#dante has…. no memory of this

[lesbiankoby]

i do have a prototype “dante’s daughter” character in my head for the sheer self indulgent fun of it . and a plot to go with this character . but i need to finish the anime bc her and patty would be the primary character relationship (besides oc and dante)

[fisheito]

(3) remaining

[player-1]

Oh boy, I sure can't wait for Intervallo 7.5, where the bus goes on yet another wacky roadtrip while the gang goes to Hong Lu's home district and learn about his extremely complex family dynamic and the many many references to the original novel, it's multiple remakes, and/or the series adaptation.

The next Walpurgis is most likely the Safety Team with Netzach as the next Announcer; and the next LobCorp IDs might connect to Abnormalities of denial, blissful ignorance, or the constricting force of family (Queen of Hatred, Queen Bee, Void Dream).

Even if the Sinners adjust to the fact that one of their members is a Second Kindred Bloodfiend, everyone keeps eyeing Outis just in case she tries to kill Don mentally or physically. She's still salty about the "betrayal" of having a definite threat in their ranks and were possibly waiting to backstab them at any moment (...Did something happen with Eurylochus, Outis?).

And even if she's also adjusting to a modernish life without the fanatic belief in Fixers, Don Sancho Quixote the Second reads them the riot act on their multiple attempts to prove she's a "real vampire" and committing elder abuse: shining light in her eyes or putting her in direct sunlight, putting garlic in her food, Dead Butterfly's coffin and Hundred Sins cross mace in her face cause Christian symbol or possible vamp bed, chasing her with a water bottle or spray bottle, so much water, so much water...

[mariyekos]

Is there any canon material stating when Sparda left/disappeared? Including even something vague, like "he must have left after the twins were 5 and before they turned 8." Or do we just know he left sometime after the boys were born but before the fire?

[iced-flower-pot]

Have you never stood to regard our home from its farthest corner?

Would you really want our home to be without it?

💖

[tsubanoboo]

autism creature

[thealatvs]

smiles

tldr dante’s greatest enemy has always been himself

[icedteaandoldlace]

K, so as much as the rest of season 1 and the entirety of season 2 would suck with Cisco being dead, now that this thought is in my head, I can't stop thinking about how wild that would be if they literally killed him off for just that period of time, with the intention of bringing him back via Flashpoint and keeping him on for the rest of the show, but making the audience think he was gone for good for a whole entire season. That would've been CRAZY, yo.

[a-passing-storm]

I just remembered the Outer Wilds soundtrack and I'm going to cry...

[captain-lovelace]

I am so tempted to write Dante fic

[spardaxwarchief]

Chapter Thirty-Four

He closed his eyes and he could just imagine her here, putting books away, making sure everything was in its proper place when she put them away, and her scent…that lovely, dark scent of her perfume that he missed smelling was hanging in the air, and he stopped and took a deep breath, just so he could smell it. Sure he’d read a book and then it turned into a sleeping mask each time he took a nap, but just being here…made him miss her more.

“Dante?”

He turned around to her standing behind him, clutching a bag in her hand. She had switched out of her bloody t-shirt and jeans into a simple button down, a tweed blazer, and a simple plaid skirt, her feet into some caramel boots. Her hair was left long and flowing down her shoulders, and her plump lips- the lips he wanted to kiss and mess up that red lipstick -was parted a bit, making her look a bit sultry.

And all he wanted to do was throw her on the table and make love to her until they couldn’t anymore.

Instead, he cleared his throat. “Yeah?” he said.

“Did you get lost?” she asked him, throwing his question back at him.

Chapter Thirty Four of Magical Memories II is up, and we got a bit of a meme, a bit of fluff going on, but it's really good and I hope you like it, so click here to read more!

[poptartmochi]

it is 4am so i am once again debating if it would be evil of me to give Maggie red hair

[barblaz-arts]

I promised lore about Pugsley's kids forever ago but kept forgetting, sorry. Or more like, I kept putting it off because I wanted some sketches to accompany the lore dump, but I don't think I have the time to do that. So, just... Here.

Dante Addams

- Outcast type: Demon

- Power: can turn into fire

- Mother: was a demon that Pugsley fell in love with but only saw his father as a quick fling. Months after she broke things off with him, Pugsley finds baby Dante left behind on the Addams family doorstep with the note 'Keep him if you want him'

- he's smart and precocious. Vega likes talking to him because they're both intellectuals.

- Pugsley never had the heart to tell him that his mother abandoned him, but he's smart enough to put the pieces together

- just like any Addams, he has a penchant for mischief. His favorite prank is to steal and hide Jasper's legs

- he becomes a member and leader of the Nightshades when he becomes a Nevermore student

Jasper Addams

- Outcast type: Manananggal

- Power: breathes fire

- Mother: She never married Pugsley. Because she's a free spirit who loves to travel, they agreed that Jasper is better off in Pugsley's custody(yes she could have just settled down to help properly raise him. No she didn't do that)

- he loves salty food. Salt is typically deadly to a manananggal, but because he's an Addams, the worst it does is give him rashes

- he's a bit of a klutz. He often loses his legs. He sometimes puts them back on backwards.

- he isn't very confident in himself because he thinks his siblings are a lot more impressive than him.

- he's very popular among his peers in school because of his friendly nature

Briar Addams

- Outcast type: The Faceless

- Power: controls fire

- Mother: she was the only one Pugsley married. She died before Briar was old enough to remember her, but Dante and Jasper have very fond memories of her

- she adores her Tia Wednesday and has a petty one-sided rivalry with Vega. She carries around a doll that looks like her cousin so she can stick needles into it.

- Vega, Dante, and Jasper think she's scary. Very cute, but also scary

- she knows sign language, but mostly just gesticulates like Thing when she communicates. She's a girl of few words anyways.

- she's also very smart but hates school

- she just creeps people out. As a kid, it's initially just because of her appearance. As she gets older, she does things on purpose to make people uneasy around her.

I'll make another post for lore about Sora's parents and Regine's mom later. Maybe tomorrow.

[ddarker-dreams]

lock's otome game recs

i received some asks indicating an interest in a compilation of my favorite otome games, so i decided to go for it!! i've played about fourteen otome games, but of those fourteen, only these six left a lasting impression on me. there are still some that i intend to check out, so the rankings may update in the future. i'll give a very general overview of each game and how i'd score the categories that i find the most important in an otome game — the heroine, story, art, enjoyability, along with the characters i liked the most.

number 6 - piofiore fated memories.

heroine: 6/10 story: 6.5/10 characters: 7/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 8/10 favorite characters: dante (ishikawa kaito), nicola (kimura ryouhei) and yang (okamoto nobuhiko)

this game centers around the heroine, with the default name liliana adornato, who finds herself entangled in the politics of the region's three most prominent crime organizations. the game has an italian backdrop and iirc, takes place in the 1930s.

the overarching narrative, while it has its fair share of intrigue, isn't the game's strongest point. it's the interactions with the characters themselves that made the game feel worthwhile. each love interest has more to them than what meets the eye, so it's satisfying to watch the relationship between them and the heroine develop.

the heroine takes a passive role throughout much of the game, events sorta just happen to her. still, she has a kind disposition that makes her likable and doesn't make stupid decisions that has you wanting to fling your console across the room. her characterization changes slightly depending on the route. for instance, without getting into spoilers, she's more assertive throughout yang's route. the resulting dynamic made yang's route the most memorable, even if he's my third favorite character from the bunch.

what feels unique to this game is the effort put into the bad endings. in most visual novels, bad endings can feel like gimmicks. you make one or two wrong decisions and you're rewarded with a few paragraphs. the downward spiral of the characters in the bad endings are decently fleshed out and you can see how they arrived at this 'worst' version of themselves. they're suitably dark and it shouldn't come as a surprise that i enjoyed them because of that 😭

then there's the art. it's stunning, the details in each CG are mindboggling. the heroine gets to wear a variety of pretty outfits which is something i like to see. even in the story's weaker moments, a stunning CG would pop up that had me forgiving everything. i still glance through the gallery to this day.

number five - cupid parasite.

heroine: 9.5/10 story: 7/10 characters: 7/10 art: 9/10 enjoyability: 9/10 favorite characters: ryuki keisaiin (junya enoki) & gill lovecraft (kimura ryouhei)

iconic. showstopping. a little bit camp.

cupid parasite stars one of my favorite heroines, lynette. she works as a bridal advisor whose ambition is to ensure everyone finds their soulmate. in actuality, she's the goddess cupid, who left her post in celestia to better understand humanity and create lasting pairs. she's a delight to play as.

this game's presentation and overall aesthetic is the most distinct from any otome game i've played. aside from the presentation, the story itself is unlike any of the others on this list. when it comes to romance, i typically prefer them to be dark and mature. this game opts for a more lighthearted approach. it vacillates between being a romcom and dipping into the absurdist genre. there were times i was literally left speechless (glances at gill's route)... but it makes for an entertaining experience. the game's plenty funny as well.

personally, i enjoyed the more grounded moments when the mythological elements remained in the background. because of this, the true ending doesn't do it for me as much as they do in other games. as with anything, this is a personal preference though. i liked all of the routes and found the game handles the development of each love interest well. we're introduced to these men at their most pathetic and get to help them become a little more well-adjusted. lowering the cringe meter, if you will. it makes their growth all the most satisfying as the narrative progresses.

number four - even if tempest.

heroine: 9/10 story: 8.5/10 characters: 8/10 art: 6/10 enjoyability: 9/10 favorite characters: the heroine herself, tyril i lister (noriaki sugiyama), crius castlerock (makoto furukawa) and lucien neuschburn (kaito ishikawa)

right from the get-go, this game's premise had me hooked. it features the heroine, anastasia (<3!), who leads an incredibly tragic life. she's bestowed the ability to reverse time following each of her deaths and uses this to unravel a mess of mysteries the world's setting is tangled in.

this game is absolutely anastasia's story. without spoiling anything, i loved the approach they took with the time rewinding ability. how it's incorporated is unique to an otome game, which they take full advantage of to amplify the tragic romances. on that note, the romance itself occasionally takes a backseat to the narrative as a whole. personally, i didn't mind this in the moment, since i found the story so interesting. in retrospect, i do wish that we got more moments between the heroine and each love interest, especially in the true ending.

there are more gameplay elements here as well. you have to conduct investigations, gather evidence, and apply what you've learned during these trial segments. when i first read about this, i thought it'd be a gimmick, but i liked playing through them. it incentivizes you to pay extra close attention to the world.

while i liked the narrative as a whole, i do wish we got more worldbuilding. there are hints of political subterfuge and religious oligarchy that, while touched upon, could've been leaned into more to give the setting a distinct feeling.

number three - olympia soiree

heroine: 8/10 story: 8/10 characters: 8/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 10/10 favorite characters: akaza (yoshitsugu matsuoka), himuka (shun horie), and yosuga (yuma uchida)

in olympia soirée, the eponymous heroine, olympia, lives in a society divided into castes based on colors. she is the last surviving member of a clan that can perform rituals to keep the sun aglow. this game is a lengthier title, i believe i clocked in around 25 ish hours (i don't use auto-play so that sheds some time). the story benefits from this, as olympia has rich worldbuilding and lore that's revealed throughout the route's progression.

we get to see the consequences of this caste system and olympia's growth as she becomes determined to realize a better future for the islands. this makes the heroine someone that you want to root for. personally, i'm a sucker for stories that center around a sheltered individual being forced to face the harsh realities of the world and maturing in their own way. this, paired with the struggles specific to this setting, make for a gripping backdrop for the character's routes. all the love interests have problems of their own that they need to address.

this is certainly a mature title, there's plenty of steamy scenes featuring gorgeous artwork. seriously... all the pretty CGs are absolute eye candy. i enjoyed the balance between the main narrative and the development of the romantic relationships, i don't remember ever feeling bored.

ironically enough, i think this is the darkest game from the bunch listed here, surpassing the game with actual horror elements. there's a whole litany of trigger warnings to be mindful of when going through the game's bad ends. they are, as the term suggests, Bad. not light or humorous in the slightest. the poor heroine goes through it. please be mindful of these more touchy subjects.

number two - 9 r.i.p

heroine: 8/10 story: 8/10 characters: 9/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 10/10 favorite characters: minami (nobuhiko okamoto), hibiki (shunichi toki), kureha (toshiki masuda), and koyo (ryota suzuki)

i was looking forward to the english localization of this game before it was even announced ... i'd been wanting an otome game with this vibe for ages. and it didn't disappoint! there are four different overarching story sections, with two characters each having their routes fall under them. this makes it difficult to give a summary since each route has a vastly different feel. some routes lean heavy into supernatural horror (such as hibiki and kureha), whereas others are just... supernatural (like with yukimaro and koharu).

the basic premise is that the main character, misa, is a high school girl burdened with her career survey. she's uncertain what she wants for the future and is being pressured by his mother to pursue a career in medicine. in one way or another, depending on the story section, she comes into contact with the afterlife and those who inhabit it.

i loved this game, i couldn't put it down. the routes that leaned heavy into horror were my favorites, which shouldn't be a surprise lol. i do feel some love interests were given preferential treatment of others, i wanted more from sena's storyline in particular, since he's voiced by one of my favorite VAs (tetsuya kakihara, the voice of scaramouche) 😭... apparently this game is receiving a fandisc, so hopefully they'll remedy that in the future.

minami stole the show for me. from what i've gauged online, he's a divisive character, you either find him grating or love him (like i do). i'm biased but i do think he has the most interesting and well-written story out of the love interests, i've played through it three times already. i just adored the dynamic between him and the heroine. he's petulant, selfish, and a bit immature, yet he goes to extremes for her as he realizes his unhinged feelings.

hibiki is a close second. the most yandere-coded of the bunch, he's soft-spoken and polite, but that exterior hides a creepy personality. like all of the characters in this game, there's a tragic element to him. i was worried about the role the heroine would play in helping him 'overcome' this, but i think they handled it well. it doesn't feel like the heroine's fixing him so much as she's helping him have a different perspective on certain events.

yeah i'm not normal about this game, i cannot recommend it enough. it would've taken the top slot if some of the routes were a bit more polished. i didn't care for yukimaro's at all, for example. routes like minami's, hibiki's, and koyo's more than make up for it though.

number one - collar x malice

heroine: 10/10 story: 10/10 characters: 10/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 10/10 favorite characters: takeru sasazuka (daisuke namikawa), kei okazaki (yuki kaji), and aiji yanagi (masakazu morita)

the holy grail. the otome games that died for our sins. this isn't just a good otome game, it's an excellent story, with a very human cast, commentary on issues like the nature of crime, and you're left wanting to solve the various mysterious as much as the heroine does. speaking of the heroine, miss hoshino ichika is my all-time favorite heroine. she's clever, resolute, compassionate, and you can't help but fall in love with her a little yourself 😭😭

i'm not sure if this makes sense, but the world feels very... full? you get this sense that ichika exists outside just interacting with the love interests. she has her career, friends, and her younger brother that act as more than passing NPCs. the writers ensured all the characters with portraits are given some level of depth. i left caring about more characters than the heroine and love interests.

each route is dedicated to working through a certain case, which keeps the story intriguing as you progress. finally, all of the little hints that have been littered throughout coalesce into the 'true' route, where questions you've had since the first chapter are given satisfactory conclusions. at the same time, you're left wondering about a few things, such as the complete philosophy of the main antagonist.

ichika's relationship with each of the love interests develops alongside the case they're investigating, which almost always have connections or parallels to the LI's past. this helped ground them in reality and flesh them out into dynamic characters. you come to care deeply about them alongside ichika. the romance feels earned and doesn't come on too fast, which some otome games suffer from.

if you like otome games and haven't played collar x malice yet, i fully recommend it!!!!!!!! it's the strongest title from what i've played so far.

[caffeinatedvigilantewriter]

This has a lot of de aging and if you don’t like that, scroll :))

So Danny, Jazz, Dante (Dan) and Ellie (Dani) all get deaged (either by the Fentons or GIW)

Jazz is now 9, Danny is now 7, Dante is now 11 and Ellie is 5.

Their memories are somewhat intact, but they don’t really remember who they are. (All have their halfa/liminal powers)

They somehow escape and end up being separated (via powers, ghostly meddling, etc)

Jazz ends up in Bludhaven

Danny in San Francisco

Dante in Crime Alley

and Ellie in Gotham

So in this AU, all the Batboys are adults

Dick is 38, Jason 35, Tim is 32, and Damian 23.

And in this AU, they just had a huggeeeeee argument with each other and with Bruce, so they’re not speaking much.

Nightwing across a girl no older than 9 fending off three adult men with ease. Definitely a meta human. Dick ends up taking the kid home when he realizes she wants revenge (from what, Dick doesn’t know) and he sees too much of himself in the kid to let her go. Wally and Jazz get along great.

Jason feels someone watching him, and he confronts them only to find aggravated it’s an 11 year old boy, with white hair just like him. After the kid drops some concerning information about Jason’s dead status (Dante telling Jason he’s liminal). Lian won’t mind a new brother, right?

Kon comes across a scared kid, who ends up throwing him into a car before he calms down and introduces himself as Danny. Kon brings him home and he and Tim sets up the spare bedroom with space blankets.

Damian, patrolling as Blackbird, comes across a girl in a dumpster, having fallen in on accident. When Damian pulls her out, she begins melting in his arms before regaining solidness and passing out. There’s no sign of the girls parents anywhere, so Damian takes her in. At least Jon likes her

A few months, the GIW came to the Justice League to inform them about four dangerous ghosts that escaped confinement and are now running free. They need the Leauges help to recapture them.

Bruce doesn’t buy it. After asking to see a sample of ‘ectoplasm’, he realizes all of his kids are ecto entities and have no basic human rights.

He calls a family meeting and watches as four of his sons arrive with a kid each.

[sharoo]

Thinking about Don Quixote in light of the revelations of Warp Express drives me insane.

Don's colour is Oblivion Yellow. Oblivion signifies both destruction and the state of being completely forgotten. I can't stop thinking how "Rocinante" is written on her shoes in that shade of yellow, the yellow of purging from history and memory.

Vampire Don has been on screen for less that 5 minutes and I already feel so much about her. She's a second generation kindred, meaning she's likely been bitten directly by whatever has caused the Bloodfiend to come into existence. She's the purest blood since Nosferatu.

How old do you guys think she is? How long has she had to live this way, feared and shunned and not fully in control of herself because of the endless hunger?

Don Quixote the book is a satire poking fun at the hero's delusion that his violent, uncontrolled actions could ever be seen as anything but despicable. But there's also the interpretations of Don Quixote as a dreamer who wanted to do good. And I can't help but think about how, in his madness, he truly wished to be noble. And now I'm thinking about both the stances being possibly true.

The impossible dream of becoming a hero because what you actually are is monstrous and hated. The entire fantasy being, perhaps, a desperate effort to redeem yourself in the eyes of the people around you. You want others to look at you and see a hero, you want the press to cover your stories of chivalry. Why?

Because that's way better than being the teeth in the dark, the horror story told to children so that they do not go out at night. You're so old, and you're so tired of living the way you do and so, so hungry against your will.

I am of the opinion Don should have a Big and Will be Bad Wolf E.G.O. for this reason exactly.

And I think her wish will have to do with her state, helping her control it, accept it. And it will require the understanding perhaps only Dante can provide.