#but It’s fun seeing his actions translated in human form

[crazycometspecular]

At least he didn’t overreact

[worldunbent]

chapter notes - matoba seiji

a compilation of all of midorikawa's chapter notes concerning matoba (as of volume 29)

all are from the official viz releases, translated by lillian olsen.

Chapters 23 - 26 - Inhuman Thing I didn't have a chance to write a story about Matoba until now due to page constraints or manga cycling issues in the magazine. I had fun when I finally got around to it. Matoba's appearance means Natori's hardships become more obvious. Natori settled upon his current philosophy after a lot of reflection. But then he sees Natsume wrestling with the same choices and slogging through the same place he used to be, and it's both amusing and frustrating at the same time for him. Natsume might realize this and not be able to presume so much on his kindness. Natsume and Natori are left with a problem, so l hope to take my time drawing them dealing with it.

Volume 9 (General afterword) I enjoyed drawing a bit about Matoba. He has several titles. He’s the organizer of the assembly of exorcists, so he’s called “Chairman” during the meetings. He’s the young head of the family from a regular human perspective, and known as the leader of his clan to yokai. Natsume has been more relaxed lately, so it’s very fun to draw something tense like this once in a while. I’d like to write thoroughly about exorcists some time when I have the opportunity. Seeing Matoba and Natori side by side here, they’re clearly eccentrics. I’m relieved that Natsume seems normal by comparison.

Chapters 52 - 54 - Behind the Chains Natsume is now able to face a variety of things. But I also feel that the distance between him and Natori grows each time they encounter one another. They see the same things and hope for the same outcome, but because their paths are a little different, it's hard for them to take action when they're together. It's a strange feeling. I'm sure Natori wants to remain Natsume's ally, and Natsume wants the same with Natori. I'm happy I got to draw more about Matoba, too. Whereas Natori tries to do what's right and is afraid of making a mistake, I think Matoba is the kind of person who doesn't fear making mistakes.

Chapter 77 - The Two Rings This was another story I had always wanted to do, but the timing never worked out, so I was very happy to get to it now. When I'm drawing Natsume, I always agonize over his dialogue and pick his words carefully. But when I'm drawing the Matoba clan, I don't have to think about the impression they're making, and I just use words that pop up in my head. Mr. Natori is somewhere in between. It's always a bit refreshing to draw the exorcists. I hope people form their opinions of Mr. Matoba based on what's on the page. In good ways and bad, he's a character who lies but is also uninhibited.

Special Episode 17 - A Hand Extended They let me do another episode of Natori as a high school student. There was another anecdote I wanted to include, but it wouldn't fit, no matter how hard I tried to rearrange things. Still, I'm happy I could depict more of Natori and Matoba's relationship. Sometimes you can't come to an understanding with a person, but once you become aware of your own feelings, you can often begin to be more objective. Then you start to see aspects of the person that change your mind, which is natural. But unlike Natsume, Natori can be stubborn and won't allow his feelings to change. It was interesting to see how Natori would feel about the aloof and unwavering Matoba.

Special Episode 19 - An Abandoned Station in the Rain With 16 pages, the plot could have felt too similar to other Special Episodes, so I decided to do a simple story just about running into someone unexpected. It was fun showing Matoba being himself. Mr. Matoba knows yokai who live in a slightly different world from the one Natsume knows, and Nyanko Sensei knows both worlds. I'd like to do more stories about the two of them.

Chapters 92 - 94 - The House of Promises I have a memory of some boys climbing the gate of the town hall to pick some loquats at the end of spring and getting scolded. I made it seem like spring when the chapter appeared in the magazine, but then I heard that loquats ripen in early summer, so my older sister helped me race to redraw the clothing into something more summery before the graphic novel release. I enjoyed drawing the exorcists. Mr. Natori just can't catch a break and Mr. Matoba has many things going for him, but he often gets shut out. They don't really get along, and they're skeptical of each other even when real empathy is extended. Natsume is always at least trying to listen, so conversations are easier with him present. No matter what, Mr. Natori is older, and Mr. Matoba is younger. End of story. When I include the exorcists, there are all these dilemmas and convolutions that make things complicated and fun to draw. It feels fresh to me. I get nostalgic for the first time Natsume and Mr. Natori met when they're together. Their bond is getting deeper, but it was easier before for Mr. Natori to casually invite Natsume on outings. When you know someone a long time, there are more things to say, but sometimes, just as many things remain unsaid.

Chapters 103 - 104 - Where Vessels Lie in Slumber* I was so happy to work on a longer story for once. My head starts filling up with what to do next while I'm still working on the current episode. when I'm in one-shot mode. But being able to linger on a story arc reminded me of the excitement I felt back when I first wanted to be a manga artist. I still have a lot of storylines I'd prefer not to cut short, so I hope I get more opportunities like this. I've wanted to do this particular story for a long time, but. I feel like it could only be done now because of how Natsume's currently feeling. I hope you can pick up on how Natori and Matoba's relationship changes subtly depending on the situation, and that you get a feel for their solidarity as exorcist peers. It was so fun drawing everything I wanted to include: Natsume's faith in his friends; Natori's belief that he can still offer help even as an exorcist; Matoba, who's sometimes prevented from action because he knows and sees too much; Tanuma, who's surely able to help, but is unable to accompany Natsume; the cats protecting their secret; Nyanko Sensei. And of course there were even more things I wanted to expand on, so I'll take my time working them out.

*The first three chapters of this arc are in the previous volume and there's not enough in the other note for me to include.

[eurydicees]

pls can u tell me everything about fhq and esp fhq iwaoi i don’t really know what it is but every time i see you repost one of those beautiful heart wrenching artworks i want to die in the best way

YES GLADLY I WILL TELL YOU EVERYTHING I CAN !!! under the cut because you're getting everything.

ok so some of the history lesson portion of this may be a little off, it's been a hot minute since i've done much research into this lol. but final haikyuu quest first appeared as a spread in one of the bonus pages in the manga! throughout the manga's run were occasionally drawings of the characters in little fake movie posters, one of them being an action/fantasy movie called final haikyuu quest:

this first poster and the original character designers are drawn by furudate! from there, it went on to become a mini bonus game in the haikyuu 3DS game, which is kind of crazy if you think about it too hard.

there's a playthrough uploaded on youtube here, but it's obv in japanese and i don't think there's been a translation of the game. there's a translation of part of it here on tumblr, but i don't think it's complete. poster from the 3DS game:

from there, it went on to be a CD drama (videos 8-10 on this youtube playlist, with subs), which is super neat. it's also one of the haikyuu light novels, but i have yet to find a full english translation of that.

i haven't read the novel or watched the videos with the CD drama audio myself, so i'm not sure how much it differs from the 3DS game. i assume they're pretty similar though.

so the premise at its most simple is that hinata and his party of adventurers are off to defeat the demon king oikawa and his henchmen! those are the basics.

the "canon" characters in hinata's party are hinata, kenma, aone, iwaizumi, and kageyama. on the opposing side we've got oikawa (the demon king), kuroo, and kiyoko. kiyoko has servants in the form of tanaka and nishionoya (they don't care for oikawa, they're just there for kiyoko). there's also michimiya, who is in the "fair princess kidnapped by oikawa" role that hinata & co. are trying to save. the full character profiles can be found here (everyone in game) and here (heroes only)!

now this whole premise is like. a little silly. the whole deal is a little silly. this is a volleyball manga.

with THAT being said, though, sometimes the most fun to be had is when you take the silly thing and make it devastating. and it's so easy to do that with FHQ. so let's talk abt iwaoi now <3

so in the story, oikawa is the demon king. because the premise is so simplistic and boiled down to good v. bad due to, like, this not being a real piece of media, oikawa is objectively on the "bad side." iwaizumi, on the other hand, is a knight, presumably human, and "oikawa's (former) friend."

iwaizumi being oikawa's former friend is literally his speciality and i think about that all the time btw. for context, kageyama's specialty is "prodigy" and hinata's is "strongest decoy." and fucking iwaizumi is out here like yea hey guys i used to be on the bad side but im mad at oikawa so now i'm with y'all. also my specialty in this fantasy universe is that i used to be oikawa's friend :)

like. what the hell. as you may imagine, the iwaoi angst potential here is ENORMOUS. iwaizumi who has betrayed oikawa and joined the heroes' side to take him down, iwaizumi whose greatest strength comes in knowing oikawa in and out, because the villains you love are both the hardest and the easiest to destroy. iwaizumi who loves oikawa, and who cannot save him.

(**side note, there's a lot of kuroken angst potential involved in this au as well, but let's focus on iwaoi for this post and save kuroken for another day)

so, as i said, the game's interpretation of all this is pretty simplistic and pretty silly. but personally i love thinking too hard and finding depth in things that are so not that deep. and it seems like most fhq fans also employ this as a favorite hobby because holy shit the angst people put in this au is INSANE.

the way i've interpreted it myself has been that iwaoi were besties/lovers/unclear situationship until oikawa kind of "fell into the dark side," because this is an au of every fantasy trope possible, and his reign over aoba became corrupted and "evil." iwaizumi betrays him to join hinata and take him down--save the world, at the cost of the demon he loved so much. but that demon, who oikawa was, is gone already, isn't he?

one of my favorite comics about them is here by @/ichigomaniac, where oikawa falls to the dark side and iwaizumi kills him to save the kingdom he loves. another FAVORITE similar one is here by @/hawberries! the premise of a lot of fics/art in this au run along these lines <3333

another super fun interpretation is a 5 part comic by @/duskisnigh, where oikawa and iwaizumi are running a kind of underground rebellion/safehouse in a world demons are oppressed by the human race. but as oikawa sees more and more evil on the behalf of humanity, he gets more and more unhinged until iwaizumi feels that he no longer knows him--and runs away with kageyama, with the intention of taking oikawa down.

personally i think the BEST aus are where iwaizumi--so loyal, so in love--is forced to leave because he can't stand to watch oikawa fall to more darkness, while oikawa himself is so devoted to iwaizumi that it's his love for iwaizumi that is corrupting him.....

in the fic i wrote, it's a story about forbidden love and how oikawa just wants to be allowed to love iwaizumi and he'll fight a war in order to do it. but iwaizumi can't watch oikawa fight this war anymore, because he's getting more and more dark as the war rages on. so he leaves, and was any of this ever worth it?

ggaahadhgjkadg . fhq. its crazy. i have a tag for it here, where i have been curating my favorite art. special shoutout to @/amezure who has some GORGEOUS pieces in their tag. OH ! and some of my fave fics in this au :

in the arms of loyalty and the hands of devotion (iwaoi, 23252 words), self promo lol

i can go anywhere i want (just not home) (kuroken, 3662 words) by keplcrs

wondering if your heart's still open (iwaoi, 683 words), by birdintheriver

Diorama (iwaizumi & kenma, 2027 words) by PlumTea

the ao3 tag is beautiful everywhere you turn, but i have a special love for those fics <3

so yeah that's the general deal! if you ever want to talk more about it, i am HAPPY to discuss !!! pls pls plsplsplsplsplssplsplslpslslslss!!!!!!

[makoredeyes]

What do you think the Siddharta Golem was back in the Golden Age? Must have been different enough to Rasputin to be considered his son but we really don't know anything about him.

It’s wild! Because even Rasputin becomes fairly verbose about Felwinter, but not what or who he was before he was risen. (Props to dad for not deadnaming his kid I guess??!?* except I still have this funny impression that Felwinter never liked his risen name much SOOOO )

But Siddhartha. His namesake is telling of course- gone out to wander the world and see it for all its goods and bads first hand, to grossly over simplify things.

Rasputin himself tags the activation record with the quote, "Experience is the teacher of all things." Which sure compounds the intent there.

But looking at that same log, yano Rasputin’s code is always cryptic and full of prose but this one has to be absolute THICKEST of them all:

>>AMYGDALA VOTIVE GRASP>>

V149GAQ145CB120

AI-COM/RSPN: ASSETS//GOLEM//INTERROGATIVE

IMMEDIATE ACTION ORDER

This is a SUBTLE ASSETS IMPERATIVE (NO HUMAN REVIEW) (NO AI-COM REVIEW) (secure/AUTARCH).

Initiate SIDDHARTHA GOLEM upload at DSC-342 to assess integrity of moral structures.

Stand by for CRITERIA:

Under PASSAGE (obsolesce/SIDEREAL):

If NANOBE SONDER is IVORY

If HAMMURABI is ACTIVE and passes human review under context TURING

If DURYODHANA is in FAILURE and passes AI-COM review under context IDES

Set spectrum certification to SMARAGDINE

Else, stand by for CONTINGENT ACTION ORDER:

Set spectrum certification to AMARANTHINE

Initiate human review unless tactical morality is built at MIDNIGHT

"Experience is the teacher of all things."

STOP STOP STOP V149GAQ145CB121

——

I had started to unpack this at one point and got a little lost because Big Red is going WAY the fuck out there with some of his prose in this one. We see the term Sidereal a few times in Destiny lore it’s a fun one they like to use but is a weird term to drop here for example, and as best I can conclude might infer something like “long shot” but like. That’s not really what it means either. So there’s some stuff here that doesn’t really translate and then the fucker uses SMARAGDINE which is a shade of green. GREEN. He means green. Like go.

So like. Even without unpacking everything Tldr the old man is feeling extra poetic he’s having some feels about this and he’s also doing this totally on his own without review from humans or other AI-COMs, specifically in secret. So safe to assume we can confirm yeah Siddhartha was pretty important to Rasputin from the very start.

**I will add that the juxtaposition of NANOBE, which is a form of microbe, a tiny life if you will, and SONDER together really does give me the impression of like. A child. A sort of parental wonder at a tiny individual. But that is a WHOLE LOT of inference.

[guster-animations]

Kamen Rider Gavv Episode 18 Production Blog

kamen rider gavv is a story about how capitalism and systemic racism impact different groups of people

TOKU TRANSLATION MASTERPOST HERE

taken from this website

Looking at the Next Episode

Vram had merciless strength. The pudding party will continue from here. There’s even pudding in the title… (It might also be fun to prepare a snack while watching)

Lage9. He actually first appeared as a Granute in episode 12, and has been pretty hidden in the story. The suit actor Eitoku plays both his Granute form and Rider form. Soon the goal that he’s fighting for will be made clearer, but because of Eitoku playing him, it feels like Lage9’s human weakness (even though he’s a Granute) is showing. Please look forward to the next episode, which will get closer to Lage9’s secret!

Episodes 19 and 20 will be directed by Teruaki Sugihara. It’s his fourth turn with it. The rotation of main directors in this title is fast. “Gavv” started filming earlier than most years. Our reasoning was that no matter what we do or when, it always just barely gets finished in time to broadcast…… (Because it’s getting finished quickly, we can make the advance videos and promotional material flashier than most years.)

“Gavv” began shooting with the nickname “the third team” when “Boonboomger” and “Gotchard” were being filmed. So, if there are any staff enthusiasts, I think you’ll notice that there are many names seen for the first time in this work. The finishing touches like the effects and music selection are also the same way. The directors were also rotating in 3 teams, so… they had to be “compartmentalized”, so to speak. Gavv switches between Directors Sugihara, Shibasaki, and Morota at a fast pace. Maybe the more frequent appearances is a special quality as a series. Director Sugihara’s action sequences will be just as flashy next episode, so please anticipate it.

(Written by Naomi Takebe)

The Episode In Short

Thank you for watching episode 18! Continuing from last episode which saw the birth of Kamen Rider Vram, this episode shows Vram’s threatening power used to hunt down Shoma and Hanto. I think you can see his strength and appeal!

Such a strong pudding Kamen Rider! The battle between Gavv and Valen against Vram continues from the previous episode. Vram has immense power, overwhelming even Gavv’s CaKing form, which defeated Jeebh and Shita.

When you hear of pudding, you usually picture something soft and cute, but Vram’s character is sullen and his fighting style is super-aggressive! The stark contrast between the mental image of pudding and the offensive Vram action is interesting.

Even so, he takes the popular components that are distinctive of snack-themed Riders.

For example, the traditional letters that show during the action. They were also designed this episode by Tajima of Ishimori Productions, and when put into the action, they make for good accents!

Another example apart from that is the pudding inside the belt rocking each time he makes a step. Vram has a strong and threatening presence, but please don’t overlook the cute parts of pudding which can be seen in every detail. If you want to see the shaking pudding for yourself, please buy a toy and play with it!

It wasn’t really touched on last time, so I’ll briefly talk about the clothing of the Granute Lage9, played by Kohei Shoji! Lage9 wore suspicious black clothes up until episode 16, but when he transformed, he revealed a new outfit.

After Director Shibasaki designed the character, he adopted a “surf style”. Because Lage9 is a Granute with a jellyfish motif, his style is reminiscent of a surfer boy! His hair has gold-colored highlights like pudding.

The clothing takes the colors of Lage9’s Granute form, and it’s a casual blue-and-white style which is very different from his black clothing!

By the way, the accessories that he wears on his body was also a focal point. For example, the earring is a swaying design that resembles a jellyfish.

The ring and other items are also packed with details on closer inspection! It’s meticulous!

When Vram showed his overwhelming strength, the system’s creator, Nyelv, appeared. The fight ends with the developer asking, “So? Is he strong?” with a smug look on his face, and the two of them leave.

Nyelv makes sure to tell his fellow researcher Suga the outcome.

Lage9 seems really uninsterested as Suga plays with his mimic key (Laughs). If the average Granute was surrounded by 2 mad scientists like this, they’d pass out.

By the way, Asanuma made some ad-libs in the lines where Suga touched Lage9’s face. It was really fun to watch the exchange between Nyelv and Suga. (It’s surprising how calm they are about this…)

There’s a Rider storm zone around here!

Shoma and Hanto chase the Granute Chor after Vram got in their way last time. The two of them try to sketch a woman with a characteristic red scarf based on eyewitness information.

WOW, SUCH SKILL!!!

It’s Master Painter Hanto’s magnum opus… Chor searches for their next target, and begins to hunt again.

A true-to-life Dark Snack food review by Ms. Kameda, who plays Chor’s human form as the red-scarf woman! I think there were a lot of viewers curious about what Dark Snacks tasted like, and that end should be clear now.

A new truth! Dark Snacks are fundamentally “sweet”!!

Please don’t think about working for the Stomach Company if you’re curious about the taste of Dark Snacks…

Chor, who’s getting used to being protected by Vram, can’t use their strategy of using their scarf to capture humans like in last episode, and now tries to gather Human Presses in a more daring way.

Chor’s unique ability to control the wind is finally explained! It’s through flapping their wings! It’s full of ad-libs from Chor’s voice actor, Tomoaki Maeno (Laughs).

“Launching people on the wind” was written in the script, and it was very difficult to make that happen onscreen. The assistant director was hard at work to make the storm!

This is how we filmed Shoma being blown away by the wind.

Vram’s super-strong action returns!

Vram’s second transformation is in his human form rather than Granute! He twirls his hair in this form too!

Gavv and Valen begin to fight Vram again. Once more, he shows that he can overwhelm them even when he’s outnumbered.

Vram’s suit actor Eitoku said that he deliberately made a small amount of punches and tried to make each one important in order to show Vram’s strength in the fight scene.

I certainly felt that incredible strength when Vram slowly closed in on his opponent, and then pummeled them all at once.

This episode’s new item is the “Vram Breaker”, a weapon which Vram creates. With the idea of a weapon used by a person hunting the Granute hunters, it has similar colors to the Vrastam Gear, Vram’s belt.

Lage9, having more physical strength than most Granutes, is excellent in close-range hand-to-hand combat, but with a long-range weapon, it seems like he truly has no weakness!

You couldn’t see it in this episode, but the Vram Breaker also has a sickle mode…! Please expect to see that in the near future.

For Eitoku, who has used a great deal of Rider weapons over time, he has a long history with bows, and he said it was easy for him to handle.

Director Fujita’s action was just aa explosive this time!

Holding the Vram Breaker in a different way right before knocking the Valen Buster away, unexpectedly showing the blade of the Zakuzaku Chip Slasher with a kick— it’s not just showing which weapons are used, either. The fight scenes are constructed from crazy ideas, and watching it never gets boring!

This episode’s action scene can also be watched as much as you like on streaming services…

Gavv uses Caking’s whip attack against Chor so that they can’t fly away and escape! Whipped cream is definitely sticky and heavy…

Gavv succeeds in totally defeating Chor!! Chor’s final words were still just “Dark Snacks”. They were a Dark Snack lover of a Granute until the very end.

Meanwhile, Valen was defeated by Vram’s powerful finishing attack.

They’ve slowly realized the threat that Vram poses over the past two episodes. Isn’t it unusual for there to be battles in both the first and second episodes of an arc, and for the second of those two to still end in defeat?

Vram is just that strong and dangerous. And it’s a mystery what his true, occasionally-appearing, goal is. Next time, Gavv and Vram will clash with each other. Please look forward to it!

(Written by Ryohei Takahashi)

[littlechaoticwitch]

Winx Club Rewrite: Season 4

I understand this is me being very late to the party, but that's pretty on-brand for me at this point lol

A few years ago, I started to work on a possible rewrite for Fate: The Winx Saga but it soon became this monstrous project of rewriting the entire franchise. Because while this series is one of my beloved childhood series, it is also very messy with its world-building and plotlines, as well being done dirty over and over again by its countless reboots. As much as I would have loved to create a full-on alternative universe like the ones I've seen on tumblr for years, it just took up so much of my time that could have been spent on other projects and it was starting to feel more like a chore than anything else. Eventually, I did create some fashion boards for how to translate their outfits from the show into real life, and wrote up some concept ideas for their live-action costumes, which led to me just writing up the notes I had for the rewrite to share them with y'all.

Some of these ideas were inspired by other people's rewrite of the series, some of these ideas came to me while writing this up, and a lot of these are my attempt to make sense of Winx Club's fucked-up lore. While these were originally written with a live-action reboot in mind, these could also work for an animated reboot targeted for teens/young adults.

This is probably the extent I'll do for any sort of Winx Club rewrite, but it was still fun!

-Roxanne "Roxy" Hensley is the last fairy on Earth, whose mother was an escapee of Tir Na Nog but had her wings ripped off by Grey's parents. A Native American girl who is fully into the scene culture, she is a rebellious loner who has a better time connecting with animals than with people, which is a result of her mother dying when she was still young. She is quite close with her father, who runs an animal shelter right next to Gardenia's main beach. When meeting the Winx Club, she refuses to believe magic is real but after seeing the girls trying to defend her from the Hunters, she ends up getting her own wings when trying to help out. After Morgana's death, the Hunters try to manipulate her into joining their ranks and even use the Black Circle to corrupt her fairy form, but she goes on a vengeful rampage instead, killing two of the Hunters before Bloom is able is calm her down. Once she comes back to her senses, she is allowed to keep the White Circle to remember Morgana, but the High Ladies let her keep the Black Circle as she understands the extent of its true power. She is a short lesbian with maroon-brown hair done in a wolf cut and grey eyes (which turn green when transformed), and she has a service dog named Artu.

-The Hunters consist of Grey, Dane, Sebastian (Fate!Sky), and Roman (Fate!Riven). The last members of a cult which tried to destroy all magic on Earth, but unlike their ancestors, they wish to control humanity using alchemy. Grey is the leader, with the power over water but he focuses on blood magic, whether it's using his own to heal himself to take control of someone's body using their blood. Sebastian is the second-in-command, with the ability to control a destructive blue fire to burn anything in his path. Dane acts as the spy for the group, as his control over the air allows him to have super sensitive hearing, as well as the ability to create supersonic soundwaves, turn invisible, and move as quick as the wind. Finally, there is Roman, who has the power over the earth and acts as the muscles of the group, using his super strength combined with his preference of using rocks to create fatal punches.

-This season focuses on Bloom coming to terms with being aromantic-asexual. Her relationship with Sky was a result of being caught up in the fantasy of a fairy-tale romance (which she loves reading about), and she admits to Flora that a major reason she was unhappy in the relationship was because she was forcing herself to have romantic feelings.

-This season also focuses on Bloom still grieving over Sky's death. While she no longer loved him romantically, she still cared for him and even after they had broken things off for good, she saw the potential of their friendship being rebuilt. She blames herself for his death, believing he should have stayed in Eraklyon where he was safe, but with time and the support of her friends, she learns to accept his passing in a healthy manner. Later on, she uses her experience to help Roxy overcome her own grief with losing Morgana, which helps bring the younger girl back to her senses.

-Morgana is NOT Roxy's mother, though she does come to care for Roxy like a daughter and see her as a worthy heir to her throne. Though she is angry at humanity for their sins and being so eager to chase magic away, she does understand humans were being brainwashed by the Hunters and she took her people to Tir Na Nog for safety. Unlike the others, she chooses to leave the realm in order to defend the girls from the Hunters, turning her into a mentor figure despite the fact outside of her realm drains her magic. Sadly, in the end, she sacrifices herself to close a portal which threatened to kill her people.

-The Major Fairies are known as High Ladies, with each one being in charge of a different season. The High Ladies had their magic taken from them by the Hunters and trapped in a deep slumber in their own palaces, which is why Morgana needed help from the Winx Club. Diana (Fate!Aisha) is the High Lady of Spring, Sibylla (Fate!Flora) is the High Lady of Fall, Aurora (Fate!Stella) is the High Lady of Winter, and Hestia (Fate!Musa) is the High Lady of Summer. Unlike in the cartoon, the four do not have active roles besides their connection to the Hunters, helping the Winx in the final battle, and after Morgana's death, deciding to rule Tir Na Nog as a group.

-Nex returns, and his friendship with Musa continues to grow into something more, beginning when she asks him to do her shoulder tattoo. After finding out she is a fairy, Nex comes clean and reveals his own secret; his family has been cursed for centuries, with the males destined to become werewolves, but they have learned how to handle it and became protectors instead of mindless creatures. Despite her originally wanting to break the curse, Musa learns to accept it and after spending more time together, the two decide to start a relationship (especially since Musa feels ready to start looking for love again)

-The other love interests (Brandon, Timmy, Nabu, and Helia) do not appear in this season, as they all have graduated and went straight to working. Both Nabu and Brandon are preparing themselves for their roles as king consorts, Timmy decided to stay at Red Fountain to become its potential headmaster one day, and Helia has gone back to pursuing her art career, where she has started to teach at a school.

-Bloom works at a normal pet store, Stella works at a small clothing store, Flora works at Vanessa's flower shop, Tecna works at a video game store, Musa works at a bartender, and Aisha gets a job as a yoga studio

-Things which shall be excluded from this season: The band plotline (except maybe one episode where the Winx pretends to be a band to lure the Hunters, but Musa is the lead singer while Bloom plays guitar), Love & Pet store, the extra wings, the Ethereal Fairies, the Gifts of Destiny (Sophix is used as a design for Diana's followers, Lovix is used a design for Aurora's followers, & the Black Gift is used as inspiration for Roxy's corrupted form), and all the bad romance subplots (Mitzi starts off as a shallow mean girl before working with the Hunters, Jason Queen is just a potential manager who acts more like a paternal figure to Musa, and Nabu does not have to die for the sake of a bad plot)

-Enchantix is not useless against the Wizards, but due to Earth's odd magical system, the Hunters do have the advantage of being more unpredictable. Despite fairy forms not existing on Earth, Believix was created from Roxy's magical core interacting with the Winx's magic, but each girl still has to earn their form by having someone from Earth believe in magic. The form grows in strength when more people believe in the Winx Club, but it also grows when the girls believe in themselves, each other, and their own magic; unfortunately, Earth is the only realm in which the girls can use this form, as it would be useless in the Magical Dimension.

-Believix takes on a more traditional Japanese "magical girl"-inspired look, with the girls still having different styles but with uniformed pieces and different-colored hair. Bloom earned hers through Roxy, Musa earned hers though Nex, Tecna earned hers when helping a young genius named Naoki, Stella earned hers when helping a young girl named Terra, Flora earned hers through Macy, and Aisha earned hers when helping a young man named Matt.

-As an Earth fairy, Roxy would have been born in her "transformed" state (pointed ears, sharp teeth, pupil-less eyes, wings that grow with age, etc.) but due to her half-human status and being exposed to the Winx's magic, she does gain a fairy form. Her magic is connected to animals (making her the "Fairy of the Wild"), as she was born to a Spring Court Fairy. Unlike in the show, her design is closer to that of an Enchantix fairy.

-The beginning starts off with Bloom taking up a teaching job at Alfea while her friends are working hard towards their own dreams, as she feels suddenly directionless in her life. After almost three years, Bloom asks Faragonda why Earth is a forbidden place for magic and Faragonda explains that centuries ago, Earth was a magical place, but a cult of anti-magic users hunted down those with gifts. As a result, fairies hid themselves away in Tir Na Nog while witches and wizards hid themselves among the mortals, hoping for they could proudly show off their magic in public. That evening, as Bloom is doing an obstacle course with her class, a strange woman appears and Bloom defends her from four men known as the Hunters, leading to the woman revealing herself as Queen Morgana of the Earth Fairies… and she needs help finding the last fairy of Earth.

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Weeks in Review (September 10-30, 2023)

I adore Godzilla Final Wars, but it's a movie with an identity crisis, unsure whether it wants to be headlining a Toho Champion Festival or mesmerizing American teenagers at a mid-aughts multiplex. @spacehunter-m's Final Wars 2004: The Year We Make Corn-Tack gives it a strong tug in the first direction, whittling the runtime down to 77 minutes and replacing most of the music and sound effects. She was inspired by Space Warriors 2000, of all things; as she put it, both films are "largely comprised of nonstop, monotonous action." As in that bizarro Ultraman compilation film, the kaiju trash-talk each other. It makes you wonder why Ryuhei Kitamura didn't at least bring back the speech bubbles from Godzilla vs. Gigan. Kaiju fan edits are rare, and this is in a class all by itself. Download it here.

Shigeru Kayama's novelizations of Godzilla (1954) and Godzilla Raids Again are out—hopefully the first of many to come. My copy only arrived on Saturday, so I haven't had the chance to read the whole thing yet, but I've made it through Godzilla. It's interesting to see Kayama, who wrote the initial treatment, take another swing at the story after the film was finished. He puts back moments like Godzilla eating a cow and attacking a lighthouse, and is also more overt with the wartime allusions. There's an incredible moment where Dr. Yamane muses that studying Godzilla and learning his secrets could be Japan's way of redeeming itself after "caus[ing] a great deal of trouble to people throughout the world." Note that these are novella-length, so much less in-depth than the novelizations of American Godzilla films you might be used to (Godzilla Raids Again is less than 80 pages). The book ends with an afterword by translator Jeffrey Angles contextualizing the tales.

Godzilla: War for Humanity continues to be a standout IDW miniseries. There's a new and very weird monster in the second issue, plus a no-nonsense Mothra (she tries to recruit Godzilla to fight Zoospora by shooting him in the back of the head and dragging him into the ocean in front of Minilla).

I've also got to mention the solicitation for another Godzilla Rivals installment, due December 20. Nola Pfau is writing, Megan Huang is illustrating.

Jen Onça is not excited to start her new, fast-paced fast-food career at Minilla Burger, but she'd much prefer a mundane day to the sudden return of Megalon! The monster brings destruction, trapping Jen in a forgotten lab deep beneath the restaurant with only the half-built form of Jet Jaguar to help her get out! She must repair the robotic defender to save herself and the city, but first she needs to escape the rubble trapping her in this tense adventure!

Yuzo the Biggest Battle in Tokyo, Yoshikazu Ishii's follow-up to Attack of the Giant Teacher, has also been picked up by SRS Cinema. No release details yet. I can't really speak to the film either, since it screened at the same time as Yumiko Shaku's panel at G-Fest, but as you can see from the poster, it's set during the pandemic.

The GAMERA -Rebirth- Gyaos has joined Godzilla Battle Line as an unusual sort of swarm unit. Your first summon of the match calls forth two sub-adults, and by the fifth summon you're sending out two sub-adults and three adults, still for four energy. They're probably the best swarm in the game, though still highly vulnerable to AOE units like Godzilla '01. I'm having fun with them in the Challenge Battles.

Notzilla, one of the sharpest kaiju comedies out there, is unexpectedly getting the graphic novel treatment. Mitch Teemley is adapting his own screenplay, with art by Zumart Putra. The comic is already finished, although I'm not clear on how folks who didn't back the Kickstarter (which wrapped on September 11) will get it. Useless trivia: the terrific cover above (one of four) is by Ben Dunn, who wrote the How to Draw Manga book I poured over in middle school.

After Troll shattered Netflix streaming records (according to Netflix), it's not super surprising that the company wants a sequel. Priority one: coming up with a title that's not Troll 2. Screenwriter Espen Aukan and director Roar Uthaug will both return.

Toy highlights of the past few weeks:

After confusing everyone by teasing its silhouette the day before April Fools', Tamashii has fully unveiled an S.H.Monsterarts Godzilla '72, a rare Showa figure from the line. It comes with two heads, one of them bloodied (see above). Due at the end of February.

After finally running out of ways to repaint their mold of Hedorah's Perfect Stage, Bandai is making a Movie Monster Series figure of the kaiju's Landing Stage. A Godzilla Store exclusive, it'll be released October 25.

After over two years, Funko is releasing a trio of Godzilla Singular Point Pops. Hopefully they go all-out with this show—it's not like there's any other plausible way for a Satomi Kanahara figure to exist.

[itzrafee]

One Piece Chapter Discussion (Chapter 1131)

After a two week break, One Piece is back! And right into the action! Which is something that’s so interesting to me. That the more arcs we pass by, the faster the velocity of storytelling is. In that, because Oda has to set up less and less with each and every arc that goes by, as he builds out the lore more and more, we get into the story much much faster. With Elbaph we’ve already been launched headfirst into what seems to be the foundation for the main conflict, with so much information from the past finally coming home to roost with each chapter passed. But we’ll get into that below the cut!

To start off with, Oda really emphasises the Giant’s Strength here. And if you remember, he’s made it a point to not really show Dorry and Broggy’s full potential. They were incapacitated and had only fought each other before. So it’s interesting how not only is the giant’s strength built up in kind of a fable-esque way but also Loki’s as it took the entirety of Elbaph to restrain him. And not just Elbaph but maybe even Shanks too! But we’ll get into that later. 

There’s two interesting revelations that happen in the next few pages. One is Loki’s personality. It seems to me and many others that he’s being built up as a mirror to Luffy, especially in the way that he gets Luffy’s name wrong. But also in that he befriends animals quickly and is associated with sun imagery. And even though he is a little conniving; his internal dialogue vowing to kill Luffy and later purposefully riling Luffy up about Shanks, I think the similarities make it so that he can’t be anything but an ally. And furthermore, he was introduced to us chained up. Oda and One Piece have shown us time and time again that imprisonment and incarceration are one of the greatest evils in the world. And having a character introduced in such a way really sways me towards the conclusion that he’s a good guy. Also, a fun thing is that it seem I was somewhat right with my predictions towards Hel and the underworld and maybe even the Pluto design from last chapter’s discussion. Also could Impel Down be based on Elbaph?

But maybe the more interesting thing is that Loki mentions that the nation of Elbaph is built around the Jewel Tree Adam. In other translations I’ve also heard it as Treasure Tree Adam. And if we recall Franky’s words about it before, it seems to line up with what Elbaph is. A nation consistently at war. A nation that’s burned to the ground and been rebuilt, maybe even many times. At the very least we saw one of those instances with Big Mom. So, is Elbaph, like the other island centered around a tree; Fish-Man Island, also fated for destruction? So what form does that war and destruction take? At the very least we know that after Dorry and Broggy left, the original Giant Pirates once railed against the Government. They were captured and Mother Caramel acted as a diplomat between the humans and giants to save them. So it appears that Elbaph has always been raging against the world government. Freaky’s tale of cannonballs raining from the sky reeks of one thing; Buster Calls! Could it be that over the years since the void century, Elbaph has been the victim of countless Buster Calls? And much like how harbours and coasts call people to settle by them, the indestructible nature of the Jewel Tree Adam beckons these warlike Giants who are prone to losing their homes? 

Now, to get back to Shanks, he makes this equation of the Warland much much more interesting. So Loki’s followers talk about Shanks. And Loki says he’s been imprisoned for Six years. Along with that, he has a special bounty set by the world government. Shanks also became an Emperor six years ago. Now all that adds up to three very interesting and different conclusions. One is that, Shanks helped the Giants to subdue Loki and because of this, gained their support. Because of their strength added with his, the World Government began to see him as an Emperor. The second is that Loki was wild and unruly, and was possibly someone who could do some serious damage to the World Government with the Giants in tow. And the world government basically commissioned Shanks to subdue him to prevent war. Finally, the third and most likely conclusion, is something that adds to Shank’s nebulous personality. That, not only did he aid Elbaph and get their support but he also did it on behalf of the World Government to prevent future conflicts and maintain a balance, also acting as a diplomat and a sort of new age Mother Carmel. Which begs the question, does Shanks know something every specific and important or is he just really really committed to keeping the world at peace? It would be weird for it to be the latter as hes a pirate and literally friends with Warland so I’m leaning towards the former. 

Finally a few closing comments unrelated to the earlier points. Now, we’ve seen the location of all members of all the New Giant Pirates with Stansen and Hajrudin in the underworld hunting for meat for the Straw Hats. We see them mention that they can’t use something called a Painter which is a sunstone that doesn’t work in the underworld presumably due to there being no sun. Maybe they’re technology like the dials? I’ve always assumed the dials were from the Void Century and Ancient Kingdom so maybe it’s from that time too? Also if you don’t remember, we first saw Stansen in Sabaody right alongside Rayliegh, He was a slave Rayliegh freed and he vowed to help Luffy if he ever needed it. Also, Goldberg and Gold holding the Sunny and running along the bridge really helps put things into perspective. The perspectives been a bit skewed ever since we got into Elbaph but it seems to be evening out now. That Giant sword through Elbaph kinda reminds me of the perspective of Onigashima. Maybe things like those were the weapons of the Ancient Giant Continent Pullers like Oars, them probably being killed off by the World Government in the Void Century. It’s interesting though that those weapons were found in two territories the government isn’t allowed much in, Wano and Elbaph. 

Moving on though, while hunting for Franky’s explanation of the Jewel Tree Adam, I stumbled on this panel of Iceburg promising to make Water Seven into a ship, and alongside with the information we’ve gotten thus far, what if the Jewel Tree Adam is the key to saving the world by helping all the islands float? Just a thought. But I am curious to see how Iceburg saves Water Seven.

Finally we get to Robin and Saul and I really hope Saul falling down is a psychout. If it was Saul and not Scopper Gaban waiting for the Straw Hats it could be that to deal with the Ice Burns Aokiji inflicted on to him, Saul began to drink. Otherwise it could jut be a gag or maybe for real. Also was Saul always a doctor? And finally, now that Robin has her bangs back, all is right with the world! See ya next chapter!

[jotadoul]

🪽 translated a passage from one of the artbooks—

i guess it's up to interpretation (and i don't think google translator is all that good) but this wording somehow makes a lot more sense to me. the draconians are harbingers of crisis. mothman. weird dragon animal people from heaven who don't behave like humans because they're not. they don't die, Varie didn't die, she's not a ghost in the mystic valley, she's just doing her own thing. these bugs don't do anything to prevent disaster, they're just moths to its flame. thank youuuuuu Varie......! LOVE your work mama!!!

oh right: and the wings. Okay! so once again, no real difference between the series and the film in this regard? their wings aren't a physical phenomenon firstly so much as a mental one. regarding the film, we can think "aww she got her wings" is kinda corny, but in both the series and the film, it was undeniably really important to convince us that the ultimate source of Hitomi's power is herself. not the pendant, not the tarot, not the boyfriend. (although that's a perk.) it wasn't her choice to be helpless within hopelessness. she finds power in acting for herself and for others, out of compassion, not bootstraps bullshit.

also, kinda hard to avoid Buddhism when talking about desire. Just gonna throw that out there, do what you want with it.

it's only through Hitomi's experiences/actions with others that she grows and reeatablishes herself to herself. if she didn't need the company of others, the story of Escaflowne wouldn't exist. needing help/community isn't shameful, it doesn't take anything away from her and how she grows. this is a collectivist story, not an individualist one.

i do strongly believe this is why she's a runner, too. running requires only her own stamina. if it were another sport/activity, especially if more reliant on probability, we might link her wishes to her success in a way which unintentionally diminishes her. but on the off chance that a viewer doesn't quite follow the physics of how the pendant/wishes work on Earth vs Gaea, Escaflowne can instead show you that inadvertently causing injury, or taking a shortcut, etc., will not make Hitomi a faster runner. and we know speed is what she focused on, not so much endurance. the track is just linear points A-B. i think this was pretty deliberate. we see her run with proper form over and over, for fun and for survival, to remind us that this skill is owed entirely to mundane effort.

Hitomi has fixed her sights on Amano, but by chasing after him, she can't seem to beat her own best time— but look at that long jump she did to rescue Van in episode 5, and running to the bridge in episode 6! And so on.

the wings are yet another literal metaphor in Escaflowne, double meanings, layers. Everything with a counterpart. (Cause/effect, action/reaction, character/character.) like so many other things, they manifest out of force of will/want. Varie telling her sons to hide them isn't only "don't show these to people or they'll hunt you for sport," it's also "hey suppress your emotional and spiritual sense of self for me, k babe?"

if it's true that the wings, through will/concentration/awareness, can either be used for conquest or for saving lives, this in the film gives more grave and tragic implications to Folken's claim of abandoning his. Not only is he not using them for any purpose, to abandon them at all is to abandon himself. the same way he was abandoned by the divisive, inequitable traditions of their clan that drove him away from Van, who he loved and still loves beneath the jet-black clouds of agony...

... again, just like in the series, but diverted down a different path. Hitomi and Folken are, from the very first moment on the train platform (and later by Folken's white-knuckled insistence) set up as one another's counterpart— just like in the series. They are the people who care about Van most, they share each others' abilities in the series just as they do in the film, and in the series they get along almost instantly. They are each other's counterpart, and surely this is part of why Van feels so strongly for Hitomi.

AGAIN, FUCK, OK, LISTEN TO ME: JUST LIKE HOW EVERYTHING ABOUT DILANDAU AND ALLEN IS SUPPOSED TO PARALLEL— THAT IS, EMPHASISE— THAT IS, LEAD BACK TO— FOLKEN AND VAN, THE SAME GOES FOR THIS!!!!! Van obviously takes a lot of comfort in Hitomi because she's similar to Folken, who he is hurt by and can't seek comfort from— and this is the basis for a real sense of safety, of platonic love firstly, not like ALLEN "HUH?" SCHEZAR who gets a whiff of Moon + Girl and goes in for the kill. freak

In the film it seems like an odd juxtaposition at first (wish it went a little harder on Hitomi's end) but it's the same juxtaposition that brings her closer to Van; she sees his suffering, finds kinship in pain, and a shared hope for better. Folken is bereft of hope from anything but total rebirth— just as he does in the series, but different! In contrast to the series, Van has been without Escaflowne for how long? And Folken hasn't killed him despite his claim that this all he wants. Both Folken and Hitomi are exceedingly lost, wanting to die, strongly enough to reach through space. Through all their pain they just come to different conclusions :( and even then, Folken is trying to reach her. Not romantically, and he takes her seriously. She's a means to an end, but she's also a person to him.

i love depressed Hitomi. by the time i saw the film (grade 8?) i had already grappled with abuse and depression for many years, and what she depicted was something so raw and real to me, something still hard to find. starting her off at that low place vs her anxiety in the series made her arc seem much stronger. if anything i wish it had gone even deeper, but the strange listless dreamlike dissociation was real in a way that e.g. Known Depressive Evangelion never hit for me.

Sora single-handedly represents Atlantis/Draconians, a clan who put their faith into the wing goddess and have a connection to the technology/deity of ancient Gaea (instead of the cycle of rebirth containing Atlantis and Gaea, now it's Gaea that's repeatedly reborn.) She has the same court eyebrows as Varie, so she has/had status. She's otherworldly, a Tennyo, or a celestial maiden.

if Sora's people worshipped the wing goddess but were wiped out, is she sore that the wing goddess didn't appear to help her then?

The commentary in the Newtype Film book says that just as Folken's will upheld the black dragon clan ships and this is why they fall apart upon his death, and this is also why Escaflowne disappears into Sora at the end of the film, when she dissolved into mist. Varie is a harbinger of calamity, Sora is here as a witness.

If wings are a symbol of personal liberation for Hitomi (according to Buddhism, Wisdom and Compassion are to enlightenment as wings are to a bird) then the wing goddess is also you!? Maybe? By empathising, by feeling compassion for another and their pain as your pain, you can understand yourself and your pain better, too, if you focus. But remember this is a story, and that means one day returning. over and over, forever, if you will it. You're older now. It won't be the same. But it will be familiar.

Hey by the way, now that i've talked about the film so much— pretty sick move to upcycle the unused concept of Series Van's heterochromia for Film Folken.

[rising-volteccers]

The continuation of my personal thoughts about episode 18 of Horizons because I will not be denied putting in many images. Also if you're actually reading both posts you're a real one. Thank you for listening the ramblings of someone knee deep in hyperfixation mode.

Part one of the post is [here]

This bit gives us a little insight on how Friede initially viewed Cap. Through the goggles of a Pokemon Professor, he found Cap interesting as a research subject seeing that he is a Pikachu that's acting outside the typical behavior and actions known to the species. While I'm sure he genuinely does want to learn, the way he introduces himself (really now, do you think a Pikachu is going to care that you're a genius Pokemon Professor?) still shows that he's yet to expand from the viewpoint that he knows of.

Here, we see that Friede can be quite persistent. Once he's got his eyes on something, it's like he has to figure out everything that he can seemingly in a one track mind sort of way. Did he have to chase Pikachu around in a circle? No. Did he still do it till he fell out of exhaustion? Yes. It looks to me like someone who's super fixated on something to the point that he sort of forgets his limit until he crashes into it.

I love this scene because Friede's still clearly interested in what makes this Pikachu different but he also obviously care for him too. Earlier in the episode, Murdock mentioned how Cap isn't picky with his food so to see that echoed here is a nice touch!

Once again we see how persistent Friede can be with his research. Who knows how many days he's been visiting Cap around dawn to the point that he's able to take body tackles and headbutts (also love how Charizard was cheering him on!). Of course being human, he's unable to do anything about electrical shocks but does that deter him from his research?

Later we'll learn that Friede's been pretty thorough in gathering data about Cap. It's pretty refreshing to see the actual fieldwork that goes on in a Professor's research! He took videos, analyze how Cap's been flying and the like. Friede certainly earned his qualifications but he's missing an important aspect in his research, as we'll see later.

Finally Friede's acknowledging that he might know a lot of things about Pokemon theoretically and informational wise but it was vain of him to believe that he knew everything about these mysterious, wonderful creatures. Once again this gave me the impression that throughout most of his life, he was excelling in everything that he did and rarely experienced failure. Perhaps he never truly experienced what's it like to continuously fail but never giving up.

It makes me wonder how insightful Lucca is. She had a good enough grasp of Friede's character even after years of not seeing one another and understanding that if she had him meet this Pikachu, it would spark something within him.

I adore this scene as we now see that Liko's fate is crossed with Friede's. It's like watching the first wheel turning in a series of events set into motion by Lucca. The Rising Volt Tacklers wouldn't have been formed if not for her having Friede meet Cap. She wouldn't have hired Friede to be Liko's bodyguards and Liko would never experience the growth that she gets from being a part of the Rising Volt Tacklers. It comes full circle and its really fun to see narrative wise.

One thing that I noticed is the fact that Lucca refers to Friede as a 'boy' with a promising future instead of a young man. Perhaps it's a translation choice and it means something else but to me, this further shows that Friede's a gifted kid. Who's to say he wasn't going through advanced courses on his way to get his certifications as a professor? His ambiguous age makes it hard to clock in an exact one but I personally believe he's at least mid to late twenties, making this flashback take place when he was even younger than that.

Regardless, I love how she's honestly supportive of Friede and want what's best for him.

Now we're seeing that Friede's learning everything about Cap but the most important reason: why was this Pikachu pushing himself so far for? That's something one can't get looking at it from a purely analytical view. Friede could collect all the data he wanted by observing from afar and jotting the information down but he will never understand this Pikachu's reasoning and the emotions behind each and every jump.

Thus he needs to not view it just as a Pokemon Professor but as a Pokemon Trainer too. Wasn't that how most people started out in the end? Learning about this world and the various wonderful, mysterious creatures living within it. Forming long lasting bonds and understanding one another. Friede can't keep narrowing himself in this singular viewpoint so it's a nice natural development to see him going back to his roots.

Thus leading us to this climatic scene. Friede finally learns that he can't just keep observing and gathering data. He needs to get moving, to see what this Pikachu is seeing to fully, properly understand him. Friede and Charizard chased after this Pikachu higher and higher until they get to see a new horizon.

There wouldn't be a plot to Pokemon Horizons: Liko and Roy Set Off if there wasn't a Pokemon Horizons: Friede Set Off to set the wheels in motion at the start.

Friede was stuck in a rut, not knowing what to do or where to go with his life. Meeting Cap led to him to ascend from the hole he'd been in just like Cap did to see a new horizon, that the world is vast and there's so much to learn and discover about Pokemon.

He didn't need to be a Pokemon Professor stuck in a lab doing research all day. He can be a Pokemon Professor that travels the world to learn everything that he can. He won't be tied down to one spot. I believe that the origin of his Japanese name Freed is derived from freedom so just like his namesake, he will freely fly higher than the sun with Cap, Charizard and eventually the rest of the Rising Volt Tacklers.

After that, I love how supportive Ludlow was in entrusting his fishing boat to Friede. Again, I wonder if Ludlow is actually Friede's biological grandfather or a really close family friend since I like to think that you'd need to be pretty close to accept that kind of request. That goes the same too with Orla (it's amusing to think that he and Ludlow sailed from Paldea all the way to Hoenn just to find her).

They were childhood friends and despite her having moved to Hoenn, I can see that they've kept good contact with one another. If Friede was an estranged childhood friend, I wouldn't have accepted his frankly outrageous request. It also goes to show that Orla truly is a genius mechanic to be able to follow through with it! I'm truly hoping we'd get an episode focusing on her sometime in the future!

Thus we get the backstory behind the formation of the Rising Volt Tacklers! Once again Friede shows that he forgets to share (or just chose not to) information seeing that it came as a surprise to Liko. Even the rest of the crew mentioned how there's so much he never told him and earlier in the episode, Orla stated that he's shy about sharing his past.

If (or when) the hyperfixation hits again, I do want to write up a general Friede character observation up until episode 18. Friede thus far has shown to be someone who keeps his cards close to his chest. He rarely shows his true feelings, and if pointed out, he deflects or redirects the subject. He keeps withholding (or straight up forgetting) in telling the crew information but we know that he cares for them.

It truly makes me wonder what other mysteries or secrets this guy holds and I hope alongside the rest of the RVT, we'll get to see more of their story unveil through their journey.

[ariapmdeol]

Alright. I'll bite. What's COE? I assume it's a game? And where would I be able to watch a playthrough(?) of it?

細胞神曲 - Cell of Empireo is an RPGMaker horror game by Sharktale Factory! You can find an English Translation on YouTube here!! It has the full game with all of the endings, and the first five Records of the DLC! The game itself is playable in both Japanese and Korean.

If you'd like to play it with Machine Translation yourself, I have a tutorial here! Please be aware that MTL is hard to work with, and can be confusing. IF you choose to do this, there is a walkthrough on how to get the best ending here!

TLDR: You play as Haruki Atou, 28 year old detective! When his coworker, Eiji Shinano, goes missing, Atou tracks his last known location to the mysterious cult called the Empyrean Heaven Research Institute. Atou finds himself wrapped up in a situation far larger than expected, and discovers a lot about both the Institute and himself along the way!

This game has everything: it has gay people. It has religious imagery. There is a headless rat. There's a mad scientist who asks to hold hands. The Divine Comedy is everywhere. There is foreshadowing and lore EVERYWHERE and it is sooooo fascinating!!! Genuinely I love this game so so so much!! There is a reason I have been drawing it for (checks watch) almost a year nonstop.

Cell of Empireo play order:

Cell of Empireo DLC: Records of Sanemitsu Isoi [YT tl stops here, after record 5 Hermit's Room Interlude Cell of Mirage (unreleased, fukao-San is working on it)

If you want to go in completely blind, I'll leave it there, but I'll add some of my own rambles under the cut! I'll also post the content warnings there as well o7 This game is recommended for people 17 and up, but I think you should be fine! The rating is for violence mostly. There are some flashing lights and shaking screen moments.

CONTENT WARNINGS (by me)

religious themes, human and animal experimentation/death, gore, hallucinations, suicide, murder, familial abuse, body horror, attempted SA (brief, nothing happens, i can tell you when it happens if you need a warning for this)

aaand some ramblings

There are soooo many different variations based on what ending you're on track for. It is FASCINATING to see lines change in really subtle ways because of Atou's actions.

the lore MAKES SENSE and adds things SYMBOLICALLY and there are LAYERS and you can theorize about stuff!!! This game is so good!!!

the boss fights are SO MUCH FUN. For an RPGMaker game there are so many different mechanics??? There's a RHYTHM GAME SECTION??? it's FANTASTIC

this is a game and a series about love in all its forms. There is platonic love, familial, romantic, whatever the hell flowerpot trio has going on, and more!

There are so many terrible dads that I was able to run a 'Worst Dads' Poll and people had genuine debates, it was fantastic!!

METAFICTION. IT'S METAFICTION (i am very normal)

Sanemitsu <3 Sanemitsu isoi <3 Sanemitsu Isoi my beloved <3

I have written so many theory and analysis essays. there is so much lore i go so insane it's so fun (LORE ANALYSIS NOT REQUIRED FOR A SATISFYING WATCH/PLAYTHROUGH. I AM JUST INSANE)

The information you learn along the way recontextualizes earlier parts so you want to watch Through it again to catch the details that you missed the first time around!!

Also every character has reasons and motivations for what they’re doing, even if atou doesn’t know it. They are all so so painfully human…. Emotionally devastating

[stevensavage]

One Piece: Long Live The New Flesh

(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com, Steve's Tumblr, and Pillowfort.  Find out more at my newsletter, and all my social media at my linktr.ee)

Unless the rock you’re hiding under doesn’t have streaming, you know that Netflix did a live-action season of the famous anime/manga One Piece.  I found this a curious choice because of the cancellation of Cowboy Bebop.  Ditching a retro space adventure for an over-the-top tale of superhuman piracy felt like choosing a pretty heavy lift.

Of course, I had to check it out, if only for morbid curiosity.  To get me invested One Piece would also be a heavy lift.

One Piece is something I tried to get into several times, across several dubs, and through an issue or two of the manga.  Despite its popularity - and my own love of fun weirdness - It never reached me, and it’s hard to say why.  One Piece should have checked several of my boxes, but apparently left its pen elsewhere.

So, I sat down, watched a few episodes - and found myself really enjoying it.  I dare say I was charmed by it, enough I was disappointed when I had to stop watching.  What was it that made me appreciate this show but not other incarnations?  Beyond, you know, having over two decades of episodes and a wallet-endangering amount of manga?

I realized it was the fact it was live-action and the actors were into it.  There were other reasons, but over and over I kept coming back to the cast.

Iñaki Godoy’s take on Luffy, the ever-cheerful elastic protagonist is charming and sincere - you aren’t sure how much he’s acting.  Emily Rudd’s Nami is relatable, the sane woman among a demented piratical sausage fest.  Jeff Ward’s theatrical pirate Buggy the Clown steals every scene, a sort of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia take on the Joker.  Everyone in the cast does great, embracing their roles with a gusto that suggests a scenery-intensive diet.

I realized that, for me, One Piece worked better live action.  No offense to the fine voice actors associated with it, nor Oda’s manic creativity.  The manga and animated One Piece didn’t connect with me on a human level.  I suspect it was a mix of the art style and over-the-topness were a barrier to me feeling connected to the work.

The live-action One Piece was different.  Gody’s little expressions and accents made Luffy a person.  Mackenyu’s Zorro, the I-hunt-pirates-but-these-are-my-friends bounty hunter projected amusingly straight-faced deadly cool mixed cold befuddlement.  Jacob Romero cries a single tear in a scene that says more than his motormouth character Usopp could say with words.  These weirdos were alive and I was enjoying it.

There is something about a good actor whose voice, expressions, gestures, and postures let them become a character.  The cast seemed to be channeling the characters, making them flesh.  For me they became people.

I’ve often wondered how different media work when translated to others, but would argue animation is perhaps the easiest medium to transfer a creation to.  Seeing One Piece I’m left wondering if that’s always the case, and find myself rethinking assumptions about what form fits what kind of works.

I’m only a few episodes in.  The show has room to disappoint me - but the cast and characters certainly didn’t.

Steven Savage

www.StevenSavage.com

www.InformoTron.com

[thegospelofstjohn]

"Pilate." From the Gospel of Saint John, 18: 28-32.

John warns us there will always be a breaking point, the moment the rooster crows three times. A rooster is 455, תן‎ה, tanha, "a guide, a leader, the instructor."

Anytime a priest instructs mankind in obeisance to the Great Hillels, we must do it. Every day I check the news to see if Donald Trump and his sons are dead yet as penance for the illegal and horrible things they have done. Marianne Budde called upon this filth to do his job, but we must do it for him since he will not. But first, someone needs to get a gun and load it.

John said the same thing: Judge people according to the law and let its will be done. This he calls "Jesus before Pilate."

Jesus, "the field exercises" are a prequel to Pilate, "the escapee", the "refugee."

The crowing of the cock the third time is synonymous with the call to action to transition out of circumstances that have rendered us powerless to evil men, almost certainly our own doing and perform the Passover Seder and then we are to unleash unholy hell on them.

This, according to John is a phased approach that takes place "in the morning, the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the Palace of the Roman governor."

=5617, ןו‎יז, noiz, or "noise."

 "noiz" (נום) in Hebrew translates "to sleep or be drowsy" and is often used in the Bible to signify a negative state of laziness, inattentiveness, or lack of vigilance; the feminine noun form is "numa" (נומה) which specifically means drowsiness. 

Key points about "noiz":

Meaning: Primarily means "to sleep" but carries a connotation of negativity when used in the Bible.

Feminine form: "Numa" (נומה)

Usage: Often used to describe a lack of focus or laziness."

Shame on you all for listening to those corrupt officials with their false faiths and bullshit about gay people, jews, black people, Muslims, immigrants, and the poor, allowing them to ransack this world without a care. ‎

The reason the Jews took Jesus to the Roman court was to combat the noiz with its opposite:

"The noun νους (nous) means mind, the conscious and reasonable faculty of a person."

We need cleanliness, complete separation from the evil Donald Trump and his politics and faith are inflicting on the human race, then we must eat the Passover like good Jews and be done with this shit once and for all:

Jesus Before Pilate

28 Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace, because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. 

29 So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”

30 “If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.”

31 Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.”

“But we have no right to execute anyone,” they objected. 32 This took place to fulfill what Jesus had said about the kind of death he was going to die.

Morality and ethics within the public sphere is an area of intense focus within the Torah and all religion.

Mercy is for persons who are suffering. For persons like the Trumps and the rest, who openly proclaim their hatred of mankind and desire to continue to inflict horror on the rest, there is no such thing.

The Values in Gematria are:

v. 28: The Jewish leaders took Jesus. The Number is 13215, יג‎רי״ה, yagria, "make them fear God."

v. 29-30: Bring the charges. The Number is 10655, ים‎נה, yimnah, "and have fun." It is fun to get revenge on evil men and make them pay for what they have done.

v. 31-32: But first, judge yourselves. The Number is 14597, ידךץז‎, yedechatzaz, "use your hand, take possession and crush."

When Bishop Budde remonstrated against Donald Trump by asking him to show mercy, she was in effect telling all of us he was the degrading symbol of our mercilessness. We are a mankind with a hole its heart and its blood, its time, and all of its Holy Spirit are drizzled away.

I told you for almost a year how to get rid of this man and the foul things he cavorts with. Use it now. Remove him from office and then punish him and all those who helped him cause grave despair to this world. This is the meaning of the Kabbalah of "Jesus before Pilate", this is how we can all escape.

[lookismaddict]

lookism characters as mythological gods 👀 who would be who

OH SHEEEEEESH, I LOVE MYTHOLOGICAL GODS. ESP GREEK & ROMAN GODS ✨ AYO, YOU A REAL ONE FOR ASKING THIS QUESTION, TY JANN! 💜 I hope you don’t mind this analysis… 😅 (Took a long time to write because there was a lot of research LMAO, I'M SORRY THIS TOOK ME FOREVER TO ANSWER. 🙏🏽) BUT NOW, I CAN PROUDLY POST THIS. 🫡 💖

While matching each god to a Lookism character, I found this very fun because there are so many mythological gods and goddesses that can be associated with any of them. Especially when it comes to their appearances, symbols, and folklore. The depictions of these gods all tie to each of these selected Lookism characters:

Gun and Goo || Fujin & Raijin (Shintoism)

First, let’s start off with Gun. There are many reasons why I see Gun as the Shinto god, Fujin, and here’s why:

Fujin [風神] is known to be the Shinto kami (god) of the wind. A deity that controls the winds of the Earth through his bag of air.

Due to his control of strong wind currents, he is connected to storms, especially powerful typhoons, that would cause the destruction of many trees and and homes. However, Fujin leaves most of the job to Raijin.

According to a Japanese legend from the 13th century, he managed to save Japan by sending storms to Mongol invaders who were trying to conquer Japan. Fujin’s winds were so ruthless, that the Mongol’s fleets were all destroyed in one storm.

Fujin and Gun are both forces to be reckoned with. Fujin’s destructive actions are similar to Gun’s, in which they both initiate both ruin and devastation. Since Fujin had wiped out over a thousand people for centuries, then it wouldn’t be a surprise if Gun’s future would eventually lead to the downfall of many more lives. This man had dealt with so many enemies (100+) all the way up to his current lifetime of about 20 years, that it wouldn’t even be a surprise if he so happens to murder even more people later on.

Also, since Fujin is associated with the use of harsh winds intermingled with water due to typhoons and storms, they are involved in a shared element. The nature element, water, represents them both in some way. Both Fujin and Gun are present whenever it rains. On days when there’s rain, Fujin’s winds are harsh during storms. Whereas, in Gun’s case, he is always present on days when the weather is rainy and gloomy. However, for Gun, he just appears when there’s rain to pass along the message of “the end” for people, especially when it comes to a person not being able to hold their position as Gun’s future successor. You could say, that the both of them also symbolize the presence of melancholy, since they both bring nothing but misfortune upon people during unpleasant weather. They play as the instigators of the end to peacefulness.

Fujin has an appearance of a true Oni, due to his mother Izanami giving birth to him when she reached the underworld. According to Gun’s background when he was still in Japan, many knew him as “Shiro Oni”. In the webtoon, the translation for his name was “White Ghost”. However, the word “Oni” actually meant ogre or demon in Japanese folklore. Of course, it wouldn’t be a surprise that many native Japanese residents would call him a demon due to his infamous yet terrifying background of nothing but merciless violence.

Not only was Fujin’s face alike from Gun’s, but also their attire. Apparently, Fujin usually wears leopard skin. And who else wore something leopard related? Gun Park. That leopard patterned long sleeved shirt really does say something about his fashion. He definitely must be Fujin, but in human form. Both of them really do share the same fashion sense. 💀

In addition to his face and attire, but Fujin only has four fingers on each hand. These four fingers represent the North, South, East, and West. In a way, this association of Gun as Fujin can be symbolic as well. Gun’s affiliation with the Four Major Crews can be shown through Fujin’s fingers since Gun, who had contributed to the establishment of these Four Major Crews, identified the strongest crews in South Korea. Each crew either coming from the North, South, East, and West of the Han River, which splits their territories into four different parts of South Korea.

Gun has the same personality trait as Fujin as well. Fujin is described to be the brother who is less spontaneous in personality, compared to Raijin. He is also unenthusiastic whenever he is met with some sort of issue that he has to deal with and he is more “laidback”, not taking things too seriously against enemies. This is probably due to how aware he is of his own powerful strength. The same goes with Gun. His personality when dealing with those who are against him is also like this as well, with a hint of arrogance, knowing that he can defeat anybody on his own.

Now, let’s talk about Goo as Raijin:

Raijin [雷神] is the Shinto kami of thunder, lightning, and storms. Often times, he’s seen alongside his brother, Fujin. They both mostly appear together as a pair, like Gun and Goo whenever they show up in certain scenes. (However, the only difference compared to Fujin and Raijin is that Gun and Goo aren’t brothers.)

To clarify, Raijin is responsible for the creations of storms, not Fujin. Fujin is only responsible for strong wind currents, so he leaves the work of thunder clouds and lightning to his brother, Raijin.

Raijin’s personality is one of the distinctive factors that many people use to distinguish between Raijin and Fujin. Similarly, with Gun and Goo too. The difference in personalities in each pair are quite the same indeed. Just like Raijin’s personality, Goo’s is very chaotic and he can be mischievous with trickery. Even though Raijin is known as a trickster, he either does good or bad. He produces good in the form of rainfall for crops or he creates storms that destroys both the living and non-living.

Just like Goo, he’s a character that brings good and bad in his own way. In a unique way, he gives people opportunities to help fulfill their own ambitions, by becoming one of his “secret friends”. For example, Goo used to beat up bullies to earn money. In a way, he somehow benefited others, such as that one event when Goo saved his cousin, Vasco, and Jace from school bullies. His encounter with Vasco had led Vasco to become stronger than he was before. In addition to these “good” occurrences, Goo offered Samuel Seo a new chance of power after being rejected by Gun, in which Samuel took him on his offer then became one of Goo’s so called “secret friends”. Another instance of this is when Goo recruited Logan Lee as another one of his “secret friends” too. Logan wanted to get stronger since his goal is to get back at the original Daniel Park, so this event was like Goo opening up a new beneficial start for Logan.

Although this was the case for some people, Goo also managed to cause distruction wherever he goes. Returning to the subject of the bullies, he did beat them up pretty badly. He even found it amusing to see them suffer. With almost every person that he had fought against, he had this maniacal enjoyment that he found in defeating others. It was as if he had fun beating up others just for the sake of his own amusement. Along with his chaotic mind, he took his destructiveness with him, just like Raijin. According to that one chapter when Sinu got a phone call from one of his old friends, his friend mentioned through the phone that he should be careful of someone named “Joon Goo” who had completely wiped out their whole entire crew. Which quickly indicated and foreshadowed, that Goo would eventually cause trouble for Big Deal.

Sinu Han || Heracles/Hercules (Greco-Roman Mythology)

There are some reasons why I believe that Sinu Han should be Heracles:

Even though Heracles was known as a demi-god (only a mortal), he became the god of heroes and the divine protector of mankind when he died. (This is completely unrelated to Sinu in comparison, but just wanted to address that Heracles isn’t a god when he completed his heroic deeds.)

As a defender for all, Heracles acts like a public servant. Throughout most of his lifetime, he protects civilians who are in dire need of help. Just like Heracles, Sinu Han’s mindset is similar. For about 10 years, he protected a street in Gangseo, in which he had dedicated himself to serve as the defender for the women who loved that street. It was his home. Even Heracles loved Greece and had thrown himself into dangerous situations just to defend his home.

Heracles rescued so many beings in need. A special being that he rescued was Prometheus. No matter how bad he may be as a titan to the gods, he was willing to set Prometheus free due to how he had helped humanity for giving them fire. Sinu Han's character is similar to Heracles since he is the type of person to set someone free, regardless if they have done something bad in the past. What matters is how good of a person's character is, and how they contribute to serving others. I can see Sinu letting someone go if they changed for the better, and by giving them another chance to redeem themself. For instance, even though this hasn't been directly approved by Sinu (but by Jake), Lineman used to be a character who caused trouble and lied to others, thinking that he was a big-shot. However, he changed by being accepted by Jake Kim into Big Deal and if Jake approves of these people who he have gained as his friends (or followers), then Sinu approved of them for being good people and they eventually became members of Big Deal. (Hence, believing in Jake's jurisdiction in finding good in others.)

Although he may be a well-known mythological hero, many do not know how much he had suffered. There was a time when Heracles was enslaved, and he was bought by the Lydian Queen Omphale. She made him do many things as a slave, such as forcing him to wear women's clothing (to humiliate him) and spun wool to help her and her maidens. Omphale did fall in love with Heracles, but eventually she set him free (and they got married). Alike from Sinu Han's situation, Mitsuki Soma was head over heels for Sinu, that she wanted him for herself. Treated like a slave, Sinu had to endure hardships of being her "lover". Manipulated and controlled by Mitsuki due to a mystery drug that made him forget his memories, Mitsuki made him stick by her side, in which she made him shower together. Sinu's identity and memories were twisted by her, which gave Mitsuki the power to successfully manipulate him for a long time (until Jake Kim had to rescue Sinu from The Workers).

Jake Kim || Balder (Norse Mythology)

This is why Jake Kim can be seen as Balder:

Balder is known to be not just the Norse god of light, joy, and summer. Jake Kim usually brought light and joy to people's lives, especially during his middle school days when he'd start getting himself involved with Big Deal. He had made a lot of friends and allies along the way, which would influence (I'll ignore Balder's death, and will be focusing more on his personal aspects, features, and his background that are similar to Jake's.)

Like Balder, Jake Kim shares handsome features and is a very attractive man. He has a bright smile just like Balder, and he has fair hair. In Norse mythology, it was said that Balder was so noble and handsome, that light shines down on his body in which flowers would bow down before him as he passes by.

Also he is the representation for the themes of justice, beauty, hope, and sacrifice. During the Jake Kim Arc, he sacrificed himself, especially for Big Deal who sought for the rescue of Big Deal's Former No. 1, Sinu Han.

(Side Note: I didn't want to associate Jake Kim with Eros because even though he's good-looking and is strongly related to the idea of "love" and "Romanticism", Eros is usually described as mischievous and unsympathetic due to him shooting arrows at people regardless of how they think/feel. It is the complete opposite to Jake's personality, in which he is considerate and kind towards others.)

Samuel Seo || Mercury (Roman Mythology)

Let me explain why I see Samuel as Hermes:

Mercury is well-known for being the messenger god AND the god of commerce. Alike from Samuel, Samuel specializes in business-related work and he manages finances really well. At one point, he was very close with Eugene and Samuel acted like a messenger to Eugene, since he reports to him about what goes on in the affiliates when Samuel used to be president for some of the affiliates.

Mercury had a dependent role in managing the gods. Just like Mercury, Samuel as well. He was close with the higher-ups of the Workers (especially Eugene) in which he was positioned by him to manage the 3rd and 4th affiliate of Workers. Both of their roles is to keep the gods or Workers

Even though Mercury’s role might seem “helpful” at first, do not be fooled by Hermes’s appearance, because he isn’t who he seems to be. Just like Samuel when he was first introduced in the Lookism series, we didn’t quite expect him to turn out the way that we know him now.

Mercury favors the ambitious, so he supports those who are willing to reach their goals, no matter how wicked they are. Going off by his “work smarter, not harder" ideology, Samuel is quite the ambitious man. He’s willing to reach higher things, in order to accomplish his dream as someone who’s powerful. Or, as he likes to refer to himself someday as a “King”. (As mentioned to Jake.)

As a god who defends tricksters and thieves, Hermes likes toying with others. He even favors cleverness and amusement. During the Workers (3 Affiliates) Arc, Samuel's behavior is shown as one who likes toying with others, initiating the start to Johan's rage when he found out that the Workers' Third Affiliate used to sell drugs to Pungsan, which was the God Dog cult that was ran by the former church pastor.

James Lee || Shiva “The Destroyer” (Hindu Mythology)

Here is why I believe James Lee should be Shiva:

Shiva is mainly known as "The Destroyer" and "The Creator" of worlds, in Hindu mythology. He even represents time as well. James Lee was known to be the man who ended the First Generation by defeating all of the First Generation Kings, which fits his character of being "The Destroyer". Consequently, causing the spark of a new generation, which is the emergence of the Second Generation. In this case, being "The Creator" does suit him because he is literally the catalyst to a new generation of fighters. You can also say, that he manipulates time if he were to be Shiva in this context.

Shiva also represents goodness, benevolence, and is said to be "The Protector". In a way, James Lee shows signs of "good" nature and benevolence, in which he acts as a guide to Daniel Park, in finding the secret to his two bodies. And even though James Lee isn't known as "The Protector", he did protect Charles Choi in the past. By aiding him as the company's head for an entertainment agency, he protected Charles' business by supporting him through this method.

This Hindu god is also named the "Lord of the Dance" or Nataraja, according to a Hindu artwork called, "Shiva Nataraja". From the statue, it depicts Shiva dancing in a halo of fire (which represents time), and Shiva stepping on a dwarf with one foot (which is a creature that represents illusion, who leads men astray from the actual truth). Metaphorically, this relates to James Lee because James Lee had the urge to find out the truth about the secret of the two bodies, and is willing to do anything to achieve his goal. Even if it meant betraying Charles Choi, by allying himself with The Workers, specifically Eugene.

Canonically confirming from the Webtoon, it is known that James Lee has a huge penis. Well, so does Shiva. In Hinduism, Shiva is associated with lingas, or phallic symbols, which represents fertility. 🍆

[hiccupmistress]

Star Trek Prodigy season 1 thoughts

Prodigy has become my favorite Star Trek show. No, not just my favorite “new” Star Trek, my favorite Star Trek overall. It captures the wonders of exploration in a way no other Trek show (or movie) has quite managed. 

In TOS, TNG etc. the crew are all professionals. Yes, they’re discovering new life and new civilisations, but its also their day job. Encountering a never-before-seen culture was just another day for them. 

[side note, but “Beyond” kind of touched upon this a bit, with Kirk giving a log entry at the start about how his five year mission had started to feel “episodic” (har har!)]. 

But with Prodigy, this is a purer form of exploration: These aren’t professionals who trained to fly through space and follow Starfleet Directives. These are people who thought they’d never be able to do ANYTHING with their lives, people who had never heard of the Federation, suddenly getting the opportunity to learn of those values and see the universe for themselves. “Enterprise” is the only other Trek show that’s really come close to this, they were the pioneers, before the Prime Directive or anything like that was established, but there’s something so pure, bright and wonderful about the way Prodigy does it. 

I’ve loved Star Trek for many years now, and just about every incarnation does something I like. Lower Decks is a fun romp with in-jokes and a whole lot of love put into it. Picard, whilst a little shaky at times, has some truly heartfelt moments, Strange New Worlds translates the classic TOS/TNG format into a modern taste, Discovery is a beautiful show of diversity and humanity, Enterprise took a lot of risks in some of its concepts, even if the execution wasn’t always quite there. Voyager, whilst my least-favorite, still has some episodes that absolutely changed my life. DS9 is epic and incorporated so much of the established lore for its serialised arcs, TNG is credited with pioneering many things, including but not limited to season-ending cliffhangers, something that’s now standard for most TV! TAS boldly tried to do things that would have been impossible in live-action and TOS of course started it all. But Prodigy? Prodigy is the most I’ve ever enjoyed Star Trek. 

Its made me appreciate Janeway more than Voyager ever managed, its made me laugh, its made me cry, its had me on the edge of my seat. Star Trek Prodigy has absolutely taken the spot as my favorite Star Trek.

[sketching-shark]

Hmmmm so I feel like I should expand on this later with quotes and citations, but does anyone else feel like a lot of fan interpretations of Sun Wukong are kind of...off? 

Like I definitely need to make it clear that I’m not Chinese and didn’t grow up with the story. And I’m not saying you shouldn’t have fun monkeying around in your own jttw au or what have you (in this regard special thanks to @dorkshadows for their careful documentation of the cursed big-budget jttw retellings lol). Yet after reading the Anthony C. Yu English translation, it’s kind of wild to see that a lot of the ways that Sun Wukong gets interpreted by fandom & by a Western audience in general is as just a silly monkey that has no other goals besides having a good time or as a monster with 0% good traits that deserves every bad thing that comes his way. And I get that the internet is where nuance goes to die, but at least for me it is kind of disheartening to see a lot of the potential of Sun Wukong’s character get ignored in favor of one extreme or another...

Just to give one example of this, I’ve seen a lot of people frame Sun Wukong as being really immature and an agent of chaos pre-journey, but at least for me he seems a much more complex and as such intriguing/likable/frightening figure. Wu Cheng’en seems to have wanted to make it really clear that while Sun Wukong is mischievous, he also cares a LOT about his fellow monkeys as well as had the intelligence, diplomacy, strength, ambition, and willingness to violence to become a warlord in charge of a sizable army. He is full of pride and a bit of a show-off at this stage in jttw (not to mention a murderer many times over, as he later tells Tang Sanzang), but so much of what he does seems to be in service of making the lives of his fellow monkeys better and more secure. The whole reason he decided to go to heaven in the first place was to see if he could get all the monkeys to live up there as well! And in his first stay in heaven he does a really good job in his assigned position as the pi ma wen (basically a glorified stablehand), and even makes a number of friends, at least up until he realizes that he was given the most menial position possible. In other words, heaven was basically telling Sun Wukong that even the greatest of the yaoguai will never get to be anything more than the lowliest of servants among the heavenly immortals. So you can imagine the contempt they have for Sun Wukong’s “little ones” and all of his demon friends. Not to say this excuses Sun Wukong’s violence, but it does make his actions against heaven more understandable. Might also help in explaining why all the yaoguai in his alliance seem to have been with Sun Wukong 100% when his war against heaven started. 

It’s kind of the same thing with the Havoc in Heaven arc. While I’ve seen this framed as Sun Wukong just causing chaos because monkey haha, it strikes me as more correct to see it as him staging a one-monkey man war again all of heaven due to the bitter enmity fostered between the immortals and the yaoguai. Like at this point the heavenly army has now captured Sun Wukong, killed who knows how many of his monkeys and other allies, and have tried to repeatedly kill him. And that’s all before they throw him in the Eight Trigram Brazier to try and turn him to ash. So when he manages to escape, he’s not fighting because “chaos!” but because he’s enraged and wants all of heaven to pay. He’s pretty calculating in his rage too. He’s not just lashing out wildly, but is exerting his martial and magical prowess because now he has his ambition set on becoming heaven’s ruler. When he takes on his form with six arms and three heads, he’s doing this specifically to wage war against and overthrow the Jade Emperor and his army. When he talks to Buddha for the first time, Sun Wukong makes it clear that he’ll keep waging war until he gets the position he wants. This does make him a more sinister figure than just “silly monkey breaks everything,” but it does make him a lot more human too. 

Just some sketchy thoughts for the time being, but I’d love to know what other people think about Sun Wukong and/or if they agree with my assessments! He’s a really interesting literary figure, but I know I’m far from knowledgeable about the cultural context he came from, so feel free to add to what I’ve said or correct me as needs be.