#characterised in depth in her own game

[rebornofstars]

Hey! How do you feel sepfember is going? I've enjoyed seeing all the lovely art and writings. Hope you're doing well!

luna!! hi!! thank you for the ask 💞

sepfember is going more brilliantly than i ever could have hoped. it's been absolutely wonderful seeing people coming together to create things! i've been trying my best to express my joy in the tags of my reblogs, but i'm not sure anything ever could! it's been truly wonderful. i have loved every minute of it so far - writing the prompt drabbles every day, and checking the tag for other people's work to reblog, and sniffing out beautiful art for the queue... a couple of times people have pinged me on the LU discord too, to show me sepfember art, and it entirely melted my heart. and i can't tell if it's coincidence but i'm seeing more sepfember-unrelated/untagged female focused art on my dash too!

in a franchise that caters a great deal to male gamers (and in my own linked universe bubble where all of our main characters are men), my only wish for this event was to balance the scales just a little - create a little bit of brainspace in our minds for the women. show more people who they are and what their names are and what they do! spare a moment to wonder about their goals and motives and characterisation. because they do exist! there are more women in this franchise than even i thought before this event! and i think they're worth celebrating, don't you?

[gossippool]

what do you recommend for people who are very new to deadpool comics and looking to get into them?

hiii thank u for asking!! this is kind of a complicated question because there's no right answer really. especially with deadpool, there's no actual best starting point because besides the basic origin story that he was experimented on, everything else about him is fair game (he just lies all the time and has false memories about his past) and so all the comics are different and pretty much standalones. but here's a list of a few comics depending on what you want to explore (i have not read every deadpool comic ever so this is not the best list but i will get there):

for shorter and more lighthearted reads:

deadpool (2022)—SO so cute wade has a crush on this non-binary assassin and it's actually adorable how much he likes them lol. in terms of shorter deadpool comics i think this one is quite a standout [update: the ongoing deadpool (2024) is brilliant as well and is a direct in-depth continuation of this]

deadpool infinity comic (2021)—a short partnership with sue storm. funny and the art style is so cute too

dogpool infinity comic (2024)—this is just cute and logan is in it too

deadpool (2018) #6—the issues in this run are all kinda standalone stories (although they all connect at the end). they're all a fun time but this issue in particular is hilarious. comics usually don't make me actually laugh but this one did

for a more meta read that explores exactly what makes wade unique from other superheroes:

deadpool kills the marvel universe (2011)—in my opinion THE most iconic deadpool run, i'm sure everyone's heard of it lmao. a little darker but hey cameos from every marvel character ever. this was the first deadpool comic i ever read and it was a good time

for a familiar face from deadpool and wolverine (for other specific familiar faces you could just search "deadpool vs [character]" and that comic would probably exist):

honestly just search "deadpool and wolverine" and you'll probably get the whole list but here are some i've read that are lovely:

deadpool & wolverine: wwiii (2024)

deadpool vs. wolverine: slash 'em up infinity comic (2024)

weapon x-traction (2024)

for long in-depth characterisation that explores a lot of deadpool lore:

deadpool (2012)—if you've been following me you might know this is my favourite deadpool comic ever. it's pretty depressing and much grittier than the movie deadpool you might be used to, also REALLY long so it can be daunting but it's very worth it imo. it starts to get really good by the good, the bad, and the ugly issue and there's just SO much in it. for me wade in this run is inseparable from wade as a character to me (this comic is also followed up with deadpool (2015) and despicable deadpool (2017). these aren't necessary to read because 2012 kind of wraps up on its own, but it's definitely bittersweet to get to the end)

deadpool (1997)—another hulk of a comic run. i have not read this yet but i've heard very good things about it, and many people say that joe kelly is the defining deadpool writer so you could give it a go! older comics may be a little harder to read though, from experience

for comics featuring ellie (wade's daughter) that you may want to read in order if you want to fully appreciate her and wade's relationship:

deadpool (2012, 2014, 2015)

deadpool (2018, issues #8, #12, #15)

deadpool (2024)

a lot of comics will sometimes redirect you to other comics that explore a sideplot, and the main comic will just pick up where those left off so you could miss some storyline. despite this it's not necessary to read those other comics, but if you want to avoid multiple instances of this when you first go in, then i would suggest starting with the shorter runs!!

i hope this was helpful lmao sorry this got really long but i think the starting point really is different for everyone depending on what they like

[reixtsu]

In an alternate universe, they are real and you are a fictional character.

Includes: Xiao, Aventurine, Diluc, Itto

About you: you are the main antagonist in an anime and video game.

Xiao

Aether begged him for weeks to watch your anime with him before Xiao got annoyed and finally gave in to his wishes. The plot he found a little interesting, so say the least. The story was a little cliche and overall not within his genre. At least that was until you showed up. He tried to understand your motivations and actions, after all, you were the villain. Why did he find you amusing? Why did he find your beauty otherworldly? Xiao starts to watch your anime  secretly during his own time, often acting like he has no interest in you or your anime. However no one can ignore his little blush at the mention of your name. He was obsessed with you and even bought merch and made a secret shrine. Once your arc ends, however,  he will still root for you within the depths of his heart.

Aventurine

Headphones ready? Check. Anime on? Check. Other computers with your playable character on screen? Check. With all of that checked, Aventurine was ready to watch today's new episode of his favorite anime. Why was it his favorite? Because it had you in it. He grinned as you walked up to the screen, but Dr. Ratio roughly shut the laptop, effectively cutting you off. How could he?! He just slammed a computer shut when a goddess was in the middle of making her speech? Aventurine whined as Dr. Ratio dragged him away from his computer and lectured about his unhealthy obsession with you. Luckily, Aventurine was willing to gamble anything for you. He watched your anime every single day, made you his wallpaper, and spent all his money on your merchandise. IN the game you were in, he would gamble so much just to get you maxed out in everything, making you his most prized possession.

Diluc

It all started when Kaeya went on a drunken tangent about you and your anime. All Diluc could do was sit there listening to his brother ramble on and on about you. He didn't think much of you at first, simply keeping in mind about how much Kaeya simped for you. After a lot of pestering, Kaeya finally convinced Diluc to watch your anime with him. At least one anime was the agreement, only one. One became two and two became three. Diluc couldn't stop thinking about you. Your characterisation, design, personality, voice, motivations, everything. You were so fascinating to him. Kaeya would always take the opportunity to tease him about his new obsession with you, but Diluc just brushed it off, proceeding to think about you as he cleaned a few glasses. Mind you, he is a quiet fan of you, and often doesn't make physical attachments with you other than a small image of you in his wallet. If Kaeya ever finds the picture, he swears he will kill him.

Arataki Itto

After seeing a few posters of you hanging around Inazuma, a man fell head over heels for you. Your physic was what got him first, but when he discovered you had an anime, he and the Arataki Gang started binge-watching your anime like their life depended on it. He would show off edits of you and ramble about  elegance to Shinobu every single day, much to Shinobu's dismay. He laughs at every lame joke you say and cries during your backstory. He was a very vocal supporter and wasn't afraid to show just how much he loved you.

[redlyriumidol]

Sera and character development

So Sera is a character who (imo) gets somewhat the short end of the stick in terms of character development. She's a very polarising character and many people can't stand her- personally I love her now but I wasn't keen on her at all when the game came out. She's brash, rude, has very strong opinions and freely expresses them to the Inquisitor and to others. Sera is also very young, the youngest out of the companions, and I think her immaturity is obvious. She's got internalised racism up to her eyeballs and this makes it particularly unpleasant to romance her as a female elf, which I think was a disappointment to many.

I don't think this initial characterisation is a problem, the problem is that unlike some of the other characters we never really see her tackle her issues over the course of the game. It's easy to blame her for her opinions about elves, but realistically, this hatred includes herself, and therefore it must actually be very painful for her. it's also somewhat antithetical to her goals as a character as someone who stands for the little people- anyone can see that in Thedas, these are disproportionately elves, so caring about elves would actually be logical in her position. Sera's alienation from her identity as an elf is severe, and while I actually do think her feelings are worthy of sympathy (again, this is internalised racism, not a human character who is bigoted towards elves) they're not healthy, they actively obstruct her self-realisation. it's herself that Sera blames for the situation with the baker, it's herself that she hates, her own identity. she's from the alienage but hates people from the alienage. that's really sad, honestly.

In the breakup dialogue with her she says (about herself) "You'd get it if you were smarter. If you understood what it meant to be elven." That's pretty telling of her insecurities and self-hatred, in my opinion.

I think it was a massive wasted opportunity in terms of writing and character development not to give her a questline that interrogates this issue and helps her move past it. The temple of mythal is very personally, viscerally upsetting to her. Despite her repeated denial of it, she does feel connected in some ways to her heritage and I think it's obvious that it's painful for her. So why is it never explored??

In Trespasser, two years on, we do see a Sera who is beginning to grow up. She's very likable in Trespasser imo, her diary gives her a lot of depth. She cares about absolutely everyone. If the Inquisitor is an elf, this is added: "Is s/he all right with the elfy stuff?" and she even shows empathy for the dalish at one point: "Not as bad for dwarves as was for Dalish. Maybe." That's coming from someone who once reacted with disdain towards an elf inquisitor. She's still sceptical, but is slowly becoming less extreme. I'd just have liked for us to see it more explicitly in the actual game.

[erazonpo3]

Erazon's Characterisation Essay (Part 1 - Cynthia Edition)

General preface; This is me snowballing on a thought I had earlier about canon v fanon trends given that it's a pretty evergreen topic. Without getting too much into the subject itself, I made the point that you can use the source material as a starting point for analysing characterisation, but in a lot of cases it's highly interpretive; using Pokemon as an example, most of the non-player characters exist to enable the player's autonomy throughout the game's storyline, and only a small handful have their own detailed arcs and backstories.

Therefore if you want to build on characterisation for them for transformative fanworks, you only have a handful of dialogue lines and some environmental storytelling that borders on olympic levels of mental gymnastics. Things like backstory and character motivation needs to be invented, to which end the concept of 'canon' characterisation becomes pretty insignificant in comparison to the story you are trying to tell, and whether or not that characterisation is thematically appropriate and compelling. Everyone is going to have a subjective opinion about the 'essence' of a character, the core traits that make them who they are, and how integral those traits are for it to be a 'canon' or 'fanon' interpretation.

And yet there's still ways to analyse the games to draw some conclusions that aren't always obvious straight away.

I'm going to go into how I draw characterisation for Cynthia for Way Out, but keep in mind that I don't consider my characterisation perfect or the One True Depiction To End All Others etc and so on and so forth. There's things I need to discard in favour of the story– adults in the Pokemon games, including Cynthia, have a pretty laissez-faire attitude when it comes to kids handling crises so that the target audience (kids) can feel acutalised as they play through the story, but it's not always what I consider a core character trait so much as a function of the medium.

I play up a sense of responsibility and duty that isn't really depicted in the games but is nevertheless an easy takeaway in order to give her character a bit more depth and relateability. And when other people take her character in a different direction, I try to keep an open mind about what they're saying about her character in their story, because their story is not a video game for children nor a webcomic, and they will need to do different things depending on her narrative role.

(I don't have to like it, but I'm no less a subjective soul than anyone else).

I also pull here and there from other sources of inspiration, one I've mentioned before is a meta-analysis of how she's treated by the fandom in general, assuming she'd be treated a similar way as a public figure in-universe. A lot of my character work is about peeling back that legendary status and asking who the person underneath is and how she might deal with the pressures of being expected to consistently meet other people's high standards, and how to balance a healthy competitive streak without it becoming toxic.

But more to the point– here's some material exclusively from Platinum that I think collates to a pretty consistent depiction of her character, to keep in mind and interpret any which way, arranged into some key traits.

She is the granddaughter of a village elder in a traditional rural town.

"My grandma has this sort of bossy atmosphere about her. I think you'll recognize her right away. Yes, I'm sure you will. She's the elder of Celestic Town"

An overlooked aspect of her character that I think holds some of the ripest potential for her character is that we know a fair deal about where her family is from, potentially where she was raised. My personal conclusions are:

It is likely she has an ingrained sense of cultural values of humility, respect, duty, and tradition. While she may not be ruled by these traits, they would influence the way she interacts with the world.

Her interest in mythology is likely inspired the mural in Celestic town, and reflects a value of heritage and history.

It's a common 'fanon' that her grandmother was her primary guardian through much of her childhood, which isn't substantiated anywhere (just because we don't meet her parents as NPCs doesn't mean they don't exist) but this idea strengthens the connection she has to Celestic town and emphasises her position as the elder's heir.

Cynthia introducing herself as a trainer and not a Champion suggests humility; she positions herself as an equal to the player as opposed to a superior.

2. She is earnest and sincere

"...The places we are born. The time we spend living... The languages we speak... We are all different. But the presence of Pokémon unites us. We share our lives with our Pokémon and our happiness grows as we all become greater than we were alone. That is why we can battle and trade with anyone we choose..."

This is a reflection of her position as a narrative foil to Cyrus; where he dismisses the importance of emotion and 'spirit', she holds it in high regard. Thus;

She sees strong emotions as the source of her bond to her Pokemon and therefore the source of her success. While it's not to say she's an overly empathetic person, I think it follows easily that is generally emotionally intelligent (generally).

I think she's self-aware about how emotional she can be too, which is to say it's something she consciously embraces despite knowing she comes across a little overly earnest (and cheesy) sometimes.

"I love the sound a piano makes. I savor every note with my entire being. It's not only my ears; my spirit hears the music it makes... Ehehe, I made myself cringe saying that."

3. She is intelligent

"I think I let myself get carried away and talked for far too long. I'm sorry, and thank you"

This feels like a no brainer (ha) but it's also easy to take someone who comes across as emotional and write them off as being illogical or not having the depth for complex thought. To me, her emotional intelligence goes hand in hand with her analytical intelligence.

Her fascination with mythology is one of her defining traits, and her dialogue is the source of much of the lore surrounding the Sinnoh legendary Pokemon.

Her pursuit of knowledge is one of her defining traits; her interest in mythology and the distant past is referenced more frequently by herself and other NPCs than the fact of her being Champion. "My big sister is studying the myths of Sinnoh. She wants to know how people and Pokemon interacted in the days of myths."

As a Champion, I consider that she's very calculating and analytical. Even without the strategic held items given to her in BDSP, her Pokemon have perfect stats and have solid type coverage. It's not something she would accidentally stumble onto.

"When you are facing a Trainer in battle, you can learn everything about them. What Pokemon they have. What moves they've taught. What items they make Pokemon hold."

4. She is kind

"I want you to keep traveling to many far-off places. I want you to keep meeting all kinds of people and Pokémon. I came all the way here just so I could say that to you!"

A Champion in this game being kind isn't really a revolutionary idea, but it's still something I consider very integral, particularly in conjunction with the prior traits; there is diplomacy and there is compassion, and to me Cynthia balances both.

She is something of a mentor figure to the player, giving them the solution to obstacles on multiple occasissions (HM Cut, the Secret Medicine), and imparts a lot of lore to them. Notably she gives them an egg which hatches into a Togepi; while this event doesn't happen in BDSP and Platinum doesn't have the Fairy type, it's still retroactively made more interesting for the fact that Togekiss' modern Fairy/Flying type grants perfect immunity to her Garchomp's Dragon/Ground typing.

Some of the few interactions the player will have with her is giving medicine to the Psyduck blocking the route to Celestic town, and then delivering a charm to her grandmother– it gives an impression that she is regularly invested in small acts of kindness.

5. Other tidbits

Every time she interacts with you as the player, it is always through the lens of an adult with a public position speaking to a child; I take it as a given that all her interactions have a slight amount of professional distance, and a formality she wouldn't have if speaking to an adult friend.

She reveals that she went on a similar journey as the player character after being given a Pokedex by Professor Rowan, which could imply she experienced similar experiences to the established protagonist journey formula.

There's a slight goofiness to some of her dialogue that suggests she doesn't always take herself too seriously. "You've seen that group of Psyduck huddled with their heads in their, uh, hands...?"

It's a pretty common 'fanon' for Cynthia to have known Cyrus in her childhood, but this isn't really substantiated in text; her dialogue towards him would be a lot colder with that context as opposed to a stranger. It's a common headcanon because giving them a history together strengthens their position as foils, but in my opinion it's equally as interesting that Cyrus succeeds as far as he does because he exists in Cynthia's blind spot- she admits she didn't pay enough attention to what Team Galactic was up to, and can only stand in opposition to him ideologically, unwilling to entertain (or empathise with) his perspective. It hints at a certain stubbornness she has when she believes she's right and someone else is wrong.

This is just what I personally glean from the text; it's possible I've missed something that somebody else considers ultimately integral. But I hope that my writing in Way Out speaks for itself in how I apply all this to her character in the story, and why I feel it's important to do so. Cynthia is the character I second-guess the most in her characterisation because she should always be recognisable, even while going through different arcs. Her values, her intelligence, her sincerity, and her kindness are all things that need to be balanced with the needs of the story; how strong she is is just a relative thing to what any particular scene demands.

There's a lot I could still elaborate on but for the sake of at least attempting to keep this (relatively) concise, I wrote all this to highlight how I try to stay on track with consistent characterisation, which may not be the perfect ideal for this character but nevertheless is the best version for my story. There's nobody I hold to a higher writing standard than myself, and I try to constantly ask myself if I'm really writing what's best for the narrative or if I can do something better. I'm not interested in the most canon depiction that exists for another story, I'm interested in what's right for my story.

And uhhhh peace ✌️

[cephalowaaa]

To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand Yume 2kki. The meaning is extremely subtle, and without a solid grasp of theoretical physics most of the symbolism will go over a typical player’s head. There’s also Urotsuki’s nihilistic outlook, which is deftly woven into her characterisation - her personal philosophy draws heavily fromNarodnaya Volya literature, for instance. The fans understand this stuff; they have the intellectual capacity to truly appreciate the depths of the game, to realize that it’s not just funny- it says something deep about LIFE. As a consequence people who dislike Yume 2kki truly ARE idiots- of course they wouldn’t appreciate, for instance, the symbolism in Omurice Labyrinth, which itself is a cryptic reference to Turgenev’s Russian epic Fathers and Sons I’m smirking right now just imagining one of those addlepated simpletons scratching their heads in confusion as aediorugap’s genius unfolds itself on their computer screens. What fools… how I pity them. 😂 And yes by the way, I DO have a Yume 2kki tattoo. And no, you cannot see it. It’s for the ladies’ eyes only- And even they have to demonstrate that they’re within 5 IQ points of my own (preferably lower) beforehand.

[aotopmha]

I've been finally watching an FF7 playthrough and I did not expect what the game's identity ended up being.

Currently at the end of "Disc 1".

I knew about Aerith's death long before I truly cared about Final Fantasy, but what I did not know about was literally anything else.

Aerith's backstory as an ancient, Sephiroth's characterisation as an horror villain across the game, Barret and Dyne, Nanaki and Seto.

Before Aerith even dies, we learn Sephiroth can literally control Cloud and he first ends up beating her up and then later at the capital almost killing her because of Sephiroth's ability to control him.

It's fucked, but absolutely incredible storytelling by itself.

Sephiroth's minimalistic presence itself makes him a fantastic villain because of his relation to Cloud and whatever screwed up cosmic horror Jenova is.

I did not see any of the psychological aspects of the story coming.

And I think it's an incredibly well-told narrative from just a plain script perspective, too.

Everything matters in some form, very few dialog boxes are wasted.

I also get why everyone is shipped with everyone.

Because all of them have such strong dynamics with each other even if the dialog is really straight-forward.

Guess I'm 100% a fan.

(Also as a massive FF14 fan, FF7 is an absolutely fascinating thematic companion to FF14 and I'm only at the end of disc 1.

I love, love how FF14 does its own thing while paying tribute to all other FFs. It's absolutely a tribute, but still very much has its own identity as a game and narrative.)

I'm turning into kind of a massive FF fan narratively at least, I think – FF7 is fantastic dark sci-fi/fantasy, FF6 fantastic steampunk/high fantasy and FF14 is some of the best long-form storytelling ranging from lower to higher fantasy, light-hearted to dark fantasy and a bunch of aesthetics beyond these basics that somehow all blend.

Now from all other FF stories I've seen fully, I think FF10, FF4 and FF16 are the ones I'd place lower narratively.

I think FF10 is my least fav of these because none of the cast did much for me, FF4 has the least depth narratively, though it is still pretty fun and FF16 suffers a bunch because of its uneven last third or so, even if I like the cast and base themes a bunch.

But what I like about them all the most is that even within the turn-based formula they all feel very different to each other, again, narratively-speaking. 16 is very little like 7 and even 4 and 6, the games I consider to be closest tonally handle characterisation and narrative structure pretty differently.

Each game brings something new to the table *the series* has not done before in some form. For example, as far as I know 16 is probably one of the most low fantasy games we've had in the series.

It's not new in the broader context of fantasy media, but it is new for FF.

And I like series that don't sit still like that.

[mysterycitrus]

this isn’t a specific character for the hc game but! i have a meta look behind the curtain question — i’m curious how many of these hcs you had locked and loaded, ready to go, part of your own personal character bibles vs how many you had to sit and think of in the moment

either way holy shit they’re all so so good, i’m still v new to dc but your understanding of the characters is my favorite i’ve seen of any fan creators, respectful and knowledgeable about the canon but also so fleshed out and given so much heart and depth and nuance that dc can really lack sometimes

that is really very lovely to say and i really appreciate it

idk how to describe it exactly — wrt my personal creative process, once ive read enough of a character it just gets really easy to make logical jumps about how to add characterisation that’s internally consistent. i kinda just…. vibe it out? even for characters i don’t necessarily like, it’s very quick to patch stuff together for them provided ive consumed and thought about enough canon material. most of the headcanons ive been writing is just stuff im coming up with as i go through

for example, for donna i knew i wanted to incorporate robbie in some way, so — she holds someone else’s baby -> wally has a new baby -> wally’s new baby probably has red hair, like robbie -> this is naturally upsetting -> rinse, repeat. likewise for her photography as a motif for her lost memories -> she remembers many different lives -> she’s a photographer -> she’d use her photography to capture concrete moments in her life, etc. idk if that makes sense

same deal with persephone… none of those character interactions are planned. i just started writing them and the characters did what they wanted to do. i basically just judged which characters would affect dickie’s tenuous mental state in ways that would best suit the narrative. there are specific books i read to try and monitor accuracy but other than that…… it’s all just vibes. vibes and logical conclusions and trusting that im being true to the character’s intent tehehehe

good luck with ur dc journey! try to avoid anything published this decade 🌝

[an-aussie-button-masher]

Just One More Run - Five of the Best Roguelike Games

   Are video games a little too predictable for you? Looking for a challenge, but find it frustrating to lose progress with each death? Try the random, ever-changing, ever-progressing nature of roguelikes! Every run through the game features procedurally-generated levels and upgrades so no two attempts are ever the same. Even getting overwhelmed by the usually-unforgiving difficulty isn’t the end, as you can unlock further upgrades and levels through progressing challenges across multiple runs - and you can certainly expect many attempts, considering the merciless hordes of enemies and randomised items you may or may not find. Was that run no good? Try another! I’ve grabbed a handful of the best examples in the genre, all showing off the central staple mechanics of roguelike games while each one brings their own unique twist. Take a look for yourself!

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth    The definitive roguelike for over a decade, The Binding of Isaac set most of the current genre standards in stone. While it wasn’t the first roguelike, it introduced the heavier emphasis on the macrogame progression of progressing challenges across numerous runs and massive item count that have become staples in future games. A scared, crying toddler named Isaac has fallen into his basement to hide from his religious fanatic mother, and now must survive the grotesque monsters and demons he’s trapped with, make use of the junk lying around to upgrade his abilities and weaponise his tears, and escape. With over 700 different items and almost as many achievements and unlocks (as of the Repentance DLC), Isaac is far and away the largest and most in-depth game in the genre. The playerbase is still as strong as ever, and a frequent train of updates from developer Edmund McMillen keeps the game alive and thriving.

Hades II    The long-awaited successor to one of the genre’s most popular entries, Hades II brings a greater focus on narrative and characterisation arcs rarely seen in other roguelikes through Melinoë’s interactions with the Greek pantheon across her countless runs through the Underworld. Determined to rescue her father Hades from the clutches of Cronos, the god of time, Melinoë gains most of her upgrades by encountering and challenging various gods - and the more often you find them in runs, the more familiar and chatty they’ll get with Melinoë and more of their own stories will open up. Much like the first game, Hades II has a beautifully distinct artstyle and incredibly striking and memorable character designs, alongside engaging narrative twists and turns that will keep the player coming back all the way to - and beyond - the game’s full release out of early access.

Risk of Rain 2    A stellar sequel to an old classic, Risk of Rain 2 mixes up the roguelike difficulty scaling by introducing a constant timer. The enemies gradually grow stronger and more dangerous the longer you spend in a run - the player must balance quickly tearing through the levels or carefully searching for more loot and upgrades before the ever-increasing difficulty leaves them out to dry. Beating the second-last level also gives you the option to rewind back to the beginning with all your gear, letting you get even stronger every single loop until you’re ready to confront the brutal final boss. You play as one of several different survivors, each with unique abilities and playstyles, trapped on a deadly planet and surrounded by savage wildlife and scattered ship cargo. Using mysterious teleporters to traverse the planet and find the remains of a previous expedition, the survivors must arm themselves with the strange cargo littering the world, slowly becoming just as monstrous as the creatures they’re fighting.

Dead Cells    How far will you go to earn freedom - especially if you’re not sure it’s even possible? In Dead Cells, you start each run by possessing the rotten bodies of new prisoners to escape a grimy cell in an infested dungeon, hoping this one won’t get torn apart five steps out the door. For an extra level of customizability in each attempt, you can also pick from a selection of starter weapons you unlock throughout the game - perhaps a defensive run this time with a shield, or go full offence with a pair of daggers? The game also introduces metroidvania-esque permanent upgrades to the roguelike formula, unlocking abilities needed to open up new areas and find hidden secrets. Once you look past the grim, dreary atmosphere and the bleak narrative of a decaying kingdom, you’ll find the true goofy lighthearted tone of the game; it’s even become somewhat of the indie-game-crossover central, bringing in weapons and costumes from other indie classics like Castlevania, Terraria, and Risk of Rain.

Enter the Gungeon    Within the depths of the Gungeon, a sprawling labyrinth of bullets and puns, time-travel shenanigans ensue as a small party of “gungeoneers” seek The Gun That Can Kill The Past and aim to erase their past mistakes. Enter the Gungeon brings much more intense bullet hell gameplay, with the player dodging and weaving through complex, intricate attack patterns while unloading your arsenal of guns at swarms of sentient ballistics. It features countless bizarre weapons, from realistic guns to more outlandish firearms like full-auto rocket launchers and giant bullets that fire guns that then fire bullets. Even the most obscure references and puns are turned into guns - you could shoot fish out of a barrel, or use a lower-case letter r as a gun because it vaguely looks like one. Despite the silliness, Gungeon demands a considerable level of skill and coordination for consistently staying alive against the endless Gundead, so it’s perfect for roguelike veterans and newbies alike that seek the extra challenge.

   There’s few gaming genres quite as diverse as roguelikes, with plenty of well-known examples beyond those on this list. Which one is your favourite? Know any other roguelikes that have something to set them apart from the rest? Let me know! Feedback, reblogs and likes are all much appreciated!   Thanks for reading!

An Aussie Button-Masher

[aseriesofunfortunatejan]

HOLY SHIT I just stumbled into a Tweet by Cindy Yamauchi pointing out, when Brawler's backstory came out in the manga, that Brawler wasn't "the black guy dying first" because he's in fact Japanese

(Roughly) "There were some people from overseas who were upset that it was racist for black characters to be the first to die... That's right. Brawler is Japanese. Or rather, they are all Japanese. It's Kansai. It's an anime."

I don't really have the tools to host that conversation, but I was in fact just re-reading my old posts and reblogs about Akudama Drive, including very in-depth discussions of Brawler's characterisation as a black-coded man. Even more mainstream critiques, that I remember paraphrasing in the "reception" section of the Akudama Drive page on the Wiki, were largely positive about the anime despite pointing this out.

I can't make a good analysis of her phrasing either, since I'm not familiar enough with the language. Being that overseas fans were overwhelmingly positive about the anime, I think it would be appreciated for the creators to open their minds to unexpected critique and how things may have come across to different viewers.

(By the way, this debunks the random asks I've sometimes gotten about "I read Brawler was this or this." Word of God says Japanese.)

I definitely appreciate Cindy Yamauchi's design work, but I'm tempted to question her takes on Brawler's. After all, his final design matched the sketch we know to be Komatsuzaki's a lot more than it does hers, which was... a lot lighter, although it still sported locs (and may have introduced the binders in his hair).

(White Brawler incoming 😭)

I wish I had a better idea what the timeline was for the designs, why we have a Cindy and a Rui version for each, chicken or the egg.....?

This is leading me to wonder if there weren't miscommunications in Brawler's design and characterisation, leading to his origins being... vague. I think you'd be hard-pressed to pretend Brawler's final design doesn't have foreign (from a Japanese point of view) influence. To claim Brawler's is "just Japanese" and there's nothing else worthy of note is a bit... out there. Just because "it's anime" doesn't mean his appearance isn't recognisable.

It's important to note that Brawler having Japanese origins is totally legit and even... to repeat myself, important! But it would be in good taste to acknowledge different influences, the inspirations behind his design, and so far we have very little information on the matter. In the event that there are different influences I'm missing out on, this would have been a good opportunity to point them out, clarifying that overseas viewers were misunderstanding because of their own biases/ignorance.

Like there's a non-zero chance Brawler's design was a bad game of telephone. It's still weird not to accept what the final product comes off as.

Of course, this is confirmation that there were no ill intentions behind killing him off first, but I don't think most people assumed that was the case. It often comes down to either ignorance or internalised biases, or both.

[maglors-anion-gap]

1, 11, and 13 from the nice asks, please?

[for this ask game]

A fanon characterization that you love:

I really enjoy fanon lalwen. She's not in the silm and she gets almost no exposition elsewhere so she really is the blorbo personality I invented. Lalwen the best friend of fingolfin, lalwen fingolfin's right hand man, lalwen the loud and the smiling, lalwen the lesbian -- idk I just really like how some folks have turned her into the big, gregarious lady, especially since most of tolkien's ladies fit different niches (tolkien would have exploded if he'd ever met a butch dyke, I don't think he'd know what to do with a woman like that). Otherwise, I like fanon maeglin a lot. Singly handedly fixed tfog for me so that I didn't have to avoidantly flip past chunks of it. Maeglin's canon behavior is obviously a real-world phenomenon (and the reason I had personal issues enjoying tfog) so there's value in analyzing that. But at least for me, it's been very nice to see people examine the interplay between low self-esteem and outward confidence, the trauma of adolescence and the adult responsibility of growth and recovery, inquisitive desire for greener grass and the feeling of freakishness or otherness. I think a lot of it takes themes present in the original but pares away some of tolkien's dated coding and the broader discomfort casual fans might want to avoid.

11. Recommend a fic with an unusual/original headcanon or characterisation that you loved:

I would recommend Half Mourning by @skyeventide! One, I love the idea of Maeglin having Dwarvish tattoos. There's so much depth there; that they'll fade and take a part of his identity with him, how distancing himself from the bad parts of his life has forcibly distanced him from the good or familiar parts as well. Two, Maeglin as a mirror for other people! Gaia has really masterfully captured something I didn't know I needed to see in Maeglin. He's usually written to be either charismatic and biting, or withdrawn and dejected (and to be clear, I enjoy both). But this fic kind of opened a third door: Maeglin who is whatever the situation requires, who has past associations and familiar customs but no real positive tether to his identity, the knowledge that he is not unwelcome but that he does not belong, that the easiest way to avoid scrutiny is to mimic the person in front of him. I felt very called out.

13. Recommend a fic (can be your own!) that features something you wish was written about more:

This is actually a series (sorry) but The Years Start Coming and They Don't Stop Coming by @i-am-a-lonely-visitor! I am very taken with Visitor's Celebhir (trans celebrian). I think a lot of folks (myself included) often write trans characters as having transitioned to their canon genders (for example, transmasculine maedhros is a staple of mine). And I love this, it's great! It's one way to explore. But I think for a while, at least what I saw, there was a bit of a stir across fandoms about best practice for writing trans characters (eughgghhh) and the Arbiters settled on "needs to match canon gender" and then enforced that vigorously. So personally, I love love love it when people take a canon character and say "I'm transing their gender the opposite direction." It requires you to analyze the character, pare them down to the characteristics about them that will never change (similar to the analysis required to set them in a wildly alternate universe) and then overlay on top of that the new characteristics of what it's like to be trans, how they interact with the world now, how that changes their character, etc. For example, Visitor's Celebhir has a certain tension with Galadriel that wouldn't exist in that manner for Celebrian. Very very tasty analysis going on. (I will be posting transfeminine caranthir soon - I say, having said this for the last three months). TL;DR: I think we should trans more characters, and if your first anxiety is "what if I'm transing them wrong??"/"I heard someone say you should never trans a character like this" you're probably *not* transing them wrong and it's going to be fine (and people love to beta so!)

[even-the-tiniest-bugs]

To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand Wandersong. The humor is extremely subtle, and without a solid grasp of video games most of the jokes will go over a typical viewer's head. There's also Miriam’s nihilistic outlook, which is deftly woven into her characterisation - her personal philosophy draws heavily from cartoon TV shows, for instance. The fans understand this stuff; they have the intellectual capacity to truly appreciate the depths of these jokes, to realize that they're not just funny- they say something deep about LIFE. As a consequence people who dislike Wandersong truly ARE idiots- of course they wouldn't appreciate, for instance, the humour in Miriam’s existencial catchphrase "ENOUGH WITH THE SINGING ALREADY!!!" which itself is a cryptic reference to Andrew Hussey’s classic webcomic Homestuck. I'm smirking right now just imagining one of those addlepated simpletons scratching their heads in confusion as Greg Lobanov's genius unfolds itself on their computer screens. What fools... how I pity them. 

And yes by the way, I DO have a Wandersong tattoo. And no, you cannot see it. It's for the ladies' eyes only- And even they have to demonstrate that they're within 5 IQ points of my own (preferably lower) beforehand.

[consceleratuswrites]

Hi Hi hi ANOTHER ANON HERE (I just wanna be private) I just wanted to say I love your work and your writing rocks!

I was wondering, despite the obvious voice lines and what we kinda get from Galactic Emperor Sigma's depiction (for the crumb it was - thanks Blizzard) how do you go about characterizing him? I kinda like how you aren't afraid to make him into a bit of an asshole (lol) do you have a headcanon you go off?

There are quite a few of you guys! And it's all cool - as long as you're all comfortable! Never wanna force anyone x

This is an interesting one as it relates to my personal views on Sigma as a whole, which I could go on for HOURS ABOUT. Mainly because the trailer makes him come across as this maniacal hubris-based scientist who is incredibly intimidating and self-interested in his own research. Then you have the in-game characterisation which is this rather tragic figure being manipulated by an organisation that uses him as a weapon. 

There is this beautiful dichotomy in his character (which is why he's so beloved, as he has this depth on a self-referential level). I do not doubt that he is equally as gentle and a tragic anti-hero as he is an egotistical and (at times) a vicious-mad-scientist force to be reckoned with. That's due to the in-game Canon!Sig voice lines range from quite endearing to being quite callous (to me at least). And I could go on and on about my personal feelings about the mental health allegories that can also be gleaned from him (I'm someone who has pretty bad anxiety and PTSD, so the drifting in and out of thoughts is something that got to me).

So for Emp!Sig, I wanted to magnify those aspects and dial them up to be more ruthless and more arrogant. And I loved that we got this antagonistic-bad-guy version who will call you a "pathetic worm" if you get in his way. But then I like the thought of him being multifaceted here too (I have this saying that I talk to my friends that I think of 'salty and sweet' when I write him). And I like giving him these little anxiety-fuelled moments where he's painfully vulnerable.

I have a lot to thank @akoiromanticstudent for (I tag her a lot as it's her help that's made her indulge this hard, and I love how she writes sig in his professor ways).

I have a literal page-by-page list in my notebook (because I'm crazy and do this for fun HAHA) of who I've taken some inspiration from for his characteristics so here we go I shall list a few (and this isn't even all of it so - lmao YOU ASKED)

Game of Thrones' Tywin Lannister is a massive influence on me as well. His dialogue is excellently written, and he was my favourite character in the series for being this rather diabolical yet magnificent bastard. I love how Charles Dance plays him as this character hardened by the world around him and too far gone with using violence as a means to an end. He's undoubtedly cruel and has this stubbornness that is fun to emulate and spar with.

I also take some inspiration from Hades - the Hellenic god (being a bit more of a neutral yet incredibly threatening force within ancient Greek polytheism). And his representation from the HADES game series and the Disney-fied version (for the back and fourth in his dialogue and dynamic).

I also really loved Peter Stormare's representation of Lucifer from the 05' Constantine film - I love how terrifying and threatening he is with his presence and invading personal spaces. Stormare plays him as this ancient, wise, sinister force, and I just adore it. Despite the film being of typical noughties-popcorn-movieness (but I love it for that too). So I've taken little pieces of that there as well.

Obviously, Star Wars plays as an influence (Darth Vader/Anakin being the tragic villain he is and Palpatine because I just love that silly evil old man.)

There's obviously a few Lovecraftian cosmic horror elements in there as well.

Also adding loads of representations of various Gods, Kings, and Emperors in history, Leonidas being one of them, Ceaser, Odin, Ra the list goes on and on all of which are in the mixing pot.

Thanks for reading this if you did I hope it was interesting - I get started on something and then it grows and grows because, as I said, I'm crazy.

[richardsphere]

How the writing accidentally “protag’d” Jaune, and how to prevent a repeat in V10

Look i’ll defend Jaune every day of my life, he’s a necessary grounding force in the story, a well written tragic figure and often an important voice of reason (as a result of being one of the more grounded figures in the show) and just generally a likeable guy. He’s one of my top 5 characters in the show even. But god you can see that even the showrunners are angry at how much he’s the only character they still really “know”how to write. and the worst part is that all of the choices are individually defensible and often even the right choice for the narrative.   This readmore focusses on speculations regarding the doylist reasons behind jaune’s prominence in certain scenes, and how to make adjust their course-correction strategy to be more effective.

Like i made a post before about how S1-3 were light on characterising Team RWBY because there’s gonna be a roadtrip arc and we’ll give them their own arcs to flesh them out then. And Jaune was verry much crucial in the early game (because he’s simultaneously ruby’s foil, an audience exposition receptical and Pyrrha is going to die and as the regular “normal guy” in the show no one else is better at representing the idea of “a regular life of happiness VS a great destiny that ends in tragedy” for our Achilles paralel). Then S4 splits the party up to give us the chance to characterise Blake, Yang and Weiss with their own arcs, so you’d expect those 2 seasons to give them some depth? But now that these characters are spread across 4 seperate continents we need to set up so many new side-characters for them to interact with that we dont have the time for introspection, we need to flesh out the politics of Menagerie, introduce Fake!Spring maiden, introduce Willow and Klein and Whitley and Jaques first(?) on screen appearance, and introduce Salems other lieutenants and set up the mystery of Oscarpin.... and Oopsie thats S4 done, we didnt have the time to flesh out any of WBY. And because its hard to make Ruby mourn something as abstract as a physical location, we’ll substitute it by making her foil mourn an actual person. So S4-5 doesnt flesh out RWBY, (and strangely does little for Team Sloth, who should probably have been shown mourning Pyrrha as well) but does flesh out Jaune a bit more. (which tbh, is justifiable, he’s the OG exposition-hearer and we’re about to enter the part of the plot where none of our protagonists know whats going on. Being “the guy who doesnt know stuff” isnt a schtick they can maintain for the guy anymore so we need to give him a new thing to do and “grief” is a good-enough thing for now). But at least WBY can have their own arcs to flesh themselves out right? only this is where the writers realise, we cant resolve or explore Yangs issues with Raven too deeply, because the Raven issues are inseperable from the “fate of Summer” mystery so they leave that on a half-resolution.

Weiss runs away from home, but that doesnt deepen her because “doesnt want to be with Jaques” was one of her first known traits. but at least we know she’s got a brother (who is in like one scene) a butler and moms alcoholism. Which leaves us in Menagerie, where we get some nice exploration of Blakes loving parents, but this arc doesnt really deepen out what makes her tick because Adam isnt in this arc and it turns out that: No Blake does not actually have some deep-seated reason to join the fang, she was just sort of born into it. which sort of waters her motivations down from “freedomfighter trying to achieve justice in a cruel and unjust world” to “Inherited the family business”. (and while “family legacy” is a big thing in RWBY, what with Ruby, Weiss and Jaune all being motivated by that specific thing, there are no other characters in the Menagerie arc that can contrast/foil/emphasise this part of her character so this new reveal about Blakes core motivations is a bit mellow). So after S5, the showrunners look over their charactersheets and realise “dammit, Jaune is currently the most well-defined character?” and they do the first thing they can think of: They eject Jaune from the plot ASAP. They cut the train in two so we can finally have some time with just RWBY and give them a little arc and some characterisation... And someone in the writers room piped up and said “wait, isnt the traincrash the only part we can really justify making Ozpin drop the lamp” and suddenly the “reaching Ansel safely”arc becomes the “Salem’s basic motivations and Ozpin cant be trusted” arc. so instead of “characterising RWBY” we get Ozposition and Salem backstory. But at least we get to see the heroes react to the revelation that Ozpin is full of it right? Well sort of, because while we do get a Qrow Lashing Out scene, Maria pipes in and reminds them “we’re allready holding the lamp, dont get emotional right now we cant afford a second grimm-magnet in this undefensible wilderness position”. (which yeah, fair point i guess she’s making a valid point but also, bad for the writing) And while you’d expect “our mentor cant be trusted” to be the perfect inciting incident for some character introspection, our next destination is the Brunswick farm, where the apathy lives. Now i love the apathy as a concept, and its a well written mini-arc. But whichever writer thought it was a good idea to follow the “our heroes are at the perfect moment for some real character-drama” up with a monster with the power to make characters behave in manners they normally would not behave, needs to surrender their christmass bonus. Like i get that you could argue they’re trying to go for “monster as analogy” but if you want to deepen out the characters here you really want the characters to respond to the issue in different, specific ways that flesh them out as individuals. but instead they are all forced into the same emotional state, which serves only to homogonise RWBY and make them less distinctive and identifiable. So the apathy cuts out our first real opportunity for some RWBY together-in-crisis exploration, but we fix the bike and make our way to Jaune’s Sisters Place for a second “ozpins full of shit” reveal, except this time to characters who arent going to be forced into non-response by Maria/Magic Apathy, and OOPS we just gave JNR the characterbeat that RWBY should’ve had. This is also when someone in the writers room (justifiably) pipes up: “wait, this is our last stop before we leave Mistral isnt it, and we’re not coming back to Mistral ever again afterwards right?”, and someone else answers yes, and the first guy responds “why did our 3 seasons in Pyrrha’s home-place never once make us meet her grieving family again?” and the second guy palms their face and said “allright you’ve got a point” and we get the Pyrrha Statue Scene. Which moves Jaune from “actively seeking death” to “Willing to postpone his his Suicinder until there’s no one left to mourn him”  We kill Adam while the plot prevents Weiss from ever seeing the weight of her family’s sins (yet again) as S6 comes to an end, and despite the writers taking active precautions to prevent it from happening, they’ve once again managed to flesh out Jaune without truly exploring the shows namesake team... And we get to S7, and they do the sensible thing and once again write Jaune out of the story by making him a traffic-cop who will not be involved in any plots or sub-plots for a while. But, We also brought back Penny, This is Watts’ only arc as a villain so we need to make him ominous and let him have his screentime, and we want to be interesting and make this arc Villain VS Villain with Ironwood VS Salem so the heroes wont actually get to interact with any of the antagonists for this plotline, allthewhile introducing Clover and the Aceops, setting up the Spear of Damocles and the Huntresses. So the heroes just spend a lot of time doing small fetch-quests that dont connect to anything too significant as the show tries to set the stage for S8. Also, this is our fourth? concecutive story about learning not to follow authorities blindly (Lionheart, Ozpin, Cordovin, Ironwood) so the show really struggles to sell the heroes trust in Ironwood when he introduces “operation world-wide grim-insurgence”. So a lot of this story-arc sort of falls flat as we spend most of S7 figuring out that, yeah the guy wanting to create a worldwide grimm-insurgence is probably not entirely morally right to do so. So S7 doesnt end up fleshing out anyone but perhaps Ren’s taste in bootleather, as it’s too busy setting up and fleshing out the villains to spend time on our heroes. Weiss does get to interact with her family though to flesh her out more. But the “confronting my asshole dad” thing is short and strangely low-stakes. (We havent seen verry much of Weiss’ homelife even during the V4 bit she was at home, and weiss has been largely sheltered from his “corporate crimes”, never getting to be in any scene that hints or adresses those victimised by the SDC. As a result his arrest at her hands lacks an emotional punch) S7 ends with Qrow broken, clovers death and Ironwood’s villain reveal as well as Penny as the Winter Maiden. S7 was so weak on characterisation for the main-cast, and semi-removed lessons learned in the last 3 seasons to a point where Jaune being largely absent ends up largely shielding him from the “did no one learn their lesson” feeling that permeates S7. And then we get to S8. S8 is still largely Villain VS villain, with our heroes forced to fight logistics of food-supplies and evactuations instead of dealing with any antagonistic force until Ironwood threatens the MantleBomb. This is also our last chance to characterise Penny. We get a little bit of “weiss loves her family” and Yang pining for Blake in the snowfields. But all the plotbeats go to Oscar, Emerald, Penny and the villains again until the team decides to use the spear, S8 is also largely a nothingburger for RWBYJNR is what im saying. Until the climax that is, where we dont get much in the form of characterisation beyond “the ones on the bridge grieve the fallen” but then Penny makes the sacrifice play, And Jaune screams. Now i understand why it couldnt be RWBY members to do the stab, (WBY have no real relation to penny and are already established as the sort-of-pragmatic castmembers who, while not happy wouldnt really “struggle” too much and Ruby needs to maintain her “innocence” for marketability purposes) so obviously Jaune was the only real option because as Ruby’s foil and with Penny being a maiden “ladykiller” has a sort-of second-hand connection to her. but goddamn could the show let the main four do SOMETHING important already without cutting away from their responding emotions for once? Then we get S9,   the show realises again that it needs to get rid of jaune because they’ve overused him again, creates a Jaune-free window for the characters to interact in again but wastes it’s chance again as it focusses on setting up new characters and building the setting and mystery for this new story-arc. Again. So according to some basic patern recognition: when we enter V10, expect Jaune to disapear from the story for the first half-season as the writers will, once again try to give the rest of the cast the spotlight back, only for exposition and worldbuilding to steal said spotlight from the cast anyway. Then when the plot kicks off and its “all hands on deck” Jaune will return to the plot because All Hands includes his healing hands, and that means that Jaune gets to once again be absent for the boring logistics of the narrative, and present for the characterisation bits. so now that we have identified root of the shows current problem, how would I fix it? I’d suggest moving the “Jaune free” plot-zone back a bit. Instead of putting it at the start of the vacuo arc, move it back to the early mid-point. Hell make him extremely prominent during the “boring worldbuilding” phase of our Vacuo arc. Then his dissapearence from the plot the inciting incident for the mid-point of the arc. Put him in prison/coma/other state of not-in-the-show for a bit and make Jaune’s Absence one of the things the rest of the cast can react and emote to/about. For example: Tyrian shows up, Tries to stab someone, Jaune interposes himself and turns out oops thats a poison and jaune slips into a coma. (no jaunes aura did not heal him from Alyx’ poison, the paperpleasers did cause they’re literal magic) How does Ruby respond to possibly losing her First Friend, especially now that she’s already lost her second friend (sorry weiss, but you werent a “friend” until after penny, pre penny you were an aquantence at best) How does Yang respond to Ruby’s response, does she go back to Momsis mode? How does Weiss respond to the guy who saved her life at Haven? How do ReNora respond to losing the last thing that seperated Team Sloth from JNPR being gone, possibly forever if they dont get the antidote from [Medical lab] Does Oscar become the new leader of OREN? (pronounced Orange) just, dont only remove Jaune from the setup, remove him from the actual plot next season.

[semper-legens]

61. Bloodborne: The Bleak Dominion, by Bunn, Kowalski, and Simpson

Owned?: Yes Page count: Unknown/Not numbered My summary: Gretchen and Abraham, a pair of Yharnam hunters, are searching for Lucien, their lost protégé. But to their horror, they find that the boy has disappeared into the chalice dungeons - dangerous, unmapped depths swarming with beasts of all kinds. He was following the call of his sister, a spectre who wants him to devote his life to someone she calls the Mother. But can Lucien really sacrifice his mentors to this pale lady? My rating: 3.5/5 My commentary:

And we're back in Yharnam. Or, more specifically, underneath Yharnam. Yes, this is a continuation of the previous Bloodborne comic, but it's also about that most mysterious of settings - the Chalice Dungeons, where your hunter can go to fight the most fearsome beasts Yharnam has to offer, as well as a few Dungeon-specific bosses. Gretchen and Abraham are on the hunt for Lucien, apprentice hunter who has not taken well to the hunter's life. He misses his dead sister and is seeing her ghost everywhere, a spectre telling him to sacrifice the others to be back with her, and do what the Mother demands. And things only get weirder from there…

I have to admit, I wasn't expecting to see the Chalice Dungeons make the leap to the comic format. I don't know why, but I thought they would somehow be off-limits to the page, existing more as a video game necessity than a definite part of the narrative. But no, they're here too. Including a Dungeon-exclusive boss - Queen Yharnam herself, the Mother of the child and elder god Mergo, who appears as an NPC in the main game in a few places. Here, though, she's an active threat. Tempting Lucien to her side, getting him to kill Gretchen and Abraham, or at least lure them to their gruesome deaths. It's ambiguous as to whether Lucien is himself infected by the scourge, or if he's acting more of his own volition, but at the end of the day, it doesn't really matter. It was interesting to see the hunters here try and completely fail at fighting some of the harder enemies of the Chalice Dungeons - we've seen them fend of formidable enemies, they're no slouches, but even Gretchen admits they have no hope of killing some of the things they see down there. It really drives home just how dangerous these creatures are, even those that the player might shrug off.

However, I was slightly less enamoured of this collection than the last. Don't get me wrong, I still liked it, but I think the characterisations of our main trio were a little too weak to carry the more linear narrative going on here. They just wound up being largely bland heroic types, other than Lucien. I still enjoyed them, and there was still pathos when things happened to them, but I think the last volume gained from being more of an ensemble piece. This trio weren't the only characters we were expected to sympathise with, and so they didn't necessarily appear weak in terms of characterisation when everyone only got a small slice of that pie. Here, though, the cracks start to show. The story was still creepy and atmospheric, and very much what I was looking for in a comic like this, it was just…lacking some special sauce that would make it great.

Next - from one kind of horror comic to another. It's Junji Ito!

[meserach]

I need to talk about this I guess.

I'd been holding off talking about the Power Fantasy because Gillen's creator owned stuff in particular has a way of wrong-footing premature analysis, so I was waiting on a full trades' worth of storyline being available to be discussed so that I don't look like an idiot. But the specific combo of Tarot and Gillen absolutely demands my input.

As soon as you say to me "there's a bunch of characters and they have a one-one correspondence with the Major and Minor Arcana" I am busting out the whiteboards. I got like this over matching up sigils to gods in WicDiv, and emotional spectra to gods in DIE, and this has every possibility of putting me right back on my bullshit.

Except that it seems unlikely we'll end up characterising all 22 (let alone the other 56) of Jacky Magus' underlings in much depth so there wouldn't seem to be much weight to the game! But DOUBLE EXCEPT!

There's 23 Major Arcana. So one of the Arcana is for Jacky himself. But which one?

First thought best thought is clue is in the name: he's the Magus, card I is the Magician, job done right? But that seems to be the pat answer, and it's too easy, so I look for the lie.

And then Eliza here is presumably Eliza Hellbound, so she started out as a Jacky Magus underling before coming into her own power separately later. So she's gonna be The Devil, right? But again, too easy. (Also, what's going on with an apparently literal Heaven and Hell in this comic? It's going to be fun finding out.)

Gillen's said before that he doesn't want to run another long running comic with as many secret twists and reveals as WicDiv had, not least because keeping them all secret for years was stressful. So after the whammy reveal of issue 3 here I've been trying to assume Gillen's playing with a more open hand. But, well, we'll see what's in the cards.

Issue 5 hits in two days. I should spoiler cut this next bit, because I wanna speculate:

Okay here under the cut: does anyone else feel like Etienne Lux might straight up die at the end of this next issue? Or at least become heavily compromised, in some sort of Dr. Manhattan-esque character assassination and exile way?

This whole arc has been very much about showing just how much Etienne is balancing the entire world on his shoulders and it's all inches from going to hell without him at any given moment. And Magus has expressed concern he's getting more powerful and does NOT like Lux, and has already clearly been sponsoring efforts to try and at least inconvenience him. So his focus issue is a good place to reveal a real trap for him.

Plus removing Lux at least temporarily from the board clearly lights the dramatic touch paper for a fireworks second arc.

Of course a lot of effort has been expended on establishing him as a character merely to kill him now. And arguably this repeats the trick with Luci in WicDiv too much. But then speaking of: I have every faith that Etienne, who is Mr. Contingency, might survive an apparently lethal blow in some way. Which brings me to The Signal.

The Signal is some sort of psychic mind thing that Etienne was involved with in the backstory. It's mentioned a couple times, in the issue one interview and most prominently in the issue #3 timeline. And the explanation there is it's some kind of disembodied mind...

A disembodied mind, you say? A means for a mind to survive psychically outside of a body?

Hmm hmm hmm.

Oh, THE POWER FANTASY #5 is out next week, so we should lob the preview up here, right?

It's from a little after the start of the issue, as the opening spoils issue 4. Let's flash back to the late 1970s and get to know the arsehole that is Jacky Magus.

From Image comics, out Wednesday 18th December.