#and because I had no peers it was weird

[swampndn]

Lol y'all know I'm STRUGGLIN when my therapist suggests a support group, and my knee-jerk reaction was "that sounds nice. I'm interested in that."

[kerosene-in-a-blender]

Others have talked, very rightly, about Bells Hells having an extremely Us vs. Them style of morality and one thing I find interesting about all that is many of their most virulent (read: actively nasty towards other fans) defenders are also taking this stance. The party line has become that the segments of the fandom that are disappointed with how this campaign shook out have never been happy with anything Bells Hells did from the beginning and have been actively hating on people who do like it for just as long. Us, the beleaguered Campaign 3 lovers versus Them, the mean c3 haters (who are often characterized as being hung up on the Mighty Nein and simply mad Bells Hells aren't the Nein again).

What's been quite funny for me personally is that I have seen vague posts clearly targeted at myself giving me the above detailed characterization of the c3 hater when I: have never seen Campaign 2 (though I did watch Campaign 1 back in 2019), started watching live with the first EXU, got into the fandom (as a lurker) at the start of Campaign 3, didn't make any of my own posts about it until late 2022 and didn't start really posting in earnest until mid 2023. Practically none of the characteristics applied to the archetypal c3 hater certain fans have created actually apply to me, other than of course thinking Campaign 3 actually isn't very good. So it's been interesting to watch people draw lines in the sand and create an Us vs. Them narrative that I know isn't true based on existing as myself.

[rupeenotruby]

Adventures in Research: What do you mean "Bowl of Hearts"???

It starts simply; I was checking out the Heart Container page on the Zelda wiki (as anyone does) where I saw it "also known as Bowl of Hearts (TAoL)." Known as Bowl of Hearts? TAoL?? Uh no, it isn't??? I have read that manual quite a few times and I think I'd remember if it was called "Bowl of Hearts" as it is such a strange phrase. But I always have lots to learn so I put my pride aside and start to get to the bottom of this claim. Because hey, if this is true it's one more piece of AoL trivia I get to feel superior about knowing.

Link to the Zelda Wiki page

Naturally the first thing I do is that I look for the source of this particular claim. It comes from the Zelda Encyclopedia! Okay alright that means I have a lead. So, I hop on Google only to find that the only places I can find it is Internet Archive and Internet Archive is currently down due to some kind of cyber-attack. :| Fantastic. I guess I have to wait. To quell my interest, I double check the game where unlike in TLoZ, TAoL does not have an intro scroll with the names of the items. Additionally, I checked a text dump (link to that) of the game where it is only referred to as a "Heart." No bowls there. The manual is exactly as I remember it to be calling it "Heart Container" like normal.

(Zelda 2: Adventure of Link English Manual pg. 45)

I also see if I can find another source like a strategy guide which, yes it is still called "Heart Container."

(Nintendo Power January/February 1989 pg. 20)

So I put it aside until I get the wonderful news that Internet Archive is back and running!!! Yay! I rush over and check the Heart Container entry to find that yes, it does in fact say that TAoL calls Heart Containers "Bowl of Hearts."

(Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia pg. 127)

And so the Wiki did source it properly.... But my sources are also correct, no? So what's the deal? Why is this the first time I've heard of this phrase?

And thus I decide to go to the source: The Japanese Encyclopedia. Unfortunately, I could not find the Japanese version of the encyclopedia anywhere so I do the next best thing. I grab Google translate and start looking through the Japanese manual. Some things to note first:

I DON'T KNOW JAPANESE!

At all! And Google Translate is notoriously very finnicky when it comes to Japanese. So, I'm relying a lot on pattern recognition. (Also, apologies in advance if I mess up any of the Japanese here. Again, I don't know Japanese, and I am using Google translate.)

First stop is the TAoL Japanese Manual where it is referred to as ハートのうつわ.

(Zelda 2: Adventure of Link Japanese Manual pg. 48)

I stick that in Google Translate and seem to find the problem.

ハートの means "heart."

うつわ means "vessel, container or bowl." So maybe this can be translated as both "Heart Container" and "Bowl of Hearts" and it just depends on the context! As I lack all cultural and linguistic context I do the next best thing: check other manuals and see how they spelled it. The key here is that TAoL has been singled out for whatever reason. If the other manuals match this spelling something went wrong somewhere else.

I find the OoT Manual where it has... the same spelling?

(OoT Japanese Manual pg. 28)

And to double check I look at the OoA Manul and again:

(OoA Japanese Manual pg. 42)

Same spelling! So why was TAoL singled out? What a mystery...

I still can't find the Japanese Encyclopedia, so I keep looking. I look in the game to find that it is also referred to simply as "Heart" in the Japanese version (Underlined in pink).

(Youtube: "リンクの冒険 (FDS) 全クリア (ノーデス)" Time: 1:06:43)

I check a Japanese Strategy guide!

(The Adventure of Link Winning Guide pg. 17)

Its all the same(ish)! Where did this seemingly unique part of TAoL come from???

And I finally find it! I find a youtuber who has access to the Japanese Encyclopedia and I ask them to show the Heart Container entry.

(Youtube: "LoZ lore because you asked 1" Time: 0:10)

Note: It is hard to see but TLoZ is "ゼルダの伝説" while TAoL is "リンクの冒険" above with the in-game pictures.

And AH HA! You see that? That last portion that should refer to TAoL but is instead referring to the ORIGINAL LEGEND OF ZELDA???

It says that in TLoZ Heart containers are also referred to as "Heart Shaped Water Bottle" (ハートの水筒). And this is true as in the game they are referred to as "Container Heart" with the (イノチ ノ ウツワ) spelling while in the Manual they are referred to as "Heart Shaped Water Bottles" with the (ハートの水筒とハート) spelling.

(Youtube: "Zelda no Densetsu: The Hyrule Fantasy - FDS - No Commentary Playthrough" Time: 0:48)

(The Hyrule Fantasy: The Legend of Zelda Japanese Game Manual pg. 21)

So it was a mistranslation all along! Or so I hope... Because at the end of the day, why was it translated like this? What happened along the way to end up attributing the "Bowl of Hearts" translation to TAoL when I cannot find a primary source that refers to it as such. I believe the reason they did not translate the Japanese Encyclopedia entry directly to English is that it is not referred to as a "Heart Shaped Water Bottle" in the English translation. Then why single out TAoL? Is it because no one would doubt it or think to double check? Or is there some primary source out there that does refer to it as a "Bowl of Hearts"? I just can't know for sure. Ultimately, this doesn't matter that much, at the very most it's just annoying that it gets referred to as this in the wiki when there doesn't seem to be a primary source to back this claim. Oh well.

For now, I sign off! And wish you on your merry way. Thank you for reading or at least scrolling to the bottom.

Sources:

Zelda Wiki Hart Container entry: https://zeldawiki.wiki/wiki/Heart_Container

TAoL Text Dump: https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/nes/563487-zelda-ii-the-adventure-of-link/faqs/20234

Zelda 2: Adventure of Link English Manual: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/clv/manuals/en/pdf/CLV-P-NAASE.pdf

Nintendo Power January/February 1989: https://shedevr.org.ru/zelda64rus/media/Zelda2_(Nintendo_Power_004)_(1989)_Jan-Feb.pdf

Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia: https://archive.org/details/TheLegendOfZeldaEncyclopedia/page/n119/mode/2up

Zelda 2: Adventure of Link Japanese Manual: https://archive.org/details/booklet_aol_jp/page/n47/mode/2up

OoT Japanese Manual: https://www.zeldadungeon.net/wiki/images/a/aa/Ocarina-of-Time-Japan-Instruction-Manual-Page-28-29.jpg

OoA Japanese Manual: https://archive.org/details/zelda-oracle-of-ages-j-cart-and-manual-ozidual/Zelda%20Oracle%20of%20Ages%20-%20Manual%2007%2009.jpg

リンクの冒険 (FDS) 全クリア (ノーデス): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBsZTae_TTo&t=4003s

The Adventure of Link Winning Guide: https://archive.org/details/zines_zelda_famimaga_1987_aol_guide_600dpi/page/16/mode/2up

LoZ lore because you asked 1: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/gF3KRcwD3pU

Zelda no Densetsu: The Hyrule Fantasy - FDS - No Commentary Playthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-aYJyHgCy0

The Hyrule Fantasy: The Legend of Zelda Japanese Game Manual: https://archive.org/details/booklet_loz_jp/page/n19/mode/2up

[falconfate]

Inspired both by the recent solar eclipse and this post by @otiksimr, an art piece I’ve never been prouder of, my WoF oc Sunkiller!

Born under a total solar eclipse (ask me about my temperature-based nightwing hatching headcanons. and also my headcanons about how sunlight affects nightwings.) and blessed with the ability of perfect knowledge of the past, or at least the past where dragons exist. This of course makes her an invaluable resource to historians everywhere, which she is absolutely sick of, and so has gotten very adept at the hermit lifestyle. For pity’s sake, you solve ONE cold case murder as a hatchling, and suddenly EVERYBODY wants your attention…

(if tui has declared anything canon about nightwings and solar eclipses, like she has for blood moons, which are lunar eclipses, i haven’t seen it)

[theokusgallery]

I hate that I have reoccurring themes in everything I make. YES this guy has a complex over the fact that everyone prefers his sibling AGAIN. YES he was ostracized by his peers since he was in primary school and never knew why until years later. URGH

[carlyraejepsans]

i was thinking about that ask i received the other day and how uncharacteristically upset the topic had made me when i usually just think "mh. gross!" and move on, and after mulling it over a while i realized it wasn't about the topic at all, it was the ask itself that freaked me out. i've mentioned sporadically before (for obvious reasons lol) that i used to be involved in fandom discourse when i was younger and that!! fucked me up quite a lot. between exacerbating my ocd and straight up getting cyber stalked (i almost feel guilty using that word, like i don't deserve it but. yeah that is 100% what happened to me), the topic is something I have very complex and personal opinions on but that i hate talking about in public because it still sets off my fight or flight response.

i know some people in the fandom are like "let me know if i ever rb someone who wrote/drew gross stuff" and that's entirely their choice and i respect it. but for the record, i am not one of these people. please, for the love of god, i am asking this genuinely do NOT come into my DMs about this, I don't want to know. assume I'm either living in blissful ignorance or my blacklist already covers me quite nicely & i wanna keep it that way. i vastly prefer the discomfort of stumbling into something unprepared and deciding what to do about it on my own, to the utter pit of dread i get whenever i open a message that starts with "hey just so you know-". i have blocked multiple people in the past over it. i WILL block more. be warned.

[note. this doesn't apply to people who have either hurt or behaved inappropriately with other members of the fandom, or spread bigotry and discrimination like racists and transphobes. please do let me know in those cases]

does this make sense? idk I'm kinda feverish you guys figure it out. I'm going to sleep.

[panestates]

faceless / obscured face besties ! (2 of these characters loathe each other and one accidentally murdered the other)

[taviokapudding]

Simon's joke of "soup of theseus" is so damn good & way more layered than most people think.

Okay so first- what is the ship of Theseus?

So amongst his many misadventures and legends the ship of theseus was a ship the Athenians believed connected them to the divine living person that was Theseus. The thing is, he was maybe Poseidon's adopted kid/the King if Athen's son and probably not real (or at least if he did his misadventures were super exaggerated as royals = divity stories are) but the fate the Athenians had for him & Apollo (the 6 labors is a fun legend that explains their connection and what the original ship may have been) was so intense, they would constantly give maintence as a form of religious worship to said ship on the island of Delos (where Apollo's most sacred sancutary is) every year it would dock to pay respects.

Btw we don't need to know the specifics of Theseus but he did infamously slay a minotar and Finn did have a good exchange with the Mannish Man to get the enchiridion aka the book that sets Betty & Simon on the paths they are on now so that's neat af

So if you've ever heard about the ship of Theseus being paradox- it comes from the critique that's always existed about that ship's maintenance & religious practices tldr if you are constantly replacing each rotted and borken part of a ship, is it still the same ship?

The soup is a paradox like the ship

That paradox exists in many many scifi and adventure stories like the Nier series & Ghost in the Shell but in this instance we got to first look at the joke literally. Farm world's Finn's wife's soup is the same as the ship. The original soup farm world HW made no longer exists on a technicality, but the way Finn and his kids continue to add on and consume the soup is exactly like the Athenians. It's about the intent of carrying on the memory and keeping the soup around to honor the dead rather than the soup's original recipe {which also is incredibly sad & imples that farmworld Finn is both coping and never learned the original soup recipe}. It's a beautiful way to honor their dead mom/wife and it makes you wonder if that Finn did die if his kids will continue the practice.

But the paradox goes beyond the soup & into our reality

A lot of people have noticed that Fionna's last name is Campbell and Campbells is a real soup brand that would've been around before the great mushroom war. When Marceline gets sick as a kid, Simon goes great lenghts to get her chicken soup- that only worked out because the primordial version of the Mother Gum assisting {which is extreme Bubbeline foreshadowing}. And in that scene the can low key is a campbell design. But what if I told you there's more?

In Cheers, the tv show Simon is seen constantly watching and referencing throughout the original run of Adventure Time & in the recent Fionna and Cake had Carla Tortelli work at a Canpbell's Factory.

Neat references aside the soup ends the moment the main trio hit the remote button and I have a BA in psychology & interest in childrens media and entertainment that I want to milk for once. Metaphorical intention is beyond relevant episode specifics but actually the foundation of Fionna and Cake when it comes to the paradox.

Simon making the soup of Theseus joke is the main problem Fionna and Cake has to address

If Simon can summon his & Prismo's au from his head without proper MMS (Magic, Madness, and Sadness) where does Simon the human start and Ice King end?

As viewers who grew up alongside the series, the majority of 25+ watchers are finding Simon, older Finn, and Fionna painfully relatable because good fucking god we are all traumatized because of the ongoing pandemic.

If you want to focus on the main topic you can skip this part. But if you want to get very serious for a minute, please stay. The majority of people wont to accept what I just said about the pandemic being ongoing because global governments pretending the pandemic is over, the rise of depression and escapism in real time at a social level at a global level but especially in the US where the series is being made, and the daily interactions we have with most people refusing to mask up {with a violent reaction} when there still isn't a cure for COVID has created the perfect enviroment for most people to not accept change or crave extreme change. Fionna and Cake tackles these 2 very common forms of how depression tends to manifest when it's not fully manic to be displayed through Simon (self isolation from poor coping due to loss, detachment from society, dwelling on the past to the point it effects social interactions, extreme forms of religious practice, etc.) and Fionna/Finn (pretending everything is fine, avoidance, going through the bare minimum motions to survive, escapsim and dream of grandure, not caring about sel preservation, no/lack of self control with sweets/coffee, etc.). And I've noted there's a subset of AT viewers who don't relate or find the depections too real to the point they're upset the show's tone isn't as light hearted as AT. The thing is when a global disabling event happens, unless you were under 10 when it happened and even then it's a 50/50 because you probably did lose or know somebody who did die these last several years, you will have some kind of trauma response to it whether you like it or not. Hell, some of you unknowlingly have a gap in your memory about 2020 specifically due to inconsistent sleep schedules that have nothing to do with the shrinking of the brain mass COVID causes that we all call "brain fog" and now that I pointed it out you're probably going to go stare at a wall for 5 mins {sorry btw, doubly if you have long COVID and this is how you found out what brain fog partially is}. As someone who's been dealing with depression since I was a child, it's okay to be not okay given the last several years and doubly if you've been conscious long enough to see the US freefall into fascism too {which I hope encourages those who weren't aware that's been happening to go look into that because we can't get into it right now}. Because I unfortunately know what manic depression can look like - if you find yourself relating to Simon a little too much during ep 3, please talk to somebody who is licensed and trained to do so {not me, I haven't done suicide prevention work since 2017 and am not licensed- I genuienly won't be enough of a resource} okay? Don't throw away yourself nor change yourself for others only. You need to work to accept the past, move on to live in the present, and change yourself for yourself. It won't be easy and resources are out there to not do it alone, alright?

Becuase of how paradoxial and fluid mental health (espeically undiagnosed depression) can be and how AT has it's own version with MMS, could Simon have unconscious MMS still because of Betty's with without a battery but can't tap into it because of his mental state? And could Ice King as we once knew him even be considered a proper person Simon could return too?

The original wish of why Ice King's appearance & abilities is the way it is IS because of Evergreen's impression on Gunter {Evergreen was one of the ice elementals of the past btw- go watch the original Adventure Time for that context}. So Ice King isn't even an original character, just the crown building off the wishes and manifestations of each bearer by emulating a warped version of Evergreen. And that's the main reason why I speculate Ice Thing aka Gunter the Penguin is chill af to the point he got married and can exist with less gems. His wish didn't build off of power to protect Marceline (Simon) nor the power to copy Evergreen (Original Gunter).

As the main trio jump from connected universe to connected universe, more Simons and crowns will appear that are even more removed from our Ooo's crown and it's version of Ice King or Ice Prince or Winter King will only manifest because of the prior and current wishes made. So if Simon does get a crown that isn't the Ooo crown, will the Ice King that once existed even be THE Ice King he wants to be? And will Simon want to be Ice King or an Ice King when the trio do return to his Ooo?

The crown and it's many versions is a paradox that can only be resolved if Simon and Fionna can work together but also set aside their depression to address what they both really want and what that wish's intention will do to themselves and those around them. In short, shit's deep

I applaud the team for Fionna and Cake for tackling such a layered problem and I'm excited to see how Simon's soup of emotions, Fionna's growth, & magic crown of Theseus is addressed.

[itspileofgoodthings]

.

[some-ghost-we-will-call-i]

i mean it sucks a lot. but it is still validating when my therapist is equally baffled about how many of my coworkers who are older men have just done a complete 180 on me and go from loving me and thinking im great to full freak outs, screaming and throwing shit and just ???

[yardsards]

thinking about the fact that i was so socially awkward as a teen that the school wanted to me out of class to attend "social skills classes" once a week (to which i attended one and demanded i be removed from the program cuz it was just me and about a dozen equally uncomfortable probably-autistic kids who also probably did not want to be there, being forced to do icebreaker activities by deeply condescending special education teachers)

how did i not receive an autism diagnosis til i was nearly an adult and specifically advocated for myself to be taken to a professional to get checked out for autism and adhd???

[featherymainffins]

Sometimes I think I must be a weird author because everyone keeps making "haha writing the middle part of the story is so hard haha the start and the ending are so easy baba" jokes but I never know how a story will end.

I start and then I write the middle, and then a logical conclusion happens.

[jarvis-cockhead]

.

[mordcore]

its not normal to get tunnel vision when hungry???? wikipedia doesn't even list it as a possible cause... the closest thing is syncope (fainting) which i do feel close to every time i get dizzy and tunnel vision like that (aka presyncope)

and it's associated with intense emotions & high adrenaline, which feels vaguely familiar but doesn't explain why getting hungry would cause it

i'm starting to think that getting dizzy and brain fogged and other presyncope symptoms when hungry is also not normal.... certainly is very unhelpful in the obtaining the food process so it seems like it would be an evolutionary death sentence if everyone had it

gods i am so diseased

[aceascake]

i was looking for an old syllabus today (didn't find it :/) but i DID find all the weird art i've been collecting since high school which had gotten misplaced in the last few moves. sorry not sorry to my roommates who are out of town and will be subjected to my excellent taste on their return

[computerpeople]

warren falls into so many tropes i am fucking crazy about in a character AND hes the protagonist like fuck off hes my MAN dude