#at least male knight got the super costume and was

[lightwing-s]

the batboys' favorite male marvel heroes

Our golden boy, Dick, is a massive Spiderman fan. He’s not embarrassed in the least to admit it, and he’s also not worried people will think of him as just liking something popular. He has pretty good reasons to like Peter Parker and he’ll defend it to hell and back. He’s young, fun, and lighthearted. Heroic and smart and handsome and sweet and Dick can go on for hours and hours on that topic. At a young age, he sympathized with Peter for a number of reasons: they were both orphans, taken in by someone after this loss; even after all that pain they still grew up to be happy and joyful people to be around; both are very smart. As he grew into his super hero persona, they started sharing a whole lot more, like their flexible fighting style, the way they both deal with villains. And you’d often tell him they share the same bubbly personality. Also, Bruce used to spoil him rotten with spidey gifts. Comics, action figures, school supplies, spiderman shampoo and conditioner, towels… You name it, Dick has had it at home. Truly a spidey fanboy through and through. He also has a costume at home waiting for the day he can go on patrol wearing it.

Let's be honest here, we all know Jason would live for the anti-hero trope. Growing up, he’d always been drawn to more heroic types of antiheroes, like Wolverine for example, who’s hell bent on fulfilling his duty but does not live by the hero standards as some others do.  But after a certain incident with a crowbar and a clown, he saw refuge in the spirit of vengeance himself, the Ghost Rider. C'mon, a motorcycling maniac, whose body is completely covered in fire and who fights for justice no matter what? *side eyes a certain somebody* there's no way it isn't up to his alley. He’s in the comic store right after patrol, in the early mornings, to buy whatever issue was released next and reads it like it’s a Jane Austen novel. He also buys older issues, and keeps them wrapped and well stored like his precious babies and he ain’t letting anyone touch them. Perhaps with one dear exception, you.  Jay is into the classics though, if he had to pick between one out of all the riders he would have to choose the very first rider, Johnny Blaze. When riding his own bike, he’d pretend to be a rider, spitting lines he remembers from the comics and using them on random robbers he stops on the streets. Don’t talk to him about the movie though, that’s off topic.

Tim Drake is not one to pick “silly” heroes like his older brothers do. Or he at least pretends to do. He’s into the smart supes, with admirable brains and capacities well beyond imaginable. But he’s also a bit of a contrarian, so he won’t go for easy picks like Dick Iron Man. So when he sees a powerful AI turn into a nearly unstoppable android he instantly becomes a fan. Even before living with Bruce and becoming Robin, he would ask his parents to get him the new Avengers issue with Vision in it. However, unlike his brothers he’s very chill about it, he doesn’t feel like he needs to explain why his favorite is the best, or why they're a token of justice or a mad warrior. He knows Vision is good and that no one can fight him about it. He also wishes he could stay awake without the need for rest like he does, but he’d definitely miss the coffee.

Don’t really let anyone know it, but Damian’s favorite hero is his dad. But Batman is a real, flesh and bone man, so it won’t count here. He struggled to have a favorite hero, reading comics is “for children” and he’s too mature for that. He’s an adult. But when he caught a glimpse of Dick sleeping watching the new Moon Knight tv show, this boy got hooked. Not only is he a cool,  merciless fighter, he is also intelligent and has a cultural impact on him like no other. Marc’s internal conflict with all of his personalities feels like a reflection of Damian’s own troubles with his families’ contrasting ideals: is he supposed to be a deadly weapon just like his grandfather would want, much like Jake Lockely, or is he a nicer warrior-esque hero like Marc and his father? Anyway, that cape, Dami loves the hooded cape *see that, bats? much cooler!*

[photolover82]

The Masked Singer Season 6 Costume Reveals (Predictions and Rankings) Part 2!

Hello everyone! Welcome (or welcome back) to Ana’s Masked Singer, where I, Ana, recap every single episode of The Masked Singer, including when they reveal our beloved costumes, which is what I am doing here! Actually, this is part 2 of this revealing costumes saga, so if you wanna see part 1, link is below ⬇️

So yeah, go see that post for the first 10 costumes that were revealed with my thoughts, some predictions/dream casting action, and how I rank them… and now let’s get started with the costumes and more of that action! (Preface= I still don’t know how many costumes are in total, so by the end of this post, I may have a better idea, I’m still not too sure).

* Also, in between this part and the last one, the sneak peak episode was revealed and we got to see the first clues so I will be putting them down for these costumes and updating them for the previous ones!

1. Skunk 🦨

Thoughts: I really like this costume, it is very reminiscent of flapper girls and I feel like someone older & a legendary celebrity is under that mask because it's so poised and elegant kind of like flower from season 2 or bee from season 1.

Predictions: Again, I am gonna predict that this is a legend in the music world, perhaps older & female, similar to Bee (Gladys Knight), Flower (Patti LaBelle), and Mouse (Dionne Warwick). So, for dream casting, I'm going to go between Liza Minelli, Tina Turner, or Diana Ross.

First Clue: Elvis Presley (maybe someone related to him or who knew him or sang one of his songs famously or is also from Memphis)

Ranking: 8/10

2. Caterpillar 🐛

Thoughts: It’s a super cute costume, reminds me a bit of the llama, if it were cuter tbh. The colors are super cute, very nostalgic to like toys from the 90s or early 2000s which I really like. It’s adorable, it has braces and everything, I really like it. Some people say there are 2 people under there, but I don’t think so.

Predictions: I think this might be a male actor, singer, or Broadway performer…. From the first clue provided, I am gonna dream cast a guess here and it would be Todrick Hall (this is not an official guess just a dream cast one… I haven’t heard it sing just yet)

First Clue: Taylor Swift knows him!

Ranking: 8/10

3. Jester 🃏

Thoughts: This one is probably my least favorite costume of the bunch. I get what they were going with it, like a Joker from a deck of cards, but it is really weird and creepy looking. It also looks like the belly is just a pillow under there, it doesn’t look super thought out, similar to Raccoon from last season. I’m also not a big of fan of like horror movies so it just doesn’t speak to me honestly.

Predictions: I think this might be a male actor or based on the clue, my mind went to someone from the Bachelor. Also, half of me thinks it might be an action star like Danny Trejo last season. Dream cast I would say I would like to see Bruce Willis (since his daughter was on the first season), Arnold Schwarzenegger, or Danny DeVito.

First Clue: A bouquet of roses 🌹

Ranking: 2/10

4. Pepper 🌶

Thoughts: This one reminds me of the Jalapeño from Quien es la Mascara (which is the Mexican version of The Masked Singer) but it’s a female version of it instead, which I kinda like. It is a little haphazard because the head doesn’t go super well with the dress but maybe it’s because I cannot stop thinking about the Mexican male version. Nevertheless, it’s a cool costume, super spicy (ugh now I am doing the pun thing… I promise I’m done)

Predictions: Idk about this one since there weren’t any first clues for her… but I am gonna go off the cuff again and say maybe a YouTuber or another type of influencer, like dream cast wise a Liza Koshy, Maddie Ziegler, or Rosanna Pansino.

Ranking: 9/10

5. Pufferfish 🐡

Thoughts: Woah… I legit just saw this one in the most recent preview for the show. It looks really funny with the lips, like puffer fish, but the lips puff out, I see what you are doing there Masked Singer. I like it though, it is very cartoon like but I think that’s the look they were going for. The arms are a bit weird tho, I can’t tell tho because it spun around and for a split second we saw the costume (this was a screenshot I took of that split second lol).

Predictions: I think this one might be female, for some reason a younger person comes to mind, similar to like Jellyfish or Kitty from previous seasons, someone younger whether it be an influencer, athlete, or artist of some kind (actor or musician or dancer) idk…. they didn’t give us any clues about this costume, but from this photo with them taking a lot of photos of her makes me think influencer or model specifically so that’s where I am gonna go when dream casting. So, dream cast wise, I am gonna go between Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid, or Kendall Jenner.

Ranking: 8/10

6. Mother Nature 🌬

Thoughts: Ooh, this one is super cool, they just revealed this one too after the preview. I like it a lot, it’s very realistic looking but also elegant at the same time. Even though the face is a tiny bit scary, the rest looks really cool and I like the idea of a Mother Nature costume.

Predictions: I am gonna go singer for this one, female is my guess. So, dream casting over here, I would like to see Alesia Cara, Jennifer Hudson, or maybe one of the girls from Little Mix/one of the former members of Fifth Harmony.

Ranking: 9/10

So, that's it! The total for contestants this season is 16 costumes! So, yeah, the premiere is on September 22 and 23 which is about 8 days away, so I will see you guys there! Comment below your favorite (and maybe even least favorite) costume and what you are most excited for this upcoming season! Bye guys, see you in a bit over a week.

[pwnyta]

Genshin Impact character opinions (alphabetical)-

0/10 Albedo is my least favorite design... He looks so fuckin goofy and from what I know about his character the fact he looks so goofy is not great.... The shorts look so dumb and the blue of his shirt looks weird...

Just wanted to visualize my issues with his goofy outfit... wont be ‘fixing’ anyone elses.

10/10 So fucking cute. The colors are beautiful and well spread through the design, Zettai ryōiki. bunny theme...terrific. Ambers just perfect. Look at that fucking adorable face as well... look at her big ol smile and tell me she aint a 10/10. She’d get a 10 if all I ever saw was that big ol smile.

9/10 Barbara is adorable. Her costume is gorgeous. I love the white with blue and the gold accents. Very pretty my only gripe is the lighter blue on her bow...

10/10 Beidou is just gorgeous.... I love that shade of pinkish-red with the off-black and purple with the gold trim. Shes just so hot... also her English voice is also top tier which is irrelevant to my ranking... maybe but--

1/10 Bennetts not as bad as Albedo but god hes annoying to look at... and listen to....  he looks like hes a Kingdom Hearts knock off, the colors are weird, and he has the personality of s1 Ash Ketchum.... Im sure hes a swell lad... but

6/10 Chongyun I mean I love the color pallet and over all its fine. I think the onesie with the cropped jacket and the weird half robe is weird but it looks fine if I dont think about too much.

7/10 Diluc is pretty but not as fun to look at as some others. I do really like those red palm gloves. My biggest gripe is his shirt.... with the belt? WHAT? Sir do you know what a belt is for.....

8/10 Diona... so cute. I kinda just wish her hair wasnt pink. I dont like the pink in her design at all but other than that... super cute. I just noticed her gloves had little peets on them.... THATS SO CUTE.

4/10 Fischls color pallet (other than her hair) is gorgeous but other than that... hate the overall design... Im not opposed to sexiness... but come on....

7/10 Ganyu is very cute but idk whats going on with her outfit at all.... its a very confusing piece.... but I dont hate it...

7/10 Whoops forgot the new girl... Her designs cute... but it is a bit dampened by the fact I think about toilet boy Hanako.... but other than that very cute!

9/10 Jeans a hottie. Love her tight pants... is it too much to ask for more hot girls in tight pants? IS THAT SO WRONG?! I dont really like the weird open top bit or the red bits but I dont hate it either.

10/10 Kaeyas design is one of my favs. His color pallet is gorgeous, the design is cool, tasteful tiddie window... its great. Good for him. I’ll even excuse the spiked fingerless gloves which no other character could possibly pull off.

10/10 Keqing is gorgeous too. Again with the beautiful colors, a really charming outfit design combined with those little cat-ear buns. I do often see up her skirt when flying and climbing however and it makes me feel like a bad person LMAO IM SORRY KEQING!! I DONT MEAN IT. She seems like the type thatd be really embarrassed about it!!

10/10 Klee is so fucking cute. I kinda wish her eyes were green like her charm but the red is good too. That red and white with the warm brown is really nice, and you cant go wrong with a poofy hat! Shes so cute.

10/10 Lisa was designed to be a smoke show but she pulls it off better than Fischl. Love the roses throughout her design, the color pallet is on point, her hair matching the dull gold of the accents is really nice, a peak of Zettai ryōiki and her green eyes just POP. Shes beautiful.... I love her.

3/10 My issue with Mona is mostly her bottom half... I get that her tights design looks cool but with the rest of her vibe having her main clothing piece be like... a bathing suit? ITS A CHOICE and it ruins her design for me. Also I hate the baubles on the ends of her hair.... but her color pallet is real nice. I also like her bigger eyebrows...

10/10 Ningguang... also a total smokin hottie. Her colors are beautiful and really feel RICH. That brassy color and gold on white with the ginkgo designs... the bitch is just poppin. She looks fantastic.

8/10 Noelle is so cute... I like when I add her to my party and she gets all excited and eager to help... very cute. Her design is an endearing mix of badass knight and dutiful maid.... my only issue is her skirt.... looks kinda weird. Wish she had some petticoats to fill it out more. Also dont like that her roses pop out the way they do... reminds me of Shreks ears....

10/10 Qiqi is adorable I love Jiangshi, love the colors, wish she wasnt wearin horni thigh highs(I only ever see thigh highs squeeze thighs like that in l00d art dont come for me... I didnt design her.) but lolis gonna lol. But again her design is top tier. Shes so cute.

5/10 Razor... is kind of a mess but its largely the colors.... its a lot of weird colors. Also his design makes me think of the male MC... I literally thought he was like an AU version of the MC....

10/10 Sucrose is so cute. Again that white blue and gold look great... I like her frilly shorts and thigh highs.... her boots are cute... her hair color is a little weird but I dont dislike it. Kinda wish her eyes were a different color tho.

4/10 Childe is fine... but after seeing all the other Fatui designs and his own monster form I look at him like this and go.... REALLY? Thats what were goin with... alright... Also his whole design screams ‘fire’ to me not just colors either the shape of his mask and the pattern on his scarf thing.... its weird that hes Hydro.

10/10 I love the female MCs design... I chose the male MC because his colors popped more and im a dumb animal and was like ‘ooh shiny‘ but I think her design is a bit better over all...

9/10 Male MC is still good... its very cute. I like how she looks more suited to the Anemo and he looks more Geo... Thats pretty cool. I really like his colors... the browns/gold/white... its a striking look.

6/10 Ventis pretty cute... I dont get the weird... corset thing hes wearing, dont like his shoes,,, but other than that its pretty cute but nothing special imo.

10/10 Xiangling is so fucking cute. everything in her design makes me clutch my heart at how endearing she is. Love her. Weird color palette... its even weirder that it fully works.

7/10 Look I love Xiao hes a good lad so I cant be too harsh... but all the colors on his design look a bit weird which really brings his over all design down... which I think is cool over all.

9/10 Really cute design for Xingqiu! The colors are beautiful... I love blue and white and gold obviously and he even does it with more of an emphasis on the blue and its a greenish blue and it looks great. the top is just gorgeous, those frilly sleeves are super cute... not a huge fan of the shorts but I hear theyre comfy and easy to wear.

10/10 Xinyan just looks terrific. Cool and punky, great fiery color pallet, cool theme, cheeky personality without it being obnoxious....  Shes great! Weird voice tho... lmao

11/10 You cant tell me what to do! Zhongli is the only male smoke show in the playable cast for that he gets an 11 ok? I love a dumb old man. I do think the coat over his longer coat is a bit weird but I aint mad at it. Love the colors, very earthy, the subtle gold design on his pant legs are cool and really hes got a lot of cool bits on his coat, his face/hair are lovely. Hes a total babe.

A SUGABABE

[this-is-pretty-awkward]

Halloween Hcs

(Some) MALE STUDENTS~

Iida

- Iida views Halloween as childish, “We are U.A students and too old for such foolery.” You and the rest of the deku squad rope him into some Halloween shenanigans nonetheless.

- The whole squad goes to a Halloween store, Iida of course protesting in the background, but none of your pay much attention other than when you grab his with puppy dog eyes aimed at him like a weapon and tell him to loosen up. He blushes a bit at this and does the anime thing where they push their glasses up. “We all do have our homework done and there isn’t a test tomorrow…” ��You’re the best Tenya.” You say, placing a kiss on his cheek before dragging him away.

- You go through the costumes, joking around and you can’t help but to tease Iida a bit by acting like you’re actually considering to be a ‘Naughty Police Officer’ or ‘Fiery Hot Demon’. Iida pushes you away from that section jabbering away about modesty as you laugh to yourself.

- In the end though you sneak a legitimately scary costume for yourself and the matching one for Iida. You get Tsuyu and Midoriya to distract him while you check it out.

- You’re all going to be trick or treating together, but once again Iida tries to resist you and your persuasions to participate in Halloween, like even Todoroki is going trick or treating, come on man.

- You’re in your costume (Your choice just think up something that’s mildly scary, it can be sexy too, I imagine like a zombie duo cuz Iida got the height to be a zombie like Lurch or something or Frankenstein and Frankenstein’s bride/groom even though it’s cliche) When you hand him the one you got him. “I bought you a matching costume and everything!” He caves of course.

- And surprise surprise you guys have fun! You and Iida walk hand in hand and joke around with the rest of the deksquad, having a good time. When you get back and you ask Iida if he had fun he admits that he did enjoy the outing and that happiness and fondness that he expressed was probably your favorite thing that night.

Todoroki

- It’s Todoroki’s first first Halloween and you want to make it the best you can. He’s a bit confused by it all, the purpose and general traditions flying over his head at times. You have to give him a full background on it and even delve into the the actual origins of Halloween. Samhain, All Saints Day, witches, black cats, Jack O’Lanterns, soul cakes, the whole spiel.

- That probably wasn’t the best idea, because now Todoroki’s even more confused, because praying to help people out of purgatory??? What??? I’m not religious? So you just tell him to forget all of that and just focus on the modern basics, scary movies, haunted houses, candy, trick or treating, costumes, and parties.

- You watch a Halloween movie with Todoroki ‘for teaching reasons’, you really just wanted to cuddle with your boyfriend and watch a corny Halloween movie. The movie is The Midnight Hour, which isn’t necessarily scary, but it’s fun to laugh at the really bad costumes. That werewolf looks terrible.

- You dress up as a (Knight or Princess or both something along those lines) to match with Todoroki’s prince costume.

- Whether you go trick or treating or participate in a party at the dorms you guys have a fun night. Todoroki is super cute throughout all of it no matter what it is. You compliment his costume, making him a little flustered, because it’s just a costume right? He likes seeing you so excited about everything and if you two go to a Halloween party dancing would be so cute. He probably knows some fancy waltz or something, but you try to get him to loosen up and succeed, though he’s pretty awkward.

Tokoyami

- You love your emo boyfriend so much and his enthusiasm over the holiday is adorable. He’s so into it, he loves the spookiness and for a solid month he’s in this mood. You call it his ‘Halloween Hype’. Tokoyami is strangely energetic about all things regarding Halloween during this phase.

- You guys carve pumpkins together, which goes great, it causes a mess and he gets some pumpkin guts in his feathers. Tokoyami is surprisingly good at pumpkin carving, like you know those ones that give the carving textures and use the shavers so that it doesn’t go all the way through or its super thin that you can still see the light, like that. His pumpkin is super artistic and probably something like a crow on a tree in front of a moon and it’s all spooky and realistic looking. While you just kind of did a cat’s whiskers and little holes for eyes and it’s mouth/nose.

- For Halloween he doesn’t really dress up though, because he doesn’t need to, he just wears his hero costume and lets dark shadow be spooky. I imagine you’re like a cute witch or warlock and you introduce Tokoyami as your familiar. Tokoyami hates it, because he is a terrifying shadow demon that should be feared, but the little bird pout your boyfriend gets is cute.

- Each day of October he gets slightly more cryptic with what he says to the point that you have to translate for him sometimes. Tokoyami is practically speaking in only riddles and poems the day of Halloween and there are times that even you can’t figure out what he’s trying to say. You try your best to understand him though, because it ruins his Halloween groove if he can’t talk like a cryptid.

Bakugou

- He’s “Too cool for Halloween, that’s for kids.” The insistent whining and passive aggressive comments of the bakusquad+you eventually have him give in. However Bakugou is now set on making everything super terrifying to make it not so kiddish.

- Getting him into a costume is pretty hard as well, he ends up like a werewolf and you’re some non supernatural thingy or whatever. If it’s attractive in any way Bakugou has his hands on you at all times you’re wearing it.

- It’s a week or two before Halloween, he’s already been pressured into participating by you guys, and he’s isn’t throwing as much of a fit as you’d expected. You don’t know if this is just because he never really cared in the first place or what. You and the rest of the squad realize this as you, without fear, inhale the cupcakes that Bakugou left while he was ‘doing something’. You guys thought you were being sneaky, but it seems that this was all Bakugou’s plan because when you bite into the cupcake, all at the same time, you guys are met with a crunch  that isn’t supposed to be there. You’re all screaming, spitting out the remains of what you realized to be dried spider remains (they’re edible of course).

- Bakugou cackles in the background and that’s when it starts… the ‘Bakusquad Halloween Prank War’. At first its just everyone against Bakugou in a few pranks, however most don’t succeed and Mina abandons the rest of you. They’re an unstoppable duo, but you, Kaminari, Sero, and Kirishima have some good ones. It’s neck and neck, Halloween night, where you pull the last ultimate prank on Bakugou and Mina. There’s a whole fake ritual gone wrong thing, and you had to stop it before Mina started crying and Bakugou blow things up.

- Halloween ends in a bit of a sour mood, because Bakugou was genuinely worried about you and he’s mad about it of course. You apologize to him of course to which he tches at (cuz anime) and turns around, just to squish a palmful of slime on your face. “You’re forgiven asshole.” “...Thanks babe.”    

- Oh and prank wars aside, baking Halloween treats with Bakugou is a must. Cutting out sugar cookies into spooky shapes (they aren’t that spooky) and decorating them with frosting and colored icing. Icing gets on both of your faces and in at least one of your’s hair. You two still have a batch to go, but got… distracted (you’re making out). The rest of the bakusquad break in at that point and now you’re back to icing, Bakugou complaining at the abrupt end to your makeout session.

[mysticdragon3md3]

Sometimes I worry that I might have become too fixated on oversexualized female character designs, in recent years. And then... ~_~;;;;;;;;;;;; And then chat proves that we were all thinking the same thing, for different reasons. x_x;

Seriously, when I first saw Sera's design on the right, my first thought was, "If she's a priestess or some other class that goes without armor and can make sense, walking around in skimpy clothes, then let her be a priestess! But if she's a knight that's supposed to wear armor, then let her be a knight!" She looks like she's wearing partial armor, so if she's an armored class, then why leave the entire torso suspiciously unarmored?! My suspension of disbelief has limits, y'know! o~o! At this point, the only conclusion is that just her torso suspiciously has ostensibly the lightest coverage, because of Male Gaze fanservice. At least in Claymore, they explain that Claymore warriors all have unusual healing powers. But even Claymore warrior uniforms looked like normal clothes with normal fabric. Sera's costume suddenly goes SHEER right on her sexy parts that can be see-through. o_o; C'mon, guys... ~_~;;;;;;;;;;;

Though with Maya, I will admit, I'm having fun, continuing my mental personal game of imagining male versions of costumes for all female character designs that have just normalized running around battlefields in bikinis. lol Like, just imagine, that Maya's costume is like "typical" dress for her society. Then imagine guys from her town running around in speedos and midriffs. lol Guys in crop tops showing just a little underside of pectorals. LOL But their arms are completely armored, just like Maya's here. lol And then I remember that time China censorship got super upset over a Final Fantasy male character with fabric window peep holes in his costume, right on the sides of his abs. Girls running around in bikinis and armor only on their forearms is apparently "normal", but a guy shows a little skin and it's "lewd". LOLLOLOLOLOL

[thebibliomancer]

Essential Avengers: Avengers #195: Assault on a Mind Cage!

May, 1980

... Wasp’s new outfit is just so terrible.

And I’m a little bummed that apparently Wasp is going to end up captured and have to be rescued by her husband and her husband’s spin-off character.

She’s on the Avengers now and Hank isn’t and I was hoping that she’d get to grow into herself a little bit.

But hey... first time Ant-Man, Yellowjacket and the Wasp are together in one book apparently? And first time the new Ant-Man is appearing in Avengers, the team that will ruin his life and then kill him.

H-hooray?

So last time: the Avengers had a quiet day (except Vision who broke a bunch of stuff because he was a poet and didn’t know it) which was ruined when an escapee from an institute for the criminally insane showed up and begged the Avengers to save him from people that were trying to kill him.

Instead of doing that, the Avengers handed Selbe back over to the Institute because, hey, their paperwork was all in order!

Wasp thought there was more going on than was apparent and followed back to the institute with the Avengers following after once they realized that Wasp was missing.

And that brings us to now, where the Avengers are lurking outside the Solomon Institute for the Criminally Insane in Southampton, Long Island.

The Wasp is inside, maybe.

Also, they picked up Yellowjacket and Ant-Man at some point on the way.

But they also never explained anything to Yellowjacket at some point along the way which gives an excuse for Captain America to recap the previous issue.

Iron Man chimes in some exposition that he learned off-panel about the Solomon Institute. Apparently this institute for the criminally insane is choosy who they accept as a patients, which is a weird quality for a psychological institute to have, right?

But not weird enough to get the Avengers a search warrant so instead they’re going to flaunt the law by having Yellowjacket sneak in to snoop around.

Oh and apparently the Avengers didn’t pick up Ant-Man. Yellowjacket invited him along and he’s been lurking tiny sized waiting to make a dramatic entrance, which he does when Iron Man laments having to send Yellowjacket in alone.

Although its less of a partnership and more of a... job shadowing?

Ant-Man: “YJ asked me to meet him here when he found out what the scam was. And being something of a neophyte in the super hero biz, I jumped at the chance to learn at the hands -- er, wings -- of an old pro!”

Intern Ant-Man. Antern-Man!

So with Captain America telling them to get on with it already, Yellowjacket and Ant-Man fly off to infiltrate.

And Yellowjacket thanks Scott Lang Ant-Man for coming along.

Yellowjacket: “I appreciate your coming along on such short notice, Scott. I know your job at Stark International is important, and --”

Ant-Man: “Say, look, I enjoy soldering transistors as much as the next guy -- but the reason I originally took your offer to be Ant-Man was because I craved excitement and adventure. And if that means being docked an hour’s pay, pal, then them’s the breaks!”

I like that transistors are still a huge deal in Stark’s company. Tony Stark doesn’t forget his roots.

But also I misread Scott’s line and briefly struggled with the incorrect revelation that Scott Lang invented PayPal.

I briefly existed in a very different and confusing world.

Anyway, Ant-Man, Yellowjacket, and a giant swarm of ants sneak in through the keyhole of a side door at the Solomon Institute. And nobody notices.

There’s a guard right next to the door and he doesn’t hear a giant swarm of ants flying through a keyhole.

I was under the impression that that many flying insects creates a racket.

So as the strangely hearing impaired guard trudges off to get coffee, Ant-Man and Yellowjacket climb into the ventilation system while Ant-Man tells his ants to split up, gang, to cover more ground.

The two size-shifting heroes take a tour through the vents and see that this supposed institute is very weird.

Like. Should a place for treating the criminally insane have so many guns in the big communal bedroom? Or a big communal bedroom?

And instead of therapy, they spot people doing combat drills. Or maybe its... physical therapy?

And further along, they spot a group of people talking about candidates, students and fulfilling an order for Dr. Octopus.

Why would Dr. Octopus need inmates from an institute of criminally insan-

Oh wait a dang minute.

This isn’t an institute for the criminally insane at all, or at least not in the mental health sense!

The Solomon Institute is a front for a training academy for all those goons that supervillains always seem to have!

Although to be fair, Ant-Man and probably some of the audience have probably wondered where all those faceless lackeys came from (they have a name, Scott, probably!)

And disguising it as a place for the criminally insane means nobody would suspect a thing because training camp/institute, they’d both have a lot of criminals hanging around.

But the tour is over because “Steed” the ant and friends have returned with news on the Wasp’s whereabouts.

And she’s. She was captured off-panel (dammit, comic) and is being kept in some kind of dumb oxygen tent to keep her unconscious with sleeping gas.

She’s the only one of the Avengers that had any kind of initiative and insight and you play her like this, this comic? Come on!

There’s so many other ways this could have been played other than having her be the damsel in distress.

She could be solid snaking the institute, looking for actionable informations. She could have set off one of those emergency beacons from last time to lead the Avengers to her position. Anything other than caught off-panel!

Hmph.

Anyway, Yellowjacket blames himself because clearly with him around to tell her what to do, this wouldn’t have happened. Ant-Man, more savvy to the combined effectiveness of Yellowjacket and the Wasp instead predicts that Hank would have ended up captured too.

Also, Ant-Man has an ant-plan.

I.e., he plans to use ants to solve this and every other problem.

Its what he does, what he knows, and what he’ll stick with, thank you very much.

So Ant-Man summons a big swarm of ants to distract the guards and random scientist with biting of the eyeballs and otherwise and then Yellowjacket flies down to shoot one with his disrupter blasts and Ant-Man does the growing uppercut thing that is a cornerstone of Shrink Fu.

Then they get Wasp out of that dumb oxygen/sleeping gas tent and she revives almost immediately.

I don’t know how sleeping gas works but it seems like maybe it would take longer than that but whatever.

And with Wasp awake and “Just... slightly embarrassed. I-it only hurts... when I think” she can recount What Happened To The Wasp.

So, yes. We get to see her damseled on-panel. Honestly, its a little better than the alternative. =\

So since she thought that Selbe was telling the truth when the Solomon Institute’s limo took him away, she followed on wing.

Wasp: “It was so cold... I was almost as blue as my boots by the time we reached the Solomon Institute... but that was nothing compared to the chill I felt when I saw those stormtrooper guards... and heard the orderlies told to prepare Selbe for some sort of operation!”

Hey. Maybe you wouldn’t be so cold if you didn’t design a new costume during wintertime that is missing a sleeve and a pant leg? Just a thought.

Seriously, why this new costume?

Sure she was right about shady business, Wasp slipped into Selbe’s cell and returned to normal size to try to revive him.

But that was a stupid move because apparently there were hidden cameras in the cell and the room was filled with fast-acting sleeping gas to incapacitate her.

And the next thing she knew, she was being woken up by Ant-Man and Yellowjacket.

And then she starts making out with Yellowjacket because that’s what you do when your husband rescues you from a fake institute that’s really a training camp for mooks. You get a little frisky.

But Ant-Man points out the obvious thing. If Selbe’s cell was monitored, what are the odds that this room is too?

Very. Very odds.

Dr Solomon: “A most perspicacious query, young man. Unfortunately -- it is also rather tardy!”

Geez. Its always a bit hurtful when the villains call the heroes dumbasses. Its usually true but its like adding insult to intended injury. Exactly like that, in fact.

And we meet Dr. Pernell Solomon, as spoiled by my putting his name on that offset dialogue.

Wasp exclaims - and I’ll take her word for this - that Dr. Solomon looks just like Selbe except thirty years older.

So Solomon reveals that Selbe IS HIM DUN DUN DUNNN! but for more information please join him in his study. And that please is just to be polite. The guns that attack the nervous system are the real please in this situation.

Meanwhile, outside, the Avengers continue to wait outside. In the snow.

Luckily Beast thought to bring coffee. Although when this happened will be a mystery. Maybe the Avengers just keep some instant brew on the Quinjet just in case. That would make sense.

Either way, the point of this vignette is a conversation between Wonder Man and Ms Marvel.

And the point of the conversation between Wonder man and Ms Marvel is how Carol is an overreacting, touchy feminist.

I cannot think of any other intended reading for this exchange:

Wonder Man: “I can’t help it, Ms. Marvel. I’m worried. Maybe Iron Man and I should have just smashed our way in and pulled the Wasp out. After all, we are --”

Ms Marvel: “--‘Men’? Are you still on that kick? Look, Simon, I know you were out of action for a long time, but this isn’t the 60′s anymore! You’ve got to learn that women are more than fair damsels waiting to be rescued by shining knights! The Wasp is a valuable team member, as competent as any of her male counterparts! She --.”

Wonder Man: “Ms. Marvel, what I was going to say was that perhaps we should have gone after the Wasp because we’re... her friends.”

Ms Marvel: “‘Her...?’ oh.”

=|

I choose to believe that the ellipses in Wonder Man’s reply is because he’s frantically trying to dig himself out of the hole he put himself in.

But that’s not the intended reading. I know that because the very next panel has Beast smirking across the distance and Jocasta suggesting they put more sugar in Carol’s coffee.

Ha. Ha. Ha. Isn’t it hilarious how tightly wound she is?

I don’t want to pretend I can guess the motives of the creative staff behind these books from across the gulf of time. But considering whats in store for Carol, a writing out of the book that would make Classic Doctor Who go ‘geez that’s fucked up’ I can’t think that otherwise.

At least in Avengers so far, Carol has been pretty chill about her feminism and Wonder Man has been stuck in the past.

But this swaps things so Wonder Man is the poor, put-upon misinterpreted well-meaning dude.

Bah.

Anyway.

Ant-Man, the Wasp, and Yellowjacket are taken at gunpoint to Dr Solomon’s office so he can explain EVERYTHING.

Why? Because otherwise how would we, the audience, understand what was going on?

Basically, Selbe is a clone of Dr Solomon.

DUN DUN DUN

Well. Its slightly more obvious if you know German since Selbe apparently means “same.”

Because Dr Solomon was born with a weak heart and a rare blood type so it would be hard to get a transplant. So obviously the most correct and obvious solution is to just grow a new heart that is genetically identical.

This raises the question, if Selbe is just a clone of Solomon, wouldn’t his heart also be weak? But surely a scientific genius who explains his whole plot to superheroes would have thought of that.

Selbe is just a few months old, by the way. Artificially aged up.

Why is it even necessary for the clone to be self-aware if he’s just an organ harvest or why it even needs to be a full-bodied clone if you’re just after a heart is a mystery.

Because here’s what happened. Selbe heard that he was going to be killed to be harvested and also heard about the Avengers and decided ‘fuck this shit, i’m out’ and escaped to look for the Avengers’ help.

Of course we all know how that went. With him right back where he started and several Avengers being forced to listen to exposition at gunpoint.

Wasp actually questions why someone intelligent enough to set up a secret training school for supervillain mooks would need to create a full, self-aware clone just to get a heart but Solomon reveals that he’s just an administrator. He didn’t set this up. And if it gets out that he was using resources for a personal project, geez would he be in trouble!

He has no trouble saying that in front of several of his guards who no doubt would never blackmail him.

Dr Solomon: Pretty smart dude.

Also he notices that Yellowjacket has been wiggling his... shoulder wing things.... and tells him to cut it out.

But wiggling his shoulder things allowed Yellowjacket to build up a charge for his DISRUPTER BLASTS!

FZZAK ZZAK!

And Ant-Man punches a guy too. Good job, Ant-Man.

Dr Solomon tells his remaining two guards to “jangle them!” because the neural attacking guns are called janglers.

Takes some of the menace out. JANGLE THEM YOU FOOLS! See?

But the two guards find their guns clogged with ants.

Good job, Ant-Man! And Yellowjacket had detected the ant controlling signals so that’s why he knew it was safe to attack.

Dr Solomon decides he’ll try to strangle Wasp because she hasn’t contributed to the escape attempt at all so she must be a pushover.

And granted, I was just about to complain about that but when Solomon grabs her, Wasp introduces his chin to the heel of her palm.

“This ‘lady’ -- is a champ!” indeed!

Also “Nice teamwork, people” indeed. Wasp is just saying all the right things.

I begrudgingly forgive her of her new costume.

More guards burst in but rather than wide-dispersal *snrrk* janglers, they’re carrying cartridge weapons so everyone shrinks down to avoid the guns or perhaps lasers and then Yellowjacket and Wasp combine their respective blasts to COLLAPSE THE ROOF ON THE GUARDS

DANG

I can never get a bead on how powerful the disrupters and bio-stings are supposed to be...

Meanwhile, outside again, the Avengers notice a vehicle approach and land at the institute.

“The sinister craft glides slowly down from a gun-gray sky... hovers for a moment... and then settles with a metallic whisper. The master has arrived!”

The Avengers boggle vacantly at how advanced the ship is and Wonder Man says that they should be ready for anything.

But meanwhile, inside again, I’m noticing that although the Avengers are involved, this is basically an Ant-Man, Yellowjacket, and the Wasp team-up story.

The three of them find Selbe’s chamber and there’s only one guard guarding it. So Wasp flies inside his ear and whistles

REALLY LOUDLY

And then flies out, grows, and chops him in the back of the head to knock him out.

While complaining about how waxy the guy’s ear was.

It was your decision to go for this tactic, Jan.

They unlock Selbe’s cell. Wasp tells him they’re getting him out of here and they’re going to find the one really behind all this madness and-

Aw dang.

The one really behind all this madness found them.

And beat up Yellowjacket and Ant-Man so quickly and so off-panel that Wasp didn’t even notice.

Taskmaster: “My moniker’s the Taskmaster, shuggy, and I run this little operation -- along with a dozen or so others. My shtick is teaching the teachers, an’ I’ve just decided that you an’ your sleepyhead partners here would make perfect visual aides for my next class. It’s one o’ my favorites, dumplin’. I call it -- DISMEMBERMENT 101!”

Yup. Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiintroducing, Taskmaster! And he’ll be staying around for a while.

Just like the Terrible Tinkerer was introduced to explain where the villains got all their fabulous toys, the Taskmaster was introduced to explain where villains got their never ending armies of vaguely competent henchmen.

But as you can tell by the next issue caption, this is a three-part story. So to be continued next time.

Follow @essential-avengers. I’m at 13 followers. Sad, ain’t it? But with seven more, I can be forced to cover some alternate Avengers that aren’t the main 616 ones. What Ifs?, alternate universes, terrible terrible cartoons. The spectrum of everything is your menu.

[smashmusicideas]

June 25: How the Ultimate Trailer Works So Well

Amongst all the thoughts and discussion regarding Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, I don’t think any individual element of the game - even more than the confirmation of Ridley - warranted the level of adoration and excitement as not just the inclusion of every Smash character ever, but the short “Challenger Approaching” trailer explaining that.

So I decided I’d take some time and analyze it for how it works. Hoo boy, did that take longer than I expected.

For ease (and because I’m, well, lazy), I’ll be splitting this up into bullet points. I should also note that I’m avoiding a lot of stage analysis except in certain cases, largely because the emphasis on fighters is the focus. Also, this is quite long, so a “read more” tag is needed for this one.

Before the video: Sakurai adds this whole “character numbering” element, which is odd. Most viewers less familiar with this scheme (which has mostly always existed within the series) assumed this indicated the total number of characters from the start, but more than that it inherently acknowledges cut characters, something Sakurai tries to avoid as to not make their fans feel worse. No matter who is watching, it’s odd, and sets up the actual video in a way that feels odd.

00:02 - 00:15: We see Battlefield, something which since Brawl has always functioned as a focal point for the series - kind of in the way Mario does, too, which is why he appears here. Traditionally, Mario is also the character who reflects the visual direction of each game the most, so his “Brawl meets Smash For“ art style confirms it as a new game, one that will marry multiple iterations of Smash.

0015 - 00:28: Kirby, Samus, and Bowser are all Smash staples (two from the first game, one from Melee). They’re also not in numerical order, telling us to not expect things in a “normal” way. They also more clearly show a few returning stages, Castle Siege and Green Greens in particular, and Giga Bowser seems to function in a far new way.

00:28 - 00:34: Link is also one of the central Smash characters, but his drastic redesign tells us further that this will be a new iteration - one that will look to more recent games, at least in part (we also see a new Breath of the Wild stage, alongside Temple). Keep in mind that he gets a huge amount of time to emphasize this.

00:34 - 0:44: We see a lot of Donkey Kong (including a change to his Giant Punch), but it’s Falco’s appearance in 00:42 that’s surprising. He’s typically and understandably a hidden character; showing him off is kind of bizarre. For most viewers, it’ll just seem nice for a beloved character to return, but for the more attentive first-time viewers it is somewhat odd and continues the off-kilter vibe of Sakurai’s introduction.

00:44 - 00:48: Marth casually shows off the new changes to Shield Breaker, just like with DK earlier. Further indication that old fighters will have, to quote Sakurai from a decade ago, a “slightly different flavor this time around,” and that it won’t simply be an expanded port of Smash for Wii U (this emphasis will continue throughout the video and into Nintendo’s continued promotion of the game.

00:48 - 00:52: New Zelda! Not really new Sheik! Their having their default costumes implies they will remain separate fighters, and Zelda’s in particular bucks a trend of Zelda and Link’s costumes coming from the same game.

00:52 - 00:54: Our first post-Melee fighter, Villager, shows a new ability. His appearance also begins to move us from the more classic Smash fighters into a wider variety of ones new and old.

00:55 - 00:58: Meta Knight and Mewtwo. Notable for the former being the first Brawl character in general and the first one shown, and for the latter being the first Pokémon representative - before Pikachu, even. Mewtwo also looks like it did in Smash For, an indication the DLC would not be ignored.

00:59 - 01:01: And here comes Sonic - with a new version of Super Sonic and a returning Green Hill Zone in tow - as the biggest guest fighter out there, though that doesn’t confirm whether less established third party content would be joining him.

1:02 - 1:08: Peach and Pikachu, each with slight new changes in how Toad and Volt Tackle work. It’s notable how long it took to get to either of them, though their being more famous leads nicely into...

1:09 - 1:15: the Ice Climbers! Their return is such a big moment it’s hard to notice we’ve also got a returning Summit (and Living Room), and they unsurprisingly get a whopping six seconds to show off how they look in HD.

1:16 - 1:21: And from a beloved, long lost fighter to a highly desired new one, Nana and Popo formally introduce Inkling, with both a male and female design in tow. We get a good look at how diverse their weapon selection is, alongside a new Splatoon stage.

1:22 - 1:27: Pretty much the only thing we need to see with Falcon is the Punch, while Zero Suit Samus and Wii Fit Trainer show that even the less “iconic” of the cast aren’t going to be ignored. Given Boxing Ring’s centrality to Smash For, its being so prominent here makes sense.

1:28 - 1:30: here’s where things get weirder. The Ice Climbers coming back makes sense, but the Pokémon Trainer? I don’t really think it’s vague on whether the switching mechanic will return (he’s in the back, so...), but it’s out of the blue in a way none of what we’ve seen here is. That it only lasts about two seconds makes it all the more shocking.

1:31 - 1:36: Ness and Lucas. A little surprising for the former, given his traditionally being a hidden fighter, and more so for the former, who was last in the series as DLC.

1:36 - 1:41: The DLC concern becomes even more noticeable now, with Ryu fighting yet another normally hidden fighter: Ganondorf, surprisingly sporting the classic Ocarina of Time design Melee used. It implies a far greater amount of changes than what we were initially expecting, and assures the less confident of us that even third party DLC will not be ignored.

1:41 - 1:44: And look who else is looking new, but Ike, who’s reverted to the design Brawl used...except he isn’t. While the Inklings were expected to have male and female versions, this is the first indication we’ll have more pronounced alternate costumes for specific characters.

1:45 - 1:51: Cloud’s inclusion is another important one at this point, because compared to other guest fighters, the possibility of his return seemed far more up in the air. He gets a lot of airtime, space that comfortably confirms his two outfits and Omnislash, a great flashy move to send us into the big moment.

1:52 - 1:55: If Cloud’s return wasn’t a sure thing, than Snake’s was a pipe dream for fans (myself included). Having one go to the other is smart, because after him, Ice Climbers, and Pokémon Trainer, Snake‘s chances feel so much more possible. And it works so well. We don’t see an attack, or anything, because we don’t need to. It’s Snake, on Shadow Moses Island. That’s enough for us, until...

1:56 - 2:01: “EVERYONE IS HERE!” really just speaks for itself, but I’d also like to note the small feature of Snake running right after the words appear. It’s subtle, but it’s a flash of energy leading to the rest of the video (an energy that is supported by the music, which becomes far more intense up until the end). And it’s important to him be behind the words, because by this point a viewer is processing them, recognizing the totality of what that means.

2:02 - 2:04: And to prove how serious that claim is, Jigglypuff - the last of the original cast (minus Luigi and Yoshi) - brings back Pichu, likely the very fighter most people would think of after hearing that “everyone is here”: “even Pichu?” That the joke character of Melee has returned is proof of the claim, an example of how insane and wild this project is planning to be. But despite how notable it is, the two Pokémon are onscreen for only two seconds.

2:15 - 2:18: Truthfully, the next few reveals are less exciting. Roy is the fifth DLC character revealed to return, but Olimar, Diddy, and Lucario are all fairly normal. But it’s with Lucina that we get yet another oddity. She’s 21ε - an indication that something different was being done with the then-called “clone characters.” It’s yet another indicator that Smash is going to be different, and in rather unexpected ways.

2:26: It’s not a big detail, but Dr. Mario lacks the Epsilon, indicating that he’s different from how he used to be (given that he, Lucina, and Dark Pit are associated as the Echoes of the previous iteration of Smash, it stands to reason people might look for that on him, too).

2:30 - 2:32: And there’s Dark Pit literally one shot after Doc, with the Epsilon. It’s important to keep it all in mind more easily. I also think it’s notable that Palutena’s moveset isn’t shown at all in here; it’s one more thing about which Sakurai’s been coy.

2:39 - 2:42: It’s important, I think, to have the two versions of Link show up together; it highlights how they’ve both functioned as spinoffs of one of Nintendo’s (and Smash‘s) most important heroes. By this point, Young Link is the final character (again, other than Luigi and Yoshi) who came from a game before Brawl; he’s important as one more reminder of this game’s scope.

2:46 - 2:49: And if there were any fighters whose fate would seem as up in the air as any third party character, it’d be the Mii Fighters. And yet, they’re all here, too. And like with Palutena, we see no customization or anything beyond some very basic attacks.

2:55 - 2:56: Despite not being a huge surprise, Pac-Man’s new Final Smash (or new version of Super Pac-Man, technically) is fast, really fast. And that’s good because it kicks up the pace right to the finish. Like, it’s weirdly intense to watch at that point.

3:00 - 3:03: Wolf! While calls for him were probably not as loud as those for Snake and the Ice Climbers, he has remained a beloved Smash character and a fighter people really wanted. Having him here is good for a bunch of reasons - he was the last newcomer in Brawl, his style works really well for this point in the video - but probably the most is that people really wanted him back especially. And holding off on that until now helps emphasize this game’s scope.

3:04 - 2:08: Mega Man needed to be the final main shot for a lot of reasons. He’s a beloved gaming and Smash character, he’s got name recognition, and especially because his Final Smash is the best way to send off us. It’s just this huge blast that keeps up the momentum right until the end.

3:11: And we have the title. “Ultimate” really is perfect word for this, a video that is pretty much just about the history and power of Super Smash Bros. 

3:16 - 3:20: ...But it also wouldn’t be Sakurai without some goofing around, so we let the air out of all this pomposity with some silliness from Luigi and Yoshi. I think it makes sense for more reason than Sakurai often using those two for mirth. The Brawl trailer had all this bombastic, dark energy...but then Wario showed up and farted. The first Smash For trailer seemed exciting and crazy...and then Wii Fit Trainer appeared; almost all the character trailers after it had stingers afterwards, mostly goofy ones. It’s a good and important statement that Smash will always be goofy and weird. And you got that in some individual shots (Dedede and Wario, for instance), but it’s a deliberate anticlimax that mocks you, but only slightly, for all the energy you’ve hopefully gotten from what is a very long trailer, all things considered.

So, what have we learned, aside from me realizing I need to come up with shorter topics for this blog? I think it’s that you could have made this announcement any way. Sakurai could’ve just shown the character selection screen, Nintendo could’ve put it out in a press release, or they could’ve just not mentioned it entirely (though that’d be insane given that “everyone is here!” is the game’s tagline). But a video was the best way to do it. And I think this way was the best video they could’ve realistically made. Every fighter gets to show off a ton of personality in a couple seconds, and by basing the whole video around being before or after Snake, it can position the ideal fighters in a way that lets viewers slowly realize how much grander this is going to be than they realized. It’s all just great design in general, and more than just a really cool trailer that showed things off.

(Link to my writings on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate)

[aion-rsa]

The Actors Who Have Played Batman

http://bit.ly/2JqYBS9

We take a look back at the 8 crusading actors who’ve played Batman in TV and the movies, as well as his animated avatars!

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Holy revolving door, Batman! The Caped Crusader has been portrayed by more actors than any other superhero in movie history – eight to be exact. Most have lasted for just one film. But after The Dark Knight Rises, Christian Bale has become the first man to have played Bruce Wayne and his alter-ego more than twice on the silver screen. He didn’t have much competition – Michael Keaton was the only other actor to reprise the role at the time.

Ben Affleck tied Bale for appearances as Batman with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, his Suicide Squad cameo, and 2017's Justice League. That run will not extend to a fourth film, though, as Affleck has exited the role.

But before anymore history is made with Matt Reeves' upcoming take on the Dark Knight (where Bruce Wayne might be played by Robert Pattinson or Nicholas Hoult according to recent reports), let’s take a look at the men who have been Batman.

1. Lewis G. Wilson

Wilson was the first and youngest actor ever to play the adult Batman, and also the least successful. At 23, the unknown thespian donned the cape and the cowl in the 15-part 1943 Columbia serial Batman. While he looked the part of the dashing playboy, his physique was more Danny DeVito as the Penguin. One critic described Wilson as “thick about the middle.” Maybe that was why he wore his utility belt just below his chest. Critics also complained that his voice was too high and that he had a Boston accent. That, of course, wouldn’t be the last time someone complained about Batman’s voice.

read more - Men of Steel: 11 Actors Who Have Played Superman

After Batman, Wilson’s career went nowhere. Most of his roles went uncredited. His next biggest movie part was probably in the 1951 cult classic Bowanga Bowanga. A few years later he was out of showbiz altogether. His son, Michael G. Wilson, however, fared better in Hollywood, becoming the executive producer of the James Bond series. Lewis G. Wilson died in 2000.

Buy the 1943 Batman serial on Amazon

2. Robert Lowery

Lowery took over the role in the follow-up serial, 1949’s Batman & Robin. Unlike Lewis, Lowery, 36 at the time, was a veteran actor, having already appeared in The Mark Of Zorro (1940), The Mummy's Ghost (1944), and Dangerous Passage (1944). He also filled out the Batsuit better than Lewis, with his utility belt hanging where you would expect it on a non-octogenarian.

read more: The Actors Who Have Played The Joker

Though Lowery never played Batman in another movie, he did get to wear the cape once more and make superhero history in the process. In 1956 he guest-starred on an episode of The Adventures of Superman, marking the first time a Batman actor shared screen time with a Superman actor. (The two also appeared together in their pre-superhero days, in a WWII anti-VD propaganda film called Sex Hygiene). 

After Batman, Lowrey enjoyed another 20 years in movies and TV. He died in 1971.

Buy Batman & Robin (1949) on Amazon

3. Adam West

The man logging the most hours in the Batcave, of course, was William West Anderson, whom you probably know better as Adam West. Either you love him for his goofy charm or hate him for blemishing the Bat’s image for several decades. His campy, over-the-top portrayal of Gotham’s Guardian infiltrated nearly every medium, including a 1966 movie and several animated series. 

read more: The Early History of the Batman TV Series

Legend has it producer William Dozier cast West after seeing him play a James Bond-like spy called Captain Q in a Nestlé Quik TV ad. He beat future Wonder Woman co-star Lyle Waggoner for the role. Dozier, who supposedly hated comic books, decided the only way the show would be successful was if they camped it up. So blame him.

Things would almost come full circle in 1970 when West was offered the role of James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever. West declined, later writing in his autobiography that he believed Bond should always be played by a Brit. Holy bad career moves, Batman!

After the Batman series went off the air in 1968, West was resigned to typecast hell. At one point, he was forced to make public appearances as the Caped Crusader to earn a living. Then, in 1977, he returned to the tube as Batman, doing his voice in The New Adventures Of Batman, and then on such shows as Super Friends.

read more: The Comic Book Origins of the 1966 Batman TV Series

West’s resurgence as a pop-culture icon began in the early '90s when he starred as a has-been TV action hero in the pilot episode of Lookwell, produced by Conan O'Brien and Robert Smigel. It wasn’t picked up but took on a cult following online (check it out here). He made regular appearances on Family Guy. as "Mayor West" before returning to voice Batman in two excellent animated features that expanded on the show's continuity, Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders and Batman vs. Two-Face (opposite William Shatner as the special guest villain). West died in 2017, but his Bat-legacy is immortal.

Buy the Complete 1966 Batman TV Series on Amazon

4. Michael Keaton

It took more than 20 years for Adam West to lose his exclusivity on Batman.

When director Tim Burton (who like Dozier was not a fan of comic books) and Michael Keaton were announced for 1989’s Batman, fans went bat-shit crazy, thinking their beloved superhero was going to get the Adam West treatment again. Keaton's casting caused such controversy that 50,000 protest letters were sent to Warner Bros.’ offices. In an effort to appease the naysayers, Batman co-creator Bob Kane was hired as the film’s creative consultant. And in case you're curious, here is Keaton, Affleck, and a long list of other great castings that fans initially thought would suck.

Other Hollywood stars considered for the role of Batman included Mel Gibson, Kevin Costner, Charlie Sheen, Pierce Brosnan, Tom Selleck, and Bill Murray. But producer Jon Peters said he cast Keaton because “The image of Batman is a big male model type, but I wanted a guy who's a real person who happens to put on this weird armor. A guy who's funny and scary. Keaton's both. He's got that explosive, insane side.'' 

read more: Why Tim Burton's Batman 3 Never Happened

The studio and the fans had nothing to worry about. Keaton’s performance received favorable reviews, and Batman killed at the box office. Variety magazine gushed, “Michael Keaton captures the haunted intensity of the character, and seems particularly lonely and obsessive without Robin around to share his exploits.” Keaton was rewarded by being the first actor to reprise the role on the big screen. And in 1992’s Batman Returns, Keaton again garnered positive reviews. 

Of course, Keaton has now seen a career revival thanks to the spectacular Birdman, and his time as the villainous, winged Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming!

5. Val Kilmer

When the Batman franchise was turned over to director Joel Schumacher, Keaton decided not to return. Daniel Day-Lewis, Ralph Fiennes, William Baldwin, and Johnny Depp were reportedly considered as replacements. But the job was won by Val Kilmer – probably the most forgettable of the modern Batmen. Go ahead – try to remember. See? You can’t.

Schumacher became interested in Kilmer for 1995’s Batman Forever after seeing him in Tombstone (in which he played Doc Holiday, who Adam West also portrayed in a movie before he did the Batman TV series). Kilmer allegedly accepted the role without even reading the script or knowing who the new director was. Schumacher quickly learned who Kilmer was, though, and the two clashed on the set. Schumacher later described Kilmer as “childish and impossible,” claiming that he fought with various crewmen and refused to speak to him for two weeks after the director asked his star to stop behaving rudely.

read more: The Batman Forever We Never Saw

Kilmer’s performance got mixed reviews. As The New York Times put it, “The prime costume is now worn by Val Kilmer, who makes a good Batman but not a better one than Michael Keaton.” Bob Kane felt otherwise, saying he thought Kilmer did the best job of all the actors to have played Batman up to that point.

The movie performed better than Batman Returns at the box office, but Kilmer was destined to be a one-term Caped Crusader. Between his bad attitude and his concern that the superhero wasn’t getting as much screen time as the villains, he left the Batcave for good. Instead of filming 1997’s Batman & Robin, he did The Saint.

After Batman, Kilmer’s career headed downhill. Though it was probably 1996’s The Island of Dr. Moreau that had more to do with that than Batman Forever.

6. George Clooney

George Clooney’s movie career was just taking off when he was cast in 1997’s Batman & Robin, with his breakthrough performance coming just the year before in Quentin Tarantino’s From Dusk Till Dawn. Producers probably felt they pulled off a major coup landing the soon-to-be mega-movie star. Those producers, along with Clooney, may regret that decision now.

Batman & Robin was a disaster, rife with homoeroticism, camp, and those infamous Bat-nipples. Clooney once joked that he helped to kill the franchise. “Joel Schumacher told me we never made another Batman film because Batman was gay.” The actor also called the movie “a waste of money.”

Critics and fans agreed. In 1997, Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “George Clooney is the big zero of the film, and should go down in history as the George Lazenby of the series.” Batman & Robin received 11 nominations at the Razzie Awards and frequently ranks among the worst films of all time. It was also the worst box office performer of the modern Batman movies. However, despite its many, many, many flaws, we will stick up for it a little...

read more - Batman & Robin: The Judas Defense

But all that did nothing to hurt Clooney’s career. After Batman, he went on to super stardom, starring in Out of Sight (with a cameo from Michael Keaton), Three Kings, and O Brother, Where Art Thou? over the next three years alone, and he hasn't slowed down much since.

Buy The Batman Collection on Amazon

7. Christian Bale

Between Adam West and George Clooney, Batman seemed destined to remain a joke, at least when it came to live-action adaptations. Then came along Christopher Nolan. The Memento and Insomnia director was given the reins and he planned to reinvent the franchise, finally making the Dark Knight dark.

Among the early candidates for the Batman/Bruce Wayne roles were Billy Crudup, Jake Gyllenhaal, Joshua Jackson, Heath Ledger, and Cillian Murphy. But Nolan ultimately chose Christian Bale, explaining that “he has exactly the balance of darkness and light that we were looking for.” 

Bale got generally favorable reviews for 2005’s Batman Begins, with several critics saying it reminded them of his brilliant turn in American Psycho. Not so brilliant, it seems, was his uber-husky Bat-voice. One reviewer compared Bale's guttural utterances to a “10-year-old putting on an ‘adult’ voice to make prank phone calls.” It got even more gravelly in 2008’s The Dark Knight, with NPR’s David Edelstein describing it as “a voice that's deeper and hammier than ever.”

Even Kevin Conroy, the man behind probably the most recognisable Batman voice, chimed in, saying at a C2E2 panel in 2010 that Bale’s voice was “ridiculous” and implored the actor to stop doing it. While The Dark Knight Rises was not as well received as 2008's sterling The Dark Knight, especially in the fan community, we still will happily come to the defense of it.

Also, Bale was crucial to the alchemy in Nolan's second Batman feature, The Dark Knight. That film is generally considered the benchmark in the superhero genre that all other movies about caped do-gooders are compared to nearly a decade later. It is also the only superhero movie to win an acting Oscar, for Heath Ledger's iconic Joker, and is considered responsible for why the Academy now nominates 10 films instead of five for Best Picture. This occurred after The Dark Knight was egregiously snubbed in 2009.

Buy the Complete Christopher Nolan Dark Knight Trilogy on Amazon

8. Will Arnett

With any other actor in the role, the presence of Batman in the 2013 cinematic smash The LEGO Movie could easily have become the sort of performance that gets neglected from lists like this. However, Arrested Development star Will Arnett brought some comedy magic to the role and landed his own spin-off movie as a result.

It helped that movie came at the perfect time in Batman’s busy cinema schedule – long enough after The Dark Knight Rises for lampooning of Bale’s gruff Batman to be entirely welcome, and far enough before Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice that Arnett’s new iteration didn’t get lost in all the hype for Ben Affleck’s debut.

The result of this perfect casting and canny scheduling was a Batman who will go down in the history books as the funniest, freshest and downright fun-est take on the character. From penning "dark" lyrics to haplessly attempting to hide his secret identity, Arnett’s Batman was a gag machine who The LEGO Movie’s younger audience really embraced.

There were knowing winks in there for adult fans too, with such as dialogue as “I only work in black – and sometimes very very dark grey" appealing to comic book fans and LEGO Batman’s painful attempts to hit a button with a Batarang surely connecting with anyone who’s ever got stuck for hours at a simple door-button in the Arkham Asylum games.

Arnett’s delivery, combined with Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s zingers, made this portrayal a quick favorite for many, and he reprised the role in The LEGO Batman Movie in 2017, to equally impressive effect. Bats is back in The LEGO Movie 2, out on February 8 and he'll get a sequel of his own at some point, too.

If you want more hilarious Arnett voice work in the meantime, check out BoJack Horseman on Netflix – you wont regret it.

9. Ben Affleck

It is often said that history repeats itself, and so it did when Ben Affleck was cast in the role of Batman for Zack Snyder's controversial Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Affleck was fresh off of seeing his third directorial effort, Argo, win Best Picture at the Academy Awards, cementing one of the most grandiose career comebacks in Hollywood history. He also was in the midst of filming Gone Girl with legendary auteur David Fincher at the helm. Nevertheless, fans went apoplectic that the star of notorious flops like Gigli and Jersey Girl was now the "Bat-Fleck." The fact he appeared in the mediocre Daredevil movie from 2003 likely did him no favors.

Yet, ironically, Affleck is now generally considered the very best part of Batman v Superman. Like Michael Keaton before him, Affleck enjoyed fan adulation only a few years after intense backlash. Of course, the actual depiction of his Dark Knight in director Snyder's hands is far less universally loved. For the record, Affleck offered a solid performance as the Batman. He was neither as haunted and emotionally elusive as Michael Keaton's Bruce Wayne or as noble and psychologically broken as Christian Bale's take on the character. In fact, Affleck lacked the lived-in quality of either performer's interpretation. But what he did have is a picture-perfect physique for the role and a sense of dashing charisma that all other Bat-actors have lacked or underplayed.

read more - Batman v Superman and Batman & Robin: Two Sides of the Same Coin

Some fans have even suggested that he was the perfect Batman due to his appearance and natural charm, but he was hampered in BvS by a voice modulator no less absurd than Bale's gravely alternative, as well as a characterization of Batman that bordered on fascism, as he ambivalently murdered bad guys with gunshots, car collisions, grenades, knife stabs, and even crushing one's head in with a crate. This cruelty and the totalitarian streak was in-keeping with Frank Miller's extreme vision of the character in The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel. But that story was always a major departure from mainstream interpretations of the character. In fact, for all the visual upgrades to Affleck's Batman, his characterization completely lacked the altrusitic heroism and sense of driven purpose enjoyed by the much more humanistic (read: flawed) take offered by Christian Bale.

Justice League, for all of its behind-the-scenes problems, was something of a course correction for the DCEU and Affleck's take. It saw his Batman's evolution, apparently "inspired" by Superman's sacrifice at the end of Batman v Superman to be a more balanced hero.

Too bad the Bat-fleck's time is up. Affleck will not be returning for Matt Reeves' upcoming The Batman solo movie, which will hit theaters in 2021.

The Voices of Batman

Speaking of Batman voices, there have been about as many men to voice the Caped Crusader as have portrayed him in live-action. But the bulk of the animated Batman work over the years has gone to two actors.

In real life Olan Soule was a bespectacled pencil-necked geek, but that didn’t stop him from voicing the Dark Knight in six different animated series, beginning with 1968’s The Batman/Superman Hour. His run pretty much ended when Adam West took over voicing duties in the late '70s. Soule, who also appeared in such films as The Day The Earth Stood Still and North By Northwest, died in 1994.

Unlike Soule, Kevin Conroy could probably pull off Batman in real life, but so far he’s been relegated to voice work – and quite a lot of it. Conroy began voicing the superhero in Batman: The Animated Series, which made its debut in 1992. Since then, he’s done three other Batman series, a bunch of animated movies and videogames. 

read more - The Essential Episodes of Batman: The Animated Series

Others to voice Batman are Will Friedle (Batman Beyond), Rino Romano (The Batman), Diedrich Bader (Batman: The Brave And The Bold), Jeremy Sisto (Justice League: The New Frontier), Bruce Greenwood (the brilliant Young Justice), and Bruce Thomas (who voiced Batman in commercials for GM’s OnStar service and portrayed the character briefly in the live-action TV series Birds Of Prey).

But Will Arnett deserves special attention.

With any other actor in the role, the presence of Batman in the 2014 cinematic smash The Lego Movie (which we reviewed here) could easily have become the sort of performance that gets neglected from lists like this. However, Arrested Development star Will Arnett brought some comedy magic to the role and landed his own spin-off movie as a result.

It helped that movie came at the perfect time in Batman’s busy cinema schedule – long enough after The Dark Knight Rises for lampooning of Bale’s gruff Batman to be entirely welcome, and far enough before Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice that Arnett’s new iteration didn’t get lost in all the hype for Ben Affleck’s debut.

The result of this perfect casting and canny scheduling was a Batman who will go down in the history books as the funniest, freshest and downright fun-est take on the character. From penning ‘dark’ lyrics to helplessly attempting to hide his secret identity, Arnett’s Batman was a gag machine who The Lego Movie’s primary younger audience really embraced.

There were knowing winks in there for adult fans too, with such as dialogue as “I only work in black – and sometimes very, very dark grey’ appealing to comic book fans and Lego Batman’s painful attempts to hit a button with a Batarang surely connecting with anyone who’s ever got stuck for hours at a simple door-button in the Arkham Asylum games.

Arnett’s delivery, combined with Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s zingers, made this portrayal a quick favorite for many, and it was telling that no one is complained about Arnett’s reprisal in an upcoming 2017 standalone story.

In fact, The Lego Batman Movie only cemented the adoration received by Will Arnett's much more ego-centric version of Bruce Wayne. A petulant, selfish loner who secretly watches romantic comedies when no one is lookng, it is a broadly funny (and perhaps more honest?) take on a billionaire who sneaks out at night to beat up poor people. It also unabashedly referenced countless other Batman movie, comic book, and cartoon moments, which we unpack right here.

The number one Batman?

It’s probably not a worthwhile question to ask which Batman actor is the best. It’s hard to argue that Christian Bale isn’t tops among the live-action crowd (Though I’m sure there are some Adam West Michael Keaton, and Ben Affleck fans out there who might take up the cause).

Still, Bale is no Christopher Reeve, whose iconic portrayal of Superman has made replacing him a seemingly impossible task. Bale was a respectable Bruce Wayne/Batman, but the franchise can and has moved on without him. And though another half-dozen actors have resided in Wayne Manor, we have not found the definitive Batman. 

Until then, Hollywood is sure to keep trying.

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Feature

Books

James Aquilone Rob Leane

May 17, 2019

Batman

The Dark Knight

Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice

Ben Affleck

Christian Bale

Michael Keaton

DC Entertainment

from Books http://bit.ly/2RVnSsi

[magicaltrapslover-blog]

Compiled Web Forums On Magical Traps (Mahou Shounen)

Greetings!

I've Googled and Binged this search term and constantly end up with scattered partial and often mislabeled references. I'm seeking any listings of boys/men who transform into Magical-Girls/Traps in Anime or Manga to compile a complete one. If anyone can direct me to such listings I'd be most grateful.

Thanks for any tips!

Location: Two Steps from Hell.

Kampfer - I'm a bit skeptical to calling this a true magical girl show but it has elements of that. It's largely a comedy.

Gonna be the Twin-Tail! - I actually haven't watched this show so I can't provide any thoughts.

There's also a show this season that is what you're looking for but I can't recall its name. . .

Ohg, there's also KoreZom (known affectionately as Korean Zombie Desk Car to fans) which is more a parody of the magical girl genre. It's not exactly a Magical-Girl/Trap thing but crossdressing (purposefully!) as one.

Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)

The one this season is Magical Girl Raising Project.

There's also Is This A Zombie? which may be the most infamous case since he still looks like a guy but is dressed like a magical girl.

Location: Frisco, TX

EmbraceMe wrote:

I don't know if the moderators will want us to post information/thoughts on the shows but I know of two (maybe a bit more). In the case they do want us to avoid listing, I'll edit this post later.

It's fine. It's not like we see very many requests for "recommendations, so opinionate away! Back to top  

DuskyPredator It...it's not like I post for you or anything!

Location: Brisbane, Australia

No mention yet of Cute High Earth Defense Club Love!, a parody anime which has a group of boys transform into girly magical girl like forms?

As mentioned above there was Kampfer and Gonna be the Twin Tail which had gender swapping with a transformation. Plus the big gimmick mentioned of with the main character of Kore wa Zombieturning into a magical girl with the costume to get power, but still looking like a dude.

I might count some jokes in Baka Test of a male character an magical girl transformation (plus guy who looks like a girl). I can't remember if it specifically had some, but I know that there is some crossdressing cute boy character and parodies including magical girls in Ebiten, but someone else would have to confirm it. Not sure if you would count it, but Gatchaman Crowds has some similarities to magical girls, although a bit more shounen, and Rui is a male character who almost always dresses as a girl. Chuunibyou's second season had a male character dress up as a magical girl, being noted as pretty I think. The short form Himegoto has a lot crossdressing, a male character does get dressed as a magical girl. The title male character from Hayate the Combat Butler has been made into a magical girl before.

There are a few others I am aware of that have crossdressing but not necesarilly anything that looks like a magical girl, or another that has a magical girl like transformation sequence but does not end up looking particularly feminine. Back to top  

maxlance

Thanks to you all! Your recommendations are just the leads I'm looking for to create a complete summarized list of this niche genre so don't doubt how accurate your suggestions were! You're hitting in the ballpark! Thanks all! 

Back to top

Dessa

 loathe to admit it, since it was such a horrible change from the manga, and Sensei herself hated it as well, but Sailormoon Stars.

The male pop idols the Starlights transform into female Senshi (note that their original form is female, the male human forms are the false forms). Back to top  

Newbie9

I vaguely recall one where there's a guy who's being chased by enemies of a warrior princess who he's the reincarnation of but not sure if she was magical. Back to top

Chiibi

Dessa wrote:

I'm loathe to admit it, since it was such a horrible change from the manga, and Sensei herself hated it as well, but Sailormoon Stars.

The male pop idols the Starlights transform into female Senshi (note that their original form is female, the male human forms are the false forms).

Personally, I think the Stars anime arc was WAY better than the one in the manga. Everybody had more personality and the last battle was just amazing.

What's horrible about that change? Unless you're a yuri fan. Which I'm not.

Three women tricking EVERYONE into thinking they are a boy band simply by crossdressing makes zero sense....besides, that's the opposite of what girls like. lol  

Location: China (Searching for Jusenkyo)

@OP: Since magical girl transformations are usually magical, are you interested in anime about boys that become female while they are magical girls? There are a couple manga titles (or perhaps more) fitting this description but in one of them the author never specifically reveals whether he actually becomes female or not. Back to top  

maxlance

Past wrote: @OP: Since magical girl transformations are usually magical, are you interested in anime about boys that become female while they are magical girls? There are a couple manga titles (or perhaps more) fitting this description but in one of them the author never specifically reveals whether he actually becomes female or not.

I'm avoiding from limiting the field and taking in the total concept that if the male appears to the public as a magic girl, whether via real transformation (finding surprisingly beautiful guy into magic girl henshin sequences like Twintails) or trapping it, it goes. Granted, there're more difficult plot reasons just why a guy would super-trap it though I do dimly recall reading from far back - and I'm sure the anime concerned was "Princess Knight" -- that one of its original concepts was a martial artist/swordsman boy who does Zorro trap style to evade any suspicion. (It harkens to my Eng Lit days when I learned the original Victorian-age manuscript of the "Blue Lagoon" novel had sibling main characters, not more conventionally palatable cousins...)

If there were a m-f counterpart to "1/2 Prince", that'd make one nice TG "henshin" show with more serious plots and deep characters; with VRMMO anime so hot I'm surprised this character device hasn't played out more by now like in Log Horizon. There're quite a few transgender henshin one scene gags in a few older anime that's very difficult to catch -- it'd mean literally viewing every anime made because such scenes were never "indexed" for the web. But whether via magic or VR, it'd like to see a TG henshin story played straight that would involve all kinds of personal and social complications than shy them.

Anyway thanks for the input!! Back to top

Past

Location: China (Searching for Jusenkyo) 

maxlance wrote: Anyway thanks for the input!! When you said TG it made me think of Jun from Happiness! While I don't want to say that any fanservicey or silly show about magical girls with traps represents the transgender experience in any way, Jun is without a doubt a boy who'd rather be a girl. In one episode where Jun is magically transformed into a girl it basically answers the question "What would happen if the prettiest girl in school, who is actually a boy actually became a girl?" Besides how could we not mention Jun Watarase in this thread? One of the epic traps in anime before traps became a thing. Back to top  

maxlance

Past wrote: maxlance wrote: Anyway thanks for the input!! When you said TG it made me think of Jun from Happiness! While I don't want to say that any fanservicey or silly show about magical girls with traps represents the transgender experience in any way, Jun is without a doubt a boy who'd rather be a girl. In one episode where Jun is magically transformed into a girl it basically answers the question "What would happen if the prettiest girl in school, who is actually a boy actually became a girl?" Besides how could we not mention Jun Watarase in this thread? One of the epic traps in anime before traps became a thing.

Good tip! Your lead that Jun did a magical girl gig (if only briefly in a OVA) made the list! Personally, I really believe that was really meant as a trial balloon to such a spin-off... By real-life experience I can see a trap being so insufferably cute that he becomes as popular to boys as girls. I recall a mention in Brazil where the teen trap was a mall lizard who got treated to movies and free video parlor games by schoolboys and it was (supposedly) a totally platonic date thrill thing. I think we're going to see similar here as social tolerances keep rising. Also your mention also prompts me to wish a show with a kind of "magical-girl guy" secret/clueless alter-life romance angle to stir the pot with, or even a club of magical-girl traps (secretly of ages up and down the scale) who uniquely have other things to do besides bumping another off. Back to top

Newbie9

At least one in The Magical Girl Raising Project. New. Back to top

Location: China (Searching for Jusenkyo)

Newbie9 wrote: maxlance wrote: or even a club of magical-girl traps (secretly of ages up and down the scale).

Works 4 me!! I think this is kind of what Mayo elle Otokonoko was supposed to be. A proposed anime series that never saw the light of day other than a PV that came with the opening song release. As far as I can tell it is either about a school comprised entirely of traps or has a trap club and permits male students to wear the girl's uniform but doesn't seem to have any sort of magical element.

Btw the song is totally cute and sung by the same person who sung the ending songs for other shows featuring traps such as Happiness! Otoboku and Steins;Gate.

Chuckbait wrote: At least one in The Magical Girl Raising Project. New.

Great catch! Thanks! La Pucelle about personified the ideal magical girl-guy philosophy. It's a shame La Pucelle skipped a Henshin sequence. (I'm seeking well done and tasteful guy into magic chick Henshin scenes on the side too.) I like Magical Girl Raising for bringing up the point that if the worlds inside anime/manga truly reflected their populations' sentiments and fantasies that there ought be a heck of lot more magical girl-guys than they portray. (Or maybe Kyubey doesn't know the sex switch trick like Favv does!  ) Back to top

maxlance

Past wrote: I think this is kind of what Mayo elle Otokonoko was supposed to be. A proposed anime series that never saw the light of day other than a PV that came with the opening song release. As far as I can tell it is either about a school comprised entirely of traps or has a trap club and permits male students to wear the girl's uniform but doesn't seem to have any sort of magical element.

Btw the song is totally cute and sung by the same person who sung the ending songs for other shows featuring traps such as Happiness! Otoboku and Steins;Gate.

Thanks for the really useful heads' up tip even though Mayo doesn't appear magical. It just seems peculiar to me that when yuri and yaoi and even sibsex are so pervasive in manga and anime that there's relatively so little dedicated work or even fan forums in the traps cuter than girls genre in general. Seems to me there's just as much meat for creative comedy and drama and offbeat variations there, especially when you include the VRMMO realm which kind of straddles reality and magical. (I have a gut feeling that SAO [and Log Horizon] willfully nipped any VR-trap storylines in the bud in the very first ep which I think was a mistake, as Magical Girl Raising shows can work well). An aside; I wish VR people educated people more that just attaching goggles to something optical doesn't make it "VR". There are pre-Xmas sales here in NYC of View-Masters and even binoculars being sold as VR devices.) Well, here's wishing for a anime trap convention OVA! Back to top

DuskyPredator It...it's not like I post for you or anything!

Location: Brisbane, Australia

maxlance wrote: Seems to me there's just as much meat for creative comedy and drama and offbeat variations there, especially when you include the VRMMO realm which kind of straddles reality and magical. (I have a gut feeling that SAO [and Log Horizon] willfully nipped any VR-trap storylines in the bud in the very first ep which I think was a mistake, as Magical Girl Raising shows can work well).

The second season of Log Horizon actually had something interesting with the character spoiler[Tetra]who could come as a surprise, but some like myself picked up the clues, that the characterspoiler[most like a magical girl, was originally a man]. Although the series kind of was always on the cusp of saying something. Back to top  

Newbie9 DuskyPredator wrote:

The second season of Log Horizon actually had something interesting with the character spoiler[Tetra] who could come as a surprise, but some like myself picked up the clues, that the character spoiler[most like a magical girl, was originally a man]. Although the series kind of was always on the cusp of saying something.

Yea, missed that! Luv s/he! Are VR traps like that way too flirty to really be straight? Back to top

maxlance

Greetings; I checked out DuskyPredator's Log Horizon tip and must say she-he is an interesting character, which brings up the fascinating psychology of how long and what a soul sealed up a different avatar over time will begin evolving into beyond their original personalities, maybe even becoming a new "backstory" to that character. To more directly answer Newbie, I'd guess the Log Horizon character in question was likely originally gay because I can't imagine someone else teasing and wildly flirting guys like that, though as I mentioned over time maybe that avatar and its social standing there will shape a new persona. Not really a magical girl-guy issue -- unless we have one trapped in Log Horizon to start with. VRMMO is the one "reality" way to have true magical girls and magical girl-guys. So the list goes on. Back to top

Errinundra Moderator

Joined: 14 Jun 2008 Posts: 4231 Location: Melbourne, Oz Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2016 4:49 pm

I've just watched this show. Birdy the Mighty has a school boy who shares his body with an alien female law enforcer. Normally he has the boy's appearance but, when necessary, transforms into the girl in order to deal with sundry villains. The show combines action and comedy. The transformations cause confusion for his family and his prospective girlfriend. They two personalities also hold internal conversations.

I haven't seen it yet, but I assume the remake - Birdy the Mighty Decode - has the same premise. Back to top    

ChibiKangaroo Birdy the Mighty is quite good. I'm not sure if it falls in this category just because i think boy + girl merging into one being or sharing a body is kind of its own thing, but it is similar.

Thanks for this head's up! Though not magic related the gender swapping aspect makes a list. Errinundra wrote: I've just watched this show. Birdy the Mighty has a school boy who shares his body with an alien female law enforcer. Normally he has the boy's appearance but, when necessary, transforms into the girl in order to deal with sundry villains. The show combines action and comedy. The transformations cause confusion for his family and his prospective girlfriend. They two personalities also hold internal conversations.

I haven't seen it yet, but I assume the remake - Birdy the Mighty Decode - has the same premise.

Thanks, a good mention, though not exactly a magical-girl theme, more like the "science girl" trap that's Twintails, but gender duality theme makes the honorable mention list. I'm kind of getting inspired to try doing a magical trap short myself, only I'm a lousy artist! Back to top

GoddessOtome I was gonna say La Pucelle from Magical Girl Raising Project.

Newbie9 GoddessOtome wrote: I was gonna say La Pucelle from Magical Girl Raising Project.

You mean Magical Girl RAZING Project!  

Happy New Year All!

I need help in an accurate translation for the titles of my listings for magical girl-guys and virtual girls/women. I'd appreciate any sage knowledge of whether the Japanese term "Mahou Shounen" actually literally translates out as either "male magical girls" or "males who transform into magical girls," and if there's a more accurate one please tip me. I found quite a few "male magical girls" are actually traps in magical girl guise which to me isn't quite the real deal though legit enough in topic.

Also for a parallel listing this topic has inspired, I'm seeking Japanese terms for "VR women who are men" and "VR trap" or "VR TG". I'm trying to discriminate in that you probably wouldn't qualify a male trapped as a female avatar in Log Horizon as actually being a trap which to me is more of a "lark adventure" situation (as originally happened in the 1st SAO ep) than a involuntary trapped "TG" situation as occurs in LH.

Thanks for any assist! Back to top

DuskyPredator It...it's not like I post for you or anything!

Joined: 10 Mar 2009 Posts: 11138 Location: Brisbane, Australia

Well "mahou shoujo" is literally "magic" and "girl", so "mahou shounen" should just be "magical boy". I think that I have seen it used to refer to a character like Chrono from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, who is really a male version of what the titular character is. I think that if a male character turned into a girl they would be a full magical girl. But I still feel tempted to call Ayumu a magical girl despite his gender not changing.

@DuskyPredator

Some things in regards to KoreZom, I don't think they referred to themselves as Magical Girls (mahou shoujo). Instead the term was "masou shoujo" and the English equivalent translation of it, from the fansubs I've seen, was Magiclad Girl. So, yes, he's not a magical girl in many senses since he just, err, wears their garments.

@maxlance

I don't know of any Japanese equivalence for the terms you're looking for but the term I've seen used in papers and such is "gender swapping*" so hopefully that will aid you in finding a Japanese equivalence of the term.

*This terms refers to playing as the opposite gender in games.

EmbraceMe wrote: @DuskyPredator

Some things in regards to KoreZom, I don't think they referred to themselves as Magical Girls (mahou shoujo). Instead the term was "masou shoujo" and the English equivalent translation of it, from the fansubs I've seen, was Magiclad Girl. So, yes, he's not a magical girl in many senses since he just, err, wears their garments.

Oh, you're just splitting hairs here.  

Ayumu *is* a magical girl in every sense of the term. He's got a bloody HENSHIN SEQUENCE. Back to top

maxlance Greetings all and thanks for the feedback!

Can those in the lingo know straighten me out on phase usage? Google Translate is almost useless in providing me what "trap" (as in crossdresser) is In Japanese, never mind the full term "Magical Trap", or "Virtual Woman Man" like a guy's fem-VR avatar in LH, unless they have to be made up which ought be fun. Maybe some another language might be plastic enough to possess such terms! My listing does distinguish between true biologically changed guys into real magical girls (like Twintails) and those becoming "magical traps." I am also coming around to accepting fully mind swapped magical girl dudes as the real deal (say a brother mind-swaps his sis's to kindle her magical bod) if the situation calls it, along with multiple personality magical girl traps as being legit as well. Another category I might consider splitting off are "techno-magical magical traps" as in Twintails, as opposed pure magic magical traps as La Purcell in Magical Girl Raising. Supposedly there's a Sailor Moon magical girl guy in the works but have to dig that out.

Thanks for your input! Back to top

[recentanimenews]

Bookshelf Briefs 7/23/18

Anonymous Noise, Vol. 9 | By Ryoko Fukuyama | Viz Media – The tour begins, but it’s already on the verge of falling apart. Nino simply isn’t playing very well, and Yuzu is falling apart because of his love for Nino, something that he is trying desperately to hide from her. Indeed, he ends up getting in such a swivet he loses his voice, prompting a trip to the doctor that may lead to him missing the start of the concert. And then there is Momo, dealing with his own career, and irritated as he waits for In No Hurry to reach the level they sho0uld be able to achieve. I was frequently frustrated by this volume, but the book’s last chapter works exactly like a great song, pushing closer and closer to a climax until it finally hits the last chorus in triumph. And then there’s a cliffhanger. End of song next book! – Sean Gaffney

The Bride & the Exorcist Knight, Vol. 1 | By Keiko Ishihara | Seven Seas – I wasn’t too sure about this premise. Anne is a young woman destined to be the bride of a demon. Instead, she’s saved by Haru, who is a male exorcist. He’s also twelve, and he says he’s going to marry her instead. The book, fortunately, emphasizes over and over not only that he’s too young to be talking about marriage but also that he really is an immature kid, despite being an amazing exorcist. Anne too is a good character, not content to be a helpless damsel but fighting in her own way to change fate. We don’t see much of Mephisto, her intended groom—though the cliffhanger suggests that will change. But provided you don’t mind the age issue too much, this is a cute and action-filled debut. – Sean Gaffney

Gabriel Dropout, Vol. 4 | By Ukami |Yen Press – the majority of this volume involves our four leads returning to heaven/hell (delete where applicable) in order to report on their time down in the world of humans. The gags are predictable but still fun—Gabriel is unable to bring her games to heaven, which proves rather dull, but at least she can bullshit her way past an easily suckered God. Meanwhile, Vignette is dealing with her adorable little pet being a lot bigger than she remembers (I was reminded of Gintama here), and Satanya has to deal with being herself—she tries to break into heaven and fails. Fortunately, we find out that the rest of her family (bar the “normal” younger brother) are just like her. This remains a very silly but amusing series. – Sean Gaffney

Go For It, Nakamura! | By Syundei | Seven Seas – Although there have already been several BL-adjacent manga released by Seven Seas, Go for It, Nakamura! is the publisher’s first real foray into the genre. The volume is an absolute delight. Nakamura is a gay high school student who has developed a crush on his classmate Hirose, but Nakamura’s introverted nature and general awkwardness mean that the two of them have barely even talked to each other. Go for It, Nakamura! is the perfect title for this manga–I couldn’t help but root for Nakamura as his friendship with Hirose slowly develops. The story is funny and charming and the characters immensely likeable. A bigger deal is made out of Nakamura being a fan of octupi than out of him being gay, a refreshing twist that is also resolved sweetly. Nakamura does occasionally have a dirty daydream, but overall, Go for It, Nakamura! is rather chaste and wholesome. I loved it. – Ash Brown

Haikyu!!, Vol. 25 | By Haruichi Furudate | Viz Media – Last time I commented on how delighted I was with Hinata’s character development and growth. That continues here, but as the training camps end and we resume practice it’s Kageyama who’s given a volume to really show off. In this case it’s not just that he’s grown, but the series also looks at the attitude that got him in trouble in middle school—the whole arrogant “King” thing—and wonders if it was the attitude or the rest of the team? After all, the Haikyu!! kids are unlikely to be cowed by Kageyama at this point. Particularly Tsukishima, who may need enough people being jerks towards him in order to really take off. Good stuff, though I suspect we may be getting more tournament games soon. – Sean Gaffney

Little Devils, Vol. 1 | By Uuumi | Seven Seas – This is supposed to be more than one volume, though I do wonder where it’s going to go from here. The premise is that the hero has defeated the demon king… which is now split into eleven adorable and bratty children (and one egg). Each chapter of this first volume introduces one of the children, shows off their eccentricities, and moves on. Some of the cast make reappearances (Asuka is clearly the “star” of the children), but for the most part this reads very much like an anthology. Fortunately, the kids’ eccentricities are enough to disguise the fact that the hero is super boring. The said, this really feels like it could have ended with the first volume, after the egg hatches and we get our twelfth devil. Can it keep up being sort of cute? – Sean Gaffney

Log Horizon: The West Wind Brigade, Vol. 9 | By Koyuki and Mamare Touno | Yen Press – We continue to deal with the odd golem creation that was introduced in the last book here—turns out Kuroe is part of a pair, and is not all that excited to join up with her other half, which is filled with hatred and despair, now that she’s gotten kindness from Soujiro and company. The evil golem creature is a pretty nasty opponent, eating Isaac’s black sword among other things, and the fact that it sort of looks like Soujiro with cat ears doesn’t help. I suspect this may be the final arc of this spin-off title, so I’m pleased it’s emphasizing the family aspect of the series rather than the comedy. Also, really nice fights. – Sean Gaffney

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Vol. 1 | By Hideyuki Furuhashi, Betten Court, and Kohei Horikoshi | VIZ Media –I was a little wary of this My Hero Academia offshoot, but it turned out to be more enjoyable than I expected. Nineteen-year-old Koichi Haimawari has a modest quirk—the ability to glide along surfaces—and has been spicing up his boring life by doing good deeds. One night, he runs into a grizzled old vigilante who calls himself Knuckleduster and becomes his apprentice. Knuckleduster is on a mission to track down the source of a drug called Trigger, which causes users to spontaneously undergo monstrous transformations. I didn’t expect this much plot, and Betten Court really nails Horikoshi’s art style. My only complaint is the fanservicey costume for the female vigilante, Pop-Step, who ends up in villainous clutches more than once, but I definitely like the family vibe the trio have going by volume’s end. I will surely be checking out volume two. – Michelle Smith

My Solo Exchange Diary, Vol. 1 | By Nagata Kabi | Seven Seas – One of the most critically acclaimed manga released last year was Kabi’s My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness. The sequel series My Solo Exchange Diary was therefore a welcome and perhaps obvious addition to Seven Seas’ catalog. Like its predecessor, My Solo Exchange Diary is an autobiographical work that will resonate strongly with many readers. Through the short essay manga collected in the series, Kabi continues to explore her experiences with anxiety, depression, and intense feelings of loneliness and how they impact her relationships and day-to-day life. Each chapter is framed as a diary entry written to her past self, at times offering advice and encouragement while at other times seeming to despair that she couldn’t have done some things differently. My Solo Exchange Diary can be brutally honest as Kabi struggles to find love, happiness, and self-worth, but it’s that honesty and authenticity that makes the series so compelling. – Ash Brown

Spirit Circle, Vol. 4 | By Satoshi Mizukami | Seven Seas – Spirit Circle has an overarching plot, but the way it’s being told also makes it feel like an excuse to do a series of short anthologies with a wraparound. Once again, the majority of this book is devoted to another of Fuuta’s past lives… and this one seems to be a future life, as he’s now Lafalle, a young man in charge of cleaning the chambers in a giant monolithic tower that house the brains of those that were killed but may one day be revived. As he gets older we see him interact with Kouko’s other self Lapis, and the two of them continue to have an odd bond that seems to lack any romantic feeling whatsoever—they even get married here, but it’s never consummated. This is well-written, but where is it going? – Sean Gaffney

By: Michelle Smith

[mysticdragon3md3]

Time for my post-WonFes2017summer picks.  ^_^  (Also including some figures that were announced a little before WonFes.)

My definite buys:

For me, the heart-stopping surprises were Nendoroid Taikogane Sadamune and Nendoroid Lina.  I mean, seriously?!  *O*  Sada-chan was on my WonFes wishlist, but I didn’t think there was a real chance of seeing him!  And Lina---!  That was completely out of no where!  Slayers was one of my oldest fandoms, and I didn’t think anyone even knew that series anymore!  On top of that, the Volks booth at AX2017, less than a month ago, made it seem like Volks had all the rights to make Lina figures. Though I would have preferred her TV series outfit, her movie outfit has pretty versatile pants that might be good on other Nendoroids. And hey, if she paves the way for a Nendoroid Zel, then I’ve got no complaints.  Regardless, a Nendoroid Lina Inverse is a dream come true.  *o*  The way I felt when I saw these 2 Nendoroids is exactly how I should feel about all the figures I preorder (instead of wasting my money on lukewarm buys).  

Casual version Yuri was also a surprise.  Not the “take my breath away”, "I can't wait to buy this" type of surprise, but more just surprised how much Good Smile Company is milking Yuri on Ice.  I guess it makes sense, with the fanbase so rabid.  But a whole other Nendoroid only really makes sense in terms of the characters’ different skating outfits.  This isn’t a skating outfit!  But somehow they knew they could get away with this, AND an upcoming coach outfit version for Victor!  LOL ^o^  ...But I can’t really complain.  I love versatile wardrobe for my Nendoroid collection in general.  Now I don't have to get that Nendoroid Yuki Nagato Disappearance version for her own similar coat.  ^-^  

And of course I'm obligated to get the maiko version of Kyoko Sakura.  She's my least favorite of the Holy Quintet, but I love wafuku, I'm a completionist, and I am getting the rest of this upcoming PMMM maiko set.  I'm sure they'll make her look beautiful.  Anyway, I kind of liked Kyoko from the Rebellion movie.  ^_^

Figma Joker didn't premier at WonFes, but he was displayed there, while his preorder was just opening.  So, let's count him.  I NEED THIS FIGMA SO MUCH.  Regardless that I had just decided to drop collecting Figma, since I prefer chibi Nendoroids...  But this Figma, I'd have no regrets getting.  ^o^  Joker's costume is just so cool!  I've always loved black trench coats, often drew them on character illustrations, and almost bought Nendoroid/Figma Kirito just because of his black trench coat (even though I don't watch SAO).  But now that I'm totally in the Persona 5 fandom, I'm so glad that there's now a black trench coat'ed figure for a character I already love.  

Next are figures I might buy, but not quite sure yet:

I haven't watched "Welcome to the Ballroom" yet, but if Tatara Fujita's scruffy-haired character design is any indication, he might be the earnest, sincere, cinnamon roll type that's one of my favorites.  *.*  If I get into this series late, and it turns out I'll love it, then I'll really regret missing this preorder window.  But even besides that, his tux is so versatile and nice, I might want to get him just to add to my Nendoroid collection's overall wardrobe.  

I kind of dropped off of watching "New Game" for some reason, even though it's got all the moe and "slice of life" that I love.  o_o?  But before I forgot about it, Hifumi was one of my favorites.  ^.^!  So socially awkward and exuberant through text messages...She's just so relatable!  ^u^  And so adorably shy!  If I was following this series closely, I'd HAVE TO have this Nendoroid.  But I'm not so sure now.

Kasen Kanesada has nice character design, but I really have to lay off the Touken Ranbu Nendoroids.  Originally, I wanted only the Date-gumi Nendoroids.  But before Orange Rouge was created, we had to support all the male figures we could, until they got the hint.  In other words, I bought all of the first few Touken Ranbu Nendoroids, and now it's ballooned into this huge chunk of my collection.  x_x;  Even though they have such nice character designs, I really have to stop now!  @w@!  Also, I'd normally collect all the hakama I could, but I've already got some from 2 other TouRabu Nendoroids and 2 more TouRabu Nendoroid Co-de.  I should really stop now.  ...But I do like wafuku...

This chibi Lelouch is an Ichiban Kuji / Kyun-Chara from Banpresto.  I don't really have any feeling about this Code Black costume design, but I'm just so desperate for a chibi Lelouch to match my Chibi-Arts C.C., I'd probably buy this figure if I came across it.  

Next group is made of figures I really shouldn’t buy, but they’re very tempting:

A few days ago, I saw Nendoroid Tomo Kunagisa, and though I have no idea what "The Beheading Cycle: The Blue Savant and the Nonsense Bearer" is, I began to seriously think about preordering her.  She's got multi-shaded blue hair!  *o*  It's got hints of greeen and indigo...  I'm a sucker for pastel hair and cool colors (vs warm colors), but most of the pastel-haired Nendoroids I already bought are lavender or pink haired.  I'd _love_ more blue-haired Nendoroids, especially with multiple blue-ish hues like Tomo.  Plus, she's just so cute!  Look at her little bare feet!  She comes with down AND braided hair...Her coat is cute...She holds a little flower accessory...And she even comes with a seated pose!

But if I get Tomo, I'd have to get Ii-chan, from the same series.  I say that as a completionist, but honestly, his casual hoodie sweatshirt and jeans would be a great addition to my overall Nendoroids' wardrobe.  And I'd no longer have to consider geting an Osomatsu-san Nendoroid, just for the same type of outfit.  That'd be a relief, because I'm not really a fan of those Osomatsu character designs. But if I'm in for Tomo, then I'd be in for Ii-chan too, and that sounds like a lot of money for a series I know nothing about and characters I don't know enough to have attachment to.  o_o;  

Then there's the Arthur Pendragon Nendoroid.  I'm not really a Fate Stay Night fan, let alone, a Fate Grand Order, or whatever spinoffs are going on with that series now.  But that Arthur Pendragon has a nice character design!  I really like his hair, going off into different directions.  And that armor could turn out pretty cool once it's painted too.  Previously, I've gotten Nendoroid Annelotte just because of her intricate armor, even though I wasn't into her series.  So why not Arthur Pendragon?  Like her, he could be a beauty piece.  And maybe it'd be nice to have a Western styled warrior next to my Touken Ranbu Nendoroids.  He'd either fit right in or make an interesting contrast.  It would just seem unfair if I didn't get him, while I was willing to get all those TouRabu Nendoroids---But I'm supposed to be saving money!!!  I have to stick to my rule of not buying from series/characters I don't know!  For once, I need to TRY adhering to that rule!  ;o;  

The Code Geass figures are pretty self-explainatory, given that it's one of my favorite series and CLAMP's Mokona Appapa is one of my favorite illustrators.  ^_^  But still, static scale figures are soooooooooo expensive.  And that Lelouch/Suzaku figure looks super expensive!  x_x;  I can't get that.

And lastly, there are the figures I’ve decided not to buy:

Some of these figures used to be on my wishlist when they were first announced, but I've decided against them by now.  The rest are just minor interests worth noting, but I never intended to buy.  

Originally, I was going to get Figma Utena, Figma Umi Ryuuzaki, Figma Fuu Hououji, and Nendoroid Ariel.  But I got Figma Hikaru Shidou a while ago, and though I love that character, I just can't really get excited about scale figures.  But it's not just that: I have to save money, especially when I know there are so many Nendoroids I want.  x_x;  And of course, Racing Mikus are just fanciful dreams that I will never actually purchase.  Racing Mikus are too expensive!  Otherwise, I would have also gotten that knight themed Racing Miku, in addition to this year's green butterfly fairy Racing Miku!  

And Ariel, though not a scale figure, just didn't turn out as cute as I had hoped.  When I first saw her figure announcements, I very weakly committed to considering her preorder, because I wanted to try turning my other Nendoroid characters into mermaids/mermen.  But looking at her waist joint close up, I'm not sure it would align well with the Nendoroid Co-de Fundoshi, Nendoroid Aoba Seragaki's alternate body, etc.  And let's face it: I have to cut more out of my figure spending.  And realistically, I'm not fanatical about Disney.  I have to drop Ariel.  If I really want a mermaid Nendoroid, I should make a tail accessory, even as jsut a cloth sleeve to slip over a Nendoroid's legs.  I *make* figure accessories for aritst alley, for goodness sakes!  I shouldn't have to rely on Nendoroid Ariel for my Nendoroid mermaid/merman figure photography.

Juzumaru is pretty, but his costume design really isn't doing it for me.  He's just an honorable mention because I like Touken Ranbu and he's voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa, and old favorite seiyuu.  

Ryu Mustang is also an honorable mention.  I have no intention of buying him either.  He's just worth noting because FMA is cool.  ^_^  

When I originally saw the Magical Mirai 5th Anniversary Miku's unpainted prototype, I'll admit that big top hat was intriguing.  But Do I really need it?  I can make that.  I already have made smaller top hats for my Nendoroids and Chibi-Arts before.  I was not expecting this Magical Mirai Miku to look so good after painting.  *_*  All the cool colors I love, different hues blending together in her hair, and that cool backdrop of playing cards flying around behind her.  It's just really pretty!  ^-^  But still, another unnecessary expense.  

Nendoroid Wonder Woman isn't really a figure I ever seriously considered for the sake of AmeriComi.  I just happened to be thinking lately about cobbling together a custom Nendoroid that looks like me, in the same way Nendo Stories did.  But looking through the entire Good Smile Company Nendoroid catalog, it seems like Wonder Woman's hair is the closest thing to resembling mine.  

And lastly, Casual version Oikawa Toru.  No.  I am not bringing a Nendoroid Oikawa into my house!  He lost whatever slim chance he had, when the Iwaizumi Nendoroid perorders closed.  I might have accepted bringing Oikawa into my collection if I had an Iwaizumi to beat him up.  But that's done.  So get out of here, Trashykawa!  Don’t come in here with your goddamned versatile school uniform that would look great on so many of my other Nendoroids…  Just stop it already!  ;w;

Lastly, though I like Touken Ranbu, I'm not interested enough in figures from their butai stage show musicals.  I might consider the costumes as beauty pieces, if they were Nendoroids.  But Nendoroid Petites are something I’m saving my wallet from.  At least that’s one thing I can alleviate my wallet from buying.  Thankfully.  Thank goodness.  WonFes is already kicking my wallet’s butt, as it is…  x_x;