#and then you have to go find the real leon and the shapeshifter could be a boss

[almondcroissantsandink]

so I heard there’s a non-canon RE game where a shapeshifter switches places with Leon and that sounds like a very scary plot point they should stick in one of the main games because WHAT 

[14dayswithyou]

i pm'ed you this already but i thought i'd share it here as well to help others. here's my lame attempt at cracking the 14dwy playlist mystery :] i have a feeling i only got 3 or 4 of them correct loool

1 shapeshift - Ren the song is about changing your personality for the one you love. "she's so sweet, bubblegum, cherry / i'm salty, might make your gums bleed" might be talking about Ren and Redacted's contrast, and how angel prefers Ren's persona over his true self. it also gets violent and gory towards the end which might allude to his redacted counterpart and how he'd go to extreme lengths to keep them happy.

2 almost had me - Violet "you were a wolf in sheep's clothing / and you almost had me." this song might be talking about how Violet was almost fooled by Ren. she knew he was suspicious from the beginning and you also said if it weren't for the storyline, Vi would've known Ren's real identity immediately. you also said that she's incredibly perceptive and has final girl material which fits the theme... and it's also in her official spotify playlist ;P i cheated a bit hah

3 heart shaped hologram - ren's second song "I keep forgetting you're somewhere else with someone real / You're laughing in their arms while I'm in the dark" this might be ren's introspection song because he can glitch the game and only wants to be with angel [who is real] which matches the lyrics of the song. in day 2 bad end he also mentions being in a dark void and begs the player to let him out.

4 wild enough - jae it's mainly about changing yourself to fit in with your friend group. in day 2 Jae is described to always be following along with Teo and Leon because he wants to be included with them, such as "am i wild enough for you?"

5 body - kiera this is the only song i had left so i figured it was for the mystery character which i believe is Kiera. her name was brought up in the past and also appears in the very first game files.

6 city of the dead - Moth "white light fades to red / as I enter the city of the dead" this could potentially be about moth because they don't live in corland bay [judging by the timezone difference in day 1] which makes them safe from Ren. they're not part of the city of the dead because Ren can't reach them.

7 Harvest Moon - Elanor "i've been hit with wonder since you caught my eye / slow down, I just want to stay all night with you" it's a hopeless romantic kind of song which is how you described El. it also sounds like it could come straight from her romance novels. it might also be Violet's song because harvest moon is also a game and she's a gamer girl. but it might not be her song after all because violet doesn't seem to be romantically interested in angel or interested in relationships at all.

8 Glimpse of us - leon "cause sometimes I look in her eyes and that's where I find a glimpse of us" possibly leon because the lyrics talk about seeing the person they love in their current partner. and Leon seems like he has feelings for angel and has to watch them date Ren in day 2. he also went to australia for a while and his character in 5 minutes sheet says he has a bit of relationship experience so maybe he had a partner and kept seeing angel in them.

9 god complex - leon ending "don't you say that / i'm your best friend" this might also be leon's ending song because the lyrics talk about the singer's best friend betraying them. there are also other songs by the same artist in Leon's personal playlist.

10 backstabber - conan this could be about Conan because he seems to have ties with the police and gangs which can be seen as shady. he might betray us in the game by siding with Ren which fits the "you're such a backstabber" line.

11 angel - good/neutral end "I thought you were an angel / I lost myself when I caught sight of you / I'm bidding you farewell / you'd never stand a chance in hell." the song to me seems like Ren accepting angel doesn't like him and letting them go. possibly the neutral end? or the ending with the secondary charas instead of rendacted

12 gun - bad end "You had better run from me / cuz I am gonna come for you / I am gonna break you down to tiny parts" it might be the bad end song where Ren becomes a murderer or something along those lines. it could be about him hunting down all the other charas who tried to harm angel or take them away from him.

13 fvck somebody - Teo "i wish you'd fuck somebody, steal my money, say you never loved me" yep that's all teo. rich, non-commital and not caring about his partners sleeping with others. this was probably the easiest to guess after shapeshift.

14 days - true end the entire song screams 14dwy to me with the scars on Ren's hands, the lyrics possibly alluding to angel getting kidnapped, and even the song title being called 14 days. to me this sounds like it could be the true ending since you said that's how you intend the game to canonically end. you're also very cryptic with some of your posts having hidden meanings, so making this song number 14 on the playlist could be a deliberate and important decision.

✦゜ANSWERED: Wahhhh you got 5 1/2 character songs and 2 ending songs correct!!

Also I'm sooo in love with your analysis ;v; It's made me realise that some songs work really well for other characters too!! I won't say which songs though in case I spoil something, but just know that I'm seein things from a whole nother angle now gjkgjndsk

[drwhitefox]

Full resident evil village review: SPOILERS

So, let us start from the beginning. We began with Mia telling a fairy tale to Rosemary Winters (Rose). The fairy tale coincidentally falls in line with the four houses, Dimitrescu, Heisenburg, Benevento and Moreau. However, Mia cuts off the fairy tale in mid-sentence when she sees Rose had fallen asleep, leaving the fairy tale unfinished until the end of the game. There, the gameplay begins. We know that it has been three years since the Dulvey incident, and it had been covered up as a gas leak. After some shenanigans, Mia is gunned down from multiple points and killed by Chris Redfield. He takes Ethan and Rose, and the game begins. Ethan finds himself stranded alone beside a corpse, and he began strolling through a snowy path until he reaches the Village.

Ethan reaches the castle and meets the Dimitrescu family, which they proceed to torture him. For the rest of the castle gameplay, you will sneak past Lady D and take down the daughters one by one as they try to kill you. By killing them, it will anger Lady D in which she will turn into a Bloodborne type dragon. It was so fucking cool. After killing Lady D (;´༎ຶٹ༎ຶ`), Ethan will find a jar not knowing what it is, he shows it to the Duke and tells him that Rose was not at the castle in which Duke answers that he is holding his daughter, specifically her head. DUN DUN DUUUUUNN. That revelation hurt my head and made me not care about Lady D, to be honest. So, Ethan now has to collect four yellow jars containing Rose’s body parts for all other houses to assemble his daughter back. (Poor Ethan)

So on to the best part for me. The scariest part. I don’t want to spoil this, but that Baby was fucking nightmare fuel, like who in their twisted mind could create such an atrocity. The Benevento house reminded me so much of PT which was fucking amazing. It would be best if you played it yourself to feel what I’m saying. While at the Benevento house, Ethan hears Mia on the radio pleading with Ethan to forgive her, which was weird because she’s dead, right?

The Moreau house, or swamp, I have to say it’s one of my least favourite gameplay, though it’s still far better than Heisenberg gameplay. Salvator Moreau and Ethan’s interaction was hilarious. I loved how Ethan cannot see past this guy and kept underestimating him. I loved their interaction. And that’s all good, I have to say about that battle.

The Heisenberg, Ughhhhh. The part of this scenario dragged on, and I wouldn’t say I liked any part of it at all. I think the reason had to be the strip of the gothic aesthetic and villains variants that made this part not good. Heisenberg’s character arc felt rushed or just unfulfilling. Either, I had more enormous expectations for him.

After beating Heisenberg, Ethan faces Mother Miranda as she began teasing him. There we learned that Rose was perfected Evelyn or E type. And mother Miranda, by shapeshifting into Mia, wanted Rose to resurrect her Daughter Eva that died hundred years ago by Spanish Flue. She then rips out Ethan’s heart, seemingly killing him.

There we switch to Chris bolder punching Redfield. We found out that Miranda kidnapped Mia and turned into her, and took Rose, He no longer works for BSAA for some reason that is still unknown, and Canine began racing with BSAA to Miranda. Chris goes through a many Lycans hoard, stumbles upon Miranda’s lab; there, we got a bunch of lore dump.

Ozward E Spencer, you’ll remember him. Yeah, Miranda, on the path to reviving her daughter, invited young Spencer to the village to work with her. However, their ideology clashed, and Spencer thought that he should work to further human development, not for one person like Miranda. There Spencer revealed that he found “the Progenitor” in Africa and began developing the viruses and Founding Umbrella logo that was carved in the cave, creating the Umbrella Corporation. The village is the origins of the Umbrella and everything that follows.

Chris finds Mia (the real one)

Ethan wakes up in a wasteland, incredibly cold and suffering. Evelyn appears out of nowhere and reveals that Ethan shouldn’t be walking. She was indicating that Ethan died three years ago in the Baker mansion by Jack Baker. By unknown means, the mold consumed his dead body and revived him, making him a perfected E type. (irony with his name starting with letter E)

Miranda resurrects Rose from the mould, and Ethan fights Miranda, killing her and killing himself in the process. Ethan and Chris take Rose, trying to flee, but a giant mutation is heading their way, and the only way to stop it is to blow the whole village sky high. Ethan, already dying, couldn’t move forward, takes a detonator and gives Rose to Chris, telling him to take care of her and (teach her how to be strong)(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞. Chris, Mia and Rose, along with Canine, escapes the village before detonation. Ethan dies a hero. (;´༎ຶٹ༎ຶ`) Then time skip happens, IDK how long, but we see a girl who is merely identical to Ethan exited the bus onto a graveyard; it’s Rose visiting Ethan’s grave. A man in a black suit was waiting for her in a black car, and he makes a joke calling her Evelyn, which angers Rose. She enters the car, and the man tells her that she’s a lot like Ethan. While the vehicle droves away but suddenly stop beside an unknown person that we will not see. It ends with a cliffhanger, setting up the next entry.

During a credits a woman finishes the fairy tale.

I didn’t go to up most detail in this, trust me when i say you have to play the whole thing to experience what I’m saying. I loved it, yes there was some flaws but it was in a sense minor.

Welp, there was a lot of plot twist and a gut-wrenching revelation that I didn’t expect from this game. I loved Ethan not as a character but just as the protagonist in the Resident Evil game. I always felt that when Re goes back to the og characters, it becomes an action game. Ethan was to be a breath of fresh air. Even though he has gone through a lot, he endured every single pain thrown towards him and pushed forward. He isn’t Leon and Chris or even Jill and Claire, but I think that made him more unique.

I gave the game 8/10 hahah.

[dracula-in-purple-story]

Romantic Idiots

How to confess to your crush(es)?

Option 1 : Do not let your brain and heart clashes together and give you mixed signals. Then confess.

Option 2 : Give him/her/them an Applin or any shiny Pokemons. Then confess.

Advice : Panic if fail. 

“Panic if fail? What’s that supposed to mean, Grandpa?” Hop glanced up hesitantly as he finished noting down the old man’s advice. His ex-champion brother nervously clenched around his Charmander plushies. 

The grandfather smiled coyly as he went to the kitchen to pour himself a cup of tea while the brothers tried to follow behind him. Their mother chuckled at this silly scene before the grandmother answered for her husband, also smiling coyly.

“Panic as in running away like an idiot. I swear to Arceus, when I was at your age, Leon, your grandpa over there tried to asked me out by throwing a Poke Ball at my window. Poor Appletun dearie got a fright that time and refused to acknowledge him for a decade.”

“Hush, sweetheart.” the blushing old man ruffled his wife’s hair before settling down. “Our daughter-in-law got it worse than you. Am I right, Helen?”

The said woman just sighed blissfully before snorting out loud, almost making the brothers laughed if they weren’t asking for some love advices. Standing up, she shuffled through the living room to picked up her wedding photos and was reminiscing the moment.

“Mom?” the older brother asked gently as to not interrupt the moment.

“Yes, Leon?”

“How did Dad confess? It can’t be worse than Gramps’ attempt.”

“Yeah!” the younger brother butted in while grinning at the offended-looking man, “What was it like? Could it be he try to serenade? Bet he sounds goofy and passed it down to Lee!”

“Hey! I sound amazing, Hopscotch! You are just jealous!”

“Boys,” the mother smiled at her sons’ playful banter. When they finally stopped, she smiled even wilder as she recounted the fateful evening.

“Well, he didn’t serenade, for starters. But he did tried to make an A Capella with Rotoms and Dittos. Never worked out since he first practised it at the Lake of Outrage. The Rotoms snitched on him with the Dittos were making ‘He love You’ letters while I saved his arse.”

“Oof, ouchies.” Hop scrunched up his face jokingly while Leon laughed as he imagined the scenario over and over. They pulled out their own RotomPhones when they were done though. 

“You better not snitch on me, dude. I must do this myself.” The ex-champion pleaded with his little bro nodding beside him.

“You got it-Roto! Don’t stutter when you confess-Roto!”

“We make sure to taped you guys so we can see who’s got the worst end of the stick-Roto!”

“ROTOMS, NO!”

The purple-haired brothers panicked as they chased their cackling phones, leaving the amused adults behind. 

“I bet two thousand PokeDollars that they would failed terribly and cutely at the same time.”

“No need to bet, Mother. It’s obvious that their ability to confess is still strong in their blood.”

“Rude, ladies. Very rude.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Now back at their shared apartment at Wyndon City, Leon was pacing around. His little bro had already went out to find his crushes. The new chairman wished he had this kind of courage. He wished, just not gonna happen. He and Raihan are just friends with a healthy rivalry of ten years! How is he going to react if he just confess out of the blue?! That’s why he got a perfect plan! Sonia had helped him devised a lot of plans. Plans related to shiny Pokemons were quickly rejected due to him being a natural shiny repellent. Flowers were also a big no, Raihan’s Pokemons tend to gobbled up flowers from his fans. Chocolate was supposed to be part of the plan, but Sonia rejected that idea because it was overrated. So this is the result. Just ask Raihan to go out with him and make sure he knows it’s a date and not a Valentine’s Day hangout. Solid A+ Plan! “Over a phone call? So outdated, Master Lee. Not gonna lie but that’s so last season,” the RotomPhone floats around in front of Leon while showcasing the contact details of his master’s dream man. “I don’t want Raihan to see my face if I ask him face to face! It’s too obvious!” “Ain’t that the plan?” “No!” “Okay, okay! Geez, you humans are so overly complicated. What happen to mating calls? It’s so much easier.” “Shut it, Rotom...” With a heavy sigh, he slouched over the single-seat coach. Maybe it’s a bad plan, but it’s the only foul-proof plan he could ever execute. “Okay,” Leon sat up and slapped both side of his cheeks to concentrate, “I’m ready! All I have to say is ‘Go out with me this evening’!” Snatching RotomPhone from the air, while apologizing, the purple-haired man pressed ‘Call’ with confidence. It rang for a few times before the Dragon Gym Leader picked up with his smooth, husky voice. The voice he should still get used to but still melt every time he heard it. “What’s up, ex-champ? Feeling lonely on Valentines?” Let’s be boyfriends. Leon’s mind went on short circuit for a bit. He didn’t respond for a minute, making the silence unbearable. “Uh, Leon? Are you there?” “LET’S DO BOYFRIENDS’ DATE!” Unfortunately, his mind ended up fusing what he initially going to said and his current thoughts. Freaking out, he ended up the call without hearing the reply. He just screwed up. He managed to screw up the only foul-proof plan. This is not what it should happen and yet, here he was. Leon stomped his way to his bedroom, slammed his door open and threw himself onto the bed in frustration. He really shouldn’t take Option 1. ~~~~~~~~~~ Arriving at the Hammerlocke Gym, Hop quickly strode towards the lift, and quickly slid his access card. He went in but not without getting bumped by Raihan, who never seems to noticed him as the top Gym Leader dashed outside with the biggest grin plastered on his face. Leon succeed, huh... The lab assistant shook his face to focus on his mission. He really put a lot of effort finding these Pokemon after all. Gramps’ advice always worked! Reaching his destination, he walked out slowly towards his so-called Rival Gang. They were grooming and playing with Zacian and Zamazenta. The Legendary Pokemon was really ease up on Victor and Gloria real quick. Hop let out his own Legendary Pokemon partner, Eternatus, scaring the occupant in the room, especially the albino-haired boy. “Hop! You idiot! Are you trying to scare me half to death?!” I wanna smooch you til I melt though. Grinning characteristically, he settled himself down between the girls, who now switched their focus on Eternatus. Victor, the new chairman’s secretary, smiled gently at him as greeting. Arceus, I would love to see your smile everyday, every time. “So, how’s the research coming up, Hop? Having such a rowdy Pokemon like this dragon must have damage the lab a few times.” Marnie smirked at Hop while throwing a Heavy Ball for it to catch. Such a graceful badass. With a super effective smirk. “Natus can shapeshift to a smaller size to roam freely so it’s not a problem,” the lab assistant answered before side-glancing his Legendary partner, “the problem would be giving Sonia a hard time to examine it.” “Typical. Seems like giving you Eternatus is the right choice. After all, I don’t think I can handle two huge responsibilities at the same time. Am I right, Zacian?” Gloria, the newly-crowned champion, winked at the Sword-wielding Warrior Pokemon. Zacian huffed out a pleased grunt, almost indicating it agreed with her. Are you trying to faint me with your adorable wink?! Finding the right time, Hop waited for the opportunity as they talked and played around. Occasionally battling or betting matches, making curry at this unusual location, talking about work. Hop had to thank Arceus when Victor popped the question. “So... today’s Valentines Day, ain’t it? You guys got some confession to make?” Silence taking over the room. Marnie and Bede tried to hide their blush but failed miserably while Gloria was looking embarrassed for once. Hop took a deep breath. “I do.” Shocking his gang again, he took out four Love Balls. Each of them had their unique designs that Hop took the time to do. “It makes me sound crazy but I think... I have a crushes on you guys. Super, duper big ones,” he slowly exclaimed as he handed them each of their own unique Love Balls, which they took it gladly. A good sign. Victor had Sobble with heart-shaped eyes drawing; Gloria had Scorbunny with its ear forming a heart-shaped drawing; Bede had a heart-shaped Solosis drawing; Marnie had Morpeko with heart-shaped cheek pouches drawing. “Hop, I hate you,” the Fairy Type Gym Leader started scowling. While Hop thought he was already damaging their friendship, the blushing albino head also threw him and the others a Love Ball. “You make me look so underprepared that it hurts.” “Me too.” The Dark Type Gym Leader joined in as she too had four Love Balls. “Me three.” The secretary chimed in, also with another four Love Balls. “I’m an idiot,” Gloria was flushed red as she took out four boxes of chocolates. The gang bursted out laughing at their rightfully-called lover. Lovers... that rings nicely to my heart. Our heart.

[crazynekochan]

I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of BNHA, but if you have, could I ask the quirks that DR characters would have? (Basically THH- DR V3)

Of course I did ^^ Though I am currently reading the mange since I can’t watch the anime anywhere

For some of the quirks I stole some of my ideas from the Superhero AU and Powers AU

DR1

Aoi Asahina: Water quirk, where she can manipulate water and breath in it. She would also look a bit more fish like and can also dehydrate faster than others

Junko Enoshima: Extreme emotion control where she can infect people with specific emotions and they can’t feel anything else than that. She always goes with love for her and despair. Once infected it is unbreakable

Chihiro Fujisaki: Hacking, where he can take over any computer system by touching it (He is literally Alter Ego)

Toko Fukawa/Genocider Syo: Alternate Persona, where she gets heightened senses and agility as Syo (is just as OP as Syo is, but also just as unstable)

Yasuhiro Hagakure: Clairvoyant quirk, where he can predict the possible future and many variations. The closer the future is, the higher the probability to it becoming true

Mukuro Ikusaba: Can shoot projectiles out of her body like they were guns. She can however run out of projectiles and then needs a while for her body to produce more

Kiyotaka Ishimaru: Overdrive quirk, where strong emotions lets him go into an “overdrive mode” (Ishida) and use more physical powers. Is however very draining

Kyoko Kirigiri: Lie detector quirk, where she is able to tell whenever someone is lying. She can also force people to tell the truth through conversation, but this gives her migraines.Her and Kokichi’s quirks cancel each other out

Leon Kuwata: Fire powers, where he can set himself and his surroundings on fire. The cold weakens his powers

Celestia Ludenberg: Hypnosis, where she can control other people. She however needs to have direct eye contact to activate it and it can be broken by a strong will

Sayaka Maizono: Mind control, where she can make people do her bidding by singing to them. She has to keep on singing to use it

Makoto Naegi: Originally believed to be quirkless until he turned 17. He can produce “bullets” which have various effects on people that get hit by them, from restoring energy and mental stability, enhancing other’s abilities for a specific amount of time, to breaking other mind control quirks (including Junko’s). He can also mentally harm people, but he doesn’t like using it like this

Sakura Ogami: Enhanced muscle powers, where her muscles can produce more physical power than others. Does however need training to maintain

Mondo Owada: Diamond quirk where he can cover his whole body in diamond (Daiya has/had the same quirk)

Byakuya Togami: Highly enhanced analytical abilities with his eyes, which includes finding weak points and mild mind control. Does however cause eye strain

Hifumi Yamada: Can make his own creations come to life. He has to however know how they would work and need a base for them (paper, rock, etc.). The more he creates the more draining it is for him

DR2

Teruteru Hanamura: Slime quirk. His body can reform in any shape he wants. He can also multiply, but he can’t change his mass, thus the more he multiplies the smaller and weaker he gets. Heat makes it harder for him to keep a solid form

Hajime Hinata/Izuru Kamukura: Project where someone quickless had his DNA altered to possess all quirks

Mahiru Koizumi: Light manipulation, where she can control the behaviour and intensity of light. She can also shoot solar beams, but they need time and can burn her hands

Nagito Komaeda: Luck and Misfortune, where he can control the fate of himself and to a degree of other people, by raising his good luck and in return making others experience his misfortune. Though he struggles with his control

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu: Dragon quirk, where he can breath fire and has wings with which he can fly. He also has horns and claws

Ibuki Mioda: Sonic explosions, that she can cause by screaming. Can however hurt her throat with too much use

Chiaki Nanami: Copying herself, where she can produce data like clones. However it causes extreme tiredness when used

Sonia Nevermind: Bomb production. She can form explosives out of her body and detonate them at will. She uses a launcher to attack with them

Nekomaru Nidai: Earth manipulation. It does however need a high level of physical strength

Akane Owari: Beast quirk. Looks more like a humanoid beast and the more fired up she is emotionally, the stronger she gets

Peko Pekoyama: Can make sharp blades form on her skin that can cut through almost anything. Can however also cut her skin

Hiyoko Saionji: Air control, where she can move air around her at will. She uses fans to enhance her abilities

Kazuichi Souda: Mind control over machines. He usually needs to touch them at least once beforehand, but high distress can make his powers go out of hand

Gundham Tanaka: Animal shapeshifting, where he can take on the form of any animal and gain their abilities that he touched beforehand. Does however only work on real animals

Mikan Tsumiki: Healing powers, however healing severe wounds can harm her

Imposter: Quirk copying. The copied quirk is however 50% weaker than the original and they can only copy one person at a time. They have to touch the person at least once to activate it

DRV3

Kaede Akamatsu: Music hypnosis, where she can hypnotise people. She does however need an instrument for this, which are all integrated into her costume

Rantaro Amami: Plant control, where he can make plants grow from his body and use them to his will. His powers are weaker in the darkness

Tenko Chabashira: Speedster, where she can move faster than the average human and she uses this for fighting

Gonta Gokuhara: Wolf quirk. He can do everything a wolf can and he has a high level of physical strength

Maki Harukawa: Weaponised body, where she can form weapons inside of her body. The forming of the weapon and possible projectiles takes time. She usually forms a crossbow in an arm and uses real arrows

Ryoma Hoshi: Smoke quirk, where his body produces a smoke that can range from harmless or suffocating if he wants. However it takes a lot of energy to make it deadly and he usually only uses it as a cover or to blind enemies

Miu Iruma: Can attach machine parts to herself and control them like real limps

Kiibo: Is a robot and can be upgraded with weapons

Kaito Momota: Star quirk, where he can turn his body into a humanoid star. He can fly quite fast and is burning hot. This quirk is quite strong but takes a strain on his health to use and can cause him to cough blood and faint

Kokichi Ouma: Mind control, with making people believe everything he says, no matter how ludicrous. His and Kyoko’s quirks cancel each other out

Shuichi Saihara: Phantom shadow quirk, where he can turn into a shadow like phantom. He can also control shadows by taking them over, however this takes a lot of power

Korekiyo Shinguji: Ghost quirk, where he can leave his body for a specific amount of time and possess other objects and people. However his body is then vulnerable

Tsumugi Shirogane: Appearance copying. Can shift into anyone’s appearance and take their place. However she can’t copy their quirk

Kirumi Tojo: Spider quirk. She can do anything a spider can do. She also has 3 more sets of arms

Angie Yonaga: Living paint, where her skin produces an “ink” that she can control at will. It can also change it density, weight and even how sticky it is

Himiko Yumeno: Illusions, where she can create illusions that people fall for. Can however be broken by someone with a powerful will and it causes tiredness for her

[weatheringwildstorm]

I know, the main point of this blog is to talk about the continuity of WildStorm Universe as it was from ’92 – ’11… but I really like doing this compare and contrast thing, and frankly, looking at the view numbers, you readers do too! Admittedly, I have no idea where Hill, Harris, and Ellis are going with this new series, and honestly, I couldn’t be more on board with what this team is bringing. I just thought I’d go over the final few issues of “Michael Cray.”

New vs. Old

The Khera inside Michael This was covered a bit my coverage of the main “the Wild Storm” book, but what has been talking to Michael, and what is indeed in his head is Khera. They are totally different than the Kherubim from the old WSU, these are shapeshifters that can take on a human look, but here we see one that is “naked.” Also, as laid out in “the Wild Storm” is the fact that there are I.O. soldiers that were part of Project Thunderbook that have been given grafts of Khera DNA, resulting in powers and seeing or hearing the Khera talk to them. That’s what we’re seeing represented.

New and What We Don’t Know

How exactly the Khera got inside Michael

The Khera claims that he got inside Michael because Michael was “close” when he needed someone, and Michael was a severely injured “disposable” soldier. While this doesn’t exactly track with the other folks we’ve met over in “the Wild Storm” that have some Khera DNA in them, we can make a few inferences. We do see Michael entering some kind of surgery at the hands of the military. I suspect Michael was working for I.O. in some kind of capacity. While we have no idea how long ago this was, it would seem to me that it is post-Lynch running I.O. and Project Thunderbook would be officially closed. This doesn’t mean that there isn’t a way that there wasn’t some Khera DNA still about and somehow got used on Michael. Maybe it was the nefarious Dr. Helspont, or doctor that knew little of what he had on hand and wanted to save Michael at all costs. The reason why I don’t think Lynch and Thunderbook are involved is that he wasn’t on Lynch’s list of people to hunt down that had been I.O. test subjects under him or Thunderbook. Or then again… hear me out… in the old WSU Cray’s powers didn’t activate until much later in his life. This version could’ve been part of Project Thunderbook, was implanted with Khera DNA at some point, but nothing noticeably activated, so Lynch wrote him off, hence why he wasn’t part of Lynch’s personal mission to check up on. Later in life, his power activated, which is when we meet him. It could be that Michael’s near-death experience in the desert is what finally triggered his powers/awakened the Khera inside him. I consider the Khera inside Michael to be a bit of an unreliable narrator, so I’ll only trust what it says to a certain degree. Will any of this be officially resolved in “the Wild Storm?” Maybe. Does it really need to be? Nah, not really.

Answers

Diana was motivated by her father (and his death) We get a very interesting flashback on Diana Prince and find that most of her motivation in life came from her dying father. He implored her to seek out their Greek gods, and man, she went for it!

Diana is indeed stronger than an average human While not a demigod like the DC version of the character is, this version of Diana Prince is human. She, however, has become super strong due to using several experimental techniques that she acquired from Alexander Luthor.

Christine gets what she wants For the only the second time, Michael actually gives Christine what she wants. The only other time Michael got her what she wanted was when she was able to get her hands on Oliver Queen’s company. Barry Allen destroyed all his research, and Michael destroyed everything related to Arthur Curry. So, yeah Christine gets Constantine with a head full of magick and technological know-how, the only thing she has to sacrifice is having Michael on the payroll.

Deaths Ok, I’ll admit to being wrong in the past, and here I was. When this book was starting to come out some folks said “Hey, why are all the villains just twists on DCU characters? Why not have him fight updates on old WSU characters?” and my smart ass response was something like “All the DCU characters are disposable, WSU characters may have plans for future use, thus are not used or are only in minor roles.” For me, this extended to the thought that only old WildStorm characters would be left alive at the end of the series, all DC and new characters were on the potential chopping block. Imagine my extreme surprise when Diana took out Leon, Victoria, and Hector. I also didn’t expect Constantine to survive either. Let’s hear it for shocking developments in comics!

DCU Connections

Alexander Luthor / Lex Luthor We still have a very bald, very ruthlessly evil businessman version of Lex. Now, to be fair, I’m not as up on the big DC players as I should be. For real, I know a lot more about Zatanna and various Doom Patrol members than I do any of Superman’s supporting cast, but I still think that this version of Lex is pretty much like the one we usually see over in the mainstream DC. The only difference is that this is the result of a Luthor running free without a Superman to distract/stop him.

Bruce Wayne This is the second reference to Bruce Wayne in this series! The first time was just a passing reference to a boy out East whose parents were shot in an alley being compared to Oliver Queen. This time it was in a conversation with Diana and Alexander and he was explicitly named. It seems this version of Bruce is a corporate genius on the level of Diana and Alexander, and he is a major business rival to Alexander and perhaps more.

Dr. Nelson / Doctor Fate We meet, for a very short time, Dr. Nelson who is “the Wild Storm” universe version of Dr. Kent Nelson, better known as Doctor Fate, over in the DCU. I kinda thought it was him, but once we were shown Diana crushing the Helmut of Nobu I was sure. Looking at my research it shows that while the current New52 rebooted Dr. Nelson is single, he was indeed married in the post-Crisis iteration of the DCU much like we see here.

One More Thing

Starting off and ending the series with Michael looking in a mirror is a great call back. It is so organic to both moments that at first, I didn’t catch it. The ending is just so powerful that I was so wrapped up and satisfied emotionally with the story that I didn’t make the connection until I reread the entire series as a whole. Michael also looks in the mirror near the beginning of issue 6, having him spending time in the mirror at the midway point of the series as well. I am a nut for a structure like that.

Final Thought I enjoyed the heck out of this series. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into it. Hell, all I knew was from something that Jim Lee said at the “WildStorm 25th Anniversary” panel at SDCC in 2017. All Lee would tell of the “Michael Cray” book was that Ellis had told Hill that the book needs to be three things: Michael Cray must be killing someone, planning to kill someone, or narrowly avoid being killed by someone, in some combination in every issue. (This is from memory and I could have gotten something mixed up there.) I have to say, yeah, on that front this book delivered! But also Bryan Hill and N. Steven Harris created a character that I truly ended up caring about in very few issues. I get stuck on good characters written and presented well, and that’s what I kept coming back to this book for, and it kept meeting and topping my expectations. Sure, look, I’m a WildStorm fan, but I’m also hard to please. I don’t say something is a “good comic” very often, and I’ll say that “Michael Cray” is a great comic. I can admit, yes, I would’ve bought this book each month and reviewed/compare and contrasted it on this site no matter what. I hoped that it would be good, and I was absolutely delighted that it was better than that. I am sad that I will not be picking up issue 13 next month if I’m being honest. Come on, don’t tell me you wouldn’t want to see that! Michael on the run with an alien in his head and control powers, who is beholden to no higher authority and trying to remain the man he wants to be? I want to read that book, too!

A book starring this guy? Oh hell yeah, I’m game!

Other comparisons of the old WildStorm Universe to the new one found in “The Wild Storm” & “Michael Cray.”

WSU vs. Michael Cray 10, 11 & 12 I know, the main point of this blog is to talk about the continuity of WildStorm Universe as it was from ’92 – ’11… but I really like doing this compare and contrast thing, and frankly, looking at the view numbers, you readers do too!