there was summer camp at WaFaRa again. This camp seemed to go on forever, and it was here that you realized your time for being a camper was probably over, and it was time to begin to lead-which you still have yet to do so hurry up Holly. This camp, as always, pushed your limits a little more and more each day. You go karted, did a roped course 100 feet in the air, and danced your butt off at club. After camp you went for a trip to Fossil for the second time this year, and saw the long awaited Painted Hills, which you will have to go back to one day. 

August was a summer winding down. The fair was an obligatory local teenager event, which turned out to be mediocre (shocking, I know), but made for some cute instagrams. You played glow in the dark capture the flag with Adelaide and friends, spray painted CHS’s rock with your new core council, and YOU GOT BANGS!! After contemplating many times, you just finally did it and said screw it. And they even turned out good! Oh, and the whole solar eclipse thing happened too. 

September was a peppy school spirited month, kicking off the 2017-2018 year with a spirit shirt you designed, home football games, deadly APUSH notes, homecoming week, and watching volleyball from the sidelines for the first time ever. (Turns out photographing your friends playing a sport they genuinely love is better than playing the sport as well, only pretending to love it.) Oh yeah, for yearbook, they gave you a kick ass camera that is absolutely amazing and finally lets you flex some photography skills and learn new stuff! And of course, all throughout this you were still desperately in love with C. 

October had tons of photoshoots and it was your month to thrive, libra! I think it was by now that you were seeing Dr. S and had a regular regime of prescriptions, which even though your mom was terrified of you taking three antidepressants and two mood stabilizers, it seemed to be working. You and Lilli planned a last minute concert trip in early October to see The Weeknd, and even though you were in the nosebleeds, a concert is a concert and it was a great experience. You and Adelaide had a fall beach trip this month, and you also did a stunning photoshoot with Kiara, Alyssa, and Alba which is still one of your favorites of all time. You went on many Shari’s dates with megan as well, and your new friendship began to grow here. And of course, you had your 17th birthday then too! Your party at the farm was stressful and less than eventful, but pretty ok. And at the end of October, you got what I am typing on now! A new Macbook, which was literally a dream come true thanks to your Nanna. 

November was the month of tournaments! First, dodgeball, then ping pong. Ping Pong basically consumed your whole life in November, even though you knew nothing about the sport. But in November, you also got to go to Seaside with Core Council for the OASC Leadership Conference! It was really a blast and a great bonding experience that was well worth it. There was also your third blood drive in November, which went moderately okay. 

And finally…, December. Now. You Christmas shopped your heart out and spent your paycheck on everyone else, but it was well worth it. As I am now writing this and reflecting on this year, I feel happy about it, really. This year kind of whizzed by, but what year doesn’t? You planned Winter Formal this month, finally got your school schedule together and dropped APUSH, laughed at Festivus and at Christmas Eve dinner with heidi, and enjoyed Christmas day with all three families (Dad, Mom, Wooley’s + etc.) 

Overall this year, you enjoyed a ton of music, watched a lot of movies (50 shades II, Dunkirk, Get Out, Baby Driver, Guardians of the Galaxy I and II, American Assassin, Cars 3, The Disaster Artist, Ladybird), and read quite a few books (The Book Thief, I’ll Give You the Sun, Milk and Honey, The Sun and Her Flowers,The Girls). So here’s to another year, another illusion of starting over. Here’s to you, future me. 

Love, past me of December 28th 2017

[eddycurrents]

For the week of 13 November 2017

Quick Bits:

Babyteeth #6 opens the floodgates of story after getting through the initial hurdle of getting Sadie and Clark out of imminent danger. Donny Cates gives us more depth as to what’s going on broader picture of the world and introduces us to the cult geared to protecting and raising Clark.

| Published by AfterShock

Black Science #33 has the shit hit the fan as the confrontation between Grant and Kadir reaches its peak and then reality breaks. The mix of mad science and philosophy from Rick Remender on display here is wonderful, seeing a representation of Platonic ideals mapped onto quantum realities in a kind of unfurling of Gnostic cosmology is impressive. So too is Matteo Scalera’s art. He and Moreno Diniso really get to cut loose this issue and it looks wonderful.

| Published by Image / Giant Generator

Bloodshot Salvation #3 gives a revelation to the “soon” timeline of what’s happened to Ray, while in the “now” we get a confrontation between Ray and Daddy, Colin King helping out Magic, and Project Omen causing complications. I probably sound like a broken record, but Jeff Lemire, Lewis LaRosa, and Mico Suayan are doing some great things with this series.

| Published by Valiant

Brilliant Trash #1 is an interesting take on superheroes. It’s a mix of government conspiracy and potentially mad science, told from the perspective of a journalist looking for a story in the appearance of a V-like figure, Lady Lastword’s, final speech and death. Tim Seely’s got something interesting here. Priscilla Petraites’ art is also quite nice, kind of a mix between Jamie McKelvie and Phil Hester.

| Published by AfterShock

Dark Fang #1 continues the trend of not naming the protagonist in the body of the first issue. The solicitation copy and end piece are what’s needed to piece together the full premise of the series and name of the protagonist. That said, Miles Gunter does have a decent story here. It’s environmentalism through the lens of a centenarian vampire, Valla, who was friends with a fish until modern industry destroyed her ecosystem. But first, earning money as a cam girl and getting caught up in society’s obsession with cell phones and the internet. The art from Kelsey Shannon is a definite plus.

| Published by Image

Deadpool vs. Old Man Logan #2 is every bit as fun, humorous, and action-packed as the first issue. Declan Shalvey has a great feel for both Wade and Logan and Mike Henderson’s art is truly wonderful. Only two issues in and this is just a fun, must-have wild ride.

| Published by Marvel

Evolution #1 is a very strong debut issue with multiple voices brought together by the singular visuals of Joe Infurnari. Infurnari has a style that is a bit Tom Mandrake and a bit Bill Sienkiewicz and it is absolutely perfect. If you like David Cronenberg’s early horror films, even just a little bit, you owe it to yourself to at least check this out.

| Published by Image / Skybound

The Family Trade #2 continues Jessa’s investigations into Berghardt and Mikkaelsen despite the protestation and outright prohibition by her Family. Her technique of getting close by blending in as a simple cleaning woman is a nice touch. The end, though, suffers a bit in who exactly Jessa is speaking to. I think it’s supposed to be her uncle, but I’m not sure.

| Published by Image

Fence #1 gives me the impression that everyone, even the protagonist, involved in competitive fencing is an asshole. That’s not necessarily a good impression of the sport, and gives a poor outlook on who to “cheer” for in the endeavour, but it may be an accurate depiction. Especially since many sports seem to be populated by jerks.

| Published by BOOM! Entertainment / Boom! Box

Generation Gone #5 is a suitably insane conclusion to the first arc of this series. It’s violent, angry, and explosive - kind of like how you’d expect kids to react when they find out that the world is designed to see them fail. André Lima Araújo’s art has just been fantastic on this series.

| Published by Image

Hawkeye #12 is a team-up issue between Kate and Laura (All-New Wolverine) with Gabby and Jonathan in tow as well, illustrated by guest artist Michael Walsh who is easily proving he’s a force to contend with. This issue looks great and is fun as hell.

| Published by Marvel

Jenny Finn #1 now in colour. If you haven’t read this masterpiece of Lovecraftian lit from Mike Mignola and Troy Nixey before, now’s a good time to do so. If you have, especially since this has been reprinted and repackaged a few times before, you’ll have to decide whether or not you want Dave Stewart’s colour. There was something to be said for the original black and white, although the colour version’s not bad.

| Published by Dark Horse

Kill the Minotaur #6 is both an expected and unexpected conclusion to the series. Ariadne and Theseus’ confrontation of the Minotaur is suitably epic. I can’t say much more than that because they’d be massive spoilers, so enjoy this amazing artwork from Lukas Ketner.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Killer Instinct #2 does what I was afraid the first issue was going to do and dumps a lot of characters with intricate backstories from the game on us in one go. Where the first issue mainly focused on one character to ease us into the world, this issue gives us more of the Coven, a bunch of characters fighting over the Killer Instinct Tournament, and Jago. While the Jago and Tsar bits are fairly well executed, the central bit over Ultratech is a bit of sludge. As I said in response to the first issue, I’ve never played the game and know little about the world, so this felt a bit like being dropped right in the deep end. The art from Cam Adams is still nice, though.

| Published by Dynamite

Maestros #2 quickly installs Will as the new Maestro and he begins making sweeping changes to the multiverse’s society, trying to bring concepts like equality and freedom to a world that only seems to know subjugation under magical will. It’s an interesting exploration of sociopolitical ideas from Steve Skroce and naturally it brings about severe pushback from those previously in charge. And betrayal.

| Published by Image

Mech Cadet Yu #4 features the cadets first full on confrontation with the Sharg and it’s about as exciting as you would expect. Takeshi Miyazawa’s art is just wonderful and it’s really nice to see Yu thinking on his feet during the battle to ensure the continued survival of the entire team.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Minky Woodcock: The Girl Who Handcuffed Houdini #1 is interesting. The relationship between Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has certainly been in the zeitgeist lately, this one doing something different and focusing on the end of Houdini’s career, long since the two had their falling out. Cynthia von Buhler sets up Minky looking into Houdini debunking spiritualists at the request of Doyle fairly well, but the main enticement is von Buhler’s art. She has a style that reminds me a bit of Melinda Gebbie and it works incredibly well for the smoky, pulpy atmosphere of the story.

| Published by Titan / Hard Case Crime

Misfit City #7 lines up the dominoes in this penultimate issue. Overall this has been a great series and I’m excited to see how it ends. That being said, I wish there were more. The world needs more girl adventurer books and this one has been excellent.

| Published by BOOM! Entertainment / Boom! Box

Ninja-K #1 is a damn fine new direction for Colin King, looking deep into the past of the Programme, dealing with the history of Ninjas A through L, and putting forth a mystery as to who killed Ninja-D and appears to be targeting the other remaining operatives. Christos Gage gives us a compelling mix of mystery and spy thriller that’s only topped by Tomás Giorello’s incredible artwork. Damn fine work.

| Published by Valiant

Rasputin: The Voice of the Dragon #1 begins another pre-Hellboy, pre-BPRD series tying numerous disparate threads together and giving more backstory on the world. This first issue focuses more on Trevor Bruttenholm tracking down a decrypted Nazi message, but it could be about a talking head describing how to prepare an avocado because Christopher Mitten makes everything look amazing. Thankfully, though, the story isn’t bad either.

| Published by Dark Horse

The Realm #3 reveals some chinks in the baddies’ armour as strong personalities clash. The artwork from Jeremy Haun is again one of the main drawing factors. This series just looks great.

| Published by Image

Retcon #3 finally gets around to the premise that Matt Nixon and Toby Cypress were on about in the interview in the first issue. I’m thinking maybe for a storytelling point, they should have led with this, but it does give the series a better cohesion and purpose. This was the make or break issue for me and Crowley ripped from time to tattoo a baby won me over.

| Published by Image

Star Wars: Darth Vader #8 continues Jocasta Nu’s infiltration of the Jedi Archive to retrieve an artifact from under the nose of the Grand Inquisitor. This issue gets a little...explosive.

| Published by Marvel

Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #14 is Emilio Laiso’s debut on the comic and the artwork looks gorgeous. He did a great job on the Rogue One adaptation and it’s nice to see him back on a Star Wars title. Even if I’m going to miss the hell out of Kev Walker’s art.

| Published by Marvel

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #76 allows no rest for the turtles as they return home from Dimension X, also after the brief excursion with the Ghostbusters. Damian Courciero looks like he’s handling the art chores for this arc and it’s a welcome addition. He has a darker, somewhat more realistic style and it suits the chaos and destruction going on with the Earth Protection Force’s first contact with the Triceratons.

| Published by IDW

Unholy Grail #4 continues this dark and twisted retelling of the Arthurian legend. Part of what really works about this series, though, is that it really isn’t that far removed from the other stories of glorious knights and magic, just given a different context,

| Published by AfterShock

Other Highlights: Adrift, Alien Bounty Hunter #2, Amazing Spider-Man #791, Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider #10, Bolivar, Champions #14, Curse Words #10, Defenders #7, Descender #26, Doctor Strange #381, Dreadful Beauty: The Art of Providence, East of West #33, Guardians of the Galaxy #147, Horizon #16, Incidentals #4, Incredible Hulk #710, James Bond: Kill Chain #5, Mage: The Hero Denied #4, Mighty Thor #701, Not Brand Echh #14, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #297, Postal #24, Punisher #218, Ringside #13, Secret Warriors #8, Sheena: Queen of the Jungle #3, TMNT/Ghostbusters 2 #3, The Wicked & The Divine #33, X-Men Blue #15, Zojaqan #2

Recommended Collections: Ab Irato, Goldie Vance - Volume 3, James Bond - Volume 1: Vargr, Journey to Star Wars: The Last Jedi - Star Wars: Captain Phasma, Luke Cage - Volume 1: Sins of the Father, Nancy Drew & The Hardy Boys: The Big Lie, Regression - Volume 1: Way Down Deep, Rough Riders - Volume 2: Riders on the Storm, Star Wars: Poe Dameron - Volume 3: Legends Lost, World Reader - Volume 1

d. emerson eddy knows that evolution is a mystery, full of change that no one sees. He sees the line in the sand.

[dirtdiggersanddinosaurs]

#Press Trip

Just So 2019 will go down in history, maybe because it was the 10th birthday of the now well established festival, but mainly because it was the year of ALL THE MUD! It certainly was NOT for the faint hearted! I‘ll quickly explain that this was our first time at Just So…and, did the conditions put us off? Did they heck! I’m not gonna lie, it made getting around the site with a trolley and a baby in a stroller much much harder, but we got a free workout (I used muscles I didn’t know I had!), and the boys absolutely loved doing their best ‘We’re going on a Bear Hunt’ impressions squelching through the deep oozy mud!

In fact, from what I saw there were A LOT of mud loving littles about. I might suggest to organisers Wild Rumpus that from now on they create a mud pit area regardless of the weather so that we can chuck the kids in while us parents relax nearby on dry land!

We had an absolutely amazing weekend despite [or maybe because of] the mud. Full of magic, fun and laughter. Just So Festival really is the perfect place to spend some quality time together as a family.

These were our favourite muddy moments:

Dressing Up and Letting Go

We decided to go big or go home and threw ourselves into the craziness of the Just So tribal tournament, we were all kitted out as a shimmering shoal of five fish – read how I made our costumes here. For those of you planning a Just So adventure, I highly recommend dressing up letting go of your inhibitions.

Seeing herds of stags, swarms of bees and some roarsome lions strolling around the aptly named Spellbound Forest, really is truly magical. A sight you’ll honestly never forget, and your photos will look absolutely amazing too!

Feeding the fish

Eli small fry

It was like being part of a real life fairytale and really helped us to see the wonder of the weekend through our childrens eyes. Stanley really got involved and was instantly drawn to other fishy families, we enjoyed a game of Giant Guess Who with some fellow fish team mates and won a golden pebble in a wager! Woo hoo!

The humongous Tribal Scoreboard situated on The Village Green is updated throughout the weekend as golden pebbles are handed in to Tribal leaders and counted.

Keeping Score!

We earned pebbles for our costumes, picking up somebody elses litter when the wind blew it away, for the Guess Who game, and then for ingenious costume repairmanship using duck tape – note to self: need to vastly improve sewing skills! I’m still not sure if there are any hard and fast rules on how to earn pebbles but it’s certainly fun trying.

Meeting our Tribal leader blub blub blub!

Stanley really was rooting for the fish team to win and was cheering us on all weekend, he also got involved in some lighthearted taunting of the other teams too. We came 5th overall, the Foxes bagged 1st place this year! I think it teaches children a great lesson about competition, teamwork, loyalty and doing your best.

Getting Our Groove On

One of the things we all agreed on when we looked at the programme was that we wanted to take in as much live music as possible. We joyfully discovered at Timber Festival that we have two little groovers on our hands.

My little fish swimming at High Seas

The Footlights stage was at High Seas and after a true trek to get there via the mud (it was at it’s worst at this point), a toilet stop, more mud, then skirting around the field with the trolley, and a bit more mud we finally set up our ‘base’. After all that effort it made sense to stay put for a bit and it was a great excuse to enjoy the music, we were also reasonably close to a bar and some yummy food vendors – perfect!

The Baghdaddies’ exuberant and rampant brand of world music is an exhilarating cocktail of Balkan melodies, ska and latin grooves and sizzling brass played with furious energy and theatrical humour, making them as unforgettable on stage as they are when performing as wandering brass troubadours. They take themselves incredibly seriously so you don’t have to…

The Baghdaddies blew us away, they got everybody (including us) up on their feet and dancing! The lyrics are also hilarious, and you cant help but smile. It’s pure feel good music!

We also caught Harry Bird & The Rubber Wellies who again provided a very toe tapping mix of folk inspired sea shanties, Mexican rancheras and reggae. And finally Mr. Tea & The Minions for some gypsy flavoured party music. Not your average playlist eh?

One of the Baghdaddies songs included the line ‘Have a Tequila son’ which Eli took literally!

Oh, and just in case you’re wondering, YES mud does make dancing in a field absolutely 100% more enjoyable if your aged 5 and 2!

We also tried out the silent disco hosted by Our Kids Social in the Flamingo Lounge. My boys weren’t sure at first and found it all a bit odd, but they soon got into the swing of it for a bit of oops upside your head! There was a parents vs kids dance off battle that got very animated – think Dadtastic air guitar moves on one side with some fierce flossing on the other. Great fun!

And finally, it was a bit of a surprise when my cautious 5 year old wanted to try out Circus Swing! So on Sunday we had a lesson in swing dancing that included some neat circus tricks too. I only dropped him on his head once while he did the no hands cartwheel over my legs, so I’m calling that a win!

I love the fact that Stanley was willing to try out new things, James has experienced a silent disco at the ripe old age of 2 and that we all got to listen to some excellent live music.

Singing Along

Watching David Gibb perform in the natural amphitheatre of the Woodland Theatre on with Stanley was my highlight of the weekend. He’s not a big fan of sitting still but the combination of catchy tunes, audience participation and easy to remember lyrics meant that we made it through the entire performance with big smiles on our faces.

We learned all about bats, discovered that we (and the rest of the audience) couldn’t count to five, became roses and showed off our muscles. Stanley also became a huge fan of Teddy at the Disco and has been singing it on repeat ever since. We sat next to our good friends over at Typical Mummy (there’s nothing like sharing a plastic poncho to sit on, to really cement a friendship) and we were all happily singing along together.

It was during this performance that I experienced what I’ll always remember as the Just So spirit, a real sense of camaraderie. The steep incline of the Woodland Theatre plus wet ground made it more than a bit treacherous underfoot. Getting in and out was no easy task and to this purpose I saw children being passed along rows, hands and arms being offered to help steady balance and people sharing seating arrangements to ensure everyone had a great time. There was a real sense of we’re in this togetherness, the mud was not going to stop anyone having fun!

I’m happy to say we now have David’s new album Rolling down the Road (released 23rd August) winging it’s way to us (order yours here) and also Climb that Tree for our Teddy at the Disco fix – my car journeys are never going to be the same again!

Slowing Down

In a way the conditions did us a favour, it made us really think about what we wanted to see and do. Most of Saturday was spent in and around High Seas and the nearby Roll Up Roll Up simply due to logistics, we took in the music as I’ve previously mentioned but we also watched Clown about Town which thoroughly entertained the boys and only mildly terrified me (she was absolutely lovely but I’m not a fan of clowns!)

A clown on the run, wanted for a crime she didn’t commit. In trying to prove her innocence, she finds that the silver lining is daring to be yourself in a world that’s trying to make you like everyone else. A joyous celebration of what it is to be human with slap-stick comedy, puppets and silly dancing!

Even I admit that the overly theatrical blood scenes (not as bad as it sounds, honest!) were really funny! This then inspired Daddy and the boys to wade over to the big top to try their hand at some circus skills while I stayed with a snoozing Eli.

Again, after watching David Gibb in the Woodland Theatre we ambled to The Spellbound Forest via the Corn Shack and settled in to watch our old favourites at Campfire Stories. I’d been eyeing up the huge corn cobs all weekend and me and Stan treated ourselves on Sunday – they were absolutely delicious!

We love Ian Douglas and have been lucky enough to sit and listen to his stories at several different events so he was an easy and relaxing watch while we nibbled away.

Then it was onto our crazy haired friend Professor Pumpy-Knickers Pumpernickel who we first encountered at Timber Festival. Once again he was thoroughly entertaining, and made the forest come alive with explosive science!

Embracing the Eccentricity

Just So proved to be just as bonkers as we were expecting – we’ve experienced nothing else like it! One thing we definitely wanted to catch was the lantern parade on Saturday evening. We didn’t make a lantern at the workshop as we’d heard that it gets very busy but we were armed with our Jelly fish umbrellas which lit up and looked the part.

Well, it’s hard to describe the spectacle that was the lantern parade, there was a clog wearing lady singing and dancing with some enormous Ghost Caribou. Then, the Baghdaddies arrived, the Caribou suddenly lit up and off we went, following the craziness towards Footlights!

Over the weekend we also bumped into the Dream Antelopes, Boudicca in her chariot (the moving puppet/sculpture horse was AMAZING) and got soaked as water pistol wielding passengers sped past in Vesaqua, shooting at us as they went. What’s Vesaqua? It’s a bathtub on wheels attached to a 1966 Vespa of course!

Vesaqua

Anything We Would Change?

The weather played such a huge part this year that I’m not sure what a ‘normal’ Just So looks and feels like. I would have liked a few more seating areas – we took chairs luckily, but pulling them around in the trolley was really hard work because of the ground conditions. I’m assuming that there are usually more hay bales dotted about to perch on but again due to the weather these were probably repurposed as ground cover on the worst affected areas.

The golden pebbles – are still a complete mystery to us! I don’t know who can give them out, or what they can be earned for! Having said that I’m not sure if a full explanation of this via the programme or a information board would take the magic away? It felt like a secret that you had to learn about from fellow more experienced Just So’ers…but maybe that’s the point, to get people talking and build a community of seasoned Just So families? I will say this – once you’ve earned one it quickly becomes a quest to get more, it’s so addictive!

And Finally…

There you have it, if you want to let go of the stresses of everyday life then this is the festival for you. You can completely immerse yourself in a bubble of make believe for an entire weekend. Got kids? Then it’s a super family friendly festival (mud aside), it has everything to entertain little ones and baby changing, bathing and quiet areas too. We can’t wait for next year!

Earlybird tickets for Just So Festival 2020 (21/22/23 August 2020) will be available from TODAY (Friday 30th August). Visit the Just So Festival website to grab yours.

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all the team at Wild Rumpus, the volunteers and site staff who when faced with almost biblical conditions on Friday went the extra mile to ensure people got on and off the site safely and pushed cars out of the mud, all with a smile on their faces.

Disclosure: we were invited to attend Just So Festival by Wild Rumpus as part of their Press Team. Our weekend tickets were gifted in exchange for a review of our experience and promotion across my social media channels. All opinions are my own. All images and media are my own.

Five Go to Just So! 2019 Festival Review #Press Trip Just So 2019 will go down in history, maybe because it was the 10th birthday of the now well established festival, but mainly because it was the year of…