#bible games trivia

[kingoftieland]

A BOARD GAME was the biggest influence on X-Men: The Animated Series! 🎲

[letjoelightshine]

https://hallow.com/trivia

[arthursfuckinghat]

Alright!! Here's some more fun trivia about the names in Red Dead Redemption 2:

I mentioned it previously but "van der linde" means "from the linden tree" in Dutch (the west germanic language) - so 'Dutch Van Der Linde' just means 'Dutch from the linden tree'.

"Hosea" is a Hebrew name meaning 'salvation' or 'he helps' - In the Hebrew bible, Hosea is seen as a prophet of doom. Quite fitting for how much Hosea predicted the gangs downfall in the game!

John is a commonly occurring name in different versions of the bible, usually meaning 'graced by god' or along those lines - but the last name "Marston" is an English name. It was originally a habitual term but now it's a common last name meaning "a town by a marsh". Huh.

Also mentioned previously, but Arthur Morgan is a notably Welsh name with multiple meanings. "Arthur" derives from the Welsh word for bear (Arth) and "Morgan" is a combination of two Welsh words (Môr and Cant/Gant), which means sea-dweller.

Kieran and Trelawny's horses both have Welsh names too!!

Branwen is also a combination of words, ("bran" and "gwen/gwyn") that means a white or fair crow. Branwen herself was a famous heroine from the tales of the Mabinogion. She was kidnapped by the family she was forcefully married into, her only hope was a white bird she tamed and sent across the seas to alert her family and save her. The choice of name Branwen could be a reflection of how much working with horses had grounded Kieran or acted like a lifeline for him when he needed a place in the gang.

Gwydion is Trelawny's horse, a name also from the Mabinogion! For me it's especially cool because Gwydion was the son of a great goddess of magic - how fitting for Trelawny and his horse! The name itself is a description of a birthplace, Gwydion means "born of the trees". In the story, Gwydion also practiced magic and created his nephew and wife from flowers :)

[toskarin]

Is Tomino an antisemite?

I assume you're referring to the section of PROJECT PROTOTYPE: Zeta Gundam Proposal that talks about Melanie Hue Carbine?

worth mentioning, this bit was also reprinted in the liner notes for the Zeta Memorial Box laserdisc release

to cut a long answer short and address the elephant in the room: the Carbine stuff, in those notes, is antisemitic. I also don't think that it necessarily reflects what Tomino currently believes, if he was even the one who wrote it, which is also unclear

the answer ends up being "there's not a clear answer one way or the other"

I'll elaborate a bit more on this below the courtesy break

for disclosure's sake, I could be misremembering some details here, but this is less of a "defence" and more of trying to sort out what's not included in that screencap which gets reposted every so often.

-

it's understandable that this comes up time and time again, given what a mess that writing is

the question of whether Tomino was antisemitic has been talked to death, which is why a lot of Gundam fans have just stopped entertaining it, but I still think it's worth clearing up periodically for people who haven't heard it talked about before, so it's not ground down into pop trivia

when you hear people talking about the Carbine lore in Zeta, it's usually presented as coming from a setting bible and being a direct quote from Tomino

that understanding comes from a long-running game of telephone that was probably significantly worsened by language barriers and 40 years of information rot

the infamous Carbine section not only has dubious authorship and canonicity, but was also written in the 80s in Japan (which was undergoing something of a Jewish conspiracy exploitation boom at the time) and first published in a fan-targeted magazine (not the setting bible, as it's usually presented) in a period of Gundam's history when there was a lot of outsourced filler lore being released to stopgap the inevitable decline of post-Zeta Gundam hype before the release of ZZ

that's not to say Tomino doesn't have a history of misstepping and saying incredibly strange (and sometimes reactionary) things, or even that this wasn't a concept in the original proposal for Zeta before it was heavily reworked. it wouldn't be that out of place, but it would still stick out

but, to be frank, Tomino is an 82 year old Japanese man who has been in the public eye for 60 out of those 82 years

even if we take it for granted that he was the one behind that off-screen lore, we then have to believe that he held those beliefs unchangingly for 40 years without (to my knowledge) repeating them, which is a bit of a stretch

there might be something especially damning that I haven't seen, but I feel like it would have emerged alongside the Carbine passage if that were the case

[bluelocksource]

Ego Jinpachi’s trivia (src: EGOIST BIBLE)

"You can't be the best striker in the world unless you're the world's most egotistical person."

☆ Character's color: White.

☆ Birthday: 31st March.

☆ Current age: 30.

☆ Zodiac: Aries.

☆ Current height: 189 cm.

☆ Foot size: 28.5cm.

☆ Blood type: AB.

☆ Hobby: Watching soccer, mainly European League.

☆ Favorite food: Cup yakisoba, cup noodle. "I banned them during my active days. These monster junk foods make you gain weight."

☆ Dislike/hated food: Protein. "There's no such thing as tasty protein."

☆ What goes best with rice: "Furikake made from crushed cup yakisoba."

☆ Favorite animal: Bell crickets. "Beautiful chirping sound but a bit gross in appearance."

☆ Favorite season: Other than summer. "You can't play soccer when it's too hot."

☆ Favorite manga: Magical☆Taruruuto-kun. "The work that fried my brain as a kid."

☆ Favorite movie: セッション (Session) "This is what chemical reaction is."

The original movie is called Whiplash (2014). In Japan, it released under the name セッション (Session).

☆ Favorite music: Nighttime background music of a babbling brook and the chirping of insects.

☆ Frequently read magazine: CHICHI (he's a subscriber).

It's a monthly magazine for learning about humanities.

☆ Favorite person: Hiromitsu Ochiai. "I think he's a rational genius."

☆ Favorite subject: P.E. and Psychology.

☆ Weak subject: Art. "I don't want to create art."

☆ Favorite place: Blue Lock Merchandise Sales Department. "They're selling a variety of items."

☆ Mushroom shoots vs Bamboo shoots: Mushroom shoots. "I feel a certain affinity with them."

☆ Ideal type: "Someone who does everything for me."

☆ Fixation: Physiognomy. "I find the faces of people who look hopeless to be irresistibly amusing."

☆ What would make him happy: Japan winning the World Cup.

☆ What would make him upset: "Someone taking football away from me."

☆ What he thinks his strength is: “I have no interest in anything other than soccer.”

☆ What he thinks his weakness is: “I have no interest in anything other than soccer.”

☆ What made him cry recently: “I haven't cried in a while.”

☆ Usual sleeping hour: 4 - 4 -2 (split sleeping style).

☆ Number of chocolates received from previous Valentine: 0 (it's futile).

☆ What he usually ends up buying from convenience store: Check out the new cup yakisoba and cup noodles.

☆ Place he washes first when taking a bath: Pouring hot water onto the crown of his head.

☆ What will he do if received 100 million yen: Strengthening Blue Lock facilities.

☆ How he spent his holiday: Thinking about how Japanese soccer can become the best in the world.

☆ What will he do during his last day on Earth: "Watching what I consider the best game of the Japan national soccer team. Currently, it's the 2005 Confederation Cup against Brazil."

note: i want to apologize in advance for any mistake made in the translation!

[lunememes]

🌙  *    ―    𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐕𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄    ( a series of question from 'the voting game' card game for multimuse blogs. bonus points if you answer the questions with your original characters! )

who is currently reading a self-help book?

who has a secret crush on someone?

who has gone to church drunk?

who dances like no one is watching when everyone is watching?

who has parents that know the least about their current lifestyle?

whose moral compass is broken beyond repair?

who would look the best as the opposite gender?

who is proud of the number of people they've slept with?

who has dated more than one person at the same time?

who is friends with someone that they would rather be dating?

who drinks whiskey in their coffee at work?

who gives the most awkward hugs?

who could talk their way out of a hostage situation?

who would survive the longest in a zombie apocalypse?

who could convince you that the world is flat?

whose life would win best picture if it was turned into a film?

who would be the best partner for trivia night?

who would get into a fight with an elderly person and lose?

who has found 'the one' more than once?

who is secretly from the future?

whose funeral would be attended by the most people?

who is first in line for hell?

who would be the most ashamed of their porn search history?

who would be your one phone call if you got arrested?

who would be the most upset if all of their possessions were lost in a fire?

who doesn't act their age?

who spends the most time thinking about their ex?

who claims they could quit their bad habits immediately, if only they wanted to?

who has binge watched an entire season of a tv show without leaving the house?

who will yell at you for not sorting out your recycling?

who is the most frequently awake at 4am?

who is the most submissive?

who drops someone in a trust fall on purpose?

who has most recently wiped with something other than toilet paper?

whose favourite day of the week is monday?

who is hung over the next day after having two beers?

who is secretly a superhero?

who will argue with anyone about anything?

who has accidentally sent a dirty text to the wrong person?

who can fall asleep pretty much anywhere?

who hits snooze on their alarm clock at least 5 times before getting out of bed?

who is obviously an only child?

who has read the bible cover to cover?

who would put pot brownies out at a church bake sale?

who has the least amount of respect for authority?

who would win the lottery but lose the ticket?

who always gets 2nd place?

who could charm the pants off something that doesn't even have pants?

who has been to more bars than restaurants?

who would show up at your doorstep unannounced?

who has the most complicated order at starbucks?

who is stuck on an island because they have burned all their bridges?

who is so unpredictable even they don't know what's next?

who would be the first person to stand up for someone that is being picked on?

who truly is one in 7 billion?

who has played twister naked?

who would be the last person alive?

who would be the best double agent?

who will wait the longest until they have sex again?

who picks truth over dare?

who has gotten a massage with a happy ending?

whose google search history would be the most interesting?

who has a secret crush on someone in their friend group?

who has contributed to bathroom stall graffiti?

who gets kicked off the stage singing karaoke?

whose standards dropped the most after a few drinks?

who would try to talk down the price of girl scout cookies?

who would have the hardest time talking their way out of an insane asylum?

who regularly dreams about someone else in their friend group?

who was the oldest when they last sat on the lap of a mall santa?

who has the hardest time saying goodbye?

who has fallen in love at first sight?

whose first word was "no"?

[a34trgv2]

The Problem With Exposition Dumps

In any form of entertainment, it's important to establish some context for the events of the story. There is a right way to do it and a wrong way. Dumping exposition onto the audience is most certainly the wrong way. For this post, I'm going to explain my problem with exposition dumps and how to better convey exposition. And in case you're wondering, no, I'm not going to put down writers who use exposition dumps as "lazy" or "pathetic."" My intent is always to educate, not belittle.

You should be familiar with what an exposition dump is as they pop up everywhere. In movies, TV shows, video games, radio podcasts and etc.. Characters will stop the story dead in it's tracks to spend more than a paragraph talking about lore, character backstorys, or the setting they're in. This makes for boring entertainment because at that point, the characters are just spouting random trivia from the story bible and not actually telling a compelling story. I'm all about fun facts and interesting lore, but not at the expense of good storytelling and creative world building.

Let's dissect this clip from Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. Moon Girl says that she's tired, yet the way she's animated in the clip leads me to believe otherwise as she's not panting or sweating. She also mentions that the bad guy is getting stronger, then asks "but how?" I can suspend my disbelief enough to get behind a child prodigy befriending a dinosaur and fighting bad guys in New York, but I don't buy for a second she doesn't know what a troll is. But okay, let's actually assume she doesn't know what a troll is (as unlikely as that sounds); she should still put 2 and 2 together when she sees that everytime she takes his petty comments personally, he gets stronger. She should've known before this particular clip that he was feeding off her negative emotions like a parasite, or in this case, a symbiote. She then zooms in on the troll and realizes that it's a symbiote before spelling out for the audience what a symbiote's weakness is. First of all, even if people didn't know what a symbiote was, you could've still showed us what it's weakness is by having Devil roar immediately. Or better yet, leave it a mystery to be solved in a latter episode because it honestly doesn't matter too much in the context of the episode. Second, you mean to tell me this kid knows what an alien symbiote is but not a troll? This makes her less of a relatable kid who just so happens to be smart and more like a socially inept outcast who's so caught up in science and math that she's basically stupid when it comes to being a human. Not only was this exposition dump useless, but it was also poorly constructed based on what we already know about Moon Girl and what kind of girl she's supposed to be.

Is there a way to give exposition without it feeling pointless and boring, though? Actually, yes. One of the best examples I can think of is the opening to Samurai Jack. It perfectly sums up the main driving force behind Jack's quest with the late-great Mako's chilling and sinster voice, and eerie flute plaing, and the still images that look like ancient Japanese artwork. The lines used are also vague enough for the audience to fill in the gaps and we're told just enough to be invested in the story. Exposition can also be told in a way that's funny, such as in the Wander Over Yonder episode The Ball, where Beeza nonchalantly explains to Wander and Sylvia that the world is ending (again) at the paws of a giant space puppy. The comedic timing is on point as Tara Strong gives a very relaxed and soft spoken delivery as Beeza mentions cannibalism and starvation as possible fates for her people. Exposition can even be sung in a banging musical number, such as Part Of Your World from Little Mermaid, One Day More from Les Miserable, or the iconic Oompa Loompa songs from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. In the hands of the right storyteller, the exposition scene could be an audience member's favorite moment from the story.

As the saying goes, less is more. This is especially true when you're writing exposition. Dumping exposition on the audience will either frustrate them or bore them to sleep. If you're gonna give exposition during the story, try having it delivered in a way that's interesting; i.e. during an action scene like in Kung Fu Panda, a funny scene like in The Bad Guys, or in a musical number like in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Just because exposition is necessary doesn't mean it has to be boring. Exposition is the avocado of storytelling. Alone, it's as bland and boring as paint drying on a rainy day. With the right ingredients, though, it can make for some pretty good guacamole. See you next time ✌️

[boinin]

I apologise in advance for how feral I'll be when Vol 3 of the LNs comes out and gets translated. kunigami lore aaaaaaaaaaa

Hoshi shared translations of the titles yesterday! So to fuel some hype, here's some speculation about what each part of the light novel will focus on.

Here's an index of existing fan translations of the two published light novels. I'd recommend reading them: they're short and enjoyable. Although a lot of the content has been covered or referenced by the mangas and Egoist Bible, there's some new trivia about your faves in there too like baby Isagi being able to predict the weather 🌦️

1. Niko Ikki: "Immersion"

I'm not a Niko stan (I don't dislike him! I just have other faves), so this is the hardest entry for me to conceptualise in terms of theme or story. If anyone with a better grasp on his character would like to chip in, be my guest!

Niko has the following key character traits:

➡️ he's the youngest of the characters introduced so far;

➡️he's something of an underdog;

➡️ he enjoy a particular rivalry with Isagi, as (in Isagi's words) they have the same eyes and brain;

➡️ Niko appears to be fairly introverted, enjoying games and anime/manga; and

➡️ A defining trait is his insecurity about his forehead.

Some further thoughts on what Niko's entry might feature:

🔵 "Immersion" may refer to how Niko loses himself in football: both in terms of how he goes unnoticed by his opponents and how involved he gets in the sport. That's my best guess! I'm stumped otherwise.

🔵 I anticipate there will be some rival or potential bully Niko has to overcome, using his wits and intelligence. Maybe he has to prove himself to a dismissive school football club?

🔵 His tactic early in Blue Lock is to use more physical players (such as Oikawa and Zantetsu) to score goals for his team, acting as the playmaker. The LN may elaborate on how he developed this strategy.

🔵 The forehead thing just has to be a teenage complex around acne or something, right? I don't think it's more serious than that, given how much the writer and mangaka joke about it (see: forehead kanji on the Vol 25 manga cover).

🔵 I don't think we'll be seeing Niko spotting mosquitos across the room... but the LN will likely comment on his good vision/spacial awareness also.

2. Kunigami Rensuke: "Rule"

Kunigami's light novel will be a prequel, same as all the others. While we won't get any hints about Wild Card (🥹) it's likely we'll learn about:

🟠 How his desire to become a football superhero came to be. The main manga suggests this came from him watching footballers on TV while young.

🟠 His family. Kunigami is a middle child, with two sisters. What's their family dynamic like? Does he get on with his sisters and parents?

▶️ A theory: being the middle child and only boy is one reason Kunigami goes by the saying, "fair and square". His parents enforced that message so their three children would get along!

🟠 Explanation for his personality traits. The LN might explore the rationale for his protective nature. Perhaps Kunigami was raised with the notion of looking out for his sisters, which extends to his friends and teammates in Blue Lock.

🟠 The LN will likely show how Kunigami fared as a striker in high school. Given how good he is starting out in Blue Lock, dude must have been a beast on his school team.

Overall, I'm praying Kunigami's entry is light-hearted. Our grumpy orange goes through enough angst in canon - he deserves some happiness before coming to Blue Lock 😭 I think the odds of this are actually pretty good, because if there's an angsty entry in this volume, then that's gonna be...

🟠 Lastly, the title (Rule) likely refers to his "fair and square" motto. Kunigami lives a very regimented life in Blue Lock (eat, train, play football, train some more, shower and sleep). Perhaps the focus of the LN will be how he developed that willpower and dedication.

3. Hiori Yo: "NEW GAME"

Hiori's LN entry is the easiest one to anticipate, since chapter 206 gave a fairly detailed account of his upbringing and family life.

"NEW GAME" is likely in reference to his enjoyment of video games (how these acted as a means of escape for him) as well as how Blue Lock represented a new life away from his overbearing parents.

Here are some of my expectations (sorry Hiori 💔) for his entry:

🔵 a retelling of the events of chapter 206, focussing on Hiori's injury and his discovery of his parents' discontent.

🔵 an exploration of the impact his pushy parents had on his personality and enjoyment of sports.

🔵 backstory about Hiori and Karasu's friendship/rivalry! For example, did Karasu ever target Hiori as the "weakest link" of a team? I'd be surprised if he doesn't show up - the Wanima twins appeared in Chigiri's novel, as did Sae in Rin's.

⚽⚽⚽

I'd love to hear people's thoughts about this! I'm looking forward to these getting a release, even if it'll be some time before I can actually read them. The illustrations alone are a treat - in the first two volumes, these were completed by Sannomiya-sensei, the mangaka for Episode Nagi.

[oogaboogaspookyman]

Y'know what- yeah Murder Drones is a banger horror comedy but it's not perfect, and definetly needs some more tweaking

The canon needs some criticism too

So! I'm making an au because i'm inspired now! I'm blaming a certain ex Murder Drones fan for this!

Murder Drones: WELCOME HOME

Or more simply put, "Murder Drones reprogram" or just Rewrite lol i'm not strict

Edit: the way this works is as follows

If you ask me what happens in the WELCOME HOME au, like "what happens in episode 3 in this au" i'll just answer with my rendition of the events in the episode that follow the rewritten canon. Simple!

Although the canon is in the works, i just know i'll remake the Absolute Solver to be less powerful and shift most of the focus on the initial slice of life concept of the canon series, the lore being more of a game of clues and a bible trivia pretty much (also yes the religious themes will be increased in the WELCOME HOME canon i fucking love religious themes)

Also i'm gonna have some extra forethought, Thad was made only to be scrapped like- idfk mid episode??? In episode 4???? Fuckin' shit man fuck that honestly

WELCOME HOME is made to explore other ideas that couldn't be done in the original series while also feeding the starving animals is the Murder Drones fandom collective lmao (also extra self indulgent i canonized a few things i like there)

That's all! Bye bye now!

[smolgreybunny]

Lordle

Just discovered this new scripture trivia/Wordle-like daily game, I think it's pretty cool!

https://www.lordle.com/

[riddle-me-ri]

💎 for American McGee's Alice in Wonderland?

💎: Are there any fun facts or trivia that you would like to share?

American McGee uploaded the full Design Bible for the Alice Asylum game for us to view. And since EA won't give him the rights to Alice, we won't get the game but for anyone that was interested and wanted to see what could have been:

Spoilers obviously, but I mean...yeah...here's the link to the pdf file on his Patreon.

[nysocboy]

Gemstones Episode 3.3, Continued: A fire dance, a limp wrist, a phallic sword, and Balkan beefcake

 

Cousins' Afternoon:  The Gemstone siblings and their partners sit on cabana chairs, insulting their cousins, the Montgomery boys,  while they swim in the trout pond.   Kelvin lays on the femme stereotyping, even flashing a limp wrist.  This will be important later.

Keefe, who of course looks at men's crotches a lot, points out that Cousin Karl has a lot of pubic hair.  Kelvin quips "Looks like he's got a chinchilla up there!"  It sounds like he is making a mean joke to draw attention away from his interest in what men really have up there.

The Fire Dance: For their entertainment, Keefe performs a highly erotic fire dance in the waning light, near a path lit by a thousand fires.  I am reminded of Coleridge's "Kublai Khan":

A savage place! as holy and enchanted as e’er beneath a waning moon was haunted by a man wailing for his demon lover.

Keefe here is the demon lover, pure erotic energy, offering his mouth, butt, and penis simultaneously. He is the new Messiah of Muscle, rejecting cozy, tepid phileo, friendship, for the eros, erotic desire, that promises ecstasy or damnation.

Early in the episode, Kelvin couldn't admit that they were lovers. Now Demon Keefe shows him that they are.   He has never been sure if his desire for Keefe will lead him to heaven or hell.  Now he knows -- both. 

Background note: The dark, disturbing music playing is "Balkan Sex God" from A Serbian Film, 2010, which regularly appears on lists of "the most disturbing films of all time."  It features Srđan Todorović as a retired porn actor drawn into starring in a snuff film. 

Cousins' Evening:  A huge dining hall, with the family and cousins using just one table, Keefe and Kelvin sitting across from each other instead of side by side!  Why does the staging back off from depicting them as a couple?

Kelvin pours on the femme stereotypes thickly, limping his wrists constantly as if he's in a 1920s pansy act, and coincidentally or not puts his "wedding ring" on full display.

Uncle Baby Billy pretends he's the host of his Bible Bonkers game show, where families compete at Bible trivia. He goes around the table and asks  each of the "contestants" their name and what they do for a living.  The Montgomery boys work in landscaping.  Then it's Keefe's turn.  He is ready to speak, but Baby Billy skips him with a rude "nuh-huh," angering him.  But it's not a homophobic snub: Baby Billy skips over BJ, too: "You ain't family."  Only born Gemstones count. 

Next it's "the weirdo boy with the puffy muscles," the second and last reference to Kelvin's physique this season, and maybe a euphemism for "gay." But Kelvin refuses to participate. 

Lick his what?: Jesse and Cousin Chuck pair off for a question from Genesis 40, where Joseph, in prison, interprets the dreams of the Pharaoh's butler and baker.  It should be familiar even to non-Evangelical viewers from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,  but Jesse gets the answer wrong.  The trivia contest devolves into a knife fight, which ends when Cousin Karl begins choking.  Everyone rushes to help.  Jesse yells "Heimlich his ass!"

Keefe asks "Lick his what?" Of course he has misunderstood, but the line emphasizes the interest in backsides that he has displayed all season.  

You never disappoint:  As he evening ends, Amber and Jessie offer to give the Montgomery Boys a ride home, identifying them as friends.

 Then we see three couples heading home. 

 First Baby Billy and Tiffany.  They decide to stop on the way to have sex, followed by waffles. 

Next, Kelvin and Keefe.  Kelvin praises Keefe's sausage dip and fire dance, and gives him some loving glances.  Keefe raises his phallic swords from their hilt, suggesting arousal, while the darkness surrounding them makes the scene very intimate.  When Kelvin says "You never disappoint," it is nearly the equivalent to "I love you," as well as a precursor to what will happen in the next episode.

Then BJ and Judy hug while singing "Gonna have some hot sex tonight."   

The couples are presented in parallel.  Although Kelvin and Keefe don't mention sexual activities, they are bookended by couples who do, making it obvious that they, too, will be "having some hot sex tonight."  The marital problems are over, for the time being. The end. 

The full review, with nude photos and explicit sexual references, is on RG Beefcake and Boyfriends

[sunshineandrosesnoraincamemyway]

What is it about college ministry that makes people not care? I'm sitting here all by myself eating poptarts and no one is here, not even the leaders. If the other weeks I've been are anything to go by, the leader will be here soon and the others my age will be here 15 minutes after we're supposed to start, then we'll spend another 15 minutes on a useless trivia game before we finally (maybe) get to the Bible.

[good-morning-czernobog]

Necrozma, Light, and Divinity: A Very Weird Sun and Moon Theory.

I don't think the alchemical connections in Sun and Moon were ever really discussed in-depth enough for my satisfaction. There's no god damn way they'd just base the starter's first forms off the 3 primes and name one of the factions the Aether Foundation just not go anywhere else with that. Sun and Moon were pretty wild games, and I think maybe we got distracted with all the other bells and whistles, like Lusamine's bullshit, the UBs, and ya boy Guzma. Buckle up.

Before we get onto the main bit, I wanna talk a little about Mesopotamian deities. Observe this boundary stone from 12th century BC.

It's Wikimedia Commons details are as follows: Kudurru (stele) of King Melishipak I (1186–1172 BC): the king presents his daughter to the goddess Nannaya. The crescent moon represents the god Sin, the sun the Shamash and the star the goddess Ishtar. Kassite period, taken to Susa in the 12th century BC as war booty.

We've seen this 8-pointed star before, right on Necrozma's back

The star, as the description says, represents Inanna (called that by the Sumerians, and Ishtar by the Babylonians). She is a deity of love, war, fertility, and divine justice. She is associated with the planet Venus (we'll talk about Venus more in a bit). Inanna is referred to as the "Queen of Heaven", described as powerful but capricious.

She is also described as having some ambiguity to her gender, even having the power to alter people's gender, especially in relation to her cult. This ties into another figure Necrozma may be based on, as well as it's alchemical ties. But before I talk about that I wanna walk about the time Inanna died.

Gods die all the time in mythology. Inanna is one of the few who came back. For a time, she was trapped in the underworld by her sister Ereshkigal. Similarly, it's Sun dex entry reads "Reminiscent of the Ultra Beasts, this life-form, apparently asleep underground, is thought to have come from another world in ancient times." Whole it's entry in Sword for gen 8 is "It survives by absorbing light. After a long time spent slumbering underground, impurities accumulated within it, causing its body to darken.". Inanna is eventually saved when "sexless" or androgynous beings are sent to rescue her.

Bulbapedia's trivia section for Necrozma offers a different idea: Lucifer.

Ultra Necrozma, a being of light, four wings, draconic yet angelic, who's battle music begins with a fucking organ absolutely invokes imagery of Lucifer.

In this form, its head becomes the 8-pointed star.

Lucifer, who's name means "light bringer". Lucifer the morning star, associated with Venus. This figure is eventually absorbed into Christianity as a name for the devil, a being who himself was once an angel. It's not uncommon for media to depict him with a mixture of secondary sexual characteristics, though most are male. It's entirely possible this is because of confusion between Satan and the figure Baphomet, though I had a harder time finding info on this one. If that were the case I wouldn't entirely fault Gamefreak for it. Even I have a hard time separating the two. Also probably worth noticing that dragons come up several times in the Bible, usually in relation to Satan. Ultra Necrozma does gain the dragon type after all.

Two figures, sometimes of ambiguous gender, both associated with the 3rd brightest object in the sky? Interesting. Very interesting.

If you're still reading, congrats, we're talking about alchemy now.

It was pretty hard to understand where they were going with this until we got USUM. USUM introduced Team Rainbow Rocket, Giovanni's attempt to gather past evil the leaders into a league of supervillains (who you demolish). Seemed simple enough. Haha, Necrozma is a light god. Z-Crystals are shards of its light because it's a prism. Cool.

But maybe not the whole story. I introduce to you: The Prima Materia.

In alchemy, Prima Materia is a substance that acts as the base form of all matter. It is similar to aether. a book called the Theatrum Chemicum contains the following passage about it.

"They have compared the "prima materia" to everything, to male and female, to the [redacted]*, to heaven and earth, to body and spirit, chaos, microcosm, and the confused mass; it contains in itself all colors and potentially all metals; there is nothing more wonderful in the world, for it begets itself, conceives itself, and gives birth to itself.

*the word used here is considered a slur against intersex people, so I excluded it

Furthermore, the Lexicon Alchemaie (which i would have checked more in depth but I don't speak Latin), lists names alchemists have used for the Prima Materia. Ones that stand out to me are: heaven, the dragon, heart of the sun, spittle of the moon, Venus, the rainbow. The Prima Materia is required in the creation of the Philosopher's Stone.

In USUM, instead of Nihilego, Lusamine beings forth Necrozma. The Aether Foundation's name comes full circle here. Aether as an alchemical element is frequently associated with light and gravity.

What I'm saying is, Necrozma isn't just light. it's alchemical light. it is the Prima Materia. The energy it emits becomes other things (in this case, the Pokemon types).

Now let's take this a step further, with Type: Null and Silvally. They don't directly relate to Necrozma, but I do believe they have an alchemical inspiration that ties them to Necrozma's mythological position in comparison to Arceus.

According to Bulbapedia, Type: Null was created using cells from all known pokemon types. It was supposed to be able to change types with RKS system, inspired by tales of Arceus. There were complications with them going berserk and the project was deemed a failure.

Type: Null is a failed Philosopher's Stone, until the power of love completed it.

With high friendship, Type: Null evolves into Silvally. It breaks free of the limiter attached to its head and regains use of the RKS system, this time without going berserk. Gladion, a kid, achieves what a bunch of detached adult scientists could not.

It seems love and light are very similar concepts, at least in the Pokemon world. The fairy types are heavily associated with light, super effective against dark types, and a certain pokemon repping them when they first got revealed evolves when it loves you (and has a fairy type move).

Now, it's still difficult to say where Necrozma stands in Pokemon's mythology. It's from another world entirely. The question is whether or not Arceus has influence in those worlds. It's God. It should, right? I think there's a few possibilities, but I don't have enough information to decide for sure

-Necrozma is equivalent to Arceus in its own world. Ultra Beasts may not be described as pokemon, but they have types and use moves like them, so they must be something similar but adapted to a different environment. This one's a bit of a stretch.

-Necrozma is a creation of Arceus like everything else and plays an important function, it just made a home in a different area of time and space, or much like Giratina (another Satan inspired pokemon who is dragon type) it was sent there for some reason.

-Less likely, Necrozma is above Arceus, not as a god but a primal energy gained beast-like sentience, the divine Chaos from which Arceus came

One potential hint at this relation may lie in Arceus' name. It's likely this is a coincidence, and they didn't intend this from the get-go, but it did just happen to fit the alchemy theme. There is another concept: Archeus. Archeus is, according to Wiktionary: "The vital principle or force believed by the Paracelsians to be responsible for alchemical reactions within living bodies, and hence for the growth and continuation of life." It is another name for Anima Mundi, the soul of the world. The divine spark. Archeus has four aspects: Life, Light, Chemical, and Reflective.

I haven't worked out yet what this means, unfortunately. I could be connecting a bunch of weird mythological coincidences. But it was very fun. I would like to discuss some less grand alchemical connections in Alola sometime. Those would require a bit more research and milling over however. I genuinely wish I could give you a more satisfying conclusion here.

Altogether, I hope this gives you food for thought.

UPDATE: more thoughts

there's something I wanted to talk about that I forgot when previously writing this, and I've had more time to mull over previous thoughts.

This next section will start with the elements of gender ambiguity with Inanna and Lucifer, and how that connects to alchemy. Rebis.

An end product of the Magnum Opus (creation of the Philosopher's Stone), the Rebis is a fusion of spirit and matter, imbued with male and female qualities. (Lot of the use of that word I omitted earlier here so be advised if you look into it more). While lacking in the two heads, that certainly lines up with the element of gender ambiguity. Ultra Necrozma is the being at its strongest, when it is full of the much needed light its body had been starving for.

Another interesting bit regarding the Rebis is it is considered the result of "reconciliation of opposites", and imagery around it is called a chemical wedding. This is symbolized by the coming together of a king and queen, the king in red and the queen in white, each symbolizing the sun and moon respectively.

While Solgaleo and Lunala do not fit so neatly into the references to mesopotamian myth (Shamash and Sin are both male, Shamash is Ishtar's brother and Sin their father), this might add some ideas for how Solgaleo and Lunala connect to Necrozma. They are all beings of light after all, and Necrozma is able to siphon it from them when fusing with them in USUM.

I believe Necrozma may be a possible evolution of Cosmog. Bear with me, please.

Obviously, this isn't reflected in gameplay. What Cosmog evolves into depends on your version of the game. But Solgaleo and Lunala are framed as mates. You can get a second Cosmog in both games, and when you do, the other game's legendary appears. They are also referred as appearing to be male and female respectively in their Pokedex entries despite having no gender in the actual game data.

But what is Cosmog and Cosmoem in this case then? Well besides being based on nebulas, I think it may be another concept called filius philosophorum, "Philosopher's Child". One of the Filius' ways of being represented is by the Rebis, as well as a direct child of the red king and white queen. Many sites mention an egg as a symbol but don't elaborate further (like baby name websites they often feed off each other indefinitely).

Now Cosmog's name is the same in all languages, but Cosmoem's is not. It's Japanese name is Cosmovum. Cosmos and ovum. Ovum as in egg. The -em in Cosmoem's name may also be for embryo. whoever wrote the trivia section for it's Bulbapedia stage thinks it has elements of both the sun and moon in its design, and I'm inclined to agree. It also mentions something called the world egg.

The world egg is a mythological concept that spans across multiple cosmologies, but because alchemy often takes from the Greek cosmology I'll stick to that. Within Greek myth we are given the Orphic Egg, from which the primordial deity Phanes is born. Phanes' name meaning "to light, or to shine". He is described bearing a helmet and golden wings, largely referred to as male but sometimes as androgynous. His parentage varies, with having no parents at all, to Chronos (time), to Chaos, to Nyx (night). He is described as creating all other gods, or creating the day depending on the telling.

Necrozma is also Phanes, a being of light, born from a divine egg. Necrozma is a more perfect path of evolution than it's parents, but this is likely triggered by something far beyond the control of the player.

(Addendum: If you think this also sounds similar to books about Arceus in the Canalave library, you'd be right. That myth was applied to Arceus first, which makes some interesting implications.)

Now you may be thinking "wow a lot of these concepts sound like ways to talk about the Philosopher's Stone", and you'd probably be right. The Magnum Opus had many names and many ways of representing it visually, mostly alchemists wanted to keep their trade secrets. But there is an interesting one.

The ouroboros. A symbol of unity, eternity, and endless cycles. The beginning and the end are intrinsically connected.

What is Necrozma doing when you meet it in USUM? it's desperately looking for light. It can't make it on its own anymore. It's base form dex entries describe it as craving light, going dormant when it can't find it.

Ultra Sun: It looks somehow pained as it rages around in search of light, which serves as its energy. It's apparently from another world.

Ultra Moon: Light is the source of its energy. If it isn't devouring light, impurities build up in it and on it, and Necrozma darkens and stops moving.

Necrozma is burning out like an old star. Necros, death.

The Philosopher's Stone is often visualized in modern media as a gem, much like it's body in this form. When the power is expended, Necrozma will be just another rock. It is a transient being. Much like the Great Work, perfection is not sustainable in practice.

But it's not all bad. Phanes, again, is also described as creating other gods. In time, it's body will break down and may become a new Cosmog. The end begets the beginning. The Prima Materia is after all, important in the Great Work's culmination.

There is another being described as creating all else though, in Pokemon. Once again it rolls back around to Arceus.

In Platinum and HGSS Pokedex entries, Arceus' goes as follows: It is said to have emerged from an egg in a place where there was nothing, then shaped the world.

These beings are connected somehow, but after more research from my first version of this I've come to the conclusion that while Necrozma and Arceus are similar (remember, Arceus can be any type, Necrozma's light becomes the differently typed Z-Crystals), Necrozma is inherently more flawed and impermanent.

It's important also to remember that the Philosopher's Stone is the work of humans. It's not divine but comes from a desire to come close to it. I can't say the same about Solgaleo and Lunala, but it's possible that Necrozma isn't natural. Necrozma was made. By whom? Who knows, but probably someone from the Ultra Recon Squad's dimension. This is merely a guess. It could just be a natural but rare occurrence. From what we've been given, this anyone's guess. Maybe were not even meant to know. Whatever the case, Necrozma is a transient being, Arceus-like but ultimately imperfect. The cycle continues eternally.

BONUS ROUND: tria prima

In the very introduction of this post I mentioned the 3 primes, and the starters's first forms having similarities to their symbols. I'm aware there are likely many alchemical connections in the story that I haven't noticed yet but I wanted to discuss something more with that.

Paracelsus described the primes (sulphur, mercury, and salt) as materials from which all things are made. This is not entirely literal. Alchemy wasn't just chemistry, it was spiritual. Each prime has a different quality.

Sulphur is combustibility, soul, the divine spark

Mercury is volatility, spirit (mind), consciousness

Salt is neither, it is the body that holds them

One of the biggest examples for this is that in say, burning a piece of wood. The fire was sulphur, the smoke was mercury, and the ash was salt.

The tria prima sound a lot like prima materia don't they? It's kind of poetic the way this is implemented in USUM. You begin your journey with a prime material and it's biggest climax is with another prime material. Just as the end begets the beginning, the beginning begets the end.

~

Note for potential future update: Two substances were added to this later on: phlegm and caput mortuum (Latin for "dead head"). Caput Mortuum was waste product in a reaction. Phlegm, in the alchemical sense is "A watery distillation, especially one obtained from plant matter; an aqueous solution.", to quote Wiktionary. Phlegm was also considered a waste product. CM was produced by sublimation, and Phlegm by distillation. Phlegm doesn't appear to have a symbol but CM does: a skull.

[bluelocksource]

Kira Ryōsuke’s trivia (src: EGOIST BIBLE)

"I joined this for the purpose of denying Ego."

☆ Character's color: Cream.

☆ Birthday: 23rd May.

☆ Current age: 17 (2nd year of high school).

☆ Zodiac: Gemini.

☆ Nickname: "Jewel of Japanese Soccer"

☆ Birthplace: Tokyo.

☆ Family: Father. Mother. Himself.

☆ Current height: 181 cm.

☆ Foot size: 27 cm.

☆ Dominant foot: Right.

☆ Blood type: O.

☆ Motto: "I am here because everyone else is here!"

☆ Team before joining BLUE LOCK: Matsukaze Kokuō High School football club.

☆ Starts playing football: At age 5.

☆ Hobby: Soccer. "I'm always thinking about soccer."

☆ Favorite food: Sushi. "Not the the conveyor belt sushi."

☆ Dislike/hated food: Conveyor belt sushi. "I hope I won't have to eat it again."

☆ What goes best with rice: Scallops with grilled seaweed "The aroma alone makes me want to eat white rice!"

☆ Favorite animal: Hawk. "They have a cool hunter vibe."

☆ Favorite season: Spring. "Because it refreshes my mood!"

☆ Favorite manga: DEATH NOTE. "The interesting parts where people's dark sides come out."

☆ Favorite movie: Live action 'Rurouni Kenshin' series. "Takeru is cool."

Satō Takeru, the actor who plays the role of Kenshin.

☆ Favorite music: THE FOX. "The one with the Fox Dance."

The Fox Dance (きつねダンス) is a cheer dance performed by Fighters Girls (cheerleading group) who support the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters during innings at home games.

☆ Favorite football player: Patrick Schick.

☆ Favorite subject: Other than Japanese.

☆ Weak subject: Japanese. "I find reading stories in text difficult. I prefer manga."

☆ Mushroom shoots vs Bamboo shoots: Bamboo shoots. "Huh, are there really people who like mushrooms? The world is full of mysteries."

☆ Ideal type: "A wonderful woman who gives her all for me and does anything for my sake."

☆ Fixation: Ring finger. "I think it's the most beautiful part of a woman."

☆ What would make him happy: Being praised in any case "I just want fair recognition for my capabilities."

☆ What would make him upset: Being underrated. "I just want fair recognition for my capabilities"

☆ What he thinks his strength is: “I can uplift others like the sun, giving them energy.”

☆ What he thinks his weakness is: “Sometimes I struggle to understand others' darker sides.”

☆ What made him cry recently: “Come to think of it, have I cried recently? I don't think so.”

☆ Usual sleeping hour: 6.5 hours.

☆ Number of chocolates received from previous Valentine: 1,842. "I read all the letters! Thanks everyone as always!"

☆ Place he washes first when taking a bath: Chest. "I like my chest muscles."

☆ What will he do if received 100 million yen: "I'd like to live in a luxury apartment. Somewhere with a concierge on the first floor*."

* ground floor if you use British English.

☆ How he spent his holiday:  "Just hanging out with friends playing games, singing karaoke, going on dates, and do what everyone else does!"

☆ What will he do during his last day on Earth: "Soccer, of course. I want to gather friends and play soccer. I'm sure everyone would want that too."

note: i want to apologize in advance for any mistake made in the translation!

[maxthesillyy]

hi, i made a LiS quiz on uquiz, and i thought you might be interested! it's a 42 question trivia quiz, mostly to do with the textual content of the game, although there are a few questions about the development too. feel free to say no! i just wanted to offer 😊💖

https://uquiz.com/MBjZFf

OH MY GOD THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS!! I DEF WANT TO DO IT!!

ngl the “what is kate’s favorite bible verse” sent me into a mini-panic and i felt like i was back in episode 2… so did the “whats in chloe’s pockets?” part purely because i forget how many cents she had

sadly, i only got 66%, but now (just like the blookets i play at school) i intend to play this over and over until i am a MASTER at Life is Strange trivia