#but i think if chapter 4 keeps the overall quality of chapter 3 and ups the scares while dailing down the puzzles or incorporating them

[tasmanianstripes]

Amazing how it took the developers of Poppy Playtime two whole chapters to finally make a bare minimum of a functional game

[justanotherpersonsuniverse]

Hey Cap!!!

First section of OM observations plus commentary, chapters covered is: fox skin and changeling. Questions are numbered and in bold! 

Right, finally found the time to have a sit down and do this, yippee! College has been taking up far too much space in my brain! 

I’ve got a mocha, and a slice of lemon drizzle cake so I’m all set up :3

[— — —]

I’ve always really loved what you open with for OM, its both nice and straight to the point and the tone is kept light to play up the comedy that *somehow* no one has figured out just what Juleka is. 

Question 1: How does glamour work in this universe? Is it a natural magic that developed as a defence mechanism from when monsters were being persecuted or was it something cast over monsters by design? Is it a different sort of glamour that protects miraculous users' identities?

I did chuckle when Juleka referred to the miraculous as “hero business she wants no part of” because a) PN being a thing, and b) Juleka is literally insanely protective and sacrificial in OM as is so she’s heroic either way, so like ha! I know what you are Juleka… mentally ill…

Oh, I do love reading and seeing the gang form, you introduce these familiar characters with unfamiliar aspects so wonderfully. The way each of them have a different intro… it’s so much fun. I do like how the reveals slow down as the story goes on but still pop up from time to time, like with Kim in later chapters. 

Speaking of, I do adore how you write, like, overall plots? It’s hard to describe, but you always have a very good mix of character driven plot beats, and manage to keep the story arcs flowing. OM does have less of a clear ending point because of how it’s written but if anything it adds to the vibe of the story; teenagers being silly goofs and learning to rely on each other and discovering who they are as people. 

It’s so funny how Rose kicks off the plot by casually mentioning Alya’s coat, like did she just get bored or something?? 

I do like how you write Juleka’s vampiric driven thoughts, they toe the line of being a bit funny and with her being self aware enough that they feel grounded. They don’t feel unnecessarily creepy or melodramatic.

Christ it’s really weird seeing Juleka interact with Marinette. I'm so used to the toxic LadyNoire yuri…

Question 2: But also. Fr. Why did Marinette react like that when asked about Alya’s jacket??

Question 3: Does Juleka also have to count things if they are thrown on the floor as another weird vampire thing after needing an invitation and being unable to cross running water? Also is Juleka burnt in the sunlight and she’s just been wearing a huge hat and been fully covered this entire time or…?

I do love Alya as a character, especially in this she has so many fun qualities which are a lot of fun to read about. They’re awkward in an adorable way in this chapter, both of them lack any tact Juleka’s “I like your skin.” line will always make me lose my mind, why tf is she like that?! I do like their dynamic in this with the magical investigative side of things and becoming closer friends it's super cute :3

Question 4: How does Juleka’s whole mind control thing work? Because you explicitly wrote that the “I suggest you tell me more.” thing is a suggestion spell and I’m not sure if we ever see Juleka attempt to mind control someone. Like, I get why she wouldn’t whip it out on the reg, it’s kind of nasty on the consent side of things, but for when they’re fucking around and finding it out it feels like it could be useful depending on how it works :)

EEEE, Alya’s transformation is so cool… love how you wrote that, plus her reaction afterwards with immediately wanting to know more about Juleka is so in character for her. 

The running bit of Juleka being like “Why does everyone think Rose and I are dating?” only for her to be the only one who didn’t think that is literally so funny. My poor girl has no self esteem but to be fair Rose, girly, use your words!

Question 5: In your lore, is a bitten vampire different to a born vampire in any capacity? If so, in what ways?

Question 6: Why are Etta and Ella just people but Nora and Alya are selkies? Is it because their mum didn’t bring her coat with her when they escaped the sperm donor? If so; does that mean their mother lost the other traits of a selkie (as was described about Alya having sharper teeth, claws, etc.) or is it another reason? Also I find it so upsetting that Alya’s mother couldn’t keep her coat like man wtf she suffered enough

THEY’RE SO CUTE. I love Juleka just rambling about her experience as a vampire with all that stuff and Alya’s rapidly writing everything down… the buddy cop duo of all time actually. 

HA, Alya actively stalking observing Rose and Juleka as a fox at the end is so silly…

[— — —]

The way that I’m like so frustrated that Juleka doesn’t try harder at shape shifting… girl if I could turn into a few animals and all I had to do was practise a lot you best know I��d be experimenting on the reg

Hey… the gangs (mostly) all here! (plus Marinette) 

To be perfectly honest with you; until I read this I never cared about Sabrina as a character. She just felt so directionless without Chloe there. Plus the writers kept flip flopping between Sabrina relishing in the nasty tasks Chloe gave her, ending up as a quieter mean girl or being this poor girl who’s Chloe’s lackey and is being pressured into everything. So in canon she had no consistent behaviour and had no substance behind her actions. 

On the other hand, Chloe felt similarly baseless and like she was just used for cheap plot progression until they introduced her mother and everything sort of clicked into place, as far as I can remember they never did the same thing for Sabrina.

Like the show really didn’t give us anything but hints on how you could make her interesting but you write her fantastically :)

Like, you both managed to make her a really fun character to read by pulling from bits and pieces of the show and when adding the magical element to it all you created a very compelling person who has complex relationships with people and herself and it’s just a joy to read

Not the title drop-

HEHEHE I love Alya and Juleka covertly gathering information they’re so silly, the idea of them concocting this plan all mischievous like is so funny

Alix expertly changing the subject (“Marinette wasn’t you dad a werewolf Akuma?”) but still hinting towards being / having connections to a werewolf was very smooth I don’t think I noticed that before! 

Question 7: Can a werewolf be Akumatized during a full moon? If so; what would happen? I’m ngl, this question does stem both from curiosity as I may have a little bit of a plan for that in my over complicated miraculous fic (Like, seriously, I get why you largely ignore Adrien, Marinette and the miraculous in this. Combining superhero + miraculous shenanigans AND monster / magical society AND civilian stuff into one, is a right bloody fucking nightmare to make it all fit together and figure out how the different aspects interact. It’s a lot of fun but jesus christ is it a pain in the arse to sort out)

EEEE, I love Sabrina and her changeling thingmies, it’s so much fun how you write the glamour being peeled away from each character once they have an ounce of evidence and are actively looking for it

Help not Juleka rolling her eyes at Marinette motor mouthing about Adrien, girl you are no better about Rose. Though I wonder why Adrien makes Juleka nervous.

Also, I wish we fucking went on nature walks more often. The last time I did that in school was when I was in primary 7 (grade 7 if you’re american… I actually don’t know if you are sorry) wait how old are the gang?? 

Question 8: How old is everyone in this?? Wait not literally everyone- you know what I mean!

Anyway. The point is a nature walk would rock and I love how absolutely none of the reveals for the monsters are the same! Like, Alya and Juleka’s ‘’confrontation’ was in her flat, Sabrina gets fucking lured through a forest by Juleka “Blunt as a dull hammer” Couffaine, and it goes on but I’ll natter on about them when we get there :3

Insane about the Sabrina backstory with her mother divorcing her dad after she found out Sabrina wasn’t the child she gave birth to. I headcanon that Roger also sucked ass at being a husband. He seems the sort. 

Neither of her parents are the best but like I can understand freaking the fuck out that your child got kidnapped and you were left with something inhuman, I cannot, on the otherhand, understand Roger treating Sabrina as he did and then trying to get his ‘real’ daughter back… but we’ll get there and I can rant more! 

I am curious about how they found out their baby got replaced, changelings are supposed to be convincing copies or were used as an excuse to kill physically deformed babies- but let’s not get into that! 

Juleka’s simply speaking the truth about all the changeling nonsense largely pushed by how her dad talks about her.

YES GIRL SHE IS NOT A FAKE. SHE. IS. HER OWN. PERSON!!! Juleka + rightful rage about other people’s shitty situations is always so much fun, a bit depressing that she’s so much more vocal when it’s someone else but rarely if ever speaks up for herself. But fr, whenever you write a character going off about another character’s shitty parents / situation or whatever I’m always right there with whoever’s ranting and raving. You write righteous anger impeccably cap, the dialogue and the action tags, all of it gets the feeling across spectacularly. 

Not the way that you said the stump Sabrina was sitting on was “now flourishing, not regrowing in any way, but moss and grass continued their newly improved growth, flowers blooming around their feet along with mushrooms and shrubbery.” is. Is this because Sabrina has been fucking smother by her dad her entire life and this is symbolic of how Juleka’s words affected her. If it is I’m a fucking eejit cause how did I miss that, it feels like it is because of how you phrased it. I mean it might be that but it is also foreshadowing about her botanical magic

Sabrina must be getting whiplash from Juleka suddenly being all chatty and asking pointed questions about her friendship with Chloe compared to her normally just like. Nervously standing somewhere in silence. 

Also. Hey. Sabrina girly you’ve been dealing with this whole life altering revelation by yourself for four years? What the actual fuck? I feel so bad for her?? Like I am so glad the gang forms and she hashes out her shit with Chloe and- aaaaah… The gang is just such a good friend group, the dynamics feel fleshed out for all the characters…

Question 9: Hey. what the fuck is Ms. Bustier? I vaguely remember you saying something about her nearly being a succubbus and then rethinking that cause she’s a teacher, and I *think* that it’s implied she is the Fae Queen from that story about Anarka but I’m not sure… Obviously don’t say if it’s spoilers but I just realised I’ve kind of assumed she is Fae and idk if that’s correct

I do love the wee bit at the end with Alya and Sabrina jokingly pushing Juleka to get drunk off of Fae blood, it’s really funny. Also in my head Fae blood is a dark turquoise and I’ve just realised you said “off-coloured blood” not fucking blue where did I get that from???

[— — —]

That's all for tonight! I’m not sure if I’ll go as in depth with each chapter (and I may get too into reading and forget to write stuff down). I might fiddle with making the questions easier to find… Oh and If this is too much text in one ask, do say and I’ll split things up :)

(P.S, thank you for wishing me a happy birthday after my last ask :) it was very sweet <3)

YAYYY IM SO GLAD YOU ENKOYED YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

guahh Im so happy to read this guahhh okay lets get to answering

Question 1: Glamour is both a defense mechanism and a hunting mechanism! In terms for defense, its used by monsters to hide from being hunted or bothered. In terms of hunting, creatures like vampires and kelpies benefit from looking "normal"

Question 2: As for Marinette's reaction, she just straight up didn't notice Alya's coat! It confused her, and when Marinette gets confused by something she gets curious and suspicious. But she was made to show the difference between her, a normal human, and Juleka, a monster who knows what to look for.

Question 3: Juleka has a desire to count things but its not very intense its more like a subtle observation. It's also deeply uncomfortable and slightly scary to cross running water. Juleka would dub it a phobia of getting carried away by the water. She also gets pretty bad sunburns, she won't turn to dust, but god will it hurt to go out without a hat or sunscreen on for a full day.

Question 4: Suggestion magic kinda taps into a curse side of things I imagine! Like, putting someone magically into your debt by being polite. I imagine the origin lies in Fae stuff.

Question 5: They are in fact different! Juleka is a born vampire, meaning while she's sensitive to sunlight she will not die, and other 'holy' objects won't immediately kill her. She can also eat human food. Meanwhile, to be bitten into a vampire means Dying. When you're bitten by a vampire, you dont turn unless that bite Kills You.

Thus bitten vampires are undead, and Will die in direct sunlight, and can only survive on blood.

Question 6: You're correct! Etta and Ella lack the traits because Alya's mom lacks her coat. Im unsure if that means Marlena's own traits are fading without it.

Question 7: I think it would be VERY difficult to akumatize a full moon werewolf since theres little emotions involved with the creature. Only instincts.

Question 8: I think they're around 16-17 in this!

Question 9: I shan't sayyyy thats a spoilerrrr

[wolves-and-dragons]

A Lark Among the Wolves and Dragons: Chapter 4

Main Masterlist

Chapter 3

Synopsis: the morning after in Kaer Morhen leaves the Lady of Larks refreshed and ready to spend some quality time with her newborn daughter.

In the past, the Lady of Larks confronts Prince Daemon about his illicit trysts with a certain Lyseni dancer from the Street of Silk following the City Watch's brutal carnage of the unsuspecting Smallfolk of King's Landing the night before. Daemon does his best to console the distraught and upset troubaritz, saying whatever he can so she will continue warming his bed.

CW: implied masturbation, swearing, mentions of state sanctioned violence (i.e the City Watch), oral sex (female receiving), infidelity, Daemon being his own warning. MINORS DNI

-------present day: Kaer Morhen--------------

You woke up the next morning, naked under the sheets. You look around, seeing Geralt was nowhere to be seen.

You get up and walk to the crib, noticing Aemma wasn't where she was supposed to be. You start to panic, but notice there was a little note in the middle. You pick it up and read it, recognizing Geralt's handwriting.

Thought you could use a proper rest after last night's romp beneath the sheets, so I took Aemma to the main hall for breakfast.

Don't worry, she's in good hands.

                            -Geralt

You smile a bit, thinking about last night. You remember how attentive the witcher was to your needs, taking his time and checking in every now and again to make sure it wasn't too much for you and that you were enjoying it. You remembered his soft touches and gentles kisses. You also remembered when you asked for him to be a little rougher he had been hesitant, but did as you requested, still checking to make sure it wasn't too much for you.

Overall it had been a pleasurable evening.

You did feel well rested, but you wanted to spend some time with your daughter now. You put on some clothes and walk to the main hall.

You walk past Ciri's room, hearing some rather unusual sounds coming from there.

You frown a bit and knock on the door, "Ciri?" you call out. You hear a few more sounds and Ciri opens the door. You noticed the girl's face looked rather flushed and her hair disheveled, "Uh, what were you doing in there?" you ask. "...nothing," Ciri answers, looking down like she got caught doing something shameful.

You put two and two together and knew what she had been doing. You had a small smile on your face, "it's nothing to be ashamed of," you tell her. "Uh, what, I wasn't doing anything," Ciri insists, but then recants, "...please don't tell Geralt."

"I won't," you assure, "but I highly doubt he'd make a big deal of it. Besides," you lean over, "it's the best way to figure out what you like in the long run."

Ciri frowned a bit at your cryptic advice, but brushed it off in favor of following you to the dinning area for food.

-----------flashback: the Red Keep-------------

"Oh!

There once was a ship that put to sea

The name of the ship was the Billy of Tea

The winds blew up, her bow dipped down

Oh blow, my bully boys, blow (huh)

She'd not been two weeks from shore

When down on her a right whale bore

The captain called all hands and swore

He'd take that whale in tow"

For context, there was a small council meeting today and Rhaenyra had been called to serve as cup bearer for her father and the other council members. You found this a little odd, given that she was the princess yet here she was being treated as an invisible servant, something you've brought up before, but the princess didn't seem to mind as she saw this as an opportunity to gather information.

Rhaenyra didn't really seem too interested in being a leader, which made sense given how young she is right now.

Even if she did want to be queen, the chances of her actually becoming one were slim at the moment. Her mother was due to give birth any day now and the maesters have predicted the odds of it being a boy were highly likely.

And even if that wasn't the case, her uncle still held the title of Heir Apparent, and unless something happened to him, the chances were still low. 

So while Rhaenyra was carrying out her 'royal duties' you somehow found yourself entertaining her cousins Laenor and Laena Velaryon with a sea shanty.

 You didn't know too much about the Velaryon family, other then they could trace their roots to the similar origins as the Targaryens and were dragon riders in their own right. Corlys Velaryon, Lord of Driftmark, you knew held a seat on the small council and his wife Rhaenys was cousin to Viserys and Daemon.

You also knew the woman once had a chance to be Queen of the Iron Throne as the eldest descendant of the late king Jahaerys, but was passed up in favor of Viserys, the eldest MALE descendent. 

Since then she had been known throughout Westeros as the Queen Who Never Was.

So, here you were entertaining Corlys and Rhaenys' children while waiting for the small council meeting to end.

"Soon may the Wellerman come

To bring us sugar and tea and rum

One day, when the tonguing is done

We'll take our leave and go"

"Again! Do it again!" Laena demands in excitement. "Again?" you feign exasperation, "my lady, this would be the third time. Surely, you wouldn't like to hear another one?" "I want to hear this one again!" the little Velaryon girl insists. "I'd like to hear it again too," Laenor concurs.

"Alright," you say, "One more time. Then we'll move to something else before you get sick of this one."

Before you could start, a male voice interrupts the merriment. It was Corlys calling for his children, who eagerly run to greet their father.

Corlys then sent them both to go find their mother.

You curtsy when the man approaches you, "Lord Corlys," you greet. "I hope my children didn't give you too much grief, Lady troubadour," Corlys laments. "Oh they were no grief at all," you assure, "If anything, quite the opposite." "That song you were singing to them," Corlys points out, "that wouldn't happen to be a Skellige sea shanty would it?"

Your eyes widen a bit in surprise, "yes it is? How did...you know?" "Unlike some in court I am no stranger to customs of lands outside Westeros," Corlys explains, "my ships have often made stops at those isles for trading purposes, and often end in an exchange of cultural customs as well."

"Ever send ships to Kovir?" you ask, "Or Novigrad for that matter? I'd also recommend Toussaint, their wines are excellent and well renown throughout the Continent." "Something I've been considering for some time," Corlys admits, "unfortunately with the trouble in the Stepstones, that is a venture that will have to wait another day."

"Yeah, I've heard," you admit, "I'm sure with enough pressure, the king will eventually do something about it."

You hear Corlys scoff at that. "Well it was worth a try," you admit. "You are funny, lady Bardess," Corlys laughs, "I can see why the princess has taken a liking to you. Thank you for entertaining my children." "It was my pleasure," you say, "now, I must rest for when the princess summons me again. Good day, my lord."

You walk to your quarters when you see Daemon around the corner. You were going to back track and walk the other way, hoping the Prince wouldn't spot you.

That turned out to be wishful thinking.

"(Y/n)?" you hear him call out for you. You stop, sigh a bit, and keep walking. You and Daemon had continued your little clandestine affair since that day, and as promised he'd have the servants bring you the special moon tea.

You also continued serving Rhaenyra and, as you promised a certain Hand of the king, you made sure your illicit trysts were kept discrete.

Well not as discrete as you thought as the princess somehow managed to catch on. She only smiled and wished you the best, making you realize Princess Rhaenyra wasn't as innocent as some had thought; sure she may be a maiden but that didn't mean she was naive to her uncle's philandering ways.

Frankly Daemon's said philandering was the reason why you were wanting to avoid him at the moment, especially after what you heard last night.

You feel the Prince catch up with you, wrapping his arms around you, "trying to play hard to get, Little Lark?" he teases, nuzzling your neck. You, however, were in no mood to entertain him now.

"Where were you last night?" you ask. "Patrolling the streets of King's Landing," Daemon says like it was obvious, pressing a kiss to your shoulder, "I was appointed Commander of the City Watch, you know this. It is my duty to make this city safer for the nobles and the common folk."

"Yeah I heard," you scoff, "raiding homes and killing and cutting down every other man in site REALLY made the streets a lot safer."

"Cutthroats, thieves, and rapers," Daemon points out, "the dregs and scum of the city, you ought not mourn for them."

"Okay, what about after?" you bring, "what did you do after?" "...I took the men out to celebrate a job well done," Daemon answers. "On the street of Silk you mean?" you point out, anger starting to rise.

"What are you trying to say?" Daemon asks, confused.

You pull away, unable to contain your anger, "tell me, Prince, how was she?" you confront. "Who?" "Mysaria," you say, "You fucked her." "Of course, I've fucked her, I've fucked her many times before we even met," Daemon points out. "You fucked her last night," you sneer, "I know you did, and don't you dare try to deny it."

"...Who told you such things?" Daemon asks, "was it Otto?" "It doesn't matter who told me," you say, face filled with heat.

"It was, wasn't it?" Daemon confronts, "(y/n), I've told you, the man's a-" "He's a cunt, yes I know!" you exclaim, "but he didn't tell me. He didn't have to. Everyone in the Red Keep knows what you did last night following your onslaught on the poor and destitute of King's Landing. It wasn't enough to humiliate me once, you had to do it a second time. And just when I was beginning to think I actually meant something to you, that I was more than just your...personal plaything!"

Daemon was taken aback by your words, "(y/n)," he reaches a hand as a way to comfort you, but you slap it away, "don't touch me!"

You turn and walk away in haste back to your room, slamming the door as you did so. You place your lute on the table, careful not to break it, in spite of how angry you were right now. You take deep breaths in an attempt to calm down. You didn't know why you felt this way...actually you weren't sure you even had a right to feel this way.

You knew Daemon; even before meeting him, you knew of his reputation from the brothels you had performed in.

You knew  the man was married, yet he had no qualms of seducing women who weren't his wife. You were just one of his many mistresses he has taken to his bed over the years.

You knew what kind of man he was, how he viewed the women he played with...why would you be any different to him? You knew it all, yet you had chosen to walk into this relationship with your eyes wide open.

Maybe you thought you would be the one who could somehow tame this dragon, but now you see you had been fooling yourself.

  You were pulled from your thoughts when you hear the door to your room open. You turn away, knowing exactly who it was.

"Are you jealous, Little Lark, is that what I'm hearing?" Daemon asks, approaching you. He places a hand on your shoulder and you stiffen in response, "would it make you feel better if I told you I was thinking about you the whole time?" "Oh, I doubt that," you deadpan.

"I was," Daemon insists, resting his head against your shoulder, you making no effort to push him away, "Mysaria may have her ways, that much I'll admit, but...her voice cannot compare to yours. A voice sweet as honey that can quench any man dying of thirst"

"Well, you sure know how to flatter a girl," you say, turning to face him, "Is...is this the only time? Since we've been together I mean?"  "It is," Daemon assures, "I swear by the light of the Seven. And...by whatever gods you Continentals worship." You laugh a little at that, "I'm still mad at you," you admit, "but...I don't want to be."

"How can I make it up to you?" Daemon asks, you hearing the sincerity in his tone as he places a hand on your cheek.

"Don't do it again," you tell him in a stern voice, arms crossed, "if you still want me to warm your bed, and if you still want to hear my honey sweet voice, I don't want to keep hearing about you sliding your little dragon in and out of other women."

"It's not THAT little," Daemons scoffs. "You know what I mean, Daemon," you say. "Very well," the prince nods, placing a kiss on your wrist, "you have my word." "You promise?" "On the Light of the Seven."

"Good," you nod in approval, "that's...that's all I wanted." 

"Now," Daemon says, arms starting to wrap around you, "how about I make it up to you even more?"

"What do you mean?" you ask.

Smirking, Daemon lifts you up and places you on the table. He gets on his knees and lifts up your skirts, diving head first between your thighs.

You were planning on fighting him off, still mad about his little illicit tryst, but such thoughts faded away the moment you felt him working his tongue on your sensitive rose bud.

You would enjoy this for now, but you had no plans on returning the favor once he was done. At least for now.

If the Prince wanted to that, he would have to work for it.

Which in this case would mean him winning the tourney tomorrow. 

Chapter 5

[duchessonfire]

Whatever AU you create I live for it, honestly I'm your biggest fan at this point. Feel free to expand! The abo, supernatural twist, the motherfucking reverse sugar that i did not expect 😂 what kinda dynamic do you envision? Are they overall similar to savior except for some key point or is the energy between cegan completely altered? What are the vibes 🤩

Also! What are you thought on Negan's evolution and can you add your twist as to where do you think Carl can fit in it

(ive never watched dead city and stopped twd years ago coincidentaly right after carl died i keep up a bit with spoilers so i got the gist of it. But from what i can see he's become a fundamentaly different person. Swagger still there but dialed down enough to make me sad 😔 wbu do you keep up? id be impressed if you did cause that's some damn comitmment.

Listen i've been trying to recreate your magic by combining ao3 tags lately but nothing seems to fit! Its the age difference, its the slow burn with what started as someone playing meanly and exerting their power on someone else only to be hit with the feelings 🫢, it's the top tier d/s subtext, its the jealousy and the two step forward one step back, its the smut tbh mostly the smut, simply put it's giving.

And absolutely no rush and dont feel obliged to answer but what kinda irl timeline are you predicting for part 3 and 4 and the neganpov? You've been churning out updates lately (22k high quality chapter within a month; we are spoiled god bless🫂).

I'm frothing at the mouth waiting for your next update. You sincerely bring me joy.

Hi again Cegan lovely! ✨

Thank you so much for this sweet message.

The dynamics of the other Cegan project I have planned will be very much similar to the Savior!Carl universe with Carl and Negan going from enemies to lovers. The only one that is truly different is the reverse sugar daddy AU where I'm going for a Carl that is super shy and vulnerable, really a gifted kid who has trouble connecting with people and who clings to his crush for his former PE teacher for dear life. I'm really excited about those projects even though I have no idea when I'll have time to write them 😅

I am still heavily involved in TWD universe and I have watched the main show until the end, as well as the Daryl Dixon, The Ones Who Live and the Dead City spinoffs. I was very unhappy with Negan's characterization in the last season of TWD but Dead City really brought a breath of fresh air and I'm excited to see what lies in store for Negan in season 2.

So funny thing, part 4 of the Savior!Carl universe will cover Rick's arrival and the war between the Saviors and the other communities, but because I want to stick closely to canon, part 5 will deal with the time Negan spends in the cell and the Whisperer War. So I have in fact plans for Carl and Negan's relationship even after Negan loses his empire. (I'm actually very excited about their new dynamics after that happens ❤️‍🔥 While Negan will go softer, Carl will become a lot harder and more ruthless so that will be pretty amazing to explore...).

I'm so happy that you enjoy the Savior!Carl AU 😍 If you're looking for more Cegan content, I recommend looking at my bookmarks. If you enter Carl Grimes or Negan Smith in the "other work tags to include" section, you will be able to see all my Cegan bookmarks. I especially recommend the fics by Gemjam: Wildflowers and Genesis, which are really the main inspiration behind the Savior!Carl universe, but in my bookmarks you will find loads more of amazing works by amazing writers! Happy reading 📖

So for the time-line, part 3 will finish this summer for sure, hopefully by beginning of July. I will post chapter 10 this week (hopefully today or tomorrow), and then it's only two more chapters to go. The time-line for 4 is a lot blurrier because I still have a lot of brainstorming to do. Same for part 5 and for the Negan's pov. Ideally, I would like the Negan's pov to post at the same time as part 5 because Carl will spend a lot of time away from Negan while he's in the cell, so posting Negan's pov at the same time would still giving readers a healthy amount of Cegan next to the plot of part 5.

Thank you again for such a lovely ask and I hope you have an amazing day 💐😘

[wevelocityteampresents-blog]

Pokémon Pocket Monsters BW Volume 1 - Chapter 10

To take shelter from a sandstorm on Route 4, Red and the others head into Relic Castle.

After spending nearly 3 chapters in Castelia City, we're finally continuing with the adventure. To be honest, I never thought Anakubo would choose to slow down the story in the middle of Castelia City. It felt like AGES since we've seen anything outside the city, so seeing something like a desert ruin was a bit of a refresher for me.

Professor Juniper returns in this chapter and isn't just here to watch some sports match. Unfortunately, she's only in this one for a total of 4 pages. (And even then, her role isn't as big as the professors from other series.) Despite that, her appearance here shows that she does more than hang around her lab when it comes to researching Pokémon and becomes concerned when Red, Clefairy, and Pikachu are in danger. So even though Professor Juniper doesn't get that much time in the spotlight, her character is at least expanded upon. And that's something I've come to appreciate about Pokémon Pocket Monsters.

When it comes to new characters, Cofagrigus makes for an entertaining villain whose bizarre supernatural quirks make him a perfect antagonistic foil to the equally odd Clefairy. I also like the interpretation of Curse in this chapter as, instead of halving his health for the sake of slowly damaging the opponent, Cofagrigus mummifies his enemies and effectively immobilizes them. To be fair, this would make for a better take on Cofagrigus' Mummy ability. But by adapting an already existing move to fit a specific Pokémon, it definitely adds some uniqueness that this manga is known for.

Overall, I'd say this was another good chapter. There's a good mixture of comedy and action that helps keep the mood of the manga in check and certain characters become more detailed as the chapter continues. Even after "I Want To Increase My Good Luck", the quality of the stories continues to improve with each new chapter. I'm certain I'll enjoy the next few chapters!

TRANSLATOR'S NOTES

On pages 4 and 5, there's a joke that pokes fun at the similarities between the Japanese word for coffin (かんおけ) and karaoke (カラオ���).

Speaking of coffins, a different joke on page 4 is similar to how it was in the Japanese original, where Clefairy thinks that Cofagrigus' body is a luxury toilet.

I've seen this joke done before in Medabots. Sadly only one of these did it right. Whichever piece of media I'm talking about is completely up to your interpretation. (It's Medabots.)

If you think we're done here, think again. On page 11, Cofagrigus threatens to use Curse on Red and the others. In the original text, Clefairy claims that his attack wouldn't be effective on him due to how it takes him a while to complete certain tasks.

The word "のろい" can mean "curse". But when used in a context like this, it can also mean "sluggish" or "slow". I had to think for a few minutes when it came to translating this joke into English. At least I didn't get a headache from it compared to a previous chapter.

[polygonsexual]

A whole pecking essay on why I love Garten of BanBan and my perspective on it

____

So I bought and played all the chapters. I did watch the gameplays and Then finished all of them, twice! And Even from the first chapter, I actually never thought the game is bad! In fact, I very much enjoyed it.

I’ll go over three, maybe?.. topics in this silly essay. I’m sleepy, it’s 4 am so I don’t know for sure but I really want to express my opinion:’D

Ps. Spoilers will be outlined with this color, sorry if I left something out, you can let me know tho!

The topics are:

——————————

1. Style

2. Gameplay

3. Character writing

——————————

So Style is the first thing people found off putting and lazy about this game , from the first chapter I actually kind of enjoyed it. Yes it’s simplistic and used some free stock models, but there was something about it..this simplicity is well organised. Starting with the Main cast(BanBan’s friends) they look very simple from afar. But if you look closer you see how many little veins and details they have, and as mutants made out of unknown substance it makes sense! It’s only an illusion of simplicity, they are terrifying biological monstrosities that were made to look like kid’s mascots, adds up , doesn’t it?

Now for the free samples, I don’t know if there’s much of them in the chapter 3 or 4, as those two are where the quality really starts to rise, but I can excuse it for the first two chapters, each chapter costs like 3 dollars , considering there’s only two devs working on the game and they also have college. I respect the prices and don’t regret spending my money, after all, it’s not that much and helps them make each chapter better then last one, considering that, they did start using less free samples with the 3 and 4 chapters, You can correct me if I’m wrong, but I can tell that I didn’t notice anything that felt out of place in those two chapters and that’s what makes a difference.

Overall surroundings are more polished now too, it’s a mix of a facility and kinder Garten, they worked with children but they had to keep it professional with the huge void under the facility. It can explain the amount of bottomless pits in the game and odd mix of professional and childish ornaments in the rooms. Also the safety hazards can be explained too! BanBan did talk about “we should have spoken up sooner” and that really makes it seem like the heads of the facility didn’t really care for safety of their workers, so much they ignored the countless containment breaches of the specimens , death of facility workers and maybe even children..

Im getting a bit sidetracked with the lore here, but with such simple yet memorable style, I think they did a great job. It doesn’t fit well with the established mascot horror quality, but it has it’s charm and I think a game about a scientific facility turned into a kindergarten wouldn’t feel the same with some complicated high budget textures.

Talking about high budget textures.. I don’t really like what the two weeks remaster of Garten of BanBan did with the game, maybe yeah it added more detail to the surroundings, but it stopped giving away this too polished and deeply fake childcare center feeling, and man, Opila bird does look much better in the original, mutants don’t even have blood and are supposed to look like cartoons, not whatever this guy did to them.

—————-

Gameplay

[Puzzles]

That’s something I heard complaints about a lot, but In my opinion, I didn’t see anything wrong with the gameplay, it’s easy yes, but that’s what makes it good, you can easily fly through the game without getting stuck on some task you just can’t figure out(Except snail hall we all suffered there at least for two tries). In fact, the tasks are actually enjoyable, specially in chapter 4! They are more fast paced and give you more to work with, but I can go as far as to say that I liked puzzles even from the second game, as Yet again, they are simple but still make you think a bit, which gives you a satisfaction of solution without getting stuck in one place for hours. The simplicity of the puzzles fits with the overall kindergarten style, in fact some of the tasks were made as entertainment for the workers, which explains why they are supposed to be more entertaining then difficult, obviously Chapter 4 has the best puzzles, specially when you have lil beak around and can take her everywhere. But looking back at the older ones, they were neat too!I liked the first puzzle in chapter 2 where you have to press buttons depending on the worker’s rate on the board, it’s extremely simple but satisfying non the less, plus I kinda failed it..twice on my second run because I was rushing.

[Drone]

The drone is a nice puzzle tool if you get the hang of it, people rush a lot when using it and usually that’s what makes it an annoying experience, (Drone is indeed good mental support, you can’t prove me wrong>:)) Maybe you could call it a useless unreasonable problem maker, but those are not more then another puzzles you have to solve, maybe you don’t like to solve so many puzzles, well that’s your opinion I don’t judge, but it’s kinda a base game mechanic that devs wanted to space out the main events and puzzles with. And I think it works quite well, with all the different tasks you have to do here and there, getting back to a mechanic that you recognise and is used to is a good thing to keep you busy but not overwhelmed. It was kind of unnecessary in chapter 2 but I think devs did a great job on the new ones, they don’t use it to open each door and manage it quite well with other more differing puzzles.

[Chase sequences/Boss fights]

I must say the chase sequences in this game are quite boring most of the time, the main issue is how extended and slow paced they feel, sprinting doesn’t really feel like sprinting and there’s not much dynamic in the chase, it’s a quick time event, but even for how simple BanBan is, those are just too simple, it would be nice if the boss fights had more to them then dodge or run away and stuff, I must say, if you know what to do in a kittyzaurus fight, it’s quite enjoyable! But the chameleon-turtle one is just meh, it’s just too long and doesn’t have much going on, main focus is only the attacks that happen very slowly, kittyzaurus fight is good because it gives you less time to prepare for the Kitty’s dash into your direction, so you actually have to constantly move and keep focus on the boss. For good side, the snail hall(chapter 2) nabNab chase in the werehouse (chapter 2) and bird riding(chapter 3) were a highlight, they had a challenge in them, an additional task that makes the running away process much more entertaining and I hope that the devs will do this more in the future!

[additional thoughts]

What I also hear people complain about is how spaced out and long the backtracking is, and sadly I have to agree here, as I said before sprinting in this game doesn’t feel like sprinting, and you become quickly frustrated by going through so many hallways over and over again, like the distance between Queen’s lobby and elevator is painfully long, it didn’t had to be so big. I hope there will be shortcuts in the next chapters so players could skip the long walks in the empty hallways:’) Also want to leave a thought here that chapters 2 and 4 final chases felt meh, but the build up on the 4th is something worthy talking about! That’s what next topic is about.

—————————

Character writing

A LOT OF SPOILERS stop reading here and go straight to conclusions if you don’t want to get spoiled

BanBan

That’s probably going to be my favourite topic, as Chapter 4 really opened my eyes on the character’s situation, relations and interactions, and again I really hope they’ll do more in the future! Let’s begin with Banban, as I see his storyline as the most interesting one. It’s said in the notes that BanBan is “the devil” who believes to be a human and completely ignores his mutant appearance, in chapter 4 we get his inside oh now his friends betrayed him, looked at him like he’s a monster and didn’t talk to him at all , leaving him when all in the facility started to crumble. First, BanBan’s DNA is mixed up with a DNA of one of the workers, which could very well explain his tired , careless and very human voice. BanBan believes he is human, he acts like one, cares for others like a human, feels betrayed because he always thought he is one. His friends looked at him like at a monster because he was created one, but he never realised that, thinking they turned their backs on him for no reason, as he still thinks he’s one of them. That could also explain why he is the only one who’s actually willing to help us find our children outside of Queen and Sheriff..maybe he’s willing to help, I can’t really tell. But if you think about it, BanBan’s situation is frocking sad and very much understood, with his sudden switches to devilish hunger and thirst for organs, he is trying to get out of the facility and help the mutants at the same time, maybe he sees them as humans too?… He surely tried to fix NabNab, as he said several times, he’s genuinely trying to help and bring back senses to them , refusing or just not knowing it’s impossible. It can explain his trauma when he killed NabNab in chapter 4, it’s his snap and finale , he tried to save them , but ended up hurting with this “devil side” , and it’s obvious he regrets every time it happens, he was very sorry when we meet him in the hospital and he even wanted to help us again , he finally felt like he can hold it and be useful, he said this himself. Be there for us in person!..but yet. It happened again. And this time with someone who he was always finding excuses and ways to help for. In chapter 2 he acts selfish and fishy, but you can see how he starts to care for NabNab, seems like his human senses come back to him more with each chapter, and it breaks my heart to just leave him in this room with dead NabNab alone with his did, I hope there’s a way to help him out, and I can tell that this is a good character writing, maybe Im not a professional. But with all of this I said just now, he does seem more attractive as a personality, doesn’t he?

It reminds me of Stinger Flynn’s dream sequence in chapter 4, surely the ending was..crazy and out of place , but what happened before it made me chuckle and wonder about the other characters too, it’s kinda cute and very natural of BanBan to say lIm not good with this stuff” when Stinger Flynn needed comfort with his.. endless sorrow. His “not again” really made me chuckle, relatable man…

Stinger Flynn

Despite being the most deep sounding and biggest in all meanings character of the game, his goals are very simple, to be a normal jellyfish and aimlessly swim in the real sea. I could understand his exhaustion with all the knowledge he somehow got, and it seems like he struggles to control the most unpleasant emotions there can be, anger and sorrow. No wonder he wants a life where those can’t exist at all! Did you know that Jellyfish is like the simplest organism there is? Peck they can live forever but they have no brains, that’s the life you would definitely want as a huge mega mind depressed jellyfish. He is aggressive often , but he seems to keep us alive for some purpose, from that many encounters he didn’t even once actually hurt us, but instead we had a glance at his beginnings with every dream sequence he gave us, maybe there’s something he tried to tell us? In his dreams we also can have a better look at other characters, know them better and see them actually interact, they are chaotic but I must say that the dream from chapter 4 is really good at giving us insight on him and BanBan, even NabNab(rest in peace lil bud) as NabNab actually shows us a kind gestire, which could be a hint at the fact that NabNab actually has potential in being “fixed”. I hope he’s alive and there’s still a chance….

Bittergiggle , sheriff Toadster and the Queen

Well well well, I can say that chapter 4 had the best character showcase in comparison to all the previous chapters. Bittergiggle is simple in his nature, yet he just clicks with those two. All three are playing their roles, they are the caricatures given life and their purpose is their life. Toadster protects his Queen and the Queen rules her kingdom of one, something they were made or believe they were made to do , but Bittergiggle wasn’t satisfied in his need, as he couldn’t make the Queen laugh, something he was made to do. When there were humans around, maybe he was satisfied but now there’s none, and without making someone laugh he didn’t feel like he’s living, he wasn’t doing what he was made to do, then what is the point? He said himself that he desperately tried to prove himself that there’s things more important then laughter( said it himself) but the existential crisis couldn’t make him keep his mouth shut for long, it’s unfair that everyone get to play their roles but he can’t, and it’s a good motivation, maybe one we won’t understand fully, but it makes him am reasonable villain of our story and when he finally gets what he wanted, oh did it hit hard. The chase sequence after the escape of “naughty ones” was not living up to the build up, but I’m surely invested in what will happen in the next chapter

And I feel very bad for lil beak, hope we’ll get to meet our kiddo some time soon…

Also some additional stuff I like, BanBan hides his horns under the party hats, maybe when they go off he automatically gets into his satanic side? I’m really curious on how Stinger Flynn managed to make him evil for that moment and how he turns back, but maybe that will always be left out of scene, still, that’s a cool ahh detail for the little amount of details that they have!

Other characters are simpler in their nature, but I must say that Snail, Banbaleena, NabNab and Sheriff are good to, I can’t really do the analysis here as this essay is huge already, sorry:’)

———————-

CONCLUSION

All in all, Garten of BanBan is not for everyone, but it surely doesn’t deserve to be called the worst mascot horror. If you take a look at the game from the inside and not from the perspective of those who keep listening to how shit the game is, you really can find it very much entertaining and interesting if you throw all this rumble away!

I don’t make you go and buy the game or praise it, it has it’s flaws and I’m a bit disappointed in Dev’s complaints about people refunding the game , people should do with their money whatever they want. But I hope the devs learned from backlash and won’t do this again:’D

———————-

The game is becoming better and better with each chapter, Devs are good at choosing on what to improve and it’s respectable, I wish them to keep doing what they’re doing and please restock the Plushies or make new ones Im 😭😭😭😭😭 for them. Thank you for the game too<:3

And thank you for reading this! Hope my rumbling gave you an interesting perspective, I’m terrible at essays and is often flying in the clouds and getting sidetracked, but I really wanted to share my thoughts and put them out in this world,,, Get well BanBan, I’ll be waiting for the next chapters and putting them all on my shelf so they’ll look pretty 💗

[myloveforhergoeson]

i'd love to read some good ol' hockey romance novels but idk where to start lol; would you happen to have any recommendations? (it's totally cool if not!!)

YES OMG ok but something you must understand about me is that all of my book recommendations come exclusively from booktok or instagram so please take this with a grain of salt. i like them dumb, stupid, cliche, and smutty!

i am very new to the hockey romance genre, so i only have two books that i have read as of now to recommend, but i've got three on my to be read list so i can talk about those too <3

the one i just finished is called behind the net by stephanie archer and friend... god... i thought this one was just going to be just like pwp but there was plot and it was good and had me actually shocked something so interesting popped up in this book bc i had expected something completely different. it centers around jamie, a hockey player (goalie) for a fake team called the vancouver storm who trades his life playing for a team in new york to move home and take care of his mother after a series of mental health crises. he's a bit mean, a little arrogant, but he is mostly and above all... say it with me... MISUNDERSTOOD. god i eat this shit up. his counterpart is a young woman named pippa who just got out of a pretty one sided (read: slightly emotionally abusive) relationship with the only guy she'd ever dated. her ex is a pretty famous musician and it's her dream to write and record her own album one day, but after the break up and a little bit of a traumatic experience with her ex and his manager, she's not quite sure that's the right choice for her. she's very sweet, determined, and overall someone i found to be a very interesting character. anyway, she ends up as his assistant, chaos ensues, things happen that i won't spoil, but i enjoyed it very much.

(he calls her songbird a lot and though i do not have the claim on the pet name every time he said it my mind immediately went rames rames rames rames like a dog chasing after a squirrel)

i've got a little journal where i keep track of all the books i'm reading and i gave it a 3/5 stars on quality of writing, 5/5 stars on the strength of the characters, and a 4/5 on the plot. and my own extra rating, 4/5 on the spice scale

also! the author is writing a series that includes other members of the team and some minor characters from the first novel! the next one comes out in a few days and i can't wait to pick it up!

the first book i read out of the hockey romance genre is a book called icebreaker by hannah grace - this one was pretty popular when it came out and many people have many opinions on it. here are my own which are very general because i read it almost a year ago

the summary of the book is a little misleading, the main conflict is supposed to revolve around the captain of a fake college hockey team (nate) and a figure skater (anastasia) who's shooting for olympic gold having to share an ice rink after the one the figure skaters use is put out of commission. long story short, anastasia blames nate, but they're put in a bit of a forced proximity situation that lasts like... five chapters max. the rest is them figuring out their feelings for each other yada yada which is fine and i enjoyed but it was not what i thought the book would mainly be about. so, personal warning there lol. this one is a bit closer to pwp, but both of them have goals they want to accomplish and they help each other through that. i liked stassie a lot and found her to be an interesting character - watching her fall for nate was very sweet and i think i would have enjoyed it even more if i really liked him. he was just kind of mid to me with his only two personality traits being rich and team captain. but also, as a college student myself, i liked the atmosphere of the school they attended, the dynamic between stassie and the other players on the team as she slowly got to know them, and the way both nate and stassie worked to better themselves in order to be with each other!

in my journal i gave the quality of writing 3/5, the strength of the characters a 3/5 and the plot a 2/5 (it would have been 4/5 but i HATED the epilogue. if you read this book do not read the epilogue your life will be so much better without it) and my own special 3/5 on the spice scale

this one is also a series involving the other players on the team! the second book came out a few months ago and i'm planning to read it soon. it's been sitting on my shelf for ages.

i would recommend behind the net over icebreaker, but both were enjoyable to me!

on my hockey romance tbr:

the graham effect by elle kennedy

wildfire by hannah grace

the fake out by stephanie archer

but, i am a well-rounded (romance) reader so if you'd like to know my favs or other books im reading or like reviews just lmk... i'm slowly turning this blog into one where i just share whatever i want instead of it being focused toward my story LOL

[darkluminosity]

Crazy about Diluc and Eula rn so I wanted to do this... link behind the cut since it's a lot 🙃

1. Tough to say, they both do in my hc but I feel like she's more likely to initiate the hugs and he initiates the kisses 😉

2. I think they both do tbh lol. Maybe she does a bit more (at least in my current wip)

3. Eula would borrow Diluc's, I think he's more organized

4. I feel like she would for the reasons above, maybe if she was drinking and misplaced them?

5. Hm this is actually a bit tough because although he's rich and owns a winery, it was inherited so idk if he was taught money management, especially because he has others run it for him. But I feel both of them are fairly responsible.

6. Well, Diluc's parents... yeah they're not around anymore and idk about Eula's. I feel if anything she would take either extreme, either hiding it because she doesn't want to ruin his reputation by others knowing he's dating a Lawrence, or she would utilize their relationship to get back at her clan (and in part of my hcs, get rid of her association with her clan and break apart from them). But the latter would be after they talk it through and he assures her he doesn't care about it. I don't think he would want to hide it. If anything it would take him off of the bachelor market which I think he'd be happy about lol.

7. I actually think he'd be better in the kitchen overall (especially taking lessons from Adelinde if he is willing to learn) BUT as it stands his signature dish is literally a version of Pile 'Em Up which is throwing ingredients on top of each other? Compared to her signature dish, an upgraded version of Moon Pie, I think her signature dish beats his in terms of complexity. But for everyday cooking, probably him.

8. She gets more sleep but he needs more sleep lol 😂

9. They're both serious about their duties and work, but I feel he's a little more hardworking. Not that she isn't, but I think she knows her boundaries and limits more- he's constantly pushing his limits (and working as the Dark Night Hero doesn't exactly have a strict schedule if you know what I mean)

10. She has more empathy... I think 🤔 idk sometimes he can surprise others, it's just others find him hard to read. But I think he has the capacity for empathy too, he just doesn't communicate it openly very much.

11. A cat (hmm this gives me ideas) or she becomes attached to his falcon, they can write letters to each other and send them back and forth (aww 🥰)

12. Eula

13. His is acts of service and quality time, and hers is physical touch and quality time

14. I don't think they would keep secrets from each other intentionally, but there are certain things in Diluc's past that he probably wouldn't want to mention to her, and stuff he knows about Kaeya. Maybe if she asked him (about his past) but I don't think he would readily share it.

15. Neither, but I think as I alluded to in #6, Eula might not feel she deserves him so she might push him away and tell him he deserves better. At least in versions of hc where she has a lower self image and some insecurities. Who knows, he could even say the same to her because of his past if she ever found out 🤷🏻‍♀️

16. Diluc (lol my husband thinks Eula would be a terrible mom 🤐 he said it and he's the Eula main lol)

17. Eula (lol I did a short fic idea of this after chapter 18 of Fighting Winter but never posted it, where they talked after waking up and he's like why were you moaning in your sleep and making noises... and she's like uhh,I was? but she was thinking omg I want to run away in shame lol and instead tries to change the subject 🤣)

OTP questions:

Who initiates hugs?

Who wants to hold the hug longer?

Who borrows the other one’s phone charger?

Who loses their keys/wallet?

Who’s better with money?

Who tried to hide the relationship from their parents?

Who’s better in the kitchen?

Who needs/gets more sleep?

Who’s more laid back and who’s more hard working?

Who has more empathy?

If they were to adopt a pet together, what kind of pet would it be?

Who is more outgoing?

What is their love language?

Are they holding any secrets from each other?

Which one is more likely to cheat?

Which one first brings up the idea of having kids?

Who sleeptalks?

[trashland-llamas]

July Wrap Up

The Science of Fashion [2.0 stars]

Why are there qr codes in a book? Either write out the information or cut it from the book. If you need to include a website, you can just put ‘can find out more at [insert link]’ Otherwise book was fine.

Asgardians; Odin [2.25 stars] Olympians; Zeus [2.5 stars] Death Note Vol 7 [2.5 stars]

After chapter 58, I found it to be a slog. Just cause they're suddenly introducing new characters that are dubbed to be L's proteges and nothing else. Except that they're tasked with solving the Kira case as they're characters Light wouldn't have known about. Plus one of them is very much a copy and paste version of L while the other has mafia ties. I will wait till the next volume to cement this judgement as neither have had much screen time. Feel it'd be too soon.

Edit; Nvm, I saw a tiktok where someone had the same thoughts & a bunch of the folks in the comments agreed w/ the sentiment. Ik the actual ending is probably more satisfying seeing as it’s quite literally Light’s downfall. But I genuinely don’t care about who wins. It’s was more the tit for tat that L & Light had going on. Right now, it feels as if they’re about to unnecessarily drag it out. So yea, to me, the series ends w/ chpt. 58 or episode 25.

Soichi - Junji Ito [3.0 stars] Skull-faced Bookseller Honda-San Vol 4 [3.25 stars]

Author wasn’t kidding when they said this was promotional material for volume 3 + the anime. That said, was still enjoyable to read as I had extremely low expectations for this vol, having heard someone say it was akin to a fanfic. Not that fan fiction is overall bad, it’s not, but that’s not what I wanted as the end to this series.

Queen's Quality Vol 1 [3.5 stars] These Are The Words - Nikita Gill [3.75 stars]

There’s actually a structure to it which is a rarity I’ve found, at least from the poetry books I’ve read so far; its structured into 4 segments after the seasons & then each chapter is about a specific topic (womanhood, love, family)

Each section starts with a horoscope which I definitely looked forward to. Cause they make mini stories of themselves.

It uses simple language but I think it’s really impactful & makes the poems more generalizable. Which works for this collection as the goal was ‘hey, hopefully this has something you’ve been needing to hear.’

There is an overuse of nods to the moon in terms of metaphors and similes imo

Would recommend if you’re just entering adulthood or are in a transition period in life. That or if you’re wanting to read something hopeful

Demon Slayer Vol 19 [3.75 stars] Like a Butterfly Vol 2 [4.0 stars] Devil's Candy Vol 1 [4.0 stars] Demon Slayer Vol 18 [5.0 stars]

Fav moment would be Kanao stitching up Inosuke and him pinky promising not to take out the stitches himself + the anger she feels at her sisters’ deaths + Giyuu protecting Tanjiro when he faints during the fight w/ Akaza. (Keep confusing Akaza & Douma for each other, name wise. Cause they do have distinct enough looks)

That and all the backstories shown for the upper 12 are very heartfelt in that they add humanity to characters that don't really have that much screen time outside of these final fights. Like we get glimpses of them sprinkled earlier in the series. If anything, it emphasizes how Muzan prayed on all of them during an extreme low point and does make me feel sympathy for them. Which is especially poigant as the series is coming to a close. Like it makes me hate Muzan a lot more than I originally did.

The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich [5.0 stars]

[punchingup101]

Paving the Way a Million Miles at a Time

By: Isabel De Los Santos

"Ingredient no. 1: find your goal. Ingredient no.2: know how far you are. Ingredient no. 3: draw a road map. Ingredient no. 4: if you don't know how, learn. Ingredient no. 5: when you think you've made it, you probably have to work harder"- Salvador Hernandez, A Million Miles Away (2023)

In the film, A Million Miles Away (2023), director Alejandra Marquez Abella, from San Luis Potosi, Mexico, tells the story of Jose M Hernandez and how his goal of becoming an astronaut became his reality through hard work and tremendous sacrifices. In telling the story, she uses techniques that are not commonly seen in films such as the warping of some scenes to express defeat, but not surrender, and the use of different camera quality for memorable scenes and the passing of time, such as the scene where Jose and Adela, his partner, are married and later start their family—one of my favorite scenes!

The film explores themes of resilience, determination, community, and Mexican/Mexican-American culture. Jose, like many Mexican-Americans including myself, was born to immigrant parents who came to the United States in hopes of achieving the "American Dream", or at least having a taste of it by earning higher wages compared to in Mexico. The film A Million Miles Away begins with the farewell of Salvador and Julia, Jose's parents, and their children as they leave Mexico to work on Californian farms in hopes of saving enough money to build a house in their hometown in Michoacan, Mexico. Once in the US, Jose has to help his parents work the farms early in the morning then head to school, where he excels in math.

A very important character in Jose's story is his elementary teacher, Ms. Young, who believes in him and in his goal. Because of her, Salvador was convinced to stay in one place instead picking up his family and moving every few months with the harvest, "How can a tree grow fruit when it is being uprooted and replanted every three months?" she asked.

The film fast forwards to Jose finding love, graduating college, and finally resumes when he has his first job as a lab engineer for a federal research facility. Here, he is a minority, and seen as unqualified at the beginning. For example, the secretary assumes Jose to be the new janitor despite him wearing dress clothes like all the other engineers at the facility. Although he is discouraged, he does not give up; in fact he works harder to get what he wants to achieve.

Marquez Abella, expresses storytelling through film in a way that honored Jose's story. She uses iconic Norteña music, and other iconic Mexican/Mexican-American songs that fit the corresponding scene perfectly. There is also a specific scene near the end where Jose is close to accomplishing his goal and has flashbacks to conversations with his loved ones where they are encouraging and motivating him, but this time said characters break the fourth wall and are speaking to the audience. This was clever and moving, it inspires the audience and builds a closer connection with the characters. 

The use of “chapters” throughout the film which follow Salvador’s receta, or recipe, keep the viewer engaged and wanting to take notes–at least it did when I watched it the first, second, and third time. Overall, the movie evokes emotion and awe, furthermore it evoked a personal connection because I share similar experiences with sacrifices, food, music, being Mexican-American, and having closely related goals.

“Who better to leave this planet and dive into the unknown than a migrant farmworker?” - Beto, A Million Miles Away (2023)

Sources:

Film Soundtrack:

[redbuddi]

Hey I was watching the vod for Ruff Trigger and you mentioned reading a whole bunch of 'Person Dies and is Reincarnated into the World of a Book Series They Already Read' books and so I was wondering if you've read 'I Favor The Villainess'? Because I may be a little biased because gay women but that one is really good.

Also do you have any specific recommendations for books/manga/etc in that genre?

I have! I tried it once a while back but for whatever reason it didn't hold my attention. I read a few chapters again after getting this and I dunno what I was thinking before, I like it a lot.

As for the many Reincarnation Manhua I am reading, and I am reading a LOT so do not question my knowledge, I have a data sheet and everything, here are my top five in no particular order. Note that these are specifically "Reincarnated into a Pre-Existing Story" Manhuas and not just "Reincarnated" ones, if they were the list would probably look a little different haha. Don't even get me started on the "Rebirth" category.

#1: Not-Sew-Wicked Stepmom

Status: Ongoing. Currently on season hiatus.

Synopsis: An overworked korean seamstress dies and finds herself reincarnated into the body of the evil step-mother from Snow White. Luckily she wakes up before the story proper begins, while the princess is still a small child, and so she decides to bow out of her bid for the throne and spend her days spoiling her adorable step-child. However, she soon realizes that her former self wasn't the only person trying to exploit the system for power, and that the world of royalty hosts beneath-the-surface a cycle of cruelty and abuse that could destroy the future of any child. Thus, she must do whatever it takes to ensure that the lovable little girl grows up as happily and healthily as possible.

Story Quality: 4/5 A well-paced and expertly woven narrative that keeps the story moving at all times without burning out the reader with too many rapid developments or twists. The only reason it isn't a 5/5 is because I don't know how it'll end.

Art Quality: 5/5 A sweet and expressive art style that does a good job blending in the typical CSP assets while still standing on it's own.

The Drip: 5/5 Every outfit the characters wear is stunning and suits them perfectly, which is to be expected given the series' fashion theme but still greatly appreciated in execution.

The Love Interest: 3/5 While he's a good character and I like him, I don't particularly care if he and the main character hook up. This could change as the series goes on, however.

Spiciness: 3/5 Occasionally suggestive, but overall fairly tame and normal.

Is it worth paying for? Absolutely.

#2: Beware the Villainess!

Status: Complete

Synopsis: A college student is reincarnated into the body of the nasty villainess of a romance story she had read shortly before dying. Determined to not suffer the same fate, she does everything she can to completely sequence-break the narrative and do things her own way, up to and including befriending the main character, rejecting her princely fiancee, and recruiting a derelict side-character as her right-hand man. But little does she realize that this world won't take her changes lightly, and the characters she knows are not as one-dimensional as they first appear....

Story Quality: 4/5 Clearly thought out and well-executed, the story does an excellent job conveying the ideas it presents. Currently my gold-standard for the "Villainess Sequence-Break" subcategory.

Art Quality: 4/5 Well-executed and expressive, but a little too generic for my liking. It does what's expected of it well, but rarely goes above and beyond.

The Drip: 4/5 Good outfits, including some that make me very gay, but nothing spectacular.

The Love Interest: 4/5 I wasn't with it in the beginning but ngl, by the end of the series I was really rooting for these two.

Spiciness: 4/5 Generally a 3/5, but occasional moments of sexuality do occur, although it doesn't really hit until the special episodes.

Is it Worth Paying For? Debatable. I don't regret paying for the whole thing but if you have better restraint than me you can tough out the wait-until-free episodes and save yourself some coin.

#3: Surviving Romance

Status: Ongoing. Currently on it's second season.

Synopsis: Chaerin Eun has been trapped in a romance novel for a while now, and today is the day her love interest will finally confess to her and the two can live happily-ever-after!

Things do not go as planned.

Story Quality: 5/5 While I am being careful to not reveal too much, the quality of the story doesn't just hinge on how surprising it's twists and turns are. It has something to say and so far it is doing an extremely good job saying it.

Art Quality: 3/5 I get what it's going for but I do still feel like it could be better.

The Drip: 5/5 This series doesn't let the fact that everyone is in school uniforms stop it from having some striking and downright iconic looks.

The Love Interest: ???/5 : )

Spiciness: 2/5 Good lord, could you imagine?

Is it Worth Paying For? I say yes, but only because it's a currently running webtoon and therefore the only episodes you need to pay for are the most recent ones. I don't know if my answer would be the same if this was a completed webtoon or a series on Tapas.

#4: Villainesses Have More Fun

Status: Ongoing

Synopsis: A bad-bitch korean business woman is reincarnated into the body of Reilynn Candimon, the villainess of the novel she had been reading, and a character that had greatly frustrated her. Using nothing but her powerful personality, she decides to make the best of this life and peace out from the main story to enjoy her riches. So why does the main character keep picking fights with her?

Story Quality: 3/5 A fun read that doesn't take itself too seriously. You wont be enraptured in a deep and complex narrative, but you'll have a good time and enjoy some genuinely engaging characters.

Art Quality: 3/5 Exactly what you expect from this kind of series and nothing more.

The Drip: 3/5 Some outfits are nice, but some of the ensembles the main character walks around in are downright tragic.

The Love Interest: 1/5 I deadass keep forgetting who it's supposed to be, and then I remember he's a cop.

Spiciness: 2/5 Pretty mild.

Is it worth Paying For? Only if the scanlation is really bad.

#5: The Villainess' Stationary Shop

Status: Ongoing. Currently on Season Hiatus.

Synopsis: A korean woman wakes up in the body of Meldenique Bebelloa, the villainess of a romance novel. In the original story, her character dies after trying to stop a romance between her fiance and her half-sister. Determined to not end up like that (and not too interested in the prince anyway,) Mel ditches her terrible family in order to live out her life's dream of running a stationary shop! (Essentially a store for school supplies that typically also sells toys and candy.)

Story Quality: 4/5 A kind of generic story is elevated by a cute and likeable characters, a lighthearted tone, and highly satisfying moments of catharsis. Be warned, this manhua is kind of addictive.

Art Quality: 3/5 Passable quality but nothing noteworthy.

The Drip: 4/5 With the extravagance and glitter of most other manhua, this series offers a delightful palette cleanser of cute and modest outfits that greatly demonstrate the character's personalities.

The Love Interest: 4/5 I'm not terribly invested in the romance, but the love interest is a stoic bad boy who is extremely easily flustered by the idea of kissing or even... holding hands?????? It's a fun change-of-pace and makes scenes that would typically be eye-rolling a little more enjoyable as the coolguy is the blushy one.

Spiciness: 2/5 The love interest would probably die if he saw a boob.

Is it Worth Paying For? I had fun with it but again, be warned, it is highly addictive.

[worldofavania]

Drawn: 2020

Analysis:  Well well well, we're finally here... The last page of the chapter, and last interior page of the issue! I finished this page just a few short months ago, and I daresay it's a pretty good one! Though I would have liked to use the dramatic last panel shot from the previous page to finish out this one, I really like the details of the never-before-seen other side of Hans' quarters. I always like the Schmitt and Hans scenes too, and the little interactions here were fun to do. Overall I think this page shows a lot of the quality improvements I've made over the years of drawing Avania, and wraps up this lengthy day (in comic time) pretty well.

If I drew it again:  I don't think I'd draw this page again any time soon, but there are some things which could be improved upon... I want to make end-of-chapter/issue pages have more visual impact with their composition and overall presentation, though this kinda depends on the scene and what information needs to be conveyed. At least a larger last panel might have been nice, but again that doesn't always fit with the story beats/dialogue, and I'd prefer to keep that economical than spend a lot of page real-estate simply for dramatic effect, unless it was a suitably dramatic moment itself.

For panel art specifically, I feel like I could have done a little better with some of the poses here. Schmitt in panel 3, and Hans' arm in panel 4 in particular still look kinda weird to me (though I really like Hans holding out the ashtray there.) I think I might have just been more tired while getting this page done, because I don't dislike what I drew, I just feel that even with the overall quality improvements in the grand scheme of things, I still could have done better with the exact execution of what I had in mind.

Favorite Panel: I like the background details in the wide shot, but the last panel is probably my favorite for not having any little things that bother me, and also being almost as dramatic as the last panel in the previous page! (I do like both panels on their own though, since they each carry their distinct mood despite being similarly framed.

[welovethecloudboytoomuch]

Cloud’s Top 5 MHA Vigilantes Chapters

In order to commemorate the ending of Vigilantes tomorrow I have come up with a list of my top 5 favorite chapters! I found it really hard to narrow it down to my favorite individual chapters because when I think of Vig, I think of the overall story and the arcs rather than the chapters by themselves. Nonetheless, I have attempted to compile my favorites here! Spoilers also!!!!

5. Chapter 1 - “I’m here.”

Yep! Had to put the very first chapter on this list for two main reasons. The first is because it works very well as an introduction to the Vigilantes series. It quickly explains the premise of our story and introduces us to our main characters, while also showing how it differs from mainline MHA by diving straight into the darker themes.

The second reason is because this first chapter IS the whole of the vigilantes series because of how everything ties back to it. The line of “Well, All Might ain’t coming, but l’m here!” is the central theme of Vigilantes. “We can’t expect anyone to come to save us, so we’ll be here to do what we can.” is exemplified by the recurring use of “I’m here!”. So, when our characters say it, it always ties us back to this first chapter and usage. Then there’s other stuff like Koichi remarking on the qualities of what makes a good hero, all of which are boxes he himself has checked off by the end of the series, and the fact that Koichi’s first words to Pop are “Hey it’s the cops!”

True romance right there.

4. Chapters 106/107 - “Tag” & “The Days to Come”

But Cloud! I thought this was just supposed to be your top 5, You can’t group two chapters together!

Shhhh It’s my list I get to make the rules

The reason I have both of these chapters ranked together at number 4 is simply because they contain my two favorite panels of the entire series. The first is from chapter 106 and is the my favorite example of Koichi and 6’s pure SPEED. They are so fast you can’t even SEE THEM, only the path they traced as 6 tries to hit Koichi with one of his explosions. The second is from chapter 107 and is part of AFO’clock’s warning to 6 about how if this keeps up Koichi will grow to overcome him. Which is paid off in the later chapters when Koichi goes on the offensive and develops Knuckle-style. Just the imagery here of Koichi towering over him and 6’s face are my favorite parts about this one. All the praise to Betten for these chapters.

3. Chapter 64 - “Shouta”

Everybody knows that this chapter is utterly soul-crushing, so I don’t need to say that, but this chapter is the reason I read all of Vigilantes in the first place.

Furuhashi has the audacity to give us hope, to make us believe that Aizawa won and that Shirakumo is going to be okay, only to RIP IT AWAY in the most painful way possible. Its that kind of storytelling that drew me in and and kept me invested in Vigilantes. That AUDACITY to do whatever they wanted with the plot is what sets vigilantes apart for me.

This chapter also sets up the idea for later chapters that you can hallucinate your loved ones giving you encouragement if you are a) fighting for your life and b) they are on the brink of death themselves.

This is only one example of Furuhashi being a master of set-up and pay-off.

2. Chapter 116 - “In Darkness”

Okay now we’re just getting to the ones that make me cry. In 116 Koichi is on his last legs, he thinks he’s literally dying the whole time and it’s just a chapter of dialogue between him and Knuckleduster. The only real function of this chapter is to serve as a rallying cry for Koichi to get back into the fight, but the way it’s done is so understated and gentle.

Essentially this whole chapter is Knuckle telling Koichi “you don’t need me anymore, you can do this on your own” which is IMMENSELY PAINFUL for two reasons. One, while Koichi is on his last breath Knuckleduster is also dying at the same time, so we can see this as the their “spirts” reaching out to each other one last time before one of them dies. Or if you don’t believe that Knuckle is actually talking to him, it’s Koichi just imagining the image of his master and telling himself the things that he already knows. That he is capable, that he’s been a hero all this time, and that Knuckleduster would be proud of him.

And when he stands up at the end of the chapter, fully focused with his knuckles glowing with energy? Chills, every time.

1. Chapter 75 - “Letter”

This is the one that can get me to cry literally every time I read it.

This, like chapter 116 is just Knuckleduster talking to Koichi, but this is his confession to Koichi. He starts off the letter by apologizing to him and then moves on to explain what he thinks a true hero is, only for him to say that Koichi has been his hero the whole time.

The notion that Koichi, this nobody, this guy on the street, with a funny quirk, and a penchant for being absent-minded, has always been a true hero is awesome. He showed what a true hero was to a Pro Hero, someone who had been doing “hero work” for years, but when Koichi hands Knuckleduster a tissue for his bloody nose all the pomp and circumstance that makes a hero in this world falls away.

It doesn’t matter about his quirk. It’s doesn’t matter that he’s tried and failed at being the hero before. It just matters that Koichi has the iron will to make the impossible, possible, and that when there’s someone out there, waiting to be saved, there isn’t even a decision to be made.

More than anything else, Koichi wanted to help people, and did whatever that entailed. That’s what makes him a true hero.

[blarfkey]

Tips on Beta-ing Fic in Fandom

Hello! So I’ve noticed from some of my experiences and the experiences of others that not everyone fully understands how to beta a fic or how to ask for a beta reader.

And I get it. Editing is a delicate process, it's terrifying to ask someone to look at your work, and it's equally terrifying to feel responsible for the quality of someone else’s writing. 

So I decided to write up a little guide. I enjoy being a beta reader and learned how to while I got my minor in creative writing and through participation in many writer workshops but being a good beta doesn’t require an education like that.  A lot of bad experiences I’ve seen or heard about could be avoided with communication and basic courtesy.

More under the cut:

First of all, there are different levels of editing that require different levels of depth and commitment. A lot of issues crop up when two people have a different idea of what’s expected. So here is a way of looking at the different levels.

1. SPAG (SPelling And Grammar): This is the most basic level and has the least amount of time commitment. The beta looks for issues in grammar and spelling such as: comma rules, homophones, run on sentences, anything that obscures meaning, ect. This is the easiest level to ask for since it requires a basic read through and no knowledge of canon or characters or the fandom at all. If you are with a new beta whom you don’t know well, I would start with just this level. 

2. Flow and Efficiency: this gets a little deeper into SPAG. A beta on this level would flag passages that slow down the pace of the story, words that are repeated too often, dialogue that doesn’t make sense or sounds awkward, pronoun confusion, sentence/paragraph order, ect. This requires more time and re-reading the fic more than once to do a thorough job. 

3. Characterization: This deals with how in character your dialogue and actions feel in your story. If you’re writing a character for the first time or you don’t have a full understanding of them in canon, it can be helpful to ask a writer well versed in writing that character to take a look at your characterization. This does require more of a commitment than the others and you need to communicate with each other to discuss what seemed out of character and why and what alternatives could be taken instead.

4. Plot and Story: This is the  biggest commitment for a beta and not something you ask a person to do real quick or even ask a person to do if you don’t know them very well. This type of editing asks someone to look at the story overall and see what is working and what is not working as far as plot goes.

Did the writer develop the story in a way that makes sense, did they lay down the seeds of the development throughout the fic, are they sticking to a theme, are they contradicting themselves throughout the fic, did they repeat a scene, ect? For multi-chapter fics, this requires a long term beta/writer relationship over the course of each chapter update.

You should not ask someone brand new to beta at this level for an update chapter, especially if they haven’t read your other chapters first or aren’t familiar with your writing. This level requires an immense amount of trust between beta and author and a huge time commitment for a beta.

~~~

Now that we understand the different levels of editing, here are some common courtesy guidelines for both authors and betas:

Author:

1. Decide beforehand what level you want your fic to be beta’d for. Communicate clearly exactly what you want your beta to look for and at what level you would like them to edit. You don’t have to use my guideline above exactly, but be clear if you want deeper edits than SPAG, for example. And understand that deeper edits, such as on structure and plot and characterization, require a lot of commitment on behalf of the beta reader. It’s understandable if they do not or are unable to give you that level of commitment so be clear about it upfront. 

2. Be clear on your deadline of when you want this done.

3. Be clear on the length, pairing/characters involved, rating, and major content warnings when asking for a beta. 

4. If you share a google doc, do not let any beta have full editing privileges. Even if you trust them, you won’t be able to see all the changes they make so you can learn from your mistakes. Keep the restrictions to commenter only. 

5. Be upfront and honest about  how sensitive you are to different kinds of feedback. Especially if you’ve been hurt in the past, be honest about what feedback you do not want.

6. Remember, you do not have to change everything a beta suggests. This is your story and even though they’ve done you a favor, it's ultimately your decision and judgement on your own fic.

That being said, you don’t need to argue with a beta about their suggestions. If you don’t agree with most or all of their ideas, they are not the beta for you. Thank them for their time and then follow through with your own suggestions or find a different beta.

Beta/Editor: Here are some basic courtesy rules you should follow when you are beta-ing.

1. Do not engage with fic that makes you uncomfortable, even if you want to be kind to a friend. Your reluctance shines through in your efforts and it does not end well for anyone. If you start a fic and then find you are uncomfortable with it, politely tell your author that you cannot continue. Do not do so in a way that shames their fic. You do not have to go into personal reasons why you cannot finish the fic, just tell them you are unable to do so. 

2. Stick to the deadline you agreed to. If something comes up, let the author know as soon as possible so they can find someone else, especially if they are on a publishing schedule or have an exchange deadline. 

3. Word all your non-spelling edits as suggestions, not commands. Ultimately any changes are the author’s decision and up to their discretion so it comes off as very rude and controlling when you use commands, as if you naturally know better than the author does at telling their own story. This also means that you should not change anything in the document without telling the author if they have given you full edit access on a google doc or word doc, ect. 

Some ways of phrasing you can use to make suggestions:

     A. “Could” and “can” instead of “should” and “need”.

For example:  For example, Maybe you could move this paragraph to the beginning because of ____ reason instead of You need to move this paragraph to the beginning. 

     B. “I think” at the beginning of a suggestion, so it's clear it's your opinion and nothing else.

I think this paragraph works better at the front of the chapter rather than the end.

     C. “Maybe” with a question mark.

This is one of my favorites. Think of it like brainstorming with someone. Maybe you could move this paragraph to the front of the chapter? Maybe X Character could do Y instead?

4. Always explain why you would make a change to story, flow, or characterization so the author understands your intent and reasoning.  

5. Do not judge someone’s writing. This is their story and their ideas. Do not try to steer the plot in the direction you would want to take it, do not kinkshame any of their smut, do not criticize their story/pairing choices because they aren’t to your tastes. The goal is to improve what they already have, not change it to match what you personally like. 

6. Do not offer only critical feedback without something positive. This is very important. Even if you are just at level one SPAG, leave a comment or highlight a passage, turn of phrase, line of dialogue that you enjoyed or leave a note at the bottom of something you think they did well. 

Asking for critical feedback is terrifying, and if there is not a balance of positive and constructive feedback, authors can be discouraged from writing further if they think all they write is bad or needs work. 

The way I did it in writing workshops is that I put every negative comment in between two positive comments. This might be unrealistic for beta, but you cannot beta a fic without leaving any positive feedback at all. 

~~~

Communication and clear expectations go a long way in a good author/beta relationship. It helps to find someone whose fic they have written or bookmarked align with your own tastes if you want deeper edits. Make sure you have similar ideas on characterization, head-canons, interpretations of canon lore.

At the end of the day, however, it’s fanfiction. It is written for free and for fun. Little things that would not cut it in professional publication can slide in an fanfic and there should not be pressure to make a fic as perfect as a professional, published piece unless the author gives you that explicit expectation.

Please comment or send an ask/message if you have any questions about beta-ing!

[2centsoframblings]

Two cents of ramblings on “Yūkoku no Moriarty” (‘Moriarty The Patriot’) (Anime) - Season 1...

...and why I STRONGLY recommend it.

GENERAL DATA

Title: Yūkoku no MORIARTY (憂国のモリアーティ “Moriarty The Patriot”)

Media: Anime television series

Adaptation of: Yūkoku no MORIARTY (憂国のモリアーティ “Moriarty The Patriot”) shōnen manga by Takeuchi Ryōsuke, illustrated by Miyoshi Hikaru.

Genre: Crime, Mystery

Directed by: Nomura Kazuya

Written by: Zappa Gō

Studio: Production I.G

Original run: October 11, 2020 December 20, 2020

Episodes: 11

WARNINGS: There's murder, drug abuse, mistreatment of minors, discrimination, implication of sexual abuse of minors.

The plot in short: The story is a very loose retelling of “Sherlock Holmes” by Conan Doyle, however this time the main protagonist is professor William J. Moriarty, who’s now represented as a man committing crimes in an attempt to fight the corruption of the English nobles so as to create a better world.

HOW DID I STUMBLE INTO IT

The title got me curious and since Studio I.G usually makes very good series I decided to try it out.

THINGS YOU MIGHT WHAT TO KNOW BEFORE TACKLING THIS

I’ll reference the manga version on which this anime is based, the manga “Fushiji Fushiji” (ふしぎふしぎ ‘Wonder wonder’) by Yamazaki Hiroshi, the manga “Death Note” by Ōba Tsugumi and illustrated by Obata Takeshi, the anime “Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch” (コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュ ‘Code Geass: Lelouch of the rebellion’). Oh and the movie “The silence of the lambs”.

MY TWO CENTS ON IT

THE SHORT VERSION… or what I can tell you about this while trying to keep spoilers at the very bare minimum.

Opening & ending: The series uses as opening “DYING WISH” by Tasuku Hatanaka, and, as ending theme, “ALPHA” by STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION. I quite liked both song and I love, love, love, both the opening and the ending. They’re both awesomely drawn and well matching with the songs, the opening is filled with symbolism and foreshadowing which makes it pretty intriguing. The ending, if possible, is drawn even better, even though it’s mostly a panning of still images and it too drives forward an interesting message.

The plot: This first season loosely covers the first 4 volumes of the manga (and a chapter from vol 5). Loosely because they actually skipped 3 arcs and added one. Each arc is a case the Moriarty brothers take, but the structure of its presentation might differ from case to case. This season works mostly an introduction to the characters and the story but we also see an evolution in the situation as the characters start to interact and the Moriarty brothers’ plan begins to unfold. Personally I enjoyed the series both for the overarching plot that it starts and for the episodic plots that it contains.

The characters: As this season covers only a small part of the manga we get introduced only to a part of the full cast and since not all the arcs of the manga are covered Fred and Moran are less developed than their manga counterparts, the anime focusing more on the Moriarty brothers as well as on Holmes and Watson. Still, the characters come out as interesting and likeable and there’s a care in depicting the minor characters involved in the various stories, even though they often get to end up being simplified a bit, often either to tame down the story or due to time constraints.

The visual: Personally I think the anime did a good work of reproducing Miyoshi Hikaru’s work. The character design is faithful enough to the one of the manga and there’s this amazing cure in the background which I really love. Here and there however I feel the quality is a little less than good though it will probably get fixed in the dvd release. There are some interesting stylistic choices too so it’s still very pleasurable to watch.

The BGM: Oh, no doubt I love it. I truly enjoyed Tachibana Asami’s work on this series, the music well underline the mood, stays with you and it’s pleasurable to hear.

Overall: It’s a good, well done and intriguing first season. I would personally wish it had been longer, so as not to cut arcs and take more time exploring the characters but nowadays seasons are mostly short so I guess they couldn’t do things differently. It’s still a good work and a good transposition, even though if you want to know more about the characters I recommend you to read the manga.

THE LONG VERSION… or what I loved and hated about this with, of course, TONS OF SPOILERS.

Let me dig a moment into the opening and the endings as I think they really did a good job here. The opening really get you in the mood of the series and gifts you with little gems of foreshadowing and symbolism.

It starts with the sun disappearing so we find ourselves in the dark side of the day and of London. Then it well introduces the Moriarty brothers and their helpers (Fred and Moran) and then send them walking for the night streets of London.

The scene is interrupted by the nobles entertaining themselves with a masked ball… uncaring of how a lily (usually used as symbol of purity and innocence) lays in a pool of blood. The only one who pays it any mind and picks it up is William Moriarty, which basically foreshadows the whole plot of the story, the nobility is uncaring of other people’s suffering while he wants to help. As the lily seems to redden further in blood we basically get a flashback of a poor girl selling lilies having her flowers tossed on the ground a noble deliberately stepping on them with cruelty while she’s desperate and then disappears in red petals. The lily in William’s hand, now completely red, burns.

I mean, this whole scene isn’t just beautifully drawn and takes care to match with the music in both melody and lyrics but it’s of an awesome symbolism for the series down to how London will burn in the following season.

We’re treated with some more symbolism, fruits which quickly grow rotten, a poor street and a cemetery, a statue of the angel of death then, in a maze of thin threads, Sherlock appears and this too symbolizes how he’ll have to untangle the skein of the Moriarty case. Sherlock runs with Watson and the next we know is he and William are pointing their respective guns at each other head, foreshadowing another scene in the next season.

Then a bird flies above them (birds, I’m not sure if they’re crows or ravens, are used to symbolizes the Moriarty brothers) and, superimposed to it, we see hands being joined and then the other 2 Moriarty brothers and William and Fred, so as to symbolize how they’ll join forces with William.

We get a flashback of the Moriarty house burning down and then of William’s eyes. To better tie him to the bird, his eyes are then covered by bird’s wings and we see 3 birds (symbolizing the Moriarty brothers) fly away. The song’s pace get fast and we’re showing Fred and Moran fighting, Albert smiling (as he basically fights from behind the scenes, using his own power to aid his brother’s plan) and then Louis fighting as well.

William then, in a scene that reminds me a lot of the opening of “Zankyō no Terror” let himself be fall from what we’ll discover is the big bang tower, watching the city as it burns, and foreshadowing how he plans to end his plan. As if this foreshadowing isn’t enough, the scene switches again, William joins his companions in a room and points a gun at his own head. All this is beautiful animation, smooth transitions and intriguing storytelling that well fit with the music and the lyrics of the song which I recommend to read as you enjoy it. And I love it.

And what to say of the ending?

It starts depicting a simple episode of the Moriarty brothers’ childhood. They’re just having fun painting some walls with beautiful scenery (which is symbolism for how they are hoping in real life that, with their actions, they can paint a beautiful world).

I love how they did the colouring, it reminds me of watercolours, I liked how they had bright colours all over the characters, how the clear colouring of the scenery makes it look like as if everything is filled with light. Although it’s made by still images on which the camera pans, it has its own dynamism, the characters in motion and expressive. It reminds me of the manga “Fushiji Fushiji” (ふしぎふしぎ ‘Wonder wonder’) by Yamazaki Hiroshi whose message was just to discover the wonderful beauty of the ordinary all around you.

There’s an interesting contrast between the lyrics and this calm and happy moment, well harmonized by the music that still seems happy and dynamic but it has a purpose.

In fact the hopefulness and the wonder are kind of shattered when, at the end, we have a really clever transition.

The image moves from the brothers looking at the painting they made in front of them, to the beautiful images painted behind them, as if to hint those images, those happy moments will become their past, something they’ll leave behind, and then the image quickly shift and we see the three brothers, now adults, under the rain and among ruins (are those the ruins of the place they painted?). Albert has a bittersweet expression, the corner of his lips are turned up but the rain makes it look as if he’s crying,

Louis keeps his face down, in the shadows and is not smiling,

William is smiling but it’s a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes, which are on the ground, a forced smile.

The rain soaks them like tears, in a way it washes away the memory of the colours that covered them because, despite their beautiful hopes and dreams, what they had to do was dark and painful and definitely not nice, the sad contrast between idealism and realty.

The songs end showing the Moriarty coat of arms on the ground, in a giant puddle (or outright under water) the words ‘Je crois en moi’ (“I believe in myself”) clearly visible as the song ends with “There is no turning back” which fits so well with how the Moriarty brothers can’t return to that time of their childhood… how they can only advance until the end.

So okay, said this let’s move on the story.

As I said the anime starts with an original only episode. Why this choice when they instead cut manga arcs? Why not to animate another manga arc instead than create a new one that’s loosely based on “The hunting of the Baskervilles”? Why not to just animate “The hunting of the Baskervilles” instead? Why did we ended up having “The earl’s crime” instead?

My guess is that the anime was very invested in making sure we would know we’ve to root for the Moriarty brothers, but also that we were aware that, although they want to create a new world, they’re not Yagami Light from “Death Note” but are closer to Lelouch Lamperouge from “Code Geass”.

So what they do?

They first remember us who was Professor Moriarty, the Lord of Crime in Conan Doyle’s tales by starting the story showing us a kid reading “Sherlock Holmes – The final problem” book and, as his father gives the book a look, his gaze falls on a photo of Professor Moriarty (and the image of Moriarty is a copy of the illustration by Sidney Paget which accompanied the original publication of “The Final Problem”) and then we hear…

Narrator: This is the tale of the man who confounded even the great detective Sherlock Holmes… Professor Moriarty, the Lord of Crime.

…and, as we hear so the image switches from the picture of the book to an image of William Moriarty as we’ll see him in the series, all busy writing mathematic expressions on a blackboard, but then everything seems to take fire as he keeps on writing and then everything fades to black.

From this start we might even think the story was going to represent Moriarty as we know him from the books… an evil mastermind… though the story would start from his past, as the Moriarty we see writing on the blackboard is clearly younger.

And this is a device to raise interest. Then the opening starts.

I’ve discussed about how awesome the opening is above, but when you first see it, you might not catch up all the symbolism or only part of it and therefore fail to see the full picture and this too is a good idea.

Then the episode starts and in a nightmarish red atmosphere (as every image is painted with a red filter) someone chases a poor kid, captures him and makes clear he’s going to make something terrible to him.

We don’t clearly see who’s doing this so we might be tricked into thinking it’s Moriarty himself… but then it turns out the guy implied to be a young Moriarty is reading on the newspaper about the kidnapping and this can divide the audience in 2 groups, those who realizes by the glimpses we saw of the abuser he can’t be Moriarty and those who didn’t.

And here the anime does another clever thing with this bit of dialogue.

Louis: It’s hard to believe a human being could do such a thing. William: (smiling) It’s human to think that this could not be the work of a man.

The fact William can smile in such a way for such topic feels suspicious, the anime plays with our pre-existing ideas of how professor Moriarty is evil. Is he bragging when he talks with Louis? Or is he genuinely analyzing the case? Or is he planning to offer his services to the child murderer?

And then, as he studies the case we get this line…

William: People’s fancies do not get taken by that which is out of view. They want what they see.

…and doesn’t all this starts to look like a reference to “The silence of the lambs”?

Clarice Starling: The thing is that Lecter said everything we need to catch him is in these pages. Ardelia Mapp: Dr Lecter said a lot of things. Clarice Starling: He's here, Ardelia. Ardelia Mapp: Is this Lecter's handwriting? "Clarice, doesn't this random scattering of sites seem desperately random - like the elaborations of a bad liar? Ta, Hannibal Lecter." Clarice Starling: "Desperately random." What does he mean? Ardelia Mapp: Not random at all, maybe. Like there's some pattern here...? Clarice Starling: But there is no pattern or the computers would've nailed it. They're even found in random order. Ardelia Mapp: Random because of the one girl. The one he weighted down. Clarice Starling: Oh, Fredrica Bimmel, from... Belvedere, Ohio. First girl taken, third body found. Why? Ardelia Mapp: 'Cause she didn't drift. He weighted her down. Clarice Starling: What did Lecter say about..."First principles"? Ardelia Mapp: Simplicity... Clarice Starling: What does this guy do, he "covets". How do we first start to covet? Ardelia Mapp: "We covet what we see -" Clarice Starling: " - every day." Ardelia Mapp: Hot damn, Clarice. Clarice Starling: He knew her.

Now, child murder is one of those crimes that are considered morally terrible by a lot of people included criminals. If you add to this a comparison between the criminal and the culprit of “The Silence of the Lambs” you create in people’s mind the image of a monster.

And, as William keep on talking, it’s clear he’s not the culprit, but the fact he claims…

William: This may be a case in which we become involved.

…might still make people to wonder on how he would get involved.

Professor Moriarty wasn’t a detective, he was a crime consultant, a lord of crime, so what is he up to?

And there’s also something else that’s incredibly smart, the whole mention of how a victim was an orphan with William discussing the lack of relation between noble men and orphans.

Louis: Still, one of the victims… …appears to have been an orphan who slept on the streets. What of him? William: Ah, yes. Noblemen and orphans—there is nothing quite so far removed as the two worlds in which they live. Assuming that’s the case, it could be the clue that leads us to our culprit.

And at this point the dynamic between the two starts to resemble the one people would expect between Holmes and Watson but there’s more in this line that just that, the foreshadowing William knows personally the distance between nobles and orphans.

And then Albert appears and goes visiting the father of one of the victims, Eden, but who pays attention to the discussion might notice that he’s an earl… and the episode’s title was “The Earl's Crime” so is he the culprit?

Meanwhile as we are introduced to the poor father, we start to pity him. That man is destroyed from pain for his loss… and he’s a nice, humble man, a loving father who lost a beloved child. We sympathize with him, we want justice for him.

Then William approaches a boy… but in case we still have doubt it’s clear he’s merely doing so to investigate on the case… and then William and Louis are joined by Albert and their goal is made clear, provide the poor father with a chance of vengeance.

So, now we know for sure William, Louis and Albert aren’t involved in the child murders and are hunting the culprit… and we all side with them because what he did was terrible… but just in case we need an extra push let’s have Earl of Argleton, aka the culprit, be introduced… and at the same time William confirm what we assumed, that he is William James MORIARTY.

Then William, engaging conversation with the Earl, acting as if he were Sherlock Holmes (to the point even the Earl observes he seems a detective) points out from where the various objects the Earl is wearing come. The Earl is impressed by his deductions but for us, viewers, the scene is a further proof the Earl is guilty because all those objects come from the shops from which worked the murdered kids. And, as William progresses, even the Earl realizes that’s the point he’s trying to make.

And then we’ve William say this.

William: You prefer the meat of young hares, yes? Tender, not yet fully developed, and so fresh that it still drips with blood, which you take your time to savour, nice and slow.

And, as he says so, we see the shapes of young boys running, and they seem naked, and they’re smiling and it’s clear that’s how the earl sees them… Previously we were merely said the killer ‘target young boys for their amusement, and then, after they’re done, slaughter them’.

You might even think the amusement was in the hunt… but now it has been made clear the Earl lusts for those young boys. And if killing a child is considered one of the worst crimes, it pales to sexually abuse a child. The series as now successfully painted the Earl as the most disgusting monster ever.

So why is this so very important?

Because you ends up agreeing with William that this person deserves to be killed, that the world would be better without him. And this means that in the viewers’ eyes the figure of Moriarty despite being called ‘crime lord’ and ‘crime consultant’ will be viewed as someone who bring justice, not something like Yagami Light who forced his own justice to the world, but something we all agreed upon is justice.

The Earl is a monster. He deserves to die.

This episode also becomes a chance to let us glimpse Lois in action. In the manga he would start to be more active much later, ironically exactly in “The hunting of the Baskervilles” while the anime decided to put him immediately at work. While this choice sacrifices part of the character arc of both Louis and William (there was a reason why Louis wasn’t as active at the start), since “The hunting of the Baskervilles” was cut, it made sense to put it here.

There’s also the beautiful artistic choice to show William arriving driving a coach as the scene is completely covered by fog with the sounds somewhat muffled.

It feels creepy, like the death itself is getting on that place. And then it turns out the tables are turned, the coach was likely Earl of Argleton’s one and this time it was his turn to be kidnapped, taken there and tied over as he had done countless times with the boys… and it’s William, instead than him, the one who gets inside the place, his red eyes shining as he gets inside.

And really, the colouring is so brilliant here because it’s mostly greyish brown and white but then there are some colours that shine and are clearly visible.

William’s eyes and tie which are red… his blond hair… Eden’s red tie and his empty blue eyes… the Earl’s fear filled blue eyes…

And then there’s a flashback in which William is shown talking with Eden.

Eden: Are you certain you can grant my wish… …Sir William? William: Mr Eden, what you are proposing to do Is unfortunately categorized by this twisted world as a crime. Knowing this, does your resolve remain unchanged?

We’ve a flashback in a flashback, with Eden thinking at what happened to his poor son before he nods.

William: Very well. Then I, crime consultant William James Moriarty, accept your request.

And with this we go back to the present and to Eden pulling out a pair of scissors. It’s clear what he wants to do and William urges him to be quick about it. We see nothing of the gruesome scene that happened after, just darkness and a scream, but we’ve gotten to a point where few of us would deny a poor father the chance to avenge his own son abused and murdered by such a monster.

Light returns as William lights a match and this too symbolizes how William’s actions bring light in a world filled with darkness. Birds fly away and raven’s feather flutter around him so that we now will get the symbolism in the opening.

Eden joins him and William kindly offers him his tissue so he can clean up before he personally takes care to close the door of the place in which Earl of Argleton was killed. We don’t see the Earl, just some blood but it’s clear it should have been a gruesome mess and this too is clever.

Some anime like to show things up but merely implying is much more powerful because you can actually imagine a scenario as bad as you prefer.

The episode ends showing Eden being back to normal. Although this is kind of a dangerous message to give out (vengeance by murder bringing you peace, I mean) it makes sense.

The ending for this episode is just a black screen on which credits runs but it makes sense to postpone seeing the images in the ending AFTER this episode, when we’ve seen “The scarlet eyes” and got to know the young versions of the Moriarty brothers.

After the ending the anime leaves a final bit explaining how the Moriarty brothers went through the trouble of erasing everything so that the death of the Earl and his coachman don’t even make it to the news, so that they successfully created the perfect crime.

With this the episode ends and now the series has successfully created a mind setting in which we know William helps people in committing terrible crimes… but in a way we see him as Robin Hood, as if those crimes were an act of justice because those people were terrible but due to social differences and privileges they were also untouchable and this was the only way to punish them.

William is not Yagami Light, who passed judgement on people because he felt better than them, he really feels a lot more like someone who brings justice were none can be obtained but with terrible methods. Like Lelouch Lamperouge, he took what was helpless and gave him power so that they could obtain justice.

Long story short, this episode exist to make as easy as possible to see William as a good guy despite committing crimes and “The scarlet eyes” couldn’t quite drive to the same result.

It’s not solely just because the anime tamed it down, so that the nobles involved seem less abusive than in the manga, but because that’s what those nobles are. In “The earl’s crime” we have a paedophile murderer, so it’s easy to say he deserved a horrible death but in “The scarlet eyes” we just have abusive people.

They’re bad, mind you, but this could still lead to the discussion ‘did they deserve to be murdered like that though?’ They were Albert’s real family after all. They were horrible but they hadn’t killed anyone yet. And the decision to murder them is taken by three children who all benefit from their death. And what about young William preaching to kill all the bad nobles to a group of children?

Mind you, I’m not saying that the “The scarlet eyes” is bad, in truth it’s a lot more interesting than “The earl’s crime” but it moves on a huge grey area… which is great if you want to think things through but if you’re handling a short anime and need your viewers to immediately stick with the main character… well, it doesn’t work so well.

So yeah, “The earl’s crime” might not be quite as good but it works well as first episode, and it serves well to make viewers understand to what William is referring when he gives his speech about wanting to fight the whole country.

William: Our lives should have the same value… Everyone should have an equal right to happiness… But in this country, that doesn’t exist. This class system places a curse upon people. Because of it, people’s hearts are tainted and twisted, giving rise to devils. In which case, the opposite is also true. Once the devils are cast out, people’s hearts become clear again, and the curse is lifted. The country will assuredly be beautiful.

And if you hear all this and think to episode 1, you see how the unfairness of a class system allowed a man to abuse and murder young poor boys and how murdering him fixed everything. It’s an easy to understand, immediate message and one that can easily be shared by the viewers.

So yeah, it works. It’s not great and morally elaborate like the other episodes but that’s exactly its purpose. To be as straightforward as possible to drive home a concept.

So, yeah, I think they did a very clever thing with episode 1… though, on the opposite side, I hate how, due to the limited episode number, its existence meant to further cutting chapters from being transposed. And it’s not just that chapters were cut… even those that were transposed were often changed so as to make them short and simpler.

Mind you, the episodes still remains powerful and well done but they’re actually a lot less strong than the original.

For example in “A rare breed” which is the transposition of “The one grapefruit pie” all William does is to cause the viscount’s death because he let a child die. In the manga he lowered the rents the townspeople had to pay to live on his newly acquired property, stole the control of the town from an evil baron (in the anime they decided to turn Baron Dublin into Viscount of Belfor), forced him to regret denying to the parents of the sick child a glass of water by causing him to feel sick and desperately needing water, write down a formal apology to the child as well as a testament that, once he were to die, his tenant farmers would inherit his lands and then caused the baron’s death.

It’s a much bigger accomplishment for a more complicate plot which is much more tied to the state of society than the one of the anime, who merely focus on a noble’s wrongdoing toward a poor family… but “A rare breed” is still a very good episode, even if simpler than what gave it inspiration.

Another downside of the cuts is that, as I mentioned before, the characters gets less fleshed out than in the manga, which is something that strikes hard for the minor characters. Moneypenny gets cut off and the same goes for Von Herder and Mycroft Holmes (although they’ll manage to recover the two of them for season 2), while Fred and Moran will get a lot less characterization.

Major characters will also be affected by the cuts, although they won’t have it as bad as the minors.

Still…

William James Moriarty, Albert James Moriarty, Louis James Moriarty, Fred Porlock, Sebastian Moran, Sherlock Holmes, John H. Watson, Miss Hudson, George Lestrade, I loved them all. They might be not as fleshed out as in the manga but they’re still interesting and very likable, especially William and Sherlock. I love those two guys they’re perfect.

Now… for who’s not familiar with “Sherlock Holmes” and doesn’t get why this story involves the ‘Moriarty brothers’ instead than just professor Moriarty, that is because Takeuchi Ryōsuke, the manga author, found an interesting way to solve the contradictory information about Professor Moriarty. Professor Moriarty has no given name in the first story in which he appeared (“The Final Problem”) but gives him a brother, Colonel James Moriarty. However, according to another story (“The Adventure of the Empty House”) it’s said that is professor Moriarty who’s named James and his brother is not a Colonel but a station master. So Takeuchi Ryōsuke decided to interpret all this as Moriarty having two brothers, one of which is a Colonel (Albert) and giving to the three siblings the middle name of ‘James’ so that when they play the role of Lord of crime the three of them can say they are ‘James Moriarty’, which is quite clever if you ask me.

And then, because repetita iuvant, the visual is so very great, from the art used for the background to the way the scenes are framed. Really I love this.

So, to sum it up, the first season of this series is a very good first season and actually I hope the fact that it differs slightly from the manga will also work to persuade you to read the manga because boys, the manga is awesome.

And now let's end this with an AMV about this series I recommend watching: Confrontation

[antiloreolympus]

12 Anti LO Asks

1. STOP why are those two panels of her trying to not be a bringer of death literally two obviously different pink hues???? hello??? does this comic not have quality control??

2.Alrighty, read the recent chapter (not the fast pass but the one before) and I have questions

So like, All the side characters are back now I guess? (Also I totally forgot that Artemis went to visit Hermes - how many chapters ago was that even?)

Did... Thanatos and Daphne get together / move in together off screen?? Why is there random narration all of a sudden when LO has Never had it before? (At least that I can remember) - and who's narrating?? Why does one of the side characters need to die? Am I supposed to be invested after RS ignored them for like 20 chapters? (At least its a break from the super slow burn of HxP)

Is this going to effect the overarching plot at all? Do you think RS is gonna try and flip the myths again? (Eros + Psyche, Echo + Narcissus, Apollo + Daphne, etc. Thanatos?)

Also, yeah whats been going on with Hera since she had that Kronos premonition? Why does Daphne sound so happy / smug about Demeters probable heart attack when she eventually finds out about Persephone being in the underworld with Hades? (Whenever RS gets to that).

And what happened to Zeus being all pissy with Persephone and the Trial?

Why are there so many unconnected plot threads? I cant keep up with them all! (It also doesn't help that RS just expects readers to remember all this info after ignoring it - like Artemis going to visit Hermes).

3. If we're being completely blunt and honest here... There's no happy ending for LO. Even if RS ends it on LO Hades and Persephone being "happily" married, you can tell by his past actions that LO Hades will just keep "switching out" for "newer models", so to speak. He'll keep getting mistresses. He'll keep financially manipulating women until they get away from him (one way or another).

4. ok but as a character designer? red and pink are KNOWN CLASHERS. there's a reason ariel's marketing is all in a green/teal/purple gown now instead of the pink one she wears in the movie. pink + red, especially a very saturated, blue-undertoned pink like persephone is, are a HUGE ARTISTIC NO-NO. she needs to get a refund from whatever color theory teacher she had because they l i e d to her.

5. ok but. how cool would it have been if it was trans persephone, and kore was her stand-in (similar to a deadname, but not quite the same) until she decided on her official new name, persephone? if smythe wanted a name-change so bad she could have done so much cooler, better stuff. mtf persephone would make 'becoming a queen/princess' SO much more significant. girl you were already an heiress to begin with stfu.

6. i say this as a transgender man: sometimes smythe's art legit looks like rcdart's stuff. the  weird racial features, the huge hips and tits, the dorito-men? she's cis rcdart.

7. when its the korean imported stuff the webtoons team has to market it themselves and do as best as they can, off the translations, but western made stuff like LO has the creators all input on the marketing (duh, they made the images and banners) so the "Hell" connection is very much Rachel's doing, which kinda implies she doesn't exactly know the Hades mythology or even seems to care if Hell seems more "spicy" and "sexy".

8. no more persephone x hades. if the antis hate us making OCs so much, someone should design cyane! you know. the nymph who literally died trying to protect her?

9. To that one anon - about Apollo needing to drive the sun chariot - Helios is still up there. He could perform the duty of leading the sun across the sky. 

10. oh lo apollo is pretty clearly based off someone rachel knew and was harmed by IRL, which like if that's so then go to therapy? get help? dont take out your issues on a real god from a real place and pretend you're the second coming for homer for the bastardization of a real country's mythology and culture.

11. So you guys know that famous statue "the rape of Persephone"? I think RS took it a little too literally. While the title states 'rape' its more of an allusion to kidnapping than anything else.

Or perhaps it's titled like that to draw a comparison between the violation of Persephone's personhood, her identity and her lack of agency in the situation.

I mean, when people hear the name Persephone they tend to think of Hades wife and the story of how she was kidnapped against her will.

I think perhaps RS saw the statue and confused rape with kidnapping - or decided to conflate the two. She wanted persephone to be kidnapped And raped (for plot reasons), and thus, further stripped away Persephone's agency regarding the situation (because in some versions of the myth after Persephone is kidnapped she finds she is actually ok with the underworld so long as Hades treats her with respect - which he does).

But because RS wants Hades to be the MVP she decided (for some reason) the villify Apollo (who yes, Demeter mythologically does have beef with, but Not for that reason). 

12. Alright hold on a moment - in some versions of the myth Persephone Did wander down to the underworld by herself (because, if I recall, she heard the sorrow filled voices of the dead and wanted to help them) - and in some versions of the myth Hades isnt even present - its just Persephone ruling the underworld by herself like the badass queen she is.

Also, yes - Demeter was a loving mother who grieved for her daughter and she had every right too - but I wouldn't say Persephones kidnapping was entirely Hades' fault (as the comic points out Zeus "gifted" Persephone to Hades *real Dad of the year there*).

Also also in some versions of the myth of the Kidnapping of Persephone - Hades is noted as a pretty mild mannered God - he is respectful of Persephone and seems to love her (and yes, depending on the myth Persephone either ate the pomegranate seeds on purpose or because Hades tricked her) - there are many different variations of the myth. There isnt really a "agreed upon narrative" by everyone - as far as I know.

I think most versions of the story state that neither Hades nor Demeter were pleased with Zeus decision to have Persephone stay 6 months with each of them, but because she ate the pomegranate seeds it was a kind of rule that she had to stay for each seed she ate, hence the 6 months.

If you guys want to get some more broad details of the myth I suggest OSP's "Hades and Persephone" video - which goes a bit more into the canon.

So overall I would say, yes Demeter was a loving mother who grieved her daughter (who was stolen - in most versions) AND Hades was comparatively a decent husband, despite his flaws. Both these statements can coexist - I promise.