#also the ominous last line in this screenshot

[chibishortdeath]

I cannot explain how often I think about this part of the Simon’s Quest story. Ough I wanna try to explain every tiny line of this in detail, but I can’t think of words rn aaa, so I’m gonna dump random disjointed thoughts in the tags for now.

I’m putting the links to the English translations of the first two games’ Japanese manuals because their stories are so much cooler than what the western releases got. The second I get everything I can or have thought about this guy together I’m doing in depth story and character analysis for some silly whip man NES games tho—

[doodledrawsthings]

you. Oh my god, you. (Positive)

listen. Before I had internet access, all I had was 1 hour of allotted browser time, bing image search, and a single dantdm play through of a hat in time that never got finished. I googled fanart and got pretty much nothing, I googled fancomics and got pretty much nothing, but you know what I did end up finding?

your art.

from ages 11-14, my goal in life, in art, was your art. I can’t tell you how much I loved finding random screenshots of your posts, because I was always just so impressed by how clean and consistent your sketches are, how the characters always stay on model, the shape language, how you could somehow sketch a character in like 20 lines when it took me 50 to draw sans in my little spiral notebook— like! Holy shit! For years I have looked up to your art! There’s still a photos folder on my dads old huge-ass 12 inch work iPad labeled “holy crap” and filled with your art. Because it inspired me so much. It’s become an undeniable part of my artstyle, now — I still have fanart I drew way back in the day of Hattie and the rest, I didn’t even know anyone’s names because I couldn’t play the game, but you’re the reason I eventually did play the game. Your coffee shop au and different versions of the prince— one of those ieterations inspired the main character of my novel! Well, novel that I tried to write, I was 13 so it was eh, but I tried!!

I’m submitting this on-anon because I don’t want to out my age on the wide internet (I like my privacy) but. Your art has really meant a lot to me. It’s the reason I played hollow knight, and it’s the reason I kept trying to develop an art style I was happy with. You’re the reason I started scribbling comics in my notebooks. Being 13-14 was pretty much the worst two years of my life, but I had Bing image search and the occasional glimpse of your signature, and I’d be so happy every time I found a new (if crusty) three-times screenshotted jpg. You literally introduced me to the concept of polyamory and nonbinary-ness with the coffee shop au. I had no other access to that in my household, and. Yeah. It meant a lot to me.

Anyway. I’m so glad I’ve finally tracked you down (in the most non-ominous way possible) and I’m so glad you’re still active— Please never stop making art. Your art is incredible, and amazing, and also you never know who’s out there on Bing image search. Thank you for creating for as long as you have. You’re pretty much the reason I’m shooting for an art degree (Wish me luck!) so just…Thank you.

(Also I had no idea you were a professional storyboarder, which is insane because that’s what I want to be when I’m through college. Hey, maybe I’ll end up storyboarding a remake of something you’ve storyboarded! hehehe)

Hi anon!

So right off the bat, I gotta tell you that this message made me start bawling when I woke up and saw it. Like I had a full-on cry session while reading your message and lying in bed for almost an hour. I am crying as I am typing this response, on my phone, still in bed. It’s 11am and i woke up at 9. So I hope it turns out coherent.

The last two years have been. weird. I say that a lot because I wanna say “rough” but that still doesn’t feel quite right. I’m almost hyper-aware that there are so many people that have it worse than me rn, so it feels hard to even acknowledge when I’m going through anything, myself, sometimes- REGARDLESS, it’s been kind of an all-time low for my mental health. There was a point within in the last year where I just HATED drawing. I struggled to bring myself to work, I struggled to bring myself to even draw for fun. It felt like I was posting just to post, trying to keep people aware of my existence and it almost felt physically painful to force myself to sit down and do it, sometimes.

I’m getting better now, I think, but. Yknow.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the “oh I can make money off this,” “oh I can get attention off this,” “oh I can prove myself a functional person in society with this,” of it all. I forget why I actually do this, sometimes, or if I even enjoy it. And then I get messages like yours, about the kid with limited internet access looking for A Hat in Time fan art on Bing image search, and I get taken back to when I was a kid scrolling Google images and deviantart for the same thing.

I don’t mean to like. Foster some kind of parasocial thing with you or any one of my followers. There’s a reason I’m saying all this, I hope it ties up in the end.

We don’t know each other. I’m not some mysterious legendary artist, or whatever. I’m a person who gets burnt out, and jealous, and insecure. I need inspiration to function, just like you, and when I don’t have it, I get art block. But I also really like to draw fictional characters kissing and hanging out. I like coming up with comics and stories and playing out dramatic and funny scenarios in my head like I’m mashing Barbies together. And when other people tell me they enjoy the stuff I put out when I do this, it makes me really, really, really happy.

I think I needed to read your message, probably. With the state of… Everything… Right now, especially recently, I feel like a lot of artists are also struggling with a sense of purpose, pride, and reason as the world makes it harder and harder to even BE an artist, these days. And when I read this message it was like Anton Ego at the end of Ratatouille, I got taken back to when I was a kid looking at my favorite artists and studying their style and striving to be better and better at it over years of my life. Not just because I wanted a job for it or cuz I wanted to be a famous Disney animator or whatever, but because it was fun and I just liked doing it.

Thank you, SO much. I say this in the most genuine and earnest way I possibly can possibly express. I wish you luck on your own path in art and art school. And if you decide that animation industry is your thing, then I wish you the best in that endeavor, as well. I think I will keep making art for a long time.

Peace and love on the planet earth ✌️✌️✌️

[v41entine]

***EDIT: organization + added screenshots I've finished my first avowed playthrough. I wanna talk about it.

[⚠️Major Spoiler Warning‼️]

( mid-game predictions: first / second )

First, things I was right about:

Woedica "burned" Sapadal aka The Voice and will make a cameo. (i was wrong about their imprisonment, but i should have stuck with my gut on this one bc otherwise i was right orz)

Sapadal learns from our decisions and it will change them throughout the story (the final convo with them was sooooo. it was everything 😭😭😭 the things i expected them to say about certain choices and how they INTERPRETED it thru THEIR lens was fascinating!!!!)

Sapadal is actually causing the plague to defend against the spread of the Engwithan God's influence. (OKAY i think it was actually the manifestation of their fear/loneliness BUT they are AFRAID of Aedyr and Woedica, so i was at least half right)

Now, i must confess, as seems to be my pattern with Obsidian games, I COMPLETELY MISSED OUT on a whooole chunk of the game. I missed everything in Fior, I recruited the Spy and still didn't put anything together and didn't realize what might happen. So that one's on me -_-

(towards endgame the companions are like. reminiscing about everything we've gone thru, and Yatzli straight up says "I thought you could have been more helpful" AND SHE WAS RIGHT IM SO SORRY BESTIE I COLLECTED UR VASE AND COMPLETELY FORGOT TO GIVE IT TO YOU 😭😭😭)

NEwayy I'm excited for my second playthru but first i want to go back and see the different endings with this envoy just for funsies :3

My endgame experience:

I should have known that it would end with a "Choose Aedyr or Sapadal/the Living Lands" thing; the culture you grew up with vs your "birthright"/patron. I was rly trying to stay neutral, like at first i was like, oh we're just following orders "stop the dreamscourge" and nothing else matters, but as a person with power and authority, ofc u aren't allowed to remain neutral in times of conflict 😔😔 i chose the gref (?) option, but i wanna focus on the other ending.

So when it came down to the decision on what to do with Sapadal, Free them or Destroy them, I was torn!! I did NOT trust them! but I think Marius made the point that maybe killing a God is not a good idea? So I tried for a different option and when they mentioned becoming "one", I looked at it this way:

I chose Ryngrim's offer. The same lesson in her fucked up little parable about pragmatism over sentimentality and "one for the many," I applied to this situation. I was afraid of both the ramifications of killing the god of the living lands, and also what a freed Sapadal might do, because they were, surprise! Vengeful.

My favorite line in particular was about my choices in handling the assassin/rebels.

So. "Sacrificing" the envoy to appease Sapadal and (hopefully) keep them in check, seemed like a worthy compromise! And yes, I did have the suspicion that Sapadal would replace our sentience with their own, but they didn't and everything was fine! until...

BTW the.. merging? was appropriately creepy and it definitely felt like you were giving away more than you intended. IMO. I hated it!

The final confrontation with Lödwyn was a blast, that little moment where Lödwyn realizes what's happened, and then your companions realize what's happening is, again, appropriately terrifying!

Except, that's it. You save the day and the credits roll, Sapadal has one last message for you and the epilogue plays.

And honestly, that was disappointing!!! like. No follow up whatsoever about being possessed, no longer being yourself, Kai expressed concern and then once Lödwyn died, he was back to normal???

It just seemed rly odd and anticlimactic idk! It felt like the results of this choice should have been more. ominous? permanent?? But, no! U just get a shot of your buddies havin a picnic together! It just doesn't add up for me :/

(↑ like those 2 shots happen in that exact order, did everyone else forget?? TT_TT)

I'm definitely going to play as this envoy again to make more intentional choices, but first, I feel like I need a fresh playthru altogether, so I'm excited to see how Sapadal will learn next time!🙂‍↕️ (ty obsidian i luv u obsidian ! 💖)

Overall

🌟 I loved the setting and I loved the story, tho tbh im very easy to please, so long as a game is fun, that's enough for meee :) but this one also has the fun moral quandaries common in obsidian story telling :3

💞 I really do feel like the typical "companion romance" we see in other RPGs would have detracted from this game. Sorry, not rly tho. The plot is very linear and pressing, and frankly, everyone's got bigger fish to fry!! I do like that they left the door open for an epilogue romance with Kai, I haven't heard/discovered if it's ONLY with Kai??? But I like that there is that little something for folks who prioritize romance in video games. (I stand by my personal take that romance is not, and has never really been, one of Obsidian's strengths! and i rly don't mind them leaving it out <3)

😔 I'm pretty sure I missed out on Giatta and Yatzli's personal quests :((( but I really enjoyed Kai and Marius'!! I actually just rly loved learning about the Living Lands in general!! Prior to rly knowing anything about it I played a Watcher from the Living Lands and now it feels like a whole new world actually being able to like. Conceptualize what their history/background was actually like yk?? V FUN. I enjoyed the camp banter, but I do wish there was at least a little regular banter when traveling, things could get quiet when exploring the same areas lmao.

👙 I LOVED BEING ABLE TO TAKE ON THE APPEARANCE OF OTHER ARMORS!!! sometimes the good armor is UGLY 🙂‍↕️ What i didn't love was being MICROMANAGED DURING FIGHTS "time for some new armor" the second i take 2 damage, "did that even hurt them?" when i don't 1-shot someone like WYM 😭😭 LEAVE ME ALONE worry abt urselves orz orz orz

😡 Speaking of armor, I just wanna express my ABSOLUTE disappointment in Obsidian completely erasing Pillars depiction of Aedyr/Aedyran fashion:

It's like they just used Aloth's armor ALONE as a reference, and not taking into account that Aloth dressed the way he did because he traveled!!! (esp since in deadfire his outfit still held the silhouette of aedyran clothing and in poe1 he didn't have his sash at all !! >:((() It felt like a downgrade :( instead of using the rich lore they already had they just overwrote it with some bland GOT shit :(((

🥰 All that aside, im excited for other playthroughs, the second playthru is always my fav bc i get to notice all the little details and foreshadowing i missed the first time around <333

🍄🍄 mushroom divider 🍄🍄 | 🌳🌲 branch divider 🌲🌳

[autisticlalna]

The Fourth Wall Will Not Protect You: Establishing Contact With R.C.

im being exploded from all angles but i bring news from the skyblock kingdoms discord. which is also news from fool's chat last night. WE HAVE MADE CONTACT WITH R.C.

"leo. leontids mathonwys what does that mean" IM GLAD YOU ASKED <- unhinged

after Rubyco's episode dropped yesterday, someone was curious about what was going on with the weird galactic messages. Solar and I gave an overview of what we know, which dovetailed into talking about V.P., and because im incredibly predictable i also started talking about Navigator.

normal behavior.

and then...

He is definitely someone to keep in mind.

im gonna just post some screenshots going over this part, because it got very chaotic very fast.

or, to summarize: SBKCD attempts to figure out who to yell at for being ominous.

things somehow get even more chaotic, with several others chiming in Galactic, Enderian, letter substitution ciphers, and fucking hexadecimal at one point. im gonna skip over most of it and zero in on the other message we got from R.C. during this:

leo: i was supposed to be clipping something. aces: Team L.O.R.E. Suffering continues R.C.: :) R.C.: [Suffering is not the intention]

okay! cool! awesome. R.C. making the discord explode was not part of their plan, whatever it is. more importantly hi hello what the fuck do you mean nav is someone to keep in mind

this is, somehow, not the end of it. later that night, during Fool's stream, Ruby-- or the Rubyco clone, to be more specific-- was lurking around being threatening and all-around very suspicious. Solar was in Fool's chat and feeling very stabby (which Fool shot down), and when it became clear that Ruby was stream-sniping, decided to cause a distraction.

solar: also -- fool, ignore me for a second -- R.C., pal of all ours. [i don't suppose you're listening in?]

unexpectedly, there was a response from Rubyco in Fool's chat:

R.C.: [I am always watching]

Solar and R.C. then proceeded to have a conversation, still in Galactic.

solar: oh, awesome! great to see you! [out of curiosity, do you take up capacity for this line of sight? which is to say, can that other ruby see right now?] R.C.: [I am not a parasite] solar: would never accuse you of that! quite the opposite, [i wonder if your presence protects us from the prying eyes of that impostor.] R.C.: [I do not influence the worlds- i am not him, i should not communicate- but this is different.] R.C.: [You are an ear that will listen]

a couple other chat members chimed in in Galactic, and im assuming Fool noticed what was going on (i had his stream at near-zero volume unfortunately) because R.C. ended communication with this:

R.C.: [Do not tell about my existence] R.C.: [Please tell him this too]

incidentally, the distraction didn't work. after all, they outright told Solar "I am not a parasite"-- this isn't a Sapphire situation.

what's interesting is that, in other instances of R.C. speaking to the viewers so far, they've referred to themselves as plural-- "we". this includes in the most recent video that started all this: the hidden messages include "This was the only one we could save", and the description says "We are not sure of their location".

however, here we're speaking to an individual, or at least someone speaking on behalf of themself and not as representative of the assumed greater whole. "I am always watching". "Do not tell about my existence".

hey guys what the fuck

[caputgeratlupinum]

In which I (re) watch Robin of Sherwood

In the dim and distant past (of a few years ago) I started watching Robin of Sherwood. I dropped out after the end of season 2, when *events* happened (if you know, you know).

Anyway, this to say that I started watching it again, and I thought it would be fun to record my reactions to it. I remember it as being a good if slightly silly show, so... we'll see how it holds up.

EPISODE ONE - ROBIN HOOD AND THE SORCERER (PART 1)

We are starting off strong with the Ominous Bad Guy theme that sent me back to the last time I watched this with the force of a hammer (this show has about five soundtracks and they all come up like once an episode).

Our introduction to adult Robin is him running to the top of a... something, I'm not sure if it's a hill or a ledge or what. Anyway he runs there, stops, and screams 'MUCH!'. Which must be wildly confusing if you're not familiar with Robin Hood.

ITVX doesn't let me take screenshots (tragically) but I need you all to know that Guy of Gisborne looks about twelve and speaks like he went to fancy boarding school.

Hi Will Scarlet I have fond memories of you from last time! And I think this might be the first time he's 'scarlet' as in 'bloody' rather than named for his hair or clothes. Also the second Will tells them his name another man steps out of the shadows to introduce himself like he's desperate to get in on the action.

ROBERT! ROBERT! BY CHRIST ROBERT I WILL NOT LOSE MY FISHPOND! 10/10 introduction no notes. Genius move to give the Sheriff an annoying brother in the form of Abbot (??) Hugo.

Sheriff duties: keep on top of the poachers in the forest, and meet with the evil sorcerer baron and his... possessed slave? I'm vague on what position Little John holds here.

Sorry, Sir Evil Baron (yes I know his name is Simon de Bellame. I'm ignoring that), but I don't believe for a second that your wife taking her own life was nothing to do with you.

Did I mention Marian and Tuck are here? They are! I love them both very much.

I can't believe they that they just leave Rat Man and Arthur behind. I demand a spin-off about what happened to them.

'You're like a May morning.' *climbs out the window without another word* I mean to be fair to Robin if I tried that line I'd probably also flee immediately afterwards.

I really wish I could do screenshots because Herne the Hunter's vision of various events with Evil Baron's face over it all, slowly getter bigger and bigger, is truly a sight to behold. Robin honestly took that pretty well.

The classic bridge fight is very enjoyable but I am haunted by the knowledge of the blooper reel where Michael Praed gets hit in the balls. And Robin's dramatic scream as he falls off the bridge is sending me.

Last time I wasn't really sure how to feel about the Herne the Hunter stuff, and right now I'm in the same place. uhh... stag-man. With vague prophecies. I dunno... 'when the horned one possesses me' ok but who are you when he's not possessing you? How does one become possessed by the horned one in the first place (I know none of this is the point. I just have questions!)

If I were one of the merry men, I would find it easier to agree with Robin's Heroic Inspiring SpeechTM if it hadn't started with him explaining how he's been 'awakened' by a deer-headed man.

I feel like Will saying, 'You should have killed him. You'll have to someday.' is setting up for a conflict down the line where Robin has to make a Choice about Gisborne some day, but I don't remember any such plot.

aaand that's it! I didn't mention every single thing that happened, there's a lot happening in this episode. Genuinely had a good time though! Despite my poking fun at stuff, I do actually like this show.

[buck-up-buck]

HMMMMMM

Ya'll can blame @theredrenard for this because I was told specifically to stop manifesting this, so guess. what.

HERE IS ME CONTINUING TO MANIFEST IT.

So, as per my post HERE I talked about the potential to burn Buck's loft down. Now, again, you don't have to tell me twice about how AO3 this theory is, I have been in this fandom since day one and I have read an unhealthy amount of fanfictions with this plot line, but, indulge me a second, will you?

So, at the beginning of the season I know that SOMEWHERE, there was a scene where there was a housing market crisis headline on the TV in the background, but I cannot for the life of me find it, so here is a screenshot of a post I saw talking about it!

We also have the scene where Buck is touring Harbour with Tommy at the start of 7x04 and Tommy mentions that he sometimes responds to "high-rise fires."... interesting Tommy; do you sense a high-rise fire in your near future to save you boyfriend, huh, HUH?!?

AND THEN, we have Buck at the end of 7x04 before Tommy knocks on the door seemingly going through paperwork, bills maybe? This, accompanied with the housing market crisis SCREAMS that Buck is maybe having issues with paying rent, or with living in the loft in general and is potentially looking for an out?

Now. all of these combined alone are enough to see a potential storyline to do with the loft (and it burning down, cough cough), but what really sealed the deal was Eddie's comment in the last episode (7x07).

Eddie walking in and commenting that he could smell smoke, with Buck telling him the new recipe he is working on is cracking him, rubbed me the wrong way. What a STRANGE way to word that scene. AND THEN, Buck looking up at the ceiling, where I assume the smoke detector is, all confused as if it should have been going off, but wasn't, is potentially foreshadowing issues with the building.

NOW, all of this together, SCREAMS a storyline to do with Buck's loft, the scene in 7x07 just solidifying a potential fire even moreso.

I will admit, I have changed my mind on Amir's involvement in the fire. I now highly doubt this man would go through all this effort to burn down an apartment complex, after suffering such a loss in one himself, and would not go out of his way to injure innocent people. BUT, what I do think however, is that his conflict with Bobby is going to potentially do some more foreshadowing for the loft potentially burning down.

I doubt Amir would use the words as direct as "karma is a bitch", but I do think sentences like...

"The universe has a wicked sense of payback." "Life has a way of serving up its own brand of justice." "In the end, karma is a flame that burns with the heat of our actions."

that all basically SCREAM, fire. And this makes Bobby super anxious but Amir is gone, he is either over it and has moved on with his lil ominous departure, or he's been arrested for his conflict with Bobby, and Athena is like, "he is gone, that man is gone from our lives." and Bobby settles because she is right, it's fine. everything is fine.

Until it isn't.

Until something happens that causes Buck's loft to go up in flames and all Bobby can think about is, fuck, this is my karma, and he is like, no, I will save my son, and he goes all badass and he gets Buck outta there.

Below are my messages in my beloved 9-1-1 server that I sent literally as that scene in 7x07 was playing out in front of me, including a 46-second-long VN about why that comment from Eddie just, didn't sit right with me.

ANYWAY, hope you enjoyed. As always, let me know what you think. Am I crazy? Am I onto something? At this point, I don't even know anymore but I am having so much fun terrorising the Clown Car that now I just do it for the bants.

Whenever anyone sees me type "I HAVE A THEORY" they all immediately log off, it's so weird.

[drakothedragon55]

Drako’s Top 10 Underrated "Creepy and/or Cozy" Roblox Games

That’s right. I’ve been wanting to do this for a while, and as 2024 is drawing to a close, I thought that this would be a good send-off.

For a game to be included, it must have under a thousand current players (at the time of me writing this, which started in October 2024. I'm aware that #4 has over a thousand current players now, but it didn't at the time, so it stays)

I chose to purposely exclude some more well-known games to give smaller ones a chance to be noticed. Sorry, Jim’s Computer, The Smiles Family/any Roblox myth place, and other similar games. You're all still awesome!

Also please keep in mind that this list is quite subjective. It’s literally my opinion lol. What you and I consider a good game might be quite different.

Without further ado, let’s begin!

#1: Expedition by hyuno_ooo

(second image courtesy of Josh Plays)

Interesting plot? Check. Well scripted? Check. Isn’t even close to being finished? Check. The Expedition is a tale about mental health, and about growing up. Despite it only having a prologue, it seems really promising. Yeah, it goes for the "here's the ending of the story. But how do we get here? Let's rewind." trope (which I don't typically like), but this time around it was actually quite interesting. I could relate to the main character in more ways than one, the dream sequences were neat, and...I'm going to stop there to avoid further spoilers. Hopefully more people notice Expedition soon. It deserves the attention 100%.

#2: Star Creator Simulator by funny fire ant games

I stumbled across this game after discovering another one (cart ride around a used car battery or something along those lines) by the same group. It seems to be heavily inspired by Squirrel Stapler, which is already a good game. I won’t spoil the story since I really want people to give this game a shot (and also because it's really short. Like, 10 minutes maximum), but I was consistently tense during my first playthrough. I genuinely didn't feel safe in the little house, and it's crazy that this joke-game-treated-seriously made me feel that way.

#3: Train to the Unknown by Master Games Corporation

A cozy and creepy exploration game where you can travel between different worlds on the titular train. There’s easter eggs, minigames/small tasks that you can do, a lot of cosmetic options, and other neat things to find. Also the lore is quite interesting if you take the time to find it. If you'd rather figure it out for yourself, then you can just skip ahead to #4. Now for those who want to know, the entire game is essentially purgatory, and each world is composed of memories iirc. Pretty neat! And it explains the ominous messages you see each time the train goes between worlds.

#4: The Intruder by Official_Bulderme

Sorry for the bad screenshots. I recorded a video in case I messed up the shot.

The Mandela Catalogue meets FNAF. Despite being a bit of a chicken when it comes to horror games (ironic, since I love them), I enjoy The Intruder. I have fond memories of trying to piece together the lore back when Satan’s Lodge was the most recent released map. Good times. I appreciate the eventual straying (and subsequent returning) from the FNAF formula, just so each multiplayer level doesn't feel like a reskin of the last one. Oh, and the singleplayer campaign is a whole different beast entirely. I recommend the entirety of multiplayer, and all of the singleplayer tapes. They're short but sweet :)

#5: Warm Isolation by Steven_Scripts

Does this count as a bait and switch experience? Regardless, props to the dev for making a singular bedroom so fun to chill in. But once you find a way to leave the bedroom there’s a whole house to (kinda) explore. So get a lighter or two, and venture out into the long dark hallway. I swear- every last inch of this game was put there with a purpose in mind. Sit down anywhere in the bedroom, then sit down anywhere in the rest of the house and see what I mean. There's also a notebook that you can write in, and I'm pretty sure it only erases once the server closes. It's cool to read both the silly and the in-character messages written by all sorts of different players.

#6: Pepper’s Playhouse by kippwire

A weirdcore/circuscore hangout game. You're gonna see a few other hangout games on this list, I'm sure. Anyways, it's a real shame that no one really plays this game anymore. I liked it so much, I even made my own PPH OC once upon a time. It's still getting updates every now and then, and it even has some custom music tracks. If you like weirdcore, then you're gonna like PPH. Here's hoping you like clowns, too...

#7: Tearose Library by * Tearose Library *

I first discovered this game back when it was called Teafuls' Library, and I gotta say that I'm a fan. I actually used to work as a book restocker here once upon a time, but I'd still recommend this game regardless of my past affiliations. It's just so cozy! All of the books are player-submitted, and despite the low active userbase, it's still getting new book submissions each week.

#8: Cookie Cookie Funtime by Draggyy

(both images courtesy of Josh Plays)

Upon first glance, Cookie Cookie Funtime seems to be yet another FNAF clone. And you’d be right! But CCF does something most of the other clones don’t: it makes fun of itself. CCF is a shockingly-well-made experience that’s also short but sweet (ba-dum tish 🥁 ). Just like all the other games on this list, I recommend it!

#9: Journey to the Sun by nextReality Games

A relaxing (and sometimes challenging) platforming adventure! Journey to the Sun tasks you to collect seven sacred flames, before finally venturing into the sun in order to prevent an ancient evil from escaping. You speed and jump height increases with each flame, allowing you to access areas that you otherwise couldn't before. Plus there's a whole lot of bonus content as well. The vibes this game gives off is hard to describe, but it's definitely cozy.

#10: a dream youve had before by 4slug

What first appears to be a simple "leave your mark" game where you can leave notes for other players to read is actually quite the strange experience if you take the time to delve deeper. There's many badges to collect, but the atmosphere alone is probably enough for some to want to play it. I won't spoil the events that can occur on each floor, but I will warn you about the clocks. Any floor with a clock on it is bad news...

——————————————————————————————————

Honourable Mentions

Write a Letter by Free Hashbrowns. It's a cozy hangout spot with multiple different locations, such as an abandoned bakery, an overgrown convenience store, and more. It gets a spot on the honourable mentions list due to it not really having anything going on besides that. Once you see all there is to see, there isn't really any incentive to go back. Though the letter writing/saving is executed well, and its fun to read what others have written :)

JOVIAL Playground by ROSKAA123. I didn't want two different weirdcore hangout games on the list, so I chose Pepper's Playhouse over this one (due to me liking it just a little bit more.) But that doesn't mean that JP is a bad game. Quite the opposite, in fact! It has a lot of areas to explore and NPCs to meet. It feels like a place kid-me would have loved to visit.

Stupid Idiot Cafe by Funny Fire Ant Games. These people also made Star Creator Simulator, which already has a spot on this list. Stupid Idiot Cafe is both a mockery and improvement to the dime-a-dozen cafe games you'll find all over Roblox. The baristas get guns, for pete's sake! But not just for unruly patrons, oh no no. For the SCP-style cryptids that will periodically escape, of course. There's even a Star Creator Simulator reference. It's cool.

Scary Sushi by Evil Twin Games. Any longtime followers of mine know that I love this game. Unfortunately, it’s a bit too popular to qualify for the main list. But the gameplay loop is just the right amount of difficult and fun to keep you interested, and chapter 2 is going to allegedly release in December. Also SS got featured in The Haunt, so uh. Yeah. At least it’s getting acknowledged?

Edit: Chapter 2 is indeed out. Lol.

[dirtyoldmanhole]

before we hit ch25, the last few lines of this one are pretty nutty in an emotional implications way.

corrin's fam is a bit fucked up, y'all.

(that's a roundabout way of saying mikoto's growing on me in a big way this playthrough.)

if you successfully run through this stealth level, possessed!mikoto tries to trick you with the last door. I'm pointing this out to show the increasingly more blurry line of possession as these last few levels go on. corrin's starting to get the idea, thankfully.

don't always take them at their word, basically. watch the actions.

(ignore the different corrin/player character, i had to snag a screengrab off of a let's play.)

... geez. that's chilling.

when you add in all of the more autonomous(ish) possessed characters together (mikoto, takumi, gunter), you start to see common patterns with how anankos presses on their psychic wounds.

mikotos, as you could take a gander with the last post, craves more time with corrin. her mother's instinct gets warped in a way that anankos can bend in a way that (nearly) guarantees corrin's destruction.

i find it interesting that her psychic wound here mirrors her magical barrier with how she drains nohrian troops of their will to fight. 'surrender/stop resisting/in the name of (twisted) love'

(I can't talk much to takumi's possession/his psychic wounds as much other than a 'yeap looks like anankos really whacked hard on that competitive/insecurity nerve there. but it does look quite consistent with the other two.)

mikoto's boss fight is up.

.... the massive spoiler that (one of) mikoto's lovers was human!anankos (aka corrin's bio!dad) just hit me, actually.

this whole exchange is exceptionally twisted with that in mind.

corrin defeats her. before we hit her actual death scene, you get the items, if you had completed the stealth level successfully.

(gunter's line here is a throw-away in the great scheme of things, I'm pretty sure it's nintendo throwing one last hail mary of sorts to the denser players of 'hey remember this guy, he's about to be very important wink wonk')

(also, imo, it's not a coincidence he keeps randomly showing up whenever corrin's parents are involved.)

corrin's starting to get it.

mikoto's hoshidan children get a chance to huddle around and say their good-byes before she dissolves into the water bubbles that signifies complete "body is dead" anankos' possession. (water being the element he and the other vallites are heavily linked to).

speaking of, we get a revelation ba dum tishh here....

in terms of plot twists, this one's actually not that surprising. nintendo's kind of wearing a little thin of 'oops actually royal of x country' twists but this one makes more sense with how mysterious corrin's past is.

no shit sher-

........ uh

w-w-what are you doing here sir

i am pretty sure i did not see you in the screenshot .02 seconds before when mikoto got vaporized

(why are you all alone there too that's kinda really ominous)

uh

uhhhh

you're standing kind of close man

(seriously though, analyze all the other screenshots and he's always a respectful body-length distance away from everyone, especially corrin. the difference is an immediate big fat "!!!" subconciously even if it doesn't read as well in the screnshots)

..........

..........NOT OMINOUS AT ALL NOPE

whyisthiskindofhot

corrin babe

you might want to talk things out with your hubby there justsayin'...

BECAUSE

this is the brilliant bit about the complete and fucking total shift into 'camera's weirdly all the sudden treating your psuedo daddy gunter like a villain what the fuck' (the visual equivalent to 'why do i hear boss music all the sudden')

we find out in about two chapters that gunter has a burning decades long nursed hatred of royalty (for not unjustified reasons) (but)

combine that with the 'gunter lowkey always holding some kind of romantic/??? unresolved pining for corrin' (especially if you're coming from conquest headcanons)

with

the knowledge of anankos hating corrin's guts and willing to twist anyone dear to her in some pretty depraved ways

.....

if your reaction is 'oh geez. that suddenly got some real fucky undertones real quick'

YUP

OHO YUP IT SURE DID

gunterfuckers know what's coming up next >:)

[tonydaddingham]

coercion/choice middle ground anon again! your response and also that other inspired meta have given me so many thoughts. i couldn't get them into a sort of unified statement so i'm just going to go through with a line-by-line approach:

well, what about the miracle blocker? how did i forget about this. oh shit. add that to the loooong list of Stuff That's Going To Come Back To Haunt us. chekhov's everything. someone ought to make a list.

so much so that he was potentially taken in by it too possibly not just him but crowley as well. yes they lived through austen times. they could have theoretically learned to dance like that. based off the season 1 head of a pin segment i don't think so though. aziraphale knows the gavotte and crowley knows the horrible disco dance and that seems like it's it.

why would he be sat there waiting for a call? could he have known a call would be coming? in a surveillance state way not a collabing with demons way. would fit with the way he just shows up apparently fully informed about everything the next morning. speaking of surveillance state i know a lot of people compare heaven to a cult and i agree but my first thought back in season 1 was actually dictatorship.

the explanation for that can only be, in my book, that metatron has been watching... and possibly has been since the first time the portal opened. well that's not at all ominous. but again it would fit with what he seems to know. did he actually go back over their exploits or has he just spent the last four years eavesdropping and put together the pieces?

i think he knows that metatron might have eyes and ears everywhere. hmmm. yeah. ominous. especially if he makes the connection to the bookshop portal because that would mean it's targeted. i do think he clocks the metatron as potential threat regardless of how kindly he's presenting himself. he's as you said not stupid and he's just too nervous around him not to have.

but because if aziraphale walks away, without crowley, crowley has nowhere safe to go. ohhhh shit. his decision's not at all only about crowley's safety but it is the only decision where crowley's safe.

(1/?)

oh hello 🦭 anon!!!✨ first of all, of course you can offload braindumps and thoughts and suggestions and whatever you like to my inbox!!! i love interacting with people like this so please do so whenever the inclination arises, you are very welcome here!!!✨

further screenshots below the cut:

for you to have gone through that meta practically line by line is... alarming!!! but moreso in that i cant believe you took the time to do so and reflect on each point, im very appreciative of that - thank you!!! and i love seeing your own responsive thoughts, they certainly kicked off a couple of my own!!!✨

why would he be sat there waiting for a call? could he have known a call would be coming? in a surveillance state way not a collabing with demons way. would fit with the way he just shows up apparently fully informed about everything the next morning. speaking of surveillance state i know a lot of people compare heaven to a cult and i agree but my first thought back in season 1 was actually dictatorship.

funnily enough this is nearer to how i see heaven, too; i completely understand the different analogies that others have drawn, including a cult or an abusive family (and all are absolutely true, none are wrong!!!), but i personally see heaven as a police state, or at the very least a totalitarian state with similar power/capabilities. it strikes me as being rather orwellian, to say the least.

as for collaboration with demons, i do think that there may be an element of this involved (for anyone else, context on this discussion is here), but maybe not in this exact instance of the portal opening in s2. i think there's perhaps been some high-level orchestration going on that could involve using the demons and the whole gabriel situation to an advantage, but in this specific scene, yeah i think its a case of metratron having an eye on the whole thing.

the explanation for that can only be, in my book, that metatron has been watching... and possibly has been since the first time the portal opened. well that's not at all ominous. but again it would fit with what he seems to know. did he actually go back over their exploits or has he just spent the last four years eavesdropping and put together the pieces?

oooookay so basically, i think its a combination of the two. i think the last four years - definitely possible he's been looking through the portal. we don't have any narrative confirmation that aziraphale has actually opened the portal before s1, and he doesn't recognise metatron's head. that being said, im of the mind that despite what is shown to us as the human audience, in heaven all the angels are in true form... so metatron (Inc his stupid floating head) may have looked very different pre-fall to aziraphale - hence why he doesn't recognise him.

anyway! i think yes; he's been steadily watching ever since aziraphale piqued his interest in s1 (calls metatron, ignores him, sucked up to heaven, yeets himself back to earth, and then stops the ordained apocalypse? man's practically a heavenly terrorist)... but then i think metatron has potentially used the surveillance system to basically back-research, and had a particular angel to help him do it (or perhaps he was watching all along? who knows).

i think he realises that metratron is potentially dangerous. he's smarter than metatron has given him credit for the metatron thinks he's reindoctrinated aziraphale into heaven's way of thinking when really aziraphale's planning to form heaven according to his way of thinking. crowley gets it wrong too. as so many people have said he hears i can fix you instead of i can fix heaven and i'd like your help. and look he's got issues and i don't blame him but i do think it's why a lot of people got mad at aziraphale and i have a lot to say about all of that. like a lot a lot and potentially somewhat ranty so while i'd love to share i shall appropriate vampire culture and wait for permission (also have quite a few thoughts about the fall that i'd love to vent if you don't mind being on the listening end) before i turn this endless.

listen. 🦭 anon, my love, my darling one. first of all - unreliable narrators? it's my girl dinner; both of them are unreliable to frankly incredible extents. idk how familiar you might be with my ramblings, but where you want to peruse, take a look at my masterpost tags, specifically the #crowley meta and #aziraphale meta ones, because whilst i am frankly an aziraphale defender (mainly in reaction to everyone shitting on him immediately after the premiere - me too, for about like 30 minutes and then i had a Realisation), i wax fairly lyrical about how much of a Problem these characters both are. i try to be balanced (but will fully admit im more biased towards being critical more frequently of crowley), but they are both very problematic.

the LWA responses (also linked in my masterpost) get very much into narrator critique too.

consider this absolute blanket permission to drop anything in my inbox, especially concerning the fall! it's the main speculation that i love thinking about (however much it hurts me in equal measure), but i'll chat about, and parse out, anything really!!!💕

and not until possibly clocking this dirty look thrown at crowley, just for good measure ooh good catch. i had not yet considered the possibility that he picked up on the weird tension there. (seriously do they have history?) there's something to be said about that i just don't know what.

my #the fall/the great war spec explores this a bit more across various posts and asks, but i absolutely do think this. not only because of the dialogue where metatron references crowley ("always did want to go his own way... always asking damn-fool questions too!"), but also from the way that crowley speaks about god in both s1 and s2, and - what appears to be - gaps in AWCW's recollection about the fall itself.

AWCW - Angel Who Crowley Was

come scream at me about this. seriously.

will leave it there for now, but again - do feel free to come back at any time!!! i rarely have one set opinion or interpretation of any given scene/line/etc., and love to consider alternative points of view - yours was a case in point!!!

i was originally vehemently against aziraphale having been overtly threatened or coerced, because a) it felt so superfluous to what was otherwise a subtle and masterful manipulation, one that seems to lead to aziraphale making the decision for himself, not metatron forcing his hand, and b) i think being threatened/blackmailed into ascending would potentially shit on a number of aspects about aziraphale's character, and reduce him to only "i'll go against my own character development just to protect crowley uwu", which is also... well, it's possible, but i hate it. aziraphale however suspecting that something else is happening, and being scared as a result - that feels a lot more in line with his character, imo!!!

anyway, hope to see you again soon 🦭 anon!!! you're welcome anytime!!!✨💕

[plague-of-insomnia]

Ch 197 : Send in the Clones

This is a short chapter. Finny and Snake are led from the outside by Susan, one of the young staff members, who teases/flirts with Snake about his relationship with Doll before introducing them to the Collie class. They made bath salts the day before and today are making pound cake with orange marmalade, instructed by an older woman staff member.

While we’re here, we meet a few more of the children at the orphanage, and more parallels begin to emerge.

We’ve already met Theo, the “Ciel” clone, and Jenny, one of the kids from the outdoorsy Corgi class in chapter 196, so now we get to meet three more, who parallel the other servants: Sebastian, Mey Rin, and Bard.

Oliver (オリバー), Mey Rin’s Doppleganger, Collie Class

It’s possible Oliver is a boy, but it isn’t explained. (Oliver does use 僕, boku, the same first-person pronoun Our Ciel does, and a common one for young boys.) Oliver is also very shy and tends to stutter when they speak, like Mey. Oliver has a strong aptitude for domestic tasks like embroidery, and seems very close/clingy with Daniel, the Bard clone, and always seems to be apologizing.

Artie (アーティ), Sebastian’s Doppleganger, Mastiff Class

Artie is the oldest in his class and impresses Finny and Snake with elegant manners and speech, just like a high-ranking servant like a butler. He keeps some of the other kids in line (like the Bard clone Daniel), and also seems to know more than he initially lets on about “fledgling day” (the day that the kids leave the orphanage, supposedly). He also uses the same pronoun as Sebastian, 私, Watashi.

Daniel (ダニエル), Bard’s Doppleganger, Collie Class

Daniel is definitely a boy (or he sees himself as one, anyway), as he complains about having to dress like a girl and do “woman’s work,” in much the same way that Bard complained to Seb when he first joined the servants. And like then, he’s given a stern talking to about cooking and other domestic tasks not being the sole domain of women. (He even uses the same pronoun, オレ/俺, ore, as Bard.)

I can’t say yet what the significance of these parallels are yet, but they’re definitely one of the most important aspects of this chapter. The other one has to do with a term that’s repeated over and over this arc—

「巣立ちの日」, literally “leaving the nest day,” or what I’m calling “Fledgling Day.”

It’s the day that the eldest in each class “ages out” of the orphanage and presumably goes on to the world to work as a servant in their area of expertise, and is a day of celebration. When Artie first talks about it in this chapter, it’s while lecturing Daniel about needing to be prepared with skills when he leaves the orphanage one day.

However, only a few pages later, Susan, one of the staff, announces that Jenny, the girl we met last chapter who was afraid of horses, is having her “Fledgling Day.”

This is sudden and surprising news that almost everyone seems excited about—except for Artie and Oliver. The latter is so shocked that they forget to tend the marmalade they’re making and it begins to boil and burn—and I wonder if that juxtaposition is intentionally ominous as to why they’re so concerned about this news.

On the last page of the chapter, Artie murmurs about how this can’t be, it’s too sudden, genuinely horrified. Does he know that “failures” are disposed of? It’s giving me even stronger Promised Neverland vibes now…

Another interesting element is that Snake seems oblivious to their different reaction, but not Finny. Could it be because of his own experience as a test subject that he can recognize what it means to have failures “disposed of”?

I wonder if Oliver and Artie may become allies to Finny and Snake, and if we may be horrorfied (ala the bone prosthesis in the circus arc) once we learn more about what Undertaker is doing with all these kids…

~#~

As always please be respectful of the work I’ve put into my translations and don’t use my translations or screenshots without credit.

I’m also human and I make mistakes, so apologies in advance if there are any.

[shinygemstone]

This is my toh trailer analysis. I am making this WITHOUT watching for the future. Please don't post spoilers under this.

So, first of all- Luz's palisman. It doesn't show up in this specific trailer, but I want to cover it very briefly. It's gonna be a snake. Judging by the color of the egg, it'll be somewhere between green and blue.

ANYWAYS, the trailer: https://youtube.com/watch?v=ZIurNjdV-X0&si=EnSIkaIECMiOmarE

The trailer starts with The Collector asking King to read them a bedtime story from a very tall book. It seems that King knocks it over and just starts reading.

It then cuts to a Lilith with short, curly hair, worrying about Hooty.

This does not paint a pretty picture. The moon sigil between Hooty's eyes implies that it is The Collector who did this to him, and his body looks like one of those puppets you'd put your hand through. Lilith lets a tear fall on him- I hope Hooty isn't dead, but it implies that for the time being, he functionally is.

Cut to the coven heads seeming to attack Eda. Eda also has short hair now, fun. King is just... watching. He's probably unable to help. But he has Hooty, which isn't very reassuring considering he's already been got.

At first glance, they look normal. Then you look a bit closer, realize that the sun on the healing coven head's, uh, horns, is a sun, that all of their jaws look strangely puppetlike, and realize that clearly the collector did something to them. Also the collector has no sense of style, just look at Eberwolf and Raine's hair 💀

The glowing eyes, at this point, to me, seem to symbolize that The Collector is actively using his puppets. There's clearly a puppet/doll motif here, which makes sense. The coven heads then proceed to raise spell circles against Eda, showing that even as puppets, they can still use their magic.

Enter Bump, who is actively casting a spell when he gets got. The other hexside teachers are around him, and the expected colorful magic moon, flicked by The Collector, his him. He gets turned into a cutesy puppet, too. Rest in peace, Bump. You're the greatest principal ever.

But yeah, there's a definite puppet/doll motif. Bump just stands there, implying that he is unable to move. This kinda contrasts the last clip, where Raine's movements seem very in character for them.

It's also very interesting that this clip corresponds with the line "seal them up, so that they never fade."

Perhaps that's an insight to the Collector's motivations?

The next clip is one I couldn't get a good screenshot of, but there's graffiti on the Owl House. Camila is (rightfully) worried, and the Owl House is empty.

It's followed up by Amity being surprised, and likely horrified by what's happening, and Belos triggering a glyph. Fun. It opens a secret door.

Hunter pulls Willow out of the way of an explosion, Luz and Amity are using their respective magic against something, and then there's this.

Good news- Scara, Barcus and Matthomule are okay!! We don't know what they're showing our protagonists, but judging from the smug look on Matt's face, it's something good. Perhaps the hideout of the people the Collector hasn't gotten yet?

There's more of Amity chosing violence, and then a surprised look on the faces of Luz and Matt. Maybe this is the point where the Collector finds the hideout?

They look scared. Also, I have a bad feeling about the spider behind Matt. Glowy, ominous, in the middle of the screen? And it might have the Collector's moon symbol on it. Not good. I don't like that spider.

Then there's this. I'll let it speak for itself.

King and the Collector look somewhere between surprised and angry. The puppets around them look scared. I don't really have any major theories on this one, maybe they found out about the hideaway?

There's another clip I can't catch of Camila throwing the baseball bat. Good on Camila. Nail that fucker.

And in this unhinged clip, the Collector says "You look fun. Want to play?"

I think he's talking to the viewer. Yes. Yes I do want to play. I want to play Minecraft. C'mon iPad kid, let's get you a less destructive hobby.

Except it's immediately followed by a clip of Harpy Eda with the Owl Beast taking control and hissing. Oh, Owl Beast is pissed. It lunges for the Collector. Get them. He needs an ego check.

So, yeah. I think that the main cast will only reunite with Eda at the end of the episode, if she isn't a puppet. I think Camila will be having regrets. I suspect that the Collector either keeps all of their puppets close to them or he just makes sure they're inanimate when he's not around/when he doesn't want them "on".

This is a freaky fucking turn of events and I love it.

[sananaryon]

“Our way of life”

I just watched Reunion so bear with me, my head is full of froggy thoughts.

When rewatching Reunion, there was one line in particular that stood out to me.

[image description: a screenshot of Captain Grime from the Amphibia episode “Reunion”. Grime is a stocky green toad wearing bronze armor and a black cape. His right eye is glass and scarred over, while his left glows ominously. The subtitles say “Our very way of life is at stake”. End image description]

“Our very way of life is at stake”

This line is interesting for a few reasons I’ll get into, but the first is that this very much does not feel like a line that fits the narrative role Grime has.

Grime at this point in the story is very much your Evil Overlord in the Dark Ominous Tower. He’s your Palpatine, your Sauron, your Hordak. The villain that exists as a threat for the heroes to overcome, while the more complicated emotions are with his second in command. And that role usually comes with a few expectations in terms of their motivation. Usually, this kind of villain is motivated by power or similar things. You get your outliers like Hordak, but even then their immediate goal is to acquite more power for themselves.

But this line is not about that, this line is about preserving something. That something is a feudal system where toads have power over frogs, but if Grime was out for power he would have just said that. Instead, he very specifically says he wants to preserve the toad way of life, even if that way is corrupt and cruel.

And that leads us into my second point, which is that “Our way of life is at stake” is the perfect encapsulation of the motivation shared by all of Amphibia’s villains. Because this is not the last time we hear this line.

[image description: A screenshot of King Aldrich from the Amphibia episode “The Core & The King”. Aldrich is a very old newt with long, white hair, a green robe, and a crown. He’s turned away from the camera. The subtitles say “For our way of life to continue”. End of image description]

King Aldrich, the true villain of Amphibia, also talks about preserving “our way of life” in The Core & The King, referring to the ancient Amphibian way of conquering parallel worlds. Again we have a villain who wants to preserve a corrupt and cruel way of life.

Because both of these villains share the same motivation: The fear of change.

Change is one of the major themes of Amphibia, It’s why amphibians were chosen as the dominant species of the setting, because amphibians go through plenty of changes in their lifetimes.So it is only fitting that the villains are those who oppose change.

In the case of Grime and Aldrich, both face a significant change to their way of life, and seek to prevent that change at all cost.

Grime sees change coming to the valley in the form of a rebellion, which has always been a pretty significant symbol of change (Hell, a synonym for rebellion is Revolution, a word that directly means Change). He hopes to stop this change entirely by ending the thing that caused it to begin with, Hop Pop.

Aldrich has resided over a reign that stretches thousands of years back, and when faced with the revelation that they have to change, he refuses, since it’s “their way of life”. An appeal to tradition. We’ve done it like this always, so we should keep doing like this always.

Amphibia is frankly amazing at doing setup and payoff, and I think Grime and Aldrich is one of the best. We are introduced to Grime, a villain who at first seems generically evil, until you realize that what he’s actually motivated by is the fear of change. Then, two seasons later, we meet Aldrich, a man who’s fear of change is so great that he willingly gave up his soul to a horrific abomination just to prevent it.

[digital-dhampirs]

vnc episode 12 thoughts

The thrilling conclusion to the Vanitas no Carte anime’s first cour is out, and I have thoughts! I’m still considering doing a full season/ fill cour review, but I have a Lot of episode 12- specific opinions, so this review / breakdown / thing will focus around e12!

A warning before we begin— review will contain spoilers for events that take place in the vnc manga and not in the anime, and will most likely spoil some sections of the anime’s next cour. With that, let’s get started!

Episode 12 of the VnC anime covers chapters 19, 21, 22, and 23 of the manga.

To begin this review in a brutally honest way, this episode was… in my opinion as a manga reader… bad. It did have some ok moments, but generally devoted a lot of its time to a plotline that (while adorable) isn’t actually super important compared to what was left on the wayside. Vanitas and Noé’s fight over blood drinking is fine, I guess, but why’d we get that minute long flashback compilation and not Dante’s conversation with Dominique, or Roland and Olivier’s complete conversation, or Astolfo’s excitement to hunt vampires, or Mikhail?

I really truly wish the show had taken some of the money and time that went into the Vanitas and Noé fight from chapter 23 and put it into the arguably much more important and interesting parts of this episode. Ruthven drinking Noé’s blood, Roland’s threat, and Chloé and Astolfo’s introductions all had some very janky stills and animations. It truly irked me to see that time and effort went into making Noé’s mouth move while he’s mentally monologuing about wanting to drink Vanitas’s blood, while Roland’s fantastic threat from Chapter 22 got… this. click on image for worse quality

The episode also decided to continue E11’s habit of chopping scenes up and mashing them together. In E11 this was a very not great decision, but was ultimately somewhat forgiveable from a tone point of view. In E12, meanwhile, it’s just all out chaos as the anime tries to string five completely separate scenes into something coherent (Noé and Vanitas in the hotel, Ruthven and Jeanne in the street, Domi and Dante on the stairs, Roland and Olivier in the chasseur compound, and a flashback to complete the Ruthven and Noé encounter from E11). Suffice it to say the anime does not succeed in this endeavor.

What really irritates me about this is that the manga already provided a framework for the anime to work these scenes together into. A frantic Vanitas reunites with Noé, Ruthven meets Jeanne in the street, Roland and Olivier speak about the beast, we see a mysterious flashback of Chloé calling for Jeanne as they talk, cut to Jeanne in the present as Dante and Ruthven’s attendants simultaneously tell Ruthven and Vanitas about the beast’s return.

I really wish the anime could’ve just given us the conclusion to the Ruthven scene at the start of the episode, done the OP, and then followed this series of events to a T. But it didn’t, and the result is a bit of a mess.

The anime’s choice to omit half of Roland and Olivier’s conversation means Dante’s announcement about the beast being back has no meaning or weight; Vanitas running to the hotel before we know what actually happened to Noé at the cafe ruins the drama and irony of the scene; Noé’s lack of memory of what happened at the cafe is muddled by the weirdly placed cafe flashback right afterwards; the anime putting Olivier’s “what that man believes in isn’t god” line seconds before the reveal of Roland’s intelligent and scheming nature doesn’t give the line enough room to breathe and stew; and the transition scene with Domi and Dante just doesn’t fit. I can honestly say I would have preferred Dante just teleporting from the streets of Paris to Vani and Noé’s windowsill than have that scene smack dab in the middle of what’s already a confusing mishmash of way too many unconnected events.

Wow. That was a long, critical paragraph. one might even say it was just as chaotic and disorganized as the episode itself. I feel like I’m really living up to my fullest potential as a bitter manga simp. So! Let’s turn things around and talk about some of the good parts of this episode!!

First and foremost I want to compliment this episode’s music..! The soundtrack of VnC is just all round fantastic no matter what— whether it’s playing during a goofy scene or a fight, it’s is bound to be fantastic. I think my favorite pieces are the ones that play at quiet, ominous moments— the music during Vanitas and Dante’s conversation about the beast is excellent, adding something truly incredible to the atmosphere created by the illustrations of the beast and the eerie green light of the scene. The way the music lines up with Olivier’s “what that man believes in…” line during that one flashback is similarly awesome.

This episode also has very nice voice acting..! Despite all of its struggles in the visual and plot department, pretty much everything to do with the VnC anime’s audio is stellar. I’ve become a big fan of Jeanne, Roland, and Olivier’s voices (I can’t wait to see how Olivier’s VA works with all his screaming in the Gévaudan arc); Astolfo’s voice is perfect for him (I am similarly excited to see his clipped, polite tone take a turn for the insane as the Gévaudan arc moves forwards); and as always our protagonists’ voices are great.

My one singular problem with the voice acting this episode is Chloé. I don’t know why, but she sounds like a catgirl from a fantasy anime rather than a multiple- centuries- old vampire. I don’t know what I was expecting from her voice, but this wasn’t it. I really hope Chloé’s voice will grow on me like Roland’s did, but there’s just something about it that feels off to me.

However! That one detriment doesn’t detract from the fact that this episode does have some very beautiful moments, especially during that one last scene with Chloé at the end. Visually, Chloé is absolutely spot on— I only hope the show has the budget to keep giving her pretty, pretty scenes like this. The scene where Vanitas and Dante discuss the beast is also very very nice to look at. The monochromatic red section of Ruthven and Noé’s scene is excellent. And, while I’m still annoyed that this scene got so much love put into it and others did not, Noé’s spotlight-lit monologue is aesthetically pleasing as well.

With that, we’ve covered all of my main thoughts on the final episode of the vnc anime’s first cour! My feelings towards this episode’s plot and pacing are overwhelmingly critical, and the episode’s visuals are a toss up (leaning on the side of bad, @/ that Roland screenshot), b u t the episode’s music and voice acting are both fantastic. And honestly? That’s kinda how I feel about this whole cour of the anime.

Episode 12 might not have been “good”, but I believe it’s a very neat representation of the best and worst of what Vanitas no Carte as an anime has to offer.

Despite all my critiques I am still legally obligated to love this anime, and can’t wait to see the Gévaudan arc in the next cour!

Fun Fact

The weirdly technological background when Noé realizes he’s hungry makes absolutely no sense for an anime set in 1889, but for some reason that just makes this scene funnier to me

[dorka]

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Tumblr had a real big day yesterday

Ryan Broderick

Sep 9

Yesterday, Queen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96. To say it was a big day on the internet would be an understatement. The sheer amount of memes and shitposts generated in the last 24 hours may be more than I’ve ever seen in a single day.

I would divide those who did react to the queen’s passing into two groups: people who believed it was a serious and solemn occasion and those who, uh, did not. And I don’t think people in that first group had a very good time on social media yesterday. In fact, it turns out there were a lot of people on Twitter, in particular, that learned for the first time yesterday that the British royal family is, absolutely, a political institution and may not be as universally beloved as they had assumed.

While much of the social web was taking every chance they could to pop off a viral post, Tumblr was especially active. “Queen Elizabeth” is still the number one trending topic across the whole platform. Before we dig in here, I just want to acknowledge that today’s issue of Garbage Day is a bit dark, but I also think it’s worth pulling apart how the web has been reacting to the queen’s death because, as you’ll see, I think it says a lot about how the internet, as a whole, functions now.

To fully explain the bizarre online forces that turned the death of a 96-year-old monarch into an out of control viral frenzy on Tumblr, I think it's best to break this up into three small sections. So, first, let's talk about Tumblr's relationship to the queen.

(Tumblr)

Part 1 - Tumblr And The Queen

I was trying trace back exactly when jokes about the queen dying started on Tumblr and it’s hard to pinpoint. Though, I remember seeing memes about Tumblr users wanting to join the Irish Republican Army and create a 74-country Ireland following the Brexit vote. I know that COVID played a role, as well, with many users beginning to joke that the queen could die during the pandemic. And news reports over the last few years about her declining health only seemed to make jokes about the queen dying more frequent. Is this all super morbid? Yeah, for sure. But I can put some high level analysis on this.

There are a few things happening here. First, Tumblr is still very much an ecosystem centered on, oftentimes, extremely juvenile turf wars about social justice. The platform has mellowed out a lot since its peak in 2014, but it’s still a place where users are constantly pillorying each other over leftist and progressive issues. And I think sharing dark jokes about the death of the Queen of England was a way of keeping the peace — “yes, we may be viciously fighting with each other right now, but I think we can all agree that English colonialism is bad,” etc. Also, the Tumblr community’s relationship to news cycles is much different than what you see on Twitter. Content moves more slowly, so jokes tend to build up over time, diverging in confusing ways, and then snowballing into small cultural movements that become very sticky and immediately get mythologized into community lore. And, finally, Tumblr, since the days of Superwholock, has had a very intense anglophilic bent to it. And though it may not feel like it, I think the site collectively cheering for the death of the queen is directly tied to that.

(Paramount)

There have been a lot of variations on the general “Queen Elizabeth is going to die soon” meme across Tumblr, but I’d say the main one to be aware of was a series of screenshots from the movie Megamind. The original line reads, “There is no Easter Bunny, there is no Tooth Fairy and there is no Queen of England. This is the real world, and you need to wake up.” So users would cut off the final line as a joke and caption it, “like to charge, reblog to cast,” an illusion to using a magic spell in an RPG.

The meme got very popular after Boris Johnson resigned as prime minister of the UK in July. Now users are postin the full meme.

The site is also currently full of GIFs and uploads of the “Crab Rave” song by Noisestorm, which was first used to celebrate the death of Rush Limbaugh in 2021.

I reached out to Tumblr to see if I could get any data about exactly how big yesterday was for the platform. According to Cates Holderness, the head of editorial for the site, “Queen Elizabeth” had 403% more clicks than the second highest topic, which was Chris Pine.

“In fact, clicks to the ‘Queen Elizabeth’ tag were 518% higher than the average top-clicked tag so far in September,” Holderness told me. “As far as searches go, the top three searched topics yesterday were variations on the ‘Queen Elizabeth’ tag, and combined searches for those tags were 622% higher than the next highest searched tag, which was related to Stranger Things.”

Part 2 - The Tumblr Sexyman Bracket

Right, OK, so you’ve got all that. Let’s move to how the queen’s death is being processed among the wilder parts of the internet. To understand that you need to know about the “Tumblr Sexyman Bracket,” which wrapped up yesterday.

Twitter avatar for @sexymanOTD

Tumblr Sexyman OTD

@sexymanOTD

SEMIFINALS!!!

Image

September 7th 2022

1,052 Retweets4,985 Likes

A Twitter account called @sexymanOTD started a bracket earlier this week to decide who was the most popular Tumblr “sexyman”. This is a reference to the platform’s frequent site-wide obsession with unusual (usually) fictional men. The bracket included characters like Megamind (the site is going through a real Megamind phase right now), Loki, The Onceler, Sans from the video game Undertale, and Reigen from the anime Mob Psycho 100. Sans and Reigen ended up being the final two. And a lot of users really wanted to Reign to win because fan art of him is super popular on Tumblr right now. Sans ended up winning, unfortunately.

I say unfortunately because Sans, and the idea that people could find the cartoon skeleton “sexy,” has been a long-running joke on the site for years. Adding gasoline ot the fire, Undertale creator Toby Fox celebrated the win by writing a bunch of fan fiction about it yesterday.

(Tumblr/serslee)

What does this have to do with the queen? Well, ever since the #Destiel ship from Supernatural was made canon on the eve of the 2020 US presidential election, the Tumblr community has been obsessed with the idea of a weird fandom thing happening at the same time as a massive global news story breaks. Users now use screenshots from Supernatural to announce breaking news to each other.

Now, we need to look at how Tumblr trends began to interact with trends happening outside the platform.

Part 3 - The Conspiracy Theory That Princess Diana Was Reincarnated as Jungkook From BTS

As it became clear that queen had died yesterday, internet users also noticed that YouTuber Trish Paytas was giving birth. Immediately, folks on Twitter, TikTok, and Tumblr started joking that the queen would be reincarnated as Paytas’ baby. This is probably the least unhinged example of the memes I’ve seen about this.

Twitter avatar for @trulyrick

rick

@trulyrick

The soul of Queen Elizabeth flying across the globe to Trisha Paytas’ baby rn

Image

September 8th 2022

41,939 Retweets324,466 Likes

Interestingly enough, as pointed out by Twitter user @mitsukileaks, there was already a conspiracy theory on K-Pop Twitter from a while back that Princess Diana was reincarnated as Jeon Jung-kook from BTS.

This is where things get sort interesting from a technical standpoint and also wildly confusing. Because the queen died, Princess Diana also started trending. Which then caused “Jung Kook” to trend, as well. Similarly, because, as I said, Tumblr users make jokes about breaking news events by using screencaps from the show Supernatural, that too started to trend alongside “Queen Elizabeth” on tumblr.

So we end up with this utterly bizarre algorithmic confluence of different, but linked memes happening simultaneously around one news topic: Queen Elizabeth, Princess Diana, Trish Paytas, Jungkook from BTS, Sans from Undertale, Reigen from the anime Mob Psycho 100, the movie Megamind, the #Destiel ship from Supernatural, and, of course, crabs are all trending because of each other across Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok via their own community’s memes as well as screenshots of the other plarforms’ memes. And none of this is linear. It’s old memes combining with new memes, which all still currently evolving.

What’s even funnier is that a lot of outlets have done recaps of some of this this morning. So news organizations are trying to explain the Paytas connection or the crap rave thing, but there are a lot of outlets that can’t or don’t want to explain any of this stuff because it’s too dumb or too weird or whatever, but they still want the search traffic. Which is how you end up with the US edition of the British news outlet The Sun having a literal liveblog waiting to find out if Paytas’ baby’s name is Elizabeth or not. Which, if you weren’t on social media in the last 24 hours and didn’t know the whole joke about the queen being reincarnated would be utter gibberish.

Epilogue - This Meme Should Make Sense To You Now

(Tumblr/tiptapricot)

There are a lot of posts like this flying around right now, but I thought this one from Tumblr user tiptapricot was kind of the best example of the general state of the internet at the moment. There’s a few other references in there to just general Tumblr stuff, which, if you don’t get, you can always email me and ask about.

The point with all of these things is that because we have these centralized online feeds like Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, big cultural moments are still getting compressed down into streams of information. But we also have pretty heavily fractured experiences of those centralized platforms. So massive global news stories get filtered through really strange prisms where no one’s really in charge of them anymore.

So, 10 years ago, an event like this would have happened and chances are you would have gone to your favorite news site and read a tweet roundup about it. Or maybe you waited until the evening news or maybe even the next morning’s radio show or something. Now, there’s just simply too much to recap. And too many recaps to parse. Which makes memes the main way we express and process things now. Nothing else can really cut through. And there’s probably no way we ever go back to the way things were. So if you found yourself yesterday — on any platform — wishing for people to be a little more respectful. Or a little less chaotic. Or wanted the headlines to be a little more organized. Or just wanted things to slow down. I kind of have some bad news for

[keingleichgewicht]

REGARDJNG YOUR LAST POST, DO YOU THINK YURA IS GOING TO DIE?????? WKSKDNXNCBJDJF

(the post in question)

WELL..... I MEAN IT'S A COMPLEX QUESTION........ BUT NOT REALLY.....

firstly i will point out that if we postulate that false disposition associates yura with death, or least the bright, blinding spectre of never-getting-out-of-here, of which death is a variant - then there are still at least two distinct ways to be associated with death, and only one of them is where you're doing the dying, and the other one is, uh, well, let me bring out the ol' screenshot again

whoops!

EDIT: had a brief moment of sanity and added a cut

secondly it is worth mentioning that the death/dawn/sun thing may not even be real anyway. even i think it's a pretty conspiracy board sort of business. i am sort of.... fifty-fifty on whether or not its various appearances are actually just regular, unrelated metaphors and i've been reading too much into it. and 'your smile is brighter than the most relentless sun' makes sense at face value too: it is a perfectly serviceable line for the dual purposes of a) emphasizing the louche careless cheer of yura's loser facade and b) making said facade and sanya's infatuation with it just a little ominous. 'brighter than the sun' sounds like a compliment.... but 'relentless' is a close relative to 'merciless', similarly to 'ruthless', and that makes it Weird. and yet sanya still says it like it's a good thing! hmmmm!!! sanya are you sure about that!!!!!!!

... and that interpretation in itself meshes really well with sergei's 'blinded by the sun,' in which that line can just mean.... blinded by yura.... blinded in equal parts by the careless mask and the danger, enamored with something that will not do you any good. you don't really need the big dawn-is-an-ending idea for these lines to make sense, is what i'm saying. and there is a couple lines where i haven't figured out yet how they would work with dawn as an ending, primarily that bit in message lost:

dawn can't break when the sun has burned to a crisp there must have been some supernova i missed

which is a fucking great line but if we postulate that dawn is death than wouldn't this be saying that death can't come? and yet nikita definitely, definitely kicked the bucket but good? what does it mean.... what does it all mean.....

thirdly there's potentially a lot to unpack about 'brighter than the most relentless sun' anyway. one may note for instance that she says brighter, so she is directly comparing him to the sun, yes, but she is also juxtaposing him with it; he is not the sun, he is something separate and yet more intense. which could also be interpreted at meaning he distracts her from the sun (which is the circle, which is the never-getting-out-of-here), rescues her from it, even - possibly however by being worse and more dangerous than it is, and let's be honest, that sounds about right too

and then there's also the fact that that bright facade is explicitly just that: a facade, even sanya sees him clearly enough to call it that, synonymizing it with those 'layers of rust' that come up later in the mill. the walls you build around your heart when you can't bear to care anymore. the way you get cold, the way you corrode. rust: which is the rot of abandonment. the industrial death of despair.

she doesn't call him brighter than the sun, she ascribes that quality to his smile... and way back in parties is for losers yura admits to us that the smile's a pile of bullshit anyway, it always has been! the smile isn't really him; it's a mask only kt makes him feel like he can drop (and isn't it fucking tragic that he can't do it for sanya, as occam's razor explores extensively.) so if his smile is the sun, then the sun is a mask, and he's something else underneath;

which makes sense too. a mask is a cage, it's another circle in the sand. the danger, the dawn, the death, that's something he's trapped himself in, it's not who he is - but it is who he's damned himself to be! and that's the thing right! he made himself a mask brighter than the sun, brighter than death, in the hopes of blocking it out, and instead he's just going to make himself as bad as they are. he's spent all this time trying desperately to be careless, because caring hurt too much ('and when the wizard gets to me i'm asking for a smaller heart...') and the trouble is that he's succeeding too well. he's getting what he's been asking for.

and on that subject: fourthly nahhh i just generally don't think yura's going to die. he's absolutely going to end in tragedy, but i don't think he's going to bite it, primarily because the other options are so much fucking worse! i say this constantly but at this point i'm putting my money on yura getting the traditional ending for roadside-picnic-descended protagonists, namely, he is going to get exactly what he wanted. or he is going to get exactly what he is asking for.

which isn't death, i don't think; he is certainly suicidally self-destructive, he wouldn't mind if he got himself killed, if he could find a cause worth throwing himself over the edge for like olga did, but death isn't what he's aiming for. what he wants is to get out of the circle, is to finally be able to change something, to not be powerless anymore ('i always wanted to feel like i hold my own reins!'). and i think he's going to get it, and it's going to be fucking awful for everyone involved!

that's yura's central tragedy, right: is that throwing away morality is the last act of rebellion he has left; it's the last thing he can cut himself loose from. and i think that this one is going to work. i think this one's going to set him free, like he always wanted, it is finally going to give him control. but at what fucking cost.

better to be a caged man or a free monster?

(one may note that this is like... moebius double reverse exactly the question that dima faces. life or death? man or monster? caged or free? i think about this all the fuckign time)

although i will say: i think.... and emphasis once again on the i think because i am only talking bullshit here, this could all go so many ways and they'd all be so good... that there is more or less exactly one chance left for pafl to end well, or at least almost well, even for yura, and i think it rests almost solely on sanya

side note: good god look at her face here. does she know? does she know how far gone he is? does she know how fake that smile was? and a minute later she gives him the brightest smile anyone's ever seen, but that's when he's looking at her. she only gives him this expression when he has no chance of seeing her face. does she know how far she might have to go if she really does want to follow him?

but the point is: nobody else really has a chance at saving the day. olga's in jail, anna's a baby, sergei's a lost cause, kt's been caged in a literal sense but foremost by her own despair, and let's not even get started on dmitry, but sanya loves him and maybe she has a chance at keeping yura from going over the edge. which is to say i think yura's got exactly one chance at a good ending and it's if sanya can figure out his shit fast enough to drag him kicking and screaming into being a better person

good fucking luck sanya i hope you kick your rat boy's ass

[violettduchess]

Bite-sized: a Lovestruck English Lesson 👩‍🏫: Nikolai final season set 2

I am in denial that his last season is already halfway over. He's been a constant in my reading for so long now.

I'm also still hating this ABSOLUTELY STUPID AF 5 screenshot rule because I have so much I'd like to say.

Let's just start:

Riothamus was a Romano-British military leader who some Arthurian scholars identify as a possible source for the legendary King Arthur. Now I'm good at finding things online but this painting seemed to be a ghost....so I went to source much better than myself when it comes to Nikolai and was reminded: this is the painting they heisted in season 7 and it's entirely made up 😆

According to Wikipedia: "Anarcho-syndicalism is a political philosophy and anarchist school of thought that views revolutionary industrial unionism...as a method for workers in capitalist society to gain control of an economy and thus control influence in broader society. The end goal of syndicalism is to abolish the wage system, regarding it as wage slavery. Anarcho-syndicalist theory therefore generally focuses on the labor movement".

The importance of organizing? That sounds very familiar.

Describing fear as "yawning and black" is extremely ominous. Yawning as an adjective means a large, wide opening of space so fear is darkening his eyes and taking them over completely.

Oisillon is French and means "chick", "fledgling".

This sets up a beautiful juxtaposition: grinning in dark alleyways, something sinister and alluding to violence vs being in the sunlight and thinking, feeling the sadness in the light of day instead of allowing the darkness to overcome you.

Then we have the repetition of "thinking", technically called anadiplosis. It could also be an example of gradatio, where words or phrases are arranged in order of increasing importance (Most famous in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar "Friends, Romans, Countrymen"). We go from "thinking", to the next step up "always thinking" to MC's next line which is "Always thinking about me". And she's right. He always is.