#but based on what i've seen? seems pretty neat

[simptasia]

an unexpected closing to the year was a boy meets world special interest hitting me with a steel chair

[crustaceousfaggot]

An outsider's knowledge of The Locked Tomb series, based on what I've seen from Tumblr.

So it's a series of books. Idk how many they are (at least 3? And they're still coming out) but I'm pretty sure they all have the suffix "the ninth". Idk what this means.

One of the books is called "Nona the ninth" but I feel like I never hear people talking about a character named Nona so idk what that's about

The two protagonists are Harrowhark and Gideon. They're very much in love but also I think there's some elements of Toxic Yuri at play. Not like enemies to lovers but more of like a codependency thing I think?

At some point one of them eats someone I think?

Harrow is the little goth one and she's like. Angry and bitey and very wetpathetic like a gutter cat.

Gideon is the taller ginger one who's a bit more butch. She's also angry and bitey but less so? I am attracted to her.

Harrowhark and Gideon are part of like... An order of space nuns who do necromancy. It seems like Harrow takes this responsibility more seriously and Gideon just wants to fuck around and look at tits.

That's why they have the skull makeup. Because they're Necro Nuns

Idk why Harrow is always drawn with the Bone Corset thing but Gideon isn't. Idk if this is just because she's Like That or if it's like... A separate uniform she has for whatever reason.

There's a lot of angst derived from how Harrow is like... Indoctrinated and controlled and lacks agency in her own life.

Harrow and Gideon are separated at some point and fans are very keen to see them reunited. Maybe. I might be making that part uo

There's a blonde woman named Ianthe? Idk what she does though. That's the only other character I know about.

As far as I know there are no men. Or at least no men worth talking about.

I'm not sure what the titular Locked Tomb is all about. Presumably something to do with necromancy.

You know for a series that people call the "lesbian necromancer series" I feel like I rarely hear people discussing the necromancy parts.

I'm also unclear on the time period and setting. I think it's set in space but idk if it's like a far-future thing or an alternate universe or...?

There's a lot of perspective-hopping. I think it also switches between 1st and 3rd person POV which is neat I suppose

I heard somewhere that it's loosely based off of a Homestuck fanfic but idk if that's true

[ukfrislandembassy]

I think that conlangs are a very useful way of seeing how the biases of linguistic theory manifest when applied by amateurs (and occasionally professionals). When linguists are promoting their theories they often like to make the claim that they can account for all phenomena, even if there's some clear foci for their actual attention. So the outputs of conlanging as a hobby make an interesting case study of the application of these theories, because the theories bias the kinds of structures conlangers actually end up including in their languages.

Specifically, it seems clear to me that internet-based conlangers especially show the clear effects of the assumptions made by what Jim Blevins terms the 'Post-Bloomfieldian Structuralism' that has been the default mode of linguistic analysis and theorising for decades now.

In phonology this manifests with the focus on phonemes and phoneme inventories, partly at the expense of phonotactics but especially phonetics. The result of this is a flattening of phonological structure; each of these phonemes ends up being tret as a unit of equal status within the system, with any kinds of distributional asymmetries between phones only included as an afterthought by means of some phonological rules.

It's why you get channels like Conlang Critic on Youtube pronouncing each of the individual phonemes of a conlang like that tells you what you need to know about the actual sound of a language. I rarely see any kind of restricted distribution or positional neutralisation of the kind seen in e.g. the Mandarin Chinese palatal series.

Morphology is where this kind of fixation most strongly manifests, because morphemes are an even worse fit for the morphological phenomena of natural languages than phonemes are for phonological phenomena. In effect what this leads to is the same kind of atomisation that we see with phonology; all 'morphemes' are tret as having equal status in the system, so you end up with a morphological system that just comes off as a phonologically more bound version of the syntax (but with more lists).

For instance, when was the last time you saw a conlang that made use of the concept of 'stem'? Or which showed syncretism between cells in paradigms? Have you ever seen a conlang that made use of a morphological pattern that could be considered 'morphomic'? I could go on.

None of these are somehow 'strange' or 'exotic' phenomena; they're found to some extent in pretty much all Romance languages, perhaps most elaborately in French, and much of this also crops up all over Germanic too.

I think there might be some of this tendency in the lexicon too; homophony and polysemy seem oddly infrequent in conlangs, even though they're ubiquitous in natlangs (English I/eye and you/ewe are particularly neat for showing that not even pronouns are safe from this). I've not got as much to say on this as I don't tend to pay so much attention to conlang lexicons, so I could be wrong on this one.

The actual relationship of conlangs to linguistic theory is messy, and I'm acutely aware that this is largely anecdotal. Indeed, plenty of experienced conlangers make a point of highlighting at least some of these issues, and there's definitely conlangs that avoid many of these issues (Siwa/Siųa is a good one for this, you'll have to dig through the thread to get to the actual grammar). My intent here is mainly to get some discussions going, because the real question is actually 'how do we get the conlang community to understand these phenomena and make use of them at the kinds of rates that we actually find in natural languages (which is pretty much any language with morphology, with maybe a couple of exceptions)?'

[hollowtones]

ayy monhun fan! what are you thinkin of what we've seen of wilds so far?

The initial trailer they dropped months ago was pretty cool. "World" is my least favourite game that I've played (even thought I liked it a lot!!), and 90% of why I felt that way was "this is the first time they're making a game of this scale / scope / direction", so it's exciting to see them make a successor to it now that they're not also learning how to make a game like it from the bottom-up & not also building the tech side of it from scratch.

Big desert environments have me excited!!!! I love the way these games do deserts. I'm always dreaming of Val Habar. I love the colour palette they're using for this area. Big fan of Yoshi being a new mechanic. In general I'm noticing a lot of things in "Wilds" that feel like a really cool mix of ideas from "World" and "Rise" in a way that feels a little more grounded. It's cool that they're bringing back a buddy you can ride around on & control. I wonder if they'll let Yoshi fight with you. I don't remember if they showed that off already. Getting to hotswap between 2 weapons without having to run back to base camp feels like a big deal that I haven't really wrapped my head around yet.

The focus mode thing seems fine. More granular control over aiming sometimes seems neat, & the footage we've seen makes it feel like positioning & animation commitment are still a part of it, which I like. Expanding part-breaking into "opening wounds that take more damage & enable special attacks" seems cool! (There was a similar-ish tenderizing mechanic with the Clutch Claw in "Iceborne", and I fuckin hated using it. Loved the idea of it at first. Having to do this whole separate action that interrupted the flow of the fight in a weird way to enable more damage felt awful after a while!! And they designed all the fights around the fact that you have it & use it! So I'm glad they're seemingly taking what I liked about it & chucking out the rest, haha.) I remember there was some hubbub about focus existing at all when news was first dropping. Some people were mad about it? I feel like this happens every time they announce a new Monster Hunter. They reveal a new feature, and a couple guys crawl out of the woodwork to go "THEY HAVE MADE THE VIDEO GAME PITIFUL AND EASIER - THIS IS THE DEATH OF THE FRANCHISE!" The franchise has died every game since the first one, by my count. (They end up buying the game anyway, of course.) I hope they put out a demo soon, though. I wanna get my hands on it & see how it works in the middle of a fight to see how I actually feel about it.

Weapon & armour design so far has been great. Happy about that. The bits of NPC designs we've seen have been cool. I don't really like the smith's look very much. Which makes me sad because I'm pretty sure she's supposed to be Little Miss Forge. LOL

When they first showed the game off I remember thinking "yeah, that's cool, I'm looking forward to this, but it's coming out Next Year & we're not even halfway done with 2024." Well now we're almost two thirds of the way through the year. And they keep dropping gameplay trailers. And they look hype as fuck!! And now I'm feeling more impatient!!! I wanna try this shit out soon!!! I wonder if they'll drop a public demo after Gamescom or something. I wonder if my computer could even run it...

I liked the way Hunting Horn played in "Rise" but it's cool to see the more traditional recitals back. (But faster!! And with new combo paths!!) I think I've spent a cumulative hour or two watching that horn trailer over and over again for little details. The funny bubble reminds me of bead of resonance but it seems like it might also be some kind of AoE team buff? It could also just be extra damage like bead was. But I loved bead. So I'll take it. Being a Hunting Horn fan is accepting that you'll be playing an entirely different weapon in every subsequent game, so I suppose I fuss less about whether or not it plays like any one specific game. But mannnnnn it looks cool as hell this time around.

[raventrinkets]

Krang Timeline??

Hey y'all, has anyone figured out a timeline for the Krang in ROTTMNT? I've been gathering facts from the show/movie, but I was curious if anyone had already figured this out.

I'm going to include all my notes under the cut, but My QUESTION is:

If the main Krang were sealed away 1000 years ago (as Raph says in the movie) does that mean that there were still Krang around to give Shredder his armour 500 years later? Or was Raph misinformed and the Krang were probably sealed around the same time as the Shredder, 500 or so years ago?

Edit: @pinkjunepeanut made a fantastic point in the comments! Basically she said that the Krang probably were sealed 1000 years ago, but contacted Oroku Saki from the Prison Dimension (likely via the Key). Go check out her comments if you want the full theory!

If you've got thoughts or answers, please share! 

Please note I've made Edits to the original version of this post! I've indicated where :)

At this point I'm pretty sure that:

A Krang ship crashed at some point very early on (now within the Weeping Titan), allowing for Empyrean to create the Yokai. If we're following when Yokai entered our written records, that would have to be before 720 CE (so over 1300 years ago). (I'm specifically referencing the Nihon Shoki or Nihongi here).

A Krang (who kinda looks like Krang 3) gives Oroku Saki the Dark Armour, which eventually corrupts him and turns him into the Shredder. Karai seals them both in the Twilight Realm, but is released by the Turtles 500 years later (that's what she says, anyway). So it would have taken place in the Sengoku Period. Which makes a lot of sense, as this period started with the Ōnin War, and Karai refers to the Krang who gives her father the Dark Armour as an Ōnin. Probably not a coincidence on the writer's part. 

The Krang were sealed within the Prison Dimension “many centuries ago”:

Raph specifically says 1000 years, which I believe would place the invasion in the Heian Period of Japan’s history. Due to the overlap of Yokai and Mystic powers, this probally would have had to have taken place AFTER the Krang in the Weeping Titan died. But I suppose it could be possible that specific Krang died in that battle, creating the Yokai later on, and we can ignore historical accounts of Yokai mythos within the ROTTMNT universe. But then we have the issue of WHO GAVE THE SHREDDER HIS ARMOUR?? Edit: As I mentioned above, Pinkjunepeanut offered a neat solution to this: the Krang were sealed 1000 years ago, later contacting Oroku Saki from the Prison Dimension, probably in a bid to get him to eventually free them.

If Raph was misinformed, and the Krang hadn’t been sealed for 1000 years, that changes things. Considering the Mystic Warriors seem to be wearing armour based more from the Edo period of Japan, 400-500 years would make more sense (I have more notes below). This would probably mean that the Krang were sealed in the Prison Dimension AFTER the Shredder was sealed in the Twilight Realm, so they could be around to give him the Dark Armour in the first place. 

Notes on the Mystic Warriors armour:

So this is the picture we have of the Mystic Warriors that sealed the Krang ^

I THINK they're wearing (from left to right) a Kutsune Mask (mainly seen in the Edo Period, but also, to a lesser extent, in the Heian period), a Dō-maru kabuto (also appeared in the Heian period, but was also common in the Edo Period), a hitai-ate (Edo period) and Chronmage hairstyle (Edo period again), and finally another hitai-ate or maybe a Hachimaki (Sengoku period, but also later on). (Please note that this is all me doing some cursory research online, so I could very well be incorrect or misinformed).

All of this makes me think they were learning towards the Edo Period in the designs (this also could have been influenced by ninja themed anime, like Naruto). However, there is a fair amount of overlap with the Sengoku period, which is when Karai is likely from. This wouldn’t change a lot, just how long it was between Karai’s first interaction with the Krang and them eventually being sealed by the Mystic Warriors. 

Edit: While I believe (again, this is based off my brief research) all their attire overlapped the most during the Edo or Sengoku periods, if we assume they sealed the Krang 1000 years ago (during the Heian Period) then most of this can be chalked up to creative decisions. I mentioned above that it's likely the show took influence from existing media focused around ninja's, so their blend attire from different eras can easily be explained away by that. Pinkjunepeanut's theory also answers a question I didn't bring up: the fact that none of them are wearing a recognizable emblem. If they were a part of the Hamato (or Foot) clan, then those symbols definitely would have been incorporated into the designs.

Anyway, all of this to say, does the timeline look something like this?

Krang scout (?) ship visits earth, crashes, accidentally creates Yokai and probably mystic powers with Empyrean.

500-800ish years later, more Krang appear and basically make the Shredder, forcing Karai to seal herself and her father in the Twilight Realm. This creates the Foot who worship the Krang and the Hamato's who work to prevent the Shredder's return.

Sometime in the next 100 years, the Krang attempt a full invasion of Earth, prompting the four mystic warriors (Hamatos? probably.) to seal them within the Prison Dimension (which appears similar to the Twilight Realm, as @pinkjunepeanut pointed out to me, and can also be accessed by a mystic warrior [Draxum gets them into the Twilight Realm, Mikey to the Prison Dimension]).

400ish years later, the Movie happens.

If this is wrong and the Krang were sealed 1000 years ago, it would mean that a different Krang gave the Shredder his armour. While that could be interesting (as that means there's more Krang kicking about), I think this was more akin to the "Hammer and Anvil" Strategy. Basically, the Krang probably sent a small force to weaken Earth or corrupt it to their ways (as seen with the armour corrupting Oroku Saki and the Shredder's later goals, ie. the conquest of humanity), before attacking with a greater force later on (this could have been a decade to a century later). However, this didn’t go to planned as they were sealed away by the Mystic Warriors (who they likely accidentally created with Empyrean in the first place... LOL). 

Edit: It could also look like this...

Krang scout (?) ship visits earth, crashes, accidentally creates Yokai and probably mystic powers with Empyrean. This would have to be, at minimum, 1300 years ago (but was probably a lot earlier than even that).

1000 year ago, so during the Heian Period, the Krang attempt to invade Earth. They're stopped by the four Mystic Warriors and sealed in the Prison Dimension with the Key.

A little under 500 years later, the Foot Clan, led by Oroku Saki, is under attack and he makes a deal with a mysterious "Ōnin" (the Krang in the Prison Dimension) for the armour that eventually corrupts him and turns him into the Shredder. His daughter, Karai, created the Hamato Clan in response and eventually seals both herself and the Shredder in the Twilight Realm.

500 years later, the Turtles accidentally release the Shredder but then defeat him and reunite a no longer corrupt Oroku Saki with Karai.

3 (ish) years later, the Foot (who still worship the Krang who gave their founder the Dark Armour) release the Krang with the Key, and the Movie happens.

Honestly, I think this timeline fits better than my first, but I decided to keep the original as I don't like doing major revisions to post's after posting them. We show our work here😂

I know I'm probably making this more complicated than it needs to be, as there's no guarantee the writers worried too much about making it historically accurate. But, as I'm currently in the middle of a fic that's dealing with the Krang, I want to finalize my timeline LOL. Also, I'm sure I'm not the only person who's tried to figure this out, so if you have the answers PLEASE SHARE! I could be missing something obvious that answers all my question, and (if it wasn't obvious by this essay of a post) I love finding out more about the show.

If you've read this far, you are amazing.

[homestuckreplay]

turntechGnostic? gardenGodhead?

(page 381-387)

Dave is a cool guy, yknow? A cool dude whose default face is complete neutrality, who doesn't show emotions besides anger, the only acceptable feeling for men. If he's feeling something positive, he'll show it with a nod of the head or a twinkle of the sunglasses, not-

HEY. WHAT'S THAT SMILE ON YOUR FACE, COOL GUY????

What's fun about meeting Dave is that we get to see him talk to all three of his friends in pretty quick succession, while with John it was far more spaced out. Dave loves John so much but I think he kind of talks down to him, and with Rose, it's the witty banter of equals. With GG, Dave is the one who seems lost in the conversation. GG throws Dave for a loop multiple times, and also blatantly makes fun of him with 'bro! hehehe' and 'feeling cool today? mr cool guy?' I didn't expect Dave to like this, and it's not obvious in the conversation that he does, but that tiny smile kinda says it all. I can honestly see these two becoming my favorite dynamic of the four main characters.

We get more GG lore too! They have a 'goofy' fetch modus which I'm super curious about. It turns out they have a granddad who's a big presence in their life, not a sister. They also have a pet who TG refers to as a 'devilbeast', and who is hard to feed and can overpower GG. Could be an unruly, badly trained dog, or perhaps GG lives on a farm and this is some kind of farm animal? Or an exotic pet their grandad attempted to tame (since he's apparently a 'total badass') but who shouldn't really be kept as a pet.

Also GG might have some psychic powers, or at least believe that they do. Which definitely puts their earlier conversations with John in a new light - instead of urging him to get the package now because they're excited to see his reaction, which is what I originally assumed, they're just emphasizing how important the package is, so that he'll know opening it is a priority if and when he finds it later.

The TG lore we get is.... less delightful. He mends his window with gaffa tape, which makes it objectively less functional as a window, definitely can't help with the heat, and doesn't even cover up the full hole. Like, just put a poster over it. More effective for less effort. Also his 'takedown' of monster movie tropes on p.386 is identical to 'guy who hates musicals because people sing in them' and is just exhausting to read. Also he thinks a white puppet ventriloquist rapper is the coolest shit ever, which is inexcusable. Basically, he needs to hang out with GG more so that they can chill him out and make him more tolerable.

I missed John so much. I've been thinking for a couple days about how I miss John, and here he is! The oil in his room has gotten significantly worse compared to p.253, which is a shame, because John is a fairly neat and clean kid when his sylladex isn't totally ruining his life.

But I guess this little harlequin beastie doesn't care about that? I love this thing's design, it's so fun. It looks so angry but somehow so incapable of causing any real harm that isn't oil based. What a silly hat for something that wants to be intimidating so bad. This will probably confirm to John once and for all that clowns are bad.

We've seen a couple other jet black, #000000 creatures so far. The Wayward Vagabond, linked from p.271, has smaller and rounder eyes but the same clawed hands. And the members of the Midnight Crew, seen on p.328-331, are visibly shinier (including their clothes?) with no visible teeth, but the rightmost two have those same elongated horizontal white eyes. Notably, all of these characters wear distinctive headgear. They all have really different roles in the story, so this could just be a shorthand for characters outside of the main four and their families, but it would be cool if some or all of them were connected.

[jamlessjj]

Hey team (I say as I make prolonged eye contact with my U2 mutuals) so while I was on a road trip a few weeks ago I chanced upon a record store that had an absolute treasure trove of old magazines and managed to find these gems. Would you all like me to post some scans of the articles and/or covers? Here is a list of what's pictured. If any of these strike your fancy, lemme know:

U2's Propaganda, Issue 15, Winter 1991/2: A special edition that focuses on the release and making of Achtung Baby. Its contents are very campy design-wise with a cool arts and crafts type of vibe. Lots of photos from the late 80s and early 90s, at least half of which I hadn't seen before. Contents include an Achtung Baby scrapbook, an article detailing the making of "The Fly" music video, and an article about the process behind designing the Achtung Baby album cover.

U2's Propaganda, Issue 16, Spring 1992: A pretty text-heavy issue with a well-rounded bunch of articles in terms of topics. The entire first half of the issue is dedicated to coverage of preparation for the Zoo TV tour, focuses on the band as well as artists and others involved in various aspects of the tour. This article's look is giving "graphic design is my passion" in the best way possible. There's also an interview with Brain Eno, an article on the spoof tribute band "The Joshua Trio," and a report on the Negativland thing that happened.

U2's Propaganda, Issue 17, Winter 1992/3: Its cover story, "Sixty Nine Things You May Not Have Known About Life in the Zoo," is a rapid-fire and visually immersive list of happenings from the Zoo TV tour. Big photos of the band and the staging, including some of Bono in the foregone but never forgotten red version of The Fly costume. This issue also focuses on fan content, with a mailbag section and some stuff about various fanzines.

Rolling Stone, Issue 761, May 29, 1997: Pop-era U2 on the cover, looking extra cool. The article is titled "The Wizards of Pop." I haven't read all the way through this article, but this is the premise we're given: "Who are those men behind the curtain? It's Bono! The Edge! Adam Clayton! Larry Mullen Jr.! On the eve of their supergiant '97 world tour, U2 reveal the heart inside their consumer-nightmare machine." A couple of neat photos, too.

Rolling Stone, Issue 986, November 3, 2005: Bono on the cover, and a suuuuuper long interview with him, like, including photos, this thing is about 16 pages long with a teeny tiny font size. I've only skimmed the text but the whole thing seems to have a relatively down-to-earth vibe, which the photographs compliment well. Pretty biographical, based on what I've seen it vaguely reminds me of Bono's Surrender. Found this quote while skimming and I like it a lot: "I've always had these melodies in my head. If I'm beside a piano, I put my finger on a key. I hear a rhyme."

Rolling Stone, Issue 1074, March 19, 2009: U2 on the cover, shot in a way that seems to call back to their cover on the aforementioned 1997 issue. Published around the release of No Line on the Horizon, this is definitely more of a journalism piece as far as I can tell, rather than an interview piece. I like how this article is laid out visually. Focuses on the process of creating and recording NLOTH, and includes some photos of the band working on the album. Also, eyeliner Bono. Dude absolutely dominates one of the pages.

Spin, Volume 4 Number 10, January 1989: A brooding and melancholic Bono on the cover. I enjoy the cover's visual and emotional drama, and its mythical quality definitely goes hand in hand with the corresponding article. After getting past three ads for a multitude of cigarette brands, including one with a pop-up fish holding up a supposedly irresistible offer for a pack of Salems, you'll find an article titled, "Hating U2," with the premise, "U2 set out to become the biggest band in the world. Now they're fighting to avoid being crushed by their own myth." The magazine's overall minimalistic look matches well with how U2 was publicly perceived at the time. Again, haven't read the article in depth, but I think it's the one I look forward to reading to most. Seems to deliver a considerate/compassionate and entertaining look at celebrity, and the tensions between fame and music making, all in relation to Rattle and Hum. Includes some photos that when viewed in the article's context, totally showcase a tension between the mythicism of celebrity and ordinary personhood. Three out of the four photos were new to me.

I'm sure digital versions exist for some of these articles already. I at least know you can find some past Rolling Stone articles and interviews online. But still, I think there's something to be said about the original physical versions with all the photos, design choices, and whatnot. As a younger person, I find these physical copies especially valuable, as they're like primary sources that allow me to better connect with a time I didn't get to live through personally.

I'll probably have lots more to say about each of these at some point in the future, but in the meantime, I'd be happy to post scans if anyone so desires!

[thelordofgifs]

A Completely Objective Rating of Gil-galad Origin Theories

So! My Research(tm) has informed me that Tolkien conceived of at least four potential parentages for Gil-galad, last High King of the Noldor, at various points. This plothole/controversy/mystery is deeply, deeply funny to me, so I decided to make a post arbitrarily rating various Gil-galad theories and providing examples of fics where they appear.

Some disclaimers:

I am very very new to the silm fandom and also tumblr and don't actually know anything! so there is a very high chance something will go wrong here

in compiling this I was very much indebted to this post by @sweetteaanddragons and this one by @tanoraqui

your headcanons, of course, are extremely valid! no shade at all to anyone who likes one of the theories I’ve rated a bit lower, and thank you for doing your bit to deepen the controversy. the more Gil-galad theories the better

Unsurprisingly, this turned out LONG. I split the parentages into four sections: Part 1 covers supposedly canon/canon-adjacent Gil-galad theories; Part 2, popular fanon theories that I've seen in a variety of places; Part 3 will cover rare fanon theories that I've only seen basically once, and ideas I literally just made up myself.

Baseline assumptions I'm using:

The "historical record", in-universe, is primarily the Quenta Silmarillion which states that Ereinion Gil-galad was the son of Fingon; and other documents variously suggesting that he was the son of Orodreth or Finrod, or a descendant of Fëanor. Sources give him the additional names Finellach and Artanáro/Rodnor.

It's fairly widely agreed-upon that Gil-galad was an adult and the High King by the time of the Third Kinslaying, when he was based on Balar and came too late to Elwing's aid.

(This means I won't further consider some rather fun, cracky theories that are based on the argument that Gil-galad only became the High King after the War of Wrath. That seems like a slightly excessive amount of historical revisionism for my taste, when he's named as the High King well before the WoW.)

So, with those established, what makes for a good Gil-galad parentage theory?

It has to make the confusion in the historical record, in-universe, make some sort of sense. Would someone with this parentage have a claim to the crown? If not, do they have a solid motivation to lie about it? Providing a neat explanation for other aspects of Gil-galad's characterisation and the way he rules would also be a bonus.

A storytelling concept I call weird questions must have weird answers. Neat origin theories that "make sense" tend to score low on this metric. The Gil-galad controversy is funny and needs to be kept that way.

How narratively satisfying is the theory? Does it ruin anyone else's arc, or fanon I personally like? Then it's scoring low.

This is already so long-

Time for looking at the four canon-ish Gil-galad parentages!

Gil-galad son of Fingon and, presumably, some unnamed wife. This is rubbish. Makes no sense. Not a fan. No. Primarily, it is boring, the death knell to any Gil-galad theory. Also, Fingon is never actually mentioned to have a wife because he's married to Maedhros and, while textual ghosts are obviously common in the Silm, I find it slightly harder to believe that a High Queen of the Noldor managed to escape being named anywhere. You could, I suppose, argue that she died before Fingon became King, but I don't want to. The confusion in the historical record also seems unnecessary here, because Fingon's son would presumably have a pretty ironclad claim to the crown after his death and certainly after Turgon's. No fic recs here, I don't like this theory. 2/10.

Gil-galad son of Orodreth and brother of Finduilas. Even more boring, and also makes less sense. Was Gil-galad in Nargothrond during Leithian and up to its fall? In that case, why wasn't he mentioned at any point, and if he survived the fall of Nargothrond and escaped, why didn't he go after Finduilas? If he wasn't in Nargothrond by the time of Turin, we can at least forgive his failure to rescue his sister, but why was he sent away from Nargothrond when, prior to the building of the bridge, everyone believed it was safe - and why wasn't Finduilas sent away with him? Again, there's no particular reason for obfuscating this parentage, so it fails on that metric too. At least Artanáro/Rodnor is a good Finarfinion name. Fics which use this theory: What is Wrought Between Us by @nikosheba, which voids all these objections of mine quite nicely - Gil-galad son of Orodreth, adopted by Fingon and Maedhros! Also it's one of the most heart-breaking, beautiful, canon-compliant Russingon series around, go and read it. That excellent example aside, 3/10.

Gil-galad son of Finrod and (iirc) a wife called Meril. An earlier version of the legendarium discarded when Finrod was made childless. This is potentially my least favourite of the four canon-esque theories, because Finrod's childlessness is imo a fairly important part of his arc, and Meril was replaced by Amarië, to whom Finrod was very much not married at the time of his death. Pretty much the only positive is that, again, Artanáro/Rodnor suits well as a name for Finrod's son. I don't think many people like this theory - we need not consider it further here. No fic recs. 2/10.

Gil-galad descendant of Fëanor. By far the most intriguing and also most implausible canon-esque theory, and as I understand only from one early draft of the legendarium. But there is so much to play with here. If Gil-galad's father is one of the sons of Fëanor, he has a rock-solid reason to lie about his parentage. His claim to the throne is also dubious, because Maedhros abdicated on behalf of the entire house. This gives excellent con-artist Gil-galad flavours to play with. On the narrative/emotional arc metric, this one falls a little short, though. We don't need another descendant of Fëanor in the Second Age struggling with the dark and messy legacy of their family - we have Celebrimbor! And Celebrimbor's status as the last scion of his house, and how his eventual tragedy owes so much to his heritage, is very important to me. Besides, the house of Fëanor going from 7 sons in the first generation to literally just one grandchild is so haunting. On a more practical level, I also don't think Gil-galad reads as particularly close to Celebrimbor? They seem more "distant relations" than first cousins. On the other hand, if Gil-galad simply doesn't know who his parents are, a lot of these problems disappear. We can also double up a few textual ghosts by making his mother one of the unnamed wives - preferably Maglor's or Caranthir's, because Gil-galad son of Curufin feels. doubtful. Fics which use this theory: A Gift from Father to Son by @amethysttribble explores every single potential Fëanorian parentage which is very fun, for a value of "fun" involving "sobbing on the floor about how terrible all these people are". Check it out! Theory as a whole gets 5/10.

[cometomecosette]

"Les Misérables" musical character interpretations: Fantine

As usual, these three characterizations are all based on performances I've seen, either in person or filmed. They can also be, and often are, combined with each other to create still more characterizations. For example, Anne Hathaway's Oscar-winning Fantine in the film version is basically "the Ingénue," but with a distinct undertone of "the Fighter." And none of them are precisely Hugo's Fantine. I'd say that they all represent aspects of the character as Hugo wrote her, and that the ideal Fantine would blend all three of them, as the occasional actress does.

I'd like to thank @quarryquest for sending me the Fantine chapter of her book on the stage history of Les Mis just as I was in the middle of writing this. It provided excellent insights.

The Lady

         This Fantine, in the words of Victor Hugo, displays “a serious and almost austere dignity.” At the beginning, her dress and hair are as neat, clean, and pretty as factory work allows, and her bearing is strikingly graceful and refined. She clearly once knew a better, more elegant life before her lover abandoned her. This sets her apart from the rough, uneducated factory folk who surround her, and at first, she might seem slightly cold and haughty in her distance from them, which no doubt contributes to how quickly they turn on her. But “I Dreamed a Dream” earns all our sympathy as she sings of her lost happiness, while in “Lovely Ladies” she moves us further by slowly sacrificing all her elegance for her daughter. Yet she never loses her core of pride and dignity. While this Fantine has as much raw anguish as any other, she tries to hide it from her oppressors under a brave face. Though she might reach the verge of tears several times, she’ll rarely let herself cry. When the moment of selling her body arrives, she’ll swallow her grief and fear with the drink she’s given, and offer a firm, resolute hand to her first customer. Her “Come on, captain…” is sultry, but not drunk or grotesque; instead, her hard, cold tone evokes Hugo’s description of the fallen Fantine as having “turned to marble.” Her rejection of Bamatabois will be calm and businesslike until he turns violent, and when “Monsieur Madeleine” approaches her, she’ll express her anger with head held high, making it clear that she sees him as no better than herself. This Fantine is a gemstone that’s thrown into the mud of the streets, but never breaks.

The Ingénue

         This is a warmer, softer Fantine than the Lady, and whether the actress is twenty-five or forty, she’ll probably seem younger too. This characterization keeps in mind that Fantine’s name means “childlike” and that her “tragic flaw” in her past was her naïveté. Despite being an abandoned mother, she hasn’t entirely lost that naïveté at first. Her air of gentle innocence is what sets her apart from the other, more worldly factory folk, and throughout the factory scene she’ll be frightened and brutally shocked by the cruelty she faces. Then “I Dreamed a Dream” will overflow with anguish, and likely with tears too. With just cause, this Fantine is more prone to tears than any other. More than the loss of her dignity, the tragedy of “Lovely Ladies” is the loss of her innocence, which dies once and for all when she accepts her first prostitution client, crying or trembling with fear as she does so. What comes next will depend on whether the director thinks the “Old men, young men…” verse contains a time skip or not. If not, then this Fantine will be awkward and nervous on “Come on, captain…” still all too new to her profession. But if so, then she’ll reenter heartbreakingly transformed: staggering drunk, crudely flaunting her body, utterly disheveled and broken. Either way, she rejects Bamatabois out of rash fear, then claws at his face in rash, animalistic rage. Abuse and misery reduce this vulnerable young woman to behaving like a cornered stray dog or cat. Yet through it all, there’s never a doubt that her heart remains pure and tender, because everything she endures is for the sake of her little girl.

The Fighter

           This is the grittiest Fantine. Her portrayal reminds us that Hugo’s Fantine was an orphan who grew up on the streets and that he describes her as having “fierce courage.” This is a passionate, determined woman who boldly stands up to her oppressors and who battles all obstacles to provide for her daughter. Like the Lady, she values and defends her dignity, but hers is a stolid, down-to-earth working-class dignity, not aristocratic grace. In “At the End of the Day,” she’ll protect her letter from the Factory Girl with the fierceness of a mother bear, and her self-defense to the Foreman will be firm and simmering with frustration. Her “I Dreamed a Dream” will also be angry as well as anguished and yearning, and in “Lovely Ladies,” the chief tragedy will be that despite her valiant efforts to stay “above the water,” poverty pulls her under anyway. Her prostitution sequence may or may not be drunken, but it will most definitely be hard, brash, and filled with biting rage. In her bitterness, this fallen Fantine will recall Jean Valjean as a convict before the Bishop’s mercy, and when she confronts him about her firing, she’ll stop just short of attacking him. None of this means she lacks vulnerability or deep, heartbreaking sadness; like any Fantine, she has them in spades. But the way she combines them with strength and anger make her a more complex figure than other Fantines, and arguably, it makes the gentleness of her deathbed scene especially poignant. There, for the first time, we fully see the motherly tenderness that lies beneath her fire, and which has motivated her struggles all along.

More comparisons to come!

[hellobitchlet]

I've seen a few people mention Liyue as an example to show that Hoyo is perfectly capable of doing proper research into cultures. I want to expand on my opinions about Liyue and culture a little, with some stuff I've been thinking about for a while.

So, my main interest in Genshin atm is that I've been rewriting the story. One of the main things I'm doing is putting more important lore into the main story. This has led me to looking at each nation from the perspective of "what important things are connected to this place? What can Traveler learn from here?"

Liyue is the first nation Traveler goes to in which the Archon War happened in full force. And with that, we have the adepti, immortal creatures from Chinese mythology that ruled over humanity. Adepti lore is more fleshed out than any other immortal archon group by far, thanks to having multiple characters from that group being playable 5 stars, and Genshin being more willing to make plotlines about them.

And of course, there's the culture stuff. There are two 4 stars who exist to show off Chinese culture, and we get a Lantern Rite every year. There's also Chenyu Vale, whose main draw (aside from more adepti lore(sort of)), is showing off Chinese culture through this brand new city and town.

So, obviously, Liyue's main selling points are adepti lore and Chinese culture. This is both bad for Liyue from a story perspective, and the other nations from a culture perspective.

Let me explain:

It's bad for Liyue because one of the main points having nothing to do with the story, combined with the amount of focus it gets, fills the nation up with so much filler. Aside from Baizhu and Yaoyao, we've gotten 5 new Liyue characters since Inazuma started! Those characters?

Yun Jin- filler 4 star whose gimmick is Chinese opera.

Shenhe- I'm sorry to say this, and I promise that I like her too, but she's mainly Razor if he was raised by a different immortal. Not exactly the same by far, but she functions in the same way. We didn't need another Razor. Razor and Andrius already don't get much screen time.

Yelan- honestly could've been super important with her Pantalone connection, but is instead just reduced to sexy 5 star with a gambling gimmick, to the point where she might as well be filler.

Cloud Retainer- ...ok. I don't have a huge problem with her. Other than being used to make fat jokes about Ganyu, she's neat. But she was fine as an npc, and her moving into the Harbor wasn't all that necessary when she seemed perfectly fine with living in the mountains.

Gaming- filler 4 star whose gimmick is lion dancing.

You get my point, right? The last time I remember something notable story wise coming out of Liyue was the Chasm and Perilous Trail, all the way back in Inazuma. Yet, we've gotten 4 characters, 2 Lantern Rite's, 3 LR skins, and a massive new area from Liyue since. It's so much filler. And we already have enough filler as is.

We've sure gotten more adepti lore, mainly in LR, but.. you know we're only getting that as set up to make more Liyue characters. We've learned almost everything we need to know about their story already, we have pretty much everything except for Zhongli and Guizhong's origins.

And it's bad for the other nations bc Liyue's treatment makes Natlan and Sumeru being like that, mashing European cultures together in Mondstadt and Fontaine when they're supposedly based off of 1 country, and only paying a little attention to Japanese culture in Inazuma look even worse.

They CAN, in fact, show off cultures they have researched. They've never been good at accurate designs, both with a character's appearance and their clothing, but they've still put so much more care into Liyue than other nations! There's no real reason why they can't do that for other nations. And there's no reason why they can't be even better, and make their playable characters look like the people of the cultures they're based on.

I don't have much of a point that I wanna make here. This is just an analysis I've gradually made about Liyue and it's effect on other nations.

[hadesknockedupintheunderworld]

Hi! Phantom Fleetway here! I've been wanting to ask for a bit, but Tumblr is being weird, so I'm on Anon for now.

But, I wanted to ask you, any opinions on Surge/Elias, Silver/Mephiles, or Infinite/Fleetway Super Sonic?

Sure thing!

ㅤ

Surgelias

Honestly, I didn't really get this one at first, but it grew on me.

A friend of mine shared with me a fanart piece they found on tumblr of Elias covering a sleeping Surge and Kit with blankets and kind of just looking at a sleeping Surge with the purest love in his eyes about it, and then we scenario talked.

And I think my sweet spot for an au of them meeting would be something like just after he exhiles himself. This is a point where Elias is still feeling pretty bad about himself in terms of how he ran the kingdom of knothole, but before he's been living his small village life long enough to be stronger and more jaded than before. Then for Surge and Kit the sweet spot would be just after the overpowered arc. Kit is retreating with Surge in arms to try to get her to a safer place. Ideally (as my friend and I worked out) the three would meet in the middle here, Elias wouldn't know enough about them to judge them harshly, and the three would sort of lean on each other (after the event where they agree to help each other out) for the time being.

I can see Elias coming to care for Surge and become interested in her in a way that's a bit similar to how I see him becoming interested in and caring for Sonic. And if he gets to know her well enough (and they go through enough together) I can see him coming to love all her edges as well.

As for Surge, I'll be frank. I see her on the aroace spectrum to begin with, and to me she doesn't really express or feel feelings like love in the same way most people do. When it comes to Elias, more than likely her brand of attachment will show itself not through fluttery feelings and soft love and care. Rather, on the surface he kind of just seems like a guy who is her companion whom she only relies upon when strictly necessary, but in reality I can see her being just...a bit possessive. Her brand of attachment here would be shown by her being unwilling to just let him leave her life now that he's become a part of it.

In the end though, ideally for me there would be some onesided kitlias on Elias's end as well. If the scenario was right enough for him to fall for Surge, I think he would naturally start to grow a bit attached to Kit as well.

Of course, there are plenty of ways an au like this could be taken, especially if Elias learns about things they've done or they try to kill Sonic in front of them.

My secondary ideal dynamic between them would probably take Elias's characterization about the time he starts the secret freedom fighters. I think it would be neat for (kind of Geof/flias style) Elias to have more tension with Surge (potentially after witnessing something like her actions during the overpowered arc?). On one hand, I think they could have a lot of neat tension as enemies to each other (with Surge being the trickster type who isn't a good person but also will help save the world at the end of the day and Elias being highly suspicious of her), and, on the other hand, I think they could have something closer to the surg/isper style of tension in a scenario where they used to be enemies (and possessed the previously mentioned tension about it) before Surge decided to join the restoration/freedom fighters/etc and Elias has. Thoughts and feelings about that.

So yeah I can see the potential for them if their relationship is crafted just so

ㅤ

Mephilver

Although Mepha/dow is my favorite Mephiles ship, I think at this point I can confidently say that Mephilver is a close second

Ironically, I'd thought at first that it would be my #1 favorite based on what I'd seen of the ship from an outside perspective (from fans and antis alike). What had drawn it to me was this description I kept seeing of Mephilver as this toxic ship where Mephiles would be grooming/manipulating Silver to a great degree, making Silver dependent on him. I had thought that their relationship was that of a hedgehog and his trusted mentor who'd been manipulating him to do his deeds all along, and who was ultimately not very good to Silver (see: people talking about how the ship would be inherently abusive or saying that it straight up is).

Or, in short, I thought that when I finally played Sonic 06, I would see that Mephiles was a major figure in Silver's story who had been emotionally manipulating him, taking advantage of his naivety/trust to drive him to do ultimately dark deeds (while making Silver believe he was only enacting justice), and even perhaps been at least lowkey abusive to Silver.

And by god was that an incorrect assumption. Kids, never assume you know what a Sonic game's story, canon character relationships, or characterizations are like based upon fans or anti fans talking about the thing publicly. Take the sonic fandom wikis with a hint of salt too.

At the end of the day, I was actually disappointed by the lack of Silver and Mephiles having any kind of relationship in Sonic 06. Mephiles just kind of shows up to convince Silver and Blaze to kill Sonic (asserting that Sonic is the reason Iblis was released), and then maybe shows up again in Silver's story once or twice after that to be like "Hey, did you kill Sonic yet". Like. There's nothing there. Not even a miniscule part of me could understand how people who had played the game or watched cutscenes could so confidently assert that Mephilver was a "bad problematic abusive ship" based upon their canon relationship which is why I just assume most loud Sonic fans haven't seen 06 outside of clip compilations to laugh at, the sonic fandubs, or jokes about it in general

And so it was actually Mepha/dow who entered my heart as #1 due to their canon relationship dynamic (the fact that Mephiles puts significantly more work into trying to convince Shadow to join him).

But...that doesn't mean it was over for Mephilver for me. While they sadly just don't have the canon interactions to back up any kind of interesting relationship for me, I do believe there's a lot of potential for them. So I like to imagine scenarios in which Mephiles HAD turned himself into a trusted figure in Silver's life (manipulated him, and had less than a pure relationship with him). I like to imagine post canon au scenarios in which Silver (who is very vague on the events that occured in 06) takes in Mephiles, and the two become closer while Mephiles grows in power once more in the background. I like to imagine aus in which they're both a bit unhealthily attached to one another. There's also the potential of an au where Silver sees their relationship as God x his most devoted believer and number 1 guy, and Mephiles playing into this (examples being Mikami/Light, Ixis Naugus/Geoffrey, etc). And I also like to imagine scenarios in which Mephiles explicitly wants to keep Shadow by his side as his partner, and Silver as his...pet more or less (his agents of chaos who would ideally (in Meph's pov) assist him in the destruction of space and time).

There's just so many possibilities with them. And where Mepha/dow is interesting in the way they'd ideally be closer to equals/a power couple, Mephilver is interesting to me for its lack of balance and potential unbalanced power dynamics.

ㅤ

Fleetfinite

Okay yeah this one compels me

While it's neither my favorite Infinite nor my favorite Fleetway SS ship, I read one really good fic about them and saw some fanart that won me over pretty fast.

Two people who want to kill each other and do try to rip each other apart but also kissing about it is...kind of my jam. And that works with them, since Infinite loves having a good fight with someone who can stand up to him and Fleetway SS (I should mention now that I haven't yet finished StC so take my Fleetway SS thoughts with a grain of salt) seems to enjoy killing and maiming (especially while hyped up on a great deal of chaos energy).

I think I've also seen depictions of these two on tumblr where Fleetway SS often annoys Infinite (essentially being the kind of hedgehog who is willing to fight and claw into Infinite as well as just around to annoy him and ruin his day).

For me, no matter whether Infinite wishes Fleetway SS would leave him alone, wishes to kill Fleetway SS so badly it makes him look stupid, or is genuinely that afraid of him and wants to get rid of him, their potential dynamic is interesting to me. Likewise, whether Fleetway SS just gets enjoyment out of tearing into Infinite within an inch of his life (or potentially actually trying to kill him) for funsies or becomes specifically attached/attracted to him (and. Does everything short of killing him about it), it's interesting to me.

ㅤ

Thank you for the ask! It was really fun to get to think about these pairings and talk about them for a minute🥰

[lavendergalactic]

BLUE

blue: " do you have favorite editors? is there any specific reasoning for your choosing? "

this is a tricky one since i'm horrible at expressing my gratitude but I WILL TRY!

(also if you're not in this list please don't take it too harshly!! it's 4am and i don't think i could think up everyone)

@plecakism!!! liam has been one of my inspirations since i've started posting on tumblr, one of the first ever events i did was one of his! it was really cool to win his events and i still love staring the prizes i've gotten from that. liam's edits are always so nice to stare at and i hope he gets a billion kazillion followers

@llocket!! MY BOYFRIEND!! obviously he's my favouritest ever editor because i am his #1 FAN!!!! i love the way he edits things, it's so sophisticated and cool- i also love how he does text layouts for things like rentry and discord about me's (i love him a lot 😍)

@necroangelz! proud to say that i am an og-ish moonlight follower, the improvement i've seen is CRAAAZY WILD like oh my god idol just keeps getting better and better at editing?? how??

@kiochisato-pufferfish20240406 (wtf is that username kio) i haven't interacted with kio but i do look up to her edits a lot, the colouring, the composition, the creativity is so awesome to stare at, i wish i wasn't so shy to actually send a few asks or something since bow seems really nice to talk to

@pwupsicle! I CANT BELIEVE I WASNT FOLLOWING THIS ACCOUNT BEFORE I SWEAR TO GOD I DID IT LMAFGHO.. but oh my god i've seen his psds a lot in the purrfect tale discord and they all deadass make me wanna learn photopea JUST to use them

@cactiflowering! fellow glass animals enjoyer so instantly one of my favourite editors. /hj seriously though i've always found squid's edits so satisfying and lovely to stare at, also his colouring is sSOOOO GOOD? PJ <MY GOD?

@ideallyadored! although we haven't talked much i do look at what they say on purrfect tale and he's SOOO based, i look up to how they speak her mind because i'm pretty timid and keep to myself most of the time, anyway i do also love their edits- they're always so clean and neat and the colouring always slaps

phew that was a lot sorry LMAOFH

[charaznablespeteevee]

Would you share your thoughts on the Gundam you've seen? I added the first one to my list based on your posting about it (mostly the transition Char posting, he sounds like a fascinating character) and am not on Twitter to see your liveposting

Good question!! It seems like you want to know if I'd rec them so I'll answer based on that.

The original Mobile Suit Gundam (1979) absolutely I would rec to literally any anime fan. Both because it is a genuinely good anime, but equally because it's like. You know how people say you have to read the Bible to get all the references to the Bible in literature? It's like that. Gundam is one of the Bibles for anime. It's in everything. And you won't realize this until you watch it.

It's also a very good science fiction show just in general. The major characters are all great, the drama is compelling, and while some of the animation has not aged well, the newtype stuff has some super neat effects that are gorgeous to see on a big screen to this day.

It's also super accessible, the full show is available on Crunchyroll or if you don't want to commit watching a 43 episode show the three compilation movies are on Netflix and are a very solid alternative.

Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam (1985) - they got a big budget upgrade so everything is Bigger and More. More robots, more character drama, more romance, better music, and some bizarre segues into how men are from Mars and women are from Venus. Absolutely worth a watch if you liked the original Gundam because it continues to follow a lot of the original characters.

Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ (1986) - technically "skippable" if you consider 0079, Zeta, and Char's Counterattack a trilogy, which it kind of is. ZZ focuses on an almost entirely new cast of characters and the first half of the show is VERY heavy on the comedy before jumping directly into some of the best anime I've ever seen for the second half. The mood whiplash is kind of divisive among fans. Personally I like it and the characters are great. Worth a watch if you like what you've seen so far.

Char's Counterattack (1988) - caps off the gayass Amuro/Char rivalry and is just an amazing movie in general. Gorgeous visuals, and the final 15 minutes or so are a series of emotional gut-punches the likes of which I've rarely experienced in media. Must watch IMO.

War in the Pocket (1989) - six episode OVA featuring entirely new characters. This is a truly fantastic little series that lets you into the lives of a small handful of likeable characters and how their lives are affected by war. It's Gundam so guess how that goes. I liked it a LOT and recommend it. BONUS: This is a GREAT "starter" Gundam. It's short, it's very good, and you don't need to know anything about Gundam going in. There's a few references to prior lore, but they aren't anything major and a newcomer could easily figure it all out from context.

Mobile Suit Gundam F91 (1991) - this is a movie that was originally going to be made into a TV show and it shows, they stuffed far too much into too little time and it suffers for it. So unfortunately this is the first thing on this list I probably wouldn't rec. That said the characters are pretty fun and the ending is very good, so you can do a lot worse if you're bored or a completionist.

Mobile Suit Victory Gundam (1993) - this is what I'm watching right now! I'm a little over halfway done with it. This is all new characters and there are some interesting new concepts. For example the first twenty or so episodes were set on Earth so you got some really gorgeous scenery during mobile suit battles that made those scenes really visually distinctive compared to say, a battle in space. That said it's yet to really "pull me in" the way most other Gundam series did. For now I'm still waiting to see if it will do that or not.

Witch From Mercury - I'm assuming everyone knows what this is. It's gay as fuck, what can I say, and it's the entire reason I fell down into this Hell to begin with. 10/10

[torihakaraublog]

Obey Me! Nightbringer "The Phantom Butterflies" Pop Quiz Event

!SPOILERS FOR THE EVENT! (also this discussion will involve omegaverse cause if you know you know)

Read through this story the first day of the event, but then things got busy and I wasn't able to make a post about it till now. :(

This event was really fun! Also as an omegaverse fan all the conversations about Levi going into 'heat' was funny to me xD

I'm not a fan of perfumes - get agitated easily, but do like scents in other products. Its cool how you can mix scents to get something completely different or create a vibe that matches a character like Levi is doing here.

Ummm this sounds kinda disturbing... idk if I would want to put that on my face.

Ah yes the start of the 'scenting'. Was a side effect of mixing all these ingredients together that Levi can now smell people's 'true' scent, or is more sensitive to the scent of people he's attracted too? Also why do you need to be alone Levi? huh? huh?

Kinda sweet how Asmo remembered what show/character Levi is into at the moment TwT

Perfume ambassador would be a prefect job for Asmo if the situation wasn't so sus. Beel also gets Bel a pillow spray to help with sleep from the same shop that is 100% the same as the perfume given to Asmo. (loving all these brother support moments!)

Idk if it was mentioned before in past stories/events or not where Beel works? I'm assuming he works to help offset the cost of his food?

Luckily Beel told Bel before hand what the location of the shop is. That combined with Asmo's info they search for the butterfly store location. Turns out the area is owned by Mephi's family and he confirms the store is sus.

OMG Beel is so busy! (side note: he should have been in Fangol event)

Heck yah world lore! The phantom butterflies seem to be like a 'will o the wisp' leading people into the forest to get lost. Plus you could get turned into a butterfly!

Levi in heat part two xD was laughing at his survival rules! They are honestly great rules tbh based on the few horror movies I've seen.

This is really cool ngl. Poor butterflies were lonely though T_T

YES LEVI GO USE YOUR POWERS OF A GOOD OLDER BROTHER!!

It is neat Levi! You inspired the butterflies to go out and find happiness! (tho they kinda did it in a not so great way)

So cute his loud passion yelling about anime caused this :3

Levi in heat part three lmao This was just wild! Basically he basically begins to lose his sense of reason due to our 'scent'. I tried all the combos for this and sadly their was no kiss, just a lot of cuddling and horny words. But like...that was pretty good too heh heh. <3

Liked how Lucifer didn't discourage Levi here from making the perfume he wants to make, just that he should do it in moderation.

Overall this event gets a big YES from me!

[eccentric-nucleus]

actually if i'm gonna make a games rec post.

here are some games i have enjoyed recent-ish.

kenshi. an open-world squad-based rpg with base-building elements. get stronger by getting beaten up. lose a fight and get knocked out, have your weapons and food taken by the bandits that mugged you and left you bleeding to death. get rescued by some slavers that capture you and sell you into slavery. free yourself from slavery and limp away until you roll in hours later with a whole squad of overpowered fighters. then head a little bit too far south and get murdered by skin bandits. they take your skin. this is a completely self-directed game; there's no "main plot", although arguably "figure out the history of the world" is kind of the main 'story' mystery. there's also a bunch of unique recruitable characters with custom-written interactions. i usually recruit exclusively from freeing slaves but you can do w/e.

wildmender. a survival gardening game. this one came out recently and the devs are still releasing bugfixes; it's unclear if they'll make large content patches in the future. apparently multiplayer can still be pretty glitchy, and there's a water flow bug that i've been finding very frustrating. the way biomes work is kind of unsatisfying. kind of slim content-wise, but still, i really enjoyed what's there. out of all of the climate change terraforming anxiety games i've seen, this has been the one i've most enjoyed.

hellpoint. a scifi soulslike made by a team of like 12 people. previously i had thought things like "it would be neat if dark souls was less linear". hellpoint is a great example of why that might be a nightmare. the areas are connected in such a complex way, with one-way routes and branching unlock keys and secret paths and hidden doors behind hidden doors that it gets profoundly disorienting. a hint: almost every single hidden door in the game (there are a lot) is the middle panel of the same exact three-paneled-wall geometry. once you notice what it is you will see it everywhere. also, the enemy designs are hot.

crystal project. remember playing fan translations of final fantasy v? remember wandering around in old mmos? crystal project is kind of a... turn-based rpg mmo-influenced platformer. with a job system. you can sequence break the game from the tutorial level and also at basically every other point in the game too, although until you know what to look for it might seem like there's a linear critical path. but there's a lot out there. hint: play on easy mode. the combat gets tough later on and the game absolutely expects you to be finding and exploiting some class combinations.

astlibra: revision. a sidescrolling rpg. it must have been released episodically originally or some of the chapter pacing makes no sense. also it was originally released with a mess of art sourced from all sorts of places; 'revision' is a re-release with a more unified art style. it gets extremely anime all the time. there's a whole obligatory section where you have to ask all the women in a town about what kind of panties they're wearing. it's rough. i enjoyed how chaotic the systems are and how much Stuff there is to pick up and upgrade and unlock. the plot goes some unexpected places though it doesn't quite stick the landing, i still enjoyed what it did. also karon should be the love interest instead.

silicon zeroes. a cpu-building puzzle game. this straddles the line between the tech/code games that are literally just "learn a new language and code in it" and ones that are more structure-themed like, idk, spacechem. connect modules to assemble solutions to problems. it takes too long to get to chapter 3, which is where they start asking you to make entire cpus.

ashen. another souls-like. i just really like the environments in this one. the initial area looks gorgeous and the way it changes through the game is really neat to see happen. the seat of the matriarch is wonderfully awful to traverse and i wish there had been two or three more dungeons like it in the game. you can't level up; you gain stats mostly by progressing sidequests and the name quest. i eventually ran out of things to spend money on AND inventory space to store items. the late-game tuning is a little rough but until then it's great. a hint: there are three weapon types and within that type nearly all the weapons are identical. you get thrown so many weapons that don't matter; don't worry about collecting all of them. see above re: running out of space and things to use money for.

i guess it would be cheating to recommend minecraft regrowth or morrowind but i have also been playing those.

[golvio]

Well, no wonder Ganondorf was wearing all that gold jewelry in the trailer. Pure gold is one of the few metals that doesn't rust or tarnish. Anything less would've immediately rotted and fallen off the second it came into contact with his caustic, corrosive ass.

It also explains why he's not wearing any armor this time around. Cloth doesn't seem to be affected by Gloom.

This is probably the first time I've ever seen a canonical attempt to explain why a man is wearing revealing clothing. I think that's pretty funny (in addition to being a kind of neat bit of lore that I'm totally stealing for later use).

But it's also interesting that he's covering his bases from last time. The Gloom is connected to his will, and it seems to be everywhere in trace amounts, even in areas that don't show obvious signs of corruption. And he used it to rust away every single metallic weapon in Hyrule. Every one (from what I've seen so far). And only weapons, suggesting this was a specific and targeted attack. I guess he was really mad at those speedrunners who beat him up with regular, mundane, nonenchanted weapons, huh?

It also started raining when I approached Hyrule Castle. I'm not sure if that's on-purpose or if it was just the weather system deciding it was time for an atmospheric downpour, but if it was, that was really clever on Ganondorf's part, because it guarantees nobody can climb their way up the narrow pillar of stone holding the castle up, either.

He's really trying to cut off any avenues of counterattack based on what took him down last time. I'm impressed!