#also all my top posts have zero or one note haha

[sakurapika]

What are your all-time favorite outfits from Twisted Wonderland?

Hello @letterstoear, thank you for ask! I've had a lot of fun making this post, and I'm so sorry that it took forever to answer!

Every time I was certain I had my list narrowed down, I remembered another outfit I really liked. (Also, I'm a little bit biased, as you will see...haha). This time, I focused on event outfits to make it easier for myself. Maybe in the future I'll post my "reviews" on dorm uniforms or Halloween costumes.

I am always blown away by the the little details that Yana Toboso and the rest of the design team have added to each of characters' outfits, because they give some interesting insight to their personalities and backgrounds.

Without further ado, let's discuss some outfits! (Please note that there are spoilers for upcoming events from the JP server, as well as some groovy arts!)

My Favorite Twisted Wonderland Outfits

10. Floyd's Outdoor Wear (Vargas Camp)

Most of the outfits on my list are on the extravagant side. I recently bought a volume of Black Butler, where there was a note about how Yana Toboso loves to draw clothing, and it truly shows.

But in contrast to seeing our beloved characters in over-the-top costumes, it's refreshing to see them wearing casual outfits once in a while as well and see their individual, everyday styles.

I'll admit that I haven't played any of the Vargas Camp events, and have a grand total of zero (0) cards from this series. I'm not sure why; I always miss the event's runtime for some reason.

Still, I've always loved Floyd's little sling bag with the eel keychain, as well as the teal visor. The bright colors stand out and are appealing.

The whole outfit looks like something you could get from a store like Uniqlo, and sometimes it is nice to have that sort of realism in a magical game. He looks like an ordinary teenager I could find on the street. Except...if I did find Floyd on the street, I'd be running in the other direction. But that's not the main idea here.

9. Azul's Glorious Masquerade Outfit

At first, I sort of forgot that this SSR existed. When the PV for Glorious Masquerade came out, I was more focused on Malleus.

However, eventually, many people began to cosplay as GloMas Azul, and they all looked so amazing. I began to appreciate the outfit more after seeing people pose and dance in it. Azul also tends to have some of the best fanart, and fans have spared no expense when drawing him wearing this.

My favorite part of the outfit is his coat. I like the silhouette it creates with a high-waist belt, and the long coattails that resemble tentacles. The ruffles on his trousers are cute, too. I would buy a pair if I could. Unfortunately, it's hard to see these details on his in-game sprite.

As for his accessories, the pearls are so dramatic (and so very Azul). His round glasses are also cute, I hope he wears them again!

8. Idia's Suitor Suit

One look at Idia's Ghost Marriage outfit, and you can really tell that it was designed by Yana Toboso. His gloves, coat, and cravat make him look like he's in the Victorian Era. Also, doesn't he look sort of like Grelle from Black Butler?

Speaking of Grelle, Idia's outfit is meant to look more like funeral attire, between the long, black coat and the lilies pinned to his shoulder. There are also skulls hidden throughout his outfit, such as on his jacket chain and cufflinks. I was still new to TWST at the time, so I just thought that Idia liked gothic clothing. I didn't realize he was (at least in his mind) attending his own funeral!

Let's not forget his new hairstyle! This is one of Idia's first SSRs if I remember correctly, so it was exciting to see him with a ponytail.

My love for this outfit also comes from my love for the story associated with it. Fans have pointed out that Idia's "arranged marriage" with Eliza parallels the myth of Hades and Persephone. The design team and Yana were so clever for this.

I don't have this card, either, but I hope to pick him up one day!

7. Ortho's Fairy Gear

The Shroud brothers are luckyーthey are probably two of the characters with the most SSRs in the game.

That being said, we all have to agree that Ortho's fairy gear is one of the most unique and avant-garde cards in the game.

I really enjoy the white and gold color scheme in this event. His color-changing wings are stunning, and the piece covering his eyes makes him look very mysterious.

I thought this card was cool when I first saw it, but then I learned that Ortho's outfit and hair can turn pink, which is even better.

Every time I see his "pointe shoes," it makes me imagine Ortho and Idia trying to learn how to dance together in Idia's room, and Idia obsessively studying ballet costumes for his younger brother.

Yet again, I don't have this card, but my best friend does! At least I can admire him from her phone...

6. Silver's Rabbit Wear

There is no way that this outfit is just an R card! When this card was first advertised in one of the JR rail train stations, the pictures showed this card with Deuce's hometown in the background instead of the standard Diasomnia R background, so I thought that this card would at least be an SR. (Although I can't complain so much, because that means it's free!)

Silver is so princely. I am convinced that he can look good in anything. I am fond of pastel colors, and the pink/blue color scheme suits him, as the TWST version of Aurora. The bows may be silly, but I find them adorable.

Compared to the other boys in this event, Silver's outfit looks a little more like a soldier's (albeit a toy soldier's or a nutcracker's), which is a cool touch.

5. Deuce's Rabbit Wear

Deuce's hometown event was truly one of my favorite events that came out in the JP sever last year. Not only were some of my most favorite characters there, but they were dressed up in the most whimsical outfits possible. (And we got to meet Deuce's motherーshe's the coolest!)

Since Deuce is the main character of this event, his outfit bears the most resemblance to the white rabbit's in most classic illustrations, complete with a bow tie, top hat, and, of course, his pocket watch. His outfit has a blue color scheme. Like Azul in GloMas, Deuce also wears round glasses in his groovy art. Overall, it looks like the sweet ouji style, although I'm not very familiar with this sub-fashion. If anyone who is reading this has studied/worn this style of fashion, please let me know!

I used to play Love Nikki and Shining Nikki (two fashion-themed gacha games), which also featured lolita dresses inspired by Alice in Wonderland characters. For this reason, Deuce's outfit in particular feels very nostalgic to me.

4. Lilia's Right General Armor

Here's another departure from the cute pastel outfits...

Sleeping Beauty was one of my favorite Disney movies as a child. I always remembered Maleficent's "goons" as short, silly little creatures wearing simple green tunics.

So how on earth did we get to Right General Lilia Vanrouge?!

Seriously, I'm just stunned by how the artists looked at the source material and created something so radically, yet wonderfully, different.

I'm curious about the green stones (jades?) on his outfit--around his waist, there are several pieces attached to tassels, and he has two strapped to his right leg. The material matches the stone used for his weapon. Maybe it represents his status in Briar Valley. If you check his (unposed) sprite, you can also see that he is wearing something around his waist that looks like folded bat wings.

Like everyone else, I'm obsessed with his long hairーit makes him look so formidable, especially with that hood. My friends and I like to joke that his ponytail makes him look like a character in a Chinese martial arts drama.

Again, the story associated with this card made me love it even more. Few books have made me cry as much as Book 7 of TWST.

3. Malleus' Glorious Masquerade Outfit

While Sleeping Beauty was my favorite movie as a young child, when I got older, I began to love The Hunchback of Notre Dame. It was only natural for this outfit to be among my favorites for this reason.

There are so many details here. The feathered hat. The sheer sleeves. The golden embroidery. The split cape. It's honestly overwhelming to take in at once.

I can say that my favorite detail is his green earrings. They really bring out his eye color, and the PV made them so sparkly.

In addition, everyone I've ever seen who has cosplayed as GloMas Malleus or has drawn fanart of him has increased my appreciation of this outfit.

[Now for some very spoiler-y stuff] The fact that this event came just before the release of Chapter 7 is worth noting. Doesn't it feel a bit tragic that just before Malleus' overblot, we have a chance to see him wearing an outfit that makes him look especially like his mother, having fun and being the star at the masquerade? And what about the feathers on his shouldersーdo they hint at another side of his family? There's so much foreshadowing and mystery going on, and nothing is more suitable for the occasion than masquerade attire.

2. Kalim's New Year Attire

I've already rambled about how sentimental this outfit is to me in a previous post, but in summary: New Year is my favorite holiday, and the New Year's Sale event was the first event I "seriously" participated in. Kalim looks excessively cute and festive in his kimono, and every time I see this card, I feel nostalgic and in the holiday mood.

1. (Tied) Epel's Applepom Outfit and Riddle's Beach Outfit

I'm really sorry, Epel and Riddle are my favorite characters, and in the end, I refuse to chose between them. They're like my younger brothers! I try to collect all of their cards, so I pay attention to their outfits the most, and picking only one outfit for each character was a challenge in itself.

My favorite part of Epel's Applepom outfit is his cloak. It looks so fluffy and warm. When you set him as your home screen character, you also have the option to "swap looks" and see his outfit without the cloak--the apple embroidery on the rest of his outfit is very detailed. Many fans have mentioned that the outfits people wear in Harveston resemble traditional Scandinavian clothing, which is really cool!

The little apple slices on his cap are everything.

And I'm always happy to see characters in different hairstyles, such as Epel's little ponytail.

One of my headcanons is that you're allowed to call Epel cute, but only when he wears this specific outfit, because he takes it as a complement to his culture.

As for Riddle, we're all so used to seeing him wearing formal suits. It's so nice to see him loosening up for once. He looks so happy, now that he has the chance to see the ocean for the first time!

I also happened to be on vacation at the beach around the time this event came out, so it felt like a gift.

I have to laugh a little, because there are so many flowers on his outfit. Even Jack pointed it out in the story. But he looks so cute!

I suppose we have to discuss the elephant in the room. My friend saw it before me, so she spammed me with messages along the lines of "RIDDLE IS WEARING A CROP TOP!!! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!!!" and I naturally thought she was pranking me. But lo and behold, it's the truth. I like to headcanon that among the rest of the cast in this event, everyone has made an unspoken mutual agreement not to mention it. This Victorian child has already been through enough, and not a word must reach Mrs. Rosehearts.

Thank you once again for the ask! For anyone who read all of this, what do you think about these outfits, and which ones in the game are your favorite?

[aqueousablution]

(March 2023) morXa sorXa armorXa

Note: this post originally was only b&w sketches; I'm using the colored version of the first image here because I figure I might as well post it now.

Original post body under the cut:

These are still WIPs and I want to further refine the vambrace buster concept before I get to coloring any of this, but I'm getting antsy sitting on all this unshared progress I've made with sorXa's armor design, so fuck it, I'm posting what I have so far!! I've more or less said "fuck it" and started leaning into the Χ/χ motif à la X (particularly his X8 design), though the besagew is actually also meant to evoke a clover, partly because sorXa's name is pronounced like the Irish way of saying "Sorcha" (which would make it a shamrock), but also largely because I'm nothing if not a huge MMZ dweeb and I love the lyrical version of MMZ2's credits theme from RTRZ: Idea, which is called... Clover. (the original song is Awakening Will, for reference, which itself is a reprise of the hypest intro stage theme I've ever fucking heard, Departure, which plays during what's also probably the most badass opening to a game I've ever seen. Zero 2 isn't my favorite in the series, but that intro goes so fucking hard!!... I think I got a bit off-topic here, haha)

Transcripts under the cut, since even if I'm not done yet I figure I might as well help people make out what I wrote if I'm posting these as WIPs:

Page 1 (sorXa armor concepts):

gold rivets? (pointing to the forehead plate of her helm, accompanied by a sketch showing the positioning of the three rivets)

speakers (pointing to the circles on her facemask)

Megamix-style arms (next to her big bulky round forearm armor; this idea is altered in the third image to be more like Mega Man Volnutt from the Legends series)

Page 2 (sorXa armor concepts):

mask can detach if lip-reading is needed for clearer communication (near her detached mask, which is connected to her helm by a tether on each side)

❌ no (next to a besagew shaped like a Phillips-head screw)

sapphic! (next to a besagew with indents shaped like the violet used in some versions of the Sapphic pride flag)

Clover + "Χ" (next to a variant of the previous besagew with only 4 indents; an arrow points from the Sapphic violet besagew to the clover besagew)

historical! (next to a besagew with a shallow cone in the center of a bowl-like rim)

gold or red ring? (pointing to a variant of the above besagew with a lighter-colored ring around the central cone)

maybe only 1? → R or L? (above a small mockup of sorXa's torso with only one besagew; "L" is circled, which is reflected by the first page's design of her armor)

Page 3 (sorXa armor concepts (buster cannon)):

vents on top | slides up & out (pointing to a raised part of her vambrace, which is now more cylindrical than the previous images)

thruster (pointing at jetpack-like structures on the back of her cuirass; note that these will be revised in a future drawing, probably)

(duplicated at the back of her calf, which also has a visible jet of sorts)

[various color ideas for her boots] (the poleyns will probably be gold with red "fan plates"/hinges, which will be replicated on her ankle adornments as well; the calves themselves are black (of course), and the notes show her boots as having white outsoles and red soles, though I think I might reverse that in practice)

4 holes (pointing to the beveled edge of her vambrace hear the wrist, accompanied by a simple drawing showing roughly the positioning of those holes, which are in an X-formation)

Model A + Bridget (pointing at the bumpy protrusions on the outsoles of her boots, which are meant to evoke the boots of Model A from Mega Man ZX Advent and the shoes of Bridget's Guilty Gear Strive Design)

[huginsmemory]

hi :) 🔥 maybe for vashwood or just trigun in general

Hello, and why thank you for the ask! This is a spicy one hahaha. Uhm, I definitely do have a few bones to pick with vashwood and trigun, and yup if you're like oh no is this about stampede (cough, low hanging fruit...) Then. Uhm. yeah it is. Sorry. I have a few thoughts about it, and why I really dislike (sorry stampede enjoyers) the choices for the characterization for Vash and Wolfwood, including the feminization of Vash. And also... how part of these characterizations are related to classical yaoi shipping dynamic tropes and how it may or may not be intentional (I'm gifting u a conspiracy haha). And then my own opinions on these changes and the reception of the new characterizations. These thoughts have been rolling around in my brain for a while but I wasn't sure if I wanted to post it since it's a bit spicy. But. Well. This is as good a sign as any.

I'll be going over the differences in Wolfwoods characterization, in Vash's characterization and his feminization in stampede, and then how this relates to yaoi shipping dynamics and Vashwood fandom reception (and my personal feelings around it...).

Also, this ended up being... Really long. Oops. I've highlighted the TLDR paragraphs in red for those who want to skim. If u want to just be like, wow spicy take with no context... Go to the last paragraph lol.

Preface and acknowledgement

I want to preface this with that I haven't actually watched Stampede, although I have quite heavily engaged with secondary material about it, ie gifs, meta posts, etc. So I suppose one can take my opinions with a grain of salt; to really form a full opinion on the series, I would have to watch stampede myself, of which I have zero time to do and maybe at one point I'll get around to. This is also why I've been reluctant to get into my thoughts... but from what I've seen of it, I've got a few bones to pick.

Yes, I may be a bit of a hater (ah... such a strong word...) but I do want to acknowledge that stampede has revived the trigun fandom, and hell, I wouldn't have read the manga without it. So credit where credits due, and it's very exciting to engage with the fandom for the first time and see it grow so much in such a short time. Also, yes, I am one of those people who watched the 98 version quite a while ago, so for me it's something that is nostalgic. Call me blinded by nostalgia all u want. If stampede is what first got you into trigun-- congrats! I'm not here to invalidate your experience; stampede is simply another iteration of trigun (even if I disagree with some of the characterizations), and I highly recommend you check out the manga as well. I'm very happy to have you here in the fandom!

Wolfwood's characterization

As some other people have noted here- stamp!ww is a bit different then ww in trimax or the 98, while the cut-copy-paste of the tragic orphange background stays the same (Nightow, you're so over the top. I love it).

Within 98 and trimax, ww is a bit rough around the edges, but is overall friendly, kind, charismatic and a bit goofy (a character trait these ww's share with Vash, which they both use it in a way to mask their darker parts of their lives). Sure, wolfwood in these iterations have zero issues calling people out on their bullshit and is willing to manipulate people around him into doing the greater good- but is shown to be gruffly genuinely caring about people when he can help (especially children), even if he still chooses to kill people when it comes down to it. This can be seen with 98!ww getting Vash to sign up for the tournament to help the single mum and her kid, and the way trimax!Wolfwood treats Milly during the midvalley fight because he's worried about her getting seriously injured, even going to the point of injuring her himself. Sure, he's not going to declare his care verbally to people, but he doesn't need to do that when he's actively doing things that clearly shows he cares for people, especially those he's created ties to, even if he chooses to be violent/forceful when he believes what he is doing is for the best.

This charismatic friendliness and kindness is generally stripped from Stamp!Wolfwood; sure, he cares deep down as is displayed by the orphange and his concern later in the series for Vash, but through his actions with others, there's a noticible lack of general feeling of kindness behind his overstepping of people boundaries compared to og!ww. As another user in here put it, Stamp!ww is a bit of a dick. He has harsh commentary to the group and one of the first things you do is see him rip off Meryl and Roberto with his undertaker job over literal dead bodies when he's introduced. Nor does he really get to be redeemed through showing his care for children, such as at the bus stop where he gives away most of his money or food to begging children, opting to go hungry himself; it instead being replaced by him giving a lolipop to Zazie... which doesn't count for shit. This post by chibivesicles does a really good job of summarizing it from the fourth episode.

ID: 3 images, each of different iterations of Wolfwood giving something away to a child. First is 98, with ww giving away two of his three food ration bars to two scruffy children, the second from the manga with ww giving away two of his three coins to two scruffy children while Vash watches on, and the third with ww offering a sucker to Zazie while Meryl and Vash watch on.

Overall, the gist I've gotten of Stampede's iteration is that they very much boxed Wolfwood into the typical anime tsundere black-haired brooding character, stripping out his previous goofy and friendly charisma as well as his general feeling of kindness to fit that character trope better.

Vash's Characterization

Vash within 98 and trimax is also pretty different from stamp!Vash; I find this difference to specifically come from stamp!Vash feeling more naive, less driven and well--a bit spineless. The differences come down to two things; Vash having a strong moral spine which he is willing to call people out on due to righteous anger and Vash being emotionally detached from the people around him. Sure, og Vash (going to just use this to refer to 98 and trigun manga together) is goofy, cheerful and shows his emotions on his sleeve, but he doesn't actually let people become close to him. It's delibrate, and most of it specifically revolves around obfuscating that he's a plant and his goal of trying to chase Knives down; thus, he adopts a lifestyle of travelling and rarely staying long in areas, and so you see that his relationship with people are pretty surface level, even through his friendliness.

Three specific incidents within the series and their differences illustrate the emotional distance, and the righteous fury of og!Vash's in comparison to stamp!Vash. This includes Vash's childhood and relationship to the people on the seeds ship after the fall, Brad questioning their trust in Vash as he isn't human, and Wolfwood killing someone to save Vash.

Firstly, for Vash's childhood after the fall, within stampede he's pretty quickly picked up by the seeds ship, which hosts him, and they immediately are able to identify that he is an independent plant. They know more about him than he knows really about himself, and they also are generally aware about the fall (although not the exact details until later). Vash is raised for a while under their tutelage, and ends up helping heal plants, overall forming bonds with them even if they treat him a bit rough in the beginning, and Luida becomes mom #2.

ID: Screenshot from tristamp, of the photo on Vash's bedroom table, of him with all the seeds ship people he was working with.

In 98, no information is really given, but presumably is something somewhat similar to trimax. In trimax, after the fall Vash literally wanders the wastes with Knives for about 70 years, until Knives cuts Vash's arm off in anger at Vash's insistence that people shouldn't be killed, even when he's literally at the mercy of a town that is going to kill him and sell his organs. It is assumed sometime not long after Vash gets picked up by the seeds ship people, as it is mentioned that theyve known him for 70 years. Vash during these 80 years is very alone, with only his brother as company who is angry and abusive, as is directly pointed out within the manga. The two of them are presumed to be eking out a living travelling around the harsh wastes, and as displayed by the human organ stealing town, it is clear that often human settlements are just another possibility of danger due to crime and violence as a result of limited resources.

ID: two manga pages. First is just a panel showing Vash's flashbacks to violent traumatic instances of his childhood, showing a montage of him yelling, holding a gun, and crouched over a man who is dead and bleeding out looking panicked and horrified.

The second page is Knives while they are traveling together in the desert, looking down at Vash and calling him over. Vash looks at Knives, and he narrates that "It was about 80 years after the fall. Time passed slowly, but we neither grew nor parted. I knew I couldn't leave him alone. That thought alone determined the distance between us." Vash and Knives are clearly distant from each other in the panel, Vash in the foreground and Knives indistinguishable other than a silhouette at the top of the sand dune in the hindground.

In comparison, although it's not easy for Vash either in stampede, his childhood is cushier and less lonely. This loneliness and harsh environment that trimax!Vash exists within adds a depth of experience to his ethics, informing his righteous anger over everything that is morally wrong and should have never been, that makes him speak out, providing him a stronger spine which stamp!Vash doesn't have. This intensely lonely part of his upbringing also gives him an emotional independence, or even detachment, from most people he interacts with, in comparison to stamp!Vash who is emotionally dependent (and seems less mature) due to his ties to the seeds ship people.

As in tristamp, the closest people to Vash in trimax are the people on the seeds ships (also Lina and her grandma, but they don't know who he is when they take him in). Although he's the most open with them (ie, they know about Knives and his plans), during the visit to the seeds ship you are still given the idea that while Vash knows everyone and cares greatly for them, Vash is still generally emotionally independent from them, and doesn't form intimate relationships with people (especially compared to stamp!Vash). Interestingly, the manga implies when they first visit that they don't know what he is exactly, just that he's functionally immortal, as that when Luida talks about him to Wolfwood, she doesn't mention that he's a plant. Overall, compared to the outside people, the people on the seeds ship know more, and are more aware of how to use the old technology (it's also something that is hinted that some of it is possibly taught to them by Vash over the years), but they are not more knowledgeable then Vash, with Vash likely about the same level or more knowledgeable then them about general 'lost tech' and plant related things. As well, the people on the seeds ship in trimax are entirely unaware of circumstances around the fall--and Vash never tells them either. The visit to the seeds ship trimax functions as a way to allow the reader to distinctly comprehend Vash's age, and how Vash is really quite a terribly lonely character, as he is doomed to watch those he cares about die (which also informs why he likely doesn't really let people get very close to him, along with practical matters). This is directly pointed out in Luida's conversation with Wolfwood and Wolfwoods own inner monologue, as well as being alluded to by Jessica's locket, and Brad's grumblings. From the explanations you get the sense that Vash is emotionally independent and in a way, detached from people's opinions of him as a result of his longevity, with his constant travelling only ensuring that.

This is very different to the relationship of stamp!Vash with the seeds ship, as Vash is shown to have emotionally dependant relationships with the people on the seeds ship, with them literally raising him as a child, and this 'parent-child' relationship is only emphasized by them knowing more than Vash does about independent plants. Instead of emphasizing how Vash is old and outside of time, the dynamic gives Vash as a character an overall young and naive slant to his character, even if they still do drop the 'he's 150 years old' line when the stamp gang visits the ship.

This emotional dependence/independence directly corroborates to the differences in Vash's response to Brad's comment on him not trusting him, as something non-human. Within stampede, as Vash is young, he flees, feeling rejected--indicating a strong emotional dependence on those on the seeds ships for acceptance of who he is. However, within Trimax, Vash acknowledges Brad's comment, and actually validates and agrees with Brad's concerns; he's aware enough that who and what he is something to be feared and suspicious of (especially as by this time, the fifth moon incident, and July has occurred) and is worried about this himself; however, he simply requests Brad to trust him in this. Trimax!Vash's is emotionally independent, from Brad's rejection, a person who is part of the community that he is closest to; he accepts what Brad says, but also stands firm on his request from the community and his continued association with them, focused on his goals of stopping Knives. It's a scene that originally shows Vash's emotional independence from what others think of him (although he is saddened by it), and displays his maturity and acceptance when others reject him for who he is.

ID: Five pages of the manga. First page, Brad (in his early 20's) scoffs at Vash being called human. Second, Brad accuses Vash as a plague bringer in light of the fifth moon incident being brought up, grabbing him by his collar. Vash closes his eyes, then looks up at Brad, gaze steely, replying, "yeah that is possible". Third page, Vash asks Brad "Won't... you trust me? Please. Brad?". Vash looks sorrowful but is serious. Fourth page, Brad responds by saying "Ones who live outside of time, huh... In thirteen years... even though my hands have grown this big... You... Haven't really changed at all". The words are over-laid on an image of Brad's small hands reaching up to Vash when he was a child, and a smaller panel has Brad looking disturbed. The fifth page has Brad angrily stomping out of the room calling out "Everyone in the older generation may trust you... But you're not convincing me!". Vash then responds by saying to the older man in the room, that "I see what you mean. From the standpoint of a normal human I must be a monster.".

This is entirely turned on its head within tristamp to a scene that displays emotional dependence on people and an inability to accept rejection, displaying a immature, self-conscious, and younger version of Vash. Obviously, he is still younger at this point, but this immaturity and emotional dependence is one that still persists within the narrative of stampede, and influences your view of Stamp!vash. One could argue that then learning the details of why the ships fell is something Vash feels more guilty about, and so takes Brad's criticism harder, and flees. However, no matter what, this is a immature reaction. Interestingly, this portrayal of Vash having an emotional dependence on humans accepting him, is quite contrary to trimax, as this trait is actually one that specifically emphasized to belong to Knives, while trimax!Vash is shown to be emotionally detached and generally uninterested in their acceptance by humans.

ID: Screencap from stampede, Vash against the door looking shocked and horrified as he hears Brad say "he's never been on the side of us humans!".

The third thing is the scene where Wolfwood kills a man for Vash. Within stampede, Rollo is killed; Vash is angry at Wolfwood for doing so, grabbing Wolfwoods collar, but with a few strong words of a reminder of the harshness of general existence from wolfwood, Vash shuts up and is shown to just be sad, if a bit withdrawn/sulky with Wolfwood. Within Trimax, this scene is technically a rolling together of multiple arcs, but specifically thematically wise is a revamp of when he faces off with Rai-dei the Blade. When Wolfwood kills Rai-dei, Vash literally slaps Wolfwood hard in anger, resulting in them get into a fight, with Wolfwood retaliating by slamming Vash down to the ground in anger, and culminating in him pressing his loaded handgun into Vash hands, pointing it at his own head, and telling him to shoot; Vash then derogatorily calls Wolfwood a coward and they break up the fight, both still very angry at each other. In this, Vash clearly has very strong morals and is unafraid to call Wolfwood out when he transgresses them, full of righteous fury. None of this anger is transposed into stamp!Vash, who just looks sad about all of it; sure, he has values, but they feel like he fumbles with them, unsure and unwilling to speak up for them in an assertive way, crumbling underneath any criticism.

ID: first image is three panels from tristamp, and second is five pages of the manga, both detailing Vash calling out Wolfwood on killing.

First of the three panels has Vash grasping ww collar, looking angry; Wolfwood says "mercy" in response to the unseen question asked by Vash. He then goes on to say "there's no way to return his humanity", and Vash is looking down, fists clenched. Wolfwood continues, saying that "at best, it's all talk" about Vash's beliefs. Vash looks hollow and distressed.

The second, the first page has ww shooting Rai-dei; Vash responds in horror. Second page has Vash slap Wolfwood, yelling "why? Why did you shoot him?! Wolfwood?", to glare up at him. Third page has ww slam Vash onto the ground, Vash looks shocked, arms around his head to protect it. Ww glares down at Vash, saying "are you really such an idiot? If I hadn't shot him, it would be you lying there." Fourth page has Wolfwood holding Vash's hand with his own handgun in it against his forehead. Wolfwood tells Vash to "SHOOT." Fifth panel has Wolfwood telling Vash that he is a chickenshit for not being able to kill him. Vash then responds by calling Wolfwood a coward.

Something that's also interesting about the righteous anger that drives og!vash, is that its specifically because of his righteous anger, that he comes very close to killing people (Monev the gale, and how he's originally in the trigun manga before trimax presumably tracking down Knives to kill him after July, to some degree the rapist in the train)--and violating his ethics. This anger--and Vash's very real possibility of him killing someone out of a feeling of righteous fury, or a feeling of just righteousness--adds further dimension to Vash as a character, because you see that he also struggles with his no kill rule, even if he staunchly stands by it. Which... without this feeling of righteous anger, it takes out Vash's dilemmas around killing others.

To summarize the above, stamp!Vash lacks the righteous anger that og!Vash has around his belief of forgiveness and second chances (of a blank ticket), and as a result fails to confront others assertively when presented with things that go against his beliefs. Stamp!Vash also lacks the emotional independence that he previously had as a result of a harsh and lonely upbringing and his travelling lifestyle and his inability to age; instead he forms an emotional dependence and connections with them. Generally, the two characters have a very different relationship with the people in the seeds ship, which makes trimax vash seem older and more mature, while Stamp!vash feels more young and naive.

Vash and Femininity

Vash as a character has always been portrayed in a somewhat feminine light; Nightow even specifically has said that he purposely designed the angel arm with feminine elements, as the act of creation is correlated to the feminine. In much the same way, plants are drawn feminine, likely to correlate to the same feminine=creation manner. Thus, his relations to the angel arm, and plants he is given a feminine slant to his character. As well, Vash is shown to be open (ie, crying in public multiple times) and shown to be (at least somewhat) emotionally competent with his emotions, as that empathy (and Rem's instructions) is the core of his belief of pacifism and no-kill policy. These emotional related traits are, well, very commonly perceived to be feminine traits. Vash is also quite pretty in a more delicate (feminine) way, especially with his teardrop mole; he's not 'ruggedly' handsome like Wolfwood, in a more traditionally 'masculine' way. As well, Vash as a character is shown to be a more passive character, as the majority of trimax and 98 has the plot occurring to Vash, rather then Vash actively seeking out and causing changes within the narrative. This passivity within the narrative also is commonly found correlated to female roles, who often aren't active agents of the narrative. This can especially be seen in comparison to active 'male' roles, such as is played out by Knives who is majorly making decisions that move the plot forward (although Knives himself has gender fuckery going on. Nightow likes gender fuckery. On a related note, I love u Elendira and I'm so sorry what they did to you in tristamp that's horrendous). This is also related to how repeatedly within trigun the issue of bodily autonomy and choice is brought up--within plants of course, but also Vash's bodily autonomy is clearly violated multiple times, such as within July, and the fifth moon incident by Knives (and this relates, and this immensely good post put it, also to Vash's insistence on not killing, which is the most ultimate form of violation of bodily autonomy). Bodily autonomy (and the lack of it) is also something deeply related to woman's issues (among others, such as general minority groups).

So overall, even within Trimax and 98, Vash is quite clearly traditionally feminine coded, as can be seen in relation to his angel arm, his emotional openness, his physical features of being 'pretty', his passivity within the narrative and his lack of bodily autonomy. However, even within these feminine traits, og!Vash still comes off as masculine; the breadth of his shoulders and triangle shaped body indicates that, as well as his righteous anger and willingness to speak up against ethical issues are typically seen as masculine traits. Within 98 and trimax he's essentially coded as a feminine-leaning man.

Stamp!Vash however, is a different can of worms. His character still carries the feminine traits as is detailed above, but as previously discussed, specifically lacks the righteous anger that gives og!Vash a backbone and a willingness to stand up for transgressions against his ethics. This further emphasis on passivity of Vash strips him of one of the defining 'masculine' traits of anger, further sliding him along the masculine-feminine spectrum to a more feminine character. As well, with the character revamp making Vash more lithe, rather then giving him broad shoulders, and his hair cut is more of a non-binary haircut vs something that could be argued to be more masculine, further effeminates him as a character. Not to mention the work he's been doing, which is being a plant engineer, specifically involves with caring for and nurturing plants--which directly correlates to a emotionally sensitive nurturing role, one which it is also correlated to a feminine role. This especially so when it's shown that this iteration of Vash is clearly emotionally sensitive too and dependant on the people from the seeds ship, another 'feminine' trait. As well, within stampedes Vash rarely fires his gun... In comparison to 98 and trimax, where you see him fire it quite frequently, to incapacitate people. Comfort with firing a gun, and just general use of a weapon is another traditionally masculine trait. Overall, Vash within Stampede is almost entirely devoid of any masculine traits and is comprised of almost all feminine traits--passive both in narrative and in character, feminine in his work, his build, his goddamn haircut, his bodily autonomy-- with basically the only thing not is that he's not canonically female.

Stamp!Vash feminization and Fandom Reception

This has quite obviously been picked up by the fandom, with many people with trans!Vash headcanons. As per my experience of generally keeping an eye on the ao3 feed, in fact, a large majority of Vashwood fanfiction is of afab trans Vash, with another majority of xeno/intersex Vash; in fact, it's a rarity to find a fic specifically detailing a non trans or intersex Vash within the newer AO3 works. Interestingly, this is quite different then the works previously found within Vashwood on AO3, pre-stamp; these works are primarily with a amab non-trans Vash. It'd be interesting to actually run the numbers, but I'm too lazy to do that. This difference I've observed within pre and post stamp I bet is a result of these changes to Vash's character, making him more feminine--and more likely to be pegged (pun intended) as a trans or intersex character, especially one that has a vagina (specifically, vaginal sex within explicit fics is a very common tag within the Vashwood ao3 feed).

Stamp!Vashwood and Yaoi Tropes

Something that has been personally mildly bugging me about the stampede vashwood is the common yaoi trope of when there are two gay characters, one needs to assume to traditionally feminine role (nurturing, emotional, passive), while the other keeps the traditionally masculine role (in charge, often unable/unwilling to express emotions ) within the relationship. As well, a popular trope within the traditionally masculine role is for the character to be tsundere, heavily leaning into the character being emotionally incompetent and just generally being a dick. This... almost too well fits the changes to both Vash and Wolfwoods characters. Stamp!Wolfwood is now squarely a tsundere and a bit of a dick, as well as dark and brooding, rather then a charming if gruff and rough around the edges character that is goofy and kind (but still dark and brooding). In the meantime, Vash is further feminized, his righteous anger replaced by passivity, fitting that role of a female character perhaps a little too well.

The rest of stampede has been heavily revamped to cater to a modern Japanese audience; this can be seen with the use of Japanese ranking systems within the Eye of Micheal that didn't exist, the stripping of a lot of Christian themes from the show, the swap to a sci-fi genre instead of western and the re-vamping of the character designs. In a similar way, revamping the characters into character types and tropes the Japanese audience is familiar with wouldn't be a stretch; and especially so tropes found within yaoi that very easily can invite shipping, if you as a director recognize the potential of Vashwood as a ship to get people invested into a show. Which, quite evidently, the director may aware of, as he's been liking copious amounts of fanart, including Vashwood. He also has a quote attributed to him about how Vash acts as both a female and male character. So, did the feminization of Vash and heavily emphasized tsundere attitude of Wolfwood come about as (at least a part of) a result of a yaoi bait ploy to get people invested into tristamp? Honestly, I don't know, but it fits the tropes so well that some parts of the stamp!vashwood rubs me the wrong way (even if I'm marinating myself within the fandom). It's especially fishy that one of the people involved with the production is liking vashwood stuff shows that people involved in making decisions for the show are aware (and even encouraging) the ship. The fandoms also been around for quite a while, so it would be easy enough to tap into the fandom to see what was popular--and what they could potentially exploit. Interestingly, the way they're setting up tristamp also leans into yaoi bait for Knives x Vash as well, heavily leaning into Knives being like 'everything I did was for you Vash' in an obvious way, which wasn't really the case with trimax... But that's another can of worms. More attention, the better I suppose.

If it's true, characters where changed for more shipping potential, does this matter really? In a grand scheme of things, no. I mean, yaoi bait is obviously utilized in many anime media, just look at Drrr! and the shizuo x izaya ship. The author is plenty aware of what they are doing and leaning hard into it, knowing its popularity, and exploiting that. So it goes. Obviously, its not necessarily a 'bad change' if they decided to change the characters partly for shipping; that's something people get to decide for themselves. Besides, this new iteration of trigun with a more feminine Vash allows for a heavier emphasis on bodily autonomy, especially in regards to femininity as that one post linked above goes into. However, that said, does it matter to me, who is chewing through drywall thinking about the complexities of Wolfwood and Vash and their relationship in trimax? Yeah, absolutely. A little more on that below.

Personal opinions on everything above

If you don't want to read me griping on personally about tristamp then you can just skip this section. It's just me being boring and predictable.

Personally, I miss the og versions of Wolfwood and Vash; I miss the righteous anger that Vash has, I miss their designs and big shoulders and Wolfwoods goofiness and kindness. As well, as much as I love the trans headcanons that are coming out of stampede, as a masc leaning NB individual I really enjoyed the masculine but also emotionally sensitive version of Vash. This especially so as a part of me feels uncomfortable that people look at a male character that is essentially fulfilling a feminine role and go, oh, he's an afab transman, specifically because of his close connotations with femininity. Like, fuck gender expectations and norms and all that, but for me I'm a bit uncomfortable with that assertion (btw this is not me being like u guys need to stop--we're all allowed our opinions, and y'all seem to be enjoying yourself, so go ham I guess). Also, just personally, I've never particularly identified with feminine characters, especially passive female characters, which stamp!Vash very much feels like.

Perhaps part of it is also that I relate a great amount to og!Vash's righteous anger over everything that is occurring, being a part of a cultural minority myself, and being so terribly angry over how I've seen my people be treated. I've also got an abusive sibling with anger issues that lashes out, so seeing Vash struggle with his relationship with Knives, being so terribly angry over everything Knives has put him through (technically, more about others then himself but I digress), along with his confusion and dilemma over still caring about and loving his sibling is also so very validating. So stripping that underlying righteous anger about everything to just make him sad™ makes him less relatable to me. Where is your anger over everything??? where is it?? Come on man, bare your teeth to the world.

Maybe also part of it is also related to just... acknowledging that male characters can be kind. This is probably related to why I dislike that ww has just become a tsundere and kind of a dick. Give him his friendly charisma and kindness back u cowards, I'll beat you with a stick. Dark brooding tsundere's are dime a dozen! Rough around the edges and dangerous but still kind and a bit silly and friendly men who are riddled with guilt? Shiningly beautiful.

Overall, all meta analysis and conspiracy theories (character flattening of wolfwood and vash to fit yaoi tropes) aside, I guess what I'm trying to say is that my 🔥 spicy 🔥 trigun/vashwood opinion is that I don't particularly like this very heavily feminized version of Vash which the fandom seems to be quite happily enjoying. This is both because his righteous anger is stripped out which I relate too and that I (masc NB) feel somewhat uncomfortable that he's often considered a afab transman due to specifically his feminine traits.

EDIT (MAR 27): a post script with further thoughts I suppose, especially after reading this post by @paiteyy , which describes the stripping of more canonical queerness within Stampede--and the way specifically that Meryl seems to be given some of Wolfwoods roles from trimax, in relation to likely making her stampedes 'canonical' ship... in comparison to how trimax Wolfwood and Vash spend a majority of the time together and form deep emotional connections. If they are rearranging tristamp to further cement Meryl into a heavier role of love interest, then it would make sense for her to take over some of Wolfwoods actions. This also falls in line with how they've gone out of their way to give Meryl a bigger backstory and create conditions for character growth... while simultaneously simplifying many of the other characters, especially Wolfwood. Interestingly, this actually falls in line with the tristamp creators being very invested and shuffling things around to fit shipping tropes to rope in a bigger audience; by moving Meryl to the front they can get a canonical het ship for the general audience (much like the 98 version did in a way--cause clearly every show the mc needs a clear love interest), while also ensuring to lean into sub-textual yaoi tropes to rope in others which would be interested in queer ships.

Also photo ID's were added :D

PLUS: here's the link to more of my meta posts if you liked this.

[sodapopseagull]

Week 2 of my November writing challenge is done!

I think the best way I can sum it up is that is that I wrote on days I probably wouldn't have without this challenge to motivate me. I did miss two days but that's okay- I got the requisite 11 hours, 12 minutes at least. Wrote a lot of oakweave and I do hope that's one of the fics I finish this month.

Still gotta do my writing for today, but I got tagged in a thing so I'm gonna take care of that first. On to week 3 now, hoping to have something ✨finished✨ or in the hands of a beta reader by the end of it!

Notes on each day + a photo of the birthday cake I made for my friend below the cut-

Sunday - Went bananas and wrote gender-affirming bloodweave smut to go along with my drawing of Gale wearing stockings and bunny ears. I like it a lot but it's definitely something I wanna get beta'd for sensitivity just to be safe once I tidy it up. It also needs a hot check because I've never properly written smut before 😩

Monday - Bad anxiety day, definitely not super productive as I poked at my oakweave fic. It's a rehash of Gale's romance scenes but during a post-canon visit to Reithwin.

Tuesday - Talked about my feelings a bit here, but yeah. Too anxious to write.

Wednesday - Running on zero sleep but managed to open a doc and write a few words. Oakweave has become my comfort ship haha

Thursday - So the timer I use to see how long I'm writing for counts up when I have Discord open, so the timing is a bit funky. Was very distracted, but I officially made my oakweave fic into a multi-chapter situation.

Friday - Quietly participated in the Bloodweave Brainrot server's crack fic night and attempted to write some silly smut. I've got the bones of something silly and I do hope to get it finished enough to post. Rebounding in a bouncy castle would be an excellent first E-rated fic I think, if I get to it before the other one. Also experienced how effective the Sprinto bot is for locking in!

Saturday - Didn't have any time to write, but that's okay as I was hosting my best friend's birthday party. I love my friend group so much, they are such good people and getting to see all of them was such a comfort. Yesterday was the only day I didn't cry at all LOL 😭 Here's a pic of the birthday cake I made for her- lemon, lemon curd, and lavender buttercream. Little potato guy on top because the party was a potato-themed potato-based potluck!

[its-no-biggie]

SO I WATCHED RESTORATION lets do a quick rundown of my little prediction chart. spoilers under the cut!

I FUCKING CALLED EPSILON TEX COMING BACK ???????

cant believe ZERO got canonized but nothing from temple. we were robbed.

not only no grimmons love confession, but THEY SPLIT UP?????? i wasnt genuinely expecting them to get together or anything but like holy shit. literally the plot of season 15 was grif wanting to split up and realizing that wasnt actually what he wanted. this is not their happy ending what the FUCK. like it was in character and kind of a nice moment, but not as the closure at the very end??? hello??????

predicted both one of the r&bs dying and (kind of) epsilon being dead. im a genius 💪

on that note. i cant believe they KILLED one of the main characters and it wasnt even good angst. tucker fucking killed him???? and then it never comes up again???? the only reason i wanted that to happen was because tucker is the villain!!! he killed him!!!! he should have to reconcile with that!!!! but he just. doesnt?????

still no wash/epsilon interactions. also washs whole presence in this movie was confusing and bad. just didnt make any sense. disappointing

the amount of red team screentime was good though! the reds were easily the best part of this movie. also caboose <3

um. the ending was much worse than i could have predicted. see above. also the "why are we here" thing was WAYYY overused. i appreciate a good callback but like have some restraint jesus christ

and of course the top left corner was bang on. meta!tucker was..... i think in a vaccuum and with better pacing i wouldve really liked it. theres some good angst potential there, but it makes no sense with the rvb meta (haha) and is not well executed. disappointing. and the other fragments had almost no lines :(

final notes. what the fuck did i just watch. honestly its about what i expected - has potential but poorly executed. but my GOD is it poorly executed. they really butchered most of the main cast - not in terms of like, dialogue, per se, but in terms of like. character arcs? most of the character moments would be at home in season 6 even though its supposed to be post-13. and donut isnt even in it! even though theres a moment that was CLEARLY written for donut!! also the twist with doc is somehow both predictable and makes no fucking sense. the exposition is painfully bad, and wastes its time on going over shit we already know while leaving gaping holes that are never explained. the ending is awful and the post credits scene is even worse. and the PACING. this shit is WAYYY too short for everything theyre trying to do, so theres absolutely no time to build tension or care about whats happening. just bad writing all around. but like. it couldve been good. i did have fun watching it. im planning to watch it again so i can fully digest it, and i cant WAIT to read fanfic about it. and there are some really funny moments! but its bad. its a bad season. EASILY worse than the 4 full seasons of material they retconned. honestly.... a fitting end for the show. and i mean that derogatorily

[moveslikeanape]

that is very understandable about preferring to save money and not really keep up with the latest tech haha, but it really is too bad that companies don't make their games compatible with older devices. maybe someday if you end up wanting or needing to replace yours you'll have a chance to play the game! and if you ever do then i hope you'll enjoy it. the songwriters for wish were two people who had only ever written for pop singers before, which i guess isn't automatically bad--after all, phil collins did a great job with the songs he wrote for tarzan. but i wish that for disney's 100th anniversary movie they had gotten a team that was experienced with broadway-style music, the way they usually do for their musicals. the song "at all costs" from wish is an especially strange song to me because just listening to it, you'd think it has a way different context than it actually does in the movie. oh wow i've actually not heard of that book series before, but it's cool that it's getting a disney+ series! i hope the show turns out well. the only thing i'm reading right now is "disney's art of animation: from mickey mouse to hercules", which so far is a great overview of disney's history and i really wish it had had a newer edition. ooh that sounds interesting, i might try and watch greystroke sometime! what do you think of the direct-to-video sequel (or midquel, i guess) to disney's tarzan, and the tv series, if you've watched those things? i remember watching them both when they originally came out, but i don't recall much of what happened in them and i don't think i saw every episode of the tv series. also, i saw your post about the supervising animator of jane following you on instagram--that's so cool, congratulations!! -🌟

I was listening to Hercules this morning at work, and all I could think about was how amazing the lyrics were. The line from One Last Hope "I'm down to one last shot and my last high note, before that blasted underworld gets my goat" is so satisfying because it rhymes perfectly, makes sense, and is a clever pun using a common phrase that is also in this case literal given he's half goat. And in Zero to Hero there's the line "and this perfect package packed a pair of pretty pecs" is probably the best example of alliteration I've ever heard in a song. Also, all the songs fit perfectly in the movie. They don't sound like something written to get radio plays or to hit the top of the charts and then stuffed into a movie they don't belong in.

More and more lately it seems like Disney's really just going for the quick buck. Just trying to get things out as quickly as possible with out putting the effort in to making it quality like they used to (nothing against the crew, at the end of the day they have to do what their bosses say). So frustrating… just because something is popular does not mean it's the best. Thinking back to growing up in the 90s and the music that was popular then. I loved the music, but it would have been awful to shove that into the movies. Technically it did happen with Mulan. I love that movie, and I do really enjoy True to Your Heart, but it is soooo out of place with the rest of the songs that it practically pulls out out of the movie, like you just changed to channel to something else, and it ruined the ending for me. I honestly feel like skipping the end every time I watch it. One of the reasons the 90s worked so well is they brought in that broadway style that worked so well, and kept the pop music out of the movies (and in the credits where it actually makes sense).

I think the reason Phil Collins worked so well is he was making music for the movie, not what was popular at the time. It made complete sense to bring him in because he's probably the best known drummer at the time. From what I've seen and read he came in willing to learn, because he'd never done music for a film before. This wasn't just writing individual songs, this was telling a story and moving that story along. If you listen to his other work you can notice the difference. Still distinctly Phil Collins, but still serving the film they were made for.

I also remember seeing an interview a few years back with a number of different film composers talking about writing for movies (this one was specifically Marvel movies) compared to "back in the day". One thing that really stood out to me was they said that the movie's are filmed or story-boarded and the director will watch playback with temporary music, sometimes music from other movies that have already been released. The composers said that by the time they are brought in to write the actual music for the movie, the director has "seen the film" so often with the place holder music that that's what they want in the film. So the composers have to write something new that sounds similar to the temp music, instead of having the freedom to create their own music. I wonder if it might be a little of that going on too.

Ooo, I picked up a copy of that art of animation book at a convention a few years ago, still haven't gotten around to reading it though. It's always a shame when book series don't continue. Would be interesting to see a newer version of that series now with todays computer animation included.

I enjoyed the tv series for the most part. A lot of the episodes were based on the original novels, and I loved seeing new adventures for Tarzan. But at the same time, it felt off. The animation was understandably poor (they had only a tiny budget), but the thing that bothered me the most was the way the characters behaved. I know some of it was to make the story work, but they for the most part felt like different characters playing the ones from the movie. Jane was probably the worst, she seemed even less equipped for life in the jungle in the series than she did when she first appeared in the movie. Tarzan and Jane was basically 3 episodes of the series tied together as flashbacks for the story of their 1 year anniversary.

Tarzan 2 was basically an expansion of the Son of Man segment of Tarzan. It had far better animation than Tarzan and Jane (the characters were actually on model!), and the story was pretty cute too. I loved the new songs in it, although they weren't quite up there with Tarzan's songs, it was nice they were able to bring Phil back to write them. Also love that the one was reworked and put in the broadway show.

OMG, thank you!!! I'm still over the moon about that… I keep checking back to see if it actually happened and I didn't just dream it, lol.

[comfort-questing]

20 questions for writers

tagged by @therosefrontier :) thanks!

--

How many works do you have on AO3?

21, but one's a collection of fe3h drabbles and small fics totalling 13.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

98,576 apparently! ...seems about right.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

uh. Genshin... Critrole... Fire Emblem Three Houses... also Fate Zero, finally, triumphantly, eventually. I've written bits of stuff here and there for other ones but most of it isn't published.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

night and death and the rain are given, 729, because Kaeya whump brings out the fans?? also I had a good update schedule for it, haha, which probably helped.

flame to dark, 393, my first Genshin fic. I guess Diluc whump is also popular. I remember being so chuffed that people liked it.

something which nobody may keep. 219, fain's dear angst art made into a Whumptober 2022 prompt... wait, that was just last year?

the sea, the storm, the stars, 217, right after. writing about Kazuha is hard because thinking about him hurts a little, but I do love this story so.

a gently welcoming darkestness, 186, which surprises me that it made the top 5 since that was where my regular update schedule went to die, and didn't take off as quickly. but I'm glad folk ended up liking it.

all Genshin, haha. and 4/5 ragbros.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I do! although if someone comments on each chapter I may not respond to every single one. but I like to respond, because I like to be responded to on mine when I can be, and because it does make me so happy for them to comment.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

oh boy. that's a toss-up between the last of my fe3h drabbles that I put up, "not glory nor goodness," and just about any of my fate zero pieces, but probably on these sands I built my fortresses. the horror of having to kill Felix at Arianhrod, because not killing him means other students die, vs. Saber's shame and self-hatred and having to kill one of her old associates too. maybe I should say the fe3h one because I don't like re-reading it but I will the other one.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I... was going to say I usually did happy endings but that's not quite true. I write ambiguous, nervous, and hopeful-in-the-midst-of-confusion endings. I think the only uncomplicated happy endings I've done were the fluff fics for a couple exchanges. specially driftwood and light for Critrole, which is all about getting rescued!

8. Do you get hate on fics?

no, thankfully, though I did get someone once commenting that my snarky/dark humor author's notes on some whump fic ruined the mood. it stung a bit, but I kept doing it, and also deleted the comment.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

heh... I do not... I tend to think what characters do in the bedroom is their own business, although now and again I admit some amorphous spicy headcanon occurs to me. usually in regards to someone else's suggestion or a fic that I scroll past that I think brazenly mischaracterizes their sex lives...

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

usually don't, but I do have a funky little dialogue piece between RWBY characters and Morgaine and Vanye from the Morgaine Chronicles that I never posted. This is because I think I may be the only person in the universe who is familiar with both fandoms. if there are any others I really want to meet them though.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

hope not! ...though there was one that got published shortly after the author put kudos on one of mine, and it was a very similar concept and similar imagery at several points. but they did a totally different thing with it and went in a different direction! so even if it was borrowed it was Fair Use and I'm rather proud of them. :)

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

not that I know of!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

no, but I'd love to someday! I am not good at plots. I admire when folk are good at plots. I want to be part of their plots and fill in all the corners with conversations and angst and character stuff.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

I'm not really a shipper of anything particularly, but... I suppose the only ship tag I actually ever used is for Zen and Shirayuki from snow white with the red hair? and I do love their relationship, haha.

oh! that reminds me. I think my favorite ships are Hak/Yona from Yona of the Dawn and also Royai from FMA just like my tagger said.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

...of original works? oh so many. of fanfic? uh... I want to write a Fate/Stay Night AU where Saber saves Ilya, and I did start it. what's likelier to happen there is I write it as a bunch of short stories and they may just end up being bittersweet with a side of catharsis?

I want to write an Inazuma Rebellion AU for Genshin but that's more of a "literally never started" than any kind of "in progress."

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think it's fair to say description? people mention it a lot, and I like to write it. I love words. words are amazing. the things that people can do with words are amazing. I like to make words do cool things too.

I like writing dialogue a lot too, when I can.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

plots. pacing, sometimes. fight scenes, or used to be, but I think I'm getting better at them.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I never have, but if it came up I could try? though I certainly wouldn't trust google translate.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

in little bits and snipppets... the Chronicles of Narnia when I was a small kid, and then Warriors Cats like the rest of us (heh), and I think Redwall? I made stories up about the sci-fi series Dad read to us when I was very very young, but I don't think I'd call them writing per se.

and then I did a lot of mediocre heartfelt Lord of the Rings fic when I was 11-12ish, which I didn't post although my friend encouraged me to. that was the first fandom where I wrote anything more than, like, half a page. in fact, it was very many pages. I want to say there were like 4 separate OCs and concepts I was writing, and they never intersected, they were all just different twists I had.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

that's a tough one. I... actually really love my longer fe3h fic, the bright and the broken - which completely elided all ships in a very shippy fandom with an alacrity that was not my intent but my outcome. the conv I wrote there, about helping people being like dropping pebbles in a well, and never knowing which one is going to be the one that lifts them high enough to reach the light... I think about that still and I'm not sure where I got it but I think it's true. also encapsulates what I love the most about Three Houses. loving people is how you change the course of the narrative... you can't save everyone all the time but you can save almost everyone most of the time if you do what you can??

I think my fate/zero trilogy is the most uh... emotionally cathartic of them for me though. I hope it finds the approximately 2.9 people in the universe besides me that it makes sense to, wherever they are.

--

tagging @notfromcold, @erinaceina, @isnt-it-pretty, anyone else who wants to bc I'm sure I'm forgetting folk

[bookworm-2692]

I posted 18,363 times in 2022

That's 4,896 more posts than 2021!

159 posts created (1%)

18,204 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@theminecraftbee

@simplydm

@anarchy-and-asexuality

@genderfluid-chameleon

@lebannabell

I tagged 11,509 of my posts in 2022

Only 37% of my posts had no tags

#hermitcraft - 5,171 posts

#double life smp - 2,761 posts

#empires smp - 1,679 posts

#red vs blue - 863 posts

#mcc - 461 posts

#doctor who - 416 posts

#third life smp - 206 posts

#zero escape - 187 posts

#bbc ghosts - 179 posts

#999 spoilers - 128 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#he was reading his chat and mentioned it and grian was like ‘wow that’s clever wish i’d thought of that’ and otherwise didn’t say anything

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Watching Impulse’s stream from the other day and Bdubs joined the game an hour or so in, and Impulse was about to say hi in chat but then stopped, because he hadn’t said hi to anyone else and he didn’t want it to look like he was playing favourites. He was like “sorry Bdubs I have to snub you just like I snubbed everyone else”. Then, after a suggestion from chat, he got around it by saying “hey everyone hope you are all having a wonderful day” and then looked super pleased with himself for that loophole

139 notes - Posted September 16, 2022

#4

Doc’s been wandering alone on Empires for 20 minutes, hasn’t seen anyone, has finally discovered a structure. He sees a redstone contraption and just says “if I was Grian right now I would press this button” and then presses it. He’s seen Joel kill Scar in chat, and also that Grian knows Joel by name and is very confused. Doc is convinced this is a UHC. The button released fireworks and now Doc is looking around, worried that he has attracted attention, worried that he’ll be killed if it’s a UHC. Doc is not having a good time right now

142 notes - Posted October 29, 2022

#3

Man Ren is practically begging the server to start a revolution. Flaunting his wealth and building with diamonds was taking too long so he decided to claim everything built in spawn and the shopping district with his head.

The funny part is I honestly think he wasn’t expecting the king thing to last this long. He expected rebellions long before now and now he’s just like. What can I do next so they rebel. I have no diamonds please remove me as king why is no one rebelling.

190 notes - Posted September 5, 2022

#2

I still can’t get over the fact that the only two people banned from the Ranch, separately, were Grian and then Scar. And who did Rancher Duo accidentally team up with? Desert Duo. It’s just. How. Why. It’s great

371 notes - Posted July 15, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

After everyone leaves Tumble Town, except for Scar who doesn’t have enough rockets, Scar sits Jimmy down and tries to explain that Woody is an honourable man, a leader, respected, and that Jimmy should embrace him. Honestly I much prefer Scar’s method here of utilising his charisma rather than Joel’s of just yelling that Jimmy is a toy haha

455 notes - Posted October 28, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[bambis-baby]

I posted 239 times in 2021

4 posts created (2%)

235 posts reblogged (98%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 58.8 posts.

I added 40 tags in 2021

#pretty peoples arty art - 28 posts

#spooky and motivation - 2 posts

#🦌👶 - 2 posts

#asks - 2 posts

#pulling out pens or bottle caps or things he finds under the couch that have been there for years - 1 posts

#not too shabby - 1 posts

#❤😈 - 1 posts

#spicy - 1 posts

#i try not to but im always thinking it - 1 posts

#it's my birthday tomorrow and my dad doesn't remember and i'm intentionally not telling him to figure out how long it takes him to realize - 1 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#it's my birthday tomorrow and my dad doesn't remember and i'm intentionally not telling him to figure out how long it takes him to realize

My Top Posts in 2021

#4

But this... this is the mobile app..

0 notes • Posted 2021-12-08 10:33:02 GMT

#3

28! ✨

Welcome to the Jungle by Guns 'n Roses! 🌻💕🎶

I never ever get asks for these sort of things so you've absolutely just made my day

0 notes • Posted 2021-12-02 10:49:51 GMT

#2

I'm just watching Age of Ultron with my family and woah, Jo** Whe**n really does have a thing for the 'male character falls and lands in female characters bust' trope, huh?

0 notes • Posted 2021-04-11 11:23:24 GMT

#1

When you get this, please respond with five things that make you happy! Then, send to the last ten people in your notifs (anonymously if you want). You never know who might benefit from spreading positivity ♡

Oh my gosh, I never ever get messages. It must be my lucky day.

5 things? I don't know five things. I can barely think of two things. But for you, kind anon, I will try.

It's gotta be my dog, Max. He's three years old, and American Staffy, and the only reason I get out of bed in the mornings

I love writing. Mostly fanfic because it's so versatile but I've got a few of my own original works that I've done for class and stuff with my own characters that I'm pretty pleased with

Books! Reading! My new year's resolution was to read one chapter a day, and I've done pretty well. I've dropped off a bit towards the end of the year because I've got a lot of books to read for my class, but I just love that I've gotten back into reading!!

Dungeons and Dragons. I haven't actually played, but I've got the core rule books and heaps of dice and lots of characters, so all I need is a group to play with and I'll be set

Lollies and sweets. I have a huge sweet tooth. Chocolate, cheesecake, caramel, vanilla slice, jelly slice, red velvet cake, sticky date pudding, you name it

Thanks, anon! This made my day x

1 notes • Posted 2021-11-07 01:59:59 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[ladyyatexel]

I Went On A Manga Binge

So you don't have to

For those of you who have wisely avoided the shreds of it I've left around the blog thus-far, I had some weird notion to go re-experience Yu-Gi-Oh uuuuuh a week ago? We'll go with that. Time is meaningless.

I'd been able to read a good portion of the early manga at the end of highschool, and somewhere in my stacks and stacks of paper is fanart from this dark time, so you know I cared. I also still own a Dark Magician action figure somehow, so. I'd also watched a large portion of the anime with my brother because it had been laced with some kind of crack and we couldn't look away? I remember when we both were just like shit, wait, don't change the channel, I can't stop looking at it. And the next thing we knew we were waiting for new episodes and I was doing research on the Japanese original because I was that kid.

Anyway, unnecessary backstory out of the way, here are some... let's call them Observations and Consequences of having read somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 chapters (and growing) of a manga primarily hinged on card games from a spectrum of sources ranging from boringly lawful to sketchy as fuck.

Surprise actual character that develops in typical shounen fashion being Jounouchi. My limited experiences with the 4Kids dub and only early manga had not painted him in a particularly good light. I don't know if episodes were being aired out of order or if I had just missed the ones that established that he was making shit up as he was going along, but Wow I liked him a lot more going through the manga than I ever did watching the (dubbed, heavily edited and censored and thrown into a slurry machine) anime. I'd managed to come out with the impression that he was just as reasonably experienced with the game as Yugi back in the day. Wild.

I'm now reading every single comic-style post on Tumblr backwards.

Striking inverse to first point, wow, I don't like Seto Kaiba. Though he gets points for his general philosophy of the future, and the line I read in my sketchy online combo of scans and scanlations in which he said, "If God is in your way, you run him down," was Metal As Fuck. I somewhat shame-facedly admit to enjoying him a lot more as an Abridged Series character. (I watched Abridged as it came out back in the day! The experience of watching the anime with my brother had been so fresh that I got all the in jokes about the way things were edited and dubbed, it was great. Series remains influential part of my life to this day, which is hella weird.)

I almost understand how Duel Monsters works now. I don't want this.

That said, wow a lot of the decisions made in the anime made everything a lot more ridiculous than the admittedly already ridiculous original. I got the distinct feeling in the manga that the Duelist Kingdom stuff we were seeing was designed to be used and exploited in ways that don't make sense in an actual cardgame just played on a table like a normal person and this was part of testing everyone to think higher, differently. Maybe this is obvious to everyone already, I don't know. I had always liked that it was very, 'Not so fast, I'm going to blow up the moon to change the tides,' but I'm not really sure the anime gave enough explanation that this was an extra layer added to things for that event? You can see people actively getting used to it in the books, and people who aren't considering the real or 3D nature of it getting owned, but my memory of anime version is everyone just like, 'oh, shucks, fuck me, I forgot to consider the phase of the moon before i played this card, can't believe I forgot.' No one calls Yugi on any of this stuff because it's valid play in that situation. Plus Yami Yugi had mad trickster energy in the beginning and it suited him to think of ways to do things inside these little simulation boxes the way it suited him to set perverts on fire. I imagine the real card game trying to emulate this element as something that would be to its detriment, but I neither know nor particular care haha

Ryou Bakura.

Really, though. I think he became kind of casualty of 'wow, we have a lot of characters who really aren't able to do anything in this story anymore,' despite the fact that his whole inner life could have been as interesting as Yugi's. I always like thinking about the possibilities of stories in which main character falls into magical world and is given magical item and told they're the hero and then they find out they've been the bad guy the whole time. The first several volumes of manga were about the quiet weirdo kid that no one talked to who was always blacking out and turning into a fucked up version of himsef because he was so attached to his ancient Egyptian jewelry, so like, Bakura could have much the same shit going on. I want to know what's happening with him so much. He clearly doesn't love being possessed, but he's also so drawn to the ring. Despite it having stabbed him at least twice and him knowing it's a danger to him and his friends, he keeps being pulled back into it. You see so much more of him being like, 'Oooh, a creepy thing, I love that! :D' in the manga than ever in the anime, which I'm all about. Also more blood. I'm very about that as well. Though my memory of the anime also made it look very much like normal regular daily Bakura was just a weird facade in places before he ever would have been. I think that was it trying to compensate for what people didn't see from the Toei anime, but okay whatever, that I love everything about this guy is not news, I don't need to talk about Bakura excessively here, I'm pretty sure that's gonna show up on my blog by itself

On a related note though, damn, more of these people need to talk to each other. Can we have some existential crisis support clubs or something. Can we get like some apologies or something? "I respect you as a duelist." "Cool, but you literally built a tower designed to specifically assassinate me and my friends? You were supposed to get Better after I retaliated by putting you in a coma, but you kinda didn't." "Why would the coma have made it better" "I just told you it didn't" ---- "Sorry I went along with the plan of your evil parasite stabbing you, misled you, and then also jumped in and took up some real estate in your head too." "I understand, I also have an evil thing inside me that does things while I'm blacked out." "...no, I was conscious for all of that." "Oh." "..." "..." "..." "Do you like Ouija Boards?" "sure okay" ETC. Like damn we are reading shounen manga because no one is talking extensively about their feelings here and I'm tapping my foot angrily.

Holy shit there are so many mythologies happening at once. The ancient family guarding the Egyptian Pharaoh has a surname that's a Mesopotamian goddess. None of the god cards make any Egyptian sense except Ra, and just like. Baaarrrrely. Somewhere either Evil Ring Bakura or Mar/lik makes a reference to cremation and spirits being taken to heaven with smoke which several things, but definitely not Ancient Egyptian. Marik/Malik meanwhile is clearly trying to head Arabic, along with Rishid, but then, hey, our sister is just Isis. Goddess McGoddess. Sometimes they're the same goddess! Her name could be Isis Isis or Ishtar Ishtar. Meanwhile, all the obviously 'occult because Christians think it is freaky' stuff. ~ancient egyptian pentagrams~~~This isn't a complaint, I guess so much as a 'Wow, I can kind of see the cultural spot the author was coming from and where he was aiming' kind of thing.

Wonder where things would have gone if the card games had not been latched onto the way they were.

Managed to forget how gross the pre-cardgames stuff was on the sexual harassment front. I'm glad there was a sort of explanation of everyone drifting away from being dick heads and that that decision was made. It got way more comfortable to read after no one was bringing Yugi p*rn on VHS.

Yugi looks better with a nose, glad we got that upgrade.

Interesting to watch the series style shift as it goes away from being horror to being over the top cardgames and friendship (with blood!). The first picture of Mokuba is fucking Jarring. Also noticed that the nicer a character is, the less their teeth are defined.

Glad manga did not go as completely off the fucking the rails about Marik's face. I never got as far as seeing him back in the day because college occurred, but I remember seeing pictures and stuff and being like, "what in the Fuck happened to that dude, I think the house style has collapsed in on itself"

Things the author Really Likes: motorcycles, belts, SHOES, holy shit the shoes. These are some of the most lovingly rendered sneakers I've ever seen. All the detail on his characters goes straight to their feet and then it's stretched upward until it forms stiff peaks. Gently fold in 3000 years of trauma and bake face down in a crumb coat of scattered mythology. Remove when you roll two zeros.

Where the fuck am I going to put the extremely large omnibus volumes of this comic I purchased in order to balance out how much I would be reading for free on the internet. I should have grasped that a three in one edition would be Thick and yet somehow I was still :O when it arrived. Have I strategically purchased volumes that contain my favorite parts, maybe, what's it to you will i eventually get the whole thing because incomplete book series gnaw on my soul? yes

Wish the transition from "I've murdered several people in delightfully karmic ways" to "all you need is friendship in your heart and cards in your hand" Yami Yugi/Pharaoh had been discussed more/transitioned better. Buddy, where did you get this approved for television high horse? Please go back to strangling people with yo-yos or at least tell me why you stopped.

I still can't tell anything that looks like a big robotic monster apart from any other big robotic monster. My dude, I can't tell cars apart, all these monsters look the same.

Yami Yugi fascinated me way more in highschool? Maybe because it was still super early and the anime was like 'we need to torture you about his origins WeEkLy. Now I'm just like 'wait hold on, can we go back to Bakura and Marik for a minute, there's some extreme unpacking to do here?' Those two are paying so much more in baggage fees here my guy wow

Violently uninterested in any of the spinoff media

[shoutogepi]

As Long as You’re Safe

Bakugou Katsuki

word count : 2.1k smol boi (blurb!)

[ ☁︎, ☀︎ ]  

themes : Soooo not really sure what to call this?? Kinda angst?? But super fluff ending :3

blurb : They are fighting a villain who has the ability to see into their opponent’s memories, and also convey scenarios and images into their opponent’s mind, making them feel like real life. The villain accesses their memories of you, and realizes that that is a very weak spot.

author’s note : idk i felt like I needed a fluff sponge to clean up that nasty first post haha so heres my best janitorial work!

    ─── ・°* ﾟ✧:* • ｡ﾟ:*･☽･*: ｡ﾟ•*:✧ ﾟ*°・ ───

🅃he air whipped past Bakugou’s face, eyes turning into venomous slits as he finally was able to see the villain he had been called in to handle. He had been on patrol on the other side of the area, but when his sidekick didn’t respond to his messages, a gut feeling had urged him to come as backup. The agency had called when he was already halfway there, confirming his suspicion.

This was the guy? Tch. Bakugou snarled at the thought of this wimp being able to beat, well, anyone. The guy was slender and looked like he had almost no muscle or body fat. But he had to have a good quirk if he had taken out a handful of people already, so Bakugou regarded him with careful contempt. The explosions in his palms stopped as he fell from the third story of the building he’d been perched on, hurtling toward the ground.

“Hey asshole,” Bakugou yelled as his boots touched the pavement of the sidewalk. He stretched his palms in a wicked manner, cracking his neck in a swift motion.

The villain turned, a look of disgruntled annoyance simmering to the surface of his face. A malicious smile overtook his thin lips, and a glint in his eye made Bakugou growl. The man faced him directly now, and the terrified pedestrian he had been toying with sobbed as they ran towards the safety of the crowd gathering a respectable distance away. Bakugou grimaced as he noticed the limp body of his sidekick, sat up against one of the storefront’s flower barrels with closed eyes and a pained expression. From just a glance, he could tell they were alive… but they probably didn’t feel too great.

“Ground Zero,” the spindly man smiled, but to Bakugou it looked more like he was baring his teeth like a rabid dog. “How nice of you to grace me with your presence! I didn’t know little old me could pull in a top hero.”

Bakugou barked a short laugh. “You only got me ‘cause of sheer luck, dumbass. I have no clue who you think you are, but you’re about to be very well acquainted,” he paused, rolling his right wrist for dramatic effect,” with my fists.” 

He expected a range of reactions from the villain. He had been doing this pro-hero gig for awhile now, so he’d learned the ropes-- and this guy didn’t seem like the type to have an ass-whooping quirk, so he could most likely afford to physically attack.

“Now that is an interesting game plan, Bakugou,” the villain stated, voice dripping with rancor. His words shocked Bakugou for a moment, and just as a thought formed in his mind, the slender man vocalized it. “Oh shit, this fucker can read me like a book,” the man paused, an amused smile on his face,” wow, you have quite a way with words.”

“Tch. I don’t care if you’re in my head asswipe, ‘cause your skull is about to be crushed into the ground,” Bakugou replied, foot planting behind himself and getting ready to pounce.

“Hmm, are you sure? Will you treat me roughly?” the man continues seamlessly, making Bakugou’s eyes widen in confusion. Treat him rough? Who the hell does this guy think he is? Was he hitting on him? The villain’s smile only broadened, the sneer on his mouth flushing Bakugou’s stomach with dread. “At least, as rough as your girlfriend likes it?”

Bakugou’s mouth dried at his words, body stuttering as he processed the them. Why the fuck was this freak talking about Y/N?

“Y/N, yes-- what an extravagant creature. I wouldn’t have pegged her as someone who likes to be choked. Are you sure you can handle fighting me? It seems like you had an exhausting night, and rest is important for the body.”

Bakugou’s breath is stolen out of his lungs, his wide eyes turning into furious crescents at the villain’s words. That was private! The villain’s words automatically triggered his memory, even if he was trying his best to push the image away. You, underneath him last night, shaking and whimpering and making that irresistible expression as he fucked you raw. A light blush bloomed on his cheeks at the recollection, but he shoved it away as fast as he could. His eyes met the villain’s again, but this time, the shadowy figure’s features had morphed into a terrifying grin, eyes bulging out of his skull with disgusting delight.

“Oh, thank you so much for sharing that with me. Maybe I’ll try out choking her myself!” he laughed, voice oozing with excitement as he wrung his hands together.

Bakugou snapped out of his surprised state, shaking his head and clenching his eyes shut. He just had to wreck his loser and then he could go home to you.

Nothing could prepare him for what happened next. He looked back up at the villain, and his stomach plummeted fifty meters into the concrete below him as he registered the horrific scene.

The villain was standing in the exact same spot, but he had his arms wrapped around your throat. You were trapped in his hold, big desperate eyes full of tears that slid down your cheeks and fingers clawing futilely at his hold. You were wearing that maroon lingerie from last anniversary that drove Bakugou wild, your hair clinging to your wet chin as you sobbed. The noise was enough to make Bakugou’s knees shake, his heart felt like it had leapt into his throat.

“S-Suki,” you whimpered, slicing his heart into two.

Bakugou’s lips trembled at your cry, his hands clenching into fists at his side. His voice was much softer now, and he was surprised to find it didn’t break,” Let her go.” His feet planted square, he stared down the villain with a burning determination, steam practically pouring out of his nostrils.

“Now where’s the fun in that?” the man chided, one hand leaving your delicate throat and sliding down your chest. Bakugou’s fingernails broke into the flesh of his palms as the villain’s hand ran over your breast, lingering there as he gauged Bakugou’s reaction. The choked sob that came from you made Bakugou see red.

Bakugou stepped forward but immediately regretted it as the villain’s hand on your throat turned white. He watched in horror as you sputtered, face turning pink at the exertion of wriggling in his hold, grasping at his hand to no avail. “Stop! Please!” he yelled, throwing his hands up in front of him and taking a step back.

“Ground Zero!” Bakugou’s eyes hesitantly left your figure for a moment, trying to find the source of the shout. It sounded like someone was calling him, but from somewhere far away… or like he was underwater. He looked around, realizing the crowd of onlookers had vanished, and the unconscious body of his sidekick was gone as well. Actually, you three were the only people on the busy Japan street.

Just like that, the gears click into place. Looking back at the villain, his rage bubbling inside, he snarled and pushed his body off the pavement, explosions dancing on his palms to seal the gap swiftly.

The villain looked irritated at being found out, but that didn’t stop him from snapping your neck. Bakugou tried not to look at you, but the thought that you had been real just a moment ago made his chest tight as your gaze glazed over and your body slumped to the ground. He screamed as he drew back his fist, concentrating his power on his hand just as it connected with the spindly man’s jaw. His head flew backwards, a sick crack sounding as his body was flung into the air behind him.

Bakugou landed on his feet, and braced himself for a second as he closed his eyes. Not real, not real, she is not real. Opening his eyes, he looked at the spot your crumpled body should have been, only to find that it was empty. He breathed out a sigh of relief, attention sliding back to the unconscious villain in the middle of the road. He ignored the cheers erupting from the crowd behind him, feet moving on their own accord toward the villain’s figure to finish the job.

It was hell waiting to get back to you. Bakugou had to wait for the police to show up and take the loser off his hands, then he had to pretend he was fine and sign a thousand autographs, and then to top it all off, he had to take his damn sidekick back to the agency across town. The suspense was killing him. Even if he knew that it was stupid… a small, okay-- maybe large-- part of him needed you in his arms, and to know you were truly alright.

After he was done with the agency, he nearly ran all the way home. Using his quirk to shoot himself through the starry cityscape, the wind rushing through his hair, his chest still felt just as tight as it did earlier. It seemed like an eternity had passed as he finally planted his feet on the sidewalk, hand grabbing the main entrance door and nearly ripping it off its hinges. The security guard barely had time to recognize him and buzz him in, and he sure as hell didn’t bother with a “good evening”. He beelined past the elevator, instead opting to dart into the stairwell and propel himself up to the sixteenth floor with his quirk.

His legs couldn’t carry him fast enough, and he dashed through the hallway with urgency. His eyes finally landing on the door, he prayed it was unlocked because he really did not want to blast through the lock but damn it, he might just have to. He nearly cried as he jiggled the door handle, confirming his fear. His palm on the metal handle, he closed his eyes and wondered if you would kill him for blasting through another locksmith’s fine work.

But then the handle turned ninety degrees, and the door cracked open to reveal your bare face, hair looking frazzled as you blinked at him.

“Suki!” your plump lips split into a joyous grin and Bakugou’s soul almost left his body in sheer relief. You pulled him into the apartment, shutting the door behind him and wrapping your soft arms around his torso. “I was so worried about you! I saw the end of your fight on the news, are you okay?”

Bakugou couldn’t say any words, his throat felt thick and his eyes stung as he crushed you into his chest. His head hanging down to sniff your precious head, his lungs rattled as he tried not to burst into tears. You fit so perfectly in his arms, he couldn’t help but thank the universe that you’re safe, and you’re here, holding onto him tightly as he barely kept it together.

You frowned at his silence, but you decided to comfort him anyway because he seemed like he really needed it. Your fingers brushed along his spine as he clutched onto you, gathering his emotions. You weren’t used to seeing him so choked up, but you knew there must be some reason as to why he’s so silent. “It’s okay, baby,” you whispered, making a small sigh fall from his lips.

He finally looked you in the eye, and your stomach fluttered with butterflies at his expression. “I love you, Y/N,” he mumbled, warm hands taking your face and pressing your lips to his. You hummed happily against his mouth, hands lacing behind his neck in compliance. He pulled away, one last shred of doubt left to address. “Are you okay?” he inquired quietly, almost bashfully. His gaze was directed to the collar of your shit that his thumb was playing with, and you took his jaw in your hands to make him look at you.

His scarlet eyes looked so concerned and scared, your heart ached for him. “Of course I’m okay Katsuki,” you answered, looking at him deeply,” I have you to protect me!” A small smile adorned your lips as your nails scratch gently at his scalp. “Are you okay, my love?”

One corner of his mouth quirked up adorably as he tried to put on his brave face for you. “I’m okay,” he whispered, eyes closing as his lips touched your forehead gently,” as long as you’re safe.”

    ─── ・°* ﾟ✧:* • ｡ﾟ:*･☽･*: ｡ﾟ•*:✧ ﾟ*°・ ───

masterlist (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ 

please stop by and say hi!! i’d love any feedback <3 thanks for reading!!

𝐂𝐨𝐩𝐲𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 © 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐩𝐢 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟎. 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐝.

[xenteaart]

Shall We? (Part 2)

Pairing: Five Hargreeves x fem!Reader

Request: Can I request part two for Shall We? Pleeeeaase 🙏!! You can’t just leave it like that.

Word count: 1,7k

Warnings: kind of a fight scene?? and like one swear word idk

Note: Sooo here’s part two of this fic, give it a read if you havent coz otherwise this one is not going to make much sense haha

For the sake of the story, Five disappeared when he was 18 (instead of 13) and got stuck in his 18 year-old-body after coming back accordingly. Also I’ve decided to give the reader and the Handler kind of a Lila x the Handler dynamic

The events are taking place in s1, some details of the canon are obvsly altered.

ALSO THERE’S A LIL EASTER EGG AT THE END MWEHEHE

Hope you enjoy!

Taglist: @stitched-mouth​ @startrekkingaroundasgard​

“You do know you can’t win. I really don’t wanna hurt you, Y/N,” he uttered, raising his hands a little as a way to warn you not to come any closer for your own good.

Even though it was supposed to be a sweet gesture of concern, hearing him confirm that he still thought you were no match for him cut you to your very core.

“Oh, yeah? Well, I’m afraid you might have to. Shall we?” you sneered and threw your leg into the air, hitting Five right under his kneecap and making him collapse on the ground with a surprised gasp.

Five truly had zero intention of hurting you, but your determination to have a fight left him no choice, and even his clear advantage of having loads more experience and superpowers on top did not seem to make you hesitate.

“Come on, don’t be stupid, Y/N,” Five commented as he got back on his feet and took a few steps away from you, still giving you a chance to back off before he had to inflict any pain on your person, but all it achieved was winding you up even more.

The problem was - you two underwent identical training at the Commission as the Handler gave both of you her very best mentor, and right now you were basically mirroring each other’s moves, except Five was also using his spatial jumps to disorient you. He was still going easy on you, mostly just blocking your punches and jumping further away so you had to chase him all over the Academy while he was hoping you would simply exhaust yourself before any real damage would be done. Quite frankly, it was a smart decision on his part and a rather thoughtful one as well because, despite all appearances, he actually cared about you an awful lot.

As the both of you gracefully danced all the way to the second floor, you were already out of breath from the endless running around which meant Five’s plan was beginning to work. However, you realized what he was doing soon enough to indulge him into the feeling of being right and played his little game for a while, waiting for the perfect moment when he’d get distracted, and as the moment came you had to act fast.

You threw yourself forwards and promptly wrapped your arms around Five’s waist, knocking him off his feet and pressing your body against his as you pinned him to the floor. He groaned with annoyance and winced at the pain as his back hit the hard wooden surface. The next few seconds sort of happened in slow-mo for both of you as he roughly pushed you off himself and somehow managed to switch places with you, now looming over your body and warningly putting his knee on your solar plexus, threatening to crush your ribcage if you moved.

A mutual silence fell between you as you were processing the last 30 minutes of your lives, both visibly struggling to believe that each of you somehow ended up fighting the person they would never wish to hurt in their entire life. The sounds of your heavy breathing were filling the room as you were merely staring at each other in utter confusion. The weight of Five’s knee on your diaphragm was beginning to give you trouble breathing, and your breaths became shallow and hoarse which finally snapped him out of his trance.

“Gonna tell me what the hell is up now, Y/N?” he asked in his teacher-y manner that you used to absolutely hate and adore all at once, especially when he used to give you lectures on your occasional fuck-ups - whether it was failing a class because you were too lazy to turn in your assigments in time or something a little more serious, like getting into an argument with the Monocle and consequently making life harder for both of you.

You would always roll your eyes and smirk when he would get into his i-am-disappointed-in-you-but-i-still-love-you character and cross his arms on his chest for dramatic effect.

“You were the one telling me to piss off in the first place, remember,” you narrowed your eyes as you were subtly gasping for air underneath Five’s weight. He pursed his lips and looked away, contemplating whether or not to be completely honest. Evidently, his lack of sincerity got him nowhere the last time around, so he sighed loudly; his shoulders dropping and his expression finally revealing all of the exhaustion and regret that he was concealing quite successfully up until now.

“I only pushed you away to protect you.”

“Sounds like bullshit to me,” you replied, clearly unimpressed and palpably suspicious; two years of being brainwashed by the Handler now taking their toll on your perspective.

“God, don’t be so slow,” Five uttered clearly irritated but then quickly realized his offensive implication and added, “Said with respect.”

You stayed silent, raising your brow as a way of telling him to continue.

“I couldn’t risk you becoming a casualty because being involved in my family’s mess as a non-super is dangerous. As in, you’re going to be a target all the time, and I couldn’t and still can’t afford to waste my time worrying about your safety. As much as I’d love to - it’s simply not the luxury I have. I’ve got to stop the end of the world, otherwise everyone is going to be dead in four days, don’t you get it?” Five asked, a waterfall of emotions pushing at the inner sides of his chest, waiting to be set loose and consume everything on its way.

You were quietly listening to his explanation and taking it all in whilst still trying to fight off the suspicion and disbelief that were nagging at your every cell.

“I wanted to keep you safe because I couldn’t bear to lose you again,” his voice trembled a little as the memories of his post-apocalypse life washed over his mind, “The last 45 years have been a fucking nightmare.”

“I’d find it way more believable if you stopped crushing my ribs for starters,” you muttered through clenched teeth and immediately felt the pressure taken off your chest, precious and very much needed oxygen starting to flow through your system the way it should again.

Five got up and offered his hand to help you on your feet as a gesture to show you that he didn’t see you as an enemy and placed trust in you. You took his hand and steadied yourself awkwardly, still slightly disoriented and light-headed.

“I don’t know what the Handler told you but I do know she’s exceptional at manipulating,” Five added as he looked you right in the eye, “Christ, and you’re so naive, always have been. Most days it’s truly adorable but sometimes, Y/N, it really doesn’t work in your favor,” as the words escaped his lips, his gaze became noticeably softer; his expression blossoming with tenderness towards you.

“Prove it. Prove that you care.”

Five chuckled and shook his head, simultaneously annoyed and amused at your stubbornness. The atmosphere between you was shifting and you couldn’t help but notice the familiar overwhelming feeling of comfort and peace enveloping your person from head to toe. You’ve forgotten what it felt like being around Five, and now you were finally getting to remember. At home.

He slipped his hand into the pocket of his uniform shorts and pulled out a grape-sized plastic figure of a golden retriever.

“You gave me this a few days before I jumped and got stuck in the future. I carried it with me all the way. This silly trinket was the only thing I had left of you, the only thing that reminded me you were still out there waiting for me. Kept me going,” he shrugged casually as if it wasn’t important at all which it absolutely was.

“Five, c’mere! Look what I found!” you called for him as you were sitting on the floor surrounded by all sorts of useless crap. You were in the middle of decluttering your bedroom when a little figure of a dog caught your eye, it was the breed that Five was especially fond of and you knew he secretly dreamed of getting a puppy of his own as soon as he was out of the house.

“What’s that?” he asked, unimpressed.

“It’s a doggie! He wants to be your friend,” you replied, playing with your accent a little, rolling you “r”s and shifting the flow of your words to sound more Scottish or ... Russian. God knows where you were going with it but you tended to butcher your accent for fun quite a lot.

“Y/N, are you twelve?”

“His name is Mr.Pennycrumb and he’s gonna look after you whenever I’m not around,” you said with utmost confidence and gave him a wide smile, putting the trinket into Five’s pocket, clearly very proud of yourself and still committed to your silly accent performance, “Treat him well.”

Five scoffed and shrugged.

“Whatever.”

“So did he?” you asked, staring at the goddamn toy as tears were slowly welling up in your eyes.

“What?”

“Did he do a good job looking after you while I wasn’t around?” your gaze finally met Five’s as the realization in his own eyes was starting to sink in. A pained smile touched the corners of his mouth, and you could see Five genuinely struggle to maintain his tough facade.

“Yeah. He did.”

Without saying a word, you stepped closer and rested your cheek on his shoulder, wrapping your arms around him, this time with no hostility or murderous intention. If you had to be perfectly honest with yourself, you’d admit you could never find it in you to actually hurt Five, let alone killing him. Both of you knew that way too well.

He returned the hug and pulled you closer, burying his nose in your hair and then planting a quick innocent kiss on the top of your head. Feeling the warmth radiating from you was enough to make him relax further into your embrace, his eyes now closed shut and his breathing steady and deep.

It didn’t last for as long as you’d like, though, a big loud bang from downstairs making you both flinch and pull away from each other, breaking your fragile bubble of comfort and calm in an instant.

“Shit, Hazel and Cha-Cha,” Five whispered, concern and worry crawling back onto his features. He briefly looked at you, and you simply nodded, non-verbally confirming that you were willing to help and were no longer part of the Handler’s plan.

The two of you were going to talk all about that later. His years alone, his and your own involvement with the Commission, the end of the world and loads more.

Of course, right in this moment neither of you could possibly know that your friendship was, in fact, a gateway into a lifelong partnership but you were bound to find out eventually. And the journey you two were about to begin as soon as the apocalypse was dealt with and gone was going to be magnificent.

[bnhasimpgirltm]

Until the End  [BNHA (Platonic) x Reader]

Pairings: BNHA (platonic) x reader

Warnings: a lot of death, swearing

Genre: Small Fluffy moments, and soft angst

Word Count: 3685

A/N: this idea was born from the chat between me and @jayjee.art (Instagram). She was going to draw cheerleader Bakugo and not show me, so I used my power and decided to do this. I really like writing flashbacks, so this is similar to the first fic I posted on this blog (a Todoroki fic). I’m so sorry for not posting a lot. I’ve been working on three things at once, so it’s a lot, but I hope you guys like this one! This is also a call to make platonic love a normal thing. 

note: this one is a little confusing to read, so I recommend reading it a little slower than you would read other things on my blog. 

———————————————

“RUN!” Todoroki yelled urgently.

“We can’t get out,” you yelled in a hoarse voice. The smoke was getting to your lungs, and everything was on fire. You could barely see Jiro and Kaminari, and Todoroki was completely obscured.

“Keep trying!” He yelled back. 

You had been trying, and it was no use. 

“I’m sorry guys,” Kaminari shook his head. “They blocked the radio signals, I can’t call for help.”

Jiro let out a sob, but kept mining at the walls with her ear jack. 

“Can you defuse the bomb Todoroki?” You asked. 

He shook his head. 

“At least try!” Denki yells back.

“If I cut the wrong wire it will kill us,” Todoroki explains worriedly. 

“IF YOU DON’T DO ANYTHING WE’RE GOING TO DIE ANYWAYS!” You scream while hitting the wall uselessly. 

“I don’t know which one to cut,” Todoroki sweats, either from the heat or because he was nervous. 

“Cut the red one! That’s what they do in the movies!” Denki cries out.

Todoroki cuts the red wire and the ticking stops. 

Everyone let out a sigh of relief, glad to not die a horrible death to a bomb, and now trying to find a way out of the hot, stuffy, vault.

But then, it happened so fast. Todoroki had cut the wrong wire. 

Since Todoroki was the closest, he was first. 

~

“You do it like this (Y/N),” Todoroki said.

“This is so dumb Todoroki,” you whined. “How about we kick back and head over to hang out with Midoriya and Iida instead of doing this!” 

Todoroki thought about it for a moment, wondering if it was a good idea to let you off. 

“Fine, we can go watch a movie or something with Iida and Midoriya.” Todoroki sighed. 

“Perfect!” You fist pumped . “You’re the greatest best friend Todoroki.” 

~

You and Todoroki enjoyed small moments like that. They were the best examples of your friendship.

~

You fell to the floor laughing.

“So you’re telling me you don’t know how to ride a bike?” You asked Todoroki.

“No, I never learned,” He replied back stoically.

“We can teach you!” Midoriya offered with a smile. “(Y/n), can you get my bike?”

“Yes! Oh my gosh this is going to be so fun!” You jogged to the bike rack and took Midoriya’s bike, bringing it back to where he and Todoroki were standing. 

“Lets get started,” you clapped your hands together enthusiastically.

~

The last thing you heard from Todoroki was “I’m sorry I let you down again.”

~

Jiro was next. You and she were inseparable.

~

“(Y/n), do you want to join me tonight for open mic?” Jiro asked you. 

“Of course,” you agreed. “It was super fun last week.”

“That’s great, I get a little nervous singing in front of the class,” she admitted.

“It’s okay Jiro, you have nothing to worry about!” You reassured. “You’re a great singer.”

~ 

Music built your friendship, but it stayed up because your personalities matched so well. 

~

“Jiro!” You screamed. “There’s a Hot Topic that opened in the mall!” 

Jiro put the book down, and shot up from her seat. 

“No way!” She said. “Lets go!” 

“I know!” You excitedly did a victory cartwheel in the common room, then ran with Jiro out the doors.

“Oh my God is this Heaven?” Jiro asked.

“Maybe not, but it’s close,” you responded, looking up at the mass of band shirts and merchandise from your favorite shows. 

“How does this look, (y/n)?” Jiro asked, holding out a My Chemical Romance shirt.

“It suits you Jiro. You should get it,” you gave her a thumbs up.

She smiled back at you, digging a Fall Out Boy shirt out from under the stack and tossing it towards you. 

“We can rope Denki and Momo into this so we can be the quartet,” you joked. 

“Is this an excuse for us to get more shirts?” Jiro asked.

“Maybe?” You bit your lip and let out a loud laugh.

Jiro laughed with you, and soon, you were both on the floor laughing.

~

The last thing you heard from Jiro was a strangled sob, mixed with the word “Help”

~ 

Then came Kaminari, your wild card of a friend.

~

“Haha! Nice one Kaminari!” You yelled. This was the fifth game that Kaminari had gotten a stuffed toy from, and much to Kirishima and Bakugo’s dismay, they were the ones who had to hold them,

“Kaminari, can you chill out on the games?” Kirishima complained. “I’m being drowned by these things.”

“I’m on a roll and no one is going to stop me!” Kaminari proclaimed proudly. 

“How about (y/n) plays the next game, and if they screw it up and don’t win, we can go do something else?” Bakugo bargains.

Kaminari thinks about it. “Fine, (y/n) is a carnival game God, there’s no way they’re going to lose!” 

“You’re going to be eating your words in a minute Dunce Face,” Bakugo retorted.

You and the Bakusqaud walked over to a game that Bakugo was sure you couldn’t win. 

“This isn’t fair!” Kaminari complained. “No one ever wins this!”

“That’s the point Dunce Face,” Bakugo rolls his eyes. 

“Watch and learn everyone,” you gave a ticket to the worker behind the counter and got three darts. 

“There’s no way (y/n) is going to land three darts,” Kirishima said.

You lined up with the balloons and threw the first dart. 

POP!

“Lucky shot!” Bakugo argued. 

You looked back and grinned at him.

“We’ll see about that.”

You looked back towards the balloons and aimed again. 

POP!

“I’m just super lucky, I guess,” you mocked.

“Tch, you’re not going to get the third one,” Bakugo claimed.

Rolling your eyes, you throw the last dart at a green balloon. It bounces off, and Kaminari’s excited face shifts to disappointment.

“Ha, I told you,” Bakugo says triumphantly.

While the dart falls to the floor, you use your psychokinesis quirk and lift it.

“Eh?” Bakugo asks.

Guiding the dart forward, you stab the green balloon with it. 

POP!

“You were saying Bakuhoe?” You snarkily said. 

“THAT’S CHEATING!” Bakugo whined.

“Nice one (Y/n),” Kirishima fist bumped you, and Ashido laughed at Bakugo’s complaining.

“Which one do you want?” The person working asked.

You looked at all of the plushies.

“That one,” you pointed. 

The person working handed you the giant Ground Zero plushie and you added it to the growing stack in Bakugo’s arms.

“I hate you so much,” Bakugo groaned.

“This is awesome,” Kaminari took his phone out and took a picture of Bakugo buried under the plushies.

“I hate all of you,” Bakugo repeated.

~

To think that you would never have another moment with Kaminari was unthinkable. You thought you would both have forever to do stupid things together. 

~

“(Y/n)!” Ashido called. 

“What’s wrong?” You asked. 

She paused for a minute to take a breath. “Kaminari is going to do human tire bowling!”

“Oh my gosh, yes!” You squealed. “Lets go! Where is he?” 

Ashido motioned for you to follow her, and when you two left the common room, you saw Kirishima stacking trashcans and Kaminari standing next to Bakugo.

“This is dumb, someone is going to get hurt,” Bakugo complained.

“You worry for us Bakugo! How nice!” Kaminari prodded at Bakugo.

Sero impatiently rocked the tire back and forth. “Come on guys, lets get started.”

“I’m going first, and then Bakugo and Ashido will go. That means Kaminari and (Y/n) are a team, and they’ll go third.” Kirishima explained. “It’s like normal bowling. You get two tries, and then the next team goes. The next round, the person who wasn’t in the tire gets to be in the tire. We’ll do ten frames, so each person gets to be in the tire five times.” 

“Did he do the math right Bakugo?” Sero asked. 

“Yeah whatever, lets just start so I can beat all of you,” Bakugo smirked. 

“You’re on Bakuhoe,” you teased. “Come on Denki, let’s do this!”

~

The last thing you heard from Kaminari was a scream that tore through the vault and through your heart.

~

You were the last one hit, and your eyes teared up. It was as if everything slowed down. 

You saw your mother.

~

“(Y/n), come over here,” your mom called. She was watching a news broadcast of heroes who had stopped a small gang of villains. 

“Wow!” you had said. “Someday I’m going to be a hero just like that!” 

“I know you’ll be a great hero,” your mom hugged you close to her. “I know that you’ll make me proud.”

~

You saw your acceptance into UA.

~

“Did you get that mail?” You almost tackled your mom as she came in. 

“Yes, I did.” She chuckled. “Someone’s excited.” 

You shuffled through the mail that she put on the table, and found what you were looking for.

When you opened the envelope, you realized that you had been accepted into UA, the top hero school in Japan. Not only had you been accepted into UA, but you were also put into the hero course, and you would be in 1A.

“Mom! I did it!” You had shrieked. “UA HERE I COME!” 

“I’m so proud of you!” She jumped up and hugged you. “You’re going to be a hero!”

“I can’t wait!”

~

You saw short moments with your friends.

~

“Bakugo what are you reading?” You had asked.

“Hah? Nothing,” Bakugo sat on his book and defiantly looked at you.

You looked at him, suspicious, and using your quirk, you pushed Bakugo over and grabbed his book.

“Bakugo, you read ‘Maid Sama!’?” You looked at him, shocked. 

“Yeah, what about it?” He said, trying to keep his tough guy facade up.

“Bakugo, why didn’t you tell me?” You shrilled, “We could have had so many good convertations you UWU boy!”

“Shut up,” he grumbled.

~

You knew that Bakugo the gremlin would miss you, Kaminari, and even Todoroki. Though he would never admit it.

~

“How could you do this?” You asked Kirishima. “How could you betray me like this?”

“(Y/n), I’m sorry, I didn’t know-” He started. 

“No! I don’t want to hear it! I despise you Eijiro Kirishima!” You yelled. 

“Shitty Hair, put the damn card down,” Bakugo said, annoyed.

“NO! DON’T DO IT!” You pleaded. “I thought we were best friends!” 

“We are (y/n), but I must do what I have to do,” Kirishima slowly put his second to last card down. “Uno!”

“Stop him!” Ashido begged. “Someone put a wild card down!” 

“I got you!” Kaminari was after Kirishima, and he placed his wild card down, choosing red. 

“Damn you,” Bakugo grabbed another card from the deck and added to his slowly growing hand of eight cards.

“I call skip!” You put a red skip card down and skipped Ashido. 

“(Y/n)!” She whined. 

“I had to Ashido, you could have put down a card that would lead to Kirishima’s victory!” You reasoned. 

“Guess what color my last card is,” Kirishima let out a shark toothed grin.

“No!” You all yelled.

“Red seven,” he placed his card down. “I win!”

You all wailed and groaned and complained. 

“Who wants to play again?” You asked.

~

When you needed small things, they always came through, because you always came through for them.

~

“Todoroki, my drink is warm,” you complained.

“What should I do about it?” He asked, stoic as usual.

“Maybe you could make me a couple ice cubes,” you prodded.

“(Y/n), you know I’m not supposed to use my quirk without permission,” he argued. 

“But this is an emergency!” You dramatically said. 

“Fine, only this once,” Todoroki agreed reluctantly. He made four ice cubes and put them in your drink. 

“Thank you Todoroki!” You grinned at him as you sipped your drink.

~

Yeah your friends might have been idiots, but at least they were always there for you, comforting you in your worst moments. 

~

“Hey (y/n), are you okay?” Midoriya asked you. 

“Oh yeah, I’m fine Midoriya,” you said through sniffles. 

He looked at you with wide eyes. “Are you absolutely sure you don’t need me to stay?” He asked.

“Well, I do need someone to talk to,” you patted the open spot next to you on the bench.

Midoriya sat down and hugged you. “It’s okay, you don’t even need to tell me what happened.”

“Thanks Midoriya,” you said. “I’m glad you’re here.” 

“I’ll always be there for you. You’ll always be my friend!” Midoriya smiled at you and you smiled back. 

~

They were also there to celebrate your greatest acheivements.

~

“WE DID IT!” You yelled out. 

“Yeah we did,” Jiro echoed.

“I’m so glad I met you guys,” you said to your classmates. “Stay in touch with me alright? And don’t be afraid to call for help! You’ll always be my girls!”

“I love you all!” Ashido squealed. 

“Love you too,” Jiro repeated.

“You guys are the best,” Yaoyorozu added. 

“I can’t wait to be a pro hero,” Asui said.

“I hope we can see each other again soon,” Uraraka and Hagukare said at the same time.

“Same! I’m going to miss you guys so much,” you teared up and the girls of 1A group hugged.

“(Y/n), who’s agency are you going to go to?” Uraraka asked.

“Well actually,” you started,”I think that I might start my own agency.”

They all blinked at you in disbelief, then broke out into grins.

“You’re going to be great!” Yaoyorozu excitedly said. 

“I’m so happy for you!” Hagukare shouted. 

“Enough about me, who wants to get the rest of our classmates and have a graduation dinner?” You asked. 

Everyone cheered and hugged. 

It was the end of your chapter at UA, but you would start a new one once you formed your agency. 

~

You hoped that Yaoyorozu, Uraraka, Ashido, and Asui wouldn’t be too broken up over your death.

~

“mY Ex-mAn BRoUGhT hIS nEw GiRLFrieND,” you sung loudly.

“She’S LiKE oH mY GoD, BuT I’M jUST goNNA ShAKE iT,” Ashido continued.

“anD tO thE FeLLa OVeR ThEre WiTH ThE hELLa GOod HaIR,” Jiro bopped.

"Won’T yOU coME oN oVEr BAbY wE cAN shAkE, sHAke, ShAKe,” Uraraka finished. 

You all burst out laughing, as Jiro danced with Yaoyorozu. 

“I’m so glad we got to spend today together,” Ashido said. “Pro hero work has been exhausting!” 

“Oh my gosh, you’re so right,” Uraraka sighed.

“I’m just glad that we could all make time to hang out,” you said. “We can always get together though.”

“Right, now who wants popcorn?” Jiro asked. 

~

Who knew that would be the last time you would see them in person. It was a realization that brought on strong emotional pain on top of the physical pain that came with being in a burning vault. 

Your mother spoke again, but unlike earlier, it wasn’t filled with energy. It was soft. 

~

“(Y/n), I’m so proud of you,” your  mother said. 

~

Her voice was soft and loving. It was warm, in a good way.  You missed your mom and wished that you spent more time with her after graduating.

~

You hugged your mom tightly and asked “Really?”

She hugged back and smiled. “My child is a pro hero that’s running their own agency. How could I be more proud?” 

“I love you mom,” you said, choked up.

“I love you too,” she said.

~

You had so much love to spread around, and you had given it to all of your friends. They had always deserved it.

~

“Shut up,” he grumbled. “I trust you okay, so don’t go around talking about what you saw.” 

“Okay, okay,” you agreed, then more seriously you said,”I love you, Bakuhoe.”

“Eh?” He asked, clearly confused.

“I said that I love you, best friend,” you repeated. 

“Yeah whatever, I tolerate you more than others I guess,” Bakugo rolled his eyes. 

“And that’s enough for me,” you sat down on the couch next to him.

~

“Who wants to play again?” You asked.

Everyone agreed. 

“Guys, I know I don’t say it enough, but I love all of you,” you quietly mentioned. 

“Our platonic love will keep us all together forever!” Ashido commented. 

“This is too much love, I think I’m going to fall into a hole and die,” Bakugo dramaticaly recited. 

“Bakubro, you have got to join the dark side,” Kirishima said. “We know you love all of us in your own twisted Bakubro way.”

“We should make shirts that say ‘Katsuki Bakugo Wuvs Us’,” Kaminari suggested. 

“Oh my God yes,” you agreed. 

~

“Thank you Todoroki!” You grinned at him as you sipped your drink. 

“That is the only time, okay,” he reminded. 

“Yeah I know.” You agreed on impulse. “I love you Todoroki, you’re the best friend I could have.”

“That’s very sudden, (y/n),” he said, surprised. “What brought this on?”

“I just need to tell all of my friends how much I care about them,” you explained.

~

“I’ll always be there for you. You’ll always be my friend!” Midoriya smiled at you and you smiled back. 

“I love you Midoriya,” you said.

“I love you too (y/n),” Midoriya said back. 

You smiled at Midoriya and embraced him.

~

It was the end of your chapter at UA, but you would start a new one once you formed your agency. 

“Girls, before we leave, I want you to know that UA wouldn’t have been the same without you guys,” you started. “I love all of you to the moon and back.”

“We love you too, (y/n),” Yaoyorozu said back. 

“I know, and I’ll remember until the day I die,” you linked arms with Yaoyorozu and Jiro, then started to skip around. 

“I still want food though, so lets go.”

~

“Right, now who wants popcorn?” Jiro asked. 

You all raised your hands and Jiro counted the hands that were in the air. 

“This is super random, and I know I say it a lot, but I want you guys to know how much I love all of you,” you said thoughtfully. 

Uraraka didn’t say anything and hugged you tightly.

“You have no idea how much I needed to hear that,” she sobbed quietly. 

“It’s okay Uraraka, we’ll be here for you, always,” you held her tightly. 

~

Your memories finished flashing in front of your eyes, and just as fast as it started, everything was over. 

And despite everything going on, you managed to smile. 

Yes, you were in pain, but just like in all of your life’s special moments, you had pushed through to let your positivity shine through. You smile would be the last thing that your friends would see of you, and you knew that your job here was done. 

They could live knowing that you had died loving them. 

“I love you, all of you,” you whispered, closing your eyes. 

Quite fittingly, those were the last words you said. 

Then, you welcomed the darkness. 

~

The next day, you and the other’s that had been trapped in the vault didn’t show up for work, so a group of pro heroes searched for all of you. 

The first place they checked was the vault that you had all gone to. The door was blown off, and they found four bodies that day. 

Four true heroes, lost forever. 

“Who are they?” Midoriya, the pro hero “Deku”, asked. 

“We haven’t identified them for for sure yet, but based on the information we know, we can assume (y/n) (l/n), Shoto Todoroki, Kyoka Jiro, and Denki Kaminari,” the police officer said. 

“What?” Bakugo stood next to Midoriya, questioning the officer.

“We know that you were good friends with who we assume the deceased are, and offer our condolences,” the officer walked away, not wanting to be suceptible to the wrath of Ground Zero. 

“Kacchan-,” Midoriya started.

“AGHHH!” Bakugo yelled, kicking the wall.

He remembered you and Dunce Face, and even Icy-Hot and Earjack girl. 

You had all meant something to him, even if he never showed it. 

“Ground Zero, sir, you and Deku have been the two requested to customize  (l/n)’s headstone,” a small, wiry man said. “The police said that it’s highly likely that one of the bodies is (l/n)’s, and that we should make arrangements.”

“Give it,” Bakugo motioned for the clipboard he was holding, and the man turned it to him. 

He paused on the engraving. 

“Kacchan, let me,” Midoriya said, taking the pen from him and filling the engraving part out. 

Bakugo read what Midoriya put, and reeled back. 

“I love you? Isn’t that a bit basic?” Bakugo asked. 

“(Y/n) loved us all, and was never afraid to say it,” Midoriya said pointedly.

“Give me the damn clipboard Deku,” Bakugo grabbed the clipboard and scratched out ‘I love you’, writing ‘The greatest gift to give is love, and I shared this gift with everyone.’

Handing the clipboard back to Midoriya, Bakugo folded his arms. “Well?” He asked. 

“I like it Kacchan,” Midoriya approved. 

“(Y/n) would have liked it too,” Bakugo looked at his feet.  

“(Y/n) loved everyone, and wanted us all to get along, so why don’t we start over?” Midoriya asked. 

“I guess we can do that,” Bakugo kicked at the ground, wanting to say something snarky, but refraining. He had been such an ass to Deku, so who was he to refuse a fresh start?

“Hi, I’m Izuku Midoriya, the pro hero, ‘Deku’,” Deku stuck out his hand.

Bakugo shook it. 

“My name is Katsuki Bakugo, and I’m the pro hero ‘Ground Zero’,” Bakugo introduced.

“I think we have the potential to be great friends,” Midoriya smiled at Bakugo, not in admiration to worship him, but this time as an equal.

A friend. 

Bakugo smirked back. “Yeah, I think I can make that work.”

With that, Bakugo and Midoriya walked away from the vault together, surprising everyone.

The pair knew that you would have been proud.

They had put aside their differences and past to create something new. 

All because of you. 

For even in death you were still bringing people together.

And as long as people remembered you for that, you would never truly die.

[prorevenge]

Ridiculed, accused of lying and incompetence, I shoved burning facts down their throats and made a successful business in the process.

"The best revenge is massive success." -Frank Sinatra

TL;DR; Told I was lying and didn't know anything about game design. Made a spite video game that became a huge hit. Jackass is also forever immortalized within the game credits.

PREFACE

This is a very unusual story compared to the typical posts you've read here. There's a lot to unpack but I'll try to summarize everything as best I can.

I hope you'll find it as entertaining as I did. And, what's great about this story is that it happened very recently, it happened here, evidence is searchable, and it's still kinda on-going. It's a tale of trolls, video game addiction, self-righteous arrogance, harassment, winning an impossible bet, a viral hit in Russia, and massive success with even some little revenge sprinkles for added measure.

Quick background about me: I've worked with game developers for decades and I'm an avid researcher and supporter of unorthodox and ethical video games used for educational and clinical purposes.

HOW IT STARTED

Two months ago, there was a new reddit post about "using video game to ease depression" that caught my attention.

The reason it caught my attention was because it was a game & study that I had in-depth knowledge of (from over a year prior.) Unlike everyone else in the thread, I was the only one who had actually seen the game, played it, knew the developers, and even had the original technical game design documents.

The article discussed a variety of topics but never addressed exactly HOW the video game was able to ease depression. So, I provided a quickly summary of what the game actually did.

[SKIP THIS SECTION IF NEUROSCIENCE & GAME DESIGN DON'T INTEREST YOU]

A quick side note about this article, for those that like extra details: One of the cool properties of ketamine is that, not only can it provide rapid and temporary relief for depression, it also actively heals damaged brain circuits. Then there's dopamine. A chemical that we internally produce, that has similar but less potent effects. There is no cure for depression, but these are promising treatments for some. The article focused on what's called "flow". Using certain game design methods you can induce a "flow state" by causing a sustained dopamine release. When used ethically, it can be highly beneficial in stimulating/training the brain to perform certain activities, improve or learn memorization, adapt to challenges, learn new concepts, exercise motor skills, and meanwhile rebuild pathways/synapses. While all of this is happening, the user is receiving pleasurable rewards without realizing it. This process can create new pathways, repair old circuits, and increasing their neuroplasticity. Increased neuroplasticity means improved cognitive functioning, reducing impairment of the reward process, and improving the effectiveness of antidepressant medications. Video games can be a unique non-drug option to accomplish this while easing symptoms. Research has already shown that many popular games can already accomplish this (unintended effects by the game developers). By comparison, the game design they used in this theoretical study was highly limited in scope, so permanent benefits were negligible compared to the temporary respite brought about by basic dopamine release. Science is still barely scratching the surface of neurotransmitters and flow state. There are still many unknowns, but dopamine isn't just a pleasure chemical that the media would like you to be believe. It can do quite a number of things. Research has shown that "flow state" can modify synaptic plasticity, improve connectors between cells/synapses, ultimately helping cells in the brain communicate better as a network and improve neural system intrinsic properties.

My summary posting was fine for a while, until predictable trolls arrived led by an "armchair game developer". Dr. Armchair definitely did not appreciate my post. It was an affront and insult to his profession. Within a few minutes, it dropped 30 karma. I don't care about imaginary internet points but I don't like being accused of lying. Dr. Armchair and his pals started with the usual "do you even lift?" Then it was quickly asserted, from their armchairs, that I knew nothing about flow, psychology, dopamine or game design at all. From their high horses, they contributed nothing useful; only taunts, defamation, attacking my character and physical appearance, and accusing me of being a liar and incompetence.

Apparently it was a very sensitive topic. Who knew?

It quickly devolved into Dr. Armchair gleefully, and repeatedly claiming, that he won, he was right, and I was wrong. He demanded that I essentially write a 300 page peer-reviewed study to prove him wrong, and when it couldn't be provided within 5 minutes, there were more gleeful cheers of "HAHA! I WAS RIGHT! I WAS RIGHT! I'M NOT LISTENING TO YOU LALALALALA.."

Obviously, it was going to be impossible to reason with Dr. Armchair and his buddies. But actions speak louder than words.

So, I claimed that I would provide undeniable proof in the form of a video game "a few months from now" that he could actually play for himself. Once again, claiming that I was lying and it was impossible. And more of the usual "It's been 5 minutes, where is it? Oh, you can't do it can you. HA! I was right! I BEAT YOU! I BEAT YOU!"

It was weird.

Eventually the mods had enough. Dr. Armchair and his cronies harassment, ad hominem attacks, accusations and inflammatory attacks resulted in multiple posts being removed. But my promise still stood and I fully intended on keeping it.

THE BOLD CLAIM

The plan was simple:

Create a proof of concept that demonstrates just the critical neuroscience principles that induce flow. To prove it beyond a doubt, I intended to also prove that MOST COMMON INGREDIENTS of a game are completely UNNECESSARY to accomplish this.

So, I made the very confident claim that the game would still be fun, addictive, and demonstrate flow state, even after ripping everything out:

No extras or frills. Built within a short period of time.

No music. No sound effects. No animations. No story.

No expensive art. In fact, hardly any at all: I would use ONE SINGLE ART ASSET for the gameplay (plus some lines.)

No feature creep. No sign-in system. No gacha mechanics.

No level design. No achievements. No RPG gamifications.

I could get at least a couple hundred people to play it.

I should have also mentioned that it would be built with ZERO BUDGET and NO MARKETING.

If this sounds like a strange way to make a game, it is. For a typical game developer, this would raise many eyebrows, and they'd consider it highly risky or improbable to achieve any success with both arms figurately tied behind your back while blindfolded.

HOW IT ENDED

While I was preparing to stress test the game online, it was discovered by .ru bots that were scouring the web for new games. Even before the game was ready, they published the game link on several Russian gaming sites.

The game exploded.

It has graphical similarities to Tetris, so it was a nice coincidence that the game essentially launched and did so well in Russia at first. After that, other game sites started discovering the game on their own too, even before I had a chance to submit the game myself. Most importantly, the proof of concept and everything I claimed worked (high ratings and retention). It proved so effective that the game is currently being played by hundreds of thousands of users worldwide. And it's a clear demonstration about the importance of combining psychology and game design.

I suppose you could say that there are many layers of revenge happening here, maybe even karmic justice or backfiring on their part, it's really hard to classify. The best kind of revenge is always massive success, and shoving it in their faces, however. But, on top of that, I also fully kept to my promises while proving these ignorant individuals so wrong they look like fools.

I also added some extra salt to the wound. I figured that success of the game was partly due to Dr. Armchair's ignorance. It was only fair that I included his name within the Game Credits. So, I officially gave this very wonderful human being a very "special thanks" for their support in making this success possible.

(source) story by (/u/postfu)

[sage-nebula]

Game Review — New Pokémon Snap

In 1999, a photography game centered on the world of Pokémon was released. Ever since then, I have hungered for a sequel. And now, 22 years later, my wish was finally granted.

Overall Score: 9/10

While I am still puzzled that they didn’t create and release this game for either 3DS or Wii U, since both had built-in cameras, overall I couldn’t be happier with this and I definitely feel that it was worth the 22-year-long wait. Head under the cut (and onto my blog) for more detailed thoughts on what has honestly been an excellent game.

The Pros:

Everything is GORGEOUS. The environments, the pokémon, literally everything. Even setting aside the glowing effects of the Illumina phenomenon (particularly at night when it really stands out), everything about this game is visually stunning. The colors are bright, but not blinding, and you can see that everything was crafted with care. There aren’t any areas that feel unfinished or unpolished. It is beautiful to look at, which is rather important when you’re making a photography-based game.

Each area changes as you increase your research level, so that even though you will have some run-throughs of the courses that are the same as you experienced before, you’ll also find new paths and see different pokémon as you go through the courses more and more times as well. For instance, when you first play through the Florio Nature Park, the Bidoof are in the process of building their dam. But later, their dam is completed. And this is just one example of how things change; believe me, there are lots of changes as time passes and you go through the courses again and again, making them feel far less repetitive than they did in the original game. (Not to bash the original game, which was on the N64 and thus had a lot less space to hold data, of course. I’m just saying.)

The pokémon behaviors are also so great. You have the Bidoof building their dam, for example, but you also have Alolan Raichu surfing the sand dunes, or Espurr levitating rocks for the fun of it, or Pikipek bringing fruits back to nests on Toucannon’s orders. On less happy notes you also have things like a group of Mareanie chasing down a Corsola, but I mean, it’s a well-established fact that Mareanie eat Corsola, so that’s just nature. The point is that this isn’t a game where the pokémon are just standing around waiting to have their pictures taken. The pokémon feel alive and it’s clear that so much thought went into their behaviors to make it feel as if life is teeming around you as you go through the courses, because it is! It’s excellent.

Although this is a sequel game (and it makes it clear that it’s a sequel game, which I’ll talk about more in a second), it’s also incredibly accessible to those who have never played the original. Even if you never heard of the original before, you can jump right into this one with mostly new characters and a brand new story. And I think that’s great, considering the original game came out 22 years ago and is probably somewhat hard to find now, especially if you don’t have a system with access to a Virtual Console to play it on. (Which wouldn’t be a problem if we had the Virtual Console on the Switch, Nintendo, but that’s a separate discussion.)

That said, it is a sequel game and all of the nods and references to the original game are things that I love. I mean, first off, Todd Snap is back and he had a major glow-up. But even setting that aside, it’s mentioned how the NEO-ONE was based on the old vehicle that Todd used (the ZERO-ONE), how Todd used to take photos for a different professor (Professor Oak), the final Illumina Pokémon’s level is a huge callback to the Mew level in the original Snap, et cetera. Although this game was called New Pokémon Snap likely so that people wouldn’t think they had to play the first game first, it’s pretty clearly Pokémon Snap 2 and I love that.

Along with the courses themselves changing as you progress through the game, there are also day and night versions of almost every course so you get something different on them even before making more progress. Additionally, each course has multiple different routes that you can take if you find them / want to, and Elsewhere Forest in particular has zones that change depending on the season, which offers even more variety and things to discover. Again, it doesn’t feel boring to keep going through the courses because there’s always something new to find.

Everything is streamlined and plays excellently. The menus are cleaned, I haven’t noticed any lag in gameplay no matter how much is going on on-screen . . . everything is smooth, clean, and fresh, and again, adds to how much of a joy to look at this game is, on top of making it a joy to play as well.

The online features are implemented really well. I absolutely love that you can post photos to share with people around the world, but also that the feature isn’t obtrusive and in your face, so if you want to ignore it, you can. But the process itself is seamless, and the fact that you can add filters and stickers to make memes out of the photos is hilarious and a well thought-out feature, particularly since this is the age of social media, so having a Pokéstagram just makes sense.

I enjoy that there are little missions that you can complete that are posited as being posed naturally by the other characters. You’re given clues of what to do, but often you’re not told outright, which can make some of them fun to figure out (and others the shot itself is challenging enough so you don’t need a riddle, haha). While fulfilling the requests can be a bit irritating (more on that in a bit) I like that there’s additional material to do in addition to the main story that unfolds as you go through and gives you plenty of stuff to do even after you’ve completed the main story.

The characters are all pretty great. There’s one character I don’t enjoy very much, but otherwise the characters are good and add charm to the story.

These characters still don’t know anything about photography (the rule of thirds is so basic and no one here knows it), at least they’re not as obvious about it as Professor Oak was, always scolding me for not getting pokémon in the center of the frame. So toning down the obnoxiousness on that was nice, I will give them that.

The environments are so varied and so cool. Like sure, you have your basic jungle, your basic grasslands, your basic volcano . . . but also your underwater, your magic forest, your ancient technicolor ruins. And I mean, I don’t even want to diss the other areas because the volcano area was incredibly vivid, the snowy mountain was beautiful, and so on. Again, I don’t want to gush too much about how beautiful this game is, but it is and the wide variety of places to take pictures makes it all the more incredible.

As I mentioned in the missions bullet, there is plenty of content to do even after the main story is completed, which is a definite plus. Filling your Photodex aside, there are also Course Scores that are enabled once you complete the main story and an additional time of day for an already unlocked area that is unlocked as well. This means that even after you clear the game, you can still have fun trying to get different shots and discovering new things, which is always a bonus in my book.

Motion controls are included, but they are entirely optional. So if you want to undock your Switch (or if you are playing with a Switch Lite) and you want to move your Switch around like an actual camera, you can! But if you have any physical limitations that would make doing that hard for you (or if you just don’t feel like it), you don’t have to and the motion controls are actually turned off by default. I haven’t used them myself because I’m not a fan of motion controls so I can’t tell you how good they are, but I can say it’s a plus that the motion controls are 100% optional, rather than forcibly included like they have been in other Nintendo games.

The Neutrals:

All of the different tools you get are basically the same as the original game, with a few slight (and sometimes silly) changes. For instance, they’re now calling apples “flufffruit” because “fluffruit are actually a lot softer and don’t hurt the pokémon” even though . . . they’re very obviously apples. Like very obviously apples. I get that they don’t want to encourage throwing apples at animals for the sake of picture taking / they don’t want to make a kid feel bad if they accidentally (“accidentally”) knock a pokémon in the head with one, but . . . come on. They’re apples. They’ve also decided to take away the Pokéflute and make it a random music player instead, and Illumina Orbs replaced Pester Balls for both story reasons and for the same reason why we can’t call apples apples anymore. Honestly, all of this is fine, just something to mention, though I will say it took way too damn long to unlock the turbo feature, damn. Pokémon are fast, guys! Give me my turbo sooner!!

Sometimes the “tips” that Professor Mirror gives during the photo evaluations . . . don’t actually fit the situation at all. Like I can’t tell you the number of times he’s told me about getting the whole pokémon in the frame when the pokémon is in the frame, or like “throw a fluffruit to get the pokémon to look right at you!” even though the pokémon is staring into the camera like they’re on The Office. It’s not a huge deal but it makes me think that Professor Mirror might need his vision prescription updated.

I understand that this is also the age of the smartphone, but I do find it disappointing that we’re essentially given a smartphone camera (or at most a point-and-shoot) versus the SLR camera that Todd very obviously had in the original Snap (and even has here). Granted, we didn’t have to adjust for aperture or shutter speed in the original game and I wouldn’t want to do that here either, but it’s about the aesthetic and the fact that having professional nature photographers have actually good cameras is more fitting than handing them a smartphone and saying, “have fun!” Again, I get why it’s a smartphone now, but it still is a little disappointing, even if not an actual detraction from the game.

It is confusing that we have wild Alolan form pokémon when this is not Alola, especially since they didn’t make it equal by adding in Galar form pokémon too. (And on that note, there seems to be a lack of Galar pokémon at that.) I think it would have been cool if they’d designed some Lental form pokémon for this game specifically, although I get that this isn’t a game developed by Game Freak so I understand why that wasn’t done. All the same though, the presence of Alolan form pokémon when this isn’t Alola was still a bit weird.

It’s rather easy to breeze through the main story if you don’t want to take your time revisiting areas to get better pictures / boost the research level. While the main story is longer than the original game / there are more areas than the original game, it’s still pretty short. Ordinarily this would be a con, but since there are so many things to do even after you beat the main story, I’m putting it in the neutrals section instead. 

The Cons:

While the missions are fun, it is frustrating that you have to do them again if you capture a photo of the mission before the mission is formally handed to you. This is especially true if it was a hard to get shot that’s difficult to replicate. I understand they want to put challenge in the game, but it’s a bit frustrating you can’t point to your photodex and have the mission be cleared if you’ve already done it. You also can’t get the pokémon doing the requested thing in a different part of the course (or a different version of the same course, or even just a different course altogether if a pokémon appears in multiple areas), which is fine, except that you can only turn in one photo per pokémon. This can make it particularly frustrating when you technically get a photo of what was asked for (e.g. Wingull doing a loop-de-loop) but it’s not the specific Wingull you were supposed to take a picture of, so it doesn’t count.

I have noticed a few bugs or typos here or there. Like one time the text box said “Rita” even when it was clearly Mirror talking, and there have been other times when the game is like “you can’t submit photos if the pokémon is not in the Illumina State” even though Wishwashi was GLOWING BRIGHT PINK because I had just thrown an Illumina Orb at it. Little things like that are things I think could have been better smoothed out in QA, but ultimately aren’t too much to deal with and don’t happen very often.

The alternate paths are a bit too finicky sometimes. Like I managed to get on the swamp path once and haven’t been able to manage it since. I was on research level 3 in Elsewhere Forest for a good long while before Espeon decided to show up, which blocked me off the second exit and guaranteed winter route, too. Again, I love that there are secrets in this game, but I tried to replicate getting into the swamp area twenty times in a row after I had just done it with no success, so it can be a bit frustrating at times.

There isn’t really a true conclusion to the main story. I won’t give spoilers, but essentially the story revolves around uncovering the secrets of a myth that happened in the Lental region thousands of years ago. You get close . . . but the story ends before you get any real answers. You’re just left to speculate. In a way this makes sense, since it’s not like you’re time traveling, you’re just taking pictures. But it is still a little annoying for anyone who is interested in things like the lore of the Pokéworld and who might like actual answers to the questions set up (such as myself).

Anyway, overall, this game is amazing whether or not you played the original, and I highly recommend it to everyone who likes Pokémon even a little. Here’s hoping we don’t have to wait another 22 years for the next one. (But if we do, it will probably be worth the wait.)

[nutty1005]

Xiao Zhan – Beijing Beijing

Translator’s Note: This article comes from PEOPLE Magazine 2020 2nd Issue.

In between “seems beautiful” and “very beautiful”, there can be one or many different views. For example, the phrase “famous after a battle” (TN: Xiao Zhan’s “Zhan” sounds like battle in Chinese), we could analyze the keywords in many ways.

Xiao Zhan, born 1991. Could you imagine how you and I would be when we were 28? Xiao Zhan is like this –

Fan View

“His looks are totally my type” “As warm and gentle as jade, a gentleman who is peerless” “A precious boy with the soul as crystalline as prismatic glass”

“Famous after a battle”, is the most effective “wartime story”. Using this analogy in the entertainment business, there are many who had been battling for quite a while. Xiao Zhan is like this as well…

Audience View

The summer of 2019, the antihero Wei Wuxian (portrayed by Xiao Zhan), came from “The Untamed” into the living rooms of countless viewers, and straight into their hearts;

Platform View

As the Beijing TV Spring Night Spokesperson, as a celebrity with more than 20 million fans on Weibo, as Tencent’s “Most Popular Artist of 2019” and “Drama Actor of the Year”, as iQiyi’s “Breakthrough Popularity Actor of the Year”…

When we change our point of view, will the world become more interesting?

With regards to his looks, Xiao Zhan said he is “ordinary”, and only scored himself a 6.

With regards to his age, Xiao Zhan said his mother’s method of urging him to start a family has went from straight-to-the-point to indirect and tactful.

With regards to “famous after one battle”, is it really as straightforward as standing out from the big data and being ahead of everyone else? Xiao Zhan, who is 1.83m, reduced his weight from 70kg to 58kg for his outstanding portrayal of Wei Wuxian – is this really the result of a day’s work? Does anyone remember the hardworking youth, with a caption “Designer from Chongqing”, from the 2015 idol search variety show “X-Fire”? Does anyone remember that in 2016, after debuting as the lead singer for X9, Xiao Zhan admitted that there were instances of zero income, zero entertainment and zero social activities?

No matter whether it was “very beautiful” or it “seemed beautiful”, would it be free of worries?

Xiao Zhan looked down and smiled, slightly bashful, his expression serene, “Sweet worries.”

He actually loves Beijing so much

On 28 Feb 2019, I (a reporter) entered a dressing room in Beijing TV. The narrow and long dressing room had been split in the middle into two narrower sections. Near the corner, after the staff has dispersed, I finally set my eyes on Xiao Zhan, who sat obediently on a chair while styling his hair.

The stylist stood on the right of Xiao Zhan; to the left of Xiao Zhan was a giant suitcase. After we tried to push the suitcase aside, I managed to stand in the gap. In such a tight space, I could only put the phone in front of Xiao Zhan, on top of the opened makeup case, for voice recording. After some more effort from everyone, there was finally space for the phone.

He was covered in a white hairdresser cape, his long legs enveloped by a pair of black pants – his thick black hair was being kept in order, his handsome side profile, relaxed and natural attitude, polite words, and after some close observation, no piercings on his ears.

How did this unguarded Xiao Zhan look like?

There was no need for exquisite words, just simple and pure wonderfulness.

If it remained unimaginable, it would not be too complex to imagine the warm smiles of the good looking youths on the streets of Beijing. All of these people could have been born in Beijing or traveled to Beijing from their hometowns.

“Chongqinger” Xiao Zhan said, “Beijing, in fact, besides my hometown Chongqing, is my longest lived in city. If we use 2020 to calculate, it would have been 5 years. Beijing, is a striving city, and like any other youths, Beijing means dreams and endeavors to us – this is a city of ambition. Hence, as Beijing TV’s Spring Night spokesperson, I feel that this special meaning, I’m very happy and very excited.”

Indeed, during the release conference in the afternoon, when being asked about how he felt spending his “Year of the Rat” Spring Night with Beijing TV, and expressing that by singing, Xiao Zhan, who was nicknamed “The Little Chinese Music Archive”, thought about it seriously and suddenly sang, “I’m beautiful, beautiful, beautiful……”

Haha, this quick wit and humor was almost as cute as “The Chipmunks”.

Spring Night is a big event, and it required absolute secrecy. We secretly asked Xiao Zhan about Beijing TV Spring Night from his personal point of view. Xiao Zhan continued to be witty, “I feel it’ll be exciting, at least I’ll be performing with a… senior that I really like.” When asked who it would be, Xiao Zhan smiled, “Let’s keep it a mystery, and we welcome everyone to watch Beijing TV Spring Night!”

This “Chongqinger”, who still could not confirm if he could return to his hometown for Chinese New Year, would sometimes show his inner thoughts – “If I could go back I definitely would”, but yet his words lingered on Beijing TV Spring Night.

Xiao Zhan, he actually loves Beijing so much.

He actually likes Zhou Xun so much

Who are the actors that Xiao Zhan admires the most? If he were to pick two, it would be Zhou Xun and Tony Leung.

Xiao Zhan said, “I really like Zhou Xun, her views, her experiences, are all mesmerizing to me. She has many performances that give me the urge to rush into the screen to rescue her. Her performances are very vivacious, it feels like you’re beside her experiencing her performances with her, my attention is all on her, she just has great charisma.”

Xiao Zhan emphasized that he liked Zhou Xun all along, and as we stood and studied his side profile, his face, we suddenly remembered a classic scene from “Palace of Desire”, where the young Princess Taiping removed Xue Shao’s mask.

That year, Zhou Xun was 26, Winston Chao was 40, but it did not prevent her from portraying a young girl’s infatuation. This drama was almost 20 years old, and the female audiences at that time would exclaim that Winston Chao was “as warm and gentle as jade, a gentleman who is peerless”. If this seemed familiar, this phrase was also used by many of Xiao Zhan’s fans to describe him.

Time, in the long river of ages, cycles endlessly Memories, in our past and present lives, crosses endlessly

– Lyrics from “Yu Nian”

This is the lyrics from Xiao Zhan’s song “Yu Nian”, which is the ending song for “Joy of Life”. Who knew that time cycles? Who knew that memories crosses paths?

As of now, Xiao Zhan is similar in age to Zhou Xun’s age then. If we could time travel and Xiao Zhan were to act as Xue Shao, could we guess the ending?

And since we are at this point, we could add another statement – “Traffic” / “Celebrity” / “Actor” – what difference do they make in the face of time? If there are no answers, why not listen to Xiao Zhan’s “Yu Nian”.

Time will tell, it is just that we are too impatient – regardless of our need for speed, we still ought to seek the truth.

He actually admires Vincent van Gogh so much

Xiao Zhan, like many of us, went through the tough period of studying overnight for university entry examinations. He became a student of Chongqing Business and Technology University, majoring in Design. However, this did not prevent Xiao Zhan from becoming a “Top 10 Inter-school Singer”, he self mockingly called himself a “literary enthusiast”, but in fact became one of the stars in many girls’ eyes – someone who was good looking, tall, stylish and could sing and take photographs. Immediately after he graduated, he became a designer, but he would still be brought up by his ex-teachers, one of whom recommended him to participate in “X-Fire”.

When reviewing “X-Fire”, you would realize that Xiao Zhan had a round face, an obedient expression and mild temperament – in fact, you would think that he did not pose much of a threat. But as one by one, the youths started getting eliminated, as their teams were getting regrouped, as they were getting more and more difficult tasks, it seemed as though Xiao Zhan was being sculpted on the spot – his face became more chiselled, he started slimming down, his eyes started having the steady gaze of ambition… Talent search variety shows are, in fact, cruel and all the participants were getting re-sculpted and remodeled – whatever that was removed was not the meant to be in the final product.

So what did Xiao Zhan keep in his heart? These were all the passwords to his past – drawing, design and art. Like anyone who learnt design, they all had an artist that they favored, and they were all different. Xiao Zhan’s answer – Vincent van Gogh.

Xiao Zhan said, “I was asked previously – if I could have a conversation with a past personality, who would it be? I would just choose Vincent van Gogh, because I want to listen to what he had experienced then, how he lived then, such that he was able to create such a beautiful world and paintings. Such as “Starry Night” or “Self Portrait”, I feel that he was able to step away from himself, into very amazing angles, and then create them.”

Those who learned design would usually be able to draw quite well, and usually beyond the levels of self taught hobbyists. Hence, these would also become part of his self cultivation.

Xiao Zhan confirmed this, “Yes, I think starting from aesthetic views to detailed observation, I feel that there were definitely influences.”

On whether Xiao Zhan still went to art exhibitions, the question seemed like a luxury to him – his eyes widened, he straightened himself, and he started smiling widely, “There is very little time now for art exhibitions, I would see them via friends who went and posted in their social media, or those art-related media accounts.”

There could be no burden I could sway my head I could stay my steps I could surrender to you

– Lyrics from “Two Tigers”

This is the promotion song from movie “Two Tigers” sung by Xiao Zhan. There was once in a variety show that he was requested to use his facial muscles to move a cookie on the side of his face into his mouth, while singing. Before the game started, Xiao Zhan pointed at the camera and laughed, “I really do have an idol’s image burden! I really do have an idol’s image burden!” However, after the game started, you see no sign of his “burden”, just 100% into moving his facial muscles, working hard to get to the cookie.

What is an idol’s image burden? Is there art in an idol’s image burden? There are no answers, but we can look for it in Xiao Zhan’s “Two Tigers”.

Art often gave the answers to philosophy. For example, an idol’s image burden could be thrown away, hence it is definitely not art; Art follows the heartbeat, follows life, just like the Vincent van Gogh, a man whose life bloomed and withered like the summer flowers, in the hearts of people like Xiao Zhan.

This phrase “A designer who can’t sing isn’t a good actor” seemed nonsensical, but if you think about it, it seemed to suit Xiao Zhan a lot.

He actually yearns the audiences’ recognition so much

It seemed like Xiao Zhan did gain fame after a single battle, but it was not just one battle – there were more raging battles before then.

The dancing spirit, wearing bright red and green clothes, in “Monster Hunt 2” – the camera panned past him without a HD shot; The minor role of a special agent in “The Rookies” – with some onscreen time less than a minute… And there were more, such as “Star Academy”, “Oh! My Emperor”, “Battle Through the Heaven”, “Shuttle Love Millennium”… Never heard of them? Eh, well this proved a problem – how could there be so many people who became “famous after a battle”?

What next? Xiao Zhan happily shared, “If everything goes well, there would be three roles coming to meet everyone, two period, one modern.”

Alright, the modern role would be Doctor Gu of “Oath of Love”. In fact, there were already naughty fans yelling that they were going to register for Doctor Gu’s hospital. Two period roles from “Douluo Continent” and “The Wolf”. Which do Xiao Zhan like the most? Xiao Zhan was unable to answer, “I feel like I like them all. Three different roles, three different pace!”

So, for the audiences who are already familiar with the two roles from “Joy of Life” and “The Untamed”, which are the ones that are closest to Xiao Zhan himself?

Xiao Zhan shook his head, “They weren’t quite similar to me.”

With regards to his roles, his works, let us get to some quick Q&A.

Q: After experiencing the life of the role, would that some what affect yourself? A: I feel that there are some influences to my usual personality.

Q: Would it make you mature faster? A: I feel that it makes my life richer, it means that I have experienced multiple different lives.

Q: What is your long term goal as an actor? A: If we are talking about long term goal, it is definitely being able to act in a drama that I love, and then gain audiences’ recognition for that. I feel that this is my ultimate term goal.

Q: Which role do you like? How do you live with your roles? A: I feel that there isn’t the most loved, I’m just someone who enjoys the moment. For example, when I’m in the current role, I will invest myself entirely into that role, and then I will cherish him and love him. But when I have to go to my next battle, I will put him down and let him go. And then, I will invest all of my passion for the next one.

He actually likes to smile so much

Observing Xiao Zhan up close and personal – his head narrow, his face small and firm, the folded long legs were especially straight and long. Xiao Zhan, is really thin.

When asked if he was at his thinnest, Xiao Zhan smiled, “No, I was the lightest during ‘The Untamed’, it was shot with ‘Joy of Life’, that was the period. I feel like I’ve regained more than what I’ve lost.”

Wei Wuxian in “The Untamed” liked to smile, all the time, everywhere; Yan Bingyun in “Joy of Life” was cold, all the time, as cold as ice. These two roles shot at the same time, just the emotions were already poles apart – the effort in switching in between them definitely exhausted a lot of brain cells.

When asked if he remembered his longest working day ever since his debut, Xiao Zhan looked down and smiled, then exclaimed at the same time with me, “A few days!”

Whether he could mentally sustain the current pace was not the main point – whether he could physically sustain was hotly debated. On this, Xiao Zhan replied especially fast, “I could adjust to it, really! I personally preferred a busier schedule, the feeling of being busy, makes me feel more fulfilling, and more sense of security.”

“Sense of security” – Xiao Zhan used this phrase, how did he understand it?

For example, Xiao Zhan said that there were instances of him in bad temper, and then he was asked if he would flip tables. Xiao Zhan was slightly taken aback, and answered with a smile, “I can see that you’ve never done design, a designer is a contractor working for his clients, if the clients have opinions, you need to communicate properly and slowly convince them…”

Everyone has a different understanding and adaptation when it comes to “bad temper”, a lot of it came from experience and self control of emotions – similarly, our understanding and adaptation of “sense of security” would be different as well, because everyone’s sense of responsibility and experiences would be different. For a youth to openly bring up “sense of security” and fight for that, we could only choose to give him our blessings. Because, in the blur of the mind, we could almost see ourselves in him.

Before I could give him my well wishes, Xiao Zhan gave the readers and audiences an especially down-to-earth and warm blessing, “I feel that more well wishes are repeated too often. I will simply wish everyone a smooth path ahead, and then peace and safety would be nice!”

Finally, we would emphasize one point – Xiao Zhan really likes to smile!

Moreover, Xiao Zhan’s smiles are varied – there is gentle, healing, mischievous, surprising, confident, hearty, shy, embarrassed… and every one of these smiles could be extended into a language of its own.

There is this saying about a child who likes to smile…

His luck will never be lacking.