#because i think its weird how many women in this series just get school uniforms compared to the men

[frootbyethefoot]

victim/killer (crane/crab)

[ID: two digital drawings. the first one is of sayaka maizono from danganronpa: trigger happy havoc. she is standing against a bright red background, with one hand raised in the air, and another behind her, gripping a knife. her fingers are crossed, and she is staring straight ahead and smiling. sayaka is colored in monochrome, aside from her hands and the knife she's holding, with are bright pink. behind her is the silhouette of a crane in black

the second drawing is of leon kuwata, also from trigger happy havoc. he is standing against a pitch black background. he is pointing towards himself, as if to say "who, me?" and is also holding a knife. he looks confused, and is colored in monochrome as well. like sayaka, his hands, and the knife he holds are bright pink. behind him is the bright red silhouette of a crab. END ID/]

[illusionsofcontrol]

are there any tropes you wanted to stay away from with each character or the setting of danganronpa? its a pertty formulaic thing but you made it probably 10x more interesting than the usual game. maybe its because of the depth in charcters or the stakes but wh just seems more engaing than most real dr games! i love your works btw!

I'm really honored that you feel that way about my story! Thank you!

I should warn that my response is going to be somewhat critical of Danganronpa. I want to clarify that I still enjoy the games and it's perfectly fine if anyone disagrees, but these are my opinions and I feel they are important to my response.

First off, I guess I'm not sure if there's any setting tropes I mind in DR. The settings are actually pretty unique to each game and tie into the murders decently. WH obviously has a different setting, but that's more to fit the story rather than avoiding DR tropes.

There are, however, a lot of character tropes I intentionally avoided in WH:R.

Singular Buff Character Who Dies in Chapter 4

WH:R has two buff characters (formerly named Jerome and Ryan) and without going into spoilers, they may or may not have anything to do with Part 04. I don't know, this trope is just so overdone that I saw Gonta's design and instantly predicted that he'd die in Chapter 4. I thought it had to be a red herring, but no. That indeed happened just as expected. I don't want people to be able to predict deaths just by looking at a character design.

Girls Must Wear Skirts

Fun fact, there are only three female Danganronpa characters who don't wear skirts. They would be Aoi Asahina (wears shorts, much like an athletic swimmer would outside of the pool), Hiroko Hagakure (Yasuhiro's mom, wears jeans), and Ruruka Ando (Confectionary girl from DR3, wears very, very short shorts-). Unless there's someone I'm forgetting, every other DR girl wears skirts. Now, I'm aware that this is because most Japanese school uniforms require girls to wear skirts. But given how... bizarre everyone's outfits already are, do all the girls HAVE to wear skirts??? Given the weird fanservice of the games, I feel like it's more to make the girls reveal more skin/slim figure idk :/

I'm getting carried away here. Anyway, WH:R doesn't take place in a Japanese school so I made sure that the women aren't all wearing skirts. And while we're on the subject...

Sexual Fanservice

I'm not against it, but I personally feel like sexual fanservice in a Murder Mystery game (especially involving teenagers) is really uncomfortable. Every game has certain female characters designated to making fanservice moments (DR1: Aoi, DR2: Akane, Mikan, v3: Miu) (Junko for all three I guess-) (Also yes I'm aware that Mikan's fanservice is part of her character/backstory but it doesn't change the fact that the CGs are there for shameless fanservice. They could've drawn the scenes where her back was to the screen or something and conveyed the same message but they made sure to show Everything.)

There's also plenty of designs that are overly revealing; obviously anyone can wear what they want and a large chest is not inherently sexual but it's pretty clear to me that a lot of the revealing designs are for fanservice. Once again, these are mainly teenagers, and the older I get the more it unsettles me.

Anyway, I really wanted to avoid doing sexual fanservice for WH:R. Even though all characters but one are adults, it's just not something I want to write in a story like this. It's not my style.

The Rat

I mentioned this in a previous post, but I ended up avoiding the Rat Character trope. It's not that I dislike it, but I quite enjoyed having the characters all mean well (except for the Puppetmaster, of course.)

(But if I were to have a rat character in WH:R, they'd be the Super Diamond Level Griefer haha)

Resident Dumbass

Yasuhiro, Kazuichi, Kaito, and Akane come to mind (yeah the middle two aren't actually dumb but they tend to fall into this trope regardless). Having to do an entire minigame just to convince Yasuhiro that Kyoko wasn't a literal ghost comes to mind... Idk, I guess I just feel like characters like Kazuichi and Kaito are actually smarter than that but because it's "funny" they have to say illogical stuff throughout the games? Perhaps in a game with voice acting it can be a funny aside, but in a novel that kind of stuff would just slow everything down.

I don't know, it's not like everyone in WH:R is super smart, but that's a trope I tried to avoid.

Rude Characters (?)

Okay this isn't really a trope but Danganronpa tends to always have abrasive characters, but given that WH:R has a main cast of friends, it wouldn't make much sense for there to be much rudeness. I guess Ryan would be the closest to that but he still genuinely cares about the group.

This isn't a bad trope, it's just more natural to exist in Danganronpa because the characters there start off as strangers.

Conclusion

I can't really think of other tropes at the moment. Maybe if I think of more I'll reblog this. But I want to clarify that most of these "tropes" are avoided because of personal preference and differences in media, not necessarily because they're inherently bad.

This next part isn't exactly answering the ask, but I'm assuming that I get these asks from people who are interested in making their own fangans. So here are my two cents.

I've seen fangans that are made out of love for DR and I've seen fangans made out of spite and dislike for some aspects. Both reasons are valid (mine is mostly the former with a slight hint of the latter that's grown over the years). Kodaka's writing is definitely flawed; however, making fangans purely out of spite is dangerous. I don't want to name names, but there is one fangan in particular where the writer admitted to hating Danganronpa and only focused on adding what they wanted. But they neglected the most important part: having a solid story and cast.

Whether or not you love or hate Danganronpa, if you're writing a fangan, it is important to consider the many subjective reasons people are drawn to/away the series. I'm a firm believer that every story has something to teach a writer; even if the lesson is simply "I really don't like these tropes", considering why is insightful.

It mostly boils down to style, in my opinion. Danganronpa has a much different tone with its wacky characters and dialogue and scenarios, but that's Kodaka's style. My style is more grounded in reality, with each character having their own depth that comes up in the main plot and not just in Free Time Events. This is because my stories are more character-driven, and I personally dislike important character information that is sidelined to bonus content. I'm the kind of writer that never makes an OC that's not part of a story, cuz my style has every character play an important role.

(However, one can argue that in a visual novel, having more character depth in Free Time Events adds greater meaning because the player gets a special insight from choosing to interact with certain characters. In a regular novel, there isn't really that kind of interaction. Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the media you're working with is also important.)

I think one of the biggest lessons I learned while writing WH is that forcing yourself to imitate any writer's style when trying to take inspiration is going to fall flat. It's kind of apparent in the beginning of WH, but I used to be feel like I had to follow the Danganronpa style even when I had my own desires for the story.

In reality, every writer is different and has their own quirks that they enjoy but other writers might not. There are many things I dislike about Kodaka's writing, but I know those things are definitely appealing to other people. Likewise, I know my style is not for everyone. It's fine to try and branch out if you want, but one has to recognize what one is comfortable with.

This lesson is still hard for me to absorb sometimes because I don't have much confidence in my storytelling abilities, but I'm gradually accepting that this fangan is my own. I am doing my own spin on the Danganronpa story and that's okay.

And honestly, that's what every fangan should be; a writer's own spin on the Danganronpa plot concept. So while here are the tropes I made sure to avoid, that doesn't mean other writers need to do the same. Figure out what works best for you and what YOU want to see in a Danganronpa story.

(Holy crap this was so long I'm so sorry-)

[itsclydebitches]

So I'm curious what are some character designs you love? Not from RWBY, but just i general. I'm the same anon who got you to check out Berserk and I'd say essentially all of the designs are done damn well. Fit the character. Changes that makes sense for growth. Also make sense given the setting. Even women in armor that doesn't have those massive boob plates. Good designs impact so much subconsciously to have much we enjoy other aspects of a story.

Congratulations! You’ve unlocked my never-ending need to praise Yu Yu Hakusho! :D 

This long, picture-laden post needs two disclaimers going forward: 

I’m not an artist. In the sense that I’m not a visual artist who knows anything about what makes character design good from a technical/community approved standpoint. This is purely based on my own, personal reaction to a beloved series. 

Connected to that, I’m going into this under the assumption that people might really disagree with me (?). Based on the cartoons and anime that I see praised for character design, I don’t think YYH fits whatever list more knowledgeable viewers are pulling from. But I’m gonna lay out my thinking anyway! 

Major spoilers for Yu Yu Hakusho below. 

Alright let’s do this. 

First off, when people start talking character design they often reference how cool a character is. Which makes sense. You want a character to be visually engaging and distinct. Something that makes you go “Wow!” whenever you look at them. However, one of the things I love about the YYH cast is how normal they are. Because they’re supposed to be normal. The trope of the main character having a crazy hair color has become so prominent that we’ve got memes about it now and that works for a lot of stories. You know who is important because, despite the assumption that they’re average people not dying their hair, they stick out like a sore thumb among the rest of the cast. 

However, normalcy is a really important part of YYH. The entire point at the start is that Yusuke is not special. He’s not unique. He’s a delinquent kid who most assume isn’t going anywhere in life. When he dies this doesn’t unlock some Super Special Backstory - you were innately amazing all along! - he just gets caught up in the plot because of a paperwork issue. The afterlife doesn’t know what to do with an asshole kid who unexpectedly saved another kid’s life so they just kind of... shuffle him around until he’s given another chance to live. Then he gets to pay back that second chance by becoming a Spirit Detective. Yeah, Yusuke is talented when it comes to fighting and spirit energy, but at the start that’s rarely emphasized outside of “He’s the best street fighter among no-name street fighters so really, it’s not impressive once you take Yusuke out of his tiny world of school parking lots and the occasional alleyway.” The takeaway is that he’s a dime-a-dozen troubled teen who got involved in the spirit world due to an impulsive act and a bunch of bureaucracy. Indeed, it’s a HUGE moment of emotional growth for Yusuke to realize that people do love him despite his supposedly average, unremarkable, and otherwise negative personality. His normal-ness - and others’ expectation that he could someday make himself great if he learns to work at it - is crucial to where Yusuke starts out. Making him visually distinct in terms of Anime Protagonist Looks would undermine a lot of that. This isn’t supposed to be a Super Special Kid Destined For Greatness. He’s just... a kid. A normal kid. A kid who has to work and learn and grow if he wants to make something of himself. So he gets black hair, brown yes, and a green school uniform. He’s pretty damn average looking. 

Same with Kuwabara. Same with Keiko. Same with Atsuko. They’re just normal people going about their lives and I always appreciated that they looked the part. You can still easily tell them apart thanks to different hair colors, texture, jaw lines, and outfits, but none of them seem out of place in the average world they start out in. Which, as said, is crucial to a lot of YYH’s themes. The ones who look more visually distinct - Hiei and Botan - aren’t human. It makes sense that they wouldn’t obey these same average laws of the rest of the cast and they are our first taste of a world that, in terms of character design, will eventually get pretty wonderfully weird. They function as stepping stones. 

This eventually becomes a story about the demon world and those demons wouldn’t come across as particularly scary/other if you begin the story with equally strange looking humans. Or even just “I don’t see people who look like that walking down the street” humans. Alongside many themes, there’s a contrast at work here. Yusuke stepping out into a stadium full of demons who despise him because of his species hits home when he is so clearly distinct from them. Suddenly, his normal is abnormal. 

Once the ball gets rolling, Yusuke’s looks are constantly in contrast with both his environment and his inner self. He looks like a scary thug but then unexpectedly saves a life. He looks like an average human but is actually the strongest among a group of scary-looking demons. He looks like this badass spirit detective who everyone assumes with have an equally badass spirit beast but, uh... 

Oh my god that’s a precious baby. By the time our cast is family and everyone accepts that Yusuke looks scarier than he actually is or ever was - once the core group is made up of not just humans but demon loving humans who are equally soft - we turn it all on its head again and reveal that Yusuke has demon blood. For the first time he looks as strange and powerful as he is. Yusuke’s normality is done away with the second he’s fully accepted his place in these worlds, throwing everything back into chaos. 

Yusuke’s demon form becomes even more foreign looking  when he’s being controlled by his ancestral father. The above is a Yusuke who is still Yusuke and in many respects the design reflects that: natural hair color, human body, tattoos easily covered up with a shirt. When he’s gone full Mazoku though, something dangerous, the white, wilder hair and change to his expressions ensure we read him as something feral. For the first time in the series Yusuke is truly the dangerous creature he’s pretended to be since his principal was running after him at school. 

As a side-note about character costumes, we see this emphasis on normality in their outfits as well. Obviously a story like RWBY is limited by how much time/money they have for animation, but it nevertheless has an impact to see the group almost constantly in their battle gear. They’re never not the main characters of an action-fantasy show, not even while just out around town with no expectation of entering a fight.  

In contrast, Yusuke and Kuwabara are often animated in everyday clothing that remind us that they’re really just teens trying to live their lives outside of this crazy nonsense. Kuwabara wasn’t even formally hired for all this! The cast wears sweaters and jackets while out and about. More formal clothes for special occasions. Jeans and t-shirts when they’re unexpectedly caught up in a fight because, you know, they’re not ready for battle every second of every day. They’re drawn like normal folks because, outside of the ring, they are. 

(We’ve also got a lot of parallels between Yusuke and Kuwabara’s civilian clothing, visually reminding us that they’re far more alike than they might be willing to admit.)

Despite often changing outfits, the group maintains a basic color pallet that makes them recognizable, yet it’s also not so limited that they appear strange for sticking to one (1) color for the entire time we know them. Yusuke, like most people, is drawn to particular colors, mostly greens, yellows, and blues, so each time we see him he’s familiar while also being distinct from the last time he changed. 

Hiei, as someone who initially wants nothing to do with anyone else and relies on assassin-like speed to take out his enemies, is dressed almost entirely in black. Without that bit of white in his scarf/hair you’d lose him in the shadows... which is the point. 

When he opens up and actually becomes friends with the team, his color pallet starts opening up a great deal too.  

And we’re shown all the little changes he starts incorporating that speak to his growth: his Jagan eye, a bandaged arm hiding his Dragon of the Darkness Flame, the necklace connecting him to Yukina. 

I’ve blathered on about the outfits enough but as a quick final note: EVERYONE WEARS APPROPRIATE FIGHTING CLOTHES. 

No one (even the women to my recollection) wear heels. Everything is loose-fitted and looks easy to move in. They’ve got sensible belts, bandages if they need them, and... that’s it. No unnecessary bells and whistles that distract from what’s supposed to be the story’s real draw: good fights and good characterization. Even the more elaborately styled characters (usually) look like they chose their outfits practically first and for the aesthetic after. At no point do I recall watching this show and going, “WHY would you wear that to a fight??” 

Anyway, back to the designs. 

The exceptions to either side of these extremes - from human normal to demon monstrous - are Genkai and Kurama, both of whom straddle the line. Genkai is someone who has pushed her spirit and body far past the norm. She’s the first human we meet who truly goes beyond that normality, even if you don’t immediately realize it. Her pink hair (such a soft color in her old age it’s not at all distracting) is a slight hint that something isn’t quite right with her. She’s obviously human... but not a normal human. Not anymore. 

Those unnatural looks are emphasized in her youth when she was at the height of her power. 

Genkai as a young woman has vibrantly pink hair (a bright pastel like Botan’s), a softer face, and far more emotive eyes. She looks ethereal, which fits not just her own journey to power but Togoru’s as well. Her story is intimately tied up in what that power does to the human body/soul. So Toguro starts out like this 

a pretty normal looking guy who is on the far end of what the human body is naturally capable of. He’s buff as hell, but not so much that it looks unreasonable. I’ve seen body builders bigger than him. He’s the average (dehydrated...) MCU superhero. However, he ends up like this

In Togoru’s case his abnormality is explicitly presented as grotesque. Rather than giving him a cool looking characteristic that’s clearly supernatural (blue hair, an extra eye, curly horns, etc.), we’ve taken a human characteristic (muscles) and expanded them to an unnatural degree. He’s got some uncanny valley shit going on. 

Paralleling Genkai, we likewise see Kurama subtly standing out among his human allies. 

He’s a demon in a human’s body. By in-world logic his appearance should be just as normal as anyone else’s, but a bit of his true nature shines through. His hair is long in a style not popular in YYH’s Japan. His red is far less of a natural shade than Kuwabara’s. He carries himself with the air of someone who is ancient, because he is. His human design deliberately reflects his true demon form so when that’s finally revealed we still recognize him as Kurama. 

(Same sort of work with Hiei’s demon form.) 

When we look at the cast together we have an immediate, visual impression as to who is normal and who is not - and those assumptions are embedded into the story. Yusuke is someone you’d overlook in the crowd, but he’s the most powerful. Kurama is clearly other in some way, but he’s desperate to live an average, human life. Kuwabara is designed to look and move like the fool and a lot of his development (his and others’ in relation to him, really. Like Hiei) is built around respecting him despite those looks. Hiei is tiny but will kick your ass. Genkai is tinier and will kick your ass worse. 

Her size combined with her age - combined with her status as Yusuke’s teacher - is a continuous reminder not to judge power by looks alone. Don’t underestimate your opponent and get overconfident (a major flaw of Yusuke’s). Know that you still have a LOT to learn about the world. That woman you assume is just a rude grandma? She’s going to break your expectations over and over and over again. 

Speaking of size, that’s a major aspect of Koenma’s design as well. When Yusuke learns he’s meeting the head of the underworld he starts picturing a massive, demonic beast who (sensing a theme here) looks the part of a supernatural ruler. Seeing Koenma for the first time - an adorable toddler-like being - is an absolute shock. 

It’s a gag for the audience, but it’s not just a gag. Due to his looks Yusuke is unable to take Koenma seriously, despite knowing the power he holds. 

Which, even more-so than arrogance, is Yusuke’s greatest flaw throughout the series. He doesn’t take school seriously. His death seriously. Ruler of the underworld seriously. His teacher seriously, etc. Yusuke constantly acts like he doesn’t care, throwing basic respect and effort in the face of whatever authority figure is desperately trying to keep him from self-destructing. He’s on the receiving end of multiple speeches throughout the series (mostly from Genkai) that boil down to, “Care about something, dammit. Take this seriously!” and when he does it’s GREAT. It’s a moment of growth we’ve really built to in a hundred different ways, including how he reacts to others’ looks. Koenma’s design feeds directly into the primary flaw Yusuke is working to overcome. How will he go from a delinquent laughing in the face of the most powerful being to someone multiple worlds can put their trust in? Design assists with that. 

When Yusuke does respect Koenma (even if he still insults/teases him because that’s just an ingrained part of Yusuke’s personality) Koenma’s appearance can change. It’s no longer serving its original function, so he evolves into a very good looking young man (with references to Tuxedo Mask to emphasize those good looks) that just... happens to still carry a pacifier. 

A pacifier that is revealed as an incredibly powerful weapon that will help save the world. Again: don’t judge anyone or anything solely on their looks. They’re never precisely what you’d assume they are based on your first glance - with the exception of minor villains whose looks serve only to convey their villainy: 

For everyone else, looks are complex. Two of the most different looking characters (color-wise anyway) are actually siblings, their contrasts reflecting both differing cultures and the emotional distance between them. 

The scariest looking monsters are just paper-pushers. It’s the handsome humans you should watch out for.  

And this is our hero, a man charged with protecting three worlds. 

I could say SO MUCH MORE but this is already disgustingly long so basically YYH (I think) does a great job of: 

Crafting characters that are distinct but not different for the sake of different. They always feel like they belong to their individual worlds and adhere to whatever “normal” is by those standards. 

Tying character looks really closely to the show’s themes and individual growth. Which, frankly, is something I think all good character design should do. 

It’s not nearly as flashy as other anime... but YYH knows what it wants to accomplish and went about it beautifully. Catch me still weeping over this show fifty years from now. 

Peace ✌️

[renaroo]

Wednesday Roundup

We have an interesting week! Not the least of which because of Saga’s newest volume release which I have been highly anticipating for months. There’s a lot of storylines beginning, ending, and everything in between this week, and we’ve got a spread between DC, Marvel and Indie. So let’s see how it plays out!

Marvel’s Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows, DC’s Detective Comics, Image’s Saga, DC’s Titans, DC’s Wonder Woman 

Marvel’s Amazing Spider-Man: Renew You Vows (2016- ) #6 Gerry Conway, Ryan Stegman, Jesus Aburtov

We’ve officially gone into territories that I honestly hadn’t expected for this series to take, that being the confirmation as of this issue that this is a parallel universe where the Superhero Registration Act and Civil War never happened. But... oddly enough it seems to also be a world where Conway is happily ignoring Slott’s miniseries that started Renew Your Vows because the X-Men, including ones we very much saw were dead in the mini, are well and alive and running the Xavier institute just fine. 

And just to add to weirdness, everyone’s in their 90s uniforms but Jean is married to Logan and they have an adorable daughter. How’s that supposed to work with my perception of reality? I have absolutely no idea, but Annie gets a possible future friend in little baby mutant so I think I can consider myself happy. 

It’s interesting to see Gerry Conway, who in many ways as I revisit the various comics of the past (as you may have noticed through my liveblogging here) really is fundamental for me personally in how I perceive Peter, MJ, and their relationship, is writing the first book I’ve been able to read in a long time that feels like them. And it’s not perfect marital bliss -- there’s conflict, opposition, and a sense of flaws that both of them bring to the table. 

Basically all the things that Slott and co. whined and bemoaned were gone simply because Peter and MJ tied the knot. y’know. Thirty years ago. 

Still enjoying the book, but I’m extra curious/worried where our cliffhanger leaves us. Also wow, poor Beast.

DC’s Detective Comics (2016- ) #954 James Tynion IV, Marcio Takara, Marcelo Maiolo

*long heralding sigh and a wistful look into the distance*

We’re smack in the middle of this storyline and I’m sure there’s a lot of things that will be better once it’s fully played out, but I’m running out of ways to defend Tynion’s run on ‘Tec. Mostly because for all the frustration that I have with people being way too critical of this run -- which there more than has been -- I’m getting less and less out of Tynion’s work that fills me with the joy and exuberance that helps me want to defend his comics to begin with.

Probably because I have always said his pacing is awful, his reveals have almost no setup, he repeatedly robs us of emotional catharsis, his views of morality are about as black-and-white as someone can get out of a high school creative writing class, and just structurally I’ve never enjoyed his arcs. 

What I do like from Tynion and have defended again and again is his understanding of the main team’s characters. The Belfry team, as written by him, have so many amazing character moments that they far outshine his stories and villains time and time again. He understands why people love these characters and he wants to share why he loves them, and that enthusiasm has repeatedly been a saving grace on issues that had everything else working against them during his run.

Soooooo This issue is completely devoid of those good things. Because our only goodguy left standing is Bruce. I continue to be... less than apathetic toward the Colony and the assassination of Jacob Kane’s character, or Ulysseus’ gamer-brat return. Bruce continues to be an IDIOT about this League of Shadows thing to the point that my brain breaks trying to figure out why in Detective Comics it seems like the World’s Greatest Detective can’t get a clue. And it all just blehhhhssss toward the middle. 

Now for the controversy. Because god forbid we not have controversy every week ‘Tec comes out. Cass’ reentry in the last two pages is awesome for the first page and stupid on the giant splash page. yes, she’s going to be the one to take down the League of Shadows, and she’ll probably FINALLY get to say one of her famous lines herself for once (IMAGINE). but Tynion or Takara one dropped the ball on that last page by having Cass holding bloody katanas and make it look like she had actually killed Shiva’s ninjas. If this was a mistake, DC is... itself again and we’ll have to ignore it. If it’s meant to make us doubt Cass and that she’s taken Shiva’s words to heart it’s a cheap cliffhanger and we know better. If if if, doesn’t matter, it’s not what it seems and it annoys me.

I was annoyed by this issue and outside of Takara’s continued excellent work in the art department this is going to be lost in the overall storyline of this arc like every single other middle issue Tynion has written for this run. Nothing was gained for this experience. 

Well, it gave me the energy to rant. And I know that’s what some of you come to this blog for, so it gave you that much. 

Image’s Saga (2012- ) Volume 7 Brian K. Vaughn, Fiona Staples

Few comics hit the milestones and accolades which Saga have without stumbling across bumps in the path, and that goes nearly triple when it comes to pushing the envelope with themes of interracial relationships, multiethnic found families, clashing cultures, war, sexual politics, and discussions of sexuality and gender all at once. 

But somehow, amazingly, Saga not only continues to maintain this path and always manages to find new and impressive ways to surprise me -- someone who I’d consider to be a pretty hardened veteran of nearly all forms of storytelling in comics at this point -- but it manages to make each punch still feel like a direct hit to my gut. 

There is so much anguish in the trials of our space opera family for this adventure, so much loss that it’s hard to pin down what hit me harder -- the loss of a long time friend, the sanity of a former dignitary, the home of a beloved survivor, the respect of a former mentor, or -- as Hazel herself so eloquently put it in the last pages of this volume -- the loss of things that never were, the missing energy of what could have been. 

There’s a lot throughout this, and as always Saga delivers. We continue to have one of the most badass trans women I’ve seen in comics to date, the fall from grace of Marko’s professed pacifism, and the fear of Sophie’s inevitable manipulations at the hand of The Will, something that will break my heart a thousand times more. 

Fiona Staples’ art is next level comic storytelling, but I also need to emphasize just what a fantastic writer Brian K. Vaughn truly is. As someone very aware and concerned about portrayal and voices of women in comics, I have to say that Vaughn is up there with Rucka as some of the few male writers that write female characters in a way that truly speak to me on a fundamental level.

DC’s Titans (2016- ) #10 Dan Abnett, Brett Booth, Norm Rapmund, Andrew Dalhouse

Our fight with the Fearsom Five comes to quite the stunning end, really utilizing all of our characters and their strengths as well as their weaknesses. But what really captured my attention here was just how well the comic did when it came to showing off how truly formidable the Five were, with maybe only Gizmo not getting a real moment to shine out of the entire lot. 

The Titans were believably taken down, but not without showing off their prowess first and foremost, an that’s really all I ask for in a story where our heroes ultimately don’t win -- that their strengths are still on display and it’s believable how the battles’ outcome got to where it was. 

Perhaps our Seventh Ranger’s late entry with Bumblebee really showing off her powers and surprising us all does seem like a cheap way to end a battle the Titans mostly lost, but I think that was softened by showing that, in return, Karen has lost something that we have spent many issues building up as being highly important to her: her family and the memories and love she holds for them. 

That plus the reintroduction of H.I.V.E. and Deathstroke has me very curious about just how the “Lazarus Contract” is going to play out here, especially with its title’s obvious signifiers. 

Very good issue through and through, really enjoyable.

DC’s Wonder Woman (2016- ) #20  Greg Rucka, Bilquis Evely, Romulo Fajardo Jr. 

I have been incredibly curious to see what is Veronica Cale’s motivations in all of this and why she wants to get to Themyscira so badly, and it seems as though our past and present storylines have finally come to a head, proving my suspicions correct that the two Doberman that Cale has with her are the twins -- though I thought they were common disguise and not binding of them thanks to a revamp of Circe.

Now, of course, if you follow me long enough to know my Wondy opinions, you know that Circe is by far my favorite villain in Diana’s rogues gallery, and so I have been very excited about her turn to come into Rucka’s reimagining. And it didn’t disappoint, I rather like her modern redux. 

And in all honesty, Rucka’s second time around with Veronica Cale has been delightful to see take form -- moving her motivations to something more powerful and more relatable than “women be jealous of other successful women” is just so much more engaging. There’s definitely been a lot learned since his last run of Wonder Woman and I appreciate it.

The art continues to be just beautiful for the past storylines, I mean beyond gorgeous and so colorful. Which just makes me dread the upcoming more dour, dark, and all around depressing take on the present. 

And if that isn’t a culmination of my feelings about comic trends in general I don’t know what is. 

If I didn’t think it’d be entirely unfair, I’d easily give this week to Saga which just continues to impress and amaze me every volume, but as I read it by volume rather than by monthlies, that seems completely unfair. 

Usually my weeks are difficult because there’s more than a few standouts but this week I didn’t really have anything that really stuck out to me. But, ultimately I’m going to give my pick of the week to Wonder Woman. Rucka’s past storylines are just a joy over and over again. 

[minusram]

1/? at night i see the twinkling

[AU; series here]

Teru’s seen him a few times, the boy with all the sugar daddies. At least he’s quiet about it, the building doesn’t need cops everywhere just because some kid can’t keep a lid on his compensated dating. Teru wonders how he’s managing to pull so many people with such a plain face. Some of the men and women that Teru’s seen him with are even kind of cute, for adults. Though they all dress so boring, just suit after suit after plain black suit. Maybe that’s his neighbour’s taste, Teru smirks as he snaps the wrinkles out of his sheet.

About a month ago, Teru’s new neighbour moved into the empty apartment down the hall. He’s a kid, a middle schooler Teru’s age; Teru first learned about it from listening to 2B and 2C, two chatty women who gossip loudly enough on their adjacent balconies during chores that he can use them as a building newsletter.

They’re out again now and so is he, listening while he hangs his laundry out to dry.

The kid lives alone, like Teru, and now that school’s started 2B knows that he goes to Salt Middle School. She shares this, along with a complaint about how her brother acts so superior, just because he happens to live in a district that lets him choose between two schools for his daughter. The information is good, what’s there, but Teru has to sort through a lot of aural chaff to get anything useful from their conversations. And this is out of date; term started a couple weeks ago, for both Salt Mid and Black Vinegar.

The name of the school is familiar, and in retrospect so is the uniform; he had to take care of a budding gang war from there in the spring. And, of course, that’s where Kageyama goes.

Kageyama. The only other esper of any note he’s ever met. A natural, and yet barely more than a commoner; he folded like wet cardboard when Teru showed him his place. Still, he remains a potential threat, and that’s interesting.

Actually, enkou kid kind of reminds him of Kageyama, if only visually. Maybe it’s just the uniform; he’s never seen either of them wearing anything else. But then, he only saw Kageyama the once.

Their paths haven’t crossed since Teru taught him a lesson a few months ago. Maybe it’s time for a refresher course. It might be fun to cultivate an antagonist, someone stronger than ordinary people but exponentially weaker than himself. It’s not like anything else in his life has ever posed a challenge. Psychic powers truly are convenient.

He goes back inside to make dinner, and thinks about paying a visit.

In the mornings, he sees his neighbour leave for school on foot, half an hour at least before Teru even considers heading out.

The timing implies he walks to school, which is odd, but maybe he likes the fresh air. Teru watches him disappear into the city sometimes while he eats breakfast, when the news gets intolerably boring. It’s slightly less interesting than watching a fish, but at least it isn’t the hundredth ‘urgent news bulletin’ about those five students that disappeared. They’re either dead by now or they don’t want to be found; either way, Teru is sick of hearing the same handful of voice clips from their Tragically Grief-stricken Families.

Teru never sees the boy in the afternoons. Enkou kid always gets home late; stepping out of the same black car but driven by a rotation of strangers.

It must pay pretty well, if he can afford an apartment. Teru’s place is paid for by his parents, who live across the city. His mother calls him every so often to invite him for dinner; once in a while he’ll even go, but it’s better if he stays away, for everyone’s sake.

Teru checks the time and gets up. It’s time for him to go; he has a date this afternoon, to see a movie he’s not particularly interested in with a third-year girl he doesn’t particularly like. He’ll probably have a not-particularly-tragic breakup in a few days, before moving on to another one of his fans.

Still, appearances must be kept. He doesn’t bother with the keys as he leaves, locking the door behind him with a flick of his finger as he walks down the hall.

Maybe it’s time he talks to Kageyama. His life’s gotten pretty routine lately, it could use some shaking up.

A few days later, Teru is loitering outside Salt Middle, waiting for his target and attracting the attention of the local students as he leans against the wall, artistically dappled by the sunlight shading through a tree. They admire him, as they should, and form a suitable backdrop for the coming confrontation. Teru’s been plotting how the conversation will go as he waits, and he’s excited to get started.

“Ah, Kageyama,” he says, when he sees a flash of black hair from the corner of his eye, turning to stand in front of the other boy.

Enkou kid stares at him blankly.

“My mistake, I thought you were someone else,” Teru says, with a winning smile, “I don’t mean to trouble you. Go right ahead.”

“You’re… from the apartment,” the kid says, hands straight at his sides.

“Yes, I am. I’m not surprised you noticed, I’m pretty distinctive,” Teru says, with a wink.

“Hm. You are,” the kid says, and walks away, to the car idling in front of the school.

He gets his clients to pick him up at school? That’s so brazen, Teru is starting to like this kid.

Enkou kid pauses, and turns back to him.

“Kageyama-kun has student council. He won’t be out until 4:30,” he says, and then he’s in the car and gone.

At 4:25, Teru finishes off his cafe au lait and walks the block back to Salt Middle School to find Kageyama.

He sees the rest of what must be the student council as they disperse off-campus from their cluster around their unhealthy looking president, but not the member he’s looking for. There’s something weird about the president, like a haze that hangs around him, but Teru doesn’t concern himself with that; he’s here for his foil, not some incompetent, nameless nobody who trails enmity like a smokestack.

Everyone else is gone by the time Kageyama emerges, but Teru’s grown to appreciate the abandoned schoolyard. Absent of anyone but the two of them, it might even be eerie, if it weren’t so sunny. Clouds would be better, thick stormclouds that would blot out the sun and add an electric current to the air. Dramatic effect; this is the kind of thing that looks better in the dark.

No students means no audience, but it also means no witnesses. Instead of a battle of words, like he planned, maybe they’ll just battle. It won’t last very long, but at least it’ll be something.

Any psychic confrontation between them won’t be much of a fight. There’s too great a difference between them; in power, in skill, in hierarchy. Teru’s simply better—even if Kageyama’s been training full throttle, it’s impossible for him to catch up.

Kageyama’s reached the approximate centre of the schoolyard, halfway between the building and the exit. It’s good staging; Teru steps away from the gatepost and into view, to stand squarely across from Kageyama in the opening, backlit by the afternoon sun. A dark shadow stretches on the ground in front of him, reaching toward Kageyama where he’s frozen in his steps.

Kageyama clutches the strap of his bag hanging from his shoulder. He stares, and his powers rise around him, coalescing into the visible spectrum.

The pecking order’s been firmly established, but Kageyama’s stronger than he was the last time they met; the power hanging around his shoulders is more practiced, and Kageyama manipulates his aura confidently, forming it into defensive spikes.

If Teru were an amateur, he might skewer himself flash stepping over there, but as it stands they really serve no purpose but warning him of Kageyama’s hostile intent. He returns the message, letting sparks play across his fingers and lift his hair. The sun washes out the colour of his powers, robbing the display of some of its effect. Next time, they’re definitely going to meet at night.

“Ah, Kageyama,” he says.

“Hanazawa,” Kageyama says guardedly, staring grimly, his spare hand in a fist at his side, “Why are you here.”

Ah, he’s perfect. Teru smirks, and cocks his hip, planting a fist there as he tilts his head playfully.

“What, aren’t you happy to see me?” he asks, opening up the field. It’s exciting, improvising. He throws out the rest of his old script, calculated for a social climate that no longer exists now it’s just the two of them. Kageyama raises a resentful eyebrow.

“You have to ask?” he says. His spikes writhe into faint corkscrews, their ends splitting into forks with his agitation. Clearly, he hasn’t yet figured out how to keep his powers from betraying his emotions, an advantage Teru is happy to take.

“I thought I’d check in on you, see how you’ve been doing. It’s been a few months, you know. How’s school?”

“Oh, perfect, except I’m being stalked by a blond peacock,” Kageyama says with a smile, brittle and insincere. “Have you just been waiting here since school let out?”

“Someone helped me out,”—an NPC—“A boy, with a bowlcut, maybe you know him? He let me know you’d be a bit delayed.”

Kageyama's manifestations shimmer for a moment, then snap back to solidity as jagged, branching spires of hoarfrost, a crystalline thicket of animosity that wreathes his body with razor fractals.

“Of course…” Kageyama muses, and then spits, “That makes sense, Hanazawa. Like calls to like.”

Teru has found a nerve. He’ll think about it later, why Kageyama feels so strongly about dating for money that he thinks Teru will be insulted by the baseless implication that he does it too, but now he rolls with the opening, keeping the momentum of their conversation.

“Bitter, hm? What’s the story there, someone you liked didn’t like you back? Don’t worry about them, Kageyama. They’re the background characters, the unimportant people. From now on, you can just focus on me.” And with that, he attacks.

Teru surges toward Kageyama, pulls up inches away when his startled opponent swings the bag at his face. Teru bats it away with his forearm, snapping the strap as it rockets away to skid across the ground and thrusting his palm out to send Kageyama flying in the other direction.

Kageyama skips; once, twice, before recovering, rolling with the inertia to his feet and reaching out a clawed hand that clenches into a fist.

Wood cracks and Teru zips back five feet in an instant to watch the tree branch spear through the ground where he was standing. He tucks in his toes and throws his arms out in front of him; a wave of powers hurls the branch’s quivering leaves at Kageyama, a maelstrom stiff and sharp as knives.

Kageyama fields most of them, arms wheeling around his head, but a few get through, opening paper-thin cuts that weep bleed from his face and hands. Ooh, that pissed him off. Kageyama glares, swipes at his face with the heel of his hand, smearing red across his cheek as he pants, then slaps the first two fingers of each hand together, ripping chunks out of the asphalt that whizz at Teru’s head.

Teru lets them hit his barrier, bouncing them off with a spray of gravel and minimum effort as he zigzags in flash-step spurts to where Kageyama’s fetched up next to the school. Kageyama’s looking the wrong way when Teru appears in front of him, and the knuckle-punch to the solar plexus blindsides him, propelling him back the scant distance to slam against the wall of the building.

Kageyama’s impact craters the masonry, and Teru follows up with another stone-cracking punch to the gut which Kageyama spins away from against the wall, whipping up his hand in arc that sends a sharp crescent of power slicing at Teru’s neck. Teru tilts his head and it scythes harmlessly past his face, except for where it’s caught some of his hair.

Teru telekinetically flattens Kageyama against the wall with an outstretched hand as he reaches up to inspect his slightly shorter bangs, then flicks the hair out of his eyes. The shorn pieces float away on the wind.

Kageyama’s aura swells, stabbing out at Teru though his body is pinned, breaking Teru’s concentration so he can move. He hurtles forward, fighting with his hands and feet, jerking a knee up that Teru deflects, throwing out a haphazard haymaker that Teru ducks back from before stepping in and hitting Kageyama with an elbow to the chin that knocks him back for Teru to slam his palm against his chest, pressing him to the wall again and pumping him full of electricity.

Kageyama’s mouth opens but no sound comes out as Teru’s power jolts through him. He twists, muscles tense until Teru cuts it off and lifts his hand to let him slide down the wall.

Kageyama isn’t out, but it’s close. He flops his head back to stare up at Teru spitefully where he sits on the ground. There’s still blood on his face.

Teru drops easily into a crouch so his antagonist doesn’t have to look up as far. He’s considerate that way.

“Nice job. That branch thing was pretty good, but the sound gave it away,” he says, helpfully.

Kageyama flips him off with a finger that still twitches with aftershocks, venomous.

Teru grins. This is gonna be great.

At night I see the twinkling stars And a great big smiling moon. My mother tucks me into bed And sings a good-night tune.

enkou = compensated dating