#but from posts i've seen it seems to be a fairly common theme

[trailmixtime]

why are gaming chats so toxic? i just want to play some among us in peace but have to see people being so mean-spirited, including adults. why are people so mean to each other in games? :(

[mecachrome]

not sure whether excerpts from oscar's book have alr been posted here but i found some of the quotes from the author's exclusive interviews with j.sera & rené quite interesting and thought i'd gather them in one place ❓__❓

i always love hearing insights on his karting days and how his unique rc bg & transition from australian to european karting shaped his racecraft... also notable that Every Single person who ever speaks about oscar is just like "well more than anything... he was SMART" 😭 obsessed with baby oscar already learning to dispense his energy in understated / calculative / strategic ways... more below the cut:

another thing i find quite interesting is how because oscar started karting in a relatively smaller scene that wasn't quite as competitive or talent-heavy as in europe, he was always too young/small for the classes he competed in (as with rc racing). of course he was never quite as egregiously undersized as lando but it's kind of fun that they have very similar karting lore in that aspect. not from the book but self-provided visuals:

also love how much the seras talk about his style, from his smooth inputs and clean driving to how much open-wheel potential he exhibited from the very beginning T__T

as for rené's insights on oscar's time at prema, i also find them interesting because while they corroborate a lot of surface level details about his junior campaigns that we're alr familiar with it's cool to be reminded of his growth from f3 (zero front row starts, winning more off consistency and competitor error than any personal dominant performance) to putting it all together in the second half of f2 (consecutive run of poles/fr wins to end the season).

also interesting to hear that THE most angry rené ever saw him was after his f3 monza penalty, because oscar's demeanor & reactions to adversity get discussed a lot and while he's always been very level-headed and i'd argue his core personality has not changed much if at all over the past 5 years, you can still see how he was just that touch less filtered and more defensive during his junior days. oscar is definitely still someone who refuses to take blame if he knows he wasn't at fault and who will never give credit to others when the work was mostly done by him ("i was the one driving" re: mweb helping him) but there has been a fairly noticeable growth curve from the guy who said he felt Physically Weak at the fr finale because of how nervous he was, who said he was grateful to be in school because it distracted him from his "habit of overthinking" that he was trying to get rid of, who complained extensively at monza about the novalak / beckmann incidents and then said "seems to be quite a common theme with liam if i'm honest 😐" re: continued contact in the press conf, to the guy today who reacts to deleted laps with a dry 👍 and stealthily downplays racing incidents to the point of not even calling them "incidents" at all.

there's also a bit from rené about how close he is to chris piastri and how he traveled to melbourne from italy Solely to attend his 50th birthday party, and basically how the piastris are just Good People and that oscar's demeanor is what sets him apart. which i thought was sweet :')

also bonus interesting media quote from laurent rossi, which i've seen before but don't remember in its entirety — specifically the part saying that the other academy drivers "weren't as curious" and basically calling oscar the only smart one of the bunch.... 😭😭😭 this freaking guy

[ramoth13]

Interesting Trends and Voices in the Silmarillion Fandom

~

Although I have been a lover of Tolkien since the earliest days of my youth and have been a Tolkien Scholar for over a decade, I have not made too many forays into the Silm fandom other than when I was younger and more recently a few years ago. Thus, I was rather surprised by the trends that seem to be mainstays of the Fandom and which ones I've seen big shifts in. I'll mention them briefly, but please note, although I may share differences of opinion regarding these characters or themes, we all share a deep love of the source material and that makes us fellow Enthusiasts. Whatever our differences, we have more in common with what we love than that which we do not.

With that said,

A "newer" trend I've noticed is the number of Fëanorian apologists, which is rather surprising, especially given their vocality. Some of the more common trends in this vein:

~A general indifference towards Fingolfin apart from a "if he had been through what Fëanor had, he would have been that way too" kind of approach, etc.

~All of Fëanor's sons (but especially Maedhros) are often given the best possible excuse for every action and bad decision. Others like Thingol or Elwing, less so.

~Finarfin and his children are generally regarded as boring, except for Galadriel who is either, loved as being awesome, wild, and wise or slightly disliked for having ill-opinions of Fëanor or some combination of the two.

~Fingolfin's line is seen as either goody-two-shoes or full of themselves, with the exception of Fingon who is close friends with Maedhros.

~The Valar are often illustrated to be antagonists, especially when in opposition to the Fëanorians.

~In the same light, I've seen a few posts that portray Luthien as being somehow problematic, seemingly to balance out the negative Fëanorian interactions she endures.

~One of the more sad effects of this apologist line of thinking is the Denegration of Elrond and Elros' parents. In order for Maedhros and Maglor to be considered "good" their actual parents are seen as "bad" despite little evidence of that being the case.

~ It seems Fëanor and sons have become the golden child of the Silm fandom, a spot once reserved for Sauron and Morgoth, if memory serves.

NOTES:

These are all fairly intriguing lines of discourse and I understand that they are tied up in and often heavily influenced by the fan-fictions and fannons. Still, it does make me wonder, with how vocal the Fëanorians are (especially on tumblr), how many Nolofinweans are in the Fandom? How many fans of Finarfin's cohort (or as one Tumblr user once called them), the blondes?

Some older trends that continue:

~Thingol still sucks (at least by common thought). It is interesting that despite all of the love of the Noldorin lines given their proclivity towards violence and bad decisions, the fandom still has not been able to lend some compassion towards the reigning Sindarin Monarch.

~Celeborn somehow ending up with Galadriel is still a big mystery (I do love this one).

~Sauron is still seen as Morgoth's boyfriend/lover/etc.

~The Valar are antagonists (before this was due to the Sauron/Morgoth apologists, and now it seems to stem more from a Fëanorian view)

~Turin and Beleg are still a ship (I am pleased).

~Halls of Mandos Reunions (always a classic).

~Gimli/Legolas ship.

Some older trends I don't see as much:

~Fingolfin/Fëanor ship (I'm not upset that this one is scarce. Even in Fantasy, incest isn't my thing).

~Fingon/Maedhros ship (see above note)

~Celebrimbor is the greatest elf of all time.

~Melkor/Manwe/Varda and/or Sauron love triangles.

I'm curious to see what others think of these trends. I'll be the first to admit, I have always had a fondness for the Nolofinweans, but it is interesting to see the growth of the Fëanorian fans and how quickly their voice has grown into one of the primary topics of fandom discourse (which is good, I love the discussions!).

~ Ramoth13

[suntiger745]

I've seen a few posts on twitter about Dhola being a reference to Tiberius and Orion.

I don't think so.

Dohla's connection is with Kima and Allura, not Vox Machina.

I think they made her character so Vorugal would have a more clear reason to come to Draconia.

There are two reasons I disagree with the opinion that she's a reference:

The first is that the former party member/friend who has grown to resent their old friends and now betrays them to the bad guy is a fairly common archetype in storytelling.

(And while Tibs had a crush on Allura, Dhola had a crush on Kima).

The second reason is that the CR cast gave Tibs a dignified funeral and a monument ingame and then moved on, in and out of game.

It seems uncharacteristic for the people who did that to put in a petty callout to a real person in their animation 8-9 years later.

I suppose the comparisons from fans were inevitable when they gave Dhola red scales, though I think that is a coincidence and more a little visual nod to the red lesbian (Kima, Dhola)/blue lesbian (Allura) relationship theme from the artists and animators.

[worldismyne]

Iceberg Bing for layer 3 and 4.

My memory is really bad, so some of these might have already appeared in earlier layers.

AMVs - Either specific songs that were popular to use in the fandom, or any fanmade content from during the manga's run that was popular

Soul and Maka Split up - Apparently this interpretation of Maka and Soul's final discussion in the manga is a hot take. There was a lot going on in the final chapter, but here are the phrases from the manga that gave me that impression.

Will cross this box off for any analysis from that final chapter tho.

Thompson Twins - Can't remember if this specific reference was pointed out, but stands in for any pop culture references brought to light.

The Dress - This is a newer development, but at some point this dress got listed on Devil Inspired and advertised heavily on instagram.

A bunch of Chrona cosplayers independently saw it and adopted it. (There were at least 3 or 4 at the first con I went to after it was listed). It's so prolific I've seen it in fanart of Chrona now.

Mary Shelly Theory - Saw someone in the tag a while back theorize Marie might be an allusion to Mary Shelly. It would add a layer to the electricity power outside of the Mjolnir reference.

New Art - Any mention of the 20th anniversary drops. (It didn't fit well in the square)

Purple/Pink Gate - Another one I can't remember if it's already been covered. Despite most fan artists color picking a dusty rose for Crona's hair, lavender wigs are still more common for cosplayers. I am a pink wig truther.

Shinobi - Okay, this is a PS2 game that predates the manga by two years. The main mechanic is a katana that sucks the lifeforce/soul of the user unless it's constantly fed other souls. I am fairly sure this is the inspiration of the uncanny sword. Even the cover art gives post time skip vibes.

If not, both pieces of media have to be referencing the same thing.

Zagreus + Dionysus : Death the Kid's role in SE has similarities with the god of the rebirth. Particularly the part of the legends where he's dismembered and eaten. There is some confusion in greek mythology if these are just different names for the same god or just two gods whose roles overlap, thus why I put both names.

Ragnarok - Particularly how he stops being a character after Salvage. Will also check off for mention of the war of the gods.

Merch - There's a lot of merch out there. Apparently they made a speaker inspired by bonus art. I'm sure there's a bunch of official stuff I haven't seen before.

Official Cosplay - There's a few talking points here that come to mind. Like how Soul is the only weapon with an official cosplay prop. Any Spirit, Ragnarok or Tsubaki props you see were made by the cosplayer. Death the Kid rings get sold one at a time, even if they're advertised as a set.

Translations goofs - There's little things like Afreet and Kishen being used interchangeably in the sub. The Witch hunter evolutions have a few different names. I'm sure there's other translation stuff that I don't know about that might pop up.

Demi-god Black Star - Another umbrella square. Black Star's arc towards the end seems to be referencing something specific. Idk what it is, but Marie goes out of her way to put him and Death the Kid on the same level and snubs Maka at the end of the manga.

The Dread Queen - Comparing Chrona to Persephone is really common in the Kirona crowd. After listening to some deeper dives on the topic there's actually precedence for them to be an allusion ancient underworld goddess that predates Persephone and Hades, but not the abduction myth. They're never referred by name only by titles. Crona's name being literally Dark One in Japanese fits with this theme, as well as usually being referred to as the Demon Sword rather than by their given name. This could be more coincidence than anything else though.

Unlocalized content - The iceberg has already covered the games, but there might be audio dramas or other in-character content that didn't make it's way over when SE was popular in the US.

[leaf-sheep]

As much as I appreciate the wonderful people who make sci fi and fantasy sex toys, tongue and tentacle themed dildos always just feel like they're going up against impossible expectations.

Like, the whole appeal of tentacles and tongues (for me, at least) is the prehensile aspect. Something that can not only push its way inside you, but that can then twist around to rub against all the right spots or even grab hold from inside so you can't pull them out...

ANyways. Um. Yeah so like I've seen a lot of dildos that follow this theme that still have amazing detail and do look like fun shapes, but I could never bring myself to get one because it'll never be what I want. I have seen some that are like SUPER long and flexible and those I could maybe be interested in? Those seem like they might have a little more versatility, but still not the full articulation of my dreams.

Although on that note, I do recall videos of some pretty interesting segmented snake-like robots...

Ok derailing this post as I'm writing it to talk about the potential for cutting-edge robotics in sex toys to bring all our dreams of tentacle monsters to life. Horny amateur opinions on robotics below the cut.

So we have these things, which have been around for a while (this image is from this 2013 article). Basically a series of solid links with little motors inside to let them twist into different shapes. I think if you fitted something like this with a silicone sleeve you could probably have something pretty good? The one in the picture looks pretty clunky but I'm sure you could design something with shorter links. Even with the sleeve though, it would still have that really solid core and probably not very pliable. Might be good for some things though, and probably the best for us robophiliacs.

Then we have designs like this. Its an inflatable tube where as air is pumped in, the plastic tube extends from the middle and extends forward. Kind of like those slippery plastic toys filled with goo from the aquarium that seem like they would make good sex toys but really don't? I think this one also works pretty straightforwardly for our purposes. You'd want a decently sturdy material for the balloon part (maybe even make it textured), and you'd want it to be lubricated before extending. That would probably mean extending it, lubricating it, then retracting it so that when it extends again its already good to go. I'm not an expert on how these things are usually controlled but the common use cases seem to be things like going into rubble or pipes, so it should be fairly well suited to extending into an orifice. Unfortunately as far as I can tell they don't have a lot of articulation once they are extended, though they can extend into different curved shapes, so it'd be more about getting filled.

And lastly (at least for this post) we have soft robots. I think the Spiderverse version of Doc Ock's arms took visual inspiration from these. These are usually a soft, rubbery, stretchy material, but they can be articulated in different ways. Some of them use tendon-like sections that compress or pull, others fill with air or water, but ultimately these are functionally the closest to muscles we have in robotics atm (at least to my knowledge). They're also... kind of enticing as they are already. They're naturally soft, and they have a very lifelike motion that I think is really appealing. You could definitely get some fun squirming motions with these.

The next problem would be making them smart, i.e. able to react properly to your movements and to be able to find the right areas automatically. As far as I know, these soft robots are mostly long extensions that are controlled from the base. That's just fine, but there isn't much feedback to the controller about what the bot is interacting with. Ideally, my robot tentacle monster lover shouldn't have to ask me if it's in yet. For the ones that work on water or air pressure you might be able to do something by reading the pressure changes from different sections to let it feel its way around a little bit? But that would still be pretty imprecise and clumsy. I'm not sure what the current state of the field is like right now for small pressure sensors, but that would probably be the best. Alternatively, maybe something like an ultrasound? You'd probably want some little pellets of hard material embedded in the bot tentacle to help it stand out. Don't they have new ones that can provide a proper 3D reading of babies and stuff?

Hmm actually that does sound hot. The machine spreads a cool gel on your belly and presses a sensor to your skin, so it can watch its arms slither inside you, stretching your belly forward almost as if there really was something alive inside... then once it's situated, it starts moving to slide the arms over all the most sensitive places...

Unfortunately I think it might be a little late to switch tracks to an engineering career so I can mad science my way into getting tentaclefucked by a robot and become a slave to my own creation. A tragedy.

[violetlypurple]

Musings on Sharlayan Fashion(?)

A series of observations on Sharlayan dress and colour.

I find the variations of the Shire sets worn by Sharlayan scholars and researchers presented in Old Sharlayan and Labyrinthos to be fascinating, so I thought I'd put together my thoughts and findings! This will be an image heavy post to contain all of the screenshot references so I will place the majority of it below a cut. We're in for a ride.

My general point here is that the colour theming of Sharlayan outfits are a uniform which denotes one's specialty or field of study. What follows are what I would consider to be confirmed lines of work/study. Let's start off with likely the most familiar colour variant, which I will call:

Aetherite Nerds - Cactuar Green

We're familiar with these vibrant green specialists for their assistance reaching Thavnair via their experimental unattuned aetherite in the Confluence, but there are a couple more hanging out in the Archon's Den area.

Up next, another familiar sight from the Studium:

The Faculty (Materials Nerds) - Canary Yellow

You may have noticed these banana friends at the scrip exchange, but their primary interests seem to be with the procurement of specialized materials and supporting the material needs of the Studium at large as displayed with Qih's introduction to Studium DoH/DoL quests and Edithe's efforts to to inform us on hunt targets as a Gleaner ourselves.

Our next subjects are likely one of the most numerous:

Customs and Public Transit - Ice Blue

Once you've noticed them, you'll see these ones everywhere. Every lift in Labyrinthos is staffed with these blue garbed officials.

Materia Nerds - Rolanberry Red

Pretty self explanatory, but at least one more with this colour can be seen as part of the random wandering NPCs in the Agora and speaks directly of Master Mutamix.

Rostra Guards - Ochu Green

Somewhat unique in the way that these two openly carry swords, they guard the entrance to the Rostra and thereby the Forum. Important job! Probably!

From here we venture into speculation, but let's start with what I think is most likely.

Preceptors - White

The white garb is fairly common, but my observations lend it to no particular study. With a stretch, we could make an assumption that because the Shire Preceptor's Coat is a healing item that is connotes some relation to healing or a medical field and reinforce this with the observation that Y'shtola's Modish attire bears clear influences from it via the style of cut and red accents. However, I believe that it's prevalence hints more to the name itself - Preceptor, defined as a teacher or instructor. Plenty of those in Sharlayan to be sure!

Logistics? - Black

These are the only two I've found with distinctly black garb, and assume they have some association with the logistics support structure around the Gleaners given their dialogue with regards to specimens and cargo.

Curmudgeons - Anamnesis Variant Teal Collar

Both of these lads are ill tempered and both wear the variant of the Shire set unique to Anamnesis. Maybe they caught some grumpy old man energy from there by fashion osmosis?

Exceptions and Unknowns

While we know from her quest that our most glorious sole Xaela representative of Sharlayan, Boragchin, is in charge of some carnivorous animals in Labyrinthos with her unique Void Blue (I think), there are several other colours that give no clear indication as to their field.

It is quite likely that I may have missed some that would clarify these chromatic aberrations or that we will see and know more in the future, but I hope this was insightful and/or helpful for your own scholar's wardrobe!

[yurisorcerer]

I don't know, man. I think I kind of really like this show.

On the face of it, ATRI depicts a fairly difficult situation. Its two main characters, Atri herself and her human caretaker Natsuki, aren't exactly the most likeable of people. (Although Atri, who is merely clumsy and loud, is so more than Natsuki, who is sometimes outright nasty to her.) But something about these characters, and their world, compels me. I think it's a fairly common thing to feel (even if you don't necessarily think it rationally) that we are living in the end times of some sort, so post-apocalyptic fiction like this takes on a specific resonance in the modern day. But it's more than just "the show is good because it depicts people getting by after a climate collapse," which I think would be oversimplifying it.

I think I was closer on the mark with the AIR comparison I made last week than I initially realized. In addition to the obvious similarities---both take place in a coastal town, both have a heavily summer-drenched aesthetic that is a key part of the show's visual and aural appeal---the general setup is fairly similar too, both in depicting a young (or at least young-seeming) girl and her male caretaker and their strange relationship that doesn't neatly fall into any single category.

I've seen a lot of people deride the show as a rote male fantasy (in the vein of the many girl-with-a-quirk romcoms I've discussed this season) and while I'm not going to deny that there's definitely at least a little of that, I don't think it's remotely the entire picture and seeing people write this off entirely because the main character is kind of a dick annoys me. Especially since I think his being a dick is part of the point of the series. (Hell, we get a very straightforward motivation for that here; when the ocean started rising, his dream of becoming an astronaut and helping with a climateering project fell apart and he hasn't had any motivation to do much of anything since. It's pretty understandable that this would turn someone crabby.)

I also like Minamo, one of the island town's few remaining schoolgirls. (Going by the OP there are just two others, all of whom attend an overgrown high school that's fallen into disrepair. Who exactly is teaching them I do not yet know.) There's a very pronounced melancholy to almost everything she does, and she and Atri have a nice conversational scene together in her house---also half reclaimed by nature---in this episode where we learn her father evacuated to the mainland, and she chose to stay behind despite his wishes. That's interesting! And when Atri visits her school at the end of the episode she seems to have some kind of weird flashback thing, which is also interesting.

The series has a lot going for it. In addition to everything I've just said, and also its deeper themes which are only just starting to take shape (persisting in the face of loss, even massive loss, is definitely going to be one), it's also pretty funny! I can technically imagine how Atri's antics might grate on someone but I find them endearing, and it's hard not to when the character animation is so expressive.

Unrelated to the show itself, I want to briefly talk about the OP and ED and specifically the songs used for them. The OP is just an absolutely gorgeous thing and I really recommend watching it for yourself even if you have no interest in the show.

But the ED is actually even *more* interesting to me despite the fact that I like it less. Because it's by 22/7. Yes, *that* 22/7, the idol group tied to the multimedia project of the same name, including its profoundly disappointing anime from a few years ago. These guys.

Yeah, they do the ED, which is significantly cheerier than most of the songs I like by them. But it's pretty good! To be honest I'm just sort of shocked that they're still around, although I think a good chunk of the original members have since departed (not that odd with idol groups, and I can't imagine there's much incentive to stay in 22/7 specifically).

It will be very odd if they end up soundtracking one of my favorite anime of the summer, but they well might!

I've given people some grief elsewhere in this post for dropping Atri but to be honest given the strong season there's no reason to waste your time on things you're not enjoying. Me personally though, I am determined to see this one through to the end, and am a little sad I won't be doing so with more company. Notably though, I didn't feel like that when when I finished the first episode at all. So I wonder what I'll think of episode 3 and beyond? Watch this space to find out, I suppose.

[deadmandairyland]

A few weeks ago I made a post about some ideas I had for my multi-fandom crossover (though mostly Danganronpa) fic idea The Fog Cutters (which I had started at one point on AO3 but I wasn't happy with how it was going so it's on indefinite hiatus and I hope to restart it from scratch eventually), but I deleted it because I didn't like how I worded the post (I felt like it came off kinda fanpol-y at some points which wasn't my intention, and also there was at least one hot take that I felt I could've worded better), and also I said that these ideas were things I was considering headcanoning for Danganronpa as a whole when in hindsight I don't think I'm invested in these ideas enough to consider them actual headcanons that I have for the series, and also-also... no one seemed to notice it anyway. But I'd like to give it another go because I do still want to share these ideas and maybe share some more ideas that I didn't mention before as well? I'll put them under the cut so if you don't care, or if you are interested in the fic idea but don't want to get spoiled in case any of this stuff ends up in the fic, you can just skip it.

First thing's first: I'm actually making bios for the characters appearing in the fic, mostly to help keep things consistent because of how much thought I'm putting in this one fic idea, but also because it's fun. And I'm wondering if I should post these somewhere? Either on AO3 or on here? And if I post it on here, should I make a sideblog for that (and for The Fog Cutters stuff in general)? If anyone would like to see that, let me know!

But for now, I'll first start with the ideas I mentioned in that original post:

Chihiro and Chiaki are cousins.

This one is actually a fairly common headcanon I've been seeing lately, and I'm kinda on the fence on it for Danganronpa in general, but I like the idea enough that I would like to go that route for at least The Fog Cutters. And part of the reason why I'm interested in going this direction with the fic is because of this next idea:

Chihiro and Chiaki's mothers are identical twins.

This idea mostly came from the fact that, before Chiaki was retconned into being a real person and was still just an AI Chihiro created, there was concept art from Ultra Despair Girls that suggested that Chiaki's design in-universe might have been based on Chihiro's mother. (Basically Chihiro's mother looks like Chiaki when her hair is down and her glasses are removed, in case you haven't seen the concept art for her.) And personally I think this is a better idea than an earlier idea I had where Chiaki was a clone of Chihiro's mother. Don't ask me how that would work or why that would have been a thing.

I even came up with names for Chihiro and Chiaki's mothers, which is something that I deliberately avoided doing in Despair Imitator because I figured the moment I gave Chihiro's mother a name (which, for the record, I've never been super confident in, coming up with names for characters I'm happy with) Kodaka would make a tweet saying "By the way, Chihiro's mom's name is Blahblahblah." Well, fuck it. I'm doing it now. So I figured I'd continue the theme naming with the whole "Chi"/"Thousand" thing, so I gave them the names Chiharu and Chinatsu respectively. Not only do their names kinda work with their respective families ("Chiharu" and "Chihiro" sounding similar, and "Chinatsu" and "Nanami" both having "na" in the names), but also it's a little funny because Chihiro actually kinda breaks the theme naming here. Like for some reason Chiharu decided to stick with the theme naming just enough to keep the "Chi" thing going, but not enough to go with the name "Chifuyu." Is there a story there? Could there be more world and character building that can come out of this? (The answer is yes; I'm considering having Chiaki be named in honor of a sibling the twins had that died young, and they have a still living sibling named Chifuyu. In other words, Chiharu and Chinatsu's parents were super into the "thousand seasons" theme naming, and the twins just kept the "thousand" part.)

The Fujisaki family line (and possibly Chihiro's mother's family line as well) were originally from Nagasaki.

This is where it gets a little crazy. I wasn't expecting to come up with ideas for a character's full-on ancestral history, but then again this is Chihiro and I've been a Chihiro stan for pretty much as long as I've been a Danganronpa fan, so this isn't really all that surprising.

Anyway, the idea largely stemmed from both the Fujisakis being an incredibly intelligent family, and the fact that Chihiro's old high school had "St." in the name, suggesting it's a Christian (likely Catholic) school (which could also explain Chihiro's dialogues about the concept of souls and Chihiro's discomfort with the idea of an always present, all-knowing god). Nagasaki has historically played a big role in the presence of Christianity in Japan, as well as its persecution during the Edo period. Also during the Edo period, Nagasaki was one of the few places in Japan that traded with other countries, and the only place that traded with China and the Dutch, which resulted in Japanese scholars of the time moving to that area to learn more about the outside world (basically during that time if you were Japanese and for whatever reason you wanted to know just what in the fuck was going on in Europe at that time, Nagasaki was where you had to go). A Christian heritage could also potentially explain why the Fujisaki family writes their name as "two unblooming (flowers)"; it could have been a show of humility. Granted, the out-of-universe explanation for this is probably just a joke about how Chihiro has no tits and it really isn't all that deep, but fuck it. It's fun coming up with in-universe reasons for this stuff.

Since (at least as far as I'm aware) Chihiro and Taichi don't have speech patterns or mannerisms that suggest they are from the Nagasaki region, presumably at some point their ancestors moved to somewhere near Tokyo. Given what would unfortunately eventually happen to Nagasaki, I have a pretty good idea of when that likely would have happened too.

Hina had/has unrequited feelings for Sakura.

Taking a break from the Fujisakis for now, this was the last thing I mentioned in the old post. In fact this was the hot take I was concerned about, particularly the part where I suggested making Sakura *le gasp* straight??? Which is a hill I'm not willing to die on, especially during pride month, so we'll just leave Sakura's sexuality ambiguous (though given that pretty much everyone in my fic is bisexual unless stated otherwise, making Sakura straight would, funny enough, actually make the cast more diverse; plus, think about all the stereotypes we'd be dismantling if Sakura was the one confirmed cishet person in the cast). But in case you're wondering, this idea largely stemmed from the following observations:

Hina seems way more into Sakura than Sakura is into Hina. Ignoring for a moment that Sakura has a boyfriend (something the fandom already does on a regular basis anyway), the way Sakura speaks to and talks about Hina is way different from how Hina speaks to and talks about Sakura. Even looking at chapter four, Hina is going to all these lengths to help or defend Sakura, and even tries to commit murder-suicide to avenge her, and yet Sakura in her suicide note is just like "You are my best friend," like talk about friendzoned, fuck. Also, in School Mode, if Makoto asks Sakura about Hina, Sakura basically immediately accuses Makoto of being a nastly little lesbian porn addicted gooner bitch. ...Okay, I'm exaggerating for comedic effect, but she does basically accuse him of having some kind of girl-on-girl fantasy about them. But if Makoto asks Hina about Sakura, Hina immediately glows up and is like "Isn't Sakura the best? She's the fucking best!" Like she was just waiting to hype Sakura up to somebody. Honestly starting to feel a little bad for Hina here, not gonna lie.

I mentioned this already in the first bullet point but... yeah, Sakura has a boyfriend. I mean granted he's basically dying and would probably be dead by the time my fic takes place (most of the DR cast is 23-25 years old in my fic), but still, we tend to forget this a lot. Again, she could be bisexual (and no, I'm not convinced it's a comphet situation either; he was literally her Captive), so this point isn't nearly as important as the other two. But I think it's still worth mentioning.

I don't think I've ever seen this dynamic for Hina and Sakura... ever. Either they're both inexplicably straight (which... no, I don't care how many hoops you have to jump through, there is no fucking way Hina is straight) or they're already fucking. It's always one or the other. There is no in-between. Well I reject this reality. There is untapped potential here. Some good old fashioned quality angst just waiting to be written.

This next idea was briefly alluded to in the original post, but it wasn't really a major point and I didn't really go into much detail on it in the original post, so I'm viewing this as the first new idea on the list:

Makoto's (Un?)Lucky Love Life Registered Trademark

Heavy emphasis on the "Un" being in parentheses and having a question mark after it because can you really consider yourself unlucky if you're dating Hina?

All joking aside, I put a hilarious amount of thought into Makoto's love life just to explain why he's dating Hina in the story, because for some reason I had a feeling someone would question it at some point because some fans are like that. So here's a list for that too:

Makoto and Sayaka reunited at Hope's Peak Academy, and things play out largely the same as their FTEs in the game. But then reality sets in and Sayaka, being an idol who will do anything to keep that dream alive, basically can't date Makoto because idol industry bullshit. So yeah, she likes him, but her career comes first. They part on good terms.

Haven't decided yet if Mukuro (and Junko for that matter) ever went to Hope's Peak in this universe, so we'll gloss over that for now. But even if they did, I don't think Mukuro would have acted on her crush.

Mutual feelings between Makoto and Hina and Chihiro were had at some point during their time at Hope's Peak but a constant string of insecurities, other crushes, and that whole "not wanting to ruin their friendships" thing kept them from knowing that the other two felt the same way, so nothing really happens there... at least not between these three. Sometimes foreshadowing is relatively obvious

Kyoko sees potential in Makoto as a detective and also he reminds her of Yui and he's also kinda cute so there's that and the two end up working together as detective and apprentice, and they eventually start dating. This relationship actually continues past Hope's Peak for some time, but sadly it doesn't last, as Kyoko hasn't fully gotten over what happened to Yui and is genuinely afraid of that happening all over again with Makoto. So they are basically left with two options: stay in a relationship but be separated for long periods of time as Kyoko does regular detective work while Makoto stays out of the picture alone, or break up and save them both the potential heartache of losing their romantic partner while on a case. They end up choosing option two, and they continue to work together.

Sometime after this breakup, Makoto reconnects with Hina (preferably at the Olympics when Hina wins the gold, because I just think that would be a neat scene), they hit it off, and they start dating.

Makoto moving into Chihiro's apartment also happens after Makoto and Kyoko break up, but that's probably not going to be relevant. ...Maybe. ...Depends on if I go the poly route.

Here on out are ideas I'd like to share that I haven't fully fleshed out yet, so they will just be in bullet points.

As mentioned briefly earlier, Kyoko never got over Yui's death. Out of literally everything else in this post, this one is guaranteed to be in the fic the most. It will come up. That's not a threat; it's a promise.

Kyoko's maternal grandfather never liked Jin and was complicit in backing up Fuhito's lie that Jin abandoned Kyoko (likely canon as well, considering how the guy posing as him in DRK acts).

Byakuya comes out as trans and goes by the Polaris P. Polanski identity (though this is partially to make up for me portraying Chihiro and Persona 4's Naoto as cisgender because I know that can be a sore spot for some fans of these two series, I also think the Polaris identity is kinda interesting and in general the idea makes me want to actually write something for Byakuya, so I consider this a net positive).

I also plan to include Deadman Wonderland's resident trans queen and best girl candidate (when your competition includes Makina, Kasuga, and Karako it's hard to choose a best girl) Chaplin Sukegawa at some point. And unlike the Polaris idea, this one is not here to make up for cis Chihiro and Naoto whatsoever, but instead because I've always wanted to write something for one of the best characters in the Deadman Wonderland manga, who, for the record, totally should've been in the anime, goddammit! We were robbed! Robbed, I say! ...And yes, this will be ending!Chaplin too: looking good and directing plays and shit. Living her dreams and being happy, hell yeah.

If anyone reading this is still concerned about Chihiro and Naoto, they are both trans allies and I want to make that clear in the fic too. I'm even considering slightly tweaking Chihiro's backstory a bit to suggest that Chihiro presenting as a girl was partially due to Chihiro considering the possibility he might be a trans girl, though the bullying will still factor in and presenting as a girl ends up giving Chihiro dysphoria. But effectively walking a mile in trans people's shoes gives Chihiro a better understanding of their struggles and plays a big role in him becoming an open trans ally. As for Naoto, she doesn't need a backstory, she's just cool like that.

Despite all the crazy claims and shit talking that Miu says, Chihiro is the only one in their group chat (which, if you haven't read my first attempt at this fic, includes Pidge from Voltron: Legendary Defender and Futaba from Persona 5, both of whom are 21 in the fic, though this age lift is mostly to portray them as being legally allowed to drink) who is not a virgin. He doesn't like to talk about it. Spoilers, especially for those of you who are worried about this: he lost it to Mondo during their Hope's Peak days. It was consensual; it's more what happens to their relationship afterwards that's the issue for Chihiro. But that's a story for another time.

This is all for now. Probably more than I should be sharing, honestly, but I don't even know how much of this will end up in the fic, so... maybe not spoilers? But hopefully spoilers. Hopefully as in hopefully I don't pull a World of Remnant and leave this all in outside material and also hopefully I actually feel confident enough to write this someday. But for now, this is it. I hope somebody out there likes it. I hope it doesn't result in any discourse because I'm terrible at it and also not in the mood. Lots of hoping in this post, I hope Monokuma doesn't notice.

I didn't tag the old post (which is probably part of the reason why no one noticed it) but I am tagging this one. Feedback is more than welcome but please keep things constructive! Thank you and I hope you all continue to have a wonderful Pride Month, even if you're just an ally! Take care.

[through-lines]

Oh! This is a pleasant surprise to get in my notifications. Thanks for the response! I'll ramble a little under the cut, if you don't mind.

OOF. This one always feels so damn big--it's so much to parse, and such a huge thing to deal with.

It is a very big subject, and one that people seem to get bery nervous about broaching (for entirely understandle reasons!), and I second-guessed including it or putting it at the top of the list! But I think it's a subject worth talking about, even if it requires a lot of vulnerability. It helps paint a picture of what being fictionkin means for the folks who use the label.

Besides, this post was me just throwing a bunch of ideas hoping some of them would stick for readers; I don't expect everyone to answer every single "prompt" here! Especially not if they aren't comfortable with it or the prompts don't apply to them.

But I'd also seen at least one memorable thread positing that there couldn't be any unicorn Otherkin because our poor, pure, unicorn souls would be blasted to bits by the horrors of this world

LOL.

But hey, I couldn't be Sonic, could I? No way…! There was no way! I just really, really liked him, didn't I! And who wouldn't want to be Sonic, right!? Nah, I was willing to entertain the idea that I was somebody, but Sonic!? Not a chance!

Incredulity seems to be a fairly common theme from what I've seen. I know I struggled with accepting being someone Good and Important. Felt like I didn't deserve it, or that it was just too good to be true. Maybe different reasoning, but still. And maybe this is off, but this had me thinking, I think coming to accept an identity like that by approaching it more indirectly makes sense. Sometimes you gotta skirt around your defenses…maybe?

But it'll be 15 years in July (chaos…l've known who I am for as old as I AM. Fuck that's trippy as balls), and if it's stuck this long, I have no reason to think I'm gonna wake up in a cold sweat and realize I've been wrong all this time.

At this point, that's probably also the main thing reassuring me of my identity. Not the only thing at all, but I know myself: I know the most consistent thing about me is my inconsistency. I know fixations come and go. I know 'linking just doesn't work for me because they inevitably fade away, even if they feel like the biggest deal ever in the beginning. That I still consistently see myself as my fictotypes after 6-8 years has to be a testament to the idea that there's something deep and intrinsic causing these identities, right?

Also, that's a long time o.o It’s not often I see fictionkin who've been awakened that long. I wonder where I'll be at 14 years... Wild to think about!

So…yanno, I was fairly skeptical of myself at first. So I did the thing l'd advise anyone to do when feeling out their identity: Fictionkin, Otherkin, therian, trans, queer, whatever. Just try it out for a bit, and see. See if it sticks, in whole or in part. See what feels right and wrong. It can be just for you, or just for you and a few trusted friends at first. It's okay to be wrong. But the only way to know is to try.

YES! I was self-conscious for a hot minute about the fact that I didn't 12+ months rigorously questioning my fictotypes, that I couldn't bring myself to deny, deny, deny until I couldn't deny it anymore like other folks at the time seemed to do. But it's committing myself to taking the perspective of my hypothetical fictotype that really brings those rights and wrongs to the fore.

When I questioned being from my source material, Sora wasn't even my first "pick", and all the questioning of the other character fell apart when I actually tried assuming their identity--and all the things that remained and pulled at me pointed me in the right direction.

Anyway, this was a good read. It’s giving me some things to contemplate (and as an aside, very interesting to learn a bit about unicorn community lore—shame about what happened, though…). Thank you again for taking the time to share this!

(sorry for any typos or formatting weirdness, I’m doing this this on my phone orz)

Every once in a while, I'll see someone saying they want to write more about being fictionkin but have no idea what to write about. It's hard to get specific without knowing the individual or their source material, but some general ideas on what to write about could be like…

What makes you believe you're your fictotype(s)

How being fictionkin affects your day-to-day life

Your relationship with your source material(s), before and/or after discovering you're fictionkin

How you feel about your source material's fandom

If/How discovering you're fictionkin affects how you interact with other fictional works

How you deal with doubt (from yourself or others)

What you do to cope with homesickness/canonsickness

What you consider shifts and what they're like, or what it's like not having shifts

Aspects of your source materials (weird pacing? gameplay mechanics?) and how they compare to your memories/noemata

I'll also add that getting into the habit of journaling regularly can help you figure out topics to write about! Of course, journaling is first and foremost for better understanding yourself, but if you make it a habit of journaling about anything that comes to mind, you could find some entries cover topics that may be interesting or helpful for others to see.

(On that note, it can be very interesting to address how things have changed over time--whether that's your identity (or your understanding thereof) or the community. That's the benefit of both journaling (for yourself) and sharing your writing publicly (for others).)

But I think in general, there's a serious need to talk about what being fictionkin is, so anything you can think to write about and share helps.

[olderthannetfic]

This amuses me a little, but I somehow managed to be a "bigger" author in a fandom by writing a lot of gen that people found and went ham over. I'd post and not participate otherwise in fandom until very recently, and even then it's more as a lurker on discord.

BUT I also have quite a bit of the "bad ship" and other themes people in this particular fandom tend to say is too "dark/etc"..... (which is rhetoric I tend to roll my eyes at and avoid, but whatever) scattered on my profile, and there's been multiple times now where someone will find that, and comment about it in a genuinely shocked way that I can write things that are gen.... then also write things that are, in their eyes, "too dark". It's particularly funny as most of my fics (even ones that are gen) have the same themes and undertones regardless of ship/rating/etc, but because there's no "bad ship" people don't seem to clue in, OR they comment about thinking I handled it with nuance, and seem honestly shocked that they can enjoy themes they've passed off as "bad" before reading it.

Essentially, I've avoided any drama about this by being very nice in replies to the comments in a "don't like don't read / I get if you don't like something, feel free to read my other fics / I wanted to explore this, but I get it's not for everyone", and avoiding most of the fandom in general. Pushing the DL;DR thing, even though these people tend to think this content shouldn't exist at all.... unless I write it, in some cases??

I've seen a couple of posts here on tumblr, and in discord conversations, saying "this ship/trope is bad, but I liked how X wrote it because..." which is an issue in and of itself, but it's amusing to me that if people give something a chance they may realise it's not all bad. I've somehow become a "gateway" person to a ship some fairly vocal people have derided as being bad, and a couple of them have come out going well, actually, maybe it's not bad.

I am looking forwards to some people finding my fics in other fandoms though haha, which make everything I've written for this one looks like pure fluff.

--

"It's fine if you're my friend" is all too common.

It comes from them imagining that Bad Fic comes from Bad People but if they've already classified you as Good People, that overrides it in your case... without making them reevaluate their faulty starting premise.

[macaronnya]

Fresh(?) Impressions (7)

Other parts: |Trickstar| |UNDEAD| |2wink| |Ra*bits| |Akatsuki| |fine| |Ryuseitai| |Knights| |Valkyrie| |Switch| |MaM/Double Face/Crazy:B| |Eden| |Alkaloid|

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Hello Enstarries~☆ It's been a while since my last post. Life's busy as always and 3 events in 3 dofferent games sure don't make it easier 😓 Good news is that I got A to Z Kaoru! Only once but that's alright for my first event aiming for the 5☆! Well, let's not stall for long and begin with the evaluation of Ryuseitai!

DISCLAIMER!: Everything said here is for entertainment purposes only and not meant to attack anyone. This is not an accurate description of any characters but my subjective rambling for fun, so please don't take it too seriously. (Just to be safe, I'm kinda scared of elite idol fans) Also, you will hear me mention other games a bunch of times bc I'm that bad and uncreative at explaining and I'm still grieving A3!EN's shutdown. Eng is my 2nd (or 3rd?) language so there might be some weird grammar or spelling mistakes. And it's usually at 3am.

Without further ado.....Let's Ensemble!☆

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I'm not going to put 2 pics per member because of the 10 pic limit, so just a heads up! First off, for a unit with a ⭐hero⭐ or essentially a power ranger theme, their Ep.1 were surprisingly depressing. Ik judging a book by its cover is really not gonna work here in this game but still.. Anyways, they do seem to have a positive mindset for most of the time. Heroes helping everyone and spreading hope for world peace is a nice concept. They even have their own catchphrases. It actually reminds me a bit of Sailor Moon as well. I'd say they pass the vibe check! Their dynamic is often compared to a big family from what I've seen. 2 parents and their 3 kiddos lol Although they're one of the bigger groups, they're actually fairly normal, if you're desensitized from their eccentricity. Their costumes are fittingly color coded and look more like idols outfits than power rangers suits but meh. That would be a bit too silly for their standard costume, I suppose. Not particularly special but ok nonetheless. Regarding music, it's not bad but also not my cup of tea. It is quite fun to play the beatmaps since it's very on beat and I do like how cheerful and energy pumping it sounds, like a shounen anime op. I could listen to it as background music no problem.

6/10 - more on the neutral side but their vibe is kinda nice

Chiaki Morisawa

His A to Z card came home in 30 pulls!!! Already looking sympathetic here...jk. He is pretty nice, though. Maybe coming on a bit strong sometimes but he's considerate enough to not cross any boundaries. Probably. He somehow gives me Sinbad (Magi) vibes. Both want to improve the world, where everyone is happy, are natural leaders many look up to, popular and charming (tho here less flirty). Small difference is that Chiaki doesn't see himself above others even after achieving lots. That and although he seemed to have idealistic aspirations, he does see reality as it is. Changing subjects, I was very caught off guard by his voice. Not that it's bad or so, it's just the only other roles I've heard from his VA were Sakyo Furuichi (A3!), a serious and authorative but dad-like yakuza, who turned a new leaf by joining a theater group and Felix Hugo Fraldarius (FE:3H), an antisocial noble swordsman, who's sick of the world and grieving his brother's death (angrily). A common character trait is their grumpiness. So to see that very voice being all cheery and shouting RYUSEI RED blablablabla was a whiplash. Although his hair and eye colors are very ordinary, he has this boyish and dashing shine, that makes him kinda cute. His laugh is probably very infectious. Apparently likes action movies and power rangers (or whatever the jp versions are called), which is no surprise. Good for him to be able to follow his dreams. Very likely to be genuinely popular with kids.

6.5/10 - cool guy cool guy

Kanata Shinkai

If Haru (Free!) and Misumi (A3!), had a love child, Kanata would be the result. His "affection" with 💧water 🌊 (and sea life too?) + his floaty vibe aka airheadedness really cement it. Was also a god??? Very Misumi-like. I bet he has inhuman skills as well, like, being able to hold his breath for god knows how long or understanding sea animals. He might have been born in the water like me. It would be very funny if his zodiac sign isn't a water element. Is the mom? of the group, which raises a few concerns but, hey, every family dynamic is unique and if it works, it works. I wonder how "this" specific speech pattern sounds when I hear him "talk". He seems kind of a weird mix of chill and hyper. :3 but like úwù. Kinda random but the mermaid set from Love Live would fit him so much and he'd look stunning in those costumes.

6.5/10 - slightly cute kamichama, sangaku sa- I mean, puka puka~

Tetora Nagumo

Inverted Kuro. Are they seperated brothers??? Is Kuro his idol? Idk but there's no way they aren't connected in some way or another. I mean, his hair for starters, then his athletic vigor, his goal of being manly and.....just look at him! Nothing in a bad way of course. Very much a puppy and all. Just a lil boy who wants to be a cool hero~ which is why he suffers from slight feeling of inferiority and insecurity trying to fill the shoes of his former leader.....Somebody give him a snack 🍪 Reminds me a but of Kumon (A3!), since he also looks like the hyping younger brother type and so. They all seem impulsive but he seems especially so. Is probably actually stronger than he looks. Black rangers are usually former or to-be enemies if I remember right so what does that say about him? Well, at least that one version I watched a decade ago had it like that. And black is usually kinda e~vi~l.

5/10 - a soon to be tragic hero?

Midori Takamine

The irony of not only looking like Tsuzuru (A3!) but also sharing other traits like being just a random boy, crippling depression and being the token :/ in his unit, and then having his VA voice Kanata o.o u_u o.o Well, he does seem even more pessimistic and down, though. Can't say I can't relate....With his parents having a vegetable shop, he was probably a good boy and always ate his veggies. The only cards I remember seeing from him showed him either being flustered, down or just not being paid enough to deal with whatever is about to happen. Has a very sweet voice but like naturally sweet and not through added sugar. Like cherry sweet! Or I'm thinking of sour rn. I mean, they're tasty either way. Anyways, I can't look at him without thinking of other characters so I can't really say anything else worth mentioning.

6/10 - I wanna like him for himself and he should too

Shinobu Sengoku

Speedy ninja boyyyyy~ He may have an emo haircut but he pretty much radiates like a ball of sunshine. A peeking one. Like a sunrise. I bet 100 gems he just likes being a ninja and differently to samurai guy, he doesn't have any ancestral ties to that. His Ep.1 surprised me with how calm he handled the complaints. Probably also a gentle soul and cries at movies. Tragic and happy. Something tells me he likes sweets. His other eye does function, right? While, his voice seemingly sounds annoying, it's actually alright. I wanna see him and Tetora have a collab song with Akatsuki. I'm curious of how their "shota voices" and energetic singing would sound with Akatsuki's somber songs and deeper voices. That and with Shinobu being a ninja and all...y'know.

6/10 - Nin nin into the night my boy

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Conclusion

I don't care for them as much as other groups but I feel a bit bad to give them a 6/10, the same score as fine, though for wildly different reasons. They're just... there....but we're delighted to have them here anyways.

You can skip this if you want but I really wanted to include this funny idea my younger sibling #1 had, when I told them about Kanata's and Midori's impression on me and they deadass created a whole crossfic (Free!, A3! & Enstars) in a matter of minutes 😂 Haru and Misumi were a married couple bc Makoto didn't reciprocate Haru's feelings due to some bro code, which leads to him having an affair with Tsuzuru, who looks similiar to Makoto and is also the responsible older sibling, cook, normal one etc. Kanata is the love child between them but Misumi doesn't know that he's not his biological child and Midori is Makoto's child. After all these things, Haru struggles to discern his true feelings for Tsuzuru and Misumi, whether he actually does love Tsuzuru or smth smth I forgot the rest.

That's all for today, I guess. I feel like I only write at 3am and I'm tooooo lazy to proofread 😩 I'll do it anyways ofc. I'm just gonna include this in my disclaimer as well. See you next time~☆

[fantasy-anatomy-analyst]

(image description: eight sketchbook drawings of characters holding a variety of pride flags, all nude and posed in ways that match some old fine art pieces. The nudity has been censored with cute digital flower stickers. end description.)

Characters:

Dalmar, intersex man. Kouto, nonbinary. Chacha, agender. Parva, nonbinary. Xulic and Kidron, genderqueer. Obeli (or Abuela) Moruga, genderqeer. Olli, demiguy. Sajak, genderqueer.

Genderqueer is kind of my default for "well, biologically and culturally, they already don't have binary sex or gender, so they kinda default to genderqueer." And I know maybe some people will be bothered by that, but it's just part of the worldbuilding I've written around all these non-human and frequently non-mammalian species of people.

The uncensored version is on my Patreon page. I do have one more drawing to add to this series, but since it's four child characters I will not need to worry about adding any censors and keeping the original image only on my patreon, as they will simply be wearing their pride flags as whole outfits.

The previous part of this, my binary trans characters, can be found over here.

detailed character descriptions and explanations of the pose references under the cut

Dalmar Ubora, a black intersex elf man with short black hair. He is holding his arms up as he holds the intersex flag, mimicking the pose of Virgin Mary from Titian's painting "The Assumption of the Virgin". The shading was washed out by the photo, but his belly is still clearly round from pregnancy. Dalmar is an interesting case, in that he was assigned male at birth based on his outward appearance, continues to identify as male throughout his life, but finds during puberty that what was believed to be an undeveloped penis was actually just a non functional body part. Instead, what actually developed to full functionality was his uterus. He still identifies as a straight cis man, and has come to terms with his body. He is married to a medically transitioned trans woman, and he could undergo operations to change his body if he wanted to. Instead, he has embraced his body and even birthed some children who were conceived via sperm donations. This is why I wanted a Mary pose for him, and this painting in particular is about Mary being welcomed into heaven as a blessed holy woman. Dalmar may not be a miraculous holy figure, but there is a reverence in the way he has come to love his body and chosen to bear children, including the surrogate birth of his brother's child.

Kouto Hayashi-Loryck, a slender nonbinary elf with black hair tied into a bun. They are holding the nonbinary flag and standing in the pose of a statue known as "Apollo Belvedere", which is so old no one knows the artist's name. One arm raised, one lowered, legs in the relaxed contrapposto pose. Kouto is an artist and an art model. Apollo is a god of the arts, and regarded as a beautiful and sexual figure. Kouto is bisexual and admittedly a very sexual and flirtatious person. They did settle into a happy marriage though (actually they are Dalmar's in-law and the sperm donor for the aforementioned surrogate birth.) Marriage has not stopped Kouto's flirtations, merely limited their targets to a singular person. It felt right to give him this pose, from a pretty well known portrayal of Apollo. Beauty, art, and sex, all defining traits of Apollo and Kouto alike, all present in a pose where the figure seems to be reaching for something above them.

Chacha Faraji, an agender black elf with short hair. They are facing away from the viewer, seated on a stool that is covered by the draped agender flag. No physical traits that could betray their agab are visible. Chacha is sitting in the pose of Reubens' painting "Venus at the Mirror". The arm closest to the viewer ends at the elbow, while they hold a mirror in front of their face with their one whole arm. Their face is seen reflected, smiling, little wrinkles visible by their eyes. I chose this painting in part because it did allow me to obscure Chacha's agab. They were my first nonbinary character, and I never really settled on an agab. But also, I enjoy putting characters who have unconventional bodies into poses associated with Venus or Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty. Chacha is missing half an arm, they are getting older and it shows in the wrinkles on their face. Chacha is also Aromantic and Asexual, the full queer triple A battery. The mirror pose has become an independence of beauty. "Look but don't touch." Chacha is beautiful, and they do not need to be beautiful for anyone but themself.

Parva Turbatus, a white nonbinary elf with shoulder length curly hair that has been shaved down on the far side of their head. They are holding the nonbinary flag, standing in the slightly closed off pose found in Paul Gariot's painting "Pandora's Box". One hand on their chest, one hand held out to hold the flag. They have top surgery scars on their chest and a c-section scar on their navel, though all of these have unfortunately been hidden by the flower censors. I chose a pandora pose for Parva because they have one of the most intense tragic backstories of any of my characters. Like Pandora opening the box, they have suffered through many things but came out the other side with Hope, and healing.

Xulic Vos and Kidron Engedi, a drow and a lizard person. They are sharing the genderqueer flag. Xulic has long ears and white hair in a braid, with a white monkey-like tail barely visible behind their legs. Kidron looks like a leopard gecko, and their tail is acting as a visual block in fron of Xulic's groin. They are standing together in the central pose of Raphael's "School of Athens" fresco. Xulic is pointing one hand up to the sky, while Kidron holds one hand palm down towards the earth. Xulic's chest is visibly flat, however I have rewritten the drow as a eusocial people, who's biology has made most of the common population infertile and visibly near identical above the waist. Xulic's agab is unknown to anyone but them, and perhaps their reptilian lover Kidron. Both drow and lizard folk have biology and cultures that do not really support a gender binary, so genderqueer suits them both quite well. I chose the School of Athens pose because these characters are scientists in fields that overlap, and they often get into deep discussions on the matter. Xulic is a paleontologist while Kidron is a geologist, and they have another friend (my protagonist) who studies archaeology.

Obeli (or Abuela) Moruga, an elderly goblin with sagging skin and axolotl-like frills on the sides of her head. She grins as she holds the gender queer flag, partly draped over the tall stool she is seated on. Her pose matches that of John Collier's "Priestess of Delphi" painting, which depicts a woman hunched over herself on a stool. Old Obeli Moruga, whose title best translates to "grandmother" is a significant figure in her community, both because of her more practical role as a leader and wise woman, but also because she has gained immortality and become an incarnation of Life Itself, after she was given the offer of such power when she nearly died in the goblin revolution. There are many figures that would suit her. Poses from statues of goddesses, like Athena or Gaia. Perhaps turning away from the theme of greek and roman figures I ended up with for my nonbinary group (dalmar is his own thing) and using the famous painting of Liberty on a battlefield. But now in her old age, all those poses of figures in more active poses, tall and imposing, simply didn't feel right. A wise old woman, hunched on a stool in a pose associated with the idea of an oracle, a priestess, a prophetess, felt much more fitting. (goblin culture does have specific pronouns for leadership, and in the common speech they have decided this translates best to the feminine "she/her")

Olli Moruga, also a goblin with axolotl-like frills, standing with the demiguy flag in his hands. He is in the pose of Michaelangelo's statue of Bacchus, god of wine, merriment, and madness. One hand up as if to salute with a cup, body leaning and perhaps a little unstable. Olli is a gay demiguy, stepping away from the naturally ungendered state of his people to embrace masculinity instead. He is extroverted, loves a good party, and has definitely been a little over his depth with alcohol on many occasions. He knows this is a problem. He used to act rebellious because of it, trying to be cool and aloof, but he has since admitted the truth to himself and now openly seeks help. His trans lover, Zaire (seen in a previous post) has become a great support to him. Even though it may seem odd to use the pose of a god of wine for a character that is trying to overcome an alcohol issue, I still feel like the vibe of Bacchus or Dionysus fits Olli well. He is not only a god of wine, but also of pleasure in general, a concept Olli embraces. Wild joy, perhaps to the point of becoming a little feral, abandoning tradition for personal fulfillment. It is unusual for goblins to embrace a binary gender, even partially. Gendered pronouns do not exist in their tongue, only being used in cases where common speech needs to be used to refer to certain significant figures, such as a leader. It is also unusual for a goblin to take a lover outside their species, since most goblins live in fairly isolated places and all mate together seasonally, depositing their eggs in a communal nursery pool. Olli stands out on purpose.

Lastly, Sajak, an amphibious person with some fish-like features such as their finned ears and a barely visible dorsal fin. They are holding the genderqueer flag as they stand in a commanding pose, one foot on a rock, one arm held out as if pointing to something below them. This pose is taken from the central Poseidon statue in the fountain of Trevi. Their head, arms, and torso are covered in dark tattoos in abstract designs, and they also have a few natural dark stripes along their arms and legs. The obvious connection between Sajak and this statue of Poseidon is that Sajak is a fish person and Poseidon is an ocean god. If I could have thought of a more medical figure, I may have made a different choice in the art reference. Sajak is primarily a doctor, a healer. They are fairly well known and they were an important figure on their home island, though they did leave eventually. Even so, there is a certain vibe to Sajak that suits the image of a powerful and unpredictable oceanic god. They are steady, intelligent, and careful, but they can become fierce when their loved ones are under threat, and the intense focus they show in their work as a doctor can be intimidating to see. There is a feeling of hidden power within Sajak, just as there is in the ocean when it seems calm. Fish folk, whether bipedal and amphibious or fully aquatic, also fit under my category of "non-mammalian people who are just kind of genderqueer by default due to their biology not fitting into a binary".

[sanstropfremir]

would love to hear ur thoughts re. these street woman fighter's performances and who you would personally vote as the "better dance crew" in how they interpreted each other choreos and the song.

this was for their first elimination round (ep4) and it was interesting to hear from the judges + why they gave the points they did. (i'm not entirely sure if you're watching the show's episodes. they are roughly 2 hours long. so if you would like more context, pls let me know! i wrote brief comments underneath each one as well as the winners [spoilers ahead!]. assuming you are not: for this mission, each crew is paired with another crew and they have to choreograph one of the soloist songs. songs were "split" into two parts: part one [would be one song] and part two [another song]; one crew would choreograph one part and follow the other's crew choreograph for the other part.)

1. boa - eat you up (want choreo) + better (ygx choreo). dance crews: ygx vs want

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCfK_qWAhM0&ab_channel=MnetTV

winner: ygx. boa gave 151 pts to ygx and 49 pts to want (the biggest gap in points between crews), sharing that although want choreographed eat you up, ygx was more cohesive (pointing to how want wore hats and it was messy). additionally, ygx had better stage presence and was able to capture the camera more. also, because ygx is the only crew to have a b-girl and use it in their routine, the judges applauded want for doing the best they can.

2. cl - doctor pepper (wayb) + hello bitches (prowdmon). dance crews: prowdmon vs wayb

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEEpZ9SrvaE&ab_channel=MnetTV

winner: prowdmon. judges shared that doctor pepper's routine is a trademark of wayb and that they should have been the standout. however, they felt like prowdmon did it better.

3. hyuna - crazy (4minute) (coca n butter) + i'm not cool (hook) + lip and hip (hook). dance crews: hook vs coca n butter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1ikpPKEA30&ab_channel=MnetTV

winner: hook. the two dance crews are VERY different in terms of style. coca n butter is described to be more hip-hop while hook is definitely more reflective of the current/newer trends. (when hook was first introduced in the show, they were known as the crew who was famous only for tiktok dances.) the judges shared that hook was more fun and interesting, given their stylistic choice of wearing the pink wigs. whereas it seemed for coca n butter, they felt like something was lacking (they showed something but it didn't feel they did.)

4. jessi - what type of xx (lachica) + nununa (holybang) + gucci (holybang). dance crews: holybang vs lachica

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtZzI11oyqc&ab_channel=MnetTV

winner: lachica. (this was the only battle where both crews came in v close pts. whereas for the other crews, there were huge point-gaps.) judges had a hard time choosing, sharing that for lachica they were more detail-oriented while holybang had better teamwork.

-

imo, i agree with the judges' choices. though i would have to say i think wayb did their routine (doctor pepper) better than prowdmon. they stood out to me then, but when it came to the second part (hello bitches), prowdmon was better. i loved lachica's performance - it was v clean + reminded me of something a kpop group would do (which like, the crew largely works with kpop acts like chungha, boa's better, etc. so it makes sense).

-

this was LONG. thank u if u do read it and post! i miss the kingdom "era" when u would post weekly reviews. the two are v different but this new mnet competition show is the only one i'm invested in. i'm not sure if it's big internationally? i know it is v popular in korea right now. while i've only seen i-fans talk about the show as it relates to chaeyeon (want) because she's an idol. - swf (streetwomanfighter) anon :]

omg this is so long and well organized, forget me writing reviews anon you should do it!! i'm not currently watching the full episodes but i've been catching the few clips that pop up in my youtube recommended occasionally, so i definitely don't have all the context but i'll take a crack at it!

ok so my assumption/from what i can tell, they have a bit of leeway to alter the competing group's choreo as needed to better suit numbers and formations. i also went and found the individual versions of these because why did they make them so small on the split screen, don't they know i'm old and wear glasses. also: MNET FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY STOP MOVING THE FUCKING CAMERA. WE DO NOT NEED SCROLLING VERTICAL BOOM SHOTS OF THIS. just keep the same lens at eye level it's really not that hard. this is like, one of the worst possible ways to shoot dance it is SO annoying. ok i'm done bitching about that let's go.

1. boa - ygx vs want i agree with the big point gap on this one, and i think want made a couple of choices that were not cohesive enough, and obviously they also got set up to fail by ygx. actually i think both groups made choices that were not particularly good, but ygx had more of the skills to back up what they were doing than want did. breaking is very difficult and requires a lot of upper body strength and a higher centre of gravity, which are two physical traits that are less common in women. personally i wouldn't have tried to break to better because although boa songs do have more of a beat than other idol music, it's still not at all the right type of music for breaking. it's gotta be fast, breakers rely on speed, because it's all about momentum; they're literally throwing themselves around the stage. here's the final from battle pro 2019 for example. the music is basically beats only; heavily lyric based music, like idol music, is bad for battling in general because there isn't a lot of consistency. i have more to say about this but i'm getting off track. basically by choosing to handicap the other team (because they don't have a bgirl at all) they shot their own bgirl in the foot because the song is too slow to properly show off her skills. i applaud want for making bold choices, like the hatwork and attempting the breaking, but ultimately when combined with their styling the performance looks disjointed. also they have some formation cohesion issues that make it look a bit like they'e struggling to keep up, even with their own choreo.

2. cl - prowdmon vs wayb i agree with the judges, i think prowdmon bodied the wayb choreo. i actually thought that was their choreo at first. they have the best presence that i've seen of all the groups and the performative "hard bitch" attitude fit in with their genre setting. wayb had several mistakes and synchronization issues that in my opinion made them look sloppy in comparision to prowdmon, who were sharper and had two more people to put into formations. 3. hyuna - hook vs coca n butter ok personally i don't like either of these choreos, but i'm agreeing with the judges here, i think hook's was the mildly more engaging. i can tell that they're very young and do mostly short form tiktok content because i see a lot of eye catching moves, but i don't see a lot of strong connective tissue between those moves. they have good ideas but they also really struggle with putting people into formation and balancing it out well. it doesn't help that they're a seven member crew going up against a four member one, so they have three extra people to figure out what to do with. there's a lot of empty space where there are members waiting in position for a group formation. it also doesn't help at all that they (mnet) appear to just be rawdogging the songs together without any kind of mixing, which is a huge detriment to groups that have to choreograph for two in their section. i'm not cool and lip and hip have two totally different feels and kudos to hook for at least trying to get them to at least visually be cohesive when mnet is go girl giving us nothing sonically. coca n butter has much more of an old school hip hop style, so putting these two up against each other was (probably a random lot draw) an interesting choice. personally i would have been more interested to see hook against want with the boa tracks and ygx against coca n butter with the hyuna tracks. however, i think the reason why coca n butter's stage felt like it was lacking is because they tried to emulate hyuna, without having the stage presence or the weirdness of hyuna. it feels like they're trying too hard and there isn't really any personal character in the piece, versus with hook, who embodied hyuna's weirdness a little more authentically and took a completely different direction. 4. jessi - lachica vs holybang lachica took this one easily, although their formations were a bit wonky for nununana, they covered it fairly well and i think they managed the best transition between songs (between nununana and gucci). they were sharper with good stage pictures and had a good gimmick with the double fringe on the gloves and hats. holy bang had some issues fitting their extra person into the what type of x choreo, but they did well with their own choreo. however, like with coca n butter and hook, because lachica took a new visual spin, this felt too derivative of jessi, so it wasn't that interesting for me to watch. i do think they are one of the groups on the stronger end of skills and presence. --- as far as visually what performances i liked the best, since would this even be a writeup by me if i didn't talk about design, here's a quick breakdown:

prowdmon - got some rudimentary setpieces, got a theme, got some fun variations on a uniform look; excellent for what i assume was limited budget capacity and also it's a dance crew show.

lachica - great continuity of effect in costuming with the fringe, and using the gloves as a mouth/lip effect was one of the most interesting choices of these routines.

hook - the pink wigs and the black latex on the checkered floor was a nice gimmick that was a bit of a nod to hyuna's weird without being too derivative. i'm not expecting a whole lot because these are dance crews but i think this was a decent amount of styling effort.

want - they made a bold choice with the hats and even though it didn't quite pay off for them i still respect it.

coca n butter/ygx/holybang/wayb - ygx and wayb did basic hip hop type styling and while it's absolutely fine, it's just boring. holybang went for a directly inspired jessi look, and although yes bodysuits, overall it wasn't that interesting either. coca n butter get props for doing a costume change and actually incorporating that into the choreo but it feels too much like it's trying to be hyuna weird with the caution tape strapped over their tits and asses.

---

as a final note/question to you, my lovely invested swf anon, what's the format of the show? are there stages like this every episode to review? if these were from the fourth one only, is there anything worth me reviewing in the first three? i'm not particularly interested in the aggressive competitive nature of the show and editing so i don't particularly want to watch the full two hour episodes, but if you think it's worthwhile for me to review stuff then i will. otherwise if there's a set structure (like with kingdom) i can seek out the stages specifically and review them if i know what i'm looking for.

[chaosstar290]

Reasons try out Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore.

Nintendo's been pretty casual with porting Wii U games over to the Switch, and for good reasons. Normally, I'm not all into porting games that I've already played, but my personal favorite games on the system that lack good marketing and advertising are now getting the attention and love they deserve.

Take Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for example, one of my favorite 2D platfomers. The game originally sold 1.72 million copies worldwide on the Wii U. Not very good numbers, huh? However, the Switch port managed to beat those sales numbers with 2.25 million units sold worldwide by the end of March 2019.

So while this could be seen as a way for Big N to earn more $$$, this is also a way for those who never owned a Wii U and missed out on some of the system's best titles to give these games a shot. Now we just need a port of Xenoblade Chronicles X and The Wonderful 101...and Star Fox Zero, I guess.

But that's a topic for another time. This post is specifically for my favorite JRPG on the Wii U only to be tied with Xenoblade Chronicles X....Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE.

This'll be a long one, so here's hoping you'll stick with it until the end.

Development

Before I get into the reasons, lemme educate you guys a bit. Back in January 2013, both Atlus and Intelligent Systems made a teaser trailer for a potential Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem crossover for the Wii U.

The trailer was mostly just a slideshow with various character artwork. Despite this, there was a decent amount of hype surrounding it. But development around the game was pretty silent. That is, until we fast forward to the Nintendo Direct in April 1, 2015. We got a trailer of the ambitious SMT x FE crossover that fans were waiting for...but this was the final product.

Needless to say...neither SMT nor FE fans were happy about this. The fandoms were incredibly salty and foaming at the mouths, basically calling it a Person 4 Lite with a hint of FE. Heck, they're probably still posts on this site from 5 years ago that'll show that.

Fast forward to the games initial release, and you'll see quite a few positive reviews and thoughts about TMS. Unfortunately, the sale numbers were not all that great for the game. Obvious reasons being that it was a Wii U game, and many fans of both SMT x FE were not happy with how it turned out.

And to be honest, I wasn't feeling the game myself at first. It seemed too lighthearted and upbeat, and the J-Pop, anime-ish aesthetics were very off-putting. However, the more I saw about the game, the more I was drawn into it. Somehow all that disappointment I had about TMS originally just washed away. And considering it was a new IP, I decided to give it a chance. And hoo boy...I was generally pleased.

With that outta the way, let's get into why I'm excited for the Switch port of game, and hoping people will give it a fairer chance.

The Setting

The plot of Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE is mostly simple. You start out as high schooler Itsuki Aoi, the main character of the game encountering his childhood friend Tsubasa Oribe at an audition event to become a idol. It isn't until moments later in the game that the area gets overruned by shadowy creatures known as Mirages that suck out the creative energy known as Perso-- ah I mean Performa from the other idols and audience.

Poor girl doesn't know what's gonna happen next.

Despite our main characters seeming unharmed by the effect, the Mirages drag Tsubasa into their world known as the Idolsphere. And of course, courageous Itsuki takes action to follow and rescue her.

After trying to make a daring rescue, Itsuki gets bombarded by a Mirage, but somehow manages to awaken it. Taking the form of Fire Emblem Awakening's protagonist Chrom. Itsuki does the same with the Mirage that captured Tsubasa that takes the form of Cedea from Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon. The two awakaned Mirages, however, suffer from a bit of amnesia and can't quite remember who and what they are.

From there on, Itsuki and Tsubasa form a partnership with Chrom and Cedea, encountering various characters trying to reach their way to stardom while trying to draw back the opposing forces from taking over Tokyo and the world. Typical RPG stuff, am I right?

It's a fairly standard and slightly cliche plot with some common anime tropes, but for this game...it works. It's a plot that's incredibly silly, upbeat, and over-the-top, but again...it works for this game. And I love it. It may not be original, deep, or complex, but the story does its best to not take itself too seriously, and it doesn't fail to keep a smile in my face.

Aside from the vanilla cookie-cutter MC Itsuki, the various casts that you meet are incredibly charming, and go through their own personal growth as celebrities. Though you mileage may vary on this.

The Gameplay

The combat is the real star of Tokyo Mirage Sessions. Basically, it's your standard turn-based combat system...but with a few twists. If you've ever played a SMT or Persona game, then don't be surprised that elemental weaknesses make an appearance here. Along with that, the Triangle Weapon system from Fire Emblem also makes an appearance in the game.

But if you're not familiar with either franchise then give you a basic example how this works. Say that you've encountered an armored Mirage wielding an axe. The weaknesses on that enemy are both lightning and swords, and Itsuki just so happens to have both the necessary element and weapon equipped.

In case you're wondering...how the Triangle Weapon mechanic works in FE is that Swords beat Axes, Axes beat Lances, and Lances beat Swords.

The interesting thing about this is that once you exploit an enemy's weakness, other characters will jump in and combo extra attacks. These are called Sessions, and their not only powerful...but also flashy as all hell and it's glorious. Not only that, but there's also Duo Arts where two certain characters will sometimes perform a song that unleashes a powerful attack...which also strings up more Sessions. As broken as this sounds, it actually is pretty strategic for taking down harder enemies, and they can also form Sessions...so be careful.

There's more to the gameplay like roaming Tokyo, exploring dungeons, and upgrading your characters and Mirages by Tiki from Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon as well.

There's mixed opinions on the dungeon aspects of Tokyo Mirage Sessions, but...I personally enjoyed them. Aside from the first one. Once you get past the first dungeon, they get better as the game progresses. From exploring a darker version of Shibuya where you have to avoid giant cameras from sending you back to the entrance of the of the room you currently entered, to venturing through a maze-like TV studio.

There's also side-missions that you can do with your main cast that'll help them grow and develop even further. You'll be rewarded with either a special cutscene or a special attack. Or maybe both.

The Visuals

Go go...Persona Rangers?

If it wasn't obvious from the amount of images I'm posting, Tokyo Mirage Sessions is a very colorful game. Fitting with it's lighthearted theme, the amount of colors the game throws at you makes visuals aesthetically pleasing. Heck, you could make these your personal wallpaper on your phone or something.

Sure, Tokyo Mirage Sessions isn't nearly as strong as Persona 5 graphically or even artistically, but like most Nintendo games...what their games lack in terms of detailed ultra-hyper graphics, they make up for it with giving their games gorgeous artstyles.

Also, this game has some reeeeeally good artwork.

The Music

J-Pop plays a pretty big role in Tokyo Mirage Sessions, so expect a lot of vocal tracks. If you're not into this kind of genre of music, then you might wanna stray away from this game. If you are (or if it doesn't bother you), then you're in for a treat. As someone who really isn't into J-Pop myself, the songs in this game are incredible and catchy followed by some beautiful cutscenes. Reincarnation from Kiria Kurono and Feel from Tsubasa Oribe are some of my personal favorites.

The music from outside the vocal tracks are pretty good too. The normal battle theme and the Illusion Shibuya dungeon theme are just to name a couple.

What's New?

Like I said before, Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore is a port of the Wii U version, but with added content. Any DLC that was added in the original game will part of the base game in the Switch version. But let's talk about the new stuff.

EX Story and Songs

The EX Story is basically a dungeon that you explore in short bursts. Here you'll find new costumes such as a Joker outfit from Persona 5 for Itsuki, or an Annette outfit from Fire Emblem Three Houses for Mamori Minamoto. Or you can have a much easier time grinding for EXP. Also, much like the side-stories, this dungeon will also explore the main casts' issues and help them grow.

New songs will also be added in this port. A duo song called "She is..." sung by Tsubasa and Kiria is one of them.

Sessions

By making Sessions even more powerful and ridiculous, unplayable characters like Tiki, Maiko Shimazaki, and Barry Goodman will also join in Sessions.

In addition, a Quick Session option will be added. Which is a major upgrade in my book. One of the big issues the Wii U version had was while the Sessions were fun to watch, they took forever to get through with the more characters that joined your party. There are also smaller improvements like the Switch version having faster loading times.

Conclusion

Hopefully, this long as hell post will spark some interest into those who'll give the game a shot. I know there's small nitpicks like the lack of English voice acting and censorship, but the latter is a topic I'd rather not delve deep into.

Regardless, these small cons are greatly outweighed by the large pros this charming game has. If you're an Atlus fan, a lover of JRPGs, or wanting to play something that'll ease the wait for Persona 5 Royal, I highly recommend you give Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE encore a shot.

If you're also waiting for Persona 5 to actually come to the Switch like me, this game is next best thing we've got for the time being.

This is one of the most stylish menu screens ever.

[jensensitive]

So since people are talking about the poetry account again here are some ideas I've collected the past months: a lot indicates that perhaps vicki is even the one writing some few of them, at least the four ones before the last one because the themes fit with m*sha's being on set or at home, BUT there are some that would not make that much sense considering they have been together most of their lives and are publicly married, like "i didn't set out to love you"? and the most recent one?

Yeah, it's an interesting puzzle for sure. As far as the ones that seem like they're about being long distance, I feel like those could just as easily work on the other direction for Misha to Vicki if he's on set or traveling or Misha to Jensen if he hasn't seen him in a bit (the July 19th one he was at home for, as far as we know). It's interesting cause some of them seem like they're about a secret love and a newer love, which would fit j/m, and there are also those that are about a dramatic love, maybe involving being on and off or just self doubt about everything idk.

There are a lot of reasons to think it might be Misha or Vicki (or Jensen I guess) at least writing some of them

-often looks like Misha's handwriting (imo), same G, inconsistent with the way they write letters just like Misha is

-based on the timing of a mention of "first snow," they're probably based in Vancouver or Washington

-they used the word "kerning" around the same time Misha told that story about Vicki

-mentioned Japan around the same time Vicki's book was released in Japan

-they seem to travel fairly often and stay in four-star hotels (they $$$)

-were in Mexico around the time Misha posted that video with the pigs at their hotel

-were on a beach around the time Misha was in Belize for Christmas

-the last one gives vibes of a closeted love

-the one that says "this is the season I hope never ends"

-Misha followed them from the beginning of their account

-Misha likes and comments on their stuff even though he rarely ever does that with anyone

-they've never said anything in Spanish or used any Spanish words, even though they have a common Spanish name

-they don't spell things wrong a lot, but they have

-Misha deleted a bunch of his own poetry in his own handwriting around the time the account started

and the reasons it's probably not him:

-like I said, Misha has commented a couple times

-when they respond to comments, they use non-white emoji hands

-their earliest poems are in a handwriting we haven't seen Misha use

So there's significant reasons for either argument really. Do I think Misha would be dumb enough to talk to himself while pretending to be a poc woman? I mean….. yeah, kind of 😬 lmao. But who knows, I truly have no idea. Maybe it's Vicki's girlfriend??

eta: Charlotte brought up an idea that maybe it's a poetry collective, and multiple people are writing them, maybe only one person physically writing then down, but the comment on the Aug 20 one suggests the same person wrote it down as took the picture and as is running the instagram. Although maybe more than one person has access to the account? Maybe it's multiple people and they all just try to emulate a specific handwriting style? Idk!