#especially with how long it takes between season nowadays

[sealxraccon]

Hate being late to fandoms, because while it’s great that there is already so much written, the fandom has often slowed down considerably. The fandom is not dead, but there is maybe 2 updates a day when there used to be 20.

Also don’t like when there is a large amount of works, but nothing for a specific scenario. Not even anything really specific just like how is there next to nothing where they breakup and take 50 chapters to get back together. Where is it? Why is everything so fluffy? Even though I like the fluff, sometimes I need a good angst fic to cry my eyes out were the characters don’t die, because I also like a happy ending.

Or maybe it’s just because I mainly ship women and those ships are so often background pairings that I feel this way. Like I’m out here licking up crumbs in fics were my pairing isn’t even in every other chapter.

I know this is a problem for certain fandoms only and not fandom in general, but sometimes I really feel like that one meme with that guy poking something with a stick. Like move, shows signs of life dammit.

Also I know some people are going to think or say to just it yourself. But I’ve tried and found out that while I’m great at outlining and over all plot points, I’m bad at connecting them and my writing resembles those essays you wrote for a grade the night before in 8th grade. Aka pure and total garbage, that were at best average only because you went to a poorly funded school where your fellow students did not get a good education like I did.

[cinnamonroll-anon]

lmk request!

wukong and mac (separate) had a nightmare and s/o came to comfort?

a/n: thank you both for the request! Since you both had the same prompt i decided to just put the two together! Sorry for my long absence have some comfort for your heart!

Terrible Visions: Sun Wukong x Reader, Macaque x Reader (Separate)

Warnings: angst to fluff, comfort (giving), mentions of violence and mentions of death. SEASON 5 SPOILERS! (not much but will brush up on events that take place!)

Sun wukong:

Honestly, what hasn't come back to haunt the infamous monkey king? Behind his usual suave facade, he was constantly stuck in his own head, thinking about his past and what problems could await on the roads ahead. If we're being honest here, he's stressed of having to save the world or having to face his own mistakes and shortcomings. He can never live down his own choices, not entirely at least. There would always be a whisper of doubt breathing down his neck, it would never fail to make him feel ashamed of himself. Luckily for him, he can play things off perfectly and no one would know any better from his usual laid back attitude. He wouldn't allow anyone to see the burden on his shoulders, or see how weary he's grown over these recent months. Well, everyone else except you.

You have been with Wukong for a while, so you're no stranger to his attempts at keeping you at an arm's length. It was a prominent problem in your relationship. He simply wouldn't tell you what was bothering him, even if it was something so miniscule that you could stop doing. Nowadays, he tries to open up to you and to express himself to the best of his ability. It was a promise you both made to each other as your relationship continued to flourish. He'd communicate with you and you'd understand him and try to meet him in the middle. It was a fair compromise that has saved your relationship on multiple occasions.

It took a great level of trust for him to feel like he could share his worries with you, he didn't want to trouble you... At least it was partially true, especially with all the guilt that's been dying to swallow him whole. He felt as though he had dragged you down into a mess like he did with MK, and that he was the one to blame for all of his suffering, as well as yours. Another part of him wouldn't allow him to love or care as deeply as he used to. Not again because, he knows what love really leads to... To pain. He had promised himself once in the past to not let his heart suffer again, to never go through another heartbreak. It was that promise kept getting in the way with his new ambitions and his heart's desire. To be with you.

Unfortunately as all things do, these emotions build up, and when they resurface, they present themselves to the great sage as he finds enough tranquility to sleep at night. He could only keep his thoughts to himself until they started pouring into his subconscious. The nightmares weren't as frequent but they'd manifest horrors that would leave him restless and fearful. Even in his slumber, he couldn't find rest.

Maybe he would be trapped in the mountain with no one to talk to, feeling condemned, forgotten, unloved and lonely. He'd stay there, unmoving and vulnerable for eternity. Perhaps it would be all the splitting headaches with his circlet, punishing and agonizing. No matter how much he begged for it to simply disappear, the torment would only continue. He would dig his nails into the groud, clawing into his head in desperation, howling in pain and sobbing for anything to stop it. He'd never find that solace here.

Maybe it was the day he struck Macaque. It would always be the same outcome, no matter how hard he tried to fight it. To change it. His body would move without his permission, his mind torn in-between this urge to kill him and hopelessly trying to stop himself. He saw his old friend laying beaten down, he watched as Macaque tried to move to get away from him helplessly. Was that fear or hatred he saw in his eyes? He couldn't tell before he felt the way his staff punctured through his eye, cracking entirely past his skull. No matter how many times he'd watch the scene unfold, it never ceased to be any less gut wrenching when he drew the final blow. It was all worse when he could smell his blood, practically taste the hot irony liquid in his tongue.

Sometimes it was failing MK. Failing him as his mentor. He knew he wasn't the best at teaching, honestly it had stung him when MK searched for guidance in Macaque. It just didn't help ease his nerves or reassured him that he was doing the right thing. He's put the kid through so much, yet he always kept his distance from him. He couldn't afford for him to get close, not again, not after everything he's been through. MK sacrificing himself was painful to watch, and luckily for him, he'd get to relive that moment. One second he was contemplating losing his Immortality and his life, and the next that familiar excruciating pain would crush his head again. He couldn't't move to save him, to sacrifice himself instead. The worst part was seeing that look on MK's face through his tears and screams. He almost lost him, but in his dreams he wouldn't come back, and in his eyes his world would still remain shattered.

The lady bone demon's control was the worst dream he could ever be faced with, because instead of any other circumstances hurting his friends, he was killing them all... One by one. A ruthless frenzy and an unstoppable slaughter, all for her destiny. Her voice would pound against his head and her command over him was absolute. He couldn't even cry if he wanted to.

He'd wake up in cold sweat, lunging to sit up and gasp for air. He had startled you awake, promoting you to wearily sit up with him.

"Wukong? What's the matter?"

He gripped his heart feeling it's frantic palpitations as he took harsh breaths. Maybe, the worst nightmare of all... Was losing you. He condemned his head for getting so creative with ways he could lose you. Meanwhile, you observed him, trying to read his expression. You sat there for a minute before you gently placed your hand ontop of his own.

"Wukong-"

"P-peaches, hey y-yeah, sorry about that! Just ah, y'know ehe thought i lost my streak. And to Macaque no less!" He answered with a strained smile, you could see a him covered in sweat.

"Uh-huh, so you're expecting me to believe that you're this worked up... About your videogame?" You deadpanned as you were fighting to keep your eyes open. With or without them open you can hear how shaken up he was.

He stumbled over his words and another half assed excuse before taking a deep breath and looking down at his hands.

"You're right- It, It wasn't about videogames... I had another nightmare."

You noticed how fragile his voice sounded, that and how ashamed of himself he looked. Was it his pride or perhaps it was the horrible attempt to brush you off? It didn't matter to you in the moment as you gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Honey, that's awful. Do you want to talk about it? Or maybe cuddle-"

Before you could finish your sentence, he quickly pulled you into a tight embrace. You gradually hugged him back, wrapping your arms around him, gently rubbing his back in a comforting manner. You could feel his racing heartbeat against you, how ragged his breathing was before they began to even out. Much of your relief, he was slowly calming down. His tail wrapped around your waist, giving it a tight squeeze, trying to ground himself in the present.

"It's okay Wukong, you're safe. I'm here for you, thank you for telling me. I want to help you with things like these, okay?"

"Even if i wake you up in the dead of night?" He spoke through a chocked sob, he was trying really hard not to cry, but it was so hard when you were so willing to sacrifice sleep and time just to help him. He tightened his hold on you, burying his face against your shoulder, either for comfort or to hide his face from your view, you didn't bring it up as you placed a kiss to his head.

"Yes Wukong, even if you woke me up at four in the morning," You replied with a chuckle. "I'd rather have missed a little time asleep than having you dealing with a nightmare all alone. Especially if I'm already here for you."

He shook his head as he let out a heavy sigh, you could feel your shoulder getting wet by his tears. After his initial fear had finally passed, he began to move again. He first placed his hand behind your head before he hesitantly pushed you away, only enough to look into your eyes. He mused to himself how sleepy you looked, before remembering he was the reason you were so worried about him now and awake.

"I'm sorry... you shouldn't be up at this hour Peach, i didn't mean to-"

"It was a nightmare Wukong, you didn't exactly plan it." You interrupted him as you delicately held his face in your hands, "Besides I already told you I'm not going anywhere. Im sticking with you no matter what, be it sickness, a nightmare or the world ending, again... I'm with you Wukong."

He swore he could barely blink back the tears in his eyes threatening to pour again. Despite it all you, were still here. You stayed by his side. You were still kind and loving to him, even if he wasn't always as vulnerable or open with you. You were more than willing to help him through it, to save your relationship... to save him. That was so brave of you, he hoped you knew that. He wished he could tell you, but he wouldn't say it... not today at least or now. He smiled warmly before laying back down, pulling you into his arms as you laid your head on his chest. He held you close as he felt himself become more tired, but before he could close his eyes again you pressed a lazy kiss against his lips.

"I love you Wukong, goodnight my love." What wonderful words to hear, he thought to himself, before finally letting his muscles relax and his jaw unclench. He finally felt safe and loved... all in his beloveds arms. He truly felt like everything would be okay. He looked down at your already sleeping form, god, you must've been truly exhausted he thought to himself. He waited a bit until he knew you were sound asleep, not taking any chances to wake you again, before he placed a loving kiss against your forehead.

"I love you too Peaches, if you only knew how much you mean to me... Goodnight love, see you in the morning."

Macaque:

He's more open to you about his nightmares. You've been with him for this long, so he trusts you're not going to hurt him when he lets down his guard. You've proven yourself to him time and time again that you won't take advantage of him or harm him. On the contrary, you treat him with compassion and respect, even when he has felt undeserving of your grace and patience. Youve always so considerate and understanding to him. He swears he doesn't deserve you, he knows he's definitely not the best guy around, but if you stayed this long and showed him you're not going anywhere, then he'll be damned if he doesn't try his hardest to appreciate you and show you how much he cares about you too.

But his nightmares are a sore spot for him, especially telling you what happens in them. He'd rather forget they happened at all, but those images in his mind refuse to leave him. Why must he be reminded of how much he suffered now that he's living a better life? He's gotten close to wukong again, albeit the two still bicker, but he knows now that wukong trusts him. It's a work in progress, but their relationship was mending slowly, it all starts with a little bit of trust. And then there's you.

He'll admit that he wasn't planning on ever having a partner, with all his issues, he considered himself the least qualified in the romance department. And yet there he was, spending his days with you happily. You had even stayed with him while he was on flower fruit mountain, you would enjoy the cuddle sessions the little monkeys had with Macaque. Even if he wasn't all too thrilled with the arrangement but, he couldn't deny how adorable you looked with the little ones clinging to you.

It's been a little over a day or two since the pillar of heaven was restored, you and Macaque having been enjoying some down time from the world's end. It was such a shame that in these peaceful moments his mind would still be plagued with these horrible nightmares. Even before he met you they were quite common, it made his lifestyle change as he avoided sleep, staying up throughout the night until eventual exhaustion would overtake him. If he pushed his body to the limit the chances of having a nightmare would decrease. Not the healthiest choice on his part, but the one that has worked for him over time.

But that all changed with you. You have given him a safe space, a home he could call his own. He trusted you and he let himself relax around you, and this would cause him to fall asleep at a more reasonable hour. He was still a night owl but it was harder for him to stay awake when you were so close to him, so warm and peacefully asleep. He couldn't overcome the temptation of resting alongside you. Although that peace would be short-lived.

Every bad experience he's had gets relived and reimagined in each nightmare. The most common type is getting betrayed. It ranges from getting abandoned and feeling worthless to being used for someone else's benefit. If he's had a nightmare of you betraying him, he would be a bit distant. Luckily he was willing to talk with you about it, in which you reassured him that you just wanted to be with him because you loved him. You weren't going to leave him or cheat on him.

Another common nightmare he's had was recollecting the day Sun Wukong not only turned on him, but killed him. It was always a brutal but hopeless cause. His heart was heavy with how wukong so easily sidelined him, how everything they had been through meant nothing. That he no longer meant anything to his friend. This dream was too realistic, he could feel every strike and how tired he was becoming. Nothing he could do was enough. Not against a force like wukong. The most horrid part was when he finally looked up at wukong in defeat only to be met with an agonizing pain to his eye. This nightmare would cause him to wake up yelling and holding his eye, feeling the phantom pain the dream left behind.

The least common dreams he had that would leave him mortified were the ones of the Lady Bone Demon. Being forced to do her will or have his life taken away from him again. He thought he was clever losing the key, but somehow she always escaped. Having the slow threat of her crystals on his body being a horrifying experience, especially the days in which he would become paralyzed in fear, going stiff in his sleep. Sometimes she would make him kill Sun Wukong and MK and there wasn't any fire of Samadhi to save him from being entirely consumed by her will. The worst one of all was when she found out about you, sending macaque to kill you, her champion didn't need any distractions after all. No insignificant mortal will stand in the way of his destiny.

Macaque would jolt awake, taking in gasping breaths before looking around the room. Hed sigh in relief, he was home, he was safe, just another stupid dream. He'd stay awake in bed, looking up at the ceiling in hope's of falling asleep. He couldn't shake the vivid images from his mind and he felt agitated and restless, he couldn't sleep again. He then looked over at you and the sight warmed his heart a little. You were peacefully asleep, it was a miracle his sudden movement didn't wake you, but he was silently grateful. Hed hate to wake you up since you looked oh so blissfully asleep. He couldn't do that, not to you. So he decided to discreetly get out of bed before using a shadow portal to drop himself into the couch. It was a better option than having to maneuver himself quietly through the room with you soundly asleep. Waking you up was simply a chance he didn't want to take.

He would sit in silence on the couch simply trying not to think about whatever dream plagued his mind. At first the silence was normal but he quickly found out how not wanting to think of something made you think of it more. The silence would become unbearable so he grabbed the remote and turned on the TV. He opted to mindlessly watch tv, turning the volume down to the lowest possible. It was the perks of having six ears.

You woke up, having stirred from your rest at the lack of his presence. You drowsily felt his side of the bed. It was empty, so you sluggishly got out of bed to look for him. He could hear you coming towards hims, yet his entire focus was on the nonsensical noises of the TV, he couldn't bother to pay attention to what was happening. You eventually made your way over to him and plopped yourself down on the couch next to him. You leaned against him, laying your head on his shoulder. He went tense at the sudden contact, not like he wasn't already stiff as a board as he tried to force his attention away from his own thoughts.

"Hey Honey, what's got you up so early?" He asked casually as if he also wasn't up at four in the morning.

"I didn't feel you in bed with me anymore... Are you okay Macaque?" You fought off the drowsiness in your eyes, but leaning against him and feeling his warmth was lulling you back to sleep. No, you had to make sure he was alright, sleep can wait. You slowly were able to get your hazy mind working before you felt how stiff he was against you. He usually eased up to your touch by now, even when he was caught by surprise.

He notices your discomfort before he wraps an arm around you, slowly relaxing against you. He gave you a soft smile as he took in your sleep ridden state. It was heartening to him that you missed his presence, even when you were asleep. But he wasn't exactly thrilled that he still somehow woke you up, but having you with him did relieve him of his worries.

"Sweetheart, listen... I'm sorry for leaving you alone but i just... Had a nightmare and i didn't want to wake you up about it. But i still did." His answer was honest but filled with disappointment in himself. He really wanted to handle it by himself, but a part of him knew he could never ease his mind the way you could. Having heard his explanation you leaned into him, giving him a tender hug. He's still for a moment before he finally wraps his arms around you tightly, allowing himself to be comforted by you. You gently ran your finger through his fur, it was like your every caress alleviated his aching heart and it wasn't long enough until he began to quietly cry against your chest.

"I-I didn't want any of this to happen... I didn't want to go through with it, I had to-" He murmured against you. You could tell it had been a horrible nightmare, especially if it broke him down like this

"I know baby, but you're not there anymore. You haven't done anything, you're at home... It was only a dream, you're safe... I'll keep you safe." You quietly reassured him, calming his anguish and placing kisses where his tears ran, gently wiping them away with your thumbs as you held his face. It was when you held him so close that you noticed it. His glamour was off. You could see his six ears, all the scars on his face and his eye, you wondered how you didn't notice it before. Then again being awake at four wasn't exactly peak conscious behavior and it was still dark, the only light being the dim glow of the TV.

Macaque felt safe in your embrace, enjoying the sound of your voice. He would normally be uneasy listening with all of his ears, but your voice was like a serene river to him, calming and comforting. He would gladly listen to you talk for hours about anything, but when you directed it at him and used it to ease his pains, it was simply heavenly.

After a while of hugging he thinks you might've dosed off then and there.

"Hey darling, are you still with me?" He asked quietly as he gave you a soft shake. The only response you gave him was a low, albeit late, hum of acknowledgment.

"Yeah, yeah, wide awake." Which ears a soft chuckle out of him before makes sure you're secure in his hold. Before you can ask if he wanted to head back to bed, you feel a swoosh before having landed on the soft and familiar mattress. You weren't even going to lie, his shadow portals were convenient. You probably wouldn't have made it back to the room with how tired you felt.

"A heads up would've been nice." You mumbled against him.

"Nah, I'm sure you could've handed it." You could practically hear his signature smirk in his tone.

"What if i couldn't and it scared me?" You joked as you pushed yourself away from him, earning you the sight of his handsome grin and un-glamored glory.

"Come on sugar, you're telling me you're scared of a little gravity. You'd think you'd be used to it by now." He chuckled as he patted your head before ruffling your hair.

"Hey! My hair, you're messing it up!"

"You have the wildest bed-head baby, you should be thanking me."

"Oh, I'll give you a thank you, alright. Keep this up and I'll smother you entirely." You challenged him with your own mischievous grin. He didn't believe your little threat for one second.

"Oh really? I'd like to see you try~" You then held the sides of his face before pulling him into a barrage of kisses. He's caught by surprise, unable to get away from your devoted kisses. He nuzzles against you trying to fight off his embarrassment, but you're so cute and oh lord, he feels like he's malfunctioning. Even after all this time he wasn't immune to being overwhelmed by your affections, having gone most of his life without them. Eventually you slow down your kisses, instead you poured out adoring words about every feature you love about him before giving it a kiss. You took your time, letting him know how much you loved him with each soft murmur and soft peck. That you loved him dearly and found him captivating, even with his glamor off.

"I think the scar makes you look hot" you ended off on, trying to brighten up how he might've felt about his appearance.

"Oh really? Is that so?" He smirked before finally wrapping his arms around you, pulling you against him to cuddle. You soon felt the familiar sensation of his tail curling around you protectively. You both held each other tenderly and you leaned closer to leading him into a slow kiss. Your lips molded into each other lovingly, parting to look into each other's eyes with nothing but adoration. You trailed your hands through his hair until you reached his ears, gently scratching the back of them and caressing them. He let out a content huff before resting his head against your chest, closing his eyes, allowing himself to be lulled back to sleep by your warmth and the steady rhythm of your heartbeat. You place a final kiss against his forehead.

"I love you Macaque, I hope you only have sweet dreams tonight." He didn't need to when his time awake with you was his greatest dream come true.

"I'll always love you, thank you my love." That was all he said before pleasantly falling asleep, safe and loved in your embrace.

back

[sgiandubh]

Never on Mondays

Cue in the Reporting Bitch, re: my last post on stalking and inciting others to do so. To be honest, I was counting exactly on a reaction like this one:

Ok, dolls - fasten your seat belts.

It is my (and at the same time the general) understanding an NDA, signed either by cast or crew, protects anything that could be construed as 'confidential information' related to a film/TV series ongoing project, in order to prevent any unwanted leaks, before the release of said project.

Have a look at this widely used template in the industry:

[Source: https://employmentcontracts.com/nda/film/]

It is also my understanding the above is a template only, which is always adapted to the specific/detailed needs of the ongoing project it aims to cover. More often than not, it does cover any set related information, especially in a situation like OL's Season 8, where a lot can be speculated about adaptation choices and open ending. An ending which may or may not coincide with Future Book Ten (I hope I shall still be alive by the time she finishes it and mark me, I have just turned 46).

Peel your eyes here, punk, for a very informative thread about GoT - a much bigger production. But also one that went ahead of the source books, with the results we all know, by now:

[Source: https://www.quora.com/Do-people-working-in-the-TV-show-film-industry-extras-and-post-production-sign-NDAs-How-would-this-be-enforced-on-GoT]

But what happened? As many of you already know, a local newspaper, the Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald, released some pics of the alleged set, with the following comment:

[Source: https://www.ardrossanherald.com/news/24494143.outlander-filming-taking-place-eglinton-country-park/]

Also, dolls and FYI. There is no 'Right to Roam Law' in Scotland. The only thing that deals with the 'freedom to roam' is the 2003 Scottish Land Reform Act and the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, detailing in very precise terms its enforcement. Your reference is useless (spare to give an impression you've got a smattering of law under your belt), because the two above texts cover just about any type of land you could think of, including public domain. For this is what Eglinton Country Park is, nowadays:

There is a difference, as far as law is concerned, between freedom to do something and the right to do that something. Freedom is general and abstract in scope: for example, the freedom for you to write whatever you want and look like a twat by doing so. A right is whatever that freedom grants you, limited by common sense obligations - it is personal and practical, as opposed to general and abstract. In the situation I have just mentioned: your right to write whatever you want and look like a twat by doing so, as long as it is not slander or libel.

In the Eglinton Country Park case, Mr. Gemmell had the entire right to photograph a public domain feature, as long as no restrictions to do so were enforced by the local authorities. They would have been, if filming were underway - but that was not the case, that particular day. I see no problem with that and I suppose the info was even tipped by the local OL production team, as it is almost impossible to control access on public domain without a reason to do so (see above filming limitation).

However, that was not the question asked by yesterday's Anon, nor the Fascist's response to it.

Let's take a look again:

Anon was wondering what scene could the Eglinton Park set be used for, but then moves on to 'the new house', which she thinks might be 'nearer the old location, but no one seems to have found it yet'. The Fascist answers, very logically, referring to the same New House: 'will be interesting if some fans find there [sic!] way there and take a few pix of filming'. There was no logical point to refer to Eglinton Park, a location that was already disclosed by local press.

Taking a pic of a set erected on public domain is not stalking, nor the result of an NDA violation, as long as there is no filming underway and the NDA violation cannot be substantiated. Taking a pic of a set whose exact location and legal status (private property or public domain) remain undisclosed, in the process of filming is both stalking and probably the result of an NDA breach by crew or secondary cast. According to paragraph 2.11 of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, free access rights do not apply on

Failure to do so is considered as aggravated trespass, by the UK's Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (Section 68):

[Source: https://www.outdooraccess-scotland.scot/]

Considering the above, the honest question to you is: are you guys idiots on a daily basis, or just on Mondays?

Asking for a friend.

[This post has been slightly edited several times, to clarify a couple of things. Sorry for that, but it had to be done.]

[tobi-smp]

well ! if I'm posting about my other interests ! have a little how-to guide for getting into marble hornets:

firstly, what is it.

that's an answer in two parts! it's a foundational indie horror web series on youtube that was beloved in its time for its mystery, atmosphere, and editing (pioneering or popularizing many of the techniques that you'll see more commonly now in the analogue horror genre, just with the budget of college students in 2009).

and it's remembered fondly Now for its fascinating representation of mental health (in how it subverts the harmful ways that horror tends to depict more stigmatized disorders, but Also in how it depicts mental and physical health in general), and the underlying queer themes that While subtext at the time have ultimately been confirmed as intentional as one co creators (and actor for the main character) has come out as bisexual!

it is Also a wildly creative and beautiful comic series. written solely by troy wagner (the aforementioned co-creator) and illustrated by jackie reynolds (a long time fan of the series and insanely talented illustrator). taking place after the events of the webseries, the comics take full advantage of this new visual medium to express the horror, atmosphere, and emotions of the series in a more visceral way. and being self published they're free to make whatever they'd like

done entirely in water color and ink, it builds beautifully on what was laid down with the original series and carves out its own identity and legacy.

it's also just very lovely seeing queer creators who were once writing subtext be able to just. Be Open about it. both about themselves and their characters. it's a horror story that happens to have queer characters mind, but it's just ! nice.

.

now ! being internet horror that's sat in that weird space between args and analogue horror (nightmind would call it Unfiction, but unfortunately that term hasn't caught on as much as I'd have liked) it's not as simple to get into as just like, Watching A Show.

that's not to say you Can't just watch it, but rather I have ways to help you get more out of it :>

1: The full chronological playlist for the marble hornets web series, including the totheark replies: [Link]

this is exactly what it says on the tin ! the entire series in order, I've even included the dvd extras at the end of each season !

two notes: firstly, the full series is captioned, and I think they're very nice captions! and secondly, there's a lot of loud noises in the series, which the captions help mitigate a bit. this is due in part to the nature of the kind of horror it is (though it doesn't have straight up jumpscares), but Also because troy wagner was HoH at the time he was doing the audio editing for the series.

there's significantly fewer issues with the audio as the series goes on (troy actually got surgery for his hearing!) but for the most part it's fine just keeping it Somewhat lower. except entry five. entry five is so very loud <3

.

2: The in-character twitter for jay merrick (the main character of marble hornets): [Link]

much like the youtube channel is presented as being ran by the main character/pov character of the series (jay merrick), the twitter was created to run along-side the main series! it mostly exists to give us further insight into jay's mental state and personal life that you don't get in the main series, especially early on!

it's a little cumbersome nowadays, especially since twitter doesn't Like being archival. but you kind of just have to scroll all the way to the bottom to when the twitter was created and scroll up to follow along jlkfasdjlkfdas

this is made a Little more difficult because the account got hacked in 2020 and reinstated 2021, so all of the dates are wrong now. but the account always posted when new entries were uploaded so it's easy to watch an entry, check what was posted after it was uploaded, and then see the link for the next entry and know to stop until you've watched.

you don't Have to do it this way, but I think it's the way to get the most out of it!

.

3: All of the translated codes for totheark/tta listed in order: [Link]

back in the day, youtube allowed you to make Video Replies, which would be displayed Under whatever video you were responding to! this feature was ultimately removed because of the tendency to do make clickbait in response to whatever was currently popular, but it was Wonderful in this instance !

the youtube channel and twitter were presented as in character, and they took advantage of this by having a second channel created (named totheark) start Replying to the entries as they were uploaded. these videos were highly edited and contained codes and secrets that were meant as messages to the main character (and the audience)!

there was a dedicated community for code breaking throughout the show's entire life, and this list here goes through every one! I like this one in particular because it Also gives us information on How the codes were broken, in a digestible way.

.

4: Nightmind's marble hornets explained series: [Link]

this is definitely Optional. it's obviously not official media, is outdated now that the comics have started, and I'd say was flawed even at its release. (it's not a spoiler if nobody knows what I'm talking about, so I'll say now that I'm not a fan of his theory with masky, and the seth theory is very famously silly).

BUT! I Do think it's a very good resource when it comes to putting certain crucial things together. as the whole point of the series is that it's a Mystery. you see nearly everything out of order and you're intentionally limited in what you know about characters and their motivations. this series works as a good jumping off point in that it helps to put things into Context and change your perspective on certain events and character With the benefit of said context!

like I said, it's not Required, it might just be helpful! a starting point to help chew on things once you've watched the web series in full for the first time.

.

Comics!: [Link]

comics ! they're all available on troy wagner's personal website! (along with other goodies that are periodically available!) you can buy them either physically Or digitally ! personally I'd recommend digital, as it's cheaper, instantly available, and the digital extras are wonderful!

they come with the script for the comics, a commentary version (including comments from troy and jackie on every page), and other extras like backgrounds, behind the scenes sketches, character art, etc!

I would very much so suggest buying the comics if you're interested. this is an indie project being ran and funded by two people (and again! there's other goodies in the store that are worth looking at). buttttttt, my friends may dm me <3

.

Extras! [Extras]

Anniversary streams [Link] on a few different anniversaries for the series several of the creators have done streams rewatching the series and reacting to it live ! this is a playlist where I've collected all of the instances that I could find :>

I Also included the dvd commentary here ! the format is different, but it's a similar concept so, why not ljkfsdajklfasd

.

Interviews, QnA's, and con appearances: [Link] exactly what it sounds like !

I was, at one point, overtaken by some kind of madness and hunted down for every single Person Records Marble Hornets Creators Talking About Marble Hornets thing I could find, and then attempted to put it in order. this is just ! for fun. I do so adore it though, I have one con panel that was recorded on someone's 3ds.

.

My silly posts:

some analysis posts I've main on my main account since having watched the series ! these all contain spoilers so I wouldn't suggest watching them until you've seen the show (though I Would suggest reading them if you do choose to watch the explained series)

this is my post going into what I think masky is supposed to be/represent, and why it's Important [Link] which I think pairs nicely with this post by tim sutton (one of marble hornet's actors) [Link]

my discussions on jay's mental health and behavior and how they're often misunderstood (which won't necessarily be needed if you've read through his twitter jlkfasdlkjafds) [Link 1, Link 2]

confirmation that jay is canonically queer :> [Link]

.

Social Media

Social media for various marble hornets creatives !

Troy wagner (co-creator, actor for jay): Tumblr [Link] Twitter [Link] Instagram [Link]

Jackie Reynolds (main artist for the comics): Tumblr [Link] Twitter [Link] Instagram [Link] Linktree [Link]

Tim Sutton (actor for tim (I know)): Tumblr (inactive): [Link] Twitter: [Link]

Joseph DeLage (co-creator, actor for alex): Twitter [Link]

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and here's art jackie drew of masky marble hornets punching richard spencer in the face <3

[flightfoot]

do you know of lila take down fics that don't bash the children?

Hm, I'm assuming you mean ones that are still focused around Lila being a schoolyard bully? I generally stay away from those nowadays, instead opting to just read the fics where everyone's aged up and she's presented as more of a supervillain (those tend to not bash anyone else), but I do still have some recs for you!

Not Quite Right by @ladynoirfanao3

When Marinette wakes up one morning, she can’t help but feel that something is just a little bit… off. No one else around her seems to feel the same, however, and she is forced to shake off the strange feelings. It proves to be more difficult than she imagined, especially when an akuma attack leaves her feeling helpless as she watches Chat Noir and Ladybug arrive on scene.

---

In Pursuit Of The Uneatable by @nemaliwrites

Who do you trust when your own reflection becomes a stranger? In a Paris where Lila weaves tales that blind the city, Marinette stands accused, isolated. Her parents' trust is shattered, her friends distant, and in battle, illusions blur the line between ally and enemy. As the shadows and uncertainty threaten to close in, Marinette finds herself turning to the last person who claims to be on her side: a boy in a white mask who calls himself a fox hunter.

---

Hold Me By Both Hands by @angelofthequeers

“I know he said never to take you back,” Plagg mutters. “But he’d change his tune if he knew.” He looks Adrien straight in the eye and, more serious than Adrien’s ever seen him before, says, “There’s someone you gotta meet. He’s been looking for that book for ages.” How differently might the events of season 2 have gone if Adrien had also known of Master Fu from the start?

---

Accidents Are Also Miracles by @liiinerle

After some turbulent days that end with five people knowing her secret identity as Ladybug, Marinette loses faith in her ability to keep herself hidden. Wracked with doubts and insecurities, she pleads with Alya to take over as Scarabella, and tries to disconnect from heroing altogether. Along the way, she starts to date Kagami. Hard as she tries, though, she can't stop worrying - especially not once Monarch takes a particular, and personal, interest in her. At the same time, Alya tries to adjust to her new role while she works to uncover who Monarch really is, and makes some realisations about her own wishes. Kagami struggles against a controlling and abusive parent, and a girlfriend who seems bent on destroying herself - with or without Monarch's involvement. And in the meantime, Alix keeps popping her head back in with offers to help (because cool though time travel is, she misses hanging out in her own time).

---

Side Effects Include: Empathy by Word_Devourer

Adrien develops touch-based empathy from using a Miraculous as long as he has. This can only go well.

---

The Investigation by @11jj11

Adrien and Marinette are finally dating-- which is what Alya has always wanted... but yet this sudden transformation in their relationship overnight? Things aren't adding up. They are suddenly so much closer than they ever have been before, Adrien is apparently a flirt, Marinette is no longer a stuttering mess, and not to mention the nicknames that came out of no where. Alya is happy for her friends, but she knows there's something more going on, and the reporter in her is going to get to the bottom of it.

---

best (fake) smile by Reiaji

After Gabriel arranges for Lila to be his date at Paris Fashion Week, Adrien rights a wrong as best he knows how: with a little bit of sweetness, a little bit of subtlety, and a lot of social media magic.

[noxexistant]

ai-less whumptober; day fourteen

@ailesswhumptober 14 — seizures, concussion, “See if you can follow my finger with your eyes.” ↳ boarding school au, modern word count; 2.3k

cw; severe bullying, violence, head trauma, mentions of abuse and death

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

Morris just wants to get to the library. He's had a full day of classes — actually attended them all for once, since his last run-in with Mr. Snyder regarding his truancy — and it's been miserable. Moreso than usual. Winter's coming in, so it's freezing in every classroom and colder in the hallways, and out of the huge windows he tries to gaze out of for solace he can only see grey and drizzle and mist.

It'd be romantic, perhaps, if it weren't for everything else.

It's the perfect backdrop for a movie, Dead Poets Society or an older noir, would look beautiful as the environment for a beautiful '40s actress in black-and-white, but even the fantasy doesn't much help with Morris' usual feelings of listlessness. He's always lonely — having no friends has that effect, but weather like this makes him feel somehow lonelier. He'd been stung worst of all when he'd been sat beneath the covered alcoves towards the back of the school at lunchtime, neglecting to eat atop a stone wall a hundred years old or so, and seen Oscar run past with the rest of the rugby team, all in their rugby uniforms. All of them muddy and wet from the rain, hair slick to their heads, but grinning, laughing, shoving at each other the way groups of boys do.

Morris misses his brother often, but especially in the winter.

A season they'd used to spend glued even closer than usual. A silent understanding between them of the seasonal melancholy that always seems to hit Morris the hardest, but also the weight of each bit of grief contained in these months. Lonely birthdays — Oscar's October, Morris' December — and Ma's death nestled neatly between. Oscar used to spend this time looking after Morris. Checking in on him a hundred times a day, taking the time before they left the house to ensure Morris was dressed properly for the cold weather, used to always make sure he had Morris' inhaler on him.

Nowadays, he doesn't often look Morris' way. They share a dorm room, but even then Oscar is around sporadically. Often up and gone by the time Morris wakes up — rugby practice. Or not there when Morris settles down for bed — parties. Oscar had taken like a duck to the water of the school their Da scored them free attendance to, meanwhile Morris is sure he's still drowning, no matter how long they've already been here.

Things have been somewhat better, at least, since Katherine transferred. A generous exchange of the title of new kids — a title that doesn't get passed often in a school like this — and an offer of Morris' first friendship. Sure as he still is that Katherine liking him will soon run its course, she's nice. And has asked him on more than one occasion to spend time together even after school, which is. Also nice.

Nice enough that he'd accepted again today, despite knowing full well the risks. The provocation of him walking the hallways alone once classes have ended and there's infinitely less risk of anyone coming across anything, not that it makes any difference when they do. Teachers turn wilful blind eyes, students don't want to make themselves a target. Everyone is comfortable with Morris being the school's pariah, scrawny and queer in both senses of the word.

There would've been a time Oscar would've defended him. Would've spilled blood to protect him.

But now, he's one of the group that surrounds Morris in one of the lonely stone hallways leading down to the library.

"I don' want trouble," Morris says, to none of them in particular.

To Oscar, really.

It doesn't work regardless.

One of the boy's shoves his shoulder hard, and in an instant Morris finds himself with his back pressed to the cold stone wall, staring up at one of the rugby players. Tall and broad. Already having fun.

"Who says we want trouble?" he says. "Jus' saw you all by yourself again. Thought you was prob'ly feelin' lonely."

"I'm meetin' Kath," Morris forces out. A few of the boys laugh.

"She can wait." His chest is shoved again, hard and pointless when he's already up against the wall, but it's a power play. "Dunno why you're meetin' her anyway. She don't know you're a queer yet? Weren't around at lunch when you was enjoyin' the view."

Oh, Christ.

"Weren't lookin' at anythin'," he says. "You was jus' passin' while I was there."

"He was starin'!" a boy jeers.

"Bet he took photos."

"Show us your camera, Delancey."

One makes a grab for his bag slung over his shoulder, lopsided from how he's pressed to the wall, and Morris desperately grabs the strap and clutches onto it. There's no photos of the boys on the film, obviously, but there is schoolwork he needs — and a $20 roll of film that he can't afford to lose. Can't afford to lose the camera. Da would beat the shit out of him.

"Stop!" he spits, trying to wrench his bag back. Immediately, the bag is released and he gets a punch to the stomach for his troubles instead. Doubles over wheezing, and his bag hits the ground anyway.

He hears Oscar laughing along with the group. Recognises the footsteps approaching him then the way he'd recognise his own. The worn black leather shoes that enter his bleary line of sight, still ducked to the floor.

His brother's hand seizes him by the necktie, and when that same hand forces his chin back up, Morris glares at him as fiercely as he can.

"Jus' leave me alone," he pleads quietly. "Os."

His vision bursts with stars as his brother simply slams him into the wall again, more brutal than the boy before had dared to be. They all laugh, the sort of breathless amusement of being impressed.

"Christ, Os, gonna knock somethin' loose like that."

"Would do him some good. He's queer an' retarded, surely you can fix one of 'em."

Morris hates them. A violent, hopeless, impossible amount. He just wants to leave, just wants to sit in the library with Katherine and pretend to read or maybe get some drawing done, but he's trapped. Eyes on him from every direction, sharks in the water, waiting for what's next. More blood. More to feed on.

"Wish you weren't such a freak," Oscar tells him.

And then the rest of it is a blur.

~

Oscar really doesn't mean for it to go so far.

It's easy to enter a sort of fugue state with violence. It does something to him, something therapeutic, something for him to get lost in, even in the worst circumstances. It's why he'd been so attracted to rugby, why it had come so naturally to him — and it's what had earned him the first bit of status he's ever had in his life. A popular member of a respected school's star sports team, finally clawed his way up far enough that nobody even cares anymore that he was the late-enrolled new kid, only got in because his Da works here so he gets free tuition.

And he's even proven himself against his freak of a little brother.

Morris has been an easy target all his life. He'd been one in public school, in foster care, and Lord knows he's one here. The student body is wealthy and mean, and Oscar had given Morris the chance to toughen up or lose it — and lost it he had. The boys Oscar befriended went after Morris like sharks, and Oscar will not sacrifice himself to the same fate. He'll follow them and keep his fins, keep his teeth. Even if it costs him Morris.

But, God, he didn't mean for it to go this far.

It's standard fare for what they do to Morris mostly. Corner him and shove him around, shots to the abdomen where they won't be seen, a few to the face if they get the chance because it's always fun to see his eyes bruise, his nose bleed. He's a mess already, blood beaded between pale lips, one side of his face blooming red that'll be black by tomorrow.

But then Morris tries to run.

It's a natural instinct. They're not that far from the library, where Morris had been trying to get to anyway, and even if there isn't a staff member there, Katherine will be. It's a shot at safety.

It doesn't work.

One of the boys grabs at Morris to wrench him back, in the same moment his ankle gets caught in the strap of his bag on the ground, and Oscar doesn't process the sight of what happens next. It happens so fast. He just processes the sound of it, the awful crack.

And then everything is very still. Morris is on the floor.

Oscar's friends are gone in an instant. All of them bolting, fleeing the scene of the crime before the risk of being caught can even be considered, but Oscar is rooted in place. Heart pounding in his chest.

"Mo," he says, real quiet. Terrified. "Mo?"

He steps shakily closer from where he'd backed away, happy to let his friends have their fill of violence. Crouches, reaching out with a shaky hand — bruising knuckles — to rest it on his brother.

Morris twitches hard like he's been woken up.

"Fuck," Oscar sobs. "Oh, fuck. C'mon. C'mon, Mo, get up."

He's desperate to destroy this scene before anyone comes across them. Gets considerably more frantic when he hears footsteps approaching from down the hall.

"Mo. Mo, c'mon, you gotta get up. We're gonna be in trouble."

Oscar lifts him, ignoring how utterly stiff he is, and all in a moment notices the stream of blood from where Morris' temple had split against the stone. There's a small pool of it, still dripping, getting all over Morris' uniform shirt, and Oscar is wondering if he could mop it up with his own rugby jumper when—

"Oh my God, Morris?"

It's Katherine. Of course it's Katherine.

Her footsteps are deafening as she runs over, clicks of her heeled shoes echoing around the hallway. Morris twitches in Oscar's arms, making a vague, croaked noise that Oscar recognises as a protest against the noise.

"What happened," Katherine demands. Her eyes are wide, pale face drawn tight into horror. "Oh my God. What happened?"

"He's fine."

"We have to get him to Matron—"

"He's fine. He jus' he had a wee fall, okay? Fuckin'. Tripped over his bag. He's fine. He's fine."

"Oscar, he hit his head."

Oscar can't breathe right. He's helpless to do much but watch as Katherine rounds him to crouch in front of Morris, wild ginger curls falling into her face with her haste, stricken with fear like Oscar's never seen — but Morris is fine. He's fine. Of course he's fine. Da's cracked his head against stuff countless times and Morris has always been fine.

"Morris," Katherine says, very gently. "Morris, here, see if you can follow my finger with your eyes."

Oscar watches her do it, draws a line across in the air. Morris has his back to his chest, so Oscar can't see what he's doing — but he must've done it.

"He did it, right? He did it," Oscar says, a little desperate.

Katherine ignores him. That look on her face is getting worse.

"Morris," she repeats, and there's something awful in her tone now. "Morris, please."

"What?" Oscar croaks. "What, what?"

"His—his pupils are uneven, so he must have a concussion. But. He. He's completely unresponsive. Like—he's just staring straight through me, like he can't even see me."

Oscar feels utterly sick. People can go blind from head trauma, right? That's a thing, he swears he remembers being told that. He's frantically trying to remember all the things he was taught when he started rugby, all those lectures on injuries and concussions and TBIs that he hadn't paid attention to — had rarely even attended — when suddenly what little colour had been in Katherine's face drains. Morris jerks again.

"Oh my God, he's having a seizure," she croaks.

Oscar's throat convulses like he's going to throw up.

"What? No. No, he ain't. This ain't—" he's seen seizures on TV. All that jerking and shaking all over, dancing about the floor. Morris isn't doing that. "This ain't what seizures are like."

"Yes, it is, Oscar. Holy shit. Oh my God."

Hands shaking, she starts digging in her blazer pockets, desperate.

"What're you doin'?" he croaks.

"I'm calling 9-1-1."

Oscar is hit with a flash of terror as she puts her phone to her ear and begins speaking, asking for an ambulance with a tone that no longer belies her childlike terror.

Oscar knows that, if an ambulance comes, they're going to ask questions — and it's his friends who will be in trouble. Big trouble. Fuck, what if they get charged? He knows what charges like this are like, it's the type of shit Da has been to court and then jail for after fucking people up in fights. Battery and GBH and—all that shit.

But then Morris jerks hard in his arms again. Lets out a croaked little noise that sounds so vividly like when he was a kid, deathly sick or beaten to shit by Da, in Oscar's arms because Oscar was the only person on the planet to look after him.

Oscar leans over and looks down at him. Just manages to catch a glimpse of his pale, colourless face and dazed, empty eyes and the blood drying against his skin, bloomed into his shirt that Oscar used to iron for him.

He doesn't say a word as Katherine talks to the operator on the phone, on her feet and pacing the hallway beside them. He just holds his brother closer to cradle him. Can't even begin to pull together an apology, so goes for the next best thing.

"'S'gonna be okay, Mo," he says softly.

Morris slumps against him. Oscar feels the twitching melt to trembling as Morris cries.

It's going to be okay, he tells himself.

[miss-multifandom-mess]

Teacher/pro-hero bkdk! Teacher/pro-hero bkdk! Teacher/pro-hero bkdk!

Currently looking for a long-term roleplay with these two, and I’m only selecting a chosen few who I deem worthy to be my rp partners for this!! 🙏

I have so many ideas for plots, but those shall be discussed together in DMs. Let’s get into background details!

Genres I’m looking for:

Romance (obvs) with a great build up! (Eventual smut)

Seasonal??

Angst (gotta have it) but in decently proportionate amounts throughout/not clumped

Where is angst without drama?

Gotta have comedy, too! Especially between characters!

Rules:

Be 19+ !!

Literate/advanced to novella!

Please, I want something good that we can also take time on!! I’m in no rush for replies, but I do get one in every 1-2 days depending on how busy I am! I want us not to feel pressured and to pace ourselves so we write when we have moderate motivation to the story

Share triggers!!

I can’t stress it enough; I want us going into this comfortable with the plot and respecting each other’s boundaries

Side characters

Please be open to taking roles of side characters when it is needed! I am not unfair, I make sure we have an equal amount of characters to play on the side for a scene

OOC chat

I want us having fun together, having nice conversations when we just need to wind down. I’m totally open to sharing fanart, music, just making new friends!

Extra details:

Please be fluent in whichever character you take on! Have fun with it; add headcanons or interpretations on how the character is handling emotionally and physically, it makes the story more compelling; equality in the angst

Please contribute to brainstorming and moving the story along! It can’t be all me!

Characters!!!

I can write as either Katsuki Bakugo or Izuku Midoriya! I’ve had more experience with Katsuki, but would LOVE to try out Izuku if possible

But really, I don’t mind what’s decided!

Bonus request:

RodyDeku

The same details and conditions to roleplay, but also pretty flexible with ideas!

This is all I can think of for now! I know it seems like expectations are high, but it’s rare I get good roleplays nowadays. I want something that will be worth my free time.

Message or comment if interested!! Then I will send you my discord

[7grandmel]

Todays rip: 17/04/2024

Psy's End Stylehall

Season 6 Featured on: Transmission Archive ~ The SiIvaGunner All-Star Nuclear Winter Festival Collection

Ripped by Eva Twin

Alright, so, sure, it wasn't very long ago that I covered a PSY rip, with The World Ends With PSY. But part of why I wanted to highlight that rip in particular other than to talk about The World Ends With You, was to showcase a rip that used PSY's music in an abnormal way for rips, using it in a way we don't really see much of nowadays. That isn't because The World Ends With PSY held some secret ingredient that no rip since has been able to capture, no no, quite the opposite - its because the style of PSY rips we've gotten for a majority of the channel's life, the ones like One Winged PSYcho - V​.​S. Sepsyrop, like Korean Idiot, and indeed like Psy's End Stylehall, are fucking bangers. PSY is at this point more than just an artist whose music can be made into fun mashups - PSY's vocals are an instrument in of themselves.

And like, I really, truly don't know enough about vocaloid or vocaloid music. I enjoy a Lagtrain from time to time, I love rips like Rolling Start and Willievan Afton Polkka, but its still a niche that's a fair bit out of my wheelhouse. Yet its these kinds of rips that all highlight, to a peasant like me, just what makes the scene tick - the sheer energy in a song like World's End Dancehall feels like the kind of thing you'd ONLY hear through the vocaloid scene. Yet in a way, it doesn't surprise me that I find the music so inherently appealing - it feels as if there's a fair bit of overlap in enjoyment between the art of high quality rips and the art of creating vocaloid music. Both fields are, in many cases, using something not meant to be an instrument, a noise turned music through pitch-shifting and other techniques, be that noise the voicebanks of a digital songstress, or the AHHs and EYYS of a South Korean pop artist. Hatsune Miku is everywhere, she is an instrument for artists to use more than she herself is an artist - yet all of the music featuring her vocals sounds so incredibly distinct from one another. Much the same, again, can be said for PSY.

Like, you'd think one would get tired of the guy after eight years of the same bit, after having annual PSY days where we get nothing BUT rips of the same PSY samples and sounds and bits. Yet each rip manages to sound different from the last, each rip able to find so much creativity in using the guy's vocal samples to ridiculous effect - and no matter how many years pass, Gangnam Style itself still bangs!! The amount of cool shit Psy's End Stylehall in particular does is just too much to list - the slight stuttering on the "Ga-Gangnam Style!!"'s in the song's intro, the constant yet unintrusive presence of Gangnam Style's backing instrumentation, the ways that PSY's vocals are used for both the backing AND the lead melody?? It's nutty, especially in music as chaotic in pace as that of wowaka's (who was also the artist behind Rolling Girl, paid tribute to in Rolling Start mentioned earlier). PSY rips didn't take long to be elevated above just standard mashup material on SiIva, and as late into the channel as Season 6, rippers like Eva Twin were still finding novel ways to use the man's voice.

Like, the way Gangnam Style's first verse vocals play in full at a pretty standard pace, only to suddenly be as if whisked away by World's End Dancehall picking up the pace at 0:49, raising the pitch in PSY's vocals, repeating a segment of the chorus over and over...or the way the chorus has PSY sing alongside his own "ops" repeating as a new form of percussion, on top of Gangnam Style's own instrumentation, on TOP of a layer of "Eyys" in the background - this is the kind of rip that I would just ADORE to see the inner workings of, just how many layers it must've taken to make such a full sound. And like, I've covered Eva Twin on here a good number of times, I still love I'll Face Gay Bowser to death, but Psy's End Stylehall is the kind of rip that leaves me outright amazed at how layered it all sounds. I need no attachment to vocaloid to know good music - and no amount of overexposure to PSY can make his rips any worse. Unfamiliarity and overfamiliarity meet in the middle for a rip I could almost recommend to anyone, a show of SiIvaGunner's sheer quality as of its most recent seasons, and a demonstration of just how deeply its team members care about music of all shapes and sounds.

[loveislandthegame]

thoughts on todays volume ! remember how i said bringing back jace after he’s been gone for one singular day would be ridiculous, even for FB’s standards ?😭 well here he comes, dressed like he just came off of a yacht. at least esme won’t get dumped 🫶🏽

of course kane picks mc ! (not like he had a choice, but he’s still my babygirl)

next up is rumpy pumpy ! it’s silly but whatever, at least FB is actually using challenges from the show. (side note, i think physical challenges like these are better to read nowadays because of how MC hasn’t had any sort of internal monologue since the AI takeover. does that make sense ?) obviously, we won. i figure that it’s impossible to lose for the sake of MC/LI going on the date with esme/jace, but i was surprised i got the 2nd question correct lol (42% ??? for real ???😭) the double date & diamond scene were very sweet ❤️

zabrina coming for MC is one thing, but arguing with ruby ? she better sleep with one eye open

“bombshell beer-less pong” 😭 my poor MC is gonna need a proper drink to deal with these childish islanders. of course some drama is fun, makes it more realistic, etc, but the whole thing with zabrina/ren is just pointless. this absolute goober brought it on himself for choosing her when he was already upset about her kissing callum

that dressing room diamond scene with ruby tho 😳 if you ever heard that “what is it finna play …WOAHHHH” audio, that was my exact reaction 😭

me—a piano player that is constantly fumbling—reading this: 😭😭😭

afterwards MC and zabrina are sent to hell a sleepover villa. ngl my initial reaction was “now wtf is a sleepover villa ??” but this seems to be based on the bombshell sleepover twist that has been in the show (funnily enough, i think the current all stars had some weird hideaway bombshell double date sleepover, i haven’t been keeping up with it though)

anyways, we meet the bombshells, harvey and tunde. i think that tunde is one of the most adorable guys, at least in the “churning out seasons with a month long break” era of LITG sprites. harvey is certainly an islander

we play never have i ever, just reading that made me miss season 1 💔 my MC was giving teetotal because i didn’t select a single drink option (especially not to dance for them, tf 😭) until she randomly decides to drink for “never have i ever blocked someone 🤓” i assume the someone in question is dominic. i think FB needs to make up their mind with his backstory. is he not just some stranger who stole our job opportunity ? you would think he’s our ex with the way everyone is acting

this isn’t giving sexy getaway. MC could have a billboard that says “not interested” strapped to her head, with 10 neon arrow lights pointing directly at it, and these lads still wouldn’t take the hint. at least we have the choice to sleep alone later on

eventually we are presented with a choice between the two of them. unfortunately there isn’t a “neither” or “hop off the terrace and sprint back to the villa” option. whatevs, i picked tunde. honestly i was thinking that they should just couple up with each other, but i assume FB was trying to go for that “competing for MC” tension, rather than romantic tension (speaking of missing season 1, please give us bi/pan men 😭🙏🏽)

harvey, babes…considering the current size of your head, that may be beneficial 😭

when it comes down to choosing which boy to bring to the villa, i picked neither (i would’ve picked tunde but i didn’t want to deal with “MC picked this guy !!” drama later, however, i think that’ll be inevitable) so zabrina ends up choosing tunde. i assume she always picks the guy you said you’re interested in, probably for some cheap drama later (i can practically envision it. some bullshit like “i wasn’t interested in either of those guys, MC BEGGED me to bring tunde 🤥🤥🤥”)

i know the game is trying to make us think that our LI cheated on us, i’ve played too many seasons to be fooled, swayed, and upset by FB’s “another woman is trying to steal your man” antics.

what i am mad about, is that it’s so unfair we had to be sent off to the world’s shittiest sleepover while the villa had vida, this BEAUTIFUL woman 😭 an absolute 100/10, and she’s definitely gonna be some half-assed delusional rival instead of a LI ! i’m SICK !!!

overall, the energy of that sleepover was too foul for me to say i “enjoyed” this volume, but excluding that it was alright. esme is a sweetie and i hope she doesn’t end up doing a random 180 in her personality (if FB is using more elements from the show, you’d think that they would want to create an actual friend group to capitalize off the success of PPG in love island USA. but they’re lazy misogynists so…)

i wonder if jace will end up being a LI, i can’t really imagine it right now but i’m sure FB has some catastrophic event up their sleeve. my unpopular opinion is that i’m fine with unromanceable male islanders, as long as the game makes it clear at the beginning, like with season 3 (even though i’m still heartbroken over seb & nicky 💔😭) we desperately need islanders that have a personality outside of being a cardboard cutout that’s obsessed with MC (or the equally obnoxious inverse, the trope of guys like season 6 hamish, liam, and dean being horrible to MC for literally no reason)

i wish vida was an LI, but based on previous seasons, what will actually happen is probably more along the lines of “poorly written rival is convinced that LI is in love with her, & makes it her life’s goal to attack MC at every given opportunity. LI is too spineless kind to outright reject the rival, so players believe he is turning his head even though this exact storyline has happened for 5 seasons straight” 🫠

[poliwhirl42]

Hi! What is your opinion on every pokemon season (by region) or at least the ones you have watched?

Oh man, a great question! I'll try to condense my thoughts about each into a few sentences but you should probably prepare for a novel haha:

Kanto: Honestly, when I watch the Original Series, I actually prefer watching the Orange Islands and Johto over the first season (I'll get to why in the next section). I think the first season is incredibly nostalgic to watch and has some of the most iconic moments in the entire anime, and the rest of the Pokemon anime wouldn't exist without it as a foundation, so I have to give it credit. Aside from most of the gym battles being kinda stupid, I do wish they'd followed up on lore they introduced that could've been incredibly interesting to explore, like Ash's childhood/his father's whereabouts, Jessie's mom, the Mewtwo/Mew stuff and other Team Rocket history from the CD drama, etc. But I also realize that the writers were just getting their bearings with making an anime adaptation in the midst of a rapidly-growing cultural phenomenon based off a video game, so I recognize the challenges and uncertainties that came along with that. Also quickly adding I highly enjoyed Orange Islands and my Pokeshipping heart revisits certain episodes from time to time as well.

Johto: Those who know me well know I LOVE the Johto series. I'm actually in the middle of a rewatch of it. Definitely rewatching it in full nowadays though, has definitely made me recognize that this series was far from perfect, but looking past its writing flaws, it's just purely entertaining for me. The English voice actors really found their voices and added so much to their characters, especially with the dialogue and the creative liberties they took in creating the dub. I like how certain backstories like Jessie's were explored a bit more in Johto as well, and I definitely think the gym battles were taken a little more seriously than they were in the first season. There were also some GREAT Brock episodes which I highly appreciated, and I never tire of watching the Butch and Cassidy episodes (aka the fortune telling one and the Lugia Arc). Also, Gary and Ash's battle in the League is my second favorite League battle of all time behind Ash VS Paul. Johto is also not only my favorite region but is also home to my favorite Pokemon opening song/OST of all time, and I generally just loved the vibes with this series where not every episode or scene had to be jam-packed with action every single second. It was nice to have episodes of them helping out a Character-of-the-Day or visiting a city or just laying in the grass taking a nap after camping out or having lunch. When I think of a Pokemon journey, those in-between moments are for me just as special as the action-packed high stakes moments. I definitely recognize the downside of this, though, because I do recognize that the constant repetitive pattern of Johto's plotlines in many episodes was fatiguing for many fans who wanted to see something different, and as much as I enjoy watching it, I agree. Johto itself is so RICH with its history and traditional Japanese roots and culture and it really felt like the writers shied away from integrating Ash's journey with a lot of the Johto game lore. It would've been cool to have characters like Jimmy and Marina interact with Ash, perhaps have Silver be introduced, and I also think they really dropped the ball on having characters like Casey and Ritchie be rivals in the Silver Conference. This is getting long though lol so onto AG next!

Advanced Generation: AG to me is like the underrated gem of the pokeani series. I think sometimes it slips through the cracks because it's not as "nostalgic" as OS but not as "hyped up" as XY or DP are. I really like AG a lot even though I don't talk about it much, but I do admittedly feel like several episodes or arcs at least in Hoenn are kind of forgettable to me or lackluster- the two major ones that come to mind are the Hoenn League and the Aqua/Magma arc, both of which should've been FAR more exciting and entertaining. DESPITE THAT THOUGH, I thought the group of four- Ash, Brock, May and Max was incredibly entertaining and brought a whole new dynamic which was different from the OG trio's. I also loved May assuming the role of dual protagonist and absolutely loved the concept of contests! I love Contestshipping and adored every moment May's rivals appeared on screen with their quips and banter. Her growth in this series was fantastic and her battle with Drew at the end of Battle Frontier was chef's kiss. Ash himself, this is actually my favorite portrayal of Ash as he's such a little egotistical brat in Hoenn- other people don't like this as much but I still eat it up, like you just wanna punch him but he's so funny. The battles were also SO MUCH BETTER in AG; I loved little scenes where Ash was teaching his pokemon new moves and actively training alongside them; really showed he was getting more and more serious about being a Pokemon trainer.

Diamond and Pearl: Aside from Johto, DP is my favorite series and is actually the series that was currently airing when I first became fully invested in the Pokemon anime (I did not watch it much as a child), so it's very nostalgic for me. I love almost everything about it, between Dawn continuing the dual protagonist role, contests still being included, Ash's entire team, Paul being an amazing rival, the Sinnoh League being amazing and still my favorite League, rivals like Conway, Zoey, Kenny, Ursula, Nando, and Barry all being awesome in their own ways, so many fun arcs like the summer camp arc, Wallace Cup, Hearthome Tag Battle, Team Galactic's major involvement, Brock's development leading up to him becoming a Pokemon Doctor...I can't get enough of this series. The only thing I don't like is probably the giant amount of filler episodes they really didn't need at certain points and the gaps between Ash's gym battles; even though I love it to pieces like I do Johto, I agree that similarly both did not need to be drawn out as long as they did.

Best Wishes: Besto Wishes!!! So aside from me blabbering on about how much I love Burgundy, gosh I absolutely love BW. There are some things about it I will unfortunately never be able to forgive- like the confirmation of Ash being 10, the Rocket/Plasma arc being canceled, and basically the soft-reboot essentially making all of Ash's development pre-BW for naught. But gosh was this series so refreshing in other ways. Iris and Cilan, both amazing characters, offered a new dynamic with Ash that the previous characters didn't and I will die on this hill disagreeing with everyone who says that Misty and Brock are just like Iris and Cilan. I think Iris out of all the Pokegirls actually had the BEST portrayal of a backstory and I like the development she received. I also love that Ash rotated between pokemon that he caught, aside from his DP team I'm also very attached to his BW and loved all their starkly different personalities. BW was just so much FUN to watch. I go back so many times to rewatch the fun Battle Club arcs and I definitely think the rivals made the series so entertaining. I wish they had explored the connoisseur thing more and wish that Cilan had gotten way more episodes than he did. I wish his rivalry with Burgundy had been explored more as well, and honestly I think they could've done without the Decolore Islands arc. I really wish they had just stayed in Unova and had characters like Georgia and Burgundy return at least one final time since they weren't present for the Unova League. I could say a lot more of course but again don't wanna make this a novel so moving on...~

XY: XY is unfortunately the series I've seen the least of and it's known to be well...not one of my favorites lol. I have a lot of issues with the way Ash is portrayed which is why it's taken me so long to watch it. I have, ironically, seen all of XYZ though, and think the Team Flare arc is the absolute greatest villain arc in the entire series. But I'm still working through all the previous stuff! I was in college when XY aired, so I had unfortunately missed a lot of parts due to being so busy, but it also has its own layer of nostalgia for me, mainly because it was between BW-XY when I first came into the Pokeani fandom on Tumblr and was introduced to a variety of incredible friends, many of which I've now met in person and am still close with to this day. One day I hope to sit down and just power through all of it, because despite some of the issues I have, I know that it has so many good moments and is absolutely gorgeously animated. Also Sawyer is best boy he's my fave and his battle with Ash was one of the best things I've ever seen (my 3rd favorite battle ever).

Sun and Moon: Sun and Moon is simultaneously hilarious and depressing as hell, and I absolutely love it. I don't know if I can say too much because it's been a VERY long time since I've watched SM. It was the first series I watched consistently as it was airing but I also had a lot of stuff going on IRL so by the end I had dropped off just a little bit against my own will. Nonetheless I love so many things about it, between the humor, Ash's found family in Kukui/Burnet, Ash's team, the TRio's team and being so entertaining in this series, Team Skull/Guzma (I find Guzma very attractive lol), and of course Ash winning the Alola League which was amazing to experience and be part of that moment! I love the concept of family in this series and it's just so incredibly heartwarming, hilarious, AND heartwrenching all in one. I really need to do a rewatch of it though.

JN: I'm biting my tongue but I really do not like Journeys lol. I don't really wanna talk about it haha it makes me sad that everything I wanted to happen in the future didn't and it was just so poorly written. The only episodes I like honestly are Lillie/Gladion's return and Paul's return.

I KNOW A LOT OF THIS IS KINDA ALL OVER THE PLACE AND DISJOINTED BUT PLEASE ENJOY MY THOUGHTS and feel free to add yours as well!

[inchidentally]

U wanna analyse this? The words kinda made me sad: https://www.planetf1.com/news/peter-windsor-oscar-piastri-negative-impact-lando-norris

oh babe that one's easy bc not only did Lando have his best season yet by a long shot, he has many many times publicly credited it to Oscar pushing him and giving him the kind of competition that he's needed. as in he's said it so many times it would take me hours to screenshot all of them. Andrea and Zak have said it too, and actually the article itself even admits it. at the very last race Lando said how much Oscar has brought and that Lando himself has learned from him.

so big shock, "planetf1" faked a headline for clicks lol.

just to get ahead of the inevitable doom and gloom that sports media posts for engagement, let me pass on what I learned while in hockey fandom:

if the headline is dramatic, it's fake and don't give it clicks and ad rev. if it's not something like "grosjean leaps through fireball" which is easily verifiable then trust me, they won't be able to back it up in the article. remember when Lando did the landolog of him and Oscar karting in Italy and how much fun they had? at the beginning, he joked that Oscar had been a "little snake" for getting there early and practicing. he literally laughed while he said it. but sure enough, headlines on sites w names like F1dotcomBizFunHorny4U had "McLaren's Norris calls teammate Piastri a snake".

negative stories get engagement and melodrama gets even more. they'll worry about fixing it to not get sued way down in the article under the tenth video ad.

if the article was cribbed/didn't get a direct interview with a named source with an actual role within a team then it's either fake or stretched beyond reality for engagement.

even quotations can get chopped to hell and misplaced to fake a story - like people seeing Pierre explain his lack of relationship with Esteban by saying that other drivers might not be close friends either and to not make assumptions. despite quotes from those other drivers that they do in fact like their teammate (Carlos actually said this about him and Charles to Esteban and Pierre on the fanstage at Vegas). if people want to go hogwild with a quote to fit their negative personal narrative then they will. sites that exist solely for ad revenue and sponsorships will do everything to draw those fans in.

if DTS ever lands on the truth it's because that storyline wasn't worth the time in post twisting it into lies. so the fact that Oscar and Lando haven't had melodrama between them and keep saying how well they work together and like each other could mean that we get some unedited actual decent content! but since the 2023 season was so boring it might mean that the editors decide to do a hatchet job and bring in the usual talking heads to fabricate a drama between them. it ultimately doesn't matter bc DTS is only good for f1blr so that we can pull stuff for memes and gifs etc. when Lando recorded his viewing of some of the seasons he spent most of it laughing.

also this isn't the 80s or 90s or even early 00s Formula 1. the drivers are expected to stay much more even keeled out of respect for their teams and even the Pierre/Esteban situation (jsyk I do know their childhood history) isn't like they're out for each other's throats. they have a solely professional relationship now and they'd both agree that being civil is much better than not having an F1 seat. drivers are also way too busy nowadays with their own sponsorships and work outside racing to sit and fester these crazy rivalries in bars and pubs - as well as the media duties for their team that are way more since Liberty Media took over.

every set of teammates will experience ups and downs and tensions but they also have every incentive to get over it and not fuck up their work environment. especially at McLaren where Andrea and Zak now take a hard line about the drivers cooperating at all times for the sake of the team, that's never going to spiral into the kind of drama that media want. Lando beating himself up this season is because he's 5 years in and dying for that win, it's his mentality and it clearly didn't stop him from snatching podiums and points anyway. does he envy Oscar's sprint win, of course!! but if he hated or even resented Oscar for that Sprint win then he wouldn't keep bringing it up on Oscar's behalf all the time. he would do like other resentful teammates have done and simply avoid talking about it at all.

tl;dr anon, for your own sake please customize your F1 media experience or it'll drive you crazy <3 and just to say, I don't look at anything but F1.com or AP news to get updates on anything and I don't pay attention to anything else.

[mzannthropy]

When will Lazarus and The Count of Monte Cristo release?? I wish Sam gets a recognisable role again just like Finnick Odair, People have forgotten him. He's become too underrated nowadays.😩

So the latest we got about The Count of Monte Cristo is early 2025 I take it to mean Q1. I was really hoping it would be out this autumn (in fact I was relying on it more than I realised, but all sources so far indicated it should be out this year), by now it must be ready to to view, or almost ready to view, but *shrug* no doubt they have their reasons. At least it's something to look forward to next year.

IMDb shows release date for Lazarus as 2024, but idk how far we can trust it (generally I take IMDb with a pinch of salt when it comes to projects in production or post-production). It seems too soon, as they were still filming in June. But who knows. If not late this year, then I'd say definitely we should get to see it in the first half of next year. I'd like to see something else of Sam's before the year is out besides Bagman, it has been a long dry season--18 months between the ending of DJATS to the release date of Bagman. Almost exactly. Like I've already said (twice!), they may all arrive at once like buses lol.

Once I made a post that went like this: inside you are two wolves. One wants recognition for Sam Claflin that he deserves. The other wants him to stay as he is. It's true he's underrated but then I'd rather be a fan of someone underrated than overrated. Those in the know know. Out of those two it will be TCOMC that will get him the limelight, bc it's a classic nearly everyone has heard of and if they get it right, it will be the best thing he'll ever have done (so far). Also, that Barbaric series that he has just been cast in will make more people aware of him, especially in the more nerdy circles.

[roppongi-division]

Relationship: Family - Kai Quinlan

Takamaku "La Meraviglia" Quinlan † - Kai's father, and a highly acclaimed opera singer. He was nicknamed "La Meraviglia", which means "The Wonder", due to his miraculous singing voice. Unfortunately, the days on the road during touring season combined with being overworked with long hours of practice eventually led to him fainting on stage during a performance. He soon passed away due to heart failure, causing almost all of the music world to mourn his passing.

Raelyn 'Burgess' Quinlan (59 Years Old) - Kai's mother, who was, like his father, a popular opera singer who often performed as a duo with her husband. Unfortunately, after his passing, she became depressed and began to drink heavily, forcing many events not to include her. She then tried forcing her son to take up her mantle, which ultimately didn't work. She didn't approve of her son's marriage to a bargirl, which led to Kai not allowing her into his or his wife's wedding. She now lives alone in her family's small mansion. It's unknown what she is doing nowadays. Kai once tried calling her so they could make amends, but she always refused his messages. Now, he barely thinks about her these days...

Kairi 'Quinlan' Solis (35 Years Old) - Kai's older sister, and the only thing, other than his DJ equipment, which kept him sane whilst living with his overbearing mother. Their mother didn't pay much attention to her, instead focusing all her attention on Kai. After Kai quit opera, she tried to get her daughter instilled instead, which was met with quick and abrupt refusal. After graduating high school, she went to university to study acting and writing. After graduating college, she moved out of her mother's house. She is now a highly paid actress and is happily married to a fellow actor. Kai always finds time to call her once or twice a month to see how she's doing. To this day, he describes her as his 'biggest supporter after his wife'.

Mireya 'Moto' Quinlan (34 Years Old) - Kai's wife, and the love of his life. The two met in a Coyote Ugly bar where Kai was DJing, and after meeting after the show, love blossomed between them. After rescuing and caring for her when she was taken hostage by the mob, Kai finally asked her to marry him, which she accepted. Now, the two work and co-own a nightclub together, functioning as a husband/wife duo. The love the two have for each other transcends anything that they come across.

Zakari Hiroya (22 Years Old) - Kai's adoptive son, whom he met when the young man was only 15 years old, living on the streets. It's unknown what possessed Kai to adopt the poor teen, especially since he knew little to nothing about being a father. But something inside him told him to take adopt the young man into his family, so he did. The two now have a loving father-son relationship, with Kai learning the ins and outs of being a dad every step of the way.

[tirorah]

Growing Stronger One Failure at A Time: Smile PreCure and Its Dark Sequel Novel

Long-time readers of this blog know that, aside from Strike Witches, there’s one other media property that holds a special place in my heart: Pretty Cure, the magical girl anime for young girls who love to watch fictional young girls kick ass and do cute things. Airing almost weekly since 2004, each season (bar a few sequels) completely changes the setting, cast and motif, allowing for incredible diversity in stories.

Smile PreCure is the ninth season and served as my gateway into the franchise. It is, for better or worse, a consistently average show, with engaging characters, a by-the-numbers plot, and a lot of funny nonsense. That last part is especially important: Smile aired in 2012, the year after Japan was devastated by the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Smile’s lighter tone and goofy antics were designed to cheer people up.

Indeed, Smile is so relentlessly optimistic, so bright and so colourful, that even my younger self’s teeth and retinae had a hard time keeping up. But it did exactly what it was supposed to do: in a period of my life when I wasn’t feeling my best, I sat down to watch it based on mere hearsay and it made me Ultra Happy. To this day, it remains one of my favourite shows of all time.

In February 2023, I decided to watch Smile for the fourth time—the first in years—in the hopes of recapturing that magic. And while doing so, I found out about something else: nowadays, there’s more to Smile than the anime.

Between 2015 and 2016, Toei released six PreCure light novels that were explicitly written for its now-older fans. To my utter fortune, not only was Smile one of the seasons to get one, it also received an unofficial translation to English by a team of devoted fans. Naturally, I gave it a read.

And I thought it was incredible, despite its faults!

Why? Because it builds so well on the characters I know and love. Because it’s given me a deeper understanding of Smile’s theme. And because it accomplishes that by taking this group of happy-go-lucky girls and ramming them straight into the harsh reality of adult life. Which is also, despite appearances, an essential part of Smile’s story.

[Spoiler warning: If you haven’t watched Smile PreCure and think you might want to, now is the best time to acquaint yourself with it. I spoil important plot points throughout this post.

If you’ve already watched the anime and want to know why I love the novel, you can read on for a bit. I’ll give you another warning once we get into spoiler territory for it.

If you’re unfamiliar with both, but want to give me a chance to explain why I think they’re great, read on!]

Life As an Underdog

It’s well known among PreCure fans that Smile makes poor use of its fairy-tale motif; it’s one of the areas where it falls short of its potential in a big way. But its theme is a different story, and that’s best felt in its character writing. As ivanhobe once said in his Worth The Watch series (which I highly recommend): the main characters of Smile are underdogs.

See, PreCure characters are always good at something, whether it’s a hobby, a potential career or a facet of their personality. While I’m sure this doesn’t happen to literally every character, there’s a tendency to inflate this aptitude to such a degree that the character becomes incredibly competent in their chosen field, far beyond the skill most fourteen-year-olds are capable of.

In contrast, Smile is the story of five girls who have talent, but who are not the best at whatever they put their minds to. They’re also shockingly prone to failure. This affects how we view their struggles; when they fall short and experience disappointment, or regret, or lose confidence in themselves, it’s believable to the viewer because they’re relatively normal girls who still have much to learn.

This is why episode 22 works so well. The group is faced with a choice: continue into the den of evil and possibly die, or abandon their magical friends and return to a peaceful life on Earth. They don’t want to do the latter, but the former legitimately terrifies them. Although we as viewers know they’ll succeed in the end, the danger is very real to them, and that makes it all the more heroic when they each independently decide to go through with it anyway.

This is the theme of Smile PreCure: keep smiling and keep doing your best, even if you’re sad, even if it’s hard, and your efforts will lead you to a shining tomorrow. The Smile girls were brought low, but they never gave up completely, and they earned an unknown but happy future in return. That’s where the anime left off.

In the light novel, that future has become reality. Ten years have passed since Pierrot’s defeat and the girls are now 24 years old; a time for budding careers and working toward your dreams. But reality can be hard, even unfair, and not giving up never gets any easier.

I had won an honourable mention only once; a bittersweet start to the goal of opening my path of becoming a writer to the world. After graduating from vocational college, I eventually became busy focusing on real-life one day, and any time to write fairytales disappeared. I couldn’t keep putting my faith in the power of imaginative stories.

– Miyuki

The above passage is emblematic of why I so viscerally connected with this story. I was in my young 20s when I first watched Smile, recently graduated into a job market that was unfavourable to me for several reasons. I was unemployed for a long while and found myself stuck in a rut that I had trouble envisioning a way out of.

Back then, Smile was like a shot of rainbows straight into my arm. I was much happier for weeks and was downright inspired by some of the episodes. While I didn’t suddenly turn my life around because of it, it did give me something I truly enjoyed like few things before it or since, and I’ve always been thankful for that.

Now, on my fourth watch and my first read of the novel, I’m in my early 30s. My situation has improved quite a lot. But I’ve also had to endure my fair share of challenges, the most emotionally intense of which is a trio of losses that I suffered over the past couple of months. That’s why, even though I’m a happy person in many ways, it’s harder to feel like that right now.

Grief makes you fragile. I’m…tired. Sometimes I’m sad, or I wonder if another blow will come soon, and I become afraid of what it would do to me. Other times, I’m just unable to have as much fun with something I love compared to a few years ago, or even a few months ago. This is why I started my rewatch of Smile in the first place; it’s my go-to laughter therapy.

But in the novel, I found a different type of relief: catharsis. These cheerful young girls, whom I all adore, had grown up…and they were struggling too. Some of them were successful, some of them less so, but all of them suffered from time to time, because that’s how life works. As I read each chapter and came to realise what these characters were going through, I felt…represented in a sense. Seen, maybe. Understood.

The way I understood them.

Emotional Baggage

[Beware! Spoilers for the novel below.]

But I know now that I’m an adult: there’s no such thing as a perfect person. If anything, once you’re grown up, you’ve got even more worries. More failures. The stuff that makes you wanna cry piles up like a mountain.

– Nao

Another of Smile’s interesting writing decisions is that the main cast is static, rather than dynamic. By and large, they don’t get any big arcs and the status quo is never upended. Smile is much more concerned with developing the characters rather than growing them. To compensate, all of them have strong personalities from the start, and those personalities completely carry the show. It’s Smile’s most impressive achievement.

But they have flaws too, weaknesses that can be turned against them, and this is what the novel plays with. Let’s take a look at each of our heroes.

Miyuki works part-time in a bookstore, and she’s not great at it. Still, she’s taken initiative to organise storybook readings for little kids, and sometimes she’ll read the one she made herself: The Greatest Smile. It’s her dream to have it published and to create more children’s stories, so they can be delighted and inspired by them like she was.

But having your story published is far from easy, and her attempts have so far resulted in failure. To make matters worse, the bookstore is now due to be closed next month, and there doesn’t seem to be a way out. Miracles only happen in stories, the manager says, and the scene ends before Miyuki can disagree with her—if she even does at all. It’s hard to keep smiling and dreaming when you’re not getting anywhere.

Akane still works in her family’s okonomiyaki restaurant. On the sunny surface, she’s doing great. But their customer base is stagnating, and despite many happy years of living together with Brian—both in the UK and now in Japan—Akane’s world is rocked to the core when she realises Brian’s vision for his future differs from hers.

She’s always been the most individualistic character, wild and free and boisterous. But sometimes this crosses the line into self-indulgence. It’s not something she does on purpose, just a natural consequence of what she’s like as a person. To her, nothing could be more perfect than running the restaurant with Brian by her side. But he has other dreams, something which is tough for her to understand and accept.

Yayoi is the most successful of the group by far. Miracle Peace really took off and ended up serialised, running for seven years. But keeping your ratings high is difficult and time-consuming. So, to be able to devote everything she had to its continued success, Yayoi dropped out of high school and set up a workplace in the city centre, chasing deadlines year after year.

It made her a lot of money, but money by itself doesn’t guarantee happiness. She’s horrified when her deadline causes her to forget the anniversary of her father’s death, and decides Miracle Peace’s story has to end, for her own wellbeing. But this leaves her adrift. Is being a mangaka truly what she wants for herself? How can she pursue her passion if it causes her to lose sight of other things she loves?

Nao was always the person whose personality flaws hindered her the least in daily life, the one who had the least to ‘learn’. That’s probably why her shot at her dream career was taken from her before it even began. When she saved Yui from an oncoming truck, Nao took the hit instead…and broke her leg. Although she was fortunate enough to survive, her leg suffered permanent damage and she had to give up football.

But this incident is a symptom, not the cause; her true enemies are stagnation and self-sabotage. She chose to stay in her hometown for university, despite a multitude of recruitment offers. She didn’t even move out to live on her own. Unwilling to move on from her family, unable to pursue her original dream, and burdened with a trauma that freezes her when triggered, she’s shrunk her world to a safe existence where her limits aren’t challenged anymore.

Reika’s path led her to share her wisdom with others. As a Language Arts teacher at her old middle school, her genuine interest in her students and her encouragement to seek one’s own path in life have made her quite popular. So, it’s all the more of a shock to her when a letter turns up in the school’s letterbox: an anonymous student accuses her of being unable to see into the students’ hearts, and threatens to leave unless she quits.

Her confidence as a teacher falters. In spite of all the internal progress she’s made, and all of her efforts to be a more charismatic speaker, she now faces proof that she has failed in her duty to listen. Someone’s crying out for help, she concludes, and she must find out who. But this means observing her students, analysing them as though they’re criminal suspects. It’s a loss of the intrinsic trust between student and teacher, and that makes her feel like a horrible person.

As you can see, each character is being punished for their flaws or personality traits in some way.

Miyuki is in a situation where optimism is simply not enough, and her attempt to put on a happy face ends up backfiring. Had Akane thought to look past her own ambitions, Brian’s plans might not have blindsided her so much. Yayoi lived the life of her dreams, but that life was utterly consumed by Miracle Peace. Nao’s problems are a direct result of her total devotion to her family and how she never grew out of her role in it. Reika is so steadfast in her path that she misses the warning signs of someone else straying from theirs, and it makes her heart waver.

Then, just when Reika has managed to recover her equilibrium, Joker appears.

A Story of Despair

Until now, I’ve completely skipped over the overarching narrative of this novel. It’s not subtle about the fact that something more is going on here. For starters, Miyuki doesn’t actually remember why she drew The Greatest Smile; she thinks she made it all up, and that she used her best friends as templates for the heroes. But the most disturbing thing is that she doesn’t even remember said friends to begin with.

There’s a haze clouding their minds. Whenever two of them encounter each other, memories of their non-Precure times at middle school resurface, like seeing them through fog. But when the other person leaves, those memories slip away and the encountered friend is gradually forgotten, the fog closing around them once again. This is the basic plot structure for the first three chapters: Miyuki happens to run into Akane, Akane into Yayoi, and Yayoi into Nao. And then the memory drifts to the back of their minds, doomed to fade away unless something triggers it again.

This is actually my biggest complaint with the novel: the first three chapters all explore the same concept and have roughly the same outcome. They don’t add new details to intrigue you every chapter, so the story isn’t pushed forward during Akane and Yayoi’s chapters any more than it is during Miyuki’s. And because the girls spend so much time separated from one another, the novel doesn’t flesh out the character dynamics between specific duos, an aspect that was already lacking in the show.

But in the background, hidden from the reader, plot was afoot. We see it in Chapter 4 for the first time.

Nao, absent-minded and troubled, inadvertently places herself into the path of an oncoming truck. The stressor triggers her and she freezes in place, helpless to avoid death. But someone pulls her clear: it’s Reika, her childhood friend! Unlike the previous three meetings, this one didn’t happen by chance; Reika specifically sought her out. See, it’s one thing that they don’t remember their best friends from middle school. But for Reika, missing so many childhood memories on top of that proved too suspicious to ignore.

In Reika’s chapter, it eventually becomes apparent that this isn’t the first time she’s snapped out of her haze. As it happens again, and more and more of her memories rush to the surface, she finds indicting proof: ever the organised sort, she’d made a note in her schedule to see Nao. It wasn’t just Nao, either; Reika realises she’s visited Miyuki, Akane and Yayoi as well. And the memories faded every time.

Although this doesn’t alleviate the problems I outlined earlier, it does help. First of all, it recontextualises the first three chapters. You’re prompted to wonder when Reika went to see her other friends, and if this had anything to do with their awakenings. And secondly, it utilises the childhood friendship between Nao and Reika more profoundly than the anime ever did. While we’re never shown if Reika’s actions had any effect outside of Nao’s chapter, it’s possible that they did. And if so, their years-long bond may have helped to save the day. It saved Nao’s life, at least.

Back to Joker’s attack. Although it’s not the first time he targets Reika—having taunted and tormented her in two dreams prior—he now goes on the offensive for real. Reika is getting too close to the truth: that this world they live in is a fabrication, not unlike the Ball of Negligence they were once trapped in. Only this time, instead of a carefree dream, their prison is a nightmare of never-ending struggle and disappointments designed to grind them down.

She escapes of course, fleeing through the Book Gate toward the Magical Library they once used as their secret base. Here, in the final chapter, the rest of the truth is finally revealed.

The entire premise of the novel was a lie. In truth, it’s only been a year since Pierrot’s defeat. The girls are fifteen years old, on the cusp of graduating middle school, and separation looms. Although Miyuki, Akane and Yayoi plan to attend the same high school, Nao and Reika have each decided on separate ones that align better with their interests. And so, they gathered in the Library to discuss their dreams and plan a graduation trip.

It was at that moment that Joker made his move. Although without a body, his fusion with Pierrot and his boundless hate for the Precure had turned him into some sort of immortal being with an immense grudge. He trapped them in the Library, locked away their ability to transform, and took Candy hostage. Then he challenged them to a game: to save Candy, they must navigate the stormy seas of adult life…alone, with not even their happy memories of each other to keep them going.

The True Meaning of Strength

Now, in true Smile PreCure fashion, Miyuki and her friends have overcome their hardships, get beaten down for a bit longer, and finally return with a vengeance. They transform as adults, their Precure forms more refined than ever, and a power boost to go along with it. But even with that rather typical return to form, the details are what’s truly important.

Joker has evolved into an even more dangerous form, as he managed to collect a considerable amount of Bad Energy from them during their captivity. And he shows them pictures of their lives as adults: downcast, lost, disillusioned, suffering. The insinuation is clear. Maybe it was only for one, intense moment, or perhaps it was a long-term bout of despondence, but whatever the case, each of them did fall into despair.

What’s more, Joker asserts that the stories they were trapped in weren’t of his own making; they were based on the despair within them, their weaknesses, their fears. These were potential futures based on who they are as people. And sometimes people fail, or lose sight of their dreams, or even give up.

And yet here they are, stronger than ever. Miyuki remarks that they’ve, ‘powered up just as much as we have become adults!’

This raises an intriguing question. Beyond the nebulous concepts of friendship and determination, what exactly fuels their powers? How did they go from only being able to use their finishers once, to spamming their elements at will? I always assumed they were becoming more accustomed to the rigours of being Precure, that they were getting used to the fighting and the energy expenditure.

But what if it is this act of ‘becoming an adult’ that drives their powers to new heights? The change in their outfits seems to suggest as much. Now, the simplest explanation is that Precure become stronger as they age, but…that’s not very fitting. PreCure is a romantic universe by nature, one where bonds and willpower save the day. Reducing that to the passage of time is entirely at odds with the spirit of PreCure.

No, I think it’s more interesting if we look at the other side of becoming an adult: maturity. Do Precure—or at least the Smile Precure—become more powerful as they mature? If so, then the question becomes: what does it mean to mature? That’s a complicated one, but I hope everyone will agree when I say that personal growth is a big part of it. Except, didn’t I earlier claim that Smile’s characters don’t really grow that much, if at all?

It's true. Smile mostly lacks character growth…in general writing terms. But in terms of the characters as people, each episode is a valuable lesson. As established before, Miyuki and her friends are deliberately written to fail, and they do so frequently. But they always keep going. They always renew their determination to never give up on what’s important to them. Whether they actually achieve their goal of the episode is irrelevant; what matters is that they experience hardship and keep at it anyway.

In this way, the theme of Smile PreCure doesn’t just shape the characters; it’s literally the source of their power. Every victory, big and small, becomes a source of confidence. Each memory serves as proof that they can come out on top one day, as long as they keep trying. This is why Joker’s game was so effective. They had to get back up on their own this time, without any help from the friends they came to rely on, and missing many of the memories that made them stronger, better people.

It was their toughest challenge yet, and they had to dig deep to overcome it. But ‘overcoming it’ wasn’t winning a fight, or achieving some sort of goal, or unlocking a nifty power-up.

It was a choice.

Even though each of their awakenings was sparked by contact with one of their friends, it still fell to them as individuals to find a choice to make, and then to commit to their decision. When they did so, they tapped into a wellspring of power within themselves that was completely divorced from external factors: a strength of character. And it was only then that they fully remembered who they were.

It makes perfect sense that the resulting power increase as Precure allows them to beat back Joker and write yet another victory for themselves.

The Treasure You Need

With this emphasis on choice and maturity, I see a lot of parallels between the progression in this light novel and the anime. See, both of them contain a basic but effective writing tool: want vs need. I’m far from a professional writer, but here’s what I know.

What a character wants is their initial motivation in the story: an external goal that will make them happy. But what a character needs is some sort of lesson: an inner realisation that will make them a better person. This want and need are usually linked in some way.

In the show, there’s a constant build-up and reinforcement of the group’s want, and it clashes with their need in a heart-rending manner.

The girls and Candy want to stay together forever, because the friendship that’s formed between them is incredibly precious to them. It’s the foremost reason why they fight so hard, and why they can keep getting back up no matter what. The importance of their want is proven to them on every occasion.

Then the finale hits, and suddenly it all comes crashing down. They receive a final chance to save the world…at the cost of losing their friend forever.

Smile treats this revelation with the gravitas it deserves. Miyuki and the others are devastated. To them, this is the ultimate sacrifice. Even though they can see the choice they need to make—and that it’s basically no choice at all—it still takes them a good while before they can accept it. The moment they commit, they choose to sacrifice their want in order to attain their need.

Even though Smile retcons this twist in its final moments, likely to avoid making a lot of children (and me!) inconsolable, the characters still made that decision and were at peace with it, no matter how excruciating it was. And that’s a true hallmark of maturity.

The light novel is less dramatic, but it’s an equally stirring continuation of this journey toward adulthood.

First, each of them is placed in a situation where they’ve (more or less) achieved their want: they all have jobs that they like or love, that they’re good at or at least competent enough to keep. For those who have yet to attain their dream profession, their current situation has the potential to lead them there. Yes, even for Nao; sure, she can’t play anymore, but she still loves football and being a coach fits her.

But there’s something holding them back from true happiness, and this is where their need comes in: there’s no such thing as a perfect life or a perfect person. They need to acknowledge that, no matter how hard they try, their future won’t always be bright, it won’t always be how they envisioned it, and they won’t always get what they yearn for. The choices they make during their individual chapters are how they embrace that need; they turn away from their want and become better people for it.

This is best exemplified by the ending.

Joker has been vanquished and everyone is safe once again. None of the girls seem scarred by their latest experience, but it serves as a potent warning: even if it was fake, even if it stacked the deck against them as much as possible, it was based on a nugget of truth. And they take that to heart. Rather than brush it off as an inconsequential trick, they take action that shows a newfound level of maturity.

On the day of their graduation, they ascend to the top of a hill on the outskirts of town. Their spur-of-the-moment goal: to find the treasure at the end of the rainbow. This is a futile endeavour, of course. Rainbows are optical illusions; they don’t actually exist as an object that can be approached. The treasure can likewise never be found.

But that was never their goal. They make the journey slowly, using only their own legs to carry them. No bicycles, no public transport. By the time they get there, the rainbow has long since disappeared from view. None of them care; walking there together was the true point all along.

Here, under a sky resplendent with stars, they bury a time capsule with The Greatest Smile inside: a collection of their precious memories, the source of their fortitude. Accompanying it is a letter, tailored to a more realistic future:

To our future selves who have become adults.

Hey there, how are you doing right now? Did your dreams come true? Is your work fun? You didn’t forget to smile every day, did you?

If you have opened this capsule and are reading this, then it’s most likely your heart is being troubled. You may have lost sight of your dream, and you may be facing discouragement. You may have even lost your smile, and you may have been stricken with sorrow.

But think back, remember that time. At the end of the day, you girls became the PreCure and saved the world. So be brave. You were all able to change the Story of Despair into the Story of Hope after all.

And, don’t ever forget. You all have irreplaceable friends who are there for you. Whenever you want to cry, think back to when you used to go to the end of the rainbow with everyone, and remember that day.

Somewhere in the twinkling and shining starry sky, you will surely find happiness.

– Hoshizora Miyuki

I view this as a more mature version of the show’s theme. It’s important to dare to keep dreaming, to keep moving forward and doing your best, even if you’re sad, even if it’s hard. And you need to accept that, inevitably, you will be sad sometimes, and you will find yourself disillusioned with your goal, or with life. Maybe you’ll lose touch with the people or the things you love…or maybe you’ll lose them altogether.

But you need to get back on your feet no matter what. And if you do that enough, hopefully, someday, you’ll achieve happiness. Maybe it’s not the happiness you set out to find, or maybe you took a long, winding road to get there, but if you manage to attain it, that’s your figurative treasure at the end of the rainbow. You can’t always see it, and you can never touch it, but it’ll still make you smile.

And that’s a lesson I hope to learn myself.

---

Thank you for reading. I hope it was as informative for you as writing this was for me.

[mayasdeluca]

With another possible strike coming in the next few months I really don’t know if I want to watching anything new. Finding good shows nowadays that has more than 2 seasons without a long ass hiatus is an exhausting task.

Is there really going to be another one that soon? Is it the crew going on strike this time? I feel like I've heard some stuff about that and I guess that's the last group left since the actors and directors have already. It is really hard to find things to watch though now and not knowing how long they'll last and especially streaming stuff taking years in between to make...it's crazy. Definitely way different than it used to be.

[fizzingwizard]

Time for some semi-ritual bitching about one of my favorite bitch-worthy topics, Yugioh

Why couldn't they have just done Memory World properly

Why make us suffer through Doma... and especially KC Grand Prix, a single episode of which is more boring than filler in any other fandom... and they made an entire filler arc out of it! Like Doma has lots of faults but at least it tried to do something interesting. It tried to develop characters, which proooobably shouldn't have been undertaken by a filler arc with no canon script to follow, but gold star for trying! Had a shitty finale not remotely worthy of its awesome beginning, but did we really expect any better? lol. KC Grand Prix tho, no. That's just there to Idk be mean to men with pink hair and dumb names?? In the ridiculous hair dumb names anime???

cut because Fizz has the curse of long-windedness thanks my evil fairy godmother

anyway back to Memory World, maybe the issue was the story in the manga still lagged behind where the anime was. I don't remember. If so I guess there was no choice but filler. Still, did they have to blow the budget on it? They lost most of their good animators during Doma, where they also introduced a couple new crap ones who stuck around till the end of course -___- And no doubt the animators were getting paid peanuts for long hours of work, and if they'd run out of budget to even pay that... well clearly the show should have been shorter. Like two whole filler arcs shorter. Just take a break, take a pause, come back when you're ready to do Memory World the way it should be done. Back then no one took breaks, "The fans will forget us," nowadays TV shows just up and away for multiple years at a time x'D before returning suddenly with a new season.

The reason I'm still salty and plan to be salty to my grave is just this. Memory World is the one and only YGO arc since season zero that was not explicitly about card games. They'd been dropping hints since the first that we could expect ancient Egypytian shenanigans in the finale. We were supposed to find out about Atem's lost memories and recover his name. That was the driving force behind everything that wasn't filler. I specifically became a fan as a kid because I enjoyed reading about Ancient Egypt and thought the idea of a millennia-old feud between a pharaoh and whoever Bakura really was sounded neat. So I watched hours and hours and hours of card games all for the sake of making it to Ancient Egypt.

(don't get me wrong I enjoyed the card games lol. Never ask a YGO fan to explain how watching characters stand around and yell "Pot of Greed allows me to draw two cards from my deck!" for hundreds of episodes somehow stayed fresh and interesting)

So we reach Memory World at loooooooong last and. And the animation is the worst. Atem falls off a cliff it's just like "ow." Bakura isn't have as intriguing anymore now that he's a poorly drawn anime guy with scars. He arrives toting Atem's father's mummy it should be scary. It should be shocking. But instead, for some reason we watched dancing girls of questionable historical accuracy repeat the same frame several times, while Atem makes a face like a baby trying his hardest to go number two in his diaper. In the manga this scene is really funny, with Siamun being Sugoroku in every way, and Atem in his awkwardness being more Yugi-like than we've ever seen him. In the anime they are just going through the motions. There's no life in anything.

The one thing the anime version got right was understanding that this was the one and only opportunity we'd have to learn about Atem. You know, half of the main character for the whole show. Even the manga is really so busy doing plot stuff it kind of forgets to make us care about the ancient Egyptian cast. The anime took advantage of the need for pacing to give us a couple low key moments about Atem & Friends, but for some reason it decided we should 1) know what Atem looked like falling flat on his nose as a toddler, and 2) show us that from a young age he was making grand progressive speeches about equality. Seeing Atem portrayed as a nice guy who cared about people gave me mixed emotions after watching him struggle for seasons with the possibility that he might have been a bad king and not remember it. Because we got a whole season of him making mistakes and disappointing fans in Doma, and now in Memory World the final answer to what kind of person Atem was is just "well he's a good guy in the modern sense of the word lol" and then we move on. Also, neither that speech, nor Doma, are manga canon, but fans on the whole remember Doma much better than they remember nice guy baby Atem. Which is so very nice -.-;

So Memory World could have been so much fun, exciting, adventurous in a way you can't always be when you have to stay put on a holo-duel stage (card games on motorcycles hasn't been invented yet!), and insightful about a character who has been the central point of everything yet whom we knew next to nothing about. Instead it was a poorly animated clusterfuck of battle scenes that were difficult to make sense of. The Bakura stuff was the best. The Kaiba-insert filler was the worst. I was disappointed with Set's arc in the manga as well, another thing that had been built up for years and years and ended up more about the mysterious waif-like dragon girl than Set vs Atem. If the anime changed something to add in Kaiba, I wish they'd have rewritten the Set vs Atem duel so it was mildly interesting, and Idk maybe Kaiba could have teamed up with Atem against his past self, which would have aggravated him to no end? Instead of just wandering around insisting none of this could really be happening. Or he should just not have been there at all. Personally I go the DSOD route and pretend Kaiba was never in Memory World, same as the manga. It's not like erasing him from the anime version has any impact on events bahahaha. He was included for MONEY MONEY MONEY popular character NEEDS to stick around even if he has abso-fucking-lutely nothing to do because MONEY MONEY MONEY

I love DSOD to pieces. But my own dream for the anniversary project was a remake of Memory World. Even if it had been a 90 min movie version instead of several episodes, as long as it was better quality, and invested in Atem as a character instead of simply as a pawn in a game, I would have enjoyed those 90 mins better than the entire Memory World season. Doma and KC Grand Prix were a mistake if they played a role in how awful Memory World was.

But they did the Millennium Duel well. Not astonishing, but really, except for useless Kaiba being there, it was more than adequate. (And although Kaiba himsefl was useless, it was cool seeing him rejected as an opponent for Atem in favor of Yugi. Actually I kinda wish they'd made a bigger deal out of that...) Kid me cried buckets (actually I must have been well into my teens by then bahahaha. I def cried though). Thanks to those final two episodes, the series send-off didn't leave me with a bad taste in my mouth. If it had ended with Memory World it would have been an even bigger disappointment to me than the finale of Bleach. And I despise the finale of Bleach x'D